Carly gets a happy surprise when Drew shows up at Kelly’s, having been granted an early release from Pentonville.

“Drew is also super-surprised,” sets up his portrayer, Cameron Mathison. “He’s still kind of in shock, because obviously, this happened so fast. As we know, Alexis interviewed the judge [who sentenced Drew] and really put pressure on him, exposing some of the shady stuff the judge had done, and the Pentonville people wanted to kind of sweep it under the rug as quickly as possible — get Drew out of there, get people to stop talking about it and investigating it. So, they more or less get Drew out overnight and he’s thrown back out into the world. He goes to see Carly while he’s still kind of reeling from the fact that this is real, this is happening.”

As the lovers catch up, Drew finds out that Carly played a pivotal role in securing his release, by helping to bring Judge Kim’s corruption to light and enlisting the help of their friends to get Drew out of prison. “For Drew, that means everything to him,” says Mathison. “He’s super-loyal, super-devoted to those that he’s close with, both family and friends. That is intimacy to him, and it really touches his heart and makes him feel even closer to Carly. He’s been away so much and missed so much of his daughter’s life and his life out in the world, so for her to do that, and get him out, basically, two-and-a-half years earlier than he would have otherwise, that’s everything.”

Next, Drew pays a visit to the penthouse, where he is warmly received by Sam and Scout. “There are some really nice scenes between me and Kelly [Monaco, Sam],” the actor reports. “Drew and Sam connect while Scout is still asleep, but then she wakes up and sees her dad and they have a huge reunion. They spend the rest of the day together; they go for pancakes and then Drew goes to thank Alexis for what she did to help get him out, and he brings Scout with him. He just doesn’t want her to leave his side.”

As much as Drew relishes his freedom and the chance to reconnect with his loved ones, there are hints that his ordeal in Pentonville is taking a bigger toll on him than he’s willing to admit. “There’s a physical toll, but an emotional one, too,” explains Mathison. “Almost getting beaten to death, recovering, and everything that he went through tweaked something in him a little bit. He’s like, ‘Life is short,’ and not necessarily in a good way. It’s a little less of the peace, love and understanding [attitude] and more like, ‘You’ve got to protect yourself and protect your loved ones at all costs.’ ”