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As Monica gives Tess an
ice skating lesson we meet the seemingly happy Craig family at the
rink where the son, Alex, is finishing hockey practice. This
family is Monica’s next assignment as she gets a lesson that things
aren’t always what they seem. Linda and Ray Craig bring their
children home to welcome Linda’s sister Holly, who is in town for
Linda’s graduation from law school. Holly is overwhelmed to be
back in the house of her childhood, a house that the Craig’s
recently bought back. Andrew, Alex's hockey coach, arrives at
the house to return Alex's hockey gloves, which he left at the rink.
This upsets Ray, abnormally so, and it becomes clear that there is a
tension in this family when Ray grounds Alex for the whole weekend.
Holly questions this, but Linda covers for Ray, explaining that he's
had a bad day. Holly also finds a gun in the hall closet, and
questions the safety of having a loaded weapon in the home.
Later that night Holly wakes up to hear Linda and Ray having a
heated argument. She goes downstairs to find Linda on the floor
bleeding from the head. Monica arrives as a policeman to
investigate an anonymous domestic disturbance call, but Linda and Ray
both agree that Linda fell down the stairs and bumped her head.
Later at the hospital Linda explains that Ray has been upset recently,
after losing his position as head of the emergency room, a consequence
of endangering a patient’s life. Tess arrives as a family
counselor and encourages Linda and Ray to seek counseling, but Linda
will not admit that Ray has been violent with her. The situation
seems to improve when Ray is really sweet to the kids, but when Alex
gets into a fight during the hockey game, it is clear that he is
taking after his father. When Holly suggests that the family
needs counseling, Ray becomes furious and starts beating Linda and
Holly with a hockey stick. Believing that Ray will kill her
sister, Holly gets the gun and shoots Ray, ultimately killing him.
Because Linda won’t admit the abuse, Holly is arrested for murder.
Linda is also angry at Holly for killing her husband, who she claims
was just trying to “scare” her. Back at the house Monica
offers to pray with Linda, and they do, in hopes that this will clear
Linda’s mind about the events. Monica reveals herself to be an
angel, and this triggers Linda’s memory about her childhood, when
her father beat her in the same house, and about how Holly saved her
by hitting him with a stone. Linda digs the stone out from under
the closet floorboards and brings it to her sister, thanking her for
her protection. The murder charges having been dropped, the two
sisters are reunited and resolve to ask God to help them pick up the
pieces of their lives.
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