Scabs (Hell on Wheels)

"Scabs" is the fourteenth episode of *Hell on Wheels* and the fourth of its second season. It first aired on AMC on September 2, 2012. John Wirth wrote the script, and Catherine Hardwicke directed. The story pushes forward the tension between the railroad’s management, its laborers, and the Sioux, while also deepening the personal arcs of Cullen, Elam, and Eva.

The episode opens with the Sioux torturing a railroad sentry named Fleming near a cutting site. Cullen shoots Fleming dead from a distance, and the Sioux scatter. Back in camp, Reverend Cole begs for a drink from bartender Carl. Cullen buys him a round and asks him to deliver a eulogy for Fleming, but Cole says Ruth now runs the church and he sleeps in the cemetery. Cullen offers him a place in his caboose. The crew returns early from work, and when Cullen orders them back, Toole refuses, citing safety concerns. Cullen threatens to make camp unsafe for them if they don’t comply, but Toole holds firm. In the railway office, Lily suggests rerouting the line to avoid Sioux sacred land. Cullen argues the Sioux will always be a threat and it’s better to fight them now.

Eva tells Elam she is pregnant with his child. He is upset at first but later declares his love for her. He offers her money for an abortion, fearing Toole would kill her and the baby if he found out, but she refuses. At the saloon, the crew holds a wake for Fleming. Cullen enters to pay respects and urges the men back to work. Psalms and the Freedmen arrive, offering to protect the railroad if armed with rifles. The room objects, and Cullen says Durant would never arm former slaves. Psalms and Toole declare a strike until their demands are met.

The next day, the town burns an effigy of Durant. Durant gives Cullen full authority to resolve the situation. Elam warns Psalms that the Freedmen will get themselves killed playing with guns. Psalms counters that they will never be seen as equals without weapons. Toole comes home drunk and gropes Eva. She pushes him away and announces she is pregnant, and the child is not his. Toole grabs his bag and leaves. Cullen telegraphs Council Bluffs, Iowa, requesting 200 replacement workers. Elam predicts bloodshed and tells Cullen he won’t clean up after him. Cullen says Elam will do whatever Durant tells him to.

Outside his tent, the Swede prophesies a war to Reverend Cole.