We watch as dozens of survivors flood the gates of the resort, which is the obvious result of Madison’s (Kim Dickens) decision to turn the marquee on after realizing that Nick is not far. Madison along with everyone else living in the resort are forced to turn everyone away, including small children who packed their bags hoping they would be safe inside the massive building. As Madison is apologizing she recognizes someone in the background, and as he makes his way through the crowd we see that it’s Travis (Cliff Curtis). They’ve finally found each other again.
With that being said, the next scene takes us back to the moment after Chris (Lorenzo Henrie) shot and killed the farmer in front of Travis. Once the shock wears off Travis is forced to do what he does best, help Baby James who has been shot in the leg. He finds that the bullet went straight through the kid’s leg so he’s going to be fine, he just needs stitches. Chris raids the house and finds a sewing kit, then runs back to help fix up Baby James. After that we watch as he buries the farmer next to his family and even makes a little wooden cross to go with the rest of the graves.
That night Chris and his new “friends” cook up one of the chickens they caught in the farmer’s barn, while Baby James rests off to the side. Travis watches as the entire group laughs and has a great time as if they didn’t just kill an innocent man a few hours ago. This is enough to push Travis over the edge, so after checking on Baby James he pulls his killer son aside for a chat.
Unfortunately for Travis, he doesn’t get the reaction from Chris he wants. Chris is completely remorseless about killing the farmer, and even tells his dad that he’s “sorry” he’s “not sorry.” Even worse? Chris more or less threatens Travis by telling him to “be careful” how he handles the situation with the guys. Wow.
In the next scene we’re back to the gate where Madison and Travis have finally found each other. Madison demands that they open the gate, and Alicia (Alycia Debnam-Carey) backs her up by telling everyone who Travis is. Somehow the guys manage to open the gate just enough to let Travis slide in, and he immediately embraces Madison before she takes him inside the resort. It’s an emotional reunion and completely overdue, but the question remains: where is Chris? Alicia asks him that before he heads inside, but Travis’ only response is to shake his head.
Something’s up with Travis and Madison notices it almost immediately once they are alone. He refuses to shower or eat, and when he asks where Nick is Madison shares that she thinks he’s near Tijuana. Then Madison finally asks where Chris is, and all Travis tells her is that he “had no choice.” That’s pretty ominous, T.
Things With Chris Just Keep Getting Worse
When we return to the farm Travis is sleeping in the barn with Baby James, but Chris and the others come in to wake them up because “it’s time to go.” Travis is confused because it’s only been a week and he doesn’t believe that Baby James is ready to be moving around, but Derek and Brandon are over him debating them on everything. Even Chris is being pushy about the move, which continues to throw Travis off. Before leaving Travis goes through the farmer’s house to find something with his name on it and when he does, he carves it into the cross he built for the man’s grave.
It takes all four guys — Chris, Travis, Brandon and Derek — to lift Baby James into the back of the truck. It’s extremely obvious that Baby James is still in serious pain as he cries out while being placed in the back, but he continues to say he’s fine because he doesn’t seem to want to upset anyone. They take off down the road but Baby James can’t stop crying out, and eventually it gets so bad that Travis asks Brandon to stop the truck. Baby James begs him not to stop and then passes out, which causes Travis to freak out and tell Brandon that his friend is dying. When Brandon finally stops the truck Travis is able to find a pulse for James, but he can just barely feel it. Not good.
That night at the farm Travis overhears Brandon, Derek and Chris talking about how they have no choice but to leave James behind. Travis storms in on the conversation and tries to talk them down, but Brandon argues that James would understand. Travis finally tells him that no, that’s not true, because James is actually terrified of them, but they don’t seem to care. Travis tells them that they can survive there long enough to let him get better, but for some reason these guys are impatient — and don’t seem to actually care about their friend at all. When Travis realizes that there’s nothing he can say to get them to understand, he snatches a gun from Chris to protect himself and James. Brandon quips that Travis doesn’t “have the balls” to kill them, so he shoots at Brandon’s feet. Chris moves forward to stand in front of Brandon and Derek knowing full well his dad won’t shoot him, but when he asks why his dad is doing this the answer he gets seems to surprise him. “I’m doing this for you,” Travis tells him before going back into the barn with James.
James finally wakes up and seems confused, but then he sees the gun in Travis’ hand and questions it. Travis is very honest with James and tells him that his friends want to put him down, to which James replies, “Why do you think I got in the truck?” Then James tells Travis the truth about their friend Troy, about how he got sick and they promised to put him out of his misery so that he wouldn’t turn, but that Brandon couldn’t bring himself to pull the trigger — so it was James who did it.
Chris Breaks Travis’ Trust — Again
It’s unclear how long they stay in the barn like that, locked inside to stay safe from the other guys. There’s a knock at the door one morning and it’s Chris with a tray of food, who Travis hesitantly lets inside. He even pats Chris down to make sure he’s not concealing a weapon before letting him sit with them inside the barn. Chris seems genuine as he tells his dad that he finally gets it, that he sees what he’s trying to teach him: all life matters no matter what else is happening in the world. Travis seems relieved by Chris’ confession and leans in for hug, which is when Chris locks his arms around his dad’s body and tackles him to the ground. Brandon and Derek come running in just as James wakes up and while Chris holds down Travis, Derek puts a gun to his head. Brandon apologizes to James who is begging for mercy until a bullet goes through his head, all thanks to the “friend” he’s had since he was six years old. Wow.
Later when Brandon, Derek and Chris are packing up the truck to leave again, Travis calls his son over to talk to him. Brandon reminds Chris that Travis is NOT coming with them, which is upsetting because they could have just left Travis and James behind without having to hurt anyone.
Travis begs Chris not to go, he begs him to stay with him and tells him that he leaves him behind now they will likely never see each other again. That this isn’t just a temporary goodbye, that it’s forever, and that he promised his mom he would take care of him. Chris tells him that by letting him go he is taking care of him, because he doesn’t believe they can survive living life the way Travis does. “I’m better off without you,” Chris heartlessly tells his father, who looks crushed as his son drives away in the back of the pickup truck.
Madison Finally Tells Alicia The Truth
When we return to the resort, Travis has just finished telling Madison what happened. He feels that he failed Chris, but Madison reminds him that the kid gave him no choice. Travis is filled with regret, overcome by it, and Madison can’t reach him.
Something about how Travis is reacting after losing Chris strikes a chord with Madison, so she goes to find Alicia to have a little one-on-one time. This is when she finally confesses to her daughter that her father’s accident was no accident, and that he left a note. The news breaks Alicia’s heart, but Madison remains honest with her, for once, about what really happened. Madison hesitates to share what her ex-husband left on his suicide note, but Alicia insists — she must know what her father’s last words were. “I love you all, but enough’s enough,” the note read, according to Madison.
Madison also reveals that Nick doesn’t know what really happened to his father and that’s because she was worried he would end up just like him. They had too many similarities, according to Madison, and then she confesses that she was always so worried about protecting Nick that she wasn’t there for Alicia. “You deserve better,” Madison tells Alicia.
As the episode comes to a close it’s nightfall at the resort, and we see a small group of people walking up to the gates of the resort. Once they arrive we see that it’s a strange man we’ve never seen before, but beside him are a worse for wear Brandon and Derek… but no Chris.
Also, did anyone notice that we didn’t see Victor throughout this entire episode? Hmm.
Tell us, HollywoodLifers — Do YOU think Travis did the right thing letting Chris leave? Where do YOU think Chris could be? Comment below.