Holiday cheer is sparse in Rosewood. The “Pretty Little Liars” Christmas special aired on ABC Family on Tuesday night, updating viewers on the Liars after Spencer’s (Troian Bellisario) arrest and Mona’s (Janel Parrish) murder in the Season 5 summer finale.

Spencer, who was arrested for the murder of Bethany Young, was out on bail at the start of the holiday special, “How the ‘A’ Stole Christmas.” But being out of jail didn’t put her in a better mood. The thought of going away for a crime she didn’t commit put a damper on everyone, however Emily (Shay Mitchell) was still hopeful that Mona would be found and that Spencer would walk free.

Fortunately the girls received a bit of a Christmas miracle in the form of a visit from Mona’s attorney. He approached Hanna (Ashley Benson) on the street and revealed that he had orders to deliver a package to her 30 days after Mona’s death. The package contained drawings to Alison’s (Sasha Pieterse) house and all of her hiding places. Mona left a note for Hanna explaining that the package meant that she was dead and that it’s up to her to continue the fight against Alison. With the drawings the girls could potentially clear Spencer of Bethany Young’s murder. However “A” is always watching. She delivered a note to the Liars through Santa: “’A’ Takes a holiday, you should to.”

Know who wasn’t taking a holiday? Mrs. DiLaurentis (Andrea Parker) and Mona! They might be dead, but they returned to haunt Alison. Mrs. DiLaurentis visited first, warning her daughter: “She’s got a lot to show you. Pay attention.” Then came Mona. Dressed like a ghost, Mona took Alison back in time to when she was just a child. Alison was playing the piano when she discovered that something was hidden inside. When she opened it up, she discovered two gift boxes. The boxes both had the same thing inside – a yellow dress.

Mrs. DiLaurentis was not happy that Alison found the boxes. She asked Alison to forget about one box otherwise her father would leave the both of them. Watching the exchange with her childhood self and her mother, Alison asked Mona if the other dress was for Bethany. However Mona told her “it’s not going to be that easy.”

Meanwhile, the Liars hatched a plan to break into Alison’s house while their former friend was at the charity ice ball she was throwing for the town. The game plan was for everyone except Toby (Keegan Allen) to attend. However when Alison arrived, they would all split up. It would be up to Aria (Lucy Hale), Ezra (Ian Harding), Emily (Shay Mitchell) and Paige (Lindsey Shaw) to watch Alison’s every move while Spencer and Hanna (Ashley Benson) broke into her house to search for evidence. Toby would act as the watch guard if Alison returned home.

Alison arrived at the ball with her minions and the plan went into action.

Spencer and Hanna snuck out – but someone in a white cloak was watching them. Aria and Emily began to follow Alison, and Aria’s shift began with a surprise – Alison kissing Santa Claus. She didn’t get a chance to see the face of the man in the Santa suit, but Detective Holbrook (Sean Faris) later approached her in the same outfit. Was he the one kissing Alison? It’s possible, however there were other people in the same Santa suit at the party.

With Aria distracted, Alison entered a holiday maze and the person in the white cloak followed her. The person turned out to be CeCe (Vanessa Ray)! Alison’s old friend returned to town in order to help her deal with the first Christmas after the loss of her mom. However she also came with a warning – Mona might not be able to hurt her anymore, but watch out for the Liars.

At the ice ball, Emily got pulled aside by Sydney (Chloe Bridges) and Jenna (Tammin Sursok). The two girls told Emily that they’re not the enemy and that they joined Alison’s group to survive. Emily seemed to believe them and confided that her friends think Alison is the one that killed Mona. They revealed that they think Alison was responsible as well.

Meanwhile at Alison’s house, Hanna found a passport hidden inside a birdcage. The passport held Alison’s photo but a different name – Holly Varjak. That wasn’t the only thing they discovered. Spencer found newspaper clippings that revealed that Alison had been talking to someone through the personal ads. But the big shocker was in the attic. Hanna found a note from Bethany. Alison had been writing to Bethany and invited her to Rosewood for Labor Day – the same day that Alison disappeared and that Bethany ended up in the grave. It was the proof they needed to help Spencer, but someone threatened to ruin everything. A person wearing a black hoodie had entered Alison’s house and was ready to attack Spencer and Hanna with a knife.

Spencer managed to hide, but the intruder went after Hanna. Fortunately Hanna made it out unscathed, but someone knew that she had the letter.

The “Pretty Little Liars” Christmas special concluded with Mona visiting Alison to show her a piece of her future – her coffin. “You look pretty good considering,” Mona told Alison. “But they never found your legs.”

Mona disappeared and Mrs. DiLaurentis showed up. She warned Alison, “They’ll be coming for you soon.”

Alison was spooked when she woke up, but the Liars received a bigger scare on Christmas. “A” had snuck into Spencer’s backyard to string up “Merry Christmas B-----“ in Christmas lights.

RELATED STORIES