Children: Kendall Hart (by means of a rape by Richard Fields), Bianca Montgomery (with Travis Montgomery)
Father: Eric Kane
Mother: Mona Kane Tyler (deceased)
Siblings: Silver Kane (half-sister; deceased), Mark Dalton (half-brother)
Niece: Julie Rand
Significant Romantic Relationships: Chuck Tyler, Jeff Martin (1st husband/divorced), Jason Maxwell, Phil Brent (2nd husband/divorced), Lincoln Tyler, Nick Davis, Tom Cudahay (3rd husband/divorced), Brandon Kingsley , Kent Bogard, Adam Chandler (4th and 7th husband/divorced), Mike Roy (invalid marriage), Jeremy Hunter, Travis Montgomery (5th and 6th husband/divorced--invalid marriage-she was still married to Adam), Jackson Montgomery , Charlie Brent, Dimitri Marick (8th and 9th husband/divorced), Jonathan Kinder, David Hayward, Chris Stamp

Erica Kane is Pine Valley's homegrown superstar. Her exploits, antics, romances and rivalries are the stuff of legend. A force to be reckoned with, deep down, Erica is as insecure as everyone else. Having been abandoned by her father at an early age, Erica's mother Mona raised her with loving attention, but the seeming abandonment by her father has always been a source of great insecurity in Erica's life.

We were first introduced to Erica when she was still in high school and dating Chuck Tyler. However, Erica had her eyes on another boy in school-Phil Brent. She was determined to break up Phil and his sweetheart Tara Martin, but no matter what she did, the two remained true to each other. One day, Erica overheard her mother Mona and Mona's best friend Nick Davis discussing a secret about Phil Brent---Nick, along with Amy Tyler (whom Phil believed was his aunt), were really Nick's parents. Erica, deciding Phil had a right to know, told Phil the truth. The ripple effect of Erica's revelation was large, and it eventually resulted in Phil and Tara's break-up. However, it also ruined any chance Phil had with Erica. Tara's brother Jeff Martin was there to console Erica, and seeing that Jeff was a doctor, Erica set out to marry him.

Erica and Jeff eloped, but Erica was not pleased when she found out that being a doctor's wife did not meet her expectations. As a first year resident, Jeff was barely making a comfortable living and their lifestyle was not glamorous. The distance between Erica and Jeff grew, but that didn't stop Erica from being jealous when Jeff grew close to his co-worker, Nurse Mary Kennicott. Bored and frustrated, Erica got a job at Anne Tyler's boutique, and began going on buying trips to New York City.

In New York, Erica met sleazy modeling agent Jason Maxwell, who promised to make Erica America's next big model. The two flirted and Erica began doing modeling assignments for him. Jeff wasn't happy with his wife's career, but tried to keep an open mind. Soon, Erica found out she was pregnant by Jeff. Realizing this could interfere with her modeling career, Erica never told Jeff she was pregnant and secretly had an abortion (the first legal abortion on television). Soon after the procedure, Erica became very ill and Joe diagnosed Erica's illness as a post-abortion infection. Jeff was furious with his wife for not telling him she was pregnant. Eventually, Jeff forgave Erica.

Erica continued with her modeling, and the flirtation stepped up with Jason Maxwell. The two began an affair. Even though she was still jealous of Jeff's close friendship with Mary Kennicott, Erica was growing increasingly tired of being Mrs. Jeff Martin. Eventually, the two divorced. Mona worried her daughter was becoming too involved with Jason Maxwell, but Erica ignored her mother's concerns. To keep things interesting, Erica lied to Jason and told him Jeff was extremely jealous of their relationship. Jason, believing Erica, came to Pine Valley to settle things with Jeff. The entire town was shocked when Jason Maxwell later turned up dead. The scandal that resulted from Jeff's suspicion in Jason's murder ruined Erica's modeling career. Eventually it was revealed that Mona was the one who had killed Jason after a struggle with a gun, and had blocked out the incident!

Erica set her sights on Phil Brent again. The two began a relationship, but Erica rightly felt that Tara still came first in Phil's mind. Before she could break things off, though, she found out she was pregnant. Phil found out and convinced Erica that they should be married. Erica agreed and the two were wed. Soon after, Erica suffered a miscarriage and was so upset that she had a nervous breakdown. Phil and Mona were forced to commit Erica to a mental institution. Months later, when Erica was released, Phil asked Erica for a divorce so he could reconcile with Tara. Erica adamantly refused to give him one. Nick Davis offered her a job as the hostess of his restaurant, the Chateau, but made her agree to divorce his son Phil. Erica consented---she had already decided to pursue wealthy Lincoln Tyler. Erica offered solace to Linc after his separation from wife Kitty, while simultaneously doing her best to make Kitty think she wasn't the right mate for Linc. Soon Erica's attention was diverted by her new boss Nick Davis. Although the two had been at each other's throats since Nick came to town years earlier, working together revealed a passion neither thought they possessed. Soon they began an affair!

Erica then met piano teacher Mark Dalton and became fascinated with him, and vice versa. Any romance between the two was halted when Mona revealed that Mark was her half-brother, the product of one of her father's many affairs. Nick and Erica still maintained an attraction underneath all their sparring, and Nick was a bit jealous when Erica became smitten with football player Tom Cudahay. Erica and longtime rival Brooke English clashed over Tom, but eventually Erica decided she wanted to be Nick's wife. Erica seduced Nick and arranged it so her mother (Nick's best friend) would see them in bed together. Thinking this would result in Mona pressuring Nick into marrying Erica, she was shocked when Nick accused her of manipulation and dumped her!

Using a new scheme to get Nick, Erica insinuated that she would kill herself if Nick didn't marry her, then purposely disappeared. Hiding out in New York, Erica contracted viral pneumonia and nearly died. Mona convinced Nick that proposing to Erica would give her the will to live. Nick agreed, proposed, and Erica accepted. She soon recovered, but Nick realized that a marriage to Erica wouldn't work and left Pine Valley.

Determined to find a new man, Erica set her sights on Tom Cudahay once again. She got herself hired as the hostess at Tom's restaurant the Goalpost, and once again battled Brooke English for Tom's affection. Using all her charm, Erica managed to get a proposal from Tom and they were soon married. Tom desperately wanted children, and Erica made it appear as if she wanted them as well. While working hard to open her own disco, called "Erica's" (information that she did not reveal to Tom until shortly before the disco opened), Erica began taking birth control pills. Tom had no idea and was disappointed when Erica claimed that their attempts at getting pregnant failed. When he found her birth control, a furious Tom told Erica their marriage was over.

Although not officially divorced, Tom and Erica separated while she traveled to Hollywood to pursue a film career. When things didn't pan out there, Erica returned to Pine Valley and managed to take Tom away from Brooke English. Promising to change her ways, Erica and Tom reconciled. Things didn't last that way for long, when cosmetics mogul Brandon Kingsley offered Erica a job as the model for Sensuelle Cosmetics. Knowing Tom wouldn't approve of her modeling career, Erica lied to him about it. When Tom found out the truth, he had had one lie too many and divorced Erica.

Erica recovered quickly and began a relationship with Brandon, despite the fact that he was married. The two were engaged and Brandon promised to marry Erica as soon as he divorced his wife Sara. Unhappy with Brandon's stalling tactics to leave his wife, Erica took up with rival cosmetics magnate Kent Bogard. Brandon attempted to win her back, but Kent's promise of her own cosmetics line as well as a movie role kept Erica in Kent's arms. Kent's father Lars soon informed her that her movie role was cut entirely, and that she was going to be replaced as Sensuelle Cosmetics's (now owned by Lars) "All American Beauty." Erica managed to delay her firing by calling a press conference to announce her "triumphant return" to the modeling world after her hiatus in Hollywood. However, strains with Kent were present, and he began an affair with Erica's half-sister, Silver! Erica vowed to get Kent as a husband, unaware that her half-sister was sleeping with him. A jealous Silver started modeling and tried to gaslight Erica, and after catching her in one too many lies, Erica kicked her out. Silver revealed her affair with Kent, causing a furious Erica to confront Kent with a gun. After a struggle, the gun went off and Kent was killed. Silver, who witnessed everything, told the police that Erica killed Kent in cold blood. Fearful of life imprisonment, Erica went on the run disguised as a nun! Eventually Erica was caught, but Tad exposed Silver as known con artist Connie Wilkes, and Kent's death was ruled as accidental.

Realizing that her life story clearly needed to be told, Erica began working on her autobiography Raising Kane. The ghostwriter hired, Mike Roy, had never heard of her-the two immediately were at odds. Before they knew it, however, they were falling in love.

Adam Chandler came to town and became smitten with Erica. Adam announced that he was financing the movie version of Erica's book Raising Kane. Determined that she should be the star, Erica spent endless amounts of time convincing Adam that she was the only person that could play Erica Kane in a film. Adam took advantage of this to try to cause as much friction between Mike and Erica as possible, which it did. Adam cast Erica, but then threatened to have the film shelved unless she slept with him. Frightened that her chance at superstardom would be taken away, Erica agreed. The distance between Mike and Erica grew as Adam schemed to have Mike sent to Tibet on a book writing assignment. Mike left town, infuriating Erica and prompting her to marry Adam!

Mike returned to town and a jealous Adam tested Erica's loyalty by faking his own death. Erica, realizing she was still in love with Mike, quickly got engaged to him after Adam's "death." Adam reappeared and forced Erica to choose between his wealth and her love for Mike-Erica chose Mike and divorced Adam.

Mike was later killed by a bullet meant for Brooke English and Mark Dalton. A devastated Erica went to spread Mike's ashes in Tibet. There she met Jeremy Hunter, a monk that Mike had saved. Jeremy and Erica fell in love, but his vow of celibacy presented an obstacle for them. Erica proved irresistible, and Jeremy dropped his vows of celibacy and became Erica's lover.

Jeremy's father, Alex Hunter, arrived in Pine Valley with his new bride, Natalie. Natalie and Jeremy had been lovers years earlier and Natalie was determined to get Jeremy back! Jeremy and Erica got engaged shortly after. When Alex and Erica were lost in the Canadian wilderness, Natalie slipped into bed beside Jeremy and convinced him that they had made love. Alex later died in a horse riding accident, and Natalie convinced Jeremy that she was pregnant with his (Jeremy)'s baby, when she was really pregnant with Alex's. Jeremy felt pressured to marry Natalie, and he did, but couldn't resist Erica. A jealous Natalie came after Erica with a gun, but Erica managed to talk her out of using it. Later, Erica revealed that Jeremy and Natalie were never married, as she hired an actor to impersonate the minister.

Discovering the truth about Natalie's baby, Adam-who still wanted Erica-switched a paternity test result to reveal that Jeremy was the father. However, this ploy soon backfired as the truth about Natalie's baby came out-Alex was the father. Erica thought she would have a blissful future with Jeremy, but he was imprisoned for killing a man named Earl Mitchell. Erica attempted to break him out of jail, but Jeremy refused to go with her, wanting to prove his innocence. Erica was furious and broke off things with him.

Erica became enchanted by politician Travis Montgomery, but encountered resistance with Travis's ex-wife, Barbara. Travis and Erica grew closer after an attempt was made on Erica's life by a woman from Adam's past. Erica hoped Travis would propose, but he was too preoccupied with politics and business. However, Erica soon learned she was pregnant and Travis proposed. She soon met Travis's handsome brother, Jackson and quietly became attracted to him.

Erica learned she really did have a sister, Silver, living in Canada. Silver's mother, Goldie, attempted to kill Erica when she learned that, according to Eric Kane's will, Silver would inherit their island if Erica died. Goldie shot a pregnant Erica, who survived. Erica's life wasn't out of danger yet, as evil Dr. Damon Lazarre, a co-conspirator of Goldie's attempted to kill Erica but was thwarted by Jeremy.

Despite developing toxemia late in her pregnancy, Erica gave birth to a baby girl, Bianca. Travis and Erica soon married and were happy until Travis's financial woes caught up with him. Desperate for cash, Travis set up a phony kidnapping plot that would garner him $15 million dollars from his insurance company. The plot backfired, and the man Travis hired to perform the faux kidnapping, Steven Andrews kidnapped Bianca and demanded $15 million for her return. Travis got Bianca back, but when Erica learned the truth of what Travis had done, she left him and moved to Sea City with Bianca, where she took a job as a waitress (wanting "the simple life."). While there, she met and began a romance with Steven Andrews, who was using an alias and whom Erica had never met before her time in Sea City. Travis discovered Erica's whereabouts, tracked her down and entered into a struggle with Steven, whose identity was revealed. After getting injured, Erica realized she still loved Travis and reconciled with him. However, a mugging soon left Travis without a memory, and he grew close to ex-wife Barbara and even slept with her. Disgusted with his behavior, Erica divorced Travis and took up with Jackson.

Despite Erica and Jack's romance, Bianca wanted Erica and Travis together. After Bianca fell ill with Reye's Syndrome, Erica and Travis grew closer. Deciding that the logical choice would be to date Travis and Jack on alternate nights, Erica was surprised when this idea blew up in her face. Jack gave Erica an ultimatum: Travis or him. With her renewed feelings for Travis as well as Bianca's interest at heart, Erica picked Travis and married him again. It was around this time that Erica started her cosmetics company, Enchantment.

Molly, the daughter from Travis and Barbara's brief affair, developed leukemia and Barbara was forced to tell Travis. The two concocted a plan to conceive another child in hopes that a child could provide bone marrow to Molly. They slept together, and Barbara was soon pregnant. The affair prompted Erica to tell Travis that their marriage was in name only for Bianca's sake. Erica began an affair with Jack, telling him she loved him. Jack wanted Erica to divorce Travis, but after Bianca caught Jack and Erica in bed together, she set fire to her dolls, which prompted Erica to once again remain with Travis for her daughter. However, Travis got wind of the affair and divorced Erica.

Travis sued Erica for sole custody. Erica fought tooth and nail and begged Jack to lie on the stand that they had only slept together once, or else she would be painted as an adulteress and lose custody of her daughter. Jack, a lawyer, couldn't perjure himself and Erica lost custody of Bianca. Furious with Jack, Erica broke things off with him.

Erica next surprised everyone when she started dating Charlie Brent, son of her former husband Phil. Erica and Charlie planned to marry, but Erica soon realized that she was not in love with him.

Erica was horrified when Adam presented her with the information that they had never been divorced. Years ago he had manipulated Stuart into flying to the Caribbean and obtaining the divorce from Erica, meaning she was still married to Adam! Disgusted, Adam blackmailed Erica into another marriage ceremony or the truth about their non-divorce would come out. Erica had hoped to appeal the custody ruling, so she had no choice but to go along with Adam. However, she was determined to make Adam's life with her a living hell by thwarting his need for constant control. Eventually Adam realized Erica was never going to love him and gave her a true divorce.

Erica managed to stop mysterious Dimitri Marick's attempt of an Enchantment takeover, but couldn't deny her attraction to the man. Dimitri was married to Angelique and Erica was not about to be the other woman. Dimitri proved too irresistible and the two began an affair. After leaving Angelique, Dimitri and Erica traveled to Hungary where Erica was kidnapped by Edmund Grey, who was demanding that Dimitri acknowledge him as his brother. Eventually, Erica went along with the kidnapping scheme because she wanted to make Dimitri jealous. Things became serious when Dimitri's ex-mother in law, the psychotic Helga, held Erica captive in Hugo Marick's crypt. Erica recovered and she and Dimitri got engaged. Kendall Hart showed up at Erica's door and turned everyone's life upside down. Kendall revealed that she was the daughter that Erica had given up at birth when she was just 14, after being raped by Richard Fields. Erica, who had blocked out the incident, was horrified when her repressed memories came back. Mona confirmed the story after she saw a telltale birthmark on the back of Kendall's neck.

Kendall wanted to find her biological father, despite Erica's protestations not too. Kendall conned Dimitri into helping her find Richard Fields, which infuriated Erica so much that she moved out on Dimitri. Later, a scheming Kendall told Erica that Dimitri raped her and Erica, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of remembering her rape, stabbed Dimitri, believing he was Richard Fields.

Erica went on trial and Kendall brought Richard Fields to the courtroom to mess with Erica. Kendall also lied on the stand that Erica knowingly stabbed Dimitri because she was jealous of his relationship with Kendall. Kendall's lies were uncovered and Erica was cleared of an attempted murder charge. However, the damage with Dimitri had been done and the two divorced. Erica then had to deal with the tragic news that her mother, Mona, passed away.

Dimitri and Erica soon reconciled and married again. While on a modeling shoot, Erica fell off some scaffolding and suffered severe back injuries. During her recovery process, Erica became addicted to painkillers. As she alienated her family and friends with her addiction, Erica grew more and more dependent on her doctor, Jonathan Kinder, who was supplying her with drugs. Dimitri knew Erica was addicted and that Jonathan was her supplier, but Erica refused to listen to Dimitri and the two eventually divorced. Erica was finally able to admit her addiction and sought treatment at the Betty Ford Center.

Upon her return, a revitalized Erica decided that the world needed to hear her story, so she wrote Erica Kane: Beyond the Pain with Edmund Grey. She also tried to reconcile with Dimitri, and the two grew closer, but Jonathan kept presenting himself as a problem. One night Jonathan drugged Erica and put her into bed with him so that when Dimitri walked in, he believed that they were having an affair. Dimitri was crushed and sought consolation with his equally heartbroken sister-in-law Maria. Erica tried to patch things up with Dimitri, but a desperate Jonathan wouldn't stay away. He kidnapped Bianca and in the struggle to free her, he fell down some stairs and presumably died. Erica, along with Janet Green and Skye Chandler, attempted to cover up his death by lugging his body around town trying to hide it in various places. Eventually it was revealed that Jonathan was not dead and he was jailed for his crimes. Erica and Dimitri got back together, and she soon found she was pregnant. Erica lost the baby and was equally crushed when she discovered that Dimitri and Maria had slept together---Erica blamed Maria for the loss of her baby. Alienated from Dimitri, Erica had a confrontation with Maria at a remote cabin where she was forced to deliver Maria's child-a little girl (Maria believed she was having a boy). Erica rushed the baby to the hospital, but her car careened off a bridge and the baby was presumed dead. Erica later discovered that a mentally challenged woman, Esther Glynn, had found the baby girl and was caring for it. Erica, still heartbroken over the loss of her unborn child, convinced Esther to give her the baby. Erica then arrived in town with her new baby "Sonya" whom she said she adopted in Russia. Eventually Erica's lie was discovered and the baby was returned to Maria and Edmund (her real father) while Erica served jail time.

Upon her release, Erica got back together with Jackson. However, Erica was shocked when her former fiancée Mike Roy showed up! Mike admitted his past as a secret agent and how he had faked his death. He came back to town to reunite with Erica. He fought with Jackson for months for Erica's love, but Erica finally told Mike that she loved Jackson. However, Mike managed to convince Erica into one last lovemaking session. Jackson discovered this and broke things off with Erica, and Mike left town.

Erica faced her next crisis while helping her daughter Bianca cope with Anorexia Nervosa. In a powerful intervention session, mother and daughter were able to open up their feelings to help get to the root of Bianca's eating disorder.

While racing to stop Adam and Liza's wedding during a catastrophic snowstorm, David Hayward and passenger Erica were in a horrible accident. David managed to save Erica's life by performing immediate cardiac surgery, but her face was badly scarred. Erica blamed David for her disfigurement, and planned to take revenge by crippling his greatest asset-his hands. However, while holding David captive, Erica began to develop feelings for him and the two became a couple. David flew Erica to South America where she got radical cosmetic surgery to repair her face. Eventually David and Erica's differences interfered in their relationship and the two split up.

Bianca moved in with Erica permanently after Travis died. Overjoyed to have her daughter back with her, Erica tried to be involved in all aspects of Bianca's life-particularly encouraging her to date. What Erica didn't know was that Bianca was a lesbian and fearful that her mother would reject her if she found out the truth. The chasm between Erica and Bianca grew, and eventually Bianca came out to her mother. Erica was saddened and confused at this new information, as it contradicted her hopes for Bianca's future. Over time, Erica has accepted Bianca's sexuality, only desiring to see her daughter happy.

Erica met handsome undercover agent Chris Stamp and quickly fell into a relationship with him. Erica was unhappy when Bianca started a tentative relationship with Mary Frances "Frankie" Stone, whom Erica believed to be a con artist. When Frankie was murdered, Erica assumed that a jealous Bianca had done it (Frankie had been caught in bed with JR Chandler). Wanting to spare her daughter, Erica decided to implicate herself and even managed to get Kendall back in town as a negative character witness for Erica. Erica was found innocent, but soon was at odds with Kendall again. Their animosity reached its heights when Erica accused Kendall of burning down her house (Trey Kenyon had actually done it).

Michael Cambias arrived in Pine Valley determined to take away Enchantment from Erica and use Kendall to do it. Kendall caught on to his scheme and teamed with Erica and Bianca to bring Michael down. Erica and Kendall's tentative reconciliation strengthened when Michael attempted to rape Erica and Kendall saved her. Later, Kendall helped Erica deal with a night of traumatic rape flashbacks, and the two formally reconciled.

Erica was engaged to Chris but Jackson was still a large part of her life. The two had a one night stand, and Erica realized that she truly loved Jack. A jealous Chris found out and broke it off with Erica. After Jack was shot by a disgruntled thug, Erica learned that his life was saved via a rare blood transfusion-that came from Greenlee Smythe. Putting together a few clues, Erica realized Greenlee, her rival, was Jack's daughter and decided to keep the secret, not wanting Greenlee in her or Jack's life in any capacity. Greenlee revealed the truth in the middle of Jack and Erica's wedding, and Jack left Erica at the altar.

Erica was horrified to learn that Bianca had been raped by Michael Cambias. Shortly after she received shocking news that Michael had taken over Enchantment by buying up a majority of the stock. Disgusted that Michael had been acquitted of rape charges, Erica received yet another blow with the revelation that Kendall married Michael shortly after he was acquitted.

Erica was devastated when she learned that, like herself, Bianca had been impregnated by her rape. She urged Bianca to terminate the pregnancy, feeling that this would be the wisest move-after all, Erica knew the pain of giving birth to a child conceived under such circumstances. Counseled by David Hayward, Erica believed that Bianca terminated the pregnancy (unbeknownst to Erica, Bianca didn't get an abortion).

Michael's body soon surfaced, and Erica was questioned by the police about the night Michael disappeared (the same night Kendall claimed to have married him). David Hayward was also questioned, and to protect them both, Erica claimed that she was David's alibi the night Michael disappeared-as they were making love! Erica and David were forced to keep up the charade of romantic interest to make the alibi hold water, which angered Jack (who knew it was all a ruse). Erica and Jack began to make slow inroads towards each other, but his new relationship with Greenlee as well as her need to keep up her alibi kept pulling them apart. Eventually the two saw their way back to each other and were engaged once again.

Kendall raised Erica's ire when she announced that she was pregnant with Michael's child! Ryan Lavery, who had been fighting with Kendall over who had true stake in the Cambias fortune, urged Erica to drop any legal vendetta against her daughter. Trusting Ryan, Erica agreed to not publicly fight Kendall's claim that she was pregnant.

As Kendall went to trial for murdering Michael, Erica-despite her anger at Kendall's "pregnancy"-was determined to not let her daughter go to jail. Both she and David gave testimonies that left reasonable doubt towards Kendall having the sole motive and means to kill Michael.

Erica was shocked when she discovered that Bianca was still pregnant and determined to raise the baby as her own. Erica was dealt another blow when she realized her whole family-Jackson and Kendall-knew about Bianca's pregnancy but had purposefully kept it from her. Still, Erica would not let Kendall go to jail. She began to believe that she had really killed Michael while in a fugue state. Tad Martin managed to find a witness that cleared Erica. Bianca was revealed as the killer (she had blocked the incident out) and was cleared of all charges.

Reeling from her family's dishonesty and her daughter's pregnancy, Erica remained cool and distant. She began drinking, despite not having had any alcohol since conquering her pill addiction.

Erica finally told Bianca that to raise a child of rape would mean only pain for mother and child. Bianca was hurt by her mother's words. Bianca gave birth to a baby girl, Miranda, but the child was presumed dead after a helicopter crash. Unbeknownest to Erica and the rest of Pine Valley, the helicopter crash was staged by Paul Cramer and baby Miranda ended up in the arms of an unsuspecting Babe and JR Chandler, who named the child Bess. Devastated over the loss of her daughter, Bianca lashed out at Erica, telling her she no longer considered Erica her mother. An emotionally beaten Erica then got the news that her father had died, and left Pine Valley for parts unknown.

Erica traveled to Las Vegas, where she continued to self-medicate using alcohol. Plagued by nightmares and visions of a mysterious man, Erica broke off all contact with her family in Pine Valley and began to drink more heavily. Her family staged an intervention, where Erica realized that her rape at age 14 had been at the behest of her father: He essentially gave her to Richard Fields in exchange for a film deal. Realizing that she had blocked out the horrific betrayal of the man whose love she wanted most, Erica broke down. She agreed to enter treatment for alcohol abuse.

Erica returned to town some time later, determined to start anew. Slowly she began to repair her relationship with Bianca, Kendall and Jackson.

Erica was surprised when Zach Slater, a man she met in Las Vegas, arrived in Pine Valley with a mysterious agenda. She, and the rest of the town, were shocked when he announced he was really Alexander Cambias, Junior, the presumed dead brother of Michael. On the defensive to protect Kendall and Bianca from more pain at the hands of a Cambias, Erica has demanded that Zach-along with Ethan Ramsey, who claimed to be the Cambias heir-leave town.

Erica surprised Jack when she asked him to marry her and he accepted. Erica was dealt a blow when Bianca fell off a balcony and slipped into a coma. Tad shocked Erica when he revealed that Miranda was actually alive and being raised as Bess Chandler. Knowing that having her daughter in her arms would surely revive Bianca, Erica sought a DNA test. Since JR would flee with the baby if he suspected anyone was trying to take her away, Erica went to his father Adam and demanded that Adam authorize a test. After much sparring, Adam gave in to Erica's and a test was done, which proved that Bess was Miranda. Armed with this information, Erica went to the Chandlers and got Miranda back. She rushed to the hospital, where she urged Bianca to wake up and be a mother to Miranda. Erica's pleas were heard: Bianca came out of her coma and was reunited with her daughter.