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With Matobo and his wife sealed inside their safe room, Kiefer decides to try to Mr. Wizard them out using gas made from stuff under the kitchen sink, which actually works. Walker shows up, just in time to get herself pinched by Emerson's crew just as they're heading out of there with the Matobos. Kiefer and Tony manage to stop Emerson from killing her on the spot without blowing their cover, but not for long -- more on that in a minute. When President Taylor learns that Matobo's been nabbed, her advisers argue more strongly to back off the invasion.
At the Bureau, Moss is going nuts over losing Walker, we learn that Sean is cheating with blonde coworker Erica on the wife he just impersonated his boss to save, and the Attorney General is climbing all over everyone's ass regarding Walker's torture of Tanner in the hospital. Also, Henry Taylor gets closer to the conspiracy that killed his son; unfortunately, his Secret Service agent is in on it, and paralyzes Henry in Sam's apartment preparatory to bringing Sam in to fake a murder-suicide. In the end, Kiefer has to pretend to kill Walker in front of Emerson. Since he has practice at that kind of thing from early in Season One with Nina, he pulls it off. Let's hope things work out better in the long run this time around. But since he also has to bury Walker alive, let's not hope for too much.
Want more? The full recap starts right below!At the FBI's Washington Field Office, Boss Moss is briefing the leader of the FBI SWAT team that's going to be heading over to Matobo's place forthwith to foil the ex-PM's kidnapping. That leader is played by Peter Onorati, looking every day of his age and none too happy about Moss's order that Tony be brought in alive. Apparently his protests have something to do with the fact that refraining from the use of deadly force is likely to get him and his men killed. Whiner.
Over at Matobo's place, Emerson is busy kicking the crap out of Matobo's security chief outside the panic room, even though the guy already told Emerson it can only be opened from the inside. But that was last week/four minutes ago, so we can't expect Emerson to actually remember that. In the storage space adjoining the panic room, Kiefer's up on a ladder. No, this isn't another manifestation of his Napoleon complex; he's just shining a flashlight into the narrow space between the panic room's roof and the actual ceiling. Surprisingly, there doesn't seem to be a secret entrance. What kind of panic room is this, anyway? Aside from one that everyone keeps insisting on calling a "safe room" for some reason. Emerson gets on his cell phone with the fourth member of his crew, Litvak, who is still hanging out by the fuse box he sabotaged, only now he's working on hooking the safe room's intercom back up so Emerson can talk to Matobo. Make up your minds, Emerson's crew.
At FBI-DC, blonde underling Erica comes up to Moss with some papers. He tries to blow her off, but she says it's from the Attorney General. It seems Tanner's lawyers have worked fast; they've not only put together a complaint about Walker's actions in the scant minutes since she threatened to suffocate Tanner, they've also gotten the ear of the Attorney General, who is reacting to the news of a rogue FBI agent as though it's the only crisis currently in progress. After scanning the printout -- several pages of close text, mind you, so somebody somewhere is obviously a very fast typer -- Moss looks irritated and dials his cell phone.
At 12:04:05, he gets through to Walker, who is in her silver SUV with the flashers on but no sirens, driving through the city. Except somebody screwed up the shot so that somehow the Washington Monument isn't visible at all. Walker tells Moss she'll do recon when she arrives at Matobo's residence, but he wants to know how she got the information about the kidnapping in the first place. Of course, she's so sure she did the right thing that she simply answers, "I questioned Tanner." Nobody could possibly object to that, right? Moss reads to her from the complaint, which includes the ventilator-hose thing and the pressure-to-the-gunshot-wound thing, and Walker excuses herself by saying she needed Tanner to give up Tony. "So you tortured him?" Moss demands. Walker doesn't bother answering. Because, again, she did the right thing. Right? Moss points out, "You know as well as I do, coercive interrogation is unreliable." Except on this show. "We'll find out when I get to Matobo's house," Walker says glibly. Well, at least she understands the seriousness of the situation. Moss says she's doing no such thing; she needs to get back to the office. Walker pleads with Moss to let her see this through and correct her mistake, but when he refuses, she hangs up on him and turns off her phone. She just keeps compounding her bad moves, doesn't she? If I still gave characters nicknames, I'd consider calling her Snowball.
Over at Sean's desk, he's on the phone with his wife, who's not only already on the ground, but actually off the plane, waiting at baggage claim, and telling him that she heard from the flight attendant about their priority clearance. She wonders, not ungratefully, if he had anything to do with it, and he denies it, before telling her he'll be home late tonight. In fact, Christina, don't expect Sean home tonight until some time after 8:00 tomorrow. She mildly protests that she hasn't seen him in a week, suggesting "dinner, and, maybe, you know." Oooh, listen to that married-people dirty-talk. Red hott. Instead of joining in with a steamy come-on like "whatever" or "something," Sean blows her off so he can get back to work. His first project? Moss tells him to call back Matobo's security guy. Good luck with that, Sean.
Inside the panic room, Matobo is still having no success getting anything other than static on the video monitor or over the phone. Mrs. Matobo asks if the people outside are working for Dubaku. Matobo thinks so, "But if they wanted me dead, I would be dead." That's reassuring. He figures Dubaku will want Matobo to provide him with the names of Matobo's allies inside Sangala. And he waited until today of all days to decide to get them. Since both Matobos know that he would rather die than give anyone up, she figures out that they'll use her as leverage against Matobo. He tells her to be cool until the FBI gets there, which shouldn't be long. Yeah, you'd think. But then it's just going to turn out to be the Matobos' shitty luck to be in this situation during an episode when it actually takes time to drive from one place to another.
Suddenly the video monitor comes to life, and Emerson is there, threatening to kill Matobo's security chief if they don't come out in one minute (which will be at 12:08:47, if you don't mind doing a little math here). Tony and now Litvak stand there watching the standoff, while Kiefer is presumably still trying to shoehorn his way into the panic room from inside the storage space. The security guy says he's ready to die for Matobo and for Sangala. Matobo's wife tells her husband to go ahead and let him, only not quite so coldly: "Without you, Sangala has no leader. The people need you." Matobo does a nice job of making his nod look reluctant. Emerson says there are thirty seconds left. Matobo hits the intercom button and says, "[His] courage is stronger than your threats. He's willing to die. And for that sacrifice, he has my eternal gratitude and the gratitude of the people of Sangala." That and a bullet in his head in about ten seconds. Emerson finally says that time's up. But then a cell phone rings. Emerson grabs the phone out of the security guy's pocket and reads the display, which simply reads, "F.B.I." Which I'm sure is what people's cell phones say when the FBI calls them (At the Field Office, Sean shrugs at Moss, who says, "I just got through to him fifteen minutes ago."). "Does the FBI know we're here?" Emerson asks the security guy. Well, they do now, Sunshine. When no answer is forthcoming, Emerson again clubs him unconscious. He figures Tanner must have talked. Litvak wants to bail on the mission right now, but Tony and Kiefer argue for staying long enough to get the Matobos out, for reasons of their own. "We can gas 'em out," Kiefer suggests. He's found a way into the ventilation system that provides air to the safe room, apparently. Not so safe after all, is it? He argues that the FBI has to be at least fifteen minutes away. Emerson shuts up his nervous underling and cuts Kiefer loose to make the gas from "basic household products." Should be easy; all you really need is some vinegar, furniture polish, and a canister of VX nerve gas. Kiefer and Tony head for the kitchen, where Tony warns they could "kill them as easily as flush them out." Kiefer says they'll have to take the chance. "Delivering Matobo is our only chance to get to Dubaku and the CIP device." And if they asphyxiate a poor man's Nelson Mandela, they'll worry about it when the time comes. He gets a couple of jugs from under the kitchen sink. "Grab those bowls," he tells Tony, which has to be the least dramatic act-out line ever. It's 12:10:45.
At 12:15:12, Walker seems to have turned her siren on just long enough for the splitscreen. Or else the people who cut the splitscreen together don't know that Walker's supposed to be running without her siren. I could go either way, as long as it's the second one.
Inside the safe room, the Matobos can hear Kiefer banging around in the overhead air duct. Tony passes a bowl of cloudy liquid up to him, which Kiefer places inside the duct. Tony then hands him a spray bottle and a wet towel to breathe through. Kiefer squirts some stuff into the bowl, which immediately starts bubbling and emitting clouds of thick gas, which stream along the duct. Kiefer replaces the duct panel he opened and waits for the magic to happen. Emerson returns to the intercom camera and tells the Matobos what's going on, explaining about "ammonium distroit gas," whatever that is. I don't know why they didn't just have Kiefer mix bleach and ammonia; whether it's because chlorine gas isn't as telegenic, or because they're worried about copycat situations where viewers will attempt to smoke each other out of shoddily designed panic rooms with it. Seems to me like warning people about the dangers of mixing household cleaners would be a net benefit, but then I'm not the broadcast network. Emerson asks Matobo, "I believe that you are willing to sacrifice your life. But are you also willing to sentence your wife to death?" Indeed, both Matobos can now see the thick gas pouring down from the ceiling vent. Mrs. M. is pretty nervous, but her husband is standing firm. "Our cause is more important than we are," he insists. And they both start coughing and choking. If they make it through this, they have so much couples counseling ahead of them.
At FBI-DC, Janis (now back from the hospital) is flagged down by a suited (of course) guy who introduces himself as Raymond Howell from the Attorney General's office. He wants to talk to her about the accusations that Walker tortured a suspect at the hospital. Word travels fast, but officials from the Justice Department travel almost as quickly, it seems. Why don't they just put this whole discussion off until Walker returns Kiefer to the Senate subcommittee tomorrow morning, and Senator Mayer can start in on her while she's there? For now, Janis disavows any involvement, but Howell reminds her that she stalled Tanner's attorneys for Walker, so she's in on whatever Walker did with the time Janis bought her. Fortunately for Janis, Moss comes up to draft her for some task, and pulls her aside. He explains that Walker's incommunicado, and thus can't be warned that the bad guys are already at Matobo's place. Apparently Janis needs to coordinate remotely with the SWAT teams, whatever that means. Sean is just supposed to keep trying to reach Walker. Janis is so lucky that there's only one other office functionary around here who actually knows how to do...things.
Walker has turned off her siren again as she pulls up outside the gate at Matobo's place at 12:18:45. Inside the house, Litvak and even Emerson are getting impatient at how long this is taking. "It's up to them," Kiefer says.
Both Matobos are now flat on the floor, holding each other's hands. "Close your eyes and let it happen," he gasps, and adds, "I love you." What else are you going to say to the wife you're subjecting to an agonizing death? But she lets go of his hands, then crawls to the door and manages to raise the handle that opens the room. Kiefer and crew haul them out of there, the gas seeming to have no effect on them as it disperses into the outer room. Of course we are already familiar with such capricious properties of poisonous gases from Season Five. "Just breathe, you'll be all right," Kiefer urges Matobo with what looks like real concern. They're dragged out of the house as Mrs. M. apologizes to her husband for saving their lives, however briefly.
At 12:20:15, Emerson leads the way to the big yellow prisoner-van that's parked, apparently, right outside the bedroom. He signals for the others to follow as he throws open the back gate. Across the driveway, where she can see the whole thing, Walker lurks behind a corner of the house and dials her cell phone. Back at the office, Moss is glad to hear from her, and lets her know that the bad guys are already there. She's like, yeah, I got that memo. Moss has to tell her that the SWAT team is still five minutes out, and he orders her to wait for them to arrive. Walker wants to get a plate number off the van, as though a huge generic corrections vehicle isn't distinctive enough, and that's when Litvak appears out of nowhere, his gun to her head and telling her to drop her weapon. He also breaks her cell phone, cutting Moss off. "Dammit!" Moss nearly sobs, and orders Janis to get Walker back on the line. And then he backs into some extra, bellowing, "Move!" at her before storming off. This, then, is Boss Moss at a loss.
Litvak drags Walker over to the back of the van. Kiefer's pretty surprised and none too pleased to see her, obvs. "Damn you, Bauer, you son of a bitch!" she cusses at him, as if he weren't already finding this moment awkward enough. Kiefer stares at her slackjawed for a minute before explaining to Emerson, "She's FBI. Her name is Walker. She's the one who pulled me out of the Senate hearing to help me find Tony." Emerson raises her gun to Walker's face, but Kiefer stops him, on the pretext that they can't kill her until they know how much she learned from Tanner. Tony backs Kiefer up on that, and Emerson orders her put into the back of the van with the Matobos. In character as the big bad kidnapper, Kiefer slams her against the gate, disarms her, and gives her the patting down he's been wanting to give her for hours now. She gets loaded in the back with the Matobos, and the van is out of there with Litvak at the wheel. Well, that was the worst arrest ever.
On the road, Emerson calls Nichols at the command center to report that they have the Matobos, but also a "complication." He tells Nichols to check with his sources at the Bureau to find out how much Walker learned from Tanner. Nichols agrees to do so. Through the rigid steel screen separating them, Walker tells Kiefer, "I can't believe I trusted you. You lying son of a bitch." Tony looks sympathetically at Kiefer, who just stares straight ahead, chewing the inside of his cheek. How's that jerky taste? It's 12:23:32.
At 12:27:52, Henry Taylor is still chilling by the Tidal Basin, almost an hour after we left him. Must be nice to be the First Gentleman; he's probably the only guy in D.C. who doesn't actually have someplace to be. Nearby, his Secret Service guy, Agent Gedge (which I mistakenly spelled as "Getsch" for the first four recaps, because I couldn't work out the closed captioning on the DVD screener), is on his cell phone to someone named Ian. After he hangs up, Gedge tells Taylor, "Sorry it took so long [no shit], but I tracked down a friend who does crypto for the private sector? Says he should be able to crack the files on the thumb drive...He also said you'd have a lot easier job if you went to the NSA." Henry would rather keep this quiet until he knows how dirty his wife's administration is. Gedge is like, whatevs, we'll meet my friend at his apartment in twenty minutes. Henry thanks Gedge and speechifies about how much it's sucked to be the only one who didn't believe Roger killed himself, and how much ass-kicking he's going to deliver to his son's murderers. That's going to be embarrassing later. Gedge suggests informing the President, but Henry isn't about to do that until he's got the proof he needs. Gedge nods. Well, he tried.
Ethan enters the Oval Office, where Taylor tells him, "Presidents don't make new friends. That's why they lean on their old ones." That doesn't sound encouraging. In fact, it's her way of setting up to say that she's going to need Ethan's support, because she's going ahead with the invasion of Sangala and damn the consequences. Ethan still isn't behind this, pointing out that she took an oath to protect Americans. "And the way to do that is not to give in to blackmail and threats," Taylor insists. She's refusing to back down. Just then Secretary of State Stevens arrives with word that Matobo and his wife were just abducted. "His bodyguards identified Jack Bauer and Tony Almeida as two of the men involved. Which means Dubaku has the CIP device and Matobo." That's a pretty good hand. Now if Dubaku could just somehow get a hold of Henry, he'd have a full house. Ethan points out that without Matobo, the U.S. doesn't even have a post-invasion plan for Sangala any more, and he and Stevens both agree that it's time to give in to Dubaku. "The best course of action is to find Matobo and the people who took him," Taylor snaps back, unbowed. As Stevens leaves the room at 12:31:43, Ethan stands and asks about Taylor's decision. She says they have thirty minutes to meet Dubaku's deadline, and wants Matobo found by then. Sounds like a good plan to me. If really hard to carry out.
At FBI-DC, Sean comes up to Erica and brusquely gives her an order, then leans over her desk to apologize for being a "jerk" earlier. She says it's understandable, given Sean's concern over his wife. He says she's on the ground now, and Erica says she's glad to hear it. And then she adds, "I can't stop thinking about last night." Oh, man, is there no end to this guy's jerkitude? While they're mooning at each other vomitously, Janis comes up to pull Sean away to watch her computer for a while. Good to know that in times of crisis, these high-tech gurus are on the case.
Apparently, the reason she can't watch her own damn computer is because she needs to report to Moss that the first FBI team to arrive at Matobo's place is on line two. Moss snatches up the phone, and Janis waits as Moss is told that Walker was seen by Matobo's security guys being put into the van with the Matobos. "Then she's alive," Moss says hopefully. But he's not happy to hear they can't trace her cell phone, since it's still at the house along with her weapon. After hanging up, he rubs his face and tells Janis to get Walker's info out there. "I want everybody in this office to make finding her their top priority, is that understood?" Janis understands, and asks if he'll be okay. Moss pretends not to understand her meaning, and tells her to get to work. Which she does. Somehow Moss refrains from telling her to get in her car and go looking for Walker herself.
At 12:34:02, that yellow van is driving down a deserted country road. Oddly, I still can't see the Washington Monument. In the back, Walker breaks the awkward silence by saying to Matobo, "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you, sir." Matobo politely declines the apology while Kiefer looks pained. Walker then turns to him and guilts him about what he's doing. Tony snaps at her to shut up, but she doesn't, until Emerson's cell phone rings. It's Nichols, reporting that according to his preternaturally well-informed FBI source, Walker doesn't know anything else. "Walker is extraneous. Kill her before you get here," Nichols instructs. "And be quick about it. Dubaku's anxious to get his hands on the prime minister." After hanging up, Emerson says they're in the clear as soon as they get rid of Walker. "You trust Nichols's source?" Tony says doubtfully, helpfully trying not to leave all the Walker-saving up to Kiefer. Well, if you can't count on your friends to help you stop the terrorist traitor commandos you're undercover with from killing your favorite FBI agent who you just met four and a half hours ago, what can you count on them for? Emerson directs Litvak to drive to an abandoned construction site where they can dump Walker's body. Tony argues some more, but Emerson's content following Nichols's orders. Oddly, Walker doesn't interject with an offended, "I'm sitting right here." Kiefer looks all shifty, and Walker looks miserable. Well at least now she won't get in trouble for torturing now. It's 12:35:47.
12:40:13. Moss is frantically working the phones, trying to pull together search teams to look for Walker. Of course, since anyone who finds Tony and Kiefer will also find Walker, it shouldn't be too much of a priority issue. Sean comments to Janis, "He looks like his head's going to explode." Janis isn't surprised. "It's fairly obvious he has feelings for Renee." Sean asks how she knows that. Uh, eyes? Ears? No, she claims it's "Instinct. I just know." Yes, it's all the little intangibles that make up the whole picture. Like how you know a bus is nearby when you notice subtle signals like the way its bumper knocks you to the pavement and you sense its tires powdering your ribcage. "Stay on task," she tells Sean. He follows her advice by ogling Erica from across the office some more. No, Sean, she said "task," not "Erica."
At the command center, Dubaku is speaking some more French into his cell phone. After wrapping up the call, he complains to Nichols that the U.S. forces have still not withdrawn. "Apparently our demonstration was not convincing enough. This woman is more stubborn than I expected." That's what he gets for spending too much of his military career giving orders to preteen boys. Nichols thinks Taylor will change her mind when she hears about Matobo's abduction. And if not, Nichols suggests, "Launch another attack. Let's see how stubborn she is after American civilians start dying." As if Dubaku needs any encouragement on that score. Instead of ordering a 747 crashed into a water treatment plant to a regional power station, Dubaku changes the subject to Matobo's ETA, and isn't happy to hear that it's only going to be within the hour. "An FBI agent got in the way," Nichols explains smoothly. "I needed to make sure she hadn't compromised the operation." Nichols promises to pick up Matobo and bring him to Dubaku himself. Dubaku thinks about that, and glares over at the CIP device. You know, whatever else is going on in Dubaku's head, he is not going to be happy when he finds out that one of his subcontractors is the guy who killed his brother. That'll be an awkward reunion, I can tell you.
Henry and Agent Gedge get off the elevator at an apartment building, Henry now toting a cardboard coffee cup. Because while Henry might not rest until he exposes the mystery of his son's death, he'll still get thirsty. He thanks Gedge once again, and the young agent retrieves the key from under the mat. Great idea, especially knowing what we're about to find out. Gedge lets them in at 12:42:54, and replaces the key in its "hiding place." They find themselves inside a spacious loft, and Henry asks Gedge to turn on some A/C, since he's suddenly finding it hot. Try shedding that David Byrne jacket you're wearing, then, Sparky. Instead, Henry wanders over to some pictures on a side table, which show Sam and Roger together. Henry's confused about what those photos are doing there. "This is Samantha's apartment," Gedge mildly explains, pulling on a pair of rubber gloves. Oh, no -- Sam is living in sin with Gedge's cryptographer friend Ian, so soon after Roger's death? And, uh, Gedge is...going to...clean the apartment? Okay, obviously we're able to figure out pretty quickly that Gedge is in on the conspiracy, as if that sinister shot of him on the Ohio Avenue Bridge during the last hour hadn't been tip-off enough. Even Henry catches the snap. "Why?" He asks. "Roger was looking into things he shouldn't have," Gedge sighs regretfully. "I tried to protect him too, but he wouldn't let me. He inherited your determination." Henry realizes, "You killed my son!" He takes a step toward Gedge, and I'm hoping he's about to do something bad-ass with that cup of coffee, but alas, the exact opposite is the case. He collapses to the floor, spilling it and gasping for breath. Adjusting his gloves, Gedge picks up the cup and explains, "It's tetric diazine, sir. It's a neuromuscular paralytic." Holy shit, how much did Gedge tip that barista, anyway? "Also paralyzes your vocal cords," Gedge adds in response to Henry's pathetic whimpers as he takes the thumb drive from Henry's suit pocket. To try and cheer Henry up a bit, Gedge adds that Roger died quickly. "I'm going to make sure you do too." He leaves Henry on the floor, contemplating his clawed hand, while he goes to the kitchen and dials his cell phone. Oh, stupid Henry. Trusting your Secret Service agent this much was bad enough, but you wouldn't even be in this situation if you'd ever bothered to visit your future daughter-in-law's home.
Gedge reaches the guy who was Roger's evil Secret Service agent in "Redemption," who's now wearing his hair just a bit too long and floppy for active duty. Selecting a knife from Sam's butcher block, Gedge tells the other agent that it's time to bring Sam back home. Apparently the other guy, Agent Vossler, has been tailing Sam for some time, and is even now watching her finish up lunch at a sidewalk café. So she left the office for her secret meeting with Henry and lunch? What kind of securities trader is she, anyway? "Are you sure this is gonna work?" Vossler asks doubtfully. Gedge insists he's got it all figured out: "Mr. Taylor came to her apartment to confront her about Roger, lost his temper and killed her, took his own life. 'Kay?" Which shouldn't be at all awkward for the agent who drove him there off the books. Vossler agrees, hangs up, and gets out of his car. Gedge returns to his helpless charge to apologize. "If only you'd left well enough alone." Henry's spasmed face isn't too expressive right now, but I think we can assume that he's running through a couple of other "if only"s behind that pained rictus. For instance, "if only" Sam had the sense to not leave an apartment key under her mat, in Washington D.C., when she knows she's being watched by highly motivated killers. That's one of my favorite "if only"s ever.
At 12:45:56, Vossler crosses the street to where Sam is just finishing lunch alone. He approaches her, and she remembers him, which only makes sense, since he was her boyfriend's shadow for who knows how long. He claims that Henry sent him, believing she's in danger. He adds that he has orders to put her in protective custody and take her to a safe house immediately, although he's willing to stop by her place to pick up a few things first. Nice touch, that, making her think he's doing her a favor by letting her go to the apartment he actually wants her to go to. Mighty Christian of him. Sam lets him escort her back across the street to his car. It's 12:46:48.
At 12:51:14, the splitscreen is dominated by the grim scene in the back of the van. They're still driving? Are abandoned construction sites really that few and far between? You'd think that the 24-verse would be pretty packed with abandoned construction sites. Otherwise how would all the abandoned warehouses get built?
Back at FBI-DC, Sean approaches Janis to gossip about Howell, the guy from the Attorney General's office, who's still loitering around the office. "He wants to talk to me about what Renee did to Tanner in the hospital," Janis explains. Sean asks what exactly that was, but since Janis wasn't in the room, she doesn't know. "But Howell's claiming she tortured Tanner." Sean doesn't believe it, which I'm choosing to believe says more about Walker than about Sean. Janis tells Sean what she knows, which was that Walker kicked her out, alarms went off, and a minute later Walker had what she needed. Sean tells her it's not her problem, but she admits that she stalled Tanner's lawyers to give Walker time to do whatever it is she did. "Come on, Gold, what were you thinking?" Sean says helpfully. "Do you realize if they prove that Renee tortured him, you're an accessory? And [Moss] is not going to protect you." But Janis has a plan: "Let's just hope that the AG has moved on to something else when this is over." Sounds solid. Or she could hack into the DoJ database and erase the records completely. I'd say she's about two hours from being morally compromised enough to try it. Across the floor, they watch Howell close his cell phone. "I'm getting back to work," Sean announces. Capital idea. Erica hasn't been ogled for a good eight minutes or more.
"You're really gonna kill me?" Walker asks Kiefer as he walks her across the dirt. "I'm not gonna beg for my life, Jack." He doesn't answer, not even to beg her to beg for her life. While Emerson and Litvak watch through the van's windshield, Kiefer leads her to the ditch to a parked backhoe. "So everything you told me was a lie?" she asks. Kiefer says something that could either be in character or not: "I'm doing what I have to. I don't expect you to understand." She calls him a traitor and a murderer. Aw, don't be that way, Renee. He tells her to turn around, and she refuses. "You're gonna have to look at me when you pull that trigger," she says defiantly. He physically forces her to pivot and hisses something about trusting him enough to get her through this alive. Because now is the perfect time to have to win back her trust. After pushing her to a kneel and flamboyantly cocking the gun using all of both his arms, he aims and fires -- and the bullet grazes her neck. From the vantage point of the van, it looks like a fatal head shot -- or at least a TV-friendly version of one -- especially when she flops over in the dirt. Kiefer walks around, to see her looking up at him, and he kicks her so she rolls into the ditch, face up, her shirt already stained with blood from the cut in her neck. He grabs a handy sheet of plastic and throws it over her before returning to the van and handing the gun back to Emerson. "For a second there, I didn't think you were gonna do it," Emerson confesses coolly, and orders, "Now bury her." "We're on a timetable!" Kiefer protests. Emerson says they don't want anyone to find Walker's body before they're out of the country. Yes, because then people might start looking for them. Emerson tells Tony to help Kiefer, and they both walk over to the ditch and each grab a shovel from a nearby wheelbarrow. This abandoned construction site is really quite well equipped. Walker's still lying under the sheet, peering up at them through it like Laura Palmer, only bloodier. I trust Kiefer didn't nick her carotid with his little stunt, or he's going to feel kind of stupid in the hour.
And it's splitscreen time. As the two ex-CTU men shovel dirt over the plastic that's covering a prone, bleeding Fed, Colonel Dubaku pouts in his command center, Matobo waits in the back of the van for his turn, Gedge manhandles a limp Henry to a sitting position on Sam's couch, Taylor clasps her hands as though praying for a director who can think of things for Presidents to actually do during these splitscreens already, and Moss looks impotently worried. This is all accompanied by creepy vocal/synth chords, like we're watching a black mass. By now, Tony and Kiefer have Walker covered up to her neck, and she stares wide-eyed at them through the plastic. Kiefer tosses the first load on her chin, and she blinks in suppressed panic, her face almost completely covered but for one eye. So you know what the very last shot will be: that one eye's view of a plastic-blurred Kiefer tossing that one last shovelful on, blacking out the camera just in time for a full-screen clock ticking silently to 1:00:00 PM. Oh, quit messing with the volume settings on the clock already, 24.
M. Giant is a Minneapolis-based writer with a wife, a son, and a number of cats that seems to have settled at around two. Learn waaaay too much about him at Velcrometer, follow him on Twitter (mgiant), or just e-mail him at M.Giant[at]gmail.com
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