Dark Shadows 1991: 1.4

Dark Shadows 1991, episode 1.4

The sheriff and Julia walk up to Michael’s front door. His car is in the drive and lights are on in the house. Michael opens the door and lets the two of them in. Patterson mentions they’ve been trying to get in touch with him for hours, but his phone has been dead. The sheriff asks why Michael has been calling him, and Michael apologizes. He stumbled down another dead end regarding Barnabas Collins and the killer. He mentions a diary—Julia realizes he means hers—and Patterson says his deputy told him Michael had photographed evidence. He hands Patterson the camera, and the sheriff takes the film to be developed. As George and Julia leave, Michael attacks the sheriff. Patterson shoots him, but the vampire Michael still comes after him. Julia sees a wooden spear and manages to stake Woodard just in time. He goes after Julia, but Patterson pulls him off and pushes the stake farther in.

Julia and George Patterson head back to the sheriff’s office, where they leave Michael’s body in the custody of the coroner. He hands the film over to the deputy to be developed. He hands over his bloody raincoat as well, wanting it to be disposed of. Julia and George share a drink and wait for the photos to be developed. He goes off to the dark room, while Julia waits nervously in his office. The pictures are nothing more than black images for each. The film had not been exposed.

Roger and Elizabeth are at Collinwood. Liz wonders what is happening, that some dark cloud has come over Collinwood. (None connected to a mysterious cousin, however!) Julia gives Barnabas another injection, and he tells her that he had no choice regarding Michael Woodard. It was for the best, he said, but Julia is still upset. She is as much a part of his death as Barnabas was, he tells her. She says that he can now spend only limited times in the sunlight. He wants them to finish what has started, together. He plays Josette’s music box for her. He says he looks forward to the day when he can give it to the woman who will take her place. (No doubt Julia thinks that is her.)

David plays with Revolutionary War soldiers. One of the soldiers moves magically by itself. “Sarah?” he asks. She appears and they discuss the war. She doesn’t wish to discuss now now, but then. Vikki hears David talking to a young girl, and she walks into his room. She asks if he was talking with Sarah. Yes, he says. Sarah gave him the soldiers as well. She leaves him to his play. Vikki leaves and walks down the hall. She sees someone walking down the hall and follows. It is a young girl who disappears into a door. Vikki runs to the door and there is nothing there. It is locked. A key is on the floor, and she uses it to unlock the door. She finds an abandoned hallway, filled with old furniture. She follows Sarah deeper inside to a library, where Sarah sits behind a desk. She turns the pages of a book. Vikki asks what she is reading. She read about her brother, Barnabas and hands Vikki the book—the diary of Sarah Collins, 1787. David is at the door. “Now do you believe me?” He says Sarah is trying to tell her something—that someone is going to get hurt. They agree to tell only each other if they see Sarah again—especially not Barnabas.

Vikki is at the cemetery, and she finds a covered headstone that says Sarah Collins. She and Barnabas then go for a walk on the beach. She gives Barnabas the diary of Sarah, despite David’s warning. He asks where she got it and grabs her by the arms. She tells him he’s hurting her. She asks why he’s so upset over it. He says it’s just that his family history means so much to him. Where did you find it? He asks. In a library in the west wing, she says. He thanks her. They talk about how Josette married his brother, Jeremiah, and Vikki wonders why.

Barnabas reads aloud from Sarah’s diary that night. He talks to Willie about how much he loved his sister. Willie asks why she was so young—nine years old—when she died. Barnabas said she was very ill. He asks Barnabas if David really sees Sarah, and Barnabas believes that he has. He thinks that Sarah is trying to tell him something—he finds a small portrait of a blonde woman. He throws it into the fire, where it bursts into flames. A flaming specter comes out of the fireplace. Willie is frightened and asks what that was. Barnabas says her name was Angelique, the true cures of his existence, a force so evil, so powerful, that even now she reaches out to destroy him.

In the schoolroom, David is peering into his desk. Vikki asks him what is in there. “Are you sure you want to see?” Vikki grabs a book to kill whatever it is, but there is only a small painting. David said he got it in a room he’s not supposed to go to. She promises not to tell Roger but that they should put the painting back. David leads her to a locked room set up as a painting studio. Stacked against the wall are many paintings, and Vikki asks who painted them. David wishes to leave. Roger arrives, and Vikki tells him it was her idea to come up. Roger is irate and tells her to go downstairs—that the room does not exist anymore.

Maggie is sculpting in her studio. Roger arrives. While he’s gone, David goes into Roger’s room and takes some hair from a brush and a coat button. Roger and Maggie discuss their relationship. Maggie asks what will happen if she comes back; Roger doubts that will happen. Maggie said she’s not like other people. David fashioned a wax doll using the items from his father’s room and sets it on fire. At Maggie’s, Roger begins convulsing. Vicki manages to set the flames off, and Roger recovers.

Vikki tells Liz about the incident with David. She says that David was in some sort of trance and hands Liz the button from Roger’s coat. Liz confesses that David was asked to leave the town school because he started a terrible fire and almost burnt it down. Vikki has a phone call from Maggie Evans. She meets Maggie in town. Maggie tells Vikki about her affair with Roger and that Vikki must be very careful with David. She also tells Vikki that she has certain powers, that she can see things, and she saw David burning the doll. Talk turns to David’s mother, who is in an institution in England but is somehow controlling David. David’s mother knows what’s happening, she’s evil, and she’s a witch. Watch David carefully, Maggie warns again.

Barnabas and Willie are in the Old House, preparing for dinner. Barnabas sees Sarah’s diary out on the table and asks Willie what it’s doing out. Willie does not know. Barnabas tells Willie to make sure everything is ready when the window bursts open and the fire flares. The candles flicker and Sarah’s diary opens. They both watch as writing appears, warning Barnabas to keep Vikki out of his plans—they are both in danger. It means nothing, Barnabas says. Willie insists that Sarah is trying to warn them, and Barnabas flies into a rage. Barnabas apologizes, and Willie goes to put the diary back. After he leaves, the pages flip open to a picture of Angelique