Too Late

Luke describes the moment when he thinks he will die. His heart slows down, and his eyes grow heavy. Then he sees Sloan giving up and thinks he has to fix his mistakes before he takes his last breath. He shoots Asa’s wrist, making him drop the gun. Ryan and other officers break in, and Luke is content knowing that Sloan is the last thing he’ll see.

When Sloan was almost 13, her brother Drew had a seizure. Their mother left the boys with Sloan at night when she partied. He hit his head when he fell and died before she called 911. If his head had fallen six inches in either direction, he would have survived the impact. Ever since, it has infuriated her when people refer to miracles. For Sloan, there are only freak coincidences, and they’re usually bad.

Then a doctor tells her that six centimeters saved Luke’s life. The bullet missed everything vital that could have killed him. Ryan sits with her after Luke’s surgery. She remembers Asa screaming for her to let Luke die because Luke didn’t love her like he did. She hopes she won’t have to testify about his erratic behavior. Sloan wants him to get help, but she also wants him to pay for the suffering he has caused.

Ryan tells Sloan that Luke has always had a hard time separating his emotions from their cases. In fact, he once broke cover the second night on a job so that he could save a child’s life. Sloan says Luke’s compassion is the sexiest thing about him. When she kisses him, he starts to wake up, so she kisses him again. He finally opens his eyes and says a nonsense sentence, which she responds to in kind.

Asa sits up. He realizes that no matter how she protests, Sloan did say Carter’s name in her sleep, not “harder.”

Sloan lies in the hospital bed with Luke and tells him what she learned about Stephen’s benefits and Asa’s deception. Luke will be released from the hospital tomorrow. He asks where she’s staying as his pain meds kick in. When she tells him she is at a low-end hotel, Luke says she’s in a scary neighborhood and asks her to stay with him. Sloan agrees to stay with him for two weeks. After she settles in with him, he thanks her for everything. Ryan and Tillie visit to talk about the case, and Tillie apologizes to Sloan for the night she had to make out with Luke at the party.

Ryan says Asa is claiming self-defense for the bedroom shooting and he has a good case. Asa says he was merely defending Sloan from an attacker. He shot him with a legally registered weapon, but the other man’s gun was unregistered. Asa is claiming that Luke and Sloan set him up. Sloan admits that she felt relieved when Asa came in and stopped the man from assaulting her. Now their boss, Young, is requesting that they close the case to avoid humiliation in the press. Asa will not face charges, although Luke might.

Asa assumes that Sloan will be coming to her senses by now. She’ll see through Luke and come back to him. Luke and Ryan are in the courtroom. Sloan is sitting away from them, which Asa takes as a good sign. He watches her, refusing to look at the judge until she makes eye contact with him. Paul, his lawyer, writes him a note that says to be respectful. Asa insults Paul and then mouths “I love you” at Sloan. Luke sees this, moves to sit by Sloan, puts his arm around her, and glares at Asa. Asa imagines them at home alone, laughing and having sex.

Sloan cries when the judge rules that there will not be a trial. Asa doesn’t understand why she’s crying, since this is good news. He worries that she’s even more brainwashed than he thought. Asa then congratulates himself: He has been pretending to be schizophrenic, showering in his clothes and checking the locks constantly. He got a copy of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, made a list of symptoms common in patients with schizophrenia, and faked them. In his cell, he smiles as he thinks about making Sloan love him again.

Asa has been free for two days. Sloan and Luke are in a protected apartment until the next hearing. She can’t sleep even though Luke assures her that they’re safe. Even though the doctor has said that Luke isn’t permitted to have any physical activity—including sex—for at least four weeks, he wants to take care of Sloan’s physical needs.

Sloan worries that Stephen might be in danger. Asa could hurt him to punish her. She wants Asa to suffer, which makes her feel like a bad person. However, she wants to prove to him that she is not brainwashed and she genuinely hates him.

Ryan knocks on the door. When Luke checks the peephole, Ryan isn’t scratching his neck, which has always been the sign that it is safe to open the door.