Previously…
– Brent discovered a clue that Dr. Longo had not died by suicide but had been murdered.
– After Zane crashed the car, Tori escaped from him and, in spite of her injuries, made it to a gas station, where she called her parents.
– Zane lost control of the damaged vehicle and collided with Landon’s car, in which Diane and Samantha were passengers.

Sarah Fisher Gray is already fighting tears as she shoulder-checks the swinging door to get into the gas station’s mini-mart. Her gaze darts around wildly, finding racks of candy bars and chips, as well as an entire wall of refrigerated drinks. Panic pulses inside her with every foot of the shop she sees, until she swings around to look behind the counter and–

“Tori!” she exclaims. Her daughter is sitting on the floor against the wall, knees to her chest. She wears a soiled white dress and has the beginnings of at least one nasty bruise on her bare forearm. But she is alive. 

“Kid. We’re here,” Matt says from just behind Sarah, and the two race behind the counter. Tori looks up at them with frightened eyes, as if not actually believing that they are here. 

The heavily bearded clerk stands back respectfully, only commenting in a rough voice, “911’s on the way.”

“Thank you,” Matt tells him, and then he and Sarah are kneeling in front of Tori.

“We’re here,” Sarah says. “We’re here.”

“Mom… Dad…” Tori’s eyelids blink rapidly for several seconds, and then she bursts into tears and collapses against both of them.

The police and medics arrive within two or three minutes, amidst a flurry of light and noise. Seeing the state Tori is in, the police agree to take her statement after she has received medical care, so Sarah rides in the ambulance with her while Matt follows in his truck. While Tori is being treated, another torturous wait ensues, this time in the waiting room of the local hospital; having held Tori, having seen that she is alive, Sarah is reluctant to leave her side at all, but Matt convinces her that they need to let the doctors do their work.

While they are sitting in rigid chairs in the waiting room, Sarah’s phone rings. When she sees that it is Diane calling, she scrambles to pick it up.

“What do you mean, a car accident?” she asks in horror. Matt’s head snaps up to look at Sarah, wide-eyed.

Moments later, Diane is emerging from the treatment area, looking a little banged-up and disheveled but otherwise all right.

“Thank god you’re okay,” Sarah says as she throws her arms around her friend.

“I’m fine,” Diane replies stoically, but her tone and expression say that she is anything but fine.

“What about Sam?” Matt asks. “And Landon? Where are they?”

Diane swallows the lump in her throat as she stares back at them, gathering her strength to answer.

—–

“Does that feel okay?” the doctor, a woman in her 50s with once-blonde hair that is rapidly turning gray, asks.

“I guess.” Tori winces slightly as the doctor adjusts the sling on her right arm. “I’m still a little…”

The doctor offers a warm, reassuring smile. “What you need is rest. Ibuprofen will be your friend for a few days. And I know the sling might feel like it’s in your way, but keeping that shoulder immobilized as much as you can for the next week will do wonders.”

“Thanks.” Tori does her best to smile in return, but she isn’t so sure that it comes off as intended. Truth be told, all she wants is to rip off this horrible white dress, stuff it into a trash can, and take a scalding hot shower. 

“And Tori…” The doctor leans forward conspiratorially. “I know you told the police officers that there was no need to run a sexual assault exam, but if you do feel you’d like one…”

Tori shakes her head. “No. There isn’t any need. I swear.”

“Okay.” The doctor flattens her lips into a line and nods. “Then you’re all set. Make sure you see your doctor at home seven to ten days from now.”

“I will. Thanks.”

Relieved — and she isn’t certain why, because leaving this room hardly means that she will be able to shake off what she has been through — Tori slides off the exam table and moves through the door, which the doctor has held open for her. In the hallway, Tori mutters another thank you, and the doctor wishes her well, and they go separate ways.

She feels steadier on her feet than she felt back at the gas station, and she is able to follow the signage back toward the waiting area, which seems like a good thing. However, she is all too aware of the eyeballs scanning her at every turn, looking at this mess of a girl in a disgusting wedding dress with a sling on her arm. It causes her to pick up her pace, simply wanting to get back to her parents and away from anyone unfamiliar–

Until she passes the room with the open door. 

She wasn’t even looking for him. She was just checking every corner and strange space, eyeing any potential threats, and there he was — is — lying in the bed. Her brain tells her to keep moving, but her feet seem to have a mind of their own. They lead her right to the doorway.

“You’re alive,” she says. 

The handcuffs clang against the bed as Zane turns to look at her.

—–

“Thanks again for the update, Mom. We’re all really happy to hear that,” Molly Taylor says into her phone. With a colossal sigh of relief, she ends the call. 

Her teenage sons stand anxiously at the edge of the living room.

“Was that about Tori?” Christian asks.

“She’s okay, right?” Caleb jumps in.

Molly nods her head very deliberately. “She’s okay. She somehow got away from Zane and got herself to a gas station. Sarah and Matt are with her at the hospital now, but it sounds like she’s going to be fine.”

Christian throws back his head and exhales. “Oh, thank god!”

“I knew that dude was a psycho,” Caleb says. “There was always something sus about him.”

“He didn’t exactly come into our lives under the best of circumstances,” Molly says, recalling her and Sarah’s initial realization that Zane was blackmailing them with the footage of Paula shooting Philip dead, “but I can’t believe that it went this far.”

As the three of them process the news that Tori really is safe again, the doorbell rings. Christian, who is standing nearest to the entryway, darts toward it and looks through the glass panel beside the door.

“It’s Dad,” he says as he unlocks and opens the door.

Brent enters the house as if propelled by a rocket, or at least a lot of caffeine. “Hey, guys. Hey, Mol. I need to–“

“Is this about Tori?” Molly asks. “I just spoke to my mom.”

“Sounds like she’s going to be fine,” Brent replies. “But no, something else actually came up, and…” He glances toward their sons, and Molly recognizes the internal debate over whether to say something in front of them or not.

“We can step into the kitchen if you’d like,” she offers.

“No, it’s fine. You boys are going to hear this anyway.”

Molly’s stomach tightens. She can’t quite read his expression or body language, but she can tell that he is holding back something significant.

“Brent, what’s going on?” she asks nervously.

“It’s about Dr. Longo.”

“I thought he was dead,” Caleb says.

“He is,” Brent explains. “But that’s the thing: I was going over the info from the crime scene, and I don’t think Longo killed himself.”

“What?” Molly exclaims in shock. “What do you mean?”

“I think someone staged it to look like a suicide,” Brent says. “And I have a pretty good idea who.”

—–

In the waiting area of the hospital near Mount Hood, Sarah and Matt await Diane’s response with bated breath.

“Landon was conscious the whole time,” Diane says. “He’s being checked out now, but he seemed okay, relatively speaking.”

When she doesn’t immediately follow up with more information, Sarah urges, “And what about Samantha?”

Diane shakes her head. “I don’t know. She lost consciousness at the site. I rode here in the ambulance with her — they said it looked like a head injury, but I haven’t heard anything else…”

“Jesus,” Matt says, swiping a hand over his tired eyes. Then he seems to catch himself and adds, “She’s gonna be fine.”

“I’d like to think so,” Diane says, “but we don’t know that. And it’s all my fault.”

“This is Zane’s fault,” Sarah says firmly. “He’s the one who set this all in motion. He’s the one who was speeding in a car that was clearly not in any shape to be driven.”

“But I’m the one who let Sam come out here at all,” Diane interjects. “I should have told her and Landon to stay put back in King’s Bay.”

“You wanted to help,” Matt says. 

Diane continues with a full head of steam: “Who did I think we were? The Avengers?”

Sarah places a comforting hand on her friend’s back. “Let’s see what the doctors say. Samantha is strong.”

“Yeah, she’s put up with me all these years,” Diane says ruefully. “If she isn’t okay–“

“Don’t even say that,” Matt tells her. “Sam’s gonna be fine. I know it. And that bastard Zane is gonna pay for what he’s done to our girls.”

—–

Tori and Zane remain frozen in a locked stare for what feels like an eternity. Even the adrenaline flowing through Tori’s veins, as well as the pure rage she feels at seeing this man, cannot get her to form words or move.

“Are you okay?” Zane asks. “Your arm–“

“Oh my god,” she responds, almost involuntarily. And that opens the floodgates. “Are you serious? You can drop the bullshit. It’s all out in the open now–“

“This is all a huge misunderstanding,” he says, and it appears as if it costs him an incredible amount of energy to speak. Tori wonders just how grave his injuries are.

“What’s the misunderstanding? Did you not put a tracker on my car? Did you not tie me up and drive me all the way out here and then freak out when the police sent out an alert and kidnap me at knifepoint? What part am I misunderstanding, Zane?”

He is silent again for a long moment. “Tori. I love you,” he finally says.

“You don’t even know what love is.” 

“That isn’t true. Everything I’ve done — I did it for us, because they didn’t want us to–“

“Shut up!” she shrieks. “Shut up! I can’t believe I ever fell for your toxic bullshit.”

He sets his jaw, and Tori can see genuine emotion in his eyes. But now she realizes that what she has been interpreting all this time as vulnerability is actually something more sinister. It’s all a part of his manipulation. Maybe he even believes it himself — but now she knows exactly what it is.

“I’m going to make this up to you,” he says.

“You are never going to come near me again,” she spits.

“Don’t say that.”  

“I mean it, Zane. You’re going to prison. For a long time.”

“Like hell I am.” He grits his teeth in a way that reads as incredibly ominous. “I’m not going to stop fighting for you, Tori. I will never stop fighting for you.”

A chill courses through her veins. She finds herself scanning the room desperately. But there are no scissors or syringes lying around.

Then she sees it, sitting on a worn, upholstered chair by the window: a power cable. She can’t tell what it is intended to power, but right now, it is lying there  unused, loosely coiled. Her brain tells her to walk over there and pick it up. Pull it taut between her hands. Press it against Zane’s throat. He’s handcuffed to the bed — he wouldn’t be able to get away. Finally, he would no longer be a threat.

Her feet begin to carry her over to the chair.

—–

Claire Fisher drops her purse on the floor beside the front door of her ex-husband‘s house. 

“No word yet?” she asks.

“I haven’t heard from Diane in half-an-hour or so, no,” Tim says wearily. 

“That means they’re still treating her, and that’s a good thing.”

TIm’s shoulders sag with worry. “I’d like to believe that.”

“Believe me,” she says. “I only wish they were at the hospital here so that I could get in there and find out exactly what’s going on.”

“That would be nice.” Tim begins to lead her into the living room. A TV news broadcast drones on in the background. “Can I get you something to drink? Water? A very strong drink?”

“I’m okay, but thanks. And please, get yourself that drink if you need it. I know you must be worried sick about Sam.”

“Beyond.” He picks up a pint glass half-full of beer from the coffee table. “And I’m already on top of the drink thing — but I should probably stop, in case I have to drive to Mount Hood tonight.”

“I can drive us there right now if you’d like,” Claire says. “I’ll get my keys–“

“No, Diane asked me to stick around here for a while in case there’s anything that needs to be brought out there once Sam is… once we have more info. But thank you.”

“Okay. Just say the word, though.” Claire takes a seat on the large, beige sectional sofa. “And I hear Sonja and TJ are safely hidden away.”

“For the time being, yeah,” Tim says. “I’m sorry I didn’t give you a heads-up that we were going. I don’t want you to think–“

“It’s okay. I promise.”

“I just don’t want you to think I’m not grateful for all your help in tracking them down,” he continues. “I wouldn’t even know about TJ if not for you.”

“You can chalk that up to chance more than anything. But I’m really glad you were able to find them and bring them back. And that they’re safe.”

Tim takes a contemplative sip of the beer. “We can’t keep them locked up in a safehouse forever. It isn’t fair to either of them. And, selfishly, I want some real time with my son.”

“Of course you do,” Claire says, reaching over to place her hand over his. Tim looks down at their hands and then meets her gaze; Claire feels the same spark of connection that she felt when they first met, all those years ago. 

The moment lingers for what suddenly feels like too long, and Claire abruptly pulls her hand away.

“You’re going to have a lot of time with TJ as soon as we get this all resolved,” she tells him. “And you have plenty of time ahead with Samantha, too. She’s going to pull through this just fine.”

“I hope to God that you’re right,” Tim says as he places the beer glass back on the table.

—–

The pace of Tori’s footsteps increases as she approaches the chair where a cable rests, ready to be put to use. 

“Tori,” Zane says from the hospital bed. “Do you hear me?”

“Mm-hmm,” she murmurs as she picks up the cable, suddenly quite aware of how constrained she is by the sling.

“What are you doing?” he asks, and she can hear how strained his voice is.

This won’t even be that hard, a voice inside her head whispers.

She turns around and passes the cable into her hand that is currently elevated by the sling. Then she grabs the other end with her free hand and pulls it tight.

“Tori,” Zane says, alarm mounting in his tone. “What are you–“

“You can’t be in here, ma’am,” a voice says from the hallway, and Tori quickly drops the cable back to the chair as she looks over to see a nurse in blue scrubs standing there. 

“He’s, um– He’s my fiancé.”

“This man is under police custody. He can’t have visitors.”

“Oh. Okay. Sorry.” She shuffles quickly toward the exit. But she casts one last look back at Zane, who is still exhibiting palpable terror, his neck lifted a few inches off his pillow.

Good, she thinks as she leaves the room.

—–

“There were no fingerprints on the keyboard?” Molly asks. She, Brent, and the twins are all seated in the living room now, as he finishes recounting his discovery about the crime scene in Dr. Longo’s office.

“Nothing,” Brent replies. He claps his hands down on the tops of his legs. “It makes zero sense unless someone wiped it down after the message was typed.”

“And the doctor wouldn’t do that,” Christian says. He leans forward eagerly on the couch. “You really think someone killed him?!”

Brent looks over uneasily, then says in a measured tone, “Everything we talk about here stays here. Okay? No telling anyone — or gossiping with Bree–“

“Bree is my best friend!” Christian says.

“She’s also Natalie‘s daughter, and Natalie’s mother-in-law is Loretta Ragan,” Brent says.

“What does that crazy old bi– lady have to do with this?” Caleb asks.

Brent and Molly exchange a cautious look. He gives her a subtle nod, indicating that she can proceed.

“Your cousin Elly came to see us with some, um, information on Loretta,” Molly explains. “Your father and I don’t quite understand how all the pieces fit together yet, but…”

“Does this mean you’re going to get your job back?” Christian asks. “If those charges get dropped?”

“I don’t know,” Molly admits somberly. 

“So Loretta’s screwing with you guys because you killed Philip,” Caleb says. “What about the part where he killed, like, five people?”

“The woman is insane. Logic doesn’t matter,” Brent says. “What’s important is that, for the first time, we’re ahead of her. She doesn’t know what we know. That’s why none of this can leave this room.”

“Dad,” Christian says with mounting excitement, “if you can prove that Loretta killed that doctor…”

“…then we might finally have her,” Molly finishes for him. “After all this time, and all this misery, we could all finally be safe from that monster.”

—–

Sarah, Matt, and Diane seat themselves in chairs as they wait tensely for updates. When Tori emerges from the corridor, all three leap to their feet again. 

“What did the doctor say?” Sarah asks.

“I’m fine. I promise,” Tori says, nevertheless still shaky from her encounter with Zane. “My shoulder is dislocated, that’s all.”

“You’re doing nothing but resting the minute we get home,” Matt says. “Billy’s gonna be really excited to see you.”

Tori is about to respond when she sees Diane hanging back.

“Diane? What are you doing here?” she asks.

“I, um, I came out here to help,” Diane says, brushing a piece of her highlighted bangs out of her eyes.

“Oh. Thank you.” But Tori can tell that there is something the three adults aren’t telling her. “What’s going on?”

“What do you mean?” Sarah asks.

“Mom, Diane’s here and you’re all acting weird,” Tori presses. “What’s up?”

“That’s what I’ve been wondering,” another voice says, and all three turn to see Landon Esco entering the waiting area. Despite the beginnings of a black eye, he seems to be walking steadily, albeit with a slight limp.

“Landon?” Tori says in shock. “What are you–“

“I came out here to try and help,” he explains as he hurries toward them as best he can. “Are you okay?!”

“I’m fine, yeah.” Again Tori searches her parents’ face for answers. “What aren’t you all telling me? What happened to you, Landon?”

He takes a deep breath. “It was Zane — he was speeding away in your car, and he swerved and hit my car–“

“Oh my god.” Tori covers her mouth with her free hand before turning to Diane. “Were you with him?”

Diane offers a tight nod in response.

“I can’t believe you came,” Tori tells Landon, “after what I said to you — and after–“

“I’m sorry about Fee,” he says, nearly breathless. “That was a whole — I’m sorry. I swear, it wasn’t what it looked like.”

“I believe you,” she says, with such ease that she surprises herself. Finding Fee C. at his apartment seems so irrelevant now, like it happened in another lifetime. “You were right, Landon. You were all right about Zane.”

Before any of them can form a response, however, a male, Chinese doctor in a white coat steps into the area. Diane’s focus goes straight to him.

“Do you have news on my daughter?” she demands.

“Okay, what’s going on?” Tori asks again. “Samantha’s here?”

The doctor looks back at the group uneasily.

“Doctor,” Diane says more forcefully. “Spit it out. How is my daughter?”

END OF EPISODE 1131

Will kind of news will Samantha’s loved ones receive?
Would Tori have harmed Zane if she weren’t interrupted?
Are Brent and Molly about to take down Loretta?
Discuss it all in the comments section below!

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