Caray, Caray!

Good work, Hellashelle. An don't worry; that prison thing is getting added to the list.

Great point about all the crimes that occurred during the arrest attempt. Those would be enough to keep him locked up for at least a few months in the US but in Novelalandia nothing if the guy's family has dinero.

I was disgusted with Claudio's weakness for the nasty Isela, but now I'm livid. If he gets Scuzzy Santibanez out of prison -- even by proxy -- his sons will disown him. They won't find out about this immediately, but they will before this tale is over. If Claudio has any sense at this point he will have some threat he can hold over Ursula if she outs him over this. We know she will, but I'm not sure he's wise enough to see that.

As for Isela, no redemption unless she decides to enter a convent. She still appears to have no conscience about what she's doing and she won't stop until she finds out Hosefa is only using her for this and doesn't give a tinker's curse about her. If Alma dies Isela loses Claudio, too, for reasons we've previously discussed.

Hosefa and Ursula have in common that they both hate their daughters and use them for their own purposes. Both of these daughters have yet to fight back.

More after caffeine.
 

Hellashelle- Excellent recap.

Of course Dan would make friends in prison. It's where he belongs! He's among his people. But this just makes him more dangerous, as he meets people who have the criminal skills to help him carry out his evil plans. Watch out, Max! If Max gets hurt due to Claudio helping Daniel, it will be just one more thing that will eventually separate him from his sons.

I had to laugh at poor Alma's face as all the craziness broke out in the hood. She always looks perpetually horrified when she's there. I'm going to agree and say part of the cause of the troubles that break out when she and Claudio are there, are result of the bad vibes they bring. And Claudio almost brought one of the scandals himself, with Ursula ready to barge into the dinner.

I've glad that Isela (backed against the wall by both Claudio and Leo) came clean at the end and told Claudio and Leo that it wasn't Orlando who bit her. Bet she didn't tell Alma though.

I'm just going to enjoy Max and MD being happy for the moment (we know many are working to tear them apart), and be happy that Max is finally on the Corina case. Although, finding her, when they have no last name or any other info about her, will be hard.
 

I liked Orly's self awareness about his knight in shining armor syndrome with Isela. A huge part of their relationship was him saving/protecting her from her abusive mother. Glad to see that he sees that.
 

The person who has disappointed me the most in all this is Ivana. I was hoping for ages that she came to her senses when Maria Dolores lectured her in the courthouse about asking a woman to give up a baby when she herself wanted to have one so desperately. She backslid very badly here.

What I'd love to know now is whether it would make any difference to her if she knew all the details of Ursula's plan? Would she even care about getting Danny-Boy's baby if she knew that it would be at the expense of Maria Dolores' life?
 

Excellent recap Hellashelle and thank you.

"As usual, he gently scolds her for not coming to him sooner and promises to help"

"Unholy Witch Bitch Charter, DF 2015 Edition"

"and he’s the kind of galan that knows you buy the whole package, not just the fun bits"

Ok I better stop or I'll cut and paste the whole darn thing.

Great points all, there is nothing more dastardly as Ursula's smile. Not sure if knowing MD has to die at the end would do it for Ivana, perhaps knowing that is Usrula's plan for her too, would.

The monogrammed baby outfit was all kinds of uncomfortable. I don't know how I feel about this, if it's a boy you can't name it Dan and Max will be a father to the child, biological or not, but I can see how it would bother Claudio and Alma.


 

Great point about the baby's name unless a miracle happens and Max's condoms leaked. We can still hope.

Now, if the baby were a girl would Ursula still consider it valuable?

As for Ursula she is beyond being a black widow and if Danny-Boy were to screw up again he'd also end up on her hit list. It's no accident that Arango named money before him in terms of her priorities.
 

Urban- Since she plans to hand the baby over to Ivana, no, I don't think she would give a damn if it was a girl.

As for Ivana, finding out the ultimate plan for MD is death would give her pause, but dangling the baby in front of her would make her come around. ITA, that if she learns death is also planned for her, then she'd take action.
 

My angst riddled brain begs for MD to stop withholding things from Max and circle the wagons. It's lining up Max will be fighting (for her and them) everyone from every direction playing offense and defense and they gotta be in sync.
 

Morning all,

Tofie - I agree. Max tells MD everything because he already thinks of her as his wife and for him that means they're partners. MD still thinks she's a C team pick that lucked out, so she's always trying to handle stuff herself "so as not to worry Max". It's ironic since her parents seemed like a pretty even team, while Max's seem uneven (Claudio decides, Alma follows).

I'm with Vivi on the baby's gender - it's bait for Ivana either way. But if it's a boy, she'll value the baby herself, if it's a girl it'll just be bait.

I don't know if Ursula would ever cut Dan loose. Arango said he wasn't sure if her loves went in the order of Money first, Dan second. I think even if Dan brought down the empire, she'd snatch him up, retreat to the cave from whence she came and rebuild; she's never down for long. Mal she'd abandoned in the street without a secnd thought or a look back.
 

I'm only now catching up with the past few days of episodes. Count me in the camp of whoever thinks Dan killed (Tofie, I think you first suggested that?). I didn't see it at first, but now it makes all the sense. And it makes Ursula the coldest bitch to ever call herself a mother.

I see where MD was coming from in going to talk to Claudio. It's what she wouldn't wanted when Josefa, the Santibanez, Ivana were spreading lies about her to each other, but especially to Claudio and Alma. I think she was hoping he'd say "yes, I think she has a crush on me. But she'll grow out of it and I'd hate to take away her job and whatever educational and career oriented opportunities she could gain from working for me. She's got a bright future. Besides, my wife adores her and I adore my wife. Thank you for telling me about the rumours though." Honestly, I'm surprised all of the cracks in his and Isela's big secret haven't prompted Claudio to pre-empt someone telling Alma by telling her about these "rumors" himself.He knows how protective she is of Isela and how distrustful she is of everyone from the vecindad; he could spin this easily.


 

Thank you Hellashelle, wonderful recap. I'm wondering what Isela will do with the info that Fermin gave her. She can ask Julian and Orlando, who all warned her. But really, so what if Isela learns that Josefa isn't her real mother? Josefa can just say that she's always thought of her as her real daughter, and didn't want to hurt her with the news otherwise.

Not sure about Mexican law, but I thought someone said earlier that if Max marries MD, then Dan automatically doesn't have parental rights?
 

Cathyx- I think the law presumes the father is the husband. But, Dan could demand a DNA test and try to reclaim his paternal rights. That's what Claudio brought up last night, and Leo that it was unfair that the law allows a rapist to do this.
 

US law allows this and US law is probably tougher in general on rapists.
 

True UA, historically some states did not prohibit the rapist from parental rights thought they could still be found unfit through other criteria. However, thankfully in the US there are federal laws now that influence states with funding to close the loopholes allowing parental rights for rapist. See Rape Survivor Child Custody Act

In our TN Dan can do whatever he wants and hope Max is prepared.
 

Thanks for the splendid recap, Hellashelle. I am still new to commenting and am not sure my prior attempt was successful. I am facinated with this novela and nervous at the same time so I won't watch an episode before reading the recap. I learn so much from the recap and comments and would like to know how to join the patio conversations from time to time. Is there a window within which we may make comments once the recap is published?
 

RetiredinFlorida, the patio is just a term we use when we comment here. There is no other spot, we have imaginary tables and drinks, although you are permitted to make a drink at home and drink it while we converse here.
 

RetiredinFlorida- Welcome to the Patio! As long as you comment before the next recap is up, you'll usually find someone is still listing and may respond. We don't tend to go back and comment on a recap thread once the new recap is up though. We're fickle that way. But even if you're a day behind, feel free to comment and ask questions on the episode that passed, if that's where you are. Our only rules about commenting are basically to NOT give spoilers on things to come (that have not yet aired in the U.S.)-- you are allowed to speculate (as long as it's not spoilers disguised as speculation). And don't delve too much into the personal lives and gossip about the actors. Pretty easy. So pull up a chair, pour your favorite drink, and join us!
 

Listening, not listing. But maybe listing too, if they've had too much to drink on the Patio. ;-)
 

Hey guys! I've been playing with this idea for a "deleted scene" and I wanted to share. Feel free to comment or ignore, as you like.

THIS DID NOT ACTUALLY HAPPEN ON THE SHOW:



“Just keep walking. Don’t run. Don’t make any sudden movement.”

Maria Dolores could barely breathe. She concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other, moving legs that felt at once heavy and impossibly weak. She tried to remember when she had felt this before, this empty drop of her stomach, the thick, clawing panic in her throat. The memory formed slowly in her mind’s eye, sliding in around the horror that was threatening to overtake her: she was on holiday, visiting abuela. She was stalking the lizards that sunbathed on the wide, flat rocks while her father told her how he would catch them as a child when he stopped, suddenly, mid-sentence.

“Maria Dolores,” he said abruptly. “Don’t move.”

More than his words, the note of fear that had crept into her father’s voice made Maria Dolores freeze. She had been focused on the lizard in front of her, but now her gaze stretched further to see the rattlesnake poised just a few feet away. Time seemed to slow and the world seemed to narrow to only the serpent before her. It licked the aired, and she wondered if it could taste her fear. She remembered feeling as though the blood were rushing up to her head while her stomach plunged, the terrible minutes rolling on into eternity while she waited desperately to hear her father say something else, to tell her what to do. The seconds stretched out as her panic grew. What if while she sat there, paralyzed in fear, her father had been struck by another snake! What if Clarita, clumsy on her baby legs, toddled away from Mama to follow her and Papa? What if a whole nest of snakes arose from this one and devoured them all? She had to move! She had to run! She had to -!

The cutlass came down with such blinding speed, Maria Dolores was shocked out of her waking nightmare. Before she could fully register that her father had cleaved the snake in two, he had already grabbed her up into his arms and was carrying her away, back to the house. She was so surprised, it was several seconds before she burst into tears from the panic.

But in the brief moment before her father tucked her face into his shoulder, she saw the two halves of the snake, still writhing, looking for all the world as though they would rejoin or even multiply. The image lived with her for many weeks and it was days before she’d sleep in her own bed.

It was with exactly the same feeling of terror that Maria Dolores walked carefully away from the Santibanez house. She prayed fervently that they weren’t following her, fought the urge to turn and check. For a moment, she had been certain they wouldn’t let her leave, thought that maybe they would close the circle they had made around her and lock her somewhere in that mansion. It was easily the biggest house she had ever been in, but she had never felt so caged. Except for when Daniel-

She ruthlessly tore the thought away and her pace quickened. She was out of the courtyard now, but she could still hear them, still see them, still smell them. The stink of Jacinto’s hair oil and cheap cologne; the sharp smell of alcohol – vodka? Whiskey? – from Daniel, the subtle, but coiling, fragrance of Ursula’s perfume. She could feel their eyes on her, watching, she was sure, for any sign of weakness. Her heart was pounding, the hairs on her arms were standing up. They were going to pounce, weren’t they. Any second and one of them would grab her by the arm and-!
 

Maria Dolores whirled around, certain Daniel was behind her. The empty sidewalk seemed to mock her paranoia. What could be wrong here? Here, in this fine neighborhood, in the middle of the day. It’s not a dark street on your side of town, is it? A bubble of hysterical laughter rose up in Maria Dolores and she turned back around and quickened her pace. Daniel didn’t need the darkness; he was the darkness. He had raped her in broad daylight. He had “married” her in her house, and beat her and raped her mere feet away, in the house she had grown up in, in the neighborhood she had been safe in all her life, in the middle of the day. He had had kidnapped her only – she checked her watch – forty-five minutes ago?! - there on a busy street, at knifepoint, on a clear afternoon.

And no one had come to her aid.

Surely this was a nightmare. Surely she hadn’t been stalked and forced into a car less than an hour ago. Surely those people hadn’t threated to take her child.

Oh God!

Suddenly Maria Dolores couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t think. She was running, gasping for air, trying to arrange her arms and legs so that they would go faster, but all the while feeling like they were tied together with string. Like a puppet, she thought distantly. I’m a puppet.
She swung around a corner and clung to a wrought iron fence, certain she was about to be sick.

They’re going to take my child! Her mind screamed. They’re going to take my child?! It was impossible, wasn’t it? They couldn’t take my child…Could they?

She forced herself to move forward, forced her legs to move though she felt stiff and clumsy.

He took your job. He took your virginity. He took your good name. He took your family’s house.

He took your innocence.

In the middle of the day. In the sunlight. Smiling.

Maria Dolores looked around wildly, crowded again by the fear that Daniel was right behind her or that Jacinto would leap out and shove her again into a cab. She was disconcerted to find that she was in a park, peering out from behind a tree. A boy with a ball paused and stared at her oddly, as though wondering if she were playing hide and seek. His mother also gave her a confused look before taking his hand and hurrying off.

They’re going to take my child.

She watched the woman hurry off and her mind catapulted forward. Getting away from Daniel wouldn’t just be a matter of taking her child’s hand and quickening her pace.

“I’ll fight for my rights from prison.”

 

And he would win, wouldn’t he.

Maria Dolores sank to the ground and hugged her knees. The wheels of justice worked slowly, she knew, and were greased in favor of the corrupt. She shuddered as she thought of the police officer that hadn’t taken her statement about the rape. “Are you sure?” he had asked. “Are you sure it was rape?”

Maria Dolores’s stomach roiled and then she really was sick, throwing up into a bush and then sinking onto a park bench. She watched as another family skittered away from her hurriedly.
They must think I’m drunk, she thought dimly. Everyone must think I’m drunk, or crazy, lurching along and hiding behind trees. How would a judge look at her, she wondered. Fired from her job under accusations of theft. Rehired, only to lose a dress the very same day. No money, no job. Where could she take her baby? To the house than Daniel now owned? To the neighborhood where her father had been killed? Daniel’s house was cold and filled with horror, but who could see that but her? Even if she charged Daniel, who would take her seriously? An unmarried, poor pregnant woman accusing her rich ex-boyfriend of rape? Let me get this straight: the wealthy and popwerful Santibanez family kidnapped you and threatened to steal your baby, along with fashion mogul Ivana Duval?
“Are you sure it was rape?”

Who would listen to her?

Max. Max would listen. Max would fight for me; I know he would.
But was that enough? Even his own parents didn’t believe him about her. She groaned as she thought of their attempt to charge Clara with theft. Even though Clara’s “confession” was absurd, the very fact that her little sister was accused of robbing a judge wouldn’t look good for her either. Daniel could surely buy a slew of witnesses to concoct a clean image. He’s charming, they would say. Such a sweet man. She thought bitterly of how she had thought the same thing, convinced her mother of it too.

Mamá!

She’d learn about the rape! Oh God, what would that do to her? Shame dripped down Maria Dolores’s throat. She’d thought the possibility of being pregnant by Daniel after learning their wedding was fake had been bad. Telling her mother had been horrible then, but this was so much worse.

And Max.

Tear pricked her eyes as she thought of him. She thought the embarrassment had been bad when he’d gone with her to the doctor for that first pregnancy test, but telling him about the rape had been almost unbearable. Yesterday, when he’d dismissed the possibility of her being pregnant, she couldn’t even look him in the eyes! A sob broke free and Maria Dolores covered her mouth. She had brought him nothing but trouble since she’d met him. One crisis after another that he was always cleaning up. She couldn’t imagine how large her bill would be when it came time to pay him back.

 

Oh, hellashelle! That is some wonderful writing and fantastic fan fiction! If this tn were a novel, that's how it would be written. Love it!
 

“There are no debts between husband and wife.” She thought of his smile when he’d said those words, how happy he had been. How happy they had both been. That was a debt she could never pay back: the hope he had given her. While her love for Daniel had been unabashed and pure, Max had had to pump life back into her heart before it stated beating for him. Loving him was like learning to walk; she had felt so unsteady and so unsure, but he had held her, supported her, every step of the way. And now, now when she wanted to cling to him not out of need, but to hold him out of want; now, when she wanted to spend the rest of her life trying to fill him with the sense of wonder and hope that she felt whenever she thought of him, trying to return to him the miracle that he had given her in himself; now it all came crashing back down. She could almost feel herself falling, being dragged back into the nightmare that was her life. Her life after Daniel.

There is no “after”; I’ll never escape him.

She began to breathe quickly, almost hyperventilating as the truth washed over her. Even if Max could win her case, even if they could get Dan locked up, he’d keep fighting. He and Ivana would drag them through this nightmare forever. She would have to tell her little boy that he was product of rape or explain to her little girl that her father was in jail because of mommy. God how she wished she’d never met Daniel! How could she ask Max to put up with him for the rest of their lives?! To raise his child?! It wasn’t fair to Max. God, it wasn’t fair at all! And Dan would certainly unleash hell if he knew Max was raising his child. She went cold, remembering the hate in his eyes back when she had told him she had slept with Max, that she loved Max. In that moment, she could see the murder in those eyes depths. If she and Max raised the baby together, Dan would go after him. And adopted or not, she knew Max would love her child with all the depth of his heart. He had beaten Daniel into the hospital for the rape, if Dan or his mother made good on their threats, Max could be pushed to kill for his child. She couldn’t let him have that on his conscience. Lord! Dan would be safer in jail, if it came to blows again!

 

She sat up suddenly and the world spun around her again. The cold washed over her again. Dan had hired someone to pretend to marry them. He had hired Jacinto to hold her up at knifepoint. Even if he were in jail, it would be a matter of routine to him to hire someone to kill Maximiliano. He might even do it just to leave her unprotected. And then there was Ursula. She had looked at Maria Dolores with a curious mix of hatred and indifference. As though she both hated her passionately and couldn’t care less about her at the same time.

I have to get away.

The idea fell like lightning in her mind: She had to leave. She had to go home now, pack her things and disappear. She had to protect her baby and she had to protect Max.

Max.

The air left her lungs again. As surely as she knew Max would fight her and her baby, she knew that she couldn’t just disappear. Max loved her and if she simply disappeared, he’d never stop searching for the truth. She thought of how frantic she would be if he just disappeared, how panicked, and how scared. She’d look at the Santibanez immediately. She’d want to rip apart that mansion, brick by brick, until she found Max, beat them all senseless until they told her where he was. She’d want to do that…but Max really would. He would end up losing his freedom or his mind, maybe even his life because of it.

Maria Dolores covered her face with her hands. What was she going to do? If she stayed, she’d never escape Daniel or his family. If she ran, she could get away from Daniel, but she’d lose Max. And if she lost Max…She felt sick again. If she lost Max, it would be like stab to the heart and she might never stop bleeding. But what were her alternatives? She needed to think, needed to figure out what to do, how to protect everyone from this monster she had brought into their lives. If she could just find a safe, quiet place to think for a bit-

Her cell phone beeped. Jacinto had turned off the ringer when they were in the cab, but had, surprisingly, given it back to her afterwards. Maria Dolores flipped it open and could see she had several missed calls. A reminder about Julian’s office party blinked onto the screen as well. Lord, she had forgotten all about it! How could she go and smile and pretend that everything was okay, after everything that had happened today? And Julian! She had blurted his name out to the Santibanez clan without thinking before. She had to talk to him too and she had no idea what to say. She closed her eyes. Her heart was racing, but she was so tired and so confused.

Oh Dad. I wish you were here.

Maria Dolores sighed and opened her eyes. First things first: Julian deserved his party. He’d already given her so much, given up so much in her name, at the very least she wouldn’t spoil this moment for him. Besides, she needed time to think. She would go to the party. She would smile and nod and get through it without ruining everybody’s night. Surely, tomorrow would be soon enough to talk to Julian. Surely she could figure out how to protect her family. There had to be a way. She just had to find it.

THE END.
 

Fanfiction! Yes, that's what it is. Thatnks Vivi! Do we have a section for fanfic on Caray? I can move it there so it's not plogging up the comments.
 

Leave it here hellashelle. I don't think we've ever had a dedicated fanfic place on the site, but certainly many of our gifted writers like you have from time to time shared some great work in comments. I loved the whole thing!
 

Thanks, Hellashelle. Terrific title and recap. I found myself nodding along with all your commentary, like:

“like the baboon that he is”

note that while he was no friends outside, as soon as he got arrested he made two! Yeah, he’s where he should be.

I had to sympathize with Alma when all hell broke loose in the vecindad. Shootings, three-way lover fist fights, oh my!

But Alma saying MD and Max had to have Baby #2 right away disturbed me. I could picture the polite but subtly different ways she’d treat both grandkids as they grew up, should she beat cancer.

I’m foggy on what Dan’s new friend in prison has against Max.

 

Hey Niecie. I very much agree about Alma as abuela. I actually wonder if Claudio would be better at treating his grandkids with equal coolness than Alma, who would play favorites.

Max put Dan's new friend in prison. I'll add it to the recap.
 

Yeah, we tend to forget that Max actually works on cases that have nothing to do with the Morales women or their friends in the vecinidad. :) What's with all these people wanting to settle scores with the lawyer or judge who put them or a loved one away for a crime.

In the Marta case, I'm willing to be open to the possibility that someone set her up in the bank for the theft. But that has nothing to do with Claudio. All the evidence that came before him in the court all pointed to her guilt, and he gave the just sentence for the crime it had been proven she committed. Maybe Josefa should have turned her hatred and scrutiny on Marta's colleagues at the bank instead.
 

Hi Vivi. Thanks for the kind words above :)

LOL, yes I do totally forget that Max's job idn't just fixing MD's problems!

Alma's always fluttering. Her hands are always fluttering over her mouth or her heart, she's always worrying. I"m really annoyed that she has pancreatic cancer because I want all that fluttering to come to a solid halt with news of Claudio and Isela.

Thought I get why MD went to talk to Claudio, now that she has, I wish she'd tell Max about the "rumors," if only to just get it off her plate and out in the open between them so she can't be accused of hiding it later.
 

Wow, Hellashelle that is soooooo good. Adriana should have read this and perhaps we'd see the terror instead of a blank stare oftentimes from MD. Awesome.
 

Thanks Tofie! At the very least, imagining it made me feel better about MD's huge lie.

I'm very sad that Ivana crossed back over to the dark side. She wears her feelings right on her sleeves so Ursula can manipulate her every which way. She needs a little Chelo in her life.
 

Great stuff, Hellashelle. We should be writing for Televisa.
 

Thank you Urban! Yes, Televisa should look to CarayCaray Productions for all of its writing and editing needs ;)
 

Thanks hellashelle, good recap, episode kinda stunk. But what else is new with this crew?
Would this be the first time isela has told the
Truth in a month of sundays? About orly not attacking her. And now she'll Have to keep a striaght face while shes sexin up Almas lusty husband with the knowledge of almas cancer problem. The girl is a peice of work.
Poor alma. A cheatin husband and cancer too. Which is worse?
Its good MD and Max are happy. It'll be short lived, hell is gettin out of jail.
Can somebody please yell me, why the hell is
It so important for ivana to have this child? I
Know why ursula wants her to have him or her shes a greedy bwitch← not a typo. She
Don't wont to share the wealth she has with
Her crazy twisted spawns, which is weird.
Ivana can adopt a child, why cause trouble
For yourself when you don't have to? I totally
Agree with gerry shes loco. Shes not ready to be anybody's momma.