The Cleaning Lady – Season 3 Episode 3 Recap & Review

Episode 3 of The Cleaning Lady season 3 kicks off with Thony entering her shop, only to discover it vandalized, with “Go Home” spray-painted on the mirror. Shortly after, she receives a call from her sister Fiona, who thanks Thony for arranging her return to the States. Fiona offers to repay Thony, but Thony insists there’s no need to worry. Thony continues that she has struck a deal with the Cartel, offering her cleaning services in exchange for ensuring her sister and nephew’s safe passage. 

Later, we see Chris and Fiona arriving in Mexico, and from there, they’ll be smuggled into the USA. While there, Chris notices a woman in distress who lacks the funds to pay the smugglers. He steps in and covers the remaining fees for her and her daughter, Camilla.  

While cleaning the bus, Thony notices blood and realizes that a baby has been born there. She finds the mother, Soledad in the next room, crying in pain. Despite Dante’s orders to focus on cleaning the bus, Thony decides to help the woman and helps the mother sneak out of the warehouse.

As the episode goes on, Nadia and Russo sit face to face. Nadia reveals that a cartel has taken Arman and offers Russo a deal that if she helps her rescue Arman, she’ll help him in building a case against the aforementioned cartel. She also insists on immunity for both Arman and herself. Nadia also subtly hints that Arman might have a connection with the aforementioned cartel. 

Russo shows Nadia body cam footage depicting Arman’s kidnapping by a man, but Nadia is unable to identify him. Russo gets frustrated by the lack of answers and suggests involving Thony. Later, Nadia tracks Glen and asks for his help in tracking down an old Grey Van in the video. Glen confesses that the van was hers but she sold it a week ago.

Dante meets with Jorge and Ramona to discuss Thony running off with Soledad and her son. Ramona suggests sending Dante to Thony’s home, but Jorge believes Thony wouldn’t take them there. He says that he knows where Thony might have gone and sets off to find her.

Meanwhile, Thony contacts Susan, the CPS worker, for help treating Soledad. With Susan’s help, Thony manages to stop Soledad from haemorrhaging and get her and her son to the hospital. However, Susan mentions that she’ll have to report this incident to the judge overseeing Thony’s custody hearing.

Jorge tracks down Thony and brings her to see Ramona who subtly warns Thony about not playing a dangerous game that could endanger her and her loved ones. Thony seems to understand what Ramona is actually talking about. Jorge also cautions Thony that once Ramona sees her as a liability rather than an asset, her life and the lives of his loved ones will be in danger.

Nadia meets with Thony and shows her the video, asking her to identify a man in the footage. Just as they’re discussing, Jorge arrives, and Nadia realizes that Thony has been working with the Sincara cartel from the beginning. Thony apologizes and explains that she couldn’t disclose it earlier as it would’ve jeopardized everything. This infuriates Nadia, who tells them to go to hell, and also that she can find Arman on her own.

Meanwhile, Fiona and Chris successfully sneak into the US along with many other illegal immigrants. There’s a tense moment when it seems they might be caught by border patrol, but Fiona’s quick thinking saves her and Chris, and they make it through safely.

Thony has a strong suspicion that Jorge may be involved in Arman’s kidnapping. She follows her intuition to Dante’s warehouse and finds the same van shown in Nadia’s video. She confronts Jorge and asks directly if he’s connected to Arman’s kidnapping. Instead of giving a straightforward answer, Jorge tells her to leave in a threatening tone. 

Back at her office, Nadia proposes a deal to Russo and offers to help capture both the Cartel and Thony in exchange for immunity for herself and Arman. Russo agrees to grant Nadia immunity but says that Arman must face justice. Russo also harbours doubts and suspects that the kidnapping may have been staged and not genuine.

In the show’s final moments, Chris intervenes when he notices one of the smugglers trying to force himself on Camilla. With Fiona’s help, they manage to save her. However, the smugglers retaliate by leaving Chris, Fiona, and Camilla stranded in the desert, alone in the dead of night.

The Episode Review

It seems like Jorge might not have been completely honest with Ramona and Thony. The fact that the van used in Arman’s kidnapping was found in Jorge’s warehouse is too much of a coincidence.

Perhaps Jorge, who has never been fond of Arman, especially since he began using their smuggling routes for his drugs, is behind the kidnapping. Jorge’s loyalty lies with his cartel and organization, so it’s plausible that he could be responsible for the chaos.