The sixth episode of season two of Big Sky has is called “Heart-Shaped Charm,” referring to the unique pink heart-shaped knuckles keychain that was found in the woods where Harvey died. Cassie is trying to figure out who it belongs to while Jenny grapples with her own matters of the heart. When we last saw Jenny in the ABC drama, she was on the ground, her partner Cassie pointing a gun at Dietrich while her new love interest Travis held Cassie at gunpoint and revealed them both to be cops. Don’t worry, this recap picks up right where last week’s episode left off.
Dietrich (David Meunier) asks Cassie (Kylie Bunbury) and Jenny (Katheryn Winnick) why they followed him. Cassie blames it on the alcohol and when Dietrich asks her to lower her gun, she looks cautious until Travis (Logan Marshall-Green) tells her that nobody will get hurt. Dietrich asks Jenny and Cassie to leave and Cassie disarms the gun she grabbed from Smiley (Michael Tomsu) and sets it on a car nearby. “Thanks for letting me borrow it,” she jokes. With the girls gone, Smiley asks Dietrich why they didn’t kill them if they were cops and Dietrich points to the cameras watching the parking lot. Smiley looks at Travis with suspicion as they walk away.
(ABC/John Britt)
Cassie’s dad Joseph (Jeffrey Joseph) makes her coffee and shows her something he found in the couch cushions, a keychain that has pink knuckle cat ears on it. Cassie recognizes them as being just like the pair discovered by Harvey’s dead body in the woods and realizes that this pair belongs to Kai’s babysitter Max. He tells Cassie that he has something he wants to show her later.
Harper (Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson) leaves her house and sees the white van parked, recognizing it as the one that belongs to the man that saved her from Harvey (his name has yet to be spoken, but he is credited as “Creary” and played by Ryan de Quintal). She wakes him up by knocking and gets in the passenger seat, thanking him for saving her and asking why he’s helping her. “That’s my business,” he says and she gets out. “They’re not gonna stop looking for you,” he adds. “I know,” Harper replies. After she leaves, we see that he’s still suffering from his stab wounds from his fight with Harvey.
Cassie brings the lost keychain to Max (Madelyn Kientz) and asks about the knuckles on it. “It’s just this thing someone started at school. A lot of us have them. It just means that I’m single.” Max’s mom’s boyfriend T-Lock (Arturo Del Puerto) comes to the door to introduce himself and invites Cassie in, but Max says she has to go meet some friends and runs off. Without Max there, Cassie leaves and T-Lock watches as she goes.
(ABC/John Britt)
Max meets with Harper, Madison (Lola Reid), and Bridger (Jeremy Taylor) at their usual hangout spot. She tells them about Cassie bringing her keychain back and says she felt like she seemed suspicious. Harper reveals that she lost her matching knuckles keyring and thinks she lost it in the woods the day Harvey died. Max is worried, but Harper assures her everything will be fine.
Mark Lindor (Omar Metwally) is at Dewell & Hoyt with Denise (Dedee Pfeiffer) looking at Wolf Legarski’s website. Denise found a note on Jerrie’s desk with Wolf’s address on it and he plans on paying him a visit. But before he can leave, Cassie walks in and is surprised to see Mark there, but tells him she could use him and invites him to lunch.
Travis meets Jenny in her new truck and asks if she’s okay. “So last night was interesting,” she teases. He tells her it could’ve been worse if Dietrich found out about him. “I just don’t want to see anything happen to you,” she tells him. Travis tells her that another event like last night will be bad for both of them. As Travis leaves her truck, we see that Smiley followed him and watched him talking with Jenny.
When Max gets home, T-Lock calls her to the kitchen, saying “Sounds like someone’s been keeping secrets, Maxie.” Her mom Rachel (T.V. Carpio) told her boyfriend what Max confided in her and she’s upset. T-Lock gets Max to admit to having taken a bag of drugs, but when he asks about the money, she says she spent it all on her mom’s tooth. He tells her to bring the drugs to him so he can get rid of them. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of everything,” he promises her, winking as she leaves in frustration.
Ren (Janina Gavankar) finds Donno (Ryan O’Nan) making breakfast and she vents to him about how impulsive her brother Jag is. He asks her what they should do about Dietrich. “I have an idea you might enjoy,” she smiles.
Mark and Cassie sit at a restaurant together and she shows him a folder with a photo of the keyring she found in the woods, telling him that her babysitter has one just like it. She tells him that she could tell Max was lying to her and Mark asks what Jenny’s thoughts are, finding out that Cassie hasn’t told her yet because she feared the new Jenny would take action too quickly. He asks about what the new Cassie would do and she says there isn’t a new Cassie, but that the old Cassie is ready to go out with him.
Back at their hangout spot, Max tells her friends that her mom’s boyfriend knows about the bag of drugs and has asked her for them. She has left them out of her story, her mom and T-Lock thinking she acted alone. She tells them they can all keep the money, she just needs the drugs.
Travis picks up a snack at the motel vending machine when he gets a text from Smiley informing him that he knows about him and Jenny. Travis is thrown off when he gets back to his room, looking at his phone as he locks the door behind him. “Howdy,” says Donno, who is sitting in a chair in his motel room with a gun pointed at Travis.
Cassie pulls up behind Max on her way home and asks to talk to her. She asks Max if she heard about the police officer who died in the woods and brings up the fact that a keychain just like hers was found there. “Max, if you were out there, if you know anything, you can tell me.” Max seems offended that Cassie would even suspect that she was near the crime scene and walks away in a huff.
Travis finds himself on Ren’s couch being questioned while she drinks wine. She first asks him if he would die for Dietrich before asking directly where the drugs and money are. He tells her that Dietrich doesn’t have them. “Oh God, such a shame, you’re so cute,” Ren says. “I really thought you were smart, too.”
Jenny comes to Cassie’s house upset about Travis and wants to drown her sorrows in booze and ice cream. Jenny asks Cassie about her lunch with Mark and Cassie tells Jenny about Max having a matching keychain to the one found in the woods. Jenny agrees that it’s weird, but says it likely has nothing to do with it.
Max returns home with the black duffel bag full of drugs and T-Lock makes a comment about how big the bag is and how it must be worth a lot of money. T-Lock kisses Rachel and tells Max he’s going to make everything better, but she leaves the room in a huff.
Ronald (Brian Geraghty) goes to Scarlet (Anja Savcic) as she works in the garden and asks her where she went last night. It’s implied that they are now sharing a room together consistently and Scarlet gets upset by the question, saying “Don’t interrogate me.” Ronald presses on and she says she was in the bathroom, but he tells her it was a long time. She adds that she went to look at Venus after. Unbeknownst to them, Mark Lindor has just parked in the driveway and gotten out of the car with his dog Jim. Agatha (Romy Rosemont) rushes to them and asks them to follow her. Wolf (John Carroll Lynch) approaches Mark. “Hello, friend. Welcome to Holy Wolf Ranch. How can I be of service?” Agatha leads Ronald and Scarlet to the shed that Ronald was first kept in. Ronald realizes this means that somebody is there and he starts to yell and bang on the walls. Agatha presses the button that controls his shock collar and he falls to the floor.
(ABC/John Britt)
Mark tells Wolf that he read his book and needed help with his dog Jim as they walk him, but Wolf sees that Jim is already a well-behaved dog and questions him. Mark changes his story, saying he has a girlfriend who moved in, and that started some bad behavior from Jim, who is now chewing his socks. Jim starts barking, having been able to hear Ronald yelling and banging before he was silenced. Wolf pretends nothing is wrong and asks Mark what he does, Mark yelling over the barking that he owns a roofing business. “WHY DON’T YOU TELL ME WHY YOU’RE REALLY HERE, MARK?”, Wolf yells, commanding Jim to quiet down, the dog following his command immediately. Wolf tells Mark that he can read people just as well as dogs. “This is about my brother, isn’t it?”
Max waits for Harper outside of her house to walk her to work and Harper can tell that something is wrong. “My mom’s an idiot for trusting T-Lock,” Max vents. Harper tells her that the worst-case scenario is simply that T-Lock gets blamed for taking the drugs. She holds Max’s hands as she reminds her that she’s not in this alone and they kiss. “You’re the only thing that makes me feel like the sky isn’t falling,” Max tells her. Cassie hides behind a tree watching them.
Jenny returns to Travis’ motel and when she knocks on the door, it swings open. She calls for him, but there’s no response. She draws her gun and enters, finding that the room is empty before noticing Travis’ gun on the dresser.
Travis is hanging from his wrists in a storage container, Donno torturing him as Ren tells him she wished this had gone differently. Donno opens up a case with a saw inside and as he brings it to Travis’ throat, he starts laughing hysterically. Donno stops, unable to enjoy this if Travis isn’t afraid and Ren asks what’s so funny. He tells her that Dietrich doesn’t care about him and that who she really wants is Smiley, who is Dietrich’s nephew. “He’s been skimming for months and I wouldn’t be surprised if it was him and Big Sam that ripped y’all off. And Dietrich’s been blind to all of it.” Ren smiles at Donno and says “He’s not willing to die for Dietrich.” Donno uses the saw to break the ropes holding Travis up and he crashes to the floor. “I would like an address please,” Ren says as Travis writhes on the floor in pain.
Jenny comes into the bar with Deputy Poppernak (J. Anthony Pena) and approaches Dietrich and Smiley, announcing that she has an arrest warrant for “Stone” (Travis’ alias). Dietrich questions why she wouldn’t also have one for Smiley, who punched her, and she says she punched him first whereas Travis pointed a gun at an officer. Dietrich says he hasn’t seen Stone. “I tell you what, if I see him, I’ll drive him down to the station myself.”
That night, Cassie’s dad takes her to a horse ranch and they sit in the back of his truck. He recalls how when she was a child, he didn’t have the money to pay for riding lessons, but the rancher let them ride hoses for free. He always had a dream of owning his own ranch and starting a Black rodeo so people could see that there are Black cowboys. “Haven’t we always existed?”, Cassie asks. “Existing and being seen are two different things,” he replies, adding that he’s thinking about buying this ranch and if he does, he’d like to train Kai how to ride there.
T-Lock approaches Smiley outside of the bar and asks to speak with him alone. Once nobody else is around, he hands him a small bag of white pills and Smiley instantly recognizes them, grabbing T-Lock’s collar. “You stealing our product, man?” Smiley tells T-Lock that his boss will kill him if he finds out he has them. T-Lock offers to give Smiley the full bag but says if he wants to partner and sell it themselves he’s interested. “Who else knows about this?”, Smiley asks. “Nobody, I swear,” T-Lock responds, asking Smiley to think about it.
(ABC/John Britt)
Mark sits at Wolf’s kitchen table, Jim the dog lying at his feet. Agatha offers Mark coffee or tea and he declines, which Wolf says is rude of him. He’s upset that Mark lied to him and Mark comes clean. “I’m a U.S. Marshall, I’m looking for Ronald Pergman.” Wolf says he knows who that is, his brother’s partner in crime. Agatha speaks up for her husband, telling Mark that Wolf feels ashamed because he believes he could have fixed his brother. Mark tells Agatha he’s changed his mind and will take a cup of coffee. While Mark waits, he notices the table of rewards, which includes a box of Ronald’s favorite cereal Cocoa Chunks. Wolf asks him if everything is okay and Mark plays it off that he feels bad about lying, but his job demands it and it’s a hard habit to break. “Every habit can be broken,” Wolf says, quoting one of the philosophies from his book.
Smiley is at his house, crushing up some pills and sampling the product. He calls T-Lock and agrees to sell the drugs with him in secret behind Dietrich’s back, inviting him over tomorrow to work out the details. After hanging up, Donno breaks down Smiley’s door and they begin to fight as Ren walks in behind her assistant, picks up a knife, and saves Donno by stabbing Smiley in the neck. “You thirsty?”, she asks calmly as if nothing happened. “Maybe some milk,” Donno replies as Ren checks the fridge. Donno gets up and searches the house, finding the small bag of their drugs. Ren takes it to mean that Dietrich had their drugs the whole time and lied about it. “It’s time to show this guy who’s actually in charge.” Her phone rings and she sees that it’s her brother Jag, but she declines the call. We then see Jag (Vinny Chhibber) walking with an employee, asking him to pack their bags because they’re going to Montana.
Cassie goes to the diner that Harper works at and orders a coffee to go. Cassie tells Harper she recognizes her as one of Max’s friends. As Harper picks up a plate on the table, Cassie sees her wrist, which has a tattoo that matches the size and shape of the one on the rock she saw in Jenny’s office. When Cassie gets outside, she puts the cup Harper touched in an evidence bag to run the fingerprints against the keychain found in the woods.
Jenny tries Travis’ motel again and is relieved to find that he’s there. “I thought my text said leave me alone,” he says as she pushes her way inside. He reacts to the pain in his body and she asks him what happened, but he refuses to tell her. She undoes his shirt and sees scars and strange marks on his skin. “I’m under the wing of the dragon,” he tells her, meaning that he’s in deep with the cartel. Jenny leaves to get him some ice for his wounds.
Wolf shakes Mark’s hand outside as he gets in his Jeep. Wolf cautions him to drive safely because there are some sudden turns on these roads that are hard to see in the dark. Wolf watches as Mark drives away, but Mark stops the car once he’s out of Wolf’s range of view, talking to his dog Jim. “I could’ve fixed him? What do you think he meant by that?” Jim cries as Mark unbuckles his seatbelt and gets out of the Jeep in the dark.
Harper takes the trash out behind the diner and sees the white van parked crooked, the headlights on. She goes to the door and sees a boot sticking out from the back compartment. She slides the door open and finds the bearded man inside bleeding from his side.
Jenny lays in bed with Travis in the motel applying ice to his wounds. “I just need to know you’re okay. Don’t make me come hunting for you again.” Suddenly there’s a rapid knock at the door. “STONE, OPEN THE DOOR,” Dietrich yells. Travis has just enough time to push Jenny onto the floor next to the bed and tell her to stay out of sight as Dietrich breaks open the door. “Let’s go for a ride.” Travis says no, but Dietrich bashes him against the head and Travis falls to the ground. His temple is bleeding as he makes eye contact with Jenny. “I don’t remember asking,” Dietrich responds, picking Travis up off the floor and taking his gun off the dresser. Jenny hears Dietrich tell Travis that they’re going to meet Smiley so they can clear the air.
Mark sneaks back onto Wolf’s property on foot with his gun drawn. He’s approaching the shed where Agatha locked Ronald and Scarlet.
Big Sky will return on Thursday, December 9th. ABC hasn’t yet released an episode title or description, but I can’t wait to find out what happens next.