On episode 3 Luis(Benito Martinez) arrives at the Hesby farm and learns the truth about his son's tragic end. After a deep and revealing conversation, Jeanette (Felicity Huffman) and JD (Tim DeKay) attend a workers' rally.
The show opens with a female migrant worker being raped out in the fields by Diego (Clayton Cardenas). Coy (Connor Jessup) sees what is going on but doesn’t say anything, he just walks away after a brief stare-off with Diego.
The scene moves over to the shelter and we see Shae (Ana Mulvoy Ten) getting acclimated. She has to give a urine sample for drug testing, work in an industrial size kitchen (is this free labor), and attend chapel where the speaker is preaching a fire and brimstone message.
Jeanette is on the phone with Carson (Dallas Roberts). She has sent him photos from the migrant camp to get him to understand the inhumane conditions that the migrant workers lived and died. Carson treats her like she is wrong for caring, and asks why she does this to herself. He continues to maintain that the fire was not on the farm so they have nothing to worry about.
Later that day Carson tells Jeanette that he spoke to JD and Laurie Ann (Cherry Jones). They have agreed to review their policies on the migrants, and write up new procedures. When Jeanette offers to help Carson says no. She explains that she has nothing to do and with his dad being ill she can see the extra pressure on everyone else. Carson says he will ask JD if he needs help, but he doesn’t want this issue to become an issue in their marriage.
Diego sees Isaac (Richard Cabral) out in the fields talking to Coy. The two get into an argument about Isaac and his relationship with Coy. Diego believes that Isaac is being too soft on the “white boy” and wants to know why Isaac cares so much. He tells Isaac that if he’s talking to Coy then Coy isn’t working. He also says he saw Coy snooping around earlier and when Isaac replies that he had Coy come in early so he can earn extra money, Diego is livid. He tells Isaac that Coy is a junkie and he doesn’t have the authority to pay him for extra work.
Diego has no use for Coy and this will prove to be a point of contention between him and Isaac.
Luis is asking a work at another farm about Teo. The worker tells him to be careful in front of the overseers and to put the picture of Teo away. He promises to ask around and see what he can find out.
In the fields, the worker comes over with someone who remembers Teo. The guy tells Luis that someone named Jorge El Gallinero (Mike Hernandez) runs the houses for single men and may know more information. He tells Luis he can find Jorge at night in the labor camp.
Coy is telling Isaac stories about overdosing on drugs and dying. Isaac seems to be really intrigued by the stories. Coy says dying was like a high itself because they learned that the paramedics had a new drug that thy inserted in your nose and it revives the patient. He and his friends started OD’ing closer to the fire stations so the paramedics could get the Narcan to them quicker.
Isaac educates Coy on his white privilege. He tells him that when crack cocaine was prevalent in the inner cities there was no drugs to revive the blacks and Mexicans; they just died in the streets. Now that white kids have Heroin, there is suddenly a magic treatment to save them.
Isaac is annoyed that Coy doesn’t get it. Coy then starts mouthing off about how hard his life is and that he doesn’t see what Isaac does that is so hard. He even goes so far as to say that he sees a lot of bad things happening on the farm and he doesn’t see Isaac doing anything about it.
Isaac gets up and starts walking away, but stops and comes back. He hands Coy some money and when he reaches for it, Isaac throws the money at him.
In group therapy one of the male teens is telling a story about how a John almost killed him. Shae raises her hand and shares that she has gone through similar things. She says her dad’s girlfriend forced her to have an abortion because she thought she got pregnant for the attention. She tells the group that she misses Billy and that she’s pregnant again, but won’t keep it.
Shae has some warped fantasy about her and Billy having a baby together and being a family one day. The group leader thanks her for her honesty. Outside Shae and several other participants are standing around when one guy notices that she stole someone’s phone.
Shae is called into the counselors office and Kimara (Regina King) is there. They found out she has the phone and are ready to kick her out of the facility. Shae says she stole the phone from one of the counselors so she can take pictures. Kimara looks through the phone and when she asks Shae what the pictures are of, she says she doesn’t know; they were just beautiful images. Kimara tells her she has to return the phone.
Kimara and Reggie (Sean Blakemore) are discussing him being her sperm donor, but he tells her he can’t do it. Kimara thinks it is because Denise, his wife, said no. Reggie explains that he could not have a baby with someone he cares about and not be a part of the child’s life. He tells her being a parent is a lifetime commitment. Reggie doesn’t think with her job, Kimara can be a full time committed mother.
Kimara breaks down and tells him what she feels when she thinks about never having a child. Reggie says he empathizes, but can’t father a child for her. He offers to help her financially with the treatments but that is the best he can do.
At a drugstore, Kimara witnesses an interaction between a girl and guy. When the guy walks away she walks towards the girl and bumps into her. In the brief interaction she slips the girl a card with her information.
Jeanette goes to see JD. JD tells her that Carson called and said she was looking for work. When Jeanette mentions that Carson told her JD and Laurie Ann were going to review the procedures, JD seems surprised, but tells Jeanette that Laurie Ann has already taken care of it.
Jeanette pulls out the pictures from the fire to show JD. He doesn’t want to look at them and share that he’s seen it before and that there have been many fires and many deaths since he was a boy growing up on the farm.
JD believes he should be running the farm and Jeanette counters that if he gets himself cleaned up maybe Laurie Ann would trust him. She tells him she knows what addiction looks like and offers to help him.
Kimara goes to visit Shae and sneaks her a device she bought from the drugstore. She tells her to hide it and hide it good.
At the migrant camp, Luis walks up on some guys looking for Jorge. He tells them that he is looking for work. Jorge asks if he has money and when he says yes he takes him to the sleeping quarters and tells him it is $200 a week. Luis pulls out a picture of Teo and says he heard he was staying there.
Jorge questions Luis, reminding him that he said he isn’t a drug dealer he is no good at picking crops. Luis replies that he is an accountant, and Jorge asks if Teo owes him money. Jorge says that he remembers Teo and wants to show Luis something. He tells him to stay put and he will be back.
Luis realizes something isn’t right but suddenly he is grabbed from behind. Jorge comes back and asks why he is looking for the boy and adds that Teo left owing him money. A woman appears and ordered them to let Luis go. She asks why he is looking for Teo.
Luis cries out Teo is his son and he wants answers. He accuses the three of not carrying and only wanting money for themselves.
The woman tells him that Teo was there a few months ago but disappeared. He became involved with a Nahuatl girl named Itzel. After getting the information Luis walks away.
Luis walks up to a bus that has been converted to living quarters, looking for Teo. A guy comes out and tells him Teo is not there. He asks about Itzel and he says she is not there either.
Luis says he came to talk to someone and somebody has to talk to him. He pulls out some money and tells the guy to take it. The guy says he doesn’t want his money and walks away. Luis follows him to a tent where a woman is tending to a baby. It is Itzel (Nitzia Chama). She gives the baby to an older woman in the tent and follows them outside.
Luis pleads with her to tell him what happened, good or bad. Itzel says that Teo made her very happy but the bosses couldn’t stand to see her smile. One day they drag her out to the “Green Motel” the name they call the fields when the women are raped. Teo tried to defend her but the boss became angry and dragged him off. This was the last time she saw him.
Luis asks what the boss’s name is. The scene cuts away to the following day and Diego is in the fields calling out to Isaac.
Diego shows Isaac that Coy is slacking and his basket isn’t full. Coy says he is trying. Diego knocks the basket out of his hands and Isaac goes to help Coy. Diego says that Coy is Isaac’s little bitch but he needs to learn how to work on his own. Coy picks up the tomatoes but Diego kicks the basket over again and again.
Coy stands up to Diego and says he’s not going to pick it up again. He then puts Isaac on the spot telling him he should do something. When Isaac doesn’t say anything Coy walks away. Diego looks to Isaac, as if to say, you’re just going to let him walk away. Isaac goes after Coy and beats him up really bad.
Luis is looking on and thinking the same thing happened to Teo and Isaac must be the boss that Itzel was talking about.
The show ends with a room full of people listening to a speaker. He is trying to speak to their conscience on how the migrant workers are treated. We get a shot of Shae riding on a bus, and then the scene goes back to the speaker. The camera pans across the room and we see JD and Jeanette in the audience.
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Love & Blessings,
Tracy
Tracy L. Darity is the author of three novels, He Loves Me He Loves Me Not!, Love...Like Snow in Florida on a Hot Summer Day, and The Red Bear Society. Available in print and e-book. To learn more, visit www.TracyLDarity.com or Amazon.com
