Bellevue – Hello Little Light

By: Maggie Stankiewicz

Annie (Anna Paquin) is a disaster magnet and this fact hasn’t escaped her. In between updating her evidence and theory board, she dresses her home and property up with security cameras that link to her cellphone. With that small peace of mind installed, she goes to sleep. The next day, she meets Peter (Shawn Doyle), Virginia (Sharon Taylor), Brady (Billy MacLellan) and the rest of the crew at Jed’s (Neil Napier) (a/k/a Rainmaker) house for evidence of his relationship to the late Jesse (Sadie O’Neil). Annie is hesitant to entertain the notion of Jesse’s death being anything other than a personal attack, but Danny shows up before they can discuss it any further. Danny (Cameron Roberts) insists that he wasn’t on the hook for drugs, but instead occasionally looked over the property. Meanwhile, Brady manages to find a set of false eyelashes and women’s boots in size thirteen – a tad bit larger than the foot of the average woman. The detectives theorize that the eyelashes and the boots may belong to Jesse, who’s stash of “Rainmaker MDMA” had been located in a previous episode.

The foursome bicker and banter before breaking up, each tapping into their own investigative veins. Virginia and Brady go out to do some footwork, Annie departs to brood, and Peter raises suspicions. As it turns out, Annie and Virginia regroup at the Rattle Snake where they find Jed in attempt to validate his alibi. On their way out, they run into Eddie (Allen Leech), who is in the middle of a date with Brianna (Amber Goldfarb). Annie isn’t happy, but her displeasure will only add fuel to her fire. They return to Jed’s property where Brady has found a miniature Eiffel tower attached to a conspicuous earring – one that belonged to Jesse. This is evidence enough to bring Jed in for official questioning where they propose that he killed Jesse after the teenager stole a surplus of Rainmaker MDMA. Virginia takes the lead as bad cop, suggesting that Jed acted out to hide the sexual abuse he forced Jesse and Danny to endure. Jed turns the tables and asks for a lawyer – but maintains that he is innocent.

Speculation is Annie’s favorite game and she’s failing to see the connections between the circumstantial evidence. Peter declares that it’s time to give someone else’s instincts the benefit of the doubt. Instead, Annie applies the pressure to Peter for a separate mystery – the “spontaneous” combustion of his garage/shed. He denies any knowledge of the perpetrator, but Annie’s sends the signal that she knows there’s more to the story. A jump cut later, we watch Peter stand before a beaten and bloodied pedophile, demanding to know about The Riddler with more zeal and aggression than necessary. The pedophile surrenders to Peter’s requests before the superior officer drives away. Peter’s actions are bordering between malevolent and over-protective.

Daisy (Madison Ferguson) comes home to Annie for a brief exchange before band practice. Daisy hands her mother a hospital bracelet that belonged to Annie’s father Clarence. The vision seems to startle Annie and the impact was powerful enough to send her off in search of her father’s medical records. Her little personal investigation takes another step in the direction of the truth when she begins listening to the tapes of her father’s psychological evaluations and group therapy tapes. The echo of Clarence’s voice sends her back in time where she remembers a foreboding message about a man who thinks he loves her, a child. The man watches her and is full of rage and anger. Another familiar voice breaks through the static on the tape; Neil Driver (Andreas Apergis). Neil verbally attacks Clarence for failing to protect Sandy. This inspires Annie to pay a visit to Neil who tells her, “Violence is necessary. It has to happen. It’s how we see the truth.” When Annie asks about the truth behind Jesse’s murder, Neil shuts her down. It is not her time or her place to decide…not yet.

Back at the police station, Brady and Virginia experience a similar breakthrough. They’ve located Anthony (Karl Graboshas), one of Jed’s drug runners. Brady and Virginia interrogate him about the code he and Jed were speaking, but he’s not quite ready to talk until Virginia tugs at some of Anthony’s personal strings. Anthony reveals that Jed instructed him to burn the infamous white truck – a discovery that leads to Jed’s official arrest.

Bellevue’s tight-lipped Mayor (Janine Theriault) is caught in a moment of vulnerability when Bethany (Emelia Hellman) finds her crying and then smiling, over the long distance between the family patriarch. A brief exchange later, and the Mayor leaves Bethany to tend to a maelstrom of hostile text messages from her former friends and classmates. The messages, all of which read, “WHORE”, are a stark contrast from her mother’s semi-positive announcement on Jesse’s memorial and the creation of more jobs in the blue-collar town. Peter and Annie discuss the case within earshot of a local parent, and later bump into Eddie and Brianna. Annie questions Eddie’s promiscuity, which appears to be a side-effect of his blossoming addition. And speaking of addiction…Annie seeks refuge with Brady to get drunk in his truck, like esteemed law enforcement officers. Their conversation veers into dangerous territory, but Annie leaves before things get too heavy.

Fueled by alcohol, loneliness and frustration, Annie continues dumping all of her energy into the investigation. While she tries to find the connection between Neil Driver and The Riddler, her security system alerts her that an intruder is in the system. It’s The Riddler and he knows she’s looking for him. He greets her with a haunting “Hello Little Light,” but before anything else happens she disconnects the system from a power source, blocking him out. Annie pays a visit to Neil Driver to ask him about his technological literacy after learning that The Riddler could have easily hacked her security system, but he is too far from coherence to have been the culprit. He thinks Annie is Sandy and his schizoaffective disorder is proof enough that he is not The Riddler. Annie leaves the hospital and bumps into Peter, who is following her under the pretense that they need to rectify their trust issues for Annie’s safety.

When Peter leaves, Annie is introduced to The Riddler’s next gift to her, a swing seat with the words “Time will tell if the bracelet fits” scribbled on it. The riddle refers to the hospital bracelet that Daisy delivered to her mother earlier. Annie instantly makes the connection and calls Daisy for a few additional details. Daisy found the bracelet hanging, like a gift for them to find. Like mother, like daughter. Daisy took the bait. Annie, despite her suspicions being quelled, returns to Neil’s home. Neil arrives shortly after Annie does after being released from the hospital. He has some rare clarity, as he recognizes Annie for who she is. He tries his best to explain December 24, time 12:13, a pivotal moment for the Driver family. Sandy and Maggie Sweetland (Victoria Sanchez) had been up to something shady, a fact that drove him mad. He tells Annie that if Maggie had left them alone, Sandy wouldn’t have had to die.

In an aside we see a grief-stricken Maggie crying over her treasured photo album, and later see her sitting with Annie as they discuss Jesse’s indiscretions. Maggie asks about Jed’s motivations in killing Jesse, but Annie’s doubt is palpable. There’s more than just doubt about Jed that’s on Annie’s mind. Maggie can tell and it doesn’t take long for Annie to spit out a question about her connection to Sandy Driver. Annie ties it back to the possibility of Neil wanting revenge, and Maggie is pushed off the edge. Is it grief, or a cover up that causes Maggie’s outburst? There are no clear motives.

Jed and his bandana are being questioned by Annie, who brings up the presence of pond water and Jesse’s earring. Their conversation becomes pivotal when Jed reveals that he actually cared for Jesse. They shared a unique bond, one that allowed Jesse to try out more feminine pronouns. Jed appears to be the only one who knew Jesse as a she and not a he. In a following scene, Danny is reminiscing on his time with Jesse by watching some old videos. In the video Jesse discusses their journey of sexual identity discovery – and smiles in total freedom. This is the first unadulterated glimpse into Jesse’s existence, once that involves happiness and perhaps a strong sense of self awareness. Danny was a part of that brighter side of Sweetland’s life.

In the final scene of this jam-packed episode, we watch Annie plug her security camera back in. The small indicator light slowly illuminates, and I can’t help but think to myself: Hello Little Light.