Aahana Swrup
Ever since Thony’s life intertwined intimately with the Sanchez cartel family in season 4 of ‘The Cleaning Lady,’ the doctor has found herself in increasingly dangerous situations. By the time the season’s two-part finale rolls around in episodes 11 and 12, titled ‘Killer Queen’ and ‘As Time Goes By,’ the trouble-magnet protagonist has found herself in an actual prison. Jorge, her fake husband for whom she had started to have real feelings, betrays her by pinning the Rex Blackley murder firmly on her. Unfortunately, this, paired with his newfound rivalry with Sam Heller, effectively lands his wife in the same prison block as his vengeful sister, Ramona. Nevertheless, the stakes rise through the roof once the former cartel queen sets her sights on the one person Thony treasures above everyone else: her son, Luca. SPOILERS AHEAD!
Ramona and Thony go Head-to-Head in Prison
Shortly after Thony’s arrest, Jorge shows up by her side as her attorney. As it turns out, he only ever testified against his wife as a part of a deal he had cut with ADA Herman to earn his own freedom in exchange for rooting out interdepartmental corruption. Therefore, even though he used her as a pawn in a bigger plan, he has every intention of getting her out of the jaws of trouble. That is, until Sam Heller steps in. The rival crime boss has a bone to pick with the Sanchezes, for which he ends up employing the explicit help of an estranged family member: Ramona. Jorge’s sister, who is also responsible for the murder of his first wife, is desperate to exact her revenge on his second wife.
Thus, Heller pulls a few strings and gets Thony into prison without due process or a conviction. As such, Jorge’s risky plan ends up leading his wife toward an entirely new danger. In the prison, the cartel doctor won’t have any real protection against Ramona, who is bound to target her from the start. Therefore, once weeks pass and it becomes obvious that neither Jorge nor Herman can do anything to get Thony out, she decides to take her fate into her own hands. She plans to strike at her sister-in-law before she has the same chance. After snagging a job at the facility’s kitchen, she messes with the food to give Ramona’s gang food poisoning. Furthermore, the rotten food jumpstarts a heart attack for her roommate, Cheryl, which grants her lucky access to the ward’s medical room.
As such, Thony manages to arm herself and earn a favor from Cheryl for saving her life in one fell swoop. Consequently, when Ramona comes for her during Shower Hours, she’s prepared to defend herself with a sharp scalpel. Nonetheless, it isn’t enough to overpower the ex-cartel leader, who easily puts the inmate-doctor in the infirmary. However, this only ends up being a distraction for a much bigger plan. Ramona was never planning on killing Thony. Instead, she just wanted her locked up away in the infirmary so that when her real plan, a bulldozer to the prison wall, arrives, there’s no one to stop her from escaping and going after her real target, Luca.
Herman Becomes the New District Attorney
While Thony goes through her own personal hell inside prison, Jorge tries his best to track down the person responsible for throwing a wrench in his plans. Even though he broke a personal deal by testifying against his pretend wife, he never meant for her to be in any real danger. He knew there wouldn’t be enough evidence against her for a conviction and that a quick bail would be all it would take to get her out of custody. As such, Herman can investigate the person who planted the false evidence in the Sanchez house while Jorge remains free to settle his own scores. Nonetheless, as soon as Thony gets thrown into jail, everything changes.
Jorge discovers that the current DA is responsible for the abrupt change in Thony’s processing, which in turn leads him to uncover his involvement in planting the evidence. Therefore, he decides to resort to adverse, cartel-appropriate measures and assassinate his target. He drugs the District Attorney to death to make it look like an overdose and silently fades away into the shadows. As a result, once the position opens up again, Herman automatically gets the promotion. Despite all his reservations against Jorge and his wife, the law enforcement officer inevitably ends up finalizing Thony’s release after a tense confrontation with an emotional Fiona. Still, it ends up being for naught since the doctor escapes with the other jailbreakers, intent on saving Luca from Ramona by any means necessary.
The Cleaning Lady Season 4 Ending: Does Thony Kill Ramona?
After Ramona escapes from prison, she wastes no time and immediately goes after Luca and Violeta. Once Thony learns of her plan from one of her gang members, she attempts to beat her to the punch, but ultimately fails. Thus, the other woman manages to get the kids from school before either of their parents can intervene. This sets Thony and Jorge up for a wild goose chase as they put all their resources to search for Ramona and their kids. Eventually, she manages to lure the mother out into the middle of nowhere for a final confrontation.
Their place of meeting already has one grave ready to house the body of whoever fails to walk out of this altercation alive. Initially, Ramona almost manages to get Thony to climb into her own grave. Fortunately, Fiona, who tracked the duo down with Benny’s help, arrives in the nick of time to knock out the escaped convict. However, instead of returning to her family afterward, Thony makes a heavy decision. Ramona has been a danger to the doctor and her family for a long time now. It’s evident that even her love and loyalty to her brother are conditional and can change at any given moment according to her own personal gain. She has already killed one of Jorge’s wives.
Therefore, it stands to reason that she won’t hesitate a second time. As a result, Thony convinces herself that the only way to get rid of Ramona for good is to kill her once and for all. Yet, the fact remains that taking a life, without the excuse of mercy-killing or anything else, will take a toll on the doctor’s soul. Ever since she got tangled up in the criminal underbelly of the world, her morality has continued to be corrupted further. It seems Thony is prepared for Ramona’s death to be the final nail in the coffin. Even so, when it comes down to it, she can’t outright slit the unconscious woman’s throat, unwilling to have actual blood on her hands.
Thus, Thony opts for an easy way out and drops Ramona’s body in the grave the latter had dug for the other woman. In the end, the cartel doctor buries her sister-in-law alive, condemning her to her inevitable death. Some time later, once the crime scene has been cleared out, Ramona wakes up inside the coffin, forced to surrender to her demise. Even though the woman has much fight in her, it’s hard to imagine she would be able to claw her way out of her premature grave. Still, the possibility remains the same since she never really dies on screen.
Do Thony and Jorge End up Together?
Despite getting married early in the season, Thony and Jorge have an exceptionally complicated relationship. The duo’s marriage is only a thing of convenience that keeps them both in the clear in the Rex Blakeley murder case. Initially, when the knot is tied, the two have no evident feelings. Jorge’s heartbreak over Vanessa’s death is still fresh, and Thony is simply trying to stay alive. Nonetheless, in time, as the two and their kids spend more time together, sparks inevitably fly. Still, the pair runs away from their feelings all the same, either by pining over a dead spouse or starting ill-advised workplace flings.
Nonetheless, by the end, the Sanchez couple’s feelings for each other eventually come out in the open. Yet, their timing remains abysmal since a trip to the slammer and the abduction of their kids immediately follow their confessions of love. Still, as Jorge manages to save Luca and Violeta, and Thony gets rid of Ramona, the pair find a moment of peace. In the reunion that follows, they reaffirm the reality of their persisting feelings for one another, sharing their mutual desire to give their marriage and their family a real chance.
However, a happy ending doesn’t seem to be in the cards for them yet. Jorge has recently lost out on his cartel to Feng, an unexpected traitor to the Sanchez family. As a result, he’s planning on leaving the States to regroup, find a way to regain his power, and return to take back control of Sin Cara. Although a fresh start would be good for Thony, who is technically still a fugitive of the law, she’s unwilling to give up on the life she has built for herself here. Thus, in the end, even though the couple finally find their way to each other, their paths must diverge. Yet, there’s always hope that somewhere down the line, their roads will collide once again, allowing their unfinished romance another chance.
How Does Feng Take Over Sin Cara?
Feng’s takeover of the Sin Cara cartel arrives as a big surprise to both the audiences and the in-universe characters. Admittedly, the cartel has been falling off for a while, especially since the Sanchez family’s inner conflict began taking priority over their business. Ramona’s attempts to sabotage her brother, the discovery of her involvement in Vanessa’s death, and her decision to go after Thony all directly endanger her relationship with Jorge. In turn, the latter’s consistent decision to focus on his personal feuds instead of dealing with the cartel’s financial dip, rivalry with Heller, and ever-present instability dampens any faith the others have in his leadership.
However, while all of this is unfolding, Feng manages to swoop in and carve out an advantageous path for himself. He plants seeds of discord all around, even going as far as to target cartel members and their families to stoke the fires of the rivalry between Sin Cara and the Hellers. Finally, Ramona’s decision to go after the kids grants him the perfect excuse to execute his ultimate plan. While Jorge and Thony remain preoccupied with their familial drama, Feng sets the cartel boss up in a trap. Furthermore, he uses this time to elbow his way into overtaking the cartel’s assets for himself. Thus, even though Jorge manages to survive in the end, his loyal members and resources slip away from his fingers.
What is Thony’s Plan?
In the end, Thony decides against running away with Jorge for a new start. She has managed to build a life for herself and Luca in the States by their family’s side. For the same reason, she isn’t willing to give up on it without a find. Nevertheless, it’s become evident to her that she can’t ever return to her old life. Thony has gone too deep with Sin Cara and its enemies ever truly to be rid of its looming shadow. Therefore, if she has to live with that danger over her head, she decides to embrace this other aspect of her life. Before leaving, Jorge leaves his wife with one parting gift: a book of all his cartel contacts that she can use to cut a deal with Herman for her own freedom.
However, Thony decides to use the book in another way. She hands it over to Feng as an olive branch to dispute any lingering rivalry between them. Furthermore, she makes a demand of her own. She wants her own seat at the Sin Cara table. On the other hand, she also makes a different deal with Herman, to become his eyes and ears in the cartel. Thus, she earns both her freedom and manages to keep one foot in the underworld. It seems Thony has finally gotten sick of letting crime bosses determine how her life spirals out of control. Now, she’s intent on taking back the reins of her life by fighting her way to the top and becoming Sin Cara’s head herself.
Read More: The Cleaning Lady Season 4 Episode 10 Recap: Queen For a Day
