From: Susan Richmond <susan@webspan.net>

Hi everbody!

Before I get started, I'd just like to wish everyone a very happy 4th of 
July.  Today's episode was a good one, IMHO.  Not only did it have my 
FCC Tony, but there were many good LOD to choose from.  The last few 
weeks were so serious on Thursday, it was hard to find even one.
So, here we go....


				THE CITY UPDATE
		  	   Thursday, July 4th, 1996


AT THE MENS SOCIAL CLUB
Location:  See above

*Since Tony won't come to see his Uncle Gino, Gino left the family's 4th
of July picnic to come see Tony.  Gino needs to talk to him.  Uncle Gino 
sends Joey outside to watch the car. Joey leaves. "(I) see some things 
never change, huh unc, you say jump, people say how high."  "This is 
true, Tony, except for you" Uncle Gino says.  So, what is it that Tony 
wants to know?

*Tony doesn't ever ask Uncle Gino anything because he doesn't want to 
owe Gino anything.  But you're my nephew, Gino says.  But with Uncle 
Gino, there's always a price, no disrespect intended, it's just the 
truth.  Gino says that even when Tony was a boy, he didn't need anybody. 
Tony denies this, he needs lots of people.  "But not your Uncle Gino"  
This time, to get his answers, he might need Gino.  OK then, "Was 
somebody in the 'family' responsible for Jared Chase's murder?" asks 
Tony.

*The 'family' had nothing to do with Jared's death, they never even had 
any business with him. "It's the truth, Tony", Uncle Gino swears.  Then 
what about the hit on Tony?  Gino checked around with the other 
'families'.  No one would want to upset Gino by killing his nephew, it 
wasn't one of them.  Then why was Joey working for Jared, Tony wants to 
know.  Joey didn't admit it, but he knew about the hit.  Gino says he 
doesn't know, but Tony doesn't buy it.  Why won't Joey answer questions 
now that Jared's dead and can't hurt him?  Why would Uncle Gino come all 
the way from Brooklyn on a holiday just because Tony was asking Joey a 
few questions?  He finds it hard to believe that Gino(head of the 
'family') would be so out of touch.  But Gino doesn't have the answers, 
"I swear it on my daughter's life".  Tony starts to believe he really 
doesn't know.  Now the price - a small one - Gino asks Tony to come out 
to Brooklyn and have dinner with him and Carla(his daughter).  Tony and 
Carla apparently don't get along too well.  She can be "difficult", Gino 
admits.  She's ambitious, which Gino blames on her business degree from 
Harvard.  Carla walks in at that moment. "Hi papa", she says, then looks 
at Tony "look what the wind blew in".

*Gino reminds Carla that it's a men's social club(Do they still have 
such things?)  "I'm sure the members will survive, Papa".  Carla has her 
papa on a strict diet and followed him to make sure he didn't sneak out 
to have all the things he's not supposed to eat.  The waiter tries to 
bring them their drinks, but Carla(being very bossy) sends him away, 
ordering instead de-caf expresso, no cream or sugar.(Yuk!!)  Joey comes 
back in, something came up, it can't wait, Gino has to go.  Gino will 
let Tony know if he hears something.  Gino and Joey leave - "Come, Joey" 
(good dog:-)  "Well, well, well, the lady still knows how to make an 
entrance", taunts Tony.  "Cut the crap, Tony.  What do you want and what 
does it have to do with my father", Carla replies.


AZURE AND ZOE 
Location:  The City Bar

*Azure walks into the City Bar. Zoe greets her and they hug.  Azure 
thanks Zoe for inviting her, she didn't think she had any friends left.
"So you had a little surgery, big deal"  Azure wishes Bernardo would see 
it that way. "He will.  He's a guy.  It's a guy thing, you know, his 
emotional clock runs on slo-mo.", Zoe tries to reassure her.  Bernardo 
has made it clear it's over, Azure just wants to leave town.  Zoe knows 
exactly how she feels - "my middle name was cut and run".  But now Zoe 
has people here she just can't ditch, like Richard and Nick.  Zoe tells 
Azure that Nick isn't doing well.  She wants to tell him that Richard is 
his son, "but the truth might kill him".

*Nick finding out about Richard would be a shock - one he doesn't need 
right now.  Azure promises not to say anything.  Azure thanks Zoe for 
being her friend.  Lots of people like her, Zoe tells her, it's Azure 
that's making things hard by hiding out.  Zoe's main concern is Nick and 
Richard right now, but if she's not going to tell them, what can she do?

*Zoe told Richard the other day to go visit Nick.  Zoe knows he'll go, 
hoping to see Zoe there.  This way, Nick and Richard will get to know 
each other and become friends.  Then Zoe will tell them the truth and 
they'll be "one big, small happy family".  It's not the relationship she 
wanted with Richard but... Suddenly she jumps up, she's got to go.  Zoe 
leaves a puzzled Azure sitting there.


I DREAM OF JARED
Location:  Nick's apartment

*Nick's sleeping on the couch, wrapped in a plaid blanket.  He's 
dreaming of Jared talking to him after he was attacked.  Jared is 
blaming him for the baggage Sydney brought to their marriage, Nick's 
bastard son.  Nick says "I'll kill him" out loud.  Lorraine comes over 
and wakes him.  He was having a horrible dream, but it felt like it was 
real.  "What if it wasn't a dream?"

*Nick struggles to sit up with Lorraine's help.  Lorraine says he 
couldn't have killed Jared in the condition he was in.  Nick remembers 
Jared's voice during the attack, talking about Syd and Nick's son.  "Why 
would he be talking about that now?"

*He and Sydney had a child? (Lorraine obviously hadn't heard about it 
before)  The child died at birth.  Nick didn't even know until earlier 
this year.  It happened a long time ago, before she married Jared, so 
why was it bothering Jared so much?  Jared was talking about the kid 
like he was still alive. "It doesn't add up", says a confused Nick.

*Lorraine trys to convince him it was all a dream.  Actually, he's not 
thinking about that, he's thinking of all the trouble he's given 
Lorraine.  If she wants out, he'll understand, this wasn't part of the 
deal.  "The deal was that you were going to make a big come-back with 
your CD and I'll have my first free meal ticket in my life", Lorraine 
jokes.  "That was the deal?", Nick says, laughing "I don't remember that 
part of the deal".  The doorbell rings, it's Richard.  Zoe thought Nick 
could use some visitors.  Richard sits down and gives Nick a Raymond 
Chandler book which he's brought for Nick.  The doorbell rings agains.  
Lorraine goes to answer it.  Zoe sees Nick and Richard talking, she 
doesn't want to come in, "she got what she wanted". Zoe walks away.


COFFINS 'R US
Location: Sydney's Penthouse

Sydney and Richard are entering the penthouse, they've been picking out 
a coffin for Jared. "Do you think Jared would have approved of the plush 
white velvet you selected for him?", Richard asks.  Sydney says it 
doesn't matter if he approves, he's finally gone.

R: "For the second time."
S: "Well, you know what they say, 'two's the charm'"
R: "Actually, I think it's three"
S: "Whatever it takes"

Richard doesn't understand, if Sydney hated Jared so much, why did she 
stay with him when he came back?  Did Jared have something on Sydney?

*Sydney explains that Jared had become a crook, diverting funds from 
Chase International for years.  That's why she had to call off the 
merger, they couldn't open their books to the public.  Why would Jared 
Chase need more money, Richard wants to know?  Maybe for the thrill, he 
loved to play games and he loved to wim.  Jared faked his death, stole a 
fortune in gold and hid it in the building.  He thought things had 
cooled off enough to come back and get it, but Sydney hadn't told anyone 
he was dead and Richard had rented out the building, making it 
impossible to get the gold out.  But that still doesn't explain why 
Sydney stayed with him. Sydney tells him she got the gold before Jared 
did and "got the satisfaction of knowing that before Jared died, he knew 
that he'd gone to all this trouble for nothing.  She stayed with an 
"abusive monster like Jared Chase" for money?  Love maybe, but not just 
the money, Richard doesn't buy it, there has to be more.

*Doesn't Sydney have enough money?  She should have thrown Jared out 
immediately.  Sydney claims she stayed with Jared to get information.
Now that Sydney has control of Chase Enterprises, she wants to bring 
Richard into the company.  Talk turns to Zoe - Richard isn't seeing her 
anymore, isn't that what Sydney wanted?  Sydney didn't think that Zoe 
was an "appropriate partner" for him.  Well, Zoe dumped Richard for one 
of her old boyfriends.  Richard had thought they were so happy together. 
Richard loves her so much that he still hangs around and does what she 
asks, pathetic, huh?  That's why he's going to visit Nick, because Zoe 
asked him to.  Richard leaves to go see Nick (see above).  Sydney says 
to herself, "I did do it all for love, Richard.  I did it for you, all 
for you."


THE MERRY WIDOW
Location:  Funeral Home

*As the scene begins, we see Jared lying in his open casket at the 
funeral home.  Classical music is playing in the background.  Sydney 
enters the room and slowly walks down a long red carpet to the coffin.  
She puts her hands on the edge of the coffin, looks down at Jared and 
says, "Ohh darling........you've got on too much blush."   Sydney reads 
a card from one of the flower arrangements. "Well, Jared my darling, the 
only person who's going to miss you is our stockbroker."  She tells 
Jared that Richard is with Nick right now.  After all Jared did to her, 
it's ironic that Richard may still find out that Nick's his father.  
Also, the police suspect her in Jared's death. "Course you and I both 
know I have absolutely no idea who got off the *winning* shot."  "I can 
handle anything at all because this time I know that you are now truly, 
really dead."  She turns to leave, but then looks back at Jared 
suspiciously.  She takes off her pin and jabs Jared in the chest with 
it.  "Just checking"  (Ouch!!!)

To be continued...

LOD:  Several good choices, but the winner is:

	Sydney: (to Jared's body)"Ohh darling....you've got on too much 
                                       blush"


Sorry it's so long today, I was trying to keep it shorter, but it seemed 
to take on a life of it's own:-).  As always, comments/suggestions are 
welcome. See you next week.

--
Susan

FCC Tony


