'Fire Country' Season 3 Episode 9 Recap: Gabriela Finally Sees the Light and Bode Moves On

Editor's note: The below recap contains spoilers for Fire Country Season 3 Episode 9.

The fires from the winter finale rage on when Fire Country returns with a new episode this week. Bode (Max Thieriot) and Audrey (Levin Rambin) are stuck treading water in a residential pool while an inferno rages around them. Gabriela (Stephanie Arcila) also finds herself surrounded by flames after walking off the job in the middle of the fire after getting into a fight with Jake (Jordan Calloway). Meanwhile, Eve (Jules Latimer) and Vince (Billy Burke) fight valiantly to save her family's farm as the fire spreads.

Some well-timed water drops help get our crew out of immediate danger, but the devastation of the fires forges new relationships and ironically builds bridges between an estranged family. Most importantly, the fire forces Gabriela to take a hard look at her recent choices and finally makes her realize that she needs to do better, or she won't be able to walk away so easily. After spending the first half of the season actively torpedoing her life, it's nice to see shades of the old Gabriela back. We missed you so much, girl. However, Gabriela being back on track means accepting responsibility for her decisions, both personal and professional, and that might be a harder pill to swallow than expected — but having to start over may be the best for everyone, including Gabriela.

Gabriela Hits Rock Bottom in 'Fire Country' Season 3 Episode 9

Of course, Gabriela needs to escape the fire before she can start doing that important soul-searching. She gets lucky that Manny (Kevin Alejandro) risks his position at Three Rock to venture into the flames to find his daughter; he's the one to find her curled up on the ground after she walks into a barbed wire fence in the smoke. He untangles her and the two hobble into a nearby abandoned campground for shelter until they can call for help. While Manny is focused on trying to find them water in the campground bathroom, Gabriela hits rock bottom. Even though Manny has just saved her life, she's pissed that he's left his crew and risked going back to prison just to save her. Then she lays into Manny for being self-righteous instead of a supportive dad when she needs him most. It's true that Manny did not handle confronting Gabriela about breaking Diego's (Rafael de la Fuente) heart in the best way, but the decisions she made in the aftermath were all her own.

Luckily, Manny's learned his lesson and has become the supportive dad after the bathroom meltdown. Gabriela's words are harsh, but he's had to watch from the sidelines while his daughter self-sabotaged to the point where she almost got herself killed. He sucks up her verbal abuse so that he can help her see she's finally hit rock bottom. Manny's not perfect, but he's a hell of a dad, man. Gabriela finishes her emotional vomit session just in time for her and Manny to hear a car alarm in the distance. They leave the shelter in hopes of finding transportation that could take them farther away from the flames.

They don't just find a car, but Vince and Sharon (Diane Farr), who have ventured into the woods to rescue both of them. Unfortunately, the car alarm is the result of Vince and Sharon totaling the truck they've driven out to save Manny and Gabriela. So the foursome are reunited but still stuck in a raging fire until the literal cavalry shows up to get them out. Bode is probably the last person Gabriela wants to see after ripping her own heart out in front of her dad, but you know if Gabriela is in trouble, Bode will be the one to ride in to save her. The heroic moment does not mean these two are on the road to reconciliation, though.

Is Bode Finally Moving On in 'Fire Country' Season 3 Episode 9?

Bode will always ride into the flames to save Gabriela, but he also holds true to his word that if Gabriela can't offer him more than a "maybe," then he isn't hanging around. He also helps save Audrey's life in this episode, keeping her afloat in the pool until the flames die down enough for them to look for transportation. They find an old tractor to get them out of immediate danger and when they reconnect with incident command, Bode sends Audrey to the hospital to get her lungs checked out after she swallows a bunch of water. She's pissed that he has her sent to the hospital during her first shift, but it turns out Bode is right and Audrey going to the hospital to have her lungs cleared saved her life. He's really outdoing himself on the hero front in this episode!

Things get awkward when Bode goes to visit Audrey at the hospital and runs into Gabriela, who is there getting a boot put on her sprained ankle. Bode is carrying flowers that Gabriela teased he didn't need to bring her… and then realized he hadn't brought them for her. It's ultra-cringe-level awkward, but Gabriela puts on a brave face and says that Audrey would be lucky to get them. I'd never peg Audrey as a get-her-flowers type of girl, but it seems to work out in Bode's favor. Gabriela goes to eat with Manny and has a heart-to-heart about getting their relationship, and her life, back on track, while Bode gives the flowers to Audrey and they continue their slow-burn flirting. Now that Gabriela is aware that Bode's affections lie elsewhere, will he and Audrey continue taking their time with this growing spark between them? And is Gabriela going to realize she has some lingering feelings about this once she's cleaned up the immediate mess in her life? Ultimately, it's good that Bode and Gabriela are moving in separate directions. They have not proven to be good for each other at this point in their lives. It's also not smart for Bode to date another woman who works at the same fire station as his parents and his ex. Figure out how to flirt with someone you don't work with, Bode!

The Family Farm Is Back in Business in 'Fire Country' Season 3 Episode 9

Someone who truly is on the up and up by the end of the episode is Eve. The winter finale leaves her aghast as her planned blackburn turns into a massive emergency, jeopardizing her estranged family's ranch. Thanks to Jake and Bode, Eve and the team are able to get the flames under control, saving her father's barn and the family horses. While Eve's dad puts up a fight during the process of saving the ranch, he ultimately realizes that his daughter will go above and beyond to save him and what their family holds dear.

He softens by the end of the episode and lends Bode, Eve, and Jake the horses they need to save Vince, Sharon, Gabriela, and Manny. He even rides with them to make sure they can get all four back to safety on the horses. There's no official reconciliation between him and Eve in the episode, but this act of kindness is the olive branch she needs to know that they can start rebuilding their relationship. It's going to be a long road back before Eve's attending family functions regularly, but the door to communication is open, and that's more than Eve could have hoped for when she first set foot back on the family farm.

There's New Leone Drama on 'Fire Country' Season 3 Episode 9

With Bode successfully making it through his first day, Gabriela recognizing things need to change, and Manny safely making it back to Three Rock, Vince and Sharon are ready to celebrate the wins at the end of the winter premiere. They deserve a moment to relish being in a good place. Of course, as soon as they have the thought that things are starting to go well, their next problem arrives on their doorstep. As they prepare to head home, they find Vince's father, Walter (Jeff Fahey), hanging out at the station. He's arrived for Bode's graduation; the only problem is that Bode's graduation was a week ago. Did Walter forget when Bode's graduation was, or did Vince and Sharon neglect to invite him to the ceremony? Whichever the answer, there's something clearly wrong with Walter, and that's going to be the next hurdle that Sharon and Vince have to tackle together. These poor parents just can't catch a break.

Fire Country continues with new episodes every Friday at 9 PM on CBS. Episodes are available to stream the next day on Paramount+.