The world screamed as Eric Stone fell to the ground, unmoving. In all the melee, Karen had been knocked down, and Christopher tried to help her up. Behind her, Donna was trying to get her bearings with Ray's help, and Bobby raced off towards Pam. When Karen managed to balance herself, she and Christopher saw Eric lying on the ground before them, bloody.

"Oh my God!" Karen screamed. "Oh my God!" It was all she could say.

Christopher, despite his hostility to Eric, could see that he was still breathing and was not about to let him die. He called for help, and Ray immediately came to his side. Christopher ripped a segment of his own shirt to cover the wound from Eric's chest that was spewing blood.

"Donna!" Ray yelled. "Get an ambulance, now!"

Donna was off and running, but looking ahead of her towards the pool, she saw that she might not be the only one that might be calling for an ambulance.

The water in the pool grew ever more red and the fighting had stopped. Water sloshed against the concrete sides. Gary Ewing quickly ran over to the pool and jumped in, followed by Cliff and Jack. Gary grabbed Val and pulled her out of the pool. She was shaken, but was not physically harmed.

The crowd barely breathed as they wondered which one had been shot. Jack helped Abby out. She was wet and looked nothing short of frightful with all of her makeup washed off.

Jack held her as Cliff came up with Afton. "Somebody get an ambulance, she's been shot!" he said.

Some of the people in the crowd gasped not because Afton had been shot, but because Cliff Barnes was alive. James helped Lucy out and she looked into the pool where Cliff held Afton., staring in disbelief at what had just happened.

Bobby's world was suddenly filled with sheer terror as he saw Pam fall. He ran to her, fighting his way through a maddened crowd, not letting anyone stand in his way. "Pam!"

"Oh, Bobby," she said in a faint tone of voice.

He picked her up. "What's wrong? Are you hurt?"

"No. I was just having some pains. I'll be fine. I could swear I heard gunshots."

"You did honey, you did. I thought you had been shot. I don't know what I would have done had you been shot. Let's get you in the house."

Bobby took her inside and put her on the couch. "Will you be okay? Should I call Ryanne or one of the other doctors?"

"No, I'm fine. Go find out what all that shooting was about."

John Ross caught the flicker of light that careened off the gun as the assailant pulled back into the Southfork barn. The shooting had caused a huge confusion. People were screaming everywhere. John Ross quickly looked to the pool and saw that his mother was fine. He quickly made his way towards the barn. Nobody seemed to be concerned with WHO was behind the shooting. John Ross pushed his way through the crowd, and sprinted for the barn door.

He saw the woman running from the barn, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible. The glitter of the gun was radiant below her arm. Either she was horrible at concealment, really stupid, or crazy. John Ross quietly ran behind her and tackled her to the ground.

"Get off of me!" the woman screamed, as John Ross managed to get the gun away and throw it towards the side of the barn. He pinned the woman down so he could look at her face. He was shocked as he looked at her. He KNEW her!

Clayton grabbed Ellie before she could fall. "Ellie?"

"Clayton, I'm fine. The heat just got to me I think, but I should go inside and check on Pam. I saw her fall. It could be the baby."

"Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes! Now stop being so fussy Clayton." Clayton watched as Ellie walked into the house.

It was then that he saw her, standing across the crowd, wearing a wide-rimmed hat. "No, it can't be Jessica, she's in a sanitarium."

He began to walk across the crowd, trying to catch up with the woman who had also started walking, only away from him. "Jessica?"

The woman hesitated, but began to walk faster until she was almost running. Clayton picked up his pace too, but he was too slow. Jessica made it to her car and locked the doors. Clayton ran up to the car and looked in. It was Jessica. "Jessie?"

"Clayton."

"What the hell are you going here?"

"Why, Clayton. You should know the answer to that question. I'm here to kill Ellie."

"Oh my God." Clayton flashed back to a few minutes ago when the drinks from Mavis had been served to Ellie. "Oh God no, the drinks."

Jessica laughed. "Yes, I am a smart one aren't I?"

"I'll deal with you later!" Clayton ran back across the grass and to the house.

"Oh Ellie, you should only have a few minutes left now."

Jessica smiled as she drove off in the car that she had stolen. "Ellie!"

"For heavens sake Clayton, what is it? Is everyone okay?"

"No. Ellie, Jessica was here. She poisoned that glass that you drank from. The one that the caterer said was especially for you."

"Oh dear. Jessica? But Clayton, I didn't drink from that glass. Right after it was almost knocked over, I put it back, apart from the others on the table. You already had a drink, and I got two fresh ones for Pam and I."

"How can you be so sure that one of us didn't drink from it?"

Pam had just walked back into the room from getting a drink of water. "You mean Jessica was here and tried to poison you?"

"Apparently so."

"But she failed," said Ellie. "All of us are okay. I'll call the police."

"What I want to know is how in hell she got out of the sanitarium and why we weren't notified."

"I'm sure that and all of our other questions will be answered when Jessica is in custody."

It was Pamela Rebecca's grandmother. What was her name? Arliss? John Ross had seen a lot of pictures of her, and heard Afton and Pamela Rebecca talk about her. What was she doing here? With a gun?

"Let me go, let me GO!" Arliss screamed, and in a shocking burst of strength, threw John Ross off of her.

John Ross got up instantly, assuming she would flee, but was surprised when Arliss just curled up, clutching her knees to her chest. She rocked back and forth continually, chanting almost incoherently. John Ross tried to make out what she was saying:

"HadtokillthatbitchLucy.Hadtokillher.Lucy.Cliff.Hadtokillthem.Hadtokill…."

She continued like that for a few minutes. From what he could make out, Arliss was aiming for Lucy. Why? And Cliff, was he alive? It sounded as if he was out the barbecue, but the way Arliss talked, it was as if she saw him, and was aiming for him, but hit someone else instead.

Once again, J.R. found Mandy Winger. "Mandy, I'm sorry I ran off like that."

"It's okay J.R."

"So will you be staying in Dallas?"

"My show is called Dallas Dish."

"Stupid question I guess."

Mandy laughed. "Dallas is a big town. Chances are, we may never cross paths again."

"Is that what you want?" said J.R.

"No. No it's not what I want."

"And it's not what I want either." "That sounds good. I'll look forward to hearing from you."

Mandy kissed J.R. "Goodbye."

"Bye Honey."

Marilee Stone stormed into the emergency room of Dallas Memorial Hospital, brushing past the whole Ewing family that was gathered together to hear any news about Pam, Afton, and even Eric.

"Where is my son?!?" Marilee screamed almost hysterically.

A nurse ran over and did her bets attempts to calm her, but it was not until Cliff stepped before her that Marilee was silenced. "Cliff, my God. You're Alive!" She shouted.

"Marilee, I'm so sorry about Eric…."

Tears started to form in Marilee's eyes and she started to shake her head in violent protests of no. "No….No. He's not dead. Eric's fine. You're just overreacting. I mean Cliff, YOU weren't dead, so Eric surely isn't."

One of the attending doctors to Eric walked over, taking Marilee aside. "Ms. Stone, Eric is not dead. In fact, I've just come out of surgery and we've got him stabilized. He's still out from the anesthesia, but he'll pull through. I don't know what kind of damage has been done though, physically speaking. There could be a severing of nerves from the bullet's impact."

Marilee didn't care. Eric was alive. That was all that mattered. Now she had to find out why his father was alive as well.

Bobby walked to the phone to answer it before it woke up anyone sleeping at Southfork. "Hello?"

"I need to speak with Mr. Bobby Ewing please."

"This is Bobby."

"Mr. Ewing, we've found Katherine Wentworth."

"You found Katherine?"

Pam had walked into the room behind Bobby and began to listen.

"Yes, she was hurt in the accident and apparently crawled away, but we found her. She's in St. Francis Memorial here in Paris."

"Okay, thanks for letting me know. We'll be there as soon as possible."

"Katherine's alive?" said Pam, after Bobby had hung up the phone.

"Yes she is. Pack your bags Pam, we're going to Paris to find out what the hell she's up to."

Shortly after Marilee arrived, Pamela Rebecca entered the emergency room as well. She had just heard about her mother's shooting, and her grandmother's arrest. Now she was hearing rumors that her father was alive. What the hell was going on with her family?

After seeing Cliff across the room, Pamela Rebecca knew there was some truth to the rumors. Her eyes welled up with tears. "Oh my God! Daddy!" She screamed and ran across the room into Cliff's embrace. John Ross grew uncomfortable watching this, knowing that a confrontation with Pamela Rebecca would be inevitable.

"Daddy, what's going on? I thought you were dead! What happened? Why did you leave? Is Mom going to be okay? What happened!?" She was in near hysterics.

"Sssssh….Pamela Rebecca, calm down. Everything's going to be OK. I promise you. We'll sit and have a long talk. We just need to hear about your mother first. Then I'll explain everything."

Sue Ellen sat and watched Megan sleep. What a beautiful little girl. So unaware of the horrible events that happened earlier that day. After showing no injury from the shooting, Sue Ellen elected to remain at Southfork and watch Megan while the family went to the hospital. My God, what a day it had been. Horrible. Afton shot….Eric Stone shot also. Pam and Miss Ellie collapsing. And Cliff. He was alive. Sue Ellen felt herself get both nervous and excited at the thought of Cliff. They had been so good together all those years ago. But she made the stupidest mistake of her life, again. She married J.R. How she hated him. The thought of him made her blood boil. His "wooing" of her in order to get the Clifford Group away from her was the last straw. She was sick of being used by him. Sue Ellen was going to strike back, HARD. No idle threats this time. J.R. Ewing was going to hurt.

And he did tell her everything. Cliff told Pamela Rebecca the whole story, of how he really didn't die, of his time in Hawaii, how he was the one that shot Akbar. Pamela Rebecca was both shocked and disgusted. How could he lie to her? She was all alone, all those months, with no one but her infant daughter to be with her. John Ross was to infatuated with Melissa, which was obvious in hindsight, now that he had dumped her. Afton was always too busy with herself and her TV show. Now she was in a coma. Pamela Rebecca could not believe it.

"How could you? You were right there in Hawaii and you didn't even reveal yourself! You're awful! I am disgusted. With this whole family!" What kind of family did she come from, anyway? A father that fakes his death, a mother that's never around, a psychotic grandmother. Pamela Rebecca needed to get away. Her mother was going to be in a coma for a long time. Not that she would need her anyway. Her mother never really seemed to need her.

Pamela Rebecca ignored Cliff's attempts to stop her as she stormed off. She was fuming. It did not help that she ran right into John Ross toward the hospital exit.

"Oh God, this is just what I need," she moaned.

"Pamela Rebecca, listen…." John Ross didn't know what to say. He couldn't stand her, but her mother HAD just been shot. Her grandmother HAD just been jailed. Her father HAD just come back from the dead.

"Shut up John Ross. I don't want to hear it. I hate you. I loved you once, but that's over with. You showed your true colors. Have a happy life with your slut. And don't expect to be seeing your daughter anytime soon." Pamela Rebecca stormed off.

There was another confrontation Cliff knew was inevitable. He and Lucy had exchanged nothing but glances while the events at the barbecue wound down. As she was about to approach him, the ambulance had arrived and he had gone with Afton.

As he was thinking about her, Lucy walked into the doorway of the waiting room. "Cliff, how could you!"

"Lucy, it's not really what you think. I did NOT intend to fake my death!"

"Well it sure looked that way. Care to explain?"

"Things in Dallas were so bad for me. It was Bobby and Pam's wedding, they were both so happy, but my own marriage had been dissolved and you had turned against me. I had no one and couldn't stand to stay at the wedding anymore. So, I went in the house to say goodbye to Megan, then left Pam a note saying that I was going to take a long trip…"

"Wait a minute, you left a note?"

"Of course. I left it in Pam's room."

"That's where the explosion took place. It was probably burned up in the fire."

"I figured that much later. By then, I had already settled down in Hawaii. Things were so good for me Lucy. For once, I was free. Away from the hassles of Dallas and away from J.R. Far, far away. At least I thought I was. He came to Hawaii to chase down Akbar, a former associate of mine. Akbar came to the Clifford Group Research center, where I happened to be spending the day. It was just right across the island from the hotel. Akbar held John Ross and Pamela Rebecca hostage and was about to shoot them, but I killed him first. I had never intended to stay gone so long, not long enough for the time to expire on the will. I wanted to get back to stop control of my company from going to someone else."

"But you still didn't let us know you were alive until now."

"I'm sorry Lucy."

"This is so strange. I thought you were dead, now you're back. Cliff, I love you. I want to marry you."

"No Lucy. I have to take care of Afton. She's my responsibility now."

"You always did give her a little too much of your time, but I understand. I'll go now."

Donna attempted to get some work done on her campaign, although the events of the last day left her shaken. Pam and Miss Ellie were going to be fine, thank god. Eric Stone was as well, although Donna did not really know him that well. Afton was not as lucky.

Ray came in and gave her a kiss on the cheek as she typed at her laptop. "What are you working on?" he asked.

"Campaign stuff. Just making sure I cover all bases."

Ray was a little shocked. There had been a shooting yesterday. "Donna, don't you think that you should wait a while, until the shooting issue has settled. Do you really need to work on your campaign right away?"

"That IS why I'm handling this Ray. The shooting is major news, and I am---I was, er, I WILL be a Ewing. I'm connected to it."

Ray was getting angry. He thought it a bit insensitive of Donna to be working in the face of what happened. He told her so.

Donna stopped typing and looked Ray directly in the eye. "What am I supposed to be doing Ray? This is how I cope. There's nobody for me to take care of, or to watch over. Miss Ellie and Pam are going to be fine. What happened yesterday was just as scary for me as for you. My work helps me deal with this. And I certainly have a lot of it."

She certainly did. The last few days, Donna was campaigning non-stop. The only time they had together was when he proposed to her, and even after that, she had to type up press releases and conduct an interview on the phone. It made Ray feel like he was a side priority. It made him angry. Donna seemed to be engrossed in her work. "I'm going to go out for a little while," he stated, as he made his way towards the door. Donna didn't respond as he walked through the front door. She kept typing.

Eric Stone looked at his toes and tried his hardest to wiggle them. They wouldn't move. Neither would his feet. Or his ankles. Or his legs. Marilee walked in on him while he was deep in concentration.

"Hi" she said.

"Damn! Why can't I move!" he shouted. He was frustrated beyond comprehension.

"That's actually why I'm here. I have good news. I found some place that can help you." Eric raised his eyebrow in curiosity. Marilee went on to explain the clinic that she had found in Upstate New York that specialized in helping paralysis victims recover. After all, the bullet had struck a nerve in Eric's back, but it might not necessarily lead to permanent paralysis. Marilee wanted Eric to have the best care, and this clinic was it. After she had told him all about it, he was still not convinced.

"I hear my father's back," he said.

"Cliff's alive, yes."

"Don't you think its about time that he knew he had a son?"

"No, I don't. Cliff will find out eventually. But you need to get better before you do. Telling him needs to be handled very delicately, so that everything plays to our advantage. You need to walk again, Eric."

Eric thought of Karen. She could never love him if he was in a wheelchair. "I'll go," he said.

Cliff looked up to see Dr. Benson walking toward him. "Doctor? Can you tell me anything?"

"I think I can Cliff. We just got the MRI results back and I'd like to go over them with you."

"Okay."

"We have some damage to the brain Cliff."

"Oh my God."

"It appears as if she's going to be partially paralyzed. As of now, it's still hard to say. She's in a coma. Now, there's a very close friend of mine, his name is Dr. Ralph Roberts. He's the best neurological specialist that I know."

"Well then we need to let him see her."

"He practices in Boston and has lots of facilities for this type of thing. I think it would be to Afton's advantage to have her flown up there for treatment and care, when she's been stabilized of course."

"Whatever is best for my wife."

"Then I'll give Dr. Roberts a call."

"Wonderful."

Sue Ellen approached Cliff, who was sitting outside Afton's hospital room. "Cliff," she said softly. He lifted his head to see her. There was electricity instantly in the air.

Sue Ellen had been thinking of Cliff a lot ever since she discovered that he left her the Clifford Group. She must have been special to him if he felt that strongly to leave a huge conglomerate to her. Cliff was always kind to her. He listened to her. As long as J.R. wasn't around. He interfered with everything.

"Sue Ellen. It's so good to see you." Cliff gave her a hug.

She asked him right away. "Why did you do it?"

"I had too," was all he replied. She didn't really understand, but the look in his eyes told her to leave it at that. He would tell her in time. Sue Ellen tried not to stare at him. Cliff tried to do the same.

Snapping herself to attention, she said, "I just wanted to say how sorry I am about Afton. I also wanted to officially welcome you back. And thank you. For leaving me the Clifford Group in your will. I'm flattered that you had enough faith in me to leave me full control."

"I've always had faith in you." They began to stare again. Sue Ellen stopped herself.

"Well, things haven't changed around here." Sue Ellen tried to fill him on the things that had occurred since he'd been gone: John Ross and Pamela Rebecca's escapade in Hawaii (Cliff confessed his role in saving John Ross, endearing him more to Sue Ellen), Pam's ordeal with Katherine in Paris, the revelation of Todd as April's son, Karen and Christopher's troubles.

"Oh yes, and then there is J.R. Something's never change Cliff. Once you left, and it became apparent that your will was going to leave me the Clifford Group, J.R. made every attempt to sweet talk me so he could get his hands on it. That bastard tried to get me into bed so he could get your company."

Cliff was aware of J.R.'s takeover attempt, but to hear it again just made him all the more furious. "He's going to pay, somehow" Cliff muttered.

Sue Ellen gave a little laugh. "Oh you bet that he's going to pay. I'm going to make sure of it. I'm sick of him and his schemes, everything always working out for him. I'm going to hit him in his Achilles Heel, Cliff. Without his base of power, he's nothing. I'm going to take Ewing Oil away from him."

"Hi," said Karen, entering the room. Eric was startled to hear her voice.

"Karen, what are you going here. I don't want you to see me like this."

"I heard that you were going off to a rehab center. I wanted to let you know something before you go."

"What would that be?"

"I really cared for you when I thought you were a good person. You seemed so sweet and caring. I think I could have eventually grown to love you had your schemes not been revealed."

"But you can still love me! We can be together."

"No, we can NEVER be together now, not after what you put me and Christopher through. You wouldn't even be in this situation if you hadn't been scheming. You wouldn't have rushed into the barbecue like that and been hit by Arliss Cooper's stray bullet."

"I know. I guess I'm paying for it now huh?"

"I guess so. But before you go away, I wanted to let you know that I forgive you. I know you must have some kind of feelings for me, as misguided as they might have been."

"I love you Karen."

"And I like you, that's all. Now goodbye. I hope you get better soon so you can get back to your normal life. I think Lucy really cares for you. Who knows, maybe you two would make each other happy."

"Bye Karen."

Karen left the room, glad she had gotten that off of her chest."

Pamela Rebecca entered onto the Southfork patio unnoticed, just as she had entered Southfork. She was there to pick up Megan, and get the hell out of Dallas. She had given a note to Theresa to give to the family, explaining where Megan was and where she would be. She had visited Cliff yesterday and told him that she was leaving town, with or without his help. She demanded that Cliff find her a position at a Clifford Group owned company out of state, immediately. Knowing how disgusted she was with her family, and that her threat was valid, he quickly found her a position with a small gas company that the Clifford group owned in Boston. He had also told her that her mother would be flown to Boston to receive care, which just worked out all the better for Pamela. She's be able to work up there, as well as be with her mother.

Pamela Rebecca was leaving with Megan on the red eye. She hadn't really said goodbye to Cliff, or John Ross. She had left John Ross a note. If anything went wrong, Cliff knew where to reach her. Pamela Rebecca was not worried about John Ross chasing after Megan. After all, he was not her biological father, so he had no right to her. With his little jaunt around the world with that slut, he'd be too busy to care about Megan anyway.

As she shut the patio door behind her, Pamela Rebecca was not happy to see Sue Ellen approaching her, having just pulled in. "Pamela Rebecca," Sue Ellen began, noticing Megan, "where are you going?"

Pamela Rebecca was sick of Southfork. She wanted to get out, and Sue Ellen was delaying her. "I'm leaving Dallas. Megan's coming with me. Dad got me a job in Boston. You can come visit and see her if you like, but I'm leaving." Everything was going by like a big blur to Sue Ellen. Pamela Rebecca was leaving? With her granddaughter?

"Please! Don't go." Megan was one of the few good things in Sue Ellen's life. "I can find you a job at West Star. Give Dallas another chance. I did---I almost left with John Ross years ago."

Pamela Rebecca sighed right in Sue Ellen's face. "God, I wished you did. Then I wouldn't have met that slimeball son of yours. Why didn't you leave Sue Ellen? Hell, why do you stay here? You're not a Ewing for God Sakes. You don't belong here. Like me. So I'd advise you to get the hell out, while you've still got your sanity. This place is cursed." With that, Pamela Rebecca walked past Sue Ellen, placed Megan in her car, and drove off. Sue Ellen didn't stop her.

Maybe Pamela Rebecca was right, Sue Ellen thought as she walked into Southfork.

The sun had risen over the ranch as Miss Ellie sipped her orange juice and looked at Clayton. She was exhausted from the past few days, and wondered why the events of a few days ago transpired. Obviously, Afton's mother had been disturbed. She was sorry about what happened to Afton. But her family was intact. She looked around at the table and smiled. She did have her family. Ray, Donna, Lucy, Clayton, and J.R. She loved them all so much. She wondered where Sue Ellen, Pamela Rebecca and Megan were. Pam and Bobby had told her earlier about Katherine and their trip to Paris. Theresa had mentioned something about Pamela Rebecca and taking Megan, and about a note, but Miss Ellie said she'd deal with it later. She had tried to convince James and Debra Lynn to stay for a few days, but James had insisted he get back to his work. Everybody seemed to be enjoying his or her breakfast, so Miss Ellie decided to make a little small talk.

"So, Donna," she asked, "How is the campaign going. I must admit that I have been slacking in my duties the last few days, and haven't really spoken to Mavis."

"Well, things are hectic," Donna said. "But coming along." Ray grew uncomfortable at the talk of her campaign. J.R. soon interjected.

"Well, if you ask me Donna, I don't think that Dallas really needs you as mayor." Everyone was shocked at his bluntness.

"Always one for manners" Lucy mumbled

"Excuse me?" Donna asked.

"Frankly Donna, I've been following your campaign darlin', and I really think you're off on some issues. Not that I think Mary Anne Teasdale is anyone to shout about, but she and I seem to think alike on a lot of the same issues."

Donna was getting a little agitated. Miss Ellie shot J.R. a warning look, which he ignored. "Face it darlin, you're proposals really don't help the oil community and you come from an oil family."

"They don't hurt them eitheir, JR" Donna grunted.

"Well, in Dallas, it's all about oil and what you can do for it. This city survives because of oil, and forgetting that is going to cost you the election."

Donna was a little annoyed that Ray remained silent through all of this. Did he agree with JR? JR continued. "And honey, I don't know if you got the greatest record either. You've been married three times, one time to a half-breed and you're making that mistake again…"

"JR! That's enough! Go to work right now. I shouldn't have to discipline you anymore, but obviously you haven't learned." Miss Ellie was stern. "Go!"

JR was getting sick of the atmosphere, so he complied. He left the dining room and got his briefcase from the hall. Donna slipped out of the dining room to use the bathroom and saw JR about to leave.

"JR, I've had enough with your insults and rude behavior. When I'm in office---which would seem to be a likely possibility based on recent polling---I'm going to make sure that you're not such a bigshot anymore. I'm not dumb. I know you payoff judges, cops, whomever you can to make things go your way. Well you can kiss that all goodbye JR, because all your little illegal doings are going to be exposed and terminated once I'm in office. Which I will be." With that, she headed for the bathroom.

JR was a tad shaken.

Meanwhile, back downstairs, John Ross and Melissa were saying their goodbyes to the family before setting off on their trip.

"And John Ross, don't forget to write and send us a postcard," said Ellie, kissing him. "When do you think you'll be back?"

"In time for Christmas at least," said John Ross.

"You two do have a long trip planned then," said Clayton.

"We have a lot of things to do and see," said Melissa, hugging John Ross.

"And a plane to catch in 20 minutes," he said, looking at his watch.

"Bye you two," said Miss Ellie.

"Bye Gramma, bye everybody!"

The rest of the family said goodbye as John Ross and Melissa walked out into the morning sun.

Christopher walked into his office at West Star, stopping to admire the "Christopher Ewing" gold-plated nametag on the door. The stacks of paper on his desk made him do a double-take.

"Doesn't take long for a corporation this size to fall apart," said Christopher.

He began to look through the papers and came across a very intriguing one. A small oil company was up for sale and several of it's holdings were very lucrative. Christopher smiled as he read through the paper. His Dad would be so proud of him if he could pull this one off. His four day vacation had really invigorated him and he was ready to work. Soon, his eyes fell to the bottom of the page, which reminded him that he had until July 1st to respond to the deal.

"Damn!" said Christopher. He picked up the phone and dialed the number at the bottom of the page. "Yes, I need to speak with Richie Braswell please."

Christopher didn't notice when Karen entered the room.

"Mr. Braswell, this is Christopher Ewing at West Star Oil."

"Well, hello Mr. Ewing. This isn't about the sale of my company is it?"

"As a matter of fact, it is. I was hoping you'd be able to extend my deadline. See, I've been on vacation and I just found this."

"I'm sorry Mr. Ewing, but the company is already being sold. The oil business is not a place for vacations. It's a fast-paced, intense roller-coaster ride and you have to keep up with it or you fall behind."

"Can you tell me who you're selling to?"

"Ewing Oil."

Christopher's jaw dropped. "Thank you Mr. Braswell."

Christopher threw the phone across the desk and knocked off the electric pencil sharpener, spilling pencil shavings onto the carpeted floor.

"Christopher, are you all right?"

"Karen, hi. I didn't know you were there."

"What's wrong?"

"I just lost a deal…a very good deal…to Ewing Oil because I've been out of the office for so long. I can't keep this up Karen, I just can't. I'm too young for this…I should be out having fun and going to school, not working five and six days a week at a major oil corporation."

"Things will get better."

"No they won't. I'm contacting my lawyer tomorrow to arrange for the sale of my percentage of West Star. I'm getting out of this while I still can."

Lucy sat at John Ross' desk and smiled. Her deal was almost clinched. She had almost lost it to West Star at one time, but West Star hadn't responded to the offer and they had called her back, accepting her offer.

Despite the earlier happenings with Cliff, her day was really turning out nice. She was about to pull off the biggest deal of the year for Ewing Oil and she had done it all alone. J.R. would be so ticked that she had done it and not him, but she knew deep down that he would also be pleased…pleased that Ewing Oil had acquired Braswell Enterprises.

And now, with John Ross' percentages too, she knew she could really do some damage.

In the next office, JR read the article in the paper that showed Donna was significantly more popular than Mary Anne Teasdale in the mayoral race, and had a large chance of winning. JR knew Donna—she didn't make empty threats. With the Clifford Group no longer a possibility, JR needed to make sure that Ewing Oil was in as secure a financial place as possible. Unfortunately, sometimes secure finances came by illegal means: a little bribing her, a little blackmail there. JR did what needed to be done. But now Donna was going to prove to be a problem. The woman was a saint, so blackmail was out of the question. He thought of how to ensure that she didn't win the mayoral seat. He smiled as an idea formulated. An instant later, he was on the phone.

Todd Foster lit up a cigarette just as his phone started to ring. He picked it up immediately. "Hello?" he said, a tad annoyed.

"Todd. JR here. I've got a job for you."

"What am I, Kojak? I'm not for hire JR"

"You want to keep April Oil and that pretty little chunk of change I got you?"

"Is this a threat?"

"No," JR said, "It's a fact. Donna Krebbs is running for mayor of Dallas and she might win."

"Your point?" Todd was tired of this distraction. He felt like going out and spending some money.

"If she wins, she threatened to let all my cats out of the bag—she's going to reveal every little illegal thing I ever did and put a stop to half my business now, which runs on the darker side of the law. I don't like the lady but I know her. She means what she says."

Todd was beginning to understand the implications of what this meant as JR continued. "So, if she shows everybody all the 'illegal' things I've done, everybody gets to see just exactly how you got April Oil—unfairly. Then it goes right back to Michelle and you lose everything."

Todd was trying not to get nervous as he inhaled deeply on his cigarette. "Can she really do that? Does she have that much power?"

"Dammit boy, when I tell you she makes valid threats I mean it. She used to be the governor's wife years ago. She knows everyone, and everyone likes her. She has ways of finding out things."

"So what does this mean for me?" Todd asked.

"You're going to help me put a stop to her campaign," JR retorted. "You're joining the Donna Krebbs for mayor campaign team. So make sure she loses, or we're both screwed."

Credits Roll

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