"Remember, stay away from Nicole. She's bad news and she's trouble." Roman's warning rang inside Eric's head. "Okay," he thought. "That should be easy enough to remember. She's told enough lies as it is." He walked into the Titan studio that he and Nicole worked in. He noticed that there were photos just laying on the desk in the corner. They were the photos of the little girls who were at the shoot the other day. The day Greta ran off. He looked through them slowly. Why would Nicole just leave them laying there, and not even neatly? That wasn't like her at all.
He came upon the picture that Nicole had taken. It was a picture of Nicole and Eric in a, uh, how should we state this? A compromising situation. He flashed back to the time that he and Nicole had made love in this very studio.
He sucked in his breath. No one is to see this picture. The results could be disastrous! Greta… He would hurt Greta terribly. "What are you doing?" Eric whirled around and saw Nicole there. Her eyes widened when she noticed that he had the photo- her photo- in his hands. "Give that back to me!"
"No," he answered. "How dare you take a picture of this? It means nothing, do you hear me? What happened that day was a mistake. Loving you was a mistake!"
"No, Eric, it wasn't. You are only saying that because you want to resist me. But you can't, so why try? We were meant to be together," said Nicole.
"Resist you? I don't need to. You disgust me. As for us being meant for each other… You made a choice not to be 'together' with me when you married Lucas. I don't care what your reasons are," retorted Eric. He ripped the photo into pieces and threw it at her.
"Reasons? I have my reasons. But you better do as I say because you work for me. And the photo. Do you think I don't have negatives? I think you better take the day off," she said. She picked up the photos of the little girls and slid them into an envelope. "Now I've got to take these to Kate. There's an envelope on your desk, too. We have a meeting."
"A meeting?" he asked incredulously. He opened the envelope and read the contents. "This is a hotel room and the keys. What kind of game are you trying to play, Nicole?"
"I'm not playing any game," she said with a smug smile. "You're going to be there, and for the dinner at Tuscany's, too. If you don't I'm just going to have to show poor little Greta the picture. You don't want that, now do you? She wouldn't understand and it would make her feel so bad," she sneered. "I'll be there. But I swear, if you say or do anything to Greta… Anything…" he said with a tight jaw.
"Good, then don't be late." Nicole walked out of the studio triumphantly.
Eric turned to watch her go in angry, worried glance. He was sure now that Greta had run out on him because of something Nicole had done. He shook his head. "When will you leave me alone, Nicole?" he thought. "I can't say I have no feelings for her, but she's married now, and I like Greta. I like her a lot." Eric scowled. He was sure Nicole would do something with that photo. She seems to have forgotten however, that she did have a husband. That photo jeopardizes her, too. Plus, she isn't the only person with access to the negatives. "I think I'll go get them now."

"Hey, Mrs. Horton, may I speak to Greta, please? It's Eric Brady."
"Oh, hello, dear! Well, I'll go get her. You should come over more often, you know. I'll make you some doughnuts the next time you do. Here's Greta," said Alice cheerfully.
Greta took the phone uncertainly from Alice. She couldn't believe that she found a condom in the picnic basket. Why in the world would Eric do something like that? "Hello?"
"Hi, Greta. I really need to talk to you. Um, I think that we shouldn't talk on the phone because I'm at work right now. So, how about I meet you at the Brady pub tonight at around seven?"
"Um, sure. I'll be there! But before you go Eric, I need to talk to you, too. So we'll both talk tonight okay?" "All right. Well, I better go. I'll see you tonight. Bye, Greta."
"Bye." Greta hung up and smiled. Well, Nicole can't be entirely correct. After all, Eric called her again. Then she remembered the condom and frowned. She ran her hand through her hair and sighed deeply. "I might as well take Sami's advice. Besides, I'm sure Eric didn't mean to." She pursed her lips uncertainly. She took a deep breath. Sure. She'll just confront him tonight about it and ask what is going on.

***Back at Titan…

Eric hung up and again looked at the envelope Nicole had given him. He will meet her all right, but to "counter-blackmail" her. Nothing will happen next Friday night. (That is when the Hotel room and the Tuscany reservations are on.) He had secured the negatives. And Nicole will be the one who will shiver. He left to go to the studio.
Nicole noticed the glance at the envelope she had given him. "I will just bet that he is looking forward to next Friday as much as I am," she thought smugly. "All I have to do is start stripping again. He won't be able to resist me. Because he loves me as much as I love him. I WILL have him. He is mine and Greta can't stand a chance in hell."
She moved toward her office and poured herself a drink. "This is absolutely perfect."
"What is so perfect?"
Nicole whirled around. "Lucas!" She feigned a pleased smile. "What, uh, what are you doing here?"
"I work here, silly! Besides, can't a guy drop in on his beautiful, talented, wonderful wife just to say that he loves her?"
"I think I'm going to be sick," Nicole thought in disgust. "Lucas," she replied sweetly. "You really didn't have to. But I have a lot of work to do and…"
"You don't have to work today. I'll just get Dan to do your work here. He's very capable. Dan! Come here!" he yelled.
"Lucas, really, it's really not fair to trouble Dan like this. He already has a lot of work to do, you know? I think I should just stay here and just do my fair share! Besides, I can handle it, I really think that…" Nicole desperately protested.
"Nonsense," Lucas cut in. "Hey, Dan."
"Hi, Mr. Roberts, listen, I…" started Dan.
"I'm sure that you are doing fine. Anyways, I was wondering if you could do Mrs. Roberts' work for her today. I can guarantee you a nice reward. And don't worry about your work. I'll take care of it."
"Yes, sir."
"Now, Nicole, you are free. We can go home and make love now."
Nicole bit her lip and agreed. "But I'm going to go tell the staff in my studio that I'm going. That way they won't schedule anything for me and realize I'm not here."
"Sure, honey. Whatever you say."
She headed to her studio and saw that Eric was there alone. "Good," she thought. "Eric," she said aloud.
"Yeah?"
She took his face in both hands and gave him a hard kiss before he knew what happened. "To remember me by. I'm leaving for the day."

Note: *_ _ _ _* = italicized words

It was about 6:00 PM. Greta hugged herself, already dressed and waiting. Another date with Eric Brady! Just as soon as her spirits were lifted, they deflated. The condom. "Why?" she asked herself. "Why would he do something like that? It doesn't seem like him at all." She sighed. It will all be straightened out tonight.
Besides, it's not as if she doesn't want to be with Eric. "I mean, who wouldn't?" she thought. He *is* very handsome after all. Plus, she knew him pretty well and liked him a lot. "You know what?" she said to herself. "I'm perfectly convinced that Eric would never put… that in the basket. At least, not until we're both ready. Sami is perfectly right; Eric *is* very honest. He would never do that."
But a different voice entered her mind, a voice that represented the thread of doubt in her mind. "But if he didn't, who did? He isn't as naive as you are. Don't be fooled!"
Greta shook herself and exhaled deeply. An image of Princess Gina flashed into her mind. "Mother," she whispered. Tears coursed slowly down her cheeks as she cried silently. Her mother, whom she placed on such a pedestal, is a fraud. Right now, she is masquerading as Hope Williams. Who knows where the real Hope is? Dead? No, she didn't believe that. The story Gina had given was a very weak one. Hope jumping off the bridge? Not likely. Not if what Bo said is true. Besides, Bo is still feeling connections with her. How is that to be explained? "God, Mother!" she screamed in her head. "Why couldn't you just keep me out of this? You knew! You knew that I hated lying! Yet you are forcing me to do it. Lying to all these people that have been nothing but kind to me!" She covered her face in anguish. Her face. It was free of scars now. Her mother did not even know of the pain *she* has gone through.
She could never bring herself to say these things to her mother. She had always been timid and weak. But she was deceiving Bo, John, and Marlena. Bo was literally her hero. He saved her from a lifetime of being Swamp Girl. John has done nothing but comfort and be good to her. He even financed the surgery that removed Greta's scars. And of course, Marlena helped Greta and was one of her first friends. Marlena was one of real Hope's good friends. She knew Hope well. Yet Mother continues to deceive her in therapy. Sooner or later, Marlena will discover she isn't Hope and it is bound to be sooner. Then what is going to happen? "I mustn't think of these things!" Then she shook herself again. "No," she thought. "No. This must end." To think that Mother even proposed to poor Bo! Of course, Bo accepted, but Greta thought that he would have figured out by now that "Hope" isn't *Hope*. "Hope" is Gina! She feels terrible that she is not telling Eric and Bo. But she gave Mother her word. No, she *can't* tell.
But first things first. Greta smiled slightly and rolled her eyes at herself. (It is possible! People think something that they don't normally think and they find it humorous, so they roll their eyes! Back to the story… ahem.) She never thought that she would actually one day have these feelings for someone. Eric Brady is the man of her dreams. She believes that she is falling for him. Greta frowned and pursed her lips; she wasn't quite sure that Eric felt the same way. After all, there was always the "Nicole-factor". She shook her head. Just thinking about it makes her head spin. She married Lucas, but everyone but Lucas could see that she still loved Eric.
The door bell rang and interrupted her thoughts. She glanced at the clock. It was now 6:30. Wow. Time sure flies. Then she cocked her head in confusion as she made her way to the door. "I thought I was supposed to *meet* him at the Brady pub." She opened the door expecting to see Eric but instead saw Nicole. She stood stunned with the door knob still in her hands. "Hi, Greta. Surprised to see me? Can I come in?" asked Nicole in a mock friendly way.
"Um, sure. Yeah, come on in," Greta said confusedly as she opened the door wider. Nicole stepped in with a faintly triumphant look.

"Have a seat. Would you like a drink?"
"I don't mind if I do. Red wine please," Nicole replied eagerly. Mrs. Horton always kept a fine supply of wines.
"Here you go, Nicole." Greta sat down beside her. "Um, Nicole… Pardon me for being blunt, but what are you doing here?" Greta asked curiously.
"I've come to help you," said Nicole. "To save you from heartbreak."
Greta raised her eyebrows. "Heartbreak?" She crossed her arms and pursed her lips. "Okay…"
"Yes. Heartbreak," smiled Nicole. Privately, she thought, "Oh, Greta, you poor thing. You have no idea what you got into when you started messing with what is mine. Too bad you don't stand a chance in hell because I would have had much more fun." She smiled wider and purred, "You know, Eric hasn't gotten over me. I hate to tell you, but after being with me, it's hard for him to forget." She leaned forward and confided mockingly, "You know, I was his first. First love… *and* first lover."
Greta sucked in her breath sharply and abruptly got up. "Yes, I know that, Nicole. Eric told me." She walked around in a nervous sort of way. She cocked her head and squinted her eyes a little. "Why are you telling me this?"
"I told you, Greta. Eric is never going to get over me. I'd hate to see you walk away with a broken heart. You're an innocent girl. I don't really think you should have to go through that kind of pain. We girls have to look out for each other, you know," Nicole stated matter-of-factly.
Greta shook her head in disbelief. "Why would you care? You hate me. And, might I remind you, YOU are married!"
"I know," Nicole sighed mockingly. "But… while I've moved on, he hasn't." She pasted a regretful expression on her face and shook her head. "I mean, I was modeling for him at the photo shoot. You know the New York photos *have* to be sexy. So, this is what happened." She reached into her purse and pulled out the photo and handed it to Greta.
Greta's eyes widened and she breathed hard. Her beautiful face crumpled and she shook her head in disbelief. "No. No. It's not true."
"I'm afraid it is," replied Nicole ruthlessly. "I'm really sorry, but I think you are better off…"
"No!" Greta covered her mouth and tried to choke back her sob. She ran out of the room.
Nicole watched jubilantly. "Well," she thought slyly. "My work here is done." She picked up her things and the photo that Greta dropped and sidled to the door to let herself out. She opened the door just as Eric was about to ring the doorbell. Nicole stared at him, shocked. "Eric!" she exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"
"I was going to ask you the same thing," said Eric angrily. He pointed to the photo Nicole had in her hand. "But obviously, you were up to no good." He pushed past Nicole and called, "Greta? Greta, please answer me!"
Nicole regained her composure. "Forget it, Eric. She's just not for you. Besides, you broke her heart when you kissed me." Greta heard their conversation from her room as she sobbed. Eric lashed back bitterly, "You said you wouldn't tell. You know it meant nothing! I should have never believed you."
"Oh, but, Eric. It meant everything to me. You know you still want me. You can feel it. I can feel it. Why fight it?" She licked her lips as her eyes swept up and down his body. "As for me saying something to Greta… I lied. Sue me." She turned on her heel and walked out.

Eric stared furiously after her. He walked to Greta's room and knocked. "Greta, please, let me explain."
"I think you should leave, Eric. Go find Nicole and be with her," Greta said, fighting to control her voice. She bit her lip as ore tears streamed down her cheeks.
"Greta, how can you just hear Nicole's side without hearing mine?" Eric asked.
"That's simple, Eric. You lied to me. And the picture proved it," she answered dully.
"Greta, please. Let me talk to you face to face. This is why I wanted to see you tonight," Eric said desperately.
Greta opened the door and stepped into his arms and sobbed. Eric was shocked at how tearstained her face was. So he did mean something to her. But now this has happened. God knows that he didn't want to hurt her.
Greta pushed him away and began wildly wiping her tears away. "Why? You told me it was over. Why did you lead me on?" she asked in a clipped tone.
"Greta, I'm truly sorry." He sighed. "You're right. I lied. It didn't *mean* anything though. I just…" He shook his head. "I don't know why I did it. I didn't even like it." He cleared his throat and raised her face to meet his. "But I wasn't leading you on. I swear. I really do like you a lot. I like you enough to want to be with you more. I just… I just didn't want you to be hurt."
"Well, Eric, I mean, gosh. I just didn't expect to be a rebound girl-" she said, refusing to look at him.
"You're not," Eric cut in.
"Let me finish." She looked down and pursed her lips. "I just want to know why you put that… that condom in the picnic basket."
"Condom?" he looked at her incredulously. "I didn't put anything in there. I ordered it from a pastry shop."
"I'm sorry, but I can't believe that. I…" she trailed off. "Nicole."
"What about her?" Then it dawned on him, too. "*She* handed me the basket."
"But I still think that we should stop seeing each other."
"Greta…"
"Look, Eric. I have never been aggressive in my life. Not like this. I want you to respect this. Let me think about our relationship. And you should, too. Maybe you should think about whether or not you are really over Nicole."
"Greta, I don't need to think about it. I really don't. I know I am over Nicole. Please don't make me lose you."
Greta bit her lip. She looked deep into her eyes and knew that he meant every word he said. "Well, all right. But…" She took a deep breath. "But don't let it happen again," she joking weakly. She smiled a little and said, "Well since I'm already dressed already, why don't we grab a bite? I.. I haven't eaten yet and…"
"All right. Do you still want to go to the Brady pub?" replied Eric in relief.
"Yeah, that would be good. I am pretty hungry," Greta said shyly. "But… this is definitely… definitely not a date."
"Of-of course not, Greta. This is not a date," stammered Eric. "Damn," he thought privately. "Have I screwed up my chances with her?"
She bit her lip and turned to get her coat and purse. Then she saw herself in the mirror. Her makeup was streamed down her face. She blushed rosily and said, "Give me a few more minutes."
He looked at her longingly as she went to reapply her makeup, his handsome face filled with agony. But he quickly pasted a smile on his face as he saw Greta come out of the bathroom. "Off to the Brady Pub."
Greta *did* see the look on his face when she had come out of the bathroom. She felt horrible but she hardened her heart. "I think he needs to spend some time away from me. No, I know he does," she thought sadly. "This way he can really question himself and see if he does or does not have feelings for Nicole."

(This will be a short chapter because I want to move on with The Eric and Greta part instead of focusing on the Bo-Hope-Gina-Stefano problem.)

Greta attended the wedding of Bo and faux Hope, serving as her mother's maid of honor. "I wish this thing was over. I can't stand any more of this lying! And I am getting very, very tired of Lilli," she thought miserably. "I can't believe Mother decided *after* the wedding that it was a bad idea. So, now, I'm leaving Salem… and Eric. I don't want to say goodbye to Eric, but I am certainly not going to lose my mom."
Speak of the devil, at that moment Lilli came to her panicked. "Greta, your mother! Oh, poor 'Giner'! She's been shot!"
"What?" she said unbelievingly, horrified. "Lilli, do not joke with me!"
"I'm not, Greta. Oh, I'm not!" sobbed the fervent Lilli. Eric overheard part of this conversation and went over to Greta right away. "What's going on?" he demanded, seeing Greta's bewildered face filled with anguish.
His only response was when his mother (Marlena) and "Hope" were carried in unconscious. Hope was covered in blood. "Oh my God," he muttered.
Greta broke down. "I can't lose you again," she whispered inaudibly. Eric took her in his arms to comfort her as they watched the grotesque scene before them. She cried, horrified at the thought that she really was going to be alone now.

"Eric! Oh, God! Oh, God, Eric!" sobbed Greta wildly. They were now in the hospital. Marlena was fine. She had a splitting headache, of course, and a bandage on her forehead, but she was walking and talking.
"Greta, shh. It will be okay. It will be okay. Hope will pull through this. She'll pull through this for Bo," Eric murmured quietly. To tell the truth, he was puzzled. Hope had been friends with Greta, but… There was something he couldn't put his finger on. He berated himself for feeling this way, but he could not help it. Why would Greta feel so badly? It wasn't as if Hope was essential to her life as she (Hope) was to Bo's. And Eric's own, of course. After all, she was his aunt at one time… legally. "Eric, I have to tell you something. It's important. I don't want you to tell me that everything's all right, because I know they aren't," she said, when Eric tried to 'calm' her down again. "I've…" Greta paused to try to grimly wipe away her tears. She took a deep breath and began again. "I've been hiding something from you," she said, wavering. She pulled him to a more secluded spot. "That… that isn't Hope in there. Let me finish," she said, holding up a finger when she saw Eric getting ready to object. "It isn't Hope in there," she repeated in a melancholy voice. Eric could barely recognize it. "It's my mother. It's Gina," she said with tears in her eyes. "And… and Hope is already dead."
"Greta," Eric began cautiously. "Your mother is dead." He looked quizzically into her eyes when she shook her head. "Greta, we went to France to find out what happened to your mother. We exhumed her body. The autopsy proved that it was her body. Greta, she really is dead." Then he took a deep breath and sighed. "Hope is not dead yet. Hope is in that the OR fighting for her life so that she can be with Bo."
"No, Eric," she protested. "You're wrong. She knew things that Hope couldn't possibly know even if she had my mother's memories." She choked back a sob with difficulty. "She knew about me jumping in to your bed because I was scared. She knew about us playing dress-up with her things. She knew that I had a dream about seeing her. It was her. I wasn't hallucinating. Don't you see?"
"Oh, my God," Eric said under his breath. He brought up his hands to his head and massaged his temples. Then he took Greta in his arms and embraced her, placing his head on hers as she quietly shed tears.
Finally Greta pulled away from him. "You… you aren't mad at me?" She looked down at her feet and said nervously, "I didn't… I didn't want to keep it from you. I… I was sworn to secrecy. You have no idea… I tried to tell her not to…"
Eric sighed and took her face in his hands so that she would look at him instead of everywhere else. "No, Greta, no. I don't blame you. Not at all. I understand, I really do." He took a deep breath and said, "Your mother showed up as Hope. She fell in love with Bo, but caused trouble for my mother anyway because she had gotten John. She revealed herself to you and swore you to secrecy. You didn't want to, but she convinced you because she was, well, your mother. But, it all leads to the big question - where is HOPE?"
Greta bit her lip and burst into fresh tears. "Hope," she faltered piteously, shaking her head in sorrow. "Hope is… dead." "What?" Eric stared at her in disbelief. "Hope? Dead?" "My mother told me that she and Hope met on a bridge. Hope was shocked and scared out of her mind. Before my mother could stop her, Hope climbed onto the bridge and jumped. My mother tried to save her. She was a good swimmer - trained by Stefano. But she did not find any trace of her," Greta choked out. "But," she added. "I don't know whether or not to believe it."
"It can't be true. Bo had 'reached' Hope in Paris. She would never even THINK about taking her own life when she knows how many people love her," Eric declared firmly.
"I agree with you," Greta said, still weeping. "But why hasn't she come back?"
"Because," a deep, heavily accented voice boomed from behind. "Because, my dear Greta, your damn mother locked us in that damn Chateau."

"Stefano!" Greta whirled around to say. Her eyes widened in amazement. "Hope?"
Eric just stood there looking stunned. "Hope," he said, finally coming to his senses. He gave her a huge hug. "You're okay. Thank God."
Lexie saw her father and immediately rushed over. Stefano's face lit up. Lexie began to exclaim as soon as she reached them. "Oh my God! You're okay! God, you had me so worried." She hugged him for a long time. Then, a business-like look came over her. "Okay," she demanded. "Where the hell have you been?" She finally noticed Hope. "Hope?" She raised her eyebrow in confused perplexity. "I just operated on you… didn't I?"
Greta answered when Hope looked confused as well. "No, you operated on my… my mother."
"I came here because I had the feeling that Shawn-D was in trouble and…" Hope began.
Lexie immediately snapped into Doctor mode again. "Shawn-D will be just fine. He is going to make a full recovery. He got lucky. Only a bump to the head."
Hope asked hesitantly, "Wh-what happened to him?"
"I don't know, but apparently he fell from a terrace. Here why don't I take you to see B-"
"No!" Greta practically shouted. "No. Not yet. Hope. Let me talk to you."
"And let me," said Lexie to her father. "Take you to a room." "Of course, my dear Lexie."
As soon as they were out of earshot, Greta began to speak and explain urgently what happened. "I'm so sorry, Hope," she finished with tears in her eyes. "You've done nothing but be good to me, but I turn around and wreak havoc on your family." Hope, still in a bit of a shock, said, "Greta. I know you meant no harm. The way your mother convinced you would have convinced me as well. She convinced me that I must plot against Stefano. But right now, I have to go find Bo."
"Eric, will you go with her? I have to go visit my mother," she stuttered. "Before… before it's too late. And, I don't think I can face Bo right now. Especially after he placed all blame on Marlena. I don't think I can face either of them."
"If you are sure," answered Eric slowly. "Come on, Hope." Greta watched them go as a weight lifted off her chest. But there was still a lot of weight left. As soon as they were out of sight she bolted for the bathroom, only to run into Marlena. Stunned, she uttered something unintelligible and ran out the door. Marlena stared after her, but did nothing. She was much too depressed. One of her best friends was going to die, and it was her fault.
Greta finally approached her mother's room. She saw Bo nearby and hid by the pillar in the hall. Bo finally walked off, and Greta slipped silently into the room. Gina Von Amberg lay upon the bed, asleep. "Oh, Mother," she murmured mournfully. "You're leaving me again. I can't bear to lose you again. Oh, God, why?" She laid her head upon the edge of the bed and cried softly.
"Mon petite choux," Gina whispered weakly. "My darling Greta, I have been unfair, and I will make it all right before I go. Hope…"
"I know, Mother. She escaped."
"Good. You must tell Kurt that I will be needing his services no longer. Leave him… ten percent of my estate. The rest is yours, Greta, my dear."
"Mother, please, don't talk like that."
"No, Greta," said Gina, furtively. "You must promise me. Tell… them… I am sorry. And tell them… it wasn't your fault. And tell your father…"
"Father?" Greta's eyes probed Gina's searchingly.
"Yes. Your father. Bring your ear down, I will tell you. But he does not know, nor does anyone." Gina spoke urgently now. Greta lowered her head and Gina told her. Greta then clasped her mother's hand, weeping, "I love you, Mother. Please don't leave me."
"I don't have a choice my beloved darling, Greta. I love you, too, mon petite choux. You have many here in Salem who love you. Do not be like me and waste your fortuity here. I see that you love Eric, or that you soon will. Do not ever let go of him, ever. And do not be afraid of love."
"Mother," Greta cried, unbearably sad.
"Mon petite choux…" Gina trailed off and the heart monitor started to whine.
"Mother!" Greta screamed, sobbing. "No, Mother, no!" She turned and started to shout for doctors when she saw Eric standing at the door. "Eric. My mother… " The world have suddenly begun to sway…
The doctors pushed passed him and started working on Gina. Eric caught Greta on her down to the floor and carried her back into the waiting area.

Three months had passed since the death of Princess Gina. Greta was right. Bo had indeed removed blame from Marlena and placed it upon Greta. "You caused us a lot of pain. You let me think it was my wife dying. You lied to everyone. You didn't even try to stop her from marrying me. If you had convinced her to leave, none of this would have happened. I don't ever want to see you again. Don't you dare come anywhere near me or my family, or I will not be responsible for my actions," he had angrily vowed. Roman and Shawn had to restrain him when Bo saw her.
Greta shook her head as if it could dislodge the memory, but it was still there. Mrs. Horton would not even look at her. "Greta, please. I really can't talk to you or look at you right now. Maybe, after a little time, I can forgive you," she had said sadly.
Marlena had forgiven her, saying that she understood, but Great knew that she did it because of Eric. Marlena's attitude towards Greta had unquestionably changed.
Only Eric, Sami, and Austin treated her the same as before. Belle practically hated her. Shawn-D still treated her indifferently as he had before. Hope was still fuzzy with the details, but she assured Greta that she had forgiven her though she had not forgiven Gina. Nicole had backed off. Perhaps that means there is some good in her heart. More likely, it was because she was secretly gloating that such a tragedy had befallen poor innocent Greta.
Greta walked along the dark streets of Salem, wandering aimlessly. She was supposed to meet Eric for dinner, but at the last minute decided she wanted to be alone. It was her mother's birthday today.
Suddenly, a pair of hands grabbed her and covered her mouth, dragging her backwards into an alley. Rough hands threw her against the wall. Greta finally made out the shape of two men. "What do you want from me?" she asked slowly, struggling to keep her voice steady.
"Well," said the larger man. "We were told to hunt you down like an animal. Too bad you're so pretty, though. I do hate to destroy pretty things."
"Yeah," agreed the smaller man. "I wouldn't mind having a little fun with before we, uh, do her in."
"Look," Greta said, panicking. "Don't do this. You could be killed. I won't tell anybody this happened. As far as I'm concerned, this never happened. Please. I have money if you want it."
"We're gonna get plenty of money for doing the job right," the big man replied. "As far I'm concerned, I'd rather get the chair, than not do the job."
"Who would want to have me killed?" asked Greta apprehensively. "I haven't done anything to anyone." Suddenly, it dawned on her. Bo. But would Bo sink this low? "It's Bo Brady, isn't it? He wants me dead… for… for what I did to him. For what my mother did to him."
"You're pretty close, little girl. Since, you won't be walking out of here alive, I'm gonna tell ya who. It's Bo Brady's father. Victor Kiriakis," said the little man.
"Victor? But isn't Shawn Brady…" asked Greta.
"I don't know. I don't care. But you're outta time, girl." The big man trained a gun on Greta and looked around while the little man produced a syringe.
"See, my fingerprints aren't going to be on this." The little man raised his hands. "Gloves, see? I'm going to give this to you, and you're going to inject yourself. If you don't, no problem. I can inject it for you and put your prints on it, or I can blow you away. What's it going to be?"
"Please," Greta wept, "Please don't do this to me!" Greta shivered involuntarily as the man crept closer to her. She backed herself into a corner and tried to wedge herself into it, as if she pushed hard enough she could go through it. "Shut up," he commanded. "Come on, inject yourself, or I'm gonna blow you away!"
"No, please, don't do this," Greta whimpered, crying openly now.
"I said- Quiet!" He covered Greta's mouth and stared tensely toward the street. Lively voices were chattering.
Greta forced herself to calm down and strained her ears to hear above the sound of her heart pounding in her ears and the nervous breathing of her captors. She could have sworn to herself then that she heard Sami's voice. She immediately bit the hand covering her mouth hard enough to draw blood. The man screamed in pain. "Help!" she screamed on the top of her lungs. "Sami!"
The big man stepped over and backhanded her. The world became dark as she sank down to the ground.
"Greta, is that you?" Sami called, worriedly. "Greta?"
"Hey!" Roman shouted. "You guys come on out of there."
"Dad," Eric whispered urgently. "That was Greta. I know it was. Dad, you've got your gun, right?" (Apparently, since Greta canceled on him, he called dad to his dad invite him to dinner. They ran into Sami and Austin and were taking a walk around when they heard Greta scream.)
"Yeah, I know, son. Sami, back out of sight and call the station for backup. Austin, get ready to tackle them," he said in a low voice. Roman saw the glint of a gun swing towards them and he yelled, "Duck!"
A gunshot boomed as Sami screamed in fright. Austin was immediately up and tackled the big guy (who had the gun) and wrestled it away from him. Roman trained his own gun on the little guy while Eric ran to the back of the alley and emerged with an unconscious Greta.
"Get her to the hospital, now!" ordered Roman. "Sami! Did you call?"
"Yes, Dad. Oh, my God, Dad. Do you think Greta's…"
"Sami."
"Sorry."
Backup finally arrived and arrested the two men. An investigation was to begin immediately. Bo was excluded by the request of Roman.

Those who are fans of Bo, do not read this chapter. If you do, I gave you a warning, so I will delete any email you send regarding this chapter.

Eric sat beside Greta's hospital bed, holding her hand. "Come on, Greta. Come back to me." Eric had discovered a syringe in Greta's arm with most of liquid still in it. He had taken it to the hospital. Luckily, the doctors quickly found an antidote, but they couldn't be sure of what damage the chemical had already caused.
Eric brushed some hair off of Greta's face. He laid his head next to hers and closed his eyes. This would be the second night he had spent in the hospital with her. Greta moaned softly in discomfort. Immediately, Eric sat up and started talking to her. "Greta, are you awake? Greta, it's Eric. Come back to me." Greta fought through a dense fog to make sense of the noise she was hearing. "What?" she murmured, as she struggled to understand. She shook her head to clear the fog, but instantly regretted it. Pain exploded in her brain. "Oh," she groaned. Slowly, she could make out Eric's anxious face staring down at her. "Eric?"
Eric grabbed her hand and held it to his face. "Yeah, Greta. It's me. I'm so glad you're okay."
"Where am I?" she mumbled sleepily.
"You're in the hospital. You were attacked, but you're gonna be okay."
"Okay," she whispered sleepily and drifted back to sleep. Eric stayed by her side and watched her sleep tenderly.

***A Few Days Later…

"They said that they were sent by Victor Kiriakis. I don't know why. At first, I thought it was Bo, but…" Greta said.
"Bo?" Roman looked at her quizzically.
Greta nodded. "Because he hates me, but I knew that he wouldn't do this."
"I think I know why. I was leaning towards Victor anyways. He wasn't as careful as he was once before."
Abe scrutinized her. "Now, are you *sure* that they said Victor Kiriakis?"
"I wouldn't lie about it, Commander Carver."
Abe shook his head. "He just got out of the hospital and he's already up to something. I thought that he'd change." He sighed. "Well, I better go get an arrest warrant. Kate is not going to be pleased."
"No, she isn't," Roman replied grimly. "And his son is not going to have a father again."
Greta bit her lip. "I don't mean to…"
"Yes, I know, Greta," Roman responded absently, looking through his files. "Well, I think we are done here. I'll have Eric take you home."
"Oh, okay."
Meanwhile, Abe has taken Victor Kiriakis into custody. He has hired about ten lawyers. (He can do that, you know. He *is* loaded.) Roman and Abe made a very strong case against him. Victor decides to plea-bargain to gain the lightest sentence possible, after all, he is a man of many connections. Bo, though ashamed of his birth-father's actions, made no apologies to Greta. (Note to Reader: Now is your cue to say: "What an idiotic a******!") In his mind, Greta could have prevented everything from happening. Greta agreed with him, being that Princess Gina was her mother. After all, she had been privy to the entire plan the whole time. This, of course, is even though he doesn't even notice Hope wasn't Hope, even though he didn't listen to his son or Hope's parents, and even though he didn't listen to the whole town for that matter. But of course, *he* can't be wrong. He hasn't even apologized to Marlena. Though he had stopped blaming her, he had not actually resumed the acts of forgive-and-forget, though Hope has tried to get him to.
Victor Kiriakis was sentenced to 15 years in jail. Kate Roberts was absolutely furious with the entire town and especially Greta. "You… if you had not come to Salem, NONE of these catastrophes would have happened. My daughter Billie would still be here. My husband would not be in jail. You wouldn't have brought your chain-smoking mother back here to wreak havoc on his son's life. My damned daughter-in-law and her damned obnoxious brother wouldn't be living in my house. And I wouldn't have had to spend 5 million dollars if it hadn't been for your damned boyfriend."
"What? Why would Eric ever ask you for five million dollars?" Greta asked incredulously.
Kate, flustered, said, "Nicole and Lucas' marriage cost a fortune. It was the only to distract them because of your boyfriend kept hanging around."
Greta did not buy it but was careful not to let it show on her face. "Ms. Roberts, I'm sorry that I've caused you and your family so much pain." With that, she walked off with tears streaming down her face. Though Kate was not justified in the accusation she made against Greta, she represented much of Salem when she told Greta that she wasn't wanted here.
Greta, in a suite in the Salem Inn, having moved out of Mrs. Horton's house, wiped away her tears. "I'm going to move back to France. And I will move into the Chateau where my mother spent nine years living. And I will find my father…" (At this time, I don't have a clue who Greta's dad should be, so I'm sorry if this seems vague.)

Greta quietly made all her arrangements and packed up her things. She also notified Kurt that indeed the Princess was dead. No one was to know that she was leaving Salem. On the night before her flight, she suddenly decided that she would go to see Eric to say goodbye. She called a taxi and left her luggage at the hotel safe, to be sent to the airport in the morning.
She knocked on the door of Eric's apartment and took a deep breath.
Eric heard a knock on his door and thought to himself that it was strange that anyone was knocking on his door at this hour. It was 10:14 PM. He opened it to find Greta there. "Greta!" he said, surprised. "What are you doing here?"
"Eric, I..." No sooner as those words left her mouth did her eyes begin to overflow. She covered her mouth and squeezed her eyes shut, looking down, trying to hold back her tears. She suddenly found herself in Eric's warm comforting arms.
Eric embraced her, kissed the top of her head and pulled her into his apartment. Once inside, he took her face in his hands and wiped away her tears with his thumbs. "What's wrong, Greta? Talk to me. I'm here," he soothed.
Greta buried her face in his chest and sobbed until she could barely stand. Whenever she started to explain herself, a fresh flood of tears would come. Eric picked her up and sat her down on the sofa and rocked her softly, as if she was a young child, until she was calmed down a little.
"Eric, I…" She paused, and looked searchingly into his eyes, wondering if she mattered to him at all. "I'm… I'm moving back to Paris."
"What?!" Eric practically shouted. "You're doing what?!"
"Eric, please. I just… I just can't take it anymore. And everyone in Salem hates me, and I don't like that feeling at all."
"And is there nothing in Salem that could keep you here?" Eric asked carefully, trying not to let her see his hurt.
But Greta did see, and her eyes filled again. "No," she whispered slowly, knowing that she didn't mean it.
"I see," Eric answered, staring down at her. They drew closer together, unaware. Eric brought up his hand to caress her cheek softly and she leaned her face into it as a tear slid down. Finally, he whispered hoarsely, "Not even me?"
Greta covered her mouth and looked down as her eyes once again overflowed, painfully shaking her head. Eric pulled her closer to him and tried to fight from forming tears. Was he going to lose her just like that?
At last, Greta brought up her eyes to look at his. "I… I just can't stay here like this, and have all these people who hate me so much… I can't handle it. I just can't." She looked away; she couldn't bear the hurt look in his eyes.
Eric took a deep breath and tried to shake off his sorrow. "You don't want to think about this?"
"I already have."
"I can't just let you go like that, Greta. I can't… I don't want you to go," Eric pleaded brokenly.
"There's nothing you can do nor say, Eric. I've…" A sob suddenly rose in her throat, but she fought to control her voice. "I.. I *am* going back. And that's it." Her face crumpled and she found herself in Eric's arms once more. She slowly cried herself to sleep in his arms and Eric himself shed some, too.
Eric picked her up and took her to his bedroom so that she could sleep more comfortably. He laid her down, pulled the covers over her sadly and was about to leave when Greta puled him down on her and kissed him softly.
Their kiss grew more passionate as they desperately clung to each other. This would be their last night together. They broke the kiss finally when they needed air. Greta stared into Eric's grievous eyes. She reached up to wipe away a single tear crawling down his face. "Eric," she murmured. "Eric, I want you." She looked into his eyes, which registered slight surprise, searchingly. She took a deep breath. "I want you to make love to me." She closed her eyes and pulled his face back down to hers.
Eric responded to her kiss with vigor. "She wants me?" he thought wonderingly. Soon, all thoughts except those of the moment left his mind. Their kiss was getting very enthusiastic as their tongues were tasting each other, their hands all over one another's body.
Suddenly, Eric broke off the kiss and they both lay there gasping for air. Greta looked at him confusedly while he looked at her concernedly. "Are you sure?"
Greta nodded and said simply, "Yes."
Eric responded by kissing her again, slowly undressing her.
Meanwhile, she slowly undressed him. (Okay… you guys can use your own imaginations here.)
Later, Greta lay awake next to a sleeping Eric. She stared at his handsome face, tears coursing down her cheeks. "I'm so sorry," she whispered. She slipped out of his bed and quickly got dressed. She got out of his apartment with tears streaming down her cheeks.
Meanwhile, Eric rolled over to find that Greta was not there. "Greta?" He got up and looked around the apartment. "Greta?"
Then it hit him. "Oh, no! Greta!" He changed very quickly and tore out of the apartment and sped to the airport.
He was too late. He saw Greta entering the little walkway-thing that you walk on to get on the plane. "Greta, no!"
Greta turned and shook her head sadly. She turned and ran down the walkway.
The doors slammed shut. Eric struggled with one of the stewards but to no avail. He ran to the window and saw Greta in a window. He put his hand on the glass, almost believing that he could touch her. "Greta," he whispered. "How can you do this to me?"

Look For A Sequel Coming Soon... some suggestions/feedback would help!

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