Tuesday, October 28, 2008, Episode #5428

Rick tells his mom to make a choice.

In Rick's hospital room, Brooke tells him to rest, but he wants Ridge out of her life. He won't let her marry the man who pushed him off a rooftop. Brooke reminds him that she and Ridge made a commitment to each other, but Rick thinks she should be committed to him and not Ridge after all the times he came in second to Ridge with her or with Eric. "Can't you see he has you paralyzed, too?" queries Rick. He knows he can't control her choice to have Ridge in her life, but he wants her to know that she has to make a choice: if she doesn't cut Ridge out of her life, Rick will shut her out of his. Brooke is clearly torn as she kisses Rick's forehead and leaves.

Taylor tells Rick that she still cares about him.

Alone in his room, Rick flashes back to the moment in his fight with Ridge where he fell off the roof. As the flashbacks end, Taylor enters the room. Rick tells her that he doesn't want to see her. Taylor sits down by his bedside and acknowledges that she probably has no right to be here, but she still cares about him. Rick tells her to save her pity for Ridge, who put him in a position where he may be in a wheelchair for the rest of his life. "He's a loser," Rick insists, asking Taylor what she and Brooke see in Ridge. He tells her that he sees things clearly and now realizes that Taylor was only using him for a crutch to help her regain her lost confidence. "You walked out on the best thing that ever happened to you." he suggests, asking what she gave him up for. When Taylor doesn't answer, Rick asks again what she left him for, angrily pounding on his legs. Taylor asks Rick to talk to her, but he orders her to get the hell out of the room right now! Taylor reluctantly agrees to leave, telling him that she'll always care about him before walking out.

Steffy has some questions for Rick.

When he hears a knock at the door, Rick thinks Taylor is back and calls out for her to go away, but then he looks to the door and sees Steffy standing there. As Steffy comes in and stands by his bedside, Rick tells her that he doesn't even know why he got involved with her mom in the first place. "There is only one real love of her life: your father, the great and powerful Ridge Forrester," Rick explains. Steffy asks if he's sure. Rick states that he's sure that Taylor is still worshipping at the altar of the great Ridge, but Steffy insists that her mom told her otherwise. Rick isn't sure why Taylor denied her feelings, but he wonders if it might have something to do with the way that Ridge treats the women in his life like toys. "I can't stand that!" he laments, vowing to stop Ridge.

Donna refuses to let Pam go unpunished.

Donna insists that Pam's condition is all an act, but Eric and Stephanie both believe that the mass in Pam's brain caused her erratic behavior. Even if Pam really doesn't remember what she did, Donna asserts, she's still a menace who needs to be locked up for her crimes. Stephanie asks to speak to Eric alone for a moment; Donna urges him not to let Stephanie sweep this under the rug. Once Donna steps away, Stephanie tells Eric that she's worried about the kind of care Donna will get in a state prison facility. She states that her mother Ann is on the way to take Pam to a facility in Chicago for treatment, but that can only happen if Eric and Donna don't press charges. Eric then takes Donna aside. She can't believe he is falling for Stephanie's pleas to just forgive Pam, but he reminds her that the mass that was removed from Pam is being checked for cancer right now. "That's irrelevant," Donna responds. Stephanie overhears and is stunned by Donna's lack of compassion. Donna reminds her rival that Pam tied her to a chair and sicked a bear on her. Eric doesn't think Pam can be held responsible for that. He tells Donna that he is not going to testify against Pam and he hopes Donna will do the same. He assures her that Pam is not a threat, but Donna cannot accept that.

Eric, Ann and Stephanie ask Donna to show some compassion.

Ann arrives and gets brought up to speed by Stephanie about Pam's injury. Stephanie tells her mom that it's urgent that Pam get the right treatment and looks to Donna, who is standing off to the side, watching. Eric brings some coffee and asks Stephanie if there has been any news on the biopsy. The mass was not cancerous, a relieved Stephanie informs him. Ann excuses herself for a moment and approaches Donna, who has nothing to say to Ann. "Good, since I hate being interrupted," Ann retorts. Ann begs Donna not to testify against Pam, since Ann cannot bear to think of her baby girl being in a dingy prison hospital. After the years Pam spent caring for her, Ann will not let Pam go to jail. Instead, she wants to take Pam to a secure private facility in Chicago. Donna refuses to let Pam go to some "country club" jail with just a slap on the wrist. Eric asks Donna to give Pam the same level of compassion that she and her family asked Stephanie to give Storm. Donna relents, telling Stephanie and Ann to take Pam to Chicago and keep her there! Stephanie and Ann thank Donna, who gets a hug from Eric as well.

Pam asks for forgiveness.

Stephanie, Ann and Eric then go in to tell Pam the good news. Donna watches from the doorway as Ann tells Pam that she's not going to jail thanks to Eric and Donna. Pam thanks Eric for his compassion. Stephanie, Ann and Eric leave the room so Pam can rest, and Donna follows right behind them. Out in the hall, Eric gets a call on his cell phone about some emergency and excuses himself. Stephanie and Ann go to find Pam's doctor to arrange for the transfer. Donna goes back into Pam's room and shuts the door. Pam tells Donna that she's so sorry for what she did. "Are you?" a doubtful Donna asks. Pam sobs that she knows Donna must think she's evil, but she heard from her mother that Donna does not plan to testify against her and is grateful. She begs Donna for forgiveness, saying that she couldn't bear it if Donna can't find it in her heart to forgive her. "BEAR it?" Donna coldly asks.

Ridge asks Brooke about Rick.

Brooke returns home, where Ridge finds her in their bedroom and asks how Rick is. "He wants me to leave you, and if I don't, there's no place for me in his life," Brooke replies. Ridge assures her that they will get through this, suggesting that Rick is asking too much of her by making her choose. He reminds Brooke that while he understands that she has to be there for Rick, she also has responsibilities toward her other kids, especially where Hope, R.J. and Jack are concerned. He urges her not to let Rick stop their wedding.