“Karma Chameleon” is episode thirteen of season one of Timeless.
In the previous episode, “The Murder of Jesse James”, Flynn found the person he was looking for in the 19th century – Emma Whitmore, a former pilot of the mothership who had supposedly died in an accident, according to Anthony. She said that when she found out what Rittenhouse wanted to use the time machine for, she faked her own death and essentially hid, and that even Anthony doesn’t really know what they want to do with it. Rufus had recognised her name when they found her uniform, and told Mason about it, and Jiya, whilst poking around on the servers, had also found out about Whitmore’s death. At the end of the episode Wyatt asked Rufus to, basically, steal the time machine so that they could go back in time to prevent the murder of Wyatt’s wife, Jessica. A pretty big ask really, as they can’t go back to the time of the murder – or even particularly close (as in decades out).
This episode opens with Wyatt arriving at Lucy’s house late at night. He wants to tell her that he and Rufus are stealing the lifeboat tonight to save his wife. Lucy wants to come with them, but Wyatt says she can’t risk her own deal with Agent Christopher to get Lucy’s sister back. Wyatt is going back to prevent the murderer’s parents meeting. So he won’t be born and Jessica, as well as two other women, will live. Wyatt wants Lucy to call Christopher and tell her everything, after a 20 minute head start.
Wyatt is pretending to take Rufus as a hostage to pilot the lifeboat, so that he has plausible deniability – even though Rufus thinks it won’t look convincing. Mind you, it worked in “Pilot” when Flynn pretended to take Anthony hostage. They’re heading back to 1983, which is the same year that Rufus was born. The killer’s parents met on a one night stand, so it wasn’t exactly a serious relationship. She is a stewardess, but when they get back to the past, the flight was 20 minutes early. Something Wyatt didn’t know, even with his extensive research on the serial killer. So they missed the mother, and arrive too late to prevent the meeting. Wyatt is managing to keep them separate, but the weather isn’t co-operating – they all get stuck in a hotel because of a serious storm and a tornado warning.
Christopher is not happy with Wyatt when Lucy tells her what he’s done, and certainly doesn’t believe the plausible deniability, but Lucy says she can’t blame Wyatt, she would do the same for her sister – and Christopher would do the same for her family.
Whitmore explains to Flynn what Rittenhouse wants to use the time machine for – off-camera, so we don’t know it. At least, not at this point. Anthony says this is an existential threat to reality, and Emma suggests they destroy the mothership and the lifeboat. Anthony says it’s not a bad idea, given the threat, but Flynn stays they stick with the plan. So Anthony rings in wanting to speak to Rufus, but Rufus isn’t there as he’s back in 1983. So he says that he will speak to Lucy instead, and wants to meet face to face, alone – because he also has a plan to end this.
Things are getting out of control in the past and in the present Lucy gets some shocking news.