And then we're back to just three hours after the attack, rejoining Kendal's beating of McClure, currently in progress. Suddenly he's at home, and Christine tells him to stop lying to her. Paul greets Kendal from the couch, much to Kendal's confusion (although at least Kendal recognizes him, so he's telling Christine the truth about them knowing each other before), and taunts Kendal about how long someone as hot as Christine is willing to wait for him. "This is the beginning of the end, Sam," Christine tells him, and suddenly they're both back in the control room, looking over McClure's limp body, which is surrounded by needles that must have spilled out of his pockets when his chair got dumped over. "You almost killed him," Christine says, and but adds that she'll always love him. Kendal returns to Christine, who begs him to come home, but he says he needs to finish this. "If I don't, my people will die. I'm not gonna let that happen." Christine asks what about them, and warns that he may never see her again if he uses the needle in his hand. Which he does, and she repeats to him, back in their house, "You're never coming back, are you?" Sam gives her reassurances and even more kisses, and walks out the front door again, promising once again to be home soon.

That night, Nigel steps into Sophie's office to say goodnight and offer any necessary apologies, and she says he wasn't himself. When he wonders what she's looking at, she tells him that the cameras in the control room were still recording during the attack, but she isn't willing to let him see the footage just now. He leaves her alone, watching footage of the moments when Sam was having that last hallucination of Christine that we just saw. Except it wasn't entirely imaginary; there was a real girl in Kendal's arms. It's just that it was Sophie and not Christine. Sophie goes back to watching Kendal kissing her. And watching, and watching, and watching. Wow, how many people get to have live-action video of their romantic fantasies?

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, or just e-mail him at M.Giant[at]gmail.com.