01x14 - Broken

[bunniefuu]

Previously on NCIS: Hawai'i...

I think there's a high-level mole

in U.S. intelligence here in Hawai'i.

- JESSE (OVER COMMS): Take it!
- Janey, don't!

(g*nsh*t)

Maggie Shaw? Your best friend?

You are under arrest

- for espionage and treason.
- (HANDCUFFS CLICKING)

You broke my heart, Maggie.

(CRYING): I know, Janey.

Did something happen to Aunt Maggie?

She won't be coming around anymore.

Are you all right?

(CRYING): No, baby.

I'm really, I'm really not.

- Mom, it's okay.
- (CRYING)

("EVERYTHING'S ELECTRIC"
BY LIAM GALLAGHER PLAYING)

♪ The city is burning ♪

♪ Sinking ships in the ocean ♪

♪ With a head full of dreams at night ♪

Let's go.

♪ Sorrow's written the story of life ♪

♪ Ain't nothing to do but... ♪

- (GRUNTS)
- k*ll shot, baby!

Nice job.

- Let's go!
- (GRUNTS)

♪ This time... ♪

Center mass! (GRUNTS)

(RINGING)

(GROANING)

What the... ?

(OTHERS GROANING)

(RINGING LOUDER)

♪ ♪

KAI: Hey, boss.

Sort of wasn't expecting you today...

Inquiry doesn't start for another hour.

Plenty of time for a crime scene.

All right.

TENNANT: Looks like
evidence of a good time.

Yeah, Marines training out
of K-Bay got the morning off.

They were playing volleyball
when they experienced head pain,

bleeding from the ears and vertigo.

A few of them lost consciousness.

They've all been sent
to Tripler for treatment.

Those are Fleet Marine Forces Corpsmen.

Were the people affected Spec Ops?

Marine Special Operations Team.

Some are operators, the rest enablers.

Everything from intel to logistics.

Nobody else on the beach was affected.

We need to rule out
anything mission related:

rapid cabin depressurization,
viruses, parasites, et cetera.

I'll check with their commander,

but I got to say, I hate
to root for parasites.

LUCY: I ever tell you how
much I hate hospitals?

I had this infection as a kid,

and I spent the whole week
eating crappy food

and hooked up to machines.

The only good thing are the nurses.

And, you know, not dying.

- Are you listening?
- Yeah, Luce.

Uh, I'm sorry that happened to you.

And I'm sorry I'm distracted.

It's just... doesn't she
work with dead people?

I am a student of the human
body, soul intact or not.

My last paper was on the effect
of environmental factors

on the external auditory meatus
and tympanic membranes.

(CHUCKLES) That's a lot of words.

Eardrums.

I wanted to see
if meditative chants can heal.

Any idea what caused their injuries?

I have a "bad news, good news,
more bad news" situation.

What, uh, order do you want it in?

I'm sorry, was it one bad, two good?

I'm still hung up on "auditory meatus".

Your order is fine.

Okay, bad news: There are a scary number

of natural reasons why ears bleed.

Good news: None of them
are what happened here.

Bad news: I believe it might be
some sort of ultrasonic wave

that disturbed the inner ear canal,

creating vertigo-like symptoms.

So, sound waves caused our
victims to bleed and collapse?

- Yes.
- How?

Well, it wasn't naturally
occurring, something like

a meteorite creating an
impact wave right next to them.

I suspect they would have noticed that.

So it was man-made,

like sound waves were weaponized.

Everything can be weaponized,
Agent Boone.

Even love.

And what'll happen to our victims?

They'll recover completely.

But if they'd been exposed any longer,

they might have lost their hearing.

Or worse.

Special Agent Tennant.

FBI Special Agent Whistler.

- (CHUCKLES)
- You saved me a call.

I wanted to congratulate you
on the new gig.

When do you start?

Just got my photo taken
for my new credentials.

Pick them up tomorrow.

DIA's gonna miss you.

But if I'm being honest...

Please.

... I'm so glad you'll no longer be

coming in hot with red tape.

Yeah, I deserve that.

Still, I hope it doesn't mean
we'll be seeing any less of you.

Yeah, I think the Bureau
liked that I had

a good working relationship
with you and your team.

Well, they're lucky to have you.

I should get to my meeting.

I know. I brought you a coffee.

It'll be a long day.

Glen Smith is in charge of the inquiry.

Bulldog.

Don't say anything you shouldn't, Kate.

Well, like I said,

haven't gotten
my official credentials yet.

He'll try to make you doubt yourself.

Don't let him. Don't
forget who you really are.

Have a good day,
Special Agent in Charge Tennant.

You, too, FBI Special Agent Whistler.

Molecules push and pull
as a sound wave moves.

Increase the amplitude,

and these opposing forces can
create bubbles in the inner ear.

This is called cavitation,

a disruption in the ear canal
that can cause fatigue,

nausea, even collapse.

- So, it's bad.
- ERNIE: Well, bad works, but

cavitation makes it sound like
I know what I'm talking about.

Also, the waves are directional.

Given that nobody else
on the beach was affected,

whoever did this was
targeting our Marines.

Kai, Luce, what info
do we have on the unit?

What?

Acting SAC Boone's time to shine
while Tennant's out of pocket.

Mm. You did that so effortlessly.

One of you just tell me what
the unit's C.O. said, please.

Yeah. They just returned
from a two-month mission

supporting local forces against Jemaah

Islamiyah in Southeast Asia.

ERNIE: I checked the dark web.

None of the Spec Ops team
or their enablers were doxed.

- We have any anomalies?
- Just heard back.

One of the unit's members hasn't
checked in since the attack.

Gunnery Sergeant Bryan Shepherd.

He have any issues with the team?

C.O. didn't know of any.

Let's circle back
to the Marines at Tripler,

see if they had any trouble
with Shepherd, and, Ernie,

- see if you can track him down.
- I already got it.

Bryan's not your guy.

You found that in ten seconds.
How do you know?

ERNIE: Because he was found unconscious

in a car that swerved off the road.

Checked into the hospital
with a bad case of cavitation.

Luce, you up to confronting your
disdain for hospitals again?

Oof. Okay.

Ernie, Kai, find me a
suspect, what caused this,

- anything.
- Sir, yes, sir.

Uh, hey. You don't think

Tennant's gonna lose her
security clearance, do you?

No way she crossed any line
that would make it necessary.

Well, I-I hope you're right,

but what would happen if she did?

We don't need to go there right now.

She couldn't keep her job, could she?

You're not gonna let
this go, are you, Luce?

No, no, I-I will. And...

could be losing a job isn't as bad as

being betrayed by

someone you care about.

Hard to bounce back from that.

(ELEVATOR BELL DINGS)

Special Agent in Charge Tennant,
right on time.

I'm Glen Smith, with the CIA's
Office of the Inspector General,

and these are my colleagues Mr. Norwood,

Ms. Cartwright, Mr. Hanson,
and Ms. Logan.

Hello.

Do you need anything before we begin?

No.

Then why don't you sit down,
and let's get started.

TENNANT: I've prepared a statement.

I met Maggie Shaw

in March and remained
in contact with her

until two weeks ago,

when my team discovered
she had been compromised and...

Special Agent Tennant?

Yes.

SMITH: I appreciate
the trouble you went to

collecting your thoughts,

but I would like to approach this...

a slightly different way.

Bryan's the healthiest person I know.

Now they've induced him into a coma

to alleviate the pressure in his skull.

When was the last time you spoke to him?

He was supposed to play
volleyball this morning.

Um... h-he called me to say

he had a headache and was coming home.

At first, the-the doctors
thought this was an aneurysm.

Since you guys are here, I assume...

We believe he was
the victim of an attack.

This has to do with
the fact we're Spec Ops.

- "We're"?
- He's a comms specialist.

I'm operational logistics. We met

taking shelter as mike-mikes

were raining down on our position.

Heck of a meet-cute.

Who would have done this?

Who would have targeted
Bryan and our friends?

ERNIE: Bryan Shepherd
wasn't one of the targets.

He was the target.

No, no, no, no.

This is much too important
for shoulder hovering.

With ultrasonic waves,

the biological effects depends on

proximity and direction. In other words,

the closer and more
straight-on the victims,

the more they're impacted.

To be inconspicuous,

the attack would have to originate

from a car in the parking lot.

If Bryan was hit walking to the beach,

he would have felt the symptoms first.

He left with a headache
before he even got to the court,

and-and with the trees,
it might've taken a few minutes

for the attacker to realize
Bryan went back to his car.

Meanwhile, the people playing volleyball

are still in the path,

collapsing with
relatively minor symptoms,

but minutes later,

Bryan drives his car off the road,

ends up in a coma.

The MARSOC team really was
just collateral damage.

- Told you.
- Any way to track the attacker?

I checked traffic cams and
looked for social media video

of the accident... nothing, but I
may be able to track the weapon.

I know someone with a DARPA research lab

on the island. You want to come with?

Like... a science lab?

I think Jesse might need
my help upstairs.

Fine. I'll ask Lucy.

She'll appreciate the ingenuity.

Come on, Ernie. I-I will go
with you if you want.

Luddite.

SMITH: When you joined NCIS,

how often did you and
Ms. Shaw see each other?

I was based in Norfolk, and...

I guess, whenever she was in D.C.

Did she initiate contact,

or did you?

"Contact"...

feels loaded.

We had lunch.

Sometimes dinner. Like friends.

SMITH: What did you talk about?

Work

and family.

Like friends.

Did she ever come to your home?

Yes.

How often?

However often friends come over.

Did you ever vacation together?

TENNANT: Yes.

We went to the Poconos once,

and to New York

with my son

to see The Lion King.

When did you go to Mexico?

Look, I know this falls under the

"you ask the questions,
not me" category, but...

can I ask why is this important?

(CLEARS THROAT)

A Chinese MSS asset,

posing as a diplomat,

was in Mexico the same time
as you and Ms. Shaw.

A week later, the U.S. suffered

a DDoS attack

and came very close
to compromising key facilities.

ERNIE: I haven't seen the tall one

around acting goofy recently.

Uh... we're sort of done.

Not sort of... really, really done.

- Oh, I'm sorry, Lucy.
- Thanks.

Uh, we-we weren't together that long,

so I'm hoping to just

move on.

Sh-Should be easy, right?

If it was easy,

none of it would've mattered, right?

- (BEEPS, CLICKS)
- Oh, yeah.

Ooh.

These all must've just come back
from the TechConnect conference.

And am I supposed to be seeing this?

This isn't the Ark of the Covenant.

Besides, all the really
classified stuff is locked away.

- Oh, wow. What does this one do?
- No, hey.

Look but don't touch.

I thought you said we were
meeting your friend.

I see you shiver with antici...

... pation.

Wow, that was quite an entrance.

Thanks for noticing.

- Lucy, meet Dr. Tony Lee.
- (CHUCKLES)

So, what brings you up from
the dungeon to the palace?

To ask questions about weapons

that are capable of
directional ultrasonic waves

that result in cavitation.

Smart cookie, this one.

I do have a project.

It's right up your alley.

- Unfortunately, it's need-to-know.
- Mm.

Written approval.

Oh, thank goodness, 'cause I've
been dying to talk about it.

Come on.

People saw the initial

Havana syndrome incident of

as a medical anomaly,
but I received funding

to reverse-engineer a weapon

that could cause those injuries.

I've been waiting

for the right time to reveal it,
so mum's the word, okay?

Is this capable of emitting
waves up to yards?

More.

All right, what happened?

This hasn't left the lab.

Well, then we're gonna need a list

of everyone involved in its development.

Sorry, Tony, looks like someone
stole your thunder.

JULIE: What are you looking at?

A vacation photo.

- Ooh, am I in it?
- No.

(CHUCKLES)

Mm.

I went to Mexico when you were little.

- JULIE: With Aunt Maggie.
- TENNANT: Yeah.

Did you have a good time?

Yes.

We had a very good time.

We haven't seen her for a while.

Is she out of town?

Yeah.

For a while.

If you talk to her, tell her I love her

and that she owes me cents.

- From playing cards.
- Of course.

(CHUCKLES)

- Dinner will be ready soon, okay?
- Okay.

And did you finish your homework?

- Mostly.
- Mm-hmm.

- Well, why don't you turn that "mostly" into a "yes".
- Okay.

Dr. Lee sent along the list

of everyone who has access

to the sound wave weapon schematics.

That's a lot of people.

, to be exact.

From project directors
to research assistants.

So, I narrowed it down
by certain criteria.

Like who's a vindictive maniac?

That's not far off, actually.

Like being let go for
disruptive behavior at work.

- Joel Johnson.
- A contractor.

Lost his clearance and
his job about a month ago.

- We know why?
- No, not yet.

- Waiting on personnel records.
- We know where he's at?

Ernie tracked his cell phone.

Apparently, he's been
bouncing around Airbnbs,

but the most recent place
is just south of Kailua.

And get this,

the reservations are under
a different name each time.

Would an innocent person do that?

Not unless they were
a celebrity or a sociopath.

Let's go pay him a visit.

(RINGING)

(GRUNTING)

(WINCING)

(DOOR SHUTS)

KAI: He's not in the house.

Jesse? Lucy?

Where are you guys?

(GROANING OVER COMMS)

(GROANING)

Call for a bus, now!

Om...

- (CLEARS THROAT)
- Om...

I'm s... I'm sorry. (CHUCKLES)
What-what are you doing?

Oh, good. You do hear me.

Your equilibrium is off,

but you'll be centered soon enough.

Your exposure was limited.

You may have a headache
for a bit, but I can recommend

some mantras that'll
help heal the aural canal.

How you feeling?

Oh, thank you, Commander Chase.

Feel a lot better
if we knew where Joel went.

Found his car in Laie.

Dumped. He's in the wind.

Where's Jesse?

Checking in

on the team like a good acting SAC.

But he's not gonna be happy when

you tell him that we got
our heads scrambled for nothing.

For something, actually.

LUCY: Is that Meg Carter?

KAI: Yeah. Our victim

Bryan Shepherd's girlfriend.

SMITH: What did your
children call Ms. Shaw?

Aunt Maggie.

- NORWOOD: Did she babysit them for you?
- Yes.

- NORWOOD: In your house here on the island?
- Yes.

- SMITH: Did she take them on any outings?
- Yes.

SMITH: Do you know if Ms. Shaw
ever asked your children

to keep anything secret from you?

I don't know.

NORWOOD: Did you ever catch Ms. Shaw

- looking through your desk?
- No.

- SMITH: Computer?
- No.

Throughout this questioning,
Agent Tennant,

you have continued to describe
Ms. Shaw as a friend,

almost as family,

and, in that context,
I feel compelled to ask.

Despite never catching her
engaged in suspect activity,

is it possible that Ms. Shaw maintained

her relationship with you
so that she could gain access

to sensitive cases and operations

in the Pacific region?

Agent Tennant.

Is it possible that Ms. Shaw... ?

Yes.

It's possible.

MEG: Why are you showing me this?

'Cause I need to know how you know him.

His name's Joel Johnson.

We were in a relationship a while ago.

Are you still in contact with him?

No.

Why?

Because your ex attacked Bryan,

the MARSOC team, and my teammates.

Joel?

We found that photo
where he was staying.

(SIGHS)

KAI: Tell me about your relationship.

Uh, we were engaged.

What happened?

He wasn't the one.

He has now attacked a dozen people.

I need a little more
than "he wasn't the one".

I-I don't know.

He was smart and-and curious.

But, over time, he got
possessive and angry.

And it made me uncomfortable,

but I can't imagine
he's capable of this.

Have you heard from him?

Not for five months.

We both moved on.

I would say he hasn't moved on.

(CHUCKLES)

Pretty cool look.

Bit of a headache. Cubano from E.A.R.L.

Cure for hunger and, uh,

intelligence inquiries.

I don't know how much
of an appetite I have,

but thank you.

Why don't you tell me about the case?

A few of us got zapped

by the same wave machine
that got our Marines,

but... Commander Chase

sang some weird voodoo
song, and we're fine.

- You sure you're okay?
- Yes.

And I'm not just saying that
'cause you're having a crap day.

(LAUGHS)

Well, please tell me
we accomplished more

than just putting you in harm's way.

We got a bead on a suspect,

a contractor working on
a secret DARPA project, but

we're wading through corporate
bureaucracy trying to get access

- to termination records.
- Which contractor?

Douglas-Neptune.

Give me your phone.

An old colleague I went to FLETC with,

he went over to the dark side, but...

he should help you
cut through the red tape.

You know how valuable you are, right?

- It's just a phone number.
- No, it's not just that. I mean,

you make everyone around you better.

So, please, eat the sandwich.
Don't want you being hangry

in the middle of something like this.

I don't know how I'm gonna
get over what happened.

But you'll move forward.

That's all anyone can do.

And...

you don't have to do it alone.

Oh.

Oh, Special Agent Whistler.

(CHUCKLES) It's weird, I know.
(CLEARS THROAT)

Well, congratulations.

- Thank you.
- Mm-hmm.

So, are you...

excited about the new job?

Uh, the... the building's really nice.

Like... "borderline abuse
of taxpayer dollars" nice.

Publicly accusing your new agency

of boondoggle before
you even start. Bold.

(BOTH LAUGH)

(CLEARS THROAT)

Well, I, uh...

I have to go follow up
on some leads, so...

Well, you know, if it was only

a couple days later,
I'd be able to help.

I'm gonna have "creds" and everything.

I hear "creds" is what all the...

the cool agents say.

What are you doing?

I just... you know, I feel like

things are... unresolved.

No, no, we're good.

- It doesn't feel good.
- We are so good.

(CHUCKLES)

But, yeah, like I said, I, uh,

have a case to follow up on.

So, congrats again, and...

Yeah.

L-Lucy.

Hey, Tennant's lead
came through for us, so...

- You okay?
- Yeah.

Yeah, I, uh, just, uh,

ran into someone.

I don't need to talk about it.

We can catch you up to speed later.

No, no, no, no. Let's-let's keep going.

KAI: All right, um,

we got all the addresses

Joel Johnson ever gave
to his former employer.

HPD's sitting on all of them.

Got access to all his bank accounts.

Tracking expenses, though, it looks like

he ditched the plastic, and

we also got a copy
of his exit interview.

First they take me off the project,

and now you're letting me go?

I'm the best engineer you've got.

There-There's nothing that
I can't build to last.

Except his relationship.

Some of your choices make
your coworkers uncomfortable,

and unfortunately you've taken no steps

to address those behaviors.

I'm gonna sue all of you.

There's a bit more.

It's mostly just a "greatest
hits" of male fragility.

KAI: Personnel records show

a decline in performance reviews

and an increasing number of complaints

from coworkers in the months
leading up to his termination,

escalating significantly about the time

Meg returned from deployment.

The unit's been back from
that assignment for over a month.

Why attack now?

He kept the picture for months.

Maybe he thought she was
coming back to him,

and then at some point
he saw her with Shepherd.

ERNIE: That tracks.

Around the same time,
his spending, travel,

his entire pattern of life changed.

So, he saw her with another man,
and that broke him?

Well, makes sense to me.

And, what, he started stalking her?

Well, the dude built a weapon
to k*ll her boyfriend.

I mean, stalking seems
well within the possibilities.

The man clearly doesn't
take rejection well.

Rejection will make
you do a lot of things.

I'll keep digging.

(TYPING)

Are we done for the day?

We're done, done.

We'll let you know our findings
as soon as they're available.

Mr. Smith?

Yes?

You didn't let me read my statement.

But the crux of it is this...

Maggie Shaw mentored me,

molded me, and took care of me.

But she also taught me
a valuable lesson...

always assume someone is watching.

Did she tell you it would be her?

No.

But it was still a lesson
I took to heart every day

as I did my job

and lived my life.

Is there anything else?

No.

Okay.

Is it over?

The interviews, at least.

How are you?

Needing something
to take my mind off of it.

Our victim Bryan Shepherd

should be taken out of the coma soon.

- HPD's on him.
- Yeah.

We have a protective
detail for his girlfriend

Meg Carter as well.

- Okay, what about our suspect?
- JESSE: Dumped his cell phone

after our first raid.
Still off the grid.

ERNIE: Not anymore.

- You're back.
- Hi, Ernie.

- Should I keep going?
- Yes. Please.

I have been trying to find any way

to track Joel since he went dark.

He's had to have used something

in order to stay ahead of us
without detection.

A tablet or something?

A gaming device.

- Oh, like a Game Boy?
- What's that?

It's something Jesse saw when
he went through a wormhole.

No, not a Game Boy.

You jailbreak handheld
gaming devices these days.

You have a computer in your hand

without all the same
attention drawn to it.

It's likely how he's been able

to stay ahead of us
without detection, but...

You found it.

Once I knew what the device was,

I knew how to find it,

and it's in San Diego, Joel's hometown.

I sent a lead over
to the Southwest field office.

Okay, but what do we do now?

Wait.

No other choice.

(KNOCK ON DOOR)

(SIGHS)

I researched everything about you,

and I am happy to report this is exactly

what I thought your office
would look like.

I'm not sure if that's
a good thing or a bad thing.

Just a thing.

- Do you want to sit down?
- Uh, no.

I've conducted hundreds of inquiries

and security investigations,

and there's one lie
that almost everyone tells.

That they weren't vulnerable
to a breach.

Well, we all want
to think that, don't we?

I guess so.

But you told us that Ms. Shaw
was basically family.

Now, if you'd gone on to say

she couldn't possibly have
taken advantage of you,

I wouldn't have believed
anything else you said.

Which means?

We conducted an exhaustive search

before your inquiry,
and we found no evidence

that Ms. Shaw took advantage
of her relationship with you.

(SCOFFS)

Would've been nice to hear that
in the beginning.

Is that how you would have
conducted the questioning?

No.

Now, we cannot determine whether

she chose not to take advantage of you

or you didn't let her,

but either way, the result is the same.

You are cleared of any wrongdoing,

and you can keep
your security clearance.

Have a nice day, Special Agent
in Charge Tennant.

(SIGHS)

All right, what do we have?

I don't know what you're so happy about.

You just got demoted.

Ah, whatever.

- I'm good with it.
- (LUCY CLEARS THROAT)

Heard from Southwest.

Their agents got a hit
on Joel's location.

KAI: Mm... That's...

not Joel.

Mm-hmm. He stashed the device
in someone else's bag.

He set an automatic "power on" function,

so it wouldn't ping again
until it was long gone.

A diversion.

Which means Joel's probably
still on the island.

Any idea where?

Probably the house Meg and Joel

bought while engaged.

It's on the market and unoccupied, and

except, according to Honolulu Electric,

the power usage has seen a spike.

We just now heard about this?

He had bad credit,

so she's the only one
on the deed and mortgage.

It's okay, Ernie. Do we have an address?

In Wai'alae Iki.

All right, let's go get him.

ERNIE: Wait.

Ear plugs?

They're ear-wigs with
tapered chains of beads

made from tungsten carbide

alternating with beads created

from a plastic called Delrin.

So, high-tech ear plugs.

Uh, one more thing.

There's no telling what else
Joel has in store.

What are you saying?

I'm coming with you.

See you got yourself a vest.

Well, the bank was an unfortunate lesson

in preparedness.

Which is a lesson
you really took to heart.

What is all that stuff?

Kevlar's for b*ll*ts.

These are for whatever else
Joel has for us.

Like now. The sensors are
picking up ultrasonic waves.

How's everybody's heads?

Yeah, high-tech ear plugs for the win.

He knows we're here.

All right, Ernie, you
and Jesse take the back.

Kai, Lucy, come with me to the front.

Everyone make sure
the entrances are clean.

TENNANT (OVER COMMS):
Front entrance is boobytrapped.

Back door's open.
He might already be gone.

Ultrasonic waves
are still registering high.

He's got to be inside. Unless

he's set up the device
with a remote of some kind.

- Stay out here.
- Usually, I'd say yes,

but I think you're safer
if I'm with you,

which you should not take as anything

other than a sign
of professional respect.

Got it.

(BEEPING)

Get out!

(expl*si*n)

(GRUNTS)

You okay, Ernie?

I'm alive,

but not so much okay.

TENNANT (OVER COMMS):
We're coming for you.

Don't.

There's no telling where his traps are.

He's gone full-on psycho Home Alone.

If I can find a hub, though,

I may be able to disable the sensors.

(CREAKING)

Oh, hi, Joel.

All right, we need to
find a way to help Ernie.

When I was in Lashkargah, we
came across a house-borne IED.

Only way into the place was underneath.

If I get some charges, I can get us in.

Ernie, we think we can get to you,

but you're gonna need to distract him.

How many more are there?

It's just me and the other guy
who was here to help me.

Though I'm pretty sure he's
calling for backup right now.

You don't look like an agent.

I'm not. I'm-I'm-I'm someone...

someone like you.

- Right.
- No, no, really.

Like, I appreciate the sophistication

of your centrally controlled,

individually actionable
expl*sive devices.

A-And I also know
what it's like to be rejected.

I wasn't rejected.

(SCOFFS) That's what I told myself, too.

Okay, okay, okay. I-I was married.

And she was perfect.

The kind of perfect

where you let all the
little annoyances slide.

Was Ernie really married?

- All right, I need a hand.
- I'll go.

Size advantage for once.

All right, Jesse and I
will cover out here.

ERNIE (OVER COMMS):
The one problem, though?

I wasn't perfect for her.

JOEL: That's not the case with Meg.

Other things got in the way.

We can't ask people to choose between us

and the other things they care about.

She only thinks she loves that Marine.

KAI: Hey.

Put this on the floorboard
just above this pipe.

ERNIE (OVER COMMS): This
is your pain, and it's not for me

to tell you how to process it, but

do you know what I learned
since I got divorced?

You-you can't make someone
love you, but...

Love is an echo.

You put it out in the world, and
eventually it comes back to you.

Maybe just not from where you expected.

What if we set off other traps?

No, he wouldn't put a trap
in the middle of the room.

How sure are you?

Sure enough, given that we
don't have other alternatives.

Okay.

Ernie,

get close to a wall.

So, y-you think that I should move on?

I did.

And-and now I'm with someone better.

JOEL: What if I don't want to?

ERNIE: Is this really
how you see yourself?

I mean, boobytrapping houses
and zapping people with...

state of the art, very
impressive weaponry?

- What are you doing?
- You're right.

I lost her.

So what's the point?

I really think you're missing
the message here, Joel.

(GRUNTS)

It's disarmed!

- NCIS!
- Get your hands Up!

Did you punch him in the nose?

A little.

I'm sure that didn't get old.

Oh.

Yeah, Jesse and I, we have a...

thing.

(CHUCKLES) A thing where you buy
him novelty gifts as a joke.

Yeah.

You know, it sounds a little
weird when you say it like that.

Hmm.

Lucy was just here.

She bolt when she saw me coming?

It's not for me to say.

Yeah, fair enough.

I-I was actually looking for Tennant.

She just left for the day, so...

- Anything else you need?
- Oh, no.

- (CHUCKLES)
- Okay.

Good night.

(WINCES)

Oof. You okay?

No.

Remind me to never punch anything, ever.

Sure, yeah.

Don't do that.

You need something?

Uh, well, there's-there's something

in the bullpen I wanted
to get away from.

Is it six feet tall in heels?

- Do you want me to leave?
- No, it's fine.

(SIGHS, GRUNTS)

- Here. Let me help.
- Thank you.

Okay. (EXHALES)

So...

Is it true

that you were married before?

Yes.

And that you divorced

and found love again
with Detective Reed?

First part's right.

Mm.

What about all that stuff
you were saying about...

love being an echo?

I was trying to not die.

Truth is, Lucy,

love is pain.

(STAMMERS) Dopamine and
oxytocin trick our brains

into thinking that it's not.

I mean, look at you.

You're hiding out here because

it hurts too much to be in
the same space as Whistler.

That's not...

- I mean, it...
- It's fine.

You can hide out here all you want.

I'm gonna go get some ice.

I don't believe you.

And I don't think
you believe you either.

("A SAFE PLACE TO LAND"
BY SARA BAREILLES PLAYING)

♪ When holding your breath ♪

♪ Is safer than breathing ♪

- (KNOCK ON DOOR)
- ♪ When letting go ♪

♪ Is braver than keeping... ♪

Hello?

Whistler.

Uh, your-your door was open.

Yeah. My door's always open.

I heard your inquiry was done.

I thought maybe you could

- use someone to talk to.
- (CHUCKLES)

Don't you have someone
more interesting to be with?

Uh, no, not anymore.

Sorry.

Yeah, me, too.

Well...

maybe we could both use a drink.

That would be great. (CHUCKLES)

Looks like you were having fun.

Yeah. That night in particular.

♪ And the boat beneath you... ♪

I can only imagine
how difficult this is for you.

I just keep thinking
about the therapist I saw

after my divorce.

He'd like to say that the way
a relationship ended

didn't discount
all that happened before.

Did you believe him?

I did...

then.

♪ And show you... ♪

Just struggling a little now.

Well, it's still...

- it's fresh. Thank you.
- Yeah.

Well, I mean, I'd ask

about your ending,
but that just seems...

Weird. (CHUCKLES)

♪ Be the light in the dark
of this danger... ♪

I'll just say it was my fault.

Which is not true for you.

♪ Till the sun... ♪

Hey.

Here's hoping for a better tomorrow.

Amen.

♪ Till the sun comes up. ♪