Friday, April 28, 2006
Tom arrived at the police station with a note and necklace he found on his doorstep for Daniel from Emily. Susan worried that her daughter would do something drastic. When Tom suggested bringing in the FBI, Susan told Hal she wanted to keep the investigation local. Hal promised Susan that he would keep Emily safe. While the three hashed out how to proceed, Hal received word of where Emily was and headed for the bluff.

At the Lakeview Jen prepared to go help Paul find Emily, while Dusty was not so sure they should trust her brother. "Nothings going to take you away from me. Nothing." He told her. Jen would not be swayed so the two headed out to find Paul. Down in the lobby, Paul deduced that Emily would be at the bluff and had every intention of going to find her, but Meg refused to let him go, suggesting they call in the police. Paul admitted to Meg that he felt responsible for Emily becoming unhinged and it was up to him to find her. Meg agreed and as they headed out they ran right into Jen and Dusty. Dusty demanded that Paul tell him where they were headed. They claimed to be going to see Hal and made a hasty retreat. The two decided to search for Em on their own. In route to the bluff, Jen became aware that Dusty was carrying a gun. She wanted his assurance that he would not hurt her brother, which he would not give.

Emily's grasp on reality began to slip away as she contemplated her life on the bluff. Hallucinating, the voices of all the people she had hurt began to fill her head. "Make them stop!" she cried falling to the ground in horror. Emily's relived her misdeeds as they came to life in the form of the people closest to her. She tried to explain the reasons for what she had done to all of them as the apparitions of her friends and family swirled around her. Moving closer to the bluff, she tried to fight the visions just as Paul (the real one) arrived and pulled her back from the edge. Paul tried to get his hysterical wife to calm down as she explained to him about the visions. Paul offered his apologies for driving her to do the things she did and vowed to help make everything right. Em assumed that he was going to help her escape. " You are my last hope. " she cried. Paul danced around her suggestion that they run off together as he implored Emily to trust him. She agreed and prepared to leave with him just as Meg showed up. Em had a complete breakdown and accused them of being out to get her. "My eyes are wide open." she told them as she moved closer and closer to the edge. Paul attempted to reason with her, but was interrupted when Jen and Dusty appeared on the scene. "Trust me one more time." Paul told his wife, vowing to tell everyone that her actions were his fault as he offered her his hand. "All I ever wanted was for you to love me." She told him before throwing herself over the edge.

Where did Emily suggest she and Paul go to disappear?
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Thursday, April 27, 2006
Nick and Mike commiserated about the body over a few beers at the hotel bar. Mike implored Nick to keep out of the investigation but he claimed he was doing it for Katie. "Without her I wouldn't have a job," he told his cousin as he headed to the police station. Katie arrived soon after and told Mike she was worried how the investigation would affect their lives.

At the police station Meg was frantic to find Emily, worried that if they didn't soon, she would hurt Paul. Jack refused to let her out of protective custody. Furious, Meg vowed to help Paul with or without his help and stormed off. Nick came to the station and tried to get some information from Jack about the case. Noting Nick's personal connection, Jack refused. "Stay out of this case," he warned.

Crash was bustling with activity as Casey and Gwen prepared for the opening. With some help from Will, Casey convinced Gwen to be the live act. Maddie was feeling left out when Casey was preoccupied with getting the club ready. Noting how hurt Maddie was, Gwen told him that he needed to start paying attention to his girlfriend or she would not sing. Casey found Maddie on her way out the door and convinced her to stay. Meanwhile, Will went by Carly's and convinced her to come out for Gwen's debut. Kate and Mike arrived and ran into Nick who informed them that Jack wouldn't let him in on the case. When Nick commented on the multiple glasses of wine Carly had drank, she told him to mind his own business. Katie wondered if Nick came by to update them on the case or flirt with Carly. The bride-to-be was speechless when Mike suggested they postpone the wedding.

At the hospital Susan implored Emily to turn herself in but she refused, just as Paul came knocking at the door. Emily hid while Susan created a diversion. When she heard Paul admit how sorry he was for the way he treated her, she contemplated revealing herself to him but decided against it. After Susan was able to get him to leave, Emily collapsed in her mother's arms "How did I get here!" she cried. Susan vowed to stand by her side, but she needed to stop running. Susan begged her to do the right thing for her son and turn herself in. "He's better off without me," Emily said to her shocked mom. While Em prepared to skip town, Susan tried to make a call to Hal but was caught by her daughter. "Thanks for nothing!" she spit, before slipping out of the hospital. At the bluff where she shot Paul, Emily broke down over what had become of her life.

Dusty had an intimate reunion with Jen and Johnny at the Penthouse as they made plans for the summer. The moment was interrupted Meg arrived and wanted to speak with Jen. Dusty doubted her intentions but Jen promised to let her know if she received word from Paul. Jen admitted that she was worried about Paul. Downstairs in the bar, Paul was unsuccessful in getting Henry to give up Emily. He was furious when he saw Meg and demanded she go back to the station where she would be safe. Meg refused to leave Paul when he admitted that he has an idea where Emily was.

Wednesday, April 26, 2006
Meg and Paul had a romantic reunion at the police station, while Dusty and Jennifer continued theirs at the hospital. Hal dropped by to get Dusty's statement: it's all Emily's fault, which Hal still had a hard time believing. Still disturbed by his ordeal, a slightly gun-shy Dusty went home with Jennifer, and blamed Paul for causing them to lose so much time. After that came the requisite romantic reunion bubblebath. Thank goodness he's clean again!

At the hospital, Gwen ran into a pouty Will, who sadly clutched his broom while claiming not to mind that she missed their anniversary date. After Hal stopped by to give them the news about Jennifer and to wish Gwen luck on her opening night, Gwen headed off to CRASH, where Casey told her about the big concert in Chicago. She was reluctant to go, especially because the tickets are from Barbara and the current tension with Will, who was advised by Jen not to waste a single minute with his wife. Will sweetly showed up at CRASH later with Gwen's anniversary gift, which she loved. The young Munsons then made up adorably and shared a slow dance to "The Luckiest" by Ben Folds (which also played during Jen and Dusty's bath). Meanwhile, Casey was wearing a "Larkin's Burgers & Shakes" T-shirt. Is that a shout-out to acting coach and soap vet Larkin Malloy?

Carly woke up in Jack's arms on Emma's porch. It was a charged moment that almost led to a kiss, but Jack pulled away in the last second. Still, the near-kiss and the familial feeling at Emma's with J.J. and Sage — in which we hilariously learned that J.J. plans to be a horse whisperer when he grows up and therefore desperately enjoys mucking out the horse stalls — clearly gave Carly some hope. Then, as Emma described the day ahead to the kids, Carly noticed Jack searching for something around the kitchen, and casually called out "on the fridge, behind the fruit" — which is where he found his cell phone. It was a nice, unclunky way of showing how well they know each other. Because they belong together! But then Jack had to go and ruin things by telling her that it's safe for her to return home. He called her on putting on a fake brave face (especially considering J.J.'s experience with mothers pretending they're okay when they're not), but she's trying to do what's best for the kids. A worried J.J. noticed the face later, but she assured him everything would be fine soon. Oh, Parker, just look what you're missing!

Meanwhile, Paul and Meg engaged in lots of smiling and hand-holding and hair-stroking as they discussed Dusty's condition and Emily's disappearance. After they were scolded by Hal for not filling in the cops sooner, Paul demanded protection for Meg. She thanked him for thinking of her safety and legal situation first above everyone. "I put myself a close second," he joked, but then they got serious. "Do you want to hear the awful truth? You're a noble man, Paul Ryan," she gushed. "You...," he grinned back — "Are the sanest girlfriend you've had this month?" she interjected — "You are the one that I want," he grinned, prying off his wedding ring. "You're second to none. I love you." That was fast. Later, he took her home to Emma's, where an awkward Paul was fairly warmly welcomed (after he was spotted kissing Meg on the porch by J.J.). But upon hearing from Jack that Emily was spotted in town, Paul decided to do go out and look for her, despite warnings from Meg and Jack.

Susan got the full story about Emily from Hal, and was later shocked when her incognito daughter snuck up on her at the hospital.

Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Paul was thrilled to see Dusty in the woods, but the feeling wasn't mutual. Dusty didn't lower his gun, so Paul swore that Emily worked alone — because she's a lunatic. "Because you drove her to insanity," pointed out Dusty. Ooh, touché. In fact, as he protested, even Paul seemed to realize how ridiculous it sounds to deny his part in bringing on Emily's psychotic behavior. Dusty, himself looked like he might be ready to snap, as he forced Paul to his knees and announcing that during his captivity, he swore to himself that he would kill Paul when he saw him.

At the station, a super-skeptical Hal grilled Meg about her accusations regarding Emily shooting Paul and kidnapping Dusty and even confirmed things with Tom ("Emily was beyond edgy," the D.A. said), doing more of an investigation into Em's guilt than he did into determining that Dusty was dead.

Back at the cabin, Jennifer attacked Em (who at first tried to cover her tracks with lies) and hysterically demanded to know where Dusty is. Emily hysterically admitted that she did everything for Paul, and they both just hysterically cried and whined and pushed each other around until finally Em took Jen outside and actually pulled the old "Look over there!" fake-out before pushing Jen to the ground.

Still, Jennifer ran up just as Dusty pulled the trigger to shoot Paul. Luckily he missed, though it's unclear whether he did so on purpose after hearing Jen's voice. Dusty and Jen had a joyous reunion in which we couldn't help thinking about how filthy he must be, as Paul reached for the discarded gun. Dusty stopped him, but Jen insisted that Paul was uninvolved in his abduction, because Emily just confessed to her; Dusty didn't believe it. That's when Hal showed up (completely unsurprised to find Dusty alive), ready to arrest Paul while resisting Jen's pleas for reason. While being dragged off, Paul insisted that Emily's gone completely bonkers and they'll need him to talk her down because he's the only one she trusts. When that didn't work, he simply demanded that Hal release Meg, yelling "That's all I care about!" Guess which little bird was crouching and humming with the crazies in a flowering bush nearby and therefore overheard everything? We're guessing Emily's not gonna take that too well.

At the Lakeview, Will told a concerned Maddie that he has to blow off some of his calculus tutoring because tonight is his two-month wedding anniversary. Barbara swooped in to remind him that if he doesn't graduate, he won't get his trust fund. Will assured his mother that he would graduate, but he doesn't need her money anyway, so there. She claimed that she's trying to make up for her past mistakes and reminded him that she helped Gwen get a job. He said he still doesn't trust her, but she was really there to pry into Jennifer's life. Will promised to tell Jen that she was worried, then sent her on her way. He gave a cute shiver as she sauntered off, and Maddie noted that it seems like Bab is really making an effort. He thought she sounded just like Gwen. He then showed her the gift he'd gotten his wife (it looked like a belt) and assured Maddie that she's changing Casey for the better, and he expects them to be together for awhile.

In the antique store — uh, CRASH — Gwen helped Casey recreate a music playlist that seemed intended to reminded every viewer over 20 that they're really, really old. He then convinced Gwen to do a run-through of her planned performance. She sang Melissa Etheridge's "Meet Me In The Dark" and wowed Casey. Babs noted his starry-eyed look with delight and later offered to send Casey (along with Gwen) to a big concert in Chicago this weekend. At the Lakeview, a disappointed Will blew out the candle, realizing his wife wouldn't be making it to the anniversary. Gwen arrived soon after he left, and realized she missed him.

It was J.J.'s turn to be the sad child from a broken home today, since he and Parker's simultaneous appearances have become suspiciously rare. Anyway, he was so worried about how jumpy Carly seems (after she broke a plate, cutting her finger) that he called Jack and asked him to come calm her down. Upon determining that Carly hadn't put J.J. up to the call, Jack stopped by and assured her that she could call him when she gets freaked out and even acted concerned about her cut, which is kind of the definition of mixed signals from him. Further muddling matters, he invited her to come and stay with the kids at Emma's that night. After sending Sage and J.J. off to bed, Jack lovingly tucked an exhausted Carly in on the porch sofa.

Monday, April 24, 2006
Carly (who has seen her share of highly upsetting stuff and has once cleaned her way around a freshly dead body) totally lost it when she spotted the skeleton in her basement. Jack soothed her and took her upstairs, where he called the forensics team as Mike apologized and explained all (except he doesn't know how the body got there), claiming he "blocked [burying a stolen bag of rubies for a hot older woman/con artist in his basement] out." Carly also learned that Katie had written Oakdale Confidential, but agreed not to tell Jack about it. Carly accepted Mike's apology (again) before he and Katie left. She and Jack then had a moment alone, in which he told her that since the basement is a crime scene, she can't go down there and she can't tell anyone. After urging her not to make the kids stay there tonight, he left for the station — after she dutifully gave him his laundry and Parker's baseball uniform (though he did act appropriately embarrassed about the laundry). She then told a concerned, kindly dayplayer cop that she would be alone tonight and that's just the way it is. But the stress of the day, seeing the compass in the drawer, and hearing some house creaking noises took just minutes to totally wig her out again. Katie and Mike headed to the Lakeview for a calm-down drink, where she told him with an uncharacteristic lack of superstition that she thinks everything will be okay now. Jack stopped by to insure Mike's cooperation in the investigation, while flashing back to finding a key chain-like object in the wall.

A shaken-but-awesomely-snarky Henry was still recovering from being roughed up by Paul when he left Emily a rambling message to say that a)Paul is on her trail; b) Paul has been arrested, giving her time to escape; and c) that he (Henry) never wants to talk to or see her again. Susan wandered up as he was finishing and demanded to know what's up with her daughter. Henry apparently can't be strong-armed by just anyone, because he managed to get away without saying anything other than that Paul tried to kill him. Susan then ran into Hal and begged for his help. Henry left another message for Emily: "It dawned on me that when I told you to get out of town as fast as your pointy little hooves would carry you, I neglected to mention the fact that I would appreciate it if you would tell me where my money is before you go on the lam." He also noted that he had no obligation to tell her about Paul — a name that's like the bat symbol for batty Barbara, who instantly appeared behind him and also demanded to know what's going on. "Barbara, can you wear a bell or something?" he asked, then told her that her "raving lunatic" son has been arrested for assault. She yelled after him as Susan happened by to taunt her about her son being "back in the slammer again.... If there's the equivalent of frequent flyer miles over at the Oakdale jail, your son must be getting a first class cell," Susan snarked, before sharing details of the "pathetic wedding ceremony" and how she now has a bad feeling about her daughter's well-being. The mothers-in-law finally just called a truce because neither one of them can deal with their children.

Jen searched the farmhouse and instantly identified the bloody scraps of clothes there as Dusty's. Down in the basement or possibly in another room, Em warned Dusty a gunpoint to keep his trap shut. Jen went outside to call Paul in hysterics about finding the bloody shirt and not finding Emily or Dusty (all he could do was claim to have gotten "hung up") and asked him to hurry and meet her. Arrestee Paul took advantage of a major scuffle at the police station to get some quality catch up time with fellow arrestee Meg in the interrogation room. She then created a distraction so he could leave.

At the same time, Emily told Dusty, "I have to finish this." She managed to sneak him out of the back of the house, but Dusty wasn't done trying to negotiate, hilariously noting that if she shoots him now, "That's murder, baby." While he worked on breaking the duct tape holding his hands together, he suggested that she therefore has to pin this whole thing on Paul, but as confused as she was, she refused to do so. In tears, she told him, "I just want to be loved. Is that so much to ask for?... I am a good girl, but everybody leaves me," she whined. As he smooth-talked her about how she'll have to find someone more trustworthy than Paul, he freed himself and they struggled for the gun, which went off. Jen heard it, and this is where it gets a little frantic: Dusty, with the gun, chased after a fleeing Emily; a furious Hal grilled Meg about where Paul went and learned that Jen's in trouble; Emily ran back to the house to look for her purse, where Jennifer found her; Dusty and Paul came face-to-face in the woods.

2005 recaps