Samantha Ruland (Scandal)

Samantha Ruland, aka Grace Dennis and Gertrude (Zoe Perry), was a recurring villainess from Season Six of Scandal. She was Theodore Peus' partner in the conspiracy to kill Democratic President-Elect Francisco Vargas.
== Introduction and Events ==
Samantha Ruland first appeared in episode 6.05, "They All Bow Down," though her role was shown in more depth via flashbacks in the following episode, "Extinction." Samantha and Peus approached Eli Pope at his workplace and ordered him to kill Francisco Vargas, threatening to kill his love interest, Sandra Potter, if he didn't comply. After he does so, and sets up his soldier Adam (who willingly accepted), Eli stated that his business with them was over, and he even shot and killed Sandra to take away their leverage. However, the evil Samantha stated that she had someone planted to watch over Olivia Pope, with orders to kill her when she gives the word, keeping Eli under their thumb.
Not only was the plan to kill Vargas, it was to set up Cyrus Beene as the mastermind, resulting in Cyrus' arrest. As revealed in episode 6.07, "A Traitor Among Us," Samantha's hired gun was none other than Meg Mitchell, who killed Jennifer Curtis to keep her from exposing the plan. The end of that episode and the following episode, "A Stomach for Blood," revealed that both Samantha and Meg compromised Abby Whelan into doing their bidding, starting with taking $300 million from a company in North Korea and paying Abby under the pretense of boosting her career. The villainess had Abby's boyfriend, Leo Reston, abducted to force Abby into helping set up Adam and Cyrus.
The end result of the plan was to make sure that Mellie Grant became President--one that Samantha and Peus could use as their puppet. The episode, "Trojan Horse," revealed another ally in the form of the evil Elizabeth North, as she agreed to accept Samantha and Peus' contribution: rigging the electoral college in their favor. Once Mellie emphatically turned them down, Samantha killed Elizabeth with a golf club, and then forced Mellie to be in league with them, with Samantha naming herself as her new Chief of Staff. In the following episode, "Mercy," Samantha ended up taken to a holding room with Abby after the White House was on lockdown due to a drone; however, the drone was released by Olivia's group as part of a plan to isolate Samantha while they cooked up a plan.
==Death==
In episode 6.13, "The Box," Peus released actual drones and fired them at Dallas and Philadelphia in response to Olivia's ruse, while demanding Mellie and Samantha back to him. Meanwhile, Jake was dealing with Samantha, and as suggested by Cyrus, told her that they had Peus and was making a deal (which wasn't true). Samantha took the bait and agreed to reveal everything to make a deal of her own, and it was later in the episode that she was approached by her former lover, David Rosen, who gave her the document to sign. However, when David voiced his hatred of Samantha, the villainess realized that she was being duped, as she noticed that the only time David was honest was when he lashed out at her. She tore up the deal in response.
After a long time of convincing, Eli decided to help Fitz and get Samantha to talk, only to hold a guard at gunpoint and order Samantha's release. He later met with Samantha and Peus and demanded to be released from control, with Peus granting his request. However, this was part of Eli's plan to take down the pair, as while Jake got to Peus and killed him, Eli killed Samantha; stabbing her to death with a dinosaur tooth. Though Samantha claimed to Rosen that her real name was Grace Dennis, it was revealed as a fake name in the following episode, "Head Games," with her actual real name being revealed as Gertrude.
==Trivia==
*Zoe Perry is the real-life daughter of Jeff Perry, who played Cyrus Beene in the series.
Category:2010s
Category:Alias
Category:Blonde
Category:Callous
Category:Conspirator
Category:Deceiver
Category:Femme Fatale
Category:Hero's Lover
Category:Live Action Villainess
Category:Man Kills Villainess
Category:Makeshift Weapon
Category:Murder: Bludgeoning
Category:Murder: Indirect
Category:Murderer
Category:Politics
Category:Ponytail Hairstyle
Category:Psychotic
Category:Fate: Deceased
Category:Demise: Stabbed