Previously on: Edgar-veda's "one-man campaign bankroll" planned to use blackmail to allow a drug cartel the opportunity to buy up Farmington. Edgar-veda took said Box O' Blackmail. Vic played the Armenians against the Mexicans, each thinking the other group had the box.
City controller Robert Martin was assassinated. Vic's federal friend Olivia has a file in the blackmail box. She asked Vic for help getting out from under the cartel.
Tina and yet another new partner respond to a burglar alarm. She stupidly goes down an alley alone, gun drawn. Behind a dumpster, Tina discovers a naked man with blood smeared on his chest.
In the clubhouse, Edgar-veda informs Vic he's turning the Box O' Blackmail over to some friends at the Justice Department. Vic can join him if he wants to get credit too. That's not good enough; Vic wants Cruz in jail and "not for 30 days on some pissant charge his lawyer can plead down to a fine."
Doesn't Edgar-veda care about Olivia? Turning over the box now means "throwing a good woman and her career under the bus." Edgar-veda shrugs that Olivia got herself into her own mess. Vic knows Cruz gets Rios to do his dirty work and wants a chance to bust him. Vic's the inside man. Edgar-veda says no way; Vic's had plenty of chances. Vic pleads for more time and Edgar-veda agrees to 36 hours.
"What happened to his clothes?" Dutch asks of Tina's suspect, now wrapped in a police blanket. Tina has no idea; she found him naked. She's hoping someone can do a psych exam on the guy. "This time of night, good luck," says Dutch. Billings is utterly uninterested, playing with his tie; let him know if naked girls show up. Nice.
Vic crouches over Lem's headstone; Ronnie joins him. "The last time we were here, Shane stood right next to us," Vic sighs, "He watched as I vowed to get the guy who killed Lem." It's been months and Vic hasn't kept his promise.
Vic tells Ronnie about Edgar-veda's timeline for turning in the Box O' Blackmail. Ronnie worries about losing their leverage with Rezian. Vic's spent the last two hours sitting here in the graveyard trying to come up with a plan. Vic thinks he knows how to get rid of the Armenians, save his job, bust Cruz, and "give Lem the justice he deserves."
There's a close-up of Lem's gravestone. Inscribed upon it are the words HONESTY, LOYALTY, OFFICER, and BROTHER. Vic knows they can't afford to wait for Shane to make a mistake. "We go through with what you're talking about, there's no turning back," Ronnie says slowly, "...Doing this in a rush to meet some deadline, we're bound to make a mistake." "We owe it to Lem!" says Vic. He promises that taking care of Shane will never blow back on them.
"Where you guys been?" Shane asks when Vic and Ronnie enter the clubhouse. Oh, nowhere, really. Just visiting the grave of the guy you murdered and plotting your death. Vic apologizes for being so stubborn about the Box O' Blackmail. Cruz won't want to pay to get the box back, but Rezian might.
Vic asks Shane to call the Armenian boss about purchasing the box. Shane's all for it, eagerly guessing they could make at least $100,000. He doesn't seem to realize that amount splits a lot neater two ways. "It's gonna feel real good to move past this," says Shane.
There's a knock at the door and an unexpected visitor appears: former Strike Team member Tavon. Ronnie and Vic greet him with hugs. Tavon recently got off disability, but still has some physical therapy to go; he transferred to Hollywood Division. "Oh, you went out and found yourself another brother?" Tavon jokes when he sees Julien, "They letting you ride in the front of the bus yet?"
Tavon expresses his sympathy about Lem, then asks to talk to Shane upstairs about someone named Gary Barba. "Hope he fell into a meat grinder," grumbles Shane. Julien asks who Gary is. Vic replies cryptically, "A blast from Shane's past."
Shane dishes exposition to Claudette; Gary was a rape suspect when he and Vic were working Vic, but they never had enough evidence to arrest. "Piece of shit goes off and kills his family a week later." His 10-year-old daughter Camille was the sole survivor. Gary's been on the run for the last 6 years and just tried to get in contact with Camille. Tavon got involved in the case because Camille's foster parents live in Hollywood.
Gary has been calling Camille constantly for days, trying to talk her into meeting up. The girl told Tavon that she was close to Shane during the original investigation. Shane remembers watching her in protective custody, a job that seems like it would've been better suited to Vic or Lem. Anyway, the girl will only meet with Gary if Shane is there to protect her.
Outside, Tavon apologizes to Shane for hitting Mara the night the two men slugged it out in Shane's living room. (Longtime viewers/readers will recall that never happened; it was a lie Lem fed Tavon to keep Shane from getting in trouble). Shane shrugs that bygones are bygones.
Vic has observed the conversation. Shane asks if he can go back and forth; Gary's back and he wants to take him down. Vic inquires if Tavon's memory is back. Shane shakes his head: "He still thinks he smacked Mara around." Vic is relieved to hear that. Shane looks vaguely sick.
Vic knows something about the Box O' Blackmail, but is afraid what Cruz will do with the intel. "I don't pay you to be afraid," says the developer. Vic points out he isn't paid enough to "stand by while you assassinate city officials." He wants Cruz's word there won't be more civilian casualties. Vic heard all the Armenian bosses are meeting sometime tonight. Cruz tells Vic to give the details to Rios.
Camille asks why her dad is coming back after all these years. "Ah, baby, your old man is a bad penny. He was bound to show up sooner or later," says Shane. He promises not to leave the teen's side until she's safe and Gary is in handcuffs. Shane also offers the girl advice he would've done well to take himself: "You are better off dealing with trouble now than looking over your shoulder for the rest of your life."
When Corinne answers her front door, Vic sighs that he's been calling all morning and knocking. Corinne, still in her robe and PJs, says she took a personal day from work. Vic reminds her they were supposed to meet about counseling for Cassidy. Corinne wants to deal with it tomorrow.
"You've been bitching to me about being more involved," Vic says irritably. He looks at his ex suspiciously. "Are you on something?" Corinne admits she took sleeping pills the night before. "Looking at your eyes, they look more like downers," says Vic. Does she know how addictive those can be? I mean, she should; she's a nurse.
Corinne argues she hasn't been able to sleep too well lately. Vic points out she's got primary custody of three kids, two of whom have special needs. Maybe they need to figure out another arrangement if she's popping pills to deal with it. "Let that be the last thing you say before you leave," Corinne growls. Vic is incredulous: "Our daughter's falling apart and you're snoring the day away?" Corinne slams the door in his face.
The naked man claims he can't remember anything that happened after 11 PM last night. He was watching the late news and has a history of sleepwalking. Usually, though, he wakes up somewhere in his house like the garage or kitchen. Once, he got arrested for public indecency after being found naked in a convenience store.
"How does your girlfriend feel about ya runnin' all over town naked?" Dutch asks, trying to lighten the mood. Jeff says he's been separated from his wife for six months. Hey, It's That Guy! Scott Michael Campbell played Dr. Weston on the Netflix series Longmire.
Jeff is a recovering addict who doesn't drink or use drugs. He's scared he might've hurt someone, but can't remember it if he did. Dutch had Tina send a sample of the blood on Jeff's body to the crime lab; they'll know soon enough whether it matches any recent assaults or murders. He inquires about the marks on Jeff's wrists. "Sometimes I tie myself up at night to stop myself from leaving," he explains.
Clearly not a foolproof strategy.
Tina brings Dutch a folder. Six months ago, uniforms responded to a 911 call from Jeff's wife. Maybe Jeff finally killed her.
Shane reports to Vic that Camille is doing well and likes her foster family. Barba wants to meet Rezian in the park this afternoon. In a filthy warehouse, they tell Rezian it'll cost $100,000 to buy the Box O' Blackmail. Rezian wants to see the box first. Vic can bring it at 9 PM if Rezian has the money. Both sides are allowed to bring three lieutenants and no weapons; Vic and Shane will be armed.
Tina hangs up a composite sketch of Robert Martin's killer. Danny recognizes the man. Claudette asks why this is the first she's hearing of Danny being attacked in the line of duty. "The Army surplus room was supposed to be cleared. I didn't wanna get another officer in trouble," she explains. Danny spent her own time looking through mug books and couldn't find the suspect.
Claudette interrupts the Strike Team's lunch break to ask them to track down Robert Martin's killer. He's the same man responsible for the body draggings. She asks where Vic is. Ronnie tells her he's on his way back from following a lead. Claudette doesn't buy that: "I put you in charge of the Strike Team so that I could have somebody who could be held accountable...If I wanted to be lied to daily, I would've left [Vic] in charge."
Claudette shuts the clubhouse doors, saying she knows Ronnie is covering Vic's ass as usual. He looks a little scared by her tone. Claudette has no choice now but to put an official reprimand in Ronnie's file. She warns, "One more and you lose the team, plus your job, if I can manage it." Claudette is willing to tolerate Vic until his hearing, but who'll still be standing when he's gone?
Vic and Ronnie talk outside in the parking lot. Shane has volunteered to handle the Armenian side of their deal. Vic bets he's already spent his share of the money. "Holy shit. This is gonna work, isn't it?" Ronnie breathes.
The blood on Jeff's body came back AB- and Jeff himself has a different blood type. Dutch found out his wife called 911 because Jeff was choking the woman in her sleep. He doesn't believe the guy really has parasomnia.
Billings thinks Dutch is projecting his failure to lock up Lloyd onto an innocent man. "I would hardly say Lloyd burned me. And haven't you got a lawsuit to lose?" Dutch asks nastily. Claudette decides they need to have a conversation with Jeff. Billings is more interested in calling his lawyer, so Claudette will help her old partner.
Olivia worriedly tells Vic that Rios asked for help getting himself and two other guys out of the US tonight. She's considering the idea of turning herself in, but she'll keep Vic's name out of it. Vic is sure she has other options. Hypothetically, how would she go about smuggling Rios to Mexico?
Vic wants to stall Rios. If they can definitively connect him to a crime, they can get him to turn on Cruz. "Vic, I can't have anymore blood on my hands," Olivia says tensely. Vic promises that won't happen.
Vic informs Rios, "Witnesses made two of your boys for the Robert Martin killing." Are they the same two he's bringing tonight? Half of LAPD is looking for them and Rios needs to make sure they're well-hidden.
Vic asks how Rios is getting out of the country. Rios basically tells him "nunya." Vic argues it is. Rios answers that his new ID is being made as they speak. Vic gives him the meeting time and location: Armenian junkyard, 9 PM.
Julien's knock-and-talk didn't turn up Martin's shooter. Ronnie didn't have any luck with the Byz Lats. Shane lets the guys know he'll be late to the meeting; he's still trying to catch Camille's dad. Ronnie looks worried. Vic reminds Shane that Rezian could get cold feet if they start changing the plan, but relents. Shane and the Armenians better be there on time.
Jeff play semantics: "I was grabbing Sophia, not choking her. I was asleep when I did it." He was also asleep when he wandered into the convenience store naked. Jeff admits he hasn't been formally diagnosed as a sleepwalker. "And yet, it's your excuse for everything," says Dutch, "And yet, you won't see a doctor about it." Both good points.
Dutch sits on the interrogation room table and leans close. He thinks being naked in public helps Jeff regain feelings of power he lacks due to his failed marriage. Exhibitionism is a rush "until it doesn't work anymore." Dutch theorizes Jeff "got into some kinky sex," but things went too far and his partner got scared. So Jeff attacked her.
Jeff repeats he isn't lying, then stutters he never meant to hurt anyone. Claudette suggests Dutch step out for a few minutes.
Olivia ran Rios' name through her ICE databases again. After several previous searches turned up nothing, Rios has been flagged on a federal watch list. Cops with cameras are following him 24/7. Olivia isn't sure if Rios is wired or not: "I need to turn myself in now while I still have control." It's downright spooky how much she sounds like Lem. She can arrest Rios when he picks up his fake IDs from her.
Vic lets Ronnie know about the surveillance. It'll be hard to deny involvement when there's photos of him and Rios on the day of the Armenian hit. "Shit," says Ronnie, throwing his taco onto his passenger seat in frustration. Vic is willing to let Rios get away to keep his family safe. They'll still have Rezian, his crew, and Shane.
Vic also tells Cruz the feds are watching Rios. Cruz needs to keep Rios away from the meeting at the junkyard.
Jeff is embarrassed and disgusting with himself for trying to choke Sophia. Claudette understands. Jeff admits he wanted to hurt Sophia because of the bitter custody battle over their daughter. He's ashamed of other thoughts he's had too.
Jeff followed Michael Vick's dogfighting trial and became hooked on the idea of the rape stand dog fighters use to breed the females. He wondered if he could design one for human women. Jeff's been having memory flashes of a young, screaming blond woman: "I think I wanted to kill her."
Camille sits at a picnic table in the park, waiting for her dad. Shane's in a van parked at the curb. The girl is scared. "You're not scared, baby. You're brave," Shane soothes. Tavon asks Shane to tell him what happened the night they fought. "I thought Lem told you," Shane answers evasively.
Tavon's replayed it in his head thousands of times. "We got a 16-year-old girl out there who's scared to death," says Shane, "Maybe this isn't the right time for this."
Cut to Shane locking Gary in the cage. Gary wants him to tell Camille he's sorry for killing Camille's mom and two brothers; he almost killed Camille too. "Sometimes it's too late to apologize, no matter how much you mean it," says Shane, an expert on that subject.
Ronnie sends the desk sergeant on an errand and starts digging through the drawers. Shane has the money from Rezian. Vic wants him to be at the meeting early. Ronnie takes Shane's gun out of the desk drawer, fiddles with it, and puts it back.
Outside, Tavon asks if he can come to Shane's this weekend and give Mara a long-overdue apology. Seeing her in person is the only way he can make peace with himself. Shane understands, but doesn't think Mara would like it. (Also, she probably forgot all about Tavon and the lie that was spun for her benefit).
Tavon nods: "After all, she might not have her iron ready this time." He's slowly come to remember everything about that night, except for the moment he supposedly hit Mara. Tavon knows it didn't happen. "You musta gone through that windshield harder than ya thought," Shane says coolly.
Tavon is pissed that Shane used Lem to cover his ass. He bets it wasn't the first time. Shane freezes in place, staring. "Now I know who you really are...and so do you," Tavon finishes.
Shane goes back to the clubhouse, looking shaken. "I thought you were headed to the junkyard," says Vic conversationally. Shane mumbles he forgot something in his locker. He then suggests the Strike Team needs a fresh start without him. Shane knows they'll never be able to put what he did to Lem behind them. He can transfer if the others want him to.
"Me and Ronnie, we got no axe to grind," Vic lies. When Shane leaves, Ronnie asks, "Can you believe the balls on that guy?" Julien struck out on canvassing another part of town. Ronnie thinks the three of them should do the next round together; splitting up hasn't worked.
In the parking lot, Corinne hands Vic her bottle of downers, which she's supposedly only been taking for a week. She's exhausted and knows she's not handling the kids very well. Corinne loves them more than anything and won't give up on Cassidy. She begs Vic not to take the kids from her. "You think my first move would be to rip the kids from you?" he asks through his teeth.
Dutch managed to find Jeff's victim, a 34-year-old woman named Fiona, in a dumpster. She was stabbed five times. Dutch bets Jeff dumped Fiona's body using his car, parked it somewhere, undressed, and started wandering around to sell his sleepwalking story. When they confront Jeff with the crime scene photos, Jeff lawyers up.
"We gotta pull Shane outta there," Vic pants at the junkyard, "I can't do this." Ronnie tells him it's a done deal; they can never make it this clean again. Vic says, "We still have a choice." "Do you think Shane gave Lem a choice?" asks Ronnie.
Elsewhere, Shane's cell phone rings with, what else, "Dixie." But it isn't Vic on the other end; it's Mara. She wants a favor. Shane tells her now isn't a good time. Mara keeps talking. Can Shane pick up Jackson's prescription on his way home from work?
Shane's call waiting signal beeps. Rezian tells Shane to give his phone to his associate. Shane points a stern finger: "I see any calls to Armenia, I'm coming after you."
In his car, Vic is worried that he got Shane's voicemail. He casually asks Ronnie where Shane is supposed to be meeting the Armenians. They're acting like they don't know because Julien is driving. Vic refuses to "let a team member fall off the map in a red zone."
Rezian complains the Mexicans' arrival is taking too long. Shane steps out to take a look around the junkyard. Two men approach the meeting spot, but don't see Shane. The Mexicans open fire on the Armenians. Shane takes out his gun, but, thanks to Ronnie's earlier gunsmithing, it goes click instead of bang.
One of the Mexicans spots Shane hiding amongst the wrecked cars.
"He's still not answering," sighs Vic, snapping at Julien to drive faster. The dispatcher crackles over the radio. Shots fired near the Armenian junkyard. Vic turns on the blue lights. When they arrive, he dials Shane's phone again. They hear "Dixie" beeping from nearby. The man himself, very much alive, appears. He lies that he was late because he had to sign Tavon's arrest report.
Vic says he tried to call with information on the Mexicans. Shane explains Rezian took his phone. Vic breathes a sigh of relief. "I'm still shaking," says Shane. Ronnie can't find the briefcase of money. Shane's just glad the Mackeys will be safe. Ronnie looks disappointed that Shane's still breathing.
Tina has information that could change things for Jeff. His victim is alive and at Mission Cross Hospital. She reported running into a naked man outside a bar the night before. The woman stepped outside for air after too many mai tais, tripped, and hit her head on a fire hydrant. Naked Jeff pulled on her arms to help her out. She freaked out and ran back to the bar.
Claudette goes back to interrogation, but the door is locked. She calls for a uniform to bring the keys. When the door is opened, we see Jeff motionless in large pool of his own blood.
Vic goes to Corinne's house to let her know she and the kids are safe.
Billings gripes some more about his disability lawsuit. The city is countersuing him for basically filing a nuisance suit. His "bitch dyke lawyer won't take the case without a retainer, but I can't afford the retainer without winning the case." Billings then asks if Dutch is planning to eat that sandwich.
"You know, Steve, someone died here tonight," Dutch points out. Billings helps himself to the sandwich even though he didn't get an answer. Dutch knows why he worked so well with Claudette: she challenged his assumptions and crazy theories.
Billings looks uncomfortable when Dutch lays a hand on his arm. For better or worse, they're partners. Dutch needs Billings' head in the game, not worrying about his lawsuit or counting the days 'til retirement.
At home, Mara puts some soft rock on the stereo. Shane enters. They embrace and kiss. Mara asks where he's been. "Lookin' for a place to hide $100,000 where Vic won't find it," he sighs. He describes the cash as a consolation prize. "Vic and Ronnie tried to kill me tonight."
Shane splashes cold water on his face in the bathroom: "It's sheer luck I'm even alive right now....The worst part is, they think I'm too stupid to even realize it [was a setup]." Shane heaves another sigh and stares at himself in the mirror. End of episode.
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