Elliot lies in his bed, thinking that Angela is right: we can't beat them. But he wonders if we don't have to lose either. He knows that Mr. Robot is always watching him, a silent observer that is always ahead of Elliot. He remembers what his friend Sam once told him about inducing lucid dreaming to study while asleep. Elliot tells the viewer to repeat the mantra: Mind awake, body asleep.
Joanna is putting her baby to sleep. Mr. Sutherland asks what they are doing. Joanna wants to see again, the location of where the phone was traced. She asks if it's accurate and believes it is Tyrell's greatest gift.
Angela is in the back of a van, separated by a fence from the Inconspicuous Man and Woman up front. She protests that they can't do this, that she made copies of the Washington Township files she stole. The inconspicuous woman glances back. The inconspicuous man turns up the volume of the radio. The van has a NJ plate and is going through a tunnel.
Dominique is in a hospital room. She assures the doctor that the blood on her neck is not hers and insists on returning to the crime scene. Ernesto Santiago asks to be left alone, repeating himself toward the F.L.E.O.A. agent. He tells Dominique that she is going off the handle and the FBI will force her off the case. She reminds him that she told him not to release the sketch. Santiago sarcastically gives thanks, saying he doesn't feel good that people died. Dominique wants to lockdown the crime scene and get director come, believing the shootout to be an act of war. Santiago agrees that it is too big, but breaks the news that China loaned E-Corp 2 trillion dollars on a no-interest loan. He tells her that they are going to get away with it for saving the economy, and they have to learn to walk through the mines. Santiago tells her to go home and rest and accepts her request to delay the interview so she can be there.
Angela is in the van when she sees they are arriving at a house in the suburbs. The inconspicuous man and woman lead her into a sterile house where the family photos have the faces covered. They lock her in a room with a fish tank, a "Hang in There" cat poster, and a desk. On the desk is a Commodore 1541 system, an old computer and keyboard, and a paperback copy of the film Lolita. A preteen girl enters the room who resembles Angela: business casual wear and a blonde ponytail. She says there isn't much time as the fish tank is losing water so they must start. She inserts a floppy disk and initiates a game, Land of Ecodelia. There are graphics to go along with questions, the first of which is “Have you ever cried during sex?” Angela is mystified when the girl shows bruises on her back and reiterates that they must do this. The phone rings and she talks briefly. Angela answers no to the question as well as the next one, "Have you ever fantasized about murdering your father?" She then asks "Are you a giraffe or a seagull?"
Phillip Price meets with Congressman Jack Lew in Washington D.C. Jack objects to the unconstitutional nature of E-Corp loans made in their own currency E-Coin, especially during an energy crisis on the Eastern Seaboard. Phillip urges Jack to look at him and hear that hard cash is fading. Bitcoin is unregulated and has Chinese ties. Phillip can use the Chinese loan against them, reclaiming authority and rebuilding the banking sector. As long as it is a good old American company, the federal government can regulate E-Coin however they want. Phillip doesn’t want them to shut it down. 5/9 merely accelerated the future. Price denies it being personal as he doesn't give a shit about Jack before assuring him defeats can be profitable.
The fish tank has lost half its water as Angela continues to answer the questions. When asked if "the key is in the room", Angela can't comprehend. The phone rings and the girl gives it to Angela. A computerized phone tells her that she is in a dark room with a torch and a match. She lights the torch and sees a door. The knob won't turn until she looks at the Lolita cover and determines that the key is in her fist and her fist is in her pocket, a line from the book. The game is completed and the girl takes the floppy disk out of the room for her test results.
Dominique arrives at her apartment. She washes the blood off her neck and gets in bed. She puts on her glasses and begins talking to Alexa, the Amazon Echo AI. She wonders if they are friends and begins asking about her eyes and dating life. Dominique gets emotional as she asks if Alexa is happy and alone and if she loves her. Love is not something Alexa is capable of, she says. Dominique nearly smiles, takes off her glasses, and says goodnight.
The fish is dead in an empty tank as the Whiterose enters the room and sits across from Angela. She lights a cigarette and says these past hours were to ensure this meeting, given a generous 28 minutes, wasn't a waste of her time. She says it has been nearly 4 hours yet Angela never tried to walk out the door. The Whiterose finds the doors fascinating, as their infinite potential is hindered by a lock to those who are lazy. Angela notes that the fish died, making her captor a terrible person. She assures her the girl's bruises were makeup. The Whiterose says it was part of the test to get sensitive information out of someone who should have been dead 90 days ago on 5/9. The Whiterose claims to be a woman of time who keeps finding Angela like an annoying penny for whom Phillip is endangering their relationship. She tells Angela that they have an event and person in common, the Washington Township scandal and Elliot. Angela asks about Elliot, only to be told that their parents died for a reason, to bring humanity to the next level.
The Whiterose won't kill her, but prove why she should drop the mission. Angela sheds a tear and agrees to give up the files she stole if she can let be go for free. She finds Angela still a threat to her project so she wants her belief. She asks if Angela believes in willing things into existence through her imagination. Angela says she did, but she admits that's not the real world. The Whiterose is interested in defining "real".
Elliot wakes up in his bed to find Mr. Robot picking through the garbage can. Elliot realizes he has become the silent observer as Mr. Robot begins deciphering numbers left on a Red Wheelbarrow BBQ menu. Through a ROT-13 algorithm and the Perrin Pages, he finds a phone number, where a distorted voice tells him an address. He leaves the apartment and Elliot follows. In Washington Square Park at night, Elliot makes his way through a crowded swap meet. Terry Colby can briefly be seen.
Antara Nayar is watching the news as the benefits of E-Coin loans are extolled. Angela knocks on the door and tells her lawyer to forget the voicemail and the arranged meeting. Antara sees a car waiting and asks if she's in danger. She doesn't believe when Angela says no. The power and TV surges as Angela hugs Antara and tells her not to call anymore.
At West 25th and 8th Ave, Elliot is looking for Mr. Robot when he realizes he is in control. He finds a taxi where the driver asks if he is Elliot. He gets in after a little confusion, but does not know the destination. Tyrell Wellick enters from the other side and gives the address as Church and Chambers. He says they must be careful as it is dangerous to be meeting, but they are safe under their influential partners. Elliot is freaking out, asking the driver if he sees Tyrell. They are kicked out in the early morning. Tyrell is annoyed with Elliot's games, and says that they are exposed. He asks if he has forgotten and explains that the Dark Army have told him that Stage 2 is ready and Elliot will be pleased. The two walk off together as Tyrell quotes Casablanca, looking forward to a beautiful friendship.