Recap for "A is for Answers" PLL Episode 4x24

The spring finale of Pretty Little Liars arrived and we finally got some more answers about what really happened the night Ali went missing.  Melissa’s back in town, Noel makes a surprise appearance, we get some horrific insight into Ms. DiLaurentis, and there is a huge Ezra shocker.

Last episode, we left off with the girls surprised by the arrival of a mystery person.

Spencer, Aria, Hanna and Emily watch the clock and wait in silence.  The mystery person from last episode?  Noel, of course.  Noel’s taken them somewhere else to meet Ali.  Noel answers his cell phone and tells the girls to stay there.  He’ll be right back.  He leaves and Aria expresses her disbelief that they let Noel bring them to this room.  Spencer and Hanna wonder if it is some kind of trap.  Emily wonders why Ali would trust Noel.

Ali suddenly comes in and says she trusts Noel because he has some secrets, too.  The girls all stand and stare at Ali.  Hanna says she wants to hug and slap Ali at the same time.  Ali says that she could use a hug.  She hugs Hanna, Emily, and Aria individually.  Ali doesn’t hug Spencer, but she says that she’s glad Spencer is here.  She needs her help.

Now that the cops are looking for her, she really needs help figuring out who “A” is.  She can’t go home until she figures it out.  Hanna tells Ali that they think “A” is her mom.  Ali doesn’t look surprised and she says it’s complicated.  She’s finally going to tell them everything they need to know.  Spencer tells her to start at the beginning.  Ali says that she is ready to talk.  If the girls can’t figure out who “A” is tonight, then she will have to disappear again.  This time for good.

Officer Holbrook questions CeCe in an interrogation room.  The police are filming the interview.  CeCe asks if the police got lucky or if someone turned her in.  Officer Holbrook asks who would have done that.  He gives her a chance to use self-defense as an explanation for murdering Wilden, but CeCe doesn’t bite.  Officer Wilden says that they have an eye witness who can place her at the scene of the crime.  They are waiting for him to come to the police station and identify her.

CeCe decides that she wants to make a deal.  Officer Wilden doesn’t know what she has to bargain with, since they have her on the hook for murder.  CeCe says that she knows who killed the girl that was in Ali’s grave.  It is the same person who is still trying to hurt Ali.  She’s seen Ali alive more than once and she can prove it.

Ali says that her story starts at Hilton Head.  “A” had been terrorizing her every since Halloween.  She figured a weekend away with Ian would do her some good.  Ali is waiting for Ian in the room when she hears Melissa and Ian arguing outside the door.  Melissa insists that she knows Ali is there.  Ian tells her that Ali doesn’t mean anything to him.  After hearing this, Ali deletes footage on the camera set up in the room.  Outside the room, Ian tells Melissa that he will take care of the situation so that Melissa doesn’t make a scene.  Melissa tells Ian that he can never see Ali again because someone will get hurt.  Ian tells Melissa that he was just killing time waiting for Melissa to come back to him. Melissa doesn’t want to lose Ian again.  Melissa and Ian kiss.

In the room, Ali looks through Ian’s laptop.  He has videos on his computer, including videos of Alison and a Toby/Jenna video.  Ali copies the videos onto a USB and is gone by the time Ian comes into the room.

Ali figures that the videos are everything she needs to shut “A” down.  Jenna was at the top of her list of suspects.  She had every reason to hate Ali and she had Garret to do her dirty work.  Ali brings the tape to Jenna and threatens to bury her if she gets one more threat or if Jenna ever comes back to Rosewood.  As Ali is leaving Jenna’s room, she gets a text message that says “Bitch can’t see you, but I do.  Tonight’s the night I kill you”.

Ali is convinced that Jenna wouldn’t have sent that text message after finding out Ali had a tape of Jenna and Toby’s relationship.  So Ali realized that Jenna wasn’t “A”.

Ms. Hastings is busy talking to all the girls’ mothers.  The mothers are all concerned because the girls are missing and the police are at their houses.  None of the mothers have since the girls since thenight of the fundraiser. 

The police have a search warrant to search Spencer’s house.  Ms. Hastings asks what they are looking for.  Maybe she can help them find it.  Officer Holbrook informs Ms. Hastings that Spencer knows the whereabouts of a missing person.  He shows her a photograph of Ali with the girls taken the night the girls returned from Ravenswood.  Ms. Hastings is surprised when Melissa suddenly appears at the door.

Ali remembers that she went home after confronting Jenna.  She tried on a shirt that her mom left for her.  She turns around and sees a message from “A” scrawled on her mirror.  It says “I’m everywhere and soon you’ll be nowhere”.

Ali goes downstairs and sees her mom having a heated conversation on the phone.  Her mom asks how this could happen.  She doesn’t understand.  When she sees Ali, she tells Ali not to go outside.  Ali is upset because her sleepover with the girls was planned ages ago and her mom had said it was fine.  Ali asks if this is about her mom thinking Spencer is the one bullying her.  She tells her mom that she has everything under control.

Ms. DiLaurentis says that she knows things about the Hasting family that Ali doesn’t.  She’s seen what they are capable of.  Don’t ever turn your back on a Hastings.  She demands that Ali go back to her room.  She then resumes her phone conversation, asking if there is any news and saying to please hurry. She’s very worried. 

While her mom is distracted, Ali digs through her mom’s purse and swipes some sleeping pills.

Ali heads to the barn where the girls are waiting for her.  Toby calls her cell phone, but she doesn’t pick up.  When the girls are not looking, Ali slips the crushed sleeping pills into the alcohol cup and passes it to Aria.  She tells Aria to drink up.

Ali waits for the girls to fall asleep.  Once they are knocked out, she drops Aria’s stuffed pig and goes outside.  She calls Toby and asks what he wants.

Back in the present, Emily can’t believe that Ali drugged them.  Ali thought that she could cross them off the suspect list if she got another threat when the girls were asleep.  Emily still can’t believe that Ali suspected them, but Ali acknowledges that she wasn’t the best friend to them.  Spencer points out that Ali’s plan didn’t work.  She didn’t fall sleep. 

The girls got downstairs.  Hanna can’t believe that Ali works here.  Ali says the owner travels a lot and she watches the place upstairs when he is gone. 

Emily tells Ali that Toby wanted Ali to know that she did him a favor.  He was free at last.  Ali says that she knew he wasn’t “A” because the time in juvie got him away from Jenna and grateful to her.  The day he told her that was the last time she saw him. 

On the night Ali went missing, Ali texted Ian to meet her at the kissing rock.  A car pulls up to the barn and Ali gets in the car.  It’s Ezra’s car.  Ali asks if they had a date that she forgot.  Ezra is furious that Ali lied to him.  Ali tries to leave, but Ezra grabs her arm and tells her that she isn’t going anywhere.

Officer Holbrook is busy interrogating Ms. Hastings.  He asks where Spencer was when she was gone a few days earlier.  Ms. Hastings asks if he is questioning all the parents.  He tells her that she is free to leave, but there are reporters waiting outside.  Ms. Hastings doesn’t know why her husband isn’t at the police station yet and says that she wants to call him.  Officer Holbrook leaves to give her privacy, but Ms. Hastings can’t get any cell phone reception. 

In the lobby of the police station, another police tells Officer Holbrook that he got a warrant to track the GPS on the all the girls cell phones and Spencer’s car.  They’ll have a location within the hour.  Officer Holbrook heads to another interrogation room.  He passes Melissa, who is being questioned by police.  Melissa is explaining that she ran into Spencer’s boyfriend in London, who said that Spencer missed her.  So she decided to come home.

Officer Holbrook starts his interrogation of Spencer’s dad, who wants to know if Ms. Hastings is on her way to the police station.  He doesn’t answer Officer Holbrook’s questions and demands to know what they are doing to find Spencer.

Noel gives Ali cash and a passport.  She needs to leave for the airport in an hour.  The girls overhear this and don’t want Ali to leave.  They are determined to figure out who “A” is so that Ali doesn’t have to run anymore.

Aria asks Ali if Ezra has been telling her the truth.  Ali says that Ezra believed her when she told him that CeCe and her were roommates at UPenn.

Ali met Ezra at a pub near Hollis.  Ali was bored while CeCe was making out with a guy.  Ali noticed Ezra reading across the room.  She went over and sat near him, ordering a gin and tonic with her fake I.D..  She notices what book Ezra is reading and does a quick web search on her phone to get the basic summary of the book.  She starts up a conversation with Ezra, telling him that she’s read that book three times while sunning in the French Riviera.  Ezra knows that Ali is lying and calls her on it.  Ali admits that lies are more interesting than the truth.

Ali tells Aria that Ezra wanted to write a story about her.  He thought Ali reminded him of Holly Golightly from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”.  Ali thought it was a compliment until she found out that Holly Golightly was too stupid to even name her cat.  Aria tells Ali that Holly Golightly didn’t name the cat because she didn’t think she deserved to be loved.  Ali tells Aria that she is sorry for everything.

Flashback to the night Ali went missing.  In Ezra’s car, Ezra is furious that Ali said she was 21 when she was still in high school.  Ali doesn’t get what the big deal is, since she and Ezra never actually did anything together.  Ezra admits that he likes Ali and doesn’t want to see her get hurt.  Ali kisses him on the cheek and tells him that he is a great guy.  She says that she’ll see him around, but he tells her that she won’t.  Before Ezra drives off, Ali tells him that he better spell her name right if he ever gets that story published.

After Ezra drove off, Ali went to the kissing rock to meet up with Ian.  Ian asks if there are no hard feelings.  Ali says that she was just killing time for someone better to come along.  She says that he deserves Melissa because Melissa is such a bitch.  Ian tells Ali to watch her mouth.  Ali threatens Ian with jail time.  Ian points out that they didn’t have sex, so he didn’t do anything wrong.

Ali lets Ian know that she saw all his home videos on his computer.  What does N.A.T stand for?  Need a therapist?  Ian tells Ali that she is not going to blackmail him.  Ali says that someone is threatening her, either Ian or Melissa.  And those threats stop tonight.  She made copies of every video on his computer, so she’s going to use those videos if she gets one more text message.

Ian tells Ali that she has no idea how much trouble she will be in if she shows the videos to anyone.  They could bring everyone down, including her family.  Ali tells Ian to go back to his posse of pervs and tell them to leave her alone. 

Back in the present, Ali tells the girls that Ian was more freaked out than she thought he would be.  He took off like a plucked peacock.  Hanna scares the girls when she drops the lid of the cookie platter as she grabs some cookies and brings them to the table.

Spencer asks Aria if she is okay.  Ali tells Aria that Ezra is looking for her, but not because of the book.  He found Shauna in Georgia and offered to help find Ali.  Ezra thinks that he will win Aria back if he saves Ali. 

Aria asks Ali if she wants to be saved.  Ali knows how she treated people in the past and deserved a lot of what she got, but she thinks she deserves a second chance. Spencer asks what happened after Ian left.  Ali went back to the barn, where Spencer was waiting for her.

Back in the interrogation room, Mr. Hastings asks Officer Holbrook to check if Ms. Hastings has arrived yet.  Officer Holbrook asks him why he hired a private eye after Ali went missing.  Mr. Hastings says that it was for business.  Officer Holbrook is convinced that it was actually related to Spencer.  He takes out the confidential papers that Marc Pope, the private eye, gave Mr. Hastings.  Officer Holbrook says that Spencer’s name is all over the file.

Officer Holbrook says that in hindsight, Mr. Hastings knew it was drugs.  It was a rough summer, with Spencer’s erratic behavior and violent outbursts.  Mr. Hastings decides to call his attorney.  Officer Holbrook lets him know that cell reception is better in the lobby.

CeCe is taken through the lobby in handcuffs.  She exchanges a look with Ms. DiLaurentis as she passes.  Officer Holbrook tells Ms. Hastings that they are using all of their resources to locate Ali.  A cop tells Officer Holbrook that they have locked on Spencer’s GPS.  The girls are in Philadelphia. 

Mr. Hastings steps into the lobby and sees Ms. DiLaurentis.  He tells her that the police are asking pointed questions about Spencer.  He wants to know if they still have an understanding.  Ms. Hastings says that all she is thinking about is the fact that her daughter is still alive.  She leaves. 

Spencer’s dad is surprised to see Melissa at the police station.  Melissa explains that Toby came to London to tell her about Spencer’s relapse.  She and Ms. Hastings have been questioned for an hour by the police separately.  Mr. Hastings says that the police know.  He must have missed something.  He is devastated that he couldn’t protect Spencer.  Melissa cries as she asks if he thinks that Spencer killed the girl in Ali’s grave.

Spencer tells Ali that she remembers bits and pieces of the night Ali went missing, but she’s not sure what she made up and what is real.  Ali says that she had been pushing Spencer to tell Melissa about Ian because she wanted Ian and Melissa to break up.  Ali and Spencer got into a huge fight in the kitchen.  It was like Spencer bottled up every fight they ever had and exploded that night.

Spencer explains that she thought Ali was threatening her even after Spencer told Ali that she would tell Melissa the truth.  Ali says that she told Spencer to forget it, but Spencer just wouldn’t let it go.  Spencer followed Ali outside and grabbed the shovel.  After yelling at Ali, Spencer slipped and the pill bottle fell out.  Ali grabbed the bottle and asked Spencer if she was speeding.  Ali realized that Spencer wasn’t asleep like the other girls because she was wired.

Spencer continued to walk, dragging the shovel with her.  Ali chased after her.  Spencer begs Ali not to tell anybody about the pills.  She’ll do anything, even get on her hands and knees and beg.  Ali tells her not to take any more pills that night and to never take them with alcohol.  Ali promises that it wil be their secret.  After all, that’s what friends are for.  She tells Spencer to go back to the barn and sleep it off.

After that, Ali went to see Aria’s dad.  Byron tells Ali that she know how much it will hurt Aria if she makes that call and he doesn’t think that she’s that horrible.  Ali didn’t think Byron was “A” but she needed him to know that she had the tapes.  Ali went back to the barn and waited for text from “A”, but nothing came. 

Ali went home thinking that she had won.  Her mom watches her from the window.  Suddenly, her mom covers her mouth and gasps as Ali is hit on the head with a rock. 

Back in the present, Ali assures Spencer that it wasn’t her.  Spencer was sound asleep when she was attacked.  Spencer is still devastated by the thought that she could have killed the girl in Ali’s grave.  Aria reminds Spencer that she was asleep, so she couldn’t have killed anyone.  Spencer starts to sob on Emily’s shoulder, relieved that she is not a murderer.  Hanna asks why Ali’s mom didn’t tell the police who attacked Ali.  Ali tells them the horrifying truth: her mom buried Ali alive.

Ali cries as she explains that her mom thought she was dead, but Ali tried to tell her that she was alive.  She tried to scream, but words didn’t come out.

Aria grabs Ali and tells her that they are all there for her.  Hanna can’t believe Ali’s mom buried her alive.  Aria asks if Ali is sure her mom thought she was dead.

Ali says that her mom was hysterical that night, repeating over and over “what have you done?”.  Spencer realizes that Ms. Hastings was pointing the finger at her in order to cover for the person who attacked Ali.  Ali says that after Ms. Grunwald took her to the hospital, she was so scared that she ran.  Mona pulled up in her car and asked if she was okay.

In a room at the Lost Woods Resort, Mona presses a wet towel against Ali’s head.  Mona tells Ali that she checked into the hotel room under the name Vivian Darkbloom, just like Ali told her to.  Mona tells Ali that she is scared for her.  If “A” was willing to bash Ali’s head in, what would stop “A” from trying again?  Mona tells Ali that she should fake her death and disappear.

Mona tells Ali to rest.  She lays Ali down and strokes her hair, telling her everything is going to work out exactly the way it is supposed to.  Mona kisses Ali on the forehead.  While Ali is sleeping, Mona is in another room.  Mona hums as she brushes a blonde doll’s hair.  The walls in the room are covered with photos of Ali. 

Mona gets Ali new clothes and Ali, now a brunette, prepares to leave.  Ali tells Mona that she saved her life and doesn’t know how to thank her.  Mona tells Ali that she can thank her by staying gone and by being safe.

Ali tells Mona to come over to the mirror and look at herself.  She tells Mona to ditch the glasses and barrettes.  She tells Mona where to go to get a makeover and new clothes.  She tells Mona that she doesn’t have to be a loser.  Mona thanks her and eyes the purple Alison bracelet on the table.

Mona watches as Ali drives off.  Mona smiles slightly once Ali is gone.

Back in the present, Ali realizes that Mona played her like a fool and got exactly what she wanted.

Melissa tells Mr. Hastings that Ms. Hastings is talking to Sandra King, the best criminal defense lawyer in the state.  Melissa tells him that Spencer didn’t kill that girl.  She leans in and whispers something to him.

The girls tell Ali that they will protect her, but Ali doesn’t feel safe going back to Rosewood because of her mom.  Ali says that it was easy to stay away until Hanna got hurt.  She was so scared that Hanna was going to die.  It was worth the risk coming back to Rosewood after seeing what Mona did to Hanna.  Ali stopped running and focused on keeping the girls safe. 

Ali saw Ian attacking Spencer in the bell tower.  Ali was the one who pushed him, but he wasn’t dead after the fall.  She saw him in the back of the tower later. 

Ali admits that she was at the lodge the night of the fire.  She saved Hanna, but the rest of the girls were already out of the lodge by the time she got back.  She didn’t see who pulled the girls out of the fire.

The girls get scared when they realize someone is outside.  Glass shatters and the girls see a person dressed in all black point a gun at them.  The girls run up the fire escape, but they can’t call the police because Noel has their phones.  The girls get trapped on the roof.  QA door opens and Ezra appears.  Another door opens and the figure dressed in black points the gun at them again. 

Ezra tells the mystery person that he knows who it is and the police are on the way.  Ezra gets shot at.  He lunges at the gunman and they fight.  The gun drops and Hanna grabs it.  They yell for the gunman to take off the mask.  The gunman almost does, but then jumps to the rooftop of the building next door.  After seeing that athletic jump, Hanna says that there is no way that is Ali’s mom.

Aria calls out Ezra’s name.  Ezra says that it is so beautiful.  He turns around and we see that he has a gunshot wound.  Aria screams and grabs him as he falls.  Ezra says sorry and reaches out for Aria.  The rest of the girls surround him and Ali screams for someone to call the police.  Aria begs Ezra to stay awake and not close his eyes, but he closes his eyes and becomes unresponsive.

Ms. DiLaurentis is dragged across a lawn, either unconscious or dead.  She is put in a grave and someone buries her.