Hayley caught up to Mateo at the Chandler mansion and apologized for him having to close SOS by himself. Hayley told him that she'd had to run over to the condo to pick up something for the bride. She had a bracelet in her hand to give to Liza for the "something borrowed." Mateo asked Hayley if she was feeling better, and she told him that she'd run into Stuart, and he'd helped her realize something about her mother that had completely changed the way she felt.
Mateo asked Hayley where she had seen Stuart, and she told him it had been at the Pine Cone Motel. She told Mateo that all of Arlene's stuff was still there. Hayley told Mateo that Stuart was keeping her room available because he thought she would return. Mateo said that was crazy. Hayley told Mateo that she felt Arlene was still alive in spirit only.
Hayley showed Mateo a necklace that she had given to Arlene when she had been a little kid to remind her mother of her. Hayley said that she could use the necklace to remind her of her mother. Mateo asked if that was what she really wanted. Hayley said that she finally had hope. Stuart had told her that the best of Arlene was in Hayley, and Hayley could go on with her life and try to be the best person she could possibly be. Mateo hugged her and told her that she already was the best.
Meanwhile, in the mansion, Marian was getting the room prepared for the wedding guests, and she had Winifred waving a branch of burning sage to put that scent into the room. Liza descended the stairs, smelled the incense, and asked her mother what she was doing. Marian's psychic, Frederick, told her that it was an old Native American ritual that was supposed to get rid of all of Arlene's bad vibrations. Liza told her mother that she could not get married the way she felt. Liza said that she felt she would be celebrating Arlene's death.
Liza wanted to cancel the wedding, but Marian tried to change her mind. She started to tell Liza about all the bad things that Arlene had done to her. Liza asked her mother if they could really go through with the wedding and live with themselves afterwards. Marian said that Liza couldn't cancel the wedding.
Hayley and Mateo entered the room, telling Liza that they could never get Arlene back. Hayley told Liza to marry Adam and give Colby the family that she had always wanted because then she could find some peace. Hayley told Liza that she had begun to find peace and handed Liza her charm bracelet in the hopes that Liza would wear it as her "something borrowed." Liza said that she didn't know if she could go through with the wedding.
Adam walked into the room with the judge, telling him that nothing was going to stop the wedding "this time." He said that the marriage license was valid, and there would be no unscheduled interruptions. Hayley went to her dad and told him that if he didn't want any interruptions, he'd better speak to his bride first. Hayley went to take care of Colby, and Adam had Marian take the judge into the study for some brandy.
Since they were alone, Liza told Adam that she could not play the "happy bride," and she was sorry. Adam told her that she was right. He said that their love would not be defeated by a dead person. Adam told Liza that together, they could conquer anything in the world. Adam said that nothing would ever defeat them if they faced it together, and he begged her to marry him. She agreed, and they hugged.
Laura and Bianca were at school, talking, when Laura asked if Bianca had been having a hard time. Bianca said that she was getting a lot of stares. Junior walked up to them and told Bianca that he'd heard what she had done at the Crystal Ball, and Bianca told Junior that all she'd done had been to tell the truth. Junior told her that if anyone gave her a hard time, she should let him know because he would use them for hockey practice. Bianca told Laura and Junior that everything was "pretty cool" as long as she didn't go home.
Junior said that he had to leave because his dad was getting married to Liza that day. Bianca said it was really weird to realize that all of their mothers had been married to Junior's dad. Laura said, "And all the parents think we are weird?"
Junior told Bianca that Donald Steele was heading down the hallway with his camera. Donald walked up to Bianca and asked her if her mother had made her lie about being gay. Bianca told him to "shut up." He wanted to know what it was like to "hang out" with the most famous lesbian daughter since Chastity. A lot of Bianca's schoolmates were gathering around Bianca, and Donald said that he was going to take a picture of all her gay friends then he snapped the picture.
Everyone defended Bianca. They grabbed Donald and threw him into a locker. Junior grabbed Donald's camera to get the film. Bianca just stood back with a smile on her face because everyone was helping her. A teacher stepped out of a classroom and told Donald that he had five minutes to get off the premises. He reminded her about freedom of speech, but she reminded him about trespassing and harassment. He left the school.
Miss Singer, the teacher, told Bianca that if Bianca ever needed to talk, she would be there for her. Bianca thanked everyone for sticking up for her. They all told her that Donald had also been trashing them. A couple of Bianca's classmates told her not to sweat "this gay thing."
After the others walked away, Bianca asked Laura what had just happened. Laura told Bianca that people were dealing with it, and it would not shock everyone. Laura insisted that Erica loved Bianca -- she just didn't know how to deal with it yet. Bianca said that she was a disappointment to her mother. She said that the only conversations they'd had since Bianca had disclosed that she was gay had been about "how she could fix" her.
Erica was on the phone at her office and insisted to the person on the other end that the campaign was not targeted for gay women. While she was on the phone, Dimitri entered, and he told Erica that he was in the area with the FBI and police, trying to get a handle on Alex's whereabouts. Erica again thanked Dimitri for the other night when he'd talked to her after the Crystal Ball. She told him that she would not have survived without him. He asked her how it had been going, and Erica told him that the whole world had nothing else to do but devour trash about Bianca.
Dimitri asked Erica how Bianca was that day, and she told him that she assumed Bianca was okay because she'd left home before Bianca had awoken. Dimitri asked Erica why she didn't take a few moments to be with Bianca after what Donald Steele had put her through. Erica told Dimitri that she had enough damage control to do at work. Dimitri asked Erica when her company started being more important than her daughter. Erica told him that the company wasn't.
Dimitri asked Erica if she was avoiding Bianca. Erica just stared at Dimitri, speechless. Erica told Dimitri that she'd tried to comfort Bianca, and if Bianca had just kept quiet, everything would have been okay. Erica told Dimitri that she had tried everything with Bianca, and Bianca had even refused to see the therapist that Erica had recommended, even though she had been able to tell Donald Steele everything. Erica told Dimitri that she didn't know how to handle "defiance."
Erica then mentioned to Dimitri that the "Teens Against Addiction" benefit was a couple of weeks away, and she was not ready to face the press alone. She asked if Dimitri would be her escort, and he agreed unless something happened with Alex, because that was his priority. Dimitri then asked Erica to do him a favor. He told her to get her coat, and they left the building.
Erica and Dimitri headed for Bianca's school and found her in the hallway. Erica called Bianca's name, and Bianca just looked at her. Bianca asked what her mother was doing at the school, and Erica replied that it hadn't been her idea. Dimitri told Bianca to be gentle with her mom and to listen to her.
Erica told Bianca that they needed to talk about the previous night, and Bianca agreed. Erica said that she was waiting, and Bianca asked what she was waiting for. Erica told Bianca that she was waiting for an apology. Bianca asked what kind of an apology she was waiting for. Erica replied that it was for her behavior. She asked why Bianca couldn't have just kept quiet about being gay.
Just then, Shannon and her boyfriend walked up to Erica. Shannon told Erica that she had purchased some of Erica's perfume and loved it. It made her feel very feminine. Erica said that Shannon was what Enchantment was looking for and asked if she would like to be the new Miss Enchantment, since Bianca felt it was not for her. Shannon was very appreciative, and she and Erica walked away. Bianca called to her mother, and Erica just said, "We'll talk later."
Leslie Coulson was in Tad and Dixie's bedroom, going through his closet, smelling his clothes and smelling the bottle of cologne on the table. She took one of his ties off the rack and was rubbing it across her face when she heard a noise. It was Dixie entering the room. Dixie was upset and threw her coat on the ground. Leslie hid in the closet. Dixie went to the closet and opened the door.
Just then, Tad called Dixie from downstairs. She slammed the closet door and waited for Tad to enter the room. When he walked in, she asked him if he'd had a nice lunch. Tad told Dixie that he'd had a good lunch. Tad asked Dixie what was wrong. Dixie asked him who he'd had lunch with. Tad asked if Dixie thought he was lying.
Dixie then asked Tad if he'd had lunch with Leslie Coulson, and he replied, "Yes." She asked him why he was lying to her and what his excuse was "this time." He told Dixie that he'd had to make sure that he could get rid of Leslie. Tad assured Dixie that Leslie Coulson was out of their lives. He gave her his word that Leslie Coulson was out of their lives for good.
Dixie asked Tad what made him think Leslie was out of their lives for good, and Tad replied that Leslie had accepted a job in Singapore that afternoon. He said that Liza had good connections. Dixie was surprised that Liza knew about them, and Tad told Dixie that Liza had done them a huge favor. Dixie wanted to know how soon Leslie would be leaving, and Tad told her right away. Dixie said he hadn't done her a favor by keeping things away from her. He apologized and said that he had been wrong. He wanted to know if they could look at the bright side of things.
Tad told Dixie that he felt "lucky" that afternoon, and that was why he was home early. He told Dixie that she was perfection. Dixie asked if Tad would like to take a long, hot shower. When they left to take their shower, Leslie stepped out of the closet and sprayed some of Dixie's cologne on herself then walked out the bedroom door. Just then, Dixie emerged from the shower with a towel wrapped around her, calling Junior's name. She apparently thought she'd heard him in the room.
When Dixie and Tad got out of the shower, they did the bedroom scene. Tad asked Dixie how he could show her that he loved her. She told him that he had jumped out of a plane and donned a chicken suit, but her favorite was when he held her hand at night. He leaned over to kiss her, and the hairs on his chin scratched Dixie. Tad told Dixie that he was going to shave because he didn't want the kids to think they'd been fighting.
While Tad was gone, his cell phone rang, and Dixie answered it. It was Leslie on the other end, but she didn't say anything. Leslie hung up on Dixie. Dixie called the number back and got the Valley Inn. She asked what room Leslie Coulson was in then said that it was time for Leslie to deal with her.
Tad finished shaving, and when he went back into the bedroom, he could not find Dixie. She was no place in sight. He started to get dressed but couldn't find his wedding ring. He knew he had placed it on the table, but it was gone.
Back at the Valley Inn, Leslie had Tad's ring and placed it on her hand. She then called a store to see if they carried a perfume called "Alluring." They did, and she ordered it to be delivered to her room. She used Tad's credit card to pay for the order and said that it was her husband's credit card. Dixie approached Leslie's room, very upset.
Adam and Liza's wedding was about ready to begin. The judge insisted that they start soon because he had another engagement. While they were waiting on Stuart, Liza pinned a flower bud on Junior's coat and told him that when Adam had told her that he had picked Junior for his best man, she'd told Adam that he couldn't have picked a better man. Junior thanked her and told Liza that he was glad she was marrying his dad again.
Stuart then showed up, and Adam asked him where he had been. Stuart replied that he had been at the gallery, and he had some good news to tell Adam. Adam asked Stuart to tell him later because he and Liza were getting married. Stuart said that Arlene was alive. Everyone just looked at Stuart.
Greenlee was at the loft when someone knocked on the door. She opened the door, and it was Leo. Leo asked Greenlee if he could enter and get his coat and some of his things. Greenlee told him she was busy. Leo walked in anyway.
After Leo got his things, Greenlee tried to rush him out the door. Leo asked Greenlee why she was so nervous, and she told him it was none of his business because he didn't live there anymore. There was a knock on the door, and Leo went to the door and looked through the peephole. Leo said that the guy looked familiar. He wanted to know who the man was. Greenlee would not tell him.
Greenlee rushed Leo out the back door then went to the front door to let the man in. When he entered, she said she was glad he was there. He commented that they didn't have much time then he held his arms out to hug her. Greenlee rushed into his arms. Leo hadn't left the apartment but was watching from around the corner, waiting to find out who the strange man was.
The man told Greenlee that she was looking more beautiful than ever, and if it weren't for her looks, he didn't know what would have become of her. He told Greenlee that he didn't appreciate being summoned across the ocean by her irate grandfather. She was surprised that her grandfather had called him. He told Greenlee that her grandfather was very close to washing his hands of her completely.
The man asked Greenlee how long she would continue to act irresponsibly and get away with it. He told her that it was criminal behavior because she had pushed a young lady off a yacht and almost killed her. He also told her that when she had been younger, her shrink had said that she would outgrow the cries for attention, but apparently, she had not.
Greenlee apologized to the man and said that she hadn't meant to upset him. He told Greenlee to pack her bags because he was taking her back to Europe. She cried out, "No, Daddy, please!" Greenlee told her dad that she couldn't leave the country. Her dad reminded her that she had been under arrest for attempted murder, but thanks to her grandfather, all the charges had been dropped. The attorneys had made a case that she had ingested a drug and had not been responsible.
Greenlee told her dad that everything was okay, since the charges had been dropped. Her dad said that he and Greenlee's mother could not trust her anymore. Greenlee said that she would not do anything that would embarrass them again. Her dad said they could not take the chance, and it was their turn to take care of Greenlee, even though it would change their plans.
Just then, Leo walked in and excused himself, stating that he had forgotten some CDs that he'd left on the table. Leo said, "You're Greenlee's dad! I couldn't pass up the opportunity to meet you, Mr. Smythe. You are everything that I expected!" Greenlee asked Leo to please leave. Greenlee's dad said that was okay because he had nothing else to talk about.
Mr. Smythe told Greenlee to get her passport, pack a small bag, and meet him at the airport in one hour. He told her that she would be taking their place in Geneva while he and his wife were off gallivanting. Greenlee asked if he was going to dump her in Geneva. Her dad told her that she would have a companion to take care of her and keep her out of trouble, and there was an excellent shrink for her to see. Leo told her dad that she might as well stay and go to prison.
Greenlee said that she would not go with her father. Her dad said that if she did not, she would risk losing Woodruff's money because he and her mother would not support her. Her dad turned away and started to walk to the door. Leo slammed the door shut and said, "Roger, have a seat. Due to unexpected turbulence, your flight has been delayed."
Stuart was at the mansion, and he gave the wedding party some news. He told them that Arlene was back. Adam told Stuart that was absurd. Stuart told Hayley that he'd wanted her to know first about her mother being back in Pine Valley.
Marian asked Stuart if he had seen Arlene, and Stuart told her that Naomi, his new part-time lady at the gallery, had seen her. Naomi had told Stuart that the lady that had walked into the gallery was a very pretty lady with long blonde hair, strong perfume, and tight clothes. Marian asked Stuart if the lady had said anything, and he said that the only thing she had said was "Sweetie, I'm fine." Hayley told Mateo that when she had been at the Pine Cone Motel, she'd noticed how strong the smell of Arlene's perfume had been.
Hayley told Mateo that she was going to leave and drive over to the Pine Cone Motel and see if her mother was there. If she didn't find her there, she was going to drive around and then stop at the gallery and talk to Naomi. Mateo told Hayley that it wasn't possible that Arlene was alive. Junior asked Hayley why everyone was making such a big deal about Arlene returning to town. Mateo told Junior that they weren't. Junior said that his dad had canceled the wedding, and Hayley told Junior that the judge had needed to leave.
Junior told Hayley that he knew Arlene was her mom, but everyone had been happy when Arlene had gone to Europe. Hayley told Junior that if Arlene was back, they were going to start over and have a new beginning. They would forget the past. Liza returned to the room and told Junior that even though they were not having the wedding, they could still cut the wedding cake and have Colby enjoy it also. They would have stories to tell later. Junior said he had enough memories.
Adam told Liza that he was sorry about canceling the wedding, and Liza told him that they couldn't get married that day. Liza said that every time they tried, something happened that had to do with Arlene. Adam asked Liza if she thought Stuart was right. Liza replied that she didn't know. She said she was afraid that Arlene's body would wash up on shore, and then everything Adam had done would be exposed. Liza asked Adam how they were ever going to rid themselves of Arlene.
Marian told Stuart that there were many people that had blonde hair, wore tight clothes, and wore cheap perfume. Stuart wouldn't agree with her. Marian told Stuart that Arlene was in Amsterdam, and Stuart said that there were a lot of flights each day back to the states. Marian said that Arlene wouldn't return there because the police were looking for her because of the stolen necklace. Stuart said that was probably the reason Arlene had returned, to turn in the stolen necklace. Marian told Stuart that it didn't sound like something Arlene would do.
Adam announced to everyone that the wedding had to be postponed and hoped everyone would understand. Stuart said that he didn't understand and wanted to know why Adam and Liza were not getting married. Adam told Stuart that they would be married some day soon. Stuart apologized for spoiling the wedding. Stuart said that if he'd thought talking about Arlene would have done that, he would have waited until later to tell everyone. Stuart and Marian left, and when Stuart was walking out the door, he told Hayley to tell Arlene that if she needed anything to just let him know. He also told Hayley to tell Arlene that he was sorry he'd missed her at the gallery.
Mateo and Hayley talked to Adam and wanted to know what was going on. Mateo wanted to know what Stuart was talking about. Adam told Mateo and Hayley that it was impossible for Arlene to be back because they knew what had happened on the yacht that night. They knew that Arlene had been strangled. Hayley covered her ears and started to shout, telling everyone to be quiet.
Mateo tried to comfort Hayley, and Hayley asked Mateo why it couldn't be Arlene. Hayley said that Arlene knew how to swim. Adam walked out of the room with Liza and declared it a disaster. Adam said that everything he had tried to do had been to protect Hayley, "and look at her now." Adam said that Arlene was dead. Liza told Adam that Stuart was convinced that Arlene had been there. Adam told Liza that it was wishful thinking on Stuart's part.
Adam told Liza that he had promised her that Arlene would never get between them again, and he'd meant it. Adam told Liza that they would have to hang together, and they would be married soon. Winifred ran into the hallway to see Adam and said that something terrible had happened. Someone had smashed the wedding cake. Hayley stepped out into the hallway and said that Arlene had done it, just like she had at their wedding.
Adam asked Winifred what had happened. The guests asked her many questions, trying to find out who had smashed the cake. Winifred said that someone had entered from outside. While Adam was questioning the staff, Hayley told him to stop. She knew who had smashed the cake. Hayley knew it had been Arlene. Adam told Mateo to take Hayley home, and he would get to the bottom of the situation with the cake.
As Hayley and Mateo were leaving, Marian returned. Liza asked what she was doing there. Her mom said that Stuart was taking Junior home, and she'd had to return and try to find a way to get the ridiculous notion out of Stuart's head that Arlene was alive. Liza told her mother that they'd found the wedding cake, and it had been smashed. Marian wanted to know who would have done something like that then she gasped. She said that it had to be a practical joke.
Adam said that Arlene was dead, and the only people that knew she had been on the yacht were Hayley, Mateo, and the three of them. Marian said that Vanessa Cortlandt knew. Marian told Adam and Liza how the conversation had arisen that Arlene had been on the yacht. Liza wanted to know if Vanessa was pretending to be Arlene.
When Hayley and Mateo returned home, they opened their door and found the inside of their condo in ruins. Someone had entered the condo while they'd been gone and had turned their condo upside down. Mateo checked the place and said that nothing had been stolen, and all of Hayley's jewelry was still there, along with the money on the nightstand. Hayley bent down and found a flask. She picked it up and said it was Arlene's flask.
Tad was at home, looking for his wedding ring, and he could not find it. He called out for Dixie, and she didn't answer. He said that he'd not only lost his wedding ring, but he'd also lost his wife.
Meanwhile, Dixie was just about to knock on Leslie Coulson's room at the Valley Inn when David walked up behind her. Dixie told David that Tad had told her everything and that Leslie had even called when they had been in bed the night before. Dixie was ready to deal with Leslie. David told Dixie not to talk to Leslie. David asked if Tad knew Dixie was at the Valley Inn, and she told him no.
Leslie heard voices in the hallway and went to listen at the door. She heard Dixie and David arguing. David told Dixie to take a deep breath because she had apparently rushed over there without knowing all the facts. Dixie told David that she knew plenty, and Leslie would have to listen to her.
Leslie made a phone call to Tad and asked him if he had told Dixie to go to her room. Tad asked her what she was talking about. Leslie told Tad that Dixie was in the hallway, having a big argument with someone, and she was looking for trouble. Tad went to the Valley Inn and knocked on Leslie's door. She went into the hallway, and Tad asked her where Dixie was. She didn't answer him, so he grabbed her by the arms and shook her then asked her what she had done to Dixie. Leslie told Tad to let her go because she hadn't done anything to Dixie.
Leslie told Tad that she had a very upset client in her room, and she'd had to soothe him because he was upset about her leaving the country. Tad asked her why she had a motel room. Leslie replied that she had rented her house, and the tenants had wanted to move in right away, so she'd had to rent a motel room until she left. Tad commented that she'd only taken the job that morning. Tad didn't believe Leslie and said that something wasn't right.
Tad grabbed Leslie by the arm and said that he was going into her room to see the client. Tad said that he knew Dixie was in Leslie's room. Leslie told Tad that she didn't have time to play his games. She was leaving the country and didn't have time to ease his mind about his wife. Leslie told Tad to look someplace else for his wife because she wasn't in Leslie's room.
Dixie was in David's room, and they were talking. Dixie got up and said she was going to leave. David asked her if she was going down the hall to Leslie's room. Dixie told David no, and she thanked him for letting her sit down for a while. David asked her what she was going to do, and Dixie said he was the last person she should be explaining it to.
Dixie told David that Tad had told her that Leslie had a fixation on him that was one-sided, and nobody wanted it to stop as much as Tad did. Tad had also told her that she had no reason to doubt him. David said, "And now you do?" Dixie said that she'd let all of her fears surface. Dixie told David that she'd had to find out, and that was why she'd wanted to see Leslie. Dixie said that there was only one real threat to her marriage, and that was her feelings for David.
Dixie told David that she'd pounced on the idea that something was going on between Tad and Leslie and had tried to justify it because of her feelings for David. David asked her if something was going on between Tad and Leslie. Dixie said that the only evidence she had was lipstick on his collar. Dixie told David that there was nothing going on between them; she was just imagining things. David asked Dixie if she would go back to Tad and live happily ever after. She looked at David and said that she had to leave. She walked out of the room.
Tad went back to Leslie's motel room and knocked on the door. He told Leslie that Dixie was not in the lobby, and he wanted to know where she was. Leslie told Tad that she didn't know where Dixie had gone. Tad asked her if she'd said anything to Dixie. Leslie told Tad that if Dixie ever found out about them, it would not be from her. Tad didn't realize it, but Dixie was in the hallway and heard everything that the two of them were talking about.
Dixie was standing in the hallway outside room 909 at the Valley Inn, where she overheard a heated discussion between Tad and Leslie. Tad was telling Leslie that his wife wasn't going to find out about them. Leslie told him that she was not into home-wrecking and to lay off her -- she was leaving just like he wanted. "It's just too painful. Let's just say goodbye," she told Tad. He replied, "You're too full of it! Stay away from Dixie," and stormed off.
Dixie ran straight to David's room and told him she had seen Tad and Leslie together. She related what she'd overheard, and David told her he was sorry. He tried to tell her that maybe there was an explanation for what she'd heard, and she said there was -- "My husband is having an affair with Leslie." David tried to comfort Dixie and asked if maybe she could've misunderstood something. He suggested that she talk to Tad before jumping to any conclusions, but she was sure Tad wouldn't be honest with her.
"What should I do?" Dixie cried to David, who told her he couldn't help her. She insisted that she needed help, but David said not from him. Dixie yelled at David that he'd been pushing her to find out about Tad but all of a sudden, he wouldn't be involved. She was upset that he wouldn't hold her hand while her marriage fell apart. He tried to comfort her by telling her, "I live here full-time. Don't you think I'd have seen them if they were having an affair?" Dixie countered with "I didn't even see it!"
David told Dixie there was an easy way to check, to expose their one mistake, and pointed to the phone. Dixie picked it up, called the front desk, and asked for Leslie's room. The front desk clerk told her no one was registered under that name. Dixie said to check under room 909. She was told that room was registered to Mr. Tad Martin. Dixie slowly hung up the phone and with great difficulty told David that the room was Tad's. She ran out of the room, and David followed.
As Dixie rounded the corner by room 909, she saw a deliveryman with a gift knock on the door. David and Dixie listened as Leslie cooed over the gift, saying what a nice gesture it was and what a "sweet man he is!" Leslie took the deliveryman into her room, saying she was going to get him something for his trouble, and she shut the door.
Outside, Dixie hissed, "That's it!" and started to follow, but David stopped her. Inside the room, Leslie gave the man money then thanked him for all his help with Tad. He told her that he had overheard the front desk clerk telling someone on the phone that the room was Tad Martin's. Leslie asked if anyone had seen Dixie at the inn that day, and he said he had and was worried that she was the one who'd called the front desk. Leslie told him not to worry and thanked him again, slipping him a tip and sending him on his way with a smile.
David took Dixie back to his room and wouldn't let her confront Leslie. Dixie asked if he'd known about Tad and Leslie, and he said no. Calling him a liar, Dixie asked him, "How long did you think you could keep this from me? All this time you knew my marriage was in trouble?" David tried to calm Dixie down, telling her that she'd shown him a different way of living, one based on kindness and loving completely. "I wanted to earn and deserve your love. But you have to choose. If you choose Tad, I'm out. I have to be," David said.
Dixie looked at David with great sadness and walked out the door. She went to Leslie's room and knocked on the door. It opened on its own, and she slowly walked in. Looking around the room, she started to find Tad's belongings, starting with the wedding photo with Leslie's face pasted on top of Dixie's. She dropped it with disgust and walked toward the bed, where she shuddered at the disheveled sheets.
Dixie found the recently delivered package and tore it open, discovering that it was her perfume. She found his shirt and slammed it over and over into a chair. Sobbing, she walked over to a table and found Tad's wedding ring. She read the inscription: "Together forever, love Dixie," sat down crying out Tad's name, and let her grief pour out.
Leo told Roger Smythe not to treat Greenlee like a child, to which he replied that Leo was out of his league. Leo went on to say he knew a little about lousy parenting because he was a product of it, but Greenlee told him to lay off. "No wonder you're in trouble -- look at the company you keep" Roger snidely told his daughter. Leo said at least he knew who Greenlee was, but he asked if Roger did. Roger looked at Greenlee and told her he'd meet her at the airport then told Leo to leave.
Leo told Roger that his stepfather was Palmer Cortlandt, and when Roger reacted with a bit of discomfort, Leo said, "That little label means something, doesn't it? It means I'm connected to money and power, which in your little universe means something!" Greenlee tried to stop Leo's ranting, but he went on to describe Greenlee's desperation for acceptance. Leo said Greenlee didn't realize that Roger would never see how lucky he was to have a daughter who loved him as much as she did. Roger told Leo to stay out of his family business.
Leo said Roger was right; family was one thing, business another, and he finally realized that Roger had been dipping into Greenlee's trust fund. He confronted Roger, saying, "You come to see Greenlee every two years or so to make sure the ol' gravy train is still chugging along." Roger just stared daggers at Leo, but Greenlee asked him if he had been "dipping." He tried to skirt the question then told her she didn't have to go to Geneva with him. However, he had to make his flight to meet her mother in Spain, so he left her alone with Leo.
Leo shouted with glee, "I so busted him!" and danced around the loft, talking about how he could catch people in a scam. Brokenheartedly, Greenlee asked why her father would need to steal from her when her grandfather gave them money too. Leo told her that for some people, too much money still wasn't enough. He told her that she finally realized "it's all about them, not you." Greenlee just stared at Leo, hurt and disbelief written on her face.
Leo told Greenlee that "being the spawn of Cruella de Vil" himself, he knew that finding out one's family wasn't normal wasn't easy, but that knowledge was power. Her parents could no longer hold anything over her, and Leo told her she could turn it into her own personal declaration of independence. Greenlee asked Leo if he thought she really needed to know that the only reason her parents even spoke to her was so they could steal from her. "I only have two things: who I am, and where I come from. You took those away!"
Greenlee then asked Leo who he was to decide how she existed in her own family. Calling him an idiot, she told him he just didn't get it and asked why he thought she'd want to know that her parents didn't give a damn about her. Leo told her she was misinterpreting it, but she went on to tell him, "I've spent my life holding onto the scraps of attention they gave me, and now you've humiliated my father and made me feel as big as a gnat, and now you're telling me you did me a favor?"
Mateo and Hayley walked around their trashed condo, and Mateo told her the flask was not her mother's. He said Arlene had not destroyed their condo, and he tried to devise a plausible explanation for the mess. Hayley said Arlene had returned for revenge and "wants me to be afraid when she comes back for me."
In the living room at Chandler Mansion, Liza told Adam they couldn't rule out that Arlene was alive. Adam denied the possibility and grabbed the phone to "send out feelers." He said there was no chance she was alive and that someone was trying to scare them. Liza wondered who. Adam said he didn't know, but he vowed to find whoever it was and make them regret it. Liza told him to be patient.
Mateo called and told Adam that someone had broken into their home. Adam rushed out the door while Tad was heading in to ask Liza if she'd seen Dixie. Tad asked Liza to help him find his wife before he lost her for good. He told her that he had to find out if Dixie had been at the Valley Inn, and if she hadn't been there, he had to find out what Leslie was trying to prove. Liza told him that he'd made a mistake with Leslie, and Tad replied, "Not one that Dixie could get past twice."
Liza urged Tad to tell Dixie the truth: that he had been under the influence of Libidozone, and she was sure Dixie would forgive him. Tad said he knew Dixie wouldn't forgive him for it even if it had been drug induced. "The one thing that will matter is that I slept with someone when I promised I wouldn't," he said. Liza insisted that he stop lying because what bothered Dixie the most were the lies. Tad said he couldn't float the situation with his history. Liza told him that he owed Dixie the honesty she'd given him when she'd told him about kissing David. Liza asked Tad what he was going to do.
Adam joined Hayley and Mateo and surveyed the damage. He said it did look like Arlene's work, but he knew she was dead. Hayley showed him the flask and told him it smelled like vodka, Arlene's drink of choice. She told him it wasn't a random act. It was Arlene sending a message.
Adam played the devil's advocate and said if she were back, she wouldn't leave her belongings. Mateo agreed, and the two men went to the Pine Cone Motel with the understanding that Hayley would go back to her father's house. After they left, Hayley walked back into the condo and hung her mother's bell necklace over a lamp. She then went to Adam's house.
At the Pine Cone, Adam and Mateo found Arlene's room empty. They asked the motel manager where her stuff was. He told them that a woman had emptied the room into a car trunk the previous day. He described her as a blonde, thin woman in tight clothes, with great legs. Mateo and Adam looked at each other nervously.
At Mateo and Hayley's condo, a pair of legs in fishnet stockings and high heel boots walked around the living room. A hand tinkled the bell necklace hanging from the lamp, and a woman in a short skirt topped with a leather jacket left through the front door.
Edmund and Brooke rushed to Wildwind to hear Dimitri's latest update on Alex's whereabouts. Sadly, Dimitri told them they had been unable to trace the call to one place. He consoled himself and Edmund with the fact that they knew Alex was alive, and they had to hold onto that. Edmund agreed that they were going to find Alex, even if they had "to move heaven and earth."
Suddenly, Erica sped in and delightedly told Dimitri that he was just the man she wanted to see. "Did you hear the doorbell ring?" Brooke facetiously asked Edmund. Erica informed Dimitri of her new Enchantment campaign and said, "I'm thinking rustic. I'm thinking earth tones. I'm thinking back to nature." Brooke cut in with, "I'm thinking of a number between one and ten."
Erica ignored Brooke's comment and asked Dimitri if she could use the stables as a backdrop. "For the new Mr. and Mrs. Ed campaign?" Brooke inquired. Dimitri asked if that meant she and Bianca had "patched things up," but Erica told him that she'd found a new girl to represent Ms. Enchantment. "She's feminine, she's frilly, she's fun," Erica explained. "Erica," Brooke asked, "did you fire your daughter because she's gay?"
Erica approached Brooke. "How dare you, and yet how typical," she said, "forever jumping to the wrong conclusion." She informed Brooke that she hadn't fired Bianca, and when Dimitri asked why she'd decided to go with another girl, Erica repeated that the girl was everything Erica was looking for. Dimitri probed Erica as to whether she had spoken to Bianca, and she reassured him that she had and that Bianca was fine. "Would you guys mind if I had a moment alone to talk to Erica?" Brooke asked Dimitri and Edmund. "Am I not in the room?" Erica retorted, but the men excused themselves to make a phone call.
Alone, Brooke asked if she and Erica could just talk as mothers, but Erica countered that she had nothing to say to Brooke and began to leave. "Then I suggest you sit down because I have a lot to say to you!" Brooke commanded. Erica informed Brooke that she wouldn't sit in Brooke's judgment, but Brooke assured her that the only one doing that was Erica's own conscience. "Spare me the dime store Freud," Erica angrily retaliated, insisting, "You know, editing a magazine doesn't give you the knowledge or the right to analyze me!"
Brooke declared that she wanted only to help Erica confront her fears of her daughter, but Erica said that was absurd. Brooke revealed that she didn't want to believe at first that Bianca, "a kind, caring girl," had pushed Laura overboard, and she apologized for "spreading rumors" about her. She continued and said that it upset her that Bianca would rather let people believe those rumors about her than let her own mother know that she was gay. Erica notified Brooke that Bianca's problem was none of her business, but Brooke rebutted that it was everyone's problem because there were many frightened gay and lesbian teenagers in the world.
Erica asked Brooke what she would do if Laura revealed she was gay, and Brooke replied that it wouldn't matter because she loved her daughter for who she was. Erica called Brooke a liar and said it was different when it was one's own daughter. She explained that townspeople gossiped, and they wouldn't give Bianca a second chance. Brooke asked if they were talking about Erica. "It doesn't take a psychic to know that your image means everything to you," Brooke stated.
Erica retorted that Brooke was jealous, but Brooke insisted that she wouldn't trade lives with Erica for anything. Brooke told Erica that, regardless of how beautiful Erica was, she wondered how Erica could look at herself in the mirror. Erica blasted her enemy and told her to get a life so she could stop obsessing over Erica's. Edmund and Dimitri suddenly walked in, and Edmund and Brooke left.
Alone, Erica asked Dimitri if she was a monster, but he assured her that she was not. He advised her to sit down, not think anymore, and to just be herself because that had always been enough. Erica told him that she wouldn't apologize for needing him, and as he rubbed her arm, he told her it was okay.
Bianca and Laura were walking into the boathouse after going skating, and Laura commented that it was "too cold to breathe." Bianca reasoned that it was better than "the deep freeze at home." Once they sat down, Laura said that Erica was just "running scared" and that she wasn't "thinking straight," but Bianca retorted that the problem was that "this is what she does best." She concluded that if she asked her mother to "stop being straight, she'd self-destruct." Bianca revealed that her mother had just hired "a new surrogate daughter," and she was "just waiting for the new man in her life to come along."
Laura interrupted and told Bianca that she had a feeling they weren't alone. The two crept down the stairs to see if they could see anyone, and a shrill scream suddenly shattered the quiet night. The girls ran for a hiding spot behind some bushes. When a few seconds of silence passed, Bianca and Laura decided to make a run for it back to the boathouse. Once they reached their bags, the scream erupted again behind them. They shrieked in response, turned around, and saw Leo laughing at them. They chastised him for scaring them.
"Haven't you heard of the primal scream?" Leo asked, explaining, "It relaxes the soul and releases the nasties that clog your karma." Laura suggested that he should try yoga the next time. The trio retreated to the benches, and Bianca announced that "any man who braves the winter cold to scream his guts out must have spent the night with Greenlee Smythe," but Leo assured them that they were through. Bianca asked him what he was going to do next, and Leo responded that he didn't have any immediate plans. "Do you want to test that prediction?" Laura asked, and mysteriously told them she would be right back.
Laura returned with a fortune-teller board. A skeptical Leo and Bianca sat down with Laura and put the board between them. They put their fingertips on the pointer, and Leo asked if he would get back together with Greenlee. The pointer went to YES then moved to NO. Leo clapped his hands and gleefully said, "I told you." Laura accused him of pushing the pointer, and Leo retorted that she was pushing too.
Laura retaliated that she didn't care what happened between them and asked the board if she would be accepted into Pine Valley University. It answered YES, and it was Bianca's turn. She asked Laura if she would be able to communicate with people who had died and revealed that she wanted to talk to Travis. Bianca called out her father's name and told him that she missed him and that she had to talk to him about a problem. Suddenly, the pointer began to move, and it slowly spelled out the words "BE PROUD."
Leo and Laura backed away from the board and assured a crying Bianca that they hadn't moved it. Bianca was convinced that she had just spoken to her father, and that was exactly what he would have said to her. "Be proud," she repeated as she looked up at the night sky, calling out, "I am, Daddy. I am."
At home, Tad opened the door to Joe, who had rushed over after Tad had paged him. Tad asked his father if Joe could watch Junior for a few days. Joe agreed and asked where Tad was going. Tad replied that he was taking Dixie to the Bahamas for a few days, and Joe inquired what the occasion was. Tad became defensive and said he was just taking the wife he loved away for a few romantic days.
Joe sighed, and Tad asked him to get whatever he had off his chest. Joe admitted that the idea of a romantic weekend for Tad and Dixie made him think that they were having problems. He asked if David was causing any more trouble for them. Tad looked his father in the eye and confessed, "Hayward's not the one screwing up my marriage. I am." Joe asked what had happened, and Tad reminded his father of Christmas Day when he'd felt sick to his stomach. He admitted that he had been drugged with Libidozone, and Joe said that a lot of people had been. Tad explained that people "do stupid things" on the drug and that he'd thought his head was going to spin off.
Joe asked if Tad had done something stupid, and Tad confessed that "the night before, I had sex with Leslie Coulson." A shocked Joe explained that was why he had been so nervous when he had seen Leslie after her appointment, because he'd thought she had said something about their "affair." Tad quickly pointed out that it wasn't an affair to him, but it appeared to be one to Leslie, and due to her unstable condition, he wasn't sure what she was going to do. Joe put his arm around Tad and told him that he should have said something before so he wouldn't have to deal with the situation alone, but he admitted that he'd told Liza. "Which is ironic, considering it was sleeping with Liza that cost me my marriage the first time around," he said.
Tad confided that Liza had advised him to tell Dixie the truth, but he hadn't because he was afraid of losing her. Joe reminded him that "Dixie is a very forgiving woman," but Tad wondered, "How many miracles" was he "supposed to get?" Joe consoled him by suggesting it was the Libidozone, but Tad countered that Dixie had been drugged, too, and he hadn't seen her "making out with Dr. Hayward in a state room." He told his father, "Dixie agreed to take me back because I promised her on bended knee that I would never hurt her again," and he admitted that he didn't know if she would take him back again.
Joe assured Tad that he would support him and began to leave to get Junior. Before he left, he turned back and asked Tad if it had only been a one-night stand. Tad swore to his father that Dixie was the only woman in his life.
A shaken Dixie sat at the edge of the bed in "Tad's" room at the Valley Inn, holding his inscribed wedding ring and crying. Suddenly, Leslie walked down the hall, and Dixie heard her loudly ask, "Is that my bad boy coming back for seconds? Tad, you keep this up, and you're going to wear me out." She opened the door and was face-to-face with Dixie. "Dixie, what are you doing here? I thought you were someone else," Leslie exclaimed in mock surprise. "Obviously," Dixie retorted.
Dixie coldly explained that she was looking for her husband and asked if that was who Leslie was waiting for. Leslie tried to deny that she was expecting Tad, but Dixie interrupted her: "Wait, let me see if I can quote you correctly..." and she repeated what Leslie had yelled out in the hallway. "That was just business. Tad had me working overtime," Leslie hurriedly explained. "I bet he did," Dixie challenged, continuing, "I know that you're not working for Chandler Enterprises anymore. How long have you been sleeping with my husband?"
Leslie told Dixie that the stuff in the room belonged to a man she was seeing, but Dixie wasn't fooled. "A married man?" she asked, holding up Tad's wedding ring. "A man who happens to look exactly like my husband?" she grilled, picking up their wedding photo. "You know, I gave him this pen!" she thundered, raising it for Leslie to see. "And in case there's any confusion," she bellowed, "the inscription on the wedding band says, 'Together forever, love Dixie', you bitch!" Leslie apologized and told Dixie that she'd never meant for it to happen.
Suddenly, David hurried in and asked what was going on. Dixie demanded that Leslie tell how long she had been sleeping with Tad, but all Leslie said was that Dixie should take that up with her husband. David walked over to Dixie, commented that Tad had "made himself at home," and asked Dixie to go back to his room. Dixie coldly asked if that was what he had wanted all along, but David assured her that he didn't want her to be hurt. Dixie stormed past him and shoved Leslie on her way out.
David went to run after Dixie, but Leslie cruelly told him to let "the little Dixie belle fly away home." Once he stopped, she asked, "Am I good or what?" David asked her how she had known Dixie would be in the hotel room, and Leslie explained that "Dixie may harken from the backwoods, but she isn't stupid." She said that she had planted lipstick marks on Tad's collar then had made sure that Dixie had seen her applying the same color. She theorized that when Dixie had seen the stain, she would be "snooping around." Leslie laughed as she realized that Dixie was probably ending her marriage as they spoke.
"We both get what we want, don't we, David?" Leslie asked, "Wasn't that the master plan?" She happily told David that they should be toasting each other with Champagne and celebrating. David informed Leslie that Dixie had a bad heart, but Leslie only reasoned that "what doesn't kill you makes you stronger." David didn't think their success was worth its price, but both agreed to call one another if anything happened. As David was on his way out, Leslie congratulated him and let him know that "this is what winning feels like."
Tad was confirming the airline reservations as Dixie walked in. He quickly hung up, rushed over to her, and gave her a hug, which Dixie didn't return. She asked who had been on the phone, and not wanting to spoil the surprise, Tad replied that it was "just business. Chandler Enterprises is funding a little retreat." When he asked her what was wrong, she declared, "You look nervous. Like I caught you doing something you shouldn't be doing." Tad explained that he was nervous because he had no idea where she had gone after she'd gotten out of the shower.
Dixie quietly turned to him and held out his wedding ring in the palm of her hand. Tad exclaimed that he had been looking for it and reached to take it from her, but Dixie quickly closed her hand and pulled it back. "It was by the bed," she told him. Tad said it couldn't have been because he'd looked there. "Not our bed," she continued, "the one you share with your mistress." Dixie explained that she had been to the Valley Inn and had seen room 909, "the room where you meet your whore."
A confused Tad told Dixie she wasn't making any sense, and Dixie screamed that she had seen him and Leslie in front of a room that was registered in his name. Tad admitted that he had been there but that he had no connection with the room. Dixie argued that she had seen the Champagne glass that Leslie had given him for Christmas and the perfume that he had ordered for her. "You gave her my perfume," she screamed, "the one that I wear. What's that for? Camouflage? So I won't smell her on you after you have sex with her?"
Tad confessed that he was "totally clueless," but Dixie continued and informed him that she had seen his clothes, his pen, and his wedding ring, and she threw it across the room. Tad realized what Leslie had done and told Dixie that she had to believe that he'd had nothing to do with anything in that room. Dixie agreed that she would be the first to admit that she was wrong if he honestly answered one question for her. "Did you sleep with Leslie Coulson?" she asked. Tad admitted that he had but couldn't convince a disgusted Dixie that their one-night stand had meant nothing to him.
Tad confessed that he should have told Dixie earlier and apologized. He told her that it had been the night of the yacht party, but Dixie wouldn't let him finish. She screamed that she didn't want to know when it had started, but Tad tried to assure her that it had only been once. Dixie asked, if that were true, why there was a hotel room registered in his name, but Tad had no answers. Dixie asked him if he had lied and told her that Leslie was going to Singapore because she had been getting too close to the truth.
Tad told Dixie again that it had only happened once, but Dixie informed him that, according to David, Libidozone only made people lose their inhibitions, so he had to have wanted to have sex with Leslie. "Forget it," she said with a sigh, "you are what you are. A serial cheater. There's no use forgiving you." As she cried, she reminded Tad of the last time that had happened, when he'd promised her that he would never do it again. Tad tried to apologize again, but Dixie wouldn't hear it.
"It's too late," Dixie cried, "it's too late for us. It's too late for this marriage. I want you to pack up your stuff, and I don't want you to be here when I get back." She walked past Tad to leave, but he grabbed her arm to get her to stay. "Don't you touch me," she demanded and shook him off. "Don't touch me ever again," she screamed and slammed the door behind her. Alone, Tad picked up his wedding band and remembered the fateful night with Leslie.
Alone in his room, David went to answer a knock at his door. He opened it and found Dixie, who just silently stared at him.
Laura stood on the deck of the yacht. Leo walked up to her and startled her. Laura said she'd thought it was "your ex, coming to make me walk the plank." Leo reassured her, "Greenlee's not going to show her face here. If she does, I will scuttle her jib. I'll topple her mizzenmast. Something naughty but nautical."
Laura asked Leo to teach her how to do the primal scream. He did, and they both screamed, holding onto the railing of the yacht. Leo told Laura she'd had some tough breaks, adding, "I think that you're used to things not working out for you, so it's safer just to expect the worst. ... I'm familiar with that approach, but it doesn't work for me anymore." Laura asked why, and Leo said, "I guess my future means more to me than just the weekend now. I actually care about what I'm going to be doing five to ten years from now. ... I just know I don't want to duplicate my mother's unhappy life. I wish I had some kind of talent to develop, you know, a passion that I could pursue, like you do with your photography."
Laura told Leo she took pictures because "it's a way to hold onto what I think is real and what I think matters. It's a way to really look closely at people and catch them beautiful and unguarded." Leo said, "That's how I see you." Laura told him if he kept being nice to her, she was going to cry. They talked about how Leo had helped Bianca and Greenlee. Leo felt he could have done more to make a difference, but Laura said, "I don't think so. I mean, you know the famous phrase 'It's Erica's world, we just live in it'? Well, Greenlee has become a planet in her own right."
Laura told Leo to focus on the future and not look back. She told him about her involvement in pornography. They ended up kissing. They broke away, and Leo said, "I'm shameless, you know that? Your survival play is to turn and run. Mine is to catch and smooch." Laura said, "You didn't orchestrate that kiss. I've got moves of my own. I wanted to kiss you. I wanted you to kiss me back." Leo said, "We both got what we wanted." Laura said, "I want more."
Meanwhile, over at Wildwind, Dimitri and Erica were talking. Erica said, "I have always felt so safe with you." Dimitri assured her, "I will always be here for you. ... I will be here as a friend. Now that goes for Bianca, too. Alex and I will always open our home to you both."
Erica told Dimitri to look around -- Alex was gone. Dimitri said, "But she's still my wife. And when I find her and bring her home, we'll resume the life we had together." Erica said she valued his friendship, and "although I cannot fathom your commitment to Alex, I acknowledge that it exists." She went on to suggest that maybe Alex didn't want Dimitri to find her.
Dimitri said, "I don't want to discuss my wife or my marriage with you." However, Erica continued, "Well, why not, Dimitri? I mean, who knows you better than I do? And, if as I suspect, Alex has left you, then who better to help you with that?" Dimitri told Erica her theory was off the wall. Erica persisted, talking about how Edmund and Dimitri had been at each other's throats because of Alex. "She cheated on you with your own brother," Erica said.
Dimitri started to get angry and told Erica to leave. She told him about seeing Alex on the yacht the night of the party. "I was aware she was trouble from the day I saw her, but never as much as I was that night. And so I knew it was up to me to stop her before she completely destroyed you and Edmund," Erica said. Dimitri asked what she had done. "I took her aside, and I told her that if she really loved you, that she would leave you and Edmund alone in peace," replied Erica.
Dimitri was incredulous, saying, "So you told Alex to leave me?" Erica said, "I just merely made a suggestion. I'm really rather surprised, given how she feels about me, that she seems to have taken it to heart." Dimitri was angry with Erica, saying, "But what right did you have to interfere?" Erica protested, "I was your wife. That gave me some rights. And I am your friend, and I hate to see her tear you and Edmund apart."
Dimitri wanted to know why Erica hadn't told him that before. She said she'd thought it had been a kidnapping, but after Alex's phone call, she'd started to believe Alex had left voluntarily. Erica said, "I hate to burst your bubble, but she's probably checked herself into a spa to get a complete overhaul, which could take months. If I were you, I would file for divorce. I would get on with my life." Dimitri countered, "Uh-huh, the way you've gotten on with yours?"
Dimitri laughed slightly and told Erica he was sure Alex hadn't left because of what Erica had said. "Although I'm sure you gave it your best shot," he said accusingly. Erica was surprised, saying, "Dimitri, what is it about me that still gets to you?" He said, "I think you're using Alex's disappearance to your own advantage." Erica protested, but Dimitri said, "Oh, come on, Erica. I know how you operate. You're always working an angle."
Erica said she didn't want to get back together with Dimitri, "Does you ego know no bounds? ... I have come to you as a friend, Dimitri. I've told you about this so you could have a sense of closure and start living again." Dimitri said, "If you had said one generous word about Alex at some time, I might believe you, but you haven't. ... My wife did not leave me. I do not believe that."
Erica suggested Alex had made a clean break to spare Edmund and Dimitri more pain, and with her experience and resources, Alex could vanish without a trace. Dimitri told Erica to leave. She left, telling Dimitri to call her if he needed her.
Over at the Valley Inn, Leslie was in one of the rooms, lounging on the bed in a black negligee. Tad pushed open the door and entered. He was quietly furious. Leslie was flirtatious and provocative, saying, "I've been waiting for you, Tad. Why didn't you just use your key?"
Tad looked silently around the room, seeing many of his things there. He saw the wedding picture where Leslie had pasted her face over Dixie's. He picked up the perfume bottle. Leslie took it from him and used it, saying, "This scent you bought me has a musky, animal quality. I'll never wear anything else."
Tad was silent, and Leslie said, "What's the matter, cat got your tongue? Did Dixie yank it out when she got home? Come on, you knew it was only a matter of time before she found out about us. I mean, your wife is hurting now, but she'll get over it. Tad? Either say something or kiss me. Why are you looking at me that way? You're scaring me."
Tad said, "What do you want me to say? You set it up, didn't you? You set up the whole thing. Dixie asked me point-blank what happened, and I told her." Leslie asked, "How did she take it?" "How do you think?" Tad coldly replied. Leslie said she was sorry and added, "This whole thing got way too messy. And that's partly your fault. ... You could have made life a hell of a lot easier for all of us if you'd stopped fighting the inevitable." Tad stated incredulously, "You and I belong together."
Leslie cheerfully went on, "I've known it for years. You don't belong with Dixie. You belong to me. I love you, Tad. I want you to love me back. Love me, please." Tad slowly caressed her arm and then her neck. Suddenly, he started choking her. Leslie looked shocked and frightened.
Tad said, "You wouldn't listen, would you? ... It didn't matter how many times I told you I didn't want you, that it was a mistake, to stay away from me. No, no, no, you had to take my things, right? So you could set up this twisted fantasy, huh? And torture my wife and ruin me and my marriage. Well, guess what -- you didn't just steal my clothes or wedding ring. No, you stole my life. And I'll bet it was fun for you, wasn't it? One big game. Well, guess what -- game's over, and you lose." With his hands on Leslie's throat, he slammed her up against the wardrobe.
Leslie was scared, saying, "Tad, you're crazy. I only wanted..." Tad said, "I don't give a damn what you wanted. I never have." Tad shoved her away roughly. Leslie fell against the bed and then to the floor. She tried to get the phone, but Tad yanked it out of the wall. She started to cry, saying, "Please, don't hurt me. Why are you doing this?" Tad replied, "I'm doing it for fun. The same reason you tore apart the only woman I've ever loved, someone who meant everything to me!"
Leslie protested that she loved Tad, too. Tad took the wedding picture and said, "You take a really, really good look at this picture because this is as close to me as you are ever going to get!" He threw the picture against the wall, breaking the frame. Tad said, "From now on, I am living for one reason and one reason only, and that's to get my life back. And you are going to help me, whether you like it or not."
Later on, Leslie walked out of the bathroom, dressed and wearing her coat. She asked Tad, "Where are we going?" Tad said, "Where do you think? We're going to find Dixie. And when we do, you are going to tell her the truth. You're going to tell her there never was an affair, that you've been stealing my things for weeks so you could set me up. You're going to tell her, Leslie, what I've been telling you from the very beginning, which is that I don't care about you, and I never have, that I love one woman and one woman only, and that is my wife." Tad took Leslie by the arm and dragged her out of the room and down the hall.
Meanwhile, also at the Valley Inn, Dixie stood silently at the doorway of David's room. She looked devastated, on the verge of tears. She walked in and said to David, "Well, it happened. He confessed. He slept with Leslie. I asked him to move out. So it's over. My marriage is over. My husband is gone."
David held Dixie and said, "Dixie, I'm really sorry." She said, "Don't be. He's moving out, and our life together is over, and I really feel nothing. ... I don't feel anything at all." David said, "That's because you're in shock."
Dixie said, "I don't care what it is, as long as this lasts. I personally don't ever want to feel anything again. ... Did you know Tad is a serial cheater? I knew that. I knew he wasn't capable of being faithful. What is more pathetic, the guy who can't keep his pants on or the woman who keeps forgiving him? ... He told me 'Don't worry about it,' and I trusted him. But we were both lying because I knew he hadn't changed. But I guess I closed my eyes because I just didn't want to believe he'd stick it to me again."
Dixie told David he was a sanctuary for her. David asked her to tell him what she was feeling. Dixie said," Hatred. Hatred for Tad, for Liza, for Leslie, and for myself for being so blind, for believing he loved only me. How could I be so stupid? You must think I'm the world's biggest fool." David knelt before Dixie, saying, "The only fool here is Tad. Only a fool would betray a woman like you, Dixie. Only a fool would give your love away."
Dixie said she was as guilty as Tad, and maybe she should have trusted him more. "There must have been something that he needed, maybe, something I could have given him. ... I could have gone to a marriage counselor. I could have confided my fears to my husband. But instead, I turned to you. And when I told Tad that I kissed you, I practically gave him permission. I practically pushed him into Leslie's bed."
David said, "What you and I did is not the same as having an affair." Dixie said, "Tad and Leslie had more than an affair. ... How many times did he make love to her and then come home and make love to me? Did he do the same things? I can't stop thinking about him kissing her and telling her that he loves her. I can't live with these things in my head. David, you have to help me. You have to make it go away."
Dixie started to cry, and David told her he would take care of her. He said, "It's time I take you home." Dixie said, "I don't want to go back home. I want to stay here with you. I want you to make love to me."
