[Scene ends.]
[Scene: Asa's office, next morning. Music: Cat Stevens' "Father and Son".]
Bo: I understand you had much more of a hand in Matthew's paternity than I had thought.
Asa: Now, hold your horses, boy. What's this about? What do you mean?
Bo: My son, Pa. It's about my younger son.
Asa: I've already apologized to you more than once, son.
Bo: But you've never told me the extent of your involvement. We now know Lindsay was involved with that Lab Tech, and she got the results changed. LPD did a case review not too long ago. She also, and this is where you come in, changed the original lab tests; my sperm count test. You knew about that and kept silent. That's what started this whole mess. You let me believe I was basically sterile, for the longest time.
Asa: Nora thought you were dying, what was she supposed to tell you? 'Sorry, Bo, but you're shooting blanks and I'm not really pregnant?' She did try to tell you when you were feverish in the hospital, but you refused to believe her. You almost died after she told you.
Bo: I know all that, Pa, but it still doesn't change the fact that my own Pa, who wanted an heir so badly, would do this to his own son. You've already stolen one of my sons, and now you're doing it again.
Asa: I didn't steal Drew!
Bo: You basically did, Pa. You married Becky Lee when she was pregnant with my son and then claimed Drew for yourself. What is it with you, Pa?
Asa: Nothing, son.
Bo: You shooting blanks since me and Clint?
Asa: No, I’m a stud and don’t you forget it. I got me you two stallions to prove it, too. I'm only doing what's best for you and the boy. That boy is a Rappaport, I'm sure of it. I don't want to watch you get your heart broken again.
Bo: Well, I don't think he is, and I know you don't really think he is, either. You were adamant he was a Buchanan before he was born.
Asa: I supported Nora going with Rappaport because I was sure she was already pregnant with your child, but I wanted to be doubly sure she really was pregnant.
Bo: So you approved her doing that?
Asa: For an heir, hell yeah.
Bo: And you think that that lie was all right?
Asa: What're you going to do about it? Nora's with Rappaport now!
Bo: Maybe not for long.
Asa: That kid may not even be yours.
Bo: Or yours, Pa. What would you have it be, Pa? Is he or is he not my son? And what does it mean to you if he is? What will you let it mean to me if he is? Huh, Pa? Will you take him from me again, Pa? Over my dead body, Pa! (Icily:) I am not letting you do that to me, again.
[Scene ends.]
[Scene: Sam's livingroom, two days later, mid-morning. Todd rings doorbell. Music: Harry Chapin's "Cat's in the cradle".]
Sam: Todd, hi. C'mon in.
Todd: Matthew here? (Crosses to flop on couch.)
Sam: (Picks up the baby monitor, turns up the volume a moment, listens a moment, turns the volume down again and sets the monitor back on the end table next to the phone.) Yeah, but he's asleep down the hall. Why?
Todd: Sam?
Sam: Boomer? (Sits down next to him.)
Todd: Why did you go after Blair last year?
Sam: That was so long ago, pal. Why not? Why shouldn't I have gone after Blair?
Todd: You don't see why not?
Sam: No.
Todd: Did it ever occur to you that it might not be appropriate somehow?
Sam: Why not? Since when are you Miss Manners? She was free at the time, and she seemed interested, too. We were good together, while it lasted.
Todd: Didn't it ever bother you, the age difference?
Sam: That's not the sort of thing that ever bothers you, especially. What's this really about?
Todd: Didn't it ever once occur to you that sleeping with your surrogate son's ex-wife was a little over-the-top and weird?
Sam: Um... Oh.
Todd: Yeah. "Oh." You never once thought of that, did you?
Sam: No. Why? Do you still have feelings for Blair? Is this about jealousy?
Todd: You mean, other than hatred? Contempt? I hate Blair. She always manages to bring out the worst in me, and every moment I spend with her it's a struggle not to rip her lungs out. The only reasons I deal with her are family functions, the business, and especially with Starr. Even Starr knows her Mother and I don't like each other, it's getting harder to hide it from our little girl.
Sam: Have you thought about sole custody again?
Todd: Yes. Right now I have temporary sole custody, after that night at Dorian's when they scared the hell out of my kid with their fighting. She will not set foot in Cramer Hell again, unless I'm there to supervise, let alone sleep there again. She doesn’t even want to.
Sam: Why didn't you say anything before about how you felt about Blair and me?
[Music: Goo Goo Dolls: "Bulletproof".]
Todd: (Starts pacing the room.) Too much going on at the time. I'm still rebuilding my life, things are coming back to me piecemeal. This was just next on my list.
Sam: Does it upset you?
Todd: (Faces Sam.) It's sick, Sam! It's like if you were doing the nasty with Jessica, you know? Blair was basically your ex-daughter-in-law.
Sam: I never really thought it through. It was mostly during your trial, and even though I was mostly thinking about you, I guess I never thought very clearly about the bigger picture.
Todd: (Not buying it and annoyed:) The tunnel vision excuse makes you look very self-centered, Sam. You don't think a lot of things through.
Sam: I wasn't being selfish.
Todd: Oh, yes you were. Did you get your rocks off thinking about bedding a woman young enough to be your son's ex-wife? Was this some sort of midlife crisis thing? Is Nora some sort of midlife crisis thing?
Sam: No! It -- both were quite innocent, I assure you.
Todd: You can't honestly tell me that fathering another guy's kid with his wife is an innocent gesture. You can't honestly tell me that bedding Nora was an unselfish act. You can't honestly tell me that bedding Blair was an unselfish act. Was this a regression to adolescence thing? You had to let your hormones lead you wherever they took you? That's pretty self- centered, Sam!
Sam: It wasn't a midlife crisis of any sort at all! It wasn't a regression to adolescence thing, either.
Todd: Ok, a crisis of old age, then.
Sam: Todd! I am not old.
Todd: You're too old for Blair.
Sam: Why do you care?
Todd: It's like Dorian and my nephew Joey. Except she's basically sort of his grandmother.
Sam: I've heard about that.
Todd: Well, it's stupid, a total mismatch. It's also a huge betrayal by a father of a son, but you didn't think of that angle, either.
Sam: You -- ?? This wasn't a betrayal, Todd!
Todd: Maybe not to you, but it was to me!
Sam: You feel I betrayed you in dating Blair?
Todd: You took off at the end of the hostage disaster while Kevin ran off after me in the woods with a loaded gun, just so you could go screw my ex-wife! Anyone else might think of that as a betrayal.
Sam: You're not like anyone else.
Todd: I am in this, surprisingly.
Sam: Is this part of why you're having so much trouble trusting me?
Todd: Good guess, Sam.
Sam: Oh, my god. Oh my -- I'm sorry, Todd. I didn't think you knew about that, with everything going on then. I didn't think you needed me then. I failed you yet again when you needed me.
Todd: Yeah, Sam. And you call me a selfish SOB.
Sam: You are a selfish SOB.
Todd: Think what you will. You just took off and let me fend for myself then. What a great Dad you were! You failed me with that, and you failed me by going off with Blair. And I think the next time you and I were together, we were in that cabana and you were trying to make me talk about what Peter did to me that night. No wonder I felt helpless and even more scared. No wonder I felt so hopeless. I was already strung out. I wanted the cops to just shoot me then, remember? Did it ever once occur to you to wonder why? To ask what else was going on inside me to drive me to do what I had been doing until you found me in that cabana?
Sam: And you ended up threatening me, calling me perverted......
Todd: Was I really wrong, Sam? You brought up one of the worst nights of my life, stirred up all sorts of demons and memories, and for *what*?! I was already going down so fast I couldn't feel the air rushing past me anymore. But did you notice? Instead of calming me down, you sent me further over the edge with your questions. They could’ve waited, Sam! I needed help.
Sam: (Chastised:) I guess you have a point. Several. The whole time was pretty perverted. Everything was pretty well twisted up. I was an insensitive jerk, and I left my son hanging out for target practice. I really am sorry, Todd. I really am.
Todd: And if you had listened to me earlier maybe you could have helped me avoid some of that stuff. Instead, you were off boffing Blair. And then, later you're making love to Blair in court during my trial, during my testimony! I thought you were there in court to take care of me, that's what you said, but there you were in a shameless show of -- I don't know what to call it, but it was pretty disgusting and perverted -- and you were supposed to be defending me!
Sam: I was defending you!
Todd: You stood there and verbally seduced Blair, courting her in open court! Were you showing off?! Were you trying to stick it to Max? What? When Max tried to speak up, you let him have his say, but you didn’t really pursue it, and he chickened out. Even through my haze of panic and everything, I could see that. If you had, do you know you would probably have had that tape in your hands, right there in court? I got off, but almost without your help, Sam. Almost despite it. I lost my kid. Max was blackmailing me with that tape! Blair and Max together! You were my lawyer, if you wanted out of the case so you could screw Blair, you should have just said so and I'd've gotten another lawyer who didn't have the hots for my ex-wife!
Sam: This really upsets you, doesn't it?
Todd: Why shouldn't it? Sorry doesn't do any good now, Sam. Your whole defense seemed to revolve around that night at the opera when you should have been watching me, but you went after Blair's skirts and left me almost entirely unsupervised, where anything could have happened to me and several bad things did. Where were you?! (Paces again.)
Sam: WHAT?!
Todd: (Turns to Sam:) Oh, so now you care? Now you're interested?
Sam: I never stopped caring!
Todd: Oh, really? Then where did you and Blair go?
Sam: We had a late night picnic in the park.
Todd: You did what?! You were supposed to be supervising me that night, all night, as a condition of my being out of the house in the first place with my wife. You were my guardian, you and Viki, and you were supposed to be there to see I didn’t get in trouble, or wander off.
Sam: You were with your wife! What happened, Todd? What happened at the opera?
Todd: (Casual, but a little icy:) Nothing. Just Max blackmailing me, holding my entire life up for ransom with that damned pink tape of Shorty's. Coming and whispering threats about it in my ear, extortion. Nothing much. Just my life. I almost, *almost* made love to my wife that night when we got back from the opera, except I'd been roped into meeting Max at the Penthouse so he could play more blackmail games with my life. So Rod, who knew more of this than I did then, looked at our watch while he was kissing Tea, and had to stop the proceedings. We didn't get to make love to Tea that night. Everything had been perfect, except for Max. We couldn't let her see Max there, and we almost didn't hussle her out of there in time.
Sam: Why was this such a big thing for you?
Todd: (A little evasive, looking away:) Because....
Sam: Wait a minute.... this would have been the first time?
Todd: (Looking downward:) Since Blair. (Peering through his long eyelashes at Sam:) You gotta problem with that, man?
Sam: No. I'm a little surprised that such a good-looking man as you've become, with such a sensuality and grace about him, and beauty, whose wife thinks he's gorgeous and very attractive, would not have made love to his wife long before then. Especially because you two are so much in love.
Todd: Well, then you don't know me as well as you thought.
Sam: I've been finding that out.
[Matthew makes some noise that the baby monitor carries to the livingroom. There is a pause while they listen to him settle himself and quiet down.]
Sam: Oh. He's ok now, I think.
Todd: You know, as much as I hate Nora, I don't hate Matthew. Nora's his Mom, and she's been ok with him, right?
Sam: Yeah, she's been great with him, he's thriving.
Todd: You wanna keep him thriving?
Sam: (Wary:) Of course.....
Todd: She did really screw up Rachel, though, her becoming a drug addict and a murderer and all.
Sam: She was great with Rachel when she was little, you don't know that side of her. What is this?
Todd: He's not yours, Sam, anymore than I am. Tell Bo he's the father, and let him take Matthew and Nora home. A kid should be with his Mom. With both his parents.
Sam: Why are you taking Bo's side? You know Bo came to me?
Todd: I don't care if Bo came to you, he didn't come to me. We don't talk. I'm taking Matthew's side.
Sam: Why? Are you trying to get back at me?
Todd: I could be.
Sam: You hate me that much?
Todd: I don't wanna see a kid be hurt by lies like this, Sam. I don't really care what any of you think. I don't want on my conscience -- yeah, I actually have one -- that I let a little kid get hurt by the adults around him screwing around with his life and lying to him about the most basic things about who he is.
Sam: Do you see yourself in him?
Todd: (Glaring and scowling at Sam:) What do you think, Sam?
Sam: I think you do. I can do the math, here.
Todd: (Sarcastic:) Well, listen to the penny drop.
Sam: I don't think this will hurt Matthew.
Todd: (Evenly:) I know it will.
Sam: What are you really afraid of for Matthew? That Bo or me, we'll hurt him like you were hurt by Peter?
Todd: No. Not all of it. The lies hurt, Sam, they hurt in ways you don't even know about. Ways you can't see.
Sam: (Thoughtful:) I guess I don't.
Todd: I'm looking out for Matthew, because no one else seems to be.
Sam: I remember an incident at the Community Center where you attacked some guy who was yelling at his son and I had to seperate you from him and make apologies to him for you. You scared Starr.
Todd: I also stopped him yelling at his kid. (Shrugs.) I made it up to Starr.
Sam: You took the kid's side.
Todd: Look, I don't like Bo, and I hated Drew, but Bo seems to be good with little kids. What you and Nora did was very wrong. So don't do it to that kid in there.
Sam: You should talk, pal!
Todd: You're no better, man.
Sam: Since when are you the authority on 'bringing up baby'?
Todd: I had a lousy role model, you know that. I gotta great kid. Starr taught me what to do. One thing my kid taught me was never lie to a kid, like I was lied to or any other way. What you did is a major life-damaging lie.
Sam: Are you jealous of Matthew, because he takes a lot of my time?
Todd: What?! No!
Sam: Why this concern over someone else's kid, who might be the kid of people you don't even like?
Todd: 'Cos the kid's done nothing wrong. Why's he being lied to like this?
Sam: Because someone wanted you to go away and be someone else's problem.
Todd: This isn't about me, it's about that boy in there asleep. (Gesturing towards closed hallway door off livingroom.)
Sam: It's about you, too. Pal, you came to me and cried in my arms for a very long time in this very room not too long ago. You cried hard, Todd, and you let me hold you and rock you in your grief, and cuddle you until you were calm again. I kissed your hair, I kissed your face, I dried your tears, I got you to smile once even, like any good father would do for his son. Don't you get that I love you? I know you need me, and you know it, too.
Todd: (Has been listening closely, but making faces, wincing as Sam speaks.) That's disgusting. You don't have to say it all out loud like that, you know.
Sam: You seem to need to be reminded. No one's going to hear us.
Todd: How do I know Matthew's tape recorder isn't running on record somewhere in the room, catching our every word?
Sam: He's too young to have a tape recorder like Starr's. He's very into chewtoys and rattles right now. You wanted me to be your Dad that day, to walk the floor with you in my arms just like I do Matthew, and I was your Dad for that moment. Is this about your not trusting me still?
Todd: No..... Yes. I still don't trust you.
Sam: You're gonna have to make a decision about whether or not to trust me again sometime. You never know when you'll need me.
Todd: Trust. Right. You think I'm ready for this trust stuff? 'Cos I'm not. I took a big leap into thin air trusting all of you with that nightmare --
Sam: And have any of us given you grief about it?
Todd: (Softening:) No.
Sam: We've all kept it within the family. And that's where it will stay unless you want to discuss it with anyone other than us.
Todd: (Quietly:) What is trust?
Sam: The belief that you can be safe or your confidences can be safe with another person or an institution.
Todd: (Sarcastic:) No wonder I can't trust.
Sam: Do you ever feel safe?
Todd: With Tea. Tea makes me feel not so scared.
Sam: She must work miracles to be able to do that.
Todd: Yeah, ever seen her levitate a truck, no hands?
Sam: Very funny.
Todd: She yells at it. It jumps.
Sam: You must be feeling better.
Todd: Actually, I'm feeling worse. Don't screw Matthew's life up, Sam. Don't.
[Scene ends.]
[Scene: Sun Offices. Evening.]
Blair: Briggs, take a look at what I have so far. I brought over a hardcopy version so you could go over it offline tonight and mark it up.
Briggs: (Groans.) My wife and I have plans for the evening.
Blair: Is this piece to be published or not?
Briggs: I may not get to it until the morning. In fact, I'm locking it in my desk before I leave.
Blair: You wouldn't say this to Todd.
Briggs: No, I wouldn't. (Turns and leaves.)
Blair: (Stares after him in disbelief.)
[Scene ends.]
[Scene: Dr. Boyd's office. Two days later, afternoon.]
Dr. Boyd: How were the past two weeks?
Todd: Rough, but I'm still here.
Dr. Boyd: You’re not ready to discuss it?
Todd: No. I wasn't ready to tell the other guy, either.
Dr. Boyd: My backup?
Todd: Yeah. I'm not talking to a stranger about this stuff.
Dr. Boyd: Well, then we should discuss the tape.
Todd: I'd rather not.
Dr. Boyd: I realize that. I have a transcription, and I've studied the tape pretty thoroughly now. I think it's time to share the tape with your family.
Todd: You mean again.
Dr. Boyd: Well, I guess it would be "again", yes. I have some idea of some of their probable responses now and that they would differ from the way they reacted at your wedding when they heard it. I'm certainly prepared for any reaction you might have to hearing it again.
Todd: That's what I'm worried about. They'll see me react.
Dr. Boyd: What's so bad about that? They've seen you in the throes of dissociative episodes already.
Todd: But this time it'll be me seeing them react and having to put up with their worry and their fussing over me. This time they'll know I know about what's going on, and they'll know that I know they know.
Dr. Boyd: What if you end up needing them to fuss over you in order to help you through this?
Todd: (Bristling:) I don't need anyone's help.
Dr. Boyd: Then, why are you here?
Todd: (Pauses.) Ok. So, I can’t do this all by myself. Is that what you want to hear?
Dr. Boyd: Is it true?
Todd: (A little sullen.) I guess.
Dr. Boyd: I think it is true, but you feel too vulnerable to admit it directly, and that's ok.
Todd: No it's not.
Dr. Boyd: It's quite ok with me, then. Better?
Todd: I guess.
Dr. Boyd: Why are you frightened of going back to jail?
Todd: (Comes back to the present.) I can't take being locked up.
Dr. Boyd: Why?
Todd: I was very badly beaten in prison, you know that.
Dr. Boyd: Any other reasons?
Todd: (Wary at the probe:) That's not good enough?
Dr. Boyd: There could be other factors. I'm trying to get a fuller picture of your prison experiences. Were the beatings worse than what the records indicate? Were you attacked?
Todd: (Frowns at him briefly.) It's all in my records. They put me in Solitary. My Dad used to lock me up sometimes, remember? Locked me in a linen closet once. I thought I was going to die in there. I don't like confinement. In Solitary, I couldn't tell what was real and what was the nightmare, it was all a nightmare.
Dr. Boyd: Is there anything about the past two weeks you can talk to me about just yet? Or that you need to say?
Todd: (Pauses, thinking.) I had this big talk with Sam while you were gone.
Dr. Boyd: Oh? What about?
Todd: He wanted to be my Dad.
Dr. Boyd: Was this new?
Todd: I always knew somehow, but he spelled it out recently and now I know it's always eaten at him that he couldn't save me from Peter and just take me home with him and keep me safe. It wasn't just guilt. I think he feels ashamed and that he failed me, when he mostly didn't.
Dr. Boyd: How does that leave you feeling?
Todd: I don't know. I do know I went to apologize to him for the way we've been treating him, and we ended up talking about my fathers. I got really upset, and he held me a very long time..... until I stopped.... crying.
Dr. Boyd: I'm impressed.
Todd: Why? Because I was weak and I cried?
Dr. Boyd: That you let Sam get so close to you.
Todd: (Quietly:) He's my Dad. He's still a selfish jerk, though.
Dr. Boyd: It sounds like he acted like a very good surrogate Dad in that moment, and that you let him take care of you like a father takes care of a son who's in pain.
Todd: (Rolls eyes, looks away.) Whatever.
Dr. Boyd: I see once again how much Sam seems to love you, Todd. You're not so unloveable. Even when you're angry at the person loving you.
[Scene ends.]
[Scene: Saybrooke Mansion study/den/livingroom. Afternoon.]
Blair:
RJ: (Whispering:) Ok. Why the secrecy, though?
Blair: (Closes the double doors. Normal voice.) Ok.
RJ: Ok?
Blair: Sit. (She gestures towards couch and sits on the couch next to him.)
RJ: Are you going to tell me or not, Blair?
Blair: Here's the deal: I'm writing a hot expose' on Asa for The Sun, and I
was handed some material that originated from an anonymous source, who in
turn was apparently given tips about Asa's attempt to buy out The Sun. I know
that this is happening because a while back Max approached me for this, with
financing from Asa.
RJ: Ok. Where do I fit in?
Blair: Find out who that anonymous source was.
RJ: Why can't you find it out yourself?
Blair: I haven't had any success with it. You're a detective of sorts,
I figured you'd find it out for me. You have contacts I don't.
RJ: What makes you think I can? It's your article, I'm sure you know more
than you have in your notes about the situation. I'm not exactly invisible.
Blair: What I know is these things: It was delivered to Briggs via forged
email that at least ended up as forged internal Sun email. We've both looked
at the headers. We had Sun geeks look at the headers and there's not much
for them to work with. So we know this is someone who knows Sun internal
email addresses and how to use our email system. What we don't know is who
they are or what their authority or connections are, and we don't know who
their sources are.
RJ: What do they know?
Blair: They laid out Asa's business hierarchy for this buyout, most of the
companies involved are bogus, just paper, and they lead back to Asa.
RJ: How? Directly?
Blair: Do you remember when he was found out to be Jeb Stuart years ago?
RJ: I have vague memories of that. Ok. So I'm looking for links to Jeb
Stuart?
Blair: Yes.
RJ: Then I'll probably find him. Jeb Stuart is known about and if he's
resurfaced recently, my contacts should be able to find him.
Blair: Ok. Because I was drawing a blank.
RJ: Oilman?
Blair: Of course.
RJ: Ok. When do you need this?
Blair: Yesterday.
RJ: I'll get on it. (Rises.)
Blair: (Rises.) I'll see you out.
Dorian: (Opening the door and walking in:) Oh! (Peers between Blair and RJ
and back to Blair.) Why didn't you tell me RJ was here?
RJ: This was a just a quick social call, Dorian. I'm between things right
now and it's time to jump and run. Sorry to run out on you.
Dorian: (Boggled.) Ok..... Will I see you later, RJ?
RJ: Probably. (Goes to the front door.)
Blair: (Following RJ to the front door, whispering:) Not a word to anyone
until this thing hits the stands. Do you want credit as a source?
RJ: (Whispering:) No, thank you. I'd prefer to remain anonymous. (Grins
broadly at her.)
Blair: (Look of surprise as RJ leaves the house. Quietly to herself.) Not
you. How would you know this stuff, RJ? (Closes front door, and turns
around to go into the study and to greet Dorian. She affects an innocent
expression.)
[Scene ends.]
TO BE CONTINUED
