Recap by Kaydee

One Life to Live Recap for Thursday, May 9, 2002

LOONVIEW TEEN BEAT: THE SEARCH FOR REX!

Natalie knocks on Roxy's door, but no one answers. After a few seconds more, she finds the spare key in Roxy's hiding spot on the porch and lets herself in. She goes in and starts fishing around for something. Halfway through her search, she is side-tracked by the baby photo of Rex. She looks at the picture for a moment, then quickly resumes her mission. She finds an address book hidden in a cabinet and she immediately calls Jessica. She gives Jessie the most current address that Roxy has listed for Rex.

Jessica excitedly tells her that she and Seth are right across the road from Huron Road, and Natalie wishes her well in her quest. As she hangs up, Roxy enters and blasts her for being in the apartment. Natalie tells her that she thought she'd be in Las Vegas by now, and Roxy mumbles something as she hurries about the house. She spots the address book in Nat's hand and freaks out.

What is Natalie doing? Roxy demands to know. Natalie innocently tells her that she was giving Jess the info she needs to find her brother. Roxy starts freaking out even more. Why did she do that? She repeatedly calls Natalie a stupid idiot, telling her that she's only good at making messes. Natalie starts inquiring about Roxy's panic. What's the big deal about Jessie wanting to meet her brother?

Roxy ignores her question, but continues to degrade her as she bumbles around the house in a hurry to get to Vegas. Natalie is not easily blown off, however, and she starts ribbing Roxy for some more info about the events of her childhood that led up to Rex going to live with Careen. Roxy flies around her, and Natalie grabs her by the arm, demanding some answers.

Roxy blows her off, telling her that she doesn't give a damn what Jessie tells Rex. Jessie can call her Limburger cheese for all she cares. She's going to take the $200 that Jessica gave her and head to Vegas to triple it. She tells Natalie to take a good look at her face, because it's the last time she's going to see it. Then she heads out the door. Leaving Natalie alone with her pain and unanswered questions. She sinks to the floor and tells the photo how much she loved him, before breaking down into tears.


Meanwhile, in a diner in Michigan....

Jess and Seth flip through a Michigan phone book in search of Rex. To Jessica's frustration, there is no listing for either a Rex or a Careen Balsam, and she sighs. Seth tries to assure her that they'll find him. She says it doesn't matter. Rex is her brother, and she's going to find him.
This prompts a skeptical look from Seth, which she questions. He tells her that he doesn't want to rain on her parade, but Rex is a lot older now, and he has his new life...

Jessica finishes his sentence..."And he might not want me in it."
Her phone rings, and she gets the info from Natalie. She tells Seth that now is the time to find out if rex wants to be her brother, or not. They head over to the address Natalie gave them and they are met by an unwelcoming Careen, who shuns the very idea of Jessica and Rex meeting each other. She doesn't want Rex coming into to contact with anyone who's connected to Roxy. Jessica desperately tries to assure the woman that she has the whole situation wrong, but the woman is on a roll. She's panicked and desperate to keep Rex safe.

"Roxy gave up her rights a long time ago," Careen says.
"I know, but.." Jessie says.
"Rex can never be involved with Roxy again."
Jess tells her that she just wants to get to know Rex, and she isn't involved with Roxy, she wants to bring Rex to meet her real family, the ones who adopted her. The Buchanans? Careen asks. Jessica, slightly hopeful, hurriedly says yes. Careen's not biting that line, and she ultimately tells Jess that Rex is away in a school out of the country.

Feeling defeated, she and Seth leave, and realizing that Jessie needs to be alone, he leaves to the diner to wait for her there. Jessica stands sadly in front of the door, and she happens to look down at a pile of accumulated mail that is on the ground. She picks up a postcard that's addressed to Rex. She realizes that Careen lied to her about Rex's whereabouts, and she sits on a stone bench nearby to figure out her next move. To her luck, Rex appears, ready to unlock his door.

She calls out to him, and he asks her, "Yeah, I'm Rex. Who are you?"

Before she can reply, he thinks he knows, and he blows her off and tells her that he told his aunt that he doesn't need a tutor, do buzz off. He turns again to go inside, but Jess stops him. I'm not a tutor, she says, but Careen emerges to prevent any further communication. Annoyed, Rex flies inside, telling Careen that since she hired the tutor, she can fire the tutor.

Careen and Jess stand facing each other, and Careen thanks her for keeping the truth a secret from Rex. Jessica doesn't want her thanks, she wants to meet her brother. The women engage in a dispute, which Rex overhears, and he quickly heads over to the secret drawer his aunt has been guarding all of his life. He finds a manila envelope with news clippings of the baby-switch, and he puts two and two together. Careen is horrified when she finds him holding the articles, and they engage in an argument of their own. How could careen keep something like this from him? He has rich relatives dying to meet him, and she's kept him holed up in their humble apartment all these years.

He leaves his protesting aunt and heads off to Llanview.


TEN WAYS TO DUMP YOUR HUBBY-BY NIKI SMITH:

STEP ONE: Call your husband and pretend you're really sorry for getting held up at work, (NOT!) and standing him up.

STEP TWO: Set up your police commissioner brother-in-law times three to be in the right place at the right time to hear you having a terrifying conversation on your cell phone with your husband, who hung up a while ago.

STEP THREE: Invite your brother-in-law to sit so you can plant seeds of suspicion and character-bashing about your husband.

STEP FOUR: Tell your brother-in-law all about an imaginary anger problem your hubby has that totally frightens you to death, but be sure not to accuse him of hurting you.

STEP FIVE: Get to flirting, very discreetly with the commish, setting him up to be the man with whom your hubby catches you cheating.

STEP SIX: Tell the commish more details about the marital problems you're having, and make them really juicy.

STEP SEVEN: Compliment the commish on the many ways he's been there for you for so many years, and let him know just how much you appreciate it.

STEP EIGHT:.....
Well, that's as far as Niki got, because just as she's pouring out her terrified little heart, Asa storms over and abrasively demands to know if Bo has seen
the light about Gabby and if he's kicked her damned butt to the curb yet.
Bo tells his father that he is rudely interrupting a private conversation.

Asa brushes that aside and tells his son, "One simple question, Bo. Did you kick that skinny scorpion out of your house yet?"

Enter Renee, trying to propel Asa to his table, which is in the opposite direction, but he brushes her aside and reposes his question. Bo excuses himself and pulls Asa aside to discuss the situation in private.

Renee lets out a scream of frustration with regards to Asa, and tells Niki that she thought he could change. Niki says that would be a surplus of wishful thinking. To Niki's annoyance, Renee helps herself to the seat that Bo recently vacated, and delves right into a conversation about the Davidsons'
Palace Suite rendezvous.

Continuing her plot to ruin Ben, Niki tells Renee that the plan didn't go as well as she'd hoped. Renee says she's sorry, but Niki tells her not to worry, she has something else in mind...(In mind, Niki, or other body parts?)

Over at Asa's table, Bo rips into his father about ragging on Gabby for no reason. Asa says she's trying to kill him, that's why she went out and bought Alex's perfume. Bo is trying to make sense of his papa's insane ranting, so he asks his father to explain.
Asa tells him that she sprayed that skunk oil all over the front porch of the mansion so that he could smell it when he came to answer the door. He also relates the details of his impromptu visit to Bo's apartment where he smelled the perfume again, and found Gabby there ready to get it on with that "quack doctor."

Bo asks his father if it would be more logical to conclude that maybe Alex is back in town than to assume that Gabby was wearing Alex's perfume to attempt to kill Asa?

Asa looks up to the sky and says, "Lord, if that she-devil is back in Llanview, puhleeze take me now."

Bo giggles, (as did I), and tells his father that he's looking in the wrong direction while he's praying. Then he asks Asa what he wanted when he visited the apartment that day. Asa, offended, tells his son,

"Oh, I don't know...I wanted to spend some time with my son, perhaps? Is there a problem with that? Ben went crazy, and I was looking for some normalcy."

Asa has Bo's attention now. He's remembering all of the things that Niki just told him about Ben's anger problem, and he asks Asa to be more specific. Asa tells him that Ben is super-nice to him one day, and the next day he has Viki spitting in his face. Bo is concerned now, and he looks over to where Niki and Renee sit chatting. He goes over and tells Niki that he has to leave, but he'll stop by Llanfair to talk to Ben. Niki gives a panicked,

"NO! Don't do that! Please don't let him know we spoke." Bo assures her that the visit will be a brotherly social call, not a gossip match. Then he leaves and walks back to his apartment...smack into the Alex Off-way-Off fiasco.

When he gets rid of Alex, Gabrielle has an epiphany and decides that she wants to come clean with Bo.. about everything.

THE ADVENTURES OF TODD MANNING: SCHEMER MAJOR!

Leave it to Todd Manning to give the phrase, "A cornered animal comes out fighting" a WHOLE new meaning, and leave it to Loonview to have the only residents in the world to have gullible residents. Let's go to the ER where the Manning-Rappaport face-off has progressed to Level Two.

After being pushed into a corner to come clean about Jack's parentage, Todd is forced to set those scheming wheels into turbo motion. He tells Blair that Sam is right about Nellie. She's not who they think she is. He starts to say something, then acts really agitated and tells Sam that he needs to talk to Blair alone. Sam says, no way, Todd can't be trusted. Somehow, Todd gets his way and he winds up alone with Blair. (What did I tell you? Gullible! Or is that, just plain STUPID?)

Todd tells a panic-stricken Blair that Nellie is not the drug addict they thought she was. Instead, she turned out to be a lying, manipulating little..well, anyway. Sam talked to Nellie and started telling her all about how great Jack is, and she decided that she wants to use Jack to make money. Blair is confused, and he goes on to say that Nellie wants to use the baby in TV commercials.

(My god! How DOES he come up with these things so fast?)

Blair says: "That's pretty stupid. Why would...wait a minute. What are you saying, Todd?"

Todd tells her that Nellie wants the baby back. Blair starts screaming:

"NO! NO, Todd! He's ours! I can't lose another baby."

Sam hears her screaming from the other side of the door and immediately prepares to go in, then decides against it to allow the Mannings their privacy.

Todd, realizing that he has to get Blair out of the way before Sam comes racing in, hurriedly tells her more bad news. Sam told him that Nellie has a great lawyer, and the law sides with the biological mother. Blair says that they have to get one, too. They'll get Sam..

NOOOOOO...that's the last person they need Todd tells her. They won't have to get a lawyer. He has a plan. They'll just skip town, all of them. Blair is confused, but her desperation to keep her family together supercedes that confusion, and she agrees. Todd steers her out the back way, with instructions to get to the airport and he'll meet them there after he makes some calls to The Sun to justify his absence.

Blair scurries off, and Sam comes running in. Where's Blair? He wants to know, and Todd after a brief smug grin passes over his face, tells Sam in mock anger that she's gone. He told her everything about the baby and she hates him now. Is Sam satisfied? His marriage is over because of Sam. Sam
passes the blame back to Todd, telling him he caused his own marriage to fail. He tells Todd that he'll call Blair later and leaves. Todd smiles at Sam's back, saying quietly that Sam better not call too much later, or he'll be too late.

From the airport, Blair leaves a message for Todd on the voice mail and tells him that she's there, Suzanne has the children in the lounge, so hurry up and get there, because her nerves are frayed.

She hangs up and starts walking as she's putting her cell phone back into her purse. Not looking where she's walking, she bumps right into Alex!

Happy Mother's Day to all!! May the LIVE WEEK serve as a special pleasant gift for us after the fact!!

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Recap written by Kimberley Barnett, © Copyright by Katherine Thurston & 2002.