Do you really want to hear that?
Why is everyone staring?
Were you happy?
Were you honest?
Did you ever believe that any of this was real?
We can’t just slow down now
This road’s not safe for driving out this town
I’ve wanted just one thing from you
Everything, everything, it’s everything
– Safe, Airborne Toxic Event

---

October 2012

Spoon Island: Lab

Andre Maddox exhaled slowly as he looked at the unconscious men stretched out on gurneys in front of him. The final twin had been delivered just a week earlier—with a gunshot to his back that had nearly proved fatal. It had taken a week before Andre felt comfortable enough to begin work. Victor had been apoplectic when the wounded twin had arrived—he’d demanded the twins be delivered unscathed.

“Well?” Victor demanded. “Is he ready? Can you begin the mapping?”

“His vitals are stable enough,” Andre agreed, with a nod. He placed the last sensor on the injured twin—Patient Five had arrived almost three months earlier from overseas.

Despite being taken from a warzone, he’d been much easier to procure. Patient Six had been wily and had ducked several attempts to take him cleanly. Their agent had finally gotten frustrated and ignored his orders to deliver an undamaged specimen. He’d shot him and shoved him into the water. Victor’s recovery team had barely managed to pull from the frigid waters of Lake Ontario.

“How long will this take?”

“I don’t know,” Andre repeated for what felt like the thousandth time. “This has never been done. This might not even work — it could fail at any stage. Do you want it done right or quickly?”

Victor seethed. “Why not both?”

“Mr. Cassadine—”

“Let the man work,” the woman said quietly as she walked in behind her brother-in-law. Victor Cassadine was intimidating, but Helena was terrifying. “You’re the one that’s invested in this experiment. I merely wanted Jason Morgan removed from the field for as long as possible.”

Andre ignored the byplay and got to work. He didn’t want to know any of this. He didn’t want to know which patient was Jason Morgan or why Helena and Victor had selected these twins for the first field test. He just knew it had been more than Victor’s conviction they were suitable. This was personal for them. He’d met Helena a few months ago after one of his colleagues at the lab, Ewen Keenan, had died, and she’d chilled him to the bone.

He avoided her at all costs.

He just wanted to dig out the memories from these men, prove they could be mapped and transferred, and save others from the loss he’d suffered.

“Helena—”

“I told you, making her suffer is what matters,” Helena hissed as Victor herded her from the room. “Losing her great love, knowing that he drowned, that his body lays beneath the waters—”

The door closed on the words as Andre ignored the curiosity as to who Helena hated so much.  He shoved it out of his mind and got to work.

Friday, October 27, 2017

Morgan Penthouse: Living Room

Sam’s hands were still trembling as she and her husband walked through the door. Her mother, Alexis, rose from the sofa, her eyes stark against her face. “I just got off the phone with Kristina. It’s all over the news—”

“Mom—” Sam rubbed the side of her face, looking away from her husband who stood in the middle of the room, staring blankly at the floor. “I can’t do this tonight—”

“But—” Alexis looked the man between them. “It’s a mistake. Isn’t it? There’s—I saw the video on the news,” she added, “but it’s wrong. We did the DNA tests—”

“We’re running them again,” her husband said roughly, “but they’ll probably match.” He met Sam’s eyes. “Whatever is going on, it’s not going to be undone by a test. They’ll have figured that much out. Just like Helena knew to erase my fingerprints—whoever is behind this already has an in at the hospital—”

“We’ll have the tests run independently,” Alexis said briskly. “This is just a mistake. A horrible mistake. Everyone has a double out there,” she continued. “I remember Mac Scorpio—”

“Elizabeth said it might be twins,” Sam said softly. She looked at her husband. “I think she’s right. Don’t you?”

“I—” He walked over to the sofa, sat on the arm. “I don’t know. Probably,” he said finally. “Carly brought up the story Heather Webber fed us about Franco being my brother all those years ago.”

“She might not have been completely lying,” Alexis murmured. “So this new man—he’s the twin?”

“I—” Sam wanted to say yes. She desperately wanted to say yes. Because she’d felt it the minute she’d met the other man’s eyes—the crackle, the light of recognition that had never, ever been there with the man standing in front of her.

How she never realized it? How hadn’t she felt the absence of it?

But this was her husband. She’d schemed and stolen him from his other life, and he’d fallen in love with her. He’d married her. He’d chosen her and their children over that other life, over Jake, Elizabeth, Sonny, and Carly. Jason had never done that. How could she turn her back when everyone else already had?

“He must be,” Sam said finally. “He’s just—he says he’s not, and he’s convincing. As an actor,” she added hastily when her husband shot her a glare. She folded her arms. “He’s playing a game. Raised by Betsy—I bet that’s why Franco wants to press charges. He knows who he is—”

“Maybe.” He exhaled on a shaky breath. “I just—” He looked at Alexis. “I really just want to stop thinking about this. I know who I am. I had to fight to get my life back, and someone with my old face isn’t going to steal it from me without a fight.”

“We’ll get the fingerprints,” Sam told him. “They can fake a DNA test, but the physical fingerprints—from the PCPD archives—those are yours. Jordan isn’t going to screw with that. Curtis won’t let her do that to you.”

“Right.”

“Why don’t I leave you for the night?” Alexis offered. “The kids are sleeping. Jason,” she said, stressing the name. She waited until he looked at her. “Go upstairs and look in on them. You’ll feel better.”

“Yeah. Yeah.” He sighed. “Sonny and Carly believe him,” he said faintly. “Elizabeth does—”

“Of course they do,” Sam snapped. “They didn’t believe in this new life. They want the old Jason back. The one that let Carly walk all over him, let Sonny use him, let Elizabeth lie to him—they’re angry that you’re putting me and the kids first. It’s jealousy,” she added. “Just like we said earlier.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Her husband kissed her forehead. “I’ll see you upstairs.”

“I’ll walk you out,” Sam told her mother, opening the door. Alexis sighed, then grabbed her coat. At the elevator, Alexis pressed the button. “Mom—”

“I saw some of the videos, Sam. They played them on the newscast, and they got the feed from the Metro Court —I saw the man that tried to choke the life out of Franco. I think we should both remember that the man who just went upstairs came to us with a different face, a different voice—”

“Mom—”

“No memories, beyond some residual ones of Elizabeth and their son—” At that reminder, Sam’s mouth tightened, and she looked away. “And he also came to us with a chip in his head from Helena Cassadine.”

“He’s my husband,” Sam said with a lift of her chin. “All of that might be true, but he is also my husband and the father of my children.”

“But is he Jason Morgan?” Alexis said gently. The elevator door opened before Sam could offer an answer. Alexis stepped on board, then held out her hand to prevent it from closing. “You would be doing him a favor if you were realistic—”

“I won’t pretend to be someone I’m not. I love my husband. I won’t abandon him the way everyone else has,” Sam retorted. “He needs me.”

“I’ll see you in the morning then.” Alexis moved her hand, and the doors closed. Sam spent a moment staring at them before going back into the penthouse.

Webber House: Living Room

Her hands tightened around the bat, and Elizabeth lifted it higher, locking eyes with the man that she’d let into her home, into her life, into her body, her heart—

Into the lives of her boys. Her precious babies.

“Get your hands off my son now,” she repeated.

Franco released Cameron’s shirt, stepped away from her eldest son with his hands up. “There’s been a misunderstanding,” he said slowly. “Let me explain—”

“Cameron, take your brothers upstairs,” Elizabeth snapped, not taking her eyes off Franco.

She’d never take her eyes off him again. Evil always struck when you weren’t looking.

“Jake, Aiden, go upstairs,” Cameron ordered. “I’m not leaving you, Mom. Let me call someone—”

“I came in here, and they were watching the video from the Metro Court. They were laughing—”

“They are children,” Elizabeth snarled, wishing she could get to the safe on the other side of the room. A bat—she knew she’d never be able to take him down for good. She had to get her babies to safety.  “Cameron, upstairs. Now!”

“Not a chance,” Cameron muttered, but he pushed Aiden and Jake towards the stairwell. “Go—”

“But—” Jake protested.

“Listen to me,” he ordered in a tone that sounded so much like her own it might have been amusing any other time.

“I just wanted him to give me the goddamn tablet,” Franco retorted. “If you’d taught your kids how to respect people—”

“You called my mom a liar!” Aiden screamed, and Cameron hissed at him.

“Upstairs!”

“Go,” Jake told Aiden, and the youngest Webber boys headed up the stairs, their feet scrambling up the carpeted steps. She could breathe a little more easily.

But only a little.

“Get out.”

“Damn it, Elizabeth!” Franco dragged his hands through his hair. “Why won’t you just listen to me? After everything I’ve been through tonight, you’re not even trying to listen to my side—”

“Side?” Her voice climbed almost to a shrill pitch as hysteria threatened. Oh, God, what if he didn’t leave? What would she do? Behind Franco, she saw Cameron sliding his hand in his pocket, likely for his phone, but he was moving slowly—trying desperately not to draw any attention.

“You don’t have a side. They’re my children!” She forced herself to take a deep breath, for her lungs to fully expand. “Get out. Don’t make me say it again.”

“What if I don’t go?” Franco retorted. “What are you going to do? This is my house, too. I have rights!”

Damn it. Damn it. She had to get to the safe. Had to get something better than the bat. If she’d been by herself, she’d have gone for the fucking head and let the chips fall where they may.

But her babies were in the house, and she didn’t think Cameron could get them to safety before Franco went after them.

And she knew, she knew he’d go for them first.

“Okay.” Elizabeth let the bat fall to her side. “Then explain your side,” she said.

“Mom—”

“Cameron. Let him explain. We owe him that much,” she said, hating the way his face fell, how his eyes filled with disappointment and betrayal. Oh, God. What had she done?

She edged around Franco, wanting to put herself between Cameron and Franco. She had to get to the safe. Could she still get open as fast as Jason had taught her?

“Finally! Do you see my face?” Franco demanded. “Look at my throat!” He started to unzip his jacket to reveal the skin in question—

And Elizabeth went for the safe, thrusting the bat at Cameron, getting the code and door open in what must have been five seconds but felt like hours—

She yanked the gun from the top shelf where it had rested next to her passport and the boys’ birth certificates for nearly a decade—

Franco’s hands were still on the zipper of jacket, his one good eye bulging in stunned surprise as Elizabeth leveled the gun at his chest, stepping in front of Cameron.

“Get out,” she said. “There’s not a jury in this world that would convict me.”

“You wouldn’t—”

She slowly and deliberately disengaged the safety, the click reverberating in the quiet room.

“You don’t know me as well as you think you do.”

Greystone Manor: Living Room

“I cannot believe you knew for three whole hours,” Carly said as they walked into the living room, “and didn’t tell me. I told you something was wrong—” She slapped Sonny’s shoulder. “Didn’t I? I said Helena put a whammy on him—but it’s more than that—”

She turned to Jason and threw her arms around him, nearly knocking him off his feet. “It’s really you, isn’t it?”

“It’s me,” Jason told her, closing his eyes, hugging her back.

“You’d never buy a media company and abandon me—”

“Carly—” Sonny said, with a sigh as he pulled her back. “Let Jason breathe. It’s been a long night—”

The door opened behind them, and Michael and Joss hurried in—Michael standing in the doorway for a moment to stare at Jason, who could hardly believe his eyes. When he’d last seen him, Michael had barely been twenty. He seemed taller, his face filled out, with lines at the corner of his eyes—this little boy he’d practically raised and had loved like a son—

“Oh my God,” the girl beside him said, and Jason took in Carly’s daughter for the first time. She must be fifteen now, he remembered, and looked a lot like her mother had when Carly had arrived in Port Charles at twenty-two. “We saw the videos, but—Michael—” Joss tugged her brother’s sleeve.

Michael swallowed hard. “Is it—” He looked at his parents. “I don’t—I don’t understand what’s happening,” he said, finally.

“We don’t either,” Carly offered, her voice trembling. “But it’s Jason.”

“Of course it is,” Joss said. She gestured at him. “I mean, it’s just like I told the others,” she said to Michael, “he tried to kill Franco, which is what normal people do.” And for some reason, she glared at her mother, who winced.

“Joss—” Michael said with a sigh.

“What? You think I’m ever going to let Mom forget what she did?” Joss demanded. “Has anyone even told Jason what’s going on with that? I mean, he lives with Jake—”

“What?” Jason demanded, everything else in his brain squeezed out at that. He whirled around to stare at Carly and Sonny. “What the hell—”

“It’s complicated,” Carly muttered.

“Not really,” Joss said breezily. She folded her arms, and Jason focused on her again because at least she was giving him answers instead of trying to protect him. “Franco showed up like eight months after you went into the water. He had all these stupid DVDs that supposedly proved his innocence and no one was buying it, but then Dr. Patrick found a brain tumor—”

“Brain tumor?” Jason repeated with disgust. “Not again.”

“It gets better,” Sonny offered. Carly scowled at him, and he shrugged. “What? You might regret it now, but—”

“Mom got Diane to defend Franco in court,” Joss continued as Michael sat down, put his head in his hands. “And got all the charges dropped—”

“I am not proud of that,” Carly muttered.

“What about what happened after that?” Michael said dully. “You almost married him.” He focused on Jason, who was just staring at Carly. “She didn’t. But he left her at the altar.” His mouth tightened. “She was having an affair with Dad, among other things.” He looked at Sonny and Carly, who both avoided his eyes, and Jason frowned at that. There was something else that wasn’t quite right.

But he couldn’t really wrap his mind around any of this. “You almost married Franco?” he demanded of Carly. Which meant — “Is he—” He closed his eyes.

“One time,” Michael said, leaning back against the chair, staring at the ceiling. “You told me that you thought Elizabeth might be able to forgive a serial killer because she was too nice.” He met Jason’s eyes without any humor. “I laughed then. It’s less funny now.”

Jason hissed under his breath. “How the hell did any of this happen?” he demanded. “Franco was dead. I killed him—” He winced, remembering Joss was there.

“Oh, don’t worry, your failure to do that has been a source of much irritation,” Joss said with a shrug. “Cameron and I are very disappointed.”

“Joss,” Carly said through gritted teeth. “Maybe you should go to bed.”

“I can’t,” Joss said, rolling her eyes. “Because I know you think I’m just a kid, but me and Cam—”

“Oh, no,” Sonny moaned. “What now?”

“Don’t make that face, Uncle Sonny. This isn’t like the last time,” Joss said. “I promise. We didn’t even get near a car tonight.”

“You should listen to Joss on this one,” Michael said, “Because, like I told you guys on the phone, this was all over social media. Cam and Joss knew about it before I got there. And they saw the videos—”

“By the way, Jason,” Joss interrupted, “Cam and Aiden are going to have the choking video on repeat for days. Highlight of the night—”

“Joss,” Michael scowled. “Focus.”

“Right, right, well Oscar—my boyfriend, Oscar Nero—and I actually found out that’s not his real name—not his birth name. He’s actually Oscar Cain, but his stepmom changed their name—”

“Joss.” Michael shoved himself to his feet with a growl. Jason’s head was starting to ache. “Oscar saw the video and says that you—” he gestured at Jason. “Your face—looks exactly like his dad’s did the last time Oscar saw him. Andrew Cain. Disappeared from Afghanistan in July 2012. He went AWOL.”

Jason exhaled slowly, then looked at Sonny. “So he did have my face before.”

“Heather Webber wasn’t lying, and neither were the DNA tests,” Carly said. “But—” She hesitated. “He has your memories, Jason. We didn’t know who he was—and even when we found out, he still didn’t remember. Then he did.”

“He told me about raising me as a baby,” Michael offered. “And it sounded real, but—” He paused. “I don’t know. He also had that chip in his head,” he reminded his parents. He looked at Jason. “He did these crazy things—really bad crimes—and got arrested. Elizabeth was sure something wasn’t right, and it turns out Helena Cassadine had a chip in his head to control him.”

“The Cassadines,” Sonny said, nodding to Jason. “I told you. Whatever this is—it’s not over. You said you were chased in Russia, attacked in New York City.”

“But here aren’t any Cassadines left,” Joss said, folding her arms. “Except for Spencer who barely counts, and—” she hesitated. “And Valentin. I bet he’s in on it. He’s super scary.”

“What? What did he say to you?” Sonny demanded.

“Oh—” Joss’s eyes widened. “Nothing to me. He’s not that dumb. He picked up Charlotte from Aiden’s birthday party a few months ago, and he was like, super weird to Cam’s mom. Like he said something about Nikolas—”

“What about Nikolas?” Jason asked, irritated by only having half the story.

“Valentin killed Nikolas last year,” Carly said tightly, “and ended up inheriting everything. He’s one of Mikkos’s sons. Illegitimate,” she added. “Joss, you never said—”

“Because he didn’t say it to me,” Joss repeated, rolling her eyes. “And Cam’s mom never gets scared of anything. Cam says that’s because they’ve all been kidnapped like twice. Except for Cam. Which I think sometimes he’s jealous about—”

Michael put his hands on Joss’s shoulders. “Why don’t we go upstairs?” he said to her.

“No, I’m helping,” Joss said, shrugging his hands off. “I listen to everything even when I’m not supposed to.” She looked at Jason. “He’s Charlotte’s dad, and Lulu’s her mom, so Aiden is stuck putting up with her, and Charlotte is mean. Like pick the wings off flies mean, and he’s in Charlotte’s class at school. He’s always coming home, upset about her. Cam’s mom can’t do anything because the school refuses to stand up for Aiden because Valentin has all the money, and she doesn’t —anyway—he’s raising his own little serial killing psychopath, so that’s how I know he’s scary. Plus, he said to Cam’s mom that it was a shame Nikolas couldn’t get to see his son, only then he pretended like he’d made a mistake when he was just making a dig at her because he’s also a giant douchebag—”

“I have a headache,” Sonny muttered, but Jason had taken all of Joss’s rambles in and refined them to the essential details. Valentin had killed Nikolas, and had a daughter — likely the girl Aided had complained about in the park.

“The important thing,” Joss said, “is that we know who the other guy is because all Oscar has to do is get a DNA test, right?” she widened her eyes. “Or would that come back to being identical to you? I mean, would it say Oscar is your kid?” She furrowed her brow. “Would that help?”

“There are advanced tests,” Carly said. “They can use Jake and Oscar’s DNA to establish identity,” she offered. “Along with the fingerprints. That should take care of it—”

“What about—” Joss began, but Michael elbowed her. “Hey, ow, what, you think no one is going to ask about Danny?”

“Danny?” Jason repeated, furrowing his brow.

“I was thinking,” Michael said, with a growl at his sister, “that maybe we’ve dumped enough crap on you tonight.”

“Oh, well, maybe, but this is good stuff, isn’t it? Jason went into the water with no kids, and now he’s got two. That’s gotta be, like, the best part, right?” Joss blinked at him as Jason just stared at her. “Right?”

Webber Home: Living Room

“You don’t even know how to use that thing,” Franco said, his voice trembling just enough that she knew he was scared.

Good.

“You sure about that?” Elizabeth’s lips curved up in a humorless smile. “You think Jason didn’t teach me how to make a kill shot? When my life was on the line? When it came to protecting Jake and Cam?”

“Jason,” Franco spat. “It’s always back to him—”

Was she really going to have to pull the trigger? God damn it—She hissed, then lowered the gun slightly—aiming it at the floor just by his toe. It had been a very long time since Jason had taught her how to shoot but—

Franco yelped when the bullet hit the floor just in front of his feet. Cameron lunged towards to the stairs as Jake cried out, and Aiden started screaming.

“It’s okay, it’s okay! Mom just fired a warning shot. She’s okay. We’re okay!”

Franco stumbled back, glaring at her. “You fucking shot at me!”

She raised the barrel. “Want to see what else I can do?”

He hissed, then stalked out the door, slamming it behind him so hard that the entire front of the house shook.

She didn’t move the gun, didn’t even blink until she heard a car roar away, the brakes squealing.

“Mom? Mommy!”

“It’s okay, he’s gone,” Cameron told his brothers as Jake and Aiden came rushing down the stairs—Cameron holding them back because Elizabeth still had the gun in her hand.

“Mom,” Jake said slowly, “are you okay?”

She wanted to tell him no. Of course, she wasn’t okay. But she was the adult. These were her babies, and she needed to be the strong one.

“Yes,” Elizabeth told him. “Cameron, go secure the alarm and put the chain on the door.”

She disengaged the safety and relocked the gun in the safe, her fingers trembling slightly as she took just a minute away from the boys to steady herself.

How had this happened? Had had any of this happened?

“Mom?” Cameron said. She stood up and faced her boys, with their tear-stained faces and stunned expressions. “Mom,” he said again, “we’re going to talk about how badass that was, and I’m sorry I doubted you because I never saw anyone move that damned fast, but I don’t think we should depend on an alarm system he knows and a chain—”

“No, I know.” Elizabeth pressed a hand to her head, tried to gather her thoughts. “And I need my floor fixed,” she muttered, staring at the scarred hardwood. Or maybe she’d keep it as a reminder to never, ever let anyone else in again.

She felt a pair of arms encircle her waist through her black coat, and she opened her eyes to find Aiden clinging to her. “Hey, baby.”

“I was scared he’d hurt Cameron, then us, but you came home, and you made him leave.”

“Yeah, that was really cool,” Jake told her, swallowing hard as he hugged her, too. She kissed the top of his head—her babies who had seen too much of the bad in this world.

She’d made him leave.

But she had brought him home in the first place.

“Do we call the police?” Cameron asked. “I mean—” He glanced uneasily at the floor where the bullet had hit. “Will you get in trouble?”

“No, because we’re not going to call them. They’re the good guys,” she reminded her children, “but they’re not always the answer.”

No, she needed someone who understood.

“Cameron, can you take the boys upstairs?” she asked. “I need to make a call.”

Cassadine Estate: Foyer

Valentin winced when he saw Nina standing just beyond the foyer, in the parlor ahead of him. He gritted his teeth, offered his coat to the waiting servant, then waded into battle.

“You left me,” his wife said. “In the middle of all that chaos, you left me and walked out.” Nina arched an imperious brow. “What the hell is going on?”

“I saw someone I needed to speak to,” Valentin said, offering her a charming smile, but it was a mistake since her eyes just narrowed.

“Right when a Jason Morgan look-alike was storming the ballroom, trying to choke the life out of Franco?” she said dryly. “You saw someone you needed to speak with?”

“Yes.” Valentin brushed a kiss on her cheek. “Have you looked in on Charlotte since you’ve been home?”

“Yes. She’s sleeping. Don’t change the subject, Valentin. Who did you need to speak with so badly that you didn’t even tell me you were going?”

“Just someone from the office. Really, Nina—” Valentin tried the smile again, but he really wasn’t feeling it. He was stretched too thin, trying to keep too many balls in the air—the last thing he needed was a suspicious wife asking questions. And he highly doubted that Nina would be interested in why he’d had Jason Morgan held in a Russian clinic or why his return might bring everything crashing down.

He had too much to do—too many lines to tug—he needed to find those files—he needed to find the last of the Cassadines before his inheritance—what his mother had promised him—could be stolen from him—

“Valentin, I told you that I needed a new start,” Nina said to him softly. “After what happened with my mother and Ric Lansing. And Ava and Silas. I needed to be able to trust someone. Please don’t tell me that you’ve become someone I can’t.”

“You can trust me,” Valentin assured her, and this he could say without a single trace of dishonesty. His schemes were over—there were just some loose ends that didn’t have anything to do with the life he’d created with Nina and Charlotte. “It’s really nothing. I’m so sorry I left you in the middle of that, but those people don’t really matter to us, do they?”

“No,” Nina said, slowly. “Other than Franco,” she added. “But I imagine if the other man really is Jason Morgan, he’ll have to accept that Franco has changed.” She bit her lip. “What do you think is going on? I know that Helena was behind Jason’s abduction all those years ago. Could it be something leftover from her?”

“Maybe,” Valentin said. “I should probably find out,” he offered. “Why don’t I make some calls in the morning.” He leaned in to kiss her cheek again, relieved that some of the cold tension in the air had dissipated. “My stepmother had many irons in the fire. After the Chimera incident,” he murmured, “it makes sense that there might be some other loose ends.”

“You should get to the bottom of it,” Nina said, straightening his suit jacket. “It was scary last year when that poor little boy was under Helena’s control. Dead for two years and still pulling strings—it’s something out of a horror film.”

“Yes.” Valentin nodded. “It’s time that Helena’s secrets were revealed. She’s dead, and she’s going to stay that way.”

Webber House: Living Room

Elizabeth rubbed her neck as she watched Michael change the security code on her door with Sonny hovering nearby. “Jason doesn’t know?” she asked. “I mean, that I called?”

“No, I talked him into going to bed just before you did,” Sonny assured her. He gestured for her to join him in the kitchen while Michael finished changing the code. “When did you get a gun?” he asked. “You could have used it that time Obrecht locked you up at the old house—”

“The safe was too far away, and she was a lot smarter than Franco. After that, I kept it in the living room,” Elizabeth said, rubbing her arms. “Jason got it for me.” She looked back out into the living room. “After Michael was shot. He broke off the engagement, but he was terrified that someone already knew about me and the boys.”

Sonny sucked in a sharp breath. “I didn’t know—”

“He got me the safe, and he taught me how to open it fast. He knew I didn’t want the gun around the boys, even unloaded. He kept his in a lockbox high up in the penthouse, but I couldn’t—” She was babbling, her voice was shaking. “Anyway. He made me practice until I could get to the gun in ten seconds. He taught me how to shoot, too. I wasn’t sure I’d remembered how to do that until I had to fire the shot. It came back in a rush. Muscle memory.”

Sonny scrubbed a hand over his face. “Christ. This is a goddamn mess.”

“I feel like such an idiot,” she admitted. “Everyone told me. Why did I think I was different? Why did I think I was special?”

“Why would you think this is on you?” Sonny bit out. “I’m the one that let him live over and over again. We should have cut his ass up in tiny pieces, set him on fire, and danced on his grave.”  He winced. “Sorry.”

“No, right now it sounds like a great idea. I killed one of the Russian guys when they tried to kill Sam and go after Jake,” Elizabeth said. “It didn’t stop them from getting him, but I know I’d kill for my boys. That was never in doubt. I  just didn’t want Cameron to see me.”

He paused. “These last five years Jason has been gone—there’s so much he doesn’t know. And he’s getting all of it fast, like a freight train coming at him.”

“Do you—should I not tell him?” Elizabeth asked, squinting. “I mean—”

“No, you should absolutely tell him. Franco threatened you, put his hands on Cam It doesn’t matter that it wasn’t Jake. You and the boys—you know you’re family. And I like Cameron. You know I do. This pisses me off.” He paused. “It’s never happened before?”

“Absolutely not!” Elizabeth shook her head. “No, I didn’t—it wasn’t even until the last few days I even realized that Cameron and Aiden—that Franco was an issue. It’s just been—the Chimera, my grandmother, then Jason—” She closed her eyes. “The shooting and the coma,” she said slowly, “and Franco was spending so much time with his art show. He wasn’t around the boys much after he moved in. This—I know this has to be the first time.”

She turned as she saw Cameron come into the room. “Cameron, please tell me—”

“I never would have kept that from you, Mom.” He nodded to Sonny. “Hey, Mr. Corinthos.”

“You ever gonna call me Sonny?”

“No, sir,” Cameron said, but his smile was a bit more genuine. “Mom, I promise. I didn’t think that was ever—if he’d gone after me, he might have done it to Jake or Aiden. And I asked them. They would have told you or me. I promise.”

“Okay. Okay.” She could breathe more easily. “Okay. That’s—that’s better. Are your brothers okay?”

“Yeah, they’re in your room, watching Netflix. I’m gonna go back up, I just—” He shifted. “I just wanted to thank you for coming over, Mr. Corinthos. And Michael,” he said as the older blond joined them in the kitchen. “With everything that’s going on tonight. I appreciate you doing this for my mom and me.”

“Any time,” Sonny said. “If I let anything happen to you, Joss would never forgive me. You did a good job looking out for your brothers, your mom said. She could focus on getting that bastard out of here because you kept your head.”

“Yeah, well, Mom was pretty cool under fire, too. I was scared,” Cameron said, “but then she shot at his feet, and he jumped like eight feet in the air. That helped.”

“I would have liked to see it,” Michael said with a grin. “Jason will be proud when you tell him.”

“I don’t think pride is going to be high on that list,” Elizabeth said. “Cam, I’ll be up in a bit—”

“Yeah, yeah. Thanks again.” He extended a hand to Michael, who shook it, then he shook Sonny’s hand.

“He’s such a great kid,” Sonny said as Cameron’s steps faded away. “About tomorrow—”

“I know I have to tell Jason,” she said, “I just hate that it has to be like this. I hate that this happened, but tonight of all nights—I just want—I want to find out what’s going on. How this happened, and now I have to drop Franco at his feet.” She grimaced. “But I have to tell him.”

“Good. We’re meeting at a safe house,” he told her, and she frowned at him. “Not at Greystone. I don’t want Carly at this meeting. It’ll just be me, you, and Jason. And Michael,” he said, “if you want to come.”

“You planning on tying my mother up?” Michael said dryly.

“I’ll figure something out—”

“She should be there,” Elizabeth said, irritated with the both of them. “That’s ridiculous. This isn’t business, Sonny. It’s Cassadines. And they scheme. Why the hell would you leave Carly out of this? No one schemes like her.”

“She’s got a point,” Michael said. “And if you don’t bring Mom, she’ll just find out and make you pay later. Plus, then she’ll find out Elizabeth was there, and we really don’t need Mom finding another reason to give Elizabeth hell.”

“That is also an excellent point,” Elizabeth said. “And what safe house? You have like a thousand of them, and I haven’t needed to know any of them for—”

“The one Jason bought for you in Queen’s Point,” Sonny told her, and she fell silent. “It’s how he got in contact with me. Only you, me, Spinelli, and Jason ever knew the code. It’s a safe place, and I want to keep this quiet.”

“The safe house in Queen’s Point,” Elizabeth said slowly. The one Jason had bought before the trip to Italy that had never happened. Where they’d talked about the future, had made love in several rooms before leaving and never going back. She forced a smile. “Sounds great.”

Morgan Penthouse: Nursery

He knew they were right.

That was the horrible truth behind all of this. He knew he wasn’t Jason Morgan. Wasn’t that what the voice had been screaming in his brain for years?

It had started small, just merely a whisper in the days after his failed wedding to Elizabeth, when the world had been trying to shove him into a box labeled Jason Morgan. This is who you are, they’d said. Sam had begged him to see the truth, had begged him to come back to her, to their life. To Danny.

And he’d said no. He’d resisted. He didn’t remember that life. He knew this life. He was Jake Doe. And Elizabeth and her boys—they were his family.

Then he’d learned Elizabeth had been lying, and he hadn’t known what to think. What to do. He couldn’t be Jake Doe anymore, and he didn’t want to be Jason Morgan. He didn’t belong anywhere.

The voice had only grown louder when his memories had returned—those memories that felt so real except when they also felt like movies playing in his head—like there was a strange white film over them sometimes, keeping him from really feeling like a part of him—

He’d ignored that voice, ignored the out of body sensation he felt every time someone called him Jason. He had his memories, he’d told himself. And he shut it all way. He’d married Sam. They’d started a new life—

But since he’d woken up in the hospital after the last gun shot, the voice had been screaming so loud it had nearly drowned everything else out He’d ignored it, he’d kept going, finally ready to stop pretending he was the Jason from before—he was going to be the Jason of now. The Jason he wanted to be.

“But it’s not me,” he said slowly, looking down at his beautiful little girl, the little girl with dark curls and her mother’s dark eyes, named for the sister that wasn’t his.

He squeezed his eyes shut. If he let this go, if he stopped living this life, who would he be this time? He’d be no one again. Couldn’t go back to Jake Doe. That life was gone. He’d burned all those bridges—

No. It had to be a lie. And there had to be another reason his memories didn’t always feel right. His brain had been knocked around a lot, Sam had laughed once. It was a miracle he could function. That’s what it was.

He was Jason Morgan. Sam was his wife. And Danny, Scout, and Jake were his kids. He couldn’t lose them. He couldn’t lose another life.

“Jason?”

He turned to find his wife standing in the door frame, her voice hesitant. Had she stumbled over his name because she was worried about him? Or because she just didn’t know how to tell him that she also believed the man with the face she’d loved once?

“Jason,” Sam repeated, her voice steadier this time, more assured. He wondered if he’d imagined it.

“Hey.” Jason smiled at her. “Sorry, I was just thinking about how beautiful Scout is. How much she looks like you.”

Sam returned his smile and held out a hand. “Let’s go to bed,” she said softly. “Everything will be better in the morning.”

Knowing she was lying—that nothing would be okay again—Jason took her hand and followed her into their bedroom.

Greystone Manor: Living Room

Sonny frowned when he walked through the door and found Jason sitting on the sofa. “Jason, I thought you’d gone to bed—”

“I did,” Jason said as he got to his feet. “Then I heard you leave. What happened?”

Sonny pressed his lips together. “I got a call to take care of a security problem,” he said. “And I didn’t know how to change a security code, so I took Michael. He’s picked up some things from Spinelli. We should call him in the morning, by the way. We’ll need him.”

“What security problem,” Jason said, ignoring Sonny’s attempt to change the subject, “did you need to deal with that you were comfortable taking Michael?”

“It’s been a long five years,” Sonny said. His voice shook as he continued. “You know about Morgan, but there’s a lot more. You can’t learn it all in one night.”

“Sonny—”

“I know it’s a mess. I know there’s a thousand things going in your head, and you’ll never be able to sleep. That’s fine. But we need to take this one step at a time. We’ll get Spinelli back in town. We’ll need him. We’ll find out who did this to you—”

“Five years,” Jason repeated. His entire life—everything he’d known—it was gone. And in its place was a world he didn’t know. Didn’t understand. Couldn’t even process. Jake was alive. Danny was apparently his biological son. Sam didn’t believe him, and Elizabeth was living with Franco, who Carly had almost married—the Cassadines might still be coming after him—or anyone else who mattered—

“One step at a time,” Jason repeated. He took a deep breath. “You’re right. We’re meeting tomorrow?”

“Yeah, and until we get a handle on what we’re dealing with, I don’t want Elizabeth coming over here and signaling Valentin, or whoever the hell we’re dealing with that she’s gonna be involved.” He hesitated. “And it might be good if Franco doesn’t know she’s spending time with you.”

Jason narrowed his eyes. “Sonny, what the hell is going on?”

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow. Neither one of us might be able to sleep,” his friend said, “but I sure as hell need to lay down. I’m not as young as I used to be. And neither are you.”

“I want—”

“Tomorrow,” Sonny repeated. He paused. “And this isn’t my story to tell.”

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