Original subtitles

Headquarters wants to get your firefighter medic program

up and running soon.

That is great news, Chief.

Make it work.

I don't get that victim statement,

I'm not getting paroled.

You lied to everyone, including me.

This is over.

She asked me out.

This is a politico.

Those people, they're always working some angle.

Or maybe she just likes you.

I lost my wife last year,

so even thinking about going on some kind of date...

I totally understand.

The thing is, if you're OK with it,

I'd love to go out for a cup of coffee sometime.

- Hey. - I am so sorry, Dom.

My morning got shot to hell, and I totally lost track of--

the teachers' union just voted to authorize a strike,

so it's all hands on--

Don't give it a second thought.

I know what it's like when alarm bells go off.

Thanks.

Can we try again later this week?

Of course.

You will not get preempted twice.

I promise you that.

I don't care if Ben Johnson himself

calls me for advice on the Bears lineup.

Careful.

I may hold you to that.

Bye.

I appreciate you saving me the trip to 13.

I was headed to the Loop anyway.

Your dad's parole hearing is today, isn't it?

As far as I know, yeah.

We haven't really talked much since our dust-up at MCC.

Hey, man, you did the right thing.

Your dad had every opportunity to--

I know.

He made his bed.

However long he's got to lie in it,

that's on him.

I'm done.

Hey, thanks again for having my back on all this.

And if you ever need an extra set of eyes on a sticky case,

hit me up.

I'm down to kick stuff around.

That's my sergeant.

Go.

Wait, the clinic is in Cleveland?

I never heard of a world-class anything in Cleveland.

They got a world-class orchestra, actually.

So Isaiah's mom, she's doing better there?

Kidd says they got an army of doctors taking care of her.

And her scans are moving in the right direction,

so things are looking up.

Well, how long is Stella gonna be out there?

Two weeks of furlough.

Hoping no longer than that.

The hell is this?

I call it the Universal Compartment Protocol,

UCP for short.

It's like the barcode system.

No, you're thinking of UPC.

My thing is UC--

I'm still workshopping the name.

The point is, with all these crazy rig rotations

and firefighters constantly getting shuffled

from house to house, it's high time we instituted

department-wide standards for compartment organization.

OK.

Look, Mouch, it's not that it's a bad idea.

It's just, you are not the first newbie lieutenant

to try and revolutionize compartment organization.

Well, I may not be the first,

but I plan to be the last.

Oh, wow.

You really went to town.

Too much?

This thing is kind of addictive.

Oh, tell me about it.

I labeled my toothbrush, and I live alone.

Thank you again for giving me a hand

with all of this on your day off.

Oh, I wouldn't even have the shift off

if you hadn't fought so hard for the Joint Duty Program.

What are you gonna do with a whole weekend off anyway?

Oh, well, today, I have this hot little foursome

on the docket.

It's me, my couch, my DoorDash app,

and season eight of "Botched."

Oh, that sounds glorious.

Oh, this is low.

I'm gonna swap it out.

Copy. Thank you.

There he is.

Joint Duty Program is officially underway.

A hell of a friend you are.

You get me to sign up for this thing,

and then you just bail the first shift, huh?

OK, well, that wasn't my call.

Chief Robinson only wants PICs riding with firefighters,

at least until the program is really dialed in.

Right.

Squad 3, Engine 51,

Ambulance 61, automatic alarm.

Patterson High School.

All right, Vasquez, let's hit it.

Yep.

You ready for this?

You know it.

OK, well, I want a full report

tomorrow night at Molly's.

You got it, Novak.

They said it was an automatic alarm?

Yeah, let's go in and take a look around.

Mouch, you can stand down for now.

Copy that.

We got smoke on the Charlie side.

Let's go, Squad, primary search.

Mouch, get a line in there now.

On it.

Clarence, looks like we got a long run to the fire.

Let's load off from the officer's side.

Copy.

All right, let's mask up.

Capp, Tony, leapfrog search.

Cruz, with me.

Copy that.

Fire Department!

Call out!

Fire Department! Call out!

- Ready? - Let's go.

Fire Department! Call out!

Hey, Mouch, we're gonna need that water in the back offices!

Fire Department! Call out!

Copy that. Hose line coming in.

Hey.

- Back here! - Wait!

Are you OK? Can you walk?

- I think so. - All right.

We're gonna form a shield for you.

All right, you stay tight on our ass,

just like a quarterback sneak.

You got it? - Uh-huh.

On three! One, two, three!

Stay low.

All clear in there!

Copy.

All right, buddy, take it easy.

We got you.

South Corridor all clear, Lieutenant.

Take a seat right here, sir.

Copy that, Tony.

What's your name, sir?

Gerry.

You have any tightness in your chest?

Uh-huh.

Oxygen's at 92.

All right, let's get him on the non-rebreather,

and crank it to 15. - Copy.

What happened in there, Gerry?

I was running the buffer down the hallway

from the office when the alarm went off.

I should have run, but my dumb ass

went to see if I could stop it.

What did you see?

Credenza was on fire.

I--I keep some cleaning supplies in there

to keep me from walking all the way down

to the custodian's closet.

Damn, I hope that's not what caused this.

You were the only one in there?

Yes, sir.

I'm the only one here on Saturdays,

except for the principal.

But he texted me and said that he was running late.

All right.

We gotta get him to Med.

OK.

You take the wheel and just get us there, Vasquez.

We're not Hobbs & Shaw.

You got it.

What's all that?

I am packing a GSW to the lower torso,

so I need you to start an IV.

Grab an IV kit, 20-gauge catheter,

flush syringe.

And don't forget gloves.

Copy.

Read the labels, Vasquez.

Bottom right. And hurry.

Patient's going into hemorrhagic shock.

Starting an IV is one of the most important skills

you need to master as a paramedic.

Mm-hmm.

So let's see what you got.

Don't forget the alcohol swab.

Right, right.

We don't want our chicken to get an infection.

All right, buddy.

OK.

Only way to know for sure is to aspirate

and check for blood return.

Yep.

Mm, nope. You went right through it.

Try again.

Bevel side up, and pierce the vein.

Don't go right through it.

Pierce the vein, copy.

So start a little steeper and flatten out the angle

once you're through the skin.

Copy.

Come on. Come on. Come on.

OK.

Check it.

Yep.

Good job! OK, you're in.

Advance the catheter, connect the J-loop,

and let's go again.

Hello?

This is Lizzie Novak.

Oh, my God. Is she OK?

OK.

OK, I'll be there as soon as I can.

Thank you for the call.

You came up with this yourself?

Well, I've been talking to lieutenants around the CFD

for a while, gathering information,

doing an informal poll, if you will.

But the core principles,

for better or worse, they're mine.

- Give me a minute. - Mm-hmm.

Chief.

I was just on my way to lunch with the police commissioner,

and he just canceled,

so I picked up some sandwiches from Ferrara Bakery.

I know it's a long shot,

and it's a little more than coffee,

but it is just lunch.

Any interest?

So it wasn't electrical.

No, the origin point is too high.

What about that smell?

It's intense.

Well, it could be mineral oil or paraffin.

Yeah, once it's all burned away,

it's hard to tell one petroleum-based chemical

from another just by the smell of it.

So you got to send it to the lab to make sure, huh?

Yeah.

You can get a good idea by tasting it,

although, officially, that's against protocol.

Well, that must be the cleaning supplies

the janitor was talking about.

Yep.

Morning, Captain.

Gentlemen.

What do we got there, Lieutenant?

Well, I think this one was hand sanitizer.

Probably got the fire cooking that much hotter,

but I don't think it's the source of the odor in here.

Check this out.

I'm guessing it's a coffee maker.

Or it was.

I think you're right.

Ooh, it's definitely the source.

Paint thinner?

That's gasoline, and a lot of it.

Based on how hot the fire burned in here,

I'd say they filled the whole damn reservoir with it.

That would have been enough to burn down the whole school.

I think he may have had a more specific target in mind.

Officially, we'd call it an improvised incendiary device.

So someone did this on purpose?

Almost certainly.

The coffee maker served as a crude timing device.

Probably gave the perpetrator

two or three minutes to clear out.

Any idea of who might have done this?

I mean, I can't give you any names,

but I have been getting these text messages--

nasty stuff.

Threats, profanities,

all from an unknown number.

When did they start?

Well, let's see.

The--the 3rd, so a week and a half ago.

I assumed it was a student with an axe to grind.

Not that that narrows things down

at all, unfortunately.

I never thought that it would escalate into actual violence.

There was a kid outside, just as the fire got going,

maybe 14, 15 years old.

Tall, lanky Black kid with a bright red skateboard.

Ah.

That him?

Name's Wyatt Moore.

He's a bright kid, but troubled.

His parents are going through an ugly divorce,

so I've tried to cut him some slack.

But I caught him smoking cannabis in the parking lot

a couple of weeks ago and had to suspend him,

for all the good that it did him.

Why do you say that?

Well, I ran into Wyatt last night

at the boys' basketball game at Lane Tech.

I suspected that he was under the influence again,

but he denied it with some choice words.

Left me worried that he is not on a good path.

Does he seem like the type of kid

who could do something like this?

I wish I could tell you no.

Excuse me. Hi.

I got a call about a patient, Heidi Novak.

I'm her sister.

Oh my God, Heidi.

What are you doing here?

Apparently, I am still

an emergency contact in your phone.

The paramedic called me.

What happened?

Nothing.

I mean, it's not a big deal.

I think I was just majorly dehydrated.

The medic said that you were passed out at a bus stop,

and you almost got hit by a car.

The lady who called 911 said that she couldn't wake you up.

She thought you were dead.

Did you know you're not supposed to drink

grapefruit juice when you take a sleeping pill?

'Cause I sure didn't.

Heidi.

I'm dead serious.

Google it.

It's really bad.

I just remember going to bed and waking up in the ambulance.

Did you take more than one pill?

You can tell me the truth.

I literally just told you.

Are you sure?

I didn't do this on purpose, Lizzie.

I swear to God, OK?

I know that's what you're thinking.

I would never.

You say that, but--

I'm not Mom, OK?

It was my first campaign,

a city council election up in Madison.

Turkey or Tuscan chicken?

Turkey.

Decisive. I like it.

Anyway, my candidate lost by 12 votes,

but I didn't care.

I was absolutely hooked on politics.

And my phone hasn't stopped ringing ever since.

I have to take this. Sorry.

Of course.

What's the latest?

Of course they're going to say that.

How many schools are we talking?

Fine.

Gather the comms together,

and I'll meet you in an hour.

The teachers going on strike?

Let's hope not.

I'm sure we'll do whatever we can

to avoid a school shutdown.

The problem is, wherever we find the money,

it just means someone else is gonna be pissed off at us.

Everyone's taking cuts right now.

The fix is to spread the pain,

maybe take a little more from items

further down the priority list.

You don't fix the fence before you fix the roof,

as my grandfather used to say.

Have you ever thought of running for office?

- No. - That folksy charm of yours?

A lot of pols would kill for that, you know.

It's one of my firehouses.

Captain O'Neill.

How serious?

All right, I'll be right over.

Yeah, it's one of my guys, got hurt.

Nothing serious, but I gotta go to the scene.

It's protocol.

Totally understand.

- Feel free to stay or... - No.

I'll take mine to go.

But one of these days,

we will have an actual meal together, Chief.

I'll call you.

Nice place.

Yeah.

What's going on?

I'm Captain Van Meter.

I'm with the Office of Fire Investigations.

This is Lieutenant Severide.

Are you Wyatt Moore's father?

Yeah. What's this about?

There was a fire at Patterson High School this morning.

We were hoping to talk to your son about it.

Mr. Cole sent you here, huh?

Don't pass Go, just straight to the Moores's house?

Actually, the lieutenant here--

This is ridiculous.

Why he got busted smoking weed one time,

and Mr. Cole wants to make him out to be an arsonist now?

No one's accusing Wyatt of arson, sir.

We're just here to get information.

Your son was outside the school at the time of the fire.

I saw him there myself.

Go to your room, son.

Now.

I'm not an idiot.

I know how this goes.

You lock in on one person, and you--

I don't care what Mr. Cole said.

My son?

He would never do anything like that.

If you got a shred of evidence against him,

come back with a warrant.

Otherwise, leave us alone.

Our family's been through enough this year.

That kid seemed pretty freaked out.

Unfortunately, I don't think

we're gonna convince Dad to let us talk to him

until we have something solid.

So let's go back and see if we can find something

that puts the kid inside the building this morning.

Not to bang my own drum,

but I think there's a logic here that would

best be described as elegant.

Tools are organized by frequency of use

based on a 5-point system.

Hey.

How's the custodian doing?

Oh, his O2 level stabilized by the time we got to Med.

He's gonna be OK.

Hey, you guys, uh, forget your lieutenant somewhere?

No, we found evidence that the fire was an arson,

so he decided to chase it down with Captain Van Meter.

Severide does fire investigation?

More of a freelancer.

Whenever Van Meter needs help with a thorny case.

His father, Benny, was a legendary fire investigator.

So I guess you could say it's in the blood.

Ambulance 61, person down of unknown causes,

3435 West Washington.

Hey, over here.

My roommate was taking a shower.

I heard the water shut off, and then she screamed.

And the whole apartment shook like an earthquake.

It's locked from the inside.

She must have fallen behind the door.

OK, what's her name?

- Halina. - All right.

Halina, I'm a paramedic

with the Chicago Fire Department.

Can you hear me in there?

Hey.

Ambo 61 to Main, we need

a truck company assist at our location.

We got a victim with a possible head wound

trapped behind a bathroom door.

Copy that, Ambo 61.

Dispatching Truck 93.

ETA is 14 minutes.

With that much blood, I don't think we have 14 minutes.

How's that door frame looking?

Oh, it's pretty solid.

Maybe if I had my tools, we could--

actually, ma'am, do you happen to have any tools?

Like a hammer or a screwdriver? - Yes.

Halina keeps a toolbox in the kitchen.

I can check. - Great.

Bring them all, please!

Hurry.

Halina, can you hear us in there?

Oh, perfect.

Thank you.

Perfect.

Thank you.

Come on.

Oof.

OK.

OK. OK.

Ah. Give me a hand?

- Yep. - OK.

On three. Ready?

- Uh-huh. - One, two, three.

Oh.

OK.

Vasquez, put this on the blood.

Yep.

OK.

Let's get her on the backboard.

Yeah.

Let's support her head.

There we go. OK.

OK, I've got a 2-inch occipital laceration

with an arterial bleed.

4x4 gauze.

Grab me a C-collar and some Kerlix,

and start prepping an IV.

Copy.

Is she OK?

She lost a lot of blood,

but we're gonna get her to Chicago Med.

OK.

I'm gonna finish up this bandage.

You start the IV.

Copy that.

- You got this. - Yep.

Aspirate.

Good. You're in.

All right, I'll push fluids en route.

OK.

All right. On three.

- Yep. - One, two, three.

Well, with a little luck, we'll dig up

something to help us pull a warrant.

It would have been a whole lot easier

if he had just let us talk to the kid.

Yeah, I get it, though.

That's got to be a hell of a tight spot

for a father to be in.

That's parenting.

There's no end to the rocks and the hard places.

How's it been having a teenager in your house, anyway?

Me and Stella got lucky there.

Isaiah's a--he's a great kid.

Sharp, stays out of trouble--

pretty much the opposite of me when I was his age.

What do you got there, Boyd?

Coffee maker was plugged into this.

We thought it was an ordinary outlet splitter,

but when we pried it from the wall, it cracked open.

We saw it's got a microchip inside.

- It's a smart plug. - Yep.

So you're saying the arsonist started the fire remotely?

So... see you in another six months, I guess.

Wait.

If there's something that you wanna say, just say it.

No.

I'm good.

Come on!

It's not like you're blowing up my phone either.

But hey, the second that I got a call

that you were in the hospital, I was out the door.

You know, it's easy to show up in a crisis,

'cause you get to feel like a good person.

Well, it's true.

We don't ever just hang out.

We don't even talk, really.

I mean, we used to call each other on our birthdays

or whatever, and now it's just a text

or a comment on Insta stories.

HBD.

I have never written "HBD" in my life.

When's the last time you talked to Will, by the way?

When is the last time that you talked to him?

He is your brother too.

Look, you can lash out at me all you want,

but that is not--

I'm not lashing out, Lizzie.

I'm saying I'm over it.

I'm sick of pretending like we have

some normal sibling relationship.

What is normal?

That's--that's not even a thing.

You know what I'm talking about.

We haven't acted like siblings in a very long time.

You think it's possible to pull any data off that?

I seriously doubt it.

We got enough of the serial number

to maybe track where it was purchased,

but look at this.

The pins on this chip are trashed.

So that means there's no way to ID

whatever device was controlling it.

Unfortunately.

Understood.

Thanks for the information.

That's a big help.

That was the school's IT administrator.

He checked the connected clients log

on the school's Wi-Fi router

and found that a Helix Home Smart Plug--

that's the same model as this one--

logged onto the Wi-Fi for the first time

at 7:36 p.m. last night.

Well, didn't Mr. Cole say that he saw Wyatt

at the Lane Tech game last night?

Yeah. At halftime.

And based on the tip-off time, there's no way that Wyatt

could have been here connecting that smart plug

to the school's Wi-Fi at 7:36 p.m.

That kid wanted to tell me something

when we were at his house.

It was written all over his face.

He knows something.

Hey, Chief, you got a sec?

What is it, Mouch?

I was just wondering if you had a chance

to mull over my Universal Compartment Protocol.

The plan is solid. It's a good idea.

It's just these days, if you want to get

something like that on the white shirts' radar,

it has to translate into dollars and cents.

You don't think they'll go for it?

Well, I just think it's gonna be

a little low on their priority list for now.

Yeah, copy that.

I appreciate you looking at it, Chief.

No.

I don't mean that you should give up on it.

Timing just has to be right.

Yeah.

Mouch, I appreciate

you leading Engine 51 with such gusto.

Thank you, Chief.

I'll keep working on the plan.

Hey.

Thanks again for doing this.

I know you've heard the sales pitch 100 times,

but it's really gonna make a huge difference

for all the paramedics.

I mean, Novak worked one-on, one-off

for an entire week before this shift, so--

I'm glad to give her some rest.

- Hmm. - And it's good

to keep our EMT skills sharp. - Yeah.

And hey, it's good to keep

our forced entry skills sharp too.

Well, look, since you're going to be working

with firefighters more often... - Mm-hmm.

How do you feel about keeping a Halligan bar in the ambo?

I think that would be a great idea.

OK, fantastic.

So we can...

I'm sure he's not trying to be rude.

Just wasn't expecting to see me so soon.

Ray Vasquez. I'm Sal's father.

Violet Mikami.

You two work together?

What the hell are you doing here?

I came for my wheels, son.

You forgot?

Sal was nice enough

to look after my car while I was away,

but I'm back now.

Go.

Wow.

You try to teach your kids good manners,

but, uh...

in the end, they are who they are.

Pleasure to meet you, Violet.

You know, when people don't call you back,

it's usually a sign they don't wanna talk.

We know Wyatt didn't start the fire.

How?

'Cause the fire was set up

at the exact same time that Mr. Cole saw Wyatt

at Lane Tech, 3 miles away.

I'm glad to hear you say that.

But then what are you doing here, Lieutenant?

Maybe that's a question you should ask your son.

Because I think he knows.

He's right.

Don't say another word.

This guy doesn't care

what kind of trouble you get into.

It's what he wants. - Mr. Gerry's in the hospital

because of what happened.

Maybe we can help catch the person who did it.

Whoever did it,

I bet you'll find him there.

Oh, yeah, I--

I used to live around the corner.

Have you been to that huge farmers' market on Webster?

Um, yeah, maybe.

I'm not sure.

Well, hey, you should go.

There's, um, a great barbecue stand,

if you like barbecue.

This is it here.

OK.

Thanks for the ride.

I feel bad.

I could have just Ubered.

Don't feel bad. It was on my way.

Yeah.

Look, I'm sorry that you had to deal with all that.

Yeah, my dad and I, we've...

We've got some issues.

Hey, no need to apologize.

Seriously.

Don't even think about it.

OK. Well, uh, I'll see you around.

OK.

Hey, wait, Vasquez!

You should come to Molly's tonight.

Everyone is gonna be there.

We gotta wash the day off somehow, right?

Maybe I'll see you there.

Ugh.

And you were so looking forward to your day off.

Is Heidi OK?

Um, physically, she's fine.

Yeah, she just had a bad reaction

to mixing sleeping medication with grapefruit juice.

Yeah, that's a thing.

Who knew?

OK.

And mentally?

Who the hell knows?

Heidi and I, we kind of have this way

of talking around the big things.

It's like deep down, we both want to be more connected,

but we can't just...

What?

OK, you know that game Taboo?

It's like we're both

playing it whenever we see each other.

It's like there's this whole long list of words

we're never allowed to say, ever.

It's funny.

I used to play Taboo with my parents

when I was a kid, only we had special rules

because it was just the three of us.

Yeah, that's not as fun.

Yeah, I was always jealous of people

who had these big families.

My best friend growing up had four brothers.

So I wanted four brothers, two older and two younger.

- Oh. - Yeah.

I guess it never occurred to me

how much messier my family would have been

if I had had siblings.

Yeah, but that's the thing.

It was--it was messier,

but it was a good kind of messy.

Things didn't get complicated

until after my mom...

Everything changed after,

meaning, basically, everything just fell apart.

But still, someone had to make the lunches

and sign the homework.

And you would think that that would

make siblings closer, but...

I don't know.

It's not like you had a choice, right?

You were forced into it.

I'm sure your siblings get that.

Yeah, but that's the thing.

No one really asked me

to do any of those things.

I just kind of did it.

It never really occurred to me

to ask what anyone else wanted.

I'm sorry. I--I have to go.

I totally get it.

Yeah, go. Go.

Hey.

Just the woman I needed to see.

Let me ask you something.

When you were putting together

your proposal for the Joint Duty Program...

Uh-huh.

If you're heading out,

we can just talk about this next shift.

Uh, no. No. It's fine.

I can stay for another drink.

Great.

Vasquez.

Hey.

So here's my question.

Did he let you talk to Wyatt?

We were right.

Swipe that way.

What am I looking at?

Screenshots from a private Facebook group

called "I Hate Mr. Cole."

- Subtle. - Yeah.

There's hundreds of comments going back at least two years

of people accusing Mr. Cole of bullying students,

public humiliation, trumping up charges

to expel kids for low grades just to inflate test scores.

- Did you read all these? - Mm-hmm.

They sound like an angry mob sharpening their pitchforks.

According to Wyatt, there's 83 active members.

So we have 83 possible suspects.

Sorry to bother you at this hour.

You mind telling me what's so urgent

that it couldn't wait till morning?

The fire at Patterson--

it's likely the perpetrator wasn't just

trying to send you a message.

We believe the attack was deliberately timed

for when you'd normally be arriving at the school,

and you'd be alone.

Can we talk inside?

Uh, yeah. Yeah.

Please come in.

What's up?

Sorry for the random pop-in,

but I heard that's what normal siblings do.

What's that?

I--I thought we could hang out,

if you're not doing anything.

One whiff of Peach Schnapps,

and I just start sweating bullets,

like I'm about to get grounded for a month.

We weren't grounded for a month.

It was like a week, max.

Drama queen.

Whatever.

Well, I hope you like the show "Botched."

I love "Botched."

I mean, I'm talking, like,

30 people are just standing there,

frozen, some of them still holding their drinks

while we're doing CPR on a little baby girl.

They can't even look at each other,

they're so ashamed. - Jesus.

I mean, how did no one notice her crawl into the pool?

Not a single person?

Damn.

Already?

Yeah, I--I forget.

On Sunday, they--they close early.

Well, Vasquez, I'm glad you decided to come out tonight.

Hey, wait. I mean, come on.

You're not going home after the shift we had?

OK, fine. After the shift I had.

Look, I've got a lot of the day to wash off still.

I mean, that raw chicken alone...

Oh, my God.

Let's go to Nick's

or the Redhead Piano Bar

or wherever you want.

Just one more for the road.

Sure.

Yeah.

Let's go.

Never would have guessed you're a chef.

Well, don't jump to any conclusions.

You haven't tried it yet.

Oh.

Don't tell me you don't like red meat.

I--I should have asked.

No, it's not that.

You've gone to so much trouble.

What I have to tell you, I can't pretend I don't know.

And you'd find out and wonder why I didn't say anything.

I don't want it to ruin the night.

What's this about?

What you said yesterday, about fences and roofs

and making tough choices.

We had to avert a teacher strike.

We had no choice.

So I had my budget team look for money

to reallocate quickly without starting

a new and bigger backlash.

We pulled from infrastructure, public works, admin services.

There's no easy way to say this.

We asked the CFD for a list of rigs

that could be permanently decommissioned.

Hmm.

One of those rigs is in your battalion.

Which one?

Engine company 51.

I believe the lieutenant's name is--

Randall McHolland.