Sonoma - Recap

Eli arrives in the office and tells Keith that he’s suffering from headaches. After he gets in the elevator, he emerges to find himself in a vineyard as his friends and staff sing “Red Red Wine.” Eli starts dancing along… and wakes up to find himself in the hospital. Nate and Frank tell him that the doctors have discovered that Eli has a second aneurysm. Nate is surprised when Eli asks if his visits to Dr. Lee and her use of Nahachi caused the aneurysm. Frank makes Eli swear that he won’t go to see Dr. Lee again.

In Taylor’s apartment, Taylor is checking out spas so she can relax after weeks of dealing with only the baby or the office. Matt isn’t thrilled but gives in. However, he gets a call from the office about the Russell vs. Bay West wrongful termination suit and heads to the office.

Jordan calls an emergency meeting on the Russell case: they’re representing Sam Russell, who claimed he was wrongfully terminated. Both Eli and Taylor arrive late. Eli wonders why Russell is pursuing the matter after they were forced to drop the case because of the lack of a witness, but Jordan says that Russell has found a whistleblower that can confirm his claim.

Paul Rollins is representing Bay West tells Maggie and Matt that Russell has found Jesse Bates, a news director, who can testify on Russell’s behalf. A public records search located Jesse in the town of Sonoma… where she’s in jail. Matt objects when he realizes he’ll have to cancel the getaway with Taylor, However, Rollins tells him in no uncertain terms to go.

Jordan asks Taylor to accompany him to a charity benefit. She says it’s too soon after what she’s learned about how he treated her mother, and that she plans on going with Eli to Sonoma. She and Matt end up riding together and taking Eli… and Maggie. Eli isn’t thrilled to have Maggie with him. As they drive, Matt seems preoccupied with spending as little time in Sonoma as possible. Meanwhile, Maggie asks Eli to apologize to her for blaming her for the breakdown in his last relationship with Ashley Cardiff. Eli finally gives in, admitting he messed up the relationship himself.

Nate goes to visit Frank and wants to know about the Nahachi technique. Frank insists there’s nothing to worry about but Nate doesn’t believe him. He threatens to tell Eli that Frank kept a copy of their father’s journal, but Frank warns that the knowledge would hurt Eli and he doesn’t think Nate could do that. Nate has no choice but to agree.

Matt and Taylor check into the suite at the hotel and Eli manages to get the car keys so he can leave Maggie behind. Meanwhile, Matt and Taylor go for a walk and Matt sees a woman coming. He tries to avoid her but she spots him anyway and introduces herself as Leigh Rappaport. She notes that she and Matt dated in college but seems okay with him now.

Eli gets to the sheriff’s office and tries to get past the desk sergeant to see Jesse. Maggie arrives and accuses him of stealing the car, and Matt and Taylor arrive to break them up. They all end up talking to Jesse. She explains that she quit Bay West and started an art gallery in Sonoma. However, Eric Danvers and his wife asked her to sell a Moreau painting, “Lady With a Locket,” that Jesse realized was stolen by the Nazis during World War II. She refused to sell it or give it back, and the judge held her in civil contempt. She wants the lawyers, separately or together, to get her released and promises the “winner” she’ll help with their case.

At the pool, Eli and Maggie argue with Matt in the middle. Taylor arrives to tell Matt that the spa is closed for the next three days. Taylor finally tells them to determine who will be first chair by playing, Rock, Scissors, Paper. Matt wins and they all go into court… only to learn that Leigh is the presiding judge. The DA, Donnie, is fine with her having a prior relationship with Matt. However, it soon becomes clear she isn’t going to entertain any motions from Matt.

Nate goes to see Dr. Lee, pretending to be a patient. He tries to find out what she did for Eli with the Nahachi ritual but she knows from Eli that Nate’s his brother and tells him to leave.

Jordan is trying to cancel his dinner reservation at the benefit dinner when Patti visits him. She explains that she’s making amends as part of her AA program. Jordan insists she has nothing to apologize to him for, until she explains that she tried to sabotage his firm and his personal life after he learned she was an alcoholic. Jordan agrees to forgive her if she’ll accompany him as his date to the benefit dinner.

Eric Danvers testifies about his ownership of the painting. When the DA continues to object and Leigh grants all of his objections, Matt questions her objectivity. She tells the courtroom that he left her standing at the airport after college graduation, when they had a Caribbean vacation planned and she expected an engagement ring. Later, he sent her an e-mail break-up and said he was joining the FBI. She orders Matt locked up for contempt of court.

Back at the hotel, Eli and Maggie argue some more and play Rock, Scissors, Paper for first chair. Eli wins, while Taylor worries about what she’s learned about Matt. When Eli takes aspirin for his headache, Maggie notices but Eli dismisses it as nothing. They need to find Katie Bochner, the granddaughter and sole living descendent of the family who owned the Moreau. However, Katie has apparently gone on vacation and is impossible to locate. Maggie warns that there is precedent that ownership wouldn’t revert back to Katie if she never filed a claim of ownership. Eli compliments her on her legal skills, getting her to smile, and they figure all they can do is stall until they find Katie, and hope Leigh and the DA don’t know the precedent.

Back in court, Jesse testifies how she learned the painting was stolen, and admits she couldn’t find Katie. Leigh takes up the cross-examination and Taylor objects, insisting Leigh is acting unprofessionally. Leigh responds by citing her for contempt and throwing her into the cell next-door to Matt.

Patti meets Jordan at the benefit dinner and he admits he’s glad he’s there rather than sitting at home alone. However, he spots Ellen there with an associate, and is surprised to see her there when she claimed she wasn’t going to be there. Patti insults Ellen and Jordan asks Patti to go with him to dinner somewhere else.

That night, Eli and Maggie are back at the hotel discussing the case. They finish off a bottle of wine and Maggie returns Eli’s compliment from later. She admits that she first met him when she attended a dinner he gave a speech at in Chicago when she was a law school. Eli doesn’t remember her until she explains that she followed him to a karaoke bar. She gets him to sing to “Red Red Wine” and they end up kissing.

In jail, Taylor says that she knew about Matt’s past romantic history but isn’t happy he keeps bringing it up. Matt responds by saying he feels the same way about Taylor whenever she’s around Eli, her ex-fiancé. Taylor explains that she thought Eli was the love of her life but she was wrong. Matt volunteers for the position and takes her hand.

Eli and Maggie end up in bed. He hesitates but she insists he doesn’t need to protect her and asks if he’d rather be somewhere else. He admits he doesn’t.

Nate goes back to see Frank and demands answers about what was in the journal. When Frank refuses, Nate asks about the Nahachi ritual. Frank finally admits that he did it twice. The second time was on Eli. The first was on Mr. Stone, after he complained of hearing voices in his head. Mr. Stone died a week later and Frank blamed himself.

Jordan takes Patti to a diner and she wonders why he lets Ellen walk all over him. Jordan claims that he’s making amends but Patti doesn’t believe it. She tells him that if he wants to make amends, he needs to do it for his first wife, Susan, who he cheated on with Ellen.

The next morning, Eli and Maggie wake up in bed together, naked. Eli tries to pretend he’s asleep but Maggie realizes he isn’t. Eli explains that he’s been dishonest and that he just learned he has a second aneurysm. He took the case in Sonoma to get away from his normal routine. Maggie gets a call notifying them that Katie Bochner has returned to town. Angry at Eli, she leaves without saying anything to him or letting him explain further.

In court, Katie talks about how her grandmother died in Nazi Germany and the painting disappeared. Her grandfather talked of the painting and how it reminded him of his wife. Eli shows the court the painting and Katie reveals that she wears a locket just like the one in the painting. Eli moves for the painting to be returned but Leigh has learned of the precedent concerning ownership. However, before she can order it back to Eric Danvers, Katie says that she doesn’t want the painting. She explains that it won’t bring back her grandparents or make up for their loss. All she asks is that Danvers sell the painting to a museum so that others can appreciate it, and he agrees.

Leigh goes to see Matt and Taylor and have them released. She apologizes for locking up Matt, and he apologizes for being a jerk in the past.

Eli meets with Jesse as she’s released. She figures that as long as Katie got to choose what happened to the painting, she’s satisfied as well. She tells Eli that she wasn’t involved in Russell’s firing but that she has e-mails and documentation from her higher-ups that might be useful. However, she has already given the key to the storage locker where she kept them to Maggie.

Taylor and Matt drive back home with Eli in the back. He tries to call Maggie, who refuses to pick up.

In his office, Jordan finally calls his ex-wife Susan to make amends.

Later back at his home, Eli keeps trying to call Maggie. Nate and Frank arrive and explain that Frank kept a copy of the journal but lied to protect Eli. Nate agrees, and reveals that Frank performed the Nahachi ritual on Mr. Stone. Eli, upset, tells them both to get out.

Share this article with your friends