Plot
Lynette, a woman with multiple jobs (including escorting), is trying to keep her Portland childhood home for herself, her mother Doreen, and her older brother, Kenny, who has Down syndrome. On the day Lynette and Doreen are to sign to secure their house at the bank, Doreen is a no-show. Arriving home, Lynette discovers Doreen spent the $25,000 meant for the down payment on a new car.
Distraught and desperate, Lynette contacts former client Scott, skipping work at the bar to meet him. He refuses to loan her the money, but she sleeps with him anyway. Afterwards, Scott doubles her usual $500 as a definitive goodbye. Scott accidentally leaves his car keys behind, so Lynette impulsively takes his Mercedes. He calls and leaves increasingly angry voicemails. She parks his car under a bridge in a panic, leaving it there with one door open at which time she then walks back to her car.
Lynette then unsuccessfully asks her friend Gloria, an escort and senator's mistress, for the $3,000 she owes her. Gloria reluctantly gives Lynette $500 from a safe. Coming across Cody, an ex-felon and co-worker from the bar, Lynette convinces him to take a look at the safe for $400.
Insisting it must be opened off-site, Cody asks for double. After driving across town, Cody's contact uses a sledgehammer on it. Inside is cash, Rolexes, and bags of cocaine. He threatens Lynette and she eventually confesses that the safe belongs to her friend. As the contact refuses to let her leave, she severely injures him with one of his tools.
Cody and Lynette escape to a diner and count the cash, which ends up being $6,000 short of what she needs. She decides to sell Scott's Mercedes and collect Kenny on the way. Once locating the car, Cody turns on Lynette, taking the bag with everything and the Mercedes' keys. Losing it, she impulsively hits him with her car, grabbing the bag, but leaving him the keys. Kenny is upset, but Lynette convinces him to come around after getting him pancakes and talking about how they need to stick together as family.
Lynette wakes her ex Tommy in the middle of the night to try to sell what she can from the bag to him. He tells Lynette that he does not have the cash to pay her that night, but has a contact that could buy the coke for $3,000. Lynette confronts him about pushing her into prostitution at 16, and Tommy tells her to never reach out to him again.
The buyer, Blake, lives in the suburbs and is holding a late night party. When he tries to force Lynette to have sex for part of the money, she hits him over the head and frantically searches everywhere for Kenny. She finds him, but everyone tries to hold her down when the injured Blake accuses her of robbing him. Lynette falls through a glass table and gets thrown out.
Lynette and Kenny arrive back home before sunrise. When Doreen confronts her, she explains she spent all night replacing the $25,000 her mother had spent yesterday. While removing glass from her daughter's back, Doreen insists she does not want the house, preferring to see it burn.
Lynette confronts her, upset she worked so hard for a house her mother did not want to keep. Doreen in turn lists Lynette's mistakes, including her past relationship with Tommy at 16. Lynette tearfully asks why she did not protect her against his abuse, when she needed her the most. Doreen coldly informs her she is moving with Kenny to Mona's.
David calls Lynette to tell her he went with another buyer offering more for the house, as he had given her family far too many chances. She climbs into bed with Kenny, telling him she has to go away for a while, but will visit later to see him. They profess their love for each other, and she goes.
Lynette leaves some cash and a note to Doreen, saying that she fought hard for their family, asking her to take care of Kenny, and insisting she will go on fighting.
