“Covert Affairs,” Season 2, Episode 11, “The Wake-up Bomb,” finds Annie Walker still trying to reconnect with her estranged sister while performing an op in Venice, one of the loveliest cities in the world.
Spoilers follow.
However, things go wrong when her contact is liquidated and the package he handed to her is snatched. Though Joan is not concerned at the turn of events, Annie views this as just one more aggravation. She has been given a safe house apartment to stay in by the agency, but she feels lonely. She finds herself in a Basque restaurant and chatting with a handsome chef named Xavier, who claims to be a bad boy as he stays up all night, uses knives and fire, and likes to surround himself with beautiful things.
However the Agency’s policy about dating foreigners is clear, especially ones who have connections with the terrorist Basque separatist group. Xavier’s brother is in town, having just been released from a Spanish prison, and they both may be up to no good. The Spanish Embassy is nearby and a diplomat may be slated for kidnapping or murder.
As it turns out, Xavier is not involved in his brother’s terrorist plot. However he is very cross with Annie for vamping him for information. In the meantime, brother dearest, under the impression that Xavier gave him up to the Spaniards, plants a bomb in his restaurant, blowing it and almost Xavier and Annie up. The brother snatches Annie, but she is rescued by Xavier, who beats his brother into a pulp.
The episode ends with Annie still estranged from her sister, lonely in her new digs. Xavier is picking through the ruins of his restaurant and his shattered dreams. Could the Food Network give him a show? He is a charmer and could do well.
In the meantime, Jai is maneuvering to get out from under Arthur’s thumb in order to avoid being sent to Phoenix. He uses his dad’s influence to wrangle a special assignment heading a task force that reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence. This shows that the gentleman is as skilled at office politics as he is at spy craft.