Diksha Sundriyal
The second season of Fox’s ‘Accused’ brings a myriad of tales where people are held accountable in the eyes of the law for things that are not as straightforward as they seem. The fifth episode of the season gives us the story of Margot Holloway, an elderly woman whose life changes after she meets a dance instructor named Alexei. The episode opens with Margot’s daughter and her lawyer discussing the best way to defend her in court, but Margot already seems to have given up and is ready to confess her crimes. As the story unfolds in the past, we discover exactly what Margot did to land herself in this trouble and whether or not she can get out of it without a prison sentence. SPOILERS AHEAD
Why Did Margot Help Alexei, aka Victor?
Margot Holloway likes to keep busy, especially since her husband passed away a few years back. She works at a dental clinic but is too stern about the rules, which makes her unlikable. When she overhears her boss and her co-worker talking behind her back, she decides to resign from her job and focus on other things. Around the same time, her best friend, Connie, brings her to a dance class, which is taught by a young and charismatic teacher named Alexei. Connie reveals that Alexei is planning to open his own studio, but he is short of money. So, Connie has decided to invest in his business, which she believes will be a great success.
At first, Margot is skeptical about the class, but leaving her job and Alexei’s friendly demeanor wins her over. Moreover, she is good at dancing, which allows her to enjoy the class even more. This also brings her closer to Alexei, which irks Connie, who believes that Margot is stealing her dance instructor from her. Over time, Margot and Alexei befriend each other pretty well, and they start spending more time together. They even go out in the evenings to bars and enjoy dancing together. Bonding with Alexei makes Margot feel lively again, something she hadn’t felt in a very long time. While people like Connie think that there is something romantic going on between them, Margot just sees Alexei’s friendship as a breath of fresh air.
Moreover, she also starts to see what Connie has seen in him and his business. She wishes to support Alexei in his endeavor, but due to her own difficult financial circumstances, she cannot give him her own money. However, she lobbies for him with her friends and acquaintances and convinces them to invest their money in his business. All this while, Margot has no idea that Alexei is a conman who is planning to run away with all the money that he has received from Connie and Margot’s friends. She helps him get the money without ever intending to cheat anyone because she truly believes in the potential of his business. Sometime later, she even gives her own money, whatever she has left, to him, showing just how supportive she is of his endeavor. This is why when she discovers that he is a cheat, she is not just broken-hearted but extremely angry.
What Happens to Alexei and the Money? Does Margot Go to Prison?
Alexei had told Connie and Margot that he had already found the place to open his studio and that he had put some downpayment on it. It was to buy the place that he was getting all the money from them. One day, Connie meets a friend who works in real estate in the same area where Alexei claims to have bought the space for his studio. This is when Connie discovers that no one with that name has registered or paid, or even asked around about that space. More digging into Alexei reveals that he is a professional con man named Victor, and the federal authorities have been after him for a while. When Margot discovers this, she isn’t just angry about giving her money and compelling her friends to give their money to Alexei. She also feels duped by the fake nature of his friendship, which is the most hurtful part of the con for her.
Margot borrows her friend’s gun and confronts Alexei in the studio, where he confesses that he is a conman, but he also reveals that he never cashed the cheque Margot gave him. Yes, he had been conning women into giving him their money, but he had no such intention with Margot, whom he saw as a real friend. His words make Margot rethink her actions. When she sees the cops approaching the building, she does something very unexpected. Due to their friendship, Margot didn’t want to see Alexei go to prison, but she couldn’t let him run away with her friends’ money either. So, she makes him transfer all of their money into an account that she would have access to. Once that is done, she distracts the cops by creating a scene using her gun, which allows Alexei ample time to escape the law.
It is for this act that Margot is arrested. Because she helped Alexei escape, Connie and others start to wonder if she had been in on Alexei’s plan from the beginning, which leads her to be accused of fraud. However, when the whole story comes out, she is found not guilty of those charges. Moreover, she also reveals that she had intended to give back all the money that Alexei had stolen, so the jury doesn’t see any harm done. Still, there is the charge of attacking the officers who showed up in the studio to arrest Alexei. This is something that cannot be ignored because, at the end of the day, Margot did obstruct the course of justice. For this third charge, she is found guilty. However, considering everything and the fact that she is not exactly a danger to society, she might get away with a lenient punishment. Whatever her sentencing might be, she is ready to face it because she knows she is guilty and must face the consequences of her actions.
Read More: Fox’s Accused Season 2 Episode 4 Recap: Justin’s Story
