CHAPTER 23:

Daniel stepped off the elevator, looking rather weary. The only thing occupying his mind being Wilhelmina and the humiliation she suffered the previous evening at the hands of his mother and sister. That horrible scene kept playing over his mind as he sympathized with her and her want for something for so long and then when she finally got it, it got ripped away. The look on her face is the one that's been haunting him for the past few hours. His thoughts of her were immediately interjected by Betty.

"Good morning, Daniel." She said brightly

"Hey Betty." He replied flatly

"So, your first day back at Mode. Here's your schedule." She handed him the document

"Thank you." He responded flatly yet again and Betty noticed

"You don't look happy to be back. Your eyes are bleary. What's going on?"

"It's about last night. Alexis didn't tell Wilhelmina that I was being reinstated, she pulled all that to humiliate her."

"WHAT? Daniel that's…"

"Terrible. Betty, I know."

"And I guess Wilhelmina's mad at you?"

"You have no idea. I didn't even get the chance to explain that I didn't know until the last minute and I thought they had discussed it. Alexis did all that to drive a wedge between me and Willie."

"You have to explain to Wilhelmina."

"Well I would have…if she came home last night."

"She didn't?"

"I called and called and she never picked up. I stayed at her apartment until I fell asleep on her couch. She didn't show up."

"Well, you know what you have to do…" Suddenly the sound of loud clapping and Marc's unmistakable voice interrupted them

"People! I have an announcement to make! This is urgent! I have important news!" Daniel and Betty both rushed out of the office and to the crowd in the conference room. Daniel thought Marc was going to announce that Wilhelmina quit, which scared him. He knew when she was angry she was very hard to reason with, let alone explain one's self to. He's been there, she was fired during his father's funeral and dumped him and didn't talk to him for more than two months. However nothing prepared him for what he heard from her loyal assistant.

"Wilhelmina Slater is n the hospital!" Daniel went completely pale, his eyes widening with shock

"What?" He managed to croak out.

"Last night she fell down the stairs and is unconscious." Marc explained

"Marc, is she okay?" Betty asked

"Betty, I can't share that information with you. Now excuse me I have to meet with her publicist. Willie's orders." Daniel yanked him by the arm

"Marc, c'mon don't be like that, what happened? How did she fall down the…" Asked Daniel, his heart racing

"Daniel, calm down."

"How can I be calm, Marc? My girlfriend who's carrying my baby fell down the stairs and I have to be calm?" He bellowed, not caring that all eyes were now on him. Marc's expression softened and he looked at Daniel sympathetically

"Look, just go to Mount Sinai Hospital." He said calmly

"Is she okay?"

"Daniel, just go to the hospital. She needs you more than ever now."

Mount Sinai Hospital:

He marched down the hospital hallway like a mad man, looking for her room. As he approached, he noticed a large gentleman in a black suit standing outside her door.

"Sir" Acknowledged the gentlemen

"Hi, I'm here to see Wilhelmina Slater. I'm Daniel…"

"Meade. I recognize you from the list."

"List?"

"Of individuals who are permitted to enter Ms. Slater's room. I was called to tighten security as a number of paparazzi have been suspected to have been sneaking in the premises."

"Oh, okay." As he was about to go in, a tall salt and pepper haired physician came out of her room.

"Is she okay? Is the baby okay? How did she fall?" The doctor pulled him aside, a few steps further from the door.

"May I ask who you are and how you are related to Miss Slater?" The older man inquired

"I'm her boyfriend, Daniel Meade." He extended his hand "Is she and the baby okay?"

"Mr. Meade, before you go in there, there's something you need to know…Shortly after Ms. Slater was brought in last night, she started having profuse vaginal bleeding. We scanned her and we discovered that she was actually suffering a miscarriage. It was too late to save the fetus."

"Wh-…wh-…what?" Daniel stammered in disbelief

"The fall caused a severe case of placental abruption."

"A placental abruption? What's that?"

"The fall had caused a severe separation of the placenta from the uterine wall, which was fatal to the baby. A D&E was performed a little over 2 hours ago." He felt his heart sink as the aging physician explained. His eyes began to well up.

"Oh, my God." Daniel whispered in a shaky voice

"I'm so sorry, Mr. Meade." The older man said putting a hand on his shoulder in an effort to comfort him. "She's in there. You may go in." Said the doctor before walking off.

Daniel stood in front of the door peering through the glass. She was just sitting there, staring ahead with a perplexed expression on her face. Her eyes appeared red and puffy from all the crying she must have done upon finding out that their baby was gone. Daniel willed himself not to cry as he prepared to walk in. He knew that there was a chance that she wouldn't want anything to do with him, that she blamed him for everything. He wouldn't be mad at her if she did. He was prepared to take whatever she threw at his direction.

Her head jerked toward the door as Daniel opened it. Their eyes met and all of a sudden, their fight from last night didn't seem to matter anymore as she began to well up upon seeing his distraught expression.

"He's gone" murmured Willie, looking at him with tear filled eyes

"I'm so sorry, Willie…" Without another word, he rushed to her side and put his arms around her. She buried her head in his chest finally allowed her warm tears to flow down her cheeks.

"Our baby is gone, Daniel…I'm sorry" She said in a muffled voice

"Shhh" Was all he managed to say

Daniel just held her tighter, stroking the back of her head with the other hand. Soon she began to sob and started getting sobbing spasms. A lump grew in Daniel's throat as Willie sobbed on, it was too painful for him to bear. Suddenly he felt a rush of tears coming down his eyes.

"BABY. MAMA. DRAMA. Rumors are swirling that the pregnant Wilhelmina Slater fell down the stairs… or was she pushed? With Meade in the balance, everyone wants to know who could have done such a thing. The millionaire playboy? The tranny CEO? The angry matriarch acquitted of murder? Or any one of Wilhelmina's close frenemies? This comes after the shocking news that La Slater has been banging Danny boy on the down low…so another question on everybody's lips is…is Wilhelmina carrying her and Bradford Meade's love child or did she get knocked up by the infamous playboy? If so, he is crossed off the suspect list…"

"This is just what they need right now!" Marc said sarcastically as he closed the down the fashion buzz page on his computer. It had been hours since the incident became public and the press wouldn't leave the grieving couple alone. He and Betty had been assigned by Daniel and Wilhelmina to write a press release regarding the incident, forcing them to work together. Betty wasn't all there, she had been quiet the entire time, blaming herself for the entire unpleasant incident. Marc didn't want to watch the news updates either but he had to so he could keep the couple updated.

"This is all my fault." Betty said in a shaky voice

"Well, not all of it. But yeah, you're partly responsible."

"I know. When I showed Alexis Daniel's notes I didn't mean for her to demote Wilhelmina on the spot and humiliate her." Betty explained on the verge of tears

"Yeah, right." Marc scoffed "That's why you clapped louder than everybody else in the room last night when Alexis was welcoming your boss back."

"I just wanted Daniel to be back at Mode. He missed Mode. The fan mail and with Wilhelmina's first day sales figures shows that she could use some…" Betty's attempt to explain was interjected by Marc's mirthless laugh

"You are a naïve young girl aren't you? You think everything is rainbows and unicorns."

"Marc…"

"Fan mail? You think Mandy and I don't read that stupid fan mail that your boss never bothers to read? Please."

"What's your point?"

"Those are girls who are Daniel Meade's fans, not his work as Editor-in-Chief. It's like they all share a brain…all they do on those letters is ramble on about the dirty things they'd love to do to him and then write their phone numbers on them."

"Marc, I know I messed things up, okay?"

"See what your goodie two shoes, holier than though attitude has done? Your constant need of wanting to do the right thing? Willie and your boss whom you refer to as your friend lost their child."

"Well, I thought I was fixing things because I believe that Daniel deserves to be the Editor-in-Chief." Marc snorted

"Really?"

"He was good. He is good." Betty argued. Marc replied with yet another a snort

"You really believe that the sales figures from last night are real? You really believe that the first issue of a woman who has been in this business for almost 20 years, has been Creative Director for the magazine for the past 13 years, the woman who closed an entire issue by herself during a blizzard back in 2003 has somehow done a terrible job that her first issue is the lowest selling in months? That Daniel is better than Wilhelmina? You really believe that?"

"Well…"

"You ARE naïve, Betty." She swiftly stood up, tears threatening to spill. She walked off leaving Marc alone to type the press release by himself.

The recently bereaved couple snuggled in the hospital bed. Wilhelmina had cried herself to sleep in Daniel's arms. It came as a relief to him when she finally ceased crying as it scared the shit of out him. Wilhelmina Slater, the strongest person he thought he knew had broke down in his arms and cried straight from the heart. He felt her stir and then her breathing changed and Daniel knew that she was awake. However, he decided not to disturb the comfortable silence that fell between them. More silence followed until she spoke in an unusually soft voice.

"This is all my fault"'

"Willie, please, don't even think about that. This isn't your fault."

"Yes, it is, Daniel. If I wasn't so damn impatient I would have waited for the elevator a little longer and I wouldn't have been pushed down the stairs and our baby wouldn't be…" Daniel shot up from his sleeping position

"Wait, somebody pushed you?" He asked in complete shock, his eyes widening

"Yes, it all happened so fast."

"Oh, my God."

"I didn't hear any footsteps, I didn't hear a single sound except for the thumping music and then within a blink of an eye, I felt two strong hands on my back. I…I screamed…and…" She began to sob softly again. Daniel held her even tighter than before, allowing her to cry in his arms. He knew he had to be the stronger one in this. He was hurting as well, but he had to put his grief aside and be there for her. Her sobbing went on for quite some time before she quieted down. When she finally stopped crying altogether. Daniel began to squirm in an attempt to slide out of the bed.

"Please don't leave." She said softly while gripping his hand tighter

"I'm not, babe. I'm just gonna get some coffee, make a phone call to my mom and ask her to care for DJ after school." He placed a tender a kiss her forehead and quickly got off the bed. "I love you."

"I love you, too."

Betty sat at her desk, slumped in her chair in defeat. She sat there feeling guilty, completely blameworthy for the entire ordeal. All she was doing was wishing that she could turn back the hands of time. A gruff voice shook her from her thoughts.

"Betty" Strangely the voice turned out to be Marc's. He stood in front of her desk with a file in hand

"Marc"

"Look…I…I'm sorry for blaming this on you."

"Well, I am to blame."

"No. Willie made me see that Alexis would have done what she did anyway. She found out about their relationship from Claire and has probably been planning what she did even before the press found out."

"I don't know why I took the book to Alexis. I don't why I thought that she would put her differences with Daniel aside."

"I know why and you do too. Maybe you did it because you wanted to be back at Mode, so you could further your own career. We both know that'll never happen in boobs and booty magazine."

"Marc…"

"It's okay, Betty I get it. You may think that I lick Willie's boots because I like it, and I do, a little, they're fancy. But there's a reason I put myself through it. You're not the only one who wants to get ahead in the magazine world. I have dreams too."

"Wow, you never mentioned that."

"Well, I am now. Anyway, Daniel said he'll stop by, so I'll just leave this on his desk."

"What's that?" He handed the file to her. She took a few seconds scanning the document "Is this…"

"Yeah, those are the real figures of the issue. I got them from Accounting. Now I gotta go and submit the press release." With that Marc left Betty rifling through the file.

That evening, Betty walked in the conference room where Alexis sat at the table with a number of documents before her.

"Betty, what can I do for you?"

"Alexis, I know what you did."

"I don't know…what you're talking about, Betty." She said dryly while shrugging trying to mask the guilt that's been eating away at her for the past 24 hours.

"That's usually the first answer that comes out when somebody is hiding something." Alexis' hard and confident expression suddenly changed. She sighed heavily

"I'm so sorry, Betty. I…I didn't mean for that to…I was mad. Everything got out of hand. I didn't mean it. But she was right."

"Who was right?" Betty questioned, totally confused.

"Wilhelmina. She told me I will never be rid of her thanks to the baby. I don't know what came over me, I just…pushed her." Betty's mouth gaped, her eyes widening in horror

"You're the one who pushed Wilhelmina down the stairs?" Betty asked staring at Alexis almost fearfully

"Wait, what were you talking about?"

"I was talking about the sales figures you rigged! Oh, my God!"

"Oh" was all Alexis said, realizing she's just been caught

"Alexis?"

"I'm sorry, Betty."

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to, Alexis. What you did to Wilhelmina was horrible. She lost the baby, Alexis."

"I know, God, I never meant for that to happen." She said with teary eyes, her voice breaking

"What did you think was gonna happen when you pushed her?"

"Look, the night of the party things were bad with Wilhelmina. I was pissed at her and my heel broke and I found facial hair and when I saw her…I don't know what I was thinking. I just…saw an opportunity and followed her and I…I pushed her, Betty. I ran to her afterward…made sure she was still alive, and called 911. I can't justify what I did. Oh, God, Betty, if I could take it back, I would. But I can't. What do I do?"She asked with tearfully, her voice shaking.

"Well, no one else knows yet. I can't tell you what to do but…your brother lost his son with Wilhelmina. They are in a world of pain."

"Daniel is really the father?"

"I wasn't supposed to tell you that. But I guess it doesn't matter now. The reason I'm not running to tell Daniel and Wilhelmina right now is because I know you're a good person, Alexis. But right now, you're the only person who can prove that." Betty walked out without another word leaving her alone. Alexis exhaled shakily, knowing that her relationship with her brother and mother might never be the same again but she knew that she had to do the right thing.

The next day Daniel attempted keeping himself busy in his office. He had spent most of the morning at the hospital with Wilhelmina. She insisted that he go to the office and make sure that Mode wasn't falling apart. He reluctantly left and came in to do a little work, which was surprisingly a little therapeutic as his mind was occupied by something else for a change.

"Daniel?" He lifted his head to see his mother standing on the threshold of his office

"Mom" He said dryly

"How are you holding up?"

"I'm…I'm okay, Mom." He said focusing his attention back to his work

"And Wilhelmina?" He turned shifted his eyes to his mom

"Why are you acting like you care?"

"I'm not pretending, Daniel. Despite how I feel about the woman…she was carrying my grandchild. Speaking of…Daniel I know this isn't what you want to hear right now but, since the baby turned out not to Bradford's…"

"Are you kidding me? That's all you can think about right now? She's in the hospital, mom."

"Daniel, darling, please…."

"She's gonna keep her share of Meade." Daniel said firmly looking her in the eye. "She was right. I'm sick of being treated like an outsider, like I'm not part of this family."

"What are you talking about? You are a Meade just as much as Alexis."

"But somehow you made decisions about me without me."

"Son…"

"Wilhelmina isn't going anywhere." Before Claire could reply an agitated Alexis walked in the office.

"Daniel, Mom, I need to talk to you…both of you. "

"What is it, darling?"

"I want to confess something."

"If this is about you screwing with the sales figures, don't bother. I know about it." Daniel offered

"Daniel, that's not…"

"You know, I thought you wanted me back at Mode because you thought I was good and actually wanted me to come back. But all you wanted to do was to screw up my relationship with Wilhelmina."

"I'm sorry about that but that's not why I'm here." Before Alexis could go any further detective Averaimo and two uniformed police men appeared and stood by Betty's desk.

"They're here for me." The admission struck a confusion to Daniel and Claire. "I'm the one who…pushed Wilhelmina down the steps." She clarified

"You WHAT?" Daniel asked in disbelief

"I'm very sorry, Daniel. I'm turning myself in."

"Alexis how…just how could you?" Daniel managed to stammer

"Daniel I'm sorry, I wasn't thinking."

"OH REALLY?" He screamed as he shot up from his seat. "You weren't thinking when you followed her and pushed her, killing your nephew in the process?"

"I never meant for that to happen!"

"You never…Are you out of your fucking mind? WHAT THE HELL DID YOU THINK WAS GONNA HAPPEN WHEN YOU PUSHED A PREGNANT WOMAN DOWN A FLIGHT OF STAIRS?"

"Daniel please, calm down." Claire started "Everybody can hear you."

"I DON'T GIVE A SHIT!" He screamed again "You know what? Just go, get out of here."

"Daniel?"

"NOW!" Alexis didn't argue any further, she walked out. Claire followed her.

Their walk led them to the elevators with the detective retrieving the handcuffs. She pulled her mother in a tight hug scared to death of what would befall her.

"Miss Meade, if you're ready." Said Detective Averaimo causing her to pull away from her mother's embrace

"Dear?" Claire said in her motherly tone

"Mom, there's one more thing I have to tell you."

"Could you give us another moment, please?" Claire pulled Alexis aside

"When I was clearing out my office, I accidentally opened up a piece of Daniel's mail."

"Darling, given what we're dealing with here, I think Daniel's going to overlook that one."

"No, no. He won't…It was a paternity test."

"I don't understand."

"Daniel isn't Daniel Junior's father. I am."