Boardwalk Empire's Nelson Van Alden, once a federal agent, will delve deeper into a life of crime in the show's upcoming fourth season.

A press release from HBO revealed Van Alden is still doing undercover investigative work, except this time around he's not working for the American government. Van Alden is keeping tabs on mobster Dean O'Banion's nemesis, Al Capone, in Chicago. In season 4, the former agent will be "caught up in gangland conflicts," according to the press release.

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The "conflict" probably arises when Van Alden penetrates Capone's inner circle, hoping to gain useful information he can report back to O'Banion. The press release and the trailer for the new season hint that he may be forced to kill one of Capone's men.

"When one of their collectors is incapacitated, Al and Frank Capone decide to finish his route, enlisting a reluctant Van Alden to tag along," the press release states.

There's a possibility that Van Alden was "hesitant" to join the Capones because he knew they would encounter O'Banion's men on the route. A scene from the trailer shows Capone's and O'Banion's crews in a confrontation, and later Van Alden is seen pointing a gun at a man who is crawling away from him as several other men fight each other in the background.

Van Alden first met O'Banion in season 3, when he pretended to be on O'Banion's side during a confrontation with a rival gangster. Van Alden was in fact attempting to sell O'Banion an iron before the confrontation occurred, as part of his new job as a salesman. He took the job after he fled Atlantic City because he was being investigated for the murder of an agent he drowned in a previous episode.

O'Banion then returned the favor by disposing of the body of a policeman, who Van Alden's wife killed. The police officer showed up to Van Alden's home to return an iron he bought, but Van Alden's wife believed the cop was there to arrest her husband for selling alcohol out of their, and consequently murdered him.

Season 4 of Boardwalk Empire premiers Sunday Sept. 8 at 9 p.m. on HBO.

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