Boardwalk Empire Recap: Breathe, Nucky

Gillian tries to manipulate a bumrush but Gyp’s all “call me Gyp,” and putting his meaty fingers on her lips, which I’m sure Gillian really appreciates what with her history, so she tells him while he’s always a welcome guest, she has a business to run. Gyp tells her she’ll still run it, same as it ever was, only now she’ll “have a pal in charge.” Then just to be sure he’s gotten on every one of Gillian’s nerves, he plays with her earring and calls her “Strawberry.” Grab that big tusk that the Commodore used as his proxy cock and beat Gyp with it. Now!

You know his finger smells like Brylcreem and salami.

Sadly, Gillian puts on her pleasant façade and tells Gyp that’s what she’s always hoped for. Gyp thinks he’s actually won that round and tells her he’d like some breakfast. Gillian smiles and tells Gyp and his goons to make themselves comfortable then lurches out of the room, running into Richard. She hisses at him that Tommy’s not to come downstairs and to lock him in his room. Then Gyp’s goons shuffle the desk into the sitting room and Richard looks around wondering how the lonely, half-faced sniper with a gift for scrapbooking became the most well-adjusted person at the whorehouse.

Nucky’s trying to get Torrio on the phone to no avail, as the guy on the other end is staging a really half-assed version of “Who’s on First?” Nucky just wants to talk to Torrio or Capone or Eli but the guy’s all “Nope, he’s not here. Thought you wanted to talk to Torrio. Wait, what?” Then we learn that Nucky never even bothered to learn anyone’s number because that’s what Eddie was for, but it’s too late, anyway since Torrio’s guy hung up, without so much as a goodbye. Chicago hoods ain’t got no class.

Nucky’s all nervy, but Dunn comes in to tell Chalky he brought someone and Chalky reminds Nucky that this is a huge favor, implying that he intends to cash it in, soon. Dunn’s brought Samuel, because I guess he’s going to be the Michael Corleone who keeps trying to leave but they pull him back in. (Not the one who has his brother murdered, although that version of Samuel might be interesting, too.) Chalky tells him this is between them. No one, not Maybelle, not his parents, need to know and Nucky Nucky’s that he’ll make it worth Samuel’s while because everything has a dollar amount in Nucky’s world.

Oh…damn. This again?

Samuel looks at Eddie, who’s still muttering in German from the delirium and very likely infected at this point, and tells Nucky he doesn’t know what he can do. Nucky sneers at Samuel that he’s a doctor, isn’t he? But Samuel’s not part of Nucky’s world so he snots back that he’s a medical student and what Eddie really needs is a hospital.