10x14 - Acid Test

[bunniefuu]

[dramatic music]

We knew this was coming.

[sustained beep]

I'm sorry for what
you're going through.

Whatever you need, I'm game.

Your presence in the ED
has become a liability.

I'm suspending you without
pay, effective immediately.

With Sean leaving Chicago and
Margo and I ending things,

why stay?

Are you really
saying that to me?

Of course, you're
a reason to stay.

Jackson-Monroe Hospital
is closing its doors.

Daily patient
numbers will double.

Changes are on the horizon.

♪

[person sneezes]

[chatter and baby crying]

[soft dramatic music]

[sneezes]

Alistair Reed?

That's me.

Oh.
- [coughing]

Please, she's dizzy
and getting worse.

Let's get you inside, ma'am.

Just a little longer, sir.

[sirens wailing]

[sniffles]

♪

Oh, man, it's
freezing out there.

Yeah.

Hear anything from Ripley
yet since the suspension?

No.

But to be fair, I kind
of walked out on him.

Yeah, well, he kind
of deserved it.

I know, but doesn't make
me stop worrying about him.

Yeah.

Same.

Dr. Asher, there's
a 12-year-old girl

in treatment three.

Didn't want to get
the pediatrician?

Mm, the mom's requesting
a female doctor.

- Ah, OK.
- I'll be right there.

OK.

[knocking]

[footsteps pattering]

Ah, took you long enough.

Sorry, doorbell's busted.

Super said he'd fix it.

But he's also a criminal, so...

- Yeah.
- You look like hell.

How's Nate?

Oh, he's still running a fever.

OK, well, let me
take a look at him.

All right.

Going barefoot in this
weather is ill-advised.

I wanted to feel the
earth under my feet.

Well, I thought you said
that the Night Owl Rave

was in a warehouse.

Oh, it's a metaphor, man.

Yeah, I'm going to
go out on a limb

and say I don't think you
know what that word means.

Oh, you need to relax.

I think you'll find
that touching me

will not elicit the
response you're looking for.

OK, Mr. Kerr, you
need a tetanus shot.

I'll get it while Nurse
Campos dresses your wound.

Let's get him some shoes
from the lost and found.

Something soft, if you have it.

[gasps] UGGs, maybe.

Hi, Arianna. I'm Dr. Asher.

This is Student Doctor Howard.

- Hi.
- Hi.

And you must be Mom.

- Jocelyn.
- OK, nice to meet you.

OK, so what's going on today?

Arianna's school choir
had a competition

in Columbus last weekend.

They got back yesterday,
when she started

feeling sick to her stomach.

Then today she woke up with
a low fever and body aches.

Well, I'd like to take
a quick look at you.

Is that OK?
- OK.

OK.

So any sore throat or coughing?

All right.

Any vomiting or diarrhea?

May I touch your stomach?
- Yes.

Any pain when you
go to the bathroom?

My stomach hurts, but
I haven't thrown up.

Have you started
menstruating yet?

Menstruating?

Have you gotten your period?

Um, yeah.

OK. When was the last one?

I'm sorry. Is that relevant?

It could be, yes.

Well, she got her first
period a few months ago.

And I believe she just finished
with the last one, yes?

Yes, a couple of days ago.

OK, so let's get a CBC,
a CMP, a UA, and a UPREG.

- OK.
- Wait. I'm sorry.

That last one, is
that a pregnancy test?

It is.

- Why do I need that?
- Oh, this is standard.

Dr. Asher, can I speak
with you a second outside?

Sure.

Is everything OK?

Listen, I try very
hard to make sure

Arianna isn't exposed
to certain ideas

until she's ready.

OK.

Well, it just seems
like you're making this

about my daughter's
sexual history,

which I can assure
you she doesn't have.

I promise you, that is not
at all what's happening.

Everything that I'm
asking is very standard

and designed to get
the whole picture

to diagnose Arianna,
that is all.

Yeah, well, I
would appreciate it

if you could be more
careful moving forward.

I will do my absolute best
within the scope of my job.

OK?

OK.

♪

Excuse me, sir.

You can't enter until
they call your name.

I've been waiting over an hour

and I keep getting
bumped by other patients.

We are having a
particularly busy day,

but we will get to you.
- Will you?

And exactly what
criteria do you use

to prioritize patient entry?

Or is it just as
haphazard as it seems?

Sir, do I need to call security?

What's wrong, Doris?

This patient is trying
to cut the line.

Oh, I'm not a patient.

- Then who are you, sir?
- Alistair Reed.

I'm with the National
Accreditation

Board of Hospitals.

- You're with NABOH?
- Mm-hmm.

Well, right, then.

Why don't you wait in the lounge

while I find Ms. Goodwin,
our executive director?

Doris, can you help
Mr. Reed find the way?

Follow me.

♪

What's NABOH?

They're like health
inspectors for hospitals.

They show up unannounced

and look for any health
and safety violations.

If Mr. Reed sees enough
things that he doesn't like,

he can recommend that Gaffney
be closed... permanently.

But does that
actually ever happen?

What?

Sounds like a
scare tactic to me.

How do you think
Jackson-Monroe got shut down?

♪

As requested, six months
of hospital records.

I'll also need the most recent

hospital policy and
procedures manual.

I'll get that for you.

I'm sorry you had such
a long wait, Mr. Reed.

But I'm confused why you didn't

just alert the
staff you were here.

I sign in as a
non-emergent patient

and see how long it
takes to be called in.

If I wait more than an hour,
it's a policy violation.

With all due respect,

that feels a bit misleading
and unfair to my staff.

With all due
respect, Ms. Goodwin,

I've found that
full transparency

leads to less than
accurate results.

Mm-hmm.

Well, when you're finished,

I'm happy to escort you
through the site visit.

Yeah, I'll let you
know when I'm ready.

Lovely.

In the meantime, please help
yourself to some coffee.

You allow coffee
in your workspaces?

I'll check back later.

Yeah. Uh-huh. Thanks.

Is it just me, or
was that the most

humorless man you've ever met?

Worse than that.

It felt like he was nitpicking.

Look, I'm going to
need your help today.

Give the brick to Doris.

I want you to
organize the staff.

Make sure there's nothing
that could undermine us.

And if you spot any major
problems, you let me know ASAP.

Anything else I can do to help?

Yeah, if you see
NABOH coming your way,

tell him you need to
go to the bathroom

and run the other direction.

Sorry, why exactly?

Because they will quiz you

about every single
hospital policy.

Do you know the exact
protocol for evacuating people

out of an operating room
in case of an emergency?

Sorry, I have to
go to the bathroom.

Now you're getting it.

He was coughing all night.

The only way he
would sleep at all

is if I sat upright
and laid him on me.

Well, he's got a nasty virus,
but his lungs are clear.

So whatever it is,

it's all right up here.

Oh, what about the vomiting?

When babies have
mucus dripping down,

it can upset the stomach.

Oh, so he's throwing up snot?

Yeah. [toy squeaks]

That's objectively disgusting.

Yeah.
- [chuckles]

Well, I'm sorry I called
you out for a cold.

Oh, don't apologize.

It's... it's better to check.

I was just being polite anyway.

What's the point of
having a doctor friend

if you can't abuse them?

[soft dramatic music]

You know, if...

if you want, I could
stick around for a bit.

You know, keep an eye on
Nate, monitor the fever.

You don't have to work?

Well, I got the late
shift tonight, so...

Oh, that would be great.

Yeah.

[phone keyboard tapping]

Please don't tell my mom.

She's not a fan of screen time?

She's not a fan of anything.

And it's only supposed
to be for emergencies.

Well, I'll have to
make sure I observe

doctor-patient
confidentiality, then.

So who you texting?

This boy I met on the trip.

That's cool.

The trip was so fun.

We hung around this fire pit,

did chicken fights in the water,

basically everything
I'm not supposed to do.

You went swimming
in this weather?

The hotel had an indoor pool.

My mom would lose it if she knew

I was in a bathing
suit in front of boys.

[chuckles]

I finally felt normal for once.

Yeah.

[monitor beeping increases]

Sorry.

I'm shivering all of a sudden.

Can I get a blanket?

Mm-hmm.

♪

Hey, the intense
shaking, that's rigors.

It means that she's
got an infection

and it's getting worse.

You know, I was
talking to Arianna,

and she mentioned on her
trip, she swam with some boys.

She didn't say it, but
it's always possible

there was some kissing.

You thinking mono?

Rigors is a symptom, right?

Could be, but,

it could also be a sign
of bacteria in the blood.

So I want you to get
a mono spot test,

draw blood cultures
and a Gram stain,

and start her on
broad-spectrum antibiotics

until those cultures
are done cooking.

Nice work.

Patient is Brayden
Whitlocker, 13 years old.

g*nsh*t wound to his left chest.

No exit wound found.

His mom and brother are here.

His dad's on the way,
Alderman Whitlocker.

- From city council?
- One and the same.

You got vitals?

Criticals. GCS 6,
pulse 145, SATs 89%.

- Any meds in the field?
- Just TXA and RSI meds.

It's going to be OK, baby.

- Let's get him over.
- Transfer on three.

One, two, three.

Hang fentanyl and
propofol drips.

OK, ultrasound.
I got the E-FAST.

Pulse is dropping. He's
getting bradycardic.

- Behind.
- BP 75 over 42.

[monitor beeping rapidly]
- Large pericardial effusion.

He's about to code.
Let's open him up.

ChloraPrep, scalpel,
and chest tray.

- I got it.
- Is my brother going to be OK?

Please, I need you
both to step back, OK?

Step back.

Get the ChloraPrep, please.

That's good.

Let's get the rib spreaders.

[cranking]

Opening the pericardium.

All right, pulse 44 now.

OK, looks like it hit
the left ventricle.

Any sign of the b*llet?

- No, nothing.
- Grab a couple Allises.

And hold the edges
together to close the hole.

- OK, letting go of the hole.
- OK. Skin stapler.

♪

[clicking]

- BP 70 over 40.
- Give it a second.

Still no b*llet.

You have to look lower.

- What?
- He was shot from above,

so the angle of the
b*llet went downward.

How do you know?

I'm the one who shot him.

♪

Apparently Brayden
snuck out last night

to hang with friends, but when
he came back early this morning

and tried to climb
through a window,

Jeremiah mistook him as an
intruder and shot him once.

When Jeremiah realized
what he'd done,

he was obviously devastated.

I can't even imagine.

But it was an accident,

so there likely won't be
formal charges, right?

I hope not.

But unfortunately
the g*n Jeremiah

bought last week
is unregistered,

so he'll be processed
and charged.

Why would he buy a g*n?

For protection.

The family lives in a
pretty rough neighborhood.

Why? The husband's
on city council.

They just separated.

Mrs. Whitlocker and her sons
moved out a few weeks ago.

Look, Jeremiah can stick
around until we know

where his little brother stands,

but then I got to
take him downtown.

That's kind of you.

Alderman Whitlocker.

Ed, thanks so much
for reaching out.

Is Brayden OK?
- He's stable for right now.

Tell me everything you know,

and please just be
straight with me.

Brayden was shot in the heart.

He lost a lot of blood.

We were able to stabilize him,
but there was no exit wound.

And the trajectory of
the b*llet was unclear,

so we're doing a CT
scan to try to find it.

[sighs] I've
spent half my life

trying to get g*ns
off the streets,

and then this happens.

When will we know the results?

Soon.

Thank you for your candor.

I'd like to see my family now.

Please. Yeah.

[soft dramatic music]

♪

I got the test results
back on Arianna.

Negative for mono.
- Damn.

But that's not the weird thing.

She's positive for staph.

But that doesn't make sense.

We started her on
broad-spectrum antibiotics.

That should be helping
get rid of the infection.

But it's getting worse?

So then what's going on?

I don't know, but it feels like

we still don't know the
source of the infection.

So let's get an abdominal CT.

OK.

Hi.

All right, let's
check every wheel

on every cart and every bed.

No dings, no dents,
no stickiness.

No anything. No friction.

Every wheel in the ED,
that's going to take all day.

- Wheels.
- You have 12 minutes.

Wheels. Wheels.
Wheels. Wheels.

You don't ever think
of that H in "wheels."

Everything OK, Dr. Archer?

Yeah, I feel good.

Yeah, I feel pretty good.

I'm a little warm,

maybe a little, uh, glow-y.

Glow-y?

What is that?

It's an owl sticker.

Those guys that were here
earlier came from a rave,

and they were pretty high.
- What?

- And you're thinking...
- Yep.

- And they gave him...
- Uh-huh.

Those sentences, did they end?

Oh, my, what's...
what's going on?

That is an LSD
sticker on your arm.

You're on acid, Dean.

Oh, that's unfortunate.

Ah, that word came
out like a ribbon.

OK, this isn't happening.

OK, is this bad?

It's an accident, right?

You try telling NABOH that.

OK, change of plans.

No more wheels.
- Wheels.

OK, we're going to take
Dr. Archer to treatment four.

- Four.
- OK?

- Yeah.
- And we're going

to get him on IV.

You're going to be OK.

We're going to
get you on fluids,

and we're going to take
good care of you, OK?

I've always liked you.

Oh.

- OK, come on.
- OK.

- All right.
- Let's go.

- Yep.
- OK.

So the CT revealed
that the b*llet

embolized into the aorta.

Well, that sounds dangerous.

It is.

We need to operate
immediately to remove it.

Is he going to survive that?

It's a risky procedure.

The aorta is a pulsating vessel,

so the b*llet could
move at any time.

There's also significant
chance of organ failure,

catastrophic blood loss.

I can't believe I did this.

Don't blame yourself, Jerem...

Jeremiah.

Wait.

Walk me through
this, Dr. Lenox.

What exactly are you
going to do in there?

First we will make an incision

down the center of the abdomen.

Then we will stop blood
flow to the aorta.

And assuming the
b*llet's still there,

we'll take it out, sew
everything back up.

And how long will
the surgery take?

It's hard to say for sure,
but a few hours, I'd imagine.

And I do have to
get up to the OR.

Thank you so much
for helping my boy.

Of course.

I'm going to make a call.

Sure.

[tense music]

Hey, I couldn't help
but to notice your cut.

♪

Yeah, I cut it picking up some
broken glass at the house.

Ah.

You really should clean it up.

I mean, Brayden is on
the way up for surgery.

There's really nothing
you can do right now.

OK?

All right, follow me.

Now that his fever is down,
hopefully he'll sleep awhile.

Oh, good.

Good. He needs it.

What's that?

The night Sully died, he
asked me to bring it to him.

He wanted to give it
to you himself, but...

when everything happened,
I forgot about it.

[clears throat]

Wow.

One of the first times
Sully and I hung out,

he, uh,

convinced me to ditch school
and sneak into a Cubs game.

Sixth inning,

Mickey Morandini hits this homer

that lands just a
few feet from us.

We both dove, practically
got in a fistfight over it.

We thought it was going
to be worth something.

And I guess Sully
beat you to it?

Yeah, except he
told me he sold it.

He was actually
pretty sentimental

once you got past the
whole arrogant prick thing.

[both chuckle]

Yeah.

I miss that arrogant prick.

[soft music]

♪

You know, they say
it gets easier.

It doesn't.

It gets harder.

Because when it first happens,
everyone's there, you know?

And they're sorry.

And they're crying too.

And it feels like they're

helping to carry all this hurt.

♪

But then the world moves on

'cause they got to, right?

But I'm still here.

I'm just carrying all
of it now, all alone.

- Hey. Hey.
- [sniffling]

No, you're not alone.

♪

Uh...

I'm sorry.

I... I didn't mean to do that.

Uh, uh...

It's OK. It's OK.

I should probably go.
- No, no, no.

Rip, don't. I'm... I'm...

It's... it's fine.

It's... I just got to go.

Call me if anything
changes with Nate.

OK. I'm sorry.

Problem?

These two trash cans
should be 8 feet apart.

Uh, shall I get
you a tape measure?

Excuse me.

Nurse Graysen, may I ask you
a quick protocol question?

Oh, uh...

I was just on my
way to the bathroom.

You may think
encouraging your staff

to stonewall me is amusing,
but I assure you it only

damages Gaffney's standing
in my final evaluation.

Well, if my staff is
avoiding you, Mr. Reed,

perhaps you need to reconsider
your bedside manner.

By all means, speak
your mind, Ms. Goodwin.

Gaffney is a center
of excellence

and adheres to only the
highest of standards.

I'm deeply proud of my staff

and the groundbreaking
work that they do.

And I'd hope that the
quality of their care

isn't measured by the distance
between two trash cans.

Shall we move on to
the surgical wing?

Let's.

You know, at my last hospital,

I got really good at triage,
figuring out what's wrong,

trying to fix it.

Over time, you start to
see the same injuries,

the same patterns.

I got to see a lot
of slide bites.

What are those?

Well, sometimes when a person
who isn't used to handling

a g*n fires one, see, the slide

can come back and slice
right between the thumb

and the index finger.

Olivia, this is a slide bite.

Why are you letting
Jeremiah take the blame

for sh**ting his brother?

If I'm arrested, my husband
will get custody of Brayden.

[soft dramatic music]

That can't happen.

You're afraid of him?

Last year, he put
Brayden through a door

and broke his collarbone.

It's only gotten worse.

That's why I moved
us out of that house.

You need to report this.

OK? I can help you.

You can't fight my
husband. [scoffs]

You'll lose.

I get being afraid of him.

I do.

But if you don't get
in front of this,

I mean, Jeremiah could be
facing serious jail time.

Don't gamble his future for him.

It was an accident.

Jeremiah is young.

The judge will understand.

We have to protect Brayden.

♪

So you're willing to sacrifice

one son for the other?

If Brayden goes
back to that house,

his father will
end up k*lling him.

So Jeremiah's just
sticking to his story,

even if that means throwing
his entire future away.

OK.

OK, so I'm not really
sure what to do here.

Well, that's simple.
We do nothing.

Nothing? What do
you mean do nothing?

I know you wanna help,
but we're not cops.

Our job is to find medical
solutions to medical issues.

OK, OK, so you're saying that
if they don't have a chart,

then they just
don't matter to you.

I'm saying there's a boy
on that operating table

with a b*llet in his chest.

That's my patient. That's
who I know I can help.

I don't concern myself
with saving souls.

[hinges creak]

[door clatters shut]

[bells tolling]

♪

Dr. Ripley.

Hi, MK.

It's so good to see you.

What brings you in here?

I guess I'm running
out of places to go.

♪

Well, your timing is perfect.

I could actually use
your help with something.

Right this way.

And this will tell
us what's wrong?

We hope so.

I'm sorry, but that
answer is not good enough.

We're doing everything
that we can.

Sometimes infections can be
difficult to pin down, but I...

[monitor beeping rapidly]
- What's that?

What's happening?

Her BP's dropping, and
she stopped responding

on the intercom.

[monitors beeping]
- Arianna, can you hear me?

BP 86 over 52, pulse 140.

She's tachycardic.
- What's happening? Tell me.

She's in septic shock.

Hang a liter of
saline wide open,

and let's get her
back to the ED.

Dr. Asher, look at her hands.

She went swimming on her trip.

No, she didn't.
She's not allowed.

When did you say
her period ended?

A few days ago.

Find me a speculum
and ring forceps.

I need to perform a pelvic
exam on your daughter.

Do I have your consent?
- What, now?

Yes. Yes. Yes.

Speculum and ring forceps.

OK. Pelvis up.

Grab her leg, please.

What is going on?

I believe your daughter
left a tampon in.

That's not possible. She's
not allowed to use them.

She probably borrowed
one from a friend

and forgot to take it out.

Your daughter has
toxic shock syndrome.

♪

But I don't understand why
she didn't say anything.

Because she's too
scared to tell you.

♪

Where's Mr. NABOH?

Hmm? Oh, he stepped out
to take a phone call.

How's the assessment going?

[scoffs] Honestly,
Maggie, I don't know.

This... this guy feels like

he's got some kind of vendetta.

Wait, isn't that his notebook?

Hmm?

Oh, yeah.

He... he must have left it.

Maybe we can find
out how we're doing.

No, Maggie. No, we shouldn't.

Maggie.

[mumbles indistinctly]

There's about 15 or 16
violations he listed.

How many does it take
before we get penalized?

Jackson-Monroe was
shut down at 20.

Close the book.
Close the book.

Close it.

So how's your friend,

the one who was sick?

I'm so sorry.

Yeah.

At times like this, it's
important to have community.

[laughs]

Well, I'm doing a pretty
good job of destroying that.

And why is that, do you think?

I don't know.

It's like I'm reverting
back to this...

old version of me,
and I can't stop it.

Maybe I'm trying
to punish myself.

You know, there's...

there's no fast-forward
button for grief.

[soft dramatic music]

Sometimes all you can do is...

limit the damage
you do to yourself

while the storm passes.

♪

[sobbing]

♪

How? [sniffles]

How?

By reminding yourself
what's important

over and over, like...

like a mantra.

Listen, close your eyes.

[sniffles]

[sighs]

Think about

what matters most to you,

what you can't live without.

♪

Looks like you figured it out.

♪

Think she's going
to pull through?

I don't know.

Her vitals are
still pretty labile.

Next couple hours are
going to be crucial.

Oh, you've got
blood on your shirt.

Oh.

NABOH won't love this.
I'll be right back.

[sighs]

- I feel I should inform you...
- Oh, my...

- I'm in the room.
- Dean, what...

Dean, what... what the hell?

What are you doing in here?

[groans]

The ED was a little hectic...

[grunts] Given my...

you know.

Plus,

the lighting in here is sublime.

You still feel a
little out of it?

I wouldn't say I'm out of it.

I'd say I'm in it.

[chuckles]

How are you?

I'm OK, I guess.

Kind of a rough day.
- Yeah.

The Ripley roller coaster?

Yeah.

Yeah, amongst other things.

It's a shame you don't see it.

[sighs]

What... what? See what?

Oh, Hannah.

You walk around

without realizing you
have this light...

all around you.

You have every
right to be cynical

after everything
you've been through

and working here every day.

But you're not, you're...

hopeful...

and open.

[laughs]

[sighs] And kind.

[laughs softly]

And you deserve more.

And you don't see that.

♪

I do.

[chuckles]

♪

I think we need to get you
back to a treatment room.

- Fair enough.
- Mm-hmm.

- [groans]
- Come on.

♪

Dean, are you barefoot?

I wanted to feel the
earth under my feet.

♪

- Hey.
- What happened?

How is he?

It took some time to
localize the b*llet,

but we were able to find it
and remove it without incident.

So he'll be OK?

Yes, I expect a full recovery.

Oh, thank you. Thank you.

You're very welcome.

Can I see him?

He's being transferred
to the PICU shortly.

Yeah, I'll show you
the way. Come on.

I'm afraid that's not
going to happen, Jeremiah.

What?

Now that Brayden's
pulled through,

I need to take him
in to be processed.

- Wait. Right now?
- It's OK, Mom.

Oh, come on, you can't just
give him a few more minutes?

I mean...
- I'm sorry.

I gave as much
latitude as I could.

Oh, we understand, Detective.

I'll send over a lawyer
immediately, son.

I don't want your help, Dad.

You've done enough.

Let's go.

Wait, Detective Rankin.

Jeremiah didn't sh**t Brayden.

I did.

You? What?

Mom, please, don't do this.

I bought the g*n, and
I can tell you where.

And I was the only
one who fired it.

You almost k*lled our son?

Yes, because I thought it was
you breaking into our house.

I thought it was you
coming for us again.

And I pulled the trigger so
you'd stop hurting Brayden,

stop hurting all of us.

I love you, Olivia, but
I can no longer deny

what I've known for a long time.

You're a very sick woman.

Dad, stop lying.

This is what he does!

He gaslights you
to protect himself!

I'm going to sue
for sole custody.

But I promise to get
you the very best care

that money can buy.

I blame myself for
not doing it sooner.

You always win, don't you?

Always.

- You damn monster!
- No, Jeremiah, don't.

Jeremiah, don't, OK?

Stop.

I think you should leave.

Of course.

If you think that's best.

♪

Why'd you tell them, Mom?

We had to protect Brayden.

That's not your job, honey.

It's mine.

And you shouldn't be
punished for my mistake.

I'm so sorry.

This way.

♪

Well, what do I do now?

What happens to my brother?

Jeremiah, listen to me, OK?

I promised I would help you, OK?

And that's exactly
what I intend to do.

♪

Ms. Shaw?

Sorry, I just needed a minute.

How is Arianna?

Her fever's breaking,

and it looks like
she's going to be OK.

Oh, God, I'm so glad.

Oh. Thank you.

[sighs]

Are you OK?

Yes, I'm... I'm so happy.

I just... [sighs]

My daughter almost died because

she didn't know how
to use a tampon.

You were right.

She was afraid to tell me,

afraid of me.

This is all my fault.

No, you were just
trying to protect her

because you love her.

I'm not some prude, you know?

It's just,

growing up, I experienced
a lot of things

I shouldn't have.

I'm so sorry.

And I promised myself that
I would let Arianna be a kid

for as long as she could before
the world could get to her.

I get that.

But when she was sick,
you brought her in,

and you advocated
for her strongly.

And all those missed
conversations,

you now have a chance to
have them moving forward.

♪

Thank you.

Yeah.

[monitor beeping]

Brayden sure beat
the odds, didn't he?

Yeah.

He still has a long road ahead.

He'll get there.

Brayden's always been a fighter.

Alderman Whitlocker,

I have a concern about
Brayden's recovery.

Oh, what is it?

Before Brayden was
transferred to the PICU,

we did post-op X-rays.

I took the liberty of doing
a full skeletal survey,

and I found several old
fractures, including,

most notably, this healed
fracture on the collarbone,

which is consistent
with the incident

your wife relayed
to Dr. Frost.

What incident?

You remember when you shoved
Brayden through a door

and broke his collarbone?

The thing about injuries
is, even if the bruises

are long gone, the
bones keep a record.

And they don't lie.

This isn't something
you can just

brush under the rug, Alderman.

I don't like what
you're insinuating.

Oh, I'm not
insinuating anything.

You've clearly been
beating your son for years.

- [scoffs]
- What will my X-rays say, Dad?

I've reported my
findings to the police.

They should be here soon.

How dare you?

You will both regret this.

You seem quite angry.

Do you want to hit me now too?

He wouldn't lay a hand
on anyone in public

because that would
jeopardize his career.

He's a coward at
heart, aren't you, Dad?

If I go to jail, my
sons go into the system.

No one wants that.

Unless Jeremiah wanted

to petition for
custody of Brayden.

Jeremiah's a minor. [laughs]

He won't be 18 for another year.

You forgot my
birthday again, Dad.

I'll be 18 next week.

I need to make a call.

You do that. You'll
need a lawyer.

Thank you, both of you.

Dr. Frost,

you kept your promise.

I won't forget that.

♪

Hey, you know,
I'm not a surgeon,

but I'm pretty sure that
a full skeletal survey

is not part of the
standard post-op procedure.

Just being thorough.

I thought you weren't
into saving souls.

Just take the win, Dr. Frost.

Careful.

People might think
you have a heart.

[scoffs]

♪

So is the inquisition over?

Uh, I think so.

Mr. Reed is gathering his
stuff and then he'll head out.

How did we do?

Well, you were amazing.

I can't imagine what today would

have been without your help.

As for our score, I think it's
going to be right on the line.

He said we'd know one way
or another in two weeks.

It doesn't seem fair.

We're the best
hospital in Chicago,

but we might get shut down
because we got an inspector

that's in a bad mood.

Sharon, what's wrong?

[no audible dialogue]

Oh, that's not good.

Mr. Reed, I can explain.

Explain what?

Dr. Archer is technically
not on duty right now.

Well, regardless,
he and I just had

a very illuminating
conversation.

[laughs] Very illuminating.

I'm not so sure I would
take that to heart.

Oh, I think that I will.

I spend all day being ignored,

avoided, resented.

And Dean reminded me that
what I do is important.

Look, you're just
trying to make sure

everyone is the
best they can be.

And I know what that's like.

People, they hate you for it.

But I was also letting my own
frustration affect my attitude,

which was a mistake.
- That's right.

It was?

I'll file my official
report tomorrow,

but I don't think Gaffney
has anything to worry about.

Well, I'm so glad.

And this guy is a gem.

Yay. [laughter]

You should really
consider putting him

in a leadership position.

Good night.
- Good night.

[laughs]

Who was that guy?

[breathing deeply]

Hey, thank you for meeting me.

Of course.

OK, um,

I know I've said
sorry to you a lot.

And after a while, that
can start to feel hollow.

But I am sorry for...

for all of it.

And I've been doing a
lot of thinking about...

OK, I've been...

I've been thinking a lot too.

Look, you're going
through a lot.

I get it, but...

It's just...

I keep imagining that

I need to help you through this
rough patch with your past,

with Pawel, with Sully.

And I keep thinking
I'll help you

and then we'll be OK again.

But then we get through
something, and...

there's always
another bad patch.

♪

And at some point,