[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz6m7XTPDN4]
Sleepy Hollow: Sanctuary (1×09)
Synopsis: Ichabod and Abbie investigate a familiar haunted house, which leads Abbie to learn something about Katrina that not even Ichabod knew.
Rating: ★★★★☆
A woman is seen pulling up to a house in Sleepy Hollow, a man named Sam driving her there. It’s her family’s house, all run down and old, but she is there to restore everything. As she explores the inside of the house alone, she opens a closet to find it full of branches. Accidentally cutting her hand, the branches come to life and pull her into the closet.
In the car, Crane is complaining about the drive-thru and all this talk of Thanksgiving. He’s obviously upset because he’s unable to be with Katrina at this time. He shares with Abbie that he had high hopes for them after their marriage. When they get to the station, Irving tells them about Lena Gilbert, a billionaire socialite who disappeared and was last seen in town. She had a note with Katrina’s name on it, a connection which agitates Crane. He immediately wants to know about her ancestry and ties to landowners in the area.
Research reveals that she was related to Lachlan Fredericks, a member of Congress and owner of Fredericks Manor. The Fredericks owned half of the eastern seaboard at one time. No one has lived in his home more than a few weeks and when they visit it, Crane says it’s not the same residence he visited during the war. The estate had been a safe haven for African Americans seeking refuge during that era. Everyone was free, given Lachlan’s protection, and able to go and stay as they wished.
They go into the home and find someone sitting in the rocking chair. Upon closer inspection, it’s revealed to Abbie and Crane that it’s the man who brought Lena to the home, Sam – he’s dead and his face has been scratched up. They find fresh blood tracks on the ground and Abbie attempts to call for backup, with no answer. There’s also no signal to call out and when she tries to leave, the door shuts on her. Every other door slams shut and Abbie realizes they’re in a haunted house.
Panicking a bit, Abbie is trying to get out while Crane is making a plan to locate Lena. Abbie notices a woman in a dress, but Crane doesn’t see the woman and instead finds Gulliver’s Travels, Katrina’s favorite novel. Inside the book, he finds a letter he wrote to Katrina on the day he fell in battle, leading him to believe Katrina must have come back to Fredericks Manor after his death. He explains to Abbie how the home was a force for good at the height of the war. Lachlan was charming and helpful and had Grace Dixon, an African American woman, to help him run the house.
Crane finds a bloody handprint on the bannister to the basement and Abbie opens a closet to come face to face with Lena. Crane cuts a branch in an attempt to free her and it bleeds. Unbeknownst to them, outside the house, something gets up from the ground and crows flock to the house. Lena, terrified, tells them that the house is alive.
In his office, Irving is attempting to get through to Abbie, but can’t. Jenny shows up at his office and is returning his guns. She awkwardly extends an invitation to him for Thanksgiving dinner with the rest of the misfits when his daughter and his ex-wife show up.
Lena explains to Crane that she found in her research that Katrina was the last recorded person to come to the manor for sanctuary. She bought the manor to figure out the mystery of the house. They realize that Lachlan may have been a warlock, using magic to protect the property. He may have even been part of Katrina’s coven. Suddenly, they’re forced to run from something big, crawling through the walls and the secret tunnels. Finding an escape, Crane kicks a hole in a wall and helps Lena out. When he reaches for Abbie, he ends up pulling out a tree monster – she’s still in the walls somewhere.
Irving’s daughter, Macey, calls Jenny out on dating her dad, something Jenny denies. She tells Macey she doesn’t even like her dad that much. They bond a little bit and Jenny encourages Macey to give her dad a chance, even though she lives in the city with her mom. In his office, Irving is trying to explain to Cynthia, his ex-wife, why he’s not seen Macey as often as he would have liked. She’s attacking his fathering skills and telling him about how Macey needs stability, not disappointment. She warns him that if he cancels another weekend with her, she’s going to file for full custody.
While attempting to reunite with Crane and Lena, Abbie finds Grace Dixon, who tells her to hurry along with her. Suddenly, Abbie finds herself in the past, watching Katrina giving birth as crows begin to attack the window. The baby starts to cry and Abbie is there long enough to learn that it was a boy. When she finds Crane again, he tells her that the creature took Lena. She wastes no time in telling him about her vision and his son. He’s upset by the news, insisting that Katrina would have told him if she were pregnant. Abbie tells him he had a son, but that something happened during the birth – mentioning the crows.
They finally realize something broke through Lachlan’s protections, beating the hex by growing on the property. It was a creature sent by Moloch who killed Lachlan. Crane asks what happened to his son in the vision, but Abbie truthfully admits, she doesn’t know. Before they can discuss it any more, they hear Lena scream and go rushing off after her. She’s telling them to run, but Crane tells Abbie to shoot the roots, where the creature will feel them. Crane rescues Lena and Grace shows Abbie the way out. She also sees Katrina leave that way in her visions. They make it out the back door and head towards the car.
Instead of getting into the car, Crane gets an axe and returns to the house, despite Abbie trying to stop him. He takes a flare and goes back inside because the monster had gone after his son. Axing some of the roots to draw it out, he angrily yells that he knows who the demon serves and why he came there – Crane’s son. He brutally kills the creature and returns to Abbie covered in blood, only saying that he should like to go home now.
Later, Abbie tries to invite Crane to Thanksgiving, but he declines, saying he wouldn’t be good company at the moment. They have another heart to heart before Crane gives her a box from Lena Gilbert. It’s documentation from the manor that reveals Abbie to be a descendant of Grace Dixon. They realize that her relative brought his son into the world and they toast to finding family.
English