Tariq’s learns some unfortunate news.
Cane and a few of his acquaintances rob a church. In the process, one of Cane’s men gets shot.
Back at Stanfield, the students are informed that it’s Sex Week and they learn so by another student running from class to class throwing rubbers around. Tariq’s teachers urge everyone to be safe and attend panels that discuss how to have safe sex. They also reveal the semifinalists who are eligible to receive the fellowship and graduate early.
Tariq is disappointed to find out he’s not one of the semifinalists.
Afterward, Professor Milgram tries to talk to him about it, knowing that Tariq is disappointed he won’t be graduating early as he planned. While she questions if the workload is too much for him as he tutors Zeke, Professor Reynolds looks on in jealousy.
Tariq catches Brayden and Riley in the act.
After Brayden finishes up “orally pleasing” Riley in his bed, he tells her he loves her. But she tells him he can’t love someone he can’t be honest with. She wants to know where he went on the day he went missing. And she suspects that Tariq told him not to tell her. Before Brayden can answer, Tariq, walks in on them and expresses his disgust saying they look like “two raw chicken cutlets.” He’s angry to see Riley in their room after he told Brayden to keep her away. So he storms off.
In Professor Milgram’s office, Professor Reynolds questions what she was talking to Tariq about. Milgram reminds Reynold that she is Tariq’s advisor. And she can’t share what she discusses with him. After Reynolds wants to discuss his upcoming book, Milgram says she’s too busy and she’s prepping an assignment for the “48 Laws of Power” book. Reynolds can help her but she’s not interested in anything else.
Monet’s concerned about Cane.
Things are still tense between Cane and Monet. Cane is missing. And he usually goes with Monet to get the re-up. Instead, she is having Dru do it.
Monet calls Lorenzo to find out where Cane is. He hasn’t been home since visiting Lorenzo in prison. So Monet questions what Lorenzo said to him. Cane hasn’t been home in three days. But Lorenzo tells her he only told Cane he has to listen to Monet. He neglects to tell her that he had Cane jumped by the prison security guards.
Stern’s husband pops up on Tariq. He asks why there are orders on the app that haven’t been handled. He tells Tariq he needs to go to the notorious Q party and push some pills. So Tariq calls Monet and tells her she needs more of her product. She tells him she’s low and will need a couple of days to restock the supply.
Saxe goes to see Paz. He tells her she must testify during Tasha’s case and if she refuses, he would just subpoena her anyway. She doesn’t want to do this because she’s moved on with her life. But she now has no choice and tells him that Tasha told her nothing about Ghost’s murder. Saxe is fine with this and tells her to just say that in court. During a previous conversation with Maclean, Saxe said he needed to look like he’s serious about putting Tasha away. And Paz is the perfect witness to achieve this.
Cane is found.
Diana locates Cane at the place of a woman he hooks up with. She tells him that Monet wants him back and there’s a re-up coming up. Although he’s not on good terms with Monet, if he shows up at the right time, it will show Monet she can still depend on him. So Cane agrees to show up but he doesn’t want Diana to tell Monet where he’s been staying.
Tasha calls Tariq and tells him not to come back to court. She doesn’t trust that he’s safe and being there can make him vulnerable. So she wants him to just focus on making sure Maclean is getting paid.
When Brayden comes back, Tariq tells him he doesn’t want Riley around. It’s dangerous, and he needs to remember he was just kidnapped by Cane. Brayden agrees to this.
Diana tells Monet and Dru that she talked to Cane but she’s not revealing his location. All they need to know is Cane will be showing up to the drop. So Dru won’t need to go with Monet.
Migram and Zeke sleep together again. When Zeke asks Milgram to meet Monet, she reminds him that people can’t know what they are doing. And she tells him to go to the Q party to keep up appearances.
Trace comes by looking for Brayden but just finds Tariq instead. After a tense conversation about being kidnapped by Cane, Trace says he knows Tariq slept with Riley. He saw Tariq passed out in his bed with Riley. Tariq recalls none of this and wonders what Trace is talking about.
Reynolds gets in the way of Tariq’s assignment.
Reynolds pops up at Milgram’s place while Zeke is in the shower, and he doesn’t want to accept that they can now only have a professional relationship. Once he figures out a man is there, he tries to get a glimpse of who it is but Milgram slams the door in his face.
When he gets in the car, he tears up the card Tariq is supposed to receive for the assignment for the “48 Las of Power” book.
The next day in class, Milgram discusses the assignment. Each student is supposed to pick a partner and guard the secrets not the card they are given. And their partner must use the 48 laws of power to get a confession.
Tariq and Lauren agree to be partners and head back to Lauren’s dorm room. They joke about finding out each other’s secrets and acing the project, and Lauren playfully ends up on top of Tariq. Her boyfriend Malcolm walks in on them and gets upset, but manages to take a picture of them on the bed. After Tariq leaves, Lauren breaks up with Malcolm.
Tariq learns about Riley and Saxe.
After Tariq leaves Lauren’s place, he sees Riley en route to the courthouse for her hearing. When she gets there, Tariq takes a seat in the back. And he learns that not only was Riley arrested for marijuana possession but Saxe is her uncle and representing her.
He later tells Brayden that Riley tried to sleep with him twice and Trace can verify this. Brayden doesn’t believe this and says that Riley would never do this. He’s tired of Tariq lying to him and he tells Tariq he’s “f*cked up” before leaving.
Tariq meets with Reynolds who tells him he can still qualify for the fellowship if he completes an extra credit assignment. The assignment is Tariq must write a specific essay about the power dynamic in romantic relationships. Tariq agrees to this and he has no idea that it’s possible that Reynolds will use the essay in his book.
Paz testifies against Tasha.
Before Paz testifies, Saxe’s boss Steve Ott warns him to handle business because if not, he will lose his job. After Paz originally says that Tasha told her Tommy killed Angela and she believes this, she later agrees when Saxe says it’s possible that Tasha told Tommy to kill Angela. And this speaks to the possibility of her being a queen pin. Angered by Saxe’s switch-up, Maclean tells Tasha that Saxe has no idea who he’s “f*cking with.”
Before Cane can make it to the re-up to help Monet, a cop finds him and says he was seen at the location of a robbery. So Cane must go to the precinct for questioning. When it’s looking like Cane isn’t coming to the re-up, Diana texts Tariq to come.
Back in court, Maclean grills Paz. He gets her to confirm that she received money from Ghost’s estate and used that to open a nail salon. And she has changed her story three times when it comes to who killed Angela. So she seems to have a habit of lying to the police and Angela also admitted she made some unethical moves when she was alive as well. Paz also confirms she has no proof that Tasha is a queen pin.
When Brayden runs into Trace, Trace says that Tariq wasn’t trying. And Riley did try to hit on him because Trace saw it with his own eyes.
While Tariq steps away to take Milgram’s call, Diana goes in his bag and finds the card Reynolds switched out that was for the “48 Laws of Power” assignment. The card reads that a professor is sleeping with a student.
Monet has trouble with her supplier.
Meanwhile, Cane calls Ramirez while he’s sitting in the precinct.
After Tariq gets off the phone with Milgram, Diana asks if that was the girl he has been sleeping with. It’s safe to assume she’s talking about Lauren. Tariq says he isn’t sleeping with Lauren and it was actually Brayden’s girlfriend at his door the last time Diana came by. And it was a crazy situation because he wasn’t sure if Monet ordered Cane to do what he did or not. His life is complicated but he does like Diana. They kiss.
Monet tells the supplier, DC Joe, that she wants all the pills and half the coke, but he’s not hearing it. He says that his boss Rico didn’t tell him that so Monet won’t be getting that. So he still wants the money they originally agreed to. Monet says she only has half and he pulls a gun on her.
They start scuffling and when Tariq comes to see what’s going on, Monet shoots DC Joe.
After he falls on the ground, she tells him he “f*cked with the wrong b*tch” and shoots him in the head, killing him as Tariq looks on.
Monet is surprised to see Tariq there but Monet says they can trust him. And Tariq says he will get rid of the body. Monet says that he can help Dru dispose of DC Joe’s body when he gets there.
Brayden believes Tariq.
Brayden breaks up with Riley and says that Tariq and Trace said she hit on Tariq. She denies this and says Trace tried to hit on her. And Tariq is lying to keep them apart. But when Brayden asks Riley what she was doing with Tariq the night he was really out of it, Riley can’t answer. So Brayden leaves now fully believing Tariq and Trace.
Dru and Tariq carry DC Joe’s body into his car. To make it look like he was mugged, Dru says he needs to shoot him again. And he thinks he should be the one to do it because Tariq never shot anyone before.
Cane thanks Ramirez for giving him an alibi and getting him out of the robbery situation. Ramirez goes off on Cane and says he is out of control. And he’s going to get everyone caught up, including Monet. But Cane says he doesn’t care about Monet because she doesn’t care about him. All she cares about is Tariq and she’s changing up the entire business to push more product with Tariq at Stansfield. Ramirez wants clarification that it’s Tariq St. Patrick that Cane is talking about. Cane confirms this and he also says that he and Ramirez should work together and take down Tariq.
Cane’s theory gets some validation after Ramirez takes him home and tells him that DC Joe had to be handled. And Tariq helped get rid of his body. So she doesn’t need Cane or Ramirez to do anything.
Milgram learns about Tariq’s card.
Lauren shows up at Tariq’s place after his eventful night. She tells him she broke up with Malcolm and starts making out with him. To keep Lauren from seeing his bloodied shirt, Tariq tells her his secret for the “48 Laws of Power” assignment. And he tells her he knows she was just trying to seduce him to get the secret. Lauren angrily denies this and leaves.
The next day Lauren turns in her assignment and shows Milgram what Tariq’s secret was. Since the card read that a professor is sleeping with a student, she thinks Tariq just made it up. Milgram is stunned by what’s on the card but tells Lauren she will get full credit.
Maclean goes to Saxe’s office to go off on him, but Saxe explains he had to grill Paz because Ott was on his case and he didn’t want to blow up their plan. But he will make things right by contacting Epiphany Turner. She’s the stripper that Tasha and Tariq have both did illegal activities with.
Monet calls Lorenzo and tells him he went too far with Cane. And she doesn’t want him to do that again. She needs him to understand that Cane is hers.
Paz visit’s Tasha in prison.
Milgram confronts Reynolds about the card. She says she knows he’s been sleeping with his teacher’s assistant Melissa, so the card is actually an admission of his own guilt. So if he doesn’t stay out of her business, she’s taking the card to the administrators.
Brayden apologizes to Tariq and tells him that he believes what he said about Riley. They agree to move forward and watch “Lethal Weapon.”
Paz sees Tasha in prison. Tasha tells Paz that she never did anything to hurt her and only helped her because they are in the same boat. Both are single mothers who lost everything. Paz says she’s not judging Tasha because she could have ended up in Tasha’s shoes. She admits to going to Truth that night but heard Tasha’s voice in her head telling her to walk away and not kill Ghost. After Tasha says she didn’t kill Ghost, Paz says Tasha knows who did. And she should consider telling the truth so she can finally save herself.
What are your thoughts on the episode?
