Inside the bank, a strange calm had settled. The gang members, though still tense, allowed themselves a brief breath—they had the upper hand, for now. They gathered quietly in a corner, whispering about escape routes and unfinished business.
Amid the crowd of hostages, a disturbance broke the silence.
A commotion.
"What's the problem?" A.D. asked, standing still but alert.
A woman behind Emily Hale called out, her voice sharp,
"That man's been misbehaving with her."
A.D.'s eyes narrowed. He didn't need more details.
Something in him snapped.
A.D. walked forward with slow, deliberate steps. His tone was cold.
"You crossed a line," he said to the man, who was now trembling. "You need to learn a lesson."
To Jackson Reed:
"Put the bomb jacket on him."
The man screamed, fell to his knees, begging for forgiveness, but A.D. didn't flinch. Jackson strapped the jacket around him and shoved him into a corner.
The message was clear: there were lines even a criminal wouldn't allow crossed.
From a distance, Emily Hale watched in silence. For the first time in her life, someone stood up for her so fiercely. The fear she'd felt began shifting—into respect, even curiosity.
A.D., recognizing the weight of what had just happened, ordered the men and women separated. Then, quietly, he handed a bottle of water and a small pack of food to Emily.
"Sorry about that," he muttered, eyes avoiding hers.
She nodded, her emotions tangled—violated, comforted, confused.
Ethan Black, now recovering from his shoulder wound, had been watching everything.
He knew who Emily Hale was.
And more importantly, he remembered what she had cost him.
Rage boiled in him. As the others were distracted, he quietly grabbed a gun and made his way to Emily.
Just as he raised the weapon, A.D. appeared, swift and silent.
He snatched the gun from Ethan's hand and leveled it back at him.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Ethan:
"You don't know who she is!"
Tension surged. Logan and Marcus rushed in to break them apart. Ethan was dragged into a back room, restrained.
Later, Emily approached A.D. and asked to speak privately. He hesitated, then allowed her.
In a quiet corner, she spoke, her voice low but sincere.
"Thank you... for earlier. And... I like you."
A.D.'s expression froze. Then his hand twitched, rising halfway like he might slap her—but he stopped.
He shook his head.
"You don't know what you're saying. Go back to your seat."
Emily didn't move.
"I don't care. I don't need a reason. I just do."
A.D. walked away without another word.
Back with the gang, Logan asked what everyone was thinking.
"What's the escape plan now that Ray's in custody?"
A.D. glanced at him, calm and focused.
"Don't worry. I've already made preparations."
He remembered the small letter he had tucked into the doctor's coat—its contents known only to him.
"But first," he added, "we get Ray back."
He selected a group of hostages—including the man in the bomb vest, a few others, and Emily Hale—unaware of her identity.
They stepped outside, hands raised, tears in many eyes.
But not in Emily's. She trusted A.D., strangely.
Guns pointed from every direction.
Hale and Angelina Hale watched from behind cover, their hearts in their throats.
Hale got on the speaker:
"What are you doing? We're managing this situation. What do you want now?"
A.D.'s voice was steady.
"We want Ray Donovan back inside. Immediately. Or people start dying."
Second-in-command:
"You're bluffing. Stand down or we'll shoot."
Tension erupted.
A.D. shot four hostages in the leg—non-lethal wounds, but loud and bloody. Emily remained untouched.
Hale yelled into the comms:
"Enough! We're releasing Ray. Just stop."
Moments later, Ray Donovan was brought to the bank. The lasers were disabled temporarily, and he entered.
A.D. met him with a brief, hard hug.
They escorted the wounded hostages inside and resealed the bank.
Emily lingered at the door. She turned to A.D.
"Why didn't you shoot me too?"
He paused.
Then walked away without a word.
Inside, the gang erupted into celebration. Ray was back. They danced, laughed, clapped.
A.D. silenced them.
"Enough. We have very little time. Get ready."
Logan:
"Ready for what?"
A.D.:
"To vanish. We're already captured. They just don't know it yet."
Back at the command center, an officer monitoring the footage approached Hale, pale-faced.
"Sir... we just realized something."
Hale: "What?"
Officer: "The laser fence—it's fake. A decoy."
"When A.D. fired into the air, the bullet crossed the 'laser'. At the same time, some hostage forced to shoot gun butone of the hostages shot back late—and it was caught on ."
Hale's eyes widened.
"We've been fooled since that moment."
The second-in-command looked stunned.
They weren't in control anymore.