It was an emotional episode of Nashville on Thursday (March 2) as the characters of Music City tried to grapple with the death of beloved matriarch Rayna Jaymes (Connie Britton) in Episode 9.

Opening with a powerful funeral scene honoring the country singer and her memory, the heartbreaking moment finds Deacon (Charles Esten) tearfully delivering her eulogy, with friends and family including Scarlett, Gunnar and daughters Maddie and Daphne (Lennon and Maisy Stella) standing by his side. “I thought that love would last forever, but I was wrong,” he chokes out as the rain pours down at the cemetery.

Characters new and old come together to pay their respects to the icon, including Rayna's first husband Teddy, producer Watty White, sister Tandy, Maddie’s boyfriend Clay and many more all gathering at the Jaymes household to show their support. Deacon is, naturally, taking Rayna’s death the hardest, secluding himself during the wake in the bedroom they once shared.

Maddie and Daphne are also trying to cope with the tragic loss of their mother, which is made that much more difficult by the legal battle that threatens to tear the family apart. Maddie is thrown for a loop when she overhears a conversation between Tandy and Teddy, who both think Teddy is more capable of being their legal guardian as opposed to Deacon.

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On a more positive note, romance appears to be brewing between Silicon Valley executive Zach Welles and Will (Chris Carmack) when Zach abruptly kisses the country singer during a trip to an art gallery, which could very well be the start of a new relationship.

After much tension between Deacon and Teddy, Deacon sees the heartache the girls are going through in dealing with the guardianship battle on top of their mother’s death and makes the painful decision to let Teddy legally take over the role as their father.

Though Juliette (Hayden Panettiere) is designated with the honor of singing Rayna’s signature song at her CMT tribute show, she ultimately decides to have Maddie sing in her place, believing the performance would be much more special coming from her. Reluctant at first, Maddie decides at the last minute to take the stage and breaks down in tears in the middle of the song, with Deacon and Daphne rushing to the stage to console her and help finish the performance.

After the emotional display, Teddy recognizes the love Deacon has for the girls and asks him to be their guardian while he finishes up the last three months of his prison sentence. He also offers a silver lining when he says that they may be able to work out a scenario for both of them to take care of their daughters in the future.

Nashville fans were shocked after the Feb. 23 episode, when the show’s main star died after complications from a car accident. The show continues to air on CMT every Thursday night at 9PM EST.

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