After a very long and restless night, Rocco woke up to a voicemail from Alyssa. He stared at his phone for a long time. Hearing her voice was the last thing he wanted to do. He was still fuming over Dante's theory from the night before.

It was one thing to come to the realization that the marriage was over. That she wasn't who he thought she was. He could even handle that she was self-serving and maybe had ulterior motives for choosing him. But to accept that his entire marriage was one long con? That was something else entirely.

With a heavy sigh, he finally listened to the voicemail.

"I get that you're mad at me. I understood your veiled threats from when you left for the trip that you were leaving me. But you promised we'd talk about it. Not that you'd send Lexi here to announce that you're divorcing me with Gavin right there in the other room! You'll find your stuff out on the lawn. Come get it before the city fines us."

"Damn it!" Rocco yells in frustration. He could just imagine Gavin's worry when he woke up to find Alyssa tossing his stuff out the window.

He hurriedly tossed on some jeans and a tee shirt. Lexi was just getting in as he crossed into the kitchen to leave.

"Exactly the person I wanted to see," Rocco growled through gritted teeth.

"What did I do?" Lexi huffed looking tired and annoyed.

"You announced to Alyssa I was divorcing her. With my son right there?" He accused, his eyes boring into hers.

"It just came out!" Lexi exclaimed, her eyes widening. "I thought you guys had already talked about that or— I didn't know Rocco."

"Just get out of my way." He pushed past her angrily.

"I really am sorry." He could hear her voice break and felt a stab of guilt for being so harsh.

"Let's just hope he didn't hear it," Rocco said in a somewhat softer tone.

"I don't think he heard. I really don't."

"You have to be more careful." Rocco sighed.

"I will, I swear."

"I got to go." He slipped quickly out the door, thinking he'd have to get his place very soon.

**

True to her word, Rocco found his stuff tossed all over the estate when he got there.

"Alyssa, for the love of god." He furiously got out of the car and headed towards the door.

It was locked. He didn't want to scare Gavin by pounding on it, so he started calling her instead. Of course, she didn't answer.

"Alyssa, this is ridiculous. You're acting like a teenager." He started leaving her a voicemail when she finally emerged from the house.

"It's about time!" she yelled, slamming the door behind her.

"What do you think you're doing? This is absurd. Where's Gavin?"

"Becks took him out to breakfast. You didn't bother to leave me a dime to support our son before you took off." She sniffled her victim tone on full display.

"Oh please," he rolled his eyes. "You have a dozen credit cards."

"How do I know you didn't shut them all down? Everyone but me knows you're leaving me."

"I fully intended to sit down with you today. I didn't want to have an emotional thing that late at night." Rocco tried his best to calm himself, remembering despite his intense emotions. Dante's words about him being the reasonable one were true.

"Lexi said she didn't mean to blurt it out; she thought we'd already talked about it."

"Sure, Rocco," Alyssa snapped. "You were trying to rub it in my face. I know you were; why else would you have sent that little tramp with her?"

"Are you trying to talk about Dani? Oh, come on, Alyssa." Rocco scoffed.

"I'm not stupid, Rocco. She's just as much Katherine's blood as I am. I bet she came here for revenge. She probably wanted you before she even walked in the door." She said with an air of satisfaction in her tone.

"Stop. " Rocco shook his head at the absurdity of her claims. "Nothing is going on; she's your sister. She loves Gavin. That's all there is to it."

"Then why did you take her with you when you left town?" Alyssa pressed.

"I wanted Gavin to have a stable and happy week before all this started. It didn't need to get like this. If you cared about Gavin, you'd think about how this stuff will affect him." He tossed an accusatory look at her.

"He's not home," she muttered.

"Whatever." He snapped, having had enough. He grabbed a few handfuls of clothes and shoved them into his car. He's just come to get the rest later.

"We have a lot of things to talk about." Alyssa folded her arms across her chest.

"Then we'll talk tomorrow when I bring Gavin back."

"Back?" She questioned. "He just got home."

"I want him to spend the night at Dante's place with me tonight. He's probably really confused right now, " Rocco insisted. "I'll pick him up later."

"Is Dani going to be there?" She asked in a sing-song voice.

"No, Alyssa, she's staying somewhere else. She's not needed since you fired her." It took all his strength to keep the emotions from his voice.

"I didn't fire her. I simply pointed out she works for you," Alyssa shrugged. "I'd rather my nanny work for me."

"I don't need a full time nanny, while we sharing custody, so now your sister is out a job, I hope you're happy."  

"How could I be expected to trust the sister that's always resented me? If anyone is like Katherine, it's her. She also came between a married man and his wife. Apple doesn't fall from the tree there, I bet."

He just ignored her and got in his car, slamming the door. He knew what she was doing; she wanted him to get upset so he'd defend Dani. Dante was right about the narrative she was trying to spin. Not good, considering how damn close she was to home.

**

Alyssa watched as Rocco sped off with a satisfied look on her face.

"What did you go and do all that for?" Edward exclaimed angrily as soon as his car was out of sight.

"Don't be stupid. Get in the house. You can't be seen out here!" Alyssa whipped around to yell at him.

"He is long gone along with our perfect plan!" He yelled, his scowling face making her laugh.

"It's hardly funny!"

"Ali, you told him you suspected there was something going on! Now he'll end it abruptly and make sure to be extra careful. We'll never get our proof!"

"Men just never understand how these things work," Alyssa said. "Rocco didn't cheat with her, and he won't. "

"He took her on holiday!" 

"He's too loyal for that, he's the suffer in silence type, trust me. He will bury his desire for her until all this is over."  She gestured to the mess still strewn about the yard. "But if I can get to those emotions of his. Poke, poke, poke...eventually, he'll pop." She made a popping sound with her lips as she said the word. 

"But you made him doubt her. You said she was like Katherine." He casted her a doubtful gaze, of course he wouldn't get it. "Why would you do that? Jealousy? Do you want him back now?"

"Hardly," she laughed. "I don't need to reveal every detail, Eddy, but I promise, that went exactly how I wanted it to." She flashed him a devious little smirk, then turned away. She had a yard to clean up and more plans to be made.

**

Rocco returned home to an angry-looking Dante and a sheepish Lexi.

"I'm sorry, I was a total dick." Rocco sighed, tossing a bag of tacos down as a truce.

"I forgive you." She started rummaging through the bag. "You've paid the correct toll."

"We have to talk, Dante," Rocco said he glanced at Lexi. "Lexi, can you?"

"Fine, but I'm taking these." she snatched the bag of tacos and went to the deck.

"I know, you're pissed. I went home and got into it with Alyssa," Rocco said. "She was tossing my clothes out the windows. I also realize I have been defensive about Dani, and I'm sorry. Lys is all over that, big time. You were right."

"I knew it, but this is not about that. This." Dante thrust some papers at him. "You're planning on paying for Dani's brother's rehab?"

"You're going through my finances?" Rocco snapped.

"Your budget plan and stuff, yeah, I can't be missing anything."

"I know, but I thought you'd ask first before you went digging," Rocco grumbled.

"You can't do this," Dante said. "It'll get used against you. You simply can't explain this."

"I promised. I won't take that back." Rocco felt tears in his eyes and tried to hide them from his brother.

"She'll understand," Dante said softly.

"He's Alyssa's sister's brother, too, which makes him like family. I'm doing it for him." Rocco pleaded, knowing it was falling on deaf ears. He couldn't explain a favor like that to the courts. Not considering the narrative Alyssa was trying to twist.

"Dante, she lost her home, her job, and now the one chance she had to help her brother all at once," Rocco said, and Dante shook his head sadly.

"It's really unfair," Dante agreed.

"What if there was some other way we could help him and her? What's Dani supposed to do now?"

"There's only one thing you can do," Dante said. "Offer her a severance package and pay for her flight home."

Rocco nearly choked; the air in the room seemed tighter. The very idea of her gone from his world was too much.

"The money will help get her brother more time and get herself an apartment. She's smart. She can figure it out from there," Dante said.

"You know it's the best choice for her." Dante said quietly and gently. "We do this now. By the time Alyssa wants to use her against you she's already gone."

"No," Rocco choked. "I can't send her away."

"Alyssa will destroy her in court; she'll say awful things about her and hurt her," Dante stressed. "Dani's family has a long history with the law, it's not going to go well for her no matter how hard I try to fix it." 

Rocco couldn't help but think this was probably exactly what Alyssa  wanted, to keep him unhappy. Dante was right, though. He heard how quickly Alyssa turned her gears to Dani this morning. Alyssa would dig up everything, Dani would have to relive all that trauma as Alyssa's snaky attorneys used it against her. He couldn't let that happen to her. 

"She'll hate me," Rocco said hoarsely.

"She won't forever. Right now, the best thing for both of you is for her to go away," Dante affirmed. "I'm sorry, Rocco, but it is."

"Alright set up a meeting and prepare the check." Rocco managed to choke out. Dante nodded and squeezed his arm before ducking out of the room.

"You okay, Rocco?" Lexi awkwardly tip-toed into the room.

"Eavesdropping?"  He was so focused on Dani; he hadn't heard her come in.

"I didn't mean to."

Lexi handed him a taco, but he set it aside his appetite was gone.

"She won't leave. There isn't a check big enough. She'll wait forever for you," Lexi whispered feverishly.

"She will when she knows she has to take care of Kevin. She'll hate me for taking that back."

"She won't." Lexi shook her head. "She won't go. You know she won't."

"I'll have to try. What else can I do?" Rocco asked her.

"Rocco, I know about the mountain."

It felt like a slap across the face. What? Why would she ever share that moment with anyone? Was he wrong about her too?

"It's not like you think." Lexi stopped his thoughts cold. "I filled her with wine and made her admit something happened. I kept pressing to make sure no one could've seen it, and then she said it was on the mountain. I don't really know anything about what happened up there, just that it some something special to her. "

"There's nothing to know." Rocco snapped irritably.

"Yeah, right." Lexi scoffed.

"Can you mind your own business?" Rocco snapped back.

"I'm trying to help."

"By driving me insane?" He retorted.

"No," she said tersely. "There's no telling how long this thing goes on. She can't put her whole life aside and wait for you. It's not fair, not for her or you. Dante is right, Alyssa will kill her in court, and I don't want her hurt."

"So you're helping Dani ?" Rocco realized.

"I have too," Lexi confirmed. "I hate this, but she needs distance from you. She's in too deep. It doesn't have to be forever; maybe someday, somehow..."

He was in just as deep, and his gut was twisted into a horrible knot at the thought of Dani gone from his life.

"What are you trying to get me to do, Lex?"

"Something you're going to hate." She scooted in closer to fill him in.