Silence is Golden

Episode 3.
November 4, 2024

The Residents of Muskrat Creek

Esther Field (Lindsey Walker) - elderly schoolmarm, who has taken a vow of silence
Lester Field (Randy Brososky) - her son, proprietor of Fields, the general store
Sylvester Field (Jason Hardwick) - her other son, town undertaker
Chester Field (Peter Brown) - her third son, misses the old Muskrat Creek
Cyrus Lane (Jesse Gervais) - broken hearted widower
Holden Strong (Joel Taras) - hard working miner
Major Julien Bullion (Cody Porter) - The Baron, coal miner, owner of Crooked Fang Saloon
Billy Minor (Ellie Heath) - his bartender with a heart of gold
Old Man Muskrat (Vince Forcier) - town eccentric
Alma Grass (Caley Suliak) - Abandoned maid, cleans the whole town
Lady Lou Quigley (Stephanie Wolfe)- Owner of Lady Lou’s Saloon

Director: Jake Tkaczyk
Music: Paul Morgan-Donald
Producer: Nicole Thibault
Synopsis: Jim Cej
Technical Magic: Olivia Bogaard

Act I

In a silent film , Sergeant Burnaby Benson pursues and captures The Mad Trapper.

Calliope visits a grave, saying goodbye. Sylvester watches her. He remembers every coffin that he made. Do you miss your mother? More than you’ll ever know. Sylvester is the last person that his own mother will see. Calliope hadn’t heard from Sylvester for so long. She thought that he’d forgotten what she told him. He thinks about her all the time. Her and his mother. It’s 49/51. They hold hands.

Esther has Cyrus’s gold and he is unable to speak. She does. His voice has been doing him a lot of favours, garnering him attention and respect. And sympathy. She needs his help. She needs him to tell people that she’s cool. And nice. They role play how she’s like to be perceived. She’s willing to trade one of the chocolatey treats in his bag for his gold. He can have his voice and no gold or his gold and no voice. She takes a chocolate.

In The Crooked Fang, Julian Bullion and Lester and Chester negotiate a deal for the general store. 15% of the proceeds. It’s usually 20%. Maybe you can do something for me. I hear that there been gold found on Cyrus’s claim. If they can find his homestead for The Baron, he can arrange nice surprise for Cyrus.

Sylvester and Holden have a stand off.

Burnaby knows that there is something going on with Esther’s strange gold and he’s determined to figure out what it is. What deals are being made? Do you know the devil? Burnaby knew a guy in Cincinnati that called himself the devil, but he was a jerk. The gold that he is so curious about, it makes people do evil things. It changes people. It has changed every person that it has touched. What about Julien Bullion? He touched to gold, and the gold cowers.

Julien touches the gold. He laughs.

Calliope waters her plants. Cyrus visits her. His voice is coming back. She asks if he was smoking in the bar. That’ll do it every time. He needs her advice. She has been in Muskrat Creek longer than anyone. He has a sickness. She can help with that. It’s gold. He’s sitting on a rich claim. That gold killed his wife and kids. So many kids. She has many plant based medicines, she can help. Guns. He needs guns. He knows her real story. Her heart is colder than marble. She has a secret cache of weapons, and leads Cyrus to it.

Back in The Crooked Fang, Julien, Lester and Chester must come to a decision. Chester will do whatever Julien wants. For less rent, he’ll have to do more for Julien. Ever since he laid hands on it, he has been having nightmares about a river of gold. Chester calls off the deal. They’ll give him little bit of gold to drive him over the edge. Lester can give him a little nudge, and Chester will do the rest. Julian warns them that if they don’t give him something he can use before the end of the day, one of therm won’t see tomorrow.

The stand off continues with Holden and Sylvester. They both have something to say to the other. Holden says that he has been holding a grudge against Sylvester ever since his aunt’s embarrassing funeral. But this is worse. He is disgusted with what he has heard about Sylvester and Calliope. She may have run away from Holden’s course embrace to Sylvester’s moist hands. It you can’t hold onto a woman, that’s on you, not me.

Burnaby needs answers from Julien. He’s talking to his gold nugget. He asks Burnaby if it is illegal to have a timber wolf fight a cougar. If he wasn’t around to see it, did it really happen? There’s something going on in town, and Burnaby thinks that Julien is behind it. He tells Burnaby that he might find something sniffing around Beelzebub’s Butthole.

Chester confronts this mother. He knows that she can talk. His brother squealed her out. What were you doing? She just didn’t want him to know. He always cares so much about things. He’s all “What can I do to help?”. He thought that he was her favourite boy, but now he’s angry. He’s 38 and it’s time he stood up for himself. He has fallen for her hi jinx enough times. He’s not going to take it any more. I’m going to say “Stop it.” He’s passed her test! He is now her second favourite son. What can I do to be your favourite? She says that in one of those houses out there has a really bad man inside. You’re going to find that bad man and murder him with a pickaxe.

Act II

After the town falls asleep, Sylvester sneaks home. His mother sees him come return. He’s old enough of to come home whenever he wants. And runs off to his room.

Burnaby is sneaking around and is approached by Chester with the pickaxe. Burnaby has been investigating something very mysterious. Chester offers his help.

Holden drowns his sorrow in Julien’s bar. Someone told him he’s not good with the ladies. Julien points out that he isn’t good with the ladies. Does he know how to show a woman what’s inside his heart. My blood? Holden shows Julien some of the gold that he’s been finding everywhere. Julien grabs the nugget. It’s the most pure gold that he’s ever seen. It has a strange glow… Julien keeps the nugget and threatens Holden.

Calliope shows Cyrus her hidden cache of weapons. She tells him to keep quiet. Lester reveals himself. He knew that she had a dark side, like himself. She takes off her kerchief and puts on her black hat. Lester gives Calliope a potion. Make sure that Julien drinks it. It won’t kill him, but it’ll increase what’s on his mind and drive him over the edge. Calliope has never hurt anyone, but she’s been preparing herself. Calliope makes Lester promise he won’t tell him about her. And she promises she won’t tell him about his plans.

Sylvester reveals what is in his heart to his mother. Death, decay, and Calliope. What are your intentions with her? He wants to take her on a picnic. He’s never been on a date before and it seems like a perfect first date. He wants to love her, but not as much as he loves his mother. She needs him to do something for her. Chester has gone rogue. He is going to kill someone. She needs him to oversee it. I need you to build a casket for Burnaby, and make sure that Chester goes through with killing him.

Calliope sees Holden from across the street. It’s awkward. He tells her that she looks good. He needs to open his heart to her and tell her how he feels. But there is blood in there! He became really cross with her when she dropped him like a sack of potatoes. There is someone else. Will you promise not to be cross with me? I won’t be cross with you, but I’ll be cross with him. It’s someone who builds caskets. I need to know what I could have done better. Calliope just couldn’t love Holden enough. I think it’s time that you see what you missed out on. I’ve been finding all this gold. I could have done things for you. Holden thinks they deserve each other. Thanks!

Burnaby investigates the shadow he saw earlier, and finds Lester and Cyrus leaving Calliope’s weapons cache. Cyrus easily finds where Burnaby and Chester hiding. Chester tells Cyrus that he’s been going where he shouldn’t be going. This town has been heartache and heartbreak since Cyrus found that gold. He tells Burnaby that Julien is planning on jumping his claim and should be arrested. Burnaby has nothing to arrest him for. You’re in his pocket!

The gold speaks to Julien. It distracts him from his conversation with Sylvester. He confesses to Sylvester that he doesn’t have any friends. Julien has to go, below into Beelzebub’s Butthole. If he stays in town, he’s going to do something that he’ll regret. Burnaby, Chester, and Cyrus arrive to arrest Julien. He’s taking him on conspiracy charges. Did you find a body? Cyrus tells Julien that he smells of death. Julien says that they need to have a conversation about what’s going to happen.

2 hours later, they’re still there. We’ve covered this all already! Julien knows that Cyrus knows the pull that the gold has on some people. While Cyrus tells them what he’s experienced, Julien sneaks behind them and pulls out a gun. Shots are fired.

Esther visits Lester at his store and is critical about how he’s running things. She tells him that he can leave town at any time and it won’t change how she feels., but he never asks how she feels about him. Esther would like to know what else he was up to when he was away. He was hired by a dangerous man, the one you sold he to. He taught me to do terrible things to people. Every time he inflicted pain, he saw her face. He’s not proud of that. But she is. He became the kind of person she always wanted him to be. She’s glad that he’s back. He can have the life he wants after be does one more thing. They look out over the town. There is a man that lives in one of those houses… But there are men in all of those houses. Choose one. They hear shots.

Photos by Janna Hove