EPISODE #2013-192 Part #2
“Let’s get one thing straight.” Figuring turnabout was fair play, Marley barged in on Dennis at Russ’ house the same way Iris had done earlier with her at the art gallery. “If you or anyone else in your family wants to speak with me, make an appointment. Call first. Or, better yet, don’t. How about you stay away from us, we stay away from you, and everybody lives happily every after.”
“A little late for my daughter to live happily ever after, wouldn’t you say?”
“She’s pregnant, Dennis, not terminally ill. Women have been known to survive the condition and go on to live rich, full lives for several centuries now.”
“How is my daughter supposed to live a rich, full life when she is stuck taking care of a child? Your husband’s child.”
“Sarah had options. She could have had an abortion. She could still give the baby up for adoption. Or, she could have kept her legs shut and saved everyone a lot of heartache.”
“Same goes for Grant keeping his fly zipped.”
“Good. So now that we’ve determined where babies come from, let’s go back to my original point: Keep your mother and your daughter and your ill-chosen one night stand away from my family. And keep your fists to yourself.”
“Grant had it coming.”
“You’re lucky he didn’t charge you with assault.”
“And end up back on the front page? Not likely.”
“Grant isn’t afraid of what having his private business make the local news will do to him. He’s protecting me.”
“Is that what they’re calling breaking your wedding vows these days?”
“You worry about your daughter. I’ll worry about my wedding vows.”
“If you’d done both in the first place, none of this would be happening,” Dennis accused.
“I’m sorry,” Marley said. “I am so sorry, Dennis, that I somehow failed to find time to snap a chastity belt on your daughter. Maybe it’s because I was too busy trying to keep her from going to jail for helping kidnap Gregory so he could commit suicide. Or maybe it was from holding her hand after Steven dumped her and she was devastated. Or maybe, maybe it was because I still managed to do it while having a nervous breakdown that landed me in Clareview after I almost killed Lorna and her unborn child, then tried to run off with Michele and Bridget, all after someone attempted to murder me in a garage filled with carbon monoxide. I don’t know what’s kept you from looking after your kid over these past three years, but that’s my excuse!”
“Marley….” Dennis looked strapped for words. “I – I didn’t know… Honestly, I – I mean, I heard about Lorna’s accident, but I didn’t realize you were the one…”
“Yeah. They kept it quiet. For the girls’ sake, not mine.”
“Someone tried to kill you?”
Marley shrugged. “That’s what happens when your mother goes on television to provoke an international criminal cartel. Not that anyone believes me. They’re all sure I tried to commit suicide and made up the story about an attempt on my life.”
“Who do you think did it?”
“Who cares? Some anonymous compound thug. Considering the same organization also kidnapped Kirkland and killed Spencer, I got off pretty easy in the great scheme of things.”
“And about what happened with Gregory, I only found out after the fact. Sarah didn’t call us when she was arrested or – “
“I know. She called me. I bailed her out and I took her home and I hired her a lawyer.”
“I am very, very appreciative of everything you’ve done, Marley.”
Her snort of derision was truly worth a thousand words.
“I’m sorry, I – It’s just when I heard about Sarah and Grant….”
“You think I was ecstatic to learn the news?”
“No. Of course not. That’s why… That’s why I don’t understand – “
“What?”
“Any of this. I don’t understand how you could have let it happen.”
“Alright, this is where I came in.” She turned to go.
“And I don’t understand how you can stay with Grant after everything that has.”
The change in subject brought Marley up short, leaving her to stutter, “He’s my husband.”
“He had an affair with your babysitter. She’s pregnant.”
“Not an affair. A moment of weakness. He’s… a man.”
“I had a moment of weakness with Olivia. You and I weren’t even together then. And finding out about her and Sarah was enough for you to….”
“Olivia was just one of our problems. Let’s not rewrite the past.”
“You had a hard time accepting her in my life.”
“I was younger then, Dennis, alright?” Marley snapped. “I was still young enough to believe that life held endless possibilities and the right man was just around the corner. That I would know him the minute I set eyes on him. That he would sweep me off my feet and we would live happily ever after.”
“I wanted to be that for you,” he said softly.
“It was a stupid, immature fantasy,” she reminded. “You couldn’t have lived up to it. No man could have.”
“Grant….”
“Grant was there for me when nobody else cared enough to try. He covered up my role in Lorna’s accident, and he was ready to sacrifice everything to help me run off with Michele and Bridget. He gave up legal custody of Kirkland so Jamie wouldn’t press charges. Do you know how devastating that was for him?”
“Actually, turning his back on his kids seems to be Grant’s M.O. these days.”
“Kirkland was different. Grant came back to Bay City for Kirk. He fought for him, he loves him. But, he gave him up to save me. Do you have any idea how much I owe him for that?”
“Is that why you’re sticking by him? Because you think you owe him?”
“Grant waited for me to get out of Clareview. He didn’t turn his back the first time I made a mistake. Or the second or the third. Don’t you think I owe him the same kind of loyalty?”
“Loyalty isn’t love, Marley.”
“Thanks for the tip.”
“Do you love him?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“Does he make you feel…”
“Stop it, Dennis.”
He took a step forward. Then another. Then another. “Does he make you feel… the way that I did?”
He was towering above her now. The heat from his body saturating her skin. Right before he kissed her. And saturated Marley’s insides with warmth of a completely different kind.
“Help me!” Allie insisted, desperately clinging to the edge of the broken ice as the rest of her body remained submerged in the frigid waters below. “Help me, Charlie!”
The girl who’d driven Allie into the woods until she’d fallen through the half-frozen lake remained on the bank, just watching, her face completely neutral.
“Come on, Charlie, enough is enough. You wanted to scare me? You’ve scared me. I can’t hold on much longer. Help me. Please.”
Charlie took a step forward. Then shook her head, and walked away in the opposite direction.
“Lila thinks I am trying to turn her precious child into a whore?” Donna summarized the gist of what Matt was trying to tell her, and zeroed in on the part that applied primarily to her. “Why, I never!”
“That’s not what Lila said. It’s not what I said, either. Lila just wanted to make it clear that you were not to interfere with how we’re raising Jasmine.”
“A few innocent hours spent entertaining Jasmine and her friends is hardly what I would call interference!”
“Your make-overs went too far.”
“The girls had a lovely time!”
“I’m sure they did. And maybe the other mothers didn’t have a problem with it. Lila does.”
“Then Lila should deal with her problem, not punish myself and Jasmine.”
“You know how Lila grew up, Donna.”
“Her mother was a lady of the evening, was she not?”
“She was. Which is why Lila is so sensitive on the subject. Because of her mother, Lila lost her innocence way before she had to. She doesn’t want that happening with Jazz.”
“Ah, so I misunderstood earlier. It’s not that Lila believes I tried turning Jasmine into a whore, it’s that she sees me as one.”
“She doesn’t think you’re a great role-model for Jasmine,” Matt conceded.
“And yet Lila was perfectly happy to allow Jasmine to hero-worship Lorna! Talk about a negative example! Why, when Lorna was Jasmine’s age….”
“We’re not talking about Lorna. We’re talking about you.”
“Will Lila be banning Rachel from spending time with the child shortly then, too? After all, Rachel’s past exploits are hardly the stuff of fine role-modeling.”
“You’re changing the subject, Donna,” Matt sighed, more resigned than angry.
“I love you, Matthew.”
“I know that.”
“Which means I love your daughter, too.”
“That’s very sweet of you.”
“I only want what’s best for Jasmine.”
“We all do.”
“Please tell Lila that she has nothing to worry about where Jasmine and I are concerned. Her message has been received loud and clear. I know exactly what my role as stepmother should be from now on.”
“GQ?” Kirkland knew he shouldn’t be using his cell-phone while driving, but this was an emergency. Kind of. Maybe. “It’s Kirk Frame. Steven’s brother.”
“Hey, Kirk. You looking for Steven? Sorry, he isn’t at the lab with me.”
“Oh. Yeah. I needed to ask him a favor, but he’s not answering his phone.”
“I’ll let him know you’re looking for him if I see him.”
“Actually, this kind of won’t wait. I – Can I ask you to do something for me?”
“Depends on what it is.”
“Steven told me once that there’s this way to figure out where somebody is using their cell-phone? Is that true?”
“You can sometimes triangulate a location, yeah.”
“Do you know how to do that?”
“I do…” GQ said slowly. “What’s this about?”
Kirkland sighed, embarrassed to be admitting as much. “It’s my girlfriend, Charlie. Her mom can’t find her, and she’s kind of worried. I’m kind of worried, too.”
“Why?”
“Charlie’s been acting really weird lately. She’s angry at everybody and she just seems so unhappy. I… I’m scared she might… do something.”
“Like what?”
“I don’t know,” he confessed. “But, I got a bad feeling about this. And it’s not just a Star Wars reference, you know? I need to find her. Just to make sure she’s okay. Can you help me?”
“Thanks for watching the girls,” Jamie told Steven upon coming home. “Their regular nanny is off for the holidays, and I didn’t want to impose on Felicia or Alice again. I’ve done enough of that lately, as it is.”
“No problem. Though, I got to say, those two really keep you on your toes. I don’t think I sat down once the whole time I was here. Devon must have had me take every single toy out so she could look at it and decide that’s not what she wanted, after all.”
Jamie grinned. “They’re a handful, alright.”
“You managing okay, Dad?”
“One day at a time.” Jamie was damned if he’d worry his kids anymore than he already had. “ Where are the girls now?”
“Finally got them down for the night. Though, uh, Devon is kind of still wearing her Princess shoes and crown, and Zee’s got all her stuffed animals in the crib with her. They wore me down.”
“You remember when you would only go to sleep with a different volume of the encyclopedia under your pillow? You thought it would help you learn more?”
“No,” Steven said, blushing to make it clear he most certainly did.
“Thanks for everything, son. I can take it from here.”
“Dad?”
“Yeah?”
“I… uhm… I wanted to apologize.”
“For what?”
“For what I must have put you through when I claimed I was the father of Sarah’s baby. I figure that’s the last headache you needed on top of everything else you’ve got going on.”
“I appreciate the apology. But, I’ve got to tell you, I knew from the start the baby wasn’t yours. I’d seen Sarah and Grant together last New Year’s, after Kirk’s accident, so I was aware of that relationship. Besides, I know your heart is with Jen.”
“Yeah, well, that’s… you know.”
“In fact,” Jamie hesitated. Then, remembering his vow of not keeping secrets from his boys, confessed. “I’m the one who forced Grant to step up and take responsibility.”
“That was you?” Steven’s eyes widened.
“I let Grant choose: Either he tells Marley the truth, or I go to Chase Hamilton.”
“Why would you do something like that? Jesus, Dad! I could have handled it! I was trying to protect Aunt Marley.”
“Not at your own expense.”
“That wasn’t your choice to make!”
“Call it a selfish choice, then. You’re right. I didn’t need to be dealing with you and Sarah on top of everything else. I did it for me. There. Does that make you feel better?”
“I can look out for myself,” Steven spat. “I don’t need an army of older and wiser dads to come in and make my choices for me.”
“I’m hardly an army, Steven,” Jamie twigged to something being off.
Steven realized the mistake he’d made too, as soon as he heard himself say it, and forcibly changed the subject. “This is just like when you decided to take the blame for Cecile’s murder and go to jail for thirty years.” He suspected that was the one topic capable of distracting Jamie from pressing to figure out what Steven meant earlier. “You made a unilateral call about what was best for everyone, without consulting the people your decision would affect.”
“You’re right,” Jamie conceded. That and nothing else.
“So I guess it runs in the family,” Steven mumbled. “Taking blame for stuff we didn’t do.”
“I respect you trying to protect Marley. And Sarah. And her baby. That’s what I did when I pled guilty. I was protecting Lucas.”
“For Lorna’s sake,” Steven remembered.
“Yeah.”
“You really thought she’d rather have her dad out of prison, than you?”
“Our relationship at the time was… complicated. But, yes. I really did think that it was more important she hold onto her dad, than some guy who’d brought her nothing but trouble up to that point.”
“And did Lorna appreciate it? Afterwards, I mean? Finding out what you’d done?”
“I didn’t do it for the appreciation. I did what I thought would make her happy. Because I loved her. And that, in the end, was all that mattered.”
“Yeah,” Steven sighed, feeling the weight of the past few months come crashing down on his shoulders. “I know what you mean.”
“There!” Riding shot-gun in Kirkland’s car, GQ directed him to the location where his computer indicated Charlie’s cell-phone – and presumably Charlie – could be found. “Right there. Do you see anything?”
Kirkland torqued his windshield wipers up to max, trying to make anything out in the still falling snow. “I think so,” he said. “Look.”
He pointed towards a snow-drift, where it was possible to still make out the shapes of two cars. With nobody in them.
“That’s Charlie’s, alright,” Kirkland observed.
“And that’s Allie’s,” GQ gulped, looking around desperately, wondering, “What the hell is going on here?”
“You wouldn’t,” Rachel informed Alice calmly. “You wouldn’t turn in Jamie. Not even to save yourself.”
Alice merely smiled and, equally calmly, told Rachel, “Neither would you.”
“You think I’m bluffing.”
“No. I think you were hoping Kevin would decide to take care of matters on his own. That way he’d never come to me, and I’d never tell him about Jamie also being involved in covering up precisely how Spencer died.”
“Jamie was only there because of you. You got him into that mess.”
“And Spencer wouldn’t have ended up beaten to death if it weren’t for your husband.”
“Please,” Rachel scoffed. Because it was easier than confronting the real issue. “The three of them were in it together. Carl, Spencer, and Lucas. Each was equally to blame for what happened.”
“Then why was Spencer the only one targeted? After Carl made sure Jeanne reported the compound’s downfall was entirely Spencer’s doing.”
“All three men knew the risks they were facing.”
“Yes, they did. What Spencer and Lucas didn’t know – but probably should have – was that Carl would sell them out at first opportunity.”
“What makes you so certain my husband hasn’t paid his price? Carl’s jet went down in the Atlantic Ocean with my children on board. You honestly think that was an accident?”
“I think,” Alice chose her words with care. “That Carl, Elizabeth and Cory’s deaths have driven you so far off the rails that you no longer have any idea what you are saying or doing. For goodness’ sakes, Rachel, you are threatening innocent children!”
“My children were innocent. That didn’t stop Chase Hamilton from targeting them. All I want is to give him a taste of his own medicine.”
“And Mr. Rivera? What did he ever do to you? Besides start a family with someone you find unpalatable. What did a five year old girl and a four year old boy ever do to you?”
“I didn’t come here to discuss the Hamilton-Riveras. I came here to tell you it won’t work. You can’t use Jamie against me. Because I know, when push comes to shove, you would never do this to him.”
“And I maintain the same thing in return. This isn’t you, Rachel. No matter how hard you’re trying to pretend that it is. You wouldn’t risk destroying your son’s career, his life, sending him to prison… Are you going to leave your granddaughters virtual orphans? You won’t. Not for a vendetta, not for anything.”
“Now you’re the one who’s bluffing.”
Alice shrugged. “How much are you willing to bet on it?”