Conspiracy theorist Ernie Arbus goes to Webandflow Studios and removes his disguise, and his producer Stevie tells them to give them the same crazy enemy. Ernie begins his Internet video talking about all of the government conspiracies he's exposing, and then says that the next day he will presents video proof that will expose the elite for the evil fiends they are. Stevie congratulates Ernie on hamming it up, and Ernie says that the footage is real. Ernie goes to his car and starts it up, and it explodes.
At prison, Jonathan tells Cameron that someone burned Oscar alive and figures that it has to do with him. Cameron says that Kay was a pyro, but Jonathan figures that it's no coincidence. His brother wonders if Jonathan is paranoid,
Mike and Kay check out the explosion and Mike confirms that it was done by a professional. Kay notes that Ernie was going to do an expose of a secret society of crow people, and Cameron arrives and asks what's going on. She tells him that there was no magic angle, and Cameron insists that magicians don't have anything to do with conspiracies. Mike finds Ernie's address from his pizza orders on his credit cards. The trio goes there and discover that someone has tossed the entire place. Cameron works out where Ernie hid his secrets: an old microwave. Inside is a small book with a list of names. One of them is Senator Bruce Conners, a former astronaut.
The trio goes to Conners' office and the senator explains that Ernie followed him around and accused him of staging his moon landing. Meanwhile, Mike talks to a CEO on Ernie's list, Charles Quaid who says that that Ernie was stalking him. His head of security, Bruce Holt, says that they caught Ernie going through their dumpsters.
Jonathan meets with the warden, Andy Faust and Faust says that he's a huge fan. He then suggests that Jonathan confess to Oscar's murder, pointing out that only an escape artist could have killed the former arsonist. They found lighter fluid in Jonathan's cell and someone deleted the security footage. Jonathan insists that he's innocent, but Faust says that he'll only give Jonathan eight years instead of twenty if he doesn't. Among the prisoners on Faust's photo board is Winslow.
Kay and Cameron visit a woman who was in Ernie's book: Alicia Davis. She admits that Ernie is her father, and says that she and Ernie have been estranged for ten years. Alicia got into journalism to prove Ernie right, but then she "woke up", moved away, and changed her name. Ernie sent her a Betamax tape and Cameron takes it to Gunter the Archive. He has a Betamax player, and the tape shows Ernie making a recording of the secret society, Corvus Vale. The tape shows a group of robed figures chanting and sacrificing a girl. They spot Ernie and he runs. When Gunter rewinds the video, Kay spots one of the figures wearing an expensive watch that only astronauts get... and that Conners had.
Later, Kay tells Deakins that they think Conners is involved. Deakins refuses to bring Conners him on the basis of a watch, and tells Kay that she'll need more proof. Kay and Cameron questions Alicia, who says that Ernie thought everything was tied together. He said that in the 1880s, twelve of the most powerful men came together to rule the world from the shadows. Alicia realizes that they think Corvus Vale is real and demands to know what was on the tape. Kay says that they can't tell her because the tape is part of an active investigation, and Alicia storms out.
Cameron goes after Alicia and she apologizes for being so upset. Alicia admits that Ernie was exasperating to be around but she loved him, and Cameron says that he also had a demanding father with weird eyes. Alicia knows about Jonathan and Cameron from a piece she did, and asks Cameron what it was like growing up. He says that it was like an international game of hide and seek. Kay comes through and tells Cameron to come with her. In the elevator she says that they had a leak. "White Horn" was written on the tape, and it belongs to a Mexican takeout place in the Bronx.
Jonathan approaches Winslow and asks what he knows about Faust. Winslow says that he minds his own business, and warns Jonathan that if Faust is trying to frame Jonathan then he'll succeed. Jonathan asks Winslow what Faust framed him for, and Winslow explains that Faust framed him for stabbing a prisoner. When Jonathan asks if Winslow can get him onto Faust's computer, Winslow wonders why he should help and Jonathan figures that Winslow hates Faust more than him.
Cameron and Kay go to the takeout place and discover that it's closed. Four taxis have pulled up and gone in, and they're dressed for a gala. Caterers are taking food into a nearby hardware store, and Kay and Cameron steal caterer uniforms and slip in with the caterers. The manager tells them to grab trays and goes upstairs. The inside of the building is the club from the tape, and they realize that they've found Corvus Vale.
Cameron and Kay split up to search the place, and Kay finds a mask and a jeweled dagger on a pillow. She sees Alicia across the room.
Once the lights go out, Jonathan removes a phone from a hidden crack in his room.
Dina, Gunter, and Jordan are watching a horror movie. Gunter triggers a device to spray Jordan's popcorn in his face. Jonathan calls Dina and asks if they're up for a deception.
Kay approaches Alicia, who says that she followed Kay and Cameron. She refuses to leave, but Kay points out the armed security guards. Several of the members go into a room, and Cameron "accidentally" bumps into a guest and spills a drink on him. He takes the jacket, saying that he's going to have it cleaned, and then puts it on and steals a ring from another passed-out guest. Flashing the ring, he gets into the adjoining conference room where the select guests put on the masks and robes. Cameron goes to the next room where the victim was sacrificed on the tape There are paintings on the wall, and one of them is Alistair. A guard tasers Cameron unconscious.
Alicia refuses to go, and spots Quaid A judge just threw out a case against Quaid's company. A man comes up and hits on Kay, and Alicia slips away while Kay is distracted.
Cameron wakes up and finds the robed figures chanting around him. He's strapped to the chair, and Conners removes his mask. Cameron points out that they blew up Ernie and killed a woman, and one woman Claudia removes her mask. She's the "victim" on the tape, and Conners explains that Claudia was part of the initiation. Cameron has already escaped his bonds, and Conners threatens to sue him if he reveals their existence.
Conners shows Cameron around and explains that they're now a salon of ideas. Now they just sue gate-crashers rather than kill them, and says that if someone killed Ernie it would draw attention to them. Cameron asks about Alistair, and Conners says that Alistair designed the building, Ravens Hall, so he was made an honorary member for life.
Alicia is taking photos, and a security guard grabs her and smashes her phone. He realizes that she's a reporter and starts to escort her out, and Kay intervenes and flashes her bed. Cameron joins them and says that it's time to go, and they quickly leave.
The next day at the FBI, Kay tells Mike what happened. Mike has transferred Ernie's tape to digital and they go over the video again.
As Faust leaves the prison, Dina and Gunter "accidentally" run into the back of his car. Meanwhile, Jordan slips into Faust's car and swaps his phone for a replacement. When Faust calls the insurance company, Jonathan takes the call and gets Faust's password from his password for his insurance account. Winslow peers in the door to tell Jonathan that he only has five minutes, and Jonathan finds a video of Faust planting the evidence in his cell when he isn't there. Meanwhile, Dina and the others slip away.
Kay and Mike go over the video and isolate Quaid's voice. Quaid is talking to another man, and Mike identifies him as Judge Eric Walton, who dismissed the claim against Quaid's company Claxton. They figure that Quaid had Ernie killed because he accidentally captured Quaid and Walton on tape. They take the tape to Deakins, but Deakins says that it's circumstantial and tells them to bring Alicia in because she wrote a story about Quaid that didn't print. Cameron calls Alicia, who says that she's meeting Quaid because he reached out and said that he wants to go on the record in his office. Kay is listening and warns Alicia that it's a set-up, but Alicia doesn't believe her. Alicia hangs up and puts an envelope in a mailbox. Once she walks away, Holt comes over and calls someone.
That night, Alicia meets with Quaid. He hands out photos of Ernie's death and threatens her if she doesn't stop the story.
Kay and Mike arrive in the lobby and tell Holt that they need to see Quaid. Holt denies that Alicia is in the building.
Quaid shows Alicia the envelope that she dropped off earlier, and a crow caws in the building. Quaid locks Alicia in and finds a crow sitting on a box on a table. He shoos it away and opens the box, and finds a Corvus Gale mask inside. The lights go out and a robed figure appears in the shadows. Quaid' tries to call, and the figure comes at him with a dagger. The CEO runs down the hallway, and another figure throws a hatchet at him. When Quaid runs into the stairwell, another figure grabs him. The figure tells Quaid that he's been expelled and throws him down the stairwells. A harness keeps Quaid from falling, and another figure tells Quaid to confess rather than expose Corvus Vale. The figure then removes his mask, revealing that he's Cameron. Cameron says that he's a member of the Vale, takes out a knife, and cuts through the harness. Quaid falls and faints, and another harness catches him. Cameron tells Gunter and Jordan to put Quaid back in his office.
As Cameron leaves, Holt arrives and draws a gun on him. Holt says that he doesn't deal with matters through lawsuits. A robed figure arrives and knocks Holt out, and Cameron assumes that it's Gunter. Dina and the others arrive--including Gunter--and they quickly leave.
Quaid wakes up in his office, and Alicia says that she's going to expose him. Quaid grabs a letter opener and threatens to kill her, Kay comes in and reveals that they recorded Quaid's confession via his phone.
In prison, Winslow finds Jonathan waiting in the weight room for him. The guards drag Winslow out as the prisoners cheer, and Jonathan tells Winslow that the FBI got a video. He tells the prisoner that he may be out sooner than he thought, and Winslow tells Jonathan that he'll try to find out who killed Oscar.
In the Archive, the team tells Mike how they pulled off the entire thing. They wondered who saved Cameron, and Gunter figures that Cameron is pulling their leg. Alicia is there with Kay and Cameron, and says that Ernie would have been proud of her. There's a photo of Cameron as a boy, and Alicia tells him that they may both have more of their fathers in them than they think and it may not be a bad thing. Cameron tells her that he and Jonathan are who they are because of their father.
After the party, Conners walks in and meets with Cameron. He tells Cameron not to do wat he did again, and Cameron realizes that Conners was the one who took out Holt. The senator says that he's there to get the ring Cameron stole, but gives Cameron Alistair's ring. Cameron's father broke with tradition, but Conners says that Cameron and Jonathan are welcome to join. He gives Cameron a sealed box and the ring unlocks it. Inside is a pen with AB on it. Cameron realizes that it's not in the group photo, and when he turns back Conners is gone.
Written by Gadfly on May 14, 2018