From: Vicky Korosei <vkorosei@SINCLAIR.EDU>

Well, November sweeps came & went, w/o any trace of Frankie's return (and 
nearly w/o Cass, we noticed); here's hoping we get our Christmas wish...


Here is the update for Another World, for Friday, November 29, 1996 (the 
day after Turkey Day):

* Joe and Gary re-open the closed Mercer file, with a new lead [!]
* Sofia gets an unwanted internship - guess where?
* Grant lays it on with a shovel, no one's buying
* Bobby plots Grant's downfall, Carl plots Bobby's love life


     STATION HOUSE - Gary finds Joe wrapping up the paperwork to close the
Mercer case.  Gary is upset, he thinks they should keep it open and pursue
the Grant angle.  Joe reminds him there's no evidence, but Gary vows he
won't drop it.  He later reports to Joe that he reluctantly put Mercer's
file in the archives - almost threw it in the trash, where garbage like
him belongs.  At that, a woman starts hitting him angrily with her purse. 
As Joe restrains her, she reveals that she's Cody Mercer's mother!  After
they subdue her, she says she came for Cody's personal effects - he wasn't
really a bad person, she claims.  Gary makes a snide comment, and Joe
sends him out for Cody's effects.  As he returns, Joe is assuring Mrs.
Mercer that the cops did their best to capture Cody alive.  Your best
wasn't good enough, she snarls, I read the paper, he was murdered - by a
civilian - that cold-blooded killer, Grant Harrison!  Highly agitated, she
points out how Grant's getting off scot free because of his wealth and
connections.  Gary tends to agree.  As she's leaving, she drops her purse
and an envelope falls out.  Gary sees that it's a letter from Cody,
postmarked the day before he died.  She admits it arrived after his death,
she hasn't had the heart to open it yet.  They want to bring in Gabe and
examine the letter, it could be important evidence.  She reluctantly
agrees. 


     CARLINOS - Paulina helps Sofia set up a large table for her business
class, the prof wanted an informal setting for their last session. 
Sofia's a nervous wreck, and exits to the kitchen to check on Angelo. 
     Jake sneaks in and startles Paulina from behind, to her irritation,
but he looks so exuberant that she asks excitedly if he's popped the
question to Vicky.  He tells her about the 24-hour deadline he gave Vicky
to decide her feelings.  Paulina slaps him several times with a napkin and
finally throws it at him for being such an idiot, but Jake is sure Vicky
will soon agree to marry him.  He asks to see the ring Paulina is holding
for him.  She pulls it out of the cash register, they ooh and aah over it,
then he insists she put it on (her other hand) so he can get the full
effect.  Grant slithers in and watches from a distance as they admire the
ring and share a good-luck hug.  After more kidding around, Paulina
suggests Jake go back to work.  He goes to call the office, while Paulina
struggles to remove the ring, which is stuck.  Grant comes up and probes
her for info about the ring.  She tells him to bug off, but he's so
persistent she ends up saying enough to confirm his guess that Jake's
proposed to Vicky but she hasn't accepted.  Sofia scurries in, and she and
Paulina get back to work on Sofia's luncheon.  Grant tries to stop Jake on
his way out.  Jake almost snubs him, but he can't resist a dig about how
much Kirk enjoyed Thanksgiving without him.  Stay away from my family,
Grant warns.  You don't have one, needles Jake, no one wants you around
anymore, not even your old buddy Gabe!  I'm used to it, I can take
rejection - *can you?* smirks Grant (referring to Vicky).  Grant exits, as
Jake's smile fades into a scowl. 
     Back at the luncheon - After their meal, the prof informs Sofia and
the rest of the class that he's assigning each one to an (unpaid)
internship with a local business, which will be the bulk of their grade. 
He hands an envelope to each one - one gets KBAY, another an ad agency,
another a bank.  Sofia opens hers and looks dismayed, I think we can guess
where it is.  After the others leave, she takes the prof aside and says
she can't possibly take this assignment.  He tells her there's no way
she's getting out of this, you don't get that option in the real world -
I'll be watching you, don't let me down.  He exits.  Paulina comes over,
anxious for a report on how it went.  The meal was great, says Sofia, but
the class was a disaster, this'll be the worst month of my life.  [Perhaps
she's forgetting the Maggie pregnancy bombshell which ruined her wedding
to Nick and drove her to a near-fatal car crash??  That was a pretty bad
month, I thought...]


     HOSPITAL - Grant skulks over and spots Cindy.  He thanks her for
getting him brochures on rehab equipment, then asks how Sharlene's doing. 
Better, says Cindy, but she sure could use some of that rehab equipment,
it's just too expensive for most hospitals unless some angel donates it,
hint hint hint.  He's noncommittal, but comments on the surprise
Thanksgiving dinner they had for Sharlene - must have been nice for you to
have Gabe there, he says with veiled innuendo.  She eyes him warily, and
excuses herself to get back to work.  He smiles slyly and exits. 
     Grant tracks down Michael in his office and expresses how sorry he
is.  Michael, highly skeptical, excuses himself to take a seat for this
performance.  This better be good, he tells Grant.  I know the Hudsons
have written me off, Grant starts.  Hey, Mike retorts angrily, Ryan's
death broke Vicky's heart, and you've made every day since then a living
hell for her - a little white flag won't cut it!  Grant claims he, too,
has paid a heavy price for Ryan's death, but whines that Carl won't accept
that; Carl lured me to the depot, Steven was nearly killed, so I've
decided to end the hostility here and now, believe it or not.  I'll
believe it when I see it, sneers Mike.  Grant: Fair enough, I just want
peace.  Mike: Go light, I just ate.  I understand, says Grant, I just hope
someday you'll choose to understand me.  He exits.  I do, mutters Mike,
all too well. 

     Later, Donna brings Mike the tickets for their romantic getaway
cruise next week.  He's surprised but pleased; they're cooing into each
other's ears and kissing when Cass makes a cameo appearance to interrupt
with Fundraiser business.  Seems the invites are all ready to go out, his
job is nearly done, but Mike's is about to kick in next week - schmoozing
all the corporate bigwigs Cass has lined up, to get big bucks out of them. 
Sorry, Mike tells a disgruntled Donna, duty calls. 

     Meanwhile, Cindy pops into Lorna's office to invite her to lunch. 
Sorry, I'm swamped, says Lorna.  Cindy asks if Grant has stopped by,
thought he might be considering donating some rehab equipment?  He usually
has his own agenda, observes Lorna.  Yeah, hard to believe he and Gabe
were ever friends, says Cindy, or that you and Grant were once -
oops...she stops as Lorna shoots her a glare (pretending it was an
accidental, unconscious gaffe).  Forget it, it's common knowledge, says
Lorna - but in those days, I hadn't yet learned to judge character. [Got
that, Cindy?] Speak of the devil, Grant arrives, and Cindy exits.  Grant
invites Lorna to dinner sometime, in appreciation for her having been kind
to him in the past.  Lorna's bemused, but firmly declines.  As an
afterthought [yeah, right], he asks if Gabe's still working on the Mercer
case.  So that's your angle, scoffs Lorna - we really don't bring our work
home, but as far as I know the Mercer case is history. 


     HERALD NEWSROOM - Chris gives Carl the last bit of info the paper has
on Mercer, going back 10 years.  Will this be enough for your "book," 
Chris asks (to catch Carl in a lie and figure out his real angle).  Carl
is baffled at first [they always are - but you'd think Carl of all people
could keep his lies straight], then replies wryly that what he's working
on "will be very well read."  He hands Chris an envelope with his
appreciation, then runs into Matt on his way out.  He asks about Rachel; 
Matt says she's better now that Carl's gone.  Tell her I carry her in my
heart, Carl asks, but Matt refuses.  I understand, says Carl, exiting [see
below].  Chris asks Matt what's up with him and Carl, the tension was
obvious.  It's personal, says Matt.  Nick snidely observes that they
should try out for The Love Connection. 


     VICKY'S HOUSE - Vicky sits in front of a roaring fire, holding Ryan's
picture.  She tells him she missed him at Thanksgiving, remembering
Thanksgivings they'd spent together.  I still have a lot to be thankful
for, bad luck seems to turn around, like - Steven was almost hit by a
train, but Bobby appeared in time to rescue him, almost as if he...  As if
I what? asks Bobby, who's entered unseen.  Vicky, startled, puts the
picture back on the mantle and says she's just trying to make sense of
what happened that night - how did he know to look for Steven on the
tracks?  Bobby admits he didn't see or hear anything, he just had a
feeling so he went, it was a lucky break.  He says he went back to the
depot that night because he was too keyed up to sleep, then admits he was
also debating whether to join their Thanksgiving dinner.  He's not much
for holidays, he says, but decided to be there because of how close he was
getting to her and the kids.  She says she was gratified to have all her
friends and family in her house that day.  But one thing was missing,
Bobby observes; he takes Ryan's picture from the mantle and shows it to
her.  He begs her to stop looking for signs of Ryan in him, he's not Ryan,
I have Ryan's corneas but they're *my eyes*!  Vicky reminds him he'd told
her that night he thought he was here for a reason.  That's not how I
meant it, he says, it's like when two people finally meet, and for the
first time...  Her eyes widen, searchingly gazing at him, waiting for him
to continue, but he looks distressed, not sure what to say.  With
impeccable timing, Donna swoops in laden with shopping bags, complaining
to Bobby about the weather stripping on the door.  Or is this a bad time? 
she realizes unapologetically.  After a moment, he says he'll fix the door
later, gotta go.  He hands the picture back to Vicky and exits. 


     BOBBY'S PLACE - Bobby returns home, and is startled to find Carl
sitting inside waiting, having picked the lock.  He drops his irritation
when Carl presents him with the remaining info on Mercer.  His connections
to Grant included their mutual prison time, Josie's ransom, and the
wedding shoot-out.  Bobby agrees with Carl that Grant's transformation to
hero status was awfully quick and convenient.  Bobby's hopeful that they
can find a way to nail Grant, he's already ruined Carl's marriage.  Carl
refuses to believe his separation from Rachel is permanent, we're
soul-mates, Grant can't touch that for long.  Carl is convinced Grant
carefully timed and engineered the scene at the depot to alienate Rachel. 
Bobby gets an idea: why not let Grant think he's won, that Carl is broken
and bereft?  He might let his guard down, Carl agrees.  And then I'll nail
the S.O.B., Bobby promises - I'm just afraid his next target is Vicky. 
Carl turns the subject to how Bobby is doing with Vicky.  Bobby thinks she
wants to trust him, but she still sees Ryan when she looks at him.  Carl
encourages him to start with how *he* feels, and then take action.  He
recounts how, when he fell for Rachel, she was still mourning for Mac,
beloved by the whole community, like Ryan only more so.  If I'd waited for
Rachel to see my worth, I'd have gotten nowhere - look to your heart,
urges Carl.  Thanks, I will, Bobby half-smiles. 


     VICKY'S HOUSE - Donna finds Vicky on her front steps, deep in
thought, and sits beside her.  She's agonizing that she's hurting both
Jake and Bobby.  Donna insists neither one is right for her, not the right
breeding - I know this nice Vanderbilt...  Vicky points out that no one had
better breeding, status, or social class than Grant - I won't make that
mistake again.  All right, Donna sighs, then who will your next mistake
be - Jake, or Bobby? 


     NEWSROOM - Matt comes out later and hands out paychecks.  Nick
complains that he's been shorted.  Matt claims he's been shirking, which
Nick denies.  Jake enters (after his run-in with Grant); everyone
surrounds him with financial problems.  Later! Jake shouts, and retreats
to his office, closing the door.  He picks up the phone and dials... 


     VICKY'S HOUSE - Vicky thanks Donna for all her help, you're right,
I'm better off alone.  As Donna leaves, Vicky hears the phone ring and
dashes in to grab it - Bobby? she asks.  Jake is so thrown, he can't say a
word.  Hello, is anybody there, she asks.  Silence.  She hangs up. 


     NEWSROOM - Matt comes out and gives Nick a stack of menial
assignments.  Nick grumbles, not too subtly; Chris advises him to cool it
if he wants to keep his job.  Nick says he's already planning a move to
the ad department, so he'll be working under Jake again. 
     Chris pops into Jake's office to see what's bugging him - lost your
best friend?  Jake growls; Chris figures it's about Vicky again.  Jake is
desolate, I thought sure she'd come around, but it's all slipping away. 
As they slip into a series of poker analogies, Chris reminds him, the real
Jake would never just fold like this.  You're absolutely right, Jake
resolves, considerably cheered. 
     Outside, Nick makes a big show of dumping the busy work in the trash
can and handing it to Matt, I don't work for you anymore.  Just then Sofia
walks in and announces she's the new intern.  Matt glances at Nick, who
manages a surprised smile. 


     VICKY'S HOUSE - Vicky is in the shower, scrubbing her hair furiously
as she stews over Bobby and Jake.  She winces when she gets shampoo in her
eyes. 
     Downstairs, Bobby enters, calling out to her; he takes a glance at
Ryan's photo on the table, muttering about his "feelings."  He hears a
shriek and a thud from upstairs.  He dashes up the stairs, bursts through
the bathroom door, and finds Vicky naked and motionless on the floor by
the tub.  FREEZE FRAME. 




NOTE:  Late Thanksgiving = fewer shopping days before Christmas - be 
careful at the malls!

Later,

Vicky (vkorosei@sinclair.edu)
mff1


