‘Empire’ Season 3 Episode 16: Evil Stepmom (RECAP)

You mess with a Lyon and you’re going to hear their roar. Mess with their cub and feel their claws. The Lyons are demanding that the Dubois family return Bella but they deny having anything to do with taking Bella. The battle of Lyon vs Dubois begins on this week’s episode of Empire.

The Lyons are losing their patience as no one can seem to find Bella. There’s no record of where she is or who is responsible for taking her. It appears that this case is turning into a kidnapping.

Thirsty (Andre Royo) suggests that Anika (Grace Gealey) expedite her divorce from Lucious (Terrence Howard) to show that she’s doing everything she can to separate Bella from the Lyons. None of them have a clean track record but they’re going to have to unite for Bella and stay low until they get her back.

The Lyons were supposed to stay quiet for a while until they got Bella back but Andre (Trai Byers) is already ruining it. He attacks Anika to take care of their unfinished business.

Anika tells Andre that she deserves everything he’s willing to do to her, even kill her. She wanted to be a Lyon so badly that she sold her soul and now she’s lost without her baby. Anika is left to suffer in a similar way that Andre has.

Taye Diggs as Angelo Dubois and Phylicia Rashad as Diana Dubois.

Cookie and Andre go behind Lucious’ back to try and steal his Vegas show. She promises to bring a bigger and better show with Jamal’s When Cookie Met Lucious but the deal isn’t going anywhere without Lucious.

Angelo (Taye Diggs) better watch his back. The Lyons have a loyal fan base and they’re willing to fight for Bella. If the Lyons don’t get to him first, the fans will.

Snap! Cookie put Nessa (Sierra A. McClain) in her place with a big whack across the face. Nessa must think she’s a Lyon just because she’s dating one. Even if you’re a Lyon, you don’t tell Cookie what she can and can’t do.

Andre doesn’t want to work with Lucious on the Vegas deal but Cookie reminds Andre that they need him if they don’t want to go to war. Once Nessa realizes she won’t have anything to do with Cookie’s version of the Vegas deal, she tries to tell her off. You live and you learn, Nessa.

The only ones being peaceful are Jamal (Jussie Smollett) and Lucious. The two had a few disagreements on the music for their song but eventually Lucious let Jamal take the reins on this one.

Terrence Howard as Luscious Lyon and guest star Nia Long as Giuliana Green.

Cookie does not play around. She works with Shine (Xzibit) to take Angelo hostage and rough him up a bit. Angelo tries to justify the way he reacted when they broke up by saying Cookie broke his heart. He denies that he would ever take her granddaughter and doesn’t know what happened with Bella.

Just because Angelo swears he had nothing to do with what happened to Bella doesn’t mean his mom is in the clear. Cookie knows Diana (Phylicia Rashad) played some role in Bella being snatched. I agree with Cookie. Maybe Angelo wasn’t in on it but Diana fits in perfectly.

That little weasel Giuliana (guest star Nia Long)  just can’t stay away. Cookie tries working with Lucious, telling him the fans want to see them together for the Vegas show.

Once again, Giuliana sneaks in and takes control. Lucious tells Cookie that they will stick with his plan of Inferno being the Vegas show that launches Empire Casino. Cookie should’ve saved a slap for Giuliana.

Andre basically comes clean about using Nessa as a way to make himself more powerful instead of actually loving her. He just needed an artist that he could control. I don’t think Shine will be happy about this.

I knew it! Diana took baby Bella. She introduces Bella to Angelo as the newest member of the Dubois family. How could she do this when she’s a mother herself? I understand Anika isn’t the most innocent person but that doesn’t make it okay to steal her baby.

Empire, Wednesdays, 9/8c, Fox