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written by Margaret Royal

Love, Lies and Voldemort

The Lianca Recaps

Tuesday, August 12, 2003

Bianca is back at Erica's penthouse and a little confused by the reception Erica and Kendall gave her when she came home. Erica relieved that she's okay, runs to her and hugs her. Bianca wonders why she wouldn't be okay, and Erica mentions the multiple messages; she didn't know where Binks was. Binks says her phone was turned off, and mentions Boyd, but there's a thunderclap outside, which startles her. Affecting composure again, she asks if Jack might have called, and they rescheduled the wedding. Erica b.s.es that she thought they could have dinner together. Bianca declines; she wants to go to bed. Erica tries to find out where she was and what she was doing, but Binks brushes her off: "Mom, in the morning, okay? I just need to crash." She strides off to her room without acknowledging Kendall. Damn.

"The storm . . . she's terrified, like me," Erica says to Kendall. She covers her face with her hands and sits down. "I can't believe this. I can't believe this is happening to my baby." Kendall says that Erica doesn't know that Michael did anything to Binks. Still, Erica definitely thinks that "something has her running scared." Kendall offers the disclaimer that she's "not a shrink" but wonders if Erica might be "projecting [her] own fears onto Bianca." Just in case we didn't get it, there's a thunderclap outside, and Erica whips around. She flashes back to Michael attacking her—God, it's ugly. Let's replay him pinning her to the couch in her office, flipping her over, threatening her as she screams for help, asking her if she'll "take it lying down," and removing his belt, but for God's sake, we can't have the lesbians kiss more than once. Freaked, Erica snaps out of the reverie, turns to Kendall, and yells at her to "get out of [her] house, right now!" Jesus Christ, is she hallucinating again? They should run a PSA about how rape victims often hallucinate that the person sitting across from them is an attacker. I mean, flashbacks are a symptom of PTSD. Is psychosis a symptom? If it is, maybe they should let people know. Commercials.

Kendall apologizes to Erica if she said anything to upset her. Erica seems to realize where she is and says that she should be apologizing to Kendall. "I did not mean to bark at you like that." Kendall says it's okay and that they're a little on edge; she thinks the storm reminds Erica of her own rape. Erica "refuse[s] to be a victim, but Kendall says that it's okay to be afraid and asks her to let her help her the way she did the last time. Erica crosses back towards her and says that she can't "fall apart every time a cloud rumbles," since she needs to "stay strong for Bianca." She needs to find out if Michael "hurt [Bianca]," and Kendall supplies, "the way he hurt you and me." Erica says that Bianca has "always been so naïve" and "trusting," but Kendall thinks Binks is "a lot stronger than [Erica] give[s] her credit for." A fittingly meta comment, Kendall, what with the Bianca character assassination necessary to write this stupid storyline. Erica says that Kendall doesn't know Bianca the way she does. Kendall suggests that they both go talk to Binks together, but Erica thinks it's not a good idea—"in fact, I know she wouldn't open up in front of you, no, I have to do it alone." Poor Kendall; her face totally falls. But she says she'll go. Erica wants to make sure she understands, and she says she does, and suggests that Erica call her if she needs anything. Erica sees her out. Outside the door, Kendall says, "you are not getting away with this, Michael." She strides away.

Inside, as the lightning and thunder crash, Erica composes herself and moves out into the living room but is practically mowed down by Pajamas!Bianca (beater and yoga pants) flying out of her room. Wow, Eden Riegel does a really good terrified run. Binks says that she wanted to make sure that Erica locked the door. She hurries to lock it herself, and of course flashes back to Michael locking the doors at Myrtle's. Back in realtime, she looks breathless and harried, and her eyes dart like crazy. Erica comes up behind her, reassures her that there's nothing to be afraid of from the storm, and puts a hand on her bare arm. Binks flinches and flashes back to Michael grabbing her as she tried to run away, her asking him to let go of her, and him apologizing for frightening her and telling her that there was nothing to be worried about—as lightning flashed upon his face, naturally. Now Bianca's eyes are wetter than before, and Erica asks her if she's all right. She doesn't respond and is looking a little crazy. Commercials.

In his condo, Michael is on the phone with the hospital in Las Vegas. He learns that Daddy Cambs is "stabilized," and he doesn't want to leave a message. He hangs up and says, "Damn, you old man, you just never know when to let go, do you?" There's a knock at the door, and he goes to answer it. It's Kendall, whom he says he's been expecting. She storms in. "What in the hell did you do to my sister?" she demands.

Speaking of, Erica leads her away from the door, telling her not to be afraid, since it's just the two of them. Bianca flashes back to telling Michael that there were people upstairs in the house, and Michael replying that there weren't; he had checked, there was no need to lie, and they would be together for a while. Binks gasps, wrenches away from Erica, telling her not to touch her, but trips on the coffee table. She flashes back again, this time to telling Michael he should get some therapy, which angered him, so he threw his lemonade glass. Match cut to an overturned water glass on the penthouse carpet. Erica tells her it's all right, turns her around to look at her, and tells her to take a deep breath and try to relax. Bianca stares at her terrified and flashes back again. This time, Michael is drawing her to him to dance; he tells her to close her eyes, maybe pretend he's Lena. Binks snatches her hands away from Erica and backs up against the couch arm. "Get away from me," she says. "You're not her. You'll never be her." "Bianca, it's me," Erica says, "it's Mommy." Binks climbs off the couch and knocks over one of the end tables before crouching tearfully near the fireplace. "I'm not going to let you do this to me again. I won't drink your damn lemonade. I won't dance with you. I won't let you inside me." Gah, could they exploit this any more? Erica begs Bianca to come back and tells her that she's "home" and "safe." Binks is backed up against the fireplace, and she flashes back to Michael throwing her onto the couch, pinning her down with his knee, and trying to roll up his sleeve before she kicked him away, ran and grabbed a poker, and raised it to strike him. Now, backed up against Erica's fireplace, she reaches out, grabs one of the pokers, and raises it up. "No, Bianca, no! No, honey!" Erica yells. Poor Susan Lucci. Poor Eden Riegel. Commercials.

Bianca is still holding the poker in the air and trying to control her crying. Erica stands up and with grand Lucci gestures points to her own eyes, asking Binks to focus on her and "really see [her]." She swears that she would never hurt Bianca and that she's there to take care of her and not let anyone else hurt her, either. Binks's body goes less tense, and she starts to let the poker down. Erica continues to reassure her, and she drops the poker. Erica goes to her and pets her hair, saying "Mommy's here." "Mommy?" Binks gulps. The hell? Erica tells her that she's okay and that they'll get through this together.

Kendall and Michael at his condo. Kendall demands again to know what he did to Bianca. "Well, if you really thought I did something, I highly doubt that you'd risk being alone with me now here, would you?" he asks. Kendall spits, "you're such a sick little man." "And yet here you are," Michael continues. "I mean, it's amazing. You and Erica, you just keep coming back for more. I mean, you can, uh, accuse me of romancing every woman in town—" "Only you would confuse rape with romance," Kendall says. Asshat has an unlit cigar in his hand, and he gestures with it as he tells her that they will "never—never—pin a rape charge on [him]," in fact, never pin anything on him. He drags the cigar under his nose and inhales. "Finest import rolled by a native woman," he sleazes, and puts it between his teeth. Kendall yanks the cigar out of his mouth, throws it on the couch, and threatens that he tell her what he did to "[her] sister," but she can't come up with the other end of the threat. "What are you gonna do, Kendall, hm? Huh? Are you gonna stamp your feet, call me names?" He has to spit tobacco out from between his teeth and stands to get close to her. "Is there anything sadder than a blown opportunity? You know, you could have had so much more with me, Kendall. I would have given you my all. Everything I had if you'd have stuck by me." "I'd rather die," she says, and turns away. Michael says that he would have "given [her] the world gift-wrapped," but she sold him out to win Erica's affection. He wonders about where she is now: "If I know my irony, she's probably hangin' out with Bianca, isn't she?" Kendall doesn't answer. "That's what I thought," he says, and sits back down with his cigar, which is now beginning to unravel. Kendall tells him that he's "beyond pathetic," but he thinks that "'pathetic' is for little children that, uh, don't learn their lesson." Yarrr, he's trying to light the cigar with a Zippo while he's talking to Kendall, and it's distracting and appears to be exacerbating Will deVry's chronic "uh" problem. Michael thinks he'll "have the last laugh" since Papa Cambias is getting ready to kick it, he'll inherit Cambias Industries ("which of course you would have shared in the wealth of all that"), and he'll make the "bogus" insider trading charges go away, and he'll be free. He finally puffs on the cigar, even though the end doesn't appear to be lit, and when he speaks again, he has Smoky Voice, as if he inhaled. The fuh? Anyway, he says that he knew "old Dad would come through for [him] in the end." Kendall looks ill-composed.

Michael, cigar going a little more in earnest now, says something about how Alexander should go ahead and hand over control of Cambias Industries to somebody more "vital and uh, capable." Kendall thinks Michael is deluded to think that his inheritance would change anything, or that he could buy freedom after all the crimes he's committed—"and if I find out that if you've laid one finger on Bianca—" Michael wonders what she might do. "Whatever hurts the most," she says matter-of-factly. Michael stands and goes to her and tells her that she knows she can't touch him, nor can anyone else. "You, your mother, your sister, you mean nothing to me. And one day, one day soon, you will look back on all the things that we shared together, and you're gonna wish that you had it back. You will lie in bed at night dreaming, burning with desire, remembering the things I used to do to you. And how I made you breathless." Kendall spits in his face. She turns to leave, but Michael grabs her roughly and won't let go.

Erica holds Bianca and rubs her arm, telling her that "Mommy's here" and that she can talk to her. "He came back," Bianca says. "He's here. He wants to get us. He wants to hurt us . . . so bad." Erica tells her that the door's locked and there are guards, so no one will hurt them. Ah, the guards. Right. "He's gonna try," says Binks, sinking to the floor. "He'll never give up." Erica reassures her that no one will hurt her, because she won't let them. Binks says, "I'm gonna fight harder this time. I'm gonna be smarter than he is. Last time, I wasn't strong enough. And he held me down . . ." She flashes back again to Michael grabbing her, telling her to shut up, and pinning her against the rain-streaked window. "No," she says now. "No." Erica pulls her closer and embraces her again. Commercials.

In his condo, Michael has Kendall by the arm and won't let go, despite her protests. "Do you think I'm going to pounce on you?" he asks. "Have my way with you? In your dreams. Get out." Cigar clenched between teeth, he throws her toward the door and then out of it. She stands in the courtyard and begins to yell tearfully. "You're sick! Michael, you're sick! Admit it! Admit that you raped my sister, Michael! Admit it!"

Erica pets Bianca's hair some more, cups her face, and tells her that everything will be all right; she wants Binks to tell her who hurt her. Bianca's eyes flutter next to Erica's hand and she looks sick, but she says, "Michael. Michael. He won't leave me alone." Erica gently but firmly asks her what Michael did to her. Binks makes a guttural noise but doesn't say anything. Erica asks if Michael raped her. Binks looks pained. Erica says that Bianca can tell her, and begs her to. "Yes," Binks finally says. "Yes, he raped me." Erica hugs her again, Binks holds onto her tightly, and there is much sobbing.

And what is sexy? I don't know; let's make this storyline as offensive as possible and juxtapose it with the Bullshit contest. Awesome.

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