It’d been eating her up inside. Since the moment Nikolas Cassadine was arrested, Elizabeth Lansing felt the acid churning in her stomach.
She paced the living room of their new home. There were still boxes everywhere–she hadn’t had the energy to unpack more things over the last month or so. In fact, only three rooms were furnished. The living room, their bedroom and the kitchen.

She’d picked out a room upstairs for the nursery but beyond a few half-hearted sketches for a mural on the wall, it remained a blank room.

Elizabeth grabbed the remote for the VCR and pressed rewind. The television reporter’s face went backwards and then she pressed play.

“Preliminary autopsy reports of Alexander Lewis AKA Zander Smith have been released to the press detailing that while the body was burned very badly, the cause of death appears to be a blow to the head.”
She rewound it again.

“…the cause of death appears to be a blow to the head.”

Again.

“…appears to be a blow to the head.”

Again.

“…a blow to the head.”

She pressed the power button and the screen went black. The words kept echoing in her head. Elizabeth closed her eyes and fought against the sting of tears.

“It was an accident,” she announced to the empty room. “I didn’t–I didn’t mean to do it.”

She braced a hand on her lower back, feeling the stress of her pregnancy, feeling the stress of this whole month.

“I was terrified,” she whispered. “He looked…so angry. I didn’t know what he’d do.”

“I didn’t mean…I didn’t know that I hit him so hard.”

She felt the acid rising into her throat and covered her mouth, the tears streaking down her cheeks. “But it doesn’t matter. Because Nikolas didn’t do it.”

The door opened behind her but she didn’t turn to it. “Sorry, I’m late again,” her husband said. “I hope you didn’t wait to eat.”

“Ric.” Elizabeth slowly circled around. Ric Lansing frowned, set his briefcase on the floor.

“Elizabeth, what’s wrong?” he asked quickly. He hurried towards her and put his hands on her face. “Are you in pain? Is it the baby?”

She shook her head. “No. I need–I need to tell you something.” She backed away from him and turned away. “The night of the fire…I was at the hotel earlier that night. Before the fire broke out.”

Ric frowned. “Why? When?”

“I wanted to talk to Emily,” Elizabeth said softly, her throat felt thick and it was hard to talk. She was a murderer. How could she ever reconcile herself to that fact? “I saw Maxie Jones coming out of a door that I knew led to the basement. I only really paid any attention because you told me you thought she knew more about Zander’s disappearance than she was saying.”

Ric nodded. “She was hiding him down there after he’d gotten shot,” he informed her. “Is that what you wanted to tell me?” he asked, hope in his voice. He didn’t want her to say what he was beginning to realize was possible.

“No.” Elizabeth took a deep breath and kept her eyes trained on their second wedding photo. “I, ah, after I talked to Emily, I saw Nikolas coming out of that same room. I couldn’t…I was curious so I went and opened the door. I thought if he was down there, I could get the door closed before he noticed me and then I could tell you.”

“Elizabeth…” Ric trailed off. He had no words. He had nothing he could say to make this better–to make it go away.

“But he saw me. A-and…he ran up the stairs. At first he was just trying to get me to keep him a secret. He told me was leaving town–I wasn’t saying anything. I was in a little shock and I didn’t know what I’d do,” Elizabeth admitted. She turned, the tears streaking trails down her cheeks. “I didn’t know if I’d let him get away and then tell you–or not tell you at all…I didn’t know.”

“It’s okay. Zander was your friend a lot longer than we’ve known each other,” Ric assured her. “I understand.”

“I guess he didn’t–he took my silence to mean that I would tell and–then he grabbed my arm.” She held it out and slid up the sleeve to reveal a dark bruise in the shape of fingers. “He wouldn’t let me go,” she whispered. “He just–he was scaring me. I’d never seen him like that and I just–I just wanted to get out of there.”

He stepped towards her then, the bruise on her arm making his blood run cold. “You hit him to get away,” Ric said slowly.

She nodded. “I reached out and grabbed something. A pipe, I guess, I don’t really know. And I hit him. I–I didn’t mean to hurt him–I didn’t mean to kill him!” she cried.

Ric pulled her into his arms then. “Okay, okay, no, of course you didn’t. It’s okay. We’ll fix this.”

“We can’t fix this,” she said, clutching his arms like a lifeline. “I killed him. It’s involuntary manslaughter at the very least. I’ll have to go to jail–”

“No. You are not going to jail,” Ric said forcibly. He helped her seat down and he perched on the edge of their coffee table. “Now I want you to take deep breaths. It’s not good for the baby for you to get so upset, okay?”

“Okay.”

“No one right now suspects you,” Ric told her. “Now–that’s not saying they never will. They’re still sifting through the evidence at the scene and it’s possible they could find that pipe and your finger prints could be on it.”

Elizabeth nodded numbly. “And then they’ll know,” she whispered. “I can’t run from this, Ric–I’m guilty.”

“You were scared, you were trying to protect yourself,” Ric protested. “He had you by the arm–you didn’t mean to do it.”

“That doesn’t make me any less guilty.”

“In the eyes of the law,” Ric nodded, “no.” He took a deep breath. “Okay, you have to get out of town. Disappear. No one can know where you are. I’ll get this case closed and you can come back–”

“I don’t want you to do anything illegal,” Elizabeth interrupted. “If the evidence points to me, I don’t want you to do anything to get rid of it.”

Ric closed his eyes. “Elizabeth, that means you could never come back–”

“I don’t care,” she said stubbornly.

“Okay, chances are–finger prints won’t even be identifiable by the time they find anything,” Ric told her. “We’ll get you out of town–I shouldn’t even know where you end up.” He put his hands in the pockets of his suit jacket. “I think I know who to go to for help.”

Elizabeth frowned. “What? Who?”

“I–” he hesitated. “I think I know someone who would help you. It’s…it’s probably the equivalent of selling my soul to the devil, but I’ll do it.”

Elizabeth stood. “Ric…who are you talking about?”

“I’ll be right back.” Ric left the house before she could get another word out.

---

“This better be good.”

Ric stepped across the docks gingerly and kept his voice quiet. “I need your help.”

Jason Morgan raised his eyebrows. “Are you kidding me?” He shook his head and started back up the stairs.

“Elizabeth needs your help,” Ric called after him.

He heard Jason sigh and turn back around. “With that?” he asked stiffly.

“She…” Ric hesitated. “She needs to get out of town. Disappear. No one can find her until it’s safe.”

Jason came down the steps and grabbed Ric by his lapels. “What the hell did you do this time?” he demanded.

“Nothing,” Ric assured him. “She’s…she accidentally killed Zander and until the case is closed or marked inactive, I need her to get out of town.”

Jason pushed him away. “You sure she’s not covering for you?” he said scathingly.

“Look, I can’t stand asking you for this,” Ric retorted. “I’ll confess to it myself before she’s sent to jail.” He stepped towards the irate man. “Can you imagine her in jail, Jason? She’s pregnant. She’ll give birth to her baby in jail. Is that something you imagined her having to do one day?”

“A good lawyer would get her acquitted,” Jason said uncomfortably.

“The first thing they’d break is her spirit,” Ric seethed. “I would rather die than see that happen. Can you picture her in a jail cell? Locked away? From her family? Her friends? Her paintings?”

Jason took a deep breath and tilted his head to the sky. He didn’t need this right now. With the problems with Courtney, Sonny and Carly ripping each other to shreds, the territory war brewing with Faith…

“I cannot picture you in jail.”

“I’d look the same.”

The words just whispered in his ear and he remembered standing here with her all those years ago. And he finally understood what she’d been trying to say.

“All right. I’ll do it.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Have her ready by six in the morning. I’ll pick her up. You won’t know where she is and the only way to contact her will be through me. I’ll give you more details in the morning.” He turned and started up the stairs again.

“Thank you,” Ric said.

“I’m not doing this for you,” were Jason’s words as he disappeared around a corner.

“I know,” he said softly.

| Chapter One →