Officer Dante Torres’ past indiscretions return with a vengeance in “Contrition,” an episode of Chicago PD that’s less about subtle character development and more about twisting the knife—or, in this case, injecting a rookie cop with a near-lethal dose of cartel-approved poison. Torres’ (Benjamin Levy Aguilar) affair with Gloria Perez (Yara Martinez)—now operating under the significantly less conspicuous alias Vivian Salazar—becomes a very real problem when it turns out “Vivian” is running a drug operation. This isn’t exactly shocking, considering the informant-turned-drug-lord career path is as well-worn as a Law & Order rerun.
The plot thickens faster than a Chicago-style deep-dish when a young hitman, Jose Canto (Jose Martinez-Chavarria), turns up dead, poisoned before the Intelligence Unit can get any information out of him. Canto’s demise points directly to Gloria/Vivian, suggesting her new life isn’t as reformed as she’d like everyone to believe. Of course, Torres’ involvement with Gloria puts his career, and possibly his freedom, on the line. The cover-up, which also entangles Officer Kim Burgess (Marina Squerciati), throws gasoline on an already raging dumpster fire.
Meanwhile, Officer Cook (Toya Turner) goes undercover. Predictably, she makes a mistake, blowing her cover and landing squarely in Gloria/Vivian’s crosshairs. The episode ends with Cook’s life hanging in the balance, courtesy of a poisoned needle, and Torres staring down the barrel of his past bad decisions. It’s the kind of cliffhanger that reminds you why you either love or hate network television.
“Contrition” offers a solid dose of Chicago PD formula: a complicated personal entanglement, a rookie mistake with potentially deadly consequences, and a web of cartel intrigue that’s about as subtle as a brick to the face. Let’s just hope Officer Cook has a decent health insurance plan.
Chicago P.D. airs Wednesday nights at 10/9c on NBC.
