Original subtitles

Marsh is not swamp.

Marsh is a space of light where grass grows in water

and water flows into the sky.

Then within the marsh, here and there.

True Swamp.

A swamp knows all about death and doesn't necessarily define it as

Certainly not a sin.

I thought Chase Andrews would have more common sense.

Best quarterback this town ever had.

Floyd, I think it's your footprint here.

Where's his footprint?

Yeah, some kids just get crazy ideas in their heads and think they're

invincible. Chase Andrews is no kid.

Hey, look at this.

He opened a grate himself. Could have been an accident, all the same.

Time of death between midnight and 2 a .m. Cause of death, sudden impact from a

63 -foot drop.

Since you found that blood and hair on the support beam.

I would deduce that was the cause of the primary injury.

Layman's terms banged the back of his head on the way down.

To hit the back of his head on the beam, he would have needed to fall backwards.

Is that right?

I'd say yes.

So he might have been pushed.

There's no fingerprints on the railing. The grade's nothing.

No fingerprints?

Not from Chase either?

No fingerprints, no tracks.

We do have those.

Red fibers found on the jacket.

I just got the lab report back from Atlanta.

They did not come from any of his other clothing.

Wool, it says.

I think it'd be a sweater, scarf.

Hell, it could be anything.

And we gotta find it.

Beautiful wife.

Good family. Can't think of anyone who'd want to kill Chase. Come on, you're not

Chase, Wool.

Tomcat and running around like a pinned -up bull. And I don't speak ill of the

dead, Frank.

I'm just saying, I can think of a few guys. Let's do it. Mr. Milton.

Hi, Sandy. The usual, Brunswick stew.

God bless.

What do you make of the Chase Andrews case, Tom?

Oh, I'm retired.

That's none of my business anymore.

Fair enough.

Could have been that woman lived out in the marsh.

Crazy enough of a loony bin. I just bet she'd be up to something like this.

Well, my brother's always told me that marsh girl's been missing legs. You

poor Chase Andrews had something going on down in that marsh.

Chase Andrews and the marsh girl? How's that in asking for trouble?

What do you think really happened, Frank? You think that Marsh girl could

killed Chase? Hell, I don't know.

Truth will come out.

Look at all these feathers and whatnot.

Is she a scientist or a witch?

Miss Clark?

Sheriff's Department.

Sheriff.

Look.

Could get a warrant.

Plain view.

Drop off a call, Sheriff.

But that door isn't even locked.

They're fueling.

Mr. Sheriff, shut down your engine.

Go straight, go straight.

Mr. Clark?

I'm Tom Milton.

I'm a lawyer.

May I come in?

Thank you, Mr. Prager.

You probably know that you're being held for the murder of Chase Andrews.

I've taken the liberty of putting myself forward to defend you.

I know you've never been in trouble before, so I can explain the courtroom

the trial and who's who and whatnot.

Do you have family that you might want to come be with you?

Ms.

Clark, I don't quite know how to put this, but... Well...

I know you as Catherine Danielle Clark, but here in Barclay Cove, they don't

call you by that name. They call you Marsh Girl.

And when you stand trial, you will be judged by a jury of your peers from

Barclay Cove who only know you as such.

They are going to judge you whether they know you or not.

But I can't help you.

unless I know you, even just a little bit.

Well, all right then.

I'll come back in a while when you've had time to consider.

Oh, and I brought you this just in the meantime.

Mr. Frazier.

People forget about the creatures who live in shells.

I had a family once.

They called me Kaya.

This little piggy went to market, and you hold still.

This little piggy stayed home.

This little piggy ate roast beets.

This little piggy had none.

And this little piggy went all the way home.

That's my special girl.

How many times I told you not to mess in my goddamn bunk?

Get in there!

Mom never came back.

And everybody else was quick to get out the same way.

Murph was the first to leave.

A few months later, Mandy and Missy.

Then finally, Jody.

Kaya.

Kaya, listen.

I have to go, Kaya.

I can't live here no longer.

Kai, you be careful here.

If you're in trouble, run and hide deep in the marsh way out where the crowd has

seen.

Like Ma always says.

I learned from the mistakes of the others how to live with him.

Keep out of the way.

Don't let him see you.

Fend for yourself.

I'd been out in the marsh plenty of times with Jody, but never alone.

I didn't know which way was home.

You're Johnny Clark's sister.

Used to be.

He's gone.

You know your way home?

Yeah.

It's okay.

I get lost all the time.

Tate.

There was something about that boy that eased the tightness in my chest.

For the first time since Ma and Jody left, I felt something other than hurt.

Felt brave.

Wait with it and see, baby.

Morning, Mr. Clark.

How you doing?

Well, jumping.

I woke up on the right side of the dirt.

Oh, this is my daughter, Miss Kaya Clark.

Well, I'm mighty proud to know you, Miss Kaya.

Oh, don't mind her. I tell her, stay away from everybody.

It's a dangerous world, isn't it? It is. But listen.

Could I get a bag of grit?

And some of that Jim Beam?

Maybe you fill it up for me. It's okay.

Maybe. Mm -hmm.

You wait for our change, yeah?

Helping out your power wave mom's going, huh?

I ain't seen her in a while.

She's doing chores at home.

Mm -hmm.

Great thing much to go on.

Let's see here.

Paul left $2 here, and the bill is $1

.50.

How much does that leave for guys?

Don't worry about that.

I got another question for you.

You go to school?

Do you know that they publish the school lunch menu in the paper?

Today's is Salisbury steak.

You could get a nice hot meal, make some friends.

Plenty of kids go to school without shoes.

But you will need a skirt.

That's number four.

There you go.

And the change is 50 cents.

Boy, Chase Andrews, what you got to say for yourself?

Sorry, Miss Pansy.

We didn't see because that girl got in the way.

Hello there.

I think you've got yourself turned around the wrong way, little lady.

Isn't school that way?

You've just as much of a right to be there.

Go along now.

It's all right.

Miss Catherine Danielle Clark, are you reading and writing already?

Can you spell dog, honey?

G -O -D.

Well, we can all use practice, can't we? You can go ahead and sit down, Miss

Catherine Danielle Clark.

Where you been, Martian?

Where's your hat, swamp rat?

Now, boys and girls, settle down. Just an hour until lunch. Please, try to pay

attention to our lesson.

Who can tell me a word that has a long mouth? She probably lives in the mud.

She's got candy.

Think in the room.

That was the only day I ever spent in school.

Reckon I was better off learning from the wild Did you

be

careful out here hear me you can't trust nobody

You protect yourself.

Greyhound owl, probably.

For a while, Paul was good to me.

I thought you could use this for your feathers, bird nests, other stuff you

collect.

Oh, thank you.

Yeah.

This is my old army nap set.

Give it to me.

Give it to me.

Now, listen to me.

She ain't never coming back.

You hear me?

Pa took to burning any trace of Ma.

Get your shit out of my house.

And then one day, he was gone.

It wasn't like the pain when Ma left, but being completely alone was a feeling

so vast, it echoed.

And there was the small matter of surviving.

I didn't know how to do life without grits.

Wantin' some?

Mr. Jumpin', I hear tell y 'all about muscles.

I got some here.

They fresh?

Done for a don.

Just now.

Your pa sent you out with these?

I tell you what, I'll give you 50 cents for the one bag and a full tank of gas

for the other. How many bags y 'all need a week?

We striking up a business deal.

I buy about 40 pounds every two or three days.

Mind you, others bring them too.

So if you bring them, and I already got some, why you just be out?

It's first come, first serve.

Ain't no other way of doing it.

That's fine.

Thank you.

Can I, uh... Oh, yeah.

growing up fast.

Why don't you come by next week? I'll measure your feet.

I got some shoes in the church donation bin just collecting dust.

Thank you, ma 'am. Sure.

Poor child.

Ma's gone.

Pa's gone, too, I bet.

What? You ought to be careful.

Messing folk business.

We don't say that in the Bible.

Be careful.

And the king shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto thee, Inasmuch

ye hath done it unto the least of these my brethren, ye hath done it unto me.

All right, Mabel.

Be careful.

They promised me.

Catherine Danielle Clark of Barclay County, North Carolina is charged with

murder in the first degree of Chase Lawrence Andrews, formerly of Barclay

In such cases, the state is allowed to seek the death penalty.

Prosecution has announced it will do so if the defendant is found guilty.

We will now begin jury selection.

There is an option.

It's what's called a plea bargain.

And it means that if you are willing to say that you did go to the tower that

night and met Chase Andrews there, and you had a disagreement, and in

a horrible accident he stepped backwards through the grate, you'd get ten years.

But you'd be out in six.

No. If we lose, we lose big.

It's life in prison.

Or the other. Mr. Milton, I won't say anything.

That implies guilt.

I will not go to prison.

Please call me Tom and promise me that you will think about it. I have to get

out of here.

One way or the other. Between midnight and 2 a .m. on October 30th,

the defendant lured Chase Andrews to the tower and pushed him to his death.

She then covered up her tracks and fingerprints.

Now, you're going to hear she had the time, she had the motivation, but most

importantly, she has the weakness of character to murder Chase

Andrews.

Ladies and gentlemen, the state is going to throw a lot of words at you about

Miss Catherine Danielle Clark, but I am asking you, To look at the

evidence that the state will be offering to back up those words.

You'll find that there is none.

Furthermore, you are going to hear that there's a good chance no one murdered

Chase Andrews.

And that the defendant, Ms. Clark, finds herself here because it is easier to

lay blame on an outsider than it is to rely on facts.

And although she was born and...

Grew up not five miles from this courtroom.

Ms. Clark is an outsider.

Oh.

Hi.

It's me.

Tate.

Tundra swan.

How do you know birds?

My ma likes birds.

I can't read your notes.

Oh, all I said was I'd seen you a couple times when I was out fishing, and it

got me thinking that maybe you could use some seeds and spark plug. I had extra.

Thought it might save you a trip to town.

I don't know. I figured you'd like the feathers.

All right, then.

All right, then.

Well, I better be going, so...

I

could teach you to read.

I thought you may as well learn to write at the same time. Oh, yeah.

Good. Okay, so we start with A.

Let's go ahead and draw that shape right there.

Don't tell me.

I'm getting there.

Don't help me.

Sure. I got all day.

There are...

Some who can live without wild things, comma,

and some who cannot.

That's what I'm talking about, Kaya.

There will never be a time again where you can't read, ever.

I didn't know words could hold so much.

Not all words hold that much.

We could read at my house sometime.

We went through the whole library, three times a week,

summer into fall.

Read how plants and animals change over time to adjust to the ever -shifting

earth.

How birds sing mostly at dawn because the cool, moist air of morning carries

their songs and their meanings much farther.

How some cells divide.

and specialize into lungs or hearts, while others remain uncommitted to stem

cells in case they're needed later.

Within all the worlds of biology, I searched for an explanation of why a

would leave her offspring.

Mr. Jackson Henry Clark married Miss Julianne Maria Jax.

June 12, 1933.

That means these are my parents.

Master Jeremy Andrew Clark, January 2.

That's Jody.

Master Napier Murphy Clark.

Miss Mary Helen Clark.

Miss Catherine Danielle Clark.

I miss them.

I forgot how much

I feel I'm not here.

I feel I'm not here right now.

Sometimes I feel so invisible.

I wonder if I'm here at all.

You want one?

Sorry I'm late.

Come on, give me a hand.

Son, you know I don't listen. I don't talk.

But there is a regular riptide of gossip all around you. You got something going

on with that marshal?

You know you can tell me anything.

Is she your girlfriend? She's my friend.

I bring her books because people in town are so nasty to her, she can't go to

school.

She doesn't have any family.

Hey.

Come on.

There's no need to be huffy.

It's my job to say all the things we don't like to talk about.

And I can't give you a lot of things those other dads can give their sons.

That's what I'm asking you.

Just be careful.

Everything you've worked so hard for, your dreams of going to Chapel Hill,

Life can change in a second.

You understand that?

Yeah.

Now turn up my music, would you? Come on.

It's Puccini, in case you're wondering.

A young girl living on her own like that looks immoral, don't you think?

No, sir, I don't think that is.

At least not enough.

Just ask my wife.

There are some fine group homes that would help keep a young woman out of

trouble.

They say she comes in here from time to time? I do see her from time to time.

She's not alone. She's got a father with her.

Well, I've never seen anybody home.

all the times I've been by.

When does she usually come around?

I never know, just when she'll boat in here.

Have her call me next time she comes in.

You don't have any reason to lie to me, do you, boy?

No reason at all, sir.

We've got to meet somewhere outside to hear.

A hot cognitive to see you too. Social services are looking for me again.

They're going to pull me in like a trout, put me in some group home.

You know, it's polite to greet people when you see them.

You know, group home might not be the worst thing.

What? I don't know. You'd have someone cooking you warm meals?

Real bed?

I got a real bed.

Guys, I'd never leave the marsh to go live with a bunch of strangers.

It's besides, not sides.

And you can't live alone in the marsh forever. Watch me.

I appreciate you teaching me to read and all the things you gave me, but why

do you do it?

Don't you have a girlfriend or something?

Sometimes I do.

Sometimes?

I mean, I've had one, but not now.

I don't.

I saw you on your pa's boat the other day.

Seems real nice, your dad.

Yeah. Yeah, he is.

You never talk about your ma.

What's she like?

You don't have to say nothing.

My mother and little sister died in a car wreck over in Asheville.

My little sister's name was Carrie Ann.

There was, uh...

What, David?

You can say anything to me.

I think they went to Asheville to buy me my birthday present.

There was this, uh... This bike I wanted, and Western Auto didn't carry

I... I think they went to Asheville to get that bike for me.

I don't even remember what kind of bike it was.

Am I your girlfriend now?

Do you want to be?

I know feathers.

But the other girls don't know feathers.

All right, then.

All right, then.

I've never been out this way.

It's worth the trip.

We'll see.

Happy birthday, Kyle.

How'd you know it was my birthday?

I read it in your Bible.

Did you know it was your birthday?

I don't have a calendar.

Oh, um, not my name.

Don't cut my name.

Yes, ma 'am.

Pretty good, huh?

Here they come.

I'm sorry.

I'm sorry.

No,

Tate, I want you.

Why not?

Because I... I care about you too much.

Look, I want you more than anything, but I can't be damaged as easily.

It's more dangerous for you. You understand?

Fall gave way to winter.

Winter to spring.

The only constant in nature is change.

Why are you quiet?

You know I'm going away soon.

To college.

We talked about it.

When?

Not right away.

Soon.

I got a job at the biology lab.

Starts next week, so...

Stay here.

And do what?

Look, I just mean there's no work for me here.

What am I going to do? I don't want to be a shrimper like my dad.

I'm going to get a degree and be something, Kai. So could you.

What do you want me to be?

That's not what I meant.

You're never going to come back.

Yes, I will.

I won't leave you, Kai. I promise. I'm going to come back to you.

Kai! Kai, stop!

Kai!

You can't run away from every whip stitch.

One more night.

It's a list of publishers for all your drawings and notes.

There's nothing like them out there, Kai.

There's enough for a book.

Lots of books.

And, you know, you wouldn't have to leave home.

You could just mail your samples into a publisher.

You know, bring some money in.

You know, probably not a huge amount, but, you know, maybe you wouldn't have

dig muscle for the rest of your life.

Just give it a try, Kaya.

Come on, what can I hurt?

You're going to forget about me.

When you get busy with all that college stuff.

All those pretty girls.

I could never forget you, Kaya.

Ever.

I'll be home in a month, I promise.

Before the 4th of July, okay?

I'll be back before you know it.

We'll meet on your beach and watch fireworks together.

Just write those publishers, all right?

Goodbye, Cara.

The birds of the eastern seaboard.

The new big red.

Yeah.

Tate and life and love had been the same thing.

They were all gone.

And then?

Whenever I fumbled, the marsh caught me.

At some unclaimed moment, at last, the heart pain seeped away, like water into

sand, still there, but deep.

There were no footprints around the body or on the fire tower, and no fresh

fingerprints either.

Not even on the grate, which somebody had to open.

All this indicated that someone had destroyed evidence.

No more questions.

Your witness.

Sheriff, I'm handing you the tide table for the night of October 29 and the

morning of October 30.

Now, this shows here that low tide...

was around midnight.

So at the time Chase Andrews arrived at the tower and walked to the steps, he

would have made tracks in the wet mud.

And then as the groundwater rose, those tracks would have been wiped out.

Do you agree that this is possible?

Well, and then you'd agree that if he had any friends with him, their

would be washed away as well.

Under these circumstances, the absence of footprints in and of itself does

not suggest a crime.

Correct?

Sheriff?

The absence of footprints does not by itself prove there was a crime.

You also testified that there were no fingerprints found anywhere in the fire

tower, including on the open grate.

So this led you to conclude that...

Someone must have opened the grate and wiped away their fingerprints

Correct.

Now, in fact, isn't it true that these grates were left open so often and

considered so dangerous that your office submitted a written request to the U

.S. Forest Service to remedy the situation on July 18 of last year?

This is a copy of that request.

Who wrote this, Sheriff?

I did it myself.

Would you read to the court the last sentence of this document that you sent

the Forest Service?

Just the last sentence.

I must repeat, these grapes are very dangerous, and if action is not taken,

action is not taken, a serious injury or death will occur.

Thank you, sir

I've been taking pictures around my house.

What do you think they want?

Developers.

They've been hauling them down the marsh the last few weeks, wanting to drain

the murky swamp, build hotels.

I saw them last year, cutting oak and digging channels down the way.

They want my house?

Well, maybe not the house, but I bet you they offer you a heap of money for that

land. Jump it.

There ain't nothing wrong with some money going to Kai, is there?

You do own that land, don't you?

You own that house?

That's all.

You're going to need some proof.

Deed? Title?

Hey.

Sorry to startle you. Can I carry that for you?

I got it.

Please.

Oh,

I'm Chase Andrews.

Your name's Kaya, right?

Yeah, it's a nice name. I like it. It's different, but nice.

There we go.

You want to go for a picnic in my boat this Sunday?

Okay. I'll pick you up at noon from Point Beach.

Does that work?

I'll see you, Kai.

Here we are.

Mr. Napier Clark.

Looks like bought it in 1897.

That's my grandpa.

Yes, ma 'am.

It's never been sold, so... Yes, sir, yeah, I reckon it belongs to you.

Looks like you got to pay some back taxes if you want to keep it, Miss

fact, ma 'am, the way the law reads, whoever comes along and pays those back

taxes owns the land, even if they don't got no deed.

How much?

Looks like about... $800

total.

Five years.

It had been five years since Tate showed me this path.

Dear sir or madam, I am sending you the following pages on the shells of the

Carolina Marsh for your consideration.

Five years for my heart to open its shell again.

I have to fail to bask in the presence of musical genius.

Hey, Luke.

Oh,

that's an ornate scallop.

It's an ornatus.

All right.

It's unusual to find one here.

Really?

Yeah, it's a particular species.

You can have it choose and stop it here.

What? Oh, no, it's just the marsh goat knows a Latin name for shells and where

they inhabit and why, for Christ's sake.

Here, you keep it.

There's something else, ain't there?

I know you think I'm trash, but I'm worth more than a picnic.

Oh, no, Kaya, come on. I'm sorry. No, hey, come on. I've never thought you

trash.

Please, I'm sorry. I understand if you want to go, but you can't walk from

It's too far.

Can I make it up to you?

Please, can I make it up to you?

I can't believe you've never been up the fire tower.

Come here with my family, it's all in my business, you know?

It's a great way to see the whole marsh from above.

You can tell me. I won't laugh at you.

It's like having a friend your whole life, but you never saw their full face.

Now I see it.

Your house is over there, ain't it?

Take me there.

Oh, um...

Yeah, I like far.

I don't care what it's like if that's what you're worried about.

Living right here?

How long you lived out here by yourself?

About ten years, I think.

Neat.

Living out here with no parents telling you what to do?

Look, there's really nothing to see inside.

Ah, what you got in the porch?

What?

Oh, um, nothing.

What is all this?

Nothing.

What, you writing a book or something?

Sort of.

Well, these look straight out of an encyclopedia.

You're the real deal, ain't you?

Ah, Swanee, you got a water pump.

I wasn't ready for Gap.

Hey, don't worry.

Hey, there's nobody I know who could live out here alone like this.

I mean, most guys would be too scared.

What do you want with me?

Okay, look, I'm real sorry I came on like that.

I want to get to know you better, all right? I think you're gorgeous.

I do. I think you're free as a dangale and smart as a whip.

But I won't do anything unless you want me to.

How's that?

That's fine.

All right.

I

didn't

know exactly how I felt about Chase.

But I was no longer lonely.

That seemed enough.

Is that for your book?

Yeah.

Who knows if anyone will read it.

I will.

The marsh was our secret.

Tell me about your friends.

Oh, I don't really have any friends.

Well, you always seem to be having a good time when you're with them.

Are you spying on them?

It's funny, my dad told me once he'd had something to drink and I'd fight with

my mom.

He told me that if my friends really knew me, they wouldn't be my friends.

Yeah, I don't know if anyone really knows me is what I'm saying, I guess.

What makes the sky blue?

Blue and violet wavelengths from sunlight.

They, uh, they bounce off the gas particles in the atmosphere and scatter.

Is it okay if I... kiss you now?

Let's turn to the red wool fibers found on Chase Andrews' denim jacket the night

he died.

Did you compare those samples to this red ski cap, Exhibit C?

Yes, the fibers from the cap and the jacket matched exactly.

And where was that cap found?

It was found in Ms. Clark's residence.

Now, about these red fibers, is there any way, Doctor, to determine how long

fibers have been on the jacket?

No, we can tell where they came from, not when.

And if someone wore this hat often, is it possible the fibers would be in their

hair, on their clothes?

Yes, I would suppose they could.

So would you agree that at any time during the years that the defendant, Ms.

Clark, knew Chase Andrews, the fibers of the hat could have been transferred

onto Chase's jacket? From what I've seen, yes.

At any time they met?

Yes.

We were fascinated by our manuscript.

If, as you say, your materials are already complete, we hope to edit and

in record time.

Hey, you're looking at the new manager of Western Auto.

Oh, Jason.

That's great news.

Yeah, come on. Let's celebrate.

So they're gonna, uh, they're gonna pay you for those drawings?

Yeah.

Just don't get too full of yourself, I guess.

I wouldn't.

I know people have disappointed you.

I'm sorry for that.

Getting left by your own family, I mean...

God, my family's a pain in the ass, but I don't think I could take that.

But I want you to know that I'm going to take care of you.

You know, now I've been promoted, I can get you a nice house when we're married.

Great. Yeah.

Nice two -story on the beach with a wraparound veranda.

Yeah.

What about your parents?

Have you told them about them?

What you've got to understand about my folks is that if... If I say you're my

choice, that'll be that.

I'll just fall in love with you when I get to know you.

Oh, by the way, I have to drive over to Asheville in a few days to buy goods for

my dad's store.

I was thinking you could come.

Celebrate your book and all.

There'd be lots of people. Well, it doesn't matter. You'd be with me. I know

everything.

Hell, you don't have to talk to one soul if you don't want to.

Come on, if we're going to get married, you need to get out in the world a bit.

Spread those long wings of yours.

Come on, it'll be fun.

It's a two -day job, so we'll...

And we'll stay the night.

Incredible, huh?

It's an adventure.

Come on.

It'll feel better for you later.

The more you do it.

Hey,

I never want to lose you.

Yeah. Yeah.

I think about it a lot.

Sneaking out at night to come see you.

My most girl.

Nobody knows.

Nobody sees.

Nobody knows.

Hey,

you don't have to prove yourself to anyone, you understand?

You have me and I love you.

It was a single shell hung on a piece of rawhide tied in a tight knot, and it

was missing. So to be clear, what you're saying is that the shell necklace that

Chase wore every day was missing from these items that law enforcement

from his body the day that he was found.

Is that correct?

I think it's important.

Yes.

He had that necklace on when he had dinner with us that night, and it was

From his body.

And what I'm saying is he never took it off.

Whoever killed him took it.

Objection, Your Honor.

It's speculation.

Sustained.

Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, you will disregard that last remark by Mrs.

Andrews. Mrs.

Andrews, where did Chase get this necklace?

It's from that Marsh girl, Miss Clark.

I didn't even know her name or if she even had one.

I can't see why, Chase.

But what I'm saying is, she's the only one who'd have any interest in taking

thing.

Mrs. Andrews, were Chase and Mrs. Clark romantically involved?

You could say.

I saw him sneaking out at night. When I finally asked him where he was going, he

told me the truth.

I thought, what would people say?

I was a silly woman to be worried about.

But he told me he broke it

off with her.

She knew she couldn't have him anymore, so she killed him and took back...

Objection!

Sustained. No further questions, Your Honor.

Ms. Andrews, you have my deepest sympathy for your loss.

With all due respect, you are aware that Ms. Clark's house was thoroughly

searched and that the police did not find the necklace there, did they?

No.

What's that marsh girl like in bed, man? Is she an animal?

Well, the bobcat marked every bit of the gas money.

Tell me her eyes glow.

Only for me and only when I make them. Hey, don't talk about her like that.

What's that?

I said don't talk about her like that.

Oh, the college boy.

He taught the marsh girl her ABCs. Oh.

You're a waste of her time.

Go ahead, college boy. What you gonna do? What you gonna do?

Come on, you're tough, right?

Come on, let's do something. Hey, hey, hey, y 'all settle down now. It's

Settle down before someone gets hurt.

There's better ways than this.

Hey, Kaya.

Hey, what the hell, Kaya?

Wait! Kaya, wait! Please!

Look, I just want to talk. Get out of my lagoon, you low -down dirty... Kaya,

please! I just need to talk to you. I don't care what you want.

I never want to see you again.

Ever. Kaya, I need to talk to you about Chase, okay?

About Chase?

He's not good enough for you.

You're the one who left me.

Who didn't... come back when you promised.

Who never came back.

You didn't even write to explain her.

Or even to say if you were alive or dead. You just disappeared.

I know.

And I'm so sorry, Kaya. You have no idea.

You weren't man enough to face me.

You're right, Kaya.

Everything you say is true.

Leaving you like that was the worst thing that I've ever done. The worst

I'll ever do in my life.

I knew how badly I'd hurt you, and I couldn't face you like you said.

I thought you wouldn't be able to leave the marsh and live in any other world.

You know, I thought I had to choose between you and everything else.

But the truth is, Kai, everything else that I thought mattered, the

scholarships, the grants, the jobs, it means nothing without you.

I was so wrong.

I've been sorry for years.

And I'll be sorry for the rest of my life.

You look... I

brought

you something.

You know, I'm working at the new lab near town.

You'd love it, Kaya. I get to study all this under a microscope.

So I'm here now.

I'm back for good.

Kaya, I would do anything to...

I would have done so many things differently.

What do you want now, Dave?

Is there any way that you could possibly forgive me, Kyle?

Please.

Kai, I trust you would tell me if you knew anyone else who had reason to harm

Chase Andrews.

Well, all right, then.

Try and get some rest.

Hi.

Hey.

What you doing in town?

I had some good news from the publisher, so...

I thought we could celebrate.

There he is.

Kai, you know Brian, Tina, Carl?

You guys know Kai? Sure, yeah, the Marsh girl.

Pleased to meet you, Kai.

I'm Chase's fiance.

All right, well, I'll see you around, Kai.

Hey, Kai, I can explain.

Are you in there?

Hey, I just wanna talk.

I had to do life alone.

But I knew that.

I'd known for a long time.

People don't stay.

Dear Miss Clark, Enclosed is the final copy of your beautiful book.

along with the initial check for delivery.

There's royalties to follow, I'm sure.

I'm attending a conference in Greenville next month, and would love for you to

join us and celebrate this great accomplishment.

A full deed for Catherine Daniel Clark for 310 acres of lagoons, marsh, oak

forests, and beach.

Wasteland category, Murky Swamp.

Jody? There I am in Asheville, and I see your book in a shop.

Catherine Danielle Clark, and my heart just broke and leapt for joy all at

I knew I had to find you.

I just didn't think you'd still be here.

What about the others?

I don't know a thing about Murph, Mandy, or Missy.

I wouldn't know them if I passed them in the street.

And, um... What about Ma?

Ma passed, Kaya.

Ma had a sister, Rosemary.

She found me in the army and told me what happened.

Showed up at Rosemary's door in her alligator shoes.

Rosemary said she didn't talk for months.

And then about a year later, she remembered she had children.

Rosemary helped her write a letter to Pa asking if she could come get us.

He told her if she ever so much as contacted us again, he'd beat us

unrecognizable.

Sounds like Paul.

She saved up for lawyers and everything, but...

Then she got sick.

Leukemia.

She tried, but... She never had a chance.

I've been waiting.

Years for her to walk down the line.

You didn't have a family your whole life.

And there's nothing I can do to give you that back.

But I'd like to come see you as much as I can get up here.

Maybe it's going to be so proud.

One more thing.

I'll be sure he gets it.

Thank you, Jonathan.

How y 'all doing?

A pack of your finest, please, sir.

Give me some matches.

So good.

Kaya Clark.

Miss Catherine Danielle Clark. You wrote a damn book. Come here.

Wait, wait, wait. I want to talk to you.

Don't act like that. Come on.

Leave me alone.

Damn. The Mars girl thinks she's too good for you now.

Shut up!

It's all right.

Thought I might find you here.

I told you to leave me alone. No, I know, but I just, listen, I wanted to

I'm sorry, really. I feel bad about how things turned out.

How things turned out?

You mean how it turned out you were engaged the whole time we were together?

How it turned out that you lie to everybody?

I have to do things I don't want to do. You know that.

No, I had to get married to someone like Pearl, but no, I had to. But you're the

one I really want.

You know, any other man would have tried to change you, to fix you.

I never did.

No, no, please, please, wait, wait. I need you. I really need you.

I don't want you all alone in that place.

You know, nobody else knows me.

I feel sorry for you.

But I want nothing to do with any of that.

Wilder than ever.

I know you want to.

I want to.

You'll match how you belong to me. I'm not letting you go this time.

She shouted it real loud, sir. I heard a commotion and I come closer.

See if anybody was in trouble.

And there she was.

Do you recognize the woman?

Is she in the courtroom today?

It's that and there, the defendant.

One of the folks is called Marsh Girl.

I finally understood why Ma had to leave.

One thing I learned from Pa, these men have to have the last punch.

Being isolated was one thing.

Living in fear, quite another.

I will never live like that.

A life wondering when the next fist will fall.

Tate, you can't be here.

I just wanted to check on you. Jump said he hadn't seen you since I... Not now.

Kaya, what happened to your face?

Was it Chase?

Tell me, Kaya, did he do this?

I need you to stay out of it.

That son of a bitch.

That son of a bitch. Tate, I need you to go.

Kaya.

You know, I'm gonna go to Greenville next week.

Finally meet my publishers.

Look, I found that next book.

Feeling brave enough.

No, you can still go.

Don't go like this.

Don't let them ruin this for you.

Go to Greenville.

Okay, there's a bus.

It's easy. Jumpin's got the schedule.

They'll have to put you up in a nice hotel, eat some hot restaurant food you

didn't have to make.

Stay a week, if you can.

And I'll come see you when you're back.

Okay?

Hear how it all went with the publishers.

Hey, you cold?

I'm fine.

I don't need you to take care of me. I know, but just take my hat.

I said I don't need your help. Just take it.

You want to tell me what happened to your eye?

I need to write down the bus schedule.

You have a copyright?

It was that chase, wasn't it?

Kyle, look at me.

Will you tell me what he did?

It's over now.

I just want him out of my life.

And how do you know he ain't coming after you again?

You're by your lonesome out there. German, please.

You can't tell anybody.

You know how it is.

They drag me into the sheriff's office and make me describe it to a bunch of

men.

And then write me up in the papers accusing me of whoring.

For trying to get money out of his parents.

Okay, they'd do nothing about it. You're right, guys.

I ain't gonna do anything to make this thing worse.

But you let me know when you're coming and going.

Here.

Now, I gotta know if you're out of time.

Because I don't see you for a while.

I'm leaving in a few days.

I'll come see you as soon as I'm back.

Okay, that's good.

That's good.

Miss Price, would you tell us what you saw on the morning of October 29th?

I saw the Marsh girl.

Miss Clark, that is. Pardon me.

Get on the 9 o 'clock bus.

Well, you've got quite a good memory.

We all talked about it. We'd never seen her all cleaned up like that.

Hair combed, makeup.

Just to be clear, on the morning of October 29, you and several others

saw Miss Clark board the 9 a .m. bus and leave Barkley Cove.

Yes, that's right. Thank you, Miss Price.

No further questions, Your Honor? Miss Price, is the Piggly Wiggly open at 1

in the morning?

No, sir.

Well, the reason I ask is...

You couldn't have seen who got off the night bus from Greenville, nor could you

have seen who got on the 2 .30 a .m. bus from Barkley Cove back to Greenville,

could you?

Well, no, of course not.

So after you saw Ms. Clark board that morning bus to Greenville,

she could have returned to Barkley Cove that night and been back in Greenville

for breakfast all without you taking notice.

My name is Robert Foster.

I'm a senior editor at Harrison Morris Publishing Company in Boston,

Massachusetts. Mr. Foster, you sat down for dinner with Ms. Clark at 7 p .m. on

the night of October 29, correct?

Yes. What was your first impression of her?

My first impression was that she was very shy, very gentle, very smart.

I knew that she was something of a recluse, but I also knew that she was a

gifted naturalist. How long did that dinner go on? At least a few hours.

Some female insects do eat their mate.

Fireflies, in fact, have two different light signals, one for mating and one to

attract a male in order to make him our next meal. So she eats him? How

gruesome. Dear, I must spend less time with insects.

It's quite amoral.

Amoral indeed.

I don't know if there is a dark side to nature.

And when you met with Miss Clark the following morning, October 30th, was

anything unusual about her appearance or her demeanor?

Not at all.

Mr.

Foster, did Miss Clark stay at the same hotel as you and your colleague?

No. She preferred a smaller hotel, the Mountain.

Something. Could you look at this map of Greenville for me, please?

I think you'll see the Piedmont, where you and your colleague stayed, and then

the Three Mountains Hotel, where Ms. Clark stayed.

Could you tell me which one is closest to the bus station?

The Three Mountains Hotel is closer.

In fact, the Three Mountains is the closest hotel to the Greenville bus

Is that correct?

Looks that way.

No further questions.

I don't think a good lawyer ever puts their client on the stand, but this

help you.

For the jury to be able to hear from you directly, for them to be able to

see you as the kind and thoughtful person you truly are. They're never

see me like that.

Listen, I know you have a world of reasons to hate these people. No, I

hated them.

They hated me.

I mean, they laughed at me.

They left me.

They harassed me. They attacked me.

You want me to beg for my life?

I don't have it in me.

I won't.

I will not offer myself up so he can make their decision.

But they're not deciding anything about me.

It's them.

They're judging themselves.

All right, then.

Mr.

Milton, you have always been kind to me, even as a child.

His life was cut short by a jilted lover who could not accept that he had

returned to the fold.

A witness saw Ms. Clark and Chase in the marsh, heard her say the words, I'll

kill you.

And what's more is there's physical evidence from that night connecting

Fibers from her red wool cap left on his denim jacket.

Who else would have motive to take that shell necklace?

You can and you must find that the defendant is guilty of first -degree

murder.

Mr. Milton?

I have lived in Barkley Cove my whole life.

And like you, I heard the tall tales told about the Marsh Girl,

that she was part wolf, a missing link between ape and man,

that her eyes glowed in the dark.

Well, here she is.

The reality is that she was an abandoned child.

A little girl surviving out there in the marsh on her own, reviled and

shunned.

Mr. James Madison and his wife, Mabel, they are sitting here in the courtroom

today. They're about the only people in this town who showed her any care.

The rest of us.

Well, I'm ashamed to say that we labeled her and rejected her because we thought

she was different.

And now, the job of judging this shy and rejected young

woman has fallen on your shoulders.

But you must base your judgment on the facts presented in this courtroom and

on the rumors and feelings.

from the past 25 years.

Ms. Clark has a solid alibi.

She was in Greenville the night Chase Andrews died.

And what facts exactly stand against her?

The state has not proven that this incident was indeed a murder and not

some tragic accident.

The state wants you to believe.

that at 11 .30 at night, without a single witness seeing her, she caught

last bus from Greenville to Barclay Cove and rode that bus disguised, since

neither of the bus drivers that night could identify her as a passenger all

way back to Barclay Cove. And then, in less than an hour,

She tracks down Chase Andrews in the middle of the night, lures him to the

tower, murders him, wipes away all physical evidence, and somehow catches

.30 a .m. bus back to Greenville again without a single witness seeing her. And

after doing all that, she meets with her publishers the next morning,

unruffled. Now, these are not facts.

These are just more of the rumors.

and tall tales that we have been spreading about Miss Clark for her

I believe you will come to a judgment based on the facts and not the gossip

that you have heard for years.

It's time, at last, for all of us to be fair to the Marsh

Girl.

Maybe you should go home and do your weight in there. Six hours already.

How long do you think they'll take?

Well, let's hope they take a good long while.

If a few jurors have doubts, we've got a chance.

Mr. Foreman, is it correct that the jury has reached a verdict?

We have, Your Honor.

The defendant will please rise for the reading of the verdict.

We,

the

jury, find the defendant, Catherine Danielle Clark, not guilty of

first -degree murder.

Mr. Chase Andrews.

Miss Clark, you are free to go.

And I apologize on behalf of the state for the time that you have served.

This court is dismissed.

Just forget about this nonsense.

We're looking forward to the next book.

Now I can finally admit, all the months in isolation, yearning to be back in

the marsh, it was knowing how much was left to explore, how much life to

in the wild that kept me going.

And the hope, always that hope, that one day I could share it.

with the only person I had ever truly loved.

You know I love you, right?

What? Will you, uh... Sorry.

I'm sorry.

Will you marry me?

I mean, do you want to?

Well, aren't we already?

Like this?

I can live with that, I guess.

We loved you so much.

Look at that.

See that up there?

I hope when it is time for me to leave, I will go quick and easy without making

too much noise.

Kaya? Kaya!

It has always been enough to be part of the natural sequence of things.

Sure as the tides.

Nature my guide.

The marsh knows all about death.

And doesn't necessarily define it as tragedy.

Certainly not a sin.

It understands that every creature does.

what it must to survive.

And that sometimes, for prey to live, its predator must die.

I am the marsh now.

I am the feather of an egret.

I am every shell washed upon the shore.

I am a firefly.

You'll see hundreds beckoning far into the dark reaches of the marsh.

And that's where you will always find me.

Way out yonder, where the crawdads sing.

Thought I was born, lonesome I came, lonesome I'll always

stay.

Carolina knows why for years I'm

wrong. Free as these birds, light as whispers.

Never did see me here And see then my

dreams Into the mist, into the clouds

Don't leave, I'll make a fist I'll

make it count

On the dress she lived In pellicle scars,

pivotal marks Blue as the light she fled

Don't leave.

I'll make a fix.

I'll make it count.

And there are places I will never, ever go.

No.