I was out of town last week, so I was unable to review “Letting Go,” which gave fans a peek into Nick’s backstory. It was a pretty emotional ride, with Nick coming close to meting out the justice he’s waited so long for, an introduction to his older brother (Peter Stebbings in a beard!) and Dov and Marlo continuing the bombing investigation on their own.

This week saw closure in the case of the man stalking Traci. Or should I say “men” as the duo of Adrian Locke (J. Adam Brown) and Corey Sleeman (Will Bowes) were working in tandem to capture women and rape them. Eagle-eyed viewers will note Corey Sleeman is the guy who was pulled into the station and questioned by Swarek in Episode 1 and aimed the investigation away from himself.

“A Real Gentleman,” written by Karen Moore, may very well have been named that because Corey felt he hadn’t done anything wrong by nabbing ladies like Traci. After all, he wasn’t the one sexually assaulting them; that was Adrian and Corey was just watching and making sure his partner was being gentle. The whole storyline was pretty terrifying simply because the suspects were so blasé as they recounted what they’d done. Most TV shows go the route of a hardened, veteran criminal committing the crimes, but Thursday’s storyline proposed the quiet kid next door or the barista in the coffee shop could be stalking and plotting harm. It was a dark route to go, and kudos to Bowes and Enuka Okuma for saying the lines with the appropriate gravitas. Okuma’s Traci hasn’t had a heck of a lot to do this season, but she more than made up for it on Thursday. (And can we talk about the serious butt-kicking Traci delivered to Corey in that basement? Wow.)

Rookie Blue isn’t the first cop drama to throw a red herring into the mix but the latest was offering up gun smuggler Thom Kozik (Daniel Kash) as the possible reason Traci had gone missing just minutes before the raid. Kash plays bad guys to a tee and was in his element as the sleazy Kozik, hinting to Swarek and Steve that perhaps he was behind Traci’s disappearance. He wasn’t, of course, but I have to wonder if Kozik will be back in a future episode. Kash is a little too high profile an actor for a one-off and the case against him seemed to be far from closed.

Gail’s ongoing adoption storyline made a little step forward this week, as she and Dov were tasked with keeping Leo company while the force searched for his mom. There was a nice moment in the squad car where Gail and Leo bonded and he showed his trust in her by putting his head on her shoulder. Awwww.

Notes and quotes

• The look Gail gave Dov when he suggested she might be iron deficient? Priceless.
• Track grabbed a bike lock to defend herself from Corey, but I would have used the canoe paddle by the door.
• Diaz needs to run away from Jamie as fast as he can. But is he in too far to escape her if he decides to break it off?

Rookie Blue airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET on Global.