NCIS: Los Angeles

Hetty, oh, my God, where are you?

Nowhere I want to be.

I need a favor.

Hetty, I-I don't work here anymore.

But the team needs someone to run point.

I've got to go.

I'll check in when I can. Good luck.

Oh, my God, Hetty. No, no, no. Wait!

Where is Eric?

Uh, he's... officiallyon vacation.

What's up, guys?Hey.

FBI Agent Rountree.

Working with NCIS now.

You sure this is the right place?

Uh, yeah, that was the address in the e-mail.

And Hetty vetted this guy?

I've been trying to get some more

information out of her, but you know,

communications with Hetty have been even more sporadic

and, let's say, cryptic than normal.

I wonder why.

Well, clearly,

she's involved in something crucial.

Oh, and we're not?

No, of course we are.

I'm just saying that...

whatever she's doing right now is of priority.

And it conveniently forces you

into assuming a role you didn't want.

Yeah, I know, but she was in a jam,

and it's just till she gets back.

You're sure about that?

I mean, think about it.

Hetty invites you to meet her,

then ghosts you before you get here.

I mean, it's not like this is the first time

Hetty has disappeared for an extended period of time.

It's the first time she's done it after leaving you in charge.

Well, she was desperate.

When have you known Hetty

not to have an ulterior motive or two?

Or six.

The longer she's away,

the longer you run the show,

and the more confidence and experience you get.

So, you think she's trying to get me to submit for her job

when she finally decides to leave NCIS?

Showtime.

Any idea what this guy wants?

Uh, not specifically.

According to Hetty, he has information vital

to national security.

Why didn't he just put it in an e-mail like everybody else?

Sam?

Sam, what's happening?

Son of a bitch tried to run me over.

My God, are you okay?

No. I'm pissed.

Call 911.

He's gonna need an ambulance

or a coroner if he tries anything else stupid.

: Oh, great.

Everything okay?Yeah, no.

Things are good. Things are really good.

That's not your"all good" voice.

What's going on?

I'm starting to question my choice

in deep-sea predators, you know?

Maybe the gold shark was too flashy.

Maybe we should have gone with, like, a bronze barracuda.

Looks like the evil lair of a Russian oligarch.

What's this?

Oh, that? That's nothing.

That's just a little police reform.

LAPD is undergoing a public safety review

to avoid defunding, and part of that is

the cancellation of all partnerships.

Liaisons. I'm being recalled, like a Ford Pinto.

When?Already happened. Done-zo.

Deuces.

See ya.

Deeks, this says temporarily.

Uh-huh.

Hetty can pull some strings.

Nobody even knows where Hetty is.

There's nothing she can't fix with a phone call, right?

And plus, I could kind of usea new partner for a day.

No offense, buddy, but your musical tastes are killing me.

I think it's actually required by law

that you have to sing along with Journey.

This isn't really bothering you, is it?

Oh, come on, babe. Look.

Worst-case scenario...

Okay....you quit the force.

Yup.

You attend FLETC.Right.

And you become a full-time NCIS agent.

Yeah. Then they can transfer me any place in the world.

Could end up in Mogadishu

or-or-or... Barstow or Iowa.

Do you actually think Hetty would let that happen?

Yeah, nobody wants to go...And look, maybe thisis a good thing.

Right? Maybe it's time that you become one of us.

Assuming, of course,

you can pass the training.

The seven push-ups and...

Hi, Fatima.

Tell her I said hi.What?

Did you tell her I said hi?

Is he okay?

Yeah, of course. I'll be right there. Bye.

What happened?

Somebody tried to run down Sam last night.

What? Who?

I don't know, but I'm sureas heck gonna find out.

You are gonna stayhere, okay?

This, too, shall pass,and plus, when I, uh, get back,

I want this place sparkling.

Hey, do me a favor?

Yeah.

Be careful.

Always.And keep me posted!

Yup.You can send me a textor a TikTok.

The driver's name

is Donald Harris, 36, single, no priors.

He's a CPA who works for an accounting firm in Westwood.

Who supposedly has information vital to our national security?

According to Hetty, he left a message on our tip line.

Does his firm handle military contracts?

Nope. And from what I can find,

they're a modest operation dealing mostly

with small businesses and personal taxes.

Well, I suppose it could be a front for something bigger.

See if you can get a list of their clientele.

Will do.

If this guy wanted to meet with us,

why would he try and run down Sam?

Maybe he got spooked.

So why not just drive away?

It's a good point.

You think it was a setup?

Possibly.

What's this guy's beef with us?

Difficult to say at this point,

but we have all accumulated a list of enemies.

Well, I guess I have that to look forward to.

One of the many perks of this job.

Well, hopefully,

this guy'll pull through. He can tell us

just what the hell he was up to.

Unfortunately, he's still in the ER.

He was still in critical condition last time I checked.

They need to get him into surgery,

but he's not stable enough to move yet.

Got pretty banged up for not wearing that seat belt.

Who doesn't wear a seat belt these days?

Maybe he wanted to hurt himself.

Yeah, well, he could have donethat without trying to kill Sam.

True.

So, has anyone shown up for him?

Just me. Does he have any next of kin?

Mm, Fatima's still trying to track 'em down.

All right, copy that. Well, I'll let you know

if he pulls through, if anybody shows up for him.

You sure you're all right?

Nothing a couple of beers anda good night's sleep won't cure.

You ever seenthe driver before?

No. His name is Donald Harris, but I've never heard of him.

Hmm. Airbag didn't deploy.

Could have been a malfunction,

or he disabled it on purpose.

What do you make of the seat belt?

It's still buckled.

It was cut,

but they left just enough intact so that you wouldn't notice.

Till you needed it to prevent you

from flying through the windshield.

Maybe you weren't the target, and he was.

Still doesn't explain why he tried to run me down.

Unless somebody wanted both of you dead.

Donald Harris is out of surgery.

They were able to stop the bleeding,

and they think he's gonna pull through.

Well, that's great. I needed some good news.

Yeah, I don't... I don't know how goodit actually is.

Well, if he survives, he can tell us

what's going on here.Yeah, well,

unfortunately, he suffered a traumatic brain injury, and

they don't know if he's gonna pull through.

And even if he does, the damage may have been so severe

that he won't be able to communicate with us.

Yeah.

One step forward, two steps back.

What do you want me to do?

Uh, sit tight. I'm gonna contact the others.

We might not even need Harris

if we have some new leads to follow.

Copy that. I'll stick around

just in case he does regain consciousness.

Sounds good. Thanks, Rountree.