Don't you have anything to say?
I just told you
I have a grown son.
Do you have a picture?
Let me see.
Yeah.
[SNIFFLES]
Here. Oh.
Here's one. Aw.
[SIGHS]
What a sad, difficult story
for you, for him, for Noah.
I can't even imagine.
It hasn't been simple,
that's for sure.
Especially for Noah.
And as for you
keeping this from me,
this most recent chapter
specifically,
I have to ask you this,
have you prayed about it?
Of course
I prayed about it, Mama.
Where's A.J. now?
At the moment, I'm not sure.
He hasn't returned my calls
since we had the argument
about the money.
And did you tell Sophia
that you were gonna
speak to me about this?
Not yet. I will. Hopefully,
that will satisfy her conditions
for returning home.
[SIGHS]
At least, even only for a visit.
[BABY CRYING]
CHARITY: It's okay. Maricel.
MARICEL: Yes, ma'am?
CHARITY:
Can you help me, please?
So may I meet my new grandson?
If I can get a hold
of him, yeah.
[♪♪♪]
What are we gonna tell
the church?
Excuse me?
The only reason
that I am in the position
that I am in right now
is because I'm supposed to be
the Greenleaf
with all the morals.
In this day and age,
there's no real shame
in giving up a child.
And the way you handled it
when he reached out to you
when he came of age,
well, that was slightly
less adorable.
But his prison record
is a thing of the past.
[FOOTSTEPS APPROACHING]
What happened now?
[SIGHS]
This has to be kept
in the family.
Who else would I tell?
♪ Amen ♪
♪ All right ♪
♪ Amen ♪
♪ Oh ♪
♪ Ooh ♪
♪ Well ♪
♪ Oh ♪
♪ Ooh ♪
♪ Amen, amen ♪
[WOMAN VOCALIZING]
♪ Yeah ♪
♪ Ooh ♪
A.J., hey, it's me again.
Look, I know you're upset
with me about the money, okay?
And I'm sorry.
Just please call me back.
I told the family about you,
and they wanna meet you.
Tonight, if possible.
[SIGHS]
Okay. Bye.
[PHONE BEEPS]
I feel like
a squirrel on a branch.
On the farthest, dry end
of a thin bare branch.
James, are you listening to me?
No. Not really, dear. No.
Well, what has you
so transfixed?
I'm thinking about a night,
years ago,
about a week
after Gigi left home.
She called, needing money.
[♪♪♪]
And I said
I'd come up to Chicago,
and I'd bring her back.
She said no.
I'd always pictured her
on the other end of that line,
obstinate, righteous, proud.
Now I know she was pregnant,
scared, and lonely.
If only I had gone up there
and brought her home...
maybe none of this
would have happened.
Our job now is to graft him
into the family
and put him where the sun
can do him some good.
Oh. Um, morning, Pastor.
I was just, um...
I was watching a sermon.
Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
And by sermon you mean
the fight between me
and half the Red Devils?
I was just reading the comments.
Yeah.
What's the internet saying?
It's calling you
Pastor Holyfield.
[SCOFFS] Nice.
Phil in his office? Yeah.
I'll let him know you're here.
All right.
Just have him call me.
Okay. Thanks.
[FIST IMPACTS FLESH OVER PHONE]
[♪♪♪]
Stand up. Why?
Just do it. Please.
[SIGHS]
What?
You're gonna need to sit down.
Charity, come on.
I just stood up.
I know, but I've always
wanted to say that,
and now is the perfect time.
What's going on?
Sit down, and I'll tell you.
[SIGHS]
Well?
Grace has a secret son.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
Your family... Careful.
Go on.
She had a baby
right after she left home
she never told anybody about,
and she just gave him up
for adoption.
Who's the father? Noah.
So that's why he came to visit.
And why he and Isabel broke up.
Isn't this, like,
the silver b*llet?
Well, it's something.
I'm not sure if it's a b*llet,
a blank, or a trap.
She's supposed to be
the good one, Phil.
She turned her back
on that child
when he tried to connect.
Her son.
It's not like
she had an abortion.
[SIGHS]
Yeah. I thought about that too.
Did I tell you he's an ex-con?
Seriously?
He did five years for burglary.
Yeah, that's more
about him than her.
[SIGHS]
I can't believe this.
I'm just trying to see how we
can really use this against her.
Is there any chance
you can speak to him,
get a sense of his point of view
when it comes to his mother?
Maybe. He might be coming over
for dinner tonight.
If Gigi can find him.
What? He's lost?
[CHUCKLES]
No. He's mad at her.
Hmm. Well, that's promising.
And I didn't even have to snoop.
[CHUCKLES]
What?
Your hair, it looks nice today.
Does it?
Thanks.
Oh. Hey! Jacob, hi.
What happened? What do you mean?
Are you in trouble
with Phil too?
Why would I be in trouble?
You just came out of his office.
Oh, well...
I mean, according to Phil,
I'm always in trouble.
I'm the problem child.
[LAUGHS]
What did you do?
[CHUCKLES] What?
I called Judee Whitmore,
and I told her we are never
singing that welcome song again.
Ever. Okay. But, uh...
I could have sworn
I just heard Carlton
in the choir practicing it,
and it sounded like
a new arrangement.
Yeah. They're dumb.
But, Jacob, I got to go.
Phil is so mad at me.
Bye. Got to scoot.
[PEOPLE CHATTERING INDISTINCTLY]
CHOIR:
♪ Welcome to
The family of love ♪
LEAD:
♪ Welcome to
The family of love ♪
CHOIR:
♪ Where everyone is loved... ♪
[PHONE RINGING]
Hello.
This is Pastor Grace Greenleaf.
Hey, it's A.J.
I've been arrested.
[♪♪♪]
[SIREN WAILS]
[♪♪♪]
A.J. Delahaye.
Sign right here. Oh, thank you.
Okay. Thank you.
It's just inside.
[WHISPERS] What happened?
[WHISPERS]
You got to say
I was with you.
You want me to lie?
Last night, from, like, 10
to, like, midnight,
you got to say you were with me
at my place pastoring me.
Where exactly were you?
At my place,
but I can't prove it.
But you did come
to the church yesterday
asking for more money.
Yeah. Maybe forget that part.
Okay?
Your boy, Aaron, says you would
do anything for a stranger.
Just pretend I'm a stranger.
I can't go back to jail again.
Please.
Promise me you didn't do it.
I didn't.
They're just looking for
someone to pin this on,
and I fit the description.
You got to help me. Please.
[♪♪♪]
I was breaking up a fight.
Jacob, I've devoted
almost an hour
to this conversation. It's over.
You know this is
my family's church, right?
Your family is
this church's biggest problem.
It always has been.
Just admit you screwed up.
Just admit you take
a specific pleasure
in trying to remove me
from a place I belong.
I mean,
what's up with that, huh?
What's your deal with me?
I have no deal with you.
Bob saw the news.
Bob wants you out.
Bob said to make it happen.
Full stop.
Should we get him on the phone?
[SCOFFS]
I'm gonna say no,
but only because
I don't wanna
make trouble for Grace.
I think that's wise, considering
she stuck her neck out
to get you this job
you never found important enough
to make your first priority.
You know what?
You better leave before I do
something you'll regret.
Jacob.
Phil, careful.
Not every son
of a preacher's anointed.
Some are just children.
[♪♪♪]
I think this could be
a real turning point.
Same clothing, same build,
and his prints
were on the counter.
Are you sure about that?
DETECTIVE:
We're sure they're his prints.
That being said,
he's a regular customer,
and he might have
been there earlier.
He might have been
casing the place.
But at this point,
that's kind of up to you.
How is it up to me?
Well, Mr. Delahaye says that
he was with you when
the surveillance was taken.
Was he?
If you say yes, he's free to go.
Actually, hang on a second.
Okay if I record this, Pastor?
Of course.
You probably remember this
from when you were here
for that situation
with your uncle.
[DICTAPHONE BEEPS]
Interviewing
Pastor Grace Greenleaf
regarding A.J. Delahaye.
Now, the accused says
that he was with you
when this video was taken,
was he?
Yeah. I was with him last night
from about 9:30 to midnight.
Where? At his apartment.
You make a lot of late night
calls in your line of business?
No, but he was recently...
Released from prison. We know.
It's a challenging time.
We're also aware of the fact,
Pastor Greenleaf,
that you played a pivotal role
in the modification
of Mr. Delahaye's
parole agreement
which allowed him
to leave Arizona.
That's correct.
Did you know him from before
when you were in Phoenix?
Sort of.
I am...
I'm his mother.
Interesting.
His biological mother.
I'm sure there's
a real story there.
Mm-hmm.
Are you prepared
to sign a sworn statement
saying that you were
with Mr. Delahaye
at his apartment at the time
the crime was committed?
[♪♪♪]
I am.
You understand lying to a police
officer is a crime, right?
I do.
Great.
I'll be right back.
Here's your check,
Ms. Greenleaf.
Thank you, Mr. Amable.
And that concludes our business.
Unless there's something else?
I know you're Harmony and Hope.
We are an independent LLC.
That's completely
funded by H&H.
And this troubles you
for some reason?
No. Not at all. It interests me.
It interests me to wonder
what H&H is up to
by hiding its identity from us.
I see.
How much is it worth to you
that no one at Calvary
finds out about this?
Kerissa. May I call you Kerissa?
Just tell me
how much it's worth.
You don't look
very happy right now.
Well, I'll call my husband.
Well, if you haven't told him
that you know this already,
you must have your reasons.
[SIGHS]
But go ahead. Call him.
My mother-in-law
is driving me crazy,
and my husband just lost
both of his jobs.
I need to buy a house,
and the check you just gave me
isn't even half of the money
I need to buy it.
I'm sorry. That's okay.
Now, to be clear,
were Calvary to hear
that we bought your land,
it would make things harder...
but not much.
Shall I make it out to you
or your husband?
Either works.
[SIGHS]
You can make it out to me.
[SIGHS]
That being said...
to share this information now
would be bad form.
At least after receiving this.
[GASPS]
Understood.
[CHUCKLES]
Thank you. May I see you again?
[CHUCKLES] For what?
It seems I'm not the only one
giving you half
of what you need.
I'd like to see
what you look like
when someone gives you
all of it.
Now, if you were mine,
you'd never have to
do something like this.
I'd make sure
you are always taken care of.
[SIGHS]
Maybe. Hmm.
After the check clears.
[♪♪♪]
Thanks for doing that.
After this dinner
or whatever your grandmother's
got planned,
we're gonna sit down,
and we're gonna have
a long talk.
This is not working.
I didn't do it!
Yeah. I know.
But I just lied to the police.
That is not ideal.
Are you gonna tell them?
Your mom, your family?
What? That you just got arrested
for robbing a pharmacy
and I had to lie under oath
to get you released?
No. I'm not gonna
lead with that.
[CAR LOCK CHIRPS]
[♪♪♪]
[♪♪♪]
KERISSA: Hello, handsome. Hey.
[SIGHS]
I was just thinking about you.
Oh. Is that so? And here I am,
what a coincidence.
Why aren't you at work?
Well, I came
to take my hubby out.
Well, what's the occasion?
I'm sure it's not me
getting fired one more time
from Calvary.
Well...
we put an offer in on the house.
Which house?
The one we've been looking at.
The one I love.
Okay. Wait. Wait.
We put an offer in.
With what money?
The money from the land.
I thought we didn't have enough.
Well, I just scraped up
a couple of more dollars,
and I just went for it.
And they're gonna
either say yes or no.
But it's done.
Well, let's celebrate.
[LAUGHS] [PHONE RINGING]
Great. Yeah.
I'm gonna run
to the ladies' room.
Okay.
[LAUGHS]
[PHONE CONTINUES RINGING]
Hey, Ma, what's up?
I think you should come home.
Well, sorry. I can't.
Kerissa just
showed up unexpectedly,
and she's planning
to take me out.
There is someone coming home
that I think
you're gonna wanna meet.
JACOB: Who?
[SCOFFS]
Maricel, the egg. Yes. Please.
Anything that even seems
vaguely valuable. Hurry.
Yes, ma'am.
Ma, who's coming over?
Grace's son.
Son?
The whole family's
going to be here,
would you please just come home?
Thank you, son.
What?
Change of plan.
No. No. It's my plan.
I get to say when it changes.
And I haven't, so...
Mama wants us to come home.
Well, she is going to
be disappointed.
Grace has a son.
What does that even mean?
I don't know.
But I think we need
to get over there and find out.
Jacob, I'm your wife.
We're putting an offer
in on a house.
Can you just
put me first for once?
I don't even understand
how you made this offer.
Found the money...
Jacob, can you just man up
and be my husband for once?
You have gotten fired
from both of your jobs.
I'm not complaining.
I'm not leaving.
Where would you go?
Are you coming or not?
No. I'm going home,
so I can meet this nephew
or whoever this mystery man is
Mom was talking about.
I mean, are you coming with me?
Does it look like I'm coming?
[PHONE BEEPS]
[SUCKS TEETH]
[CHUCKLING]
Hi. The check cleared.
[CHUCKLES] Yes, it did. Mm-hmm.
Um, I was wondering...
[SIGHS] ...if you're free.
[♪♪♪]
[SIGHS]
[CLEARS THROAT]
Oh!
A.J...
Welcome to the family.
Thank you.
And, uh, this is my father,
the Bishop.
Now, I'm shaking
out of ceremony,
but at some point,
I'mma wanna take hold of you.
Come here.
[ALL LAUGH]
What a revelation. Yeah?
Boy, I think
he's got a lot of Noah in him.
Don't you think? Grace too.
He's a perfect mix.
[BOTH CHUCKLE]
Y'all have a lovely home.
Well, it's a work in progress.
Looks kind of finished to me.
MAE: Well, it can seem that way,
and then something new
comes along,
and you realize
the journey continues.
Mama's a preacher too.
I kind of caught that, yeah.
[CLEARS THROAT]
Oh, how would you like to meet
your cousin, Zora?
She's right down the hill
in her little hippie bungalow.
And I told her that
we were having you over.
Yeah. I guess I would
like that very much.
Good. Well, then,
I'm gonna walk you down there,
and that'll give us a chance
to get to know each other.
How are you faring in all this?
Daddy, it's... It's a lot.
You know, your mother and I
are there for you.
We could have helped with this.
I know.
[PHONE RINGING]
Excuse me.
Yeah?
Yes. All right. Thank you.
What's the matter?
That was Millard.
There's a Detective Ellis
here to see you
with some follow-up questions.
[♪♪♪]
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
Yes?
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
Yeah. Coming, coming, coming.
You good? Yeah.
Okay.
A.J., this is your cousin, Zora.
Hey. Hey.
Bring it in.
Is this why Sophia was so...?
I think so. Yes. Right.
[EXHALES]
You're about
to experience
one of the all-time freak-out
carnival side shows
life has to offer.
What are you talking about?
Greenleaf family dinner.
Oh. [CHUCKLES]
She might be right about that.
[ALL LAUGH]
Come on. I'll give you
all the background,
show you where
the life preservers are.
In case there is
a loss in cabin pressure,
a mask will fall from above.
All right.
So y'all come up in 10 minutes.
Okay. Yes, ma'am.
So A.J...
Wanna get high?
Just a little.
I thought you were Christian.
I'm Christian. I'm not crazy.
And you two talked about what?
God?
And employment.
He's looking for a job.
That's not an easy thing to do.
With his record, it wouldn't be.
Is there anything else, Officer?
Yeah. Just one last thing.
We have security footage of you
talking to your son
when you got to the station.
There's no audio,
but it's clear
he was asking for something.
My guess is it was an alibi,
or am I mistaken?
Look, if you had enough
evidence to convict my son,
I assume you'd have
charged him by now.
My guess is you don't.
My guess is
he's just a black kid
unlucky enough to be walking
the streets of Memphis
while you cops are
looking for someone
to blame it on. So if you have...
MAE:
I left them down
there to get acquainted,
and I have to say that...
Who's this?
Detective Ellis, ma'am.
Memphis P.D. Charmed.
I stopped by to ask
your daughter a few questions
about a statement she gave
earlier about your grandson.
We'll be in touch...
Mom.
[♪♪♪]
Grace, what's going on?
What have you not told me now?
Oh, that man.
I mean, I found the house,
I found the money,
and all I ask was that
he take me out to celebrate.
Just one night.
He can't even tell his mama no.
Hmm.
But for one night.
Just one night.
I mean,
do you think that's right?
Mm-mm.
Oh.
[HIP-HOP MUSIC PLAYING]
What are you doing?
You know what I'm doing.
[♪♪♪]
[BREATHING HEAVILY]
So the squirrel is dead.
JAMES: The squirrel is not dead.
It feels pretty dead to me.
What squirrel
are we talking about?
My church, my future,
the whole misbegotten adventure.
It's all dead.
They can't prove
that I lied, Mama.
No, they can't, but he can.
Who can?
A.J.
Grace, if he ever confesses...
Why would he confess?
He didn't do it.
But what if he did? He didn't.
Grace. Lord.
Hasn't he made it clear to you
that he's not trustworthy?
You give him money,
he wants more.
You don't give it to him,
and then he threatens you.
What is to keep him
from extorting
every penny we have over this?
[SCOFFS] That's insane.
Shall we repair
to the mess hall?
A.J., would you
sit for a moment?
Yes, ma'am.
Is everything okay?
Everything's gonna be fine.
Zora, excuse us, please?
What about dinner? Zora.
Yes, ma'am.
What happened?
The police came by.
About me?
You see? That look right there.
Mom. What look? What?
That guilty look.
A.J., did you do it?
Lady, I just got out of jail
after five years.
I'm not going back.
That's not answering
my question.
A.J.: Yeah, it is.
You know how stupid
I would have to be
to pull something like that?
They get me for that,
I'm doing 20, 30 years.
Did you do it or not?
Because I'm not gonna
let this daughter of mine
even get a stain on her dress
doing some criminal a favor.
Grace, there is
too much on the line.
Mama, back off.
Well, he's not answering
my question.
Yes, he did.
Didn't you say you didn't
want people to find out?
I don't care at this point
what they find out about him.
I just want you to be
spotless enough that
you can do what we need to do...
What? To get you back
your church?
Is that not the mission?
This is my son. He is innocent.
Then let him say so.
JAMES: A.J. Yes, sir.
For the sake of this woman
who was once my wife
and who I still hold
in the highest regard,
could you please
just answer the question?
Which one?
"Which one?" Hmm!
Son, did you rob that drugstore?
I thought we were family.
We are.
And that is why you are
gonna suffer more
than you ever have
in your whole life
if you don't man up
and tell your family the truth.
Okay. We're getting you
out of here.
CHARITY:
Where is this nephew of mine?
Right there.
Well, get over here.
Let me give you a hug.
Come on. Come to Aunt Charity.
She better hang on to her bag.
Mae, can we please just move on?
I can't wait
to hear all about you.
There is nothing
I don't wanna know.
"It's a boy"?
Well, I asked if they had
any "It's a man
that your sister
kept secret for 25 years,"
but they were out.
A.J., would you
answer the question?
JACOB:
So where is this nephew of mine?
CHARITY: He's right here.
[SIGHS]
Kerissa couldn't make it?
Uh, no. She's out
somewhere celebrating.
Hey, I'm Jacob.
And you are?
This is Grace's son, Jacob, A.J.
Since when?
Since 25 years ago.
But that's all in the past,
and now we just wanna
hear the stories.
MAE:
Well, there's one story
I want to hear,
and I'm going to hear it.
I've got nothing to say to you.
A.J., you don't know me yet...
but I am formidable.
I am a formidable adversary,
and I'm even more so
as a friend.
More useful to you than riches,
and more trustworthy than
the ground you are standing on.
I don't care if in prison
you supped with K*llers.
You have never met anybody
more formidable than me.
Okay. What's going on here?
I am trying to give
this child his chance.
[♪♪♪]
Did you do it or not?
A.J. A.J. Mama!
Well, there it is.
You lied to the police
to protect your son. Fine.
And being a mother
who suffered similar
indignities, I feel for you.
But you know what?
Gigi, as a Christian
and as a member of your church,
I am imploring you,
you go down to that station,
and you tell them the truth.
Where you been?
I met with Nadine.
Where are you going so late?
Calvary.
I need to get to the church
for something.
I'm just waiting on you
to get home 'cause of Winkie.
Well, you could have called me.
Could I?
Didn't seem that way.
[SIGHS]
I just wanted
to be happy, Jacob.
I wanted us, you and me,
to be happy for one night.
You had a few, huh?
It was a celebration.
And believe it or not,
I spent most of it
wishing you were there.
What did I miss?
I'll tell you in the morning.
[♪♪♪]
[SIGHS]
[EXHALES HEAVILY]
[SIGHS]
[KNOCK ON DOOR]
What? You brought the cops?
[LOCK CLICKS] You're leaving?
That's the plan.
You know it's gonna
violate your parole?
That's the least of my problems.
Where are you planning on going?
I'm not sure. I just gotta go.
A.J. Look, I know you're trying
to help and trying to do right
by both of us,
and maybe that guy
was right, Aaron.
Maybe you are a good person.
But this whole thing
was a mistake.
You should have never
gotten pregnant by Noah.
I should have never
have reached out.
You should have never
invited me to Memphis.
No.
I should have never have came.
It was all a mistake.
We should cut our losses
and go. Let it go.
Look at me.
Don't you want a family, honey?
After all this time?
Don't you want a family?
That family?
No.
Look. You leave like this,
they're gonna think
you're guilty.
I stopped caring what people
think about me a long time ago.
[BAG ZIPS]
Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait.
What? What?
[KEYS JINGLE] Here.
Take my car.
Take good care of yourself.
[CRYING]
You do the same.
[♪♪♪]
[DOOR CLOSES]
[DOOR OPENS]
Don't you ever go home?
When the work is done, yeah.
[SIGHS]
So, what do have for me?
Stand up. No, no, no,
I'm not doing that again.
[LAUGHS]
No, just stand up.
I'm gonna want a great big hug
after I finish telling you this,
so I'm making sure you're ready.
Oh, boy. Okay.
Go.
I met Grace's son.
And? And right before
he was supposed to meet
the family for dinner,
he was arrested
as a suspect in a robbery.
Okay. Now, that's something.
Oh, just wait.
Grace was his alibi,
so they let him go,
but... she's lying.
She lied to the cops?
Mm-hmm.
How do you know that?
I just know.
Well, we need proof.
[SIGHS]
[SIGHS]
Boo-yah.
What, you...?
You recorded her saying it?
I recorded her saying it. Oh!
[BOTH LAUGHING]
Oh, this deserves
more than a hug.
This is amazing.
Just promise me something.
What?
That we can use this
to get Grace out
without sending that boy
back to prison.
I don't even care if he did it,
he's been through enough.
I promise.
[CHUCKLES]
You are a good man.
And you are beautiful.
[♪♪♪]
It's all gonna be okay.
I feel certain that's not true.
You know,
one time I had a friend
who said, "I got a girl for you,
and you're gonna love her."
For weeks and weeks
before we met,
I pictured her,
this total stranger.
Saw us holding hands,
walking together.
When I finally did meet her,
hmm, she was nothing like
what I... What I imagined.
She was more wonderful
than anything I had in mind.
More a part of me
I'd been missing than I...
ever could have guessed.
So, what is your point, James?
What's to come
is just like that girl.
We don't know where it's going,
but it just might be better
than you think.
So who was this stranger?
Who do you think?
[CHUCKLES]
[YAWNS]
Amen!
I'm gonna go before
I'm liable to fall asleep.
You can fall asleep.
Are you sure about that?
I'm positive.
Oh, goodness.
[SIGHS]
Hmm.
I said you could go to sleep.
I will.
If what you say is true
and everything is about
to go to hell in a hand basket,
I wanna enjoy this while I can.
[♪♪♪]
[SIGHS]
[BOTH INHALE AND EXHALE HEAVILY]
[SIGHS]
[CHARITY LAUGHING]
[BOTH BREATHING HEAVILY]
♪ Guide me, great Jehovah
Day and night ♪
♪ Lamp unto my feet
Pathway the light ♪
♪ Never let me wrong you
Led me right ♪
♪ I'mma walk by faith
And not by sight ♪
♪ Hold my hand ♪
♪ Hold my hand ♪
♪ Hold my hand ♪
♪ Hold my hand ♪
♪ Guide me ♪
♪ Guide me on
To that promised land ♪
04x06 - The Stranger
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"Greenleaf" follows the unscrupulous world of the Greenleaf family with scandalous secrets and lies, and their sprawling Memphis megachurch with predominantly African-American members.
"Greenleaf" follows the unscrupulous world of the Greenleaf family with scandalous secrets and lies, and their sprawling Memphis megachurch with predominantly African-American members.