Previously…
– After the apparent death of their baby, Molly and Brent each retreated into their pain.
– Elly helped get the charges against Molly for attacking Dr. Longo reduced to a misdemeanor.
– Spencer noticed text messages from Elly on Loretta’s phone and decided to follow his mother to learn if she was meeting with Elly in secret.

The darkness of night acts as a shroud for Spencer Ragan as he sits in his Tesla outside the King’s Bay Metropolitan Inn. At his home, he made the choice to head out out of his driveway and toward the main thoroughfare nearby, and he was relieved when he caught up with Loretta and was able to tail her here. He parked at a safe distance while still maintaining a vantage point of the hotel’s entrance, and he watched as Loretta went inside. Minutes later, Elly arrived in a black trench coat and entered the hotel as well. He hadn’t fully expected to find her here — as if he hoped the messages she’d sent to Loretta’s secret, second phone might not have been real, or it could all be a big misunderstanding — but actually seeing her go inside made it all painfully real. He sat for minutes longer, feeling as if he had been hit in the stomach with a sack full of bricks, and then called the front desk to see if he could bamboozle someone into giving him the number of whatever room they might be meeting in. When that proved unsuccessful, he remained in the driver’s seat, with the lights off and his right leg shaking anxiously.

Finally, after what must be a full half-hour — 36 minutes, he ascertains when he checks the clock — Loretta emerges from the hotel. Spencer sits up straighter, watching intently through the dark as she makes her way back to the black Mercedes, gets in, and starts the engine. His breath catches for a split-second when her headlights flash on, as if they might expose him, but the logical part of him knows that he is nowhere in their path. Regardless, within seconds, Loretta has pulled out of her parking space and is headed away from the hotel.

More minutes pass. He contemplates getting out of the car and going to wait by the hotel entrance, but he doesn’t want to open himself to being spotted any more than is necessary. His mind wanders through possibilities: did Elly decide to spend the night here? Why? Or what if — what if Loretta did something to her? 

He can’t believe he hadn’t considered that chilling possibility. He decides to call Elly, just to see if she is okay, but before he can place the call, he sees her walk out of the hotel.

With adrenaline pumping through his body, he releases the parking brake and eases the car toward Elly, who is walking back to her own vehicle. He slows to a stop as he pulls up alongside her and rolls down the window.

“Funny running into you here,” he says.

Caught off-guard, she nearly jumps out of her skin. 

“Spencer?” she asks, confused, before taking on an angrier tone. “What the hell? What are you doing?”

“That’s kind of what I want to ask you.” 

Her head looks left and then right in rapid succession. She folds her arms. “What do you mean?”

“I mean, why are you taking secret meetings with my mother?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” she snaps, but her eyes flicker in a way that betrays her.

He thinks carefully about how to word his response. After a pause, he says, “You know what I’m talking about.”

“You’re literally stalking me, Spencer. This is nuts.”

“I didn’t follow you. I followed Loretta.” He figures that a technical truth is the way to go here. “But imagine my surprise when you turned up, too.”

Framed by the passenger-side window, she glares at him, then does another nervous scan of the parking lot. 

“We shouldn’t be talking,” she says.

“And that’s the question I want an answer to. Why not?”

“Spencer…”

“Are you actually conspiring with my mother? Is that it?” he asks, his voice taking on a ragged edge. “Was that whole thing about her blackmailing you even true? Or was it bullshit?”

Her only response is a stony stare.

“The jig is up, Elly,” he says. 

—–

“Thanks for coming on such short notice,” Molly Taylor says as she stands in her kitchen, watching as her ex-husband lies on his back, with the upper half of his body wedged into the cabinet beneath the kitchen sink. “You really didn’t have to.”

“I wasn’t doing anything tonight, anyway,” Brent responds while turning a wrench to tighten a section of pipe. “Besides, if this leak gets any worse, it’s gonna be a much bigger pain to fix.”

“Well, I appreciate it.” 

She lingers nearby, with one hip propped against the countertop, as Brent finishes his repairs. Soon he is pulling himself out from under the sink, groaning as he does so. 

“Here,” Molly says, instinctively reaching for his hand. As adept as Brent has become at navigating the world with a prosthetic leg, she can tell when his balance isn’t perfectly solid.

“Thanks,” he says. Molly helps him to his feet. “Now let’s make sure this works.”

He turns the handle, and after a hiccup filled with chug-chug-chug noises, the faucet sputters to life. 

“There we go,” he proclaims, but as soon as he stoops down to look beneath the sink, water shoots out of the space that connects two sections of piping. It fires out, hitting him in the face and neck, and Molly squeals and reaches for him.

“Get a towel!” Brent yells. Molly grabs a dish towel that is hanging on the oven door and thrusts it toward him. Quickly he uses it to cover the leak. 

“Okay, can you hold this in place? I think I need to tighten that,” he says, lowering himself onto his knees. Molly wedges herself between him and the cabinet door in order to press the rapidly dampening towel up against the pipe.

Brent picks up the wrench and gets back to work.

“Sorry,” he says as his arm bumps against her, pushing her even closer against the cabinet.

“It’s okay,” Molly replies, straining to keep the leak at bay without turning her body into a complete pretzel. 

“There.” Brent exhales loudly and sets down the wrench. Molly tentatively releases the towel and sees that no more water is spewing out. 

“You did it!” she says with a mixture of amazement and relief. 

“I told you I would. Even if I screwed up a little bit in there.” He chuckles. “Sorry about the mess.”

“Don’t worry about it.” She places the wet towel on the kitchen floor and slumps down, too. “Remember the first time this happened? Right when we bought the house?”

He takes a contemplative breath. “You mean when we both got completely drenched? See — this is progress! The only casualties this time were my shirt and that towel.”

Molly laughs. “I appreciate you taking the hit for me.”

“That’s what I’m here for.” He glances over toward her and grins but says nothing.

“What?”

“Nothing,” he says, but the tail end of the word hangs in the air. 

“Brent. What is it?”

“I was just imagining what would’ve happened if you’d been the one it hit!”

She gasps in mock outrage. “What’s that supposed to mean?!”

Through laughter, he says, “Don’t take this the wrong way, but you’re not exactly the get-your-hands-dirty type.”

“I am, too!” She picks up the nearby towel and swats it at him.

“Hey!” Brent shouts, still laughing as it thwacks against his chest. His hands just out to block her next attempt and wind up grabbing the towel — and her hand.

Time seems to slow down as they stop, surprised by the accidental contact, even while neither of them makes a move to break it. 

—–

Elly braces against the damp and cold as she looks at Spencer through the window of his Tesla.

“How dare you,” she spits. “You think I’d make something like that up?”

“Well, you’re still sneaking around and meeting up with her in secret,” Spencer replies. 

She leans forward and reduces her voice to a husky whisper. “Because she’s still blackmailing me, you idiot!”

“For what? Why?”

Her only response is silence, but it gives Spencer the opportunity to study her — really study her, her face, her body language. There is something genuine about it that tells him she is not lying. 

“What’s going on?” he presses.

“My uncle called me to help Molly when she got arrested,” Elly says. Although she leaves the end of the statement dangling, she does not continue.

Spencer turns it over in his head a few times before saying, “And Loretta doesn’t want you helping Molly because she hates her?”

Elly looks at him and widens her eyes, providing confirmation.

“This is fucking ridiculous,” Spencer says. “Not to, like, minimize shit — but is it that big a deal that you slept with some law firm partner while you were in school? Is that worth having to do Loretta’s bidding forever?”

She draws in a deep breath through her nostrils. “You don’t understand.”

“What don’t I understand? I’m trying. Why don’t I just try and talk some sense into her?”

“Sense? Her?”

“I’ll tell her I know about that Anatoli guy — take the wind out of her sails a little. Threaten to keep Peter from her if she doesn’t leave you alone. That should do it, you think?”

Arms still folded, Elly again gazes around the parking lot — then grabs the door handle and lowers herself into the passenger seat.

“Drive,” she says.

—–

Molly and Brent stare into each other’s eyes for a charged moment that seems to last for minutes. Molly senses that Brent is about to speak, and she can feel the urge to say something bubbling up inside herself, too — but she has no idea what those words would be.

The sudden sound of the front door being opened jolts them out of the moment. They both slide backward, putting physical space between themselves.

“Mom?” Christian’s voice calls out. Seconds later, the teenager appears in the kitchen and takes in the sight of both his parents sitting on the floor.

“Uh, what’s going on?” he asks, confused.

“The sink was leaking,” Molly explains as she pulls herself to her feet. “Your dad was nice enough to come over and fix it.”

Brent steadies himself against the counter as he, too, stands. Molly suppresses the urge to reach out and help him again, though she isn’t quite sure why.

“Fixed it without making too much of a mess,” Brent says, indicating his wet shirt. “Except of myself.”

Christian eyes them suspiciously. “Cool.”

“How was play rehearsal?” Molly asks. She feels the strange need to cover up whatever was happening between her and Brent — despite the fact that nothing was actually happening. 

“It was good. Like, no one is ready to be off-book by next week, though,” Christian says.

“There are leftovers from dinner if you want a snack,” Molly tells him.

The teen shrugs. “I’m good. But thanks. I’m gonna go shower.”

“And I’m gonna head home and dry off,” Brent says, “but I’ll see you tomorrow after school, kiddo.”

“Sounds good, Dad.”

Christian disappears up the stairs, and Brent starts toward the front door. Molly follows him.

“Um, thanks again,” she says as they reach the door.

“My pleasure.” Brent reaches for the knob and opens the door, then stops and turns back. “And Mol…”

She waits. “Yeah?”

But he seems to choke on whatever he was going to say, and instead he fixes a genial smile on his face. “Nothing. Let me know if the sink gives you any more trouble.”

“I will. Thanks, Brent. Get home safely.”

He lets himself out of the house, and Molly locks the door behind him. She stands there, consumed by thoughts. She knows that she didn’t imagine that moment of electricity between them. But after everything that has happened, she doesn’t even know if Brent would want to pursue that again — nor does she think she could handle the rejection if he didn’t.

—–

“…so I started studying for the Washington bar,” Elly explains as Spencer directs the Tesla away from the hotel, “just to try and have a fresh start. But now she’s threatening any hope I’d have of a career here, too.”

Spencer glances over at her for a quick moment before refocusing on the road ahead. 

“Then why not just go back to California?” he asks. “Even if she leaked the info that you banged some partner while you were an intern — how do you think that’s gonna play in a post-#MeToo world?”

“It’s not that simple,” Elly says as she intently watches the scenery pass outside the passenger window.

“How is it not that simple? You fucked some dude who had power over you. If that’s not–“

“That’s not all,” she says with surprising firmness before shutting down again.

Spencer drives in quiet for several seconds. “What?”

“There’s other– other stuff.”

“Like…?” He waits, and when she doesn’t say more, he prompts her: “Elly. What the hell is going on?”

She hesitates again, then says, “This was stupid. Pull over.”

“What? No. I’m not leaving you on the side of the road–“

“We’re not that far from the hotel–“

“I’m not making you walk a mile in heels in the dark alone,” he says. Nevertheless, he slows the car, checks for oncoming traffic, and makes a three-point turn to reverse course. He can feel Elly’s gaze burning into him.

“She really hasn’t told you?” Elly asks tentatively.

“Told me? No. What?!”

“Spencer, this is…” She sighs. “Shit.”

“El. I want to help you. You helped me get custody of Peter — hell, you kept me from going to jail when you didn’t have to. If Loretta is doing something to you–“

“She is!”

“Then tell me. Let’s figure this out.”

“Why?” she asks, swiveling her head toward him. “Why are you doing this?”

“Because.” Now it is Spencer’s turn to let out a heavy breath. “You know why.”

“Do I?”

He looks over again, and her eyes meet his in a challenge. 

“My mother — Loretta, whatever — she’s hurt enough people. And she’s installed herself in my house and I can’t get rid of her,” he says. “So, yeah I care.”

Another agonizingly long moment passes.

“Spencer. This sucks,” Elly says. “The thing with Anatoli — it’s a lot worse.”

“How? Why?”

“I got pregnant with his baby.”

“Wait, what? Elly–“

“In the middle of his divorce. I…” 

She trails off, and Spencer looks over to see her focused out the window as trees pass by in the dark.

“What happened?” he asks. “Did you–?”

She begins to shake her head. Spencer sees the turn for the hotel parking lot and keeps driving.

“He made me get an abortion,” she says. 

Spencer feels his foot moving to the brake and wills it not to slam down.

“Elly! What the fuck?!” 

“I can’t believe I’m telling you this,” she says, sounding short of breath, “but I have no other friends here, and–“

“That’s not true.”

“Who do I have? Samantha? She’s Travis’s sister. He thinks I’m a mess, and he’s married now, and–“

“What about that dude you were with at brunch?”

“Who? What?”

“At 322. Sebastian? You introduced me,” he says with a caustic laugh.

She raises an eyebrow. “You were taking notes, huh?”

“No comment.” He grips the steering wheel even tighter. “So you can’t tell him about this?”

“What? No. No!”

Spencer hears the franticness in her tone and responds, “He made you get an abortion? That’s– Elly. What? I’m sorry.”

“I wasn’t even ready to have a kid,” she says, “but… you can’t tell anyone about this.”

“I won’t. But having an abortion isn’t something to be ashamed of, either. Definitely not something to let yourself be blackmailed over–“

“It’s not that,” Elly says.

Spencer waits for more as he directs the car back into the hotel’s lot. 

“Then what is it?” he finally asks.

“Anatoli. He–” She stops herself mid-thought and takes a few seconds before continuing. “He did me a favor to make sure I wouldn’t tell anyone. A favor.”

“What does that mean?”

“He somehow rigged my bar exam,” Elly says. “He had connections to the proctor — I don’t know. But he made sure I knew that I only passed because of him. If I speak up, I get disbarred for cheating. And if I don’t… he’s got this over my head, anyway. And Loretta found out–“

“How?”

“I don’t know. She’s Loretta. Now she’s using it to make me do her bidding however she can.”

“Jesus.” 

Spencer pulls the car into a parking space near where Elly’s car sits. He puts it into park but leaves the quiet engine running.

“And that’s why you want to pass the Washington bar,” he says.

“Except now your mother is onto that, too. I don’t know what to do, Spencer. As long as that woman is alive–“

“I’m going to help you.” Spencer shifts in his seat, rotating toward her. “I promise. Okay? I’m going to help you get out of this.”

END OF EPISODE 1104

Can Spencer help Elly turn the tables on Loretta?
What will it take for Molly and Brent to reunite?
Discuss all this and more in the comments below!

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