EPISODE 183
Written by: Bre L. Drew
May 9, 2022
Last Time On Town and Country
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Two years ago, Peter Saunders passed away as a result of a massive heart attack.
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Deirdre is hiding her role in the collision that left Emma in a coma.
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Ernest is still investigating the collision while he and Thora are dealing with their marital issues.
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Jordan made a breakthrough in therapy regarding her postpartum depression.
FRANKLIN FARM: MAIN HOUSE
Walking downstairs into the living room inside the main house on Franklin Farm this morning, Sarah Lynn Saunders strolls toward several framed photos that were occupying the mantel space. Though her eyes skim over all of them, it is one that specifically catches her attention as she grasps the specific one.
At first, she did her best not to get emotional, but she couldn't help glancing down at herself and Peter on the couch in this very space over forty years ago. The photo was taken by Peter's mother, Rosemary, on the day they brought Louise home from the hospital after she was born. The infant was in her arms, sleeping peacefully.
Sarah Lynn couldn't help but think of her husband on a day like this, since today marks their forty-eighth wedding anniversary. And it has been two years since he passed away.
"It still doesn't feel real that you're gone," she says to herself,
She still remembers that horrible day when her life changed forever and how the grief was so unbearable that she nearly lost her mind.
"It looks like we were in the same mindset,"
Sarah Lynn turns around to see her sister-in-law coming down the stairs.
Making her way to her late brother's widow, Esther Saunders places a supportive arm around her.
"It still doesn't feel like he is gone from me either. There are days when I want to talk to him, but it hits me that he isn't there." Esther relays her feelings to Sarah Lynn. "I know our relationship can never compare to what you two had."
Sarah Lynn puts the picture back onto the mantel.
"Peter loved you too, Esther. You were his big sister, whom he looked up to since he was a little boy. He once told me he admired you so much for the way you used to stand up to Jimmy."
Esther chuckles, reflecting on how she was able to tell her father when he was wrong—something he never took well. It makes her think of his affair with Deirdre all those years ago, and she possesses the handwritten letter Dee wrote to him to end their affair. She is relieved that no one else has to know the truth since she was told by Deirdre that Emma wasn't her father's child, knowing if she was the product of their time together, the damage it would do to both families.
"Hey, is there something on your mind?" Sarah Lynn queries why Esther seemed to have drifted off somewhere else.
Esther shakes her head. "Nothing important, we better get going."
Sarah Lynn does her best not to let her nerves get to her since they're heading to the cemetery. It is the first time she's been since Peter's funeral.
LOCKHART LAKE COTTAGE
"Lenny, we're leaving in five," Louise Saunders Lockhart calls out downstairs in the Lockhart family residence.
"I'm coming!" the blonde fraternal twin daughter announces from upstairs.
Meanwhile, Tanner Lockhart strolls downstairs in a black jacket with shiny shield buttons on the front, blue jeans, and her purse draped on her shoulder.
"I'm so happy your home," Louise tells her brunette fraternal twin daughter.
"Me too," Tanner replies, "Although I have tons of laundry to do."
Louise puts a reassuring hand on her daughter's arm. "Well, that can wait for later. But today, we honor your grandfather. He would've been so proud of you for doing so well in school."
Tanner received straight A's this semester in college.
"I miss him," Tanner declares.
Louise tucks a strand of her hair behind her right ear. "I do too."
Despite it being years after his death, the grief still has a hold on the family.
Louise decides to change the topic of the conversation.
"I hear Presley McKnight is back in town,"
"Yes, I've seen him around a few times."
Tanner had run into the reverend twice since he'd been back in Radcliffe.
"I hear it's possibly more between the two of you than friendship," Lynn says while coming down the staircase.
Both of her twin daughters give Louise a look of bafflement. "What does that mean?"
"Meaning she's been probably talking to Aaliyah, who thinks he likes me. But like I told her, and what I'm going to tell you two, he doesn't see me that way."
Both Louise and Lynn exchange glances of disagreement.
Lynn moves next to her sister. "Anyone would be better than Tommy, even if he does, unfortunately, share the same bloodline as Jordan."
Tanner raises both arms to demonstrate a cease-fire. "Presley and I are just friends, okay, so let's drop it, and anyway, you two are the ones with the healthy love lives."
Tanner does admit she has befriended Presley since he returned, but she isn't in a place right now to start dating again knowing the last time Tommy not only broke her heart but conceived a child behind her back.
Louise observes that there's more going on, but she is reminded of the importance of the day when she looks down at her Apple watch on her wrist.
"We better get going."
RADCLIFFE RECEIVING HOSPITAL
Daniel Covington accompanies his mother inside his sister's hospital room. Where the two see a tall female nurse with a long brown ponytail update her medical chart.
"Has there been any change?" Deirdre Covington asks the nurse in a hopeful tone.
"No, but sometimes that's a good thing; her vitals are still strong." the nurse informs them.
"Thank you," Daniel says respectfully.
The nurse makes her way out of the room, leaving the two there.
The more time she's been in a coma, the more Deirdre is full of regret and sadness. She knows that her actions in trying to rid Will Jackson out of her life landed her here in this bed, immobilized for the foreseeable future.
"She looks so peaceful, doesn't she?" Deirdre says while she takes a seat in the chair by her bedside.
Daniel remains standing beside his mother, looking at his sister.
"I remember when she was little, and she couldn't stop talking day and night. She would go on and on, and I used to wish she would be quiet. I would give anything for her to open that mouth of hers to say anything."
The beeping sounds of the machines fill the room as a hollow knock occurs on the door.
Both see Ernest McKnight standing in the doorway with a vacant look on his face.
"May I speak with you two?" he asks.
Daniel is surprised to see the police chief since they were told the investigation was closed due to the driver of that semi-truck dying.
"Of course," Daniel replies.
Ernest walks in while giving a concerned look to the victim lying in bed before giving his undivided attention to the two of them.
"As you know, the investigation into the head-on was closed when the driver of the semi-truck died." he starts. "But I decided to look into why the brakes in Jackson's car weren't working at the time of the accident."
Deirdre felt the whole room go into slow motion, somewhat unsure whether or not she would be implicated in her own daughter's condition, not to mention the ire she would meet from the public, let alone her own family.
"My team and I checked the surveillance from The Cliffe and The Waterfall to see if we could catch the suspect tampering with Jackson's brakes."
"Did you find who did it?" Daniel enquires eagerly. "I want whoever did it punished to the fullest extent of the damn law."
Ernest unclogs his throat. "Not one soul turned up on the CCTV having anything to do with Jackson's car."
Daniel shakes his head in disappointment. "Like hell, I mean, this person could've done it somewhere else." If you need more resources, they will be at your disposal."
"That's not it. It's not many places where someone can tamper with brakes and not be seen."
"So, whoever did this to her is going to go unpunished?" Daniel is enraged.
"I know this isn't what you both wanted to hear — if anything does break within the investigation, I will let you know myself," Ernest says kindly. "I'll show myself out."
Chief McKnight makes his way out of the room once again, leaving them to comprehend the news they have been given.
Deirdre puts her hand on her son's back like she used to do when he was a boy. "Trust me, I know what you are feeling because I feel it too, but our focus needs to be on Emma. "Besides, I'm sure whoever did this will be caught committing another senseless crime."
Before he could protest, she gets him into a cordial embrace relieved that nothing will be traced back to her. Since she had the person who tampered with Will's brakes on the farm where no cameras our on the property.
THE RECTORY: PRESLEY MCKNIGHT'S RESIDENCE
The din of the ringing doorbell has Presley McKnight coming down the staircase inside the home where he resides. He opens the door, where he sees his mother, Thora McKnight, in the doorway.
"Hey," he greets her.
She steps inside the house, glancing around the foyer of the two-story refurbished Queen Anne Victorian home while he shuts the door behind her.
"I've driven by here most of my life, and this is my first time being inside," she says of the rectory home the church provided for her son to live in while he ministers at First Street Methodist church, which is around the corner.
"Well, let me give you a tour. Just fair warning, I haven't got around to renovating everything to my liking just yet, but it's getting there."
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"Anything to take my mind off... you know, what you probably don't wanna hear about your parents' marital problems."
Even though Presley wasn't in the mood to talk about his father, he could sense from his mother's tone of voice that she needed to vent to someone.
"I've got time," he tells her. "I have tea, coffee, or anything stronger I have wine."
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Mom and son are seated beside each other on the couch with their glasses of white wine. Presley hears his mother going on about the issues affecting her marriage with his father, which, of course, have been there even before he left for seminary, dating back to his brother EJ's murder while on duty as a rookie police officer.
"Mom, can I ask you something?" Presley queries. "And please take no offense, okay?"
Thora leans over to grab her glass of wine from the coffee table and puts it to her lips. "Go ahead,"
"If you're so miserable, why do you still put up with him after all these years?"
Thora takes a long sip of wine before answering, trying to form a coherent statement. "When you've been with someone as long as I have been with your father, you start to think, maybe just maybe, it's better than being out there again alone, especially when you're at an age when you're too old to start over."
Presley sighs heavily, not buying her excuse. "Mom, don't doubt yourself. I'm sure you could survive without your dad if you do decide to leave him."
Thora shakes her head fervently. Presley, you'll learn when you get older that when you love somebody, you have to accept their faults and all. I know your dad. And I could use all the prayers we can get, so can you at least do that for me?"
"You still love him, don't you?"
The McKnight matriarch takes another drink of wine.
"I'm not going to deny it. Your father and I have been through a lot. I just wish he could put some effort into saving our marriage."
"Well, I will pray for you no matter the outcome," Presley insists.
"Thank you." Anyway, enough about me. How is work going?" Thora purposely changed the subject.
Presley grabs his own glass to take a drink of the liquid, thinking it's going to take a whole lot more than a prayer for his parents' marriage to stay together for the long haul.
He informs her about how his pastorship is going as well as how he has now been assigned to lead the church's new youth group by Reverend Friendly.
"That sounds great, and it seems like Joel has complete faith in you to give you that type of responsibility within your first month on the job. I'm proud of you. " Thora generously complements
Presley gives an unsure motion of her head.
"I think he didn't want the headache, but thank you..." Hey, I've got an idea. This is going to require a lot of help, so what about you becoming a volunteer? I mean, you're good with kids, and it would get you out of the house at least once a week."
Thora takes a drink of her wine before answering.
"I mean, it would give me something else to do than worry about my issues. Yeah, I'll do it; I'll volunteer."
"Good to hear," Presley says while taking a sip of his wine.
HOME FARM
Jordan makes her way into the mansion. As she goes upstairs to the second floor, she manages to bring herself into Jeremy's nursery, where he is being placed in his crib by his nanny, Lillith who is surprised to see Jordan there since she hadn't been in here often.
"Hi," Jordan says nicely. "How is he?"
The red-haired woman looks back at the baby, then back at his mother. She was surprised to hear anything from Jordan about the little boy.
"Uh, he was okay earlier, but after a while in the park, he got fussy, so I brought him back for his nap." But he's fighting not to fall asleep. So, I'm going to get him a bottle."
Jordan stares at her little boy, whose face is still red from crying.
"Lilith, let me try to see if I can get him down. "If not, I'll call you back here, okay," Jordan says fairly confidently.
She could tell that the caregiver had some strong misgivings from the expression on her face. However, Lillith complies by telling her she will be outside the room.
Jordan walks up to the crib while the baby turns his head. She kneels on the floor to meet him at eye-level, never realizing how handsome he was until now. She still remembers the day when she thought she lost him after his birth when he turned blue.
Unbeknownst to her, he had a hole in his heart that needed repairing. After the procedure, she decided she couldn't be a mother to him. That's why she left Radcliffe for Washington State, fearful of hurting him.
"Hey, there, you don't like taking naps, huh? I think you get that from me. You probably have forgotten who I am. And that's all my fault because I left you when you were so tiny you needed me."
Suddenly, Jeremy's blueish-grey eyes gazed upon her.
​
***
Daniel walks down the hallway on the second floor when he sees Lillith standing outside his grandson's room.
"What's going on in there?" he probes.
"Jeremy is having a hard time falling asleep, so I was going to fix him a bottle, but Jeremy's mother stopped me, saying she could get him to sleep."
"I'd like to see that," he says to himself.
The idea of that woman attempting to be a mother amuses him, especially after the day he has had. He tells Lillith she can leave and remains behind the wall behind the door, seeing in his mind, no doubt going to be a disaster.
***
Jordan is still on the floor talking to Jeremy, who seems interested enough in what she is saying even though she is winging it herself.
"How about I sing to you?" she says. "Fair warning, my voice isn't that good."
The baby makes an incoherent noise, which she takes as confirmation to do so.
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You're beautiful, and that's for sure
You'll never, ever fade
You're lovely, but it's not for sure
That I won't ever change
And though my love is grand...
Though my love is true...
I'm like a bird, I only fly away
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She then sings the chorus while she looks to see Jeremy lying on his back, his eyes trying to stay open, but it seems slumber is overcoming him.
Jordan stands up and softly runs her hand through her son's curly blonde hair. She sees this as a small step to being there for him, determining not to be like her parents.
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Meanwhile, Daniel is standing by the door, wondering if perhaps her therapy is working after all. Yet, he knows a few sessions can't erase the months of her abandoning her baby. He believes that in a few months, she will tire of playing mother and will leave for good.
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LAKEVIEW CEMETERY
The beautifully bright spring afternoon gives the cemetery a peaceful ambiance as Sarah Lynn, alongside Esther, Steven, Louise, the twins, Martha, and SJ, walks towards the gravestone that bears the Saunders patriarch's name.
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Peter Jim Saunders
1952-2020
Husband, Father, Grandfather, and Brother
Gone But Never Forgotten
Sarah Lynn could feel the arms of both of her daughters around her for comfort.
The family then takes their turn going up to the headstone to say a few words.
"Hey, Uncle Peter, I want to thank you again for being the father I needed when mine wasn't around." Steven proclaims
Lynn and Tanner follow behind him both, carrying flowers and placing them on the ground by the headstone.
"We love you, granddad," Lynn says meaningfully.
Next is Martha, who is holding her son's hand. "Daddy, wherever you are, I want you to know I miss you and one day. I'm going to tell SJ about the kind of man you were and the kind of father you were. Oh, I wish you were here to see him grow up. I love you."
Louise approaches the headstone with flowers in her hand as well.
"Well, dad, you'd be happy to hear the farm is doing great. The one thing you taught me was how important family is and how much that farm means not only financially but to our family's past. And I'm determined to keep it that way for future generations."
She puts the flowers on the ground and then surrounds herself with her daughters.
Esther makes her way to the gravestone, inhaling and exhaling laboriously.
"Please watch over us and tell momma and daddy hi for me,"
She then looks up in the sky before going to her son.
The widow is now standing in front of her husband's gravestone.
"I love you so much; I almost lost it there but was able to get myself back together." There isn't a day when I don't thank you."
She manages to stand there silently, which the rest of the family does respectfully.
She nearly forgot the bouquet consisting of roses and sunflowers, so she put them in front of the tombstone. She puts her hand on the
"Happy anniversary, sweetheart," she expresses emotionally. while kissing her hand and placing it on top of the headstone.
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END OF EPISODE
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ON THE NEXT EPISODE OF TOWN AND COUNTRY
Tricia takes pleasure in an awkward situation.
Daniel puts pressure on his children.
Deirdre plays another game against Will.
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