Back at Police HQ, Daniels walks into the now empty Deputy Commissioner of Operations office and sits behind the desk. The phone rings, and Daniels hesitates before answering it as "Deputy Ops." There's a pause before Daniels replies, "No, this is Daniels. Cedric Daniels." Another pause while the person on the other end of the line clearly asks something along the lines of "So where the hell is Rawls?" "He's now in the commissioner's office," Daniels replies, before hanging up. Then, he leans back in his chair, looks around the office, and smiles the smile of a man who -- for a moment anyhow -- has the satisfaction of finally getting what he wanted. Savor the flavor, my man, because if this show teaches us one thing, it's that all joy will be fleeting.

We head to the Western District -- the beer cans littering the roof was my tip-off -- where Herc has come to plead the case of Colicchio to Carver. Let's call it an instance of the dumb speaking out on behalf of the dopey. "He knows he fucked up," Herc says. "He knows this. He's proud, you know? He doesn't want to beg." Carver replies that this has nothing to do with begging, nor does it have anything to do with Carver's rank, as Herc suggests. "I never told you, Herc," Carver begins. "I never said a fucking word. But when I gave you that kid to debrief last year, what's his face?" Randy Wagstaff, but somehow, I think Carver is only pretending not to remember the name. "You were supposed to get him to Bunk Moreland. You remember that?" Herc does remember, and allows how he fucked up: "So what?" "So it mattered," Carver responds, his eyes fixed on Herc. "It all matters. I know we thought it didn't...but it does." Herc gives this some thought -- you can practically hear the hamster wheel squeaking -- and wonders whether Carver's insistence upon disciplining Colicchio means that he thinks the department was right to bounce Herc. Carver's silence suggests that he does. "Yeah, probably," Herc agrees. He warns Carver that the other officers are probably "going to talk shit about you for a while. But fuck 'em, Carv. You do what needs done." The former partners clink beer cans. Herc, that shows remarkable insight, particularly for you. I take back 40% of the nasty things I've ever said about you.