‘When Calls the Heart’ Season 10 Episode 11 Recap: Elizabeth at a Crossroads
Hallmark Channel promised that the penultimate episode of When Calls the Heart Season 10 would feature a decision that would “change Hope Valley forever.” They weren’t lying. In “Long Time Running,” Lucas steps up to run for governor, which forces his fiancée Elizabeth to confront long-simmering doubts about their future together.
[Warning: This article contains spoilers for When Calls the Heart Season 10 Episodes 11.]
Lucas heeds a call to serve in ‘When Calls the Heart’ Season 11
Lucas’s (Chris McNally) rousing speech at the governor’s ball in the Oct. 1 episode of When Calls the Heart proved he had a strong future in politics, should he choose it. But his opportunity to pursue a life of public service arrives sooner than anyone expected. When Balfour’s opponent drops out of the governor’s race at the 11th hour, party leaders call on Lucas to step in as a candidate.
At first, Lucas is reluctant. But at the same time, he knows he’s the one who has the best chance of defeating the crooked governor – and saving Hope Valley. He turns to Elizabeth for advice, who tells him he should enter the race if it’s what he really wants. He decides to run. But is he doing it because it’s what he wants, or because he wants to save the town that means so much to the woman he loves? Whatever the motivations, neither is prepared for what his choice will really mean for them as a couple.
Bill and Nathan confront Montague
If Lucas’s bid for office is successful, he’ll be able to stop the theft of Hope Valley’s water. In the meantime, a judge has issued an injunction ordering Union City Holdings to halt all water diversion projects. But there’s a loophole, as Bill (Jack Wagner) and Nathan (Kevin McGarry) discover when they ride out to confront Bernhardt Montague (Benjamin Wilkinson), who’s still lurking about on the outskirts of town.
Montague smugly informs the pair that the injunction only applies to work done on private property, not public land. And once Governor Balfour wins reelection, he says, it will be full steam ahead on the water diversion. Any holdout property owners who won’t play along (e.g., Bill), will have their land seized under eminent domain.
Nor does Montague believe that Lucas poses a real threat to the governor. “There’s a lot of people with a lot at stake in this project,” he tells one of his henchmen. That raises the question: How far will Montague go to make sure the governor stays in office? And is Lucas unwittingly putting himself in harm’s way by running?
What does Elizabeth want?
Lucas might have hesitated to declare his candidacy for governor, but once he’s in the race, he approaches it like all of his big projects – with gusto. Still, he’s unsteady on his feet as a new candidate. That’s especially evident when he blunders during his first radio interview and announces that his new wife and her son will move with him to Capitol City if he’s elected. That comes as news to Elizabeth. In her desire to see that Hope Valley is saved, hasn’t fully processed what Lucas’s win will mean for her.
Lucas and Elizabeth talk about it, but they don’t really settle anything. Instead, they basically agree to cross that bridge if and when they come to it. In the meantime, Elizabeth reluctantly agrees to support Lucas on the campaign trail. But she’s obviously still deeply uneasy about the possibility of leaving Hope Valley.
Also not on board with the idea of Elizabeth leaving Hope Valley? Mountie Nathan. When Bill mentions it during their ride out to see Montague, his hackles are immediately up, offering perhaps the greatest evidence yet that he’s still harboring feelings for Elizabeth.
Later, Nathan boldly confronts Elizabeth. Her life is in Hope Valley, and she makes a difference there. Can she really leave? And more importantly, is it what she wants?
“What I want is for him to win,” she replies. And if that happens, they’ll move.
“Well, I hope it makes you happy,” Nathan replies.
How should we read this scene with Nathan? Is he a concerned friend calling Elizabeth out and forcing her to be honest with herself? Or is it more about his love for her? Perhaps a little bit of both? One thing is clear: There’s undeniable chemistry between the two in this scene.
Elizabeth tells Nathan that she wants Lucas to win. But she’s more forthcoming in a later conversation with Rosemary (Pascale Hutton), where she admits she doesn’t know what she wants. And her indecision is about way more than the governor’s race. Lucas was the safe choice, she admits. But he might not be what she really wants.
“I was just so afraid of getting hurt again,” she says. “I don’t think I was listening to my heart.”
Mike’s awkward encounter with Mei leads to a date
A lot of heavy stuff is happening in this episode of When Calls the Heart. Thankfully, we get a few moments of levity, courtesy of Mei (Amanda Wong) and Mike (Ben Rosenbaum).
During a visit to the mercantile, Mei finds a nervous Mike hiding behind a book he’s randomly picked off the shelf. He tells her it’s one of his favorites, not realizing he’s recommending a pulpy-sounding novel called Night of the Lonesome Heart. Fortunately, Mei ends up loving the book, but when she stops by the hotel to chat about it, Mike’s forced to confess he hasn’t actually read it, but he will now. He suggests they meet up and talk about it later. “It’s a date,” Mei replies, much to Mike’s delight.
This episode’s other big “aww…” comes (surprisingly) via Henry Gowen (Martin Cummins), who a frantic Rosemary (Pascale Hutton) dragoons into babysitting. He’s clearly overwhelmed at first. But the gruff businessman proves he has a tender side as he gently sings the Goldie to sleep.
Elizabeth makes a choice that changes everything
Despite her doubts, Elizabeth plans to go through with her plan to campaign with Lucas. But she backs out at the last minute in a Casablanca-esque scene at the train station.
“You are destined for this … but my whole life is here,” she tells him.
Lucas says he’ll stay, but Elizabeth urges him to go, telling him he’ll regret it if he doesn’t.
He realizes that this isn’t just about the governor’s race. “Your heart isn’t there,” he says, as Elizabeth tearfully apologizes for hurting him.
“Maybe these paths are meant to be,” he says. He also admits that he’d long suspected there was something wrong, though he didn’t want to admit it and was afraid to raise the issue with her.
“I wish you all the happiness in the world,” he says, as he kisses her goodbye. It’s hard not to contrast Lucas’s gentle demeanor as he wishes Elizabeth happiness with Nathan’s sharper tone when he said something similar to her in their scene together.
What’s next in the ‘When Calls the Heart’ season finale?
It seems that Elizabeth and Lucas are done. But is everything truly settled between them? There’s one more episode left in this season of When Calls the Heart. Hallmark’s episode synopsis notes that Elizabeth will be by Lucas’s side on election day, suggesting they’re on good terms, at least. And then there’s Elizabeth’s voiceover from the beginning of the episode, when she says she’s “confused and afraid of change.” By breaking things off with Lucas, she seems to be choosing the comfort of the familiar over a riskier unknown. There’s a chance – however slight – that the finale will see Elizabeth realize that it’s her fear of change (and fear of letting go of everything she had with her late husband Jack) that’s been keeping her from opening her heart to Lucas.
On the other hand, if things really are over between Lucas and Elizabeth, she might be free in the finale to take a step forward with Nathan. That scene in the school certainly suggests there’s something between them. But is it true love? Given that Elizabeth’s emotions have been all over the place the past few weeks, it seems wise for her to take a breather before jumping into another relationship. Hopefully, we’ll get some clarity and what she wants – and what’s next for Hope Valley – when the When Calls the Heart Season 10 finale airs Sunday, Oct. 15 at 9 p.m. ET on Hallmark Channel.
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