Rohan Jain
Created by David E. Kelley, Peacock’s ‘The Calling‘ is a crime drama TV series that follows Detective Avraham Avraham (Jeff Wilbusch) as he and his team solve cases in New York York City. The NYPD officer is also a man of faith and spirituality who believes in humanity and its innate goodness. However, things take a dark turn, and his belief is tested when he encounters horrific cases.
One such case is a missing wife and mother of two children, Elisabeth Serra. Before it is confirmed that Elisabeth is missing, Avraham and his partner Janine talk to her husband, Paul. Paul tells how the two had been fighting a lot, so she decided to go to her parents’ place. According to him, she did this quite often but always came back. However, when she doesn’t this time, the two detectives know something is off, leading them to conclude that Elisabeth Serra is dead. So, who killed Elisabeth Serra in ‘The Calling‘ and why? Let us find out. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Who Killed Elisabeth Serra and Why?
Paul Serra, Elisabeth’s husband, killed her after she fell in love with Peter Hanney and decided to leave him. The way it all transpired is pretty convoluted, and in the end, it just came down to Paul’s inferiority complex and rage that made him kill his wife. Paul and Elisabeth come from meager financial backgrounds. While Paul makes a living by installing underfloor heat systems, Elisabeth works at an elite Manhattan club called Valley Forge Club. Peter Hanney is a club member who runs his under-the-table crypto trading company, Alexandria Profits. While working at the club, Elisabeth and Peter interacted and fell in love.
Meanwhile, Paul gets an installation gig for one of the club members and receives a tip for buying crypto. So, he uses all his family wealth to invest in cryptocurrency and makes about $750,000. However, later on, he somehow loses all the money, including the wealth he put in. When the police try to connect all these dots, they realize that Peter Hanney wanted to spend the rest of his life with Elisabeth and was also ready to take the boys with him. However, Elisabeth was a woman of values who wanted to keep her family together, despite falling in love with Peter. This conflict and Paul’s increasingly resentful behavior caused a lot of fights between Paul and Elisabeth.
When Paul made a lot of money through crypto, Peter couldn’t stand it because, according to him, money was everything. Since he owns Alexandria Profits, he directly or indirectly made Paul lose all his family wealth. When Paul confessed his mistake to Elisabeth, it was the last straw for her. She revealed that she was in love with Peter Hanney and was going to leave Paul. While Paul thought it was because of the financial loss, Elisabeth said it wasn’t just the money. Paul had turned into someone she didn’t recognize, and she didn’t like how he was with her or her kids. During this argument, her words triggered Paul’s insecurities about himself and his financial status, and something ticked.
He flew into a rage and nearly flung Elisabeth across the room. The latter bumped into the coffee table in the living room and landed on the couch. In an uncontrollable state, Paul strangulated her with his hands, and thus Elisabeth met her tragic end. However, what’s truly interesting is how he disposed of her body and tried to cover up the crime. Paul created a hidden room inside the apartment and dragged Elisabeth’s body into that room. Later, when he gets another gig for designing and installing an underfloor heating system, he buries his wife under the tiled flooring.
However, Detective Avraham knows something is wrong when Paul mentions that Elisabeth called him and said she was staying at a hotel. One of the reasons for the doubt is that the hotel number he gives is unreachable. Another problem with this development is that nobody simply turns up after missing a long time. So Avraham and a task force storm into Paul’s apartment and find the kids drugged. However, Paul isn’t present in the apartment. The detective looks around and finds the secret room, and sees the marks that indicate Paul dragged in Elisabeth’s body.
Almost intuitively, he knows where the body is. So, Avraham and his partner Janine go to the apartment where Paul is working on his installation gig and conclude that the body is underneath the floor. At the police precinct, Paul confesses to his crimes but tries to run away. He knocks out two officers and gets his hands on one of their pistols. Just as he is about to raise his gun Captain Kathleen Davies shoots him, thus bringing an end to the case.
Read More: Is The Calling Based on a True Story?
