Liv? he whispered, the name sounding like a prayer he’d forgotten how to say.
I’m here, Brian, she said, holstering her weapon and moving toward him, signaling the others to hold back.
I don't know where the lie ends anymore, he muttered, his head dropping. I did things. I stayed silent when I should have moved. I looked at the mirror this morning and didn’t see a shield. I just saw him. [S19E16] Who's Brian Now?
He wasn’t the Brian who had clumsily tried to navigate a relationship with her years ago. He wasn’t the Brian who had barely survived his stint in Internal Affairs. This Brian wore the skin of a man who had seen too much and done too much to ever really come home.
Olivia knelt in front of him, cutting the ties. She didn't offer a platitude or a promise of easy absolution. She knew the cost of the job too well. She simply took his hands in hers, feeling the Tremor in his fingers. I don't know where the lie ends anymore,
He’s a brother, Fin, Olivia replied, her voice steady but thin. If he’s gone deep enough to lose himself, we’re the only ones who can pull him back.
We’ll find him, Brian, she said firmly. We’ll find the man you were. But for tonight, you’re just a guy going home. I looked at the mirror this morning and
The case was a jagged mess. An undercover sting into a human trafficking ring had gone sideways, and Cassidy, working for a separate task force, had been identified as the primary muscle for a mid-level enforcer. The question wasn't just where he was, but who he was now. Was he still the cop playing a part, or had the part finally swallowed the cop?