American Odyssey Episode 1.09 Figmo

Outnumbered and outgunned on the dusty roads of North Africa, Odelle and Aslam look certain to fall victim to yet another hostage situation - until Luc drives up and interrupts. He uses a drug exchange to rescue Odelle and Aslam and later, back on the road, reveals his very own hostage to Odelle: Osela agent Frank Majors. Odelle manages to contain her urge for revenge and agrees to accompany Luc to his house in Timbuktu. En route, the laconic Frenchman reveals that he served in the Foreign Legion... and soon after went AWOL. It appears both he and Odelle share an affinity for disobeying orders.

Back in New York, Harrison meets with Khulus, the imam that contacted him, and Khulus' wife at the mosque. Harrison promises to finish his father's story and expose the injustices dealt to Yusuf, a vow that convinces Khulus to set up a secret meeting between the two. Afterwards, Bob beckons Harrison to his apartment to relay all the details about Ruby's lies and stolen identity but mistakes Harrison's understanding and thankfulness for romance... and makes an attempt to kiss him. As kindly as possible, Harrison rejects Bob and promptly exits, leaving Bob an emotional wreck.

Emotions also run high for Peter and Tsaldari when she returns to the States. Peter agrees to help negotiate a secret engagement between her and Yusuf with the understanding that Tsaldari will also sit down with Alex Baker. Their tentative bargain sends Peter to confront Khulus and, with Tsaldari's backing, he offers Yusuf safe passage to Greece if Yusuf will chat with Tsaldari. While Khulus considers the option, Peter heads to Societel where Tsaldari meets with Baker behind closed doors. He doesn't wait long before Khulus calls him to accept the offer and inform him of the already-planned meeting between Yusuf and Harrison. He adds another alert, though: his wife received threats from an unknown party (Ruby) that may crash the meeting, too.

Peter rushes to the location of the meeting and finds it packed with activists protesting drone warfare. Nearby, and unbeknownst to Peter, Harrison questions a masked protestor about Yusuf, eager to find the man amid the tumult. But Ruby, posted on a rooftop with a sniper rifle, mistakes the protestor for Yusuf and assassinates him right in front of Harrison. The murder sends the crowd into a panic - and Peter and Harrison miss each other by seconds, neither locating Yusuf in the process.

Shell-shocked, Harrison wanders around New York with the protestor's blood still on his face until Ruby sweeps in and snaps him back to reality. She barely manages to hide her shock when he tells her of the innocent man's death and guides Harrison back to her apartment... where Harrison finally demands to know Ruby's true identity. She responds with a dark story of childhood abuse, a lifetime of distrust and a dishonorable discharge from the Army. Harrison buys the whole thing (which leaves out her affiliation with Osela) and moments later the two find themselves shedding clothes and locking lips on Ruby's couch.

Another relationship appears in conflict when Suzanne and Ron bicker about Suzanne's continued friendship with the woman she met in the bookstore, Julia. Their ongoing discussion takes a pause with the unexpected arrival of Colonel Glen. He explains away Odelle's forged ring as an atypical but not uncommon byproduct of the government replacing personal items they could not successfully recover from a body. Suzanne erupts into a tantrum, certain of the colonel's lies. She winds up back at the bookstore and enjoys a snack and conversation with Julia. After she opens up about her concerns for both her parents, Suzanne invites Julia to their house for dinner... but when Julia politely turns her down, Suzanne becomes physically ill, a nut allergy reaction. Julia helps rush her to the hospital where Suzanne, in private, confesses to Ron that she purposefully caused the reaction in order to keep Julia from ending their friendship. Ron approaches Julia outside Suzanne's room and the two agree to meet for coffee.

Meanwhile, Tsaldari arrives at Peter's doorstep and the former lovers speak alone in the house still vacated by Peter's family - and without Tsaldari's security detail. Not only does she reveal that she and Baker did not reach an agreement, but she also admits to knowledge of Peter's $40 million cut. He attempts to pass it off as a necessary evil to convince Baker of his loyalty, but quickly devolves into expressing regret for his career and the dissolution of his family; in a moment of compassion, they almost kiss. Their attention turns to a strange noise inside the house - could it be one of Societel's goons? - and Peter stalks through the halls with a gun... only to find Maya. The terror of seeing her father with a gun takes second place only to the shock of seeing Tsaldari with him. Maya storms out, certain of her father's infidelity, paranoia and, most of all, outright lies.

Back on the dusty North African roads, Frank regains consciousness in the back of Luc's truck and tumbles out in an attempted escape. But his injuries handicap him and Luc easily places him back into custody. However, out of Odelle and Aslam's earshot, Luc whispers his secret plan to Frank: he will keep Frank alive and hand over Odelle if Osela agrees to never bother him again.

Still bothered by the earlier moment with Harrison, Bob busies himself in the kitchen and announces dinner plans to his mom... only she doesn't respond. He enters the living room, and she appears asleep, but she's cold to the touch... and not breathing... and Bob struggles to grip the sudden, chilling reality... His mom is dead.