Written in 66 minutes.

Saturday, September 21, 2024

Quartermaine Mansion: Foyer

Jason’s determination to avoid Drew entirely during this trip was immediately foiled — the bastard was in the foyer when Jason and Jake arrived, trying to talk Scout into putting on her jacket so that they could leave.

“Jake!” Scout’s eyes lit up and she raced for her older cousin, hugging him tightly. “Did you bring Danny?”

“That kid isn’t allowed within six feet of my daughter,” Drew began, his chest already puffed out, “so if he’s in the car or—”

Jason reminded himself that an arrest for slugging Drew in his pompous mouth wouldn’t help anyone, and kept his distance and his tone cool. “For someone who never met Edward, you sound a lot like him.”

“I want to see Danny!” Scout said, stomping her foot. “I was supposed to go home!”

“You are home,” Drew said. He wiggled the jacket. “Now come on. We have to go. I have a campaign appearance, and I can’t be late—”

Scout’s face screwed up in scowl that echoed her mother and she flounced over to the bottom of the steps, took a seat, and folded her arms. “No. People keep taking pictures of me and I don’t like it.”

“I’m in charge, and you’ll do what I tell you.” Drew grimaced, then focused on Jake and Jason. “What do you two want anyway? Any more dead bodies to leave on my property?”

Jake flinched and looked away — and all Jason could think was how his son had thought Drew might listen to him — that the arrogant son of a bitch might remember a time when he’d called Jake his own son. And now—

“Maybe this was a mistake,” Jake said to his father. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“Why don’t you take Scout and go up to see your grandmother? Give me a few minutes,” Jason said. Jake made a face then nodded, heading for the stairs. Scout bounced to her feet.

“Excuse me, you don’t have—Scout, come right back—” Drew started to follow but Jason stepped in front of him, blocking his approach. “Get out of my way.”

“Seven years ago, Jake thought you were his father,” Jason bit out and Drew closed his mouth, pressing his lips into a mutinous line. “And I made it clear that I would never stand in your way if you wanted to maintain a close relationship with him. I don’t know what the hell happened to you, but if you ever speak to my son that way again or about either of my children, they won’t be able to find your body.”

Drew kept his eyes locked on Jason’s. “Are you threatening me?”

“You’ve done nothing but make every part of this situation worse—”

“I’m protecting my daughter—”

“You’re protecting you—” Jason jabbed him in the chest, and Drew fell back a step. “You’re dragging your daughter to campaign events, putting her in the media when she doesn’t want it. You took her from her mother where she wasn’t in any danger, making Danny feel even guiltier about the mistakes he made—”

“He’s a drug addict—”

Jason’s fist twitched at his side, but he kept it in place. “He’s a teenager, making bad choices. And he’s trying to fix them. Rocco’s an idiot. But  neither one of them would ever hurt Scout. And Jake?  Jake came here because he still thought there an ounce of good in you, someone worth trying to reason with. Because he still remembers the man who pretended to be his father—”

“I was his father,” Drew bit out, his jaw clenched. “A better one than you ever were—”

“And that’s what it’s all about isn’t it?” Jason said, stepping back, satisfied. “Being better? A real father doesn’t stop loving his kids. The way you’re treating Jake and Danny now? They’re better off without you. They know that now. And one day, so will Scout. Drop this bullshit custody fight with Sam—”

Drew sneered. “Still fighting her battles. Does Elizabeth know you’re here, white knighting for your ex-wife?” He pulled out his phone. “What do you think she’d think of this conversation?”

“Go ahead. Call her. She’s with Danny, trying to mend things between him and Sam.” Drew stopped, looked up, squinting. “She’s not like you. She know the kids come first.”

“Whatever. I’m late, and I don’t have time for this.” Drew dropped his phone back in his pocket and snatched up his own coat. “Tell Scout that she wins this time, but it’ll be a cold day in hell before I send her back to her mother’s.”

Kevin & Laura’s Condo: Guest Room

Rocco rolled over at the knock at his door, expecting to see his father — then sat up when it turned out to be Aiden. “What are you doing here?” he asked, scooting backwards to sit against the headboard. “I didn’t know the prisoner could have visitors.”

Aiden shrugged, then remained standing awkwardly in the doorway. “I don’t know. I guess I thought maybe we could, like, talk or something.”

Rocco snorted. “What? Doesn’t everyone have it all figured out? Don’t they know everything is my fault?”

Aiden grimaced, then pulled out a chair from a desk against the windows and sat down. “No one’s saying this is all your fault.”

“Fuck off. Everyone thinks you’re the good kid that was peer pressured by the two morons,” Rocco retorted. “And Danny’s trying to play good kid like he wasn’t with me every step of the way.” His shoulders hunched slightly. “No one even asked how we got the pot. Including you. You all just blame me.”

“I figured it was someone at school.” Aiden furrowed his brow. “It wasn’t?”

“Danny stole a vape pen from someone and he knew how to get the stuff. I never asked because I didn’t care. I just gave him the money. It was his idea to start doing it after school—”

“Okay, but Danny’s, like, trying to stop. Or trying to make up for last weekend. Rocco, we could have got my mom put away. Like they might have dragged her back to jail if your dad hadn’t stepped in.” Aiden leaned forward. “I can’t stop thinking about how much I could have messed things up.”

“So what if she did?” Rocco challenged, his eyes hot. “You were fine. Jason stepped in and you were fine. Nothing’s gonna happen to you if she ends up back there. You’ll get to stay in the same house with your brothers.”

Aiden straightened. “That’s a shitty thing to say — ”

“What? You think there’s something special about you? That you get some kind of protection from losing your mom?” Rocco demanded. “You’re not. No one is. So good. Danny’s pissed at his mom, yours might go to jail. But they’re alive—”

“So is yours, you shithead—”

“Yeah, okay, sure.” Rocco rolled over. “Whatever. I get it. Your mom is perfect and we have to protect her at all costs. Dad made that real clear. No one gives a damn about mine. Including him.”

Aiden opened his mouth, then closed it. “This is about your dad going away, isn’t it? He was gone for two years—”

“Don’t pretend you give a damn. You don’t. You’ll just say at least he came back, but he didn’t, did he? He was all fucked up in the head and had to leave again, and then still wasn’t right when he came home.” Rocco’s eyes burned, his throat was on fire but he forced the words out. “Mom wasn’t enough to fix him. I wasn’t enough. But Sam, sure. She was the magic he needed. And then he’s in love with her, and I gotta leave my house and Maxie and her gremlins moved in and now it’s not mine anymore. There’s nothing for Mom to come back to, but don’t worry. She’s not coming back anyway.”

Kristina’s Apartment: Living Room

She’d thrown out at least a dozen ideas already that morning, and Kristina wasn’t any closer to figuring out how to make Elizabeth or Jason look more guilty. She’d thought framing Elizabeth would be the best choice since Jason would confess but it was taking longer for that to happen.

Maybe he wouldn’t do that until it was a sure thing Elizabeth was going to jail — like when Michael had been sentenced to Pentonville, Jason had confessed to get sent away with him but even that hadn’t happened right away.

Damn it, if Molly hadn’t poked her nose where it didn’t belong, none of this would be happening. The FBI was positive they had their guy, and it was only because Molly made Chase and Dante redo every step that they were even talking to Harry about her apartment security footage.

And she couldn’t take anymore risks the way she had with the gun. It was just a miracle that no one had really questioned her visit to Elizabeth deeply. But could they come back to that?

Kristina paced the length of her living room again. The only card she hadn’t played was the knowledge Dante had covered up the kids getting high and drunk — and getting arrested on Elizabeth’s property. But if she played it — it wasn’t a guarantee to work and it would end up throwing Danny under the bus.

And it might make Dante and Sam suspicious. After all, how many people even knew about the drugs?

She grimaced. She was out of ideas — and praying that her luck would continue to hold. That something would come up pointing at Elizabeth or Jason before Kristina had to play the one weak hand she had left. She had to find a way to put the pressure back on them.

Penthouse: Living Room

Sam jerked the door open as soon as she saw Danny through the peep hole, her smile bright. “Danny! You came home!” She embraced him tightly, ignoring the reluctant way his arms came around her shoulder or the lack of enthusiasm. “I’ve missed you so much—” She stepped away, framing his face in her hands. “I’m so sorry about what happened last week at the station. I never should have left—”

“It’s okay,” he said awkwardly, pulling out of her grasp and walking past her — but not going further than the desk. “Um, is Dante around?”

“No. No, um, he went to talk to his dad. Does—Does Jason know you’re here? Is—” She folded her arms, forcing herself to take a deep breath. “Did he drop you off, or—”

“No. I mean, I have a ride—I’m not staying,” he said, averting his eyes and her stomach dropped. “I’m sorry about Scout. What Drew’s doing. Jake and Dad are gonna try to fix it—”

Sam forced herself not to make a face. “It’s not their fight—”

“No, I know. But they wanted to help. Um, I came to ask you—” He scratched back of his neck. “I came to ask you—the therapist I’m going to—he said there are sessions for my parents. And I know you didn’t want me to go, but then you agreed, so I thought maybe you’d go.”

“Of course.” Sam stepped closer to him. “I only refused because I was worried you’d been pressured into, but if this is something you want to do, if you need to do it, then of course I’ll help. I love you, Danny. You’re my son. I’ll do anything for you.”

Relief flood Danny’s expression and he seemed to relax slightly. “Good. Good. Thanks. I know—I mean, maybe Dante’s mad at me, but Dr. Fletcher said maybe he could come to. Since, like, I lived with you guys. And maybe I will again.”

Maybe. Sam had to ignore that word. “Of course. Dante loves you! And if this is working, then maybe it’s something we can do together. Maybe Rocco—” She stopped, everything going cold. “You said it’s because you lived with Dante. Are you—is Elizabeth going?”

“Mom.” Danny grimaced. “Don’t start—”

“You’ve lived with her for a week! How can that possibly compare with all the time you and Dante have lived together? Dante’s been like a father to you! Elizabeth is barely an acquaintance—”

“Mom. It’s not—you’re making this more than it has to be, okay? I live in her house, and Jake’s my brother, and she’s really nice. I know you don’t like her, but I do—”

“She has no right to be part of your therapy. She’s not your mother. I don’t want this—”

“Forget I asked. This was stupid. You’re never going to change.” Danny started past her, and Sam caught his elbow. “Mom—”

“No! This is your home, and you’re not leaving! Call your father or Jake and tell them you don’t need a ride—” She stopped when Danny dropped his eyes. “You said they were trying to fix things with Drew. They’re not downstairs. They’re not your ride.”

“Mom—”

“Is she down there?” Sam growled. Without waiting for Danny’s response, she lunged for the door, pulling it open and heading for the elevators.

“Mom! Mom! Stop! I don’t want to do this with you—” Danny tried to block the elevator buttons but his mother had already managed to press it, and he couldn’t stop her from getting into the car when the doors opened. “Mom!”

“I’m done playing these games with her. She’s going to learn to keep out of my business—”

Danny managed to get on board just before the doors closed and pulling his phone out, hoping he could warn Elizabeth — but Sam snatched the phone from his hand. He scrambled for it but Sam had already shoved it into his pocket, and short of tackling of his mother he didn’t have a choice.

The elevator slowly descended toward disaster.

+31

Written in 66 minutes.

Saturday, September 21, 2024

Penthouse: Scout’s Bedroom

The bed still laid unmade, the purple comforter scrunched in the middle of the bed, and Scout’s pajamas dumped on the floor, leading a trail to her dresser. Evidence of the reluctant fourth-grader’s  journey from sleeping child to student. Sam had sent her daughter off to school last Friday, knowing that Drew would pick her up for his week.

Scout should have been sleeping in this bed this morning. Sam should have been able to pick her up at school, and return her to the only home Scout could really remember. But no — it would days before Sam would see her daughter again.  If not longer.

Sam touched the side of the door frame, swallowed hard, and looked at another door down the hall — Danny’s room that had also laid untouched this last week — and just next to it, Rocco’s.

The penthouse was empty of all three kids today, the first morning Sam could remember waking up without the scramble for breakfast, arguing over the use of a bathroom—

On a shaky breath, Sam closed Scout’s door and headed downstairs where Dante sat in the dining room staring into a cup of coffee. He glanced up at her approach, but said nothing as she took the seat across from him.

“Laura said she’d call when she thought Rocco was ready to talk.” Dante’s mouth twisted with irritation. “If I ever tried to pull this with my mother back in the day, she’d have murdered me. Probably. I never wanted to find out.” He rubbed his mouth. “I don’t know what I’m supposed to do, Sam.”

“If you’re looking to me for the answers, then we’re in more trouble than I thought.” She picked at her cuticle. “My mother told me that I could probably get this injunction lifted on Monday. Drew doesn’t have a lot to work with. And I can fight for Danny, but—” Her voice faltered slightly. “But is that the right thing to do? You called Laura instead of getting Rocco yourself. Was that right? I just don’t know. Does it look like we’re giving up?”

“I keep thinking — maybe Rocco was disappointed I didn’t come after him. Maybe he’s even angrier that I sent his grandmother. I just—” Dante shook his head, leaned back. “If I went after him and didn’t get him back this time — or maybe even got him home, I can’t watch him all the time, I can’t stop him from running again.” He met her worried gaze. “I don’t have the answers either, Sam. I guess we just take it one step at a time.”

“Not sure what choice I have. Danny’s too stubborn to drag him, and everything I seem to do makes me the bad guy. It’s just—” She swallowed hard. “It’s hard. Not having one of them here. I’ve—I haven’t been without them since I got out of jail. And I’m afraid I’ll never have them back.”

This might have been Dante’s cue to reassure her, but he had nothing to offer. The room fell into awkward, uncomfortable silence.

Webber House: Kitchen

“Hey.” Jake climbed onto the stool, folded his arms on the counter, watching his father scoop coffee into the machine. “Is Mom up yet? I didn’t hear her or anything.”

“Not yet.” Jason switched on the machine, then turned to face his son. “You okay?”

Jake didn’t answer right away. Instead, he picked at a paper towel that had been discarded earlier, picking at pieces. “It’s been a really weird couple of weeks,” he said finally. “It feels like five minutes ago we were leaving for the barbecue and I was still so angry at you—at everyone—” He looked at his father. “I’m trying to act like it’s all normal. You know. All of this.  You living here. Danny in Cam’s room. Mom—” His throat was tight. “She’s wearing ankle monitor. We’re all ignoring that because Danny’s giving us something to concentrate on, but I saw it last night, and I started thinking about it again.”

“I know it’s useless to tell you or your brothers not worry about it,” Jason told him. “Whether we  talk about it or not, it’s out there.”

“She was gone for five days. Longer if I think about how I didn’t see her after I went to school on Friday. I came home and she was gone. And that might happen again.” He looked at his dad. “She’s out on bail, but everything that went down with Danny, I guess I didn’t think about how easy it would be for them to take it away. They could if they found out Dante made the pot stuff go away, right?”

“I don’t know. Jake—”

“I’m sorry. You know, that I thought you were keeping secrets about what happened,” Jake said. He forced himself to meet Jason’s gaze. “I thought you and Sonny were lying, and that you were why Mom was in jail.”

“In a way I am,” Jason told his son, and Jake made a face. “The FBI don’t really think your mom did this.”

“Yeah. You said that. If you—” Jake furrowed his brow. “If you had,” he began painfully, “you…you’d have done something already. To make this go away for Mom. Wouldn’t you?”

“Jake.” His father didn’t speak again, and Jake looked up again, thinking he’d find Jason looking back at him with impatience or anger, or maybe even irritation. But there was none of that. Just worry. “I’m not going to let them put your mother in jail again.”

“That’s not really an answer,” Jake managed, and Jason sighed. “Dad.”

“I don’t know what the question is, Jake. I didn’t have anything to do with this. Not even a little bit. I’m out,” he said. “Completely. That conversation you overheard with Sonny? The last time I talked to him. And the first time in more than a month. I wish I knew something that would convince the FBI that the gun was planted, that someone is framing your mother. But I don’t. And short of confessing to something I didn’t do, I don’t know what I can do.”

“I—” Jake shook his head. “I don’t know. I guess I don’t even know what I’m asking. I just remember you were always, I dunno, involved. Running around, trying to solve things. You and Sam went after that Shiloh guy—”

“And how did that end up? Your brother got kidnapped and nearly had memories shoved into his brain, Sam went to jail and Danny lost his mother for six months.” Jason hesitated. “Yeah, there was a time that I’d be trying to find the killer myself. But it’s different, Jake. Your mother’s been charged. Even if I found something, it might be used in court.” He stepped closer to his side of the island, laid both palms flat and leaned in. “A long time ago, before Cameron was born, someone kidnapped your mother trying to get me to do something. They locked in an old crypt. In the dark. And instead of going about it the right way, I tried to handle it myself. And the man who’d taken her died. Without telling anyone where she was.”

Jake swallowed hard. “But you found her.”

“I did. But it took twice as long, and —” Jason paused. “She nearly died from a gas explosion. I told myself that day that I would never do anything that would put Elizabeth’s life risk again. I wasn’t always able to keep that promise, but I did my best. And right now, going after who ever did myself, puts her freedom at risk. It has be done by the right people, the right way. It’s our only chance to make this go away for good.”

“I guess.” Jake exhaled on a long breath. “I’m sorry. It’s just—Mom’s been running around for a week trying to fix Danny’s life, and I keep thinking that it shouldn’t be her problem to fix. Not when—not when all of this is going on.” He paused. “Danny’s my brother. This is should be my responsibility.”

“Danny isn’t a problem anyone needs to fix—”

“Right now, he’s talking about going back home because Scout’s with her dad and Danny thinks this is all his fault. But you and I both know that’s a dumb idea. First, he belongs with us. I want—I want us to stay together. And second, until Rocco’s got his shit together, Danny’s not gonna be able to stop trying to be like him. They’re idiots separately, and worse together.”

“I agree that it’s better if they’re separate right now, but if Danny wants to go home—”

“But he doesn’t. He likes it here, too. We’re—I mean, it’s sort of twisted with everything that’s going on, but we like how things are right now. Don’t you? All of us together. You and mom, and me and Danny and Aiden?”

Jason hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah, I do.”

“He only wants to go home because of Scout. So I thought maybe I could talk to Drew. He’s my uncle, and we used to be really close, you know? Maybe I could talk to him. Tell him it’s not that bad.”

“I don’t know if talking to Drew will help,” Jason said slowly.

“But we gotta try, don’t we?” Jake leaned in. “You could talk to Grandma. She’s really good at guilting people. And I’ll talk to Drew. If it doesn’t work, fine. But at least we tried.”

“Okay,” Jason said finally. “Okay. We can try.”

Laura & Kevin’s Condo: Kitchen

Rocco twirled his spoon around the bowl of cereal, watching with half-interest as his little cousin Ace shoved pieces of scrambled eggs into his mouth. “Shouldn’t he be eating more or something? He’s like two right?”

“Eighteen months,” his grandmother said, sitting across from him with a cup of coffee in her hand. “And we let him make a mess at breakfast.”

Whatever. Kid had enough trouble, Rocco figured, with a lunatic for a mother and a criminal for a father. And a name like Ace. Never had a chance.

“So what’s the deal? Dad coming to get me or something?” he asked.

Laura traded a look with Kevin, her husband, then set her coffee down. “I suppose that’s up to you. If you go back to the penthouse, will you stay?”

“I dunno.” Rocco jerked his shoulder. “Are they gonna keep searching my room and treating me like an idiot? Is Danny still gonna be acting like this was all my fault? Everyone’s acting like I’m the bad guy.”

“I’m not acting like anything, Rocco,” Laura said gently. “And if we’re not being fair to you, all right, we can have a conversation. But your father doesn’t know what to do. He tried to talk to you—”

“No, he tried to blame because Sam’s stupid kids don’t want to live with her,” Rocco shot back. “Danny’s been talking for months about living with his dad, and she’s the one that walked out on him so she’s got no one to blame but her crazy ass—”

“I don’t like the way you’re speaking about her—”

“Are we having a conversation or not?” Rocco let the spoon hit the bowl. “Because no one seems to give a damn what I think. Or Danny. Or even Scout. We’re just little toys you pick up and play with when you’re bored or to pretend you’re a good father, and then throw away when you’re done. Dad hooked up with Sam because he knew he’d have to deal with me by himself and he didn’t want to. Well, I don’t need him. I don’t need Sam. I don’t need anyone.”

He shoved back from the table and left the room. A moment later, they heard a door slam upstairs.

“On the bright side,” Kevin said, lifting his mug, “he didn’t leave by the front door.”

“Kevin.” With exasperation, Laura picked up a napkin to clean up the milk that had splashed from Rocco’s abandoned cereal bowl. “What am I going to do with him?”

“Listen to him. He just told you the problem. Dante left for two years, leaving Lulu to take the brunt of a young kid on her own. And just when he returned, his mother went into a coma. And instead of hunkering down, guiding Rocco through that, trying to figure out what a new normal would look like, Dante put his own trauma first and built a new relationship. And then took Rocco out of the home he’d shared with his mother for his entire life.” Kevin sipped his coffee. “He doesn’t like Sam. He’s been bottling it up  and now it’s exploded out into the open. What do you want him to do? Pretend like none of that is happening?”

Laura sighed. “No. No. And I don’t want to watch him go down the same path Lucky did. So angry with his family that he shoves them away. My son was never the same after he left home. He never reached his full potential. And I’ve given up hoping he ever will. I tried to give Lucky space then, but it was wrong. I can’t make the same mistakes with Rocco.” She pressed her lips together. “I’ll call Dante. I think we need to have a conversation about what happens next.”

Webber House: Living Room

“Hey. Um, Dad and Jake left?” Danny asked, stepping off the landing to find Elizabeth sorting through paperwork on the sofa.

“Yeah, Jake thought maybe he can talk to Drew about this custody situation.” Elizabeth shifted slightly, patted the cushion. “I think we can all agree that if we can take the temperature down, it’ll get easier. I can’t imagine how your mother feels this morning without Scout in the house.”

Danny furrowed his brow. “You know she doesn’t like you.”

Elizabeth’s hands paused in the shifting of envelopes, then looked at Danny for a long moment before speaking. “Yes. I know that. I don’t like your mother either. If that helps.”

“Oh. I guess that’s not surprising. You just never—you never acted like that before.” He cleared his throat. “Is it because of Dad? Because…after Jake was born, he married Mom and…had me?”

She was quiet again, and Danny knew she was weighing her answer carefully — probably looking for a way to lie to him without really lying and he kind of appreciated the care she was putting into it. Because it mattered. His mom had never bothered.

“It’s none of my business, I’m sorry—”

“It’s not, but it’s been made your business,” Elizabeth said, cutting him off with a rueful smile. “Your mom and I tried so hard for so long not to let how we felt about each other get in the way. It might be hard to believe, but we really wanted you and Jake to be brothers. And I think there’s still some part of her that feels that way. It’s just hard sometimes for us to forget everything that’s happened between us. We weren’t always kind to each other — and there was a time I gave your mother as good as I got. She’s not the villain in my story, Danny. I don’t see her that way.”

“Oh. You…you didn’t really answer my question. Which is okay, like I said, it’s none of my business—”

“It is if you think that somehow I wish you weren’t here. That if things had been different for your dad and me, you wouldn’t exist. And that’s not true,” Elizabeth told him. She squeezed his hand. “I’m glad you’re here. You’re a great brother to Jake, and a good friend to Aiden. And your dad loves you.”

“It’s okay if you like…maybe sometimes thought it’d be easier if I didn’t exist,” Danny said, and she shook her head. “No, I—I used to think that about you. And Jake.” When Elizabeth lifted her brows. “When Mom moved out, and it was, like, obvious she and Dad weren’t gonna be together, it was hard for her and Dad to be in the same room. They argued a lot. Even before that. And Jake used to tell me he never saw you and Dad argue, and I guess it was like—” Danny hesitated. “I dunno, like somehow he meant it like you guys were better. That Dad liked you better. It’s stupid. But I felt it.”

“It’s human. And there’s nothing wrong with that. Your dad loves you and Jake more than anything. I hope you know that.”

“I  guess. I’m trying to believe that.” Danny rubbed his hands against his jean-clad thighs. “Um. The doctor, you know. The one you found. Um, I’m going back to him, you know.”

“Your dad told me.”

“And like…he asked me about you. And Dante. Like, the adults in my life. And he asked if maybe you would go to parent session. With Dad.” Danny dropped his eyes when Elizabeth looked at him. “I mean, I’m living here, I guess, so like, you should—you could know stuff.” When she hesitated, he hurried, “but you don’t have to. It’s not—you don’t have to—”

“I want to do whatever  you need me to do,” Elizabeth told him. “My only hesitation is…it might make things worse with your mother. If I’m going. And she’s not.”

“Oh. Yeah. I guess so. She just—she didn’t want me to go. So I didn’t ask her. I figure she doesn’t care.”

“I don’t think that’s true at all, Danny. She’s just scared to lose you.” Elizabeth went quiet again, the nodded. “Why don’t I take you to the penthouse? I’ll stay in the car,” she added, “and you can try to talk to her. Just the two of you. You can ask her to go and maybe if she hears it from you, it’ll be easier. You haven’t talked to her since that night in the police station.” She squeezed his  hand. “I think you’ll feel better if you see her, talk to her. What do you say?”

+34

Written in 60 minutes.

Friday, September 20, 2024

Penthouse: Living Room

Dante dragged one hand through his hair, pacing from the mantel to the door, then back again. “No, thanks. Let me know if you hear from him.” He clicked off the call, staring at his phone for a moment, willing his son to call him. To send a text. To do something.

Where had it gone wrong? he wondered.  Was Sam right? Had they rushed into living together, thinking Danny and Rocco being friends would be enough to glue their families together?

The phone vibrated, the screen lighting up with a notification that it was Jason on the other line. Dante grimaced, then answered the call. “Yeah?”

“Rocco called Danny.”

All the air rushed out of Dante at once, and he dropped onto the sofa, gripping the phone more tightly. “Is he with you guys?”

“No. But he told Danny where he was. Down on Pier 42, in a warehouse—” Jason’s voice faded a moment, and Dante could hear some muffled sounds on the other line before it came back. “It used to store food or something, Danny thinks. There are refrigeration units.”

“Yeah, I know the place. Thanks. Tell Danny thanks. I know—” Dante rubbed his mouth. “I know it’s not easy for him, but thanks.”

Davis House: Living Room

“I should get to say something,” Kristina told her mother. She fisted her hands on her hips. “I should get to tell the court how much that evil bastard did to me. How he took the worst time of my life and made it even worse. I should have been grieving my daughter, and instead he—” She scowled. “You’re making a face. Why are you making a face?”

Alexis, seated at the table, paperwork spread across the surface with her open laptop by her side, sighed and removed her reading glasses. “Oh, God. Where to start.” She rubbed her forehead. “First, I know it’s difficult to hear this, honey, but no one in that court cares about your personal feelings. They have no bearing on this situation.”

“But I was in emotional distress or whatever they call it on TV,” Kristina complained. “He arrested me the day I was released from the hospital. I had to be bonded out just to go to Adela’s funeral—there!” She stabbed a finger in Alexis’s direction. “There’s that face again!”

Alexis folded the reading glasses and set them back in their case. “Kristina, I’ve tried to be careful about this. But I’m worried you’ll have an outburst in court, and if you do, and you start talking about your daughter and calling her Adela—” Her mouth tightened.

Kristina’s eyes burned. “I thought you understood. Molly can live whatever fantasy she wants, but Adela was never hers. She was mine. You know that. She’s living her life like Adela never existed. She and TJ are back to work like it was a blip on their radar—” Her voice broke. “Like she was nothing at all—”

“Molly is handling this the best way she knows how.” Alexis got to her feet, crossed to her daughter. “But your insistence on denying her tie to that baby, on denying TJ’s tie—”

“She was never born, Mom. She never took a breath—maybe if she had—” Kristina turned away, pressed a hand to her mouth. “I’m the only one who ever got to be her parent. That should matter.”

She heard her mother mutter something and whirled around to face her. “What was that?”

“Nothing—oh thank, God,” Alexis said when they heard a car door slam. She hurried to the entrance just as Sam threw open the door. “Sam! What’s going on?”

“I need you to get my kids back. Both of them. We need to file in court now—tomorrow—” Sam slammed the door. “Tell Drew if it’s a matter of Rocco not  being in the house, fine. We’ll come stay with you until Dante and Rocco can find somewhere else to go.”

“Whoa, what happened?” Kristina demanded, crossing to them. “What’s going on with Scout?”

“Rocco’s still getting high,” Sam retorted. “We found a stash in his room, and he’s apparently found a way to keep this up at the Quartermaines when he’s supposed to be on punishment—Drew filed for emergency custody and won, the son of a bitch. He lied or he called in a favor, you know he did, Mom—”

“Okay, let’s take a deep breath. We’re on the docket for Monday—it’s the earliest I can do anything, honey,” she reminded Sam who just shook her head. “I know this is hard, but I can’t imagine a judge is going to let the custody order stand. Scout will be back home before you know it.” She hesitated. “Danny—he’s old enough to say where he wants to be—”

“Oh, and he’ll pick his father, won’t he?” Sam demanded. “Does it even matter that Jason barely has a temporary address or that the woman he’s living with is accused of murder?”

“Honestly? No. Elizabeth hasn’t been found guilty, and we’d have to demonstrate a danger to Danny. Do you think she presents a danger?” Alexis asked, her brows lifted. “Is that the road you’re asking me to go down? Because I’m not going to do it. It would be a lie.”

“Great. Great. So Drew and Jason can just waltz in after years of being deadbeats and take my kids like I didn’t do anything?” Sam raged. “I told you, I told you she’d turn him against me! And she’s doing that! She’s  been working on him for years! Rocco told me so!”

“Come on. Sit down, let’s take a deep breath. Kristina, go get your sister some water,” Alexis told her, and Kristina made a face but since she didn’t want to be kicked out altogether, she obeyed.

When she came back, Alexis had Sam sitting on the sofa. Kristina handed the glass to her sister and sat down, reaching for Sam’s hand.

“I always knew Jason settled for me,” Sam said bitterly. She gripped the glass, didn’t drink. “And Rocco said as much — if Lulu was awake, Dante and I wouldn’t be together right now—and he said Danny’s always preferred to be at his brother’s. She’s been poisoning him for years, Mom. I knew letting Jake and Danny be around each other would be a mistake.”

“I always got the impression that Elizabeth wouldn’t speak about you with the boys present. And that you’d agreed to do the same.” Alexis arched a brow. “Do you have reason to believe she’s attempting actual parental alienation?”

“Of course she is!” Kristina interjected. “Danny’s always loved Sam, but since Jason came home, all they do is fight. Jason or Elizabeth must be doing something for Danny to be acting out like this.”

“It’s just all falling apart so fast,” Sam managed. She set the glass on the table, pressed the heels of both hands against her forehead. “A week ago, Dante and I were united and now we’re both talking about how living together was a mistake, and Rocco’s taken off, Danny’s barely returning my calls, and that bitch  talked him into therapy, and you just know he thinks I’m the bad guy for not immediately agreeing — God, why can’t she just go away?” Sam launched herself to her feet and shot across the room to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

Alexis exhaled slowly, then lowered herself into the armchair across from the sofa, looking worn. “I don’t even know where to begin.”

“You can’t guarantee Danny will come back to live with Sam, can you?” Kristina asked.

“Not as long as he wants to live with his father. The best I’ll be able to do is visitation.” Alexis pressed two fingers against her temple. “Right now, Jason has a solid family to offer him, and Danny has another brother in the home. Danny’s old enough to have a say.”

“Well, what happens if Elizabeth loses her case, or whatever?” Kristina asked. “I know you and Diane don’t think that will happen, but doesn’t all of this concern Danny? Don’t we have to think about the worst?”

“I suppose. I mean, I think I understood the plan was for Jason to remain in the house with the boys, so on the surface, nothing really changes.” Alexis shook her head. “But a judge might be more willing to put custody back in Sam’s hands if Jason’s on his own. I just don’t think we can — or should  — rely on that since it’s so unlikely.”

“I guess.” Kristina looked towards the bathroom, her lips pursed. But what if there was a way to make sure Elizabeth got out of the picture? She’d never really planned for Elizabeth to take the fall — and still thought Jason was likely to confess to protect her. But maybe Kristina hadn’t done enough to push Jason.

And if Elizabeth was really in danger of losing her freedom, Jason would confess. And he wouldn’t be in a position to take Danny from Sam — and Danny would hate Elizabeth for being the reason he lost his father again.

Maybe she needed to make sure everyone’s attention stayed on Jason and Elizabeth — and get the heat off her. Not only would she be protecting herself — but she’d be taking care of Sam, the way her sister had always looked after her. No, it was clear — Kristina was going to have to do something.

But what?

Webber House: Living Room

“Rocco’s never going to talk to me again,” Danny muttered, flinging himself onto the sofa. He laid on his back, staring at the ceiling.

“And nothing of value was lost,” Jake muttered from the armchair, his sketch pad in his hand.

“Jake,” Elizabeth admonished, but his brother just shrugged.

“Just the facts.”

Elizabeth sat on the sofa, and Danny pulled his legs out of the way. “He’s gonna know I snitched—”

“He’ll get over it,” Jason cut in, without an ounce of sympathy in his tone or expression. “He ran away from his father. And he tried to drag you into more trouble. I don’t know why you want to talk to him at all.”

“See, he gets it,” Jake said, leaning forward. “Rocco’s a moron. I told you that even before I knew the two of you were getting high and smashed every weekend.” He flicked his attention over to Aiden, who had wisely remained out of the conversation, his eyes trained on his tablet. “And I don’t have to know he was the ringleader.”

“I could have been in charge,” Danny shot back. “I know how to get beer—” He closed his mouth, dropped his chin to his chest, avoiding his father’s glare. “Never mind.”

“Rocco might be angry with you right now. And maybe for a while,” Elizabeth said, and Danny looked at her. “But he’ll realize one day you were trying to help him. And if he doesn’t, well, then, honestly? Jake’s probably right. Nothing of value will be lost.”

Jake narrowed his eyes. “You’re agreeing with me? This is a trick.”

“You don’t understand—” Rocco began, but Elizabeth shook her head.

“I do understand. I had a partner in crime, too. Emily and I got into all kinds of trouble. Arrested. Committing crimes — and no, you get none of those details until you’re much older,” she added when Jake and Aiden both sat up, alerted. “But we did it together. Always. And we always tried to protect each other. Rocco’s not trying to protect you right now. He’s not thinking about anyone but himself, Danny. Maybe he’s too hurt and upset. But you can’t fix that for him. All you can do is think how’d you feel if something happened to Rocco because you stayed quiet. Would you be able to forgive yourself?” she asked.

“No, I guess not,” Danny muttered. He let out a long irritated sigh. “Fine.” He flung himself back to stare at the ceiling.

“Okay, but can I get just one crime story?” Jake wanted to know, and Elizabeth rolled her eyes.

Pier 42

The building had been abandoned for the better part of three years, the name Brown’s Rite Market peeling from the sight above the cargo door that faced the parking lot.

It had started to rain hard, sheets pouring into the gravel, dripping from the roof, rotted through in more than a few places. Rocco huddled by the cargo door, pulling the hood of his sweatshirt more tightly closed around his face. The next time he ran away, he’d have a go bag or something. His grandpa Spencer had always talked about them — a stash of clothing, some cash, and a new ID. He couldn’t swing the last one, but the first two?

He’d show them. He’d show them all that you couldn’t push Rocco Falconieri around and tell him what to do. Not his useless father who liked to walk around like he knew every damn thing, not Sam with her angry eyes and smart mouth—

There was a slap of thunder that jolted Rocco, and he stumbled when the night lit up with a crack of lightning. He fell backwards into water that had puddled in one of the potholes, soaking his sweatshirt, his jeans, and even his socks. “Damn it, damn it—” He grimaced, sitting up, swiping gravel from his palms.

Headlights broke through the night, and Rocco rolled over, ready to dart under the dock stairs — until he recognized the car. It pulled to a stop, and the driver’s side opened. The umbrella emerged first —

And then his grandmother stepped out, her face just barely visible in the fading light. She came towards him, then raised her voice to be heard over the rain. “You look like you could use a place to dry off.”

Rocco scowled, folded his arms so that she wouldn’t see he was shivering. “You can’t make me go home. I’ll kick and scream.”

“Oh, I have no doubt.” She came towards him again so that her face was clearer. “You know, your uncle Lucky used to sleep under these docks when he was your age,” she said, looking past him. “He decided he was done being under his dad’s thumb, too, and he never came home. Not all the way. I couldn’t dragged him back either.”

“So you get it.” Rocco lifted his chin, the water dripping. “I’m not going back.”

“Okay. But I’m not here to take you to your dad’s. Maybe you can come home with me and Kevin. It’s dry and warm,” Laura suggested. “And if you decide you don’t want to stay, well, you can go tomorrow. When the rain is gone.”

“This is a trick,” Rocco said, but his teeth chattered, and Laura smiled faintly.

“Maybe. Only one way to find out.”

+34

Written in 61 minutes.

Friday, September 20, 2024

PCPD: Conference Room

Chase jolted when Molly popped into the doorway of the conference room, and he hastily flipped the whiteboard, pushing the side that detailed the case against Kristina and Alexis to face the wall. “Uh, hey. I thought you were in court today.”

“I was—” Molly furrowed her brow, stepped fully into the room. “One of my cases plead out, so I had an opening my schedule. What did you just hide?”

“Nothing. Well, not nothing,” Chase corrected when her expression turned grim. “Just some dead ends that I was cleaning up.”

“Chase.” Molly closed the door behind her, folded her arms. “I thought we were on the same team. This investigation is complicated enough without any of us keeping secrets.”

“I know—”

“You and Dante being connected to all the primary witnesses—” Molly stopped, looked around. “Where is he?”

“He, uh, was working from home. Some things came up with Rocco, I guess. Related to what we talked about on Monday.” Chase paused. “I’m not keeping secrets, Molly. I’m just—I’m trying to protect the case.”

“Then show me what’s on the other side of that board. Now,” she added when Chase didn’t immediately act.

He sighed, then rolled it back. “I was writing out all my thoughts before taking it down completely,” he admitted. “I didn’t want you or Dante to know about this part of this investigation. And that’s from Robert.”

Molly didn’t answer, her dark eyes scanning the board — divided neatly between Kristina and Alexis. She exhaled slowly, looked at Chase. “You spoke to Robert.”

“Yes.”

“I—” She swallowed hard, looked back at the board. Saw ALIBI NOT VERIFIED written in large red capital letters underneath both names. “I was expecting them on the list, you know.  They would have to be eliminated all over again, just like we did with Jason and Elizabeth. And you did good work eliminating them. Jason’s alibi is tighter than it was, and I just can’t see any opportunity for Elizabeth to pull it off without Michael lying, without the boys being wrong about the time frame—if anything, we’ve really helped Diane nail that part of the case down if it goes to the trial.”

“I know.”

“And I saw the report about Ava. No way of getting around that. I mean, she could have hired someone,” Molly admitted, folding her arms. “But there’s nothing tying her to it. I guess I just assumed—I hoped—that my mother and Kristina would be eliminated the same way. That this was someone from Cates’ past — someone else he framed, another family he targeted.” She looked at Chase. “But that’s not the case is it?”

“It might be. It probably is,” Chase added. “We’ve requested all his cases, looking for any where he testified, but it’s not easy getting those from the FBI. They’re not really interested in anything that goes against their own narrative. Listen, Mols—”

“You should, um, keep this information in a safe place. Maybe at your old apartment. You said you still kept it, right?” Molly asked him, and Chase nodded. “There’s no telling who Sonny has on payroll around here.” She rubbed her mouth. “Robert wanted me and Dante kept out of this part of this investigation, and he’s right. Seal it off from us entirely. I don’t want to be tempted to look at any of it. Whatever happens after this — it has to be clean. An innocent woman’s freedom is at stake. I can’t—won’t—do anything to jeopardize that.”

Webber House: Living Room

“I’m gonna go do my homework,” Danny told his father as they came into the living room. “I just—I just wanna be alone for a while.” Without waiting for Jason’s response, the teenager darted for the stairs, and his footsteps thudded above them.

Jason rubbed his face, then looked into the kitchen where he found Elizabeth behind at the stove, stirring something in the pot. “Hey.”

“Hey.” She tipped her face up and he kissed her, tugging her against him with one arm. She stroked his neck, then leaned her forehead against his jaw when he released her. “How did it go?”

“He agreed to go back,” Jason said, stepping back to lean against the island. “But he didn’t really want to talk about anything.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t know. I guess it’s something that he decided to go back on his own.” He met her concerned gaze. “How did it go with Diane? Did the feds file their reply?”

“Yeah, she said it wasn’t anything she didn’t expect. Except—” Elizabeth covered the pot with a lid, then turned to face him, folding her arms. “They added a second chair who filed the motion. Do you remember Gia Campbell?”

“Gia—” Jason’s brow creased, and he straightened slightly. “Taggert’s sister? The one that hated you?”

“That’s the one. She’s on the case. Working for Reynolds. Diane didn’t really know the background, but she’d dug up a few things — including the Deception competition which was really enough for her to have questions. I didn’t need to get into all the reasons Gia doesn’t like me or why I never liked her, especially since we met because she was blackmailing Emily about Ted Wilson.” Elizabeth shuddered. “I haven’t thought about her since she and Nikolas broke up and she left town to finish law school.”

“Now she turns up to prosecute you for murder?” Jason said. “Why would she do that? Diane can get her removed, can’t she?”

“Oh, for sure. All I’d have to do is to point out that I was originally the first choice to win the Face of Deception, and Gia only took the prize because I pulled out. Laura will obviously corroborate that, and Carly might do it for you.” Elizabeth made a face. “I don’t even know why Gia would bother trying to hurt me like this. After we stopped fighting for Deception, I didn’t even really bother with her. I couldn’t tell you the last time we talked before she moved.” She hesitated. “The only thing she has that would even be relevant is that time she told Lucky I was at Jake’s with you. But how is that even helpful? Why would anyone care that I had an affair twenty years ago?”

“An affair?” Jason lifted his brows. He folded his arms. “I think I would have remembered that.”

A smile played on Elizabeth’s lips. “Well, maybe not a physical one though you certainly gave me enough openings.” His own mouth curved slightly in response to that. “I guess that plays into the FBI’s real theory. If you and I have had this relationship going back all that time, I’m more likely to cover for you.”

“But that only works if both of us are charged,” Jason said, and she nodded. “So we’re back at the start. Gia doesn’t really have anything to offer them. Could she be trying to help you?” he asked. “Taggert was always in your corner. I think, if it’s possible, he hated me more after you and I…met,” he said.

Elizabeth bit her lip, considered that theory. “I know it sounds crazy, but what if it’s about Nikolas? She used to accuse him of being in love with me when he’d take my side. We didn’t—” Her cheeks heated and she dropped her eyes away, the pit in her stomach gnawing the memory of one of the worst decisions she’d ever made. And how it continued to come back to haunt her. “It’s not like that wasn’t common knowledge. Gia might have heard about it.”

“That was still fifteen years ago,” he reminded her gently. “Seems like a long time to hold a grudge.”

“You’d think that, but Carly still hates me for things that happened twenty-five years ago, and there’s a reason Carly and Gia always got along,” she pointed out, and he sighed, acknowledging that truth.

“What does Diane want to do?”

“Let it play out as long we can. We don’t have a duty to disclose the relationship — particularly when I can point out we haven’t spoken in twenty years. If not longer. Neither of us are models, and I never wanted it in the first place.” Elizabeth wrinkled her nose. “Diane was putting together a file and she pulled all the campaign prints for the one photoshoot I even finished. You remember? The one with the black dress?”

“Yeah. I remember.” Their eyes met, and he tipped his head. “I didn’t realize that ever went anywhere. I thought you’d quit before that.”

“They’d already sunk a lot of money into it, so I agreed.” Elizabeth went over to the large tote bag that doubled as her purse and removed the file. “Diane gave me copies so I could go over all of it, and think of anything Gia and I ever clashed over.” She drew out the photo, considered it for a long moment. “It seems like a lifetime ago, you know? Like it happened to someone else. I tried to enjoy it, and you know, sometimes—I almost could?” She laid the file on the island. “When it was just me and Lucky, and he was just taking photos, it was almost like the old days. I didn’t mind posing for him, and he used to talk about how maybe I could get into the artistic side, you know graphic design or something. But that day — in that studio—” She traced the lines on her face. “He didn’t even remember.”

Jason stepped up to her carefully touching her shoulder, not wanting to jolt her. Even after all this time, he knew that coming up behind her wasn’t something to be done lightly — and he never wanted to put her back in that moment. He’d done it once, years ago, when they’d been trying to find Manny Ruiz after he’d kidnapped Sam. And he’d never wanted to repeat it.

“You looked beautiful,” he told her. “You always do. You just…didn’t look like you.” The tension in his chest eased when she turned into his arms and he embraced her, stroking her back, looking at the printed copy behind her. He’d never forget that day she’d come to his room, in layers of makeup, her hair stiff from styling, and a backless dress and plunging neck line. And misery in every line of her face, in her beautiful eyes.

“I should have kissed you that day,” came her muffled words against his chest, and he smiled, kissing the top of her head. “I was such a stupid girl.”

“I wanted it to be your choice,” he told her. “But I should have kissed you. A thousand times. Because I know you needed it to be my choice, too.”

She tilted her face up, and he kissed her , lingering. “But here we are, all these years later.”

“And we’re not going to mess it up again,” he promised. And he wasn’t going to let anyone take her away from him again. No matter what he had to do.

Penthouse: Living Room

Dante slammed the door behind him, jolting Sam still standing at the terrace, her phone in hand. “They couldn’t stop him.”

“Wally said he went through the parking garage—I guess you tried to find him—” Sam came towards him, but he kept his back turned, picking up the landline on the desk. Her throat felt tight. “Do you want to call Chase or someone at the station?”

“No. I—I’m going to call Laura. And have her call Elizabeth. Rocco’s a moron, so he might try to go to Danny or Aiden. And Michael.” He jabbed at the buttons.

“We moved in together too fast, didn’t we?” Sam asked, and Dante looked at her.  “The kids. They weren’t ready. I thought—Danny and Rocco were friends. I didn’t think—”

“Don’t—don’t go down that road. Rocco’s pushing your buttons. And mine. He knows exactly how to twist the knife. Laura? Hey—” Dante turned back and Sam went to the door, snatching up her keys “Where are you going?”

“I need—I need to get out of here.”

“Sam—”

But she was already gone. Dante sighed, and turned back to the phone. “No, Laura, sorry. I was just—I’ve got a problem, and I need your help.”

Webber House: Danny/Cameron’s Room

It had been almost an hour since Danny had come home from his appointment with the doctor, and Jake figured that was more than enough time.

He crossed the hall, shoved open the door. “Hey. What happened—” He stopped, saw Danny with a phone in his hand. “They still let you have one of those?”

Danny looked up, blinked. “What?”

“The phone. I thought you were grounded from it.”

“Oh. No. I think Dad just wants to be able to track me.” Danny hesitated. “Rocco called me. Just now.”

Jake flopped on the bed. “They let him near a phone? No wonder neither of you dorks have learned—” he stopped, straightening when he saw Danny stare at his phone. “Danny, what’s going on? What did Rocco want?”

“He, um, said he had to leave the penthouse. Dante and my mom were on his case, and it was time. He—he wants me to meet him. Bring him some things to hide out for a few days. He figures it if he scares the shit out of them, they won’t be as mad.”

“And you said no because you’re not a goddamn moron,” Jake said. Danny flushed. “Of course you said yes. Moron.” He dragged a hand down his face. “We’re telling Dad.”

“You can’t—”

“I’m going to stand next to you while you do it—don’t shake your head, dickhead.” Jake yanked Danny to his feet, and Danny tried to shove out of Jake’s grasp. “Knock it off! You don’t remember what it’s like when a kid goes missing, but I do. I remember Mom when I came home. And when Cam got snagged with Trina a few years ago. You really think Dante and your mom deserve that?”

“Let me go—” Danny pushed and this time was able to get Jake to release him. “It’s not a  big deal. He’s just gonna go AWOL for the weekend—”

“Spencer died like seven months ago. You want my grandmother to worry like that? After what she’s been through? Don’t be an asshole. Rocco’s doing something stupid. Again. Why are you protecting him?”

Danny opened his mouth, his eyes burning with anger, but then he dropped his chin to  his chest and when he spoke again, his voice was trembling. “He was really mad that I told my dad about his stash at the Qs. But he called me for help, so if I snitch again, he’ll never talk to me again.”

“Good riddance. He’s just trying to get you in trouble, Danny. You said that you liked living here, right? You and me in the same house with Dad. What do you think happens if you keep screwing around? Rocco could get hurt. He’s dumb enough to trust the wrong person, and you know it. This is how you prove to Dad and my mom that you learned a lesson last week. Tell them, Danny. Don’t make me be the bad guy,” Jake said flatly. “Because I’m gonna tell him if you don’t.”

“So I don’t have a choice at all, do I?” Danny demanded.

“You get to decide how much information Dad gets right away or if Mom has to guilt it out of you,” Jake retorted. “Or if I have to kick your ass. So yeah, you got a choice. What’s it gonna  be?”

+35

Written in 57 minutes.

Friday, September 20, 2024

General Hospital: Doctor’s Suite

Jason shot to his feet as soon as the office door opened and Danny slunk out, his hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans, shoulders still hunched.

He met Danny at the receptionist’s desk where the nurse on duty asked if they were scheduling the next session.

Jason looked at his son, one brow lightly lifted. “Danny? Are we coming back?”

“Yeah. I guess.” Danny avoided Jason’s gaze, keeping his gaze trained on the carpet. “It didn’t suck, so I guess we can come back.”

Exhaling his first easy breath, Jason looked back at the nurse. “Okay. What’s available?”

Miller & Davis: Diane’s Office

Elizabeth sat forward, her nostrils flaring, her eyes narrowing. “I’m sorry, did you just say Gia Campbell filed the reply motion?”

Diane slid the file across the desk and Elizabeth snatched it up. “There’s no way this is the same Gia,” she said flatly.

“We confirmed that the same Gia who works in the State Attorney’s office is the former Deception model. I take it that your relationship didn’t end amicably?”

Elizabeth hesitated, laid the file down, then rubbed her forehead. “I don’t know. We were never friends. Most of the time, we were hostile. I mean, we only met because she was blackmailing Emily so we didn’t exactly get off to the right start. What the hell is she doing on my case?”

“That’s what Spinelli and I wondered. We could only find some basic facts — that the two of you had sparred over a modeling competition. But Gia blackmailed Emily?” Diane echoed. “Over what?”

“Oh. That’s—that’s not exactly relevant,” Elizabeth said, with a wince. “But Gia and I just never quite  figured out how to be easy with each other, and Nikolas kept her around. They were engaged for a while before they broke up. This is crazy, Diane. Why would the government want someone who knows me on the case—” she stopped. “They wouldn’t. It’s a conflict of interest. You’d just file a motion, wouldn’t you? You’d tell them about the Deception contest. Laura would testify that Gia loathed me. Nikolas and Lucky are still around. God, even Jason knew how much Gia hated me. Gia knows this. What’s going on?”

“You’ve jumped ahead to the most important question. Who’s playing the game?” Diane leaned back in her chair, crossed her legs. “But what I need to know from you is how do you want me to handle it? I can have the motion filed Monday to have her removed from the case. But—”

“Do we get in trouble if we don’t?” Elizabeth wanted to know. “I mean, are we waiving my right to complain about her appointment if we say nothing?”

“We could argue that this modeling competition was a lifetime ago and both of you have moved on to different careers. After all, we’re from Port Charles. Everyone knows everyone here, and there’s always conflicts of interests that have to be weighed.” Diane tipped her head. “Gia might have nefarious motives, but what damage could she really do?”

“Nothing, I guess. I’m not guilty, and I don’t know who really did this. Neither does Jason.” Elizabeth chewed on her bottom lip. “Do we let it happen? See how it plays out? I mean, all she could really give Reynolds is ancient history. What’s she going to tell him? That Lucky thought I was cheating on him with Jason? I was, just not physically. And so what, right?” She let out a quick breath. “Let’s play it out. I want to know what Gia’s up to after all these years.”

“That’s what I was going to recommend. We’ll be in court in a week or so anyway.” Diane flipped through her notes. “In other news, the reply didn’t have any surprises, so it’s really just going to depend on the judge and what we can dig up between now and then. Spinelli didn’t find anything interesting in your security footage, but we’re still waiting on subpoenas for your neighbors’ security footage, particularly across the street.”

“Okay. Um, we do know how long that might take?”

“A few weeks. This is the hardest part, Elizabeth,” Diane told her. “Everything happens behind the scenes, and you just have to sit back and wait. You and Jason have done that so far, and I’m going to keep asking for your patience. I know it feels like nothing is happening, but we’re making progress, I promise. Just…live your life. And leave this up to me and Spinelli.”

Penthouse: Living Room

Sam clenched her hands in lap, her palms slightly damp from sweat as she watched Rocco trudge down the stairs and nearly throw himself into the chair across from she and Dante at the dining table.

“You bellowed?” he wanted to know.

Dante leaned forward, his eyes dark. “Sit up. Now.”

Rocco rolled his eyes, but obediently straightened, laying his elbows on the desk. “You know, you’re taking Drew’s word for this. You didn’t even ask me—”

“It didn’t come from Drew,” Dante interrupted. “It came from Danny.”

Rocco’s face lost a little color, but he swallowed hard. “Bullshit.”

“He told Jason,” Sam said softly, and Rocco looked at her sharply. “Jason wanted to keep Danny’s confidence, so he and Michael were trying to set it up to catch you in the act. I don’t agree with it,” she added when Dante made another face. “But you need to understand that denial isn’t an option here.”

“Whatever. You’re all acting like I committed a federal crime, okay? Everyone does it. And if Aunt Liz weren’t accused of murder, no one would have even given a damn last week. You’d have picked up from the station, read us the riot act, and life would have been fine—”

“That’s your defense?” Dante demanded. “Are you kidding me?”

“Yeah, you’re all getting twisted up over something that’s not a big deal—”

“Did you notice that neither of my children are here?” Sam interrupted and Rocco swung his dark eyes back to hers. “Danny might be one thing, but Drew is suing me for custody. Because I have a teenager in my home doing drugs and drinking alcohol.”

“Two teenagers,” Dante added tightly, and Sam pursed her lips before continuing.

“Drew’s an asshole. Everyone knows that—” But Rocco swallowed again. “Did—did he win—”

“Emergency custody. He claims Scout is in danger in the house.” Sam’s voice trembled slightly, and she had to a deep breath. “The fact that you were using the Quartermaine estate to do this — that you were making both her homes unsafe—”

“Oh, Christ—”

Dante leaned down to snag the shoebox they’d found under Rocco’s bed and practically threw it on the table. Whatever color Rocco had left drained, his eyes focused on the center of the table. “You want to keep talking? Scout’s a kid. She could have found this.”

“Okay, so maybe I should have hid it better—”

Dante shoved away from the table, the chair flying backwards, and Rocco looked up, his eyes widened. “Shut up. Right now.”

“Rocco, you don’t seem to understand the trouble you’re in. The trouble you’ve caused—” Sam began.

“The trouble I caused?” Rocco demanded, the flush rising again. “You’re kidding right? Danny’s not here because of you. I’ll take the heat on Scout, obviously, okay? But like, let’s not pretend Danny was happy here.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Sam demanded, getting to her feet.

“Don’t play stupid,” Rocco retorted.

“Watch your tone—” Dante began.

“No, I’m done with this.” Rocco shoved himself to his feet. “You wanna jump down my throat about the weed — fine. Whatever. But it’s not all my fault. Danny hid his stash in the closet. Okay? We both were getting high. I didn’t have to twist his damn arm. He was miserable, and this made it better for a while.” He sneered a little. “Aiden, you know, wasn’t really into it. I guess even with being gay, he doesn’t have a lot to run away from.”

Sam went very still. “Excuse me?”

Dante, as if sensing the line of attack coming, lifted an arm. “Rocco, it’s time to go upstairs—”

“You need to drawn out for you, Sam? No problem. You make Danny miserable. You always did. You put too much pressure on him to be better than you, and he always liked being at Aunt Liz’s more than here. Even before his dad came home. He’s living there because she’s better. And you damn well know it.”

“Rocco, upstairs now,” Dante ordered.

“Truth hurts, doesn’t it?” Rocco said. “Don’t pretend you don’t see it, Dad. Sam’s second best. Everyone knows it. If my mom were awake, we wouldn’t even be here—”

Dante came around the table, and Rocco sprinted backwards to avoid his father snagging him by the arm. “No, you wanted the truth, Dad. You don’t get to complain how that it’s out. I hate living here. And I hate you for making me come here. This is all your fault. Both of you! You’re both sitting here like you got any right to tell me what to do! You’re not my mother,” he spat at Sam. “And you never will be.”

He turned and darted for the front door, and Dante charged after him. Sam stood alone in the room, tears staining her cheeks.

Second best.

Dante came back a minute later, his face flushed. “He took the stairs, I’m going after him in the elevator—”

Sam looked at him, blinking. “What?”

“The elevator. Call the lobby. Tell them to stop Rocco before he gets down there.”

“Right. Right.” Sam swiped at her cheeks, then picked up her phone. “I’m on it.”

Pozzulo’s: Dining Room

Kristina kissed her father’s cheek and set down the white Wyndham’s bag in front of him. “I saw this  while I was out today, and it made me think of you.” She slid into the booth across from him.

Sonny lifted the neatly packaged tie from the bag and smiled faintly. “It’s nice. I’ll wear it to my next court appearance.”

Kristina wrinkled her nose, poured herself a cup of water from the pitcher by the wall. “You won’t have to wait long. I’m due in next week for the dismissal.” She flicked her eyes to him. “Unless you’re going to something for Elizabeth first. I haven’t been following her case since she got out.”

“Not much to follow.” Sonny set the tie to the side of the table, then put the shopping bag on the floor. “You know as much as I do. Though I imagine Diane was as happy to learn about the voicemails Cates faked as your mother was.”

“I’m not sure how it helps Elizabeth, but it’s definitely good for me. It makes him look crazy, doesn’t it?” And made Kristina even more sure of what she’d done. If she hadn’t taken care of things, Cates would still be wreaking havoc on her family. “Does it help her?”

“I guess it depends on if they can prove Jason or Elizabeth knew Cates was trying to set him up.” Sonny winced. “I guess if Elizabeth knew, it might give her motive. But I don’t know how they’re getting past the alibi. Michael was with her.”

“Well, you know the truth doesn’t matter to the FBI. And as much as I hate Molly getting involved,” Kristina said, “I suppose it’s a good thing. Dante and Chase are good cops. They’ll get to the bottom of this.” She looked up to find her father watching her. “What?”

“Why don’t you want your sister involved?”

“Because she’s just using it to avoid her issues with me. She won’t even talk to me now, Dad. She’s acting like I’m evil because I loved my daughter. That I grieved for her. What did she expect? I carried her, you know.” Kristina’s throat tightened. “I’m the one who lived with that precious child all those months. Molly never met her.”

“I think there’s room for everyone to grieve for what was lost,” Sonny said carefully. “And your sister is handling this as best as she can. I’m glad she went up against the FBI. They’re not looking for the real killer.”

“I just hope Dante and Chase don’t make the same mistakes the FBI did. I mean, everyone’s acting like Cates’ life started here last year. Maybe it was someone else. Someone else he framed,” Kristina said. “If he tried to go after me and Jason, of course he’s done it before. But they’re just asking the same people the same questions. Mom said Chase talked to her.”

“Mmm, and Chase talked to me,” Sonny said. “They’re running the same leads, Kristina. Eliminating suspects again. Haven’t they talked to you?”

“Not yet. Mom probably stopped them before they got to me. I don’t care. I’ll talk to them, but it’s a waste of time. Whoever did this is long gone.”

+33

Written in 72 minutes. Went over  because I really wanted to finish the last scene so we can move on 😛

Friday, September 20, 2024

General Hospital: Eighth Floor

Danny flung himself down into a seat, crossed his arms, and glared at his father. “The only reason I’m even coming to this stupid thing is I get to skip to school. I’m not doing it again.”

Jason didn’t even bother to respond to this barb as it was a variation on the theme Danny had been complaining about since the night before. Drew had, in fact, arrived at the penthouse before Jason could warn Dante, and had made a tense situation even worse. Drew was filing for custody of Scout based on drug use in the home, and Dante was pissed that Jason had known and said nothing.

He hadn’t asked for Sam’s reaction to that information — Jason doubted she felt any differently.

Jason stepped up to the counter. “Danny Morgan to see Dr. Fletcher,” he said, already pulling out his wallet for the health insurance card and debit card. He handed the materials to the receptionist and looked at his son.

“This was always voluntary, Danny. You don’t want to come back, you don’t have to. But I’m not changing my mind. If Rocco was still drinking and getting high, I had every right to do something to stop it. I tried to keep you out of it, but that didn’t work out. You want to be mad, be mad. But don’t forget — we’re here because you and Rocco screwed up last weekend. You’re not a victim. Stop acting like one.”

General Hospital: Nurse’s Station

“I mean, I’m sorry it came out the way it did,” Willow said, coming around to stand beside Elizabeth at the counter and reach for a stack of charts. “But Drew isn’t wrong. Dante had every right to know about this—”

Elizabeth bit back her first retort which was entirely unkind towards the younger man, and gripped her pen more tightly. “It was being handled, Willow. Are you happy with how it’s going now? Rocco’s angry with Danny, Danny’s trying to back out of therapy, Drew and Sam are going to end up in family court, and Dante’s furious with everyone.”

“Well, you and Jason shouldn’t have tried to protect Danny in the first place.” Willow planted a hand on her hip. “Don’t you think Drew has a point? Rocco and Danny are obviously a bad influence on each other, and if they’re getting drunk or high on the state, who knows what they’re doing at home. He has every reason to worry about Scout. I’m surprised you’re not more worried about Aiden being around them. You know how sensitive and easily led he can be—”

Elizabeth tossed her pen aside. “You don’t know my son. You were his teacher for one year six years ago, Willow.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to put you on the defense.” Willow held up her hands. “I’m just saying that while I wish it hadn’t happened the way it did, I think it’s for the best it’s all out in the open. Honesty is always the best policy.”

“Really?  You want honesty?” Elizabeth folded her arms. “Michael confided in you as his wife. No crimes were being committed. No one was being hurt. We were trying to protect everyone and make sure Rocco got help by catching him in the act so he couldn’t deny it. But you decided you knew better than anyone else and betrayed Michael’s trust. What kind of wife are you?”

Willow’s expression froze and color leeched from her skin. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me. Drew wasn’t even involved. He knows damn well Scout was never in danger. He’s not worried about her. He’s worried about the optics. Just like he was the day John Cates was murdered on that property. It’s about him. But you disagreed with how we were handling the situation, and blabbed a secret that your husband wanted you to keep between the both of you. If anything, now we know that you can’t be trusted. Don’t complain the next time Michael keeps you in the dark. You’ve proved your loyalty isn’t with him.”

“You have no idea what you’re talking about,” Willow hissed. She jerked the charts from the counter and stalked down the hallway.

Elizabeth rolled her eyes, and got back to work.

Silver Water Rehabilitation Center: Lulu Spencer’s Room

Dante paced the length of the room, then stopped to look at the still figure lying in the bed. “Christ, I wish you were here.” He dragged his hands through his hair, then dropped into the chair by her bed.

“I thought I was a good father, you know? I thought—” He shook his head, looked at his hand, at the finger where his wedding ring had once been. He circled the bare skin with his other hand. “I thought I was doing okay. That Sam and I were building a future together, and that I’d given Rocco a good life. A family. He and Danny are like brothers—” Dante exhaled on a low breath. “But he’s screwing up and he doesn’t get it. Why doesn’t he get it?”

He touched the edge of the bed, running the tips of his fingers over the rough texture of the hospital blanket. “He’s drinking, getting high — and I keep thinking about your dad and your brother. Lucky with the pills, your dad with the alcohol. The damage they did. You used to tell me the only addiction you inherited was the adrenaline. The need to take risks.”

He rubbed his mouth. “I’m not blaming you, I’m not. Falconieris are stubborn. Thick-headed, and that’s our boy all wrapped up, isn’t he? A stubborn moron who’s definitely addicted to something. Maybe it’s just the risk. Maybe it’s the danger. But maybe it’s the alcohol. ” He reached for her hand — limp, but warm.

“Maybe Jason’s got it right. Maybe I should shove the kid into therapy and figure out where he’s broken. But maybe I don’t need that question answered. He’s had nothing but trouble all his life. Kidnapped for the first six months of his life, I left for two years, came back wrong, and then just when I was getting my head together, he lost you. Maybe it’s not such a mystery. I just don’t know how I fix any of it.”

He squeezed her hand, then gently laid it back on the bed. “We miss you, Lu. If  you’re still in there, if there’s any part of you still with us, man, I wish you’d give us a sign.”

He waited — but there was nothing. Her vitals didn’t change — the machines didn’t make a noise. Her lashes didn’t flicker, no movement of her fingers.

He was on his own. Just like he had been for years.

Apartment Building: Lobby

Kristina stepped off the elevator, rummaging in her purse for the keys to her car and didn’t notice the building manager waiting by the entrance until she all but walked into him. “Oh.” She clenched her fingers around her keys, pressed them to her chest. “You scared me!”

“Sorry, Miss Corinthos,” he said, and she wrinkled her nose. She’d stopped correcting him ages ago about her name. “I just wanted you to know that I would never turn over any documents or files without a court order.”

Kristina furrowed her brow, then tipped her head. “I don’t understand. What do you mean? What documents? What files?”

“They asked me if you were here on September 2, and I didn’t remember. I thought about lying because I know that would help you,” the manager added, and Kristina’s breathing hitched. September 2. The day of the murder. “But I thought maybe that would make more problems. But I won’t let them see the security footage without a subpoena. I would never do that you, Miss Corinthos. You—you know that, right?” He licked his lips, nervously. “You make sure your dad knows that, too. I’m a company man. Loyal. I know the rules. Never cooperate with the police.”

A company man. Kristina pursed her lips. Of course. Her father owned the building — of course that meant the manager answered to him. No wonder he’d never bothered to learn her last name was Davis-Corinthos.

And the cops were looking at her? Dante was looking at her? Damn it. Damn it. Her keys dug into her palms, biting into her skin as she clenched her hand even more tightly.

“Of course. I know you’d never do anything to hurt my dad. And you don’t have to worry about lying. I’m on that footage, just like I told the cops.” With her free hand, she patted his arm and forced herself to smile. “Don’t worry about anything, Harry. You’re the best.”

She left the lobby, forcing to keep her smile pasted on her face, though anyone walking past her might hastily walk in the other direction.

The PCPD thought they were going to get her files, did they? They thought they’d investigate her? They would regret messing with her.

General Hospital: Fletcher’s Office

Danny slouched low in the chair, his arms folded, his legs sprawled, feet planted on the floor. It didn’t matter what this doctor said. He was gonna keep his mouth shut for the entire house, and when he got out of here, he’d make sure his dad knew they were done. That Danny was never going to trust him again. Lousy bastard.

The doctor had smiled at him, told him to sit down, and was now sitting across from him, a notepad on the little table next to him.

“It’s nice to meet you, Danny. I’m Dr. Fletcher.”

Danny jerked a shoulder, and grunted something.

“I understand you’re not happy about being here. Most of the kids I talk to don’t choose to be here,” the doctor added.

“You think you’re smart, don’t you?” Danny demanded. He straightened. “You think you’re gonna feed me a line about how it’s okay I don’t want to be here, and how you’re my friend, and that I can trust you, but it’s all bullshit. You’re bullshit, my dad’s bullshit, it’s just—” He closed his mouth, looked away.

“It’s not a line, Danny. And I’m not going to pretend to be your friend. I’m not.”

Danny frowned. “Then how are you gonna get me to talk to you if I don’t trust you?”

“I suppose we’ll have to find out. Let me start by telling you that what we talk about is private. Unless I think you’re in danger of hurting yourself or someone else. And I don’t think you are.” Fletcher lifted his brows. “Am I wrong?”

“Hurting like physically? No. That’s stupid.” Danny shifted, folded his arms again. “But it’s a lie that you won’t tell my dad anything. You already talked to him, and you’re supposed to talk to him again.”

“That’s true. If you decide to come back, I’ll be checking in regularly with the adults in your life. Not about details, nothing specifics. Just generalities. For example, if I told your father that you’re very angry at him, I don’t imagine that would come as a surprise, would it?”

“No,” Danny muttered. His lower lip trembled and he bit down hard. “And he knows why.”

“I have your father’s permission to share anything he tells me with you,” the doctor told him, and Danny looked at him now, the first stirrings of curiosity. “He’s not my patient. You are.”

“What did he tell you?” Danny asked, almost reluctantly.

“That he’s worried about you. You’ve picked up some habits that aren’t very good for you. He also feels like he hasn’t been a very good father to you. That he’s failed you.”

“My dad told you all that?” His dad never told anyone anything. Danny sat up, let his hands fall to the side. “Why did he do that?”

“Well, I could tell you what I think, but you know your father better than I do. Why do you think he did?”

“Because he feels guilty,” Danny muttered. “And he should. He’s an asshole. They all are.”

“All?” Fletcher inquired.

“Yeah. Dad and Liz made me think I could trust them and they went behind my back, and now Rocco hates me, okay? And my little sister is gonna end up in court just like me, because my mom’s a lunatic, and Dante’s angry at me, I guess, because it’s all my fault, and because Rocco’s an idiot, and Aiden and Jake are mad because I almost got their mom sent back to jail—” Danny’s voice faltered, and he looked down at his hands.

The room was quiet for a long beat, and then the doctor spoke again. “Why don’t we go back a step, Danny? Why don’t you tell me about your life before your dad came home? What did it look like? School, your friends, what you did for fun.”

“I was failing,” Danny muttered, then heaved a sigh. “I mean, not really, but my grades were trash. Eighth grade was harder than anything else, and Mom always wanted me to get, like, all As, you know? I’m supposed to be better than her, she always says that. She did stuff when she was younger. Crimes, I guess. Because she didn’t finish high school or go to college. She said I’m supposed to be better. Smarter. That I have to be.” He huffed. “And Jake always got all As. Didn’t matter what he was going through. Dad died, Jake made the honor roll. His step dad died, he made the honor roll. And he didn’t even care.”

“Jake’s your brother, right? And you’ve got a younger sibling?”

“Yeah. Scout.” Danny fidgeted. “And I got Rocco. We were supposed to be like stepbrothers, I guess. But we were best friends.”

“Is he your closest friend?”

“Yeah. And Aiden, Jake’s other brother. You know about all of that, right? Dad told you what happened last week. You know that we’re friends. Why are you asking?”

“I know how your father framed the situation. What I don’t know is how you see the people in your life,” Fletcher corrected. “I think parents often have a skewed vision of what’s going with your kids, especially as teenagers. Sometimes because they’re not paying attention, or sometimes because their kids are hiding pieces of themselves. Not because they want to lie — but maybe they don’t want their parents to see them.”

“I get that. I guess. Aiden’s gay, you know?” Danny said. “And he didn’t come out to his mom until last Christmas. He said he figured his mom would be cool with it, but maybe not. And he still hasn’t told his dad. Not that it matters. His dad isn’t around.”

“Exactly. There are a lot of reasons to keep pieces of yourself private. But it’s good to have someone to share those with. Another friend. It sounds like Aiden felt comfortable enough to tell you.”

“Oh, well, yeah. Kids were always calling him names,” Danny said. He shrugged. “And then I got big enough to shove them into lockers. So they stopped.”

“Would you consider Aiden and Rocco your best friends?”

Danny paused, then nodded. “I guess, yeah. At least until this week.” He shifted again. “Aiden and I are okay. For now. He thinks I’m being an asshole about what my dad did, but I’m not. Dad told me I could trust him, and I told him Rocco was still drinking, even after we got caught, and that I almost wanted to go with him and that was freaking me out because I got into so much trouble, and my mom walked out on me because of the drinking, and I almost did it anyway—” The words tumbled out of his mouth before he realized he was saying any of it. “And I told Dad I wanted to stop, that I wanted to get help, but he promised he wouldn’t tell anyone about Rocco, and he did, and now Rocco hates me.” His cheeks were wet when he looked at the doctor. “You think I’m stupid, too, right? For being pissed that Dad tried to get Rocco caught, and that Elizabeth went along with it, and now I hate them.”

“I think,” Fletcher said, slowly, “that this is a good time to talk about who’s at home with you. Because it sounds like you  have a lot of thoughts about them. You were living with your mom until last weekend.”

“She won’t want me back now,” Danny muttered. “Not if it means Scout is gonna get hurt. It’s my fault. Scout’s gonna get dragged into court, and Drew’s going to be a dick about it, and Dante’s probably angry at me for not telling him, and I know he’s mad at my dad because Dad didn’t tell him. But if Dad had just kept his mouth shut—” He stopped. “But yeah, now I’m living with Dad and Elizabeth. For now.”

“For now?” the doctor echoed.

“Yeah. I mean, they’re not gonna want me around either. Dad’s already left once, right? He’ll do it eventually, and you think Elizabeth’s gonna put up with me? I got Aiden dragged into the PCPD and almost got her arrested, too.” He stopped. “But she wasn’t mad at me about that.”

“She wasn’t?”

“No.” Danny furrowed her brow. “I don’t get it. I don’t get why. I made a really big mess, and I was an asshole, and she was nice. This was her idea, you know. For me to talk to you. She got Dad on board, and he made my mom sign the papers.”

“But you think they don’t want you around?”

That made Danny pause, furrow his brows. “I guess maybe it’ll be okay. They shouldn’t have gone back behind my back to get Rocco caught. If they’d told me, maybe I would have helped, you know.”

“Why?”

“Because Rocco needs to stop. His grandfather was an alcoholic, my dad said, and Jake almost died in a car accident that his grandfather caused. And Dad said addiction’s, like, in our family, too. Maybe it’s fun and feels good, but I don’t want to hurt anyone. More than I already did.” Danny swiped at his face. “Maybe Dad was right to do something, but he should have told me. I would have helped.”

“Do you think you can ask him that question? Or is it something he wouldn’t answer?”

Danny paused. “I guess I could. Especially if Elizabeth is around. I always feel like I can talk to her, you know? And it makes it easier to talk to my dad.”

“It’s good to have someone in your life you can talk to. I hear that you care a lot about your friends and family, but maybe it feels like you’re carrying too much on your own shoulders.”

Danny’s throat felt tight and he dropped his eyes, jerking a shoulder in a half-hearted shrug. The doctor continued, “Maybe this can be a place where you don’t have to do that all the time. What do you think?”

“I dunno. This didn’t really suck,” Danny muttered. “I guess I could come back.”

“In that case—” the doctor leaned forward, his eyes kind. “Here’s something I want you to think about. Pay attention this week — notice when you feel like the protector — and when you feel like you’re the one who needs protecting.”

+38

Written in 60 minutes.

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Miller & Diane: Office

Diane strode in to Spinelli’s office, a tablet in one hand and her reading glasses in the other. She flicked her eyes over the corkboard, then nodded in satisfaction. “Thank you, I appreciate you doing what we discussed.” Before the tech had a chance to respond, she donned her reading glasses and peered at the tablet. “Does the name Gia Campbell mean anything to you?”

Spinelli hesitated, then frowned and shook his head. “I’ve heard it before, but I wouldn’t say I know where or when. Why?”

“She’s been added as second chair for the government — she filed the response.”

Spinelli turned to his laptop, then keyed in a few strokes. “Gia Campbell works in the U.S. Attorney’s office, for the last decade — and prior to that—” He lifted his brows, looked at Diane. “There’s an article here about the model turned lawyer. She was the Face of Deception about twenty-five years ago.”

“She’s from Port Charles? Well, isn’t that interesting? And Deception, if I remember correctly—” Diane swiped from her PDF reader application to the browser on her app. “Yes, Laura Spencer was running the company at that time—and—will you look at that—” She turned the tablet to face him. “An article about the Face of Deception from 2001. But that’s not Gia.”

“That’s Elizabeth—” Spinelli began to type furiously. “I pulled up the archives for the Sun — there was a competition for the Face when Laura and — the Valkyrie? — they took over the company. They wanted to restart the company with a splash—” He continued to skim. “Gia and Elizabeth were the finalists — and there was some tabloid gossip because they were dating Laura’s sons.”

“Oh, this is very interesting.” Diane sank into the chair. “I had no idea Elizabeth ever worked as a model!”

“Short-lived. She won the competition, did one ad campaign, then quit. Gia took over and was successful until she retired to go to law school.” Spinelli turned his laptop around to reveal a photo of Elizabeth dressed in a strapless black dress and an up swept hair  style. “For lipstick.”

“Audrey Hepburn,” Diane murmured. She drew the laptop screen towards her. “Elizabeth beat Gia for this competition, and then this former model shows up two decades later prosecuting her? I find that fascinating.”

“And Gia Campbell doesn’t just know Elizabeth — she’s Taggert’s sister.”

Diane removed her reading glasses, her lips pursed again. “I could understand Reynolds turning to her for insight if she’s from Port Charles and if she knows the players. But putting her on as second chair when there’s a possibility of bad blood? He must know I could file one motion and have her removed.”

“What if Gia didn’t tell him?”

“That’s a possibility. A simple search would bring up the history, but perhaps he wouldn’t bother.” She tapped her lips with the folded glasses. “Or perhaps she’s keeping it to herself, hoping we won’t push the subject. Maybe she and Elizabeth ended on good terms, and she’s hoping to help her. I certainly don’t want to get rid of an ally.” Diane got to her feet. “Get me a complete work up on her. I want to know everything about her time in Port Charles and her career. I want to know more before I bring this up to Elizabeth.”

District Attorney Suite: Robert’s Office

“Thank you for seeing me on such short notice,” Chase said, shaking the hand Robert had extended to him. “This shouldn’t take long.”

“Well, I’m curious to see what you wanted from me that Molly couldn’t handle.” The older man gestured for Chase to take a seat. “She’s in charge of this case—”

“I know. And she’s doing a great job. It’s just—” Chase took a beat. “We have some suspects that we can’t eliminate — and Dante and I wanted to make sure we exhausted every possibility before we brought it to Molly.”

Robert took a seat, leaned forward. “Are these suspects related to Molly?”

“Yes. Kristina and Alexis.”

The district attorney was quiet for a long moment, his faded blue eyes locked on Chase. “Her mother and sister. And if I’m not remembering incorrectly, Dante’s sister.”

“Yes. Dante’s not happy about this either, but I’m handling that side of the case. We’ve done our best to make sure neither of us have direct contact with anyone we’re related to in this case, but it hasn’t been easy.”

“No, and I’ll be frank with you — if I had any one in this office or at the department that would be willing to take this on, Molly and the pair of you would not have been my first choice for handling the case.” Robert paused. “Talk to me about why they’re suspects and what does your gut tell you?”

“The motive is obvious, I would think. The victim was targeting Kristina for attempted murder charges in a federal case. Kristina was furious, and so was her mother. Neither of them have a good alibi for the time of the murder. I think Alexis probably would have been able to get Kristina’s charges dismissed, but Kristina might not have known that for sure.” Chase hesitated. “So we have motive. We have opportunity.”

“And a better motive than Elizabeth Webber,” Robert said. “For her to be guilty, you’d need a lot of people to be lying about alibis.” He nodded. “Anything else pointing to either of them?”

“For Alexis, she’s not a stranger to taking the life of someone who’s wronged her. She pleaded insanity to a murder when Kristina was an infant — Luis Alcazar. But before that, she sat back while Jason and Brenda Barrett were wrongly convicted and nearly sent to prison.”

Robert’s brows lifted. “That’s interesting.”

“I’m pulling more of that case file to get a better sense of it, but Kristina —” Chase paused. “Elizabeth’s security footage has her coming to the Webber house the day after the murder. I don’t know why she was there, but she came back to the door after Elizabeth left, and left again.”

“Putting her in the area during a time when someone might have planted a gun. I can see why you can’t eliminate her.” Robert stroked his chin. “Those are good facts. But what does your gut tell you?”

“I don’t know. I think I’m having trouble thinking the same woman that fell under the sway of a cult leader would be able to pull off a murder like this — and then frame an innocent woman.” Chase paused. “But that’s bias, because Willow was victim to that same cult and I know how strong she is. If I put that aside, honestly, Mr. Scorpio, I think Kristina or her mother or both of them did this. I can’t prove it yet, but there’s just something I can’t shake about it.”

Robert was quiet for a long moment, then slowly nodded. “I don’t get involved in my attorneys’ private lives, but I know that the loss of Molly’s daughter was devastating for her. And that there’s been tension with her sister because of it. I can commend Dante for not looking away from his sister as a suspect, but from here out, you’ll be the contact point for this line of investigation, reporting directly from me and keeping everything we learn confidential. Where can we start?”

“Subpoenas for security footage at Kristina’s apartment.” Chase paused. “And for any traffic cameras between her mother’s house, the Quartermaine estate, and her apartment building. I want to track her movements that day. And phone records. Whatever we can get without her knowing about it.”

“Let’s get started.”

Webber House: Living Room

“Hey, sorry to just show up like this,” Michael said as he passed Jason at the door, stopping when he saw Elizabeth on the sofa. “Or that I have to do this at all.”

“What’s wrong?” Elizabeth got to her feet, and came over to join Jason by the door. “You never have to apologize for coming over, but you look upset.”

“That and pissed. I just don’t know who to be more angry at.” Michael dragged a hand through his hair. “I did what you suggested, you know,” he said to Jason. “I set up some extra cameras so we could track Rocco better on the estate. Willow saw me doing it, and I didn’t think any of telling her. I mean, I trust her. But she didn’t agree with what we decided to do—”

Jason exhaled slowly. “She told someone—”

“Drew overheard us arguing, and she told him. I tried to talk him out of doing anything, but all he cares about his damn reputation and this campaign. I don’t understand why Willow—but that’s my problem, and not yours. Drew said he was on his way to talk to Dante. Said he wanted to talk to him father to father.”

“Why would he do that? Didn’t you tell him we were trying to protect Danny’s trust?” Elizabeth demanded. “Drew should know better—”

“I told you. He can’t see anything but himself. I don’t know what the hell happened to him in prison or when he was kidnapped—” Michael’s expression was grim. “I tried to at least get Drew to say it wasn’t from Danny, but maybe that we just caught him or something—but he’s refusing to lie. Says Danny and Rocco are bad influences on each other, and maybe this will keep them from being near each other—”

“That’s not true!”

The cry from the stairs had all three adults turning to see Danny practically flying down the last few steps, with Aiden and Jake following — matching guilty expressions.

“You said you wouldn’t tell!” Danny’s face was flushed, his chest heaving. “Rocco’s never going talk to me again!”

“I’ll call Dante,” Jason started, digging in his jeans. “Maybe we can try to get to him before Drew can—”

“But why did you tell anyone?” Danny demanded. “I told you because you said I could trust you and that you wouldn’t say anything—”

“I couldn’t do nothing,” Jason said, but Danny wasn’t listening. He turned, and rushed back up the stairs, shoving Jake out of the way.

“I’ll talk to him,” Jake said, but then he paused at the base of the stairs, looked at their father. “It was an asshole move to lie to him even if you did the right thing. Just so you know.”

“Jake—” Elizabeth started but their son had already disappeared out of view and his footsteps were thudding towards the third floor, Aiden on his heels. She looked at Jason with worry.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t know they were listening—” Michael started. He scrubbed both hands down his face. “I’m sorry.”

“Michael, none of this is your fault,” Elizabeth said.

“It’s mine,” Jason said. “I should have told Danny I wanted to get Rocco caught.”

“We both signed off on trying to sneak it past him,” Elizabeth interrupted him. “I could have argued with you. I thought it was the easiest way for everyone. Danny was just starting to trust us.” She pressed two fingers against her lips. “We couldn’t do nothing.”

“But we should have been upfront what we were doing. I’m not sorry I did it. But I should have just gone to Dante,” Jason admitted. He focused on Michael. “But for now, let me get a hold of Dante and see if I can stop Drew from making everything seem worse.”

Penthouse: Living Room

Sam jolted off the sofa as soon as Dante came through the door. “Hey. I was hoping we could talk—”

“Can it wait?” Dante dumped his keys and jacket on the desk, rubbing his eyes. “It was a crappy day, and I just want a shower and a beer—”

“I mean, I just—” Sam bit her lip. “Yeah it can wait, I just—Danny sent me a text today.” She stared down at her phone. “He thanked me for signing the papers.”

“Oh.” Dante furrowed his brow. “That’s good news, isn’t it? He’s reaching out?”

“I thought so, and but if he’s thanking me, that means he knows I refused at first—” Her eyes glittered with tears when she met his gaze. “I thought I was doing the right thing. I thought he was being forced into this, but what if Jason was right? What if Danny really did want this, and I was standing in his way—”

“There was always that possibility—” Dante stopped at the rapid knocking on the door. He pulled it open, grimacing when he saw Drew on the other side. “What do you want?”

“Is Scout all right?” Sam demanded, coming to Dante’s side. “Where is she?”

“At home. Where she should be safe,” Drew bit out. “Except your son brought drugs onto the estate — and is still drinking and getting high.”

“What—” Dante began, but Drew was already glowering at Sam.

“And your son is still protecting him. What kind of mother are you? Don’t even bother to answer that question,” he added when Sam opened her mouth to protest. “I’ve already called my lawyer and filed for permanent custody.”

+34

Written in 72 minutes. I didn’t really love how this part came out, and had to rework some of it, so it’s both shorter and late, lol. But it’s done, and it was necessary to move the story forward.

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Quartermaine House: Living Room

Willow folded her arms, hugging her upper torso and biting her lip. “I don’t really know how I feel about any of this,” she admitted, watching Michael skim through a video on his phone. “You’re spying on him—”

“I’m watching security footage,” Michael interrupted. He slid the phone in his pocket. “We don’t have a choice—”

“Yes, we do. We tell Dante what we know—”

“And how do I explain how we know?” Michael wanted to know. “Danny trusted Jason—”

“Jason’s an adult, Danny’s a child. A child who’s acting out and using emotional manipulation to get his way.”

Michael pressed his lips together. “I’d think you understand how important trust is. We’re  going to catch Rocco in the act so he can’t pretend Danny’s lying.”

“And what if we don’t catch him right away?” Willow wanted to know, following her husband into the foyer. “What if he gets into real trouble this way?”

“He’s not popping pills or snorting cocaine. He’s getting high or drunk. If he does it on the property—”

“Who’s getting high and drunk?” Drew demanded, striding into the foyer from a back hallway. Michael grimaced, and made a face at Willow.

But she either didn’t see it or didn’t care. “Rocco. Danny says he still has some stash on the property. Michael’s watching security footage to catch him in the act—”

“So he can end up in the papers? Oh, that’ll be great. Just the kind of headline or viral story I need,” Drew muttered, shoving his fingers through his hair. “We can’t have this.”

Michael clenched his jaw. “Who’s we? This has nothing to do with you. I’m handling it, and we’ll keep it in the family—”

“It’s bad enough Jake and Danny are being dragged through this, thanks to Elizabeth’s blind loyalty to my useless brother. If she’d just tell the truth—”

“She is telling the truth,” Michael retorted. “She was with me the day of the shooting, and Jason was with Grandmother.”

“Yeah, because no one in this family has ever lied before,” Drew said, with a roll of his eyes. “This is a disaster waiting to happen, and Dante needs to handle his son somewhere else. We’re not a refuge for hoodlums.” He whipped out his cell phone and headed into the foyer.

“Thanks. That was just great, Willow.” He scowled at his wife. “I told you what was going on in confidence—”

“He lives here, too, Michael. And he’s not wrong! If a teenager is doing drugs on the property, it’ll look really bad for him—”

“Then he can move out and be someone else’s problem. I’m sick of everything in his life being about optics—”

“Michael, be reasonable. Rocco’s a teenager who’s getting himself into more trouble if we don’t make sure we get him some help.” Willow approached him, tried to rub his shoulder but Michael shook her off.

“I told you something in confidence because you used to work with kids and because you’re my wife. Because I don’t want any secrets between us. But the first chance you had, you dump the truth on the worst possible person in this house—other than maybe Olivia.”

Willow’s eyes shimmered with tears. “I was just trying to do the right thing. Drew’s right. Rocco needs more help—”

“Don’t. Don’t pretend Drew gives a damn about Rocco. Just—I have to find a way to fix this. But the next time you complain that I’m not telling you everything, I want you to remember this moment.”

General Hospital: Fletcher’s Office

Who is Elizabeth to you and to Danny?

Jason cleared his throat, and shifted slightly. Not the easiest question to answer — or one that could be summed up in a few words. “You mean, factually?”

“We can start there.” Fletcher’s smile looked a bit more genuine now. “I’m not trying to pry for gossip, Mr. Morgan. I want to understand the adults in Danny’s life. How they affect him. If Elizabeth is in his life daily, it stands that she plays some sort of role.”

“Oh. Well—” Jason let out a breath. “She made the appointment, you know that. And I think it was her idea. She—she has a way of talking to him, you know? Sometimes I get tangled up or he gets too defensive, and we just yell. But Elizabeth’s an amazing mother, and she just…always has the right words.” And it sometimes felt like he couldn’t string together two coherent statements when he was with his sons.

“So she’s someone Danny can talk to.”

“Yeah. Yeah, I mean, that’s definitely been true the last few days.”

Fletcher made a note. “Danny’s been staying with you and Elizabeth. And there are other children in the home?”

“Yeah. Yeah. Full-time, there’s Aiden and Jake. Jake’s—he’s my son. And Elizabeth’s. He’s seventeenth. And at his mom’s, there was Rocco, Dante’s son, and Scout, Sam’s daughter with…” Jason paused. “My brother.”

There was just a slightly lift of the brows at that, but Fletcher didn’t say anything, just made a few more notes.

“I already know that Danny was brought into the police station with Aiden and Rocco. How’s his relationship with Jake and his sister?”

“He’s protective of Scout, I think. I haven’t seen them together much, but I know they’re close. With Jake—” Jason paused. “They’re close. They argue a lot, and I know it’s hard on them that Danny’s mother…doesn’t like Elizabeth. There’s been tension there.”

“That brings me to my next question.” Fletcher looked at him. “Do you and his mother make decisions about Danny together? Or separately? Through a mediator?”

“Threats mostly. Legally speaking,” Jason added. He pushed himself to his feet, unable to remain seated anymore, and went towards the window overlooking the parking lot. “Sam’s had to carry a lot of the weight raising Danny on her own, and she’s a good mother. I’ve defaulted to her decisions most of the time. Until the last few weeks.”

“She’s not here today.”

“No, she’s not. She doesn’t want Danny to do this. I don’t know if it’s because it was Elizabeth’s idea or because she genuinely doesn’t want Danny in therapy. But Danny wants to do it, and I think he needs more than I can give him.” Jason turned back to face the doctor. “I filed for full custody of him and the right to make medical decisions. His mother backed down, and signed the consent form, but she still didn’t want to come today.”

General Hospital: Nurse’s Station

“This is supposed to be your day off,” Felix complained when Elizabeth approached him at the counter. “Do you not understand how to relax?”

Elizabeth wrinkled her nose. “Hi, hello, how are you are also options,” she said pointedly.

“Fine, fine. How are you? But I still want to know why you’re here.”

“Did I imagine the voicemail you left me two days ago saying we needed to catch up?” Elizabeth folded her arms, leaned over the counter. “Because I thought you’d want to know that Jason and I are living together, but if you want me to go—” She started to step back but Felix reached out, snagged her arm.

“Who said that? Not me. Spill. When did this happen? How did it happen? And don’t leave out a single detail.”

“Well, the when is technically the day before I was arrested,” Elizabeth said. “And also last Friday. And this morning.”

“This morning?” Felix wiggled his brows. “I stand corrected. So you do know how to relax.” He furrowed his brow. “But wait, you’re living together? Already? I feel like I missed a few chapters. Let me take my break, and we’ll get a coffee. I want to hear everything.”

PCPD: Conference Room

Dante watched in silence as Chase pinned the freeze frame of Ava and Trina at the Jerome Gallery with the timestamp at the bottom of the screen. Unless Ava had super powers, she couldn’t have made it to and from the Quartermaines and still been with Trina at 7:40 PM that night.

“Our suspect list is getting smaller and smaller,” Dante murmured. He folded his arms, then looked at Chase. “Did we hear from Kristina’s apartment manager?”

“Yeah. He doesn’t remember the day, but wouldn’t have seen her anyway.” Chase paused. “He says he hasn’t seen her much, since I guess she’s been staying with her mom.”

“What about security footage?” When Chase looked away, Dante sighed. “She’s not on it.”

“I don’t know if she is. The building’s owned by Sonny, which means—”

“Standing order not to cooperate and require warrants and subpoenas.” Dante rubbed his face. “And the only way we can subpoena that footage is if we tell Molly who will want to know why.”

“We could that, sure. Or we could go to Robert.” Chase hesitated. “Both options suck. But we have to pick one.”

“Yeah. I know.” Dante looked at the whiteboard, at the photo of his sister staring back at him. “You’ll have to take the meeting with him. My hands can’t be on that part of the investigation.”

“Understood. I’ll handle it. It’s going to turn into nothing, Dante. I’m sure of it. We’ll both feel better when we can cross this off.”

“I sure as hell hope so.”

General Hospital: Fletcher’s Office

The doctor opened the door for Jason and they walked into the front of the office suite together. “I can’t promise miracles,” Fletcher told Jason. “And you might get frustrated by not knowing anything, but I can only keep you updated on general progress. Without Danny’s consent or imminent danger of harm, my meetings with your son will be confidential.”

“I can live with that,” Jason told him. “I just want Danny to be okay. If this helps him get there, that’s all that matters.

Fletcher held out his hand. “I’ll see Danny tomorrow then.”

Jason shook his hand. “Thank you.” He glanced around the room and didn’t see Elizabeth. She’d mentioned she might go check in with Felix while he was in the meeting, so she’d probably gotten caught up.

When he emerged from the office suite into the hallway, Elizabeth and Felix were turning the corner, both with coffee in their hand, stamped with the GH logo.

“Oh, hey, that’s good timing.” Elizabeth crossed to join him, reaching out with her free hand. He squeezed it. “Felix and I were just catching up.”

“Let’s not wait three months again,” Felix told Elizabeth, leaning in to kiss her cheek. “Texts are not enough. We work in the same building—”

“I know, I know. I’ve been awful. You’re amazing for putting up with me.”

“I’d better get back to work.” Felix held out his hand to Jason. “Good to see you, Jason.” When Jason took the other man’s hand, he was a bit surprised when the nurse put a little strength behind the grip, tightening it. “You take care of her now.”

“I can take care of myself,” Elizabeth said, wrinkling her nose. “Felix—”

“She has terrible taste in men,” Felix said, ignoring her. “I warned her about the last two, don’t make me regret giving her the green light on this one.”

“Ah, you won’t,” Jason said, a bit mystified but somewhat grateful. “I didn’t like the last two either.”

“See, I told you I liked him.” Felix released Jason’s hand, then kissed Elizabeth’s cheek again. “Don’t be a stranger.”

“Honestly, you’d think we were in high school,” Elizabeth muttered, watching her friend disappear around the corner. “I don’t need him to approve of anything—” She turned back to Jason. “Anyway. How did it go?”

“Okay, I think.” They turned towards the elevators, and he kept his hand in hers. “But I guess we’ll find out when Danny gets to talk to him.” When they stepped onto the elevator and the doors closed, Jason tugged her a little closer to him. “We have a little time before the boys are supposed to get home from school. We could take the bike out — it’s the first time it hasn’t rained in a few days.”

“That sounds like the best idea.”

+39

Written in 66 minutes

Thursday, September 19, 2024

Jerome Gallery: Gallery Floor

“Oh, I hope you’re here for a social visit,” Ava Jerome declared, turning to face Chase and Dante as they approached. She sniffed. “Do I need to contact my lawyer?” She touched Trina’s arm. “Go. Call Martin.”

“Okay—” Trina started to move away, but Chase held up his hand.

“We just want to tie up a few loose ends about September 2,” he said, and Trina hesitated, looked at her employer with some concern.

“I’ve already discussed that with the FBI,” Ava said. She folded her arms. “So either—”

“The FBI didn’t confirm the information you gave them. That’s all we want to do,” Chase told her. “You told them you were here at the gallery, and they didn’t do any follow up.”

“Because she’s telling the truth,” Trina blurted out. “She was here that day!”

“Trina,” Ava murmured, with a slight shake of her head, and her assistant closed her mouth, though she was clearly unhappy.

“If you’re telling the truth, talking to us won’t be an issue,” Dante said, speaking for the first time, his tone flat, devoid of any emotion, and Chase glanced at him. It was never easy to be around Ava for his partner — since Ava had somehow skated on murdering Dante’s aunt and was charged with assaulting Kristina—

“Then I’ll call my lawyer, and he’ll handle everything from here—” Ava turned to head for her office, but Trina stopped her.

“Cam’s mom was arrested for this,” she told Ava. “Joss told me the PCPD is just trying to get to the truth so they’ll stop hounding his mom. You and I both know you didn’t do this. Why let the suspicion linger?” When Ava hesitated, Trina continued, “Please, Ava. Cam’s mom has always been so good to me. The PCPD need to know where everyone was.”

Ava pressed her lips together, then looked at Chase. “All right. Let’s get this over with.”

“We need to have this conversation separately,” Dante said. “Trina?” He gestured towards the lobby, and with a grateful smile, Trina followed him through the arch and out of sight.

Ava wrinkled her nose, folded her arms again. “Let’s get this over with.”

Jerome Gallery: Lobby

“We were planning an event in October,” Trina told Dante, leading him into her small office with its tiny desk. She shuffled through some paperwork. “I’m going to give you the number for the security company that runs the cameras. I just know they’ll have Ava coming and going.”

“That would be great.” Dante took the card she offered, but Trina didn’t immediately release it. “Did you want to add something else?”

“I meant what I said out there. Ava was with me, and I wouldn’t lie for her. I know—” Trina paused, then took a deep breath. “I know she’s done terrible things, and I know why people don’t believe her about what happened in the hotel room—”

“I don’t want to talk about that—”

“—but whatever else she might have done,” Trina continued, ignoring Dante’s interruption, “she didn’t shoot Agent Cates. I know that makes your jobs harder and it would be easier for Cam’s mom to get out if her lawyer can point to other suspects, but that’s not the right thing to do, you know? The system screws up all the time, and maybe I shouldn’t trust any part of it to get this right. I’m living proof that innocence doesn’t matter — your entire life can still be derailed because someone points the finger at you. But maybe it makes it that more important to tell the truth.”

“What happened to you was wrong,” Dante said, “and I appreciate you convincing Ava to talk to us. You’re right. Crossing Ava off the list makes it harder for Diane, but the truth is what matters. But here’s another truth for you. She murdered my aunt in cold blood. And she had no problem destroying my brother’s life. You want to trust Ava? Go right ahead. But don’t ever turn your back on her.”

“Call the security company,” Trina said. She lifted her chin. “You’ll find out Ava’s innocent.”

“This time,” Dante said, and left before Trina could say anything else.

Miller & Davis: Spinelli’s Office

Diane studied the corkboard in Spinelli’s office, her brow furrowed. “You can’t let Alexis in this room.”

“You don’t think she’d understand?” the tech asked, coming to Diane’s side. “I’m just looking at this logically. You start with everyone who wanted the guy dead, and chisel away.  ” Spinelli folded his arms, his expression grim. “And I can’t chisel enough away to take her down.”

Diane exhaled and turned away from the index card with Kristina Davis-Corinthos scrawled out in Spinelli’s messy handwriting. “Walk me through why she’s up there.”

“The obvious reason? Cates was charging her with federal crimes. He arrested her when she was released from the hospital.” Spinelli went back to his desk, sat down, and tapped a few keys to bring up the file he’d started. “Kristina is impulsive and volatile. She attacked Connie Falconieri with a bat and trashed her office—”

“She had a very good reason—”

“Diane. You think I want her name up there?” Spinelli asked. “I’ve known her since she was a kid. I’ve helped Stone Cold and Sam get her out of a thousand jams. Do I think she did this? No. But that’s not what you asked me to do.”

Diane rubbed her forehead, sat down. “She was at Elizabeth’s the day after the murder,” she murmured. “I asked her about that visit. She was calm, cool, collected. Not a hint that she was there to plant a gun.”

“I know.” Spinelli put his head in this hands, rubbed his eyes, then returned his focus to Diane. “But I gotta look at this. Her alibi for that night is basically I was home, and we have nothing to back that up. Cates was making her life miserable, and we both know she’d have access to weapons — especially the kind the FBI can’t trace. She’s the only person outside of Elizabeth’s family at the house that week.”

“We don’t know the gun was planted that day,” Diane said, her tone taking on an air of desperation. “Aren’t you still getting the security footage from the hospital?”

“It’s due in by the end of the week, and I’m supposed to get the car data analysis early next week. All I need is Kristina’s alibi to be confirmed and that car data to tell me that trunk wasn’t opened during the time I have her on the property. Believe me, Diane, I want her off that board, too. I just—” Spinelli hesitated. “She’s grown up in a world where ending someone’s life is a reasonable option to consider.”

“Okay. Okay. All of that is true—but let’s look at the rest of it. Framing Jason—”

“She’s not framing Stone Cold. She put the gun in Elizabeth’s car—”

“She’s not doing anything, damn it. Don’t say it that way—” Diane’s head snapped up. “We don’t know anything.”

“Hypothetically, she would be framing Elizabeth,” Spinelli corrected, and Diane pressed her lips together, looked away. “I agree that framing Jason would be a long shot, but let’s remember how how loyal Kristina might feel towards Sam. Who has never hidden her resentment of Elizabeth. And who has been fighting with Jason for months about Danny.”

Diane closed her eyes, slumped back in her chair. “I don’t like any of this.”

“You asked me to investigate every lead, Diane. And I did. I promise you. I went down every rabbit hole, and the only person I can’t take off the board is Kristina. Even Ava has someone else verifying her alibi, and Trina isn’t known for lying.”

Diane took a careful breath. “This stays between us. Take her off that board—no, take her off the board, Spinelli. Alexis works here, and if—” Her throat was tight. “If this is true, and Sonny or Alexis find out before we could prove it — Kristina will be out of the country before we can blink, and there goes our chance to prove Elizabeth’s innocence. And that’s—that’s all I can think of right now.” Her voice faltered on the final words. “It needs to be someone else. It has to be. Keep looking. I won’t believe this until we have no other choice.”

“We need the neighbor’s footage from across the street. I think they have the best view of the street—” Spinelli stopped when Diane’s phone buzzed. The lawyer dug in her purse to retrieve her phone. “Diane?”

“The government’s response to our motion to dismiss was filed.” Diane rose. “I need to download and print it. Keep me in the loop, Spinelli, and make sure you eliminate every possibility, no matter how unrealistic. And I mean it—no visible evidence that we’re investigating Kristina. From now on, we discuss this outside the office—and—” Diane paused. “It stays between us.”

General Hospital: Eighth Floor

The nurse behind the desk smiled. “Dr. Fletcher will be with you in just a moment,” she told Jason. “If you want to have a seat, we’ll call you back when he’s ready.”

He didn’t want to sit, Jason thought, but turned away from the desk to find Elizabeth had already taken a seat by the door to the office suite and was flipping through a magazine she’d picked up. His chest eased slightly at the sight of her, and he took a seat next to her. “You didn’t have to come.”

“I wanted to.” Elizabeth closed the magazine, reached for his hand. He laced their fingers together, and smiled faintly when she squeezed. “I know this kind of thing isn’t easy for you. I know first hand how hard it is to get you to talk about anything,” she teased, and now his smile deepened.

“You could come in with me,” he asked, but he already knew she’d refuse before she shook her head.

“If I do that, you’ll look to me to answer the questions so you don’t have to. If we were here about Jake, that’d be different. But as much as I want to help Danny, I have to respect that Sam doesn’t want me to be part of it.”

“Do you?” he muttered, and she wrinkled her nose.

“Yes. I’d be livid if she pushed herself into Jake’s therapy without my consent.”

“That’s different—” Jason said.

Elizabeth tilted her head. “Is it? Maybe you never told her, but we both know I played a part in keeping Danny from Sam—”

“For twenty four hours,” Jason retorted, his voice pitched low. “If you think that in any way compares to what she did—”

“It does for me,” she said softly, and he sighed. “Then I lied about Jake Doe—it doesn’t matter that he wasn’t you,” she added when he opened his mouth to object. “Sam and I have played a lot of games with each other. Maybe in this latest round, I didn’t start it, but I won’t pretend to be innocent. Right now, all that matters is Danny. I don’t want to create more problems with his mother.”

“I know you’re right, but I don’t like it.”

Elizabeth leaned in close, rubbing his shoulder with the hand that he wasn’t holding. “I know. When he’s talking to you, just remember that it’s for Danny. We can do anything we have to do if it means he’ll be okay.”

He opened his mouth to respond, but the nurse called his name, and he kissed Elizabeth’s hand before releasing it.

“Good luck,” she said as he rose to his feet and followed the nurse through the door.

He’d never liked psychiatrists or psychologists or whatever they called themselves, not since Kevin Collins had attempted to interrogate him after his accident, trying to measure how damaged Jason really was. Kevin might have meant well, but the entire experience had left a bad taste in his mouth.

But Elizabeth thought this might help, and he knew that despite Andre Maddox’s crimes, therapy had helped Jake to adjust after everything that happened to him because of Helena and the kidnapping.

“Jason Morgan?”

The man on the other side of the door was older than him, maybe by about ten years, his dark hair shot with silver. He rose from a chair by a desk that had been turned to face a sofa and armchair set against the office’s opposite wall. “Dr. Raymond Fletcher.”

“Hello,” Jason said, a bit reluctantly, shaking his head and sitting in the armchair, perched on the edge, as if it would make an escape faster.

“I received your message that Danny’s mother won’t be joining us.” Fletcher took his seat, and made a note in a little book that sat on a table next to the chair. “I’m sorry to hear that.”

“Yeah, it’s…” Jason shifted. “Complicated.”

“Families usually are.” The doctor waited a beat. “Tell me a bit about what brought Danny here. I have some of the information, but I’d rather hear it from you.”

“Uh, well—” Jason cleared his throat, fought the urge to get up and pace. “Saturday night, I got a call from Elizabeth. She’d heard from the police that they had the boys. Aiden, Danny, and Rocco,” he added. “Aiden is Elizabeth’s son, which is why she’d been called. They’d been picked up for drinking, and they found weed on them. Danny was high and drunk.”

“He’s fourteen?” Fletcher asked, his pen scribbling a note.

“Yeah. In May.”

“How long has the substance use been happening, as far as you know?”

Jason clasped his hands between his thighs, leaning forward slightly. “A year, almost. Aiden told me first, and Danny confirmed. They started at a party, and they’ve been doing it every weekends. The weed came later.  Last few months, according to Aiden, it’s been during the week, too.”

“Did you notice any changes in his behavior?”

Jason exhaled slowly, then shook his head. “I wasn’t here to see it. I’ve…I’ve never been here. Not enough. And not the way Danny deserved. I’m the wrong person to do this. His mother should be here.”

“But she’s not.” Fletcher laid the pen down, met Jason’s gaze with his own. “Is he living with her right now?”

“No. He’s—he’s with me. Since Saturday. We’re—we’re at Elizabeth’s.”

“And he lived with his mother prior to Saturday?”

“Yes. She…was frustrated with the way he’d been speaking to her and he left. I don’t blame her for that,” Jason added. “They’d been fighting a lot.”

“All right. You said you live with Elizabeth. You’ve mentioned her a few times. Now, I know who she is, of course. I work at the hospital. But let’s pretend I don’t.” Fletcher looked at him again. “Who is Elizabeth to you and to Danny?”

+43

Written in 58 minutes. Not as long as I wanted it to be, but it’s the general idea.

Thursday, September 19, 2025

Webber House: Living Room

Elizabeth dangled the keys to the second car, and Jake heard the clink of the metal from across the room. He dropped the book he was shoving into his bag and nearly shoved Aiden over the back of the sofa to get to his mother. “Seriously? You don’t need it?”

“Not today. But—” Elizabeth jerked the keys from Jake’s grasp just as he was about to snag them. “You have to bring your brothers home before you can go anywhere else.”

“No problem. I’ll slow down in front of the house long enough to push them out.” Jake snatched the keys before his mother could change her mind. “Didn’t think I’d get my car back for a few more weeks.”

“Well, it’s looking like the government is never giving back mine, so I guess we’ll have get a second car. Because even after you’re in Spain next year because you’re applying,” Elizabeth added when Jake made a face, “your brother needs to drive something or Cam might need it.”

“The thought of Aiden behind the wheel is terrifying,” Jake quipped. He grabbed his bag. “I’ll be in the car,” he told his brothers. “I’m leaving in thirty seconds.”

Aiden rolled his eyes but followed Jake out the door. Danny hesitated, his hands on the strap of his book bag over his shoulders, and waited for his father, who’d been loading the dishwater to emerge from the kitchen. “Um, is…I mean, am I still supposed to go tomorrow?”

“Diane filed for medical decisions this morning,” Jason told him. “We should hear something on that within twenty-four hours. So yeah. I’m meeting with the doctor today. Is there anything you wanted me to ask him?”

“I don’t know.” Danny hunched his shoulders. “Like, is he gonna tell you everything I say?”

“I don’t think that’s how it works, but sure—” They all looked towards the door at the sound of an impatient honk.  “You’d better get going or you’ll be late.”

“Yeah, okay. Um, I guess, thanks.” Danny ducked his head and hurried out the door, closing it behind him.

Elizabeth flipped the deadbolt lock, then turning back to face Jason. “I’m tempted to pull the cord on the phone, but maybe—” Her words cut off abruptly when Jason’s hand curled around her waist and tugged her forward until his mouth covered hers. She sank into the embrace, sliding her hands up to cup his jaw. “So you remembered we had plans for today?” she managed when he released her, his hands slowly stroking her back in small circles.

“Did you think I’d forget?” he murmured, nipping at the line of her jaw. “I told Diane not to call unless it was life or death.”

“I left the same message at the hospital—” Elizabeth stifled a surprised giggle when he lifted in her the air. “It’s like I’m twenty-five again—” she said as he carried her towards the stairs. “But Carly doesn’t have a key to this door, so we’re probably good—not that it would stop her—”

“You’ve got a lock on your door, too, don’t you?” he replied and she laughed, leaning down to kiss him again, her hair swinging forward, falling across his cheek, the strands like silk.

“You’re right. Let’s not take any chances.”

—

She curled up against his side, her fingertips dancing across his chest. “This scar is new,” Elizabeth murmured, tracing a small, jagged line that was still a bit pink. “And not very old.”

“A year maybe,” Jason said, his own hand caressing her back, from her shoulders, dipping towards her waist, then back again. “Ran into the wrong end of a knife in an alley.” He tensed, because wouldn’t she ask more questions now? What alley? Why had he been there—

“I thought it would be different.”

His hand froze. “Different?” Jason repeated. “What do you mean?”

“Different’s not the right word,” she said. “But I don’t know. We haven’t been together in…” She sighed, her breath sliding across his skin. “So long. I was worried.”

I was worried. Past tense? His mind started to race. It had been years, she was right, but—

“I’m probably not saying any of this right,” Elizabeth said, and she sat up now, pulling the sheet up to tuck beneath her armpits. Her hair, disheveled, and a little damp at the roots from sweat. She bit her lip. “You know, I said it downstairs. I’m not exactly twenty-five anymore, and you know—” She lifted her eyes towards the sunlight pouring through her bedroom windows. “Lighting’s not always kind—”

The tension rushed out of him and now he almost smiled. Jason reached for her, curling his hand around the nape of her neck to kiss her, long and slowly. “You’re perfect. You always were. You always will be.”

“I’m not perfect. I don’t want to be—” Elizabeth grunted when he rolled her across his body so that she was on the other side of the bed, flat on her back and only protested slightly when he tugged the sheet down to reveal her abdomen.

He traced the faint stretch lines, maybe not entire visible to someone who hadn’t memorized their existence, and then the scar low on her belly, the evidence that she’d carried and risked her life to become a mother, to make him a father— “You’re perfect to me.”

“See, now you think I was fishing for compliments and I wasn’t,” Elizabeth insisted. He didn’t protest, when she pulled the sheet back, but relaxed back into his side. “I just meant — I was worried we couldn’t…that it wouldn’t be like before. I mean—” She bit her lip, tilted her head up. “Are you gonna be irritated if I mention Lucky?”

“No.” Probably not, he admitted to himself.

“You know, we were back and forth until we got married, and then the divorce — I don’t know. We kept trying to get it back. And it was never the same. Not the way we felt — or anything else,” Elizabeth admitted. “And maybe part of the reason I didn’t…that I was okay with waiting for today…was I liked how things were. And I didn’t want to mess it up if we’d…” She sighed. “If we’d lost this part. If it wasn’t the same. Or better.”

His lips curved into a smile, and he was glad she couldn’t see his face right now. “You can’t help but worry, can you?”

“Don’t make fun of me.”

“I’m not.”

“You are!” She huffed, and snagged one of the decorative pillows from the floor to whack him with it. “I’m being vulnerable here—”

“Okay, okay—” Jason caught the pillow and tossed it behind him, sitting up and pulling her with him to sit against the headboard. “I’m sorry.”

“No, you’re not.” But she was biting at her lip, trying to stifle the smile. “It’s silly to worry about it, I guess. We’ve got so many bigger problems—” Some of the color in her face faded, and he was sorry now that he hadn’t distracted her in the right way.

“Hey.” Jason caught her hand. “We don’t have to talk about any of that right now.”

“I don’t want to, but it’s hard to close it out entirely. It’s…it hasn’t even been three weeks, do you realize that?” Elizabeth said. “I’ve spent almost a week in jail, you’ve been living here for almost two weeks, your son lives with us—Jason, we’re literally living together and it’s just…I blinked and everything is so different. I never, not in a million years, thought we’d be back here.”

“Neither did I,” Jason admitted, and she leaned back against his chest, letting him wrap his arms around her. He kissed her shoulder. “I’d given up on this dream a long time ago,” he told her, his voice almost too quiet to be audible. “You and Jake. I didn’t deserve you, I thought. Not with the choices I made. And all the steps I kept taking, it took me further away.”

“I know.” She sighed, long and wistful. “I built a whole other life, and I was happy enough. I put this — you and me, and being a family — I put in a box on a shelf in a room, and lost the key. It was enough, I told myself, to have you in Jake’s life. To have your friendship. We’d missed our moment. I’d thrown it away a long time ago, and then you walked away—”

“Our timing really sucked,” he said, and she laughed, the words echoing a sentiment he’d expressed the night they’d created Jake.

“But it’s different now. Your life is different, and we’re both free—” Elizabeth tilted her head up so that their eyes met. “I guess I was scared that everything was going too well. That maybe we might be able to live together, and be a family, but that we weren’t going to be able to have this part, too.”

“Are you still worried about that?” he asked.

Elizabeth her lip, then sat up to let the sheet fall to her waist. “I don’t know. I think we might need to run a few more tests.”

+40