Friday, April 18, 2008

Zacchara Estate: Study

“What do you mean she’s, gone?” Johnny growled. “When did she leave?”

The man on the other side of the phone call was immensely relieved not to be in the same room as the mob boss. “She left late last night. Flew directly to Naples.”

“Fine. Then you get on the next flight out and you bring her back,” Johnny ordered. He slammed the phone down and glared down at the surface of his desk. After all Claudia’s talk about a united family, the second the heat had been applied, she’d fled.

And left him holding the bag.

He growled at nothing in particular and shoved out of his seat. In the two short weeks since Michael Corinthos had been shot in the head by an unknown assailant and lapsed into a coma, life in Port Charles had become extremely precarious. Men on both sides were coming up missing or dead. Anyone who mattered had been locked under tight security or shipped out.

Johnny had teamed up personally with Luke Spencer to tie up Johnny’s semi-girlfriend, toss her on a plane and take her out of town. He liked to think she’d eventually understand his actions. She was probably not in any danger, being the daughter of an old friend, but Sonny was running on anger now and rational thoughts might not intrude.

It was Jason who had handled security for his side. They didn’t know where the hit had come from so they’d exercised extra precautions above and beyond the usual protocol. Johnny had been somewhat surprised when a nurse at the hospital had disappeared along with her sons. He’d dug into that just a little and found out Elizabeth Spencer had had a relationship at one point with Jason Morgan and the paternity of her youngest son was in question. Not  anymore, Johnny decided. It was clear Jason had decided not to take any more chances with his own family.

Morgan Corinthos had also been secreted away, and Kate Howard had returned to New York, talked into it by Jason Morgan, Johnny surmised.

The only family Johnny had worried about was Claudia. She was rash and made stupid decisions. It was her fault Michael Corinthos was in the hospital, not expected to recover and yet, she’d fled for Naples. Unbelievable.

His study door flew open, bouncing off the wall it slammed into. Sonny Corinthos strode in, arm extended and gun cocked. Johnny froze for just a moment before diving under the heavy oak desk. He scrambled to get the emergency piece from a special drawer installed for this purpose.

“My son just died!” Sonny yelled. He  started shooting at the desk and Johnny knew that the wood would only protect him so long. “You coward! You go after women and children?”

“I had nothing to do with it!” Johnny roared. He checked his gun, made sure it was cocked and ducked away from the desk, diving behind a nearby sofa. He felt the sofa jerk as another bullet struck it. He had to act fast or Sonny was actually going to kill him this time.

“You’re lying to me!”

Another bullet whizzed past Johnny’s ear and he finally started to get it. Even if Sonny didn’t succeed this time, he’d keep coming back to kill him. It was always going to be one or the other. Neither could coexist.

He waited until he heard Sonny’s gun click, indicating he was out of bullets. Johnny rose to his feet, took aim and then closed his eyes so he wouldn’t actually have to see himself kill someone else’s father.

 Monday, July 22, 2024 (Eastern Standard Time)

Nadine’s Home: Living Room

The last person Nadine expected to see on her doorstep was the woman who had destroyed her marriage. “You have five seconds to say what you have to say and then I want you gone.”

“Well, then I’ll make it short and simple–” Lulu started.

“You’re out of time.” Nadine slammed the door. She couldn’t believe the nerve of that woman — to show up on her doorstep a decade after sleeping with her husband. What in the world could Lulu have to say to her after all this time?

“Knowing my luck, probably a hidden love child,” Nadine muttered. She returned to her previous task — going through the many court documents she and Johnny had generated in the last ten years. She’d been so angry and devastated by his infidelity that she’d had Alexis Davis fight tooth and nail for anything and everything. Half of Johnny’s estate, full custody of Amalia, alimony, exorbitant child support.

True to form, Alexis had done her best to nickel and dime Johnny, but Trevor Lansing had fought her every step of the way. Nearly as angry as Nadine, Johnny had sued for full custody, refused alimony and child support and wanted to leave Nadine with absolutely nothing.

She’d realized later that Johnny had only been so harsh because he’d wanted Nadine to fold and come home. She’d always known in his own way that Johnny cared for her and Nadine was almost sure that if not for Lulu, they would be together. But Lulu had been a fact that Johnny couldn’t explain away.

Eventually, they’d reached a financial agreement that satisfied them both and joint custody had been agreed on. When Johnny realized that Nadine wasn’t backing down from a divorce, he’d told Trevor to back off.  The divorce had been finalized and Nadine had thought they would both move on.

Unfortunately, they dragged each other into court countless times over the last few years. When Johnny had remarried out of the blue, Nadine had retaliated by suing for full residential custody. When Nadine had considered moving back to Ohio to be closer to old friends, Johnny had pulled her into court.

And now, it looked as though they were headed back into court yet again except Nadine wasn’t sure if it would work out the right way in the end. Amalia was old enough to decide who she wanted to live with and Nadine knew her daughter wasn’t going be happy about her engagement to Nikolas. She’d pick Johnny out of spite.

A knock from the back porch broke into Nadine’s thoughts and she glared at the sight of Lulu standing there, one eyebrow raised. “Lulu, if you don’t get off my property, I’m going to call the police.”

Lulu pulled open the back door and stepped in. “You really need to start locking this place if you want to keep people out.”

“I’m calling the police–” Nadine reached for her cell phone.

“You’re going to want to hold off on that,” Lulu said. “I was informed by an interested party that you might be a little ignorant of a few things that happened that time I was home–”

“Did you sleep with my husband?” Nadine demanded.

“Well, yes–”

“Then I don’t think there are any facts of which I am ignorant since that’s the only one that matters.” Nadine flicked her wrist towards the front door. “You can go out the front.”

“He thought I was you,” Lulu said. “I found him passed out at Jake’s and he started calling me Nadine–”

Nadine stood. “Excuse me?”

“Look, I’m not saying I didn’t take advantage of the situation,” Lulu continued. “You wouldn’t talk to him after you lost the baby, you completely shut him out and he was angry at himself for not knowing how to help you, for not being there so he got drunk at Jake’s. I was there, I saw him, he was reaching for me, calling me by your name and kissing me, telling he was sorry–”

“You’re telling me that Johnny thought I was in the room with him and you slept with him anyway?” Nadine said quietly. “That the entire time he was with you, he thought it was me?”

“It seemed like a good idea at the time,” Lulu said. “I thought maybe he’d realize it was me eventually, but all the way through, it was Nadine this, Nadine that,” she shrugged. “So I split. If Johnny had had a smart bone in his body, he never would have said a damn thing to you and this all could have been avoided.”

“You are disgusting,” Nadine murmured. “You pursued him from the second you came home, despite the fact that he and I were married, that we had a life together. You just didn’t care–”

“Look, I’m not saying I’m proud of myself or the way I acted,” Lulu replied. “I’m just saying that I didn’t do it to be malicious–”

“You probably tell yourself that a lot,” Nadine cut in. “You tell yourself you’re not doing this to be a bitch, to be a devious little slut or to do anything wrong. No,” she drawled sarcastically. “You probably thought you were doing me a favor because if Johnny was really happy, he’d never stray so maybe it was best to find out.”

“Nadine–”

“You’re pathetic,” Nadine snarled. “You’ve explained yourself. Now get the fuck out.”

Morgan Home: Cameron’s Bedroom

Molly knocked lightly on Cameron’s ajar bedroom door and walked in. Her boyfriend stood across the room, staring out into the backyard. She could hear the shouts and splashes from below. “I can’t remember the last time I heard Jake laugh like that,” she murmured joining him at the window.

Below, she watched as Amalia waited until Jake was distracted by Mal and Spencer before leaping and dunking him. He surfaced with a splash and started for the other teen, determined to return the favor.

“Lia’s good for him,” Cameron said after a long moment. “I wish he’d stop worrying about their age difference and just go for it.”

“Hmm…” Molly backed and sat on his bed, taking in his room. It was decorated in greens and blues complimenting the dark wooden furniture. His walls weren’t covered with posters of bands or scantily clad women, but rather a few nondescripts prints she didn’t really recognize. If not for a pile of clothes on his desk and his sneakers poking out from under the bed, she wouldn’t even have known that this was his room.

She looked over at Cameron, who was uncharacteristically quiet. She’d been in love with Cameron Morgan since she was thirteen and he’d taken his shirt off by the pool one summer. She’d bided her time, waiting out all the other girls and she’d watched him closely so that when he finally looked at her, she’d be ready for him.

Kristina had warned her that Cam might end up using her for sex but she thought that wouldn’t be so bad. It was pretty good sex after all and at least she’d have Cameron for a little while. Since the night she made the first move out at Vista Point, they had done very little talking about themselves and she knew that her mostly her fault…because she’d allowed it to happen.

“So I was working today — the usual afternoon rush,” Molly began, smoothing her hands down her bare arms. “And Morgan’s parents were there.” She paused, waiting for some sign that he had listened to her, some sign that he might understand what she was saying to him but he didn’t even look at her.  “So your dad went to Greece.”

Cameron glanced at her then and frowned. “What?”

“Carly and Jax were at Kelly’s,” Molly repeated. “Carly asked me how you were handling everything.” She shrugged. “I didn’t know what that meant and she looked at me weirdly. I mean, everyone thinks we’re dating. Of course I should know that Jules might have found your mother.”

“Molly…” Cameron hesitated. “It’s not that I didn’t deliberately tell you–”

“It’s hard not to think that,” Molly interrupted, staring straight ahead, being careful to not look at him. “Your dad left early Sunday morning. We went out that night. And you said nothing. We saw each other yesterday…and you said nothing.”

“You don’t understand–”

“No…” Molly drawled. “I think I do.” She looked at him now, tears in her eyes, a faint smile on her lips. “Krissy warned me this might happen but I thought I knew better. I mean, we got off to such a promising start. It changed after that night at the Point. After we had sex. That’s all we do when we’re together now. We don’t talk–”

“That’s not true–”

“The fact that your dad is off in Greece because you guys think your mom is there–” Molly closed her eyes and shook her head. “That’s just…such a major thing not to tell someone. I bet you told Morgan and I bet Jules told Amalia and Jake told Mal. That’s what you do with news like that. You share it with the people that matter.”

“You have to let me get a word in here, Molly–” Cameron crouched in front of her, trying to meet her gaze.

“You share it with the people that matter,” Molly repeated, “and I had to learn the hard way that I’m not one of them.”

“That’s not true,” Cameron said roughly. He grabbed at her hands but she pulled away and stood, nearly knocking him back on the ground.  He scrambled to his feet. “Molly, you matter-”

“To your libido, maybe…” she shrugged. She clasped her hands behind her back. “I thought I could be okay with that, that maybe I could learn to live with just being the girl you go to for sex. It’s not like it was going to last once you went back to Boston and we could have still been friends later.”

Cameron stared at her, unable to form words that would make this go away. It was like watching a collision, knowing what would happen and not being able to stop it.  “Molly–”

“But I can’t be that girl anymore, Cam.” Molly stared hard at the ground. “Because I made the mistake of caring too much–”

“I didn’t tell Morgan,” Cameron blurted out. “I didn’t tell anyone! I couldn’t say it out loud once I knew Dad was taking it seriously. If I said it, it was real and if it’s her, she’s been out there all this time! What if she doesn’t remember me? Or Jake or Jules? And what if it’s not her? It’ll be like her going away all over again. Molly…” he stepped towards her. “If that woman in Greece is my mother, then she will have missed our entire lives. How can she really come home again? How can it ever be okay?”

He could see her weakening. Her eyes changed and her arms started to slide to her side. Feeling somewhat hopeful, he continued, “Mol, it’s not about the sex–”

And just like that, he lost her. “I think we need to take a break,” Molly said. “You have a lot going on with your family and I can’t…I can’t be that girl anymore, Cam. I deserve more than that.”

“Molly–”

“I’m going to go now.” She disappeared out the door and after a split second, Cameron followed her. He wasn’t really sure what he was going to do. He had this strange vision of himself grabbing her, carrying her away and locking her in his room until she saw things his way.

As soon as Molly heard his footsteps, she started to run down the stairs. He heard the door slam and by the time, he got to the front door, her car had pulled out of the driveway and she was gone.

Morgan Home: Backyard

Cameron might not have told many people that his mother might have been found, but Juliet had passed word to most of their friends. She’d decided that they needed a distraction from waiting for their father to call them with answers. She’d passed the word to her best friend and together, they’d gathered everyone. With the exception of Cameron, who was brooding in his room for some reason, everyone was either in the pool or hanging pool side.

Amalia watched as Jake lifted himself out of the pool and started towards the grill to harass Morgan into cooking the burgers faster.

She treaded water and turned to Juliet. “This was a really good idea.”

“Yeah, after not hearing any kind of news for the last two days,” Juliet said, “I just thought we needed a distraction.” She padded towards the shallow end of the pool. “When Dad told us Saturday night that he was leaving the next morning, we were all kind of surprised. Cam and I thought he’d take some time to verify things but I guess he couldn’t wait.”

Amalia followed her and the two teens climbed the steps to sit on the side of the pool. “How did Jake take it?”

“He was really quiet,” Juliet admitted. “I don’t know what he’s thinking really. Me and Jake have never been on the same wave length if you know what I mean. He’s always so angry.” She shot her best friend a grin. “I know…that’s what you like best.”

“You know me so well.” Amalia reached for her towel and started to dry her legs. “What do you think will happen if this turns out to be your mother?”

“I don’t know. I mean, best case scenario she’s lost her memory and won’t remember us.” Juliet chewed her lip. “I don’t really know how that would work out. But at least we’d know what happened.” She shrugged. “Isn’t it easier for you to know why your parents split?”

“I guess,” Amalia shrugged. “But you know, Lucky Spencer told me that I might not want to look into this because I wouldn’t like what I’d find. I found out that my parents have tortured each other for the last ten years because a stupid slut wanted my dad and took advantage of a family tragedy to do it. I found out that I could have had a little brother or sister.” She pursed her lips. “I wanted to put them back together but I don’t know if that’s possible now after everything they’ve been through.”

“Well, they’re both single,” Juliet pointed out. “As long as that’s true, you never know.”

“That’s true,” Amalia nodded. She saw Jake disappear in the house. “I’m going to run in for a second…I need to use the bath–”

“Make sure he’s handling this okay,” Juliet cut in with a knowing smile. “He talks to you, Li, and that’s a good thing. I know he’s not talking to Mal.”

“Malcolm Drake, I swear to God, if you try to untie my top one more time, I’m going to drown you!” Cecily shrieked from the pool.

“Mal, stop messing with my sister,” Morgan warned. “Or I’ll dump your body where no one can find you.”

“Please don’t make statements like that,” Kristina sighed, handing him a plate of hot dogs to put on the grill. “I’m not your lawyer yet, but I do have to maintain some deniability.”

Juliet rolled her eyes and started back for the pool. These people had been her friends her entire life but sometimes, they were just insane.

Inside, Amalia found Jake in the living room, leaning against a couch, looking at a portrait of his mother recently hung by Juliet. “You’re getting the couch all wet.”

“Is this going to be the new routine?” Jake asked, not looking at her. “Jules is worried about me, so she sends you in to do the dirty work?”

“No, I came in because I’m worried about you.” Amalia folded her arms and stood in front of him so he’d have to acknowledge her. “Jake, your mom might be alive out there. She might come home.”

“What if she disappeared with this Helena Cassadine’s help?” he asked. “What if she wanted to leave and Helena arranged for a new identity? Why else would someone have gone to all the trouble of erasing her past and making a new future unless she wanted it?”

“You don’t really believe that,” Amalia said. She placed her hands on his arms and forced them down to his sides. “You just want to keep hating your dad.”

“I don’t hate him,” Jake muttered. “I blame him. I’ve blamed him for what happened to my mother for just about as long as I can remember. But if she was kidnapped by Helena Cassadine, then I guess that means he’s not responsible.”

“He never was, Jake.” Amalia took a chance and wrapped her arms around his neck. “You’re just going to have to accept that. Maybe this woman isn’t your mother. And maybe she is dead. But the only person responsible for that is the person who did it. Not your dad, not you. Not your mother. No one else. Until you can come to terms with that, you’re going to be a lonely guy.” She stood on the tips of her toes and kissed him lightly. When she drew back, she found him staring back her, his gaze unreadable. “And that would be a shame.”

Tuesday, July 23, 2024 (Eastern Europe Standard Time)

Rafina, Greece

Jason had been sitting on bench across from Aneikastos, the arts and crafts store that Maia Cassadine had opened and operated for the last eight years in the town of Rafina. During the long plane right on Sunday, he had been in teleconference with Spinelli, verifying what Juliet had given to him and digging deeper.

The more he learned about Maia Cassadine, the more it felt like she wasn’t who she was reported to be. She had turned up just before Cassadine matriarch’s death in 2011 and from what Jason could find out, she lived a quiet and simple life. She kept to herself and did not participate in any of the town activities.

He had arrived in Greece late Sunday night, even with the time difference.  On Monday, he had come to the downtown area and sat on this bench, just staring at the store. It was open, but the proprietor never came outside, meaning she probably used the back entrance. Spinelli had told him later that the residence he’d found on record coincided with the store, so she lived above the stop.

Jason couldn’t bring himself to go inside the store to find out for himself who the woman was. He knew that he wanted it to be his wife. If Elizabeth was inside that store, then it meant that she was alive and relatively healthy. That she had not been tortured or frightened all of this time. Most importantly, it meant that an enemy from Elizabeth’s own past had been behind this and that it wasn’t Jason’s fault that she had disappeared.

If it wasn’t her, then he would have to accept once and for all that even if Elizabeth wasn’t dead, she was never coming home to him.

He knew the kids were getting impatient at home, that Juliet had had her heart set on accompanying him. He’d put Cameron in charge of keeping an eye on her so she wouldn’t sneak into the car or worse, enlist Amalia Zacchara to fly to Greece on their own. His daughter had a way of getting into the most peculiar sorts of trouble with the help of her best friend. It was a trait Jason knew she’d inherited from her mother. Elizabeth could never sit idly by while a friend needed her.

Even if she did end up hiding a dead body or two as a result.

Finally, close to noon, Jason told himself that he had to put an end to this. He had go into that store and discover for himself the answer to the question. Was his wife inside? Did she lose her memory?

Jason walked across the street, weaving in and out of the various forms of traffic before reading the sidewalk on the other side. He put a hand on the handle and pulled it open.

The store was filled to the brim with shelves and cluttered from the doorway to the counter in the back with stacks of canvases, painting supplies and other things he didn’t really recognize. Behind the counter, a woman had her back to him. She was small and petite, her long dark hair hanging down her back. It was laced slightly with gray and had a bit of a curl to it.

Jason took a step forward and his foot hit a floorboard the wrong way, causing it to the creek. The woman turned and smiled at him. “Can I help…” Her voice trailed off as she stared at him.

Her skin was still peaches and cream, her eyes still dark stormy blue. Her lips were still full and painted with a light pink. There were lines near her eyes and by her mouth. She was older, in her mid-forties now but the last fourteen years melted away as Jason stared at his wife.

She stared back at him and then her eyebrows narrowed and she tilted her head to the side. “I know you,” she murmured.

Jason swallowed. “You don’t remember,” he said roughly. He fisted his hands so she wouldn’t see them tremble. “Do you?”

“And you know me,” the woman said softly. “Don’t you?”

“You used to be my wife,” Jason answered. “We lived in New York.”

The woman came out from behind the counter and continued to stare at him, never breaking eye contact. “I have children,” she said slowly. “A boy–no…two…and a girl.” She continued towards him. “I…don’t…” she pressed a hand to her lips.  “They’re grown up now, aren’t they?”

“Almost,” Jason said. He could smell her familiar scent as she drew closer. “Do you know what happened to you?”

“I fell,” she said softly. “I hit my head and I didn’t remember anything. The doctors said the longer I was in familiar surroundings, the more I would remember. But nothing was ever familiar before.” Her lips curved until a shaky smile. “Until you walked in the door and I remembered your face. And your voice. And my babies.” Her eyes filled with tears. “My name is Elizabeth.”

She closed her eyes and then opened them, reaching out to grasp his hands in hers. “My name is Elizabeth Morgan,” Elizabeth continued, “and you are my husband.”

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