"I just need a minute. Steffy," Wyatt turned to her frantically and looked to the room the kids had returned to. "Can you watch her? Take her with you. I promise I'll be back."

"I got her," Steffy nodded. "Take my car. Get a breather." She knew he probably needed a break to clear his head.

"Please make sure she knows I didn't leave her." Steffy agreed and placed her keys in Wyatt's hands.

While she watched his retreat from the room, Sami cleared her throat. "Now might be a good time to call Bill. Wyatt was pretty angry, and I don't want to see what happens if he finds Liam."

"Wyatt isn't a violent person. He wouldn't—"

"Anyone would be violent under these circumstances. I didn't use to be violent either. Situations force your hand. Now, I can't say that I care when it involves my family. Especially my children."

Steffy heeded Sami's words and called Bill. She told him everything and listened to the verbal reprimand he tried to issue and disconnected the call once he assured her he would find Wyatt and talk him down.

Sighing into the air, Steffy turned to Sami and smiled. "Thank you. I'll take Arilyn and get out of your way. I'm just going to go to the hotel and wait for Bill to get back. We'll get an Uber."

"Don't be silly," Sami reached for her own keys. "My kids are fine here, EJ will watch them. I'll take you guys to the hotel. Just let me tell him I'm leaving."

Sami disappeared for a few minutes and returned with Arilyn gripping her hand and EJ behind them. He was tall and handsome with a certain dark aura that surrounded him, and once again, it was sexy to Steffy.

Steffy looked at this couple, her devious nature that could border on perceived innocence if you didn't know her, and his strong silent, refined disposition. They fit, like most of the new couples she had met over the past few months.

"Thank you, Sami, and it's a joy to meet the famous EJ DiMera." He shook Steffy's extended hand and gave her a sly grin. He was trouble, and she just smiled inwardly. For the life of her, things started to make even less sense in regards to Liam. Jason, EJ, even Sonny had energy that turned her on. They all exuded power like Bill, and that was what made her look his way in the beginning. Falling in love was an unscheduled complication, but she wouldn't change a thing. Well, maybe she'd change the years apart from Bill, but those were on him.

"The beautiful Steffy Forrester-Spencer," EJ acknowledged with a nod. "Words don't do you justice."

"Likewise." Steffy smiled at him and saw a devious icy smile from Sami. The intensity between them was strong. Sami stared at him until she spoke again.

"We only brought the things she loved the most. I was sure Wyatt would get her all new things," Sami shrugged.

"No, it's fine." Steffy was actually a little nervous to be alone with this child. She was adorable and well behaved, but every time she looked at her she saw Hope. Her biggest nemesis had given birth to the child that was now her family. It was a hard pill to swallow.

"She's just a child," Sami laughed. "I get it, your history," she spoke as if reading Steffy's mind. "But she's so amazing. You're going to fall in love with her. Me and my kids already have. We're going to miss her."

"We sure are, mommy!" Sydney yelled from the back, and Steffy chuckled.

Steffy looked at the timid little girl and bent down to her level. "Would you like to meet your grandfather?"

"Yes, ma'am," Arilyn nodded, and Steffy grinned at the cute way she fluttered her eyelashes. She was going to be a heartbreaker.

"We don't have toys, but you're going to love taking a bath in his big tub. Have you ever been swimming?"

"No," Arilyn piped up.

"Well you and me today! We're going. Let's get you a swimsuit."

"Really?" She seemed excited, which relaxed Steffy even further.

"Really."

"Thank you, ma'am!"

The formalities were making Steffy feel the age difference between her and Bill for the first time since they got together. "Call me Steffy."

Steffy, Arilyn, and Sami boarded the elevator together, and apparently, Arilyn's nervousness had faded. She was talking Steffy's ear off, and Steffy was enthralled, listening to the little girl yammer. Bill was going to love this. She only hoped Wyatt allowed the swimming trip she promised. She didn't want to break the very first one she ever made the little girl.

"So this is where we head to the car," Steffy advised Arilyn. "Grab my hand and hold on tight."

"Okay, Steffy," Arilyn agreed. "Are you going to be my new mommy? I know I have a daddy now."

"I... I, uh—" Steffy was at a loss for words, and surprisingly she didn't have to answer. She was cut short by an annoying presence.

"Steffy! How dare you? You sent those women after my mother, and now you're here probably causing more havoc. I know you're not staying here. Where is Liam? Is he upstairs?" Hope was a trembling, angry mess. Steffy knew something was off.

"Stalk much?" Steffy quickly pushed the nervous little girl behind her and out of Hope's line of sight. She was so focused on Steffy she hadn't realized her own daughter was standing before her. "I don't know where the hell your husband is, but you should."

Steffy could feel Arilyn clutching her calf and suddenly felt horrible about engaging with Hope. "I'm on my way out."

"To where?" Hope crossed her arms. "What room did you come out of? Where is he?" Her voice was raised, and she was waving her finger in Steffy's face. Steffy was trying to remain calm, but her anger was getting the best of her. She held her hand up, and it was knocked down when Sami brushed past her.

"Mine." Slap.

Hope's eyes seemed to be trying to gain focus as she recovered from the slap Sami laid on her. "Sami?" Hope said in disbelief.

"Yes," Sami snarled. "Hello, Bridget, I mean, Hope. No one lies to me. You're going to regret the day you ever did."

"You don't understand," Hope pleaded. "There were—"

"There was nothing, but there will be," Sami warned her. "Stay away from my friends. Just so we're clear, Steffy and Bill are my friends. Stay away, or else I will destroy your miserable life."

"Sami—"

"Leave now while you still can." Sami crossed her arms and locked eyes with Hope, giving a more intense version of the icy stare Steffy was familiar with. Sami meant business.

Dropping her head, Hope looked toward the entrance before glancing back at Sami.

"I'm sorry. You know, we really shouldn't have acted this way in front of a child," Hope spoke, apparently finally noticing the child hugging Steffy's leg.

Sami stayed engaged and looked ready to attack until the moment Hope vacated the hotel. Steffy took a deep breath and looked back at the quiet little girl. "I'm sorry we had to play that mean game," Steffy attempted to get a smile from the child. "That lady was funny, huh?"

"She was mean," Arilyn admitted barely above a whisper. "I don't like her."

Where Steffy should have enjoyed the irony, she actually felt bad. This little girl had no clue the woman that had practically traumatized her was, in fact, her mother. She'd been the one to give her away and didn't even recognize her own child. If it were up to Steffy, Hope would never see this child again.

"She's just a bad actress," Steffy assured the child. "So how about that swimming date?"

"Yes!" Arilyn squeaked. "Let's go."

Steffy smiled at how easy it was to change her mind. Maybe she would be good at this parenting thing. She just hit a slam dunk with this three-year-old.

"I'm going to grab the car," Sami advised. "I'll make sure it's all clear too."

While Steffy and Arilyn waited, she heard her phone ring and reached for it. She saw that it was Bill and sighed, hoping he didn't have bad news. She answered and heard the exhaustion in his voice.

"What's wrong?" Steffy quickly asked.

"Liam isn't here. The house is a mess, but he's not home. Neither is that moron, Hope," Bill told her.

"No, that because Hope is here. She—"

"Did she see the girl?" Bill cut her off.

"Yes and no. She doesn't know who she is, but she saw her. She came screaming at me about Liam. I'm really tired of those two."

"Why would she think you knew where he was?"

"I don't know, but this is getting weird. Just... if anything happens you call Justin and tell him to do what we talked about."

"Steffy—"

"Bill, I have to go," Steffy stopped him before he could ask what was going on. "I love you."

"Steffy, don't hang up—" Bill tried to finish before she hung up, but she stuffed the phone back into her purse as she swallowed hard looking at the person in front of her.

"Come on, now. Bring the kid with you. Right off to the side before your little friend gets back. Hurry up!"

Hope was holding a gun on her and had crept up while she was on the phone with Bill. To save her baby and the child that was now hanging on to her for dear life, she just nodded and followed directions.

Steffy slipped over to the side of the hotel where Hope's car was waiting and tried to assure Arilyn as she put her inside the car. "It's going to be okay. Remember that game I told you about?"

"You said swimming," Arilyn pouted.

"That too." Steffy smiled nervously. "We're going to do all of that once we're done here."

"Who in the hell is the kid?" Hope asked, waving her gun in Steffy's face. "You collecting strays now?"

"She's just a friend," Steffy threw out to try and distract that crazed maniac sitting across from her.

"You don't have friends. Or maybe you do. You seem to be collecting a lot of crazy friends lately. Two of them roughed my mother up. She had to get stitches, Steffy. Her lip and her eye were split open. The little mouthy one hit her with her ring, and the tall blonde kicked her until her ribs were bruised. They could be broken!"

"She deserved everything she got. She tried to ruin their kid's wedding, and as for my collection of friends, they've been there for me through some of the hardest times of my life. I'm thankful for them."

"The hardest times like what?" Hope screamed as she peeled out of the parking lot. "You left Liam. You left him for a kiss, and he still won't let you go. I've done everything to get him to forget you, but he won't. He acts as if you're some God."

"It was more than just a kiss," Steffy defended. "We weren't working. Distraction after distraction took him away from me, and then you. One email from you sent us into a tailspin."

"But he's chasing you!" Hope jerked the steering wheel as she screamed and Steffy could hear Arilyn crying. She looked at the little girl through the rearview mirror and her gear dissipated. Now only adrenaline and anger stood in its place.

"You want to blame me? That's a laugh. Liam only wants what he can't have, and once he gets it, he's bored. You were a dream to him. The perfect, unattainable dream, and I was his flawed reality. I was the whore that stole him from you when you clearly decided you didn't want him while I was out of the country. You and Wyatt happened without me, and you or him never saw me as good enough.

That's not true. You never saw yourself as good enough. It was why you felt like you had to manipulate Liam. I know how you play on his need to do the right thing to endure him to you. You know how to play this game with him and trap him in your web."

Steffy cocked her head to the side and stared at Hope for a second before starting. "For as long as we've been in each other's lives you always thought you were better than me. You always had to try and one-up me in our personal lives and in business. You tried to make yourself the little girl that my dad already had. He had me and Phoebe. We were his damn daughters, but so many times, he chose you over me, and so did Liam. He put you on this pedestal, but you're worse than I could ever be. I'd never set your house on fire with you in it. I'd never do it because it's not something that even crossed my mind. You're not that important to me. You're a menial pest that, like a bug, I'd squish with my shoe. If it were up to me, your whole family would be eradicated for its insignificant use of air, except this child. She's—"

Steffy stopped once she realized what she'd said, but she knew it was too late. Hope's eyes darted to the little girl, and she took her hands off the steering wheel. "My daughter? you have my child clinging to you like some surrogate? I'm her mother!"

"You dumped her off on some couple with Liam's help. You're both evil and deserve to burn in hell. You are never going to see this child again after Wyatt takes sole custody, you psychotic bitch."

"He's not going to have her. I won't let him and Quinn ruin her, and she won't be a whore like you."

"Hope!" Steffy screamed as the car careened off the street and into a tree.

Smoke filled the air, and both women sat in the front seats, incapacitated as the screams of the little girl in the backseat blanketed the air. Neither adult heard her. While her tears streamed down her cheeks, she crawled from the back and into the lap of the woman she knew the most and shook her. "Wake up, Steffy. You said we could go swimming. We can't go swimming if you die like my other mommy.