Written in 66 minutes. For obvious reasons, the final scene had to be just right.

Port Charles Courthouse: Holding Room

Justus glanced over at the deputy with raised brows. “You really have to leave him cuffed? Come on, man—”

“I’ve got my orders.” The deputy just lifted his hands in surrender, then backed out of the room.

“It doesn’t matter,” Jason said, though he hated when they went a step further, shackling his cuffed hands to his matching cuffs around his ankles, preventing prisoners from sprinting to freedom. “You said bail looked good, so I’ll be out of here anyway.”

“I said that if Scott was serious about wanting your cooperation, he’d be smart not to put up resistance to basic bail,” Justus said. “We’re about to find out exactly how on the level Baldwin is playing this. After all, he did make you wait almost the entire seventy-two hours before this hearing.” He lifted his briefcase, headed for the door connecting the room to the court room. “Look, by the way, Elizabeth was released from the hospital last night.”

“Released—” Jason shook his head. “No—it’s too early—”

“Maybe not. It’s a good sign, Jason. She’s out there with her grandmother. I just didn’t want you to be surprised—”

“She should be resting,” Jason muttered.

“It’s another sin we’ll lay at Baldwin’s feet, because no doubt, she’d be at home if you weren’t in here.” Justus knocked on the door. “We’re ready.”

The courtroom was filled—Jason was used to that, though he was less enthused when he realized about half the occupants were members of the Quartermaine family, including the old man. Nikolas Cassadine sat behind Elizabeth, and was leaning forward, talking to her in a low voice. Emily wouldn’t be there, Jason knew that, but Zander was sitting in the back corner, ostensibly to report back to her.

And Elizabeth sat in the front row, flanked on either side by her grandmother and Bobbie. Mike sat next to Bobbie, and Felicia Jones on the other side of Audrey.

Scott had no one on the prosecution side, save for himself, and Mac Scorpio sitting at the table.

Elizabeth looked pale, Jason thought, dressed in a simple blue dress with a sweater opened in the front. On the right, the shoulder of the sweater hung loose over her arm, pulled up in a blank sling. But she looked better than when he’d left her in the hospital, and for that, he had to be grateful.

“Jason…” Elizabeth rose as the deputy brought Jason to his seat. “Oh, it’s so good to see you. I wanted to come yesterday, but—”

“I said no,” Audrey said firmly, rising alongside her granddaughter, placing a steadying arm around her waist. “Because we had an agreement, didn’t we?”

Elizabeth wrinkled her nose, then looked at Jason. She held out her hand, and Jason took it, squeezing it. “I promise. I’m okay. We’re both okay.”

“I trust you. I’ll be out of here soon.” He didn’t want to release her hand, but he had no choice in order to take their seats. Still, as much as he wished she were at home, that she were anywhere else, knowing where she was, having her safe in the same room—for the first time since he’d been arrested, he could breathe a little more easily.

Three days had been lost because of Baldwin’s antics. Three days of not knowing what the hell was going on with Sonny, with Carly, of not being there for Elizabeth—was her arm better? Was there improvement? And Michael. How was he handling everything—

Jason barely heard the bailiff call the court to order, only rising when Justus prompted him. The judge took his seat, and Jason sat.

“Case of New York versus Jason Morgan, one count of attempted murder and two counts of assault with a deadly weapon,” the clerk said, handing the file to the judge who skimmed the contents.

“All right. Appearances?”

“Scott Baldwin for the district attorney’s office,” Scott said, rising and buttoning his jacket.

“Justus Ward for the defense, Your Honor.”

“I’ll hear the prosecution on bail.”

“Your Honor, the DA’s office has no opposition to a reasonable bail being set for Mr. Morgan. He has ties to the community, and we don’t expect him to be a flight risk.”

Jason frowned, looked over at Scott. What game was he trying to pull?

And clearly Scott’s request had surprised the judge who peered at him over his reading glasses. “Mr. Baldwin, didn’t your office try to deny bail for Mr. Morgan just a year ago when he was arrested for the murder of Luis Alcazar?”

Scott blinked. “Oh, Your Honor, forgive me. I didn’t realize that, you, ah, had presided over that case. Well, as you know, that was an unfortunate miscarriage of justice which the DA’s office was more than happy to remedy. As you know, Mr. Morgan was set free—”

“To apparently commit further acts of violence. According to you,” the judge said dryly. “Do I have the facts correct? Attempted murder of an assistant district attorney, shooting wildly in a courtyard, injuring two pregnant woman, one of whom is still in a coma?”

Scott opened his mouth, then closed it, considering his words carefully. “Ah, well, yes, those would be the facts.”

“Case file says there are two witnesses, that you have  the weapon used in the crime registered to Jason Morgan—”

Jason snapped his head to look at Justus, who just shook his head. That was news to him, too, Jason thought grimly.

“I’m actually surprised we’re not talking about a plea deal. It’s a very strong case from what I can see—”

“Your Honor, the defense has not yet had a chance to test any of that evidence,” Justus interrupted. “Two witnesses with very dubious credibility, I might add. The gun in question has not been tied successfully to this crime, at least not that I’ve seen, and my client has an alibi—”

“One of the women he’s accused of shooting is his mistress pregnant with his child, Mr. Ward. Should I let him out so he can finish the job? What’s the matter, Mr. Morgan, not interested in child support?”

Shaken, Jason just looked at Justus who seemed a bit dumbfounded by the turn in the bail hearing. Would the judge refuse to set bail? What would he do—

“That’s not true,” he heard Elizabeth hissing from behind him. “No, it’s not—”

“Silence, or I’ll clear the court room,” the judge said, banging the gavel. “Mr. Baldwin? Are these not the facts in the case?”

“Those are the facts read in the worst light,” Scott said slowly. He smoothed his hand down his shirt front. “The PCPD turned up no evidence that Carly Corinthos or Elizabeth Webber were intentional victims. It seems as if they were in the wrong place in the wrong time. And there is some questions of fact that a jury is entitled to determine. Mr. Morgan is free to plead not guilty, which I assume he plans to do, and as you’ve pointed out, he’s not new to the criminal justice system. Despite the resources available to him, he’s never failed to fail up for a court appearance.” Scott cleared his throat. “And as such, bail is not meant to be a punishment in itself, only an assurance that the accused completes the process. Furthermore, you’ve never held a defendant without bail in anything less than a capital case. Which this is not.”

The judge tipped his head. “Mr. Baldwin, that’s a very eloquent defense of Mr. Morgan. Have you changed sides while I wasn’t looking?”

“I represent the constituents of my district. All of them. Jason Morgan is, unfortunately, one of them,” Scott said. “And he’s entitled to due process and a fair, impartial hearing of the evidence. Your Honor.”

“All right. Mr. Ward, any other thoughts?”

“Mr. Morgan would surrender his passport in addition to reasonable bail. I share Mr. Baldwin’s view of the situation. My client is not a flight risk. He’s eager to absolve himself of these scurrilous charges, and I look forward to embarrassing the district attorney in court as soon as possible.”

“All right. I don’t want hear any complaints when Miss Webber has another mysterious accident that puts a child at risk. No editorials about womens’ right,” the judge said with distaste. “Bail is set a five hundred thousand dollars. Next case.”

Port Charles Courthouse: Hallway

“I will have that son of a bitch removed from office by end of day,” Edward Quartermaine thundered as he stalked from the room, heading for the elevators, followed by Alan and Monica. “The insult, the audacy—” His furious voice disappeared when the doors slid closed.

Elizabeth lingered outside of the court room, waiting for Justus to finish with Jason, for him to be processed and released. Her throat tightened. “Did you hear the way the judge spoke about him? It’s so awful—why would anyone—”

“It’s all right, darling. Let’s go sit down. We’ll wait for Jason over here.”

“Jason would never hurt me or Carly. Never! He loves this baby—”

“I know he does, sweetheart.” Mike came to Elizabeth’s other side, guided her over to the bench, a bit more forcefully than Audrey. “Sit down, let’s all take a deep breath. The judge, as Scott said, looked at the facts in the worst light. We all know the truth.”

“I’m sorry—” She bit her lip, looked at Mike. “I mean, I know this—Courtney—”

“Don’t you worry about that right now, all right?” Mike patted her shoulder, then went back over to where Bobbie and Felicia were talking to Nikolas. “What the hell is Scott Baldwin pulling? That judge was ready to throw Jason to the wolves—”

“Election year,” Felicia said. She rubbed her forehead. “And he took a beating in the press two years ago when he released a man accused of domestic abuse. I remember Mac was just furious—the man violated the restraining order. Put the woman in the hospital.”

“And he doesn’t want more bad press,” Bobbie said. “Well—”

“I’m sorry, perhaps I’m still playing catch up,” Nikolas said, “and believe me, I’m sure there’s something I don’t know. But are we not listening to the part where there are witnesses and they have the gun? Whatever case Scott has, the judge didn’t throw it out. It’s not as flimsy as you had me believe—”

“Oh, Nikolas, do you really think Jason shot Elizabeth and Carly?” Bobbie said, with a roll of her eyes. “I thought you’d agreed to let go of all of that—”

“I believe he hated Ric enough to do something stupid,” Nikolas said, dryly. “He’s not perfect—”

“Shut up.” Bobbie jabbed a finger in his chest. “Shut up right now, Nikolas Cassadine. I don’t want to hear any word from you that isn’t how can I help? Because this isn’t what Elizabeth needs right now, damn it.”

“I only meant—”

“If you have a single doubt in your head right now that Jason is being railroaded, then you need to get out of my sight. Because you’re accusing me of lying if you believe Jason did this. He was standing right to me when those damn bullets ripped through the night, when my daughter was shot in the head, Jason was with me—” Bobbie broke, put her hands on her face, turning away.

“Come on, let’s go take some fresh air,” Felicia said, putting an arm around Bobbie’s trembling shoulders. She threw Nikolas a dirty look, then guided the redhead away.

“I forgot,” Nikolas said. “I forgot Bobbie—” He looked to Mike. “I forgot.”

“You said you wanted to help, to be here for Elizabeth, and that’s fine. I won’t speak for her,” Mike said. “But you might want to think about what you say before you put it into the world. Because that girl has been through more than enough these last few days. And Bobbie’s already buried one child. Do you really think she’d protect the man who might take another from her?”

“No, no, of course not. And if you’re standing by Jason despite being Courtney’s father, then I can’t do any less. I’m sorry.”

Mike opened his mouth to respond, but then Jason came around the corner, Justus on his heels. Elizabeth saw him, too, and to Audrey’s dismay, all but jumped to her feet, rushing to him. Jason caught her against him, carefully to one side so he didn’t jar her injured shoulder, then buried his face in her neck, clinging to her.

“I take it all back,” Nikolas murmured. Mike looked at him. “But if he didn’t do it, then who the hell are these witnesses? And how did they get the gun?”

“You should be at home, resting.” Jason smoothed her hair back from her face, drawing back to press his lips to her forehead. “You and the baby are more important—”

“I would have gone crazy being at home, and I’m glad I came because that judge was so out of line, and Justus—” Elizabeth looked past to Jason’s lawyer. “You should get him thrown off the case. He was so unfair.”

“Hoping it won’t come to that.” Justus touched Jason’s shoulder. “Remember what we talked about, all right? And get me those files.”

“Yeah, yeah. Thank you.”

“I’ll talk to you later.” Justus picked his briefcase up, headed away. “Mrs. Hardy, why don’t we take the elevator before Jason and Elizabeth? Give them a minute.”

“Of course. Elizabeth, I’ll be in the parking garage. And Jason, you’re welcome to come to the house if you like,” Audrey said. “We should find Bobbie and Felicia,” she said as she and Justus left. Mike and Nikolas following.

“Let’s sit down for a minute, all right? Humor me,” Jason said, when Elizabeth opened her mouth to protest. He led her over to the bench. “How are you feeling? Really,” he added. “Don’t sugarcoat it.” He reached for the fingertips of the hand in the sling.

“I’m tired. Sore,” Elizabeth admitted. “Better than yesterday. Gram’s cooking is better. And my bed at her house is better than the sofa in the studio. But if you’re asking about my hand—my arm—nothing yet.”

“Nothing—” Jason stopped. “Nothing at all?”

“Tony says it’s not uncommon for temporary paralysis of the nerves, based on where the bullet was located. It’s—it’s possible that once the healing is done, the swelling has gone down, that it’ll be fine. But…” She picked at loose thread in her skirt. “There’s also a just as likely possibility that while I’ll get feeling back, full control might not  be possible. Especially fine motor skills.”

Like picking up a paintbrush, holding it for a hours. Jason exhaled slowly. “But not definitely. There’s medications. Physical therapy. We’ll try it all, okay? Everything. I don’t care—”

“I’m not—I’m not going to focus on that right now.” Though her grim smile told him that it was easier said than done. “It’s the baby and you, in that order. Finding out who did this so they’ll leave you alone, and we can worry about everything else.”

“That’s what I’m going to do. Justus and I have a plan.”

“I’m so glad Bobbie called him. Luke always said Justus was the best, and you told me how much you trusted him. So this is good. It’s a good thing. Tell me everything. What are they talking about? What witnesses? How did they get a gun registered to you? What are you and Justus going to do?”

Jason sighed, looked away for a moment, then brought his gaze back to hers. “I can’t tell you any of that.”

Port Charles Hotel: Suite

She’d had second thoughts, of course. Third, fourth, and fifth. And now, today, as Courtney paced the length of her hotel room, glancing occasionally at the newspaper laying across the remains of the breakfast she’d barely been able to touch.

Jason was being arraigned today. He’d been arrested, charged, and now he was out on bail. What had she done? What had she done? She kept asking herself that over and over and over— she’d thrown in her lot with her brother’s enemy, with Carly’s tormenter—and while giving Ric Lansing Elizabeth’s schedule had been a minor crime—

Helping him frame Jason for Carly’s shooting was another.

She caught sight of herself in the mirror, her wide blue eyes, disheveled hair. And it was so stupid, she thought. She’d told a story that could fall apart at any minute. But she’d been so angry, so furious that Jason was giving Elizabeth child she could no longer have that all Courtney could think about was revenge.

Until the newspaper this morning made it real. On her word, on Ric’s word alone, they’d arrested Jason.

The knock came at her door, and Courtney went towards it with some trepidation. If Jason made bail, he’d come straight for her, wouldn’t he? He had to know by now that she was behind it—

Maybe if she came forward, maybe if she stopped it, he’d be able to understand how she’d just lost her mind for a little while. Temporary insanity. Just like Sonny, right?

But when she pulled the door open, it wasn’t Jason standing there—

It was Lorenzo Alcazar, his brows raised. He had one arm against the doorframe, leaning forward slightly. “Well, well, we’ve been up to a little bit of mischief, haven’t we, Miss Matthews?”

“What do you want?” Courtney demanded.

“Oh, so many things. I’m particularly disappointed that you’ve decided to give Jason all the credit when I tried so very hard to make sure Sonny took the fall.”

She stepped back, her mouth slightly parted. “What?”

“But you’ve ruined everything with your little petty vengeance.” He came forward, and she backed up fast. He closed the door. “The only question is—do I make you pay for that or is there a way for you to make it up to me?”

She blinked rapidly, but her throat was closed. No words could come out.

“And I thought—” Alcazar continued, pulling a gun from the inside of his suit jacket. “What’s the best way to use this to my advantage? How can I put this back on the right track? And it came to me, of course. Thank you. For your service.”

And before Courtney even realized what he intended, he’d aimed the gun and pulled the trigger.

She was dead before she hit the ground.

+44

Written in 58 minutes.

PCPD: Squad Room

Mac lifted his brows when Scott stalked out of the interrogation room, folder in hand, a scowl firmly etched on his face. “So,” he drawled, “how did it go?”

“You think this is funny?” Scott demanded.

Mac snorted, just shook his head. “No. I think it’s tragic. You can’t ever just to be content with the little guy, can you? You have to go for the kill, for the headlines—” He shrugged, took the folder from Scott. “What did I tell you about making a dramatic arrest in front of Elizabeth Webber?”

“Look—”

“I said if you want to piss off Jason Morgan, then go ahead and make a scene in front of the woman pregnant with his child and at risk for a miscarriage. Go for it. Hope it’s worth it.” He cocked his head. “Are we ready to do this my way yet or are you going to keep chasing your tail—”

Scott leaned in. “You keep making your jokes, Mac, but I’m on the side of the angels here. I got an iron-clad case that’s going to wrap two major criminals up at once—I get to charge Lansing with kidnapping, Sonny of attempted murder, and as a bonus, I get the stupid blonde for obstruction of justice and, hey, if I play my cards right, maybe I get Lansing and Goldilocks for aiding and abetting after the fact. Maybe you don’t want to clear a case—”

“Maybe you should kiss my ass because my officers handed you that kidnapping case in July, jackass. And you not only told me to disregard it, you hired the primary suspect! So if you want a reason Jason Morgan doesn’t trust this office to do diddly squat, look in the goddamn mirror.” Mac slapped the folder against Scott’s chest. “You do what you have to do. We’re going to keep investigating the weapon turned over, and when I find the evidence that links Sonny to the shooting, I’ll handle the arrest. Stick with tanking your own career, and leave me out of it.”

Harborview Towers: Morgan Penthouse

Max dragged his hands down his face. “What? What do you mean Jason was arrested? Are these guys high? I know the PCPD doesn’t have a lot going for it, but come on!”

“Yeah, I’m kind of at a loss.” Mike perched on the edge of the sofa, exhaled in a slow breath. “Scott kept talking about witnesses, but how is that possible? Bobbie and Jason were together the whole time! And you and I—well, shit, Max, we both know what’s going on here, don’t we?”

“Yeah.” Max put his hands at his waist, looked down. “Yeah, we do. I could look at the security footage to be sure, but Mr. C was no where to be found around the time this happened.”

Mike frowned, got to his feet. “You haven’t looked yet?”

“Well, I didn’t want to know, okay? And Jason—I figure Jason will come here and he’ll tell me what to do. Okay? I am not the decisions guy, Mr. Corbin! I follow orders! And no one’s giving me any orders!”

“Okay. Okay. Okay.” Mike took a deep breath, looked around the room. “Walk me through last night. You found Sonny missing.”

“Yeah. I called Jason right away. I looked in every room. He wasn’t here. We think he took the stairs. I looked on the elevator, and he wasn’t there. We don’t have cameras on the stairs.”

“Well, that’s a bit of an oversight, don’t you think?” Mike demanded.

“Hey, what part of not the decisions guy are you not getting? I’m doing my best, man.” Max huffed. “I called Jason. He was with Bobbie. He said find him, and I figured he was going to look or maybe check on Carly. I don’t know. But he went to Kelly’s, obviously.”

“To secure Elizabeth first. That would have been priority. Carly—if she’d been with her guard the way she was supposed to—” Mike closed his eyes. “But Elizabeth didn’t have anyone.”

“That tracks. Okay, back to me. I go down to check security footage. I’m watching the elevator, he’s not on it. But then I found him in the the parking garage, leaving. I went to go call Stan, our tech guy. Maybe we could get something on traffic cameras, you know? By the time I get back, security is telling me we got Sonny back in the building. I go upstairs, and he’s in with Miss Matthews—”

“Courtney?”

“Yeah, yeah, she was here, I think to get some things. She had to come back later. But when I came in, she was crying. Upset, and she left. Sonny was destroyed. Just crying. Sobbing,” Max remembered. “So I got the sedatives and I did what Jason said. And we’ve kept him sedated ever since.”

“Courtney came back twice? She hasn’t answered any of my calls,” Mike said. “I know she must have heard about Jason and Elizabeth, about the baby, but I figured she’d be with Carly. Did she know about the shooting?”

“Yeah.” Max frowned. “She left the first time, and came back. She’d forgotten a suitcase. And then she came back a few hours later. She was in the living room across the hall when I came down from checking on Sonny. She said she wanted to see how he was. She had some clothes in her arms, she wanted to get some things for Carly, for Michael. I didn’t think anything about it.”

“Okay. I’ll track her down. Right now—” Mike considered the options. “My instinct is to go to the PCPD, to come clean. But they’ve complicated all of this by dragging Jason in there. I don’t know if telling them about Sonny right now would help or hurt. I don’t want to do anything that’s going to screw things up for Jason more than they already are.”

“Totally fair. So maybe we just keep things status quo until we hear from Jason?”

“Keep Sonny calm. Whether that means you just keep—let’s just keep him where he is. Full-time guard. Christ, I don’t know. This is such a mess.”

“It’ll be okay. Jason will get out of jail, and he’ll tell us what to do. I’m just the orders guy, Mr. Corbin, and I think maybe you are, too. Jason’s the decisions guy. I’m not doing anything without his say.”

“Good. I’ll update Bobbie on this, and I hope like hell his lawyer is here by now.”

“Oh, yeah? Who are we going with? I figure we’d run through most of what PC has to offer.”

PCPD: Squad Room

Scott heard a familiar voice, and winced. He turned to find Bobbie striding through the double doors with Justus Ward hot on her heels. Well, this wasn’t great news, he thought. He’d never worked with Justus, but he’d heard enough to know that the cooperation he wanted from Jason wasn’t just on life support, it was dead in the water. For now.

“Bobbie, I hope you’ve had some time to rest—” Scott’s words were cut off when her hand connected to his cheek and his head snapped to the side.  A few officers rose from their desks, but he held them off. “Settle down, fellows. She’s had a long night. And, uh, I had that one coming.” He rubbed his jaw. “I see you brought Junior a lawyer.”

“My daughter is in a coma, and might never wake up. My grandson is at home alone with a nanny, and you have me here fighting you when I should be fighting for them,” Bobbie hissed, and he had to look away from the fury—from the disappointment in her eyes. “Jason is here when he should be with Elizabeth. Did you know she might have nerve damage? That while you’re here playing games with her case, with Carly’s, that Elizabeth might never pick up another paintbrush? Does it matter to you that my grandchild might be born and my daughter never knows? Never holds him?”

“Bobbie—”

“No! No! Because I know you know this is bullshit. You know I’m not lying. You know Jason was with me the whole time. So whatever you’re doing, it’s a game. You’re thinking about winning! How dare you play these games? Wasn’t it enough what you did this summer? Did you have to continue to prove how little I matter to you? Don’t think I know that after all these years?”

Scott flinched, dropped his gaze to the floor, swallowed hard. Then he lifted his head, looked at her. “I promise you, Bobbie, that I’m doing what I think is best for everyone to get justice. Carly and Elizabeth are not far from my thoughts. They’re the reason I’m doing this. And as angry as you are with me—and as much as I deserve it for what I’ve done, for the millions of ways I’ve disappointed you—” He paused. “I’m doing what’s right. I can’t fix Carly, okay? I can’t fix any of that—it’s not in my power. But punishing the man who caused it? Who started all of this? That’s what I’m doing. Now you can either get on board with that, Bobbie, or you can get out of my way.”

She searched his eyes, then only scowled more deeply. “You actually believe that, don’t you?”

“I don’t know, Bobbie. Why don’t you tell me where your son-in-law is? Why don’t we have a conversation with him about this case? His best friend, his wife—” Scott lifted his brows when she just pressed her lips together. “Who’s playing games now, huh?”

He looked past her to Justus who had remained quiet throughout the exchange. “Your client is in the room. But she stays out here. You know, pesky privilege and all.”

“Bobbie’s going to come in for a few minutes to pass information about my client’s—” Justus shifted his eyes to Bobbie. “She has a health update. If you care so much about Carly Corinthos and Elizabeth Webber, I’m sure you won’t mind that. And then she’ll leave so that I can get to work.”

“Fine. Do whatever you want. You will anyway.” Scott stalked off in the other direction, bitterly disappointed in Bobbie. Maybe he wasn’t perfect, but he wasn’t protecting a crime boss who was hiding from something and if it was the last thing Scott did, he’d find out what that was.

General Hospital: Elizabeth’s Room

Elizabeth looked in the doorway expectantly as Audrey stepped in, then closed the door. “Is there an update? Did the police release Jason yet? Can I go home?”

“All I know about Jason, dear, is that Justus Ward has arrived, and they’re at the PCPD right now. We just have to trust that Justus and Bobbie will look after him now, all right?”

Elizabeth closed her eyes, nodded. “Justus. Jason trusts him. I know he does. It’ll be okay if Justus is here. Alexis would be better.”

“No doubt, but she’s having her own troubles.” Audrey took a seat next to the bed. “I spoke at length with Tony about your case. He wants to keep you here another three or four days. Your risk of miscarriage is not zero, though no one has any serious worries on that score. But you did have a head injury. I reminded Tony that those extra days are about observation, and I am fully capable of doing that.”

“And?”

“He will allow you to check out tomorrow afternoon if your condition remains stable or continues to improve. I think that’s very fair, darling. And as for your worry about Ric Lansing down the hall—” Audrey pressed her lips together. “Well, I just spoke to a very nice man outside. It seems Jason had already made arrangements prior to all this. You’ll have someone on this door until you leave. And then at the house.”

“Oh. I should have known Jason would—” Elizabeth exhaled slowly. “All right. All right. Um, if Jason—if they don’t let him go, he has to be arraigned. I want to go to that if I’m out in time, but if I’m not, you’ll go. You’ll tell him I’m all right. I don’t know if they’ll let him out on bail. I mean, they arrested him for nothing—”

“Don’t get so upset or worked up. Jason is an adult with a strong support system. I spoke to Alan and Monica, and it seems Edward is working behind the scenes. But yes, if you are not able to be there—and I’m strongly encouraging you to stay home—then I will be there, in your stead. On one condition.”

“That I rest, eat when I’m supposed to, and not get upset,” Elizabeth muttered. Audrey smiled.

“Precisely. How wonderful that we don’t even have to argue.”

PCPD: Squad Room

“How’s Elizabeth? Carly?” Jason asked, half-rising as soon as Bobbie and Justus stepped inside. He blinked, seemed to actually realize who Bobbie had brought with her. “Justus. I’m sorry, I didn’t—”

“You had other priorities. That’s fair.” Justus set the briefcase on the table. “Bobbie?”

“Carly is unchanged. The baby is stable. I spoke to Leticia, she’s going to keep Michael out of school this week to avoid the news. Right now, he just thinks Carly is getting some help for his little brother. I thought—well, I’d hoped we could talk to him together when this madness has ended.”

Bobbie paused. “Elizabeth is fine. Stable. So is the baby. Everyone is all right, Jason. I want you to focus on getting out of this mess. And I want you to do whatever Justus says will make this go away.” Her eyes found his. “Whatever that is. Do you understand me? You are the priority. I need you with me for what happens next. Elizabeth needs you. Your child needs you.”

“I hear you, Bobbie.”

“Good.” Bobbie looked at Justus. “Get him home. Whatever has to be done.”

Justus watched her leave, furrowed his brow, then looked back at Jason. “Okay, yeah, you’re going to start from the beginning and don’t leave anything out. Because I got a feeling there’s some fuckery afoot.”

General Hospital: Ric’s Hospital Room

Capelli nodded to the officer on duty, then closed the door behind. “Ric. Doc says you might be up for more questioning.”

Ric winced as he adjusted himself in the bed. He looked like hell, Capelli noted, with deep lines in his face, his hair disheveled across his forehead. “They won’t tell me. Elizabeth. Carly.”

Capelli tipped his head to the side. “Elizabeth is stable. Carly’s in a coma. Why don’t you tell me what happened last night? Start with why you were at Kelly’s.”

Ric cleared his throat. “It’s…fuzzy. You know? Like—” He gestured weakly with his hand. “A film is over it in my head. I went there to talk to Elizabeth. The divorce—”

“Don’t you have attorneys for that?”

Ric grimaced, closed his eyes. “Yes. Wish I’d stayed home. But I know if I just could just talk to her, just the two of us—”

“You mean get her alone?”

Ric opened his eyes, squinted. “What?”

“Never mind. You got to Kelly’s to talk to your ex-wife.” Capelli jotted a note. “Was she alone?”

“N-No. No. Um—Carly was there already. And Courtney. I think—they were arguing. All of them. About the affair. Courtney knew about it,” Ric said. He furrowed his brow. “But Carly didn’t. This—she was just learning about it. I stepped up behind them. Then—then I heard footsteps, and I turned—and it was Jason. He was angry that—” Ric closed his eyes. “I didn’t care. I turned away from him, I walked towards the women—and then I felt the pain. The shot.”

“So you didn’t see Jason shoot you?” Capelli asked, lifting his brows.

“No, but I saw him an instant before I was shot in the back, so you do the math.”

“Don’t worry, Ric.” Capelli made another note. “That’s exactly what we’re doing.”

PCPD: Squad Room

Justus strolled out of the interrogation room, found Mac waiting for him. “I wish I could say it was good to see you,” he said dryly.

“Feeling’s mutual. Look, I don’t know if Jason told you what Scott’s plan is—”

“Oh, he did. I’ve never worked with Scott Baldwin, but his reputation for being…” Justus pursed his lips. “Ethically loose, shall we say? That’s pretty well-known. But you, Mac? You’d never go along with this. My client and I are calling bullshit. And we’re calling your bluff. We want an arraignment, and a bail hearing. My client has places to be, and people counting on him.”

“Scott’s on the level, I promise. He’s an idiot, but—”

“If what Scott told my client is accurate, then you don’t need him to prove anything about your so-called witnesses. We both know that’s not the plan. So maybe Scott knows Jason is innocent, but he sure as hell isn’t being straight on what he wants. You have to what you need to discredit your witnesses. And my client is here for nothing. So book him and let’s set some bail, or let’s all go home. Your choice.”

+36

Written in 60 minutes.

General Hospital: Hospital Room

The figure stretched out on the hospital bed, skin nearly as pale as the sheets beneath her, head wrapped in gauze, any hint of her honey blonde hair tucked away—the patient barely resembled her daughter, and if not for the rounded belly, Bobbie might think she was in the wrong room.

“Hello, sweetheart.” Bobbie sat down, took Carly’s hand, ignoring how limp it was. “I’m sorry I wasn’t in earlier. I meant to — I sat all night and morning in the waiting room, just ready to pounce as soon as they told me I could be with you. But then this awful tragedy was just compounded, and I knew—” She closed her eyes, took a deep breath. “I knew that you’d want me to look after Jason. That if you were awake and able, you’d be down at the PCPD, railing against the injustice. So that’s where I’ve been.”

Carly’s face didn’t move. Not even a twitch of her lips. Bobbie swallowed the small bubble of hysteria that rose in the throat, forced it back down. “And Michael — he’s in good hands. You know how he loves Leticia. She’s looking after him. Everything is just fine. You rest, you heal, and we’ll take care of everything else.”

General Hospital: Elizabeth’s Room

Down the hall, Audrey had a cell phone in her hand, using her reading glasses to peer at the small print. “Oh, heavens, I simply will never learn to use these until they make these buttons easier to read.”

“Just find number three,” Elizabeth murmured, turning her head slightly, pressing her cheek against the pillow. “Press down. It’ll make the call.”

“Oh. All right—oh, there we are. If we wait any longer to call Emily, she’ll show up here, and you know that can’t happen—”

“No, not until her immune system has recovered.” With her free hand—with her only hand—Elizabeth retrieved the phone from her grandmother.

“Elizabeth? Oh thank God, I was about to have my parents storm the hospital, because let me tell you, this house is in chaos—between you and Carly, and then this absolutely fuckery—I will—” Emily stopped, and Elizabeth audibly heard her friend take a breath. “I’m sorry. Are you okay? What’s the situation? What can I do? Who can I fight? What do I do? I need you to give me something to do.”

“I’m…okay. Cautiously in stable and good condition. And I know your brother would hate it if your family was involved in this, but if it gets him out of that awful police station—” She closed her eyes, swallowed. “I don’t care. Tell Edward to call a Senator. He always threatens to. I’ll take the blame.”

“Listen, that’s on the menu, believe me. And—Liz, listen, you know that—well, everyone knows. About the baby.”

“Yeah. Yeah. I gather Jason said something to the paramedics, and well, it didn’t take long. I  can’t be bothered with that right now.”

“Of course not. Plus, we already agreed that this is the best thing that ever happened to all of us, so anyone who doesn’t agree with us can go pound sand for all I care.” There was a pause. “But can you—I mean, is that—are we all systems go on that? Because I know there’s risks after surgery, and with what happened—”

“So far so good. Um, I think—I think the risk was already at eight percent before I woke up, and it falls every day or so as I recover.”

“Good. Good. That’s the best thing. What can I do? Give me something.”

“You can focus on your health. On getting better. So that your niece or nephew has a aunt to spoil them and take their side.”

“Liz—”

“I can’t do anything either, Em. All I want—” She closed her eyes, the tears hot as they slipped past her lashes. “I want to be at the PCPD, screaming at anyone who can listen. I don’t know what they’re thinking or why any of this is happening—I don’t even know what happened—I just know Jason should be here with me.”

“Then we’ll get him back to you. I’ll call Grandfather and unleash the dragon. You’re right, Jason can be mad at us later. The important thing is getting him back to you and my niece or nephew—you know, they call them niblings when you’re talking about a mixed group, so that’s what I’m gonna do until we have a name. You take care of my nibling, and I’ll get the President involved. I love you.”

“I love you, too.”

Audrey took the phone, closed it, then removed her reading glasses. “Can I get you some more water, or—”

“You can—” Elizabeth took a deep breath, winced as she moved slightly. She looked down at her arm, at the hand she couldn’t move. Couldn’t feel. No. No. Not thinking about that right now. Couldn’t. Jason said he’d find a specialist to fix her, and she believed him. Now was the time to focus on Jason. To put him first. “You can find a doctor. How long do I have to be in the hospital?”

“Elizabeth—”

“I know. I just had major surgery. I’m at risk for a miscarriage, but I hate it here. Ric’s down the hall, I heard the doctors say so. I don’t want to be here, Gram.”

Audrey stroked her hair. “All right. All right. I’ll talk to Tony. I’ll do whatever I have to do. We’ll get medical equipment at the house. You and my great-grandchild are my only priority.”

The tears continued to spill down her cheeks, but Elizabeth didn’t have the energy to wipe them away. “You mentioned the baby. You didn’t before.”

“Well, I learned quite by accident, and then Jason told me you’d only learned about it yourselves. And that you were happy.” Audrey smiled, continued to stroke Elizabeth’s hair away from her forehead. “And when we learned that you’d made it through the surgery, that the risk to the baby was so low, oh, the relief on that man’s face! I remember him, you know, with Michael. He was such a devoted father.”

“You’re not m-mad? D-disappointed?”

“I’m disappointed in myself, my darling. A week ago, I might have thought of the circumstances first, or started another one of our old arguments about Jason. And I’d have been wrong. Very wrong. You are my granddaughter, and there is nothing you have to do to earn or keep my love. It simply exists. You are going to be a wonderful mother, and I want to be here to support you on every step of this journey. What a joyous blessing for us all. Something to look forward to, to plan for this in this dark time.” Audrey kissed her forehead. “Something to fight for. I couldn’t be happier.”

PCPD: Interrogation Room

Courtney. Courtney was the other witness.

He couldn’t wrap his mind around that fact, couldn’t make it real. Courtney, the woman he’d asked to marry him—the woman he’d planned a life with—had turned away a future with Elizabeth for—

—who he convinced himself he loved because she fit in his life, because she understood it—

Courtney was the other witness.

Scott had continued to talk even as Jason’s thoughts had raced in other directions, and now he turned back into the district attorney.

“Like I said, I was pretty sure that Ric was lying about the whole thing. His version didn’t match our preliminary evidence,” Scott continued. He scratched his chin. “Well, it did, and it didn’t, you see? Because we figured Liz and Carly—they were accidents. Or at least, not the primary target. But what I couldn’t make work—what tripped up Mac, too—was that you’d ever open fire with them so close.”

Jason forced his expression to go blank. Couldn’t let Scott know what he was thinking, couldn’t give the man an inch. Maybe Scott was saying he didn’t think Jason had pulled the trigger, but Jason was still in handcuffs. Still under arrest for attempted murder.

No, better to let Scott keep talking and find out exactly what the man thought, what he wanted, and then make any necessary decisions.

“At first, when she showed up with the gun, I thought—well, it can’t matter what I think you’d do. Or what Mac feels about your character. What matters is the evidence. And we had two independent witnesses saying the exact same thing. And you’re known to them, you know? No mistaken identity. Plus, the weapon Courtney had recently been fired, but wiped for prints.”

Courtney had the gun, Jason thought. She’d been at the Towers last night. Max had said as much. When? What time? She could have gone in to see Sonny, found the gun.

“So we take her back here. Get a full statement. But she’s not adding details, you see? Just the same set of facts over and over again. Not adding, not elaborating. And for a while, I thought, well that’s the truth then. Story never changes. Never trips up. But then I watched the video we made. And I watched her repeat that story. And she didn’t have a story so much as she had a trio of facts.”

Scott held out his hand, one finger raised. “One. She was at Kelly’s last night. Two. She saw you shoot Ric, and Liz and Carly were accidentally hit. Three. You gave her the gun to hide and told her to leave. Never deviated. And you know why? Because she’s lying.”

Jason wanted to ask how he was so sure Courtney was lying — normally, sticking to the story was a good thing, especially when she wouldn’t have had time to rehearse. Or talk to Ric— Jason squinted. Unless—

“I think she kept her story limited until she had time and space to think,” Scott continued. “Normally, someone telling the truth? They’ll give you more when you ask for it. Why were you at Kelly’s, I ask. She doesn’t know. Why were Liz and Carly there? She doesn’t know. When did you get there? Where was Bobbie? She won’t answer any of these questions. Tries to act like it’s all a blur except for those three facts. But that’s not how someone tells the truth, Morgan.”

Scott looked away. “But I couldn’t explain it. I couldn’t explain why she and Ric were telling the same story without talking to each other, and she wouldn’t have seen him. I was there when he woke up. And no one else came in that room before I talked to Courtney. And Bobbie? I believe her. You, I’d never believe a word you said, I’m just gonna be straight with you.” He twisted in the chair, leaned forward. “But you also would never tell me anything, so  that doesn’t matter. Bobbie? Bobbie’s not going to lie or protect the man who put her daughter in a coma, endangered her grandchild. Who shot Elizabeth and put that baby at risk. She says you were with her in the parking lot when you heard the gunshots. Says there was maybe one minute, two before you got to the courtyard.”

“We parked near the street,” Jason muttered. He dragged a hand down his face. “I always park near the street.”

“For quicker getaways, I’m sure,” Scott said dryly, and Jason shot him a dark look. “Fair enough. You had to cover the entire parking lot, and it’s not a small one. They share it, right? With other businesses on Elm. Right. Anyway. Back to what I was saying. I couldn’t explain her story, Ric’s story, and make it come out with what I know is the truth — Bobbie.”

“It’d be easy to just discard the story, you know? To just say well, Ric hates you because you’re Sonny’s best friend, his chosen brother, and apparently, Ric’s got mommy issues or something. Courtney’s an easy sell. She hates you because you knocked up another woman. But that’s where she made her mistake. That’s where I finally realized why they were telling the same story.”

Jason frowned at him, shook his head slightly. He didn’t follow that.

“Courtney shouldn’t have known that fact. Not yet. Not if you believe the rest of her story. She said she was at the Towers, freaking out, then she went to Carly’s to check on Michael. Mac and Capelli told her the news — she didn’t know that yet. And I’m gonna tell you, Mac was there for both statements — he said she was lying from the beginning. Because he believes her surprise was genuine. Which means — she doesn’t know about the shooting. And if you don’t know about the shooting, you don’t know that the paramedics came into the ER and said the word pregnant a little too loudly. Only a handful of hospital staff would have known. Then. I looked at that list, just to check my thinking. No one Courtney would know. It’s not in the media. Not in the papers. It’s not out there unless you know the players.”

Jason exhaled slowly, looked at the wall, considered Scott’s theory. Learning about the pregnancy could be a trigger, he thought. One to make Courtney angry enough to look for revenge. To make Jason pay.

“And then I remembered who else talked about it in the hospital. Me. Mac, Capelli, and me. We were discussing Ric’s story, and Capelli asked about the pregnancy, and I said you were the father. Then maybe a minute, maybe two later, she rushes up and she’s got the gun. And this story. She overheard that detail, and she changed her mind right then and there. I think she was going to turn in whoever actually did this, Morgan, and decided to pin it on you.”

Scott leaned in. “What do you think about that?”

Jason faced forward, looked down at his hands, still cuffed to the table, then raised his eyes to Scott’s. “If you know they’re lying,” he said flatly, “why am I here?”

“Because I’d like to right a wrong. I’d like to nail Ric, and Courtney’s asses to the wall for obstruction and interfering with an investigation. I’d like to see what I can do about getting some justice for Carly for this summer. I can’t go back and undo what I did. But I can maybe go forward and do better. I need your help. And I needed Ric and Courtney to think I believed them.”

Jason squinted. “Let me get this straight. You know I’m innocent. You want my help. And you thought the best way to get that would be to walk into Elizabeth’s hospital room after she’d been shot and operated on, with the risk of miscarriage on the table, and you put handcuffs on me in front of her. In front of Carly’s mother. That seemed like a good idea to you? Knowing you were going to ask for my help?”

Scott opened his mouth, then closed it. “Okay. I see your point. I wanted a dramatic moment to prove things like I said—”

“You can go to hell. I don’t believe you. I don’t believe this isn’t a trap. So you go out there, you tell Mac that this didn’t work, and then you put me in lockup because I’m not talking to anyone until my lawyer gets here. That’s what I think about that.”

General Hospital: Elizabeth’s Room

Elizabeth rested one hand on her still flat belly, her eyes watching the fetal heartbeat monitor, listening to the steady beat of her child. The child Jason had been so emotional about that it had melted any resistance her grandmother had ever shown towards him.

“He’ll be back,” Elizabeth said. She closed her eyes. “Don’t worry, baby. Daddy will be back for both of us. We just have to rest and be patient. He always comes back.”

Brownstone: Foyer

Bobbie dropped her purse on the table next to the door, but in her fatigue, misjudged the placement, and the purse tipped over, spilling its contents across her hardwood floor.

“Damn it.” She knelt down, started to shove it back inside. All she wanted to do was take a shower, to change, and maybe an hour of sleep.

She had just risen to her feet when the doorbell rang. Her purse clutched against her chest with one hand, she opened the door with the other—

And all her fatigue melted away. She grinned brightly. “You came so fast!”

“Well,” Justus Ward said, “you said Jason was in trouble, and I promised him I’d always be there if he called. What’s he gotten himself into into?”

“I barely know where to start, but I am so glad to see you.” She stepped back to let him in. “Let’s get to work.”

+39

Written in 52 minutes.

General Hospital: Elizabeth’s Room

“What just happened? What just—” Elizabeth fumbled with her one good hand for the control for the bed, wincing as she raised herself to a slightly sitting position. “Gram—”

“Darling, let’s just—” Audrey took the seat Jason had vacated, her hands trembling. “Let’s just take a minute—”

Mike reappeared in the doorway, Bobbie on his heels, both of them grim-faced. “They’re gone.  What the hell can Scott and Mac be thinking?” he demanded. “Jason wouldn’t have done this—”

“He’s gone too far. Too far—” Bobbie fisted her hands at her side. “He’s probably trying to get Jason to flip on Sonny, because God forbid we do any investigation—”

“I don’t understand. Gram—why did they arrest him? Why—”

“He said there were witnesses,” Bobbie bit out. “When he got to the waiting room. Well, those witnesses are full of shit. I’ve a witness, damn it. I was with Jason for over an hour before we got to Kelly’s—I was with him when we heard the damn gunshots—” She pressed her hands to her mouth, closed her eyes. “Oh, God. Oh, God. What’s happening? Why is this happening?”

Mike went to her side, and Audrey just gripped Elizabeth’s hand more tightly. “We’ll get to the bottom of this darling,” she promised. “Whatever evidence Scotty thinks he has, it surely won’t take them long to learn it’s faulty. Jason would never put you or your child in danger.”

Elizabeth winced, closed her eyes. “Oh, God. Everyone knows?” Her head started to ache. “I don’t even understand what’s going on.”

“Don’t you worry about a thing,” Mike told her, patting the top of the covers. “You either, Audrey. We’ll get Jason’s lawyer and he’ll be out in no time.”

For just a few minutes in the alley that day, her world had seemed perfect. She was pregnant and the man she loved was excited to become a father.

It seemed so far away now.

PCPD: Squad Room

The entire room was quiet as Capelli directed Jason through the double doors of the entryway towards the interrogation room. Jason’s expression was as stone-faced as ever, though there were some evidence of his sleepless night in the disheveled nature of his hair and the weariness in his eyes.

But most of the cops weren’t interested in looking that deep. All they ever saw when they looked at Jason was a killer who’d gotten away with his crimes for far too long.

Capelli settled Jason at the table, locking the handcuffs to the table. “Someone will be right with you.”

“I’m not talking to anyone without a lawyer,” Jason said flatly, his eyes trained on the table below. “So there’s no point.”

“Yeah, I’ve heard that one before.” Capelli closed the door to the interrogation room, then joined Mac and Scott across the room. “What do you want to do now?”

“Let him stew for a little bit,” Scott said. “Make him wonder why we think we have enough for an arrest.”

“If this comes out wrong—” Mac slapped the file against Scott’s chest. “You’re the one going down for this, you know that, don’t you?”

“Yeah, yeah.”

General Hospital: Hallway

Courtney edged around the corner, made a face when she realized there was an officer on Ric’s door. Why couldn’t anything ever go her way?

She’d spent half the night at the PCPD, telling her story with the least amount of details, not even sure that Mac or Capelli were believing a word she’d said. But then she’d seen Jason being marched through the lobby of the hospital in handcuffs, so they must have believed it enough to act.

Now she just had to make sure that she tracked down anything that could go wrong, and unfortunately, the list was long. It wasn’t easy to frame someone after the fact, Courtney thought, with some irritation.

How did she get the cop to leave the room long enough for her to get in and make sure he was gone long enough for to also make her escape?

She went back to the nurse’s station and stood at the counter for a long moment. She couldn’t get the cop to leave by crying for help herself — everyone knew who she was. If only she could find away for an unrelated person in the area to need a cop—

She watched the people in the waiting area for a while, pondering her options, and finally, after nearly twenty minutes, she saw her chance. An older lady rose and headed down the hallway — leaving her handbag behind.

Courtney waited an extra beat before hurrying over to the area, snatching the purse, then shoving it under the sofa. Then, she followed the lady, caught up to her relatively quickly. “Ma’am, ma’am?”

“Oh, yes?” The woman turned, smiled faintly. “Can I help you?”

“I was going to tell you—you left your purse back in that waiting area, but before I could grab it and bring it to you, someone else ran off with it.” Courtney widened her eyes. “I think he headed for service stairs!”

The woman gasped, felt her arm where the strap should be. “Oh, oh, I need security! Oh!”

“I thought I saw a cop around the corner! Why don’t you go check and I’ll go to the desk to get security?” Courtney suggested. She waited for the woman to rush off, then headed into the hallway that fed into another hallway where she could approach Ric’s room from the other side.

She grinned when she saw the cop leave his post. Finally. Time for Step 2.

General Hospital: Hallway

“No, no, you’re doing everything you can, Leticia.” Bobbie sighed, turning away just as the cop a few doors down left the room he’d been guarding. By the time Courtney had snuck around the corner, Bobbie was staring in the opposite direction, listening to her grandson’s nanny on the other end of the line and never saw her go inside the room where Ric was recovering from his own surgery.

“No, I don’t think we’ll be able to rely on Mr. Corinthos right now. And well, I understand Jason’s the emergency contact, but—” Bobbie nodded. “Okay. I’ll stop by later. And keep you in the loop.”

She clapped her phone closed, and looked at Mike stepping outside of the room. “Was Audrey able to get Elizabeth settled?”

“Yeah, she’s going to get something to sleep. I don’t like this, Bobbie, I don’t like this at all.” Mike shook his head. “How could anyone think Jason would do this?”

“Scotty only saw a link to Sonny and that’s all he cares out,” Bobbie said bitterly. “My mistake was not raising holy hell when he hired Ric Lansing.” She looked at Mike. “I don’t know how much you know about what’s been happening since this summer, but—”

“I know you and Jason were together talking about doctors for my son,” Mike said, pitching his voice lower. “And I know that when I went to the Towers last night, that guard told me Sonny had been sedated but that things had been difficult earlier.” He paused. “That Sonny had gone missing, but that he’d turned up.”

“Oh, God.” Bobbie dragged her hands through her hair, stared blindly down the hall. “He did it. He had to have done it. He was in the middle of one of his episodes, and he thought Ric was a danger.” She looked back to Mike. “Does Jason know?”

“He knows what I know, yeah. At that point, he was willing to let it sit while he waited to find out how Carly was. What Elizabeth would be dealing with.” He paused. “Jason was adamant that he be here when she woke up. He didn’t her to hear from some doctor about the possibility of nerve damage. But I don’t know what, if anything, he planned after that.”

“Probably nothing.” Bobbie stared down at the phone in her hand. “Even if we turned Sonny over now, it wouldn’t be proof. They said there were witnesses. As much as I want to throw Sonny to the wolves—”

“We’d better wait for Jason before we make any moves. And not do something we can’t take back. But we have to get him out of there—”

“What we need is someone who knows the lay of the land and won’t have a problem playing a little dirty politics.” Bobbie looked at Mike. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

“I’m thinking how fast is the flight from Philly?”

PCPD: Interrogation Room

Scott stepped inside the room, then closed the door behind him. Then he set the file on the table and took a seat, finally lifting his gaze to Jason’s.

The anger radiated so visibly from Jason’s broad frame that the younger man was practically vibrating—and the hatred and fury banked in his blue eyes made Scott visibly uncomfortable. He cleared his throat, shifted in his seat.

“Let’s get started.” Scott flipped open the file. “Where were you last night around ten-thirty—”

Jason leaned forward and only said one word. “Lawyer.”

General Hospital: Ric’s Room

Courtney leaned against the back of the door, took a deep breath. “Okay, I only have maybe five minutes so let’s make it clear.”

Ric, already sitting up, a plastic cup in his hand, frowned at her. “What are you doing in here? You playing messenger for your damn brother, trying to finish the job?”

“Believe me, Ric, the last thing you want is for me to tell people what I actually know. I backed your story up to the cops.”

“My—” Ric’s eyes went cool. “Are you wearing a wire?”

“I told them that I was there last night. That I saw it. That Jason shot you, accidentally hit Liz and Carly, and gave me the gun to hide.” Her lips twitched. “Isn’t it lucky for you that I ran into the real shooter and got my hands on the incriminating gun?”

“What’s your game here?” Ric demanded.

“Look, we don’t have a lot of time because I also have to avoid Bobbie and Mike because, of course, Elizabeth would be recovering just down the hall. And of course that bitch is still pregnant, because why not? Why wouldn’t she take everything from me?”

Ric opened his mouth, then closed it. “I’m lost.”

“You can either play along and get some real revenge—and help me get the same— or you can tell them the truth, watch Sonny get locked up in the loony bin while Jason and Elizabeth get to walk away like nothing happened.” Courtney raised a brow. “What it’s going to be?”

PCPD: Squad Room

Scott nodded, jabbed a finger at Jason. “Good. Good. You keep being smart, and maybe this will go the way it should. So don’t talk until we get you someone. Is Bobbie already calling or should I get the public defender’s office on the line?”

Jason didn’t even have a lawyer to call, but he was almost sure that Mike and Bobbie would have someone down here, and then this circus would be over. How could anyone think he was responsible for what happened? Did they think he was stupid enough to open fire with so many people around?

Did they think he was too damaged to realize that bullets would ricochet in that tiny enclosed courtyard?

Whatever they thought, Jason didn’t care. A lawyer would show up, slap Bobbie’s witness statement in front of them, and then Jason could focus on what was next. Handling Sonny, making sure Carly had what she needed to wake up, and most importantly, flying in as many nerve specialists as it took to restore Elizabeth’s hand to perfect use.

Anything not on that list didn’t matter to him, so Jason leaned back and prepared to ignore whatever Scott would say next.

And then Scott started talking, and suddenly had Jason’s full attention.

“I’m sorry about this, I am. It had to be this way, though I get that you don’t see that right now. But we know you didn’t do this. We being me, Mac, and Capelli. I believe Bobbie. You were with her the whole night, with her when you heard the shots. I know you didn’t do this, and maybe you do. We can talk about that if you want. But here’s what I do know.”

Scott hesitated. “I made a mistake this summer. I believed the wrong person. I believed Lansing when he said his wife was being vindictive and telling stories. Hell, maybe I just told myself I believed him,” Scott murmured, more to himself. “I thought Lansing could finally get me the Holy Grail, that I’d finally get to see Sonny go down like the rat he is. But I didn’t think about Carly. And I sure as hell didn’t think about Elizabeth.”

Why was Scott saying any of this? Jason squinted, but said nothing.

“I think part of me believed him all the way up until last night. I went to him after his surgery. And when he woke up, he looked at me, and he told me you’d shot him. That it was you.”

Jason pressed his lips together. Ric had identified him. Okay. That made it slightly more sticky. Carly was in a coma and Elizabeth didn’t remember anything. It had been a risk for Ric, but he’d banked on being the only survivor without a head wound. But one witness wasn’t enough. It couldn’t be—

“I didn’t have a reason to doubt him, but it just—” Scott shook his head. “It felt wrong. You know? My gut said it wasn’t right. I was still thinking it through in my head, running it past Mac and Capelli, trying to understand the story even though it didn’t match the evidence—and then Courtney told us the same thing.”

Jason knew he couldn’t hide the reaction to that news. He jerked slightly, sat up, shook his head. Scott nodded grimly. “Yeah. That’s what I figured. So that’s why it had to be this way. I know they’re lying. But I can’t prove it. That’s where you come in.”

+37