Maybe I should have loved you better
Maybe you should have loved me more
Maybe our hearts were just next in line
Maybe everything breaks sometime
Everything breaks sometime
– Everything Breaks, Jewel
Wednesday, December 10, 2003
Brownstone: Kitchen
Carly stirred her coffee restlessly and looked over at her mother. “You didn’t have to stay home, you know. I’m okay—”
Bobbie lifted her brows, then sat back down to look over the newspaper. “I just want to make sure that no one bothers you.” She frowned at her watch. “Jason said he was going to arrange for security here, but maybe he hasn’t had a chance yet—”
“Sonny sent a lot of the extra guards down to Venezuela when they got word Ric was there,” Carly told her. “I don’t know if they’re back yet, and it’s not like I’m going anywhere—”
Bobbie looked ready to argue again, but the doorbell stopped her. With a grimace, she got to her feet and went to the foyer. A moment later, Carly heard the door open. “She’s not talking to you.”
“Bobbie, just let me—”
Carly closed her eyes at the sound of her husband’s voice. It wasn’t fair for her mother to fight her battles for her. She needed to be stronger than that. She set her coffee down, then stood up to join her mother in the foyer.
Sonny was on the doorstep, Max visible at the base of the stairs outside. Bobbie had opened the door only partially—blocking Sonny from getting inside. He looked—normal, Carly decided. Like he had the morning before when they’d driven to Syracuse. His hair was neatly combed, his suit was pressed—
He shouldn’t look like that. He should look like hell—he should look sorry. Devastated by what he’d done to her—what he’d put her through.
That’s what was bothering her, Carly realized as she stepped into his line of view. Sonny didn’t just look normal—he looked irritated at having to be there, at having to deal with Bobbie.
He did not look like a man who had locked his wife in a room the night before, leaving her traumatized and fleeing for her sanity.
“I’ll talk to him, Mama,” Carly said. “For a minute. He can come in.”
“Carly—” Bobbe said, her mouth tight with irritation. “I don’t think—”
“I think it’s important that I make myself clear,” Carly said. Bobbie sighed, then stepped back. Sonny stepped inside, closed the door behind him. He started to take off his jacket, but Carly held up her hand.
“You’re not staying.”
His hands stilled on his lapels, his dark eyes meeting hers. Then Sonny nodded slowly. “Okay. Then we’ll do this here. I’m sorry. Obviously, I wasn’t thinking clearly last night. I—I wanted you to be safe. To protect you. I didn’t do it the right way.”
Bobbie scowled but held her tongue.
“No, you didn’t, but we shouldn’t pretend that yesterday was the first time we’ve had an issue. Yesterday was just the final straw. From the moment I stood up to you—” Carly folded her arms as his expression tightened. “When I told you I didn’t want a deal, that I wanted to testify, you have punished me. You have tried to make me feel like there’s something wrong with me for wanting that—”
“That’s ancient history—”
“I wanted that to be true,” Carly said softly, more to herself. “I wanted to think that it didn’t matter anymore, but it’s just the same problem, again and again, Sonny. You think that what you need and want matter more than me. Than what I need. What I want. And sometimes, yes, you’re right. But it can’t always be about you.”
Sonny scoffed. “Are you really standing there and claiming that our relationship is always about me? That’s bull, Carly—”
“No, it hasn’t been. And I’ve made mistakes, Sonny. I’ve done terrible things to you, trying to protect you—” Carly bit her lip. “But the difference is…I’ve tried to learn from those mistakes, and you don’t think there’s anything you need to change. I told you I was going back to work. You never told me Leticia wasn’t coming back, and you never set me up with a driver or a guard—you trapped me in that penthouse, and if it hadn’t been for Jason, I wouldn’t have been able to leave. To go to work.”
Sonny narrowed his eyes. “I told you that was a mistake—”
“I would have left last week,” Carly told him. “That’s why I didn’t come home after work—why I was still at Jason and Elizabeth’s. Because I needed to think about what to say to you. But you came in with that panic attack, and I put it away. Because that’s what you needed.”
Sonny pressed his lips together. “I can’t give you a trial, Carly. I can’t change the fact that Ric is out there somewhere, plotting his revenge—”
“We don’t know that. We just know maybe he’s in South America. Thousands of miles away. And this isn’t about a trial. It’s about whether or not you respect me. And you don’t, Sonny. More than that, I’m—” Her voice trembled. “I’m afraid of you.”
Sonny flinched, then looked at the ground. “I know. I can’t—I’m sorry. I did a terrible thing, and I can’t take it back. I’d give anything—”
“You need more help than I can give you,” Carly told him. “I can’t do it alone. Jason can’t either. I should have pushed you last summer, but I thought we could handle this—”
“This is your doing,” Sonny said, glaring at Bobbie, who snorted and shook her head.
“If I had any control over Carly, she never would have gone back in the first place,” Bobbie retorted.
“Mama,” Carly murmured, and Bobbie subsided. “You either go to counseling and figure out how to sort this out, Sonny, or I’m never coming back. I can’t go back into a marriage with a man whose mental illness—”
“I am not crazy—”
“Then you knew what you were doing when you locked me in our bedroom?” Carly shot back.
“Look, I said I was out of control last night. Christ, Carly, I barely remember most of it. I couldn’t even remember shoving Elizabeth, but if Jason can forgive that—”
“What did you do—” Bobbie cut in, stepping forward.
“Elizabeth?” Carly repeated. “What—” She shook her head. “What did—what do you mean? You—” She put up a hand in front of her. “You locked me in our bedroom, and I can almost understand that.”
“Carly—”
“Almost,” she snapped at Bobbie impatiently. “When you get into these moods, Sonny, I know your brain lies to you. I can follow the steps to see how you thought it was keeping me safe. It doesn’t make it right—but it makes sense. But you didn’t lay a hand on me. You didn’t hurt me.”
Sonny pressed his lips together. “So you can forgive me—”
“No. I can’t. Because you don’t want to fix it. How do I know it won’t happen again? Did Elizabeth try to help me? Is that what happened? She got in your way? Tried to stop you?” When Sonny looked away, Carly nodded. “So you pushed her. She’s pregnant, Sonny. Just like I was. How could you do that? And what happens the next time you lose it—the next time I try to challenge you? Will you put your hands on me? What if Michael tries to stop it? Will you hurt him?”
“I would never lay my hands on my own son,” Sonny said with a shake of his head, a burning look. “You know that—”
“No, I don’t know that,” Carly managed. “And you don’t know that either. If you went after a pregnant woman that has never done a single thing to hurt you, how do I know I’m not next? That my children aren’t in danger? You need more than a sedative, Sonny. You need professional help. That’s my line in the sand. I’m not coming back unless something changes.”
“I am not weak, and I am not crazy. There’s no chance in hell—”
“Then you can get out,” Carly said flatly. “We have nothing else to discuss.”
Sonny stared at her for a long moment, then turned to yank open the door. He stalked down the steps, and Bobbie slammed the door behind him.
Carly pressed a fist to her mouth, closed her eyes. “He doesn’t see it.”
“No, he doesn’t.” Bobbie sighed. “I’m sorry, Carly—”
“You warned me, Mama. Months ago.” Carly exhaled, then nodded. “This—this is the right thing to do. For me, for my kids, and for Sonny.” She looked at Bobbie. “Right?”
“Yes, But that doesn’t mean it isn’t hard.” Bobbie wrapped Carly into her arms and hugged her tightly.
Kelly’s: Dining Room
Around the time her son turned thirteen, Olivia realized she no longer knew exactly what Dante was thinking. He’d become a teenager, a species that was mysterious even to mothers. He’d come home moody and facial expressions gave her nothing to work with — she always got them wrong.
So, Olivia had tried to figure out other ways to know what Dante was thinking — he was her baby after all, and she wasn’t tagging out of the fight so easy—
But on this day—the day after his testimony had ended his cousins’ last chance at any freedom—Olivia thought it was time she tried simply asking what the hell was going on.
“I called your grandmother,” Olivia said as Lulu set their breakfasts down, then went back to the counter. She squinted slightly as she realized Dante wasn’t listening to her—but that his eyes had followed their waitress.
She twisted slightly, then raised her brows when she saw Lulu looking back—and her boyfriend, Dillon Quartermaine, scowling at them both.
“Oh, that looks like trouble,” Olivia muttered. She snapped her fingers twice in front of his face, and Dante blinked.
“What?” He picked up his coffee. “You say something?”
“I could have announced I was runnin’ for President, and you wouldn’t have noticed,” Olivia said sourly.
“Are you old enough for that?” Dante asked with a frown. “Don’t you have to be, like fifty? You’re not fifty. Are you?”
“You are not funny.” Olivia narrowed her eyes. “And you have to be, like, forty-something. I don’t know. It’s not like I paid attention in history.” She rolled her shoulders. “Like I was sayin’, I called your grandmother this morning.”
“Isn’t she also your mother?” Dante sipped his coffee.
Olivia narrowed her eyes. “On alternate Wednesdays when she’s not a pain in my ass. It won’t work, wise guy. You can’t distract me that easy. If you wanna go ask the blonde out—”
“She has a boyfriend,” he muttered. “And what about Grandma?”
“She still isn’t all that ecstatic with me or you, and she thinks Gloria Cerullo’s boys threw something at her window last night—”
“Aren’t Gloria’s boys in their forties?”
“That’s what I told her. But I think she’s starting to come around. She said Frankie made her listen to the news reports again—they released the tape.”
“They—” Dante swallowed. “Already?”
“Not the whole thing. Not yet, anyway. Just the part where Vinnie admits it. No names, no details. Just that he did it.”
“So Grandma believes it.” Dante shrugged, pushed his home fries around on his plate.
“Fran never will—”
“Can we talk about Grandma naming her kids Francis and Francesca?” Dante asked. “Because that sounds more fun.”
“Hey. I’m just—I’m trying here, Dante. No one is happy that yesterday had to happen. And I hate my sister, but I’m also sorry for her,” Olivia admitted. “It’s not like Vinnie was ever a shining star—we always knew he was an asshole, but there’s a difference between being my least favorite nephew and being a monster. If someone told me you did something so terrible, I don’t know if I’d believe it either—”
“Ma.” Dante looked at her, and Olivia closed her mouth. “Look, I just don’t want to talk about it. It’s done. Taggert told us that Vinnie’s pleading guilty to the original deal. It’s done,” he repeated flatly. “I did what I had to do.”
“I know—”
“And Grandma—I’m just—” Dante looked away, and Olivia frowned.
“Did she say anything to you, baby? After the hearing? I know you told me yesterday she didn’t, but—”
“No.” Dante took a deep breath, met her eyes. “No, she didn’t. It’s fine. Even if she believes Vinnie did it, she’s still angry at me for going against family. So…let’s just leave it where it is for now, okay?”
Olivia pursed her lips, then nodded. “All right. We’ll let it go for now. For now,” she repeated. She lifted her eyebrows. “Now tell me about the blonde behind the counter. How long has that been going on?”
“Ma—”
Corinthos & Morgan Warehouse: Jason’s Office
Johnny O’Brien stifled a yawn as he sat down on the sofa. He’d taken the red eye from Puerto Rico the night before, to tell Jason and Sonny in person about Caracas, and what the next step should be. “No Sonny?” he said, accepting the coffee that Bernie gave him.
Jason didn’t look at Bernie or Justus, hoping they wouldn’t change their expression. “He’s not coming in today. Is there something he needs to know?” he asked, leaning against the desk. “Did you find out anything?”
“No,” Johnny started, but Tommy Marcheski scowled.
“Sonny’s been all over this for the last month, and now he doesn’t show up? When he dragged me in here? I got shit to do—this isn’t even my problem—”
“I know that,” Jason said, irritated. “I know Sonny called this meeting, but he’s not here. Suck it up. Let’s just stop pissing each other off, and you can go back to worrying about the clubs.”
Tommy’s scowl didn’t lessen, but he didn’t say anything else.
“Nothing from Caracas?” Jason asked Johnny. “I know you said there was nothing the first time, but—”
“Nothing this time either. I went personally,” Johnny told him. “Michelena called me, told me he’d seen Ric in the marketplace. I went to talk to him—to get to the bottom of it. He said he’d seen him, and one of his guys said he also saw the same guy. But Michelena never saw Ric before, and was comparing it to a picture.”
“So it could be anyone who might look like Ric.”
“Exactly. To be honest, Jason, I’m not sure this is worth all the trouble you’re going to,” Johnny told him. He nodded at Tommy. “I’ve got the casinos to worry about, and Sonny keeps dragging me up here to report, to deal with crap that isn’t my responsibility. I’d say Francis should be handling it since security is his thing, but—”
“You’re not…” Jason hesitated. “You’re not wrong. I have some, uh, contacts from Interpol,” he told them. “They’ve been looking into it—no, we don’t have anyone officially on our payroll,” Jason said when Johnny looked interested. “But Lansing is an international fugitive at this point—Interpol says they can’t trace him out of the country either.”
“So we have maybe two sightings, two thousand miles away from Port Charles.” Johnny shrugged. “Can’t we just say that the asshole has left the country and is long gone?”
“He should have been dead months ago,” Tommy muttered. He glanced at Jason, who was glaring at him. “Sorry, Jason. I am. And I get it. It’s personal, and I’m glad your girl is fine. I’m glad Carly is fine. But you’re screwing over the business to look for him. So, if it’s business, then fine. Let me shoot this fucker on sight. If it’s not, then let us do what we need to do and stop obsessing over it.”
“I’ll talk to Sonny,” Jason said, crossing his arms. “I’m sorry. Neither one of you will be asked to report on Lansing again. You’re right. It’s been over a month. If Ric was coming for us, he’d have done it already. He’s not going to use the business again.”
“Good. Now, can I go to sleep?” Johnny demanded, handing the coffee back to Bernie.
“Yeah, get out of here.”
When Tommy and Johnny had both left, Jason exhaled slowly, looked at Justus and Bernie. “They’d never say it to Sonny, but they’re not the only ones who think we’re wasting our time.”
“No,” Bernie admitted. “So, if you can get Sonny to back off from using all the resources to go after Lansing, then it would smooth a lot of things out.” He cleared his throat. “Uh, speaking of things aren’t really my business, I wanted to ask how Mrs. C is.”
“She’s fine,” Jason said, shortly. Carly was at the Brownstone, and he hadn’t been able to go see her yet. Elizabeth had said she’d do that for him, but he’d feel better if he saw her in person.
“Jason, I gotta tell you, I’m not comfortable with what happened last night,” Justus told him. “With just…pretending it didn’t happen—”
“I’m not—we’re not doing that,” Jason cut in. “Carly took the kids, and she’s with her mother. She’s probably not coming back. But it’s not any different than what happened last summer.”
Justus squinted. “I’m not just talking about Carly, Jason. I’m talking about…” He shook his head. “It’s not my place—but Sonny was out of control last night. Are you comfortable living across the hall from him?”
Jason stared at him for a long moment. “Say what you want to say, Justus.”
“Fine. You planning on doing anything about what he did to Carly? What about Elizabeth? What if no one else had been there last night—if Elizabeth had been alone when she found out Sonny locked Carly up?” Justus demanded. “He put his hands on her, he locked up his wife and scared Carly so badly, she went a little crazy, but you’re just gonna say you sedated him, so it’s fine now?”
“I—” Jason didn’t have an answer for that. Hadn’t even thought to remember how often Elizabeth was alone in the penthouse—
He’d left her alone there today. Cody was outside, and sure, Max was usually there. But—
“It’s not fine,” Jason said after a long moment. “And we’re still sorting it out. I’m waiting to see what Carly wants to do.” But he knew Elizabeth was uneasy about Sonny, that she’d accepted his apology to smooth things over for Jason—
“I don’t know, Justus,” Jason continued. “Nothing that happened last night is okay. I just don’t know what to do,” he admitted. “It’s not that simple.”
“It would be for me,” Justus retorted. “A man puts his hands on a woman—” He stopped. “None of us did anything last night to protect Carly or Elizabeth, and it doesn’t sit right with me. Sure, you got her out of that room, but it just—it bothers me.”
“You think I should have punched him?” Jason asked darkly. “When he pushed Elizabeth? Is that what I should have done?”
“Yeah—”
“Should I have stopped helping Carly so I could do that? You didn’t do it either, Justus. If you have a problem with how I’m handling this, go ahead. Tell me how I could have done better.”
“I don’t think Justus thinks you did the wrong thing,” Bernie said, stepping between them before Justus could snap back. “I think we’re all just concerned. I was very worried about Carly all night, Jason. Watching her go through that—it was upsetting. And we’re just—we’re just sorting it out.”
“She didn’t know where she was, Jason,” Justus said. “She thought she was back in that panic room—and Sonny did that to her. How do I work with him after this? After knowing what he’s capable of?”
“You’re not the only one asking those questions, Justus.” Jason exhaled slowly. “I just—I don’t have the answers. I’m sorry.”
“You better find them before Sonny does some serious damage next time.” Justus picked up his briefcase and stalked out. After a moment, with an apologetic smile, Bernie followed.
Brownstone: Living Room
When Carly opened the door to find Elizabeth on the steps, the blonde frowned slightly. “Uh, hey. I wasn’t—I wasn’t expecting to see you today.”
“Jason is going to try to stop by after work,” Elizabeth told her, “but he wasn’t sure how late he’d be. So I told him I’d check in.” She bit her lip. “Um…can I come in? Or…”
“Oh. Yeah. Yeah. Sorry.” Carly stepped back and let Elizabeth into the foyer. “I’m sorry. It’s just…it’s been a weird day.”
“I’m sure.” Elizabeth took off her jacket, hung it on a hook in the hall. “How are you?”
“Not entirely sure,” Carly admitted as she led Elizabeth into the living room. They sat on the sofa. “Michael doesn’t seem to think anything is wrong. I guess he’s just…” She sighed. “He’s used to being moved around.” She twisted her wedding ring on her finger, staring down at it. “I don’t…remember a lot of last night.”
When Elizabeth didn’t say anything, Carly looked at her. “You said you had this last summer. The disorder. Did you have memory problems?”
“Yeah.” Elizabeth scratched her forehead. “Um, it depended on how bad it was mostly. I got trapped in an elevator about a month after the crypt—I don’t remember any of that, just finally snapping back in the waiting room at the hospital, with my grandmother looking at me weird. And then I had panic attacks that weren’t as bad. I could kind of—” Elizabeth squinted. “I could sort of hear myself, but I couldn’t stop myself, you know? Does that make sense?”
“Yeah. It does. I don’t think I’d had anything like last night happen before,” Carly admitted. “Where I didn’t remember anything. I was having nightmares or losing track of time, but…it was kind of scary, to be honest. To come back to myself, be at Jason’s and not know why.”
She chewed on her bottom lip. “Kevin told me it was about triggers. And some are worse than others. For a while, Michael was a trigger because he was the last thing I saw before I passed out.”
“I’m so sorry, Carly.” Elizabeth squeezed her hand. “I think the scariest thing is not knowing what might be a trigger. The worst attack I think I ever had was back in July. Jason had that letter from Baker, and he put it down in front of me. He was going to tell me he’d gone to see him in Pentonville—but seeing the letter—I started to relive the night I was attacked. I disappeared into that night. Jason tried to help me, and I scratched his arm—” She exhaled slowly. “It seems so silly that the letter would do it.”
She looked at Carly. “I’m sorry, Carly. I wish I’d done something sooner. I think—I think after last week, after the way Sonny acted when he couldn’t find you—”
“You did the same thing I did. You put it away. Because Sonny can’t fall apart,” Carly told her. “When he falls apart, it makes things worse. When I was missing—Sonny couldn’t function, and Jason had to do everything. We’ve been covering for him for years, and it’s not working. It’s getting worse.”
“I know.” Elizabeth paused. “Sonny came over this morning. To apologize to Jason, to me, but I—” She grimaced. “I got the feeling that he thinks that should be enough. Did—was he here? We told him to leave you alone, but I got the feeling—”
“Yeah, he came over to apologize. He said Jason forgave him for shoving you—” Carly scowled. “I don’t—I don’t remember him doing that. I can’t—It’s like, I heard the door being locked, and my brain just—it flipped out. When—”
“I don’t know how long you were up there alone,” Elizabeth said. “I just know that Jason and I had been home from the hearing for about two hours—we were just sitting down with some dinner when Justus and Bernie came over. We could hear some shouting, but it didn’t sound—” She pressed her lips together. “It didn’t sound so bad at first. But then Sonny came in—he looked terrible, and then we could hear you screaming.”
Carly rubbed her throat. “You could hear me screaming all the way from the other side of the building? That explains why my throat hurts—”
“I started to leave to check on you, but Sonny pushed me back to stop me. I knew—we both knew something was wrong, so we went to get you.” Elizabeth looked at her. “You were in the bedroom, but you thought you were in the panic room.”
“I—” Carly blinked at her. “I did. I saw you. I thought—I thought Ric had put you in with me. Or maybe—maybe I thought I was watching you on the monitors. Drinking the water.” Carly closed her eyes. “I screamed at you all the time to stop drinking, but you couldn’t hear me.”
“You told me not to drink the water last night. Jason held Sonny back, and I brought you over to the penthouse. It’s—that’s what happened.”
“That’s what happened,” Carly repeated. “Mama didn’t know all of the details. She just knew the basics. I wanted the details. I need to know how bad it was. I can’t remember, but if I don’t know, I might forget.” She bit her lip. “I don’t want to forget. He did that to me.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“I know he thought he was protecting me. I understand that. He probably—he can explain it that way to himself, and I can get it. He hurt you because he didn’t want you to get in his way—to stop him from protecting me. But—” Carly shook her head. “But that can’t be okay. I can’t live like that.”
“You shouldn’t have to.”
“Jason went to work today. And—” Carly frowned. “You said Justus and Bernie were over at the penthouse. Why? It—it was after eight. They don’t—” She touched Elizabeth’s arm. “What happened?”
“Someone saw Ric again in Caracas,” Elizabeth said. “Which is good news. Because it means he’s still far away from us. Sonny had organized some meeting today with a bunch of the guys. I don’t—I don’t really know them all. But it was important, and Jason had to handle it. That’s why he didn’t come over yet—”
“Because he’s putting out all the fires. Like usual. I thought—I thought going back to the penthouse would make his life easier,” Carly confessed. “I didn’t—I thought if I were somewhere Sonny could see me, he wouldn’t lose it. He would stay focused, and Jason wouldn’t have to do everything.”
“But that’s not what happened.”
“No.” Carly was quiet for a minute. “I told Sonny that if he doesn’t get professional help, I’m not coming back. Do—” She looked at Elizabeth. “Do you think Jason will back me on this?”
“Yes,” Elizabeth said immediately. “Of course he will.” Then she hesitated. “I just don’t know if…if Sonny will do it.”
“Because it’s not like Jason is going to push him to do it. Yeah, I know. And God knows, it’s clear that Sonny doesn’t respect me enough to do it because I’ve asked him to.” Carly frowned, reached for Elizabeth’s hand again. “This—this ring is new. Isn’t it?”
“It is,” Elizabeth said with a hesitant smile.
“It’s nice. Ruby, right? Did Jason give that to you? After the hearing?” Carly asked.
“He did. Um, it’s nearly the same shade as a piece of Venetian glass he gave me a few years ago.” Elizabeth twisted the ring on her finger. “I don’t know if this is the right time—but after the hearing, he asked me—he asked me to marry him.”
“Oh.” Carly’s eyes widened slightly, and she took Elizabeth’s hand against to examine the ring more closely. She remembered another ring Jason had bought—a gaudy diamond ring that Carly had helped him pick out.
“I know it’s not a diamond—Emily said the same thing when I went over for lunch,” Elizabeth continued. “She thought it was confusing, but—”
“But it probably means more that it’s not,” Carly said, looking at Elizabeth. “That Jason picked something for you.”
“Yeah.” Elizabeth’s face lit up, and she looked at the ring. “Yeah. Exactly. I mean, diamonds are nice. And they’re great. But I’ve had two other engagement rings. And Jason gave Courtney a diamond.” She wrinkled her nose. “She made sure I saw it when we were still working together.”
“Yeah, that does sound like her.” Carly released her hand, managing a smile of her own. “I’m happy for you. And for Jason. Really. Yesterday—it was a tough day, but I’m glad you’ll be able to remember it for good reasons.”
“Me, too. Let me know if you need anything. I’ll pack things for you, or run interference if I need to—” Elizabeth started to stand, then swayed slightly—her hand reached out for something to hold on to—her knees buckled—
Carly lunged up—caught Elizabeth before the brunette fell to the ground, got her to the sofa. “Elizabeth, whoa—are you—”
“Dizzy.” Elizabeth closed her eyes, took a deep breath. “I’m okay. Just—just lost my balance—”
But Carly went to the stairs to call upstairs to the second floor apartments— “Lucas! Felix! Are either of you home?”
“Carly—” Elizabeth managed from the sofa.
A door opened from above, and Felix stuck his head out. “Carly? What’s up?”
“Elizabeth Webber. She’s having a dizzy spell—”
“Be right down. Get her some water—”
“Carly—”
“Quiet.” Carly went to the kitchen to fill a glass of water, and when she returned to the living room, her brother’s boyfriend was kneeling in front of Elizabeth, her wrist in his hand.
“Your pulse is thready.” Felix peered at Elizabeth’s face. “You’re flushed—your pupils are dilated—how’s the breathing? Can you breathe deeply for me?”
“Um.” Elizabeth grimaced, shook her head. “N-No, but that’s normal.”
“Normal?” Carly repeated. “I knew you were still having issues sometimes, but how often—”
“Are you short of breath a lot, Elizabeth?” Felix asked. He took the glass of water from Carly and handed it to Elizabeth. “Lucas told me about your embolism.”
“I’m calling Jason—”
“Carly—”
But the blonde wasn’t listening. She rummaged around for her cell phone and started to dial.
“I don’t want to worry him—”
But Carly wasn’t listening, and her call had already connected. Elizabeth grimaced, then looked at Felix, answered the question he’d asked before Carly had decided to call Jason. “Uh. Yeah, I guess. A few times a day.”
“Just a few times a day?” Felix raised his brows. “Or is it more?”
“It’s…a lot. But I’m pregnant. I’m supposed to be tired. Aren’t I?” Elizabeth frowned at him. “I—I’m just tired.”
“I’m sure that’s what it is. I’m in my second year of the nursing program,” Felix told her. “So obviously, I’m not a doctor, but I will say that being short of breath a lot isn’t a super common side effect of pregnancy. Dizziness, fatigue, sure. But with your medical history, I wouldn’t disregard it.”
“Jason is on his way over. He said to stay put,” Carly told her. “Felix, what can I do?”
“She’s okay—her pulse is starting to return to normal.” Felix tapped the water. “Drink. You might be slightly dehydrated. You could have stood up too fast. Could be a lot of things.”
“Great. A lot of help,” Elizabeth muttered, but then smiled at him. “Thank you, though. I appreciate you coming down.”
“Any time. What’s the point of having me and Lucas upstairs if you can’t use us?” Felix got to his feet, looked at Carly. “You want me to stick until Jason gets here?”
“No.” Carly looked at Elizabeth, who did look a lot better. “No, unless you think you need to—”
“I’ll just hang for a minute or two. Make sure you finish that water.”
“Oh, shoot,” Carly muttered when the baby monitor on the table emitted a cry. “I have to check on Morgan.” She turned and went down the hall.
Elizabeth and Felix sat in silence for a few minutes as her breathing slowly returned to normal, and she could feel her lungs relaxing. She sipped her water, then looked at the younger man standing by the windows, peering out onto the street.
“Felix,” Elizabeth said, slowly. He turned to her. Lifted his brows. “What would you say if I told you I’m short of breath often, and that I also have to use an oxygen tank sometimes when I get upset and hyperventilate? Does…could that explain the dizziness?”
Felix frowned. “I know that sometimes PE sufferers are given oxygen therapy afterward because exertion and stamina are a challenge, but you should be mostly recovered from that. The pregnancy—” He hesitated. “Did it go away after your PE? Or did it get worse since you got pregnant?”
“It went away for a while, but it’s back. And it’s gotten worse in the last few weeks,” Elizabeth admitted. “Maybe I just pushed myself yesterday. Maybe I just need to rest—”
“Maybe. I think you should talk to your doctor to make sure.” Felix glanced over when Carly came back, Morgan in her arms. “I’ll head upstairs—”
The front door opened, and Jason came in then, his chest heaving slightly as if he’d run from the warehouse. “What’s wrong?”
He went over to the sofa, sat next to Elizabeth, took her hand in his to measure her pulse. Elizabeth grimaced, and with her free hand, finished her water.
“Dizzy spell,” Felix told Jason. “I had her drink water, checked her pulse, and rest. Seems like it’s calming down.”
“I’m okay,” Elizabeth assured Jason. She showed him the water. “I probably didn’t drink enough water at lunch.” She paused. “But I’ll talk to Kelly and Monica about it tomorrow when we have the ultrasound.”
Jason met her eyes, and she saw the worry there. “Yeah. Yeah, okay. If you want to wait—”
“They can’t do anything about it today. I’m fine right now.” She started to stand, and Jason pulled her to her feet, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “I am—” She touched his chest. “I’m okay now. I probably should have stayed home.”
“Elizabeth—”
“Go back to work,” she told him with a smile.
“No, I’ll—” Jason looked at Carly for a minute before focusing on Elizabeth again. “I’ll take you home—”
“You wanted to stop by and talk to Carly today anyway,” Elizabeth reminded him. “If Felix walks me to the car—Cody will take me home. And I promise — I’ll call Monica when I get there.”
“Elizabeth—” Jason began again, but then sighed. Nodded. “Okay. Call me when you talk to Monica, and I’ll bring home dinner.”
“Okay. I’ll see you then.” She kissed him, then went to the hallway to get her coat. Jason watched her out the window as Felix walked her down the stairs and didn’t look away until Cody had driven away.
Felix went back upstairs, and Jason turned to Carly. “Hey. Thanks for calling me.”
“Sure. She didn’t want me to, but I figured—” Carly folded her arms. “Is she okay, Jase? I know she was having trouble yesterday, and then I didn’t think about last night—”
“She’s—she probably pushed herself.” He didn’t look convinced, but Carly didn’t want to make him feel worse. He shook his head, trying to put it out of his mind. “How are you?”
“I’m okay. Really—” Carly offered him a hesitant smile. “Sonny came by, and I told him I’m not coming home until he gets help. He won’t listen, I’m sure, but I can’t—I can’t keep doing this.”
“I’ll try to convince him,” Jason said. He paused. “I’m sorry about what happened. That I didn’t do more—”
“I could have done something, too, Jason. I knew weeks ago he was being too controlling—I should have stopped it. But I gave in. I told myself I was compromising, that I was trying to meet him halfway—” Carly shook her head. “But I wasn’t. I was humoring him, and it just made it worse. I just—I don’t know what to do anymore.”
“Me, either,” he admitted. He looked out the window, and she knew he was still thinking about Elizabeth.
“Congratulations, by the way,” Carly told him softly. “Elizabeth told me you proposed. It’s a beautiful ring.”
“Oh.” Jason looked back at her, and she could see that he was still preoccupied with worry. Once that would have driven her absolutely insane, knowing that Jason’s entire attention wasn’t on her. “Yeah, thanks. I—”
“You don’t have to feel bad about being happy.” She walked forward and hugged him tightly. After a moment, he hugged her back. “I’m happy for you. I didn’t always like her, but I’m glad you’ve found someone who fits.” She kissed his cheek, pulling back. “I’ll try really hard not to mess up this wedding.”
Jason smiled then, and Carly was happy to see it was more genuine. “You didn’t mess up the last one, Carly.”
“No, it turns out I did you a favor. I would have preferred objecting in dramatic fashion, not getting kidnapped, but I’m not going to argue with the results.” Carly shrugged.
“Me either.” He kissed her forehead. “Let me know if you need anything, okay?”
“I will. And same. I want to know how your appointment goes,” Carly told him as he started to leave. “Don’t forget — this friendship thing is supposed to work both ways.”
“I know.” He squeezed her hand. “I’ll call you.”
“I’m counting on it. Now, go wait for Elizabeth’s call because you won’t be able to concentrate until she talks to Monica.”
PCPD: Commissioner’s Office
Anna knew she was walking into a tough place, returning to the PCPD after a decade away—most of which she’d spent being dead, she reflected ironically as she set a photograph of herself and Robin on the desk, smiling at her daughter’s face.
She’d seen a lot of resentful glares she’d walked in that morning, but Anna wasn’t scared of hard work and didn’t mind dealing with idiots. She was used to it, after all. While Mac was a good man who had tried hard to do a good job, he hadn’t been strong enough to speak truth to power.
That had never been a problem for Anna.
She spent her morning arranging her office and catching up on open cases—spending time grimacing at the budget for Organized Crime and being pleased with the improvements in Major Crimes.
She glanced up around eleven when Taggert came in, a uniformed officer trailing behind him. She got to her feet, removed her glasses, and extended her hand. “Lieutenant, it’s nice to see you again.”
“You too,” Taggert said, shaking her hand. “This is Cruz Rodriguez. He was one of the rookies that started last summer.”
“Ah, yes, you’re being fast-tracked for detective status,” Anna said with a smile. “I read over the Lansing file for this morning. You did good work.”
“I sat in a car—”
“Really? Is that all?” Anna picked up a memo, put her glasses on again. “Was the Lieutenant incorrect when he said you ‘provided essential input in making sure that the investigation stayed targeted on Ric Lansing and absolved his wife of any prior knowledge?’”
“Uh—”
“Or that ‘Officer Rodriguez displayed courage and conviction when challenging superior officers on the complicity of Elizabeth Webber, not allowing prior biases to interfere, using facts to correctly ascertain that Ms. Webber and Mr. Morgan were working together to investigate the kidnapping, not cover it up?’” Anna set the report down. “Was the Lieutenant mistaken?”
“I—” Cruz frowned, looked at Taggert. “Um. I wouldn’t have written it that way, but I guess I did tell Capelli he was wrong a few times.”
“Which he was. You didn’t just sit in the car, Rodriguez,” Taggert told him.
“In any case, Lieutenant Taggert speaks very highly of all three of the rookie officers on his squad, and I’ve been impressed by the reports I’ve read from Major Crimes. Scott Baldwin has also been very happy with the cases turned over in the last six months,” Anna said as Taggert and Cruz took seats in front of her desk. “If only Organized Crime were doing as well—” She raised her brows at Taggert. “Any hope of getting you back over there to clean things up?”
“Uh, not at the moment, no. I was…burnt out,” Taggert said. “Too many years chasing Corinthos—I forgot why I was here.”
“Fair enough. The reason I wanted to speak with you today was the Lansing case. I understand that we’ve had a source passing us information about his potential whereabouts.” Anna tapped her pencil. “Have you learned anything that isn’t in these reports?”
“Only that there was another potential sighting in Caracas—the El Recreo Shopping Mall—but by the time it gets to us, it’s usually a day or two old,” Taggert said. “Mac told us you’d been working with Interpol on this even before taking over.”
“That’s true. I’ll pass the new Caracas info over to Interpol, and see what they can find out, but I think it’s time to let this case ago.”
Cruz tensed. “Let it go?” he repeated.
Taggert hesitated. “Commissioner—”
“Anna, please.” Anna sighed. “I understand how difficult this case was for the department—I read the coverage as well. I also know how dangerous Ric Lansing is. Or was. I assure you — I don’t make this decision lightly. But all evidence suggests he is out of the country.” Anna raised her brows. “Is there any point in pretending this case isn’t already cold?”
“No, but—” Taggert exhaled slowly. “No. I just…” He looked at Cruz, who also seemed more upset than Anna might have expected.
“It’s personal,” Cruz admitted. “It was—it was my first case. And I was there when we found Carly—when—”
“When Elizabeth Webber had her health crisis. I didn’t—” Anna bit her lip. “I realize there is a personal aspect to all of this, but—”
“Right after the Lansing case, the park rapes—that blew up—and Elizabeth was part of it almost from the beginning,” Taggert told her. “She didn’t know that, but I was investigating her case almost from the day Brooke Lynn Ashton was attacked. I know you’re right. Lansing’s long gone, and it’s a job for international authorities at this point, but saying that—putting the case on the shelf—”
“It’s like letting her down again,” Anna said after a moment. “Because you didn’t do more to catch Ric and find Carly earlier—because she nearly died. And what happened originally with her case. I understand that.”
“But you’re right.” Taggert rubbed his face. “The case is cold. So…let’s…let’s put it away. For now.”
Ward House: Entry Way
Justus could hear laughter and music from the kitchen the moment he entered the house. He stood there for a moment, his briefcase in his hand, his jacket still on, and just listened to the sounds of his wife and daughter making dinner. He heard a third voice singing along with Jill Scott, and Justus remembered why his sister-in-law was there.
And what today was.
He hung up the jacket and left the briefcase in the hallway, hurrying back to see his girls.
“Daddy!” Kimi proclaimed from her booster seat. He swung her into his arms, then leaned over to kiss his wife.
“Hey, did you sign it?” he asked with a smile.
Tamika looked over at her younger sister, Portia Robinson, and smirked. “I told you he didn’t forget.”
“I never said he would,” Portia said with a sniff. She stirred the sauce on the stove. “And yes—” Her smirk blossomed into a grin. “We signed it! Portia’s Closet is officially coming to Port Charles!”
“And Aunt Portia, too!” Kimi said. She put her hands on Justus’s cheeks so he’d look at her. “Just in time for Santa!” She wiggled, and Justus put her down so Kimi could hug her aunt’s legs. “Miss you.”
“Miss you, too, sweets.”
“Did you really remember?” Tamika murmured under her breath as Justus slid an arm around her waist.
“Not until I heard Portia,” Justus admitted. “It’s—it’s been a long day.” He leaned his forehead against hers. “But I’m home now.”
“Can you tell me about it?”
He hesitated. “Maybe later.” When his wife just frowned at him, Justus added, “Definitely later. I just—I need to take a minute. Let’s celebrate. We’ll open that wine Elizabeth and Jason gave us.”
“Already pulled it out and opened it to let it breathe.” Tamika kissed his cheek. “Love you.”
“Love you, too.”
Harborview Towers: Hallway
Jason stepped off the elevator and started to turn towards his penthouse, wanting to check on Elizabeth—
But he stopped just before he turned the corner, took a deep breath, then went in the opposite direction. He couldn’t put this off anymore.
He nodded at Max, standing in the doorway as usual. “Hey. I guess Sonny’s here?”
“Yeah, he got home a few hours ago. Hasn’t come out.” Max hesitated. “Uh, Jase, is there something I should be doing? I mean…” The guard looked towards the closed door, then swallowed. “Last night was a lot.”
“I know.” Jason paused. “I guess, at this point, could you give me a heads up if he leaves? Or goes over to see Carly? Just so I can—” Prepare. Get ready to do damage control or step in—Jason didn’t really know what he wanted—
“Yeah, sure, sure.” Max knocked then and pushed open the door. “Hey, Mr. C. Jason’s here.”
Jason went in and found Sonny in the living room, drinking a tumbler of bourbon—like usual. Like nothing had happened.
“Hey. How did the meeting go?” Sonny asked. He set the tumbler on the minibar. “Did Bernie or Justus have anything?”
Jason squinted at him, then shook his head slightly. “No. Still nothing. But he’s in South America, obviously. Not here.”
“Until one of our guys lays eyes on him, I’m not ready to accept that,” Sonny told him with a scowl. “The sooner I get Ric out of the picture, the sooner Carly will get over this.”
“Get over this,” Jason repeated.
“And look, can you talk to Elizabeth for me?” Sonny asked. He picked the bourbon up again, sipped it. “If she doesn’t forgive me, she’ll just keep badmouthing me to Carly, making her think I need help.”
“You—” Jason bit off the retort, fisted his hand at his side to help him keep his temper in check. “I talked to Carly. You might want to consider what she’s asking, Sonny.”
“Oh, don’t start—”
“You were thinking about it last summer,” Jason reminded him. “After Carly got home—you need to do something—I can’t do this again—”
“Then get Carly and Elizabeth to get back down about this stupid trial,” Sonny told him, flatly. “Carly and I can’t argue about Ric if he’s dead. She understands I wanted to keep her safe. She’s just afraid I’ll do it again if she comes home.”
“I—” Jason didn’t have the words, didn’t have the first clue how to convince Sonny that it was Carly who was right—that it was insane to suggest that Carly’s only problem was that Ric was still alive.
And because he didn’t know what to do, Jason did nothing. There was no point in wasting his breath when the woman he loved was sitting at home alone. All he wanted to do was sit with her and make sure she was okay.
“I’m not having this argument with you,” Jason told him. “Carly will do what’s right for her. But she’s right. You need more help than I can give you,” he added when Sonny gave him a dark look. “And it’s not up to me to tell Elizabeth to forgive anyone. You put your hands on her, Sonny. You know what she’s been through—you know she’s pregnant—and you still shoved her. What if Bernie hadn’t been there? What if she’d fallen?”
Sonny stared at him, a bit blankly. “I didn’t mean to—”
“No, you didn’t. But you still did it. And if you don’t think that’s a problem, I can’t force you to see it either. Good night.”
When he reached the door of his penthouse, he stopped in front of Cody. “If Elizabeth is alone at home,” Jason began, “don’t let Sonny in.”
Cody frowned at him. “What?”
“Just—for right now,” Jason told him, putting up his hand to make it clear it wasn’t up for debate.
“Okay.”
Inside, Elizabeth was sorting through a stack of magazines, then smiled when he came in. “Hey.”
Jason sat next to her, leaned over to kiss her. “Hey,” he murmured against her mouth. He brushed his hand down the back of her head, sliding his fingers through hair. “How are you feeling?”
“Better,” she told him. She held out her hand. “Want to check?”
“No, I trust—” Jason winced, then took her wrist. “I trust you,” he finished almost on a mutter but started to take her pulse anyway. It was normal again, and something inside eased. “Sorry.”
“I know. Sometimes it’s not about what I’m saying, it’s about how you’re feeling.” Elizabeth squeezed his hand. “I came home, I drank more water. Monica said everything is fine until tomorrow, and Cody sent someone for dinner when you called to let me know you’d be late—”
“Capelli’s trying to get a raid on the warehouse approved for this weekend,” Jason said with a wince. “I’m sorry—”
“Stop apologizing. You called,” she reminded him. “I wasn’t worried. Plus, Emily came over for dinner, and she dropped off these magazines for me to start going through—”
He looked at the magazines, realized they were wedding related. Jason scrubbed a hand down his face, then sighed. “I know I suggested the end of January, but maybe—”
“We are not waiting until after the baby is born,” Elizabeth told him. “At least—” She bit her lip. “Not unless Kelly or Monica think we should. Emily said she’d try to do a lot of it on her breaks, and I know Bobbie would help. Plus, maybe it would distract Carly—I could delegate a lot of this, Jason—”
Jason pressed a thumb to her lips. “You’re right. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you—”
“You didn’t—” Elizabeth sighed. “I just…don’t want to wait. Now that we’re doing this—I just want to get on with our lives, you know? You, me, married. That’s—that’s the dream.” She searched his eyes. “Isn’t it? Is it so bad to want to get to the part where we’re living it? Not waiting?”
“No.” He kissed her again. “No. I want to be married to you, too.” Jason drew her against him, nodded at the magazines. “So, what kind of wedding are we looking at?”
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