Tuesday, October 17, 2006, Episode #4916

Phoebe worries about her mom.

Phoebe gets a call on her cell from her mother. Taylor tells Phoebe that she's at the police station. Phoebe asks if Lt. Baker understands that what happened to Darla was an accident. Taylor says that Lt. Baker won't decide her guilt. Phoebe is scared, especially after Taylor says she feels better having finally told Thorne the truth. Phoebe tells Taylor that Ridge knows what happened and is trying to help. Taylor is glad Ridge is there for Phoebe, but she doesn't think her ex-husband can do anything for her. She tells Phoebe to stay strong. Phoebe gets frustrated that her mom sounds so resigned to her fate. Taylor tells Phoebe to just accept that it's pointless. Lt. Baker comes in, so Taylor exchanges "I love yous" with Phoebe and ends the call.

Thorne won't listen to Phoebe's pleas.

Phoebe goes to Thorne's beach house to talk to him, but Thorne doesn't even want to talk to her. Phoebe pleads with him to hear her out for just a minute; she knows he's hurting, but she needs to tell him what happened that night. "To your version to what happened?" Thorne asks. To the truth, Phoebe says, since she knows Darla would want him to hear it. Thorne tells her not to bring Darla into this, but Phoebe says she has to, since it's all about Darla! She tells Thorne the whole story about how Darla arrived and fell onto the road while helping to change her flat tire. He responds by asking why she lied if it was an accident. Phoebe admits it was stupid, but she was scared. And by the time she realized how stupid it was, it was too late. Thorne refuses to judge Phoebe. At the same time, however, he can't stop thinking about how she and Taylor watched him and Ally grieve, and then saw them fall in love with Taylor, all the while knowing what Taylor had done. Didn't she know the secret would come out? he asks. He doesn't want Ally to have to suffer another loss over this. Phoebe says Ally doesn't have to suffer, but Thorne says Ally does, because he won't allow Taylor or Phoebe in this house ever again! Phoebe tells him to hate her and her mom if he wants, but she can't believe he doesn't believe any part of her story. Thorne says he isn't buying that it was an accident. Phoebe asks if he really wants her mom to go to jail. She reminds him how Taylor was there for him and Alexandria, even though what she did tore him up inside. But Taylor couldn't keep the secret and came forward willingly. Doesn't that count for anything?

Thorne tells Phoebe to go. As she leaves, Phoebe pleads with him to forgive Taylor, even if he can't forgive her. Alone, Thorne goes over to the shrine Alexandria made of Darla memorabilia and picks up the photo of Taylor that Ally put there. He looks at the photo and then tearfully crumbles it.

Ridge frets about Taylor's plight.

At the Forrester mansion, Stephanie is on the phone with her lawyer, Bill (the one who drew up the divorce papers for Brooke). She pleads with Bill to take Taylor's case, but he's too busy. Across the room, Ridge is on the phone with the police, trying to get to see Taylor. Finally convincing them to let him come, Ridge hangs up. He then tells his mom that he's going to see Taylor - and the first thing he intends to ask her is how she could let his mother talk her into stupidly keeping this secret! He asks Stephanie what she was thinking. She replies that she was trying to protect Taylor and the family. Ridge asks her to think about what this has done to Phoebe; as usual, he thinks his mom's meddling has made things worse. Stephanie agrees, but she wants him to understand why she did it. By the time she found out, Thorne and Alexandria were already so close to Taylor, so she saw no point in sending Taylor to jail. She doesn't appreciate Ridge criticizing her coming into this so late. Ridge tells her that he's called Brooke's brother Storm, who has agreed to take the case. Stephanie is glad to hear that and gets on the phone to send the Forrester jet to San Francisco to bring Storm down. Ridge tells her not to expect any miracles, no matter how good Storm is. Stephanie points out that Phoebe insists Taylor's hitting Darla was an accident, and she believes it. "But will a jury believe it?" Ridge asks.

Stephanie tries to explain to Ridge.

Stephanie isn't sure if a jury will buy that it was an accident, since Phoebe lied for months to protect her mother. Ridge worries about how this is affecting Phoebe; that's why he has to do everything he can to keep Taylor out of jail, even though that will be impossible without Thorne's help. He can't imagine what it will do to Phoebe if Taylor gets the maximum ten year sentence. Stephanie admits she knew this would blow up one day, but she convinced herself it wouldn't. But it has, Ridge says, and now Taylor is under arrest. He knows Storm would tell her to stop confessing now before she digs herself any deeper. But since Storm won't arrive until morning, Ridge decides to go to the police station and shut Taylor up.

Lt. Baker levels with Taylor.

At the police station, Lt. Baker tells Taylor that he's matched her confession against previous statements by Hector and Phoebe. Given the inconsistencies, he fears Phoebe and Hector will face obstruction of justice charges. Taylor says that she's the guilty party and has confessed, so she doesn't see why they need to drag anyone else in. Baker explains that the district attorney makes those decisions, and he can't change the fact that Phoebe claimed in her statement not to see the driver of the car. He tells Taylor that he can help, but only if she helps in. Taylor can't believe that she has to turn in her daughter to "help" and asks Baker how he expects her to do that. Baker says he can only sell the D.A. on how to approach this case unless he knows everything. Taylor tells him how Hector found out about her DUI conviction. She thinks he had romantic feelings for her, but she also thinks he was just in "rescue" mode when he told her to lie. She's sure Hector was only trying to help. Meanwhile, Phoebe was so scared that her mother would go to jail that she went along with the lies. She pleads with the cop to consider how much Phoebe has been through in her life. What about Stephanie? Baker asks, pointing out how Stephanie tried to shut him down all the time. She explains how Stephanie found out the night Hector's house burned down. She's sure Stephanie thought keeping the secret was best for Thorne and Alexandria, since the truth would just traumatize them more. But then her conscience acted up.