If you were surprised to see a new member of the Chicago Police Gang in the season 12 premiere, then you're probably not alone.

Detective Emily Martel (Victoria Cartagena) appeared on the show as if she had always been there, but unfortunately her time was cut extremely short. She met a tragic end that was especially painful after getting to know her during the action-packed hour. Learn more about Martel – and her surprising death – below.

Who is Detective Emily Martel on Chicago Police?

A month has passed since the events of the Season 11 finale, and in the meantime Martel has joined the Intelligence Unit. It's clear that she's a natural fit for the force and has quickly found her place, especially with Ruzek (Patrick John Flueger). The two met while training together at the Academy and have remained friends ever since.

“When we really start the episode and the case and see her, she's almost like a team member,” says showrunner Gwen Sigan NBC Insiders. “And we thought it would be fun and different, even though we had never done anything like this before. And we liked the idea that she had such a dry sense of humor, and it felt like she was someone who would get along really well with Ruzek.”

However, Martel's place in the Intelligent Unit marks her return to police duty after being placed in a state of mental insanity for witnessing her partner being shot in front of her eyes.

“Ruzek was the one who said, 'You're coming with us. You're joining our team, we're behind you, and you're going to be great.' And for her, it was really like a new beginning and something fresh and something different, and obviously a lot of the same themes that Voight deals with. When something tragic happens to you and then you move on and move on?” Sigan says.

Martel is played by actress Victoria Cartagena, who you probably know from series like Gotham, servant, Batwoman, Almost family, manifestAnd YouSigan called Cartagena “perfect” for her small but important role.

“I think she just fulfilled everything we were looking for and made it her own,” she says. “By the end of the episode, I fell in love with her… She did a great job, because we have only known her for a short time, but “That's a big task as an actor. To get in there and give the feeling that you're just part of this team.”

What happened to Martel?

After solving a complicated drug case, the team seems to be over the hill. At the end of the episode, Ruzek and Martel have left a crime scene and are driving back to the station together when gunshots ring out in the area they are driving through. Naturally, they stop to assess the situation and get out of the car, pointing their guns in the direction of the line of fire. The two have barely taken a few steps when Martel is suddenly shot in the head while Ruzek turns around. He looks over at her lifeless body, stunned.

The scene is shocking for viewers, especially after Martel was just introduced Chicago Police and became a seamless part of the team after Upton (Tracy Spiridakos) left. However, the casualness and false sense of security were intentional by the show's writers.

“WWe explore death in two episodes this season, oneAnd it's kind of a catalyst for the theme of this season, which is the crisis of self and identity, and so much of that has to do with, you know, the fact that we all know it's going to end,” Sigan says. “For for us it was like, 'OK, then we need to articulate this and show a death that is so shocking and reminds each of our characters that tomorrow it can all be over… I think it's important to remind the audience and ourselves as writers and the cast and the characters of this show that they are police officers. And so there is a threat every day.'”

Next week, Season 12, Episode 2, “Blood Bleeds Blue,” will feature an hour centered around Ruzek, where we will definitely see him immediately after the tragedy he witnessed.

““His character has grown up so much since the show began,” she tells us. “And there are so many facets to him that we haven't seen yet.”