As the episode begins, we see that Lloyd (Tom Jackson) is handcuffed and chained to a bathtub. He calls for Henry, but doesn’t get an answer. Mama (Rya Kihlstedt) belittles Jack for killing them. She tells him that he likes killing too much. The boy, Jack (Alex Ozerov), walks Mama through the murders. She is mad that he killed the woman, because she could have told them things. Mama tells Jack that he needs to learn some control. She explains that they cannot build North Haven without those guns. Jack has the key to the storage locker. He just doesn’t know where the locker is yet. Mama gives Jack a lashing for being a bad boy. After the intro, Kelly (Alanna Bale) returns home to John (Billy Campbell). John claims he is going through cold cases.

Kelly tells her father that he shouldn’t keep Catherine’s note and other belongings. John suggests they should take it one thing at a time. Cardinal meets up with Lise (Karine Vanasse) and learns there have been no hits with the Barstow’s rent vehicle. John invites her inside to talk about Randall Wishart (Aaron Ashmore). John and Lise both believe Randall is lying. While he hasn’t come in to speak with them, they do not believe he is responsible for the murders. They put together a theory for the reason Randall and his mistress were in the house. Randall finds Sam (Devery Jacobs) outside his place of work. Sam wants to tell the police what happened. Randall does not. She reveals she made an anonymous call to the police. Randall promises that he is going to leave his wife so they can be together.

Sam insists she didn’t give the police Randall’s name. Jack finds Nikki (Sophia Lauchlin Hirt) taking a bath. He tells her that she needs to find a way to be useful. They’re not going to have those amenities where they’re going. He claims that he and Lemur (Nick Serino) are both useful. Nikki laughs at that. She asks him about the guns he was supposed to get. He threatens to send her back to being a prostitute. Lemur interrupts. Jack believes that Lemur is in love with Nikki. Lise and John visit Randall. He denies having a mistress. Lise pleads with Randall to help them protect the woman out there. Randall isn’t willing to cooperate. Mama and the others sit down for food. She wants Lemur and Nikki to learn how to hunt and trap. Lemur is told to set traps on the property. Outside, Nikki and Lemur speak about Jack being wired wrong.

Lemur feels sorry for Jack. He claims that Jack just wants to be normal. Lemur says that Mama is better than their real mother. She saved them. Lemur says he wishes it was just the two of them. They also speak about the ATM jobs. Nikki confirms that the trap works. Jack checks the picture of Sam and looks at her phone. He gets the key. Lise lets John listen to the anonymous message from Sam. She tells them about a white man who followed them. They speak with an art dealer about Laura Carnwright. Marla tries to give John her condolences. She tells them about John chatting with a cute little cook from the Champlain Pub. She cannot remember the woman’s name. Marla tells John that it was not his fault. He doesn’t want to hear it. Mama checks on Lloyd. They speak about Henry and Lloyd’s family members.

Mama insists she is not interested in money. There is one thing that he has that she wants though. A security guard finds Jack going through the lockers. Jack makes up an excuse. The security guard, Mick, doesn’t want to give up any information. Mick threatens to call the cops. Jack explains that he is going to check the last three locks and then leave. Mick agrees to let him do so. John tries to track down the cook. Ash Kular (Zach Smadu) tells John about Connor Plaskett. It is a name he wanted him to run. Plaskett was living in Sudbury last December. He died not too long ago. Later, John speaks with a parole officer about Neil Codwallader. The parole officer explains that Neil is one of his success stories. John visits Neil at work and forces him to print out the threatening messages.

Neil does so. He claims he doesn’t know anything about the cards. He insists he is clean now and everything is over. Lloyd is moved from the bathtub. He tells Mama that she is out of her mind. McLeod tracks down Sam. He asks her about Laura and Randall. She pretends she doesn’t remember either of them. Mama gives Lloyd a drink later that night. He agrees she has been very fair. Mama takes a fishing lure from the wall. She tells him that they’re pretty. She sticks the hook deep into Lloyd’s hand. Sam gets off the bus. Jack threatens her. He wants her to say she saw nothing. She knocks him to the ground and runs for it. She attempts to hide from him. Sam gets a crossbow and prepares to use it. She ends up shooting him in the hand. Jack runs for it.

Lise meets up with Ash. Then, she speaks with the father of the boy who got mugged at the ATM. She tries to prevent him from being a vigilante. The man is searched and asked why he isn’t with Nathan. Lise explains that the doctor is confident that Nathan will regain consciousness. The man is worried that Nathan won’t recognize him when he wakes up. Dyson speaks to John about Neil. They speak about the nasty cards. Dyson tells him that she should have come to her. Dyson asks Lise if she knew about it. Lise admits she knew about the cards. Dyson tells Lise that she is worried all of John’s cases could be put in jeopardy. Lise explains that John has always been there for them. He found the bodies too. Lise believes it is his way of coping. She agrees to speak with John about it.

John tells them that they’ve got the girl from the voicemail and maybe the killer too. Lise speaks with Sam a short time later. Sam asks Lise if they got the Island Road killer. John and Lise speaks with Troy (Josh Cruddas). John tells Troy to tell Lise what he told him. Troy admits he wasn’t with Randall on the night of the murders. Sam was with him. Troy admits he tries to keep Sam quiet for Randall. He insists he is done covering for him. Troy wants Sam locked up for assault. A short time later, John tells Wendy and Sam that she won’t be charged. Lise continues questioning Sam. Lise tells Sam about Troy being Randall’s friend. Randall is arrested a short time later. Lise tells John to work on the cards quieter. She doesn’t want him to get suspended. He understands.

Later, Jack goes through Sam’s pictures and videos. Lemur catches him. Lemur tells him that there is a family meeting. Mama speaks to her warriors. She tells them that they have worked hard and they’re close to building their new home. She explains that the building is going to burn like everything else and nobody else will be ready for it. She chose them because they’ve seen the worst in people and they’re still standing. She tells them about an old mine that they’re going to use to protect themselves from the upcoming nuclear war. Once Jack finds the weapons, they’re going to be unstoppable.

 

Cardinal Review

This episode of Cardinal was pretty good. The entire season has been creepy and this episode took that to a whole new level. The relationship between Mama and Jack is very awkward. She has obviously helped the kids but she wants something in return for that favor. Meanwhile, John is working tirelessly to find who is sending those nasty post cards. So far, he is only driving himself batty. Could his behavior get Lise and himself in hot water?

Randall got caught up in his scheme. What will he say when questioned again? I can’t wait to watch the next episode. This one scores a solid 8.5 out of 10. Catch up with previous recaps of Cardinal before you leave!