Breaking Ties: An Ensemble Story (Read 240,056 times)

[heroicmuse]

Week 332 - 5

Chloe was sitting on the floor watching Charley play with some alphabet magnets while Philip sat at a desk nearby, going over some facts and figures on his tablet.

“Match the letters,” Chloe told Charley. She pointed to a mat that had a printout of the alphabet. “Find A.”

Charley matched the A, squealing, “A!” Then she picked up another magnet and announced, “C for Charley!”

“That’s right,” Chloe said. “Mommy’s name starts with a C too. Well, her other name. Mommy starts with an M.”

“Daddy P and Parker P,” Charley said.

“That’s right,” Chloe agreed. She nudged Philip. “Did you hear that?” she asked him. “Our daughter’s a genius.”

“Of course she is. She came from us, didn’t she?” Philip smiled. “We need to work on her math skills, though.”

“Do we?” Chloe asked.

“Of course we do. How else is she going to become a powerhouse of a woman who takes over Titan when my father finally decides to kick the bucket?”

“Lovely thought,” Chloe said, making a face.

“I’m not saying I want him to die,” Philip said. “I’m just saying, he’ll never let Charley take over while he’s alive. He’s still stuck back in 1953 somewhere, thinking business is a man’s world and women belong in the kitchen. Why do you think he built a second one for Maggie?”

“I’m no fan of Victor, but that’s hardly fair,” Chloe said. “And who says that Charley’s going to want to take over the family business, anyway? You didn’t, for a while.”

“That was because I was young and feeling my oats,” Philip said. “I came to my senses once I started seeing it as a way to support the family I always wanted.”

“I’m glad you did,” Chloe said, “but only because it meant we could be together.” She reached for Philip’s hand and he took it and helped her up. Then they hugged.

Chloe’s phone buzzed. “As nice as this feels,” she said, “I have to go get Parker from school.” She sighed. “I hope that now that he’s living with us full-time, he’s going to start behaving like the sweet boy he used to be.”

“Yeah. Me too,” Philip said. “I’d hate to have to be hard on him his first day home.” As Chloe went to get Charley’s little jacket so she could take her with her, he said, “I’ll watch Charley. I need a break anyway and I have a feeling it’ll be easier for Parker if his sister isn’t there when you come to get him.”

“He has to learn to accept her sometime,” Chloe said.

“I know, but let him wait til he gets home, at least for now. Give him his few minutes with you.”

“All right,” Chloe said. She turned toward Charley. “Stay here with Daddy. Mommy will be back with Parker soon.”

“But I wanna go in the car,” Charley said tearfully.

“Crying isn’t going to get you your way,” Chloe said. “And you’ll have fun with Daddy. Besides, I’ll only be gone a few minutes.” She gave Charley a hug. “Be a good girl for Daddy. Don’t drive him too crazy.”

Chloe put on her own coat. As Philip watched her button up, he said, “Hey. Do we need to make arrangements with Daniel to get any of Parker’s things back over here?”

“I don’t know,” Chloe said. “I’ll call him later, I guess. Or tomorrow. He was so heartbroken about Parker’s decision that I just didn’t have it in me to ask him yet. Anyway, I’d better go.” She kissed Philip one more time and then left.

Charley began to cry. “I want Mommy.”

Philip pulled her onto his lap. “Mommy,” he said, “will be back soon. But in the meantime, my little CEO, you need to learn other ways of handling disappointment.”

“What’s CEO?” Charley sniffed.

“A CEO,” Philip told her, “is a very important person in a company. Like Daddy is for Titan Chicago. And someday, when you’re big, you’re going to be the CEO of Titan Enterprises here in Salem, whether your grandfather likes it or not.” He smiled slightly, thinking about the future he wanted for Charley.


Cole watched Bev and Ian go into Berger’s office. He waited a minute and then slipped into the waiting room, aware that he couldn’t get any further than that. He picked up a magazine and hide behind it, pretending to read.

A second later, Ian came out and threw himself into a chair. Cole looked up from his magazine and watched him. Ian was tapping his fingers nervously on the arm rests of the chair.

“She threw you out, huh?” Cole said.

Ian flinched, showing fear like the weakling he was. He turned toward Cole and said, “Not that it’s your business, but the only reason I’m out here is because her lawyer said it would screw up her confidentiality if someone else was in the room. And you shouldn’t be here at all. You’re the whole reason she needs a lawyer.”

Cole shrugged. “I was going to talk to her about making a deal so we don’t have to go through the court system, but I’m not really supposed to get too close to her. Besides, you’re a lot easier to convince.” He lowered his voice. “Here’s the deal, asshole. The reason I’m filing for custody is I don’t like you moving in on my son. You’re not good for Bev and you’re definitely not good for Mason. So I’m doing what I gotta do to protect him.”

Ian’s eyes flashed. “You’re talking about yourself. You must be because you don’t even know me.”

“I don’t think so,” Cole said, “but think what you want. The point is, I don’t want you around Bev. You’re a stalker and a loser and you’re going to hurt her.”

“Whatever,” Ian said. “You can’t do anything about it, so you’ll just have to deal with it.”

“That’s where you’re wrong,” Cole said. “I told Paige to give Bev a message. Maybe she did and maybe she didn’t, but I’ll give it to you now. You’ve got two choices. Break up with her and this goes away. Or stay with her and I take Mason away from her. Which is it going to be?”

Ian stared at Cole, his eyes wide with both disbelief and fear.


JJ and Hannah had met at a table at the back of Brady Pub where no one would disturb them.

“First things first,” JJ said. “You sure you want to go on the record about this?”

“Course I do,” Hannah said. “I just said I did, didn’t I?”

“I know,” JJ said, “but the thing is, you’re still on probation. So - “

“Like I don’t know that,” Hannah said, annoyed. “The whole reason this came about is cause I came within an inch of getting arrested cause I called Kenneth before I called probation about this nonsense.” She sighed. “I was so mad at Kenneth,” she said. “You know he bought a gun?”

JJ shook his head. “I didn’t, but I’m not surprised he’d do a boneheaded thing like that. I had to tell him to shut up about being happy that Marcel got shot when this first went down. It’s like he’s got no common sense when it comes to that dude.”

“Yeah,” Hannah said, “and if it was only him that got affected, I’d just be worried about him. But the thing is, I got lucky cause if probation knew my boyfriend had a gun… they’d have a lot bigger reason to violate me than a stupid little phone call and they’d probably do it too.”

“That’s why I was asking you if you were sure you wanted to do this on the record,” JJ said. “Couple years ago, some corrupt cops set out to shut me up, tried to look for crap to pin on me cause if I was locked up I couldn’t report on what they were doing. If probation doesn’t like what you got to say about them, it’d be way too easy for them to find a way to get you out of their way. So I was thinking you might wanna go anonymous, tell your story without your name coming into it.”

Hannah’s eyes narrowed. “Not like they wouldn’t guess it was me,” she said. “They know who they just picked on and how.”

“I guess,” JJ said. “Unless…” His eyes widened. “Maybe you’re part of a bigger story. After I get this interview, I can get my new boss to let me look into how probation treats people and see if there’s a pattern.”

“There is one, all right,” Hannah said. “Look at who’s getting violated and who’s not. I dare you to tell me it’s not by skin color.” She crossed her arms. “No more foot dragging, now. Turn your recorder on and let me tell you the whole story of me and probation so you got something to go on.”

[André DiMera]

It’s nice that Philip has ideas for Charley’s future, but like Chloe said, she may not want to be in charge of Titan when she’s older. Hopefully things with Parker get better now that he’s living with Chloe and Philip full time.

Cole is deluded if he thinks any court would give him custody of Mason over Bev. I hope Ian doesn’t give in to this extremely weak blackmail.

Nice as it would be for the whole world to know how unfairly Hannah is being treated, I’m not sure this is the way to go about it.

Can we please have previews, heroicmuse?

[lumiforeverandalways]

Great chapter

[Kpatch]

Ha. Your Philip is head of Titan Chicago just like my Philip. I'm so glad Parker is coming to live with the Kiriakises. Charley is very smart.

[heroicmuse]

Thank you André DiMera, Kpatch, and lumiforeverandalways for your comments this week! There's more exciting stuff to come, so stay tuned.

Coming Up on Breaking Ties...

Hannah gives JJ an explosive interview, telling him her opinion of how probation -- and the rest of the justice system -- keeps screwing her over because of the color of her skin. However, when JJ returns to SPN, he seems reluctant to let Harriet use any of it, and his new boss picks up on it. What’s up with JJ, and will he ruin this new opportunity with his fears?

Meanwhile, Kenneth’s day goes from bad to worse when his mom gets home and confronts him about buying a gun. Nan makes it clear that Kenneth’s behavior recently is not acceptable to her, but before they can finish their conversation, they are interrupted by the cops at the door… and they’re looking for Nan.

Kenneth wants to call a lawyer, but Nan is happy to talk to the police, who question her about her whereabouts when Marcel was killed. She is calm and cooperative with them, but as soon as they leave, she lashes out at Kenneth, making it clear that she expects him to turn the cops down if they offer to give his gun back to him.

After leaving the Hansen home, Horowitz checks in with Abe. She doesn’t think either Nan or Kenneth is guilty, but where does that leave their investigation? Abe rechecks the security footage, hoping for a new lead, and he might have found one… but before he can confirm his suspicions, an irate Sami walks in with Johnny, and a demand for a favor from Abe.

Elsewhere, Mr. Woods is not happy with Vicki and Allie after Lucas brings them back to school, and for his part, Lucas gives the principal permission to punish Allie any way he sees fit. After talking with both girls, Mr. Woods makes it clear that he would be within his rights to suspend them but gives them an alternative punishment. The discipline seems to have had an effect on Allie later, who shudders as she recounts it to Claire. But unbeknownst to the girls, Ciara is spying and plotting to get Allie and Vicki in trouble again so she can get them out of her orbit permanently.

Finally, Trask puts a positive spin on the story of what happened between her and Nicole when she is questioned about it,  Roman is frustrated by the lack of leads while searching for Rex, and Chloe isn't happy that Philip is putting the idea of being a future CEO into Charley's head.

[André DiMera]

Can’t wait for the interview! Wonder why J.J. is reluctant to use anything from it.

So glad Nan talks to Kenneth about that gun, and that she’s cooperative with the police.

Wonder what favor Sami wants, and what Abe found on the security footage.

Interested to see what alternative punishment Mr. Woods gives Allie and Vicki. Of course Ciara is gonna try to use this to her advantage.

Trask is so annoying. Glad Roman is still keeping up the search, even though it sucks that he’s not getting any leads. I figured Chloe wouldn’t be thrilled, especially since she and Philip kind of already talked about how it should be up to Charley when she gets older.

Thanks for the previews, heroicmuse!

[lumiforeverandalways]

Can't wait for what is to come

[heroicmuse]

Week 333 -1

Kenneth was sitting in his room, flipping through photos on his phone, when he heard the door creak open downstairs and then his mom calling, “Kenneth? You better be in this house. We need to talk!”

Crap. That tone meant only one thing: she knew about the gun too.

All of a sudden he felt exhausted.

No time for that, though. He had to face the music, cause if he didn’t come down when his mom was in this kind of mood, she was gonna come up and practically break down the door.

“Coming, Ma!” he called, trying to play it off like she’d just woken him from the nap he hadn’t a chance to take yet. He came down the stairs, slowly. “What’s up?” he asked, as if he didn’t know.

“Have a seat,” Nan said, “and be glad this is your uncle’s house cause if it was mine I just don’t know what I’d do with you.”

Kenneth sank into his seat, his heart pounding. “Guess you heard about the lockbox,” he said. “Ma, please, I learned my lesson, all right?”

“Did you?” Nan looked him up and down. “I know the police are on your butt, thinking you killed that horrible man, but let me ask you this. If they let go of this foolish notion they got that you did this thing and they give you that gun back, you gonna take it?”

Kenneth stared at the floor. “Don’t know what else to do with it now,” he said, “but I can’t keep it.”

“Damn right you can’t. I thought I was clear from the start that I didn’t want a gun in the house.”

“You were.” Kenneth swallowed hard. “I… I wasn’t planning…”

“You weren’t planning. Don’t tell me you’re about to say that gun found its way into that lockbox of its own free will.”

“I didn’t say I didn’t buy it,” Kenneth said. “It was dumb, all right? I got that now, loud and clear. Uncle Malcolm’s upset with me and I might have lost my girl over it, and even that’s not gonna matter one bit if I get sent to Statesville.” He let his breath out slowly. “So go ahead, Ma. Do your worst. Cause there isn’t anything you can say to me that’s worse than what I’ve been saying to myself since Hannah stormed out of here.”

“So you’ll listen to that girl of yours but not to your own mother, is that what you’re saying?” Nan said. “Your uncle and I both told you that we didn’t want any guns in this house and you defied us. Now, I can’t do anything about this except tell you how disappointed I am in you. It’s the only tool I got left to discipline you now. That and prayer, cause the last thing I want is to see you go to jail.” Nan’s whole body tensed up at the thought, but then she let her breath out slowly and said, “But if that’s how it has to be, that’s how it has to be. You made your choices, you’re gonna have to face the consequences.”

“Already am,” Kenneth said. “I’ve never seen Hannah so mad, and that was after I stopped by the school to talk to Uncle Malcolm. He’s never been this disappointed with me in his life and he told me to go home and think about what I've done like I was still seven years old and that’s about how old I felt.”

“You deserved that,” Nan said, but then her voice softened and she said, “You wanna tell me what in the world you were thinking, bringing that gun into this house?”

“I was trying to fill my promise to Dad.” Kenneth’s voice was thick with pain. “A little before he died, you know what he said to me? He said if anything happened to him I was gonna be the man of the house and I’d better look after Vicki. And I didn’t, Ma, that night Marcel got me I didn’t protect her. She had to sit flat against the wall of the closet holding her breath and he almost got her anyway.” He blinked back tears.

“Didn’t we talk about this last time you asked me about a gun? I just don’t understand what it is you think you could have done different. That man had a gun in your ribs and your hands tied behind your back. So you tell me what more it is you could have done to protect your sister under those circumstances.”

“I couldn’t that time, I guess,” Kenneth said, “but still. I couldn’t shake the feeling I was supposed to do everything in my power to stop it from ever happening again. I… I thought it’s what Dad would have wanted, me buying that gun.”

“Your father would not have wanted you to defy me like this,” Nan said, “and he certainly wouldn’t have wanted you to put yourself in some crazy situation where you could go to jail for someone else’s crime just cause he told you to look after your sister. Putting that gun in your closet wasn’t taking care of her, baby. It was the opposite. What do you think would have happened if she got her hands on it?”

Kenneth swallowed hard. “Uncle Malcolm said if she got caught with it she’d go to juvie full stop and that’s only if he prevented a tragedy first cause some girl’s messing with her. I’ve been praying ever since she's not the one who took it. I know ‘sorry’ doesn’t cut it but I don’t know what else I’m supposed to do now.”

“We can be thankful for one thing. Vicki didn’t get her hands on that gun. I found it first.” Nan shook her head slightly. “I tried to sell it back to that dealer, but he wouldn’t do it, and then the cops took it to run tests on. They said if it turns out it hasn’t been fired and whatnot, you’re in the clear. But here’s the thing. If that gun wasn’t used to shoot anybody, they’re gonna give it back to you. And then you’re gonna have to have a decision to make. Cause I don’t want a gun in the house and neither does your uncle, and if you’re that hellbent on having one…”

“I’m not,” Kenneth said. “I told you, I learned my lesson.”

Nan looked him up and down. “I hope so, cause - “

Just then, there was a knock on the door. She got up and looked out the window, then turned and said to Kenneth, “It’s the police.”

Kenneth swallowed hard as Nan opened the door. “Please tell me you’re not looking for my son,” she said. “I told you, he didn’t shoot that man.”

“We’re looking for you, actually,” Horowitz said. She sighed. “I hate to have to do this, but we need to ask you a few more questions about where you were between the time you found that gun and the time you took it to the dealer. Do you mind coming down to the station with us?”


Mr. Woods hung up his phone as Lucas marched Allie and Vicki into his office. “Thank goodness,” he said. “I was not looking forward to having to call either of your mothers to tell them you were unaccounted for.” He crossed his arms. “I told you to go back to class,” he told Vicki, “not to leave school grounds.”

Vicki looked away. “I was trying to make sure Allie was okay.”

“Yeah,” Allie said. “It was all my fault.”

“I told you,” Lucas interjected. “It doesn’t matter whose idea this was. What you girls did was very dangerous and you are very lucky that you didn’t get arrested for truancy. Or hurt.”

“That’s why I left,” Vicki said. “I was afraid Allie might get hit by a car. I didn’t want to lose her like I lost my dad.”

“You ever thought maybe you could have just come back here and told Mr. Woods that Allie ran away?” Lucas said. “Don’t get me wrong. I appreciate you looking after my daughter, but two wrongs don’t make a right and neither of you had any business leaving school property when you were supposed to be in class.” He turned toward Mr. Woods. “I don’t know what you want to do about this, but just so you know, Sami and I aren’t going to stand in the way of whatever you need to do to make sure Allie learns her lesson. And to think we thought this was the kid we don’t have to worry about.” He shook his head.

“I will discuss that with both of the girls in private and let you know,” Mr. Woods said. “But I can assure you your daughter will be treated fairly. Vicki is my niece, but that does not mean she will get preferential treatment in this matter.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything less.” Lucas let his breath out slowly. “Now that that fire’s out, I have to go put out another one. Allie’s brother isn’t exactly acting his age so…”

“Of course,” Mr. Woods said. “I hope Johnny is all right. We missed him today.”

“I doubt that,” Lucas said, “but it’s nice of you to say.” He turned toward Allie. “Straight home after school today. Unless your mother convinces me otherwise, you’re grounded for the rest of your childhood.” He left.

Allie blinked hard. “My dad’s so disappointed in me,” she said.

“Only because he cares about you,” Mr. Woods said, “and he’s terrified of what could have happened. Two teenage girls out on their own, unaccounted for… there’s no telling what might have happened.”

“I tried to tell Allie that,” Vicki said.

“You went out too,” Mr. Woods said. “It doesn’t matter the reason, Vicki. You broke the rules and put yourself in danger.” He rubbed his temples. “The school rules are clear and neither of you has any excuse for what you did. And do not tell me that you are new, Vicki. I’m sure that leaving school without telling anyone was not allowed at your old school either.”

“Not like anyone would have noticed,” Vicki said under her breath. Mr. Woods raised his eyebrows and she said aloud, “No, it wasn’t.”

“I didn’t think so,” Mr. Woods said. “So tell me, girls, is there any compelling reason for me not to assign you both to in-school suspension for the remainder of the day?”

[André DiMera]

Glad Nan was firm with Kenneth, and that he’s realizing how badly he screwed up. Interesting that the cops want to talk Nan. I’m sure she’ll be cooperative.

Hopefully this will impress upon Allie and Vicki why this was a bad idea. Glad Mr. Woods isn’t going to give Vicki preferential treatment. I figured he wouldn’t, but it’s nice to know.

Great chapter, heroicmuse!

[Kpatch]

Mr. Woods is amazing. I love how he cares about the students and how well he knows the parents.

[heroicmuse]

Week 333 - 2
After Hannah had told JJ her story, he was scowling. He said, “I knew they were being ridiculous with you, but I didn’t know it was that bad.”

Hannah shrugged. “Not like you can stop them all by yourself. I don’t know that even this story’s gonna do anything. Might make them back off me, but they’ll find some other girl to take my place as the one they mess with.

“It’s not just probation either. They’re just one cog in the machine cause you got cops stopping me over nothing all the time and judges putting me on this stupid probation and holding me back.

“And don’t get me started how I was treated in jail. I know jail’s not supposed to be a picnic, but just cause it’s punishment doesn’t mean they can treat you any kind of way. I got thrown in the hole cause some guard put a homemade crack pipe on me he had his own damn self and said it was mine when I hadn’t ever seen it before, all cause the warden wanted to get me where she wanted me.

“That other news lady, what’s her name, the one on Channel Five, she wanted to talk to me and the warden made it clear if I didn’t keep my mouth shut about how bad things were for me at that jail she was gonna press charges and I was gonna be stuck there longer. And now here it is how many years later and I could still get sent back over a missed phone call?” Hannah shook her head. “If I wasn’t risking another probation violation I’d have something way stronger than this soda, that’s for sure.”

JJ turned the recorder off and said, “Don’t. That’s not gonna do you any good whatsoever, trust me.”

“I know,” Hannah said. “Just… thinking about all this gets me so wound up I wanna escape it all.” She rubbed her temples. “You got enough to get started?”

JJ nodded. “I’m gonna take this back to Harriet and talk to her about getting ahold of some other people they’re messing with. Meantime, if it gets to be too much for you, don’t go looking for trouble. Call me or Paige. We’re there for you.”

“I appreciate that,” Hannah said, “but first person I’m calling now’s my lawyer to see if I can get out of this probation nonsense. Last thing I need is another violation cause I stay with you and Paige five minutes too long.” She frowned as she dialed. “Voicemail. Guess I’d better get my butt over there and see what I can do.”

“K,” JJ said. “But listen, you wanna come over for dinner tonight? Paige and I got wedding stuff to talk about with you anyway, and it might take your mind off things.”

“Maybe,” Hannah said, “but right now, I feel like I can’t rest til this is straightened out.” She hurried away.

JJ watched her go, his eyes full of concern.


Nan’s eyes widened. “Whatever questions you got to ask, you can ask right here in my living room. There’s no need to make it worse than it is, especially since I didn’t do anything other than take this gun away from a boy who knew it wasn’t welcome in our house.” She gave Kenneth a look.

“Don’t say another word, Ma,” Kenneth said. “Not til I get our lawyer down here. I’m not having them twist your words all out of shape and get one or both of us thrown in jail over this.”

Nan looked even more scared. She turned toward Horowitz and said, “Is he right? Do I need a lawyer?”

“It’s just routine right now,” Horowitz said. “We’re trying to rule you both out so we don’t waste any more time on the wrong suspects. The thing is, Kenneth’s gun is missing a bullet, and we’re waiting on some tests to see if it was fired recently. If it was, it could turn out it was the murder weapon, not the gun we found under Kenneth’s seat. And that’s why we have to know where you were, exactly. You told us you went for a drive but we’re going to need to know specifics so we can double check the traffic cameras and make sure you weren’t anywhere near the courthouse with that gun.”

Nan rolled her eyes. “Like I could get into court with a gun. Come on!”

“Ma, don’t,” Kenneth said. He turned toward Horowitz. “Aren’t there cameras in the courthouse? That should clear this up real quick.”

“The shooter seems to have stayed out of the cameras’ way,” Horowitz said, “unless it was you, because we saw you shifting in your seat and taking something out of your pocket.”

“My phone,” Kenneth said, “because I was gonna text my mom and my uncle to tell them the news soon as they took Marcel back to jail.”.

“I figured it was something like that,” Horowitz said. She turned toward Nan. “So… when you went for this drive, where exactly did you go?”

“I don’t remember,” Nan said. “Just that I went past the high school. Other than that, I drove around and around til I got the idea to go to the dealer and sell him back the gun. Just like I told you before.”

Horowitz nodded. “I believe you. What time about, do you know?”

Nan shrugged. “Had to be before school let out for the day, but it wasn’t like I was looking at the clock.”

“Morning? Afternoon?”

“I found the gun right before lunch, so…”

“That helps narrow it down,” Horowitz said. “Okay. We’ll check the traffic cams and hopefully everything’ll check out.”

“Hold up,” Kenneth said as Horowitz turned to go. “Is my mom a suspect or not?”

“Kenneth,” Nan said quietly.

“Not at this point,” Horowitz said, “and hopefully it stays that way. Thanks again for your time.” She left.

Nan closed and locked the door, then turned toward Kenneth, her eyes blazing. “You happy now?” she said. “Look at all the trouble you caused, bringing that gun into this house. Cops questioning both of us and we’re just lucky your sister was in school or they’d be after her too, believe me.”

Kenneth looked away. “I’m sorry,” he said.

“I know you are,” Nan said, “but sometimes sorry doesn’t cut it. Now you’re grown and I can’t do anything about your choices but if I were you once we’re out of this nightmare and they ask you if you want that gun back I’d tell them No.”

“I will,” Kenneth said. He looked away. “Ma? I-if they try to say you did it, I’ll confess.”

“You’ll do no such thing,” Nan said. “We got enough problems without you making up stories and getting yourself in trouble. I can take care of myself if I need to, believe me. All I need from you is a sign you understand the enormity of what you did and that you’re gonna have your head on right from now on.” She turned on her heel and walked quickly away.

“I can’t let my mom go to jail behind this,” Kenneth said to himself. “Not when she’s as innocent as me.” He sank into the couch, playing with his phone and trying to think.


Ian’s heart pounded, but he didn’t let himself look away from Cole. “Nice try,” he said, wishing his voice wasn’t shaking. It was slight, but still. Guys like Cole could smell fear a mile away. “You’re not going to threaten me or Bev,” he said. “In fact, get the hell out of here or I’m going to ask the receptionist to call security.”

Cole laughed. “I’m not threatening you. I’m just stating a fact, that’s all.” He crossed his arms. “I’m Mason’s father and I’m going to be in his life one way or the other, but whether Bev is too depends on you. See ya.” He turned and walked away.

Ian slumped down in his seat, not sure if he’d done the right thing or what he should do now.

Just then, a tall Black girl came stomping into the room. She went up to the receptionist’s desk and said, “Tell Mr. Berger that Hannah Martin’s here to see him. It’s an emergency.” The receptionist said something in a quiet voice and Hannah said, “You sure you can’t - all right.”

She threw herself into the seat next to Ian. He turned and stared at her, not sure what he should say to her, if anything.

[André DiMera]

Glad Hannah is trying to get ahold of her lawyer. Though, like J.J., Im somewhat concerned about her.

Interesting that whoever the real shooter was that they avoided the cameras. Hopefully the traffic cameras will prove that it’s not Nan.

Glad Ian didn’t back down. Wonder what, if anything, he’ll say to Hannah.

Great chapter, heroicmuse!

[lumiforeverandalways]

Good chapter

[Kpatch]

I don't know why Cole cares about Mason, father or not. I think he just wants to hold power over Bev.

[heroicmuse]

Week 333 - 3
VIcki’s mouth opened and closed. “Suspension?” she whispered. “Mom’ll kill me. Please, Uncle Malcolm…”

“Vicki,” Malcolm said gently, “we talked about this before you started here. I cannot give you special treatment, and you broke the rules just as much as Allie did.”

Vicki’s eyes filled with tears and she stared down at the ground.

“Please, Mr. Woods,” Allie said. “It’s Vicki’s first day. Besides, it was all my fault. I ran out the door without thinking and she just followed me to try to make sure I was safe.”

“I see. And why did you do that, Allie?”

“She had a good reason,” Vicki said. “She thought her mom had been shot.”

Mr. Woods held up his hand. “I need Allie to speak for herself, Vicki. In fact, I’d like to talk to her alone.”

He pressed a button on his phone and his receptionist came in a second later. He said, “Escort Vicki to my conference room, please,” he said. “I need you to supervise while she writes me a letter about why she left school grounds without permission and what she thinks I should do about it.”

Vicki scowled. “I’m missing even more class if you make me do that,” she said.

Mr. Woods rubbed his temples. “Vicki. This has been a very difficult day and I am not in the mood for back talk. Please go do what you were asked to do so that I don’t have to punish you further.”

“You heard him,” the receptionist added. “Come on.”

Vicki pulled away from her, but she left. Mr. Woods turned toward Allie. “Now. What is this about your mother?”

Allie sighed. “Vicki told me that there was a shooting at the courthouse and I knew my mom was there today. So when I couldn’t get her on the phone, I kind of panicked.”

“Kind of, or did?”

Allie’s face got bright red. “I panicked,” she said. “I thought my mom was dead and I felt like I had to go home and see for myself or I would go crazy. I TOLD Vicki not to follow me but she didn’t listen. But you shouldn’t punish her. Just me. She would never have left school if I didn’t.”

“I see,” Mr. Woods said. “I think you know leaving school without telling anyone was the wrong response. What should you have done?”

“Told someone, I guess,” Allie said. “But I was so scared I couldn’t think. I just… went.”

“That is a problem,” Mr. Woods said. “You can’t just do whatever some strong feeling tells you to do, Allie. That’s how people get into trouble. That’s how YOU got into trouble. Now, you are a good student and you have never been in any trouble before, so I don’t want to suspend you. Besides, I can’t really justify sending you to in-school suspension and only requiring Vicki to write me an apology letter. So I’m going to give you the same punishment I gave her, even though I think you are more capable of thinking before you act than she is. No socializing with Vicki while you are writing your letters. Sit on the opposite end of the table from her and take this seriously so that I can send you back to class.”

“Yes, Mr. Woods.” Allie swallowed hard. “There’s something else you should know, since Vicki’s your niece. I feel kind of like a snitch saying this, but…” She fidgeted. “Vicki acts like what happened when that guy broke into your house doesn’t affect her, but I think it does. She was all freaked out when she caught up with me and she said she kept thinking about when she had to hide in the closet and worrying something like that would happen to me.”

Mr. Woods nodded, his face blank. “I appreciate you telling me that. Let me just fill my receptionist in and then she will take you to write your letter.”

A few minutes later, after Allie had been escorted out, he picked up a photo on his desk of Vicki and Kenneth. He shook his head and said to himself, “I can’t let that man ruin their lives any more from beyond the grave than he already has.” He picked up his phone to make a call.


Philip was showing Charley something on his tablet. “This is called a news alert,” he said. “When you’re bigger, you’ll understand better how to use this. But what Daddy does is he follows the news for all the other companies that are like Titan Chicago. That way, I can know what the competition is up to and get ahead of them.”

Charley put her fingers in her mouth. Philip gently took her wrist and moved her hand away. “I know, I know. This is all complicated, grown-up stuff. But what I really want you to understand right now is that it is very important that you work hard when you get to school and learn to read and write and do math especially well so that when you’re grown up you’ll have the skills you need to run our family business the way it needs to be run.” Chloe’s key turned in the lock just then and Philip mock gasped. “There’s Mommy. And Parker!”

Charley slid off his lap and ran to give her big brother a hug. “Parker!” she said. “I didn’t know today was a visit day.”

"Get off me," Parker said, but he was grinning.

“Parker!” Chloe said. “Don’t be rude. And say hi to Daddy Phil.”

Parker scowled, but when he turned toward Philip, the scowl was gone. “Hi, Daddy Phil,” he said.

“How was school today, big guy?” Philip asked.

Parker shrugged. “Boring. I read a book inside my book whenever the teacher wasn’t looking cause otherwise I’d have fallen asleep.”

Charley said, “But then you won’t grow up to be a CEO.”

“Um, what?” Chloe said. She turned toward Philip. “Philip! What have you been filling our daughter’s head with?”

“I’m gonna be the first lady CEO in Titan when I grow up,” Charley said. “Daddy said.”

Chloe frowned and Charley put her fingers in her mouth again, afraid her parents were going to fight.


“Sonny went to get her,” Will told Gabi over video chat. “We were going to tell her that you were free first, but since you’re on video, as soon as she comes home, I’ll put her on.”

Gabi pushed her hair behind her ear. “Do I look all right?” she said. “I won’t scare my daughter, will I?”

“You’re fine,” Will said, “and she’s been begging for you to come home so - “ Just then, a key turned in the lock. “Here she comes.”

Sonny came in with Ari, who was wearing a My Little Ponies backpack and a pink jacket. Sonny said to Ari, “Okay, put your school things away and then Daddy Will and I will tell you what’s going on.”

“Actually,” Will said. “Come over here for a minute. There’s someone on the phone who wants very much to say hello to you.”

Sonny knit his brow as Ari said, “K!” She ran over. “Who is it?”

“Look and see,” Will said.

Ari looked, her mouth dropping open. “MAMA!”

Gabi had tears in her eyes as she looked at her daughter, but Sonny looked upset as he walked away and left Will and Ari with her.