Heart and Soul

Episode 77

Damage Control

By Allan Craig

 

Stepping out of his limo, Shane took in the fresh morning light as he revelled in his newfound freedom, albeit temporary. Madison Chase stepped out from behind Shane and glanced up at the hospital.

 

“Are you sure it’s wise to be going back in their so soon after being arrested in front of everyone?” Madison asked, having just bent over backwards to get Shane released on bail before he had even had a bail hearing.

 

“You’re a good lawyer, Madison.” Shane thanked the pretty brunette, “But I think I know how to handle my family myself.”

 

“Mr. Baldwin…”

 

“Shane,” Shane shot Madison his trademark smile, the one guaranteed to make a woman weak at the knees.

 

“Whatever. I have to urge you to go home, clean yourself up, think about what you’re doing before you go back in there. You have no idea how your family is going to react to you being there, especially if they work out your involvement in your son’s current predicament.”

 

“Keep your voice down.” Shane ordered his glamorous lawyer. “My family don’t have a clue what’s going on, and I’m paying you to keep it that way. Get me Felicia Kelly on the phone, I want to see what she can do to minimise press on all of this.”

 

“I think it’s a little late for that,” Madison pulled the day’s copy of The Oakridge Banner out of her handbag and unfolded it in front of Shane.

 

TYCOON ARRESTED ON DRUGS CHARGES

 

The headline caused the colour to drain from Shane’s face. “You have got to be kidding me. I own this fucking paper. Who the hell approved this? Get me John Sterling on the phone.”

 

“I think you must be a little confused, Mr Baldwin…I’m not your personal assistant, I’m your lawyer. I’m afraid I’ve got enough work on my hands trying to get you out of a very lengthy prison sentence, never mind running personal errands for you.”

 

“I thought you said you could get me out of this.” Shane hissed.

 

“I’m the best lawyer you’ll get, Mr Baldwin, but even I can’t work miracles.” Madison explained. “You’re going to have to use every last bit of charm you’ve got in you, but even then I cant guarantee that you’ll get off. People are in hospital because of you, so you better pray that nobody dies as a result of exposure to these drugs, otherwise you could be looking at manslaughter.”

 

 

Jessica lay in her bed, buried under the covers in the hope that she wouldn’t have to get up, the strain of the previous day’s actions had given her very little opportunity to sleep, yet she closed her eyes in the hope that she would eventually drift off and forget about what had happened.

 

Rex walked out of the bedroom and into the living room, where Tyler sat in front of the TV devouring a bowl of cereal.

 

“Is she still sleeping?” Tyler asked his older brother. “You’d think she’d been up all night, but you guys were way too quiet for that to have been possible.”

 

“Watch it.” Rex joked. “I better get going anyway, I’ve got a mountain of paperwork to do now that we’ve nailed Baldwin.”

 

“Oh yeah, I heard about that.” Tyler motioned to the copy of the paper sitting on the coffee table. “Pretty sick if you ask me.”

 

“Well I’m not really supposed to talk about cases that are still open.” Rex explained as he finished the last of his coffee. “But if all goes well, Shane Baldwin could be behind bars for a very, very long time.”

 

Jessica stood behind her bedroom door, listening to Rex and Tyler’s conversation. Was she hearing right? Was Shane the ‘big case’ Rex had been working on for months?

 

 

Over at Sterling Enterprises, John had arranged to meet his children for a quick lunch, the amount of damage control he had to do meant that the previously proposed dinner at The Bungalow had to be shelved for a sandwich and a soda in his office.

 

“So Shane’s a drug dealer?” Kimberley wondered as her eyes poured over the newspaper. “You think you know someone…”

 

“He’s not strictly a drug dealer, princess.” John explained to his youngest daughter. “That being said, I wouldn’t be surprised if Baldwin Industries had a few other subdivisions with some shady ventures.”

 

“Still, isn’t he going to be mad that you approved this cover, dad?” Megan asked her father.

 

“He wont have the chance to be mad, his ass will be back behind bars before he knows it,” John grinned. “And besides, considering Kendall’s wanting Shane’s head on a plate over all of this, she won’t mind one little bit that The Banner ran this.”

 

“Even so, I wouldn’t want to be in your shoes when this all hits the fan.” Greg warned his father. “Shane Baldwin’s a very powerful man.”

 

“You know what?” John cracked open his can of soda, still bitter from Shane’s rebuffing of he and Joseph’s proposal to buy him out, “I couldn’t care less. Shane Baldwin’s going down, and I’m going to love watching every minute of it.”

 

“I wouldn’t be so sure, dad.” Greg scrolled through a website on his BlackBerry. “It says here he’s got Madison Chase working on his case, and god knows how many lawyers he’ll fly in if he needs to. Baldwin’s a multi, multi millionaire; he’s not going to go down without a fight, no matter what the cost.”

 

“Would you excuse me?” Kimberley cleared her throat as she stood up. “I need to go powder my nose.”

 

“I’ll go with you.” Megan agreed, following her sister out of the room. Once outside, she grabbed Kimberley by the arm. “We need to talk, now.”

 

“Someone’s cranky.” Kimberley noted sarcastically. “Is being pregnant keeping you up all night or something?”

 

“No, that was worrying about my sister who I’d barely spoken to since Vegas.” Megan snapped at her younger sister. “Do you have any idea how worried I’ve been? And now here you are, back in town, without so much as a quick phone call to let me know?”

 

“Well sorr-ee, but in case all those pregnancy vitamins have totally screwed up your memory, Leo is in hospital and could die, so I’ve barely been home, I’ve been at the hospital most of the time, and in case you’re forgetting, cell phones in hospitals are strictly persona au-gratin.”

 

Megan was too tired to even correct her sister, “Even still, Kim, the last thing I heard you were shacked up with some movie star and now what? You’re back in town like nothing’s happened and nobody’s supposed to ask questions?”

 

“It’s none of your business.” Kimberley insisted, still raw about her uncertain relationship with Jet. She didn’t know what was happening, so why should anyone else.

 

“Funny how it was my business when Marc and I were running back and forth across Las Vegas to stop some porno movie you made being leaked to the tabloids.” Megan growled, infuriated at her sister’s attitude. “You’ve got a whole lot of nerve forgetting that little indiscretion.”

 

“Whatever.” Kimberley rolled her eyes.

 

“Get real, Kim.” Megan relished abbreviating her sister’s name, knowing how much it infuriated her. “Seriously, get a grip.”

 

Megan walked back inside her father’s office, leaving her sister reeling in the corridor.

 

 

Kendall closed the door to Leo’s hospital room and walked over to the waiting area, taking a seat on one of the mediocre sofas and inhaling the beige interior of the hospital. She had never really noticed it before because there was always a steady supply of family around her as Leo lay in his coma, but since Shane’s arrest nobody had been anywhere near the hospital.

 

She looked up to see Lucy standing in front of her, an apologetic smile on her youthful face.

 

“Do you hate me?” Lucy asked, fearing that her father’s actions would come back to haunt her.

 

“Of course I don’t.” Kendall stood up and gave Lucy a warm, friendly hug. Lucy was the only person going through what she was going through right now; while Kendall felt like she was missing her other half as Leo lay in a coma, Lucy was only just getting to know her brother, so the thought of losing him must have been killing her, Kendall thought.

 

“I just thought…what with everything my dad has done…”

 

“What your father did…” Kendall did her best to remain composed in front of Lucy, not wanting to reveal her true feelings about Shane to his daughter. “It had nothing to do with you. You’re still Leo’s sister, and while he’s not here to look after you, I am.”

 

“No,” came a female voice, “I am.”

 

Lucy and Kendall pulled out of their hug to see a glamorous woman standing in front of them, her honey blonde hair falling down over her porcelain skin, while a simple diamond pendant hung over her black sweater-dress. Lucy took in the sight of the woman’s familiarly striking cheekbones and piercing eyes… “Mom?”

 

“I came as soon as I heard,” the woman touched her daughter gently on the top of her head, “I have a limo outside, we’re going to go back to Shane’s place and you’ll pack your things, I have us on the first flight back to LA tonight.”

 

“Kendall, this is my mother…” Lucy began.

 

“Nadine Baldwin,” the woman extended a perfectly manicured hand to Kendall. “Very nice to meet you, now, Lucy, darling, go downstairs and I’ll follow shortly.”

 

“Mother, I’m not going anywhere.” Lucy couldn’t believe Nadine had just sauntered back into her life and was calling the shots already. “My brother is in hospital and I’m going to stay here until he pulls through, no matter how long it takes.”

 

“Young lady you will do as I say.” Nadine ordered her daughter sternly, all the while maintaining an air of elegance and composure. “There is no way I’m letting you stay with your father after this latest shenanigan. You are coming back home to Los Angeles this instance, do you hear me?”

 

“If she doesn’t want to go with you, she doesn’t have to.” Kendall butted in, much to Nadine’s dismay.

 

“Pardon me, I don’t see how this is any of your business.” Nadine pursed her lips.

 

“You cant just force her to move back across the country just because you want her to.” Kendall couldn’t believe this woman just swanned in and demanded that Lucy up sticks and relocate, especially considering Leo’s condition. “You have absolutely no right…”

 

“I think you’ll find I have every right. I am Lucy’s mother, and as she is a minor it is my responsibility to ensure that she is cared for in a stable, safe environment, something she is most certainly not receiving under the care of her father, wherever he may be.”

 

“Lucy isn’t in Shane’s care,” Kendall lied. “She’s in mine. And I think you’ll find that, as your daughter is sixteen, she is perfectly capable of deciding for herself where she wants to live.”

 

“You really think I’m going to leave my daughter in your care? You must be joking, you cant be any older than twenty years old…”

 

“Twenty one, actually.” Kendall’s birthday had gone by unnoticed due to Leo’s coma; a few cards and gifts had been received, but nothing as major as she had imagined. “And unless Lucy wants otherwise, she is perfectly welcome to live with me for as long as she likes.”

 

“Lucy wants to stay with her mother, don’t you dear?” Nadine glared at her daughter.

 

Lucy felt her heart sink to the pit of her stomach; her mother had put her in an extremely awkward situation, but she was determined not to let Nadine control her life anymore; it was one of the reasons she’d turned up unannounced in Oakridge. “I want to stay.”

 

 

Carrie navigated the pushchair containing Adam through the sea of tables and chairs in Fix in order to reach Jessica, who sat alone at a table in a corner with her head buried in a cup of coffee.

 

“Hey.” Carrie smiled when reaching her best friend. When Jessica looked up, Carrie’s heart sank, her usually perfectly made up friend showed dark circles around her puffy eyes and her blonde hair hung limp and straggly from her head. “So you went through with it?”

 

Jessica nodded at her friend, looking tired and worn out from the last twenty four hours. “It just doesn’t feel real, I just feel like this is all one big nightmare and soon I’m going to wake up and everything will be normal again.”

 

“But it’s not, Jess.” Carrie reassured her friend; the truth was, she wished it was all a big nightmare given the state of her life at the moment, but no matter how much she hoped otherwise, this was reality. “And you cant undo it. I really don’t know what to say…why didn’t you call me? I would have come with you.”

 

“It was something I needed to do on my own.” Jessica sighed. “At least it’s over now.”

 

“Is it really? If Shane finds out you got rid of his child…”

 

“He’s not going to find out.” Jessica insisted, a look of fear in her eyes. “You’re the only person who knows any of this, and it’s going to stay that way, right?”

 

“I promise, your secret is safe with me.” Carrie took her friend’s hand; as much as she hoped this would all go away for Jessica, these things had a way of coming out, and Carrie wasn’t looking forward to that moment one bit.

 

 

Upon hearing of Leo’s near fatal overdose, Ashley had felt an urge to visit him in hospital. She didn’t know why; she couldn’t stand the guy and he couldn’t stand her, but the old feelings she had for him, no matter how much she tried to silence them, had urged her to stop by and show her support.

 

However, once she arrived at the hospital, the urge had escaped her. What was she thinking? She barely knew Leo, and she didn’t think he would exactly thank her for stopping by. Instead, she took a detour to Cal’s floor, hoping her cousin would talk some sense into her.

 

“I think he’s with a patient just now,” Tyler explained upon spotting Cal’s pretty cousin in the hospital. “He shouldn’t be too much longer though, why don’t you have a seat while you wait? That way you can tell me all about what you’ve been up to since Monaco.”

 

“Look, Tyler, what happened between us…” for a split second, Ashley allowed herself to be taken back to that wild weekend she had shared with the dishy doctor, his hands wandering all over her naked body in a way that made her tingle at the very thought of it, months later, before snapping back to reality. “I dunno, isn’t it maybe best we just forget about it?”

 

“I didn’t think I was what you’d call forgettable.”

 

“Believe me, you weren’t.” Ashley thought, but she wasn’t about to give Tyler the pleasure of saying it out loud. “It’s just, I’m not really looking for a relationship right now.”

 

“Whoa, who’s talking about a relationship here?” Tyler freaked out. “I just thought we could catch up…maybe, over dinner or something?”

 

“Maybe…” Ashley wasn’t sure if she wanted to get caught up with Tyler again, another bad boy was the last thing she needed. “Look, I better go, would you tell Cal I stopped by?”

 

“Sure thing.” Tyler stood up at the same time as Ashley. “I’ll call you…we can discuss dinner?”

 

“I thought you lost my number.” Ashley caught Tyler out.

 

“I’ll get your number from Cal.” Tyler yelled as Ashley approached the elevator.

 

“Like hell you will,” Cal hissed as Tyler turned to face him halfway down the corridor. “There is no way you’re getting together with my cousin.”

 

“Ashley is a big girl, Calvin, she can make her own decisions, fight her own battles.” Tyler shrugged, loving that, after all these years, he was still able to push all of Cal’s buttons like a pro.

 

“Yeah? Well this is one battle she’s not going to have the chance to fight.” Cal edged closer to Tyler, squaring up his shoulders in a dominant stance. “Now you listen to me, Davis, if you think for even a second that I’m going to let you get involved with my cousin after everything you’ve done, you’re in for a very, very rude awakening.”

 

“Oh yeah? And who’s going to stop me.” Tyler shrugged.

 

“Do you really want to find out?” Cal growled. “I swear to god, Tyler, you might have been able to pull all kinds of shit in the past, but now, you’ve got no idea what I’m capable of, and unless you want to find out, you’ll stay away from my cousin.”

 

 

Just when Shane Baldwin thought his day couldn’t get any worse, he stepped out of the elevator in the hospital to see the face that could sour milk staring right back at him.

 

“Nadine.” Shane faked a smile, although she was the last person he wanted to see right now. “If it isn’t my favourite ex wife. What brings you back east? Life in Orange County getting too stressful for you?”

 

“You never were particularly funny, Shane, I wouldn’t start attempting humour now.” Nadine sauntered over to Shane. “But no, seeing as you asked, did you really think I’d leave our daughter in the care of a convicted drug lord?”

 

“It suited you perfectly well when you were reaping the benefits, didn’t it?” Shane muttered, careful of whoever may be listening into the conversation.

 

“Well you weren’t getting arrested then.” Nadine hissed. “I let Lucy come to stay with you against my better judgement and this is how you repay me? I’ve come to take our daughter back where she belongs, but she’s refusing to come.”

 

“Who could blame her?” Shane smirked. “Living with a self medicating control freak isn’t exactly good for her, is it?”

 

“How dare you? Do you have any idea what you are putting our daughter through? Still, at least now she knows that her beloved father isn’t as perfect as she thought.”

 

“Would you two stop?” Lucy yelled, hating her parents’ extremely public display of hatred towards one another. “It’s no wonder I don’t want to live with either of you, the way you go on.”

 

“What are you talking about?” Shane asked his daughter.

 

“I’m moving in with Kendall at the mansion.” Lucy announced. “I don’t want to be around the type of man who puts his own son in hospital. God, dad, do you have any idea how sick that is?”

 

“What are you talking about, Luce? I didn’t put Leo in hospital, for crying out loud.”

 

“But you were responsible for the drugs that he took, weren’t you? It was you that shipped them into Oakridge, whether or not you knew they were tainted with poison is totally irregardless, you still brought them into town and if Leo dies it will be all your fault.”

 

Nadine smirked as she watched Shane go a whiter shade of pale, while Lucy stormed off leaving her estranged parents standing alone in the hospital.

 

 

Having spent the morning reassuring Jessica that she had did the right thing, despite her own personal feelings on the issue, Carrie returned home deflated. She lifted Adam into his playpen before collapsing on the sofa, just as Nate made his way down the stairs.

 

“I thought I heard you come in,” said Nate as he buttoned up his shirt.

 

“Are you on your way out?” Carrie asked her distant fiancé. “It’s just I thought I could make us some lunch.”

 

“I’ve got stuff to do, sorry. Some other time, maybe?” Nate didn’t do much to assure Carrie that the ‘other time’ would ever come, but she bit her tongue, just as Nate made his way outside. Carrie didn’t know where he was going or when he would be back, but she couldn’t help but think Nate was back up to his old tricks, and she for one was determined that she wouldn’t be the doting mob wife sitting at home while her husband killed people. She wasn’t about to let Nate push her away like that, she wanted a happy life, even if it meant cutting Nate out of it.

 

 

“You’ve got some nerve showing your face around here,” Kendall yelled upon seeing Shane arrive at the hospital. “After what you did to my brother you should be locked up.”

 

“Kendall, I can assure you that…” Shane began, only for the stinging that followed Kendall’s hand lashing across his face to silence him.

 

“You shut the hell up and listen to me.” Kendall growled. “I’m going to make you pay for what you did to my brother, he could have died because of what you did, Shane. You sick, sick bastard.”

 

Nadine smirked as she watched Shane being given a dressing down from a girl half his age, while Lucy meandered awkwardly around the scene, unsure as to whether she should interrupt.

 

“Honestly, Kendall, if I had…”

 

“You don’t get to speak.” Kendall yelled. “I want you as far away from my brother as possible. I was a fool to ever think it was a good idea to bring you back into his life…and now I want you out of it, I want you out of Leo’s life and I want you out of mine.”

 

“One little problem there, kiddo,” Shane realized playing nice with Kendall wasn’t going to get him anywhere. “I still own half of that company of yours, and I have no intention of giving it up. And whether you like it or not, Leo is my son. So sorry, kiddo, but you’re pretty much stuck with me.”

 

“Get a hold of yourself, Shane, this is a public place,” Nadine muttered with a wicked grin on her face, loving the fact that Kendall was cutting Shane down to size.

 

“You really think I’m going to let you continue to weasel your way into mine and Leo’s lives like you’ve been doing?” Kendall looked Shane up and down, detesting every inch of him. “You’ve got another thing coming, Shane, you’re out. Got it? You’re gone…you are never going to hurt anyone I care about again.”

 

Kendall was deadly serious about her threat, Shane would never be able to hurt anyone close to her ever again, even if it meant killing him. Her blood boiled at his blatant cheek, standing there in the hospital playing the caring father after it was his poisoned drugs that put Leo into the hospital. Shane Baldwin was going down, and Kendall was determined to make sure of it.

 

TO BE CONTINUED…