1991 (#9) - The meeting with Flo, the trial for attempted murder and Nina's acquittal

When the police and doctors arrive at Nina and David's house, the scenario that unfolds before their eyes is shocking. David is lying on the ground in a pool of blood, under the petrified eyes of Nina, who is still holding the gun. David is rushed to the hospital, while Nina is taken to the police station for questioning and charged by prosecutor Glenn Richards for attempted murder. Katherine and Jill rush to the police station, where they obtain the woman's immediate release on bail pending the trial. Nina doesn't say a word and decides to remain silent despite Jill and Katherine's questions, shocked by what has happened but inside happy to have finally closed this dangerous chapter of their lives. Both try to console Nina, assuring her that they are convinced she will be acquitted since it was self-defense, and they set about contacting their lawyers. Nina, however, is more confused than ever, and upon hearing the news that David is still alive, she instinctively takes Chance and decides to leave. Leaving the city, the woman goes with little Chance to his mother, Flo, in search of help. Flo is astonished but at the same time happy to see Nina again after all these years, who doesn't mention anything about what happened. From Nina's cold attitude, it soon becomes clear that she never had much of a relationship with her mother, and it doesn't take long to understand why, as Nina soon realizes that Flo has never changed in all these years; her mother, in fact, still continues to drink and work as a prostitute. Meanwhile, Jill, Katherine and Christine panic when they can't find Chance or Nina. Realizing that the woman has escaped, Christine sets out on her trail and, suspecting that she may have gone to her mother's, runs to her. Flo, meanwhile, is displeased by Nina's sudden decision to leave; her repeated promises to change her life are obviously not believed by Nina, who feels trapped and does not want to raise Chance in that environment. Determined to escape to Mexico to start a new life and in search of safety, Nina is tracked down by Christine just as she is about to get back in the car. Christine eventually manages to convince Nina to do the right thing, certain that in the end her innocence will come out despite all the trouble she has gotten into. Back in town, Nina is then taken to jail to await her trial, where she testifies that she shot in self-defense and makes a heartfelt plea to be given the chance to raise her son. The hard work of Katherine's lawyer, Rick Dooley, who point by point pitted David's criminal life, eventually convinces the jurors of David's dangerousness and evil intentions, thus acquitting Nina, found not guilty, who explodes from joy and happiness along with Christine, Jill and Katherine.

1988 (#26) - Steven's murder and Ashley's despair

Victor returns to the city, fresh from his marriage in Las Vegas to Leanna, just as Steven and Ashley are having a furious discussion. Steven assures the woman that he will devote himself completely to her to protect her and make her safe, but at the same time he demands clarity, transparency and above all a strong willingness to put Victor behind him. Steven thus, despite Ashley's assurance that her future is with him, begins to doubt that the press is completely wrong in insinuating a possible flirtation between his wife and Victor. It is precisely this, however, that presents itself in front of Steven to reassure him and inform him that he has married Leanna. Steven is astonished at how Victor could have so suddenly decided to marry the woman and becomes suspicious; talking to Jack and asking him why they were no longer seeing each other, the man lets it slip that Leanna is really none other than Nora, the author of the defamatory book about Victor, who thus completely ignores his wife's identity. Steven decides to leave it all a secret, not feeling compelled to do Victor a favor, which he never liked; however, when he notices Ashley making friends with Leanna, he seriously begins to think he has to tell his wife who the woman is and explain the whole thing to her. Unfortunately for Steven, however, he will never have time to talk to his wife. Shortly before leaving work, in fact, a psychopathic and deranged former patient of Steven's, a certain Andrew Morton, stops the doctor and, after a brief interview, freezes him with a gunshot leaving him in a pool of blood. Andrew, who disappears and will never be caught by the police despite the arrest warrant issued by Prosecutor Glenn Richards, immediately leaves the office with a dying Steven inside. When Jack, recalled by Ashley worried that her husband has not returned from work, finds the body of the corpse, he is completely shocked. It was his turn, unfortunately, to inform an inconsolable Ashley of the death of her husband, an event that affects the entire city. Victor, in this difficult period for Ashley, spends a lot of time with the woman, trying in vain to console her; this fact, which obviously leads Leanna, to show the first signs of jealousy. When Victor in particular gives Ashley a pendant, leading her to believe that it was a gift from Steven who did not have time to give it to her, Ashley is struck by Victor's generosity and his significant gift, while Leanna, who is equally impressed by Victor's gesture of kindness, begins to realize that she has strong feelings for him.