At 16:00 five M41s and a Scout Car from the 1st Mech Recon moved to protect the President in Laranjeiras palace. It is only a few blocks away from Guanabara palace and the police defensive line was in its perimeter. At night the Army Police was already in the area, face to face with Lacerda's police. The streets between the palaces were rigorously guarded but it was not a standoff.

Admiral Aragão considered himself "absolute lord of Rio for two days". But although his marines were intimidating, Guanabara's police also made themselves felt as a city-wide force, imprisoning union leaders. In one case they failed: 12 policemen busted a meeting in a building right in front of the Air Ministry, which sent troops to free the unionists. Heavily armed marines showed up and expelled the police.
Aragão was also proactive and guarded pro-government media and a few other buildings, as well as going on the offensive. The government had a sort of censorship in place and he enforced it; through night and the next day's morning his marines occupied some oppositionist media. He was very willing to act but restrained by lack of orders from above. Lacerda's campaign against the pro-government civilian bloc was largely successful, aside from that one case.

At 21-22:00 there was panic in Guanabara palace as a convoy of marines headed their way, but all they did was reinforce Laranjeiras. At this point Lacerda's was behind a multilayered defense centered on the 1st Independent Company and 2nd Battalion of his police, bolstered by more battalions and hundreds of volunteers further out. They stood behind garbage trucks or from apartment windows.

Lacerda had an escape plan through the hills to boats left in the beach.

At Botafogo beach (southeast of the palace) there were empty fuel tanks to obstruct any amphibious landing.

Despite all of this Lacerda could hold out no longer than two hours in combat. The decision to stand was by itself courageous, but would he die fighting or escape? That was never tested. Aragão wanted to attack and thought it'd be a moral triumph, but never received Goulart's approval. Likewise Francisco Teixeira received suggestions of bombing the palace, but refused out of lack of officer support and that such an attack on a densely populated area would just be terrorism.