The hunt for FBI Agent Emily Byrne takes a dramatic turn in “Me You Him Me,” the fourth episode of Absentia‘s first season. Faced with overwhelming evidence, Emily makes a desperate choice to flee from the law, directly confronting the man she believes ruined her life: her former boss, Agent Adam Radford. This high-stakes episode escalates the series’ tension, blending a dangerous cat-and-mouse chase with intense personal drama.
The episode aired on February 2, 2018, and runs for approximately 40 minutes. With Boston police and the FBI closing in, Emily’s decision to go on the run sets off a chain of events that changes the entire investigation and leaves a major character dead.
Emily Byrne Chooses Flight Over Surrender
The episode begins with the walls closing in on Emily Byrne. The Boston Police Department and the FBI determine the evidence against her is too strong to ignore and formally ask her to turn herself in. Her former husband and partner, Nick Durand, pleads with her to comply, fearing for her safety if she resists. Before making a decision, Nick takes Emily to see their son, Flynn, one last time. At his bedside, Emily shares a quiet but powerful moment with the boy, needing him to believe in her innocence.
Emily says to Flynn: “People are going to be saying things about me, and I don’t care. I just care that you know that they’re not true. I need you to believe me, okay?”
Flynn’s simple reply, “I believe you,” offers Emily a crucial sliver of emotional support before her world spirals further.
Despite this, Emily feels trapped. She agrees to go with Nick to a motel, but the situation leads to a moment of intense old emotions, and the two share an intimate connection. Seizing a momentary opportunity while Nick is in the bathroom, Emily makes her choice: she runs. She later calls Nick, explaining that she cannot bear the thought of being locked up again and feels she must solve the mystery targeting her on her own.
A Dangerous Confrontation with Adam Radford
Convinced her former FBI partner Adam Radford is the corrupt agent behind her framing, Emily takes extreme action. She tracks him down, forces him into his own vehicle at gunpoint, and takes him to a remote location to interrogate him. Her method is brutal, involving water to force answers from him.
During this tense confrontation, Radford makes several key admissions. He confesses to being involved in a money-laundering operation with the criminal Regina and admits he paid her to lie to the police about Emily. He also reveals his obsessive search for Emily after she vanished, which led to his strange drawings of a “bleeding eye.” He claims this is not a symbol of a person, but a place.
However, Radford denies planting Emily’s DNA on a murder victim or being her actual kidnapper. His partial confession confirms some corruption but suggests to Emily that a third, unknown person is the true mastermind setting her up. Before Emily can decide what to do with Radford, Nick and his colleague Tommy Gibbs arrive at the scene, having pieced together her location.
A Shocking Murder and Its Aftermath
As Nick and Gibbs approach, the confrontation reaches its climax. Radford calls out for help, and Emily flees into the shadows. Then, from the darkness, gunfire erupts. An unseen shooter kills Adam Radford before he can reveal anything more.
Nick and Gibbs, who did not see the shooter, arrive to find Radford dead and Emily gone. With Emily having just kidnapped the agent and fled the scene, both men immediately believe she is the one who killed him. This act turns the already intense manhunt into a far more serious pursuit, with law enforcement now likely to shoot Emily on sight.
Personal Lives Fracture Under Pressure
Emily’s flight and the ongoing chaos create severe strain on those around her. Nick Durand faces immediate professional consequences for his perceived help to Emily; Agent Radford suspends him from the FBI and takes his badge and gun shortly before his own death. Nick is caught painfully between his duty and his lingering belief in Emily’s innocence.
The stress also devastates Emily’s family. Her brother, Jack Byrne, relapses into heavy drinking, showing how the trauma of Emily’s ordeal ripples outward. Meanwhile, Nick’s current wife, Alice, reaches her breaking point. After finding Emily with Flynn at a pool, Alice unleashes her frustration, accusing Emily of hurting everyone around her.
Alice confronts Emily: “You don’t deserve him. You’re hurting them. You hurt everyone around you and you don’t care.”
The tension between Alice and Nick worsens, especially with the secret of his intimate moment with Emily looming between them.
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The Mystery Deepens with a New Clue
Despite the catastrophe, Emily’s interrogation of Radford yields one vital piece of information. The “bleeding eye”—a recurring and mysterious symbol connected to her captivity—is not a person, but a location. This clue becomes Emily’s only lead as she vanishes into hiding, completely alone and with every law enforcement agency branded against her. The episode ends with Emily as a fugitive, in more danger than ever, but armed with a new direction for her solitary quest for the truth.
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