WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Big Sky Season 1, Episode 7, "I Fall to Pieces" now available on ABC.
When Big Sky's midseason finale ended, fans thought the deviant human trafficker and Montana state trooper, Rick, was dead after being shot in the head by Cassie, but the bullet was lodged in his skull, so he didn't die. He seems to be suffering from memory loss, annoying Cassie, Jenny and the rest of the rescued kidnap victims, since they want to blow the lid open on the criminal ring. However, things may not be as they seem, and courtesy of some key hints in the latest episode, Rick may be faking his memory loss to protect his own interests.
Rick's like a child again, but he does have his memory up until a few years ago. He shocks Merrilee, as he thinks he's still a heroic member of law enforcement, refusing to believe he's into such heinous acts. Merrilee believes him at first, as he can't even remember his dad's death, but when she takes phone calls from his business partner, Ron, without knowing Ron's true purpose or identity, Rick gets curious. In fact, he's keeping a watchful eye on his wife, and it's odd that he spots this red flag when he should be in a daze.
What's also interesting is he keeps quoting Jaws, specifically speaking about when the guys tried to find the monster hiding beneath the surface. Fans believe this is a sign that he's hiding his own monster underneath this facade. As he keeps up this act, Merrilee believes he's overselling it, which Cassie and Jenny think too.
When they bring Grace in to I.D. him as her kidnapper, the biggest sign pops up based on the fear in his eyes. He shouldn't recognize her, but he does. He might fool the others in the room, but Grace knows he recognizes her, having beaten her up and killed someone in front of her before. They have a unique connection, so he can't keep up the facade with her when they reunite.
As to why Rick would be doing this, he knows he's a sitting duck anyway, so he may be angling for a lighter sentence. In addition, he knows Ron has ulterior motives, so he could be luring him in, waiting to blackmail him and become a puppet master again. It seems he's also trying to protect his employers, with a church nearby thought to be part of the ring too, so it makes sense Rick fakes this bit of amnesia as it's the only trump card left up his sleeves.
Big Sky stars Katheryn Winnick, Ryan Phillippe, Kylie Bunbury, Brian Geraghty and Valerie Mahaffey. It airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET on ABC.