EPISODE TWO
Written By Aaron D. Mullins
Previously on Autumn Lake:
SCENE ONE-Autumn Lake Memorial Hospital-Staff Lounge Karen managed to recover fairly quickly from the shock of seeing Diana standing in front of her (at least outwardly.) It was so strange; the last time she’d seen this woman was over three years ago, long before she and Will even thought about getting together. Back then, Diana was still “Mrs. Bowman, Rossie’s mother.” Now, she was… something else entirely. Diana smiled fondly and extended her hand toward Karen. “Karen… It’s so good to see you again.” The younger woman accepted the handshake with only a hint of hesitance and returned the smile. “Diana,” she said, the name sounding awkward on her lips, “How have you been?” “Fantastic!” she exclaimed, perhaps a little too exuberantly. “Look at you! You’re so beautiful. Pregnancy certainly agrees with you.” “Thank you,” Karen said, a bit startled at her unexpected generosity. She cleared her throat and turned toward Ross, squeezing his arm slightly. “So this must be the beautiful woman you were seen dining with this afternoon?” “Sure was. Mom's in from Chicago for a visit.” “A visit!” The words came out like a sigh of relief. “That’s wonderful. Emily must be thrilled. What did she say when you called her?” Diana blanched slightly. “I actually haven’t talked to my daughter yet,” she began, shooting a quick glance at Ross. “I have a few things to take care of and then I’m going to pay her a visit. Karen…” she began, the words sticking in her throat, “may I stop by the house this afternoon and see her?” Awkward situation or no, Karen realized how difficult it must have been for Diana to ask permission to see her own daughter in the house that had been hers for so many years. She appreciated the gesture and the respect Diana was therefore granting her. “Of course,” she responded, “I know she’d love to see you.” “Good. Let’s say… five-ish. She should probably be all done with classes by then.” The three of them stepped into the hall with Ross falling in line between the two women. “Mom, where are you planning to stay?” “I’m off to talk to Wendy now, I’m hoping I can use one of the spare rooms above the Gypsy if she’s not full-up with collegiates.” Not at a hotel? Karen thought. “How long are you planning to be in town, Diana?” The older woman crossed her arms and seemed to stare off into space. “That’s dependent upon a few different things, actually.” Suddenly Karen felt a sense of panic. She had gotten the impression that this was just a little weekend junket to see the kids and her niece. But Diana seemed to act like there was… more to her visit than just hugs and kisses. “I suppose you’ll be seeing Olivia Marshak while you’re here?” Ross asked, a dark shadow crossing his face. Diana squeezed her son’s arm in understanding and smiled. “Of course, Ross. I know things are… tense between you and the Marshaks right now, but Olivia and I go way back. She’d never forgive me if I didn’t pay her a visit. As a matter of fact, I called her from the plane and told her I’d be back in town today.” Ross was stung. “You called her and didn’t even think about calling your kids?” Score one for Ross, Karen thought. “I’m sorry, honey,” Diana apologized, giving Karen an awkward glance. “It wasn’t planned. I wanted to surprise you, there was no malicious intent, I assure you.” “Well, you did surprise me,” Ross responded, still bothered. “But it doesn’t matter, the important thing is that you’re here.” He gave her another warm embrace. Karen watched closely, realizing that it wasn’t so much his mother’s lack of sensitivity to her children that bothered Ross, but the fact that she’d still consider Olivia Marshak such a good friend after… “My gloves?” Diana said suddenly, interrupting Karen’s thoughts. “Do you have any idea where I might have put them?” “Not a clue, but let’s go look for them.” Ross winked at Karen. “I’ll talk to you later, okay? “You got it.” Karen smiled warmly at Diana. “Take care, Diana. I hope you enjoy your visit.” “Thank you, Karen,” Diana replied, avoiding the younger woman’s gaze. “Take care of yourself.” As Karen watched Ross and Diana disappear down the long hospital corridor, her smile faded. Her heart began to beat unexpectedly and she felt her cheeks heat up. Not now, she thought bitterly. It’s too soon for her to come back into Will’s life. This is not what we need right now. How is Will ever going to come around to accepting the baby and I in his life with the lingering guilt he feels about hurting Diana? She leaned against the cold corridor wall and rubbed her swollen belly. This isn’t fair, she thought. I can’t let her throw a monkey wrench into our lives. I’ve come too far for that. If she’s really only in town for a visit, it should be relatively easy to keep Will occupied until she’s gone. But if she stays longer… No, Karen didn’t want to even consider that. One step at a time, she decided, marching off to check on a new patient. She’d make sure that Will didn’t run into Diana for as long as she could and then things would be okay. Will would see that Diana had moved on with her life and then maybe he would finally let go of that damned guilt and start making his future with Karen a reality. SCENE TWO-Drummond Estate Across town from the hospital was the sprawling Drummond Estate. Although the name "Drummond" was intimately familiar to all residents of Autumn Lake, there were, in fact, very few Drummonds actually currently residing in town. Industrialist J.D. Drummond had built the main house in the 40’s shortly after founding Drummond Enterprises, and the company's high-rise dominated the downtown skyline. A few years ago, J.D. had begun to have serious memory lapses and it wasn’t long after he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. When he began to grow more and more debilitated, he realized the time had come for serious action, so he turned over control of the company (and his power of attorney) to his daughter, Olivia. Olivia Drummond Marshak was a classy dame in every sense of the word. She was strong and professional and could command an audience of thousands at the Drummond Staff meetings. All the same, she was just as comfortable having a quiet dinner at home with her family. She had found herself missing precisely that, recently. Since taking over DE, Olivia had found herself practically living at the office. She had quite a bit to overcome, considering the public at large had long ago dismissed her as a brainless debutante, fully expecting J.D. to hand over the reigns to his business-minded son, Jeffrey. Determined to prove them wrong, and live up to the standards set by her father, Olivia ran DE with a velvet fist. Her near-obsession with the company had taken its toll, however. She felt as though she never saw her husband, Randy. Randy Marshak had stolen Olivia's heart over twenty-five years ago. At the time, she was busy building the reputation that would later haunt her, filling her days with cotillions and parties, dating every rich boy that expressed an interest. Randy was a young roughneck who had taken a job working on the construction team for Drummond Tower to help support his younger brother and sister. Like most star-crossed lovers, their meeting was “hate at first sight.” In spite of Randy’s rather obvious social failings, Olivia felt drawn to him. She made excuses to go down to the construction site and used her power as the “boss’s daughter” to push around the construction men. Not Randy, however. He wouldn’t have it, and that led to countless disagreements and passionate confrontations. Both were surprised when their passion took another turn. J.D. would have nothing to do with this coupling, but, like Olivia, Randy's roughhewn charm would grow on "the Old Man." They were married in a spectacular ceremony in the Estate's rose garden. How she missed those days. Randy later discovered a hidden talent, that of a fiction writer, and he churned out two mystery novels. He received moderate acclaim and traveled around the country on book signing tours. Those were glorious days. They were blissfully happy, he with his career, she with raising the children. They were blessed with three amazing children; first Katie, then Jason and finally Kyle. A brood of kids whose blood flowed red and blue. Like their parents, they were all "a little bit classical, a little bit rock and roll." Olivia was feeling particularly wistful as she entered the grand foyer of the manor house. In the distance, she smelled the familiar scents of pumpkin pie, which meant that Maggie had been taking over Cook’s kitchen again. Maggie Whittaker had been J.D.’s private nurse for the better part of a year. She’d once filled the same capacity for Olivia’s mother, Elizabeth, when she was stricken with cancer. Over the years, Maggie and her family had become like extended members of the Marshak clan. She had become more than just J.D.’s nurse; she took care of the whole family, including browbeating the estate’s pretentious European cook into letting her make some more "American" treats on occasion. Olivia smiled warmly as Maggie quietly stepped out of J.D.’s room. What had once been the business mogul’s private office had since turned into a makeshift hospital room. Maggie kept a small room in the house as well for the occasions when J.D. needed round-the-clock attention. “You’re home early, Livvie,” Maggie said, joining Olivia. “Not too often we see your beautiful face before sundown. I was thinking of calling the Enquirer and starting a rumor that you were secretly one of the undead.” Olivia laughed and embraced the woman who had come to be like a sister to her. “Sometimes it certainly feels that way. I just thought I’d surprise Randy and see if he might be interested in a late lunch.” She rubbed her arms and stared at the closed office door. “How’s Daddy?” “He’s quiet today. I just finished reading him the business section. He seemed to enjoy it. A heck of a lot more than the comics page, I might add.” “I’ll stop in and sit with him later tonight.” Maggie nodded, although both women knew that Olivia’s visits were practically useless; J.D. hadn’t recognized his own daughter in weeks. “Good luck with Randy,” Maggie said. “I haven’t seen hide nor hair of him all afternoon.” “That’s strange. I’m sure he’s home, I saw his car in the garage.” Just then, a thought crossed her mind and Olivia stepped into the hall leading to the east wing of the house. “Maggie! His office door’s shut. You don’t think…” A big smile crossed Maggie’s face as she placed a hand on Olivia’s shoulder. “That would sure be a blessing.” Olivia approached Randy's study and knocked on the door. She didn't get a response so she turned the knob. Randy was sitting at his computer, typing up a storm. He hadn't heard her because he had his headphones on. The volume was up so loud that Olivia could hear the distant strains of Meatloaf from all the way over by the door. She smiled. Her husband was such a goofball sometimes. Only he could concentrate by being surrounded by rock music. Olivia approached and caught his eye. “Two hundred pages, Liv! Two hundred in one day!” “My god! You'd better slow down before you get Carpal Tunnel!” He grinned as he pulled off his headphones. “What did you say, sweetie?” “I said that's fantastic. Does this mean you’ve finally found a way around your writer’s block?” “Knock on wood!” He was full of energy as he gave her a bear hug and kissed her passionately. She laughed as he began dancing with her around the room. “My god, it's like someone flicked a switch in my head. Suddenly all these ideas are just flowing through my brain. The past six months have just been torture, like a dry well. And now… it’s just amazing!” “I haven’t seen you this excited in months! I knew something was up when you were in your office with the door closed. I was beginning to think we’d have to board up the door, it’s been so long since you’ve been in here.” “It’s incredible, Liv. I feel like a new man.” He obviously hadn’t shaved yet today as he scratched the stubble on his chin. Grabbing a pencil, he dropped down on the leather sofa and began scribbling notes on a yellow legal pad. “I’ve got an idea.” Olivia joined him on the sofa and began rubbing his leg. “You smell that terrific scent wafting in from the kitchen? Maggie’s made another of her trademark pumpkin pies. Why don’t you take a break and join me for a slice?” He laughed and shook his head. “Can’t stop now, babe.” “Oh come on,” she purred. “I came home from work early because it’s been days since we’ve spent any time together. A few minutes won’t hurt.” Randy gave her a befuddled glance. “Liv, I’m serious here. I’m on a roll. I can’t stop for pumpkin pie.” “I cleared my schedule for a few hours and thought maybe we could take advantage of the fact that the kids are all out of the house and maybe go upstairs and have a little… you know… private time.” She let her hand slip under the cotton leg of his sweat pants. “We don’t have to take long.” “I wish you’d have called first, hon. I hate that you went to so much trouble for nothing.” “Come on, Randy, can’t you take a few minutes? I mean, the ideas will still be there when you come back. Rest your hands for a while. I’ll rub your back.” He sighed in frustration. “I see what this is.” “What does that mean?” “How many times have I showed up at your office begging you to come to lunch with me? ‘Please Olivia, we never see each other.’” “That’s different.” “Of course it is,” he said, pulling away from her and returning to his desk. “It’s your job. It’s Drummond Enterprises. It’s not the same as my lowly book.” “That’s ridiculous, Randy.” She stared at him for a few moments, but saw that he was clearly irritated. “Just forget it,” she mumbled, heading for the door. “Don’t dismiss me, Olivia, I’m not your damned secretary.” She had her back to him and rubbed her temples wearily “How did this become a fight?” she whispered. “It became a fight when it suddenly dawned on me that you don’t think about me and my career. You know that I’ve been suffering for months. You know what a loss it was to me that I wasn’t writing. It was killing me that I was blocked. And now I finally found ‘it’ again and you want me to have a pumpkin pie break. It hurts me that after all this time you don’t know me well enough to know how important this is. You can be really selfish sometimes, Olivia.” Silence fell over the room as Olivia absorbed her husband’s stinging words. “Okay. Point made. Good luck, I hope you get a lot of work done. I'll see you later tonight, I suppose.” Randy placed the headphones back on and continued typing without a word. Olivia gave him one last sad glance and turned to leave, finding Maggie waiting in the foyer. “You’re going back to work aren’t you?” she asked. “Yep, there was no point in coming home.” “I’m sorry, Livvie. Here…” Maggie handed Olivia a brown paper bag. “What’s this?” “Pumpkin pie to go.” Olivia placed a hand on her old friend’s shoulder. “You always just… know, Maggie. Thank you for that.” SCENE THREE – The Gypsy Grille Diana Harris looked around the bustling lunchtime crowd at The Gypsy Grille and pretended not to notice the borderline junk her niece had filled the place with. It certainly hadn’t hurt business, apparently. Diana had never seen the Grille this packed. She wound her way through the crowd and back to the manager's office. Opening the door, she found exactly what she had expected: total chaos. Wendy Harris was on the phone haggling with a distributor while little Nicky banged furiously on a drum. Wendy was trying in vain to reach the drum to pull it away from the little boy, but she had apparently yet to invest in a cordless phone. Wendy caught Diana's gaze and her face lit up. She waved hello, signaling that she'd be off the phone in a few moments. Diana used the time to reacquaint herself with her grandnephew. “Well, hello there, Nicholas,” she said, scooping him up and gently putting the noisy drum aside. “You don’t remember me, I’m sure, but I’m your Auntie Diana.” Nicky smiled at Diana and reached up to try and grab one of her earrings. She laughed and unclipped the golden ornament and handed it to him, just as Wendy was hanging up the phone. “Relief does not begin to express what I am feeling right now. I am so glad you’re here!” Diana sat Nicky back on the floor and embraced her niece. “Honey, believe me, I know what you’re going through. Back when Ross and Emily were growing up, I used to put them back here with a little black and white TV and play Sesame Street all day. Of course, I never had a crowd like that out there! “Isn't it great? Gypsy's become the place to be for the college crowd.” “So I could see. I was the only one out there with any gray hair in my head!” “You don't have gray hair, Aunt Di.” “Thanks to Miss Clairol,” Diana laughed, playfully fluffing her hair. She followed Wendy into the small kitchenette in the corner and accepted when Wendy handed her a cup of coffee. “What are you doing here, anyway? Why aren't you out putting away the bad guys in the Windy City?” “Didn't you hear?” Diana teased, sipping from her mug. “There are no more bad guys in Chicago. They were apparently all caught, so I figured I'd better move on to more exciting things.” “You’re something. Seriously, is everything okay?” For a split second, Diana’s face grew dark, but she recovered before Wendy could see and guess that all was not well. “Everything is fantastic,” she lied. “I just missed you and the kids.” “Aunt Di, it's Wendy you’re talking to. You know we’re two of a kind and I can see right through you. This would have absolutely nothing to do with Uncle Will's new child bride, now would it?” Diana cleared her throat and changed the subject. “Did I tell you I hate what you've done out there? What's all that junk?” “Nice try, but I'll let it go for now. It's not junk, it's... atmosphere.” “So's smog, but you didn't pump that in.” Wendy laughed and gently swatted the older woman. “Will you stop? Don't you trust me?” “I’m just teasing you, honey, you’re obviously doing very well for yourself here. I knew you would.” “Sometimes I think you have more faith in me than I do in myself.” “Well we can't have that.” Wendy began preparing a snack for Nicky while Diana made herself comfortable in an overstuffed chair. “So how long are you in town for?” “That seems to be the question of the day,” Diana mumbled. Then, a little louder she replied. “I haven’t decided yet, to be honest. Actually, I was wondering if I might impose on you a bit? I know that you’ve probably got a full house in the apartment units upstairs, but I was hoping I could bunk in your spare room for a while?” “Please, impose?” Wendy scoffed. “Last time I checked, you did still hold the deed to this place. I'll move my stuff into the spare and you can have the master bedroom.” “Oh, sweetie, no, I don’t want you to have to do that! It may not even be for that long…” “I insist! Besides, if you stay in the guest room, you'll be right up against little Rum Tum Tugger's room, which means you will get no sleep.” “It won't bother me, I promise.” She smiled lovingly at the little boy. “Well... we can discuss the details later. I’m just glad you’re here.” Diana stood and joined her niece. Placing her hands on her shoulders, she looked down at the younger woman. “Wendy, I want you to know something. I’m so very proud of all you’ve done over the last few years. You’ve turned your life around. I knew you could do it. Thanks for proving me right.” “Aunt Di, I couldn't have done any of this without you and Uncle Will, you know that. Thank you for the opportunity.” “This concludes the Harris Women's Mutual Admiration Society,” Diana teased. “Agreed.” “So since I’m going to be staying for awhile, what can I do to help?” “Ha!” Wendy exclaimed. “I thought you’d never ask!” SCENE FOUR – Autumn Lake Memorial Hospital The afternoon flew by and Karen Bowman had seen seven patients before she realized that it was getting dark outside. She checked her watch. Almost five o'clock. Will would be wrapping up his own shift, and she had to convince him to go out to dinner to make sure he didn't bump into Diana at the house when she went to visit Emily. Just the thought of Diana in that house again made Karen very nervous. It was her house now; she and Will's. Not Diana's, not anymore. Granted, Karen had only been living there for a few months, and had made very few changes to personalize things. That had less to do with Diana as much as Karen’s relationship with Ellen Bowman, Will’s mother. Ellen had been terribly disappointed in Will’s reckless behavior concerning Karen’s pregnancy, but had grudgingly accepted their marriage. Still, Karen had yet to “click” with her intimidating mother-in-law. As Karen prepared the paperwork for the night staff, she saw Ross talking to Mr. Rappaport's family. As the gathering dispersed, Karen joined him at the nurse’s station. “I never got a chance to thank you for your pep talk earlier.” “Oh, you know you don't have to thank me. We’ve been friends for too long for that.” “It has been a long time, Rossie. You’ve stood by me through a lot, not the least of which was learning that your father and I were… well…” He grinned at the memory. “Well, that was certainly... awkward. But we got through it.” “I know that this tension between your mother and I is hard on you.” “Tension? Please, you two were disgustingly civil to one another earlier. I expected a catfight.” “We’re both too old for that,” she said with a weary sigh. “You’re still young, Karen, don’t make yourself sound ancient.” “Sometimes this situation makes me feel really old.” They made their way toward the elevator and Ross pressed the “down” arrow. “It really upset you, bumping into Mom today, didn’t it?” “Ross, you know things haven't been... perfect for your dad and I recently. I just don't want anything to interfere.” “Look,” he said, holding the elevator door open for a departing patient. “You remember all the agita the family went through three years ago when Mom learned about Dad’s affair. It was hell. That mistake broke something inside of my mother, something I really don’t think can be fixed. I really don’t think she feels anything for Dad anymore, other than maybe a bitterness softened by a few years. She’s moved on with her life, Karen.” “Frankly, it's not what she feels that worries me.” Ross pressed the button for the lobby and lowered his voice since there were other passengers on the elevator. “How many times do I have to tell you? Dad is committed to you and the baby. You’re not some chippie he fools around with occasionally. You’re his wife! You hold all the cards, Karen, the ball is in your court.” She felt warmed by his words. “My cheerleader,” she sighed. “You know, Katie Marshak was a fool to walk out on you...” She stopped suddenly, realizing what she had just said. “Oh god, Rossie, I’m sorry… it just slipped out. I didn't mean…” “Skip it,” he said. “It’s forgotten. Both the comment and Katie Marshak.” Sometimes I can be a genuine idiot, Karen chastised herself silently. “You know, you have been doing really well. You don’t seem quite as… melancholy as you used to. Have you really accepted that things are over with Katie?” “Nowhere to go but up, sweetheart.” He was trying to sound positive, but Karen had known Ross Bowman long enough to know that, although he had made progress, there were still some unresolved feelings inside him concerning his ex-fiancé. As the elevator opened in the lobby, Ross checked his watch and scratched his head. “Listen, I’m gonna hit the cafeteria for some takeout, I’ll catch up with you later, okay?” “Okay. Ross?” “Yeah?” “Thanks for being my champion.” He gave her a wink and kissed her on the forehead before turning to make his way toward the cafeteria. As she watched him walk away, Karen began rubbing her belly and speaking gently to her baby. “Well, sunshine, your momma's not the sharpest rock in the bunch sometimes, but she's got good friends. And I don't want you to worry about a thing, sweetheart. Momma’s worked too hard for too long to make sure you don’t have to deal with the same kind of crap I did growing up. You’re going to have a safe, happy home with a daddy that loves you and a momma you can depend on. And no one, not even Diana Harris, is going to stand in the way of that.”
TO BE CONTINUED
What did you think of this episode? Join us on our Message Board to discuss! In The Next Episode of Autumn Lake:
|
