Previously:

Despite their differences, Pete and Giselle wound up working together to escape the Castleton Psychiatric Hospital. Initially, Pete was only in it for revenge against his former rival, but he wound up taking Giselle's cash payout ... and her advice that he start a new life for himself somewhere far, far away.

Following Erin's breakdown and her attack on Sonya and Misty, the Bradleys' worst nightmare came true when they were told that Misty had died from her injuries. Sonya remained in critical condition, while Charlie and the others remained oblivious to Erin's role in the crime.

Ava recaptured Kerri after her near escape. She demanded Miles bring her the money immediately if he wanted his sister returned to him unharmed.

 

St. Laurent Community Hospital

Through the window to the hospital room, Charlie Guthrie could see Misty Bradley's lifeless body. Tisha kneeled at her daughter's bedside, sobs racking her body, while Benton stood off to the side by himself.

Charlie felt horrible, a spectator to their misery. He shouldn't be intruding on their grief. It was only making him feel worse. Worse for the Bradleys, and worse about the fact that Erin and Summer were still unaccounted for.

Charlie forced himself to look away from the Bradleys. As he sat in the waiting area, he prayed that Erin was safe somewhere.

Minutes later, when Charlie looked up from his contemplation, he saw Benton leaving his daughter's hospital room. Charlie went to him immediately. "Benton," he said, "is there anything I can do?"

Benton shook his head, a tight grimace on his lips. Charlie knew he still hadn't accepted the fact that his daughter hadn't survived. It was something that would take time to come to terms with, especially after happening so unexpectedly.

"We've got to find the bastard that did this," Benton said, seeming to channel all his conflicting emotions into anger. His tough shell almost cracked for a moment, his voice faltering ever so slightly. "Who could do this to my baby?"

But as soon as the thought escaped him, Benton clamped up once more, fighting to remain in control of himself. He turned to glimpse his heartbroken wife through the window.

Charlie followed his gaze. "Tisha ... will she be...?"

Benton didn't know what to say. "I don't know. I just can't do it, Charlie. I can't be in that room anymore. I can't see her like that. I don't want that to be the way I remember my daughter."

"It won't be."

"I can't have that be my last memory of her. In that bed, with Tisha crying over her..."

It was too much for Benton. He took off down the hall by himself, needing an escape.

As Charlie looked back into the room, his gaze turning from Tisha to Misty, he wondered how his friends would ever begin to cope with what had happened to them tonight.

 

Near the Marina

Beau Ormand drove to the marina with the money he and Miles had collected from the Highwind. It was almost time to make the exchange with Ava -- the cash for Kerrigan.

"Are you ready for this?" Beau asked, hopping out of his Escape. He looked to Miles, whose face was about five times as pale as normal.

"I'm worried," Miles admitted. "What if she does something to Kerri? If she gets hurt again..."

"She's not going to get hurt," Beau said with conviction. "You're going to give them what they want, and we're going to get Kerri back, right?"

Miles nodded, clutching the briefcase of money closer to his side.

Beau looked at his watch. "We're supposed to meet them at Pier 7?" He already knew the answer, but a little confirmation never hurt anything. Miles nodded, and Beau continued, "Good, we've still got time. It's only one thirty."

"What are we going to do?"

"Just do what they ask you to do," Beau said, trying to remain calm. He knew Miles was terrified. He was scared too, but they had to play it cool. They didn't want to rile up the D'Amatos or give them any reason to attack. "I'm sure they think you're coming alone, so I'll hide. If things get out of hand, or if they try to renege on the deal, I'll step in."

"At least we have the element of surprise," Miles said, skeptical.

Beau looked down the docks but saw nobody. He stepped out over the water, Miles trailing close behind. They didn't have much time now. As he scouted his surroundings, he hoped Kerri could hold on just a little longer. He wasn't leaving until she was back in his arms.

 

Bravington Heights

At the edge of the small community she'd wandered into with Pete Sorenson earlier that night, Giselle Ormand Guthrie walked down the street, aimless in the dead of night. Where was she going to turn now that she was all alone? She'd escaped from the mental hospital, but if the police found her, they'd cart her right back to Castleton, and everything she'd done to escape would have been in vain.

She needed somewhere to go, someone to turn to. She was surprised to find herself missing Pete's company. As dangerous as she knew he was, at least he'd had a plan. Unfortunately, his plans no longer included her, and Giselle was left to fend for herself.

She thought about her next move. Where would she go? Should she try to contact her family? Certainly not her traitor of a husband. She couldn't believe Vincent thought she'd be better off among mental patients and wackos ... among people like Pete Sorenson and that certifiable freakshow, Madame Chakra!

While Giselle worked at developing her gameplan, church bells rang out in the night. Their sound reminded Giselle of where she was and what she had been through. Until then, it had seemed so surreal. But this was no dream or nightmare, as much as she wished she would just wake up in her own bed...

Giselle followed the call of the bells, the beginnings of a plan forming in her weary mind. As the picturesque stone building came into view, Giselle continued on and climbed the steps to St. Magdalene's Catholic Church.

Pulling open a heavy wooden door, Giselle was relieved to find the church's adoration chapel was open for visitors, even in the dead of night.

Giselle looked around the reception area of the church, its stained glass windows glimmering in the soft lighting. The last thing Giselle wanted to do was sleep outside. Maybe she could go unnoticed, find some hidden place to sleep within the church's walls.

But what if somebody found her? What if somebody saw her and recognized her? Giselle was sure she must've made the news in the time since her arrest.

She scanned the room, looking for a solution. On a long table near the church's entry, Giselle lifted a candelabra and yanked a runner from beneath it, a long piece of white linen. Giselle wrapped the runner around her head as a headscarf, hoping to disguise herself a bit with the cloth.

Once she finished up her sad disguise, she entered into the church itself, walking toward the altar.

She was lucky in that she seemed to be the only visitor at this hour of the night. The rows of pews stood empty, but she knew someone else must be here somewhere. Giselle wondered what that person would think if they came across her, dressed in her ridiculous get-up of various, stolen clothing objects.

Giselle kneeled at the altar, bowing her head in prayer.

Please, don't let anyone recognize me or take me back to that awful place.

Please, forgive Remy for what he did to Monique.

And please, forgive me for lying. Forgive me for what I did to keep my son safe.

 

The Marina

Below the deck of their boat, Dominick and Ava discussed their preparations for meeting up with Miles. Kerrigan was seated on the floor, her hands still tightly bound behind her back. Dominick kept shooting her furtive glances while he spoke to his sister, unsure if they should be discussing things openly in front of their hostage.

"Who cares if she hears? She can't do anything about it," Ava said, noticing her brother's worry.

"Shouldn't we be going soon?" Dominick asked, checking the time.

"I'm going alone. You need to stay here and keep an eye on her."

"She's not going anywhere."

"Are you kidding me? She almost escaped because of you, and you don't think she's going to go anywhere? Just do what I say. Stay here and watch her. You're nothing but a liability lately anyway, especially when it comes to Miles."

Dominick thought it was a stupid plan.

"He's not going to give you the money. Not if you don't take me along," Kerri said, hoping to change Ava's mind.

"Miles doesn't have a choice. If he doesn't do what I say, he won't see you again. It doesn't matter if you're there or not."

Ava turned away from them, sick of their whining. She knew she was the one in control of the situation. Miles would do what she asked if he wanted to see Kerri again. That's all there was to it. Soon, they'd have the money, and instead of collecting debts for her father, she could put this behind her and worry about her own life for a change.

"I'm going to go. Make sure she doesn't go anywhere," Ava said.

Kerrigan watched Ava collect her handgun from the table and felt a growing sense of dread in the pit of her stomach.

"Be careful," Dom said genuinely, despite the way the two of them bickered.

"I'll be fine," she said, then, turning to Kerri, "and as long as your brother doesn't try anything, you'll be able to say the same."

 

St. Laurent Community Hospital

Tisha Bradley wondered if the pain would ever go away. At first, she could hardly breathe. When she heard the news, when the crying began, it felt like her chest was caving in on itself. She'd cried until the pain filtered and branched out, until it became a dull ache that reached every extreme of her body.

It was unbearable.

But when her tears finally stopped, she didn't know what to think or feel anymore.

She was alone in her daughter's room, clutching tight to Misty's hand. Letting go of it meant giving up, admitting that there wasn't a reason to keep holding on. And Tisha wasn't ready to do that.

"I should have listened. It was such a meaningless thing to fight about." She smoothed Misty's hair away from her face. "I didn't listen to my own baby. You couldn't even talk to me ... you must've hated me then ... hated me for that right up to the end..."

Tisha sobbed, tripping over her words, and just when she thought she had no more tears left, they returned.

That was what hurt the most. As much as Tisha loved her daughter, she would forever remember the distance between them at the time. She'd never have the chance to patch things up and tell her daughter how trivial their behavior was.

It seemed so stupid now. Fighting with her daughter simply because she was in love? Tisha knew her daughter had a good heart. Misty was always an excellent judge of character, always made rational, sound decisions. She didn't take things lightly. She must have had something truly special with Jasper, for her to come clean to her parents, knowing they wouldn't understand or comprehend her feelings. To put herself through that...

Tisha could only hope her daughter was happy with him. That Jasper brightened the last of her days, while she and Benton only made them worse.

Tisha tried to wipe the tears from her eyes, but they reappeared the instant she cleared them. She heard the door to the hospital room open. "Benton?" she asked, turning to the door.

But it wasn't her husband. She didn't know where he went or why he left her side. Instead, it was Dr. Hart.

"We need to take her now," Dr. Hart said.

Tisha struggled to her feet. She looked down at Misty's hand, still within her own. Could she really let go?

"I know there's nothing I can say, Tisha. Nobody can say how sorry we are for you..."

Tisha bowed her head. When she looked up, she saw Charlie watching her from the window. Her heart ached. He gave her a nod, the briefest show of encouragement, but it was enough.

Tisha rested her daughter's hand across her body, gave Misty a kiss on the forehead, then willed herself to back away. She was still in shock, she knew. A part of her still thought Misty would come back to her some way.

She saw Charlie enter the room. He slipped his hand into her own, and she closed her eyes, pretending it was her daughter's.

 

St. Magdalene's Catholic Church

Hidden within the sacristy of the church, Giselle was resting, drifting into an uneasy sleep among the vestments, cloths, and sacred vessels stored within. She wondered if it was a sin to be hiding out here, using the church's holy linens as her bedding, but she figured it was among the lesser of the crimes she had yet to atone for.

She'd barely fallen asleep when Giselle was ripped from her slumber. Someone or something was in the chamber with her. She could feel its presence. She scrambled into a seated position, her back against the wall as she looked up into the face of...

Gene Sorenson?

Giselle was taken by surprise, shaken by the sight of her companion. His hair, his skin ... it was all an ethereal, silvery color against the darkness surrounding them. He looked every bit the ghost she knew he was.

"It's a miracle you're alive," he said, his voice barely audible at first. "My son has been waiting a long time to get his hands on you. To get revenge for what you did to me. How you swayed him from that mission is beyond me."

Gene Sorenson was grinning from ear to ear. She could tell he was amused by her fear.

"Is that what you want from him?" she asked the shimmering vision. "Retribution for what I did to you?"

After a moment, Gene shook his head. "I never wanted to see my son become so poisoned, so consumed with vengeance. He's been so unhappy." His voice softened, and Giselle's fear waned. "I never wanted Pete to throw his life away for me. That's why I have to forgive you for what you've done, Giselle. I have to forgive, in the hopes that my son will do the same."

"Gene," she whispered, drawing closer to the apparition. "If I could take it back ... I would change everything, everything from the beginning. I made the wrong decision all those years ago. I wish I could make it up to you," she said, reaching out to him.

"You actually mean that, don't you?" he asked, a gentle smile spreading across his silver lips. "Giselle, you helped my son avoid a very dangerous path tonight. You offered him a second chance. I can only hope he makes the most of your gift."

"I never realized ... how much I took from him by keeping the two of you apart."

Gene's visage studied her, and for a moment, Giselle wanted to believe he was real.

"I chose Vincent. I thought he was the one, but I was wrong. It should have been you. I made a mistake."

"We both made mistakes. It can be hard to know who to trust in life. Nobody's ever really who we expect them to be, are they?"

Giselle knew there was more she needed to say to him, but before she could offer up anything else, his silhouette faded, disappearing into the dark.

Giselle thought about his words and was surprised to breathe a little easier, to feel lighter than she had in years. She wanted to believe that Gene had truly forgiven her, though she suspected the entire conversation was likely the result of her overactive imagination.

Nobody's ever really who we expect them to be...

Gene's words only brought her back to thinking about Vincent. She knew everything about the man, or at least she thought she did. But the Vincent she thought she knew never would have treated her this way.

Gene may have forgiven her for her crimes, but Giselle knew he was a bigger person than she could hope to be. She had other plans for her husband. And forgiveness definitely wasn't among them.

 

The Marina

"She's not going to shoot him, is she?" Kerri asked, rigid with anxiety. She didn't intend to talk to her kidnapper, but the longer she remained silent, the more she worried about Miles and what would happen when her brother met up with Ava.

"No," Dominick said simply, sitting in the corner with his head in his hands.

"Are you sure? Are you sure she won't just shoot him and take the money? What's to stop her?"

Dominick didn't look up at her. The truth was, he was wondering the exact same thing. Ava's last minute change of plans didn't do anything to ease his mind. Dominick wondered why she made him stay behind. Was it because she knew he would try to stop her ... if she wanted to shoot Miles?

This was going too far. Nobody was supposed to die. Not Miles. And Kerri? She was a total innocent in all of this. She didn't even know the truth, that Ava was the one to blame for the explosion that had nearly killed her.

Dominick refused to let it happen again. He couldn't do it to her. He couldn't do it to Miles.

He crossed the room, ducking down to the floor as he neared Kerrigan's side.

"Get away from me!" she screamed, thrashing and kicking at him.

"Stop. I'm trying to help," he said, watching her relax ever so slightly. He got behind her and started sawing at her ropes with the dull blade of his knife. "I can't do this anymore. It's not worth it."

"What?" Kerri asked, knowing she shouldn't be questioning his decision, but unable to believe this was happening.

"I'm letting you go," he said. "When you escaped earlier ... I almost hoped you'd get away with it." He finished pulling away the ropes, untying her wrists. "I'm not a bad person, Kerri. I know you can't believe that, but I'm not."

As soon as she was untied, Kerri scrambled away from him.

"Wait!" Dominick called out.

"No!"

"Please, wait!" He held something out to her. Something that made Kerri stop in her tracks. "Take this with you. you can't leave without it."

It was her engagement ring. The one Ava had stolen from her on the Midnight Zephyr.

Kerri hesitated, then approached him, taking it from his hand. She slid it back onto her finger where it belonged.

"Run as far away from here as you can. I'll tell Miles you've escaped when I see him. I've got to go stop Ava."

Kerri's eyes widened. She was worried what Ava would do when Dominick showed up. Would this make things worse for Miles? She hoped Dominick would be able to help her brother somehow. With one last, hopeful look at her former captor, she sprinted off, racing away from the boat and not looking back.