Episode 112, originally published 09-Oct-98

Carnage Under Fire

In Norfolk, Jim Bradley (Carl Williams) is eating a quick breakfast while Ruth sits at the table sipping on some coffee and grumbling at him. "Do you really have to do this?" she asks. "Do what? Make a living?" "No, of course not. Make a living THIS WAY." "Protecting others? What's wrong with that." "Jim, you're carrying a gun. Are you crazy? You don't know what kind of people might be out there. You could get hurt." "Ruthie, I'll be fine. Really. This is just something I feel I must do. Trust me, I'll be ok."

Away on his trip, Nick has been working furiously. He looks very tired. "Nick, you've got to sleep. You'll never be able to function," Grace warns. "Are you kidding?" he says. "I'm actually thinking MORE clearly the less sleep I've had. It's like my mind is free associating and I'm having lots of GREAT ideas." Grace worries about this. "Like what?" "It's a surprise." "A surprise? Nick, you're responsible for solving the Y2K problem for Newman Enterprises. The last thing anyone wants is a surprise." "Trust me, ok? You usually do all my thinking for me. This time it's my turn to show I can carry my own bacon around here." "Nick, you bring home bacon. You carry weight." "Yeah, well, whatever. Anyway, trust me, Grace. This is gonna knock your socks off." "Nick, you don't need to knock my socks off. I'll gladly remove them for you any time. And the rest of my clothing, too." Nick shakes his head. "You're just saying that because I'm the boss's son. I don't want any handouts. I want to earn my keep. So come to my talk, and all will be revealed." She sighs. "That's what I'm afraid of," she says to the camera.

"Christine, you can't seriously be considering being Victor's counsel," Michael says. "Just look at what he did to me." "What exactly DID he do to you?" Cricket asks. "Well, he kidnapped me. And left me bound and gagged for days." "That's a very serious charge," she says. "It's not a charge," Michael replies. "I have no evidence. But it's true nonetheless. And I think if you search your heart, you'll know it's so." Cricket thinks for a moment and then stutters, "Michael, I--" He raises a hand gently to stop her. "Look, I'm saying it to you as a friend. I know you probably don't think of me that way, but I can't control that. You don't have to listen to me. I've said what I came to say. Now you can do, or not do, what you feel is right."

Victor is in his office when Cricket arrives. "Ah, Christine, are you ready to get down to business on the case?" "Actually, Victor, the reason I came is--I can't work for you." "But why? You just started. And have I not met all of your demands?" "Maybe. I don't know. But let's just say--I can't." "It's that shyster Baldwin, isn't it. He's got some hold over you." "No, Victor. It's not that. I just shouldn't have joined this team. And now I'm correcting that. Please, if you know what's good for you, get John Silva back before he's too busy with other cases and you've got to go for someone less qualified." She turns and walks out.

Victor sits staring at his door trying to think of something he can buy to make Christine change her mind. Finally it comes to him. Suddenly he picks up his phone and says, "Connie, get me Vinnie. I have a job for him... Just tell him I need some information, ahright? Thanks, Connie." He hangs up.

Vinnie enters Victor's office a short while later. "Vic, my man, speak to me, V to V. What can I do for ya, guy?" Victor raises an eyebrow and the unorthodox way he's spoken to, but retains his cool. "I need some information." "What kind of information?" "I'm not sure. Dirt of some kind. I need a hold on a woman named Christine Williams. Let's just say I'm involved in a personnel matter, and it's necessary for me to show her who's boss." Vinnie forms his fingers into a gun shape and uses his thumb to pretend-fire at Victor. "Gotcha. That all?" "Only this: I need the information yesterday." "I'm on it," Vinnie says, almost dancing out.

Michael is with Phyllis at their home. He is still very disheveled from his kidnapping. He paces anxiously back and forth. "I can't believe Victor did this to me," he grumbles. "What makes you think Victor did it?" she asks. "Are you kidding? It was classic Victor Newman. Who else could it be?" "Me," she says. "You?" "Yes, me." "Phyllis, don't play games with me. This is serious." "You're darned right it's serious Michael, and I'm glad you finally understand that. I hired those thugs, not Victor. And you're lucky I told them not to rough you up--this time. But if I see you flirting with one more person, I promise you it's not going to be nearly as fun the next time."

At the Norfolk airport, Carl has spotted a suspicious character in the lobby and follows him quietly to a door marked "No Admittance". The man, who is plainly not airport staff, slides a card through a sensor that opens the door and he disappears out of sight. Carl waves his card through the same door and continues his tail until he can see the man meet another man and whisper something. Carl stays behind some boxes watching until the two men split up and Carl again follows the first man. A moment later, though, the other man is touching his gun to Carl's head and saying, "That'll be just about enough. Now drop it, or you'll be history."

In Victor's office, Victor is sitting at his desk going through "reports" when Vinnie enters. "Well, that was fast." "Well, you said you needed it yesterday. You want my report or what?" "Did you find something?" "You bet I found something. The broad's got a little secret." Victor perks up. "A secret?" "You bet. A dark secret, I'd say. She's careful not to let her old man onto it." "Well, well. Tell me more." "It's at her office... there's an old closet. No one goes there--but her. She keeps it locked, but, of course, that's no problem for my expert talents, if you know what I mean. So I go in, and what do I find? She has a fetish for older men." Victor smiles proudly. "She does, eh?" He smiles thoughtfully. "You better believe it. There were photos plastered on every wall. And they were not photos of her husband, ya know. It was downright weird. But what do I know? I'd guess it was her stepfather." "Stepfather? She doesn't have a stepfather. Just a stepmother." "Well, maybe the babe's into necrophelia, too. I can't really say. But they're marked as a Carl Williams, and that's her husband's father. I didn't get a chance to find any old photos of him, so can't be sure. But the age is right. I'd say this woman has a serious Oedipal complex, if you know what I mean." Victor smiles. "I do, and I thank you. I'm sure this new information is just what I need to get Mrs. Williams back on my team."

Back in Norfolk again, Jim/Carl is now with several people who are presumably some organized gang. It's very noisy with the conveyor belts taking luggage to and from planes. Nearby we see a pile of goodies that might have been taken from luggage. "I say we waste him," says one of the guys, speaking standard organized crime jargon. "What if he's not working alone?" says another, much older man. Then to Carl, he says, "Are you working alone?" "No," Carl lies. "The guy's lyin'," says a third man. "Let's do him," says the first man. "Wait!" comes a woman's voice from off to one side. "This has gone on long enough. You have to let him go."

Michael bursts angrily into Diane's apartment, but before he can explain his problems with Phyllis, Diane is hitting him with her latest saga. "Oh, Michael, thank God you're here! Michael, I need help. That man, he--" "Alright, what's he done this time?" Michael asks with a resolute sigh. "He raped me." "Raped?" "Yes, raped. You know, jumped me. Took me forcibly. Against my will." "Yes, I know the drill, actually," Michael says. "But how can this be? You're not even supposed to be talking to him." "He moved back in, Michael. He told me that since he was my husband, I had to have sex with him. When I told him no, he--" She casts her eyes downward.

At the Norfolk airport, the guys who were about to do in Jim/Carl are looking to see who's stopping them. Ruth walks up. "Ruthie, no!" Carl says, recognizing her and worrying for her safety. The guys start to aim their weapons, but Carl grabs a pistol from one of them and shoots the other one's gun away. Ruth screams. No one else has a gun handy, so they put their hands up. "It's ok, Ruth," Carl says reassuringly. But she isn't reassured. "No, it's not ok. It will never be ok." "What are you talking about?" Carl says. "They can't hurt you any more." She kneels at the man who lies dead on the floor, then looks up at Carl. "You killed my father," she explains. Carl is confused. "Your father?" "Yes, my father. I was in no danger just now. He would never have allowed harm to come to me. You maybe--he's never liked you--not since that day he left you for dead and I rescued you--but me, no. He wouldn't have turned against me." "I killed him to protect you." "Then you killed him for nothing. I was already protected. Maybe too protected. All my life I've been protected--men running around waving guns everywhere. And look what it gets me. I tried to get you not to do it, but you wouldn't listen." She shakes her head sadly. "So you know about my past? Why didn't you tell me." "That you had been a police chief on the verge of nailing my father? I don't think that would have gone over very well. Some family secrets are best left buried..."

Michael goes to the phone. "What are you doing?" Diane asks. "Calling the police," Michael says. "I wouldn't waste your time," comes Victor's voice from the stairs. "Victor," Diane says. Michael stops dialing and looks up. "If you report it, no one will believe you," Victor says with a smug smile. "And why not?" Michael asks. "Because she went on national television and said her fondest wish was to have me back. No court in the nation is going to find a juror who thinks fulfilling this woman's `fondest dream' is a criminal offense." "But it wasn't my fondest dream to be raped." "I didn't rape you, my dear. It was voluntary. I had to fight YOU off," he says, mocking her. "Michael!" she says in a `rescue me' tone. Michael shrugs. "He's right, you know. We could report it, but it would be hard to make the case." "Well, what am I supposed to do? I'm not staying here." "Come with me," he says, leading her out of the apartment.

As Michael and Diane disappear down the hall, Phyllis comes out from behind a plant just outside the apartment door. She shakes her head and whispers for our benefit, "You just can't stay away from this one, can you, Michael? Well, you'd better be ready for me to defend my turf." Just then, Victor comes out. "Well, now, you're Phyllis Romalotti, aren't you?" he asks. "And you are?" "Victor Newman," he says. "Oh!" she says, delighted, extending her hand to be shaken. He doesn't take it, and she leaves her hand out. "You seem to have had some sort of disagreement with that Shyster lawyer of yours." "Disagreement?" Phyllis laughs. "That's an understatement. Michael and I seem to have declared war." Victor brightens. "Really? Well, as they say, the enemy of the shyster enemy is my friend. If I can be of service in your crusade to get even with that shyster lawyer, don't hesitate to call me," he urges. "Thank you," she says. "Thank you very much. I may just do that," she says with a twinkle in her eye.

The scene shifts to Nevis, where Michael is with Diane in the large living room of a suite. The porter has just deposited their suitcases and is showing them around. As he does, Michael grabs a phone and says, "Just a sec. I have to make a call." The phone rings at his home and Phyllis answers after about two rings. Sparing no smalltalk, she barks, "Michael, this had better be good." "I'm away on business." "Oh?" she says. "What kind of business? Funny or monkey?" "Kind of a combination. Money." "I don't think so, Michael. Tell me Diane is not with you." "No, she's here." "At her apartment?" "Uh, no, actually. We're out." "Out." "Out... of town." "How far out of town?" "Pretty far out of town, actually. But don't worry. I'll be home soon." "Michael, WHERE are you?" "Look, I have to go. I'll be in touch soon. Give my love to Victor if he calls," he says, and hangs up. Phyllis frowns, but fortunately she remembers she has caller-id on the box and she checks that. It reveals the originating phone number, which she calls. Cut away momentarily to the front desk of the hotel, where the attendant answers, then cut back to Phyllis who says, "Uh, where AM I calling?"

At Victor's apartment, there is a knock at the door. He opens it and is surprised to find Phyllis, carrying a small traveling bag. He considers her for a moment. "You moving in?" he asks. She laughs. "That's an intriguing thought," she said. "And no doubt it's suddenly become lonelier around here all of a sudden." He is surprised she knows. "How did you--" "Never mind. I know. And remember your offer of assistance? If you meant what you said, I'm here to collect. I need to get to the island of Nevis... immediately." He picks up his phone and punches a single button. "Wally? Gas up the jet. We'll be leaving as soon as I arrive." He hangs up. "We?" Victor nods. "You don't expect me to send you off unescorted while that shyster lawyer is running free now, do you? You might be hurt." "I'm already hurt," Phyllis says. "Now all I'm looking for is to get even..."

In Nevis, it's later. Diane is alone in her room when she gets a phone call. "Mrs. Newman? This is the front desk," says the voice at the other end. "Yes?" "There's a package here for you. We need you to come sign for it." She looks puzzled for a moment but then shrugs and heads out the door. A few moments later, the door opens and Phyllis slips in. She surveys the situation quickly, peeking in the various rooms, and making her plan. She starts to remove her blouse and the camera cuts to the floor to show it falling to the floor. "It doesn't matter that it's not hers," she chuckles. "Men never notice what a woman is wearing anyway." The camera follows her feet as she walks toward the bedroom and drops her skirt just outside the door. Finally, we see her feet approach the bed. Panties and a bra fall to the floor, and the covers are pulled back as the light clicks off. A small ray of light shines through the still-open door onto the bed showing that all we can see is that someone is in the bed with the covers pulled up.

Outside, in the living room, Michael enters. "Diane?" he asks. There is no answer. He sees the trail of clothing leading to the bed and follows it curiously. "Diane?" he asks. "Mmmmmmmm...?" comes a muffled voice. "Was that an invitation?" he asks. "Mmmmmmm." comes the reply. We see him getting undressed and then he slips under the covers. Suddenly he jumps up in bed. "Phyllis?" he asks, surprised. "Of course it's me, Michael. Surely you wouldn't even THINK of getting into bed with another woman after that little warning I gave you before, right?" "But how did you know I was here?" "How?" she asks. "Michael, I have eyes everywhere. So you'd damned well better behave." "Phyllis, look, I can explain." "Explain? I somehow doubt that. I may be willing to let you do some sort of penance, but I really doubt you can explain this one off." "What's to explain off? I'm here in bed with you. No different than ever." "Uh, no," she says firmly. "Nice try, though. Perhaps you're mistaking me for little miss brainless-brunette. She might buy a line like that. Now up, and out of this room. We're not going to have this discussion here in some other woman's bed. We're going to OUR room." The two get up and dress hurriedly. Michael looks annoyed. As they start to leave, Phyllis says, "Just a minute. I forgot something." She goes back into the bedroom for a moment, leaving him to wonder. A moment later, she emerges. "All right. We can go." And they do. Their cottage is apparently just next door, and they are soon inside.

It isn't long before Michael and Phyllis are again arguing over what he is doing there with Diane. "Just TRY to explain your way out of this one, Michael. Just try." "Well, I--" But he is interrupted by a loud scream. Michael looks around worried, but Phyllis seems unsurprised. "Right on time," she says under her breath. "Phyllis, what did you--" She stops him. "Don't get distracted, Michael. Your little fling can take care of herself. Now, you were about to tell me what you were doing here. And why you were getting into Diane's bed."

The big moment has arrived. Nick's presentation to the company at the big conference. He stands up at the podium and says, "Hi. You may not know me. No reason you should. I'm the boss's son, but I like to keep that a secret 'cuz I don't want you to like me just for that. I want you to respect my work, too. Just like I respect this beautiful partner of mine for her work, you know. Well, not just for her work, but you know. We're not supposed to talk about the other part. Anyway, let's not talk about any of that because today we're here to talk about that Y2K thing. And I want this to be a really two-way kind of interchange, so you ask questions and I'll ask questions, and hopefully we'll all be more informed. So... I guess I'll start by telling you all my great new idea. I mean, it's not my idea--it's well,--like here in this hotel, the elevator doesn't have a 13th floor, you know? Why is that? Because 13 is bad, right? And what's so bad about the year 2000? Seems pretty much like every other year, but some people say it's bad for some reason. So here's my thought. Let's just skip the whole year. I mean, how can there be a year 2000 bug if there is no year 2000, right? And if there's no bug, we don't have to invest anything in fixing it, right? So there you have it. That's my plan, and it saves us a bundle. Any questions?"

Cassie is in the audience with Sharon watching Nick's presentation. She raises her little hand eagerly. Sharon looks to her and says, "Cassie, this is Nick's big moment. Don't ruin it for him." "But he asked for questions," she insists. Nick points to Cassie. "Yes?" he asks. "Mr. Newman," Cassie says in her best business-like tone, "what about the year 2001?" "I don't understand," Nick says. He blushes. "My wife's daughter," he explains to the assembled crowd. "She's just a kid, so bear with her." Cassie rephrases, "If you get rid of the year 2000, won't you just have the same problem with the year 2001?" He laughs nervously, still not understanding. "Cassie, it's the Year 2000 bug. How can we have it with any other year?" "Well, what about a year 2001 bug?" Nick pauses for a moment to think. "I never heard of such a thing. I don't think there is one." "Only because it happens in the year 2000, which you've gotten rid of. So now it will happen in 2001." "It will?" Nick wonders aloud, still not getting it. Then he says, "Why don't we worry when the time comes? 2001 is a long ways off." "Actually," says Cassie observantly, "if you don't use the year 2000, it's not that far away." Sharon tugs on Cassie. "Ok, Cassie, that's enough. Sit down and let your father answer some easier questions." "But he's making a very serious corporate blunder," Cassie says. "He's allowed to, Sweetie," Sharon explains. "It's his area of expertise."

In Nevis, Michael and Phyllis are still making no progress. There is a knock on the door. It's the hotel manager. "Mrs. Romalotti," the man says. He holds up a dead octopus. "Oh, you found it," she says, taking it from the man. "I knew I left it somewhere around here and couldn't remember where." Michael looks at the octopus and then at Phyllis, completely puzzled. "Family tradition," she says to him cryptically. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to ask you to leave... again," the man says. "I don't think so," she replies. The man nods to some thug-like men who stand behind him and they start to enter to take her, but Victor steps out of nowhere. "You can leave the young woman alone. The man you want is that shyster lawyer with her," he says. "This woman has brought mischief with another guest. She will be removed from the island," the hotel manager says. Victor shakes his head and hands the man a piece of paper. The man reads it and looks to Victor with surprise. "You see?" Victor says. "I own this place now, and I'll say who stays and who goes. And this man goes." He points to Michael. The manager nods to the men and says, "Take him to a room. He will leave on the first shuttle in the morning." As they grab Michael by the arms, Victor says, "He will leave tonight." "But there is no boat," says the manager. "Then he will learn to swim." "But the sharks!" says the manager alarmed. "The sharks won't attack him," Victor mumbles confidently with a sly smile. "It's a professional courtesy, you know."

That's all for this episode. Hope you learned something. Don't miss Episode 113!
If you missed any older episodes, see the index.

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