Chief Dom Pascal found himself under investigation for attempted murder during the Chicago Fire season 13 finale, but the episode wasn’t all doom and gloom — and Us has questions about what’s next.
Warning: Spoilers below from season 13, episode 22 of Chicago Fire.
During the Wednesday, May 21, finale, Pascal (Dermot Mulroney) was accused of trying to kill the man who crashed into his wife Monica’s (KaDee Strickland) car and caused her death. While the Office of Fire Investigation (OFI) thinks he’s guilty, Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) is on a mission to clear his name.
“He’s all in with Pascal,” showrunner Andrea Newman exclusively told Us Weekly of Severide’s finale journey, which ultimately results in him finding the real culprit: firefighter Stephen Vale (Phil Donlon). Vale pined over Pascal’s wife for years, so he tried to kill the man responsible for her death.
While the OFI case is front and center during the finale, not every story line was wrapped up neatly, including Violet Mikami (Hanako Greensmith) and Sam Carver’s (Jake Lockett) romance.
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Violet finally gave Carver the letter she wrote him while he was in rehab and professed her love for him. While Carver revealed he already put in for a job in Denver, he ended the season by passionately kissing Violet outside her apartment.
Severide and wife Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) also got a happy ending to the season after Stella learned she is pregnant with their first baby. What’s next for the couple, however, is unknown. “There will be some shakeups all around,” Newman revealed.
Keep scrolling for answers to the biggest questions ahead of season 14:
What Does Violet and Carver’s Kiss Mean?
During the final minutes of the episode, Carver showed up and kissed Violet. He finally confessed, “I love you, Violet,” and she responded, “I love you, too.” The moment was “a beautiful thing” for both of them, according to Newman, but it might be short-lived.
The showrunner told Us that Carver is “on a razor’s edge in terms of healing” after his ups and downs with alcohol. His state of mind and Carver and Violet’s sometimes “painful” dynamic has left their relationship status open-ended.
“Do they get this moment and then that’s all? Or do they get to explore past that and kind of see where it goes?” Newman teased, confirming “that’s the question hanging in the air” ahead of next season.
Are Violet and Carver the Next Brett and Casey?
Prior to the finale, Lockett confirmed that he won’t be a series regular for season 14, which could influence Carver and Violet’s future. While Carver might be moving to Denver, he and Violet wouldn’t be the first Firehouse 51 couple to be long-distance. Matthew Casey (Jesse Spencer) and Sylvie Brett (Kara Kilmer) lived apart when Casey had to move to Oregon to help raise the kids of his late firefighter friend, but the pair ultimately got married during season 12.
According to Newman, Casey and Brett’s romance is not like Carver and Violet. “Anything’s possible,” she told Us when asked if they could replicate the long-distance relationship. “But I think this was more of an explosion than a slow build.”
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The TV writer explained that there are “different things at stake” with Carver and Violet, especially since he hinted at leaving Chicago pre-kiss to better focus on his sobriety.
“For Carver, it’s a life thing. It’s like, can he stay alive? Can he keep sober and clean and not crash and burn?” Newman said, not ruling out Carver potentially making cameos next season. “So the stakes are a little bit higher in terms of that relationship going forward.”
When Will Stella Announce Her Pregnancy?
After attempting to adopt a baby during season 13, Stella and Severide were left brokenhearted when the mom changed her mind. During the finale, Stella turned her focus to helping a teenager named Natalie (Ava Torres) in the neighborhood in the neighborhood, eventually reconnecting the teen with her big sister. Stella later got her own good news: she’s pregnant!
Newman told Us that Stella’s pregnancy timeline for season 14 will depend on “the kind of time jump we do when we start.” She joked, “It will be hard to be hiding it if it’s, you know, the kind of four-month jump we usually do.”
The showrunner noted that the writers want to get the firefighters’ “reactions” to the pregnancy sooner rather than later. “There’s a closet full of baby gear in the firehouse right now,” Newman said, referring to the baby gifts that were bought before Stella and Severide’s adoption fell through.
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Although Stella might keep the pregnancy under wraps for a little bit next season, Newman said her and Severide’s journey will be all about “how they balance” being parents and firefighters.
“We keep saying you think the stakes are high when you’re in the firehouse with your significant other … [what] about the fact you have a baby at home and you know, this baby will be an orphan if anything goes down here,” Newman stressed. “It just turns up the heat and the stakes on their relationship in a really interesting way, both from a work standpoint and just a love standpoint.”
How Will Mouch and Hermann Navigate Their New Roles?
Christopher Hermann (David Eigenberg) chose not to take the chief’s exam during the finale, despite planning to take over the spot someday at Firehouse 51. Instead, Hermann took a pay cut and a demotion so his best friend Randall “Mouch” McHolland (Christian Stolte) could be the new lieutenant on Engine 51.
According to Newman, the determining factor for Hermann was “the looming fear of this auditor who said, ‘You guys don’t have much longer [to work].’” She noted that Mouch will have to navigate being a leader with a “ticking clock behind him” next season.
At the same time, Newman said that Hermann’s pay cut will be fun to watch play out since he will be “scrambling with new ideas and plans to make extra cash.” She joked, “He could be selling hot dogs out front of 51. We don’t know anything could happen.”
Will Ritter’s Exit Be Shown?
In March, news broke that Daniel Kyri, who plays Darren Ritter, would not be returning to Chicago Fire as a series regular. However, his exit was not shown during the season finale, so could he be back?
“Everything’s kind of up in the air on that front,” Newman told Us. “We love Ritter and we’d love to play with him, see him again.” She hinted that his goodbye could be a “big explosion or a fun, twisty story.”
Chicago Fire episodes are available to stream on Peacock.
