Agent Abbie Mills (Nicole Beharie)

First Appearance: “Pilot”

Full Name: Grace Abigail Mills

Backstory: After their father took off and their mother had a seeming breakdown, Abbie and her sister Jenny wound up in foster care. As teens, the sisters came upon four mysterious white trees and the demon Moloch in the forest. The sisters blacked out for four days until they were discovered by a search party. Abbie pretended it never happened, but Jenny insisted on telling the truth, leading the authorities to assume she was mentally ill. The sisters became estranged. Abbie briefly turned to drugs and broke into a pharmacy along with her then-boyfriend; she was apprehended by Sheriff August Corbin, who took her under his wing.

Mission Statement: The young police lieutenant was a week away from going to the FBI Academy. During a routine call to Fox Creek Stables, her partner and mentor, Corbin, was decapitated by the Headless Horseman and Abbie saw the mutant for the first time. She met a time traveler Ichabod Crane and partnered with him to vanquish the Headless Horseman and prevent the End of Days. It was revealed that Abbie is the Second Witness, one of two prophesied in the Book of Revelation to defend humanity from the Apocalypse. With that destiny, she decided to stick around Sleepy Hollow.

No Good Deed: On the 13th anniversary of the Mills sisters sighting in the woods, Henry Parrish told the Witnesses that he’d had a nightmare that forewarned the Horseman of War was coming, and Moloch would begin the Apocalypse that night. Though Abbie had been warned by undead Andy Brooks that Washington’s secret map would help Moloch to win the war, Crane and Lieutenant Mills used it anyway to enter the netherworld and liberate Katrina. Henry Parrish had cautioned that they might forget about each other in Purgatory, and they held hands as they entered the world between worlds. In a misleading vision, Corbin and Andy Brooks appeared to Abbie and claimed she’d made it to Quantico, but she had a memory of Ichabod and fled the illusion. Ichabod located her and they journeyed through a hellscape and found Ichabod’s wife. There was a wrinkle in the plan: Katrina explained that to be free, a soul must either be granted forgiveness or have another soul take its place. Abbie offered up herself as the one to remain behind. Katrina promised to return for Abbie and gave the Lieutenant and amulet for protection against Moloch. Ichabod took Abbie into his arms and also vowed to come back for her. The tender moment did not escape Mrs. Crane.

Remember This: Moloch found Abbie and declared that she belonged to him. Mills escaped and sought refuge in a life-sized version of her childhood dollhouse. Teen Abbie and Teen Jenny appeared and urged grown-up Abbie to remember something that happened in the woods: They’d seen Moloch raise the Horseman of War. God sent Abbie as a Witness to stop it, but she hadn’t yet gained enough strength.

Well, that Backfired: As Abbie had been warned, using Washington’s map did have dire consequences. Seemingly helpful Henry had turned her faith that there was a purpose to her pain against. His plot trapped her in Purgatory and separated the two Witnesses, which enabled him to break the Second Seal.

Out of the Darkness:  Using a unique key, Ichabod kept his promise to come back for Abbie and save her from languishing in Purgatory.

Three’s a Crowd: Abbie’s looked a little downhearted during Katrina’s return to her husband and gave the increasingly erratic Mrs. Crane a lot of side-eye.

Don’t Let The Door Hit You: Moloch was killed by Henry, so Abbie doesn’t have to worry about him anymore. Henry then began causing more trouble, so with Ichabod’s consent, Abbie killed him.

What Could Possibly Go Wrong? After Katrina’s turn to the dark side, she made a not-so-veiled threat to Ichabod. As Katrina was about to disappear in a mystical cloud, Abbie lunged at her. This was a dangerous idea, Abbie ended up transported back to 1781. Oh, Abbie. Abbie, however, foiled Katrina’s plans to let Ichabod die on the battlefield (rather than keep him alive so that he could be resurrected later.) She also opened a can of whup-ass on some colonial thug that thought he could corner her and get violent. Through the help of her ancestor Grace Dixon, Abbie was able to return to the present.

• Distinguishing Features:  Lovely Abbie is 5’1″ and has a petite frame. She has dark brown hair and is is doe-eyed and with high cheekbones.
• Special Abilities: Abbie is good with a gun, remembers her high school Latin, knows how to pick locks, has technical skills, can ride a motorcycle, is well acquainted with Biblical prophecy and decoding realty jargon such as “cozy.” Abbie can be relied upon to know how to MacGyver a situation.
• Bragging Rights: Abbie fulfilled her dream of becoming an FBI agent
• Living Arrangements: Agent Mills recently purchased a roomy new home, which she shares with Ichabod.
• Past Relationships: Detective Luke Morales and Agent Daniel Reynolds.
• Family Matters: At Fredericks Manor, Abbie had a vision of her ancestor and namesake, Grace Dixon, who had helped deliver and then raise Katrina and Ichabod’s son, Jeremy. Grace’s journal has proven useful in battling evil. She recently discovered that her father is alive.
• Likes: Abbie likes leaving Crane Post-It notes with instructions on how to take a shower, use a coffee pot and watch TV. Her interests include yoga, the Mets, Jane Austen, hockey, performing karaoke, big hug and  bulk shopping for bottled water and such at Buy Plus

  

• Dislikes: Crane’s initial assumption that she was an emancipated slave; Moloch’s claim that Ichabod would deliver Abbie’s soul to him, taking advice from Andy Brooks, haunted houses, lame third wheels getting in the way of Team Witness, slacking off, reckless driving; Ichabod’s nosy questions about her love life.
• Given To: Faking court orders and warrants, violating Captain Irving’s and Sheriff Reyes‘ direct orders, heckling baseball players, thoughtful gestures, being the subject of unrequited love, communicating with big, brown eyes, objecting to and then relenting to Ichabod’s wild ideas, romantic tension with Ichabod, shading Katrina, shooting at every evil creature (sometimes it works), saving the day

Quotes: “Okay, I’ll play along here. I am a black female lieutenant for the Westchester County Police Department. Do you see this gun? I’m authorized to use it. On you.”

“250 years, huh? The Civil War didn’t wake you? Noisy neighbors to the south? Did you get up to pee? I don’t know about you, but I’m getting up to pee every 75, 80 years.”

“Only in Sleepy Hollow does your boss get eaten by a demon.”

Jenny Mills (Lyndie Greenwood)

First Appearance: “Blood Moon”

Backstory: After their father deserted and their mother’s seeming breakdown, Jenny and her sister Abbie were raised in foster care. While in high school, the sisters saw four white trees and the evil creature Moloch in the woods. While Abbie kept mum, Jenny was adamant about telling the cops what she saw. The authorities thought Jenny was delusional. A rift developed between the siblings and Jenny resented that she spent her life in and out of institutions while Abbie went on to have a successful career.

Recent Developments: Jenny escaped from Tarrytown Psychiatric, retrieved passports and weapons and hid out at Sheriff Corbin’s cabin on Trout Lake. When Abbie and Ichabod tracked her down, it was revealed that like her sister, Jenny also shared a close connection with Sheriff Corbin. The sheriff believed her story about the demon in the woods and sent her on missions around the world to obtain rare objects and dig for information on supernatural happenings…. After her escape, Jenny went back to Tarrytown psychiatric. To make amends for their falling-out, Abbie arranged an early-release.

Under the Influence: It was brought to light that Jenny was once possessed by Ancitif, who predicted Corbin’s death at the hands of the Horseman and pronounced that Abbie must die… Jenny disclosed to Ichabod that after spotting Moloch in the woods, she was plagued by strange happenings and frequent blackouts. When she heard voices, Jenny, deliberately got herself arrested and committed to the psychiatric hospital to stop the urge to kill Abbie.

Action Girl: While Abbie and Ichabod visited Purgatory to avert the Apocalypse, Jenny got busy decoding the riddle Moloch posed to Ichabod: “The Saint’s name is a sign. When you know my meaning, War will take form. Then the end of days begins!” Corbin’s occult files directed her to an abandoned church that’s name had been changed many times. She figured out that Moloch was being extremely literal  — the name of the church was — St. Henry’s Parish. Jenny phoned Ichabod —Is there cell service in Purgatory? The Headless Horseman galloped up and shot her tires, causing the car to flip over before she could reach Ichabod. Henry took Jenny captive, but she escaped with assistance from Ichabod and helped him find the key that released Abbie from Purgatory.

Sisters are Doin’ it For Themselves: Jenny was the first one with concrete evidence that a back-from-the-dead Frank Irving was evil. With Team Witness busy preventing the village from being overrun with evil witches, it fell to Jenny to handle Frank Their shootout ended when Henry was killed by Abbie, thus releasing Frank’s soul.

Relationship Status: She shares a past with shady Nick Hawley, who left town. Currently dating Joe Corbin.

• Jobs “Freelance acquisitions” for Adams Antiquities; a boring week working as a paralegal, she stole office supplies; a bartending job working for someone named Mike
• Special Abilities: Pull-ups, improbably escaping her hospital room via a drop ceiling, combat training, giving Sarah Connor a run for her money, shooting her way out of sticky situations, knowing how to flirt
• Dislikes: Sheriff Lena Reyes, whom she blames for having her mother committed, which led to the Mills sisters being sent to foster care.
• Given To: delivering bon mots, quarrels with Abbie, being a tremendous asset to Team Witness, sitting at bars in sexy outfits

Quote: “What do your friends call you? ‘Icky?’ ”

“I have more than faith. I’m a mental patient with a gun.”

Teen Abbie

First Appearance: Teen Abbie “Pilot” Teen Jenny “Blood Moon”

Backstory: The sisters were raised in foster care after their alcoholic father bailed on the family and their mother was placed in Tarrytown Psychiatric. Mrs. Mills subsequently committed suicide. After the age of 12, Abbie was raised in one stable foster home, while Jenny was placed in seven different ones. When the girls went to the woods to secretly drink beer, they saw four strange white trees and the demon Moloch. Though it only seemed like a few minutes, the girls passed out for four days. They were eventually found by Garrett Gillespie (Pete Burris), who was part of a search party. Abbie didn’t want to get in trouble for sneaking beer and kept the whole story including their supernatural encounter to herself and urged her sister to do the same; Jenny insisted on telling the cops about what happened and they thought she was unstable. Jenny was sent to the psychiatric hospital. The sisters were estranged for many years.

Recent Developments: When a grown-up Abbie entered Purgatory and was chased by Moloch, she found refuge in a dollhouse like the one she and Jenny used to play with. The teen version of the Mills sisters came to her in a vision and told Abbie that after the incident in the woods, Moloch made them forget the truth, that they saw him unbind the Horseman of War. God sent Abbie as a Witness to stop it, but she wasn’t yet strong enough.

Lori Mills (Aunjanue Ellis)

First Appearance: “Mama”

Backstory: After she seemingly suffered a breakdown and was hospitalized at Tarrytown Psychiatric, Lori’s daughters went to foster care. Abbie assumed her mother was crazy. When Lieutenant Mills read documents chronicling Lori’s talk of demons, she changed her mind about her mom.

Recent Developments: After a series of suicides at Tarrytown Psychiatric, Abbie and Jenny went to the hospital to investigate. They found a video which showed their mother’s ghost in the room with a man who committed suicide. The Mills sisters thought that their tormented mother, who had committed suicide 15 years earlier, was haunting the hospital. Abbie and Jenny came across another video from one of Lori’s psychiatric sessions in which she insisted that Nurse Lambert pushed her to kill herself. The interviewer maintained that the nurse was a figment of the patient’s imagination but Abbie and Jenny knew there was still a Nurse Lambert walking around the hospital. Abbie and Jenny finally understood that all of their mother’s actions had been to protect them and Mama Mills had been aware of Abbie’s role as a Witness all along. Before her spirit was freed to leave the hospital, Mama Mills directed her daughters to Grace Dixon’s journal which held secrets on fighting evil.

Theme Music: “You are My Sunshine.”

Grace Dixon

First Appearance: “Sanctuary”

Backstory: Grace worked as House Matron at Fredericks Manor, a sanctuary for freed slaves, where she helped deliver Ichabod Crane and Katrina’s son, Jeremy. With Katrina a fugitive, Grace, who was married to Trinity Church pastor, Joseph, took in the child. Townspeople believed that Jeremy could start fires with his tears. Grace and her husband ultimately died in a blaze and Jeremy was sent to an orphanage.

Present Day: Abbie Mills had a vision of Grace in which she learned of Katrina’s baby. It was discovered that Grace was one of Abbie and Jenny’s ancestors. The Lieutenant’s full name is Grace Abigail Mills. When Abbie inadvertently wound up in 1781, Grace performed a reversal spell to get her back to the present.

• Middle name: Martha.
• Only the good die young: Grace lived from 1751-1784. She was 27 when she died.
• Legacy: Thanks to the spirit of Abbie’s late mother, Abbie is in possession of Grace’s journal which contains information on how to fight demons.