Previously: Ian Masque met with real estate agent Lydia Appleby and the two took a boat to the deserted Foxglove mansion situated on an island across the Blackport Harbor. Masque and Appleby were unaware, however, that the mansion was being used as the hideout for escaped prisoners Misty Arugula and Catherine Grey. With Misty and Catherine hiding in the basement stairwell, Miss Appleby showed Ian Masque around the mansion. Ian immediately fell in love with the place and told Appleby he was ready to make an offer to buy it. At Ivory’s Boarding House, Mindy Mint arrived and told Alphonse Brunette, Pearl Ivory and Sienna Fallow that her mother had escaped from prison and the police had come to the Pine Cone Motel to question her. Officer Jake Summers, in the meantime, was having a hard time accepting the fact that the bullet that killed his fiancée Alva Vermillion came from his gun. The guilt over having caused the deaths of both Alva and her father Police Chief Vermillion was slowly starting to take its toll on Jake’s psyche. After Masque and Lydia Appleby left the Foxglove mansion, Misty Arugula sat down to think after overhearing that Masque was going to be purchasing the mansion, and that she and Catherine would be out of a hiding place. To get her mind off of the new wrinkle in her plan, Misty opened the envelope that was given to her by Sandra Sumac and read the letter inside. The letter Sumac had written was intended to be read only by Sumac's teenage daughter, Jessie. Misty was shocked by Sumac’s words to Jessie and hurried upstairs to share what she had found with Catherine Grey.

“Going, Going, Gone”

In the kitchen of the Brown Family, a young woman with long blonde hair fills up a tea kettle with water and then puts the kettle on the stove. She opens a cupboard and takes out a tea cup when the doorbell rings. The young woman leaves the kitchen and crosses the living room to answer the door. On the doorstep, Jessie Sumac looks at Gavin Gold and takes a deep breath. Gavin puts his hand on Jessie’s shoulder as the door opens. “Hi.” The young woman says as she opens the door.

“Hi.” Jessie says. “How are you?” They embrace. Kimberly Brown is the teenage daughter of Winfield Brown and his wife Janice. She works as a front desk clerk at the Black Towers Hotel.

“I’m holding up, I guess.” Kim says. She smiles at Gavin, who is holding a tray covered in aluminum foil. “It’s freezing out here, come in.” Kim says. She lets them enter.

“Thanks.” Jessie says. “I’ve brought you some snacks.” Jessie motions to the tray Gavin is holding.

“Here, let me take that.” Kim says. She takes the tray from Gavin and crosses the room. She puts the tray on the dining room table. “You really didn’t have to do this.”

“It’s nothing too fancy.” Jessie says, removing her coat. Kim rejoins them in the living room.

“Please.” She says, offering them a seat.

“Thanks.” Gavin says.

“You sure you’re doing ok?” Jessie asks Kim. Kim takes a seat next to Jessie on the couch.

“It’s hard.” Kim sighs.

“I’m sure it is.” Gavin says. “I am really sorry about your parents, they were really nice folks.”

“Thank you.” Kim smiles. “But Jessie, how are you doing? I couldn’t believe it when I heard that Chad died too.”

“It’s tough.” Jessie says.

“I really don’t understand what is going on. First Rhoit’s suicide, then Alva being shot at the Miss Blackport Contest and now Chad and my parents dying on Founder’s Day, it’s all too much.” Kim says, trying not to cry. Jessie hugs her as the tea kettle begins to whistle. “I am making some tea, would you like some?” Kim offers.

“No, that’s alright.” Gavin says. Kim stands up from the couch.

“Jessie?” Kim asks.

“Sure, I’d like that.” Jessie smiles.

“I’ll be right back.” Kim says. She leaves Jessie and Gavin alone.

“My god she looks horrible.” Jessie says as soon as Kim is out of the room.

“This has to be so hard on her. I can’t imagine it.” Gavin says.

“I’m worried about her.” Jessie says. “Gavin, I hate to be rude, but would you mind leaving me alone with her for a few minutes?”

“No, of course not.” He says. He goes to the door. “I will go for a little drive.”

“Thanks, Gavin.” Jessie smiles. Jessie sits back on the couch and looks across the room at the fireplace. On the mantle are framed photos of the Browns. She gets up and walks over to the mantle. She smiles when she sees a picture of Inspector and Mrs. Brown with Kim when she was a baby. “I don’t even have a picture of my father.” Jessie thinks to herself. In the kitchen, Kim has poured some tea in two cups and places them on a silver tray. She is about to go out to the living room when she stops.

“Sugar.” Kim says to herself. She puts the tray on the counter and goes to a cupboard and grabs a sugar bowl. She puts the sugar bowl on the tray and then picks the tray up from the counter and goes back into the living room. “I hope you like sugar in your tea.” Kim says as she enters the living room. But the room is empty. “Jessie?” Kim calls out. She then notices that the front door is open. She puts the tray with the tea cups on the coffee table. “Jessie. Gavin?” Kim calls out as she goes over to the door and looks out. She steps out onto the front porch. “Jessie.” She calls out, her voice echoing. She looks down the driveway and sees that Gavin’s car is gone. “They left?” Kim asks herself. She goes back inside. She goes back to the couch and notices Jessie’s coat is still on the couch. Kim goes over to the staircase and calls up them. “Jessie, the tea’s ready.” She gets no response. Kim turns and sees her cell phone lying on a bookcase. She slides open her phone and presses a button. After a few rings, Jessie’s voice mail recording comes on.

“You’ve reached Jessica. Leave a message and I’ll call you back. Thanks.” The outgoing recording says. Kim hangs up then calls Gavin.

“Hello?” Gavin answers.

“Gavin, where are you guys?” Kim asks.

“I’m driving on Lookout Road.” Gavin says.

“Can I talk to Jessie?” Kim asks.

“Jessie? She’s not with me. I left her there with you. She wanted to talk to you alone for a few minutes.” Gavin says. He stops his car.

“Well she’s not here.” Kim says.

“Are you sure? Maybe she’s in the bathroom.” Gavin says.

“No, she isn’t.” Kim tells him. “Gavin, I am telling you she’s not here.”

“Ok, calm down. Maybe she’s outside.” He says.

“I looked out there. Besides, her coat is still here on the couch where she left it. Why would she go outside without her coat?” Kim asks. Gavin puts his car in reverse and backs down the gravel road.

“I am on my way back. I’ll be there in a few minutes. Just hang on.” He says.

At Ivory’s Boarding House, Alphonse Brunette is sitting on the couch reading the morning issue of The Blackport Journal newspaper. Mindy Mint is next to him listening to her iPod. “This is really incredible.” Brunette says to Pearl Ivory, who is sitting at a table going over some paperwork.

“What is?” Pearl asks, looking up from the paper in front of her.

“All of the people that died the night of the Founder’s Day party.” Brunette says.

“Yeah.” Pearl says sadly. She looks down at the paper in front of her. It’s a copy of her mother’s life insurance policy.

“I’m sorry.” Brunette says. He puts the newspaper down and walks over to her. “That was very insensitive of me.”

“It’s alright.” Pearl says. She looks up at him with tears in her eyes. “A lot more people could have died that night; Mindy, C.J., your daughter.”

“And you.” Brunette says.

“We are all very lucky.” Pearl says. Brunette leans down and wipes a tear from Pearl’s cheek. Mindy watches from the couch and smiles.

“I know I am.” He smiles. At the top of the stairs Sienna Fallow watches them. The front door opens and Allison Amber comes in carrying grocery bags.

“Hello.” She says as she enters.

“Allison, here let me help you.” Pearl says. She hurries over to Allison and takes a bag from her. “What’s all this?”

“Since you have been so kind to me, I thought I would make dinner.” Allison smiles.

“That’s very sweet.” Ivory says. “Let’s put these things away. Mindy can you help us?” Mindy stands up and pulls her iPod earbuds out of her ears. She walks over and takes a bag from Allison. They walk to the kitchen, passing Brunette.

“You girls need any help?” He asks.

“We can manage.” Allison says. The women go into the kitchen. Brunette goes and sits back on the couch and picks up the newspaper as Sienna comes down the stairs, carrying her baby, Sepia. She goes over and puts the baby in a playpen.

“Alphonse, I was wondering if I could talk to you.” Sienna says.

“Ok.” Brunette says. He puts the paper down again. Sienna comes over and takes a seat next to him. “What’s goin’ on?”

“Well, I don’t want to seem nosey, but I get the feeling that there is something going on between you and Pearl.” Sienna says. Brunette blushes.

“Ahem.” Brunette clears his throat.

“It’s really none of my business.” Sienna says.

“No, no it’s fine.” Brunette says. “Pearl and I have become very close over the last few years.”

“And by close, you mean?” Sienna asks.

“We are taking it slow, especially now with the loss of her mother.” Brunette says.

“Oh, of course.” Sienna says. She looks over at her son playing in the playpen. “Well, I hope that Sepia and I living here won’t cause any trouble for you two.”

“Sienna, I am not sure I get what you mean. How could you and Sepia living here have any effect on my relationship with Pearl?” Brunette questions her.

“Well, I can’t speak for Pearl, but I know how I would feel if my boyfriend’s ex-girlfriend and son were always around him.” Sienna says. Brunette chuckles.

“Sienna, first off, you are not my ex-girlfriend. We had a one-night stand. At one time, I admit, I wished it was more than that, but I’ve come to terms with the fact that that’s all it was. Second, Sepia isn’t my…” Brunette stops. “Oh my god.” His eyes widen and immediately focus on the little boy in the playpen. “Sienna, Rodrigo is Sepia’s father, isn’t he?”

“I don’t know where you got that idea. I never claimed that Rodrigo was Sepia’s father.” Sienna smirks.

“Are saying that Sepia is mine?” Brunette asks just as Pearl and Allison come back into the living room.

“You should see all of the food Allison bought.” Pearl says, interrupting them.

“I think I’ll go and have a look.” Sienna says. She hops to her feet and goes into the kitchen, leaving a stunned Brunette sitting on the couch. Allison comes over and notices that Brunette seems distracted.

“So, Al, I read in the paper that a local police inspector and his wife died in the Founder’s Day massacre. Their name was Brown. Any relation?” Allison asks, taking a seat next to him. Alphonse doesn’t respond.

“Hey.” Pearl says, nudging him. “You alright?”

“What?” Brunette asks. “Oh, sorry. I’m fine.”

“So, the Inspector Brown that died the other night, was he related to you?” Allison asks.

“Not really, I mean, yeah we may have shared a father. But I wouldn't call that man a relative.” Brunette says, matter-of-factly. He gets up and walks over to Sepia’s playpen and picks up the boy, passing a shocked Pearl Ivory.

“I take it by the look on your face that you didn’t know that Al’s half-brother died on Founder’s Day.” Allison says.

“I didn’t even know he had a half-brother.” Pearl says.

“I bet there’s a lot you don’t know about him.” Allison mutters.

“We weren’t close.” Brunette says, still holding Sepia in his arms. “Just look at this little boy’s eyes.”

“But he was your brother.” Allison says. “And according to the newspaper, the Brown’s have a teenage daughter. So you have a niece somewhere here in town.”

“I told you, we weren’t close.” Brunette snaps. He puts Sepia back in the playpen and walks to the front door.

“Where are you going?” Pearl asks.

“I need some air.” Brunette says. He leaves. Pearl takes a seat on the couch next to Allison.

“Maybe I shouldn’t have said anything.” Allison says.

“No. I am glad you did.” Pearl says.

“I didn’t mean to upset anyone, especially at this difficult time.” Allison says, playing with the locket around her neck.

“I guess he just needs to think.” Pearl says. “That’s lovely.” She motions to the heart-shaped locket.

“Thank you.” Allison says. “It was my sister’s.” Sienna comes out of the kitchen.

“Alphonse, do you think you could drive me back to the motel so I can…” Sienna begins to say.

“He’s not here.” Pearl says.

“Oh.” Sienna says. “Shoot. I was going to see if he would take me to the Pine Cone Inn so I could get some more of my things.”

“C.J. is upstairs, I am sure he would take you.” Pearl says.

“Would you mind keeping an eye on Sepia for me?” Sienna asks.

“Not at all.” Pearl says. Sienna goes to the steps.

“Thanks so much.” She smiles. She goes up the stairs to ask C.J. to take her to the motel.

“I feel really bad. I am going to see if I can find Al and apologize.” Allison says. “I will start dinner when I get back.”

“Allison, if you don’t mind, I think I will go after him.” Pearl says. “We have a lot to talk about.”

“Of course.” Allison says. Pearl gets up and goes over to a coat rack. She grabs her coat and slips it on.

“Make sure you are back in time for dinner.” Allison smiles. Pearl nods and leaves. Allison sits on the couch and begins to open and close the locket repeatedly.

CLICK…CLICK…CLICK…CLICK

Sienna comes down the stairs. “C.J. was sleeping. He looked so peaceful I didn’t want to wake him up.” Sienna says.

“You can take my car if you want.” Allison says. “It’s a rental.”

“You wouldn’t mind?” Sienna asks.

“No, I don’t mind. But on second thought, is it safe for you to be going there alone? Isn’t that escaped prisoner looking for you and the baby.” Allison says.

“I didn’t think of that.” Sienna says. Mindy comes out of the kitchen, still listening to her iPod. “Mindy.” Sienna asks. “Will you do me a huge favor?”

“What?” Mindy asks, pulling an earbud out of her ear.

“Will you watch Sepia long enough for Allison to take me to get some of my things from the motel?” Sienna asks.

“Do I have a choice?” Mindy asks.

“Thanks.” Sienna smiles. Mindy rolls her eyes.

“The car is in the garage.” Allison says. They head to the kitchen to go out the back door.

“I don’t change diapers!” Mindy shouts. She goes over to the playpen and looks down at Sepia.

Down the street, Alphonse Brunette is sitting on the curb, playing with a cigarette lighter.

Click…Click…Click…Click

“I have a son.” Brunette says to himself. “How could she not tell me after all this time?”

In the Ivory’s garage, Sienna and Allison climb into Allison’s rental car. Allison starts the engine. “You know what, I forgot my cell phone and I am expecting an important call.” Allison says. I will be back in a minute.”

“Oh, alright.” Sienna says. Allison gets out of the car and leaves the garage. The car’s engine is still running. Sienna reaches over and turns the radio on. She begins to sing along with the song on the radio as she waits for Allison to come back. The exhaust from the car’s tailpipe begins to fill the garage.

Inside the house, Mindy is listening to her iPod, ignoring the fact that Sepia is screaming at the top of his lungs. “Mindy!” Allison shouts. Mindy pulls the earbuds out of her ears. “I don’t think Sienna would be too happy to find that her baby is in here crying while you listen to your music.”

“Fine.” Mindy says. She puts her iPod on the table and goes over and picks Sepia up. He stops crying. “Happy now?” She asks. Allison hurries upstairs. Out in the garage, Sienna notices that the air is getting much harder to breath. She sees the remote garage door opener and leans over and presses the button to open the garage door, but nothing happens.

“Oh, come on.” Sienna says. She presses it again, but nothing happens. She begins to cough. “What could be taking her so long?” Sienna reaches over to turn off the car’s motor, but the key won’t turn. “What the hell?” Sienna says. She then reaches over to the car door handle and pulls, but the car door won’t open. “No.” She says. She tries the handle again, but the door won’t budge. She presses the unlock button on the car door but nothing happens. “I can’t get out!” Sienna shouts. She begins to bang on the car window. “Help me!” Inside the house, Mindy is sitting on the couch holding Sepia, who is crying again. She puts her earbuds back in her ears and cranks up the volume on her iPod. In the garage, the car exhaust fumes have begun to fill the car. Sienna reaches over and closes the vents. She begins to cough violently. “Somebody help!” She screams. She continues to bang on the window. Outside, Pearl Ivory walks up the path to the house. She notices that her car is parked in the driveway.

“I might as well put my car up. It doesn’t look like I am going anywhere for the rest of the night.” She takes her keys from her coat pocket and unlocks her car. She climbs in.

“Crap.” Pearl says. “I gave Allison the remote to open the garage door.” She opens the car door and gets out. She walks up the driveway to one of the garage doors and is about to open it when she hears and odd clicking noise coming from behind the garage.

Click…Click…Click…Click…Click

“Hello? Is someone out here?” Pearl calls out.

TO BE CONTINUED…