EPISODE 159
Written by : Bre L. Drew
November 22, 2021
Last Time On Town and Country
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The judge sentenced Elijah with a six month suspended license and a fine. He also encouraged him to seek treatment for his alcoholism which he admitted to his parents he need help with it..
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Sean and Tricia fought over her kissing Samuel.
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Shortly after Jeremy's heart procedure, Jordan left for King's Bay, Washington, struggling with post-partum depression.
BARKER RESIDENCE
Elijah Barker drops his duffle bag on the floor near the front door of the house he grew up in; in just a while, he'll be leaving for rehab to combat his issues with his drinking. Still, it is hard for him to realize he has a problem with alcohol. Sadly, it took him almost killing himself while drinking behind the wheel on the night of Halloween, which landed him under arrest for a DWI and appearing before a judge in court to make him aware of it.
He turns around to see his father descending the staircase.
"You all set?" Nathaniel Barker inquires
Elijah casually places his hands in his pants pockets. "I believe so,"
Nathaniel puts one of his arms on his son's shoulder like he did when he was young and did well in school.
"I know it wasn't easy for you to come to us and admit you needed help. But know this: your mother and I will support you through this."
Elijah doubts his mother is keen on establishing support since she has said numerous times she is disappointed in him.
The action of his father embracing him catches him off guard since he and his father have hardly hugged since Elijah became a teenager.
Though at this moment, he wouldn't mind being a little boy again.
JOJO'S CAFE
As Tommy Covington pushes the stroller, his infant son, Jeremy, is in while the voice of Pat Monahan greets them as 50 Ways To Say Goodbye by Train is playing on the sound system above them.
Inside the establishment on this brisk autumn weekday isn't densely populated due to being the time of the day when most of the customers have migrated to school or work.
Tommy stopped in because his son's nanny, Lilith, was meeting him here to pick Jeremy up while he heads to Elijah's house, where he will be seeing him off as he heads to rehab to battle with his alcoholism. In the meantime, he takes a seat at the table near the large window that overlooks Main Street.
The baby begins to babble incoherently about something, which makes Tommy elicit a grin on his face.
A familiar voice speaks to him.
"Hi,"
Tommy turns his attention to Tanner Lockhart, who is wearing a black double-breasted pea coat holding onto a tall paper cup in her hand. She is also carrying a paper bag with the cafe's name on it.
"Hey, I take it we're heading to the same place?" Tommy assumes
She nods.
"Hopefully, all of us coming together will let Elijah know we're here for him no matter what during his recovery."
"You always know what to say," Tommy says reasonably.
A second of awkwardness among the two exes build an invisible barrier between them.
Tanner overcomes the obstacle by venturing over to the stroller, where she sees the baby who predominately caused their breakup for the first time.
Thinking to herself, of course, the son of Tommy and Jordan would be adorable with his blonde hair and noticeable bluish-gray eyes.
Tommy points to Tanner. "Jeremy, this is Tanner -- one of your dad's friends."
The baby looks at her for a few seconds before he lifts his head back up in the stroller.
"It's nice to meet you, Jeremy," Tanner says pleasantly.
"So what's in the bag?"
Tanner gazes at it then onto him.
"You are looking at an assortment of pies and cheesecakes that will be going on the table for Thanksgiving dinner at the farm,"
Every year Louise and the twins bring desserts to contribute desserts to the feast.
Tommy does his best not to flirt with the girl he will always love yet, recollects how he hurt her by sleeping with Jordan a year ago.
"What a cute baby," a woman whose voice is unfamiliar to him states cheerfully.
Tanner glances at the woman who said that instantly knowing who it is.
Tommy gives a look of uncertainty to Tanner.
"Tommy, this is Mrs. McKnight, Jordan's mother,"
WHEELER BUILDING : APT # 424
Inside the Wheeler Building, on the fourth floor near downtown Radcliffe, Courtney Covington arrives at Tricia Lockhart's apartment. She balls her hand into a fist to tap on the door.
Tricia opens the door. Though Courtney instantly detected that her friend wasn't feeling well.
"Hey," Courtney says, greeting her warmly.
"I feel like death warmed over; come on in," Tricia says sardonically.
Courtney enters the apartment as Tricia closes the door behind her.
"A cold?"
Tricia lightly swings her head. "I'm thinking it's the flu. And on top of that, my husband is hardly speaking to me. I'm getting my karma tenfold."
On Halloween, Sean was made aware of her kissing Samuel at the Waterfall weeks earlier. And despite her apology, the two hadn't had much interaction with one another since that night.
The two friends settle into the living room.
"I'm sure Sean will come to his senses, and the two of you will be able to work it out."
Tricia scoffs, somewhat ruefully.
"And if only fairy tales were real, I would have screwed up so many times before. He probably thinks I'm the little girl who cries sorry. "
"So I take it you need something else to talk about to keep you from going insane," Courtney assumes.
"You'd be correct,"
Courtney begins by filling Tricia in on the plans for her wedding to Steven on Christmas Eve. However, she stops when she notices Tricia with her eyes closed.
​
"Tricia!" she calls out.
The café manager awakes herself.
"Did I bore you to sleep?"
"No, I'm just a little tired, not to mention sick to my stomach."
Courtney couldn't help but get a suspicious feeling about what was said.
"What?" Tricia asks
"Maybe you don't have the flu?" Courtney responds
Tricia doesn't hide her uncertainty. "Then what do I have, Doctor Covington?"
"Maybe you are pregnant," Courtney answers reluctantly.
JOJO'S CAFE
Thora McKnight takes a seat at the table after finding out from Tommy that the little baby she had been admiring inside the cafe is actually her own grandson. Jordan, her daughter, was pregnant with the child when she last saw her.
"I've been taking care of Jeremy ever since he came from the hospital. I know Jordan and I had our problems, but she wanted me to raise Jeremy until she felt like she could." Tommy tells her.
Thora, who is wearing a long beige cardigan sweater and blue jeans, while part of her long blonde hair is in a ponytail while the rest is hanging past her shoulders, takes a sip of her coffee.
"You two have some important things to discuss; I'd better get going," Tanner said.
Tanner couldn't help but feel uncomfortable, like an unwanted third wheel due to the nature of the topic currently being discussed.
Tanner glances at the baby, drifting off to sleep, unaware of what is occurring around him.
"I see you over there," she replies to her ex-boyfriend.
​
"Take care, Tanner. Tell your parents I said hello. I miss seeing you, your sister, and Elijah around the house. "
Tanner remarks that she will before heading out of the café into the fall day, wondering if all those years of being in the house grieving over the loss of EJ had affected her memory since it had been years since they were all Jordan friends.
Back inside, Tommy sits across from his son's maternal grandmother. He hadn't met her before in person. The only time he saw her was in old photos on the mantel of the McKnight residence. In those pictures, she seemed livelier. In front of him, she looked pale, like she hadn't had any exposure to the sun in quite some time.
"So you have no idea where Jordan is?" asks Thora.
Tommy shakes his head vehemently.
"No clue, she was dealing with a lot after having him, which contributed to her depression. But I had hoped by now she would at least try to make contact. But it's been almost five months now, and I haven't heard from her. "
Thora takes another taste of her coffee as tendrils of steam rise from her cup.
"I could ask my husband to look into it. I mean, I'm married to a police officer. For God's sake, he should at least try to help look for his only daughter. "
Tommy sees that his son is asleep, which makes him lower his voice.
"I have connections that can look into her whereabouts." And anyway, I think the last thing Jordan wants is to be found by the father who threw her out of her own home five months pregnant. "
Pursing her lips, Thora also remembers standing by while Ernest forced his daughter to leave their home when she finally told them she was pregnant, but she didn't reply with the name of the person who impregnated her.
"I took no pleasure in watching my child leave her own home because of what my husband did."
"Also, what you did, which was nothing," Tommy interjects.
Thora tries to fight back her tears.
"You're right. I didn't do a damn thing. I should've fought to keep my daughter in her own home, where she could've felt safe and protected, but I want to try to build a bond with my grandson if you let me. "
By now, Lilith had entered the establishment, in which Tommy had made an introduction to the two women. Soon, the nanny escorts Jeremy out of the café.
Looking at the clock on the wall, Tommy stands up from his seat, knowing he had to be at Elijah's before going to rehab.
"You can drop by on Thanksgiving morning at my house to have a few hours with him."
"That's perfect, thank you,"
Tommy crosses his arms over his chest, keeping an eye on Thora.
"And please don't bring your husband with you. I want my son to be around people who actually give a damn about him."
With that, Tommy makes his exit from the café, leaving Thora alone at the table.
Thora quickly unzips her purse to retrieve her iPhone. She dials a number and puts her phone to her ear, hearing four rings before getting the dreaded voicemail instead.
"Jordan, it's mom. Wherever you are, please know that I've seen your son, and he's beautiful. I know I can't make up for what happened. But I won't let him down. I love you, bye. "
BARKER RESIDENCE
Taking advantage of the kitchen to themselves, Elijah and Lynn Lockhart were making out as she was sitting on his lap at the table.
"You do know that I'm not leaving for war," Elijah says half-jokingly.
"Well, I wanted to remind you what you have to come back for," she playfully replies.
The footsteps belonging to Brynn Barker have Lynn quickly getting into the chair beside her boyfriend, sensing she would say something since the last close moment she walked in on them in his bed upstairs.
The Barker matriarch looks down at her Apple Watch on her wrist. "We should be getting on the road soon, Elijah."
"Mom, we only live twenty minutes away from the hospital," Elijah reminds her.
He is going to the rehab facility located within Radcliffe Receiving Hospital.
Brynn throws her hands up in defeat.
Elijah roughly sighs. "I'm going to miss tons of work for school,"
He is still worried about falling behind with his college course load, knowing he will be in rehab for several days.
Lenny stares at him meaningfully. "I'm sure you'll be able to catch up, and anyway, the most important thing is that you get healthy."
Brynn is about to open her mouth when the doorbell rings. Elijah volunteers to get the door as the two most important women in his life remain in the room.
"Lynn, I want to thank you for bringing Elijah's problem to his father and me."
Since they started dating, Lynn knew she wasn't her first choice for her son to date. Though she can hear what she is saying to her, it is honest.
Lenny stands up from the table. "You don't have to thank me, Mrs. Barker. We all want the same for him."
The two give each other a look of mutual agreement as Elijah calls out that Tanner is here.
Lenny meets her boyfriend and fraternal twin sister in the living room.
"How are you doing?" Tanner asks Elijah
"Like I need something to take the edge off," he says. "But I'm resisting," he declares. "You know what, I am tired of talking about myself, so what's up with you?"
Tanner reports to them about running into Tommy and the baby at the café. As well as Thora McKnight also showing up there; and how she left the three of them there.
"You okay?" Lenny asks
"You mean seeing the end result of what contributed to our breakup?" It was fine, after all, it wasn't his fault his parents did what they did.
"But it can be easy to see him, "Elijah posits."
Tanner puts some of her hair behind her right ear. "It's not like I haven't seen Tommy with his son before."
She recalls seeing the two going into a store at the outdoor mall in Hudson Lake months ago.
"If anything, I guess I can describe it as surreal," Tanner adds.
Lynn couldn't help but think she was hiding the truth about Tommy and Jordan sleeping together behind her sister's back. Sometimes, second-guessing the advice given to her by her great-aunt about not telling, though, in this case, it seems she was right.
Brynn strolls into the room with her arms folded. "I hate to end this, but we should get going,"
This time, Elijah doesn't fight her as he uses his crutches to aid him while the women follow behind him outside into the crisp fall day.
They all see a black Tesla stopping in front of the house. Soon, Tommy gets out of the car, seeing his friends.
"Cutting it close, weren't you, Covington?" Elijah calls out as the two friends hug each other.
"Long story, which I will tell you later," Tommy replies.
"Oh, that reminds me, Lorenzo and Aaliyah couldn't make it; he had to work, and Aaliyah had her project for her intro to merchandising she had to finish up."
"Yeah, they called me to tell me," Elijah nods.
By the sullen looks on his friend's faces, he decided to ease their emotions.
"Guys, I'm not heading to Jerusalem. I will still be here in this shitty town like the rest of you. "
Some cracks of humor appear on their faces.
"I better get going,"
Lynn puts her arms around her boyfriend. "When I can, I will come visit. "
The exes watch the pair walk to the car, in which Elijah's parents are already in.
The young man gets into the backseat while Lynn walks over to her sister and Tommy. The three watch their friend take off from the driveway as the black Volvo SUV moves forward down the street. Elijah gazes out of the window, unsure of what is ahead for him.
WHEELER BUILDING : APT # 424
"Got it," Courtney says, lifting the bag from the pharmacy as she makes her way back inside the apartment.
The Covington heiress made a run to the pharmacy around the corner to purchase a pregnancy test for her friend.
"This is ridiculous; I've been on the pill for years."
Courtney smirks at her friend. "Just humor me, okay,"
Though Tricia's period has been late by a few weeks, she has been irregular a few times in her life, so it wouldn't warrant pregnancy. Then again, she constantly feels nauseous.
She takes the bag out of her friend's hand before heading into the bathroom.
Minutes later, Tricia returns to join Courtney in the kitchenette. "It will take a while before the result comes on the stick."
"I don't know if you know this or not, but Elijah is going into rehab this afternoon," Courtney informs
Tricia grabs a bottle of lemon-Perrier mineral water out of the refrigerator. "Yeah, I heard; it was one of the few things Sean and I talked about."
Tricia still recollects him coming for his shift at the café three hours late, drunk.
"I fired him because of it--part of me does still feel bad about it."
"But?"
"Look, I know I don't go around telling people about my life growing up. But my stepfather is a drunk with a violent temper. I'm glad Elijah is getting the help he needs. Because I've seen first hand what a drunk can do when they refuse to stop drinking."
As she takes a sip of the water, Courtney discerns that this is the first time she has heard anything substantial about her friend's childhood in Bakersfield, California.
"I think it's time," Tricia announces hesitantly.
With a glacial pace, she walks into the bathroom to pick up the stick on the counter.
Courtney awaits as she sees Tricia walking back into the kitchen.
"So?" she asks impatiently.
Tricia heavily sighs while holding up the test in her hand. "I haven't read it yet. What does it say?"
From her spot, Courtney can see the result without moving.
"And Baby makes three; you're pregnant," Courtney announces.
Tricia reads the stick that has two lines, which, according to the instructions, indicate pregnancy.
She is unsure of how to react since she has been adamant about not wanting children anytime soon. Not to mention her own fears of being a mother due to her turbulent childhood with her own mother.
"What are you going to do?" Courtney queries
"I dunno," Tricia reveals candidly.
​
END OF EPISODE
ON THE NEXT EPISODE OF TOWN AND COUNTRY
Tricia walks in on a moment between exes.
Samuel gets some much-needed advice.
Martha pours her heart into her music.
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