Thursday, September 23, 2011

Morgan Home: Living Room

It was just before dawn when he slid his key into the door and unlocked it. He pushed the door open and stepped into the home that had not been lived in for nine months. When he had walked out the previous December, he had told himself that the next time he stepped through the foyer he would know what had happened to his wife.

Or better yet, she would be at his side.

Instead, he had come home because he couldn’t justify staying away any longer. There were no more leads to follow, no more people to rustle up and interrogate. He had no idea what had happened to Elizabeth and no idea where to look next.

But he had three children that depended on him. Jake and Juliet weren’t old enough to know any better, but Cameron knew his mother was gone and he’d had enough upheaval in his life. The little boy had lost Lucky as a father figure already, and now, in the matter of a year, he’d lost his mother, the one constant in his life.

If Jason couldn’t bring Elizabeth home personally, he owed it to her and to their children to see that they were loved, cared for and raised in a way she’d be proud of.

He stepped into the living room and the first thing he saw was the large framed photograph of Elizabeth with Cameron and Jake the day of their wedding. She was leaning against the gazebo in the gardens at the Quartermaine estate, Jake in her arms and Cameron standing at her side. Her smile was wide and her eyes were sparkling.

She’d been so happy that day and Jason knew that she’d been happy each day that had followed for the next two years. Blending their lives together hadn’t been as difficult as they’d assumed. They had worked together to plan protection for their boys that each were satisfied with and by the time the wedding had taken place, even Elizabeth and Carly had found common ground. Their family was created that day and cemented in the years that had followed.

He couldn’t accept that Elizabeth had just driven away from him, their children and the life they’d fought so hard to have. She loved him and he loved her. She never would have left him. Not without a fight.

Jason put his duffel bag down next to the sofa and felt his throat constrict with every reminder of Elizabeth that he could see. The photos that she had lined the room with, the caftan blanket that draped over the sofa. A bottle of nail polish that she’d used the day she left that he’d never cleaned up. He knew Carly had been in and out over the last year, picking things up for the kids and keeping it clean and paid for but clearly, she had instructed that nothing was to be touched other than the dust.

He appreciated what she’d tried to do for him but now he wished he’d called ahead and told her to put these things away. To put these pictures and belongings and mementos in a box so that he wouldn’t have to look at reminders of a life that was no longer his.

He picked up the photo of Elizabeth and the boys. He looked at it for a long time, drinking in every line of her face, memorizing her smile and her eyes. He placed it back on the shelf and went into the kitchen. He opened the closet where cleaning supplies had been kept and dragged out an old box left over from a purchase he couldn’t remember.

Jason took the box into the living room and methodically began placing each frame inside carefully. Photos of Elizabeth with him, with the boys, with Juliet, alone, even ones that just reminded him of her – they all went in the box.

When he was done with those, he took the bottle of nail polish and the caftan and placed it on top. He closed the box and tucked it under the coffee table.

Jason grabbed his bag and went upstairs into his bedroom. He dropped his bag and then went to the closet in the hallway where Elizabeth had kept her luggage. He dragged the entire set into the bedroom. He unzipped one of the bags and opened her dresser drawer.

Jason carefully packed all the clothes that he could fit into her suitcases and then packed her makeup and hair materials into the toiletries bag. The dresses and things hanging in the closet remained in their place for now. He would arrange for permanent storage later.

By the time he called Carly later that afternoon to tell her he was home, the Morgan home had been carefully stripped of anything that would remind him of his wife. It wouldn’t drive out the memories but maybe, just maybe, it would keep him sane long enough to perform the task of raising the children she’d left behind.

Tuesday, July 16, 2024

Miller & Davis: Diane’s Office

“Oh please don’t tell me you’re under investigation again,” Diane Miller sighed. She pressed her perfectly manicured hands against her desk and pulled herself to her feet.  “I think I’m getting too old for this. You’re going to have to wait until Alexis’s daughter finishes law school, which means you must be on your best behavior for the next four years.”

“That’s not why I’m here,” Jason answered, more than used to Diane’s diatribes. She was the only lawyer he’d ever had that had managed to stick around for so long but he knew she was tiring of it. Alexis had attempted to forbid Kristina from pursuing employment with the organization but Jason was aware that Diane was training Sonny’s daughter to take over for her one day.

It was just a stark reminder of how much had changed in the time Elizabeth had been gone. The morning she’d vanished, Kristina had been in elementary school talking about ponies and fairies and now she was about to enter her senior year of college.

Jason lowered himself into the chair. “There’s something I need to discuss with you.”

His sober tone worried her and Diane sat back down. “All right. I’m all ears.”

“I wanted to look into…” He stopped and shook his head. “I never wanted to do this but I think it’s time for some closure. The kids need it more than I do. Juliet still thinks…” Jason exhaled slowly. “What is the process for declaring someone legally dead?”

Diane’s lips formed a silent oh and she leaned back in her chair. “As your legal counsel, I can tell you that it would be a simple matter of filing some papers, attending a hearing and publishing a new notices. With Elizabeth being gone for over a decade, you wouldn’t find much hassle.”

“I thought so,” Jason replied quietly. “I was hoping it would be more difficult.”

“I can see why you might want to take this course,” Diane continued. “It would give a lot of people a chance to say goodbye. You could make it official with a viewing and perhaps a ceremonial stone placed—” She stopped and tilted her head to the side. “Can I be frank with you?”

“I wasn’t aware you were ever anything but,” he responded.

“I respect you for considering this,” she said. “And I admire you for waiting as long. Most men wouldn’t bother with this process. They would simply divorce their wife, citing abandonment and they would have moved on to someone else by now. But not you, Jason. You held out hope longer than anyone could have expected you to and I suspect that you haven’t given up. You just wish to do this for your children. And I respect that as well. All that aside, I don’t think you should do it.”

Jason frowned. “No?”

“I am a cynical person by nature,” Diane admitted. She spread her hands out in a careless shrug. “I don’t believe in most ideals and I think optimism is for suckers but I had the privilege of going to your wedding. And arranging your adoption of Cameron, so I have some first hand knowledge of your life with Elizabeth. I know how much you loved her then and I don’t imagine that it’s paled despite the passage of time.”

She leaned forward. “I think you should discuss this with your children. They have a right to be involved with this decision, especially if you’re doing it for them. Don’t do it because you think it’s what’s expected of you. If I had had an ounce of what you shared with your wife, I don’t know that I would ever give up hope.”

Morgan Home: Driveway

“Hand me that wrench?”

Juliet peered out over the array of tools Cam had spread out on a towel on the ground next to his car. “Which one is the wrench?”

“Jules.” He slid himself out from underneath the vehicle. “Are you kidding me?”

“Look, it’s not my fault you’re not talking to Jake and have to depend on me.” Juliet pursed her lips and picked up one. “Is that it?”

“That,” Cameron said patiently, “is a screwdriver.” He picked up another and held it in front of her. “This is a wrench.”

“Duly noted,” she said dryly, setting the screwdriver back down. Cameron slid himself back under the car and continued his work. “Are you and Jake just not going to talk all summer?”

“If he keeps acting like an asshole, it’s a distinct possibility, yes.”

“Boys are so dumb,” she sighed. She shifted into a different seating position, crossing her legs and leaned back on her hands. “You should hang out more with Spencer Cassadine.”

“What?” Cameron slid out again. “That’s a pretty random suggestion.” He narrowed his eyes. “Jules.”

“Yes?” she asked innocently.

“He’s too old for you.”

She rolled her eyes. “Oh, good God. I’m not going to like jump him or anything. He’s not even going to be around past the summer. He’s going away to college in like London. I just think he’s nice. Aren’t he and Morgan close? They’re supposed to be cousins.”

“Morgan’s supposed to be cousins with half of the population. He barely talks to his own half-sister, you think he’s cozied up to a cousin he sees once a year for five minutes?” Cameron grabbed another tool and slid back.

“People just don’t appreciate family in this town,” she huffed. She sat up and folded her legs Indian style. “So you and Molly have been seeing each other for a couple of weeks.”

“Molly’s not close to him either,” was his pithy reply.

“Haha,” she muttered. “No, I was just inquiring if you were actually serious about this one or if she’ll be like your last summer fling.”

“She’s not—” Cameron broke off and swore under his breath. “I’m not going to discuss this with my little sister.”

“Ha, I told Lia you guys were having sex,” Juliet grinned. “You could so tell—” she was startled when her brother slid out and sat up, looking somewhat pissed off. “What?”

“What the hell are you doing discussing my sex life with Amalia?” Cameron demanded. “Whose business is it what Molly and I do?”

Juliet frowned. “We were just talking about it in passing. Everyone talks about sex, Cam, don’t be such a prude. It’s not just you and Molly. We talked about Mal and CeCe, but we don’t think they’re sleeping together, which is good because Lia and I don’t think you should give it up before you’re at least sixteen.”

Cameron pressed his lips together in angry line. “Juliet, I don’t appreciate you talking about Molly or CeCe like that. How would you like it if someone did that to you?”

Juliet hesitated. “We didn’t do it to be mean. I like Molly. I always have. And I’m glad you guys are together. I think she’s a nice match for you. We were just talking. Lia and I are the last people to spread malicious gossip. Someone wrote slut on her locker last year and she had to beg the school not to call her parents.”

“Why would someone do that?” he asked. “I was under the impression Lia doesn’t really date.”

“She doesn’t date period,” Juliet clarified. “She’s holding out for Jake and he’s got this thing about their age difference. Anyway, she thinks that she just turned down the wrong idiot but it was pretty bad for a while and she was upset about it.”

“She’s holding out for Jake?” Cameron repeated. “She could do better.”

“You’re only saying that because you’re mad at him right now.” She hesitated. “I wish he got along better with Dad. It feels like they’ve argued about everything for as long as I can remember.”

“They have.” Cameron disappeared back under the car. “Since Jake was in third grade and came home crying because someone told him that his father had killed his mother and buried the body in the backyard. Jake demanded to know what happened to Mom and Dad finally told him. Jake started to pay attention to the gossip around town about shit that happened before they got married and it just got worse from there.”

“What happened before they were married?” Juliet asked curiously.

There was a long pause if Cameron were trying to decide if he should tell her. Finally, he sighed. “You know how Mom used to be married to Lucky Spencer? That he was raising me for a while?”

“Sure. And I know that she was married to him when she had Jake, but then Dad told her he loved her and they got married right?” Juliet answered.

“Not…exactly.” Cameron slid back out and sat up. “She lied to Dad at first about who Jake’s dad was. Because Dad was seeing someone else and she thought he didn’t want him. So she let everyone believe Lucky was Jake’s dad.”

“Oh,” Juliet bit her lip. “I guess that explains why he tried to get custody of you after Mom disappeared. Maybe he was still a little angry about that.”

“Well, it kind of gets worse. Even after Dad found out the truth, he stayed with the other woman and they both continued to lie to Lucky. And even after they were both free to be together, they only saw each other in secret. Lucky was still claiming Jake, to keep him safe.”

“So how did they end up getting married after Michael and Sonny died?” Juliet asked, bewildered.

“Well, after Michael was killed, Dad tried to break off the engagement and reneged on his decision to claim Jake in public,” Cameron continued. “But after a few weeks, he and Mom decided they couldn’t do it anymore and by then, Sonny was dead. Dad decided that instead of retaliating against Johnny, they would strike a new truce. He had to do a lot of maneuvering with the other families but that’s when things started to change. When Dad felt like things were safe, he and Mom set a wedding date. Gradually, people learned the truth and by the time they were married, Dad had adopted me and claimed Jake legally.”

“So Jake’s mad at Dad not only for what he thinks happened to Mom but because he let everyone believe Jake was someone’s else’s son?” Juliet asked.

“I wish I knew,” Cameron answered. “Look, I think Jake’s got some good reasons to be a little ticked about how things went down when he was little. Maybe he feels like Mom had to force Dad into it. And maybe he thinks Dad let Mom down a lot before they were engaged. I don’t remember a lot of it, but I know she worked double shifts all the time. I know that we didn’t have a lot of money and I remember her crying about being evicted at one point. I think Dad could have done more to support her, found a way to give her some money but maybe she was too proud to accept it. I don’t know. And unless Dad decides to get chatty about it, we won’t ever know.”

“What do you think it would have been like if Mom had been around?” Juliet asked softly.

Cameron hesitated. “Well…I think we’d have a bigger family,” he said after a moment. “Definitely another sibling, if not two. Mom…she really wanted a big family. I think she wanted another sister for you, so she probably would have kept going until she had one.” He paused. “I think Jake would be happier in general. And maybe she could have explained his birth in a way he could have accepted. I think Dad would be a different person. He wasn’t…he’s a great dad, Jules, but he was different when Mom was around. He was smiling, he even laughed sometimes.”

“I wish…I wish I knew her,” Juliet said quietly. “I know a lot about her, I have these pictures but it’s just…it’s not the same.”

“She’d like you, Jules,” Cameron told her. “You would have been close. She was funny and she was loyal. She would do anything for her friends and for her family. You’ve got all that. I don’t know for sure how our family would be different if Mom had been around, but I know she loved us all and that she loved Dad.”

“You think she’s dead, don’t you?” Juliet said. “You and Jake both think she’s dead. He blames Dad for it. Do you?”

“I don’t blame anyone,” he answered. “I don’t know for sure that she’s dead, but I can’t think of any other reason why she’s not around. Can you?”

Juliet hesitated. “Yeah…actually I can.” She reached to the edge of the driveway and grabbed the large bag she hauled around everywhere. She withdrew a folder and handed it to him. “I think she was kidnapped, that Helena Cassadine did something to her to make her forget who she was and then Helena died before she could do whatever she had planned.”

Cameron stared at her for a long moment. “Jules—”

“I know what you’re going to say, Cam, and I know it sounds crazy, but you have to believe me. This isn’t some crazy theory. I researched it. First, Helena did have a thing about Mom. She tried to make Nikolas kill her once. And Helena’s got the resources to do something like this, she did it to Laura Spencer years ago. Also, there’s an obituary from Rafina, Greece for Helena that mentions a granddaughter Maia. I asked Spinelli to look into her and there was no record of Mai before December 2010. Now she owns an arts and crafts store in Rafina – the same place where Nikolas saw a woman he thought looked like Mom last year. It all fits, Cam.”

“And the folder?” Cameron asked, arching an eyebrow. He set it down and wiped his hands free of grease so he could look at it more closely.

“It has the obituary, the article about the store and the delayed birth certificate Spinelli found for her. The parents listed? No record of them anywhere. He dug into the birth records and didn’t find anything that coincided with Maia’s past. She just appeared out of nowhere a month after Mom disappeared.”

“Why haven’t you taken this to Dad?” Cam asked, glancing at the documents inside.  “I would have thought you’d be all over flying there immediately.”

“What if Dad agrees to go look and it isn’t her?” Juliet asked. “What if I get his hopes up, and yours and Jake’s…what if we all start to believe it’s her and it turns out it isn’t? The whole reason I wanted to find out what happened to Mom is to make everyone else feel better. What if this does the opposite?”

“What if it is her, Jules?” Cam asked. “What if you never said a word and things keep going the way they are around? Sure, now we can talk about Mom in the open and ask Dad questions, but are things really any better?”

“I thought you were sure she was dead,” Juliet replied.

“I don’t know for sure, I just couldn’t figure out anyway to explain things.” He held up the folder. “This? Explains things. I bet Dad never thought about Helena Cassadine, especially since she died a few months after Mom left, and he was still concentrating on his own people at that point. Jules, I’m not saying that I definitely think this is Mom, but I think you’ve got something here that you can’t ignore. You have to tell Dad.”

He handed her back the folder. “Good work, kid.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck and hugged him. “I totally forgive you for trying to drown my dolls in the backyard pond when I was five.”

Morgan Home: Jake’s Room

Jake was throwing a tennis ball against his wall when he heard a knock at his window. He glanced over and nearly fell out of his desk chair. “Amalia!”

He opened the window to let her climb through. “What the hell are you doing?”

“Jules called me a little while ago. You had another fight with Cam and your dad.” Amalia closed the window behind her and plopped down on his bed, leaning back on her hands. “She thought you were upset and you wouldn’t talk to her. She thought you’d talk to me.”

“My sister is mistaken,” Jake muttered. He tossed the tennis ball in a drawer and crossed to his bedroom door. “You can take the stairs this time,” he said, opening it.

Instead, Amalia shifted until she was lying down on her stomach, propping her head with her hands. “Jules said you and your Dad argued about your grades. Apparently, you landed yourself in summer school and you didn’t bother going. The school called and your dad grounded you. He took away your car keys. Which sucks for you because you just got that car for your birthday.”

“I’m not interested in summer school. What’s the point?” Jake sat back at his desk. “Like I’ve got an actual future.”

“Oh, come on…” Amalia sat up. “You’re not going to pull that ‘I’m Jason Morgan’s Son So I’m Going To Inherit Whether I Like It Or Not’ bullshit. That’s not true and your dad would be the first to say so. What about Cam?”

“Cam’s not his biological son and everyone knows it,” Jake argued. “You wouldn’t understand. You’re a girl. No one thinks you’re going to take over your dad’s business.”

“You’re just being an idiot now,” Amalia shook her head. “You keep this up and I’m not going to wait around for you to notice me.”

“I’m not in the mood to play that game right now,” he grumbled. He turned away from her and punched a few keys on his keyboard.

She stood up and crossed to him, folding her arms on the back of his chair and leaning down. “Jake. You’re just so determined to be mad at the world for what you’ve been dealt that you’re just making up reasons to be angry. You don’t have a mother and you blame your father for it. That’s sad, but it’s not the end of the world. Your dad grounded you because he wants you to do well in school so that you can have a future that’s not about the violence. He can’t get out all the way, but he’s tried so hard to shield you guys from it. My father has done the same. They’ve worked themselves to the bone to keep us clear of danger so that we have choices.”

“His life got my mother killed.”

“Maybe,” Amalia said soberly. She twisted his chair around so he was looking at her. “But she loved him and she married him. You can’t tell me she didn’t know exactly who he was before she stood before God and swore to love him. You can’t hate him for the choice your mother made. And you can’t punish him for what happened to your mother anymore than he punishes himself. Everyone knows that he’s never forgiven himself. My mother said that if it weren’t for you guys, he would have never come home. He would have just been wandering around the world, following any lead no matter how unlikely it was. He loved her, Jake, and my mother said he would have died for her. Stop punishing him and stop making your life more difficult than it has to be.”

Jake shook his head. “Li, you just don’t understand.”

She wanted to argue with him, but her cell phone rang. She tugged it out of her back pocket and answered it. “Hey, I didn’t think I’d hear from you so soon—oh? Good. Thanks.” She closed her phone. “Lulu Spencer’s coming home on Friday.”

Jake regarded her suspiciously. “Do you really think she’s going to give you answers?”

“I’m not going to give her a choice,” Amalia said. “I don’t know what she did to make my father cheat on my mother, but I don’t believe he did it just for the hell of it. I can’t believe that.”

“Now who’s making things up in their head?” Jake asked.

Friday, July 19, 2024

Kelly’s: Lulu’s Room

Lulu Spencer yawned as she unlocked the door to her room. She really needed to stop the overnight flights—it was hell on her in the morning. She would have to schedule a stop over from now on.

She flicked the light on and a short scream spilled from her lips at the unfamiliar teenage girl seated at the small table in her usual room. “Who the hell are you?”

“My name is Amalia Zacchara,” she replied. “And you’re going to tell me how you wrecked my family and ruined my life. You owe me that much.”

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