Recap: Under the cover of darkness, two sisters (Rainey and Annie Chambers) meet up for their nightly act of burglary. They sneak onto the front doorstep of an expensive looking house, override the electronic security system, and tiptoe inside. A few seconds later, a patrol car pulls up...and when the officer approaches the front door, Rainey and Annie crouch down and manage to sneak out unseen through the back - but without stealing the big ticket item they came for: the computer. Cody is at his gal pal Francine's place and is hiding in the bathroom to avoid being attacked by her aggressive (yet adorable) little dog Bucky, who growls at him menacingly. Francine orders Bucky to his dog bed, then rescues Cody from the bathroom and explains that her pooch is only acting up 'cause he's upset that she's leaving tomorrow to go on a vacation. She then links her arm with his and steers him over to her dining table to show off the elaborate spread she prepared for lunch, telling him she went so far as to call his mother to ask whether or not he likes to eat Cornish game hen. A weirded out Cody's all, "You called my mother?" then says they really really need to talk - but Francine seems oblivious to his torment about being in any kind of relationship with her and giddily pours two glasses of champagne. Lieutenant Quinlan tells Murray and Nick that they're suspects in a string of burglaries that have been occurring in a nearby upscale neighborhood, 'cause apparently a computer manual that Murray wrote (which details how to bypass security systems) was left behind by the burglars in one of the houses they robbed. Nick tells Quinlan it's nuts that he's considering them suspects based on such a flimsy connection, while Murray admits that, technically, he did invent a "digital impulse relay" that could be used to bypass security systems. Lieutenant Quinlan points out more circumstantial evidence to give weight to his theory: lately they seem to have all kinds of cash, as is evidenced by their purchase of a new motor for the Riptide, along with a new radar system. Murray explains that they're so flush with cash these days 'cause of all the royalties he's been earning from the aforementioned computer manual. Quinlan demands proof of that, then warns them to not leave his jurisdiction while he investigates the recent burglaries. A few seconds later, Cody returns home with a basket of cookies, courtesy of Francine. Nick fills him in about Lieutenant Quinlan suspecting them of burglary, then suggests they conduct their own investigation in order to clear their good names. He then glances warily at the cookie basket and asks Cody how breaking up with Francine went - but Cody clams up and refrains from admitting that he couldn't bring himself to dump the weirdo. Murray tells Nick and Cody that after researching the burglaries, he discovered that they all took place while the owners were on vacation...and has deduced that the thieves must have been somehow privy to their travel plans. While out jogging, Rainey tells Annie she no longer wants to break into people's houses...and when Annie reminds her about the 20K debt they owe Joey Dietz, aka a local loan shark and all-around bad guy, Rainey just shrugs and suggests they calmly explain to him that they want out. Annie doubts he'd give even the tiniest of rat's asses about them not wanting to rob people, 'cause all he cares about is getting his money back - but Rainey digs in and stubbornly declares, "As of right now, I'm retiring from the burglary business" and jogs off.
The Riptide trio heads over to the upscale neighborhood that's been the target of the various robberies and check out the Coldwell residence, aka the site of last night's attempted robbery. As they check out the backyard, an armed neighbor (Lyle Babcock) advances on Cody and Murray, points his gun at them, and warns them to put their hands up. Nick, meanwhile, grabs a garden hose and sneaks behind Lyle and shoves the hose nozzle into his back and orders him to drop his weapon or he'll shoot. Lyle is so filled with terror that he promptly faints...but then quickly regains consciousness after Nick spritzes him with the hose and asks him who he is. Lyle introduces himself, explains that he's been on edge 'cause of all of the home invasions in the area, and reveals an interesting tidbit: the Coldwells boarded their dog Ginger at Camp Wellington (a luxury pet hotel) while they're out of town...and that the owners of every home that's been burglarized lately also boarded their pets. The trio returns to Pier 56, jazzed that they've established a common thread regarding the robberies. As they approach the Riptide, they notice a Bon Voyage Boys poster...and Nick correctly assumes that 1) Francine hung it there, and 2) Cody hasn't yet found the courage to break up with her. They enter the boat, which has been decorated with a tropical motif, and find Francine wearing a slinky bikini, sipping a fruity cocktail as she pets Bucky. Murray perks up at the sight of Bucky and gives him a canoodle, which is well received by the pooch...much to the confusion and dismay of Cody. Nick and Murray excuse themselves to go above deck and discuss a plan to lure the burglars into a trap...and when they head back downstairs to share their plan with Cody, they find him consoling a sobbing Francine. Nick assumes that Cody finally had the cajones to dump her and starts nattering about how they'll still all be friends - but Cody hastily interrupts to explain that Francine is sobbing 'cause she can't find anyone to take care of Bucky while she's vacationing in Club Esprit. Murray offers to look after Bucky...and as Francine profusely thanks him for being part of the solution, Nick ushers her above deck and wishes her Godspeed on her journey. When Cody chides Murray for offering to take care of a high-strung mutt like Bucky, Nick points out that they can use him to infiltrate Camp Wellington. Rainey and Annie bravely inform Joey Dietz that they no longer want to rob houses in order to repay the 20K he loaned them, and he smarmily says he can think of a lot of ways a coupla hotties like them could repay him, creepishly adding, "The longer it takes, the better I'm going to like it." When he reaches out to caress Rainey's face, she reacts by slapping him...and he counter-reacts by shoving her onto the ground and snarling, "You retire when I say you retire!" He then warns that if they don't continue burglarizing houses, he'll do heinous things to their husbands and children. Murray arrives at Camp Wellington with Bucky, who causes a ruckus when he barks aggressively at the other dogs. When Annie appears at the reception desk, Murray tells her he's checking in his pet Buckminster (lol), then makes a point of adding that he's well-to-do enough to be off to Acapulco for the next month. Annie visibly perks up at that tidbit and says she'd be happy to book Bucky in the luxurious Bel-Air suite, which comes furnished with a doggie water bed.
While en route to pick up their kids from school, Annie tells Rainey that a new client at Camp Wellington is a perfect target for their burglarizing 'cause he's rich and will be out of town for an entire month, She excitedly chirps, "It's going to be our last job! It's going to be perfect!", and Rainey perks up when Annie tells her that the client lives aboard a yacht (!), and that he's a well known, wealthy scientist. The women are horrified when they arrive at the school and see that Joey Dietz and his thugs are standing beside their kids. Rainey leaps out of the car and angrily warns Dietz to not come near their kids ever again, while Annie assures him they have a job lined up that's going to result in the kind of loot they need to fully pay off the 20K loan. Joey menacingly says they have until tomorrow to pay up, then threatens to rough up Annie's husband if they don't come through. Later that night, Murray is monitoring Pier 56 when he spots two figures clad in black approach the boat...and he promptly alerts Nick and Cody via walkie talkie that someone's about to sneak aboard. A few seconds later, Annie and Rainey sneak onto the Bozinsky "yacht", look around, and express disappointment that there's nothing of value for them to steal. Murray suddenly bursts into the room and yells, "Freeze or you're fish food!" and the women are all, "Ack!", throw a lamp at Murray, and flee the boat. The trio chase after the women, who run to a nearby amusement park that's closed for the night...and when they eventually emerge from a hiding spot beneath a pinball machine, Murray punches one of them. When they're subdued by the trio and remove their head coverings, Murray stares at them in shocked bewilderment and exclaims, "I hit a girl?" Back on the Riptide, Annie and Rainey sheepishly offer to make amends for their attempted robbery of the boat, then explain that Joey Dietz is forcing them to rob innocent people 'cause they're in debt to him for 20K. When the trio's all, "Wuh? You owe that creepy loan shark that much money?", Rainey explains the nonsensical genesis of their financial woes: Annie has a numbers-specific form of dyslexia, yet for some reason is in charge of the finances of her family's business, Camp Wellington. During tax time, she accidentally filed a wildly inaccurate tax return due to her tendency to invert numbers, and then spent all the excess money the government issued as part of the tax return. And so...instead of 1) telling Michael (Annie's husband) so that he has a clue about what's going on, and 2) working out a reasonable repayment plan with the IRS, the sisters figured 'hey, let's borrow 20K from a sleazy loan shark', who's now forcing them to rob houses in order generate a daily revenue stream. They tear up and self-piteously lament that they have no one to help them out of this contrived financial disaster, and Murray clucks sympathetically and says that surely the Riptide Detective Agency could do something to help. When Nick and Cody look less than thrilled at the prospect of involving themselves in this conundrum, Murray pleads with them to reconsider, pointing out that Joey Dietz might actually harm the women's families...and that maybe they can figure out a way to get the sisters off the hook by implicating Dietz in all of the robberies.
Lieutenant Quinlan drops by a pawn shop run by Joey Dietz's crime ring to snarlingly warn the loan shark that he strongly suspects him of being behind the recent burglaries. After he huffs off, Joey tells his thugs he can only assume that Annie and Rainey have been blabbing to the cops, and that they're going to have to "fix that". Annie calls Joey Dietz to inform him that she's planning on robbing the yacht belonging to Murray Bozinsky, and supplies him with Murray's personal info. Joey orders his thugs to find out where Murray lives, and that he also wants them to kidnap "the two broads" and dump them in the ocean asap. That evening, Rainey and Annie show the Riptide trio the warehouse Joey Dietz has been using as storage for all of the stolen items from their robberies - but are dismayed to see that it's been totally emptied. Cody tells the two women that since they have no proof of Dietz having possession of the stolen loot, they may have no choice but to bite the bullet and confess all of their crime-ing to the police. They tearfully concur - but insist on telling their families prior to spilling the beans to law enforcement. When the trio returns home, they're startled to see that the Riptide has been totally emptied of everything. Francine, who has just returned from her Club Esprit vacation, emerges from the lower level and cries, "They took it all! Even Bucky!" After the commercial break, Francine admonishes Murray for abandoning Bucky at Camp Wellington, railing, "I trusted you!" - just as Annie rushes aboard to report that Joey Dietz and his thugs have just abducted Rainey. Cody implores Francine to please leave so that they can deal with this far more urgent crisis...and Murray suggests they begin their search for Rainey by tracking Roboz, who the thugs apparently stole along with the rest of the Riptide furnishings. The trio (+ Annie) heads over to Camp Wellington so that Murray can 1) use their computer to track Roboz's whereabouts, and 2) retrieve Bucky from his Bel-Air dog suite. The camera pans over to Roboz and Rainey, who are in the back of a truck, being driven out of state with all of the stolen property. As Murray shows them the tracking map, Annie sobs and clutches Nick (yum!) before they all head out to execute a hastily-cobbled-together rescue plan.
From aboard The Screaming Mimi, Murray - with the help of Bucky (!) - is tracking the signal being given off by Roboz...and eventually he's able to locate the criminal caravan: the truck containing the stolen property, and Joey's car. In a death-defying move, Cody's stunt double leaps off of the chopper and lands atop the truck, and nearly gets thrown off of it a few times before he's able to climb onto the side of the truck and into the cab, where he punches the driver and takes control of the truck. Nick then lowers Mimi in front of Joey's car, which forces it to crash on the side of the road - just as Cody brings the truck to a stop. An uninjured Joey and his thugs emerge from the overturned car, and Murray keeps them subdued by holding them at gunpoint. Annie rushes to the back of the truck and is relieved when she finds Rainey unhurt. The trio is able to quickly get control of all the bad guys - except for the armed truck driver, who sneakily exits the passenger side of the truck and orders everyone to put their hands up. Cue Bucky, who leaps out of the chopper and runs over to the gunman and bites him...which gives the trio all the distraction they need to quickly disarm him. Hurray for Bucky! Cody is practicing his breakup speech for Francine...and Nick and Murray nod approvingly and assure him that it comes off as firm, but also humane. A few seconds later, Francine arrives with her new beau (Garth), a bland looking accountant she met at Club Esprit. She breaks the news to Cody that she's hereby dumping him for Garth, who's everything he isn't: strong, determined, a real man. Ouch. She casually says, "Have a nice life" and saunters off with Garth...leaving a dazed Cody to mull over the humiliation of losing a wack-a-doodle like Francine to someone who's nowhere near being in his league of hotness. Thanks for reading! If you are enjoying TVofYore's recaps, consider thanking me by buying me a "coffee"!
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