Momentum around the case picks up after more dead bodies are found. Alice finds herself navigating both professional and personal pressure when forced to work with her ex. Meanwhile, Catherine finds solace in a familiar landing spot.
It's impossible to escape the past. Too many complicated emotions are tangled up within it. Alice left Marshall after years of abuse. She's forced to work alongside him. He's the homicide detective in charge of Oliver's case. A joint task force has been established between the FBI and NYPD. Alice's hard work brought legitimacy. It also forced her to contend with this familiar face. He's trusted to investigate despite also being an abuser. That's not the totality of how Alice sees him. She has happy memories of their time together. It's raw when she shares them. Out of empathy, she tries to reconnect with what was good. However, everything was ultimately tainted by this violent behavior from Marshall. He's not genuinely remorseful for anything that he did. He's just upset that Alice's accusation is enough to hinder his career. Whenever he apologizes, it's in pursuit of getting something from her. He wants her to visiting his ailing mother. Alice agrees as she was raised by her after being abandoned by her own mother. She wants to confide in her. Yet Marshall's mother remains loyal to him. She too quickly writes Alice off as cold and destructive. Alice doesn't understand the extent of her actions. She's destroying a good man for no reason. A gun is the only way to get Marshall to back off. Alice must protect herself. Marshall pleads that he's changed. He offers no evidence of that.
People are eager to dismiss the word of women and girls. FBI agent Choi believes Alice is too new and inexperienced to be leading this investigation. He forces his way in. He undercuts her instincts. He praises Marshall's ideas. Alice knows it's unlikely the suspect checked in to a shelter and signed up to work a catering job under her real name. That's the lead others pursue. Instead, Alice sees the benefit of interviewing Mira. It's important to meet the person who spent real time with Catherine. Alice wants advice for how to handle the interview. Nora tells her what to expect. She suggests Alice position herself as a surrogate mother. Alice doesn't know how to do that. She forges her own path. She knows Mira is strong. She was the one who saw her holding the scissors. She pushes until she provides more details. It's not enough to satisfy the men in the room. They believe Mira is purposefully withholding. Her absence of memories can't be understood. They don't know what to expect. Instead of looking for clarity, they ridicule the process. They do so verbally for all to hear. They need their opinions to be known. Alice's lead is the one Catherine left behind. That's more or less why she let Mira live. She wanted the police to know Jay Easton was involved in trafficking too. It wasn't just his son.
Catherine's motivations can't easily be understood though. The men of the task force believe she is conning powerful individuals for their money. The financial angle isn't worth pursuing. Alice knows that. The motivation runs deeper than that. This is Catherine seeking revenge against those who hurt her. She was abused by these influential men. They don't remember her. She can't forget them. She's on a righteous path. This was what she was raised to be. She was trained to blend in with her surroundings. She's unnoticeable until she strikes. This job invades every corner of her life. She doesn't know how to exist outside of it. She's looking for opportunities that will benefit her in the long run. It's odd seeing her as a nurse taking care of a patient. That also provides new insight into her. She's genuinely caring while providing the relief he needs. He doesn't care what she's doing either. He just needs to know she's scoring big in her cons. That's enough satisfaction that he gives her whatever she wants. She also wants the sister of her former friend to get out of the trafficking world. She can't take care of her herself. She doesn't know how to function and provide stability. She can't even offer answers as to what happened to Isabelle. That presents as the new purpose behind her mission. She's avenging her friend instead of herself. It's not personal to her even though everything would indicate as such. She can't internalize her pain so she needs to carry it on behalf of someone else.
