As the Vance case enters a new phase, Bosch faces an escalating threat. A controversial police shooting ensnares both Maddie and Chandler.
With billions of dollars at stake, Bosch is trying to do what he believes Whitney Vance would have wanted. He meets with his living heirs for the first time. They have a wildly different understanding of who he was. Vance was simply a billionaire involved in the military industrial complex that ultimately got Dominick killed. It's only in facing his own death that Vance was willing to challenge the notions of what he did in his life. As a result, his money may be tainted because of what he did in order to obtain it. Of course, the people who inherit it don't have to carry out the same legacy. They can manage the money differently. It's already obvious that Vance's chosen successor at the company plans on doing the job the exact same way. He doesn't care about personal connections or trying to make the world a better place. It's all about the resources that can provide him exactly what he wants. He has the relationships to intimidate anyone who gets in his way. Creighton has put so much surveillance in place to monitor what Bosch has been doing. Bosch has been aware of that every step of the way. He hasn't been perfect in his objectives. He's trying to balance a lot. He knows the danger people's lives are in when they are brought into this secret. He has to be careful with who he tells. And yet, people deserve this money. It should be passed down to the generations that came after Whitney Vance even though they had no relationship with him whatsoever. This money can be transformational. They can dictate the terms of how they wish to spend it. They don't have to be holden to some business objective. Of course, people want to hoard this power and influence. None of it can be shared. People don't need billions in order to be comfortable. They can survive with much less. Having that wealth makes people covet and crave it even more. None of it can be taken away because that's then perceived as an attack on what they have. It's a bruised ego on a massive scale. And so, Creighton may hire someone to ensure that no living heirs can come forward to collect this stake in the company. Bosch will do whatever it takes to keep these people safe. He too recalls his own tortured past with family. It means so much to him. And yet, Maddie is the only relationship he wishes to foster in any deep or meaningful way. He could have relatives out there yearning for family connection as well. He is willing to keep those uncertainties in a box. That may mean he follows the same pattern as Vance even though they have wildly different circumstances in their lives. They may ultimately be connected in that way too.
The job is an easy distraction for Bosch so he doesn't have to think too deeply about these issues. That's evident with many of these characters. They don't have much time for personal lives outside of what they do to help the people of Los Angeles. They see the importance of doing things right in the face of so much adversity. They see people messing things up over and over again. They may not always operate with power and authority. They may not always have the right answers. However, they have the objectives to honor the victims of the various crimes in this city. Maddie actually makes a difference. She catches a serial peeping tom in the act. It's not the culprit in the screen cutter case. It's because of that personal significance that she is on the lookout for this specific behavior in the neighborhood. It's still her first major arrest. It comes on the heels of her being involved in her first shooting. That weighs on her too. She may only pursue a sexual connection with one of her fellow boots in order to distract from the work Chandler is doing. Chandler believes a wrongful death case is warranted against the city. The girlfriend to the shooter was held against her will. The LAPD had that information. They knew they had to protect her no matter what. She still ended up getting shot to death. That was the inevitable outcome for her. People want to write it off as the expected result for getting in the car. She didn't have a choice in that moment. She wanted to get back to her son. That's all she wanted. The LAPD used her family to set up this trap. And then, the family's wishes were ignored. They were discounted because it was so much easier for the cops to fire their weapons. That offered a clear and concise conclusion. Their fellow officer can recover from her injuries knowing the man who shot her has been caught and killed. That's the priority. It's not the sign of a system that works. Maddie knows to question the circumstances. People want to limit what she can offer because her vantage point didn't tell the complete story. That may still be enough to sow doubt about the situation. Maddie isn't personally responsible. She is part of an institution that has these questionable tactics and a long history of abuse. She is celebrated for her actions here. Bosch could live with that appreciation for a long time on the job. He reached his breaking point. And now, he's more friendly to Chandler than ever before. He truly is working as if he is her in-house investigator. She employs Mo's services as well. That information is vital. It also reveals how relationships evolve over time even when people aren't fully aware and accepting of it themselves. They still have to confront those truths when the situation presents itself. They have to know who they are even in the face of uncertain times.
