July 1, 2003

Corinthos Penthouse

“You have to what?” Courtney demanded in shrill voice.

Sonny scrubbed an impatient hand over his face. His sister had been waiting with Carly when they’d gotten back from the No Name. Her eyes had narrowed when she’d seen Jason behind Elizabeth, his hand on the small of her back. As soon as Jason had spied his girlfriend, he’d dropped his hand like a red hot coal and stepped away.

Carly had been eager for details of the meeting but from the expressions on the engaged couple’s faces, she had an inkling it hadn’t gone quite as they expected. Apparently, she’d been right.

“We have to live together,” Elizabeth said, softly, answering the enraged woman’s bitter question.

“Live together,” Courtney bit out. “For how long?”

“Until Ric and Faith are dealt with,” Sonny supplied. “The families have agreed to leave Elizabeth and her child alone under the following conditions. The marriage is to appear real, meaning they live together and see no one else. They will have a real ceremony and a reception. Honestly, it’s not as bad as it seems—”

“Not as bad?” Carly cut in. “What do you think would be worse?”

“They could have shot Elizabeth where she stood and killed her,” Sonny snarled, effectively silencing his wife. Elizabeth closed her eyes and shook her head, willing away the image of her standing in front of the families as though she were facing a firing squad.

“I can’t handle this,” Courtney declared. “This cannot happen. Jason, you can’t do this.”

“I’ve already agreed,” Jason told her quietly. “I can’t pull out now.”

“You can and you will. Or we are through,” Courtney announced.

Sonny grabbed his sister’s arm forcefully and jerked her into the hallway. “I need to talk to you for a minute alone.” He slammed the door shut behind them.

Elizabeth eyed Carly warily. “This wasn’t how it was supposed to be,” she told the other woman, fearing their truce had ended.

Carly swallowed hard. “Yeah. I believe that. I’m going to go check on Michael.” She crossed to the stairs and disappeared onto the second floor.

Elizabeth smoothed her hands over her arms and turned away from Jason. “I’m sorry Courtney’s reacting like this,” she said.

He shook his head. “Sonny will talk to her.”

“All right then, I’m going to go upstairs and call Luke,” Elizabeth replied. She hesitated another moment before climbing the stairs slowly and disappearing after Carly.

Hallway

“Damn it,” Courtney seethed. “I will not stand for this! Jason is my boyfriend!”

“I understand why you’re upset but try and think about someone other than yourself for five seconds, okay?”

Courtney paled. “Sonny, I am your sister. You are not supposed to deliberately try to hurt me—”

“That is not what I’m doing,” Sonny hissed. “I am trying to save someone’s life. Do you remember when you were accused of the accident and Elizabeth cleared your name?”

“Yes,” Courtney muttered.

“And I’m sure that’s not the only thing Elizabeth’s ever done for you.”

“No, it’s not,” Courtney grumbled.

“Now, multiply that by a thousand and you still won’t get how much Elizabeth has helped Jason. She has saved his life more than once and nearly sacrificed her own just as many times. She came to us to save hers. The families would not hesitate to use her to take Ric down if they thought we didn’t care. I will not let an innocent woman die because you’re a petty little brat!”

Courtney stepped back, stung. “Is that how you see me?” she asked softly.

Sonny muttered a curse under his breath and shook his head. “No, it’s not. I know how difficult it’ll be to see them together, but this is the way it has to be done.”

“I can’t do it Sonny,” Courtney whispered. She shook her head. “I just don’t think it’s possible. Even if I skip the wedding, I’ll end up staying here and I will have to see them and I know that I will not be able to handle that.”

“Okay, okay.” Sonny exhaled slowly. “Will Bobbie give you time off from Kelly’s?”

“She’s still got to replace Elizabeth,” Courtney said. “But I heard she was tapping one her nieces for that.”

“Ask her. Tell her the situation. She’ll understand.”

“What exactly am I asking?” Courtney asked her brother. She tilted her head to the side.

“I’m suggesting that you take time off from work and go on a well-deserved vacation,” Sonny said.

“Where and for how long?”

“To the island and until this mess is over. You’re right. You don’t have to deal with this and you shouldn’t have to see your boyfriend marry someone else.”

Courtney shook her head. “I don’t know Sonny. If Jason’s going to marry Elizabeth of all people, I don’t know that I should be leaving right now. I mean, it’s not that I don’t trust him, I do…” she trailed off and thought for a moment, searching for the right words. “Come on, Sonny, you know better than I do. They have this…connection. It’s still there, no matter how much anger or how hurt there is. Look, Jason hasn’t talked to her in months and he’s already stepped up to offer himself as the sacrificial lamb.”

“Do you think he’s still in love with her?” Sonny asked curiously.

“No, I know he loves me. But…you know, no matter how much you move on with someone else, part of you will always belong to someone else. I mean, AJ…” Courtney sighed. “Part of me still loves the man I thought he was. And I know you still love Brenda deeply.”

“You’re right,” Sonny agreed. “I think Jason still loves Elizabeth very much. But there’s a difference between being in love and just loving someone.”

“I know. I know that he’s in love with me and that Elizabeth is in his past. But, she was his present for so long…how can I really compete?” Courtney asked, her voice aching for reassurance.

“Go to the island,” Sonny encouraged. “I’ve got a little cottage just off the beach, it’d be perfect for you. I’ll even see if I can smuggle Jason down there occasionally. I’ll visit. I just think you need some time away from this.”

“Let me think about this all right?” Courtney asked. She kissed her brother on the cheek. “Thanks, Sonny.” She pushed past him and headed for the other penthouse.

Corinthos Penthouse

Jason was waiting for him when Sonny reentered the living room. He looked at him expectantly. “Is Courtney okay?”

“She’s fine. We talked and I understand what’s bothering her. I suggested sending her to the island while this is going on.”

Jason frowned. “We don’t know how long this will be, Sonny. It could be weeks, months, as long as a year.”

“I understand that. But the alternative is letting my sister stay here and watch you be married to your ex-girlfriend.”

“Sonny, you know that Elizabeth and I—”

“Still care for each other?” Sonny supplied. “Are still friends? Yeah, I know that. Trouble is, so does Courtney. And she understands that the two of you have history. She’s not begrudging that. I just don’t think she should be here to watch it.”

Jason sighed. “Okay. If Courtney is okay with it, then all right.”

“All right.” Sonny shifted. “Johnny and Francis are in England. How’s that lead they have?”

Jason shook his head. “Didn’t pan out the way we expected. But Johnny found a store owner who remembers Lansing. Said he overheard something about them sticking around Europe for a little while.”

“They’re keeping a low profile,” Sonny said. “Makes sense. There’s a lot of heat on them right now. Their best bet is to stay out of sight for a while. Tell you what, makes my life easier. I can concentrate on everything else.”

Elizabeth’s Room
“Hey, Luke,” Elizabeth greeted. She cradled the phone between her shoulder and her head, keeping her hands free as she unzipped her dress and slipped some sweat pants and a tank top.

“Hey, darlin. How’d the meeting go?”

She sighed. “Okay, I guess. They agreed.”

Luke leaned back in his chair at the club, focusing on a picture of his wife Laura. “Doesn’t sound good. What kind of negotiation tactics did they use?”

“It was kind of surprising, really,” Elizabeth admitted as she hung up the dress in the closet and shut it. “For a bunch of cold blooded killers, they sure are strict about marriage.”

“Yeah, their priorities are little twisted.”

“I’ll say. One of them wanted to lock me in a room until the baby was born.” Elizabeth sighed. “God, Luke, they’re so determined to make Ric pay they don’t care who it is.”

“I will say this about Jason and Sonny. Idiotic as they may be, they’ve got some shred of decency. So?”

“Well, what it boils down to is that Jason and I have to look married. Apparently, a fake marriage offends their morals,” Elizabeth said sarcastically.

“Never let it be said that hypocrisy is dead. So, looking married…” Luke trailed off. “Real wedding I suppose?”

“Yeah. Complete with a reception,” Elizabeth said with mock cheerfulness. “We also have to live together and he can’t see Courtney.”

“Hey, there’s a silver lining on an every cloud,” Luke replied, affably.

Elizabeth laughed then and sank onto the bed. “Oh, Luke.”

“Well, listen, you know if there’s anything you need, I’m there for you.”

“Actually,” Elizabeth bit her lip. “There is something I’d like. This is my wedding, I guess. And I don’t know much about planning a mob wedding so I’m just going to go with my instincts, you know?”

“Okay…”

“Could…could you walk me down the aisle?” Elizabeth asked softly. “And let Lulu be my flower girl?”

“Aw, darlin’, I’d be honored. And of course my little princess can be the flower girl.” Luke scratched his head. “I know this is tough, kid. But you’re a strong girl. You can get through this.”

“I don’t know if I can,” Elizabeth admitted. Her eyes filled with tears and she glanced towards the ceiling. “I called my grandmother and she disowned me. I don’t have anyone, Luke. No family.”

“How can you say that?” Luke demanded. “What about me? Cowboy, the demon’s spawn? Emily? Don’t we count?”

“Of course you count,” Elizabeth assured him. “It’s just…I’ve always had this unconditional support from you guys and it just makes me remember all the more that my own family can’t be bothered.”

“Your family is just as stupid as the five families,” Luke decided. “Listen, come to the club tomorrow. You bring Emily, I’ll supply Lucky and the spawn. We’ll start planning this here wedding.”

“I don’t know,” Elizabeth hesitated. “Isn’t there stuff I should run by Sonny and Jason? Shouldn’t…I don’t know…shit, Luke, I don’t know what I’m doing here.”

“No one knows what they’re doing here, darlin’, but we just try and muddle through life the best we can.”

“Yeah….yeah, I know.” Elizabeth sighed. “Thanks, Luke. Noon?”

“Hell, no. Make it two.”

Luke’s Office

Luke placed the receiver back in the cradle and sat forward to peer at Laura’s face again. Laura would be glad he’d set aside his anger and bitterness towards her Cassadine son and was working with him to help Elizabeth. Laura always had a soft spot for the girl.

In fact…Luke’s eyes lit up as he remembered the velvet box Laura had hidden in their closet, just waiting for Elizabeth’s birthday. It’d be a perfect wedding gift for the girl he considered a daughter.

July 2, 2003

Corinthos Penthouse

Elizabeth sighed and pushed her plate away the next morning at breakfast. “Sonny, there’s something I have to ask you.”

“What’s that?”

“Well, I’m meeting Luke and the others at the club today,” Elizabeth reported, shoving her hair behind her ears. “We’re going…well…plan the ceremony, I guess I should say. And I just wanted to know if there’s anything I need to know. Like is this different from a normal wedding?” Elizabeth flushed. “I mean, I know it’s obviously different—”

Carly cut the flustered girl off with a grimace. “Security. You have to plan for security. With the five families in attendance, you’re going to need a lot.” She leaned forward. “Does it bother you if they don’t blend in?”

“No,” Elizabeth managed to say. “They’re there to do their jobs, what does it matter how they look? As long as they’re comfortable.”

“Good.” Carly thought. “Way I figure it, you’ll need someone at the door to check invitations. Possibly two. Once you guys decide where the ceremony will be, you can figure out how many guards you’ll to patrol the perimeter—”

As Carly went on, Sonny sat back and smiled at his wife, proud of her for stepping forward with the knowledge Elizabeth needed.

“Carly,” Elizabeth interrupted. She smiled. “Would you come with me? I mean, you’ve planned a few of these weddings and you…you’ll be able to help with the guest list and all.”

Carly hesitated. “I don’t know. I was supposed to help Courtney with packing.”

“Oh.” Elizabeth nodded. “Okay, I understand.” She shoved her chair back and stood. “I need to go get ready.” She disappeared upstairs.

Sonny eyed Carly. “Courtney hasn’t decided whether or not she’s going. You don’t need to help her pack.”

“Just leave it alone,” Carly advised. She stood. “Just leave it alone.”
Quartermaine Mansion: Emily’s Room

Emily combed her brush through her hair before securing it into a ponytail. She grabbed the bridal magazines and the wedding planner she’d nabbed from the mall the other day and was halfway out of her room when Zander came through the window.

“Hey,” she greeted. “I was just heading out.”

“Sorry,” Zander apologized. “Where you going?”

“To help Elizabeth plan her wedding,” Emily said. “I don’t know why we’re going all out, but apparently, the families want a real wedding and Elizabeth is going to bend over backwards to do it, I guess.”

Zander frowned. “You don’t sound happy about this.”

“I want Elizabeth to be okay,” Emily told him. She sat on her bed. “I hate that this is happening, but I honestly feel like everyone’s just…protecting her. They’re so busy assuring that none of this is her fault…they’re not letting her take any of the blame.”

Zander frowned. “What does Elizabeth need to be blamed for?” he asked with almost an edge to his words.

“It’s not like my brother didn’t warn her about Ric. And Elizabeth admitted to me herself she had suspicions Ric was up to something. But she stayed with anyway, Zander. All I’m saying is that Elizabeth is not a saint. She needs to take credit for her part in this.”

Zander shook his head. “Emily—”

“Oh, don’t look at me like that,” Emily sighed. “I love her to death, but I see her for who she is, okay? She has a tendency to be selfish.”

“Is that what you think she’s doing?” Zander asked incredulously. “She’s marrying herself off to your idiot brother to save her baby, not herself. I honestly worry that Elizabeth wouldn’t give a damn otherwise.”

“Oh, don’t you champion her, too,” Emily scoffed. “Elizabeth made the decision to marry Jason with both her eyes open. It’s not like she doesn’t know exactly what she’s doing. She knows that Jason’s over her and I know she won’t use this as an opportunity to get him back.”

“Of course not. Your brother is head over heels for the stripper,” Zander joked. “I doubt Courtney would let Elizabeth close enough to Jason to make a difference.”

“Jason really loves Courtney, I know that. But you know, he still has a soft spot for Elizabeth. I don’t want him to confuse that for anything more.”

“Emily—”

“Look, I’m not trying to be a bitch. I just want everyone to keep a realistic outlook here. Elizabeth and Jason aren’t living a fairy tale. If they’re lucky, they’ll come out of this with a friendship. But I just think this is going to end badly. For everyone.”

“What happened to my optimistic dreamer?” Zander said, laughing and kissing her on the cheek.

“She grew up,” Emily murmured. She gathered the magazines and planner back into her arms and stood. “She grew up and realized her little fairy tale world crumbled while she was away.”

0

July 1, 2003

Corinthos Penthouse

“You told him it would be okay?” Carly demanded. She tossed aside another baby name book and rolled her eyes. “Great.”

Courtney sighed. “Well, what was I supposed to do? Play the raging bitch and tell him it’s over if he does? You know that wouldn’t have gone over well.”

“You should have argued more,” Carly accused.

“Yeah, well you should have kept your damn mouth shut about marriage,” Courtney snipped. “It doesn’t really make a difference. Jason told me it will be in name only. She probably won’t even set foot in the penthouse.”

“That’s true,” Carly nodded. “It’ll be okay, I guess. I mean, Jason’s obviously over the little twit.” Her face lit up. “And when this is done, maybe we can convince Sonny to send her to the island.”

“Yeah, like I’d get that lucky,” Courtney grumbled.

Morgan Penthouse

Jason looked up from some paperwork when Elizabeth knocked on the already open front door. “Hey.”

“Hey.” She rubbed the back of her neck. “Are you busy or do you have a minute?”

“It’s fine, come on in.”

Elizabeth only stepped inside a few feet. She made it no further than his desk. “I…I…made my decision,” she said softly. “I thought it be for the best to tell you as soon as I made it so you could tell Sonny and work out the details with the families.”

“Okay,” Jason said.

“I think…that for my child, the best decision would be to do this,” Elizabeth told him. “If this were just me…I never would have even hesitated. In fact, I would have been on the first plane to Greece last month, but I am pregnant and no matter I go, I’m a target. I know this, I’ve come to terms with this.”

“You’ll have to be present at the meeting,” Jason informed her. “Sonny wants a show of strength. That we’re not backing away from the threat.”

“Sonny said they’ll want to negotiate the details,” Elizabeth said. “What does that mean?”

“The families…” Jason hesitated, thinking about how and what to tell her. “The families are…well, they’re petty. And sometimes getting them to agree to the simplest of things is a chore.”

“So what kind of details will be negotiated? Where? When? How?” Elizabeth asked.

“More than likely.” Jason paused. “I know this isn’t the ideal solution, but—”

“It’s fine,” Elizabeth interrupted. “I…I’m a little tired. I’m going to go take a nap.” She turned and left the apartment abruptly.

Jason stared after her for a moment before picking up the phone and calling Sonny at the warehouse.

Corinthos Penthouse

Courtney and Carly watched in silence as Elizabeth opened the door and crossed the room to the stairs. She did so without a word and when she had disappeared from view, Courtney took a deep shuddering breath.

“Why do I suddenly have the feeling that entire world has shifted on its axis and it won’t be the same again?” Courtney asked her sister-in-law.

“Because I think Elizabeth is about to be the next Mrs. Jason Morgan,” Carly murmured.

“I can’t believe this is happening,” Courtney said, stricken. She shook her head. “I mean, what kind of ceremony will they have to have? Will they have to go to Vegas? Will it be in a real church—”

“Don’t get yourself worked thinking about this,” Carly said immediately. “This will be just like his marriage to Brenda. Even less real, I promise.”

Elizabeth’s Room

“Gram? It’s me.”

“Oh, my dear, Elizabeth, how are you?” Audrey Hardy asked warmly.

“I…I’m fine. How’s France?” Elizabeth asked softly. “Are you having a good time?”

“Oh, it’s lovely dear. I do wish you would have been able to join me on this vacation.”

“Next time, Gram,” Elizabeth replied. “There’s something I have to tell you.”

“What is it darling?” Audrey asked, sounding alarmed. “Is something wrong? Are you all right?”

“Well, I guess I’m fine. I’m…I’m getting married, Gram,” Elizabeth told her. She held her breath and waited.

There was silence for a moment on her Gram’s side of the line. “I thought you’d broken up with that lawyer.”

“I did, Gram,” Elizabeth replied. “But it’s not him. It’s…I’m…I’m marrying Jason.”

“Oh, Elizabeth,” Audrey sighed. “I really thought you’d gotten that out of your system.”

Elizabeth’s eyes filled with tears and she looked towards the ceiling. “Gram, I don’t expect you to understand, but—”

“I don’t. I thought you were finished with Jason Morgan and the whole lot of them. I’m very disappointed. What were you thinking, accepting a marriage proposal from that thug?”

“He’s not a thug, Gram,” Elizabeth whispered brokenly. “Please, just let me explain.”
Hallway

Carly was headed for the bathroom when she heard a voice inside Elizabeth’s room. The door was ajar and she stepped closer to listen.

“Gram, please just let me explain. I promise it’s not as bad—no, this isn’t about rebelling against you. I’m…” She heard Elizabeth’s voice break. “Gram, stop calling him a thug. If you can’t speak about this rationally—Gram, please just let me explain…hello? Gram? Hello?”

Carly bit her lip when she heard Elizabeth start to cry. How horrible it must be for her own family to reject her. Carly had never liked Audrey Hardy—it had always felt like the nurse was judging her.

She pushed the door open, startling Elizabeth who hung up the phone and started wiping her eyes. “Did you need something?”

“Something I’ve learned about pregnancy is that your emotions are always right on the surface,” Carly said quietly. She sat on the bed next to the other woman. “Sometimes the slightest thing can set it off. Last week, Sonny got me nut brownies instead of fudge brownies and I was crying for three hours.”

“You’re very lucky, you know,” Elizabeth said softly. “Your mother loves you unconditionally.”

“Yeah, my mom is great,” Carly agreed. “Always there when I need her.” She hesitated. “She loves you, too. She’s always thought of you as part of the family.”

“I love Bobbie,” Elizabeth replied. She looked towards the ceiling. “She’s done so much for me since…well…since I became friends with Lucky. And I’ve always appreciated the surrogate family I’ve found here.”

“But?” Carly prompted.

“Is it so hard for my biological family to just accept me for who I am?” Elizabeth asked. She wiped her eyes. “Why is every decision I make a rebellion against them? Why is it so hard for them to accept that I’m twenty-one years old? I have my own life, now. I support myself.”

Carly shrugged. “You just got dealt a bad hand, I guess. At least you’ve got this group of people that love you.”

“Why are you being so nice to me?” Elizabeth asked.

“Because you were nice to me when I needed it,” Carly replied. “When Sonny faked his death, and Jason wasn’t around, you were nice anyway. You weren’t seeking to gain points or rate their approval. You were just nice. And that meant a lot to me at the time.”

Elizabeth nodded. “Okay. That sounds reasonable.”

“Don’t tell anyone,” Carly warned. “They find out I’m being reasonable and I’ll never hear the end of it.”

Elizabeth laughed then. “Yeah, can’t have that.” She looked the blonde. “I told Jason that I…I agreed to marry him.”

“Yeah, Courtney and I figured that,” Carly replied. “Look, we’ll never be the best of friends. But for the next few weeks, maybe months…we should call a truce.”

“I agree,” Elizabeth said. She took a deep cleansing breath. “Oh, well. Gram has disowned me before. Once this marriage is over, I’ll be able to explain this to her.”

Sonny knocked on her bedroom door. “Hey, everything okay here?”

Carly glanced up at him and nodded. “Yeah. Princess and I were just discussing mood swings.”

Sonny grimaced. “Sounds like fun. Uh, I came home when Jason called me. He tells me that you’ve agreed.”

“Yeah,” Elizabeth reported. “He told me that you want me at this meeting.”

“I think it’s for the best, yes,” Sonny replied. “I called the families. It’s at six tonight. Be ready.”

“I will.”

Sonny left the room then, leaving the door open. Elizabeth closed her eyes and took another deep breath. “Here we go.”

No Name

“Okay, when we go in there, don’t speak unless spoken to,” Sonny directed Elizabeth. “They don’t take kindly to women speaking out of turn here. Reminds them too much of Faith. You are the direct opposite of Faith and we want to show them that.”

Elizabeth looked down at the white cotton dress he’d instructed her to wear. “Is that what this is for? Because Faith always wore black?”

Sonny grinned. “Yeah, I guess you could say that.” He glanced at Jason. “I’m fully expecting them to demand stupid shit so that they don’t have a reason to agree to this. Which means we have to be prepared to bend on a lot of topics.”

“Like what?” Elizabeth questioned. “What kind of topics?”

“Well, where the wedding would be held, I suppose. How long the marriage would have to last. You get the idea, right?”

Elizabeth nodded. “Okay.” She sighed and looked away.

“Sonny, give us a moment, okay?” Jason asked him as he steered Elizabeth a few feet away. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“I’m fine, Jason. I just want this over with,” Elizabeth replied. She crossed her arms stiffly.

“It’s just…I know you feel about people telling you what to do.”

“I hate it,” Elizabeth admitted. “But I…it’s not just me I have to worry about anymore. My baby is all that is important to me and I will do whatever I have to do to ensure her safety.”

“Okay.” He and Elizabeth headed back to Sonny. “Let’s do this.”

The representatives of the families were seated around the long table in one of the back rooms of the restaurant.

Sammy Tagliatti stood. “Mr. Corinthos, Mr. Morgan, welcome.” The smile fell from his face as Elizabeth stepped into view. “Ms. Webber,” he greeted stiffly. He flicked his gaze to Sonny. “What is she doing here?”

“Well,” Sonny said amiably, “I thought since this was her life we were discussing, she should be present.”

“Very well,” Tagliatti said. He took his seat. “You said you have a deal.”

“Ms. Webber is very important to me,” Sonny began. He pulled out the last remaining empty seat and sat, leaving Jason and Elizabeth standing behind him. “I want her safety ensured.”

“And you understand why we perceive her as a threat,” Michael Hernandez spoke up. He leaned forward and stubbed out his cigar. “Ric Lansing embezzled a lot of money from me and I want him to pay.”

Elizabeth stiffened and she clenched her fists at her side. The implication was clear. They couldn’t find Ric, they’d settle for her.

Sonny shrugged. “He tried to kill me, raped my wife and he tried to kidnap a girl I consider a sister. I want him to pay as well. But Ms. Webber is pregnant and I think she should be afforded special consideration.”

“And I want to know what assurance we have that the kid isn’t the next Ric Lansing or Faith Roscoe,” Hernandez shot back.

“Simple,” Sonny replied. “The deal is that Elizabeth Webber marries Jason Morgan, my second-in-command.”

Tagliatti smirked. “Therefore making her untouchable. Very smart Corinthos.”

Elizabeth let out a relieved breath. This was going to work. It had to work.

“A fake marriage?” Daniel Vega scoffed. “I can’t agree to that. Marriage is a sacred undertaking. It’s common knowledge Morgan’s been seeing your sister, Corinthos.”

“Yes,” Sonny replied. “Jason has been dating my sister, Danny. But this is a negotiable deal. We’re open for suggestions.”

“I’ve got a suggestion,” John O’Reilly remarked. “Let’s just lock her somewhere and wait for Lansing to come and get her. He’s obviously not through with her.”

Elizabeth made a whimpering sound and took a step back. Jason steadied her with a hand on the small of her back.

“Okay, John. Say I decide to renege my decision to forget that nasty little deal where you tried to blackmail my wife into running drugs through my territory,” Sonny said. “Say I want you to pay. You want me to grab Gracie and lock her in a room while she’s pregnant?”

O’Reilly narrowed his eyes. “That’s a low blow and completely irrelevant.”

“I don’t think so,” Sonny replied smoothly. “You want to lock up the fiancée of my second-in-command.”

“The fake fiancée,” Vega interjected. “Look, locking up a pregnant woman—or anyone woman is out of the question. I would never agree to that either.”

Tagliatti sighed. “This is getting us nowhere. Danny, you hate the idea of a fake marriage. Fine. We can solve that.” He looked at the couple. “Condition number one. The two of you live together through the tenure of the marriage. Condition number two, Morgan doesn’t see his girlfriend on the side. That work for you Danny?”

“Yeah sure,” Vega remarked. “What do you say Corinthos?”

Sonny shrugged. “What do you think about that, Jason?”

“It’s fine,” Jason replied stiffly. “Elizabeth?”

Elizabeth nodded mutely, careful not to speak. They obviously loathed the very sight of her and she was going to heed Sonny’s advice. Seen and not heard.

“Okay, that’s agreed. What else?” Sonny said, folding his hands.

“I want assurance this kid is safe from the influence of Lansing and Faith,” O’Reilly demanded. “How do I know she ain’t gonna turn this kid over to him?”

“I’d rather drink poison,” Elizabeth blurted out.

Sonny closed his eyes and sighed. “Elizabeth, I thought we agreed…”

“No, no,” O’Reilly said, waving his arm away. “This is the mother of the child. I want to hear from her.”

“I hate Ric Lansing with every fiber of my being,” Elizabeth bit out. “He threatened my life, he threatened to kill to my child. He tried to kidnap me two weeks ago. How could you think I would willingly turn my child over to him?”

O’Reilly had the decency to sit back and look away. “Okay. Not willingly. I apologize.”

“You want protection for her through this marriage, then this marriage has to last until Lansing and Faith are dealt with,” Hernandez dictated. “Weeks, months, years. I don’t care. She is a target and she is what will bring him back to Port Charles.”

“That’s fine,” Sonny agreed. “Anything else?”

“I’m not convinced Lansing won’t just kidnap the child,” O’Reilly said, shaking his head. “What do you have to say to that, Ms. Webber?”

Elizabeth hesitated. She glanced up at Jason and then back at the well-dressed gray-haired man who’d posted the question. “That’s a question that terrifies me,” she confessed. “If Ric were ever within five hundred feet of my child…I think I would probably kill him.”

“Well, that works me for me,” Tagliatti agreed. “When will this wedding be held?”

“As soon as we can contact the justice of the peace,” Sonny replied.

“No good,” Vega decided. “You must have a church wedding.”

Elizabeth inhaled sharply. “A church wedding?”

“Elizabeth, let me handle this,” Sonny directed. “A church wedding is out of the question. Once they’re divorced, neither of them would be able to marry in the church again.”

“Get an annulment,” Thomas Caracas spoke up finally. “Morgan’s got experience with that.”

“That’s fine. Jason, Elizabeth?”

“Fine,” Jason replied, shortly.

“That’s fine,” Elizabeth agreed.

“I expect an invitation to a wedding ceremony and a reception,” Tagliatti announced.

“Of course,” Sonny agreed. “Is that it?”

“I believe that’s it for now. We’ll let you know if there any other details to work out.”

Sonny stood. “We’ll be leaving then.” He gestured for Jason and Elizabeth to lead the way out of the restaurant.

Once they were outside, Elizabeth leaned against the brick wall and closed her eyes. “They probably would have shot me if given the chance,” she whispered painfully.

“I doubt that,” Sonny said. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders to steady her as they walked towards the car. “Are you okay? I should have insisted that you sit.”

“It was so hard to sit there and let dictate the way I’m going to live my life,” Elizabeth told him. “I hate being told what to do, I despise and loathe it.”

“It’ll be okay,” Sonny assured her.

“Yeah, well, at least I’m not the one who has to tell Carly and Courtney the details of this deal,” Elizabeth said as Johnny opened the door to the limo.

Jason sighed and followed her in. He almost wished he could convince Sonny to tell Courtney. He did not relish this responsibility.

0

June 30, 2003

Corinthos Penthouse

Carly Corinthos leaned forward and wagged her finger at her husband. “I’ve got it!” she announced gleefully. “It’ll solve all of our problems!”

Luke Spencer smirked and took the cigar out of his mouth. “This ought to be good.” He leaned against the fireplace and eyed his niece.

They’d been at this for hours—every suggestion was shot down for one reason or another. Elizabeth had been quite adamant, she wanted to stay in Port Charles at all costs.

So immediately, any idea Nikolas Cassadine or Luke had come up with was rejected. Luke wanted her to disappear while Nikolas wanted to barricade her on a Greek island.

It was nearly midnight now and Elizabeth was upstairs in the guest room, fast asleep. Her pregnancy was making her more tired than usual and she’d been sleeping more and more.

Carly’s pregnancy was somehow making her superhuman, which was why she was still up trying to contribute to the conversation despite Sonny’s pleas for her to rest.

“Just marry her off!” Carly declared dramatically.

Jason Morgan frowned. “And how in the world is that supposed to help?” he asked.

Carly shrugged. “She’ll be protected if she gets married to someone in the organization, right?”

Sonny stroked his chin thoughtfully. “I think she may have a point.”

Luke shook his head. “I can’t believe the day came when I’d agree with my psycho niece.”

Carly glared at him. “I resent that.”

Jason shook his head. “I don’t think this is gonna work. Lansing made the families very nervous. He embezzled from three of them and the other two want to kill him on principle. They don’t care if Elizabeth is under our protection. She’s a way to get to him and the baby she’s carrying is an extension of him in their eyes.”

“Look, Lansing and Faith have taken off for parts unknown,” Nikolas spoke up. “And I don’t give a damn about them right now. All I care about is that Elizabeth doesn’t get caught in some stupid mob war.”

“I agree,” Lucky Spencer chimed in.

His father snorted. “You would.”

Lucky glared at Luke. “Look, I thought this was done with. You and Nikolas are never going to agree about Mom’s treatment. I thought we agreed that as long as she’s getting the best treatment—that Elizabeth’s safety was going to take priority over this god damn rivalry.”

“As long as Luke can keep up,” Nikolas smirked.

Luke opened his mouth to reply, but Sonny jumped in. “Hey, I know there’s about twenty years of hatred between your families, but do you think we can concentrate on the matter at hand? The families want an answer.”

“Fuck the families,” Luke announced. “Bunch of inbred idiots.”

Sonny stood. “Look, the three of you are being included in this at Elizabeth’s request. Now, I promised that girl when she came to me that I would protect her. Whether it be from my enemies, from my half-brother or from anything else. I am not going to let anyone get in the way of the promise.”

Lucky shook his head. “All of this damn fighting is getting us nowhere. Let’s get back to the topic. Sonny, just how much protection would she guaranteed if she married someone in the organization?”

Sonny shrugged. “Depends on the person. If it were me, she’d be untouchable. If it were one the of guards, well it would ensure her safety to a certain point.”

“Well, obviously you’re not a possibility,” Luke decided.

“Damn right,” Carly muttered.

“What about Morgan here?”

“No way!” Carly declared, lunging to her feet. “There is no way that twit is going to force herself into Jason’s life again!”

Jason stood slowly. “Carly, just…stop it, okay? You brought the idea up. We’re looking at all the possibilities.”

“What about Courtney, huh?” Carly demanded, crossed her arms and glaring at her best friend. “You know how uncomfortable this whole situation has made her. What would she think if she knew you were considering this?”

“I don’t give a damn about that girl thinks,” Luke cut in. “What I do give a damn about is that girl sleeping upstairs. She’s got nowhere else to turn to. Her grandmother is out of town, her biological family could give two shits about her. The only people she’s got on her side are the six of us and Emily Quartermaine. I’ll be damned if the whims of some jealous little twit—”

“Watch it, Luke, that’s my sister you’re talking about!” Sonny warned.

“So?” Luke scoffed. “I thought she agreed that whatever had to be done would be done. Why are you now worrying about her feelings?”

“Because I doubt Courtney thought Elizabeth marrying Jason was even a remote possibility!” Carly snarled.

“Yeah, like Elizabeth would be jumping through hoops at the idea,” Nikolas retorted. “I can’t think of anything she’d like less. She left this life, remember? She got out.”

“And then she turned right around and came back! First by dating that idiot and then by coming to Sonny for protection!” Carly tossed back.

Jason rubbed his hands over his face. “Look, all of this fighting is getting us nowhere. We’ve got to figure this out and we’ve got to do this soon. Elizabeth is our only key to finding Lansing so her leaving Port Charles is out of the concern.”

“Careful,” Lucky sneered. “Wouldn’t want you to choke on that concern of yours.”

Jason paused momentarily to glare at the younger Spencer. “I don’t want anything to happen to her,” he said, patiently. “I want to do what’s best for everyone involved. Lansing threatened her, he threatened the baby and in my book, that would have been reason enough to get rid of him.”

“But you didn’t, did you?” Nikolas accused. “You two idiots sat on this information, letting Elizabeth come and go as she pleased. Well, I guess you learned your damn lesson when she was almost kidnapped, huh?”

“Okay, that’s enough!” Carly announced. She used two fingers and whistled loudly. “Apparently, I’m voice of reason here. Look, I’m not thrilled about the idea, but Elizabeth came to us for protection. Not you three Stooges, but she came to Sonny. She trusts him. That is his niece or nephew she’s pregnant with and you have our word she will be protected.”

“Your word means nothing to me,” Nikolas announced. “If I had my way, Elizabeth would have been in Greece last month.”

“Yeah, well, we all know what she thought of that plan, don’t we?” Carly retorted. “Look, I am exhausted. Is she marrying into the organization or not?”

“I think before we decide that, this needs to be run by Elizabeth,” Lucky interjected. “She needs to approve this. This is her life, her child.”

Luke nodded. “Right. I’ll go wake her.”

“There’s no need. You all woke me up with the arguing,” Elizabeth murmured as she descended down the stairs.

The past month of stress and worry had taken its toll on the petite brunette. Her hair was pulled into a limp pony tail, her eyes sunken, her face more pale than ever. She was dressed in an oversized T-shirt and a pair of sweat pants.

She folded her arms. “So? What’s this about me marrying someone?” she asked softly.

Luke cleared his throat and crossed the room to his surrogate daughter. Winding an arm around her shoulders, he steered towards the couch. “Sit down, darlin’. We got something we need to discuss.”

“Luke, I’m not a child,” she said. She pushed his arm away. “Just tell me what’s going on.”

“The basic summary?” Sonny said. “We think your best bet is to marry someone in the organization.”

Elizabeth didn’t say anything. She just arched her eyebrow and waited.

“We haven’t really nailed down who yet,” Sonny continued hesitantly. “But we agree that someone of Jason’s standing in the organization would be the most ideal.”

Elizabeth sighed and nodded. “This is the best you can do?” she asked.

“The best way to get the families off our back,” Sonny replied. Carly shook her head and crossed her arms. Participating in a scheme to save Elizabeth Webber’s life ought to gain her saint hood or something.

“If I weren’t pregnant,” Elizabeth began, “then I would have taken my chances elsewhere. I would have taken Luke’s offer and disappeared.” She looked down at the ground. “But this isn’t a decision to make just for myself. This is for my baby. And that’s the only thing that matters to me.”

“So, this is okay?” Lucky asked, stepping forward.

“I don’t know,” Elizabeth replied. “Who would I have to marry?”

The room was deadly silent, the tension was thick and palpable. Lucky shuffled his feet and looked away. Nikolas crossed his arms and looked at his feet. Luke stared into the fireplace.

Jason stepped forward. “Me,” he announced. “You’d marry me.”

Carly gaped at him. “What?” she sputtered. “What about Courtney?”

Elizabeth didn’t take her eyes off of Jason and completely ignored Carly. “Are you serious?”

“Hello!” Carly said, waving her arms. “Does the name Courtney ring a bell?”

Jason inhaled slowly and looked at Carly. “She’ll understand. It’s not permanent. It’s temporary.”

“Yeah, okay,” Carly said, rolling her eyes.

Sonny touched her shoulder. “Look this is something that’s up to them, okay? Marriage was your idea.”

“Yeah, well this wasn’t what I had in mind!” Carly screeched. She shrugged off Sonny’s arm and crossed to Elizabeth. “You listen here—”

“Hey, back off,” Nikolas interjected, stepping in. “You are not his keeper. He can make his own damn decisions, he doesn’t need a guard dog. And if you ever speak like that to Elizabeth again, you’ll regret it.”

“Are you threatening me?” Carly demanded.

“You’re damn right I am.”

“Wait, wait,” Elizabeth said, waving her arms. “Let’s just take a step back here and calm down, okay? I haven’t agreed to anything.” She looked at Sonny. “How long do I have to decide?” she asked.

Sonny rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, the sooner we deal with this, the better. The families are gonna wanna negotiate this further and we need to be ready in case there’s retaliation from Ric or Faith.”

“Can you give me until tomorrow night?” Elizabeth requested. “I’ll have an answer then.”

Sonny nodded. “Yeah, tomorrow night.” He glanced at Jason. “You might want to spend tomorrow getting Courtney ready for this possibility.”

Carly snorted. “This is so damned ridiculous.”

“Come on. You need to get to sleep,” Sonny directed, steering Carly towards the stairs.

Lucky hugged Elizabeth. “Meet me and Nik at Kelly’s tomorrow for breakfast?” he suggested. “We’ll call Em.”

Elizabeth nodded. “Yeah, sure.”

“See ya,” Nikolas said, hugging her and kissing her on the forehead. The brothers exited the penthouse. Luke sighed.

“Okay, well, call me if you need me. If this goes through, I wanna hear all the details about this so-called deal, understand?” Luke told her.

Elizabeth nodded. “You’ll be the first one I call.”

“Good. Night.”

After Luke was gone, she and Jason were alone in the room. She shifted. “I’m going to go back to sleep.”

“Elizabeth, wait a second,” he said. “Look, if this makes you uncomfortable in any way—”

“I think I’m the one who should be saying that,” Elizabeth replied. “You’re the one who’d be sacrificing for this. You’re the one that’s got to tell the woman you love you might have to marry someone else. I appreciate you being willing to do this, Jason, but I just…” she sighed and looked away. “I don’t know if I could handle it, that’s all. So I just…I need to think about it further, okay?”

Jason nodded. “Yeah, okay. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See ya,” Elizabeth echoed as she watched him leave.

Kelly’s: The Next Morning

“I don’t know,” Emily Quartermaine began. “This whole thing sounds…off. To me, at least. How will you marrying Jason help anything?”

Elizabeth stirred her hot chocolate absently. “I’m not sure really. I think there’s something about the level of respect. Sonny and Jason were really more concerned about the families’ threat against me rather than Ric. I guess if I were married into the organization…the families would be obligated to leave me alone.”

Nikolas shook his head. “I just don’t understand the code there. They’ll respect you to your face, but plot your death behind your back.”

Emily ignored Nikolas and concentrated on Elizabeth. “Gut instinct. Is this a solution you could see yourself handling?”

Elizabeth shrugged. “A year ago, I wouldn’t have hesitated. I would have said yes. But now…there’s so much…distance between us. We’ve barely talked in months and I can’t tell you the last civil conversation we had.”

“So, you agree that marrying Jason would be a bad idea,” Lucky decided.

“No, I didn’t say that,” Elizabeth said. “Logically, I know that it’s the safe solution. But…”

“Emotionally,” Nikolas prompted. “Emotionally, it’s not.”

“Yeah, I guess that’s the best way to put it,” Elizabeth replied. “Emotionally, I don’t know that I’d be able to survive it.”

“Has Jason said anything to Courtney?” Emily asked.

“He’s supposed to do that today,” Elizabeth replied. “I’m being selfish, I guess. I shouldn’t be thinking about what’s best for me. I should be thinking about my child and what’s best for her…or him.”

Emily nodded. “Well, then I guess you’ve made your decision,” she said quietly.

“I guess I have.”

Morgan Penthouse

Courtney eyed her boyfriend skeptically. “Are you serious?” she asked. “You want me to be okay with you marrying your ex-girlfriend?”

Jason sighed and shifted on the couch. “Courtney, it’d be like it was with Brenda more or less. Name only. I don’t even think she’d have to set foot in the penthouse.”

Courtney shook her head. “No…I don’t think I could be comfortable with this.”

“You agreed you’d help in any way possible,” Jason reminded her.

“Yeah…but I never dreamed it’d be like this,” Courtney sighed. “I thought…I don’t know what I thought. But this was not even something I thought of in my wildest nightmares.”

Jason rubbed his temple. “I love you,” he assured her. “But I gave Sonny my word that I would do this for him. He feels guilty that Ric even came to town at all. He’s depending on my help.”

Courtney sighed. “Okay. Okay. But I want it on the record that I’m not happy with this.”

0