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<blockquote data-quote="80&amp;#039;s Cha Cha Cha" data-source="post: 242318" data-attributes="member: 6964">Chapter 10&nbsp; Ben Gibson had been in strange situations before.&nbsp; He had even been in some pretty dangerous ones.&nbsp; &nbsp;But his current predicament was strange, dangerous and pretty damned frightening! And yet he refused to show that he was scared.&nbsp; &nbsp; He was in a room that was dank, dusty and was only lit with a bulb that looked as if it was about to blow out any minute.&nbsp; He was also tied to a wooden chair.&nbsp; As soon as he had been grabbed up at the airport, he was shoved into a dark sedan and blindfolded.&nbsp; Ben had no doubts whatsoever that this is what someone considered a ‘Texas Welcome’.&nbsp; And the privilege of such a thing was not bestowed on everyone.&nbsp; &nbsp; Ben’s theory was proven right, when the door opened and two men in cowboy hats walked in, along with a third person—J.R. Ewing.&nbsp; He took off his own hat, told the guys to wait outside, then waited until they did just that, closing the door behind them.&nbsp; &nbsp; J.R. then smiled cordially down at Ben and set his hat on a nearby table.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Mr. Gibson, we have never been formally introduced.&nbsp; I’m J.R. Ewing.&nbsp; And if you thought I was going to let you step foot in this state and keep up the nonsense you’ve been writing, that has hurt my wife, you are very sadly mistaken.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Ben eyed him.&nbsp; He now understood why Gary had run off from his family.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I am here for a journalists convention.” Ben lied.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Even if I believed there was one going on, you’re no journalist so you don’t belong here.”&nbsp; J.R. replied.&nbsp; “Now you understand this: I confiscated all of your papers and I don’t want to hear about you writing trash like this again.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “What are you afraid of, Ewing? That the truth will come out! Dottie Smith helped deliver a baby born to your wife a year and a half before your legitimate son was born…”&nbsp; &nbsp; J.R.’s answer to that was to backhand Ben!&nbsp; Blood trickled from his lower lip.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Mr. Gibson, I find your ingratitude just astounding.&nbsp; Now I kept my niece’s charges from sticking against you in California.&nbsp; I can make them stick again…I can make the charge change from attempted rape to full blown sexual assault with bodily fluids to match.&nbsp; And if such a thing happened, no one would believe two words you printed.&nbsp; So, the only thing you are going to take with you back to California is your return ticket and your clothing.&nbsp; I don’t want you here bothering poor Dottie Smith.&nbsp; She’s a sick woman and wouldn’t know what she’s saying anyway.”&nbsp; J.R. told him.&nbsp; &nbsp; Ben said nothing because there was nothing more to say.&nbsp; If he left here and then tried to make arrangements with Dottie Smith, J.R. Ewing was capable of making him wish he&nbsp; was dead.&nbsp; And he had been unaware that J.R. had intervened and gotten those attempted rape charges dropped.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; But he understood something now.&nbsp; If there was no illegitimate child, then there was no need for all of this. &nbsp; &nbsp; “I’ll leave as soon as you let me go.” Ben said.&nbsp; He would not return to Dallas.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Ben Gibson planned to send someone else here to speak with Dottie Smith and get the proof he needed.&nbsp; Someone J.R. would not suspect. Ben just had to think of the right person to do the job.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ****&nbsp; &nbsp; When Gary entered Abby’s room at the rehab center, he stopped short.&nbsp; &nbsp; Abby was packing.&nbsp; She was up and around and a nurse was helping her get her things together.&nbsp; &nbsp; But that was not what was throwing him.&nbsp; Abby had changed her appearance somehow and Gary couldn’t put his finger on what it was.&nbsp; &nbsp; She had bangs now and her hair was straighter then it had been before.&nbsp; It gave her a regal look.&nbsp; Abby noticed him and spoke.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Gary? Gary?”&nbsp; &nbsp; Gary snapped out of his wonder and focused on her.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Abby? You’re okay to leave? Why didn’t you call me?” he asked.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Dr. Cooper has rented a house and invited me to stay while I recuperated. Our home is a bit crowded.”&nbsp; Abby said, now looking at the nurse and thanking her for all of her help.&nbsp; The nurse left, closing the door behind her.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; “I see you changed your hair.&nbsp; It looks nice.” &nbsp; &nbsp; “I know it does.&nbsp; Did you need something?”&nbsp; Abby asked coolly.&nbsp; &nbsp; Gary snapped out of his ‘hair trance’ at her tone.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I want to talk about Mitch.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “What about him?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Lucy had an accident and fell.&nbsp; She is pregnant and it’s Mitch’s.&nbsp; They need time alone to work things out.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Abby pretended to look confused.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I don’t see anything stopping that.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Come on, Abby! Seriously? Where do you think your little affair with a young guy like that can go?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Further than my marriage to a man that can’t let his first wife go.&nbsp; Mitch has let Lucy go.”&nbsp; Abby said calmly.&nbsp; &nbsp; “What would it take to get you not to do this?”&nbsp; Gary asked.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I think you know.” Abby replied.&nbsp; “Val and Lucy go home and we return to our happy, blissful lives.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Gary said nothing and Abby took advantage of his silence to press her case even further.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Gary, I know you wanted, in your own way, to live the life with them that your father and brother denied you.&nbsp; You’ve done that.&nbsp; Lucy is going to have her own baby now.&nbsp; Val and Ben are going to have babies.&nbsp; There is no place for you with them now, except as grandfather and friend.”&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Gary continued to say nothing and Abby closed the distance between them and pressed herself up against him.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I know what we have isn’t the greatest love story ever told, or a lost love like what Val and you had.&nbsp; But it works.&nbsp; For us. And us alone.&nbsp; There is no room for Val or Lucy.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “You tell Mitch it’s over and push him towards Lucy.” Gary finally said.&nbsp; Abby rolled her eyes!&nbsp; &nbsp; “Mitch was a one time thing, Gary!&nbsp; And I can’t make him want Lucy or this baby.&nbsp; You’re sure it’s Mitch’s?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Mitch thinks Harris might be the father.&nbsp; I don’t buy that.&nbsp; There is something off about Lucy and Harris.&nbsp; I don’t get the feeling they are a love match.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “That doesn’t mean he might not be the father, Gary.&nbsp; Really, you can’t make Mitch take responsibility for a child that’s not his.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “He doesn’t feel it is because of you.” Gary said matter-of-factly. “So I will agree to your terms, Abby.&nbsp; But after you do your part.&nbsp; Because if Mitch doesn’t take Lucy back, Lucy isn’t going anywhere.”&nbsp; &nbsp; And with those words, Gary pulled away from Abby and left her room.&nbsp; Abby stared at her closed door for a moment before turning to a mirror and fussing with her hair.&nbsp; Gary had been enchanted with her, briefly. The ‘Krystle Carrington’ hairdo could do that, she guessed.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Gary was pitiful when it came to Lucy and Val.&nbsp; And she had offered Gary a lifeline just now, though he didn’t know it.&nbsp; He hadn’t agreed to kick Lucy out on the terms she had stated.&nbsp; That meant that Abby would have to get rid of her on her own.&nbsp;&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Abby would not be leaving the rehab center to go home with Mitch.&nbsp; Abby was getting on a plane and going to Denver, Colorado.&nbsp; She needed to test her new look on someone else.&nbsp; &nbsp; Blake Carrington.&nbsp; And if he looked at her like Gary just had, Abby knew she could lure Matthew Blaisdel over to her side and find the evidence she needed to finish Lucy.&nbsp; &nbsp; And as for Gary’s impending grandchild…well…Abby would not be against Gary and herself raising the little tyke—while Lucy was in prison.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ****&nbsp; &nbsp; “i’m pregnant.” was Lucy’s reply to Charles’s proposal. “So no, sorry.”&nbsp; &nbsp; They were still outside standing against one of the wooden fences.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Pregnant? How far along…”&nbsp; &nbsp; “It’s not yours.” Lucy interrupted.&nbsp; “So whatever Abby ordered you to do to get me out of here, isn’t going to work.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “My dear,” Charles said with a sigh, “I can assure you that Abby has nothing to do with this.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Something about the way he said that, put Lucy on alert!&nbsp; &nbsp; “Okay.&nbsp; Abby didn’t put you up to this.&nbsp; But someone did.&nbsp; Who?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Alexis Barnes is my second cousin.&nbsp; And she has need of your help in securing Ewing Oil for herself and Cliff.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Lucy rolled her eyes!&nbsp; &nbsp; “I have nothing to do with that company! I couldn’t help them steal anything from J.R. and Bobby! And I think she has a lot of nerve pulling this considering what she could lose.&nbsp; What do you have to do with this? Is she forcing you to propose to me because she has something on you?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “I am proposing because I want to.&nbsp; And…well…my company could use some help.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Okay.&nbsp; Well thanks for the truth but the answer is no, again! And aren’t you already married?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “That can end with a piece of paper.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “And I can end Adam Carrington’s freedom with just a slip of the tongue.” Lucy warned him.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; “Alexis isn’t worried.&nbsp; She’s thinking of framing you for running down Cliff.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Lucy snorted!&nbsp; &nbsp; “That’s a joke! Alexis would never get away with that!”&nbsp; &nbsp; Charles moved closer to her.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I agree, my dear.&nbsp; But would Bobby or Pam forgive you for helping Adam break the two of them up?”&nbsp; &nbsp; Lucy stepped back.&nbsp; Adam and her had been engaged lovers.&nbsp; But when she saw what he was, Lucy could not stomach his face most days.&nbsp; They then came to an agreement. One where her reputation was saved and he helped her get things moving with her plans here in California, in exchange for her making sure that Pam spent as much time with herself and Adam, while Cliff was recuperating.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Then the moment of no return came.&nbsp; And it involved her putting something in Bobby’s drink while Adam arranged for some hooker at Lute Mae’s home to be seen in bed with Bobby.&nbsp; Pam walked in on them…Bobby couldn’t explain properly but just thought he had drank too much the previous night, after having a horrible argument with Pam over the fight for Ewing Oil.&nbsp; &nbsp; Lucy would rather stab her own eyes out than let Bobby or Pam know she had a hand in the end of their marriage.&nbsp; And Charles could see that.&nbsp; He rested his hands on her shoulders.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Darling, think about what I could offer you.&nbsp; The father of your child, is he that man that we had dinner with the night of Abby’s fall?”&nbsp; &nbsp; Lucy knew he meant Harris.&nbsp; And she decided to allow him to think that.&nbsp; She nodded.&nbsp; &nbsp; “And yet his eye seemed to be on your friend that night.&nbsp; Abby told me she was going to become a nun?”&nbsp; &nbsp; Lucy didn’t respond.&nbsp; Charles squeezed her shoulders.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I know we are not in love.&nbsp; But we could still be very happy together.&nbsp; You, me and OUR child.&nbsp; Do think about it.&nbsp; I would hate to have to be the bearer of bad news to Bobby or Pam.” Charles said solemnly.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Well if you were, then your chance to save your company would go out the window.”&nbsp; Lucy told him bluntly.&nbsp; “So I suggest you find a different way of proposing, Mr. Scott.”&nbsp; &nbsp; And with that, Lucy pulled away from him and headed inside the house.&nbsp; The NERVE of Charles and Alexis to pull his kind of crap on her! She didn’t have the time for it and if Bobby and Pam heard a word of any of this, Lucy would find a way to blame Abby somehow, someway.&nbsp; &nbsp; She walked into the house just as Val came out of the sitting room.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Did Charles leave?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Yes. He came by to see how I was.” Lucy lied.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Oh.&nbsp; Well the phone is for you.&nbsp; I left it off the hook in the hallway.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Who is it?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “It’s one of your friends from Dallas.&nbsp; Muriel Gillis?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Okay.” Lucy said, confused. She walked to the phone and picked it up.&nbsp; Val went upstairs.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Muriel?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Oh Lucy! You need to come back to Dallas or tell me what to do!” Muriel wailed.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Okay, calm down! What’s wrong?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Your friend has stolen your fiancee and my job prospects!”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Ann?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Yes! ANN! We are interning at Ryland Transportation and I got a paid internship that she didn’t!”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Uh, I’m not following you.&nbsp; That’s good, isn’t it?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “I saw Harris Ryland kissing Ann! And he keeps calling me ‘Mabel’! I have no future with him if Ann is sleeping with him! She’s betrayed both of us! Especially you! You should get back here and keep her away from him!”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Muriel, on the list of all the things I am dealing with right now, Harris and Ann are at the very bottom.&nbsp; But I do get why you’re upset.&nbsp; Ann wants to be a nun so she probably doesn’t even want to work there.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “What do I do?” Muriel asked.&nbsp; Lucy’s calmness was calming her.&nbsp; And Lucy was feeling calm.&nbsp; If she could not get Mitch back and marrying Charles was out of the question, of course, then Harris would have to do as her baby’s father.&nbsp; Maybe steps needed to be taken to ensure that he was still available in case she needed to marry him.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Who was that guy that Ann was seeing? He took day and night classes but he wanted to be some kind of minister or something? You remember? He was kind of cute.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Yeah,” Muriel said slowly, “you said you thought he was the only reason Ann decided to become a nun in the first place.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Oh I’m sure it was! Go and find him and get him back in Ann’s life somehow.&nbsp; Ann will leave Harris and go running back to him, I’m sure.” Lucy counseled.&nbsp; “Now I have to get going.&nbsp; I’ll call you in a day or two to see how things are going.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Okay.&nbsp; And thanks, Lucy.” Muriel sighed, hanging up the phone.&nbsp; Yes, Lucy’s idea might work.&nbsp; What was that guy’s name again? John…Jeff…&nbsp; &nbsp; Josh.&nbsp; Joshua.&nbsp; Joshua Rush.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; ****&nbsp; &nbsp; Dorothy ‘Dottie’ Smith loved everything about the Ryland home.&nbsp;&nbsp; And Judith was so nice and gracious.&nbsp; She insisted on pushing her wheelchair so that Harris and Ann could have time to themselves.&nbsp; Ann seemed reluctant to leave the two of them alone, but Harris corralled her off someplace else, leaving the two women alone.&nbsp; &nbsp; “It was nice of you to invite Ann and me here tonight.&nbsp; Ann is very fond of Harris.” Dottie noted.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I’m fond of Ann.” Judith lied.&nbsp; “Though I’m confused about some things she’s told me about her life.&nbsp; Like about her father.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Dottie rolled her eyes!&nbsp; &nbsp; “That snake!&nbsp; He left when Ann was little.&nbsp; He claimed he didn’t think Ann was his, though I never told her that.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Judith folded her arms.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Was there any truth to that?”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Any truth to what?” Dottie asked.&nbsp; &nbsp; “That Ann wasn’t his.”&nbsp; Judith asked.&nbsp; Dottie frowned.&nbsp; That was quite a personal question! And she began to realize that the tone of Judith’s voice had changed as well.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; Dottie began to sense that this evening was not what it appeared to be.&nbsp; &nbsp; “No.&nbsp; My husband just didn’t want kids.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Hmmm.” Judith responded.&nbsp; “You know, it would help Ann’s position with Harris if let’s say….her father was someone important.”&nbsp; &nbsp; Dottie clenched her jaw.&nbsp; &nbsp; “You know.” was all she said.&nbsp; &nbsp; “Yes.&nbsp; But Ann doesn’t know?”&nbsp; &nbsp; Dottie’s eyes flashed!&nbsp; &nbsp; “What good what it do for her to know any of it? Garrison paid Ellie Ewing a visit before he died and those Ewings assumed he wanted everything they had.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “Well,” Judith said, “he would have had a right to the property, at the very least.&nbsp; As does Ann.&nbsp; She’s his only child.”&nbsp; &nbsp; “And J.R. Ewing would let that happen? He’d see her in the ground first!”&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; “Not with Harris and I supporting her, he wouldn’t.&nbsp; But let’s not talk about that anymore.” Judith purred. “I’d love to know what you remember about that baby being born? The one that Sue Ellen had…”&nbsp; &nbsp; “There is nothing to that.&nbsp; And I don’t know how my name became attached to that rumor.”&nbsp; Dottie said coldly.&nbsp; Judith turned away and began talking.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I know everything about you and your nursing career.&nbsp; I know that the only reason that daughter of yours and yourself, came this far in life is because you worked for rich people, kept their secrets and then gambled away the blackmail money they gave you. So if…”&nbsp; &nbsp; Judith turned around and could barely react! Dottie was out of her wheelchair and coming at her with a poker! Judith knocked the poker out of the woman’s hand, punched her and watched her go reeling back! She fell to the floor with a thud and was helped to the ground courtesy of a brass statue she hit her head on!&nbsp; &nbsp; Judith stared down at the woman, sensing she was dead.&nbsp; She then eased over to her, hunched on the floor and felt for a pulse.&nbsp; &nbsp; Her ‘suspicion’ was confirmed.&nbsp; &nbsp; Judith stood up, walked out of the room, turned, closed the double doors and began to search for Harris.&nbsp; He would have to help her cover this up, somehow, someway.&nbsp; She felt no remorse or even fear when she spied her son and ‘Ann Southworth’, kissing on a terrace(God, she could see her son’s tongue in that girl’s mouth).&nbsp; Everything that was hers would be theirs.&nbsp; Judith turned away, wondering something: which secret had caused Dottie to almost brain her with that poker?&nbsp; The one about Ann’s real father or the Ewing child rumor?&nbsp; &nbsp; Well, it didn’t matter. Not anymore.&nbsp; Harris would help her get rid of Dottie Smith’s body.&nbsp; Harris and that new chauffeur that she had recently hired.&nbsp; What was his name again?&nbsp; Yes. Lyle something or another.&nbsp; &nbsp; Meanwhile, Ben Gibson left Dallas by way of a night flight arranged by J.R. Ewing.&nbsp; He had decided he would need Abby’s help on this.&nbsp; She would benefit from finding out the truth here and he thought she was capable of doing it.&nbsp; &nbsp; But Ben would not find Abby in the state of California.&nbsp; Her own plane was about to touch down in Denver.&nbsp; And from there, she planned on staying at a hotel owned by Fallon Carrington Ewing called ‘La Mirage’.&nbsp; She also read the local paper mid-flight.&nbsp; Poor Blake Carrington had been hurt in some kind of car accident while en route to meet his wife, Constance Weldon Carrington. He now had amnesia and was struggling to recover his memories.&nbsp; Apparently this happened while she had been in her coma.&nbsp; How Abby had missed this tidbit, she could not understand.&nbsp; But she had been overly busy looking at old tabloid news of Krystle Carrington.&nbsp; The new dirt on the Carrington family had gotten lost in the shuffle.&nbsp; &nbsp; Governor Donna Krebbs, who technically was her sister-in-law, had been hurt as well.&nbsp; But that didn’t concern Abby so much.&nbsp; She smiled and put away the paper, just as her seat mate tapped her on the arm.&nbsp; &nbsp; “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt your reading but I have to tell you, you look a lot like the late Krystle Carrington.&nbsp; Has anyone told you that?”&nbsp; &nbsp; Abby now grinned!&nbsp; &nbsp; “All the time.” she purred.&nbsp; &nbsp; THE END&nbsp; &nbsp; The next installment of this story will be called ‘Capricorn Crazy’.&nbsp;&nbsp; But Abby’s journey will continue in the second installment of the Flamingo Road, Dallas and Dynasty fan fiction posted on the fan fiction area of this site titled ‘The Ties That Bind’.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="80's Cha Cha Cha, post: 242318, member: 6964"] Chapter 10 Ben Gibson had been in strange situations before. He had even been in some pretty dangerous ones. But his current predicament was strange, dangerous and pretty damned frightening! And yet he refused to show that he was scared. He was in a room that was dank, dusty and was only lit with a bulb that looked as if it was about to blow out any minute. He was also tied to a wooden chair. As soon as he had been grabbed up at the airport, he was shoved into a dark sedan and blindfolded. Ben had no doubts whatsoever that this is what someone considered a ‘Texas Welcome’. And the privilege of such a thing was not bestowed on everyone. Ben’s theory was proven right, when the door opened and two men in cowboy hats walked in, along with a third person—J.R. Ewing. He took off his own hat, told the guys to wait outside, then waited until they did just that, closing the door behind them. J.R. then smiled cordially down at Ben and set his hat on a nearby table. “Mr. Gibson, we have never been formally introduced. I’m J.R. Ewing. And if you thought I was going to let you step foot in this state and keep up the nonsense you’ve been writing, that has hurt my wife, you are very sadly mistaken.” Ben eyed him. He now understood why Gary had run off from his family. “I am here for a journalists convention.” Ben lied. “Even if I believed there was one going on, you’re no journalist so you don’t belong here.” J.R. replied. “Now you understand this: I confiscated all of your papers and I don’t want to hear about you writing trash like this again.” “What are you afraid of, Ewing? That the truth will come out! Dottie Smith helped deliver a baby born to your wife a year and a half before your legitimate son was born…” J.R.’s answer to that was to backhand Ben! Blood trickled from his lower lip. “Mr. Gibson, I find your ingratitude just astounding. Now I kept my niece’s charges from sticking against you in California. I can make them stick again…I can make the charge change from attempted rape to full blown sexual assault with bodily fluids to match. And if such a thing happened, no one would believe two words you printed. So, the only thing you are going to take with you back to California is your return ticket and your clothing. I don’t want you here bothering poor Dottie Smith. She’s a sick woman and wouldn’t know what she’s saying anyway.” J.R. told him. Ben said nothing because there was nothing more to say. If he left here and then tried to make arrangements with Dottie Smith, J.R. Ewing was capable of making him wish he was dead. And he had been unaware that J.R. had intervened and gotten those attempted rape charges dropped. But he understood something now. If there was no illegitimate child, then there was no need for all of this. “I’ll leave as soon as you let me go.” Ben said. He would not return to Dallas. Ben Gibson planned to send someone else here to speak with Dottie Smith and get the proof he needed. Someone J.R. would not suspect. Ben just had to think of the right person to do the job. **** When Gary entered Abby’s room at the rehab center, he stopped short. Abby was packing. She was up and around and a nurse was helping her get her things together. But that was not what was throwing him. Abby had changed her appearance somehow and Gary couldn’t put his finger on what it was. She had bangs now and her hair was straighter then it had been before. It gave her a regal look. Abby noticed him and spoke. “Gary? Gary?” Gary snapped out of his wonder and focused on her. “Abby? You’re okay to leave? Why didn’t you call me?” he asked. “Dr. Cooper has rented a house and invited me to stay while I recuperated. Our home is a bit crowded.” Abby said, now looking at the nurse and thanking her for all of her help. The nurse left, closing the door behind her. “I see you changed your hair. It looks nice.” “I know it does. Did you need something?” Abby asked coolly. Gary snapped out of his ‘hair trance’ at her tone. “I want to talk about Mitch.” “What about him?” “Lucy had an accident and fell. She is pregnant and it’s Mitch’s. They need time alone to work things out.” Abby pretended to look confused. “I don’t see anything stopping that.” “Come on, Abby! Seriously? Where do you think your little affair with a young guy like that can go?” “Further than my marriage to a man that can’t let his first wife go. Mitch has let Lucy go.” Abby said calmly. “What would it take to get you not to do this?” Gary asked. “I think you know.” Abby replied. “Val and Lucy go home and we return to our happy, blissful lives.” Gary said nothing and Abby took advantage of his silence to press her case even further. “Gary, I know you wanted, in your own way, to live the life with them that your father and brother denied you. You’ve done that. Lucy is going to have her own baby now. Val and Ben are going to have babies. There is no place for you with them now, except as grandfather and friend.” Gary continued to say nothing and Abby closed the distance between them and pressed herself up against him. “I know what we have isn’t the greatest love story ever told, or a lost love like what Val and you had. But it works. For us. And us alone. There is no room for Val or Lucy.” “You tell Mitch it’s over and push him towards Lucy.” Gary finally said. Abby rolled her eyes! “Mitch was a one time thing, Gary! And I can’t make him want Lucy or this baby. You’re sure it’s Mitch’s?” “Mitch thinks Harris might be the father. I don’t buy that. There is something off about Lucy and Harris. I don’t get the feeling they are a love match.” “That doesn’t mean he might not be the father, Gary. Really, you can’t make Mitch take responsibility for a child that’s not his.” “He doesn’t feel it is because of you.” Gary said matter-of-factly. “So I will agree to your terms, Abby. But after you do your part. Because if Mitch doesn’t take Lucy back, Lucy isn’t going anywhere.” And with those words, Gary pulled away from Abby and left her room. Abby stared at her closed door for a moment before turning to a mirror and fussing with her hair. Gary had been enchanted with her, briefly. The ‘Krystle Carrington’ hairdo could do that, she guessed. Gary was pitiful when it came to Lucy and Val. And she had offered Gary a lifeline just now, though he didn’t know it. He hadn’t agreed to kick Lucy out on the terms she had stated. That meant that Abby would have to get rid of her on her own. Abby would not be leaving the rehab center to go home with Mitch. Abby was getting on a plane and going to Denver, Colorado. She needed to test her new look on someone else. Blake Carrington. And if he looked at her like Gary just had, Abby knew she could lure Matthew Blaisdel over to her side and find the evidence she needed to finish Lucy. And as for Gary’s impending grandchild…well…Abby would not be against Gary and herself raising the little tyke—while Lucy was in prison. **** “i’m pregnant.” was Lucy’s reply to Charles’s proposal. “So no, sorry.” They were still outside standing against one of the wooden fences. “Pregnant? How far along…” “It’s not yours.” Lucy interrupted. “So whatever Abby ordered you to do to get me out of here, isn’t going to work.” “My dear,” Charles said with a sigh, “I can assure you that Abby has nothing to do with this.” Something about the way he said that, put Lucy on alert! “Okay. Abby didn’t put you up to this. But someone did. Who?” “Alexis Barnes is my second cousin. And she has need of your help in securing Ewing Oil for herself and Cliff.” Lucy rolled her eyes! “I have nothing to do with that company! I couldn’t help them steal anything from J.R. and Bobby! And I think she has a lot of nerve pulling this considering what she could lose. What do you have to do with this? Is she forcing you to propose to me because she has something on you?” “I am proposing because I want to. And…well…my company could use some help.” “Okay. Well thanks for the truth but the answer is no, again! And aren’t you already married?” “That can end with a piece of paper.” “And I can end Adam Carrington’s freedom with just a slip of the tongue.” Lucy warned him. “Alexis isn’t worried. She’s thinking of framing you for running down Cliff.” Lucy snorted! “That’s a joke! Alexis would never get away with that!” Charles moved closer to her. “I agree, my dear. But would Bobby or Pam forgive you for helping Adam break the two of them up?” Lucy stepped back. Adam and her had been engaged lovers. But when she saw what he was, Lucy could not stomach his face most days. They then came to an agreement. One where her reputation was saved and he helped her get things moving with her plans here in California, in exchange for her making sure that Pam spent as much time with herself and Adam, while Cliff was recuperating. Then the moment of no return came. And it involved her putting something in Bobby’s drink while Adam arranged for some hooker at Lute Mae’s home to be seen in bed with Bobby. Pam walked in on them…Bobby couldn’t explain properly but just thought he had drank too much the previous night, after having a horrible argument with Pam over the fight for Ewing Oil. Lucy would rather stab her own eyes out than let Bobby or Pam know she had a hand in the end of their marriage. And Charles could see that. He rested his hands on her shoulders. “Darling, think about what I could offer you. The father of your child, is he that man that we had dinner with the night of Abby’s fall?” Lucy knew he meant Harris. And she decided to allow him to think that. She nodded. “And yet his eye seemed to be on your friend that night. Abby told me she was going to become a nun?” Lucy didn’t respond. Charles squeezed her shoulders. “I know we are not in love. But we could still be very happy together. You, me and [B]OUR[/B] child. Do think about it. I would hate to have to be the bearer of bad news to Bobby or Pam.” Charles said solemnly. “Well if you were, then your chance to save your company would go out the window.” Lucy told him bluntly. “So I suggest you find a different way of proposing, Mr. Scott.” And with that, Lucy pulled away from him and headed inside the house. The [B]NERVE[/B] of Charles and Alexis to pull his kind of crap on her! She didn’t have the time for it and if Bobby and Pam heard a word of any of this, Lucy would find a way to blame Abby somehow, someway. She walked into the house just as Val came out of the sitting room. “Did Charles leave?” “Yes. He came by to see how I was.” Lucy lied. “Oh. Well the phone is for you. I left it off the hook in the hallway.” “Who is it?” “It’s one of your friends from Dallas. Muriel Gillis?” “Okay.” Lucy said, confused. She walked to the phone and picked it up. Val went upstairs. “Muriel?” “Oh Lucy! You need to come back to Dallas or tell me what to do!” Muriel wailed. “Okay, calm down! What’s wrong?” “Your friend has stolen your fiancee and my job prospects!” “Ann?” “Yes! [B]ANN[/B]! We are interning at Ryland Transportation and I got a paid internship that she didn’t!” “Uh, I’m not following you. That’s good, isn’t it?” “I saw Harris Ryland kissing Ann! And he keeps calling me ‘Mabel’! I have no future with him if Ann is sleeping with him! She’s betrayed both of us! Especially you! You should get back here and keep her away from him!” “Muriel, on the list of all the things I am dealing with right now, Harris and Ann are at the very bottom. But I do get why you’re upset. Ann wants to be a nun so she probably doesn’t even want to work there.” “What do I do?” Muriel asked. Lucy’s calmness was calming her. And Lucy was feeling calm. If she could not get Mitch back and marrying Charles was out of the question, of course, then Harris would have to do as her baby’s father. Maybe steps needed to be taken to ensure that he was still available in case she needed to marry him. “Who was that guy that Ann was seeing? He took day and night classes but he wanted to be some kind of minister or something? You remember? He was kind of cute.” “Yeah,” Muriel said slowly, “you said you thought he was the only reason Ann decided to become a nun in the first place.” “Oh I’m sure it was! Go and find him and get him back in Ann’s life somehow. Ann will leave Harris and go running back to him, I’m sure.” Lucy counseled. “Now I have to get going. I’ll call you in a day or two to see how things are going.” “Okay. And thanks, Lucy.” Muriel sighed, hanging up the phone. Yes, Lucy’s idea might work. What was that guy’s name again? John…Jeff… Josh. Joshua. Joshua Rush. **** Dorothy ‘Dottie’ Smith loved everything about the Ryland home. And Judith was so nice and gracious. She insisted on pushing her wheelchair so that Harris and Ann could have time to themselves. Ann seemed reluctant to leave the two of them alone, but Harris corralled her off someplace else, leaving the two women alone. “It was nice of you to invite Ann and me here tonight. Ann is very fond of Harris.” Dottie noted. “I’m fond of Ann.” Judith lied. “Though I’m confused about some things she’s told me about her life. Like about her father.” Dottie rolled her eyes! “That snake! He left when Ann was little. He claimed he didn’t think Ann was his, though I never told her that.” Judith folded her arms. “Was there any truth to that?” “Any truth to what?” Dottie asked. “That Ann wasn’t his.” Judith asked. Dottie frowned. That was quite a personal question! And she began to realize that the tone of Judith’s voice had changed as well. Dottie began to sense that this evening was not what it appeared to be. “No. My husband just didn’t want kids.” “Hmmm.” Judith responded. “You know, it would help Ann’s position with Harris if let’s say….her father was someone important.” Dottie clenched her jaw. “You know.” was all she said. “Yes. But Ann doesn’t know?” Dottie’s eyes flashed! “What good what it do for her to know any of it? Garrison paid Ellie Ewing a visit before he died and those Ewings assumed he wanted everything they had.” “Well,” Judith said, “he would have had a right to the property, at the very least. As does Ann. She’s his only child.” “And J.R. Ewing would let that happen? He’d see her in the ground first!” “Not with Harris and I supporting her, he wouldn’t. But let’s not talk about that anymore.” Judith purred. “I’d love to know what you remember about that baby being born? The one that Sue Ellen had…” “There is nothing to that. And I don’t know how my name became attached to that rumor.” Dottie said coldly. Judith turned away and began talking. “I know everything about you and your nursing career. I know that the only reason that daughter of yours and yourself, came this far in life is because you worked for rich people, kept their secrets and then gambled away the blackmail money they gave you. So if…” Judith turned around and could barely react! Dottie was out of her wheelchair and coming at her with a poker! Judith knocked the poker out of the woman’s hand, punched her and watched her go reeling back! She fell to the floor with a thud and was helped to the ground courtesy of a brass statue she hit her head on! Judith stared down at the woman, sensing she was dead. She then eased over to her, hunched on the floor and felt for a pulse. Her ‘suspicion’ was confirmed. Judith stood up, walked out of the room, turned, closed the double doors and began to search for Harris. He would have to help her cover this up, somehow, someway. She felt no remorse or even fear when she spied her son and ‘Ann Southworth’, kissing on a terrace(God, she could see her son’s tongue in that girl’s mouth). Everything that was hers would be theirs. Judith turned away, wondering something: which secret had caused Dottie to almost brain her with that poker? The one about Ann’s real father or the Ewing child rumor? Well, it didn’t matter. Not anymore. Harris would help her get rid of Dottie Smith’s body. Harris and that new chauffeur that she had recently hired. What was his name again? Yes. Lyle something or another. Meanwhile, Ben Gibson left Dallas by way of a night flight arranged by J.R. Ewing. He had decided he would need Abby’s help on this. She would benefit from finding out the truth here and he thought she was capable of doing it. But Ben would not find Abby in the state of California. Her own plane was about to touch down in Denver. And from there, she planned on staying at a hotel owned by Fallon Carrington Ewing called ‘La Mirage’. She also read the local paper mid-flight. Poor Blake Carrington had been hurt in some kind of car accident while en route to meet his wife, Constance Weldon Carrington. He now had amnesia and was struggling to recover his memories. Apparently this happened while she had been in her coma. How Abby had missed this tidbit, she could not understand. But she had been overly busy looking at old tabloid news of Krystle Carrington. The new dirt on the Carrington family had gotten lost in the shuffle. Governor Donna Krebbs, who technically was her sister-in-law, had been hurt as well. But that didn’t concern Abby so much. She smiled and put away the paper, just as her seat mate tapped her on the arm. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to interrupt your reading but I have to tell you, you look a lot like the late Krystle Carrington. Has anyone told you that?” Abby now grinned! “All the time.” she purred. [B]THE END[/B] The next installment of this story will be called ‘Capricorn Crazy’. But Abby’s journey will continue in the second installment of the Flamingo Road, Dallas and Dynasty fan fiction posted on the fan fiction area of this site titled ‘The Ties That Bind’. [/QUOTE]

Verification

Who played JR Ewing?