Her early life was happy but when her father Ed had another affair this time with Lillian Raines the Head Nurse at Cedars Maureen was so devastated that she drove her car that she lost control of and drove off of a cliff and like his older brother Mike, Ed too had to deal with the task of raising his daughter by himself. She couldn't see herself as lonesome considering that since she had "Reardon Blood", she had various other relatives including her cousin Bridget, the former Manager/Owner of Company a combined Boarding House and Restaurant. Her closest friends however were Bill Lewis whose mother Vanessa was Maureen's best friend and Ben Reade, the adopted son of Fletcher Reade. She also has an older brother named Rick Bauer whom she adores.
Yet there were times where needing a mother was very important to Michelle. This was never more obvious when she had her very first period and since she was too embarassed to talk to her father about it, she would eventually develop a bond with her father's former second wife Holly Norris Bauer Thorpe Lindsey. Holly was going through a rough time of her own. Her relationship with her daughter Blake had gone downhill and she felt lonesome too so the two developed a strong bond for the next several years. On her Graduation day from Springfield High in 1997, she remembered feeling a little depressed. Her freinds Dahlia Crede and Bill Lewis each had family members representing them but she only had her Great-Aunt Meta (The sister of her late grandfather Bill). So instead of going to the Graduation Party, she went into the rough section of Springfield and met Jesse Blue. A mechanic who was illiterate, so she offered to teach him how to read and write and as a result, the two fell in love although Bill Lewis was devastated because he had loved her from the time that they were children.
They were inseperable but when Michele's sister in law Abby went across town to relay a message to Jesse from Michele, she was attacked and because of that, Rick was convinced that Jesse was no good for his sister. Time went on and the two were inseperable to the point that Michele posed nude for him and he drew some special pictures but when Drew, a new girl in town found them, she showed them all to the people at the Annual Bauer BBQ that was shown every year on July 4th. Sadly enough the worst was yet to come, when Michele found herself stuck in a fire at Josh & Reva's old house, she became blind and had to go to an institute. She met a man named Carlos who was really Jesse in disguise who was working as an orderly. However, love conquered all until one fateful incident.
Jesse was playing cards at his place where he met Mick Santos, a troublemaking individual who was dangerous to be around. He dealt drugs in front of Drew's new Club Millenium as well as finding the tape of Ben Warren & Blake Marler making love. He blackmailed them both, and when Ken Norris (Blake's Uncle) beat him up, he was infuriated. So when he tired to force himself on Michelle, she fought him off by using a rock but instead of turning herself in to Frank Cooper, a detective she, Jesse, Drew and Bill decided to make a pact and keep quiet about it. They did but when Michelle met Danny, Mick's brother she knew that she was in for some major problems. He continued to follow her be where she was and even took the exact courses that she did. If anything he was determined to be a thorne on her side to the point that she would sing like a canary. However, if Danny was angry at the death of his brother, it was nothing compared to the rage of Danny's mother Carmen Santos, the family head of a notorious crime syndicate who was determined to make Michelle pay, pay, pay, and then pay some more.
She was forced into a marriage of protection and although she was terrified, it was either marry this man or die. As time went on, she was very fearful of her husband especially when she used part of their Wedding Money to give to a lady who owed a lot of money to The Santos who told Michelle that she was behind on a payment loan when in reality, it was "Protection Money" so her little convenience store wouldn't get robbed by local thugs. Carmen hated Michelle and set out to prove that she and Danny's marriage was one of convenience, not love. In the meantime, Michelle decided to work with the FBI in taking down the Santos family and freeing herself to return to her old life...and Jesse. Feeling guilty over not implicating herself, Drew agreed to work as Michelle's go between with the Federal Agents. As she worked to find evidence against the Santos', she continued the charade with Danny....even going so far as to agree to another wedding ceremony....a religious one at the request of her mother-in-law. At the end of the wedding ceremony, Danny and Michelle kissed and she began to realize she was having feelings for her capture.
Eventually, at the urging of Carmen, Danny set a trap for Michelle to see if she was working with the FBI by telling her that he was overseeing an illegal shipment of cigards coming into Springfield. At first, Michelle fell for it and had Drew call the feds. Later, back at the Santos house, she heard Danny admit to his grandmother that he was in love with her. Touched by his admission and falling in love with him at the same time, Michelle tried to get Drew to call off the feds...but it was too late. To keep Danny from getting arrested, she faked going blind again so that he would go with her to the hospital. Later, Dietz, one of Carmen's employees, informed Danny that the FBI had shown up at the docks for the arrival of the "shipment". Believing that Michelle had deceived him, Danny prepared to punish her when he found out that Carmen had actually called the FBI. He vowed never to forgive his mother and went with Michelle to the Bauer's. Eventually, a guilty Michelle also confessed her deception and begged Danny to forgive her, trying to tell him that she was having feelings for him now and didn't want to have any secrets between them. Heartbroken, Danny wouldn't listen and sent Michelle home with Rick and Abby.
The ensuing months brought about even more interference for Michelle and Danny, but eventually the two beat all odds, admitted their true feelings and ended up together. The two were married privately for the third and final time at Laurel Falls....it was the wedding she had dreamed of as a child. Since then, they've faced some more obstacles, but have managed to stay true to each other and their marriage. Danny even agreed to leave the family business and move into the Santos house with Michelle, Rick, Abby and Meta. In November 1999, as a result of a misunderstanding involving her daughter, Pilar, Carmen shot her lover, Ben Warren. Later, Vanessa shot him again.. this time killing him. Not realizing Vanessa's part in the murder, Carmen, believing she was the guilty one, set up Michelle to take the fall for the crime. Carmen planted evidence and paid off witnesses and Frank was eventually forced to arrest Michelle for the murder. In the meantime, Vanessa lay in a coma, unable to confess.
As Michelle stood trial, Carmen found out that Vanessa had been the one to actually kill Ben. Seeing this as an opportunity to break up her son's marriage and finally make Michelle pay for killing Mick, Carmen decided to continue her plot against her. The trial was long and painful. Most of the town rallied around Michelle, but Drew chose to believe that her best friend killed her father and their friendship came to an end. It also put a strain on Danny and Michelle's relationship, but they never let go of each other and vowed to fight until the end. Unfortunately, a happy ending was not to be. After weeks of incriminating testimony, Pilar finally came forward in the courtroom and told everyone what really happened. The problem was that everyone, except for Danny and Michelle, believed that Pilar had gone insane and her testimony was not reliable. After a day of deliberation, the jury found Michelle guilty of murder.
While in county jail awaiting her sentence hearing, Michelle came to the realization that she would never be cleared. She decided to accept her fate and asked a distraught Danny for a divorce so that he could go on with his life. While watching her get transferred outside the police station, Danny couldn't bear the pain anymore. He asked Jesse to fake a heart attack. While the police were distracted, he threw Michelle into the police van and drove away. Danny then escaped with Michelle to his family's house in Cristobel. Though they made plans to flee the island, they were discovered by Prince Richard and given sanctuary for two weeks to clear Michelle's name. Running against time, they tried to locate the witness who testified about seeing Michelle at the crime scene. Though they planned on staying in San Cristobel for the two weeks, their stay was cut short with the arrival of Danny's old girlfriend Theresa.
Theresa, learning from Drew that the fugitives were on the island, arrived at the cottage brandishing a gun. While trying to calm Theresa down, Danny grabbed the gun away. Instantly he saw someone rushing through the window and thinking it was one of Theresa's goons, he fired the gun. Immediately he learned his mistake: it was Jesse coming through the window! Determined to get Jesse the best possible care, Michelle risked imprisonment and demanded to take Jesse back to Springfield for treatment. Immediately upon arriving in Springfield, Michelle learned that Vanessa had emerged from her coma and told the police that she and Carmen shot Ben; Michelle was in no way involved. After months of persecution, Michelle was legally cleared.
About this time, Michelle got two surprises. First she learned she was pregnant, then she met her biological mother, Claire Ramsey. Though happy about the pregnancy, Michelle was ambivalent about Claire's arrival. After all, she hadn't heard from Claire in over twenty years. Though she considered Maureen to be her real mom, Michelle reluctantly allowed Claire into her life. Then she learned that Danny made a deal for his mother's release. Fearing the mob, Danny made a deal that if his mother testified against the other mob families, she would be released under the Witness Protection Program. Though afraid that Carmen would go after her, Michelle understood that the deal was necessary to get away from the mob. Tragically, however just when Michelle thought her life would get back to normal, Carmen was murdered and shortly after Michelle suffered a miscarriage.
Last updated 03/15/01. E-mail me with any comments or suggestions at addip@isholf.is.