Trama

Quarles and Duffy kill Gary Hawkins and try to frame Raylan for his death, while also getting the FBI on his tail. Meanwhile, Quarles raises the stakes in his war with Boyd Crowder, and Ellstin Limehouse tries to decide whose side he's on.

A shocking murder forces Raylan to confront his past mistakes. Boyd grapples with Harlan's corrupt sheriff.—FX Publicity

Number One Gangster Son Sammy is having a steak at a nice restaurant with his thug associate (David Atkinson) when he gets a call on his cell' 'phone. Following Quarles' instructions, Sammy turns the conversation to Givens, telling the voice on the line that Deputy U.S. Marshal Raylan Givens is "the source of the heat down here. Turns out he's dirty and willing to help out for some consideration," says Sammy, confident that the FBI is listening as he explains that Givens is in Boyd Crowder's pocket all the while.

Outside the restaurant, Special Agent Susan Heller (Elena Evangelo) who is conducting the surveillance, contacts a superior. "Sir, you're gonna wanna hear this," she says. Quarles' plan to get the feds paying more attention to Givens and less to Sammy and Quarles starts to bear fruit.

Quarles is being driven back from Tulsa by Mike (Jonathan Kowalsky) with Wynn in the passenger seat. Tanner, who is secretly spying for Limehouse, calls Quarles. "He wants to meet up to explain," Quarles tells Wynn after hanging up. "Brave man," Wynn says quietly.

Givens is having a quiet drink by himself in the crowded bar beneath his quarters, listening to entertainer Lynda Kay sing, appropriately, a melancholy Country & Western song about "Jack and cokes."

Quarles, Wynn and Mike stop the car in front of Gary's and Winona's house, where Gary is released from the trunk. Quarles, telling the confused man that he needs him to deliver a message to Givens, unceremoniously shoots Gary who falls dead on the front lawn. It is a brutal message.

The trio returns to Quarles' suburban home to find Limehouse and a pair of men waiting on the side lawn. Limehouse introduces himself to Quarles and explains that Boyd Crowder is backing former police officer Shelby for Sheriff. Quarles pointedly asks why this would interest him? "Because," Limehouse says, "I likes to back the winning side."

The next morning, Givens goes downstairs from his room above the bar where owner and day bartender Kent Chilobeck (Joe Stevens) informs the Deputy Marshal that he saw someone messing with the trunk of Givens' car and scared him off. Sure enough, Givens finds scratches around the trunk lock, but nothing unusual in the trunk. Givens then gets a call summoning him to Gary's and Winona's home.

Givens is surprised and saddened to see Gary's body where it fell on the front lawn, and identifies the victim for Lexington Homicide Detective Gerrity (Stoney Westmoreland) who had been unsuccessfully trying to reach the home's owners, Gary and Winona. He attempts to question the Marshal, who doesn't feel much like taking -- especially after it is suggested that Winona might somehow be involved. "We always look at ex-boyfriends, ex-wives," he tells Givens.

Back at the office, Tim explains that Gary had been living in Tulsa for months under an assumed name. Meanwhile, FBI Special Agent in Charge Jeremy Barkley corals Assistant U.S. Attorney David Vasquez (Rick Gomez) after court, and asks to look at Vasquez's file on Givens.

Tanner Dodd, out of concern for his own safety, meets with Quarles in public and apologizes profusely for attracting attention from the law by taking down Boyd's oxy "clinic" and killing three people in the process. He promises to do whatever he can to make it right with Quarles.

Back at the Marshal's office, Art calls Givens into his office to warn the Marshal that the homicide detectives will "burn you down" if it establishes another connection between Gary and Givens. Two hit men coming after Givens and Winona and then Gary disappearing for three months already makes the Marshal hot enough a person of interest in their investigation as Givens is well aware. "The last thing I want is to see these peckerwoods here handcuff you right here in the marshals' office," Art tells him. "What do I need to know?" Givens responds: "Gonna rain tomorrow, might want to bring an umbrella."

Winona arrives at the office, summoned by Art. She doesn't yet know of Gary's death and Givens has to break to the bad news. "Police found him on your lawn this morning," Givens says. "He was shot." Winona is distraught and wants answers. "I know he was involved in some money stuff, but what did he do to deserve this?" she wants to know. Givens has far too few to offer.

Givens exits Art's office to find local Homicide Detectives and FBI agents waiting. Art tells him that the prints were found on a bullet casing at the homicide scene match those of Givens.

Givens under questioning explains that some months earlier he has "dropped" a cartridge from his service weapon on Wynn Duffy's chest as a warning to "get the hell out of Kentucky and don't come back." Probing further, Detective Gerrity is openly tickled by Givens' recitation of the earlier scene in Wynn's trailer office when he punctuated his message by telling Wynn "The next one might be comin' little faster." When Gerrity genuinely expresses his appreciation for that patter, Givens admits that he "heard it on the Johnny Carson show" and had always wanted to use it in the right situation.

It's possible -- likely even -- that the catridge case was used to frame him, Givens suggests. The detectives are skeptical and ask for the Marshal's gun to check ballistics. Homicide Detective Dempsey (Tim DeZarn) says he's going to check Givens' story with Winn and Quarles.

Sheriff Tillman Napier (David Andrews) exits his log cabin home and heads toward his patrol car. He climbs in, starts the engine, remembers something and then exits the car to head back inside. The squad car explodess in a ball of fire and debris, the force of the blast knocking the Sheriff to the floor of his front porch.

Detective Dempsey, meanwhile, has brought Quarles and Wynn in for questioning. Neither criminal acknowledge knowing Gary Hawkins, nor will they will confirm Givens "thrown bullet" scenario. Wynn explains that Givens recently came looking for Gary and, when Wynn couldn't locate the real estate agent, the Marshal savagely beat him. "Between you and me, Raylan Givens is a very angry man," Wynn tells the detective, as the two criminals calmly construct a frame around the Deputy Marshal.

A singed and very lucky Sheriff Napier barges into Johnny's bar looking for Boyd, who he arrests on a charge of planting the bomb in the lawman's car. Boyd, who denies any involvement, is handcuffed by Deputy Sheriff Mooney (William Gregory Lee) and dragged out of the bar.

Back at the office, Winona is brought in for questioning. The Homicide Detectives reveal that Gary was involved in the attempted hit on her and Givens. Winona then confronts Givens. "Why didn't you tell me, Raylan?" she asks. Givens didn't want to put Winona in any extra danger. Art tells the divorced couple that the Lexington Detectives want to search their house and cars. They assent, as an angry (for not knowing who her late estranged husband really was) and grieving Winona storms out.

It keeps getting worse for the Marshal as AUSA Vasquez and FBI SAC Barkley enter the office. "We're here about Raylan Givens being a dirty cop.

The FBI, AUSA Vasquez and Givens sit down with Art in his office as Barkley outlines his case that, after reading the file compiled on Givens by Vasquez, "it is strongly suggestive the Deputy Marshal is guilty of pervasive corruption." Art tells Barkley that "Raylan may be a lot of things but I've never gotten even a whiff of dirty." When the haughty Barkley counters with "Well maybe that says something about you, Chief," Art cannot believe what he heard. "Did you honestly just say that?"

Barkley, too arrogant to realize that he has just made a powerful adversary, persists and cites the claims that Walter Vondas (a/k/a "Terry Powe" Cut Ties (2012)) made that Art had used extreme interrogation tactics to extract information from him. Givens adoitly brings the conversation back to his own situation. Barkley is pleased to oblige, saying that he suspects Givens of "working with and perhaps being paid by the convicted criminal Boyd Crowder." Givens can only shake his head and sigh.

Sheriff Napier perp walks Boyd into the jailhouse in front of the local media summoned for the event, explaining that Boyd has been arrested for putting dynamite under the lawman's car. While the Sheriff grandstands, Boyd says nothing and stares straight ahead.

Givens storms out of the FBI interrogation -- much to Barkley's displeasure -- and with Tim heads down in the elevator to resume his interrogation by the Lexington police. Halfway through the ride, however, Givens hits the emergency stop button. He explains to Tim that he has to search his vehicle. Tim calmly demands the truth from his colleague. "I think Quarles put a murder weapon in my car," says Givens, remembering the incident with his trunk and the scratches around the lock. Tim decides to let his colleague "escape."

Outside, Givens sees that he might be too late as the cops are already searching his vehicle, including the trunk. Just then, Winona calls. She has found a planted gun inside the home where Gary's body was found.

LPD, finding nothing in Givens' fleet vehicle, head off to see if a search of the house will yield a better result. Givens jumps into his vehicle and speeds away. He meets up with Winona at a park where she hands off the weapon. "You going to throw it off a bridge?" she asks without much humor. Sad and exasperated, she tells Givens not to come find her this time and drives away.

Sheriff Napier enters his office to find Tanner Dodd waiting. Tanner explains that he is there to collect payment. Napier refuses, telling Tanner that he wasn't supposed to set off the car bomb until the Sheriff was safely back inside his house, revealing it was all a ruse to frame Boyd because his support of Napier's election opponent.

Givens returns to the office to learn that from Detective Gerrity that there was no ballistic match between Raylan's service weapon and the bullet which killed Gary Hawkins. "Doesn't mean you didn't use another gun," Gerrity says. "I'm keeping this case open."

FBI SAC Barkley is fuming. Art explains that Barkley refuses to divulge the source of his information for launching this investigation into Givens' affairs. And without that source (the wire tap on Sammy), AUSA Vasquez won't prosecute, so Givens is off the hook for now. "It doesn't mean you're not dirty," Barkley barks angrily.

Sammy receives a call from his father who has an informant somewhere within the FBI. He explains that the plot to frame Givens hasn't worked. Sammy shares the news with Quarles. And then he shares worse news: Quarles is too much of a liability. He is on his own. "You're out," Sammy tells Quarles. Furious, Quarles pulls his sleeve gun on Sammy -- and then thinks better of it. He retracts his hide-out gun, shaking in rage.

Givens lets himself into Quarles' home to find Wynn belatedly painting the room where Quarles' had a semi-nude man tied and gagged. "Tell your boss I have the gun that killed Gary," Givens says. "Ask him where he thinks it might turn up next." Givens warns Wynn that the "SS Quarles is sinking" and it might be time to jump ship. Wynn goes face-to-face with the Deputy Marshal, clearly not as intimidated by Givens as he is by Quarles. "There's the old Wynn," Givens says.

Quarles drives home in the darkness listening to a preacher on the radio. He ignores a call from his family and takes one of the Oxy tabs that he specializes in peddling. The vial is almost empty, so he is not just a wholesaler, but a user as well.

He arrives at Limehouse's compound in the middle of the night. "What can I do for you, Mr. Quarles?" Limehouse asks. Quarles, brazenly advancing across the bridge into Nobles Holler to within arm's length of Limehouse, replies: "You said you like to back the winning side."

To be continued....