On a crisp morning in Dongying District, Dolly Weaver returned to the sheriff's office, bearing supplies to aid Keith in preparing Garrett's birthday dinner. As they baked a cake together, a fire broke out at Garrett's construction site due to a short circuit in the horse barn heater. Without hesitation, Garrett rushed into the flames to save the horses. Although his vital signs stabilized after being transported to Bozeman's trauma center, severe lung damage from smoke inhalation left him critically injured. Post-surgery, Garrett, under the influence of medication, mumbled incoherently, "Tell Carl I'm sorry." This was a reference to his trauma of witnessing his friend Ronny's death during a SEAL deployment years ago.
Meanwhile, on Cruz's first day back at work, a federal prisoner transport mission went awry when a landslide caused the bus to lose control, resulting in the death of the driver and another officer. The sheriffs on-site treated two inmates who hadn't escaped—among them was a derelict doctor and Samantha, Bell's estranged mother, who hadn't contacted him in years. Samantha, once a high-ranking executive at Turlock Metals, had seen her family's business collapse and Bell's father commit suicide due to greed and power struggles, leaving her as a white-collar prisoner. Now, mother and daughter struggled to reconcile amidst the wreckage of the bus.
While Keith stood guard by Garrett's hospital bed, Miles and Carl pursued the escaped prisoner. However, Keith instead went after another inmate, Neil Lamb, whom he had seen on TV. Tracking Lamb through the wilderness using his knowledge of the terrain—Lamb, a former ranch hand with old feuds against the Dutton family—Keith warned him against revealing the family's secrets. Lamb countered with an offer to help him cross the border to Canada. As Keith drew his gun in a standoff, Deputy Sheriff Pete Calvin suddenly appeared, questioning why Keith sought to deliver "justice" outside the law.
