Piece of her: which secrets are the most terrifying?

Did you enjoy the crime mystery series Piece of her? I enjoyed the unfolding of the events, the several flashbacks and the relationship between mother and daughter. Although it disheartened me, especially at the beginning, when I thought the mother did not really care about her daughter. Especially after the traumatic event they experienced, why do you send your own daughter away? Don’t you want to be closer then ever, after such a terrifying attack?

The character development of the daughter Andy (Bella Heathcote) manages to surprises me. At the beginning she is this quiet, shy and frankly, not a fully confident woman. However, after the initial shock, instead of fleeing, she stays and fights. She is so determined to find all the pieces of her, that she does not care if she puts herself or others in danger.

She wants to know all the pieces of her mothers story.

Mysterious mother named Laura (Antonia Collette) is deeply entangled in this crime drama. In the first episode, they both experience a terrible attack: They are together at a restaurant, when a murderous lunatic man shoots several people and then targets Andy too. The mother is like a bear protecting her cub, she covers her, while Andy lies on the floor, in a cocoon like a little baby in the womb. She is in shock and helpless.

Her mother stands up and tells the shooter, please don’t shoot my daughter. She is not a real police officer, she only wears the uniform because she works at the police office answering calls. The shooter is not taking it and shoots Laura with his gun, but his gun misfires or the bullets are finished, so he does not get to kill her. In this moment he takes out a knife and stabs her, she reaches for the knife with her open hand and he pierces the palm of her hand with the knife, which is now stuck there.

It all happens in seconds, Laura uses the knife that pierced her hand, to turn her palm to the other side and with one swift movement, she slits the throat of the attacker. Quick, as a professional fighter would do. This scene is wild. What did you think as you saw it?

From here everything starts to go downhill.

Laura and Andy are extremely close up to the murderous attack, but after that, her mother distances herself from Andy. At the beginning I thought she is a very cold and distant mother, not interested in her daughter. Slowly we understand why Laura wants to protect her. Why did she separate from her then? Even if you want to protect your daughter, isn’t it better to be close to her, rather then shun her out?

She tells her daughter to leave the house, go and make her own life. That Andy should not be so focused on her mother, but on building her own life!

Andy is 30 years old, and has lived away from her mother for some time, but since Laura had had cancer, she has been back home to take care of her. Through the many flashbacks of their past, we see how devoted Andy is to her throughout her whole sickness: She helps her bathing when she is at home, she stays with her through therapy and hospital visits.

I really highly respect Andy’s character for being such a devoted daughter. Being there for your mother when she needs you, is the most important responsibility and kindness you can give to who raised you. I notice, how there are many such caring people in the world and how important that is for our society. So thank you reader, for being a caring and loving person, who takes care of others, especially in sickness and hardships. You make the world a better place!

Andy is always there when Laura needs her, although she is really hurt when her mother sends her away, she does not understand why. Being as close as they are, she cannot fantom how her mother would not want her in her life anymore.

On top of that, Andy is conflicted by the fact that she did not react during the attack. She was hovering on the floor, closing her eyes, really paralysed. Something changed in her after that wicked day. She probably promises herself to never be so helpless ever again. It is quite common to feel paralysed in a life threatening situation, but getting ahead of it, like Andy’s character did, shows a lot of inner strength.

What is your response in terrifying situation? Fight or Flight? To this two common reactions I would also add feeling paralysed, right? What do you think?

After the attack, the video of Laura slitting the throat of the attacker gets viral, on the internet and on Tv. Laura panics innerly, but outwards she is calm and collected. She tells Andy to leave, because she does not want Andy to be in any danger, why?

Well, Andy is relentless and loves her mother very much, so she actually comes back that exact evening to check on Laura and good that she did:

An intruder is in the house and has her mother tied to a chair. What is happening? Andy sends a message to 911. What would you have done?

This is also a very exciting moment in the first episode of the show.

Everything happens so fast and this scene is very dark, so better turn on the illumination of your screen.

This attacker is a strong big man. Andy takes the paper towel holder, it seems made out of marble! In that moment the intruder puts a plastic bag on her mothers head. It is a terrifying scene. Andy slowly comes closer from his back, and hits him as strong as she can on the head. The attacker falls to the floor and his gun slips on the ground not far away from him. So this guy had a gun, and did not shoot the mother, but wanted to kill her with a plastic bag? Why?

Andy is in full fight mode and jumps to get the gun and struggles with him. One shot is goes off during the struggle. He is a big man and manages to he get the better of her. However, Andy is smart and even during this struggle she fights to keep the gun in her left hand, with the right hand she grabs the holder and smashes it again right on his head.

Two time in the row, and so hard? He is out.

Andy lies there exhausted, during her fight with the intruder, her mother was struggling to get her head out of the plastic bag. What a scene! This is all only the first episode. There is so much Andy will go through. Especially now that her mother sends her on a trip to Maine, which is practically up the whole east coast.

Most shocking that Laura does not want the police to know what happens and hides this murder from them. Who do you think hired this hitman? I am not sure Laura knows exactly who sent him. The hitman is not yet dead, but will be soon. This story is a rollercoaster!

If you continue reading, we are past spoilers of only the first episode and will now deep dive into the more crucial plot twists of the whole series. I would recommend that only reader who either don’t mind spoilers, or who saw the series, continue. For the rest, come back for the next part of the article, whenever you like!

Does Andy think that she killed that man? Now, when her mother instructs her to leave she does not oppose her anymore. This is when her adventure to find out who her mother is really starts.

Now Andy is on the road, her mother told her to pick up a suitcase in a storage locker on the way to Maine. This trip is very eventful:

Andy is constantly thinking about her mother, who nearly got killed. She overheard some words her mother said to the attacker. Laura said a name, Paula Koontz or something. She wants to discover who that is, and who her mother is.

In the storage unit she finds different IDs of her mother and a photo of her when she was young. She looks so different, right? They did not choose an actress that actually looks like her younger self. I still think the flashbacks with actress Jessica Barden as young Laura are exiting and insightful.

When Andy opens the suitcase it is filled with cash.

What would be your thoughts racing through your mind in such a situation? Andy must have thought her mother is a secret agent.

By now we do not know that Laura actually does not care about the money in the suitcase, she cares more about an object that is hidden in the layers of the suitcase.

However, the cash is quite handy for Andy, right? She takes all her mothers fake IDs, gun, picture of her younger self and suitcase and leaves the storage unit.

She does not know that she is being followed, and even befriends the man that follows her, when he sits next to her at the bar, she starts talking with him. After he tells her he is a Marshall, she asks him to teach her how to shoot a gun. We actually start to trust him a bit more after he teaches her how to use a gun, because if he wanted to kill her, he would have done it already, right? Or is he waiting for something?

The day after she figures out that she is followed and does not want to risk being found by this mysterious stalker, so she goes and buys a new car. Why did you think she was followed ?

Until now Andy is still completely in the dark about her mother. Instead of heading to Maine, she continues her journey to discover what happened to her mother. What would you have done? Her mother wants her to go a lovely idillic place, like a community farm place in Maine. Where she could have been happy and oblivious.

For Andy there have been probably many moments in her childhood where she did not understand her background or was left with questions. If think that is why she does not want to back down, she wants to dig deeper into hers and her mothers past.

Most shocking when her stalker follows her. The same man that taught her to shoot. He is still so mysterious, right? Well, not for long. Since Andy knows she is being followed, she tricks him into a trap and points the gun at him. The same gun he taught her to shoot with. At gun point, he tells her he is a Marshall named Michael Vargas (Jacob Scipio) and is here to protect her. She is confused and wants to know more.

This is when she discovers she has been in witness protection all her life and did not know that. That is so interesting and confusing at the same time. Is this even possible? I understand not telling a minor, but Andy is an adult woman. Shouldn’t it be mandatory to tell her she is witness protection?

Andy is very disturbed by the fact and feels even more betrayed by her mother.

With the help of flashbacks of Laura, rethinking her past, we uncover precious details about her life before witness protection: Her wealthy background, her piano career, her scattered family, and the encounter with a revolutionary named Nick Harp. He is the dangerous antagonist in the story. Or is it someone else?

Andy finds out about her family’s background: Her uncle is a business tycoon, heir of the Queller fortune, Jasper (David Wenham). She wants to meet him and know more. Was that a good idea? By now, she could ask her mother and talk with her?

Micheal, the marshal, is helpful at this stage of the story and shares a room with her to keep her safe. Now that she knows about his identity he can protect her better. One night when he is out talking on the phone, and intruder, yet again, manages to get into Andy’s room and wants to suffocate her in her sleep.

Fortunately, Michael manages to save her. Andy runs aways so exposed into nowhere, while these two men are fighting in the motel room. Honestly at that moment I was afraid she would get killed. If there were more hitman, they could have followed her and killed her at gun point. I don’t know how Micheal manages to get that guy off and reach Andy. How did he manage so quick? Why did Andy run and not help Micheal? She always has completely different reactions, this time she flights.

Most importantly, who was this hitman? Who hired him? He must be the same who hired the men who tried to kill her mother, right?

What do you think?

Especially what are your thoughts about Nick?

Andy finds out who Nick is, he is the man wanted for the murder of Martin Queller (Terry O’Quinn). He has been a fugitive since the murder.

Andy arranges to meet Jasper for the first time at a conference, Jasper invites her to their family Mansion, and tells her she is a Queller too. This is the house where her mother grew up. Here while talking with Jasper, Andy discovers that he knew Nick at the time and that he was a friend of Andrew, his late brother.

Moreover, he tells her about video tapes of her mother playing the piano. This is how Andy discovers her mother had this hidden talent and was a performer. Most shockingly she finds out that her mother had an affaire with Nick through the video tapes. In one her mother filming Nick half naked and they are sweet talking to each other.

Nick and Jane/Laura were lovers. How can her mother have an affaire with her fathers killer? What will baffle her even more, is knowing that Nick is actually her father!

If you reached until here, most of the plot twists are discovered and many details are left out, because honsestly there are so many!

The biggest plot twist is yet to come and it is outrageous and shocking at the same time. It is revealed only at the end of the first season to give us something to look forward in the next season!

Do you know what it is? Should I tell you?

Yes, then I will. Andy discovers that her mother is the one who gave the killer of her own father the gun to kill him. Exactly what Nick is accused of. What she doesn’t know is that Jane’s father tried to kill Andy as a foetus when she was only in the womb. Jane did not take that lightly. She already had lost her mother, brother and her lover Nick, she did not want to loose her future child too. But going so far as to kill your own father? Andy is shocked and uncovers yet another piece of the story.

Jane and Nick had a fall out when her brother dies in her arms. He was injured during one of Nicks organised revolutionary attacks. He is a fanatic radical revolutionary leader, and Andrew (Nicholas Burton), Janes brother, was one of his followers.

It was heartbreaking to see this scene, how he gets shot, but since Nick does not want them to be discovered, he lets him die, for the cause. Jane loves her brother so deeply, she resents Nick after Andrew dies. Nick shows his real self when she gets angry and fights about what happened with her and beats her up really badly. From that moment it was over for her.

Which discovery was most interesting to you throughout the series?

Let me know if I should write about a specific topic or side of the story.

Thanks for reading,

See you in the comments.

For more crime mystery, click on the link.

Yours,

Queen Bingeeye