'True Detective' Season 2 Spoilers: Episode 3 Reveals Ray's Fate; What Happened In 'Maybe Tomorrow'? [RECAP]

Fans of "True Detective" Season 2 had been holding their collective breath since the end of episode 2 last Sunday. After a deliberately slow hour that set the stage for the convoluted investigation into Ben Caspere's murder, Ray Velcoro (Colin Farrell) followed the wrong lead and ended up with two shotgun blasts to his ribs. Viewers were left wondering if the HBO series had just killed off one of its main characters. Luckily, episode 3, "Maybe Tomorrow," would reveal Ray's fate.

Here's how it all went down in episode 3:

The episode begins with a scene that seems straight out of a David Lynch movie, with an alive Ray sitting in the restaurant where fans have seen him meet Frank (Vince Vaughn) watching a lounge singer belting LeAnn Rimes' "Some Say Love" in a curiously surreal blue light. Ray has a cryptic conversation with his father before realizing there is a bullet wound in his chest. "What is this," he asks his father. "I don't know, you were here first," he replies.

Ray wakes from the dream to find Ani (Rachel McAdams) upset he had followed a lead without his partner on the case. It turns out the house was Ben Caspere's murder scene. He notes the riot bullets used to subdue him, but not actually kill him, imply, perhaps, cops were behind the shooting. Ani is further distressed to find Vinci city police was moving in on the case and, potentially, the investigation.

Meanwhile, add performance anxiety at the fertility clinic to Frank's list of problems. The mobster cannot stay focused with everything going on with his business deal. Later Frank and Ray meet at the restaurant, in reality this time, where the detective confronts the crime boss about sending him to the house where he was shot. Frank claims to be in the dark.

Elsewhere Ani and Paul (Taylor Kitsch) pay a visit to the Vinci mayor's house where they meet his strung out wife, Veronica (Agnes Olech). They also square off with the mayor's son, an "event organizer" named Tony (Vinicius Machado).

Ray has to deal with the fallout of an angry Vinci mayor after Ani and Paul's shakedown. The mayor's office reminds him to steer her away from any possible corruption involving the city. However, there is some pressure on Ani as well. Her higher ups want her to pursue possibly exposing Vinci's underhanded dealings via Velcoro in exchange for a promotion.

Ray and Ani visit a film set where Ben Caspere used to hang out. They learn Caspere partied with the director at an exclusive club with many prostitutes present.

Frank meets with Osip (Timothy V. Murphy) where he learns his deal is gone for good. Afterward, he questions if Osip was behind the murder of Caspere to blow up the deal. Then, Stan (Ronnie Gene Blevins), a contractor and former business associate of Frank's visited earlier in the episode for extortion purposes turns up dead with his eyes gouged out. Frank worries someone is gunning for him and calls a meeting of all his former associates.

Later, at Ray's house, Ani overhears a conversation between Ray and his ex-wife in which she tells him she will be filing for full custody and warns him state investigators came asking about him.

Elsewhere, Paul visits a club Caspere used to frequent, finding out from some male prostitutes Caspere took a liking to a girl named Tasha. It happens to be the same club Frank uses as his meeting place -- Paul and Frank awkwardly bump into each other, not realizing each other's role in the story. At this meeting, Frank urges all of his former associates to put the word out to the girls who work for them for information on Caspere. When one refuses, claiming Frank no longer has any power after selling off his stake in the criminal underground, Frank challenges the man and after beating him to ground, rips his golden grill out with pliers. Frank returns home and turns down sex with his wife.

While they're following up on a lead, Ray's and Ani's car is set on fire. They pursue the masked criminal on foot, but lose him when Ray has to tackle Ani to keep her from being hit by a truck. When she thanks him for saving her life, he asks what the state has on him. She says she does not know.

What did you think of "Maybe Tomorrow?" Tweet your thoughts to @Ja9GarofaloTV.