Nearly a full day passed before Ressler finally had the opportunity to question Samar about Liz.
"Can I ask you something?" he asked as they headed to the airport to catch their return flight home from Denver.
Samar raised an eyebrow. "Sure, what?"
Ressler licked his lips. "Yesterday you said you got the feeling Keen's not coming back. What did she say exactly that made you think that?"
Samar frowned as she considered the question. "It wasn't so much what she said as what she didn't say," she began slowly. "And what Reddington didn't say. She pretended to be pleased to see me but she felt…guarded. And when I asked about Agnes, she changed the subject. She had no interest in hearing about the case or anything else really. She seemed…preoccupied. And Reddington refused to answer me when I asked about her coming back."
Ressler shook his head. "Last time I saw her, all she wanted to talk about was the crime scene. The crime scene and everything that happened that day. I was hoping some time away might change that."
"Oh, I doubt it," Samar replied. "If I know Liz she won't rest until she finds out exactly who killed Tom and why. And honestly, can you blame her? I'd do whatever I had to do to find out who killed my husband if it came to it."
Ressler stared out the window at the passing cars. "I get it. I do. I just - I guess I don't like her going it alone. We should be helping her."
"You know what Cooper said. We had to allow Metro PD to run point. The Bureau wasn't going to approve us getting involved unless Reddington gave us something to work with that related to it. And he didn't. He hasn't," Samar replied.
"I know. And I don't like that either. Reddington should want us to solve this case. He's got to be hiding something," Ressler mused. "Whatever Tom got himself into, Reddington has to know more about it than he's saying."
"Well that's for Liz and Reddington to work out between them," Samar said. "It's out of our control." She glanced at her watch. "We're almost at the airport. I'm going to check in with Aram and let him know we'll be taking off soon."
Ressler nodded and pulled out his own phone. He hesitated for a moment before tapping out a text to Liz: "About to fly home from Denver. Crazy case. Hope you got my message. Would love to see you. Call me."
Liz had just finished cleaning the motel room and was loading the supplies into the trunk of her car when she felt her phone buzz. Seeing Ressler's text reminded her that she had never listened to his voicemail from the night before. She slid into the driver's seat and sat in the parking lot and played the message. She smiled faintly at the sound of his voice but her smile quickly faded as she looked up and stared at the door of the motel room she had just left. You have no idea what I've become, she thought miserably. Honestly, she'd been relieved to find only Aram when she'd walked into the Post Office earlier in the day. She was sure Samar and Ressler wouldn't have let her get away with combing the files so easily without asking questions. Questions she'd rather not answer. Liz's finger hovered over the screen as she weighed whether to reply to Ressler's text. After a few moments, she shoved her phone back in her pocket without responding. She knew she'd have to talk to him eventually. She just couldn't face him yet.
"So Aram had some news about Liz," Samar began as their plane took off from Denver. "Apparently she showed up at the Post Office today."
"Maybe you were wrong, then," Ressler replied. "Maybe she does plan to come back. Did Aram say what she wanted?"
"Well that's the strange thing," Samar replied. "He says she wanted something from the files. He didn't seem to know what and of course he was so happy to see her, he didn't really ask. But he said she made it clear that she wasn't back except for whatever it was she came for and she had no interest in hearing about the case. He thinks we should invite her over for dinner. You're welcome to come too, of course," Samar added quickly.
Ressler nodded. "If you set something up, let me know. I left her a message last night. Hopefully she'll make contact soon." He stared out the window at the setting sun. What did Liz want from the files? he wondered.
By the time they arrived back at the Post Office, most people had left, but Aram had stuck around to wait for Samar.
"I heard Liz stopped by earlier," Ressler said casually as he stopped by Aram's work station.
Aram grinned. "Yeah, it was good to see her. She looked great. Not quite her usual self, but that's to be expected."
"Samar said she was a looking for a file - do you know which one?" Ressler pressed. Aram shook his head.
"I didn't ask. Figured it really wasn't any of my business. It was one of the ones in the closed cases cabinet though," Aram continued as he gestured towards the hallway. "Second drawer, I think. I mean, if you wanted to look, that is," Aram added, looking uncomfortable.
"Thanks, Aram. Don't worry about it," Ressler replied as casually as he could manage as he continued towards his office. "I'm sure it's nothing important." Ressler sat down at his desk and twirled a pencil as he waited for Samar and Aram to leave. It didn't take long and as soon as the elevator doors closed behind them, he got up and made his way over to the file cabinet.
Ressler opened the second drawer and scanned the files. On a first glance, nothing looked out of place. He fingered the file folders slowly. Suddenly, he noticed that one had been replaced backwards. He lifted it out and caught his breath as he saw the name on the cover - "Stanley Kornish a/k/a The Stewmaker." He opened the file and quickly noticed that the pages were out of order. He felt a chill down his spine as he realized that the pages on top were those relating to the Stewmaker's chemical recipe. Whatever it takes, he thought as he recalled Samar's words from the day before. Ressler carefully restored the pages to their correct order and replaced the file in the drawer. He glanced at his phone. Liz still hadn't answered his call or his text. What the hell are you up to, Liz, he thought.
He returned to his office, grabbed his keys, and headed for the elevator. As he was heading out, he glanced up and noticed the lights were still on in Cooper's office. Taking the stairs two at a time, he knocked lightly on the open door.
"Late night, sir?" he asked from the doorway.
Cooper looked up and removed his glasses and rubbed his face. "Just finishing up," he replied wearily. "Long day all around. Reddington was happy to get his penny back, though."
"You gave it to him?" Ressler asked. Cooper nodded and gestured for Ressler to take a seat. Ressler could tell his boss had more on his mind than pennies.
"What's going on?" Ressler asked as he took the proffered chair.
Cooper shrugged. "I wish I knew. Bobby Navarro of the Nash Syndicate is missing after a domestic disturbance at his home. Metro PD booked a bloody rag into evidence from his home, but the rag mysteriously vanished from the police evidence vault. The same vault where the penny was booked after the incident at the museum. Yet Reddington claims to know nothing of it. And for once, I actually believe him."
Ressler frowned. "So who do you think stole the rag?"
Cooper shook his head. "I'm not sure," he said slowly.
"You don't think Liz had anything to do with it, do you?" Ressler asked as his mind turned over the various possibilities.
Cooper leaned back in his chair and regarded him grimly. "That's interesting that you're wondering the same thing I'm wondering."
"You don't think she'd go after Navarro alone, without Reddington's help, do you?" Ressler asked, leaning forwards.
"I don't know what to think anymore," Cooper replied. "If Elizabeth feels Reddington is keeping something from her regarding Tom's death, I have no doubt she's capable of going to great lengths to ferret out that information on her own. I hope she decides to share her information with us eventually. Under the right circumstances, I could convince the higher ups to allow us to assist her. But I can't if she shuts us out."
"I've left her a couple of messages," Ressler replied. "I'll let you know if I hear from her."
Cooper nodded. "That's good. Keep on her. In the meanwhile, go home, get some rest, it's been a long day for all of us. Time enough to deal with this tomorrow."
"Goodnight sir," Ressler replied.
Ressler headed down to the parking garage and glanced at his watch. It was probably too late to stop by and pay Liz a visit. But not too late to try to call her again. He pulled out his phone and pressed her number. After a few rings it once again went straight to voicemail. Ressler cleared his throat. "Liz - hey. Just got back from Denver. Give me a call if you're still up. Got some things I want to talk to you about."
As he replaced his phone in his pocket he paused before driving out of the garage. Navarro's missing and Liz is researching the Stewmaker. She couldn't possibly..? Ressler shook his head and put the SUV in gear.
Across town, Liz glanced at her phone as she once again pressed ignore to allow Ressler's call to go straight to voicemail. He was being unusually persistent in trying to get in touch with her. She couldn't help but feel that he had more than friendly concern on his mind. He must suspect something, she thought. Either way, she wasn't prepared to deal with him tonight. She tossed the phone on the counter and walked into the bathroom and stared at her reflection in the mirror. The skin on her arms was marked in a few places where the acid had splashed her. She traced the marks lightly with her finger. She'd have to make sure to wear sleeves until the marks healed. She pulled up her shirt and examined the dressing on the cut on her abdomen. It appeared to be holding and hopefully she wouldn't end up with too much of a scar. Suddenly, she felt lightheaded and she placed her hands on the side of the sink to steady herself. She tried to remember when she had last eaten. Or had something to drink.
As soon as she felt able, Liz stumbled into the kitchen and poured herself a glass of water and forced herself to take small sips. The water helped a little bit, but she needed food too. She opened the fridge and grabbed a yogurt and opened it and ate it quickly. After a few minutes, she started to feel more collected. But she had to admit she was exhausted. Both physically and mentally. All she wanted to do was sleep. As soon as she felt steady enough, she made her way back into the bedroom and crawled under the covers. She was more than ready for the day to be over.
Liz woke while it was still dark outside, her heart pounding. She felt disoriented and it took her a moment to remember where she was. As she glanced wildly around the dark bedroom, images from her nightmare replayed in her head. The bubbling acid. Navarro's body. She sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed while she tried to calm her breathing. The smooth wood of the floor grounded her. After a few minutes she got up and made her way into the bathroom.
Liz splashed some cold water on her face and stared at her reflection in the mirror. "You're a monster," she whispered to herself. Just as quickly, she forced the thought from her mind. You did what you had to do to survive, she reminded herself. She stared at her reflection until she felt strong, not ashamed. She headed into the living room and scanned the wall of familiar thug-like faces staring back at her. How she longed to mark Navarro's photo with an X for dead. But she couldn't do that until the death was official. And if she'd done her job well enough, it never would be.
Liz caught a glimpse of her phone on the counter and crossed the room to pick it up. She glanced at the notifications from Ressler. Another voicemail. With a sigh, she pressed play. After listening to the message she stared at the phone. Ignoring him was probably causing more red flags than replying would. Barely thinking, she tapped out a text: "Yes, I'm back. Sorry, been super busy. I'll call you soon." She pressed send and only then glanced at the time. She flinched as she realized it was 4 a.m.