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<blockquote data-quote="CeeCee72" data-source="post: 284456" data-attributes="member: 5055">I don&#039;t own any of the characters in this story and no copyright infringement is intended.This fic is an alternate timeline where the dream season wasn&#039;t a dream. It picks up after the last episode of season 9.***Life Is But a DreamPart 24:***Cantrell slipped on his jacket and checked his appearance in the mirror. He and Cliff were having dinner with Pam and Mark. Cliff wanted him to tell Pam everything he knew about Katherine and how JR whisked her out of the country after she skipped bail - and like it or not, he had no choice but to do exactly what Cliff wanted.But Barnes was in for a rude awakening. Cliff didn&#039;t know the whole story. He knew they HOW Katherine had disappeared but he didn&#039;t know the WHY of JR&#039;s involvement. Once Pam heard everything Mark had to tell her, she wouldn&#039;t want to hurt JR at all anymore. In fact, Cliff would be damned lucky if Pam didn&#039;t declare JR Ewing a sainted hero. Matt smiled at the thought of how shocked Cliff was going to be. He couldn&#039;t wait to see the look on the other man&#039;s face. It was going to be priceless.***&quot;What are you going to do, Ellie?&quot;Ellie sighed and sat her coffee cup down on the kitchen counter. &quot;I don&#039;t know,&quot; she sighed heavily. &quot;But I have to do something.&quot;&quot;You should tell JR.&quot;&quot;I can&#039;t, Clayton. JR will kill him.&quot;&quot;Maybe, but if you don&#039;t tell him and he finds out only after he gets served with the papers, he&#039;ll kill Barnes for sure.&quot;&quot;I just don&#039;t understand why Cliff would do this! John Ross&#039;s paternity was settled long ago.&quot;&quot;He&#039;s doing it because he blames JR for Jamie&#039;s death. He thinks JR cost him his wife, so now he&#039;s trying to destroy JR&#039;s family.&quot;&quot;We can&#039;t let this happen.&quot;&quot;Then we have to talk to JR.&quot;&quot;Yes,&quot; Ellie agreed reluctantly. &quot;I suppose there is no other choice, is there?&quot;***Jack grimaced and looked down at his watch. He&#039;d just come from April&#039;s hotel room, but she hadn&#039;t&nbsp; answered the door. He didn&#039;t understand it. She knew he was coming to see her after he left Southfork. Where had she gone?The elevator stopped and the doors slid open. Jack stepped out into the lobby and made a beeline for the front desk. &quot;Excuse me.&quot;A young, pretty female clerk looked up at him and smiled. &quot;May I help you?&quot;&quot;Yes. I was supposed to meet April Stevens, but she doesn&#039;t seem to be in her room. I was wondering if she left a message for me. My name is Jack Ewing.&quot;&quot;Room number?&quot;&quot;2203.&quot;He watched her punch something on the computer keyboard and then turn to a row of mailboxes behind her and retrieve an envelope.&nbsp; &quot;Miss Stevens checked out this afternoon, but she left this package for you.&quot;&quot;Checked out?&quot; Jack breathed out in shock. He took the manilla envelope she was holding out to him. &quot;Thank you.&quot;He walked over to a chair, sat down, opened the envelope, and pulled out the contents. There was a large folder and a smaller, pink envelope. &quot;Jack&quot; was written across the back of the envelope in April&#039;s familiar, dainty handwriting. He opened it up and unfolded the letter inside. &quot;Jack, sorry to be such a coward, but I just couldn&#039;t bring myself to face you. The real reason I came to Dallas is in the folder. I got a judge to grant me half of your income for the next five years. I promise never to bother you again. My lawyer will be in touch.&quot;Jack laughed lightly and shook his head. &quot;Oh, no April,&quot; he muttered, standing up and heading for the exit. &quot;If you think I&#039;m going to let you get away with this, you&#039;re&nbsp; even crazier than I thought you were.&quot;***&quot;You didn&#039;t&nbsp; eat much at dinner.&quot;Sue Ellen looked up and smiled at her husband. &quot;I wasn&#039;t very hungry.&quot;&quot;You&#039;re&nbsp; still not worried about how things will be between us when you get back from therapy tomorrow, are you? Because if you are, you don&#039;t need to be.&quot;&quot;How can you say that, JR? We have no idea what I&#039;m going to remember or how I will feel…&quot;&quot;I know you love me. You know I love you.&nbsp; That&#039;s all we need to know, Sue Ellen.&quot;&quot;JR..&quot;&quot;Honey,&quot; he voice was soft and soothing, &quot;whatever you remember, no matter how ugly it is, I&#039;ll deal with it. I&#039;ll answer any question you have. I&#039;ll tell you whatever you need to know. We&#039;ll work through it.&quot;&quot;You promise?&quot; her voice sounded small and shaky.He smiled and leaned close to her, pulling her into his arms and holding her close. &quot;I swear it.&quot;&quot;JR,&quot; Ellie appeared in the doorway of the living room, &quot;I&#039;m sorry to interrupt, but Clayton and I need to speak to you. It&#039;s important.&quot;&quot;Can&#039;t it wait, Mama?&quot;&quot;I&#039;m afraid not,&quot; Ellie said evenly.&quot;It&#039;s fine, JR,&quot; Sue Ellen squeezed his hand. &quot;I&#039;ll go upstairs and read a book with John Ross.&quot;JR stood and helped his wife off the couch. &quot;I&#039;ll be up soon.&quot;Sue Ellen nodded, kissed his cheek and walked gracefully from the room.&quot;Alright, Mama,&quot; JR turned back to Ellie. &quot;What&#039;s this all about?&quot;&quot;Cliff Barnes,&quot; Ellie sighed. &quot;JR, there&#039;s no easy way to say this, so I&#039;m just going to come out with it. Cliff has a court order. According to Jack, he intends to have you and Sue Ellen served tomorrow morning.&quot;&quot;Served with what?&quot; JR demanded. &quot;What does he want?&quot;&quot;DNA,&quot; Ellie&#039;s voice sounded nervous. &quot;He wants John Ross&#039;s DNA.&quot;&quot;For what?&quot;&quot;To prove he is John Ross&#039;s real father.&quot;***&quot;Matt! What a lovely surprise!&quot;Matt caught Pam as she launched herself at him and hugged her close. &quot;Hi, Pam. It&#039;s&nbsp; good to see you.&quot; He released her and backed away. &quot;Mark,&quot; he nodded at the other man.&quot;Matt,&quot; Mark nodded back at him. &quot;What brings you to Dallas?&quot;&quot;Cliff actually,&quot; Matt sighed, casting a sideways glance at Cliff. &quot;He brought me here to tell Pam something.&quot;&quot;Tell me what?&quot; Pam asked.&quot;What really happened to your sister,&quot; Matt sighed.&quot;Katherine?&quot; Pam gasped. &quot;What could you possibly know about Katherine?&quot;Matt took a deep breath and looked Pam square in the eyes. &quot;I know JR smuggled her out of the country after she shot Bobby. And I know he used me to do it.&quot;***&quot;You need anything else from us?&quot;McSween looked up at the warden and shook his head. &quot;No. Thanks for all the help and cooperation.&quot;&quot;Not a problem. I&#039;ll never understand how a good cop like Lowell could go so bad. Hope you find some answers.&quot;&quot;Me too. And this will help.&quot;&quot;I wish you could have talked to the inmate who killed Lowell before the bastard hung himself.&quot;&quot;Yeah, me too.&quot;McSween closed the folder the warden had given him and stood up. &quot;This stuff really does help. I&#039;ll call you as soon as I find out anything.&quot;&quot;I&#039;d really appreciate it. A murder and a suicide here in my jail...let&#039;s just say if I don&#039;t come up with some answers, my job is the one on the line.&quot;The warden stood up and extended his hand to McSween.&nbsp; &quot;Good luck.&quot;&quot;Thanks,&quot; McSween shook the other man&#039;s hand and nodded, &quot;you&#039;ll be hearing from me soon.&quot;McSween left the warden&#039;s office and walked swiftly through the exit of the jail and across the parking lot to his car. He needed to see JR right away. They had a problem.They had a HUGE problem.***&quot;This is nuts!&quot; JR raged. &quot;John Ross is MY son! The blood test proved it!&quot;&quot;Yes...but Cliff is claiming the test was tampered with.&quot;&quot;Tampered with how?&quot;&quot;Well…&quot;&nbsp; Ellie struggled to find the right words. &quot;Cliff presented the judge with evidence that someone switched the samples.&quot;&quot;What?&quot; JR demanded.&nbsp; &quot;Who? Who would do that?&quot;&quot;Are you sure you don&#039;t&nbsp; know?&quot; Clayton asked carefully.&quot;How in the hell would I know?&quot;&quot;JR…&quot; Ellie reached out her hand to cover his. &quot;I know how much you love Sue Ellen...how much you&#039;ve always loved her. If Cliff had turned out to be the father...Jock would have never allowed you to stay married to her. If you did this to keep Sue Ellen...I&#039;d understand.&quot;&quot;I didn&#039;t&nbsp; do this!&quot; JR protested.&quot;Are you sure, JR?&quot; Clayton pressed him. &quot;If you did, we can fix this. But you have to be honest. According to Cliff&#039;s court order, Harry McSween is the one who swapped the samples.&quot;&quot;What?&quot; JR&#039;s voice was full of barely contained fury. &quot;McSween?&quot;&quot;You really didn&#039;t know, JR?&quot; Clayton asked softly.&quot;No,&quot; JR growled. &quot;I wouldn&#039;t have rigged the blood test to keep Sue Ellen. I would have thrown her off Southfork on her pretty little ass. And I never, NEVER would have lowered myself to raise Barnes&#039;s bastard!&quot;There was a sudden gasp and sharp cry from behind him. He whirred around and saw Sue Ellen standing in the doorway. She was white as a sheet. &quot;JR,&quot; she cried out. Her hand flew to her mouth and she shook her head violently back and forth. &quot;Dear God no!&quot;He watched helplessly as she turned and ran blindly out of the room and up the stairs.&quot;No!&quot; Ellie&#039;s voice shouted when he turned to go after her. &quot;I&#039;ll go,&nbsp; JR. I think you&#039;ve done quite enough!&quot;&quot;I...I didn&#039;t know she was standing there,&quot; JR whispered after Ellie had left the room.&quot;I know,&quot; Clayton sighed.&nbsp; &quot;Come on,&nbsp; JR. I think we both need a drink so we can figure out how to&nbsp; fix this.&quot;&quot;I&#039;ll take the drink,&quot; JR growled. &quot;But there&#039;s no fixing this. Not ever.&quot;***</blockquote>

[QUOTE="CeeCee72, post: 284456, member: 5055"] I don't own any of the characters in this story and no copyright infringement is intended. This fic is an alternate timeline where the dream season wasn't a dream. It picks up after the last episode of season 9. *** Life Is But a Dream Part 24: *** Cantrell slipped on his jacket and checked his appearance in the mirror. He and Cliff were having dinner with Pam and Mark. Cliff wanted him to tell Pam everything he knew about Katherine and how JR whisked her out of the country after she skipped bail - and like it or not, he had no choice but to do exactly what Cliff wanted. But Barnes was in for a rude awakening. Cliff didn't know the whole story. He knew they HOW Katherine had disappeared but he didn't know the WHY of JR's involvement. Once Pam heard everything Mark had to tell her, she wouldn't want to hurt JR at all anymore. In fact, Cliff would be damned lucky if Pam didn't declare JR Ewing a sainted hero. Matt smiled at the thought of how shocked Cliff was going to be. He couldn't wait to see the look on the other man's face. It was going to be priceless. *** "What are you going to do, Ellie?" Ellie sighed and sat her coffee cup down on the kitchen counter. "I don't know," she sighed heavily. "But I have to do something." "You should tell JR." "I can't, Clayton. JR will kill him." "Maybe, but if you don't tell him and he finds out only after he gets served with the papers, he'll kill Barnes for sure." "I just don't understand why Cliff would do this! John Ross's paternity was settled long ago." "He's doing it because he blames JR for Jamie's death. He thinks JR cost him his wife, so now he's trying to destroy JR's family." "We can't let this happen." "Then we have to talk to JR." "Yes," Ellie agreed reluctantly. "I suppose there is no other choice, is there?" *** Jack grimaced and looked down at his watch. He'd just come from April's hotel room, but she hadn't answered the door. He didn't understand it. She knew he was coming to see her after he left Southfork. Where had she gone? The elevator stopped and the doors slid open. Jack stepped out into the lobby and made a beeline for the front desk. "Excuse me." A young, pretty female clerk looked up at him and smiled. "May I help you?" "Yes. I was supposed to meet April Stevens, but she doesn't seem to be in her room. I was wondering if she left a message for me. My name is Jack Ewing." "Room number?" "2203." He watched her punch something on the computer keyboard and then turn to a row of mailboxes behind her and retrieve an envelope. "Miss Stevens checked out this afternoon, but she left this package for you." "Checked out?" Jack breathed out in shock. He took the manilla envelope she was holding out to him. "Thank you." He walked over to a chair, sat down, opened the envelope, and pulled out the contents. There was a large folder and a smaller, pink envelope. "Jack" was written across the back of the envelope in April's familiar, dainty handwriting. He opened it up and unfolded the letter inside. "Jack, sorry to be such a coward, but I just couldn't bring myself to face you. The real reason I came to Dallas is in the folder. I got a judge to grant me half of your income for the next five years. I promise never to bother you again. My lawyer will be in touch." Jack laughed lightly and shook his head. "Oh, no April," he muttered, standing up and heading for the exit. "If you think I'm going to let you get away with this, you're even crazier than I thought you were." *** "You didn't eat much at dinner." Sue Ellen looked up and smiled at her husband. "I wasn't very hungry." "You're still not worried about how things will be between us when you get back from therapy tomorrow, are you? Because if you are, you don't need to be." "How can you say that, JR? We have no idea what I'm going to remember or how I will feel…" "I know you love me. You know I love you. That's all we need to know, Sue Ellen." "JR.." "Honey," he voice was soft and soothing, "whatever you remember, no matter how ugly it is, I'll deal with it. I'll answer any question you have. I'll tell you whatever you need to know. We'll work through it." "You promise?" her voice sounded small and shaky. He smiled and leaned close to her, pulling her into his arms and holding her close. "I swear it." "JR," Ellie appeared in the doorway of the living room, "I'm sorry to interrupt, but Clayton and I need to speak to you. It's important." "Can't it wait, Mama?" "I'm afraid not," Ellie said evenly. "It's fine, JR," Sue Ellen squeezed his hand. "I'll go upstairs and read a book with John Ross." JR stood and helped his wife off the couch. "I'll be up soon." Sue Ellen nodded, kissed his cheek and walked gracefully from the room. "Alright, Mama," JR turned back to Ellie. "What's this all about?" "Cliff Barnes," Ellie sighed. "JR, there's no easy way to say this, so I'm just going to come out with it. Cliff has a court order. According to Jack, he intends to have you and Sue Ellen served tomorrow morning." "Served with what?" JR demanded. "What does he want?" "DNA," Ellie's voice sounded nervous. "He wants John Ross's DNA." "For what?" "To prove he is John Ross's real father." *** "Matt! What a lovely surprise!" Matt caught Pam as she launched herself at him and hugged her close. "Hi, Pam. It's good to see you." He released her and backed away. "Mark," he nodded at the other man. "Matt," Mark nodded back at him. "What brings you to Dallas?" "Cliff actually," Matt sighed, casting a sideways glance at Cliff. "He brought me here to tell Pam something." "Tell me what?" Pam asked. "What really happened to your sister," Matt sighed. "Katherine?" Pam gasped. "What could you possibly know about Katherine?" Matt took a deep breath and looked Pam square in the eyes. "I know JR smuggled her out of the country after she shot Bobby. And I know he used me to do it." *** "You need anything else from us?" McSween looked up at the warden and shook his head. "No. Thanks for all the help and cooperation." "Not a problem. I'll never understand how a good cop like Lowell could go so bad. Hope you find some answers." "Me too. And this will help." "I wish you could have talked to the inmate who killed Lowell before the bastard hung himself." "Yeah, me too." McSween closed the folder the warden had given him and stood up. "This stuff really does help. I'll call you as soon as I find out anything." "I'd really appreciate it. A murder and a suicide here in my jail...let's just say if I don't come up with some answers, my job is the one on the line." The warden stood up and extended his hand to McSween. "Good luck." "Thanks," McSween shook the other man's hand and nodded, "you'll be hearing from me soon." McSween left the warden's office and walked swiftly through the exit of the jail and across the parking lot to his car. He needed to see JR right away. They had a problem. They had a HUGE problem. *** "This is nuts!" JR raged. "John Ross is MY son! The blood test proved it!" "Yes...but Cliff is claiming the test was tampered with." "Tampered with how?" "Well…" Ellie struggled to find the right words. "Cliff presented the judge with evidence that someone switched the samples." "What?" JR demanded. "Who? Who would do that?" "Are you sure you don't know?" Clayton asked carefully. "How in the hell would I know?" "JR…" Ellie reached out her hand to cover his. "I know how much you love Sue Ellen...how much you've always loved her. If Cliff had turned out to be the father...Jock would have never allowed you to stay married to her. If you did this to keep Sue Ellen...I'd understand." "I didn't do this!" JR protested. "Are you sure, JR?" Clayton pressed him. "If you did, we can fix this. But you have to be honest. According to Cliff's court order, Harry McSween is the one who swapped the samples." "What?" JR's voice was full of barely contained fury. "McSween?" "You really didn't know, JR?" Clayton asked softly. "No," JR growled. "I wouldn't have rigged the blood test to keep Sue Ellen. I would have thrown her off Southfork on her pretty little ass. And I never, NEVER would have lowered myself to raise Barnes's bastard!" There was a sudden gasp and sharp cry from behind him. He whirred around and saw Sue Ellen standing in the doorway. She was white as a sheet. "JR," she cried out. Her hand flew to her mouth and she shook her head violently back and forth. "Dear God no!" He watched helplessly as she turned and ran blindly out of the room and up the stairs. "No!" Ellie's voice shouted when he turned to go after her. "I'll go, JR. I think you've done quite enough!" "I...I didn't know she was standing there," JR whispered after Ellie had left the room. "I know," Clayton sighed. "Come on, JR. I think we both need a drink so we can figure out how to fix this." "I'll take the drink," JR growled. "But there's no fixing this. Not ever." *** [/QUOTE]

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