Brad Hollister was a smooth opportunist who looked rough around the edges but was, in fact, a smooth-talking snake. A land surveyor, among other things, in January 1981, Brad discovered silver on land owned jointly by the Hughes and the Stewarts. To maximize his chances to make a fortune, Brad charmed Lisa Colman into loaning him money to buy the Hughes portion, and then looked to the beautiful Annie Stewart as way to the Stewarts' parcel. Nancy and Chris Hughes recognized that Brad was a phony because he had conveniently forgotten to tell Lisa about the silver and so had conned her and them.

As all of this was going on, Annie's younger sister, Dee was becoming more involved with world renowned orchestra conductor and composer, Ian McFarland. Tragically, when Dee accompanied Ian to Rome, Ian died of a heart attack in the midst of their love making. Coincidentally, the older John Dixon was in Rome and, despite being a sworn enemy of her father, John befriended Dee. When they returned to Oakdale, Dee was certain that everyone could read the guilt on her face, but the only thing Brad noticed was her beauty. The Stewarts wanted Dee to take an interest in the mine, which meant that Dee and Brad would see each other frequently. John Dixon had a good time egging Annie on, saying that it looked like there might be competition for Brad .between the Stewart sisters. As far as Brad was concerned, he and Annie were just friends, and Dee couldn't help liking him, even though she fought it. When he tried to kiss her, Dee pulled away, leaving Brad to wonder what he had done. To bury his feelings for Dee, Brad turned to drink and turned to the available Melinda Grey, with whom he had a brief affair. Later, while Brad took Dee on a tour of the mine, there was an explosion. Dee was horrified to see Brad buried in the rubble. Had she hurt someone she loved yet again? Brad's legs were damaged, and while recovering at Memorial Hospital, both Annie (who ironically, as a medical student, had to see Brad plenty just for her studies) and Dee visited him regularly. When Brad questioned Dee about Ian, she admitted she couldn't get close to any man. Brad decided to pursue her anyway. Dee and Annie's mother, Ellen, sensed something was wrong with her daughter, especially when Dee ran off to Chicago. John found out where Dee was and followed her there.

Later, when Brad's father had a massive heart attack, he called Brad's younger brother, Eric, but Eric arrived just minutes after his father passed away. Brad was angry because his father had always loved Eric more. Annie overheard and, feeling great compassion, longed to be close to Brad again. Meanwhile, Eric started seeing, romantically, Annie's niece, Betsy Stewart. During all of this personal stress, Brad ignored warnings that the mine might explode again and failed to improve the safety of the mine. In the meantime, unable to have sex with any man since Ian, Dee eventually found herself giving in to John. Brad couldn't bear the thought of her with John, and he tried to convince her that she was making a terrible mistake. Dee claimed she would marry John if he asked. Despite a confrontation with Brad, John did just that. Meanwhile, Annie and Brad resumed their friendly relationship, and Annie told Dee that if Brad asked, she'd marry him tomorrow. Because she still cared about Brad, Dee did her best to hide her feelings.

On June 16, 1980, Brad decided to give a party, by the lake, for his employees. It was here that Melinda saw her chance to make a move on Brad. Unfortunately for her, Brad was thinking about Dee, and he ignored her. Melinda had been drinking and tried her best to get Brad in a romantic mood, but he wanted to be alone. Melinda told Betsy that she and Brad were more than friends and he had invited her on a speedboat ride on the lake. A drunken Melinda started talking in a loud voice about what a great lover Brad was. Brad warned her she'd be sorry in the morning for making such a spectacle of herself. Eric and Betsy were kissing in the bushes and overheard the entire scene, including Melinda saying that she wanted to go to the island across the lake and make love all night. To shut her up, Brad took her out in the boat. When Melinda realized they were headed for home, instead of the island, she jumped overboard. Brad tried to rescue her, but she pushed him away, and he struck his head. When he came to, Brad saw Melinda's hair ribbon floating in the water. The police were notified, and they retrieved Melinda's lifeless body, from the lake. Annie did her best to comfort a shocked Brad.

The following month, Annie and Brad were married. Days later, Brad and Dee shared a private moment, and Brad demanded that Dee tell him what made her pull away from him. Dee sadly replied that only John would understand. Then she, finally, confessed to how she had "killed" Ian. Brad tried to convince her it wasn't her fault. He told her the only reason he had turned to Annie was because Dee had turned to John, but he was still very much in love with Dee. Dee loved him, too, but could never hurt her sister, and she begged him not to end his marriage to Annie.

Later, tragedy struck when Brad's employees, Jay Stallings, and Raymond Colfax were killed in a mine explosion. A devastated Brad turned to Dee. He told her he understood now what she meant about hurting people and not meaning to. In the meantime, Annie was thrilled when she learned she was pregnant. Unfortunately, as Brad became more preoccupied with Dee, Annie sensed that something wasn't right in her marriage.

Unfortunately, Dee's marriage to John was a disaster. John then became downright paranoid about his wife. He began to follow her to the mine where she worked, and accused her of being there only because of Brad. By November, John's jealous rages and tyrannical behavior were causing Dee many sleepless nights. Disillusioned, she asked him to move out. At some point, Brad gave her some sleeping pills and told her to go home and get some rest. That night, John went to the apartment and found her in bed, groggy from the pills. Dee thought he was Brad, and by the time she realized who it was, he was already on top of her and she was too weak to push him off. Afterward, John was quite happy, but Dee was crying. Meanwhile, afraid that John would hurt Dee, David showed up. While John was getting a bottle of champagne to celebrate, David found Dee shivering in her slip and sobbing. She said John forced himself on her. David told her that was rape and took her to Memorial, where evidence of forced entry was found. A rape therapist explained to Dee that her husband must be punished. To John's astonishment, he was arrested on the grounds of marital rape.

In February 1981, the trial began with David's impassioned testimony, but Nurse Lyla Montgomery surprised everyone by saying she wasn't sure if Dee had been raped. Later, when David was on the stand, attorney Maggie Crawford asked him if Dee had used the word "rape." She had not. John urged Maggie not to hurt Dee, but when Dee took the stand, she questioned Dee about Ian McFarland. Dee lied when Maggie asked her where she was when Ian died, but Maggie caught her in the lie. Dee broke down, confessing that Ian died in her arms. Dee admitted that John lied to protect her, and if she lied then, how could anyone believe her now? Later, Maggie asked Dee if there were any other men in her life besides John -- perhaps her sister's husband, Brad? Tom warned Dee not to lie because it would ruin her credibility, but Dee insisted that she and Brad were just friends. Under subpoena, Brad confessed that he and Dee did love each other, but they were never lovers. Annie burst into tears and ran from the room. Brad insisted that he wanted to make a life with Annie and the child she was carrying. Unfortunately, Annie left Brad. Meanwhile, back on the stand, Dee admitted she lied to protect her sister. She swore that John's jealousy was driving her to a near breakdown, and she feared what he would do to her. Then he forced her to have sex. On the stand, John said he loved Dee and was shocked when he accused him of rape. On the fateful day, in November 1980, they had made beautiful love. John tearfully swore that he didn't rape his wife. In the midst of this, Annie lost her baby. Soon after, Dee shocked everyone by dropping the charges against John. At this point, Dee realized that she might have encouraged him, and he'd already suffered enough. In his arrogance, John thanked her for telling the truth and Annie felt she'd lost her baby for nothing. Depressed, she dropped out of medical school.

Meanwhile, to Dee's great relief, John agreed to a quick divorce. In the Dominican Republic, she was shocked to find Brad at her hotel. He swore his love for her and said there was no hope for he and Annie's marriage. It was then that Brad and Dee finally made love. Unfortunately, the next morning, Brad admitted how important money was him, and how he bought the Hughes and Stewart properties because of hidden silver. Turned off by his greed, Dee told him they had missed their chance, and a week later, Brad left town.