Written in 58 minutes.

Wednesday, October 2, 2024

Belle Forest Drive

Alexis clutched Sonny’s coat jacket, her heart in her throat as the SUV moved across the partially submerged bridge.

“Come on, come on, come on,” Sonny muttered under his breath. “Make it, make it—”

If the SUV lost traction, if it was swept away by the creek which now looked more like a raging river spilling past its banks, all but erasing any evidence of the roadway that had comfortable sat above it. How many times had she taken this drive and not even considered the water that ran beneath it, rolling past her housing development and emptying into the lake—

The initial propulsion had the SUV halfway across the bridge and it continued to move, much more slowly through the flood waters. All around them, the rain continued to pound down, feeding the flood—

And across the road, somewhere out of her sight, her babies, her precious girls were trapped somewhere and Alexis couldn’t get to them, couldn’t fight for them, couldn’t do anything—

The SUV stalled for a beat — likely no more than a handful of seconds, but, oh, they felt like a lifetime as Alexis watched the back tires start to slide across the roadway. Sonny released her, took a step forward—because, of course, his son and the man he’d loved as a brother were in that vehicle risking everything to get to her girls.

But at the last minute, the SUV cleared the bridge, picked up speed, and the headlights disappeared where the road curved into the trees.

“He made it, the crazy of a bitch—” Sonny let out a bark of bewildered, terrified laughter, his gray streaked hair stuck to his temples.

“Emergency services are on their way,” Diane said, panting slightly as she joined them underneath the umbrella. “And they’re going to get a chopper on the other side of the creek.”

Alexis couldn’t stop shaking. She just wanted her girls, she wanted them safe in her arms — where she could yell at them. What were they thinking being out on a night like this?

“Let’s get in the car,” Diane said, touching her shoulder. “No need for us to stand out here where we can’t do anything but wait.”

Webber House: Living Room

“Mom? Mom!”

Jake tried to tune out the pitch of Danny’s panicked voice, climbing with every attempt he made to reconnected with his mother. The call had dropped, and Danny couldn’t get her back on the phone.

And their father wasn’t answering either—Jake dialed his mother’s number next, waiting, and waiting, and waiting—

But nothing.

“What do we do?” Aiden wanted to know. “What do we do?”

“I don’t know!” Jake snapped, and Aiden stepped back a beat, swallowing hard, his eyes too big for his face. Jake took a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I just—” Wished Cameron was here. Cameron would know what to do.

What would Cameron would do?

“Okay. Okay. We can track them. We can—” Jake hung up his phone, and with shaky fingers navigated to the app that he’d protested when his mother had put it on the phone. Why did she need to know where he was all the time? Didn’t she trust him?

You? Yes. The world? No. And look, I’ll put myself on here. You can track me, too.

“She’s—she’s out by Sam’s mom’s house,” Jake said, confused as his mother’s little blue dot traveled. “And she’s with Dad.”

“They must be going to see your mother,” Aiden told Danny. “See? Your dad’s already on the way. Call your grandmother—”

“Right, right.” Danny fumbled with his phone, found Alexis’s contact information, and pressed send.

But there was nothing. No answer.

“What about your aunts? Kristina or Molly? They have to know where your mom is, right?” Jake said, coming over to Danny’s phone.

“I don’t know, I don’t know. Mom sounded so scared, and she wouldn’t tell me—why wouldn’t she tell me—” Danny gripped Jake’s shirt, his eyes tear stained. “Why didn’t she tell me?”

“We’ll call Molly, okay? She’s in the DA’s office, right? She’ll know about accidents, okay? We’ll call, and we’ll keep calling—”

“No. No, we have to go out and start looking—” Danny made a break for the door, and Jake dropped the phone, reaching his brother just as Danny started to open it.

“Are you kidding? There’s flooding, and you hear that rain? And even if it wasn’t, we don’t know where to go. Let’s not play Noah’s Ark until we know something.” Because that’s what Cameron would do. Collect the facts. Make informed decisions.

Except that one time he’d nearly shot Jake’s dad who was trying to escape from jail—

Because he didn’t have the facts, Cameron had told Jake later, with some real regret. He’d been stupid. Acting on impulse. All the things he’d yell at Jake about.

“Here—” Aiden held out the phone, Molly’s contact information on the screen. “Let’s start with her, and then we’ll make a list if she doesn’t know anything. We won’t stop until we figure it out, okay, Danny? We’ll find your mom.”

Belle Forest Drive

There’d been one moment — just one — when he could feel the weight of the SUV change slightly, becoming almost weightless as the back of the vehicle had lifted, caught up in the rushing creek waters, and if they’d been even a foot further from the other side—

Elizabeth had never doubted Jason for a moment — or Dante. She knew that neither of them would have let she or Spinelli anywhere near the SUV if they’d been truly worried that they might not make it across—

But there’d been that moment when she’d seen Jason go stark white, and his fingers clench on the wheel, the roar of the engine as he pressed down on the gas pedal —

When they’d felt the water fall away, when the SUV had picked up speed, and they were back on firm, albeit, slick ground, she could breathe again.

But then the reality of what they might be speeding towards sank in — would they make in time? How many minutes had elapsed between Chase’s first frantic radio call to Dante and getting in the car —

How fast were the waters rising?

They came around another bend, where the trees broke open and the first houses could be seen — where the sides of the road sloped down, the incline steep on the left side as it led down to the creek. A car was parked haphazardly across the road, the headlights on, doors open and trunk popped.

Jason brought the SUV to a stop, but Dante was already out of the car the second he started to slow, running towards the abandoned car, slipping as he reached it.

“Where’s Chase?” Elizabeth demanded, all but falling out of the car and sprinting towards Dante. Jason reached him first, Spinelli just behind Elizabeth.

“Which side—” Spinelli went to one side, while Jason went to the other — and found that a bungee cord had been tied to the trunk of the car and was over the side of the embankment — until it disappeared into the inky night.

“The damn fool went down there on his own,” Dante bit out, limping slightly as he squinted down. “I can’t see anything. Or anyone.” No headlights. Had Chase been able to see the car? He couldn’t remember.

“Okay. Okay.” Dante turned to the others, swept his soaked hair from his face. “Spinelli and Elizabeth, you’ll wait up here—I don’t want to hear any arguments,” he said when he saw Elizabeth open her mouth. “Spinelli, there’s a radio in Chase’s car. Get it. You’ll keep it up here. Jason and I’ll follow Chase’s trail, and we’ll radio up if we need medical help. I know the basics, and you can talk us through anything else,” he told her.

Elizabeth grimaced, then nodded reluctantly. Spinelli returned with the radio and with a flashlight.

“Here, take this. We can’t see anything — be careful. The weather service expects the creek to crest at nearly nine feet above its usual levels,” Spinelli told them. “You need to get down there, get them out, and get back.”

“Let’s go.” Jason took just a moment, to squeeze’s Elizabeth’s hand, then gestured for Dante to start down in front of him. He gripped the rope tightly and he and Dante started to make their way down the mud slick embankment.

General Hospital: Nurse’s Station

Molly wound her arm through TJ’s as they strolled towards the station where they would have to part ways as he got back on shift. “We should really do this more often,” she told him, leaning her head against his shoulder. “Why don’t we meet in the on-call room next time?”

“I told you,” TJ said, offering her a half grin, turning to face her. “It’s not like what you see on television. I don’t have time to be getting lucky between patients.”

“Well, I should hope not since I’m not here,” Molly returned with a grin. She leaned up to his kiss him on more time. “The holidays. This Christmas. Can you take a few days? We’ll go down to New York, see my dad or something. I think we both need a break.”

“Agreed.” He kissed her again. “Love you.”

“Love you, too.” She started towards the elevator, leisurely plucking her phone from her purse when she felt it began to ring. A call from Danny? At this time of night? Curious, Molly accepted the call.

“Hey, kiddo, what’s up—”

“Please tell me you know where my mom is,” Danny cut in, his voice rising until it cracked. “Aunt Molly, please.”

“I—I don’t know.” Molly turned back to find TJ watching her. Something in his expression must have caught his attention because he came towards her. “Danny, what’s wrong?”

“Mom—Mom, she called and she was scared, and she was telling me she loved me and that she couldn’t get out, and Grandmom isn’t answering and neither is my dad or Elizabeth, and I don’t know where she is, Aunt Molly, you gotta find my mother—”

“Okay, okay slow down—” Molly reached out, gripped TJ’s scrub shirt. “Your mother called you and said she couldn’t get out, that she was scared—and no one was answering? Not your dad either?”

“N-N0, he and Liz were s-supposed to be at the lawyer’s, but they’re not. They’re out by Grandmom’s house, but they’re not answering—”

Grandmom’s house. The flash flood advisory. Molly’s heart sank. She couldn’t get out, she said she couldn’t get out, that she couldn’t get out—

She closed her eyes, forced herself to speak evenly. “Danny, I want you to listen to me very carefully. I am at the hospital. TJ is going to find out if there’s been any accidents or anything else in the ER. I am going to start calling people and I will find out what’s going on, okay? I will find out what’s going on.” She gestured for TJ who jogged over to the nurse’s station, started talking to the nurse behind the counter. “Where are you right now?”

“I-I’m home.”

“Are you alone?”

“N-No. Jake and Aiden are here.”

“Good. Can I talk to Jake? Just a minute, honey.”

Molly heard some rustling, and then Jake spoke. “Uh, hello?”

“Jake. Hey. I need you to promise me you’ll keep Danny at home with you until you  hear from me. You know him, you might have to tackle him. But don’t let him leave, okay?”

“I won’t—but, um, do you know anything? What’s going on?”

“I don’t—” Molly’s throat tightened for just a moment, and then she was able to speak again. “I don’t know. But I’m on it, and I’ll get answers. I’m going to call some people, find out if anything has been called in. I know people, Jake. I will find—I will find out what’s going on. You stay with Danny. Don’t move from that house until you hear from me or your parents.”

Belle Forest Drive

The cord was slick and difficult to keep a good grip on, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as trying to stay up right on the mud slick hill, and more than once, Dante or Jason had had to reach out to the other to keep them from falling—

The rain had only gotten worse, the drops more like little pellets that were being shot at him —  and he imagined if he could feel the cold on his skin, he’d be freezing. He could hear the creek waters getting louder as they moved down the hill —

But still no sign of a car or anyone who had been in it.

Though the descent couldn’t have taken more than five minutes, maybe a few more — Jason heard Dante shout — and they could see the end of the cord where it was still fastened around Chase’s middle.

The younger man was on his knees next to a crumbled form, dark hair spilling out onto the mud and leaves. Jason moved closer, and his heart sank when he realized it was Kristina, with a nasty gash on her head.

“Where’s Sam?” Dante demanded. “Where’s the—” He looked over and saw the creek ten feet away — rushing past them, faster than he’d ever seen it. It was usually nothing more than a rolling creek that was usually good for wading or maybe a little bit of fishing in one of the deeper spots —

Now it was a rushing, roaring flow of water that had swallowed half the hillside.

“I couldn’t—” Chase’s voice was hoarse, and he had his own forehead gash that was oozing when he lifted his face to Jason. “I couldn’t get to the car—I tried, I tried ,but the water it just — I couldn’t—

“Where’s the car?” Dante demanded. “Where—” He looked over where Chase had been looking, and Jason followed his gaze.

The car was gone. Maybe it was still somewhere, beneath the waters. Or maybe it had been carried away by the furious waters that had crept towards them even closer than it had been when they’d arrived.

“Sam!” Dante cried. He started towards the water’s edge. “Sam!” He stumbled, and Jason caught his arm as the man looked like he might try to jump into the flood.

“You can’t do that! You’ll be dead before you—” Jason’s words stumbled to a horrified stop as he realized what he was telling Dante. What was he was admitting.

What he would have to tell Danny.

That any attempt to find Sam now would be suicide. There was no way of locating the car, not like this, not with the storm still raging around them, with the waters still rising and expected to come up another two feet—

“You can’t help her now,” Jason said, squeezing Dante’s arm tight. “You can’t help her now. We have to get Kristina, and we have to get out of here before it’s too late for us, too. We can’t—” He took one minute to look back at the creek, his stomach rolling at the thought of Sam somewhere in it. Was she trapped? Was she still alive somehow?

There was no way to answer that question without killing himself, and he wasn’t willing to do that. He’d risked enough to get down here, to try to save her. It would have to be enough. He hoped it would feel like enough when he faced their son.

“We have to get out of here,” he repeated to Dante. “Now.”

+41

Written in 54 minutes.

Wednesday, October 2, 2024

Belle Forest Drive

The car rolled and rolled and rolled, the screams from the women inside swallowed by the swollen waters of the creek rushing towards Port Charles and Lake Ontario and the relentless thunderstorm.

Chase reached the side of the road just as the car landed near the bank of the creek — or what was now the bank of the creek — it had already risen almost a foot past its typical height. It was difficult to see what was going on through the rain, so Chase tried to hesitantly start down the embankment, but immediately, his foot caught in the mud and he nearly lost his balance, tumbling after the car.

“Damn it, damn it—” He scrambled back to safety, then cupped his mouth to yell down to the car below him. “You have to get out! You have to—fuck—” They wouldn’t be able to hear him —

He rushed back to his car, reached for his radio. ““Central, 3-12—signal 10-50, rollover, vehicle in the creek. Be advised, flash flooding, water rising—requesting FD and EMS, priority. Hurry!”

And then he found his cell phone, using the lights of the dashboard to find Dante’s contact information. Please let Dante be nearly here and not on the other side of the damn creek—

Below him, Sam’s sedan was upside down, the top side crushed down, windshield and windows shattered from the rollover.

Kristina could barely breathe, her fingers fumbled to unbelt her seat belt which she immediately regretted the decision when her body dropped hard out of the seat and hit the roof, a sliver of something stabbing her side. “Shit, shit, shit—”

She looked over to see Sam, still belted in but her side of the car was more crumpled, the dashboard crushed in. Her sister was moaning, blood coming from a cut on her scalp.

Kristina fumbled for Sam’s seat belt as Sam became more and more conscious. “Hold on, hold on—” she sobbed. “I’ll get us out of here. I’m so sorry, I’m so sorry—”

But when she released the belt — Sam didn’t drop. The steering wheel was pinning her to the seat. “Help—” Sam swallowed hard, then tried again. “Help me—you—you have to…you have to—”

“Okay, okay—” Kristina’s eyes widened as she felt something wet beneath her knees as she knelt next to her sister. Water. The water was inside the car. “We have to get out, we have to get out—the water—it’s coming in the car—”

“Pull—” Sam held out a hand, trying to get a grip on something. “You have to pull me—”

Kristina took her  by the shoulders and try to yank Sam backwards, out of her seat, but Sam just screamed, and Kristina lost her grip.

“I can’t—I can’t get you—I have to get help—I’ll get help—” Kristina crawled towards the window. “I’ll get help—”

“Don’t leave me! Kristina! Kristina—”

But Kristina had already crawled through the window, and Sam’s cries were swallowed by the storm.

Davis & Miller: Parking Lot

Though every muscle in Jason’s body was screaming to go faster, he carefully backed out of the parking spot and pulled the SUV onto the road. The storm was getting worse, and the last thing any of them needed was to get in accident themselves.

“Spinelli, where are they?” Jason demanded to the tech that had hastily followed them to the car and was tapping keys furiously on his laptop. “Where did that call come from?”

“He’s going as fast as he can,” Elizabeth reminded, dialing her own phone. “I’ll get 911 on the phone, Diane—”

“I’m going to start with Alexis—” the lawyer next to Spinelli said.

“Belle Forest Drive,” Spinelli interrupted. His voice was a bit strangled as he continued. “Just near Cobb Creek.”

A possible accident just where they’d closed the road for a flash flood?

Jason pressed his foot down on the gas pedal — just a little bit faster.

Belle Forest Drive

Dante gripped the phone one more time. “You can’t—” His throat tightened and he had to force himself to continue. “You can’t get down there?”

“I’m getting cord from the trunk—” Chase’s voice was barely audible. “Tie it to my car and to my waist—but it’s all a mud slick—”

Dante looked out over the bridge — Cobb Creek traveled a low bridge and he’d stopped where water was already flooding over the surface, making travel by car dangerous — the car could easily be swept away.   Belle Forest Drive continued over the other side of the river and then curled out of sight into a copse of trees. “How far away are you?” he demanded. “From the bridge?”

“Maybe half a mile—”

“Dante, what’s going on?” Alexis demanded, coming up from his father’s car, still somewhat dry beneath the umbrella his father had in his hand, though Sonny was fighting against the wind to keep it above them. “When can we get past the bridge?”

“Chase, I’m going to try to get to you, okay? Don’t be stupid. Don’t try that on your own. I’m going—I’m going to get there—” Dante said, looking back over the flooded water. “I’ll be on foot, so it will take some time.”

“Dante—”

“I’ll be there.” Dante hung up the phone and turned back to his father and Alexis. “Sam and Kristina were in an accident on the other side of the creek.”

“Oh my God—” Alexis grabbed Sonny’s arm. “How bad?”

“We don’t—Chase doesn’t know. The car went over the embankment and it’s down by the creek—”

“No!” Alexis cried. She lunged forward, as if she was going to run through the floodwaters with nothing powering her but maternal terror —

“Chase is getting down there, I’m going to get there to help him. It’s all—” Dante looked at his father, saw the worry and terror he knew must be in his own expression.

“You can’t go alone—” Sonny shoved the umbrella at Alexis. “You stay  with the car—” They turned back to the road as another pair of headlights appeared.

“Please let that be emergency vehicles,” Dante prayed.

But it was a familiar SUV, and Jason jogged up to them, followed almost immediately by Elizabeth, Diane, and Spinelli.

“We have to get to the other side of the creek,” Jason said, lifting his voice to be heard over the rain. “There’s been an accident—”

“Sam was on the phone when it happened—” Elizabeth said almost at the same time.

Diane came up to Alexis, put an arm around her. “But you already know that, don’t you?”

“They went over the road, they’re by the creek, and I can’t wait to catch you up, I have to go—Chase is on his own trying to reach them—” Dante shoved a radio at his father.

“How the hell are you going to get over that creek?” Sonny demanded, gesturing wildly towards the bridge that couldn’t even be seen — the water was rushing so fast and had risen several inches while they’d been standing there.

Dante couldn’t think, couldn’t articulate a response. “I don’t know. I can’t just stand here and do nothing!”

“The SUV might be able to get across,” Jason said. “It’s higher off the ground,” he told Dante. “Let’s go—”

Elizabeth started to follow them, but Jason turned and stopped her. “No, stay here—”

“Shut up,” she retorted. “And don’t waste time trying to argue with me.”

Cobb Creek

Kristina was still crawling up the side of the hill, sliding back every few minutes. She just had to get to the top. She’d get Sam help, she’d get some to help, someone stronger who could get Sam out of the car.

She’d get help—

Then she slipped, lost her balance, and tumbled down, the world rolling rapidly until pain exploded in her head and everything went black.

A hundred yards away, the water had risen high enough that Sam’s legs were soaked, and her voice was hoarse from screaming for help, and every piece of her body was screaming in pain as she kept trying to wrench herself free.

She had to get out, had to get to her kids, had to—

Her fingers brushed a familiar object, and Sam lifted her phone from where it had fallen next to the console. It was wet, but it still lit up. She choked back a sob, and had started to dial 911—but then she felt the cold water by her waist.

There wasn’t enough time. Not for emergency to reach her.

There wasn’t enough time.

Her fingers trembled, and she dialed the only number that mattered now.

Webber House: Dining Room

Danny stretched his legs out underneath the coffee table and scowled at the computer screen with the algebra problem mocking him. “I don’t know why being normal has to include homework,” he muttered, tapping some keys, trying to think of the first step.

But it was hard to think straight about anything. It was easier for Jake and Aiden, whom he could hear in the kitchen bickering over dinner. Their mom might be in trouble, but at least their mom didn’t make everything impossible on a daily basis.

His cell phone buzzed on the table by the computer, and Danny picked it up. His mother’s name flashed on the screen, and he swallowed hard. He wasn’t supposed to talk to her. He knew that. And if he kept helping her break the rules, it would make it harder for her to get better. For them to ever have a chance to be normal again.

He hit ignore on the call, and then went back to his algebra.

Belle Forest Drive

Sonny and Alexis had both argued vociferously for maybe thirty seconds to be allowed to go with them, but it was obvious they couldn’t all go, and Sonny was given the radio to stay in touch.

The only way across the bridge that had any hope of working with the water already three feet over the road was to go fast. If the engine got flooded, hopefully the spurt of gas would get them to higher ground.

Cars could be replaced. His son’s mother couldn’t.  And Elizabeth’s only chance at freedom was trapped in the car, too.

“Ready,” Dante said. “Leave the belts off. If we need to get out of the car—” He swallowed hard, looked at Jason. “Go.”

Jason pressed the gas pedal, slowly at first to get the car moving — and then as they approached the bridge, hit it all the way to the floor — and the SUV sped up as they approached the flood waters.

Webber House: Living Room

The phone was silent for a moment and then it lit up again — his mother was calling again. Danny grimaced, then finally picked it up — “Mom, you know—”

“D-danny? Thank God. You need to listen to me.”

Danny jolted at the hoarseness of his mother, at the sounds from her side of the call — the rain sounded like it was right on top of her. “Mom?”

“Did I just hear you say Mom?” Jake said, coming from the kitchen, Aiden trailing behind him.  Danny shook him off and then put her voice on speakerphone so he could put the volume all the way up.

“Mom, where are you? You sound awful.”

“I—I’m in trouble. And I-I c-can’t get out. It’s cold—and there’s water—but just listen—”

Danny gripped the phone tightly. “What do you mean?” He looked at Jake, who was already pulling out his phone. “Where are you?”

“An accident, I don’t have a lot of time—the water—just listen to me. Please.”

He’d never heard his mom sound like this — so scared and hurt and awful — and what did she mean there was water? “I’m listening, Mom, but tell me where you are—”

“I love you. I have loved you from the moment I knew you existed. I love you. You need to know that. I know I didn’t do a lot of things right, and I—I hurt you, and I’m sorry. But I love you.”

“I l-love you, t-too. Mom, you’re scaring me. Tell me where you are—”

“You’re—you’re going to be okay, I know it. I can feel it—” There was a pause, and his mother gasped. “You have your brothers, and you’ll take care of Scout. You’re—you’re the best thing I ever did in my life. I love you so much. I wish—”

And then the call disconnected.

+38

Written in 65 minutes.

Wednesday, October 1, 2024

Davis House: Living Room

Kristina took a deep breath. “Okay, listen. Listen. I think—” She closed her eyes, put up her hands, took another breath. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, okay? I didn’t want this to turn into another Kristina screw-up, okay?”

Sam  shook her head. “No, that’s not good enough. Not for what you were just trying to pull.” And why was she backing off it now? “What the hell did you do, Kristina?”

“Nothing! I mean, I sent the email because Mom told me bail was a problem and I just thought—” Kristina stopped. “I just thought if I got Elizabeth out of the house for a little while, the judge would give Danny back to you, and you guys would be okay—”

“You wanted her to go to jail—”

“So did you! Why am I the bad guy for trying to do the same thing?” Kristina demanded. “You were right! If Elizabeth weren’t around manipulating Danny or Jason, everything would be better!”

She wanted to believe her. Wanted to believe her little sister had just screwed up again — but it didn’t feel right. “All right, fine. You wanted to help. You didn’t. Now you have to tell everyone what you did so that Jason doesn’t use this to keep custody of Danny permanently. I could lose even my visitation rights. You have to tell everyone—”

“So I can hear another round of what a screw up I am? No. No. Let’s just wait it out, okay, Sam? No one knows for sure. You and me, we’ll just stick together—” Kristina came forward, clasped her hands together, holding them in a beggar’s pose. “We’ll tell everyone we don’t know anything! Please, Sam! Let’s just tell them we don’t know anything!”

“That won’t work. It won’t. Danny believes this, Kristina. He believes it. Mom and Jason and Diane and all of them — even Dante. They think I did this! There are no other suspects!” Sam shook her head. “No. You have to tell them what you did. You have to. For everything I’ve ever done for you.”

“Please, Sam! You can’t tell them! You can’t!”

Because they’d ask the same question Sam had? Kristina hadn’t tried this woes me crap until Sam had started questioning her motives — God, why did Kristina need Elizabeth out of the picture? Why had she done this?

She needed help. She needed someone else to figure this out — she needed someone else to know. Someone who wouldn’t be snowed by Kristina’s damsel in distress act — someone who would dig—

Sam looked at Kristina. “I can and I will. Come with me, and we’ll talk to Mom. She’ll understand, Krissy. She will, okay? She knows what you’ve been though. She’ll know how to handle this.”

“Just Mom?” Kristina asked. “No one else has to know?”

“No. No one else will know. Come with me and we’ll fix everything.”

Pozzulo’s Restaurant: Street

Dante wasn’t going to wait for Anna to move her car — time was running out before the cover up started. He reversed his car into the parking lot, then shifted gears and drove over the curb to get in front of Anna’s car.

He slapped a few buttons on the dashboard, commanding it to put a call through to Chase, then nearly skidded off the road when  he tried to come to a stop at a red light. The rain was pooling on the the sides of the roads, deep enough that his tires were splashing up a ton of water.

“Dante, where the hell are you?” came Chase’s first words. “Sam and Kristina just left — they’re in Sam’s car, heading back towards town.”

“Damn it. Damn it. You’re following?” Dante demanded, making another turn. “There’s only one road out of Belle Forest down to the rest of town. I’ll cut them off near the Cob Creek bridge. I’m not letting them get to Alexis or my dad. Kristina isn’t getting away with this. Not this time.”

Davis & Miller: Diane’s Office

“Well, there really isn’t much that either of you can do,” Diane told Jason and Elizabeth. “Spinelli needs to get that trunk pop and footage to match, and we need to continue gathering evidence. Whether she did it or not—and I’m leaning towards guilty for the record — she’s an excellent alternative suspect for the jury trial.”

“So you don’t have enough to get the charges dismissed.” Elizabeth folded her arms, feeling chilled. The prospect that Kristina of all people had carried out this scheme seemed so strange and unlikely — but there had been that strange visit the day after—and Kristina would know Jason’s protective instinct might have led him to confess to protect her—

“I just can’t stop thinking—” Elizabeth stopped, looked at Jason who’d gone to the window. He’d need a minute to adjust to this — not that it would help, she thought. He’d sacrificed so much for the sake of Sonny and Carly’s children — for Sam’s sister. Because Kristina was family to him.

No wonder Diane and Spinelli had kept this from them. Even as alternative suspect  for the purposes of trial, the idea that Kristina had purposely framed Elizabeth —

“We’re really saying that Kristina — the same woman who was gullible enough to be brainwashed into a cult — we’re saying that she pulled off framing me?” Elizabeth wanted to know. “It just sounds so impossible to me. I know—you’ve made a good case. I just can’t wrap my mind around it.”

“Well, she didn’t pull off anything—” Diane said. “It’s actually a pretty terrible frame job. You have an alibi, which is why the FBI initially didn’t pursue you or Jason. She managed to get the gun into your trunk, but she can’t put it in your hands. She tried to use the tipline to get the FBI into your car, but she wanted to pretend to be smart about it, so she used a notorious gossiping nurse who works with you — but she doesn’t know your work schedule or that you and this nurse wouldn’t have been near each other. And she doesn’t know enough about the technology to know we can prove it’s false. It’s not smart, Elizabeth. She’s literally on your security camera returning the key she probably dropped on your front step. Otherwise, why is she back at your front door after you’ve left, kneeling down and then leaving?”

“But I never lost my key—”

“You didn’t have them that day,” Jason said quietly, and Elizabeth stopped, looked at him. He turned to look at her. “You left your purse at the house when I picked you up. When we were up at Vista Point, you realized you hadn’t put your house keys in your pocket, and you couldn’t get back in the house.”

Elizabeth’s lips parted, and she turned to Diane. “He’s right. I’d forgotten — we made a joke about — I locked myself out of Kelly’s once — you promised not to break the glass this time,” she said to Jason. She put a hand against her chest. “But I got home, and Aiden and Jake were home. And my keys were in my purse. They were already home—”

“She’s benefiting from luck, Elizabeth. Not intelligence. You didn’t know your key was gone because you didn’t take them. The boys don’t mention finding it because it’s probably not a big deal and no one even thinks of it for days, and by then,” Diane said, “they’re upset and stressed by your arrest, then Danny and Aiden are in trouble — and no one ever goes back to that day and asks questions. Because why would we? She’s Sonny’s daughter. Her visit that day was strange, but so what?”

“She’s Sonny’s daughter, why would we think—” Elizabeth pressed two trembling fingers to her mouth. “She took advantage of that, didn’t she? It’s not just luck. It’s the blind spot we’d all have.”

“I didn’t even think twice at her first story. It made sense to me, didn’t it? No one thought anything of it until we went back and checked alibis. And having access to a gun that matches the murder weapon — it’s not a slam dunk in court, but I think, in this office, it’s enough—”

Spinell’s phone rang as Diane spoke, and he turned away to answer it. “Hello?” His brow furrowed. “Diane—”

“What is it?”

“I don’t—” He tapped the speaker phone button and they could hear rain — and voices. Muffled. “It’s Sam, but I don’t know if she meant to call me—”

“Wait—” Jason came forward, his hand held out. “Can you turn up the volume?”

Spinelli obeyed, and the voices became more distinct — Sam…and was that Kristina?

“…I just don’t…why…her bail…important…”

Jason’s mouth pinched, and Elizabeth’s stomach dropped. Oh, God, had Sam known about the email? Had it been her idea?

“…told you…” Kristina’s voice came through, but it was hard to make out her words. “I…to help…you said…no one…know.”

There was a shift in the voices, and now they were coming in more clearly — the phone had moved maybe.

“We’ve been over this, Sam,” Kristina said, sounding annoyed. “And if Mom can’t make this go away, I’m not admitting to anything.”

“You have to tell them, Kristina. You have to tell them I didn’t know. Danny believes I did this to him—do you really think your feelings are more important?”

“He’ll get over it. He’s done worse to you.”

“She sounds so cold,” Elizabeth murmured, and the first pangs of sympathy for Sam bled through. No matter what they’d done to one another, Elizabeth had always believed Sam loved her son. What would it be like for your son to believe the worst about you?

“I just wish you’d tell me why you did this. Why you really did this. You had to know there was a chance people would think it was me—why did you take the risk? Why not try to get Mom to use it in the custody papers? Why go to the same lawyers who tried to put you in jail?”

“You needed Elizabeth out of the picture—”

“No, no! I didn’t—not like that! Damn it, Krissy, it wouldn’t have solved anything! She’d be a goddamn martyr and everyone would be trying to get her out—you really think it would make Danny’s life better that way?”

Diane rolled her eyes. “Never changes,” she muttered under her breath, but Elizabeth almost smiled because that actually made sense. Sam would never have put Elizabeth into the position of being even more of a victim.

“But Jason wouldn’t be able to say he’s got a stable home—”

“No, no, I still think there’s another reason. You were ready to blame me and gaslight everyone else into blaming me, too, until I asked you why you wanted Elizabeth’s bail revoked.”

Diane went still. “Is she—”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about—”

“Don’t play stupid, Kristina. You’ve never had a negative thing to say about Elizabeth in all these years, and now suddenly you’re trying to help by putting her in jail. I don’t believe you. Just tell me what you did, and we can talk to Mom. We’ll fix it. But you have to tell me what you did.”

She knew, Elizabeth realized. Sam knew what Kristina had done. Had she called Spinelli on purpose? Was she trying to…help?

“What do you want me to say? That I finally see Elizabeth as a manipulative bitch like you always said—”

“But you’re doing it now not when it would have made a difference. I mean, when she lied about Jake Doe, you weren’t talking like this, but she’s accused of murder, and you want her in jail over it.” There was a pause. “Kristina, did you put that gun in her trunk?”

“Why are you asking me that? How can you even—”

Just then, the phone emitted a loud, angry beep — and so did the other phones in the office — Jason’s muffled in his pocket, Elizabeth’s in her purse, Diane’s on the desk — and Sam’s —

“What is that?” Kristina’s voice came through, upset and shrill. There was a scuffle. “Is that your phone?”

“Damn it—let go—”

And then the line went dead.

Belle Forest Drive

“You’re driving too slow,” Alexis muttered, watching the windshield wipers work furiously to keep the view clear.

“It’s basically a  hurricane, Alexis—Sam and Kristina aren’t going anywhere in this weather—check your damned phone,” Sonny retorted.

Alexis threw him a dirty look, then but rummaged in her phone, intending to check the location of her eldest daughters — which, ten minutes ago, had shown them at her home.

While she was squinting in the dark car without her reading glasses, Sonny saw a pair of taillights ahead that were stopped, the car angled across the road. “What the hell is—” He brought the car to a stop. “Is that Dante?”

“They left the house,” Alexis said at the same time. “They’re—they’re on the same road as us—”

And then the phone alerted with an angry warning —

“Flash Flood advisory,” Alexis said. “Cobb Creek is rising—they’re closing—” She looked at Sonny but he was leaning forward, confused as to why his eldest son was walking towards their car. “Sonny, they closed Belle Forest up by me. The girls are going to be stuck on the road in this—”

“Great. I knew we should have waited,” Sonny said with a sigh. He shoved open the door, and got out. “Dante, what the hell are you doing blocking the road like this?”

“Let me guess,” his son retorted. “You’re on your way to clean up after Kristina. Damn it, Dad, I told you stay out of this—”

Alexis ignored both of them, and scrolled through her contacts to bring up Sam’s number.

Belle Forest Drive: Road

Sam shoved Kristina back with one hand, keeping the other on the road. “Damn it, Kristina—knock it off—” but her sister was enraged, trying to find the phone that Sam had wedged between her thighs. The last thing Sam needed was Kristina to find that her phone had connected to Spinelli — had they heard enough? Had they heard anything?

“Give it to me—” Kristina drove for her again, and this time, Sam lost control of the steering wheel, sending the car into a careening skid — both women screaming—

Behind them, Chase had already slowed his car, watching their car wave back and forth on the lanes. He’d reached for his radio, intending to call for backup —

But then the car went skidding off the road—

Chase hit his brakes, his own car sliding slightly as he came to a stop, and got out of the car just in time to see Sam’s car go off the road — and flip down the embankment towards the creek.

+40

I wanted to write more, but I ran out of time. Written 66 minutes. LETS GO PHILLIES FOR MAKING ME STAY UP

Wednesday, October 1, 2024

Webber House: Living Room

Jake dropped his soaking backpack next to the door and flipped the locks. “Okay, we need to get our stories straight—”

“What story?” Aiden shook his head rapidly, raindrops flying from his shaggy hair, then he ran his hand through it, trying to get rid of excess water. “Mom’s not home yet. There’s no way she knows anything happened.”

“We can’t tell anyone,” Danny said. “My mom didn’t even do anything, okay? I mean—” he winced when Jake scowled. “Okay, yes, she did—I’m not talking about yesterday. All she did was—”

“Stalk you outside the high school when she’s not supposed to try to see you,” Jake said. “No matter what else is going on, she’s breaking the custody order. Dad needs to know—”

“What do you mean, no matter what else?” Aiden wanted to know. He squinted. “We know what else. Sam tried to get rid of Mom. Again. I mean, I’m not saying they need to know,” he told Danny. “But she was kind of crazy today—”

“I know, but—” Danny pressed his lips together, looked at his brother. “It just feels wrong. To get her in trouble. I know that sounds stupid.”

“It doesn’t. She’s still your mom, and—” Jake stopped. “I don’t know. I don’t know if I think she did it anymore.”

Danny frowned. “What? What do you mean?”

“I thought we were pretty solid on that part—” Aiden said almost at the same time.

“I don’t know. Your mom just—it was different. Maybe it was just because she was desperate-” Jake shook his head. “I don’t know. I just—when we tell Dad it happened—because we have to tell him—I don’t think we need to make it worse than it was. Your mom’s upset. She’s being accused of something really awful, right? And if she is innocent—”

“Why are you defending her?” Aiden demanded. “She wants Mom to go to jail!”

“Maybe she did a few weeks ago, but—look, our mother is being accused of something she didn’t do, right? It sucks. Mom tries to hide it, but it’s messing with her. I just—” He looked at his brother. “I think we need more proof before we say she did it. So we just tell Dad she stopped us, tried to talk to us, and we left. Okay? We don’t have to tell him she was waiting for us in the parking lot or anything.”

Danny swallowed hard. “You really think she didn’t send that email?”

“I think she probably did, Danny, but she looked—” Jake exhaled slowly. “I can’t explain it. Maybe she didn’t do it herself. Maybe she knows who did. But until we know for sure — it’s not just you, right? We gotta think about your sister. If we make her out to be crazy, Drew’s gonna use it against her. And I don’t know about you, but I think that would make this worse. Let’s wait until we know for sure what she did before we ruin Scout’s life, too.”

Davis & Miller: Diane’s Office

“Kristina?” Jason repeated, baffled. “Kristina sent the email? Why? To help Sam?”

“It makes awful sense, doesn’t it?” Elizabeth said. “Kristina wanted to help Sam get Danny back—and I’m just guessing — but if I were back in jail, Jason’s situation changes. Sam might be able to get the custody order revised—” She stopped, tilted her head. “Why would you need to talk to Diane alone about that?”

“Well, that’s where this gets complicated,” Diane said. “Because, yes, if Kristina sent the email, that’s something,” she told Spinelli. “But I don’t really see how that helps us—”

“You don’t think—” Elizabeth held up her hand. “You’re not suggesting Kristina had something to do with Cates’ murder.”

“That’s not possible. Kristina’s not capable of that,” Jason said with a shake of his head. “Maybe shooting him, but everything else — that’s not her— it’s not—”

“Jason’s been taking care of Kristina almost since she was  born,” Elizabeth argued. “She’d never turn on him like this—” The implication was horrifying. “She’d never betray him—”

“She might,” Diane said softly, “if she blamed Jason for John Cates being in Port Charles at all. After all, it was Pikeman that brought him here, wasn’t it?”

“That’s—” Jason couldn’t speak. Couldn’t finish the thought. “She’s Sonny’s daughter—”

“She had access to the murder weapon — or at least a gun that matches the one found in the car. Sonny confirmed that himself — one of his is missing, and Kristina had the combination,” Diane told him. “Sonny thought it was one of his guys, framing you for being an FBI informant—”

“Kristina wouldn’t know, would she?” Elizabeth asked, putting a hand on Jason’s arm. “She might know you came back to town with Cates, but she might not realize you were forced into working for him. That wasn’t—that wasn’t general knowledge. You had to tell me, remember? I mean, maybe Sam said something to her, but Sam was so angry with you—”

“Stop—stop talking like this is a real possibility,” Jason interrupted, then winced when he realized how sharp his tone was. “I’m sorry, it’s just—”

“It’s Kristina,” Elizabeth finished. “You’ve put your life on the line for her. Over and over again. You’re right.” She looked at Diane. “It’s not enough. She had access to the gun and sent an email. There are other explanations—”

“She has no alibi,” Spinelli said. “She was at your house the day after the murder, and we have her on camera coming back to the house after you’d gone. She got rid of her phone just after the false tip was sent to the feds.”

“I—” Elizabeth paused, then folded her arms around herself. “What do you mean, she came back to the house after I was gone? You—”

“We think maybe she picked up an extra key while she was in your house. Did you have it laying around? You told us you were doing laundry while she was there. Did you leave her alone in the living room?”

“I don’t—” Elizabeth shook her head. “No. No. I don’t have an extra key fob. I used to, but Cameron took it with him to California, and I forgot to get it b ack—” She went to her purse. “The cops never took my keys, and my fob is right here—” She fished inside, and plucked it out, handing it to Spinelli. “See? She couldn’t have taken it.”

Spinelli examined metal ring, then shook his head. “I don’t know. Maybe. But—Fair Elizabeth, Stone cold, it brings me no pleasure to say it might be her,” he told them. “We both—we avoided such an unpleasant thought. We’ve been waiting for something more—”

“She sent the email, so what? She was probably trying to help Sam—” Jason said.

“But she must know that Sam was blamed — doesn’t she know?” Elizabeth asked Diane. “Why wouldn’t she just tell everyone? It’s an awful, stupid thing that she did, but she’d have to see letting Sam take the fall would be the opposite of what she was trying to do. What did she say when she found out?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t spoken to Alexis since she talked to Kristina. Alexis—Alexis did tell me that she’d mentioned your bail hearing to Kristina. In passing, not thinking. Kristina knew what Noah Reynolds might do with that information. Alexis—she doesn’t know what we know.”

“It’s not just us,” Spinelli said. “The PCPD—it’s why Dante and Molly recused themselves. Kristina is their prime suspect, too.”

“Are you—” Elizabeth stopped. She couldn’t speak, couldn’t form a full thought. “She’d know about Michael,” she said softly. “She’d know that you’d confessed to keep him safe in prison. And if Sam did tell her — if she knew about why you went to work for the FBI, she’d know it was to protect Carly.” She looked at Jason, his expression grim suggesting he’d connected those dots as well. Or that he was starting to come around to the theory. “It’s not…that crazy to think if I was accused of murdering an FBI agent, you might confess to save me.”

“And if you confessed, the FBI would stop looking,” Diane said. “Investigation is over. Story ends. Kristina gets away.”

“That’s…” Jason took a deep breath. “That’s…I don’t know. It makes sense, but—” It was Kristina. Sam’s sister. Sonny’s daughter. How much of his life had he sacrificed for Sonny? For Sam?

Elizabeth touched his arm, slid her fingertips down until she took his hand. “It’s worse than either of us thought,” she told him, and he remembered their fear that the murderer was someone who knew them.

He’d just never let himself put Kristina on that list. It was like putting Josslyn on the list or Molly.

“I’m sorry. You see why we waited to bring it up,” Diane said. “All we need now is for Spinelli to find those trunk records and for it to match the time Kristina is at your house that day.”

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want this to be true,” Spinelli said. “I just—I have no explanation for everything we know.”

“Okay. Okay. Let’s say it’s true. What does that mean? What do we do next?” Jason asked.

Pozzulo’s: Street

“Move your car,” Dante said, slamming his car door shut, striding towards Anna who remained in the car, but rolled down the window. “Damn it, Anna, get out of my way—”

“You’re interfering in a police investigation,” Anna told him, lifting her voice slightly to be heard over the rain. “If you’re here to protect your sister—”

“So what if I was?” Dante demanded. “Are you the only one allowed to do that? Are you the only one allowed to bend the damn law?”

Anna shoved her door open, forcing him to step back. “If you have something to say to me, Dante, stop tiptoeing around—”

“Oh, I’m done playing games with you, Commissioner,” Dante retorted. “You and I both know you screwed up the Pikeman investigation by tipping off Valentin. He flew out of town, and the FBI has had it out for Jason Morgan ever since. Which is why you tried to play ball and serve him and Elizabeth to cover your own ass! You called the FBI as soon as you got the call about Cates —”

“They were always going to take the case—”

“You could have fought it! Damn it, Anna! You let them walk all over you, and drag an innocent woman into jail! Are you happy? Are you satisfied? Was it worth it to let Valentin walk away?”

Anna shook her head. “You don’t understand. You weren’t there—”

“I don’t need to be there to know you let the man responsible for shooting me flee the country,” Dante bit out. “The man who nearly killed my father. But you weren’t thinking about that were you? Just like you weren’t thinking of Elizabeth and her kids when you let the FBI use our jail to book and hold her—”

“I didn’t have a choice, damn it—”

“Not once you let Valentin escape, you didn’t.” Dante shook his head, laughing bitterly. “My God. Laura’s made a lot of terrible mistakes in her life, but putting you back in charge at the PCPD was one of the worst—” He turned away, started back towards his car. “Get the hell out of my way, or I’m going to ram your car and force you. You have no right to hold me here.”

“Dante, wait—” Anna came after him, grabbing his arm and pulling him back. “You must understand that I never meant for any of this to happen! It’s all gotten so out of control! I thought it would be enough that Cates knew who Valentin was! I thought they’d be satisfied—”

“Well they weren’t!” Dante exploded, turning back to face her.  “He’s off somewhere, probably laughing at how stupid you were to let him go, Charlotte’s on the run with a fugitive, Elizabeth’s facing life on jail, Danny and Rocco’s lives are ruined, Sam’s life is destroyed, and my sister is probably a goddamn murderer—was it worth it?”

“You can’t seriously blame me for all that’s happened—”

“No. No I can’t. But if you’d have an ounce of integrity, my God, how different would this all be?” He yanked his car door open. “Get out of my way. Now.”

Davis House: Living Room

“Who will they believe?” Sam repeated. She laughed, though the sound was more bitter than amused. “You really think you’re going to get away with it this time, don’t you?”

“I don’t see why not. Everyone knows you’re unhinged about Danny’s relationship with Elizabeth. Mom’s been worried for weeks. Molly thinks so, too. You’ve already tried to have her arrested. All I have to do is tell Mom that it was your idea. That I just mentioned the bail to you, and you were off and running — it’s such a shame you didn’t think about Danny.” Kristina shook her head, sorrowfully. “It’s just like that day in the lobby, isn’t it? You just see or think about Elizabeth, and nothing else matters. I only did it because you begged me to, because you had me so worried about what you’d do next.”

“You’ve really lost it, Kristina. You have just—” She sliced her hand through the air. “You have absolutely just lost the plot. Ever since you lost the baby, you’ve just—I’ll tell Mom about this, and she’ll believe me—”

“You sure about that? I mean, I already managed to convince Mom to draw up custody papers for me. Custody papers I was going to use against Molly and TJ.” Kristina took a step towards her. “Do you really think Mom won’t think you took advantage of me? I’ve been so upset, so desperate to help you — and you told me this would help—I didn’t even realize what it would do to Danny—I feel so awful knowing he was hurt—”

“You—” Sam couldn’t form another word, because she wasn’t entirely sure that Kristina couldn’t pull it off. That their mother wouldn’t place the blame on Sam who had always been too headstrong for her own good—that Kristina wouldn’t be able to play the gullible, manipulated sister she’d always been. How many times had Kristina been taken advantage of? What if Alexis didn’t believe her? What if Dante didn’t—

‘They’ll know I’m telling the truth,” Sam said, but it was more to herself than to Kristina. She focused on her sister. “I’ll make them see I’m telling the truth. I’ll do whatever I have to do. But—I don’t—” Her voice faltered for a moment, then she found it again. “I don’t understand. If you did this to help me, why can’t you just—why can’t you just tell them that? Why do you  have to make it my fault at all? I didn’t tell you to do this. Why can’t you just tell them the truth?”

“It is the truth,” Kristina told her. “You needed Elizabeth out of the picture, and I knew that everything would be better if she went to jail. You’d get Danny back. I did it to help you. To get Elizabeth to go away—”

“Elizabeth has never done anything to you,” Sam said. “She’s never—I don’t understand. I don’t understand why you did this—How could you do this to her—I was getting Danny back. I was going to therapy. I was—I had a plan, Kristina. Why would you think putting Elizabeth in jail for months and months was  good for anyone—”

“You don’t have to understand. It doesn’t matter anymore. It didn’t work. All that matters is getting our stories straight.” Kristina smiled, but it looked forced — and suddenly she didn’t seem so confident anymore. So cold or assured.

Because Sam had asked the right question, hadn’t she? Why couldn’t Kristina just tell them the truth? She done it to help Sam, but it had backfired. Kristina had made it her life’s mission to make stupid mistakes that backfired — why was this different?

Why couldn’t Kristina just tell them what happened?

“You didn’t do this for me,” Sam said, and now Kristina looked at her, her eyes sharp. “You didn’t do this for me. I’m the excuse, I’m the—” She paused. “I’m the excuse,” she repeated. “You wanted Elizabeth’s bail to get revoked. You used what you knew about Danny to do it. Why? Why did you want Elizabeth out of the picture?”

+33

Written in 58 minutes. SEE YOU TONIGHT *cackles*

Wednesday, October 2, 2024

Miller & Davis: Lobby

Elizabeth shook out her umbrella before wrapping it up and shoving it in her purse. “I don’t remember the last time it rained like this,” she told Jason, whose hair was still a little damp. “I’m so sick of gray skies and puddles.”

“It’s supposed to clear up in another day—” Jason started but stopped when Spinelli came out of his office. “Hey. We’re late, sorry—”

“No, it’s okay. I don’t—” Spinelli made a face, shoved his hands in his pockets. “I don’t really have a lot to to tell you. Not bad news,” he added. “It’s just a lot of data to go through, and you know — it’s never the first file you open.”

“No, we’d never get that lucky,” Elizabeth said with a weak smile. She took a deep breath. “But you still think something will be found with everything you got?”

“The security footage has to give us something, and don’t forget, we’re about to have a list of every single time you opened that trunk between the murder and the time your car was seized,” Spinelli reminded her. “You said you didn’t even remember opening it at all — so it should be one trunk pop — we line that up with your schedule, and security footage from the neighborhood or the hospital, and we prove it’s not you.”

“And with any luck, prove who it was,” Jason added.

“Seems so easy, doesn’t it?” Elizabeth said. “But you’re right. I’m just ready for this to be over.” She saw Diane heading down the hallway towards them. “But now we get to talk about my bail being revoked next week—so—I hope you find it fast.”

Pozzulo’s Restaurant: Sonny’s Office

“I don’t know what was so important I had to rush over here,” Alexis said, with a huff. She tossed her briefcase on the chair, then turned to face Sonny as he closed the door behind her. “You said it was an emergency, and I have to remind you — I’m not technically your lawyer—”

“But you are Kristina’s,” Sonny said, and Alexis closed her eyes. “You’re don’t seem surprised by that.”

“No.  I’ve been dreading this since I spoke to Sam this morning. Has Kristina talked to you? Do you know what she did?”

“That would depend on what we’re talking about,” Sonny said. He went behind his desk, but remained standing. “Do you know the whole story?”

Alexis furrowed her brows. “Are we not talking about the same thing? You know I don’t like riddles.”

“Let’s start with this. Dante just left here. He’s convinced Kristina sent an email that tipped off the U.S. Attorney’s office about Rocco and Danny’s incident with the official report leaving out that the boys were picked up in front of Elizabeth’s house. With Aiden.”

“Oh, God. Dante knows? This is a disaster.” Alexis sat down for a moment, then jumped back up. “What did he say? What does he want to do?”

“He’s been suspended because Anna thinks he abused his power to change the report — so he’s a little pissed off. Not to mention — Kristina didn’t think it through. She’s made it so that Danny and Rocco’s names are on the federal record for drinking and smoking weed.”

“And everyone thinks Sam did it,” Alexis muttered. She sank back down, rubbed her temple with one hand. “I accused her, Dante went after her — Jason came after her last night, and Danny was in court when it happened, so of course, he believes his mother did it after all the ridiculous things Sam has done lately—this is a nightmare, Sonny. Because while I am now convinced Kristina actually sent the email, I’m not sure I can persuade Jason or Diane that Sam wasn’t involved in some way.”  She looked at him. “Kristina wouldn’t have done it if Sam hadn’t been filling her head with all the ways Elizabeth destroyed her life—she’s got no reason to go after her—”

“I…wouldn’t be so sure about that,” Sonny said. Alexis frowned, straightened in the chair. “I’ve been avoiding it — trying to come up with anything that explains what I know in a different way —”

“Sonny, what are you talking about? Kristina was obviously trying to help Sam. I’m the one that gave her the damn idea. I told her Diane was worried about Elizabeth’s bail—”

“The gun that killed John Cates matches one that’s missing from my safe.”

Alexis closed her mouth, her eyes widening. “The gun—” She held up a hand. “Wait a second. Wait.”

“I thought it was one of my guys, and framing Jason makes sense — he’s still seen as an informant with my people — but Kristina screwing with Elizabeth’s bail?” Sonny leaned forward. “Her phone went missing right after that bullshit tip was sent to the Feds. She was furious with Cates—”

“That doesn’t mean she killed anyone! Oh my God, Sonny, can  you hear yourself right now—” Alexis got up, turned away, dragging her hands through her hair, squeezing her eyes shut. Then she turned back, looked at him. “The day before that damn gun was found — the FBI came back around. Asking about our alibis.”

“They couldn’t do anything with Jason — his alibi was tight. So they did their second round of statements,” Sonny said nodding. “I remember. Kristina—” He sighed. “She was angry. She didn’t have an alibi. Oh, man.” He sat down, looking every inch of his years. “She did this, didn’t she? She killed an FBI agent, and then decided to frame Elizabeth.”

Davis & Miller: Diane’s Office

“I don’t know how we avoid any of the boys taking the stand,” Diane said with a shake of her head. “I understand neither of you want that. I don’t want it either. We can try to have the hearing sealed—”

“I just don’t — I don’t want Danny to get up in court and have to talk about any of this,” Elizabeth said. “Testifying is terrifying, and he was so upset yesterday—” She looked at Jason and he reached for her hand, squeezing it.

“He blames himself for all of this. We’ve tried to talk to him about it, and I know he realizes that we don’t blame him, but I’m not sure it makes a difference,” Jason said. “Elizabeth’s freedom comes first, but—”

“Then we need to reframe this for Danny. Yes, he made a terrible and stupid decision that night. A decision that he, Aiden, and Rocco had been making for months. But he has a chance to help Elizabeth stay free,” Diane told them. “That might even be empowering for him—”

“I’m not agreeing to it until we have a chance to talk to his doctor,” Elizabeth said. “I’m trying to get in to see Fletcher this week,” she told Jason. “But his schedule is so filled — he only took Danny as a favor to me.” She looked at Diane. “You can call everyone else. Dante, Sam, me, Jason, Dex — I don’t care. But the boys are off limits—”

“Elizabeth—” Jason began at the same time Diane scowled and said, “Nothing is off limits—”

But they were both cut off when there was a knock on the door, and Spinelli opened. “Hey, uh, sorry to interrupt—”

“Did you find something?” Elizabeth demanded, getting to her feet. “Tell me you found something that makes this entire conversation useless—”

“I—” Spinelli looked at Diane, took a deep breath. “Okay—”

“Wait—” Diane held out a hand. “Spinelli, let’s go have a conversation in your office.”

“What?” Elizabeth frowned. “Why? What’s going on?” She looked at his lawyer. “Diane? What’s going on that he can’t say in front of both of us?”

Pozzulo’s Restaurant: Street

Dante flicked on the windshield wipers — the rain had picked up again and was now coming do so fast that the wipers were going at full speed. The dashboard screen lit up with an incoming call — Chase.

Dante tapped the button to answer it. “Hey. Tell me you got something.”

“Sam’s here. She just went in the house.”

Dante grimaced. “Damn it. They’re going to circle the wagons, aren’t they? Alexis has been in with Sonny for almost twenty minutes. Kristina’s gonna find a way to make Sam feel like this was Elizabeth’s fault or some bullshit, and Sam will eat it up. She was already halfway there when I talked to her last night.”

“You don’t think Sam is pissed that she’s getting the blame?”

“She is. But Sam thinks her sisters are her responsibility. She’s been covering up Kristina’s messes for years. She’ll blame everyone but Kristina—” Dante shook his head. “No. I’ll get someone to cover me here, but I need to be in that house. I need to get in the middle—Call someone to take over here. I’m heading your way.”

He put the car in reverse so he could back out of the spot, and started to edge out into the road — but then a car pulled in front, turned sideways so that no one could get around him. A familiar one.

“Goddamn it, what the hell is she doing here?”

“Dante? What’s going on?”

“Anna,” Dante bit out. “I’ll call you back.” He turned off the engine, and got out into the rain to confront the commissioner.

Davis & Miller: Diane’s Office

“I’m not going anywhere,” Jason said, getting to his feet. “If you’ve got something, Diane represents us both—”

“Jason, I’m asking you to trust me,” Diane said, also rising. “Spinelli and I are handling this very carefully—”

“Handling what?” Elizabeth wanted to know. “Do you have a suspect or something else?” she looked from her lawyer to the investigator, then back to Diane. “Whatever it is, we can handle it. And we’re obviously not going to tell anyone.”

“It’s not just—” Diane started, but Spinelli interrupted her.

“I think it’s time, Diane. We wanted to have enough—” Spinelli held up the paper in his hand. “It’s not enough to act on, but it’s enough for me. And besides — Stone Cold needs to know this.”

Diane sighed, took her seat. “All right. All right. What do you have?”

“The email trace came through from the Feds. We know who emailed Reynolds,” Spinelli said. “The IP address led them to an account that’s paid for by Sonny.”

“Sonny?” Jason’s frown deepened, and he exchanged a mystified look with Elizabeth. “I don’t understand.”

“That’s where the Feds would have had to stop looking — without a way to look at the account,” Spinelli said slowly, “they can’t pin it to a device yet. But I can. Not officially. Not yet. But I can tell you because I set up this computer as a favor last spring and I had to connect it to Sonny’s security. That’s why he pays for the internet.” He paused. “It’s Kristina’s. Kristina sent the email.”

Davis House: Living Room

Water dripped down from Sam’s soaked sweater and jeans, puddling on the wooden floor beneath her as she stood on the landing, her hands curled into fists. There was something obscene, she thought, finding Kristina sitting in front of a warm fire, curled up on their mother’s sofa like she didn’t have a care in the world.

Because she didn’t, did she? No matter what happened to Kristina, there was always someone right behind her, picking her up.

Always.

Kristina looked up, startled at Sam’s sudden entrance, and her eyes went wide. She set down the phone in her hand and got to her feet. “Sam. Hey. I was, uh, waiting for Mom.”

“Yeah, I bet you were.” Sam came down the two steps into the living room, the water trail following her. “Going to make this her problem, aren’t you? Just like you made it mine.”

“I—” Kristina closed her mouth, took a deep breath. “Dante already talked to me, so I know you guys think I did—I know you think what happened in court yesterday is my fault, but I didn’t do it. I wouldn’t hurt Danny like that—”

“Shut up,” Sam said, and Kristina closed her mouth, startled. “Don’t. You don’t get to ever say my son’s name again. Do you understand me? Not after what you did to him.”

“Sam—I know you’re angry, and I understand that you and Dante need to blame someone—” Kristina came towards her, her hands held out — liking she was talking to a wild or feral animal.

“Don’t—don’t—lie to me. I held your hand at every step after that baby—after Irene died,” Sam said, and Kristina’s nostrils flared at the use of the baby’s legal name. “I told Molly to have patience, to give you space, after everything you were planning to do to her, to TJ—I took your side. And you repaid me by destroying my life.”

Kristina scowled. “Destroying your life? Please, Sam. You barely have a life left to destroy. Everyone immediately knew you did it, and now you’re trying to shove the blame off me like I’m the one who came up with the idea. I only did what you wanted me to do.”

Sam went still, and the rage drained from her body suddenly, leaving nothing but ice. “So that’s the plan. You’re going to tell everyone I made you do it.”

“And they’ll believe me, won’t they, Sam?” Kristina tipped her head, a slow smile curving on her face. “They want to blame you already. Everyone knows how insane you are about Elizabeth. They want to give me a reason for doing it. We did it together —” Her voice changed, hitched. “We did it together, S-Sam, I w-was just so scared what would happen if you didn’t get Danny back. I was so scared of what you’d do to yourself. I’m so sorry. I was just trying to help.” Kristina’s smile deepened. “What do you think, Sam? Who are they going to believe?”

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