General Hospital Transcript
Transcript provided by Suzanne
THIS STILL NEEDS EXTENSIVE EDITING!
Okay. How’d the guild vote? It’s over. Parkway will not be rerouted. Virginia benson’s remains must be moved. You failed, caroline. I’m sorry. No, you’re not. Where do you think you’re going? Anywhere away from you. You and I are not through. Not by a long shot. Hey, tara, it’s drew cain. I’m just checking in on the guild vote. The meeting didn’t exactly light up social media.
[ Knock on door ] Um, just give me a call when you get this message, okay? Hey! What a pleasant surprise. Come in, come in. Did carly know that you were coming? No, actually, it was a spur of the moment decision. But after I saw what that awful honeycutt woman was saying about carly on the news
[Sighs] I just knew I had to come and support her. Well, she’ll be happy to have it. Have you seen her yet? I just left her at the bar. Carly’s putting up a good front. But I know my daughter better than that. And so do you. Listen, I haven’t got a lot of time. I’m going to see a client. So what’s up? It’s time we put everything out in the open. What’s everything? Dominique and her son.
[ Sighs ] Britt: Dante said he saw you here, and I hoped I might be able to catch you. Well, why were you looking for me? To give you one last chance. Anna: This is my operation. All right? It is my duty to protect my civilian asset by whatever means I see fit. Gee, you know what? I don’t need protection, and I have everything under control. And the only way you are going to bring down victor cassadine is with my help. Well played, anna. Now, how should I retaliate?
And you just can’t leave me alone, can you? You don’t know what I’m going to say to you. Let me save you some time. You’re here to gloat, right? You want to make sure that I know that you won. You want me to know that you’re better than me. That I’m always going to be trash. How did I do? Did I leave anything out? Ever since you were a little girl, you had that spark in you.
[ Chuckles ] It’s remarkable how some things never change. Let me tell you something that’s changed, peyton. My need to fit in to your narrow world. I can’t believe I ever bought into your B.S. That some people were better than others. I wanted to be just like you. I wanted to be liked by you, but not anymore. I see you for the small-minded snob that you are. And you do not define my worth. I agree. I did not come here to rub in your loss. I came to apologize. You think that carly’s holding something back from you? About this mess with virginia’s grave. I mean, carly is tough, but, well, I have a hunch that this is hitting her a lot harder than she’s letting on, especially with the added stress of her being away from her kids. I know that’s a lot for her. Mm, I mean, being in jacksonville has been hard on her. It’s stirred up a lot of unpleasant memories for sure, on top of how worried she is about the guild vote and about virginia’s final resting place. So I’m not surprised that you picked up on some underlying stress. Well, carly insists that she’s handling it, but I want to know how much of that is genuine, or if — if carly is covering for my sake. And, um, why do you think that I’m the one that can answer that? Look, I’m really sorry about my lack of attention lately. You haven’t been attentive at all. You completely checked out during our last date. And all I’ve got since is a few random “what’s up” texts with no mention of future plans. Look, I know. It’s just I’ve had some stuff come up lately — wow, when you say that out loud, that really is a dumb excuse. You think? Yeah. Sorry. And I wouldn’t have kept my distance, I promise, if I hadn’t been dealing with some huge news. Exactly what is this huge news? You know, I don’t think we should really get to know it right now. Uh, you owe me some kind of explanation. Well, you made it clear that the subject was off limits. It’s the f-word.
[ Whispers ] Father. I only mentioned that so you would stop asking about my twisted relative. Oh, wait, so I’m supposed to be up front about mine? That’s hypocritical. Or a double standard or both. I think that is both. Are you really comparing mac scorpio and cesar faison? Wait, now, who — who told you? I am the one who found out that victor is working with the deputy mayor. So it’s just a matter of time before I figure out what victor’s nefarious plan is. And then you, you get to take it to robert. That’s what you want, right?
You want to be done forever with victor. Well, I am one — one “come hither” look from finding out what his plan, he’s going to tell me. Yes! You have done an outstanding job, lucy. Nobody would argue with that. Great. Then let me finish it. That — that is why you brought me in. No, I brought you in to find out what was going on with valentin, and — oh, my god — I should have ended your involvement then. Really?! Well, then, why didn’t you? Lucy. Robert. Who else are you working with, miss devane?
[ Knock on door ]
You want to apologize? At the guild meeting, you were so passionate. The love you had for virginia, your mother. If reese were still alive, would she feel that way about me? You cared so much for virginia and all the others just like her. You mean the people who are beneath you? I treated you unfairly. Now… and before. When you lived in jacksonville, actually, I was — I was unaware that virginia was buried in that — in that cemetery. Then you came back to jacksonville. You were upset about the parkway. And I admit, I… I did feel some satisfaction. Well, at least you’re being honest. After everything I lost — my husband, my daughter — I was reeling. It was easy for me to focus my pain and anger on you. There was no one else left to blame, and I have held on to that for a long while. But I never should have blamed you. You were a child, caroline. Carly. I’m so ashamed of my actions that it has taken me so long to see how wrong I was. And I am so desperately sorry, and I… I hope you might forgive me. Why do you think I have any insight into carly? Well, I like to think I know my daughter better than anyone. But lately, you’ve been giving me a run for my money.
[ Chuckles ] Yeah, I guess it’s no secret that carly and i have become closer friends since I got back in port charles. Oh, it’s way more than that. All right, yes. Maxie filled me in, and she said that mac might be your father. Then why are you giving me such a hard time? You ghosted me. You think I should let that go? Yes. Yes. If you had an ounce of compassion, yes. My compassion is the reason why I’m here. I understand why you went radio silent. You do? Yes. This is the second time you found out you’re not who you thought you were. That would mess with anyone’s head. It doesn’t mean that I like that you disappeared. Normally, I wouldn’t tolerate that. But given the circumstances, I’m willing to give you a chance to come clean. Thanks, but, I mean, this is a heavy subject to talk about, especially with someone you barely know. Really? That’s the card you’re playing. I know I opened up to you at the q picnic. Or have you forgotten already? I — I didn’t forget. But, you know, me ta lkingabout my messy feelings doesn’t come easy to me, especially with someone as intimidating as you. Listen, so, cody bell, what’s he done? Is this a legal issue? He hasn’t done anything. It’s a family issue. What does that mean? Go on, tell him. Cody might be my son.
[ Sighs ] Okay, mac. I know that you had a little thing with dominique before me. However, I just assumed that that kid was leopold taub’S. It’s possible. But it’s just as likely that cody is mac’s son. Why is that? Well, mac and I think that dominique may have given birth to cody while she was at shadybrook. The timing fits, and it’s possible that she was drugged or convinced by the staff that she was hallucinating her pregnancy.
[ Sighs ] Oh, wow. Wow. Why would there be this secrecy? Look, if leopold taub knew that dominique was pregnant and the kid wasn’t his… he would have given the baby to the bells to ensure that cody could not claim dominique’s fortune. So dominique never knew she had a child.
[ Sighs ] Look, leopold taub and the woman who raised cody are both dead. We were hoping you’d know something. What I know is that I never met this kid before he showed up in this town. Well, did anything we just said jog your memory? Do you remember if dominique ever said anything, anything about her time at shadybrook, that she may have been aware that she had a child with me? If you need time to deal with your new family, I get it. But if you truly want to see where this thing between us goes, don’t ice me out.
[ Door opens ] Britt, listen. Yes? I do want to talk to you about this. It’s just I… I don’t know where to start. Okay, I’ll help. Maxi e said you don’t wantto get a dna test. Why? I already told you you were a valuable asset. Ah! So now I’m not. The situation changed, lucy. It happens. It’s just the nature of the game. Okay, so you brought martin back, which, by the way, thank you so much for doing that. You’re welcome. Yeah. But I know you. You didn’t do it out of the goodness of your heart. I brought him back because I figured that if anything could convince you to bow out, it would be him.
[ Laughs ] Nope. I win. Didn’t work. I told martin everything. What do you mean you told him everything? Everything. Everything. Everything. Everything. Everything. Everything. Everything. That’s the worst thing you could have done! Come in, dear boy. Always a pleasure. Watching a ted talk on world domination? Well, I make daily sacrifices for the good of this family. You have no idea the lengths I go to ensure its future. That’s because you never tell me. And no matter what I do, it’s never enough to get out from under your thumb. Well, I’m not the only one holding back, am I?
no excusefor my behavior, for the way I treated you. There is no excuse. You were an adult. I was a child. It was your responsibility to protect me. Yes, it was. And instead of looking inside, I was blinded by my prejudices. When i
heard you speakat the guild yesterday, I saw the little girl that was my — my daughter’s best friend. Oh, that little girl came over and did her homework, practiced her cheer routines. You were like a sister to reese. I loved reese. And I’ll always regret that she got hurt. I regret that, too. Oh, I regret… so many of my mistakes. But I did love my daughter, and I wish I’d done better by her. And better buy you. Well, we can’t change the past. We can try to make peace with it and learn from it and… move forward. I want you to know I did try to make it up to you. I changed my vote with the guild, and I tried to make your case with them, but… I couldn’t change their minds. The cost of shutting down the parkway at this point would be just too high. And I’m so sorry. And I… I wish for you everything good in your life. Peyton. Your husband did wrong by you. You deserve better. Just like reese and I did. If I have been good to carly, it is nothing compared to what she’s done for me. Carly did go out on a limb to help you and michael with aurora. Yeah, and she lost her half ownership of the metro court as a result of that. I just… it was that that had turned out differently. Me too. So why did you drop everything to come here to florida to help carly? Is it because you felt guilty about what happened to her after aurora’s merger with elq failed? No, no, no. I — I came because carly means a lot to me. And if she needs me, I will be here for her. When I got back to port charles, um, it was very obvious to me that the rest of the world had moved on while I was — I was struggling with all that I had lost. And yeah, there was a brief period where carly and i had to kind of get used to each other again, but mostly, she was my constant when everything else in my life was… was really out of control. You’re lucky. Friendships like yours are rare. Treasure that. I will. Well, I have done enough talking, so I think I better go check into my room. And to be honest, I’m a little exhausted from the trip. I bet you are. Well, it was really nice to see you. I’m glad you’re in my daughter’s life. So am I.
[ Cellphone rings ] Tara. Hey, thank you so much for getting back to me. Any news on the guild vote? Will the cemetery remain intact? You know, nothing dominique ever said to me implied that she had a son. I mean, for crying out loud, mac, you knew her. She wouldn’t hurt a fly. I mean, she would move heaven and hell if she knew that she had a kid to raise it. So this whole thing, I’m sorry, but it’s caught me flatfooted. You’re not alone. It took me a while to wrap my head around the fact that cody could be my son. Well, we just have to hope that cody agrees to a dna test. Or not. You know something I don’t? Yeah, what I know is that cody is bad news. He sucker punched me when liesl introduced me. What? Listen to me. You do not want anything to do with cody bell. You wouldn’t understand. Try me.
[ Scoffs ] Okay. Okay. Here goes. Um… everyone expects me to be all excited about mac scorpio being my dad instead of leopold taub. I mean, why wouldn’t I be falling all over myself?
[ Chuckles ] You know, upgrading in the dad department? Yeah. Mac’s a good guy. See, that’s just it. Everyone says that he’s great at everything. He’s a great father. He’s a great husband, detective. So? Most people aren’t that good. You think mac has a dark side? No. Then what? I have a past. All right? There. I said it. Congratulations. I have a past, too!
[ Laughs ] I know. But I’ve made so many bad decisions, and I have this sketchy background, and mac is this — this paragon of virtue. You’re afraid he won’t accept you. I’m not afraid. Okay, maybe I don’t want to set myself up for rejection. I mean, why would I? You don’t know that mac will reject you. Yeah, well, I don’t know that he won’t either. So why should I even bother? You know, put yourself in my shoes, okay? If there was something that could blow your whole life up, wouldn’t you be better off not knowing? Of course I’m holding back. Every day that goes by, you keep me separated from my daughter. You force my cooperation. You keep me on a very short chain. But keep in mind, every time you choke it, my patience grows a little thinner. It is so discouraging to hear such hostility from one’s son. I haven’t seen my daughter in months. You’ve allowed me to text her and very short phone calls. You use her as leverage. Well, I have complied. I framed jennifer smith for luke’s murder. I took care of your laura problem by orchestrating events so she’d feel compelled to go to italy. And what do I get in return? You keep my daughter from me. Well, I’ve proven my loyalty. Ah, but have you, though? I basica lly told martinthat he doesn’t have anything to worry about, that he has my heart. And the only reason I’m stringing along victor is because you asked me to. Did you tell him anything else about what we’re doing? Funny about that. I can’t really tell him anything else because I don’t really know exactly what it is we really are doing. Okay, so basically martin doesn’t know anything. But what little you did tell him could put him in victor’s sights. Do you understand? And he is a dangerous man, and you need to take him seriously. And you need to get out before it gets too late. Or honestly… …I’m going to be forced to take more drastic measures.
I live my life a certain way, you know? But for better or worse, it’s mine. Why should I have someone judging me now just because we share some dna? I’ve never known my real dad. Why should that change now? I actually — I do know how you feel. You do? Mm. I’ve lived in my father’s shadow my entire life. Even after he died, I… I couldn’t escape his horrible legacy. It goes beyond his rap sheet. Cesar faison left me something that had the power to disrupt my life. What was it? The details don’t matter. But the important thing is I had to make a decision. Either I live in the dark, or I face my fears and I deal with it. And?
[ Chuckles ] And after a long time, I realized that the not knowing was way worse. I had to know. So I really understand your fears. I do. But no one is saying that you have to have a relationship with mac. What you choose to do with that information is up to you. But if you choose to ignore the question, you could spend the rest of your life wondering what the answer is. And I just don’t think that’s something you could live with. That’s right. Cody sucker punched you. Uh-huh. Dante falconeri brought him in, and you refused to press charges. Yeah. Yeah. Sometimes I regret my generosity. I mean, the guy just hauled off and punched me. He blamed me for giving away his inheritance or what he thought was his inheritance. You know, when I met cody at the quartermaine picnic, he did seem to be carrying some resentment toward dominique for giving him up. Yeah. See? The guy, he’s got issues. Felicia: Of course he’s got issues. His whole identity has been called into question. And now he finds himself meeting the two men in his mother’s life. Both of whom know more about dominique than he does. You have to give him time to adjust. Yeah, but that doesn’t excuse him from being a grifter. And who declared cody a grifter? I’m just quoting britt, and for crying out loud, she likes him. Look, I refuse to rush to judgment about cody. You’re right. We don’t know him. Doesn’t he deserve a chance? Well, no, not if he could hurt your real family. You have a point. You’re both missing one important thing. Okay, I have gone toe to toe with bobbie spencer, with tracy quartermaine, and everybody else in town, it feels like. I have ended up in my underthings, thrust out on the nurses ball stage in front of everybody. I don’t know how many years, and actually, one year, I ended up hanging upside down in my underwear. I have also worn a beautiful red, red dress, with a great big red hat to my wedding. And you know what? I made it work. So I’m not scared, and I’m not a quitter. And I am going to see this thing through to the end. Oh, god! None of that matters. Do you understand? You are out of your depth. This isn’t a charity gala or some tiktok challenge. Okay! But I know what I know. And I know I’m lucy coe, and I know when I have a man wrapped around my finger. And victor is just right there, wrapped around my finger. Not to mention the fact he isn’t the first guy, the other victor, that I’ve had eating out of the palm of my hand. Believe me, I am well aware of your skills. Are you aware of mine? Okay, look. Truce. Could you just trust me? You want me to get the goods to put victor away? I can get you those goods. I will make it happen. Just stay out of my way. I let you into my life. I accepted you as my father. And what do I get in return? You take my daughter hostage? Well, I’ve lied to those who care about charlotte the most. But every time I tell the story, it gets harder to believe because it’s one thing to send your child away while you’re recovering from an injury, but to leave her there month after month, never let her come home. I’ve never been away from charlotte this long, and people know that, and they’re asking questions. You told me you’d taken care of laura. I did. She’s dealing with her mother. But there are people, multiple people. Nina, just the other day. What about lulu’s family? Dante, the police detective. What about our family? Alexis? She’s editor of the invader. So if I were you, I would reconsider your tactics. Because if you don’t, all your plans, your work is going to come crashing down. Is that a threat? It’s reality.
[ Sighs ] You’re right. It’s not fair to keep you separated from charlotte for so long. After all, you have been by my side. You’ve helped me put my plans into action. You’ve even shown loyalty in intercepting your cousin nikolas’ insane false confession to the murder of esme prince. You’ve put in a lot of effort on my behalf. It’s time you were met with the appropriate reward. Thank you. I’m sorry, mom. Too little, too late. No surprise there, huh?
[ Sighs ] Hey, um, we didn’t, um — I know. I know.
[ Sighs ]
I only just found out about the vote. Want to know who told me? Peyton.
[ Sighs ] It’s the last thing that you need. She actually came to apologize. How did that make you feel? I wish I could say that I didn’t care that peyton apologized, but I do. When I was a kid, I wanted reese’s life. You know, I mean, I especially wanted her mother. I wanted a beautiful mom who drove around town in a convertible and who would go to the country club and play tennis and would throw these big parties and do lunch. A far cry from my mother, who would pack her own lunch when she went to work because she couldn’t afford to eat in the cafe. She was always balancing her checkbook, saving every penny she had so she could buy me a pair of tennis shoes, and they were always wrong. When I was a freshman, I got an award at the end of the year for having a 4.0 gpa. I never told my mother about the assembly. I went with reese’s family. Can you imagine how much that hurt my mother? God, I was a rotten daughter. And here, I thought I could make up for it now, and I failed her. No. No, you didn’T. I have failed her every day for years. I did. She was so good to me, and I never appreciated it. And I know she would love to have been buried by the ocean. And I couldn’t even give her that. You really believe that you can have your cake and eat it, too? Uh, duh. That’s the point of cake. This has gone too far. The risk to you and now, by extension, martin, is too high. I brought you into this, and I can take you out. Okay, what do you think vict or is going to think? Really, don’t you think it’ll seem strange to him that I’ve been fawning all over him all this time, and, all of a sudden, I’m ghosting him? God knows what will happen when he starts wondering about me. Mm. Mm. I wonder what else happens. I think in time, he will probably figure out what we are really up to. Let me deal with that. You’re out! I’m not letting you do this anymore. You aren’t “letting” me do anything. Is that so? Yeah. You know what’s so funny? Is you think you control everything. Sweet. You do not control me.
[ Door slams ] Ooh! You’re so wrong about that! And what would you call an appropriate reward? I’m going to arrange for you to go visit charlotte. You are? Yeah, well, it doesn’t do anyone any good to keep father and daughter separated indefinitely. I’ll call the school and make arrangements for you to go see her. Thank you. Of course there is one condition. You’ll leave immediately and on my plane. Why? No, I’ll get ready. I’ll leave first thing in the morning on a commercial flight. Do you really expect me to give you time to launch an ill-advised rescue mission? No, I’m afraid that — that doesn’t align with my plans. No, if you want to see charlotte again, you will leave within the hour, on my plane, alone. Well, except for the men I’ll have guarding you. Or you don’t see charlotte at all. Whatever h is upbringing,whoever his father is, cody is dominique’s son. He may have inherited her good qualities, the same ones that made the two of you fall in love with her.
[ Cellphone rings ] Mac scorpio. Um, yeah. This is, um — this is cody bell. I hope you don’t mind. Your wife gave me your number. Uh, not at all. What can I do for you? Um… I’m in. Let’s set up this dna test. If you still want to. I do.
I’ll set it up. We’ll talk soon. What was that about? That was cody. The dna test is on. He is setting up the dna test. How do you feel about it? Turns out you were right. I had to know the truth. Just don’t let it go to your head. Too late. [ Laughs ] I’m actu ally surprisedyou took my advice. Why? Well, besides my patients, usually people do the opposite of what I would do. It was good advice. People should listen to you more. Thanks. Actually, I should take my own advice. There’s something I need to deal with.
Virginia no longer has a final resting place. Do you remember what you told me that virginia always said? That there’s no problem that a few hours at the beach can’t solve. Why don’t we just grab a couple beers and we honor her by taking her advice, which is go figure this out at the beach. I have an idea. Maybe we haven’t lost yet. The first step is just to get answers. Agreed. And whatever the outcome, your whole family is behind you. I’m a lucky man. Okay, listen. This will probably come back to bite you. Hell, I’m getting another martini. Would you care to share, or is it some sort of state secret? Okay. Uh, it’s about my brother, peter. When he died, some of his things were left to me. I passed them on to maxie to get rid of, but at the last minute, I called and told her not to destroy them. So she brought them back to me, and after all this time, I still have the box stuffed in an armoire. Guess I should finally get rid of peter for good. Well, I mean, you know, seeing as how you just helped me, it seems only fitting that maybe I help you get rid of your brother’s effects, if you want. Okay. Why not? We have a lucy problem. So, are we clear on everything? Good. It’s time for a repeat performance of the cable-car tragedy.
[ Knock on door ] Uh, I’ll talk to you later. Hi. Are you, um, up for some company? Well, my, my, my. If it isn’t the star of the show.
On the next “General Hospital” —
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