Episode 3 of Outer Range kicks off with Sheriff Joy swiftly apprehending a robber in a dimly lit corner shop. With a swift crack to his arm and a firm grip, she drags the culprit into the backseat of her car. As he sits, his voice rises in a rant, spilling out the town's sinister secrets — specifically, the mysterious disappearances that have been plaguing the community. This prologue ominously hints at the possible trajectory of this sci-fi saga.
Amidst the chaos, Trevor's absence stands out as the most pressing concern. Joy collaborates with her election rival, Trudy, confessing her efforts to uncover Trevor's whereabouts. However, she's not alone in her search. The Tillerson brothers fret over the lack of cell reception from Trevor's phone, their worry palpable.
Meanwhile, Wayne's obsession with acquiring the pasture reaches a feverish pitch. He orders Luke and Billy to make an offer to Royal — a staggering £1 million to relinquish ownership. Whether Wayne is aware of the mysterious hole remains unclear, but his desperation to secure the land speaks volumes.
On his journey to the ranch, Amy happens upon Billy, who awkwardly belts out a tune on their way back. His singing is a bizarre yet strangely humorous interruption.
Another eccentric in this ensemble is Autumn, who, as we learned in the previous episode, has been busily scribbling the insignia found on the cliff-face. She eventually ventures into town to pick up her medication, her actions shrouded in mystery.
That night, Rhett becomes the focus of scrutiny when Joy confronts him about the belt buckle. Remember the blood? Well, tests reveal it belongs to Rhett. His suspicious answers to Joy's questions only add to the intrigue, as he claims ignorance regarding how it came to be found at the crime scene.
Later at the station, Joy finally confronts him, vowing that the truth of whatever transpired would eventually surface. "It always does," she declares resolutely. After enduring the wild ride of a bull and urinating beside a police car, Rhett is escorted to the downtown precinct, where he reluctantly concedes that he and Trevor had a brief altercation outside the bar that fateful night. He dismisses it as a mere skirmish and insists on returning to the bar. However, Joy remains skeptical of his narrative, sensing the falsity of his words.
Royal eventually arrives to ferry him home, proudly displaying the belt buckle he had stolen from the lock-up. Unexpectedly, Royal drops the buckle into a hole later that evening. After some contemplation, he decides to rekindle his relationship with Autumn, erasing any past misunderstandings.
Royal inquisitively asks about the accident Autumn suffered as a child, a topic she had explicitly mentioned in the previous episode. Autumn responds casually, recounting that she had an accident as a child, waking up in a hospital in Jackson with only her name on her lips. She claims that she pushed Royal into the hole to "see what would happen."
When Royal divulges what he glimpsed in the hole—a fleeting vision of the future—Autumn is taken aback. Yet, they agree to keep this revelation a secret between them. Intriguingly, as they shake hands, Autumn's stone necklace appears to transform, and the cliff-face behind her fades out of sight and then back again—a phenomenon that Sherriff Joy and numerous onlookers notice. Calls from concerned townsfolk flood the station, reporting the strange occurrence.
Meanwhile, Amy ventures into the woods and stumbles upon Trevor's lifeless body lying amidst the grass. She rushes back to the house, alarming the family, while Royal promptly alerts Joy of Trevor's discovery.
