1984 (#18) - Victor and Nikki's shimmering, glittering and sumptuous marriage

Nikki's happiness over her impending marriage to Victor was soon put at risk by news of Victor's health. While Douglas is helping the man prepare for the wedding, Victor has the opportunity to study his medical records personally, and what he sees, of course, upsets him. Victor immediately contacts Dr. Steele, who confirms his risk of impotence and, above all, the fact that he has already informed Nikki of the news. The woman apologizes for not saying anything to Victor; however, she insists to the man that he doesn't care if they can't have children, since the only thing that matters to her is to live with him and Victoria for the rest of her life. But Victor, full as ever of pride, decides to annul her marriage, believing that Nikki deserves much more than a sterile man. Full of anger and self-pity, Victor withdraws into himself by refusing to see a desperate Nikki, begging the man to reconsider. Determined to leave Genoa City, leaving every memory of Nikki in the city, Victor orders Douglas to take him to the airport. Douglas, however, intent on proving to the man that it would certainly not be a mere chance of sterility that would ruin his life, decides to leave photographic magazines in the back seat of the car with Nikki in sensual poses. In a few moments, realizing that he had not lost his manhood at all, Victor immediately ordered Douglas to go back, because he was going to marry Nikki that very day, being sure that he would have no problem with his sexual performance. Seeing Victor return, Nikki's tears of despair soon turn into tears of joy: the two of them embrace each other and Victor once again asks Nikki, his "rough diamond", for her hand, as he has always jokingly defined her, as he intends to become her husband from now on. The marriage between Victor and Nikki was the biggest, most spectacular and sumptuous marriage Genoa City has ever seen. In fact, Victor decided not to save anything for his organization, spending a lot of money in the organization of the ceremony and in Nikki's wedding dress, designed by the best designers and embellished with silk and glittering pearls. A real elite of guests were also invited, from the Arab sheikhs oil magnates to the most powerful European and Asian businessmen. But family and close friends, including those from previous years, as in the case of Derek, who returned for the wedding accompanying his ex-wife Katherine, were considered the most important wedding guests. The moment of the fateful event of two moved and excited Victor and Nikki, presided over by Reverend Jerry Frazier, is certainly the event of the year in town!

1981 (#22) - Derek's plan and the agreement between Eve and Victor

After losing control of Chancellor Industries to Victor, it is only logical that Derek began to feel a great resentment towards the man; resentment also increased by the flirt between Victor and Judy, with whom Derek hoped to have a future. When Derek accidentally meets Eve, who can't forgive Victor for not recognizing her son, it's normal for the two to work together to bring Victor down and take revenge on him. After Eve informs him of the situation regarding Julia's pregnancy, therefore, Derek decides to take action to destroy the man who ruined his life. Derek thus, thanks to the knowledge of a doctor in the hospital, manages to get his hands on the report of Victor's vasectomy, which confirms the fact that Julia's baby was conceived after the operation. Eve and Derek decide to send a copy of the report to Julia, who realizes that the baby she is carrying is clearly Michael's. Julia thus informs Michael, sharing sweet moments with him. What Julia cannot imagine is that Victor also understands the truth about the fatherhood of Julia's baby, which turns his jealousy into certainty about Julia's betrayals. Victor then decides to record Julia's hidden conversations with her lover Michael in order to obtain evidence about the relationship between the two. Victor then decides to take action. First, he decides to get rid of Eve, accepting the woman's last financial request for $50,000, but only on the condition that she had agreed to hide her fatherhood: Eve would claim to have been widowed and to have received a large inheritance from Cole's rich uncle, who was supposed to study at one of the best schools in Switzerland. Eve, now resigned to not seeing Victor's paternity of Cole recognized, decided to leave Genoa City forever.

1981 (#10) - Katherine and Derek's divorce, Judy's chairmanship and Victor's power

Katherine returns to Genoa City completely different. Perhaps for the first time in her life she was in control of herself and her emotions. She owes a great debt of gratitude to Felipe, who has shown her that it is not necessary to rely on Derek, Douglas or any other man who does not really love her, but is only interested in her heritage, to be happy. And so, when Derek and everyone else realize that they are not hallucinating when they see Katherine, and they get over the amazement and bewilderment of knowing that she is still alive, joy soon gives way to the knowledge that they are dealing with a deeply changed woman. In fact, Katherine is more inflexible and determined than ever to change her life and to leave behind people she does not consider worthy of her support. The victim of Katherine's renewal is obviously Derek, indeed Katherine confirms her willingness to remove him from the company and, above all, asks for and obtains a divorce in a short time. After thanking Mitchell for the excellent work done in her absence and having dismissed Douglas and all his ambition to bind himself to the woman, Katherine decides to symbolically leave the presidency to Judy, as a new face able to show Katherine's desire for change, the decision to remove Derek, which makes the whole board happy, above of all George. In fact, however, all power and control of the company is entrusted to Victor, who is therefore confirmed as general manager of Chancellor Industries. Judy still finds herself secretly in love with Victor and hopes that their closeness in the management of the company will bring them closer together, despite the fact that Victor is currently busy solving his serious family issues.

1980 (#29) - Victor's night of love with Eve and Cole's Conception

As the months went by, Victor's financial situation improved day by day. Katherine's company, in fact, from the moment of his arrival, also with the help of the disappearance of the woman, an event that inevitably increased advertising, has achieved extraordinary results, all to the delight of George, who is happy to no longer have Derek around. In fact, Katherine's widower has in fact been excluded from the shares of his deceased wife and this prevents him from seeing Judy with precedent frequency, with whom he soon interrupted what could have been the beginning of a love story. By now, it is only Victor who dominates the company, and it is no coincidence that he constantly receives Judy's attention. As is often the case, however, Victor's fortunes at work receive a negative counterpart in family life. In fact, while Victor is unaware of the strange friendship between Julia and Brock, an old acquaintance of Victor's, Eve Howard, arrives in Genoa City. The girl, once his secretary, was Victor's mistress. The feelings between the two have never disappeared and to testify it is the night of love that they spend as soon as Victor manages to find an excuse for Julia. What Victor does not expect, however, is what he sees the next morning at Eve's house, the woman with a child in her arms. Eve thus informs Victor that Cole is her son, having been conceived six years earlier during a business trip to Acapulco. Victor thus realizes that the woman could put his marriage with Julia in great danger, being then engaged to Julia and close to marriage. However, Victor refuses to recognize his son and to tell the truth to Julia, and even gives a certain amount of money to the woman to get out of town and keep quiet.

1980 (#21) - The fight between Derek and Douglas, the cruise and missing of Katherine

Douglas' plan to drive Derek out of Katherine's life and receive the woman's love obviously didn't go as planned. In fact, Katherine accepted the man's advice to contact Victor to replace Derek, but he hadn't expected the woman to arrange a cruise as the second honeymoon. Unable to accept the fact that Derek was preferred over him, Douglas thus decided to give it the last chance and decided to embark on the ship himself. In the meantime, Katherine is happy to have some time with Derek and says she is convinced that the marital problems between them will be resolved in a short time. Derek, however, is not very convinced, being increasingly attracted to Judy. In any case, Derek feels he owes to the woman and wants to really try and give their marriage a new chance. However, when he meets Douglas on the ship, Derek cannot believe his own eyes and, convinced that the woman was able to bring her lover on their honeymoon, in a burst of jealousy and frustration, after risking a fight with Douglas himself, he gets off at the first port of call and immediately returns to Genoa City to Judy. Unaware of everything, Katherine, meanwhile, can't believe the words of the captain and how Derek could have abandoned her during their vacation; and, in a moment of despair, she throws herself off the ship under the desperate eyes of Douglas. He immediately calls Genoa City and warns two upset Victor and Derek of what happened. The woman's search is in vain and after a few days everyone resigns themselves to the loss of Katherine. Some time later, Derek recriminates his share of the woman's inheritance, but Katherine's lawyer, Mitchell Sherman, informs him that, without a body, the legal process to declare Katherine dead would have taken five years. Following Katherine's wishes, Mitchell, as curator of the woman's estate, decides in the meantime to leave Victor in charge of Chancellor.

1980 (#16) - Victor and the management at Chancellor Industries of Katherine

As time goes by, the first data regarding the company's performance begin to give reason to George's doubts and perplexities. Since Derek's leadership of Chancellor Industries, in fact, there have been sharp declines in the company's performance. These results lead Katherine to reflect on the validity of her decision, and George's pressure for a change in management persuades her to listen more and more to an experienced businessman like Douglas. He and his partner Everett Thornton then suggested that Katherine should contact Victor Newman, a great friend of theirs and a valued manager who could resurrect the fortunes of any business. However, not wanting to cause her husband great displeasure, Katherine decided to make a decision that would solve both her main problems, financial and emotional. So she decides to give a new boost to her marriage by taking a break from work together with Derek to make a new honeymoon away from Genoa City. At the same time, she decides to contact Victor to ask him to run the company during their absence. Victor responds positively to the call, happy to move to his luxury ranch in Genoa City with his friend Douglas. Simultaneously with Victor's arrival and the handover between him and Derek, therefore, Katherine and the man leave for their second honeymoon, a fact that causes a certain displeasure to Judy, who hoped to be able to get closer and closer to the man she realizes every day more and more she loves, namely Derek.

1980 (#10) - The closeness between Katherine and Douglas, Derek's attentions to Judy

Derek's great commitment to his role in the company, meanwhile, allows Katherine to think more about herself and to play a greater role outside the company, looking for new sponsors. During a gala dinner, Katherine recognizes her old friend Douglas Austin, a former colonel who has also been the head of a large company for years. Between Douglas and Katherine there is immediately a great feeling and the two begin to develop a deep friendship. Douglas doesn't hide the perplexities of Katherine's choice to put Derek in charge of her company, so the woman confides to him that she wants to engage him in the work so that he won't have any other distractions. Douglas is amazed that a classy woman like Katherine is with someone as bad as Derek and tries to convince her that she deserves more. Katherine accepts Douglas' advances, hoping that flirting with him will make Derek jealous and make him appreciate her even more. But Derek is actually starting to have a certain complicity with his secretary Judy. She soon turns out to be pleasantly surprised by the man and is convinced, without talking to George, of the worth of the boy, thus deciding to become his ally in the internal struggles within the company: it is clear that there begins to be a tender relationship between the two.

1980 (#5) - Katherine's trust and Derek's nomination as Managing Director

Despite Brock's constant warnings, Katherine continues to follow her heart and trust Derek with her life. After all, Katherine's desire to focus body and soul on her marriage is paying off as Derek and Jill have less and less time to see each other. Moreover, when Katherine surprisingly decides to appoint Derek as the new CEO of Chancellor Industries, the man can't help but get involved in the work, ending up neglecting Jill who is getting more and more tired of chasing and waiting for the man and in the end she decides to leave him. The nomination of Derek as CEO naturally does not make happy George Packard, president of Chancellor Industries after the death of Phillip, who complains with Katherine because of Derek's inexperience, convinced that he does not have the necessary skills to fill that role. Katherine, however, is intransigent and puts her full trust in her husband, who repays her by promising her every effort. But George, tired of Derek bossing him around, decides to design a plan to make Katherine regret her choice. So he hires his secretary, Judy Wilson, as Derek's secretary, convinced that in this way Judy can gather the evidence to prove to Katherine Derek's incapacity.

1980 (#1) - Katherine's feelings for Derek, the flirt with Jill and Brock's suspicions

Katherine is determined to get her life back so she returned to Genoa City and showed up unexpectedly at Jill and Derek's wedding, thus interrupted. First at all, after canceling Jill and Derek's wedding, Katherine claims her husband to whom she is still formally married. Derek is happy about the fact that Katherine is still alive and declares himself ready to continue his commitment with her, after apologizing to the woman for going after Jill right away. This one, meanwhile, is not resigned certainly to lose once again the man she loves and continues to secretly seeing Derek, who proves to be attracted to the girl; the man then informs Jill that he wants to confirm his union with Katherine being exclusively interested in her money. He also confirms Jill about the fact that he wants to be able to divorce soon but with a good money, now that the divorce is very near. But if Katherine is unaware of Derek's plot against her and her assets, Brock suspects that Derek wants to be with Katherine, not love-oriented but only for his personal interest in his mother's money. In order to open his mother's eyes, Brock hires a detective, Ray Gordon to take compromising photos between Derek and Jill. In front of Brock's words and the evidence, Katherine is still convinced of Derek's love, so she chooses not to care about that. So she decides to tell Brock to stop interfering in her marriage, despite the fact that he continues to be convinced that Derek is more interested in his mother's money than in her happiness. Anyway after a tough confrontation between the two men, Derek intimates Brock to stop with his insinuations.

1979 (#21) - Jill's waiver and Katherine's interruption of her marriage to Derek

An angry Katherine, meanwhile, lives in the shadows, waiting for the right time to turn up. Believed and officially declared dead at the fire at the psychiatric institution, Katherine attends her funeral curiously, and of course disguised. Determined to take revenge on Suzanne, who was almost killing her, Katherine thus begins to appear before the woman, who thinks she is hallucinating or, even worse, she thinks she's in front of the Katherine's ghost. Katherine's repeated threats soon bring Suzanne to the brink of a nervous breakdown until a worried Derek decides to have her examined by a specialist, who advises him to hospitalize her in a psychiatric center. Meanwhile, while Jill is busy in court getting her share from the divorce from Stuart, the woman gets a lot of psychological support from Derek, with whom she soon reconnects. The man, who is ready to declare Katherine dead and inherit her fortune, has his heart divided between Jill and Suzanne. Undecided who is the right woman for him, he soon realizes that what he really wants is not to get back with his ex-wife, who seems to have completely lost her mind, but to be together with Jill to finally defeat the Destiny that since always seems to turn against them. Derek's choice naturally makes Jill happy, but it fills Katherine's eyes with hate, who can't believe how Jill can once again set her eyes on her man. The rapid evolution of the love story between Derek and Jill leads her to want to end her marriage to Stuart as soon as possible, even at the cost of losing a lot of money: after all, she is tired of waiting and Derek, having inherited Katherine's fortune, certainly has no financial problems. Surprisingly, then, Jill announces in front of an astonished Stuart that she wants to give up any claim, in order to get a divorce immediately. A happy Stuart naturally accepts Jill's request, free at last to cultivate her dream of love. So the long-awaited wedding day arrives between an excited Derek and a very happy Jill, but it is precisely on this occasion that Katherine decides to show up again and reappear in front of her acquaintances; the woman thus stops the wedding right at the culmination, claiming her property and, above all, her husband. Everyone is shocked to recognize Katherine and to find her alive again; but joy naturally leads to amazement, first of all Derek's, and disbelief mixed with Jill's disappointment. Jill, who had given up a probable good exit from her marriage to Stuart to be with Derek, is thus forced to remain, once again, empty-handed.

1979 (#14) - Suzanne's revenge, Katherine's hospitalization and the fire at the institute

The reconnection between Jill and Derek is certainly not what Suzanne was hoping for. The confession made to Derek, which caused the woman's pact with Katherine to be broken, was of course not only a selfless act of kindness and duty on Suzanne's part, but she was hoping to see a new feeling arise from her relationship with her ex-husband. But Derek, as mentioned, immediately went looking for Jill, even though Suzanne wouldn't give up. Convinced that she was still capable of making Derek fall in love with her, Suzanne began to think about solving the main obstacle to her union with the man, Katherine. While it's true that Derek believes his marriage is over, Suzanne also knows that if Derek asks for a divorce he won't get anything from the woman. Suzanne then convinces herself that the only way to stay with her ex-husband and get great financial benefits is to permanently remove Katherine from their lives. So Suzanne starts drugging Katherine, unaware that it was Suzanne who informed Derek of the truth about her recovery, with candies mixed with very powerful drugs and medicines. Katherine soon begins to behave abnormally and Derek, worried, on Suzanne's own advice, takes the Katherine to a centre for drug addicts. Here the doctors inform Derek that it will probably take years before Katherine can hope to come to her senses; this is also because Suzanne, during her visits, keeps bringing her special candies, which prevent Katherine from getting better. During Katherine's absence, meanwhile, Suzanne begins to successfully seduce Derek, who soon gets carried away by the woman, setting aside his plans to return with Jill. Meanwhile, Katherine begins to reflect on what has happened recently and begins to suspect Suzanne; realizing that the woman was poisoning her, Katherine stops taking the candy, giving it to another patient who shared the room with her, Daniel Branson, for the sole purpose of verifying its effect. Soon Daniel began to experience the same symptoms as the her and went crazy. One night, he lights a fire in the institute, burning himself to death. Katherine, then, realizes that she has a chance to escape and to be considered dead: by putting her wedding ring into the burnt and unrecognizable body of the man, in fact, everyone suspects that she is the victim of the fire.

1979 (#11) - Suzanne's confession to Derek and her rapprochement with Jill

Derek cannot explain Suzanne's bizarre behaviour and her departure without any details; in particular, Derek misses his son, which leads him to constantly look for and call her, asking the reason for his departure and pointing out his need and right, to see his son Jamie. Suzanne, finding herself under increasing pressure by all the man's questions, agrees to return secretly to Genoa City to talk to him in person. At the opposite side of the city from the Chancellor property, Suzanne reveals to Derek about his wife's fraud, telling him that she saw her walking with her very own eyes and that she was paid to go away and keep the secret. The news shocked Derek, who couldn't believe the woman's words, even though he actually managed to confirm it in the following days. An angry Derek then decides to confront Katherine, informing her that he wants to initiate divorce procedures. At the same time, Stuart informs Jill that he is now determined to end their marriage, despite the woman trying in every way she can to convince him to give up the idea. Stuart thus informs his daughters of the decision he has made, which fills them with joy. Now approaching their respective divorces, Jill and Derek find themselves once again in the possibility to start all over and to try once more to give their relationship a chance.

1979 (#7) - Katherine's hidden healing and Suzanne's return

No one would have ever bet on this couple, as their marriage was based essentially on blackmail, but in the end the long-awaited year of marriage between Katherine and Derek passed. According to the agreement between the two, at the end of this year, Derek would be free to divorce Katherine, and would also get the beauty salon. In Derek's plans, of course, there was the return with Jill, but this plan failed as Jill married Stuart. In addition, Katherine relies very much on her condition as she is still bedridden by paralysis following the attempted murder of Derek, whose life she saved. So it's obvious, that the young man's good heart, and the expectation of getting half of the Chancellor estate, should not lead him to consider divorcing Katherine. What Derek doesn't know is that Katherine has only been pretending to be paralyzed for some time now, just to keep the man next to her, although the fact that she has regained mobility months ago, just to keep the man next to her. Things get complicated for Katherine, however, when Suzanne comes back to town, convinced to get her ex-husband back. Katherine, frightened that her secret might be discovered, gets to the point of offering Suzanne money to leave Genoa City and stay far away from Derek. Finding herself in difficulty, Suzanne initially accepts the offer, but soon becomes suspicious of Katherine and, spying on her, manages to discover her secret. Suzanne's suspicions are confirmed when she pretends to be screaming about a fire in Katherine's house, and Katherine betrays herself by jumping up from her wheelchair to escape. Confronted with the evidence, a furious Katherine, ready to do anything to keep Derek just for her and not to be shared, chases Suzanne away and makes sure she leaves the city with a large sum of money.

1979 (#5) - The marriage to Stuart, Jill's oath, and Liz and Greg's doubts

Finally comes the long-awaited day of Stuart and Jill's wedding. Both in love with other people, the marriage is based purely on a physical attraction and the secret of Jill, who pretends to be expecting a child to gain better financial security for herself and her son Phillip. It's obvious that in this situation, the marriage is going. Despite this, however, the good intentions of the couple, who declare their eternal love in front of the many guests, are naturally the best. Stuart is happy to marry a young and beautiful woman, who becomes a wife envied by many; Jill, on the other hand, is happy to finally earn a comfortable life and give her son a peaceful future. Regretting having to lie to Stuart about her pregnancy, she also promises herself that she will soon get pregnant so that she does not have to admit the truth to Stuart and give him a child for real. Stuart's daughters also attend the ceremony, of course, who have tried to approve the marriage or not to get in the way of it, and, with obviously conflicting feelings, Liz, who carefully avoids turning her eyes on Stuart to focus on Jill instead. Next to her, Snapper and Greg support her, both strongly convinced that this marriage is not going to last long. Particularly doubtful about the solidity of the marriage just celebrated are Liz and Greg, who both have serious doubts based on very convincing reasons. Liz, having spoken with her friend and trusted friend Katherine, is aware of Jill's attempt to get in touch with Derek; Greg, on the other hand, obtains confirmation of his feelings by speaking directly to Stuart, who confesses to him his real reasons for marrying Jill. Greg knows that he cannot tell to the mother Liz about Jill's pregnancy as she would suffer too much, but this convinces him of the real feelings between Liz and Stuart, and he swears that he will do everything possible to get them back together again one day.

1979 (#3) - Stuart's afterthought and Jill's failed attempt with Derek

As time goes by, Stuart and Jill begin planning their wedding, an event that Stuart would now like to accelerate and celebrate before anyone can begin to suspect Jill's pregnancy, wanting to let everyone know that they are expecting a child from the woman only after the wedding. Despite Stuart's firm intention to get married, however, a sense of repentance and melancholy soon began to grow in him, realizing that he had only agreed to marry Jill because of her pregnancy; beyond the physical attraction to the woman, in fact, Stuart begins to understand that the difference in age between the two is all too evident and that only a woman like Liz could have made him happy, realizing that he was still in love with Liz herself, but now he was trying to forget him and play the difficult role of mother of the bride. In the meantime, it was Jill herself who began to feel guilty of having faked pregnancy. Feelings for Stuart, in fact, soon fade away and the only reason to continue this performance continues to be the desire to guarantee a comfortable future for little Phillip Jr. Jill can't deny, however, that she still has feelings for Derek, who promises Jill to get rid of his marriage to Katherine to be with her. Just the night before the wedding, Jill contacts Derek for a meeting and asks him for a warranty that he will marry her. At the meeting, however, Derek never shows up, having been called back by Suzanne to her family duties to look after little Jamie. Jill, once again disappointed by Derek, and realizing how foolish she was to think she could immediately break her current relationship, decides to put aside all her dreams with the man to focus on Stuart and Phillip. Derek's absence, of course, was orchestrated by Katherine who, unable to move, intervened to create a family emergency by making Derek's ex-wife look for him so that she couldn't meet her bitter rival Jill. A furious Derek, forced to make his beloved Jill suffer once again and leave the city at such an important time, will never know that his wife Katherine was the architect of all this.

1978 (#14) - The gratitude to Katherine, Derek's commitment and the breakup with Jill

After all the events that led to Katherine's injury, at this point Derek, moved by the woman's gesture, promises to stay with her until she was able to walk again. Katherine, then, confirms to him the proposal in which they would live together, even if only platonically if Derek wanted, for a year, at the end of which she would give him the entire beauty salon and, in addition, he would create a trust fund of one hundred thousand dollars for Phillip Jr; by the way Derek should never have talked about it with Jill. Meanwhile, Jill herself is grateful to Katherine for saving Derek, but she is certainly not happy with the news that Derek intends to continue his marriage to Katherine. The man confirms to Jill his love for her, but at the same time he tries to make her understand that he owes this act to Katherine for which he will always be grateful. A mortified Jill then decides to end her relationship with Derek for good, giving up all her dreams. Jill, despite Derek's assurances, in fact, suspects that Katherine might actually be able to get Derek's affection and she would only end up wasting her time.

1978 (#10) - Derek's involvement in organized crime and Katherine's leg paralysis

The turning point in what seemed to be a marriage meant to end soon, the one between Katherine and Derek, is when Derek's past in Boston comes back. Speaking with Derek, Katherine learns that the man has a daughter named Jamie Thurston who lives with his ex-wife Suzanne Lynch; Katherine, despite Derek's refusal, is convinced that the man needs to be close to his daughter and that she may therefore be the key to obtain the man's love. Katherine decides to travel to Boston in secret to bring his former family to Genoa City and make him understand how important his happiness is to Katherine; however, she is disappointed by her encounter with Suzanne. She tells her that she has no intention in leaving Boston for Genoa City and seeing Derek again, convinced that it is the same for him; then she suggests to Katherine to put her plan aside and forget about Derek. When Katherine asks her for explanations, Suzanne thus informs Katherine that Derek has had major problems with organized crime in the past when he asked for help from moneylenders to get his business going again. When, due to a deal gone wrong, he was no longer able to pay, Derek instinctively rebelled and reacted abruptly to threats from the criminal gang. In a gunfight, therefore, the brother of the boss died and the fact aroused a great scandal that led to the arrest of many other members of the gang. It is for this reason that Derek was forced to flee from Boston, leaving his family to keep them away from him and protect them. Back in Genoa City disappointed for having failed the attempt at reconciliation, Katherine does not know, however, that she is being followed by the gangsters, who thus manage to track down Derek. So, together with Katherine, two criminals arrive in Genoa City with the sole purpose of revenge and therefore ready to do anything to kill Derek. Katherine was naturally unaware of this fact, but when she sees two men attacking the man, she instinctively interferes trying to stop the beating. The whole thing ends with the woman falling to the ground, immediately fainting from a gunshot aimed at Derek. Taken to the hospital, the doctors are worried not so much about the damage to the head caused by the fall, but they are more worried about the damage to the legs caused by the bullet. Derek, moved by the gesture of the woman, who saved his life, and desperate for her critical condition, is not comforted by the doctors, who inform him that the woman risks losing the use of her legs because a paralysis of the lower limbs had been diagnosed.

1978 (#7) - Katherine's deception and her marriage to Derek

Despite Derek's refusal, Katherine is more determined than ever to make man her own. So, one night, Katherine gets the man drunk and, having arranged a wedding ceremony quickly, manages to marry him under false pretenses. The next day, when Katherine realizes that Derek doesn't remember anything that happened the night before, she ends up revealing to him that he woke up in his bed having made love the night before without any condition; Katherine's plan, after all, is first of all to make the man fall in love and only then to reveal to him about their marriage. Derek can't believe he could have sex with Katherine, so he decides to keep it a secret from Jill. Katherine denies everyone, especially Brock and Jill, that she has put a plan in place to make Derek her own, but he lets out some anxiety when he shows guilt to Jill. Soon, taking advantage of Katherine's lack of clarity, Derek manages to snatch from her the fact that the two got married. As Katherine begins to speak, begging Derek not to ruin it, the man is shocked. Despite Katherine's attempts to make him give up, Derek thus confesses to a horrified Jill the truth. The girl, convinced that the responsibility for what happened is exclusively Katherine's, Jill forgives Derek, but incites him to ask for the annulment of his marriage to Katherine. On hearing the news, Katherine is devastated and seeks suicide, but is saved by the emergency surgery of Derek and Brock, who tried to convince the man not to give her mother a pain with the divorce. Jill is not surprised by Katherine's attempt to take her own life, convinced that it was only a move to get pity from Derek and convince him to stay attached to her; Derek, however, thinks that Katherine's gesture was genuine even if, at Jill's exhortations to end her relationship with Katherine, confirms his willingness to divorce and get back with the girl.

1978 (#3) - The relationship between Jill and Derek, Katherine's proposal

As the weeks went by, Jill became more and more attracted to the handsome and charismatic Derek and the two began a relationship. Both dream of opening a large beauty salon together, which they will call the Golden Comb, and one day they will get married and start a family, sharing triumphs and failures together. Ironically, Katherine, too, as soon as she saw the young man, began to be interested in him; and knowing of his attraction to Jill, she knew that the only way to attract the man to herself was to prospect a real economic breakthrough. Katherine, from the very first encounter with Derek, used her money to try to buy his affection. Soon, a certain feeling was born between the two of them and Katherine surprised the man by proposing a particular agreement: they would get married living together but also without consuming the marriage for at least a year if he didn't want to, at the end of which Derek could have Katherine's big beauty salon becoming the only owner. Derek, a man certainly clever and with a nose for business, is tempted by the offer, although Jill, as soon as she hears Katherine's name, warns him, informing him of his past affairs with the woman. Jill accuses Katherine of wanting to ruin her life again, but it is Derek who reassures Jill that he has absolutely no intention of marrying Katherine, but is only tempted by her money. In the end, however, Derek is persuaded by Jill to refuse the woman's proposal and, with it, her financial offer.

1978 (#1) - Derek's arrival and Jill's dream of the beauty salon

A few years passed in Genoa City, but for Jill, it seems like it never happened. Losing the Chancellor inheritance, in fact, the girl is looking again for a job to support herself and her family, and without a man to raise her son Phillip Jr. Jill returns to look for a job again, and once again she is supported by her older brother Snapper, who is always demonstrating an overprotecting attitude. When Jill manages to get herself hired by a barber, in fact, it's Snapper himself who forces her to quit after hearing some customer's comments and advances harassing Jill. The long-awaited turning point for Jill, however, is around the corner, and it comes with the arrival in town of Derek Thurston, a young and charming hairdresser who has the dream of opening a beauty salon and in the meantime opens a small barber shop. It is Brock who asked Derek to hire Jill, aware of the difficult economic circumstances of the Foster family. Since their first meeting, Derek and Jill feel attracted to each other and they share a passion for cosmetics, thing that brings them closer and closer.