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You only see what your eyes want to see
How can life be what you want it to be

If this was going to be done at all, he was determined to do this his way. He was going to ask her very calmly to come with them. He wasn’t going to put her through what her husband had put his own best friend through.

They might be breaking their number one principle about not going after family, but they were going to do this without violence.

She deserved that much.

She was on the docks, her hands in her pockets, her hair gathered in a loose bun. Pieces of her hair trailed down around her face and she kept brushing it back. The night was hot and she was wearing a tank top and a pair of jean shorts. She looked more sixteen than twenty-two.

He stepped forward and cleared his throat. “Elizabeth.”

She turned and narrowed her eyes. “What do you want?” she demanded.

He indicated for Max and Marco to hang back. “I need you to come with me.”

She eyed him for a moment, eyed the familiar guards behind him and then looked back at him. He looked nervous and almost out of place. She drew her hands out of her shorts and crossed her arms tightly. “No.”

You’re frozen
When your heart’s not open

Jason exhaled slowly. “This is important, Elizabeth. Please.”

She bit her lip and looked down at the wooden planks of the docks. “You lost the right to ask questions like that. Now you either tell me what you want from me or leave me alone.”

“I need you to come with me,” Jason said again. “I’m asking now. But if you refuse again…”

Her eyebrows lifted slightly and she smirked. “What? You’ll make me?” she mocked. “I thought you didn’t attack innocent people.”

“Elizabeth, don’t make this more difficult than it has to be.”

“Yeah, wouldn’t want things to be hard,” she muttered. She let her arms dropped and headed for the stairs.

Jason sighed. “Max, Marco. Go get her.”

The second the words were out of his mouth, Elizabeth whirled around to find the large guards coming near her. She backed up into the railing of the stairs. “Whoa, wait a second–”

“I need you to come with me, Elizabeth. You can come willingly or we’ll take you,” Jason told her.

Her eyes burned with sudden tears. “So basically you’re kidnapping me.”

He looked away, unable to meet her accusing glare. “That’s not what this is.”

“Oh, yeah?” she demanded. “Then let me walk away without sending them after me.”

“I can’t do that, Elizabeth.”

She stared at him, helplessly. “What’s wrong with you?” she demanded in a broken whisper. “Why are you doing this?”

“I…” Jason trailed off, not wanting to explain his actions in front of the guards. “Look, just come with me and I’ll explain.”

She sighed and started forward, bowing her head, unable to look at him and not let the tears slip down her cheeks.

You’re so consumed with how much you get
You waste your time with hate and regret

He took her to the warehouse, into an empty room. “Sit in the chair,” he told her, indicating a bleak wooden chair that sat in the middle of the room. “We have to…” Jason hesitated and looked at Max and Marco. “Leave us alone a minute okay?”

The guards nodded and exited. Jason dragged a hand through his hair. “I’m sorry, Elizabeth. This isn’t something I wanted to do, but it’s Sonny’s orders.”

“S-Sonny ordered you to kidnap me?” Elizabeth asked, stunned. “Why? What could it possibly serve?”

“Because he thinks Ric values you above anything else and he’s going to trade you for Carly,” Jason admitted.

“You still believe he has her?” Elizabeth asked, surprised. “You’ve only searched our house a dozen times–”

“I know, but Michael was there when Carly was kidnapped,” Jason informed her. “Whatever Ric did, it traumatized him to the point where he couldn’t tell us what happened. But he’s been remembering pieces…and yesterday, he remembered that he saw Ric.”

The tears hovering in her eyes finally released and soundlessly streamed down her cheeks. What could she say to that? Accuse Michael of lying? Michael, the boy that Jason still considered in some ways his son? Michael, a small boy with no reason for lying?

“What makes you think that Ric would give into this?” she asked softly, her voice almost dead.

“We don’t know, but it’s the best option we’ve come up with so far,” Jason admitted. “We need…We need to tie you up, take a picture to send to him. Let him know we’re serious.”

She nodded and without another word, sat down. She looked at him pointedly. “Will I be tied up the entire time?”

“No,” Jason said immediately. “Just for a minute. But you have to stay here. Until we get Carly back.”

She nodded and stared at the floor. Jason sighed and opened the door to let the guards back in. Marco carried a piece of cloth and a coil of rope, Max had a camera which he set aside.

Marco kneeled behind her. “Ms. Webber,” he said, almost apologetically. “I need your hands.”

She unclasped her hands and brought them behind her back, closing her eyes as she felt the guard begin to tie her hands. Max kneeled in front of her with another set of rope and started to tie her legs to the chair.

When they were done, Marco stared at the piece of cloth which would be used as a gag. He looked at it for a moment before looking to Max. “I…” he faltered for the first time, remembering that he’d once guarded this woman.

Max reached for it and stood next to him, wrapping the gag around Elizabeth’s face. She opened her mouth a little and the tears started again as she felt the material. This was really happening. She was really being tied to a chair by Jason and Sonny’s guards. Her life would be bargained for Carly’s.

Max finished fastening it and the two guards went to the front of the room. Jason wasn’t look at Elizabeth–couldn’t look at her and not think of the previous summer, not think about the fact at this time last year, she’d been kidnapped by his enemy and now…

You’re broken
When your heart’s not open

Max snapped the picture quickly and the two guards set about untying her as fast as possible. “I’m sorry,” Max apologized under his breath. “This…this isn’t right.”

She nodded and rubbed her wrists. “It’s okay,” she said softly. She looked at Jason. “So, I just sit here and hope this plan works?”

He swallowed hard. “Yeah.”

She nodded and looked down. “Okay.”

He stared at her bowed head for a moment before clearing his throat. “Marco, stay here. Get Elizabeth anything she needs. Food, whatever. If it gets past ten, take her to the closest safe house so she can sleep. Max, come with me.”

If I could melt your heart
We’d never be apart
Give yourself to me
You hold the key

Jason entered the penthouse wordlessly and shut the door. “Where’s Michael?” he asked.

“He’s across the hall at your place, asleep,” Sonny answered. “Is it done?”

“Yeah,” Jason answered. “She’s at the warehouse until ten. I told Marco to take her to the safe house if Ric didn’t contact us by then.”

“Why?” Sonny demanded. “She should just stay in the same place.”

“In the empty room?” Jason asked, incredulously. “It could take days. There’s no reason to make this difficult on her–”

“Do you think Ric cares about Carly?” Sonny interrupted. “Do you think he’s making sure she’s comfortable? Making sure he’s not making it difficult for her?”

“I don’t care what he does, we are not going to punish Elizabeth for the actions of her psychotic husband. It’s bad enough we had to tie her up for even a second, much less locking her in an empty room with no end in sight. We’re better than that, damn it and she deserves more respect from you,” Jason bit out, angrily.

“You don’t agree with this plan, do you?” Sonny challenged. “You think it’s a bad one?”

“Yes, I do,” Jason snapped. “I think involving an innocent woman who had no idea what Ric kidnapped anyone is a bad idea.”

“Especially Elizabeth.”

“Yeah, especially Elizabeth,” Jason confirmed. “She’s not just the wife of your enemy, Sonny. She used to matter to you.”

“She used to matter to you, too,” Sonny pointed out quietly.

Now there’s no point in placing the blame
And you should know I suffer the same

Sounds from outside the penthouse kept Jason from answering. Ric’s loud voice and some fighting broke the tension and Jason pulled the door open. Immediately, Ric was in the penthouse, shoving Jason against the wall.

“Where is she?” he demanded, infuriated.

Sonny called to the two guards outside who entered and pulling Ric away from Jason. Ric struggled, but Max and Francis kept a tight grip on him. “What have you done to Elizabeth?” Ric shouted.

“You return my wife to me and I’ll return yours,” Sonny said calmly.

Ric stared at Sonny in shock. “I-I don’t have Carly,” he stammered.

Sonny smirked. “Yeah, okay. It’s simple, Ric. We get Carly by midnight or Elizabeth…” he shrugged.

Jason stared at Sonny in complete shock. “What?” he sputtered.

Ric narrowed his eyes. “You’ll kill her?” he asked in disbelief.

Sonny said nothing and pointedly avoided Jason’s angry gaze. “Midnight, Ric.” He snapped his fingers. “Escort him out.”

Once Ric was gone, Jason turned to his friend and partner. “Tell me you were bluffing,” he said quietly.

Sonny remained silent.

“You can’t really mean you’ll kill Elizabeth if Ric doesn’t return Carly,” Jason said again. “I know you, Sonny. You’d never hurt an innocent woman, much less Elizabeth.”

“I’ll do anything to get my wife back,” Sonny said calmly.

And in that moment, Jason believed him. Believed Sonny would take any measures, no matter how drastic or unreasonable or unfathomable they may be, he’d do it if he thought it’d bring Carly home.

“I can’t…I won’t let you do it,” Jason told him. “You can’t kill her, Sonny. I don’t care what Ric’s done. Elizabeth is not just his wife. She’s more Sonny, and you know that.”

“It’s an order Jason. If Carly’s not home by midnight, it’ll happen,” Sonny told him. “Whether I give you the order or I give it to someone else. It’ll happen.”

If I lose you
My heart will be broken

He went to the warehouse but didn’t go inside the room. The minutes ticked by slowly and Jason found himself sitting on the floor outside the room, staring at a clock on a wall nearby.

9:20 p.m.

9:45 p.m

10:00 p.m.

10:29 p.m.

10:59 p.m.

His cell phone didn’t ring once. He even checked it a few times to make sure it was working before he realized that Ric wasn’t going to bring Carly back. Whatever reason he’d taken her for, it obviously was more important than his own wife.

His fists clenched as the hands on the clock crawled towards midnight. Last summer, he would have given anything to see her again. He’d gone to the police, to the Quartermaines–he’d begged them for information and for help. He’d barely slept, all that mattered was finding her and bringing her back.

How could her own husband, someone who’d taken vows to love and to cherish her…how could he do any less?

When his phone finally rang, Jason looked at the clock automatically even though he knew what time it was. 12:03 a.m.

He took it out of his pocket slowly and answered it. “Yeah?”

“He didn’t make the deadline,” Sonny said coldly. “Do it.”

“Sonny–”

The phone clicked off and Jason found himself standing. He slipped the phone into his pocket and stared at the door.

Love is a bird, she needs to fly
Let all the hurt inside of you die
You’re frozen
When your heart’s not open

He entered the room and looked at Marco. “Leave us alone for a minute,” he directed quietly. “In fact, you’re relieved. Go home for the night.”

Marco nodded and left quickly. Jason stared at Elizabeth who was sitting on the floor, her knees raised, her arms around around them. “Did Ric bring Carly back?” she asked softly.

Jason shook his head and her heart fell. “Then…why did you send him home?”

“Because Sonny gave me instructions…orders…on what to do if Ric didn’t bring her home by midnight.”

Her heart stopped for a moment before beginning to beat rapidly. “Orders,” she repeated softly. She stared at him, her eyes lush with tears.

“Elizabeth…” He stared at the floor and shook his head. He couldn’t do it. He’d been fooling himself thinking it was possible. Sonny’s orders…he’d questioned them before, but defying this one was different. Sonny had ordered this in retaliation, for revenge. Anyone else, Jason would have still had trouble accepting the order but he had an odd sinking feeling, that in the end he would have gone through with it.

It was a feeling that his stomach lurch and bile rise in his throat. He was what everyone had told him. Sonny’s lapdog, a brain damaged thug with no honor, no decency. He was just…Sonny’s enforcer.

If I could melt your heart
We’d never be apart
Give yourself to me
You hold the key

He stared at her, knowing that if she’d been anyone else, he would have done it already.

But she wasn’t anyone else. She was Elizabeth. And that made the difference. It should have meant something to Sonny, but damn it, it still meant something to him.

He couldn’t take out his gun and shoot the woman who’d found him in the snow, forced him to accept her help and who shoved gallons of soup down his throat. He couldn’t end of the life of someone who hummed when she painted and got so lost in her work that she’d end up covering herself in paint and not remember she did it.

He couldn’t kill someone who’d once trusted him, cared for him and had meant the world to him.

He was violently ashamed that he’d even considered it all.

The silence was scaring her and she swallowed hard. “What were the orders?” she whispered.

“To kill you,” Jason admitted.

She inhaled sharply and began blinking rapidly. She was terrified now, and he could see it in her eyes. He could see that she expected him to do it. And that thought rocked him to his core. They’d drifted so far apart that she believed him capable of ending her life in cold blood.

“I’m not going to do it,” Jason said, finally.

You only see what your eyes want to see
How can life be what you want it to be
You’re frozen
When your heart’s not open

Elizabeth closed her eyes, feeling the rush of relief flood her body. For a moment, she’d been so scared, she’d been so cold. But he wouldn’t do it. He couldn’t and she should have known that.

“I can’t just let you go either,” Jason replied after another moment. “Because if I don’t do it…Sonny will send someone else.”

She nodded and lowered her eyes to the floor. “What do you want me to do?”

He stared at her for a moment, formulating possible solutions. Finally, he held out his hand in an achingly familiar pose. “Come with me.”

If I could melt your heart
We’d never be apart
Give yourself to me
You hold the key

She stared at him, holding her breath for a moment. “What?”

“You can’t stay here,” Jason told her. “And I’m not going to let Sonny touch you. I need to get you out of town.”

Elizabeth pushed herself into a standing position. “Jason, Sonny…he’s just angry. He might not mean it–”

“He meant it,” Jason said flatly. “Elizabeth, just please come with me.”

“Why?” she whispered. “Why would you go against Sonny like this?”

“Because if I did what Sonny ordered me to do this time…I’d be no better than what people say I am,” Jason answered quietly. His hand was still stretched out. “Let me…just let me protect you.”

Scared that he was right about Sonny, Elizabeth slipped her hand into Jason’s. “Let’s go,” she said softly.

If I could melt your heart

 

Song: Frozen (Madonna)

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