Up a Tree

Up a Tree
Season 03, Episode 15

Air date	March 27, 2020
Written by	Jenna Richman
Directed by	Andi Behring
Viewers	0.32 million (320,000)^[1]
Episode Guide
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“	The truth is I know exactly how you feel. Because my mom ran away, too. Now, I was a little older than you, but I was still a kid. And I remember how scary it was. {...} Yeah, well, she came back, eventually. And I'm sure your mom will, too. But in the meantime, it is okay to feel scared, and it's okay to feel mad. And it is definitely okay to come down from that tree.	”
Fallon to Connor about his mom running away

"Up a Tree" is the fifteenth episode of the third season and the fifty-ninth episode overall of The CW's Dynasty. It aired on March 27, 2020.

Synopsis[]

REALITY BITES - Fallon offers to keep an eye on Connor while Liam follows a lead on his baby mama. Dominique and Vanessa put the wheels in motion for a reality show and get Culhane to play along, while Cristal looks after Beto.^[2]

Plot Summary[]

SPOILERS AHEAD

Dominique is having breakfast at the manor when she greets Vanessa, who is still cold toward her for sleeping with Michael. Dom tries to pawn it off as a mistake but Vanessa isn’t buying it. They go back and forth until Vanessa throws a croissant at Dominique’s head - though she ducks out of the way. Blake enters and questions what is going on, and is surprised when the camera crew begins appearing. Dominique reveals that they are doing a documentary called House of Deveraux. Blake isn’t interested and kicks Dominique out of his chair. She follows Vanessa and asks if she’s spoken with Michael. She wants Vanessa to pretend that everything is fine to reenact how she and Michael’s relationship was before the sex tape.

At La Mirage, Fallon discusses their current predicament with Liam. He’s talked to a detective who has determined that Heidi’s rental car isn’t turned in yet. Fallon calls her lucky but Liam isn’t so sure since there’s only so long that Connor will believe their story. Connor takes off his headset and asks for food, which surprises Fallon as he just had a rather large breakfast. Liam obliges putting Fallon in charge of watching Connor for a while.

Cristal visits Beto in the hospital to see if he’s okay. Blake still doesn’t know he’s there despite Cristal sneaking out to see him. The police came by to see him earlier to ask about the explosion, but he told them it was an accident. He claims to be an innocent bystander - wrong place, wrong time. She knows they’ll be suspicious fo Beto.

Jeff and Alexis are having breakfast at the Colby house and discuss him drinking a new tea. He asks for the salt which she gives to him. He claims to have asked for sugar for his tea, so Alexis glosses over it claiming it was her mistake. Jeff says he’s fine as not buying that pharma company should have been a blessing in disguise, as they were at least a decade away from finding a treatment. He doesn’t have that long and decides that he’s going to go with homeopathic holistic medicine. Alexis is hesitant but Jeff wants her to be on his side.

Michael speaks with an investor about his leaked sex tape as they worry that their organization is no longer family-friendly. They’ve lost eight sponsors so far with three more on hold. Vanessa enters his office much to his surprise. She admits that what’s done is done and she just wants to move forward. She tells him about her opportunity with House of Deveraux but Michael doesn’t believe that she needs Dom’s help. Vanessa reminds Michael that Dom didn’t make the tape alone and wanted to make things right. He wants to make things right so she asks him to pretend for one day that the tape never happened.

At the hospital, Adam converses with his colleagues at the Carrington Wing when Alexis stops by. She confides in him about her worries that Jeff is getting worse to which Adam believes it’s aphasia. She mentions the herbs that aren’t helping and that whatever Blake’s company is working on has to better than this. Jeff needs a real doctor which Adam is - sort of. She reminds him of his confession and that if it’s released they’ll both go down so they need to fix it.

In the hotel, Liam tells Fallon that his PI discovered that Heidi’s credit card had been used t a gas station in Montgomery. They don’t think Heidi could have gotten far. Liam notes that it’s only a few hour’s drive to get to Montgomery if he leaves in the morning. He can’t bring Connor and asks Fallon to stay with him. After a moment of panicking, she agrees to watch Connor and just requests that he’s back by eight as she has to go to Vanessa’s launch party. He kisses her and leaves.

At the Carrington Manor, Cristal and Blake cuddle and talk about her leaving for Mexico. She reminds him of her friend Adriana’s bachelorette party that he agreed to let her use the plane. She tells him that it’ll be boring but it’s ladies only so he shouldn’t worry about it.

Culhane and Vanessa flirt in the kitchen for the cameras with Michael making her breakfast. Sam enters and comments on how cute they are together than shameless promotes that he’s a single, wealthy, hotel owner who is back on the market. He offers to move the party back to La Mirage just as Fallon enters, her hand over Connor’s eyes. She hopes it isn’t a sex tape sequel causing the producer to cut. Vanessa tells Fallon about the show with Sam piping in that Dominique is trying to be the next Kris Jenner. The crew, Culhane, and Vanessa leave the kitchen so it’s just Sam, Connor, and Fallon. She asks about the s-e-x t-a-p-e to which Connor pipes up that he can spell and is hungry. She offers him pancakes with syrup but he is grossed out by the syrup as it isn’t the kind his mom buys. Fallon tells him the syrup is from the finest trees in Vermont, then removes the top pancake but he argues that the syrup got on all of them. She mentions forgetting the pancakes and just watching a movie but he’s still hungry so she offers popcorn.

Cristal and Beto are on the Carrington private plane telling the pilot they’re ready to go but the pilot claims they’re waiting for one more. Blake enters with plans for a romantic getaway after the bridal party but then notices Beto and how wounded he is.

Things aren’t going well with Fallon and Connor as their movie idea tanked. Now outside, she offers to go look at the horses which excite him. She tells him about her jumping championship which makes him want to jump around like a horse much to her chagrin. She accidentally drops a comment that Heidi ran away which upsets him. He wants to know where his mom is and begins getting emotional but her attempts to soothe him don’t go well as he runs away.

Cristal tries to cover with Blake by lying that Beto came to surprise her when the explosion happened. She lies that she only found out yesterday when Beto called her from the hospital when the police began asking him questions. She doesn’t think the police will believe that Beto was in the wrong place at the wrong time, especially with their last names. Blake is upset about her lying but understands in the ned, reminding her that they’re a team. He tells the pilot he’s ready to go.

Vanessa and Michael are at La Mirage getting drinks while she feigns reminiscing about her days as a bartender. They discuss her album release and she sings him a portion of what she is thinking the single might be. The song is romantic but they are interrupted by Sam who claps at her performance. He mentions having hired her and tries to claim responsibility for her first gig at Atlanta. He asks about the album but he interrupts Vanessaby yelling cut when he realizes his shirt looks a mess. The producer reprimands him for yelling cut but he wants to take it again from his entrance. He wants to go change quickly so he leaves to go. Vanessa invites Culhane to the single release party and Sam reenters with a new shirt on so they resume filming.

At the Colby house, Adam gives Alexis the information he received from Chlorcyte after pretending to be “Mr. Carrington”. Chlorcyte was onto something with neurotoxicity as the drugs all already on the market for other purposes. It’s just when used together the side effects are too risky for the FDA to approve a human trial which is why none of Jeff’s doctors brought it up. Despite this, Adam believes this is the best chance they have to stop his decline. He can’t obtain the pills legally as he has to steal them from the hospital, plus the treatment is risky for Jeff. Alexis decides to explain it to Jeff since he isn’t Adam’s biggest fan at the moment.

Fallon calls out for Connor trying to make things better by bribing him with candy. She hears a noise but it’s Alexis, not Connor. She admits to trying to find a missing child then covers that they’re playing hide and seek but they got lost. She asks Alexis for help but notices her mother’s hesitation, but Alexis claims she doesn’t have anything better to do. They agree to meet by the pond. With Fallon gone, Alexis calls out for Connor to no avail.

Sam talks to Michael about the show and Michael mentions that Vanessa invited him to the single release party. He doesn’t understand what Vanessa wants from him, but when she asks him to be part of the show she made it clear they weren’t getting back together. Now, he’s getting mixed single because he can’t decide if Vanessa is asking as herself or a reality star. He begins to ramble about his concerns and questions so Sam cuts him off. He advises Michael to take it one party at a time and not to let Dom scare him away.

Alexis and Fallon walk by the pond still no having found Connor. Their bantering eventually leads to Fallon admitting to having let it slip about Heidi running away which got Connor upset. She fills Alexis in on what happened then blames her lack of maternal instincts on Alexis, who becomes defensive as she has other pressing matters to deal with - not that Fallon asked. Fallon states that she should have known better because even when Alexis was here, she was never really here. She tells her to go as she has figured things out on her own before and can do it now. The women go in separate directions.

Fallon is walking when she hears rustling in the tree above her and makes the shocking discovery that Connor has climbed up a tree and is sitting on a branch.

Beto is asleep on the couch when the pilot announces they will land in 30 minutes. He converses with Cristal in Spanish but when he is gone he begins to collapse, choking on something. Blake starts doing the Heimlich maneuver while Cristal frantically prays in Spanish. Beto coughs up another pain pill he tried to take.

Jeff is making tea bags with herbs with him being aggressive toward Alexis about discussing the herbal remedies further. She apologies for being dismissive earlier but mentions she’s coming from a place of concern despite it being a pragmatic agreement. Jeff appreciates it but isn’t sued to be taken care of. She doesn’t’ want him to miss out on something that could help him - including traditional medicine. She brings up Chlorcyte being closer than they thought, with Adam being able to get pills that could help Jeff. He isn’t able to get passed the fact Adam poisoned him and the conversation quickly becomes an argument, with Jeff wanting nothing more to do with Adam.

Back at the Carrington pond, Fallon tries to convince Connor to come out of the tree as it is cold and it’s child endangerment. She offers to take him inside where she can leave him alone but he refuses only asking for his mom. She takes a moment than admits that Liam is working on finding Heidi when Liam arrives asking what’s going on. He becomes bewildered when he sees Connor in the tree and learns what Fallon has done. He claims that it’s been a misunderstanding as he just talked to his mom. He claims that Heidi got lost on the way home from an interview, a lie, as they were unable to reach her in time. He offers to call Heidi once they are inside but Connor counters to call her now and put her on speakerphone. Fallon sarcastically remarks that this is what happens when kids have too much screen time. Liam ignores her and tries calling Heidi again but it goes to voicemail, so Connor belives he’s still lying. When Liam wants to join Connor on the tree the kid moves further down the branch, telling him to get away. It is then that Liam and Fallon can hear the tree cracking.

Now on their way back to Atlanta, Blake tries to assure Cristal that they can handle anything the police throw at them since Beto is innocent. He makes a toast to them being able to handle anything. She is distant which he notices and asks for the truth. She admits that the explosion wasn’t an accident as Beto was trying to plant a bomb that went off too early. He was trying to blow up Alexis’s car and kill her on CRistal’s request. She admits to wanting her to pay. Blake can’t blame her for wanting Alexis dead, especially after what happened with Mac. He’s wanted her dead before too. She doesn’t see it that way as her wanting someone dead isn’t okay. She mentions that Blake sounds exactly like her father - justifying one thing after another until nothing is wrong. She left her family because of that mentality only to walk into the same thing with Blake. He doesn’t think that’s fair which she agrees that it might not be. But if she’s going to break the cycle she might have to do it alone.

In the parking garage of the hospital, Adam enters a van with Alexis. He apologies for taking so long and jokes about having to tie up the pharmacy technician in the broom closest. She is taken aback, not knowing it’s a joke. He calms her nerves but tells her the less she knows the better. Alexis tells him that Jeff won’t do it, but Adam presses that the longer they wait the lowers the chance of the medicine working. He subtly suggests drugging Jeff with the treatment for his own good. He gives Alexis the instructions for the medication, warning to avoid alcohol to protect the liver.

At Vanessa’s party, Vanessa and Dom give interviews when Sam shows up remarking on everyone’s attractiveness. This leads to a playful conversation between Sam and Vanessa about Sam’s attractiveness and self-titled superhero side, “Sammy Ho”. Dom tries to dismiss Sam by pointing him to the bar. Sam leaves then asks Vanessa about Fallon but she hasn’t seen Fallon yet. She notices Culhane and walks over to greet him. He offers to get her a drink and Vanessa tells the cameraman to leave her for a moment as they walk out.

Still outside, Liam tries to bribe Connor with hot chocolate, something that Fallon tried three-hours ago. Connor refuses to go with them despite Liam’s insistence, calling his father a liar. Fallon agrees with Connor saying that they both are. They were trying to protect him by not telling him the truth about his mom. But now, he can’t trust either of them. She wants to tell him something and makes him promise not to tell anyone. She admits that her mother ran away too, and even though she eventually came back, it was still scary. She is sure that Connor’s mom will come back one day too. She tells him it’s okay to feel scared, mad, and okay to come down from that tree. Connor takes a moment then admits he wants to come down. Liam starts toward the tree to help Connor, who shifts closer to the trunk. When he does, the branch finally gives out and Connor plummets into the freezing water below.

Liam doesn’t hesitate and jumps in after Connor, who can’t swim. He grips Connor and tries to get him to shore but Conor won’t calm down and ends up pushing Liam under the water. Michael comes running up as he heard yelling. Fallon frantically tells him that Connor fell in, and Michael doesn’t hesitate to undress and jump into the lake after them. Together they grab Connor’s arms and drag him back to shore. Fallon takes off her white fluffy jacket and wraps Connor in the jacket once Michael and Liam get him to shore. Fallon ushers him inside with Liam telling Michael to call a doctor.

Inside at the bar, Alexis and Jeff are standing. She doesn’t understand why they’re here as they both hate Dominique. He’s just here to support Vanessa and pee in Blake’s pool. She notices the ruckus outside and asks him about it, noting that Fallon was down by the lake earlier. She asks him to go see what’s happening while she waits for her seltzer. When it arrives she empties a pill capsule into it.

In the kitchen, Liam puts Connor on the counter while Fallon attempts to find towels. Culhane brings towels in, earning thanks from Fallon. He begins wrapping Connor int hem when he impulsively hugs Fallon, surprising her. She soothes him in a mother manner stating that everything is okay, motioning to Adam to explain that he’s a doctor - sort of. Adam does a quick exam saying that he’s not hyperthermic and has a strong pulse so he will be okay. Liam then thanks Culhane for everything he did to help.

Back at the party, Jeff tells Alexis that Fallon is okay, much to her relief. Sam explains that Connor fell in the lake, Liam jumped in after him, and then Culhane jumped in after Liam. Everyone is okay and Adam is checking everyone out in the kitchen. She leaves and when she does, Sam and Jeff toast with champagne that they begin drinking. Blake and Cristal arrive home and are surprised at the party happening. Sam gives his drink to Jeff, quickly explaining that Dom inited him. Blake doesn’t care and wants everyone out - especially Jeff, who downs both glasses of alcohol.

Connor, Liam, and Fallon arrive at La Mirage. Connor wants to play something but Liam is hesitant as its been a long day. Fallon remarks that he can have a few minutes, which elates the boy and he hugs her tightly. This causes her to spill her coffee on her very expensive-looking jacket. He apologizes but she tells him it’s okay and the first one up the stairs gets to pick the movie. Connor heads to the steps where he finds Heidi waiting for them.

Heidi embraces Connor saying that she missed him. Liam, silently angry, asks her where she’s been. She apologizes as she just needed to clear her head for a minute as after ten years of parenting alone she didn’t’ know who she was anymore. Fallon asks if that’s why she dumped him with two relative strangers and took off, prompting Liam to tell Connor to wait off to the side while they talk. Heidi tearfully admits that Liam and Fallon have a good life, and she thought Connor could have a better one with them. But ultimately, she realized she can’t have a good life without her son as she’s his mother. She apologizes for putting them through the stress, but Liam is only worried about what she did to their son. She turns to Connor apologizing and says that they’re going home and she won’t leave ever again. Fallon doesn’t think it’s right that Heidi can just take him since Liam is his dad and she’s his cool stepmom. She refuses to give up on him without a fight.

Still at the Manor, Vanessa and Culhane discuss the incident that occurred earlier. He assures her everyone is okay and made it out in one piece. He apologizes for the party as she didn’t even get to sing as it was her moment. She notes that the moment is over, gesturing to his ringing phone that he should answer. One of the Atlantix biggest sponsors decided to keep their deal because they saw a video of what happened at the lake and decided the Atlantic was worth it after all. Vanessa remarks that Michael Culhane saving a kid’s life is what people needed to see - meaning she leaked the tape. She notes that everything isn’t all bad in case he was thinking of giving this another shot. She wouldn’t say no to it, so he kisses her.

Cristal is in her bedroom when Blake tells her that everyone is gone and he’s kicking Dominique out. He doesn’t want to lose her prompting her to sit down and tell him that she wasn’t trying to give him an ultimatum. He wants to do better with her but she admits to not being able to live with herself right now. He calls her the best thing in his life right now and is willing to do whatever it takes to make hers better too. She admits to thinking about working with patients again at a clinic. She wants to get the Carrington Foundation involved so they can open a clinic at the hospital for patients who can’t afford to pay. Blake thinks that is exactly what the foundation is for and they kiss.

Dom is in the kitchen pouring alcohol. She asks Vanessa if Michael left and if it’s done. Vanessa reports that he’s in for the time being, and the women toast to House of Deveraux’s newest cast member, Michael Culhane, and the audience he opens up for them. She adds a toast for Vanesa for doing whatever it takes to keep him on the show.

At the Colby house, Jeff decides to lie down as he isn’t feeling well and is dizzy. He only had a few drinks but the must-have hit him hard. She panics as he was drinking and leaves to get him some water, telling him to sit. She hurries off texting someone. Jeff begins toward the coach but faints halfway there, landing on the hardwood floor.

Cast[]

Starring[]

Elizabeth Gillies as Fallon Carrington
Daniella Alonso as Cristal Carrington
Elaine Hendrix as Alexis Carrington Colby
Rafael de La Fuente as Sam Jones
Sam Underwood as Adam Carrington
Michael Michele as Dominique Deveraux
Robert Christopher Riley as Michael Culhane
Sam Adegoke as Jeff Colby
Maddison Brown as Kirby Anders (credit only)
Adam Huber as Liam Ridley
Alan Dale as Joseph Anders (credit only)
Grant Show as Blake Carrington

Guest Starring[]

Co-Starring[]

John Jackson Hunter as Connor
Amanda Tavarez as Abby
Jasmine Sargent as Assistant

Trivia[]

As being the part of the main cast, Alan Dale and Maddison Brown are credited, though they are absent from the episode.
The title "Up a Tree" is a reference to the line said by Walter Lankershim to Steven Carrington in season one episode "The Bordello" of the original Dynasty series.

Quotes[]

Dominique: I know I made a mistake.
Vanessa: Calling someone the wrong name is a mistake. You slept with my boyfriend. You taped it, and you released it.
Dominique: I told you, we were drunk. It was bad judgment. And I don't even know how it got out. I must have been hacked.
Vanessa: Why would I believe anything that you say?
Dominique: After everything I've done for you? I got you a record deal, this roof over your head, that croissant.
Vanessa: Oh, you want this back? Here, take it!

Dominique: We're calling it House of Deveraux. What do you think?
Blake: I think this is the house of me, not some movie set.

Fallon: But if your guy doesn't find him, we are gonna need a lot more than room service. Like a nanny, and a really good shrink.
Liam: Kids are pretty resilient.
Fallon: The shrink was for me.

Alexis: I think Jeff is getting worse. This morning at breakfast, he asked for the salt instead of the sugar and didn't even realize it. Doctor.
Adam: It's aphasia. Is it the first time it's happened?
Alexis: Well, that I've noticed. But he's been taking all these weird herbs and teas.
Adam: What kind of herbs?
Alexis: I just told you... weird.

Fallon: Connor! God. Is this what your mother's been dealing with for ten years? No wonder she ran away.
Connor: My mom ran away?
Fallon: I didn't say that.
Connor: Yes, you did. Where is she?
Fallon: Uh... Okay, that's a fair question. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. Please don't cry. Please don't cry. I'm not good with feelings, yours or mine.

Fallon: I am not the guilty one here, okay? And if there's anyone to blame about my lack of maternal instincts, it's you.
Alexis: Oh, here we go again. I'm here now, aren't I? Despite pressing business of my own, not that you asked.
Fallon: No, but I should have guessed. Because even when you are were here, you were never really here. Why don't you just go.
Alexis: Fallon...
Fallon: No, no, no, no, no. I mean it, okay? I have figured things out without you before. I can do that now.

Blake: Hey, hey, nobody died, Cristal. Beto's okay. Alexis is okay.
Cristal: But I wanted to kill her.
Blake: Do you know how many times I wanted to kill Alexis? How could I blame you after what happened with Mac?
Cristal: How could you not? It's not okay, Blake. None of it is okay. And I don't want it to be.
Blake: Well, what's beating yourself up gonna do?
Cristal: You sound just like my father. Justifying one thing after another until nothing's ever wrong. It's why I had to get away from my family. And then I just walked right back into the same thing with you.
Blake: Oh, that's not fair.
Cristal: Maybe not. But... I have to break this cycle. Even if I have to do it alone.