A med tech prepares to give Sameen another injection. She describes how she's going to take out the tech, and then does so. Sameen then smashes the camera watching her and uses the barrette to pick the key card lock. The orderlies are unable to get in because Sameen has sabotaged the lock, and Lambert has them get a fire axe to break down the door. They discover that the axe is gone, and Lambert shoots the door out and goes in. Lambert searches the attached shower room and confirms that Sameen isn't there, but sees some loose dirt beneath the sink. He kicks the sink off the wall and finds a maintenance shaft beyond, and realizes how Sameen escaped.
Reese follows the new Number, international businessman James Ko, James negotiates contracts between US and UK corporations and their Chinese manufacturers. He was returning to Hong Kong when his plane was diverted to NYC for maintenance. James' flight goes the next day and Reese wonders why he left the airport and went to a neighborhood by the highway. As Reese watches, James switches out his SIM card and gets a call. A man, Blackburn, asks where he is, and James says that he has to take care of an errand first. Blackburn tells him not to miss the flight and hangs up, and James clutches his briefcase as he goes on.
Root enters the station and asks if there have been any new developments with the simulation. Finch admits that the Machine clone has yet to reach a positive outcome against its opposite number, Root suggests that they alter one of the variables and warns that every ecosystem changes. Finch isn't convinced and walks away.
Reese follows James to a hospital where he checks into the ER. He's coughing and Finch figures he ws just trying to locate the nearest hospital. A nearby nurse, Carroll, is having trouble bringing up the inventory of antivirals, and Administrator Garcia activates the system and confirms that they've just arrived. A deliveryman comes in with them and Carroll takes them to the patients. Meanwhile, two gangers complains to the attending physician, Dr. Mason, that they've been waiting for an hour. She dissmises their injuries and tells them to wait or she'll have the security guard Paulie deal with them.
Mason then checks on James, who says that he doesn't have time to be sick. She says that he's coming down the flu, and James claims that he hasn't left the country recently. Reese tells Finch that James is fine and the Machine is wrong, but Finch insists that James is either a victim or perpetrator.
Jeff takes his former girlfriend Ally to an expensive restaurant, and he says that he's made some new connections. He says that he's working for a new company but doesn't go into details. Ally says that some ex-convicts have trouble readjusting, and Jeff says that if she had waited a little longer, she could have seen them when they were together in high school. He says that they tried him as an adult, but Ally points out that he was an adult when he stabbed an inmate and got five years added to his sentence. Jeff takes her hand and insists that they can get a fresh start, but Ally figures that he'll get rearrested.
Elias is in the safehouse reading a book and draws a gun until he knows Fusco is the one coming in. Fusco tells him about the murdered missing persons. Elias says he's out of the game and doesn't know anything, and Fusco tells him that Bruce was one of the people who was killed. He figures that whoever is responsible is using trucks to deliver the explosives, and wants Elias to use his contacts in the construction business to find the trucks. When Fusco agrees to share everything he knows, Elias tells him to talk with Frank Capello, who runs a transportation outfit and knows every truck coming into the boroughs. As Fusco goes, Elias warns him to be careful because the threat can come form anywhere.
Finch checks in with Reese, who reports that James is just checking out. James collapses and Reese calls for help. Mason and Carroll come over and confirm that James is dead, and try to revive him without success. He's hemorrhaging from the mouth, and Reese tells Finch that whatever James had was lethal.
Sameen climbs out of the tunnel and finds herself in a prison cell with three inmates. Two of them are beating the third one, and they tell her that she's in Johannesburg, South Africa. When the two inmates move on her to get the axe, Sameen knocks them out. The third man, Samuel, says that the place is like some twisted experiment in violence. He points out the only gate in and warns that the guard sonly open it for meals or discipline.
In NYC, Carroll covers over James' body and Mason tells her and Garcia to get a blood sample to the lab. Garcia insists that it's not a computer glitch, and Mason has an orderly wipe down everything that James touched. Reese introduces himself to Mason, who admits that they could use a little help with security. She says that the last time they had three fatalities during the last outbreak when the people panicked. An nearby couple overhear Mason talking about contagion. Meanwhile, Reese tells Paulie that they need to lock the place down. Finch arrives with Bear just before Reese shuts the place down, and they figure that someone triggered an allergic reaction with James. Root is running background checks on everyone. Reese warns whatever killed James could be spreading, and Finch says that they should take precautions.
Frank arrives at the station after receiving a parking violation ticket about one of his trucks. He wonders why Fusco is involved, and Fusco says that Carl recommended Frank. Once Frank accepts that Fusco is operating with Elias' authority, Fusco demands to see a list of lawyers. Frank hands it over and insists that the licenses are legit. One of the drivers is Jeff, and Fusco recognizes him. He then calls the RTCC and has them run a check on Jeff's license.
Jeff meets with Mona on short notice and says that he's having second thoughts about the job. He figures that it will end with him in prison, and that now he's tailing a guy protected by a NYPD detective. Mona is having him breaking into an apartment to steal a hard drive and encountering a woman who mentioned Samaritan. His employer says that there are people in the world that want to impede progress, and Jeff asks who he works for. Mona insists that they make the world better for people like Jeff, and knows all about Ally. She tells Jeff that he's up for a promotion, and says that he has one more job and then he can quit. Jeff asks what the job is, and Mona tells him that it requires an exam.
At the hospital, a woman asks Reese how much longer they're going to be longed up because her daughter is frightened. While Reese reassures her, Finch looks into the antivirals that James received. Mason admits to Reese that they can't take any chances until they get the lab results back. Meanwhile, the gangers pick up a newscast about how officials have locked down the hospital because of a highly pathogenic virus. The gangers head for the door, and Reese takes two of them down. The third one draws a gun on Reese, but Paulie knocks him out from behind and Reese tells Finch that they have a reliable partner.
Finch takes a photo of the antiviral lot number and sends it to Root. She has the Machine run it down while she tries to figure out who is responsible. Meanwhile, Carroll finds Finch and tells him and bear to go back out front. Once Finch takes a seat, the lab report comes in and Carroll tells Mason that it shows H5N1. Reese overhears them, and Mason explains that James was infected with avian flu before he arrived. However, they injected him with live human flu virus. They've combined two flu viruses to make a new, very contagious one. For every person who gets it, ten more will be infected. People start coughing, and Reese realizes that they have an outbreak on their hands.
The guards see Samuel outside of his cell. They set off the cell and go in to investigate, and Sameen knocks one of them out. She jams the gate with the axe and takes out the second guard, and Samuel gives her a gun. He says that he still has a job to do and friends that he can't leave behind, and Sameen wishes him luck.
At the hospital, the CDC quarantines the hospital. The news is running inside on the TV, and Finch figures someone used James to spread the disease and kill someone. Meanwhile, Mason tells Carroll and Garcia that until the CDC can find a cure, they'll have to provide for themselves. They have a small batch of antiviruals for avian flu in a storage room on the other side of the ER. One of the patients starts coughing up blood, and Garcia heads for the stock room. The patients start panicking, and Reese has Finch, Bear, and Paulie take Garcia to get the antivirals. Meanwhile, Reese and Mason start handing out protective masks.
Jeff calls Mona from the hospital and says that he's been waiting 45 minutes and the doctor hasn't shown up. Mona tells him that he's passed, and tells Jeff to open the drawer in front of him. It contains an envelope and two syringes filled with blood, and Mona tells Jeff to go to the ER and await further instructions. She tells him that the hospital is under quarantine and assures him that he'll be fine, and hangs up.
The RTCC gets a hit on Jeff's car at the hospital, and Fusco goes there. He orders the officer on guard away from the door and then goes inside.
When one of the patients breaks into a drug cabinet, Reese subdues him and asks Finch where he is with the antivirals. Finch stands guard while Garcia and Paulie enter the stock room. Root tells finch that she tracked down the antiviral shipments. They were shipped to a research facility that has since closed. Finch realizes that Mason was right and they weaponized James by creating a superflu. The Machine has analyzed James' blood sample, and only one combination out of five trillion resulted in the proper combination. Samaritan is the only other entity that could have made the calculations. Root has hacked the hospital email servers and discovered that Mason and Carroll both filed complaints with Garcia about errors in the new health care database. Finch realizes that Samaritan has been manipulating the database, and tried to kill the three people that could realize what was going on.
Paulie yells from inside the stock room, and Finch goes to investigate. Garcia is grabbing the antivirals from the shelf and draws a gun on Finch. He then smashes the antivirals and says that he's ushered in the future.
Sameen is heading through the prison when Lambert finds her and holds her at gunpoint. He says that it's another simulation, and Sameen tells him to prove it by shooting himself in the head. She figures that Greer would have no reason to build a Stanford Prison Experiment in South Africa inside of her head, and Lambert says that the simulations are built on her memories. He reminds her that she killed a Somali bomb maker by sneaking into the cell where he was held. Sameen insists that she was in Germany, not South Africa, but Lambert suggests that she has two coexisting sets of memories and is confusing them. He reminds her of the people that she's murdered, in the simulations and in reality, and tells her that she can't tell the difference. Confused, Sameen drops the axe, and Lambrt says that she'll wake up in a few minutes. She says that it's all a dream... and then takes out a gun and shoos Lambert in the chest. Sameen admits that she had to get it out of her system, says that she'll take a little joyride, and runs off with Lambert's car keys.
At the hospital, Jeff enters the ER posing as an orderly. He spots Reese and recognizes him, and calls Mona. She says that the syringes are an insurance policy, not the cure, and they contain James' blood samples. Mona tells him to open the envelope, which has photos of Mason and Carroll, and tells him those are his targets. Jeff insists that he can't kill them and the people that they're trying to save, and Mona sends him a set of prints. She explains that they are Jeff's, and they were collected at a crime scene. After a moment, Jeff hangs up, takes out one of the syringes, and walks toward Mason.
Garcia tells Finch that he doesn't work for anyone. He figures that Finch doesn't work for the people who offered him a healthy pension, and says that he's going to save them all. Garcia says that 400,000 people a year die of medical errors--human fallibility--and automation is a cure. Finch's phone rings, and Garcia tells him to answer it. It's Root, who passes on a message from the Machine: Aanval and ethylene oxide. The ethylene oxide is on a nearby shelf, and Root says that "Aanval" is Dutch. Finch shouts it and Bear, responding to the command, attacks Garcia. As Paulie recovers, Finch sprays Garcia in the face with the ethylene oxide. Garcia says that finch can't stop what's coming, and Finch goes to tell the others. Root tells him that the Machine is working on a cure. It finds a match and prints out a security badge for TGR laboratories with Root's picture on it.
As Jeff prepares to inject Mason, Reese spots him and draws his gun. However, Fusco tackles Jeff first. Jeff jabs the syringe into his effect and tries to run, but Reese grabs the other syringe and injects Jeff with it. Jeff grabs the syringe and runs, stabbing Carroll in the arm with the syringe as he goes past. Fusco tells Reese to go after Jeff, but Reese has already made his escape. Carroll is clutching at the injection site on her arm.
Jeff punches out a guard and walks out past the quarantine zone. Meanwhile, Samaritan assigns him a new identity.
As Paulie takes Garcia away, Root arrives at the hospital posing as a CDC tech. Inside, Reese tells Mason that Jeff is an escapee from a psych ward. She thanks Reese for saving her life, just as Root brings in the new batch of antivirals. As Mason takes them away, Root tells Reese and Finch that the Machine diagnosed the new strain and found the antiviral at a nearby lab. Reese wonders what they're going to do about Jeff, and Finch figures that they're missing something. They look over at Fusco, who is getting the cure, and Reese realizes that he could have lost his partner.
The next day, Reese finds Fusco packing his things. Fusco says that he's been reassigned on request so he can work with someone who appreciates him. Reese insists that it's for Fusco's own good, and says that Carroll ended up with permanent kidney damage. He asks if Elias helped Fusco track down Jeff, and Fusco says that it's his job... and tells Reesenot to ask him to do his job. Fusco tells Reese to find a new partner and leaves.
Finch goes to the safehouse and asks if he spoke with Fusco. Elias points out that if Finch had told him about Bruce's death, he wouldn't have to resort to other sources. Finch warns that there are powerful forces in play, and Elias says that a leader enlists all of his resources in war. When Finch says that he and Reese can handle it, Elias gives him the book that he's reading--Twelve O'Clock High--and warns him that war requires sacrifices. He then tells Finch that he's the darkest of all of them, and he doesn't want to be around when that dark part resurfaces. Finch says that he's mistaken and leaves.
Jeff meets Mona and says that he only killed one of the targets. Mona assures him that the mission was a success, and says that he was selected because of his genetic markers. He's an elite controller: he will never contract any strain of avian flu. Mona says that sometimes they have to throw out a few rotten apples to save the lot, and explains that after the outbreak, the government tested everyone to identify those who needed to be vaccinated. They look at a health center across the street, and Jeff realizes that the government is collecting everyone's DNA. He wonders what they plan to do with the data, and Mona says that they're going to make sure everyone has the same opportunity as he does to live up to their full potential. Once everyone's DNA is stored in the national database, then it will need to be sorted to get humanity through the next great filter: its own savage history.
In South Africa, Sameen leaves the prison posing as a guard and drives off in Lambert's car.
Written by Gadfly on May 25, 2016