HOLDEN HOME

"No…this can't be true," Matt Holden said, flipping through the paternity test results he was currently reading. He was sitting on the couch in the living room of his own home, reading through a file he had stolen from his uncle, Michael Hanley's, safe.

Matt had become increasingly suspicious of his uncle since he began treating Vincent Moore like a golden god. Matt was already wary of his uncle since that time he blacked out in his office a year ago while searching for things Michael was keeping secret. But now, with Felicia Bale's mysterious accident at the mansion and Erin Maddock's death less than a week ago, Matt had taken the opportunity to arouse his suspicions once more.

It had been easy enough to break into Michael's safe during the confusion once everyone discovered Erin's body — Michael was really going to have to see into getting a better security system.

"But how is this possible?" Matt demanded. "How could my uncle know that these paternity tests were switched and not —"

Matt was interrupted by a knock at the front door. He shoved the files underneath one of the couch cushions and hurried to the door to see who it was. When he opened the door, he found a familiar face standing before him.

"Dr. Melfi," Matt said.

"Hello Matthew," Dr. Melfi said, smiling.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm back in town for a conference," Dr. Melfi replied. "I thought I'd drop by and see how my old patient is doing."

Matt frowned. "Got an hour?"

"For you?" Dr. Melfi asked. "Of course."

"Matthew, you don't have to lie down on the couch," Dr. Melfi said.

"I know that," Matt said. "But I prefer to."

"All right. What do you want to tell me about?"

"My entire life is a lie," Matt said, struggling to hold back tears. "My family…my family is full of lies and the lies just keep getting worse, and they will get worse."

"Lies? Like what?"

"I have a cousin," Matt said.

Matt stood at the top of the stairs in the Hanley mansion, gazing over the railing and onto the floor below. These were the same steps that Felicia had fallen from, according to the police report filed by Michael. Matt asked Quentin Blood to use his connections to find out what he could about Felicia's accident, which had taken place soon after her first accident outside of Bale & Maddock Law Offices.

But Matt and most of Marquette Cove knew why Felicia was struck by a car on that day. Everyone knew about Robert Bale's affair with Melissa Maddock — word got around fast in town. Everyone also assumed that Felicia had been sleeping with Michael, which Matt assumed as well, but now he knew it wasn't the case.

In his hands he was carrying the blood tests Michael and Robert had done after Felicia's second accident, which seemed to prove that Felicia was related to Michael by blood. Which meant that the secret they had been hiding wasn't an affair, but the fact that they were siblings.

"It's not every day you find out you've got an aunt you've known your entire life, but didn't know she was your aunt," Matt frowned. "Or…that I have a cousin, for that matter."

"And how do you feel about that?" Dr. Melfi asked.

"I hate it!" Matt cried. "I hate the Bales. Every single smarmy one of them, and now that idiot Alec Bale is my cousin? And he's dating my girlfriend!"

"Your girlfriend?"

"Akilah Moore," Matt said. "Technically, she's not my girlfriend. But we were dating to break up Alec and his girlfriend, which worked, so now Akilah and Alec are together. Not that Akilah and I can date now anyway."

"Why not?"

"Oh, I'm sorry…that's behind door number two," Matt muttered. "I'm related to Akilah too."

"You're related to Akilah Moore?" Dr. Melfi asked.

"Well, not by blood, but yes," Matt said. "I still have no idea how that happened."

"Mr. Hanley, I know that this is probably a little strange, me showing up on your doorstep like this," Sean said. "But I don't want anything from you."

"Don't lie to me, Mr. Moore," Kevin Hanley said, sighing. "Everyone wants something. I don't see why you're any different."

"I just want answers," Sean insisted. "The truth."

"Well, then that's something," Kevin replied. "Something big. Are you sure you can handle the truth?"

"I don't really have much of a choice, do I ... I'm come all of this way, Mr. Hanley. Or would you prefer that I called you ... dad?"

"So, you already know the truth then?"

"Yes, I know that you're my father," Sean replied.

Sean turned around and stormed out of Kevin's study.

"But apparently, my grandfather adopted Sean Moore as a kid and let him live with another family," Matt explained. "My uncle found out about it and has hated Sean since…right up until his death, anyway."

"How does this make you feel?"

"Not grossed out, I guess," Matt said. "It's not like I dated my own cousin by blood. To tell you the truth, I'm even more grossed out by the fact that I'm related to her brother, Vince."

"You still have issues with Vince?"

Matt laughed. "Those are probably never going away, Doc."

"So, you found out you have three cousins?"

"Well, three news ones," Matt said. "But I also have a cousin Ariel and Eric, who go to boarding school in London. Of course…those are only the ones I know about. Who knows if I have more hidden family members."

"How are you coping with this?" Dr. Melfi asked.

Matt remained silent for a moment.

"Matthew…don't tell me you're —"

"Yes," Matt said. "I'm using drugs again...It's not recreational either, which I know you probably don't approve of, but…I don't know how else to deal with all of this. My life is royally fucked up, and now…there's the worst of it that's…never mind."

Dr. Melfi frowned, checking her watch. "Matthew, I'm afraid I have to get going. But I'd like to refer you to a colleague of mine…Dr. Aaron Maddock. I think you need to see someone regularly again."

Matt accepted Dr. Melfi's offer and took the contact information for Dr. Maddock. He said goodbye to her and gave her a quick hug before she left the mansion, leaving him alone once again. Once he was sure Dr. Melfi was gone, Matt crumpled the business card into a ball and tossed it into a nearby wastepaper basket.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Melfi," Matt said. "But I can't bring anyone else into this…this my own personal hell I have to contend with."

Matt returned to the couch and removed the files he had hidden. Files showing that Michael had knowledge of switched paternity tests for…Matt. It appears that Simon Holden wasn't Matt's father.

"I don't have a father," Matt said. "And Simon probably doesn't even know…my mother probably doesn't even know. Dammit! Is that why Michael won't treat me like I'm his nephew? Like I'm not even —"

In his anger, Matt accidentally spilled the contents of the folder onto the floor. He collapsed to his knees and tried to gather the pages, and as he did, he noticed a page he hadn't viewed before. It was a different type of test that had been hidden until now.

"Oh my God," Matt cried. "Is this…oh my God!"

Matt climbed to his feet and stumbled into the kitchen, but as he ran, he tripped and fell onto the floor. His body slammed onto the linoleum, and Matt could feel vomit forming in his throat. He threw up onto the floor and though he tried to stop himself, he continued to do so until he could finally feel clean.

That moment never came. But the vomit eventually subsided.