Look at you.
Did you get your guy?
Come on. You have to ask?
You get huffy when I don't ask.
Yeah, I got my guy. You heading out already?
On the approved route that you gave me.
- Okay. - Don't worry, Ranger Walker.
Now get up to the house.
The kids are waiting on you, with your parents.
- It's game night. - Right.
Uh, how do I play that game again?
Every time you tell me the rules, I-I black out.
Babe, just go in there, go have some dinner,
go play some games. They're just so excited to see you.
You could lose every single game and it wouldn't matter.
Why are you talking about... straight to me losing?
Stella's gonna whup your *.
All right, yes.
Dang. Dang.
I've been in prison three times now.
H-How... You get a six and a five...
- Just watch, just watch. - Oh...
- Okay. - Come on, good roll.
Oh, my God!
Okay, wait, wait, wait.
- What? - Okay, okay, okay.
- What's happening? - What's happening is your son
is mopping the floor with you.
Yeah, I... yeah, I know he is, clearly.
But I don't understand the rules, so it's-it's not fair.
- Oh! I knew it! - Oh! Yeah!
You knew... What?
- What's going on? - We all get a bonus turn
when someone says it isn't fair,
and Stella knew you would crack.
Stella.
Et tu, Brute? Your own dad?
This is a very serious game.
- No loyalties. - All right, well, I...
- Get it. Come on. - _
- Excuse me, we're playing a game. - Good roll, good roll, good roll.
Yeah. Uh... hey, just a sec.
- See, he can't even handle it. - I know.
What a sad state of affairs.
- Okay, come on. It's my turn. - All right. What do you got?
Emily. You all right?
Just had to call you. Something's not right.
What do you mean?
Emily. Emily.
Hey.
Good one.
Uh, Dad, it's your turn.
Hey, uh...
Augie, why-why don't you, uh,
- why don't you take my turn? - Cordell?
Just, uh, just work stuff.
It-It's, uh... Got my turn, bud?
- Yeah. Okay. - Be right back.
You've reached Emily Walker.
I'm probably out trying to save the world or something.
Leave me a message.
_
- Let's just go inside. - He's coming.
Oh, absolutely.
Neither hell nor high water could keep him away.
Did he call you when he got in?
You're asking if my brother checked in with me,
gave me his whereabouts
as well as an update on his emotional state of mind?
Fair.
Does he know that his old partner is his boss now?
Mm, last time we spoke he was a little busy.
Didn't seem like the right time to tell him
I was getting a promotion.
Told you he'd be here.
Hello, good people!
We should've told Stan we were running late.
Please. That man loves two things:
being in the room where it happens
and your mother's brisket.
Young dude, how you are?
- I'm good. How are you? - Yeah?
Yeah.
- Baby girl. - Hey.
- How are you, sweet pea? - Good.
- Where's the hero? - Making history, I'm sure, Stan.
Why don't you head inside? I'm sure my folks
would love to share a drink with you.
Well, thank you, young Liam.
Larry, hey.
- Always good to see you guys. - Absolutely.
If I had to guess, I'd say the lookout.
- Lady Bird Lake? - Yeah, Emily and Cordell's place.
All right, I'll get a patrol car out there.
Trooper Ramirez, DPS.
You got a plan for the night, sir?
A plan? Uh, not as such.
Sir, this is a public space.
- Can I please see your license? - Yep.
You, uh, you ask so nicely.
Yeah, they train the girls special.
I'm gonna take you home.
You can pick your truck up in the morning.
These seats go back at all?
It's not designed for comfort.
Most guys, when they're drinking with no intention
of putting the cap back on, just do it at home.
Yeah, well, I've been out of town for a while.
For... more than ten months.
Flew in just a couple hours ago.
Haven't even seen my kids yet.
I'm still, uh,
you know, carrying the work with me.
Didn't want to get the stink of it on 'em.
Needed to go visit a ghost instead.
Doomed for a certain term to walk the night.
It's been a while since I had an actual conversation.
I mean, you know, as myself.
So you've been out of town, not yourself.
Sounds like undercover. Law enforcement?
Cordell Walker, Texas Ranger.
Respect.
All right, this you?
I guess.
I'll thank you for this in the morning, I bet.
Consider it my last good deed as a state trooper.
I just got promoted.
Respect.
Lot of daylight there. Getting sticky.
Yeah, buddy. Kept the beard on.
Yeah. Yeah, yeah.
All right.
Well, there he is.
Good to see you, Dad.
Might've been better to see you last night at the appointed time
when we were gathered to express our awe and admiration.
I appreciate it.
Just curious to me as to why they're so impressed
with something that took you so damn long to accomplish.
Ten months? That's over 14 breeding cycles here.
You, uh, really did the math there.
Colts look strong this year.
Yes, they do.
- Listen, Dad, I-I wanted to... - No need.
Get on up that house.
Let your mama think she's the first to lay eyes on you.
All right, Daddy.
Oh! He lives!
Yeah. Yeah.
Oh. Had you told me you were coming,
I would've kept Stella home.
- No, I'll... I'll catch her tonight. - Dad!
August!
My boy. Hey.
You-you... you grew.
- Yeah. - Feet!
Hey, bro.
Good to see you, stinker.
Get over here.
All right. You're getting stronger.
Yeah. I'm still the big brother.
Boys, knock it off.
Oh, all right, all right, all right,
all right, all right. I got to be careful.
Your hands got soft since you got promoted.
I am the most well-groomed assistant D.A. in Austin.
- August, grab your lunch. - Oh.
William Edison, get your * in the shower.
I did not press that suit for my own amusement.
I... I know, Mama.
I'm... I got to go.
Hey, you... you, uh, you been living here?
Oh, I got my own place in town.
I-I do have a social life.
Or I did.
I don't think Bret was expecting
to play My Two Dads quite so soon, but...
it's all good.
- Just been helping out. - Yeah, uh... thank you.
All right. Yeah. You're good.
All right.
Hey.
You know how many slices of pie
I put away in your honor last night?
It's okay, though, 'cause I got to listen to Stan Morrison
pontificating on your greatness for almost an hour.
Your daddy finally just got up and left.
Grabbed a bottle, went to the bunkhouse.
Well, that sounds like your own fault, James.
Or, uh...
Captain James?
Is this gonna be a thing now, or...
You mean "congratulations"?
Is that what you're trying to say?
Hmm?
- You good? - Yeah. Yeah, I-I... just, uh...
needed a minute to pull myself together, that's all.
So what are we looking at?
Officer was assaulted
when he stopped to offer roadside assistance.
His name is Sergeant Curtis.
He's not talking.
He's asking for his union rep.
Something spooked him.
Whoever he assisted obviously didn't want help from a cop.
Yep. Officer gets assaulted,
they call in the Rangers.
Oh. Here. She's new to the unit.
I'm putting her with you.
Ranger Micki Ramirez,
- this is Cordell Walker. - Micki.
Figured you'd be a guy.
So did my mom. Pleasure.
Walker just closed the Rodeo Kings case.
You're familiar with that one?
Yes, sir. I have to ask...
Yeah, I'd really not... want to talk about that one.
Okay, then.
Ramirez, fill Walker in on where you're at.
Welcome back, Cordell.
Guess I got some catching up to do.
_
Congratulations on the promotion.
Should've celebrated last night.
I think you celebrated enough for the both of us last night.
Look, Captain put me on patrol.
It was a chance to let the new kid do some recon.
Well, go on, then.
Let's hear your report.
Okay.
I hear you're the edge of the coin.
Not heads or tails, just...
your way, and... I know that's how you work,
but I got a lot on the line.
You must like pressure.
I mean, if you wanted to do this.
Put yourself right in the spotlight.
Oh, you mean there aren't a lot of Mexican American Rangers?
- I'm shocked. - It's a steep climb.
So why'd you want to do this?
I needed to do this.
Burned some bridges with my family, too.
So they're not proud you're a badass?
Just don't mess it up for me.
Why would I do that?
Okay.
Well, like you said,
Curtis was asking for his union rep.
He must've been scared.
What do you think made him clam up?
Maybe whatever was in that truck
spooked him enough to abandon his oath.
Yeah, maybe.
Okay.
Traffic cams nearby.
Let's hope one of them picked it up so we can get a visual.
So we need to roll through all the footage.
And by we, I mean the new kid, right?
You don't strike me as someone who wants special treatment.
Dad, can you pass the salt?
Mawline, this is so good.
- Want some more wine, dear? - Hey.
- No, I'm good for now. - Caught up at work.
- Don't wait up. - Never do.
Where's, uh, where's Stella?
Well, she was prepared to greet you last night
at your homecoming, but you failed to show, so...
She's out with a friend.
Isabel... some Mexican girl.
Mexican American, Dad.
Okay, stop it, Bonham.
She's out with a friend from school.
I've got Stella and Augie over at Sacred Heart.
Yeah, I know, I know, I-I still can't believe we're doing that.
I... we, uh, we-we didn't want that for 'em.
You should be thanking your mother
for enrolling your children in a respectable Catholic school.
"We didn't want that for them"?
To what are you referring... a decent education?
Yeah, well,
she's still got basketball.
Oh, no, soccer now.
- I thought she quit. - Oh, I guess she missed it.
You have so many questions
that we can't answer to your satisfaction,
maybe it's time you put in the work yourself.
Um... I've been messing around with Mom's old camera.
Just trying to figure it out.
That's great, pal, that's, that's great.
Mom would've liked that.
More roast?
Augie, help me carve.
We did right by Stella.
Yep... uh, yeah, I know, I know.
It's work.
Walker.
Yeah. What?
Yeah, okay, got it.
On my way.
I got to go.
Um, I got to go pick up Stella.
- From where? - From the police station. Hmm.
Thank you for dinner, Mama.
From what I can tell, they were at a party,
and I'm sure other kids were there high,
but your daughter and her friend
got caught for possession.
I'm sorry about this.
I'm sure she'll get a ticket, there'll be a court date.
Yeah, I-I, uh... I know the drill.
Thanks for the call, Randall.
Thank Stan Morrison.
Stan. Austin's finest string-puller.
And here he comes to save the day.
Glad to see you, too.
This is Bel.
Can she come home with us?
No.
Minors have to be released by their parents.
Okay, but I'm not just leaving her here.
Then you're staying here overnight, because that's the option.
- good to see you. - You, too.
Rangers are involved?
No, sir, I'm, uh,
here for my daughter. It's good to meet you.
Listen, I've been out of town for a while,
so I don't really know Stella's social life.
- We should spend some time tog... - Dad, stop it.
Seems like the girls got into some trouble.
- And we can help each other out. - Sir, ma'am,
we need you to come with me.
We'll see you in a little bit.
Sorry, Mama.
Yeah.
Epic first meeting.
I'm so sorry.
- This is so embarrassing. - For who?
Let's go.
Stella.
You want to tell me what the hell you were thinking?
Using a substance to numb the mind?
Huh, who does that?
Mom always said you'd never be on a case too long.
I never meant to be.
This last case
got complicated.
Complicated?
A five-minute phone call this summer
and then nothing for three months?
You even bailed on your stupid homecoming.
It's already bad enough we didn't have Mom.
We both got to stop acting like she's gonna come back
and put us right.
Trey?
Are you here?
- Trey? - You're a Texas Ranger now
and that's how you check to see if someone's in your home, huh?
Your duffel's the size of a body bag.
How long are you staying for?
Two days, two weeks?
- Yeah. - Got it.
Can we please have all the drinks now?
Oh, in a minute.
Tell me one thing about your day first.
Come on, come on.
What's a Texas Ranger like in real life?
- You mean the legend. - Mm-hmm.
Ranger Cordell Walker.
He's a lot.
He's a mess.
What's his story? He serve?
Yeah, Marines. Signed up right after 9/11.
Damn, they were up in it.
And he recently lost his wife.
Wow, that's tough.
I know.
I'm just trying to understand him.
Hey.
You think he's home tonight, trying to figure you out?
Oh, I am 100% positive
he thinks he knows everything about me already.
Nice buckle.
Handcrafted by a Texas convict.
- Oh, that's messed up. - Mm-hmm.
Want to talk about Stella?
I do not.
You know she's like 70% typical kid
and 30% she doesn't know where to put her feelings for you.
Yeah, well, she's sure putting them where they count.
- The brothers Walker. - Hey, Geri.
- Heard you were back. - Yeah.
How you been?
I'll tell you soon.
I'm gonna go call Bret,
see if I can get him to come down and cause some trouble.
Kids must be happy you're home.
Hey, it's been a while.
We got worried.
Yeah. And then I thought, you know...
maybe it just wasn't helping you, talking to me.
No.
I just got tired asking about Emily,
about what happened that night.
- So many questions. - That I couldn't answer.
You all right?
Come on.
That's a great song.
Take a break. Let's have a dance.
Cordell Walker.
- Geraldine Broussard. - No.
- Take a damn break. - No!
My mom wouldn't let me play with dolls when I was a kid,
so I learned about cars instead.
Our perps should have gone more generic.
Ran its entire production course in a year.
Today there's only 230 of these left on the road.
I checked the registration of every single one.
How was your night?
Had a weird dream about the sandworm from Beetlejuice.
Anyway... nothing inside our map aside from one truck.
It leads to a place called Green Thumb & Grace.
I know the place. Um,
the owner, Milo Clark, started it to rehab criminals.
Right.
Let's go. Come on.
Hey, JC.
It's been a while. That's on me. My apologies.
I do have a question for you, though.
Uh, do you want my kids to go to Sacred Heart?
No answer, huh?
All right, typical. How about this?
Let's go Old Testament. Show me a sign.
Can you stop?
Can I help y'all?
I'm Milo Clark. I'm the owner here.
This is my sister Cheryl.
She runs things around here with me.
Nice to meet you. I'm Ranger Micki Ramirez.
This is Ranger Cordell Walker.
Just Walker is fine.
Can you confirm this is one of your company trucks?
Yep.
Any recollection of who might have been driving it southbound
on 84 yesterday morning?
Jordan and Alex.
Jordan, Alex,
these Rangers are looking into an incident
with a police officer.
Oh, I think I know you.
You the Ranger with the dead wife?
Jordan.
What did you say?
Yeah, my cuz told me a story
about a Texas Ranger's wife biting a bullet down by the border.
Guess you couldn't protect her, huh?
Yeah, look on your face, she must have been yours.
You know what, I-I don't feel the need to engage
with a sorry-* lowlife
- I'll be slapping cuffs on soon enough. - Jordan!
Enough!
Hand's bleeding.
Go take care of it.
You have the right to remain silent.
Anything you say can and will be used in a court of law.
I have antiseptic somewhere. Not sure.
Not really prepared for jackass disasters.
Baby?
There's some dude bleeding on your couch.
Partner, huh?
Boyfriend, huh?
Trey! Right.
You're here.
- Mm-hmm. - Right.
This is my idiot partner Cordell Walker.
Just-just Walker is fine.
Shut up. This is Trey.
You're gonna need more than antiseptic.
Listen to him. He's a medic. Not me.
Medic? What, are you just home from deployment?
- 68 Whiskey. - Okay, do not make small talk with him;
- he's in trouble. - All right...
Roger that. All right, Trouble.
Uh, you should probably have a-a drink,
- 'cause that might hurt. - Yeah, twist my arm.
He swung at me first.
Eh, I know why you're mad.
- Exactly. - Yeah.
I am realizing how stupid you are,
and it's making me very depressed
about my prospects as a Texas Ranger.
Okay. Aside from that.
- Aside from that? - Mm-hmm.
We're working together. Right?
Well, listen, I have a certain way of doing things...
Yeah, and that way has got to evolve.
You know that, right?
Look, my theory is, they put us together
because you always break the rules.
I don't always break the rules.
I read your files... half the cases you broke,
- you definitely bent the rules. - Okay, bent.
- Fine. - Okay, look,
I am not here to play Florence Nightingale to you
every time someone pisses you off.
Okay, well, in all fairness,
it's your boyfriend who's dressing my wound, not you,
so you're not really Nightingale-ing anyone here.
Mm, my man, you do not want to cross her, trust me.
Babe, you hear how he called me your boyfriend, though?
Hmm. Look, you got a sad story, I get that.
And I got your back... that is my job.
But I need to know that you have mine.
I'm going back to work.
Stella's school?
Stella's school. I am nailing today.
_
Hey. They called you, too?
Emergency contact.
So...
Stella didn't come home on the bus?
And she wasn't at her afternoon classes.
Okay. Is that normal?
- It is not normal. - You would know better.
Hey, this isn't about who knows her better, Cordi.
It's about, where the hell is she?
You track her phone?
I think she put it on airplane mode,
- so we couldn't. - Yeah.
All right, um,
I'll call my guy at APD,
put them on it, too.
- Okay. - Uh...
thank you.
Of course.
Mrs. Muñoz.
Afternoon.
- Mr. Walker. - Looking for Stella.
She never came home from school.
I was hoping Bel might know where she was.
She's not here. We haven't seen her.
I'm sorry, Mr. Walker, I thought you were here for us.
What do you mean?
When they brought Bel in the other night,
the police, they had to pull up our records.
We don't have our papers yet.
Any criminal activity and...
- You could be deported. - My daughter didn't even know.
She was born here.
I understand.
I'll see what I can do.
Just got a phone call
that my daughter's missing.
- What can I do? - Yeah, my family's helping, thanks.
I checked with her friend's mom,
but they're handling a different situation.
Turns out they might be deported
because their daughter broke the law.
My brother's an assistant D.A.
I'm gonna have him talk to their friends in the Feds,
see if we can't speed up their papers.
They're lucky they have you.
This is exactly how those bridges were burned.
I can just hear my mother's voice in my head right now
saying, "See? Who does the law protect?
Not us".
We're not really speaking right now.
The Army, the police force,
none of that was on brand for my mother.
But Texas Ranger, that is aggressively off message.
To her, it's a personal betrayal, but to me, it was...
it was always a way to set things right.
Anyway...
I followed up on the intake interviews with Jordan and Alex.
Judging by the transcripts,
Alex seemed scared.
- How so? - He was in a panic
by the time they brought him in,
even asking for extra protection.
What's he scared of?
Milo? Milo seems like
Mr. Rogers... I mean,
if Mr. Rogers did hard time.
Maybe it's not.
Maybe a charitable business
could be a pretty good cover.
Hey, do you remember at the crime scene,
Curtis was dusting himself off.
- Mm-hmm. - Debris from the truck?
I mean, he fell into the back.
So what could have been back there? Figurines?
Maybe they're not just figurines.
You still have the one you swiped?
Heroin.
That's why Alex was spooked.
- He didn't want to blow Milo's cover. - Curtis saw something.
Maybe one of the figurines had broken
and he figured it out and they panicked.
But he didn't want to talk,
because if they're moving that many drugs...
They're doing it for cartel.
Cop interference is a death sentence.
All right. I'll go take care of Milo.
- Let's go. Right now. - No, I'll go with backup.
Oh, you're calling the shots now?
Walker, your daughter's missing.
I get that our jobs are important,
but nothing beats being her dad.
- Yeah, you're right. - I know.
Look, I was that kid once.
I always wanted to be found.
Just think about it.
Where would she go?
All right, if I find her, I'll meet you.
Walker, go.
Go.
Do you know how worried we've been?
Well, you showed up,
so this must be a super big deal for you.
Are you forgetting the part where I picked you up
from the police station last night?
And now you're out here?
What are you playing at, Stella?
It isn't a game.
Then tell me what the hell it is, so we can end it.
'Cause I'll tell you right now, we can't keep on like we are.
Me trying to figure out where you'll be next.
You scaring the crap out of everyone.
I'm in the middle of a case.
When aren't you?
Why are you doing this?
What do you want me to do, Stella?
I am here. I am trying.
Yeah, when you're forced to.
I just got back. I am trying to make this work.
Be here for you, protect you and, yes,
do my job. I can't just do it all.
She did.
But,
what, you're somehow more important?
Of course not.
Stella, listen. Stop!
You think it *s having just me. I get it.
But it's not just me.
You've got Gramps and Mawline and Liam.
I needed you!
August and I needed you!
Okay, then we need to find a way to find a balance,
Stella, because when I get a call, I have to go.
Do you?
Do you just have to?
You can't call up your boss and say, "Oh, whoops.
Turns out that I'm actually supposed to pay attention to my kids now"?
What am I supposed to say here?
How can I fix this?
I don't know!
The only one who could have fixed anything is gone.
Get in the truck.
Ranger Ramirez.
- That's twice in one day. - Yeah, my partner Walker and I
had a second to think about a few things.
Partnership. That's what it's all about.
Yeah. We had some laughs, shared some stories,
washed one of your figurines in the sink
and found a bag of heroin.
Mr. Clark, when you started this business,
did you really have any intention of doing any good?
How can you ask me that?
Maybe Jordan and Alex
weren't quite ready for the program yet.
Then why did you have them on such a heavy packing
and shipping rotation?
- Yeah, we saw their files. - Milo?
Cheryl, I'm, I'm not sure what's happening here.
- My God, Cheryl. - Get out of here.
- What are you doing? - You got nothing to do with this.
Secure him! I got her!
Walker, she's heading for the van! Stop her!
On it!
Respect.
- Captain. - Hey, hey.
That was nice work, you two.
Well, Ranger Ramirez took the lead.
Should've known the woman was the brains of the operation.
So, taking down Clark's ring,
you uncovered a bigger link to the cartel.
Special Operations Group is setting up a team down there.
How soon?
Effective immediately.
And, as you know, DPS appreciates your particular tenacity.
You're being recommended.
Obviously, you're gonna have to decide if now's really the time.
Thank you. I'm honored.
Got a feeling you can hold down the fort here.
- Help me fight the good fight. - Yes, sir.
All right, then.
Oh, and, Walker, how you handled the suspects earlier
was a mess that I didn't need
and is not gonna fly on my watch. You understand?
Just 'cause a perp gives you an opening
- doesn't mean you take it. - Yeah, I get it.
- Do you? - Apologies, sir.
Apologies won't cut it. Do better.
Roger that.
Hey. You, uh,
you seen Stella?
- Yeah, she's inside. - She's in...
I just...
She must be hiding from me.
Yeah.
What are you doing?
What do you mean?
Well, you just got home, and your mind's already gone.
I can tell. And you're doing
that thing with the... with the poker chip.
- Helps me think. - Helps you worry.
About Emily. About what happened.
Liam, why was there a poker chip on her that night?
Huh? She and Geri were just dropping off food and water
by stations in the desert.
- What was the chip for? - I don't know.
It could be a million reasons,
all of which will make you crazy.
Yeah, well, I can't stop thinking about it.
Her eyes, they were... they were
closed when they found her body.
Like somebody took the time to lay her to rest.
And the perp today, he said something. He-he...
he said I didn't protect her.
That got me thinking.
You know, what did I miss?
Nothing. A man confessed.
Carlos Mendoza.
You looked him in the eyes,
and you have the best spidey sense
in the whole damn division, and you believed him.
So stop it
with the poker chip and every other damn unknown
under the sun. She is gone.
And there is nothing that you can do.
Except be here.
Start being here.
I hope you came to put a bell on that girl.
Well...
She'll settle now.
She's exhausted. I'd let her be.
Can I give you some advice?
Not like you to ask.
Parenting isn't something
that necessarily happens automatically.
Of course, you're their father,
but you've got to take a minute to get to know them again.
Yeah.
She's feisty and smart as hell.
It's the best revenge I can think of,
you having to raise yourself.
August, though. He-He-He's good.
Oh, yeah. He sure is.
- Like his life depended on it. - How do you mean?
That boy is working so hard
to keep anyone from worrying about him,
he's twisted into bits.
Don't take him for granted.
Not for a second.
You need to be here.
And I don't just mean Austin.
I mean here.
That house in town, it is not a home anymore.
Not with her gone.
But here,
it could be.
That farmhouse at the edge of the property?
You know, your father's been out there,
fooling around with his leather tools.
But it's big enough, and...
I think it's better suited for you.
You've already arranged the whole thing, haven't you?
Well, I wanted, uh,
you to put your own personal touches on it, of course.
Mama,
it's a tricky time for me.
I mean, th-there's
a task force I've been recommended for.
It's down south, but it's...
really important, and...
- Hey, kiddo. - Hey.
Well, love,
I trust you to make the right decision.
Hey, pal.
- Looks nice. - Yeah.
Mawline did a good job.
Oh, I, uh, I refinished this table.
Look at that.
- Good job. - Thank you.
You've shouldered a lot.
You know, I, uh...
I never meant to make you grow up so fast.
Can we, um...
Can we sleep out here tonight?
- Hey. - Mawline told me to bring you this,
which was super subtle.
I heard you.
Before.
Come on.
Come here.
I'm not gonna take that job.
You might feel different in the morning.
I'm not gonna feel different about you.
About being here.
For now.
I'm learning.
Now's all we got.