Philip and Elizabeth Jennings are Russian spies. They have two children and live near Washington, DC. They have been living in the United States for about 16 years, since 1965. They track down a defector, Nikolai Timoshev, a former KGB officer and capture him. They are supposed to get him to a ship which will take him back to Russia. They make a stop to drop off one of their collegaues who was stabbed during the pursuit of the defector. They arrive at the dock in time to see the ship leaving but not in time to get the defector on board.
Philip and Elizabeth aren't sure what to do with Timoshev. In the meanwhile, they keep him tied up and locked up in the trunk of their car. They use a ball gag to keep him quiet. Elizabeth has a past with Timoshev, an unpleasant one. He raped her when she was a trainee 20 years ago. She never told Philip. She seems eager to kill Timoshev now that their best chance to get him out of the country has set sail. Philip tries contacting other KGB operatives but everyone is laying low because the FBI is out and about searching for the missing defector
Philip is swayed by Timoshev to consider turning himself in. Timoshev tells Philip about the money he will get if he does, millions. Philip tries bringing it up to Elizabeth but she is adamant that they will not defect and will not betray Russia. I get the impression that she is the senior member of their team although it isn't explicitly stated.
Stan Beeman plus his wife and son move in across the street from the Jennings. Stan is an FBI agent. He starts to sense that something is off about Philip but can't quite put his finger on what it is. He comes dangerously close to spotting Timoshev in the trunk when he comes over to borrow some jumper cables.
Things get increasingly tense for Elizabeth and Philip. He is about ready to let Timoshev go and turn himself into Stan Beeman when Elizabeth finds out what he is up to. She's disgusted. Timoshev halfheartedly apologizes for what he did to her 20 years earlier. She's ready to kill him but doesn't. Philip does instead, after hearing about what Timoshev did to her. They dispose of the body together and make love in their car afterwards.
I'm hooked. I loved this episode. There's a lot to like about it. I like the setup and the way the plot unfolds. It kept me on my toes and wasn't as forced or predictable as I feared it might be. There are some powerful character moments for both lead characters. I really liked the way music was used in this episode to help set the scene and ratchet up the tension. I'm very eager to see where the show goes from here.
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