Episode 49, originally published 23-Jun-97

Dark Visions

At the Tack Estate, Cole's favorite editor Jerri is visiting. She sits at the laptop and is presumably rummaging his latest manuscript. There are little wads of paper all over the floor. "This looks pretty interesting--can I get a hardcopy to take to my hotel room to read in detail?" she asks. "Well,..." Cole hesitates--"I don't actually have a printer." Jerri looks perplexed. "You don't? What are all these balled up pages here?" She opens one to see. It's blank. She opens another. "Cole, these pages are all blank." He blushes. "Yeah, well, it took me a long time to get used to working on a computer--one of the things I missed the most was wadding up the paper and flinging it across the room when I start over." "So you just wad up a blank piece of paper when you start over?" Cole nods. "That's really weird, Cole," she says. "Well, you know us writers, Jerr--we're always just a page short of a full pad--and now you know why. But I can give you a disk with the story on it and you can review it online--how about that?" "Fair enough," she says.

Later, still at the Tack Estate, Cole is working away on his book and Victoria comes home. "Hey, Vikki," he says cheerfully. "You're in a good mood," Victoria says. "Yes, I guess I am--Jerri was here a while ago and she seemed very enthused about my new book." "Oh, yeah--and did she show you just HOW enthused?" Victoria snipes. Cole gives her an irritated stare. "Vikki..." She giggles. "Oh, Cole, I was just kidding--that was all a long time ago and I'm a different person now, remember?" Cole doesn't look convinced, but shrugs acceptance. "So did she come with a little editor in tow?" "No, she didn't." There is a pause. "Well? Did you ask?" "Yes, I asked. She miscarried." "Oh, I'm so sorry for her--it is just HER I should be sorry for, right?" Cole looks disgruntled again but decides not to give in this time. "As far as I know..." he says. "As far as you know? That's not very reassuring." Cole seems happy with the ambiguity. "It's about all I'm of a mind to reassure you at the moment--you said you were going to let it drop."

"Why are you home, anyway?" Cole asks Victoria. "Oh, I just got tired and wasn't feeling well--bad headache. I decided to come sleep it off. That won't bother you will it? I'll just make a little place amidst these wads of paper..." "And I have to promise not to throw any at that area? I don't know... Maybe I'll go up to the main house for a while." "Suit yourself. But you'll be missing out," she says, stripping down to the slinky underwear that was barely hidden by the micro-mini-skirt she'd worn to work. "I'll risk it," Cole says. He kisses her on the forehead and says "Now, shut off the lights, take some aspirin, and get well, ok?" She nods and he heads up to the Main House.

At the Main House, Nikki is preparing for Joshua's birthday celebration. She has a rack of clothing, presumably delivered from some nearby store. "Hi, Nikki," Cole says. "Well, hello there," she says. "What's going on?" he asks. "Just trying to find something really good to wear for Joshua's birthday tonight--can I try them out on you?" "Oh, I forgot that was tonight--but sure, I'd be glad to help," he says, always eager to ogle someone other than his wife. "Oh, thanks, Cole. It's soooo good to have a maaaan's opinion," she bubbles. She puts on the first outfit and he shakes his head. She goes back for another. Just then, Joshua appears at the window outside the house and peers in to see Nikki enter wearing almost nothing, and shaking her body in a very sexy way in front of Cole. From his angle, he can't see the rack of clothes. She comes right up to him and musses his hair as she says something to Cole that Joshua cannot hear. Joshua is instantly and obviously furious, but declines to enter. Instead, he wanders away.

An indeterminate amount of time has passed since we saw Joshua at the Main House. He approaches the Tack Estate and knocks on the door. Victoria, still virtually nude from her attempt to entice Cole, answers the door. "Joshua," she says, somewhat surprised. "Hello, Victoria," he says, obviously very upset. "Could I come in?" he asks. She can see he's upset and is oblivious to her own state of undress. "Can I offer you some coffee?" she asks. It is conveniently fresh perked. He nods. "Thanks." For want of real furniture, the two sit on the bed each holding a cup of coffee. "You look upset about something. Do you want to talk about it?" Victoria asks. "Not really," Joshua says, "but I'll try anyway." "Ok," she says, and waits. "I was on my way home and I peered in the window and I saw your husband," Joshua says. "Yeah, he's a real workaholic," Victoria says. "Couldn't be away from his book for a minute, so he's up there working while I have a headache." "He wasn't working." "He wasn't? What was he doing?" "He was.. well, they were... he was with Nikki." "Is that so strange?" "She was wearing less than you are... and she was ... jiggling a lot ... for him." Victoria is obviously edgy, remembering back to a time when she and her mother competed for Cole. "Maybe you were confused about what you saw?" she says, grasping at straws. "You want to come look?" Joshua says, not knowing what else to suggest. The two get up and head out the door. Victoria, who doesn't have a place for keys in her skimpy little outfit, leaves the door ajar behind her.

Moments later, we find Joshua and Victoria peeking through the window at the Main House again. As Joshua has explained, Nikki is parading around in a skimpy outfit. Joshua, being a man and not very fashion conscious, is oblivious to the fact that it's a different outfit. "See?" he says. Victoria starts to cry and then just starts running--out--away from the house into the field.

Jerri pulls up at the Tack Estate and is surprised to find no one home. She sits on the bed to wait and doesn't take long to fall asleep. Unconsciously, she pulls the covers around her. Not long after, Cole enters and sees a body asleep in the bed. "Oh, good," he says quietly. "You went to sleep. I better be careful not to wake you," he whispers as he gets undressed and gets into bed without turning on the lights.

Back in the Main House, Nikki is pacing back and forth, confused about why Joshua has not come home. She calls his office, but no answer. Finally, she calls Victor. "Victor?" "Yes, Nikki, what is it? Is everything ok with the children?" "Yes, Victor, everything's fine. It's Joshua--tonight's his birthday and he's supposed to be here, but he hasn't come home." "Well, maybe he got held up at the hospital." "I tried there, but no answer." "All right, well, there's something I have to do first, but I'll stop by the ranch in a little while and make sure things are ok, ahright?" He hangs up.

Beneath the starlit sky, Victoria sits and sobs. "I just don't know what to do. I've done everything to make Cole feel like I'm back on track, and this is how he betrays me?" Joshua wraps his arms around her and nods. "I know just what you mean, Vikki. It's a terrible thing to be rejected." They look deeply into each others' eyes, and the camera mercifully cuts away before we see the inevitable events to follow.

As he crawls into the bed, Cole curls up to the body next to him. Forming his body to it and holding her all the way around, he immediately realizes it is not his wife's. At that moment, Jerri wakes up and feels the arms around her. Realizing Cole's error, she holds him to her, hoping he'll be confused. "Wow, I don't know who that is, but it's NOT Victoria," Cole says. "Shhhh," comes the reply as Jerri rolls over. "Jerri?" he asks. She giggles. "I was very excited by what I'd read--I stopped by to see if there were more pages. I guess I fell asleep." "Jerri, I--" "Cole, I can TELL you're happy it's me. You're not in a position to lie to me like you sometimes are. Maybe we could talk about the book in a little while?" "Uh,... " Cole says, embarrassed. "Jerri--I DO like you, but I am a married man, and--where's my wife, anyway?" "I don't know--she wasn't here when I got here--the door was open." He gets up and gets dressed again. "I wonder where she could have gone." "Maybe I shouldn't have come..." Jerri says. Cole darts a quick look in her direction. "To your house, I mean." "Oh, right--um, I'm going to look around for Victoria. Can I find you tomorrow, Jerri?" "Sure, Cole," she says, feeling slightly rejected. "Tomorrow..."

"Vikki!!" Cole shouts. "Vikki!!" Nick and Sharon come running out of their house, and Nikki and Miguel out of the Main House. "Cole?" Nikki says. "What's the matter?" "I'm looking for Vikki--her car is here, but she's wandered off. She had a headache, and..." Miguel runs back into the house and emerges with a trayful of flashlights which he carries around to everyone. Then they go wandering off in various directions, shouting "Vikki!"

Cole and Nikki are walking together as they come across a hill. Cole's flashlight shines down the hill to where Joshua and Victoria are in an awkward position. Victoria's knees are in the air, and Joshua is hidden behind them. "Vikki?" Cole says, shocked. "Joshua?" Nikki says, as her spotlight falls on them. The two searchers approach them, as Joshua straightens his clothing. "What are you doing!?" Cole says to Vikki. "No worse than what you were doing, I'm sure," Victoria says. Cole can't figure out how Victoria could have known about the events with Jerri. "How could you know about that?" he says. "Cut the act, Cole, I saw the whole thing." "And so you came out here to..." Victoria feigns indignance. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Cole, just because you're a sleaze you shouldn't think I am, too--I suddenly worried I might be going to have your child, so I asked the good doctor here to give me an emergency gynecological exam..."

Back at Newman enterprises, Victor turns on his computer. "Well now, let's see if she is on here tonight," he says.

 Newman Enterprises In-House Chat System.  There is one other user connected.
 Your Name: Victor
 Please type your password: NO
 Accepted.

Victor smiles. "Well, that was a lot less hassle than the last time I was here. Someone musta finally gotten the damned thing fixed."

 Dark_Lady: I'm glad you came back.
 * I am here every day.
 Dark_Lady: Not online.  You're new here.  And you wanted me.
 * I did?
 Dark_Lady: You aren't good at expressing your emotions, are you?
 * What gives you that idea?
 Dark_Lady: You ask questions to avoid going on record.
 *

There's a pause.

 Dark_Lady: I'm right.  You don't know what to say.
 * What would you like me to say?
 Dark_Lady: Say you're intrigued by me.
 * Am I?
 Dark_Lady: I have to go.
 * All right, I'm intrigued by you.
 Dark_Lady: Tell me you thought about me all day.
 * Why would I say something like that?
 Dark_Lady: Because it's true.
 * Who says it's true?
 Dark_Lady: I say.
 * And that makes it so?
 Dark_Lady: You like control, don't you?
 * What's your point?
 Dark_Lady: You don't have any control here.
 * Of course I have control.
 Dark_Lady: Bye.
 * Wait.

There is a long pause.

 Dark_Lady: Tell me you thought about me all day.
 * I don't understand.
 Dark_Lady: Tell me or you'll never see me again.
 * I did think about you.
 Dark_Lady: There now.  A little loss of control feels good, doesn't it?

There is a long pause.

 Dark_Lady: People say you never talk.  But you will with me.
 * I will?
 Dark_Lady: You will or you won't get me.  And you want me, don't you.

There's a knock at the door aand Nikki pokes her head in. "Is this an ok time?" she asks. "Just a minute while I finish something..." he says.

 * I must go.
 Dark_Lady: Tell me you want me.
 * Or what?
 Dark_Lady: Or your screen will be dark tomorrow.

He types slowly:

 * I want

But he stops typing as Nikki starts to walk around behind his desk. He snaps off the computer before she can see. "You're SUCH a workaholic," she says. "And I don't need that tonight." "And what is it that you do need?" Victor asks. "A friend," she says. "A very good friend..." He stands to hug her, as she bursts into tears. The episode closes with just a kiss...

That's all for this episode. Hope you learned something. Don't miss Episode 50!
If you missed any older episodes, see the index.

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