It began with a shot in the dark…
…and led to one of the most promising love stories in GH history. In yet another attempt at seeking revenge against Luke Spencer, Stefan made a tragic mistake in accidentally shooting Katherine, who had come to Spoon Island looking for Nikolas. Stefan was horrified when he realized what he had done and he immediately rushed to help the beautiful woman whose name he did not yet know. Their eyes met briefly, and Stefan would continue to be haunted by the vision for many months to come.
When Katherine awoke in the hospital, the doctors informed her that she was paralyzed from the waist down. She was understandably distraught not only at her prognosis but also in the fact that she could not remember what happened or who had shot her. She had brief flashes of her assailant’s eyes but could remember nothing else. Katherine had a difficult time accepting her paralysis and she pushed away those who were close to her, including Mac who had proposed marriage in an effort to give her a reason to live. She turned him down and instead broke off their relationship, telling him that it was obvious they were no longer in love with each other.
At the hospital, Katherine received two regular visitors: Nikolas Cassadine and a mysterious stranger whom she believed to be someone working at the hospital late at night. The handsome stranger offered her comfort and she came to look forward to his daily visits. She felt unexplainably drawn to him even though she had yet to know his name or anything about him. She opened up to him and talked about her fears of being paralyzed and eventually began to share with him the details of her past as well. She felt comfortable talking to him because he seemed to genuinely care about her and did not judge her.
For his part, Stefan first began visiting Katherine out of guilt over being the one who shot her. But soon those visits turned into much more as he starting getting to know her and learning more about her. As his visits became more frequent, he made many excuses to Bobbie about feeling responsible because Katherine was on their property when she was shot. Therefore he felt obligated to keep tabs on her recovery.
The more he visited Katherine, the harder it became to fight his attraction to her. He felt connected to her on a deeper level and soon discovered she was the one person he could go to and completely be himself. She had no idea who he was and she liked him anyway. That was something he had never before experienced.
Katherine told Stefan that she would never walk again simply because she was weak and had always failed at everything in life. Stefan sat amazed by the lack of self confidence this beautiful woman possessed and he told her in no uncertain terms that she was beautiful and strong, and that she could accomplish anything she wanted. She was raised the daughter of a servant and she should be proud of her successes in life. She would walk again, he was sure of it. He helped motivate her to go ahead with surgeries and therapies that would help her walk again. One evening during a terrible ice storm, Stefan came to the hospital and they shared their first really poignant moment together. He told her how the ice was covering everything outside, making the landscape almost breathtaking. She asked him to carry her to the window so that she could see for herself. She was taken aback by the beauty of an ice covered tree just outside her window, and several days later Stefan presented her with a unique gift he had made especially for her: a crystal tree that would always serve as a memory of that evening.
Stefan’s wife Bobbie was becoming increasingly suspicious of her husband’s attention to Katherine, and yet she continued to turn a blind eye to the amount of time he was spending with the other woman. For her part, Katherine was still completely unaware of Stefan’s identity and she had already begun to develop feelings for him by the time he finally revealed his name. Stefan felt guilty about keeping secrets from her and finally revealed to her that not only was he Stefan Cassadine, but that he was also the one who had shot her. Katherine was hurt and angry and told him she never wanted to see him again, and yet she did not turn him in as her shooter. Even when Luke Spencer begged her to reveal the truth and seek revenge, Katherine kept silent. In her heart, she knew Stefan had been sincere about his feelings for her. Stefan also realized the significance of her silence. Despite the fact that she felt betrayed by his secrets, she still would not turn him in to the police, and it was then he knew that he must somehow find a way to make her forgive him. He continued to check on her progress and he eventually got her to accept that he was genuinely sorry for his deception. Knowing he was married, Katherine tried desperately to fight her feelings for him, but each time they were together it became more obvious that they were falling in love.
They continued to grow closer, spending time taking moonlight swims, going for long drives and spending hours talking and getting to know each other. As Stefan became more distant and home, Bobbie grew increasingly suspicious until she finally confronted Katherine, who denied anything was going on.
Realizing the pain their affair was causing, Katherine made it clear to Stefan that it had to end. She would not settle for being the “other woman,” though she never resorted to giving him and ultimatum. She knew in her heart that if his feelings for her were genuine, then he would stop at nothing to be with her.
Katherine continued with her therapy, more determined than ever to one day walk again. Each time she and Stefan saw each other was almost painful as they longed to be together if only the circumstances were different. On the night of the Nurse’s Ball, Katherine had her most significant breakthrough when she finally stood and took her first steps. Stefan was in attendance and was overjoyed when she walked onto the stage. They were incredibly moved that they got to share the experience with each other.
Bobbie had finally reached her breaking point when she noticed the looks between Stefan and Katherine and she asked her brother Luke to help her spy on Stefan. When she was caught red handed, Stefan was livid at the invasion of privacy and immediately demanded she leave Wyndemere and told her he wanted a divorce. In reality, Stefan was not so much angry at Bobbie as he was relieved that he could finally be with Katherine.
At long last they were able to be together without hiding. They confessed their love and Stefan gave her a beautiful pearl ring as well as a necklace that had been in his family for generations. As they continued to grow closer in their relationship, Stefan’s cousin Alexis could do little to hide her jealousy. She did not like how distracted Stefan seemed to be from the family business, nor did she like that he seemed to be giving up his vendetta against Luke Spencer. She blamed Katherine’s influence, and sought a way to keep the two apart. She soon realized it would have to be drastic, as the two were deeply in love.
She devised an elaborate hoax to make Stefan believe that Katherine was his illegitimate half-sister Natasha (from an affair between Stefan’s father and Katherine’s mother). Alexis convinced Stefan that he couldn’t reveal the secret to anyone…especially Katherine, in order to protect her from Helena who would undoubtedly have her murdered should she find out.
Stefan was devastated but knew that he had to do everything in his power to protect Katherine and keep her safe, even if it meant making her believe he had been using her along so that she wouldn’t turn him in for shooting her. At first Katherine refused to believe that he had been using her. She couldn’t fathom that everything they had shared had all been a game to him. Still, he went to great lengths to convince her by humiliating her in public her and firing her from her job at the hospital. Katherine was heartbroken by his cruel rejection, not knowing Stefan was equally devastated. In desperation, she teamed up with Luke, in an attempt to make Stefan jealous (it worked) and also to taunt him and make him think that she was plotting revenge. Stefan warned her to stay away from Luke Spencer because he was just using her and Katherine was incensed at the irony of his warning seeing as how he had used her as well (or so she thought).
In the meantime, Stefan was tortured over the truth as he wanted so much to be with Katherine. Alexis was afraid he would discover the truth so she arranged for him to visit the “grave” of Natasha and when the empty casket was opened, Stefan was more convinced than ever that Katherine was his sister. Stefan broke down in tears as he told Alexis how much his relationship with Katherine had meant to him after the life he had growing up as a Cassadine. Alexis felt guilty, but knew she could never reveal the truth of what she had done.
Over time, Stefan began to suspect Alexis was up to something though he was unprepared for what he eventually discovered. His trusted cousin had apparently gone to great lengths to construct the elaborate hoax to convince him that Katherine was Natasha. He couldn’t fathom that she could do something so despicable and yet when he confronted her she didn’t deny it. She tried to explain her motives, but a livid Stefan was having none of it. He disowned her and told her never again to return to Wyndemere.
Just as he found out the truth, Katherine was on her way out of Port Charles, determined to start a new life far away from the man who had broken her heart. She ended up going to her childhood home at Serenity in hopes of finding some sort of comfort.
Stefan panicked when he went to her penthouse and discovered she was gone. He was desperate to find her and explain, hoping that she would understand and forgive him. He knew her well enough to deduce that she had likely gone to Serenity and he followed her there. Katherine was shocked to find him standing at the door, but still she refused to let him in. The hurt and humiliations was too much to forget and she told him to leave as she attempted to slam the door in his face. Stefan pleaded with her to listen and persuaded her to let him in for just ten minutes. She listened as he explained Alexis’s deception, but she still would not accept that Stefan could believe something so preposterous. As she looked into the eyes of the man she loved so much, she felt herself begin to waiver and immediately ran upstairs to get away from him. Stefan came to her to say goodbye, but before he left he wanted her to know that he truly did love her. It was at that moment Katherine realized what they had was not dead. She saw the look of love on his face, and their passion was undeniable. Stefan and Katherine made love for the first time at Serenity.
Stefan convinced Katherine to come back to Port Charles with him, and she moved into the Wyndemere guest house. Katherine helped Stefan deal with Nikolas’s shooting and the aftermath of Nikolas losing his voice. Stefan and Katherine continued to grow more committed to each other every day as they basked in the joy of their love for one another.
Unfortunately Helena was determined to make their lives hell as she used Alexis to taunt Stefan over his memories of Laura in order to cause trouble in his relationship with Katherine. Stefan truly did love Katherine and he struggled with his unexplainable obsession with Laura’s portrait stored away in the attic. Fighting the memories that had haunted him for so long of how Laura abandoned him and Nikolas, and realizing how much Katherine had given him and how much she meant to him, Stefan proposed to her. After some initial hesitancy (she thought their relationship was already perfect), Katherine accepted! Still, Katherine didn’t yet know about Stefan’s haunted memories of Laura and the fact that Nikolas could be Stefan’s son. The long-kept secret threatened to explode at any moment and the prospect of losing his beloved Katherine tormented Stefan.
In honor of their engagement, the traditional Cassadine Bacchanalia was held at Wyndemere where the happy couple planned to announce their intentions to marry to the entire city of Port Charles. In preparation for this day, Katherine was aglow and radiant- full of joy and hope. At last, she told Stefan, she had found someone who loved her without question and that nothing would ever come between them. Stefan held her and told her she was the only person who had ever made him feel truly loved and cherished.
Katherine told Nikolas how happy she was at becoming part of his family and how all the Cassadine heirlooms, from the dress she was wearing, to the ring Stefan placed on her finger- meant so much to her. At last she was going to be part of a real family, and it was a dream come true for her.
At the ball, Stefan and Katherine waltzed in the spotlight, surrounded by all of Port Charles finest citizens. Katherine slipped away to retrieve a special gift she had gotten for Stefan, but when she walked into the guest house she found Laura.
Laura revealed to Katherine that the dress, the ring, and all the things in the trunk Stefan kept upstairs had all once belonged to Laura. They were never heirlooms as Stefan had led her to believe. Katherine was devastated as she stood listening to a jealous Laura’s rantings.
Stefan noticed Katherine was missing and went to look for her. Instead he found Laura who told him she had seen Katherine, but failed to mention all the things she had said to Katherine. Stefan told Laura he was truly ready to be happy with Katherine but Laura refused to believe he would ever love anyone as much as he loved her. Stefan went in search of Katherine and found her in the room where he had been keeping Laura’s belongings, and the portrait he’d had made of her. Stefan tried to convince Katherine that Laura didn’t want him to be happy and that she had placed all these doubts in Katherine’s head in an effort to tear them apart. Katherine pointed out that the portrait was dated Dec. 1997. Broken hearted, she tearfully proclaimed that it was never about her, that she was just his replacement for Laura. Stefan tried to tell her otherwise as Katherine made her way out onto the balcony. Laura walked in just as Katherine realized Nikolas was Stefan’s son with Laura! Surprised, Katherine stepped back and fell through the railing (Luke had loosened the stones on the parapet outside, as part of his and Alexis’s scheme to kill off Helena).
At the hospital, Katherine was pronounced dead, just after Helena’s mysterious visit. A tearful Stefan told Katherine, before her “death” that she had misunderstood all that had happened. He never wanted to make her into Laura, and that Laura had told her all those things out of jealousy because he had finally moved on with someone else. Although Luke and Alexis had been the ones to loosen the railing to try to kill off Helena, when Katherine was the one who fell, Luke decided to set it up to look like Stefan had loosened the railing.
Alexis wanted no part in setting up Stefan, and yet she was too fearful of Helena’s wrath to admit her guilt to anyone. She vowed to Stefan that she would prove his innocence and he was extremely grateful as it seemed that everyone else was against him. While he doesn’t suspect Alexis Stefan is certain that Luke was behind the loosened railing and also setting him up.
When Stefan arrived home after being released on bail, he saw the music box Katherine had intended to give him for their engagement. It played the “First Waltz” as a lasting memory of their engagement party. Stefan broke down crying and mourning for his lost love, as Nikolas comforted him. Stefan vowed to make people remember Katherine at the Nurse’s Ball.
Stefan was eventually tried and cleared of Katherine’s murder all while he continued to mourn their lost love. Alexis and Stefan mended their relationship as did Nikolas and Stefan. After Stefan was exonerated Alexis and Luke plotted together to frame Helena for the murder of Katherine.
At the hearing for the state’s case against Helena, she called a surprise witness: Katherine Bell. The story after this point is not worth retelling or remembering. A new writer was brought in and both the characters of Stefan Cassadine and Katherine Bell were destroyed, as was their very promising love story. Much happened in the interim before both characters finally ended up dead, but for fans of Stefan and Katherine, it is better to remember them the way they were…
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