Karen's kidnapper, Phil Harbert, brings her to a guestroom in his home. He's laden it with food and new clothes for Karen, telling her he wants her to be comfortable. He tells Karen she hasn't been kidnapped, she's just disappeared. Greg uses the cleanup of Empire Valley as publicity for Peter. Greg tells him that he won't really clean it up until Lotus Point goes bankrupt. Peter tells Jill, who tells Gary.Val is overjoyed when Ben comes home. Later Ben receives a note from his old friend Jean Hackney to meet her. He goes to her boutique, which is a cover from underground activities. She asks him to spy on Greg, and kisses him. He tells her he no longer can do either activity. Flashback Scene: Young Mac, Greg and Phil go to the Matheson's, only to find out they've gone to their summer residence. Mac is upset because he didn't get to say goodbye to Anne.

Phil makes Karen cut her hair because he likes short hair better.Ben refuses to spy for Jean. The arsenic levels at Lotus Point are rising. Gary decides to run for the senate himself, against Peter. He thinks that this will pressure Greg to really clean up Empire Valley. Jill agrees to be Gary's campaign manager, and this angers Peter. Jill tells Peter that only Gary is important to her now. Mac breaks down to Val over Karen, and Val comforts him. Flashback Scene: Mac, Phil and Greg see Anne on a train, but Mac is afraid to approach her. Greg speaks with her, and she slaps him. Mac apologizes to Anne, and she agrees to go out with him. He falls asleep by her pool while waiting for her to get ready on their first date.

Jean calls Ben and he tells her never to call him at home. Ben poses Val a hypothetical question: Should he do a report on a man who was once in a subversive group that bombed a building, but had gotten out and was now a responsible man with a family? Val says no, as it would hurt his family. Abby shows up at a speech that Gary gives, and tells Jill that she will be with Gary morning, noon and night. However, she gives Peter copies of Gary's speeches and schedule. Phil tells Karen that he wants Mac to feel what it's like not to know where his wife is. Phil says that Mac sent him to jail and he didn't know what was happening to his wife, and then she died. He says he'll let Karen go in a year. Greg decides to really clean up Empire Valley. Phil stops by to see Greg. Greg excitedly tells Laura that he's a good friend from law school.

News of Gary and Jill's affair hits the papers. Abby's furious, and has a little talk with Peter. At a debate, Peter makes it clear that Gary's personal life is not an issue. Gary and Jill resume their affair. Greg has Phil's license plate traced to an address in Dillon, CA, and drives there. Jean keeps trying to call Ben, and he keeps hanging up on her. Karen escapes the burning house. Phil sees her on the road and tries to run her down. She escapes into the woods and eventually comes across a vacant house. She breaks in, but Phil finds her. She throws a bucket of ammonia in his face and runs out back to the barn. He is breaking down the barn door when Greg shows up and stops him. Greg says he'll let him go for old times sake, as long as he goes back east and never gets involved in their lives again. Karen is confused when she hears 2 cars leave. Police tell Mac they received a tip about where Karen is. Mac and Karen run into each other's arms, and he brings her home.

Mac thinks Greg has something to do with Karen's kidnapping. Greg puts Phil up in a motel until he can make arrangements to send him to Hong Kong. They agree to meet the next morning. Phil orders a pizza. The delivery boy recognized Phil from TV and calls Mac. Michael is uncomfortable with his attraction to Paige, but they begin to kiss. Jean introduces herself to Val as an old college friend of Ben's, and Val invites her to dinner. Ben tells Jean to leave him alone or he'll expose her on TV. While grocery shopping, Ben loses Bobby and later finds him with Jean. Scared, he goes along with her and supports Peter on TV. Abby is furious, but tells Peter it was her idea. Peter wins the election.

Peter continues to add extra pills to Sylvia's medical dish. Peter tells pharmacist he needs more pills because Sylvia dropped them down the sink. Then Peter feels guilty and flushes the extra pills. A studio options ""Capricorn Crude"" and wants Val to write the script. Eric walks in on Michael and Paige sleeping together. He's furious about what that would do to Mac and Karen. He and Michael have a physical fight, and trash the room, but won't tell Karen what it's about. Paige can't pay her hotel bill and moves in with the MacKenzies. The hotel calls and says Paige's check bounced, and Karen wonders why she pretends to have a lot of money. Ben tells Val he doesn't like Jean and not to be friends with her. Jean tells her lover that Ben's real assignment is to kill Greg.

Jean scratches Greg's car in order to meet him, and later comes on to him. Mac tells Paige he can come to her if she needs money. Paige pawns some jewelry. Peter can't find Sylvia, and calls Jill over to Sylvia's. Peter tells Jill about the pills, and she's angry that he's gone too far. Ben, who was going to interview Sylvia, stops by and is suspicious about Jill being there. Sylvia shows up at the ranch telling Abby that Peter tried to kill her. Peter denies it, but Sylvia says she's staying at the ranch until Abby finds her new accommodation. Gary and Abby sleep together, but he tells her that sex isn't enough anymore. Jill won't tell Gary what her relationship to Peter is, so he gives her an ultimatum. Jill tells Peter that she's going to tell Gary he's her brother, and Peter flips out. They argue, and Jill accidentally falls over the side of a cliff.

Paige tells Karen she'd better worry about Anne's intentions with Mac. She then packs goes to stay with Peter. Anne tells Mac that he's the only man she ever loved, but didn't tell him she was pregnant, because she found out her father paid him $5,000 to leave her. Mac says that isn't true. She says she's afraid she'll fall in love with Mac again. Karen is jealous of Anne's looks, and they talk uncomfortably while waiting for Paige. Anne says Paige did this to bring her and Mac back together and she is snide to Karen. Olivia goes to AA with Gary, and apologizes to Brian. Abby still wants to postpone the divorce, but Gary says no. Jean has Ben bug Greg's office. They hear Peter ask Greg where he sent Sylvia on vacation, but Greg won't tell him. Then Jean calls and says she wants Ben to break into Greg's computer.

Seeing Anne's immature behavior, Karen feels sorry for Paige and wants her to stay with them. Anne wants Paige to come back to NY, and threatens to cut her off financially. Peter tells Paige it isn't good for his image to live with someone, so she moves back to the MacKenzies. Anne says she'll stay until Paige agrees to leave with her. Greg finds the bug in his office, and suspects that someone has hooked up to his computer. He makes phony deals, and tells Ben about it. Ben tells Jean, who's upset because she fell for it. Abby tells Gary she will fight for the ranch unless he gives her $3 million so Gary gives her the money. Ben tells Val that no matter what happens, to always remember he loves her. Jean tells Ben that his new assignment is to kill Greg.

Paige accepts a job at Lotus Point. Anne asks Karen to arrange for her to live at Lotus Point. Greg and Laura disagree about her having the baby, so she moves back to the cul-de-sac. Abby opens a nightclub at Lotus Point. Peter asks Abby to the opening, but tells Paige it is only for PR purposes. Ben refuses to kill Greg, and Jean says she'll kill his family. After someone tries to run Val off the road, Ben tells her that he was part of a subversive group that bombed a building and an innocent man was killed. Ben says they want him to kill Greg. Ben and Val decide to run away. Val won't tell Lilimae what is up. Ben is being followed, and steals a car to lose them. Val, Lilimae, and the kids follow Ben's plan to meet him secretly. As they drive away, Jean pulls up next to them in her car.

Jean catches the Gibson's, and they know that their house is bugged. She instructs Ben to kill Greg at the Lotus Point Club Opening. At the opening, Greg and Laura make up. He says he's happy about the baby. Anne hangs all over Mac at the party, and Karen pretends not to mind. Mac is amused at Karen's jealousy. Ben tells Val that they'll escape in a catering truck after the party. Jean tells Ben that if he doesn't kill Greg, she has people at the party who will kill Val. Ben says the time isn't right, so Jean tells him to make an opportunity. Gary and Jill tell Val that they're getting married and Val runs off crying. Ben confronts Greg in his office and pulls out a gun. He tells Greg to help him find a way out of this, because if he doesn't kill him, they'll kill his family. Jean listens in on the bug. Ben can't bring himself to kill Greg, but then a shot rings out.

Val and the kids are brought home in a catering van. Val is frantic about Ben. Mac hires bodyguards posing as construction workers to protect Val and instructs Val to say that Ben is on a business trip. Lilimae asks Karen if she knows what's going on as Ben had her close her bank account, they drove around in a stolen car, then in a Catering van all night, and now there are 2 carpenters at the house who aren't doing anything. Karen asks both Mac and Val what is going on, but neither will tell her anything. Greg's death is in the paper. Abby rushes to Peter's and says he'd better be prepared to take over Galveston Industries and pressures him to make a public statement. Gary and Jill had planned to marry in Las Vegas, but he postpones it. Val goes to the ranch to comfort Laura, then Greg walks in, and Val suddenly wonders if Ben is dead.

Jean's superior tells her she needs to kill Greg. Mac, Greg and an agent find out that Jean and her associate are trying to kill Greg. Mac punches out Jean's superior, and he's arrested. Not knowing he's on to her, Jean invites Greg to her hotel room. Greg says he knows what she's up to and pulls a gun. Mac and the agent come in and arrest her. Mac explains to Karen that he couldn't tell Val that Ben was alive, because she would give it away. Val, hysterical about Ben, tries to buy a gun. Unsuccessful, she goes to the ranch and takes Gary's gun. Val breaks into Jean's store, and almost shoots a cleaning woman by accident. Gary finds her and brings her home. Ben walks in and they hug and kiss and cry. That night Ben dreams that Jean kills Val. Abby tells Jill, ""Let the second Mrs. Ewing give the soon to be third Mrs. Ewing some advice. The first Mrs. Ewing doesn't go away - ever!"" Gary and Jill decide to get married some other time.

Ben is upset that Greg sent Jean to Paraguay instead of pressing charges. He is ultra paranoid and thinks he sees Jean everywhere. Greg fires Ben. Jill questions Gary about whether she comes first in his life. Olivia joins Peter's Youth Commission against drugs. She admits to Paige she has a huge crush on Peter.Abby and Paige vie for Peter's affection. To win his affection, Paige tells Peter that Sylvia gave Olivia a letter, and that he can use Olivia's crush on him to get the letter back. Peter sends Olivia flowers, thanking her for her help. Anne rents Laura's house, and hangs out at the MacKenzie's. Karen doesn't like this, and tells Anne to stop coming on to Mac because she doesn't stand a chance. Anne sends herself a package, but has is delivered to the MacKenzies. When Mac brings it over, she tells him she wants him to stay and get reacquainted.