It's been a long, hot summer but with school back in session, life doesn't cool down. Gangs are on the prowl and students are restless, resulting in a lockdown that has life altering implications for everyone in the Sutton family. Through it all, Charles stands by his girl, letting Cassie know he'll always be there for her. She neesd to look no further than him for her protector. But will that be enough to keep her loyal? Can Cassie be trusted?

Everything seems to be changing in Lincoln Heights (some for the better, some for the worse) and the Sutton household is noexception. Jen finally sickens of pushing paper at the all-but-shuttered neighborhood hospital and leaves to work at a free clinic. That leaves Eddie in charge on the home front, but things are not going down exactly as he thinks. Lizzie is still writing to her kidnapper Boa, only now she's doing it in secret. Cassie and Charles are very close to becoming much mor eintimate friends. And even sweet, naive Tay manages to get picked up in an FBI sting. Through it all rings the voice of Reverend Hammond, calling for peace and an end to gang violence. But when his voice is stilled one question still echoes, who will step up to take his place?

Life seems like it's spinning out of control in the Sutton household as lis and half-truths slash away at family unity. First there's Eddie who wakes up on the anniversary of his mother's murder and pushes away the truth of it like he has since he was Tay's age. The pain has always been too great, but this year the gig's up. Tay is demanding to know what happened and Eddie's efforts to keep him out will set the whole family in a downward spiral. Down to where Cassie schemes to be with Charles. Down to where Tay (like his grandfather) gets drunk to push away his pain. Into this maelstrom saunters Sage, Lund's long lost daughter. She seems to thrive on lies, manipulation, secrets and outrageous behavior and, on a weekend at the Sutton home with no parents home, she's found the perfect stage to act out.

Relationships are broken. Repairs are needed. But that takes honesty and a steady heart. For Jen's parents, lies and deceit may end a forty-year marriage. While Cassie and Charles push each other to the breaking point (a place so far there may be no going back). All summer long Charles has been working on a special present for Cassie (a one-of-a-kind, built-with-love automobile just for her). But when he finds her in another man's arms, he doesn't wait for explanations. The two seem headed off a cliff and neither knows how to apply the brakes. Does disaster lie ahead?

Missteps. Missed cues. Relationships pulling together. Relationships tearing apart. That's Lincoln Heights, as Eddie tries to bring an end to the endless gang warfare by getting everyone - the All Stars and the Shilohs - to play together as a team in the city basketball championship. But trust is missing, and no one can move forward. Which is a problem that seems to be infecting the Heights. Charles doesn't trust Cassie's new friendship with Luc, and he's telling her he wants out for good. Even lovebirds Eddie and Jenn are having problems with each other. Which is nothing compared to Eddie's problems with Lund. When Cassie and Sage get arrested together, Lund's defense of Sage at Cassie's expense has Eddie fighting mad. It's clear everyone needs to cool down, start talking and find a way to trust. But if opportunities keep turning into dead ends, it's anoyone's guess what will happen.

Is life full of turning points or breaking points? Suddenly everyone in the Sutton household has to decide. For Eddie, it's deciding whether to stay on the streets or become a precint insider by applying for sergeant. For Jenn, it's balancing her love of her work with the dangers of the clinic. And for Cassie, it's having the guts to pursue her painting despite what the critics might say. But this proves easier said than done. With Charles MIA, Cassie feels like she's in free fall. She can hardly get out of bed. But that's only until her Prince Charming appears at the door, waiting to escort her to her very first gallery show as a real painter. Has Charles come back, or is Luc rushing in to take his place? Which one can Cassie really trust?

If pain is too depp and hatred too wide, can peace ever come to Lincoln Heights? Eddie Sutton thinks it can -- if he can just peel kids away from the gangs one by one and get them off the streets. But can Eddie's good intentions outweigh gang loyalty? Is there ever a way out? Maybe not, when feelings are hard, and hurt is left to fester. That's a lesson Cassie is learning as she watches Sage go after Charles. Seeing them together is killing her, but all Cassie ever shows him is her anger. But anger won't win Charles back, and it won't help anyone out on the streets either.

Forgiveness seems to be in short supply in Lincoln Heights, and the streets just keep getting meaner. After another gang killing, Jenn tries to organize a support group for mothers who've lost children to violence. But the moms who show up lost kids who were on opposite sides of the gang war, so the first meeting is thick with hostility and pain. Meanwhile, Lizzie is trying to forgive her grandfather for taking off with the money she was raising to help the needy. To make up for what was lost, she's organized a talent show at Revolution. Everyone's in and excited, except Cassie, who's giving out nothing but grief -- especially to Lizzie. Maybe if Sage weren't making such an obvious play for Charles, Cassie could deal. But she's nothing but mad, so she's going after Sage. Kinda like how Grandpa Spencer is going after Reuben -- only grandpa's got a gun.

Shots ring out. A body falls. Tempers flare. And Eddie is there to watch it all. Will he rat on an officer he thinks fired too quickly? His "brothers" on the force think he will, so they're threatening Eddie and Lund -- even Jenn -- if Eddie talks. Will Eddie do what's right, or what's convenient? Where do principles end and protecting your family begin? Lizzie may be young, but she faces the same questions. Her heart's as big as the universe, but she faces the same questions. Her heart's as big as the universe, but breaking every rule to help her kidnapper has put her in a place she should have never gone. Charles and Cassie enter new territory too: When his mother won't throw out his stepfather, Charles leaves home for good, and Sage is only too happy to keep him company. Casse steps in to try to bring him back, but this time it's too late.

Gang warfare has taken over the streets. Charles and Sage are its latest victims, and now the gangs are after Tay. It's do or die for Lincoln Heights. But someone has to make a move. Will it be the mothers of the slain who come together to fight for peace? Can Eddie, see past his fury to help take back the streets? When no one's looking, it's Cassie who steps up to light the way. Despondent over Charles, needing to do something with her grief, she stakes out her territory -- right in the middle of the gangs. Using art as her weapon, she starts painting her message of hope on a wall in a gang-infested vacant lot. Can Lincoln Heights rise to the challenge? Who will stand with Cassie?