Susan is sitting in the lounge room at Dural, watching a cartoon on TV. The front door bangs suddenly and Wayne walks into the room, slowly. He puts down his briefcase. Susan doesn't look at him. Wayne then comments lightly, "Interesting programme?" Susan just shrugs, "Something to watch." Wayne muses, "Mmm..." He then sits down next to Susan and puts his arm around her, saying as he does so, "I had an interesting afternoon myself." Susan mutters, "That's nice." Wayne comments, "You could sound a little more enthusiastic - in view of the trouble I went to on your account." Susan looks at him finally and demands suspiciously, "What trouble?" Wayne reaches into his trouser pocket and removes a set of keys. He then smiles as he places them in Susan's hand. She stares at them and asks, "What's this?" Wayne grins, "What do they look like? They're your car keys!" Susan starts to say nervously, "But... How did you...?" Wayne just smiles, "I have connections, my darling; I thought you knew that by now. Didn't take long to track down the guy who stole your car." Susan starts to say, "But..." Wayne interrupts and replies, "But what?" Susan doesn't answer. Wayne then goes on, "Funny thing: he says he didn't steal it. He said you sold it to him." Susan says quickly, "That's ridiculous. Why would I?" Wayne chuckles, "The same question popped into my mind." He then reaches into his shirt pocket and pulls out a sheet of paper. He shows it to Susan as the smile on his face disappears and he tells her coolly, "Copy of the Transfer of Registration - with your signature on it." He stands up suddenly, switches off the TV and growls, "Stop playing dumb, Susan. We both know what's going on." Susan asks, "Do we?" Wayne retorts, "Some little scheme to run off again. That's why you needed the money." Susan cries, "No!" Wayne, however, tells her, "I'm not completely stupid, Susan. You've got everything you want here; why else would you need it?" Susan mutters bitterly, "That's a laugh. But I've agreed to stay with you and I will. I wouldn't be running out on you; it'd be mum, and I won't do that." Wayne demands, "Then why did you need the money?" Susan snaps, "I didn't; I just didn't need the car." A sarcastic smile crosses Wayne's face and he says, "I see! You love sitting around and watching cartoons so much you're never going to leave the house again?" Susan sighs, "Will you stop?" Wayne, however, grabs her arm, suddenly, and yanks her to her feet. He then stares into her eyes and snarls furiously, "Why did you need the money?" Susan cries, "It's none of your business." Wayne just snarls, "Everything about you is my business. Everything. Sooner or later, I am going to find out, so you might as well tell me." Susan hesitates before replying, "I owed some people." Wayne demands, "What people?" Susan snaps, "No one you know." Wayne repeats angrily, "What people?" Susan snaps, "It's none of your business - and it's got nothing to do with our deal." Wayne yells, "I just spent over ten grand to get your car back. If that doesn't make it my business, I don't know what does. Have you been gambling again?" Susan looks down at the floor and sighs, "Trust you to think of that." Wayne just snarls, "Have you?" He then puts his hand under Susan's chin and yanks her head up, snapping as he does so, "Look at me." Susan stares at him. Wayne then snarls, "Susan, you stupid... Didn't you learn the first time?" Susan just cries, "What else am I supposed to do? You cut me off from my family, my friends, everything worthwhile in my life. If I have to be with you, I need something to keep me sane." With that, she runs off out of the house. Wayne stands there, looking angry.

Beryl is walking along the verandah outside the Bendala Detention Centre. Gordon is approaching her, holding Robert, but he puts the boy down and he starts running towards his mother. Beryl picks him up and coos excitedly, "Hello, darling, mummy's missed you so much." She walks towards Gordon, going on at Robert, "You and Gordon have to look after each other while mummy's away." Gordon then tells Beryl, "I brought some things for you; I left them in Reception. Enough to keep the others off your back for a while." Beryl says sincerely, "Thankyou. It's good to see you." As a prison warder watches, Beryl puts Robert down on the ground and challenges him to a race. As the two of them run along the verandah, Gordon watches fondly. A look of sadness then crosses his face, though.

Susan is walking slowly down the driveway outside Dural. She stops and sits on the wall of the bridge over the stream. Wayne walks towards her, suddenly, and tells her, "I'm going to open an account for you - with an SP bookie." He sits down next to her, adding as he does so, "That way, you can gamble to your heart's content - within reason, of course. There will be a weekly limit on the account, but as long as you stay inside it you can throw your money away however and whenever you like." Susan looks at him suspiciously and asks, "Why?" Wayne shrugs, "I can't stop you from gambling - and if I don't give you some leeway, I'll be forever counting the silverware. This seems the most reasonable solution." Susan chuckles warily before telling Wayne, "No it's not. You're not interested in keeping me happy; only under the thumb - and this is just another way to do it." Wayne nods, "That's right - but you don't have to accept the offer. I can hardly force you into using it if you don't want to - but the money will be there." Susan stands up. She looks at Wayne and then walks off again, back to the house.

Gordon is standing in Fiona's room at the mansion, tucking some papers into his briefcase. The door to the room opens and Fiona walks in. She smiles at Gordon, "Hi there. How did the visit go?" Gordon replies mutedly, "Alright. I gave Beryl your love." Fiona looks at him and remarks, "You seem to be very worried about something." Gordon explains, "It's young Robert: he was very upset when we had to come home. Took me forever to get him to go to bed, and God knows how long he'll stay there - which has made me late for an appointment: I've got one with a management consultancy; it could lead to a job." Fiona smiles, "You go; I'll look after the child. Good luck." As Gordon heads out, he murmurs, "Thankyou. I think I'll need it."

Sometime later, a businessman is sitting behind a desk, looking at Gordon's résumé. As he puts it down on his desk, he comments to Gordon, who's sitting opposite him, "I didn't realise you were that Gordon Hamilton. You're no longer associated with Hamilton Industries?" Gordon just muses, "If I were, I don't supposed I'd be here!" The man remarks, "I wasn't aware the company had changed hands." Gordon, however, explains, "It's still a family company; I'm just no longer involved." The man asks, "Why would that be?" Gordon replies quickly, "Personal reasons." Looking concerned, the man then asks, "Do you often have family crises, Mr. Hamilton?" Gordon says blankly, "I'm sorry?" The man reminds him, "You said you were late because of a small family crisis; I wondered if that often happens." Gordon assures him, "Certainly not. I have a small child in my care at the moment. He's a lovely little boy, normally very well behaved, but this afternoon he had a bit of an upset." The man presses, "Surely, when you make an appointment, you should allow for that sort of thing? As it happens, I've a rather full schedule today and now it's been disrupted because one person's arrived late." Gordon retorts, "I did say I was sorry. If you're worried about it, I assure you that I'm normally extremely reliable - but there's an exception to every rule. In my case, today happens to be it." The man looks at him. He then goes on, "This child you mentioned: is he permanently in your care?" Gordon nods, "Yes, he's my stepson; I recently remarried." The man asks, "And his mother? Normally at home to care for him?" Gordon hesitates before retorting, "I don't see the point of all these personal questions." The man explains coolly, "We take the view that executive performance in the workplace is very much influenced by an individual's personal situation." Gordon replies quietly, "Yes, well, my wife's away at the moment and I'm looking after young Robert." The man asks, "Do you have domestic staff to help you?" Gordon replies, "No I don't, but I have a very good friend who's willing to look after him while I'm working. I don't see that my family responsibilities are going to prove a problem." The man just murmurs, "Let's hope not, eh...?"

The door to Fiona's room at the mansion opens and Alison walks in, calling, "Fiona? You there?" A moment later, Fiona emerges from one of the bedrooms and tells Alison, "I was just checking on Robert. Visiting with Beryl this afternoon really upset him most terribly." Ignoring this, Alison says, "I just came for the accounts. Are they ready?" Fiona hands her an envelope and replies, "I haven't had time to check them over, but I'm sure they're all in order." Alison assures her, "I'll let you know if they're not." She then adds, "By the way: how did you go when you went to see Susan yesterday?" Fiona sighs, "I'm not too sure, really. She was very pleased to see us at first - we chatted away and she played with Robert - but she didn't want to talk about Wayne and I didn't press her; I thought if I could gain her confidence there could be another time." Alison muses, "Maybe..." Fiona adds quickly, "Excepting I don't think there's going to be another time." Alison asks in surprise, "Why not?" Fiona explains, "Wayne came home while I was there, and her whole attitude changed. I don't know what he has on her, but it's quite obvious that his word is law." Alison shrugs, "Well, it was worth a try." Fiona says quickly, "Why don't you try again?" Alison, however, retorts, "Oh no, I've done my dash there. I was told to stay out of it. Besides, I've got more important things on my mind at the moment..."

Nick is standing by the bookcase in his office, looking at a book. A buzzer sounds suddenly on the intercom. He walks over to it and presses a button. His receptionist then tells him, "Doctor, Miss. Carr's here to see you." Looking momentarily taken aback, Nick says, "Ask her to come in." Alison steps into the room and smiles, "Hello." Nick gives her a kiss and comments, "Unexpected pleasure." Alison indicates a necklace that she's wearing, and she smiles, "I wanted to thank you personally. I think it's absolutely beautiful." Nick smarms, "On you, what wouldn't?!" Alison, however, tells him, "It's not just the pendant; it's the way you gave it to me." Nick queries in surprise, "Oh?" Alison explains, "The way you left it at the house with Pamela: it shows that you've accepted her and that you trust her. That means a lot to me." Nick comments, "Let's face it: I was a bit of a pig to her at first. I don't know why I was so hung-up on her being in prison." Alison points out, "I told you you'd like her once you made the effort!" Nick then says uncertainly, "There is one thing: I love seeing you any time, you know that - but it could be a bit of a problem you dropping in without 'phoning first." Alison, going and sitting down in front of Nick's desk, tells him, "I spoke to the receptionist; she said you didn't have a patient." Nick, however, says quickly, "It's not as simple as that. It's a dicey area. Let's say my next appointment turns up and I'm involved talking to you - so I keep him waiting five minutes; but he's a paranoid schizophrenic and it's taken me six months to get his confidence and now I keep him waiting because I'm talking to a girlfriend; he could see that as showing that I don't really care about him." He goes and sits down behind his desk. Alison stares at him and asks, "Are you serious?" Nick nods, "Yes. When I'm working, my patients need to feel that they're the only ones that matter - and when you're here... well, I'm not that good an actor." Alison muses, "I'd never thought of it that way." Nick presses, "But you do understand?" Alison assures him, "Yes. Yes, of course..."

Charlie is sitting in the lounge room at her house, feeding Isabella chocolates! The front door bangs suddenly and Alison walks in. Charlie looks at her and exclaims, "There you are, darling! You should have been at Fiona's this afternoon: Andrew's doing simply the most astonishing things to Janice!" Alison just goes and pours herself a drink, muttering as she does so, "I don't think I want to hear, Charlie. I've got something on my mind: I've just come back from Nick's office." Charlie sighs, "You haven't had another argument?" Alison explains, "No, no, it's nothing that concrete. It's... oh, probably nothing at all." She goes and stares out through the window, looking worried.

A short time later, Charlie is wiping Isabella's mouth with a cloth, sighing, "Mummy really shouldn't let you make such a little piglet of yourself. All that chocolate; if you're not careful, you'll end up with pimples!" Alison wanders in from the hallway and sits down on the edge of the couch. She then says, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to take it out on you." Charlie comments, "I'm not absolutely certain what it is you're taking out!" Alison tells her, "Neither am I; that's the problem. Maybe I'm starting to care too much about Nick... " Charlie gasps, "You're not thinking of breaking it off?" Alison, however, says, "I can't. I need him too much. I'm just worried about whether he needs me." Charlie assures her, "Of course he does, darling; how often has he taken you out this week?" Alison moves across to sit on the other couch as she replies, "Oh, I don't know. A lot. We're having dinner again tonight." Charlie tells her, "There you are, darling. If he didn't care for you, he wouldn't keep coming to see you, would he?" Alison muses, "I suppose not." Charlie then adds, "To take your mind off it, you know what you're going to do? You're going to come to the mansion with me and see the new Janice." Alison starts to protest, "No, Charlie, I--" Charlie interrupts, however, and tells her, "No arguments!"

Janice - still wearing her new clothes - sits down in an armchair in Fiona's room at the mansion, snapping as she does so, "No! I won't do it." Fiona and Andy are standing in front of her and Andy tells her, "Janice, you're being unreasonable." Janice, however, snaps, "I'm making a complete spectacle of myself just to satisfy you two. Look at me." Fiona retorts, "You look lovely. Everybody said so." Janice mutters, "I should be standing next to an organ-grinder with a cup in my hand. But I've kept my part of the bargain; if it makes you two happy to see me like this, here I am." Andy, however, tells her, "You're not finished yet." Janice snaps back, "I am. Clothes are one thing; you're not getting my hair as well." Andy sits down next to her and sighs, "I see. Everything I have done... all the changes I have made in my life, mean nothing, huh?" Janice insists, "Andy, they mean a lot." Andy retorts, "So much you won't even have a simple haircut." Fiona chips in, "Janice, dear, why don't you go down to the hairdresser with Andy? Have a talk to her; let her show you some styles. You never know: you might see something you really like." Janice insists, "I know I won't." Andy appeals, "Just go and talk to them." Fiona adds, "What harm could it do?" Janice looks at her and says weakly, "Oh, Aunt Fiona..." Andy tells her, "It's the least you could do after everything I've done for you."

A while later, Janice and Andy are standing outside a hair salon. Janice, however, is snapping at Andy, "I'm not getting my hair cut in a place like that!" Andy retorts, "Like what? A lot of very respectable ladies have their hair cut here - honestly." At that moment, a teenage girl emerges from the salon, her hair piled on top of her head, semi-punk style." Janice gasps at Andy, "Good heavens. If that's what they do here, forget it!" Andy, however, tells her quickly, "Hang on, slow down. That's, um, that's not a customer; that's the boss's daughter. Yeah! Just go in there and talk to them. Janice, you know I would never let them cut your hair like that." Janice hesitates before sighing, "Oh, alright. Let's get this over with." With that, she heads into the salon. A smile crosses Andy's face!

Sometime later, Fiona sits down with Charlie and Alison in her room at the mansion. They hear voices, suddenly, out in the hallway: Andy is saying, "Where are you going?" Janice retorts, "Upstairs. I'm washing it straight out." Andy tells her, "It'll go all streaky and look stupid." Janice just snaps back, "It can't look any more stupid than this." A smile crosses Alison's face as she hears Andy say to Janice, "Come and show Fiona first." The door to the room flies open, suddenly, and Andy comes in. He beams, "Hi!" Alison looks at him and comments, "Janice seems to be having second thoughts!" Andy, however, tells her, "No, it looks fantastic. She just needs a bit of time to get used to it, that's all." He then adds, "Presenting the all-new, all-exciting, ravishing, gorgeous, Miss. Janice Reid. Ta-da!" Janice remains standing outside! Andy cries, "Come on, Janice!" Janice snaps back, "No! It looks awful." Fiona calls back, "I'm sure it doesn't. Come on in and show me." After a few seconds, Janice walks into the room, slowly. Her hair is piled up on her head, in a big bouffant style. There are streaks of bright red dye dotted around in it!" Looks of shock cross Alison's, Charlie's and Fiona's faces." Janice growls, "You see? I look an absolute freak." Fiona starts to bluster, "Well, it's, it's, it's, it's, it's... it's very, er..." Janice interrupts and snaps, "I look like a jellyfish!" Charlie, however, stands up and smiles, "Don't be silly, darling! I know it's hard work, but we girls can't just sit around and wait for Mr. Right to turn up; we have to work to attract his attention." Janice mutters, "Any sensible man who saw me like this would run a mile. They've made me into a laughing stock." With that, she marches out of the room. When she's gone, Andy asks the women, "What do you think, huh?" Charlie muses, "It's certainly not the work of Raphael!" Andy replies, "No, it wasn't - but now that I've got the gear and all the hair and all that, all that is left is the walk." Alison asks in surprise, "The walk?" Andy nods, "Yeah, the walk: that prissy little duck-waddle of hers. Don't worry - I'll get it straightened out very soon - and when I do, she'll thank me, you'll see!"

Susan is sitting on the couch in the lounge room at Dural. Wayne walks in and hands her some sheets of paper, saying, "Latest form guide - hot off the press. Just picked it up from the newsagent's." He sits down next to his wife as she demands coolly, "Why?" Wayne smiles, "I thought you might like to christen your new account. It's all organised: a grand goes in each week, and if you lose it you have to wait a week before you can place any more bets." Susan says, "And if I win?" Wayne replies, "You have that much more to play with. I'm afraid it stays in the account, though: you can't convert it to cash without my signature." Susan mutters, "Naturally." Wayne comments, "I thought you might be grateful. Now you can indulge your little gambling bug to your heart's content. Isn't that what you wanted?" Susan mutters glumly, "If you say so."

It's evening-time. The radio is on on the bar at Dural. Susan is sitting by the bar, listening to the racing commentary, a glass of scotch in her hand. Wayne is sitting over on the couch, watching her. A look of annoyance crosses Susan's face suddenly, and she switches the radio off angrily. Wayne asks in surprise, "What did you do that for?" Susan retorts, "It was getting on my nerves." Wayne points out, "You had $400 on it and the horse looked like winning." Susan just mutters, "What does it matter?" Wayne sighs, "Sometimes I don't understand you." Susan snaps, "You've taken all the pleasure out of it - and don't pretend you didn't mean to." Wayne says lightly, "I'm sure I don't have the slightest idea what you're talking about - darling." Susan rolls her eyes furiously.

Fiona is sitting alone in her room at the mansion when the door opens and Gordon walks in. He says wearily, "Hello. I hope the young fellow's settled down." Fiona smiles, "Oh yes, he was a bit restless to start off with, but he soon settled down." She then asks, "Any luck with the interview?" Gordon, sitting down, sighs, "It didn't go well. I arrived late, I was flustered and I made the mistake of telling them about Robert." Fiona asks, "Why would that matter?" Gordon replies, "It shouldn't, but it does. And that's not the only thing: they seem to think that I'm too old - and the way I feel at the moment, they're probably right." Fiona looks at him and sighs, "Oh, for goodness' sake, Gordon, I'm sure there's many a position for a man with your experience." Gordon just murmurs, "Maybe." He then carries on in a tired voice, "Fiona, I have to face up to it: the pressure's starting to get to me; I don't know how long I can keep this up." Fiona cajoles quickly, "Come on... you're not to think like that. You've just had a hard day. You have got to think positive; if not for Beryl and Robert, then for yourself." Gordon murmurs, "I know. Don't worry: I'm not about to cave-in yet."

Andy is walking along the hallway outside. Janice comes downstairs. Her hair is back to how it was before. Andy looks at her in surprise and asks, "What did you do?" Janice retorts, "I've brushed it out - as much as I could." Andy insists, "But it looked really good." Janice snaps, "I didn't think so. No one liked it, Andy. Fiona nearly choked... Alison could hardly stop herself laughing... even Charlie thought it was too much." Andy points out, "They liked it; they even said so." Janice snaps, "They were only being polite. I don't know why you're trying to make me into someone I'm not. It's crazy." Andy insists, "I'm only trying to help." Janice murmurs, "Yes, well, I appreciate the thought, but no thankyou." She then indicates the suit Andy is wearing and asks, "Where are you off to?" Andy explains, "I thought I'd go out to a club for a while; have a bit of a dance." Janice warns quickly, "Don't you get into any trouble; I know what those clubs are like." Andy, however, retorts, "How? You've never been to one! See you later!" With that, he heads out. Janice stands with her arms crossed in the hallway.

Nick and Alison are at a restaurant. Nick is telling Alison a story about his psychiatric work, as she sips her coffee. As she puts her cup down, he says, "More coffee?" Alison, however, replies, "No." A strange look crosses her face suddenly and Nick asks, "What's wrong? You look as though you just realised that you forget to turn the gas off!" Alison, however, explains, "No, it's just... I had the strangest feeling." Nick smiles, "It's not surprising, considering what you've had to eat!" Alison, however, tells him, "No, no, it's not that. Oh... I guess it's nothing." Nick accepts this. He then says, "I'm going to have some more coffee. How about you?" Alison murmurs, "Yes." She then starts frowning. Nick asks gently, "What?" Alison tells him, "It's the same thing again - like someone just walked over my grave." Nick suggests, "Give it a moment; it'll pass." Alison, beginning to look shivery, says in horror, "No, it's getting worse. It's like a sense of invasion... Something's wrong." Nick tells her quickly, "Just relax. It's possibly just an anxiety attack." Alison, however, snaps, "I don't have anxiety attacks. I don't know what this is but I've never felt anything like it before. Nick, I'm frightened..."