Madam Secretary (2014–…): Season 1, Episode 10 - Collateral Damage - full transcript

Heavy fighting continues
today in Northern Iraq,

as Kurdish Peshmerga
try to dislodge fighters

from the so-called Islamic State, or ISIS,

from areas around the
oil-rich city of Kirkuk.

A delegation from the newly
created government of Iraq

has arrived in the Capitol.

They'll be meeting

with Secretary of State Elizabeth McCord

before moving on to the White House

to appeal for more help in
their fight against the insurgent

Sunni Islamist group ISIS.



Their request comes

against the backdrop of insurgent gains

in the Anbar Province,

the scene of some of the heaviest fighting

during the U.S.'s ten-year
engagement in Iraq.

Marines took heavy losses
in two separate battles

to wrest control of Fallujah

from Sunni insurgents in 2004,

but now the city is
effectively ruled by ISIS.

President Dalton is reportedly
weighing whether to redeploy

U.S. troops in what the
administration insists...

Morning.

Hey.

Uh-oh.



The Serious Mom face.

- No.
- So, uh...

be honest, how worried
should I be about ISIS?

You let me worry about ISIS.

You worry about getting
your dad up at 7:00.

- He's got a flight to catch.
- All right, fine.

Keep your walls up.

What are you talking about?

We talk about stuff all the time.

What are you doing today?

Work, obviously.

Oh. Right.

So, do they have a, um,

a dress code there, or is it...

- Mom!
- What?

Okay, okay, I will let it go,

because you have a really big
day with the Iraqis, but...

just for the sake of world peace,

can you please promise me that
you'll be a little bit less

passive-aggressive when you talk to them?

That outfit just doesn't say
"front of the house” to me.

There... all aggressive, no passive.

- Mom, I know what I'm doing. I mean...
- I know.

- You look very cute.
- Thank you.

Just a little casual.

Stop.

Stopping.

Good morning, ma'am.

Normally, I'm the first one in,

but this is the... fifth day in a row

you've gotten here before me.

Just prepping my remarks
for the Iraqi delegation.

Isn't that mostly a photo op?

Is there something wrong
with what Matt worked up?

Can I help you with something, Nadine?

I know you've been getting here early

to investigate Secretary Marsh.

There was very little about him

that I didn't know, so...

maybe I could help you.

All right.

Why, on the last day of his life,

did he change his itinerary
and fly to Venezuela?

He said he had family business to tend to.

Could that have been a
cover for something else?

Maybe something about his
plans to run for president?

Maybe he was meeting with future donors

or fundr...

Oh, Nadine, I'm...

I'm really sorry.

You're certain he was planning to run?

Yeah.

Well...

I don't know why he went to Venezuela,

other than what he told me...
which was probably a lie.

And I'm certainly a fool, so...

...I suppose I can't help you after all.

Excuse me.

Every six months, there's
a protocol breakfast

- for the new Foreign Service officers...
- Uh-huh.

...where they learn the food etiquette

- of their new postings.
- Wow.

Seems like a solid use of taxpayer dollars.

Come on, let's hurry up.

Like if you find yourself in Denmark

and you're served ymer,

you shouldn't complain that
it tastes like sour milk.

What's ymer?

Sour milk. The point is, you should

be prepared to eat your ymer like a native.

Oh? How's that?

- On kammerjunker, obviously.
- Obviously.

Look, just forget about the ymer.

You're the one who keeps
bringing it up the ymer.

What we're here for, my good man,

- are the Chinese pork dumplings.
- I can't...

They're pretty much the best in the world.

So be cool and act like you're
in the Foreign Service, okay?

Wait... why aren't you eating dumplings?

They're not all gone, are they?

God, I told you to walk faster!

I've had no coffee.

Okay, actually, Win is getting them for me.

Win?

Win, as in Win your fiancé?

Yes, and he wants to meet you.

Yes, and that's not going to happen.

Wait, wait, you guys talk about me?

Oh, my gosh.

Chinese dumpling drama.

- So... bye-bye.
- Save me some dumplings.

Look, he doesn't know anything about us,

so just relax.

Absolutely... just on a different floor.

Hey, it is really crazy in there.

Never get between government workers

and free food.

Babe, this is Matt.

Oh! The famous Matt.

- Win Barrington.
- Nice to meet you.

I know, I know, I look
like a walking stereotype.

Right?

Medical marijuana
lobbyist with the munchies.

Daisy's told me

so much about you.

- Has she?
- Oh, yeah.

Wow.

Dumpling?

Obviously, Prime Minister Arif

will be immediately to your right, but...

...Hasan, defense minister, already hates

that a Sunni is Prime Minister,

when the Shia have three
times the population.

So he'll be damned if he's going to be

tucked away to the right of Arif

while the new oil minister, Barakat,

who's a Kurd, is on my left.

Am I right?

Now you're just messing with me.

But the Kurds are the only

really reliably pro-Western contingent.

Yeah. Not to mention

the most effective fighters against ISIS.

So there's a case to be made for Barakat

to be in the second most prestigious spot,

on your left.

Well, good thing they
haven't all been on a plane

for 15 hours together.

Otherwise, they might be edgy or something.

I mean, if these guys can't
even manage a photograph,

I don't know how they're going to form

an integrated army against ISIS.

Well, the fact that they
all traveled here together

is a great sign,

and the picture will send
an important signal of unity.

If their new government doesn't collapse

when someone makes bunny ears.

Ma'am, your daughter's here.

I see that.

Hi.

Well, they're probably downstairs,

- so I will send them up.
- Good.

Hi.

You on break or something?

Okay, you were right.

- Let's get that over with.
- You're going back to college?

- Not funny.
- Sorry.

About my shirt.

My manager told me that I had to change.

He even used the words "too casual".

So if you want to gloat,
just get it over now.

I'm not gloating.

I didn't want to be right.

Okay, well, if I had listened to you,

then I wouldn't be here
now, asking you for $50.

Fifty dollars?

I can't go all the way back home.

I mean, I would miss half of my shift.

And all of my front of
house clothes are dirty.

I don't know if I have the cash.

- I-I just didn't plan ahead.
- What about your credit card?

- I think we can call this an emergency.
- It's maxed out.

Your emergency credit card is maxed out?

Mom.

Did I sleep through some
emergencies along the way?

- Can you not?
- I have a right to ask

- where our money has gone.
- Ma'am?

- Okay, pl...
- Ma'am.

The Iraqi delegation has arrived.

Thank you.

Please don't give me that look.

I cannot put a foot right with you.

It's exhausting to live with.

You want me to move out?

No. God...

Can we do this later? Please?

Or not at all, maybe?

I mean, if you want
to... we-we don't have to.

I don't want to.

I love you.

- We're good?
- Sure.

Good.

And her she is now. Secretary McCord.

Um...

wh-where can I get a blouse

near here for $50?

I don't think you can.

Although the gift shop
downstairs sells T-shirts

that say "State of Confusion.”

God, I'm running out of time.

I am so gonna get fired.

Well, uh...

I have an extra... like, a dressier blouse

that I keep in a stash for your mom.

Maybe that'll work?

Yeah. Okay, thanks.

I guess I just groveled for nothing.

Well, it's good training
for a career in Washington.

Well, yeah. Not interested.

Smart girl.

"Win.”

What kind of stupid name is...

Hey, Matty.

Win!

Hey.

Daisy's not here.

Obviously.

She's probably down in the press room.

I didn't actually come here today

to speak to her.

Because you came for the dumplings?

I came to speak to you.

Oh?

Why is, um, why's that?

Well, it's about Daisy.

Well,

you and Daisy.

May I?

All right.

How about this one?

A little too Dolly Madison.

Waiters can't be choosers.

I'm a hostess.

Oh. Not for long, if you don't get going.

All right, you're gonna wear this one.

- Thanks.
- Mmm.

Oh, I wish you were my assistant.

I don't.

Blake, any calls about the Meat Market?

The... I'm sorry?

Today is the first day
of a week-long period

where the department matches

its Foreign Service officers

with their postings abroad.

Yeah, I'm aware of that.

I just wasn't aware that we
called it "The Meat Market.”

Every year, a few officers
are unhappy with their postings

and they call up here to complain.

Shouldn't that be a Bureau
of Human Resources problem?

Human Resources, in their
habitual defensive crouch,

tends to lead these
unhappy officers to believe

there is wiggle room when
it comes to their postings,

but there is not.

Well, no one's complained yet, so...

maybe they're still busy eating their ymer.

Have anyone who calls

about a difficult posting come up here.

I'll deal with them myself.

Okay.

Prime Minister Arif.

Minister Hasan.

Minister Barakat.

It is a hopeful sign

for your proud nation
and the rest of the world

that you've traveled here together.

We welcome you to the United States.

"Thank you so much for
your gracious words.”

Insh'Allah, we will welcome you

to a peaceful Iraq

one day very soon.

I look forward to it.

If you could please direct
your attention to the camera?

You have never been to Iraq before,

Madam Secretary?

No, I haven't.

Mike Hirst. Welcome to The Sandbox.

Oh, thanks, Mike.

They speak highly of you at Langley.

Yeah, the brass is big on you, too.

Best analyst they got.

A real killer, they say.

- Well, I don't know about that.
- Yeah, neither do I...

'cause out here, we are real killers.

And quite frankly, I don't
know what I'm gonna do

with another desk jockey from Langley.

Depends on how badly

you want Safeer Al-Jamil, I guess.

Son of a bitch has
blown up half of Baghdad,

so yeah, I want him.

And, look, while I appreciate

your new Intel, I'm gonna
tell you something...

That's right, Mike... my new Intel.

I've been tracking
Safeer for two years now,

so when we bring him in, based on my Intel,

Langley wants me to interrogate him.

We clear about that?

Yes, sir.

A real killer.

Get away from the windows!

What's going on?

We've got an active shooter

- situation, ma'am.
- Wh...

We're in a lockdown.

All we know is, he's armed

and he's outside. Until
we know it's safe...

- What about Stevie?
- We found her, ma'am.

She's safe.

Alice Millevoi?

- Um, yes?
- Do you know who I am?

You're the secretary's chief of staff.

So you know how busy I
am. Let's cut to the chase.

Your assignment to
Portugal has been cancelled,

and you've been reassigned to Angola.

- What? I...
- You are the only person

available with the experience

and language skills required,

so there is no room for appeal.

But I've looked at your file,

and you are well-prepared
to handle this post.

I'm sorry,

but the decision is final.

So if you'll excuse me,

I have other matters to tend to.

Sorry, ma'am, but I'm a bit confused.

- I was assured...
- We all have our disappointments,

Ms. Millevoi.

Thank you for your service,
and good luck in Angola.

Active shooter situation,
ma'am. We're in a lockdown.

What? Well, I need to get to the secretary.

She's being secured, ma'am. But
until the threat is resolved,

everyone is required to shelter in place.

Gentlemen,

I know this is unusual,

but not to worry. This is

a secure building; the
windows are bulletproof.

They're asking that we remain

here until the threat is lifted.

It will give us a better chance

to get to know one another.

_

_

_

_

_

Gentlemen... you must be exhausted
from your travels. Can I...

invite you to have something to drink?

Uh, we have some water,

tea, fruit juice...

_

- He says...
- I agree.

But I don't keep anything stronger

in the office.

_

You speak Arabic?

Not as well as you speak
English, I'm afraid.

- Come, please.
- Of course

she speaks Arabic.

Everyone knows that.

Madam Secretary,

please excuse the prime
minister's translator.

My translator has more manners,

but he is downstairs with
the rest of my entourage.

My apologies, Madam Secretary.

Please, come.

Of course I'm not making it up.

You didn't like my shirt,
so I came to my mom's office.

And now there's a guy with a gun outside.

- You don't sound very afraid...
- Well, I'm sorry

that I don't sound more nervous, Dave.

- Can you find someone to fill in for you?
- Okay, yeah.

I'll call... I'll call
Meghan, and-and I'll...

ask if she can cover for me.

All right. Thank you.

If my mom had just saved the lecture

and just given me the stupid 50 bucks,

I might actually be at work already.

Or you might be some nut job's hostage.

Well, arguably, I'm kind
of my mom's hostage, so...

I can think of worse people

to be held hostage by.

Again, a deranged gunman comes to mind.

Look,

not my business but...

she's not trying to be on your case.

I think she just wants you to...

find your thing.

Wait, she talks to you about me?

Hi.

I was really worried. I'm so glad

- you are still here.
- Yeah, yeah.

My flagrant irresponsibility

- might have saved my life.
- Oh, come on.

I hate that we left in a fight.
You know I adore you, right?

Yeah.

- Do me a favor,
- Mm-hmm.

call your dad and your
brother and your sister.

Tell 'em that we're fine...

Already left word.

Thanks, Blake. Okay.

- I have to head back in. You're good?
- Okay.

- You just... hang tight, okay?
- Mm-hmm. Yeah.

Is that my blouse?

Looks good.

Well, this is just fantastic.

So, Matt...

on a scale of one to ten,

how much do you love Daisy?

Wow.

Okay.

That's a complicated question.

Ooh, wait, before you start...

Okay, shoot.

I'm sorry, what's happening?

Oh, I-I'm sorry, man.

Uh, her birthday's coming up.

I'm gonna surprise her with a video.

You know, all her best friends and
colleagues telling her how great she is.

I totally thought I told you that already.

Hmm, sorry, crispy brain.

That's right.

What did you think was happening?

No idea.

I mean, uh, this whole situation
has-has got me jumpy, you know?

Deranged gunman outside,
trapped in enclosed space...

Just try to relax.

It's all gonna be fine.

That-that's easy for you to say.

My heart's racing, my mouth's all dry.

You know, I'll tell you the truth...

when I get this nervous, I
usually smoke a cigarette.

I know, I know, I know.

It's a bad habit, super gross... sue me.

Well, I don't have any cigarettes,

but I do have some gum, if you want.

Yeah, okay.

Thanks.

Yeah.

It's a real love-fest in here.

Stay the course, Jay, stay the course.

You have been to Iraq.

Down! Get down on the ground!

Down!

Get down!

Do not move and you will not be harmed!

_

_

I wasn't sure until I
heard you speak Arabic.

My cousin Safeer Al-Jamil was dragged away

by coalition forces.

And you were there.

I was there, too.

And that was the last
time I saw Safeer alive.

_

_

I've always had trouble
with a particular passage

from one of my favorite Arabic poems.

But I think I have a copy
of the book in my office.

Would you mind?

Well, I would hate for your career

to be ruined by one reckless moment.

I am going to tell you this one time.

I was never in Iraq.

Do you understand?

And while I do know who your cousin was,

as to what happened to him...

Safeer, you should have stayed in London.

Instead of killing your own people,

you could be getting your
degree in engineering,

thinking about settling
down with that girl...

what's her name? Fiona.

Oh, yeah.

I know everything about you.

Which is why you're gonna tell me

when and where the next
truck-bomb is set to go off,

so more innocent Muslims
don't have to die...

_

I honestly don't know.

Now, if anybody asks,

you helped me translate a
particularly thorny passage

of the Qasida, by Al-Buhturi.

But we will never speak of
this again, do you understand?

Sorry, Mom?

- Yeah.
- I just talked to Dad.

I just wanted to let
you know, I-I told him

- what's going on.
- Yeah, yeah. No, no, that's great.

- Okay.
- Okay.

All right, baby, I'll
check in with you later.

Okay.

The stand off with police and a gunman

outside the State Department continues.

No shots have been fired,

but the gunman is allegedly
protesting a state visit

by Iraq's newly-elected leaders,
with secretary of state Eli...

Okay, I'm just gonna say it...

this reassignment is unfair.

That's your concern right now?

Oh, you want to talk gunmen?

I was held up in Afghanistan in 2003.

I barely made it out alive.

Yes, and I see you received
a commendation for it.

And did you also see that
they had to medevac me

out of Sierra Leone?

I have worked here for nearly 30 years.

I have done my time in hardship posts,

and I am very good at my job.

Don't you think I deserve Portugal?

The needs of this department
and of this nation supersede

any personal desires,

and the department needs you in Angola.

You're the only one available
with the necessary experience.

You know what, Miss Tolliver?

They didn't reassign me to
Angola because of my skills.

They reassigned me because I'm
a woman, and because I'm single.

_

_

You're gonna love this.

The new prime minister's men
back in Iraq have arrested

the previous oil minister for corruption.

So, his first official act is gonna be

to put a Shiite on trial?

Unbelievable.

You see? You see, he waits
until he is far from home

because he knows he has broken his promise!

_

_

Gentlemen, gentlemen. _

Please.

If we could just calm...

How long until the next call to prayer?

Too long.

So, in, um, these chats
that you have without me...

what do you talk about?

What a disappointment I am?

Well, that's my position; she defends you.

Um, yeah, it's, uh, it's weird, you know,

you drop out of school,

and suddenly people start
seeing you really differently.

Mm-hmm.

It's like, I-I tried...

I was thinking about selling my eggs.

The clinic wouldn't take them.

They only wanted college grads.

It's like even my eggs are devalued.

I'm sorry, you tried to sell your what?

Relax.

I-It was a low moment.

I just wanted to find a way of making money

that didn't involve wearing a
white blouse and seating people.

Just don't tell my mom.

Okay?

Yeah, I don't think that'll be a problem.

Daisy is a hard worker,

and very dependable.

She's really kind... to
the cafeteria workers.

She's... like,

"Hey, Penny, how's it going?

Javier, qué pasa?”

Because she's... she's, like,

really tough on the outside,

but on the inside...

On the inside, she's just...

she's so...

so tender.

What was I talking about?

Dude, you're feeling it already?

Feeling what?

Oh, my God, you gave me pot gum?!

Yes.

Dude, study after study proves

marijuana's efficacy in treating anxiety.

Uh, you should thank me.

I didn't even know pot gum was a thing.

The video... the vid...

If I get caught, I'm so screwed.

Hey, just something to calm you down, man.

Had to... had to calm you down, man.

Oh, you were acting so guilty, so weird.

You were all, mm, being
so straight. It was...

- What are you talking about?
- Wait a minute.

Did you, uh...?

I mean... did you hook...?

Did you hook up with Daisy or something?

She never would never.

- She would never.
- Ah, she... ah, she would.

- Ah, she...
- Wait.

Wait a minute. Did you?

You went back

on your word!

You assured everyone there
would be no reprisals,

and now, you are issuing arrest warrants?!

"For too long, the Shia
have been oppressing the Sunni.

"And now we are back in power,

- and now, it is our turn"
- Until when?

There are three times
as many Shia as Sunni.

They have the backing

of the Iranians. Your government

will fall and your people
will be slaughtered by ISIS.

Is that what you want?

_

You know what he's saying, Madam Secretary,

so now it is your turn to listen to me.

The arrests will continue,

and the U.S. will do nothing to stop them,

because if you interfere in any way,

I will tell everyone
about your past in Iraq,

starting with your daughter.

Do you honestly think
anyone would believe you?

Do you want to take that chance?

_

The gunman's name is Mark
Ferguson, 20 years old.

His brother's a war hero...
two tours in Iraq, KIA in 2008.

Parents say, after his brother passed away,

he fell into a depression,
never pulled out of it.

- Oh, poor kid.
- He's been off his meds

and homeless the last six months.

FBI negotiators say that,
as far as they can tell,

he's here to protest what he sees

as a slippery slope back
to engagement in Iraq.

At this point, I don't disagree with him.

Any chance he'll just give up?

Well, he's still talking, which is good.

But he claims he has grenades.

Which is not.

All right, keep me posted.

Yes, ma'am.

How did it go with Arif?

He's got a lifetime of grievances,

finally the chance to
do something about 'em.

Their country is on fire, and
all those guys can think of

is settling old scores,
so, I say, screw it.

Let's back the Kurds and contain
this cancer as best we can.

No, we can't just stand back

and let it collapse into chaos again.

They have lost too much, and so have we.

We can't want it more than they do, ma'am.

What are you gonna do in there?

Get them to take some responsibility

and take some ourselves.

Where are you going?

To talk to my daughter.

Wow.

Yeah.

And you ended things how long ago?

A couple months.

So, like, weeks before I proposed.

It's fantastic.

Look, man...

it's super messed up, you know?

So...

...have at it.

Open your eyes, man.

I'm not gonna hit you.

Why not?

Because what good's that gonna do?

The greatest woman you're ever gonna meet

in your entire life cheated on you with me,

and what... you're gonna just let it go?

Yeah.

Yeah, that's exactly what I'm gonna do.

I'm gonna walk out of
this building and away

from the both of you, and...

begin the extremely difficult
process of trying to move on.

- Because what choice do I have?
- You never had to fight

for one thing in your life, have you?

Good-looking rich guy, everybody's pal.

What-what? You cannot
be serious right now.

One Westport princess after another, right?

You even make weed look waspy!

For your information, smart guy, marijuana

happens to be both good
business and good policy!

Oh, my God! Would you shut up?!

- Ow!
- Ow!

- My ear!
- My hand!

What the hell was that?!

Look, you...

If she were my girl,

and she cheated on me...

Hey!

- What?
- I swear to God...

I'd kill the guy.

Well, the good news is you'll
probably get your chance.

It's locked.

I have missed countless Thanksgivings

and Christmases with my
family because somebody

always had to hold down the fort.

Well, that somebody's not going to be me...

I get it.

But you know the department policy

is very clear about making
these assignments in a fair

and unbiased manner...

David Cruz, James Gordon, Lisa Alva...

all of them have the necessary experience

and the language skills.

They also have spouses

and children.

And I'm an unmarried woman in her 50s.

And so, to the State Department,

I'm expendable.

I would argue the opposite.

That you're dependable.

That's what I always told myself.

And yet, here we are.

Oh...

who am I kidding?

The State Department is... is my life.

Of course I'll go to Angola.

Maybe next year I'll
get a post in, in Europe.

There was another truck bomb explosion

this morning at the market in Sadr City.

- Allahu Akbar.
- No, no. No, no.

Not one American was killed.

Want to see who you did kill?

_

_

_

_

Look at it!

You bastard! Look at what you've done!

You're going to tell me.

When is the next attack going to be?

Where and when?

This is your last chance.

You gotta tell me something.

_

Allahu Akbar. Allahu Akbar!

Allahu Akbar! Allahu Akbar!

We've tried it your way,
killer. It's time to step it up.

Do it!

Shut up!

I said shut up!

What...

what did "stepping it up” mean?

Stress positions.

Physical abuse.

Waterboarding.

Uh... I wasn't

in the room when they did it.

But...

I knew what was...

happening, obviously.

Why are you telling me this?

'Cause I have to.

Well, I really wish you hadn't.

We were at war.

Changes the landscape.

And it forces you to face things

you didn't even want to know.

Yeah, like...

like the fact that your mother is not

the person that you thought she was at all?

- Who did you think I was?
- I don't know, Mom.

Not a torturer!

Stupid work.

- Stevie...
- Don't.

Yes, Dave?

Zaid, I think we should talk.

I think you would be wiser to keep silent.

I think you should stop
mourning your cousin Safeer.

You know nothing about him.

No, I know everything about him.

I know where he went to school,

who his family was and who he killed.

Your cousin was a mass murderer,

and I am glad that I took him
off the streets of Baghdad...

You will be glad when I
tell Prime Minister Arif...

I don't care who you tell.

Maybe they'll believe you,

maybe they won't.

But it won't change U.S. policy in Iraq.

I am not your hostage,
do you understand me?

If you want to grieve someone,

you should grieve your grandfather Abdul,

the scientist who was killed by Saddam.

How do you know about my grandfather?

I told you I know
everything about your family.

You come from

a long line of great men,

who built a great nation that dates back

all the way to the Babylonians.

That is your legacy.

So I'm gonna do my part
to help that heroic nation.

What you do is up to you.

But whatever you tell the prime minister,

be sure to tell him this.

Unless he releases the former oil minister

and drops the charges against him,

the United States is
going to pull our support

of the new government and back the Kurds

for statehood.

Sorry to interrupt, ma'am.

Go.

Tell him what I said.

The gunman's been apprehended.

The SWAT team disarmed him
with a flash-bang grenade.

But they shot him in
the leg in the takedown.

Mr. Ferguson's being
transported to the hospital.

The FBI doesn't think he was
actually going to shoot anyone.

He's just a messed-up guy

with a lot of issues.

Well, I'm glad no one else got hurt.

Well, we think he was acting alone.

So... I'm gonna lift the lockdown order,

effective immediately.

Wait, so that's it? I-I kind of thought

we had a Breakfast Club
kind of thing going...

I really have to get out of here.

Well, wait, what did your boss say to you?

You had a legitimate reason to be late.

I don't want to talk about it.

Okay, it's gonna be all right, really.

You're gonna get another
job. Hey, wait a minute.

Wait a minute, hey, hey,
hey... hold up, hold up.

Look...

for what it's worth,

if I ever did the surrogacy thing,

I'd want eggs just like yours.

You got winner eggs, kid.

You know, we spend all this time

wondering whether we're good enough

to even be around her.

But what if we're better?

Did you ever think about that?

I have to go, but thank you for the shirt.

Yeah...

Thank you again for your patience.

Excuse me.

I don't know what happened,

but Arif reversed himself.

Word is, he's dropping the charges.

They're going to the White House tomorrow.

Call the White House.

It happens tonight.

Gentlemen...

it was an honor having you as my guests.

Although I know it was
for a little bit longer

than you would have liked.

Um, I-I did want to say something

to you before you went to the White House.

I said something earlier today

about letting go of the past,

and I realized how...

arrogant that was.

All of our people

still have open wounds

and blood on our hands

from inflicting those wounds on each other.

Everyone here wants to be a great leader

to their people, but in the face

of the inhumanity,

the indecency of terrorism,

things like-like trust

and-and competence and decency

are greatness.

For the sake of your nation

and the rest of the world, Insh'Allah.

_

Insh'Allah.

Madam Secretary...

Thank you. Very much.

Thank you.

Baby, I'm so sorry.

I got trapped in the press room.

What happened?

Are you okay?

What do you think?

What did you do?

You deserve someone who'd fight for you.

It doesn't have to be me,

but it can't be him.

Mm...

Hi. Nadine is waiting in
your office to see you.

Okay. Wh... Stevie's gone?

Yes, Ma'am.

Um, Ma'am...

everything okay

between you two?

Thanks for looking after her today.

Did you call home, tell
everybody you're all right?

- Uh, yes, Ma'am.
- Friends, family?

- Significant other?
- Yes.

- Everyone's up to speed.
- Just want to make sure

that you're taking care of your loved ones

as well as you take care of mine.

Oh, uh, before you go,

find out what hospital
they took Mark Ferguson to.

Yes, Ma'am.

Hey, Nadine.

Missed you today.

I hope your lockdown was
less eventful than mine.

I was locked in with a woman named

Alice Millevoi who was
reassigned to Angola.

She said others could have gone,

but they all have
families, and she doesn't.

She said that happens a lot.

- Which it does, of course.
- I think we need

to do a better job of making
these reassignments fair.

These women are not expendable.

I agree.

Do whatever you have to do.

You have my full support.

Thank you.

Vincent said he was going to leave

the State Department
at the end of this term.

If he had run for president,

I would've had to disappear.

Anyway...

I'm done keeping his secrets.

Well, they do have a way of
hitting you where you live.

This is a bank letter he
asked me to keep for him.

It's got an account number on it.

And this is a document
I'd like you to sign.

It says we're reassigning
Alice to Portugal.

She deserves it.

Hey.

I forgot my keys.

Kind of blows your whole
dramatic exit from before.

Hell of a show you put on today, Mahoney.

Yeah, you know,

not exactly

the grand gesture I would have chosen.

How's Win?

He's officially...

my ex-fiancé.

And he's nice,

and...

handsome...

and easygoing...

and deeply hurt.

Look, what we did to him...

...what I did to him...

was really pretty terrible.

Am I a terrible person?

You're asking the wrong guy,

because, um...

I have seen you... at your most terrible,

and I am still crazy about you.

For what it's worth...

I-I didn't want to hurt you.

I'm...

I'm sorry.

Okay, while we wait for the
President just a few more shots.

Okay... thank you.

Yeah, um, I'm leaving, like, right now,

so I should be there in 20... 20 minutes?

Right.

Cool, thanks.

Yeah.

Bye.

I gotta go, Mom.

Um, I'm just gonna stay with some friends,

clear my head.

But don't worry...

I won't tell anyone.

There was a boy at the market

where Safeer's bomb went off,

about Jason's age;

a girl about Alison's...

The scream that mother made...

...when she I.D.'d the bodies.

15 kids maimed or dead.

To have the guy responsible

right in front of you,

to feel that rage

for justice.

I gave in to that.

I did.

It was still wrong.

Not to mention, against the law.

Technically, it wasn't.

Technically?

At the time, there were provisions.

Vile...

evil, bogus provisions?

Ultimately, that's why I left.

Yeah.

And then you came home.

You came home and you told us

you'd been in Jordan the whole time.

Very happy to just...

pick up where you left off.

Coach my soccer team.

That's right.

Wow.

This is a lot.

I-I'm sorry.

I... You maybe don't want to...

talk about it yet,

or maybe you want some time.

I wouldn't hold your breath.

Hey, Stevie?

If you never listen to anything I say again

for the rest of your life,

please hear this:

Everything is more complicated
than you think it is right now.

And the only way you come to know that

is through experience.

And that's what this whole process

of growing up is all about.

Yeah.

I know.

I gotta go do that now.