Episode 104

[Home] [Episode Guide] [News] [Social Register] [Visitor Info] [Interact] [Links] [Credits]

Episode 104

Scene 1:

The neighborhood was unfamiliar to him but Rick managed to locate the building after three circles around the block. He completed two more drive-bys to make sure she was home before finding a parking place. He picked up the flowers and bottle of wine that sat on the passengers seat before making his way to the door and ringing the doorbell. His judgment wasn't impaired, he reminded himself for the 1,000th time that day. He was just making up for being an ass. And Maura and her secret had nothing to do with it. Nothing at all. When Jillie opened the door, he grinned pleasantly drinking her in with his eyes. She was so like Maura before... Stop that, he warned himself. She's not Maura. She's never lied to you once.

"Hello," he said softly.

Jillie stared at Rick through the open door, roughly assessing the situation before taking a step back, adjusting the straps of the white cotton tank-top she wore with a pair of royal blue soccer shorts from her high school days. If she'd known who would be interrupting her workout, she might not have answered the door, she thought with a wry grin. Wine and flowers. It could only mean one thing.

Someone had let him in on a little secret.

"Rick," she drawled slowly, motioning him in. "What brings you here?"

"You, of course," he replied. "I've missed you, Jillie." He felt self-conscious under her careful gaze and shifted uneasily. "I was hoping we might talk?" Nothing wrong with talking, he reminded himself. The flowers were only a peace offering and the wine...well that was a back up just in case.

"What do we have to talk about?" Jillie asked innocently, even as she closed the door behind him. Something gave her a feeling that this was going to be good. "Is there a story you want me to work on that...you feel bears offering gifts?"

"No, come on Jillie...you know I don't admit to mistakes very often. And I made possibly the worst one where you were concerned." He remembered the flowers in his hand and thrust them forward. "I brought you these. Just as peace offering," he added at her look.

She accepted them, looking at them critically before setting them aside, her blue eyes more intense than they had been a moment earlier. "Don't tell me you're starting to regret your decisions, Rick. What is it that has you...so...." Her brows furrowed as she took a closer look at him. "Intoxicated? Have you been drinking, Rick?"

"I'm not drunk, Jillie," he answered, defending himself. "I had a couple of glasses of wine at lunch that's all. I'm very serious about making things right between us." He gazed around the room, taking in her new apartment. It wasn't his style, but it seemed very...Jillie. "Will let me apologize?" He asked, looking back at her.

Jillie arched a brow, but sat down on her couch, curling her legs under her. "Please, by all means...."

She wasn't going to make it any easier. "I used to think you were like your sister before...before she changed. But I was wrong about that and about you. You are nothing like her and I was a fool for not seeing it sooner or appreciating you. I'm sorry for that, Jillie," he offered setting the bottle of wine on the coffee table in front of her. He motioned to the sofa and sat at her nod. "And I'm sorry that I let my obsession with her break us up. You were right about her all along."

You were right about her all along. How long had she waited to hear someone - anyone - say those words? And yet, at the moment, they didn't sound so gratifying. "Dare I ask what brought on this sudden turnaround?" As if she didn't know the answer. Hadn't this been exactly what she wanted? Hadn't she wanted someone to see Maura for what she really was?

So why did it feel so empty? Why did it seem so surreal?

Rick averted his gaze, looking at anything other than Jillie at the moment. What had brought it on? How about the fact that she had lied to him for ten years and assumed he wouldn't care if and when he found out the truth? How about the fact that she led him on for the last year with her "confusion?"

"I finally found out why she left me and to be honest," he said returning his gaze back to Jillie. "To be honest with you and myself, she disgusts me...do you know that that walking cliché Jude Fontaine knew about it before I did?"

"No," Jillie replied with what she hoped to be the appropriate mix of surprise, regret and sympathy. Disgusted. Yes, that seemed to sum up her own reaction to Maura's secret life. But it was one thing for her to feel that way. It was quite another for Rick to do so. "I suppose she and Jude have been getting closer recently. Although, with those two, it seems like one disagreement after another. Wouldn't doubt that it's got something to do with Maura's high horse.... But that's not what you're really here to talk about, is it? Let's cut to the chase. What do you want, Rick?"

"You." It was as straight forward as he knew how to be.

The word seemed to resonate between them for a long moment. But the sweetness of victory was lacking. She would have liked to think that he'd finally come around. That she'd finally won. In her head, she knew that Maura was probably beating herself up over Rick. But how long would it really last? After all, Maura was interested in Jude Fontaine now. And Rick. How long would Rick's disgust last? And did he really expect her to fall back into bed with him now?

Unable to help it, Jillie shook her head, an amused grin playing over her lips as she couldn't hold back a small laugh. "I'm sorry, but I think that offer's been taken off the table."

"Oh come on, Jillie. Don't play games with me," Rick coaxed. "You know as well as I do that we have something interesting between us."

"Had," Jillie pointed out. "We had something interesting. But it wasn't interesting enough, or don't you remember that part?" She shrugged coolly, her blue eyes lightening. "I gave you a chance. And yeah, we had some fun. But it's over. You chose Maura. Your mistake."

"So that's it? I chose Maura in a moment of nostalgia so I don't get a second chance?" He stood quickly, losing a bit of his equilibrium. Catching himself from swaying too badly, he closed his eyes, remembering how he had let a chance encounter with Maura change his relationship with Jillie. All because of a lie he told himself. Maura never intended to give in to him. "She had a baby," he said softly. "Had it and didn't tell me. You know who fucking told me? Jude fucking Fontaine."

"Why didn't she tell you?" Jillie questioned, not playing the part of the innocent or the manipulator. "Why wouldn't she tell you she had a baby?"

"I guess, because she assumed I wouldn't want anything to do with her," he replied opening his eyes. He looked down at her warily. "You don't seem so surprised."

"I'm not surprised. I'm not surprised by anything Maura does. You know how I feel about her. I am curious, however. I'm curious as to why she'd think you wouldn't want anything to do with her. I'm curious as to why she would obviously go to such lengths, for so long, to keep such a secret from you. She never told any of us about a baby. I imagine that had to be hard for her. But if you think about it, not only has she denied you a chance to know your child, she's denied all of us the chance to know our niece or nephew. She denied our parents the right to know their grandchild. I'd really like to know why."

"Then you should ask her because I haven't got a clue!" Rick snapped angrily. "Ten years ago...ten years ago I was just starting out at The Tribune making nothing and she was waiting tables or something. I'd just asked her to marry me and that was no simple task for me. But it made her happy... I don't Jillie, okay? It's not like we never talked about kids. Christ, that's all she did some days! I got tired of hearing about it."

"So you didn't want kids," Jillie said. "That's not a crime. Can't say as I want them myself. They tie you down too much. I happen to like my freedom. Seems like we could have been good together, Rick. But I guess Maura just got it into her little head that if she had a kid, you wouldn't want her anymore. She always was melodramatic. Had to make everything into such a big deal. I think Piper takes after her in that way." Inhaling deeply, Jillie turned her gaze on Rick, lounging back as she looked up at him. "I never said it was your fault," she drawled smoothly, getting back tot he topic at hand.

"Why does it feel like my fault then?" He paced around her neat living room, pausing to look at her bookshelf. "Maura doesn't matter though," he continued. "What matters is that I may have possibly hurt you. And I never meant to do that. I used you as a substitute for her and I shouldn't have."

She couldn't contain a loud bubble of laughter. "Your chances of getting laid are greatly diminishing, Rick," Jillie warned. "Look at you. Do you know what attracted me to you in the first place?" she asked, not waiting for an answer. "Okay, so ten percent of it was the thrill of taking something from Maura. But honestly, I liked you. You were a hard-hitter who knew exactly how to get what he wanted. Sitting across from you at our first interview...." She stood up and took a step closer to him, tilting her head back slightly as she met his gaze, her tongue darting out swiftly to wet her lips. "I wanted you. Do you know how hard it was to sit still, to act professional, when all I could think about was what it would be like to have your hands all over me?" Stepping back again, she gave him a once over, less than impressed. "Now look at you. Look at what she's reduced you to. Hurt me? Please, Rick. I'm not the fragile one. You didn't use me anymore than I used you. And the only pain I remember between us...wasn't anything I didn't ask for...and enjoy," Jillie told him, dropping back down to the couch and stretching her long legs out in front of herself.

That stung. What had Maura reduced him to? He folded his arms over his chest, eyeing her as she lounged on the couch completely aware of how she looked to him...or any man. "You used me? All right. Fair enough. I suppose I can accept that. Might damage my ego just a bit, but it's already pretty banged up as it is."

"Poor, pitiful Rick," Jillie murmured in a singsong voice. "Why are you really here? Looking for a sympathy screw? Trying to save face? Or am I your way of getting back at Maura? Doesn't really matter, does it? It's over between us, Rick. And if you want a little free advice, suck it up. Maura's not the end all, be all. She's stolen more from you than just your child. Don't let her get away with it."

"Right." He brushed past her on his way out the door. No need in staying if he wasn't going to get anywhere. He didn't really know what he thought would happen anyway. Jillie was Jillie. She was cold and used people. Maura had told him so and he had ignored it in his desire to hurt her. At least the sisters had one thing in common; they knew the other much better than they gave each other credit for. Besides, he reminded himself, he was still hurting from Maura's lies. Perhaps she had damaged him in some way. But then, he always believed the damage had been done when she left the first time. This, he thought, might just be him dealing with it at last. He paused at the door, one hand on the door knob, and turned back to her. "Keep the wine. You can use it for then next victim who falls into your trap."

"Yeah, okay, Rick," she sighed lightly. "If you're positive you won't need it to drown your sorrows."

"I won't need it Jillie," he returned sharply deciding quickly what his only option was. "Because this time, I know exactly what I am going to do."

Scene 2:

Galen stared at the piece of paper Dinah held out to him. "Go on, take it," she repeated, thrusting the paper forward. "I nearly got caught by my dad trying to get this."

"I-" His words choked in his throat. Dinah was offering him the one thing he's begged Barbara and John for since Kelly had left him and yet, his hands remained firmly shoved into his pockets. "Are you sure it's hers?"

"Of course I'm sure," she replied, frowning. "What's the matter, Galen? Don't you want it anymore?" She dropped her hand to her side. He followed the paper with his eyes. "All right, what is the matter?" Dinah demanded. "You want this phone number, I can see that. Why won't you take it?"

"What if I find her?" He asked raising his eyes to Dinah's.

"Then you can kick her in the ass for leaving you and Mia. Jesus, Galen. It isn't as if she did anything nice for you." She pushed the paper out again, waving it. "Come on. If you don't take this number and call her, I will."

He took the paper from her at last, staring at the number. Of course, he wanted to call it. He wanted to know where Kelly had gone. He wanted to know what made her think she could abandon her daughter the way she did. More importantly, he wanted to make her hurt like he had. He waved Dinah off towards the kitchen where Liza and Mia were setting the table for dinner. Steeling himself, he picked up his phone and dialed the number Dinah had given him, holding his breath while it rang.

"The Flamingo Club, this is Tiffany."

"Is Kelly there?" Galen asked quickly before he lost his nerve. He shouldn't be nervous about this, he scolded himself. He should be angry and self-righteous!

"One moment please." He heard the phone being set down and the woman calling Kelly's name. His heart practically stopped when Kelly replied. Here it was, the moment of truth. Footsteps near the phone...a rattle of a bracelet against the counter....

"Hello?"

His mouth went dry at her breathy voice. It sounded the same as always. He found his voice and managed to mutter her name. There was a moment of silence on the other end before she spoke again.

"Is Mia all right?" Her question snapped him out of his nervousness. Funny that she would think to be worried about Mia now. Especially after she had left them with no word and no contact.

"She's fine," he replied.

"Then what do you want Galen?" He could hear a note of impatience in her voice. "I'm working right now."

"What do I want? Jesus Christ, Kelly! At least I know you're alive now."

"You're overly dramatic as always, Galen. I can't talk to you right now. And I don't know how you got my work phone number, but this is not the time, okay?"

"Wait!" He exclaimed, willing her to stay on the line for one minute more. "Call me back then. You know the number. We can talk then."

"I don't know about that, Galen," she murmured. "I'll think about it. Just don't call me here again."

And then she was gone.

Scene 3:

Gwen yawned during a lull in the Board meeting at the Mason Foundation. She was tired of the silly prattling of Daphne Wheeler and her crony Lana Dylan. It was a fundraiser for pity's sake! If there was an actual Director at the Foundation, this meeting wouldn't be necessary, she thought for the 100th time that afternoon. Too bad, Genevieve McCormick had taken that job at the museum. Even Vivian Marek wasn't interested in running the Foundation. The young women today had no commitment to their social status.

"Lana, I think what you're suggesting is marvelous!" Daphne announced loudly. Gwen raised an eyebrow in surprise. She hadn't heard a decent idea from Lana Dylan since 1974. "What do you think Gwen?"

"Of?" Gwen returned.

"Of Lana's idea to host a carnival. It's high time we had one!" Daphne exclaimed.

"And why would we have such a thing, Daphne dear?" Gwen asked, swiveling to face her. Sometimes she had to reign them in a little.

"Well, we haven't had one recently," Daphne replied uneasily glancing between Lana and Gwen. "I think the last one was almost five years ago..."

"No, I think you're missing the point," Gwen interrupted. "Why would The Mason Foundation, a charity organization, host a carnival? Surely there is a better reason than to watch your husband gorge himself on cheese on a stick and beer. I'm surprised at the both of you!"

"Mrs. Mason?" A meek voice from the back of the room called out. Gwen craned her neck to see who was calling her name, spotting Hallie's assistant shoved into the corner by Marian Overstreet. What was her name? Lisa...no Liza that was right.

"Yes, Liza?"

"If I might offer something?" Gwen shrugged slightly, tipping her hand to the young woman. "I was thinking that the Foundation could host a charity ball as well. I looked into it a little and in the late 1920s, the Jency family hosted a cotillion to show off their rose garden. They called it The Moonlight and Roses Ball. They planned one for the following year, but unfortunately the stock market crashed and the Jency's lost everything. They were never able to host another."

Gwen nodded, impressed with Liza's composure in a room of vultures. Daphne Wheeler, especially, glared ferociously at her as she continued to expound on the idea. "Yes, go on."

"The Foundation could host The Moonlight and Roses Ball this year with all the proceeds going to the Center. It wouldn't be as kid friendly as a carnival would be, but we could also charge more per head and then hold off on the carnival until the fall or winter when parents are more inclined to take their children anyway."

"Why wouldn't parents take their children now?" Daphne snapped. "Moonlight and Roses, what a terrible name!"

"Excuse me, Mrs. Wheeler, but I am a parent and right now, my son is enjoying the summer weather as I am sure are a lot of other children in the Glen. If we hold off until the fall for your carnival, which by the way is a wonderful idea, we could host it at the high school and draw in families that are tired of looking at each other on a rainy Saturday."

"It sounds as if you've thought this out," Gwen commented, ignoring the daggers Daphne was shooting at her.

"I have. The Country Club is actually situated on what used to be the Jency property and some of the roses grow wild there now. It would be a perfect location and I think Mr. Jency would be flattered," Liza continued.

"Flattered is an understatement," Gwen replied with a smirk. "All right, I like it. Shall we vote then? All those in favor of Liza's idea to host a ball" She looked around the room and counted the raised hands. Only Daphne and Lana kept their hands firmly in front of them. "I think we have a winner. Which means that this meeting is now over. Liza may I speak with you privately?"

Liza stood, biting her lip nervously, but followed Gwen to the Director's office. Gwen took her time getting comfortable in the chair behind the desk, collecting her thoughts as she did so. She knew very little of Hallie's assistant and she had no idea where the woman's loyalties lay. If she was loyal to Hallie there might be a problem later. For now though, the Foundation needed a director.

"Liza. I'm afraid we have had very little interaction before today. Would you mind sharing a little bit about yourself?" She asked, officially beginning the interview in her mind.

Liza blinked at the question, suddenly wary. "Myself? There's nothing to tell really."

"Please? Despite what my niece may have told you, I am not a monster." She offered a sincere smile as proof. Liza grinned in response, color creeping into her face.

"She never called you a monster...but that's close." She was being too kind, Gwen thought watching her wrestle with herself for a moment. "Okay. A little bit about me? I was born and raised in New York. I came here last fall to help my brother raise his daughter. He's a doctor...Galen Gennaro? Anyway, I have a son as well. Matthew. He's four. That's all there is to tell really."

"What about Hallie?" Gwen asked, raising an eyebrow. "How do you feel about her?"

"She's all right," Liza returned quickly. She dropped her gaze and stared at her hands in her lap. There was something more than what Liza was telling, Gwen realized. How interesting. She waited for a moment but Liza had said all she planned on saying it seemed.

"All right then. Do you enjoy working at The Foundation?" Liza nodded earnestly. "You showed a lot of courage back there. Daphne Wheeler isn't used to having the spotlight stolen like that. Your idea was much better than hers and what's more, you thought yours out and researched it. Liza, the Foundation is in need of a Director. I can't do it because I have no time. I had thought that maybe a daughter of a board member might be interested, but so far no one is interested."

"That's a shame, Mrs. Mason."

"Quite. How about it Liza? Would you like to be the Director of Affairs at The Mason Foundation?"

Scene 4:

"Rick." Maura wasn't startled by his sudden appearance at her door. In fact, she had wondered what had kept him so long. She swept a critical gaze over his unkempt clothes and unshaved face. He leaned against the column just at the porch steps, arms folded across his chest, gazing back at her with the same critical stare she gave him.

"Wondering what took me so long? Or were you hoping I would just let it go?"

Maura shook her head. "No. I-"

"Good, because I'm here to talk," he interrupted brushing past her into the house. He paused in the foyer, listening for the noise of the family. "It appears we are alone at last. Unless, Jude Fontaine is hiding out in the kitchen."

"He's not," Maura replied tartly, closing the door behind them. "And yes, we're alone. I knew you would come eventually too," she added.

"I'm sure you did." He reached into his pocket, pulling out his wallet. "I brought this back to you," he said holding out Tristen's picture. "Go on take it; I already made a copy." She reached for it, pulling it to her breast protectively.

"Thank you." He raised an eyebrow in response. "What? I'm just glad to have it back. It's all I have of her."

"Really? Somehow I doubt that very much," Rick retorted.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"It means, Maura, that you have something more than that. And a lot more than I will ever have. You have memories." She stepped back, stung by his words. They were true of course. She had memories and he had nothing. He had nothing because she had denied him, she reminded herself. And she had made a gigantic mess of everything. "So, are you ready to explain yourself?" He asked interrupting her pity party.

"It isn't as easy as you seem to think it is," she answered meekly, backing up against the front door.

"Give it a shot, Mo." He planted himself firmly in front of her, arms crossed. "I'm not going anywhere until you do."

"Rick..." She trailed off looking for a place to begin. How did she explain after all this time? "It was an accident," she sighed at last. "I found out the day before your interview at The Tribune...."

"So you knew when I was making all those plans for us?"

She nodded, averting her eyes. "I did. And I was planning on telling you but you seemed so determined not to let me. Any time I brought up having a family, you told me there wasn't a need to discuss it and that you would be a terrible father." She looked up again, her eyes bordered with tears. "You even told me I would be a terrible mother. Do you remember that?"

"Yes," he answered quietly, his expression staying unchanged. "Is that why you decided not to tell me about her? Is that why you left?"

"Of course not!" Maura exclaimed, biting back tears. "But you wanted something completely different than I did! I wanted that child and you. Suppose I had told you that day before you left for your interview, are you telling me that you would have skipped the interview and stayed with me?" She paused for his answer. When none came, she smiled bitterly. "Let me answer that for you, Rick. You wouldn't. You would have gone to that interview and been so preoccupied with me, you would have ruined any chance you had at The Tribune. And then," she added letting the tears stream down her face at last. "Then, you would have blamed me for not getting the job."

"No, I wouldn't..."

"Yes!" She interrupted him, lifting her chin. "Yes, you would have. And we might have still gotten married after that anyway, but you would have always blamed me for not letting you have the career you wanted and tying you down with a wife and child. I would have been miserable, you would have been miserable, and she would have grown up thinking that she was what made us hate each other. So I left. I did what I thought I had to do for her."

"Without consulting me." He dropped his arms to his side, helplessly. "Whatever your reasons, Maura, it doesn't excuse your actions!" He added sharply. "You've thrown me off and ignored me since I moved here. If you had just told me from the moment I asked last June, we could have avoided all of this."

"It wouldn't have changed a thing."

"Maybe not. But I would have known! That's something at least."

"Rick, you don't understand. I made that decision to make sure you had what you wanted out of life and to make sure Tristen, our daughter, had a good life too."

Rick's jaw fell open in surprise. He blinked once before regaining his composure. "You're not kidding are you?" He asked, studying her. "You really believe what you did was for me and...Tristen? Oh my god. How delusional are you?" His caustic tone made her flush in shame. "All I ever wanted was you. I might have been angry or upset. But I loved you...I loved you when I found you again but you didn't even give me a chance to be a better man than you expected."

"I thought I was doing the right thing!" Maura flashed out defensively.

"Self righteous as always. Get off your high horse and admit for once, you were selfish. You didn't want that baby any more than I did!" Rick snapped, his features contorting in anger. "Admit it! Or was it me you didn't want and were too afraid to own up to it? Christ, Maura! How dare you make decisions like giving up my child for adoption without even asking me? What kind of a woman are you? Not the woman I thought you were!"

"That's not fair," she murmured in a low, tormented voice. "I agonized over it. I hated myself for doing it. But there was no other way. My family is Catholic. I couldn't have an abortion. And my mother was sick! I would never have asked her to help me raise a baby!"

"Excuses, Maura Conlan." He took a step closer to her making her shrink away. "You took my daughter away from me for no good reason except that you thought it was for the best. You owe me, Maura."

She squeezed her eyes shut, letting the hot tears escape at last. She wasn't as bad as he made her sound. She had made the right decision, she told herself. She had! Tristen had a good life and Rick had the career he had always wanted. She had done it for them, not for herself no matter what he thought.

When she opened her eyes, Rick loomed over her, his eyes glinting angrily. "I want to see her."