As Revenge Season 4 Episode 17 begins, Emily watches Jack being taken into custody and Carl being taken by the police and she has flashbacks of herself as a child when her father was taken from her. Carl has come home with Emily and she and David discuss who might be behind Jack's arrest. She vows revenge on whomever may have separated Jack from his son.

At the jail, Jack learns that his blood sample was lost by the lab. An officer lets him into the room with his attorney who turns out to be his mother. Emily flew her in from out of town.

Victoria meets Margaux at the doctor's office and they discuss Victoria's inheritance and Margaux's September issue of Voulez. Victoria has the plans for the Daniel Grayson Research Wing she plans to build at the hospital and hopes Margaux will be able to help her sway any board members who take umbrage with naming it after Daniel given the circumstances surrounding how he died.

Nolan startles Louise in the kitchen and she spills the hangover cure she says she's preparing for Lyman, whom she believes has not yet woken up. As Nolan leaves the house to visit Emily, Ben is outside the door with another officer. They want to speak to Louise. Ben delivers the news that Lyman Ellis's body was found on the bluffs outside their house.

Jack enters a "not guilty" plea during his arraignment hearing. The judge releases him on his own recognizance and assigns a social worker to determine his competency as a father. Emily confronts Margaux after the hearing and Margaux informs Emily that whatever happens to Jack is her fault.

Ben sits with Louise and Nolan and she tells him Lyman had too much to drink at the Fourth of July party. Ben asks some probing questions about Louise's relationship with her brother and Nolan steps in saying he was the one who had an issue with Lyman.

Victoria meets with a board member at the hospital who tells her that the project will not be moving forward. Victoria sees Emily Thorne's name on a list of honorary board members who are not required to vote and assumes she's the person who tanked the foundation's project.

Emily, Jack, and Nolan meet with Jack's mom to discuss his case. She suggests asking Ben to discredit the arresting officer on the stand but Ben's account of the events are not supportive of Jack. Nolan pulls up security footage from the bar at the party and they see Margaux's bodyguard move Jack's drink. Emily plans to find the man in order to make him hand over information.

She sneaks into his apartment later that night to find something suspicious on his table. He comes up behind her with a gun and they fight. She wrests control of the gun away from him and demands he tell her what he put in Jack's drink. He gives her Jack's blood sample by tossing it into the air and disappearing while she focuses on catching it.

Emily takes Ben breakfast and tucked away inside the bag is Jack's blood sample. She needs Ben to put it back in the lab as if it had been misplaced. He's reluctant to help because he's close to making detective but agrees when she makes her plea on Carl's behalf.

The social worker meets with Jack and Stevie. Carl is spending the day with David which the social worker doesn't like. The social worker also doesn't like the fact that Jack is a bartender. The social worker asks Jack about his alcohol consumption and whether anyone in the family has an alcohol problem. Stevie answers in the affirmative and the social worker says he's concerned.

Margaux meets with her henchman and shows him the paper reporting Lyman Ellis' death. That, coupled with the voicemail he left her shortly before dying, scares her. She pays her henchman, asks him to erase any trace of the call, and says she's giving up. The henchman won't give up. He suggests ending everything once and for all.

Emily arrives home to find Victoria sitting on her couch. She accuses Emily of torpedoing the research wing and Emily says she voted in favor because Daniel saved her life. Emily asks Victoria to call Margaux off of Jack and Carl.

The social worker visits Nolan at the yacht club to question him about Jack. The social worker accuses Nolan of breaking the law by operating an unlicensed daycare and Nolan says he'll have a license by the end of their meeting. The meeting turns personal for Nolan when he believes Jack is in danger of losing Carl.

When Stevie tries to have Jack's blood sample admitted into evidence citing precedent which should allow it, the judge denies her motion and holds her in contempt. Stevie is arrested and taken out of the courtroom, leaving Jack with no one to defend him. David posts Stevie's bail as repayment for her attempt to help get him out of prison 20 years ago. The team learns that LeMarchal media outlets endorsed the judge in her reelection bid and deduce that she's the one in Margaux's pocket.

Victoria buys Margaux a baby crib and bedding as a gift and then learns that Margaux was the one who kept the wing from moving forward. Margaux didn't want to announce her pregnancy in conjunction with the announcement of the wing in order to protect her child from the scandalous cloud surrounding Daniel's name. Victoria agrees to keep Margaux's pregnancy quiet and Margaux agrees to change her vote.

Nolan delivers an expensive bottle of wine to the judge as she dines in the club. She thanks him for the table service but doesn't want the bottle uncorked saying she prefers to stick with her water. As she's driving home, Ben pulls her over on the grounds she's had a call from a concerned citizen. He asks her to blow into a breathalyzer and she's shocked to see the results. Emily calls and tells her that her water was laced with acetone, just like Jack's. She expects the judge to test Jack's blood sample and have him cleared of all charges.

Stevie tells Jack and Emily that he's been cleared of all the charges against him and offers to take them off to a celebratory lunch. Emily declines the invitation and David goes after her. He knows she plans to go after Margaux and he advises her against it. He hopes she'll end their feud.

Nolan apologizes to Louise for not being there for her in the wake of her brother's death and she confesses to him that she wasn't honest with the cops. She caught Lyman snooping on Nolan's laptop, they had a scuffle, and he fell to his death. Nolan gets a message that the social worker in Jack's case is waiting for him at the club so Louise sends him to work.

Margaux meets Emily on the street in the city and tells her that Jack's charges were dropped. Emily proposes a truce, that she and Margaux stop their fighting and protect those they love working together to clear Daniel's name. Margaux is not inclined to trust Emily so Emily offers the one thing she can: her real birth certificate. Margaux takes the birth certificate but not Emily's terms. She is hit by a cab while trying to hail one.

Victoria arrives at the hospital before Margaux's ambulance. Emily arrives right after. She tells Victoria that Margaux's accident was just that but Victoria doesn't believe her. Emily hands over Margaux's handbag, from which she has removed her birth certificate.

Nolan meets the social worker at the club. Tony reveals he's on a personal visit and not on business. Until he sees Nolan's wedding ring. Nolan decides to buy Tony a drink so they can talk.

Jack and Stevie talk about Emily's story. Victoria visits Margaux and learns that she lost the baby. Emily turns to David for comfort following Margaux's accident. 

Margaux tells Victoria that Emily pushed her in front of the cab.