Cardinal 402 – Adele
Cardinal: Until the Night returns with its second episode, Adele peeling back some of the mystery surrounding Robert Quillen’s death and the killer’s modus operandi. What remains somewhat cloudy is the killer’s motive, his connection to the victims and what is going on between Cardinal and Delorme. The episode starts off in Toronto before heading back to Algonquin Bay for more intrigue and murder.
The details of Robert Quillen’s gruesome murder are highlighted during an autopsy in Toronto. The severity of Robert’s injuries confirm Cardinal’s suspicion that the killer wanted him to suffer and a taser burn around his neck connects his death to Wade Kleiss’ murder. After the autopsy, Cardinal and Delorme meet Kelly, Cardinal’s daughter and they spend a little bit of time catching up. Delorme has to connect with her old colleague about the job offer and leaves Cardinal and Kelly to continue their visit. Later on Delorme informs Cardinal that she’s going to take the job and subtly hints that he could start a new chapter of his life in the city he once called home.
Meanwhile in Algonquin Bay, the killer has his eyes set on another victim – the individual he was watching shovel snow at the conclusion of last week’s episode. Barry LeBlanc is the man in the bullseye and the killer introduces himself at Barry’s greenhouse. After the awkward encounter, he then lets himself into Barry’s home, displaying some obsessive compulsive tendencies like rearranging family photos, before exiting the house. The killer’s interest in Barry would appear to be random until a news report flashes across the television featuring Robert Quinlan’s death and Barry’s mother, Adele reveals that her son and Sheila Gagner share a past.
Gagner has some skeletons in her closet and a strange individual at Robert’s funeral arouses suspicion. It doesn’t take long before Cardinal and Delorme close in on him to find out more. Leads turn into dead ends until Barry’s mother disappears and the killer leaves his calling card, a feather on her abandoned scooter.
Adele delves deeper into the twisted psyche and motives behind the killer’s murder spree. The threads connecting his victims are tied to a shared past involving Gagner and LeBlanc. Cardinal, realizing he’s helpless to save Adele LeBlanc becomes increasingly agitated, something that doesn’t go unnoticed by Delorme. Cardinal’s feelings of dread hit home, particularly in the final moments as Adele’s screams go unanswered in the frigid air. Full of character development and answers that lead to more questions the slow boil that has characterized the first two episodes promises to heat up as the body count increases.
