Tonight on ABC Scandal starring Kerry Washington continues for another exciting episode in an all new Thursday October 16, season 4 episode 4 called, “Like Father, Like Daughter.” On tonight’s episode a family crisis gets messy, so Fitz asks Olivia to handle the matter. Meanwhile, Rowan wants an old pal to take care of an unpleasant task for him.
On the last episode, an old friend (Sonya Walger) returned for help after her daughter went missing, Cyrus had an awkward run in during a business breakfast, and Jake used his connections to get some answers. Meanwhile, Mellie became obsessed with a national news story and David went to great lengths to prove himself. Did you watch the last episode? If you missed it, we have a full and detailed recap right here for you.
On tonight’s episode Fitz asks Olivia to shut down a situation that could destroy the Grant family’s reputation. Meanwhile, Rowan calls on an old friend to do his dirty work.
Tonight’s episode of SCANDAL is going to be absolutely incredible and you won’t want to miss even a minute. We’ll be recapping it for you here live.
Tonight’s episode begins now – Refresh Page often to get the most current updates!
Jake walks to his car and hear noise then notices something off about his car. He walks away from it and pushes the button on his key chain. The car explodes. He comes to see Olivia and she says he’s late and he says it was car trouble. She offers dinner and to talk about their day. She tells him Catherine Winslow was taken into custody but all he can picture is her dad threatening him. She gets a call and says not to do anything and she’ll be right there. She says she has to go and asks to talk later. She rushes out.
She shows up at a party and meets Quinn and says they have to get in and out quick. Quinn asks who they’re looking for. They head into a bedroom and find a girl puking – it’s the president’s daughter. She tells Quinn to use her phone and call Cyrus on his encrypted line and let him know they have her. Cyrus is in bed with his boy toy and tells him he’s ruining him since he’s all he can think about when he’s in meetings and strategy sessions.
Cyrus admits he doesn’t mind at all. His phone rings and he grabs it and asks where the hell Secret Service was. Olivia says they need an extraction plan because the place is full of kids with smart phones. She then calls Huck and asks him to shut down cell service in that building. He says he’s on it. Quinn finds a fire escape they can use and Olivia tells Karen she has to act sober but the girl says she can’t walk. They drag her across the party and someone says isn’t that the president’s daughter.
They try to Google her to see but realize their phones are dead. They make it to the fire escape and Karen asks what they’re doing. Olivia says – getting you into college. They go out the window where a helicopter waits and take off for the White House. Olivia tells her Secret Service will take her in and Karen asks isn’t it her job to take care of people. Olivia says it’s not a job, it’s a favor.
Olivia tells her it’s her job to explain to her parents why slipping Secret Service to go party is a good idea. Olivia reminds her the agents are there to protect her and Karen says they were standing right by her brother when he died and didn’t protect him. She checks something on her phone and curses. Looks like someone recorded her on their cell phone. Olivia watches it, blanches and calls Cyrus and tells him to wake the President.
He asks why and she tells him to just do it. She says she doesn’t care what he has on his morning schedule. She says she just saw the dirtiest sex tape she’s ever seen and it involves his daughter. She tells him to go up and get the President’s ass out of bed now. In the Oval Office, Fitz demands to know if the sex tape thing is true. Olivia recommends they wait on her mom but he says now.
Karen admits she skipped out of school and hitched a ride on someone’s jet. He also realizes she’s high then asks Olivia about the video. He sits by Karen and asks if she was raped. He says she just has to tell him. Karen tells him she cut class, ran away from her guards, jacked a private jet, shot up some awesome drugs and says he thinks she would draw the line at sex with some guys.
Olivia tells Fitz the doctor is waiting and says his daughter needs a pelvic exam, STD check and a firm talking to about unprotected sex. Karen leaves to be seen by the doc. Fitz rails at Cyrus and says he wants to know how his daughter slipped her detail. He says he wants heads on spikes. He leaves. Fitz says he’s going to stick her in a convent in Switzerland and Olivia says it didn’t work when her dad tried it with her.
Olivia says one of the boys sent the video to Karen and says he doesn’t know what he has or he would already have it online. Fitz begs her to find the tape and shut this all down. He says this is his child and he needs her on it. Abby sees Huck and Quinn come into the White House. She demands they tell her what they’re doing there and they tell her they can’t tell her. Cyrus comes out and calls her down and says to leave them alone.
Abby tells Cyrus he keeps secrets from her and makes her feel small. Cyrus says there are many secrets in the White House, some that involve Olivia, and says she will never know them. He says he never tries to make her feel small. He says that her jealousy of Olivia does that for her. He says she is not and never will be Olivia. He asks her if she ever thought what it would be like to be Olivia and says he doesn’t think it’s much fun.
Fitz brings Karen to see Mellie. She asks why she’s there and not at school. She asks what’s wrong but Fitz says nothing and she just had a couple of days off. He says Karen is going to spend some time with him today. He drops her off with Olivia’s team who are working on finding the video. Huck says it was with an app and he’s looking for tweets, IG and other sources. They show her photos from the party and ask which of them she had sex with.
She says she was high and doesn’t remember much. They eliminate the ones she’s sure she didn’t bang. They are down to four guys and then she points one out and asks if he has a tattoo. She says that’s him. Olivia sends Quinn to nab the guy.
Rowan tells Tom he’s disappointed he hasn’t killed Jake yet and the guy says he’s a harder target. He says the guy is command and used to be his boss so he knows his tactics. He tells Rowan that with the parameters he’s given him, it’s making it hard. Rowan threatens him and says he may want his head too. He says Jake has to go now and tells him not to let hm down. Tom says he’s on it.
Tom sees movement in the corner of his eye and it’s Jake who says he knows Rowan wants him dead. Tom says it’s orders and Jake tells him that once Rowan has eliminated him, the only person left that can link him to the death of the president’s son is Tom himself. He asks if he thinks Rowan will let that stand. Tom is surprised – he didn’t know what this was about.
Tom says Jake can’t protect him from Rowan but Jake says he can try. Jake says it’s a nice day if he tries to kill him again today. He says he may not know if he can trust Jake, but he definitely knows he can’t trust Rowan. Olivia comes into the Oval Office and Fitz calls for break and sends the others out. She says Karen ID’d one guy and they’re looking for the other one. She says her team is on it.
Fitz says he thought getting Karen back into her routine after her brother died was best. She says burying yourself after a loss isn’t always best and he says neither is running away. He asks her where she went. He asks if she took off all one for two months. She lies and says yes. She says she needed time alone. He says he knows she was having a difficult time and she says they all were.
Fitz says he’s sorry about her mother and she says her mother did a terrible thing and ruined both their families. She says she ruined us. She walks out abruptly. David watches himself being interviewed about his recent success. Jake comes in and tells him Rowan is trying to kill him. He asks if something happens to him to release the B613 files. David says no.
He says he wants nothing more to do with the files and says he wished he’d never seen them. Jake asks him to give them back and David says no because they would destroy the government. He says they are evil and shouldn’t exist. Jake chokes him and says his morality means nothing to him. He says to give him the files or he will snap his neck. He lets him go and David hands over the key. Jake thanks him and goes.
Then he calls Olivia and says he has something important to tell her in person. Mellie sees her and Olivia turns. Mellie yells her name and runs after her. She asks why she’s there and Olivia tells her to talk to Fitz but Mellie won’t be dissuaded. Olivia says nothing and walks away. Mellie comes into the Oval Office and demands to know why Olivia is there.
He says he didn’t bring her there. He says Karen called her and tells her that Karen got into trouble last night. He says she should be glad she called.
Bobby dumps trash outside of the burger joint he works at when Quinn approaches him and asks where the video is. She rattles off a bunch of facts about his life and says she will make sure he loses his scholarship and his future if he doesn’t hand over the video of the girl he and his friends screwed at the party. She chokes him out and terrifies him.
Olivia leaves a message for Jake to come over for dinner when Quinn comes in with takeout from Gettysburger, the place the kid worked, and says she met with Bobby. Donald Tripp Morgan III is the other guy and the one that has the tape. Olivia brings in his parents and the mom says he’s always in trouble. The dad says the boy has been wild.
Olivia says the consequences will be dire if this video gets out. She says they will help Tripp get this video permanently deleted and then check their devices. The dad asks how much for the video and they say they have no idea of the going rate for a sex tape of the first daughter. Olivia goes to tell Fitz they want $2.5 million for it. He’s outraged but she says he should give him the money.
She says it’s game over and will be who Karen is for the rest of her life if they release it. She says she knows he wants more for his daughter. He says he’s the most powerful man in the world can’t stop two idiots from releasing a tape. She says the world is full of terrible parents and he says he’s a failure as both a parent and a husband. He grabs her and pulls her close.
He asks if he’s failing as a man too. He tells her to never leave him again. He says he almost died without her and asks if she missed him. He opens her jacket and caresses her. He asks again if she missed him. She press her lips to him and says she did miss him. They kiss passionately. She tells him to stop and says she can’t. He asks why she can’t and he asks what’s the point.
She says she didn’t go away alone. He steps back from her in shock. He asks if she went with Jake and she says yes. He tells her to say it. She says – I went with Jake. He sighs and says he is failing as a man, father and husband. He says it’s good to know. He says heavy is the head that wears the crown. She tries to touch him but he grabs her arm roughly and pushes her back. He tells her to pay the Morgans.
She asks if he wants to discuss it with Mellie and he says why – because they’re partners. He says to do what his father would do – throw money at the problem and sweep it under the rug. He stomps out of his own office. Olivia meets with the Morgans again and she hands them a check and the dad says he needs another $500k to cover expenses. She says that’s what they need so the world doesn’t find out the president’s daughter is a dirty little slut.
Olivia snaps a photo of them and the check and says she will destroy them. She says these are children and calls them sick sons of bitches. She calls them child pornographers. The dad says she has no evidence and she says she will pay eye witnesses and plant stories until she has them in jail. She says they are sick people and says she has all the top media outlets on speed dial.
She says she will tell them how they sent their son to have sex with the president’s daughter just so they could blackmail the White House. She says everyone in America will hate them, the paparazzi will never forget them and everyone they know will turn on them. She says this is what she does. She gives them non-disparagement agreements to sign and tells them to sign them quickly so she never has to see their faces again.
Karen is going through her drawers when Mellie comes in. She asks her mom if she’s seen her phone and Mellie says she has and she’s also seen the film she made with her friends. She has her daughter’s phone and asks if they’re her friends. She says they should be friends since they had their body parts inside her. Mellie says if she had sex with those boys because she felt empowered and it made her happy, she’d be okay with it.
Mellie says she thinks she was sad, feeling numb and thought feeling something was better than nothing. She says since her brother died right in front of her, she gets one free pass. She says this was it and she won’t get another. Karen says she misses him and Mellie says she knows and hugs her. Mellie says it may not be fair that she’s the daughter of the most famous man in the world. She says it’s not fair, but she has to keep her knees together.
Karen nods her understanding and Karen asks her mom if she’s okay. Mellie doesn’t answer. Fitz looks at family photos on his phone when there’s a knock. Cyrus introduces George Bixby from the IG office. He says he’s seen some red flags with Secret Service. He tells him Tom Larsen, his agent, has some discrepancies in his schedule. He asks when and George says November 2nd.
Cyrus says it’s likely nothing but George says he’ll get to the bottom of it. They leave and he looks sick. He picks up his phone and asks for a secure line. Jake gets a call from Tom who tells him he has to leave town because the IG found discrepancies in his schedule. Jake says to stay in town, tell the truth and says they can cut a deal that will nail Rowan. Tom says he thinks he can do it.
Jake shows up to the White House. He asks to see Fitz and tells him he has something important to tell him. Fitz won’t hear it. He says he has somewhere to be. Tom meets with the IG who asks why his security card was swiped in Maryland when he was supposed to be in Ohio with the President. He asks if they’re on record. George says yes and that he was on assignment. The IG asks on whose orders.
Rowan comes in and tells George he’ll take it from there. Tom is stunned. George gets up and gives him the desk. Rowan sits and Tom says he won’t say anything without an attorney. Fitz watches the interview and Cyrus is there. He asks the president who brought Rowan in and he says he did. Rowan tells him to focus on him and Tom says he wants to talk to the President. Tom speaks to the glass and says Mr President, please. No response and Rowan continues.
He asks Tom what assignment he was under. Rowan says he can jog his memory and shows photos of him in a highly classified area where diseases are stored including the strain of meningitis that killed the President’s son. Rowan says he was there and the vial went missing. He says he will be held responsible. Tom says he was under orders and Rowan asks whose orders. Rowan tells him to tell him.
Rowan yells at him to tell him. He says it was Jake Ballard. Rowan claps his shoulders, satisfied that Tom didn’t rat him out. Fitz tells Cyrus to do it. He walks out. Olivia sits alone at her table. No Jake. She looks at her watch. We see Jake waiting on the President when Secret Services comes to arrest him. They take the envelope of proof he had away from him. They also come and arrest Tom. Rowan packs up his papers and calls it a night.
THE END!