Jack woke up with a start. He looked at the clock---it was three in the morning. What had just happened? He looked over to see Dominique in the bed next to him, asleep. Even with the covers over her, he could tell that she was nude. He jumped out of bed and realized that he was nude as well. Oh God, he thought to himself, Oh God….

He found his clothes on the floor and quickly put them on, his mind shutting down to perform the task at hand. As quietly as he could, he left the hotel room and headed towards the elevator, pressing the lowest level for the garage.

He had slept with her---but how had it happened? He remembered coming to the hotel to confront her about working for J.R., but she distracted him, insisted that they have a drink first. It was then that he started to feel strange---like he was disoriented and drunk, but not exactly. He remembered he couldn't control himself; it was hard for him to even move. Dominique led him to the hotel room, and then she started to kiss him…Jack tried to block the thought from his mind, but it was no use. Dominique had drugged him, and she had slept with him. He had slept with her---what difference did it make? He betrayed Sue Ellen. His guilt made him want to vomit.

He wanted to forget it, just forget the whole thing, but he knew he couldn't. He had to make things right, and the only way to do that was to get Dominique to confess. He knew that---and he knew what he had to do.

The Barnes Residence: The Guesthouse

Cally put down her brush when the telephone rang. With the last few days, she took her solace in painting. She hadn't told Justin about the custody hearing. She didn't even know if she was going to tell him---how to tell him. What should she do? His life had been traumatic enough the last few months, and now this. Damn J.R., Cally silently cursed to herself.

“Hello?” Cally asked.

“Cally.” It was Miss Ellie.

“Hi,” Cally said quietly. She was not exactly thrilled to be hearing from Miss Ellie at this time.

“Hello. How are you?”

“I've been better,” she said a little sarcastically. Ellie noted it.

“I wanted to call, and see how you were doing.”

“Well, thanks for calling. I'm doing just fine.” Cally was short, but not rude. She hadn't forgotten the preliminary custody hearing---Miss Ellie and Clayton were listed as potential witnesses against her.

“Is everything alright? You seem a bit upset.”

“I may lose my son, Miss Ellie. Of course I'm upset.”

Ellie was silent for a moment on the other end of the line. “Yes. Of course. I'm so sorry.”

Cally was silent. Ellie felt uncomfortable—something was wrong. “Are you upset with me?” She asked.

“How could you say you were going to testify against me?” Cally asked, glad that the doors had been opened for her to discuss this. “You're my friend!”

“That's why I said I would. Because I am your friend.” Ellie said, her voice sounding very collected.

“There ain't nothing wrong with me.”

“Cally, you've been under extreme stress lately. You can't deny that.”

“You're right, I have, but that doesn't mean I'm crazy! That doesn't mean Justin should be taken away from me!” Cally quickly turned her head to make sure Justin couldn't hear what she had said. He was in the other room.

“I'm not doing this to hurt you. I want to help. I don't know how else.”

“Stop J.R.!” Cally said, her voice growing a little louder. “He's behind this!”

“J.R. was not there all those times when you…when you haven't been yourself.”

“It's because of him. I know he's behind it.” Cally was getting exasperated now. “I know he's your son Miss Ellie, but you know what he's capable of. Sue Ellen believes me,” she added in, as if to emphasize her point.

“I think that Sue Ellen and J.R. have their own separate issues, but that is besides the point.” Ellie took a deep breath. “I'm worried about you Cally. Clayton and I both are. We don't want to see you get worse, or hurt….we don't want to see Justin get hurt either.”

“So this is for my benefit?” She asked, short-tempered.

“And for Justin's. Is it fair to him? You have a lot of things going on right now….a lot to deal with. There's no shame in asking for help. Professionally and from the family.”

“I don't need any help Miss Ellie. I'm sorry that you and Clayton think I do.” Cally wiped a way a tear from her eye. “I've got to go. Justin's calling me.” She lied. She just needed to get off the phone.

Before Ellie could say anything, she hung up. Thirty seconds passed, and the phone rang again. Expecting it to be Miss Ellie, Cally tersely answered “Hello?”

“Cally. It's Josh Messina.”

“Oh hi Josh,” she said to her lawyer, embarrassed. “Gosh, I'm real sorry. It hasn't been a good day.”

“I'm sorry,” His voice was laced with bad news. “I need to tell you something. I have some bad news.”

Cally was scared. “What?”

“I've been reviewing the case, and all of the evidence and testimonies that your ex-husband brought forth at the preliminary hearing. I have to advise you that it may be best to relinquish custody.”

“What?” Cally couldn't believe what she had just heard.

“This case could get ugly. It could be difficult, for both you and Justin. I think that if you relinquished temporary custody and agreed to get some help, you'd have a strong case to get Justin back in a few months.”

“Are you crazy? There's nothing wrong with me!” Now her lawyer was even turning on her. “J.R. is not going to win this time---he's behind this. I'm not going to give over custody of my son. I'm not crazy.”

Cally was so flustered she hung up the phone. She fell onto the couch crying. She wasn't crazy. No one believed her. Now she was questioning whether she even believed herself.

Southfork Ranch

“Clayton, I'm worried about Cally.” Ellie said, looking over at her husband who was flipping through the newspaper. They were alone in the living room.

“I know. I am too.”

“But I talked to her today. She was very hostile.” Ellie took a sip of her water. “She's very upset with me.”

“Why?”

“Apparently she found that that we would be witnesses in the custody trial.”

Clayton folded his newspaper down. “Well that makes sense. She's probably very hurt.”

Ellie stared off towards the wall. “I know. I know. I don't like this Clayton.”

“What?”

“The whole thing. I hate doing this to Cally. I feel like I'm betraying her.”

“It's not an easy situation. But you're doing this for her own good. She needs help—she's not well.”

“I know, but still….”

“Sue Ellen needed help once. Remember when she started drinking again, after Jamie left Southfork? We knew that she needed help. She didn't want to accept it, but she did. Luckily, she beat it herself. Maybe Cally will too.”

“But I don't know what's wrong with her. With Sue Ellen, we knew: it was her drinking. With Cally, I don't know what to do. She's just not herself.”

Clayton put his arm around his wife. “Ellie, we've been married for over fifteen years. When you know something's wrong, something's wrong. You're doing the right thing. We both are. For Cally---and Justin.”

Ellie smiled in thanks. It made her feel just a little better.

A moment later, Theresa walked into the Living Room. “Mr. Farlow, a package just came for you.”

“Really?” He looked at his watch. “It's almost five. Whose it from?”

“I'm not sure. It's in the hallway. It's very large.”

“Thank you Theresa,” Ellie said, getting up from the couch. A moment later, she and Clayton were in the back hallway, looking over a large rectangular package. It was addressed to Clayton, but there was no return address.

“I wonder what this is,” Clayton said.

“I hope it's not another key that belongs to Jock,” Ellie joked, referring to their adventure ten years earlier.

Clayton laughed too, and started to tear away the wrapping. It was a picture depicting a few brownstones on a street in what looked like a large city.

“How strange,” Ellie said. “Is there a note or a card?”

“Let me see,” Clayton said, moving the painting from the table. Attached to the back was a small card. “Here.” He ripped it off and read it. “It looks like it's from Laurel…”

“Who?”

Laurel Ellis caused a lot of problems for Ellie and he ten years earlier. She thought he was having an affair with her, and eventually he was framed for the murder of Laurel's ex-lover. “Laurel Ellis,” Clayton said a bit softer, trying to pretend that there was nothing wrong.

“Oh,” Ellie said. She didn't quite know how to react. “What does it say?”

Clayton read from the card. “Clayton, sorry to have been incommunicado for so long. All's well here. Hope all is well with you. This is a painting which I've just completed---my new hobby! Will be in contact soon. All my love to Ellie. Laurel.”

“How strange,” Ellie said again. She hoped that trouble wasn't going to follow this painting into town.

Dominique's Hotel Room

It wasn't easy, but Jack called in some favors and managed to get his hands on the Sodium Pentathol. An old friend of his had just moved to Dallas to open a new branch of a medical supply/pharmaceutical company. He owed Jack a favor, so he was able to get the truth serum fairly easily, promising that nothing “illegal” was going to be done with it.

Jack was angry. He had to face Sue Ellen at the office today. He found it hard to look her in the eye. God, to think that he had slept with Dominique. Sure, she had drugged him, but how much of it did he actively participate in? He had no control, he kept telling himself, but was that really true?

He tried to focus his guilt and channel it into determination. He was going to nail Dominique. If for no other reason than revenge.

He knocked on her hotel room door. She answered, and her face indicated that she was very surprised to see him. “Jake. Hello. This is a surprise.”

“Hi,” Jack said in a flirtatious manner.

“What brings you to my hotel room?”

“Unfinished business. Last night certainly sent my head spinning,” he said, smiling.

“Come. We will sit and talk,” she said, motioning for him to come in. Jack checked his coat pocket. The recorder was there, along with the syringe.

Ewing Oil

“Janice?” Todd asked as she stepped into the hallway where the elevators were located.

“Oh….hi.”

“What's going on?”

“Nothing,” Janice said uneasily. “I just had a lot of work to do.”

“Why didn't you call me last night. We had plans.” He looked at her, sensing her uneasiness. “Is everything OK?”

“Everything's fine,” she said, walking past him and pushing the down button.

“Well, what are you doing now?”

“Nothing. I have to go home,” she said quickly.

Todd looked at her for a moment. Her eyes were darting everywhere except for his direction. “Alright, cut the crap,” he said, crossing his arms. “What's going on.”

“Nothing,” Janice reiterated. She didn't want to talk about this. She didn't want to talk to him. Not after those pictures of Todd with those women. She felt a putrid combination of nausea and despair thinking about it.

“Bull. You're pissed. Why?”

She didn't like the tone that he was using. He was getting a bit hostile himself. What right did he have? “Don't you speak to me that way.”

“Then cut the silent treatment,” he snapped back.

“Cute,” She snarled. “You deserve it,” she muttered under her breath.

“What did you just say?”

“Nothing.”

“Not it was not 'nothing.' I heard what you said. What did I do?” Now Todd was getting really angry. If there was one thing he hated more than anything else in the world it was rudeness for no apparent reason. It was especially infuriating coming from Janice.

“Why are you even angry that we didn't go out last night? Gave you more time for your other women,” Janice crudely said.

“What?” Todd thought about what she said for a second. “Do you think I'm cheating on you? Janice, I'm not.” He was met by silence. “Where are you getting this?”

“Don't you dare lie to me,” she said, pounding the down button with her thumb. Where the hell was the elevator?

“I'm not lying to you. Where are you getting this from?” Silence. “Tell me!” Todd yelled.

“Fine? You want to see?” Now she was really mad. She stormed passed him into the main Ewing Oil office. She was the last one to leave, so the office was empty. She pulled out the pictures that had been sent to her yesterday of Todd in bed with the other women. She shoved them in his arms.

“What the….” He asked, looking at the pictures.

“You think that's a lie. You bastard!” She said, tears welling up in her eyes. She whacked him with her purse.

Todd blocked his face with his arms. This couldn't be happening. “Where did you get these?” This couldn't be happening. Where were these found? Josh swore to him that there were no copies left…

“You going to go yell at one of your lady friends now? Maybe break it off. Well don't worry Todd, they're a dime a dozen, I'm sure.” She wiped her eye. “That how much they charge?” she added in maliciously.

Todd looked up from the pictures. “Actually, I charged a lot more than a dime.”

Janice just stared at him for a moment. Now she was confused.

“These were taken over two years ago. I didn't even know you existed.”

“That supposed to make me feel better?” Janice fumbled through her purse looking for a Kleenex.

“No, but it's the truth. I did not want you to find out about this. Especially not like this.”

“Find out about what? What the hell is this?” She said, indicating the pictures.

“I didn't tell you everything about when I lived in Boston. I did more than just work of oddjobs,” he said. He never stopped looking at her.

“Oh God…” she muttered, realizing what he was saying.

“I had no money. I left home. I had no college degree, and working part time at a health club doesn't exactly pay the bills.”

“Oh My God,” was all Janice could say. Her shock morphed into disgust.

“That's why I never told you. How was I supposed to know how you'd react?”

“You're sick! Get the hell away from me,” she said, snapping her purse shut and storming into the hallway. Todd ran after her.

“Don't you dare leave after throwing this in my face!” He yelled after her.

“I dare?” Janice looked back as she hit the down button again. “What about your nerve? How dare YOU do this and not ever tell me! Don't you think I had a right to know that you were a friggin prostitute!”

“I wanted to tell you..”

“Don't give me that,” she yelled back. “This is disgusting! You're disgusting!” She morphed her face into one of revulsion.

“I know you're pissed. You're so justified…”

“Don't even try to play like you're on my side!”

“Who sent you this?” Todd asked, as the elevator pinged indicating that it had arrived.

“I don't know. One of your clients…I don't know. Probably jealous that your time was being taken away.”

“Janice, that was years ago. I don't do that anymore.” Todd was trying to remain as calm as possible.

“I don't care!” The elevator doors opened. He made motions to get in the elevator with her. “Get the hell away from me. I never want to see you again.” The elevator doors shut as tears welled up in her eyes again.

Todd felt defeated, standing alone in the hallway. Then he got angry---VERY angry. Who sent her those pictures? No one in Dallas knew about what he did in Boston. Even when J.R. and Bobby first had him investigated when he came to town, he made sure that it remained very hidden. So who knew?

He walked back towards Janice's desk and looked at the pictures again. Josh had insisted that those pictures be taken, so that he could “show off” what a talent Todd was to potential clients. Josh was the only one that had copies of those pictures.

Todd decided to pay his former “manager” a visit.

Dominique's Hotel Room

Jack had been flirting for over an hour. Finally, he decided to strike. “Close your eyes,” he said.

“Do you have a surprise for me?” Dominique said, putting her hands over her eyes.

“Oh yeah,” Jack said. Before she could protest, he put a blindfold over her eyes.

“What is this?” Dominique asked, apparently not fazed.

“Your surprise.” He got out the syringe, and in the span of a second, injected into Dominique's arm.

“OW!” she screamed. “What are you doing?” Her voice registered alarm.

“Giving you a taste of your own medicine,” he said. The Sodium Pentathol should begin to take effect at any moment.

Dominique struggled away from Jack's grasp, but he held her arm steady. “Let me GO!” she screamed.

Jack took out another surprise from his pocket---a pair of handcuffs. Using his leverage over Dominique, he managed to slip the handcuffs around one wrist. She continued to struggle, but he soon had the other one bound to her other wrist. With her arms immobilized, he took off her blindfold. “Now,” he said, “Let's get down to business.”

“What are you doing you psychopath?” Dominique said, a mixture of fear and rage.

“Getting the truth. Now let's start. Why are you here in Dallas?”

“On business.” She felt funny. A little dazed, but still coherent.

“Are you working for J.R. Ewing?” Jack had taken out the tape recorder now, but kept it out of Dominique's view.

“Yes.” Why had she just said that? She didn't want to, but it was like there was nothing stopping her. Why did her head feel so funny?

“What are you doing for him?”

“I am working for him.”

“Be more specific.”

Dominique didn't answer. He had injected her with something. Oh God, truth serum. She had used it once herself, years ago, when she was still in espionage.

“You got a choice. Answer or I call J.R. and we'll see what he thinks of this situation. My guess is he hasn't paid you yet.”

“I am working for him. To hurt his ex-wife.”

“Cally?”

“Yes.”

“What are you doing to her?” Jack was surprised that this was going easier than he had thought.

Then, Dominique jumped up and made a dash for the door, her wrists still bound. Jack ran after her, beating her to the doorway. He grabbed her arms, immobile behind her back, and forced her over to the bed. “Shut up and talk.”

“I will scream. Someone will come.”

“I'll get a drug test. I'm sure whatever you gave me is still in my system. You did drug me?”

“Yes,” Dominique said, everything being recorded.

“Are you working for J.R. to get custody of his son from Cally?”

“Yes,” Dominique said. She wasn't resisting anymore. There was no point. She would not get her money, but J.R. would not win. This man had discovered everything. It was going to be all over. She was too tired to resist. She couldn't.

“What did you do?”

And Dominique told him. She told him everything: how J.R. had paid her, how she had intercepted phone calls that Cally was supposed to receive, how she drugged Cally's food. Jack left no stone unturned, remembering everything that Sue Ellen had told him that had been strange about Cally's behavior.

“That's everything?” Jack said, triumphant but still feeling disgusted. He could not believe that J.R. had been behind the whole thing. To think that he actually tried to make Cally think that she was going insane!

“Are you happy that you have done this?” Dominique asked.

“Yeah, actually I am. You're not exactly a saint.”

“But you enjoyed it, Jake. You know you did.”

Jack was silent. Dominique continued to probe him. The tape recorder kept playing.

“You enjoyed being with me. How long has it been since you have been with a woman? It must be a very long time. You were an animal.” She gave a malicious smile.

“Shut up.” He realized that the tape recorder was on, and quickly turned it off. He had heard everything he needed to.

Taking out the key to the handcuffs, he released Dominique, who started to massage her sore wrists once she was freed.

Jack gave her a final look of contempt and then left.

Lee Park, the next day

The unseasonably warm weather had brought many residents of Dallas and the surrounding areas out of hiding and had drawn them into the various parks and recreational areas that filled the city. Such was the case with John Ross and Pamela Rebecca.

They sat together on a park bench while Megan tossed pieces of bread at a group of ducks that had gathered around her. Pamela Rebecca couldn't help smiling from ear to ear as she thought about how well everything was going.

“Beautiful day isn't it?”

John Ross stared ahead at his daughter. “Yep. I'm glad you suggested this. It's doing me good to get away from the house for a while and I'm really enjoying spending time with Megan.”

“I've enjoyed spending time with you John Ross…just like the old days.”

“The old days are gone. I'm with Melissa now.”

“You constantly remind me of that. Are you just trying to rub it in or are you doing it in an attempt to convince yourself?”

“I'm crazy about her. And, I won't sit here and have this conversation with you—it's none of your business.”

Pamela Rebecca frowned. It might as well pour down rain now—her day was shattered. She called out to Megan, who was getting too close to the lake.

John Ross noticed the look on her face and felt bad for snapping at her. “Look…I'm sorry. But can we please not talk about that anymore?”

“Sure. Fine with me. So, have you decided what you're gonna do about leaving Dallas?”

“As a matter of fact, I have.”

“You have?”

“Yeah. You and Megan helped me decide that Dallas is my home. Megan is here and I'm her father—I need to be here for her.”

“What about your Dad?”

“I'll handle him in my own way, when the time comes.”

“Are you staying at Southfork?”

“Nope.”

“Maybe I can help you find an apartment or something. I know of this great—“

“Pamela Rebecca, no, I don't need an apartment. I talked to Melissa and she wants me to move in with her, so I am.”

Rebecca was crushed. She couldn't believe he was moving in with that tramp. If she didn't hurry, she knew she would lose John Ross to her forever—but what could she do?

Southfork Ranch

The bright light of the morning sun protruded through the curtains and shone on Christopher's face. He awakened and the first thing he noticed was the hangover. The next thing he noticed was the letter from Karen. Those two things together set his mood for the day—it was a bad one.

He vaguely remembered falling down the stairs. Then he remembered—his mom had seen him. She knew he was drinking and it was only a matter of time before she intervened.

On cue, Pam and Bobby walked into the room. "Mornin' Son," Bobby said.

He and Pam both took seats on the bed. Pam put her arms around Christopher and held him.

"Look Mom, I know you know and I know what you're here for. Let me tell you now—I'm a grown man. I don't need you or anyone else telling me what I should or should not be doing."

Pam was hurt. Was it too late to make him realize they loved him? "Christopher…I know you're a grown man. But sometimes even adults make mistakes and we're all guilty of having bad judgment from time to time."

"She's right Son. Look at Sue Ellen…she made the same mistakes you did over and over again."

"Don't compare me to her."

"No one is comparing you to anyone." Pam rubbed her son's back, but he pulled away. "Christopher, just talk to us. How long have you been drinking?"

Christopher didn't know why, but he felt the need to answer. "I don't know…a few months. I tried to stop a few times, but the same stuff kept happening over and over."

"And that makes you want to drink?"

Christopher was in tears. "Yeah. And neither of you have exactly been here for me when I needed you…"

Neither Pam nor Bobby knew what to say. Pam broke the silence. "I realize that…and I'm truly sorry. Things have been so hectic for all of us."

"Where is Karen?" Bobby asked.

"She went to PA…I didn't even know she'd gone until I found the letter. Her sister's having surgery."

Pam nodded. "Christopher, we're here for you now…and we'll be here for you from now on. I missed out on so many years of your life because of Katherine's schemes. I don't want to miss out on anymore. I think you are a strong man—I think you can beat this and stop drinking."

"I'll be fine Mom…really."

"If you ever need anything, let us know," Bobby said, "that's what we're here for."

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Eric had been awake for a half-hour, watching Karen sleeping. He couldn't believe the way things had turned out—it had been almost a miracle. They had arrived in Philadelphia late in the night and had checked into the first available hotel room.

He looked at the time and realized that they should get going. "Karen?" he whispered. Next time, he spoke louder. "Karen…"

In the bed across the room, Karen opened her eyes and temporarily forgot where she was. "What time is it?" she said groggily.

"Almost eleven a.m. Looks like we're both quite the heavy sleepers."

"Yeah, well we have an excuse. We didn't get in until the crack of dawn anyway."

"That's true. I was tempted to just sleep in today."

"Eric! You know we have work to do and I don't have long to do it." She hurled a pillow across the room. "Now, who gets the shower first?"

"You go ahead…ladies first."

"Ha, and they thought chivalry was dead." Karen pulled her robe over her shoulders and walked into the bathroom.

Eric smiled. He hadn't been this happy in a long time—things were looking very promising.

The Clifford Group

Sue Ellen popped her head into Jack's office, but he wasn't in there. She had hardly seen him in the last day, as he'd gone out with some business associate the night before. Sue Ellen pressed him on it, but Jack wouldn't give details as to who it was, just saying it was someone doing “deconstruction” work for the Clifford Group.

Sue Ellen looked at her watch. She had about ten minutes before she had to be back upstairs for a meeting. She was silently cursing herself for forgetting her tape recorder that day, and her secretary did not seem to have one either. Since legality was going to be involved with the meeting, Sue Ellen liked to tape it, just to make sure that everything would be on official record---at least for her own benefit. It was just a little thing that made her feel better. She had hoped Jack would be in so she could borrow his tape recorder.

She assumed that he wouldn't mind if she searched a little for it. She walked briskly over toward his desk and started to poke into the drawers. God, Jack was disorganized! After about a minute of hard searching, she found it in the bottom drawer, tucked away between files.

She took it out and checked it to see if there was a tape in there. There was, already rewound. Almost without thinking, she hit play.

When she heard Jack's voice and that of a French woman she was curious. The woman sounded unusual, like she was drunk. When she heard J.R.'s name mentioned, her jaw dropped. She kept listening. She couldn't believe this! This woman--it must have been the blonde woman--she was confessing to working for J.R. and trying to gaslight Cally! Sue Ellen was both disgusted and overjoyed---Jack had nailed him! She didn't know how he did it, but she wanted to put her arms around him and give him a giant kiss.

Then she heard what the woman said. “You enjoyed it.” Her words were laced with sexual taunting. She continued to listen. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. “You enjoyed being with me?” That's what the woman said on the tape---Dominique seemed to be her name. What had he done? Sue Ellen prayed her suspicions weren't true…

Jack walked in, and saw her standing at his desk, listening to the tape recorder. “What's going on?”

“What is this?” Sue Ellen demanded.

“Where did you find that?” Jack asked. Had she heard? Sue Ellen had just hit the stop button.

“I needed a tape recorder. That doesn't matter. What the hell is this? Who is this woman?” Sue Ellen was growing hostile.

“She's working for J.R. He was paying her to gaslight Cally---I got it all on that tape. I'll play it for you. Can you believe it---we nailed him!” Jack said with a smile. He prayed she hadn't listened to it. She wasn't supposed too. He was going to confront J.R. with it himself, and fill Sue Ellen in on the details later.

“Apparently that wasn't the only thing you nailed!” Sue Ellen said, making her way towards the door.

“What are you talking about?”

“Did you sleep with her to get this information?”

“No.”

“Don't you dare lie to me Jack, don't you dare lie to me.” Sue Ellen was infuriated.

“She drugged me. I was out of control.”

Sue Ellen just gave him a look of disgust. “I'll deal with J.R.,” she said, storming off.

“Sue Ellen, wait!” He ran after her, stopping her at the door. “What are you doing? We have to talk about this---she drugged me. She's nuts, but I got her to confess. We can get J.R. to drop the suit.”

“Like I said, I'll handle J.R.” She opened the door. “I'll be staying at Cally's tonight,” she said in a hostile tone while she headed toward the elevator.

She did her best to put on a professional face and not wipe away the tears. She would NOT be the victim again. J.R. had cheated on her. Jack sure as hell was not going to and get away with it.

Southfork Ranch

Christopher silenced the ringing phone by answering it—it was doing nothing for his headache and Theresa was nowhere to be found.

“Hello?”

“Is Neil there?”

It took a moment for that to sink in—at first, Christopher couldn't remember who Neil was. “I haven't seen him in a day or so.”

“What about Lucy?”

“Haven't seen her either.”

“Christopher? Is that you? This is Kimberly, Karen's sister.”

“Kim? I didn't recognize your voice, sorry. How's life?”

“It's great. But what I was calling about…Neil was supposed to fly up here and pick up Tiffany yesterday, but he never did. She's terribly disappointed.”

“Really? I haven't seen him…that's strange. I'll tell him you called though.”

“Okay, thanks.”

“Oh yeah, are you feeling okay?”

Across the lines, Kimberly was puzzled. “Why wouldn't I be?”

“Well, Karen flew out there to be with you when you had surgery—or haven't you had it yet?”

Kim was baffled. “Chris, I'm not having surgery. Did she tell you that?”

“She left a note this morning and said she was flying to PA to be with you during your surgery.”

“That's odd…”

“I'll say. Look, I'll see if I can find Neil and tell him you called. In the meantime, I'm gonna find out what Karen is doing.”

“Okay. Hope everything works out and it was nice talking to you again. Bye.”

“Bye.”

Christopher hung up the phone, more confused than ever. Why did Karen lie to him and just what was she up to?

Boston, Massachusetts

Josh Nestor answered the door groggily. The constant pounding had woken him up. He rubbed his eyes with the back of one hand as he opened the door. Todd was standing on the other side of the door, his arms crossed and a grimace on his face.

“Foster! Damn, long time no see!”

Todd assaulted him. He grabbed Josh's collar and backed him up against the wall. “Who have you been talking too?”

“Get the hell offa me!” Josh squirmed, but Todd held his grip. “What are you talking about.”

“A certain person I care a lot about got some pictures in the mail. She's not happy. I think you know what I'm talking about.”

“I don't know nothing,” Josh said, completely forgetting Eric's instructions for if Todd came demanding to know who was looking into his past.

“Talk scumbucket!”

“Old dude,” Josh said. “Southern. Had a cowboy hat. I think he was from Dallas or Houston or something.”

“Old guy huh?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Josh said, quivering.

Todd pushed him to the ground and stormed off.

J.R. was going to pay.

Near the Dallas/Braddock County Line

Lucy had to admit, she was very perplexed. Lately, her husband seemed to be a man of many surprises. First the sudden trip to the lodge in Colorado and now he had another one.

“Neil, why on earth are we driving out here? Southfork is in the other direction.”

Neil smiled and focused on his driving. “You'll see Lucy—just hold your horses.”

“Is this by any chance the Christmas surprise that keeps getting postponed?”

“Yup. You got it. Sorry it's taking so long, but what I've had to go through has been kind of a lengthy process.”

“Ohh, now you've really aroused my curiosity. How much longer?” Neil didn't say anything as they pulled into a drive. Lucy looked ahead. “What is this?”

“Lucy Ewing, this is our new home.”

Lucy's jaw dropped and she stepped out of the car, never taking her eyes off the house. “Oh my God, Neil, I never imagined…”

“What do you think?”

“What do I think? Oh my goodness…I love it! How did you pull this off…when can we moved in?” Lucy's mouth spouted questions almost faster than Neil could answer them. He was thrilled that she was so pleased with his surprise.

“This is why I had to sneak out so many times—I was worried you would think I was having an affair or something!”

Lucy burst into laughter. “That thought never crossed my mind, but neither did this. Can we go in?”

“Sure. It's all ours.”

Lucy began to run to the front door, but Neil caught up with her. “No, now wait just a sec. We're gonna do this right.”

“Right? What do you meannn…” Lucy's words trailed off into a scream of delight as Neil picked her up.

“I'm carrying you over the threshold of our new house—just like the tradition goes.” Neil unlocked the door and pushed it open.

Lucy looked around as Neil put her down. “Oh Neil, it's beautiful! I love it…it's so different from Southfork!”

“And it's our own place, where we can start our own family.”

“A family; I like the sound of that.” Lucy smiled and kissed him, and then she pulled away. “Will you show me around? I'm dying to see.”

“Sure thing.” As Neil began to give his wife the tour, he tried his best to put all doubts out of his mind. This would buy him more time—she wouldn't know where he was for a while and then, maybe he could think of another plan.

Southfork Ranch

Melissa pulled her car into the drive of Southfork and stepped out onto the pavement. She spotted Christopher sitting out on the patio and she walked over to him.

“Hi Chris.”

Christopher turned around. “Melissa…hey.”

“Is John Ross home?”

“Nope. He's out with Pamela Rebecca and Megan.”

“Oh. Guess that leaves me with nothing to do for the day.” Melissa took a seat. “So how have you been?”

“Not so good.”

“Why not?”

“Karen just up and left for Pennsylvania, claiming to be going because her sister was having surgery. Well, not long after, her sister called me and she swore she wasn't having surgery…”

“Why would Karen lie?”

“Good question.”

“That's not all that's bugging you though, is it?”

“Nope. My mom found out about my drinking and she and Dad had a talk with me about it.”

“Maybe that's the best thing Chris—at least now you have more support.”

“What about you? John Ross seems to be spending more and more time with Pamela Rebecca, since he found out for sure that Megan is his.”

Melissa noticed the sadness that filled his eyes when he spoke of Megan. “I'm a tough girl…I'll survive, no matter what happens.”

“But it's nice having somebody to lean on.”

“Yeah. Makes whatever you have to go through a heck of a lot easier.”

“You need to fight for John Ross,” Christopher said, out of the blue. “You know that Pamela Rebecca is going to use Megan to her full advantage.”

“I've thought about that.” Melissa thought back to a time when she had used a trick of her own by sending Pamela Rebecca off on a wild goose chase to find her father.

They both turned to the sound of the car driving up. It was John Ross, Pamela Rebecca, and Megan. John Ross waved to Melissa and told her he'd be back out in a minute. Megan was sleepy and needed a nap.

Christopher turned to Melissa. “Now's your chance. Let Pamela Rebecca know who's boss—stake your claim.” He disappeared into the house, leaving Melissa alone on the patio. Pamela Rebecca joined her.

“Hi Melissa.”

“Hello Rebecca. Have a nice time with my boyfriend?”

“As a matter of fact, we had a great time. Thanks for asking.”

“You know what…you are such a low-life, using a child like Megan for your own personal gain. Don't think for a second that John Ross is going to buy into your good-girl act. He's only spending time with you because of Megan. You're playing on his feelings and insecurities from his childhood, just to try and get him for yourself.”

“Oh please. I'm not going to sit here and listen to your psychoanalysis of John Ross' mind. John Ross and I are very close—we share a daughter. I happen to know him very well, better than you'll ever know him.”

Melissa continued. “I won't let you hurt him. You won't hurt him. I'll make damned sure of that.”

“Don't resort to threats Missy dear. I'm only doing what's best for my daughter. Maybe if you had a daughter, then you'd understand. But I doubt that'll ever happen because no man in his right and sober mind would ever want to have a child with you.”

“John Ross loves me and…”

“Really, you can stop it with that now. If he loves you so much, then why the hell hasn't he married you yet? You've been dating for over a year!”

“He LOVES me and I AM PREGNANT!”

Rex Wentworth's Penthouse

Gregor was hesitant to enter the room, but he needed to find out what his next assignment was. Though Rex's back was turned, he greeted Gregor as he walked in.

“Good evening Gregor.”

“Evening Rex.”

“Do come in.”

Gregor shut the door. “What's up?”

“Your camera came in very handy last night. Look for your bonus in a day or so.”

“Thanks. Should I handle J.R. now?”

“No. I'll handle J.R. in good time. But first, I plan to accomplish my original goal.”

“Pam and Cliff?”

“Yes.”

“What should I do about that?”

“I realize that as long as Bobby Ewing is standing in my way, that Pam will not fall.”

Gregor pulled a gun from his belt. “No probs Rex. I'll take care of him right away.”

“No. I don't want him dead—yet. I simply want him to disappear.”

“Jeesh, but if Bobby's dead, then Pam'll go all to pieces and you'll have no problems.”

“Gregor, I'm the boss here. You'll do what I say.”

“What do you want me to do?”

Rex looked out his window at the illuminated buildings that stretched across Dallas. “Find Bobby Ewing and bring him to me—unharmed.”

“How am I gonna do that? Just march right into Southfork and bring him out?”

“You'll think of something—you didn't become my right-hand by being stupid.”

Gregor nodded and left the penthouse, not sure how he was going to accomplish his mission.

Southfork Ranch

“Well, how was your day? I didn't know you'd spend all of it out on the ranch.”

Bobby smiled and a sat down on the bed. “Yeah, well I had a lot to think about—and I think I do my thinking best on horseback.”

“Oh? What were you thinking about? Is something wrong?”

“Pammy, we need to talk. There's somethin' I need to tell you.”

Pam's brow wrinkled in worry. “Oh Bobby, what's wrong? Is it Christopher? Has he been hurt?”

“No, no, Christopher's just fine.”

Pam took his hand. “What is it?”

“Sit down.”

She took a seat next to him on the bed. “Bobby, please tell me. You're frightening me.”

Bobby moved his hands through his hair in a nervous gesture. “I'm sorry Pam. What I'm about to tell you happened a long time ago. I know it'll make you uncomfortable and most definitely make things here at Southfork tense, but I'm hoping you'll be able to get past this. It…involves Donna.”

“What? What is it? Did something happen? Oh God, was she hurt by those terrorists?” Pam was certain this is what Bobby was talking about.

“No. But Donna told us all about her abortion and the whole story surrounding that.”

“Yes?”

“Well, a few nights ago, I went downstairs and I overheard her talking to Ray.” Bobby still wasn't sure about how to break the news to her. “You know Donna and I went to college together, before she had to drop out. Pam, she said that I was the father of that baby she was forced to abort.”

Pam's face fell. “Bobby, no…”

“It's true. I didn't…”

“Bobby! How could you…how could you both keep that from me all these years! Do you have any idea how that makes me feel?”

“Just listen to me Pam…I'm not finished yet.”

“Oh yes you are finished. I don't want to talk about this right now and I don't want to hear whatever else it is you have to say!”

Pam stormed out of the room, leaving Bobby alone. “Pam, I didn't know…” He followed her out of the room, determined to make her listen to the full story. When he went downstairs, she was nowhere to be found. “Pam?”

Jillian was sitting on the couch, reading a magazine. “Uncle Bobby, she just went outside. She seemed to be pretty upset.”

“Yeah…thanks Jill.” Bobby opened the door and disappeared into the night. He looked toward the stables—there was a light burning out there. She must have gone in that direction. Bobby made his way across the ranch and a few minutes later, he was standing in the dimly lit stable. He heard a horse pawing over to his right, but saw no sign of Pam.

Bobby heard footsteps walking through the hay. “Pam…I'm sorry…I was drunk and didn't remember.” He turned around and found himself face to face with a man holding a gun.

“Mr. Ewing, please keep your voice down. I wouldn't want to make a mess here in the stable.”

“What the hell is this?”

“We're going on a short trip.”

“Wait a minute. I know who you are—you're that guy in Paris, the one that was following us. What the hell are you doing here?”

“That's none of your concern right now. It'll all become very clear to you soon. Come on. My car is parked out by the gate. We'll take a nice quiet walk and you won't say a thing…”

Ewing Oil

J.R. was packing up his briefcase as he rubbed his temples. It had been a long day, so he was glad to get home. Things were going well, though. He was starting to remember why he liked Iris so much. He was getting along with Jillian. Justin would be with him as soon as that custody trial was over.

“J.R.”

Sue Ellen's voice startled him. He quickly turned around. She was standing in the doorway, the dim light from the outer office reflecting on her face so that half was in shadow. It made J.R. realize just how beautiful she was.

“What do you want Sue Ellen?” He said with mock exasperation.

“Drop the custody case.” Her voice was authoritative. She wasn't asking, she was demanding.

“What? Are you drunk?”

“Anything but. Drop the case.”

“What in the hell makes you think I'm going to do that?”

“I know all about Dominique.”

J.R.'s eyes bulged, but he quickly caught himself. How did she know? Was she bluffing? “What are you talking about?”

“Jack and I both know. You paid her to make Cally think she was going nuts. The jig is up. Now drop the case.”

“You're bluffing.”

“Love to hear you say that after I play the little tape that Jack made of Dominique confessing everything to the courts. Or how about Miss Ellie? What do you think she'll do when she finds out that there was never anything wrong with Cally? I don't think she'll be too pleased.” Sue Ellen's voice was filled with condescension.

“I don't buy it.”

“Want to hear a snippet?” She smiled. She pulled out the tape recorder, and played a portion where Dominique confessed to one of the many cruel tricks she played on Cally. Sue Ellen knew J.R. would demand evidence, so she came prepared. “Satisfied?” J.R. said nothing. She smiled. “Good. I expect the courts AND Cally to be notified that the case will be dropped.” She made her way for the door.

“Sue Ellen.”

She turned around, her eyebrows raised. It felt good to let J.R. have it. She was still fuming about Jack---he betrayed her. She didn't care if it was for a good cause or not---he did NOT have to sleep with her.

“What are you going to do?”

“Nothing. Drop that case, and leave Cally alone, and this will be a secret between you, Jack, and I. No one needs to know. If you don't, there'll be hell to pay. So don't test me.”

She made her way to the door. J.R. couldn't say anything. He didn't know what to say.

He had lost.

| Back to Main Page | A Year Ago on RTS | The RTS Forum | Opinion Poll |

Be sure to send us your comments on this episode of RTS! We love hearing from you and we always take your suggestions/comments into consideration for future stories, etc. The form below doesn't require e-mail and leaves you totally anonymous.

If you'd like to receive a reply to your comments, then please be sure to leave your e-mail address so we can get back with you.