Emily: Getting angry at Jax isn't going to change anything.
Nikolas: What? Emily, he -- he poisoned me, framed you, and -- and I can't deny that -- that the guy's creative, which segues me into my next question -- what's next? What -- what torture is your brother dreaming up next, huh? Perhaps toothpicks under the fingernails? What, while Jax here, everyone's B.F.F., is protecting him.
Jax: Is it really so hard to understand? He's my brother.
Nikolas: If you won't do anything to stop him, you are just as guilty of whatever he does next.
Jax: It tears me apart to know what my brother's capable of, what he did. But --
Nikolas: "But" no. No, there's no "buts," there's no excuses here. Ok, let's -- let's review, shall we -- poisoned me, framed her, held a hotel lobby full of people hostage, and then blew it up -- "your" hotel, no less. What else -- yes, shot Robin, and then made Emily and Carly keep her alive with whatever they could find in the hotel. Elizabeth -- terrorized her while she was pregnant. Shall I go down the list?
Jax: I don't need a checklist of my brother's transgressions.
Nikolas: No, no, I think you do because you weren't there and you didn't see it!
Nikolas sighs.
Nikolas: Look, we could all be dead right now, including Carly. What would you have done if your own -- your own brother shot Carly? Huh? Would you still be standing here in front of me tap-dancing, trying to rationalize what h did?
Emily: Nikolas, listen to me. You're being unfair. Jerry's a grown man, he makes his own choices. Jax isn't responsible for his brother's actions.
Nikolas: Well, what about holding Jerry responsible for his? Your brother, while Emily's own father -- his heart was failing, denied him treatment, and then pushed him out the door to die. Should he have to answer for that?
Emily: What Jerry did to my father is unforgivable. But he's gone, Nikolas, and I don't want anybody else's life to be destroyed, including Jax'S.
Nikolas: Do you think that protecting Jerry is going to make all of this destruction go away? No. You stand here with an espionage charge dangling over your head because of him, because of Jerry!
Emily: Okay, what do you want to do?
Jax: I want to try to stop my brother from doing any more harm.
Emily: Do you think that's possible?
Jax: If anyone can get through to him, it's me.
Skye: You're an anathema in this town -- everybody wants you dead. So why are you walking around, face in the open for everybody to see?
Jerry: Oh, it seems that Jason hasn't brought you up to date. Well, you see, there's been an interesting shift in the balance of power, as well as my future plans -- something I suspect that alcazar doesn't have to worry about anymore. You two are an unlikely duo but, apparently, a very effective one.
Skye: I don't like what you're implying, and I don't care to. I'm meeting Jason here because of our family.
Jerry: Oh, don't disappoint me with a lame excuse that isn't worthy of you. I can see in your eyes that you have blood on your hands.
Jason: Go home. The cops are going to find Alcazar or they're not, okay? It's got nothing to do with you.
Jerry: Spoken like the man who knows where the body's buried.
Skye: How can you provoke Jason after everything that you've done? And why are you letting him?
Jerry: Well, you see, Jason and I have reached a meeting of the minds.
Jason: Just go. Go.
Jerry: You know, I owe you a debt of gratitude -- Alcazar was a problem and you clearly solved it. And the body will never be found and no one will lose sleep over it, but don't be foolish enough to think that you can get rid of me as easily.
Jerry: You see, you and I share a dilemma -- we'd very much like to kill each other. But -- and we're very capable of doing it -- but if I kill you, I destroy my new identity, throng old come after me with pitchforks and torches. If you kill me, the lives of people you care about will be severely complicated, none more so than Emily'S. You know, she will spend the rest of her life in prison, and I hate to think of it -- you know, that sweet woman locked up for the rest of her life with murderers and prostitutes and who knows what else.
Jason: It's probably not a good idea to remind me of what a bastard you are.
Jerry: But, you see, that's the crux of our problem. When you see me, you see james craig -- a heartless terrorist, you know, who deserves torture before killing -- but I, on the other hand, have moved past it, and I heartily recommend you do the same. We're practically family -- I mean, my brother is married to someone who is nearly your sister, and, you know, like all family members, you know, we don't like each other, but we coexist. And we even do favors for each other, like you did to this pompous and incompetent Alcazar. You see, one hand washes the other, even steven and all that. Have a nice day.
Emily: Look, the only way to stop the violence is to back away. Creating more is counterproductive.
Nikolas: So -- so I'm supposed to what, Emily, just let this maniac keep doing whatever he wants to whomever he pleases? I can't --
Emily: Jerry is responsible for an ugly moment in time, but we can't let that define our lives. You have a son, we have each other.
Nikolas: I -- yes, I -- I know all that, Emily -- until he wakes up one day and decides to send you to prison just for the fun of it.
Emily: He's not going to do that. I'm the only leverage that Jerry has left, so let's just let him it. Let's make the choice to ignore him.
Nikolas: I can't do that.
Emily: Why not?
Nikolas: I can't -- I can't because I love you and I won't let anyone take you away from me, including him.
Emily: Nikolas, I know that it's your instinct to protect me -- I love you -- but I don't want you to. Promise me that you're going to leave him alone.
Nikolas: I want to because you've asked me to, but I don't think I can.
Nikolas: This isn't about wounded pride. I felt helpless during the hostage crisis and when Craig was controlling me with poison, but I'm ever angrier at what he's done to you. This goes beyond personal. The man needs to die, that's it.
Emily: All you're doing is keeping Jerry in power, Nikolas. It's not up to us to be his judge and jury.
Nikolas: Emily, what -- what's th, huh? Do we go on protecting Jerry and give him a happy, rich life as a reward for everything that he's done?
Emily: No, the alternative is to leave Jax and his brother in peace.
Alexis: It's not going to do you any good to battle to the death with Jerry. It's just not.
Nikolas: Is -- is this about you standing by your old pal Jax, or -- or is it about you making excuses for Jerry because you have a thing for him?
Jerry: I got your message. I suppose it's safe to assume that we're not going to go down memory lane about these nights we got blasted in front of the bush telly, right?
Jax: You'd be right about that.
Jerry: So it's regular old ear-bashing, then?
Jax: Who the hell are you? What did you do to my brother? Were you always like this, and I was just too stupid to see it? Is that it?
Jerry: I came to this place in slow, painful degrees.
Jax: Really? How, Jerry, because I want to know.
Jerry: You don't need to know.
Jax: Well, I was hoping that, um, you'd think I deserved to know. Because this has been really, really quite difficult for me -- trying to justify the inexcusable to myself and everyone around me? You know, I tried believing that the whole hotel incident was just you acting under duress. But then you poison Nikolas and you frame Emily. You know, it's a 50/50 split out there between the people who want me to just give you up to the cops and the ones -- including my own wife -- who want me just to stand aside and let them just tear you apart limb by limb, and, frankly, I'm having a hard time coming up with a reason why I shouldn't.
Jerry: Well, that makes two of us.
Alexis: First of all, I don't have a thing for Jerry. I thought the guy was charming. I had no way of knowing that he was a psychopath.
Nikolas: It doesn't matter, he still needs to die. Look, his true identity doesn't make him any less of a threat -- it's the same man!
Emily: Nikolas, don't take your frustrations out on Alexis. She's just trying to minimize the fallout, just like I am.
Alexis: I -- I had no way of knowing what a monster he was. He -- he was a nice guy. He -- I saw him, he -- he helped me when I was sick, he brought me medication when I needed it, he took me to the hospital when I needed it, he watched my kid when I needed it.
Nikolas: Stop, stop, stop --
Alexis: What was I supposed to do?
Nikolas: No -- okay! But just don't try and talk me out of getting rid of him.
Alexis: If you kill him, you will end up in prison, and he'll win!
Nikolas: So you're okay sitting around like target practice --
Alexis: No, I'm not okay with any of this.
Nikolas: Waiting for whatever hell Jerry brings on next -- you okay with that?
Alexis: I'm just praying that Jax is not going to let that happen.
Jerry: I warned you there was nothing you could do for me, I begged you to stay away to save yourself.
Jax: Why won't you give me answers?
Jerry: Oh, please.
Jax: At least try to make me understand, Jerry.
Jerry: It's going to seem a little anticlimactic, but what the hell. I was a wanted man, I was shot, there was nowhere to hide, so poisoning Nikolas was more expedient.
Jax: How do you get poison to start with?
Jerry: Oh, you'd be surprised the number of tools I've learned to use -- tools that were used against me, actually.
Jax: Is that what you call Emily -- a tool?
Jerry: No -- she was insurance.
Jax: I want you to stop what you're doing, and I want you to give me the evidence you have against Emily.
Jerry: Really?
Jax: Yes.
Jerry: If I do, I die.
Jax: Oh, Jerry, why didn't you just walk away when you had the chance?
Jerry: Because I wasn't finished.
Jax: "Finished"? You weren't finished?
Jerry: You need to trust me now, okay?
Jax: You know what? You kept saying that you don't want to involve me? But you dragged me into this the minute you took a job not only in my tobut you people that I care about. So don't think for a second that I'm on your side here.
Jerry: You're going to think this is absurd, but it will work out.
Jax: You really are crazy, aren't you?
Jerry: No, I'm just too clever for my own good. It will work in our favor. What I do won't touch you. You'll see, brother.
Alexis: We got here as soon as we could.
Nikolas: What's this all about? Why --
Jax: What are you talking about?
Alexis: Jerry asked us to meet him here.
Jax: I got the same call.
Emily: What in the world?
Nikolas: Maybe he's planning to keep us all hostage again.
Jax: Yeah, well, I don't know what my brother is going to do next.
Nikolas: And that is the crux of the problem.
Emily: Nikolas, please.
Nikolas: What? What, don't be on my guard? Don't be afraid for -- for the people I care about? What if Jerry shoots, say, Jason or Monica? Would we still defend him then? What if he comes in here with a lit stick of dynamite --
Jerry: I don't need pyrotechnics for my arrival -- a warm smile and a few hugs will suffice. Hey! God, it's been so long! My God, you look good, little brother! Whoo! Marriage agrees with you. And look at this place -- it's even more magnificent than Lady Jane had said. Wow.
Jax: Why are you pretending like you just got here?
Jerry: Keep your voice down -- unless you have to raise it in an enthusiastic greeting.
Jax: What are you up to?
Jerry: I want to see how long it takes for your alarmed staff to call the police.
Jerry: Alexis?
Siren.
Jerry: Oh, dear, I heard that you had a terrible health crisis, but if it makes you feel better, you look as gorgeous as ever, really. Oh, and look -- little Emily Quartermaine, all grown up and a doctor to boot -- wow.
Nikolas: What the hell are you trying to pull here?
Siren stops.
Jax: Jerry?
Jerry: It's time for me to go public. Excuse me, but what's --
Mac: James Craig, you're under arrest.
Jerry: "James Craig"? Who's James Craig?
Officer: You have the right to remain silent.
Jerry: I -- I mean, there's been a terrible mistake. This is ridiculous.
Jax: Mom, you need to go to your room.
Jane: My God, Jerry, what have you done now?