Recap: Heart of the Matter -Season 5 - Episode 7
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Elizabeth heads back to Hope Valley fresh from her honeymoon with Jack, who had to stay behind in Fort Clay for duty. Even though Jack will be gone for two months, Elizabeth knows he is safe because he is training Mounties and not in battle, like before. Her friends anxiously await her arrival.
Mr. Jenkins lets Abigail know that he has found his own investor, Joshua Baxter, and the bank should be open within a few days. The sale isn’t final and Joshua wants to meet Abigail before he signs any paperwork. She eagerly awaits Joshua’s arrival.
Bill finds AJ Foster sleeping in his jail cell and is surprised to see the familiar face. He is even more surprised when he finds out why she is in Hope Valley: she is turning herself in after a year on the run. Bill happily locks AJ in the jail cell and walks away.
Elizabeth comes up with an idea to have her students pair up with local business owners so they can see how they operate in Hope Valley. Lee is a little weary of the idea, but Rosemary insists the students would love to see how he runs the mill.
Bill heads to Abigail’s to pick up food for his inmate. When he asks for the special of the day, Abigail’s curiosity piques and she wants to know who the inmate is. When he tells her it’s AJ Foster, a big smile comes across Abigail’s face. Bill gets defensive and tells Abigail to pour him the soup to take back to AJ. Abigail obliges him, but as she does, her smile gets even bigger.
In the classroom, the students tell Elizabeth which business owners they would like to shadow. Robert wants to spend is day with Carson at the clinic, Emily wants to spend her day with Dottie and Rosemary at the dress shop and Cody chooses to spend his day with Lee at the saw mill. Opal decides to spend her time at the mercantile, while Hattie chooses to shadow at the ice cream shop.
While enjoying her soup, AJ tries to engage in conversation with Bill, but Bill wants to avoid talking to her at all cost. She finally coaxes him into pulling up a chair next to her cell. She reminds Bill that the last time they saw each other they kissed and it was clear they both enjoyed it. She tells Bill that the reason she turned herself in is so she can serve her sentence before putting her past behind her and starting fresh.
Abigail meets with Joshua and Mr. Jenkins to talk about a potential investment. Joshua tells Abigail that if he invests in Hope Valley, he would want to be her partner and have a say in new businesses and growth. When Abigail wants him to elaborate, he tells her he will be looking at whatever businesses will help the town prosper.
Abigail pays Bill a visit at the jail to tell her about her meeting with Joshua. AJ overhears the conversation and says she might know Joshua. Abigail arranges for AJ to see him in person and see if his face jogs her memory.
Later on, Abigail meets with Elizabeth to tell her about the reservations she has about Joshua. Elizabeth points out that no matter what happens, Abigail is doing a great job at keeping the town calm during this time. As they talk, the potential investor that Henry set up arrives in a chauffeur driven car. Greta Preston is immediately taken with Hope Valley’s charm and is pleasantly surprised to see a familiar face walking through town. It turns out that Elizabeth grew up with Greta’s son Duncan in Hamilton. Henry approaches and he, Greta and Abigail leave to talk business. Before leaving, Elizabeth takes Abigail aside and says she believes luck is definitely on the town’s side now.
Back at the Mayor’s office, Greta tells Abigail that Henry informed her of all the ins and outs of Hope Valley, including the town’s little secrets. Abigail tells Greta that another investor is in town and Greta immediately cuts Abigail off, telling her that she won’t be used as a bargaining chip. Greta then shows herself to the door, saying she won’t further any talks with Abigail until Joshua is made aware of Greta’s interest in Hope Valley.
Back at the dress shop, Rosemary has tasked Emily with building an ensemble based on a white scarf. Upon seeing the cringe worthy ensemble, Rosemary offers to give Emily a lesson in patterns. At the mill, Lee is having lunch with Cody, who is learning that running a saw mill isn’t terribly exciting. Lee decides to give Cody a lesson in ledgers and in the importance of math. Opal is having fun with her day at the mercantile, even trying pickled eggs for the first time. At the clinic, Robert watches Carson in action as he removes a splinter from Jesse’s hand. As Carson begins to dig in the hand for the splinter, Robert passes out at the sight of the blood. Robert awakens to find Faith and Carson watching over him and offering juice. Robert is embarrassed about passing out but Carson assures him that even the toughest doctors have become woozy with the sight of blood and if the boy really wants to be a doctor, he should follow that dream.
Elizabeth runs into Greta taking a tour of Hope Valley. Greta lets Elizabeth know about all the wonderful things she has seen in the quaint town. Elizabeth elaborates on what a wonderful place Hope Valley is but Greta’s business day is over and she far more interested in hearing about Elizabeth’s new life.
Before heading to the saloon to spy on Joshua, Dottie gives AJ a makeover. Her new look leaves Bill speechless, but he quickly gathers his thoughts and the two head to the saloon. When they arrive, they spot Joshua sitting by himself with a book and a beer. AJ tells Bill she doesn’t recognize Joshua, but she needs a closer look. To Bill’s dismay, AJ approaches Joshua and casually flirts with him until he invites her to join him for a drink.
Elizabeth fills Greta in on her life since leaving Hamilton, including her dream wedding and her marriage to Jack. Elizabeth wants to know how Greta is doing, and Greta tells her that her life is filled with business meetings or traveling to more business meetings. When Elizabeth asks about Duncan, Greta tells her that she and her son have been estranged for years. When Elizabeth presses Greta for details, she tells her they are not important and says she is getting tired and wants to head back to her hotel to nap.
Bill continues to watch as AJ flirts with Joshua at the saloon. When she excuses herself and heads outside, Bill follows. She tells Bill she recognized Joshua immediately. When Bill wants to know why she sat down to have a drink with him, she jokingly tells him that she did it to see the look on Bill’s face. Later that evening, AJ meets with Bill and Abigail to fill them in on who Joshua Baxter really is. She ran into him a couple of months before, when she passed through a small Texas town where Joshua ran the bank. The town was filled with gambling and she found it to be completely opposite of Hope Valley. She suspected that Joshua paid off the police and mayor to maintain his hold on the town. Abigail decides that they need more information on Joshua and Bill agrees to reach out to a friend who is a Texas Ranger.
Back in the classroom, Elizabeth asks her students what they learned about business from their day away. Emily says she learned that there are rules to being creative, Opal says she learned that she loves pickled eggs, Robert learned that doctors don’t always make a lot of money and sometimes don’t charge patients because it is the right thing to do. Cody walks in late with Lee by his side. Elizabeth also learns that Cody tried to sneak in to spend another day with Lee. Elizabeth suspects that maybe Cody’s connection with Lee goes beyond just wanting to know what it is like to be a businessman. Lee tells Elizabeth that he understands; his own father was always gone on the road and he found himself doing all he could to take interest in dad’s job so he could spend more time with him.
Later on, Elizabeth spots Greta leaving the bank and wants to know how her meeting went. Greta says she went over Hope Valley’s bank records and what she saw was not pretty and that Mr. Jenkins has made some bad loans. Greta says she sees the potential for growth in Hope Valley but she has not made her final decision on investing. Elizabeth tries again to as Greta about her son Duncan, but she cuts her off and says she really must go.
After, Elizabeth approaches Abigail and makes her aware of Cody’s attempt to spend another day with Lee at the saw mill. Abigail realizes Cody is at the age where he could use a male role model in his life. She later finds Cody at home studying and tells him she feels bad about spending all her time focusing on the bank situation. Abigail promises him she will sneak away some time this weekend so they can go fishing and catch up. Their conversation is interrupted with a knock at the door. Cody opens the door and finds Lee standing in the doorway with a baseball and a mitt. Lee asks if Cody can help him toss the ball around. Cody gets a huge smile on his face and asks Abigail if it is okay and she obliges.
Bill rushes to Abigail’s to let her know that AJ’s story about Joshua is all true. The two rush to the bank to stop Mr. Jenkins from accepting Joshua’s deal but they are too late, the two men have already signed a contract giving Joshua a majority share of the bank.