Working in the city, David Mercer and Sarah Mercer entrust their daughter, Lucy Mercer, to David's mother, Patricia Mercer, in the countryside, where Lucy also lives with her uncle, Caleb Mercer. Favoring boys over girls, Patricia ruthlessly abuses Lucy. She starves, freezes, and beats her, stops her from contacting her parents, and spends her living allowance on a lavish birthday for her grandson, Ethan Mercer. Once, Lucy is locked out, freezes, and catches a high fever. Patricia refuses medical care, resulting in Lucy's tragic death. Afterward, Patricia and Caleb attempt to destroy the evidence, frame a neighbor, and bribe the village doctor, but a doctor from the city exposes the truth. Heartbroken, David cuts his mother off. Filled with endless guilt over their daughter, he and his wife leave the heartbreaking place.