Absentia

Hey!

No, no, no!

You looking for a date?

Yeah.

Get in.

Christ.

Not quite. Just your dad.

You're still on the hunt, huh?

You know there's places that'll pay you to do that?

Health and pension ain't bad, either.

I don't really think I'm Bureau material right now, Dad.

You're not gonna find me waving pom-poms for the Feds.

BPD, on the other hand...

Blue's not really my color.

Could've fooled me.

I put a new lasagna in the fridge. Sausage.

Ah! Shit.

Plop, plop, fizz, fizz. Cures what ails you.

Time to wake up!

Okay, Dad! Jesus.

Flynn's been making real progress.

He's learning to manage some of his stress reactions

to enclosed spaces after his time in captivity.

That's so good to hear.

However, there's one issue that's come up recently,

about the upheaval at home.

Really? He never mentioned that.

Well, sometimes, these things are best explored

in a therapeutic space.

After all that Flynn's gone through,

to add extra stressors at home,

that might trigger an underlying anxiety.

Well, moving house is a major life change.

And the miscarriage?

It's not just the parents.

Siblings also experience grief.

Buddy, I had no idea.

Whatever the fix is, I'll do it.

How are things going with the biological mother?

Well, she's still finding her feet.

It's a process.

Emily.

I'm sorry?

My mom's name. It's Emily.

Yes, yes, of course.

Emily.

Hey.

Hey.

Thanks for finding this place.

I didn't even think about any of this.

Boys' furniture isn't your thing. I get it.

It's not exactly mine either, but I'll tell you this.

I would rather be here, looking for a bed for Flynn

than on the rig with my partner after dollar taco night.

How's it going?

It's good. I mean,

obviously EMT isn't exactly my dream gig,

but now I've got my medical license back,

I can...

One day at a time, right?

Yeah.

This one's pretty cool.

You know, he can put his desk under here,

perch up top.

Hey!

You okay?

Yeah.

I just, um...

God, the way that I live is just really...

It's not what Flynn's used to, you know?

So you're exposing him to other environments.

Nice try.

Look, you don't have to be mom of the year.

He's just gonna be happy spending time with you.

So, when's the sleepover?

We haven't set a date.

I don't think this is a good idea.

You're not gonna hurt Flynn. You're not.

I need to be sure.

Okay, well...

Look, there's this all-women's meeting

over at Saint Sebastian's Thursday nights.

It's right up the street from you. Why don't you just swing by?

I don't need AA.

Okay. Okay. It's just...

Well, Dad and I have noticed you've been stressed lately.

We have. And sometimes it's good to get some extra help.

So I can talk to them about what?

I don't know. Things I can't remember?

I don't know, but you gotta do something, Em.

I'm not a drunk, Jack. That's your thing.

I'm sorry. That's okay.

No. It's shitty.

As promised, something for you.

What is it?

It's your adoption file from Barrett House.

All the case files were about to go into storage,

so I figured...

This is stolen evidence?

You know what girls like, huh? That's what they tell me.

Hey, Mike, uh, whiskey, neat.

54 inches tall, 50 pounds.

Measles vaccine.

It's everything and nothing.

I've read copies of this file like 1,000 times.

It's just a dead end, like all the others.

You're welcome.

What? What is it?

I've tracked down every kid from the old days.

I thought one of them had to have known something,

but I found the last of the Barrett House orphans last night.

She has no memories of Shen.

No connection to Laurie.

Laurie Colson doesn't have a single living accomplice.

So, that's a good thing. It means that we're done.

Look, I get it. I get it.

I've been right there on the hunt with you.

I wish there was something else, but there isn't, so...

Somebody is still out there.

Forensics has gone through those catacombs multiple times.

I don't care what forensics thinks

that they found or didn't find.

I can feel it.

You think I'm being paranoid?

No. After what you've been through, it's...

I wish I could remember more. It could help.

Maybe you don't want to remember that shit anyway.

Right?

So, what's next?

You should leave.

I know. I know.

House rules.

Tom? Yeah?

There's a number on this folder.

What? There's a number.

Em, it's probably nothing.

Just do me a favor and run it anyway.

Watch it.

Are you sure this is the place?

Yeah, double-checked.

The phone numbers were regularly transferred

to different landlines since the '90s,

then to a cell registered to a B. McNair.

Police.

Hello?

Yeah? You Mr. McNair?

McNair is my old lady's dead common law.

You wanna come check the urn?

Who are you?

You got a warrant, pig?

Just answer the question.

Well, well.

You wanna come and frisk me?

Hey. Hey. Watch your mouth.

Just tell your old lady we've got a few questions for her.

Can you do that?

She hates you dicks even more than I do.

Thank you.

You all right?

Uh, ladies and gentlemen,

some rail work is gonna have us stopped here for a second.

We expect to be back on our way shortly.

Please remain seated. Thank you for your patience.

[CELL PHONES VIBRATING AND CHIMING]

Hello?

Were you asleep?

Mmm-hmm.

Listen, I need your help with Flynn.

Where is he?

He's at school. I can't reach Alice.

I need you to pick him up

and keep him with you until you hear from me.

Why? What happened?

There's been a gas attack at the Annex.