Morning at Llanfair involved nieces and babies and a lot of Buchanan bellowing. Todd was more than happy to burrow under the pillows and shut them all out. He dozed and daydreamed of moving back into Dorian's mausoleum with Blair and the kids. He thought of sitting down with Blair and designing their dream home and wondered if there was a way to make sure it always belonged to both of them so neither one could kick the other one out or move any one else in.

When the house quieted down, Todd ventured a look at the clock. It was only nine but his stomach was rumbling and he decided to get up and forage for food.

Viki was sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of tea reading a book. She glanced up as Todd wandered down the back stairs and made a beeline to the pantry to get a bowl of cereal. "I was asleep before you came home last night."

Todd almost reminded Viki that Llanfair wasn't his home and never would be but thought better of it. She was his sister and she was giving him a place to stay.

"Did you go see Blair?"

"I did," Todd nodded as he shoved a spoonful of cereal into his mouth. "She had a headache and I took care of it and let her have a nap and got the kids pizza and then we went out for drinks."

Viki's eyebrows raised. "I'm impressed."

"Why's that?"

"I would have guessed you'd lose your nerve and then get angry about it."

"Ha ha," Todd replied sourly. "I've been apart from Blair for eight years. You really think I'm going to blow it when I get the chance again?"

Viki shrugged quietly, giving the indication she thought exactly that.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, Sis."

"I didn't say anything."

"You didn't have to," Todd grumbled. "You don't like Blair, do you?"

Viki blinked in shock. "Why would you even say that?"

"Because you're not exactly encouraging when it comes to her," Todd drummed his fingers on the table. "You tried to shove me towards Delgado, hell, you practically brain-washed me into thinking that she and I were in love when we were married."

"I thought she was good for you..."

"Why would you ever think that?" Todd asked. "Seriously, Viki, do you remember me back then?"

Viki closed her book quietly, sensing this conversation was going to be a heavy one. "Yes."

"Do you really? Think back... think hard."

"All right."

"Did I seem happy to you?"

"Todd..." Viki didn't look like she wanted to go any further with the discussion.

"Answer me!" Todd slammed his hand on the table. "Did I seem happy to you?"

"No," her voice was small.

Well, that stunned him. He honestly wasn't expecting Viki to own up like that. "Why in the hell would you try to consign me to a life that you knew made me miserable?"

Viki heaved a sigh. "It wasn't quite like that, Todd. Were you happy? No, but I'd be very hard pressed to pin-point any moment you were truly happy once you returned from Ireland. If you recall, Blair wasn't making you very happy then, either."

"That was my fault!"

"Was it?"

"Yes!" Todd insisted. "Because I misunderstood things between her and Patrick! I was so messed up I couldn't see the truth... how much she had missed me, how much she loved me... I convinced myself it had all been lies. And I wrecked everything because I was so damned stupid! Delgado wasn't any better."

"She was different, though," Viki shrugged. "I thought she may have been what you needed."

"Did you ever stop to think that what I needed wasn't some screwed up masochist with a domination fetish?"

"What?!"

Todd rolled his eyes. "You have clearly not been paying attention to Delgado if you don't see that's exactly what she is. You and Sam kept pushing me to be with her. I mean, Sam just wanted to nail Blair himself so I get that but you... why? Why would you want that for me when you knew how miserable I was?"

"I don't know that I realized how unhappy you were, Todd."

"You're smarter than that," Todd scoffed. "Come on, admit it, you don't like Blair. You like Cassie and Kelly just fine. Hell, you're always going on about the wonders of Kelly which I do not get. So why don't you like Blair?"

Viki eyed her brother. "I suspect you're going to tell me."

"I want you to tell me."

"I have nothing against Blair," Viki insisted. "In fact, over the years, I've come to appreciate her a great deal. It takes a very strong woman to handle the things she's had to handle over the years."

"So you didn't appreciate her before."

"Oh fine," Viki threw her hands up in defeat. "She was too much like Dorian."

"Aha!" Todd jabbed a finger at Viki triumphantly. "Ah! Ha! By the way, you're totally wrong about that."

"I don't think I am."

"If Blair were like Dorian, I'd like Dorian. I would have liked Dorian all along," Todd pointed out. "But I don't. Hated her on sight. Still do. The feeling was mutual."

"Whereas with Blair..."

"Blair was always the hottest thing on two legs that I'd ever seen," Todd mused. "Still is. Last night, we went out had a drink or two, talked about some things... she's prickly and has all of these walls up... didn't stop me from wanting to take her inside and bend her over the back of the couch, though."

"Todd!" Viki sputtered. "My word!"

"I didn't do it," Todd said innocently. "I just wanted to."

"I really don't think this is the sort of thing we should be talking about." Viki looked completely unsettled.

"Why not?" Todd asked. "I'm actually relieved that my libido is as strong as ever where Blair's concerned. After eight years of torture..." he hedged a little. "You have to wonder if the equipment is working... hell, if the desire is even still there."

"I'm guessing it is?"

"Boy howdy is it," Todd replied cheerfully, enjoying Viki's obvious discomfort. "Admittedly, when I was lurking around trying to get my bearings things didn't immediately pop up, if you know what I mean."

Viki rubbed her eyes wearily.

"But, the image of Blair curled up on the lounge chair in the dark with a glass of wine and that blue dress kept creeping into my head at night," Todd grinned rakishly. "And when I saw her on tv at the premiere and she showed off the earrings that I bought for her for our wedding..." he sighed. "I knew I had to go to her. It was like she was calling out to me without even knowing it."

"Really."

"And when I saw her..." Todd's eyes took on a dreamy cast. "When I saw her there in this white, drapey thing... all I could see was her and Starr and Jack. My family. My babe." He shook himself out of his reverie. "You should have seen her last night in this hot, tight purple thing with a gold dragon all wrapped around her. Let me tell you, Viki, I wanted to wrap my dragon all around her and then some."

"All right," Viki shot out of her seat and went to wash out her teacup. "I really don't think this is an appropriate conversation to be having."

"Well, why not?" Todd asked. "I had a lot of time to think, Viki, and we both know that I carry around some serious issues when it comes to the boudoir, right? Not problems, mind you," he corrected sternly. "Everything works fine and I know what to do and where things are and all of that."

"Really!" Viki looked horrified.

"But, you know, all that stuff with Marty made me rethink my entire life and Blair was the woman who actually engaged in a healthy sex life with me. She's the only one who ever did."

In spite of herself, Viki found herself interested in that aspect of it. "Really?"

"Yes," Todd cocked his head at his sister. "Oh... that's right. We weren't exactly tight when Blair and I were married the first time. Plus, you were going through your own shit."

"Language!"

"Well, you were. But it's true," Todd leaned back in his chair. "Peter, as you know, was a creep and he treated people like crap. Didn't matter who they were, he shit all over them."

"Again, language!"

Todd rolled his eyes. "So, after seeing him treat Bitsy and then every other woman in his life like... property, that's how I thought I was supposed to behave. And it's how I did behave. I treated women like whores. Some of them consented to it, some of them didn't... the point is that I was conditioned to be a certain way and after Marty and therapy I saw that it wasn't supposed to be that way at all.

"Rebecca was too skittish for me in the long run. Looking back, I don't think I could have engaged in a healthy sexual relationship with her. She was really repressed which, at the time, appealed to me because I don't think I could have handled an in your face woman... a sexually aggressive one, you know? I met Blair in the midst of all that Powell crap and, man," he grinned at the memory. "She was as opposite Rebecca as you can get. Tall, tough and fearless... she threatened to mace me once."

"Did she?" Viki's tone was droll. She still wasn't certain about the subject of this whole conversation but Todd seemed to need it. She'd just try to tune out the things that made her squeamish.

"I came onto her at Rodi's one night," Todd chuckled. "Hard. I was drunk, I admit, but she came in and sat down at the bar and she was just so hot. I mean, how could I resist? She totally turned me down but she did it so casual. It was like she didn't even take me seriously at all but she didn't hold it against me, either. She was always just this really cool headcase of a chick. I liked her."

"You say that like it's unusual for you."

"How many people do I like, Viki?"

"You have a point there."

"Blair was the first woman I ever slept with that I actually liked... as a person, as a friend. I'd never had that before. And when we got married we had a lot of sex. Make up sex, happy sex, sad sex..."

"Sad sex?" Viki shook her head. "Do I even want to know?"

"We had sex a lot, to comfort each other, to have fun... I mean, damn Viki, I'd never looked on it as fun before."

Viki looked deeply skeptical about that.

"It was always a status thing. Blair made it fun. We laughed and cuddled and it was just... fun. For a while, sex was the only way I could really express how I felt about her before I worked the nerve up to actually say it." He picked at the table top, his expression turning pensive. "It's why it hurt so much to come home from Ireland and see her with the McPoet. It was like everything she had given me wasn't special after all."

"But it was..."

"Of course it was," Todd snapped. "It's why I didn't do it with anyone else. I just wasn't built that way, I guess."

"You can build a relationship with someone else if that's what you really want to do, though," Viki told him. "You can have that healthy relationship with another..."

"Well, I sure as hell wasn't going to have it with Delgado," Todd snarled. "That would have been right back to square one for me. She saw sex as a conquest. Blair was competition and she wanted to nail me because Blair had and she wanted her piece. She wanted to win."

"Oh, Todd, I don't know... that doesn't seem like something Tea would do."

"Well, how the hell would you know?" Todd demanded. "You weren't there behind closed doors! You didn't know how she'd talk, the things she'd say and do. I was there, Viki! It's exactly how it was! She wanted to win! And I never gave her that part of me because if I did, I knew I'd backslide into the monster I was before I raped Marty." He stared at his sister for several minutes. "I think I know myself pretty well, Viki. I know what was at stake."

It was hard for Viki to give up the idea of what Tea had represented all those years ago. She had honestly seen her as a good, noble woman who had the betterment of Todd's soul as her deepest concern. The way Todd was talking, it wasn't that way at all. Viki wondered if she had to rethink everything concerning Tea and what her relationship was with Victor now. "Did I just see what I wanted to see back then?"

"Pretty much," Todd offered her a smile. "But it's kind of a Lord trait. I do that sometimes. I mean, I didn't want to see Blair's love for me because I was so angry. I learned my lesson, though. All of that stuff put walls between us for years. The mistakes we both made caused a lot of damage but it's not unrepairable, you know? When I saw her... when I'm with her... everything that was always between us is still there. I can feel it. She can, too. I'm sure of it."

"Well, good," Viki wasn't sure what else she was supposed to say about that. "But maybe there's someone more appropriate you can talk about the sex side of things with?"

"Like who?" Todd asked. "You're the only one I'd talk to about things like this. I can't talk to Blair yet because she's the subject of it all and I'm busy wooing her. My sex life is not my children's business. Period. And I don't have any friends. I sure as hell am not going to talk about this stuff with Victor!"

"I wasn't even going to suggest that," Viki waved him off.

"You're my sister," Todd pointed out. "I trust you completely. If I can't confide in you, who can I confide in?"

Viki didn't have an answer for that. Thankfully, Lois came in at that point to announce the arrival of Todd's lawyer. Cybil shook hands with Viki and gave Todd a winning smile.

"I've got good news," she said, setting her briefcase down on the table. "I've successfully frozen the Manning accounts until the matter of identity is determined. I've also placed an injunction on The Sun in regards to reporting on this case until identity is determined."

Todd raised his eyebrows, impressed. "How'd you manage that?"

She fixed him with an acidic glare. "Because I am very good at what I do. As opposed to your former attorney who was not very well prepared for the case I presented. For that matter," Cybil handed Todd a form. "This is a court order for you to submit to some medical testing. The 'other Todd Manning' has been given the same order. You're to comply within the week so we can compare the two with your medical records and move forward with determining who's identity belongs to whom."

Todd took the form and nodded. He wasn't all too thrilled with the concept of medical tests especially after the treatment he got at Irene's compound but if it put to rest the question of identity, he'd muscle through it.

"Ms. Lord," Cybil turned her attention to Viki.

"You may call me Viki."

"Very well, are you ready for our meeting?"

Viki gave Todd a questioning glance.

He took the hint. "Yeah, I'll leave you two alone." He headed up the back stairs to shower and change. As he ascended the steps, he wondered what Blair was up to.


September was when the humidity finally started to ease up. Blair stood in the park and studied the trees. They were still full and lush but she could see the changing of the seasons already. Hints of yellow-green around the edges and even some leaves on the ground. Soon autumn would be out in all of its colors. The kids would need all of their winter clothes out and Blair was already trying to figure out what Thanksgiving and Christmas were going to look like.

But she loved this time of year. Her birthday was coming up in October, as was Jack's, and she planned to take him riding before the weather got too cold. She looked forward to building fires in the fireplace, hot cider, cocoa, Halloween, mulled wine and snuggling under blankets.

Todd's presence filled her mind and she wondered just how he was going to fit into things. He had announced his intentions and that still surprised her. He had never been particularly forthcoming in regards to affairs of the heart but eight years... it would change a person. It clearly changed Todd. It just remained to be seen how deeply and in how many ways.

"Hey, Blair." Tomas smiled as she turned to greet him. "Here as directed. What's up?"

Blair studied him for a moment. "It's time to talk, for real."

His smile faded. "I see."

There was nothing to do but be blunt. "This isn't going to happen. You and me. It just... isn't."

"Because of Todd?"

"Partly," Blair shrugged. "It's a lot of things, though." She took a deep breath to steady herself. "You have been lying to me from day one."

Tomas sighed and looked down, shaking his head.

"I was honest with you," Blair continued. "Completely honest. But you... never told me the truth. I'm willing to bet you're still keeping things from me."

"Blair..."

"Tell me about Patrick Thornheart."

Tomas eyes snapped up to meet hers. They narrowed slightly as he seemed to gauge what she was saying. "What do you mean?"

"He was in the same compound Todd was in," Blair said. "Although I suspect you know that."

"Where are you getting this from?"

"From the man who hopped on the plane that brought Patrick here to pick up Marty Saybrooke and spirit her out of town," Blair placed her hands on her hips, daring Tomas to refute her. "From the man who was in that prison for eight years while you did nothing... from the man who had to escape because they were going to kill him before you ever decided to step up and tell us that Victor was never Todd in the first place! Do you have any idea how close we came to losing him for good?"

"So this is about Todd."

"This is about you!" Blair screamed. "This is about you! You and all of the lies you keep telling me and all of the bullshit deflections! 'Do you still love, Todd, Blair? Is that what this is about? You weren't together when he left, Blair. What's the difference?' Do you know how god damn frustrating it is to try to even wrap my mind about what has actually happened here? Do you have any concept of what I am going through in trying to reason this out to my children when I don't even understand what's going on? Do you see how pathetic it is that I've been attempting to rationalize your part in this just because I'm so damned used to men lying to me in order to have me?

"You set yourself up as this man who was honest, who was different from all the others, who was going to lead me out of the morass and into the bright new dawn of an honest, real relationship. You've been lying every step of the way!"

"I have never lied about how I feel about you, Blair."

"Oh, you don't even know me," Blair snarled. "You held onto a picture of me at my wedding to Todd... a picture you took from his hands." The image of that overwhelmed her. The image of a broken and bleeding Todd holding onto that reminder of their happiest moment and having even that ripped away from him. Her hands flew to her cheeks and she turned away from Tomas, squeezing her eyes shut to try to regain her composure.

"I've tried to explain this to you, Blair," Tomas said gently. "I was just doing my job. If it hadn't been me it would have been someone else. Todd was going to be taken..."

"It wasn't someone else," Blair replied. "It was you. And as much as I've tried, it's not something I can ever get over. I believe you had regrets but you never did anything about them. When I came to your door you played a part, when you followed me here and found out more about what was going on, you still played that part. If Todd hadn't escaped on his own, he would have been dead by the time you decided to open your trap. It would have been just a couple of months too late. Can you imagine that?" She stepped towards him, daring him to look her in the eye. "Can you imagine surviving that long, holding on for that long only to die two months short of someone's conscience finally getting the better of him?"

Tomas didn't reply.

"Are you going to suggest that you had nothing to do with Patrick Thornheart's miraculous resurrection?"

"Why would you think I did?"

"I went over the timing," Blair replied. "I went over it again and again and again. Pretty convenient that the man who was responsible for handing Todd over to Irene's organization just happened to come across the baby that Marty kidnapped while she was being hustled out of town. Pretty convenient that we had just spoken of Patrick days before. Are you going to continue to treat me like I'm stupid?"

"You're not stupid," Tomas admitted. "That much is quite evident."

"Why didn't you help Todd?"

"No amount of pull I had, or Calmar had was ever going to get Todd released. He was the focal point of Irene's project."

"What was Patrick doing there?"

"I honestly don't know."

Blair rolled her eyes.

"I'm telling you the truth, Blair," Tomas insisted. "Thornheart's acquisition wasn't when I was working ops. That's when I was out. I only knew of him from updates that Calmar gave me and from some of his work in the past."

"Why didn't you do anything for Todd?"

"It was well out of my hands."

"You could have said something to me!"

"And put you in danger, too?"

"Oh," Blair snorted. "How noble. I'm so sorry that you felt you needed to appease your guilt over what you did to Todd by trying to get into my bed. What a load of crap!"

"I did what I thought was best."

"If that's true, then that's very very sad," Blair looked up into the trees again, taking in the light on the leaves and filtering through the branches. "You have a sister and a niece here. Your focus should be on them and helping them through all of this confusion. I am no longer your concern."

"Blair..." He took a step towards her, reaching out with one hand.

She stepped back, waving him off. "If you cared for me at all the way you claim... you will leave me alone. This," she gestured between them, "is done."