NCIS Season 22, Episode 10 introduces a perfect mix of guest stars led by Jordyn Owens, Melina Kanakaredes, and Ken Garito.
NCIS returns with its first episode in 2025, "Baker's Man," and it revolves around the team solving a robbery-turned-murder fiasco inside a bakery that ultimately ties to an all-out drug war that is unraveling in the outskirts of D.C.
At the center of the conflict is Agent Parker's favorite bakery, and he will stop at nothing to learn what is going on. Meanwhile, Nick's new relationship presents a conflict in the workplace.
NCIS Season 22, Episode 10 premiered on CBS on January 27.
NCIS Season 22 Episode 10 Cast Guide
Carlos Javier Rivera - Arturo Jimenez
Carlos Javier Rivera joins the cast of NCIS Season 22, Episode 10 as Arturo Jimenez, a drug dealer who is blackmailing Eleni to infuse her baked products with cocaine so that he can move their products worth millions across the country.
Rivera has credits in Snowfall, Promised Land, and Animal Kingdom.
Jordyn Owens - Virgil Wilson
Jordyn Owens appears in the early moments of the episode as Virgil Wilson, an ex-convict who becomes Eleni's helper in the bakery after being released from prison.
Owens' other major credits include Miguel Wants to Fight and Uncoupled.
Joel Damany Steingold - Officer Mandel
Joel Damany Steingold stars as Officer Mandel, Virgil's parole officer who is hiding a shady secret in NCIS Season 22, Episode 10.
Steingold is known for his roles in The Chi, 9-1-1: Lone Star, and The Crossover.
Ken Garito - Leslie Walker
Ken Garito plays Leslie Walker, Eleni's obnoxious lawyer and loan officer who serves as the attorney of the drug dealers involved in the gang war.
Garito can be seen in Why Women Kill, Lethal Weapon, and Harry's Law.
Melina Kanakaredes - Eleni
Melina Kanakaredes guest stars in NCIS Season 22, Episode 10 as Eleni, the owner of Agent Parker's favorite bakery who is being bribed with protection money by drug dealers.
Kanakaredes' most recognizable role is playing CSI Detective Stella Bonasera in CSI: NY. The actress also starred in Providence, Billions, and The Resident.
Here are the main actors who appeared in NCIS Season 22, Episode 10:
- Sean Murray - Timothy McGee
- Wilmer Valderrama - Nick Torres
- Katrina Law - Jessica Knight
- Brian Dietzen - Dr. Jimmy Palmer
- Diona Reasonover - Kasie Hines
- Rocky Carroll - Leon Vance
- Gary Cole - Alden Parker
Read more about the full main cast of NCIS Season 22.
NCIS Season 22 Episode 10 Plot Recap & Ending Explained
Baking Bad
NCIS Season 22, Episode 10, "Baker's Man," begins with Agent Alden Parker visiting his favorite Greek bakery, Kostakis Bakery, to grab a box of pastries before going to work.
He meets Virgil, a new employee who seems unusually nervous, but Parker dismisses him after saying that he only has a bad day. After Parker leaves, it turns out that the bakery is being robbed by a masked suspect.
As Parker brings the box of cookies to the NCIS headquarters, Agent Timothy McGee realizes that a note saying, "Help! Call 911," prompting the team to head to the bakery to investigate.
However, they are too late since they end up finding Virgil's dead body in a pool of batter. They also find out that the cash drawer is left empty, and there is an attempt to open the safe.
Parker is furious with himself because he didn't notice that the bakery was being robbed when he entered earlier.
Dr. Jimmy Palmer points out that Virgil tried to fight the assailant while McGee points out that there is a bullet in a wall even though he is not killed by a gunshot.
Enter Eleni
Eleni, the bakery's owner, arrives and she is immediately horrified at the gruesome scene of Virgil's death. Parker ends up comforting her, and the pair clearly has some sort of (romantic) connection.
Back at headquarters, Eleni tells Parker everything she knows about Virgil while also admitting that money has become a problem for her and her bakery.
The pair's talk is interrupted by McGee who tells Parker that two local detectives from the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) have arrived at their headquarters since, technically, it's their case.
Still, they happily transferred the case to NCIS, considering how personal it is for Parker.
This leads Parker and Agent Jessica Knight (who almost exited NCIS due to an unexpected promotion) to visit Virgil's parole officer, Mandel, to learn more about the victim. He tells them that Virgil is on the "right path" after landing a job at Eleni's bakery.
Knight asks Mandel who would want to kill Virgil, but the parole officer tells her "The kid is harmless."
Parker suspects that someone from prison could be targeting him, especially after knowing that he spent two years in jail for felony charges.
A Meringue With a Cocaine Twist
After NCIS Deputy Director Leon Vance agrees with Parker that NCIS is the right team for the case, the team's forensic scientist, Kasie, discovers an unexpected breakthrough: the meringue was mixed with 67 percent cocaine.
Not only that, she also finds out that there is at least $100,000 worth of cocaine mixed into the bakery's supply.
The team brings Eleni in for questioning, and she is dumbfounded to learn that there is cocaine mixed into her pastries.
What makes it more confusing for everyone is that Eleni also received a $25,000 deposit from an offshore shell account despite telling Parker earlier that money was hard to come by.
With her back against the wall, Eleni's lawyer, Leslie Walker, arrives to save the day by blurting out improper procedure nonsense to get his client out of harm's way.
The team investigates Eleni's background, learning that she is a Greek immigrant and the only one of her five sisters who stayed in the United States. McGee points out that she's "no Walter White," since her record is clean.
Her lawyer, Leslie Walker, is a different story altogether since most of his clients are dirty, namely drug dealers, arms dealers, and all kinds of criminals.
One of his clients that stands out is a guy named Charles Barbieri since his address is part of the bakery's delivery log during the same time Virgil was killed. It is also none other than Eleni who delivered the goods and it matches the same $25,000 deposit that she received from her bank.
Parker tries to confront Eleni about the truth, but she wants nothing to do with him. She warns him to drop the investigation before someone else dies, which further confuses him.
Parker and McGee track down Barbieri, but they are too late since Virgil's parole officer found his dead body alongside another rival gang member in an alleyway near the bakery.
Eleni goes missing after the whole shooting fiasco, causing concerns for Parker and the team.
Nick's New Love Interest Finally Revealed
Earlier in the episode, Knight has been lamenting the fact that her sister, Robin, is keeping something from her, and she believes that she is dating someone new.
It turns out that the mystery guy is none other than Nick Torres himself, but he is afraid to come clean with Knight because it might affect their working relationship.
Torres confides with Knight's ex-boyfriend, Palmer, about what to do, but he admits that he can't keep a secret that big even if he tries his best to do so.
Things take a turn for Torres after Palmer accidentally reveals the secret to Kasie. She tells Torres to tell the truth to Knight or she will be the one to break the news.
While Torres is confronting Palmer about his slip-up, Knight arrives to inform him that they might've found a lead of Eleni's potential whereabouts after Kasie found traces of a substance linked to an abandoned factory in White Oak.
Upon arriving at the factory, Torres finally tells Knight the truth about dating her sister, and the conversation clearly does not end well.
Still, they have other things to worry about after they find Eleni chained to do her captors' bidding: make more meringue as a cover to transport cocaine across the country.
Torres and Knight are cornered by a much more dangerous drug cartel leader named Arturo Jimenez, and he almost kills them before Eleni insists that the pair of federal agents can help her make the products faster with their help.
The Truth Behind Eleni
Back at HQ, McGee and Parker learn from the attorney, Leslie Walter, that Eleni's $25,000 loan was tied to Arturo Jimenez, and he is the same guy who is forcing her to make cocaine-infused meringues as a cover for her drug dealings.
Of course, Torres and Knight already know that because they are now being held captive with Eleni while also being forced to make said meringues.
Upon doing some more digging, Kasie finds out that the money Eleni loaned is not for the bakery. Instead, it is for a payment for a protection bribe so that Arturo's men will not hurt his nephew, Manny, who is currently an inmate in Sutherland Prison.
McGee and Parker realize that Torres and Knight are missing and they head to the abandoned factory to investigate and find their team members. After a tense standoff, the team successfully arrests Arturo and his men.
There is still one loophole in the case since Arturo is not Virgil's killer.
After unearthing more information, the team realizes that the parole officer (Officer Mandel) whom they have been talking to is the actual killer.
They end up finding out his shady secret after the bullet of his gun matches the one they found in the bakery on the day of Virgil's murder.
It turns out that he has been extorting families of prisoners in exchange for protection. After Eleni wasn't able to pay during the deadline, he killed Virgil to send a message.
The episode ends with Knight giving her blessing to Torres about dating her sister, but she warns him that Robin might get too attached to him because she is a hopeless romantic.
Elsewhere, Parker and Eleni share a sweet moment inside the bakery, and many would agree that romantic sparks are flying between the pair.
New episodes of NCIS Season 22 air on Monday at 8 p.m. ET on CBS before streaming the next day on Paramount+.
