- 9 hours ago
Scars Into Sunlight
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🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00I was eight years old when I watched my father butcher my mother, piece by piece.
00:07Then he sold her as venison. Mom's dying words? Find Uncle Thomas, the biggest rancher in the
00:16state, ex-cavalry. She said he'd feed me, for blood's sake. But when I cornered him on Main
00:22Street, he was on horseback, holding my little cousin Becky, staring down at me like I was dirt.
00:28Why don't you just drop dead, you little rat? You want money? Tell your whore mother to come
00:34beg me for it himself. He rode off, walked right into the jeweler, bought Becky a pair of silver
00:40bracelets. I'd never seen anything so beautiful. Gleaming against her pale wrist, Thomas glared at
00:47me. What are you staring at? You think you deserve our things? Keep looking, and I'll gouge your eyes
00:54out. I stood there, frozen, gripping my hollow stomach. Mom was wrong. Thomas wouldn't give
01:01me anything. He could drop a fortune on silver without a second thought, but he wouldn't spend
01:05a cent to feed me, because Mom was dead, butchered, sold as meat. The Main Street was bustling with
01:13people, but the sky turned gray and a cold drizzle began to fall. I huddled in an alley, rolled up
01:19my
01:19sleeves, stared at the jagged scars covering my wrists. If I wore silver like Becky, my dirty blood
01:25would just ruin it. But if I had it, I could trade it for bread. Fresh, warm bread. Mom used
01:31to say
01:32fresh bread was soft, sweet, the best thing in the world. I licked my cracked lips. I was starving.
01:39Two days without food. I had to sell myself to survive. I tried the general store. The owner chased
01:44me out immediately. Get lost, beggar. You're bad for business. I walked through the rain.
01:51Numb. Shop after shop. No one wanted me. Even for just a bite to eat. Only the shady casino and
01:58brothel at the edge of town didn't kick me out. Smiled. Margaret, the madam, pinched my hollow cheeks.
02:05Good bone structure. Feed her up, she'll be a stunner. She slid a paper across the table.
02:10Told me to stamp my thumb. Thought I couldn't read. Mom taught me. It was an indentured servant
02:16deed. The smell was intoxicating. What choice did I have?
02:25Cheap little tramp. Just like Marion. Playing the victim. Selling yourself to a brothel.
02:32You're worse than your mother. Come on, take me to her.
02:38I was blacking out from hunger. So before the darkness took me, I lunged. Bit a chunk of flesh
02:44right out of his arm. And swallowed it raw. Kicked me in the chest. I slammed into the dirt.
02:50Everything went black. At least I finally tasted meat. Even if it tasted like garbage.
02:56I woke up to ice water in my face. A lavish bedroom at the ranch. A maid pinched my nose.
03:02Shoved cold, sour oatmeal down my throat.
03:04Then, I was dragged into the parlor. Thomas was in the parlor. Talking to a doctor.
03:11So, she bit me because she was starving? Yes. One more hour, and she'd be dead.
03:20I was dragged in front of him. His face was dark. His wrist wrapped in white gauze.
03:25He looked at me like I was a diseased rat. He turned away, disgusted.
03:29Starving to death? And you couldn't open your mouth to ask? Or was this just revenge?
03:38Sir, the first thing I said to you was, I'm starving. Spare a penny for bread.
03:45What happened to Uncle?
03:47I looked down. I called him Uncle before, but I didn't want to call him that anymore.
03:52He tipped my chin up with his boot.
03:54Cat got your tongue. Want food? Take me to your mother.
04:00Let's see what's so damn great out there that she stayed away for nine years.
04:06Broke now? Sent you crawling back for handouts?
04:11Give me bread, and I'll take you. Fresh bread. Not that cold, rotting slop she just fed me. It'll make
04:20me sick.
04:21The maid behind me turned pale. She stepped back, gripping her apron. Head down, her voice shaking.
04:27Sir, I swear. I fed her hot oatmeal.
04:33Thomas glared at me with pure disgust.
04:35Just like your mother. Manipulative trash.
04:39I didn't argue. I looked at the maid, shoved two fingers down my throat, gagged, and puked that cold, sour
04:46slop right onto his floor.
04:48It sat in my stomach, but it's still cold. My stomach is in an icebox.
04:54He stared at the mess. The stench hit him. How could fresh food smell like rot that fast?
04:59He turned to the maid. She was on her knees, shaking uncontrollably. It was obvious.
05:05Who the hell gave you the nerve to play games behind my back?
05:08The maid opened her trembling mouth to speak, but a cold voice cut through the hall.
05:13I gave the order. Marion's spawn.
05:17Sour slob is more than she deserves.
05:20Aunt Ruth stepped into the parlor, dripping in silk and jewels.
05:23I froze.
05:24For a split second, I almost called her mom, but it wasn't her.
05:29They had the same face, but mom was broken, hollowed out.
05:34Looks just like Marion. A little tramp.
05:37Where is that whore, anyway? The one who tried to sleep with my husband?
05:41Give me food. I'll take you.
05:45You think you can negotiate with me?
05:47But Thomas frowned. He signaled a servant for fresh bread.
05:52Eat.
05:55I don't want a corpse in my parlor.
05:57Don't tell me you pity this little bastard.
06:00Thomas didn't answer. He just stared at me, his eyes dark and unreadable.
06:05I was starving. I grabbed the bread and shoved it into my mouth.
06:09But I stopped.
06:10I took the remaining crusts and stuffed them deep into my torn, filthy sleeves.
06:15Thomas watched me.
06:17Marion didn't take care of you?
06:18She gave me all the good scraps.
06:20Then why do you look like a feral rat? Still playing the victim?
06:26Let's go. I'll take you to her.
06:29Ruth ordered the carriage prepped, but she barred me from it.
06:32She said the sight of me made her sick.
06:34Said I smelled like rotting garbage.
06:37I watched her lift Becky into the velvet seats.
06:40Becky in her pristine lace dresses.
06:42I envied her.
06:43Mom rarely held me.
06:45Sometimes she said she wanted to strangle me.
06:47Because my very existence was a mistake.
06:50But locked in that dark, freezing barn, I was all she had.
06:54And she always broke first.
06:57On good days, she taught me to read.
06:59Told me legends of the caste family empire.
07:02Even tried teaching me to shoot.
07:04But I was useless.
07:05I always missed the target.
07:08She told me caste women were fierce.
07:10Warriors.
07:11That she had medals from the battlefield.
07:14Until she was framed.
07:15Until her legs were shattered, leaving her a cripple.
07:18She wanted to end it a thousand times.
07:21But pure, unadulterated hatred kept her breathing.
07:25Thomas rode at the front of the convoy.
07:27Can you ride?
07:35What the hell did Marion even teach you?
07:39Are you completely useless?
07:41He was right.
07:42I was useless.
07:43I dropped my gaze.
07:45All I could see was dad hacking mom apart.
07:48Slicing through her bones.
07:49Offering me a bloody piece.
07:51And I, the useless bastard, couldn't save her.
07:56Cast blood.
07:57And you turn out like this pathetic rat.
08:00Do me a favor.
08:02Don't ever call me your uncle in public.
08:06Okay.
08:07He glared at me, frustrated.
08:10Finally, he ordered one of his ranch hands to take me on his saddle.
08:13The cowboy didn't dare refuse the boss.
08:16He just pulled his bandana tight over his nose, trying to block out my stench.
08:21But halfway down the trail, he leaned over his horse.
08:24And threw up.
08:29How the hell does a little girl smell like a rotten corpse?
08:33He booked a room at the nearest roadside inn.
08:35He ordered his personal maid, Della, to scrub me down.
08:39Della locked the door.
08:40She peeled off my filthy, blood-crusted rags.
08:43And she screamed.
08:45Thomas was standing guard outside.
08:46He heard the shriek.
08:48He booted the door off its hinges and stormed in.
08:51Della, what's wrong?
08:54Sir, please have some mercy on this child.
09:02What child?
09:03Her?
09:04Then he saw my bare back.
09:05He froze.
09:06It was covered in jagged knife slashes.
09:10Deep, blackened burns from my father's fireplace poker.
09:13Della touched my skin gently, sobbing.
09:17She smells because her flesh is rotting.
09:23She's burning up with a fever.
09:26Thomas stared, stunned.
09:28He quickly turned his back, taking a sharp breath.
09:31His voice was tight, strained.
09:35Clean the wounds.
09:36I'll get a doctor.
09:39No need.
09:40Mud fix it.
09:41Always does.
09:42I just forgot to put some on for the road.
09:44How can you use mud?
09:46Thomas walked out.
09:47Della carefully scrubbed the rod away and applied a cooling ointment.
09:53Why are we wasting time and medicine on her?
09:56She's playing you, Thomas, just like Marion used to.
09:59Thomas reached out to pick up Becky.
10:01He slowly pulled his hand back.
10:03Uncle Tommy, pick me up.
10:06Ruth glared at him.
10:07What is wrong with you?
10:09Pick up your niece.
10:10I'm tired.
10:12He walked over to me.
10:14He was massive.
10:15That was the only way I could meet his eyes.
10:19Did Marion do this to you?
10:22Mom was good to me.
10:25She took more beatings than I did.
10:29What?
10:30No.
10:31You're lying!
10:32Did she tell you to say that to make me feel sorry for her?
10:36I stared at him.
10:37Mom used to tell me he was a brilliant cavalry commander.
10:40A tactical genius.
10:42Mom was wrong.
10:44He wasn't a hero.
10:46He was just stupid.
10:48My hollow, judging stare must have gotten under his skin.
10:51He scoffed.
10:52He loved doing that.
10:54Lead the way.
10:56Let's see what kind of game she's playing.
10:59This time, he didn't hand me off to one of his riders.
11:02He grabbed me by the waist and hauled me onto his own saddle.
11:06I sucked in a sharp breath of pain.
11:08He remembered my shredded back.
11:10Can't you speak?
11:11If it hurts, open your damn mouth.
11:13I clenched my jaw.
11:15The pain was blinding.
11:17I just pretended I didn't have a mouth.
11:19His warhorse was fast.
11:21My two-day walk took half a day.
11:23We reached Blackstone Valley.
11:25Dad was still at the entrance of the village,
11:28standing behind his butcher block,
11:30selling his venison.
11:31He saw the armed convoy, the velvet carriage.
11:34He panicked.
11:36He kept his head down.
11:37Everyone in the valley knew the rules.
11:40You don't make eye contact with big ranch bosses.
11:43You'd lose your life.
11:45Bad I didn't look away.
11:47That's my dad.
11:49And he's selling my mom.
11:58I felt like all I did was sigh around him.
12:04Talking to him was exhausting.
12:06Where did mom get the idea he was a genius?
12:08I tried to slide off the saddle,
12:10but Thomas locked his arm around my waist.
12:13I couldn't move, so I just yelled,
12:15Dad, I'm back!
12:17Dad's head snapped up, his eyes feral.
12:19But when he saw me sitting on a war horse,
12:22he froze.
12:23He scanned the armed riders, the velvet carriage.
12:26He dropped his meat cleaver instantly.
12:28He pasted on a sickeningly sweet smile.
12:31Sweetheart, where have you been?
12:35Daddy's been looking all over for you.
12:37Thomas stared at his ugly, weathered face.
12:40His expression went pitch black.
12:42His eyes boiled with something terrifying,
12:44something I didn't understand.
12:46He gripped my waist tighter.
12:48He kept me pinned to the saddle.
12:50That is your father.
12:51I nodded.
12:52Yeah.
12:53Dad stepped up to the horse,
12:54practically glowing with greed.
12:56Sir, you fancy my girl?
12:58She's a good one.
12:59Takes a beating without making a peep.
13:02Give me 20 bucks, and she's yours.
13:06Thomas let out a cold laugh.
13:07Is that right?
13:08And you just said he was selling your mother?
13:11Dad cut in immediately.
13:12Kids talk nonsense, mister.
13:15Her mother ain't for sale.
13:16She stays right in my bed.
13:18Instead, I just pointed at the meat stall,
13:20at the chopped pieces.
13:22Mom is right there.
13:24He chopped her to pieces and sold her his meat.
13:27He even boiled bones into broth
13:29and tried to force feed me.
13:32It made me sick, so I ran.
13:34Look at that piece.
13:36It's from her arm.
13:38Mom said it was the cast family crest.
13:40What the hell are you talking about, you little wretch?
13:43You ungrateful brat.
13:44Thomas didn't say a word.
13:45He just stared at the piece of meat.
13:47I could feel his muscles tense up
13:49and a slight tremor running through him.
13:51Seeing Thomas staring at the meat,
13:53Dad blinked guiltily.
13:54He put on a flattering smile.
13:56It's prime mountain venison, sir.
13:58Smooth skin.
14:00Don't listen to her nonsense.
14:02Just then, Aunt Ruth poked her head out
14:04from the carriage behind.
14:05She sounded annoyed.
14:06What is the hole-hole?
14:08Are we there yet?
14:09Dad looked over at the sound.
14:11The moment he saw Aunt Ruth's face,
14:13his legs gave out,
14:14and then he turned and bolted.
14:15He was a massive butcher with plenty of stamina,
14:17but Thomas' riders were actual military men.
14:20He barely made it a few steps before they caught him
14:23and pinned him to the ground.
14:24Thomas finally lifted me off his saddle.
14:26He walked over to the bloody butcher block
14:29in dead silence,
14:30slowly picked up that chunk of meat.
14:33Della stepped up beside him.
14:34Her eyes turned red.
14:36Sir, the muscle fibers end in the battlefield.
14:38It's human.
14:39Just like what we saw on the battlefield.
14:41Dad was smart.
14:42He had two real deer carcasses hanging there.
14:45He just deboned Mom,
14:47dicing her up to throw in as extra weight for his customers.
14:50To the untrained eye,
14:52it was just venison scraps.
14:54Aunt Ruth walked over with Becky in her arms.
14:57She looked at Thomas and the meat stall in confusion.
15:00Are we here or not?
15:01Where is Marion?
15:03Thomas didn't answer.
15:04Two riders dragged Dad back,
15:06his hands bound tight with thick rope.
15:08I took off my coat
15:10and started picking up the pieces of my mother,
15:12one by one,
15:13wrapping them in my coat.
15:15It was late autumn.
15:16The freezing air kept the meat from rotting completely.
15:18But it had been two days.
15:20She didn't look fresh anymore.
15:22Thomas watched me,
15:23dead silent.
15:24Then,
15:25he let out a cold scoff.
15:27You put on a hell of a show,
15:28don't you?
15:29Take me to her,
15:29or I will put a bullet in your head.
15:31I cradled my mother's flesh against my chest,
15:34nodded,
15:35and led them down the dirt road into the valley.
15:37Along the way,
15:38the local women gave us weird looks.
15:40One of the braver ones called out to me,
15:42Sarah,
15:43what's going on?
15:44Why is your dad pinned down?
15:45I thought for a second.
15:46Then I told them.
15:48Because he butchered Mom
15:49and sold her.
15:50If you bought scraps from him today,
15:52please bring them back to our house.
15:54I need to bury her.
15:55The woman gripped the fence,
15:57gabbing violently.
15:58She shrieked.
15:59Wayne,
16:00you sick bastard!
16:02I gotta tell my husband,
16:03Wayne threw in an extra pound for free today.
16:07Dad's face turned even uglier.
16:09He glared at me,
16:10looking like he wanted to eat him alive.
16:13Too bad Thomas' men
16:14had shoved a dirty rag into Dad's mouth.
16:16Thomas followed me,
16:18his lips pressed tight,
16:19not saying a word.
16:20Aunt Ruth trailed behind.
16:21Her eyes kept darting around,
16:23occasionally flashing a mocking,
16:25smug look.
16:26We reached the front gate.
16:27I stared at the yard I grew up in.
16:29It felt strangely foreign.
16:31I'd only been gone for two days,
16:32but somehow,
16:33things felt different.
16:34I gently pushed the gate open,
16:36looking at the exact same layout inside.
16:38I clutched the bundle of flesh
16:40tighter against my chest.
16:41The freezing meat pressed against my skin,
16:44sending a biting chill through me.
16:46In the yard,
16:47I looked at Della.
16:48Please,
16:49could you make some food in the kitchen?
16:51It's been a long walk.
16:53Everyone is hungry.
16:54Della didn't agree right away.
16:55She instinctively looked at Thomas.
16:57Thomas nodded.
16:59Only then did she head to the kitchen.
17:00I grabbed a lantern,
17:02led Thomas and Aunt Ruth to the barn entrance,
17:04and pushed the wooden doors open.
17:06A strong stench of blood hit us immediately.
17:09I pointed at the pitch black tunnel on the ground.
17:11Mom is down there in the tunnel.
17:13That's where she lived.
17:15Thomas looked murderous.
17:16He ordered his men to drag my father down into the dark.
17:19Ruth hovered near the entrance,
17:21clutching Becky.
17:22She took in the gruesome yard,
17:24the two massive butchering blocks,
17:26the layers of dried black blood caked into the dirt.
17:29She gritted her teeth and forced herself down the stairs.
17:32It was a root cellar,
17:34deep underground.
17:35Every family in the valley had one,
17:37but ours didn't just sit under the house.
17:39Wayne dug it straight into the mountainside.
17:41He used to say it was for soundproofing,
17:43so no one could hear a thing.
17:45It was a massive,
17:46damp cavern,
17:47scattered with broken pots and a rusted cot.
17:50Right beside the bed,
17:51my mother's skeleton hung bolted to the stone wall.
17:54She was completely hollowed out.
17:56No flesh,
17:57no organs,
17:58just bone.
17:59The only thing he left intact was her head,
18:01but nine years of pure hell had rotted away her features.
18:05You could no longer tell she was Ruth's twin sister.
18:07I dropped the bundle of chopped meat at her skeletal feet.
18:10Then,
18:11I lifted the kerosene lantern high,
18:13let the yellow flame hit her rotting face.
18:16I whispered,
18:17See?
18:18Here she is.
18:19I wasn't lying.
18:21Ruth slapped a hand over Becky's eyes.
18:22She gagged,
18:24spun around,
18:24and bolted for the stairs.
18:26But before her foot hit the first step,
18:28two heavy slabs of granite crashed shut,
18:31sealing the cellar from the outside.
18:33Thomas' men shoved against the heavy stone doors.
18:36They didn't budge.
18:37Ruth shrieked.
18:39What's going on?
18:40Then,
18:41realization hit her.
18:42She spun around and glared at me viciously.
18:44You!
18:45You lured us down here!
18:47What the hell do you want?
18:48Before she could finish,
18:49a wave of dizziness hit her.
18:51Her knees buckled.
18:52She collapsed onto the damp dirt floor.
18:55Becky hit the ground hard.
18:56She burst into wails.
18:58Thomas lunged to grab her.
18:59But his legs gave out too.
19:01He crashed to the floor.
19:02He could only watch helplessly
19:04as Becky's cries faded into silence.
19:06He and Ruth lay there,
19:07unable to move,
19:09their eyes wide with absolute terror.
19:11I looked down at them.
19:12A faint smile crept onto my face.
19:15Relax.
19:16The dose was just too heavy for a kid.
19:19She's just passed out.
19:21She's not dead.
19:22I stared at the three of them lying in the dirt.
19:25Lantern light flickered on the wet stone,
19:27stretching Mom's skeletal shadow across the cavern wall.
19:30It looked like a solitary bird spreading its wings,
19:33guarding this dark, damp corner for nine years.
19:37I crouched down and gently traced my finger over Mom's wrist bone.
19:40There was a faint carving there.
19:42She scratched it in with a small knife years ago
19:45to teach me how to write her name,
19:47Marion.
19:48She had said to me,
19:50Sweetheart,
19:51Marion means beloved.
19:53My whole life I just wanted someone to love me.
19:55Why is it so hard?
19:57I was too young back then.
19:59I didn't understand the sorrow in her eyes.
20:01I just remembered her hands were warm
20:03and the mark on her bone looked like a tiny flower.
20:07Now, that little flower stayed with her skeleton,
20:10weeping silently in the cellar.
20:12I looked back at the man on the dirt floor,
20:14passed out cold.
20:15The man I called Dad.
20:16When he butchered Mom,
20:18did it hurt so much she couldn't even scream?
20:20Was she this silent?
20:22I remembered those nights in this exact cellar.
20:25After he was done beating her,
20:26she'd hold me tight in the dark,
20:28whispering through bruised lips.
20:29Hold on, Sarah, just hold on.
20:31As soon as I get the chance, we're running.
20:33We'll find Uncle Thomas.
20:35He'll save us.
20:36But Thomas never came.
20:37I stood up and walked to the darkest corner of the cellar.
20:40I grunted, dragging the heavy wooden box from the shadows.
20:44Mom's only treasure.
20:45The rough wood scraped against the dirt.
20:47It was covered in dust and locked tight.
20:49But I knew exactly where the key was.
20:51It was hidden deep in a crack under the mattress.
20:53She used to call it her last piece of hope.
20:56I squeezed my fingers into the gap,
20:58fished it out, turned the lock.
20:59Inside, resting on faded blue silk,
21:02lay a stack of yellowed letters and a silver brooch.
21:05It was engraved with a single magnolia,
21:07like the ones she'd trace in the dirt from me.
21:09I picked up the top envelope and held it up to the flickering lantern.
21:13It was addressed to Thomas.
21:15Her handwriting was elegant,
21:16but the ink wavered where her hand had shaken.
21:20Thomas, I know you hate me,
21:22but I swear to God I never touched her husband.
21:26Ruth set me up.
21:27She couldn't stand that Dad called me the pride of the cast family.
21:30She couldn't stand that you always had my back.
21:32So she got him drunk, slipped into his bed,
21:35made sure Dad caught them,
21:37and pinned the whole thing on me.
21:39I didn't do it, Thomas.
21:41I didn't.
21:42Dad disowned me.
21:44He threw me out like trash,
21:45said I ruined the family name.
21:47I had nowhere to go.
21:49I fled to Heather Valley,
21:50only to be sold to this butcher,
21:52Wayne.
21:53He's a monster, Thomas.
21:55He beats me every single day.
21:57But I refuse to die.
21:59I have Sarah now.
22:01I have to keep her alive,
22:03take her back to the estate.
22:05She needs to know her mother was never a whore.
22:08A teardrop hit the paper, smudging the ink.
22:11She never lied to me.
22:12Not a tramp like Thomas claimed,
22:14and not a homewrecker like Ruth swore.
22:16She was framed,
22:18thrown to the wolves by her own flesh and blood.
22:20And Thomas?
22:22The hero she idolized?
22:23He bought their lies without a second thought,
22:25hated her for nine years,
22:27and never even gave her a chance to speak.
22:30A low groan broke the silence.
22:32Wayne's eyes cracked open, still groggy.
22:34But the second they locked onto the skeleton
22:36hanging in the shadows,
22:37all the blood drained from his face.
22:40A ghost.
22:41Oh God, it's a ghost!
22:43He scrambled backwards, trying to stand.
22:45I slammed my boot into his chest,
22:47pinning him to the dirt.
22:48Look closely, Dad.
22:49I whispered, my voice dead cold.
22:51That's not a ghost.
22:52Ghost, that's Mom.
22:54The woman you hacked to pieces and sold as venison.
22:57His whole body shook violently,
22:59pure terror in his eyes.
23:00No.
23:01No, Sarah, listen to me.
23:03Don't let them fill your head with lies.
23:06Your mother, she got sick.
23:07She died of a fever.
23:09He was still lying through his teeth,
23:11just like when he spoon-fed me that foul stew
23:13and told me to eat up.
23:14Sick?
23:15I let out a laugh, tears spilling down my cheeks.
23:19Then tell me, Dad,
23:20why is her skeleton strung up on your wall?
23:22Why did the meat scraps in your block
23:24bear the cast family tattoo?
23:26And that stew you need eat,
23:28why did it reek of copper and rot?
23:30I dropped into a crouch,
23:31grabbed a fistful of his greasy hair,
23:33and shoved his face against the bleached bones.
23:36Look at her!
23:37Open your damn eyes and look!
23:39That's her skull!
23:40Those are her hands!
23:41The fingers she used to teach me how to write.
23:44You took your cleaver and chopped them off.
23:47One by one, didn't you?
23:48Wayne's screams echoed off the damp walls.
23:50He thrashed his head wildly,
23:52teeth chattering in pure panic.
23:54He shrieked.
23:54I didn't mean to!
23:56She wouldn't listen!
23:57Always trying to run back to the carts!
23:58I beat her, but she never begged.
24:00I had no choice.
24:02So you slaughtered her?
24:03Just because she wanted out?
24:05Because she wanted me to live?
24:07I picked up the heavy iron poker,
24:08the exact same one he used to brand my spine.
24:11The metal was still stained with black soot.
24:13Remember this, Dad?
24:15I held the iron tip over the lantern flame
24:17and watched the metal heat to a furious red.
24:19When you held this to my back,
24:22you told me I was a filthy whore.
24:24Just like Mom said I needed to learn my place.
24:27Now it's your turn to taste it.
24:30Wayne completely lost his mind,
24:31thrashing in the dirt, begging for his life.
24:33Sarah, I'm sorry!
24:36I swear to God, I'm sorry!
24:38Please!
24:39I'm your father!
24:40You can't do this!
24:42I scoffed.
24:43Father, is that a joke?
24:45When she was alive, you beat her to a pump.
24:47When she died, you chopped her up for spare change.
24:49I starved for two days and begged you for a crust of bread
24:52and you threw me out on the street.
24:54You call yourself a father.
24:56I tuned out his pathetic whining,
24:59gripped the searing iron,
25:00plunged it straight into his arm,
25:02a thickening sizzle.
25:04The stench of burning flesh filled the cellar,
25:06just like my own skin all those years ago.
25:08Wayne shrieked like a slaughtered pig,
25:10but I didn't blink.
25:11I didn't stop.
25:13I pressed the iron down,
25:14again and again,
25:16until his arm was nothing but charred meat,
25:18until his vocal cords gave out completely.
25:20Enough!
25:22A hoarse shout broke through the dark.
25:24Thomas was awake.
25:25He struggled to stand up,
25:27but the drug was still in his system.
25:29His legs gave out and he collapsed back into the dirt.
25:32He stared at me,
25:33eyes wide with shock and pure anger.
25:35Sarah!
25:36What the hell are you doing?
25:37He's your father!
25:38I turned to face him,
25:40a twisted smile on my lips.
25:42Father?
25:43Don't forget uncle.
25:45This slaughtered your own sister,
25:47chopped her up and sold her as meat.
25:49You hated mom so much.
25:51Thought she was a disgrace to the cast name.
25:53But look around.
25:55Who's the real disgrace here?
25:56It's you,
25:57the blind, arrogant brother.
25:59Ruth,
26:00the sister who framed her,
26:01and this of P-shit father of mine.
26:03Ruth was awake now too.
26:05She covered her nose.
26:06Her eyes swept the cellar,
26:08taking in the blood-soaked dirt,
26:09the bleached skeleton hanging in the corner,
26:11and Wayne's smoking, charred arm.
26:14Her face twisted with fear and pure disgust.
26:17She shrieked.
26:17You little freak!
26:19How dare you do that to your dad!
26:21And Marion?
26:22Even dead,
26:23still a disgusting mess.
26:24This is sickening!
26:25Sickening.
26:26I walked right up to her
26:27and threw mom's letter right in her face.
26:30Read it, Ruth!
26:31Read how you framed your own sister.
26:33Read how you made Thomas hate her
26:34for nine damn years.
26:36Right up until her last breath,
26:37she actually thought you loved her.
26:39Thought she could clear her name.
26:41But you?
26:42You just wanted her dead.
26:43Ruth snatched the letter.
26:45The further she read,
26:46the paler she got.
26:47Her hands wouldn't stop shaking.
26:49No, that's a lie.
26:51Marion was a slut!
26:52She threw herself at my husband!
26:54This letter is a fake!
26:56She was still lying through her teeth,
26:58like a rabid dog backed into a corner.
27:01Fake?
27:01I pointed straight at the skeleton.
27:03Are those bones fake?
27:04Is Wayne's confession fake?
27:06Are the villagers blind?
27:07You thought you covered your tracks,
27:09but you forgot the cast family tattoo on her skin.
27:12You forgot the bone fragments
27:14and the meat he sold.
27:15Thomas picked up the second letter from the dirt.
27:17It was addressed to the patriarch of the cast family.
27:20It laid out exactly how Ruth set her up,
27:22and every piece of hell mom endured in Heather Valley.
27:25The further he read,
27:26the darker his face turned.
27:28His knuckles went white,
27:29gripping the paper.
27:30Ruth, was it really you?
27:33No!
27:34Thomas, don't listen to that little psycho!
27:37She's trying to tear us apart.
27:38She just wants revenge.
27:40Ruth shrieked and lunged at me,
27:42throwing a wild slap at my face.
27:44I dodged it easily.
27:46Mom had taught me how to throw a punch.
27:47I wasn't great at it,
27:49but against a pampered rich woman?
27:51More than enough.
27:52Becky woke up.
27:53She took one look at the bloody cellar
27:55and burst into tears.
27:56She threw herself into Ruth's arms.
27:58Mommy, I'm scared.
28:00I want to go home.
28:02I want Uncle Thomas.
28:04Ruth clutched her tight,
28:05tears streaming down her face,
28:07not out of guilt,
28:08but pure, selfish terror.
28:10Shh.
28:11Becky, it's okay.
28:13Mommy's gonna take you home.
28:15Right now.
28:16Thomas, get us out of here!
28:19That little freak is insane!
28:21She's gonna kill us!
28:22Thomas didn't say a word.
28:24He walked slowly toward the skeleton,
28:26lowered his head,
28:27and dropped to one knee in the dirt.
28:29Marion,
28:30I'm so sorry.
28:32His voice broke completely.
28:34Tears fell onto the bleached bones.
28:36I believe they're lies.
28:37I never came looking for you.
28:39I left you here to suffer.
28:41Still kneeling, he reached out.
28:43His trembling fingers brushed against the bone.
28:46His voice shook.
28:46I promise you, Marion,
28:49I will make them pay,
28:51and I will clear your name.
28:53He stood up.
28:53The grief in his eyes hardened into steel.
28:56He looked down at Wayne and Ruth.
28:58Wayne, you butchered my sister.
29:00I'll make sure you die a slow, agonizing death.
29:03And Ruth,
29:04you destroyed her life with your lies.
29:07I'm locking you in a convent.
29:08You'll spend the rest of your miserable life repenting.
29:11Wayne slumped in the dirt,
29:12paralyzed by fear.
29:14He couldn't even speak.
29:15No, Thomas, you can't do this to me!
29:18Ruth shrieked.
29:19I'm your sister!
29:20Becky is just a little girl!
29:22She needs her mother!
29:24Oh, so Becky needs her mother?
29:25I cut in,
29:26my voice dead flat.
29:28What about me?
29:29I grew up without mind,
29:31beaten by my own father,
29:32treated like trash by my uncle,
29:35seen as a filthy bastard by all of you.
29:38What the hell did I ever do to deserve that?
29:40Right then,
29:41heavy pounding rattled the cellar doors above.
29:43Thomas' men had finally found him.
29:46A muffled voice shouted,
29:48General!
29:49Are you down there?
29:50We're getting you out!
29:51Thomas took a deep breath.
29:53He shouted up at the heavy doors.
29:55I'm fine!
29:56Stand down!
29:57Nobody comes in until I give thee the order!
30:00The pounding stopped.
30:02Thomas turned back to me.
30:04Sarah,
30:05I know nothing I do can ever fix what I did to you.
30:08Or to her.
30:09But please,
30:10give me a chance to make this right.
30:12Tell me what you want.
30:13Money?
30:13Power?
30:14Your rightful place as the cast heir?
30:16Name it,
30:17and it's yours.
30:18I shook my head.
30:19I looked back at her bones in the dim light.
30:22I answered softly,
30:24I don't want anything.
30:26I just want her to rest in peace.
30:29And I want the people who did this to pay.
30:32Thomas nodded.
30:33Done.
30:33I'll make sure Marion gets a proper burial.
30:36And Wayne and Ruth
30:37will get exactly
30:39what they deserve.
30:41But after that,
30:42come home with me.
30:44He looked at me,
30:45his eyes pleading.
30:46Let me raise you as my own.
30:47Give you the best education.
30:49Let me make you a true daughter
30:51of the cast family.
30:52I hesitated.
30:53Mom's dying wish was for me to go back.
30:55To know I wasn't some filthy bastard.
30:57To know I had cast blood in my veins.
31:00But just thinking about that family
31:01made my skin crawl.
31:03Thomas's cold, dead eyes.
31:05Ruth's pure, vicious lies.
31:08I finally gave my answer.
31:10I need to stay with Mom right now.
31:13Once she's laid to rest,
31:16I'll figure out what's next.
31:18Thomas didn't push it.
31:19He just nodded.
31:21All right.
31:22I respect that.
31:23But whenever you're ready,
31:25the cast gates are always open for you.
31:30Over the next few days,
31:32Thomas's men cleared out
31:33that hellhole of a Kellan.
31:35Wayne was dragged off
31:37to the county jail.
31:40Thomas gave the guards
31:41strict orders.
31:42No food.
31:44Let him starve to death
31:45in a dark cell,
31:46exactly what he did to me
31:48and Mom.
31:49Ruth was hauled off
31:50to a secluded convent,
31:52stripped of her silk dresses,
31:54forced into a habit
31:55for the rest of her life.
31:58She'd never ruin another life again.
32:01They carefully gathered Mom's remains.
32:05Thomas ordered the finest oak coffin
32:07money could buy.
32:09Every bone,
32:10every scrap they could find,
32:12all carefully laid to rest inside.
32:16The truth spread through the valley
32:18like wildfire.
32:19The whole town showed up
32:21for the funeral.
32:22Martha held my hand,
32:24tears running down
32:25her wrinkled face.
32:26She lived through absolute hell, Sarah.
32:29Now she can finally rest.
32:31We buried her on the ridge
32:32behind Heather Valley.
32:33The view up there was beautiful.
32:35You could see the entire valley.
32:37Thomas set the headstone himself.
32:39Carved into the granite was
32:41In Loving Memory
32:42of Marion Caste.
32:43And right below it,
32:45in tiny letters,
32:46mourned by her brother,
32:47Thomas,
32:48and sister,
32:49Ruth.
32:50I stayed by her grave
32:51for three months.
32:53Thomas came to visit constantly.
32:54He brought me food,
32:56warm clothes,
32:57and supplies.
32:57He even sent his own men
32:59to train me.
33:00They taught me how to read,
33:01shoot,
33:02and ride.
33:02He told me mom used to be
33:04the brightest star
33:05of the Caste family.
33:06Brilliant with a pin,
33:07deadly with a gun.
33:09He wanted me to carry on
33:10her legacy.
33:11So I pushed myself
33:12to the breaking point
33:13because I knew
33:14that's exactly what she wanted.
33:16I remembered her whispering
33:17to me in that dark cellar,
33:19Learn everything you can, Sarah.
33:21Get strong
33:22so nobody can ever
33:23step on you again.
33:25Now,
33:25I finally had the chance
33:27to make her proud.
33:28Three months later,
33:29a convoy arrived
33:30from the Caste estate.
33:31It was the patriarch
33:32of the Caste family,
33:33my grandfather.
33:35He was ancient,
33:36with white hair
33:37and a white beard,
33:38leaning heavily
33:39on a wooden cane.
33:40But his eyes?
33:41They were sharp
33:42as a hawk's.
33:43He looked at me.
33:44Tears filled
33:45his old,
33:46weathered eyes.
33:47Child,
33:48you've been through hell,
33:49your mother went through hell,
33:50and it's all my fault.
33:52I swallowed Ruth's lies.
33:54I failed her.
33:55He reached out
33:56and handed me
33:56a silver coin.
33:58Stamped right in the center
33:59was the Caste family crest.
34:01This belongs
34:02to the true heirs
34:03of our bloodline.
34:05He wanted me
34:05to come home,
34:06to take my rightful place
34:08and inherit
34:09the Caste estate.
34:10I looked back
34:11at Mom's grave.
34:12I whispered,
34:13Mom,
34:14grandfather is here for me.
34:16Do you want me
34:17to go back?
34:18A gentle breeze
34:19swept across the ridge.
34:21The leaves rustled
34:22in the quiet air.
34:23It felt exactly like
34:25her voice answering me.
34:26Go back, Sarah.
34:28Take back your life.
34:30Make me proud.
34:31I took a deep breath
34:32and nodded.
34:34Followed them home
34:35to the Caste estate.
34:36The Castes were old money.
34:38Their estate was massive.
34:39It made Thomas' townhouse
34:41look like a shack.
34:42The patriarch
34:43threw a lavish
34:44welcome banquet.
34:45He wanted the whole world
34:46to know.
34:47I was Marion's daughter.
34:49The true,
34:50legitimate Caste heir.
34:51The grounds were lit up
34:53like a festival
34:54the day I arrived.
34:55High society guests
34:56packed the halls.
34:57They stared at me,
34:58some with curiosity,
35:00some calculating,
35:01and others with outright awe.
35:02I stood before them
35:04in a gorgeous silk dress.
35:05The Caste family crest
35:07pinned right over my heart,
35:08but my skin crawled.
35:10I was used to the rough rags
35:12of Heather Valley,
35:13used to the dark,
35:14damp cold of that cellar.
35:15All this extreme well
35:17felt entirely alien.
35:19This is my granddaughter,
35:21Sarah.
35:21Her mother was Marion,
35:23the daughter I failed the most.
35:25From this day on,
35:27she is Sarah Caste,
35:28the rightful heir
35:29to this family.
35:30Anyone who crosses her
35:32crosses me.
35:34The crowd erupted
35:35in applause and cheers,
35:36but I wasn't blind.
35:38I saw the quiet sneers,
35:40the subtle looks
35:41of pure disgust.
35:42They still remembered.
35:44To them,
35:45I was just the bastard
35:46from the valley,
35:47the filthy little beggar,
35:48beaten by her father,
35:50rejected by her uncle.
35:51But I didn't give a damn.
35:53I was going to survive.
35:54For her.
35:56My new life at the estate
35:57was relentless.
35:59Reading, writing,
36:00and shooting
36:00every single day.
36:02An old scholar tutored me
36:03through dense, heavy books,
36:05teaching me how to write
36:06and speak like a true cast.
36:08One of Thomas' veterans
36:10drilled me in writing
36:11and marksmanship.
36:12He was incredibly strict,
36:14a total dead shot.
36:16At first, it was pure hell.
36:18The thick books
36:19made my head pound.
36:20The endless drills
36:21left my bones aching.
36:23But I never quit.
36:24I just thought about
36:26that dark, damp cellar.
36:27I remembered every drop
36:29of blood Mom shed for me,
36:30and it kept me
36:32pulling the trigger.
36:33Thomas came by constantly.
36:35The ice in his eyes
36:37was completely gone,
36:38replaced by a heavy,
36:40silent guilt.
36:40He started coaching
36:42my aim himself.
36:43And he finally told me
36:45stories about her youth.
36:47She was the pride
36:48of this family.
36:51At fifteen,
36:52she rode into battle
36:53with your grandfather.
36:56She was fearless.
36:58Her aim put mine to shame
37:00until Ruth destroyed it all.
37:02I'm so sorry, Sarah.
37:04I never should have listened
37:06to Ruth's lies.
37:07I never should have left you there.
37:08My mother wasn't just
37:10some victim in a cellar.
37:11She was an absolute warrior.
37:13If I had just bothered
37:14to look for you,
37:16Miriam would still be alive,
37:18and you wouldn't
37:19carry those scars.
37:24It's in the past.
37:25Deep down,
37:26I still blamed him.
37:28If he had just believed her,
37:30if he had just spared us
37:31a single crust of bread,
37:32Mom wouldn't be dead,
37:33and I wouldn't have lived
37:35through hell.
37:36But holding on
37:36to hate fixes nothing.
37:38It only eats you alive.
37:40Days turned into months.
37:42I adapted to life
37:43at the estate.
37:44My mind grew sharp.
37:45My riding and shooting
37:47became absolutely deadly.
37:49The patriarch was proud.
37:50He said I was exactly
37:51like Marion in her prime.
37:54Thomas looked at me
37:54differently now, too.
37:56He called me
37:56the future of the cast family.
37:58But I knew exactly
38:00why I did it all.
38:00For Mom.
38:01I was going to reclaim
38:02the life they stole from her.
38:04I was going to prove
38:05them all wrong.
38:06Marion's daughter
38:07wasn't some filthy bastard,
38:08and she wasn't trash.
38:10She was a force
38:11to be reckoned with.
38:12One day,
38:13Thomas brought me the news.
38:14Wayne had starved to death
38:15in his cell.
38:16He died miserable,
38:18like a stray dog.
38:19I didn't feel sad.
38:20I didn't feel happy.
38:22I felt absolutely nothing.
38:24It was exactly
38:25what he deserved.
38:27Years passed.
38:28I came of age.
38:29The patriarch handed me
38:30control of a portion
38:32of the cast estate.
38:33I ran it flawlessly.
38:36Even outperforming Thomas.
38:38I returned to Heather Valley
38:40often,
38:40always visiting her grave
38:42on the ridge.
38:43I always brought
38:43fresh-baked cornbread,
38:45her absolute favorite,
38:46the very thing I used to beg for
38:48as a starving kid.
38:49I'd sit by her headstone
38:50and talk,
38:51telling her about my life,
38:53everything I had learned,
38:54and how the family
38:55finally treated me right.
38:57One afternoon in the valley,
38:59I ran into an old villager,
39:01one of the men
39:02who bought her meat
39:02all those years ago.
39:04Sarah,
39:06I'm so sorry.
39:09I swear to God,
39:11I didn't know it was Marion.
39:12I would have died
39:14before I bought it!
39:15I reached out
39:16and steadied his shaking hands.
39:19It's in the past.
39:22Mom wouldn't blame you.
39:23Honestly,
39:24I knew the townspeople
39:25were innocent.
39:26Wayne deceived them all.
39:27I only made them
39:29return the remains
39:29for one reason,
39:31so I could bury
39:32my mother whole,
39:33so she could finally
39:34rest in peace.
39:36Shortly after I returned
39:38from Heather Valley,
39:39the news arrived.
39:40Ruth had completely
39:42lost her mind.
39:44Locked away
39:45in that secluded convent,
39:46screaming Marion's name
39:47every single day,
39:49raving that Mom's ghost
39:51had returned for revenge.
39:53I never visited her.
39:54She got exactly
39:55what she deserved.
39:55She ruined my mother's life.
39:57And in the end,
39:59the guilt drove her insane.
40:01A few years later,
40:02the patriarch fell ill.
40:04My grandfather was dying.
40:06Sarah,
40:07my time is up.
40:10The cast estate
40:12is yours now.
40:15No matter what happens,
40:18be like your mother,
40:20strong,
40:21fearless.
40:23I nodded.
40:24I will,
40:25grandfather.
40:26I promise.
40:27He smiled faintly,
40:29closed his eyes
40:29for the last time.
40:31After grandfather passed,
40:32Thomas handed me the reins.
40:33I became the head
40:35of the cast family.
40:36I controlled
40:36the massive estate
40:37and every single asset
40:39to its name.
40:40I completely tore up
40:42the old rules.
40:43Under my watch,
40:44the estate's profits
40:45soared.
40:45But I didn't stop there.
40:47I built a women's militia.
40:49I brought in girls
40:50who had survived
40:51pure hell,
40:52just like me.
40:53I gave them rifles
40:54and a chance
40:55to finally fight back.
40:57My name commanded
40:58absolute respect.
41:00Whispers spread
41:01about the iron-willed
41:02new head of the castes.
41:03But I knew the truth.
41:05Every single ounce
41:06of my power
41:07came from my mother.
41:09Then,
41:09a letter arrived
41:10from the frontier.
41:11It was from Thomas.
41:12The border was
41:13under heavy attack.
41:15He had to lead
41:16the cavalry out himself.
41:17He needed me
41:18to secure the estate.
41:19I didn't hesitate
41:21for a second.
41:22I wrote him back
41:23immediately.
41:24The estate is secure.
41:25Focus on the war.
41:27After he wrote out,
41:28I kept the estate
41:29running like clockwork.
41:30But I kept a close eye
41:31on the reports
41:32from the front lines.
41:33Months later,
41:34word arrived
41:34from the frontier.
41:36Thomas had crushed
41:37the enemy.
41:37He was coming home.
41:39I led our people
41:40to the gates
41:41to meet his cavalry.
41:42Seeing him ride
41:43through the gates alive,
41:44a massive weight
41:45finally lifted off
41:47my chest.
41:48Thomas locked eyes
41:49with me.
41:50He looked exhausted,
41:51but immensely proud.
41:52You held the line,
41:53Sarah.
41:56I protected our home.
41:57That night,
41:58the estate threw
41:59a victory banquet.
42:00Tonight,
42:00I toast my niece,
42:01Sarah.
42:01If she hadn't held
42:02the home front,
42:04my men wouldn't
42:05have survived out there.
42:05You are the pride
42:06of the cast family,
42:07Sarah,
42:07and you are your mother's
42:08greatest legacy.
42:09I stood up,
42:11raised my own glass,
42:12and looked past the crowd
42:13thinking of her.
42:14Do you see this, Mom?
42:15I knew exactly
42:16what he was up against
42:17out there.
42:17He couldn't afford
42:19to worry about
42:20the home front.
42:20I actually did it.
42:22I took back the life
42:23they stole from you
42:24and cleared your name
42:25forever.
42:26The banquet ended.
42:27I stood alone
42:28in the courtyard,
42:29bathed in pale moonlight.
42:30I rolled up my sleeve,
42:32stared at the jagged
42:33scars on my wrists.
42:34They were like the rings
42:36of a weathered tree,
42:37branded into my skin,
42:39burned into my soul.
42:40Every mark told a story
42:41of pure hell
42:43and survival.
42:44They were my badges
42:45of honor,
42:46reminding me where I came
42:47from and exactly
42:48who I am now.
42:49My mind drifted back
42:50to Wayne butchering Mom,
42:52to Thomas turning a blind eye,
42:54to Ruth spitting her venom.
42:56Those memories won't fade.
42:57They are permanently
42:58etched into my bones.
43:00But the hatred is gone.
43:01Holding onto it
43:02fixes nothing.
43:03It only poisons you
43:04from the inside out.
43:05I let it go.
43:06I look ahead.
43:08Carrying my mother's hope,
43:09wearing my scars
43:10with absolute pride.
43:11I am going to thrive.
43:13Late autumn arrived.
43:14I rode back to Heather Valley.
43:16Weeds had overgrown her grave.
43:18I crouched down in the dirt,
43:20pulled them out by the roots,
43:22and laid down
43:23a fresh bouquet of magnolias.
43:24They were her absolute favorite.
43:27A breeze swept across the ridge.
43:29The leaves rustled around me.
43:30It felt exactly like her
43:32smiling down at me.
43:33I stood up,
43:35looked out over the vast valley,
43:37bathed in the warm sunlight.
43:39I have a long road ahead,
43:41but I'm not scared anymore,
43:42because I know
43:43she's right here with me,
43:45in the scars on my wrists,
43:46in my heart.
43:47She is never leaving.
43:49I turned away from the grave,
43:51walked away without hesitation.
43:53I am Marion's legacy.
43:55Fierce.
43:56Unbreakable.
43:57I'm going to carve out
43:58my own path,
43:58and those who tried to break us
44:00will never dare
44:01to look down on us again.
44:03A brutal blizzard hit that winter.
44:05The valley was buried in white.
44:07Snow piled heavy on the roofs
44:08of the cast estate.
44:09I was in my study,
44:10going over the ledgers.
44:12Sarah?
44:13There's a girl at the gate.
44:15Says she's from Heather Valley.
44:17Show her in.
44:18A minute later,
44:19Della led her inside.
44:20She was skin and bones,
44:22barely dressed for the freezing cold,
44:23and couldn't be older than 14.
44:26Miss Sarah?
44:28My name is Lucy.
44:30Martha meant me.
44:32Martha.
44:33The only woman in that hellhole
44:35who actually had a heart.
44:36Why did she send you, Lucy?
44:38Are you in trouble?
44:39My dad?
44:40He lost everything at the poker tables.
44:42He's selling me to a brothel
44:43to clear his debts.
44:44Martha said...
44:45She said you could save me.
44:47I don't want to go with them.
44:49I just want to go to school.
44:50I just want to live.
44:52I stared at her,
44:53like looking into a mirror.
44:55Seeing myself huddled in that freezing alley,
44:57starving to death.
44:58It was the exact same helplessness.
45:00The same desperate plea for a lifeline.
45:03I stood up and walked over,
45:04took off my heavy wool cloak,
45:06and draped it over her shaking shoulders.
45:08It was a gift from my late grandfather.
45:11Don't be scared.
45:12You're at the cast estate now.
45:15Nobody is ever going to force you into anything again.
45:18I had my staff set up a warm room for Lucy,
45:21brought in a doctor to patch up her bruises,
45:23and hired a tutor to teach her how to read.
45:25But a few days later,
45:26my house manager pulled me aside.
45:28The family elders were furious,
45:30saying I had no business taking in a stray
45:33and wasting caste money.
45:34Saying I still acted like a wild,
45:37unrefined mountain girl.
45:38Sarah.
45:39That afternoon,
45:39they cornered me outside the estate office.
45:41The castes are a prestigious family.
45:44We do not run a charity for strays.
45:47We know nothing about her.
45:49If she brings trouble to our gates,
45:52who pays the price?
45:54I stood at the top of the stairs.
45:56The freezing wind whipped at my dress.
45:58The scars on my wrists throbbed with a dull ache.
46:01I looked down at them,
46:02seeing the doubt in their eyes,
46:04the absolute disdain.
46:06It was the exact same look they gave me years ago,
46:08when they all thought I was just a filthy bastard.
46:11But I wasn't that helpless little beggar anymore.
46:14Simus, Lucy, isn't a stranger.
46:17She's a survivor from Heather Valley,
46:19just like me.
46:20Our ancestors built this empire.
46:24But the cast name stands for protecting the weak.
46:27If just one person had offered my mother a hand,
46:30she wouldn't have died in that cellar.
46:32I got these in Heather Valley.
46:34I know exactly what it means to starve,
46:37to be beaten to a pulp,
46:38to have absolutely no way out.
46:40Now I have the power.
46:42I'm throwing a lifeline to girls just like me.
46:44Isn't that what a true cast should do?
46:47Lucy is sharp.
46:48She learned to read in a matter of days.
46:50She will be an absolute asset to this estate.
46:53Money spent saving a life is never a waste.
46:55As for trouble,
46:57if anyone dares to bring a fight to our gates,
47:00they answer to me, Sarah Cast,
47:03and I will crush them myself.
47:06I'm not leaving this valley until I have justice.
47:09And that's not up to you.
47:11My voice wasn't loud,
47:12but it was pure steel.
47:16I'm not asking you to leave.
47:19Fine.
47:20You run the cast date now.
47:22Do as you see fit.
47:23Once they cleared out,
47:25Della brought me a hot cup of tea.
47:26Miss,
47:27the way you handled them just now,
47:29you looked exactly like Marion.
47:31I held the tea,
47:33letting the heat soak into my fingers.
47:35A bittersweet pang swelled in my chest.
47:38Look, Mom,
47:38I can finally protect people,
47:40just like you fought to protect me.
47:42Time went on.
47:43Lucy came out of her shell.
47:44She devoured every book in the library
47:46and picked up riding and shooting
47:48faster than anyone expected.
47:50Then,
47:51word spread.
47:52More battered women found their way to the estate gates.
47:55Some were running from brutal husbands.
47:57Some have been cast out by their own families.
48:00I didn't turn a single one of them away.
48:03I recruited them all into the women's militia,
48:06taught them how to handle a rifle
48:07and how to hold their ground.
48:10I gave them the power to protect themselves
48:12and the chance to fight for the cast family.
48:15Spring arrived.
48:16I rode back to Heather Valley,
48:18but this time I wasn't alone.
48:21Lucy and a handful of my women's militia rode with me.
48:24I laid the fresh bouquet against the headstone.
48:26Mom,
48:27I brought some sisters to see you.
48:29They survived,
48:30just like me.
48:31They have a real home now
48:33and they know how to fight back.
48:35Lucy and the girls stepped forward.
48:37They stood at attention
48:38and bowed their heads in deep respect.
48:40Thank you, Marion.
48:42Your daughter gave us a second chance at life.
48:45A gentle breeze rustled the trees.
48:47White petals drifted down over us.
48:49I knelt in the dirt,
48:50tracing the carved letters with my fingers.
48:52My mind drifted back
48:54to her teaching me to write,
48:55to her holding me tight,
48:57whispering,
48:58Be strong, Sarah.
48:59And to her dying breath,
49:01begging me to find Thomas.
49:03I didn't just survive that cellar.
49:05I became the woman she prayed I'd be.
49:07I didn't let the hate eat me alive.
49:10I chose a different path.
49:11And I took every single ounce of that pain
49:14and turned it into my armor.
49:16Shortly after we returned,
49:18a scout rode in hard from the frontier.
49:20The northern raiders had returned.
49:22And Thomas' cavalry was completely pinned down
49:25at the Rocky Mountain Pass.
49:27Panic swept through the cast estate.
49:30The elders fell into absolute chaos.
49:32Some begged to negotiate a surrender.
49:35Others wanted to pack up and flee.
49:36I sat at the head of the heavy oak table,
49:40watching them argue like cowards.
49:42My mind was dead calm.
49:44I remembered what Thomas told me before he left.
49:49Secure the home front, Sarah.
49:51I thought about my mother riding fearlessly into battle.
49:54The unspoken rule of our bloodline.
49:56Past women fight just as hard as the men.
49:59I stood up.
50:00My voice cut right through the shouting.
50:05Quiet!
50:06The Rocky Mountain Pass is a natural fortress.
50:09Thomas is a brilliant tactician.
50:12Being trapped doesn't mean he's dead.
50:14We don't panic.
50:15We send supplies.
50:17And we send backup.
50:23Open half the estate's grain slales.
50:25Load the supply wagons.
50:27Then, I went to my women's militia.
50:30I handpicked 100 of my absolute best sharpshooters.
50:33I mounted my horse and led them into battle myself.
50:38Before riding out, I stopped by her grade.
50:43Mom, I'm heading to the frontier.
50:46Thomas needs backup.
50:48Don't worry.
50:49I'll protect the estate.
50:51I'll protect our home.
50:52The morning we rode out, the sun was blinding.
50:55A massive supply convoy rolled out the gates.
50:59I sat tall in the saddle, wearing my mother's old leather riding jacket.
51:03I ran my fingers over the worn leather.
51:05I could practically feel her right there with me.
51:08The scars on my wrist throbbed with every gallop.
51:11But they weren't just pain anymore.
51:13They were my power.
51:15I knew exactly what I was riding into.
51:18The Rocky Mountain Pass was a deadly trap.
51:21But I didn't feel an ounce of fear.
51:24Because Mom was watching me.
51:26And every woman I pulled out of the dirt was watching me too.
51:30Every jagged scar told a story of absolute hell.
51:34But they forged the woman I am today.
51:37I'm not that helpless little beggar anymore.
51:40I am Sarah Kast.
51:42The head of this family.
51:44A woman stepping up to defend her home.
51:47The road ahead was going to be brutal.
51:49I was going to show the world exactly what a Kast woman is made of.
51:53To prove to my mother that I kept my promise.
51:56That I stood tall.
51:57I would fight to my last breath.
51:59To protect this family and to make absolutely sure.
52:02No woman like me ever gets dragged into the dark again.
52:05No woman like me ever gets dragged into the dark again.
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