Last week’s Chicago Fire found Severide declaring that either he or Damon needs to leave Firehouse 51, but this Wednesday’s episode also put Stella on the chopping block.
While talking with Severide, Stella acknowledges that Damon is not a bad kid — oh, how she’ll regret those words later — but there’s too much baggage with him. Severide can’t argue with that. So Stella goes to Chief Pascal and tells him that she wants to put Damon back in the floater pool. Pascal is surprised to hear that since there were never any issues mentioned in her reports. Stella explains that Damon lied about disobeying orders and that there have been trust issues in the past. But Pascal suggests that Stella might be the problem and points out that Damon’s departure will mean even more turnover on her rig. Pascal concludes their conversation by declaring that he will make the final decision and he will decide if her leadership is part of the problem.
During his own one-and-one with Pascal, Damon shows his true colors: He says Stella’s orders are not always clear and that makes it difficult to do the right thing. The gall!
Meanwhile, Pascal appears to be readying to dismiss Stella. He tells Mouch to “stay ready” because “you never know” when a lieutenant position might open up. Mouch shares what happened with Stella, who tells him that she’s now the one on the chopping block after asking for Damon’s transfer. Mouch, of course, is a good friend and shows up at Pascal’s home with Stella’s record, which speaks for itself, he says. On top of that, Mouch also pulled the turnover records so Pascal will have all the information.
In the end, Pascal decides to put Damon back in the floater pool after reviewing the files. Now that his trust with his lieutenant has been broken, dismissing him from 51 is the only option. Damon lashes out at Severide and accuses him of abandoning him for an arson case when he needed help the most. What’s even worse is he tells Severide, “You are Benny.” So much for that brotherly bond.
As for Stella and Pascal, there’s a new floater for the day, but Pascal will allow her to make the choice on who stays on Truck. “Make sure this one lasts, OK?” he adds.
