Episode # 10235
Tape Date: 1/4/06
Air Date: 1/23/06
Director: Albert Alarr

Summary: It looks like this is the first show filmed after the Christmas break, but Peter and Kristian haven’t lost their intensity…they give powerful performances again as they return home to find Zack’s empty room…Austin grovels for forgiveness at Carrie’s feet…Roman tries to talk sense into Billie…Patrick is determined to get to the truth…Jen convinces Frankie to hang around.

At the Deveraux House…Jen is thinking about Frankie’s goodbye and rushes to the door to stop him from leaving. He is standing there to return her keys that he forgot. She admits that she was going to try to stop him from leaving and wants to talk with him. He comes in and she says she has some things she needs to say to him. She apologizes for her reaction to his confession and he apologizes as well for upsetting her. She tries to explain and thanks him for being honest with her. She says now it is her turn to be honest with him. She admits that yes, she probably thought of him as more than just a friend and says that when she and Jack were apart, she thought of him more than she should have. After all, he was her first love…and you never forget that. Frankie says he knows that she was in love with Jack and probably always will be. She says that they thought they would grow old together, but it just wasn’t to be. Frankie says that Jack knew he was dying but didn’t want her to stop living as well. She says that they were happy and she didn’t want to betray him or their memory and apologizes if she was sending him mixed signals. He says he has to leave, but Jen asks him not to go and she stops him. She says her family needs him there. She says she is sorry if she was sending him mixed signals and won’t be doing that anymore, but she knows that Jack is gone and she needs her friend there to help her. He finally says he will stay for as long as she needs him and they hug.

At Lucas’s Place…Carrie is furious and lashes out at Austin. He tries to explain as Nicole rushes in, informing him that the entire Highstyle staff has been pinkslipped. He tries to shut her up and then she asks what’s wrong as Sami explains. Nicole says OOPS and has a sheepish grin on her face. Carrie blubbers about them stealing her company but Nicole says she ran it into the ground. Austin tries to explain to her but she says he was only playing her. He swears he didn’t know that was her company as Lucas backs Carrie. Sami claims none of them knew until it was too late. Carrie says that is why they were in LA to scope out her company. Nicole retorts (with the line of the day) saying “no, we were in LA to go Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride”. (LOL) Carrie hauls off and slaps Austin across the chops. Austin tries to grovel, swearing he didn’t know the truth, but Carrie asks if he DID know…would it had made a difference? She goes on about how stupid she was and tells them to go on and celebrate. Austin says maybe they can fix it, but Nicole says the deal is done…no going back now. Austin tries to figure out a way to help, but Nicole says no, Highstyle is like Humpty Dumpty…it is finished. Austin swears that he tried to find out who the CEO was and talk to her, but never could. Lucas takes advantage of the situation and rails at Austin, saying he didn’t care who he hurt. Carrie says even if it weren’t her company, it wasn’t right (that is the nature of big business, honey). He continues to swear if he had known it was her company, he wouldn’t have gone through with it. Lucas (playing every trump card) calls him a heartless corporate raider that stabbed Carrie in the back and is now twisting the knife. Carrie doesn’t even want to talk to him, saying he disgusts her. She talks about how her work was her life and how she let her employees down. Austin promises to make it up to her. Sami chimes in, saying she tried to stop Austin and Nicole but they wouldn’t listen. Playing the sympathetic sister, he says she also sorry about her and Austin. Carrie says she let her guard down and this is what happened. Austin is still trying to tell her he didn’t want to hurt her but she says she hates what he has become…maybe he was like this all along and she just didn’t realize it, as Lucas comforts her. To herself, Sami thinks that Carrie doesn’t want Austin anymore…it’s only a matter of time before he is all hers.

At the Lockhart House…(or at least I think that’s where it is)…Chelsea sits alone and cries about how horrible she feels, but she CANNOT go to jail. Some guy comes in (oh, that’s Patrick…it’s been a while since we have seen him ;-) He has a paper and knows all about Zack’s death and Billie’s arrest. He says that Chelsea can’t let Billie take the blame for something she didn’t do. Chelsea says she confessed but Patrick doesn’t believe it and says there is more to it and is determined to find out the truth. She claims she doesn’t know anything but he keeps on pushing. She covers but Patrick says there are too many holes in Billie’s story. She asks him what he thinks is going on and he says he thinks she is covering for someone else and he is going to find out who. He leaves to go to the station to talk to Billie. Alone, Chelsea cries again, saying she can’t go to jail and if Billie wants to take the blame, she can. She tries to justify what Billie is doing and says it will work…IF everyone that knows the truth just keeps quiet (bahahaha, yea right).

At the Cop Shop…Roman wants to talk to Billie alone before she is booked and takes her into his office. He tells her that he knows the truth, Bo told him, brother to brother. Billie is angry that Bo told him and says that no one can prove it was Chelsea and she goes to leave. He stops her, telling her that this is wrong and that the truth WILL come out. He tries to convince her to tell the truth, but she is determined to protect Chelsea, saying that Chelsea going to jail won’t bring back Zack. Roman tells her that Bo WILL tell Hope the truth. Billie says that he (Roman) has to stop him…Hope can never know the truth. He tries to talk sense into her but she won’t listen. She tries to explain that she is only protecting her daughter and will not let her go to jail. However, she (Billie) can handle it…Chelsea can’t. Billie says that if Bo does tell Hope the truth, she will never forgive him…for he is at fault as well and their marriage will be over. Roman says that Bo and Hope have weathered many storms together and he is sure that eventually she will find out the truth. But this time, their marriage may not survive, if he continues to lie to her. The cops come to get Billie and as they go through the outer office, Patrick is now there. He asks her what the hell she thinks she is doing. She tells him to just let it go, but he says he doesn’t believe her story. He says she needs a lawyer, but she insists she is guilty. He says he knows there is more to it and she begs him to just drop it…there is nothing he can do. She hugs him, telling him she loves him. They lead her away to the booking room as he vows to get to the bottom of it.

At the Brady House…Hope stands outside Zack’s room saying that is all that is left of him. She goes in and starts crying all over again. She picks up a shirt and sniffs it and holds it close. She sits on the bed and begins to gather up some of his toys, holding them close. Bo tries to get her to leave, but she won’t. She takes it all in, talking about how sweet he was, crying that he is never coming home. She can’t let him go. Bo holds her, telling her that they will make it through this together. Hope wants Billie to pay for what she did to her baby as Bo says it was an accident. That infuriates her, crying that her baby is gone forever. She lies down on the bed and sobs as Bo picks her up and carries her from the room, as the camera pans over to his toys. Later, they are in the living room as Bo builds a fire. Hope still can’t believe how reckless Billie was and Bo says that she has to accept it was an accident. But she becomes angry again, spitting that she HATES Billie for taking her baby away. Bo tells her she has to let go of the anger, but she says she can’t. He tells her that Zack would want them to move on and they need to draw their strength from each other now. He is worried about her and goes to get her something to eat. As she cries alone, Zack comes charging down the stairs calling “Mommy” and runs to her and she holds him as he tells her he loves her. Then she realizes it isn’t real. She says “I love you too Zack…I will always love you, baby” as she holds his stuffed animal and cries. Fade out on Hope…as the previews show…

Patrick (to Chelsea): Why is Billie taking the blame when you and I both know she is innocent?...

Kate (to Billie): If you won’t tell the truth…then I will…

Bo (to Hope): There’s something I have to tell you…something you need to know…

Nicole (to Sami) Your sorry ass is going to be out in the unemployment line… (Sami): You don’t even know what you are talking about…

Lucas (to Carrie): Question is…now that you have seen him for what he really is…can you give him up?...

And the credits roll…
Laney