Mercy

Three days later:

"You've been kinda distant the past few days." Leland says to Nikki as they build a sand castle with Bailee at the beach. Nikki was thankful that Leland suggested a trip to the beach today, she was starting to feel suffocated being in the house so much. And luckily, Bailee had started walking the week before, so it made things much easier.

"Have I? I'm sorry... I don't mean to be." she says, shoveling some sand into the bucket and handing it to Bailee.

Leland studies her for a moment, trying to figure out what might be going on with her. "Is there anything you want to talk about?" he asks her. He wanted to be as good of a friend to her, as she had been to him. "Hang on." he tells her, reaching for his ringing phone.

"Hey dad." he says happily into the phone.

"She what? She's there, right now?" he screams before hanging the phone up. "Come on, we have to go down to the office right now!" he says, gathering up their things.

"Whats going on? Is everything alright?" Nikki asks, sensing his unease. He drags them across the sand and into the parking lot. Nikki feeling a lot like she did that time he drug them through the airport. "Stop Leland." she says grabbing his arm as he slams the door shut after fastening his daughter in the car seat.

"Stacy is at my dad's office, and apparently she refuses to leave until she talks to me." he says all in one breath. Nikki was stunned into silence as she climbs into his truck, the door shuts with a thud as he starts to back out of the parking lot.

"Are you kidding me? What right does she have to show up now?" Nikki says after they driven a few miles down the road.

"I don't know what to do Nik, what if she tries to take my baby from me?" he says, looking over at her, the fear evident in his eyes. "I cant let her take Bailee away from me!"

"There's no way, Leland. I will not let that happen!" Nikki tells him, reaching over to hold his hand as he drives erratically through the streets of Honolulu. She didn't know why she felt the need to be so protective of Leland, he could obviously handle himself, but something told her that Stacy wouldn't go down without a fight.

They pulled into the back of the office building, Leland running inside to see what was going on as Nikki took her time getting Bailee out of the truck. Duane Lee met her outside after his brother went into the office. "This isn't gonna end well..." he says, crossing his arms. "That girl came in screaming and yelling, demanding to see her daughter, I didn't know who she was until she said her name was Stacy." he says with a shrug of his shoulder. "I thought about calling the cops, but dad wouldn't let me."

"I'm so pissed off, I don't even know what to say right now." Nikki tells him as she hands Bailee to him. "Hold her, I have a feeling this might get physical." she says opening the door, she could hear them yelling at each other already.

The entire Chapman family was gathered in a circle surrounding Stacy and Leland as they argued, Duane Lee and Nikki joined them as the argument was becoming more heated.

"Who the hell are you?" Stacy screams at Nikki as she see Bailee reaching for her. "Is she your fat ass whore Leland?"

Leland takes a step toward Stacy as she screams, but his father holds him back. "Her name is Nikki and she is not a whore." he says through his teeth.

"Well, let me have my baby." she says reaching for Bailee, as if she hadn't been gone the past year and half. "I'm taking her home, where she belongs!" She screams, pulling at the child, causing her to cry.

"Bailee is Leland's daughter. He raised her, not you. All you ever did was abandon her at the hospital without a second thought." Nikki screams, stepping between Stacy and Duane Lee, who was still holding Bailee. "So don't you come in here demanding that he give her back to you! Have you been there when she wakes up at 2:00 in the morning? Were you there when she started teething and cried for hours at the time. And were you there when she said her first word or took her first step? Were you!" Nikki screams in her face. "No, you weren't there, because you didn't care enough to be her mother!"

"Yeah well...I'll sue you...and Leland. You don't know who my father is." Stacy threatens. "He's Dan Walters."

Nikki looks over to the Chapman's confused. "I think he owns the car lot down the road." one of them says, filling her in. Nikki bursts out laughing. "Why don't you go ahead, because I'll have your ass tied up in court until both of you are bankrupt and I own the f**king car lot and the house you live in! Because you obviously don't know who my father is." She says, never once backing down.

Stacy shrugs her shoulders and says, "Who?"

"Ever heard of a little company called Dole? Yeah, lets just say, He owns that company. So if you wanna go toe to toe, bring it on girl!" Nikki screams before walking away from her, leaving the entire Chapman family stunned. Until that day, none of them knew about Nikki's inheritance, with the exception of Duane Lee.

"I'll get my daughter back." Stacy yells as she storms out of the Da Kine office, slamming the door.

"What was that all about?" asks Beth as Leland sits down in a nearby chair, shaking his head. "I wish I knew...I wish I knew." he says, stunned. Duane Lee follows Nikki out the back door, handing Bailee off to Beth.

Nikki was bent over, with her hands on her knees, crying as hard as she could. She stands up straight as he places a hand on the small of her back. "Its okay." he says, trying to calm her down as he pulls her into his chest, holding her close as she cried.

"I'm so pissed off." she says between sobs. "I know baby, I know." he says rubbing her back. "She has no right to show up and try to take Bailee away. Leland would die." she says, burying her head in the crook of his neck, her body shaking as she cried.

"You've got to calm down. I don't wanna have to take you to the hospital." he says laughing lightly.

"I know..." she say wiping her face on his shirt and taking a deep breath. "I'm so ashamed Duane. I really am. Ive never threatened anyone before... especially with money. I always swore I would never be one of those people."

"Sometimes you just need to shock people to get them to listen. And if money does the trick then you shouldn't be ashamed. Besides, you love Bailee as much as her father does, so of course you're going to stand up for her because she cant do it for herself." he says trying to reassure her.

"I guess..." she says, still wiping her eyes. "I just exploded. Leland probably hates me now and... I just told everyone my secret." she says, realizing what just happened.

"Nikki, its not that bad of a secret. Its not like your really a man, or have a secret love child by my father or anything like that." Duane Lee says, making her laugh. "Everything will be alright.
Leland might be a little pissed off now, but he'll get over it eventually."

"I hope so. I don't know what I would do if I never got to see Bailee again. I love her." Nikki says sadly, looking up at him.

"Come on, I'll take you home." he says putting an arm around her shoulder.