CH 12
"Oh dear, where did Precious put that gin?" Ms Wallace huffed around the kitchen. "I definitely need a drink right now. After all the drama that's been going around in this house, I'm surprised I haven't had a heart attack already!"
She bent down and looked into one of the cupboards below the sink.
"Ah! Found it!" She chuckled loudly. "There's nothing like a good stiff drink in the morning to wash away all your troubles!"
She was about to close the door when her eye cast on something in the far corner. She lifted the towel that half covered it and gasped in horror at what she saw. There buried in dust were two clown masks.
"Oh, my wicked wicked daughter and her psycho accomplice have actually gotten away with attempted murder. Those two nut cases kidnapped sweet Sheridan and left her in that dark pit to die disguising themselves with these dreadful masks!" She sobbed. "Oh blessed angels, you have got to make my sick daughter pay for her crimes! Someone has got to reveal Bethie for all the evil things that she has done to that hunk of burning love Luis and his beautiful wife Sheridan! Things cannot go on this way! She has got to pay!" Ms Wallace cried.
"Well you certainly are not going to tell anyone." A cold voice above her, spoke.
Ms. Wallace slowly rose to find Alistair Crane standing before her.
"Uh Mr. Crane, what are you doing here?" She nervously asked.
"Hello Edna, I just thought I'd stop in and make sure that you weren't thinking of doing something that you would live to regret." Alistair kept his stare on Ms Wallace.
"What do you mean?"
"Well I'm well aware that you know I was pretending to be Charlie when I helped Beth kidnap Sheridan. I also know that you have threatened Beth more than once of revealing what the two of us did. But if you know what is good for you, you will keep your trap shut!" Alistair warned.
"Mr. Crane you are such an evil man! It's about time that someone brought you down!" Edna cringed, afraid of what affect her words had on him.
"Don't me silly old woman." Alistair laughed. "Nobody is dumb enough to try and expose me. If they do they better be ready to pay with their lives. I am the most powerful man in Harmony. Whatever I want, I get. And what I want is for Beth's secret to remain just that; a secret."
"Why is my daughter's happiness so important to you. You never showed much interest in her before."
"I just wouldn't like to see a beautiful woman's hard work go down the drain. And if you know what's good for you, you'd keep what you know to yourself. I mean, I know that you and Beth don't have the world's most loving relationship but I'm sure you wouldn't want her to hate you forever. Who knows what she'd do to you?" Alistair smirked, keeping a close eye on Edna's confused expression.
"What are you talking about?"
"Well living in Harmony, you should know first hand the destruction that a kept secret can bring to one's life. Especially the kind of secret that can destroy the relationship between a mother and daughter." Alistair hinted, pacing slowly around the kitchen.
"I don't have any secrets that I've kept from my daughter. Well except for that one time when Precious brushed her teeth with Beth's toothbrush." She chuckled.
"My my, you really have forgotten haven't you? I would think that you would never let something so important slip your memory. Especially something that can ruin your life so easily."
What could he be talking about? Edna thought to herself. There's nothing that he could hold against me, is there?
"What have I forgotten? What are you talking about?"
Alistair quietly chuckled to himself, as he lit one of his cigars.
"I would be happy to refresh your memory Edna. I just don't know if you really want me to. You obviously allowed yourself to forget this for some good reason. Maybe deep inside you knew that if this secret ever got out, it would be the end of life as you know it."
"You're lying!" Ms Wallace cried. "There is nothing in my past that could come back and haunt me, except for the fact that I was quite popular with the young men back then." She chuckled to herself, but then turned to Alistair. "You're just trying to get me to not reveal Beth's secret. Well it ain't happening because even if I don't tell, the truth will find a way to reveal itself. It always does!"
"How interesting for you to mention how popular you were with the men in Harmony. That's actually towards where I was going with all of this." He blew a thick cloud of smoke in the air before he continued. "Oh Edna, I bet you never thought that your past shameful actions would catch up with you and now it finally has. Well brace yourself old woman because what I am about to tell you is going to give you the shock of a lifetime."
He slowly inhaled the last bit of his cigar before he began his story.
"Oh dear, where did Precious put that gin?" Ms Wallace huffed around the kitchen. "I definitely need a drink right now. After all the drama that's been going around in this house, I'm surprised I haven't had a heart attack already!"
She bent down and looked into one of the cupboards below the sink.
"Ah! Found it!" She chuckled loudly. "There's nothing like a good stiff drink in the morning to wash away all your troubles!"
She was about to close the door when her eye cast on something in the far corner. She lifted the towel that half covered it and gasped in horror at what she saw. There buried in dust were two clown masks.
"Oh, my wicked wicked daughter and her psycho accomplice have actually gotten away with attempted murder. Those two nut cases kidnapped sweet Sheridan and left her in that dark pit to die disguising themselves with these dreadful masks!" She sobbed. "Oh blessed angels, you have got to make my sick daughter pay for her crimes! Someone has got to reveal Bethie for all the evil things that she has done to that hunk of burning love Luis and his beautiful wife Sheridan! Things cannot go on this way! She has got to pay!" Ms Wallace cried.
"Well you certainly are not going to tell anyone." A cold voice above her, spoke.
Ms. Wallace slowly rose to find Alistair Crane standing before her.
"Uh Mr. Crane, what are you doing here?" She nervously asked.
"Hello Edna, I just thought I'd stop in and make sure that you weren't thinking of doing something that you would live to regret." Alistair kept his stare on Ms Wallace.
"What do you mean?"
"Well I'm well aware that you know I was pretending to be Charlie when I helped Beth kidnap Sheridan. I also know that you have threatened Beth more than once of revealing what the two of us did. But if you know what is good for you, you will keep your trap shut!" Alistair warned.
"Mr. Crane you are such an evil man! It's about time that someone brought you down!" Edna cringed, afraid of what affect her words had on him.
"Don't me silly old woman." Alistair laughed. "Nobody is dumb enough to try and expose me. If they do they better be ready to pay with their lives. I am the most powerful man in Harmony. Whatever I want, I get. And what I want is for Beth's secret to remain just that; a secret."
"Why is my daughter's happiness so important to you. You never showed much interest in her before."
"I just wouldn't like to see a beautiful woman's hard work go down the drain. And if you know what's good for you, you'd keep what you know to yourself. I mean, I know that you and Beth don't have the world's most loving relationship but I'm sure you wouldn't want her to hate you forever. Who knows what she'd do to you?" Alistair smirked, keeping a close eye on Edna's confused expression.
"What are you talking about?"
"Well living in Harmony, you should know first hand the destruction that a kept secret can bring to one's life. Especially the kind of secret that can destroy the relationship between a mother and daughter." Alistair hinted, pacing slowly around the kitchen.
"I don't have any secrets that I've kept from my daughter. Well except for that one time when Precious brushed her teeth with Beth's toothbrush." She chuckled.
"My my, you really have forgotten haven't you? I would think that you would never let something so important slip your memory. Especially something that can ruin your life so easily."
What could he be talking about? Edna thought to herself. There's nothing that he could hold against me, is there?
"What have I forgotten? What are you talking about?"
Alistair quietly chuckled to himself, as he lit one of his cigars.
"I would be happy to refresh your memory Edna. I just don't know if you really want me to. You obviously allowed yourself to forget this for some good reason. Maybe deep inside you knew that if this secret ever got out, it would be the end of life as you know it."
"You're lying!" Ms Wallace cried. "There is nothing in my past that could come back and haunt me, except for the fact that I was quite popular with the young men back then." She chuckled to herself, but then turned to Alistair. "You're just trying to get me to not reveal Beth's secret. Well it ain't happening because even if I don't tell, the truth will find a way to reveal itself. It always does!"
"How interesting for you to mention how popular you were with the men in Harmony. That's actually towards where I was going with all of this." He blew a thick cloud of smoke in the air before he continued. "Oh Edna, I bet you never thought that your past shameful actions would catch up with you and now it finally has. Well brace yourself old woman because what I am about to tell you is going to give you the shock of a lifetime."
He slowly inhaled the last bit of his cigar before he began his story.