While on vacation in Kansas, Adam ran into an old friend of his named Alyssa. They'd known each other since kindergarten but had lost touch after graduating from high school. Upon seeing her again, Adam invited Alyssa over to meet Chelsea, and the three of them started chatting amicably.
Reminiscing about their childhood, Alyssa and Adam recalled how they had been fascinated with the local mysteries in town. For example, some animals had been killed down at Chambers Farm. Alyssa warned everyone that the killer might get tired with the livestock and move on to humans. Luckily, the culprit was only a coyote. Alyssa's love of mysteries had continued into adulthood, as she was currently a reporter who specialized in crime.
The conversation eventually turned to the topic of Alyssa's father, AJ, who tragically died after falling from a barn loft. Alyssa also mentioned that her mother had died a few years ago, so there was no one left to tell her stories about her father. Later, once alone, Adam and Chelsea continued to talk about Mr. Montalvo. Alyssa's father had gone to prison for tax evasion, because no one could prove that he was a loan shark. At some point, Adam remembered that Victor had been in town at the time of Mr. Montalvo's accident. Thinking that it was a strange coincidence, Adam and Chelsea wondered if Victor might have been involved in the death of Alyssa's father.
Accident or Murder?[]
Determined to find out more, Adam started digging for clues. He learned that his step-father, Cliff, had been in some financial trouble, but then a large sum of money suddenly appeared in his bank account. Based on the bank records, Adam guessed that Cliff had gone to AJ for a loan. After connecting more of the dots, Adam came to a startling conclusion. He theorized that AJ had arranged for Cliff's car accident, and in return, Victor had caused AJ's death.
With a plan in mind, Adam lured Alyssa to Genoa City under false pretenses. He pretended to have information about some criminals for a story that she was writing. When Alyssa arrived, she whipped out a pad of paper to take notes, claiming that she was old-fashioned. Adam acted distracted and brought up Mr. Montalvo's death. When he told Alyssa about his suspicions, she freaked out.
At first, Alyssa was appalled at his unfounded accusations. Once she cooled off though, she became determined to find the truth and wanted to help Adam. She got the coroner to confess that he had doctored AJ’s autopsy report. It looked like his body had been moved post-mortem, and that he hadn't actually died from falling. Alyssa had recorded the whole conversation with the coroner and gave the evidence to Adam, along with some other files and records. There were even some bank statements, showing that Victor had paid the coroner through one of his shell companies. Alyssa also wrote an article that painted Victor as a murderer, and Adam told her that he would publish it himself.
AJ, on the other hand, hadn’t been a killer. He had only wanted to scare Cliff. However, the guy he had hired to drive the car was an alcoholic, and the crash ended up killing them both. This was never the intended outcome. It is unclear how Alyssa got this information.
Dismayed and Betrayed[]
Alyssa got annoyed that her article hadn’t been published yet. She stormed over to the penthouse, demanding answers. Adam wasn’t home, so Chelsea tried to reassure her that everything was okay. Because of the serious subject matter of the story, the fact-checking process needed to be handled carefully. When Chelsea offered to give her some money, Alyssa accused her of bribery. Chelsea laughed and said it was just a big misunderstanding. Miffed, Alyssa explained that she wasn’t writing the story for money or fame. She just wanted the truth to come out.
Then Adam came home, and Alyssa confronted him. Chelsea reiterated that they were just perfecting the story. Alyssa didn’t buy it, so Adam lied that he was trying to get her story published in a prestigious magazine. It could take her reporting career to the next level, and it would give her story the exposure it deserved. Placated, Alyssa left and went back to the hotel.
In the Grand Phoenix lobby, Victoria ran into Alyssa and struck up a conversation. Alyssa was shocked to find out that Adam was now CEO at Newman Enterprises. It was clear that Adam had used her for his own selfish gain, and that he had blackmailed Victor with Alyssa’s evidence. Adam had abused his childhood connection with Alyssa to his own advantage, which Victoria labelled as “emotional manipulation.” Furious, Alyssa wondered how she hadn’t seen through Adam’s lies. Although they weren’t close anymore, Alyssa had believed that she could trust Adam. Victoria warned her what Adam was truly like, and vowed to strike back.
While talking to Victoria, Alyssa mentioned that she couldn’t take her article to another publishing company, since she had signed an NDA. However, Alyssa was willing to risk getting in trouble. She gave the story to Victoria, who asked Billy to publish it through Chancellor Media. Luckily, Billy hesitated to publish it. Alyssa’s article named the wrong person as AJ’s killer.
The True Story[]
Alyssa was surprised when Victor paid a visit to her hotel room. While there, he told her who really killed AJ. It was Adam. Yes, young 11-year-old Adam had killed her father, then blocked it from his memory. He had been trying to defend Hope from AJ’s anger. Victor made It clear that it would be very unwise for Alyssa to publish her article. Aside from the violation of the NDA, it named the wrong person as the culprit.
Shaken up, Alyssa started packing, so that she could leave Genoa City and all the craziness behind. Suddenly, there came a knock at her door from Victoria, and Alyssa let her in. Noticing the suitcase, Victoria tried to convince Alyssa to stay. Thanks to Nikki, Victoria had recently learned the truth about Adam as well, and she wanted Alyssa to team up with her.
Adam deserved to pay for what he did to AJ, or so Victoria thought. But Alyssa was more understanding, and just wanted to let the whole matter go. Adam had been a scared 11-year old boy, and despite everything that had happened, it was hard for Alyssa to resent him. After all, he had been her friend from kindergarten until the end of high school. Victoria claimed that the sweet Adam she’d known didn’t exist anymore. Alyssa stood firm in her decision though and walked out the door, leaving Victoria to enact revenge on her own.
Back with a Vengeance[]
At some point during the summer, Alyssa had a change of heart, and returned to Genoa City to destroy Adam's life. Somehow, she'd caught wind of Adam murdering someone in Vegas. Alyssa tried to find out more from Chance, but he stayed loyal to Adam and didn't reveal anything. Not about to give up, Alyssa then teamed up with Billy to write an exposé on Adam for Chancellor Communications. Once Alyssa decided that Billy was sincere and dependable, the two allies sprung into action. They began collecting evidence, since Adam had taken all the proof that Alyssa had previously collected. As luck would have it, the widow of the murdered man in Vegas was finally ready to talk, much to Adam's horror.
Thanks to a bug planted in the ChanceComm office, Chelsea and Adam both knew that the exposé was shaping up to be quite extensive. Desperate, Chelsea tried to guilt Alyssa into cancelling the story by using Connor for sympathy. AJ Montalvo had done some questionable deeds, and as a result, Alyssa had grown up without a father. Now, the same thing could happen to Connor, if Adam's crimes were exposed. Alyssa saw right through Chelsea's attempt to manipulate her, and seethed that she was still furious over Adam's betrayal. They'd been friends for more than a decade, and for Adam to use her like that was downright despicable. She stated again that she wasn't doing this for fame, fortune, or to further her career. Alyssa just wanted the truth to be known about her father's death. The world deserved to know just how much of a monster Adam was.
One day, Billy went by Alyssa's hotel room and assumed the worst when he found it empty. Unable to locate her, Billy accused Adam of doing something to get Alyssa out of the way. Although Adam had not harmed Alyssa, he was indeed responsible for her absence. He'd planted a false lead in Arizona, and Alyssa had gone there to follow up on it. Adam just needed enough time to convince the widow to keep quiet. Billy eventually learned of Alyssa's whereabouts when she called him to discuss her progress. Feeling like they had gathered enough info, Billy and Alyssa prepared to publish the article. Later, when Billy contacted her about writing a sequel to the exposé, Alyssa told him that she had left GC and was finished with revenge, apparently satisfied with the damage that had already been inflicted upon Adam.
In December of 2020, Alyssa was revealed to be back in Genoa City and the one who accused Billy of shooting Chance when trying to shoot Adam. Lily discovered Alyssa was back in town using the alias of Celeste Rosales. After detective Rey Rosales went to get Alyssa, Lily snuck into the room and found black leather gloves. After telling Rey, he got the gloves tested and found gun shot residue. On December 18, Rey arrested Alyssa for Chance's shooting. Alyssa was only remorseful she had hit Chance and not Adam.
Trivia[]
Victor's Newspapers
The names of Alyssa's mother, uncle, and grandparents were revealed in Victor's newspaper articles. It also mentions that Alyssa's father had numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins.
She was the only girl in Mrs. Anderson's class who wasn't afraid of worms.
Alyssa's actress, Maria DiDomenico, also appeared on a show called "Adam Ruins Everything" which is highly coincidental.
