Daria Polatin
PROLOGUE
A nurse replaces the gown of a girl that has an upside down star with a circle around it (the sign of Satan) carved into her back. The girl could clearly not have done it to herself. She makes a call and tells someone they had better come quick.
PART 1
1. Jules takes a picture of her cereal and her younger sister, Dani, tries to tattle on her. Her mom takes a phone call from Connie and says she will be right in. Like Jules, her mom’s face can’t hide her emotions very well and they can all see she is upset. Her older sister, Helen, asks what is wrong, but her mom insists it isn’t anything. Helen stares at her phone until her boyfriend, Landon, comes to pick her up for school. While Dani convinces their dad to accompany her on the piano while she practices Defying Gravity, Jules posts the picture on Instagram. Her friend Issac immediately likes it. She is a middle of the road 15 year old high schooler who is on the volleyball team (but doesn’t see much action). She has kissed a few boys, but never really had a boyfriend. Any girl friendships she has had tended to end badly.
2. Connie traded shifts to be able to watch over the girl with the pentagram on her back. She didn’t have any identification on her and they weren’t able to find anything searching through their systems. They hope Child Protective Services will be able to find out who she is. Until then, they are calling her Lauren Trauma. She has rope burn along her ankles and wrists as well as bruises all over her body. She was found on the side of the road and still has mud in her black hair and on her cheek. When she wakes up, Connie takes her temperature and asks if she is hungry. The girl shakes her head and goes back to sleep. When Suzanne (Jules’ mom) comes in, she looks her over and asks some questions. They determine she is about Jules’ age. She tells Connie to page her when the girl wakes up.
3. As Jules is walking into the school, Issac calls to her from his bus. He gets off and they start walking together. He tells her about his assignment for the debate team and tells her she should join or find more extracurricular activities. She applied for a photography position on the school paper, but there is already a senior who has the job and she doesn’t think they will need a second photographer. She is a sophomore and another sophomore named Sebastian runs the paper (youngest in the paper’s history). They were lab partners in Earth Science the previous year and she has a crush on him. When’s he sees him standing outside looking at his phone, she forgets that she and Issac are in the middle of making plans to go see movies (his choice is a documentary while she choses old classics). She apologizes for zoning out and they talk about their Social Studies project that is due in November.
4. Suzanne questions Lauren Trauma and finds out her name is Mae. Two people in black coats and hoods threw her from the back of a white van while it was still moving. The truck driver found her 15 feet from the road and called the ambulance. Suzanne asks if Mae knew who carved the symbol into her back. She nods. She asks if it was her father or uncle. Mae says it was both and then needs to rest. She closes her eyes and stops responding.
5. Jules skipped lunch and ends up at the vending machine with a growling stomach. Sebastian comes up behind her and suggests she go with a granola bar. She gets peanut butter stuffed pretzels and offers him one. He tries one and gets his own bag as well. He tells her they are not going to have another photographer on the paper, but he wants to add a new column that features a new person each edition with a picture and interview. She thinks it is a great idea and he thinks she is perfect for the position. He asks her to interview with the rest of the team the next day and she agrees.
6. A tall man in a long work coat and cowboy hat comes into the hospital demanding the release of “the girl.” Dr. Mathis says she can only give information to the girl’s next of kin. He gets closer until Suzanne is back against the wall. The receptionist calls security and whispers “code purple.” The man runs his hand down Suzanne’s face just before the security guard arrives. Two police men pull up outside. The man puts his hands in the air and agrees to leave, but warns they can’t keep the girl forever.
7. Jules comes home to find Mae sitting at the table with a PB&J in front of her. Suzanne introduces them. Dani has no problem striking up conversation and tells them all about her audition for her school play, Wicked, where she is up for the role of Elphaba. Mae says she used to sing and mentions it was “sort of” at church. Suzanne is glad she is talking with the girls. Suzanne tells them Mae cannot go home and will stay with them for a few days until they can find somewhere for her to go. She suggests Mae stay in Jules room so she can have some privacy. Jules isn’t happy with the demand at first, but agrees to stay in Dani’s room. Jules sees part of the marks on her wrist and then noticed blood staining her back and shoulder. Suzanne takes Mae to change her bandages while Jules goes to prepare her room for their guest.
8. Jules goes to the living room to work on homework and what she will say during her interview for the school paper. Issac calls and wants to go over his debate speech with her, but she isn’t interested. She tells him she is having a weird day, but doesn’t have time to explain. Her dad, Peter, comes home and Suzanne says she needs to talk to him in the kitchen. Jules tries to listen at the swinging door, but doesn’t hear much more than a dropped glass breaking. She goes upstairs to Dani’s room and realizes she is going to need her headphones to block out her sister’s snoring. She goes to her own door to find it slightly open. She knocks and sticks her head in to find Mae looking in the mirror. She asks if she needs anything before telling her she grabs her headphones. She asks Mae about herself and finds out she is from Tisdale (about an hour away). Jules tells her a bit about her family before retreating to Dani’s room. She looks up Tisdale, Ohio on her computer. It is a small farming town, but she comes across a pentagram right before something crashes.
9. A tree branch went through the window. Suzanne goes to check on Mae while Jules and Peter clean up the glass and cover the window with a tarp. It is late when Jules gets back to bed and she tosses and turns all night. The next morning, she goes down to the kitchen and decides it is the day she will start drinking coffee. She pours the rest into her mug and Helen says she’ll get some with her boyfriend. Mae comes into the room wearing some of Jules’ clothes she lent to her. Helen introduces herself as Suzanne enters the room. Suzanne introduces her and says she will be staying for a few days. Peter comes in to find the coffee gone and says he’ll teach Jules how to make more sometime. Suzanne asks if he is wearing his new suite and he reminds her he is up for a promotion and has an important meeting. She tells them she is taking Mae to the diner on their way to the courthouse to fill out some paperwork. Jules is a little jealous that her mom keeps forgetting about her, but seems to have plenty of time for Mae.
10. Back at the hospital, Connie cleans the wounds on Mae’s back. She says she is surprised CPS found a foster for her so quickly and Suzanne admits she took her in. She and Peter were licensed to foster children before their own children were born. She took Mae to the courthouse to make it official that morning. Connie scolds her for taking Mae home before the paperwork was complete. Suzanne said she had to because of the man that tried to claim Mae. Mae asks about the man and is clearly afraid. Suzanne describes him and Mae tells her he is the sheriff.
11. At lunch, Jules is distracted. She is trying to keep herself awake and alert while Issac tells her about his frustrations with his debate nemesis and teammate Victoria. She quickly looks up the pentagram she had seen while searching Tisdale, Ohio the previous night and sees it is associated with Satan. She puts away her phone quickly and Issac brings up her odd behavior. She says she is just nervous about the interview and offers him her lunch to apologize for not listening to him. He thinks she and Sebastian will start dating and she will forget all about him.
12. The interview starts off with Sebastian introducing Jules to Naomi and Zeke. He tells them about his idea for the column and then asks Jules to give her ideas. Before she can really get into it, her mom shows up and interrupts. While Jules tries to point out how important the interview is, her mom ignores all the signals and says she just enrolled Mae in the school and she will start the next day. She says she is going to leave Mae with Jules and pick them both up in an hour. Sebastian invites Mae to join in the discussion. Jules goes on talking about how the portrait wouldn’t be obvious and the questions wouldn’t be what was expected. They all agree it is a good idea and ask her to submit the questions for review for the first couple of weeks. Sebastian says their first subject can be Mae.
13. Jules and Mae wait in the front steps of the school for Suzanne to come pick them up. Jules paces with caffeine jitters and nerves from how her interview went. Mae said she did well and appeared confident. Jules is surprised she was paying any attention. Mae compliments her photography and Jules offers to show Mae her Instagram feed. Mae is confused by this. Her town didn’t like technology. She she’s never had a cell phone or internet access. Jules tries to pry, but Mae just says they have done things a certain way for a long time and want to keep it that way. Issac comes out of the building and asks how Jules’ interview went. He says her mom was looking for her with Mae and notices Mae standing with her. He introduces himself and Jules introduces Mae when she doesn’t say anything. He walks off clearly mad that Jules hadn’t texted him like she said she would. She calls out a promise to call him later, but he doesn’t respond.
14. Suzanne looks over previous case files. One ten year old boy had the same pentagram carved into his back as Mae. His parents came to claim him, but CPS deemed the boy had been through too much abuse under their care. He was scheduled for reconstructive surgery, but went missing before it could be done. He was from Tisdale, so Suzanne suspects that is where Mae is from as well. A girl had lacerations on her back and seemed to have multiple personalities. She was being medicated and was to be released to an uncle, but she ended up killing herself. Suzanne’s boss, Joanne, calls her back to her office to scold her for taking a patient home with her. Suzanne tries to explain there were extenuating circumstances, but Joanne says she will probably be questioned by the board. Suzanne says she knows she did the right thing as she leaves.
15. The next day at school, Jules is uncomfortable with Mae following her around all day. The Language Arts teacher, Ms. Ramsey, asks the class about social constructs. She picks on Mae to speak up and she talks about having to act as people expect you too in a small town. Ms. Ramsey asks where she is from and she tells them Tisdale. A boy in the class, Jason, starts asking her if she worships the devil because the town is said to be in a Satan worshiping cult. She tells them she never believed in it. Jules scurries off to lunch trying to stay away from Mae, who follows her. Jason covers himself in Ketchup and acts like he is dying. He points at Mae and says she did it to him as he falls to the ground. A cheerleader, Larissa, yells at him for being mean to her and comes up to Mae. She asks what she does to her hair to make it so shiny. They are impressed with her answer of caster oil and ask her to sit with them. Mae tells them she was going to sit with Jules. Larissa looks her over and asks about her sweater dress. When she answers it is vintage, she invites Jules with them. Jules is feels guilty for not standing up for Mae.
PART 2
16. A more permanent foster family hasn’t been found for Mae, so she stays with Jules’ family. They start hanging out together at school and at home. Larissa invites Mae to an upper classman party and Jules by extension. They go shopping with Larissa’s group of friends and get some makeup with the help of their suggestions. At home, Jules and Mae try out the liquid liner, but can’t quite figure it out. Jules pulls out a regular eye liner pencil and applies it and some shadow to Mae’s lids. Jules admits she doesn’t have too much experience with makeup because she wasn’t allowed to start wearing it until she was twelve. Mae points out that Dani wears makeup and Jules realizes she never thought to question the rules. Mae says she was the same way until the rules became too much for her. Dani comes in looking for her elastics and when Jules shoos her out, Mae calls her Amelia. Jules asks who Amelia is, but Mae just says it is someone she used to know. Mae admires Jules’ half heart necklace (her mom has the other half) and Jules lets her wear it.
17. Suzanne goes to a dive bar to find Detective Nelson because he hasn’t returned her calls. She sits by him and orders a glass of wine while he drinks his beer. Her phone rings and she sees it is Peter, but she silences it. She asks Nelson for his help in stoping the abuse that is happening to minors in Tisdale. He tells her the town is out of his jurisdiction. She asks for his help in finding the boy that had the same pentagram carved into his back as Mae. Nelson advises her to leave the town alone and focus on her own family. Peter calls again and she lets it go to voicemail. He asks if they every caught her father after he came for her and she tells him no. She finishes her drink and leaves.
18. Larissa and a few of her friends pick up Mae and Jules for the party. When they get inside the house, Sebastian hands Jules and Mae each a beer, but they just sip them a bit not liking the taste. They sit on the back porch for a while and Jules says she thinks the beer tastes like urine. Mae laughs and says her older brother once drank his own urine when he was lost out in the woods. Larissa comes up to them and is drunk. They guy she wants to flirt with us inside, so she drags them in with her. Jules and Mae stop to talk to Sebastian and Zelle. When Sebastian asks about the portrait of Mae for the column, Jules admits she hasn’t shot it yet. A few people are heading down to the cemetery and he suggests they do the portrait there. They agree and he drives them in Larissa’s car to the cemetery. There is a mausoleum that is lit up by the full moon. Jules and Mae go over to it alone to take the shots. Mae looks at the moon and says the full moon is almost like a holiday where she is from. She starts convulsing and talking. Jules calls for help and Sebastian and Zeke come running. Zeke says it sounds like she is reciting Enochian keys. Sebastian picks her up in his arms and tells her it will be okay. She stops shaking and looks up at him like she believes him.
19. When Suzanne gets to work in the morning, the Sheriff from Tisdale is there waiting for her. He knows Mae isn’t at the hospital anymore and asks where she is. Suzanne says she is not allowed to give him any information. He says they want her home, but Suzanne points out the abuse the girl went through . The Sheriff says he will go through every foster home to find her.
20. When the article on Mae is released, everyone in the school is excited over it. People come up to Jules to congratulate her and people talk to Mae to let her know she inspires them. The interview was mostly about how Mae is trying to be more adventurous now that she has a new life ahead of her. A couple of Larissa’s friends, Jessie and Christine, invite them to hang out over the weekend and make a sexual joke about a vibratory. Jules is shocked when Mae chimes in with her own joke. They head to the Regal (school paper) office and Sebastian greets Jules with a hug and welcomes her to the paper team. He tells her she gets her own cubby and that there are some welcome papers in it. She goes to check it out and when she comes back, she thinks it looks like Sebastian and Mae are flirting with each other. She says they have to go because her mom is picking them up and then leave.
21. Jules sits in Dani’s room to get her school work done. She realizes she might have been overreacting about the interaction between Mae and Sebastian and goes to Mae’s room to apologize. The door is partly open and she sticks her head in to find Mae in a towel with her back showing. Jules starts asking questions. Mae tells her she tried to leave town. When they caught her and brought her back, they publicly carved the symbol into her back as a warning to others not to do the same. Jules is surprised this would happen at a church. Mae gives her a pointed look to let her know it isn’t the same as a church for the Christian god. Mae decides she is going to prove the town wrong and never go back. Jules suggests they make a blood pact as a joke. Mae doesn’t find it funny and gets into bed. Jules takes that as her cue to leave.
22. Suzanne goes up to Connie’s desk and tells her lunch looks good and there is chocolate cake. Connie looks at the clock and is surprised it is already lunch time. She leaves and Suzanne takes over on the computer. She finds the files she needs and prints it.
23. Before the movie night for the Regal, Suzanne sits her daughters down in the kitchen to discuss Mae staying with them a a bit longer. Helen and Dani are both okay with it. Jules thinks it over and decides she is as well. Mae comes in to tell them Peter has arrived to take them to the movie night and apologizes for interrupting. Jules gives her affirmative answer to her mother before they leave. When they get to Sebastian’s house, he leads them to the room where everyone is settled to watch the movie. Mae sits by Zeke and another girl on the floor. Sebastian offers Jules the chair and asks if their is room on the floor by Mae. There clearly isn’t, so Jules offers to share the chair with him and he sits with her.
24. Suzanne interviews Mae about her life in Tisdale. She explains that she tried to leave because they were very hard on them. She has a younger and an older brother and a sister that died by drowning when she was five. The symbol was carved into her back as a punishment for trying to run away. Another boy, Victor, had tried to run away before she can remember and now he is the milkman. She explains how they have sacrifices to please “him” meaning “the devil.” Suzanne asks about the marks on her hands and Mae explains when the children are toddlers, they are nailed upside-down to a cross and left overnight. Only the strong survive and many die of infection afterwards. Suzanne asks if Victor’s last name is Peterson.
25. Jules tries to listen in at the door while Suzanne has Mae in her room to talk. She can’t hear anything, so she goes to Dani’s room and goes to sleep. She is woken up in the middle of the night from Mae sitting on the edge of the bed by her feet. She is worried about the people from her town coming to take her back and hurting the people who help her. She doesn’t want any to be alone. Jules offers to have her sleep in the trundle bed since Dani is away at a sleepover. Mae gets into the bed and asks Jules to hold her hand. Jules agrees to it and Mae tells her how she used to do that for her little sister Mr Amelia before she died. Jules expresses her sympathy and Mae thinks it is better her sister is in heaven where she can’t be hurt any longer. Mae starts singing Rock-a-Bye Baby and Jules doesn’t get any sleep.
26. The whole Mathis family (including Mae) goes out to Dinner for Dani’s birthday. Jules gets annoyed with her little sister’s constant singing and texts Mae about it even though they are sitting in the same car. When they get back to the house, the door handle looks like someone took a hammer to it. Peter noticed another branch from their tree fell and Suzanne point out that could have been what damage the door. Mae is pale and clearly afraid that her family is after her. Suzanne tries to reassure them all everything is fine while Peter checks the inside of the house.
27. Later that night, Peter is researching security systems. Mae comes into the room and offers him sex for taking care of her. Peter is extremely uncomfortable being alone with her and makes an excuse to go to the garage to get away from her.
28. Jules does her homework and tries to patch things over with Issac. Around 11pm, she starts heading to bed, but stops when she hears Mae talking to her dad in his office. He comes out quickly saying he needs some air and goes outside. Jules asks Mae if she is alright. Mae says she is and goes back to her room. Later that night, Jules can’t sleep and decides to go to the bathroom. On her way, she feels a cold breeze from Mae’s room and peeks inside to find the window open and Mae fine. She looks around and finds a white rise on the floor with her foot . She races downstairs and puts in boots before heading outside to find Mae. She finds Mae walking down the road in the rain and catches up to her. Mae comes out of the trance she was in and Jules tells her about finding her fine and the white rose. Mae says they were trying to get her to come back. She says they are coming for her.
29. Suzanne decides to go to Tisdale to see if she can get some answers, but she has trouble actually locating the town. She decides to stop at a convenient store. A truck pulls up and it says “Peterson Dairy” on the side. She sees a man with red hair and asks if he is Victor. He answers affirmatively before he sees her. When he turns around to face her, he tells her he isn’t interested. She tries to tell him she just has a few quick questions, but his brother and the cashier both back him up. The cashier tells her to leave. She goes back out to her car and calls into work to let them know she is going to be late.
30. Jules is with Mae, Larissa, and a few other girls shopping for a Halloween costume for the party in the woods. Issac calls and Jules sends him to voicemail. When he texts, she says she is busy shopping. When he calls again, she answers. He is fed up with her ignoring him because she is trying to climb the social ladder. Mae is confused by the Halloween traditions and Jules tries to explain. When Larissa says Mae should try on the devil costume, Mae swats away the horned headband. Larissa says she gets it because she probably has PTSD from growing up around devil worshipers. Jules spots Sebastian and Zeke outside and goes to say hi. Zeke walks away and Jules asks Sebastian to go to the party with her. He says he already asked someone else and smiles as Mae and the other girls come out of the store. He turns her down again loud enough for everyone to hear. Jules quickly says she has to go and takes off not thinking about how she’ll get home.
31. After getting a ride home from Stacy’s and her mom, Jules goes to Dani’s room and stays there listening to music until Dani goes to get her for dinner. When she finds out Mae made them all Farmer’s Pie, Jules tries to come up with an excuse to skip dinner. She gets frustrated with Mae acting like she is part of the family when she betrayed Jules. She notices Peter isn’t there and is told he is working late. She joins dinner and then quickly rushes back off to Dani’s room. She tries to avoid everyone and goes to take a shower. Mae is at the door waiting for her when she comes out. Jules tells her she is upset because she is going to the party with Sebastian when she knew Jules liked him. When she gets back into Dani’s room, she asks her little sister what she thinks of Mae. She likes her and is excited that their mom is supposed to take them horseback riding over the weekend because Mae knows how. The next day, Jules tells her mom about her volleyball game, but she doesn’t show up for it. Jules confronts her about it and Suzanne apologized. She asks how she can make it up to Jules and Jules is excited to get a chance to talk about their trip to Chicago. Suzanne tells her she mdoesn’t have time to talk about it just then as she has work to catch up on while she makes tea for Mae.
32. When Peter gets home one night, he tells Suzanne about Mae coming on to him. Suzanne tries to rationalize it as part of her trauma. Peter points out Suzanne has been too focused on work and ignoring her own daughters. He questions if her need to help Mae is really about herself.
33. Jules camps in the living room working on homework. She tries to text Issac, but he doesn’t answer. Mae comes into the room and apologizes for accepting the date with Sebastian. She says she didn’t know he was asking her out on a date or else she would have declined. She offers to tell him she can’t go with him. Jules forgives her and tells her to go. She knows Sebastian likes Mae and not her. Mae suggests Jules goes to the party with Zeke. The doorbell rings and Dani answers it. There. Is a puppy at the door and it goes crazy when Dani says it’s name, Bingo. Suzanne, Peter, and Jules take Dani to the hospital for stitches and a rabies shot. Joanne comes out and asks to speak with Suzanne. Peter asks her if everything is okay and she says it is before leaving them in the waiting room to talk to her boss. Peter and Jules sit and stare at the floor.
34. Joanne says she check the video feed to see Suzanne pulling up long past confidential files about Victor Peterson. She has been missing appointments and is on thin ice. She is under review by the board. They are replacing her in the Chicago trip with Dr. Brenner. Suzanne is even more determined to get Detective Nelson to help with Mae’s case.
35. For the Mathis family tradition, Peter picks a movie for them to all watch together. He makes sure everyone is comfortable and ready before revealing his choice: Carrie. Jules knows he picked it for her and is happy with the sentiment. Mae makes room for Peter on the couch, but he decides to sit in a wooden chair instead. Suzanne’s phone rings and she excused herself to answer it. She thanks the person for calling her back.
36. Suzanne catches Detective Nelson up on what happened to Dani and how she found Victor in Tisdsle. He warns her to stay away from that town especially alone. She asks for his help in putting the responsible people away since they could have two witnesses. He tells her to get Mae into a different foster family and let it go. She tells him she’ll do it all by herself and hangs up on him.
37. Jules is really proud of her costume until she goes out into the hall to see Mae wearing almost the same thing. Mae says she is going as the newer version of Carrie. Suzanne is helping her with a blond wig. Jules is furious. She goes out to the garage looking for her dad and finds him in the attic in a cot. She asks if he is sleeping out there. He confirms it and says he and Suzanne just need some space. He helps her pour blood over her head and tells her the costume looks great.
38. Sebastian and Zeke arrive to pick up the girls for the party. Mae sits up front with Sebastian and Jules can here a bit if there conversations and giggling. Jules and Zeke don’t have much to talk about. After a 45 minute drive to the campsite, they arrive at the party. Sebastian (designated driver) and Zeke go to get the drinks. Jules drinks her beer out of frustration. Sebastian noticed Mae doesn’t like the beer and they go to find her something else. Zeke asks Jules what her favorite movie is and she gestures to her costume. She returns the question and he tells her scream. When he goes to get her another beer, the bonfire catches a tree on fire. The kids start to scatter to get away from the fire. Jules falls and the smoke prevents her from getting back up. A firefighter starts to carry her away. She reads that he is from Tisdale and he Carrie’s her into the woods and shoved her in his truck dispute her kicking and flailing. When he walks around the truck to get in the driver side door, she opens it into him enough to shock him. She runs as fast as she can until she is back at the bonfire with the others. Mae asks if she is alright. Jules tells her she is not alright and wants Mae to stop ruining her life. She wants her out of her life completely. Mae starts begging Jules not to tell her parents. She says she needs Jules to save her.
PART 3
39. Jules tries to tell her dad about what happened at the party. When Peter starts to question if she is sure about the events, she decides she could have read the city wrong and maybe the man was just trying to help her. She hears her parents argue about it later and her dad stays away for dinner all week. Suzanne allows Mae to use her phone at the table which she has always had rules against. When Jules asks Suzanne to talk about Chicago, Suzanne finally tells her she isn’t to going. Jules is furious that her mom has know they weren’t going and didn’t even take the time to tell her. She says they will go another time, but Jules points out she never takes her anywhere. Jules leaves the room to have her meltdown privately. At school, Jules has been sitting with Larissa’s group, but when only one seat is available, Mae apologizes to Jules and takes it herself. Jules skips lunch and goes to the bathroom to cry. When she comes out, she runs into Issac, who can see she has been crying. He takes her outside and she tells him everything that has been going on. He accepts her apologies and gives her a candy bar as a peace offering.
40. Peter teaches Jules and Dani how to make coffee. Both of the girls are glad to spend time with their dad since he isn’t in the house much anymore. When Suzanne comes home, she immediately asks for Mae and even Dani seems a bit irritated by Suzanne’s obsession with Mae. Dani tells her Mae is out back and Suzanne goes to join her with one of Jules’ jackets. Jules gets them back on track if making coffee.
41. In Language Arts class, Jules calls the teacher over to ask a question about a passage in Great Gatsby. She angles the book so the teacher can see Mae selling pulls to her friends. She sends them all to the principal. Jules gets called down to the guidance counselor where she is asked about changes in her home life. Jules tells him what has been going on and he says he wants to see her once a week. Jules is so upset she uses her anger to score a point him her volleyball game that night. When she gets home, Suzanne is sitting with Mae. Mae leaves the room and Suzanne asks to talk to Jules. Jules doesn’t want to listen considering her mom hasn’t had any time for her. When Suzanne assumes all of Jules’ anger is from the Chicago trip, Jules goes off on her and tells her Mae is ruining her life. She goes up to Dani’s room and tells for her to get out. Dani leaves immediately.
42. Mae creeps into Suzanne’s room in the middle of the night saying she had another nightmare. She says she feels bad about Jules, but Suzanne tells her Jules is just overreacting. She tells Mae she is proud of her for adjusting so well on a new town and family. She tells Mae her mom, brother and her moved states to get away from abuse. Peter was the first friend she made in school Freshman year.
43. Jules is dreading having to present her social studies project with Issac as she knows she isn’t prepared enough for it. She gets called out of class and they grab Helen on their way to the office. The girls are told Suzanne was in a car accident. Peter arrives with Danielle to pick them up and along with Mae, they go to the hospital. Suzanne has a broken ankle and a few head bumps, but will be fine. When they all go out ti the waiting room while more tests are run, Jules asks her dad how the breaks on the car went out. He says he doesn’t know, but the insurance company will investigate the totaled car. Jules realizes the attacks on their family are getting worse and comes up with a plan.
44. Jules has Issac help her get a bunch of white roses to put in Mae’s room. Jules does this in the night of the full moon because it is the first opportunity she has where no one is home. Later that night when Suzanne gets home, she sees Mae’s backpack, but can’t find her. She starts yelling at Jules that they have to find her. They don’t have a car and her mom’s leg is still in a cast. Jules asks why her mom is so obsessed with Mae. Suzanne explains her father used to hit her and the rest of her family. They had to sneak away in the middle of the night to get away. Her dad found her when she started working at the hospital and came in to attack her one day. He screamed that she ruined his family. Security took him out and told him to never come back. That was the last time she saw him. Jules feels bad and says she will call Issac for help.
45. Issac’s aunt lets Suzanne and Jules borrow her minivan and Jules drives them out to Tisdale. She asks how her mom knows where the exit is, but Suzanne doesn’t answer. Jules insists on being the one to go look for Mae as she can move much faster than Suzanne in her cast and crutches. She sneaks through town and finds the church with the upside down cross on top. She cracks open the front door to see people inside, but quietly closes it to avoid being seen. She goes around the side and is able to hide herself in the curtains. She sees the men and women sitting on separate sides of the church and scans the woman’s side for Mae. She watches communion and how they use an IV to take blood from young women to use in said communion. They start confession and a man gets whipped across his back for stealing grain. Jules has to look away. She sees Mae enter through the main entrance in a white dress. She decides she will have to sneak around the front to get to her, but everything goes black.
46. Suzanne gets anxious waiting for Jules and decides she needs to go find the girls. As she hobbles down the road, she sees the houses mostly look empty. She looks inside one and see a young boy being hung upside down on a cross. She tries to take a picture through the window, but the light is too low to see it clearly. She goes inside and takes a few pictures. She starts trying to figure out a way to help the boy when the Sheriff comes in behind her.
47. Jules wakes in a grain silo. The fireman that tried to kidnap her is there with Mae. She realizes it is Mae’s brother Haskell. She begs Haskell to let Jules go and she will confess her part in Amelia’s death to everyone and take the punishment. Haskell wants to be the one to bring her in. He took the blame for her and has been a disgrace to their family ever since. He thinks giving the girls to the church will make him a priest. Mae begs her brother to let Jules go and promises him anything he wants from her. He leaves them together. Jules admits she left the roses on Mae’s bed and apologizes. Mae admits she was copying Jules because she wanted to be like her. She was fascinated by her normal life. Jules tells her Amelia’s death wasn’t her fault and they have to move. They put their backs together and untie each other’s ropes. They get on either side of the door as Haskell opens it again. He has a barbed wire crown with him. They run out before his eyes adjust enough to realize they aren’t there.
48. Suzanne tries to slide her phone into her back pocket before the Sheriff can see it, but he does. He tells her she is trespassing while she tells him she has to stop the abuse of the children that happens in Tisdale. She tries to fend him off with one of her crutches, but he easily knocks her to the floor and gets on top of her. He reaches into her back pocket and takes the phone. He throws it into the fire and Suzanne is upset the photos wouldn’t have had enough signal to be backed up in the Cloud. As he takes off his belt to beat her, she grabs the fire poker and stabs him with it.
49. Mae leads them through a warehouse and into a huge barn with two rows of stalls. Haskell is on their tale and Jules knows they cannot outrun him. She pulls Mae to the side and they hide while he passes him. They double back, but have to open a large door to get back outside. Mae pulls it open and Haskell turns to look at them. They dash out the door, but the minivan is not where Jules thought it should be. She is lost and losing hope as Haskell starts catching up to them. Suzanne swings the minivan up to them and they jump in quickly. She takes off before the door is closed. Jules watches Haskell fade away as she closes the side door. Police cars start racing into the small town as they are leaving.
EPILOGUE
Jules’ family is having Thanksgiving dinner with Mae and her new foster parents. Marianne seems overly into Mae and Oliver says one of his church friend’s daughters will show Mae around. Peter asks if the foster couple has any other children and they say they aren’t able to have their own. They will be living a few hours away, so Jules taught Mae how to video chat. Jules will miss Mae, but she is glad to be getting her life back. Suzanne asks Marianne to pass the gravy and Jules notices she has a tattoo that says “o.t.o.” on her wrist. She starts thinking it is suspicious that the young couple took on a teenager as their only foster child. She shrugs it off and after dinner, Mae leaves with her new parents.