I loved you with a fire red, now it’s turning blue
And you say sorry like the angel
Heaven let me think it was you
But I’m afraid
It’s too late to apologize, it’s too late
I said it’s too late to apologize, it’s too late
– Apologize, OneRepublic f. Timbaland

---

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Wyndemere: Study

Valentin had woke that morning with a measure of optimism and happiness, sure that the good fortune of the last few days would only continue. He’d located his mother’s files, decrypted the memory protocol, repaired his relationships with his wife and daughter, and had arranged for the bulk of the research to be done at his home base. As soon as Klein was able to extract memories from Stefan Cassadine, Valentin would be able to secure his inheritance and position in the world.

He urged Nina awake in the early hours, indulged in a delightful round of lovemaking, enjoyed breakfast with his daughter before Charlotte took the launch to the mainland for school, and he’d sat down in his study to go over business details of the vast Cassadine empire he now controlled.

His good mood was shattered around noon when his phone lit up with a call originating in Turkey. With a clenched jaw, Valentin listened as a doctor reluctantly relayed the news that there had been a break in just moments earlier and somehow, Stefan Cassadine had been spirited away. Their men had given chase but had lost the car in the twisty streets of Istanbul.

Valentin growled. “How can you have no idea—what the hell am I paying you for?” He tossed the phone aside, his skin heated and his pulse racing. Damn it. Damn it.

It wasn’t just the loss of Stefan and information that could be gleaned from his memories—it was the knowledge that somehow, Jason Morgan and Drew Cain had learned where his lab was located and what he’d been storing there. They had arrived in Turkey just as Valentin had left, congratulating himself on slipping away in secrecy—and now his lab had been breached.

There must be a vulnerability in his security—a leak in the mainframe that their blasted hacker had exploited or one of the men at the lab had turned—

He shoved himself to his feet, began to pace, his mind working furiously on plans for revenge. He could destroy the bastard — Damian Spinelli might be nearly omnipotent with computers, but he was still a fragile human. He could dispose of him—that would certainly distract and punish Morgan and Cain for daring to steal from him.

He could punish the brothers personally. They had family. Friends. Children. Women they loved. Thanks to his mother’s obsessions, Valentin had more than enough information about Elizabeth Webber and Sam McCall.

All of the options were tempting, but he took an extra moment. A breath. He had to remind himself that the goal was not to blow his own cover and ruin the life he’d built in Port Charles. The brothers hadn’t taken any direct action against Valentin because they’d lacked the certainty of his involvement in the experiments. Even now, with possession of Stefan, they couldn’t prove Valentin had done anything to hold either brother hostage. Only Andre Maddox knew of his involvement, and if he hadn’t given him up yet, it was unlikely he would.

No. Going after Damien Spinelli or anyone else that the brothers had brought into their circle—it was too risky, and Valentin still had to consider his own bottom line. He’d lost his half-brother as a source, but—

His eye caught a photograph of Nina on the desk, her sultry smile beckoning him like a moth to a flame. There were other ways to ensure Jason and Drew were miserable, of course. His revenge had to be subtle. Untraceable.

And he still had his mother’s memories to mine. Valentin would just have to readjust Klein’s goals. He’d unlock Helena’s vast memories, glean the information he needed, and eliminate every last living Cassadine to ensure his own branch was all that remained.

He looked at the photo next to Nina, at his bright smiling princess as Charlotte beamed out at him from her fall school picture. Oh, Valentin knew exactly how he’d make Jason and Drew pay for their crime.

Port Charles High: Classroom

Cameron scribbled down the postulate notes from the board, only half listening as their teacher assigned independent practice for the rest of the period. He was thinking about the paper he had due in three days, the test next week, and—

“You’re going to need to explain this to me.” A notebook dropped down on his desk, and he glanced up to find Emma twisting in the seat in front of him so that she was facing him. She made a face. “Reilly had me until we got to step 3, and then I was in no man’s land.”

Cameron reached for her notes, then tapped a space on the triangle. “You labeled this wrong. That’s why it’s the angle addition postulate.”

“You know, when I moved to California, you still thought math was the enemy.” Emma grumbled, but erased and corrected her work. “What happened?”

“Talked to the guidance counselor who told me you need math to get into medical school.” Cameron flipped the page in the textbook for their practice problems. “Decided to take it seriously.”

“Yeah, that’s what you said at lunch last week, but that doesn’t really explain why you’re good at it. And why medical school? What happened to soccer?”

“I’m not exactly Lionel Messi,” Cameron said. “And don’t label that segment,” he said catching her before she could make another mistake. “I think I’m good enough to complete for a scholarship, but not MLS. Anyway, it turns out math isn’t so bad once you get to geometry. I’m more worried about chemistry next year.”

“Oh, yeah, Dad said organic chem is what nearly made him jump out a window.” Emma tipped her head. “So no professional sports in your future. Why the family business?”

Cameron hesitated. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “It just felt right. To save lives. I grew up around your parents, my mom. It’s something that matters. And I want to do that.” He tapped her notebook. “You’re wrong on Step 6 of that proof.”

“Son of a—” Emma erased it. “Okay. Okay. Don’t tell me where I messed it up. I wanna figure it out on my own.” She stared at the index card where she’d neatly written every postulate and theorem, a line forming between her brows. “Theorem 5?”

“Yeah, but why?”

“Oh, you’re the worst.” Emma sighed, studied the problem again. “Because the ratio is the same on these angles.”

“See, you got it. Just have to take your time.”

She flashed him a smile, and Cameron dropped his eyes, not entirely sure he liked the way her smile made him feel.

“Didn’t that used to be my advice to you?” Emma asked. “When did we switch places?”

“Someone had to be the logical one, and it wasn’t going to be Joss.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “Oh, well, obviously not. I’m glad I moved home. It’s been hard,” she said after a moment. “Figuring out how I fit in now with, um, you know, Oscar and Trina. And Joss not being the worst. And Spencer being here—we weren’t really a quartet very long before Spence got sent to boarding school. And mostly we were trying to avoid Joss.”

“But you’re doing okay now, right?” he asked, and she smiled, though it wasn’t as genuine as the first.

“Yeah. I’m finding my way. We’d better finish before the bell. I don’t want to deal with homework tonight.”

Davis House: Living Room

“Don’t look at me,” Kristina said, as she sailed past her mother, “I’m not even here. I just need to grab one thing and I’m going right back to the hospital—” She stopped at the door to the kitchen, turned back to Alexis. “Wait, why are you home?”

Alexis, seated on the sofa and looking over paperwork, glanced at her, the reading glasses sliding down her nose. “No reason to be in the office when I’m just working on briefs. What did you forget?”

“Budget file for Laura’s meeting. I accidentally put it in my bag last night because I was in a rush to leave, and then I left it in the kitchen when I was making coffee—” Kristina leaned against the doorway. “It got mixed up with other things. I don’t know how you office people keep this straight.”

“Practice. You’ll get there.”

Kristina wasn’t so sure about that but shrugged and disappeared into the kitchen. She snagged the file from next to the coffee machine and returned to the living room, shoving it into her bag. “Well, back to the fun world of hospital administration—”

“Do you—” Alexis rose, removed her glasses. “Do you have just a minute?”

Because her mother never asked her anything in that tone, Kristina frowned, turned back to her. “Yeah. Laura’s meeting isn’t until three, and I’m on lunch. What’s up?”

“Have you talked to your sister?”

“Uh, not since we talked about it on Sunday. I figured I’d give her another day or so to calm down.” Kristina shifted her weight from one foot to another. “Why? Have you?”

“Unfortunately.” Alexis sighed. She made a face. “And I’m worried about her.”

“What else is new?” And after that conversation with Valerie, Kristina was less worried about her sister’s emotional well-being, and more concerned about what Sam would do.

“She’s talked herself right into wanting Jason back, which I suppose I should have seen coming, but I’d hoped—” Her mother made a face. “I just—I thought since you talked to her the last time, and it seemed to make her feel better—”

“I don’t know, Mom. It seems like I helped walk her right back into the old patterns.” And now Valerie’s concerns were making sense. Sam’s sense of security was being threatened, so she was backtracking and trying to get Jason back.  “I mean, you said she wasn’t likely to win her case against Jason. Especially with how hard she was going to fight. It feels like she agrees with you, and now she’s switched to the next plan. Which is getting Jason back. I think that’s a mistake.”

“I do, too—”

“Not just because of what I’ve learned about Sam’s…past with all of that. I mean, I don’t think Jason’s coming back to her. He has before, I know. But that’s…it’s different, isn’t it? He didn’t claim Jake before, and then they thought Jake was dead. And a few years ago, when we thought Drew was Jason, Drew only left Elizabeth because of the lie. He didn’t choose Sam then, you know? Mom. I’ve seen Jason and Elizabeth together. Have you?”

“No. No, I haven’t—”

“Sunday. At Kelly’s. They came in for breakfast, and they were so clearly…” Kristina lifted her hands. “They’re together. And Jason has Jake in his life now. What is Sam going to do when she realizes that?”

Alexis closed her eyes, rubbed her fist against her lips, considering Kristina’s words. “I simply don’t know,” she murmured. “Sam is anything but predictable.”

“Really? Because it feels like I can write the next chapter of this in my sleep. She was fine with staying with Drew until Jason made it clear he wasn’t picking her. And when she wanted to get revenge, she realized she wouldn’t win, and that Jason could just go on with his life. You told her that, Mom. Bifurcation. She might keep Jason in court, but it doesn’t keep him tied to her. But Danny does. She’s going to use Danny. Isn’t she? She’s going to give Jason a chance to be with his son, just like Elizabeth did with Jake.”

“Oh. Oh.” Alexis sank onto the sofa. “She said she’d let him think he’d won—” She rubbed her forehead. “What are we going to do?”

“Nothing. Sam needs to fail, Mom. You tried to talk to her, I tried to talk to her.” Kristina looked down at the file in her hands, remembering another set of files, ones that she’d handed back to Valerie, hoping never to think about them again. Remembering the cold way Valerie had dissected Sam’s past.

When her security is threatened, she goes nuclear.

 Kristina couldn’t just sit back and stay out of it. She had to do something to protect the people she cared about who would get hurt when Sam went off the rails.

 “I suppose you’re right,” Alexis said. “We may have to let this blow up in her face and pick up the pieces when it does. Maybe this time she’ll learn her lesson about Jason Morgan. You’d better get back to work.”

Penthouse: Living Room

Across town, oblivious to her mother and sister’s worries, Sam sat at her dining table, considering the next plan of action. It was amazing how much lighter she felt now that she had acknowledged the truth to herself.

She’d stayed with Drew that night in October out of fear, out of shame, really. Her instinct had been to run to Jason, just like everyone had always said. She’d chased the name two years ago, and that’s what everyone expected her to do again—she’d wanted to prove differently. And she did care about Drew. She loved him, the way she’d loved Patrick.

But she’d never been able to give up on Jason, and they’d been so close to having it all five years ago. Their son, their life together—she’d just been so angry when he’d returned, blowing up the life she’d already thought she was leading. And she knew she’d hurt him. It would take time for Jason to see that she was sorry, but she’d find a way.

The first thing of course, was to tell Martina to make the divorce from Drew as quick and as clean as possible to clear that obstacle.  Sam made that note, mentally shoving her divorce from Drew out of her mind. Jason was a different story. A trickier one. Sam had waited too long to figure out what she wanted — and Jason had started to move on. Just like before.

Just like that last summer when she’d been too broken by her grief, and Elizabeth had slid in through the cracks like she always did. But Sam had seen them kissing, and she’d known how to stop it, hadn’t she? And then the universe had given them a sign — Danny was alive, and even better, he was Jason’s son. Just the way he was supposed to be.

She’d drop the custody battle. The divorce—that had to stay it was. To stall it out until Sam had figured out how to bring Jason around to her side again so that it wouldn’t be necessary. She tapped the pencil against her yellow legal pad, where she’d been doodling out what kind of message to leave for Drew, to start the ball rolling.

Maybe she’d suggest family counseling to Jason. To build a relationship with Danny. Yes, he’d agree to that, and then they could talk about what it had been like before. And he’d remember their plans. And he’d fall in love with Danny—

Sam’s pencil stilled. He had to fall in love with Danny. He would once Jason had the chance. But he hadn’t loved him before. Not like Jake. Jason had loved that damn baby even when he’d thought it was Lucky’s kid. But Sam’s kid—

The pencil broke in her hand, and she stared blindly at the pieces. No, no. That wasn’t fair. It had been such a horrible time and only months after Jake’s accident. Jason had buried a son. And Franco had been such a nightmare.

Franco. She could use that, couldn’t she? Remind Jason how terrible it had been, how badly he’d treated her because of Franco — the same man Elizabeth had let into her lives.

Yes, that would work—and Jason would remember how terrible Elizabeth was, and he’d leave her. Sam just had to play her cards right — and she knew how to do that. She could play the long game.  No one was better than her at that.

General Hospital: Administrator’s Office

Elizabeth knocked on the open door to Laura’s office, causing Kristina to glance over from her computer. “Oh, hey, Liz.” The younger woman smiled. “You looking for Laura?”

“Is she in? I only need a minute—”

“Yeah, sure.” Kristina got to her feet and went to Laura’s closed office door. “She’s between meetings.” She knocked, then pushed it open. “Elizabeth needs you.”

“Of course.” Laura smiled warmly as Elizabeth passed Kristina and the assistant pulled the door closed behind her, leaving the two of them alone in the office. “Is everything all right?”

“Jason called just before he and Drew took off. They’ll land here around ten our time. Too late to really do anything tonight, but Jason thought maybe we could meet tomorrow.”

“I’ll call Robert and Anna.” Laura waited a beat. “Are you going to meet them at the airport?”

“I thought about it, but it’s late, and I don’t like to leave the boys—”

“Let me take them.” Laura straightened. “You can have some time with Jason, and I’ll get to spoil them with pizza and soda.”

“It’s a school night—”

“And I take Spencer to school on my way to work. It’s no problem to make a few more stops.” Laura took Elizabeth by the hands. “It’ll be good for you. And for Jason. Take some time together. Let me have my grandchildren and enjoy them.”

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.” Laura made a face. “If I have to spend tomorrow talking about how terrible my ex-husband and son are acting, at least let me have my grandsons tonight to distract me.”

“All right.” Elizabeth embraced her former mother-in-law. “I appreciate it.”

“Any time.”

Saint Andrews Elementary: School Yard

Sam blew into her hands, cursing herself for grabbing the wrong jacket on her way out. She’d carelessly left her gloves in the one she’d worn to her mother’s house, and now her fingertips felt numb.

A few minutes more, and Danny would burst out of the school, eager to tell her about his day. He really was the most beautiful miracle, Sam thought. The child she’d never thought possible—

“Well, hello, Samantha.”

Sam scowled, glanced to her left as Valentin stepped up to her side. “What are you doing here?”

“Picking up my daughter. What else?” He nodded at her bare hands. “Forget something at home?”

Sam wrinkled her nose, shoved her hands deep into her pockets. “I have nothing to say to you.”

“That’s quite all right. You can just listen. You know, my mother knew so many delightful things about our family. Have you ever studied the Cassadine family history?”

“No,” she said, tightly. “And I don’t care to—”

“Hmm, well, that’s a shame. You know, my mother never cared for you, but she was quite tickled when Alexis accepted you as her daughter,” Valentin continued, and Sam went perfectly still. “You’d think the presence of—what did she always call you? When she deigned to acknowledge your existence, that is. Guttersnipe?”

Sam said nothing, but her brain was screaming.

“But you’ve built yourself quite a lovely life here as a Davis girl. With those sisters of yours. The children. You seem happy. As your mother’s daughter.”

A hundred feet away, children started to pour out of the front doors, and Sam saw Danny standing there, searching for her. His brown eyes lit up, and he started to run to her.

“I wonder, my dear cousin, what your mother would think if she learned you weren’t a Davis girl after all.” His lips were near her ear. “And that you’ve known for some time that her real daughter is out there somewhere. Did you never wonder who she was? Or were you happy to take her place? To pretend? I wonder if your mother will believe that you didn’t know. Or will she see it as just another one of your little confidence games?” He paused. “Then again, maybe I could be persuaded to forget what I know.”

Her lips were dry as she finally looked at him. “What do you want?”

“I was hoping you’d ask.”

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