Olivia Taylor, the President's daughter, becomes increasingly involved in the day's events; and the administration reels when a high-ranking official delivers devastating news.

As the FBI continues their search for Jack, Moss calls Ethan and tells him that Senator Mayer is dead... and they believe that Jack murdered him. Ethan is angry at Moss for letting Jack get away, but Moss reminds him that he advised Ethan against using Jack in the first place. This sobers Ethan, who subsequently tenders his resignation to the President. The President, who has just spoken to her husband (who is on the mend), was hoping the day would end on a more positive note. She tries to persuade Ethan not to resign, but he feels his poor decisions will tarnish her administration if he does not resign immediately.

Jack calls Tony, and explains about the bioweapon Starkwood is about to get a hold of in order to fight their congressional order to be dismantled; killing US civilians to prove that Starkwood is needed as a secondary security force. Jack believes the weapon is still at the port. There's only one Port Authority Officer on duty, Carl Gadsen; just as he gets off the phone with his very pregnant wife - he's working double shifts to make ends meet - Jack and Tony grab him, disarm him, and force him at gunpoint to get the port manifest.

At Starkwood, Hodges is informed that Quinn hasn't checked in. He then addresses Starkwood's board, exhorting them to stop cooperating with the government subcommittee: don't answer any more subpoenas. Starkwood can be a vital tool in protecting an America with an army stretched to the breaking point and the draft off the table. After the meeting Douglas Knowles, the Board's chairman, tells Hodges he thinks it's folly to fight Senator Mayer. Hodges informs him that Mayer is dead, killed by a rogue federal agent. Knowles is horrified, and asks for Hodges' assurance that he wasn't involved. Hodges feigns offense, but coolly suggests that though Starkwood's not in the business of political assassinations, it's certainly a growth market they could look into.

At the port Gadsen tells Jack and Tony that to make extra cash to support his impending twins - twins that took three years to conceive, with fertility treatments that his insurance didn't cover - he had planned to aid men he thought were simple electronics smugglers. They haven't arrived yet. Jack tries to call in the FBI, but communication is jammed. The men arrive at the gate. Jack tells him to let them in; he and Tony will follow them, and call for help once they're out of jamming range. Gadsen is reluctant, but Jack promises that he and Tony have his back. He opens the gate to find a small army waiting; led by Stokes, who is suspicious of how nervous Gadsen is. He forces Gadsen to come along with them to the pick-up site. Tony whispers to Jack that he knew Gadsen was a dead man the moment he walked out that door.

Olivia tells Ethan she's sorry for his resignation on a personal level, though she still think it's what's best for her mother. Ethan apologizes for accusing her of leaking his role in Jack's escape to the press. He advises her that running the country isn't like running a campaign; you need to do what's right for the people, not just whatever it takes to win. Olivia responds that sometimes those things aren't mutually exclusive. Once he's gone, she calls Ken Dellao, a network White House reporter, and tells him he can now run with the story about Ethan and Jack; she was the leak after all.

At Senator Mayer's home, evidence is found that points to a third person being involved. Moss calls Agent Walker and tells her he's prepared to entertain the idea that Jack's innocent, but she needs to tell him what she knows. She's reluctant to blow his cover, but finally tells him about Quinn and Starkwood. Jack is trying to prove that Starkwood is behind today's attacks.

At the port Tony wants to move out, but Jack can't abandon Gadsen. He already promised one person today that he'd protect them, and they're dead. He can't let it happen again. When a thug is dispatched to lead Gadsen off to be executed, Jack takes aim. Tony exhorts him not to do it; they'll blow the whole mission, and many more innocents will die. Jack pulls the trigger, saving Gadsen, who runs away to safety. The fallback plan: hijack the truck. The dead man is found in short order, and Tony and Jack open fire. In the course of the firefight Jack manages to leap aboard the truck. He throws the driver out of the cab while Tony keeps them distracted; however, Tony is captured. As Jack prepares to drive away with the bioweapon, he hears Tony getting caught over the walkie-talkie... and Stokes recognizes him. Jack calls Moss, and asks him to scramble teams to meet him at a weigh station. Just as Jack gets off the phone, a flashing light alerts him to a breach. He stops the truck, and checks in the truck's pallet: there's a gash in one of the containers, and a gas is leaking out... and Jack's near a suburban area. He desperately manages to hammer the leak closed. Moments later Starkwood arrives with gunmen and a helicopter. Jack is forced to take cover while Starkwood recovers the bioweapon, and airlifts it away. Stokes calls Hodges, and reports that he'll be there in ten minutes. Jack calls Moss, and tells him that Starkwood recovered the weapon and headed due west from his position. Moss says there's a large military facility in that area, but he can't assault a private compound without evidence that a weapon exists. Jack tells him to send his CDC men to him, and they'll have all the proof they need: Jack was exposed.