Chicago Fire has made a habit of cutting certain characters from certain episodes in season 13. It's something that was introduced in years prior, but season 13 has really upped the frequency rate at which long-standing characters are excluded from the show for a week at a time.
Stella Kidd (Miranda Rae Mayo) is the latest example. The character is nowhere to be found in the episode "Permanent Damage," which airs Wednesday, April 23. Now, her absence may be a little bit more concerning than usual, given the recent announcement that Chicago Fire characters Darren Ritter (Daniel Kyri) are Sam Carver (Jake Lockett) will soon be written off the show, but there's no reason to stress about Kidd's future.
Stella Kidd is attending a course in Maryland
As confirmed by NBC, Kidd is missing in action because she is attending a leadership course at the National Fire Academy in Maryland. The character is always striving to get better, and given that she is one of the highest-ranking firefighters at 51, her decision to take the course makes total sense.
Interestingly enough, Kidd does play a peripheral role in the main storyline for "Permanent Damage." Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney) investigates "an old house fire from 10 years back," and the victims who seemingly lost everything in the process. The house fire was investigated by Kidd a decade back, but Severide pushes deeper, and discovers some details that initially flew under the radar.
It would have been fun to have Kidd on hand to relay what she remembered about the investigation, but given how much the synopsis and the promo emphasis Severide Violet (Hanako Greensmith), we can understand why writers felt it would be a good time to sit Kidd on the bench. The good news is that the veteran firefighter will be back in action for the May 7 episode, "Cut Me Open."
The character will return on May 7th
The synopsis for the episode confirms that Kidd and her husband, Kelly Severide (Taylor Kinney), will be meeting with the other of a child that they wish to adopt. The adoption storyline has been the main thrust of the season for the couple, and the fact that they are getting closer to making their dreams of becoming parents a reality means that we will likely see an adoption take place before the end of the season.
Chicago Fire showrunner Andrea Newman told TV Line that Stellaride are going to be getting some major news regarding their adoption, and can infer based on the "Cut Me Open" synopsis the episode will be a step towards realizing this news. "What happens then, viewers have to tune in to find out!"