02/05/1999



"Silence set upon Jake's office. Nearly simultaneously, Tad, Liza, Jake and Adrian sat down in chairs, their eyes never straying from the small television set before them. Liza was unable to hold back her emotions as she viewed the tape. A single tear rolled gently down her cheek. When Tad heard Dixie urging Junior to go to him should he ever need anything, Tad instantly realized why Junior had runaway to his house. "She sent him," he said softly. The tape concluded with Dixie's heart-wrenching rendition of "You Are My Sunshine." Tad rose from his chair and walked over to Liza. He gave her a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. He then did the same to Jake before walking out of the room.

A panicked Erica looked to David for help. "This woman's having a heart attack," she cried as David stood idly by. David looked frozen in time, his mind obvious elsewhere. Voices sounded from nearby, causing David to shake lose the cobwebs. Instead of helping the stricken woman, David walked off and simply vanished. Erica screamed for help and fortunately Joe was on his way out of the party. He dropped to the ground next to the woman and checked her vital signs. Moments later, Brooke and Dimitri were filing out of the party and found themselves helping in the rescue. Joe sent Dimitri to his car to get his medical bag. He also was asked to call the paramedics. The paramedics arrived shortly thereafter and Vanessa was rushed to Pine Valley Hospital. Thinking that Erica had hitched a ride with Vanessa, Dimitri offered to take Erica back to her house. Erica smiled graciously, but informed Erica that she'd come alone. Meanwhile, Brooke received a peculiar phone call from Tad. Tad asked his former wife if she'd mind looking after Junior for a few days. Brooke told Tad that she'd have no problem watching Junior for a few days, adding that Jamie would love to spend more time with his best friend. Tad said only that the reason Brooke was needed was because "true love" had called him. Brooke ended the call and told Dimitri that a change in plans required her to make an appearance at Chandler Mansion. Erica chuckled to herself, but neither Dimitri nor Brooke were amused by her antics. Dimitri and Brooke left arm in arm and Erica was not happy in the least. As she stood in the parking lot fuming, David emerged from his hiding place and headed towards his car. Erica was not about to let the doctor walk away without explaining his actions---or lack thereof. "Give me one reason not to report you to the [Pennsylvania] medical board," Erica snapped. David shrugged indifferently and told Erica that she should not worry about why he'd acted the way he had. The woman, he noted callously, had been taken to the hospital and she'd probably make a full recovery. David claimed that he'd only walked away because he heard Joe Martin's voice in the distant. That was not what happened, according to Erica. The voices came after David had left and she'd resorted to screaming for help. David referred to Joe in very unglowing terms, comparing his "come to the rescue" approach to that of Lassie and Rin Tin Tin. Erica argued that David would have been more suited to handle the situation since he is a cardiologist and Vanessa had suffered a heart attack. David condescendingly pointed out that Erica is not a licensed physician and that she had no way of diagnosing Vanessa's condition as a heart attack. "She was in pain and you acted indifferent," yelled Erica. She told David that it was not up to him to decide who lives and who dies. David felt differently. Every day, he said, he does exactly that---the fate of many patients are in his hands. He looked coldly at Erica, a woman he called a "person of great passion," and asked her if there was anyone from her past who she would not lift a finger to help---even in that person's time of need. Erica looked down at the ground and took a deep breath. She nodded her head and admitted that there was one person who had hurt when she was a teenager. The reference was to Richard Fields, that man who had raped her. David warned Erica against judging a person on their appearance alone. "You think you're looking at a person with the face of an angel, but in truth you're looking at the devil sporting a new disguise." Erica noticed that David's hands were shaking uncontrollably. David claimed that he was cold. Erica felt that something else was bothering the doctor. He had, after all, been acting strangely all night. "What did that poor woman do to you?" asked Erica, referring to Vanessa Bennett. "I knew her alright," David said, finally admitting that he had known the woman. "The Vanessa Bennetts of the world make me sick!" With nothing else to be said, David bid Erica good-night and walked away. Erica was stunned by what had taken place. As she turned around, she noticed that Vanessa's purse still lay on the ground. She scurried over to the purse and began rummaging through it.

At the hospital, Vanessa's blood pressure had stabilized, but she was not out of the woods. Joe brought Jake up to speed on the patient's condition. Both found it odd that David hadn't descended upon the scene to reap the glory of saving the woman's life.

Marian and Stuart arrived at Chandler Mansion, but no one else seemed to be around. The two discussed their honeymoon plans. They almost seemed set on going to Paris, even if neither of them spoke much French. The did a little role playing, with Marian as Josephine and Stuart as Napoleon. Marian stood up on a chair (so that Stuart would seem smaller---a la Napoleon). Adam wandered into the room and demanded to know why Marian was standing on his furniture. Marian jumped down from her perch and started to explain, but Adam really wasn't interested in anything she had to say. Adam asked Stuart to join him in his office so that they could talk about Dixie's plan to leave Pine Valley. Adam carefully tried to enlist his brother's help without revealing that Dixie was sick. It wasn't easy and he ended up looking a bit foolish. Marian didn't approve of the way Adam was trying to wheedle her fiancé into his scheme. Adam became angry and implied that Marian should butt out of his business because he was giving her the wedding of her dreams. Stuart and Marian both agreed that they did not want Adam's help it came with strings attached. Adam threw his hands in the air and encouraged the couple to plan their own wedding. He sassed that they'd probably end up having a "tacky, neon elopement."

Junior was unable to sleep and wandered out of his bed for a little late night video gaming. Tad rang the doorbell and Junior put down his control pads long enough to answer the door. Junior was overjoyed to see Tad. Tad sat the boy down and asked him if it would be okay if he "borrowed" Dixie for a few days. Junior thought deeply for a few minutes and decided that it would be okay. His permission came with several stipulations. He asked Tad to make sure that Dixie took her pills every day and made him promise that he would look after Dixie. Junior softly stated that his mother was "quite sick" and that he wanted to make sure that she stayed healthy.

Upstairs, Dixie found it odd that Braden would want to take time away from his duties for Palmer to look after her. Braden claimed that he cared for Dixie and had gotten use to taking care of her---but Dixie knew that something didn't quite fit. She asked Braden if part of his duties was to look after her. Braden did his best to dodge the question, but ultimately he was forced to admit that Palmer had asked him to watch over her. While in the confession mode, Braden also told Dixie that Palmer had asked him to help her forget all about Tad. Dixie shook her head and sighed heavily. She said that she would never get over Tad because he was the love of her life. She was very angry at her uncle, but realized that his behavior was actually quite typical---at least for Palmer. Tad casually waltzed into the room. Actually, swaggered might be a better word. He plopped down on the bed and asked Dixie why she was packing her bags. Dixie told Tad that she was moving back to Pigeon Hollow. She expected to be met with resistance---and was stunned when Tad asked her how the weather was in West Virginia. Dixie pouted and blasted Tad for wanting to talk about the weather. She ordered him---and Braden---to leave the room. Tad nodded and told Braden that he'd follow him out. Braden left the room. Tad walked towards the door, but turned around at the last minute. He grabbed Dixie and hoisted her over his shoulder. He then picked up her suitcase and carried her out of her bedroom.

Back downstairs, Brooke arrived and told Junior that she'd be watching him for a few days. Adam entered the room and asked Brooke why she'd dropped by so late. As Brooke was answering, Marian and Stuart filed into the room and told her how beautiful she looked. Brooke got sidetracked and told the pair that she'd just come from a charity benefit. Dixie protested the way Tad had picked her up even as they were making their way down the main staircase. Marian and Stuart giggled and shouted their encouragement to Tad and Dixie. Brooke also chuckled and Junior had a big smile on his face. Adam was the only one to show concern over what was happening. "What's the meaning of this lunacy?" he quacked. By now, Dixie had accepted that she was going to be taken away. "Say goodnight, Dixie," Tad chirped as he opened the front door. Dixie's eyebrows raised and she muttered, "Goodnight, Dixie." Junior closed the door behind the couple and loud cheers erupted for the possibly reunited couple."

- Soap Central