Joe and Kaitlyn meet for a meal in Washington, D.C., to discuss how Cruz is doing. Cruz is in Georgetown while their mark, Aaliyah, is in New York. Joe says she wants to put Cruz "through the grinder" because she needs to be sure her operative can handle herself. Kaitlyn reluctantly agrees, then asks about Joe's family. Joe fills Kaitlyn in with some vague details about Neil and her daughters.

Kate, Joe and Neil's older daughter is shown tearing an opponent's hair out on the soccer field. Neil revealed to be a doctor, is dealing with a six-year-old patient with a large brain tumor. He tells the patient's parents that their daughter has roughly six months to live. The father punches Neil, and his partner, Dr. Elsa Ramirez, comes to his aide. Neil is interrupted by the school office, who call about Kate's fight.

Kate and Neil fight on the ride home. Kate's been suspended but says she had to fight the girl after she used a slur. Kate feels she can't have this sort of conversation with a white man, and Neil takes offense. He says he's her father before anything else, but Kate says he can't understand. Neil is quick to say Kate is just like her mother, clearly as an insult.

Joe arrives home to Kate, angry that Neil took her phone as punishment. She takes it up with Neil, who's sitting by the pool. They two talk but are interrupted by Kate asking if she can have her phone back or if her parents are getting a divorce. Joe sends her back inside and follows her in to talk.

Kate repeats her divorce question and tells Joe not to fight for custody, as she wants to go live with Neil. Joe asks what Kate wants to be when she grows up, laughing when Kate says she's already grown up. Kate says she wants to be something important, and Joe explains important jobs come with a price. Kate says she knows; she's the price. Joe asks Kate to show her father compassion, then returns her phone.

Neil and Joe are talking in the kitchen when Kate comes in, tearfully hugging Neil and apologizing for making his day more difficult. When Neil thanks her, she gives Joe a look and immediately cuts off the tears, asking how she did with a malicious look.

At her Georgetown apartment, Cruz is growing restless. She exercises through the night to keep herself sane. She is nervous and aware she's being monitored. She runs through the neighborhood late at night, when the streets are empty, and notices she's being followed. A team catches Cruz, putting a bag over her head and hauling her into an unmarked car.

At Joe and Neil's, the couple is trying to have some semblance of uninterrupted sex when their phones simultaneously begin ringing. Neil has to head into the hospital for an emergency when he answers. Joe instructs someone on the other line of what to do with Cruz, clearly having orchestrated the faux-kidnapping. Both share they won't be home by morning, and Neil lets Kate know she'll need to take care of her sister come morning. After Neil leaves, Kate sneaks into Joe's closet to see her getting ready, and the two share a tense moment before Joe kicks her out.

Cruz has been put into an oil drum and is shown on a cargo ship with people surrounding her, the boat moving towards some destination. Cruz is removed from the drum and hosed down, screaming as the bag is sprayed off her head. She's left in a concrete room with piped-in sounds of screamo music.

When she comes to again, her hands are untied. She shakily crawls to where clothes have been left for her. After getting dressed, two people attack and zip-tied her again. Her assailants continue to torture her, asking for her name. She momentarily manages to get the upper hand but is immediately taken down again.

On a monitor, Cruz is being watched. She's sitting in a chair, her head covered again, another chair across from her. When the cover is removed, Cruz realizes Joe is in front of her. She's floored this was a training exercise and visibly angry. Joe explains that she needed to understand how much time she'll have to rescue Cruz once she's taken because that's typically what happens.

Cruz is adamant she won't be made, and Joe sits down to talk to Cruz, grilling her on her past. She gets deeply psychological, bringing Cruz to tears with talk of her past, challenging her about how she can't be broken. Joe leaves, but not before sharing, it's time for round two.

Joe tells the S.E.R.E. team what to do to continue breaking Cruz down, watching from another room. An agent questions Cruz on the death of her younger brother, who died in her care. Cruz doesn't break but is quickly taken down when her arms are untied.

The S.E.R.E. team feels Cruz is done, but Joe says she's not finished. When one of her team members calls the operation off, Cruz retaliates quickly and takes down two agents before she has to be restrained. Joe isn't satisfied that she understands Cruz's breaking point.

Joe drives Cruz back to Fort Bragg, bringing her to the house she'll be staying at with the rest of the team moving forward. Joe asks Cruz what she knows about their target, Amrohi, then explains his brand of terrorism and why she put Cruz through such a trying test. Cruz heads inside to find the rest of the team stunned by her state. After some rest, Cruz explains what she's been put through, and the team is immediately upset, heading to the bar where the S.E.R.E. team is to pick a fight.

The S.E.R.E. team explains that Joe sanctioned what happened to Cruz, but the team is angry and says they don't fight fair anymore now that they're with the C.I.A. Cruz is viscerally angry and has to be called off but is interrupted by a call from Aaliyah. She steps outside to take the call quickly and lets Aaliyah know she got into a car wreck.

Aaliyah invites Cruz to Chesapeake the following day, telling her to bring a tiny bathing suit because she'll invite boys along with them. Cruz reluctantly agrees, and the team springs into action.