You're not the first guy to join the CFD
off the back
of some personal misfortune.
Sounds like you know what you're talking about.
Getting up on those rigs every day helps.
If you ever need to vent about it, you know where to find me.
I know we have a different leadership style
and different approaches to our jobs,
which is why I handpicked Lennox for 61.
First shift and Lennox files a charge.
Robinson and Lennox aren't just coming after me.
They're coming after all of 51.
[dramatic music]
[both moan]
[soft music]
♪ ♪
[exhales] This doesn't mean anything, okay?
Neither does this.
♪ ♪
I'm serious.
Keeping this casual is the only way I can do it.
Completely, totally, 100%-- both: Casual.
I get it. This is a sweatpants situation.
Don't worry. Nobody's going black tie here.
Mm. - Again.
[giggles]
Hey. There you are.
I thought you were gonna miss it.
I got my Technical Rescue Operations course coming up.
Cruz let me borrow his book.
Gonna give me some pointers later.
Isn't that cheating?
It's kind of like, you know,
getting the answers before you take the test.
It's not cheating.
It's studying. - If you say so.
The other firefighters are gonna be
straight out of the academy.
I got 30, 40 years on 'em.
I need all the help I can get.
Ah. Shh. Here they come.
But they're so closely related
that if you're allergic to shellfish,
you're also allergic to insects.
That doesn't mean grasshoppers
taste like shrimp.
Aah!
[laughter]
[soft playful music]
You guys think this is funny?
You should see yourself.
[laughter]
Ooh.
Not bad.
Gotta hand it to you.
Not bad?
Flawless execution.
Sweatpants, huh?
Yeah, it made sense in the moment.
I gotta say, he does look really good in sweats.
Okay, but you know how these things go.
One day it's sweatpants.
The next it's jeans and a tee.
And before you know it, someone's spending hours
in the mirror obsessing over getting their hair just right.
I would never.
Who says I'm talking about you?
Oh, I could just imagine Carver standing there.
Should I coif to the left?
[laughs]
Oh, no.
[apprehensive music]
How could he show his face around here
after he tanked me and Severide?
Kelly came in early, and if he has seen Lennox,
he's not a happy camper, either.
I've gotta go talk to Chief.
It's bad for everyone, Chief, especially Violet.
I assume we're talking about Lennox?
Yes, we are, and believe me,
I am surprised he came back too.
Yeah, he talked about 51 like
it was a hellscape of oppression and bad behavior.
We gotta get him out of here.
An action like that would be considered retaliation.
Right now we wait
until the complaints move through the system.
- That could take months. - I know.
My every move here and out in the field is gonna feel
like I'm being scrutinized or about to be reported.
[alarm blares] - Ambulance 61, Truck 81,
11024 Gregory.
Person down from unknown causes.
Hang in there, Vi. We got your back.
[tense music]
[sirens wailing]
♪ ♪
Feeling all right, Gibson?
What do you mean?
You called out two shifts in a row.
Must have been down for the count, huh?
Oh, no. I'm good.
Just got that flu thing that's going around.
- Ah. - I'll be all right, though.
I'm feeling a lot better today.
- Good. - Yeah.
[sirens wailing]
Traffic's crazy right now.
Hey! Pull the hell over!
[horn blares]
♪ ♪
[horn blares]
There we go.
It's one of our patients.
Please, you have to hurry. - All right.
All right, 61. It sounds like a single victim.
Copy.
[indistinct radio chatter]
Hey. Hey! Gibson!
I'm in first.
Sorry, Lieutenant.
Sometimes they faint because of low blood pressure
from the dialysis, but she started coughing
and then gasping for air before passing out.
We got it.
Hey, guys. We'll take it from here.
♪ ♪
Pulse is weak. We need to give her oxygen.
- Blood pressure's low. - Okay.
[coughing]
Mouch.
Whoa, Mouch. - Whoa!
[coughing]
- Whoa, hey. Whoa! - Watch it.
[patients coughing]
What the hell's going on?
Violet, could this be caused by the dialysis?
Highly unlikely.
[patients coughing]
♪ ♪
Hey, this is a hazmat situation,
so we need to get everybody to clear the building now.
Let's go! Everybody out! - I'll get some backboards.
No, no, no. We don't have time.
We're gonna have to carry 'em out.
We have wheelchairs.
Okay, great. Let's grab 'em.
Mouch. - On it.
Truck 81 to main, we need a Level 1 hazmat
and an EMS Plan 1 to our location immediately.
Copy that, Truck 81. Both units are en route.
Let's go, everybody.
Everybody, as quickly as you can.
[suspenseful music]
♪ ♪
Oh, hang on. Hang on.
Charlie?
Hey, Stella. [coughing]
Come on. Let's go. We gotta get outside.
All clear. I'm coming out.
Copy.
[sirens wailing]
♪ ♪
What do we got?
Light-colored gas spilling out
of the utility closet in the back.
Patients are coughing and passing out.
All right. Contained?
No, it's growing by the second.
Hazmat gave a 10-minute ETA.
We should get in there. - Yeah.
Squad 3, suit up.
♪ ♪
[breathing heavily] Capp, Tony,
vent the windows and grab the smoke ejectors.
Copy that!
Cruz, stand back.
Oh!
The hell was that?
Off-gassing.
Looks like disinfectant reacting with bleach
or maybe the metal bin or both.
[liquid sloshing]
[grunts]
This thing's pretty full.
If we don't stop this leak, the whole place could blow.
I'll go get the plug kit.
No, wait!
If we flip the barrel, that might do it.
And put the spigot on top.
That thing's gotta weigh, like, 300 pounds.
What if you drop it?
We don't. Let's go. Grab a side.
On three. - All right.
One, two, three.
[both groaning]
♪ ♪
Easy.
- [sighs] - Nice work!
[radio static] Herrmann, charge that decon line.
We're coming out. - Copy that.
Oh, I gotta stop skipping leg day.
[pants]
You're pretty quiet.
Everything okay?
Yeah, why wouldn't everything be okay?
I'm guessing you heard about my complaint then.
Yep. I did.
I just want to clear the air.
Robinson asked me to give an honest
and objective evaluation of 51, so that's what I did.
That's interesting. I didn't know that words
like "aggressive" and "disrespectful"
could be objective.
[apprehensive music]
I'm hoping we both can be professional about this.
Despite what you might think,
Robinson is an amazing woman and inspiring leader.
She believes in following protocol, and so do I.
Might not always win you a popularity contest,
but doing the right thing is more important
to me than being liked.
♪ ♪
It stresses me out, man, that Lennox guy lurking around,
just always staring at us with his beady little eyes.
What he needs is an A-level prank.
If we're stuck with him,
may as well put him in the hot seat.
I'm partial to the old cellophane on the toilet.
You can't come away from that without a laugh.
Hey, what about a glitter bomb in the ambo's AC vents?
I mean, the guy'll be sparklin' for a week.
That sounds like more effort than Lennox is worth,
even for a prank.
Hey, nobody is pranking Lennox.
- Oh, why not? - Why not?
[all protesting]
No, do not do it.
- Really? - Yeah.
Hey, back on the call, did you see Charlie there?
Thought that was him.
- Wait, who's Charlie? - Our old academy instructor.
- He's the best in the CFD. - What a hard-ass, though.
You remember all those stair runs he made us do
with weights in our packs?
Yeah, makes the real thing feel like a walk in the park.
He was a patient at the dialysis clinic?
Yeah, and I heard that he refused to be checked out
by the medics. - I am not surprised.
Charlie's the type to try and walk off a broken leg.
Yeah. I want to check on him.
I tried calling, but he's not picking up.
Mm. So what are you thinking?
I'm thinking let's take the rig out,
swing by his place, see how he's doing.
I'm in.
- I guess I'm driving. - All right.
[doorbell chimes]
This is the right address?
It's what I got from HQ.
[knocking on door]
He needs help. - What?
[tense music]
♪ ♪
Charlie?
Oh, God.
Any family we should call?
His wife passed a few years back.
Never had kids,
though he pretty much adopts all his students.
[somber music]
♪ ♪
Okay. I'll be right back, Lonnie.
Do you mind inputting this for me?
both: Hey.
So your friend lost a lot of blood,
but he's in stable condition.
And what happened to his arm?
The fistula he had for his dialysis treatment ruptured,
probably from overexertion.
We saw him helping other patients on the call.
- Of course he was. - Yeah.
We're gonna need to run some tests, replace the fistula,
so he's gonna be here a while.
Can we see him?
Right now I'd say he needs to rest,
but check back in later.
Okay, I'll come by tomorrow after shift,
but if anything comes up, please call me.
You got it. All right, guys.
Mm-hmm. Thanks, doc.
Gibson, we're out.
♪ ♪
Hey, Wallace. Congratulations.
For what?
Short list for DC? That's big-time.
Uh, Keith, I have no idea what you're talking about.
See, this is why you should have taken an office here
instead of staying hidden away over at 51.
DC Hill got the commissioner job in Oakland, California.
She's gotta leave right away, so she's gonna appoint
an interim DC stat.
And you, my friend, are on the short list.
Who else is on the list? [elevator dings]
The big question is,
what exactly is Chief Robinson up to?
I think I just found out.
- Did you talk to her? - No.
I ran into Keith Adams at headquarters.
Turns out DC Hill is leaving.
Chief Robinson is one of the names
in the hat to replace her--
along with mine.
So by filing charges at a firehouse under your watch,
she's taking you out of the running.
At great cost to the two of you.
That's devious-- and not up to the standards
she claims to have.
[sighs] What are you gonna do?
I think it's time
I had a face-to-face with the paramedic chief.
[sighs]
Hey, man, how you doing?
Oh, like I said, fine.
Why? What's up? - Look.
I'm not trying to stick my nose in your business,
but you seemed a little off earlier.
And I don't know if you're still dealing with that bug
or whatever, but-- - Nah.
Nah, man. I'm good. For real.
Okay. Great.
'Cause I was thinking about grabbing a few pops
at that dive bar we went to a couple of weeks back.
You interested? - Hell yeah, man. Count me in.
[knocking on door]
Chief Boden.
Were those reports that Lennox filed
just to help you become deputy commissioner?
Excuse me?
You placed him in a firehouse under my watch,
and in his very first shift,
he filed two questionable reports
that you then turned into charges.
I am not interested in the job of DC.
I've never been interested in the top political job,
so I am not your competition.
[soft tense music]
Do the right thing. Drop the charges.
First of all, the charges were not questionable.
One of your lieutenants violated the no-visitors policy
and brought a gang dispute into the firehouse.
We brought Maya in to protect her.
It was a police matter.
Rules are there for a reason.
And your PIC created a hostile work environment
by being aggressive and confrontational.
This is not about undermining my competition.
I am doing what I believe is best for the entire CFD.
Every firefighter should be accountable
for his or her actions.
They are accountable to saving lives.
And they did that in both cases.
If you had gotten the full picture,
you would see that.
You are not gonna get to the top alone, Chief Robinson.
You're gonna have to show a little flexibility
and a willingness to work together.
I have both those things.
Then prove it by reconsidering those charges.
♪ ♪
If we can work together,
you'll have my full support
and a great shot at that DC position.
♪ ♪
[indistinct chatter]
[rock music playing faintly]
♪ ♪
[line trilling]
Hey, I can't get to the phone right now.
Leave a message.
[pensive music]
♪ ♪
Mm. I really got to go.
I'm gonna be late.
You're not gonna be late.
Mm. You are too tempting.
But I can't risk my career on a man I just met.
This was fun.
We should, uh-- we should do it again.
Text any time.
Okay. Cool.
Actually, um, I-I kind of have this medical thing
I was hoping you could give me some advice on.
Okay.
So I lost my prescription bottle a couple weeks ago.
And my doctor won't refill it.
They say it's too soon,
even though I explained the whole situation.
You think maybe you could help me move that along or--
I, uh--I don't know anything about that.
You'll have to talk to your doc.
I really am late.
♪ ♪
Hey.
Whoa.
Hey.
[tender music]
[chuckles]
While I'm here...
Mm.
How much time do we have?
Mm, we're cutting it close, but...
I'm game if you are up for the challenge.
Yeah, I love a good challenge.
[laughs]
[phone ringing]
Give me a second. - Uh--
♪ ♪
Hello?
Yeah.
Yes.
Of course.
[apprehensive music]
♪ ♪
- Give it a bit of-- - Hey.
- What's going on?
- Stella? - Yeah.
You didn't have an emergency contact,
so the lieutenant volunteered.
Oh, you didn't need to do that.
Oh, I'm happy to, Charlie. Yeah.
Your nurse said it was urgent.
Yeah, I figured you'd want to be here for this.
So we ran some tests before replacing the fistula
in Charlie's arm, and it looks to us like
his kidneys are actually functioning perfectly.
No. That's not possible.
We ran a second set just to be sure.
Well, then why was he on dialysis?
Well, I'm worried the initial assessment was just wrong.
Wha--how does that happen?
Well, it could be a number of things,
but based on these results,
I'm concerned you may have been misled, Charlie.
♪ ♪
Morning, Chief.
You don't look happy.
I'm sorry to say,
Robinson is not dropping the charges.
Yeah, I figured. And so did Violet.
We appreciate the effort.
Robinson is immovable.
There is no gray in her world.
I may need to take this further up the ladder.
You'll be breaking chain of command
and you'll put your own job at risk.
That's no good for anybody.
Yeah, you may be right.
But I gotta figure out something.
I don't understand.
Why would Charlie's doctor misdiagnose him on purpose?
Well, apparently some of these clinics are scams
with shady doctors getting kickbacks
for referring patients.
Ugh, I've heard of this before.
It's awful. - Yeah.
Someone like Charlie, he goes
into an urgent care for another issue,
in his case bronchitis, gets blood work done,
then leaves thinking that he's got
a serious kidney issue and needs dialysis.
That's all kinds of messed up.
Charlie has had two cardiac arrhythmia incidents,
probably due to the unnecessary dialysis.
He's lucky to be alive.
I guess, in that case, the hazmat call did some good.
Otherwise Charlie would have never known.
I'd love to have a word with his doctor,
the one who misdiagnosed him.
Oh, believe me, I'm on it.
Yeah, I had Charlie text me the doctor's info.
And I'm about to do a deep Internet dive,
so I'll let you know.
Please do.
God.
Poor guy.
Uh, you know, I don't eat eggs
with no yellow stuff in 'em.
Like, what's the point? - Uh, just so you know,
Mouch requested the egg whites.
You should thank me.
I'm saving you from a cholesterol-related death.
All right, I'm throwing this tasteless crap away.
- No! No, you're not! - Yes, I am.
You're not tossing anything.
Let go of the eggs, old man.
- Hey. - No, it's goin'.
Easy. Easy. [both arguing]
Yellow is chicken.
[shushing]
[soft tense music]
♪ ♪
As you were.
♪ ♪
You're an idiot. You know that?
Hey, Gibson.
You'll never work
with a better group of people or at a better house.
You understand that, right?
Back off, man!
What is your problem?
♪ ♪
[alarm blares]
Ambulance 61, person injured,
5001 North Ogden.
[suspenseful music]
[people arguing furiously]
- Excuse me. Excuse me. - Let 'em through!
Let 'em through! - Excuse me.
Out of the way. Hold on.
Settle down! Get outta the way! - All right.
All right. What happened? What happened?
Eddie, he fell against the bar
and hit his shoulder real bad.
[grunts]
Eddie, let's turn you over.
[groaning in pain]
Okay.
The hell do you think you're doing?
Get off him. [crowd clamoring]
It's an open fracture.
I have to cut the jacket to get to it.
You touch my leathers, I'll kill you.
Okay, yeah, there's no need to kill anyone.
This is just a misunderstanding, Eddie.
Um, can I get you some medicine for that pain?
Does that sound good? Okay.
50 micrograms of fentanyl, Lennox.
Eddie, you have a compound clavicle fracture
and shoulder separation.
We need to dress the wound and apply a splint
before we can take you to Med,
so we do need to get your jacket off somehow.
I'll do it.
[screaming] Rob!
[grunts] - I'm here, brother.
- Give me a hand. - I gotcha.
You ready? - [screaming in pain]
- Come on. - Aah!
Okay, stop. Okay, stop. Okay.
All right. How about this?
Eddie, how about I cut along the stitching?
That way there's no permanent damage.
Then we can get you and the jacket patched right up.
Yeah? Take that.
All right. Let's do it.
♪ ♪
[wheels click] - [groaning]
Where are you goin'?
Um, I was hoping I could drive this time.
That guy wants to kill me.
I can't sit with him the whole way to Med.
He's not gonna hurt you.
And you know protocol at 51 is that the PIC drives, Lennox.
Yes, but--
Are you asking me to break protocol?
Well, yeah, but for good reason.
You know what I mean.
It's just temporary anyway. Please.
If you're scared,
I'm not gonna force you to ride in the back
because your safety and our victim's safety
is more important to me than protocol.
♪ ♪
Deputy commissioner.
Chief Boden, you joining us for the PR meeting?
No, ma'am.
I was just hoping to grab you for a minute.
All right.
Congratulations on the Oakland commissioner position.
Thank you.
But you could have sent balloons.
No reason to come all the way down here just for that.
Well, I just wanted to say that I very much appreciate
being on your list, but as you know,
politics aren't my strong suit.
And my current position is as far away
from my firefighters as I want to get.
Well, I was hoping you'd be a little bit more open
to it this time around.
It'll be really hard for anyone to fill your shoes.
But, uh, for the record, I don't think
that Paramedic Chief Robinson is a suitable candidate.
Is that so?
[soft tense music]
There were two highly questionable charges
filed against 51.
And they were started by a paramedic
that she shoehorned into the house.
And I believe it to be a political maneuver.
Chief Boden, there's a process for complaints,
and you're violating it right now.
I don't do it lightly,
but sometimes the process needs to be challenged
or changed or debated.
Robinson doesn't leave any room for that.
I don't mind that she's tough,
gunning for the job.
Strong female leadership is important to the CFD,
and I find her views on accountability compelling.
I'm all about accountability, but firefighters also need
to be seen as human, not just a cog in a machine.
They also need to be able to trust their gut,
not just a rulebook,
or precious time will be wasted and lives will be lost.
I am frightened that the CFD will become
what 51 is right now.
And thanks to Robinson, that is a place filled
with disunity and distrust.
It seems you want everything your way
in all this, Chief Boden.
How unfortunate.
♪ ♪
I checked every site, and the urgent care doctor
that misdiagnosed Charlie
has consistently terrible reviews.
Oh. "Avoid at all costs."
"Rushed in and out and barely listened."
Yeah, I'm guessing Charlie didn't Google him
before going in.
And he isn't listed
with the Better Business Bureau,
which is sketchy as hell. - Yeah.
So even with all these complaints,
he's still seeing patients.
Forget about the bad reviews.
Can Charlie sue for malpractice?
Dr. Marcel was saying it'd be hard to prove
that it wasn't just a misdiagnosis.
And the company that owns the urgent care clinic
will put up every roadblock to protect one of their docs.
Okay, then what about the dialysis clinic?
Can we go after them?
What was it called?
Essential Care Dialysis?
[keys clacking]
Okay. I found it.
Okay, let's see who we're dealing with here.
Yeah.
[soft unsettling music]
Be right back.
Mm-hmm.
Oh, wow.
What? What is it?
The chief medical officer of Essential Care Dialysis
is the doctor who misdiagnosed Charlie.
[laughs] So if he's referring patients to himself,
how many more are there like Charlie?
♪ ♪
What are you on?
Speed and benzos is my guess.
I bet you even have a prescription so you can
tell yourself it's all on the up and up.
You don't know what you're talking about, bro.
The hell I don't. You think I can't tell?
You're crawling out of your skin.
Get the hell out of my face, Carver.
I'm not playing with you. - Neither am I.
You're not the only one with demons here, pal.
I know all about it.
Hey. Hey.
I know all about it. They are always right there,
just waiting for the right moment to pounce again,
like after that call with the basketball player.
I know.
I know how much that rattled you.
And I get how you might have needed a little something
to help you through.
You think you figured me out, huh?
Not even close.
But I know this much.
You stay on this road,
you're gonna flame out sooner or later,
and my money's on sooner.
Pick your ass up off the floor and pull yourself together.
Or what?
♪ ♪
[indistinct radio chatter]
Lennox.
Yes, Chief?
My office now.
Can you get the door, please?
[door clicks shut]
Lennox, you are not a good fit here at 51.
Your presence is doing damage to the firehouse.
[laughs] Hey, wait a sec.
I'm a good medic.
That is not enough to make it here.
I'm putting you back in the floater pool.
You--you have no grounds to do that.
And once Chief Robinson hears about this--
If I may offer some advice,
it seems to me that whatever arrangement that you have
with Robinson, she gets all the benefits.
She moves her way up the ranks.
Meanwhile, your career, it's stalled
because no one wants to work with you.
Just make sure that you are protected in all of this too.
Good luck, Chief Boden.
You'll need it.
♪ ♪
[door shuts]
[soft apprehensive music]
♪ ♪
Gibson?
I thought I pulled it together.
I need to get out.
I need to go.
♪ ♪
Okay.
The guy is clearly struggling.
And I didn't see it.
I, um...
I just feel like a terrible lieutenant.
[pensive music]
Hey.
When I went through my addiction issues,
Boden was the last to know.
And there's not a better boss around.
Hiding it is the name of the game.
Especially with your superiors.
Gibson's a good guy.
He's a great firefighter.
It's just breaking my heart. [sniffles]
Well, maybe he'll get it together.
You know?
But not everyone is cut out for 51.
And the Lennox situation shows that too.
[phone chimes]
♪ ♪
I did what you said.
I reached out to that marshal that I worked with at OFI.
He's all-in.
Good.
- Come here. - Yeah. Thanks.
That must be a relief, seeing Lennox go.
Yeah, I just hope Boden doesn't get dinged for it.
You feel all right about Gibson leaving?
I feel for him.
Getting dragged back into the past, that's--
that's nowhere I want to be either.
You know, you have a big heart
underneath all that cockiness and sass.
[laughs]
FYI, um,
I'll be wearing sweatpants tonight.
Oh.
♪ ♪
Violet, Violet, I was just told
that the charges against you and Severide have been dropped.
- Really? - I got a call
from an assistant at IA, and that's all he said.
But how? Who made it happen?
I have no idea.
[soft suspenseful music]
- Thank you, Chief. - Yep.
Oh! Aah!
Oh! Pleh!
[soft playful music]
[coughs]
You gotta be kidding me.
♪ ♪
Flawless execution.
[laughs]
[spits]
Just wanted to say thanks
for keeping it real with me.
Where I'm from, that means someone got your back.
I appreciate that.
[pensive music]
See you on the other side, brother.
Hope so.
♪ ♪
As you can see, we hired a cleaning service
to scrub every square inch.
Yeah, your business seems pretty clean at first glance.
What's going on?
You should have made them wait outside until I arrived.
That's Dr. Landis. He's the one that diagnosed me.
And part owner of this place.
That's right. What are you doing here?
Well, after what could have been a serious disaster
harming dozens of people, we felt it necessary to do
a full inspection with the fire marshal
to make sure that nothing like this ever happens again.
It won't. You can be sure.
You painted over your sprinkler heads.
That's a violation. - Mm-hmm.
Doors aren't self-closing. That's another violation.
But worst of all, and the reason
we came here in the first place--
Is improper storage of hazardous materials.
You need a dedicated containment area
with a fire-suppression system,
not some cluttered storage closet.
Well, I assure you we'll pay the fines
and get it all up to code.
Oh, fire codes aren't fines.
We're shutting you down. - What?
Also, Dr. Marcel from Chicago Med and myself
have opened up a city investigation
into your practice
about how you give and receive patient referrals.
So if I were you, I'd hold off
on any plans for a grand reopening party.
♪ ♪
You must be pretty proud of yourself.
Mornin'.
You got the charges dropped, Lennox is in the floater pool,
and my name taken off the short list
for interim DC all in one fell swoop.
It must feel like you won.
It's not a game, Chief Robinson.
No, it's not,
but you certainly played DC Hill.
How's that?
For some reason, she fast-tracked
those charges I filed so she could take a look.
When she called me into her office,
she said the incidents Lennox cited show
what she's always liked about you.
You protect your firefighters.
I told her you overprotect them
and create a lax, dangerous environment.
Sounds like she disagrees with you.
[soft tense music]
♪ ♪
That DC position is just interim right now.
In a few months, they'll start looking to appoint
a permanent deputy commissioner.
And when that time comes,
there will be no DC Hill here to protect you or Firehouse 51.
The old guard is on their way out, Chief Boden.
And there are more of us than you know
who believe it's time for some fresh blood.
♪ ♪
[dramatic music]
♪ ♪
[wolf howls]