Trask works to cast the devil out of Vicki, who remains tied to a tree. She calls for help, and he tells her that no one but the Lord will hear her.
The Countess paces nervously. Angelique brings the Countess her Tarot cards. She tells Angelique she needs to read the cards to find out where Miss Winters is. Angelique leaves her, and Barnabas and Nathan enter.
They ask if she was present when Reverend Trask questioned her. She says Trask was sure she was guilty of practicing witchcraft. Nathan says they should get her out of the house for her own safety, and the Countess says Trask took her out of the house forcibly, and no one knows where he took her. She says that Trask said he had a way of proving whether she was a witch. She implores them to go looking for her, as she feels guilty. Barnabas says it's a little late for her to feel guilty. She says that Vicki struck Trask, and then Trask struck her. He tied her hands behind her back and took her away, and she's sure he's torturing her right now.
Barnabas says she and his Aunt should be ashamed of themselves. As he and Nathan go to leave, Trask enters. Barnabas asks what he's done with Vicki, and Trask tells him not to interfere with God's fight with the devil. He says the girl is possessed, and he will prove it by the morning. Barnabas asks where she is, and he refuses to tell her.
Trask asks why he is concerned with someone who has harmed his family. Trask questions Barnabas' motives for defending her. Barnabas says they have just fought a war to establish certain rights, and he is defending hers. He and Nathan leave to look for Vicki.
Trask asks for Abigail, and the Countess says she's retired for the evening. He sees the Tarot cards, and asks her about them. He says she can lay no claim to being religious if she uses the Devil's playthings. She tells him she doesn't need his advice. Angelique enters with tea. The Countess asks Trask about his test, and to confirm that Vicki is not harmed. Angelique is concerned to hear that Trask is a witch hunter. Trask says Vicki is tied to a tree, and if she is a witch, the tree will be dead by the morning. Angelique sneaks away, smiling.
Angelique comes downstairs in the middle of the night wearing a cloak, and leaves the house.
Vicki continues to call for help.
In the woods, Angelique hears Nathan and Barnabas. Barnabas suggests they should have brought Ben with them, as he knows the woods. Nathan says it may be useless to search at night, and Barnabas says they have to find her before the morning. They hear a woman crying, and they call out to Vicki. The find her and untie her. She says she can't go back to the house. Nathan suggests that they hide her in the new house. He promises that Trask will not get near her.
After they've gone, Angelique appears. She touches the tree. She replays Trask's words in her mind and smiles. Suddenly, she's holding a small tree.
She sets the small tree on fire, and turns to look at the tree Vicki was tied to, which also starts to burn.
The next morning, Trask exits the house early. The Countess comes downstairs and looks out the window. She then leaves as well.
Nathan and Barnabas arrive at the new house with Vicki. Barnabas says she will be fine, and Trask will soon be gone.
Trask finds the Countess following him in the woods. She says she wants to see that Vicki is safe. He sends her back to the house. She asks if he is afraid she'll see that he was wrong. He says he was trying to protect her. He invites her to follow him. They arrive at a tree, and he says she has escaped, but her guilt has been proven. He points to the smoldering stump of a tree.
Our thoughts
John: So Angelique's voodoo techniques work on trees, too? Frankly, I don't understand why she went to the trouble of burning the small tree if she just could have burned the large tree directly.
Christine: I also wondered why she didn't just burn the actual tree and thought that it might be because it needed to look like it was magically burned, thereby giving more credence to the accusation that Vicki is a witch by removing any doubt that it could have been burned by natural causes. It's probably more likely that it was just easier and less dangerous to burn a small tree.
John: This episode has another one of my favorite Barnabas blunders, as he stumbles through his tough talk with Reverend Trask.
Christine: As we learn more Collins history, it's interesting to note that 1795 Barnabas was such a kind-hearted, unusual guy in that he did what most men of the time wouldn't do, by helping a former convict learn to write and defending the rights of a woman long before women had any rights. I wonder if Vicki has any inkling yet that he's the same Barnabas she knows in 1967.
John: Speaking of the good Reverend, I do hope he'll be around for a while. He's a lot of fun, and lord knows there will be plenty of need of a man of God in Collinwood in the days ahead...
Christine: What a great character to loathe! He and Abigail make a dastardly duo.
1 comment:
Oh, I have a feeling that Trask will be "hanging around" for quite some time. :)
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