Recap: Tainted Love - Season 4 - Episode 8

In 1925, Elliot lets go of Kat’s hand when she jumps into the pond, stranding himself in the past. Fern confronts Tessa for lying about her involvement in bootlegging. Tessa tells Fern that Capone is demanding the shipment to be doubled at the same price, so they need to get to work. Fern suggests they both flee; Fern can pursue being a movie star and Tessa can return home to the present to escape Capone. Elliot walks in and reveals that he chose to stay. Tessa is shocked and says she is leaving.

Now that Tessa has left, Elliot is unsure if he made the right decision. Fern offers for him to stay at the Landry home until Kat returns. She asks Elliot to keep Tessa’s double shipment a secret from Cliff, claiming they have no other choice. Cliff returns and Fern formally introduces Elliot to Cliff as Tom Buchanan. Cliff mentions that he is going to be traveling to St. John within the month to accept an award for his work as temperance inspector. After Cliff heads inside, Fern reminds Elliot that the only way out of everything is through it and Elliot nods in agreement.

The next day, Elliot finds the Auggie boys. They initially threaten Elliot, but he reveals he is Tessa’s son, and that he wants to help. They agree.

In the present, Alice and Del help Kat pack up The Herald. Kat is shaken up since seeing Elliot in the old paper being called The Big Fish. Alice and Del remind her that she goes back again when she is caught on film. Kat is concerned because she remembers how distressed she looked when she saw herself in the screen-test from 1925. She is also unsure why Elliot lied to her, but Del reminds Kat to put herself in Elliot’s shoes.

Jacob and Abby meet secretly in the barn loft. They greet each other with a romantic kiss. Abby mentions that Jacob is unlike any other guy and asks where he comes from. Jacob quickly responds that he just a farmer, not revealing that he grew up in the past. They agree to keep their relationship covert because of history between their families.

In 1925, Elliot makes a delicious meal for Cliff and Fern. When Cliff tries to ask Elliot more about the farm work he is doing, Fern quickly changes the subject. She offers to sing Cliff a song to celebrate the award he is going to be receiving in St. John tomorrow. Elliot sits at the piano and plays while Fern serenades Cliff. Fern grabs Cliff and begins to dance with him. Cliff is originally nervous, remembering Fern is with Grayson, but gives in. Elliot begins playing “Time After Time” by Cyndi Lauper while Fern and Cliff dance romantically. Tessa quietly walks in and watches them dance. She holds back tears while hearing Elliot sing.

Tessa and Elliot go out on the porch to catch up. Tessa praises him for adjusting to the past and thanks him for his help with the Auggie boys. Elliot insists that he wants answers in exchange for all the work he has done. Tessa begins to recollect the story of when she first jumped. She clarifies that Vic was good to her, and he wasn’t the reason she left. She was discontent with the person she was becoming, so she decided to leave with Griffin. They jumped in the pond together and arrived in 1882. They eventually settled and started their life together there. Eventually she became very ill, and Griffin jumped in the pond to bring back medicine. He never returned. With no other options, Tessa went to the Landry farm for help and was taken in by the Landrys. Elliot asks how Tessa was able to send a letter to them in the present explaining she was ill and returning her ring. Tessa claims she never wrote a letter. Before walking off, Tessa tells Elliot that she used to sing him “Time After Time” before tucking him in to sleep.

At The Point’s 45th anniversary party, Del notices Jacob and Abby smiling at each other across the room. Monica and Alice reassure Kat that closing The Herald is the right decision. Alice shares with Kat that she is having a hard time writing music, agreeing with what Colton told her in 1979, that she needs to write more from the heart. Kat tells Alice that inspiration will hit when she least expects it. Monica begins playing old footage from Coyle’s and Kat and Alice recognize the video. They are immediately concerned that their faces are going to pop up in front of everyone at the party. Luckily, they notice that they were edited out. They ask Monica where she got the film and she says that Jude found it at Evelyn Goodwin’s estate sale. They suspect Evelyn cut their appearance, but don’t know how she would have known to do that, unless she knows they are time travelers.

The next day, when Del asks Jacob about Abby, Jacob comes clean. While Del expresses a bit of concern about the Goodwin family, she is happy that Jacob has found someone and asks Jacob to invite her for dinner.

To find out more answers about Evelyn, Alice jumps in the pond. She goes to the Landry home and sees Colton, Evelyn, Vic and Tessa sitting outside together. She quickly hides. Del comes outside to join the rest of the group. Alice smiles when she notices that Del is pregnant. Del mentions to the group that she is enjoying art school and even made a friend named Rita in class. Tessa is also pregnant, and comments that she is impressed that Del has been able to stay so busy. Evelyn begins to look uncomfortable while Colton is talking about the next generation of their families spending time together. Evelyn excuses herself and leaves abruptly.

In 1925, Tessa visits Elliot at the Landry farm on the morning of the big shipment to Capone. Elliot guarantees that everything is going to go well. He then begins telling Tessa about his life in the present. That he still lives in the family home, Kat is moving in with him, and that he works as a high school science teacher. Tessa shares that she wanted to be an English teacher. Elliot quotes T.S. Eliot, which Tessa immediately recognizes. Elliot begins to ask Tessa about the clock that she left in the wall with the T.S. Eliot poem. Tessa doesn’t know what he is talking about. Kat suddenly appears on the farm, and they run toward each other to hug.

Elliot and Kat regroup inside. Elliot apologizes for keeping secrets from Kat, but he wanted to keep her safe from whatever trouble he gets himself in as The Big Fish. Kat understands and tells Elliot it’s time to go home. Elliot reveals that the big job is tonight and that he has been helping Tessa and the Auggie boys. Kat feels betrayed that Elliot has already gotten himself twisted into bootlegging. Elliot insists that he is only doing it to protect his mom and refuses to jump into the pond with Kat right now.

In the present, Jacob tells Abby that she was invited to dinner at the Landry house. Abby is nervous but Jacob reassures her. He tells her that his family will love her as much as he does. Abby stops, realizing that Jacob just said he loves her for the first time. He doubles down, telling her that even though it is so soon, he feels sure about it. She smiles and tells him that she loves him too.

At the speakeasy in 1925, Fern and Tessa meet before the big job. Kat is spying from the staircase. Fern shares that she hates lying to Cliff and wants to come clean. Tessa asks for the big job to be over first and accuses Fern of falling for Cliff. Fern clarifies that she is engaged to Grayson. Tessa gifts Fern a gold bracelet with a small key on it. Fern jokes that it’s a bribe to keep her quiet. Tessa laughs, saying it is both a gift and a bribe. Fern agrees to keep an eye on Cliff, making sure he leaves for St. John before the job. Kat reveals herself as Fern is leaving. Kat confronts Tessa for abandoning Elliot, saying she would never do that to him or her daughter, Alice. Kat storms out, but Tessa seems surprised when she learns Kat’s daughter’s name is Alice.

Alice visits Evelyn to figure out if she knows about the pond. It turns out that Alice arrived on Evelyn’s birthday, so they share a glass of champagne to celebrate. Evelyn brings Alice up to speed about her life and her friends. She says that nobody gets to hang out much anymore since they are all adults, and that her parents left her with Lingermore after they moved to Switzerland. Alice tries to comfort Evelyn since she seems lonely, but Evelyn changes the subject. Alice decides to ask if Evelyn has the film reel from the New Year’s party at Coyle’s. Evelyn explains that she asked Jasper for it but they never found it.

In the present, Abby arrives at the Landrys’ for dinner. Things get awkward as they talk about the difference between life in the city and in Port Haven. Abby refers to Toronto when she mentions returning home and Jacob comments that he didn’t know she planned on leaving Port Haven and moving back to Toronto.

In 1925, Grayson stops at the house to return Fern’s ring, which she accidentally left at The Herald. When Cliff walks in, Fern explains that he is about to leave for St. John. But Cliff announces that he is no longer going because there is nothing to celebrate, since bootlegging still exists in Port Haven. Grayson tries to reason with him, saying that everyone benefits. The bootleggers make money and the city earns from the continuous fines. Cliff describes that he doesn’t want to bring his children into a world where some laws are upheld and others aren’t. Fern smiles when she hears him talking about doing the right thing, even if nobody seems to want it.

At Lingermore, Evelyn opens up about her loneliness after multiple glasses of champagne. She looks at Alice and comments that she doesn’t age at all. She looks at Alice and says, “Who are you, Alice?” before falling asleep from her drunkenness. Alice tucks her and in and says that she is the friend that is there whenever she needs.

In 1925, Grayson reveals to Kat and Fern that Cliff is lying. He mentioned a hotel in St. John, but Grayson remembers that it closed years ago. Kat and Fern suspect that Cliff lied about leaving for St. John so that he could catch everyone red-handed during the big job. Kat rushes off to warn Elliot.

Before jumping back in the pond, Alice goes to the Landry home. She hides behind a tree and watches Del and Colton talk on the porch swing together. Del thanks Colton in believing in their dream enough for them both when times got tough.

In 1925, Kat and Fern rush to the stills to warn Tessa and Elliot about Cliff. Tessa decides to move things up and heads to the truck to drop off the shipment before Capone arrives, hoping to avoid the police. One of the men helping load the truck stops her and reveals that he is a cop. Everyone begins to run away, and Moe Augustine gets shot by the policeman. He seems to be okay but urges everyone to leave without him. Cliff appears. Kat and Elliot create some distance between them and the pursuing policemen. Elliot stops and shares that he can’t leave without his mother. Kat tries to reason with him, saying that they need to leave, and that Tessa left him so he can leave her. Tessa appears and says that they all need to leave. Cliff appears in front of them with his gun pointed at them. He looks at Kat and is baffled that she is involved. Just as Cliff is about to arrest them, Fern steps in front of his pointed gun. He is shocked that Fern is involved too. She explains that she wanted to tell him, but he looked at her like the woman she has always wanted to be. When the other policemen are about to arrive as backup, Cliff tells all of them to run while they still can.

In the present, Alice wakes up late in the morning and heads downstairs. Del greets her and teases her for sleeping in. Alice explains that she was up all night writing a song, and she felt especially inspired by her last pond trip, where she saw Del and Colton happy again after Del was able to get pregnant. Del shares how grateful she is that the pond took Alice to see that moment, because it ultimately led to her being a part of their life.

In 1925, Elliot arrives at the Landry farm the morning after the big job. Kat greets him and explains that Fern is inside talking to Cliff. Elliot informs Kat that Tessa is working on bailing Percy and Moe out of jail but is planning on meeting them at the pond after to return home. Kat and Elliot quickly rush behind a tree after Cliff comes outside of the house with his bag packed. Fern begs him to stay and tries to explain that she was only a messenger for the operation. She hands Cliff a paper with an image of a key, the same paper that was found inside the piano in the present. Cliff explains that he feels betrayed and that what he felt for Fern was real. She tells him that she feels the same way, and he helped her realize what she really wants: to build a life with him. Cliff drops his suitcase and kisses her.

In the present, Jacob and Abby meet at The Point. Jacob apologizes for assuming that Abby was in Port Haven permanently. He tells Abby that they can make long distance work. Abby explains that small towns never felt like home to her, but Port Haven is starting to grow on her. She tells Jacob that it’s time to tell her father the truth.

Kat and Elliot meet Tessa at the pond. Tessa reveals that she only met them there to say goodbye. Elliot begs her to come with them, but she explains that she would have to start her whole life over again. Before Kat can stop him, Elliot tells his mother that he comes back in the future for the Lingermore New Year’s party. Tessa promises to meet him there. Kat and Elliot jump in the pond to return home.

Kat and Elliot return to the present, and Del and Alice greet him with a hug.

Del and Sam are outside sitting on the porch swing. Without explaining the pond, Del shares that she is relieved Elliot is back and wishes that Colton could see Kat happy. Sam tells Del that she should go tell Colton herself. Del’s expression flips, unsure what Sam means by that. Sam reveals to Del that he knows about the pond.

Elliot explains to Kat that he told his mother about the future because he thought it was the only way he would see her again. Kat understands, and Elliot asks Kat to stay away from the inevitable trouble he gets into in 1925. Elliot then shows Kat an interesting finding he had when looking at the old newspapers. He noticed that Fern occasionally started an article with a T.S. Eliot quote. Kat remembers Fern calling herself a messenger and pulls out the paper with the key on it. The paper reads, “The Letter Comes After.” Elliot believes this references a cipher key, and Fern hid her messages within her columns. They begin going through each paper, deciphering each letter. The deciphered letters create the following sentence: “NYE JOB BOTCHED. TUNNELS DESTROYED. FIVE SOULS IN FOUR OUT. TESSA GONE.” Elliot fears that he invited Tessa to the party where she ultimately passes away.