The music plays in the background as we open the 25th episode of Somerset in the nurses’ lounge at Somerset Hospital. We see a half-dressed Victoria emerge from the bathroom, as she is changing out of her nurse uniform to meet Zachary for a drink.

Taylor enters the room and catches Victoria looking at herself in the mirror.

TAYLOR: The mirror isn’t going to crack, you know.

VICTORIA: (Turns around and smiles) Who said it would?

TAYLOR: You’d best get yourself together in a hurry, because your date’s here.

VICTORIA: What? (Looks at clock) I told him 10:30! Which… it is right now. I’d best get in there and finish up. Stall him, would you?

TAYLOR: Aye aye, captain. (Salutes Victoria humorously)

Taylor walks back out where Zachary is standing and engages him in conversation.

ZACHARY: She’s not ready, is she?

TAYLOR: Close, Zach. Close.

ZACHARY: I know she probably had a hard day here, but…

Victoria emerges from the nurses’ lounge, all dressed and hair fixed up. Taylor shoots her a look as if to say “how did you do that so quickly”.

VICTORIA: Was someone talking about me? (Goes over to Zachary) Hi there. Been waiting long?

ZACHARY: Naa, a few minutes. All set?

VICTORIA: You bet. Where did you want to grab a drink? Have you eaten?

ZACHARY: Yeah, I figured dinner would be too late, but we can always snack on something if you’d like.

VICTORIA: I know where we can go. Follow me.

The two leave the fourth floor nurses’ area, leaving Taylor behind still wondering about how Victoria pulled off the Houdini act.

CUT TO:

The scene changes to Jack’s condo, where Jack is on the couch taking a nap. As the camera pulls in closer, we can see a dream sequence is about to unfold.

In the dream, Jack, looking considerably younger, is wearing a tuxedo and smiling. We can’t see who, if anyone, he is looking at… we hear piano notes, which turn out to be the opening notes of “Could It Be Magic” by Barry Manilow.

As the music plays, we see Jack holding up a glass of champagne and the background unfold. It is darkly lit, but it appears to be a balcony with a sweeping ballroom below.

Before we can see any more, the dream ends, and Jack’s eyes flutter open. Jack rises from the couch and silently shakes his head.

The Somerset theme begins playing as we see an overhead shot of downtown, with the camera slowly pulling away from the buildings. The Somerset logo pops on the screen and goes into position at the center.

This… is Somerset. This portion brought to you today by Gleem, the toothpaste for adults. Fights cavities and freshens adult bad breath… and by the moist, delicious desserts of Duncan Hines.

SCENE TWO

A brightly-lit boat is shown on the waterfront. This is The Riverboat Club, our first glimpse at one of Somerset’s hot spots. Inside, Zachary and Victoria have taken a table seat on one of the elevated platforms and are waiting for a waitress.

ZACHARY: You look very nice, by the way.

VICTORIA: Thanks. I love seeing Taylor get all confused like that.

ZACHARY: Why, what happened?

VICTORIA: Well… a guy wouldn’t understand these things, but about a minute before Taylor came out to see you I was half-dressed. I was still deciding what I wanted to wear.

ZACHARY: Well, you wear it well.

VICTORIA: It’s the demure look, right?

ZACHARY: Hey, as long as you’re sitting in front of me, I don’t mind.

VICTORIA: (Looks down) You’re getting along fabulously on the ankle, by the way.

ZACHARY: It’s healing nicely. No more motorcycles for me for now… at least not until this heals. Even then I’ll be careful.

VICTORIA: You just better.

A waiter comes up to the table.

WAITER: Evening. What’ll we have tonight?

ZACHARY: What’s on tap, thanks.

VICTORIA: Tom Collins.

WAITER: Right away. (He walks off)

ZACHARY: (Looks at Victoria) I didn’t picture you as a gin girl.

VICTORIA: Well, maybe I have a hell-raising side and you don’t know it, now do you?

ZACHARY: Guess I’ll have to find out.

Victoria smiles as the music plays and the scene changes.

CUT TO:

Giovanni’s, where Jack is coming in and sitting at the bar. After a couple seconds, Giovanni emerges from the back and sees Jack.

GIOVANNI: Buona sera, Jack. (Shakes hand) Welcome to Giovanni’s!

JACK: Buona sera to you too.

GIOVANNI: I didn’t think I’d see you out late like this. Aren’t you usually up in the condo by now?

JACK: Ahh, I don’t melt if I’m out after 10.

GIOVANNI: Have you eaten?

JACK: Yeah, earlier tonight. I just came for a scotch.

GIOVANNI: (Nods head) I figured you still drank the stuff. Over 30 years and you haven’t changed a bit.

JACK: I just had a memory tonight that jogged my mind.

GIOVANNI: I always thought your mind was sharp as a tack. (Pours scotch and serves it) Thinking back in time to make sure you don’t go sour on us?

JACK: Ahh, yes. (Drinks from glass) Smooth as silk. (Smiles) Remember the Delaney Brands Christmas parties?

GIOVANNI: (Appears surprised) How the heck could I forget? They were lavish affairs. I even catered one of them while I was dating Rose.

JACK: And you two made a really cute couple. No, I was just thinking about the past because I think I’m about ready to release my details on the X Project.

Giovanni appears surprised that Jack is finally ready to talk. The music builds as the camera closes in on Giovanni’s face… the picture fades to black.

We’ll return to Somerset in just a moment.

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We see a still shot of the Somerset logo with the accompanying music.

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SCENE THREE

We pick back up at Petterino’s, where Giovanni is surprised to hear Jack talk about the project.

GIOVANNI: You’re finally ready to commit to this?

JACK: Yes. I’m going to talk to Nick Barclay and Mike Wagner next week to let them in. Are you with me?

GIOVANNI: Through thick and thin. (Shakes his hand) Refill?

JACK: One more for the road. (Laughs) Now how many times have I heard that before?

GIOVANNI: I’m just happy to hear you finally talking about the project in concrete terms. Rose said you had all these dreams about restoring Somerset to glory.

JACK: Dreams I intended on pursuing. (Drinks scotch) It’s just that I needed something to get my mind going.

GIOVANNI: And you found it?

JACK: Let’s just say… it came to me in a dream.

As Jack sips his scotch, Giovanni has a puzzled look on his face… and then he slowly gets what Jack is talking about.

CUT TO: The area by Somerset Hospital, as Victoria and Zachary have come back from The Riverboat Club to the hospital entrance.

ZACHARY: I hope you had fun tonight.

VICTORIA: I did. (Pauses) And next time, I buy the drinks.

ZACHARY: (Looks surprised) So I didn’t scare you off?

VICTORIA: Are you kidding? It takes an awful lot more to scare off Tori Petterino than just a guy offering drinks.

ZACHARY: Well then… I’d say tonight was a success.

VICTORIA: I’d agree. Let’s hope the second time is a charm.

Zachary and Victoria smile as the music plays and the picture fades to black.

We’ll return to Somerset in just a moment.

SCENE FOUR

Back at the hospital, Zachary is smiling and looking at Victoria.

ZACHARY: You really did look nice tonight. It was fun seeing Taylor’s face when you walked out all dressed and ready to go.

VICTORIA: I’ll have to do that again next time we go out for drinks. Heck, maybe we can go all out and splurge for dinner.

ZACHARY: I’ll hold you to that, then.

VICTORIA: And you too. Good night.

Zachary leans in and gently kisses Victoria on the cheek. She returns the favor… and the two share a slight peck on the lips. Obviously, the two want to take it one step further, but both are a little gun-shy.

As Zachary walks away, Victoria covers her cheek with her hand and touches her lips. Like a giddy teenager, she walks into the hospital with a spring in her step.

CUT TO:

Jack is walking home and he happens to stop by The Peoples Building. He looks up with a wistful eye at the building and its weathered exterior. He then sees a window, half covered over in dust. He peeks inside, just as a cop car flashes its lights.

OFFICER: Stop right there…

JACK: Officer… (holds up hands) I look in peace.

OFFICER: (Squints) Jack Martin? What brings you out here?

JACK: I was walking by. No malicious intent.

OFFICER: Okay. Just checking because that’s private property.

JACK: I know. I had no intention of setting foot inside.

OFFICER: Don’t worry about it. I trust you. Have a good night.

JACK: You too.

As Jack walks past the building, the camera peeks back at the window and then closes in on the window, as if to go inside the building.

The interior of the building has fallen into extreme disrepair, but as the camera pans around it’s easy to make out features. The final notes of “Could It Be Magic” play as the camera looks around…

And it’s obvious this was a ballroom at one point with a balcony – the same ballroom in Jack’s dream.

As the final note plays, the picture fades to black. The Somerset logo and credits roll following commercials.

Stay tuned for Salem Lives, coming up next over most of these SONBC stations… Join us each weekday afternoon at this time for the continuing story of Somerset.

This program was pre-recorded.