The great house at Collinwood in the world of Parallel Time. The Collins family lives under a curse that has resulted in death or madness to succeeding generations. The family has also been beset by serious emotional conflicts. Recently, Bramwell Collins lost the woman he loved, Catherine Harridge, to his hated cousin Morgan. After the marriage, the two men fought a duel and Bramwell was wounded. He has recovered physically, but everyone at Collinwood knows that the inner emotional wound will never heal.
At Collinwood, Daphne tells Catherine that she is going to marry Bramwell. Shocked, Catherine rushes to the Old House, but Bramwell tells her she isn’t going to stop the wedding.
Act I
Catherine implores Bramwell not to marry Daphne, thinking he is marrying her out of hate for the Collins family, and not love. Bramwell is adamant that the plans are already in place, and there is nothing she can do to stop it.
At Collinwood, Carrie enters the drawing room and finds Daphne. Carrie senses that something is bothering Daphne, and tells her, “Someone won’t let you do something.” Daphne is taken aback, but lies about being upset. Catherine returns and tells Carrie to leave; she then declares she will stop Daphne’s marriage to Bramwell.
Act II
Catherine calls Daphne a fool for thinking Bramwell actually loves her. Daphne passes her off as being selfish, and accuses her of still being in love with Bramwell herself. Catherine begs her to think about it, otherwise she’ll soon find out what a marriage without love is like; Daphne says Catherine is already in a marriage such as that, and leaves the house.
Back at the Old House, Josette expresses her own concerns over Bramwell’s impending marriage to Daphne. She recounts her own marriage to Barnabas, saying they wouldn’t have been able to survive without each other’s love. Josette wonders if Bramwell, when he gets to her age, would be able to say that about Daphne. Just then, Daphne walks in, and Bramwell coldly asks her if Catherine was able to change her mind.
Act III
Daphne admits she is saddened by the reaction she received at Collinwood. Josette tries to reason with her, and tells her to think about it. After Josette leaves, Daphne tells Bramwell she has doubts, and points out that he has never actually told her that he loves her. Bramwell deduces that Catherine placed seeds of doubt in Daphne’s mind, and gets angry over her. Bramwell tells Daphne that he loves her, but Daphne doesn’t believe him.
Act IV
Daphne asks for time to think, and leaves the Old House.
Josette goes to Collinwood to speak with Catherine, and tells her she is against Bramwell and Daphne’s wedding as well. Josette advises Catherine to do nothing, and let Daphne figure things out on her own. Before leaving, Josette implies to Catherine that she made a mistake marrying Morgan.
Daphne goes to the gatehouse to visit Carrie, and asks her to look into her future. Carrie goes into a trance and sees Bramwell looking at Daphne’s grave.
Memorable quotes[]
Josette: I don't believe there's been a greater love than existed between your father and me. Barnabas and I could not have survived without our love. When he died, I felt such a total loss that for a time I thought I might go insane. I made mistakes after that, many mistakes. But while Barnabas was alive, I was as happy as any human being can be.
Catherine (to Bramwell): Be honest with yourself. You're not marrying Daphne out of love....but out of hate. And all it can mean for her is a lifetime of misery.
This episode was recorded out of broadcast sequence. The previous episode to be recorded was 1221.
Beginning with this episode Gordon Russell is credited for the writing of 27 consecutive episodes. This is the second-longest unbroken run after Art Wallace, who was credited for writing the first 40 episodes of the series.
The gravestone seen in this episode for Daphne Harridge is the same one that was used in 1071 for the character's main time-band counterpart; the only difference is that in the space where 'Collins' appears, previously there was an engraving of a bird; it is identical in all other respects.
After Josette leaves the drawing room of the Old House in Act III, Bramwell mistakenly calls Daphne Catherine: "Well, Catherine, do you want to postpone it?"
The yellow masking layer of the effect for Carrie's trance stops short of the left side of the screen.
