Designated Survivor: Tom Confirms Whether Alex's Death Was an Accident or Not

Once the shock of Alex's (Natascha McElhone) death in the midseason finale of Designated Survivorwore off, we were left with a major question: Was her death merely an accident, or part of something bigger? This is a conspiracy thriller after all, so it's not unreasonable to think the car that T-boned the First Lady's motorcade did it on purpose, especially with Alex's legal battle with FBI director Forstell (Reed Diamond) over potential bribes and the ghost of alt-right terrorist Patrick Lloyd haunting the Kirkmans from the grave.

In this exclusive clip from the winter premiere, we get the real story about what happened to Alex. Or at least the story that Tom Kirkman (Kiefer Sutherland) was told: a driver was texting and ran a red light, killing Alex after he crashed into the vehicle she was in. Hmmm... do we really believe that?

When Designated Survivor returns on Wednesday, Feb. 28, 10 weeks will have passed since Alex's death, and Kirkman is seeing a therapist (Timothy Busfield) to handle his grief. But Kirkman isn't handling his grief well, and that comes out in some contentious therapy sessions.

Designated Survivor Mega Buzz: How Will Personal Tragedy Affect the President?

One thing holding Kirkman back is he never got closure with Alex. If you'll recall, the two spent their last time together arguing, and though Alex left a warm voicemail for Tom happy that she beat Forstell's case, Tom never got to return the favor.

"The lack of resolution is very true to life," showrunner Keith Eisner told TV Guide back in December. "It's very pat to have everything tied up in a bow and have everyone telling each other how much they love each other before going off and something bad happens to one of the parties. That's not life, life is interrupted by death. It's not set up neatly. It's a very difficult thing for the president to realize that he never had the final conversation with his wife that he really wanted to have. And that's something that haunts him."

Let's hope Kirkman can separate his grief and personal life from his responsibilities as president.

Designated Survivor returns Wednesday, Feb. 28 at 10/9c on ABC.