Lies will always catch up to you.
That was the central theme of Power Book II: Ghost Season 3 Episode 6 as Effie and Brayden were finally brought to the carpet to explain their actions regarding Lauren’s “death,” and to say Tariq was in no mood for their excuses would be the understatement of the year.
But at the end of the day, those three are tied together, for better or worse, until they can do something about the Noma problem.
Tariq was reeling during this hour but doing his best to keep it all hidden behind his tough exterior. He is a St. Patrick, after all.
While he went in fists first when he confronted Brayden, his decision to lull Effie into a sense of calm before taking her to the site where she killed his girlfriend! A bold move if I’ve ever seen one.
The thing was, both Tariq and Effie weren’t wrong in many ways. Tariq was obviously allowed to feel betrayed and hurt that the person he’d grown to care for and started to build a life with wasn’t honest with him, but Effie wasn’t wrong when she told him that she did it to protect him.
Tariq: You ruined everything, Effie. And you fucking lied about it. Why?
Effie: She wore a fucking wire! You know the rules. Why would they be any different for her?
Effie wasn’t trying to kill Lauren out of spite. She was trying to eliminate her because she thought she could bring them down. She was a threat, and they all know that threats must be dealt with in their line of work.
And it felt like, at that moment, Tariq understood, but that anger at both Effie and himself was too powerful to overcome.
He’d allowed himself to go all in with Effie in a way he’d never done with anyone. He loved Lauren but could never be his true, authentic self because he hid so much of himself away from her.
With Effie, he could kill in front of her. They could sell drugs together. He could admit the wildest, most devastating thing in the world to her, and she would have still stayed by his side. But loyalty and trust are two things Tariq wanted more than anything, and finding out she couldn’t be trusted wasn’t something Tariq could forgive.
But regardless of his hurt feelings, there was no way he was getting away from both of them anytime soon. Not with Obi on his throat every second of the day.
Whatever plan they come up with to get out from under Noma (I really hope they don’t kidnap or threaten a child), it’s going to take all of them working together to make it happen, and right now, they’re so fractured, it’s hard to see how they’re able to pull it off.
Especially with Cane smelling blood in the water and immediately going behind Tariq’s back to swoop in on both Effie and Brayden.
You have to admire Cane’s tenacity and his quickness. He recognized what was going on, and he immediately sought to further fracture the bonds Tariq had in an effort to get what he wanted. And for all Cane will talk about Tariq and his tendencies, they’re very similar. They want what they want and don’t care what they must do to get it.
Cane has had a thing for Effie since forever, so his sweeping in to be some kind of knight in shining armor with the promise of drugs to sell felt more personal than business-oriented, but with Brayden, Cane could recognize by now how valuable Brayden could be.
And if suddenly Brayden’s loyalty wasn’t solely pointed toward Tariq, that could be beneficial for him.
Cane also must have figured with the way his family was falling apart at the seams, it wasn’t the worst thing in the world to acquire some new soldiers.
The Tejada’s reaction to Lorenzo’s death was somewhat subdued. For half the episode, I forgot they were supposed to be planning his funeral because it was business as usual for most of them, sans Dru, who was pushing the revenge angle the most.
Dru and Lorenzo’s relationship was pretty strong looking back at it, and he was always steadfast in wanting Dru to lead the family, even when it didn’t seem like the wisest decision. And it felt like Dru wished to be worthy of that designation in his death.
Going after the Russians didn’t make sense because we know they didn’t kill Lorenzo, but for Dru, he heard the rumors and wanted to make a stand and do something for his father and in the name of his family.
No one else seemed to agree with him, though, and you could feel his frustrations grow and grow to the point where he just took it upon himself to exact a plan.
One thing you never want to do in the Power Universe is start a war. The bloodshed won’t stop coming, and often you lose more than you win.
But Dru was blinded by his pain (another theme this week along with the lying), and all he could see was the need to show Lorenzo and everyone else on the streets that the Tejadas may have suffered a loss, but they were still to be feared.
Monet was in rough shape during this hour, trying to put on the widow face while also trying to reestablish her position in the family.
Ever since Lorenzo came home, she’s taken a backseat in many ways, and now with him gone, it should be her time to take back control. Dru may not have listened to her when it came to the Russians, but between Dru and Cane, she trusts Dru more and therefore taking his back after the shootout was better for her.
But what does she do moving forward?
Cane is onto her, and there is no way he totally believes her denial about being involved in Lorenzo’s death. She was a little too mean for no reason to be totally innocent, even if she did have a reason to be upset with Cane, considering he was lying to her too.
And if I had to put money on it, Cane is the one that figures out what Monet did. But Cane is an opportunist, so if he were to piece it all together, would he use it for his benefit or hang her out to dry?
Of the three, Dru and Diana would be the ones Monet should be most concerned with. Diana and Monet’s relationship is still on thin ice and Dru? Well, we saw how he moves, and he’s now at a place where he’s not afraid to pull the trigger or do what he feels needs to be done in the name of his family.
This brings us around to Gordo, who apparently felt not an ounce of anything as he was still willing to help Dru as soon as he called.
I have to imagine Monet won’t like the two of them continuing to see each other because that relationship could put a wedge between her and Dru, but what options does she have now?
You forget how many lies are floating around until everything is right in front of your face.
Everyone on this show is lying about something and lying to someone. And I expect by season’s end, someone’s lies will get them killed.
Everything Else You Need To Know
- Jenny is ruthless! She wasn’t above forcing Lauren or Saxe’s hand, but in her desperation to win, she may be underestimating the people she’s dealing with. Saxe isn’t someone you can ever trust, and Lauren is an impressionable girl who still doesn’t seem able to reconcile the Tariq she fell for and the one everyone keeps talking to her about.
- Salim, Salim, Salim. This man had the audacity to bash Lorenzo while in the Tejada house at his REPAST. That was extremely ballsy of him. And good on Diana for recognizing that he was never going to be the guy for her because his superiority complex would never let him see every side of her and her life.
- Salim showing up with flowers to try and apologize to Diana after rightfully getting dumped is so lame. Take the L and let her grieve in peace.
- I did not have Diana and Tariq hooking up again on my bingo card, but I get it. Emotions were high for both of them, and they have that shared history. I still think Diana could do better than Tariq, but it’s slim pickings at Stansfield!
- The look on Davis’s face when all hell broke loose at the funeral was priceless.
- Estelle telling Tariq about himself was a moment in time. Will he take anything away from what she said? No. Will he eventually end up next to Ghost? Most likely.
- Estelle, Tasha, and Yas all together, where they can discuss Tariq’s poor life choices. Oh, to be a fly on that wall.
War is definitely on the horizon, and who even knows what will happen with this case moving forward, but if Lauren and Saxe are cooperating, it’s not looking good for anyone!
Hit me in the comments with your thoughts about this hour and where you think things may be going next!
As always, you can watch Power Book II: Ghost online so you don’t miss any of the action!
Whitney Evans is a staff writer for TV Fanatic. Follow her on Twitter.