Breaking Ties: An Ensemble Story (Read 240,291 times)

[lumiforeverandalways]

Glad Claire is trying to help Vicki fit in.
I feel bad for Vicki.

[André DiMera]

Glad Hope didn’t let Aiden get away with not talking. She makes a good point that it’s possible Thomas had siblings. Hope the mountain climbing goes well.

Well, that didn’t go well. It sucks that Vicki feels left out. Hopefully things will be better in the morning.

Can we please have previews, heroicmuse?

[heroicmuse]

Thank you André DiMera, Kpatch, and lumiforeverandalways for your comments this week!

Next week, it’s a new day in Salem, but some of our friends are still dealing with power outages and snow-related problems even thought the snow has stopped coming down. Check out the spoilers below to see what happens as we enter February Sweeps!

Coming Up on Breaking Ties...

Vicki’s Autism is making life just as hard for her as the new day begins as it had the night before. She can’t get her pigtails just right and gets upset when Allie suggests she’d look cute with a different hairstyle. But Allie is sympathetic and understanding, reassuring Vicki that her Autism won’t interfere with their friendship.

Soon, the girls may have another problem to worry about: Sami brings them news about school that they are not happy about. And later, Roman puts them to work in the kitchen at the Pub again, something which Allie resents.

Sami is frustrated with Allie’s attitude, though Roman and Lucas find it amusing that Sami is butting heads with a child who is so much like her. Meanwhile, Allie and Claire insist on talking with Vicki about what happened last night while they wash dishes. Will Vicki let her guard down enough to let her new friends be real friends to her?

Across town, the power is still out at David and Valerie’s apartment, which isn’t helping David’s mood one bit. He’s upset about what Hannah told him and more angry at Marcel than ever.

David goes out to shovel while Valerie talks to Hannah, who opens up to her a little about Marcel even though she feels awkward. David hopes to be able to go check on Julie and maybe stay with her until their power returns, but shoveling may turn out to be a bad idea, as when he comes back in he’s having chest pains and shortness of breath…

Elsewhere, Rafe is unhappy that the storm stops him from being able to go visit Gabi in prison, while Nicole wishes she could be up in Maine with her son experiencing the snow together. Rafe doesn’t approve of Nicole establishing a relationship with the kid without proof he’s hers, but their discussion is soon interrupted by Kate, who refused to let the blizzard mess with her plans… and certainly won’t let Nicole get in the way of her talking to Rafe about the investigation into the shooting in the woods.

And finally, in Chicago, Paige feels better after talking with Elizabeth, but JJ is concerned about her physical health, while in Wales Hope tries again to convince Aiden to keep looking into what happened to Thomas while they are hiking up the mountain.

[André DiMera]

Hopefully Allie and Claire can get Vicki to open up. Wonder what Sami’s news about school is. Makes sense that Sami and Allie would butt heads.

Glad Valerie gets Hannah to open up. I hope David will be okay!

Sucks that Nicole and Rafe can’t be where they’d like to be. Of course Kate wouldn’t let anything stop her from going where she wanted to.

Glad Paige talks more to Elizabeth. Wonder why J.J. is concerned about her physical health. Hopefully the hike goes well, and Hope can convince Aiden to keep looking into his family n Wales.

Thanks for the previews, heroicmuse!

[Kpatch]

Cute banter between Aiden and Hope.

Tom Selleck is a good choice. That man has aged really well.

[lumiforeverandalways]

Wonder what news Sami brings.
Hopefully Vicki will let the girls be her friends.
Wonder why Allie resents the work.
Thanks for previews.

[heroicmuse]

Week 321 - 1
The next morning, Vicki stood in front of the mirror messing with her pigtails. She kept putting in the hair tie and then pulling it out again. “ARGH!”

“What’s wrong?” Allie asked, coming up behind her.

“I can’t get my pigtails right,” Vicki said, her voice shaking.

“They look fine to me,” Allie said. She crossed her arms. “If you hadn’t stopped playing the truth game, I would have asked you why you always wear your hair like that. You’d look cute with - “

“NO!” Vicki said. She made herself breathe. “Sorry. I just don’t feel right til I get my pigtails in just right. And it’s not how they look, either. It’s how they feel. Either they’re too tight or too loose and neither one’s any good.”

“I understand,” Allie said, but Vicki was sure she didn’t. “Theo’s the same way. No wonder you guys are together. You have autism too, right?”

Vicki’s cheeks got hot and she froze in the middle of tugging on one of her pigtails. “I’m that obvious?”

“It’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Allie said. “Not like I don’t do things that people think are weird too.” Vicki shrugged and Allie said, “I have panic attacks. Sometimes I can’t even eat, either, because I get scared I’m going to choke. All last year everyone made fun of me and said I was a baby because I had to cut my food into tiny little pieces like you give a two-year-old.”

Vicki sniffed but she said, “I don’t know what I’m supposed to say.”

“You don’t have to say anything,” Allie told her. “I’m just trying to help you feel better. Less alone. Anyway, there’s nothing wrong with having autism. Theo has it and we all love him. So why wouldn’t we love you too?”

Vicki’s eyes stung with tears. “I’m too different,” she said. “I told you, ever since I started middle school no one wants to be my friend.”

“Well, we do,” Claire said, coming in. “So you’re just going to have to get used to it.”

Vicki’s jaw tightened. “I hope this storm lasts forever,” she said, “Of course, it won’t. The precipitation pattern is already moving east. But as long as we have a blizzard, I don’t have to deal with school.”

“I don’t know about that,” Sami said from behind them. “They’re working on making sure everyone gets their power turned back on so that tomorrow or the next day, they can have school virtually and save a snow day.”



David sat in the dark on the edge of his bed, staring into space and remembering what Hannah had said to him. “I”m gonna kill that asshole,” he said under his breath. “What he did to Hannah is unforgivable.”

Valerie came in from the bathroom. “I wouldn’t suggest more than a five minute shower,” she said. “We have no hot water and the last thing you want in this weather is a freezing cold shower.”

“Right.” David sighed. “Any news on when the power’s going to be restored?”

“No.” Valerie began brushing her hair out. “I hope it’s not days on end. East Salem’s always the lowest on everyone’s priority list.”

“Once the roads are reasonably clear, we could drop by my mom’s and see if she has power,” David suggested. “I want to check in on her anyway since you know, she’s old and there’s a blizzard.”

“If anyone can take care of herself, it’s Julie,” Valerie said. “But I agree. If she has lights and heat…” She rubbed her hands together. “How’s our daughter? Have you seen her this morning?”

“Not this morning. Last night she was a mess.” David swallowed hard. “When I think of what that Marcel did to her… well, it’s a good thing there’s too much snow to get up to Salem City Jail and put an end to his shenanigans permanently.”

“Never mind that,” Valerie said, and David didn’t need to be able to see to know her lips were pressed tightly together. “Let’s make sure our baby is all right.”

“I’m fine,” Hannah said, coming into the doorway. “About to go to the kitchen and scrounge around to see what we can salvage for breakfast.” She crossed her arms. “Did Daddy tell you what I told him last night?”

“No, baby.” Valerie’s voice was soft. “But if you want to tell me I’m all ears.”

“I don’t know if I have it in me to tell it twice,” Hannah said. “Even though I’m going to have to tell Eric eventually. I was kind of hoping Daddy would do it.”

“It’s not really my news to share,” David said, “but Hannah told me some of what Marcel used to do to her and… well, it’s worse than we thought. Buying him drugs so he’d have sex with her was bad enough but now it seems…” David took his glasses off and rubbed his temples. “Hannah isn’t sure what they did was always consensual.”

Valerie put her hands to her mouth. “What exactly did that boy do to you?” she asked.

“Nothing I want to talk about,” Hannah said. “I’m trying to get over it now.”

“Well, the first step’s to process what happened,” Valerie said. “As soon as we get power back, if we ever do, you’d better call Eric and schedule another appointment.”

“I guess,” Hannah said. “All I care about’s is Marcel rotting in jail. And now with the storm he can’t even get a court date yet, so he gets to stay there longer.” She stood, picking up her lantern.

“Baby - “ Valerie began.

“We should use the milk before it spoils,” Hannah said. “And I’ll see what else I can do for breakfast for us.” She walked away.

David glanced at Valerie. “This isn’t good, is it?”

Valerie shook her head slightly, but she said, “Give her time. She’s still processing what was done now that he’s locked up and can’t hurt her anymore.” She sighed. “It sure would help if these lights came back on. Feels like we’re living in some house of horrors.”

David patted her hand. “Soon as Hannah finishes playing at getting us breakfast, I’ll see what I can do about shoveling the car out so we can descend on my mom.”

Valerie nodded, but she couldn’t help worrying anyway.



Rafe pressed his nose against the window. “So after being stuck in Chicago for God knows how long cause of Marcel, now the snow’s got me stuck here.”

“What?” Nicole said. “I’m not company enough?”

“I didn’t say that.” Rafe turned toward her. “I just don’t like not being able to come and go. I was gonna go up and visit Gabi today, see how the new year’s treating her and reassure her that this is the last year she’s gonna spend behind bars.”

“Yeah,” Nicole said. “And after that I might have dragged you up to Maine to see my son.”

“Nicole - “

“I know, I know. My ALLEGED son. But Rafe, DNA or no DNA, I know my flesh and blood, and I’m telling you, Ethan Harp is Daniel Rafael Walker. He was supposed to be named after you. Don’t you even want to meet him?”

“What I want is to do things the right way,” Rafe said, “before you end up charged with kidnapping.”

“I’m not going to take him anywhere,” Nicole objected. “Anyway, it doesn’t matter now since we’re snowed in. But hey, look at the bright side. Trask’s determination to crush you under her heel is also buried in a snowbank. She can’t bother you right now.”

There was a knock on the door right then. Rafe said, “Sure hope that’s not her walking miles in the snow just to mess with me.”

“With US,” Nicole said. “We’re a team now, remember? And if that’s her, just don’t answer. There’s no law requiring you to let enemies in during a blizzard.”

“Yeah, but it’s better to get it over with. Rafe looked out the front window. “Anyway, it’s not her. It’s Kate.”

“Kate?” Nicole said, surprised. “What does SHE want?”

“Only one way to find out,” Rafe said, and opened the door to let Kate in.

[André DiMera]

Glad Claire and Allie are trying to be there for Vicki.

Hannah’s really not in good shape! She needs to call Eric once the power’s back on!

Wonder what Kate wants. I’m guessing it’s to do with the situation with Trask.

Great chapter, heroicmuse!

[lumiforeverandalways]

Glad Claire and Allie are trying to be a friend and there for Vicki.
Hannah needs to talk to Eric sooner rather than later.

[heroicmuse]

Week 321 - 2
“I know this isn’t exactly how you planned our weekend to go,” JJ said, putting his arm around Paige as they sat in front of the fireplace in the hotel lobby, “but you gotta admit, sitting in front of a fire while the snow’s coming down is pretty damn romantic.” He kissed the top of her head.

“It is. Especially now that the power’s back on,” Paige agreed. “I’m sorry I’ve been so on edge.” She twisted her fingers together. “That homeless guy threw me way off. I know it isn’t a big deal. I mean, some guys think they can say whatever pops into their head when they see a girl on the street and I’ve heard way worse than what he said walking down the sidewalks in Salem. But for some reason he really freaked me out.”

JJ kissed the top of her head. “He remind you of Jeff?”

“I guess. I mean, he doesn’t look like him or anything. I guess I’ve been under a lot of stress with Cole getting out too. And then the storm and the power failure and everything didn’t help either. I feel like that guy is lurking around in the shadows all the time.”

“Nah. He’s long gone. I bet if we ever make it out to the market again he’s not even gonna be there.” He hugged Paige. “Just remember what Agent Gibson taught us,” he said under his breath. “As long as you stay aware of what’s around you no one’s gonna take you by surprise.”

“I know,” Paige said. “But I feel like I’m TOO aware, you know?” She bit her lip. “That’s why I asked Elizabeth if I could talk to her before breakfast.” She squeezed JJ’s hand. “You don’t mind, do you? I know we came to be together but I really need the help.”

“Course,” JJ said. “Do what you gotta do, baby.” He hugged her. “You being whole and healthy’s way more important than us sharing a plate of bacon and eggs. You wanna meet me in the breakfast room when you’re done?”

“Sure,” Paige said. She kissed JJ. “Save me some scrambled eggs, okay?” Then she got up and walked away. JJ watched her, a concerned look in his eyes.


Valerie came into the kitchen, where Hannah was putting cereal into a bowl.

“Milk’s still good,” Hannah said. “Maybe we’ll get lucky for once and they’ll get the lights back on before everything in the fridge goes bad.”

“I hope so,” Valerie said. She pulled out a chair and sat down. “Daddy’s going to try to shovel out the car in a little bit now that the snow’s stopped. He wants to check on your grandmother and he thought if she’s got power we can stay there til they get our lights straightened out.”

“That’s good, I guess,” Hannah said. “But I know it’s not what you came in here to say.” She blinked hard. “I’m sick of talking about Marcel. He wasted enough of my time when he was free. Now that he’s locked up I just want to forget I ever knew him.”

“I know.” Valerie sighed. “He tried real hard to ruin your life and now that he’s gone you just want to move past it. But you can’t just sweep it under the rug, baby girl. What kind of doctor do you think I’d be if I told my heart patients to go ahead and ignore their chest pains cause it’s unpleasant?”

“That’s different,” Hannah said. “It’s not like I’m going to die from not thinking about Marcel for a little.”

“No, you’re not,” Valerie said, “but seems to me that ever since we moved back in here your nerves are frazzled. The slightest little thing makes you jump a mile. That’s not like you to be so scared of your own shadow. And I just don’t think it’s going to go away until you face the things Marcel did to you.”

“That’s what I got Eric for,” Hannah said. “Though I don’t know if I can talk to him about this.”

“About what Marcel did to you sexually?” Valerie asked.

Hannah nodded. “It was hard enough telling Daddy and I thought I’d rather tell you but then when it came to it I couldn’t get my tongue around the words.”

“It’s not an easy thing to talk about,” Valerie said gently. “All this time you thought you traded drug money for sex, but it sounds like it was more than that.”

Hannah bit her lip. “That’s why I wanted to talk to Paige. She’s been through it, she knows what it’s like to deal with knowing you had sex you didn’t want to have.”

“There’s a word for that, you know,” Valerie said gently. “If he forced you in any way, whether it was physically holding you down or playing games with your head, that’s rape.”

“Was it?” Hannah’s voice was flat. “That’s the thing, Mom, I don’t know for sure. Like, if he’d pinned me down and forced himself inside me, I’d have no doubt. But this… I thought I just liked it rough or maybe I was just too stoned to think straight, but now… I can’t tell if I wanted it or I didn’t, the line’s all blurred.”

“First of all,” Valerie said, “If you were too high to know what you were doing, you lacked the capacity to consent.”

“It wasn’t like that,” Hannah argued. “He was high on the hard stuff. I was just a little stoned is all.” She looked away. “Sorry. I know it’s hard for you to hear.”

“Not like you’re still doing it now,” Valerie said. “And the more important thing is you get out of your system what happened.”

“Right.” Hannah stared down into her cereal bowl. “He had rules for sex,” she said. “I had to lie awake and wait for him to come in. Then I had to play whatever role he picked out for me.”

Valerie frowned. “And if you didn’t do what he wanted?”

Hannah swallowed hard. “I don’t know. I never dared cross him for more than a second.”

“So you were scared of him,” Valerie said softly. “What kinds of things did he make you do, baby?” Hannah shook her head slightly and Valerie said, “It’s all right. I won’t judge you no matter what.”

“I know. That doesn’t make it any easier to talk about with my mom.” Hannah stared at the table. “He… he was into these crazy scenarios. Pretend I grabbed you off the street. Pretend I got you tied up. Pretend I’m an undercover and I caught you selling your body. That kind of thing.” Valerie nodded, a concerned look on her face. “He’d come in the room I was staying in and sometimes he’d just straight out say to strip and other times he’d cover my mouth or he’d have a water gun he was pretending was the real thing and he’d point it at me and tell me what to do. It was always supposed to be a game but…”

“But it felt real to you, like he’d hurt you if you didn’t do what he wanted?”

Hannah nodded, tears welling up in her eyes.

“Well then there’s no question about it,” Valerie said. “That was rape, baby. The only question now is what we can do about it.”

[André DiMera]

At least the power’s back on at the motel. Glad Paige and J.J. talked, and that she’s gonna talk to Elizabeth.

So glad Valerie is making Hannah realize that what Marcel did truly was rape. Hopefully she’ll tell Eric about it when they talk.

Great chapter, heroicmuse!

[Kpatch]

Maybe I'm off base, but I still think Paige imagined Elizabeth. She conjured up the therapist to help her calm down.

[heroicmuse]

Week 321 - 3
Paige had gone to Elizabeth’s room to talk to her. She was sitting in a leather chair that was very comfortable and made her feel like a super wealthy person, and Elizabeth was sitting in a straight-backed chair across from her.

“Thanks for making the time,” Paige said. “I’m sure you want to get down to the breakfast room as soon as you can.”

“I’m always happy to help,” Elizabeth said. “I’m still sorry that things didn’t work out with me being your full-time therapist. But I told you then that I am happy to be your friend and will always care about you. So I’m glad to be able to help you this morning. Now, what’s going on?”

Paige looked away, embarrassed. “It’s like I told you right before the power went out. Ever since I crossed paths with that homeless man, it’s like his ghost is still with me, leering at me, following me. I know he’s probably long gone. JJ thinks that if we go to the supermarket again after the snow lets up, that guy won’t even be there. But I keep worrying about him bothering me.”

“That brief encounter you had with that man must have made quite an impression. What do you think triggered your anxiety while speaking with him?”

Paige was quiet for a minute, thinking. “A lot of things, I guess. For one thing, before I even tried to give him money, JJ told me he thought it was a bad idea because of what happened with Joey. I didn’t think this man was like the woman who repaid my kindness by kidnapping the kid I was babysitting, but when he flirted with me, it made me think that maybe JJ was right.”

“So you were already on high alert because you remembered that homeless woman kidnapping Joey. And then this man’s behavior confirmed your fear.”

“I guess.” Paige twisted her ring. “But I don’t really understand why I reacted that way. As crude things strangers say on the street go, he wasn’t that bad.”

“Maybe not, but it was bad enough that it triggered you. Now, tell me exactly what happened. Picture it in your mind and describe it to me.”

Paige hugged herself. “JJ and I had just got out of the store and I was really relieved to be out of there. It was so crowded and people kept knocking into me and some people were so impatient and rude, like they’d shove past me and yell at me as if I was doing something wrong. Being in that store with all those people kind of freaked me out, and I felt like I could finally breathe when we got outside even though it was freezing and starting to snow and I knew we needed to get to the car as soon as we could.”

“So you’d already been feeling very anxious because the store was crowded and full of impatient shoppers. And what happened when you got outside?”

“I felt like someone’s eyes were on my back.” Paige hugged herself tighter. “I thought it was probably nothing. I feel like that a lot and it always is. It’s just left over from the past. But I never ignore it. If I do and it’s the one time someone means me harm, I could get hurt because I wasn’t paying attention.” Paige bit her lip, sure Elizabeth thought she was crazy.

Elizabeth said, “That’s understandable. It’s important to stay around of your surroundings and pay attention to your instincts. The problem is that sometimes your instincts are off. But go on. What did you do after you felt someone’s eyes on you?”

“Told JJ, I think. He said it was probably a homeless man sitting under the awning trying to get people to give him money. I looked to see and I felt really sorry for this guy. He wasn’t protected from the cold at all. It was snowing and he was wearing rags and shoes that were falling apart and everything. And everyone was just ignoring him. They were walking around him like he didn’t even exist. So I decided to give him some money to go to a hotel for the night. Not this hotel, obviously. A Motel 6 or something. JJ didn’t think I should but I wanted to. And then when I told him that I was giving him $40 for a hotel room he, um he said something stupid about how he wished I would take him home with me and winked at me and… and it felt so repulsive. I mean, he was probably just trying to make a joke but I felt physically ill and scared and like I had to get back to JJ right away. I said that my fiance was waiting for me and I ran away. Not ran, exactly, it was snowing and I didn’t want to slip, but I escaped as fast as I could. And ever since I’ve been freaking out.”

“I see. Let’s go back to the comment the man made. You said you were repulsed. Can you remember what you thought when he said whatever he said about wanting to go home with you?”

“I told you. I just wanted to get away from him as fast as possible.” Paige pressed her arms tightly against her chest.

“I know. But let’s go a little deeper. You wanted to get away from him as fast as possible because…”

“I thought maybe he was serious about wanting to go home with me.” Paige’s voice was flat. “Maybe he was fixated on me, maybe in his mind me giving him money meant I was in love with him or he had a chance with me or something. Maybe he was mentally ill or being forced to be out in the cold and snow made him lose his mind.”

“So you thought the man was serious about wanting to follow you home. What did you think he might do?”

Paige bit her lip, thinking. She remembered seeing a flash of metal, silver or something, when he took the bills. “I thought he might have a knife,” she said. “L-like Jeff.”

“So if you didn’t get away from him he might try to hold you at knifepoint?”

Paige nodded, her eyes wide with fear. “And I told him JJ was waiting for me but then I thought maybe that’s a bad idea, maybe he’ll see JJ as competition like Jeff did and he’ll follow us somehow.”

“So your encounter with this homeless man triggered your fears about getting kidnapped and assaulted again. Let me ask you something, Paige. What made you think this man had a knife?”

Paige gulped. “He had something silver in his hand when I gave him the money. I only saw it for a split second but it could have been a knife.”

“Right,” Elizabeth said. “So it all added up in your mind. You saw a man with something that looked like a knife in his hand. That man then made a sexual comment when you tried to be nice to him. So in your head, he had a weapon and was going to attack you and force you to go with him just like Jeff did, and might see JJ as competition like Jeff did. So that’s the story you’ve been telling yourself ever since, and it’s been making you scared that this man really did follow you and is waiting to get you. I’d like to try something, Paige. Let’s write a different story for you than the one you wrote when you interacted with this man. If that flash of silver wasn’t a knife, what else might it have been?”

Paige wriggled, suddenly feeling like this whole thing was ridiculous. “I guess it could have been a reflection,” she said. “It was snowing but it wasn’t like there was any sun.”

“Mmm hmm. A reflection of what?”

“A ring, maybe. Or the coins in his cup.”

“Good. Let’s go with that. So you went up to this homeless man and when he took the money you saw the reflection of a silver ring in his hand. So, no knife. Just a reflection. And then instead of making that comment to intimidate or upset you, what else could have been his motivation?”

Paige swallowed hard. “Maybe he doesn’t know how to relate to people,” she said. “Maybe he thought he was being nice. Some guys think it’s a compliment to leer at you even though it’s gross.”

“Good. So, now you went up to this homeless man and you saw the reflection of a ring in his hand, and when you gave him the money he made an inappropriate comment because he was trying to compliment you. And then you told him you had to go back to your boyfriend and what do you think happened next?”

“He probably wondered why I reacted like that,” Paige said. “He thought he was being cool and it was confusing but he probably had to forget me because he needed to try to find a warm place to stay.”

“Right. He might not have understood why you reacted that way. So now let’s pretend that the story we just made up is the truth. If you think of your encounter that way, if you imagine that this homeless man had a ring on that reflected in the sun when he took your money and that he was trying to be friendly but it backfired and your reaction confused him, what happens to your anxiety level?”

“I don’t have to worry,” Paige said, “because he wouldn’t follow me. He’d just move on to the next person who might help him.”

“Good,” Elizabeth said. “Now let’s do some tapping to cement that new story into your mind and then I think we’re ready to go to breakfast.”


“Ugh,” Claire said. “Why can’t they have a snow day? It’s not like they used any this year yet.”

“I don’t make the rules,” Sami said. “I’m just the messenger. If you’re going to shoot someone, it should be the school superintendent. Not that any of you should shoot anyone, of course. It’s just an expression.”

Allie turned bright red. “Mom! You’re rambling.”

“Sorry,” Sami said. “The point is, by tomorrow - “

Just then, Roman came in. “Good news, everyone,” he said. “Backup generator’s kicked in and we got enough power to run the kitchen. Now who wants pancakes?”

“Depends,” Vicki said. “Are we making them?”

Roman laughed. “Ma sure would have loved your spirit,” he said. “But no, not the first batch. I want some food in all of your stomachs first and then you can help me feed everyone else. How’s that sound?”

“Couldn’t we have been snowed in somewhere where we didn’t have to work day and night?” Allie said under her breath, but Sami and Roman both gave her a look so she said, “Of course, Grandpa. Come on, guys, let’s go eat.”

Claire slipped in next to Vicki as the girls headed down to the Pub. “Work with me in the kitchen again when the time comes,” she said quietly. “I want to talk to you about last night.”

[André DiMera]

So glad Elizabeth and Paige are talking about this! Especially that they’re discussing other ways that that situation could have gone.

Wonder what’s up with Allie this morning, and what Claire’s gonna say to Vicki.

Great chapter, heroicmuse!

[heroicmuse]

Week 321 - 4
“No syrup, huh?” Roman said as he came to collect the girls’ dishes.

Vicki looked away, embarrassed. “I don’t like getting sticky stuff on my hands. I’d rather eat my pancakes dry.”

“That’s a new one,” Roman said, “but long as you’re happy, I’m happy. How about you girls come wash your dishes and then we’ll see what we can do about getting the rest of these people their breakfast?”

“Can’t we sit and talk for a minute?” Allie complained. “My feet are still sore from last night.”

“Oh, come on, Allie,” Sami said. “I think you can manage to bring a dish into the kitchen. Besides, that wasn’t a question. When Grandpa asks you to do something, you do it.”

“Like you ever did,” Allie mumbled under her breath, but she pushed her chair out and grabbed her dishes. “Come on,” she said. “Maybe the snow’ll have stopped by the time we’re finished so we can have some fun.”

“You’re not going out in - “ Sami began, but Allie was gone.

Sami sighed. “What?” she said as Roman laughed. “You think the way my daughter is behaving is funny?”

“Well,” Roman said, “your mom always did say that one of these days you might have to deal with a daughter just as stubborn and rebellious as you. Now I’m not saying Allie talking back is right but you gotta admit it’s funny seeing you wasting your breath trying to talk some sense into her.”

“I wasn’t that bad,” Sami protested. “Was I?”

“Like suspects always said in interrogation, I take the fifth.” Roman walked away, still chuckling.

Sami turned toward Lucas, who was also suppressing a smile. “Don’t you start too!” she said.

“I’m not,” Lucas said. “Look, give Allie a break, all right? I’m just glad she ate an entire stack of pancakes without insisting they be cut into pieces so small they’d more properly be called crumbs.”

“Thank God for small favors,’ Sami said. She sighed. “Is your phone working? Mine still isn’t.”

“Mine is what’s known informally as dead. Why?”

“Because I’m not going to be able to relax until I know if Johnny and Sydney are all right. I’ve had a bad feeling since yesterday and not being able to get in touch with them is making it worse.”


Meanwhile, Johnny was in his room at home. Theo was asleep in a sleeping bag on the floor. Johnny said to himself, “Abe punished me enough without making me sleep in the same room as that retard.” He picked up his tablet to check if it worked. It was low on battery, but it connected.

No messages from Romeo, though. Johnny sighed. Then his eyes lit up and he said to himself, “Romeo made a fake account to talk to me. I could do a lot of damage if I did the same thing.” He laughed quietly as he glanced over at Theo. Then he began to type.


“There you are,” JJ said as Paige hurried into the breakfast room at the hotel. “They’re gonna start closing everything down in 20 minutes, so you’re just on time.” He gestured. “They got a place to make homemade waffles and everything.” He reached for Paige’s hand. “Want me to make you a couple?”

“I think I’d rather have eggs and toast,” Paige said. “Easier on my stomach.” JJ frowned and she explained, “I’m still feeling a little unsettled. I mean, I’m a lot better. Elizabeth helped me see things differently and I’m not so scared of that homeless man showing up anymore. But I still have this anxious feeling in the pit of my stomach, you know?”

“Aww,” JJ said. “You’d better not be getting sick on me.” He touched Paige’s forehead.

“Not sick. Just nervous.” Paige sighed. “After breakfast if the WiFi’s working I have to try to get in touch with Kayla since obviously I’m not making it to the hospital for my internship orientation until the storm clears up.”

“Yeah, I gotta try to get ahold of Tom too,” JJ said. “But the storm’s worse in Salem than here so they’re gonna understand.” JJ played with Paige’s knuckles. “You sure you won’t feel better after you eat?”

“Oh I know I will,” Paige said. She got up to get her food. “I’m a little lightheaded, actually, so I’d better eat.”

JJ frowned as he watched her go.


“Here,” Hope said to Aiden, handing him a thermos. They had managed to get halfway up the trail and now they were sitting on a bench, resting. “We need to rehydrate before we do the rest.”

“Maybe you do,” Aiden said, “but - “

“We both do,” Hope said firmly. “We’re at a much higher altitude than we’re used to and if we don’t take care of ourselves, we’re going to end up sick or worse. So if you want to run away from the whole situation with Thomas, you at least need to take regular breaks from this hike and eat and drink properly.”

“All right, all right,” Aiden said. “Even I can’t argue with that.” He took a few sips of water.

“Just curious,” Hope said as she took an energy bar out of her backpack and opened it. “Have you decided what our next move is?”

“You mean besides going up to the top of this mountain and taking amazing photos to show the kids when we finally get back home?” Aiden said. “Cause that’s all I’m focused on right now.” He let Hope push half an energy bar into his hand but he didn’t eat it.

“Maybe not,” Hope said, “but I think you know what I meant. I really think we should at least find out what happened to Thomas. We have a few extra days before the storm clears and we can fly back to Salem. So we might as well take advantage of them.”

“I can think of some other ways to take advantage of our good fortune,” Aiden said, his eyes sparkling.

“You’d better eat that half an energy bar,” Hope said. “And no sex until we talk seriously about this.”

Aiden sighed. “I don’t see the point to digging further. He had Downs, they threw him away, he probably died. End of story.” He shook his head. “Good to know it runs in the family, though. I probably dodged a bullet with Chase. Not that I wouldn’t have loved him just the same if…”

“Of course you would have,” Hope agreed. “But that’s not the point. Okay, maybe Thomas didn’t live all that long, and maybe his life wasn’t happy, but he was still part of your family tree and until you find out there’s going to be a blank spot there. And that’s why we came here, right? To fill in the blanks.”

“Right,” Aiden said flatly. “So what do you suggest, Detective Jennings?”

“Well, Mr. Jennings, we have the name of the hospital and a record for one Thomas Jennings with a year attached. I’m sure we could use that as a starting point to find out what happened ot him.”

Aiden bit into the energy bar, thinking. “All right,” he said, “but not til after we finish our hike. I’ve come too far to give up now.” He finished his half of the energy bar, then stood, ready to resume their hike up the mountain.


“I’ll deal with this,” Nicole said to Rafe. She threw the door open. “Hello Kate. Goodbye Kate.” She started to close the door again, but Kate stuck her foot in it.

“Nice try,” Kate said, “but I don’t think so. I didn’t drag myself over here in subzero temperatures just to have a door slammed in my face. Besides, Rafe and I need to talk, and it doesn’t concern you so if you wouldn’t mind - “

“Hold on,” Rafe said. “She lives here, Kate. I’m not throwing her out of her own house.”

“Fine,” Kate said, pushing her way in. “Then she can go wait in the bedroom. Unless, of course, she’d rather we go there.”

Nicole rolled her eyes. Rafe shook his head slightly at her and said to Kate, “Nicole knows the situation. Whatever you got to say, you can say it in front of her.”

“Fine,” Kate said. “But if this ends up on the six o’clock news, I will be coming after her.” She locked eyes with Nicole as she closed the door. “Trask and I probably have the only two working phones in Salem,” Kate went on. “She called me this morning. She wants me to find some place with a working WiFi signal and get on Zoom so that she can question me about the night that scumbag who kidnapped Johnny was shot. I managed to put her off for a little bit, but I only have limited time, so I’ll cut straight to the chase. We need to get our stories straight and then I need to call her.”