Chicago PD spoilers: What happened in season 9 episode 12?

Chicago PD keeps its revolving door policy going with its latest episode. After stories that spotlight Atwater (LaRoyce Hawkins) and Burgess (Marina Squierciati), the series has decided to shift things to Hank Voight (Jason Beghe) and his relationship with the informant Anna Avalos (Carmela Zumbado).

Voight’s allegiance to Avalos has been one of the most unexpected aspects of Chicago PD‘s ninth season. While the rest of the IU is skeptical (and rightfully so) regarding the informant’s loyalties, Voight seems to be far more trusting than he ever has been of a reformed criminal.

Be warned that the rest of the post contains detailed spoilers for the latest episode of Chicago PD!

What happened on Chicago PD last night? (January 19th)

The episode, titled “To Protect”, begins with the IU finding the corpse of a John Doe. They initially think he’s a member of Los Temidos, but it turns out that he was a man named Pedro who merely tried to rip off the gang and paid for the attempt with his life.

Since Los Temidos are brought into the mix, Voight decides to reach out to Avalos for some info. She has little to offer given the random nature of the killings, but she does provide some insight into the gang and their upcoming dealings. She agrees to go undercover at a Los Temidos party, and while things initially go well, she gets spooked at one point by the sight of a certain member and Voight decides to break in and protect her.

Avalos pulls Voight aside after the undercover operation nearly goes haywire, and tells him not to do anything like that again. Voight is taken aback by the request, and, visibly shaken, he goes to Halstead (Jesse Lee Soffer) for some advice. He asks whether he should allow Avalos to remain undercover, given her actions.

Halstead has made it clear in past episodes that he’s no fan of Avalos. He’s openly questioned her motives, but here, he surprisingly tells Voight to leave her in the field. He theorizes that she’s so angry with the world and the hand she was dealt that she wouldn’t make any foolish mistakes.

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More close calls and undercover breakthroughs follow. Voight and Halstead confer once more about what could be done to keep Avalos safe, and tellingly, both men struggle to come up with a solution that was legal. Voight can only theorize how to get her out safely through illegal means, but it’s evident that the veteran officer is trying to reform his old ways.

Towards the end of the episode, Avalos comes clean with Voight about her past, and why she hates Los Temidos so much. She reveals how she was initiated into the gang; that she was beaten, drugged beforehand. Whenever she encounters a voice that sounds familiar, as she did during her undercover stint at the aforementioned party, it takes her back to the night of her initiation.

Voight is struck by this, and he promises to get her out of the gang lifestyle for good. Things end on a sullen yet hopeful not, as a reeling Avalos goes to work at a local bakery, and Voight keeps his hands clean.

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