“Scandal” Recap: “The Belt”

ABC/Eric McCandlessOn this week’s Scandal, Cyrus Beene is being taken to prison for the murder of President-elect Frankie Vargas.

As Cyrus goes to jail, Olivia and Mellie celebrate their victory at Pope and Associates with a dance.

While the gladiators leave to go home, Huck decides to stay behind to watch videos from Frankie’s campaign. He becomes intrigued with one of the staffers and decides to meet up with her.

At the White House the next day, it is revealed that David Rosen and the FBI director are seeking the death penalty for Cyrus.  Abby, who is the president’s chief of staff, and a friend to Cyrus, tells Rosen and the FBI director to drop their pursuit under the orders of the president.

Meanwhile in jail, Cyrus is put into solitary confinement. Abby enlists Elizabeth North to visit Cyrus to assure him he’s not getting the death penalty. Still concerned, Cyrus tells Liz he is going to write a love letter to Tom so that he will recant his story of Cyrus’ involvement. Liz agrees to deliver letter.

Back at the office, Huck learns from the staffer that Tom may not have killed Jenny. He tells Olivia, and she tells the gladiators that they must now find a way to prove that Tom did it for the sake of Mellie.

At the prison, Cyrus is trying to get pen and paper so he can write a letter to Tom. He eventually figures out a way to blackmail a prison guard for the items and writes the letter which he gives to Elizabeth.

At the White House, the FBI director and the president are steadily hooking up. While in bed, the FBI director tells the president about Abby following his orders for Cyrus to not get the death penalty.  The president looks shocked by the news.

The next day, the president confronts Abby about interfering with Cyrus’s investigation and tells her to back off.

Meanwhile, Cyrus’ husband Michael comes to visit him, and tells him he wants a divorce. Cyrus tells his husband that Tom’s love letter, which was intercepted by Michael from Liz, was just a “ruse” to get Tom to recant his confession. Unfortunately, Michael refuses to listen. Instead, Michael leaves the prison, while the guard, who Cyrus blackmailed, brings him outside where he is beaten up by a bunch inmates who seek revenge for Vargas’ death.

During his beating, Cyrus begins to hallucinate that Tom recanted his story, his husband forgives him and he’s regained the presidency with Mellie as his vice president. Then, his dream changes and Mellie becomes president. Suddenly, Cyrus wakes up and he is lying on the prison ground bleeding.

The next day, Cyrus calls Olivia to tell her that it wasn’t he who told Tom to kill Frankie Vargas. Olivia doesn’t believe him and tells him she won’t be talking to him anymore. Cyrus is devastated.

In the final scenes of the episode, Cyrus reveals he wants to kill himself and asks the guard for his belt, in which the guard agrees to give it to him when he gets off.

When the guard returns, Cyrus gets another inmate to choke the guard and open his door. They then go to Tom’s cell where they attempt to kill Tom – but Tom comes clean and confesses that he did not kill Frankie Vargas – which also exonerates Cyrus as well.

Scandal returns next Thursday night at 9:00 p.m. on ABC.

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