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EPISODE SIX: "Time to Play Hardball"
PREVIOUSLY ON MT. VERNON SQUARE...
As Brooke and Kyle prepared for their nuptials, Kyle's old flame Ashley returned to Baltimore--fleeing her abusive husband and her life in New York City and planning to stop Kyle's wedding and start over with him. Catrina thwarted Ashley's attempts to ruin the wedding. Ashley turned to her only friend in Baltimore, Scott, for support when her plan failed, but it was Scott who ran to Ashley's bedroom when Catrina found a receipt that proved he was Brooke's secret admirer and later, in an emotional confrontation, kicked him out of the house. Catrina sank into a deep depression, avoiding even her best Brooke. Kyle noticed money and/or inventory missing from The Brew upon his return from his honeymoon and quickly jumped to the assumption that Alex was responsible. Tensions began to amount between the brothers. Speaking of tension, Valerie is convinced that Holly is a threat to her relationship with Alex and has been following Alex wherever he goes--which sometimes is to Holly's house. Valerie even went as far as to threaten Holly, raising suspicion about herself to Jamie and Bret. Jamie, while leaving the hospital at which she works, noticed Ashley visiting one of the staff psychologists. Jamie is completely unaware that after pressuring Bret for some time to find a job, he has taken up working with Ashley. Paul made it clear to Holly that he wasn't happy about taking money from her father. Bill, Holly's father, soon visited and made it very clear to Paul that he wasn't happy about his relationship with Holly and offered Paul money to leave town--and Holly. Paul declined and during a confrontation at The Brew, Bill fell down a flight of stairs. And now..Mt. Vernon Square....
"Everyone get back a little bit. We need some room here for the paramedics," Kyle shouts to the crowd of patrons at The Brew. "Get back, I said," he screams. Holly sits in front of Kyle, next to her father's unconscious body. She is crying and brushing his hair. She notices blood on her hand and begins talking to his lifeless body. "Daddy, please be okay." Sobbing, she leans over his body. "Please, be okay." Paul stands at the top of the stairs for a second and then starts to walk downt he steps toward Bill and Holly.
The front
doors to The Brew fly open and paramedics and police enter the bar. By
this time, the main overhead lights are on and the crowd is abuzz in the back
part of the bar. Brooke, Valerie, Kyle, and Alex stand off to the
side watching the paramedics start to work on Bill's body. Alex walks over
to Holly and wraps his arms around her as she watches the medics.
"He's going to be just fine, Holly. He'll be just fine,"
Alex whispers to her as he kisses her on the top of her head. Valerie
stands across from the two of them and just stares in anger.
As the paramedics put Bill onto a gurney and start to wheel him out, Holly breaks free from Alex and follows. Paul calls out, "Wait, Holly. I'll go with you." Holly turns and looks at him with a tear-drenched face. "Haven't you done enough already, Paul?" She follows the paramedics toward the door and Alex breaks in, "I'll go with Holly." He quickly grabs Holly's hand and starts walking with her to the ambulance.
Brooke turns to Kyle. "They're going to need a ride home from the hospital so I'll follow them in my car." Brooke reaches up and kisses Kyle good-bye as Paul just stares out of the window. Kyle looks over at Paul as he watches the ambulance and Brooke pull away. Valerie grabs her jacket from the bar stool next to her and turns and chugs what is left of her beer. Kyle watches her as she leaves the bar in a huff. "Umm, bye Valerie," he says sarcastically. Valerie keeps walking and doesn't turn back.
Kyle walks over to Paul. "Can I get you a glass of water, Paul?" he asks. Paul, speechless and with a tear running down his cheek nods his head to accept the offer. As Paul walks over to sit by the bar, the lights go down and the music comes on again. A police officer walks over and sits next to Paul. "Can I talk to you a minute, son?" the officer asks an obviously shaken Paul. Paul just looks over at the officer. "I understand you were involved in a confrontation with this man, is that correct?" Paul just looks at him.
Kyle walks over and from the other side of the bar interrupts the interrogation. "Can I get you a coffee or something, officer?" The officer looks at Kyle and thanks him and then turns back to Paul and asks him the question again. Kyle again interrupts. "Do you think you could do this later?" Kyle asks the police. The cop gets up and asks Paul for his name. Kyle again interrupts, "Hey, man. Here's my card." Kyle hands him his business card and then continues, "If you need to reach him for anything, you can call me. He'll be staying with me tonight." The officer accepts the card and then starts to walk away toward the door. He turns around and looks at Paul. "I'm going to the hospital now to get a statement from everyone else. I'll see you later tonight." The cop leaves The Brew.
"Thanks, Kyle," Paul says. Kyle just smiles at him and then walks over to the other bartender. "Steve, do you mind closing the bar for me tonight," he asks. Kyle thanks Steve and then grabs his jacket and walks around to Paul. "Come on, you can stay at my place tonight, Paul." Paul stands up and follows Kyle out of the door and to his car.
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Meanwhile, at the hospital--Harbor Medical Center, the ambulance arrives and
Holly and Alex are stopped at the doors as Bill is rushed in for care. A
nurse stands in front of them. "I'm sorry, you'll need to register
with the front desk." Holly tries
to push by the nurse and Alex grabs
her. "That's my daddy. I need to be with him. It's my
daddy," Holly cries out. Alex hugs her to calm her down. She
finally stops screaming out and Alex looks at her. "Let's go to the
front desk and do what we have to do. They'll let you go back with him
soon enough, Holl." The nurse directs them to the front desk.
Minutes later, Brooke runs into the waiting room of the emergency department. She runs over to Holly and Alex who are still at the front desk. Holly turns to her and starts to cry again. As she hugs Brooke, Brooke comforts her, "it's okay, sweetie. He's going to be okay." When they are done checking in with the nurse at the front desk, Alex and Brooke guide Holly to the waiting room to sit down and wait for word on Bill's condition.
Just outside the entrance to emergency, Valerie sits inside her car watching the hospital doors. She begins crying and rests her head on her steering wheel. "I can't take this, Alex. I can't this. You're never going to love me the way you love her. I can't do it anymore. I just can't do it," Valerie says aloud.
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That same evening, at the Belevedere Hotel in Mt. Vernon, Bret and Ashley sip on wine and eat dinner at the hotel restaurant and bar. The two are laughing and talking when Scott walks up to the table. "Well, well, well. I see someone isn't so lonely in Baltimore after all," Scott says snidely as he approaches the table. Ashley places her fork on her plate and looks up at him. "Scott?" Ashley and Bret both seemed surprised to see him. Ashley looks over at Bret. "You know him?" she asks Bret.
"Yes, I do know him. What are you doing here Scott?" Bret
asks. Scott grabs a chair from a close table and sits down with
them. "The question is, Bret, what are you doing here?" he
responds. Bret places his fork down on his plate as Scott picks a piece of
food from his plate. "Ashley and I had a late meeting and decided to
get something to eat--not that it's really any of your business."
Ashley laughs nervously. "I can't believe the two of you know one another," Ashley comments. Bret looks over at Ashley and then quickly back to Scott. "Shouldn't you be home with Catrina?" Bret asks. Ashley laughs again. "Catrina kicked him out of the house," Ashley tells Scott. Bret turns his attention to Ashley again. "He's been staying at a hotel for a week now."
Scott gets up and places the chair at the other table. "Ash, can I talk to you for a second--," Scott asks Ashley and then turns to Bret, "alone." Ashley apologizes to Bret and then excuses herself from the table. As she and Bret walk toward the bar area of the restaurant, Bret continues to eat.
As he is taking a bite of food, he is statled. "Bret? What are you doing here?" Catrina asks. Bret looks up at Catrina with surprise. He stands up and hugs her hello. "Catrina, how have you been. No one has heard from you in days. We were all kind of worried." Catrina smiles at Bret.
"Are you with Jamie?" Catrina asks. Bret nods his head, "No, no. I had a late meeting and decided to catch a bite to eat with my boss. Jamie is working tonight." Catrina smiles again and then notices Ashley walking toward the table. She sighs loudly, "You've got to be kidding me. Of all the people to run into..."
"Well hello there, Catrina," Ashley snaps. "I haven't seen you in a while. How are things with you and Scott?" Ashley snickers, "Or should I say how AREN'T things with you and Scott." Ashley sits down at the table. "Now, if you'll excuse us, Catrina, we have some business to discuss."
"She's your boss?" Catrina asks Bret. Catrina looks beyond Bret and sees Scott walking toward them. "I don't believe this," Catrina says aloud. Bret turns to look and sees Scott coming toward them. Ashley sits and laughs, "this is like a little family reunion."
Scott walks up to Catrina and grabs her arms. "I've been trying to reach you for so long, Cat. Can we go someplace and talk?" Bret just watches in confusion. Catrina pulls away from Scott. "No, Scott. I don't have anything to say to you." Scott grabs her again and pulls her back. "But I have so much to say to you. There's so much you don't understand, Cat."
Ashley laughs again. "Yeah, like it's not Brooke you need to worry about. The night you kicked him out, he ran right to my bed," she tells Catrina. Bret and Scott watch in shock as Catrina pushes Scott away and walks over to Ashley. Ashley looks up at her and says, "and I only did it because of the closet incident at Kyle's wedding."
Bret looks over at Ashley. "That was you that Catrina locked in the closet during the entire ceremony," Bret asks trying to control his laughing out loud. Catrina reaches down to the table and flips Ashley's plate of food onto her lap. As Ashley gasps, Catrina leans down and gets in her face. "And I only did it because you're a bitch," Catrina snaps at her. Scott and Bret both giggle with surpise at Catrina's comment, but quickly cease their laughter. Catrina turns to Bret, "I'd stay away from this one, Bret. She sucks the life out of anything and everything she can get her hands on." With that Catrina turns and walks out. As Scott attempts to follow her, Bret grabs his arm. "I think you'd better let her go, Scott." Scott agrees but watches as Catrina leaves and Ashley and a server try to clean up her clothes.
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At the hospital, Holly, Brooke, and Alex wait impatiently in the waiting room of
the emergency department. "What if he's not going to be okay?
What if he doesn't pull through this?" Holly cries as Brooke comforts
her with her arm around her
shoulder. As Holly wipes a tear from her cheek, the doors to the
examination rooms open and Jamie walks toward them. The three stand up to
greet Jamie and hear any news she has.
"Your father is awake now, Holly," Jamie begins. Holly lets out a sob as Jamie continues. "He took a pretty good fall down those stairs. He has a concussion and a cracked rib, but other than that, he's going to be just fine. We're going to admit him overnight just for observation. The police are talking to him now, but you should be able to go back in just a few minutes."
"Thank you, Jamie. Thank you so much," Holly says, wrapping her arms around Jamie to give her a hug. Brooke looks at Alex with relief and reaches out and clenches his hand in a thankful motion. "Holly, we'll wait here while you go back and see your father. I can drop you and Alex home when you're ready," Brooke offers. Holly turns to them and smiles. "Thanks. You two are the greatest." Holly hugs both of them. "Do you think you'll be able to stay over tonight, Alex? I really don't want to be alone," Holly asks. Alex smiles in agreement and Jamie escorts Holly back to her father's bed.
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At Brooke and Kyle's apartment in Mt. Vernon Square, Kyle is readying the bed in
the second bedroom for Paul. "Is that enough blankets and pillows for
you, my man?" Kyle asks as he throws the pile on the bed.
"That's perfect, Kyle. Thanks so 
much
for letting me crash here. I feel so terrible and now Holly doesn't even
want to see me," Paul replies. As Paul puts his head down, Kyle pats
him on the back. "It'll all work out, Paul. Holly was just
upset. She knows it was an accident," Kyle adds just as the telephone
rings. "Maybe that's Brooke with some news," Kyle tells Paul as
he runs to the master bedroom to answer the phone.
"Hello?" Kyle answers. Brooke is on the other line. "Hey sweetie. Holly's father is going to be okay. They're keeping him overnight for observation. How's Paul holding up?" Brooke asks. Kyle pauses for a second and then tells Brooke, "I suppose he's as good as he can be. The guilt is getting the best of him. Let Holly know he's going to stay here tonight."
"I will. And tell Paul not to worry. Alex is going to stay at the Bolton Hill house with Holly tonight and I'm sure he'll talk to her. She's just scared," Brooke tells him. "I'll be home shortly. I'm going to drop the both of them off at the house before I head home." Brooke and Kyle say their good-byes and Kyle gives a relieved Paul the good news.
Early the next morning, at the hospital, Jamie is about to finish her overnight shift when she is paged on the overhead speaker in the emergency department. Jamie walks over to the nurse's station and picks up the telephone. "Dr. Reynolds?" she answers.
"Jamie, sorry to bother you at work, but I really need to see you. Do
you think we could meet for breakfast or something when you are finished with
your shift?" Catrina asks from the other end of the line.
"Cat, I'm really tired. It's been a really long night. Could we
maybe do dinner tomorrow night?" Jamie replies. "No, I
need to see you this morning. Please, Jamie. If not for breakfast,
just stop by my house on your way home," Catrina pleads. Jamie sighs
and then pauses for second.
"Okay, Cat. I'll meet you at the Paper Moon at, say, about 8. Is that good for you?" Jamie agrees. "Perfect. Breakfast is on me, Jamie. I'll see you soon," Catrina tells her and then hangs up the phone.
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About the same time in the morning, at the Belevedere Hotel in Mt. Vernon, Ashley wakes up and wipes her mouth. She looks around her room and sees clothes strewn about and as she tries to better focus her eyes, she looks next to her in bed and Bret is laying beside her. "Oh my God. What in the hell..." Ashley leans up and grabs her robe from the foot of the bed. "My head is pounding. What in the hell happened?" She stands up and walks around the bed and shakes Bret's feet, trying to wake him.
After a few minutes, Ashley finally wakes Bret. "Where am I?" he says
as he sits up and looks around. "Bret, you have to get out of
here. I have a meeting in a few hours with a potential client,"
Ashley tells him. Bret starts to stand up and then quickly sits down again on
the bed. Ashley walks into the bathroom as Bret calls out to her.
"What in the hell happened last night? And where are my
clothes?"
Ashley walks out of the bathroom and into the next room. After a few seconds, she walks into the bedroom and throws Bret's pile of clothes at him. Bret just looks at her, trying to piece together what happened the night before. "Ashley?" Bret calls for her attention as she walks into the bathroom again. She steps out of the doorway and looks at him. "What did we do last night? The last thing I remember is shots at the bar downstairs," Bret tells her. Ashley laughs at him. As she turns around and heads back into the bathroom she tells him, "Well let's just say that after drinking as much as we did last night, you tried to seduce me." Bret looks toward the bathroom as he listens. "But by the time you talked yourself up enough to convince me of your manliness, you had already had too much to drink to prove yourself to me. Now would you please get dressed and get out of here. I need to get in the shower," Ashley commands.
Bret puts his clothes on and stops at the bathroom door on his way out of the bedroom. "You know, Ash? This shouldn't have happened. I should not be here. I'm committed to Jamie," Bret tells her. Ashley walks over to him. "You weren't so committed to Jamie last night," Ashley says. She places her hand on his still bare chest. "It's a shame too. The packaging is so nice, but the toy is broken. Now, get out of here because you smell like a brewery and I have a very important meeting in two hours and you're wasting my time." Bret starts to walk away when Ashley turns back into the bathroom and continues, "Oh, and you should have your desk cleaned out by noon. I won't be needing your services anymore." Bret stops in his tracks and turns around as Ashley slams the bathroom door and locks it.
Bret runs over to the door. "You can't do this to me, you bitch! You need me there," Bret yells as he pounds on the door. "I need this job," he says under his breath. "Get out of here before I call hotel security," Ashley screams through the door. "Get out of here now." Bret stops pounding on the door and turns to walk away. He stops and turns back. "Watch yourself, Ms. Barnett. You aren't making too many friends in this city."
Bret leaves as Ashley sits on the toilet in the bathroom crying. "No one controls me, Bret. No one," she says aloud as she hears the door slam. "I'm in control here," she screams with all her might. "I'm in control here!!"
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Later that morning, in uptown Baltimore where Remington and Charles Village border one another, Catrina sits at a table at the Paper Moon Diner. She sees Jamie come into the front door and waves her over to the table. She stands up to greet Jamie with a hug. "Hey Cat, how are you doing? You haven't been around much lately," Jamie asks. The two of them sit down as a server walks over and takes Jamie's drink order. "I'll just have a decaf for now, please," Jamie tells the server.
"So what's up, Cat? What's so important that you couldn't wait until this evening to tell me?" Jamie asks. Catrina picks up her coffee and takes a sip and then just stares at Jamie for a second. "I don't how to tell you this Jamie, so I'm going to start from the beginning," Catrina tells her. "It all started several months ago when Brooke started getting flowers and letters and notes and stuff," Catrina begins.
"Yeah, I remember all of that. But I can't imagine what that has to do with me?" Jamie inquires. Catrina sighs. "Just bare with me and you'll understand once I'm finished," Catrina adds. Jamie looks at Catrina and waits for her to continue.
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Later that morning, Bret arrives at the house he shares with Jamie in the
Southeast Baltimore neighborhood of Butcher's Hill. As he opens the door,
with a box of his belongings from his desk, he calls out for Jamie. He
places the box on the floor and his keys on the table by the door and walks to
the first floor bedroom. "Jamie?" he calls out. Once
inside the bedroom, he realizes that she isn't home. "Hmmm. She
must still be at work."
Bret starts disrobing and then walks up the steps and into the bathroom. He turns on the water to shower and grabs a towel. He opens the medicine cabinet and pulls out a bottle of aspirin and pops two in his mouth, cupping his hand underneath the water to get a drink to chase the pills.
Meanwhile, back at the hospital, Jamie is on the elevator and gets off on the
third floor. She walks down the hall to an
office. She looks up at the name plate on the door. "So, Dr.
Berger? What are you going to be able to tell me about Ashley
Barnett?" Jamie knocks on the door but gets no response. She
tries the door knob and the office is unlocked.
Once inside the office, Jamie looks around and calls out for Dr. Berger. When she realizes that the office is empty, she walks over to his filing cabinet. She opens a couple of the drawers and rummages through the files until she comes across a file labeled 'Ashley Barnett.' "So you are a patient of the good doctor." As Jamie opens the file, she says, "I wonder what interesting facts I can learn from this, Ashley?"
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Early in the afternoon, Holly is preparing lunch in the kitchen of her house in Bolton Hill. Her father, released from the hospital, is resting on the couch in the living room. Holly pulls fresh greens and fresh vegetables out of the refrigerator. She walks to the counter, lays them down, and then plugs in an electric grill. She calls out to her father, "Hey daddy, is grilled chicken salad okay." Bill calls out his acceptance and Holly walks to the sink to rinse the vegetables. As she starts clearing dishes from the sink to make room for the collander, she looks down into the sink and notices several little pieces of paper sitting near the drain.
She picks up the pieces and notices that they are pieces of a shredded
check. "Oh my God. Paul wasn't lying," she says
aloud. From the living room, Bill calls out, "What was that,
pumpkin?" Holly walks out of the kitchen and over to her father's
opened briefcase on the coffee table in front of the sofa. He watches her
as she starts rummaging through it. "What are you looking for,
Holly?" Bill asks.
Holly nervously asks, "Where is it? Where is your check book?" She finds her father's check book in the briefcase and opens it, paging through check carbon copies. "Holly, give me that," Bill says as he jumps to his feet from the sofa. Holly quickly walks away, still looking through the check book. She stops after paging through several carbons. She reads for a second and then looks up at her father, tears beginning to fill her eyes and run down her cheeks.
"How could you?" Holly shakes her head and Bill responds, "It isn't what you..." Holly interrupts him, shouting. "Shut up! How could you do this to me, Daddy? How could you have a complete lack of regard for my feelings?" Bill keeps trying to interrupt, but Holly gets louder and louder, not letting him say a full sentence. "Get out. Get your things and get out. I defended you. I took up for you when Paul said you were like this. I don't even know you anymore, Daddy. Go home. Go back to New York. I don't want you here anymore. Just get out!" Holly throws the check book at him and runs upstairs.
"Holly, wait." Bill's request meets with no reply and Holly slams the bedroom door. "I said GET OUT!" she screams from upstairs.
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Jamie, sitting in her car in front of the hospital, picks up her cell phone and dials 4-1-1. "Yes, hello. I need a number in New York City. I'm looking for a John Barnett on the Upper West Side." Jamie pauses. "Yes, thank you." She scribbles down the number as the operator attempts to connect her call.
A
few seconds later, there is an answer on the other line.
"Hello?" the man says. "Umm, yes. I'm looking for an
Ashley Barnett, please," Jamie inquires to the man. "I'm sorry,
Ashley isn't home. May I ask who is calling?"
Jamie pauses for a moment and then replies, "Actually, I would really like to speak to her husband, John Barnett. Is this Mr. Barnett?" The man responds, "Yes it is, may I ask again who is calling?" Jamie smiles and continues, "Mr. Barnett, you don't know me, but I believe you've been trying to locate your wife." There is a deafening silence. "Who is this?" he asks again. "Mr. Barnett, I'm going to tell you where you can find your wife. I'm going to tell you where Ashley Barnett is hiding out from you."
TO BE CONTINUED...
Coming Soon, Episode Seven: It's All Fun and Games Until...