Malcolm and Cookie finally exchange a kiss...and later this leads to some sensual phone conversations (until Lucious walks in on Cookie on the phone and she pretends she's talking about something else with someone else)...and later in the episode, after an explosive scene, Malcolm actually calls Cookie baby in front of the family. But it was such an explosive scene, it seems like no one even noticed. Even I had to rewind it a few times to confirm what I heard.
This is interesting given Lucious has decided, with Anika out of the picture, he wants to remarry Cookie. He even takes part of the boys' shares of the company to give to Cookie. However, towards the end of the episode, he asks Cookie to remarry him, and she turns him down. She said she fantasized about them getting back together when she first got out of prison, but that he only cares about himself and damages everything he touches including their sons (something she seems to say every episode). She also throws in that he just doesn't want to die alone. O...but he did make her head of A&R earlier in the episode...essentially he's giving her everything Anika had, but she declined the marriage part.
Camilla and Hakeem become a team of sorts, or as they refer to themselves...Marc Anthony and Cleopatra. She works on developing his new look and sound. Cookie is still not feeling Camilla being in Hakeem's life, and Lucious isn't either. He takes her to his office and offers to pay her to leave him alone, noting he is aware of her serious financial woes. She says she doesn't want his money. But Lucious has Malcolm come to take her to the airport to catch a one-way flight to England and gives her a check. She goes with Malcolm, but not before ripping up the check and telling Lucious when he dies she's going to return. Part of me was feeling like, maybe she does want the money, but is holding out for the big fortune Hakeem will get...but then they show a scene of her actually crying. Maybe she does care about Hakeem...or she's distraught she has to wait for Lucious to die to get to the money???
Andre returns home for the IPO, but he refuses to go to the signing event. He tells his wife that he is giving her his proxy and power of attorney. This episode doesn't end with Andre in a shocking predicament. Well actually, there is kind of a shocking moment for those who watched the preview for this episode. Jennifer Hudson joins the show as Michelle White, Andre's musical therapist. At one point she tells him, sometimes music and medicine aren't the best therapy. Then the scene from the preview plays out...She locks the door, says what she's about to do may be against hospital rules, and then gets down on her knees and close to him on the floor. Then she...suggests they pray! Now, for about a week I would guess most of the show's viewers thought there was going to be some type of sex scene between Andre and Jennifer's character, but nope! She suggests that prayer works better than medicine and music sometimes, and she ends up praying for him! I liked it!
Through the appearance of Olivia, Jamal's ex-wife and alleged baby mama, ex, Reggie, we learn some history about Vernon and Lucious. Reggie finds Olivia at a bus station and demands she comes with him and says he wants Lola too. Reggie forces Olivia to approach Vernon in a club about the location of Lola. In this scene we see Vernon preparing to snort cocaine. When he takes Olivia and Reggie to Lucious' home, which is the night of the IPO signing, Lucious confronts him in private. Noticing his behavior and demeanor, Lucious asks Vernon if he's back to doing it again. So I guess he had a cocaine problem previously.
Meanwhile, in the other room, Jamal is talking to Olivia, while Cookie is talking to Reggie about his tattoos...specifically a crow. Upon hearing this, Jamal realizes that crow tattoo represents the scary bird Lola said she was afraid of. He asks Olivia if Reggie was hurting Lola, and learning that was the case he runs up on Reggie to confront him. Reggie pulls a gun out on Jamal and proceeds to go on a rant about how Jamal had a baby with Olivia. Clearly seeing this fact was enraging Reggie even more, despite Olivia pointing out to him that she was married to Jamal at the time she got pregnant and it was before Reggie became her man, Lucious reveals to everyone that he's Lola's father! Yep...since Jamal wouldn't sleep with Olivia (I suppose beyond one time), Lucious impregnated her! This may also give clarity to an earlier scene. Earlier in the episode Jamal has decided he wants Lola to live with him instead of with Lucious, but he gets push-back from Lucious.
Cookie tries to take the gun from Reggie, and Reggie ends up grabbing her and putting the gun to her head. Lucious tries to convince Reggie to shoot him instead, pointing out some of the bad things he's done to his family and why they would see him as a hero. But then...BAM...or more like...BANG...Reggie gets a bullet in the head. Malcolm shot him from the doorway.
Lucious hugs Cookie, but she tells him she wishes Reggie would have shot him. Then Malcolm grabs her, he actually calls her baby, but it doesn't seem like anyone noticed. Understandable given what all just took place.
The next day, Lola tells Jamal she brought Lola to them to protect her from Reggie. As Lola hugs her uncles goodbye, she tells Andre not to be sad and tells Hakeem not to be mad...and then she tells Jamal not to be scared. Cute Empire...real cute. And correction...I suppose I should say...she told her brothers! SMH.
The episode ends with Cookie rejecting Lucious' offer to remarry her, and her and Malcolm discussion going somewhere to be alone.