CTRL: A

CTRL: A is the 20th episode in the Season 2 of Pretty Little Liars.

Synopsis


At Rosewood High, everyone is celebrating the swim team's victory, including Maya, who made a poster for Emily. Caleb is still hacking into "A's" files, and Hanna asks how he can get online in the school. Caleb explains he has his own wi-fi.



Aria and Spencer wait for Emily to arrive, and Aria asks a visibly tense Spencer if she's sure she wants to meet with the man they spoke to on the phone last week. Spencer says they have to go and find out what he knows about Alison, and insists she is fine. Aria notes how Spencer has been staying at her house for a week and asks what's wrong, but Spencer says she just can't deal with her family right now. Aria offers to help, but before Spencer can explain, Emily and the rest of the Sharks enter with a trophy, and everyone cheers for them.



Maya congratulates Emily, along with Spencer, Aria and Hanna, who says that her mom is letting them throw the victory party at their house. However, the cheery mood between the group quickly vanishes as they notice Garrett, along with another police officer, enter the school, looking around for someone. They walk past the girls and are quickly followed by Hanna as they head towards Caleb, who immediately locks his computer. Garrett shows Caleb a court order, which allows them to confiscate his laptop. When Caleb asks why, Garret explains that someone is hacking into the school files, and he traced it back to his IP address. Caleb almost finds it humorous that they think he would be stupid enough to leave a trail, but Garrett says that they will find out, and a reluctant Caleb hands over his laptop. Garrett asks if there are any passwords they will need, but Caleb notes that the court order is allowing them to take his laptop, and doesn't say anything about what information is in his head.



When Garrett leaves, Hanna asks Caleb what that was about. Caleb tells her not to worry, as there is no way they will be able to get into his computer. Hanna returns to the girls, and tells them what happened, when they all receive a text. They nervously read it, and of course, it's from the ever so mysterious "A" (Now it's Caleb's turn. - A).



Caleb and Hanna talk in the empty computer room, where Hanna is freaking out, but Caleb is calm. He assures Hanna that he didn't do what they think he did, and there is no way they will be able to get past his firewall without his help. Plus the files from A's phone are all on flashdrives, backed up online. Hanna says that someone did get into his laptop, and they put the evidence in there somewhere he wouldn't find it, and she thinks the person who did that might be Garrett. Caleb asks how she knows that, and Hanna says she just does and asks Caleb if he can go online, log into his computer remotely and delete the files. Caleb says he can do that, and logs on to a computer.



At Aria's locker, Aria tells Holden she can't cover for him unless she knows what he is doing on their 'dates'. Holden confesses he is doing martial arts. His parents don't like it and forbid him from competing, and the pills she saw are pain pills which he doesn't even use. Holden assures Aria that it's not as sketchy as she imagines, and shows her that his bruise has completely healed. Aria is still reluctant, but Holden says there is a big tournament coming up and tomorrow night is the qualifying match which he can't miss. He begs her as it is really important to him, and after thinking about it, Aria agrees.



Back in the computer lab, Caleb is typing in his password, noting that the initials are the cities he grew up in, in the order that he lived there, with alternating capital letters. He ends it with 1105!, which confuses Hanna, but Caleb says it's just a good idea to add numbers and punctuation marks. However, Caleb can't connect to his laptop, which he says means one of two things: either the police haven't tried messing with it yet, or they're smart enough to keep it offline.



In Ella's classroom, she and Byron pack up some books for the book drive. Ella says she is taking Aria and Holden to the city on their date, which they arranged about fifteen minutes ago. Byron is obviously skeptical, and Ella says that Aria and Holden could take the train if Byron agrees. Ella asks Byron when they're planning on loosening the leash on Aria, as she has stopped seeing Ezra and is seeing Holden, whom they've known since he was in preschool, and second guessing her every move seems pretty extreme. Byron says that dating her English teacher is extreme, and he's just not ready to trust her yet.



Meanwhile, Spencer goes to see Jason at his office, but finds it closed. However, Spencer spots him across the street, talking to Maya. When Maya leaves, Spencer goes up to Jason and says she has been looking for him. Jason asks if Spencer's dad has said anything, but Spencer hasn't spoken to him or anyone about the situation. Jason says she should talk to her dad, but Spencer wants to talk to him. Jason apologises as he never wanted to get between her and her dad, but Spencer notes that it's a bit late for that. He says it was never about hurting her, either, and Spencer begs Jason to tell her what it's about. He left town the night she was arrested, so what brings him back now?



Jason admits he found another one of Alison's boxes under the floorboards in her room at their grandmother's. Spencer recites what Alison used to tell them ("When I hide things, they stay hid."), and Jason says there were letters in the box, which were from their dad to Jason's mom, a few of which were love letters. Along with the letters, there was $15,000 in cash in envelopes, $5000 in each one. Spencer asks where Alison could have gotten that money, but Jason tells her to think about it. A shocked Spencer realizes that Ali must have found the letters, figured out what they meant, and blackmailed Spencer's dad under the threat that she would ruin both families. Jason notes how hard it is to believe when someone says it out loud, and Spencer says that if anyone had the nerve to do something like that, it was Ali.



Later on, Aria sits in a booth at a diner with Ali's copy of Lolita! on the table in front of her, and Hanna, Emily and Spencer in the booth behind her. A man comes over and taps the book, noting that Aria is a friend of Vivian's. He sits down and asks Aria how much Vivian owed her, to which Aria is shocked to hear. The man says that Vivian cost him his job. Aria asks what Vivian did, and he explains that he worked at Allegheny Cellular in human resources, and Vivian wanted information. Aria asks what information Vivian wanted, and the man smiles and says that she must be Alison. Surprised, Aria asks if Vivian told him about Alison, and he says that Vivian told him about a friend called Alison who was getting texts from somebody, but the number was blocked and she wanted to know where they were coming from, and would pay to find out. Aria asks if he found out, and he says he did, but made the mistake of telling Vivian before he had the money in his hand, and then he got fired for accessing restricted information. Aria asks what he knows about the person sending the texts, but the man says he's not talking without the money Vivian owes him. Aria reaches for her purse and asks how much, to which he says $2000 and the price could go up. He writes down his number and as he gets up to leave, Aria asks who she should ask for when she calls, and he tells her to ask for Jonah.



After he leaves, the four discuss this new information, and how if he finds out Ali is dead, there won't be enough money in the world to make him talk. Emily says if Jonah found out who "A" was and told Ali, it must be why she was killed. They need to find out what Jonah knows, but they don't have the money. Aria asks Spencer, but her bank account has been on lockdown since she was arrested.



The following day at school, Caleb argues with someone on the phone. When he hangs up, Caleb tells Hanna that the police will let him have his laptop back if he cooperates. Hanna asks what he is going to do, but Caleb shakes his head and leaves.



Outside, Aria is on the phone with Ezra, discussing Ezra's interview for the job in New Orleans tomorrow. Aria says it's a huge opportunity for him, but Ezra says that isn't the problem, it's what Byron will think if he doesn't take it. Aria says they need to discuss it in person, and Ezra suggests a French Vegan (Chez Miralle Vegan Bistro) restaurant which just opened up. Aria jokes that Ezra must really like her if he's taking her to a French restaurant. Ezra corrects her, saying he must really love her.



At the police station, Garrett is eyeing Caleb's laptop. He looks around before opening it and seeing the password prompt. Detective Wilden walks in and notes how tempting it is, but the IT guys said not to open it, as it could connect to a wireless. Garrett asks if they're at any luck getting in, to which Darren says not yet. Garrett thinks he could get Caleb to talk. Darren changes the subject, saying that there is a new piece of evidence in Alison DiLaurentis' murder investigation, which has something to do with the missing page of her autopsy report. Garrett looks nervous when Darren hands him a photo, asking him what he thinks is going on in it.



Meanwhile, Byron unlocks his car and finds a note on the window, from A! It states where Aria will be tonight at 8:30pm and asks if he knows his daughter as well as he thinks he does.



At the Marin house, Hanna and Ashley are icing cookies for the victory party. Hanna asks if they could get Caleb a lawyer, but Ashley says they can't help; he has his own family. Hanna says he won't ask them for help, and barely even talks to her about it. Ashley leaves to answer the phone, and Maya arrives, asking Emily if they can talk. Ashley returns to the kitchen and tells Hanna they've been invited to the police station.



Upstairs in Hanna's room, Maya breaks the news to Emily that her parents found an old joint in her room from before she got busted and sent to rehab. Emily asks how her parents found it, and Maya says they got boxes from storage from when they lived in the DiLaurentis' house, (she even found a box of Ali's old stuff) and it was with junk in her dresser. She tried to explain it was from ages ago, but they don't believe her and are sending her back to rehab. Shocked, Emily says she will help explain the situation to her parents because she is not going to say goodbye to her again.



At the police station, Ashley and Hanna meet with Wilden, who takes the time to mention to Ashley that it's been a while. He explains that he called them in to discuss Alison's murder investigation; pages of her autopsy have been stolen. The police have been looking into it, and they found a photo, which he hands to Ashley, who looks at it for a moment and gives it to Hanna. It shows Hanna, Spencer and Emily in the hospital, outside the morgue, dressed as candy-stripers.

Sometime later, Hanna and Ashley are allowed to leave. Ashley wonders why Spencer and Emily's parents weren't called in as well. She pulls Hanna aside and says although Hanna didn't answer Darren's questions, she has to answer her's, and asks why they were dressed in those outfits. Hanna quickly lies that she and Emily dared Spencer to go in the morgue as a joke, and insists they had no idea there were files in there. Ashley says she already told Hanna that she knows when she is lying, and Hanna swears that they didn't take the page from the autopsy. Ashley stares at her daughter in silence for a moment, before leading her out of the building.



In Aria's room, Aria is getting dressed for her date with Ezra when Byron comes in and says that he was told Spencer just left. Aria says that she went to Emily's victory party. He asks where Aria and Holden are going tonight, and Aria says they're going to an arcade which has vintage games. He asks when Aria is leaving, to which Aria says "now-ish", and she will be home at eleven. A still skeptical Byron asks if they are meeting anyone else, but Aria says no. Before Byron can press the issue further, Ella appears in the doorway and asks if Byron is holding Aria up. Byron smiles and says no.



When he leaves, Ella tells Aria that she thinks she and Holden should hang out closer to home, but Aria says there is more to do in the city. Ella says that from the way Holden's mom talks, she's surprised that she's even okay with it. Aria says the city is only an hour away, but Ella says his parents are worried something will happen to him. Confused, Aria asks what could happen, and Ella says that Holden has a heart condition. Aria pretends she already knew.



At Emily's victory party, Spencer is shocked about what happened at the police station, when Hanna and Ashley return. Ashley goes upstairs, and Hanna fills Spencer and Emily in on what happened, that Darren is back and he has a photo of the three of them looking for page five taken from a security camera. Copies of the autopsy from the police station are also missing, which must have been stolen as an inside job - Garrett. Hanna worries that Caleb will be sent to jail because of her, and Spencer goes to the closet and grabs her jacket. When asked where she is going, she says that they need to find out what Jonah knows, and she is going home.

Meanwhile, Holden and Aria have just been dropped off by Ella, and once in private, Holden tells Aria that there was some weird energy in the car, and asks if Ella is starting to wonder. Aria tells him she is still clueless. As they part ways, Aria asks if the tournament is dangerous, and Holden says that he has a rematch against the guy who have him the bruise, and it's gonna be epic. As he heads off, Aria gazes after him.



Spencer quietly returns home and is about to head upstairs, when she notices her dad's briefcase. She opens it and finds his chequebook, but before she can do anything else, she hears the front door. She quickly returns the chequebook and closes the briefcase, but before she can get upstairs, she is spotted by Peter, who says he is glad she came home.



Spencer and her dad stand a distance away, while Peter explains what happened between him and Jessica DiLaurentis. He and Veronica were getting their degrees, and he made a series of very poor decisions. Spencer is angry Peter is talking like it was a business deal, and plainly says he cheated and got someone else's wife pregnant. Peter simply says yes. Peter says that Jessica lied to her husband and they moved to Atlanta, but several years later, when Spencer was five, they moved back. Peter sadly tells Spencer that the first time he saw Jason, he was outside riding his bike. Spencer asks how it made Peter feel, but he is unable to give answer. She asks why they came back, but Peter says he never asked, as he was afraid she might tell him.

Spencer asks if Ali could have known about it before he did, and Peter says that it's possible. Spencer accusingly asks Peter if he's sure about that, and says that Jason found money along with letters from him. She asks if Peter gave Ali money to keep her quiet, and Peter says that although he doesn't have a lot of credibility with Spencer at the moment, he never gave money to anyone in the DiLaurentis family for any reason.

Byron arrives at the vegan bistro, and asks to be seated, at a table where he can conveniently watch the door.



Hanna and Emily, along with everyone at the party, are watching footage of the swim team's victory, when Hanna points Emily out to the fact that Maya is sat on the stairs, looking very depressed.Emily goes over to talk to her, and Maya says she just isn't in a party mood. She asks if she and Emily can go somewhere, and Emily says they can after the party. Emily is called away by a fellow Shark, and Maya encourages her to go.



Jason and Spencer meet up at the Grille, and Spencer tells him what Peter told her. Jason asks if she believes him, and Spencer says she does. Jason isn't sure and says Peter must have been very convincing. Spencer is sure he is telling the truth, and Jason asks who else could have given Ali the money. They argue about it, until Spencer points out that Jason wants it to be Peter so he can keep on being angry. Jason walks out.

Back at the party, Emily looks for Maya, and finds her, out on the patio, lighting a joint.



Upstairs, Hanna talks to Caleb on the phone. He is at the police station ad plans to cooperate, as he doesn't seem to have a choice. As Caleb notices Darren and Garrett arriving, he quickly tells Hanna that he is in a very hot spot and that he needs her help, hanging up before he can elaborate, and is lead out of the room by the two cops.



Meanwhile, Aria, having followed Holden, arrives at his martial arts tournament. It is professional, like he promised, but Aria is still unsure. She finds Holden, who is surprised to see Aria there. Aria asks what is wrong with his heart, and demands to know if he has a death wish. Holden asks her to keep her voice down and tells her that it doesn't matter if he is at home watching TV or practicing martial arts, his aneurysm could burst at any moment, and he has to live with that possibility. Aria urges him to stop, worried about what will happen, but Holden says that just because someone says something is best for you, it doesn't mean it's true, and he doesn't want to spend his life sitting on front of a TV when he could be doing what he loves.

As Holden gets ready to fight his opponent, Aria's curiosity gets the better of her and she stays to watch.



At the police station, Darren subtly threatens to call Caleb's family in California, but Caleb says it's not necessary; they asked him to come in and here he is. Darren hands Caleb his laptop and says he is going to watch him log in, telling him there'd better not be any funny business. Caleb looks at Garrett and asks if he's sure he wants to see what's on there, and Garrett smiles and tells him to start typing.



Hanna is in her bedroom with her laptop open, trying to hack into Caleb's computer to delete the files, but she can't remember his password. Spencer arrives, having gotten Hanna's S.O.S., and Hanna asks if she knows how to hack into computers, which Spencer doesn't, reminding her that is what Caleb is for. Hanna explains that she needs to get into his computer and delete the incriminating files, or he will be arrested. Spencer tries to help.



On the patio, Emily is angry to learn that Maya lied to her, and asks why. Maya is equally angry and goes to leave, but not before saying that Emily is much better at fitting in than she is. Emily says that she thought Maya didn't care, and Maya says she is very convincing. Emily says they can still talk to Maya's parents, but Maya says there is no way she is going back to rehab, and she has friends in San Fransisco. Maya asks Emily to come with her, but Emily can't, not even for Maya.



Ezra arrives outside the bistro, when he receives a text from Aria, saying they have to reschedule and promising to explain later. A disappointed Ezra turns to leave, when he notices Byron inside. Shocked at the close call, Ezra quickly leaves.

Back in Hanna's room, she remembers what Caleb told her about his password, and manages to remember all the cities he's lived in, in their precise order, as well as alternating caps. She remembers the exclamation point at the end, but can't remember the last four numbers.



At Holden's tournament, Aria is impressed, while at the police station, Caleb types in his password, switching his laptop online. Caleb is told to stand at the other end of the room, while Darren and Garrett go through his files.



Hanna and Spencer are having little luck with the password, having only one more try before the system locks. Hanna remembers 1-1-something-5, but is stumped with the last number. Spencer asks if it could be a code, a date, part of a phone number, a birthday or a anniversary, when something clicks in Hanna's mind. Without elaborating, Hanna types in the last number, which turns out to be correct. The girls are ecstatic they got in, until they realise they don't know what to do next.

Aria watches as Holden's opponent gets increasingly violent, while Darren and Garrett search Caleb's files one by one, and Hanna and Spencer find the school files in a folder named 'Hefty'. Hanna asks how much is on there, and Spencer says that someone really wants Caleb out of their way.

The three scenes continuously switch, as Holden begins to struggle, Darren and Garrett get closer to the 'Hefty' folder, and Hanna and Spencer struggle to work out how to completely erase the files from the hard drive. Caleb tells the cops not to forget his video selection, earning him a glare from Garrett.



With the cops a few clicks away from the incriminating folder, Spencer yells at Hanna to highlight all the files and press CTRL: A on the keyboard, which she does, and the files are deleted one by one.

Garrett and Darren open the folder in question, just as the final files are erased. Shocked, they try to get them back and accuse Caleb of doing something, but Caleb simply says he was hacked and probably has a virus or something, silently knowing his girlfriend came through.

Back at the tournament, Holden manages to dodge his opponent and ultimately wins, much to Aria's relief.



Later, Holden approaches Aria, happy she stayed and says it was nice to have an audience. She quickly says she won't be coming to the next one. She congratulates him, and says that although he was great, she's pretty sure isn't what the doctor ordered. Holden says he recommended gardening, but martial arts is way better. Aria's phone rings, and Aria answers to find that it's Byron, who wants to talk to Holden. Aria passes him the phone, and Byron says he's sorry to bother him, and lies, covering up for the fact he is checking up on them.



Caleb leaves the station, and is greeted by a thrilled Hanna. They hug, and Hanna says he could have told him the meaning of 1105 - November 5th, the night they had sex for the first time. Caleb notes that there was an exclamation mark next to it, and they embrace. Behind them, a frustrated Garrett leaves. Caleb says they should go, but Hanna says they should throw it in his face a little while longer, and begins making out with Caleb.



Jason knocks on Spencer's back door. She tells him that Peter isn't there, but he already knows; he wants to talk to Spencer. Spencer apologises for earlier, but Jason says he is the one who wants to apologise, because Spencer was right - he doesn't want to believe Ali was blackmailing anyone else but Peter, because it would make things so much easier, but there really isn't anything easy about it. They agree they are always at odds with each other because they are wired the same way. Spencer tells she thinks she knows why Ali needed the money, or at least a part of it, because she was looking for someone she was afraid of. Jason asks who, and Spencer says she can find out, but she needs Jason to trust her, a lot, two thousand dollars worth.



In the Marin's kitchen, Emily sits alone, trying to call Maya. She feels terrible about their fight, and begs Maya to call her and to not do anything before they can talk about it. Unbeknownst to Emily, "A" is outside, watching her through the windows.

Main Cast
Troian Bellisario as Spencer Hastings

Ashley Benson as Hanna Marin

Lucy Hale as Aria Montgomery

Shay Mitchell as Emily Fields

Sasha Pieterse as Alison DiLaurentis

Guest Stars
Natalie Hall as Kate Randall

Bianca Lawson as Maya St. Germain

Ian Harding as Ezra Fitz

Drew Van Acker as Jason DiLaurentis

Featured Music

 * "Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People (during the party at Hanna's house)


 * "I'll Wait for You" by Fior (Emily sees Maya lighting up a joint outside the party)


 * "Parachute" by Ingrid Michaelson (Maya asks Emily to run away with her)


 * "For You" by Angus and Julia Stone (Hanna meets Caleb outside the police station and Spencer talks to Jason)