Episode 223 Recap: "Vetted"

Hanna remains suspicious of the circumstances surrounding Benny's sudden wealth and expensive new home. She finds it hard to believe that Benny could come into such a great sum of money so quickly purely as a result of his own hard work. Hanna suspects that there's something much more insidious behind the money: Veronica.

She makes her feelings clear about dirty money. "That dream's going to turn into a nightmare real quick," she tells her son.

Benny admits to his mother that Veronica is still contacting him and that—try as he might—he can't resist it when she throws herself at him. Although she's happy for her son's success, Hanna can't shake the feeling that Benny's money is tainted, and, ultimately, refuses to move into the house with him.

After Wyatt stays over at Jeffery's hotel room to avoid his parents, Jeffery confronts Wyatt about his homophobia. Jeffery wants to know why Wyatt keeps bringing up his sexuality, and wonders whether it's because he's struggling with his own sexual identity. Wyatt accuses Jeffery of trying to seduce him, but Jeffery points out that Wyatt is the one who keeps reaching out to him. Jeffery asks why Wyatt leans on him if he thinks so little of him.

Wyatt says Jeffery is his friend, and he opens up to him about the sexual assault he endured in prison. Jeffery can't believe that Wyatt's father, Jim, would allow this to happen—but Wyatt can.

"He never cared about me," Wyatt says. "Jeffery, it was at that moment that I realized I have to care for myself."

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Benny calls Hanna at the hospital wondering why she took the bus instead of taking the car he bought for her. She still doesn't trust where his newfound wealth is coming from, and tells him she won't be staying at his house anymore. Worried for her safety, Benny warns Hanna that Quincy will be looking for him, and he resolves to stay at his mother's house until the threat has passed.

Meanwhile, Quincy is driving his car with a look of cold determination on his face. Suddenly, he floors it and, with a prolonged scream, crashes into Hanna's house at full speed.

"I got you, Benny!" he shouts triumphantly as he crawls out of the wreckage. Moments later, the house explodes into flames.

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Jim turns up unannounced at Celine's home to confront her about publicly revealing their affair. Jim asks her why she thought he had been paying her $270,000 as a housekeeper if not to keep their affair secret.

An emotionally distraught Celine tells Jim she never wanted to out him on live television the way she did, but after he lost interest in her romantically and then subsequently fired her, Celine had to show her sons she wasn't just a doormat. After Jim berates her for being weak, Celine begs him to stay and make love to her, admitting that she still has strong feelings for him.

"It's not going to happen," Jim says, blaming Celine for everything that went wrong between the former lovers. "You did this, and you're trying to drag me into your mess," he tells her. And with that, he once again leaves her heartbroken and alone.

Later, in Jim's office, Maggie enters to go over the details of his campaign exit speech—but she never could have foreseen where this meeting would go. Jim launches a barrage of sexually explicit requests at her that cause Maggie to storm out of the room.

"I'm glad that you're not running so I can get the hell away from you," she says.

Still incensed by Jim's lewd sexual harassment, Maggie retreats to David's office, where she wonders why Jim can't be nobler like him. Then it dawns on her: David has all the makings of a governor, and she gets to work on his bid for office, even if it means betraying Jim's trust.

"This is your time. I can take you there," she tells David.

At the Cryer mansion, Veronica arrives at the behest of Katheryn, who wants to know what's really going on between her and Jim. While Katheryn gets ready, Hanna uses the opportunity to ask Veronica a few questions of her own. She wants to know whether Veronica bought the house and tow yard for her son, but Veronica only admits to sleeping with Benny.

"I'm going to tell you one more time. Stay away from my son," Hanna says, barely managing to keep her rage in check.

However, Veronica only antagonizes her further. She calls Hanna out to see whether she'll make good on her threats. Hanna fixes her with a steely stare before walking away.

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Back at the hospital, Quincy enters Quincy Jr.'s room and tells the social worker, Allyah, that he's Quincy's father and that he's come to pick him up. Allyah tells him he can't do that; Candace and Hanna are both seeking custody after Quincy Jr. was abused under his custody. When she tries to leave the room to get help, he grabs her by the throat and shoves her into a chair. Allyah finally manages to get around him and runs out to find hospital security.

"I'll be back for you, little man, all right?" he tells Quincy Jr. before slipping out.

Meanwhile, at the Cryer mansion, Hanna learns that her house is on fire after someone drove a car into it. She and Katheryn race to the scene, but the damage has already been done. Hanna's house is in ruins.