Lucky’s Room

“Sometimes…” Elizabeth sighed and stared out the window. “Sometimes, I look at him…and there’s so much anger in him–over his mother, over Sonny. It scares me.”

Lucky exhaled slowly. They’d been in his room for over an hour and Elizabeth had proceeded to lay out everything–every emotion, every event, every feeling she’d had since she’d found out the truth about Ric.

With every word that spilled from her lip, Lucky’s confusion at her decision to marry him grew. He couldn’t understand why she’d go back to him after his revelation about Carly, much less trust him enough to bind herself to him forever.

But he’d forced himself to have patience–eventually she’d get to the point–she’d get to the big picture, where he could realize why she loved this man who’d dedicated his entire being to destroying Sonny.

And now she was silent and he was no longer closer to understanding her than he’d been before she walked into his room.

“Are you scared of him?” Lucky asked finally.

She didn’t answer right away and that worried him. Finally Elizabeth sighed and shook her head. “No. He wouldn’t hurt me. I don’t…I’m not scared of him, but the anger he has–that scares me. He doesn’t think sometimes and he just acts.” She glanced at her ex-fiancé. “I think he’s the reason Scott Baldwin didn’t call me.”

“You think he wants Sonny prosecuted?”

“I think that…no matter how much he thinks he wants peace and to start a new life…the second he lost his reason…the second I lost our child…he decided it was just another reason for Sonny to be destroyed.”

Lucky stood and shoved his hands into the back pockets of his jeans. He crossed the room and peered over her shoulder into Kelly’s courtyard.

“It used to be so simple, Lucky,” Elizabeth sighed. “Remember when they were us?”

He followed her gaze and saw the Police Commissioner’s daughters Georgie and Maxie sitting with his cousin Lucas and with Emily’s newest cousin, Dillon. “Yeah. You, me, Emily and Nikolas.”

“The Four Musketeers,” she said faintly. “Why did it have to change?”

“We grew up,” Lucky replied. “But, hey, we’re still friends.”

“Yeah, I guess.”

“Are you going back there tonight?”

Elizabeth hesitated. “I have to,” she answered. “He’s my husband. I can’t…I can’t just abandon him because we had a fight.”

“I wish you’d stay here tonight,” Lucky told her. “Just give him time to calm down or whatever.”

“I can’t. If I run out now–how is this ever supposed to work?” Elizabeth asked. “How am I supposed to make my marriage work if a little fight sends me running?”

“It wasn’t just a fight, Elizabeth. He’s got this hatred for Sonny that scares you and–”

“Lucky…” Elizabeth shook her head. “Just walk me out, okay?”

“Okay.”

Jason’s Penthouse

“He was indicted for aggravated assault?” Carly shrieked.

Jason held his hand up to his friend. “Carly, let me handle this.” He turned back to their lawyer. “What does that mean exactly?”

“It means Scott Baldwin convinced the grand jury that Mr. Corinthos pushed the victim with the intent of causing her bodily harm. Add to the fact that Mrs. Lansing actually miscarried, well…the jury didn’t appreciate it,” Robyn reported.

“What happens if he’s convicted?” Carly demanded.

“He won’t be,” Robyn told the blonde with little patience. “Because I get to present a defense. We’ve been over this, Mrs. Corinthos. The prosecution was able to get an indictment because they neglected to call Mrs. Lansing. If they don’t call her at trial, I will.” She hesitated. “I have reason to believe Baldwin was bribed not to call her.”

Jason frowned. “Bribed? By who?”

“I don’t know that yet,” Robyn told him. “If I had any actual proof, I would have reported him to the Ethics Committee.”

“Okay then. Is there anything I can do?” Jason asked.

Robyn shook her head. “The most you can do is visit Mr. Corinthos as often as possible. It can’t be easy for him. I’ve got a bail hearing set for Monday morning–it’s the earliest I could get it.”

“Sonny’s already been in there since last Monday!” Carly cried. She looked to Jason. “Isn’t there a judge you can’t talk to? He can’t last another four nights. Please, Jason–”

“I’m going to pretend I didn’t hear you request that,” Robyn remarked dryly. “If there’s nothing else, I’m going to go and start work on the defense. You know my number if you need anything. Just remember, after six, I charge double. And triple on weekends.”

“You’re positive you can get my brother acquitted?” Courtney spoke up. “I mean, you said he wouldn’t even be charged.”

Robyn narrowed her eyes at the blonde. “I said that with Elizabeth Lansing’s testimony, he wouldn’t be charged. I can’t very well be held responsible if they didn’t call her, now can I?” she finished in a condescending tone.

“You can’t speak to me like that,” Courtney retorted. “You work for me.”

“Actually,” Robyn said, cutting both Carly and Jason off before they could speak, “the last time I checked, I get paid by Corinthos and Morgan Coffee Company. Now, if you suddenly became an owner…maybe then you could try to treat me like a servant.” She picked her briefcase up. “As it is, I represent Sonny Corinthos and Jason Morgan. His fiancée was not included in the agreement.”

She pulled the door open and left.

“I don’t like her,” Courtney announced sharply. “You should fire her.”

Jason exhaled slowly and eyed his fiancée. “She’s right. She doesn’t work for you and even if she did, you don’t get to speak to her like that. She’s a good lawyer and Sonny and I like her.”

“She couldn’t even get the charges dropped,” Courtney said, scathingly. “What makes you think she can get him acquitted?”

“Haven’t you been listening to a thing she said?” Carly asked. “She was depending on Elizabeth’s testimony to exonerate Sonny. Scott didn’t call her. At the trial, Robyn will present a defense, which she couldn’t do with the grand jury. I believe her–she’s not going to lose.”

“And what makes you so sure that by the time the trial gets here that Elizabeth hasn’t changed her mind?” Courtney demanded.

“Because Elizabeth has said from the beginning that she doesn’t believe Sonny did this. She went to see him at the jail,” Carly informed them both. “Now, I asked one of the guards and she came to see him right after I did. When I left, he was withdrawn and depressed. And now…now he’s different. He seems lighter, more hopeful about getting out.”

“And you think Elizabeth is the reason for this?” Courtney demanded.

“I think Elizabeth managed to do what Jason and I couldn’t.” Carly sighed. “I think she convinced him he didn’t do it.”

Jason looked at her sharply. “Are you sure?”

“Wait, why did she have to convince him?” Courtney asked.

“Because Sonny doesn’t remember anything he said to her–he just remembers he was angry and she was–that they were both yelling. He doesn’t remember walking away, or whether she did. He just remembers going there and then being in the limo.”

“You mean Sonny thought he might have done it?” Courtney asked, skeptically. “That’s crazy.”

“Not to Sonny, it wasn’t,” Carly said quietly. “He was genuinely terrified that he’d pushed her.”

“And you think Elizabeth convinced him he didn’t?” Jason asked, steering the conversation back to his question.

“I don’t know for sure. But whatever she said…he looks better, Jason. And you and I both know that it can’t be easy on him in there.” Carly’s eyes were glossy and she raised a hand to her mouth. “He hates small spaces so much. And every time I try to go to sleep in our room without him, I think about him there and it hurts so much because I can’t do anything. There’s no crazy scheme I can plot that will change it.”

Jason sighed and drew his friend into his arms. “I know, Carly. I hate to think of him being in there, too. But he’ll be out on Monday. And he’ll be acquitted. It’ll be okay. I promise. I would never let him go to jail.”

She nodded and sniffled against his chest. “I know you wouldn’t. You’ve never failed us.”

Courtney sighed and crossed her arms, rubbing them absently. “You know…I wonder who really pushed Elizabeth,” she said suddenly.

Jason’s cell rang then and he extricated himself from Carly’s arms to answer it. “Yeah?”

“It’s me,” Johnny said. “We might have a situation.”

Jason frowned. “What? What’s wrong?”

“Elizabeth left her apartment about an hour and half ago. She was upset and she went to Kelly’s. I followed her up to Lucky Spencer’s room and then went downstairs to wait for her. She finally came down with him about ten minutes ago and she left. But instead of heading back to her place, she went to the park and she’s been sitting there since.”

“Any idea what’s wrong?” Jason asked, rubbing the back of his neck.

“Not a clue. But Lansing is still at home, so I assume she had a fight with him. I wasn’t sure if I should call, but just to be on the safe side. Do you want me to just keep an eye on her at the park, try to talk to her?”

Jason hesitated and thought about how relieved Carly looked when she talked about Elizabeth’s effect on Sonny. “I’m going to call someone who’ll come and take care of it. Keep an eye on both of them and call in if anything changes.”

“Will do.”

Jason hung up and looked at the curious eyes of his fiancée and best friend. He sighed. “Sonny’s got Johnny on Elizabeth. He was concerned that if he didn’t do it, that whoever had would come back and finish the job.”

Carly nodded. “It was good of him to do that,” she said. “So what was wrong? Is she okay?”

“Johnny’s just worried. Elizabeth was upset when she left her apartment and it looks like she’s stalling on going back,” Jason answered. He picked up the penthouse phone and started dialing. “I’m going to call Emily to go check on her.”

Courtney nodded. “Yeah, that’s probably for the best.” She was minimally relieved that Jason hadn’t taken upon himself to go check on the brunette. Elizabeth was married now and Jason was engaged to her. There was no reason for the two of them to be in each other’s sphere.

“Em? It’s me. Listen, if you’re not busy…” Jason hesitated. “Look, I’ve got a guard on Elizabeth after her fall. Just to be careful. And Johnny thinks something is wrong. She’s been sitting at the park for ten minutes and before that, she spent an hour with Lucky after she left her apartment all upset. I’d appreciate it if you could go check on her–but don’t tell her I sent you or that Johnny is there…is that okay?” When his sister answered in the affirmative, he said his thanks and hung up.

“You’re doing the right thing,” Carly assured him. “Besides, even if you went to check on her yourself, she wouldn’t talk to you. She’ll talk to Emily.”

Jason eyed her curiously. “Since when did you become the authority on Elizabeth?”

Carly flushed. “Look. We came to an understanding…and she’s doing everything she can to convince everyone Sonny’s innocent. I can’t be civil to her in return?” When his gaze didn’t stop being skeptical, she growled. “Hormones, okay? How’s that? Pregnancy hormones. You don’t like the actual explanation, let’s go for the easy one.”

Park

Elizabeth sighed, hearing footsteps coming closer to the bench she was sitting on. She looked up to see Emily approaching. “Emily. Hi.”

Emily smiled in return. “Hey, how are you feeling?”

She shrugged. “I’m okay. How are you? How’s the chemo going?” Elizabeth asked weakly.

Emily sighed and sat next to her friend. Jason’s call had mystified her–it was the first time she’d heard her brother speak about Elizabeth since she’d been back but she’d been worried about Elizabeth since she’d heard about the accident. “It’s going well, I guess. We won’t know any results for a while. Listen, I’m so sorry I haven’t visited you or called–”

“I haven’t either, Emily,” Elizabeth interjected. “We’ve both been so caught in our respective dramatic lives that we’ve barely sat down and talked since you’ve been home. I want…I want that to change.”

“I do, too,” Emily agreed. “So, how’s Ric?” she asked weakly.

“Ric…Ric is…” Elizabeth hesitated. “He’s angry,” she said finally. “He’s angry with the world, but he’s mostly angry with Sonny. No matter how much I try to tell him that Sonny couldn’t have pushed me, he’s determined to blame it on him. I think he’s just turning this into another reason to get revenge on him.”

“Are you arguing a lot or something?” Emily pressed. “Is everything okay?”

“We had a bad fight today,” Elizabeth admitted. “He wanted me to consider the possibility that Sonny did push me and I just…I can’t. Because I know he didn’t. I was so furious that he’d use our child…our baby…as a way to get at Sonny…and he…” Elizabeth sucked in a deep breath and closed her eyes. “He said that it wasn’t a child, it was fetus. And that it was gone.”

“Asshole,” Emily muttered. She sighed. “Elizabeth, he was angry and maybe he didn’t mean it the way it came out. Do you love him?”

“Of course,” Elizabeth said immediately.

“Do you want this marriage to work?” Emily asked. “Or was this a marriage of convenience?”

“No!” Elizabeth denied quickly. “I love him. I…I wanted to marry him.”

“You’ve only been dating since January,” Emily reminded her friend, sensing her weakness and vulnerability. “You and Lucky dated practically forever before you decided to get married and look how that turned out.”

“Lucky and Ric are completely different,” Elizabeth said quickly. “And…I know it’s only been five months since we started dating and only seven since we met…but why does it have to matter? What does time have to do with anything?”

“Normally, I’d say nothing,” Emily replied. “Sometimes, you just know. But you’ve even admitted that Ric spent a lot of those five months lying to you.”

“But not about how he feels!” Elizabeth replied, desperately. “He’s always been honest about that.”

“And that’s very admirable,” Emily told her. “I know how much you needed that. But if he’s not honest about everything else, how you can you learn to trust him?”

Elizabeth hesitated and looked towards the sky. “I’ve spent so much time being scared, Em,” she whispered. “I’m tired of being scared and running. Ric…he loves me. I know that. And I love him. And even though getting married so quickly might have been a mistake and even though I can’t always trust him…I can’t run from him.”

“Sometimes we love people…and we want it to work out…but Elizabeth, love isn’t enough. It can’t be. Not for the long run,” Emily advised. “You have to trust the person. You have to know them. You have the most passionate and vibrant love…but if you don’t have trust, it will fizzle and you will be left with nothing.”

“I know you’re right,” Elizabeth sighed. She looked at the ground. “Trust–it is important. And without it, a relationship will never last. But I can’t just give up the first time we have a fight.”

“No, you can’t,” Emily admitted. “But you need to learn when to give up. I just hope your marriage never comes to it.”

“Yeah, me too.” Elizabeth took a deep breath and looked at her friend. “What about you? Have you told Zander?”

“No,” Emily confessed. “I’ve tried so many times but I think…no, I know he’ll be better off without me.”

“That’s not your choice to make,” Elizabeth told her. “You should never make that decision for someone else. Zander loves you, Emily. He’s never loved anyone else like he loves you. Pushing him away and concocting elaborate schemes isn’t going to make it go away.”

“It will if he hates me,” Emily told her. “And he will when I’m done with him.”

Elizabeth regarded her suspiciously. “Do I want to ask?”

“You can ask, but I’m not telling,” Emily said. She stood. “Come on. I’ll walk you home.”

“I’ll get it out of you,” Elizabeth promised as the two headed towards the entrance.

“Yeah, okay.”

“You’re a rotten liar,” Elizabeth reminded her. “I know how to work you.”

“Things have changed, doll, things have changed,” Emily laughed. Elizabeth managed smile.

Johnny stepped out from behind a set of bushes and started to follow, pulling his phone out.

“Morgan.”

“It’s me. Emily showed up and they talked for a while. Whatever your sister said, it worked. She left and she looked a little better. I’m following her now.”

“Thanks, Johnny. Keep me posted, okay? And if Faith Roscoe takes one step near that building, I want you to stop her, is that understood?”

“Understood.”

Courtyard

Lucky managed a smirk as his cousin took his order. “Never thought I’d see you working here.”

Lucas shrugged. “It’s an easy job and I get to see my friends a lot. Personally, Georgie got the better summer job.”

“Oh, yeah?” Lucky asked as Lucas set his soda down. “Where’s she at?”

“Dillon Quartermaine was doing something over at the courthouse–probably at one of the Quartermaine’s latest hearings about Kristina–he overheard some lawyer complaining she had no assistant. He knew Georgie was looking for a job and told her.”

“Well, that was cool of him. I haven’t really gotten a chance to talk to him,” Lucky said, “but he seems okay.”

“He’s a jackass,” Lucas muttered. “He’s only trying to impress Georgie. He’s got this thing for her.”

“So, who’s the lawyer?” Lucky asked curiously. “Anyone I’ve heard of?”

“Actually, yeah. Probably. Robyn Nichols, the chick defending Sonny Corinthos in that assault case against your friend Elizabeth. Normally, I’d be worried about her being involved with a mob lawyer,” Lucas said, “but this isn’t exactly a mob case.”

“No, it’s not,” Lucky replied. “Listen, I’m heading up after I eat. If Elizabeth comes back in, looking for me, just send her up, okay?”

“Sure. Is she okay?” Lucas asked.

“She’s fine. Just having some problems,” Lucky replied. “Thanks, man.”

“No problem.”

Robyn Nichols’s Office

It was late morning the next day and Robyn was up to her ears in legal precedents for Sonny’s bail hearing. She already had her new assistant alphabetizing those cases as well as ones she planned on using at the trial. She intended on impressing Sonny Corinthos and Jason Morgan with her performance in hopes they’d hire her permanently. Right now, it was on a trial basis.

She wasn’t thrilled with Courtney Matthews and sometimes Carly Corinthos could get a little grating, but Robyn was willing to deal with it for the kind of paycheck the job offered.

“Here’s the next set you wanted, Ms. Nichols,” Georgie Jones chirped helpfully. “You’ve also got a message from Commissioner Scorpio. He needs to meet with you about his testimony.”

Robyn managed an amused smile. “Georgie, first of all, it’s Robyn. And secondly, you don’t need to be so formal. I’m well aware that the commissioner is your father. You’re doing fine. I’ll need the next set in a few hours, okay?”

“Okay,” Georgie replied, leaving the office and disappearing behind the temporary desk she’d set up. Georgie was a little young for the job, but Robyn had received a personal call from Edward Quartermaine, requesting a personal favor. She’d been flattered and offered Georgie the job on the spot.

She’d get Sonny Corinthos acquitted if it killed her.

Port Charles Courthouse

It almost seemed like a stand-off, Robyn Nichols mused, as she perched on the wooden bench outside of the grand jury room. Inside, District Attorney Scott Baldwin was just beginning his case and he hadn’t called any of his witnesses yet.

Across the hall from her, sitting on an identical bench was the victim, Elizabeth Lansing. She was dressed conservatively in a pair of black cotton pants and a white silk blouse. Her dark hair was loose around her shoulders, but styled straight. She wore no make up and her only jewelry were her engagement and wedding rings. It was the first time Robyn had laid eyes on the former close friend of her clients and it made her wonder what Elizabeth Lansing could have ever had in common with two men whose taste in women ran to Carly and Courtney.

Her husband, in a silk Armani suit, sat next to her, one of her hands enveloped in both of his. They were talking in low whispers but were very intent on their conversation.

Mac Scorpio was standing a few feet away, leaning against the wall, the case folder in his hand. He was troubled and rethinking his decision to go along with Scott Baldwin’s plan.

Robyn was seated next to an irate Carly Corinthos and her vacuous sister-in-law Courtney Matthews. Carly was still going on and on about Sonny being stuck in jail while every word out of the second blonde’s mouth was about her upcoming wedding.

The groom in question was standing to the right of his fiancée, leaning against the wall. Every once in a while, Jason would glance at Elizabeth before looking at the end of the hallway where Johnny, Max and Marco were standing. To anyone who didn’t know any better, they’d think each of them had a guard. Elizabeth wouldn’t suspect that Johnny was there guarding her and that’s the way Jason preferred it.

Just because they were no longer close and not friends, it didn’t mean he didn’t care about what happened to her. He was deeply sorry she’d miscarried her child and found himself wondering–not for the first time–why she was married to Ric Lansing anyway. Did he have something on her? Was he blackmailing her?

The door opened then with a slight squeak that shattered the tension-filled silence. A uniformed man stepped out, the bailiff Robyn decided. He cleared his throat. “Uh, Commissioner Scorpio, they’re ready for you.”

Mac nodded and he paused in front of Elizabeth and Ric. “No matter what happens here today,” he told the couple, “I won’t stop looking for the person who really did it.”

Elizabeth nodded. “I know you won’t, Commissioner.”

He nodded and stepped inside the courtroom.

Elizabeth shifted in her seat and sighed a little. Ric frowned. “Do you need something?” he asked, for once his voice carrying to the other side of the hallway. “Coffee? Tea?”

She shook her head. “No. I just…I want this over with.”

“Well, if you hadn’t accused Sonny,” Courtney muttered, shooting the brunette a nasty look.

“Courtney,” Carly admonished quietly. “You know that’s not true.”

“Well, why else was Sonny arrested?” Courtney demanded. “They have no evidence against him. All they have is her word that she was pushed. That’s as good as accusing him.”

Elizabeth sighed and shook her head. “Courtney, this isn’t what I wanted. I think that they’re wasting their time trying to prosecute Sonny. We all know he didn’t do it. And all I want is the person who did brought to justice.”

Courtney rolled her eyes. “You’re so perfect aren’t you?” she snarled, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “You think you have the perfect life now that Ric has decided he’d rather be with you than destroy my brother. Well, I’ve got news for you–it’s not. Because Sonny hates Ric and–”

“Courtney,” Jason cut in quietly. She looked up at him and he shook his head. “Stop it. This isn’t the time or the place.”

Ric glared at the younger man. “Well, it’s good to know where you stand on this,” he snapped. “You can let your little twit of a girlfriend shoot her mouth off to Elizabeth, spouting lies but all you’ll tell her is that this isn’t the time–”

“Ric,” Elizabeth interrupted. She sighed. “Please don’t fight. Courtney and Jason are going to believe what they want to believe. Arguing is only going to make it worse.”

“That’s so self-sacrificing of you,” Courtney retorted. “Aren’t you the little angel?”

“Courtney please!”

Courtney looked at her sister-in-law. “Carly, I–”

“Elizabeth didn’t accuse Sonny. She’s even made a statement to the police stating that he didn’t do it. So just stop blaming her already. Don’t use this tragedy to further your dislike of her.” Carly’s eyes flicked to Ric. “And don’t you use this to get at Sonny. What happened was horrible and we’re all sorry. But it’s ridiculous to keep on with all this fighting.”

Elizabeth nodded. “Carly’s right.” She stood. “I’m going to get some air. Come get me when they need me to testify?” she asked Ric.

“Sure,” Ric said. He stood. “I’ll come with you if you want,” he offered.

Elizabeth shook her head. “No. I’ll be fine.”

She slipped her purse over her shoulder and headed towards the elevators. When she had slipped inside, Jason met Johnny’s eyes from the other end of the hall and tipped his head towards the bank of elevators. Johnny nodded and went towards the stairs.

After a few moments, Robyn shook her head. “You’re all a bunch of idiots,” she muttered under her breath.

Carly, being seated next to her, glared at her but said nothing.

PC Courthouse: Court Steps

Elizabeth took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She’d needed to get away from the scene as quickly as possible. Sitting in the small space, across from Courtney, Carly and Jason was almost suffocating. She’d felt so guilty for being there with her husband–and she felt stupid for being guilty. She loved Ric. She was glad she’d married him.

She didn’t have to answer to anyone–not to Jason, Sonny, Courtney or Carly–about her reasons for marrying him. None of them knew her–they couldn’t possibly understand why she loved him.

Hell, she didn’t even understand it.

Lucky had offered to be with her today, but she turned him down. It would have been uncomfortable enough at the courthouse with the resident mobster, the blondes, and her husband. She didn’t need to toss in the ex-fiancé.

She sat down on the steps and dragged a hand through hair. She loathed the idea of going into a court room, knowing that Scott Baldwin was going to use this opportunity to finally get Sonny where he wanted him.

“Hey, Mrs. Lansing.”

Elizabeth looked up and smiled. “Johnny. Long time no see.”

Johnny shrugged and sat beside her. “I’m here with the wife,” he told her. “Saw you leave and wanted check on you.”

She nodded. “I’m fine.”

“Yeah, you always are, aren’t you?” Johnny replied. “I also wanted a chance to tell you I was sorry.”

“Thanks,” Elizabeth said. She sighed. “I have a bad feeling, Johnny.”

“Why’s that, Mrs. Lansing?” Johnny asked.

She shook her head and stood. “I just don’t think this is going to go away. I’d better get inside.”

“I’ll walk back with you.”

Court Room

“And did Mrs. Lansing tell you that she did not see Mr. Corinthos leave the plaza?” Scott questioned.

Mac glared at the DA, realizing that Scott had no intention of doing the right thing. “No, Mrs. Lansing remembers walking away first.”

“Which is when she was pushed,” Scott finished.

“Yes,” Mac replied. “Mrs. Lansing doesn’t remember anyone else being present and Mr. Corinthos didn’t see anyone on his way out.”

“Now, did you find any evidence that anyone other than Elizabeth Lansing and Sonny Corinthos were at that location that night?” Scott pressed.

Mac sighed. “No we did not.”

“And is there any evidence that proves Sonny Corinthos did not push Elizabeth Lansing down those stairs, seriously injuring her and causing a miscarriage?”

“No, there is no evidence that shows that, but the victim herself states–”

“Thank you, Commissioner,” Scott cut in quickly. He looked at the judge. “That’s all for this witness and I’m finished presenting my case.

Mac gaped at Scott. “You’re supposed to call Elizabeth.”

“I changed my mind,” Scott protested. “I don’t see the need in forcing her to relive that awful night.”

“That’ll be all then,” the judge declared. “You may step down, Commissioner Scorpio.”

Hallway

Mac stepped outside the room and Elizabeth stood. “Do they need me?” she asked.

Mac shook his head. “Ah, no. Scott…he’s not calling you. At all.”

Elizabeth frowned. “But…I’m supposed to tell the jury that I don’t think Sonny did it. I thought that was what we discussed. Sonny’s…he’s not supposed to be charged.”

Carly launched to her feet. “What the hell is going on?”

Robyn slowly stood and sighed. “Can we expect an indictment, Commissioner?” she asked.

Mac nodded. “Yeah. I don’t doubt the jury is going to vote on it. I tried to work in your statement, Elizabeth. But he cut me off.”

Elizabeth closed her eyes. “That doesn’t surprise me.”

“Because this is exactly what you wanted!” Courtney seethed as she stood. She advanced on the other woman. “You’re in on this whole thing with Ric, aren’t you? This is just another part of the plan!”

Elizabeth sighed and shook her head. “No, Courtney.”

Jason tugged on Courtney’s arm. “Calm down. He’s not going to be convicted.”

“It doesn’t matter!” Courtney retorted angrily. She yanked her arm out of Jason’s grasp. “He’s still going to trial for a crime that probably didn’t even happen.”

Elizabeth frowned. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” Courtney replied. Her eyes narrowed. “We’ve only got your word for it that you were pushed. How do we know you didn’t trip and fall?”

Elizabeth’s eyes filled with tears. “You think I’d use the death of my own baby to get at Sonny?” she asked softly. “You don’t think very much of me do you?”

Courtney faltered then and hesitated. “I…”

Elizabeth turned to Ric. “I want to go home, now. Can we just go?”

Ric nodded and put an arm around his wife’s waist, leading her towards the elevator. He pressed the button and they stepped inside.

Once they were gone, Carly turned to her sister-in-law. “I cannot believe you said that to her.”

Courtney sighed. “Look, I was upset. I went too far–”

“You’re damn right you did,” Carly snapped. “God, Courtney, losing a child is one of the worst things a woman can go through and you just threw it in her face. Grow up.”

Courtney glared at her friend and stalked down the hallway towards the stairs.

“You need to control her,” Carly warned Jason. “She can’t be going around, attacking people like that. It’s not right.”

Jason nodded. “Yeah. You’re right.” He sighed and followed Courtney.

Robyn smirked. “You know what?”

Carly sighed and turned to the lawyer. “Yeah?”

“That’s the most intelligent thing you’ve said all day.” She picked her briefcase up from the floor. “I’ll hang around and wait for the actual indictment, but you can go home if you want. Once I get it, I’ll head over to my office and do a brief to get a bail hearing.” She patted Carly’s shoulder. “Don’t worry. It’ll be okay.”

Lansing Apartment

Elizabeth tossed the purse on the couch and stalked over to the window. “This is unacceptable,” she declared.

Ric remained silent, removing his suit jacket and carefully set it on the back of the desk chair. He loosened his tie and started to untie it.

“He didn’t do this,” Elizabeth continued. She yanked the curtains back and stared over the Port Charles park. It was almost ironic that she lived with a view of the fountain, she mused. The rape victim with a park view. Who would have thought?

“Elizabeth, I know that you want to believe that,” Ric began finally, “but the truth is, we don’t know that. We don’t know who pushed you and it could have easily been Sonny.”

“It easily could have been Faith Roscoe!” Elizabeth retorted whirling to face him. “Remember her? Your little psycho one-night stand?”

Ric exhaled slowly. “I won’t deny that Faith is capable of this, but–”

“And Sonny isn’t,” Elizabeth snapped. She crossed the room to the kitchen and disappeared inside. After a moment he followed her and watched as she made herself a cup of hot chocolate. “He may be your brother, but I’ve know him for years. God, I snuck into his wedding to Brenda Barrett. My boyfriend was thought to have died because he slept in a building connected to Sonny.” She glared at her husband. “Sonny may be your blood, but I’m the one who knows him.”

“Fine. Then believe Sonny is perfect. Believe he can do no wrong,” Ric replied angrily.

“I’m not an idiot,” Elizabeth countered. “I know who he is, what he does. I’ve always known. But I know that he didn’t do this.”

“The fact is you don’t want to him to have done this,” Ric told her. “You don’t want it to have been him, so in your mind, there’s no chance that it was. You won’t even consider the possibility–”

“Don’t you dare use this as a reason to renew your stupid revenge against Sonny!” Elizabeth cried, finally voice the fear that had been wracking her since the miscarriage. “Don’t you use our child as a reason to destroy him!”

“We don’t have a child, Elizabeth!” Ric yelled back. “We had a fetus and it’s gone now!”

She choked out a sob and pushed past him and by the time he’d gotten to the door, she was already on the elevator and gone.

Lucky’s Room

Lucky pulled the door open, stopping the pounding against the cheap wood. He found Elizabeth on his doorstep, silent tears streaking down her face and violently trembling.

“I…” She shook her head and tried again. “I didn’t have anywhere else to go,” she said softly.

Lucky reached for her and drew her shaking body into his arms. “It’s okay,” he murmured in her ear. He closed the door behind her and shook his head. “It’s okay, Elizabeth. You can always come to me.”

Then…and only then…did Elizabeth break down and sob.

Lansing Apartment

Elizabeth was curled up on the couch, reading a magazine when Ric came home late that afternoon. He tried not to look at the plush teddy bear still perched on the mantel of the fireplace. He’d tried to take it down when he’d first come home from the hospital, but he’d found himself unable to do so.

Elizabeth had touched it once when she’d come home. She’d picked it up, stared at it for a moment and then set it back in its place. It seemed neither of them were quite ready to give up the fantasy of their own family.

He’d been avoiding her–he knew it, and he knew that she knew it. Ever since the horrible day in the hospital when she’d looked up at him with those beautiful trusting eyes and asked him why he’d made Carly believe they’d slept together.

He couldn’t answer her and he found that it was hard to look at her now. She had a right to know why someone she’d been dating had pretended to sleep with someone else and she had even more of a right to know why her husband had done it.

He’d spent the last week or so searching for the answer, an answer that she’d accept and understand. An answer so that they’d be able to put it behind them and move on.

He hadn’t found that magical answer yet, but he was tired of avoiding her. So he was going to tell her the truth.

Elizabeth looked up at him from her position on the couch. She was facing the door–almost as if she was waiting for him to come home. She closed the magazine she’d been reading and set it on the table. “Mac Scorpio was by,” she told him. “You didn’t tell me he’d called.”

Ric nodded and sat gingerly on the other end of the couch. “I know. I’m sorry. I didn’t want to be here when he came by.”

‘Why not?” Elizabeth asked softly, hurt. “It didn’t occur to you that maybe I’d need you here?”

He exhaled slowly. “I was wrong not to be here and I admit that. I know that he arrested Sonny after he left here–I heard about it on the radio while I was driving home. But I should have been here for you.”

“What’s going on?” Elizabeth asked. “You’re never home, don’t think I don’t know that you’ve been avoiding me. Why?”

“Because I don’t know what to say to you,” Ric admitted. “You asked me to tell you why I made Carly believe we’d slept together and I didn’t answer you. The truth is, Elizabeth, that the only answer I have is not good enough for you. It won’t make you forgive me and you probably won’t accept it. And all I’ve been trying to do this last week is find an answer that’s good enough.”

She sighed and drew her knees up, wrapping her arms around them. “I don’t need an answer like that. How am I supposed to know you, supposed to trust you…if you’re constantly searching for some way to explain the truth away. I don’t need to be coddled or protected…all I want is the truth.”

“The truth is that I wanted leverage on Sonny,” Ric said quietly. “He didn’t trust me, he didn’t want to let me near him. Nothing I’d done up to that point had worked. I saw Carly at Jake’s. She was drunk…and I could tell she was close to passing out. I took her to the motel room and the idea…the idea just occurred to me.”

“You wanted to get close to Sonny so that you could destroy him,” Elizabeth said slowly. “Why?”

“We’re half-brothers,” Ric said unnecessarily. “We share the same mother. When our mother was pregnant with me, she and Sonny and my father were staying at the house on Martha’s Vineyard. He pushed her down the stairs and she nearly died. She nearly lost me. My father told her that he couldn’t be around Sonny–that he was dangerous. He wanted her to give him up and she wouldn’t. She chose him–over me.”

Elizabeth sighed and slid closer to him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “He was just a little boy,” she said softly. She used one of her hands to stroke his hair. He turned and pressed his face into her neck. “He was a little boy and it wasn’t his choice to make Adela choose. It was your father’s. I can’t imagine any mother who would turn their child over for adoption.”

“But she didn’t even think twice about giving me up,” Ric said in a strained voice. Elizabeth closed her eyes and drew him closer.

“She was in love with your father, right?” she asked. When she felt him nod, she continued. “She knew that your father would love you. That he would take care of you. That you would not be hurt. How could she know any of those things about the family that would adopt Sonny?”

His arms hesitantly reached for her. They slipped around her waist and tugged her closer to him. “I guess she didn’t.”

“She made the only choice she could have…the only choice that would ensure both her sons would be loved. And I’m sure she missed you every day of her life,” Elizabeth assured him. “I can’t imagine any mother who’d make a choice like that and not miss her child.”

“But he ran away…he let her die…”

“And I don’t think a day goes by that Sonny doesn’t regret that,” Elizabeth replied. “He’s so controlling, so fiercely protective of his family. He’s trying to compensate for failing your mother. And I’m sure in his mind, he’ll never measure up to it. He’ll never be able to make peace.”

Her fingers were still combing through his hair and she exhaled slowly, sighing in relief, when she felt warm tears on the soft skin of her neck. “It’s okay,” she murmured. “It’s okay.”

Jason’s Penthouse

Carly shook her head. “This is unacceptable,” she snarled at the lawyer Jason had hired for Sonny.

“I’m sorry, Mrs. Corinthos,” Robyn Nichols apologized. “But I can’t argue with the judge’s reasoning. Like it or not, your husband is a flight risk and you managed to come up against one of the few judges in the area that isn’t impressed by the name Corinthos.”

“Sonny cannot stay in jail all night!” Carly declared. She looked at Jason. “We have to do something–he can’t sit in that cell, you know that.”

Jason exhaled slowly and looked towards the redhead again. “What about the charges? Can you get them dropped?”

“I’m inclined to wait until the grand jury hearing on Friday,” Robyn told him. “If the statements are right and Mrs. Lansing testifies the way we expect her to, Mr. Corinthos will not be indicted and this will go away.”

“And what if Scott Baldwin doesn’t give her an opening?” Carly challenged. “What if Sonny is indicted and forced to go to trial?”

“Then I’ll reopen the bail issue,” Robyn said coolly. She was not impressed with Carly’s hysterics nor intimidated by Jason’s blank stare. She had only been recently retained by the reputed mobsters and this was her first chance to show her skills. The best kind of lawyer for people like them was someone who wasn’t scared of them–and could play on their field. “Mr. Corinthos will surrender his passport and we’ll make some sort of arrangement. I’m sure the only reason bail was denied was because of his name. Assault defendants usually aren’t held without bail.”

“I just can’t stand the idea of Sonny locked up all night in a tiny little cell,” Carly whimpered. “I want this to go away.”

Jason put a hand on the small of his friend’s back and directed her towards the door. “Carly, just let me handle this.” He looked at Courtney. “Courtney, take her across the hall. Make sure she eats. Check on Michael, okay?”

“Okay,” Courtney said. She wrapped an arm around her sister-in-law’s shoulders and they left the penthouse.

Jason eyed their lawyer. “What are Sonny’s chances of being indicted?”

“It all depends on Scott Baldwin’s questions and Elizabeth Lansing’s testimony,” Robyn replied immediately. “Mr. Corinthos is the only witness, he has a known grudge against Mr. Lansing. They both admit they were arguing. There’s no evidence that says he did it, but there’s no evidence that says he didn’t. If Mrs. Lansing gets the chance to tell the grand jury she doesn’t believe he did it, then I don’t think he’ll be indicted. Juries aren’t quick to indict someone the victim doesn’t believe committed the crime. If Scott Baldwin doesn’t give her that chance, he will be indicted.”

“And if he’s indicted?” Jason questioned.

“He’ll go to trial,” Robyn told him. “He won’t be convicted because then I’ll have the chance to present a defense. I’ll be able to cross-examine Mrs. Lansing, present different theories of the case. I’m positive, Mr. Morgan, that Mr. Corinthos will not be convicted for this.”

“All right,” Jason replied. “Then we’ll see you on Thursday.”

“You won’t be allowed in the courtroom,” Robyn said as she picked up her briefcase and headed for the door. “Neither will I. We’ll be waiting outside to find out.”

“I understand,” Jason replied. “Thank you.”

She nodded and left.

PCPD

Georgie Jones knocked on Mac’s open office door, a large paper bag in her hands. “Hey, Dad,” she greeted.

He smiled and motioned for her to come in. “Georgie, what brings you by?”

She set the bag in front of him. “Making sure you eat dinner,” she reported. “You’ve been late so often this week. Maxie and I are worried about you.”

He opened the bag and removed the wrapped plate of hot dogs, beans and French fries. “Maxie?”

“It was her turn to cook,” Georgie offered. “There’s a can of soda and some ketchup, mustard and fork in there.”

He nodded and started unwrapping everything. “How did you get here? Lucas?”

She shook her head. “No. Dillon drove me. He’s waiting outside and then we’re going to the movies.”

Mac glanced up. “It’s nine.”

Georgie sighed. “Dad…it’s just Dillon. I’ll be home by midnight, I promise. He’s just really excited about this new film that’s opening. It’s the old theater on Van Ness that shows a bunch of old movies and he’s been waiting for Some Like It Hot to open for the past month.”

“He’s really into all these old movies, huh?” Mac asked, opening the can of cola. “Well, I suppose with taste like that, he can’t be that bad.”

“He’s not,” Georgie replied. “He’s really great. I know if you got more of a chance to get to know him, you’d love him.”

“I thought you were interested in Lucas,” Mac said.

She sighed. “I was. But after I had an absolutely boring time at the prom, I gave up on that. Besides, Dillon’s just a friend.”

He nodded. “Okay. If you say so.”

Georgie hesitated. “So…why are you here so late all the time?” she asked.

“Georgie…”

“Come on, Dad,” Georgie protested. “I can tell it bothers you. You’re so tense now and distracted. It’ll help to talk about it, I promise.”

“You’ve heard about Sonny Corinthos’s latest arrest?” Mac questioned. She nodded. “Well, I don’t think he’s guilty of what we’re charging him with.”

Georgie frowned. “Then why did you arrest him?” she asked.

“Because we needed to save face,” Mac admitted bitterly. “Because I need to save my job.”

“And the fact that you’re charging an innocent person bothers you doesn’t it?” Georgie asked. “Because you don’t believe you’re doing the right thing.”

“I’m doing the right thing for me, for my family,” Mac replied. “But no, on the large scale of justice, I’m not doing the right thing.”

“If he’s not guilty,” Georgie said slowly, “then I’m sure it’ll work out. I mean, the system is designed to set innocent people free, right?”

He had to smile at her innocence. His sweet little girl had grown up so fast–already dating boys–dating Quartermaine boys, much to his chagrin. She seemed so mature, so much older than her sister, that at times Mac would forget she was only fifteen.

“Right,” he replied. “I’m sure it’ll work out. You should go…don’t want to keep Dillon waiting.”

She stood and leaned across the desk to kiss him on the cheek. “Don’t worry, Dad. Even if you’re not doing the right thing right now, you will in the end.”

Port Charles County Jail

Carly clutched at Sonny’s hand from the other side of the table in the visitor’s room of the jail. It was the first time Sonny had gone to the county jail–he’d never been denied bail before so he’d never really gone further than the PCPD lock up.

His eyes were sunken and red, his face ashen and drawn. He hadn’t slept the night before–every time he’d tried; he’d seen the inside of the closet from his youth. He’d been unable to breathe at alternate times that night. He’d tried to pace the room, tried to remind himself that the cell was not as small as the closet was and that he was no longer nine years old being held in a small closet by his stepfather.

But the pacing had just reminded him that cell was small–that he had no way to escape–that he couldn’t leave at any time.

“The lawyer said that after tomorrow, this should be all over,” Carly told Sonny for the fifth time. “You’ll come home and we’ll…we’ll go to the island where the beach is nice and it’s open and air is fresh. I promise Sonny.”

Sonny nodded absently. “Yeah.”

“Even if you are indicted, she’ll get the bail issue reopened. She promised, Sonny. And–and Elizabeth will tell everyone that you’re innocent, that she knows you’re innocent. I know she will.”

“Carly,” Sonny said softly. “Go home. This place…it isn’t healthy for you.”

She shook her head fiercely. “No. I’m not leaving here.”

“Carly. Go. I…” He took a deep breath. He had to be strong–he had to show her that he was strong. That he could take a few nights in a jail cell as long as he knew his family was safe. “I’m okay. I promise. Go home.”

She was still shaking her head. “I am not leaving you. I am going to stay until they kick me out.”

“I will feel better if you go home,” Sonny told her. “I will be okay if I know you are at home, with Michael, taking care of yourself and our child. Please, Carly.”

Her voice was thick. “God, Sonny, I hate to think of you here, for a crime that you didn’t commit. They’re railroading you, Sonny. And I can’t sleep knowing you’re here. I can barely breathe. Sonny–”

“Go home, Carly. I will be okay,” Sonny said, even though he knew he wouldn’t he. He needed to show her that he was strong. He’d be okay if she thought he was strong.

“But–”

“Go home,” Sonny repeated again. “Please.”

Finally, she nodded in agreement. She stood and kissed him softly. He could feel her tears against his skin. She left the room.

Sonny was waiting for the guard to take him back to his cell when he realized that someone else was making their way through the room. She was weaving in and out of the other tables full of inmates speaking with their lawyers, their families, their girlfriends.

Elizabeth Lansing sat across from him and sighed. “I’m so sorry,” she apologized quietly.

He nodded. “I know you are.”

“I never once accused you,” she told him. “Even when I knew that’s what they wanted me to do…I can’t imagine ever accusing you of this horrible thing. I’m sorry, Sonny.”

“Elizabeth…I know you are,” Sonny said quietly. “But…I…I don’t really remember what happened and you don’t know who pushed you.”

Elizabeth stared at him for a moment. Her face was confused and she tilted her head to the side. “You think…you think that you could have, don’t you?” she asked softly.

Sonny shrugged a little and looked away.

“Oh, God…” she shook her head. “No, Sonny. I know you didn’t do it.”

“How?” he demanded. “How can you know?”

“I can feel it in here,” Elizabeth replied, pressing a hand to her heart. “I know you, Sonny. I pretend that I don’t, I pretend that we don’t know anything about each other. But I know you. I remember the night you and Carly lost your baby. I saw you…you would never hurt anyone that way–you would never push a defenseless woman down a flight of stone steps, much less a pregnant woman.” Her eyes filled with tears. “Sonny, you didn’t touch me. You walked away. I know you did. You didn’t do this.”

Some tension left his shoulders and he slumped a little. He closed his eyes. “Thank you.”

“Do you believe me?” Elizabeth asked intently. “Do you?”

“I…I believe you.” He raised his eyes. “I know that I yelled at you that night. I said things that I didn’t mean. You matter to me, Elizabeth. You’ve always been there when it counted and I can’t…I can’t fault you because you’ve chosen to believe there’s more to Ric Lansing than he’s shown the rest of us.”

“There is,” Elizabeth told him. “I know you hate him, but he’s screwed up. He’s screwed up from his father telling him that it was your fault Ric never had a real mother and believe me, Ric knows more than anyone else that he’s screwed up. But he doesn’t want to be like that anymore. He wants to build a life for himself that doesn’t include hating you and wanting revenge.”

He nodded. “I remember how much you used to fight for Jason and how loyal you’ve always been to the people you love. I hope…I hope your faith in Ric is justified and he makes you happy.”

“I will make sure you’re out of here,” Elizabeth promised him. “You didn’t do this. And you don’t deserve to be here.”

PCPD

Scott Baldwin scowled. “Why wasn’t I informed that there was a case pending against Sonny Corinthos?” he demanded.

Mac barely glanced up from his computer as he typed Elizabeth’s statement up. “Because Sonny is not a suspect.”

“The hell he isn’t!” Scott declared. “He was the only person there, Elizabeth Lansing can’t remember if he walked away first, he’s got a known grudge against her husband–”

“Since when does Corinthos push defenseless women down the stairs?” Mac snapped. He pushed away from his desk and stood. “I know he’s the prime suspect! But I don’t think he did it!”

“Who the cares what you think? The evidence shows different!” Scott yelled.

“There is no evidence! Circumstantial evidence, maybe–”

“You either do the right thing or I’ll take this case from you,” Scott threatened. “And I can do it, you know that.”

“Don’t you presume to lecture me on what’s right!” Mac retorted. “I’m not the one that bungled Alcazar’s murder trial!”

“We finally have the chance to put Sonny Corinthos away and you don’t seem to give a damn!”

Mac sighed and looked down, bracing his hands on the desk. “I understand that you’re angry about what happened to Karen. I’m angry that Maxie got a hold of drugs too. But it’s been a decade, Scott. Sonny doesn’t run drugs, he doesn’t do prostitution.”

“And that makes him okay?” Scott demanded. “And that just negates what he did to my daughter?”

“No, of course not, but you can’t go around as DA with a vendetta against Sonny because of that! You’ll be reported to the Ethics Committee! You could lose your license. Damn it, you’re a good lawyer when you don’t let yourself get carried away.”

Scott sighed and drug his hand through his hair. “Look, I’m just saying that we need to save face. The papers have gotten a hold of this now and they’re demanding his arrest. All we gotta do is arrest him. Elizabeth Lansing testifies at the indictment hearing, tells them she doesn’t think he did it and he goes away. We look good because, hey, we tried.”

Mac studied him and looked away after a moment. Scott had a point. The mayor was threatening his job again if things didn’t start looking up. To save face, arresting Sonny would be the best idea. At least when he wasn’t indicted, the egg wouldn’t be on their face.

“Let me do some more work,” Mac said finally. “I’m sure there are other people with a grudge against Ric.”

“Fine,” Scott told him. “One week.”

General Hospital

Elizabeth laid her head against the pillows and closed her eyes. Four days in this hospital and she was about to go insane.

The door creaked open and Lucky stepped in. “Hey,” he greeted, revealing a bouquet of white roses. She smirked.

“Still can’t find another color?” she asked pointedly.

Lucky shrugged and came forward to hand them to her. “Hey, white roses–they’re our thing. I figure enough time has passed that you don’t hate the sight of them any more.”

She managed a weak laugh. “Thanks.”

“How you feeling?” he asked softly.

“Empty,” Elizabeth replied. Her hand trailed to her abdomen. “I was so happy, Lucky. I was married, I was looking forward to a family and now…”

“Well…you still have Ric,” Lucky reminded her.

“Yeah…” she said faintly. She turned her head to the side. “He hasn’t been to see me in two days. Not since I asked him why he pretended to have sex with Carly.”

Lucky frowned. “What?” he demanded.

“I didn’t tell you?” Elizabeth asked wryly. “Yeah. Back in February. She was drugged, passed out. He undressed her and got into bed with her. She thought they slept together.”

He stared at her. “Knowing this, you married him anyway.”

“I was pregnant,” Elizabeth offered lamely. “And…I know you don’t understand, but I love him.”

“You’re right, I don’t understand,” Lucky replied. “But you were also in love with Jason, so–”

“Lucky, do me a favor?” Elizabeth asked softly. “Don’t talk about Jason. Because he’s the reason I married Ric.”

“What?” Lucky sputtered. “What the hell?”

“I walked away from Jason,” Elizabeth explained. “And I gave up. Despite how I felt. I didn’t want to do the same thing with Ric.”

“So you decided to go back to him, regardless of what happened with Carly?”

She nodded. “I thought…I thought having our own family would be enough. And it would have been. Oh, Lucky, he bought me a teddy bear the morning after the wedding and he bought wedding rings…you don’t know what it felt like to finally come first.”

He sighed. “Okay. So, now that…now that there’s no family on the horizon?”

“I just need…I need to understand how he could do that to Carly and think it was okay,” Elizabeth told him. “I need to understand that.”

“What did he say when you asked?”

“Nothing,” Elizabeth replied. “He shrugged it off and left to check on a job he applied for. He’s called but he hasn’t come back.”

“I’m sorry, Elizabeth.”

Elizabeth sighed. “Me, too.”

Lansing Apartment

Faith Roscoe was waiting for Ric when he entered the apartment. He stopped just inside the door and glared at her.

“What do you want?” he demanded.

She shook her head. “Poor little Lizzie. Her darling husband hasn’t been to see her in two days. After the big bad Sonny Corinthos pushed her down the stairs because she pleaded for your life, and in the process lost your baby…you can’t even see her?”

“Get out,” Ric snarled. He stepped aside and motioned to the door. “If you come back again, I’ll call the police.”

“You’re so law-abiding,” she purred. She stood and crossed the room. “It’s sexy.”

He grabbed her hand as it started to trail down his chest. “I’m not kidding, Faith.”

“Neither am I.” Her blue eyes turned cold while the warm smile stayed in its place. “If I were you, I’d use this opportunity to get rid of Sonny while you can. He goes to jail for assault, you’re in the perfect position to take over his territory. We can run it together.”

Ric shook his head. “I don’t want his territory and I’m not sending him to jail if he didn’t do it.”

Faith laughed. “Oh my God, you’re serious. What has this little twit done to you?”

“Get out,” Ric said. He shoved her through the door. “Don’t come back.”

She was still laughing when he slammed the door shut.

Sonny’s Penthouse

“This is ridiculous,” Courtney snarled, throwing down a copy of that morning’s Port Charles Herald. “Yet another letter to the editor asking why Sonny wasn’t arrested for pushing Elizabeth.”

Carly shook her head. “I don’t know. We haven’t heard anything from Mac since he was here that day. Mac doesn’t think he did it…but Sonny’s…he’s the only suspect.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Courtney replied. “He didn’t do it.”

“Since when does that matter to the PCPD?” Carly demanded. “Our best hope is that if he is arrested, that Elizabeth testifies and tells the grand jury she doesn’t think he did it. I mean if the victim doesn’t think so, that’s got to count.”

“She’ll probably end up accusing him,” Courtney muttered. “Just let Ric get five minutes with her.”

“No, she seemed pretty adamant about it when I saw her,” Carly replied. “She’s got bad taste in men and makes mistakes, but she’s not stupid. She knows Sonny would never hurt her, no matter how angry he got.”

“But Scott would never give her an opening to tell the jury she doesn’t think he did it,” Courtney pointed out. ‘”He wants Sonny and he’ll do anything to get it.”

Carly sighed. “There might not be an arrest. It’s been a week since Elizabeth fell. She’s home now. They’ve had all week to arrest Sonny and they’ve done nothing.” She shook her head. “Let’s talk about something else.” Her face brightened. “Let’s talk about the wedding.”

Courtney wrinkled her nose. “Let’s not.”

“Why not?” Carly asked, laughing.

“Because you’re going to want to help plan it and Jason and I will end up with a wedding that neither of us want. We want a traditional wedding but we don’t want to go overboard,” Courtney explained.

“I would never go overboard!” Carly denied, but she was still laughing. “Seriously, though…”

Lansing Apartment

Elizabeth gingerly stepped into the living room. She ached everywhere, but refused to stay in bed any longer. She needed to get herself moving again, her blood going.

She needed to talk to Ric.

He’d brought her home from the hospital, set her up in their bedroom and then he’d set up camp in the living room. He’d been attentive for the first two days she’d been home, but for the last three days, he’d been up and gone before she’d woken up. He was looking for space to open a law practice, he’d told her.

But she knew the truth–he was avoiding her because he knew she’d bring up Carly again and he obviously did not wish to rehash that particular subject. The trouble was that Elizabeth had never been properly satisfied with his explanation and was determined to work it out with him.

She pulled her sweatshirt down over her knees and curled up on the couch, wrapping her arms around her knees.

She’d gotten herself into a marriage she probably shouldn’t have rushed and now she was worried her husband wanted out.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Elizabeth sighed and pushed herself to stand.

“Be right there!” she called as she slowly moved across the apartment to the front door. She unlocked the bolts and slid the chain lock open. Ric had had them installed before she’d gotten home and Elizabeth suspected it was to keep Faith Roscoe out.

“Commissioner…” Elizabeth stepped back to let Mac in. “I didn’t know you were coming.”

“I called Ric last night and told him that I needed to see you both,” Mac said. His eyes searched the room. “Is he here?”

“No,” Elizabeth said softly. “He had to…he had an appointment with a realtor for some office space. I guess he couldn’t reschedule.”

“That’s okay,” Mac told her. “This won’t take long.” He hesitated. “The judge signed an arrest warrant this morning.”

“You’re arresting Sonny aren’t you?” she asked.

“We…look, Elizabeth, I know you don’t think he did it and to be honest, we don’t either. But the mayor is calling for the arrest. It’s my job and I need to keep it,” Mac explained.

“I understand that,” Elizabeth replied, “but what about Sonny? He’s innocent.”

“And you’ll testify that you don’t think he did it at the grand jury hearing,” Mac assured her. “He won’t be indicted.”

She hesitated. “I just…I don’t feel right about arresting an innocent person.”

“I understand, but it has to be done.” Mac paused. “Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Do you…do you need me for anything?” Elizabeth asked. “Another statement?”

“No,” Mac told her. “Well, I’m going go serve the warrant. I just wanted to warn you.”

“Thanks,” Elizabeth replied. “I appreciate everything you’ve done.”

“We’ll get the person who did it,” Mac promised. “But right now, I need to buy more time.”

Warehouse

“If it all goes well,” Jason said, setting the folder on Sonny’s desk and putting his hands on his hips, “we can open in July.”

“Sounds good,” Sonny replied.

The door to the office opened and Johnny stepped in. “Just got the word. Judge Carter signed an arrest warrant this morning.”

“They’re arresting him?” Jason asked incredulously. “That’s ridiculous.”

Johnny shrugged. “Yeah, well, the papers have been demanding his arrest for two weeks. I bet the mayor has been pressuring Scorpio to make an arrest.”

“I thought I put you on Elizabeth,” Sonny said pointedly.

“You did,” Johnny replied. “But she hasn’t left her apartment since Lansing brought her home from the hospital. Paul’s on him and Ric’s barely been home the last few days.” Johnny shook his head. “His wife has had major surgery and suffered a serious trauma and he’s out looking for office space.”

“He leaves her alone?” Jason asked, skeptically. “By herself all day?”

“Well, yeah,” Johnny replied. “Don’t be so surprised, Jason. You used to do it too.”

Jason glared at him. “That was a different situation–she was in a protected penthouse with guards.”

“Yeah, while you were in a dinky apartment with your present fiancée,” Johnny reminded him.

Jason clenched his fists. “You got something to say O’Brien?” he demanded. “Because you’ve been dancing around it for the last two weeks.”

“Hey, you two, knock it off,” Sonny interrupted. “Johnny, quit being a jackass–”

“Just as soon as Jason does,” Johnny quipped.

Jason took a step towards the guard but Sonny quickly stepped in middle. “Knock it off,” he warned. “Both of you. Johnny, just keep an eye on Elizabeth. I have a feeling Faith Roscoe had something to do with Elizabeth’s fall.”

“I’ll head back over now,” Johnny said. Before he could step towards the door, it opened again and Mac Scorpio entered with a uniformed officer in tow.

Mac took a deep breath. “Sonny Corinthos, you’re under arrest for the assault of Elizabeth Lansing.” He nodded to the office behind him to step forward and cuff Sonny.

Jason and Johnny stepped aside while Sonny let the officer lock the handcuffs on him.

“You have the right to remain silent,” Mac started to recite as Sonny was led from the office.

“Someone needs to call a lawyer,” Johnny said. He shoved his hands in his pockets. “Because honestly, the evidence is pretty tight. And all Baldwin has to do is phrase his questions to Elizabeth in a way that she doesn’t get to say anything helpful.”

“If she really doesn’t believe Sonny did it, she’ll work that in,” Jason said quietly. He looked at Johnny. “You should get back over to her apartment.”

Johnny managed one last parting shot as he stepped out of the office. “Isn’t it a little late to pretend that you give a damn?”

Sonny’s Penthouse

Sonny was glaring at Johnny when Carly came down the steps. “Hey, what’s going on?” she asked, peering at her husband and her best friend before looking at the guard.

“Elizabeth’s in the hospital,” Sonny told her. “Someone pushed her down the stairs after I left her at the Rice Plaza. She lost the baby.”

Carly inhaled sharply. “Oh my God. She must be devastated.”

Sonny shook his head. “I feel bad for her, but–”

“But what, Sonny?” Carly demanded. “She just had a miscarriage. I don’t care if she was stupid enough to drag you out just so she could plead for Ric’s life or that she was an idiot for marrying him in the first place. She just had one of the worst things in the world happen to her.”

“Since when do you care about Elizabeth Webber?” Sonny snapped, feeling even more defensive.

“I don’t need to be her best friend to sympathize with her,” Carly retorted. “If Alexis had lost her baby, I would have felt bad. God, Sonny. Do I look inhuman to you?”

Johnny stifled a snort, causing Carly to throw him a nasty look. Johnny cleared his throat. “Anyway, I’d expect a visit from the police as soon as they take Elizabeth’s statement.”

Carly rolled her eyes. “Great. So Sonny’s going to be accused of pushing the girl down the steps?”

“Well,” Johnny drawled, “Sonny was the last person to see Ms. Webber before she was pushed. He’s the only witness…and probably the only suspect at this point.”

Jason, who’d remained characteristically silent up until now, spoke up. “Elizabeth should know that Sonny wouldn’t do that to her.”

“Yeah, because Sonny is known for his cool temper and well-thought out decisions,” Johnny remarked dryly.

Sonny glared at his guard. “You’re coming real close to disappearing, Johnny.”

“Yeah, okay,” Johnny replied, clearly amused by the idea of Sonny knocking him off. Johnny was the third most important person in the organization, right after Jason. He was the head guard, he trained all the newcomers, regulated assignments–Sonny wasn’t going to take him on a long trip to the country because he spoke his mind. “You want me to keep an eye on Ric?”

“No,” Sonny said. “Clearly, you’re biased in this situation and I think you’d be better off somewhere else.”

“Like where?” Johnny asked, hoping he wasn’t assigned Courtney’s detail. He shuddered at the thought.

“Tell you what,” Sonny began, “you’re such of a fan of her and someone obviously has it out for her, why don’t you look after Elizabeth?”

Johnny narrowed his eyes. “You’re kidding right? You’re assigning me Ric Lansing’s wife? Maybe you are serious about me disappearing.”

“She doesn’t have to know you’re there,” Sonny said, shrugging. “Can you handle that?”

“Yeah, I can handle that,” Johnny replied. He eyed Carly. “You know, if you really feel bad, you could tell her so.”

Carly raised her eyebrows. “You’re awfully talkative these days, Johnny.”

Johnny shrugged. “Well, I know that Francis always spoke highly of Elizabeth. He really admired her and the way she tried to comfort when she thought Sonny was dead. I’m sure it wouldn’t kill you to try and show a little decency.”

“Johnny,” Sonny warned.

“Okay, I’m going. Don’t want to disappear or anything.” Johnny strode towards the door. “But I’m serious about the police. Don’t be surprised if Taggart shows up and arrests you right away.”

“Yeah, okay. Thanks, Johnny.”

After Johnny was gone, Carly laughed. “Who knew he had that kind of personality? He’s a kick.”

Sonny gave her a withering glance. “I don’t know what’s gotten into him today, but please don’t encourage him Carly.”

Carly shook her head. “Oh, no, Sonny. I like Johnny this way. Besides, he’s right. Elizabeth made me brownies and cleaned the penthouse and was…nice to me when she thought you were dead. The least I could do is offer my condolences.” She eyes Jason. “Stupid question. You want to come with?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Jason said.

“I’d ask Courtney, but that’s an even more ridiculous idea,” Carly replied. She turned back towards the stairs. “I’ll go get ready.”

When she was gone, Sonny shook his head. “I don’t know about this Jason.”

Jason frowned. “About what?”

“I don’t…” Sonny hesitated. He looked away. His eyes were troubled. “I don’t remember much of the conversation with Elizabeth. I don’t remember walking away. All I knew was one second I was yelling at her…and the next…I was back in the car.”

“What are you saying?” Jason asked. “You think you could have pushed her?” He shook his head. “No way, Sonny. And even if she accuses you, there’s no way you could have done this.”

“She questioned my honor,” Sonny continued. “And she was throwing the baby’s death in my face–about how she was there for me that night and that I owed her.” He exhaled slowly. “I honestly don’t know if she walked away first or I did.”

“Sonny–”

“What if I did push her?” Sonny asked, agitated. “Even accidentally? What then?”

Jason was skeptical. “You think you pushed a pregnant woman down a flight of stairs?”

“Why not?” Sonny murmured. “It’s not like I haven’t done it before.”

General Hospital

When the report of Elizabeth Lansing’s assault crossed his desk, Commissioner Mac Scorpio made sure to be the one to follow up on it. If he let Scott Baldwin within five feet of Sonny Corinthos’s sister-in-law, this case would go away before it got a chance to be prosecuted. Scott would muck it up like he had most of the past few cases.

He’d waited until early afternoon of Elizabeth’s second full day in the hospital before he went to take her statement. She was pale and she had some bruises on the visible skin of her arms, but for the most she looked as normal as she ever had.

“I’m very sorry, Elizabeth,” Mac began gently. “I understand that is a difficult time for you.”

Elizabeth nodded and looked down at the sheets of her hospital bed. “Thank you, Commissioner Scorpio,” she said quietly. “I didn’t expect you to handle this yourself.”

“What happened to you was abominable,” Mac told her firmly. “And I want to do my best to see that this person is prosecuted. But…”

“But what?” Elizabeth asked, meeting his eyes. “Commissioner?”

“We won’t be able to charge him with the death of your child,” Mac said contritely. “In New York, the fetus has to be twenty-five weeks old and yours was only nine weeks.”

She sighed and looked away. “I understand.”

“But they will be charged with assault,” Mac told her. “So, what I need you to do is tell me exactly what happened.”

“I went to Rice Plaza to speak with Sonny Corinthos,” Elizabeth told him. She hesitated. “He’s Ric’s half-brother and well…they don’t get along. I guess you could say I was trying to work on the situation.”

Mac nodded, having a pretty good idea of what Elizabeth was talking to Sonny about. “And Sonny showed up?”

She nodded. “We were talking for about ten minutes or so. We were arguing and I walked away. As I started down the steps, I felt someone’s hand on my back and they pushed me. That’s the last thing I remember before I woke up.”

Mac noted this down. “Did Sonny leave before you left?”

Elizabeth shook her head. “No. I turned my back and that’s the last I saw of him.”

“And it was just the two of you?”

“Sonny brought one of his men,” Elizabeth reported. “Max Giambetti, I think. But he told Max to wait inside.”

Still scribbling, Mac asked, “You said you argued. Were you yelling? Was he angry?”

Elizabeth hesitated. “Commissioner, I don’t think Sonny pushed me if that’s what you’re getting at.”

“For the record, Elizabeth, I don’t think he did either. But if we want this done right, we need to look at all suspects,” Mac replied.

“I understand. We were both angry, and yes there was some yelling. He can’t stand Ric and I don’t think he’s fond of me right now either. I called in a debt I probably shouldn’t have and I think we both said things we didn’t mean.” Elizabeth paused and sighed. “At least I did.”

Mac capped his pen. “This is off the record, Elizabeth. You went to Sonny to ask him not to hurt Ric didn’t you?”

“Possibly,” she hedged. “But Sonny…he wouldn’t hurt a woman. Not a pregnant one.”

“Look right now, Sonny is both the prime suspect and the only witness,” Mac admitted. “He’s the only person you can remember seeing there and I’ve already taken your husband’s statement. He didn’t see anyone either. Just you.”

“What are you going to do?” Elizabeth asked.

“Well, I’m going to question Sonny,” Mac told her. “And right now, I’m going to handle it personally. Because just between you and me, Scott Baldwin would screw this up and Taggart would let it get too personal.”

“Thank you, Commissioner. I appreciate everything you’ve tried to do,” Elizabeth told him. “And even if this never goes to court or you never arrest anyone, I know that you’ll do your best.”

“Thank you.” Mac stood and put his notepad away. “Rest, Elizabeth. I’ll keep you updated on the investigation.”

As soon as Mac exited, Ric entered. “Are you okay? What did he say?”

She sighed and held out her hand. He came forward and took her hand in both of his, sitting on the side of the bed.

“Even if they make an arrest, they can’t charge anyone because of the miscarriage,” Elizabeth told him. “Because the baby wasn’t old enough.”

“I know that,” Ric said.

Elizabeth sighed and looked down. “Mac is considering Sonny as both the prime suspect and only witness.”

Ric’s hands tightened around hers. “I assumed that would be the case,” he said as calmly as possible.

“Are you angry with me?” she asked softly. “For talking to him?”

Ric shook his head. “No. I don’t know why you felt the need to do so, but I know you had a good reason.”

“I wanted to ask him not to hurt you,” Elizabeth confessed. She sighed. “I just…I wanted to protect our family.”

He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “I understand, Elizabeth. And I love you for wanting to protect me.”

“I only knew about the baby for a week,” Elizabeth said softly, “but it was long enough for me to fall in love with it. Long enough for me to have dreams about what our little girl or boy would have been like.” She sighed and leaned her head against the pillows. “I just don’t understand why this had to happen.”

Later

Ric had stepped out for some dinner and Carly made sure of this before she knocked lightly on Elizabeth’s hospital door.

“Come in.”

Carly pushed it open and Elizabeth’s face tightened at the sight of the blonde. “What do you want?” she asked scathingly.

Carly hesitated. “I just…I wanted to say I was sorry–”

“Are you?” Elizabeth demanded. “I mean, since when do you care about what happens to me?”

“I really don’t,” Carly snapped. “But I’ve been where you are and I know how devastating this can be. I just wanted to tell you I was sorry.”

The fight drained from her face and Elizabeth looked away. “Thank you,” she said softly. “Did…did anyone from the PCPD talk to Sonny yet?”

“No,” Carly replied. “But you know what’s going to happen when you tell them you two were arguing and that you were both alone.”

“Mac already told me he’s going to have to look at Sonny as both the prime suspect and the only witness,” Elizabeth replied. “I told Mac that I don’t think Sonny did this and I want you tell Sonny that, too. That I would never accuse him out of spite.”

“I didn’t think you would,” Carly told her. “But I know it would mean a lot to Sonny to know that. Do you think that Mac will listen to you?”

“Mac is probably the best person to handle this case,” Elizabeth said. “He’s fair and he’s not going to arrest Sonny for the hell of it.”

“Well, I’m glad one of us trusts him,” Carly answered. “I should probably go. I’m glad you’re all right.”

“Thank you for coming, Carly,” Elizabeth replied.

Carly slipped back out and caught a glimpse of Ric stepping off the elevator. She turned and hurried down the hall to find another set of elevators.

Ric entered Elizabeth’s room and frowned. “Was that Carly I saw leaving here? Did she upset you?”

Elizabeth shook her head. “No. She just…wanted to say she was sorry about the baby.” She looked away. “When I found out I was pregnant, I was filling out forms for an abortion and Carly was here at the hospital too. She saw them…and she tried to talk me out of it.”

“She did?” Ric asked, clearly surprised. “Why would she care?”

“She had a miscarriage a few years ago. Her and Sonny’s first child–it really devastated them both,” Elizabeth told him. “She told me that when she was first pregnant, she was thinking of getting rid of the baby, but that she was glad she hadn’t. She wanted me to think about that…to concentrate on the baby, not the father.”

“Well…” Ric paused. “That was very nice of her.”

“She hates you,” Elizabeth said unnecessarily. “For what you did to her.” She hesitated and met his eyes. “Why would you do something like that? What purpose did it serve?”

Sonny’s Penthouse

Carly set her purse on the desk. “Well, she’s all right if that matters,” she told Sonny and Jason. “She’s already talked to Mac Scorpio about what happened.”

“What did she say?” Sonny demanded.

“We didn’t get into semantics,” Carly told him. “But I assume she told the truth. That you were alone and arguing.”

“Did she tell them that Sonny pushed her?” Jason questioned.

Carly frowned and studied her best friend. “Are-are you serious? Do you…do you really think she’d do that?” Jason just shuffled his feet and looked away. Carly sighed. “No. She even told Mac that she didn’t think you did it. But he’ll probably be by anyway.”

Sonny exhaled slowly. “So…she doesn’t think it was me?”

“Nope.” Carly frowned. “Sonny…” She stepped towards him. “I know you’re not sure what happened…but you didn’t do it. I know you didn’t do it.”

Sonny nodded and looked away. “Okay.”

“Sonny–”

Marco opened the door. “Commissioner Scorpio is here.”

“Send him in,” Sonny directed. Mac entered by himself and Sonny raised his eyebrows. “No Baldwin?”

“As of right now, no one else knows about this case,” Mac told him. “I’m handling it personally.” He shifted and looked around. “Do you want to call a lawyer or anything?”

“Sonny doesn’t have anything to hide,” Carly snapped.

“Carly…go upstairs and see if Michael’s okay,” Sonny directed. Carly glared at him as she passed to go to the stairs. “No, Mac. I don’t need a lawyer.”

“All right. Elizabeth says that the two of you met alone at Rice Plaza,” Mac began. “That you brought Max Giambetti with you, but he waited inside. The two of you argued about her husband, Ric Lansing. How am I doing so far?”

“That’s all fine,” Sonny said, hesitantly.

“Elizabeth went on to say that the argument got pretty heated, that you were both yelling. She turned her back and walked away towards the stairs where she felt a hand on her back. She fell down a set of fifteen concrete steps and she was unconscious for most of the night, so the last thing she remembers is the hand on her back.”

“After Elizabeth walked away, I left too,” Sonny told him. “I didn’t see anything or anybody.”

“What about Max Giambetti?” Mac questioned. “Where can I get a hold of him?”

Sonny glanced at Jason who’d been following the conversation carefully. “Jason, get Max. He’s at the warehouse.”

“I’ll go call,” Jason said, crossing to the door and leaving heading for his own penthouse.

“Max will be here shortly. Unless you want him to meet you at the PCPD?” Sonny asked.

Mac shook his head. “No. I’ll wait.” He paused. “Elizabeth doesn’t believe that you had anything to do with this and I’m inclined to agree with her. But I will follow up because honestly, you are the only other person who was there that night. You didn’t see anyone. There’s no one who saw you leave until you went to Mr. Giambetti inside. You realize what it looks like.”

“Yeah.” Sonny shrugged. “It looks like I pushed her.”

Mac nodded. “I’m not going to let Taggart or Baldwin near this until I rule you out as a suspect,” he told the other man. “Because we both know what will happen then.”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

“I’m not doing this for you,” Mac told him coldly. “I’m doing this because someone pushed a defenseless pregnant woman down a flight of concrete steps and left her there. They killed her child and it was done deliberately. I’m doing this because I intend to bring that person in and prosecute them to the fullest extent of the law.”

General Hospital

Faith Roscoe peered in through the window of Elizabeth’s hospital room and smirked at the newlyweds sitting on her bed.

“You’re going to wish you didn’t wake up,” she muttered under breath.

General Hospital

There were sixty-seven yellow tiles visible on the floor of the emergency room–visible to his eye anyway. He’d been counting them since the doctor shoved him out of out the trauma room almost forty minutes ago.

He concentrated on the tiles, convincing himself that it was important that he know exactly how many tiles he could see from his position sitting on the floor, his back against the wall, his knees bent and his elbows braced on his denim-clad thighs.

Because as long as counting those tiles was the most important thing in his life, Ric Lansing wouldn’t have to think about the reason he was here. If he didn’t close his eyes, he wouldn’t be back at on those stairs, peering down at her motionless body on the cold concrete.

His father had taught him this trick once when Ric had been cramming for the SATs in high school. He’d been going nuts over some mathematical formula and his father had told him that memorizing it wasn’t going to do any good. Trevor Lansing suggested he think about something else. That if he wasn’t trying so hard to memorize the formula, he might realize he already knew it.

It’d worked–he’d gotten a perfect 1600 on the SATs and now Ric was desperately hoping it would work again.

It wasn’t but he was persistent. Time to count the white ceiling tiles. One, two, three…

He was at forty-nine when a doctor finally emerged from the room. Ric launched to his feet. “How is she?”

“She’s stable,” the doctor replied. “We stopped the internal bleeding.” He drug a hand through his short brown hair. “Your wife was very lucky, Mr. Lansing. There’s going to be a lot of bruising and she’ll have to stay in the hospital for about a week.”

Ric nodded, letting out a relieved sigh. He hesitated and asked the question. “Elizabeth is pregnant…” he trailed off. “The baby?”

“I’m sorry, Mr. Lansing,” the doctor apologized. “There was too much damage. We couldn’t save the fetus.”

The fetus. His child, their child. The reason she’d forgiven him and married him was gone and had been reduced to a mere fetus. He inhaled sharply. “Is she awake?”

“She’ll be moved to a recovery room in a few moments and after a few hours there, she’ll be moved to her own room.”

“I want a private room,” Ric said immediately. “She has to have the best you can give her.”

“I’ll mark it on her chart,” the doctor replied. “A nurse will come and get you when you can see her.”

“Thank you,” Ric told him. The doctor strode away and disappeared in the trauma room again. Ric exhaled slowly. It was okay–Elizabeth was alive, she’d be okay. She’d be fine. He was disappointed that they’d lost their child and he knew this would devastate her.

But she loved him and he loved her. It was going to be okay.

His fists clenched at his sides and he allowed himself to think about the reason Elizabeth had just gone through emergency surgery and had lost their child.

Sonny.

He took a deep breath and tried to quell the anger rising in him. He had to believe that Sonny wouldn’t push a pregnant woman down a flight of stone steps. His own wife was pregnant–and Sonny had to be better than that. Elizabeth could have tripped and fell, there was always that possibility.

Because Ric had promised Elizabeth he was done with Sonny…and if he believed for one second his brother had pushed Elizabeth, he’d have to break that promise.

Sonny’s Penthouse

Sonny set the phone down and eyed Johnny carefully. “You’re sure about this?”

The seasoned guard nodded. “He didn’t leave the hospital all night.”

“Did you find out why he was there?” Sonny asked.

“No. He wasn’t admitted. He went in there last night and hasn’t left yet.” Johnny shrugged. “I don’t know why he’s there.”

Sonny sighed and looked away. “Check and see if Elizabeth Webber was admitted. Or an Elizabeth Lansing.”

Johnny frowned. “Ms. Webber married him?”

“Yeah.” Sonny shook his head. “She’s pregnant so I suspect that had something to do with it.”

“You’re not concerned about it?” the guard asked, surprised. “You’ve got someone watching him all the time, you think he tried to blow up everyone…and someone you’ve known for years marries him…and it doesn’t bother you?”

Sonny gave Johnny a withering glance. “Elizabeth makes her own choices.”

“Yeah…but….” Johnny shifted. “Does Jason know?”

“Yeah,” Sonny said, feeling strangely defensive. “I told him. He thinks she’s making a mistake but it’s none of his concern anymore.”

“None of his concern?” Johnny repeated. He frowned. “Did he say that?”

“No…but I’m sure that’s what he thinks,” Sonny replied. He narrowed his eyes. “You questioning me?”

“I don’t question your business decisions,” Johnny told him. “But I can question your personal motives. It’s not disloyal to do that. If you think Ric is such bad news, why didn’t you say something to her?”

“Why do you care?” Sonny asked, turning the tables on the guard.

“Because Francis would have wanted me to keep an eye out for her,” Johnny snapped. Sonny fell silent at the mention of Johnny’s cousin and Elizabeth’s former body guard. He’d been killed in Puerto Rico a few months ago. “Francis thought very highly of Ms. Webber.”

“I know he did,” Sonny replied. “He always requested her detail when the need arose. Look, Johnny, I can’t do anything to convince her he’s just going to hurt her. She wouldn’t listen. Elizabeth has a lot of loyalty and tends to believe the best in people.”

“That she does. I mean, she never listened to anyone about you or Jason,” Johnny remarked, dryly. “If you ask me, maybe she should have.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sonny demanded.

“Nothing,” Johnny answered. “I’ll try and find out if Ms. Webber was admitted.”

“Let me know what you find out.”

Johnny headed to the door, but Jason opened it and stepped through first. “Hey, Johnny.”

“Jason,” Johnny said shortly, pushing past the enforcer. He closed the door behind him.

“What’s his problem?” Jason asked.

“Ah, he’s a little upset,” Sonny replied. “He found out Elizabeth married Lansing and he’s worried about her.”

Jason frowned. “Why does Johnny care?”

“Because Francis used to guard her and I guess he asked Johnny to look out for her,” Sonny answered. “I’ve got Johnny watching Ric’s every move. He’s been at the hospital all night.”

“Why?”

“Don’t know. He wasn’t admitted, so he’s there for someone else. I’ve got Johnny checking to see if Elizabeth was admitted.” Sonny shook his head. “You know…I talked to her last night and I can’t remember a single word I said. I don’t even remember leaving.”

“Why’s that?”

Sonny shrugged. “I don’t know. I was just so angry at her. She used to be such a nice girl, reasonable and smart, you know? Now…I barely recognize her.”

General Hospital

Elizabeth moaned slightly and her eyes fluttered open to see Ric perched on the side of her bed. “Ric? What happened?”

Ric sighed and brushed her hair off her face. “You fell down the stairs at Rice Plaza. Do you remember?”

Elizabeth frowned and looked away. “I was talking with Sonny…and I walked away.” She looked at him. “Someone pushed me as I was going down the stairs.”

Ric exhaled slowly. He’d been afraid of that possibility. “Are you sure?”

“Yeah,” she breathed. “I felt someone’s hand at my back.” Her blue eyes widened with fear. “The baby…?”

Ric looked down and took her hand in his. “I…I’m sorry…but the baby…” He shook his head, unable to speak past the lump in his throat.

“I lost the baby?” Elizabeth said softly. Tears gathered in the corners of her eyes. “It’s gone?”

He nodded and closed his eyes. “I’m so sorry…”

Her lower lip trembled and she closed her eyes too. “Oh, God…”

Sonny’s Penthouse

Johnny strode back into the penthouse a half hour after he’d left and crossed his arms. Sonny and Jason looked at him, waiting for him to speak.

“Elizabeth Lansing was admitted last night,” Johnny reported in a calm voice. “She had internal injuries and a concussion. She’s in stable condition but she miscarried. Ric Lansing also filed a police report.”

Jason blinked. “Miscarried,” he repeated slowly.

“She was nine weeks pregnant,” Johnny told the enforcer, glaring at him.

“Why did he file a police report?” Sonny asked. “What happened to her?”

“Someone pushed Elizabeth down the stairs at Rice Plaza,” Johnny replied. “You’d better hope that Lansing doesn’t suspect you, because he already came after you because of your mother. What do you think is going to happen if he suspects you pushed his defenseless pregnant wife down a flight of concrete stairs?”