Friday Update
February 22, 2002

PREVIOUSLY ON ALL MY CHILDREN

Maggie tells Vanessa: "I know EXACTLY what you are."

Ryan hides a data CD inside the head of Kendall's doll.

Hayley: "The disk is safe and sound with Ryan Lavery." Chris, seeing Simone right behind her warns Hayley: "Hayley, shut UP!"

Leo tells a pilot-for-hire: "I'm looking for a couple friends of mine. I figured we could just fly over the immediate area and see the lights from the boat."

On an island, Jake and Greenlee kiss.

[Sigh ... have pity on me for having to update a day that consists mostly of Hayley, Mateo, Chris and Ryan!]

NOTE: In all scenes, it's nighttime and it's very cold outside.

AN ISLAND

[I don't want to call this a DESERTED island just yet, because the last time we thought Greenlee (and Ryan that time) was on a deserted island, she was rescued by a passing Girl Guide troop equipped with satellite-based phones]. Greenlee and Jake warm their hands over a small fire. Greenlee shivers and says that in cartoons, people who wash up on deserted islands never look like they are freezing. He says that when they run into walls, they don't bleed, either. [And people in Pine Valley never get wet in water, makeup never smudges overnight, soot never gets on their clothes when they are nearly burned alive, they never have scars from the obligatory bullet-holes in their guts, and they fall off skyscrapers with no lasting damage. On the other hand, not a woman in town can carry a pregnancy to term without major life/baby-threatening complications, if they manage to survive the obligatory fall down the stairs, that is, and the women, pregnant or not, faint whenever an unpleasant thought enters their head or path of vision. Also, the virile Dr. David was easily knocked out by a small hand mirror. Go figure.] Greenlee wants to light the bonfire, but Jake nixes the idea, explaining that he's rationing the wood until a plane actually flies over to SEE a bonfire. Greenlee hesitantly brings up the subject of Jake telling her earlier that he loved her. Before she can get going with the subject, he shushes her and tells her to listen. We hear a plane flying overhead [in my case, there IS a plane flying overhead -- so loud, in fact, that I have to pause until it goes past so I can hear the TV]. The timing was kind of spooky.

They stand and Jake notices some lights in the sky. Greenlee whoops for joy and yells: "Da plane, Boss, da plane!!!" Jake lights the waiting stack of firewood for the bonfire and they jump up and down waving at the plane.

PINE CONE MOTEL

Kendall sits on her bed, fretting over her bank statement and wondering about a particular check. She decides that it doesn't matter what she wrote it for -- it's going to bounce, anyway [not to nit-pick, but if it's already on the statement, it's ALREADY bounced or it's been cleared -- okay, that WAS a nit-pick]. Frustrated at the boring task of balancing her checkbook, not to mention her lack of funds, she sweeps paperwork onto the floor. There's a knock at the door. She yells that if that is Mr. Wolf, give her some heat and then she'll write a check for the room. Ryan yells that he's not the manager and doesn't want her money. She lets him in, shivering and commenting that it must be 20 below outside. They both complain about the weather, but I notice that Kendall is wearing a pretty flimsy blouse, proving that she's too stupid to put on a sweater, let alone a jacket. He tells her that he's on his way into town and offers her a ride to come along and get something to eat. She passes and walks across the room bobbing and swaying like Mae West, coming to a stop in front of her dresser on which the doll is conveniently propped. She belittles his offer to let freeze to death on the back of his bike in exchange for free food, then suggests maybe afterward they can hit a bucket of balls [she should be VERY good at that]. He says OR she can admit that she's broke -- two losers like them stuck in that dump have no reason to pretend. She says she'll go change into something warm and admits that she LIKES riding on the back of his bike -- except for the part where she has to scrape the bugs off her front teeth. She disappears into the bathroom [why -- are her winter clothes stored in the shower?] Ryan takes advantage of her temporary absence to pick up the doll and squeeze it's little cranium in preparation for decapitating it.

Several scenes later, Ryan still has not beheaded the doll. Instead, he listens at the bathroom door [how extremely RUDE!], then walks across the room to continue the decapitation. As he pulls the head off, Kendall slowly opens the door and watches him. She folds her arms and says "Surprise!" as he stares into the empty head of the doll. They stare at each other. [I notice that the doll's shoelace is untied]

Ryan reattaches the doll's head and asks how she knew. She points out the suspiciousness of him offering her comfort, support and free food just because she's America's Sweetheart. After the Feds trashed his room, he must be able to see how she made the connection, right? He tells her that the disk was VERY IMPORTANT. She jokes about it, saying (again) that she's not as stupid as she looks. He apologizes for putting the disk in the doll's head and says he doesn't like to use people because it's not his style. [What does he call what he's doing to JR, then?] She says that she was the perfect candidate -- it's not like she has a real firm grasp on what's right and wrong -- at least not so that it gets in her way. He tests the waters and says that then she's not angry about this? She says that would be a bit hypocritical with her track record. [I LOVE that sweater she's now wearing, BTW] She says his friend was in trouble and he had to hide the disk in a hurry. He carefully say's he's glad she understands. She says she's done worse for a pack of cigarettes. She starts to obviously play him, saying that, in fact, he probably wants that disk back at this very moment. He shakes his head and asks her not to do this. She asks him to try and see it from her point of view -- Hayley wants the disk, she's LOADED, and Kendall is flat broke. Ryan rolls his eyes and head back and asks her how much. She ponders it for a while and then says it wasn't as easy as she thought it would be. After some more teasing, she asks for $100K. He laughs, then grins, licking his teeth in that smirking, exceptionally annoying way he has.

THE PIT

[Am I the only one who keeps thinking of Laverne DeFazio whenever they see Hayley's sweater with the big "H" on it?] Hayley turns to see Simone, then back to Chris. She snottily says: "You're a real charmer, aren't you?" Chris: "No. Never have been." [LOL!] Hayley continues to belittle him about his monkey-swinging ways and is extremely condescending as she explains that Simone has been in on this since the beginning and that what THEY know, SHE knows. [There are people dancing in the background, but their movements do not match the music AT ALL] Hayley waves her arms around, drawing pictures like Dana Carvey doing his George Bush imitation as she says that he does not have the AUTHORITY to remove Simone from what they are doing. Simone does her hangdog thing, saying she shouldn't have come over and that they've been playing so many roles that it's hard to know what's real anymore. She looks meaningfully and longingly at Mateo. Hayley, her back to Simone now, meaningfully says it's been hard on ALL of them. Simone apologizes again and walks away. Hayley reluctantly tells Mateo to follow her and see if she's okay. Hayley and Mateo both make faces with their tongues poking around in their respective mouths like runaway pinballs as he gets up to appease the womenfolk. Chris then starts to lecture Hayley about spouting off information in a public place when she doesn't know who the hell might be listening. She points out that he INVITED her to that public place [touche] and that she KNEW Simone was there. She says she trusts Simone a HELL of a lot more than she trusts HIM. He asks if she gave Ryan the disk because she trusts him. She says she trusts Ryan with her LIFE. He tells her to tell him what Ryan is really like. She asks what the hell it is to HIM. They stare.

Over at the bar, Mateo sits next to Simone and asks if she wants something (to drink). She declines. He says he realizes that what went on between them was pretty intense and that it was hard to know where the game stopped and the real stuff began. She tightly says that it makes it awkward, now that the game is over. He goes on to say that having Stamp involved probably makes her feel like she's being pushed out. He assures her she'll still get her story. She snaps that that will happen AFTER it all goes down when he TELLS her about it. Simone: "Yeah, well, I don't want to get the story like that, all right? My life was FULL and INTENSE there for a while and that's the way I LOVE it! And it didn't MATTER if I don't get a lot of sleep. It made me feel like my life had some SUBSTANCE, that it MATTERED what I was doing!" He nods and says he understands. She grumbles about her being shoved aside with her laptop and notes while the story goes on without her. [Let's see here: Mateo is being framed to do vile and nasty things, thrown in prison, nearly murdered several times and cut off from his family and everything good about his life. Simone doesn't get to finish a story. Yeah, clearly she's the one who's suffering the most.] She jabs her finger at Mateo and says he doesn't even KNOW what she has sacrificed and given up to come here [and whose idea was that? Not HIS.]. She insists there has got to be a way for Stamp to let her in on this until the end. Can't Mateo DO something? Mateo stares, stonewalling her. She rolls her eyes and says she gets it now -- it's not just Stamp who wants her out -- MATEO does, too! He doesn't deny it and vaguely lifts his hand, saying that this is the way it's got to be. He gets up to return to his table. Simone picks up a full drink and snidely says that he's with Hayley, so hanging around with his FAKE mistress is a little too much. He says that it's a little awkward. She turns back to the bar to drink some more and tells him to just GO. She sniffles. He leans toward her and says: "Listen--" She interrupts him and tells him NOT to tell her how sorry he is. She works her jaw and opens her mouth, rolling her tongue around. She says she likes the Band-Aid pulled off FAST. Mateo jerks his head back in an Edmund-like nod of understanding and goes back to his table.

Back at the table, Stamp says Hayley just told him that Ryan has evidence to put Proteus away and she's asking why Stamp wants to KNOW about him? She says she seems to remember that his fascination with Ryan started long before this, when he was just a bartender at SOS and Ryan and her were having a conversation that Chris eavesdropped on. Stamp congratulates her, considering she's an amateur. If he were grilling a perp, he would pretend he didn't know anything either. He says he knows she knows the story about him and Ryan. She says she knows that Chris offed Ryan's father. He chides her for such a nice way of putting it. She says she doesn't give a damn of what he thinks of her vocabulary. Chris: "Is that supposed to hurt my feelings? Because I've been hated by professionals." Hayley: "So I understand." They have a mini-staredown. He comments that she doesn't let anyone in easily. Hayley: "Why? You wanna BOND with me?" Chris: "No. I was thinking about Ryan. The guy's been handed nothing but bad breaks his whole life, he loses his wife who he loved more than anything in this world, and he still winds up with a tough, smart cookie like you to trust him with her life. Says a lot for someone." Hayley resists the compliment [I'm not sure if the compliment was directed at her or Ryan].

Mateo finally returns to the table. Hayley asks if Simone is okay. Mateo says she understands. Hayley says that doesn't answer her question. He says Simone's cool as long as she gets her story. Chris expresses apprehension about Simone getting her story. Mateo says Simone covered his back for three months, and Chris is treating her like she's some tabloid reporter. Chris says he'll treat her like Edward R. Murrow as soon as he has that disk in his hand. [I can never hear ERM's name without thinking of his SNL appearance and the Garage Band skit. I told my father-in-law about it at the time (early 80s) and he was so shocked and horrified at the mere thought of it that he nearly plotzed :-)] Chris tells them to call Lavery and tell him that he is on his way over to pick it up. Mateo says Chris isn't listening -- he and Hayley want IN, and Chris doesn't get ANYTHING until he agrees. Echoing my sentiments, Chris shakes his head in disbelief and says Mateo should know by now that this is not a GAME! Chris: "The longer that Lavery has that disk in his hand, the more his LIFE is in danger. Proteus is going to think NOTHING about killing him!" [Now, see, there's where Chris and I diverged on opinions, because I wasn't thinking of Ryan's life AT ALL when I agreed with Chris.] The Santos duo stare, mouths open.

Mateo accuses Chris of just wanting to be in control. Chris says that Ryan knows about the disk, the three of THEM know about it, and as of 10 minutes ago, Simone knows about it. When that many people know about something, it's impossible to keep under wraps [and he doesn't even KNOW that JR knows about it]. Mateo tells him he's being ridiculous. Chris insists he's been there and this is where BIG mistakes happen that they'll regret for the rest of their lives. He jabs his finger at them and says that Proteus KNOWS that both of them are FAKING it. Mateo says that doesn't mean he knows that Ryan has the disk. Hayley: "He or SHE." Chris continues jabbing and says that Proteus knows there is probably evidence out there and it is HIS responsibility to make sure that the evidence gets into the hands of the appropriate Federal agencies BEFORE Proteus goes hunting for it. Hayley says Chris is right -- it's too dangerous for Ryan to hold onto the disk. She moves to call Ryan and tell him to hand it over now. Chris is happy -- a little TOO eager, IMO.

Outside, Simone uses her cell phone to call someone and say: "It's me, Simone. I'm ready to deal." [I marvel at her ability to make a cell phone call while wearing gloves]

PINE VALLEY INN

David and Anna lie back naked in bed, heaving contented, satisfied sighs. Anna makes some comment about his idea of pillow talk. He says never mind what she came there to say, he has other things on his mind. He starts ravishing her once again. She reluctantly stops him and says she HAS to tell him. She thinks Stamp is winding up his Proteus operation and he's going to pin everything he can on David, and that's why he's freezing her out of the investigation. David [speaking for all of us] says: "What's so new about THAT? He's been trying to nail me for MONTHS." She says this is different -- he's taken a whole other tactic, and it's scares her. She tells him that Stamp has asked for ALL of David's records AND on all people who have had heart attacks recently in Pine Valley. She says they BOTH know that heart attacks have nothing to do with the Proteus case. David looks stunned, then deep in worried thought. He frowns, seeming to be about to explain his suspicions to her. [Keyword being SEEMING, of course]

Later, Anna finishes getting dressed. David, fully dressed and over by the window, hangs up the phone and answers her query of "Well?" with: "Due to recent disclosures, my status at the hospital is once again uncertain, and blah, blah, blah." They refuse to tell him about his files. There's no way to know if Chris has them and there's not a damn thing David can DO about it! She says Chris is planning to use it to leverage or discredit him. [Ooh, smart as a whip, that one!] He says it doesn't matter, the end result will be the same. She agrees -- Chris will find out about David's research, and with what Jake already found out ... She then gives the love of her life an I- told-you-so about him losing everything. He asks if she's SURE that Chris is gathering all this info on him -- what does his research have to do with the Proteus investigation? She shrugs and says she doesn't know -- what do HEART ATTACKS have to do with Proteus? David looks furtive as he frowns and flashes back to giving his mother instructions about how to fake heart problems with potassium. He heaves a ragged sigh, bends to pick up his jacket and tells her to stay there. She orders him to tell her what's going on. He says he has to got to the hospital and find out about his files. There's a woman in the Records Department that will help him. She wants to go, too, but he says he'll be much more persuasive on his own. He asks her to trust him. She says okay, but huffs in frustration. He leaves.

GREENLEE'S PENTHOUSE

The syringe is on the bloodstained rug as Vanessa and Maggie struggle on the couch. Maggie manages to push Vanessa back long enough to get on the floor and crawl over to the syringe to pick it up. Unfortunately, she wastes her time with 7-8 little baby crawl-steps, instead of one good lunge, so Vanessa catches up with her by the time she starts to get to her feet. As soon as Maggie is standing, Vanessa hovers over her with an upraised vase, then smashes it down on her head. Like any self-respecting soap-opera-vase, it shatters into a thousand pieces as Maggie cries out and falls back to the floor. She drops the syringe and holds the back of her head, boo-hoo-hooing the whole time. She tries to get up as Vanessa recalibrates the syringe, pushes Maggie down and injects the contents into her neck while Maggie screeches. Vanessa dramatically pulls the needle out and steps back, checking the contents or lack thereof of the syringe and waiting for the drug to take effect. Maggie struggles to stay conscious. Vanessa makes an annoyed 1/2-grimace face and rolls her hand in circles to pantomime speeding things up and getting on with it for Christ's sake! Maggie appears to pass out.

After the commercial, we see that Maggie didn't REALLY pass out -- yet. She rubs her neck and calls Vanessa a monster. Vanessa indicates that Maggie should stop being such a drama queen, saying: "Oh, please, oh, please. I only gave you HALF a dose, my dear. You are NOT dying! Merely a crisis control. I DO NOT KILL **FAMILY** -- though Lord knows sometimes they push me to the brink OVER and over again!" She invites Maggie to try and make it to the sofa. Maggie lolls her head and really does pass out. Vanessa frowns and wonders how she's going to get Maggie out of there. She looks around in frustration, then wanders over to the window and rages: "Oh, this has all gone WAY out of hand!" She stomps her feet and yells: "WHY CAN'T PEOPLE JUST - STAY - OUT - OF - MY - WAY??? THIS close to getting out of this Mayberry Revisited and the two Bobbsey Twins have to show up brandishing SONNETS!" [ROTFLMAO!] She heads back into the living room grumbling about how it's probably her own fault -- she should have burned the damned book! She squats down next to Maggie and affectionately brushes hair off of Maggie's face, continuing her rant and saying she wanted Bianca to have a little memento of Frankie, but every times she TRIES to do something GOOD, it's always comes right back to BITE HER!! She feels Maggie's wrist for a pulse, which is strong. She grits her teeth and says it's moving day -- AGAIN. She walks over and plops herself down on a chair to call someone.

Later, Vanessa finishes tying Maggie to a wheelchair. Vanessa grouses about the HUGE deposit the medical supply people made her put down :-) Although she is unconscious, Maggie's legs are fetchingly crossed, rather than sloppily sprawling as one might expect, given the situation. Vanessa: "What do they think I'm going to DO, abscond with the damn thing, roll all the way to CHINA? Must have some medical scam going on I'm not aware of, SHAME on me!" [ROTFL!] As Vanessa backs the chair up, I notice Maggie's feet are both tied to one side, so VANESSA must have crossed Maggie's legs, thinking no one would notice an unconscious girl tied to a wheelchair, but LOTS of people would notice a comely young girl in a mini-skirt with her legs wide open, unconscious and tied up or not. As Vanessa wheels the chair toward the door, someone knocks on it. Vanessa freezes. David yells from the other side, telling Leo he has to speak with him about Vanessa. Vanessa does her now-polished viper-triple-tongue-flick.

Vanessa bends down to Maggie's ear and hisses: "You know, NOBODY has to put up with what I have to up with. JOB had NOTHING on me!" She rolls Maggie to the hallway behind the fireplace. As David continues to knock, Vanessa yells: "I'm coming! Possess your SOUL with a little patience, please!" As she goes to answer the door, Maggie sighs and shifts in her chair a little. Vanessa pauses a moment to collect herself (barely), opens the door and announces: "Leo isn't here. He's out making arrangements for us to escape from this HELLHOLE!" David walks in and glances around. Vanessa shuts the door and says, BTW, she knows why he's there -- she heard what he said -- he wants to talk to LEO about HER. David says she's right. Vanessa is SOO not the cooing, flighty socialite as she angrily says: "And what about, hmm? Did you bring COMMITMENT papers with you for him to sign? Or do you want to ask him to maybe pony up for half the ASYLUM EXPENSES???" David calmly says that he obviously didn't expect to find her there, but maybe it's for the better. Maybe it's time that they had an honest TALK. He walks toward the couch while she keeps darting looks in Maggie's direction, ridiculing the idea of them "talking" since he thinks she's a JOKE! Still eerily calm, he says that's not true. Arms akimbo, she says she KNOWS he doesn't love her. Leo is the only one who has ANY feeling for her. He says she's right -- maybe he doesn't have any great love for her, but he does feel responsible for her. She scoffs at him, but is clearly antsy as she wildly looks around and says: "Well, and your kind of responsibility entails what? HA-HA-HA, WE know!" [She really DOES look loony here] He speaks as one would to a child or a crazy person and says that he knows she thinks he's threatening her, but he really just wants to protect her. Constantly shifting her feet, she says that it seems the only person she needs protection FROM is him. He says he's worried about her and she seems to be in over her head. She snorts that if she really WAS in over her head, he'd be the LAST person she'd call for a LIFELINE! He says he's the best hope she's got. She laughs and bends forward in a neener-neener kind of way, saying: "Oh, don't fool yourself, my Darling, my little PRINCE! You are not HALF as powerful as I've made you BELIEVE you are!" David rubs his forehead and says he doesn't want to keep doing this with her. He just wants the truth: "Did - you - kill - Larry?" She stares, but twitches a slight smile. He earnestly asks if she used the drug on anybody else. She looks affronted by such a question. Meanwhile, Maggie is still unconscious in the hallway.

PINE CONE MOTEL

Ryan suggests a counteroffer of holding Kendall upside-down by her ankles until she tells him where the disk is. Kendall: "See, that feels kind of HOSTILE to me." Ryan: "Go with that feeling." She suggests they negotiate nicely since she's not the enemy. He says she could have fooled him, then offers her $2. She counters with $999,998.00. Ryan doesn't want to play any more games and says he made a PROMISE to these people and he doesn't like to screw up his promises. Kendall starts to cave and says: "DAMN it! (...) One of my major strengths is not giving a damn what anyone thinks about me. But suddenly watching you squint up those soulful eyes in that judgmental way you have, suddenly I don't want you to dislike me." Ryan tersely says: "Being the GENTLE soul that you are, Kendall, give me the disk." She stalls some more and he yells at her to give him the disk. She asks him to at least TRY to talk Hayley into giving her a reward. She says she's not greedy, but Stamp DID offer her $5K. Rather than just say he'll try, he snottily says he doesn't think they call it a REWARD when you make someone pay for something that you STOL in the first place. Kendall: "Excuse me -- something YOU put in my room without my knowledge which could've gotten me KILLED." Ryan: "Please, don't be melodramatic." [She finally says something truthful and valid and THEN he accuses her of being melodramatic?] She says she's flat broke and right now she has about one asset to her name. His cell phone rings and he answers it. It's Hayley, who says she needs to get that THING that he's holding. Her voice is breaking up, though, and he can't hear her clearly. She decides to go outside to continue the call.

THE PIT

Outside, Simone tells someone on the phone that she has some MAJOR information for them. As Hayley walks out, slamming the door loudly behind her, but Simone doesn't notice. Simone says there is some SOLID evidence against Proteus and it's in the possession of Ryan Lavery. Hayley glares at Simone's back.

Hayley asks Simone what the hell she is doing. Simone whips around, still on the phone. She hangs up and puts the phone in her purse as Hayley yells at her about giving away information about the investigation when they TRUSTED her! Simone gets a backbone and hatefully tells Hayley that the right word is USED -- they all USED her! She tells Hayley it's none of her damn business who was on the phone. Simone turns to walk away, but Hayley grabs her and swings her around. Simone fights her, but Hayley has a good grip on her from behind and forces her back into The Pit, yelling at her to SHUT UP! Chris and Mateo jump up to ask what's going on. Hayley, ever mindful of keeping secrets about the investigation, yells at the top of her lungs that she caught Simone on the phone telling someone stuff about RYAN!! Chris tells a non-speaking nearby extra to take her into custody. He tells Hayley to call Ryan and tell him to stay put and not to go ANYWHERE.

AN ISLAND

The plane continues on its way. Greenlee jumps up and down and shouts futilely at it to come back. Jake tries to calm her down and convince her that it's gone. She fights him off and wails at the failure to attract their attention. [I don't know why Jake feels that he has to restrain her, since there's nobody else there.] He pulls her back onto the sand and tells her that it's okay -- they'll flag down another one tomorrow. She's not so sure, since it was a private plane and the only one they've seen so far -- they're stranded and it's cold and they have no food and they could be there for MONTHS! She tries to control her hyperventilation and lets herself be soothed by Jake, who promises to not let anything happen to her and to get her out of this. [Oh yeah, you weren't able to stop Vanessa from getting the two of you there in the first place, were you?] He turns her around and squats to her eye level. He tells her that it's true -- just like it's true that he loves her. Greenlee looks miserable, but wants VERY MUCH to trust that both of those statements are true. She also looks like she has a slight head cold.

Jake says he meant what he said before -- he wants her. He wants to be with her all the time because he LIKES what she does for him [yeah, that Venus Jockstrap maneuver of hers is real popular]. He reminds her that she said herself that she's good for him. She says she talks too much. He says she was right. Schedules and budgets don't always have to be written in stone and sometimes there's nothing to drink but champagne. Jake: "And every once in a while, I want to go after what I want and WHAT I want to go after, to HELL with the consequences." Greenlee cautiously says: "You mean like now? To hell with Leo?" He says he means like holding her in his arms before when she was sick -- he was really, REALLY scared that she wasn't going to make it; and then he thought that this world would be a really BAD place if she weren't in it. Greenlee, overwhelmed by the power of the moment, says she's going to gather some wood [sounds like you've got plenty of wood right in front of you]. She slowly steps around him. He asks her if she has any idea that she's one-of-a-kind. Jake: "I mean, here you are in the face of death [you JUST got her calmed down and then you tell her she's facing DEATH?], and there's no white lights and long tunnels for YOU. Nope." He steps up close behind her and says: "You hallucinate in TV reruns." She steps away and tends to the bonfire. Jake continues: "If there's something you want, look out, because you GO for it. There's not a thing on this PLANET that can stand up to your totally GOOFY determination!" She moves a few feet closer to him as he kneels and gathers driftwood. Jake stands and says: "You know, all the time when you were pining after Leo, it took every single bit of strength that I had not to be able to tell you how I felt." Greenlee breathes heavily, still not looking at him. Jake: "And now I'm tapped out. I don't even want to FIGHT those urges anymore." He walks over next to her and drops the wood (so to speak) and intimately tells her: "And I'm GLAD. Because I don't WANT to fight them. Because I love you. And I always will love you." She finally looks at him as he says: "Always." She looks up at him, too frightened by the immensity of what he is saying to let herself say anything. He brushes the hair from her face, then bends to kiss her as we hear fairy dust being sprinkled [I kid you not].

PINE CONE MOTEL

While Hayley tries to call Ryan, Ryan fiddles with his cell phone and swears about their call being cut off. Kendall tells him that beating it up is not going to solve the problem. He tells her that she doesn't understand -- he could tell from Hayley's voice that something VERY serious has happened. He hands the phone to Kendall and tells her to keep pressing redial until she gets through to Hayley and when she does, tell her that he has the disk and he's going to take it someplace safe. Kendall reminds him of a small problem -- he doesn't HAVE the disk. Ryan says that's right, so she's going to give it to him RIGHT NOW -- he's NOT SCREWING AROUND! She sighs and heads for her dresser. She pulls out a drawer, reaches underneath and retrieves the disk. She says Hayley's number is busy. Ryan nods.

THE PIT

On Hayley's end of the phone, she reaches Ryan's voice mail and is prompted to leave a message. Hayley sighs, hangs up and redials.

GREENLEE'S PENTHOUSE

As Maggie continues to loll unconscious in the wheelchair, Vanessa asks David if he thinks she's some kind of serial killer. He calmly says he just thinks she needs help and he can get it for her. Vanessa sneers at him and says: "Nooo, David, YOU'RE the one that needs the help, My Dear. No, you've got this crazy, bizarre MOTHER fixation. You get thySELF to a COUCH!" Her cell phone rings and she excuses herself to answer it with a simple "Yes." A man on the other end says: "Santos had a smoking gun. He gave it to a Ryan Lavery." Vanessa blinks in surprise and says: "Well, then we'll just have to get it back, won't we, any way we can." David watches and listens with suspicion, trying to figure out what's going on NOW as Vanessa nervously fiddles with an earring.

AN ISLAND

Greenlee and Jake kiss passionately and eventually lie down on the sand with him on top. I notice that Greenlee holds one leg/knee against him being COMPLETELY on top of her. She protests slightly, but he kisses it away and tells her not to talk. Jake: "Doesn't this feel right? Doesn't it just feel like that all this had to happen, all of it, so we could be together like this?" [I know it's romantic and all, but isn't that something a stalker would say?] They kiss some more. He kisses her neck and she revels it in for a few moments, then opens her eyes and looks over his shoulder, gasping: "LEO!"

PINE VALLEY INN

Anna impatiently waits for David. She picks up the phone, but thinks better of it, telling herself that she has to TRUST him. She tongues her upper lip, then goes back to the phone and calls PV Hospital, asking for the Records Department. She asks for David, but is told no one has seen him this evening. She hangs up and asks Air-David where he has gone. She mimics him: "Trust me!" She grabs her coat and departs.

GREENLEE'S PENTHOUSE

Vanessa snaps her cell phone shut, scratches her head vigorously a couple of times, and says it was her lawyer -- all the adverse publicity about Larry has taken them away from having the upper hand in the divorce. She turns back to David who mildly sneers that that lie doesn't even make SENSE. Vanessa stalks across the room yelling: "Oh, for heaven's sakes, David, I'm BUSY. Can't you find something more interesting to do than HARASS YOUR MOTHER?" David rubs his forehead again [he should really get that constant headache checked out]. She opens the door and gestures to him to leave. Please. She says David WILL forgive her if she doesn't tell Leo he was looking for him. David says he knows what she's doing. He KNOWS what's really going on. In the hallway, Maggie starts to come around.

THE PIT

Hayley still can't get through to Ryan. Chris tells her to keep trying. He can get to the Pine Cone in two minutes. They're taking Simone down to the Police Station. Mateo goes with Chris. The beefy, mute extra escorts a handcuffed Simone out into the snow. He stops and they both turn as Chris and Mateo walk up. Simone glares. Mateo gives her a righteous how-COULD-you stare, then walks away. She glares longingly after him. Inside, Hayley still tries unsuccessfully to get through to Ryan.

PINE CONE MOTEL

Kendall grouses that she can't BELIEVE that she let Ryan talk her into a freebie. He tells her to just keep trying. He opens the door and walks out. As he stands in Kendall's doorway, a kneeling, ski-masked man dressed in black aims a rifle at him (after first aiming at something else) and positions the crosshairs on Ryan's heart. Ryan pats his pockets as if he's looking for his keys.

NOTE

Remember that plane that I heard early in the update when Greenlee and Jake heard a plane? I can't be sure, but the timing is right for it to have been the plane that had to make an emergency landing on a residential street a few miles from here (clipped an SUV full of kids, too). No wonder I was annoyed. I'm guessing the driver of the SUV was pretty annoyed, too. No one was hurt (but I'm guessing some therapy is in the children's futures).

ON THE NEXT AMC

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David: "If you are connected to Proteus, get ready, Mother, because you are going DOWN!" Maggie weakly slaps her hand [which she must have worked loose from the binding] against the back of the fireplace. David: "Do you have someone STASHED in here?" Vanessa smiles.

On the island, Jake, Leo and Greenlee look up and wander around as (presumably) the plane takes off. Jake yells at the sky: "There she GOES, right there!" The three of them stand on the beach and Jake says: "Looks like we're here for the long haul, just the three of us."

Erica stands outside an open door of a Pine Cone Motel room and puts her hands to her face in horror at whatever it is that she sees. [I'm guessing CHRIS was shot]

Irreverently submitted,

Robin "LOVE the Vanessa scenes -- HATE the H&M/R&K scenes" Coutellier