The morning of the arbitration hearing, I walked into the hospital knowing that everything was about to change. Ali McIntyre was waiting for me, her lawyer Gregory Charmain beside her. She had that smug look on her face, the one that told me she was ready to destroy me. “Ready for your 15 minutes of fame, blondie?
” she sneered. “Soon the whole world will know what a lying, two-faced little slut you really are. ”
I didn’t answer. I couldn’t.
My lawyer, Mickey, had warned me that this case was going to be brutal. Ali was suing me for sexual harassment, claiming that I promised her the head nurse position in exchange for sex. It was a lie, but she had a way of twisting everything. Carrie was there, standing by me like she always did.
I wanted to protect her from this mess, but she insisted on staying. “I want to be here,” she said, and I knew there was no arguing with her. My grandmother Alice and Aunt Maggie were there too, refusing to leave. “We’re family,” Alice said.
“That’s what families are for. ”
I was grateful, but I was also terrified. Ali’s lawyer had a reputation for pulling out all the stops, and I knew that my relationship with Carrie was going to be dragged into this. Mickey had warned me that the law wasn’t on our side.
My whole life was fair game. When we walked into the conference room, the arbitrator, Ben Sherman, was already there. He was a no-nonsense type, the kind of man who didn’t like lawyers and made it clear he was in charge. “I’m judge, jury, and in some cases, executioner,” he said.
Ali’s lawyer, Gregory, started his questioning. He called Rose, the former head nurse, to the stand. She testified that she had recommended Ali for the head nurse position, but that I had never seen the list of candidates. It was a good point, but Ben Sherman wasn’t impressed.
“Whether or not Mike knew Ali’s name was on that list is irrelevant,” he said. “He was the chief of staff. The ultimate decision was his. ”
Then it was Ali’s turn.
She took the stand with a confidence that made my stomach turn. “I never saw the list,” she said, “but I was thrilled and surprised when the candidates were announced and I was one of them. At that point, I believed Mike and I had a commitment, and that he would keep his promise to make me head nurse based on my ability. But, of course, that didn’t happen.
”
She made it sound so simple, so clean. But the truth was far from that. Ali and I had been involved, yes, but it was never about a promise of promotion. It was a mistake, a one-time thing that I regretted.
When I ended it, she didn’t take it well. My lawyer called Dr. Craig Wesley to the stand. Craig was a colleague, and I thought he might help my case.
But when Gregory asked him about my behavior after I broke up with Ali, Craig’s answers were damning. “Did Dr. Horton consciously and deliberately try to get rid of Ms. McIntyre?
” Gregory asked. Craig hesitated. “Yes,” he said. The room went quiet.
I couldn’t believe it. Craig was supposed to be on my side, but he had just confirmed Ali’s story. I had recommended Ali for a position at another hospital, but that was because I thought it would be good for her career, not because I wanted to get rid of her. But the damage was done.
Ben Sherman looked at me with a knowing expression. “It is clear that one of you here is not being honest about what happened on the night in question,” he said. “And before this hearing is over, I’ll find out which one of you it is. ”
I felt the walls closing in.
Ali was winning, and I didn’t know how to stop her. Meanwhile, across town, Victor Kiriakis was dealing with his own problems. His nephew Nicholas had come to see him with news about Vivian, his ex-wife. “Vivian’s death is not as imminent as we thought,” Nicholas said.
Victor wasn’t surprised. “Kate suspected that she was faking it all along,” he said. “So your aunt’s fatal condition was just another of her manipulative tricks? ”
Nicholas insisted it wasn’t a trick.
“Vivian was very ill. She had a severe disorder of the nervous system, but she’s gone into remission now. ”
Victor didn’t believe him. He knew Vivian too well.
She was always scheming, always trying to get revenge on Kate. And now she had filed for divorce from Stefano DiMera, which meant she was after something else. “Vivian doesn’t care a twit about Titan,” Victor said. “All she cares about is getting revenge on Kate.
”
Nicholas tried to convince him otherwise. He had secured financing for Kate to purchase an internet company, and he had spoken to both Kate and Vivian, urging them to bury the hatchet. “Don’t you think it’s time to end this feud for the good of the company? ” he asked.
Victor was skeptical, but he agreed to at least talk to Kate about it. Kate, meanwhile, was in the middle of her own confrontation. Sami Brady had found a letter from Roberto’s sister, and she was convinced that Kate had paid for Roberto’s confession to murdering Franco. “How much did you have to pay his family in exchange for Roberto’s confession?
” Sami demanded. Kate denied it. “I didn’t pay for Roberto’s confession. I paid for his funeral, as it states in the letter.
”
But Sami wasn’t buying it. “I know you were just trying to protect yourself and Lucas,” she said. “I am more convinced than ever that he is the one who really killed Franco. ”
Kate was furious.
“You have everything you want right now,” she said. “Why don’t you try being happy and moving on? ”
“I won’t be happy until I know the truth,” Sami shot back. “I’ll get you and Lucas.
I won’t stop until I do. ”
Across the ocean, Bo Brady was fighting his own battle. Hope was in Paris with Stefano DiMera, and Bo was terrified that Stefano was going to destroy her, just like he had destroyed Princess Gina. Greta, Princess Gina’s daughter, had found a key in a compact that John had given to Gina.
It was a key to a safe deposit box at a bank in Paris. “My mother used to bank at a branch of Mrs. Faversham’s here in Paris,” Greta said. “Maybe she still has a box there.
”
Bo had an idea. “You may not be able to get into that safe deposit box,” he said, “but I know someone who can. ”
He was thinking of Hope. She looked exactly like Princess Gina, so she could get into the box.
But they didn’t want her to know they had the compact or the key, at least not until they figured out what Stefano had planned for her. Bo had a theory. “Last night at Le Roulet, Hope and I ran into a duke and duchess. They’re old acquaintances of Gina’s and DiMera’s, and they just happen to own the last Renet that hasn’t been stolen—’Spring Morning,’ it’s called.
”
“So you think Stefano sent Hope here to steal the painting? ” Greta asked. “That’s a good possibility,” Bo said. “But I don’t give a damn why he sent her here.
I’m going to stop him. No way I’m going to let that man put her in danger again. ”
In Paris, Hope was with Stefano in his house, which had been ransacked. She was playing the part of Princess Gina, pretending to be loyal to him, but she was terrified.
She knew that Stefano was capable of anything. “You are going to finish the job that you and John started years ago, alone,” Stefano said. “And you are going to follow my orders to the letter. Because if you have any thought of betraying me again, suffice it to say I have the means to ensure your total loyalty and complete obedience.
”
Hope felt a chill run down her spine. She knew what he was capable of. She had seen what he had done to Princess Gina, and she was afraid that the same fate awaited her. Back at the hospital, the hearing was coming to a close.
Ben Sherman had heard enough. He looked at me and then at Ali. “I’ll have my decision shortly,” he said. I sat there, waiting, my heart pounding.
I had no idea what was going to happen. All I knew was that my reputation, my career, and my relationship with Carrie were all on the line. And Ali was determined to see me destroyed. As the arbitrator left the room, I looked at Carrie.
She reached out and took my hand. “Whatever happens,” she said, “I’m here for you. ”
I nodded, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that everything was about to fall apart.
