"Hmmm…" Todd thought. "Christopher Ewing's wife. She actually might be quite useful." Todd put out his cigarette, and walked over to Karen.

"Excuse me," he said. "Do you have a light?"

Karen looked up, and immediately recognized Todd from the café where she first saw him when Eric asked her to dinner. She was fascinated by his manner then, and she was now. He seemed so confident.

"No, I'm sorry. I don't smoke, just a habitual caffeine user."

Todd smiled. "Well, it's actually better that you don't. These things will kill me." He paused. "I've seen you before somewhere, but I can't put my finger on where."

"It was in that little café on Mulberry. I was upset about a fight with my husband, and you told me that life was a bitch. It made me smile."

"Well, then I'm glad. How are things going with you two? Better, I hope."

"To be honest, not really. I haven't spoken with him in days. I guess he's got other things going on, although I don't know what's more important than his wife. That's the way the Ewings work I guess." Todd saw a perfect opportunity.

"Did you just say Ewing?" He asked, pretending to be surprised by Karen's relationship to the family.

"Yeah. Let me guess, you've heard of them? Seems everyone has—or slept with one of them." Todd laughed. It made Karen smile.

"Actually, I used to be one of them, in a really twisted sort of way."

Karen was shocked. "What?!"

"My mother was once married to Bobby Ewing, but she's dead now."

"Oh my God. Bobby is my father-in-law." Karen thought back to the name of Bobby's dead wife. "Your mother was April Stevens? Christopher never told me she had a son."

"Well, no one knew—I didn't even know—until recently. April had me when she was young and put me up for adoption. I just learned about her a few months ago."

"Whoa. The Ewings are constantly surprising me, but that one's a doozy. I'm Karen Ewing. Bobby's son, Christopher, is my husband. Although I'm really not sure for how long."

"Well Karen, my name is Todd Foster. It is a pleasure to meet you."

Karen smiled. She really liked Todd. "Do you want to go get a cup of coffee? I feel the need to recharge my caffeine batteries again. Maybe we could find you a light too. Hell, maybe I'll have one. I've got nothing to lose."

Todd laughed. "I'd like that a lot." The two walked off together, and Todd thought "Perfect."

"You comfortable?" said J.R., from his seat across from Sue Ellen. He had opted to take the new Ewing Jet, which would be quicker and would save a lot of hassle.

"Yes J.R., I'm fine." She noticed J.R. eyeing her. "And J.R., honey…"

"What?"

"Don't think anything is going to happen between us just because we're alone on your little jet."

"Oh, the thought never crossed my mind," said J.R. with a sly grin. "So, how have you been? I feel like I've hardly known you the past few months."

"I've been fine, other than the last week or two."

J.R. could sense a tone of sadness in her voice and he knew that she was thinking about Dusty. "What was wrong with Dusty?"

"Cancer. It had spread to his brain and couldn't be stopped. While I was in Dallas for Christmas, he overdosed on his painkillers. I should have been there for him."

"Don't say that Sue Ellen," said J.R., "John Ross needed you here too."

"I know. Now he's in trouble too. What if he ends up the same way!"

"He's not going to. I love that son of mine more than anything else on this earth. I'll do everything in my power to save him."

Sue Ellen managed a laugh and her old personality began to show through the tears. "Now J.R., if you love him so much, why did you swindle him out of his 25% of Ewing Oil after the wedding?"

"You know I deeply regret that! After all, I did give that back." J.R. grew silent. "Which is why he's in this situation in the first place."

Sue Ellen glanced out the window as they left Dallas behind them. "Don't blame yourself either. We've both put John Ross through hell most of his life…my drinking, our constant bickering. It's a miracle he's turned out as nice as he has. But we're going to get to him before Akbar does."

J.R. moved over to the seat beside Sue Ellen and put his arm around her. "Sue Ellen…"

"Back off J.R. Remember what I told you. You wouldn't want to have a free skydiving lesson, minus the parachute now would you?"

J.R. moved back to his seat and laughed. "Well, you've still got your spunk, I'll give you that much."

"Spunk is something I had to have a lot of to live with you J.R."

"Would you like a drink?" asked J.R.

Sue Ellen cringed when she thought about how close she had come to going back to drinking after Dusty's death. "No thanks."

"So how are you feeling?"

Pam looked at her friend and smiled. "I'm feeling great, the pregnancy is going well. Ryanne, I'm so glad that you invited me out today."

Dr. Ryanne Hancock grinned back at her. "Pam, you and I haven't had a chance to talk properly since before you and Bobby got remarried. I thought a girls' day out was just what we needed. Besides, I wanted to congratulate you on the new baby. I know how long you and Bobby wanted this."

Pam took a sip of her ice tea. "Seems like forever. But the main thing is that I am pregnant and I finally have all that I wanted."

Brushing a stray blonde hair away from her face, Ryanne held up her glass. "So a toast then. To a wonderful future for you, Bobby and this eagerly awaited little baby."

Pam nodded and the two women tapped their glasses. "To the future."

As she allowed the waitress to serve them their meals, Pam felt a pain behind her eyes. As she rubbed her temples, another memory came rushing back.

"What's this for?"

He smiled. "For being you, finally being my wife."

She glanced up at him. "I really don't know how you've put up with me. Through all the surgeries."

He smiled, tilting his head to study the vision before him. Pam was dressed in a white silk evening gown. The gown just skimmed here and there before collecting in a pool on the floor. Her hair was loose around her shoulders and to him, she had never looked as beautiful as she did now.

He still found it hard to believe that she had come to him. That she had even found him. As he sat by her bedside, he promised that he would never leave her side and would pay her back for the strength she gave him.

"Well?"

He turned her around to put her gift around her neck. In the mirror, Pam saw it was an eternity symbol on a delicate gold chain. Once it was done up, he pressed his lips to her neck. Pam smiled and rested her hand on his cheek.

"It is just simply for you."

She shivered as Ryanne asked if everything was all right. Pam smiled and picked up her fork.

"Everything's fine. Just more hungry than I thought."

"I've been wondering something. Southfork is going to be repaired soon. The construction crews are almost finished. Will you be moving back in when they're done?"

Sue Ellen turned back to the window. "I don't know J.R. A part of me will always want to stay at Southfork, but I don't know if its such a good idea. I should find my own place."

"Nonsense. There's plenty of room at Southfork. Momma's not going to take no for an answer either. She'll want you there," argued J.R.

"But the question is, do you want me there? Or do you just feel obligated to let me stay?"

"Sue Ellen, you know I want you there. I'd miss your constant cut-downs during dinner at any rate."

Sue Ellen smiled. "Maybe I'll go back to Southfork then."

"There's something else I've been thinking too," said J.R. "John Ross and I are running Ewing Oil. If you came in with us, it would be a real family business. Now I've got big plans for Ewing Oil. We're going to be bigger than ever. I'm going to be buying up all the companies that I can to make Ewing Oil huge. I need more money to do that. I've got my eyes set on StoneHurst Oil for one, but something tells me Marilee's little sticky fingers won't let go of it for any less than five billion."

"Now that sounds interesting."

"I've even been considering putting some stock out on the market, going public so to speak, but I'm not sure if Ewing Oil is ready to take that step."

"And it would leave Ewing Oil very vulnerable to takeovers," said Sue Ellen, finishing J.R.'s thoughts.

"Right. On the other hand, Ewing Oil could become a close corporation and have privately held stock. No market trading. We'd have a board of directors, with myself as CEO of course. It might be just the thing we need to…"

"Make Ewing Oil a force to be reckoned with."

"Damn, you're pretty good Sue Ellen."

"Have you researched this at length? I don't think Ewing Oil needs to jump into anything that hasn't been completely thought out and attacked from every possible angle. You'd also have to get Gary and Jack's consent on their 15% before anything could be done. They'd also have to appoint someone to represent their shares on the board, or else be forced to travel back and forth from California to Texas."

J.R. smiled. "Is that what living with me all these years has done to you?"

"Yes."

"I like it."

"Good," said Sue Ellen. "We'd need to figure up a set number of board members…but I'm getting ahead of myself. First Ewing Oil needs to raise the money. You'd need a substantial amount of liquid assets to pull off takeovers of the smaller companies…"

"You're really excited about this aren't you?"

"Well, I'm just trying to help you out. I don't even own any of Ewing Oil anymore."

"Sue Ellen, we're forgetting why we're on this jet in the first place. After we handle this Akbar deal, then we'll worry about Ewing Oil."

"You're right J.R. Maybe after that's taken care of, we can all spend a little relaxation time in Hawaii. It might do us all good."

"That is a damned good idea."

Pam had just arrived back at the hotel when a voice called out. "Mrs. Ewing?"

She turned around and saw a courier coming towards her, with a package. Pam smiled. "Yes?"

"This is for you." He handed it over and indicated where on the clipboard she was to sign. She smiled and took the package. "Thanks."

She finished gathering her packages and went inside.

In the Mercedes that had followed her back to the hotel, the PI punched in a phone number. "Hi, it's me. She just received the package."

The person on the other end smiled and said thank you, before hanging up.

The telephone rang, and Carla picked it up on the third ring.

"Hello?" She said.

"Carla, its Eric. Listen, I'm going to need you to make an appearance soon."

"You keep the paychecks rolling, I'll do whatever you want. I have a doctor's appointment this week though. You going to come daddy?"

"I'll pay for it, but I don't want to be part of that baby's life. It's probably not even mine."

"First of all, it IS yours. Contrary to popular belief, I don't sleep around. Second of all, you better pay for it, and anything else I want, or Christopher Ewing gets told everything."

"Fine, whatever you need. Listen; just keep your schedule open. Karen's really starting to view me as more than a friend. I can see it in her eyes, but she still loves Christopher. I can just sense it. You are going to make sure that does not continue."

"Like I said, whatever you need. Now, if there's nothing else, I feel like going shopping. At your expense of course. Bye."

Eric Stone hung up the phone and swore to eliminate the Carla problem once Karen was his.

Bobby was reading over some files when Phyllis came in carrying a big manila envelope.

"Bobby, this just arrived for you via the courier."

He looked up and took the envelope from her. "Thanks Phyllis. You can go on home now."

Once she was gone, he turned it over and read the envelope. There was no address or name of a sender on it. Only his name and Northstar Oil.

He opened it and a bunch of materials came out. From what he could see, there was a note, a tiny eternity charm on a chain.

He unfolded the note and began to read:

How well do you really know your wife?

YOU have to make her come home to Paris.

You need to know the truth about Pamela's missing years, Mr.Ewing

YOUR wife is NOT as truthful as she appears.

"Wow," said John Ross, taking in the surroundings of the room. "This is a nice place."

Pamela Rebecca followed him into their room at the Kiwi Acres Bed and Breakfast. "I'd hope it would be more than nice, especially after that price. Ooh, look, a water bed. That should be a lot of fun."

John Ross grimaced at the thought of spending the night on one of those with Pamela Rebecca. "Yeah."

"The view is spectacular!" Palms waved lazily in the afternoon breeze and the beach was right down the hill from their room. "And I hear there are a few nude beaches here as well," laughed Pamela Rebecca.

John Ross pretended not to hear her. "I'm so tired after the flight. Why don't we take a little nap?"

"Yeah. Then we'll be ready to party. I hear some of the clubs here stay open all night."

John Ross forced a smile and lay down on the bed, closing his eyes. Pamela Rebecca lay down on the other side. The warm, salty air that blew in through the opened window soon lulled them both into a deep slumber.

"And your wife won't be joining you sir?"

"No," said Akbar. "I am single. I will be staying by myself."

"Okay, I see. It's just that we don't get many single people staying here at the Bed and Breakfast."

"My key please," said Akbar, irritated.

The dark-haired woman, who was wearing a lei, handed over the room key to Akbar. "Thank you for staying with us Mr. Farris."

Without replying, Akbar took the stairs to the second floor, passing by John Ross and Pamela Rebecca's room as he went. He didn't stop. That work would be done later.

Several hours later, a crash from upstairs sounded and John Ross opened his eyes, temporarily forgetting where he was. "I've got to get out of here," he said to himself. He stood and went into the other room to change. Maybe a swim would do him good. A few seconds later, he was walking down the ramp and over to the pool, but he opted for the hot tub instead, which was more secluded and surrounded by palms on three sides. He wanted to be alone right now—didn't want Pamela Rebecca to find him.

He slid down into the water until it came to his neck, then closed his eyes, trying to pretend Pamela Rebecca was hundreds of miles away, maybe in the Himalayas.

About thirty minutes passed and John Ross was on the verge of sleep when the rustling of palms behind him jerked him back into reality. He craned his neck to see what it was. "Oh my God!"

J.R. stood and got a blanket out of the storage area of the jet. Sue Ellen was asleep and it was cool in the jet, so he covered her in the blanket, taking a second to notice how beautiful she was. "How could I have been such a fool?" he said softly. "I let you slip right through my fingers so many times."

He returned to his side of the jet and reclined his seat, hoping to catch a few hours of sleep before they landed. He and Sue Ellen both would need all the rest they could get, because he knew there was trouble for them all ahead.

Bobby lay in bed, his arm wrapped around Pam, who was nestled closely to him.

"So how did lunch with Ryanne go?"

Pam smiled and looked up at him, resting her chin on his chest. "It went well, I forgot how much fun she was." The smile faded from her lips as she took a deep breath. "Bobby, I have to tell you something."

He suddenly thought back to that note and nodded. "What is it sweetheart?" He ran his hand through her hair and smiled. "You know Pam, you can tell me anything."

Pam turned on her side. "I've been having more and more flashbacks. I don't know if they're memories or if they're hallucinations from the time that I was away. To be honest, they are really beginning to scare me."

Bobby planted a kiss on her lips and wrapped his arms around her. "Do you want to talk about them?"

She shook her head. "Not yet. I just need to make sense of them." She looked at him. "I shouldn't have said anything to you. You must think I'm nuts."

Bobby smiled. "You married into this family, that proves that your stronger than most. If you want to talk, I'm here. We can get through whatever your past is. If you want to talk to a professional, I'm sure Ryanne can help."

Pam nodded, snuggling in closer.

"Now, you need to get some rest. When this baby is born, you and I won't be resting for years."

Pam laughed and fell promptly asleep. Bobby however, had no such luck.

"What? You're not glad to see me?"

"Melissa! What the hell are you doing here?" said John Ross, standing.

"Well. I decided I just couldn't bare being away from you for so long. So I took a short leave from the force to come be with you. I would have told you, but I wanted it to be a surprise."

"It's a surprise alright," said John Ross smiling, "But you know I'm here with Pamela Rebecca. How are we going to…"

"Sshhh, you look lonely. Any room for me in that hot tub?" Melissa was wearing a skimpy and very revealing bikini. She tossed her blonde hair behind her shoulders and untied her bikini top, flinging it back into the shrubs.

"Yeah, plenty of room," said John Ross.

A few minutes later, John Ross' swimming trunks, as well as the rest of Melissa's bikini were lying next to the hot tub and she and John Ross kissed as they sank deeper into the steamy water.

"If I had known I was getting this kind of welcome, I'd have come sooner."

"What…if Pamela Rebecca sees us?" worried John Ross.

"Don't worry about her, just relax."

"You're right. I don't care anything about Pamela Rebecca. I definitely don't love her."

As John Ross and Melissa made love in the hot tub, Pamela Rebecca watched from the balcony, tears falling from her eyes. "John Ross, how could you do this to me? I thought you loved me."

She turned and ran back to their room, running into Mumarik Akbar. "Well. It looks like I don't even have to go searching. The Ewings will run right to me," he laughed.

Pamela Rebecca was going to let out a scream, but he clasped his hand over her mouth, muffling the sound.

Screen freeze on Pamela Rebecca's face

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