Strange Bedfellows
Updated 2009-10-30 06:54:04
Hollywood sign. Sun. Sunny music that I have never heard before. Charlotte's in bed telling Coop she's sure Sam's the one blocking her from joining the practice, since Violet's totally checked out and doesn't care, Addison would tell her to her face, and Cooper would be crazy not to let her join since she's paying his share, too. He tells her Sam's not blocking her, but they haven't had time to discuss it yet. She tries to tempt him into being her "man on the inside" by offering to play python in the forest, and he groans a little, but tells her he has to go. He's late. Oh, and he's wearing a suit.
The sunshiney music stops and we're in a hall with Naomi, who's telling Violet what to do on the stand: Just look straight at the prosecutor and no one else. That's what Naomi did (so we know she's already testified, even though they didn't show us). Violet looks inside the courtroom and sees Pete on the stand. Then a bailiff opens the door and calls for her. She heads in, just as Cooper shows up to rub her on the back and apologize for being late. Dramatic music plays as Violet's walk to the stand takes what seems like forever. A court employee tries to swear Violet in, but she looks right at Katie (good thing she heeded Naomi's advice for the entire time it took her to walk up to the stand, and not a moment longer) and doesn't respond to the swearing-in. The judge sweetly tells her this is her cue, but she just looks in shock and then says she can't do this. She leaves the stand. Katie watches her with what looks like concern. Sunny title card.
Oceanside. Sam and Addison are in the break room, where he asks if there's any word on the trial. She says not yet, but Violet's on the stand all day. Then she tells Sam she heard from Stan Parsons, who's happy where he is. Sam's disappointed since Stan would have fit in well, since they could use another ortho guy. Addison says they could use any doctor at this point, and maybe they could just go with Charlotte? Sam thinks she can't be serious, but Addison says she's skilled and professional and is a specialty they don't have (do we even know what her specialty is?). Violet, Cooper and Naomi walk in, and Addison wonders what happened. Violet walks off and Naomi explains that she refused to testify. Addison wonders if they tried to talk to her, and Cooper says he did, so Addison decide to lecture him about how Violet needs support. Which is why Addison stayed at the practice in the break room while Cooper was in court. SUPPORTING VIOLET. Naomi says she won't talk to her or Pete either, so it's Addison's turn. Addison tells Sam she's not going to talk to her if she won't talk to any of the people who are her actual friends.
In the lobby, Jackie from last season's finale (who's there with Jane again) starts screaming when she sees Naomi, because she was supposed to have left the practice, as they were promised since she accidentally switched their embryos and all -- or at least took the fall for it . She tells Jackie to step off because she doesn't work here anymore. Jane tells Jackie to calm down, and she starts to as Naomi leaves. They tell Addison the appointment is because the obstetrician thinks there might be something wrong with "the baby." When Addison asks which one, both women say, "Mine." Jackie explains it's the child she's carrying, which is Jane's son, and that it all gets confusing sometimes. Jackie says they were told they needed a surgical consult, and Addison was the only one their doctor recommended. Addison takes her into a doctor's office.
Addison gives Jackie an ultrasound as she apologizes for blowing up at Naomi. She says she thought she was okay with everything, but it's been hard. She rambles but then notices that Addison's looking seriously at the ultrasound screen. She asks what's wrong, and Addison shows her something on the image that looks like nothing. She explains that it's a teratoma , a kind of tumor that has something to do with stem cells ending up where they don't belong. That's bad because, in this case, the tumor is taking over the baby's blood supply. Addison would like to operate, to try to separate the tumor from the fetus. When Jackie asks if that will fix it, Addison says it's not that simple: Sometime it doesn't work. But without surgery, the baby will die. Jackie says she'll do it since this is Jane's only chance at a baby. Addison discloses that she'll need to perforate the uterus to do the surgery, which can affect Jackie's ability to carry another child. She tells Jackie to talk it over with Jane and her husband, but her husband left because he didn't like she and Jane having each other's babies. But Jackie can't do it, because she believes her husband will come back and they've always wanted a big family. So Addison recommends terminating the pregnancy. Jackie asks if the baby's going to die in the womb if she does nothing, and Addison says it is. Jackie thinks it's best to do nothing then, and not tell Jane that she chose to do nothing. Addison says Jane has a right to know, but Jackie points out Addison can't tell her since she's Addison's patient.
Pacific Wellcare. Pete's carrying a box when Naomi comes in and he tells her she looks like someone "shredded" her. He assumes it was Violet. She doesn't answer, but tells him to remind her never to go upstairs again. She says she didn't talk to Violet, though, and wonders if he's going to again. He says he tried and she's not going to listen, so now Katie's going to walk as "not guilty by reason of insanity." This pisses Pete off, because Katie's guilty and he thinks that six months in a nut farm and some meds is unacceptable punishment after what she did. Pete says he got on the stand and explained the wound, but without Violet explaining it to the jury, they'll never understand. Naomi says maybe it's too traumatic for Violet, but he says she's just going to continue to be stuck then, and he'll have a son whose mother doesn't care about him and is missing everything. Naomi says Violet just needs time, and Pete says she can have as much as she wants because he's done.
Back at Oceanside, Sam's in Violet's office and she wonders if Cooper put him up to this. He says they're all concerned for her, but she wonders why she has to relive this to make sure Katie gets punished. Sam says this isn't about Katie; it's about her. Violet agrees, which is why she doesn't want to sit there for eight or ten hours reliving it with Katie staring at her, but Sam asks if she isn't reliving it anyway. Sam knows facing her is hard, but Violet says being on the same planet with Katie is hard. He's cool with chipping in to send her to the space station, one way. A nurse comes in to tell Violet that someone's there to see her: Mr. Kent, who said to tell Violet he's Katie's father. Sam asks the nurse to give him a second with Violet please, and as she starts to hyperventilate, he asks what she'd tell a patient in this situation to do. Sam says he's going to sit in a chair looking at her, and all she has to do is sit and blink if she needs him.
Katie's father sits with Violet and tells her how horrifying it was to hear what Pete found. He says he can't apologize enough and he starts crying. Violet passes him tissues, as he tells her that she helped Katie. Violet points out that if that were true, they wouldn't be sitting here. He goes on that Katie couldn't stop talking about Violet, and how she knew how much she wanted a baby and was helping her. Then he pleads, "If that jury sends her to prison, she'll disappear." Uh, yeah, that's sort of the point and exactly what Violet wants. He says the illness will eat Katie alive in prison. Violet wonders why he's here, and he says Katie wants to see Violet and talk to her, since she's the only person who understands. Violet turns to Sam and blinks. Commercials.
Sam's filling in Cooper, who's too busy being upset that Violet talked to Sam instead of him to actually listen to what Sam's saying. Sam says Violet's terrified of facing Katie, and Coop's like, "That's the revelation?" But Sam goes on to tell him that Katie's dad showed up, but he doesn't know what was said since as soon as he left, Violet went to hide in the ladies room. Charlotte interrupts then, wanting to talk to Sam, not Coop. In the hall, Charlotte tells Sam how amazing she is: great doctor, cash to buy in, great ideas, and chief at the hospital. She wonders why he's stalling, and he says he doesn't think she's the right fit here, since everyone else is friends and respects each other and gets along. She guesses that's why Naomi and Pete couldn't get out of here fast enough. He changes arguments, saying they want someone calm, who's great with patients, and Charlotte barks, "Oh. You want Naomi?" Sam doesn't want to be mean, but he just doesn't like Charlotte. She wonders what that has to do with anything. But Addison interrupts with a loud "ahem," sending Charlotte dashing off. Addison needs to talk about Jackie and Jane.
Charlotte bursts into the ladies room, and rants to Violet about how stupid it is that feelings have anything to do with anything. Violet just continues rubbing water on her face. Charlotte says, "If something needs doing, you just do it. Otherwise, what good are you?" Not really talking about Violet, but she gets the message. Addison's apparently brought Sam up to speed in an office, because he doesn't like what Jackie's going to do to Jane either. Addison hates that the baby's sick, that Jackie won't let her try to fix it, that she's lying to Jane, and that Naomi's caught up in it again. Sam says they're all caught up in it if the baby dies, because the settlement they made is based on both babies being born alive. If that doesn't happen, they're facing a malpractice suit, so lying to Jane is going to make it worse. Addison wants to ask Naomi, but Sam points out that they're already mad at her and if they sense she's been involved, they'll go after her first in litigation. Shouldn't they care more about protecting their practice than protecting Naomi? Or is that too selfish of me?
Sports bar. Pete and Coop are drowning their sorrows, which consists of Cooper filling Pete in on Katie's dad coming and Violet not spilling about it. But Pete didn't get a babysitter so he and Coop could talk about Violet. Cooper says they can talk about his "benefactor," Charlotte. Poor Cooper. His rich girlfriend is really a problem. He says he loves being emasculated. And, really, who doesn't? Cooper doesn't want to talk about Charlotte, either, so he asks Pete to bet on the game. Pete wonders if Cooper loses does he collect from Charlotte?
Sam and Addison are eating Chinese food and drinking on one of their back balconies, as Sam says Charlotte's face showed feelings when he told her he didn't like her. Who knew? Addison: "Cooper." She tells him he shouldn't have done that, and he says she backed him into a corner and he ran out of other excuses. Addison says they should hire Charlotte, because she likes her check, she likes moving forward, she likes Charlotte's specialty, and she likes that it would make Cooper happy. Addison says fine, and then Naomi comes over looking for Addison. She says she's interrupting when she sees them, and this awkward moment really makes me think Addison and Sam are going to end up having something romantic soon enough. Which I really don't like. Sam says he's just leaving, but Naomi starts in that Jane came to see her. She told Naomi she thinks something's wrong with the baby and that Addison and Jackie are lying to her. Addison doesn't say anything, so Naomi goes on that she knows she's supposed to be out of this, but Jane is freaking out. Addison says there is a problem, and Sam butts in, "That we can't tell you about." Naomi asks lots of questions that no one answers and Addison says this is ridiculous, since they're all in this together and so they all sink or swim. She tells Naomi what's wrong with the baby, and that Jackie won't be operated on. Naomi says they have to do something, and she thinks if they can get her into a room with Jackie, she can get her to change her mind. Sam shakes his head, but you know Addison's going to let her anyway.
Violet arrives at a prison and is led down a hallway into a room where Katie's sitting at a table in an orange jumpsuit. Katie thanks her for coming and says she's on her meds, so she's herself. Violet's heard. She asks what Katie wanted, and Katie asks how she is. Then Katie gets teary as she apologizes to Violet and asks her to tell her she knows it wasn't her who did that, because she needs Violet to know she's not a monster. She wants Violet to testify, since the jury looks at her like she's a monster. Because Violet's testimony will help that how, exactly? Violet basically asks the same thing. Katie thinks the jurors will know, if Violet testifies, that she was crazy that night. Violet says she'd avoid prison, and Katie says she won't get help in prison. Not sure the lady you cut open is going to care all that much about you getting help, crazy. Katie doesn't ever want to be crazy again, because she's scared of the person who did that. She says it's not about avoiding punishment, but she needs help. Violet cries and tells Katie she gutted her like a pig and ripped her baby out of her body. She says, "You left me there to bleed to death, and now I should be on your side? I should care about how sorry you are? I should give a damn about what happens to you? You made my life hell. You made me crazy. And now you want a free pass? FROM ME!" She leaves, and Katie hollers, "Please, Dr. Turner," after her. Yeah, good luck with that one.
Addison's office. Naomi and Addison are there when Jackie comes in. Naomi starts right in with apologies, but Jackie stops her and says she's not interested. She just wants to know what she was called here to hear. Naomi tells her that Jane came to her, because she knows Jackie's hiding something and there's something wrong with the baby. Naomi speechifies about how when this first happened, she didn't care if she wanted to keep the baby; she just wanted Jackie to feel okay given what Naomi did to her. She says she didn't change her mind: That was Jane and Jackie's decision. Addison asks if she wouldn't want to know if it was the other way around, and Jackie says it is the other way around, because they're both her babies and they're both Jane's. She says if she tells Jane now, Jane's blood pressure problems might cause her to lose the baby, and then they'll lose both. Addison suggests the surgery again. Jackie cries, and Naomi says if she won't try the surgery, the safest choice if she ever wants to be pregnant again is to end the pregnancy, which means telling Jane. Jackie says she'll tell her, but Addison can't put the reason not to do the surgery on her.
Sam's looking dapper in royal blue and brown when Cooper comes in and tells him Charlotte was in a bitch of a mood last night. Coop doesn't want any apologies, but wants to know if she's in or out. Sam says they called her this morning, and she's moving into Pete's old office now. Sam smiles, but Coop doesn't look all that happy. He goes into Charlotte's office and says she could have called him. He congratulates her and then she shows him what's in some of the boxes she's moving in: sex objects. She says her new specialty is sexual dysfunction. He says she's a urologist, but she says she's that and more. She even hired a web designer, and will be all online with her sexual dysfunction. He wonders why she didn't tell him about this sooner, and wonders what she's going to call this specialty. She says "sexology" and he says the business cards will sound a little like a hooker or dominatrix. She tells him this is a legitimate specialty, but he's like, "Really?" I can't believe the porn addict is the guy who's questioning this specialty that Addison seems so excited about, but I guess they need to create conflict somehow. Violet walks by and Coop asks to table the discussion.
Violet's office. Cooper asks if she still doesn't want to talk to him, and she admits she's afraid he's going to pressure her into doing something she doesn't want to do. He wonders why she'd talk to Sam, and she says Sam doesn't pressure. Coop promises not to pressure, so he asks why Katie's father came in. She says because Katie wanted to see her, and she went. She says she thought if she could face her there then she could face her in court. He says she should have told him, and he would have gone with her. He asks how it went, and Violet says she wanted to rip Katie's lungs out, but the deputy was there. She tells him Katie wants her to testify that she was crazy, and that Dr. Turner thinks she needs help but Violet wants her dead. But only one of those people can testify. She asks him what she should do. Coop says Dr. Turner's the best psychiatrist he knows, but he wants what's best for Violet. Plus, she'd be testifying as the victim here, not the doctor. So: Be Violet, Violet.
Addison and Naomi are telling Jane what's going on with her baby. Jane wonders if there's anything to do but the surgery, and Jackie starts to apologize, but Jane tells her she really understands. Jane starts to get a little light-headed and Addison says she'll take her blood pressure now. Jane tells Jackie that when she found out they had the wrong babies, she was afraid Jackie wouldn't try to make it work, so thanks for trying. Jane asks what to do now, and Addison tells her termination is best. Jane wants to be there, and she apologizes for how hard this must be for Jackie. She starts breathing rapidly and loudly as she tries to keep talking. Naomi puts an oxygen mask on her and Addison calls for an IV.
Later, Jane's stable, once they have her hooked up to all sorts of machines. Jane tells Addison she's such a mess, but Addison says she just needs to avoid stress and get some rest. Jane says she wanted to be stronger for Jackie, and Addison says she is. She goes to get Jackie. In the lobby, Addison tells Jackie that Jane has to be careful, but both she and the baby will be fine. Jackie tells Addison she changed her mind and wants to have the surgery as soon as she can. She realizes Jane's putting her health at risk for Jackie's baby and she needs to do the same.
Sam, Cooper and Pete are at the bar. Cooper and Sam are talking about whether Violet should testify, when Coop finally tells Sam to "ix-nay on the iolet-Vay." Pete explains he's done trying with Violet, because it's not his concern. Sam and Coop fill Pete in on Katie wanting Violet to testify. Pete wonders if she's actually considering it, then asks if they can talk about something else. So Cooper fills him in on Charlotte's wacky new specialty. Pete doesn't think it's a crazy specialty at all. Sam's just surprised Coop didn't know. Pete thinks Charlotte will be a good sexologist. Or, you know, he assumes. Coop says this is the problem, and orders another drink. Then he asks the bartender what he'd think if his girlfriend was going to be a sexologist. We get Taye's gorgeous smile instead of an answer, though.
Coop arrives home drunk, and when Charlotte questions him, he says he's a responsible adult and took a cab. He also says he's decided that it's a good thing she's a sexologist because she can do peep shows for him at work. He says she's really good at doing what she does, so she should be putting her skills to work. "Just use a condom." She says he gets nasty mean when he's drunk, but he says he's not drunk, just clear. (It's a fine line, really.) He wonders how he'll introduce her now. Maybe: "This is my girlfriend Charlotte. Do you need help with your erection?" She pushes him out of bed. He reminds her this is his bed that he paid for. She lays back down, and he tells her to take it all and leave him nothing but shame and mortification. She lies awake, thinking.
At the hospital, Addison's scrubbing in for surgery. She's nervous, because she feels like she's trying to save two babies instead of one. Naomi says all she can do is everything she possibly can. Addison says it won't be good for Nae if this doesn't work, but Naomi tells her not to put that on herself, since she's the one who made the mistake. Addison heads in to surgery. In court, someone says "all rise," and we see Violet's there. She looks back at Pete, Cooper and Sam. Naomi's sitting with Jane while they wait for surgery. She takes her blood pressure, and then Jane talks about how hard this is. Naomi apologizes for putting them through this, but Jane is too sweet and tries to make her feel better. Jane says it's crazy, but she's closer to Jackie than anyone ever, and Naomi did that, too. Addison comes out and says Jackie's fine, but she couldn't save the baby. She did everything she could.
Violet's on the stand in court. The attorney knows this is hard on her, so he gets right to it and asks her what happened that night. She says she opened the door and Katie jabbed her with a syringe. Katie starts to cry. Violet says she remained conscious but couldn't move, and Katie told her what she was going to do to her: cut her baby out of her body. And then she did. Sad piano music plays. At the hospital, Jane's comforting Jackie when Naomi comes in and tells Jackie she will be okay. Jackie tells Jane she just feels like she failed her and like she lost her baby. Jane comforts her and says it's not her fault, and that all of this just happened. She tells Jackie that her baby's still alive and kicking, and they're a family who can do this together. Jackie's husband comes back in and wonders if she's okay. Jane's horrified he'd come back now that the baby's gone, but Jackie tells Jane she called him. Jackie and her husband talk sweetly to each other and Jane leaves. Naomi chases after Jane, who tells her she's just the surrogate. When Naomi says she's much more than that, Jane says she thought she was but now Jackie's husband's back. Jane says Jackie and her husband can have other babies. Naomi tells her that he's not her baby and she can't keep him, but Jane says she can and he's all she has left. She leaves.
Violet's saying the last thing she remembers is Katie walking out the door with the baby. Wow. So she was conscious through the whole painful ordeal? You'd think she would have passed out from blood loss or pain or something. She says she remembers the blood, spreading out all around her. The attorney thanks her and then Katie's attorney starts in. She asks about Violet's treatment of Katie: that she felt it was safe for Katie to stop taking her meds. Violet says Katie refused to take them, because she thought they'd harm the baby. The attorney asks if Violet understood Katie had an illness that required them, and Violet says she understood Katie could benefit. The prosecutor tries to object, but Katie's attorney says Violet's an expert in addition to being the victim, so the judge allows it. The attorney asks if Violet knew Katie would lapse into a delusional state without meds, and the prosecutor objects again. The attorney rephrases, wondering if Katie was delusional, in Violet's expert opinion, on the night in question. Violet looks at Katie, closes her eyes and says, "Yes." Pete gets clearly emotional, as does Katie. Coop sighs. Katie's dad looks relieved. And then Pete gets up and leaves. Violet's letting him down again. And, really, you can't blame the guy. This was his baby and the woman he loved, whom he basically lost because of this. Poor Violet, though. I like to see this serious, thoughtful, responsible Violet so much more than the idiot she's been.
Violet's visiting Katie again in prison. She tells her she hates what she did to her, but she knows Katie was right, which is why she said what she did on the stand. She says denying that Katie wasn't herself that night would be denying her profession. She says she knows Katie wasn't herself, because Violet's not herself either. She tells Katie she hopes she gets better, and Katie says she hopes she gets better, too. I can't believe how sad this is. I really thought I'd hate Katie, but they've somehow made her compassionate. And, seriously, no one could ever claim that woman wasn't batshit insane, so it makes sense this is how it would end. Not that I expected this show to play it so subtly and non-melodramatically. But this is a pleasant surprise.
Hospital. Jackie's husband's pissed, and pacing, since Jane took off with "our baby." He think she'll hurt him, but Jackie says she wouldn't do that. He wonders how she can be so calm, but she says she just lost a baby. He says, "And we're going to find her and get it back," but Jackie wasn't talking about that baby. He says, "Her baby." She says it's hard for him to understand, but when a child grows inside you, it feels like it's yours. He asks if Jackie's defending Jane now, and Naomi breaks in. He tells her she should know the settlement's out the window now, but Addison says this was never about that for either of them. Jackie tells him they'll get their baby back, because Jane's a good person and will do the right thing. She tells him he can't just rush in here after months away when Jane was there for her during the hardest thing she's ever done and even tried to make her feel better when her own baby died. Jackie grabs his hand and says she loves him, but Jane's her friend and that will mean something to her.
Charlotte's in an Oceanside office, though it looks more like Naomi's old one than Pete's. Cooper comes in to tell her about Violet's trial: She did great, all calm and focused about the hell that happened to her. And then she told the jury Katie wasn't mentally responsible. He says he couldn't have done that. Then he moves in close to Charlotte, apologizes, and says he loves her. She stands up and says she's too much woman for him, since she has more money, a specialty that makes him nervous, and she bought his way into the practice. She says she's strong and she likes that, and she isn't going to make herself smaller if she's too much woman for him. She's not going to make him feel like a big man, because she's a big woman, so he can get used to it or get out. He says he'll get used to it. "You're hot. Strong women are hot. It's hot." He kisses her, and she pulls away to say she means it, but then they full-on make out.
Violet's office. She arrives and Pete's there. He tells her he's given her space and time, taken care of their son, quit his job to make it easier. But she hasn't moved past it. He says she had a chance today to make a huge step at moving past it by making Katie pay for what she did to her. She nods in agreement, and he wonders what that was. She asks if he wanted her to lie, and he says Katie's always going to be dangerous, and she'll make someone else believe she's okay and could do this again, which is unacceptable. "After what she did to you, you help her?" She says she didn't do it for Katie; she did it for her. He says what Katie did was unspeakable, and she needs to stay locked up. He starts crying, and Violet says, "Oh my God. I've been so in my head, I didn't realize that it happened to you, too." She says she's not the only victim; he's one, too. She tells him how sorry she is and walks toward him. She says Katie took something from him, too. She took Violet from him. She's sorry. He tells her not to be sorry; just come back to him. She cries. He finishes, "You have to come back to me, okay? Just come back." He leaves, and she watches him, her eyes filled with tears.
Addison and Naomi are on her balcony drinking wine, saying they couldn't be as forgiving as Violet. Addison thinks it has to be a positive step for Violet, though. Naomi wonders if Violet will get back to normal, and Addison hopes so but says it won't be the old normal. Naomi asks what is, and Addison says nothing lately. Naomi transitions, "Which raises the question: Charlotte King? Really?" Addison says Naomi's hard to replace, and then, "She has some interesting sex toys." Naomi laughs. Then we're back at the office with Charlotte, when Sam comes in and apologizes for saying he doesn't like her. She asks if he's sorry he doesn't like her or sorry he said it. He says Cooper likes her, and then he stutters around and repeats he's sorry. She says she doesn't need everyone to like her, but she's here. She asks if he's on board with that, and he welcomes her to the practice. End title card.
Next week: Addison becomes a crazy cat lady. Honesty isn't the best policy, but it's freeing for Violet. Naomi yells at someone to "Shut up. You stupid jerk." And the patient of the week wants to die. She has a secret that will shock them all, and Pete tells Violet he'll get the truth if she won't.
Discuss this episode in our forums , then find out why we think Violet is one of the truly scariest characters on television right now.
DeAnn, a writer and editor in Portland, Oregon, has not yet had to plead temporary insanity. You can contact her at twopmodmars@gmail.com .