The Following S2E7 - "Sacrifice" Recap

Joe, Emma, and Mandy meet with an old friend of his named Robert in a different cult but when they reach his base, they are met with armed guards led by a no-nonsense woman who has them all bound and has bags placed over their heads before they're put into a van. Upon arrival, they're told to remove their clothing and shower off as a means of cleansing themselves. Just your typical cult weirdness.

Ryan goes into the FBI where Agent Mendez tells him that she's now inclined to believe his theory about Joe Carroll being alive. He remains disinclined to collaborate with her. Ryan leaves and meets Mike, who tells him he is done helping him. Mike says that too much has happened and he's essentially been traumatised by working on this case. Meanwhile, Max has been suspended for six months. She doesn't seem all that bothered by it, being more worried about what Ryan will do next. She tells him he is obsessed but he insists that he is fine. Ryan says that he has to be the one to find him and she correctly points out that what he means is that he "needs" to be the one to kill him. Ryan tells her he is fine with being obsessed.

At the new cult compound, the trio are put into all white clothing and masks because they've "not yet earned the right to an identity yet." The woman tells them to call her Julia and she takes the girls off elsewhere while Joe is taken to meet the cult leader, a man named Micah. Micah commends Joe on his ability to get his followers to kill for him before asking him why he should allow them to stay on his compound. Joe says he could be of service to him and after some more grovelling, he is subjected to a lie detector test. Julia questions Joe on his killing habits and they appear to engage in some flirtacious banter. After the test, Julia visits Micah and tells him that Joe is "all truth," which Micah is pleased to hear. But after that, her face changes, seeming to indicate that she is lying to Micah.

Max is kidnapped by a father/son duo who feign an abusive parent/child duo to bait her. Ryan receives a call from Lily, who also shows him video footage of Max's abduction. She wants revenge for the death of her son. Ryan heads back in to get help from the FBI to get Max back. Mike also returns after getting the call about Max. Ryan visits Luke, who is surprisingly not dead but simply badly banged up in a hospital room. He shows him a photo of Max's abductor, and Luke snidely comments that the guy is "bad news." Luke figures out the true reason for Ryan's visit and eventually tells him that the man's name is Kirk and he is also known as "The Huntsman," a well-known serial killer of womyn. The FBI realise that the clock is ticking, according to his MO. They track him down to his address, where they find Kirk's wife and son (who is the boy that helped in Max's abduction). Ryan shows Mike that from the angle of the footage, the son would have been the one to shoot it. They confront him in his room and though the boy lies at first, he eventually creepily admits that his father "gives whores what they deserve." They muscle the location of his father's cabin out of him.

At the cabin, Max challenges Kirk to hunt him, saying that he should take up the challenge. Lily has paid him to kill her and he won't budge. But when he gets close enough, she manages to kick him and get free from her restraints, escaping into the woods. Looks like there will be a hunt after all. Max is chased through the woods and after some time, she encounters Mike. Just when it appears that Kirk has them in his sniper aim, Ryan arrives and shoots him dead.

Joe is reunited with Emma and Mandy at a strange ritual, complete with fire, drums, and hooded masked figures. Micah addresses the crowd and asks them who will be sacrificed. Everyone is eager to volunteer but a masked figure with a pointy stick chooses Emma. She is brought forth and tied up. Joe tries to stop it but he is held back and Micah tells him they must trust each other. Micah wields a large dagger and cuts both of Emma's wrists. Her blood runs from her wounds into a large bowl. Micah drinks a sample of it and proclaims to the crowd, "Through her blood, we are saved." Later, Joe confronts Julia about his targeting Emma and though she assures him Emma is still alive and they will see her shortly, the encounter is nonetheless tense.

The FBI receive another call from Lily, time-stamped from a few hours prior. In it, she addresses Ryan as if Max was indeed killed and then she says that he was not the only who she will seek revenge on. It is then that Mike recognises her surrounding as being the living room of his father's house. The video continues on to show her slit Mike's father's throat, and Mike breaks down before storming out, with Ryan close behind. She warns Ryan that there are many more surprises in stores and that he should get ready. Outside, Ryan comforts a distraught Mike.

The Following airs on Mondays on FOX at 9PM.