Plot

Arriving in a new town, a child pretends to be deaf-mute to protect himself - a ruse which works so well that for twenty years he is custodian to all the town's secrets.

In 1945, a young boy arrives in a small Georgia town on a bus from which his mother was abducted and murdered. Alone he sits quietly and everyone becomes convinced that he is deaf and mute. Deciding that silence offers some power and protection, the boy decides to remain mute and just listens to all that is being said around him by people who think that he cannot hear.—John Sacksteder <jsackste@bellsouth.net>

In the 1940s, young Sammy Ayers and his mother leave their home on a bus trip. Mrs Ayers won't tell her little boy what it's all about, wishing to surprise him, and tells him to keep silent for the trip; her dutiful son obeys. En route, Mrs Ayers gets off the bus for a rest stop, but is abducted and murdered. The bus continues on, with a sleeping Sammy on board.

The bus eventually arrives in the small town of Barrington, Georgia. Sammy disembarks after everyone else, and is picked up by bus terminal manager Norm Jenkins. The garrulous bus driver believes that because Sammy didn't speak a word he's deaf and dumb, and communicates this to Norm; Sammy decides to go along with this to maintain his privacy. He is able to maintain the facade when Tolliver Tynan, the spoiled son of the richest man in Barrington, bursts a cherry bomb in the town square; Sammy sees it coming and does not react when it explodes, furthering the impression of his deafness. Sammy waits for his mother to arrive, but there is no sign of her. Eventually, Norm decides to give the boy a home at the station.

Sammy lives in the bus station for twenty years, becoming a town handyman. He acts as an unofficial son to Norm as well to Norm's neighbor, cafe owner Lucille. He also develops a secret love for Tolliver's sister Tallassee. His widely believed "deafness" means people don't watch their words around him, allowing him to learn many secrets over the years. Among these secrets is that Tallassee was adopted by the Tynan family, and that moonshine alcohol is temporarily stashed in the new baptismal font at the Barrington church.

Meanwhile, Tolliver Tynan is getting a mere pittance from his mother, the trustee for his father's estate, due to his arrogant and exorbitant ways. As church treasurer, he embezzles money from the church to fund his various schemes.

Reverend Ray Pruitt, Barrington's new priest, gets an idea to burn all the records of the rock & roll group the Weevils (based on the uproar over the real-life controversial comments by John Lennon). News coverage soon turns the small town community into a Woodstock-level event, with Lucille becoming swamped with customers and Pruitt completely bewildered at all the people he has brought.

The record burning takes place at the Barrington church amid music and fireworks, with Tolliver looking to cash in on the event. A wayward roman candle flies into the moonshine-filled font, igniting an explosion. The reverend enters the church to search for trapped people. A volunteer fireman follows him, is overcome by the smoke and rescued by Pruitt.

Revered Pruitt is hailed as a hero, and now enjoys a great deal of popularity and respect among the citizens of Barrington. Tolliver ends up in court for stealing the church's insurance fund. He expects to get off easily, especially when Sammy is called to the stand. But Sammy finally decides to speak out at the trial, shocking everyone around him.

Norm is a little upset that Sammy kept silent to him, but reveals some secrets of his own. He had actually been tracing the whereabouts of Sammy's mother, feeling obliged to do so for Sammy's sake. He had inspected Sammy's suitcase and found documents that he now makes public, including an affidavit from Mr. Tynan that states that Sammy is his illegitimate but still firstborn son and thus heir to his fortune. Sammy and his mother had been heading to Barrington to claim this inheritance, but she never made it and he never got anything for two decades.

Sammy leaves Barrington to begin a new life in St. Louis, with Tallassee joining him.