Skye is in the Palace bar, sitting alone at a table. She speaks into the wire she is wearing hidden in her clothes, so the police officer that John has sitting at the bar can hear her.

Skye: Maybe I should check the restaurant and the lobby for Todd. Maybe he's out there.

The officer at the bar nods slightly in Skye's direction.

Skye: I'll go out first and then you follow, okay?

A waiter approaches Skye.

Waiter: Talking to yourself?
Skye: Might as well be.

Skye is about to leave her table when Todd comes storming in, yelling towards the bartender.

Todd: Double scotch and soda. Only skip the soda, will ya? And then when you're done with that, give me a scotch back!
Skye: (into the wire) Change of plans. I just got lucky.

Skye approaches Todd at the bar.

Skye: Wow, Todd. Look like you had a really lousy day! Can I buy you a drink?

Todd takes a sip of his drink and looks at Skye coldly.

--end scene--

Skye settles in on the stool next to Todd, who alternates between his drink and snacking on beer nuts.

Skye: Maybe I can pick up the next round.
Todd: Why don't you pick yourself back up and go away?
Skye: And sit here and watch you drink yourself into oblivion?
Todd: What do you care?
Skye: Why, I'm a recovering alcoholic.
Todd: Oh, so buying me a drink is some kind of a step in some kind of a program?
Skye: I was going to suggest you have my drink of choice, which is a club soda with lime.
Todd: Why don't you go suggest stuff to somebody else?
Skye: I just hate to see someone I admire go down this path.
Todd: Yeah. Right.

He takes another sip.

Skye: Oh, Todd, it's true! Come on -- we're both survivors, fighters. You're just like me.

Todd looks at Skye in disgust.

Skye: Now, I don't dislike you, in spite of all those nasty little tricks you played on me. Like the time at the diner when you had Max believing that I was lying about Blair owning B&B United. You actually did me a favor.
Todd: What a guy.
Skye: Oh, you really opened my eyes about Max.
Todd: Glad to hear it. Go away.

Todd goes back to his drink.

Skye: Well, Max -- Max isn't capable of loving any woman. But you are.

Todd looks at Skye skeptically.

Skye: You really love Blair, don't you? You'd do anything for her -- stand by her, no matter what. (sighing) That's all I've ever wanted in a man. I sure hope that she knows how lucky she is to have you and that she appreciates you. Well, considering what you've done for her, I hope she's on her knees thanking you every day.

Todd had been snacking on beer nuts, but now he turns to Skye, interest piqued.

Todd: What is it that you think I did for Blair?
Skye: (coyly) Oh, you know!
Todd: No, I forget. Remind me.

The officer down at the other end of the bar is shown listening intently.

Skye: Well, you planted that gun in my room, for starters -- the one that she used to shoot Max.

Todd looks around the bar, as if worried they might be overheard, and then leans toward Skye.

Todd: Can you keep a secret?
Skye: Sure, it's my specialty.
Todd: (smiling sneakily) You know that gun that they found in your room?

Skye nods.

Todd: I...didn't put it there.

Todd goes back to his drink while Skye tries to hide her disappointment.

Skye: Whatever you say. So, you bummed now because of Max and Blair?
Todd: There is no Max and Blair -- not anymore.
Skye: Wanna bet?

Todd looks at Skye but says nothing.

--end scene--

Skye: Oh, come on. Todd. You don't really think that Blair's finished with Max, do you? Or that he's finished with her?
Todd: They hate each other. Max doesn't want Blair anywhere near him.
Skye: Yeah -- like the flame doesn't want the moth to fly so close.
Todd: What do you know?
Skye: That they do their own version of a crazy mating dance. That they need to create a triangle. That it turns them on to use some poor lovesick jerk to stick it to each other, and I should know -- I was one of those jerks, and now so are you.

Todd tries to turn away from Skye to pay for his drink.

Todd: You don't know what you're talking about.
Skye: Oh, I have a lot more experience in these games than you do. There were a few times when Max actually had me convinced that he'd seen the light. And then he went crawling back to Blair within days! Those two love to hate each other. They whip themselves up into a frenzy, and they get right back together, and they end up dumping you, just like they did to me --
Todd: No, shut up, all right?! Just -- shut your stupid face with your stupid half-baked ideas and keep 'em to yourself. I'm not interested.

Todd storms away from her and over to a booth, which she watches him with a smirk on her face...she may not have gotten dirt on the shooting yet, but she's successfully riled up Todd, which is the first step in that direction.

--end scene--

When the scene returns, Todd has just sat down in a booth, while Skye goes over to sit in it with him.

Skye: You'd better listen to what I have to say about Max and Blair if you want to stay out of prison.
Todd: Okay, so everyone in prison is somebody who didn't listen to you?
Skye: Oh, don't play dumb with me. We both know that Blair shot Max, and you helped her cover it up.

The officer at the bar turns and listens closely.

Skye: You helped her get away with attempted murder. And how does she pay you back? She goes right back to the man she tried to kill. And that's not where it's gonna end, because knowing Blair she'll try to pin the shooting on you. My advice? Get her before she gets you.

As Todd listens, he puts together the pieces of where Skye is going with this.

Skye: I mean, come on -- it's not like she'd really be taking the fall for shooting Max, 'cause she really did it. Right?

Todd has now figured out what's going on and has decided how he's going to play it.

Todd: You know, this whole thing's driving me crazy. Really, I -- I feel all this pressure. I don't think I can stand it any longer.

He takes a sip of his drink to really emphasize the "struggle," as Skye turns sympathetic.

Skye: Oh. Come on, Todd -- you can talk to me.
Todd: Well, it's just -- you know, I don't understand how a guy like Max can take a woman -- you know, a smart, funny, beautiful woman and turn her into this dog, you know, whining and -- and begging from him.
Skye: Well, she must have hated herself. And she must have hated him for humiliating her. She wanted to make him pay for everything he did to her --
Todd: (interrupting her) Yeah, she wanted to make him pay. And a guy like Max, you know, he's smart -- he takes this woman that he claims to love and pushes her right to the edge.
Skye: Well, she just couldn't take it anymore, I guess, so she got a gun and shot him in the back.
Todd: Blair was a mess. You know, Max in the hospital, floating in between life and death, and -- Blair didn't want him to die. Ah, but, you know, I'm sure everyone will understand that -- that Max drove you to it, Skye.

Skye looks at Todd with dawning horror.

Todd: I mean, you said yourself you'd had enough. You couldn't take it anymore -- that you couldn't deal with all the humiliation that he put you through. I'm sure the judge will take that into account before he sentences you.
Skye: What the hell are you talking about??
Todd: Well, you just confessed to me that you shot Max -- unless I missed something.
Skye: (outraged) You just set me up, you miserable son of a --
Todd: Funny thing, that -- I thought you were setting me up!

Todd grabs her purse and starts rifling through it.

Skye: What -- what are you doing??
Todd: Looking for the --

He dumps everything out onto the table.

Skye: Stop that!
Todd: -- tape recorder. Well, there doesn't seem to be one. (he turns on Skye suspiciously) So, what, are you wearing a mic, huh? Who's on the other end?

Todd leans down to yell directly into Skye's blouse.

Todd: Is it Sykes, huh? Hey, Johnny Boy, your mama dresses you funny!
Skye: Get away from me! Get away from me!
Todd: I just saw him on the --

Now it's Todd's turn to have a moment of horror as he realizes the extent to which he and Blair have just been set up. He looks at Skye in disgust before running out of the bar to go upstairs to find Blair.

Skye: (calling after him) Yeah, don't say I didn't warn you! Blair's probably ratting you out as we speak!

Now alone, Skye heaves a sigh.

--end transcript--