Monday, November 06, 2006, Episode #4930

At the hospital, Brooke frets that she's unable to reach Nick. She laments that Nick should be here with his mother instead of confronting Stephanie. Maybe Nick didn't even go the mansion, Donna suggests while Eric tries to reach Stephanie. Ridge arrives and asks how Jackie is; Eric asks Ridge why he's here, since he thought Ridge was with Stephanie. Ridge explains that he had to stop by the office and decided to check on Jackie on his way home. Brooke and Donna fill Ridge in about how Nick went to confront Stephanie after Donna told him that she witnessed Stephanie push Jackie over the railing. Ridge can't believe that's true, but Donna tells him that she saw it, and Jackie confirmed it. Ridge wants to get over to the mansion right now. Eric agrees and asks Brooke to come with them, as she's probably the only one who can calm Nick down. As the trio turns to leave, Brooke asks Donna if she's coming; Donna tells her sister to go ahead, as she needs to tend to something. After Brooke, Eric and Ridge leave, Donna takes out her cell phone and makes a call, asking the person on the other end to meet her right away.

Stephanie points a gun at Nick.

At the Forrester mansion, Nick holds a frightened Stephanie over the railing, demanding that she admit that she pushed his mother over the railing. Stephanie pleads with Nick to let her up; saying, "It would be so easy, but I'm not like you," he lets up his on his grip and releases Stephanie. La Forrester runs down the hall and goes into one of the bedrooms, locking the door. Nick follows and bangs on the door, demanding that Stephanie let him in and face the music for what she's done. When the door remains shut, Nick charges at it and bashes it in - only to find himself facing Stephanie, who is holding her small revolver in her hand! "You son of a bitch," she fumes, warning that she will shoot him. Holding his ground, Nick demands that she admit what she did, but she holds firm in her claim that she did nothing wrong. She tells Nick to leave. Even with the gun pointed at him, Nick tells Stephanie that he's not afraid of her.

Eric and Ridge urge Stephanie to stop.

Eric, Ridge and Brooke arrive at the mansion and call out for Stephanie. Just then, they hear a gunshot and race upstairs, where Stephanie has fired a warning shot at the wall, just behind where Nick is standing. Stephanie warns Nick to leave, or they'll take him out of here in a body bag. Brooke, Eric and Ridge come in. As Brooke tries to calm Nick, Eric and Ridge urge Stephanie to stop this. Eric tells her that he's here and asks her to give him the gun. Stephanie uncocks the pistol and hands it to Eric. Ridge then orders Nick to get out, but Nick won't leave until Stephanie admits what she did to his mother. A furious Eric tells Nick, "This is my house!" and orders Nick to leave. Brooke turns to Nick and tells him to go to his mother; she tells him that they will deal with it if Stephanie pushed Jackie, but this isn't the way. Nick says that he just wants the truth. Which Nick tried to bully Stephanie into admitting, Ridge accuses. Nick claims that Stephanie is guilty, but she disagrees. Brooke again tells Nick to leave. Turning to leave, Nick glares at Stephanie and tells her, "The next time you shoot, don't miss." "I won't," Stephanie retorts as Nick leaves.

Brooke asks Stephanie if what Donna said is true.

Ridge and Brooke ask Stephanie about Donna's claim that Stephanie pushed Jackie. Stephanie reminds them that Donna has an axe to grind with her and insists that she did nothing wrong. Brooke asks if Stephanie is calling Donna a liar. Ridge asks Brooke if she really thinks his mother would intentionally push Jackie over that balcony. "Did you?" Brooke asks Stephanie, who again insists that she and Jackie were arguing. Jackie followed her up the stairs and pulled at her, refusing to leave, so she had no choice but to defend herself.

As Nick goes out to his car, he calls Dr. Hillman, who gives him some good news about Jackie. Brooke comes out and asks Nick to wait a minute; she wants to talk about this. Nick doesn't want to talk. Brooke asks if he's OK. Other than having Stephanie pull a gun on him, he replies. Brooke guesses that Stephanie was scared; Nick bets that she was, since he held her over the same balcony his mother fell from. But unlike Stephanie with his mother, he couldn't throw Stephanie over. Brooke asks what he hopes to accomplish by attacking Stephanie and urges him to wait until they have all the facts. Nick reminds Brooke of what her own sister saw and asks why she's defending Stephanie for trying to kill his mother. Brooke sighs that this is just what she was afraid of. Nick surmises from that comment that Brooke already knew what Donna saw before Donna told him; when Brooke admits she did, a furious Nick asks why she didn't tell him. Because she feared he would confront Stephanie, Brooke explains - like he did. Nick is livid that she would protect Stephanie, who keeps acting like she's above the law. But this time his mother paid the price, which is why intends to use the information Donna gave him to take down Stephanie once and for all!

Donna turns to her brother for advice.

Having arrived home at Brooke's house, Donna flashes back to the accident; she replays everything in her mind, from the time Jackie followed Stephanie up, to her seeing Jackie fly over the railing, to rushing in and finding Stephanie standing over Jackie's unconscious form. The doorbell interrupts her recollections; she opens the door and greets Storm, who asks his sister about her urgent sounding phone call. She apologizes for interrupting his work on Taylor's defense, but she needs to pick his brain about something. Storm hopes this isn't about Brooke and Ridge. Actually, Donna explains, it's about Jackie Marone. She tells her brother how she saw Stephanie push Jackie over the railing, even though Stephanie claims Jackie fell. Storm asks what Jackie says; Donna explains that Jackie still can't talk much, but Jackie nodded when asked about it by Nick. She asks if that's enough to prosecute Stephanie, who claims Jackie was trespassing and refused to leave. Whether Jackie was trespassing really doesn't matter, Storm replies; if Stephanie intentionally pushed Jackie, then she could be charged with aggravated assault. Donna is intrigued at the thought that Stephanie could go to jail and never hurt anyone else again. Storm points out that the D.A. would first have to get a conviction. He reminds Donna how she thought of the Forresters like royalty when she first moved back to L.A., so he has to wonder why she suddenly wants the Queen's head on a platter. Is it for Jackie? he wonders. Or for herself? Donna reminds him how Stephanie treats everyone like pawns, knocking people out of the game if they're in her way. Stephanie did it to Jackie, and then to her - but this time, Donna is in a position to win the game, instead.

Storm outlines Nick's options.

Storm asks Donna if she's considered what testifying against Stephanie would do to her relationship with Ridge. Donna refuses to let her involvement with Ridge keep her from letting Stephanie get away with this. She reminds him of what Stephanie did to their parents, to Brooke and to her and claims they don't owe Stephanie a thing. Brooke and Nick come in and are surprised to see Storm there. Donna tells Brooke that she called their brother to ask his advice about what she saw. Storm tells Nick that he can understand Nick's rage, especially after everything Stephanie did to the Logan family. He knows Nick wants to get back at Stephanie, but he thinks it might be better to do it through legal means. Nick's interested is piqued, so Storm explains how Nick can use Donna's testimony and press charges against Stephanie for aggravated assault.

Back at the mansion, Eric and Ridge look at the damage to the house, unable to believe the lengths Nick went to. Stephanie insists that Nick was crazy. Eric asks her point blank if she pushed Jackie. Furious that he would even ask, Stephanie tells him again that she didn't. She repeats that Jackie grabbed her and wouldn't let go, so this all wouldn't have happened had Jackie just left when asked. Eric tells her not to blame this on Jackie, who is in a hospital bed and may not walk again. Stephanie hopes he isn't believing Donna and points out that she wasn't the one who barged into someone's home, like Nick and Jackie both did. Letting it go for now, Eric starts to clean up the mess in the house, but Stephanie says she has something else to clean up first.

Nick considers Donna's plea to help make Stephanie pay.

Over at Brooke's, Nick is considering what Storm said when Donna gets a call on her cell phone; it's Stephanie, who tears into "Ms. Opportunity" for taking advantage. Without Stephanie knowing, Donna turns on her speakerphone, so Nick, Brooke and Storm can hear Stephanie warn her not to keep repeating the lies she's been telling. She fumes that she won't let Donna, who is nothing but a social climber like her mother, sully her reputation, especially when this is none of Donna's business. She asks Donna what she hoped to gain from setting Nick off. Of course Nick would be upset that his mother was thrown over a railing, Donna replies, but Stephanie insists that Nick is only angry because of what Donna thinks she saw. "Jackie came after me. What happened to her is her own damn fault!" Stephanie rails, ending the call. Nick is not surprised at her lack of remorse. This is how Stephanie acts when she's scared, Storm says. Donna says that Stephanie doesn't get scared. She gets even. Storm tells Nick that he might have other options, since the chances are even better with a civil suit. A judgement against Stephanie would still mean she's guilty in the public's eyes, plus she would have to pay for Jackie's care. Nick doesn't want Stephanie's money. He wants her behind bars. Then all they need to do is take Donna's information to the D.A. Donna reminds them that Jackie confirmed her story, and Lt. Baker is already asking questions. Brooke asks how this revenge talk is going to help Jackie. Donna replies that this is bigger than revenge. This is about justice for everything Stephanie did not only to Jackie, but to the entire Logan family. This is their chance to make Stephanie pay, she declares, by putting her behind bars for a long time.