John is becoming impatient outside the room. He doesn't like what is happening. There is something very wrong here. He has known it from the moment Marlena asked to speak with Stefano... No not asked... demanded. And now, as he sees her laugh, he feels his foreboding amplify.
His heart is racing, the blood pounding in his ears as he watches Stefano stand and obliterate the view of the woman he loves. The woman he has hurt so many times.
He doesn't know what to do, he only knows he can't make it right with her while he is out there and Stefano DiMera is in there with her. Who knows what kind of lies he is filling her mind and heart with? Surely he has waited long enough.
Flinging open the door, he enters the room without hesitation. "I need to speak to my wife," he demands, his face red with anger.
"I rather think that is Marlena's decision," Stefano replies smoothly, turning to where Marlena sits, expressionless. "Do you wish to speak to your husband, my dear?"
She says nothing for a long moment, but sweeps disinterested eyes over John. He can't help but wonder what she is thinking. And then, as the silence continues he is filled with the fear she is going to say no. That she is going to throw their marriage away without so much as allowing him a chance to explain.
"Doc," he takes a step towards her, his eyes imploring. "*Please*. You have to let me explain."
"I don't *have* to do anything, John." She glares at him angrily and he actually takes a physical step backwards.
"Marlena, I'm asking you to hear me out," he implores quietly. "Please, I know I screwed up and I am so sorry about that, but if you'll only let me explain-"
"What is there to explain?" She shrugs offhandedly. "You slept with another woman on our honeymoon and then you lied to me about it. For *how* long now?"
"I was scared Marlena," he moves to the end of her bed, ignoring the fact that Stefano is standing by, watching the exchange with barely suppressed amusement. "I made some really bad choices and I am really sorry for that."
He notices Marlena glance at Stefano and he feels that shiver of apprehension pass through him again. She seems so cold, so angry. Of course, she has every right to be. But why is she turning to Stefano? That bastard should be the very *last* person she wants to see.
"I'm really sorry too, John." There's an edge to her voice that he doesn't recognize and it only serves to exacerbate his distress. "I really don't feel as though I can talk about this right now. It..." She stops and looks downwards. "I don't know how I feel right now, so I don't know what to say to you."
"But if you'll just let me explain Doc-"
"I don't want to hear it John," she flicks her eyes up, the angry bronze irises searing through him. "I don't want to hear about how you made love to another woman, however it happened. And on our *honeymoon*."
"It wasn't making love, Marlena," he returns with sheer desperation. "It wasn't anything *like* that."
"Right now, I don't care *what* it was like," her reply is bordering on vitriolic. "I just don't want to hear it. And if you care anything at all about saving this marriage, you'll just leave it be for now."
"Of *course* I care!" He doesn't even know how she can say that.
"Well then, you'll allow me some time to collect my thoughts." It is a statement rather than a question.
"I...." He looks lost as he stares at her. He's not quite sure what she is asking of him.
"I think you should find somewhere else to stay for now," she explains coldly. "I'll make my own way home. I'd like you to be gone when I get there."
"You're throwing me out?" He swallows, his throat suddenly excruciatingly dry.
"Nothing quite so dramatic," she sighs lightly. "Really John, if I was going to throw you out do you think I'd be asking you to give me some time?" She shakes her head. What a moron.
John says nothing for a long moment and he turns to look at Stefano. He doesn't like what he sees. The old man is looking at Marlena with an air of possessiveness that is disturbing, to say the very least.
"All right," he says eventually. "I'll give you whatever you need, Marlena. If you need time, then you'll have time. But the moment you want to talk to me, call me and I'll be right there."
"Thank you," she nods her head, her voice deceptively mellow.
"But I will *not* leave *him* here with you," John's attitude steels and he becomes more determined. "I don't know why you wanted to speak with him in the first place. I might have betrayed your trust Marlena, but you know you have *never* been able to trust this bastard."
He is looking at Stefano as he speaks and he misses the spark that lights the almond eyes behind him.
"Ah, don't worry John, I will take my leave of the fair Marlena now." He moves to the bedside and lifts Grace's hand. He presses a soft kiss to the warm skin. "As always my dear, it has been a pleasure."
Grace says nothing, but lifts her eyebrows slightly in a gesture meant just for him. It says a thousand things that John will never understand. It says she will join him in his deception. For now. She will play the game until he contacts her and they can plan their next maneuver. And she will do her best to make the most of it.
Stefano nods but the movement is so small as to be undetectable by anyone but the woman who knows him so well. He turns and grins wolfishly at John. "Good luck, John. Something tells me you are going to need it."
When Stefano is gone, he turns back to his wife. She is lying silently in her bed, looking at the window. "Doc," his whisper is tentative. "Are you sure you want me to go? Wouldn't it be better to talk this out here and now?"
Marlena says nothing. In fact, she gives no indication that she has even heard him. She simply stares at the window, her eyes seeking something that he cannot fathom.
He has no choice. She wants him to go. He can't push her too far, if he does she might break and he couldn't bear that. He has to give her what she needs right now, so he will go home and pack a small bag and take a room at the Salem Inn.
"I'll be at the Inn if you need me baby," he tells her, his voice choked with emotion. "I'll have my celphone switched on. Call me. Anytime, okay?" She does not answer, just stares, umoving. Unmoved.
"I love you Marlena, I have always loved you. What's happened doesn't change that."
He turns dejectedly and leaves, glancing back only once to see that she still has not moved.
When she is sure he is gone, Grace lets her shoulders drop and she purses her lips, her razor-sharp mind flicking back through the events that she has catalogued in her conscience.
Memories are vague, but gaining substance as she works hard to define them. She remembers little of that last night but the growling of a dog. She is not sure she wishes to remember. It is so long ago, she has so much to catch up on. For now she can only be cautious and feel her way through what might prove to be a minefield.
"Well I'm pleased to see that you are awake." A woman walks into the room. She's wearing a white coat and holding a clipboard and Grace can only surmise that she is a doctor. "Although I wish John had told me earlier."
She sits on the edge of the bed, hugging the clipboard to her chest. "How are you feeling Marlena?"
"I've got a headache," Grace shrugs easily as she discreetly eyes the name tag on the doctor's coat. "But then that's not really surprising."
"Not really," Lexie nods as she checks the dressing on Marlena's forehead. "If you don't mind me asking, what's going on? How did *this*," she indicates the wound, "happen? And why did John leave in such a hurry?"
"I do mind you asking, as it happens," Grace replies abruptly.
"Oh," Lexie is taken aback and she pulls back from her friend slightly. "Okay, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to intrude."
Grace says nothing for a moment but taps her fingers against the sheet, signaling her impatience. "So, when can I go then?"
"Oh." Lexie is finding Marlena's manner a little unsettling. She has never seen her friend quite so detached. She can only think that something awful must have happened. But if Marlena doesn't want to talk about it, there's not much she can do. "Well, let me check you out and if everything is all right, then I can sign the discharge papers, okay?"
"Good." Grace nods her acceptance and she co-operates as the doctor goes about her tasks diligently.
She wants nothing more than to get out of this tedious room and find her way into Marlena's life. She has to learn about the woman in order to slip into her shoes, to live her life. She knows nothing of what Stefano has in mind, but as usual where he is concerned, she finds herself intrigued. They are two of a kind, if there is one thing she enjoys more than participating in his 'games', it is engaging him in one of her own. There is nothing more stimulating than defeating the master in his own sport.
"All right, I'm just going to go and sign some forms," Lexie lets the stethoscope tumble down around her neck. "Why don't you get changed into your clothes?"
"Okay," Grace nods gently and grants the doctor a grateful smile. She knows it is what the woman expects to see and she is not surprised to see the relieved smile in return. "Thank you."
"No problem," Lexie nods and moves towards the door.
Grace watches her leave but another doctor stops Lexie outside the door. Grace finds her interest piqued as she gets a glimpse of the doctor's face. He is remarkably attractive and the corner of her mouth curls slightly.
Maybe life in Salem might be a little more interesting than she has credited....