Episode 3-06

“Where are you going, now?” Kassie Tom asked Colin, who was readying a bag. “I thought you didn’t trust me to stay here a minute longer.”

“I don’t,” he said, turning to her. He pushed back his short hair and shifted his jacket. “Which is why you won’t be able to get out.”

“Exactly,” Colin finished. “The doors will all be locked from the outside.”

“No,” Colin started. “You deserve much more. I’m letting you off lightly. But you know that as soon as I let you go, everything – and everyone – will have moved.”

Kassie nodded again. She scratched her head, her dry scalp itching due to the polyester wig she was wearing.

Colin opened the door, exited, and then closed it behind him. Kassie could hear the door locking as keys shuffled and metal clinked.

“He’s gone…” Kassie muttered to herself. She waited a minute after everything has seemeed calm, and she jotted to the exit door. She tried to open it, but it was stuck. Locked.

“Duh!” Kassie said, backing away. She whacked the door with her shoulder, but all she managed to open was a wound. “Ow… That hurt.” Realizing she needed to get out, she turned to the back and tried to open the back door.

“Time to open,” Kassie said, grabbing the door’s handled. She turned it and it opened.

“Dammit!” Kassie said, hitting the door. Just them, she heard crying. It didn’t sound like he was hungry or tired. He was crying out for someone.

“I’m coming!” Kassie cried out, looking around for something to open the door. Noah’s wailing cuts through her making her want to stop hearing for just a minute. She got her quivering hands on a crowbar and wedged it in the door.

“Open!” she grunted, pushing the bar. A slight cracking sound could be heard. She took it out and started hitting the knob. Quickly, she replaced the bar and trusted her entire weight on it.

“Oh, my God…” Darla Tom gasped, covering her mouth. “This can’t be true.”

Doctor Wyndham nodded. “I’m afraid so. You have been diagnosed with… well, I could give the technical term, but it simple terms: uterine cancer.”

Patrick Donavon came around and put his arm around her. “Don’t you worry. This will be treated,” Patrick looked up at the doctor, “right?”

“Of course,” Dr. Wyndham said, smiling. “Concerns regarding the pregnancy you had gone through were stated on your charts.”

Dr. Wyndham nodded. “I’m sure your doctor in San Francisco told you of the risks. When your charts was transferred here, he had mentioned it.”

Darla nodded again. “Y-Yes… I… I just figured because of the technology these days, nothing could go wrong. I figured it was a scare tactic.”

“No, they are serious,” he said, flipping her chart. “People at your age normally don’t give birth. Due to age and body condition, usually trouble form. In your uterus, a few cells had become malignant—in other words, bad—and it had spread.”

In her own mind, Darla felt as if she were going to explode. Thoughts were pouring in all over, and she couldn’t process them.

You know: You read the magazines and you see it on TV. “Woman get cancer;” “Man dies of colon cancer;” “Cure for cancer far away.” Everyone think it couldn’t happen to him or her.

As she listened to Dr. Wyndham, her chest felt compressed. Breathing was a chore, and seeing straight a luxury.

“We’ll need you to stay here,” the doctor continued. “We’ll need to start treatment immediately. Chances are you could have had the malignance since you were pregnant.”

“God… With Noah?” Darla moaned. “No… Please… Does this mean he’ll get it, too?”

Dr. Wyndham paused. “It increases his risk dramatically. The baby develops in the uterus. And if there were abnormalities, then Noah’s chances a higher.”

Patrick grabs Darla, and gives her a light hug. He rested her head on his shoulder, and she didn’t cry. She wasn’t going to do it.

Darla breathed a breath. “I hope so,” she quivered. “I just pray I’m not being punished for having Noah with another man.”

Shortly after Iris Torres had left, Henderson came into his room to arrange his clothing. “Mr. King? Why are you packing?”

John looked up at the friendly servant. “I’m taking a small daytrip back to my mayoral duties.”

Henderson looked surprised. “But, sir. Muriel and the cook have prepared a special lunch for the entire family. Constance requested it, and she was hoping you, Adam, Julian, and Mitchel were to attend.”

“She did?” John asked. He loosened his tie, and thought about staying. I mean, there were dozens of other men and women holding down the fort. “Sure, I’ll stay. No problem.”

“What new?” Adam King asked, exasperated by having to stay here with his family. “You actually expected John to be on time?”

“Muriel’s been extremely busy,” Julian popped in. “She and the cook have been working nonstop.”

Just then, “No worries, madam.” Henderson came into the dining room with a bottle of expensive-looking champagne. “John will be here momentarily.”

Adam fell back into his seat, and observed the seating arrangement. He was sited on a tableside, with his moth to his left. Julian sat directly diagonal from him on the opposite side of the table, with John sitting beside him.

“Isn’t this lovely?” Constance asked, trying to be pleasant with her husband and the arrival of her not-so-saintly son. “We need to do this more often.”

“Like we need bamboo shoots under our fingernails,” Adam muttered. “I had some plans today.” And it wasn’t a lie. He had planned to take Gillian Evans home from the guesthouse, and they would both go to Iris’ home. After they had seen her exit John’s room, they needed answers.

“Hello everyone!” came John’s boisterous voice, cutting through Adam’s thoughts. “Ahh… I see we’re all here… except the new kid. Where’s Mitchel?”

Constance looked coldly over to Julian. “Speak to your father. The ass scared the boy, and he ran off somewhere.”

And the plan is working, thought Julian to himself. He will soon do anything I want…

John sat down beside his father. “You know what this table’s missing?” he asked. “That little venomous hussy. Poison.”

Julian turned to his son. “Don’t speak about your sister that way,” he scowled. “Ivy is in Ireland.”

“Good riddance,” Adam cued him, and Constance smiled. The girl had never warmed up with her mother. They were like enemies.

Just as Muriel began to bring out the appetizers, Henderson came rushing in. “Sir. It’s the phone.”

Julian turned back to Henderson. “Please, Henderson, put her on local speakerphone. We’ll all have a chat with her.

Adam saw a disappointed look on John’s face. When John and Poison Ivy had been younger, they always had a rivalry going on. It started off innocently enough when they were young, but it became fierce when they were older. They fought over their father’s affections. They always wanted to be the favorite. John must have thought he was in the clear, coming this year.

Adam, on the other hand, didn’t try and attract his father. He was the middle child, wedged between two rivals. He mostly bonded with his mother, and they both protected each other from—for lack of a better word—the “evil” side of the family.

They could hear the speakerphone system click on, and they knew they were connected.

Gillian Evans opened the door to her home, and threw her purse to the floor. She had been disappointed that Adam had decided to stay at the mansion, but she could find out what was up with Iris on her own.

Moving back to the floor, she picked up her thrown purse. She opened it up, and saw the baggie on cocaine.

“Iris…” Gillian muttered. “I never thought this could have been you. Why?” Replacing it, Gillian breathed deeply, crossed the living room, and entered her kitchen. “I need something sweet.”

Within minutes, she had opened the wrapper of a Twix bar. Unlike many other women she knew, she wasn’t concerned with calories or weight. She always had balance.

Just then, the doorbell rang. She bit the last bite on the first Twix stick, and placed it on the kitchen table. She went back her original route, and swung the door open. “Oh!”

“Hello, Gillian,” Iris cooed, stepping inside. “You were at the mansion today. With Adam.”

Gillian nodded. “Yes. We’re both very worried about you. You seem to be acting strangely. We wanted to help.”

“Well, don’t!” Iris said pointedly. “I don’t need help. It’s just that… There have been a lot of big things going on. I’d rather not talk about them.”

“No!” she said defensively. “Listen… I don’t want to be judged by you. I don’t want you looking at me, and pitying me. I would rather be in hell than live like that.”

Iris came up to her, and grabbed her neck. “No! I want you, and that man who thinks he loves me—Adam—to leave me alone. I’ve had enough of all of this. I have new goals. And they don’t involved either of you!”

Addy Evans continued to pester Brooke Wright while she was waiting table at the Beach Hut. She would wait for her to come back behind the bar to serve drinks.

“Remember to meet me a Natural Exposure in a few days,” Addy said, smiling. Her red hair reflected her intensity to Brooke.

Brooke looked at her. Since she was so much more youthful, Addy’s age shone through. “Why am I wasting my time there, again?”

Sighing, Brooke poured a customer a drink. “I have a bad feeling about everything that’s going on. Everything is just too weird. You know what I mean?”

Addy remembered making the wish for Gillian to loose faith in Giovanni. It was on a crystal hand, and a finger bent back. “I guess things have been strange.”

Brooke nodded. “I mean, I pretended to make love to Giovanni. What the hell is up with that? I didn’t even remember doing it!”

“You know what?” Brooke asked, leaning over to Addy. “I don’t feel going about everything. I just get shivers…”

From across the room, an elderly woman sat at a table sipping an exotic drink. It was Cassandra. “You’re right,” she said. “And Addy’s wish will have been the cause of what’s to come.”

In a room in the Beach Hut, the woman who had been tied up had managed to get out into the hallway. She spotted the courtesy phone hanging in the hallway, and thanked God.

“Oof!” Mateo Consuelos grunted as his hit someone coming up the steps to his home. “Who are—?” He stopped when he saw her face. “Brianna Huber? Back from the dead!”

Brianna looked dead serious. She didn’t even crack a smile to his over exaggeration.

“I’d just like to saw how sorry I am,” Mateo said affectionately. “Even thought I was possessed my a demon from Hell, I’d like to apologize for my actions.”

Brianna, without skipping a beat, pulled him out from the doorway and to the side of the house. “Where have you been?”

Mateo looked around curiously. “I’ve been with Father McMurdy… Why are we here?”

“So Skye won’t see or hear us… Now, why were you at the church? Does he know?”

Mateo nodded. “I think as soon as the ravens attacked guests at your funeral and blood covered your casket, he was confident.”

“You’re telling me!” Mateo insisted. “You were just with her, right? Well, I seem to have fathered her child. A human-demon-human-demon hybrid thing. That’s a mess!”

“Her past,” Brianna said, with a strange focus. “We need to get to Skye’s past.”

Inside, Skye Lore was completely unaware of what was going on outside. She was standing in front of a mirror, admiring her enlarging stomach.

“Who knew one moment of passion in February could produce something so wonderful,” she said, he voice filled with awe. “It’s amazing.”

“Woah,” Skye said, smiling. “That was some kick. This is going to be a very strong baby. A very… powerful child…”

“Of course,” came her cool, collected, rather youthful voice. “I have to admit I wasn’t expecting the speakerphone treatment.”

“Good,” she replied. “Not the best, but I know you’ll be pleased by my term grades.”

“When the term’s done. My marks still hinge on my exams, so I’m not completely in the clear. Most likely in May.”

“Oh, hi,” came Ivy’s voice. “I wouldn’t have thought you’d still be living at home. With your parents. It seems both my brothers can’t take care of themselves.”

Constance lifted her hand to Adam, making signal to not get defensive about her comments. It’s what she wanted.

Ivy cleared her throat. “School work, and visiting friends. The people are very nice here—”

“I know you’ve been up to something,” John continued. “You can’t pull this school crap on me. You have definitely been up to something.”

Adam leaned over to his mother. “To tell the truth, I hope she is up to something. Then John or I could expose it, and she’d finally be tarnished in father’s eyes.”

Constance shook her head. “Julian always makes up excuses, and you end up being blamed.”

“But you can be sure John won’t stop pestering her,” Adam concluded. “Poison’s always up to something, and it will be found out. And we will never make her forget it.”

Kassie stumbled in, went through the center of the room, and threw open the curtains. She saw Noah curled up in some fabric. She scooped him up, and turned back out. Bringing the crowbar, and made her way to the front door.

Hold Noah in her arms, she gave him a light kiss on his cheek. He squirmed. “We’re getting outta here,” Kassie promised. She got to work.

Kicking the door open with her foot, she walked down the stepped. The bright sun caused her to squint, and the warm air filled her lungs. She stepped carefully on the wooden dock. She could hear waves crashing to the coast.

“We’re going home…” Kassie said, whispering into Noah’s ear. She looked at him in his eyes. He looked different, likely due to not seeming him in a while. “I love you. Little brother.”

Colin grabbed her arm, and pulled her to him. “You crazy bitch… I said that I would let you go, but you just had to do this, didn’t you?”

“Oh…” Kassie said, stumbling back. Her foot catching in a wooden plank, her grip on Noah loosened, and she dropped him.

“No!!” Kassie screamed, moving to the edge of the dock. She saw him floating on the surface, luckily bundled in cloth. But it was dangerous.

Kassie got up, and turned to Colin. “You bastard! You cold hearted, no-good, sickening, filthy, son of a bitch!!” Taking a breath, she punched him in the nose.

Doctor Wyndham has left into his office, so both Patrick and Darla were left alone in the hospital waiting room.

“How long will it take to book a room?” asked Darla, trying desperately to change the topic.

Patrick eyed her. He was beyond surprised at how were she was holding together in the situation. “I don’t know. Anytime I’ve even been in a hospital, I’ve been unconscious.”

Patrick came up to her. He saw a small opening of vulnerability in her face and heard it in her voice. “What is it?”

Her eyes sinking, and her lips quivering, she went halfway to breaking down. “I want to see Kassie,” she pleaded. “I do… Please. Is she okay?” She carefully wiped away tears.

“Don’t worry about her,” Patrick insisted. “I have called the police, and they are on her case. Just worry about yourself. Kassie, whatever situation she’s in, can take care of herself.”

Darla nodded, wiping away another tear. “You’ve always been so good to her,” she said, looking at him fondly. “You know that. And for the entire time you’ve been with her, I am eternally grateful. You’re a good man.”

Patrick gave her a hug. “Don’t you go getting me started,” he said humorously. “I hate crying.”

They pulled away. “Always the tough one, aren’t you?” Darla smiled, her mood brightening slightly. “I meant every word.”

Patrick opened his mouth, but his phone rang. He took it out, and looked at the display. “It’s the police.”

Darla came up to him, and looked intently at his focused face. She knew this was the man to find her daughter.

Addy walked to finally sit down at a table. She passed many customers, most of whom were vacationers. They ordered exotic drinks, and even had their suitcases with them.

Outside, they were right beside a beautiful beach. As you walked along the beach, it would keep getting progressively rockier. But this was a prime location.

Addy turned to a woman sitting at a table. “Cassandra! How did you get here?”

“I can’t believe my wish actually came true,” Addy gushed. “And nothing’s happened.”

Cassandra looked at her. “You know that last night, when Gillian went to see Giovanni, they were supposed to come back together. That was how the universe had it planned.”

“True,” Cassandra said, “but you’ve changed the future a bit. And not in a good way.”

Cassandra smiled, and laughed. “You have actually brought death to two people close to you!” she snickered. “You have doomed two people you know!

The young woman had just been paid to sleep with a man. Nothing in the world could compare to doing something so humiliating and disgraceful.

Through the entire time, she thought of a happy place. A place where she could be with her mother and sister. A place where she didn’t need to do things like this.

“How will be get into Skye’s past?” Mateo asked, looking around, obviously paranoid that Skye would spot them.

Brianna remembered from the day before, and she explained the scenes to Mateo…

“What…?” Brianna muttered, turning to her. “Calm down… What are you…?”

Skye continued to scream. “No! No! I don’t want to be a part of ‘Imediatos Placeres Servicios!’ I quit. I want to quit!”

“Deep in Skye’s eyes, you could tell this was no demon speaking,” Brianna continued. “It was the actually person, and a memory had been triggered. A small, but important memory.”

Mateo nodded. “Maybe that could help what me and Father McMurdy need to do.”

“You know the baby, right?” Mateo explained. “Well, as soon as it’s born, there will be horror.”

Brianna nodded. “Well, we have plenty of time, do we not? She got pregnant during the winter. That means a fall birth.”

Mateo shook his head. “No. It will be born this spring or summer. The gestation period has been reduced.”

Brianna turned away. “Dammit! Okay, okay… We need some quick planning. Okay… I will look into ‘Imediatos Placeres Servicios.’ The place that Skye said she no longer wanted to be a part of. And you have the great luck of reading her diary. We need anything. Got it?”

Brianna eyes him carefully, her dark hair and skin reflecting her intensity into his eyes. “We can’t fail. We need this.”

“Let go of me!” Gillian screamed. “I know what’s wrong with you! You’re on drugs!”

“That could be your problem,” Gillian continued. “Drugs. It could account for your sudden behavior change.”

“I’ll get it,” Gillian said, “seeing as thought it’s my house.” She walked a few feet to her phone a picked it up. “Hello?”

“Help!” came the voice. It was familiar. Eerily familiar. “Please help me!”

Gillian shook her head. “You sound familiar. Please… Tell me who you are. What’s wrong?”

“It’s Iris!” came the voice. It was Iris’ voice. “Please. I need you to come.”

“Iris! Don’t you know my voice?” came the woman’s voice again, and there was no mistaking it. “Help!” It was Iris.

Gillian remained frozen. Her red hair down over the phone receiver, she raised her panicked eyes to Iris standing in the doorway. Her breath quickened.

Episode 3-07

Kassie makes a desperate try to save Noah. He state worsens.
Patrick is on the trail of Noah's (and Kassie's) kidnapper.
Gillian's mysterious call gets all her attention as she discovers where it was dialed from.
Brianna gets a clue into Skye's past. Ian is upset.
Mateo has a revealing discussion with Skye.
Giovanni reminisces on his past.
Mitchel meets up with Pamela again.
The King family has a talk regarding the Fall 2001 Gala, and who should attend.
The crossover with BREATHE starts! Read Presence as James, Gloria and Rachel visit!