EPISODE 224
Written by: Bre L. Drew
February 20, 2023
Last Time on Town and Country
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Daniel maintained control when it came to gaslighting Jordan.
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Jordan and Ernest had a heated confrontation, causing Thora to be concerned for her daughter.
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Since their engagement, Jai and Louise have been dealing with problems surrounding their impending nuptials, including Aaliyah's disapproval.
HOME FARM
Daniel Covington is trailed down the grand staircase of the estate's mansion by his longtime housekeeper, Gabriella.
"Is there anything you need me to do, sir?" the housekeeper asks her employer. She and he had agreed that he was gaslighting Jordan to make her believe she wasn't capable of parenting Jeremy, so she would give up and leave Tommy as the sole parent.
"Let me handle everything else," he informs her. "But you will be well compensated, Gabriella,"
The woman, who by now is downstairs, doesn't hide her disapproval; honestly, she had been enjoying helping out Daniel with his scheme because she felt Jordan wasn't fit to live under this roof, let alone be a mother to Jeremy.
"Are you sure?"
Daniel, who is near the foyer, nods to share his reaction.
The luxurious sound of the doorbell gets him to the door as Gabriella stands there for a few seconds longer before departing the room.
Expectedly, Ernest McKnight stands in the doorway, glimpsing at the businessman who had invited him over.
"Ernest, please come in," Daniel says.
The two men make their way into the expansive living room.
"All you told me over the phone was that you wanted to speak to me about Jeremy."
"I do," Daniel replies. "I hate to be the bearer of this news, but Jordan's recent behavior troubles me enough to say that I don't think she should be in the vicinity of our grandson."
Ernest raises an eyebrow in suspicion of Daniel's announcement. Though he briefly recalls his previous interaction with his daughter, that didn't go well, not to mention Thora's concern for her too.
LOCKHART LAKE COTTAGE
For all the years she was married to Sean, Louise Saunders Lockhart never would've considered eating Chinese food in bed in the slightest romantic way. However, since meeting Jai and becoming engaged, she has found it somewhat more adaptable, as she and her fiancé are doing just that in her queen-size bed. Jai is shirtless, exposing his toned physique, wearing black fleece sweatpants, and Louise is in a purple satin sleeveless nightgown.
The two are eating in the middle of conversing about their day.
"You know, I could get used to this," Jai Gupta admits while setting his plate of mostly eaten food on the nightstand beside him.
"I can, too," Louise replies as she finishes her shrimp fried rice.
"I guess that brings us to finalizing this engagement." "We should pick a date for the wedding soon."
Despite being engaged since New Year's Eve, the couple hadn't locked down a date for their impending nuptials since they've been dealing with Aaliyah not coming around to their union as she still hopes for Jai and Mala to get back together. Although they told her they'd always love her, what she wants is only a fantasy.
"I think we both agree that we don't need anything big or fancy since this isn't the first time we walked down the aisle," Jai assumes. "So, something more intimate with close friends and family will do; what about this summer?" He suggests it to his fiancée.
Louise takes a loose strand of blonde hair and tucks it behind her ear. "I like that very much," she cordially responds. "So, I guess all we have to do is narrow down a specific date, but it seems we're on the same page."
Jai quickly watches a few seconds of a commercial on the flat-screen TV in front of them. Then he focuses his attention on Louise again. "It's something else we haven't talked about."
"Oh, what is that?"
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"Decide where we will live," he states.
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"I was thinking you should move into my apartment," he speculates."Or maybe we can get a new place with enough room for everyone."
That statement catches the farmer off guard as she sets aside her glass of white wine. "I just thought that you would want to move in here; there's plenty of room, not to mention Lynn still lives here, as does Tanner during the holidays and summers."
Jai forms a countenance of reluctance, which Louise instantly notices.
"What?" she asks. We can turn the spare bedroom into a guest room for Samuel and Aaliyah if and when they want to stay. "I didn't mean to include them because they will be family too."
"It's not that," he says, less guardedly. "This house means a lot to you and the girls, and I get that, but I'm not sure whether or not I can live in a house where you have so many memories of you and Sean."
Louise thoughtfully exhales as she gets a specific answer. "I understand where you're coming from, but I'm moving forward with you; should that count for something?"
"Of course, it does," he responds. "But you and Sean lived here most of your married life; you mean to tell me you don't have recollections of your life here with him."
"Of course, I have them," Louise readily admits. "But we shouldn't let them get in the way of what is ahead for us."
Jai gives a nondescriptive look that conveys that he thinks the opposite.
Louise tries to find the right words to go with: "You know what, let's just, uh, put a bookmark on this conversation for now, all right?"
"That's fine," he mostly mumbles.
JOJO'S CAFE
The country murder ballad "Goodbye Earl" by The Chicks plays on the SiriusXM sound system this early evening inside the cafe. A small gathering of customers populates the establishment as Presley McKnight enters. It doesn't take long for him to see his mother behind the counter in her apron.
He makes his way over to her. "So far, so good," he declares.
Thora McKnight smirks at her youngest son. "I think you mean a good job for not burning down the place yet," she remarks jokingly. "Actually, it's been pretty slow all day except for a scene earlier."
From the look on his mother's face, he detects that it was at least memorable. "Oh, what happened?" he asks her. "Somebody had a Karen moment over an expresso?"
"I wish," Thora says before launching into the specifics of what occurred here that involved Jordan and Ernest's heated confrontation that ended with her telling him he could shove his apology before taking off with Jeremy in tow.
Despite her feisty personality, Jordan sounded more aggressive than usual, causing concern for Thora and her ex-husband.
"I get why you'll be concerned, but maybe dad needed to hear what was said." "I mean, you know how he can be," Presley says rationally.
"Oh, come on, Presley; I know you two have issues with him, but he's still your father, and I think he was trying to at least make some inroads with her," Thora responds defensively.
The reverend's expression suggests he isn't persuaded by his father's sudden change of heart. "Well, I will check in on her later, so she won't feel like we're all ganging up on her."
Thora nods reactively. "How are things with you, the church?"
Ernest sticks one of his hands in his pants pockets. "Not bad," he says, pausing when he notices his mother unconsciously smiling. "Okay, what is that for? he asks."I doubt it has anything to do with sermons and prayer lists."
"How are things going with you and Tanner?"
"Ah, I figured that's what you wanted to know," he responds. "Things between us are really in a good place."
He recalls the two finally having sex with each other, making it the most unforgettable evening thus far between them.
"That's good to hear," Thora says well-meaningly. "I've always liked that girl; I'm not sure why Jordan stopped hanging out with her."
Presley, knowing the obvious answer to her question, shrugs as Thora's standard ringtone blares before she answers it on the third ring.
"Hey," she responds casually. "Huh?" she says. "All right, I'm on my way; I'm leaving the cafe now." Thora ends the call.
"What's going on?" Presley questions
"Uh, that was your father; he wants me to meet him at Home Farm—something to do with Jordan." Thora unties her apron and stashes it underneath the counter, where she pulls out her purse and the quickly moves in the back to fetch her coat.
"How serious?"
"I dunno," she answers. "But I'm about to find out,"
"You need me to go with you?"
Thora shakes her head as she walks out from behind the counter beside him. "No, I'll be all right." she states. "I'll let you know what happened."
"I'll walk out with you," Presley said.
Mother and son exit the cafe as another barista on duty relieves her.
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HOME FARM
"I told you I would be able to pack in under fifteen minutes," Shauna Covington tells her husband.
The two were in their bedroom upstairs in the mansion, having come home from the office to get the things they would be taking on their weekend getaway in the woods near Lake Hudson.
Max Covington zips up his suitcase on the bed and turns to face his wife, who had changed out of her professional clothing into a dark blue "Sol Angeles" pullover with jeans. Her shoulder-length brown hair is pulled back in a ponytail.
"You look amazing," Max compliments her.
"Thank you," she answers. "Well, I hope you feel the same way before I become a blimp."
Shauna is currently pregnant with their first child.
Max rests his hands on her shoulders. "First of all, I highly doubt you will ever look remotely like a blimp," he says. "You ready?"
"Yeah, let's go."
As Shauna puts on her coat, Max grabs both suitcases by the handles to roll them, and she follows behind him holding her purse.
In the hallway, Max stops and turns to his wife, and they both agree to leave out of the mansion from the kitchen, wanting to avoid whatever is going on downstairs between his father and Chief McKnight.
Jordan McKnight wakes her from her nap upstairs in her bedroom. She could feel the grogginess she's been experiencing, not to mention the tiredness, which she chalks up to her depression. Slowly, she propels herself out of bed and towards the mirror, where she notices her, blonde mane needs maintenance, and she could use makeup to cover up the dark circles around her eyes.
It seemed that no matter how hard she tried, she could never get much rest, but now it would have to do as she undid her pigtails and brushed her hair.
Look at you; you always put yourself first—to hell with your son. Isn't it?
The hauntingly familiar voice she believes is in her head has returned.
"I'm not selfish," she tells herself. "I love my son."
The voice then launches into laughter.
Yeah, you know in your heart that he is better off without you.
"Shut the hell up!" Jordan screams strongly. She then forcefully tosses the hairbrush onto her bed.
Jordan doesn't know why she is still hearing these voices after all of the months she's been attending therapy, as well as taking sedatives when needed.
The young woman steps outside the room to go down the hall, where she swears, she saw the hall closet open beside her, but it isn't important to her at the moment as she enters her son's nursery. The toddler is playing with his blocks on the floor. She quickly scoops him up, noticing how big he is getting, which makes her realize how much she missed him when she left him for months after his birth.
"I'm never leaving your side," she whispers to him, then she lays a kiss on his forehead.
Meanwhile, Gabriella walks out of the closet, having almost been seen by Jordan while initially stepping out after using the voice changer once again to drive Jordan out of her mind. Luckily, it seems she was all in her head, not realizing she wasn't hearing voices in her head.
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The housekeeper smirks satisfactorily while heading the opposite way.
At this moment, Thora walks inside the mansion after being summoned by her ex-husband to come here, knowing it has to do with their daughter.
"Hey, what's going on?" she asks with urgency.
Ernest lifts his head to assure Daniel that she should be included in this discussion.
"Like I was saying to Ernest, I have reason to believe Jordan's mental health isn't improving, and for that, it makes me concerned for Jeremy."
Thora glares at the millionaire with disbelief. "What are you talking about?" she asks, partly in confusion and irritation.
Daniel sighs exasperatedly. "She doesn't think anyone knows, but she's been hearing voices, and on Christmas day, Jeremy wandered off; now are those clear signs of a sane parent to you?"
Both Ernest and Thora exchange worried glances, as this is the first time, they have heard this.
Daniel knew he had to stay on top of getting Jordan to surrender custody, as well as telling Tommy not to continue to figure out that Dr. Toussaint has been properly treating her, let alone discover he is the one who put everything together.
But unbeknownst to them all, Jordan sees the three of them from the top of the staircase while holding Jeremy.
"No one is going to take you away from me," she swears to the toddler. "I won't let that happen happen."
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END OF EPISODE
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ON THE NEXT EPISODE OF TOWN AND COUNTRY
Jordan makes her move.
Tricia deals with the distance between her and Sean.
Despite his actions, Tommy is too late.
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