Recap: Ides of December - Part 1 - Season 2 - Episode 3

Famous Ray hosts the grand opening of a new art exhibit in Fletcher Grove, unveiling a Christmas-themed art competition. Brooke persuades June to model for her entry, though June agrees reluctantly.

At Sue’s Diner, Emily finds Sam catching up with his former police mentor, Reed Donovan. Reed explains he’s in town on a private security job and asks Sam to lend a hand during the exhibit. Sam declines, wanting to focus on family during the holidays.

That night, while working the exhibit’s night shift, Reed is approached by a hooded man.

The next morning, Sam brings Reed breakfast but instead finds him dead, shot in the back of his truck.

Meanwhile, Emily feels a wave of loneliness as the holidays approach. Remembering her first love from school, she recalls how they worked on a project together and shared their first kiss.

Later, Violet introduces Emily to Piper, a local artist competing in the exhibit. Piper mentions that author Moira Wells is holding a book signing, and Emily decides to attend.

Detective Mike Meadows briefs Sam on Reed’s murder. The bullet came from Reed’s own gun, and several artworks he was protecting are now missing. Some pieces were being transferred to the Angela Wells exhibit across town.

At the bookstore, Moira appears distracted during her signing. The store owner, Noah, notices her slip up about a detail in her book. When a police officer interrupts, Moira abruptly leaves. Soon after, Detective Meadows asks Moira to verify the authenticity of the Angela Wells portrait, which she hastily does.
Emily returns to the shop, where Violet breaks the news that Reed was killed.

Shaken, Emily checks on Sam. He feels guilty for not helping his old partner and starts reviewing surveillance footage. Together, they spot a familiar face: influencer Harrison Graham.

Sam brings Harrison in for questioning. Harrison admits he got a tip about a late-night art delivery and snuck in to film it for his followers.
Detective Meadows is furious that Sam is interfering with the investigation and warns him to stay out or face suspension.

Meanwhile, Emily reminds herself to stay vigilant about Chimera, the hacker group from her past.

Violet opens up to Emily about her relationship with Kyle, who soon drops by with hot cocoa and teases her about a special Christmas gift.
Sam tells Emily he’s been shut out of the case. She offers to quietly gather information, but he tells her to stay out of it.

Emily visits Brooke and June as they work on the art project. She spots Piper trying to approach Moira, who dismisses her coldly. The tension reminds Emily of Moira’s strange reaction to Piper at the signing. Moira later denies knowing Harrison, though Emily senses a lie. The connections between the self-portrait, Reed’s murder, and the people orbiting the exhibit begin to take shape in her mind.

Emily asks Noah about Angela Wells, but he knows little. He admits he’s been writing a history of Fletcher's Grove but recently discovered inconsistencies after Moira contradicted details from his research.

Sam later tells Emily he’s learned Reed was battling an addiction to painkillers, a result of an old gunshot wound. Reed had taken a bullet for Sam years ago, forcing him into early retirement. Sam blames himself for not being there for him and vows to find his killer. He takes a leave of absence to investigate on his own.

Emily wonders if Moira’s book is a cover-up meant to protect her grandmother Angela Wells’ reputation.

A flashback shows Grace (Emily) and her teenage crush hacking the school’s computer to change a bully’s grades. This is the moment that sparked their connection and first kiss.

Later, Emily spots Sam undercover at the exhibit and joins him as they eavesdrop on Detective Meadows questioning Moira. Moira claims she hired Reed, who in turn hired a man named Benny Cresh. Meadows dismisses the murder as a random attack.

At the café, Violet asks Sue for advice on a Christmas gift for Kyle. Brooke overhears and suggests choreographing an interpretive dance.

That night, Sam and Emily track down Benny. Emily poses as a security recruiter to get him talking. Benny insists Reed was a good man who looked out for him and swears nothing shady was happening.

Later, during a stakeout, Sam and Emily see Benny meeting with Harrison in a heated exchange. To their surprise, Moira is with them. Sam tells Emily he’ll handle things from there.

The next day, Emily returns to the bookstore for Moira’s rescheduled signing. Piper gets her book signed but is upset that Moira misspelled her name in the inscription. When Noah confronts Moira about inaccuracies in her book, she snaps and abruptly cancels the rest of the signing.

At the art studio, June tries to leave for work, but Brooke insists she stay and finish posing.

Piper later shows Emily the botched inscription, clearly shaken. Emily approaches Harrison to ask about Moira, and when he takes out a cloth to clean his glasses, she recognizes it as the same type Sam found at the murder scene.

Sam questions Harrison again. Harrison admits he bribed a security guard to sneak onto the art truck for a peek at the paintings. He used the cloth to protect the piece from fingerprints but must have dropped it when startled. When pressed about his meeting with Benny, Harrison says Benny was panicking, afraid Harrison would expose him for letting him onto the truck.

Emily asks Ray to get her and Sam into an exclusive art party that night. Ray agrees. She also asks if he can dig up information on underground hacking groups for her “book research.” When she mentions Chimera, Ray casually mentions that Sam brought up that name recently too. Emily freezes. Why would Sam be asking about Chimera?

Later, Sam arrives to pick her up, and Emily can’t help but wonder if he’s trying to get close to her to uncover her past.

That evening, at the Heritage Gallery, Sam, Emily, and Noah arrive as guests. Moira opens the event, announcing that no photos or recordings are allowed. She unveils what she claims is her grandmother’s original portrait.

Emily glances at Harrison, who looks visibly unsettled. When she quietly asks what’s wrong, he says that the painting on display is not the one he saw on the truck.