This entry is part 30 of 41 in the Flash Fiction: Signs of Life
Written in 71 minutes. Needed to get the last scene just right.
Limo
The drive to the No Name Restaurant was thick with tension and irritation as Sonny insisted on going over the night a second time. And then a third. Elizabeth could understand that he was nervous, that he knew a lot was riding on this night, and if anything went wrong, Jason might never forgive him.
But she also knew that Jason didn’t see it that way, and that every time Sonny reviewed the rules and procedures, it felt like he was telling Jason how to do his job—the same job that Sonny had forced on him two years earlier when he’d jilted Brenda.
And there was nothing she could really do to the bridge the gap. If she even pointed out Sonny’s nerves to Jason, he’d take it as a sign that even Sonny didn’t believe in the plan, and worse—he might see it as taking Sonny’s side.
She’d never do that to him.
The limo rolled to a slow stop, and then the door opened. Sonny slid out, but Elizabeth stopped Jason from following. “Can we have a minute?” she asked him. She looked at Sonny. “Just one.”
“I’ll meet you inside.” Sonny closed the door, and Jason frowned at Elizabeth.
“What’s wrong? I can tell him to turn around—we can stop this—”
“No, we can’t.” She laid her hands on his cheeks and leaned in to kiss him. “But once we get out of the car, we have to turn into people that neither of us want to be.”
He exhaled slowly, tucking a tendril of her hair behind her ear. “I hate this.”
“I know. But it’s too late to turn back. I can do this, Jason. You don’t have to worry about me. I know how to make small talk and not say anything. I’ve done it my whole life. You know how to do this. You ran this business, remember? I’m the wild card—”
“You’re not—”
“I am,” she insisted. “I can hold my own, but it’s what you’re worried about. I’m asking you trust me. I can do this.”
“It’s not about trust,” he murmured, kissing her again, lingering. “You’re fearless, and it scares the hell out of me.”
“I can live with that,” she breathed. “Let’s get this over with.”
No Name Restaurant: Private Room
Elizabeth had been right, of course. She’d immediately charmed Daniel Vega’s wife, the unspoken leader of the wives by saying something about her jewelry and dress. And before Jason knew it, Carlotta Vega had linked arms with her and taken her to a table, beaming like a grandmother showing off her granddaughter.
“She’s quite a charmer, your Elizabeth.”
Jason turned to Daniel who offered him a glass of wine. He hated wine, but he could live with it. “Yeah,” she said shortly, and the older man laughed, clapping him on the back.
“I know you hate every minute of this. You always looked like a fish out of water when you took those meetings.” Daniel sipped his wine. “But you do the job and you give enough respect that we can live with it. You know what I always liked about you?”
Jason didn’t care, but — “What?”
“You’re not in it for the power. I am,” Daniel added. “Which means I value partners like you. You have my promise that no harm will come to your wife. I don’t—” He glanced over at the bar where Sorel was chatting with Sammy Tagliatti. “I don’t like this new generation willing to use the families. I don’t like collateral damage. He made a mistake on New Year’s,” Daniel murmured. “I wonder if he fully realizes it yet.”
Jason sipped the wine which didn’t suck. “He’ll find out,” he said flatly.
“He thought to hurt you. To break you. He’s done the opposite. A threat to my Carlotta—” Daniel’s dark eyes flashed, icing over. “I will put the grief aside until I’ve scorched the earth. We’re not so different, you and I.”
No, Jason supposed they weren’t. There was a reason Sonny was still struggling for the respect and power within the Five Families. Daniel Vega had been the unquestioned power for more than a decade because he didn’t respond to emotions. He’d let Sonny take over for Frank Smith, just as he’d allowed Jason to take over when Sonny became a liability. He hadn’t been behind the threat to Brenda that caused Sonny to run — but Jason had always suspected Vega hadn’t minded.
Jason craned his neck to check on Elizabeth, who was wiggling her fingers so that one of the younger women could admire her ring. That same woman touched the long rope of jewels around her neck with a smirk, as if Elizabeth wasn’t valuable enough to him to drape in gems. Carly had been like that, he thought. He hadn’t cared what she bought with his money, but—
“It’s time for dinner,” Sonny said, touching Jason’s elbow. “She’s doing great.”
He’d been thinking the same, but Jason didn’t need Sonny’s approval. “I know—”
“I’m just—you don’t have to worry. This was the hardest part of the night—”
“I’ve got it,” Jason snapped, striding forward to greet Elizabeth as Carlotta Vega led the women from the private reception room into a private dining room.
“I think I like her,” Elizabeth murmured, sliding her arm into Jason’s. “Is there a reason I shouldn’t?”
“No.” Jason pulled out a chair at the head table, hating that they were about to be put on display for everyone to gawk at the rest of the night. Dinner, some dancing, and then they could leave. He could handle that. “She was always nice to me. Lily liked her.”
“Lily?” Elizabeth asked, blinking in surprise. “Sonny’s first wife?”
“He was married to her when I met him.” Jason’s lips curved into a slight, sad smile at the memory. “She taught me to dance.” And then she’d been gone, stolen in an explosion of heat and flames. Nothing had really been the same since, he thought. But he’d liked her. She’d sweet and kind to him.
“Well, then I’m grateful to her. I know from experience you’re not bad at that,” Elizabeth teased and his smile spread a bit more. She grinned, then reached for the glass of wine that had been set in front of her, a stark reminder that these people did not care for rules or regulations.
Dinner went smoothly, and Elizabeth could feel some of the tension sliding from Jason as the evening continued. Then he scowled when Sorel got to his feet to give a long, rambling speech about love and promises that no one listened to. Then he clinked a fork against his wine glass, an action joined in by others in the room.
Jason fought the urge to grimace because it wouldn’t reflect on Elizabeth, when his chief complaint was that he didn’t want to be on display like an animal at the zoo. He turned to her. “I’m sorry.”
“I’m not.” She leaned in, with that smirk on her lips that made him wish they were anywhere else. “I like kissing you, and the way some of those women have been staring at you tonight—I want them to go home miserable.”
He laughed, a sound that definitely caught those who could hear it off guard because no one had thought him capable of humor. He leaned in and kissed, curving his hand around her neck, threading his fingers through the tendrils of hair she’d left loose. “Is that enough?” he murmured against her mouth.
“Mmm—maybe—” But Elizabeth drew back, catching the eye of one of the women in particular, a girlfriend who’d come with one of the younger men. She wore a sour scowl, and Elizabeth felt pretty good about it. They might have married for reasons that weren’t about forever, but Jason was happy to go home with her and no one else. That would be enough for now.
Dinner was cleared away, and all that was left was dancing. A group of musicians came into play some boring music that was slow and mind numbing. But it gave him an excuse to keep Elizabeth close and look around the room to see how it was being taken in.
“Almost over,” she murmured, and he looked down at her. “Hasn’t been so bad, has it?”
“Well, I like you,” he said, echoing her words earlier, and she laughed. “But I could do without the rest of it. Unless—I mean, I know you like stuff like this—”
“This?” She wrinkled her nose. “I mean, it’s not terrible. But it’s not our friends or family. Maybe if our grandmothers were here. If Emily or even Alexis—” She sighed. “I might even settle for my sister.”
She hadn’t had any of that, he remembered. Just a quick wedding ceremony that had been interrupted by Carly and a wedding dress destroyed by the police the next day. He tugged her a bit closer. “I like this part.”
“Me, too.” She laid her head against his chest, the way she had that first night. “You know, the first time we danced, I was trying to pretend you were someone else, but it didn’t work. I wish—” She tilted her head back to meet his eyes. “I wish we were somewhere else.”
He’d do that for her, he decided. He’d find a moment where he could dance with her that wasn’t about anyone else. He’d done that first one for her, and now she was doing this for him, but still wasn’t right. She deserved better. Maybe they both did.
The song drew to a close, and Jason exhaled in a rush of relief. Just one more dance. He’d hand her off to Daniel Vega who wasn’t someone to worry about, and he’d get through dancing with Carlotta, and then he could get Elizabeth away from this place.
Daniel and his wife were approaching with wide smiles. “I hope you’ll allow us to cut in,” he said. “I don’t move as well I as did once,” he told Elizabeth, “but I can hold my own.” He whirled her away, which Jason hated. But it was necessary.
He reluctantly started to dance with Carlotta, feeling stiff and uncomfortable. He hated dancing. “I find myself feeling quite protective of that young woman,” Carlotta told him, and he frowned, focused on her. “When Daniel told me of tonight, I was upset.”
Jason tilted his head. “Why?”
“He knows I dislike these events,” Carlotta muttered. “Why do you think we never hold them? I’ll do what’s necessary to keep the peace, but I won’t be used. Some of these women—they don’t mind. I do.” She focused on him. “And I respect the men who use the women even less.”
Jason’s throat tightened. He was using Elizabeth, but—
“But then I met her and I’ve seen you. And the obvious affection—” Carlotta glanced at her husband and Elizabeth as they circled past. “She’s not like the others. I realized that the moment I saw her. She’ll be an asset to you in the best way.” She squeezed his upper arm. “I hope you see the value you have in her.”
“I do,” Jason promised. “And I’m not the one using her tonight.”
“No. I can see that. I’ll make sure Daniel knows it, too.” She started to say something else, but then Jason saw Sorel out of the corner of his eye, striding across the dance floor. He cut in between Daniel and Elizabeth.
Jason tensed, but Carlotta tightened her hands on him. “That’s what he wants,” she breathed. “Give him nothing. He can do nothing in this room, Jason. And she can handle herself.”
“She shouldn’t have to,” he bit out. “This isn’t her fight—”
“Ah, that’s where you’re wrong, my dear.” Startled at that, Jason swung his eyes back to the older woman. “It became her fight the moment she signed her name to the church register. Don’t diminish her by suggesting less.”
Somehow, Jason managed to complete the dance without pummeling Sorel into the ground for going near Elizabeth. Sonny’s face was tense as he approach the dance floor once the song had ended, and other couples had come out to dance.
Carlotta kept Jason at his side, forcing Sorel to bring Elizabeth to him. “Joseph,” Carlotta said with a lift of her chin. “You’ve broken traditions.”
“I apologize, Mrs. Vega.” Sorel smiled at Elizabeth who managed a polite curve of her lips though her eyes were blank. “I couldn’t resist the chance to give my congratulations to the lovely Mrs. Morgan.”
“I’m sorry to hear you are so very impulsive.” Carlotta sniffed, wound her arm through Elizabeth, dislodging her from Sorel’s grasp. “You are such a lovely bride,” she told Elizabeth who beamed. “And I am grateful to have had the opportunity to meet you. I will invite you to tea.”
“That would be great.”
“But now, it’s time for the newlyweds to enjoy their privacy.” Carlotta tucked Elizabeth’s hands into Jason. “Joseph, you will take me to peruse the dessert table.”
Sorel scowled, but did as Carlotta directed. And just like that, the woman had dissolved the tension and averted crisis.
“I like her,” Elizabeth told Jason. “I knew she was amazing. I wanna be just like her.”
Jason kissed her fingertips. “You already are,” he told her, and her smile broadened. He turned to Sonny. “We’re leaving.”
“I already have the car pulled up. It went well—”
“We’re leaving,” Jason repeated. He nodded to Sonny, then walked away.
Limo
Jason didn’t bother to wait for Max to get out of the front seat to open the door. He opened it and as soon as Elizabeth was inside, he followed.
“It’s over,” Elizabeth said, leaning her head back against the seat. The car started to move, picking up speech as it left the quiet street where the No Name was located.
Jason wouldn’t feel that same rush of relief until he got the word from Sonny that Sorel was gone, but he wouldn’t begrudge her. “You’re better at this than I am,” he admitted with a bit of surprise.
Elizabeth opened her eyes, and met his. “I’ve had a lot more practice pretending,” she murmured. She reached for his hand. “You hate that part of it, I know. But I think I’m going to be good at it.”
“Carlotta Vega invited you for tea,” Jason told her. “There are guys in there whose wives have been around for years who haven’t gotten that invite.” He shook his head, a bit in shock. Even Lily had to work longer for Carlotta Vega’s approval.
“That’s probably the first time I’ve charmed someone on sight,” Elizabeth said dryly. She sat up. “Usually, I’m an acquired taste.”
“Well, most people are idiots—” Jason stopped, his heart beginning to pound as he saw the privacy screen lowered. Not all the way down, but cracked.
Max would never do that. And it had been firmly up when they’d gotten in the car. He’d checked.
Jason took Elizabeth’s hand and drew her close, pulling her in for a lingering kiss, angling himself so that his back was to the window. He broke the kiss but stayed close enough for their lips to brush. “Can you do something for me?” he asked, carefully to keep his voice nearly inaudible.
“What’s wrong?” she breathed, following his lead to pitch her voice low. “I can tell—”
“The window. Press the button and roll it down,” he murmured, then slowly kissed her again. “The driver is listening,” he breathed against her mouth. He could feel the pulse in her neck pick up. “I need to know where we are.”
He felt her hands slide up and down his back, slowly stroking, and then one moved away. He heard the light whirring of the window. “What do you see? Can you—”
“Buildings.” She swallowed hard and her startled eyes flew to him. “They shouldn’t be there.” She kissed him again, drawing her legs up, knowing her dress would slide higher on her thigh. If someone was listening, they might be watching, too, Jason realized, even though he hated that she was trying to use her body to distract them.
She was right. They should be on the highway back into downtown Port Charles, but there was a long stretch of woods between the No Name and the ramp back into town. There shouldn’t be buildings for another ten minutes. Which meant whoever was driving wasn’t taking them home.
He cupped her face, sliding his thumb over her lips. “We need to run,” he murmured. Then he kissed her again. “We’re in a different part of the city—”
“Traffic light or stop sign,” she breathed. She draped her legs over his lap. “Heels. Take them off.”
Christ. She was right. She was wearing shoes she couldn’t possible run in, but then she’d be stockinged feet—if she tripped and fell in the shoes, she might hurt an ankle. He reached for the straps and let the shoes drop to the floor of the car.
“I’m going to make this okay,” he told her with one more hard kiss. “You’re going to be okay.”
She kissed him back, feeling the car slowing down. “We’re going to be okay,” Elizabeth said.
Then the car stopped. Jason shoved the car door open, flew out, Elizabeth’s hand in his, and ran.
It feels almost surreal to be posting this update. I am beyond ridiculously excited to finally kick off Book 4. It’s about six months later than I wanted it to be, but it’s okay. We made it. New chapters will be posted every Wednesday at 7 AM. I really hope you enjoy it!
Book 4 is named Liberty, and here is the synopsis:
Set in February 2004. The city of Port Charles weathered many scandals and tragedies in 2003 — from the nearly tragic kidnapping of Carly Corinthos and attempted murder of Elizabeth Webber to the serial rapist that stalked the city for months, leaving victims broken and shattered in his wake. The PCPD, having sworn to protect the city, faltered when they learned one of their own was the villain all along.
A few months later, the city tries to recover but they should be careful what they wish for. Ric Lansing still haunts the dreams and memories of the people he damaged — has he really left Port Charles behind for good?
Dante Falconieri breaks under the weight of family secrets and his own weaknesses. Kelsey Joyce wants to find out who murdered her father—no matter what the cost. Carly Corinthos just wants to move on with her life and keep her family safe. And Elizabeth Morgan wants to forget that Ric Lansing ever existed as she awaits the birth of her son.
It’s time close the book on this mad, mad, mad world.
This entry is part 1 of 41 in the Mad World: Liberty
You swore and said we are not We are not shining stars This I know I never said we are Though I’ve never been through hell like that I’ve closed enough windows to know you can never look back
– Carry On, fun
Sunday, February 1, 2004
Morgan Penthouse: Living Room
Elizabeth Morgan studied the pile of luggage stacked at the bottom of the stairs, squinting before turning towards the man sipping his coffee on the sofa. “I think I overpacked.”
Jason Morgan, her husband of exactly sixteen hours and twenty minutes, stared at her for a long time. “I’m not taking any of it back upstairs.”
“Oh. No.” Elizabeth smiled brightly and sat down—wincing slightly as her lungs protested. She had woken that morning feeling better than she had the night before, almost like her old self. She had allowed herself to forget just for a moment why Jason was taking her out of town for two whole weeks despite the insanity going on around them.
“You okay?”
“Yeah, I just moved too fast,” she assured him. She reached for her tea, then wrinkled her nose when he kept his hand on her wrist, pressing two fingers against her pulse. “How many times do you think you’ve done that since July?”
He ignored that question. “It’s fine—”
“I told you—I just moved too fast. Sometimes I feel good. And I forget.” Elizabeth paused. “Monica said I might have a lot more good days than bad, remember? And so far, that’s been true. Before yesterday, I hadn’t needed the oxygen all week.”
Jason nodded. “I know,” he admitted, “but she also said that could change if we’re not careful. I hate that you’re dealing with this at all,” he added when she just sighed. “I wish we didn’t have to think about your health all the time—”
“I’m officially in week twenty-eight,” she reminded him. “We only have six more weeks—” Elizabeth scowled. “Don’t make that face, Jason. We talked about this—”
“Is that what we did?” He got to his feet to cross to the desk when the phone rang. “Yeah? Thanks, Wally. Send him up.” Jason turned back to Elizabeth. “Cody is downstairs. He’ll help me pack the car.”
“Don’t change the subject.” Elizabeth got to her feet, folded her arms. “You’re still mad, aren’t you? Kelly wanted me to have the baby next week—” To deliver at twenty-eight weeks with all the added complications and survival rate plummeting to eighty percent— “I don’t want the NICU, Jason—”
Jason said nothing, his lips thinning as he pressed them together. He took a deep breath. “I’m not mad—”
“Really?”
“I’m not,” he insisted. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”
Elizabeth bit the corner of her thumbnail, studying him. “But you’re thinking it.” When he said nothing, her stomach rolled. “You’re just not saying anything because you don’t want to upset me.”
“I think,” Jason said carefully, “that if you’ve made up your mind, then it doesn’t do us any good to talk about it. Not right now when you’re feeling okay, and Monica says everything is stable. I don’t want the baby in NICU either, Elizabeth. Michael had to have heart surgery when he was born, and I was terrified the entire time. That was before I knew anything about babies or being a father. I—” He hesitated. “I understand why you think it has to be this way.”
“Then—”
“And if it were me—” Jason crossed the room to take her hands in his. “If I were the one who was pregnant, I’d probably be doing the same thing.”
“Okay.” She closed her eyes in relief. “Thank you.”
“But if things change—”
“I know. Emily said the same thing,” Elizabeth said with a sigh, but she smiled and leaned up to kiss him. “I love you.”
“I love you—”
The door behind them burst open, and Jason spun around, instinctively spreading his arms out to protect Elizabeth. “What the—”
“You’re still going on this stupid trip?” Sonny Corinthos demanded, chest heaving, face flushed. “Max told me you’re leaving in thirty minutes—”
Standing behind Jason, Elizabeth could feel his muscles tensing, turning to stone. “You knew I was going—”
“Two weeks?” Sonny cut in. “With Ric back in the country? You don’t give a crap about Carly or my kids anymore? You got your own family, so mine can go to hell?”
“No,” Jason said shortly. “Johnny’s coming up to take over for me. Justus and Bernie are briefed on everything, and Justus has my contact information.” He paused. “I’m not taking my cell phone.”
Elizabeth’s eyes widened. “Jason—” she began, but he turned his head and shook it quickly. She closed her mouth.
Elizabeth bit her lip, then picked up her lukewarm tea. “Uh, I can go into the kitchen, but—”
“Not good enough—”
“Not your business,” Jason interrupted. “And I didn’t ask you to come over, Sonny. Elizabeth isn’t going upstairs.”
Not when one of Monica’s most important recommendations was to climb the stairs only once a day. Elizabeth didn’t want to waste her energy here at the penthouse when she was feeling good enough to reclaim her wedding night.
But none of that was Sonny’s business since she knew Jason hadn’t told him about the CTEPH diagnosis, so Elizabeth wasn’t going to argue.
“I’ll go into the kitchen,” she repeated.
“How the hell can you leave without your cell phone?” Sonny’s voice echoed as she went into the kitchen, but she’d only just set the cup in the microwave when the door slammed.
A minute later, Jason came in, his mouth pinched. “I’m not taking my cell phone,” he said flatly. “And neither are you. I have a burner phone. Bobbie, Justus, and Monica have the number. That’s it.”
Elizabeth nodded. “Okay.” She waited a beat. “Jason, I understand why you’re insisting on two weeks, but I don’t know why your phone has to be an argument. Take it—”
“No. If Sonny can call me, he’ll be doing it every day,” Jason told her. “And if I don’t answer, he’ll call you. The whole point is to get you away from this for two weeks. I’ll check in with Justus. You’ll check in with Bobbie and Monica. You can call Emily, too,” he added.
Remembering how tired he’d looked the day he’d told her about this trip—knowing that she was already giving him enough to worry about, Elizabeth nodded. “Okay. If you think that’s the best way to handle it, we’ll do it. I just—” She chewed on her bottom lip. “I guess I’m worried about who Sonny’s going to yell at if we’re not here.”
“I know,” he admitted. “But I asked Luke to look in on Carly and Bobbie. I hope that’s enough.”
“Me, too.”
Spencer House: Living Room
Luke Spencer intended to make sure that he would be enough to protect his sister and niece from the hostile and angry man he’d seen at the wedding.
No one in Port Charles had known Sonny Corinthos longer than Luke. He knew exactly what Sonny was capable of when thwarted from what he wanted for too long. Luke wasn’t about to let that be unleashed on his sister if he could stop it.
“I don’t understand,” Laura began, sitting down with a cup of tea in hand. “How exactly did Sonny end up locking Carly in the bedroom?”
“No one wanted to get into the gritty details, and I don’t really know what Caroline was up to this summer. I know about the kidnapping because of what Lucky and Kelsey have said,” he added. “But Sonny and I haven’t been close in years.”
“I know, and I’m sorry for it in some ways,” Laura admitted. “We broke over the garage fire, and it wasn’t even his fault.” She hesitated. “But Jason was your friend, too. He asked you for help.”
“He did—” Luke glanced over at the light knock, smiling when his sister came in. “Hey there, Barbara Jean. What brings you to our humble abode today?”
“Oh, Lulu left a few things in the car last night when Lucas dropped her off.” Bobbie set down a pair of shoes and a jacket. “I volunteered to drop them off.”
“Good. I was gonna make my way to your place, but this saves me the trip. You want some coffee?” Luke got to his feet, but Bobbie shook her head.
“No, and I’m sure I know why you were coming over, but Luke, it’s not my place—”
“Morgan asked me to look out for Carly while he’s gone,” Luke declared. “I haven’t been all that great at taking care of you these last few years—”
“I don’t need you—” Bobbie began hotly.
“But with Morgan taking Elizabeth out of town, that’s two less people for Sonny to scream at.
“Bobbie,” Laura began gently, “we just want to help. Would it hurt for Luke to know a few things? Just so he can be ready? Jason wouldn’t have asked him if he didn’t think it was necessary.”
“I’m sure he did that out of guilt.” Bobbie made a face. “He’s taking Elizabeth away for two weeks, and I think only a few people have the number. Something’s wrong,” she muttered, “but he won’t tell us.”
“The baby?” Laura asked. She rose to her feet. “Is this about last summer? Lucky said Elizabeth had been ill—”
“Never-ending complications from the birth control pills Ric Lansing repeatedly shoved down her throat,” Bobbie said bitterly. “First it was the embolism, then a heart attack, and now—I don’t know what it is now,” she continued, “but I’m sure it’s related. I know Sonny’s been a problem.” She hesitated. “Carly had difficulty recovering from the panic room. Mentally, I mean.”
“Of course. You don’t simply bounce back from that,” Laura said. “Sonny hasn’t been supportive?”
“He was until it interfered with what he wanted. Carly saw Kevin for a while to get a handle on it,” Bobbie said. “She was doing fine until Ric jumped bail. Then, Sonny lost his goddamn mind and never got it back. When she tried to leave him, he locked her in the bedroom.”
“Christ, that master bedroom doesn’t have windows. I’ll never understand why Sonny chose it with what he went through.” Luke grimaced. “How did she get out?”
“Carly was screaming so loud Jason and Elizabeth heard her. It’s part of the reason Sonny has taken so much out on Elizabeth,” Bobbie added. “He knows—” She paused. “Ric was alive to jump bail because Elizabeth and Carly wanted to testify against him. Jason supported them, but Sonny never did. He blames Elizabeth.”
“Of course he does,” Laura muttered. She folded her arms. “No wonder Jason wanted Elizabeth away from all of this. Luke, you said there’s some evidence this Ric Lansing is back in the country?”
“Some. Morgan isn’t really sure. He wouldn’t leave Carly if he thought there was a serious threat.” Luke slid his hands into his pockets. “If another one of these sightings comes along while Morgan’s gone, Sonny will head straight for Carly.”
“Jason put security at the Brownstone, and we have the guards. I don’t know what you think you can do about this, Luke, but I appreciate the thought.” She checked her watch. “I have to head in for a shift.”
Laura went to the window to watch as Bobbie returned to her car. “I don’t like this,” she declared, looking back to her husband. “It might not be enough to keep an eye on Carly.”
“I was thinking the same. I’ll try to talk some sense into Sonny if I can.” Luke paused. “Don’t be too worried about Elizabeth. You know Morgan has that covered.”
“She went through so much for us,” Laura murmured. “For Lucky, for Nikolas. I should been there more—”
“Laura—”
“But you’re right. Jason can be trusted to take care of her. I feel terrible for Carly. Being trapped in that room—” She paused. “It must have felt like being locked up in her own mind. I know what that’s like. How terrible that her own husband did that to her.”
Luke swallowed hard, looking away. He knew Laura didn’t blame him for her problems, but he sure as hell did. A lifetime of trauma, the doctors had said.
He’d inflicted some of that trauma, and he hadn’t done much to help with the rest of it. He would spend the rest of his life making amends for things that could never be forgiven.
Seneca Falls, New York
Lake House: Living Room
“That is the absolute last set of steps I want to tackle today,” Elizabeth said with a sigh. She touched her belly, absently rubbing it as she walked off the last of the cramp in her leg from sitting in the SUV.
“I’ll finish bringing in the luggage.” Jason kissed her and started to pull away, but she fisted her hand in his shirt to keep him close. “You okay?” he murmured. He brushed his knuckles down her cheek.
“Better than. It’s so beautiful here, and I’m glad we decided to get out of Port Charles for a while.” She kissed him again. “Go bring in our stuff, then get the blood pressure cuff. You’ll feel better if we take care of that. I’ll call Monica and let her know we got here.”
He handed her the burner phone. “You okay to walk around, or do you want to sit?”
“No, I want to stretch.”
She watched him as he left the cabin and headed through the thin crunchy layer of snow to their SUV. Elizabeth then wandered over to the large picture window overlooking Lake Seneca.
“Elizabeth, is everything okay?” Monica demanded. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to alarm you.” Elizabeth turned as the door opened, ushering in a gale of wind. Jason set down two of her suitcases, then went back for the last two — she had three, and of course, he only had one.
Men.
“I wanted to let you know Jason and I got to the lake all right. He’s getting our things from the car, but I didn’t want you to worry.”
“Oh.” Monica sighed. “I’m sorry. I’ll try not to act like an insane person when you call—”
“A few more weeks of this, and we can all stop assuming the worst,” Elizabeth told her. “Jason is going to take my blood pressure when he’s done, but I’m sure I’m fine. He stopped about a half-hour ago so I could stretch my legs. I didn’t sit for long.”
“I know you’re taking this seriously, so—” Monica hesitated. “Try not to think about it as much over the next few weeks. You’re away from the usual stressors. Just concentrate on each other and that baby.”
“That’s the plan.” She smiled as Jason set down the last of their bags. “Here’s Jason—” She held out the phone.
“Hey. Yeah, the view is—” He looked at Elizabeth. “I guess it’s okay. There’s a lake.”
Elizabeth rolled her eyes as she started to walk around again. She kicked off her shoes, sinking her toes into the plush carpet. Jason and Monica talked another minute or two before he handed the phone back.
“Thank you for suggesting we call her. She still sounds happy when I do,” Jason admitted.
She wound her arm through his, laying her head against his shoulder. “You’re not just letting the Quartermaines in because of me, are you?”
“Not just because of you, no.” Jason kissed the top of her head. “We’ve been through a lot since the summer. It just feels different.” He frowned, looked down at her. “Why?”
“I just don’t want you to do things to make me happy, that’s all. I’m glad you’re doing better with them. They’ve been so kind to me these last few months.”
“Which makes me think better of them,” Jason told her. “Elizabeth—” He frowned, turning to face her fully. “What’s the problem?”
“Nothing, it’s just—” Elizabeth bit her lip. “We both know there’s a chance—a small one— that I—” She looked away. “Well, that something might happen to me. Even if we do everything right.”
“Elizabeth—”
“And with everything that’s going on with Sonny, I just want—I want to make sure you have people you can depend on. Who put you first. Carly might try, but she’s going through a lot—”
“I really don’t want to talk about this—”
“I know you don’t, but that’s why—” She scowled as Jason pulled away from her, went back to the luggage. “Jason—”
“I should put these away and take your blood pressure.” He looked back at her, met her eyes. “I’m sorry. I know you want to talk about what might happen. We will. I just—” He stopped, looked down at the ground, and said nothing else.
“We’ll talk about it some other time,” she said softly, not wanting to push it. Not today. “Let’s get unpacked and get some dinner. I’m starving.”
Kelly’s: Dining Room
Lulu Spencer tied on her apron and wrinkled her nose. “I don’t know why you think I’m going to be any good at planning a surprise party for Georgie,” she told Maxie Jones. “You usually hate my ideas.”
“That’s because your ideas are uncultured trash,” Maxie said with a bright smile. “But that’s okay. I’m the ideas person here.” She pointed at Lulu. “You’re the grunt work.”
Lulu rolled her eyes and went to check the coffee. “You’re just overcompensating because we were mean to Georgie for like three weeks.”
“Three months, but no, that’s not it.” Maxie rested her chin on her fist. “I just need to see how much your dad would charge to rent out Luke’s for the night. You know, because that’s where she was born.”
“Really?” At a table nearby, Cruz Rodriguez’s ears perked up. “Georgie was born at Luke’s?”
“How’d that happen?” Dante Falconieri wanted to know.
“Mom went into labor earlier than she thought and didn’t get to the hospital in time. I thought it might be fun to celebrate her birthday where it began. So, Lu, I need you find out how much your dad will charge me and then get it cut in half because I’m a college student with zero cash.”
“Oh, so this is me doing a favor for you.” Lulu folded her arms. “The last time I did that, I ended up in jail.”
“You’re being dramatic.” Maxie looked at Dante and Cruz. “We didn’t even get booked, and they only thought we were hookers until they saw my ID and realized Mac was my dad. You thought it was funny at the time,” she reminded Lulu.
“Not the point—”
“But you’ll do it, right?” Maxie batted her eyelashes. “My best friend in the whole wide world—”
“Maxie, your best friend is Lucas. You told me that the last time we had a fight—”
“Oh my God, do you remember everything? Ugh. Fine, I’ll do it myself.” Maxie huffed and went over to join Dante and Cruz at their table. Lulu just snorted and went into the kitchen. “So—”
“You want me to ask Lucky to rent the club to you at little to no cost,” Dante said.
“I like a man who doesn’t need directions.” Maxie beamed at him. “Yes. Will you?”
“I can ask, but, uh, you know Lu is going to do it, right? She’s just screwing with you.”
Maxie glanced back at the kitchen with slitted eyes. “Yeah, but she’s unpredictable. I need some reassurance.”
“She’s going to do it because it’s for Georgie, and she really does feel bad.” Dante picked up his coffee. “But, yeah, I’ll drop a word in with Lucky on it, too.”
“You’re the best.” Maxie pursed her lips. “When’s your birthday? I need to put it on the calendar so we can celebrate accordingly.”
“I think that might be the most terrifying thing you’ve ever said to me,” Dante said. “It’s April. But that’s all you’re getting.”
“See, now it’s a challenge.” Maxie looked at Cruz. “What about you? When’s yours? I can already bet Dante doesn’t like big parties—”
“Absolutely not—”
“But you—” Maxie pursed her lips. “You’re a mystery.”
“A mystery?” Cruz echoed. “How do you figure?”
“Well, you’re around and we like you but you never, ever talk about yourself. And before you say anything—” Maxie said, throwing Dante a warning glance. “I sometimes shut up about myself long enough to listen to other people.”
“This is why I like you,” Dante told her. “You handle both parts of the conversation.”
“Part of my charm.” Maxie preened, but then focused on Cruz again. “So, spill. When’s the birthday? How do you celebrate it? What did your family do back home—wait where are you from again?”
“It’s in June, and I don’t do much,” Cruz said. He cleared his throat. “We don’t need to acknowledge it.”
“Oh, but—” Maxie started but Dante kicked her lightly under the table and she frowned at him. “Okay, fine. Two mysteries to solve. You just wait until April, Dante Falconieri.” She flashed him a smile. “Now, for Georgie’s party — should I put you down for a plus one or are we going to stop pretending you’re not just biding your time until you ask out my best friend?”
“Lucas isn’t my type,” Dante said.
“Ha. I have a class or I would stay to annoy you more.” She stabbed a finger at Cruz. “Don’t think this is over. When I adopt people into my circle, they never get out.”
“Like a hostage situation?”
“Exactly.” Maxie got to her feet and went back to the counter for her coat and bag. “Stockholm Syndrome. Eventually, you all stop fighting it.” She flounced off, and they watched her go.
“She’s going to know my entire life history in about eight minutes, isn’t she?” Cruz asked, furrowing his brows. “Maybe she should be a cop.” Shrugging it off, he turned back to Dante. “Didn’t Lucky already give you the green light on Lu?”
“I didn’t need—” Dante hesitated. “He did, I think. But—”
“Then what’s the problem? You’re not getting any younger.”
“Nothing.” Dante glanced over at the counter where Lulu had emerged, coffee carafe in hand. “Nothing. Just—biding my time.”
“You keep biding that time and she’ll be off the market.”
“First, she’s not a car, and second—” Dante studied Cruz. “You thinking about putting in a bid?”
“Oh, hell no.” Cruz wiggled his shoulders. “Definitely not my type. But you should go for it. Put us all out of our misery.”
He did like Lu—not just because she was hot, but she’d been a good friend to him and knew she’d taken some heat from Dillon over it. He wasn’t going to think about Sonny Corinthos being his father anymore. Only a handful of people knew, and Dante wanted to keep it that way.
Maybe it was time to start looking forward—and why not with Lulu Spencer?
Corinthos Penthouse: Living Room
When the knock came, Sonny barely looked up from the sofa, nursing a tumbler of bourbon. “Who is it?” he demanded.
“Uh, it’s Mr. Corbin,” the guard offered. Sonny frowned at that, twisting on the sofa to see his father walking in.
“Mike,” Sonny said, narrowing his eyes. “What do you want?” Probably here to ask for money or help from a bookie. “I thought you were in Buffalo.”
“Came in for the wedding,” Mike said. He tipped his head. “I saw you yesterday, but you didn’t stay at the reception long.”
Sonny snorted. “No point,” he muttered.
“Uh huh. It was nice to be invited.” Mike sat on the arm of the chair next to the sofa. “I thought Elizabeth looked beautiful.”
“You’re not even mad that he was supposed to be marrying my sister six months ago?”
“No, and neither are you, Michael.” Mike waited for Sonny to look at him. “I always had my doubts about Jason and Courtney, and this worked out for the best. Your sister’s doing well in Buffalo, not that you care. She’s dating again, too.” He paused. “I noticed some tension with you and Jason. Everything okay?”
“Don’t act like you care—”
“I’ve done my best to make you see that I do,” Mike cut in. “And I thought we’d come further than this. I don’t know what happened while I was in Buffalo, but you—” He paused. “What happened with Carly? Why are you and Jason at each other’s throats?”
“Mike—” Sonny got to his feet, ready to toss him a scathing set down. Over his father’s shoulders, he saw his mother and Lily. Adela. The woman Mike had abandoned to Deke Woods, and Lily, the woman who had died instead of Sonny. He closed his eyes.
They weren’t there. They weren’t real.
“Oh, mijo.” He felt his mother’s hand on his shoulder. Her light, gentle touch. “He’s your father.”
“No, he’s not,” Sonny retorted.
“That’s right,” Lily said with a tilt of her head. “He was there the night you killed me and our son. He’s the reason you didn’t join us. He stopped you. You should have died with us.”
“Michael?”
Sonny blinked, then looked around. Lily and Adela were gone. They hadn’t been there, he reminded himself.
They were dead.
Women who had died instead of him.
“Michael?” Mike repeated. “What’s going on—”
“Nothing.” Feeling a bit shaky, but more in the moment, Sonny took a deep breath. “Nothing,” he repeated. “Jason and I aren’t seeing eye to eye on handling Ric Lansing. Carly—” Another woman who was gone because of him. Not dead. Just gone. Couldn’t protect her if he couldn’t see her—couldn’t keep her safe if she wasn’t in the room why couldn’t she just see that why was everything a fight why did she make everything so hard—
“Michael,” Mike said sharply, and again Sonny snapped back.
“Carly took Jason’s side,” Sonny finished. “Thanks for stopping by, Mike. But I didn’t need you when I was a kid, and I don’t need you now.”
“Michael—”
“Max.” Sonny raised his voice until the guard opened the door. “See him out.”
And with that, Sonny went upstairs, putting his father out of his mind once again.
The Cellar: Bar
Carly Corinthos narrowed her eyes at the whiskey inventory behind the bar, then glanced at her list. “Hey, Frankie, we’re missing a bottle of Jim Beam. Can you do another count in the stock room?”
“Sure thing, Mrs. C.” She heard the bartender leave, then turned at the footsteps near the entrance.
“Hey there, Caroline.” Luke ambled over and sat at the counter. “Taking a look at my competition.” He glanced around, nodding. “Looks good in here.”
“We’re hardly competition,” Carly said but smiled at the thought. “My place is a bit more….”
“Sophisticated,” Luke offered. “I know it. And we do live music. Still, you did nice for yourself. Barbara Jean said you were going to buy back into Club 101.”
“Signing the papers next week. Starting my own empire.” Carly pursed her lips. “Is this a social call, Luke, or—”
“I can be friendly,” Luke said a bit defensively. “I’m a proud, adoring uncle—” When she just lifted a brow, he sighed. “Yeah, okay. I know Morgan’s out of town—”
“Luke—”
“He asked me to look in on you and my sister. After what I saw yesterday, I think it can’t hurt to have another body in on this. Especially since I think we both know he’s got a whole lot on his plate right now.”
Carly considered that, then nodded. “Yeah. I guess you’re right. I don’t mean to keep adding to it. I know that’s hard to believe because that’s all I’ve ever done—” She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “I guess it’s just my lot in life to be someone people have to clean up after.”
“How do you figure that, darlin’?” Luke asked. “The way Barbara Jean tells it, you were clipping along just fine last year. You and Sonny were happy, expecting that baby. The club launched successfully. Did you ask for Ric Lansing to shove you into a panic room for a week?”
Carly closed her eyes. “No. But—”
“So we wanna blame anyone, we can blame him. Or we can blame Sonny for shoving you into another locked room.” He paused. “Your mother gave me some of the background. I’m not asking for details, Caroline. I’m just—I’m just trying to help. Morgan’s not here to turn to.”
“I appreciate it, Luke, I do. But I don’t know what you can offer at this point—”
His cell phone buzzed in his pocket, and Luke drew it out. “Well, let’s find out. Hey, Mike. How did it go?” He listened for a long moment, then nodded. “Yeah, I didn’t think it would work, but it was worth a shot. Thanks, man. I’ll keep you in the loop.”
“Mike? What did you have him do?”
Luke set the phone on the bar. “Just drop in on Sonny. He has a better excuse than I do,” he added, “since me and Sonny ain’t exactly copacetic these days.”
“Copacetic, huh?” Carly sighed. “Sonny isn’t going to tell Mike anything.”
“Didn’t go there for intel. Don’t need it. Just wanted to get a sense of Sonny’s mood since he blew up at the wedding, and I know he wasn’t thrilled about Morgan going AWOL for two weeks.” Luke paused. “He’s drinking, and Mike couldn’t tell if he was drunk or just drifting. You know what I’m saying, don’t you?”
Carly didn’t want to feel bad. Didn’t want to worry about him. “You’ve seen him in those moods before, I guess.”
“A time or two, yeah. But he’s gotten worse over the years. Losing Lily and that baby, then Brenda. Jilting her, her dying—don’t make no difference she’s not dead, you hear me? Then I cut him out, blaming him for that fire.”
“We lost our baby,” Carly murmured.
“Exactly. He’s getting worse. He’s pushing everyone away. I’ve seen him do it before.” Luke scratched his temple. “Trouble is we can’t force him to get help, so all we can do is minimize the collateral damage. He’ll hit rock bottom at some point.” He got to his feet. “I just don’t want his rock bottom to include my sister, you, those kids, or Elizabeth. So, you got my number. Call me if you need it.”
Lake House: Bedroom
Elizabeth sat on the edge of the bed to kick off her shoes, then looked down at her hands. At the wedding ring nestled next to the ruby engagement ring. It was just a simple plain gold band, similar to the wider one she’d slid on his finger the day before.
“You all right?”
She glanced up to find her husband walking into the room, setting the burner phone on the dresser. “Yeah, I was just looking at my ring.”
Jason hesitated. “It’s all right, isn’t it? Emily said—”
“It’s perfect.” She rose to her feet and crossed the room to him, sliding her arms around his waist. “I love that my engagement ring is what I see first.”
“Why?” Jason asked, his hands gently trailing up and down her back.
“Because, other than the leather jacket you got me that first Christmas,” she said, “that glass was the first present you ever gave me. And I—” She sighed, rested her head against his chest. “I broke it.”
“I know. You told me.” They stood there, swaying, nearly dancing to nothing more than the sound of their own breathing. “It’s all right.”
“It’s not. I knew you were telling the truth even when I said you were lying. You picked that ruby because I told you how sorry I was for not believing you. For breaking it.”
“I didn’t even buy that glass for you,” Jason reminded her. His cheek rested on top of her head—she could feel his breath rustling her hair. “I gave it to you because I had it, and I thought you’d like it. You don’t have to feel sorry about breaking it. I never blamed you.”
“I loved that shade of crimson,” Elizabeth murmured. She held out her hand, wiggling her fingers so that the ruby caught the dim light in the room. “The way it caught in the light and sparkled. I remember the day you gave it to me. When we stood at the window.”
“I remember that, too.” He closed his hand over hers and brought it to his mouth. “I wanted to kiss you that day. When you looked at me.”
“I wanted you to kiss me, too. Which scared the hell out of me,” she admitted. She drew back so that their eyes met. “So many times I wish you would have just done it, but now, I know why you didn’t, and it makes me love you more.”
“Yeah?” With his free hand, he tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, trailing his fingers down her jaw.
“It needed to be my decision, and I think you wanted it to be mine. You needed that from me, and I couldn’t do it. Not then. I wasn’t ready. You always found a way to put me first.”
“Not always.”
She shook her head. “We’re not going to do that, not tonight. I’m not even blaming myself for not being ready. I just wanted to tell you that I knew what you were doing and that I love you for it.”
“I love you, too.” He dipped his head down to brush his mouth against hers. Her hand fisted in his shirt. “We should go to bed.”
“We should, but first—” Elizabeth kissed him again, nipping at his lips as she drew back, then smiled at him. “I want my wedding night.”
Just a note that Karma has been completely posted. I hope you guys enjoy it! I’ll see you guys on Monday for the first chapter of Mad World, Book 4. (CAN YOU BELIEVE IT’S ALMOST HERE?????)
Taggert slammed the door, then scowled at Mac, his hands at his waist. “She’s running.”
Mac exhaled slowly, closed a folder on his desk, then looked at Garcia. “What’s your take?”
“Hard to say, to be honest. No way she knew we were going to bring her in today,” he pointed out. “It’s been a week. She’s suspended from work and getting a lot of flack from the public on being a suspect and who she was with when she found the body.” The detective shrugged. “She might have just taken off.”
“So, she’s a fugitive—”
“I don’t think that’s fair,” Mac cut Taggert off. “She didn’t see you, then run. She just wasn’t home when you tried to take her in. What about Morgan?”
Garcia sighed. “The guy at the Towers says Morgan didn’t leave, but honestly, we all know he didn’t drive himself out of the building. It’s hard to keep tabs on the guy. He was home when we went by this morning but refused to say anything without an attorney.”
“He’s hiding her—”
“Morgan never talks to anyone without an attorney present,” Mac said. “Look, we’ve got an APB out right now. Maybe she’s in the wind, but maybe she just wanted to get out of town for a bit. We’ll run it on the news and see what’s going on. I’m not ready to call her a fugitive yet—”
“You and the damn DA have been tiptoeing around this girl like she’s some kind of princess—”
“You’re not from Port Charles. Either of you.” Mac shook his head. “And neither is Dara. Elizabeth’s grandparents were well-respected pillars of the community. Elizabeth was considered a good kid until she started having run-ins with Carly Roberts. We fuck this arrest up, it’s going to blow up in our faces. If you don’t like it—” Mac pointed. “There’s the door.”
2 Lots of people shamin’ me for shit they didn’t see
“So am I fugitive or what?” Elizabeth asked, emerging from the maid’s room next to the kitchen after Jason had turned away his second visit from the PCPD that day.
“No.” Jason scowled, flipping the locks even though no one got access to the penthouse floor without a special elevator code. “No,” he repeated in a calmer tone. He turned to face her. “You’re a person of interest. The APB just says be on the lookout.”
“It’s weird,” she murmured, turning to the windows overlooking the city. “I want to fight this, I do, but that’s when I thought they were working with real evidence. Not someone framing me—”
“Did you finish reading the letters?” Jason came up behind her, put his hands on her shoulders, rubbing gently. “Anything Lee can use to prove they’re not yours?”
“It looks a lot like my handwriting, but it’s not my voice,” Elizabeth said. “A handwriting analyst looks at that kind of thing, don’t they?”
“I think so. And we’ll find the best one—”
“There’s nothing in the letters content-wise—just notes to Carly about backing off.” She paused, then turned to Jason. “Except some of them are dated. I think Lee can probably work with it—the earliest one is from November 12, and it’s warning Carly to stay away from you.”
Jason squinted. “But that doesn’t make any sense. Carly was still with Tony—”
“And I’d have no reason to tell anyone to stay away from you,” Elizabeth pointed out. “We didn’t start hanging out at Jake’s until after Thanksgiving, when my schedule changed. I started to come in on nights when you were there. Jake could probably verify that.”
She smiled wanly, turning to face him. “It’s not much, but it might be enough. Lee might be able to find more. But if I call him, he’ll want to know—”
“He’ll have to wait until the DA turns it over for discovery. We can’t show him our copy.”
“Which could take weeks.” She dropped her head against his chest. “What do we do? Do I turn myself in?”
“We could wait a few days while I look into Lorraine Miller,” Jason offered, “but then you’d have to explain where you were and how you missed the APBs—”
“That looks suspicious. Especially if I try to lie. I wanted time to look at the letters. Now I have.” She met his eyes. “I have to turn myself in.”
“I know.” Jason paused. “If you go tomorrow morning, you might be able to get a bail hearing before the end of the day. I’ll be there—”
“Maybe you shouldn’t post bail right away.” Elizabeth held up a hand when Jason scowled. “Let me explain—if I’m in jail, Lorraine will think she’s getting away with it. She might make a mistake—”
“I’m not leaving you in jail,” Jason said with a shake of his head. “Not happening—”
“But—”
“If you’re under arrest, that’ll be enough for Lorraine—or whoever did this—to think it’s working.” When she opened her mouth to argue, he added, “Trust me. I’ve spent a few days in lock up. You don’t want to be there.”
And since he was the resident criminal who’d been arrested often enough, Elizabeth nodded. “All right. Then let me ask this. If Lorraine killed Carly, why is she still selling her secrets? She mentioned you, but we know she never got in contact. Who else might want dirt on Carly even after she’s gone?”
3 So point the finger, pull the trigger, throw them off your trail
“Hey.” Robin flashed AJ a smile as she sat across from him at Kelly’s. “You look tense—”
“Don’t start,” AJ muttered. “I’m sure you’ve already forgiven my brother. Are you helping him cover up what he did?”
Robin’s eyes widened. “AJ, why would I help Jason keep the baby from you? If you’re the baby’s father, then he’s not—”
“I know he’s lying,” AJ bit out. “He’d never cheat on you like that. Not with Carly. So either you know that, and you’re lying to me, or he’s still lying to you.”
“How can you be so sure? The DNA test didn’t rule Jason out yet—”
“Because I have someone who worked with Carly,” AJ retorted. “Someone who helped her lie about everything.”
Score one for Elizabeth, Robin thought. It looked like Lorraine had found a buyer. “If you have this, then why aren’t you using it in court?”
“I still need the DNA test.” He sat back. “I’m not going to let Jason take this from me. I’ve tried so hard to make amends for what I did. I can’t ever take the accident back, Robin. I can’t bring back my brother, but I’ll be damned if I pay forever—”
“AJ—”
“If he thinks stealing my son is revenge—he’s going to regret it. So you tell him that I’m not stopping until I get my son back, and I’ll make sure anyone who was part of this pays for keeping this secret. Even if it’s you.” AJ shoved away from the table and stalked out.
Shaken, Robin twisted to watch him leave. Lorraine might be a blackmailing bitch, but was she really a killer?
Or had the killer just left?
4 You’ll get yours eventually
Lorraine unlocked her apartment door, scowling at the bills in the mail. AJ’s original payment had already dried up, and he was being bitchy about a second round—he hadn’t seemed interested in more of Carly’s secrets—
“As if DNA is going to be enough,” Lorraine snorted, dumping the mail, her keys, and coat on the sofa. “He should know better.” Jason Morgan had money and people everywhere.
The light flashed on her machine, and Lorraine pressed play absently. Probably another debtor—
“Hey, Lorrie, it’s me—” Lorraine turned at the sound of a nurse from Mercy. Amanda. Allison. Audrey? “Listen, I only have a few minutes, but I overheard that bitch Kelly talking to Patty about you working at GH. She said she ran into someone who mentioned it.”
Patty. The nursing supervisor who had turned her in for falsifying records. Lorraine’s palms began to itch. Damn it. Patty was tight with the staff in the nursing program—that was how Lorraine had gotten the job at Mercy after graduating from the program at GH.
“I don’t know how long you have, but someone’s gonna say something. You should get out of town.”
Lorraine deleted the message, but her pulse was already throbbing, her head pounding. She had to go — but she didn’t have the money. She didn’t have the resources.
Which meant it was time for the last resort.
5 I got people whisperin’ as if they know my life
Bobbie stepped up to the nurse’s station, flashing a hesitant smile at Monica at the computer. “Uh, hey.”
“Oh, Bobbie, I’ve been thinking about you.” Monica turned to her. “Ever since that APB was on the news this morning—they’re going to arrest her, aren’t they?”
“It looks that way.” Bobbie pressed a hand to her stomach. “I’m just glad Steve and Audrey aren’t here to see it—” She took a deep breath. “I mean, she didn’t do it, but with Steve’s heart, this would have done him in.”
“After the drug charges last year, I don’t doubt it.” Monica tipped her head. “Is she hiding? Has she contacted you?”
“I haven’t heard from her in a few days. I think she was keeping to herself. I’m sure she’ll call Lee as soon as she finds out they’re looking for her.” Bobbie put a hand on Monica’s arm. “I told Mac.”
Monica drew her brows together. “Told Mac what?”
“That you were lying about AJ’s alibi.” Monica sucked in a breath, but Bobbie kept going. “He’d just told me that Tony was in the clear, and God, Monica, it just leaves AJ and Elizabeth, and I know she didn’t do it—”
“You’ve always favored her,” Monica said, her tone short and clipped. “Since the day Jeff and Carolyn left her with Steve and Audrey—”
“I’m her godmother,” Bobbie said, “and yes, maybe I have looked out for her. But that doesn’t mean I don’t know who she is. So, Monica, look me in the eye and tell me you think Jeff’s daughter, Steve and Audrey’s granddaughter, murdered Carly and left her to die on a supply closet floor.”
Monica closed her eyes. “If it’s not Elizabeth, that only leaves my son. And I can’t let that be the truth either.”
“All right. I can understand that. But I had to make sure the police had all the information—”
“Well, it looks like it didn’t matter, did it?” Monica bit out. “Because you told them, and they’re still arresting Elizabeth. So maybe you don’t know her as well as you think.”
6 Friends can turn to enemies if you hand them the knife
Taggert nearly launched himself out of his seat when he saw Lee Baldwin striding through the squad room doors, Elizabeth on his heels.
“My client has become aware of the APB out for her arrest,” Lee said coolly, stepping in front of Taggert. “She’s here to turn herself in. You’ll arraign her quickly so that we can post bail—”
“No way in hell you’ll get bond when she resisted arrest and fled the jurisdiction,” Taggert retorted.
Lee arched a brow. “Do you have proof that my client did any such thing?” When Taggert just glared at him, Lee nodded. “I thought not. Come along, my dear,” he told Elizabeth, reaching for her elbow. “We’ll head down to booking. I’m sure the detective will send an officer with us—”
“Oh, no, I wouldn’t want to miss a moment of this—”
Taggert was interrupted as Mac strode into the squad room, relieved when he saw Elizabeth. “Elizabeth, oh, good, you heard about the APB?”
“And naturally came right in,” Lee volunteered as Elizabeth remained quiet.
“I’m just about to walk her to booking,” Taggert said.
“Let a uniform do that—Carmichael—” Mac gestured to an officer behind the desk. “We have a problem—”
“A problem?” Lee demanded. “What kind of problem?”
“None of your business—” Taggert began, but Mac glared at him, and the detective fell silent.
“Carly’s social security number,” Mac said. “We ran a background check on her, and Carly Roberts’s number comes back to a Charlotte Roberts who died in Florida several years ago.”
Elizabeth blinked, then looked up at her lawyer. “Lee, what’s going on?”
“It seems that our Ms. Roberts was using an assumed identity,” Lee said coolly. “And that will be an excellent defense for us in court. Officer Carmichael?” he said to the uniform lurking behind them. “We’ll go to booking now. My client would like to be home by dinner.”
7 You’re diggin’ me my grave, but keep the shovel nearby
Dig your own right next to mine
Jason paced the waiting room, feeling like he was going to burst out of his body. Right now, he knew Elizabeth was being fingerprinted and having her mugshot taken. He knew Taggert wouldn’t be able to resist interrogating Elizabeth once more. Still, Lee was sure that he’d get a bail hearing that day.
“I told you, Jason,” Justus said in low tones as they both kept one eye on an angry AJ who was at the other end of the room, Monica talking to him quietly. “She’s got a clean record, and there’s no physical evidence. Lee will get her bond posted, and this case might not even go to trial—”
“Lee’s one of the best,” Robin said from Jason’s other side. “He’s not going to let anything happen to Elizabeth.”
“Easy for you both to be so confident. You’re not the one facing murder charges—” Jason wished he could be with Elizabeth, to stand next to her as she turned herself in. He’d encouraged her to do it, but his being there would only make everything worse.
The pathologist stepped out of his office, then cleared his throat. “Uh, I’ve already sent a copy over to the court,” he said, “but I’ve made one for both of you—”
“Just tell me what it says,” AJ demanded, “so I can go upstairs and be with my son—”
“I’m sorry,” the man said with a shake of his head. “Mr. Quartermaine, but that won’t be possible.” He gestured at Jason. “The DNA test confirms that the baby’s father is Jason Morgan.”
Robin gasped in horror as Justus frowned — then AJ launched himself across the room, reaching for Jason’s throat.
“You son of a bitch!”
8 In your glass house
Are you sure you’re ready for the fall out
Lorraine wound her way through the crowd of patrons until she reached the bar and found the man she was looking for. She’d saved him as her absolute last resort. If he didn’t want what she was selling, Lorraine would be out of options.
Luke turned away from an argument with his bartender only to meet Lorraine’s expectant eyes. “Can I help you, darlin’?”
“Yeah. You can tell me how much it’s worth to you to make sure your sister never finds out who Carly Roberts really was or that you knew all along.”
The warm glint disappeared from the man’s face, and his expression grew so cold Lorraine nearly shivered. Maybe that hadn’t been the right way to start the conversation—
“Listen to me, little girl.” Luke leaned forward, his voice hushed. Yet Lorraine could hear every word over the din of music and people. “Whatever you think you know, you’re going to keep to yourself. If you step near Barbara Jean or say another word about Carly Roberts to anyone, you will regret every single moment I allow you to breathe.”
Lorraine swallowed hard. “Wouldn’t it just be easier to pay me to go away—”
“I don’t give in to blackmail. You think you’re big and bad, Miss Lorraine Miller—” Luke smirked when Lorraine’s eyes widened. “Yeah, I know who you are. I knew every single thing my worthless niece did in Port Charles, and as long as she left my sister alone and only tortured that moron Tony, I let her get away with it. So I know who you are and what you’ve done. You take whatever you think you know and get out of Port Charles. Immediately.”
Lorraine fled into the crowd. Luke’s eyes followed her out, then sighed. He was going to have to deal with this, after all. That one wasn’t going away so easily.
9 Throwin’ stones, I think you need to slow down
Elizabeth rubbed her hands, wincing as Jason scribbled his name at the bottom of the check for her astronomical bond. “Lee, couldn’t you have—”
“It’s fine,” Jason reminded her as her godfather just sighed. “It’s worth it. You didn’t even have to go into a cell—” He met her eyes. “And I’ll get it back after they drop the charges.”
“Awfully nice of you to bail out the mistress—”
Jason’s eyes iced as he lifted his head, turning to find Taggert sauntering into the clerk’s office. He said nothing. He ripped the check from the book and slid it across the desk.
“Detective, we have nothing further to say,” Lee said, stepping in front of Jason and Elizabeth. “My client has no statement—”
“Oh, I’m not here to ask her any questions.” Taggert smirked. “Just wanted to let you know, Mr. Baldwin, that we got the copy of the DNA test—”
Jason’s jaw clenched. “Shut up—”
“I’m sure Miss Webber will be interested in learning the outcome—” Taggert looked at Elizabeth. “I’m sure Morgan here wove you a pretty tale about Carly lying to him and using him and blackmailing him—whatever he had to say to convince you to slice her throat—”
“That’s enough—”
“And he can afford to be generous with the bail. You’ll go on trial, be convicted, and he’ll get the money back. He gets the best of all the words. The money, the kid, and no pesky women around asking for promises—”
Elizabeth shook her head and looked away. She wasn’t going to listen to him—but—if the DNA test came back, then didn’t it mean—She looked at Jason, who was glaring at Taggert with malevolence.
“What are you babbling on about?” Lee demanded, speaking for them all. “Just say it and be done—”
“AJ Quartermaine seemed so sure,” Taggert said, “but it’s just like Carly said. Jason’s the daddy. What a guy, huh?”
10 I can see right through you from my glass house
Your glass house
Lorraine had a bad feeling when the elevators opened in front of the nurse’s station, and AJ Quartermaine stepped out. His eye was already turning purple and a cut lip, oozing blood.
She started to back up so she could duck out of sight before he saw her, but unfortunately—
“Oh no, you don’t,” AJ muttered, following her even as a few other nurses and doctors stopped to look at him. He grabbed Lorraine by the arm and steered her into an empty room. “You fucking bitch. I want my money back—”
“What are you talking about?” she squeaked.
“You promised me that Carly was lying about the baby and Jason,” he hissed, backing her up against a wall. “I paid you for the evidence! And it was for nothing! That bitch was lying the whole time! It’s not my baby!”
“It is, I swear!” Lorraine jerked the chart up, twisting her face away. “What are you talking about? All of that is true—I got fired because of it! You can even ask Mercy!”
AJ glared at her but then backed up. “Then why did the lab just confirm that Jason is that baby’s father?” he demanded.
What? Lorraine’s breath was rapid, and her head was spinning. “No! No! That’s not possible! It has to be a lie! Someone messed up the test! I know it’s yours!”
AJ narrowed his eyes, then clenched his jaw. “You’re going to tell me everything you know about Carly. Start from the beginning. And don’t you dare ask me for one more damn cent,” he growled.
11 I got people sayin’ take an eye for an eye
Elizabeth leaned back against the passenger seat of the SUV. She was grateful to be out of lockup and away from the reporters and cameras waiting outside the station.
“I didn’t lie to you,” Jason said abruptly as he drew the car to a stop at a traffic light. “What Taggert said—”
She looked at him, turning her head against the seat, drained of all energy. “About the paternity test? No, I know you didn’t lie. I just thought you’d changed the test to give you more time.” It would have been nice if he’d warned her, but—
“I would have,” Jason muttered, “if I had enough time, but I didn’t. I was going to fight AJ in court. Force another test or something until we knew for sure if he was guilty. I don’t understand—” He swallowed hard, his hands flexing on the wheel. “I never touched her again. I wouldn’t have done that to Robin. I didn’t even—”
“If you didn’t change it—” Elizabeth furrowed her brows. “Who could have?”
“I don’t know.” He checked the clock on the dashboard. “I’ll drop you at your place so you can get your car and get ready for your meeting with the board. How long do you think it’ll take?”
“That depends, I guess. My union rep wanted to protest the suspension and scheduled this before I got arrested.” Elizabeth’s smile was faint. “I don’t think they’ll rescind my suspension now that charges have been filed.”
“We’ll get your job back—”
“Maybe. But it shouldn’t be more than a half-hour. Why?”
“I’m meeting Robin at Kelly’s. We’ll wait for you there,” he told her, making the turn onto her street. He pulled in front of the building and put a hand out to stop her when she reached for the handle. “Come straight there, okay?”
“What, do you think I’ll hunt Lorraine down myself?” Elizabeth asked. She rolled her eyes. “I’m not stupid, Jason, and I don’t think Lorraine’s going to kill me even if we run into each other. How can she frame a dead woman?”
“Elizabeth—”
“Relax. I’ll listen to the board tell me I’m still out of the program, and I’ll meet you at Kelly’s.” She leaned over to kiss him, lingering. “I promise.”
12 I just turn the other cheek cause you ain’t worth my time
But Robin wasn’t at Kelly’s. Instead, Jason found Brenda sitting at one of the tables, tapping her fingertips restlessly. She jerked to her feet when he approached. “Hey. Hey. You’re here. Great. We need to talk—”
“I don’t have time for this—” Jason began, but Brenda was already shaking her head.
“No, Robin asked me to wait for you. She said she wanted to talk to AJ.” Brenda looked at Jason somberly. “She told me the truth. Or at least the truth as she knew it. I want to help.”
“Why is she talking to AJ?” Jason demanded. “And did she go alone?” He still wasn’t convinced Elizabeth wouldn’t attempt to confront Lorraine on her own, and now Robin was going after AJ—
Why couldn’t they just trust that he knew what he was doing? He was the damn criminal, not them.
Brenda bit her lip. “I tried to talk her out of it, but she wouldn’t listen. She said AJ seemed so angry after the results came back—as if he knew something the rest of us didn’t. She went to find out—”
“Where was she meeting AJ?”
“At the hotel, but let me go with you,” Brenda said. “I’m worried about her. And I want to help get to the bottom of this.” She got to her feet. “Please.”
13 ‘Cause you see in black and white
“I’m sorry,” Epiphany said, closing the door to the conference room behind her and Elizabeth as they left the meeting with the board, her union rep already long gone. Useless asshole. “I tried to go to bat for you, but—”
“No, I appreciate it,” Elizabeth said with a sigh, looking back at the room. “It’s just hard to believe they’re taking Carly’s word for everything even after knowing that she framed me last year for the drug stuff. And that she wasn’t even who she was supposed to be!”
“They’re just covering their asses. As soon as you get this cleared up with the PCPD,” Epiphany told her, “we’ll be able to try again. You’re a good nurse, Webber. Don’t give up.”
“Thanks,” Elizabeth said. “It was nice to have you here and actually believe in me. Last year, the union rep told me I should just withdraw from the program quietly and avoid criminal charges.”
“Yeah, well, I believe in my nurses.” Epiphany patted her shoulder. “You let me know if I can help you with anything.” She left Elizabeth to return to her shift.
It was hard to accept that even if she could get rid of these charges, the hospital might not allow her to return. She’d never finish her nursing certification. Even if she started over somewhere else, there was no guarantee another hospital wouldn’t unearth the reason she’d been dismissed from this one.
At least her grandparents weren’t alive to be disappointed all over again.
Elizabeth headed for the elevators but then saw Lorraine out of the corner of her eye, ducking down a quiet hallway.
She hesitated because she’d promised Jason she’d go straight to Kelly’s, but damn it—Lorraine was right there. They knew she was trying to sell Carly’s secrets. What if she gave up and left town?
No, it was better to ask forgiveness than permission. Jason would just have to get over it. Lorraine was right in front of her, and Elizabeth wasn’t going to let the bitch get away with ruining her life again.
14 There’s more than just wrong and right
Robin was in the lobby of the Port Charles Hotel when Jason and Brenda showed up. Jason took Robin by the elbow and drew her away. “What are you doing, meeting AJ on your own?” he demanded. “You know we’re not sure that Lorraine did this—”
“Yeah, but AJ hated Carly. He doesn’t hate me, and I insisted on meeting in a public place.” Robin removed his hand. “I can take care of myself, Jason. He said he had proof you were lying about the test.”
“I’m not lying about it,” Jason retorted. “I didn’t even do anything except give blood—”
Before Robin could protest, the hotel lobby opened, and AJ strode in, a manila envelope in his hands. He growled when he saw Jason standing there.
“What the hell are you doing here?” AJ demanded.
“He wants to find out who murdered Carly,” Robin interjected before Jason could say anything. “We know it wasn’t Elizabeth, but Carly had a lot of enemies. And she wasn’t even who she said she was.”
AJ exhaled slowly, glared at Jason, and shoved the envelope at Robin. “I know you’re lying and keeping my son from me. I’m already demanding another test—”
“What is this?” Robin asked as she glanced through the files, confused. “Sonograms?”
“Proof that Lorraine worked with Carly to fake a sonogram and other tests to convince Tony he was the father. If Jason was actually his father, she would have screamed it from the rooftops a long time ago. She was at Jake’s that night to find him,” AJ accused Jason. “She threw you out as a Hail Mary, and you were dumb enough to let her—”
Robin wrinkled her nose. “When did you get these?”
“A while ago,” AJ said. “But I was in negotiations before Carly died. Lorraine kept screwing around on the price. She would only give things in drips and drabs. She kept wanting more. After the murder, I just paid whatever she wanted. I didn’t want to give you a chance to mess with the tests, but I didn’t need to kill Carly.”
“If AJ’s telling the truth, and he had this ammunition—no judge was going to give Carly custody. Not over a Quartermaine,” Brenda said reluctantly to Jason. “I mean, the only we’d know for sure is if Lorraine admits it—”
“I confronted her after the test came back,” AJ cut in. “She swears she didn’t know anything about the test. Carly told her from the start that I was the father.” He lifted his chin at his brother, defiant. “Admit it, Jason. You’ve known all along you’re not the father. I didn’t need to kill Carly. Why would I when I’m this close to having my son?”
Jason could think of several reasons AJ might have done away with Carly, but the man had a point. He would have won custody easily with all of this evidence. He scrubbed his hands down his face. “I don’t know,” he said with a shake of his head. “It could be you, or it could be Lorraine.”
“It has to be Lorraine,” AJ said, putting his evidence back into the envelope. “She’s been shopping Carly’s secrets around for weeks. There’s a big one she said she’s keeping back, but Lorraine said Carly was threatening to tell the hospital why Lorraine was fired from Mercy.”
“It was in her best interest for Carly to be quiet while Lorraine negotiated for a buyer,” Robin said. “I don’t know. It sounds like Lorraine had the best motive.”
“What good are Carly’s secrets if she’s dead?” Brenda wanted to know.
“I guess that depends on the secrets,” Jason replied. “We need to know what they were.”
15 In your glass house
Are you sure you’re ready for the fall out
Lorraine went into the staff break room, and Elizabeth followed, slamming the door. The nurse blinked in surprise, coffee sloshing over the rim of her coffee. “I thought you were in jail—”
“Yeah, I bet you did,” Elizabeth said, staying on the other side of the room. “Since you forged the letters that got me arrested in the first place.”
Lorraine’s eyes opened comically wide. “What are you talking about?”
“You have a talent,” Elizabeth retorted. “You forged letters last year, remember? ”
“You’re obviously insane, and you shouldn’t be here. Aren’t you suspended—”
Elizabeth stepped in front of Lorraine to stop the other woman from leaving the staff room. “What made you finally snap?” she wanted to know. “Why’d you do it?”
“Do what? Oh my God, do you think I killed Carly?” Lorraine stepped back. “You’re crazy! I never touched her! Why would I—”
“Don’t pretend—”
“No! I didn’t kill her, but—” Lorraine swallowed hard. “Okay, I might have forged those letters. I needed the money, and I didn’t want AJ to be arrested. You know he had to have done it—”
“Don’t you dare—”
“No! I only did it to buy time, okay? I’m going to tell them they’re not your letters, I promise—I just needed to get out town, and I had one more buyer on the line for Carly’s secret—As soon as I get payment, I’ll call from wherever I end up, and I’ll tell the truth—”
“You wouldn’t know the truth if it bit you in the ass—you slit her throat and left her to bleed out. So why the hell would I believe you!”
“Why would I kill Carly? I could have kept blackmailing her,” Lorraine cried. “I’ve been doing it for months!”
“Just stop—”
“No, listen to me! I knew from the beginning only Jason or AJ could have done this! Carly told me she was going to make sure Jason ended up in jail if he didn’t help her, and AJ—” Lorraine’s hands were trembling. “Do you know everything she did to him to cover this up? God, Liz, it was terrible. She drugged him and lied to him—she made him think he was drinking again! He was so angry when he found out—”
Elizabeth hesitated. “Look—”
“I mean, do you think it’s any coincidence that Carly was murdered right after having the baby? Sure, AJ might have won in court with the evidence I gave him,” Lorraine continued. “But he’d still have to deal with Carly for the next eighteen years. Now—he’ll get his son, and she’s gone. AJ killed her!”
16 Throwin’ stones, I think you need to slow down
“I’ll have Lorraine paged,” AJ told Jason as they approached the nurse’s station. “She’s expecting me to come up with another payment anyway. You stay here—”
“No, I want—”
“Jason!” Bobbie slowed to a stop as she approached the nurse’s station, spying AJ next to him. “Are you looking for Elizabeth?”
“No—” He shook his head. “She should still be at her meeting—”
“No, I saw Amanda Barrington and Edward leaving about ten minutes ago—”
Jason grimaced. He checked the clock by the elevator. “I need to call her place. Or leave a message for her at Kelly’s. “Do you think Robin and Brenda are done at the PCPD yet?” Maybe they could swing back to the diner—
“Why are Robin and Brenda going to the PCPD?” Bobbie demanded.
“We think we know who killed Carly,” AJ said. “Is Lorraine Miller working today?”
“She’s working in the post-op recovery ward on the ninth. What does Lorraine have to do with anything?”
“Bobbie—” Jason exhaled. “I’ll explain in a minute.” He looked at AJ. “Convince Lorraine to go to the conference room on that floor. Make up a reason you’re going to pay her there. I’ll call Kelly’s and try to catch Elizabeth and see if Robin is on her way with Mac.”
17 I can see right through you from my glass house
“Lorraine Miller?” Mac repeated as he listened to Robin’s story with an air of skepticism. He flipped through the records they’d given him. “She was working with Carly?”
“Apparently. She knew Carly in high school,” Robin said. “Which means she knows who Carly really was — not the identity she was using here.”
“Which is probably the secret she’s been trying to sell without any luck,” Brenda continued. “Come on, Mac. Isn’t it more likely that she did this? She already forged Elizabeth’s handwriting before—”
“We don’t know that for sure—” Mac wrinkled his nose. “She got fired from Mercy?”
“For messing with records and some other things. I don’t know. You could probably stay here and find out, or you could come to the hospital and question her,” Robin said, irritated. “Come on, Uncle Mac. You know Elizabeth didn’t do this!”
18 Your glass house Glass house
“You need to tell the PCPD what you know,” Elizabeth told Lorraine, her throat tight. Could AJ have done it? Were they wrong about Lorraine?
“I will. As soon as I get this last seller squared away. He’s balking, but I know he’ll want what I have—”
“No, you’re going to do it now!” Elizabeth cut in sharply. “I’m not going to spend one more day being accused of murder! God damn it, Lorraine, don’t you have a conscience?”
“Some of us can’t afford it,” Lorraine bit out. “Some of us didn’t grow up with grandparents who gave us everything—”
“Don’t you dare—”
“It’s just a matter of time before GH finds out why I got fired from Mercy! I have to get out of town, and I’m not going without my retirement plan—”
“Oh, screw this,” Elizabeth snarled. She yanked open the door and stalked out.
“Wait! What are you doing?” Lorraine demanded, her voice echoing in the halls as a high-pitch shriek. “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to tell the PCPD myself!” Elizabeth called over her shoulder.
“You can’t do that!” Lorraine grabbed Elizabeth by the arm and swung her into the wall hard. Elizabeth’s shoulder radiated with fire, but she shoved Lorraine away, grunting. The other woman fell, and Elizabeth started to run.
19 Are you sure you’re ready for the fall out
Jason grimaced as he approached Bobbie at the nurse’s station. “Ruby said Elizabeth hasn’t shown up yet.”
“I bet she’s in traffic. I keep telling her to get a cell phone, but we get absolutely no reception in the hospital, so she hasn’t bothered,” Bobbie told him. “Can you tell me what this is about?”
“If you have the time, you can come with me to the conference room, and—” He turned, and the elevator opened. Brenda came out first, then Robin practically pulling her uncle. Their hair and clothing were damp from the storm that began after Jason arrived at the hospital. “You convinced him?”
“Not exactly,” Robin said with a huff. “But he agreed that maybe Lorraine needs to answer some questions.” She looked around, then frowned. “I
thought Elizabeth would be here.”
“She already left,” Jason said. “The meeting was over—”
“No—we drove past her car,” Brenda cut in, her eyes wide. “When we parked.” She tugged on Robin’s jacket. “Didn’t you see it?”
“Yeah—”
Elizabeth had never left the hospital? Damn it—
“Wait—” Bobbie snaked out a hand. “Wait! The board meeting! They had Lorraine come down and answer questions earlier before Elizabeth came in! She knew Elizabeth was going to be in the hospital. Is she dangerous?”
“Not unless—” Robin grimaced, looked at Jason. “Elizabeth might have seen Lorraine after the meeting. Lorraine could have hung around to see how the meeting turned out. And if Elizabeth saw her—”
“I’m going upstairs,” Jason told them, then stalked towards the elevators without waiting for anyone to say differently. If Elizabeth had seen Lorraine, she might have seized the opportunity to go after her.
But Lorraine might have murdered Carly in the middle of a crowded hospital. Jason didn’t have Elizabeth’s conviction Lorraine wouldn’t panic and go after her. She might be desperate—
And desperate people did stupid things.
20 Throwin’ stones, I think you need to slow down
It wasn’t until Elizabeth reached the end of the hallway that she realized she’d missed the turn towards the elevators, and the only door left was the access stairs to the roof—
There was nowhere to go but up.
Elizabeth shoved the heavy door open. She’d get to the roof and find a place to hide. Maybe she’d have enough time to bar Lorraine from coming through the door—
“Stop!” Lorraine cried after her. “I just need you to stop!” Elizabeth heard the heavy door open again and quickened her race up the stairs.
AJ turned the corner and saw the service door swinging behind Lorraine. Without hesitating, he followed.
21 I can see right through you from my glass house
Your glass house
Elizabeth shoved open the roof door, then slipped on a puddle of water—she went flying, slamming her knee into the concrete as she hit the ground.
She cried out, rolling over, then scrambled to her feet. She heard the door open, and then Lorraine was there. She advanced on Elizabeth, already soaked.
“I just need you to stop and listen!” Lorraine grabbed Elizabeth’s arm as she tried to get past her. “You’re going to ruin everything!”
“You’re trying to frame me for murder!” Elizabeth shot back. She shoved Lorraine away, but Lorraine launched herself at Elizabeth. She tumbled backward again, slipping on the wet concrete and slamming into the corner of the metal fire escape, her head spinning and exploding.
She landed on her hands and knees, dizzy and disoriented. The sun was long gone, plunging the roof into slick darkness with the rain pounding around them. Lightning flashed, illuminating the rooftop.
She couldn’t stay away, couldn’t stop herself—she slumped over, letting herself drift. Letting the rain slide around her. She heard shouting — and then a scream.
Elizabeth forced her eyes open and saw AJ standing at the roof’s edge.
22 You see in black and white
They found a mug of coffee broken on the floor, liquid pooling around it. The floor was mostly deserted as there weren’t many post-operative patients to look after. At the nurse’s station, they found a tired woman who admitted heard a fight maybe ten minutes ago, but the hallway was empty when she went to investigate.
The hallway with the stairs to the roof. Jason swallowed hard. The last thing he wanted to think about was Elizabeth alone on the roof with the woman who’d murdered Carly—
And where the hell was AJ? Had he been part of the fight? Had he followed?
The door to the roof opened just as they reached it, and AJ emerged, half carrying, half dragging Elizabeth. They were soaked from the rain, and Elizabeth was shaking—blood tricking down her cheek.
Jason’s heart lurched as he moved forward, taking Elizabeth from his brother and lifting her into his arms. Elizabeth tried to open her eyes, then winced at the light, moaning slightly. “What the hell happened—” he demanded of his brother.
AJ leaned against the wall, blood trickling down his face. “I got here just in time to see Lorraine chasing Elizabeth into the stairwell. So I followed—” He accepted the towel that Brenda retrieved from a nearby cart, blotting his face. “When I got there, Elizabeth was on the ground. I think she’d hit her head on the fire escape. Lorraine was going towards her—she had something in her hand. It looked like a needle.”
“A needle?” Robin repeated.
“She couldn’t just kill Elizabeth outright,” Brenda pointed out. “She might have wanted to make it look like a suicide or overdose. Maybe she panicked.”
“Where is Lorraine?” Mac demanded.
“I—I shoved her away from Elizabeth,” AJ managed. “But she went flying.” He met Mac’s gaze. “She went over the side. I think she must be dead.”
23 You see in black and white
Three days later, Luke knocked on Mac’s half-open door, then closed it behind him when the commissioner gestured for him to come in. “Question for you, Bubba.”
Mac leaned back in the chair, raising a brow. “What do you want?”
“Carly Roberts.” Luke paused. “You closed the case, didn’t you?”
“We did. Unofficially, it’s going down as unsolved, but we’ve got enough circumstantial evidence that Lorraine Miller was responsible.” Mac tipped his head. “Why do you care?”
“You don’t need to dig into Carly’s past anymore, then?” Luke said, visibly relieved. “It doesn’t matter who she was or where she came from?”
“You mean, am I going to tell your sister that Carly Roberts was really Caroline Benson—and her daughter?” Mac asked gently. Luke closed his eyes. wincing. “We looked into Charlotte Roberts, the woman who died, and got her yearbook. I figured that Carly was posing as someone she knew since they claimed to be from Florida. It didn’t take me more than a few days to find Virginia Benson and unravel Caroline’s past.”
“She came here to destroy my sister’s life,” Luke said hoarsely. “And if she wasn’t dead, she’d still be trying.”
“Maybe.” Mac closed a folder on his desk. “As far as I’m concerned, the case is closed. There’s no reason Bobbie ever has to know.”
24 You see in black and white
“Flight 2193 to Paris. Rows 1-5 boarding now—”
“That’s me.” Robin turned to Jason, sliding the strap of her carry-on over her shoulder.
He shoved his hands in his pockets. “You’ll call when you land, won’t you? Or at least let Brenda know—”
“Yeah. I always do.” Robin bit her lip, met his eyes. “I’m glad I came home for the holidays,” she told him. “That we could see each other again. I feel like we didn’t really have closure when you came to Paris in October.”
“I know.” He’d gone hoping Robin had changed her mind, but when she hadn’t—
She forced a smile. “And I really am glad you’re dating. I’ve always liked Elizabeth. It’s weird to think of you with her, I think, but I’ll be used to by the time I get home in June.”
“Robin—”
She held up a hand, and some of the discomfort faded from her expression. “I mean that. I love you, Jason. I will always love you, and I know you’ll always love me. But we don’t want the same things. So it’s better this way. And now I know we’ll be able to be friends. That’s all I wanted.”
He kissed her cheek, his hands resting on her shoulders for a moment. Then he stepped back. “Have a good flight, Robin. I’ll see you in June.”
“See you in June.” Robin took a few steps towards the gate, then turned back, a guilty expression sliding across her face. “Wait. There’s something I forgot to tell you with all the craziness after Lorraine—”
“What?” Jason frowned.
“About that paternity test.”
25
See in black and white
Bobbie stood next to the phone, the receiver still in her hand, as Virginia Benson’s sobbing voice echoed in her head.
“She’s dead, my baby—our baby girl—she’s dead!” the woman had wailed. Bobbie had been so confused—she hadn’t heard from Virginia in years, not since Luke had brought him the tragic news that her daughter had died long ago.
Had Virginia had a breakdown with the holidays? Bobbie knew how grief could sneak up and swamp you when you least expected it—
But then Virginia had dropped a bomb into Bobbie’s peaceful world. “Why didn’t you tell me she was there? Why didn’t I know?”
“Why didn’t you call?” Virginia wailed. “I would have buried my baby! Instead, some stranger told me she’d been murdered—”
Bobbie squeezed her eyes shut. “Virginia—”
“Her throat was slit—why didn’t you tell me, oh why didn’t you tell me Caroline was there? My baby!”
The dial tone broke into Bobbie’s trance, and she stared at the phone, even as the sound dug into her brain like an ice pick. Caroline was dead. Had died only recently.
Her throat slit.
Murdered.
In Port Charles.
Oh, God. Didn’t that explain everything?
Bobbie swallowed hard, set the phone back on the base, and pressed her hands to her face. Carly Roberts had been her biological daughter—
Which meant Luke had known. And lied about it.
26
See in black and white
Elizabeth pressed her hand to her temple, still sore after the last few days. She accepted Jason’s help as she sat on the sofa. “Wait, what do you mean Robin changed the test? Why didn’t she tell you—”
“She didn’t know if her contacts would come through,” Jason explained. “She wanted to buy us some time—and she thought it might push AJ.”
“Well, it certainly worked—” Elizabeth closed her eyes, leaning into the sweet relief and the comfort of Jason’s other arm curled around her. “AJ wouldn’t have come clean to us about Lorraine being part of the paternity cover-up.”
“I just wish she’d told me she was going to try it,” Jason muttered, then sighed. “But I’m glad she did it. And I’m glad we were able to talk before she went back to Paris.”
“Mmmm, she’ll be back in June, and I definitely don’t want things to be awkward,” Elizabeth gently pushed the icepack away from her. “I mean, if we’re still—” She made a face. “If we’re still together. Not that we’re together, I mean—” She narrowed her eyes. “You’re laughing at me.”
“Me?” Jason arched his brows. “I’m not saying a word.”
“You’re laughing with your eyes,” she muttered. “Don’t think I don’t know that.” She stuck out her tongue.
“I think,” Jason said gently, returning the ice pack to her temple. “That we don’t have anything to worry about. The charges are dropped, but you can’t go back to work until the doctors clear your concussion. So why don’t we go away for a few days? We can’t go far because you can’t fly, but it’d be nice to be alone for a while.”
“Mmmm…” She leaned up to kiss him. “Why don’t we?”
26 All you see is black and white
In the nursery where Jason and AJ had spent some of their formative years, AJ sat in the rocking chair, cradling his newborn son, who had been released from the hospital only that day.
Edward Alan Quartermaine, already affectionately known as Teddy, batted his cloth-covered hands against another before, his eyes fluttering. Finally, he drifted into a light doze.
“Everything I have is yours,” AJ promised him, stroking a finger down his cheek. “And everything I do is for you.”
It was better this way, he reminded himself. Teddy would never have to think about Carly. No custody battles. No being used like a meal ticket or a weapon. And no Lorraine lurking around with her secrets and lies, betraying anyone who looked at her twice—
AJ had made sure of that.
27
All you see is black and white
The rain pounded down around them, lightning flashing, thunder roaring. AJ bent down next to Elizabeth, relief flooding him as he felt the pulse in her throat.
“I didn’t mean to hurt her!” Lorraine cried as AJ rose from his crouch. “I just needed her to listen! If you give me what I asked for, I’ll go away, and I won’t tell anyone—”
“Tell anyone what?” AJ demanded, advancing on her. “What do you know that anyone cares about anymore?”
“You killed Carly,” Lorraine said, her voice trembling, barely audible over the downpour. “I get it, okay? She was making us all miserable, and we’re better off, but no one ever has to know! Just pay me, and I’ll go away!”
“Why pay when I can make it happen for free?” AJ said. She frowned, but realization dawned when he took another step towards her. He grabbed Lorraine’s arm, dragging her towards the edge. Her nails dug into his forearm, but he easily overpowered her.
“No! No! Please! You’re not a killer! You’re not—”
“No? You and Carly can argue about it in hell.” Then AJ flung her over the side, a blood-curdling scream cutting through the rain—
And then it stopped.
28 All you see is black and white
The grim satisfaction AJ had felt when Lorraine had gone over the edge was nothing compared to the triumph that had flooded his veins when he’d dragged that scalpel across Carly’s throat, making her choke on every ugly and dirty word she’d been spewing.
He smiled down at Teddy. He’d done the world a favor, and that was enough for him. No one would ever have to know.
As long as Elizabeth never remembered what happened on that rooftop.
Mad World is scheduled to begin on Wednesday, April 6. Chapter 76 will be posted around 7 AM. Updates will be every Wednesday until June, at least.
Karma is now being posted at CG. This was a Liason Haven exclusive for the last three months. Parts 1-3 have been posted. The conclusion will be up tomorrow around 7 AM.
I started writing Counting Stars, and crossed the 5k mark last night. April’s work is for Camp NaNoWriMo.
There was a weird code issue that was messing with the way the stories on Alternate History and other pages were listed. I’ve mostly fixed it, but I need to go through the site and do any other clean ups
Crimson Check #14, the weekly newsletter for all Patreons has been posted.
Crimson Discovery #10, the deep dive for Obsessed & Stalker was posted.
Mad World, Book 4 – Love Access post. This is the early access post for chapters that will be up that week. Of course for now, the updates are just one chapter but they should increase by June.
This entry is part 29 of 41 in the Flash Fiction: Signs of Life
Written in 55 minutes.
Friday, January 14, 2000
Kelly’s: Diner
Bobbie had kept quiet for days, arguing with herself about things that were not her business. It wasn’t her place to blow up lives with truths that no one asked for, was it?
But if she didn’t say anything now, would she really be able to hold on for months? Years? Forever?
If there was one thing Bobbie had learned living in Port Charles, it was that the truth always came out. All that mattered was where you stood when the pieces fell. Where did Bobbie want to be?
With that in mind, as soon as Carly walked into the diner late that morning, Bobbie pulled her into the kitchen, into a back pantry and closed the door.
“Oh, I guess we’re talking to me now,” her daughter grumbled as Bobbie pulled her. “What’s your problem now?”
“My problem,” Bobbie said, her teeth clenched and her voice pitched low, “is that Monica asked if I was happy about another grandchild.”
Carly stared at her for a beat, then offered a careless shrug. “I hadn’t had a chance to tell you, and I didn’t know if you’d even care. You were pretty mad at me—”
“I still am.” Bobbie planted her fisted hands on her hips. “You might be pregnant but we both know that AJ Quartermaine isn’t the father.”
Carly lifted her chin. “Says you—”
“Says anyone with a brain. I don’t know what the hell game AJ’s playing now, but I don’t care. I want to know what you’re doing—”
“I don’t see the problem—”
“A few weeks ago, you’d have jumped to tell Jason about this baby. Jason can’t be with Michael, but a baby that’s his?” And it sickened Bobbie that she was doing this. If Carly did blow up everyone with the truth, Elizabeth would be one of those casualties. It would crush her — just as it had crushed poor Robin.
But Bobbie couldn’t stay quiet. “Why haven’t you told him?”
“Because I don’t want to.” Carly folded her arms. “And it would mess things up for Michael. AJ is a lot of things, but he’s a half-decent father, and my children are better off as Quartermaines. Jason doesn’t want me. He made that clear. So I’m going to leave him and his pasty angel alone. You should be happy—”
“I would be if I thought for one second you weren’t up to something—”
“You’ll never trust me, will you?”
“Do you blame me?” Bobbie scoffed. “You nearly had me taken in for aiding and abetting a fugitive. You don’t care about me, Carly. Not really. Not when I might be in the way of something you want.”
“What a terrible thing to say—”
“It’s still true. What’s going to happen when Jason finds out about this baby? Do you think for one second he’s not going to demand a paternity test and visitation?”
“Jason is going to leave this alone,” Carly said flatly. “Because we’re all better off. He’s going his way, and I’m going mine. I tried to get him to love me. To take me away from this, but he said no—”
“He would have if you’d told him about the baby—”
“I deserve more than that,” Carly hissed. “I deserve someone who loves me. AJ doesn’t but at least he’s got something to show for it. Jason didn’t want me, so he gets nothing. And if you want Michael to have any happiness, you’ll keep your mouth shut.”
Carly yanked open the door and stormed out, Bobbie staring after her, troubled. Jason would find out Carly was pregnant at some point, but would he think to ask for the test? Or would he also, maybe, tell himself it was better off this way?
She just didn’t know.
Morgan Penthouse: Living Room
Elizabeth tossed aside her sketchbook and padded over to the desk, her socks silent against the hardwood. She picked up the ringing phone. “Hello?”
“Elizabeth. Thank God you’re home.”
“Hey, Em.” Elizabeth took the cordless with her and returned to the sofa. “Are you okay?” She heard boots on the steps and looked up to find Jason turning the corner around the landing.
“Mom didn’t call me right away, I think she wanted to think the whole thing was a terrible joke or a nightmare. I don’t know. But now that bitch is in my family forever and there’s no way to make it stop—”
“Em—” Elizabeth frowned. “What are you talking about?”
“Is she okay?” Jason asked. He sat next to her, his brows furrowed. “What’s wrong?”
“Carly,” Emily spat. “She’s pregnant. There’s no way we’re getting rid of her now.”
“What?” Elizabeth repeated, dumbfounded. “Are you sure? Are they sure?”
“AJ seems to be, but he’s a moron,” Emily huffed. “I don’t know, but it seems to be. I’m going to have to see her at every holiday for the rest of my life, aren’t I? Can I come to your place instead?”
Elizabeth just shook her head, met Jason’s eyes. “Emily, I have to call you back—”
“But you agree. This is terrible news, right? This is apocalyptic—”
“It’s not good news, that’s for sure. I’ll call you later.” Elizabeth tossed the cordless aside. “Jason, Carly’s pregnant.”
His eyes widened and he drew back. “What?” he repeated, his voice rising slightly. “Pregnant?”
“Pregnant.” Elizabeth exhaled slowly. “The Quartermaines apparently know, and I guess they’re accepting AJ as the baby’s father, but—”
“It’s not mine,” Jason said in a rush. “I told you—”
“No, I know.” She reached for his hand, smiled to reassure him. “You told me you haven’t been together in years, and I believe you. And I’m sure there’s a chance AJ is the father, but—”
“There’s also a chance Sonny is,” Jason murmured. He looked away, troubled. “Carly could be faking it.”
“She could be. It’s a risky trick to pull,” Elizabeth pointed out. “With a family that basically runs the hospital. AJ could insist on a blood test run by Alan or Monica, and she’d have no choice.” She wrinkled her nose. “And AJ certainly knows she can hide test results if he’s not on top of it. That’s what happened with Michael.”
“Yeah.” Jason rubbed the side of his face. “If AJ finds out about Sonny, he’ll file for divorce. He made her sign a prenup — infidelity means she surrenders full custody of Michael, and any other divorce cause was automatic joint custody.”
“Ah.” Elizabeth nodded. “I wondered—” She paused when he looked at her. “She married him to stop him from going for full custody in the first place, but I wondered why they were still married. Since…” Since it was clear that Jason and Carly were involved emotionally—why hadn’t it tipped over physically?
“She made her choice. I told her that months ago,” Jason said, uncomfortably. “I mean, maybe I thought—” He shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. Things are what they are, and I’m glad.” He brought her hand to his mouth, kissed it when she smiled weakly at him. “I mean it. I’m glad to be done with her.”
“I know.” Though he’d never have looked at her if Carly hadn’t slept with Sonny, Elizabeth knew. Better not to dwell on that. “Are you worried about Michael?”
“Yeah. Carly’s…she’s not a good person,” Jason said, “but I don’t—”
“You don’t think she should lose her son,” Elizabeth finished, and he nodded. “No, I guess not. But she knew what she was signing, Jason.”
“I know—” Jason got to his feet and paced over to the mantel. “It’s not that I want to protect her—”
“You do,” Elizabeth said. He turned, stared at her wordlessly. “You care about her, even after everything she’s done. And you still love Michael. You don’t want them to lose each other.”
“No,” Jason admitted. He rubbed the back of his neck. “But what if it’s not Sonny’s baby? What if it’s AJ’s? Why would I screw everything up for Michael on a maybe?”
There was a point, but Elizabeth couldn’t help but wonder how much of Jason’s reluctance to say anything was about Michael or it was about Carly. Jason had told her he hadn’t really been in love with Carly, but maybe it was wishful thinking. Maybe he didn’t want to be in love with her. You couldn’t always help the way you felt.
“It’s none of my business,” Elizabeth said, when Jason remained silent. “I’m not going to say anything, if you’re worried. I don’t owe Sonny any loyalty, and I can understand staying quiet until you know more. Maybe we’re wrong, and Carly does know.” Maybe the timing was wrong. Women knew those kinds of things, didn’t they?
“Maybe,” Jason murmured. He exhaled slowly. “I can’t say anything right now anyway. With the reception tonight, I want Sonny focused on that. I don’t want anything to go wrong.” He grimaced. “I have to get going. I’m going over to the No Name to check the security.”
Elizabeth glanced at the clock on the mantel behind him and winced. “And I should start getting ready.”
“Now?” Jason reached for her hand, stopping her from getting too far. She turned back to him, a brow raised. “You have three hours—”
“I have to wash and dry my hair. Some of us can’t just slap on some gel and go,” she teased. He rolled his eyes and drew her against him, kissing her long and deep, savoring. No matter what was in the past, she had him right now and that was enough for her.
Morgan Penthouse: Living Room
Jason tugged at the tie around his neck, grimacing. He hated getting dressed up. He hated suits. He might be able to put up with it if he was at least interested in where he was going. He’d worn a suit the day of the wedding and had barely noticed how uncomfortable it was.
He’d rather toss on a pair of jeans, a jacket, and be on the cliff roads with Elizabeth, feeling the wind rush past—
Instead, they were getting ready for a party neither one of them asked for and couldn’t avoid. He didn’t want Elizabeth anywhere near his job, but now she’d be walking into the viper’s nest.
There was a light knock on the door, then Sonny came in, dressed in a suit of his own. “Uh, hey. I thought we could go over the game plan one more time—”
“I know what we’re doing,” Jason snapped, but he closed his mouth when he heard the click of heels on the steps above them. He didn’t want Elizabeth worried that the tension between he and Sonny tonight had anything to do with Emily’s phone call earlier that day. He knew she had her doubts about his past with Carly, and he wasn’t going to do anything that would make it worse.
He’d keep his damn mouth shut until he knew more. He wanted to get out of this reception unscathed, which meant keeping everyone focused. Sonny played games with Jason’s life all the damn time—why couldn’t Jason do it for a few days?
“Sorry, I’m late.” Elizabeth wrinkled her nose as she came down the steps, wearing a soft purple dress that looked like it floated around her, held up by thin straps. She draped a darker purple shawl around her shoulders and smiled at them both. “I hope I didn’t hold anyone up.”
“No, no.” Sonny smiled at her. “You look beautiful, doesn’t she?” He elbowed Jason who glared at him. He could compliment his own wife, and Elizabeth always looked beautiful—
“Yeah.” Jason cleared his throat when Elizabeth looked at him, her brows drawn together with worry. “You look great.”
“So do you.” Elizabeth’s smile had dimmed slightly but she stepped forward and adjusted his tie, loosening it slightly. “You hate ties.”
“I know, but—” He sighed, kissed the tips of her fingers, hating that she’d picked up the tension anyway and absorbed it. “They’re pretty formal at these things.”
“Still.” She adjusted the lapels of his suit jacket, then turned to Sonny. “So what’s the plan?” she asked him. “I’m sure you want to go over it one more time.”
Sonny shot Jason a told you so glance, and Jason suddenly had the urge to growl. “I’m glad you asked.” He cleared his throat. “We’ll go over together in the limo. Max will drive. It’s a show of unity before Jason opened his mouth to protest. “I know you’d rather drive yourself, but you’ll be offered drinks tonight, and it’ll be rude not to accept them.”
“Is it always this exhausting?” Elizabeth wanted to know. She folded her arms. “How do you guys have time to commit crimes when you’re worried about rules and expectations?” she added on a mutter, and Jason smirked. She was back on his side. Not that there were sides, but it was still reassuring.
Sonny made a face. “There’s a protocol. We’ll arrive together,” he began. “There will be cocktails. You’ll have to schmooze with the wives,” he told Elizabeth. “Did Jason—”
“I got the pictures and the bios from Alexis,” Elizabeth said dryly. “Jason had more important things to do than quiz me. I’m ready. I’ll make nice with the women while their husbands give Jason alcohol. Got it.”
Sonny narrowed his eyes, as if unsure she was taking him seriously. “After cocktails,” he said slowly, “we’ll do dinner. There will be toasts. Sorel might be one of them. You can’t punch him,” he reminded Jason, and Elizabeth scowled. When she opened her mouth, Jason tightened his arm around her waist and she said nothing.
“Then a few dances. You’ll dance with each other. Then Elizabeth will dance with Daniel Vega. You’ll dance with his wife,” Sonny told Jason. “After that you’ll be able to leave. I’ll stay another hour or so. The limo will come back for me.”
“If Sorel comes near her, he’s going to leave in a body bag,” Jason said. “Does he know that?”
Sonny wrinkled his nose. “Yes, but remember—that’s the object of the entire night.” He offered Elizabeth an apologetic glance before looking back at Jason. “So whatever crime you think he’s committing, do your best to let it go. We’ll make him pay later.”
There would never be enough payment for the fear Sorel had inflicted on Elizabeth on New Year’s, but Jason nodded. “Fine. Let’s get this over.”
1 When I was a little girl, my mama said to me
“What’s your favorite flower, darling? I’ll get you the seed”
As soon as the first scream escaped Elizabeth’s lips, Jason clapped a hand over her mouth. He dragged her away from Carly’s body, his eyes remaining fixed on the pool of blood beneath her. He avoided looking at her face. At her clouded, lifeless eyes facing them. He took his own deep breath, forced down the bile in his throat, and got himself together.
Maybe no one had heard Elizabeth’s scream over the excitement, but he couldn’t know that. They had maybe seconds to get their stories straight.
Elizabeth continued to scream, the sound now muffled by his fingers, but it subsided as her body began to tremble. He removed his hand.
“Jason—” Elizabeth turned in his arms, her own eyes wide, the pupils pinpricks. She pressed her hands to her face, then jerked them away, but it was too late. Carly’s blood was smeared across her cheeks, staining her hands. “Oh my God, oh my God—”
“Look at me—” He took her by the shoulders. “Hey, focus on me, okay? Elizabeth—”
“She’s dead, she’s dead—”
“I know—” And they had to call hospital security, Jason thought with some irritation. There were cameras everywhere and likely had caught them going into the closet. He desperately hoped that the cameras would also see whoever had done this.
Otherwise, they were both screwed.
He stooped down and grabbed his shirt, tugging it over his head. Then he found Elizabeth’s scrub top and pulled it over her head, scooping her hair out of the collar. “We have to call the police,” he told her. “Okay? We came in to talk, and you tripped—”
“I—” Elizabeth stared down at her hands. “Oh, God. There’s blood on my hands, on my face—”
“We have to go now. We’re going to call the police,” he repeated, towing her towards the door. “We’ll report the body, then say nothing—”
“But—”
“Everyone knows Carly was making me miserable, and she just signed another complaint against you,” he reminded her. Elizabeth swallowed hard. “We found her body, Elizabeth. We’ll be the first suspects. Say nothing. We’ll talk later.”
“O-okay,” she said, and then he jerked open the door, the hospital light nearly blinding.
2 I said, “Dandelion, dandelion! That one’s so pretty!”
She said, “Child, that one’s not a flower, that one’s just a weed”
Carly was dead. She’d been murdered, her throat sliced open, and she’d bled to death in that closet. How long had she been dead? Oh, God, had she died while Jason and Elizabeth were on the other side of the shelf? Her stomach rolled, and the bile rose in her throat. She was still stained with Carly’s blood on her hands, light streaks dried on her cheeks—
She stood numbly in a conference room, blinking in confusion as Detective Alex Garcia repeated the same question to Jason that Elizabeth knew he’d already refused to answer twice.
“I’ve made my statement,” Jason said without an ounce of emotion in his voice. She knew he felt something—she’d felt his body trembling against hers when they’d been in the closet when he’d been trying to stop her from screaming—but now, the Jason Morgan that the rest of the town feared was firmly in control.
He might as well as have been explaining the weather as he recounted the events of the evening. He had last seen Carly almost three hours earlier in her hospital room. He’d been in the NICU he’d met Elizabeth. They’d gone to talk in the supply closet and found Carly’s body.
The other officer with Garcia had a knowing glint in his eyes when Jason had said he and Elizabeth were only talking and had tripped over the body. She wrapped her arms around her body, her shoulders still shaking.
Carly was dead. Carly was gone. She’d been murdered, slashed in the throat—
And from the clenching of Garcia’s jaw and the sneer on Detective Marcus Taggert’s face, Elizabeth knew that talking wasn’t the only thing they thought Jason and Elizabeth were lying about.
“You’re telling me you have no idea what the mother of your child was doing in that supply closet?” Taggert sneered. “You sure you didn’t drag the mistress in after you got rid of her competition—”
Elizabeth blinked at him, opened her mouth, but she could feel Jason tense beside her, the arm brushing hers like stone.
“If you have any further questions,” Jason said coolly, “you know where to find my cousin. I’m done here—”
“But I’m not done with Nurse Webber. I’m not satisfied with her timeline,” Taggert said, holding up a hand.
“That’s your problem,” Jason began, but Elizabeth knew it wouldn’t look good if Jason did all of the talking. She had to do her part to protect herself—and him.
“You can check the cameras and my access codes,” she said softly, wishing her voice was as cold as Jason’s. But she couldn’t fight the nerves lacing her tone, causing it to tremble. “If you have any other questions, I can give you Lee Baldwin’s name. He’s my lawyer.”
“Does that come as part of the starter package?” Taggert demanded. “Being Jason Morgan’s whore entitles you to your own lawyer—”
“Marcus,” Garcia hissed.
Elizabeth lifted her chin, and now it was easier to keep her voice steady. She knew she was innocent. “No, being Steve Hardy’s granddaughter and Lee’s goddaughter entitles me to his representation. If you have any other questions, call him. I’m done being insulted.”
She turned on her heel and left all three behind her, trying to walk, not run to the nearest bathroom. She shoved the door open, stumbling until she crashed into a stall, her knees hitting the floor with a flash of pain. Then she leaned over the toilet and vomited until she nearly blacked out.
When she’d finally emptied her body, she slid to the floor of the bathroom, tears streaking silently down her cheeks, still stained with Carly’s blood.
3 Oh, what a shame
Now it don’t look the same
“Oh, Alan,” Monica said, her eyeliner smudged from the long night. She paced the Quartermaine family room, the gold dress she’d worn to the Port Charles Hotel New Year’s Eve gala rustling with every step. “What if he did it?”
Having attempted the murder of at least one of his wife’s lovers, Alan just shrugged. “I imagine he knows how to get himself out of trouble—”
“Oh, don’t you dare—” Monica glared at him.
“Please. As if you weren’t relieved to learn that harpy had been exterminated—”
They were interrupted when the front door opened, and they heard stumbling. Monica and Alan went to the double doors. Monica’s brow creased in concern as AJ stumbled in, his hair disheveled and his clothing rumpled.
“I thought you had stopped drinking,” Monica said sharply.
AJ turned to look at her, his eyes worn and bloodshot. “What?”
“You look like you’ve rolled in an alley,” Alan retorted. “You need to get yourself together if you’re insisting on that paternity test. With Carly out of the picture, there’s no obstacle for you or your brother—”
“What are you—” AJ closed his mouth. “I’m not drunk—”
“Go clean yourself up,” Alan ordered, “and don’t let your grandfather see you like this.”
AJ growled at both of them, then went for the stairs.
“Alan—” Monica came up to her husband’s elbow. “You don’t think—”
“I don’t think anything,” Alan said flatly, “and neither do you. Let’s go to bed.”
4 Guess it don’t look the same
Oh, what a shame
Bobbie had barely laid down before she heard banging on the front door. She attempted to ignore it, but it wouldn’t stop.
She drew on her robe, shivering as she opened the door to the bitter January winds. “Tony, what on Earth—” She stared at him, taking in the bloodshot eyes, rumpled hair, and strange smile. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m free,” he told her. He grasped her shoulders. “Do you understand, Bobbie? I’m finally free! I’ll get my son, and we’ll never have to worry about her again—”
“Tony—” Bobbie wrenched out of his grasp. “What are you talking about—”
“Carly.” His eyes lit up with glee. “She’s dead. Someone slit that little bitch’s throat. And now we’re all free!”
5 Call me what you want
Dandelion, dandelion
The next morning, Elizabeth dragged herself into the shower and got ready for work. She was innocent, she reminded herself, and she knew Jason was, too. He never would have let her drag him into that supply closet if he knew Carly was dead inside.
She wiped the steam from the mirror, studying her bedraggled and worn expression. At least she hoped she knew him well enough to assume that. She knew what he did for a living, after all. But even so—
She got dressed and headed into the hospital, bracing herself for more whispers and stares. She was so tired of being the center of attention, the source for gossip and rumors.
She stepped inside the security entrance, heading for the elevator, only to be stopped by a security guard.
“What’s—”
“Elizabeth—” Epiphany was nearly wheezing when she rounded a corner. “I’m sorry, I thought I’d be down here before you arrived—”
“What’s going on?” she asked her supervisor. “Harry says I can’t—”
“I’ll take it from here,” Epiphany said to the guard who returned to his desk. She turned worried eyes to Elizabeth. “I’m sorry, honey. The board met early this morning for an emergency session—”
“Am I—” Her throat was tight. “Am I out of the program?”
“Suspended,” Epiphany assured her. “They need to investigate the last complaint Carly made, and well—”
“The fact that Carly was found dead after I was informed of the complaint—” Elizabeth pressed her hands to her face. “And I’m sure finding the body while I was in the supply closet with Jason instead of being on duty—”
“I don’t think that’s registered to them,” Epiphany said. “They pulled your file because of it and saw the new complaint. With everything else—they’re worried about the liability.” She paused. “They sent your file to the PCPD.”
“What? Already? The PCPD couldn’t have—” Elizabeth pressed her lips together. “They didn’t get a warrant or anything, did they? The board just handed me over.”
“Elizabeth—”
“It’s fine. I’ll just—I’ll go home.” Elizabeth looked around the hospital lobby, her eyes focusing on the memorial portraits of her grandparents. She’d worked so hard to get here. To prove to her parents, her grandparents, to everyone that she belonged here.
Carly had destroyed it all, just like she’d promised to, and Elizabeth didn’t even have the satisfaction of being the one who’d killed her.
6 You can’t stop me multiplyin’
Pull me from the dirt
It was probably too early for the whiskey in his shot glass, but Luke Spencer had never cared much about clocks and calendars or what people thought was proper. And he needed the burn of the alcohol sliding down his throat.
He studied the Port Charles Herald headline gleefully announcing the death of Carly Roberts, town pariah and whore. Not that they used those words, but it was the truth, wasn’t it? Not that Luke cared all that much—
Except that he knew who Carly really was and that Barbara Jean didn’t. She already believed her child dead, and it would do no good to bring the truth to her now—
But this investigation—
Luke picked up the paper again, studying the quote from Mac Scorpio, promising justice. How deep would they dig into Carly Roberts’ past? Would they unearth Caroline Benson? Would it all come out anyway?
Troubled, Luke took another sip of the whiskey and offered a silent prayer to a God he scarcely believed in, asking for some grace for his precious baby sister. She deserved so much better than he or the world had given her.
7 Dandelion, dandelion
No, you don’t want me in your garden
“What do you mean they think she did it?” Jason demanded, whirling around to face his cousin, his eyes hot with fury. “What the hell—”
“Our guy at the PCPD said Elizabeth’s file was volunteered to the PCPD,” Justus answered. Jason grimaced, then crossed the room to glare out over the city. “It’s full of run-ins with Carly—Carly filed complaint after complaint against Elizabeth. Most of it was in the nursing program—”
“I know—”
“Some of it stuck, but most were dismissed. Still, it’s motive. Add in these two recent complaints — Elizabeth was suspended this morning. They also can’t alibi her for the time of death.”
Jason frowned. “What? What do you mean? She was working—”
“The hospital security cameras have Carly going into the closet at 11:16 PM. They can’t find Elizabeth on any of the other monitors — and at 11:20, something happened to that camera. It went out. By the time the guard realized it, Carly’s body had already been reported. But Elizabeth can’t be located between 11:15 and 11:30 when she shows up on the NICU floor.”
“That’s crap—”
“That’s the case right now,” Justus cut in. “The theory is that Elizabeth resented Carly for dinging up her reputation and nearly costing her the job—then wanted to get rid of a romantic rival. She used you to look innocent.”
“That’s not—”
“I know that,” Justus told him patiently. “Fortunately, all they have are these complaints and the gap in her timeline. That’s not enough for an arrest. Lee Baldwin is a good lawyer. Plus, the PCPD knows Carly has a credibility problem. They have no evidence that Elizabeth even confronted Carly over these complaints or made any threats.”
Jason dragged his hands down his face. “They won’t find any. She was avoiding Carly at all costs.” And had done a pretty good job of that until Jason had ruined everything.
“Okay.” Justus paused. “You need to stay away from her right now, Jason. You make each other look guilty. The PCPD will go harder at her to get to you.”
“I know. I just—” Jason stared back out the window at the clouds gathering on the horizon. “I just don’t want her to think I’m abandoning her.”
8 I still loved those mellow yellow petals anyway
What’s that thing they say about a rose by any other name?
Robin nearly walked past the forlorn figure sitting on the bench, but then she recognized her.
“Elizabeth.”
The nurse blinked and turned back to face her. “Robin.” She slid down to make room. “Are you sure you want to be seen with me?” Elizabeth said dryly. “I’m apparently a murderer.”
“Yeah, but it was Carly, so we’re better off,” Robin said with a half smile. She sobered. “I know you didn’t do it. If you didn’t kill her last year, you weren’t going to give in this year.”
“Maybe I should have,” Elizabeth murmured, turning to stare at the gray water. “If you know about Carly, then I guess you know how I found her.”
“In the supply closet. With Jason.” Robin tilted her head. “Brenda told me you were involved.” She paused. “How long—”
“Not—not long. A few weeks. We’ve been—” Elizabeth looked at her hands. “We met a few times at Jake’s, played pool. Talked. Things hadn’t really gone anywhere yet, and then Carly—I found out about Carly.”
“That’s an understatement.” Robin wrapped the edges of her coat more tightly around herself. “But I guess you’d decided to look past it if you were together last night.”
“You could say that.” Elizabeth was quiet for a long moment. “You should ask Jason about it again. It’s safe now.”
“Safe?” Robin echoed, but the other woman got to her feet. “Elizabeth—”
“Just ask him. I have to go talk to my lawyer.”
9 Then my fragile flower turned into a ball of gray
So I took a breath and made a wish and blew them all away
“I just can’t believe it,” Monica murmured, stepping up next to Bobbie in the nurse’s station. “Are we allowed to be relieved?”
Bobbie flashed her old friend an irritated glance. “Not if Elizabeth is going to be railroaded for this.” She jabbed a pen into a cup on the counter. “As if she was the only person in Port Charles angry enough to kill Carly—”
“No, unfortunately that list is long.” Monica tapped a pencil against a chart. “I lied,” she confessed in a small voice. “Mac came to talk to us this morning, and I—” She swallowed hard. “I told him that Alan and I were with AJ last night.”
“Monica—” Bobbie turned to stare at her. “Are you insane?”
“I’m not sorry she’s dead,” Monica whispered furiously. She looked around to be sure they were alone, then lowered her voice even further. “And neither are you. Admit it.”
“Of course not, but Elizabeth doesn’t deserve this! She didn’t do it—”
“No—”
“And neither did Jason. He would never have gone with Elizabeth in that supply closet and put her at risk.” And they both knew Jason would have done a cleaner job disposing of Carly.
Bobbie closed her eyes. “It could have been Tony,” she said softly. “He came to my house last night and he was so happy. So strange looking. God, Monica, what do I do if it was Tony?”
“What if it was AJ?” Monica speculated. “What if Alan and I let him get away with it? And what’s going to happen with that baby? This is such a disaster, Bobbie.”
10 Oh, what a shame
Now it don’t look the same
Later that afternoon, Jason reluctantly returned to the hospital, irritated when he found himself in a waiting room alone with AJ and Tony. The three of them had been court-ordered to submit blood samples for the paternity test, and the only reason Jason hadn’t entirely turned his back on all this bullshit was he didn’t know who’d killed Carly.
He had hated Carly by the end, but that didn’t mean he’d wanted her dead. He cared what happened to the baby and didn’t want him to end up with a murderer who didn’t mind letting an innocent woman get railroaded in their place. He wanted Elizabeth exonerated and back at work. He wanted both of them to be safe.
“Little brother,” AJ said with his characteristic sneer, but it lacked its usual heat. He ambled over to a seat and dropped into it, resting his elbows on his knees and staring hard at the linoleum.
Tony’s eyes looked a little wild, but Jason knew that the other man had been through hell the last few weeks. He regretted adding to the misery, but then again—he had just as much of a reason to kill Carly, if not more. Carly had humiliated this man, hadn’t he? Made him angry enough to kill.
“Now that the bitch is gone,” Tony said flatly, “why don’t you just drop this pretense?” he demanded of Jason. “Admit that Carly lied about the paternity and let me and the drunk battle it out. Don’t waste the hospital’s time—”
Even if Tony had a point, Jason didn’t appreciate being told what to do. He met Tony’s eyes, then slid up his sleeve. “I’ll go first,” he bit out. “Let’s get this over with.”
11 Guess it don’t look the same
Oh, what a shame
“Now, Elizabeth, dear—” Lee Baldwin patted her hand as they waited in the PCPD interrogation room. “Don’t be nervous. This is a good sign.”
“A good sign?” she echoed with scorn. “It’s been three days, Uncle Lee. I’m out of a job, my savings are low, and the whole world thinks I murdered someone. Now I’m sitting in the police department—”
“You weren’t arrested. We came in to see what they have. I am confident that we’ll clear this up today—”
Elizabeth sighed, then turned to the door as it opened. Garcia and Taggert strode in. Taggert dumped out a box with evidence bags while Garcia sat down with a manila folder. He flipped it open.
“Ms. Webber, when did you meet Carly Roberts?” Garcia asked.
Elizabeth glanced at Lee, who nodded. “Last April, over a year ago, when she moved to Port Charles. We were in the nursing program together, and we met on the first day of orientation.”
“Did you get along?”
Lee shook his head, so Elizabeth remained silent. “That calls for a conclusion, and we won’t be answering it. Do you have something specific to ask her?”
“All right.” Garcia set down a complaint. “This was filed on May 25, 1996. It accuses you of stealing Carly’s watch so that she was late for rounds. The watch was found in your locker.”
“If you’ve read that far, I hope you also read that it was considered an unfounded charge. Carly arrived at the hospital before I did that morning, and my time was accounted for. I was with Bobbie Jones from the moment I arrived until I went to my locker and found the watch—which I found with witnesses. Lorraine Miller was there. So were several other nursing students. Those witnesses should be all listed.”
Garcia arched a brow. “But you were probably angry about the accusation.”
“Anyone would be,” Lee said shortly. “Next question.”
“The next complaint comes two days later. Carly Roberts accused you of changing the schedule so that she went to the wrong rooms during her rounds.”
“That was also dismissed for lack of evidence,” Lee stated. “As was every single complaint Ms. Roberts filed against my client.”
“Yes, including this one—” Garcia slid over another complaint. “Filed August 1996. Drugs went missing on your shift. You were in charge of distributing them to the patients, then returning the cart to the dispensary. When you arrived, you were short several bottles of Percoset. As a result, you were suspended indefinitely, pending a criminal investigation.”
“Now, we know that you were framed for that,” Taggert said coolly before Elizabeth opened her mouth. “We have the investigation records indicating that Carly was actually dispensing drugs that day and left a cart untended. She was kicked out of the program, and you were cleared. But you weren’t exonerated until after your grandfather had passed away. He never learned you were innocent.”
“How dare you—” Lee began, straightening his shoulders, nostrils flaring.
“I find it hard to believe you didn’t hold a grudge against Carly Roberts for that.” Taggert planted his hands on the table, leaning forward. “She stayed off your radar for over a year, but then she comes crashing back into your life. Witnesses from Jake’s say you and Morgan started seeing each other around Thanksgiving. Then the big bomb drops. Carly’s carrying his bastard—”
“Well, maybe she was,” Garcia pointed out. “Carly was lying to a lot of people about that kid. I bet that made you mad, Elizabeth. She had blown up your life over and over again, was trying to get her hooks into Morgan, torturing AJ Quartermaine and Tony Jones—” He raised a brow. “You probably did the world a favor. You come clean now, I bet Mr. Baldwin could get you a lighter sentence. A jury would feel sorry for you, and maybe the DA will, too—”
“Are you arresting my client?” Lee cut in. When Garcia just stared at him. “I thought not. Then we’re free to go—”
“But before you do—” Taggert held out a hand as Elizabeth started to stand. “You need to understand how much danger you’re in. We have motive, we have opportunity, and you have access to the murder weapon—” He folded his arms. “We just need one more thing to tie this together.”
“What you have,” Lee said, “is a list of crimes committed against my client by a woman who had many enemies with the same motive. Until you have evidence that ties Elizabeth directly to this murder, then you will leave her alone. We are done making statements.”
12 Call me what you want
Dandelion, dandelion
Jason waited until his brother reached his car, then lunged out of the shadows of the parking garage to grab AJ around the neck and drag him out of camera view.
“What the hell—” AJ clutched at the hands, trying to shove Jason away from him. “What is your goddamn problem—”
Jason shoved AJ against the wall. “You did it, didn’t you?” he demanded. “You killed Carly, and you’re going to let Elizabeth get dragged through the mud—”
“Don’t act like you’re any better than me,” AJ retorted, shoving Jason back. “I didn’t kill her,” he said. “I didn’t have to. The paternity test will come back, and we know the only reason you got involved was to buy Carly time. I don’t know what the hell she had on you, but it had to be big for you lie like this—”
Jason’s glare only intensified, but AJ didn’t seem to care. “You wouldn’t hurt Robin like that, and I know damn well you didn’t kill Carly, either. Just tell the truth about the baby—”
“I’m not doing anything,” Jason growled, then shoved past his brother. If AJ hadn’t killed Carly, then who else could have? Tony seemed angry enough, but did he really possess the capability to kill?
13 You can’t stop me multiplyin’
Pull me from the dirt
Elizabeth wanted to leave it alone like Lee had told her, wanted to forget about it, and shove it out of her head, but how could she? Her entire future rested on Carly’s murderer being revealed. If the shadow guilt lingered indefinitely, she’d never be able to go back to the hospital —
And whatever she might have had with Jason was gone, too. The rumors would follow them both. The list of people who might want to kill Carly was long, but Elizabeth knew the police were asking the wrong question.
Many people wanted Carly dead, but someone had lured her into that closet to talk. How many of her enemies could have done that? Carly wouldn’t have gone to the end of the block with Elizabeth.
“You know—”
A familiar, if unwelcome voice, broke into Elizabeth’s thoughts as she waited at Kelly’s counter for her order. She turned to find Lorraine Miller with her expectant eyes.
“I don’t think you killed her.”
Elizabeth pressed her lips together, then turned away. The last thing she wanted was to discuss with Lorraine. “Go away.”
“No, I’m serious. Everyone hated Carly, but I know you. You wouldn’t have done it.” Lorraine wrinkled her nose and slid onto a stool, picking up a menu. “At least not at the hospital. You’re smarter than that.”
“I already—” Elizabeth paused, then narrowed her eyes. “You said you wanted Carly to pay, didn’t you?”
Lorraine scowled. “Yeah, but I meant financially.” She snorted. “I knew a bunch of things about her that she didn’t want any of the baby daddies to know. She can’t pay me if she’s dead, can she?”
That was true, but — “What did you know?”
“Oh, no. I’m not saying a word for free. A girl’s gotta have a backup plan, and I’m working on mine.” Lorraine perked up. “You think Jason Morgan would be interested? He has a lot of money—”
“Never mind,” Elizabeth muttered. She grabbed her order and left.
14 Dandelion, dandelion
“It’s what we expected,” Justus told Jason a week after Carly’s murder. “Tony’s been ruled out, but they need to do more advanced DNA testing because you and AJ are related.” He handed Jason a copy of the results. Jason set them aside because they didn’t matter.
“How long until they’re in?”
“Maybe another couple of days. Longer if the lab gets backed up. These aren’t really a priority, and the family court is satisfied that the baby is in good hands.” Justus arched a brow. “He’d be more satisfied if you named the kid—”
Jason winced, turning away from his cousin and lawyer. “I can’t do that,” he muttered. “What did you tell him?”
“That you and Carly hadn’t decided on a name and that you’re grieving.” Justus smirked. “You’re gonna pay extra for me lying to the man. At least it wasn’t in court or on the record.”
“I can’t just turn the kid over to AJ,” Jason told him. “You understand that, don’t you? I mean, if the DNA comes back and I’m forced to—” He put his hands on his waist. “That’s one thing, but—”
“But right now, AJ and Tony are suspects number one and two, and you don’t want the kid with someone who murdered his mother and is fine with screwing Elizabeth over. I’m not arguing with you on that, Jase.” Justus paused. “But you’re running out of time. You either have to find out what happened to Carly or come clean with AJ and the court.”
“The PCPD isn’t even trying, are they?” Jason demanded. “They’re still investigating Elizabeth?”
“Yeah,” Justus admitted, “and my guy says they just need one piece of evidence to push the DA into charging her. A threat, a witness, something tying Elizabeth to the scene outside of finding the body.” He folded his arms. “Do you think AJ did this?”
“I think AJ was angry enough to do it, but—” Jason exhaled slowly. “I don’t know. Tony was angry, too. And that’s just the people we know about. If Bobbie didn’t have an alibi, I’d even put her on the list.”
“If the cameras hadn’t found you in the NICU around the same time as Carly’s time of death, you’d still be on the list for the PCPD.” Justus paused. “They’re watching you and Elizabeth closely. The working theory is that she either did it on her own without you or on your orders, so you’d have an alibi. Either way, they’re focused on her. Getting you is just a bonus.”
“They’re idiots—”
“I know, but—” Justus met his eyes. “Unless something breaks, Elizabeth is going to end up charged. There’s enough circumstantial evidence as it is, and I’ve seen weaker cases go to court. If you’re planning to do something about this, I’d do it fast. And don’t get caught.”
15 No, you don’t want me in your garden
Robin had thought about Elizabeth’s words that day on the pier for nearly a week, but she hadn’t gathered the courage to actually do anything about it. What if she did ask Jason again about the baby, and he actually said the words this time? Confirmed it?
As long as she never asked, she could live in denial. She could pretend that it wasn’t true, that Jason hadn’t become frustrated by her own sexual limitations and their long-distance relationship. She wanted to believe that he wouldn’t turn to someone who had hurt her so much—
But maybe that was why she needed to do it. With this doubt lingering, the memories of her relationship with Jason would always be tainted. They’d broken up because of who they were and what they wanted from life—Robin needed that to be the truth.
So she stood here in front of the penthouse where Jason now lived—the penthouse where Stone had died only two years earlier—and knocked.
Jason jerked open the door, then his eyes widened. “Robin—they didn’t—” He swallowed, then stepped aside to let her in. “They didn’t tell me you were coming up.”
“Max was downstairs—I asked him not to.” She wanted him to be caught off guard. “I think he still has a soft spot for me.”
“Probably.” Jason closed the door, then cleared his throat. “Um, what’s up?”
“I need to ask you—” Robin met his eyes. “I never did. I just believed what Brenda said, but I never asked you. I asked you why. I asked you how, but I never asked—” She swallowed hard. “I never asked if it was true. Elizabeth told me I should.”
“Elizabeth?” Jason echoed, his brows drawing together. “When?”
“The day after Carly was murdered.” Robin exhaled slowly. “Because it’s safe to ask now. Carly is gone. You can tell me the truth now. That’s what Elizabeth meant, isn’t it?”
Some of the tension slid from Jason’s expression, and he nodded. “Yeah,” he admitted. “I mean—it’s safe. I couldn’t have—” He dragged a hand down his face. “I couldn’t have told you before. You wouldn’t have let it go.”
“So, it’s not—” Tears burned, and hope flooded. “It’s not true.”
“No.” Jason shook his head. “It’s not. I never—I promise you. I never touched her, and I never thought—” He stepped towards her. “I never would have agreed to lie if I had thought— I didn’t think it through. I didn’t expect anyone to even tell you, and it wasn’t supposed to be like this.”
“What was it then?” Robin demanded. “How did you think pretending to be the father of a child conceived while we were still together was supposed to go—”
“I didn’t think about any of that,” Jason admitted. “Not until Brenda came in. I didn’t remember how long Carly had been pregnant. I just—” He spread his hands out as his sides. “The Quartermaines were threatening to take the baby from her, Tony was doing the same. Because they said she wasn’t good enough. That she was trash and couldn’t raise a baby.”
“Man, she knew how to play you,” Robin bit out. “She knew exactly what to say, huh? Because they said the same thing to you.”
Jason nodded, his cheeks flushing. “I’m not—I was wrong. I just—she was supposed to have the baby, then disappear. And then I could tell the truth to anyone who cared.”
Robin turned away, irritated at his obliviousness, but understanding that Carly had appealed to Jason’s need to prove to the world he wasn’t damaged and to punish the people who’d thought him little better than a walking, talking vegetable after the accident. She pressed her fist to her mouth, then faced him. “And once you agreed, she wouldn’t let you back out.”
“No.”
“Now she’s dead.”
“Yeah.” Jason folded his arms. “I didn’t—”
“You don’t have to tell me that,” Robin said with a shake of her head. “I know you didn’t. You wouldn’t. And even if you would, you’d never let Elizabeth go through any of this.” She hesitated. “Elizabeth knew about the baby, didn’t she? You told her.”
“I—” Jason nodded. “Yeah. I told her. As soon as she told me it was a problem. I didn’t know about her history with Carly.”
“No, I guess I never talked about it much, and you never really got to know Elizabeth again after the accident.” She tipped her head. “But that’s changed, hasn’t it?”
Jason grimaced. “Robin—”
“I’m not angry that you started dating again, Jason.” Sad, a bit wistful, but not angry. “When we broke up in August, we knew we were doing the right thing. You like your life the way it is. You like this…job,” she finally settled on. “And I don’t see a future with you that way. Even after October—” She shook her head. “That hasn’t changed.”
“I just—”
“I had a date last month,” she told him, and he stopped. “I mean, I’m not ready for another relationship, but when we started seeing each other, I didn’t believe I could be with anyone again. You gave me back that dream, Jason. You gave me back my future. How could I want anything for you but happiness?”
“I don’t know if that’s what—” Jason put his hands in his pockets. “I didn’t plan it. I didn’t even know there would be anyone else. But—”
Robin took a deep breath. “We agreed that we would try to be friends, Jason. And now that I know you didn’t do this—that the baby isn’t yours—I can do that now. Let’s stop apologizing to each other. I’d rather talk about how the hell we’re going to get you, Elizabeth, and the baby out of this.”
16 Dandelion, dandelion
When Garcia got to the squad room that afternoon, he found Taggert sitting behind his desk, a grin on his face. “You look happy. You steal candy from a baby?” he asked, stripping off his coat and tossing it over the desk. He reached for the papers in his tray, glancing through them.
“You bet I am. We got a hit on the Roberts murder from the hotline.”
Garcia glanced up, intrigued. They’d run into a wall on that—they were both sure the Webber woman had done the deed, but they needed just a little something more. “Yeah? Credible?”
“Oh, yeah. These came in about an hour later.” Taggert shoved an evidence bag over to him. “I was about to walk them down to evidence to get them dusted and photocopied.”
Garcia tossed aside his own paperwork and reached for a pair of gloves. “What was the tip?”
“A source said that Webber was blackmailing Carly Roberts and sending threatening letters. These are supposed to be them.”
Garcia grimaced. “How’d they get them?”
“Carly was scared of Webber and gave them to the source,” Taggert continued. “I imagine the defense will have fun with that for a while, but if the handwriting expert says it matches Webber’s writing, it won’t matter, will it?”
Garcia thought it might, but that was a problem for the DA’s office, not him. He scanned the first one, then grinned at his partner. “Jackpot. Let’s call the DA.”
17 Call me what you want
It went against Bobbie’s better judgment, but the moment she learned the results of the initial DNA tests, she went to Tony’s apartment to check on him.
For all the humiliation, for all the pain and anger, Bobbie still loved the man she’d married, the man with whom she’d raised and buried a child—the man who had never, ever truly recovered from BJ’s death.
To lose another child, even one that had never been his—
Bobbie knocked a third time, then Tony finally pulled open the door. His hair was disheveled, and his eyes bloodshot. He looked little better than he had the night he’d appeared on her doorstep, gleeful over Carly’s murder.
“You here to gloat?” Tony bit out. He stalked into the apartment, leaving the door open. Bobbie entered, then closed the door after herself.
“No. For all that’s happened, Tony, you’re still Lucas’s father, and I’m worried about you. I know how much you wanted this child.”
Tony squeezed his eyes closed and sat on the sofa, dragging his hands through his hair. “I wanted it to be worth it,” he muttered. “I wanted to be a father again. A chance to be better.”
Bobbie exhaled slowly. “You are still a father—”
“That’s not. I didn’t—” Tony shook his head. “That’s not what I meant, Bobbie. I love Lucas. He’s my son, and I’ve never treated him differently from BJ. You know that—”
“I do—”
“But he’s never forgiven me for Carly. I don’t know if he ever will. This child would—” A tear slid down his cheek, and Tony swiped at his cheek angrily. “It would have made everything I put us through worth it.”
“Maybe.” Bobbie perched on the arm of the sofa. “But that’s a lot of pressure to put on a child. Perhaps it’s for the best.”
“For the best,” Tony gritted. “For a drunk or a gangster to be his father? He should be mine. After everything I did—” He lunged to his feet, and Bobbie flinched. “I ruined my life for her! And what do I have to show for it? Nothing!”
Bobbie got to her feet, her hands shaking. “You didn’t—you still have your career—”
“Oh, yeah, where that bitch made me a laughingstock—” Tony growled. “Well, she got what she deserved, didn’t she? I hope she’s rotting in hell.”
Then he stalked into his bedroom, slamming the door, leaving Bobbie with the fear that Tony had done something worse than having an affair with a younger woman.
18 Dandelion, dandelion
Elizabeth thought she was hallucinating when she looked through her peephole and saw Jason at the door. She yanked him inside. “Are you insane? The PCPD is watching my building, you know they are—”
Jason arched a brow at her, and she flushed, remembering that she was lecturing the town’s resident criminal on the workings of the police. “I know they are. They’re out front and back, but I can get around them.”
She glared at him. “We’re not supposed to be seen together. I’m sure Justus told you that, and Lee made it very clear—”
“I know.” He stepped closer to her, their bodies brushing one another. “But I couldn’t stand it. I don’t want you to be in danger because of me—”
“I wish it was just because of you,” she muttered. She leaned her head against his chest, then felt his arms encircle her. “But Carly hated me long before you came along. You’re just the motive for why she started targeting me again.” She looked up, met his eyes. “But I don’t blame you for that. Carly was always going to circle back to me.”
He brushed his lips against hers, gently at first, then harder, pulling her closer. Elizabeth dug her fingers into his shirt, then slid them up into his hair—
“They’re going to arrest me,” Elizabeth said when they separated. “But if you stay away from me, they won’t think you’re involved—”
“The PCPD doesn’t care that you didn’t do it,” Jason interrupted. He framed her face with his hands. “So it doesn’t matter if they can tie me to you or not. They’re coming after you. There’s no way in hell I’m going to let you deal with this alone.”
“But—”
“We have to find out who did it,” he continued. “You need to be free, and the baby—I need to know if it’s safe to turn him over to AJ. You know it might have been him.”
Elizabeth sighed, letting her head drop slightly, his lips against her forehead. “I know.”
“I’ll make sure the PCPD doesn’t see me with you,” he continued, “because I know that’s better for you. I don’t care what they think about me, but don’t ask me to leave tonight.”
“Jason—”
“Let me stay,” he murmured, threading his hand in her hair, his fingers sliding through the strands. He kissed her again. “Please.” Their eyes met again, his burning. “You told me you didn’t want to wait on the sidelines anymore. How can you expect me to do the same when you’re in trouble? I know you can do this without me, but you shouldn’t have to.”
She closed her eyes, tears stinging. She was so tired of being alone.
She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him down for another kiss. If the PCPD was determined to make her pay for Carly’s murder, then at least she’d have this to hold on to. Elizabeth drew out of his arms. She went to the door, flipped the locks, and turned back with a smirk and a raised brow. “I hope you weren’t planning to sleep tonight.”
19 You can’t stop me multiplyin’
Elsewhere in Port Charles that night, Monica had her own thoughts about the PCPD and their investigation. She paced her bedroom from one end to the other, irritated with her own doubts and misgivings.
“I know that you don’t think Elizabeth could have done this,” Alan said, watching Monica, “but you and I both know anyone could have committed the actual murder. A scalpel across the throat from behind—with the right amount of surprise—”
“Oh, please, don’t tell me you think Steve and Audrey’s granddaughter could have murdered a new mother and left her to bleed out on the floor—” Monica glared at her moronic husband. “Not to mention, we both know why Elizabeth dragged Jason into that supply closet. Heaven knows, we found similar uses for those closets.”
Sometimes they’d even used them together, she thought bitterly.
“All right, while Elizabeth is physically capable, I do think she likely didn’t—but that does not mean one of our sons did—”
“I don’t see Jason doing it and not doing a better job,” Monica muttered. “But AJ—” She turned to him. “We gave him an alibi, Alan. Are we sure that was the right decision?”
“With the way the PCPD have tunnel vision about Elizabeth? Unless there’s something actually tying AJ to this mess, I’m glad he’s not a suspect.” Alan folded the newspaper he’d been reading and got to his feet. “Tony is still on the list—”
“I just—how can we go on, not knowing for sure?” Monica demanded.
“We might not have a choice, Monica. Why don’t we hope for the best and remember the silver lining.” When she frowned at him, he reminded her. “Carly Roberts is gone for good. That’s better for everyone.”
20 Dandelion, dandelion
Mac looked up when Bobbie knocked on the door to his office. “What brings you here so late?”
“It’s this Carly situation.” Bobbie took a deep breath. “Tony came to my door the night it happened. Around two in the morning. I was upstairs that night with you and Felicia, remember? You were called into work.”
“I remember—”
“Tony came to tell me, but I already knew. He looked—he looked terrible but so happy.” She rubbed her arm. “It was chilling, but I put it away. I had to. Then I talked to him earlier—the DNA results are in, and he was excluded—” Her voice faltered. “Mac, I think Tony had something to do with Carly’s murder.”
Mac grimaced. “He was high on the list of suspects,” he told her. “Number two, honestly. And I made sure Taggert and Garcia investigated him thoroughly. It took a few days, but we finally were able to eliminate him tonight.”
“You—” Relief flooded her. “You were able to eliminate him. How?”
“Bobbie—” Mac sighed. “He was with a prostitute that night, and we were able to corroborate it. He checked into a motel and paid with a card. He was checking in around 11, and, uh—” His cheeks flamed. “He was occupied at the time of death.”
Bobbie pursed her lips, then nodded. “All right.”
“Don’t worry, Bobbie.” Mac touched her shoulders. “Lucas’s father is not a murderer. He’s a moron, but not a murderer.” He paused. “Is that all?”
“Tell me you’re close to eliminating Elizabeth, then. You know she’s innocent, Mac—”
Mac closed his eyes. “I can’t comment on that, Bobbie. It doesn’t matter what I think—”
“It should! She babysat for Felicia’s girls! She practically grew up with Robin—”
“And that’s why it can’t matter what my opinion is,” Mac cut in. “I have to go with the evidence—”
Bobbie slapped his hands away from her. “She didn’t do this, Mac Scorpio! Have you even bothered to investigate AJ Quartermaine? He was just as angry as anyone else, if not more—”
“We talked to Monica and Alan—”
“And they’re lying—” The words were out of Bobbie’s mouth before she realized it, and she closed her mouth as Mac frowned at her. “They’re covering for him. They have no idea where he was.”
He exhaled slowly. “All right, I’ll follow up, but—”
“But Elizabeth is still the number one suspect.” Her throat burned. “Shame on you if you don’t stop this. You’re supposed to stand for justice—”
“I’ll look into it, Bobbie. That’s all I can promise.”
21 Pull me from the dirt
Headlights flashed through the sheer curtains, jerking Elizabeth from a light doze. She frowned at her window for a moment—why hadn’t she pulled down the shades—
Then she felt movement behind her as Jason shifted, curling an arm around her waist, drawing her against him.
“Are you awake?” she murmured, twisting slightly.
“Yeah.” She could hardly see him in the shadows, but his warmth surrounded her. “I should probably go soon.”
“Maybe.” Elizabeth sighed. “What time is it?”
“Almost four. I should be gone before the sun comes up.”
“You have sources in the PCPD, don’t you?” she asked. “How close am I to being arrested?”
She felt him tense and wondered if he was going to refuse to answer. Was she allowed to ask questions like that? Finally, he sighed. “They’ve asked the DA for an arrest warrant a few times, but my source says they’re waiting for something more. They can’t prove you were anything more than Carly’s victim, and there’s more than enough of those in Port Charles. So they have motive and opportunity, but it’s not enough.”
“It’s not?” She twisted to face him.
“No.” He paused. “If they can prove you made threats or something—”
“I didn’t, but that doesn’t mean they won’t find something.” She sighed. “I keep trying to think of who could have done this, but it’s really just AJ or Tony.”
“AJ says it wasn’t him, but I don’t believe him either.” Jason’s fingers trailed down her forearm. “The autopsy results suggest that whoever used the scalpel was Carly’s height or shorter.”
“The angle of the cut?” she asked, and he nodded. “Well, that doesn’t help,” she muttered. “Because that’s me—”
“Maybe—but that kind of thing can be faked.” Jason grimaced. “If you’re trying to frame someone, you can adjust—” He shook his head, and she could tell he was uncomfortable talking about this with her.
“You mean someone taller could adjust the knife to frame someone shorter,” Elizabeth finished. “Well, I’ll make sure Lee remembers that when I’m on trial.”
“I’m not going to let it get to that—”
“We might not have a choice—” She touched his cheek. “Hey. If I get arrested, I’m not going to let them scare me into a plea deal. I’m going to fight.”
He dropped his head to her shoulder, his breath hot against her skin. She stroked his hair for a long moment as they lay in silence.
“You can’t let AJ have that baby,” Elizabeth said. Jason raised his head slightly so that they were face to face, inches apart. “Unless you can be convinced that he didn’t do this. He was so angry at her. He could have done this. I don’t care about Carly, but I don’t think that baby should be with someone who murdered his mother.”
Jason kissed her, long and slow. “That would mean paying off the lab to fake the test,” he murmured. “Committing perjury. And then the baby—he’s mine. So I’ll have to raise him.”
“Then you’ll have to do it. He’s your nephew. And even if he weren’t—” Her eyes burned. “He didn’t ask for any of this. The same reasons you stuck by him after he was born and when he needed surgery—I didn’t even ask. How is he?”
“He’s doing well,” Jason told her. He smoothed her hair back, his fingers trailing down her face. “Recovering. The doctor said I can bring him home in a week.”
“Good. I’m glad. One day, you can tell him the truth, maybe. But as long as we don’t know who murdered Carly, promise me you won’t let that baby go with AJ.”
“I promise.” He paused. “As long as you promise to not push me away if you get arrested. If you end up on trial. Unless Lee thinks a jury will convict you because of me—”
“Whatever Lee tells me to do to be free, I’ll do it.” She gently pushed Jason onto his back and slithered on top of him. “But until then, what he doesn’t know won’t hurt him or me.”
22 Dandelion, dandelion
Robin approached her uncle’s office, a cup of coffee and a bag in her hand, intending to pump him for any information on the investigation. Like everyone else, she was concerned that the baby’s father had murdered Carly.
The rest of the world might be okay with Carly being dead and getting what she deserved, but Robin still thought it was a horrible way to die. But, more importantly, they couldn’t let an innocent child be raised by someone capable of that.
And that meant Robin needed to get to the bottom of this case before she returned to Paris in a few weeks. She wanted to make sure Elizabeth was exonerated, too. It was the least the woman deserved after everything she’d been through.
She heard voices outside Mac’s office, so Robin slowed, stopping just outside the open door.
“I know you have doubts,” she heard Taggert saying, “but I don’t actually need your permission. Dara already got a judge to sign off on a warrant.”
Robin’s eyes widened.
“It doesn’t bother you that we had a source just drop these letters into our hands?” Mac demanded. “We don’t know where they came from—”
“No, but the preliminary reports say the handwriting is enough of a match with Webber, Mac. This is a problem for her defense attorney. Not us.”
“It should be our problem—”
“I have the warrant, Mac. Are you telling me to stand down?”
Robin held her breath as her uncle remained silent for a long moment. Then he sighed. “No. I’m too close to this. Pick her up.”
Robin bolted down the hall, throwing the coffee and bag into the trash.
23 No, you don’t want me in your garden
Lorraine gritted her teeth, tapping her foot impatiently, waiting for the Quartermaine scion to leave Kelly’s.
He was her last, best chance to make any damn money off all of this. Carly’s murder had brought her a little time as the board was too busy fighting off Lee Baldwin’s lawsuit threats over Elizabeth’s suspension, but Lorraine knew it was just a matter of time before they learned why Mercy had fired her.
She needed to cash in and get the hell out of here. Start over somewhere else where no one had ever heard of Carly Roberts.
“Hey—” Lorraine said as AJ appeared in view. “Wait—wait—”
AJ cast her a suspicious glance, then paused, squinting, recognizing her. “Get away from me—”
“You need to listen to me! I can help—”
“I don’t need your help,” he cut in. “The paternity test will do that. So thanks, but go blackmail someone else—”
“Don’t you dare walk away from me!” Lorraine cried, desperate now. She grabbed his arm. “Listen. Listen to me! I didn’t tell you everything before! And you know as well as I do there’s no guarantee Jason Morgan is going to let you have that kid!”
“Why the hell wouldn’t he?” AJ demanded.
“You think he’s going to give you that kid while he thinks you murdered his mother?” When AJ’s expression changed, she nodded. “That’s right. So you need to listen to me, and you need what I’m about to give you. And you’re going to pay for it, you get me? Or I’ll sell it and everything else I gave you to Jason, who will definitely be interested in burying any evidence that you’re the kid’s father.”
24 Dandelion, dandelion
“You think there’s something to what Mac was saying?” Garcia asked as they approached Elizabeth Webber’s apartment. “About the source just dropping things in our lap this way?”
“Maybe,” Taggert admitted. “But the expert said it was probably her writing. You think someone forged it?” He knocked briskly on the door. “Who hates Elizabeth Webber that much and isn’t already dead?”
“Someone hates her enough to turn her in,” Garcia pointed out.
“Maybe, but—” Taggert gritted his teeth, then banged on the door again. “Webber! It’s the PCPD! We have a warrant for your arrest and to search the place.”
The door across the hall opened, and an irritated man with dark hair stepped out. “Hey, some of us are trying to sleep, asshole—”
“Have you seen the woman who lives in this apartment?” Taggert demanded, trying the knob. It wouldn’t open.
“Not today—” The man grimaced. “Why?”
“Because I have a search warrant, and I’m about to break down the damn door,” Taggert retorted.
“Don’t do that—” The guy dragged a hand through his hair, then disappeared into the apartment. He returned with a key. “I work with her at the hospital. Show me your badges and the warrant. I’ll let you in.”
Once they’d satisfied Dr. Patrick Drake of their identity, he unlocked the door grumbling about moronic detectives on a witch hunt. “The last thing she needs once you idiots find out she’s innocent is to replace her door. Don’t break anything. I’m gonna stand right here.”
Taggert looked like he might not mind arresting him, but Garcia stopped him. A quick examination of the apartment revealed that Elizabeth wasn’t there.
“Call the guy at the Towers,” Taggert told Garcia. “Maybe she went there—”
“Unlikely. They haven’t stepped foot near each other since that night,” Garcia muttered. He went over to the landline and picked it up. “Mac? Yeah. No, either she happened to be out for the first time all week, or she’s in the wind. I don’t know. Put out an APB.”
25 Dandelion, dandelion
Hours later, Robin approached the stone bridge with some trepidation, her heart pounding. The wind and snowflakes swirled as she caught sight of the duo on the bridge, standing close, whispering.
While there were some pangs of personal resentment that she couldn’t have brought herself to accept Jason’s life or that he didn’t love her enough to leave it behind, Robin forced it away. That was her issue, not theirs, and they had much more important problems to worry about.
“Hey,” she called softly. Jason and Elizabeth turned to her. “I’m sorry I’m late.”
“It’s okay.” Elizabeth smiled gratefully as Robin handed over the envelope she carried. “If you hadn’t called me this morning, I’d be in jail right now. Right now, at least I can say that I don’t know about the warrant.”
“As soon as you told us about these letters—” Jason shook his head. “Someone is trying to frame you. If the PCPD charges you, we don’t have a chance to find out who it is. And we might not get bail.”
Robin flinched. He talked about we as if they were already a team. And maybe they were. She exhaled slowly. “It took me a while before I could get a copy of them, but Uncle Mac finally left his office. And don’t worry—I was wearing gloves, and I used the machine in the office to make copies.” She grimaced. “It helps to be considered a goody-two-shoes. Since these letters won’t actually go missing, they’ll never suspect anything.”
“Thank you for taking this risk. I’ll never be able to repay you,” Elizabeth said. She opened the envelope. She scowled as she skimmed the first letter. “This is my handwriting—”
“That’s what Taggert said—”
“But I didn’t—” Elizabeth passed it to Jason. “I didn’t write this. Someone forged it.”
“Who would have done that?” Jason asked. “They’re deliberately framing you now. Before, it felt it was just convenient to let you take the fall—”
Elizabeth exhaled slowly. “This has happened before. A few times. The first time, Carly filed a complaint about me saying I’d left a note in her locker, threatening her. But they knew it wasn’t me because I hadn’t even been in the day they found the note. I was scheduled, but I’d called out. So they just decided Carly was wrong to accuse me and assumed someone else was threatening her.”
“But someone forged it to set you up,” Jason said. “Who would have done that?”
As soon Jason asked, Robin and Elizabeth locked eyes, and the epiphany hit simultaneously. “Of course,” Robin breathed.
“I should have thought of her,” Elizabeth said with a wince.
“Who?” Jason demanded.
“The only person who ever seemed to hang around Carly,” Robin said.
“Lorraine,” Elizabeth clarified. “She was Carly’s partner-in-crime, and she used to talk about forging notes in college all the time to get answers on the exams. I know she helped Carly forge the notes against me and the records in the drug investigation. Lorraine knew a lot of Carly’s secrets, and the last time I talked to her, she was trying to sell them. If Lorraine forged these notes—”
Robin grimaced. “Then she’s the one framing you.”
“And that means she probably killed Carly,” Elizabeth finished.
So I took a breath and made a wish and blew them all away
Sorry for the quick update yesterday! I legit forgot that I was supposed to start posting this yesterday, lol. April completely snuck up on me. I hope you guys are having a great week! I went through and updated the character images on the Karma story page so that they’re more appropriate to the time period, December 1997 (outside of Elizabeth, whose image, I think is from sometime in 1998/99). That’s probably not a detail that would bother anyone else but me, lol, so there you go.
I also went back and embedded the song for Part One. The soundtrack for all four parts is all Gabbie Hanna, one of my absolutely favorite artists, and I must have played these four songs a thousand time while writing this last fall, so I definitely recommend checking her out.
In other news, I finallycompleted the reread of the beta draft for Mad World. This took me five weeks because I went incredibly slowly and started editing while I was doing the reread. There are a few storylines and beats I decided to reorganize and that’s what has slowed down an edit that I had hoped to be done already and why the release schedule went from daily Monday-Friday to weekly, starting next Wednesday. I promise you, I think this is worth the wait.
Yesterday was April 1, which means we’re kicking off my third attempt at Camp NaNoWriMo in April. This year, we’re tackling Counting Stars, a project I attempted back in 2018 but abandoned because the plotting wasn’t quite right. I definitely think the approach I took this time around solved most of the issues I had with that first attempt, so I’m looking forward to it. I started that last night, and we’re about 2800 words into the draft.
1 Skeletons in my closet
I got secrets that’ll shake you to your bones
Carly gingerly made her way down the stairs, bracing one hand on her back and the other clutching the railing for dear life. Everything hurt, and she was so worn out and exhausted. One more week until her due date, and then this terrible pregnancy would be over—
She glanced out into the darkened living room, scowling as she realized she was alone in the penthouse. Jason must have come home late the night before — if he’d come home at all, she realized now. She’d tried to wait up for him, hoping to engage him in conversation, but he’d barely looked at her since she’d come to stay.
This all fell apart if Jason stuck to their agreement and forced her out after the baby was born. She could only stay in Port Charles with her baby if Jason promised to keep the lie going. And she needed to stay in Port Charles. She hadn’t yet finished making Bobbie pay for ruining her life, and now there were other people on her list—
Carly exhaled slowly as she reached the bottom of the stairs. Had Jason come home last night? Oh, God, what if he was still with that stupid bitch? What if Elizabeth had learned of the complaint Carly had filed and gone straight to Jason? Carly grimaced. She should have waited, should have bided her time, but she’d been so angry—so incredibly pissed off that Elizabeth was right there, waiting in the wings to take someone else Carly wanted. First, the bitch had taken Bobbie, and now she wanted Jason?
There was no way in hell Carly was going to let her get away with it—and if ruining Elizabeth’s life brought Bobbie pain, that would just be a bonus.
But she hadn’t calculated on Jason finding out so quickly about the complaint—damn it—
The phone rang across the room, but Carly ignored it, moving towards the kitchen. It continued to ring, the shrill sound echoing in the dark, empty room. Carly reached the entrance as the answering machine clicked on.
Then a voice poured out of the machine, and Carly growled, lurching back around the corner, rushing towards the desk next to the front door, moving faster than she had in weeks because that was Lorraine—
“—hoping you can give me a call back because I think we have something to talk about—”
Carly’s foot snagged on the corner of a table, and she went flying, the room tilting at terrifying angles. Then she slammed her head into the corner of the table and fell onto her back, her head lolling to one side.
2 It ain’t worth all the drama
Might be easier if I just die alone
After leaving Elizabeth at her apartment, Jason had been in no mood to return to the penthouse and be confronted with the massive disaster he’d invited into his life. He’d returned to the bar, and mercifully, Jake hadn’t said a word when the bar closed, but he hadn’t made a move to leave.
The bartender had locked up, leaving Jason with a few bottles of Rolling Rock and stewing in his own thoughts, angry at himself for how he’d handled everything. Robin had always warned him that his lingering anger and distrust for Quartermaines would eat away at him. That his burning desire to prove himself undamaged to the rest of the world would haunt him. He’d thought she was just feeling guilty for always taking their sides and had dismissed her concerns—
But Robin was right. Jason’s loathing of that family, the miserable memories of the weeks he’d spent in that house still lurking in his mind, the feeling of always being wrong, always being incompetent—it had been simmering, waiting to boil over. Carly had only had to look at him and say the things he thought about himself—
“They think I’m trash,” she’d sobbed, her hands pressed against her face, the words muffled. “That I can’t do anything, that I don’t deserve my baby—they think they can control me and make me do what they want—I’ll never be able to have my son—”
Had Carly somehow suspected how he felt? Had she known how to play him, or had she just gotten lucky? There was truth to her statements. He knew Alan and Monica thought Carly was less than the dirt beneath their feet and that Edward would never want someone like Carly anywhere near his family. Even kind and gentle Lila would think twice at Carly’s brashness and lack of empathy for anyone.
The family would absolutely go after Carly and control that child, and Jason hadn’t thought beyond that. He hadn’t known Carly had been a one-woman wrecking ball through everyone‘s life—only that she’d broken up Bobbie’s marriage and had treated Robin like garbage. That should have been enough. Why hadn’t it been enough?
He stared miserably at the half-empty bottle in his hands. Drinking wouldn’t solve anything. Hadn’t AJ’s history taught him that? He almost understood how his brother had lost himself in the alcohol. There was a comfort in letting everything fall away, letting it feel fuzzy and less important. The destruction he’d created didn’t hurt as much when he couldn’t feel it.
There was a pounding at the front of the bar. Jason lumbered to his feet and crossed the bar, scowling when he saw Francis Corelli, a guard from the Towers, on the other side of the door. He pulled it open, squinting. “What’s going on?”
“We’ve got a problem, boss—” Francis’s face was pale. “Carly fell at the penthouse this morning. She had to be rushed to GH, and the paramedics said the fall triggered labor.”
3 What goes around comes around
Do unto others and all that other shit
“How did you end up with this?” Patrick wanted to know as he scribbled something in the chart. “I mouthed off to the chief again, so I know why I’m stuck in the ER on Christmas, but who’d you piss off?”
“Some days,” Elizabeth sighed, “it feels like the entire universe. But, actually, I’m on probation.” He scowled at that, and she shrugged a shoulder. “Yeah, again. One of the terms meant being reassigned. So I get to float to all the departments now,” she continued with a sour smile. “And work the trash shifts. They called me in at four this morning.”
After less than three hours of fitful sleep, the scene with Jason at her door still haunted her. Was she right to give up? To walk away from something that had seemed so promising? If the hospital was willing to take Carly’s complaint seriously after everything that had happened, did Elizabeth even want this anymore?
And did she really care about being a nurse? Hadn’t she pursued this career to make her grandparents proud? Gram hadn’t believed in her, but Gramps had. At least until those last few weeks. Had her scandal, the charges — had it triggered that fatal heart attack—
Familiar waves of grief mixed with guilt swept through her, and Elizabeth had to take a deep breath to stop the tears that always seemed to be hovering. “Anyway,” she continued, “I didn’t really have plans today.”
“Still—” Patrick glanced over as another nurse took a scanner report that an unconscious woman was in labor. “The ER on Christmas is depressing as hell—”
“Can’t be any worse than my everyday life,” she muttered as she went to the front doors with her co-worker to be ready for the incoming patient. Her eyes bulged as the familiar guard came in, along with the paramedics rolling Carly in on a stretcher. “Oh my God—” Her eyes darted behind him, expecting to see Jason.
But he was nowhere. Carly was unconscious, bleeding from a severe head wound, and in labor all alone. She swallowed, shoved everything else out of her head—and got to work.
4 Guess I had to learn my lesson
You were one hell of a lesson
Jason pushed through the doors to the emergency room, craning his head to find a familiar face before approaching the front desk. His head was swirling from the lack of rest, the guilt of not being at the penthouse, and worry. He might not be the father or all that fond of Carly, but that didn’t mean he wanted anything to happen to either of them.
Even if getting rid of Carly that way would solve everything—
“Jason—” Bobbie left the treatment area shielded by a curtain, her brown eyes anxious. “You’re here—”
“Carly—”
“Is in recovery,” Bobbie confirmed, taking him by the hand and heading towards the elevators. “She hit her head pretty hard, but it’s just a concussion. Unfortunately, the fall triggered labor—”
“It’s only a week before her due date. Things should be fine, though—” Jason frowned at her. “Right?”
“I don’t know all the details,” Bobbie said. “Elizabeth just—”
“Elizabeth?”
“She was on call in the ER when they brought her in, so she and Patrick took the case,” Bobbie clarified. “She paged me to make sure someone was here when you got to the ER—Jason, the baby is in the NICU. There’s a problem. You need to get up there because Carly is still unconscious, and decisions need to be made.”
Jason stared at her, dumbfounded. “But—”
“Carly updated her paperwork right after she moved in with you,” Bobbie reminded him. “You’re the father on record, and your son needs you.”
5 Energy’s in full rotation
Knew I would regret ya
Tony gritted his teeth as he left a patient’s room and stalked to the nurse’s station. Working on Christmas when he could be at home with Lucas. Somehow he and Bobbie had both ended up being scheduled to work today, so his son was celebrating with Luke and Laura instead of his parents.
He tugged another chart out of the pile, then frowned, feeling someone’s eyes on him. He looked over to see Amy Vining. “What do you want?” he demanded, then winced at the harshness of the tone.
“I was wondering if you’d heard,” Amy said gently. “Carly was rushed in today, unconscious and in labor. The baby’s in the NICU—”
“What?” Tony snapped, his heart thudding loudly, almost vibrating up to his ears. “What are you talking about—”
“I don’t know what happened or why,” Amy continued, putting a hand on his arm. “I just know that you still think there’s a chance it’s your son, and I—”
Tony shrugged off her arm, his hands shaking. He turned away from her, blindly wandering the halls until he found himself in front of the hospital’s chapel.
He went inside the quiet room and up to the altar, staring numbly at the candles already lit. He closed his eyes, bowed his head —
“Please don’t take another child from me,” he begged, his voice faltering. “Please. I can’t—please don’t take him from me.”
6 Payin’ for my past mistakes
You’re bad, bad karma
Elizabeth emerged from Carly’s room, slid her chart back in the door, and went to the nurse’s station. She eyed the elevator. The NICU was just one floor up, and she knew from Bobbie’s page that Jason had arrived and was upstairs.
He must be so worried and confused—dealing with whatever health issues the baby had suffered as well as guilt for not being home when Carly fell.
Not wanting to be involved didn’t stop her from feeling like she already was.
“It’s a damn shame,” Epiphany muttered as she ambled into the hub and dropped off a chart. “How’s Carly?”
“She’s all right,” Elizabeth said. “Recovering from the C-section and concussion. Patrick and I handed her off to Dr. Meadows after getting her stabilized.” She tapped a pen against her palm. “Do you know—I mean—all I heard was that the baby was in distress when he was born—”
“They don’t know anything yet. Something about his breathing. They had to put him on a ventilator,” Epiphany said. She exhaled slowly. “It’s a tragedy. Whatever Carly Roberts has done, I hope and pray that baby isn’t paying for her sins.”
“That wouldn’t be fair, would it?” Elizabeth folded her arms. “I mean, that’s not how God is supposed to work—”
“He works in mysterious ways,” Epiphany reminded her, “and we’re not always privy to his motives. It’s a terrible first day of fatherhood for Jason. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. When my Stanford was sick as a child, I would sit and watch him breathe. Even as a nurse when I knew he was just sick with a cold, I still worried.”
Elizabeth bit her lip, sweeping her eyes over the elevator again. How many people were thinking about that? Worried about Jason stepping into fatherhood with a sick baby and unconscious mother? How was Jason dealing with it?
She closed her eyes, swallowed hard, then opened them to meet Epiphany’s gaze. “I’m assigned to Carly because I was here when she came in, but with everything we’ve been through—with what she might wake up to—”
“You don’t think she’d be happy with you as her nurse,” Epiphany said, nodding in understanding. “You don’t have to explain, honey. I’ll take over.”
7 Fucking up my reputation
Should’ve seen it coming
He hated the hospital. Hated sitting in a hospital room. His earliest memories were of walls that looked like this, painted a dark color that made him feel like everything was closing in on him.
And that was no different today, twenty-four hours after Baby Boy Roberts came into the world, and Jason realized that he was trapped.
Carly lay in the bed, tears streaking silently down her face. Jason tried to take in what Monica, the hospital’s head cardiologist, was trying to tell them. Her voice was cracking because, of course—she thought it was Jason’s son. Her grandson.
And the boy was her grandson, which made Jason feel even lower. Should AJ be a part of this? Should be this a secret they continued to keep?
“I d-don’t understand,” Carly managed, swiping her at cheeks. “T-The doctors said everything was okay at my last appointment—”
“It’s not a condition we can catch until after the baby is born,” Monica told her. “It’s an extra duct that closes within a few days after birth. However, in rare cases, the duct is too large, and the blood from the aorta mixes with blood in the lungs, and it increases blood pressure in the lungs.”
“Why was he in trouble right away?” Jason wanted to know. “If it’s supposed to take a few days—”
“The cord was wrapped around his neck at birth,” Monica said. “That can happen as the baby moves into position. It forced his lungs to work harder, which meant his blood pressure was too high. So we’ve been able to diagnose him earlier than we might have, which is a blessing in some ways.” She paused. “The baby—we, ah, still don’t have a name?”
Carly just started to cry again, and Jason shook his head. “No,” he said faintly. “No, not yet.”
“All right.” Monica frowned but didn’t comment on it further. “We have the baby on a ventilator to stabilize his oxygen levels, and we’re monitoring him for a few days to make sure the duct closes on its own. We have several treatment options available to us,” she added, “but we want to be careful we avoid endocarditis, an infection in the heart—”
“Oh, God—” Carly moaned.
“We can treat with medication, catheter—and if we need to—surgery.” Monica grimaced. “The risk is small, but it’s also not nothing. I promise you—” She flicked her eyes to Jason. “We’re doing everything we can.”
8 Is it my imagination
Or bad, bad karma?
AJ pushed open the door to the hospital chapel, hesitating when he saw Tony sitting in the front pew. He should leave the man alone and go somewhere else, but—
Tony twisted on the seat, his eyes narrowing in anger. “What the hell do you want—”
“The same as you,” AJ said, his mind made up. He let the door swing closed behind him and sat on the other side of the aisle, but also in the front pew. “To say a prayer for the baby.”
“He’s my son—”
“I know you want that to be true,” AJ said gently, reminding himself how hurt and angry he’d been to learn the woman he thought was a friend had set out to destroy his life to keep her secrets. Carly had targeted Tony and broken up his marriage, lied to him for months about the baby—was still lying to him. And Tony had already lost a child.
“It is—”
“Maybe Carly’s lying to us all. Maybe everyone is,” AJ murmured. He looked forward at the altar. “Wouldn’t be the first time. I was drunk, Tony, the night I slept with her. It doesn’t make me a good person, but you were stone cold sober when you began your affair—”
Tony closed his eyes, color leeching from his face, and he, too, faced the front of the altar. “Don’t you think I know that? Don’t you think I wish I could blame the alcohol—”
“Blaming the alcohol makes it too easy to give myself a break.” AJ clasped his hands loosely in his lap. “I chose to take the drink. Whatever happens after that, even if I don’t remember, is on me. Just as your choice is on you.”
“The baby—” Tony closed his eyes. “He should be okay. I read the charts. The risks are low, but—”
“But they exist. And I think we’re all wondering if maybe that baby is paying for the sins of his parents.” AJ’s mouth quirked up into a half-smirk. “God knows, we all have enough to go around.”
“Jason’s a smokescreen,” Tony bit out. “I don’t care what anyone says. He’s lying for her—”
“Why would he do that?” AJ wanted to know. “What does he have against you?” Jason wouldn’t cover up Carly’s secret if Tony were the father—
But he might if he knew AJ was. AJ was a Quartermaine, and the family had already made threats. And God knew Jason had a right to suspect AJ would be a terrible father. Maybe it was as simple as that, but AJ had thought they were closer than that. Not exactly friendly, but at least civil.
“I’m getting a court order for a paternity test,” AJ said. “I’m sure you have one in the works—”
“Damn it—”
“One way or another, we’ll get to the bottom of this—”
Tony jerked himself to his feet, lumbering over AJ, his eyes bloodshot and laced with fury. “And when I have my son, I’ll make sure that bitch never gets anywhere near him! This is all on her—”
He stormed out of the chapel before AJ could say anything. Tony was wrong — this wasn’t all on Carly. They’d all played a part—
But AJ couldn’t help but agree with the irate doctor. As soon as paternity was established, they’d all be better off if Carly just disappeared.
9 Bad, bad
Bad, bad karma
Elizabeth fought the urge to seek Jason out for nearly three days. Finally, her curiosity, her worry, and her regrets won out, so she went up to the NICU floor around the time visiting hours ended.
Jason exited through the security door, shoving a yellow protective gown into a nearby trashcan, then turned—stopping when he saw her. “Elizabeth.”
“Um, hey.” She folded her arms. “I was hoping you had a minute to talk.”
“Sure.”
Elizabeth glanced past him to Leyla Mir, doing a terrible job pretending she wasn’t listening. “Come with me.” She went down a hallway. Jason followed. She looked around to see if anyone was watching before opening the door to a supply closet. “I don’t want anyone to see us.”
“You think someone is going to report back to Carly?” Jason asked, but he followed her inside.
“How’s the baby?” Elizabeth said.
“He’s, uh—” Jason rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. “Managing. Surgery is looking more likely,” he admitted. “But we’re hoping it can be avoided.”
“And Carly?” Elizabeth asked reluctantly. She folded her arms. “Is she—”
“She’s fine,” Jason muttered. He shook his head. “I don’t know. I was going to force her out when the baby came. I told her if she didn’t take the baby and go, I’d tell everyone but—”
Her stomach clenched. “But?”
“He’s so small. And he’s—he didn’t ask for this.” Jason exhaled slowly. “I want her to stop hurting people.” Their eyes met. “I don’t want her to hurt you anymore—but she was crying when they told her the baby might need surgery—”
Elizabeth’s throat felt tight as she thought of how hard that news must have hit. She didn’t want to think of Carly as a person, a mother, going through the worst thing a parent could face. “And it goes without saying that dragging paternity and all of this into that baby’s life right now—I mean, I guess it’s not an argument you want to have—”
“I want this to stop,” Jason told her. “I want—I want Robin to know I didn’t do this to her, and I want Carly out of my life.” He reached for Elizabeth’s hands, and, reluctantly, she let him. “I want to be where we were two weeks ago. The night I kissed you.”
“I don’t—” Elizabeth bit her lip. “I guess maybe that’s why all of this hurt so much,” she said softly, searching his gaze, looking for answers, looking for something that would explain to her what had happened. “I thought we were going somewhere. Not that I was looking for forever or promises, but I just—”
“I’m sorry,” Jason told her. He released one of her hands to touch her face, tuck a piece of hair behind her ears, his fingertips trailing down her jaw. “I didn’t—I didn’t think it through. She begged me to protect her from the Quartermaines, and they—I just—I saw red. I didn’t think it’d get this complicated.”
“But it is.” Elizabeth sighed. “You’re not forcing her to tell the truth yet, are you?”
“If you need me to—if that would change your mind—”
“I don’t want you to do it because I asked you to. If you think waiting a few more days until you know what’s going to happen to the baby—” She paused. “You need to be able to live with this, Jason. Is that what you want to do?”
“I don’t know what Tony or AJ are going to do, but yeah. It’s what I want to do,” Jason confessed. “Not for Carly, but—”
“But for that baby that didn’t ask for any of this.”
“Will—” Jason hesitated. “Will you give me another chance?” he asked. “After all of this? I know what you said before, but you’re here. Does that mean you changed your mind—”
“I—” Elizabeth slowly drew her hand out of his and stepped back. His hand fell away from her face. “I don’t know,” she said finally. “I want to. I just—I guess I’m not ready to make any decisions until we know what’s going to happen with Carly.”
Jason studied her for a long moment, then looked away. “A few days ago, you told me that if I wasn’t important enough to you to drop Carly, then we didn’t have anything else to say to each other.”
“I know—”
“If I’m not important enough to give me a second chance when I’m doing everything I can to make this go away without making it worse,” Jason said, startling her, “then maybe you’re right. Maybe we don’t have anything else to say to each other.”
“Jason—”
“I didn’t lie about Carly to hurt you. I’m sorry it did,” he added, “but I didn’t know you and Carly had issues, and you didn’t tell me how bad it was. When you did, I told you I’d send her away that night. You told me to wait. You told me you didn’t want anything to do with me as long as Carly was in the picture. Did you change your mind?” he asked again.
“No—yes—” She squeezed her eyes shut. “I want to. I just don’t know if I can—”
“What else do you want from me? What am I supposed to do?” Frustrated, he spread his hands out at his side. “Elizabeth—”
“I don’t know,” she said finally. “But as long as Carly’s in the mix, Jason, I’m not making any promises. I can’t. I’m sorry. You’re going to have to decide if that’s enough.”
He exhaled slowly. “It’s not,” he said. He reached for the handle, then turned back. “If you don’t want to be mixed up in this, you should stay away. Carly’s going to be distracted, so maybe it’ll be enough for her to leave you alone.”
Then he left, and Elizabeth was alone. Her breath hitched, and she pressed a fist to her mouth. He was right, of course. He hadn’t come looking for her. She’d told him she couldn’t do it, and he had a right to be angry that she was sending mixed signals.
Was she going to live her whole life fearing what Carly might do? Running from anyone or anything that might put her in Carly’s path? Was she really going to let Carly win?
10 Bad, bad
Bad, bad karma
Lorraine edged into Carly’s room, casting one more look up and down the hall to be sure that no one saw her go inside.
Carly narrowed her eyes. “What the hell are you—”
“I’m here,” Lorraine said, approaching the bed with narrowed eyes, “to get what I’m owed. You’re still here on Jason’s dime, and he’s hanging around playing Daddy, so he must have decided to keep you. So it’s time—”
“It’s not that simple,” Carly snapped, fisting her hands in the hospital blankets. “He hasn’t agreed to anything yet. And he probably won’t push until we know about the baby—”
“Doesn’t change my situation,” Lorraine retorted, her eyes flashing. “Any day now, GH could find out why I got fired from Mercy. You either pay up, or I’m going to offer what I know to the first guy who opens his checkbook—”
“Damn it, Lorraine, I need more time!”
“I’ve given you enough time!” Frustrated, angry tears stung at Lorraine’s eyes. “I’ve given you everything and helped you every time you asked for something! And what I have got to show for it, huh? Nothing! My career is on the line—my entire life—I could be arrested for screwing with records!”
“I need—”
“You’re out of time, Carly. The hospital is releasing you on January 1. You have until then to get me enough money to start over somewhere else. You miss that payment—” Lorraine hissed, “and I’ll make you sorry you ever asked me for help.”
11 I recognize what you’re doin’
Wasn’t long ago that I was just like you
Brenda slapped a hand over the phone, and Robin snatched her hand back, making a face at her best friend. “What?”
“I know what you’re doing,” Brenda said, plucking the phone cord out of the base, grabbing the receiver, carrying it over to the fireplace. She whirled around, clutching the blue piece of plastic to her breasts. “And I know what you’re thinking.”
“You do not,” Robin muttered, drawing her knees up to her chest, staring at the fire burning behind Brenda.
“You were going to call him.”
“Was not—”
“Was to—” Brenda plopped back down on the end of her sofa, scowling at her best friend. ” You’ve been thinking about it ever since Felicia told us.”
“I just—” Robin wrinkled her nose. “I don’t think it’s a terrible idea just to leave a message and let him know I’m thinking about him—”
“You want to leave a message for your ex-boyfriend because his kid is sick — a kid conceived while the two of you were together. Jason’s got friends for that—”
“Brenda.”
“Robin. This is how it starts,” Brenda stressed. “You reached out because you’re kind, and Jason will make you somehow forgive him, and then you’re playing stepmother to Carly’s kid. You hate her. And you—”
“Jason and I aren’t getting back together. We’re not. That ship has sailed,” Robin insisted. “He’s dating again, and I told you there might be someone in Paris—”
“I still—”
“If I reach out to Jason,” Robin said, “it’ll be because I am kind and because that baby didn’t ask for Carly to be his mother. No kid would ever want that. And Jason and I were friends first. I’d like to be civil with him—”
“He doesn’t deserve it,” Brenda muttered, but she handed Robin the phone. “He doesn’t.”
“Maybe not.” Robin plugged the phone base in but didn’t make the call. “I have to live in this town after I come home this summer,” she reminded Brenda. “And Felicia said the baby is supposed to recover. If I don’t find a way to make peace with this, it’ll just eat away at me. I don’t want it.”
“Maybe we’ll get lucky, and Carly will take her kid and disappear,” Brenda said brightly. “That would solve all our problems, wouldn’t it?”
“I don’t think we’re going to get that lucky. Carly is the kind of woman who hangs out forever, destroying everything she touches.”
12 Did a little self-improvement
But it seems you’re still rotten to your roots
AJ saw Jason emerge from Carly’s hospital room and made his move. He approached his brother, hands shoved in the pockets of his pants. “You gotta minute?”
Jason nodded—his expression wary. “Why?”
“This needs to end,” AJ said. He rocked back and forth. “And don’t ask me what I’m talking about. We both know you’re lying. Whether it’s because you just hate me or you hate the family—”
Jason just stared at him, but AJ liked to think there was a twitch in his cheek. “Are you done?”
“You and I both know that’s my son up in there in the NICU,” AJ said roughly, his throat tight. “And I have the right—”
“It’s always about you,” Jason retorted. “Isn’t it? What you deserve. What you’re entitled to. That’s all you worry about—”
“Damn it—” AJ bit off the angry retort. “I know you might be worried about what I might do. That I might start drinking again—”
“That’s none of my business—”
“You think the baby will be the next life I destroy—”
Jason pressed his lips together, looked down at his feet, and AJ exhaled slowly. “I just want to be a good father—and we both know Carly will be the world’s worst mother. You’re protecting her for some reason, but all Carly knows is how to use people. Don’t be someone else she uses, Jase. You don’t need this crap. Carly is my problem—”
“Carly is everyone’s problem,” Jason said quietly. “You want the truth? Get a blood test. That’s the only way out of this.” He pushed past AJ and disappeared around the corner.
13 What goes around comes around
Do unto others and all that other shit
Jason passed the waiting area on the maternity floor, ignoring the sounds of Dick Clark’s Rockin’ New Year’s Eve and the people crowded around, patients and hospital staff both. They were making resolutions and talking about what they wanted to change.
Jason had never understood the idea of making resolutions. Why wait until the last day of the year to make a change? Why not just do it in the moment?
Then again, wasn’t Jason on his way to make his own resolution? Wasn’t he trying to make his own change?
It had been a week since the baby, still unnamed, had been born and rushed to the NICU. Four days since he and Elizabeth had stood in a supply closet, a line drawn clearly between them with Carly’s name on it, and neither of them willing to cross it. Maybe they didn’t know how, he thought. Elizabeth had the right to want Carly out of her life—but was he so wrong to want her to give him a sign that she’d wait for him to fix this?
He shoved that out of his head and headed down the hallway to Carly’s hospital room. She’d been recovering from a concussion and the C-section, but she was going home in the morning. The baby had had a successful surgery to correct his heart condition, and he’d be able to go home in a week, maybe two.
Jason was out of time to make Carly live up to her end of the bargain. Where she was going next, it wasn’t going to be his problem anymore. He’d done everything and footed the hospital bills in addition.
He wanted to be done.
He shoved the door open, unsurprised to see Carly sitting on the sofa under the windows, watching the same New Year’s Eve special.
“I thought you were going to Luke’s tonight,” she said, dropping her feet to the ground. “What are you doing here?”
“I’m going later,” he said. “After we’re done here.” And after he went to the NICU to say goodbye to the baby he’d been watching over for the last few weeks. The kid wasn’t his son, but he was Jason’s nephew, and he’d become used to spending time with him. But after tonight, the only way to be around the baby would be to keep Carly in his life.
And Jason wasn’t interested.
Carly narrowed her eyes. “That sounds ominous—”
“Because it is. I did everything I said I would,” Jason said flatly. “The baby is born. We know he’ll be okay. When you’re released tomorrow, you’re going to a room at the Port Charles Hotel. I’ve paid for it,” he added. “You’ll stay until he’s released. Then I’m putting the two of you on a plane. I don’t care where you go, but you’re getting out of Port Charles. Just like you promised.”
Carly studied him for a long moment, then rose to her feet, wincing and setting a hand at her middle. “No. I’m not going anywhere—”
“I’m not giving you a choice—”
“If you think I’m done in Port Charles, then you’re wrong. I have things left to do.” Carly tossed her hair over her shoulder and folded her arms. “Now you have two choices. You can pick me up tomorrow and take me home to the penthouse where my son and I will be living—”
“No—”
“Or I will make sure the complaint I filed against your precious little Elizabeth isn’t the last grenade I throw at her,” Carly cut in. He stared at her and her lips curved into a malicious smile. “She’s probably filled your head with all my terrible, awful deeds, but she deserved everything I’ve ever done to her and more.”
“That’s not—”
“If you protect me and my son and make sure whatever blood test AJ and Tony throw at me name you as the father, I’ll let Elizabeth live her life in peace.”
“What else can you do to her?” Jason demanded. “She’s already on probation, and she hasn’t been near you to give you a reason to file another complaint—”
“Oh, there are ways to make sure she loses this job,” Carly said with an indifferent shrug. “And she might think there’s nothing left I can take from her, but there’s always something. And when I’m done ruining her life, I’ll circle back to Robin. So I guess—” She raised her brows. “The real question is—are you willing to risk crossing me?”
14 But you’re caught up in the cycle
I broke myself out of the cycle
Elizabeth emerged from a patient room and slid her chart into the slot on the door. Out of the corner of her eye, she spied a familiar face.
A face not assigned to this floor.
Suspicious, Elizabeth caught Lorraine just as she turned into the hallway where Carly’s room could be found. “What are you doing on this floor?” she demanded.
Lorraine hissed, jerking her arm from Elizabeth’s grasp. “None of your business—”
“It is my business. These are my patients—”
“This week,” the other woman sneered. “Next week, where are they sending you, huh? Little floater who can’t be trusted to stay anywhere. You’re the hospital charity case, Lizzie. They can’t kick you because of your grandparents—”
Elizabeth stepped back, a chill sliding down her back. “We’re back to insulting me, which means you made up with Carly.”
“Oh, don’t pretend you give a damn—”
“I don’t. I know that just last week, you wanted me to help you beat her. And now you’re back to this.” Elizabeth folded her arms. “Whatever Carly promised you, it won’t stop her from turning on you when it’s convenient—”
“Don’t act like you know anything,” Lorraine retorted. “Because you don’t—” She stalked in the opposite direction, and Elizabeth looked after her, troubled, wondering what Carly was planning next.
15 Energy’s in full rotation
Knew I would regret ya
AJ didn’t bother to knock. He knew Carly was alone—had watched her room for almost a half hour — no one ever stayed longer than ten minutes — and he didn’t want an audience for this.
He pushed the door open and found the woman in question, pacing the floor, biting at the nail on her thumb. “You look concerned,” he said, leaning against the door frame.
Carly jerked up her hand and glared at him. “Get out—”
“Not until I serve you with this—” He tossed the papers on the bed, and she scowled at them. “That’s a court order for a paternity test. Get it done by January 2, Carly, or the court will do it for you—”
She snatched the packet up, then scowled at him. “This isn’t just a blood test order—”
“No, I’m sure you already know what custody papers look like. I hear Tony served you earlier today.” AJ shoved his hands in his pockets. “Time’s up, Caroline. When that test proves the baby is mine, I have everything I need to make sure I get custody—”
“Like hell—”
“I don’t have proof you drugged me,” AJ said, and Carly quieted. “But you’ve done enough over the last few weeks to prove that you’ll interfere with custody. If you’re lucky, a judge might give you supervised visitation—”
Carly crumpled the papers in her hand. “You’re so damned arrogant, but I’m ready for you. And I’m ready for Tony—” Her voice cracked, but her face florid with fury. “No one is taking my baby from me! Do you hear me?”
“The baby you care so much about you haven’t even bothered to name him,” AJ mocked. “That’ll look good for the judge, huh, Carly? Worried I’m going to take your meal ticket away?”
“You won’t—”
“We’ll see.” AJ sauntered out, smirking as he heard something crash against the wall behind him.
16 Payin’ for my past mistakes
You’re bad, bad karma
Elizabeth grimaced at the order to head up to the NICU and drop off some paperwork. That was the last place she wanted to be, and she was only grateful she wouldn’t have to go into the ward itself, only the nurse’s station outside.
“Hey, Leyla,” she said. “I brought up the schedule changes for next week—”
“Oh, wonderful,” Leyla said with a roll of eyes. “They’re going to float me to the emergency room, Bobbie already warned me. What the bloody hell do I know about emergency medicine?” She took the schedule.
The ward doors opened, and Jason stepped out, tossing the protective gown he’d been wearing into the disposal basket and stripping off the gloves. Their eyes met. “I’ll talk to you later, Leyla,” she told the nurse.
He shoved his hands into his jeans. “Hey.”
“I was dropping off some paperwork—” Elizabeth glanced behind him. “How’s—um—does he have a name yet?”
“No,” Jason admitted. “Do you have a minute?”
“Yeah. Sure.” Elizabeth gestured to the outer doors of the unit, glaring at Leyla over her shoulder as the other woman looked irritated to be cut out of possible gossip. “Why hasn’t Carly named him yet?”
“I don’t—I don’t know. I didn’t ask.” Jason followed her into the same supply closet as before. “I’m sorry. I know you said you didn’t want to be involved—”
“It’s not—” Elizabeth wrinkled her nose. “It’s not that I don’t want to—I just—Carly’s unpredictable, and I don’t want that in my life. It was hard enough to get her to forget about me the first time—”
“I get it, I do. And I’m going to make sure she can’t hurt you anymore. That’s why I needed to talk to you,” Jason told her.
Elizabeth frowned. “What—”
“She gave me an ultimatum. I keep the secret, or she goes after you,” he said, and Elizabeth stared at him. “And Robin. Until I can figure out something else, I have to let her stay. I can’t afford to call her bluff.”
Couldn’t afford to give Carly motive to go after Elizabeth and Robin—the truth of what Jason was planning to do hit her hard. He was sacrificing himself. She couldn’t let him—
“Jason—” Elizabeth shook her head. “Don’t—don’t do this. Don’t let Carly win—” But hadn’t she pushed him to this? Hadn’t she made it clear that keeping Carly out of her life was what she wanted? Wasn’t Jason just trying to do what she asked? Protecting her—and Robin—from the mistakes he’d made?
“It’s not—” He hesitated. “I did this. I let her lie and get away with it. I have to make sure no one else gets hurt.”
“But you can’t—that’s not how Carly works, okay? She’s made my life miserable almost since I met her. At first, she just made comments and tried to undermine me. She made sure any mistake I made was amplified and always questioned everything I did. And then she was hiding paperwork on my patient’s charts—” She rubbed a fist over her heart. “My grandmother always said I wouldn’t make it out of the program. I wasn’t like Steven or Sarah. My grandfather—he still believed in me—but every time something happened, I could see him starting to doubt me.”
“I’m sorry—”
“But that’s what she does. She hits you where you’re the weakest—in ways you didn’t even think she could.” Elizabeth lifted her chin. “We can’t let her win, Jason. If she sticks around, she’ll just find new ways to hurt and use you. If it’s not through me or Robin, it’ll be through that baby. You’re a good person—you’ll fall in love with that baby if you’re acting like his father, and she’ll never let you go.”
He closed her eyes, and she knew he’d already started that slow slide. Knew he’d spent nearly every waking moment with the little boy in the NICU.
“I don’t know another way out of this,” he confessed in a low, pained voice. “I just—I wish I’d listened to you, but it wouldn’t have made a difference. It was already too late.” He cleared his throat. “I didn’t—I didn’t tell you so you’d feel sorry for me. I just—I wanted to tell you that you were right to steer clear of this, and I’m going to make sure you and Robin aren’t going to be in the middle anymore.”
“No—”
He reached out, skimmed the back of his fingers down her cheek. “I’m sorry. I wish we could go back to Jake’s and pretend none of this ever happened.”
“I—” Elizabeth’s beeper at her waist buzzed. She winced. “No. No. I’m not going to let you sacrifice your life to save me some grief. And Robin wouldn’t want it either if you asked her. You made a mistake, Jason, but you shouldn’t have to pay for it forever.”
She leaned up on her toes, gripping his shirt in her hands, and kissed him. Jason’s hands fisted in her scrub top, pulling her tight against him—then the beeper at her side buzzed again.
“I have to—” She drew away, then kissed him again, swaying a little as she settled back on her feet. “I have to go. My shift will be over at midnight. Will you meet me here?”
“Okay.” Jason cupped her chin. “If you’re sure.”
“I’m not sure of anything, but I’m not going to stand on the sidelines anymore. There’s no way in hell I’m going to let Carly win. Not again.”
17 Fucking up my reputation
Should’ve seen it coming
Tony scowled when he saw AJ at the elevators on the maternity floor. He stalked towards him, his jaw clenched. “What are you doing here?” he demanded.
AJ raised his brow. “The same reason you are,” he said. “I just gave Carly the court order for a paternity test.”
He hated this—hated every minute of it. “You have no right—I told you I would handle this—”
“And I told you that I would help you if it turned out the baby was yours. I would hope you’d do the same for me. You might hate me right now,” AJ told him, and Tony narrowed his eyes. “But we both hate Carly more for what she’s done. The only way to get this over with is to work together to make sure she pays. She has until January 2 to conduct a paternity test on the baby, or the court will do it for her.”
Tony growled. “It’s my baby—”
“You can keep telling yourself that, but the blood test will finish this.” AJ grimaced, pressing the buttons. “I’m not looking forward to fighting Carly for the next eighteen years, but I guess it’s a price I’ll have to pay.”
Tony shook his head. “I’ll pay her off—she’ll lose interest—”
AJ snorted. “Not bloody likely,” he said sourly. “You don’t have enough money to keep her away forever,” he reminded Tony, “and Carly will just bleed me dry if I try that. I have to find a way to prove in court that she shouldn’t be in the kid’s life at all.”
He stepped onto the elevator, and Tony turned back towards the patient rooms, thinking about the future AJ had painted, dealing with Carly, and battling her every day—
If only there was another way.
18 Is it my imagination
Or bad, bad karma?
Carly just wanted everyone to leave her the hell alone tonight—AJ and Tony had come by with their court orders and angry eyes, and Jason had pulled that bullshit by thinking he could get around her—and goddamn Lorraine was in her face again—
“What’s it going to be?” Lorraine demanded. “I want my money—”
“Shut up,” Carly hissed. She stalked towards the brunette, jabbing her finger at her. “Shut the hell up, do you understand? If you keep threatening me, I’ll make sure GH finds out and the rest of the world, too!”
Lorraine slapped her hard, and Carly’s face snapped to the side. She shoved Lorraine. “Yeah, you forgot this works both ways, didn’t you, you fucking bitch?” Carly snarled. “I have the power, remember? I know everything—”
“And I know everything about you.” Lorraine jerked open the door. “You call me when you remember who the hell can do more damage. I’ll lose my job—what do you have on the line?”
She stalked out, and Carly scowled, dragging her hands through her hair. A moment later, Jason came in, closing the door behind him. “Did you come to tell me you’re taking the deal?” Carly demanded. She’d make sure access to his accounts was part of the negotiations—damn it, she needed Lorraine to go away—
“No,” Jason said shortly, and Carly gaped at him. “Whatever you think you can do to Elizabeth, Robin, or anyone else—I can handle it. And so can they. You need to go, Carly.”
“That—” Carly’s heart began to pound. “This not the plan, okay?”
“You either tell AJ the truth tomorrow morning, or I’m going to do it for you.”
“What? Wait—” Carly went for Jason’s arm as he started to leave. “Wait—”
Jason jerked out of her grasp, pushing Carly away from him. “Get off me—”
“No, let me disappear—” She could always come back—she could fight another day—
“That’s off the table,” Jason retorted. “You had your chance to keep our deal, and you screwed me over. The only thing left is who tells AJ. Me or you. And if it’s me, I won’t be nice about it.”
He left then, and Carly stared at him, her face pale. Oh, damn, damn, damn—she’d overplayed every hand, and now there was no one left to turn to—Oh, damn it—
If Jason thought she would let him get away with this—if she was going down, she was going to take him with her. One way or another.
19 You have a hunger for disaster
But you’ll never get your fill
“Planning a quiet night at home?” Ruby Anderson, the owner of Kelly’s diner, asked Robin, setting the takeout bag on the counter.
“Yeah, Brenda and I are just gonna stay at the cottage and watch the ball drop.” Robin flashed a smile. “Thanks for the last minute order.”
“You got in just in time,” Ruby said. “Have a good night—oh, AJ—did you need something?”
Robin turned to find Jason’s brother behind her. “AJ. Hey.”
“Hey,” AJ said shortly. “Ruby, you got any chili left?”
“I can put something together,” the older woman said, disappearing into the back.
Robin managed a smile for her childhood friend. “Haven’t run into you since I came back. So, um, how are things?”
“Please.” AJ perched on the stool, staring darkly at her. “You know exactly how things are. What I don’t understand is why you aren’t forcing Jason to tell the truth—”
Robin squinted. “What do you mean?”
“Do you really think Jason cheated on you?” AJ demanded. He tugged out his wallet and pulled out a twenty. “After everything you’ve been through?”
“What I think is irrelevant,” Robin said carefully. “She’s living with him, and he’s taking care of the baby—”
“Which only begs the question—” AJ exchanged the cash for the bag Ruby handed him. “What the hell does Carly have on Jason to force him to go through with this?”
“Wait, do you think Carly’s blackmailing—”
“Jason doesn’t like me,” AJ said shortly, “but he doesn’t hate me enough to destroy his entire life. So I know he’s lying about the baby for another reason.”
“Maybe he’s not—”
“All I know is Carly’s up to something, and I’m going to find out what the hell is going on.” He slid off the stool. “Happy New Year, Robin.”
20 If by bringing someone down
You thought that you’d feel better
Bobbie checked her watch again. Almost eleven—
“He’s not coming.” Felicia offered the bowl of popcorn. “And Lucas is having fun with his cousins. He barely notices his father forgot to pick him up—”
“That should bother me.” She sunk down on the sofa, watching the television as the screen flashed to the ball that wouldn’t drop for another hour. “Lucas should miss his father more—”
“Tony has dropped out of everything since things exploded with Carly,” Felicia said. “Thanks—” she said as Mac came in from the kitchen and handed them both a glass of wine. “He’ll get himself together once the blood tests come back—”
“And when he finds out that baby isn’t his?” Bobbie wanted to know.
“It’ll be the best thing for all of you. It would mean Carly was completely out of your life,” Mac said, settling into a chair with a beer. “Don’t you want that?”
“More than anything, but I just—” Bobbie sighed and leaned back against the cushions. “I just wish he’d called and said he wouldn’t be here. I had him paged at the hospital, and nothing. He’s not answering the phone at the apartment, either.” She looked out into the dark, inky night with the snow falling softly. “I wonder where he is and if he’s okay.”
21 Then why are you so unhappy still? Energy’s in full rotation
Carly paced her room, watching the door warily. Any minute now and the ax would drop. Jason would get a taste of what she’d do to the precious bitch if he didn’t stop this crap — she’d promise to take it all back if he just—
The phone on the nightstand rang. She jerked the receiver up to her ear. “Hello? What do you—” She narrowed her eyes. “So you want to make a deal, huh? No more threats? Okay. Okay. We can talk. Where do you—okay. I’ll be there in—” she checked her watch. How long would it take her to toss on some clothes? “I’ll be there in fifteen.”
22 Knew I would regret ya
Payin’ for my past mistakes
“Hey, look who’s eager to be off shift,” Patrick teased as Elizabeth edged around a row of lockers and went to the next aisle. “Any plans?”
“Not really—” Elizabeth opened her locker, grabbing the breath mints. She was going on rounds and wouldn’t be able to get back here before meeting Jason— “I’m not off for another hour.”
“Oh, sucks to be you.” Patrick jerked a sweater over his head. “I’m gonna head to Luke’s. Supposed to be good music, and you’ll know the place will be open until dawn tonight. Come by—”
“I would, but—” Elizabeth pursed her lips. “I’m meeting Jason.”
“Jason Morgan.” Patrick arched a skeptical brow. “I thought you cut things off after the news hit—”
“I did. But—”
“And didn’t she just file a complaint against you? That’s why you’re floating—”
“I know—”
“Bad idea,” Patrick advised, dragging a brush through his dark hair and arranging it to look careless and casual. “You barely got out of the last round with your job—”
“Patrick, do you think I don’t remember any of this?” she demanded, putting a hand on her hip. “I know what I’m doing—”
“Just reminding you to be on your guard.”
“I will. Have a good time at Luke’s.”
Elizabeth left the locker room and headed to the nurse’s station. She slowed her steps when she saw Epiphany standing there, a folder in her hands and a look in her eye.
“What?” Elizabeth asked warily.
“You’ve had another complaint filed against you,” Epiphany told her, handing the folder. “I’ve left a message for Bobbie. We’re going to pull all our favors—”
“Carly—” Elizabeth stared at the paperwork, her vision blurring slightly before raising her gaze back to her supervisor. “I haven’t even—”
“I know. It’s bullshit. It’ll be dismissed just like all the others, but—”
“But.” Elizabeth gritted her teeth. Well, Jason must have done something, or Carly was just lobbing a warning shot to make sure they knew what she was capable of.
It was time for Carly to lose, and Elizabeth couldn’t wait to put the bitch in the ground.
23 You’re bad, bad karma
Fucking up my reputation
Monica wound her way through the crowds in the Renaissance Room, forcing herself to smile every time someone wished her a Happy New Year.
She hadn’t wanted to come to this stupid party, but Alan had insisted, and now—
“Finally.” She tugged on her husband’s arm, dragging him away from a board member he’d been talking to.
“Monica, I was just talking to Amanda about funding for the pediatric program—”
“You can do it later. AJ promised us he’d stay home tonight,” Monica reminded Alan. “He didn’t want to be tempted by going to any of the parties and being around alcohol—”
“Is he here?” Alan craned his neck, looking around.
“No—but I called the house. Reginald said AJ left a few hours ago, and he hasn’t seen or heard from him since. Alan, what if he’s out drinking?” Monica wanted to know.
“We’ll cross that bridge when it comes to it,” Alan assured her. “Come on. Let’s see if we can get the Barringtons to increase their annual donation.”
24 Should’ve seen it coming
Is it my imagination
Jason was already waiting for her when Elizabeth arrived at the supply closet just before midnight. She’d passed by some of the staff at the nurse’s station, watching the New Year’s special. She checked her watch. Five minutes to midnight.
Jason was leaning against the door, his hands tucked in his jeans. She exhaled slowly. “Hey—”
“Hey.” He straightened. “What’s wrong?”
“Did you—Did you tell Carly you weren’t going to go along with her plan?” Elizabeth asked.
Jason’s face tensed. “What happened?”
“She filed a new complaint against me. I’ll take that as a yes,” she said when Jason muttered something and looked away. “What did you say to her?”
“I told her she could tell AJ herself or I would, and I gave her until tomorrow morning.” Jason shook his head. “I’m sorry. I should have waited—”
“Why?”
“Because—”
“Carly was always going to make you pay for giving her an ultimatum, whether you waited and we talked about how to do it.” Elizabeth shrugged. “You just forced her hand early. Will you tell AJ?”
“I’ll have to. She’s going after you—” Jason pressed his lips together. “I’m sorry. But telling AJ means he’ll drag her into court, and hopefully, she’ll be too busy—”
“Oh, Carly will make time. But I don’t care.”
Jason stared at her, and in the silence, she heard the excitement down the hall as the clock ticked one minute closer. 11:59. Down the hall, someone started a countdown from sixty began as the ball began its descent in Times Square. “59, 58, 57—”
“You don’t care.”
“I don’t care,” Elizabeth repeated. “Carly can come after my job, fine. She’s done that once, and I beat her. I meant what I said earlier.”
“Elizabeth—”
“I’m done letting Carly win. So instead of walking away—” Elizabeth pulled the supply closet open and took Jason by the hand. “I’m going to go after what I want, and I’m not waiting another minute.”
“40, 39—”
25 Or bad, bad karma? Bad, bad
Jason followed Elizabeth into the supply closet, a bit surprised, bewildered, and turned on as hell by the glint in her eyes and the smirk on her lips. Just like the first night he’d met her at Jake’s—
She reached past him, her body brushing his, and he heard the lock tumble into place behind him. Then Elizabeth arched a brow, gently pushing him against the door.
“10…9…”
She stepped back, crossing her arms and reaching for the hem of her shirt. She dragged it off, revealing a thin camisole underneath and the strap of a purple bra sliding down one shoulder.
“8…7…”
Jason grinned, then reached for her, crushing her against him and devouring her mouth with his. He’d wanted to get his hands on her for weeks, and if she was going to give him another chance—
“6…5…”
She pulled his shirt over his head, tossing it aside. “Come back here,” she murmured against his mouth. “Behind the shelves. In case anyone comes in—we can hide.” Elizabeth giggled as he lifted her in his arms.
“4…”
Then he stumbled.
“3…”
“Oof—” Elizabeth fell to the floor. “Well, that wasn’t very graceful—What the hell—what’s wet—” Her words stumbled to a stop as she rolled to her side and caught sight of what Jason was staring at, his eyes wide.
“2… ”
Carly was lying on her back, her head turned towards them, her eyes wide open and glassy. Blood had pulled beneath her head from the gaping slash in her neck.
“1…”
Elizabeth raised her hands, staring at the streaks of red on them.
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