Sacred Ground

The story unfolds in 1861, a year marked by westward expansion and shifting loyalties on the American frontier. Travel is arduous, communities are fractured, and encounters between settlers and Native peoples are charged with tension. Life hinges on improvisation and endurance as seasons, scarcity, and danger dictate daily choices.

Set along the rugged Great Divide, a remote corridor through the Rocky Mountains, the landscape is harsh with snow, rivers, and abandoned cabins. The area acts as a frontier crossroads where travelers must contend with prejudice, wildlife, and the ever-present risk of conflict. Isolation and grit define life here, shaping how people survive and relate to one another.

🗺️ Displacement

Ostracized by both white and Native communities, Matt and Little Doe are driven from their original path in search of a new home. The frontier forces them to redefine belonging while navigating suspicion and threat from outsiders. Their journey underscores how belonging on the edge of civilization is fragile and precarious.

🏞️ Sacred Ground

The couple unknowingly settles on what Paiute people consider sacred burial ground, elevating the stakes of every decision. The impending spiritual weight surrounding Little Doe and her unborn child intensifies the conflict. Destruction of the cabin becomes a ernis of cultural desecration and the living consequences of disrespecting sacred land.

👶 Motherhood and Loss

Little Doe's pregnancy anchors the human cost of frontier violence, culminating in her death during childbirth. Matt's desperate attempt to protect both wife and newborn highlights the limits and strengths of paternal devotion under siege. The narrative uses motherhood to probe resilience, grief, and the fragility of new life amid conflict.