DOOL Famous Plots: The Secret Room

Kristen Blake was thrilled to discover that she was pregnant with John Black's baby, as it would help her to hold onto him. She and John became engaged. But when Kristen miscarried after an underground explosion she did not tell John. Instead she hired the world's greatest Elvis fan to impersonate her.

Susan Banks looked amazingly similar to Kristen and could easily pass as her by simply wearing contacts and fake teeth. The plan was that Susan would impersonate Kristen at all of her doctor's appointments and during the delivery. After the baby was born, she'd sell her baby to Kristen and leave town.

Ivan Marais and Vivian Alamain discovered the truth, but Kristen blackmailed them into silence and compliance. John prepared an impromptu marriage ceremony in the delivery room before the baby was born. Susan became Mrs. John Black and Kristen was forced to keep her around to breast feed the baby. During this time Susan began to realize she loved her baby and began falling in love with John. Kristen bought Susan's silence by hiring her as the live-in nanny. Unbeknownst to Kristen, Susan  had begun seeking psychiatric guidance from Marlena Evans.

When Marlena and John received the news of Roman Brady's death, they began spending a lot of time together, reminiscing about old times. Each felt strongly for the other, but they kept their feelings in check.

Things seemed to be going well for Kristen on the outside, but surface cracks were beginning to show. The largest being that Susan wanted John for herself. She had begun to run around town dressed as Kristen. Knowing that Susan needed to be dealt with, Kristen had a secret room built and planned on keeping her there until Stefano returned. Things went awry when Marlena discovered a semblance of the truth and went to confront Kristen. Marlena quickly found herself locked in the secret room.

This was no standard secret room, mind you, as it was equipped with live video feed from in and around the house. Marlena found herself forced to watch John and Kristen in intimate settings. John believed that Marlena had been taken by Stefano and he was unwilling to give up looking for her. Kristen tormented Marlena every chance she got, including forcing her to watch her son's birthday party.

Susan discovered Kristen's video monitor and managed to lock her in the cellar with Marlena. They fought like cats and dogs during their days locked up, and each was forced to watch Susan and John get closer. Susan would stop by from time to time and supply them with a wide variety of junk food. This continued on right up to the day "Kristen" and John were to renew their wedding vows.

Stefano returned to Salem and was waiting for the perfect time to remove Marlena and take her away. Kristen and Marlena were in the secret room watching the wedding when a gas leak began. Both women became unconscious. Meanwhile, Susan had had a little too much to drink at the reception. She was unprepared to be confronted by Laura Horton. Laura shook Susan so hard her false teeth flew out of her mouth.

Kristen and Marlena were rescued from the cellar. While Marlena was still unconscious, Kristen managed to convince John that Stefano and Susan had been plotting against them all along. As the wedding was about to continue, Marlena entered the room and stopped the ceremony. She was able to get Susan to confess the truth about the baby's parentage. They day ended with Kristen, Vivian and Ivan being booked on kidnapping charges.