Queen Sugar (2016) s04e08 Episode Script

No one ever calls on that line.
Previously on "Queen Sugar" - What?! - Ma, what is it? No.
No, no, no! Mom! The mill's on fire.
Oh, my God.
I'm-a get through this.
- I am still strong.
- What happened?! Found 20 bags in your worker's car over there.
I'm glad I got cameras all around this place, huh? You been checking those cameras, making sure they're working? - Nova.
- Calvin.
I didn't feel right, so I thought we should do it again or not do it at all.
Micah? Micah! I've been trying to reach you.
I'm fine.
I'm sorry.
We've been here all night.
Ma'am, you can't go in there.
She's my sister.
Please.
I was in Philadelphia when I heard.
Got here as soon as I could.
Yeah, I told you.
She's still family, right? How bad is it? I wish I had better news, Ms.
Bordelon.
The destruction's extensive.
Can I go in, salvage anything from my office? You need to stay on this side.
Everywhere else is unstable or gone.
Why didn't you get here sooner? It took 30 minutes for you to arrive.
Your fire alarm wasn't functioning.
Dispatch never got the alert.
We got the call from a civilian.
We have regular fire inspections.
We also found traces of an accelerant, multiple sources of origin, abnormal burn patterns.
All these traits are consistent with arson, Ms.
Bordelon.
It's just a matter of time before this is a police matter.
That's all I can tell you right now.
Excuse me.
Arson? What the hell is going on? Let's go.
- Charley.
- Charley, wait, please.
I know you don't want to hear from me.
Let's just talk through things first before we do anything rash.
You don't get to say that to me! To us.
And there is no "we.
" It's good to see you, Violet.
Sam, I did not summon you here for pleasantries.
Or to talk old times.
Have you lost your damn mind? I held off calling you, even when my shop was trashed.
'Cause I can handle my own things.
This is my family.
You crossed a line.
You know that's not my style.
I bark loud to protect my business and my land.
But I would never do something like this.
You know that, Violet.
You tell that to Charley, who just had the heaven knocked out of her.
It may not be your style.
But it's your people.
Put a stop to it.
This is bigger than me.
It's out of my hands now.
Sam Landry.
I'm calling in that favor.
You find a way To put the dogs you lying with back on the leash.
I'll try my best.
Mnh-mnh.
Don't try.
Do it.
Make sure we're not disturbed.
Gotcha.
Charley! I just heard.
But don't you worry.
You have my full support.
We will get through this.
I know you're behind this.
All of it.
You actually burned my mill? What era are we living in? Charley, you're in shock and don't know what you're saying.
Why don't you get cleaned up? - I'll make some calls.
- To who? Hank Miller? Or somebody else higher up at Old World Energy? Who owns you, Frances? No one owns me.
I'm not a slave.
And I am? Charley, you're not thinking clearly.
I'm clear that you would tear up Saint Jo, this land you claim to love, and fill it with toxic waste just so you can make a little extra cash.
It wasn't so long ago that you were right there with me, happy to go along with making that extra cash.
We were to be a sisterhood in sisterhood?! Cut the act, Frances.
'Cause I see you.
You don't get to question me, gal.
I do love our land.
What we grow on it and what we make out of it! What I love most is that sugar cane.
After it's washed, processed, and all the impurities are squeezed out of it, it comes forth as white as snow, the way it should be.
There she is! You are exactly what I thought you were! I don't know who burned your mill because I did not burn your mill.
But whoever did it, I'm glad for it.
You needed to be put in your place! My place is wherever I decide to be.
Coming down here, infecting Saint Jo with your nouveau riche sports money and a tawdry sex scandal.
You're nothing more than an upstart mulatto gal, trying to be white! But I guess that's your mother's fault.
Now, you'd do best to keep my mother out your mouth because deep down, you know you're just insecure, lying trash who, try as she might, will never be more than what she's always been irrelevant.
Why'd you even bother with the whole sisterhood masquerade? The same reason you did.
The art of war.
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer.
So it was you who sent Jacob after me with his pathetic advances? That was Jacob's own weakness, just like Sam and all the other men in our family.
They risk diluting our bloodlines, but they always come home in the end.
That is why you will never win whatever battle you think you're in.
You're outdated, Frances, and too blind and basic to even see it.
I almost feel sorry for you.
Almost.
You did good, Charley.
I got just about all of it.
"Burn down your mill, but whoever did it, I'm glad for it.
You needed to be put in your place!" Nola.
It's good to see you.
Welcome back.
Hey.
Thank you.
Is aunt Vi here? Uh, no, no, I heard she was at home getting some things together for the family.
Come on.
Um, take a load off.
Let's talk.
Local mill Queen Sugar suffered a damaging fire last night.
- Oh, my God.
- It's still too early to tell, but police and fire officials suspect foul play.
This is Ralph Angel.
Can't get to my phone right now.
Leave a message.
I ain't even sure we should be doing all this right now.
I get that.
But this is your chance to state your case with the board, inspire them with the good work you're doing with your program.
It's 30 minutes, in and out.
And don't lose heart.
You're gonna be fine.
Ralph Angel? Ralph Angel, I, uh I heard about the mill.
Are you okay? Yeah, I'm good.
We're all good.
Umm Darla, this is Deesha.
Deesha, Darla.
She helping me out with my re-entry program here.
She a lawyer friend of mine.
It's great to meet you, Darla.
Same to you.
Appreciate you stopping by.
How is everyone doing? How's Charley? Charley got a plan, but I don't know.
It's hitting her pretty hard.
Of course.
I'm gonna go inside and give y'all a moment.
No, don't let me interrupt.
I, uh I-I just came by to see that you're all right.
Appreciate that, Darla.
Nice meeting you.
I've been upset with them before, but I always treated them like family.
With all this going on, am I wrong thinking they'd call me? I I want to talk to you about the story I read in your book, the night you saw Ernest burying something in the cane? Before he was your Daddy, he was my friend.
I mean, there were times me and your Daddy walked the field.
Some nights, he wouldn't say a word.
Other nights, he did.
He told you about those white men who attacked him at the bait shop? Yeah.
One of them actually came out to the farm, planning to do you harm.
Now, your Daddy fought that man and almost killed him.
Said it was like being back in the war doing what he had been trained to do.
But then then there was a moment when they're both covered in blood and dirt, and the man's barely conscious.
Your father heard your mother singing to Ralph Angel.
He had woke up crying, but it was Trudy's voice that brought him out of the dark.
Mama had a voice clear as a bell.
Yeah.
So pure and clear.
Brought him to himself.
And he ended up helping the man.
He dropped him off at the hospital, and then he came on back to the house.
But but I saw him digging.
What you saw was your Daddy burying his pain, his anger.
Now, he took off them bloody clothes and the bat he used and anything that reminded him of that night, and he buried it deep.
He was hoping to forget that he'd been trained to kill, and he saw that it was still in him to do it again.
Mm.
Baby, I got here as soon as I could.
Thank you for coming home, baby.
Oh, you know I got your back, all right? How is everything? You feeling okay? I'm feeling all right.
Pretty good.
Anything you need me to do? You're here now.
That's good enough for me.
I invited the kids over later for family dinner.
Everybody needs some comfort, so that's what I'm cooking.
Sounds good.
Mm.
Named this program after my Daddy, Ernest Bordelon.
He was a man of integrity, of honor.
And it's been an honor for me to help folk, offer 'em work.
Y'all gotta know, I would never do anything to shame the legacy of my father.
Thank you for your heartfelt words, Mr.
Bordelon.
But in light of Benjamin William's arrest, we still need to conduct a thorough review of your program.
As you can see there, Mr.
Williams has been a model citizen during his parole.
That, plus the fact sheriff Guidry has three open files of possible police misconduct casts doubt on the veracity of this so-called bust.
Taken together, Mr.
Williams' suspicious arrest does not reflect on the good work and effectiveness of Mr.
Bordelon's re-entry program.
That may or may not be true, but there's another matter that's come to our attention.
The news says there was a fire at Queen Sugar mill last night.
That's where you mill your cane, right? Yes, sir, but I milled more than two-thirds of my harvest before the fire.
It's a minor setback, but it doesn't affect the program.
It does if you're unable to recuperate your losses in time to make payroll.
How will you repay the parolees who require 40 hours of work per week? How will your program survive if you can't afford to plant next season? I mean, it wasn't a total loss.
Yeah, things might get tight for a minute, but Mr.
Bordelon, surely you know we'll have to take this new loss into consideration.
The panel will reconvene this week, and you'll receive our decision shortly after.
Thank you for coming in.
The fire department is is assessing the damage at the moment, so, uh, once they do that, the insurance companies will go in and the insurance company can take years before they settle this.
Charley, we took a chance milling with you.
But this thing between y'all and the Landrys is looking too risky for us.
Look, this is just a temporary setback.
A setback? Your mill was on fire.
I mean, how much did you lose, Ralph Angel? I know you still had cane out there to mill.
Yeah, I did, but I'm thinking about keeping my people working, not how much money I lost.
Look, we all need some good workers.
I got people.
Can't afford no one else, sorry, not after all this.
- Let's just keep talking and - gotta get back.
If All y'all just go.
If if you just if you just give me I'll talk to 'em, but you're gonna have to give it some time.
Expect the arson investigator to interview you.
I wasn't there when it when it started.
But you may have information on conditions that led to the fire.
They'll be looking for evidence and possible motive for whoever did this.
We got that recording of Frances Boudreaux.
Her evil ass it's good to have.
A smart move.
But she didn't outright confess, so that, unfortunately, won't help you in a court of law.
You're saying in order to pursue a case against Frances, we'll have to dig deeper into her connection with Old World Energy and prove prove criminal conspiracy to commit arson.
Okay.
Okay, okay, fine.
We can do this.
Jacob basically admitted that Frances teamed up with Old World Energy to get them the highway they need in order to drill.
But we have no proof.
Not yet.
There has to be another way.
This is clearly collusion.
We we know who did this.
We just need proof.
Let's talk to Pastor Martinez.
He said his congregants were being pressured they're not gonna testify against him.
With the cops and I.
C.
E.
? Okay, maybe maybe I could get a confession from Jacob.
We just need one witness who could who could Baby, your mill just burned less than 24 hours ago.
You don't have to have all the answers right now.
Come on.
This is a time for us to look at each other, to hold each other, and to heal.
It's a time to Break bread as a family.
Our father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.
Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
- Hello, beautiful.
- Hey.
Are you back in Baton Rouge? Yep.
I just got back.
Everyone okay there? They're fine.
Safe.
They're not speaking to me, but they're fine.
And that's the important thing.
You're important, too, Nova.
What you think about and all that's going on, it's an important thing.
I think I've lost them.
I've lost my family.
I don't believe that.
You didn't see their faces.
They looked at me like I wasn't part of them.
Like I wasn't Like I wasn't one of them.
They looked at me like a stranger.
Not even a stranger.
Like an enemy.
I've lost my family.
Where are you? Nova.
Home.
Okay.
Good.
Just breathe, sweetheart.
Just breathe.
We are being tried, Lord.
But I know you got us.
So I thank you.
Thank you for keeping us in your safe place.
Charley, Micah Ralph Angel, Blue.
And I'll always thank you for Hollywood.
And I ask you to help me.
I do miss that stubborn child.
I just can't with her.
So you watch over her.
Bless her, Lord.
Touch her mind and heart.
So that she knows the hurt she done caused.
And keep her safe.
Lavoisier.
L-a-v-o-i-s-i-e-r.
Yeah.
Thanks.
One sec! You came.
I did.
Can I come in? My visit isn't about me or us.
It's about you.
Me? Well, I'm struggling.
That's me right now.
All right.
Let's talk about it.
- Hey.
- Micah! Just, um, returning your keys.
Thanks.
Glad you're here.
Meet Calvin.
This is my nephew, Micah.
I've heard great things about you, Micah.
You're the cop? Ex-cop.
You know, I'm thinking I should make a sign or something so everybody knows.
I'm gonna make a phone call, if you don't mind? - I'll be on the back porch.
- Of course.
Go on.
Say what's on your mind.
I know you're disappointed.
Ah, it's none of my business.
But you're feeling some type of way about it.
Tell me.
Radical truth.
Have you been with him the whole time? No.
You read the book.
So did he.
We just recently reunited on tour.
But don't you feel weird being with a cop, a white cop? Like Orson? He's not that type of cop.
He doesn't abuse people.
But you know him? You asked him? No, not directly.
I've known Calvin a long time.
I know his heart.
He's not the kind of person to beat up black and brown people.
Okay, but he's seen other cops do it.
I I don't know.
So you're okay being with somebody who will stand by and watch other cops do that kind of abuse? Watch other cops do what Orson did to me? - What's up, everybody? - What's up, man? Checks for the week.
I know there's been a lot of talk about what's going on, so I'll be honest with y'all.
Program under review till they figure out what's happening.
I heard about what happened with your sister's mill.
I'm sorry about that.
But I gotta ask, man.
We still got jobs or not? I've been talking to other farms about any open positions.
Man, what about this farm? I'm doing my best to keep my word.
Public safety and corrections board, man, they pay a part of y'all's salary.
Until we out of review, can't keep everybody.
What's my wife gonna say? Have you come to gloat? No, Charley.
From one business owner to another, I came to pay my respects.
Respect.
None of you even know the meaning of that word.
Especially Frances.
I warned you about my sister.
Hmm.
Well, I know she had something to do with all of this! And I know your sorry excuse for a family is in business with Hank Miller and Old World Energy.
I want you to know I would never physically hurt you or your family not like this.
My hands are clean on this.
I promise you.
Sam, I will never believe a word that comes out of your mouth.
So just go and leave me alone.
This was actually very delicious.
You're a good cook.
Least I could do for all you've done.
Just being there for me.
I appreciate you.
I know letting your workers go today was tough, but you did what you had to do for now.
Just Keep your head up and looking forward.
Yeah.
And even if we save the program, still the highway come to take away the farm, I feel like I just keep letting down my pops, you know? I respect that.
Your feelings are real.
It don't mean they're always the truth.
It's how things always work out for you.
And I really be wondering, like some people just be so blessed, you know? And then others they just seem cursed.
I was still breastfeeding and studying for the bar when Joie's dad disappeared for six months.
I thought my life was over.
Almost lost my house.
Had a job offer that depended on me passing the bar, but I was exhausted from being up with Joie all night.
But I took it one day at a time, and I got through it.
Small goals started adding up to big strides, and eventually I found a way to make it work.
You can either let fear stall you Or drive you.
Let it drive you.
Stay with me tonight? I missed you so much.
I missed you, too.
Micah.
I just wanted to say, yesterday was yeah, I know.
All I could think about was, what if you and your mom had been in there? - Thankfully we weren't.
- I know, but what if you had? I don't know what I would have done.
It's all good, baby.
Just wait.
Stop interrupting me.
I'm trying to tell you something.
I love you, too.
I don't know if it's the right time or not, but prom is coming up.
It is pretty soon, huh? Yeah, so I I think we should talk about making plans for prom.
Now? Okay.
Uhh I'm-a get a tux.
You know, get a limousine.
You could pick the colors if you want.
No, I mean I think we should talk about Making plans For prom Night.
Ohh.
Plans.
Yeah.
Are you ready? I'm ready to talk about it.
That was real good.
I think your green has gotten even better, if it's possible.
I've I'm never asked but I've never felt I needed to ask.
But after talking with Micah Ask me.
Have you ever used excessive force? No.
Have you ever seen another officer use excessive force? Abuse black people? Yes.
And did you look away? Yes.
Horrible things happen, and you have to be brave to stand against the tide.
And I wasn't.
I wasn't brave.
I was I was a coward.
I'm not trying to humanize myself or explain it away.
I'm telling you the truth because I want you to know how it felt to be inside.
How does running away help? Because I wanted to live with myself, not stay in a toxic environment, one that ruined the most important relationship of my life.
I didn't want to be the person you turned away from.
I wanted to to change.
I'm sorry.
And I know it's not enough.
Your past is always gonna be there, always gonna be a new challenge.
Because of it, there's no way to erase it.
Why would I want to do that? My past led me to you.
And that led me to want to be a better man.
- Hello? - Ralph Angel? Darla? I called you to see how things are.
Still here.
About all I got.
I know what that feels like.
It sucks.
How's Blue? Fine.
He was doing his little Blue corner thing earlier.
I can come by and pick him up and take the weight off of you for a while, if you want.
Nah, you good.
Talked to him earlier.
Been asleep, not before he told me he don't want to be a marine biologist no more.
Talking about, uh Going to space.
Yeah.
Yeah, I don't know.
Like, he growing up right in front of us.
Isn't he amazing? Yeah, he's figuring it out.
Just like all of us.
Is this true? The migrant workers that were killed during the hurricane, when their boss told them to keep working, that that was you? Why didn't you tell me? I don't know.
I was embarrassed.
You were embarrassed because you were guilty.
You forced people to work in a hurricane.
You cost two men their lives.
I tried to fix it.
For all the difference it made.
What what does that mean? I wish I could change what happened then.
But I can't.
I wish I could change what's happening now, but that's that's your answer? You lost your building, your business, and that's terrible.
But these men lost their lives.
Is this the real you? Yeah.
Yeah, I guess it is.