'Ghosts' on CBS sees Hetty's tragic death and Flower's stunning return: A Season 3 update

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Boo yah! A major "Ghosts" mystery has ended happily with the revelation that '60s-era hippie ghost Flower was not "sucked off" the hit CBS comedy.

Flower's triumphant reappearance in Thursday's episode ends a spiritual crisis that has possessed Woodstone Mansion since last May's Season 2 cliffhanger finale. Haunted estate owner and ghost-seeing human Sam (Rose McIver) witnessed an ethereal beam of light signifying one deceased resident had moved on to the afterlife, a process not-so-eloquently referred to as being "sucked off."

Fans pondered the eternal question, "Who was it?"

In February's Season 3 premiere, Sam sadly concluded the lucky "sucked off" soul was the missing Flower (Sheila Carrasco). Fans cried out, and the haunting spirits of "Ghosts" mourned her exit – especially her Viking boyfriend Thorfinn (Devan Chandler Long) – until Thursday's "Holes Are Bad" episode, when the lost soul is discovered trapped in a nearby well.

"It's awesome to finally show where Flower has been," Carrasco tells USA TODAY. "It's been so long since everyone thought Flower was 'sucked off.' But she has been right there the whole time."

Here's what happened:

Flower's disappearance coincided with Carrasco's maternity leave

Executive producers Joe Wiseman and Joe Port had already envisioned a major fake "Ghosts" departure. Their brewing idea coincided with Carrasco's maternity leave to give birth to daughter Mirentxu, now 4 months old, with her husband, actor Josh Grogan. "It kind of organically happened that way," says Carrasco, whose leave coincided with the first day of "Ghosts" Season 3 production on the Montreal set.

"So this situation fell into our laps, and it turned out to be a compelling season," says Port.

"People online were really upset that Flower was sucked off," says Wiseman. "That was a good sign because they were invested. They cared."

Carrasco kept the secret "locked down. "I had supportive family members reaching out to me, but I didn't tell them," says the actress, who enjoyed watching Flower being eulogized during a "Ghosts" memorial service. "It was so touching, I cried. And the fans were so supportive."

In a brief scene, the March 7 "Halloween 3" episode revealed Flower had actually fallen down the stone well as she called out futilely for help. However, the spirits of "Ghosts" had no idea, "so we allowed the audience to be slightly ahead of the characters, which was a fun twist," says Port.

Thursday's episode shows that the "sucked off" ghost was not Flower but teenager Ralph, one of the cholera victims residing in the mansion's basement.

Why are wells dangerous for 'Ghosts'?

The show's writers have been eager to trap a spirit in a well, backed up by the growing list of "Ghosts" rules.

"The ghosts of 'Ghosts' can stand on floors, but they go right through walls. So they can't get any traction to climb out of the well," says Port. "So the only way out is walking through the wall and all the dirt. And that's perilous because you could get lost."

Adds Carrasco: "It makes no sense, and yet it makes perfect sense. I love that this episode added to the world of 'Ghosts' rules."

Revolutionary War ghost Captain Isaac Higgintoot (Brandon Scott Jones) and Native American Sasappis (Román Zaragoza) recall being stuck in a hole with Thorfinn for a year before escaping. A Puritan-era ghost, Patience, even disappeared into the estate grounds, lost in eternal dirt.

How did 'Ghosts' Hetty die? The tragic revelation saved trapped Flower

Flower's well rescue folded into another major "Ghosts" mystery: How Henrietta "Hetty" Woodstone (Rebecca Wisocky), the original Lady of the Manor, died. Flashbacks uncover the socialite Hetty, proud owner of an early telephone, is swept up in her husband's business scandal and tragically kills herself with the phone cord. With Flower in peril, Hetty reveals her secret. "I did not know how to ask for help," she says. "I saw no other way out."

However, since the phone cord was with her when she died, "Ghosts" rules state that Hetty could drop the line to Flower to climb out of the well.

The episode ends with a suicide and crisis line help number. "Life and death are at the center of our show, so we can access more serious topics when we choose to," says Port. "It's a subject that's not tackled in a lot of half-hour comedies."