At Spencer, Wyatt sat behind Bill's desk as he conducted a meeting with a couple of employees. Wyatt let them know that it had been good of Justin to fill in, but they'd report to Wyatt from then on. The employees left, and Katie entered, saying Wyatt looked good behind the desk. To Wyatt, it felt good, too. Katie warned him not to get too attached.
Katie reminded Wyatt that Bill wouldn't be gone forever, and Bill still had the papers to sue for custody and to cut Wyatt out of his life. She said they had no idea what Bill would do next. Wyatt asked if it was possible that Bill had changed. "Into what?" Katie responded.
Wyatt reasoned that the near-death experience could have mellowed his father and made him more accepting of the engagement. Katie didn't think they should be caught off guard because the stakes were too high.
Just then, Jarrett arrived in a wrinkled plaid shirt. Katie decided that she needed to get over to Forrester. After Katie left, Wyatt noted that Jarrett didn't look so good. Jarrett attributed it to not being accustomed to such a cruel dismissal after all of his years of service. Jarrett wondered if Wyatt could speak to Bill on Jarrett's behalf to help Jarrett get his job back.
Wyatt thought it might do more harm than good because Bill hadn't been receptive of Wyatt, either. Wyatt believed that Jarrett was overestimating Wyatt's influence over Bill. Jarrett reasoned that they didn't need Bill, anyway, and Wyatt could remain at the helm and hire Jarrett back. Jarrett said it was his home, and he didn't want to go.
Wyatt became worried that Jarrett was too invested in the job, and he said Jarrett should think of it as a chance to make a fresh start somewhere else. Jarrett replied that he wanted to work at Spencer, and he'd earned his place there by doing Bill's dirty work. Jarrett felt that Bill had compromised Jarrett's journalistic integrity and then had booted Jarrett out as if he were nothing. He asked Wyatt to put a stop to the injustice.
In the Forrester CEO's office, Katie was working when Thorne arrived and asked if she was still engaged. Katie said she was sorry to disappoint Thorne, but she was still marrying Wyatt, who was running Spencer. Thorne said Wyatt should enjoy it while he could unless Bill had come to terms with the engagement, but Thorne had to say he couldn't blame Bill if he hadn't.
Katie asked if Thorne was on Bill's side. Thorne wasn't. He said Bill was a bully, and Katie had horrible taste in men. Katie replied that Wyatt was nothing like Bill. "You would know," Thorne quipped. Embarrassed, she threatened to stab Thorne with her pen.
Thorne replied that Katie could have her fun, but she didn't need to marry Wyatt. Katie stated that she wanted to marry Wyatt. Thorne asked if marrying Wyatt was worth losing her son.
In the design office, Steffy ordered Hope to back off and find someone else to focus on other than Liam. Hope said that Steffy either couldn't or wouldn't understand that Liam couldn't take many more blows. Steffy asked if Hope thought Steffy was waiting to hurt him again, but Hope said she didn't think Steffy considered Liam's feelings consistently enough.
Steffy remarked that things had really changed since Hope's return. Steffy had thought the women would be friends, but it had started to seem like Hope would stab Steffy in the back. Hope replied that it wasn't just about Steffy; it was also about Liam. Steffy believed that if Hope was concerned about him, she'd advise him to go home to let his wife to take care of him.
Hope wondered if Steffy really would take care of Liam and said Steffy had given reasons to doubt it. Steffy replied that it didn't change the fact that she and Liam had created something worth fighting for, and the baby would be there soon. Hope quipped that Steffy had played the baby card enough.
Offended, Steffy said the baby wasn't a card, and Steffy and Liam's child had once mattered to Hope. Hope responded that she knew more than she had before. Steffy accused Hope of getting into Liam's head. Hope replied that she'd told him that he deserved the best. Steffy assumed Hope didn't think Steffy was it.
Steffy assumed that Hope thought she was better than Steffy. Hope said she wouldn't sleep with her husband's father. Steffy wondered if Hope spent her time with Liam, reminding him of what Steffy had done. Hope replied that she didn't need to because it haunted Liam. Steffy asked if Hope was still in love with Liam. "You are, aren't you?" Steffy asked.
Hope admitted it and said she and Liam had been set to have a life, marriage, and children together until Steffy's lies and collusion with Bill. Hope stated that Steffy had won, so Hope had moved on with Wyatt. After that had ended in heartache, Hope had left town. She had kept trying to forget. Hope said she'd had a few relationships.
Steffy guessed that no man had compared to Steffy's husband. Agreeing, Hope added that his father certainly didn't. Steffy said she'd screwed up, but if Hope would stay out of it, Steffy and Liam might be able to work through it. Hope replied that Steffy hadn't been thinking about her marriage the night she'd taken up with Bill. Hope believed Steffy had only been thinking of what she'd wanted, and Steffy and Bill were very much alike and might be together in the end.
At the Dakota, Liam was surprised to see Bill on his doorstep. Bill said he'd gotten out of the hospital, and he'd never spent so much time alone in bed before that. Liam thanked Bill for letting him know. As Liam tried to close the door, Bill asked if he was getting the bum's rush after all the effort he'd expended to make the trip.
Liam asked if Bill thought it was wise to be there. Bill didn't care whether it was or not; he needed time alone with his son. Liam didn't understand why Bill was there or why he was even able to look at Liam after Liam had tried to kill him. Bill reckoned that the experience had given him perspective about his life and Liam's. To Bill, life was fleeting. One had to make the most of it while one could and live in the moment with the people one loved.
Bill thought it wouldn't be possible to do that if Liam were in prison. He noted that he and Liam shared a secret, but not a good one. Bill didn't think anyone should know that Liam had shot his own father in the back. Liam asked where Bill was headed with the talk.
Bill said that him almost dying had to be a wake-up call for them both. Liam agreed that it was hard to cope with what he'd been capable of doing, despite what Bill had done to Liam.
Bill remarked about Liam having someone who was supportive. Liam assumed Bill meant Steffy, but Bill interjected that he was talking about Hope. Liam asked why Bill was bringing Hope into it. Noting that Hope had been there at the hospital, Bill figured that she was the only one whom Liam could trust with his secret. Liam asked why they were talking about it.
Bill said that seeing Hope and Liam together had reminded Bill of how in love the two had been. Liam quipped that it reminded him of all the times Bill had interfered. Bill admitted to it, and he apologized for it. Bill said that if he hadn't, things would be different for Liam and Hope.
Opening the door, Liam decided it was time that Bill go home for some rest. Bill felt that Liam was getting uncomfortable because he knew Bill was right, and all the time Hope and Liam had spent together had made old feelings resurface. Bill didn't think it was unreasonable for the two to feel a resurgence of love and feelings of destiny.
Slamming the door, Liam roared that Bill was up to his old matchmaking tricks again. Liam had thought for a second that Bill had arrived to see how his son was doing, but noting that Bill hadn't bothered to ask, Liam volunteered that he was pretty messed up in the head. Liam stated that Bill was there to throw Hope at Liam.
Bill asked why he had to throw something at Liam that Liam had already caught. Bill said that Steffy and Liam had had a good run, and for being a round peg and a square hole, they'd made an impressive go at it; however, Bill didn't think Liam would ever look at Steffy the same way again after what had happened between her and Bill.
Bill wanted them all to be happy, and he felt that it was a sign that Hope had returned when Liam had needed her most. Liam said it was about Steffy, not Hope. Bill admitted that he and Steffy had been captivated by each other when they'd first met. Liam asked if Bill would really say it to Liam's face. Bill replied that Liam liked honesty.
Bill felt that what he and Steffy had done had been wrong, but it had been right, too. "Oh, my God..." Liam murmured. Bill stated that it had been mutual, and Steffy had told Liam that herself. Bill felt it had been the culmination of what they'd felt before, like a sparkle candle that one couldn't put out. Bill assumed it was the same for Hope and Liam. Bill figured that she had been the only one Liam had trusted with the secret of that night. Liam asked if Bill would stand there and try to make a deal with Liam. "My freedom for my wife?" Liam asked.
In Liam's hotel room, he and Bill discussed their situation. Bill noted that Liam cared for Hope. Bill added that Hope was the only one who knew that Liam had shot Bill. "besides you and me."
Liam wondered how Bill could bargain with him. Liam assumed that Bill wanted to strike "a deal." "I get my freedom, and you get my wife," Liam said.
Bill shook his head and said that he would keep his promise to keep their secret that Liam had shot him. "I did something terrible to you, and you did something worse to me," Bill said. He promised to forget it and move on. He wanted Liam to do the same, but Liam balked. Bill called Liam sanctimonious. "What about what I've been through? You almost killed me," Bill shouted.
Liam grew angry and reminded Bill that he didn't remember anything and called it an out-of-body experience. He said he'd shot Bill because he'd seen him "proposing to my wife." Liam said it was brain trauma and added that it wasn't an excuse, but he hated violence. "It's not who I am," Liam said. He added that he'd felt the same thing when Quinn had kidnapped him. He still couldn't remember much of that time.
Bill picked up the gloves Liam had and wondered if they were the gloves Liam had used. Liam nodded and said they were 100 percent sheepskin, just like the police had said.
Bill professed that they'd both had enough and had to find a way to get along. They were messed up, "but we are still here." Bill added that they were still father and son and had to move on with their lives and had to forgive one another. Liam refused and reminded Bill that he was the reason Liam had snapped -- all because Bill had slept with his wife and had proposed to her.
Bill ignored Liam's anger and told him they all had to move on and could take care of Liam's baby together, "and you can be with Hope." Liam added that Bill wanted to be with Steffy. "That's what this is all about. You want my wife," Liam shouted. Bill agreed and said Steffy had been with him first. Liam sighed in disgust.
Bill reminded Liam that he and Steffy had had something special and intense, and he had ended it because of Katie. Bill professed that it had been easier for him to stay away from Steffy because "I gave her to you."
"Gave her to me?" Liam shouted. He angrily told Bill that women were not possessions. Bill said that he had broken Steffy's heart and his own at the time. Liam reminded his dad that she had married Liam and had a family with him until Bill had ruined everything.
Bill continued to claim that he and Steffy were meant to be together. Liam called him arrogant. "Get out," Liam screamed and repeated. Bill held the sheepskin gloves and tossed them aside. Bill left, and Liam looked furious.
At Forrester, Hope and Steffy discussed that Hope had changed and no longer supported Steffy's marriage. Steffy accused her of faking it all along. Hope disagreed.
"Nothing's changed," Hope countered, but she added that Steffy's actions prevented Hope from being supportive. "You're still not over Liam," Steffy accused. Hope looked away. Steffy said Hope had been hard to trust, and she had gotten into Liam's head.
Hope replied that Liam had no power over how he felt. He was a different person than he had been -- all because of what he'd been through. "I'm not sure he'll ever get over it," Hope said.
Steffy tried to explain away Liam's feelings because he'd been "very upset with me for a long time." Hope said she'd never been more worried about Liam. Steffy looked surprised.
Steffy insisted that she and Liam would work things out because she was pregnant with their daughter. She wanted Hope to stay out of their lives. Hope countered that Bill had proposed to Steffy and wanted a life with her. "You brought this on," Hope said, and she added that Bill would never give up.
Steffy maintained that Bill thought he had a future with Steffy, but that wasn't what Steffy wanted. Hope said she was more concerned about Liam than Steffy understood.
In another office at Forrester, Thorne teased Katie about her relationship with Wyatt. He called her a cradle robber. She countered that it was a double standard because if men had done something like that, there would be no issue.
"And I'm not that much older than Wyatt," Katie said. She added that she was just so polished and sophisticated that it seemed that way. Thorne asked for some pointers, and Katie said he was doing just fine on his own. Thorne added that Katie's biggest problem "just awoke from a coma." He figured she had to be "bummed" because things would have been much easier for Wyatt and Katie if Bill had died.
Katie stopped Thorne and said that she didn't want her son to lose his father -- even one like Bill. She explained that was what she loved about Wyatt -- he was very loving and everything that Bill wasn't. Thorne questioned if she was willing to risk everything to be with Wyatt. He added that Bill had threatened to disown Wyatt and sue for full custody of Will. Katie hoped that Bill had gained some perspective after a near-death experience. Thorne agreed, saying that would happen to a normal person -- but not Bill.
"Ask yourself, Katie, is being engaged to Wyatt going to work?" Thorne asked. Wyatt walked in and said he had smelled jealousy in the hall. He advised Thorne to grill him about their relationship and to leave Katie alone. Thorne said he wanted Katie to be happy. Thorne promised he wasn't trying to be a jerk, but they had to be worried about what Bill had threatened to do before he'd been shot. Thorne got a call and had to leave but promised to return.
After Thorne left, Wyatt wondered what made Thorne so sour. Katie told him not to worry. They discussed that neither of them had heard from Bill since he'd been released from the hospital. Katie and Wyatt hoped no news was good news.
Katie and Wyatt hoped Thorne's opinion that they were doomed was wrong. Katie hoped Bill recognized he'd been given a second chance. Wyatt hoped for an epiphany. Wyatt wanted to be positive and hoped that his dad had "mellowed out." They embraced.
Later, after Wyatt had gone, Thorne returned and told Katie that life with him would be far less complicated than with Wyatt. Katie smiled.
At Spencer Publications, Wyatt sat in Bill's office chair, attended to business, and made a deal on the phone. Bill entered. Wyatt quickly ended the phone call, saying, "Dad, you're here." Bill said that Wyatt looked comfortable in his chair. Wyatt said that he'd tried to take care of business.
Wyatt asked how Bill felt. Bill responded that "it only hurts when I breathe." Wyatt wanted to help and felt he had been groomed to sit at Bill's desk one day. "One day," Bill repeated.
Wyatt added that it might be too soon to discuss, but he hoped that Bill would reconsider and give Wyatt and Katie his blessing. Wyatt stammered that he wanted to get past all the bad choices. Wyatt hoped that his dad would reconsider cutting him out of his life and his business. Wyatt encouraged his dad to work with him so they could work things out together. Bill looked indifferent.
At the hotel, Liam sat alone with the sheepskin gloves in his hand. He heard the echo of Bill's voice shouting, "She was with me first." Suddenly, memories of the night Bill had been shot surfaced in his head, and he flashed back to the experience. Liam heard the shot. He dropped to his knees and continued to hear Bill's voice shouting at him.
At Spencer Publications, Wyatt and Bill discussed their relationship. Wyatt stammered that he wanted to work through their problems. "You could have died," Wyatt said. "Oh, I learned a lot," Bill said. Wyatt said that Bill had dodged a bullet, meaning death, but Bill said, "I didn't," meaning he'd been hit by the bullet.
"I mean, what I mean is we got a second chance to work through our problems," Wyatt said. Wyatt asked if his father really wanted to ruin Wyatt's relationship with Katie.
"Your engagement to Katie is wrong, and I'm not going to change my mind about it," Bill advised. He warned that Katie and Wyatt would "pay the price" if they continued the engagement. Wyatt balked, but Bill said they were disrespecting him. "I love you, Wyatt, but don't make an enemy of me," he said.
Wyatt questioned if Bill wanted to alienate his son after he'd already alienated Liam. Bill shared that he and Liam would never be able to reconcile. "Liam and I have irreconcilable differences," Bill said. He explained that it had nothing to do with Wyatt.
Bill encouraged Wyatt to think about his future. He offered to make Wyatt the heir to his fortune and company. Wyatt scoffed that Bill would never leave the company, but Bill said he did have future plans that had nothing to do with the company.
Wyatt assumed Bill meant a future with Steffy. Bill said he wanted to make an offer that he would leave the company in five years and leave it in Wyatt's leadership if and only if Wyatt ended his engagement to Katie. However, he threatened that if Wyatt did not comply, Wyatt would end up with nothing.
Bill encouraged Wyatt to "do the right thing." Wyatt questioned who Bill would choose to lead the company if it weren't Wyatt, and Bill answered that it would be someone outside the family.
Bill reminded Wyatt that he would not allow Wyatt to become the stepfather of his half-brother. Wyatt realized that nothing had changed. Bill reminded Wyatt that he would step down in five years, and he promised to put it in writing. Bill advised Wyatt to end his engagement. Wyatt looked thoughtful.
At Forrester, Thorne discussed with Katie that her life would be complicated with Wyatt. "Do you really want to marry Wyatt?" Thorne asked. He worried that Bill would make her life miserable if she married Wyatt. "I happen to love the guy," Katie said of Wyatt. Thorne noted that Katie had loved Bill and also Ridge -- she had made some bad decisions.
Thorne added that he didn't want to be critical, but he was concerned about Katie and felt a custody battle with Bill would be brutal. He also wondered if she was equipped to handle the tabloid articles that would say she married her ex-husband's son. He admitted that the Forresters and Spencers were already in the tabloids frequently, but he believed she might be fighting for love and end up in an "all-out war" she couldn't win. Katie agreed but said Bill shouldn't have the power to dictate who she could love. "I don't want to be alone. I'm good at it, but I want a partner and a family," she said. Thorne told her she didn't have to marry Wyatt in order to not be alone.
At Forrester, Brooke greeted Ridge, and he looked distracted. She asked what was wrong, and she worried that he was thinking about being in jail. He agreed he had been preoccupied "thinking about the man who put me there." "Don't waste time on that. You're where you belong," Brooke advised. They embraced.
Brooke changed the subject and said she wanted to get the family together down by the pool with a barbecue. Ridge was clearly distracted. "I can't stop thinking about him. I can't. I gotta settle things between us. He slept with my daughter; he threw me in jail," Ridge ranted. He added that Bill was irrational and had to be reminded that he couldn't do that "to my family."
Brooke was worried and begged Ridge to stop and remember that he was out of jail and that Bill had told the police that Ridge was not guilty of shooting him. Ridge didn't care. He insisted he had to see Bill, and he left the office in a huff.
Wyatt entered Katie's office, and Katie asked about Bill's mood. Wyatt avoided direct questions and told her that Bill was clearly insistent he wanted to be back at work. Katie pointedly asked about Bill's opinion of their relationship and engagement. Wyatt admitted that Bill had arrived "with guns blazing." Katie called it a "bad metaphor."
Wyatt confessed that he'd tried to get Bill to change his mind, but he'd been unsuccessful. "He made me a proposal, Katie," Wyatt said. He explained Bill's offer that if they ended their engagement, Wyatt would be heir apparent and running the company in five years.
Katie acknowledged that Wyatt had always wanted to run the company -- it was a dream of Wyatt's, and he was good at it. "I can see how much you've enjoyed filling in for him," she said. Katie asked what Wyatt had told his father.
Wyatt explained that he'd told Bill that he loved Katie and wanted to be with her. Wyatt worried about a custody battle. Katie agreed she didn't want her son to someday see an ugly battle between his parents on websites. She noted that Bill was "dangling the keys to the kingdom."
Wyatt and Katie agreed they wanted a future together but they didn't want to be at war with Bill. "What are you saying?" Wyatt asked. Katie professed her love for Wyatt and said she wanted a future with him, but she also wanted what was logically best for them and for her son.
Wyatt agreed. He wondered if they could have a future without being engaged or married. They discussed that they could have a relationship but not be married, but Bill needed to feel he was in control. They agreed to end their engagement, and Katie removed her ring. Wyatt asked Katie not to give up on them, and he believed they could be smart enough to "outfox the fox." They kissed.
Later, Thorne met with Brooke, who was upset because Ridge had gone to confront Bill. Thorne wondered what Ridge was thinking, and Brooke explained that Ridge felt Bill had framed him. Ridge wanted to tell Bill how he felt. Thorne and Brooke were both worried.
At home, Bill lay down on his couch. He heard a knock at the door and called out that it was open. Ridge entered, and Bill mused "I'm getting to know your knock. What took so long?" Ridge wondered why Bill didn't lock his door. Bill replied that whoever had shot him wouldn't be back.
Ridge felt that Bill had set him up. Bill disagreed. He reminded Ridge that Ridge had been the last person to see him, and Ridge had admired his gun and threatened him more than a few times. "And you hate me," Bill said.
Bill said that shooting him in the back had been a cowardly act, and he didn't think Ridge had it in him to pull the trigger. They argued, but Ridge wanted Bill to stay away from Steffy and let Liam and Steffy work things out.
Bill said it wouldn't happen. Ridge angrily warned Bill that Bill would never have Ridge's daughter. Bill answered that it wasn't up to Ridge; it was up to Steffy. Ridge maintained that Steffy wanted to be with Liam. "Stay away from my daughter. I'm warning you," Ridge shouted.
At Forrester, Ridge was in the office with Steffy, who was deep in thought about something. Ridge asked if she was okay and if things with Liam had improved. She quipped that her father should ask Hope, who seemed to know more about Liam than his wife. Steffy said that Hope was even doling out advice, too, saying that Steffy should leave Liam and go to Bill.
Later, Ridge was surprised to hear from Steffy that Hope had admitted to being in love with Liam. Steffy said Hope hadn't gotten over Liam and harbored resentment for Steffy stealing him. Ridge said Steffy hadn't done that and asked if Hope's support had been a sham. Steffy replied that Hope had wanted the marriage to work for the baby's sake, but something had changed. Hope spending all that time with Liam, especially working on HFTF, made Steffy uncomfortable.
Steffy felt that Hope was trying to protect Liam from something, but Steffy didn't know what. With the baby on the way, all Steffy wanted was support and her husband. Ridge said he would help Steffy find out what Hope could know that they didn't. He planned to talk to Brooke and Hope to see what he could learn.
In the design office, Hope discussed HFTF with Liam, but he seemed dazed. Liam thanked her for trying to get his mind off his problems, but he couldn't stop thinking of what he'd done to Bill. Liam believed he should be turning himself in, but Hope wasn't sure he'd done it. In her view, the crime was very unlike him, and she believed that if it had happened, it had been under extreme circumstances. Liam stated that he needed to tell Steffy that he'd shot his father.
Hope thought it was a bad idea to put the secret on Steffy, who the police might question and pressure to tell what she knew. Hope thought Steffy and Liam could face jail for attempting to cover it up. Hope promised to help him and get him the therapy he needed. Liam thanked Hope, but he felt that he owed it to Steffy to tell her the truth.
Later, Liam dropped papers off at Pam's desk. Steffy saw him as she exited the CEO's office. Upon greeting him, she asked why he was there. Liam revealed that he'd met with Hope. Steffy asked for a moment, and he followed her into the CEO's office.
Steffy could tell Liam was upset and asked what was going on with him. She noted that something had changed. Liam said something had, and it had made him see himself in a whole different way. Steffy asked what had happened. She wanted to help, but Liam didn't think there was anything anyone could do about it.
Steffy asked what Liam was talking about. He stated that it had to stay confidential, but then he said that it might be good for it to get out. Steffy said he was scaring her. He explained that Steffy had done something horrible, and he'd reacted by doing something worse in return.
Steffy didn't know what Liam was talking about. Liam explained that he'd been unable to forgive her or see her the same way after what had happened. She said he had had to believe that it could change. Liam didn't know what to believe or whom, and he especially didn't know if he could believe his father. Liam recalled that Bill had pleaded for forgiveness and said he'd honor the marriage, but in truth, Bill had had other plans.
Liam admitted that he'd been there at the cliff house that night before Steffy had seen him. He stated that Bill had gotten down on one knee in Liam and Steffy's home, and Bill had asked her to marry him. Liam said he'd been standing outside and had seen it through the front door.
Steffy didn't get why Liam had never said anything. Liam explained that, somehow, he'd wound up in the bushes with a concussion and had blanked out as he'd done that time with Quinn. Steffy asked why Liam hadn't said that when he'd arrived. He explained that he hadn't known it at the time.
Liam told Steffy that he'd gotten into his car and driven to his father's place. He said it got a little vague from there on out; however, he'd seen the golden gun, and he'd taken it. Liam revealed that he, not Ridge, had shot Bill.
Back in the design office, Ridge was with Hope. He said he'd just been with Steffy, and he wanted to talk about Hope and Liam. Hope replied that Liam was her friend, and she'd be there for him, no matter what. Ridge conveyed that Hope had said she loved Liam, and it would be hard to respect Steffy's marriage with feelings like that.
Hope claimed to have gone out of her way to help Steffy hold that marriage together. Ridge called it sweet, but he suspected that there was something else going on. Ridge believed Hope knew something that Steffy and he didn't, and he asked what it was.
Ridge's phone chimed, and he received a message about lunch the next day. He noticed that he'd missed another message and murmured that the eagle had landed. He'd wondered when she would get there. Hope asked who she was.
At Bill's house, Detective Sanchez arrived with an evidence box. Bill said he'd already told the police everything he knew. Sanchez reasoned that the shooter was still out there and could try again. Bill didn't think so. Sanchez asked why, and Bill insisted that the shooter had been a stranger.
Bill didn't want to go over it again, but Sanchez said they had to get things straight because, at first, Bill had thought it had been Ridge. Sanchez pulled the golden gun out of the box, and Bill asked what Sanchez was doing. Sanchez said he was hopefully trying to help Bill remember exactly what had gone on the night of the shooting.
Sanchez pulled the gun, its display case, the contract, and the pen out of his box. Bill asked what Sanchez hoped to achieve. Setting up the items, Sanchez hoped he could reenact the night and jog a memory or clear things up for Bill. Bill believed that he was already clear that someone had shot him in the back. To Sanchez, it didn't make sense that an intruder had decided to shoot Bill because a gun just happened to be there.
Bill said that Sanchez was wasting their time. Sanchez asked Bill to think back to that night. Recalling the placement of the gun and other items, Sanchez asked if he was leaving anything out or if Bill knew something Sanchez didn't. Bill flashed back to Liam's confession.
Bill believed he'd told Sanchez everything. Sanchez asked if he was sure, and Bill asked why the police would think he was holding something back. Sanchez wanted to be sure Bill had recalled everything he could about the shooter. Bill insisted that there was nothing else.
Stating that he was still recovering, Bill gestured to the door and asked if Sanchez minded. Sanchez gathered his box of stuff, and taking a call while on his way out, Sanchez left the gun and case on the table in the foyer.
At Bill's house, someone entered, walking with a cane. Bill turned around and was surprised to see a blonde Taylor closing the door behind her. Upset, Taylor hobbled in and said Bill was a despicable man. Bill said that he'd heard it before.
Taylor knew everything Bill had done to Steffy. Ridge had told her all about Bill showing up at the guesthouse to take advantage of Steffy. Bill said it hadn't been like that, and Steffy had been having trouble in her marriage. Taylor yelled that if Bill had any decency, he should have respected it. Bill insisted that he hadn't taken advantage of Steffy.
Taylor screamed that he had and said that, as a psychiatrist, she knew those things. She knew predatory behavior when she saw it. Taylor called Bill a horrible man.
At Forrester, Steffy didn't believe Liam would do something like shoot his father, but Liam insisted that he had done it. Steffy started to believe Liam, and she blamed herself. He said that it hadn't been her fault. She didn't understand why Liam had been at Bill's bedside if Liam had been the shooter. Liam said he hadn't known he'd done it at the time.
Steffy recalled that Liam had said he'd fallen. Liam replied that things had been fuzzy, but he'd started to see the proposal and the gun in his hands. He'd blocked it out and hadn't known at the hospital that he'd been capable of putting a bullet in his father's back.
Steffy asked why Liam thought he was the one who'd done it. Liam replied that he just knew. Steffy asked if it could be false memories. Liam stated that he'd found the gloves in his car, and it had all started to return to him. Liam was sure he'd driven over there and done it, and he'd had to tell Bill. Steffy figured it was why Bill had changed his story to the police.
Steffy decided that they should keep it between them, and she hoped no one would figure it out. From the look on Liam's face, she guessed that he'd told someone. Liam said that he'd only told Hope, but Hope wouldn't tell anyone. Upset, he said maybe Hope should tell, and he should be in jail for trying to kill someone.
Unable to believe he'd do anything like it again, Steffy said Liam was a good person. Liam quipped that he was so good that he'd tried to kill his father. Steffy stated that there was no way he'd try to kill someone and noted that he didn't even know how to use a gun. Liam asked if she was sure about it after what Bill had done to their marriage.
Liam didn't know what he was capable of anymore. He felt that Steffy needed to know what he was capable of, so she could keep the baby safe and away from him if he blacked out. She insisted that he'd be a wonderful father, but he said she didn't know it. She refused to believe he'd hurt their child or his father, and she asked to hear more about the concussion.
Steffy wanted to know when Liam had put the gloves on, but Liam didn't know. He said it had all been a blur. She asked if he'd driven all the way to Malibu, unconscious and without getting in a car accident. Liam said he had, and Steffy asked if he understood that none of it made sense.
Liam asked why he could see it all. He saw the gloves, the gun, and his father's back to him. Steffy thought it was because Liam had heard about it and read about it enough. She said Liam hadn't even seen the gun before. Liam insisted that he'd been there, he'd heard the shot, and he'd seen his father's body fall.
Steffy believed that Liam had imagined recreations he'd heard from Sanchez and Bill. Liam asserted that the gloves had been in his car. Steffy didn't care. She understood how hurt Liam was and how betrayed Liam felt, but she refused to believe that he'd shot Bill. Steffy tried to convince Liam that his guilt was causing him to believe it. Liam didn't buy it and asked who'd done it. Steffy didn't know, but she said the shooter was still out there.
In the design office, Brooke and Ridge kissed. She didn't think it was why he'd wanted to see her. He replied that it was always why, but he also wanted to talk about Hope, who'd retracted her support from Steffy's marriage. Ridge asked if Brooke saw a difference in Liam and Hope.
Brooke noticed a difference in Liam, who was grappling with his father being shot. Ridge asked if Brooke really thought Liam was broken up about it after all that had gone on with Liam and Bill. Brooke asked if Ridge didn't feel bad for Bill at all. Ridge said he didn't.
Brooke found it hard to believe, but Ridge said that Bill had done the unforgivable to Steffy. Brooke thought that Steffy had forgiven Bill, but Ridge didn't think Steffy knew Bill like Ridge did. Ridge knew the way Bill manipulated people, and he said Taylor did, too.
Brooke asked if Ridge had told Taylor, and he affirmed it, saying Taylor was Steffy's mother. Brooke asked if it had been wise and said he knew how Taylor could overreact. Brooke was sure that if Taylor got involved, things would get much worse.
Ridge thought Brooke was biased, but Brooke said she had experience with Taylor's rants. Ridge felt that Bill deserved it. Brooke doubted Bill would answer Taylor's call, but Ridge suspected that Taylor would go right to Bill's door. Surprised, Brooke asked if Taylor was in town. Ridge said Taylor had messaged him earlier about her arrival.
Brooke asked if Taylor were that angry. Ridge responded that Bill had preyed on their daughter. Ridge was surprised it had taken Taylor so long to get there. Brooke asked when Ridge had talked to Taylor about it, and he said it had been when it had happened. Brooke was amazed that Taylor hadn't gotten there right away, but Ridge said Taylor was there then. He felt that Steffy could use her mother.
At Bill's house, Bill asked if he could call someone for Taylor, maybe get Steffy. Taylor told him not to say her daughter's name. He asked what was with the cane. Taylor said she'd taken a fall, but that was the least of his worries. He offered her water, but all she wanted from him was to see him on his knees, begging Steffy for forgiveness.
Sobbing, Taylor went into her purse and pulled out her phone. Showing Steffy's sonogram pictures to Bill, Taylor said it should have been the happiest time in Steffy and Liam's life, but Bill had ruined it because he hadn't been able to keep his hands off his son's wife. Taylor didn't know how Bill justified it, but Bill said she could ask Steffy the same question.
Taylor assumed that Steffy had been distraught, and Bill had been the one in control and who'd taken advantage. Bill could understand why Taylor would believe all that garbage because it had been from Ridge. The crying Taylor accused Bill of targeting Steffy when she'd been the most vulnerable, and Taylor called Bill a disgusting predator.
Taylor didn't understand it because Bill had been Liam and Steffy's biggest supporter, and Bill had fought hard and dirty for them to be together. She asked if Bill had been so messed up in the head that he'd done it all to get Steffy to let her guard down. Bill replied that he wasn't Taylor's patient, and she didn't need to assess him.
Bill revealed that he'd had his own reasons for uniting Steffy and Liam in the past, and he'd thought they'd been good for each other. Taylor assumed Bill had decided that Steffy would be good with him instead. Bill agreed. Taylor didn't know how Bill could do it to Steffy and his own son. Taylor asked how anyone could trust Bill.
Bill told Taylor that it had been an insightful conversation, and she was always a barrel of monkeys. He was ready for her to go, but she said she wasn't done yet. Bill took a step forward, but pointing her cane at him, Taylor said not to get near her. Grasping the cane, Bill replied that he wouldn't have to if she'd leave on her own.
Taylor didn't think Bill was hearing her. Bill claimed that he'd heard it all before from Ridge; however, neither Taylor nor Ridge had been there, and Bill told Taylor to talk to Steffy if she wanted to hear the truth. Taylor yelled that Steffy had been emotionally wounded. Taylor insisted that Bill had taken advantage, and she yelled that she hated him.
Bill again asked Taylor to leave, and she said he didn't have an ounce of regret. Bill told her that he did regret what he'd done to his son. She didn't know how Liam was supposed to get over it. Bill replied that Liam needed to get beyond it for the child on the way, but if he couldn't, Bill had told Steffy that he'd be there instead. "Excuse me?" Taylor asked.
Bill conveyed that someone had to be there for Steffy, and Taylor certainly hadn't been. He wondered what kind of mother Taylor was. She hadn't attended any holidays or Steffy's wedding. Bill wondered why Taylor had just found out about it if she was such a super mom.
Taylor revealed that she'd known about it, and Ridge had told her weeks back. Bill asked why she hadn't shown up to protect her daughter. Taylor claimed that she had done so. She'd taken the first plane out. "It was windy that night. It was cold," she said.
Confused, Bill asked if Taylor had been at his house. Taylor considered it to be her house, even though she'd sold it to Bill. She'd raised her children there, and she could walk around without making a single floorboard creak. She yelled that she could walk from the street into the house with her eyes closed. She said it was what she'd had to do because the landscape lights had been flickering off and on.
Taylor told Bill that he'd had electrical problems, and the gate had been wide open. Bill asked if she was talking about the night that he'd been shot. Taylor said she'd wanted Bill to feel pain and to know what the vulnerable Steffy had felt like. Taylor recalled that Bill had been about where he was, listening to music.
Bill turned to look around, and Taylor picked up the gun. She said she'd seen it and had picked it up. She hadn't planned on using it. She'd just wanted him to know how evil he was. She hadn't been able to believe how easy it had been to load. The gun clicked.
Bill whipped around to face Taylor. She said it had been in her hands, just like that, and she'd just picked it up and pointed it.
Taylor aimed the gun at Bill, and he yelled, "Taylor, don't!"
