Nick Scudder's arrival in Oakdale immediately set off alarms for WOAK reporter, Molly Conlan. Molly and Nick were lovers in high school and she was very wary of his intentions. An ex-con, Nick convinced everyone that he'd atoned for the mistakes of his youth and was a changed man. In the next few months, Nick became very close to Molly's daughter, Abigail, who was close to half his age. As the weeks wore on, they spent more and more time together working at WOAK and their friendship steadily grew. Despite his claims that he was too old to spent time with her, Abigail continued to see him and confide in him. Then suddenly Abigail learned her boyfriend, Adam, had cheated on her. Despondent she turned to Nick for help. Nick and Abigail grew closer and finally they decided to run away together.

That's when Nick's true colors emerged. Confronted by Molly, Nick told her he'd stay away from Abigail for $500,000; otherwise he'd hurt her. Nick's perfect plan to extort money was foiled by Abigail herself who caught him in a lie. Desperate, Nick flew into a rage and manhandled Abigail. Not long after, Nick was found dead and Molly confessed to the crime. Though Abigail was suspected, the real murderer ended up being a woman named Mary who was in love with Nick.