Chapter 496
SHAWN-D & BELLE’S HOUSE
After having dinner together and taking a walk through Salem Place, Claire and Chase had gone to her house to watch a movie. The movie had ended a few minutes ago, but they were both cuddled up on the couch, Claire resting her head on Chase’s shoulder, and Chase’s arm around her.
CLAIRE: So, registration for Salem U is tomorrow.
Chase nodded.
CHASE: You ready?
CLAIRE: I think so. I’m excited to be able to pick all of my classes and not have to do certain ones.
CHASE: I know the feeling. Hope says we’re meeting you guys for lunch and then we’re all going over.
CLAIRE: Yeah. That’ll be good.
CHASE: So, I saw you and Ciara talking when I came down. You guys okay?
CLAIRE: We talked, Ciara apologized, we’re good.
CHASE: That’s good.
Claire nodded.
CLAIRE: You’re amazing, you know that? Thanks for everything today.
CHASE: Well, so are you. And anytime. I love you, Claire.
CLAIRE: I love you, too.
Claire and Chase kissed.
DIMERA MANSION
The swords clashed and clanged against each other.
TONY: You’re slowing down, old man. What’s the problem? Too much pressure.
André chuckled.
ANDRE: It sounds as though somebody is overconfident in their abilities.
TONY: Yes, it’s a pity Stefano never programmed you to not to overestimate yourself. You know what they say about pride coming before the fall, of course.
ANDRE: I do, indeed. A lesson you clearly never learned.
The two swords locked next to each other momentarily. Then, Tony made a sudden movement and swung the sword down. André leapt over it and landed gracefully.
ANDRE: Clever, little man.
TONY: Oh, you’ll find I’m full of surprises.
André and Tony lunged at each other, continuing their work with their swords. If anyone were watching, they’d have witnessed a spectacular battle. Neither was conceding an inch. They moved closer to the center of the room, still battling fiercely. Tony put his sword up in a defensive pose, while André swung offensively. Then, Tony jumped forward, pushing André forward and then...he was gone.
TONY: André?
When Tony had pushed forward, André had moved back to counter the move. However, he had been so distracted trying to fight against Tony that he had momentarily lost his footing. Neither noticed until that moment that the trap door which led to the tunnels was still open, and André had fallen down it. Tony didn’t want to wait around, he knew André would resurface sooner rather than later, so he made a hasty retreat back upstairs.
TUNNELS
PHILIP: It felt right?
MELANIE: Don’t ask me how, but yeah.
PHILIP: Well, at least that’s something.
MELANIE: This doesn’t mean anything. I’m still Melanie DiMera, and I still have no idea who you are. But, you’re a good kisser and kissing you felt right.
PHILIP: Gotcha.
Philip pushed another button on his watch.
PHILIP: If I’ve calculated this correctly, we should be almost out. I’ll have to thank Tony later for providing a distraction.
MELANIE: You know that man who looked like my father?
PHILIP: Yep. And, for a while, I thought I had been indirectly responsible for his death. Thankfully, that was just a ruse created by André and Stefano.
MELANIE: I see. Actually, no I don’t.
PHILIP: Let’s just say André has a habit of faking people’s deaths, especially Tony’s and his own. And on another topic, now that we’re almost out, I can finally take this mask off. I’ll tell you, being Peter Blake was not my idea of a good time, but it served its purpose.
Philip tugged at his cheek, and took off the Peter mask revealing his true face.
PHILIP: There we go. Much better.
Melanie stared.
PHILIP: What? Oh, sorry, that must have seemed odd, me taking off that really convincing mask.
MELANIE: No, it’s not that, it’s just...you look really familiar. Like, I don’t know you, but in another life, I might have.
PHILIP: Well, it wasn’t another life, just one you’ve forgotten. But, now that I’ve got you away from that mansion, we’ll be able to fix all that. Come on.
