Flight Path - Recap

Eli is reading the news at his apartment and finds himself in a vision where he’s in a field. He sees a woman in white across the field and papers and debris start to fall from the sky. The woman cries out to him but Eli can’t tell what she’s saying. Eli looks up as a piece of debris slams next to him, followed by a plane crashing.

Eli goes to see Frank, noting that he had a vision of his father warning airplane passengers as well. Frank says they don’t have enough information and seems irritated that Eli is researching it on his own.

Jordan and Taylor meet for lunch and Jordan gives Taylor her baby booties. He wonders if she’s happy with Matt and Taylor admits that she’s happy to be working with Matt again. This time she thinks there’s nothing to worry about. Jordan confesses that he’s been thinking about her mother and called her, but hung up. Taylor encourages him to call and make a connection.

At Posner-Klein, Maggie is giving more work to her secretary and Paul Rollins calls her on it. He tells her that he wants her working with him on the Chaykin case and she says she’ll think about it.

Matt and Taylor are representing Cheryl and Steve, a couple preparing a pre-nuptial agreement. When they can’t agree, Taylor starts lecturing them about what marriage is all about. She thinks about what she’s saying and then asks Matt to marry her. Cheryl storms off and Matt just stares at Taylor.

At the hospital, Eli meets with Nate, who has checked his brother’s MRI. Nate insists that everything is okay. Nate gets a call and is informed that the parents of a donor pulled out based on Nate’s patients’ religious beliefs. The Christian parents, the Carlisles, learned that the donor was an atheist and refused to donate their vegetative daughter’s heart. Nate shows Eli his patient: it’s the woman from his vision.

Eli talks to the patient, Diane Rundlet, and suggests that he take the Carlisles to court. Diane isn’t so sure, noting the Carlisles invited her to pray and she refused. Diane insists that she refused to compromise her beliefs and lie to them. Eli calls Keith and they go to the Carlisles, who insist that Diane is going to Hell and they don’t want her heart going to an unbeliever. Keith insists that they’re discriminating and Eli says that it’s a matter of faith, not fact. However, they refuse to give in and let their daughter’s heart go to Hell.

Matt goes to see Taylor and ask what she meant. She admits that she needed to take her own advice about marriage and Matt goes down on one knee to propose to her.

At the hospital, Eli worries that any judge will hold them in contempt for harassing the Carlisles. He goes through a door and finds himself walking through the wreckage of a plane. He sees Diane standing in the middle of the debris and notes assign with the airplane’s log. Diane fades away and Eli moves a piece of debris to see a piece of luggage with a WS logo on them.

Jordan announces Matt and Taylor’s engagement to the staff as Eli arrives. He then gives the staff their backordered Christmas gifts: luggage with WS logos. Afterward, Eli calls the TWA authorities about grounding flight but ends up bounced on hold. Patti refuses to get a list of employee travel plans and violate their privacy. Eli gets through and pretends to be a lawyer with the Audubon Society, but Patti cuts him off and tells him she’s found the flight in question.

Eli goes to see Jordan, who is taking a flight to Colorado to see Taylor’s mother. He says that he can’t delay the flight and asks for an explanation. Eli tells him about his visions and Jordan explains that he doesn’t believe Eli, but doesn’t want that confused with his not believing in Eli. Jordan doesn’t deny Eli’s beliefs but refuses to live by them himself.

Keith and Eli go to Judge Salvaty and ask her to honor the parents’ original consent. The judge takes it under advisement and suggests that Eli to have Nate find alternatives.

Matt gives Taylor first-class tickets to Maui to celebrate their engagement. Eli and Keith return and Eli discovers where they’re going. Taylor knows about the vision from Eli, who called her from Colorado where he arrived safely. She admits she finds it hard to believe that everything Eli says is miraculously and insists on going.

Keith meets with Todd Riley, the boyfriend of the heart donor, Emma. Todd explains that Emma wouldn’t have cared that Diane received her heart, and he broke up with her because she left the church six months ago. Emma admitted to him that she was an atheist and her parents didn’t know. Todd gives him e-mails proving what she said to him.

As Taylor packs for the trip, Matt admits that he isn’t sure if they should make the trip because of Eli’s vision. He refuses to take even a 1% chance that put Taylor and their unborn child in danger.

Keith and Eli show Diane the e-mails, and she says she doesn’t want the Carlisles to learn that her daughter lost her faith. She asks them to withdraw the motion and admits that she’s not sure if she could live with that. She tells Eli to find another way to win.

Back at the office, Matt confronts Eli and tells him that their plan didn’t crash. Eli sees a newscast about the plane crash that day on all the screens as he goes into another vision. The only thing he doesn’t see is the flight number. He tells Nate and Frank what he saw and insists that he has to undergo the Dark Truth after regular acupuncture doesn't reveal anything else. Nate insists it’s too dangerous and that Eli doesn’t have to save everyone, but Eli believes he can save lives. Frank agrees with Eli and they insist it happen under controlled conditions with Nate monitoring the process. If it becomes dangerous, Nate will pull him out. Nate isn’t happy with sitting back but Eli insists. Frank proceeds with the Dark Truth ritual and Eli finds himself at an airport terminal. He looks down and sees the EMTs declaring someone dead: Eli.

In court, the judge informs both parties that they’re running out of time and she is prepared to rule in favor of the Carlisles. Eli asks to call Vivian Carlisle to the stand and the judge reluctantly agrees. He asks one question: why did she revoke consent to give Emma’s heart to Diane. Vivian insists that what she and her husband are doing is what Emma wanted. Eli shows her the e-mails and Vivian asks him to read them. Eli reads the e-mails of Emma saying that she doesn’t talk to God any more. Eli admits what he’s doing is cruel and notes that Diane would rather die then let Vivian know what her daughter believed. Eli notes that Diane’s belief is a true Christian spirit.

As they wait for a judgment, Eli calls Patti who has made sure everyone is accounted for. Vivian comes to see him and says what he did is repugnant. He apologizes and Vivian explains that she knows he gets visions. She and her husband are going to choose to believe that they’re a message from Emma and they’re giving their consent for Diane to receive the heart.

Eli goes to see Diane, who is unhappy he disobeyed her instructions. She fires him, smilingly, and admits that he’s given her something to think about. Afterward, Eli discovers that Maggie left him a message. She tells him that she received a travel bag from Patti and she’s heading off to Rome with Paul on business. He tries to call her but her phone battery is dead. She’s at the airport with Paul. Eli gets to the terminal and runs through the building, trying to find her. He collapses as the staff call in the EMTs.

Eli wakes up in a hospital bed with Maggie at his side. He asks what happened and she tells him that one of his aneurysms burst and the doctors managed to stop it with a clip. She was there and told the EMTs to treat him for an aneurysm rather than a heart attack. Maggie tells him that she got on the plane but had a feeling that something was wrong and left. When Eli wonders what happened to the plane, Maggie explains that when she left, they ran a safety check and discovered a problem with the fuel pump. If it had left on schedule without the check, it would have blown up in mid-air. As they wonder what’s happening between them, Nate comes in and Eli told him what happened. However, Nate tells him that Diane died of an embolism after the surgery. Eli blames himself but Nate says he couldn’t have seen it coming. The heart is still viable and Nate goes to talk to Diane’s mother. Eli wonders if he’s going to be okay and Maggie takes his hand.

Later, Eli walks the hallway and sees a snowball on a table. He picks it up and finds himself back in the Himalayas on the Panch Chuli Peaks with his father Jeremy. Jeremy talks directly to his son, noting that who he actually is, his father or God, is complicated. Eli says he missed him and Jeremy says that he’s proud of him and knows how hard it’s been. Jeremy says that Eli doesn’t know if Diane was supposed to die. He does tell him that Grace was in San Francisco and waiting for the right time to get back with Eli. Her heart gave out and she received a new heart: Emma’s. Eli insists that if he’s going to continue to get visions, it has to be his way when the people he loves are at risk. He mentions Maggie and Jeremy points out that Eli said he loves her, and then says that everything is a test, and Eli is passing with flying colors. Jeremy smiles and walks away and Eli finds himself back in the hospital.

Later, Eli is at his office looking at pictures of all his loved ones and setting the snowball among them. He goes out and goes back to work.

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