Episode 420 "Elevator"

The OSIR investigates the death of Leo Hurley, who reportedly jumped to his death after his wife revealed that she was having an affair.

According to Leo's wife, Bronwen, it's as if the couple had been caught in a time pocket during which she uttered the fateful news to her husband. Somehow the memory of what was said during that time remained with Leo - although Bronwen didn't remember anything of the conversation until she read his suicide note.

This is the second such incident to be reported to the OSIR, the first being that of a man who was told that his mother had been raped by his biological father. Following this revelation, the man was hospitalized for shock. Neither his mother nor his adoptive father recalled telling their son the news.

Both of these incidents happened in the same apartment building - and both appeared to be stories of alternate reality in which honest admissions led to tragic consequences.

Now it seems that the OSIR team could be about to unwittingly experience a similar event. Donner and Stone enter the elevator of the building under investigation on the 19th floor. Davison jumps in with them. Axon tries to catch the elevator before the doors close, but gets there a second too late and he's left waiting in the hallway. As the three women discuss the case, the elevator suddenly comes to a stop - the emergency button doesn't work - and they're left to wait until Axon notices that they're stuck inside.

But as time seems to pass inside the elevator, no help arrives. There is a strange tension between Donner and Davison which mounts as their conversation becomes more personal. As harsh words fly between the two women, they take no notice of Stone who is apparently experiencing a severe anxiety attack. When Stone finally admits that she suffers from claustrophobia, Donner and Davison feel more inclined to share their own honest admissions.

As the trio sort through their personal differences and begin to focus on their situation, the elevator drops suddenly, sending them tumbling to the floor in total darkness. When Stone mysteriously disappears after climbing out of the elevator through the ceiling hatch, Donner surmises that they are trapped in the time pocket and that sooner or later they will find themselves back on the 19th floor and Axon will be at the door. But then the elevator suddenly drops again with Donner and Davison holding on for dear life.

Is Donner's assessment of their situation correct? Or will they be crushed when the elevator crashes?