From: Marni Centor <marni@panix.com>


GUIDING LIGHT TGIF UPDATE -- FRIDAY, JUNE 23, 1995

HIGHLIGHTS
* Marah & Reva have a heart-to-heart.
* Matt goes from rescuer to hostage.
* Tangie alerts the police to Brent's presence; Fletch stops the presses.
* Lucy, Brent & A-M struggle in a cliffhanger confrontation.

Evening in Springfield, U.S.A....

CEDARS HOSPITAL: In an ER-esque shot, Marah is wheeled into the hospital 
and straight into the operating room. Annie calls out the vital signs; 
Rick calls out orders. "Tell her father what's going on," says Rick.

In an empty patient room, Josh broods over a doll. Reva tries to 
apologize. "I'm sorry this is happening." Josh does not respond. She begs 
him to say something. He sniffs back his tears & tells her calmly, "While 
you were playing your stupid little games, our daughter almost died. She 
still may die. It's your fault."

BOATHOUSE: While Brent watches from behind a door, Lucy tries to convince 
Tangie not to publish her article, which makes Brent out to be Alan's 
patsy in the attempt to hang Alan-Michael out to dry. Even if it's true, 
you can't take Brent's word for it, Lucy insists. He's a liar & a rapist. 
Tangie lies that her source is not Brent & that she hasn't talked to him. 
Lucy asks where Tangie got her information.

HIDEAWAY: Matt tries to pick the lock on Dinah's chain while she begs him 
to give it up. (She's wearing that awful neon-green t-shirt again. Bad 
color for her.) She's worried that Viktor will return any minute. Matt 
ignores her. He gives up on the lock & frees her by kicking the radiator 
until the chain comes free at that end. He hustles her toward the door as 
she protests that if she escapes before he gets the ransom, Viktor will 
come after her & maybe after members of her family. Matt thinks Dinah is 
crazy. He opens the door to stare down the barrel of Viktor's gun.

Viktor tells them to get back inside. He wants to know how Matt found 
them. Dumb luck, says Matt. "Who else knows we're here?" asks Viktor. 
Matt says he came alone & he guessed the location by the background 
noises on the tape. Viktor doesn't buy it--he thinks Matt & Dinah are "in 
cahoots" & Matt wants a piece of the pie. Dinah shakes her head at 
Viktor, trying to warn him that he's wrong & is screwing up their plans, 
but Viktor doesn't get it. "How many slices are there?" asks Matt. Viktor 
thinks Matt's awfully greedy, since he's already marrying "the goose who 
lays the golden eggs," but Matt says he was only trying to rescue Dinah. 
Dinah backs him up. Viktor doesn't trust her. He stupidly informs Matt of 
his & Dinah's partnership deal & how Dinah convinced him to double the 
ransom so she could get her share. But he has no intention of splitting 
it 3 ways. Dinah seems to realize the jig is up.

JOURNAL: Vanessa, waiting for word from the kidnapper, is on the phone 
with Bridget, looking for Matt. She's very worried about him. Cutter 
gives instructions over the phone. No tail on the pickup person, he 
insists, because that's the way Van wants it. Fletch reorganizes the next 
edition, throwing the kidnapping to page 2 & putting Tangie's Spaulding 
story on page 1. Nick wants to hold off until they can check out the 
allegations. Fletch trusts Tangie & is worried about getting scooped. He 
thinks Nick is sensitive because Alan's his uncle. Nick just knows that 
where Alan's concerned, you'd better cover all your weak spots & be 
prepared for a dirty fight. Fletch informs us all that he's been in 
Springfield since 1983 & knows what it's like to deal with Alan. He 
doesn't want to give Alan a chance to plug the loopholes or kill the 
sources. A-M rushes in, looking for Lucy. Nick says she's still at 
Tangie's. A-M is worried because Brent is back in town.

BOATHOUSE: At first, Tangie refuses to reveal her sources, but Lucy 
promises confidentiality. Tangie lies that Alan was her source. Lucy 
doesn't buy it for a second. Tangie says she's been "seeing" Alan so that 
she could get the story & that Alan was putting on one hell of a 
"supportive father" act so he could grab the company. Brent seems to like 
the way things are going. Tangie says Alan told her this because of his 
ego--he had a brilliant scam & no one to appreciate it. "Except Brent," 
comments Lucy. Tangie says she'd have liked his input on the story, but 
he's "across the continent" & she really doesn't need him. Lucy predicts 
that A-M will be destroyed by the news. Tangie shows her out. Tangie runs 
to tell Brent that Lucy's gone & doesn't suspect anything. He's gone.

CEDARS: Reva insists that she tried to tell Josh about Marah, and he 
reminds her that she ruined her credibility by crying wolf last week. 
Reva doesn't want Marah to pay for her stupidity. "It's not her time yet. 
I just wish I had the power. I'd trade eternity for her." She asks Josh 
what the doctors have said. Josh says it was only appendicitis, but 
because of the delay, it could now be fatal. The music gets all ominous & 
Reva senses that "Something's happening."

In the OR, Marah's blood pressure drops precipitously & an alarm sounds. 
The team struggles to save her. Annie pleads with Marah to stay with 
them. The scene gets all slo-mo and misty & we see Marah walking through 
a fog toward a bright light. She's smiling beatifically. Reva joins her & 
says she knows the peace & joy Marah is feeling, but it's not her time 
yet. Reva urges Marah to go back to her dad. Marah doesn't seem to notice 
Reva & starts walking toward the light. Reva stops her & tells her all 
the reasons why she has to go back to all the people who love her. "I 
know you want to be with me, & you will someday, but it's not your time 
now." The mist starts doing some funky rolling out in the direction of 
the light. There seem to be shapes taking form, then they disperse. Reva 
turns Marah away from the light & tells her to go back, "for me." Marah 
hugs her happily. "I missed you so much!" She wants to know why she can't 
stay with her mom. Reva says Josh needs her love. "You can love him 
enough for both of us." Marah begs to be allowed to stay with her mom.

Back in the OR, the team continues the battle for Marah's life. One of 
the lines on the EKG monitor goes flat, then the other. Rick initiates 
CPR & gets Marah's heart going again. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief 
& Rick closes. Out in the mist, Reva looks upward with gratitude.

HIDEAWAY: Viktor reveals the door to an old coal bin & tells Matt & Dinah 
to get inside. Dinah complains that there's no ventilation & they'll 
suffocate. "Keep your mouth shut & you won't need so much air," Viktor 
advises. :-) Dinah reminds him that he needs her to pick up the ransom 
money. V says the plans have changed. Matt wants to know what Vik's going 
to do with them. Vik says he'll let them know when he makes up his mind. 
Matt climbs into the coal bin & Vik pulls the door shut. 

Dinah whines & complains. Water drips. Dinah asks if everyone is talking 
about the kidnapping & if Van is worried about her. Matt doesn't answer. 
Dinah begs him to talk to her. "Did she get the 2 million?" she asks. 
Matt grudgingly admits that Van came up with it. He seems to be scanning 
the place for a way out. Dinah is a bit surprised that Van loves her 
enough to give up all that money. She figures Ross is worried sick, but 
he's got Blake to take care of him. Blake must be talking about her with 
more respect now & feeling guilty, she figures egocentrically. "I don't 
think so," replies Matt. "She figured this for a scam the whole time." 
Dinah tries to convince Matt that it's not a scam & Viktor was lying. 
Matt continues the silent treatment, which frustrates Dinah no end. "This 
is all your fault!" she accuses, for coming in "like some macho 
superhero." Matt informs Dinah that she's a spoiled, selfish brat.

JOURNAL: On the phone, Nick tells Tangie her article went to press 15 
minutes ago. She tells him to stop the presses, but he has no idea how to 
do that. At her request, Nick hands the phone to Cutter, who listens, 
then tells everyone that Brent's in town & forced Tangie to write the 
story at gunpoint. The cops motivate & Nick calls Fletch to stop the 
presses. Cutter tells Tangie he's sending someone to get her. Alan enters 
in time to hear that Brent's back.

DOCK: Lucy loiters nervously. She pulls a little black stick [is that 
what they call a "blackjack"?] out of her purse when a noise frightens 
her. She tries to convince herself she's imagining things as a shadow 
looms behind her. She senses something & whirls to face the shadow's 
owner. It turns out to be A-M. He wants to take her home, but she's tired 
of being afraid of her own shadow. She wonders if she'll ever be her old 
self again. A-M thinks she will. Lucy feels like Brent is haunting her 
even though he's not there. A-M is marginally successful at jollying Lucy 
out of her funk, trying to convince her that the real Lucy lurks not too 
far beneath the surface of the scared Lucy. "What would Lucy have to be 
afraid of?" asks Brent, staring at the couple with a psychotic gleam.

COAL BIN: Matt thinks Dinah is a sociopath. If she gave a damn about any 
of her family, she wouldn't be putting them through this. He gets very 
angry, thinking about the look on Van's face as she listened to Dinah's 
tape. "I know this looks bad," says Dinah. She admits she's cooperating 
with Viktor, but not for the money. "I did this for Peter," she insists. 
Matt is incredulous. "You don't give a damn about that boy!"

CEDARS: Josh kneels at the bedside in prayer. Rick enters & tells him his 
prayers have been answered--Marah's going to be fine. Josh jumps up & 
gives Rick a huge hug. Rick tells the euphoric Josh how Annie talked to 
Marah all through the operation & he thinks it helped pull her through. 
Josh hugs Rick again in thanks. Annie enters & Josh hugs her too, thank-
ing her for finding & saving Marah. Rick looks disturbed, but he leaves 
them alone & Josh professes his love for Annie & gives her a big kiss. He 
heads off to see Marah. Annie sighs happily, then turns to see Reva. 
Annie is not exactly thrilled. "This changes everything," Reva says. 

Annie doesn't want to chat. Reva is very grateful to Annie as she 
realizes how close Marah came to losing out on her future. Annie assures 
Reva that Marah will be fine & turns to leave. Reva has more to say. "I'm 
jealous of you," she admits. "Tell me something I don't know," Annie 
replies. Reva is jealous because Annie is the one who'll be around for 
Marah as she grows up. "Little by little, she'll forget about me." Annie 
is sure that's not true. Josh has kept Reva's memory alive for Marah & 
Shayne. Reva's not sure he'll want to keep doing that after what she's 
put him through recently. She thinks he'll be relieved when she leaves 
because he has Annie to take her place. And she can't be mad about it any 
more. "Because you deserve Marah's love." Annie smiles a bit. "I think 
the best thing that could possibly happen to them is you," Reva 
continues. Annie's smile widens & her eyes sparkle.

JOURNAL: Alan reams Fletcher for not divining that Tangie was being held 
at gunpoint by Brent. "She would never write lies like this," Alan 
insists. [My question is, why didn't she just add an SOS line to the 
story as she was writing it? Brent wasn't watching what she typed on the 
monitor--he was sitting across the desk from her! She could have slipped 
in a little "Help! I'm being held prisoner in the boathouse!" without his 
being any the wiser. Stupid woman. Ridiculous character. When's she 
leaving, already?] Fletch points out that there was nothing in the story 
to alert them, & besides, the accusations sounded pretty realistic to 
him. Alan claims they're ludicrous & rants about the danger Tangie was 
in. Fletch roars back that T is safe now & the presses have been stopped 
at great expense, & Alan's pristine reputation is intact. Alan goes off 
the deep end. "I don't give a damn about this article! Don't you realize 
that Tangie could have been killed!!"

Tangie walks in & assures him she's fine. She was worried he would be 
upset about the article. Alan says all he cares about is that she's OK. 
Tangie seems a little surprised that she is more important to him than 
his business & power. She now believes he's a very sensitive & caring 
man. He says he loves her. She asks him to take her home. He'd love to, 
but he's got to find A-M. He promises to drop by her place in an hour.

Cutter joins Vanessa. "The hardest part is waiting," he offers. He urges 
her not to let her imagination run wild--it's never half as bad as you 
think.

COAL BIN: Dinah says if she hadn't convinced him to take her, Viktor 
would have kidnapped Peter & gotten away with all the money. She ration-
alizes that it would have been better to have some of it stay in the 
family via her plan. Matt is dubious. She reminds him of the morning that 
she disappeared with Peter & claims she was hiding him all night so Vik 
couldn't get him. Then she convinced Vik to take her instead so Peter 
wouldn't be scared. "I did it for my family. Don't I get any points for 
that?" Matt's silence is his answer. Dinah starts feeling sorry for 
herself again. "That's the story of my life! Because every time I try to 
do something... it never comes out right. I just don't get it." She cries 
on his shoulder that she's sorry she got him into this mess. He 
grudgingly admit that if she did it for Peter, then he must have gotten 
it wrong. "But leave it to you, Dinah, to figure out how to make money on 
the deal. That's how you're mind works, & it's disgusting."

DOCK: Brent tries to make casual conversation about the weather. A-M acts 
surprised to see Brent--didn't he go to Seattle? Brent derides A-M & Lucy 
as a couple & predicts that bad genes will out in their children. Brent 
wants justice. He needs to devise a fitting punishment for the Cooper men 
for running him out of town. "What would make them see the error of their 
ways?" he wonders. He points the gun at A-M & tells Lucy to come stand 
beside him (Brent). "Come over here baby. I want you." Lucy doesn't move. 
"NOW!!!" demands Brent.

CEDARS: Josh sits on Marah's bed & promises her a triple-decker ice cream 
with sprinkles. Annie stands behind Josh, arm draped over his shoulder. 
Marah cuddles up with her doll & goes to sleep. Reva materializes behind 
Josh & Annie's backs and watches with approval, then fades away.

JOURNAL: "I've got it!" shouts Nick, as he rushes in with instructions 
left outside by the kidnapper. Cutter opens the envelope & reads aloud 
that Dinah won't be picking up the money. He stops reading when he sees 
that the kidnapper also has Matt, but Vanessa senses that something else 
is wrong & takes Cutter aside, where he tells her the bad news. 

COAL BIN: Dinah takes Matt's "disgusting" comment as a reference to her 
appearance, which she knows is horrid at the moment. He bursts her bubble 
by telling her that wasn't his meaning. He strips down to his little 
black t-shirt as she babbles on about knights in shining armor. "I did it 
for your mother," he insists. "Is that the only reason?" she asks. "Why 
did you come, Matt? Why did you rescue me?" Their faces are very close.

DOCK: Lucy stays put. Brent points the gun again & informs A-M that with 
a gun on his side, the odds are strongly in his favor. A-M notes that 
Brent will go directly to jail if he shoots A-M. Lucy doesn't like the 
decidedly desperate look in Brent's eyes & says she'll go with him if he 
puts down the gun. "I don't want anybody getting hurt," she tells A-M. 
Brent tucks the gun in his waistband & Lucy stares into A-M's eyes. 
"Please," she implores him. She turns & walks slowly toward Brent, who is 
practically salivating. "Come on, come on," he says. "I won't hurt you." 

When Lucy gets within reach, Brent grabs her with one arm & pulls the gun 
on A-M again with the other. Lucy starts begging & pleading with Brent 
while he taunts A-M & dares him to try to fight back. Lucy's got her 
little stick in her hand behind Brent. Suddenly, she whips it out & slams 
it down hard on Brent's gun arm. He drops the gun & she kicks it in A-M's 
direction. A-M grabs it as Brent runs at him. Brent gets him into a 
corner & slams A-M's hand against the wall until he drops the gun. A-M 
punches Brent in the face & Brent goes down, after the gun again. A-M & 
Lucy both rush toward him. They're all huddled so closely together that 
it's impossible to see who has the gun. A-M & Brent struggle with each 
other and there's a flash at gut level as the gun booms. A-M jerks 
backward & Brent grimaces, but it's impossible to see who's hanging on to 
whom for support as the screen fades to black.

[At first I thought A-M was shot, but then Brent's grimace threw me off. 
I am guessing that A-M was jerked back by the recoil of the gun & that 
Brent was the one who took the bullet. I guess we'll just have to hang 
onto the edge of the cliff until Monday!]


--Marni (marni@panix.com)



