Episode #236
They replay the part with the nurse and Maggie and how Maggie has trouble breathing and the nurse tries to take her heartbeat (having trouble finding her heart), goes out of the room, shuts the door and starts to call Dr. Woodard, he exits a room close by and she tells him what happened. They reenter the room and find Maggie missing. Had I been Dr. Woodard I would have read her the riot act for disobeying at least the order about the window. I suppose she had to leave the room to call him, but she closed the door. Maybe if she'd kept it open, she may have seen Barnabas enter, take Maggie and leave? I guess it's possible he was invisible the whole time. I don't think he batted, we don't hear that squeaking bat sound. Just how he did this still remains a mystery to me.
Now Dr. Woodard has to inform Sam and Joe that they've lost Maggie. At first he says she's gone which they translate as dead, he has to assure them she isn't dead but it appears she escaped. The window was wide open which would give one the impression she crawled through it. There is no other way (humanly speaking) that she could have gotten out of the room. Dr. Woodard tells them that the hospital and grounds are being searched. When Sam wants to join the search, the doctor tries to forbid him, as though Sam as her father couldn't have gone searching if he wanted to. He says the state troopers are also searching. (That was fast) Joe feels that she may have gone back to Eagle Hill Cemetary so he decides to go search for her there. Dr. Woodard feels she didn't have the strength for that, somehow someone must have kidnapped her out of the room. They are all confused as to how this could have been done. Joe leaves to begin his search.
Dr. Woodard tells Sam all that the nurse told him about Maggie not having a heartbeat, and seemed to have stopped breathing. He thinks she went into shock. Sam becomes very distraught about what has happened to her, and I felt so sorry for him. David Ford did some brilliant acting here.
Maggie is in the woods somewhere, just walking as if in a daze. This confused me, did Barnabas take her or not? If she's wandering alone in the woods, had he summoned her to meet him? Where exactly is she? Why isn't he with her? If she is going to him in response to a summons, she did crawl out of that window and somehow with all those people searching, they have not found her.
Dr. Woodard tries to talk calmly to Sam, but he is very agitated. Dr. Woodard offers him something to help him sleep (sedatives or sleeping pills probably) but Sam refuses them, and even goes so far as to try to knock them out of the doctor's hand. Then he apologizes, but he is really in a sad state.
Burke appears and Sam tells him everything that's happened, and Joe returns after that, he was not able to find her at the cemetary. Burke seems to be the only one not very agitated and able to think calmly. He recalls the phone call Vicki got at Maggie's house and he thinks Willie made the call. (I don't remember Vicki ever saying she thought it was Willie, she didn't know who it was) Burke and Joe decide to go to the Old House and talk to Willie. Sam despairs of Maggie ever being found and says if Willie knows anything, he'd better tell!
Joe and Burke arrive to the Old House and knock, and Barnabas answers. He is very friendly and polite to them. They ask for Willie and Barnabas tells them Willie is in Bangor doing some work for him there (What? Picking up supplies and staying overnight?) He will be back in the morning. (I was disappointed not to see him!)
They tell him everything that's happened with Maggie, and that they think Willie is involved since it's possible he made the phone call. (I think it's also partly due to their continued distrust of him because of his previous bad attitude) Barnabas shows concern (the hypocrite!) Burke explains that the person who called Vicki told them Maggie could be found at Eagle Hill, and when he and Vicki went over there, they did find her. Barnabas tells them the call couldn't possibly have been made by Willie (then why did you beat him twice for it? Oh yeah, that's right, you're lying now!) Willie was sent to the Evans cottage to tell Sam to come at midnight to work on the portrait and then he came immediately back home, there was no time for him to make a phone call either from the Old House or from a phone booth. And of course Barn has no phone at the Old House. Barn asks Burke if he feels Willie is somehow involved with Maggie's disappearance and Burke says he doesn't know. Of course Burke wants to suspect Willie since he hates him, but he ought to ask himself (and this will come up later on too) where could Willie be keeping her that Barnabas wouldn't know about it?
At this point, there is a creaking sound and Burke wants to know what it is. It sounded like someone walking. Barn says the house is old and makes those sounds when the wind blows. Joe and Burke leave.
At this point, Barnabas calls, "It's alright now, they've gone! You can come out now!" and Maggie comes out from the room behind Barnabas' chair. She is wearing Josette's dress and has a bow in her hair. He leads her to Josette's room (I think this may be the first time we ever see it) which is a lovely room. It's been restored, so we know Willie has spent a great deal of time here. It's a huge room, and I love this room. Josette's portrait is hanging over the mantel. Barnabas starts to launch into a romantic speech about how she is now Josette, it's a lovely name, she will become Josette, think as she thought and they will be happy together. He has forgiven her for dashing herself against the cliffs and robbing him of herself. He wants to give her eternal life, they will be happy together. She begins to repeat a few of his words as if she is in some kind of trance (seemed like she may have been drugged or something). They will have the future together and he goes to the trunk and removes Josette's wedding dress. It's hers now and soon she will be his bride. They will marry soon. She begins to cry and he tells her not to. Then he gives her Josette's music box which he brought from the Orient. It has crossed the seas as he has crossed the centuries to find her. She will forget her past life and think only of the future they will have together.
I did not see this as a kid or I may have thought it rather romantic as Robin did. I didn't see it until much later and I was totally disgusted by it. Sure, there is a romance in it, but it's totally covered over for me by the fact that this was happening against Maggie's will. He did not offer her a choice. He honestly thinks that since Josette is the pearl amongst women, that he is doing her a favor. Maybe if it wasn't that he plans to turn her into what he is it would be, but she should be given a choice.
Alondra
