Breaking Ties: An Ensemble Story (Read 240,052 times)

[Kpatch]

It sounds like Marlena wants to see the girls in person.

[heroicmuse]

Week 488 - 5
“I don’t know,” Harris said. “I mean, obviously you can’t help her through me. She’d have to be here. So I guess I was lookin’ for answers for myself, for some idea of how to help her adjust to living with me.”

Marlena nodded. “I’m glad you realize that you can’t fix this for her. But what you can do is be the supportive, loving father figure she needs in her life, and it sounds like you are already starting to do that by taking her in and by reaching out for help. What exactly is it that prompted your call tonight?”

Harris looked up at the ceiling, thinking. “It’s a lot of things,” he said. “I guess it started when Ruby got in trouble in school. I forget exactly when that was, time kind of blends together, but one afternoon she told me she’d been sent to in-school suspension for fighting. And it wasn’t so much the fight that bothered me, I mean I don’t want her doing that, but the worst part was that she was terrified of how I was going to react. She begged me not to kick her out of the house and when I sent her to her room to think about her behavior, she freaked out more. And I know what you’re thinking. Kids can be manipulative, she just didn’t want to get in trouble so she was turnin’ on the waterworks. But I tell you, Dr. Evans, that’s not what this was. She was genuinely afraid that me punishing her meant that she’d screwed up so bad that I couldn’t love her anymore.”

“So something as simple as getting punished at home for misbehavior at school seemed to trigger extreme fear in her,” Marlena commented. “How did you react?”

“I reassured her that I loved her and that sometimes I had to punish her for her own good but that I wasn’t gonna take my belt to her or kick her out of the house no matter what.”

“It sounds like you handled that admirably, then. She needs that love and reassurance. It won’t stick immediately, but over time she will begin to learn that your love is unconditional.” Marlena leaned forward. “But that was a few days ago, so what happened tonight that got you feeling you needed to talk to someone right away?”

“Long story,” Harris said. “It’s been a hell of a day that included a gang member calling Ruby from jail and trying to intimidate her into doing some dirty work, but the thing that got me, believe it or not, is that after we got that straightened out, when we sat down to dinner she wouldn’t take more than a spoonful of rice. She said that if she took too much, her dad would beat her and I had to convince her it was safe to eat a normal amount for dinner. And then after that, when I checked on her before she went to bed, she just looked so small and scared and vulnerable and the tears in her eyes just broke my heart.”

Marlena was silent for a second. Then she said, “You know, I can understand why Ruby’s behavior concerns you. You’re telling me that she got in trouble in school, that she’s in danger of being forced back into gang activity, and that on top of all that she has been scared that you’ll abuse her for doing the healthy things she needs to do to take care of herself. But you know what you haven’t been telling me?”

Harris frowned. “I don’t understand. I’ve been honest, Dr. Evans.”

“Honest, yes, but you left a lot of blanks for me to fill in. I can tell that you’re worried about Ruby and scared for her, but everything you’ve told me has been about what she did and not about how you feel. Now, maybe that’s partially on me because I asked you what was worrying you about her behavior. But since you are the patient in front of me, I think it’s important that we focus not solely on what Ruby is doing, which neither of us can control, but also on how you are feeling and what behaviors are being triggered in you that I can help you with. What do you think?”



Abe and Roman had gone to the police station, where Abe had gone over everything with Roman.

Roman said, “It’s good you got eyes on the park, but do you think it’s possible this is a ruse?”

“A ruse?” Abe said, frowning.

Roman nodded. “Think about it. Nat Simmons’ trial is starting later this week, and she is desperate to shut up the people who are going to testify against her. Now, if I were a gang leader in that position, the first thing I’d do is try to throw the cops off the trail.”

Abe raised his eyebrows. “You think that whatever’s going down in the park is a distraction so they can cause trouble elsewhere?”

“I’d bet money on it,” Roman said. “I’m not saying we’re not gonna catch anyone up to no good in the park, but I think we’d better make a list of all the people Nat might use to scare the witnesses into keeping their mouths shut and make sure they’re protected.”



Chanel and Jeremy were sitting in the waiting area in the airport.

Jeremy’s phone buzzed.

Text from Dad
Just touched down. Hopefully we’ll get out of this plane within the next couple minutes.

“It’ll just be a few minutes,” he told Chanel, who nodded.

Jeremy frowned. “You okay? You’re uncharacteristically quiet.”

“Yeah. I’m just, you know…” Chanel sighed. “I hope your dad likes me.”

“I’m sure he will,” Jeremy said. “He likes everyone. Besides, even if he doesn’t, I like you, and I’m the only one who needs to.” He squeezed her shoulder.

Across the way, Molly was watching them. She took off her sunglasses and said to herself, “Gotta hand it to her, somehow she managed to land herself a cutie. But how the hell am I supposed to get my hands on her when she’s never apart from him for two seconds?” She frowned as Mike came toward them. “And they’ve got company. Damn it.”

She stared at the three of them, trying to figure out her next move.

[Kpatch]

Roman still has great cop instincts. I bet he's right.

I don't remember who Molly is or what she wants with Chanel. Maybe someone who lived in the same halfway house with Chanel.

[André DiMera]

Marlena makes a good point. Wonder what Harris will say.

That was a good idea Roman had!

Maybe don’t try to get to Chanel, Molly. I hope she isn’t able to.

Can we please have previews, heroicmuse?

[heroicmuse]

Apr 19, 2024 7:20:38 GMT -5 Kpatch said:

Roman still has great cop instincts. I bet he's right.

I don't remember who Molly is or what she wants with Chanel. Maybe someone who lived in the same halfway house with Chanel.

Molly lived in the halfway house with Chanel and ran away a long time ago. Last week she met with Nat, who told her to make sure that Chanel doesn't testify against her.

[heroicmuse]

Thank you André DiMera and Kpatch for your comments this week. Next week get out the tissues as we will finally have Doug's service toward the end of the week. But there is still plenty of drama too so let's take a look at some spoilers.

Coming Up on Breaking Ties...

Harris considers Marlena's advice after they hang up. He's not comfortable with the idea of therapy, but he does want to do anything he can to help Ruby. Meanwhile, Claire stands up to Ciara and Allie, but will they really drop the idea of getting revenge on Ruby?

Elsewhere, Jeremy and Chanel meet Mike at the airport and are relieved when Mike has a positive reaction to Chanel, but she's still worried about what'll happen if and when he learns about her record. Molly realizes she can't hurt Chanel when she has two witnesses, but spying on Chanel and Jeremy's conversation as they head to the baggage claim gives her an idea for later.

A new day dawns and with it, the sad occasion of Doug's memorial. There's still plenty of drama as people get ready, as Hannah gets a threatening message while helping Julie with her dress and Jeremy admits to Mike that he's nervous about the possibility of Stephanie being at the memorial too and about his future in general.

Despite these bumps in the road, we have a beautiful memorial planned for Doug as Salem says their final goodbyes.

[André DiMera]

Hopefully Harris will do what’s best for Ruby. And Claire gets Ciara and Allie to drop their stupid revenge idea.

Can’t wait to see Mike! Molly, go away!

Hopefully the message won’t distract too much from the memorial. Makes sense that Jeremy is apprehensive where his future is concerned.

The memorial will be sad, but nice, I’m sure.

Thanks for the previews, heroicmuse!

[Kpatch]

Doug's memorial will be bittersweet. Thanks for the previews.

[heroicmuse]

Week 489 - 1
Jeremy and Chanel both stood as Mike came up to them. Jeremy shook hands with Mike and then gave him a hug. “It’s good to see you, Dad. Really.”

“You don’t know how long I waited to hear you say that.” Mike’s voice was soft. “It’s good to see you too, son. Mom’s sorry she couldn’t come, but with it being the first night of Passover…”

“I get it. I wish there was a happier reason for us to get together.” Jeremy squeezed Chanel’s shoulder. “Anyway, I want you to meet someone special. This is my… um, this is Chanel.”

Mike smiled slightly. “So this is the girl you fell head over heels for when you took that GED class.” Chanel’s cheeks darkened and she looked away shyly. “Lovely to meet you,” Mike said, “and I am looking forward to getting to know you better.” He rubbed his hands together. “But first, let’s get my bag from the carousel.”

Jeremy took Chanel’s hand as they followed Mike toward the baggage carousel. “You okay?” Jeremy whispered.

Chanel nodded. “You were too chicken to call me your girlfriend,” she said, “but I guess it’s for the best. Your dad likes me so far so…”

“I wasn’t chicken,” Jeremy said. “I just didn’t know if you wanted… I mean, we hadn’t talked about it and I didn’t want to overstep.”

“Well, we should talk about it, then, cause us being official is more than I ever dreamed of.” Chanel swallowed hard. “Only… when your dad finds out I have a criminal record, and what it is I did…”

“Not like I’ve made him proud til recently,” Jeremy said. “He understands about second chances.”

“Yeah, but you’re his son. Me, I’m some loser girl who…”

“Never a loser. Don’t talk about yourself like that.”

Mike turned his head over his shoulder. “What are you two whispering about back there.”

“Nothing,” Jeremy said. “Chanel was just a little nervous about meeting you and I was reassuring her, that’s all.”

“Any woman who makes my son happy makes me happy,” Mike said, “especially after the rough start Jeremy had. Now come on. The sooner we get my bag, the sooner we can get out of this airport.”
None of them saw Molly following them at a distance. “So her man has a record too,” she said to herself. “Maybe I’m approaching this wrong. Maybe the key to controlling her is to make it clear that cooperating with us is the best way to keep that man of hers out of jail.” She put her hand to her chin, thinking.


Claire glared at Ciara. “Seriously? I forgave you for everything you did to me and Allie and you’re going to blackmail me? I thought you’d changed, Ciara. Maybe I should tell my dad to take you home.”

“I didn’t mean it the way it came out,” Ciara said quickly. “I swear I didn’t.”

Claire crossed her arms. “How else am I supposed to take that you won’t forgive me unless I help you, or at least stay out of your way?”

“That was just a knee-jerk reaction,” Ciara insisted. “I didn’t really mean we wouldn’t forgive you. I just meant, I hope you’ll understand why it’s so important for us to teach Ruby a lesson.”

“I do, but it isn’t right. Come on! You got a second chance, Ciara. Why wouldn’t you give Ruby one too?”

“What I did wasn’t nearly as bad as holding someone at gunpoint,” Ciara said. “You don’t know what it was like, Claire, and you’re lucky that you don’t know. I thought she was going to kill me.” Her eyes were wide as she recalled staring at the barrel of Ruby’s gun while Ruby demanded she hand over her stuff. “And that wasn’t even the worst part. S-she had so little empathy she wouldn’t even let me keep Grandma Caroline’s necklace.”

“Yeah, cause she was robbing you,” Claire said. “Look, I’m not saying any of it is right, okay? I remember finding you tied up on that bench and even though I was still really mad at you for reasons we don’t need to repeat, I was scared for you too. It was snowing and if we hadn’t found you…”

“I’m tough,” Ciara said. “I’ve been tied up twice and lived to tell the tale.”

“Don’t even joke about it.” Cliare sighed. “Ruby was in juvie for a year. Don’t you think she paid her debt?”

Ciara shrugged. “I still have nightmares. A year is like a slap on the wrist.”

“Y-yeah,” Allie said, “and she only got caught cause she got in the middle of those boys trying to kidnap me and Vicki. If I hadn’t shot her, she’d still be running around Salem messing with people.”

“You don’t know that,” Claire said, “but it doesn’t matter cause that’s how it happened. She spent a year behind bars and now she should be allowed to have a second chance.”

“Why are you on her side?” Ciara demanded.

“I’m not, but…” Claire bit her lip. “You know, I stood up for you the same way. Even after I forgave you, Allie didn’t want to and I kept telling her that you’d changed and you deserved a second chance. But instead of paying it forward, you want to mess with her.”

“It would be one thing if jail changed her,” Allie said. “It didn’t. Vicki and I caught her recording a private conversation and if I hadn’t tackled Ruby, she would be blackmailing us right now. And you know what Mr. Woods did about it? Send me to some idiot teacher for detention who’s making me tutor Ruby for the next tow weeks. You’d think Vicki’s uncle would be on her side, but no, he’s protecting Ruby when she’s the one who deserves to be punished. So the only way we’ll ever get any justice is if Ciara and I take matters into our own hands.”

Claire hesitated. “I still don’t like it.”

“Then don’t participate,” Allie said. “Be her friend if you insist. But can’t you at least keep it to yourself that we’re plotting against her?”

“Fine,” Claire said, “but if you go too far I will be telling my dad.”

[André DiMera]

Glad Mike seems to approve of Chanel. That’s a stupid plan, Molly.

I think Claire should tell Shawn, anyway. Ciara and Allie clearly haven’t learned anything.

Great chapter, heroicmuse!

[Kpatch]

It's sad that both Chanel and Jeremy are so down on themselves.

It's always so great to see Mike. Wish they'd bring him back on air.

[heroicmuse]

Week 489 - 2
Kayla looked up from her paperwork as Jennifer knocked on her office door. “Jennifer!” she said, standing. “This is a nice surprise.” Her smile faded. “You’re not here because you need a second opinion on a diagnosis, are you?”

“No, thank God,” Jennifer said. She closed the door behind her. “I don’t know how to say this,” she said. “You know my nephew Jeremy has been living with me.”

Kayla’s jaw tightened. “I’m aware,” she said. “And I’m sure you’re aware my daughter is extremely upset about him returning to Salem.”

Jennifer nodded. “I know she has her reasons,” she said, “but — “

Kayla crossed her arms. “Uh oh. Who gave Jeremy a hard time? Stephanie or Steve?”

“Both, actually,” Jennifer said. “I just came from JJ’s. Apparently Steve felt a need to pressure him not to have a relationship with his cousin.”

“Of course he did,” Kayla said flatly. “And now you’re here to tell me to tell my husband to leave your son alone about his cousin.” She pulled her reading glasses off. “Did I miss anything?”

Jennifer shook her head slightly. “JJ didn’t ask me to, for the record,” she said. “But I could tell he was upset. You know JJ’s history and how hard he worked to turn his life around. He wants to support Jeremy in doing the same. And it’s going to be that much hard for Jeremy to get his act together if he’s got your family pressuring him to leave town. It’ll make him feel like he can never be forgiven and then he’ll wonder what the point is of being good. I know because JJ struggled with the same thing after he broke that window. If it wasn’t for Daniel’s forgiveness and Paige giving him a chance I don’t know what might have happened.”

“I understand that.” Kayla’s voice rose slightly. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Sorry. Look, I sincerely hope that Jeremy is serious about turning his life around. Despite what he did to Stephanie, I don’t wish him any harm. I know very well that people can change even after doing absolutely heinous things, as I don’t think I need to remind you.” She held her hand up as Jennifer’s jaw tightened. “But I have also seen what it has done to my daughter to have crossed paths with Jeremy Horton. It took me years to pick up the pieces of my life after what happened to me, but that was not nearly as bad as watching my daughter suffer. Do you know that she refused to set foot in Salem for years after she moved to Seattle? JJ’s wedding was the first time she was willing to in almost a decade, and afterward she swore she was never doing it again. This might sound strange, but I owe Theresa a huge debt because somehow she talked Stephanie into giving this town another chance despite all the horrible things that happened here, including Jeremy almost killing her in that hot tub. And what happens? The first time she goes for a walk, she runs right into him, and it took everything for her to agree not to run away again. So I am sorry if she or Steve crossed any lines with JJ, but I will not apologize for my daughter feeling uncomfortable around your nephew and I also will not apologize for the restraining order she took out against him. She should do whatever she needs to do to stay safe, and he should just stay the hell away from her.”

“That’s fine,” Jennifer said. “I’m not asking Stephanie to be best friends with him. But for the record, Jeremy wasn’t looking for her. She is the one who went up to him at my son’s table in the cafe just to tell JJ he shouldn’t give Jeremy the time of day, and she is the one who then sent her father to my son’s home to pressure him further about rejecting his cousin. All I am asking is that your family let Jeremy’s family have a relationship with him. I know you have good reasons for wanting to stay away from him, but trust that we have good reasons for loving and accepting him.”

Kayla nodded. “I don’t condone what Steve did,” she said, “but you know him, when he gets into protective papa mode…” She sighed. “Look, I don’t want Jeremy to come between us.”

“Of course not,” Jennifer said. “We’ve lived through much worse.” She pulled her purse over her shoulder. “So you’ll talk to Steve?”

“I will,” Kayla said, “if anyone who was actually involved in this comes to me. JJ’s not a little boy anymore, and I know he’s not shy about saying what he really thinks. So if he comes to me, I will intervene. Okay?”

“Right. Of course.” Jennifer’s eyes were narrow and her lips were thin.



Harris leaned his head back in his seat. “Wow. Okay.” He rubbed the back of his neck and sat up straighter. “I don’t want to think I’m the kind of guy who gets triggered or whatever the buzz word is today. I was a damn Navy SEAL, and you can’t do that job if you can’t put everything else aside and focus on the task at hand.”

“You learned to compartmentalize,” Marlena said, “and that made you good at your job, but those skills can also become liabilities in your personal life if you’re not careful. Look, I’m not saying that you have mental health issues or that you need therapy. But what I am saying is that you came to me wanting to be the best surrogate father to your nieces you could possibly be, and that the way to do that is to make sure that you are as strong and healthy as possible, not just physically, but also psychologically and emotionally. And I know that may not be what you wanted or expected when you walked in here, but right now it is the only answer I can give you. Raising children isn’t an exact science, Harris. It’s not like baking a cake. I can’t give you a recipe to help you improve Ruby’s life. But what I can tell you is that a kid like RUby who has been traumatized needs a parent who is both patient and firm, who is willing to shower her with love without, if you’ll excuse the expression, letting her get away with any crap. And she also needs a parent who can model for her appropriate ways to deal with emotions. Her father did not do that. He modeled poor impulse control and hurting other people when they anger and disappoint you. If we want her to do better, we need to show her a better way. And that begins with you working on expressing your own emotions instead of pushing them aside to focus exclusively on her. Are you willing to do that?”

“Yeah, I guess. I mean, whatever it takes.”

Marlena nodded. “I’m sending you some referrals through the chat feature. You are of course welcome to work with me, but I thought you might prefer a male therapist, so I am sending you two that work both with adults and with families, so that if you decide you’d like to pursue family therapy with your nieces as well, you can.”

The message popped up on Harris’ screen. “Got them,” he said, pressing a button to send the info to his phone. “Thanks so much for your time, Dr. Evans.”

“Of course. Feel free to reach out if you need anything.”

After Marlena hung up, Harris tapped his phone against the palm of his hand, thinking.

[André DiMera]

Hopefully this doesn’t come between Kayla and Jennifer. Both have valid reasons for what they’re doing.

I hope Harris does reach out to one of the people Marlena recommended.

Great chapter, heroicmuse!

[Kpatch]

Jennifer had no business talking to Kayla about it. Neither of them is directly involved, just as Steve shouldn't be telling JJ who he can be friends with. The Johnsons can steer clear of Jeremy, but they should not make this into a federal case involving Jeremy's extended family. That said, I was Team Kayla on this one.

[heroicmuse]

Week 489 - 3
The next morning, Hannah came over to help Julie get ready for Doug’s funeral. Hannah was wearing a black dress and a hat with a veil; she took the hat off and put it carefully onto Julie’s dresser so it wouldn’t get in her way while she zipped Julie’s dress up for her.

“Oh, thank you, darling,” Julie said. “You know, it’s at times like these that I miss Doug the most. He was always so willing to zip me up. Oh, he’d tease me about having a dress for every day of the week and then some, but it made him happy to help in some small way. Of course, if he was here to zip me up, I wouldn’t need to put on this dress in the first place and could wear something more colorful and celebratory.”

Hannah squeezed her hand. “I miss him too,” she said, sighing deeply. “But he wouldn’t have wanted us to be sad today. I know it.”

“Of course not. I never met anyone as positive and optimistic as that man.” Julie made herself smile. “He’d want us to, I don’t know, do a tap dance in his honor or something.”

“I don’t know about that,” Hannah said, “but I got my camera all ready to film everyone’s memories of him, so I guess that’s the next best thing.” Her phone buzzed. “That’s Kenneth,” she said, checking it. “He wanted to let me know he’s on his way here to support you too.”

“That’s sweet of him, but I really don’t need all this fuss,” Julie said. “I may be missing my better half, but I’m not a fragile old woman. I can take care of myself.”

“Course you can,” Hannah said, “but why should you? Didn’t you tell me that the family always has each other’s backs, no matter what? So why can’t you let us have yours when it’s your hour of need?”

“You’re right. Of course you are. I’m just not used to being the one who needs anything. With Doug, I had everything I needed and then some.” Julie made herself smile. “How did I get blessed with such a wise granddaughter?”

Hannah said, “I’m the one who’s blessed, having a grandma like you. I’ll never forget that first day I met you as long as I live.” She kissed the top of Julie’s head.

Hannah’s phone buzzed again. She picked it up, her jaw tightening as she read the message:

Text from UNKNOWN NUMBER
Just cause it’s your grandpa’s funeral day doesn’t mean you’re off the hook. You have 24 hours to tell the court you’re not testifying or you’ll be sorry.


At Jennifer’s, Mike was standing in front of the mirror in the guest room, straightening his tie. Jeremy knocked and then came in.

Mike smiled slightly. “Hi, son,” he said. “You checking in on your old man?”

“Kind of.” Jeremy watched Mike messing with the knot on his tie. “You know what my secret to avoiding that problem is?” he said. “Wear a clip-on.”

Mike couldn’t help laughing. “That always felt like cheating to me. Not that it really is. If it works for you, that’s great.” He turned his head over his shoulder as Jeremy sank into the bed. “What’s up? And don’t tell me you’re just sad about Doug cause something tells me you’ve got something else on your mind.”

“I do,” Jeremy said, “but this isn’t the time. We’re supposed to be focused on saying goodbye to Doug, not on my crap.”

“I can talk and chew gum at the same time,” Mike said. He sat down next to Jeremy. “Seriously, I’m here for you. Don’t keep it to yourself and end up doing something you regret.”

“Something else I regret,” Jeremy said. “I hope Stephanie isn’t going to be at the funeral. Not cause I can’t handle the reminder of what I did, but cause she takes every opportunity to scream at me about how I deserve to be in jail for what I did to her. And the worst part is, she’s right.”

“Sounds like she could learn a thing or two about forgiveness,” Mike squeezed Jeremy’s shoulder.

Jeremy shrugged. “Not like I don’t deserve her wrath.” He sighed deeply. “Like I said, this is a conversation for another day, but, um, I can’t have the career I want til I clear up my warrants back home and no matter what my lawyer says, I just don’t see any way to do that without going back to Cape Town to turn myself in. And if I do that, God only knows if I’ll be let back into the US so there goes my career and my relationship with Chanel and anything else good I’ve managed to build for myself.”

Mike’s eyes widened with surprise while Jeremy waited to see what his dad was going to say.


“You sure you’re all right with watching Mariposa today?” Paige asked Harlow.

“That’s what you pay me for, yeah?” Harlow smiled slightly. “Besides, as sad as it is to hear of Doug Williams’ passing, I didn’t meet the man, so I’m one of the few people who won’t be missing something if I stay home.” She watched as Paige finished changing Mariposa’s diaper. “YOu’re certain you don’t want to take her to the memorial?”

Paige shook her head slightly. “She’s too young and wouldn’t understand what was happening, and I don’t want her to disturb everyone else.” She threw the dirty diaper away and said, “Another six months and we’ll be ready to begin toilet training. Thank goodness.” Paige washed her hands and finished re-dressing Mariposa, then hugged her before giving her to Harlow. “Listen to Auntie Harlow,” she said, “and don’t give her a hard time.”

“Where Mama go?” Mariposa asked.

Paige sighed. “Daddy and I have to do something for grown-ups. We’ll be back later. We’ll miss you.” She kissed the top of Mariposa’s head.

JJ came in, wearing a black suit and tie. He had his guitar case with him.

“Daddy take yeetar?” Mariposa said, pointing.

“Yeah, I’m gonna play my guitar in memory of… um, for Cousin Julie,” JJ said. He put his arm around Paige. “Ready to go?”

“Ready as I’m gonna be,” Paige said.

JJ said goodbye to Mariposa and then he and Paige left. Mariposa’s face crumpled as soon as they were gone and she said, “Mama come back! Daddy come back!”

“They’ll be back soon,” Harlow said. “In the meantime, you and I can have some fun together, yeah?” She bounced Mariposa up and down.

Harlow’s phone buzzed. She glanced at it. “Oh, that’s Auntie Mackenzie in Australia,” she said. “You don’t remember her but she was there when you were born.” She answered the phone. “Mack, hi. How’re you going?”

“Not good,” Mackenzie said through the phone, her voice shaking. “Something terrible has happened and I don’t know who else to turn to.”