In Which Pepa Proves She Really IS the Sane(r) One
Recap by Misty Flores
We open up with a montage by Mariano, who discusses types of couples and what keeps them apart or together.
MARIANO [VO]: There are things that a person can't do by themselves: argue, get up and down a ladder, or fold a king size sheet. All my life I've thought that the ideal way to live was as a couple, no matter how weird the couple would be.
We see Paco and Mariano in bed together, and Don Lorenzo walking in on them.
MARIANO [VO]: There are also couples the end up becoming a trio. Couples who end up without each other, because they can't handle the fear of not being up to the challenge.
We see Silvia staring longingly at Pepa from across the bullpen, before she tries to shake herself out of it and go back to work. Pepa looks up and gives her the same longing look.
MARIANO [VO]: There's couples who are impossible to define by logic or gender.
We see Rita kissing Montoya on the cheek, and then the two of them bonding with her baby from last episode. And then there is Silvia embracing Pepa happily.
MARIANO [VO]: But not for lack of chemistry.
Pepa smiles at Silvia's touch, and tentatively hugs her back.
MARIANO [VO]: Couples for whom the chemistry has fizzled out, although they keep on being a family. Families where in one moment, there was a couple. Couples that were in one moment, and now aren't anything.
Povedilla and Rita. Paco by himself. Aitor and Sara, watching the surveillance tapes of the car auction. Aitor falls asleep and Sara sends him to bed.
MARIANO [VO]: And that's what gives us the most fear in our lives - when a couple breaks up. Whatever the case is, the first reaction is always panic. Fear at the change, the loss of control in our own lives. The fear of being alone. But when that time comes, one realizes that the adventure could take us to a better place. Today? Is the first day of the rest of my life. Because as of today, the most important thing in my life, is to learn to fly alone.
Sara, Paco and Mariano sleep alone.
Sara's Apartment
The next morning, Sara watches the news about the blast at the palace, when Aitor shuffles in from the bedroom, rubbing his eyes. She teases him about him falling asleep on the job, and points out to him that she found out the identity of the man who was trying to buy the car at the auction. Aitor hugs her to congratulate her, but he reeks. She hands him a shirt that belongs to Lucas' to wear. He doesn't want to wear it, but she makes him take it.
Paco knocks on her door and asks about Mariano. Sara, trying to keep their investigation a secret from her pop, tries to push him out the door to hide the incriminating files.
PACO: Are you okay?
SARA: Of course!
PEPA heads for the door, back from her trip. Sara scrambles to cover up the files as Pepa greets her brother.
PEPA: Hello, brother!
They give each other kisses on the cheek.
SARA: Pepa!
PEPA: Niece!
They greet each other happily. Paco smiles. And then-
AITOR: Sara, don't you have a towel that's a little bigger-
He's nearly stark naked, except for the teeny towel barely covering his private, which nearly falls at his surprise at the visitors that Sara now has in her living room.
AITOR: -Oh fuck.
Paco's eyes are as wide as soccor balls. Pepa notes the situation curiously. Aitor tries to explain himself as Sara smiles nervously.
AITOR: Paco… um… Inspector Miranda!
He salutes Paco.
AITOR: Agent Miranda!
Another salute.
AITOR: … Sara Miranda.
Sara sighs and flops down on the couch. Aitor shifts uneasily.
PACO: Carrasco.
AITOR: Yes?
PACO: Can you tell me what the hell you're doing here?
AITOR: Paco… it's just that I… gave Sara a ride and-
Pepa, because she's still a rascal, starts smiling.
AITOR: … I really needed to pee, Paco!
PACO: Paco?!
SARA: um.. we… we ended up watching movies all night.
It's a lame excuse, and Pepa decides to intervene on behalf of her niece.
PEPA: That's great! Because today she's hanging with her aunt, right?
SARA: Right!
She settles on the couch with her arm slung around Sara's shoulder. Everyone stares at Paco expectantly.
PACO: Well.. I'll just… yeah.
He heads for the door, but turns back to Aitor.
PACO: That towel is REALLY SMALL.
AITOR : Right, I already know-
PACO: Get dressed! GO! Get dressed, boy!
Pepa's grinning again. Sara pops up to distract her father.
SARA: Do you want a snack for the road? Take it! Later we'll see you at the precinct, okay? Bye, Dad!
She kisses her father goodbye and shoves him out the door. Pepa sits happily on the couch, amused as hell.
Sara shuts the door. Pepa stares at her niece in amused speculation. Sara blinks at the suspicious attention.
SARA (defensively): What?!
__
THE BULLPEN
Curtis explains the plan to get out of this mess they're in with the saint's arm. He's got a friend whose bringing a replica and Nelson's supposed to return with the arm. Povedilla frets that Rita wasn't at her place this morning, and Kike tells him that Rita took a couple days off to go out of town with her little girl.
They freak when they see Montoya walk in with the Cardinal who is early.
__
Paco's Office
Paco heads into his office and sees Mariano sleeping on his office floor. He wakes him up and tells him that he's sorry but he did it for his own good. Mariano has to grow up. Mariano agrees and gathers up his files. Paco notices a picture of the King on his desk and demands to know what Mariano is doing with a picture of the king.
__
THE BULLPEN
The hombres greet the Cardinal. Curtis stalls for time and tells Montoya that Povedilla is going to take the Cardinal to eat and tell the Cardinal about his problems with Rita. Montoya glares at Povedilla, but agrees to delay for 20 minutes.
__
PACO'S OFFICE
Mariano tells Paco of his conspiracy theory that the king is using a double and something's wrong with the king. Paco tells him his crazy but mariano tells him he won't rest until he proves the king is being held hostage.
__
THE BULLPEN
Povedilla leads the Cardinal off. Nelson shows up and tells them the arm is gone. He can't find it.
__
THE LAB
Silvia runs reports on the exploding car. She takes a bit of the fragments and puts it in a machine for analysis, and then puts more under the microscope.
A knock on the door distracts her. It's PEPA, who walks in with a cold face and a file. Never the less, Silvia's face LIGHTS UP.
PEPA(coldly): Good morning, Inspector. Inspector Montoya told me to bring you the toxicology reports.
She stays on the other side of the table. Without a hint of a smile on her face, she holds out the report for Silvia to take.
Silvia's smile fades for a moment in the face of Pepa's cold attitude. She blinks at the file in her face, and suddenly bursts into an amused chuckle.
SILVIA: Is that all you have to say to me after you've been gone a week?
Pepa lifts her brow, unimpressed. But Silvia's still delighted to see her.
SILVIA: Come closer, Woman!
Pepa sighs and stays put.
PEPA: It's just the last time we saw each other, you wanted to file a restraining order against me.
Silvia rolls her eyes.
PEPA: I don't know if it's in effect or not.
Silvia just shakes her head and, still grinning like a loon, walks around the table herself, stripping off her gloves and heading for her ex-love.
SILVIA: No restraining order or anything, Pepa
She throws her arms around Pepa happily, reveling in her presence. Pepa is shocked.
SILVIA: I missed you so much, Pepa.
Hope floats on Pepa's face at Silvia's warm, engulfing hug. Tentatively, she hugs back gratefully.
Silvia pulls back and clasps her hands.
SILVIA: And I know it's a cliché, but just because we can't be a couple doesn't mean we can't be friends, right?
Pepa's smile drops immediately. Silvia smiles unabashedly. Pepa shakes her head no.
PEPA: Silvia, I don't think enough time has passed for us to be… anything.
SILVIA: Pepa, but what time? We've broken up, and that's that! We can still go out for coffee or a drink or just hang out… right? You know, talk about our lives…
Pepa stares at her in disbelief.
SILVIA: -if we've met someone…
Wow. Pepa can't believe Silvia's delusion, and decides to shake her out of it. In her own way.
PEPA: Sure, sure. I guess … I guess you have a point. I'm glad you feel that way.
Silvia smiles happily.
PEPA: Well, I'll take advantage then, and tell you that I've hooked up with a guy.
Silvia's smile freezes.
PEPA: In this precinct. But I can't tell you who it is.
Silvia struggles to hold her smile. It's not working, so she stares at the floor and snatches the folder from Pepa's hand to give herself something to focus on.
SILVIA: Well.. that's nothing… that's normal… you've always been one for hooking up, right?
… right. Pepa decides she needs to up the stakes if Silvia's going to logic this away.
PEPA: But this time it's different. This time I've really lost my head.
Silvia keeps her back to Pepa, clearly distraught as she hears this. Pepa tries to think of what she can say that could be worse.
PEPA: … I'm pregnant, Silvia.
Yeap. That's it. Silvia can't smile. She can only turn and stare at Pepa, stricken.
Before she can process it, however, Sara and Aitor have walked in.
SARA & AITOR: Hello!
Pepa grins happily.
PEPA: Well… see you later.
She heads out, and palms Aitor's neck fondly.
PEPA: Bye.
She lets her hand linger over his chest and heads out as Aitor, curious at the touch, glances back. Pepa, knowing this is exactly the reaction this would cause, meets his eyes quickly and smiles.
This has broken Silvia. She's nearly catatonic as she watches Pepa go.
SARA: Silvia. SILVIA.
Silvia jerks out of her trance.
SARA: Everything okay?
SILVIA: … yes. The results from the car, right?
SARA: Yes!
SILVIA: Well, you should have them in twenty seconds.
She tries to pull herself together.
SARA: … we wanted to ask you a favor.
SILVIA: Tell me.
As Sara fiddles with her file, Silvia can't stop staring at Aitor. He smiles nervously.
SARA: This is Raul Diaz.
SILVIA: Yes.
SARA: The one who tried to buy the car at the auction.
SILVIA: Mmhmm.
Silvia is trying like hell to concentrate and not look at Aitor.
SARA: We need an address.
That snaps her out of it.
SILVIA: For what, Sara? Sara, please, I've already had enough with the gunshot you had last year.
SARA: You also got shot. But we don't stop being cops, right?
Silvia instead finds her attention wandering back to Aitor – and comes up with a disturbing clue (remember Pepa is living with Sara).
SILVIA: That shirt is Lucas's, isn't it?
AITOR: What?! No.
SILVIA: Yes.
AITOR: No…
He blinks, and tries to get the conversation back on track.
AITOR: Sara and I think that there's something suspicious about that car, Silvia.
The test results start printing from the computer.
SILVIA: Ah! Well, look here it is.
She reads the report.
SILVIA: C4?! This is an explosive 5 times more potent than TNT.
She reads the description and hands Sara the report.
SILVIA: This was inside the car.
Aitor and Sara look at each other worriedly.
__
CACHIS
Povedilla eats with the Cardinal and tells him how Rita found out about the woman he slept with and was so understanding about it. Meanwhile, the men search the kitchen for the arm. They can't find it.
__
THE GARAGE
Aitor, Sara, Paco and Mariano pow-wow about the car. Mariano once again goes on about his conspiracy theory. Paco tells Aitor to take off Lucas' shirt, insults Mariano and walks off.
Mariano walks off in a hurt huff.
__
CACHIS
The Cachi's owner puts a plate of meat in front of Povedilla. The hombres realize that the owner has cooked the arm.
The cardinal helps Pove realize he still loves Rita. And Povedilla takes a bit bite of meat.
The hombres freak out.
__
THE BULLPEN
Pepa walks down the stairs carrying three large boxes of files. Silvia, walking by the stairs, glances up and notices.
Not one to pass up an opportunity, she runs for her.
SILVIA: Pepa!
She grabs hold of the top box and smiles at her.
PEPA: Thank you!
She heads for her desk.
PEPA: Hey, your dad isn't around is he?
SILVIA: No, he's gone to a meeting in Bruselas.
They put her files down on Pepa's desk. Pepa immediately starts sorting through them. Silvia tries to figure out how to be casual about finding out who Pepa's BabyDaddy is.
SILVIA: Hey, Pepa. The guy? The father of the baby? Is it Aitor?
Pepa grins.
PEPA: No. It's not Aitor.
Silvia is not comforted by this at all. Pepa notices her troubled expression before Silvia tries to smile.
PEPA: Look, Silvia, it's not because I don't want to tell you, I just don't want to involve him. You understand, don't you?
SILVIA: Sure.
PEPA: Glad to hear it.
She walks away with a big ole' dorky smile on her face, thrilled her plan is working.
__
CACHIS
In the kitchen, Povedilla hurls into a bucket. Kike wonders if it's a worse sin to vomit up a saint's remains than to eat them. Povedilla laments that he has realized he loves Rita. Curtis tells him to spend time with Rita but NOT to do anything until he's ABSOLUTELY SURE he wants her back.
Nelson points out they've lost the cardinal. Curtis tells them to grab the electric knife and head to the precinct to get the dart gun.
__
THE BULLPEN
Sara and Aitor see Paco heading into his office. Silvia walks up to them.
SILVIA: Listen, kids. The guy who pushed for the auction's name was Raul Diaz. He has a junkyard in the Carretera of Andalucia, exit 18.
SARA: Thank you, tita, I owe you one. [to Aitor] Wait for me at the motorcycle, okay? [To Silvia] Thank you.
But Silvia's not done yet.
SILVIA: Hey, Sara!
She sneaks a look at Pepa and inches Sara to the side.
SILVIA: Have you spoken with Pepa?
SARA: About what? I've barely just seen her.
Pepa sees Silvia interrogating Sara and grins.
SILVIA: Well, I don't know. How she's doing, what she's been doing these past few days… if she's hooked up with anyone… something!
Sara smiles knowingly.
SARA: And if you want to know that why don't you ask her yourself?
SILVIA: … Okay.
Sara smiles. Silvia doesn't. She walks away with her shoulders bunched, distressed.
Pepa watches her go, thrilled.
She launches up and chases after Sara.
PEPA: Sara! Sara! Sara!
Sara, inches from her father, sighs in exasperation at the accost of Lesbian Aunt #2.
SARA: Great.
PEPA: Have you spoken with Silvia? Has she asked about me or…
SARA: Could you two please leave me alone? One wants to know if you've had an affair, the other wants to know if she's asked about you – seriously, you're acting like teenagers!
Paco comes out of his office, distracting Sara.
SARA: Dad!
Pepa walks off in a happy girly skip, thrilled that Silvia's asked about her.
Sara tells her father that Mariano has gone off to see if she can prove that the king is really the king. She begs Paco to not let Mariano go alone. Paco sighs, agrees and hugs Sara.
--
SARA'S HALFWAY HOUSE FOR KICKED OUT PARTNERS
Paco goes to Sara's house and tells Mariano he believes in him and will support him. Mariano happily makes up with him and tells him his plan - to pretend to be a mentally retarded man to go to a benefit with the King. It's a really dumb idea, and Paco loses it before finally he agrees to go with Mariano to the king's palace.
THE BULLPEN
Curtis hides in an office with a tranquilzer gun, waiting for a chance to shoot the Cardinal, who arrives with Montoya to take the arm. Montoya can't get into the room where it's hid (it's locked) and tells him he'll get the key.
Povedilla frets about their souls, but Kike points out that considering everything they've done and everything they're going to do, this is pretty small on the list of things offending God.
SILVIA, sitting across the bullpen from Pepa, has now taken to gazing longingly at Pepa. She realizes what she's doing and tries to snap herself out of it.
Pepa stops fussing with her work to do pretty much the same thing. Silvia glances up, and when Pepa smiles, Silvia's TOO-HAPPY-FAKE-SMILE plasters on.
Pepa sees Montoya running down the stairs.
NELSON alerts the group that Montoya's come down the stairs. They have a minute.
PEPA watches Gonzalo and gets an idea.
PEPA: What's up, Gonzalo?
MONTOYA: Hey.
PEPA: How are you?
MONTOYA: Good.
PEPA: Yeah?
Silvia looks up and sees it. She watches in ill-disguised jealousy as Pepa flirts with Montoya.
PEPA: Did you cut your hair?
MONTAY (blushing): Yeah.
PEPA: Yeah? You look really handsome.
He opens the drawers to search for the keys, but Pepa grabs hold of his chin to hold his attention.
PEPA: Listen to me. What are you doing on Friday?
THE CARDINAL paces in front of the room. Curtis is about to shoot when Povedilla yanks the gun away from his sights and holds it hostage.
SILVIA is now openly glaring.
GONZALO: Well… nothing.
PEPA: because there's a new movie out
POVEDILLA keeps struggling with the rifle with Curtis.
PEPA is still flirting.
PEPA: and I'd like to-
She begins to whisper seductively in his ear. Silvia looks like she swallowed a bug.
Gonzalo bursts out laughing.
POVEDILLA refuses to give up the gun. Curtis yells at him about the gravity of the consequences if they're caught.
GONZALO: Well, we'll talk later. I have to go up.
PEPA: Okay.
They clasp hands. Pepa lets it linger as she smiles triumphantly in a stricken Silvia's direction.
Silvia can barely muster a smile back.
CURTIS keeps arguing with Povedilla. He reminds Povedilla about what it was it was like for Povedilla in jail. Povedilla was raped in jail.
He loses his resolve. Curtis yanks the gun just as Montoya comes up and shoots the cardinal. Kike is there with the chair as the man falls into it.
Montoya wants to know what happened but Kike feigns innocence.
Curtis just sighs. It's done.
--
AT THE GALA
Paco and Mariano (acting like a disabled person) show up for the gala, but Mariano's grand plan of trying to get the king to shake his hand doesn't work. Paco vents that he should have listened to Marina.
Mariano is wounded. He wants to know how long Paco has been listening to Marina, and wheels off.
--
THE BULLPEN
Silvia is still staring at Pepa. Pepa smiles at her, and then notices Curtis coming her way.
She grabs a folder filled with papers and heads in his direction, timing it so they collide and the papers go flying. The commotion gets Silvia's attention.
PEPA: Forgive me, Curtis! I'm sorry! Did I hurt you?
CURTIS: No, why would you think that?
He bends down to get the papers. Silvia watches the interaction carefully.
PEPA: Oh! Look! The clasp broke off my belt!
She lifts up her shirt, flashing Curtis some very toned belly. His mouth drops.
PEPA: Fuck, I just bought it and it ripped!
CURTIS: What the fuck!
PEPA: I know!
CURTIS: Those belts must cost a fortune, too!
PEPA: Seriously! This is handstitched calf-skin!
Curtis eyes Pepa's flat belly in appreciation.
PEPA: I bought it to hold in the belly that's starting to form, Curtis!
She lifts up her shirt even higher, revealing her flat (awesome) stomach. Silvia watches fitfully.
Curtis gapes.
CURTIS: … what belly? Woman for a belly like that I would walk to the ends of the earth.
She laughs.
PEPA: You don't believe me, right? Give me your hand.
His eyes grow wide, unable to believe his luck.
PEPA: Touch it. Touch it so you can see what I'm talking about. Touch it! Touch it!
She grabs his hand and places it on her stomach. Curtis smiles, dazed.
Silvia is not nearly as thrilled to see this taking place.
Pepa drops his hand and smiles innocently at hi. Curtis blinks, and jolts back up, trying to shake himself out of his lust-coma. He hands her the file.
CURTIS: Well here you go. I'm going to go-
Without warning, Pepa grabs hold of his head and plants her lips against his.
Silvia gapes in disbelief.
Unable to take it, she stumbles out of her chair and dizzily makes her way across the bullpen.
Pepa pulls back immediately, eyes on Silvia.
Until she remembers Curtis, and notices the awed, lovestruck expression across his face.
And realizes she has actually just kissed him.
Pepa LAUGHS awkwardly.
PEPA: Oh! Curtis!
He automatically tries to lean in, but she jerks back and pats his shoulder.
PEPA: It was an impulse! I'm sorry! I just felt like a kiss! But – thank you, Curtis!
She walks fast for the stairs. Curtis is dazed, but thrilled.
CURTIS: An impulse, she says!
Transcriber's Note – I'm going to be honest here, I have no frickin' clue what Curtis says after this. It's almost total slang, but it SOUNDS like he's saying he'll take any impulse he can get, because Pepa is a master kisser. Any Spanish Slang Masters care to translate this one for me?
--
THE SCRAP YARD
Aitor and Sara show up at the scrap yard and meet Raul Diaz. Sara gets two calls from Lucas but doesn't take them. They question Raul Diaz about the car. Raul denies knowledge and tells them to leave if they don't have a warrant. He walks away.
Sara gets a text from Lucas saying he's going to the desert for two weeks and will be out of contact. Aitor, unaware of what she's doing, tells her to stop fucking with her phone, they're on a mission. Sara yells at him, telling him Lucas is leaving for two months.
A shot rings out.
--
THE GALA
At the party after the ceremony, Paco tries to explain himself and says he only came to protect Mariano because he would do anything for him.
Mariano suggest he get the globe given to the little mentally disabled boy, then, if Paco really will do anything.
--
THE LAB
The hombres prepare to cut off the arm of a dead body while Curtis brags about his kiss with Pepa. No one really cares, but Curtis tells them if Pepa decides she wants him, he'll treat her like a princess.
Povedilla freaks out again about what they're doing and begs the unconscious cardinal's forgiveness. He realizes with a sinking horror that the Cardinal is not breathing.
They realize he's in cardiac arrest and run for the defibrillator.
--
THE SCRAP YARD
Aitor and Sara make their way through the junkyard to the source of the shot.
They find Raul Diaz, shot dead.
--
THE GARAGE
Silvia keeps working on the car. Pepa walks by.
SILVIA: PEPA!
Pepa stops. Silvia heads over.
SILVIA: I've already seen you with Curtis. It's Curtis, isn't it?
Pepa's mouth quirks, but she says nothing.
SILVIA: Well, I don't see you with him. I don't know why.
Pepa inhales deeply.
PEPA: And who do you see me with? Are you so interested in who I'm with… or are you going to start looking for boyfriends for me now?
SILVIA: Definitely no. But we're friends. And friends are allowed to have opinions, right?
Pepa decides it's time to put an end to this.
PEPA: No, Silvia. Friends are happy for each other.
Silvia glances down.
PEPA: Are you happy that I'm pregnant? Are you happy that I'm in love?
Silvia tries her hardest to nod – it's the worst nod ever.
PEPA: No. You're not happy. You've spent the whole day with your heart on your sleeve, torn apart because of what I said to you earlier, with all your little fake smiles that you kept giving me.
Silvia stares at her, silent, but unable to deny it.
PEPA: You and I can't be friends. Do you know why? Because I don't want to. Because I have a ton of friends, and I don't want you to be one of those. Silvia, I'm in love with you. And we can go have a coffee, or get a drink, have dessert if you want… but as girlfriends. And if not?
Pepa fiddles with her keys, and with a sigh, delivers her honest ultimatum.
PEPA: Then nothing.
With a bittersweet smile, she walks away. But as she goes, she tosses off one last remark.
PEPA: Truthfully, I'm not pregnant. I would only ever have a baby with you.
She doesn't look back, but it sinks in for Silvia, who is touched.
A smile floats on Silvia's face, before she remembers to stifle it.
--
THE GALA
Paco tries to get the globe away from the kid, but he tells him it's 50 Euros for the globe.
--
THE LAB
The hombres fumble with the defibrillator, and try three times before they get the Cardinal's heart beating.
They take their ready made arm and put it in the new container, and send the Cardinal on his way.
Curtis sighs and crosses himself in relief.
--
THE GALA
Mariano tries to talk to him into giving them the globe but the kid wants 50 Euros. He ups his price to 70 Euros. Paco gives him the money, but then the kid turns on them and shouts that they stole his globe.
As a reporter snaps pictures, Paco and Mariano flee the scene with the globe.
--
THE SCRAP YARD
Aitor calls in the murder as Sara stands over the body, stricken. Aitor tells her that this guy would have been shot if they had followed him or not.
Another shot rings at them. Aitor and Sara track down the would-be shooter, but it's a scared employee. He tells them they killed his brother.
--
End EPISODE