In “Bride and Doom” (episode 211), Max (Vanessa Morgan) can’t join her father George (Jason Priestley) on the anniversary of his wedding to his late wife. She and Cole (Giacomo Gianniotti) are busy trying to solve the murder of a hotel maid (Shannon Baker) who was poisoned by a guest’s wedding dress. (The woman tried the dress on, took a selfie, and keeled over.)

George gets a visit from Ricky (Fletcher Donovan) instead, and we learn how George met Viv.

GEORGE: “I was working at this ritzy lakeside resort, running the old Sheboygan Shakedown on this gorgeous young society type. At least I thought I was. Turns out she had me pegged from the get go.”
RICKY: “She turn you in?”
GEORGE: “No. She invited me to dinner. Anyway, one thing led to another and we fell in love. We wanted to get married, but Viv’s parents were upper crust old money types. Threatened to disown and disinherit her if she stayed with me.”
RICKY: “But you did eventually get hitched. So, they had a change of heart?”
GEORGE: “They cut all ties with her. But we got married anyway. At first, I didn’t want her to get involved in my line of work. I was actually considering going legit. Opening a pastry shop or a pub. But after trying a few scams, she got the bug. Turns out she was way smarter and way more talented than I was. She kept pushing us to do bigger, more intricate cons.”

Their story parallels (to some extent) the tale of Heather (Stephanie Bennett) and Joseph (Praneet Akilla), the couple whose wedding was delayed by the poisoned dress.

Heather was the intended target, and Coroner Olive (Manuela Sosa) determines that the poison in the dress was thallium (as part of a powdered mixture that must have included other, faster-acting substances). Heather turns out to be a spy with classified information stored in her photographic memory. Despite international security concerns, true love wins out, and Heather and Joseph’s wedding is presided over by Cole. (“I lost a bet when I was back in the police academy,” Cole explains, “and they made me take this online ordination course.”) Marc (Jonesy the Cat) serves as ring-bearer.

In “Clouds in My Eyes” (episode 212), George is paroled from prison, and Billy ‘Zippo’ O’Brien (Sandy Robson), the guy who killed Cole’s brother, is arrested. Cole is told not to investigate further, as it might compromise the prosecution’s case against the hitman. Cole does anyway and gets information that leads him to a jazz club run by Elena Ramos (Erica Cerra), the mother of one of Daniel’s friends. Max infiltrates the place as a singer, and the first song she sings is “Friday I’m In Love” by The Cure.

The season finale (episode 212) is named after “Sunrise, Sunset” a song Max does not sing. (She performs “Who’s Gonna Drive You Home” by The Cars.) The mobster who had Daniel killed is arrested, as is the mole in the Police Department.

Since she was wheelchair-bound in “Dial ‘A’ For Alibi” (episode 205), Max has been watching videos left behind by George’s late mentor Jonathan Ashford (Martin Sheen), and since his release from prison, George has also been watching those videos, which turn out to be instructions for accessing Ashford’s well-hidden, accumulated wealth.

In Ashford’s final video he admits his approach to life was wrong and he should not have abandoned George.

After solving the twelve passwords needed to get the cash, George realizes he must allow Max to stay with Cole. Max is supposed to meet Cole (who is on leave from the Department) at dawn and join him on vacation, but when she opens the condo door to leave, Max is startled to find her mother standing outside, clearly still alive.

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WILD CARDS Season Three premieres Monday 26 January on The CW in the US. In Canada, new episodes air Wednesdays at 8pm on CBC, and are available the following day on CBC Gem.