372 - November 28, 1967

[bunniefuu]

[Angelique narrating] - Time stands still at Collinwood,

for one girl has taken a mysterious

and dangerous journey into the past.

A house she knew as old and deserted

is now her home

and the home of the Collins family,

and under its roof, unseen by all,

a dangerous game of intrigue and terror

is being played out.

- Sarah!

- She ain't here.

- Do you have any idea where she might be?

- In the nursery, probably.

- No, I have already looked there.

Although she might be in her own room. - Maybe.

- We haven't met.

I'm Victoria Winters.

- The new governess?

- That's right.

Matthew! - What?

- Matthew Morgan!

- Why are you looking at me like that?

What are you talking about?

- No! Stay away from me!

- What's wrong with you?

- Please, please don't come near me!

Please, go away!

Please, stay away from me! No!

Stay away! Stay away!

♪♪

[eerie music] ♪♪

No! Please!

- Please, Matthew! - What? What?

- Please, leave me alone! - What is it?

- What's wrong? - No! Please!

- Stokes! What are you doing?

- Nothing. I --

- Let go of Ms. Winters at once!

Now then, I am waiting for an explanation.

- I didn't do anything.

We were talking and I turned around

and she started screaming.

I don't know why.

- You must have done something to frighten her!

- I didn't. I swear I didn't!

- He's right. He didn't do anything.

- Then why did you scream?

- Because --

because he - he looks like someone I -

I knew a long time ago.

Someone who frightened me.

But it - it was all my fault.

- I never saw you before in my life!

- It's - it's true. It's true.

He - he didn't.

It's - it's just that - that he - he resembled someone,

but it is just my fault.

- It's very kind of you to take the blame, Miss Winters,

but Stokes must be punished!

- Why, he has done nothing.

- He engaged a young lady of this house in conversation.

He has been told repeatedly that he is forbidden to do that.

You know you are forbidden to speak with the women

of this house unless you are replying to an order.

- But I started the conversation.

I asked him if he knew where Sarah was.

- That is immaterial.

He took liberty that he was not supposed to take

and he must be punished for it.

- But that's not fair.

- I am the master of this house, Ms. Winters.

I will decide what is fair and what is not fair.

Do we understand each other?

- Yes, sir.

- Now then, Stokes,

about your request for a holiday tomorrow,

I have decided to withdraw my permission.

You will remain on the property

and go about your duties as usual.

- But I -- - Don't argue with me, man!

I have given you an order.

You see that you follow it out.

Do you understand? - Yes.

- "Yes, sir!"

- Yes, sir.

- All right.

You may go.

- Mr. Collins, I wish that you would reconsider.

- I have made my decision, Ms. Winters.

Once I make a decision,

I seldom, if ever, reverse it.

- But he is not to blame!

I am the one who is at fault.

That may or may not be true.

Stokes must be kept in line.

You know very little about him.

If you are wise,

you will stay as far away from him as possible.

He is a dangerous man.

- Dangerous?

- He is a hardened criminal.

He came here from a prison in Salem.

He is indentured to me for the remainder of his prison term.

I allowed him to come here

because he is strong and able-bodied

and I needed able-bodied men to help clear the property,

but I don't trust him or any of his kind

and I must rule him with an iron fist!

- But why was he in prison? What was his crime?

- He broke into a farmhouse and ransacked it.

When he was caught,

he claimed that he was returning from the w*r

and he was starving and freezing.

- Well, perhaps he was!

- You sound like Jeremiah and Barnabas!

If they had their way,

he would sit at table with the entire family!

There is in my son and my brother a streak

of sentimentality that I --

However, I am digressing.

We are expecting a visitor in a few days,

a distant cousin of ours, Millicent Collins,

who will be coming from Boston.

With her will be her younger brother, Daniel.

Kindly help prepare for her arrival.

- Millicent Collins?

For how long will she be staying?

- Well, she will be here at least through the wedding

at the end of this month,

perhaps longer, perhaps permanently.

- Permanently?

- Ever since Jeremiah and Millicent were children,

it has been a family understanding that,

well, leave it that if all goes as planned,

there may be not one wedding but two.

- But Millicent never married.

- What?

Why did you say that?

- Because --

Because I - I read a book once about a girl called

Millicent who never married.

That's all.

- You have a habit of saying

very curious things, Ms. Winters.

- I'm very sorry.

I - I think that Sarah probably wants me.

I should go to her.

Would you excuse me? - Certainly.

You are excused.

♪♪

♪♪

[thinking] - Oh, there it is.

I was certain it grew around here.

[gasps]

- What are you doing? - Well, I was --

- Answer my question. What are you doing?

- I was just gathering herbs.

Is there anything wrong with that?

- What you want that stuff for?

- My mistress likes a special salad

that's prepared with herbs.

I - I was going to surprise her, if it is any of your business.

- Don't you know what you've got in that basket?

- Of course, bay leaves. - Them ain't bay leaves.

That's deadly nightshade and it's poisonous.

- Poisonous!?

- A man could die if he had enough of them leaves,

die real sudden.

- Oh!

I'm so glad you told me!

I had no idea.

I'm so glad you came along.

- You be careful what you pick in these woods.

- I will from now on. - See that you are.

- Oh, wait!

Where are you going?

- I've got work to do.

- But I haven't had a chance to thank you

and introduce myself.

I am Angelique.

- I know.

I - I saw you on the day you arrived.

You're Ms. duPres' maid.

- That's right.

And you?

- Ben Stokes. I - I work around here.

- I've seen you before too.

- More than likely it was somebody else.

I don't go to the house much except to bring in firewood.

- No, I'm sure it was you.

I saw you outside my window.

You were lifting a carriage out of a rut in the road

and you did it all alone.

- What about it?

- You are very strong.

- I get by.

- Oh, you do much better than that.

- Why are you wasting your time talking to me?

- Oh, I don't consider it a waste of time.

- I shouldn't be talking to you.

If anyone sees me, I'll be punished for it,

whipped, probably.

- But why?

Because I'm not supposed to talk to the womenfolk

by order of Mr. Joshua Collins!

- Oh, but that is a ridiculous order!

Why, I never heard of anything so cruel!

- Joshua Collins can think of a whole lot of ways

to be cruel to a man, but someday, I --

- Go on.

- Never mind.

I'd got to go. I got work to do.

- I won't tell anyone I talked to you,

but I hope that we'll be able to talk again sometime.

- Why?

- I just do.

- Most women don't want to talk to me.

Most women pass me by.

Why are you different?

- I just like talking to you.

Is that wrong?

- No.

- Then don't be embarrassed.

There's nothing to be embarrassed about.

- I've got to go now.

- Oh, Ben. - Yeah?

- You won't tell anyone that you saw me

picking those leaves, will you?

I wouldn't want anyone to know what a terrible mistake

I almost made.

- I don't tell nothing to nobody.

Goodbye.

♪♪

[knocking on door]

[Victoria] - Angelique?

Angelique?

- Oh, Ms. Winters.

- I'm sorry if I startled you.

- Oh, it's all right.

What do you want?

- Ms. duPres wondered where you were.

She was looking for you.

- Oh.

It was such a lovely day,

I went for a walk in the woods.

I'll go in to her in a moment.

Thank you for delivering the message.

- Of course.

By the way, what's this doing here?

- Oh, why, what is it?

- It's a toy soldier.

It used to belong to Barnabas Collins

when he was a little boy.

It should have been on a shelf in the nursery.

What's it doing here?

- I don't know. I've - I've never seen it.

- I noticed that it was missing yesterday.

I thought it was rather strange.

- Perhaps Sarah was playing with it

and she dropped it here.

- Does she come here to play?

- Well, she has several times.

I'm glad she does.

She is such a sweet girl.

- And did she drop this too?

- That handkerchief?

- This belongs to Barnabas Collins as well.

- How do you know?

- Because his monogram is on it.

Did Sarah drop this too?

- Really, she must have,

because I don't know how else they could have come here.

- Well, she really shouldn't take these things

and she shouldn't be so careless.

I think I'll have to scold her. - Oh, no, don't.

Oh, please don't scold her.

It sounds so harsh.

- Well, maybe not, but I will have to talk to her.

No, please, don't do that either.

- What is your objection?

Well, I --

- Yes?

- I have a confession to make.

- A confession?

- Yes.

I don't want you to scold Sarah or even speak to her for -

for personal reasons.

If you do, Sarah may stop coming to visit me.

She may feel that she will get into trouble if she does.

I wouldn't want that to happen.

I'd be miserable if that happened.

- But if I don't tell her where I found these --

- Well, she may remember.

Now, just put the toy soldier back in the nursery

and leave the handkerchief where --

where Monsieur Barnabas may find it

and forget all about it.

Will you do that?

Please, for my sake?

- Well, perhaps, but just this once.

- Thank you.

You are very kind.

- Now, I had better get these back to the nursery.

- And you won't say anything to Sarah?

- No.

- Thank you again so much.

I can't tell you how much I appreciate it.

- Of course.

♪♪

[thinking] - That was close.

Too close!

I've got to find someone to help me,

to work for me,

to keep suspicion away from me.

But who?

I know.

I know.

♪♪

♪♪

- Ben.

- What do you want?

- I was looking for you.

- Why?

- I want to apologize.

I'm sorry that I got you into trouble this morning.

I didn't mean it.

- Forget it.

- No, I can't.

It was my fault and you were punished.

I'm sure that you were looking forward

to that holiday very much.

- Mr. Collins would have found another excuse

to take it away from me.

That's the way he is.

- Mr. Collins may seem stern, but I'm sure --

- "Stern"!?

"Stern" is not the word for him.

"Mean" is the word for him!

He is so mean, sometimes you will want to reach out

with both hands and grab his throat and --

- Ben Stokes,

you are going to hear me calling to you.

You are going to come to me.

Ben Stokes, Ben Stokes.

- You shouldn't be so bitter about Mr. Collins.

It's easy enough to talk, but --

- What's the matter?

- I don't know.

I - I feel strange.

- Are you all right?

- Yeah. But you better go now.

- Are you sure that you're all right?

- I'm fine, but I only want you to go away.

If they catch you talking to me,

I'll get into more trouble. - I know that but --

- Go away! Please! Leave me be.

- All right.

[Angelique] - Ben Stokes.

- Who is calling me?

Who's there?

[Angelique] - Come to me.

I want you to come to me.

- Who are you?

[Angelique] - Come to me.

Come to me.

[knocking on door]

Come in.

Hello.

- I don't know what I'm doing here.

- You're here because I wanted you to come here.

- You did?

- Didn't you hear me calling you?

- You wanted me?

- Does that seem so strange?

- Yes, but it - it doesn't matter.

- No. - But I --

- Later.

First, I want you to drink this.

- What is it?

- Never mind.

Just drink it.

- And after that?

- We shall see.

- What now?

- How do you feel?

- Strange.

- Because you no longer have a will of your own.

My will is your will.

You shall do whatever I tell you to do.

You shall be my sl*ve!

♪♪

[eerie music] ♪♪