Meredith has a plan!
Meredith has been working for Steffy and Finn for quite some time now. In the meantime, she has made herself indispensable in their household. Kelly and Hayes still miss Amelia from time to time, but they had taken Meredith firmly into their heart. Steffy and Finn are more than happy with her effort. She is confident, diligent, reliable and never complains when she has to stay longer. With a clear conscience, they recommend Meredith to Hope and Liam and soon they ask her to watch Douglas and Beth as well. So it comes that Meredith is often busy with all four children at once. Everyone admires her patient handling with the children. No matter how big the commotion gets, Meredith always keeps her cool.
Steffy approaches her one day, how she always manages to stay so calm. Meredith laughs.
"I grew up in a family with seven kids and I was the oldest one. That makes you strong! Plus, I had to deal with three little brothers and most importantly, I survived it! I'm convinced there exists no prank or trick I haven't experienced yet." Steffy joins in her laughter.
"Sometimes real life is the best school!"
One evening, Hayes is already asleep and Meredith is playing 'Memory' with Kelly, Beth and Douglas, Steffy comes home accompanied by her brother. Thomas has come along to pick up Douglas. Tonight, Douglas is supposed to spend the night at his place. Meredith unobtrusively eavesdrops on their conversation.
"Chill Thomas!" tries Steffy to calm her brother. "Just because RJ is back and Dad offered him a job doesn't mean he can do without you! You're being way too dramatic about this! RJ is his son, just like we are his children and it's reasonable that he wants to have RJ with him. Especially after he was gone for so long. Forrester Creation is Dad's life's work and he wants to share it with all his children!"
"I get that and at first glance, RJ was quite affable with me, but still! I don't have a good feeling about this!"
"Well, we'll have to get along with him. There's nothing else we can do!" Thomas gives his sister an incredulous look. "I can only warn you, don't start a fight with RJ. You can only lose!"
"Yeah, you're probably right!"
The siblings change the subject and Meredith returns to the 'Memory' game. After Thomas and Douglas left, Kelly storms her mother.
"Is it true that Uncle RJ is in town? When can we see him and what does he even look like?"
"Well, he's grown up quite a bit. You know what, we'll invite him over for dinner!"
"Oh yeah!" cheers Kelly. "Do you think he'll bring me a gift?"
"You little rascal, like your room isn't bursting at the seams already!" Meredith joins in the conversation.
"Sorry! I don't want to seem nosy, but who is RJ?"
"RJ is Thomas and my brother." Steffy explains to her. "Actually, he is our half-brother. He is Dad and Brooke's kid. He was out of the country for quite some time and now he's back in town."
"Oh, I see! I'm sure your dad is very excited to have him back!"
"As a matter of fact, he is beside himself. If it would depend on him, RJ should stay in LA for good. He immediately offered him a job at Forrester Creation to keep him in town!"
"That's only natural!" says Meredith and Steffy nods. Neither she nor Kelly notice that suddenly Meredith becomes very thoughtful.
Late at night, as Meredith lies in her bed, she pulls out her diary and eagerly takes notes.
The next day, Steffy turns to Meredith with a big request.
"I want to ask you, do you have any plans for this weekend?" Meredith thinks for a moment and shakes her head. "Good, because Dad and Brooke are having a big welcome home party for RJ this Saturday. They've invited all the family and some friends too. It would be great if you were there to keep an eye on the kids?"
"Of course! That's not a problem for me at all, I'd be happy to come!"
"Perfect! There's also an excellent buffet!"
"Well, that's all the more reason to be there. How could I turn down a free meal!" The two giggle.
Steffy is very relieved to have the matter settled. Meredith says goodbye to her and the kids. As soon as she's outside, she grins triumphantly. This party is coming just at the right time.
Sheila Carter paces nervously in her cell. Although she's been in here for quite some time now, she still hasn't come to terms with it yet. Her anger at the Forresters, Bill and everyone else increases with each passing day. A guard approaches her.
"Miss Carter, you have a visit from your niece, so please follow me!" Although Sheila is looking forward to this visit, she grumbles and reluctantly follows the guard. She hates the handcuffing procedure. In the visiting room, she waits impatiently until the door finally opens. A second guard appears and escorts a young girl into the room.
"You know the drill, if you want to get out, you knock!" The girl gives the guard a friendly nod and then sits down across from Sheila.
They both wait until they are alone. The girl grins mischievously.
"Well, these guards are really easy to fool! No one's realized that I'm not your niece at all.
"Let's just be glad about it!" Sheila impatiently turns to her young visitor. "Now tell me, what's been going on these past few days? What have you found out?"
"I have already discovered two points where we can start. I overheard, Liam is extremely concerned about his wife. He doesn't seem to like her working so close with Thomas. I overheard a conversation the other day when he was with Steffy and Finn. He seems pretty jealous, so this is definitely something we can work on!" Sheila nods with satisfaction.
"Yeah, Liam and Thomas have never really been able to stand each other. There's been a lot of stuff going on in the past! Not at least because Thomas has always been very obsessed with Hope."
"Really?! This time, though, it seems to be the other way around. From what I understand, Liam seems very concerned that Hope is too fixated on Thomas!"
Sheila's eyes start to sparkle.
"That sounds even better! You'll definitely have to keep your eye on it! Hope and Thomas already caused a lot of turmoil in the family, mostly because they are raising Douglas together. If there's another falling out between the two of them, it could blow up the whole perfect, happy family dynamic! Anything else?"
"Yeah, there's one more thing! RJ, Steffy's brother, is back in town and it seems Thomas doesn't like it at all!"
"I think the dear boy is afraid of his role. I can well imagine that he doesn't like it when another son is also vying for Ridge's favor."
"Yes, it seems so! In any case, he was anything but thrilled, especially since Ridge immediately offered RJ a job at Forrester Creation. I guess we will have an easy game with those two!"
Sheila is very pleased with the initial results. However, not all the people she wanted to get revenge on had been covered yet.
"As for the other people, I haven't found out that much yet. After all, it's not that simple, I'm mostly at home with the kids. But I do have some good news! Brooke and Ridge are having a welcome home party for RJ this weekend where the whole family will be there. Steffy invited me to attend the party to watch the kids!"
"That's excellent!" Sheila rubbed her hands with glee. "You should definitely keep your focus on Bill, Bill Spencer! You must find something we can use to really piss him off!"
"All right, I will!"
The time is over and Sheila and Meredith say goodbye to each other. Back in her cell, Sheila is in high spirits. They were all going to get their fill and even if she personally couldn't do anything about it at the moment. The happy days of the Forresters, Logans and Spencers are doomed.