Robservations 1/10/03 - #762-763 - A Heart-Wrenching Truth

762 - (Clarice Blackburn) - Collinwood in the year 1897, where an anguished gypsy's curse has turned Quentin Collins into a werewolf. Tomorrow night, he knows the moon will be full and he will become a murderous beast. Desperate to prevent that, he is prepared to make a pact with the devil himself.

Quentin and Evan end up having a huge argument after Trask (who, ironically, responded to their call for the devil and appeared at the door) leaves. Evan is fearful of being exposed--I'm such a "respected" lawyer, that would be awful! Quentin demands that Evan continue the ceremony, but Hanley has had enough for one night. Desperate, Quentin threatens to kill him. Evan cruelly suggests, save your bestial behavior for the following night--you'll need it.

Collinwood - Minerva stops by to give Judith some of her plum preserves, but Quentin, who wants to upset her, keeps taunting her about how Rev. Trask and Judith are out TOGETHER, implying there is something improper going on. He offers the shocked Mrs. Trask a drink, which she refuses, of course, but he continues to drink steadily. Quentin accepts the gracious gift for Judith, and offers to give Trask a message when he returns home "with my sister." Minerva crisply informs him she will speak to hubby herself, and leaves.

Evan and Quentin, who is still drinking, communicate later and try to reassure each other about Trask, Minerva, etc. Evan frets over what Trask's price will be for silence, considering he caught them in a satanic ceremony. Quentin reveals, I've learned something that may lower Trask's price

--the Reverend has feet of clay!

At the House by the Sea (aka Worthington Hall), it's the Reverend and Mrs. Trask's turn to argue. You've had a few rich widows on your string, accuses Minserva. It was all for the sake of the school! He assures her.

You never cared about the school, she says, all you cared about was taking those women to restaurants and the theater and planning worldwide trips!--the women didn't take you seriously. Trask calls her accusations "hysterical charges"--you are a constant embarrassment to me! She suggests he's seeing Judith socially; he maintains it's only school business. (Now here's a marriage rife with strife; can you imagine how they ever managed to conceive Charity?)

At Evan's house, Trask chides Hanley for calling upon the devil--but you got ME, ironically, a spit in the face of the Big Bad One. Evan insists it was all for intellect, just an experiment, but Trask doesn't believe it. Trask hints he might tell Judith what he saw, and ruin Evan's rep. They go back and forth. Trask forces Evan into a moral corner and forces him to admit he has dabbled in Satanism. I'm a merciful man, asserts Trask, and might be willing to spare you. I know you want something from me, says Evan. The self-claimed man of the cloth says, I hope you are VERY good at the black arts, very good indeed. . .

At the school, Minerva chastises Tim for allowing a student to get away with cheating, all because the poor child erased on his paper. Trask enters and suggests, not everyone shares your suspicious mind, Minerva--I was out seeing a lawyer about a lease. He asks her to leave, which she does, not at all happy about it.

Alone with Tim, Trask asks him to conjugate some Latin, then questions him about whether or not he's happy at the school. Tim plays it cagey at first, saying, "You taught me to endure it," finally admitting his unhappiness. Perhaps, suggests Trask, you and Charity could go away and start a life of your own together. This surprises Tim. The lawyer I saw, says Trask, needs someone to translate a Latin manuscript--perhaps you could get a job through Mr. Hanley. The possibility that Trask would release him astounds Tim, who points out, that it would mean losing Charity, too. I'd still have the Mrs., says Trask. Tim is incredulous--I want to apologize to you for misjudging you in the past, he says. Trask assures Tim, I've never misjudged YOU, I know exactly what you are. He sends Tim to see Evan immediately.

Evan is home, mixing up a potion when Trask calls to tell him Tim just left. All will be ready when Tim arrives, Evan assures him--I only have to paint the edges of the book with the potion--I will then ask Tim to do a precis of the book, and by the time he's finished, our mission will be accomplished. Trask is delighted--Tim is really a show-off when it comes to Latin, and now he'll have a chance to use it. . .

Tim is going through the book when Evan comes in to check on him. I'm half done, says Tim--I'm having no trouble with the Latin, just the thin pages. Your method of licking your finger, then flipping each page, works well, praises Evan. Others have always teased me about that habit, says Tim. Evan assures him it's the perfect thing to do in this case.

Later, Tim, now under the influence of the potion, drops the book from his hands. Evan checks to make sure he is completely under. Who are you? he asks Tim.

The young teacher says, I don't know. Evan instructs, "At the right time, and at a given signal, you are going to kill someone."

NOTES: Well, we have a glimpse into the unhappy marriage of Trask and his wife, who apparently knows her husband isn't as pious as he pretends to be and who likes stepping out with wealthy ladies. Why use poor Tim for such a grisly task, or is it that Trask still believes he murdered Minerva's brother and one more murder won't matter? The relationship between Quentin and Evan is very odd, for so-called friends, but you can see what drew them together. Interesting that Quentin is so willing to sell his soul to the devil to be rid of his curse. Even Bart Simpson can tell him how valuable a commodity THAT is!

Barnabas must be sorely sick of his 1897 family by now. There aren't many redeeming qualities amongst them, are there? Edward wants to foist "family" values on Quentin now? Too little, too late.

Tim must be a member of the Evelyn Wood Latin speedreading course. He does go through those pages fast, doesn't he?

763 - (Grayson Hall) - The year is 1897, and the web of mystery which surrounds the great house of Collinwood grows larger, for Evan Hanley, attempting to end Quentin's curse, has fallen into the hands of an unscrupulous blackmailer. So he must do what Reverend Trask dictates, and use an innocent man to achieve Trask's schemes.

Evan snaps his fingers and Tim repeats, "I am going to kill someone." You must do whatever I tell you, says Evan, but you don't know why, only that you must--when the time comes, says Evan, you will have no memory of these plans. Who am I to kill? Asks Time. You will know when the time comes, replies Evan--we must make sure you aren't caught--there will be a signal which will give you a sense of power, of release, and you will know the time for action is at hand. Evan holds up a card--the queen of spades--and tells Tim, when you see it, the name of the person you are to kill will be in your mind, and nothing will stop you. He makes sure Tim looks closely at the card--it has meaning for you and you alone--it's the face of a woman who needs to be punished, and deserve everything that will come to it--you have been chosen to do it, and it will be done, says Evan firmly.

Collinwood - Quentin and Beth are playing cards in his room (couldn't think of anything more fun to pass the time?), and Q wants more than anything else to drink. Beth tries to stop him, but he snaps, I don't need a lecture, and takes his drink. When the moon rises, says Q, his face tight, the pain will come--how do you expect me to spend my time--an afternoon of cards, a night of murder?

Beth tries to calm the distraught man, but he refuses to be comforted. Aren't all murderers called animals? Asks Quentin--when I'm caught, which I will be, will the jury pity me for being the victim of a curse?--if I hadn't killed Jenny...one thing leads to the other--I'm finding all cliches are true. I don't want to sit here and wait for evening, says Beth. Do something, Quentin says, but be careful not to make it worse. How could I? she demands. Easily, says Q, as Evan and I found out. Who would be the best uninvited guest at a black mass? he asks--Trask!--he won't use his Christian charity and forget it, no, we will pay! Quentin smiles. I'm beginning to pay for all the things I did and got away with--nothing will work. Beth begs to be allowed to try. Quentin keeps imagining it's already getting dark, but it's in his mind. Beth wants to go to the one person who knows it all, Magda. I've tried, says Quentin. I haven't, says Beth. You feel you have a special way of dealing with gypsies? He asks. Yes, says Beth defiantly, and flounces out. Quentin gazes through the window.

Magda answers Tim's knock at her door. I want to buy something from you, he says. She lets him in. I want herbs, he says--I found an old manuscript which contains alchemist's secrets, and can turn copper into gold. Magda laughs--quite a story! I need nightshade powder, he insists. Ah, she says, nightshade only turns warm living people into cold, dead ones. Do you have some to sell? He asks. Yes, she says.

He offers her 10 dollars for one ounce. Who do you want to kill? She asks. He offers $20, no higher. They are nose to nose. She demands 50 gold pieces. He nods in agreement; she orders him back in an hour. He doesn't want to wait, but she says he must. I trust you, he says, pulling her arms behind her back painfully--I'll kill you if you mention this to anyone! (everyone abuses the gypsy!)

Old House - about 5:30 PM - Beth asks Magda what she cares about. Questions! complains Magda. Do you care about Sandor? Asks Beth. He's my husband, says Magda, and we do fight a lot. If Sandor were Quentin, and you were me, begins Beth. . . Magda realizes what Beth is getting at, and no longer wishes to speak to her. What would you do if Sandor were Quentin, and tonight, the moon would be full, persists Beth. . . I would wear my pentagram, replies Magda. No, says Beth, you aren't that callous, you're a woman! So was Jenny! cries Magda. Quentin didn't mean to kill her, Beth reminds her. But he DID! retorts Magda--I will help you--Quentin is death to anyone who loves him--remember Jenny. Jenny wouldn't want what you have made him, insists Beth. You know this? asks Magda Yes! Says Beth. You aren't a gypsy, says Magda. Yes, says Beth, and I'm glad--I wouldn't want the power to do the evil you do. The gypsy says, I have helped Quentin more times than you know. Help him now, begs Beth--you can remove the curse. I don't want to, says Magda--it's the only way to let my sister's spirit rest, to be avenged. She IS at rest, cries Beth, must we go on forever like this? Every night when there is a moon, says Magda, he'll be at its mercey--for months, for the rest of his life. Can't we do something? sobs Beth--I can't go back without some hope. Don't go back, advises Magda cruelly. You have no right to speak to me that way, says Beth--I could spend the rest of my life with Quentin, marry him, get money somehow, travel, and find a cure! Magda looks unhappy--you would marry him, knowing his son, if he has one, will suffer the same fate as Quentin. "You're mad!" says Beth, horrified. That's the curse, says Magda. "Then" says Beth, "you have cursed your own kin." But Jenny had no children, says Magda. "Remember the dolls, Magda?--dolls I gave her because her own children were taken from her." You're lying! Magda accuses. I'll take you to them, offers Beth--twins, a boy and a girl, who live 20 minutes away--shall we go now? I wouldn't believe it if I saw them, says Magda. You'd have to, says Beth--the little girl looks exactly like Jenny. How could anyone not know of this? asks Magda. Edward and Judith are the reason, explains Beth--I will tell you everything, but you must not tell Quentin. Magda agrees--I must know! Jenny was aware of Laura trying to steal Quentin from her, begins Beth--when Edward found out, he forced Quentin to leave--Laura left right after--Jenny was never herself from then on--Edward decided to pay her money and get rid of her--she told him something no one else knew--she was pregnant. Why didn't she come to me? laments Magda. We'll never know, says Beth--Jenny was quite mad by then, and when the children were born, Edward refused to see them, wanting no reminder of his own brother, none--it was as if his own life was based on the idea Quentin had never existed.

"So, there is a son?" cries Magda. "God forgive me, Jenny, forgive me! Can you hear me, my sister, forgive me?" Grief-stricken, Magda asks to be left alone. Help them now! begs Beth. Magda tells her, go to town and get a pentagram, put it around the little boy--he must wear it always, all the days of his life. "You can't end it!" realizes Beth. "Oh, a child," sobs Magda, her face collapsing with misery. "A child! I did not know. . ." She asks Beth to leave her alone, sobbing.

7 PM - Quentin is antsy, pacing his room, looking out the window. When Beth comes in, he says, you shouldn't be here, I know your attempt was useless. It's dark, she tells him, do you feel any pain? Aren't you afraid to be in the room with me? asks Quentin. Something's happened, she suggests. He holds her in his arms and asks, should we hope that's true, for the moment?--that the nightmare is over and the moon can go back to being something for lovers to watch? Yes, she says, laughing through tears. Quentin, suddenly wracked with pain, says we spoke to soon--the gods have heard us. "It's starting!" he screams, writhing.

Quentin grunts as the pain overwhelms him. Beth doesn't want to leave him, but he insists she must get out before it happens. I've got to get out, I'll kill one of them--you must get out of this house and forget about me, he insists, his body going through many gyrations as he begins to morph into the wolf.

Evan gazes at the moon and tells Tim, the tides of the moon are the one thing we cannot control. He holds up the vial of nightshade Tim got from Magda, marveling over how many it could kill--she was lavish, he says. He takes the Latin book from Tim's hand and suggests a relaxing game of cards. He learned to play at Collinwood; Judith is fond of cards. Charity and Mrs. Trask play, but Rev. Trask doesn't approve. He sees the devil everywhere, comments Evan, and perhaps he's right, even in a game like this. Edward plays, too, says Evan, badly, of course--he always suspects everyone else of cheating. Evan orders Tim, bring me a brandy--soon--you'll know when--and when the real moment comes, it might not be brandy, but tea, or sherry, but you understand that, right? Yes, says Tim, we cannot control what it will be. Evan puts down the queen of spades. Tim, like an automaton, rises, pours a glass of brandy, then adds some of the nightshade into it. Evan, watching, smiles. Tim brings the drink to Evan and hands it to him. "Good!" praises Evan--"For your first time." Evan sets down the brandy. A puzzled look comes over Tim's face--he lifts the glass, sniffs it, and says, "You are going to drink it." No, says Evan.

You ARE, insists Tim, grabbing him around the throat, holding the poisoned glass in front of his face as though preparing to force him to drink it.

NOTES: What a heart-wrenching scene between Magda and Beth! Is it true that the gypsy knows how to place this curse, but not how to remove it? Shades of Angelique! Now she learns that she's placed a curse on her own kin. This is where lying can get people into more serious trouble--if everyone knew about Quentin and Jenny's twins, Magda wouldn't have chosen this particular curse. She's doomed her own kin, as Beth said. What will poor Magda do now? It was her passion for her family--for her dead sister--that made her curse Quentin in the first place, and now it's boomeranged back at her in a most terrible way.

Trask wants to get rid of his wife, and Evan, to save his rep, is going to use Tim to do it. Right now, however, it looks like Evan's gotten caught in his own spidery web, because Tim just might force HIM to drink the poisoned booze from the dress rehearsal of this little scheme. It's justice when the bad guys get into trouble for being so bad, right? And how cruel it is to use Tim's Latin expertise against him this way!

What's going to happen now to this unhappy group of Collinsport folk?

Love, Robin