January 14, 2003 Transcript
"I Don't Like Being Threatened"

Zander has shown up at Faith's hotel room high as a kite.

Zander: (Strolling into the room) I'm not here tonight as Ned's errand boy.

Faith closes the door and walks over to Zander.

Faith: Apparently not.

Zander: I was thinking it's time that you and I got to know one another better.

Faith: Now, why would I want to do that?

Zander: (He nods) A few good reasons.

He touches her chin and pulls her face toward his and almost kisses her. Faith tips her head back.

Faith: Well, that's a very intriguing offer but impossible right now. (Touching his chest provocatively) You see, I have too many other interests. But I could change my mind at any point, as long as you prove yourself. (She bits her bottom lip seductively with a smile)

Zander backs away from her.

Zander: Forget it. I'm sick of proving myself.

Faith: What's got you in such a hostile mood?

Zander flashes back to his brother's death. Cameron sets a shotgun on a desk.

Cameron: You did this, Alexander. You killed your own brother.

He snaps out of it.

Zander: Why do you care?

Faith: I bet you'd like to take it out on the whole world, wouldn't you? Make someone else pay?

Zander: I'm always the one who pays. I'm sick of it. I'm sick of it. To hell with all of them.

Faith: Well, I have a perfect way for you to take out your pent-up frustrations. I'll even pay you for it. Of course, it'll have to stay between you and me. Ned must never know.

Zander: That's fine by me.

Carly goes to Jason's and tells Brenda, Jason and Sonny that Jax hauled Ric off at gunpoint. Sonny warns her that Ric would have to testify that he saw Brenda there the night of the murder. Brenda takes off to find Jax.

Jax calls the press to meet him at the courthouse when he turns Ric in to Scotty. Ric is arrested (reluctantly by Scott) and Brenda arrives to rein in Jax.

Zander goes to the club under Kelly's still high. He starts smashing everything he can with a crow bar. He pauses to rest and remembers the day of his brother's funeral.

Cameron: Peter died because you weren't paying attention.

Zander: Dad, I thought I saw movement behind the trees. I thought it was a deer.

Cameron: You knew he was close by!

Zander: I didn't think he was --

Cameron: (Yelling) No, you didn't think! You never do! We buried your brother today because of you.

Zander tries not to cry.

Zander: I'm sorry, dad.

Cameron: Sorry? (Bows his head in pain and anger) "Sorry" won't bring Peter back. (Picks up the gun) Nothing will.

Cameron: No more guns in the house. (Slams the gun on the desk) Never!

Zander starts back up smashing things when Carly arrives and screams at him.

Carly: Stop it!

Sonny shows up at the PCPD as Ric is being booked. He stands by staring and intimidating an obviously frightened Ric.

Brenda: If I identify Ric, he's going to turn around and identify me.

Jax: There's a lot of evidence that demonstrates that Ric hated Alcazar.

Brenda: Yes, that's true, Jax, but there's even more evidence making it look I did this. You know, Ric saw Jason pull me out of the hotel. Scott's going to be all over this. He's going to use Ric as his key witness in this whole conspiracy theory.

Jax: Jason tell you to keep quiet?

Brenda: Yes.

Jax: Brenda --

Brenda: What?

Jax: The guy has tunnel vision, ok? He doesn't trust cops, he will never, ever cooperate with law enforcement.

Brenda: Yeah, well, obviously, he might be right. Scott is foaming at the mouth to convict me and he knows I didn't do it.

Jax: I think Mac and Taggert are honest.

Brenda: Oh, and how would you know that? I mean, they'd be big men on campus if they got Sonny. They'd love to see Sonny in prison.

Jax: Yes, but not you. Especially Mac.

Brenda: Why not? I'm the prime suspect. You know, my testimony isn't even going to mean anything because Scott is just going to try and say that I'm trying to get myself out of it, which I am. You know, it just so happens that I'm also telling the truth.

Jax: Baldwin isn't all-powerful. Now, as much as Mac and Taggert want to see Sonny put away, they're not going to let Baldwin break the law to do that.

Brenda: Ok, you -- you need to stop because --

Jax: What?

Brenda: We need to go with my plan on this. I'm not sure if you completely realize or not, but you're not being rational, Jax. You tried to bribe Scott into framing Jason. That wasn't the best idea.

Jax: Well, maybe that was a mistake.

Brenda: Yeah, well, maybe this is, too.

Jax: No, no. A mistake would be to do nothing, ok? There's an excellent chance that Ric Lansing is the real killer, and telling the police is the right thing to do.

Brenda: I don't even know what the right thing to do is anymore.

Jax: Well, I do. The only thing left is the truth, Brenda, so we need to use that.

Brenda: What if no one believes me?

Jax: At least your testimony about Ric will make Mac and Taggert realize that there's a lot more about that night that they don't know.

Brenda: Mac did say he'd follow up.

Jax: Right, so give him something so he can start the investigation. Tell the police that you saw Ric in the hallway that night.

Alexis walks up to them.

Alexis: Before you do anything, you need to consult your attorney.

Jax and Brenda turn to look at Alexis.

Alexis: Where did this information about Ric come from?

Brenda: I remembered seeing Ric with Luis, and then Sonny just confirmed it.

When Ric is brought into the interrogation room Sonny watches through the window but it interrupted by Taggert.

Taggert: Things don't run so smoothly, huh, without Alexis Davis there to grease the wheel, huh?

Sonny: I'm just here to see Ric.

Taggert: Bad luck, there, hiring a murder suspect to be your defense attorney. Who else would be desperate enough to take the case, though, right?

As Taggert walk s off Scotty walks in.

Scott: Oh, Corinthos. If you're here to see Ric, it's not going to happen.

Sonny: Well, I have a right to visit whoever I want to visit here.

Scott: So you can threaten him, scare him, like you did Ida? We all know what happened to her.

Sonny: Do we? Scott: If I was you, you know what I would do? I'd go outside, I'd breathe in the fresh air, enjoy your freedom because once the trial starts, I'm going to convict Jason, and then I'm coming after you for conspiracy to commit murder.

Sonny: Ric Lansing is a prime suspect in the murder case, right, of Alcazar? So that means you're dropping the charges on Jason and Brenda?

Scott: No, no, no, no. He's not a suspect, he's a potential witness for the prosecution. We've taken him into protective custody.

Sonny: I don't know if you know this, but Ric Lansing used to work for Alcazar. He was imprisoned in South America on Alcazar's orders.

Scott: Uh-huh.

Sonny: He shows up here right before Alcazar dies, and he's a hell of a lot more capable of shoving Alcazar off that balcony than Brenda is. You calling this a witness?

Scott: You bet. And in your zeal to protect your ex-girlfriend, you and Jax have proven that she's guilty.

Alexis: Any time that there's a new development in this case, you need to advise me.

Jax: Well, consider yourself notified. Brenda saw Ric outside Alcazar's hotel suite. Now, if she goes to the PCPD --

Alexis: (Interrupting) Bad idea.

Jax: Why?

Alexis: Because if Brenda saw Ric, it's a logical assumption that Ric saw Brenda. And she was probably with Jason, which is exactly the testimony that Scott Baldwin needs to corroborate his murder conspiracy theory.

Jax: There was no conspiracy, ok? All the guy saw was a man helping his wife down the stairs.

Alexis: You believe that. You believe that because you're in love with her. The jury does not have that same investment. They will receive a very convincing scenario about how Brenda's husband cleared the way for his wife to kill her tormenter.

Jax: What jury is going to believe that a professional hit man did the prep work so his wife could kill somebody?

Alexis: Scott is a very clever attorney and he has a score to settle. He will probably say that Brenda stabbed him, Jason took him over the balcony. It's the perfect murder team scenario. It's the tabloid-twisted version that everybody likes to write about.

Brenda: Ok, ok, so advise us what to do.

Alexis: Don't go to the authorities about Ric.

Jax: It's too late.

Brenda: Well, maybe it's not. I mean, what if he hasn't been interrogated yet?

Jax: Wait a second. You would let a potential killer go and be prosecuted for something you didn't do?

Brenda: Well, no, but --

Alexis: You need to back off and let me do my job. I mean it.

Jax: I know you're good, Alexis. But Scott Baldwin is a corrupt man with a vendetta. And it's obvious that he'll do anything, even destroy Brenda, to get to Sonny and Jason.

Carly: Zander! Zander, what is wrong with you? Have you lost your mind?

Zander: It's called payback.

Carly: Oh, you cannot still be mad at me.

Zander: Why would I be? All you did was lean on me, confide in me, act like we were friends. Then when Sonny came along, called for you to come home, you came back without even thinking a word. But, hey, no big deal, right? Forget about it.

Carly: I thought you were past that.

Zander: Some things are hard to get over, Carly, like always being the reject, the screw-up, the one who's replaceable.

He starts to smash a table with the crow bar.

Carly: Hey, hey! Hey! Oh, great, great! So smashing up my club is making you feel better?

Zander: I don't want to feel anything, Carly. You go. Go tell Sonny what happened here. You tell him to come after me. Tell him to come after me with everything he's got. I don't care.

Carly: Look at you. You're high as a kite.

Zander: What gave you the first clue?

Carly: What happened, Zander?

Zander: Life happened, Carly. Life and all those wonderful people who cut me loose along the way.

Carly: We can still be friends.

Zander: After you drop-kicked me?

Carly: Hey, I am not the one who ended our friendship. You did by spiraling out of control, exactly like you're doing right now!

Zander: That's right, that's right. I'm sorry. You are perfect, blameless. I forgot.

Carly: Oh, oh, ok. You know what? You want to hate me, you can hate me. Don't do this to yourself, Zander. There are places you can go to get help.

Zander: I don't want any help!

Carly: You see, Zander, you just -- you ruin your life when you get angry. You self-destruct. It is your pattern.

Zander: Talking to some shrink isn't going to change a damn thing. The past keeps coming back. It never lets you run away, Carly. It always finds and tracks you down.

Zander walks out.

Alexis walks into Kelly's and sees Liz at the counter.

Alexis: Hi.

Elizabeth: Hi.

Alexis: You know, I left my glove outside earlier.

Elizabeth: Oh, oh. (She grabs it from under the counter)

Alexis: Oh, you found it?

Elizabeth: Yeah.

Alexis: Oh, good.

Elizabeth: (Holding up Kristina's glove) This one?

Alexis: (Taking the glove) Yes. Thank you, thank you.

Elizabeth: Mm-hmm.

Alexis: I was here earlier, but it was closed.

Elizabeth: Oh, yeah. Electrical problem, but we've got it taken care of. Do you want some coffee?

Alexis: I would love some, thank you.

Elizabeth: (Pouring coffee) I heard on the radio that Jax turned in Ric Lansing to the police? Is he seriously a suspect?

Alexis: I think at this point he'll be whatever Scott Baldwin wants him to be. (Takes the coffee cup) Thank you. Thanks.

Elizabeth: Mm-hmm.

Alexis turns around just in time to see Cameron strolling in the door. He walks up to her.

Alexis: Well, you'll be pleased to hear this.

Cameron: What now?

Alexis: Ned has secured his position as Kristina's father.

Cameron tilts his head curiously.

(Camera switches outside Kelly's)

Zander arrives and looks through the window. He sees Alexis with Cameron. Elizabeth walks out the door and almost runs into Zander.

Elizabeth: Oh, hey. Kelly's is open. No Jason, no Courtney, no reason you can't just go right on in.

She leaves but Zander continues to watch through the window.

Penny pours Cameron some coffee. He and Alexis are seated at a table.

Cameron: Thank you.

Alexis: For the record, this decision was not based on any advice that you gave me which, as usual, favored your own idiosyncrasies rather than textbook psychology.

Cameron: You say that like it's a bad thing. (He takes a drink)

Alexis: It is. (She sets down her cup and folds her arms in front of her.) Let's just say that I was coerced into allowing Ned visitation.

Cameron: Well, nobody really forces us to do anything.

Alexis: Did I mention that he threatened to tell the real father the truth if I didn't?

Cameron: So he was desperate to be part of Kristina's life.

Alexis: Apparently.

Cameron: The good news is he adores Kristina.

Alexis: You know, Ned and I used to have no trouble meeting in the middle.

Cameron: And now?

Alexis: It's -- it's different.

Cameron: It happens. Is he making any other demands?

Alexis: Just visitation.

Cameron: So, what's the problem?

Alexis: I don't like being threatened, and I regret setting the precedent.

Cameron: Kristina has a loving father who wants to be a part of her life without any romantic entanglement with you. Do you know how many single mothers would envy you?

Alexis: Cameron, not that long ago I would've agreed with you, but he's changed.

Cameron: Everybody changes.

Alexis: He has become unpredictable. He is doing things that he would never do, he is saying things that he would never have said, and he's socializing with people that he would never have socialized with before.

Cameron: He'll still love Kristina.

Alexis: But what kind of influence will he be on her? Will he respect my position as her mother? I was fine about Ned being in Kristina's life as much as he wanted to be. That was the Ned that I used to know. Now he's gone off on some course. I'm afraid that I won't even recognize him.

Cameron: You're worrying too much about the future.

Alexis: I can't help it. Because if Ned and I continue like this, eventually there will be an impasse, and by then it'll be too late because Kristina will have gotten used to him. This could mess up her life or,
worse, it could eventually drive her away.

When questioned, Ric does not say that he saw Brenda at the hotel the night of the murder.