SWAT season 7 premiere: What happened to Zoe Powell?

SWAT’s season 7 premiere got started with a bang, literally! In the episode, Hondo went to Mexico with Captain Hicks and Zoe Powell in order to extradite a fugitive from his past. What happened in the episode “The Promise?”

Ten years earlier, Hondo had arrived at a safe house where Rita Martinez was staying. He had been working with her to prepare to testify against her boyfriend, Gaz Verdugo, a mafia leader who would go on to murder her. Her daughter, Pia, survived, but Hondo was unable to apprehend the man.

Now in the present day, Verdugo was found in Mexico and SWAT is given the chance to be there for the extradition. While there, Hondo runs into Pia, who is cold towards him, as she feels he has not kept his promise to her to find Verdugo.

Unfortunately, the extradition goes sideways as men on motorcycles throw flash bangs, leading Verdugo to escape custody. The team works to find him alongside the Mexican police, including Officer Gabriel Bautista, whom Zoe has a flirtation with.

They eventually discover that before his arrest, Verdugo had been in the midst of an arms trade with an unknown buyer, including a bomb. While the team works to apprehend those involved, Hondo learns that Pia is running her own investigation.

Pia does find out where the deal is taking place, which is relayed to Hondo and Hicks after they learn she purchased a gun from a dealer.

What happened to Zoe Powell in the SWAT season 7 premiere?

While they eventually take down Verdugo, Hondo, Hicks, and Powell are ready to wind down. In fact, Powell prepares to spend an evening with Gabriel. 

During the episode, Hicks was concerned about Powell getting close to him, which she felt was none of his business as her boss. But as it turned out, he may have been right to be concerned. During the raid, they realized Verdugo’s phone was missing, but figured it fell during the ambush.

It turns out that Gabriel Bautista had the phone and was actually on the take, and he attacks Powell in her hotel room. Hicks is outside her room while this is happening, but he doesn’t hear everything and thinks she is watching television.

So did Gabriel kill Zoe? We’re certainly hoping that’s not the case, especially since Anna Enger Ritch was upgraded to a series regular! Unless she comes back as a ghost, we just want her to be alive and happy. The keyword being alive.

We’ll have to find out what happens when the next episode airs on Feb. 24. One thing is for sure, though, Hicks is going to likely feel guilty about this for a while.

Stay tuned to Hidden Remote for more updates on SWAT season 7.