Cop Killer Cop

S04E16

Michael and Jesse are trying to get Jesse's old handler Marv to accept their hot list of Michael-burners in exchange for their old jobs back, but it's proving delicate to arrange. While that's going on, Sam gets the team on a case involving a missing cop friend of his, suspected of having killed some dealers and fled the state with their stolen drugs. After minimal investigation, they find out the missing guy's partner is the real perp -- and worse, he had Sam's friend killed. They figure the only way to bust him is to lure him into selling the drugs to Michael (undercover as a drug dealer, of course). When that doesn't work, as everyone but them knew it wouldn't, they ratchet up the bad guy's paranoia and drive him to try planting the drugs in the home of his innocent dead partner. Then he gets busted.

This has apparently been enough time for Marv to agree to the handoff of the NOC list. But when it happens, the supposed Homeland Security agents backing Marv up turn out to in fact be bad guys who shoot Marv dead as soon as they have the list in hand. Don't know why they left Michael and Jesse alive, but it might have something to do with who they're working for: Michael's old recurring A-list nemesis Brennen. That rates a "To Be Continued," right there.

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A rare set of previouslies -- it's all about that list of people who burned Michael, and Jesse's old handler Marv, and their recovery of the list in Santo Domingo. And then Michael's infinitely slow decision of what to do with it.

While Michael VOs about that decision, we see him alone in the loft late at night, fooling with the list on his computer. It seems to be copy-protected, which is good, because I was wondering about that. Jesse shows up, and they discuss how Michael has decided to hand it over to the government. Jesse's already made a call to Marv offering the list in exchange for their jobs back. The only problem is that Marv neither trusts nor likes Michael: "In his mind you're always gonna be the guy that burned me." Michael wants to talk to Marv alone, and Jesse reluctantly agrees to set up a meeting. Clearly he's concerned about the effect of Michael's charm on Marv.

day, "Marv -- Jesse's Old Handler" is meeting Michael by a pool (where all meetings in Miami are held), running down the list of offenses Michael has committed. And those are just the ones that aren't in the burn notice. He doesn't trust Michael, and he'll only help out if Michael agrees to come clean about all his contacts with the people on the list. Michael says that would be too dangerous, but when Marv stands firm and demands a polygraph test, he agrees.

Cut to Marv in his hotel room, wiring Michael up to a lie detector (which I guess he travels with, just like all counterintel guys) and starting with the baseline questions, like name and occupation. By now, we know the response as well as he does: "My name is Michael Westen. I used to be a spy."

Jesse retrieves the flash drive containing the list from behind a wallboard in Madeline's garage. "Why don't you boys just buy some file cabinets?" she asks from the doorway. Nice security, Jesse. He promises her that this is the last time, and alludes to the likelihood that he and Michael will soon be "back in." Which is the first Madeline's heard of it, and Jesse realizes he just stepped in it big time. Madeline's nice enough to play it off so he can get away relatively clean, but there'll be a reckoning between the Westens soon, I'm sure.

At the Carlito, Sam presents Michael with a thick file -- Jesse's copy of Sam's reports from when he used to watch Michael for the Feds. "You had a daily yogurt tally?" Michael asks in amazement. Well, that would explain why the file is so thick. Sam's also got a case -- a missing cop friend, but Michael's already heard of him from the papers. "The guy's dirty, he fled the state, Sam," he says, brandishing a non-Herald. Sam tells him not to believe everything he reads. "You of all people- should know that." Touché.

Sam meets with the missing cop's wife Claire and his partner Pete, who maintain that the guy, Detective Kevin Baruchel, is innocent of what he's been accused of (killing drug dealers, stealing their junk, and going on the lam with it), even though there were traces of coke in his car and some fishy phone records that have prompted the police department to call off the search to cover it up. Which doesn't make much sense, but this is the Burn Notice world's version of the Miami PD, after all. Both Pete and Claire are willing to offer any help they can. "I'll do my best," Sam promises "Claire -- the Client."

Back at the loft, Sam brings the team up to speed, and shows them the phone records that show some contact with a guy who lives near the dealers that Kevin allegedly shot. Then he guilts them into joining him on the case. Like there was any chance they wouldn't.

Sam and Michael wait at the home of "Ted -- Drug Dealing Scumbag" until he comes home. They present themselves, and as soon as Michael mentions "Detective Baruchel," the dude bolts. But then Jesse steps out and tases him, allowing to Fi to put an ugly leather purse over his head. "My good head bag is at the cleaners," she explains to Jesse before they dump Ted in the trunk of the Charger.

After a quick VO about different interrogation techniques available to spies versus cops, Sam and Michael are sweating Ted in a locked shipping container. Ted drops the name of Kevin's partner Pete, which confuses our heroes a bit, but they still manage to threaten to let him cook in there until he talks. Finally Ted spills -- Kevin's dead. Well, that was easy. Ted says Pete was the one who killed the dealers and stole their goods. Kevin got suspicious, so Pete made Ted pretend to be a source, then take Kevin out and shoot him. Obviously Michael has to pull an enraged Sam off Ted after that, but at least they figured out where the missing cop is.

Outside, the team contemplates its move. Fi points out that nobody's going to believe Ted over Pete, so Sam resolves to break the case himself. Or themselves, as the case may be. "We'd be pitting ourselves against a police officer, and it won't bring your friend back," Michael warns. Clearing Kevin's name is all Sam wants. "Go tell Kevin's wife," Michael says. "Let's see what we can do." Sure, make Sam do the hard part.

The morning, the only sound while Sam breaks the news to Claire is Michael's VO about how much this part of the job sucks (which, again, is why he made Sam do it). "In the end, all you can really do with that kind of pain is decide what you're going to do to make it right." Sam's determined hero-shot in his car looks like a good start.

By M. Giant

Michael and Fi meet Sam at the Carlito to plan. Sam's abstaining from alcohol, so you know this one's got him upset. Michael suggests luring Pete out into the open to sell the drugs he stole and get him busted. The only risk is Pete finding out and destroying the stash, which means everyone will need to keep quiet. "Sounds like we have a drug deal to set up," Fi says. What part of keeping quiet does she not understand?

Back at the shipping container, Sam and Jesse and Sam's scary-ass knife threaten Ted into calling Pete to set up a meeting with a guy named Ray from Jacksonville. After Ted goes along, Sam stops by Claire's house and helps her get rid of Pete, who's still showing up and playing the supportive friend. After he's gone, Sam assures her they're almost done: "We're setting him up tonight." And plan A always goes so well.

Meanwhile, Fi has driven Michael to another meeting with Marv, and he's a little surprised that she's willing to help out. "I thought you hated the idea of me working for the government again," he says. She "explains" that she just wants Michael to have a choice, and then to choose to stay. Michael doesn't get that at all, so Fi says, "I hope you're never in a situation where your survival depends on your ability to understand relationships. You'll be dead in seconds. Go. Really." Whatever, Fi, if Michael understood relationships he wouldn't be in one with you.

Up in the hotel room, Marv wants to know more about Sam and Fi and how much further this goes. Michael insists it's jus the four of them counting Jesse (well, and now Marv). Michael says he can't sit on the list forever, and Marv promises to set up a meeting. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have more questionable activities to attend to," Michael snots. There's that Westen charm.

Late that night at a marina, Michael walks to the meeting place while Sam (holding a sniper rifle) whines in his earpiece about staying in his line of sight. "Every time we do this you act like I can shoot around corners." Michael walks up to a fuel drum on the beach, just before Pete shows up. Pete's pretty suspicious, given Ted's absence, and draws on Michael, who matter-of-factly says he cut out the middleman -- namely, Ted's throat. Michael makes a pitch, but Pete says the deal's off. Michael says Pete doesn't know about him because he's careful, meaning he kills people to keep them quiet. "Just like when a dirty cop comes to me with a deal, that dirty cop doesn't get to walk away!" Michael lights and tosses a Zippo, and a moment later, both of them are in a circle of flame. It's kind of impressive, but it's not the kind of thing I look for in a business partner. "I call this the ring of trust!" Michael yells, and asks, "Are we going to do some business together?" Pete agrees. "Fantastic, let's do that!" Michael says happily. I guess now they just have to work out details while the napalm burns down.

day at the loft, Michael is yelling at Pete on his cell phone when Sam shows up for an update. Michael says Pete's getting nervous enough that he might just flush the drugs, so Michael has a new plan, which Sam's going to hate. "Pete had Kevin killed," Michael points out, "but he never actually saw the body." Sure enough, Sam hates the idea, especially since it's going to involve Claire, but he goes along.

Sam and Jesse now has to go over to Claire's house and ask her to take part in this. Basically the plan is for them to borrow some of Kevin's stuff, and for Claire to act like she's relieved about something but can't talk about it. She agrees, and then they ask her for a secret meeting place Kevin might have used. Luckily, Kevin had a boat. Actually, that's going to be less lucky later.

So later, Pete shows up at Kevin's boat out in the boonies, looking for Sam. Sam makes like they just missed Kevin, warm fries and all, but he must have bolted. Pete's obviously pretty surprised to hear that Sam talked to Kevin, and pretends (poorly) to be happy about it. He's even less successful hiding his mental freak-out when Sam says that Kevin's talking to Internal Affairs. Pete pumps Sam for more information, but Sam plays it cool while cranking up Pete's paranoia.

Sam then calls Fi, who needs to borrow some "cop shoes" and is getting them from Madeline. Which is of course just going to be a conversational quicksand pit for her, because Madeline wants to talk about Michael's impending departure. She says the last time Michael left, she didn't know if he was dead or alive for three months. Fi's been there, and she promises Madeline that if Michael leaves the same way again, Madeline won't have to wonder that this time, "Because I'll kill him." Okay, problem solved, then!

Pete's already over at Claire's house, trying to get her to talk to him. Claire acts like she has a secret, and doesn't tell Pete anything beyond the "news" that Kevin's fine. Jesse and Fi are watching from a car in their cop suits and sunglasses, and when Pete heads back to his car, they intercept him. They don't even have to do anything but claim to be with IA before Pete starts getting all squirrely. They act mysterious and tell him not to leave town. As soon as they walk away, Pete calls Michael and tells him the deal has to happen today. Michael's only too happy to oblige.

At the loft, the team discusses Pete's choice of meeting place: Kevin's boat. Fi doesn't like it, but Michael says they don't have a choice. Sam and Fi will cover Michael and call the cops when they know Pete has the coke. "How about we kick his ass first and then we call the cops?" Sam suggests. "We'll see," Michael says indulgently. That's so romantic.

Later, Michael's at the dock while Sam and Fi watch from a distance, Sam again equipped with the sniper rifle. Michael gets on the boat, and when Sam and Fi spot Pete in the trees at some distance, he's got a remote detonator. Fi calls a warning to Michael, and he dives out of the fireball and straight into the commercial break.

Pete's car roars away while Sam fires a couple of ineffectual shots at it from his sniper rifle. Then Sam and Fi run down to the dock in time to find Michael's jacket floating in the water -- and then Michael hauling himself out of the water unharmed. Sam figures they blew it, but Michael says they're not done as long as Pete still has the drugs and thinks Kevin's still alive. He borrows Sam's phone to call Jesse (who's positioned near enough to have heard the boom but not near enough to do anything but stand around waiting to hear from the rest of the team) and tell him that they need to catch Pete before he gets back to Miami. Jesse's job: arrange a traffic jam on the causeway. Michael's new plan is to get Pete to plant the coke at Kevin's place, and it's going to be up to Sam to make sure the cops see it happen. With all of Sam's buddies on the force, how hard could that be?

Michael VOs about the ease of causing a traffic jam, which Jesse has done by faking a breakdown on the causeway. That makes it easy for Michael march right up on foot and to grab his target at a choke point. "Your target is likely to be distracted, unarmed, and sitting in your potential getaway vehicle," Michael VOs, Sure enough, Michael walks right up to Pete's open window and carjacks him, forcing him to turn around. He's doing a pretty good job of acting pissed off at Pete for trying to kill him, too.

Michael makes Pete drive to some building and gets ready to shoot him to a dumpsters. "I think the circle of trust is broken, Pete," Michael says. Pete blubbers and offers to hand over the coke to Michael for free. Michael pretends not to go for it, even though he acts like it would have been nice to have a cop source. Pete somehow gets the idea that Michael wants him to get, which is to plant the drugs at Kevin's place and call in a tip. "Then I'm clean, and I'm yours." Michael acts like he likes the idea, and also that he likes Pete. Don't oversell it too much, Michael.

Sam, meanwhile, is trying to get a Lieutenant Briggs to come with him to Kevin's house, which Briggs doesn't agree to until Sam takes Briggs's gun away and points it at him. Michaels' VO is oddly silent about what a dumb idea that is, especially in the parking lot at the police station.

Apparently it's nighttime when Michael and Pete get to Kevin's house. Pete's getting cold feet, but Michael gives him two options: "Drug planter or organ donor." Finally Pete gets out of the car with a duffel bag. He enters Kevin's' house and starts sticking the baggies into an air duct, which is when he gets nabbed by Lt. Briggs, who's there with Sam and some uniforms. Sam brings Pete up to speed: Kevin's dead, Ted's not, and Pete's confused. "Sort it out in prison, you son of a bitch!" Sam finally says, and decks Pete. He offers to let Briggs handcuff him, but Briggs will take a rain check on that.

At Kevin's funeral, after Sam talks to Claire, Briggs comes up to shake his hand, and Michael offers to buy him a drink. "I could sure use it," Sam says. I bet -- after not drinking this whole case, he must be pretty thirsty.

Michael walks into Madeline's kitchen, which is place that's a hell of a lot more dangerous for him right now than that exploding boat. Michael apologizes -- not for wanting to go back, but because she didn't find out from him. He promises to let her know this time before he leaves -- if he leaves, and they drink to it. Jesse comes in, telling Madeline his "file cabinet's" fixed and telling Michael that Marv's ready for the handoff, complete with a team from Homeland Security. "Good luck, boys," Madeline sings out after them.

Michael and Jesse meet Marv and three men in black at the top of a parking ramp and hand the flash drive to Marv. Jesse advises Marv to have them fly with him. "It's all taken care of," Marv says shiftily, but declines to say where he's taking it. Michael senses something amiss, and the fact that the "agents" have guns with silencers on them confirms it. "Marv? Who are these guys?" he calls out. Marv says he's sorry, and that they threatened him, and then one of the "agents" shoots Marv twice in the back. Oh, man, you don't do that to Richard Kind. As Marv falls dead to the pavement, they climb into their SUV, and shoot out the tires on Michael and Jesse's rental car on their way past. I wonder why they're leaving Michael and Jesse alive, until Michael gets a gander at the dude smirking out at him from the back of the bad guys' SUV: "Tyler Brennen -- Part-Time Spy/Full-Time Sociopath." Whoa, I did not see that coming. "Brennen," Michael mutters. Jesse asks who that is. "Our worst nightmare," Michael says. To be continued. Remember when Detective Paxson was Michael's worst nightmare? Yeah, me either.

By M. Giant

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M. Giant is a Minneapolis-based writer with a wife, a son, and a number of cats that seems to have settled at around two. Learn waaaay too much about him at Velcrometer, or just e-mail him at m.giant[at]gmail.com.