Some calls will feel like a knife to the gut.
51 means never having to carry the load alone.
I'm gonna take the lieutenant's test.
You leveling up is great for Truck 81.
I am stupid enough to have fallen in love with you.
But you have done everything in your power to push me away.
I think I really messed up.
Change is inevitable. Nothing stays the same forever.
I've decided to throw my hat in the ring
for Deputy Commissioner.
You're the man for the moment, Chief, no doubt.
Congrats, Deputy Commissioner.
You make 51 a family, Chief, and this firehouse a home.
What are we gonna do without him here holding us together?
I want you to sit in this chair as my replacement.
Life is really about family, the people around you.
Benny Severide, he was my father.
Damon knew and he's been lying about it
ever since he got here.
I don't see how I keep him on T ruck.
If he stays at the firehouse,
maybe I could be a mentor to him.
It's your rig, your decision.
Good morning, Chief.
Good morning.
- Lieutenant Herrmann. - Yeah.
I wanted to make sure you and I were introduced
before I met the rest of the house.
Well, uh, it's good to meet you, Chief Pascal.
You just got here from Miami, huh?
Well, I started at CFD, but yeah,
I've been Miami Fire-Rescue for the last ten years.
Yeah, welcome back.
DC Boden said you're on track to be a battalion chief
with the goal of sitting in this seat.
So I wanna make sure there's no hard feelings
that I'm in it now.
Mm, nah.
It's no problem.
I--I just had some bad luck,
got sick before the captain's test
a few weeks back, and so I missed it.
But I'm gonna take it next round
and then the chief's test after that.
So I, uh--
I got a little ways to go.
Well, good luck with that.
Thanks.
Never met the guy,
but I heard he's a monster in the field.
Please. In Miami, that just means breaking up beach parties
and soaking in sunshine.
Genius, you ever seen "Scarface"?
You ever seen "Baywatch"?
I know Schank over at 48 says he's tough as nails.
I guess we'll see.
I wonder why he came back from Miami.
Maybe he kept his pension, so he had to finish here?
- Has anyone seen him yet? - Not me.
He's been locked away in Boden's office.
It's Chief Pascal's office now.
I'm going for seconds.
Where the hell is Carver?
First day back after a six-week furlough,
you'd think he'd be early.
You heard from him?
Nope. Uh-uh.
I just thought he was with family in Texas.
Wanted to give him some space.
Yeah, I hope he worked some stuff out down there.
Now that I know he's coming back,
I have some things I need to say.
Like?
I'm going to apologize.
And I want to explain that I wasn't
keeping a distance because of Evan.
I was keeping a distance because of my feelings for him.
Yeah. I want this to work.
Good for you, putting it out there.
All right, morning briefing's about to start.
Rally up.
Time to meet the new chief.
You're cutting it close on time.
Uh, I was here, Lieutenant.
Just took a few beats in the locker room to take it all in.
Glad to be back.
So you're ready to jump back into action?
Hell, yeah, I am.
OK, fine.
So you won't let me take you out for drinks.
I get it. I'm intimidating.
Yeah. Yeah, that's it.
But I was thinking
I could use some more EMT con-ed hours,
and I saw that you were signed up
for that psych emergency class.
Maybe I'll join, and then we can just
go get some coffee afterwards.
Mm-hmm.
And, uh, what would your brother think of that?
Severide doesn't really get involved
with anyone else's business, in case you haven't noticed.
Morning, 51.
all: Morning, Chief.
As you probably already know, I'm Battalion Chief Dom Pascal.
27 years on the job.
A couple of things I want to get out of the way upfront.
I have the utmost respect
for Deputy Commissioner Wallace Boden,
and it's truly an honor to be here in his former seat.
But I'm not Chief Boden.
I'm not trying to be.
I have my own leadership style. I do things my own way.
So you should all expect
there'll be some changes at Firehouse 51.
All units, explosions reported at 1134 31st Street.
To be continued.
Let's hit it, team.
"There will be changes"-- sounds kind of like a threat.
Have to wonder what exactly he's talking about.
Attention, all responding companies to 31st Street,
explosions ongoing inside the building.
Units are advised to approach with caution.
Copy that, Main.
Let's roll up with our eyes peeled.
Bring it on.
Ma'am!
The main supply store caught fire,
and suddenly, everything went crazy.
Everyone got out,
but some people are stuck outside the building.
All right.
All right!
We got shrapnel coming down on us!
Take cover behind the ambulance
and let the medics take a look at you, OK?
Go.
If that's vape supplies in there,
that means nitrous oxide and butane tanks in all sizes.
Defensive attack.
No one goes inside the building.
Drivers, let's get these rigs end-to-end,
bumper-to-bumper in a semi-circle,
and create a safe zone.
Take our victims there.
Truck and Squad, get the jack plates from 81.
Use them as a protective shield.
Make your way to the structure
and pull anyone out that's nearest the flames.
- On it. - Yes, Chief!
Let's go.
Prep your unmanned deck guns, your water cannons.
Make sure your supply lines are in place.
You got it.
- Chief! - I'm good!
Get the victims out!
All right. Support me.
Can you walk?
I don't know.
- OK, I'm gonna help you up. - OK.
Easy, easy.
OK. I got you.
The explosions-- something hit me in the back.
I know, I know, I know. Careful now.
- All right. - Behind, behind.
You guys, come with us.
I think he's missing the fear gene.
Let's go, guys, move it.
We're gonna get the portable deck gun set up.
- Medic! - I got him. Go in.
All right, we're gonna take care of you,
get you out of here.
Come on, get you up.
Grab a victim.
Keep them tight under the plate.
Gunshot wound reported at Ogden and North.
Gunshot wound reported at 5th and Indiana.
Battalion 25 to Main.
We've got shrapnel way outside the perimeter of this fire.
I'm giving out a shelter in place order,
half mile in every direction.
- Carver, help her. - On it.
You OK? Come on.
Stay close.
- I got you. - Come on, get up.
Damon!
You wanna head over? I got 'em.
No, no. Let's keep moving.
Hey.
You OK? Hey.
Come on.
I got you.
Breathe.
Chief, that's the last of the victims.
The structure is clear.
- Fire 'em up. - Cannons go.
Guy nearby said that vape place
just got a shipment of butane delivered yesterday.
It can't be legal to store it there.
No. No way.
That shrapnel shot out a mile in each direction.
Pascal clearing the area of people saved a lot of lives.
And that sign collapse, it's classic façade fail.
I knew it could go down any sec.
Just had to get the victim out.
You did good. Nice work.
Hey.
Uh, our victim's gonna make it?
Uh, yeah.
Yeah, it looks like it, which is a miracle.
Some classic penetrating wounds, a few pretty serious.
Nurse said it looked like
a gang shooting spree had gone down.
Um, but if you get a second, I'd love to talk,
you know, just the two of us.
I'll be around.
OK.
I'm telling you, Chief looked like Duvall in "Apocalypse Now"
when he walked out there.
Could be the sign of a psychopath.
He did stay pretty damn calm under pressure.
- Afternoon. - Hey, Chief.
You should try Damon's chicken parm, Chief.
It's real top-notch.
No, I'm good, thanks.
Like I said in this morning's briefing,
there's gonna be some changes around the firehouse.
Starting with this one.
I need everyone to put your phones in here.
Is this some kind of magic trick?
In a way.
Meals are a great time for firehouse bonding.
Have a conversation, get to know each other.
It's a lot better than staring at your phone.
Uh, all due respect, Chief,
most of us have known each other for years.
That's where the trouble starts.
You stop asking questions, finding out new things.
If your life depends on
knowing the firefighter on your left and right
on every call and what their next move is going to be,
there's no such thing as too familiar, right?
Phones in the box, people.
Can I ask, what if we get an important call?
Well, how long is your lunch, 45 minutes?
Believe me, your family knows
they can call the firehouse if there's a crisis.
You still have a flip phone?
Yeah.
It was my wife's idea.
I like her already.
You're gonna thank me.
Either that or you'll decide I'm a dick.
But either way, if you find out something new about each other,
I'm happy.
All right?
Bon appétit.
Like I needed more grief about the flip phone.
The car had Texas plates.
OK, so maybe a girlfriend back home?
Yeah, that makes sense.
Because this was not a casual kind of kiss.
This was like a, "we've been sleeping together for a while"
kind of thing.
Oh. I'm sorry, Vi.
Uh...
No, there's no one but myself to blame.
I blew it and I pushed him away for good.
Hey, you don't know that.
We don't know anything about this Texan.
Ritter is right.
Maybe they're sleeping together.
Maybe it's a casual fling.
Either way, it could end any minute.
Before he left, he told you he was in love with you.
Those feelings don't just disappear.
Hey, Stella.
Chief Pascal wants to see
you, me, and Herrmann in his office.
Got it.
That was a hell of a call this morning.
Yeah, sure was.
As lieutenants, you're my three officers on scene,
so what I'd like to do is meet with each of you individually
and go through that fire,
what decisions you made and why,
thought processes, et cetera.
We will have our reports finished by end of shift,
and it will all be in there.
In conversation, more details come out.
It'll help me understand your leadership styles and methods.
And I'd like to do this sooner rather than later,
fresh on the mind.
- W-- - Yes, sir. Sounds good.
Great.
Lieutenant Severide, you'll go first.
Gather whatever you have in your report so far
and meet me in the briefing room.
Copy that.
Dismissed.
The way he said dismissed--
I mean, he might as well have said,
get the hell out of my office.
This guy is a taskmaster.
Boden never did this kind of performance review.
Pascal is pulling some serious alpha moves.
What--what was that for?
Not that I'm complaining.
I'm hoping it'll help ease you up a little.
What does that mean?
Chief Pascal warned us that there's gonna be changes.
You're not helping yourself by challenging him from the jump.
I'm not challenging him.
Per se.
Just give the man a chance.
One more kiss, I'll consider it.
Fine, I will try.
Damon.
He made some smart moves on the big fire call.
He did.
I, uh, I saw you talking to him about it,
which, in general, is fine.
But maybe let me be the first to debrief after the call?
Absolutely.
Now, I gotta round up my files for the big man.
Yeah.
Have fun with that.
Oh, they put out a date for the next lieutenant test yet?
No.
But I can't take it
until Herrmann moves up to chief rank, anyway.
I'm not taking a promotion until there's an opening here.
I would never leave 51.
Yeah, that's why I didn't take it last year.
Hey, I didn't think about this before,
but you're sort of at the mercy
of Herrmann's test-taking skills on this one, huh?
Hey, don't remind me.
You and Damon get into it or something?
What? No.
No, no, not at all.
He's, uh--he's a good kid.
So keep in mind, team accountability is key.
Don't forget to use your radio more.
Got it.
One more thing.
Let's see--I'm looking for a General Order 96-001.
Here.
I think you know what this section is.
It states immediate family members
should not work the same firehouse in the same shift.
Since Lieutenant Kidd doesn't have your last name,
I assume that's how it stayed under the radar.
Going on calls with family members, that can be trouble.
Seems to me you both figured out a way to manage it,
considering how long you worked together.
Yes, sir. We have it handled.
Good.
Just be aware that's something I'll be keeping an eye on.
Understood.
You need any help?
Uh, yeah, when we get back to Med,
will you remind me that we need another pair of Magill forceps?
Sure.
Hey, are you OK?
Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks.
Pascal is kind of distractingly cute
for a chief, no?
When I first met you, you told me you had a fling
with your instructor at training.
Do you have a thing for authority figures?
Please.
Uh, it is called daddy issues.
No, he was cool on the call, right?
Did not blink. - Yeah, he was.
But among many other potential disasters with this idea,
I'm pretty sure I saw a ring on his finger.
Well, you never know.
Truck 81, Ambulance 61, motor vehicle accident.
Union and 14th Street.
- Cutters and jaws. - Copy.
Hey!
Back up! Come on.
Give us some space.
Looks like two in the front, driver and passenger.
I don't see movement.
Work these front doors. - Copy.
Copy.
We got two kids!
Copy.
Damon, come help me work this door!
Yeah.
- Front door's open! - Here I come.
All right, peripheral pulses,
head injuries to both, but they're both breathing.
Could be internal injuries. - Come on.
Hey, you guys. Hi.
My name is Lizzie. I'm gonna get you out, OK?
What are your names?
I'm Lena.
My brother's Jamie.
OK. OK.
Let me get in there.
They're OK.
OK, we're gonna get the front passengers out first.
Copy. I'll stay with them.
- OK. - OK.
OK.
Is my mom OK?
They're gonna get her out right now.
It's OK, Jamie.
He got scared.
I don't blame him. You guys are both really brave.
Lena, do you mind if I take a look at your ankle?
All right, let's go.
Don't let my daddy go away.
Oh, we won't, hon.
We're gonna take good care of him.
No, I mean, don't let him go.
He crashed us on purpose.
Lena said it very clearly. "He crashed us on purpose."
Was she confused at all?
The accident must have shaken her up pretty good.
She didn't seem confused to me.
Yeah, me neither.
Both parents are intubated and unconscious.
Hopefully, they pull through
and we get a chance to talk to 'em.
The position of the car was strange.
Straight into the wall--
like the driver didn't try to turn or stop.
The accident scene is under investigation right now.
We should get some information on that.
And we'll talk to the little girl after she's rested up.
Keep us posted?
Will do.
So what was your next move?
Uh, I started crawling around,
getting the supply lines set up to feed the engine deck gun.
Like you asked.
Well, you got that and the snorkel basket
into position fast.
Mm.
It worked out. Yeah.
Just so you understand my methodology,
I believe knowledge is power,
so I'm going to try and learn from every call,
from every officer,
and ask any question I can think of.
Yeah.
But the unmanned snorkel cannon,
that was pretty cool.
I liked using that.
Me too.
Between that and the portable water cannon...
we tamed that beast.
Yeah, we did.
Hope we get some answers on that crash soon.
It's crazy the kids survived with just minor injuries.
They're lucky.
If what the little girl said was true, not that lucky.
Can you imagine?
I mean,
what the hell was going through that father's head?
All I know is there are some people
who never should have become parents in the first place.
See you next shift.
How was your shift?
Nothing you want to hear about.
It's a nasty world out there.
Sounds like a Bloody Mary is in order?
Or seven.
Almost makes getting up at dawn worth it.
Lieutenant Vale.
Chief Pascal.
Chief, wow, that's, uh-- that's something.
Congrats on the, uh, new rise in rank.
Thank you. Grab a seat.
It's been a while, huh?
It has, it has.
Yeah, I see you're still, uh, working that overtime,
burning that daytime oil just as always.
Well, when you love what you do.
Right.
Listen, I, uh--
I don't want to overstep,
but we were close back in the day.
I heard about what happened in Miami.
You OK?
Absolutely.
All good.
You sure?
Because I heard--
Most of CFD doesn't even know I'm here yet.
You must keep your ear really close to the ground, huh?
Well, I care, I guess.
I better get back to work.
Thanks for coming by, Lieutenant.
Not a problem.
And, uh, if you ever want to talk,
just give me a shout.
It's amazing the way the old-timers talk about him.
He was a real smoke-eater, huh?
Benny commanded respect.
I don't--I don't know how well-liked he was. Though--
I still have the last birthday present
he sent me on my 9th.
Guess what it was. - Fire truck.
Cop car.
Come on, Cruz, you gonna tell me what's going on,
way you've been eyeballing Damon?
It's just as these two get closer as brothers,
you know, it's tricky.
I saw Severide pull up a beat
on a call when he thought that Damon was hurt.
Just makes me worry for the both of 'em.
I think Severide's just trying to be a good mentor.
There's more to it than that when they're tied by blood.
I know I'd do anything for my brother.
Chief is definitely intimidating.
I don't know about the word "cute."
Well, a person can be both.
Hey, speaking of which,
where's, uh-- where's Carver tonight?
I figured after all that time away, he'd wanna hang.
Turns out Carver has a new girlfriend.
Or an old girlfriend. I don't know.
Oh.
I'm--I'm sorry. - Hey, me too.
Hey, whatever that girl's deal is,
I don't get the vibe that she's making Carver very happy.
Hey! Dwayne's here.
- Hey, Dwayne. What's up? - Hi, guys.
Hey. I thought you had to work tonight.
Still on shift.
Update on the case.
What's the latest?
Lena's father is still in an induced coma,
but I got a chance to talk to Catherine, her mother.
That's good news.
But she told me you misunderstood everything
Lena said, or that Lena was mixed up.
Either way, she said the father did nothing wrong
and that the crash was just an accident.
What? I--I didn't misunderstand anything.
Are you sure?
100%.
Lena was telling the truth. She was scared of her father.
The mother won't even let the police talk to Lena.
Said she's been traumatized enough.
- It's shady, I'm telling you. - Or just protective.
Where's Lena now?
She is staying with her aunt
until her parents are out of the hospital.
EMTs aren't under the same restrictions as police.
Sounds like you bonded with the girl.
If you can think of a reason to go visit,
you're free to do that.
Could be medical follow-up.
Do you have concerns about her medically?
Not really.
But there is something that I'd wish I'd done.
And I think I can fix it if we can find that minivan.
I'll give you the leeway.
I'm always open to a solid follow-through on our cases,
but watch your step.
Copy that, Chief. Thank you.
The accident report came back inconclusive.
So that puts even more pressure on the girl's word.
And the mother's.
Yeah.
Ever since we started even talking about having kids,
every call with a child just fills me with...
dread, I guess, is the word.
You think that feeling ever goes away?
You'd have to ask one of the guys with kids.
I wish I could just snap my fingers and feel ready.
I just don't.
Yet.
And I'm sorry about that.
You don't have to apologize.
I told you.
Just so you know, you can talk to me about anything.
Including Carver.
I know that.
Uh, it just kind of shook me up worse than I thought.
I kind of shut down my emotions, so...
Maybe don't give up so fast?
You know?
'Cause this girl could just be a distraction
over his heartbreak from you.
And he has no idea how you're feeling.
There it is.
- OK. - Just let me help you.
OK.
Oh, I hope it's still in here.
Got it.
I bet Lena is missing this.
I bet she is.
And, as PIC, I think we should bring it to her.
You know, I'm gonna say something
to the chief about this-- it's ridiculous.
I'll back you. We're not schoolkids.
I'm gonna lose my winning streak on Jewel Island.
This'll be good. - Mm.
Let's do some all-unit drills after lunch.
Meet on the app floor.
Hey, Chief.
Yes?
What kind of drills?
Air management and hose deployment.
Sounds great.
Thanks.
I actually could use some air management training.
You're a walking tragedy.
Hey, come on.
Pascal has some pretty good ideas.
I'm just saying
that I was impressed with him in the meeting I had.
Impressed how?
The way that he stepped into Boden's shoes like that,
you know, doing things his own way,
that takes a lot of nerve.
I give the man kudos for that.
Lieutenant Kidd, you still haven't checked in
for your vape fire post-mortem.
Let's do it now. - How about in an hour or so?
I've got some Girls on Fire work
that I want to do before the session.
That work can wait.
Yes, Chief. Of course.
My apologies.
Hello. You must be Lena's aunt.
- Is everything OK? - Yes.
We are the medics who treated Lena at the accident.
Oh.
We just wanted to see how Lena was doing.
And to give her this.
We found it after we dropped her off.
That is Lena's favorite. She's been asking for it.
Um, come on in.
- Nora! - Hey, Lena.
Thank you.
How's the ankle feeling?
It's fine,
but Aunt Judy won't let me go skateboarding yet.
One more week.
She looks so pretty.
Yeah, Novak cleaned her up for you.
I was so scared she got hurt during the crash.
I had a doll just like that growing up,
and I used to love brushing her hair and taking care of her.
And I can tell you take really good care of Nora, too.
I do.
And I bet you do everything you can to keep her safe.
I do.
I held her so tight in the car.
Before the accident?
As soon as Daddy started driving so fast.
Then, when he said that thing,
I tried to squeeze her under my seat belt.
But I couldn't.
What did-- what did your daddy say?
That we couldn't live anymore.
It was time for us to die.
Honey.
The father is still unconscious.
But now that Lena's aunt heard her statement,
the police can talk to the mother.
What if she still insists Lena is lying?
DCFS will separate Lena and her brother from the family
until the courts decide where the truth lies,
or the father regains consciousness
and admits any wrongdoing.
First, we're just here to check in with you.
Unfortunately, your daughter's reports
do match with what our report's saying.
Oh, no. She's just a kid.
She's--she doesn't know what she's saying.
And we will have to take the children away until we--
Please.
No.
You can't take my children away!
Did your husband say those things or not?
Yes, he said those things, but he's sick!
He just needs help, that's all!
Oh, God!
Hey, what time should I be at your place?
- Cubs game starts at 3:00. - See you then.
I'll bring the beer.
Heads up.
I want everyone coming in half an hour early from here on out.
I've got an equipment check
that takes some getting used to.
- Copy that. - You got it, Chief.
This guy's really getting up and in it.
No doubt he likes to keep everyone on their heels.
He even pulled out the General Order book.
Called out me and Stella
for working the same shift together.
- Damn. - Yeah.
Well, what did he say about you and Damon working together?
I didn't mention it. Not an issue.
Huh.
What?
Oh. Your call, obviously.
That's right. It is.
Are you staying after shift?
Pascal gave me some--some ideas for organizing the rig.
I figured I'd try 'em out.
You're sure trying to make a good impression on the guy.
Yeah, maybe I am. I mean, what's wrong with that?
Did you really miss the captain's test
'cause you were sick?
Of course I was sick. Why would you even ask that?
You shouldn't be so impressed with the new chief.
All this stuff he's doing, stepping into Boden's shoes,
taking some new tacks-- just so you know,
you could do all that, too.
And you'd be great at it.
Hey.
We haven't had time to talk today.
It's all good.
I just, uh--
I just wanted to say I'm sorry.
About the way things went before you left.
I shouldn't have said what I did about you and Kidd
and all-- - No reason to talk about it.
That's the past.
I'm done living there.
OK.
Let's just not pretend
that we're anything more than coworkers.
It'll be better for both of us.
What's going on?
You OK?
Yeah, I am.
I'm just pissed off.
This has something to do with Pascal?
Partly.
More about me.
He called me out
for avoiding the review
and I pushed back.
Tried to put him off.
I never would have done that to Boden.
So you were right.
My attitude has been pretty screwed up.
I really miss having Boden at 51.
The man, he was more than just my boss.
He walked me down the aisle, you know?
Mm-hmm.
I know.
I know you said,
you know, give this Pascal guy a chance.
And it's not just because he's not Boden.
There is something about him...
makes me nervous somehow.
Yeah, there's something about him that's a little...
Off.
What the hell?
You gotta be kidding me.
Monica.
Open the door.
I'm not happy, Dom.
I think you should go stay somewhere else.
Yeah, well, first of all, it's my name on the lease.
Then I can go.
No, I want you here. I...
I wanna work on this.
Seems like all you really wanna do is just work.
Night and day, like always.
I told you the hours are going to be crazy at first.
You should've stayed in Miami.
But I didn't.
I came here to be with you.
I don't give up.
Well, maybe it's time you do.
Monica...
you're gonna need me to keep you warm
when that Chicago winter hits.
We got weak in Miami.
Come on.
Open the door.
You're a lucky man.
I know it.