Tom Residence

Kassie Tom gasped as she read the latest entry in Patrick Donavon’s journal. He had been on the phone with someone, and she had realized whom it was from.

“March 17, 2001,

“I just got off the phone with my superiors. I got word that the kidnappers are not in town, but close. They suspect he’s solo. More details later.”

Kassie shook her head, but took a breath. “He’ll tell me… He won’t do nothing…” She heard footsteps and quickly placed the journal back in his tote bag. She got up and pretended to be selecting a book from the shelf.

“Kass?” Patrick asked, popping into the room. “What are you doing?”

“Umm… looking for a book,” Kassie stuttered, turning around. She quickly grabbed a book. “Found it!”

Patrick approached her and looked at the title. “That?”

Kassie nodded. “I’ve been wanting to brush up on…” She looked at the book’s title. “Uh… the mating habits of termites…”

Patrick nodded. “Uh… okay… I didn’t even thing they wrote book on the subject.”

“My father,” Kassie said, embarrassed, “got it for me. I… I just wanted to see it again. It is quite interesting.”

Patrick took the book. “The binding isn’t even cracked… You must be a careful reader…”

Kassie just wanted it to end. “Yeah…”

He opened it to the first page. “Ah… the riveting first chapter. ‘The Different Castes of Termites in the Colony.’ I’m hooked. Read this: ‘In socially advanced species, three principal castes exist: the reproductive, the soldiers, and the workers. Both the reproductive and the soldiers occur in two or three distinguishable forms—”

“Having fun?”

He closed the book. “No, and I have other things to do.”

Kassie was interested. “Like what?”

“I’ve got to get an update from the police,” Patrick stated, looking around. He spotted his tote bag. “I’ll be back in a bit.”

Kassie nodded. “Very well… Be back soon… I mean, we aren’t in any danger, are we?”

“Of course not,” he said, leaving.

Kassie turned off her smile as soon as he left. “That man…” she growled, pacing around. “Sometimes he can be so sweet, and then he can be very secretive…”

She jumped as the phone rang. “Ghaa!” she screeched. Calming down, she picked it up. “Yes?”

“Do you know how much diapers cost these days?” came the voice. “It’s outrageous.”

“Who is there?” Kassie asked.

There was a pause. “He’s very well behaved, you know. Good kid.”

She had a horrible premonition. “Whose kid?”

“Noah… we’ve got him right here…”

Torres Residence

“Iris?” Adam King called outside. Iris had gone to answer the door, and hadn’t returned for a while. “Where are you?”

“Here!” came the familiar voice. They watched as Iris walked out from the side of the house, her hair a little flustered.

“What were you doing?” Adam asked. “And who was at the door.”

Iris laughed. “Sorry ‘bout that. It was one of my neighbors. They wanted to know if our cable was out along with his.”

“Was it?” Gillian asked.

Iris shook her head. “I went to the side of the house, and spent a good minute figuring out which wire it was.”

“What’s with your hair?” Gillian pressed.

“I just got it caught in a pipe,” Iris answered, eyeing Gillian. “What’s with the third degree?”

Gillian shrugged. “You had a red clip in your hair.”

“Oh…” Iris said, clasping her head. “It must have fallen.”

Gillian nodded. “Very well…”

“So…” Adam popped in. “Did you want to do something today?”

Iris walked past him and into the kitchen. “Not really…”

“Nothing, really?”

Iris shook her head. “You must have some important family engagement.”

Adam went to follow her in the kitchen, but Gillian grabbed his arm. “What is it?” he asked.

“Do you notice anything strange about Iris?” she asked.

Adam shrugged. “I guess a little… She must be tired.”

“It’s noon.”

“Then she must have hit her head when her hair got caught in the pipe.”

Gillian shook her head. “Firstly, there’s no pipe on the side of the house.”

“And…?”

“And secondly, she never had a clip in her hair.”

“Never?” Adam questioned.

“Never,” Gillian finalized. “I only have one idea, but it doesn’t sound like her.”

“Why?” Adam asked.

“Drugs.”

Adam took a double take. “What?”

“She could be on drugs.”

“Taking drugs?” Adam questioned. “That’s impossible.”

“Is it?” Gillian asked. “Who knows who was at the door? Maybe she shot up or whatever at the side of the house.”

“That’s crazy!” Adam said. “I may no know her, but that doesn’t seem like her.”

Gillian nodded. “Same here. But that could explain her not answering. I don’t know what problems she may be having, but I’ll need to get her help if that’s what’s needed.”

“Don’t you dare!”

Both Adam and Gillian turned around. “You heard?” Gillian asked.

“Just shut up,” Iris demanded. “I don’t want to hear you talk.”

St. Peter’s Catholic Church

As Mateo Consuelos was thrashing around in the bed, Skye Lore looked on horrified. “What is going on here?” she demanded.

Ian Huber backed away, looking at Father McMurdy. The priest nodded, and he himself backed away.

“Is the exorcism complete?” Ian asked, watching Skye.

Father McMurdy shrugged. “It should be done, but I can’t be sure. I pray to God that it is.”

Skye ignored the two men and rushed up to Mateo in the center of the room. She immediately untied his wrists and observed his now still body. “Mateo? Dammit, wake up!”

As she shook his head, he began to shift around. Before long, his eyes were open. He blinked a few times and looked around.

“Thankfully you’re awake,” Skye said, sighing. “We need to get you out of here.”

Mateo didn’t more. “Where am I?”

“You’re in a church, and if you don’t get up, these two religious men will exorcise you of any personality.” Skye grabbed his arm and pulled him up.

“Exorcism?” Mateo question, pulling away. “What the—? Are we at the beach?”

Skye turned back to him. “No, you doofus, we were at the beach last November. Remember? When you were first—” She stopped.

“It worked!” Father McMurdy declared, turning to Ian. “He is definitely back to normal.”

Ian nodded. “That’s all good, but what about the woman?”

“Don’t provoke her,” the priest warned. “We’ll get to her later. It could only makes matters much worse doing anything right now.”

“But couldn’t Mateo become possessed again?” Ian queried.

Father McMurdy shook his head. “No… at least, not for a while. He body could never take it. It would kill him.”

Before they could finish their exchange, Skye turned to them. “You people like ruining our plans, don’t you?”

The priest stepped up. “We will fight you.”

Skye reached down, grabbed Mateo, and flung him over her shoulders. “You haven’t seen the last of me,” she warned. “Just you wait…”

King Estate

Constance Mathison King was getting tired, and the day wasn’t even half-done. She had been ordering Muriel and Henderson around like sheep.

“…And make sure the room will be ready. That one in the west wing!” Constance told her two servants. They did as they were told and hustled out of the room.

Constance covered her forehead. “How will this new kid like the place?” she wondered.

Mitchel Mathison’s room was located in the west wing, and it was attached to John King’s. They were both great rooms, and offered plenty of space. The room had belonged to Adam before he moved out and look residence in the guesthouse on the estate.

“Kings only marry within their class!” Julian King insisted. “This plan can’t fail. I won’t let it!”

John King nodded, but turned to his father. “But Adam is melting for this woman, father. They are in love if I’ve ever seen it.”

“Does it look like I care?” Julian quipped, turning to the fireplace in John’s room. He moved to the mantle and picked off a black-and-white photo of a bearded man. “And he wouldn’t care either.”

John moved forward. “You mean your father?”

Julian nodded. “Lincoln King, my father, had always wanted the bloodline to remain blue. And he said if there were any contaminants—”

“—They’d need to be destroyed?” John finished.

Julian nodded. “For the good of the family…”

Tom Residence

Patrick couldn’t stand the silence. “Is there something you want to say?” he asked.

Kassie nodded. “Since I’m seeing you in a completely different light, I want to know a bit more about you. Your past.”

Nodding, Patrick took a breath. “Let’s see. I was born in Europe. My father was Irish and my mother was Dutch.” He was obviously reflecting. “I have been in America only a few times. I’ve lived in Ireland, England, the Netherlands, and Switzerland.”

“You’re pretty cultured,” Kassie said, only slightly impressed. “You were in Switzerland when you got your call to track me down?”

Patrick nodded. “I traveled from there to San Francisco, and got on the plane with you under a false name.”

“And you’d been spying on me?” she asked.

Patrick nodded. “It was my job.”

“And you say my father hired you?”

He shrugged. “His company, maybe. They just knew that you’d need protection after his death.”

Before Kassie could ask another question, his cordless phone beeped.

“I’ve been expecting an important call,” Patrick said, getting up. “I’ll be back in a bit.”

Evans Residence

Addy Evans got to the phone and quickly called up an important character. As she waited for an answer, she reflected over what a blast the revelation had been the night before.

“Hello?” came the voice.

“Brooke? It’s Addy.”

There was a pause, and then, “You! You manipulated me into getting them to watch it. I don’t appreciate that!”

Addy was confused. “Wait, wait, wait… You wrapped the tape up and was ready to have Gillian open it. Why not then? Why is it suddenly my fault?”

Brooke was caught. “Um… I wanted it to strengthen their relationship.”

“I don’t buy it,” Addy stated. “Gillian reacted badly to the tape. She doesn’t appreciate the real Giovanni. They can’t be together.”

“What are you thinking?” Brooke asked.

“If Giovanni won’t go out with me,” Addy started, “then why not with you?”

Torres Residence

“What?” Gillian asked. “I’m not going to shut up.”

Iris moved forward. “I don’t want you spreading lies about me like that.”

“Are they truly lies?” Gillian asked.

Iris cocked her head, and narrowed her eyes. “And you’d know all about lies, wouldn’t you.”

“What do you mean?”

“The guy you thought you loved was really in a porno movie, wasn’t he?” Iris stated. “That must have hurt. That’s some good choice you made.”

Gillian turned to Adam. She then scooped up her jacket and left the house, obviously embarrassed.

Iris shook her head. “Loser…”

“That was your friend,” Adam stated, coming up to her. “That was kind of cruel.”

Iris shrugged. “She was annoying me.”

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m not doing drugs,” Iris urged.

With that, Bo Torres came down the stairs and turned into the living room. He spotted his daughter. “How’s my girl?”

“I’m great!” she smiled, going up to her father. As she hugged him, she rolled her eyes coldly.

Adam looked on, and wondered if there was something wrong…

Evans Residence

Addy Evans couldn’t help but feel good. And she had a sneaking feeling that he luck was going to improve greatly…

Gillian’s car

As she drove down the road, Gillian couldn’t help but feel strange. And she had a sneaking feeling that things were going to get much worse. That there could be forces beyond her mother at work trying to destroy her life…

Consuelos Residence

By the time Skye had managed to drive Mateo and herself home, he had gained his energy back. He looked pretty beat up, but he was otherwise perfectly fine.

Skye, however, had been feeling weak. She remembered right before the funeral she had been quite weak. And she knew exactly why.

“Ow…” Mateo groaned, walking into the house. “My mind is a complete blank! What has happened to me since I was out?”

Skye walked across the room and went into the kitchen. “Nothing much… You were in the… the hospital. You hit your head during the earthquake last November.”

Mateo rubbed his head. “I remember the shaking… I also remember you floating in the air.”

Skye came out of the kitchen with two glasses of water. She laughed nervously. “That must have been just you imagination,” she concluded. “The doctors said you might wake up with false memories.”

“So, I was really in the hospital for three months?” Mateo asked, feeling unsure.

Skye handed him the water, and rubbed her stomach. “Well, for some strange reason, this month, Father McMurdy took you from the hospital. They claimed you were possessed.”

“By demons?” Mateo asked.

Skye nodded, taking a drink. “I was looking all over for you. You could have died.”

“Died?” Mateo asked, worried. “Am I okay now?”

Skye nodded. “You woke up, and you’re fine. I don’t think we have anything to worry about.”

Mateo walked around his house, observing everything. “I think I’ll go to the hospital today. Just for a checkup.”

“No!” Skye said, jumping up. She calmed down, and covered her abdomen as she sat back down. “You can’t!”

Turning to her, Mateo raised an eyebrow. “What do you mean, ‘I can’t?’ ”

“Because…” Skye thought, tapping her foot. “Because it is very crowded, and you’d just add to their stress. I was there earlier. Very hectic.”

Mateo nodded. “Very well… I have been meaning to ask you something.”

“What?” Skye said, breathing deeply.

“You? You look different?”

Skye laughed nervously. “Maybe it’s my new makeup.”

“It’s a glow,” Mateo finished, coming closer to her. “And you’ve been feeling your stomach ever since we got inside.”

Skye turned away from him. “Don’t go jumping to conclusions,” she insisted.

“You’re pregnant, aren’t you?”

King Estate

John let his father out of him room, and was left thinking about everything his father had said. It was harsh, but it needed to be enforced. For the good of the family.

He quickly turned his attention to his room. He remembered the spacious condo he had owned previously, but nothing compared to the servants and freedom he had in the mansion. Each room was practically its own apartment.

“Except…” John said to himself. “The adjoining rooms.”

He moved to a door on the side of his room. It had a lock, but wasn’t locked. He opened it and was greeted by a small, yet equally wonderful room. Both Muriel and Henderson were cleaning and primping.

“Get ready for the new kid’s arrival?” John asked.

“Yes, sir,” Henderson responded, taking the arrangement of flowers and moving them.

“Get rid of the flowers,” John said. “No guys wants them in his room.”

Henderson obeyed.

Constance was nibbling on her fingers as Julian came into the hallway. “Still nervous?” he asked. “You need to calm down.”

“How?” she asked.

“Just know that everything will be fine,” Julian insisted. “Our family in much richer than you brother’s, and kids these days appreciate wealth.”

“Really?”

Julian shrugged. “I’m sure he’ll be fine. As long as he abides by our minimal rules, he’ll be fine.”

With that, the doorbell rang. Constance jumped, but Julian calmed her. “We’ll both get it.”

The duo approached the door, and Julian reached out to the handle. He opened the door to greet their new visitor…

In Ireland

Ivy King knew that her troubles were over. She had finally taken care of everything, and was guaranteed never to have to worry about it again.

As long at the police remained clueless, she was in the clear.

“Now I can go to my family when I’m done,” Ivy sighed.

She wondered when a goodtime to come home would be, and decided that she would leave as soon as her semester was done in April.

Tom Residence

“Who is this?” Kassie demanded. “I’m going to “*69” your ass!”

All she heard was a terrible laughter. “Funny… You’d think rerouting my calls would be the first thing I’d do… Wait, it was!”

“What do you want?” she screamed.

She heard a sigh. “God, you’d think you’d have clued in by now. It’s not like we’ve kidnapped your brain! The information. Get it… now!”

“You guys are by far the dumbest people I know!” Kassie screamed. “It has been a whole year! And we’ve said more than needed that is was destroyed in the plane crash! Give it up!”

Before the man could answer, she heard a foghorn over the phone lines. It sounded familiar to her.

“We also want $1,000,000,” he stated. “For damages and costs. Get the people who need to be notified, notified.” He hung up.

Kassie slammed down the phone, frustrated at the whole situation. “I’m not going to stand around like an idiot… I need to do something…”

She remembered the foghorn. She remembered the entry in Patrick’s journal stating the men were nearby.

“That sound…” she thought, scratching her head, pacing. “I know where I’ve heard that sound… It was definitely nearby…”

Her eyes opened wide, as if she had solved the enigma. She rushed to her closet and rummaged through some clothing. Kassie needed to go deep, obviously looking for something that she hadn’t worn in a while.

“This is it!” she smiled, pulling out a revealing leather number. There was a short shirt and what remained of a top. She immediately got undresses and squeezed into the outfit.

Shifting up to the mirror, she picked up a stick of lipstick and applied it on. She added some rouge to her cheeks and hurriedly clipped on a hairpiece to her own hair.

“Perfect!” she grinned, observing herself in the mirror. The whole thing didn’t leave very much to the imagination, but that was the idea. “I look like a street whore,” she thought aloud. “I’ve outdone myself.”

Primping up her breasts in the top, she turned to the hallway. Careful to not be seen, she got outside and into her car.

Consuelos Residence

“Pregnant?” Skye repeated, trying to act as if it were a joke. “That’s silly.”

“Is it?” Mateo responded. “I’m not blind. I can see it in your eyes. I don’t care. I would never judge you.”

Skye turned to him. “I didn’t want to tell anyone,” she said.

“I think it’s wonderful,” Mateo said, smiling. “I guess lots of things happen when I guy is lying in a hospital bed for three months. How long are you into it?”

“About two months…” Skye said, worriedly.

Mateo’s tone turned serious. “Do you know who the father is…?”

Skye crooked her head. “Um… no.”

“You sure?” Mateo questioned. “You sound like you’re holding back.”

“I’m sure!” Skye barked. She got up and stormed to the door. She slammed it behind her.

Mateo was left inside, thinking about the situation. “How many men has she slept with?” he wondered. “How could she not know?”

He moved quickly to the hallway and turned into Skye’s room. He looked around the room, trying to find anything that might give him a clue…