The Dry Drunk

Nicole holds her bus tickets. We pan up as she looks at them and tells Sydney they could soon be on their way to Canada, "Home free." Nicole dreams of Canada. She tells Sydney she's not so sure she's doing the right thing, "If only I had a sign."

The Lord God Almighty booms, "Nicole, you are doing the wrong thing. Kidnapping is a serious crime. You shouldn't run from your mistakes. Take the baby back to Salem and give her to her rightful parents. If you do that I will watch over you and protect you during your coming ordeal and, what's more, I will forgive you. I will help you make it through this. I will, in fact, (say it with Him) be there for you."

Nicole shakes her head, "No... I mean I want a real sign. Don't I get tablets of stone with that or something?"

Loserclueless shows up at Sami's place. Will answers the door as Lucas announces he was an exemplary patient, "I didn't have a single drink while I was there. Unfortunately, my motor mouth drove three of the staff members to drink and they are now in rehab." He says he wanted to see Will to apologize before he sees anyone else.

Will is reticent, "Things aren't OK here. It's mom. She lost her baby — again. My little sister."

"What happened," asks Lucas, "Did she forget which babysitter had her again?"

Sami pesters Brady as he tries to convince people Nicole may come home. Sami sees a ray of sunshine. EJ listens and ponders his coffee cup.

The PA system announces the bus to Toronto is boarding. Nicole takes that as her sign. Some people get tablets of stone, others get a scratchy announcement in a seedy bus station.

Stephanie shows up at Maggie's door. Maggie finds her putting down an envelope she has started to leave there. Stephanie says the hospital administrator wanted her to deliver it. Maggie thinks Stephanie was trying to avoid her since she didn't ring the doorbell. Stephanie says she feels uncomfortable about their last conversation so she decided a hit and run was the best tactic. She also says Melanie and Nathan are together and there is nothing they can do to stop it.

Nathan breaks up Melanie and Phillip before they can kiss, "HEY! WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?"

EJ stands up and pontificates. He tells Brady he can't convince Nicole to do anything. They argue. "You bullied her," says Brady.

"Maybe I should have been a compassionate junkie instead" says EJ. Rafe breaks things up. Brady wants to trace the call. EJ thinks that's a "fancy." Oooo... such salty language.

Nicole flashes back to her conversation with Brady. The bus driver comes up and asks if she's getting on the bus, "Everyone else is on board and we're ready to leave."

Melanie uses the standard excuse, "Nathan... It's not what you think." She contends it just happened, but Phillip doesn't agree=, "Nathan deserves to know the truth. The whiskey here is watered down."

Will gives Lucas the update on Nicole and the switcheroo. Lucas obsesses about Chloe's role in the whole thing.

Well as I live and breathe. It's Daniel and Chloe standing in the hallway at the hospital. They finally got out of bed long enough so Daniel could go to work. Chloe followed so he would have something to grope between female patients.

Former presidential candidate Ross Perot has issued the following statement, "I was wrong. That giant sucking sound turned out to be Daniel and Chloe finally coming up for air."

Chloe rants about Nicole kidnapping Sydney. Daniel tires to calm her down. "I made a mistake," blubbers Chloe, "It's one of the worst things I've ever done."

"Worse than breaking a promise to God," asks Daniel.

"God forgives," says Chloe, "Lucas doesn't."

EJ and Brady bicker. Rafe once again steps in and provides the voice of reason. When Rafe is the voice of reason is when you know it's time to haul out the straightjackets. The Rafester leaves to contact the FBI and Roman. Brady tells Sami, "I swear to God, I think she's on her way back."

"I don't," says Sami, "I agree with EJ. I appreciate your optimism, but she's obsessed and will do whatever she can to keep Sydney."

Nicole weighs her options and gets on the bus.

Maggie invites Stephanie in and digs about Nathan and Melanie. Stephanie sees the conversation that's coming and says, "This is why I didn't ring the doorbell. It's funny how your dignity goes out the window when... I told Nathan how I feel and wish I hadn't. He said he's not interested." Maggie laps it up as Stephanie says Nathan is dealing with the same situation with Melanie because Melanie can't shake Phillip.

Phillip explains what was going on as Nathan gets macho. Melanie asks for a minute alone with Nathan. She takes him aside and tries to smooth things over. Nathan asks, "Would you have kissed Phillip if I hadn't walked in and stopped you."

Melanie admits it, "Yes. I would have."

Nathan tells Hester, "That's such a heinous sin. For the rest of your life you'll have to wear a big red letter "K" on your blouse."

Daniel tells Chloe Nicole has lied to her for over a year. Chloe still blames herself. Daniel insists Chloe isn't responsible. He moves in, hugs and supports.

EJ blows his stack abut Brady springing Nicole. Rafe bustles back in with news, "I've figured out where Nicole was when she called Brady!"

"Where," gasps Sami.

"At a phone."

Nicole stands at a pay phone as the loudspeaker announces a delay. She calls Fay and tells her she's on her way to parts unknown. Once again the PA system announces the bus is about to depart. "I have to go," says Nicole, "The bus is going to leave any minute. And if EJ were here, I know he'd prefer me to be under it." She hangs up, scoops Sydney up and walks into the waiting area where she sees a happy family gushing over their kid. She flashes back to happy moments with EJ.

Melanie insists she meant it when she said she wanted to be with Nathan, "I have feelings for both of you." Nathan blows up and says he doesn't believe her.

Daniel wants Chloe to stop blaming herself, "Not your fault... Say it."

Chloe stammers, "Not... my... I forgot the rest. What was it again? "

Daniel kisses her and promises to return. He leaves as Lucas walks in.

Lucas doesn't waste any time, "Well, there she is — the big mouth traitor. What the hell do you think you're doing. Not only did you cheat but you had to take what I told you and ruin Sami's life too!"

Rafe says Nicole is in Cleveland. Brady jumps up and says he's ready to go there. EJ blocks him, "You're not a part of this."

Nicole waits, frets and bores Sydney and the audience with her verbal diarrhea. The driver comes to get her again. Nicole tells him she's not going after all. She rolls Sydney out of the waiting area.

Melanie begs for another chance. Nathan doesn't believe in second chances. Or 27th chances, "We're done." he walks out. Melanie sobs, but good ole Phillip is (say it with me) there for her.

Maggie is on the phone with Mickey who is delayed somewhere. She hangs up and tells Mia the Mickster was grumpy. Mia, meanwhile, has been sitting at the kitchen table studying her French lessons, "Qu'est pour le dîner?"

"Nous prenons le Mickey de rôti pour le dîner s'il est encore grincheux quand il arrive à la maison."

"I didn't know you spoke French," says Mia.

"I do it to get a smile form waiters," says Maggie.

Mia spreads it on thick, "Everyone smiles at you. You're a beautiful person. You're Salem's version of Lady Liberty."

"You mean a beacon in the night," asks Maggie.

"No," says Mia, "I mean an old stoneface who always stands somewhere she can watch everyone coming and going."

Mia says if it weren't for Maggie and Mickey, whom she has never met, she doesn't know where she would be. Maggie hugs.

Lucas rants at Chloe for leaving him in the dark about things while he was in rehab. Chloe says Will wouldn't give her his number. Lucas gets nasty about her never coming to see him. Perhaps the conversation they are having is a good indication why she wouldn't want to see him.

Lucas continues to run off at the mouth as Daniel returns and backs him off. He insists Chloe meant no harm and attacking her isn't going to help Sami or Will. He suggests Lucas do something useful instead of spewing empty jabber all over the place, "You know what you are? You're a dry drunk." Dry... yes. Quiet... no.

Lucas has a great comeback for that, "SHUT UP!"

"Not until you get it that pointing fingers isn't the way to go here," says Daniel, "This is about finding Sydney. And that is all that matters."

Rafe sides with Brady because he thinks he may be the one person Nicole will respond to. Brady and EJ continue their bickering. EJ peppers his insults with helpful words like "junkie" and "druggie." Finally, Brady just clams up. Well, some good came out of it.

Nicole tells Sydney this is something she has to do, "I'm not gonna give you to the police, though." She makes another pay-phone call... To Brady.

Nathan comes up to the nurses' station. He broods and Stephanie asks if something happened. Nathan don' wanna talk about it. So he talks about it. He says he felt rejected and humiliated just now with Melanie because she's not over Phillip.

"She told you that," asks Stephanie. Enquiring minds want to know. So do enquiring vacuums.

"She showed me," says Nathan.

Melanie beats herself up for not being able to make up her mind. "You get a kick out of screwing me up."

"That would be true," says Phillip, "if you had left the last word off of that sentence." He starts to leave.

"Come back," she orders, "I need to tell you off some more."

Phillip sits down on a barstool and girds his loins, "Go for it."

"First," says Melanie, "I need to thank you for taking responsibility for the almost-kiss." Phillip says he hasn't treated her right in the past, but will make that up to her.

"I can't do this," says Melanie. She starts to leave.

Phillip stops her, "Stay and be with me. Choose me." He takes something and throws it away.

"What was that," asks Melanie.

"My last shred of dignity."

The Brady-EJ smackdown continues. Rafe referees, "COME ON, GUYS, CUT IT OUT! YOU'RE GIVING ME A FRICKING HEADACHE!"

EJ asks, "Doesn't that take a fricking head?"

Rafe thinks they all need to pull together. Sami thinks Nicole might be trying to contact them right now.

Nicole hangs up, "I can't. There is only one person I can call." she picks up the phone and dials again.

Melanie reminds Phillip they have never made it more than a day and a half together. Phillip agrees but thinks they will be unstoppable from here on out. Melanie decides she isn't ready to settle down. She says she still has feelings for Nathan.

Nathan says he will spare Stephanie the gory details of how Melanie showed him her affection for Phillip. Oh, yeah, Stephanie gets off the hook, but we had to watch. Stephanie tells him what a great guy he is and says it's unfair when he doesn't get what he wants.

"Thanks," says Nathan, "but you are wrong."

Daniel finds Chloe again. Chloe tells him how grateful she is for him defending her to Lucas. "I would slay dragons for you," says Daniel, "I am your man for all the Days Of Our Lives."

"How did I get so lucky," asks Chloe. Daniel moves in. I guess he's looking to get lucky, too.

Maggie finds Lucas sitting at the pier. Lucas asks, "Did you ever hear the expression 'dry drunk?' Someone pointed out that's what I am."

Perceptive Maggie asks, "Did something happen?"

"Not on this show," says Lucas. He tells her he ran into Chloe, knows everything and can't believe he let Chloe stab him in the back. He blames himself for betraying Sami's trust, "If something happens to Sydney I'll never be able to show my face to Sami or Will again."

Maggie thinks if he's saying things like that, he's learned something in rehab and she is so proud of him.

EJ says it's absolutely ridiculous to think Nicole would call. Nicole calls.

Nathan says, "I don't think people get what they deserve."

"Not the ones who wind up with me," says Stephanie. He decides he will be able to move on. He leaves. Stephanie's eyes sparkle.

Melanie wants to leave — alone. Phillip stops her and says he won't give up.

Sami answers her phone, "Nicole?"

The scene shifts to the pay phone. The receiver is off the hook. We pan down to find it hanging there. We continue to pan down. Nicole lies unconscious on the floor.

We pan farther back and see Sydney holding a smoking gun.

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