Yellowstone season 3 episode 6 recap: the Duttons fall apart

Kelly Reilly and Kevin Costner in Yellowstone
Kelly Reilly and Kevin Costner in Yellowstone (Image credit: Danno Nell/Paramount Network)

"All For Nothing" opens on a woman we've never seen before. She's making breakfast when she realizes that her daughter didn't come home last night. She calls around, asking friends if Sila stayed with them. She spends all day hoping for her return. Finally, as night falls, she calls the police to report her missing. 

Who is this woman? What's happened to her daughter? Read on below to learn the answers to these questions and discover exactly what happens in Yellowstone season 3 episode 6. 

Another tragedy on the reservation 

After the police find a car abandoned on the road, Thomas Rainwater (Gil Birmingham) and Mo (Mo Brings Plenty) join in the search. Native American officer Ben Waters (Atticus Todd) tells Rainwater they believe Sila hitched a ride or attempted to walk home, adding they don't have the manpower to find her, though neither of them believe she's still alive.

Rainwater calls Kayce (Luke Grimes), explaining they don't have the resources to find Sila, something he’s tired of saying. Kayce immediately obliges by promising more officers and volunteers.

Kayce is true to his word. A large group of volunteers, including Monica (Kelsey Asbille) and her students, help police scour the reservation for evidence. It's Rainwater, though, who discovers Sila's dead body, left in a ditch.

Monica wants to do more

Luke Grimes and Kelsey Asbille in Yellowstone

Luke Grimes and Kelsey Asbille in Yellowstone (Image credit: Cam McLeod/Paramount Network)

Monica takes Sila's death hard. Sitting in a huge bath in the Dutton mansion, she tells Kayce she feels guilty. Kayce insists it's not her fault. But Monica wants to make it her problem. She even goes back out to the reservation to try and find evidence for who killed Sila. 

Rainwater drives past. He warns Monica being out here is dangerous. After Monica says what happened to Sila isn’t fair, Rainwater explains reservations were only supposed to be temporary. Native Americans were meant to move to cities and learn to be white. But they refused and now the government ignores them and wants them to die so they can take the land. 

Rainwater tells Monica he wants the land so he can build lives for Native Americans that the government can't take. Monica asks how she can help. Rainwater is building a council that focuses on violence against women on reservations. He wants her to lead it and take their stories to universities, congress and anyone who'll listen. She says yes.

John reunites with Wade

John (Kevin Costner), Kayce, Rip (Cole Hauser) and Ryan (Ian Bohen) spot Wade (Boots Southerland), his deputy and their buffaloes. John teases his history with Wade, calling him half a criminal, then tells everyone to keep "cool heads" and ignore the pair as they look to move their cattle to another field away from the buffalo.

When their face to face, John immediately calls Wade a "son of a b****." Wade explains he's babysitting the buffalo, as the resort charges guests $600 for pictures with them. Knowing he's the livestock commissioner, Wade repeatedly pokes at Kayce, who bites back telling him he won't like how he keeps the buffalo out if they enter their field. 

After Kayce departs, John tells Wade, "You're too old for feuds." He tells his foe that old feuds are all he has left.

Jimmy is lost 

Back on the ranch, Jimmy (Jefferson White) watches his girlfriend Mia (Eden Brolin) and Laramie (Hassie Harrison) racing horses. Laramie flirts with Lloyd (Forrie J Smith), who tells Jimmy he can't believe he's smitten with her. 

Jimmy opens up to Lloyd about missing rodeoing and not knowing what he'll do without it. It was supposed to be his way out, but he can't decide if he'll return to rodeoing. Lloyd tells Jimmy he has to make the decision with his heart rather than his head, otherwise he'll regret it.  

Later on, having heard about the buffaloes and after drinking all night, the wranglers go to the field and watch Laramie ride one of them, with Teeter (Jennifer Landon) then following her.

Market Equities fight back

Josh Holloway and Karen Pittman in Yellowstone

Josh Holloway and Karen Pittman in Yellowstone (Image credit: Danno Nell/Paramount Network)

Roarke (Josh Holloway) meets Market Equities CEO Willa Hays (Karen Pittman) straight off a private plane. She complains his task was supposed to be simple. 

Roarke takes her to meet Jamie (Wes Bentley), where she immediately outlines his conflict of interest if the state buys Dutton's property. Jamie says there is no issue, as the state hasn't had an offer yet and any state purchase would need to be approved by the assembly and then voters. 

Willa believes the airport should be approved because it's bringing in thousands of jobs. They'll be low-paying jobs, Jamie points out, as the more lucrative positions will be hired out of state. He insists the hired workers will just be priced out of buying homes in the area. Willa says this is already the case. 

Willa finally puts in an offer of $500 million for the land. She doesn't want him to respond yet. She wants the offer to set in and they'll discuss it when they eventually meet with Governor Perry.

John finds out

This isn't Jamie's biggest problem, though. Jamie and Beth (Kelly Reilly) start off their day with another blistering argument, where she once again explains why his approach to protecting the family under his terms makes him evil. He even addresses taking her to be sterilized as a teenager, failing to take responsibility for it as he insists he was just trying to protect the family, which Beth again says just highlights how evil he is. 

Later on, Beth asks John how he is remaining so calm when there are so many threats to his way of life. Beth points out he can't delegate the fight to Jamie, Kayce doesn't have the patience or skill and she can't do it alone. John says she has to teach Kayce and trust Jamie. 

The latter point causes Beth to walk away in disgust, shouting, "You don't know him." John asks, "What is it you know that the rest of us don't? What did he do?" Beth stops and prepares to tell him.

John, apoplectic after Beth's revelation, bursts into the kitchen where Jamie is working. John tries to hit him, screaming at Jamie, "Who the f*** do you think you were to take that from her?" Jamie, realizing what this is about, says she asked for help and he was just a kid. 

Kayce comes in, splits the pair up and asks what's going on. John leaves, telling Jamie to explain everything to his brother. Jamie bursts into tears and breaks a window, telling Kayce he hates their father because all he does is give. Kayce holds him back as Beth listens to the argument from the other room. 

John stands in a field, looks out to the ranch, telling himself, "It's all for nothing. Everything I've done is for nothing."

Yellowstone season 3 episodes air on CBS throughout January. All Yellowstone seasons are available to stream on Peacock in the US and Paramount Plus in the UK.

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Gregory James Wakeman
Writer

Born and raised in England but now based in Philadelphia, Gregory Wakeman has written for the BBC, New York Times, The Guardian, GQ, and Yahoo Movies UK, all while defiantly trying to keep his accent.