Plot summary
CPS takes Lip (Jeremy Allen White), Ian (Cameron Monaghan), Carl (Ethan Cutkosky), Debbie (Emma Kenney) and Liam, with Brittany (Keiko Agena) not disclosing the identity of the person who reported the Gallaghers. Brittany explains that Carl and Liam will go to the same house, Debbie will be in another home, and Lip and Ian will be sent to a group home for delinquents as they are too old. Carl rebels against his gay adoptive parents, and tries to steal some of their items. Debbie hates her new home, as she is forced to do errands around the house with the other kids.
As Veronica (Shanola Hampton) is unable to ask for custody due to her past encounters with CPS and with Monica nowhere to be found, Fiona (Emmy Rossum) is forced to ask Frank (William H. Macy) to help her case; Frank only agrees to do so as long as he is allowed to move back into the house. Fiona also quits her job at the grocery store when Bobby (Eric Edelstein) refuses to give her time off to look for her siblings. For the petition of custody, Frank is forced to sober up and to formally ask for the permits.
However, his lawyer, Lou Deckner (Alex Borstein), tells him his case will not be taken seriously unless he is accompanied by his wife for the signatures; Frank and Fiona ask Sheila (Joan Cusack) to pretend to be Monica for the petition. While Brittany falls for the ruse, they are still forced to take parenting classes; Frank is also forced to put clean urine in his mouth to pass a drug test. During this, Veronica and Kevin (Steve Howey) are struggling with the surrogacy; Veronica suggests Kevin should have sex with Carol (Vanessa Bell Calloway) to properly impregnate her. Although disgusted, they both agree.
While Lip challenges the orders of the group home's superior, Ian is allowed to leave to continue working at the store and meet with Mickey (Noel Fisher). The two have sex at Mickey's house, but they are interrupted by the arrival of Terry (Dennis Cockrum), who brutally attacks them and holds Ian at gunpoint. He brings in a prostitute, Svetlana (Isidora Goreshter), to have sex with Mickey while forcing Ian to watch. Later, Fiona meets with Brittany, who reports that the paperwork is now approved. When Fiona asks about the anonymous tip, Brittany only refers that it was a man. She then decides to break her protocol, allowing Fiona to listen to the phone call while she leaves for the bathroom. Fiona listens to the file and is shocked upon learning that Frank was the anonymous tip.
Credits
Adapted from Wikipedia contributors, Cascading Failures. Paragraphs and formatting adjusted; illustrations, reference markers, block quotations and non-story material omitted.