From: Marni Centor <marni@panix.com>

GUIDING LIGHT UPDATE -- THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 1996

                   A SHOCK TO THE SYSTEM

Highlights:
* Rog's attempts to dodge ECT continue as Dinah & Hart debate his fate.
* Josh catches Annie in the act.
* Amanda's accusations knock Blake for a loop.
* Nola fails to console Matt.
* Zach convinces Nola that Van didn't commit suicide.
* Billy surprises Josh. 

MIDLAND HILLS: Rog, tied down to a bed, yells to an empty room that he 
doesn't need shock therapy. He is relieved when Leo arrives & asks if 
Leo has arranged the private plane. Leo is very worried about Rog & his 
"insane scheme." Rog says he can prove his sanity by proving Vanessa is 
alive. This further confirms Leo's belief that Rog has lost his grip. 
Leo thinks shock treatments might not be such a bad idea. Rog says he's 
going to give Dinah a shock when he reveals the truth about her mother.

REARDON YARD: Dinah flips through a photo album & tells Bill that the 
pictures of mom are amazing. Bill found it in the attic & thinks it 
would be nice to have at the memorial service. He wishes Henry was there 
to tell some good stories about Van. Dinah can't believe they lost them 
both so close together. But at least they're together now. Bill says 
he's going back to the attic to see what else he can find. Dinah reminds 
him that they have to leave soon. She looks through the album some more 
& cries. Hart shows up & gives her a big hug.

CEDARS: Annie downs a migraine pill, wearing an expression of agonized 
relief. Josh enters mid- swallow & says she had told him she stopped 
taking those pills. Annie says she has to get back to work, but Josh 
won't let her brush him off. He wants to know what's going on with her.

MARLER LAW OFFICE: Philip & Rick try to shut Amanda up, but she insists 
that she merely wants to praise Ross for being so understanding. Ross 
doesn't know what she's talking about. "Only you could love a woman who 
made a baby with Rick hours before she made a baby with you. Rick is the 
father of one of your twins, isn't that right, Blake?" Blake looks 
horrified, then faints. Ross & Rick rush to her side.

Amanda accuses the unconscious Blake of faking while Rick & Ross prop 
her up against a wall & try to get her to come to. Rick sends Ross for 
some juice & says the babies will be find. Ross yells at Amanda to 
apologize for her malicious lie. Amanda insists it's the truth, but Ross 
doesn't believe her & says they will get to the bottom of it. Amanda 
says that's fine with her. Blake opens her eyes.

REARDON YARD: Hart asks what he can do to help Dinah. "Can you make it 
so that time is turned back & my mother's alive?" Hart would if he 
could. He kisses Dinah's hand. She shows him the pictures of Vanessa as 
a teenager. It's like looking at someone she never knew. She wonders 
about the people in the pictures who she doesn't know. Hart reminds 
Dinah about how she & her mom loved each other & became friends. Dinah 
regrets all the years she punished Van for giving her up. Hart says Van 
forgave her a long time ago; now Dinah needs to forgive herself. Dinah 
would give anything to have her mother back.

MIDLAND HILLS: Rog can see that Leo doesn't believe he saw Van. "I 
believe you believe you saw her," replies Leo patiently. Rog insists 
he's not crazy; he saw Van at the airport, heading for Switzerland. Leo 
says Van died in a car crash. Rog says he "died" without a trace twice; 
he knows how it can be done. He wants Leo to get him out of the nut 
hatch. Leo is convinced that Rog is "wacked" & refuses to untie him. As 
Leo leaves the room, Rog yells after him that he's not nuts & he can 
prove Van is alive. Dr. Dobson enters with a syringe.

REARDON HOUSE: Nola enters, calling for Matt. She finds him sitting in 
the living room, unshaven & deeply depressed. She hugs him & tells him 
not to blame Vanessa. "Blame her for what?" he asks.

Nola covers, realizing that Matt still doesn't know about Van's illness. 
She says sometimes people get angry because they're left behind. She 
suggests that Matt get himself cleaned up for the service. Matt doesn't 
care how he looks. He doesn't give a damn what people think. His wife is 
dead & nothing will change that. Nola apologizes & Matt heads upstairs. 
Nola is verging on tears.

Zachary enters & Nola asks why Van couldn't have told Matt the truth. 
"Why did she take her own life?" Zach says that's not what happened.

CEDARS: Annie says her problem is Rick, who is convinced that she's 
traded one addiction for another. She hopes Josh doesn't agree with him. 
Josh says he thought Annie threw her pills away. "I did," she replies, 
and adds that she was fine on vacation. Her meditation & biofeedback 
worked wonders. Josh asks why she's taking the pills again, then. 
"Because nothing else was working," she admits. The news about Vanessa 
brought on a headache & nausea so bad that she went to Dr. Stein for a 
few more pills. Josh is very concerned.

ROSS'S OFFICE: Blake gets up with Rick's help & asks where Ross is. Rick 
says he went to get juice. Amanda says the truth was obviously too much 
for Blake. Blake is sorry she didn't set fire to the construction shack 
after locking Amanda in. Amanda is just returning the favor. They toss a 
few barbs back & forth. Blake says Ross won't believe Amanda & Rick adds 
that there's no reason he should, since Amanda is lying. 

Ross returns with the juice. Blake says she's fine & Rick says the 
babies are too. Ross asks Amanda what has possessed her. "Everyone but 
you knows that Rick & Blake had an affair," she claims. Rick & Blake 
both say this is a lie. Amanda says the story is all over Cedars -- the 
amazing tale of how 1 woman got knocked up by 2 men. Philip asks why 
Amanda would think Blake was that woman. Amanda reminds Ross of the 
morning he found Rick in his bathroom, after having spent the night with 
Blake. "If you made love to Blake shortly after Rick left... you can 
figure out the odds." Ross turns to Blake & asks whether there's a shred 
of truth to anything Amanda has said.

Rick says the only truth is that Amanda is back at her tricks. Philip 
agrees. Amanda insists that deep down, Ross knows she's telling the 
truth. "Blake & I did not have an affair," states Rick. Blake backs him 
up. Amanda paints the scene: Blake knew Ross & Amanda were at the cabin, 
Rick hadn't had any in ages, factor in a few drinks & voila--twins by 2 
dads. Blake can't take much more of this. Rick says she doesn't have to. 
He tells Ross he's seen the CVS test results & there's no doubt the 
twins are "totally identical." So much for Amanda's theories. "This is 
the part where you apologize," says Ross. Amanda says she meant no harm. 
She only meant to applaud his forgiving nature. "Shut up!" yells Ross. 
"This time you have crossed the line & you're going to pay for it."

REARDON HOUSE: Zach says Van didn't commit suicide. Nola would like to 
believe him, but knows Van didn't want to burden her family. Zach knows 
for a fact that Van wanted to live more than anything. Her accident was 
just that, & it allowed her to leave this life before her illness got 
worse. "She's in a better place now," he preaches. Nola believes this. 
But it's so sad. So much love wasted. Zach says love is never wasted; 
love lasts long after the people who felt it are gone. Nola remembers 
that Henry used to say that love is the only thing that lasts.

Bill comes downstairs with a hula hoop he found in the attic. He wonders 
whose it was. Bill says it has Van's initials on it. Nola thinks Van is 
amazing.

Out in the yard, Hart assures Dinah that her mom's love will always be 
with her. Dinah thinks Hart is incredible & says she loves him. She 
notices that he looks sad. Hart was thinking about how Dinah & Van 
connected & how lucky they were. It was beautiful. Even if Rog lives to 
be 100, Hart will never have that. Dinah hugs Hart, feeling sorry for 
him. Maybe the shock therapy will help Rog be the kind of father he 
never was. Hart pulls away--what is Dinah talking about? He thought ECT 
was a dead issue. She says Dr. Dobson is going ahead with the treatment. 
Hart says she has to stop it. "I can't," replies Dinah.

MIDLAND HILLS: Rog begs the doc to leave him alone. She says she's 
giving him a muscle relaxant so he won't thrash around during the ECT. 
Rog insists he doesn't need ECT. Dr. Dobson gives him the injection.

CEDARS: Josh watches as Annie checks out a little boy's injured knee. 
The boy complains that Josh is staring at him. Annie reminds the boy he 
has to wear his helmet & kneepads when he skateboards. A candy striper 
wheels him out. "Not bad for a pill popper," says Annie. Josh says she 
isn't being fair. Annie says what's not fair is Josh accusing her of 
putting one over on him. She couldn't have helped that little boy if she 
had a migraine. Josh says once Annie starts taking the pills, she seems 
to take a lot of them, & he doesn't know where she's at. Annie says 
she's frustrated too. Everybody has their weakness, such as Josh's back 
spasms, Shayne's ear infections & Marah's allergies. Josh is just 
concerned because he loves Annie. She's come a long way & is doing very 
well & they have to be careful. 

Annie turns the conversation to Vanessa. She's devastated even though 
she only knew Van a short time; she can only imagine what Josh is going 
through. Josh reminisces about he & Van used to be business rivals & how 
she was so different from Billy, but they were so perfect together. HB 
thought Van would tame Billy, but it never happened. He mentions that he 
spoke to HB, who is in the South Pacific. HB asked Josh to tell Matt 
he's praying for him. HB used to say that when you lose someone you 
love, you think about the good times you had together. Josh tears up & 
Annie hugs him tearfully.

REARDON YARD: Dinah says nothing else has worked with Roger. "That's 
because there's nothing wrong with him," points out Hart. Dinah says Rog 
was pretty screwed up even before they messed with his head. She reminds 
him that Rog tried to kill him, & adds that he was even so cruel as to 
tell Dinah her mother was alive. Dinah can't understand why Hart is 
defending Rog. Hart just think giving Rog shock treatments is wrong. 
"He's an SOB, but he's not insane." Dinah says the doctors think he is, 
and maybe ECT is really what Rog needs. Maybe it will make him a real 
father to Hart. Hart won't agree. He insists that Dinah call it off or 
he'll go to Dr. Dobson & tell her the truth about what they did to Rog. 
Dinah says that will land them both in jail. "Is that what you want?"

MIDLAND HILLS: The muscle relaxant has taken effect. Rog, very subdued, 
still insists he's not crazy & doesn't need the ECT. The doc says Rog 
will be much happier after the treatment. "It can't end this way," says 
Rog. Dr. Dobson says it's a new beginning. She leaves to get the ECT 
team. Rog struggles out of bed & lurches toward the ECT machine.

ROSS'S OFFICE: Ross can't believe Amanda is still throwing her evil 
tentacles his way. He once mistakenly believed Amanda over Blake & he'll 
never make that mistake again. Amanda tries to pin the blame on Ross, 
saying if he had just agreed to represent her, none of this would have 
happened. Ross calls her a "self-serving, self-absorbed, tax-evading 
whore" & says he never wants to see her again. She's dead as far as he's 
concerned. Amanda says Ross can't mean this, he's making a huge mistake. 
She continues on as Philip steers her out the door. Ross follows.

Blake guesses that Rick told Philip about their 1-nighter, because Phil 
defended her when he can't stand to look at her, & she knows Rick has a 
big mouth. Rick says he didn't have to tell; Philip guessed. Blake asks 
Rick to give her an overdose of something to put her out of her misery.

Blake slaps Rick on the arm repeatedly for being easier to read than a 
comic book. Rick says Phil is his best friend & they can trust him. "Oh 
sure we can trust him," says Blake sarcastically. "He only stole every 
girlfriend you ever had, knocked up one of your ex-wives & he hates me 
because I gave him very good reason." Rick grants that Phil dislikes 
Blake, but knows he wouldn't want to hurt Ross. Blake worries that their 
secret is spreading faster than her hips & Ross will soon hear about it 
on the World Wide Web. Rick says Ross doesn't believe Amanda's story & 
will continue to disbelieve it as long as Blake plays it cool. Blake 
hates lying to Ross. Rick says she should think about the twins & forget 
"that night" ever happened.

Ross returns & asks if Blake is OK. Blake says she's fine. Ross 
apologizes to Rick for getting caught up in Amanda's nonsense. Rick 
figures it's payback for the nasty tests he gave her at Cedars. Ross 
wonders why Rick & Philip happened to show up just when they did. Rick 
says they heard from Nettie that Amanda was on her way over & they 
figured she could only be causing trouble. He turns to go, but Ross asks 
him to explain again how he knows the twins are identical. 

SPAULDING MANSION: Amanda says Phil knows she's right about Rick & 
Blake. Phil says he doesn't care & Amanda is out of line for messing 
with the Marlers' marriage. Amanda says their marriage is a sham. Phil 
says the sham is Amanda pretending to care for Ross. She insists she's 
cared for years. Phil thinks if Amanda can't have Ross, she doesn't want 
anyone to have him. Amanda insists that she was telling the truth. Phil 
says it's none of her business. The point is that Ross loves Blake & he 
loves the imminent twins, both of which are his. And if she says 
anything different, she'll have to answer to him. He has a friend in the 
attorney general's office in Sacramento, who may be very interested to 
know about Amanda's illegal business dealings. "Prison isn't a lot of 
fun, Amanda. Ask Dad." She says he's horrible & mean. "I thought you'd 
see it my way," replies Philip.

REARDON YARD: Hart says they won't go to jail because he won't call 
Dobson. Dinah will call Dobson & call off the ECT. Dinah says if she 
calls it off at the last minute, Dobson may get suspicious. Besides, she 
thinks if Rog doesn't get "fixed" he's just going to continue to come 
after them. Hart says they have each other & they don't have to worry 
about Rog. "We've won. We don't need to torture Roger anymore. His 
demons are torturing him enough." Dinah caves in & agrees to call off 
the ECT. She kisses him & heads off to Midland Hills. Hart breathes a 
sigh of relief. "You don't know how lucky you are, Dad."

MIDLAND HILLS: Dr. Dobson & the ECT team find Rog collapsed near the ECT 
equipment. The orderlies carry him back to bed. "No, please," cries Rog. 
Dobson says she's never seen anything like this. Rog couldn't move at 
all when she left him. "Are you sure he isn't faking again?" asks one 
orderly. Dobson says he can't be; she gave the injection herself. The 
orderlies strap Rog down while Dobson muses about what Rog could have 
done if he had turned his will & determination to better things. Oh 
well, all they can do is try the ECT & hope for the best. Rog continues 
to murmur that she doesn't understand.

ROSS'S OFFICE: Rick says he knows the twins are identical because the 
CVS test results say so. The twins' DNA is a perfect match, which only 
happens with identical twins. As soon as the bbies are born, it will 
blow Amanda's theory right out of the water. Ross worries that Amanda is 
going off the deep end. Rick agrees that she's having a bad year. Ross 
hopes she doesn't get violent. Rick says he has to get back to work & 
takes off. Ross is sorry Blake had to witness all this. Blake says if 
she had lost Ross, she'd be crazy too. Ross promises on his honor as 
father of their twins that she will never lose him.

CEDARS: Josh says he'd like to be there when Annie has her next 
appointment with Dr. Stein. Annie doesn't think that's a good idea 
because he might think Josh is questioning his judgment. Josh doesn't 
care. Annie says she'll see what she can do. Josh wants to get going to 
the memorial service. Annie says she'll meet him there. He tells her 
he'll never give up on her & gives her a kiss before leaving.

Josh heads into the reception area just in time to see Billy walk 
through the door. Billy gives his little brother a big hug & a smile.

REARDON HOUSE: Out by the front door, Nola tells Zach she feels better 
knowing Van & her family don't have to go through all the suffering that 
was in store for them. She says now it's up to her to help Matt remember 
Van the way she would have wanted.

Matt walks into the living room with a cup of coffee, still looking 
pretty disheveled. He finds the photo album on the couch & opens it to 
the first page. After staring at the photos for a minute, he flings the 
book to the floor. Looking down at where he threw it, an envelope on the 
floor catches his eye. The return address is Cedars Hospital. He looks 
at it wonderingly.

MIDLAND HILLS: Dinah paces in the hallway. In Rog's room, the orderlies 
finish tying him down & Dr. Dobson says it's time to start the 
procedure. She flicks a switch on the control panel & stares down at Rog 
as the screen fades to black. 


--Marni (marni@panix.com)



