Here’s another pity there’s another chance
Try to learn a lesson but you can’t
If we can burn a city in futures and in past
Without a change our lives will never last
Cause we’re going fast
– Mona Lisa (When the World Comes Down), All-American Rejects

---

Thursday, November 6, 2003

General Hospital: Carly’s Room

Jason knocked lightly on Carly’s hospital room door the next morning, and she smiled at him, cradling her newborn son in her arms on the sofa. “Hey.”

“Hey. Am I interrupting anything?” he asked, wondering if she’d been about to feed him.

Carly shook her head. “No. I was just trying to move around a little bit, and laying in that bed gets old fast.” She gestured with her head for him to sit by her. “You haven’t been able to see Morgan much yet.”

“Yeah, sorry,” Jason said with a wince as he sat down and allowed Carly to set the baby in his arms. “It’s been—”

“Crazy,” Carly finished with a knowing nod. “Story of our lives, but it’s okay. Morgan knows his uncle Jason loves him. Or he will when I’m done brainwashing him.”

Jason smiled, and she was glad to see it even for a moment because his expression quickly returned to sober. “Are you okay?” he asked quietly. “With Ric jumping bail?”

“I’m trying to be,” she admitted. She rearranged her robe, pulling the ends around her more tightly. “It’s…it’s a lot to take in. I knew he was free, but with the ankle monitor, I could still feel like I was safe.”

She hesitated, then said, “Did Sonny tell you he wants me to move back in until Ric is found?”

“He did,” Jason said evenly. He met her eyes. “You know the security is good. We’ve upgraded it since…” His mouth tightened, and he looked down at the newborn in his arms. Morgan waved his fist, yawned, fluttered his eyelids, then settled back down into a doze.

“Since,” Carly finished. “I know. What kind of changes are you making for Elizabeth?” she asked. “I mean, I know you’re not taking chances with her since she’s pregnant.”

Jason didn’t answer her right away, then almost reluctantly, he said, “Nothing.”

“Nothing?” Carly repeated. She sat back a little, her eyes wide. “Nothing at all?”

“I don’t know that there’s anything I can do short of locking her in the penthouse that would make her safer,” Jason said carefully. “We talked about it, and she’s really—she’s doing a lot right now. She’s leading her group meetings, and she’s still doing therapy. She’s…” He cleared his throat. “She has a guard with her at all times, and I know her schedule. She calls me if it’s going to change. That’s enough for me.”

“It wouldn’t be enough for Sonny,” Carly muttered. “Or I don’t know. Maybe it would have once. You know, a year ago, with all that Alcazar stuff—and Brenda,” she muttered as an afterthought. “With all of that—he never tried to change how I was living my life.”

“That was before the panic room,” Jason told her. “Before he—”

“Before he hallucinated Lily, the last pregnant woman he couldn’t protect,” Carly said with a sigh. “Yeah, I know. Maybe Mama was right. He should have gotten help. I don’t know, Jase. Sonny and I took this weird turn, or we messed something up. We can’t seem to get on the same page anymore.”

“What do you mean?”

“He was so angry that I wanted Ric to go to trial, to rot in prison. And he gave me this whole speech about I couldn’t get my way anymore. My way,” she repeated, almost derisively. “Like I wanted a vacation in Tahiti and not Barbados. Is that how it went when you and Elizabeth talked about it—”

“You can’t—it’s not the same—”

“Why not? I was locked in a panic room for a week in the dark, threatened with death every single day. Elizabeth was drugged and attacked—nearly died. We were both traumatized,” Carly pressed. “Why is it so hard to believe we both want the same thing? That testifying might help us get past it.”

“It’s not,” Jason admitted, then winced, realizing he’d ceded the point.

“What is different is how you and Sonny decided to react to it,” Carly insisted. “Did you argue with Elizabeth?”

“Carly—”

“Did you try to make her feel bad for wanting the trial? Did you berate her or tell her it made you weak to let Ric live?”

Jason stared at Morgan again, not wanting to look at Carly, into those hurt and confused eyes. “No,” he said finally. “I said okay.”

“You said okay,” Carly repeated softly. “How fast?”

“What do you mean?” he asked warily.

“Did you talk about it for a while, or did she say—this is what I need, and you said fine. Like it was a five-second decision for you, right?”

“Yes,” Jason admitted.

“Because what Elizabeth needs is important to you. It matters to you that she’s okay, that she can get past all of this—that’s the priority for you, isn’t it?”

This wasn’t helping Sonny’s case, but Jason wasn’t going to lie to his friend. Not about this. “Yes. It’s the only thing that mattered to me, but Carly, what Sonny went through—it was different—”

“Yeah, he had a breakdown. And I’m not blind to that. I get that he felt weaker because you and Elizabeth did most of the work, and Nikolas swooped in at the last minute with the panic room idea. Sonny fell apart, and I’m sorry for it, Jase, I am. And maybe I should…” She sighed, looked away. “Maybe I should just let it be that easy. I’m expecting him to put me first. Why shouldn’t he expect the same?”

“Carly, what works for me and Elizabeth—it’s not going to work for everyone. We’re different people,” Jason insisted. “It’s not that I love her more, or that Sonny loves you less. We just need different things. It’s up to you to decide if you can live with what Sonny needs.”

“I thought I knew,” she murmured. “I thought I was doing the right thing, but maybe it’s not any better than Courtney calling the PCPD instead of waiting for you and Sonny to figure things out, you know? If what I need makes Sonny weaker in the eyes of the people he needs to respect him—I don’t know, maybe there’s another way around it.” She looked at him. “I mean, it’s different now, isn’t it? Ric isn’t coming back from this alive.”

Jason hesitated. “I don’t know. I hadn’t thought about it. I guess—” He shifted, uncomfortable. “I guess not. I mean, we could—we could try—” He pressed his lips together. “Elizabeth and I haven’t talked about it lately. Do you—” He looked at Carly. “Is that something you still want?”

“A trial?” Carly asked, surprised by the question. “Do I still want to testify and for him to die in a cell, rotting away until no one even remembers him? Yeah. That’s something I still want. I just—I’m not sure if it’s something I need anymore. Maybe Elizabeth feels the same. You know, we felt one way about it months ago. But she’s—she just dealt with her rapist. And she’s pregnant. Maybe she wants to put it behind her.”

“Maybe. I’ll talk to her. But Carly, if you—if you decide this is something you need—” He gently handed Morgan back to her. “Then I’ll try to make it happen. It’s important to me that you’re okay.”

“Okay is a strong word,” Carly said with a sigh. “But it’s a goal. Hey, Jase—before you go, can you be honest with me about something?”

“Always,” he said, rising to his feet.

“Will it be easier for you if I come back to the penthouse until Ric is found?” Carly asked, searching his eyes. “I mean, Sonny will be more focused and less agitated if I’m where he wants me. And—and that would make things better for you.”

“Yes,” Jason said after a long moment. “But that’s not what’s important to me. I care about you—and the boys. Do what’s better for you. I can take care of myself.”

“I know. I just—I’m thinking about all of us. It’s something I’m trying out,” Carly said with a hesitant smile. “I’m not good at it, so be patient.”

He laughed and kissed her cheek. “I’ll see you later.”

General Hospital: Meeting Room

“Thank you,” Elizabeth said, looking at the four women in the room with her. “For doing this today. I know—I know it was hard.”

“Not as hard as I thought it’d be,” Dana Watson murmured. She toyed with the ends of her short, red hair—cut and dyed in the months since she’d been raped and beaten in the Port Charles Park. She wasn’t the only woman in the room who’d shed the long brunette hair that had served as a trigger for Vinnie Esposito to target them—to follow them.

Veronica Logan’s hair was also short and dyed black. Next to her, Wendy Morris’s hair was a white-blonde, worn in a pixie style. Other than Elizabeth, only Renee Norton had kept her hair color.

“It’s stupid,” Wendy muttered, folding her cardigan sweater around herself. “Ever since the papers published the kind of girls he was looking for, I stopped going to the movies.” She glanced at Elizabeth, then down at her nails, bitten down to the quick. “I’ve never gone back to the park. Not in all these months. I couldn’t go on the Fourth of July.”

“It took me almost a year,” Veronica said softly. She looked at Elizabeth. They were the bookends of the original attacks — Elizabeth had been attacked Valentine’s Day 1998, and Veronica had been Vinnie’s final victim in the first round, attacked in January 2000 because Vinnie had been one of the responding officers to the bomb in Elizabeth’s studio that New Year’s.

“It’s not your fault,” Veronica continued. “I—I read what the papers said. About him trying to replicate the first attack. That—that we were hurt worse because we weren’t you.”

Elizabeth’s stomach swirled as she took a deep breath. “Yeah, well, it was hard at first not to blame myself.”

“I blamed you,” Wendy said bluntly. “But—” she swallowed hard. “But I don’t now.” She bit down hard on her lip. “Mostly. I know it’s stupid—”

“It’s not,” Dana said with a shake of her head. “I—I read that it’s normal, you know, for you to blame things like that. I—I was really pissed at my best friend because she flaked on the movies at the last minute, so I was alone. I couldn’t talk to her for weeks. I kept thinking—if she’d just come with me, I might have had a ride home.”

“I blamed myself for lying,” Elizabeth said. “If I hadn’t lied about having a date, I wouldn’t have been in the park. I—I hated myself a long time for that. Sometimes I still do. It’s okay if you blame me. I keep thinking—” She took a deep breath. “I served him coffee after that. All the time. He—he was one of my regulars. He was a good tipper—” Her voice broke. “But I forgot that. You know—I didn’t remember that he’d taken my statement at a shooting, or that I’d seen him a thousand times in town. He just—”

“He blended,” Wendy said. “I mean, he interviewed us after—how fucking disgusting is that?”

“That might be the worst part,” Veronica admitted. “He investigated the cases this time. How—how do I trust the police again?”

“I can’t,” Renee murmured. The youngest of them, barely seventeen, no older than Elizabeth had been the night her world had been shattered. “I won’t ever trust them again.”

“Maybe not,” Elizabeth said. “I trusted a few of the cops so much that I assumed that one of them had sent Vinnie to question me that day. I live in a secure building, and I let him in. After all of that.”

“I’m sleeping better,” Renee volunteered with a half-smile. “Since—since he was arrested, and they told me you bashed in his head with a bat.”

“I didn’t—” Elizabeth managed a smile of her own. “I actually hit him in the knees. My boyfriend—he gave me the bat to protect myself last year. He told me that I’m not tall enough to take someone down by swinging at their head. I might just make them angry. So I should go for the knees and run. He hit the edge of my bed on the way down.”

“I like that better,” Wendy said, swiping at her eyes. “I like that he suffered even more.”

“Me, too,” Veronica admitted. She looked at Wendy and Renee. “What happened to you—it’s fresher for you. And you,” she added to Elizabeth, who shook her head. “I don’t know if it will help you to imagine that it will get better.”

“When the last girl—when Brooke Lynn Ashton died, my mom got scared I might try it, too,” Renee told them. “She slept on my floor for two weeks. It helped.”

“I thought about it, too,” Dana said. “I just—I didn’t.”

“I’m so glad that you didn’t,” Elizabeth told her. “Thank you. Even if you don’t come back, thank you for coming today. For sharing your stories.” When the session had opened, each of them had recounted their experience—and it had helped to hear all the ways it had been the same.

“Thank you for organizing it,” Veronica told her. “It—it really helped. I mean, I used to come to survivor meetings, and it helped to know I wasn’t alone. But when I found out—” She sighed.

“I used to feel that way, too,” Elizabeth admitted as she got to her feet. “But then I found out I was the first of…” So many. Seven women Port Charles, and three more in Buffalo that were still being investigated. How many more had never reported? “It made me sick to know I wasn’t alone anymore.”

“I’ll see you next week,” Renee told her shyly as the last of the women to leave the room. “You—you were really my age when it happened?”

“Yeah. I’d just turned sixteen a few months earlier,” Elizabeth said.

“And now you’re okay.” Renee took a deep breath. “You—you’re happy, right? I mean, you have a boyfriend. And I-I read somewhere that you’re having a baby.”

“Yes.” Elizabeth smiled, touching her belly. “Fifteen weeks, so I’m not showing just yet.”

“So you could—you like…” Renee’s cheeks were beet red as she struggled to get out of the words. “You…could, like, do it. I mean—have—”

“It took a while,” Elizabeth told her gently. “But I was able to fall in love and trust someone with not only my heart but my body. I used to be so scared that I could never let someone touch me. But time and patience, and the love of my first boyfriend—I got through it.” She squeezed Renee’s hand. “I hope it will be the same for you.”

She walked out of the room with Renee and smiled when she saw Gail Baldwin, her therapist, and the reason she was leading these meetings, waiting for her. “I’ll see you next week, Renee.”

“Bye.”

“How did it go?” Gail asked as she and Elizabeth walked towards her office. “I know you were nervous.”

“Good,” Elizabeth answered. “Better than I expected. Um, I don’t know if they’ll all come back, but I’m glad they came once. Thanks for helping me set it up. I wasn’t sure if—” She shrugged as they paused at the doorway to Gail’s office. “I wasn’t sure if it would work, but it did.”

“You have an instinct for this,” Gail told her. “That’s one of the reasons I stopped by. I wanted to talk to you about the possibility of you doing this more formally.”

“Formally?” Elizabeth raised her brows. “Like a job? Gail, I’m not qualified—”

“Not at the moment. But you could be. You have your BA, don’t you?”

Elizabeth rolled her eyes. “For all the good it does me. Art History isn’t much of a field—”

“You just need a BA to qualify for graduate school. I have some friends at PCU. With a master’s degree in counseling, you could do more of this.”

Elizabeth hesitated, then tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. “You think?” she asked, almost skeptically.

“Yes. I do. But it has to be something you want.”

“I—” Elizabeth thought about it for a long moment. “Would I have to specialize in rape counseling? I mean—I can do that. I think it would be okay—”

“You don’t have to. There’s domestic violence, unfortunately. Marriage counseling, addictions—” Gail lifted a shoulder. “There’s a large field to choose from, and you’d make that choice later. I’ve just—I’ve been so proud of you these last few months. Rising up from what you’ve been through, reaching out to help others—you have a gift for this, Elizabeth.”

“I’d have to think about it a little more,” Elizabeth said. “I—I—with the baby and everything—”

“Of course.” Gail smiled at her. “Just let me know. I could make some calls and have you admitted for the fall at PCU. But you and the baby come first. Let me know if you need anything.” Gail paused. “How are you doing…otherwise? Scott told me about Ric Lansing. And, of course, I saw the news.”

“I’m okay. I mean…” Elizabeth paused. “I’m okay,” she repeated. “I’m trying not to think about it if I don’t have to. Jason and I talked about it last night, and I think I’ll be fine. But thanks for checking.”

“You call me any time,” Gail told her. She kissed Elizabeth’s cheek. “Just because we’ve finished formal therapy, it doesn’t mean I don’t still worry.”

Elizabeth squeezed her hand. “Thanks, Gail. I appreciate everything.”

Kelly’s: Diner

Kelsey Joyce shifted nervously as she pushed her lunch around her plate. “We should wait a few more days,” she told Lucky Spencer. “I mean, until your mother has settled in.”

Lucky’s best friends, and fellow rookies at the Port Charles Police Department, Cruz Rodriguez and Dante Falconieri, snickered. Lucky sighed and slid over a five to each of them. Kelsey narrowed her eyes. “What?”

“I just lost a bet,” Lucky admitted. “These idiots—” he jerked a thumb at the others. “Said you would try to get out of meeting my parents, and I figured you were braver than that.” He shrugged.

Kelsey narrowed her eyes, first at her boyfriend of four months before turning her glare on his friends—“Oh, I see how it is.”

“Face it, Kelse,” Cruz said with a shrug. He took a bite out of his burger. “We know you. You’re a wuss.”

“A wuss?” She flicked him hard in the shoulder. “Take it back.”

“Not that kind of wuss,” Dante clarified. “I mean, I’d go through a door with you if I needed to—better you than Beaudry.” Sergeant Ryan Beaudry was the training officer who was supposed to be shepherding the trio through their first year on the force and in Major Crimes, but Beaudry liked to spend most of his shift in his car.

“Just that you like to avoid uncomfortable conversations,” Cruz finished. “And meeting the parents—uncomfortable.”

Kelsey scowled, then sat back, and looked at Lucky. “And you actually bet them?”

“In my defense,” Lucky said, “I bet on you, so I’m the one that got screwed here.” He flashed her a grin, and she wrinkled her nose.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” she muttered. “Fine. Okay. Yes. I am nervous about meeting Luke and Laura Spencer. Do you know who your parents are?”

“Uh…” He pretended to think it over, and she whacked him in the arm.

“I mean, your parents literally saved the world. And—” Kelsey shifted, uncomfortable. “They…really liked Elizabeth.”

“Oh.” Cruz blinked at Lucky. “Yeah? They were into your last girlfriend?”

Lucky hesitated. “Yes. And—well, they still think of her as part of the family,” he admitted. “Mom wanted to invite her to dinner that night, too—”

“See? They’re not going to like me—”

“Hey—” Lucky reached across the table and took her hand in his. “There were times my parents liked Elizabeth more than me—”

“Ugh—” Kelsey groaned. She shoved her salad away and put her head on the table.

“You are terrible at this,” Dante told Lucky.

“No, no, I mean—they like her for reasons that have nothing to do with the fact I almost married her. It’s—they got really close because of her—” Lucky winced. “Because of the…Dad was here that night when I brought her back. And she and my mom were, like, working through it together because of what happened to my mom. I mean, they like Elizabeth on her own.”

“Plus, there was that whole year you were dead,” Cruz reminded him.

“Exactly. Elizabeth—she’s just special to them. But that’s because my parents know how to make room for people,” Lucky said. He hesitated. “Well, my mom does. Dad takes some time, but only if you’re a Cassadine, and you’re not a Cassadine—”

“She is basically a Baldwin, though,” Dante said.

“The two of you are a giant pain in my ass,” Lucky snarled at the both of them. “Could you try not to enjoy this so much?”

“Then stop making it so entertaining,” Cruz tossed back.

Lucky glared at them, then turned back to his girlfriend. “Kelsey.”

“What?” she said, her voice muffled since she didn’t raise her head.

“My mother would like anyone I dated. I promise you on that. But she’s going to love you.”

“How do you know?”

“Because I know my mother. Plus, Mom probably knew your dad. You said Scott and your dad went to law school together, right?”

“Right?” Kelsey raised her head, then sighed. “Right. That’s when she was married to Scott. So—”

“So, I don’t think my mother has ever disliked anyone. Except Helena Cassadine. You’re in the clear. And my father likes almost anyone my mother tells him to. Except Nikolas. But that’s a whole other problem.”

“I’m being stupid. I know I’m being stupid,” Kelsey told him, “so don’t agree with me.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.”

“Fine. I’ll have dinner with your parents the night your mom comes back.” She looked at Dante and Cruz. “He gets his money back.”

General Hospital: Carly’s Room

Carly still wasn’t sure that she was making the best choice, but when both Sonny and Bobbie came to the hospital at her discharge time, she knew it was the right choice at the moment.

“Only until Ric is found,” she cautioned Sonny as she handed Morgan to him to strap the baby into a carrier. She looked over at Bobbie, who had said nothing since Carly’s announcement. “After that, I have to think about it.”

“Right.” Sonny nodded. “Thank you for this,” he told her. He finished fastening the carrier and turned to Carly, took her hands in his. “I mean it. I—I heard what you said yesterday. What you said a few months ago. I’m trying.”

“I know. And I listened to you. We’ll—we’ll figure this out.” She smiled faintly at him. “Can you do me a favor? Go find Dr. Meadows and make sure everything is signed so we can go.”

“Sure, sure. And I’ll call Leticia to let her know to pack up.”

When Sonny had left the room, Carly turned to her mother. “I know what you’re thinking.”

“I’m not thinking anything,” Bobbie said. She sniffed and started to make the bed. “You’re an adult. You can make your own choices.”

“Jason came by earlier—”

“Oh, don’t tell me he talked you into this? I expected better from him—”

“No, no—” Carly held up her hands. “No,” she repeated. “But I also—one of the things that’s helped me get through all of this is to remember I’m not alone. That Elizabeth went through some of this, too. And—I know she and Jason aren’t talking about it, but the physical problems still aren’t over for her.”

Bobbie hesitated, then nodded. “They’re not. She’s doing well right now. But it’s early in the pregnancy, and that could change. She could deliver normally or have any number of complications because of her medical history.”

“Exactly. I can’t do anything about that. I couldn’t stop him from drugging her. And she worked so hard to find me, to make sure Jason could find me. If she’d left him that first night—Ric might have killed me.”

Carly took a deep breath as her mother’s face paled. “I’m not stupid, Mama. Ric was obsessed with Elizabeth and hated Sonny. He wanted to give my baby to her. If Elizabeth had left him, I wouldn’t have had any value for him. I’m alive today, in part, because of that choice. And she almost died because she stayed. I owe her something for that.”

“She would be the first to tell you that you don’t—”

“But it helps me to see it that way,” Carly insisted. “I’m—I’m selfish. You know that. I am terrible at thinking about other people, and when I try to put them first, I just do what I think they should want. It’s always about me. All the time.”

“Carly…” Bobbie sighed, tilted her head. “You’re not…entirely wrong. But Sonny isn’t much different. You’re giving him what he wants—”

“But I’m not going back for him. Not entirely. That’s only part of it. I’m doing it for Jason and Elizabeth. I watched them every day, Mama, on those little monitors. I watched them search. I saw them put in cameras. They tried so hard to find me.”

“I know they did, and I’m grateful—”

“If I’m at the Brownstone, Sonny might be unfocused. He might be distracted. He’ll be wondering about me, checking on me, and even—maybe—irritating me to the point I want to slap him,” Carly continued. “How much energy do you think he’ll put into the job? Into finding Ric?”

“Very little,” Bobbie admitted.

“The same thing that happened when I was kidnapped. I’m not doing it again. I couldn’t stop it before—I couldn’t help. I can now. And it will be better for Jason if he’s not worrying about me, Sonny, and Elizabeth. He can just worry about his family. The family he’s creating. He deserves to be a father. To have a child no one can take from him.”

“He does.” Bobbie sighed, nodded. “All right. If you think this will help in the long run, I’ll support you. I just—I just want you to be happy.”

“I have my boys, I have my family, my club—” Carly took a deep breath. “And once Ric is out of my life for good, we’ll work on happy.”

Gatehouse: Living Room

Lois Cerullo took a deep breath and stepped over the threshold of the house that sat near the entrance to the Quartermaine estate. She’d lived here with Ned as a new wife, trying hard to make their marriage work—

And she’d stayed here briefly last summer. She hadn’t been back since the day Brooke died. Since her baby had left this world.

“Lois. You—” Ned looked at her, then closed the door. “I told you. We could have met in town. At the hotel—”

“We could have,” Lois said. She turned to him, lifted her chin. “But I needed to remember this is just a place. You—you were able to stay.”

“For now,” Ned admitted. “I thought I might move closer to downtown.” He folded his arms. “At least while I’m in office. Maybe getting a condo or something. I—I didn’t think you were coming up this week.”

“I’m not just here for a visit,” Lois told him. “I—I tried to go back to Bensonhurst after—” She looked away from the mantel, from the collection of photos of Brooke and Kristina. “After we found out.” She hesitated. “It always felt like a safe place before, you know? I went there when we got divorced, and after Brooke—” She closed her eyes. “After.”

“But now?” Ned asked.

“Now, I can’t move an inch without seeing Vinnie. He grew up on those streets, Ned. I knew him, you know? I was—I babysat him. I see him on the corners, on the porches—” She sighed. “And Ma isn’t doing much better with it all. The Falconieries—especially his mom and grandmother—they’re saying he was framed. Tricked into it.”

Ned clenched his jaw. “They’re wrong.”

“I know it. They think he’s being scapegoated, that the DNA results are fake—Frannie wants him to withdraw his guilty plea—” Lois’s voice faltered slightly, but she got past it. “I just—I can’t be there anymore.”

“I’m sorry, Lois.” He took her in his arms, wrapped her in a hug. She let him soothe her—it was easier now to let him comfort her. Now that she knew who had stolen their daughter away from them.

“I thought I’d hate Port Charles forever,” Lois said. She drew back slightly. “But—it’s not the same. It was terrible what happened, but it’s also—it’s where he got caught. It’s where he’ll be sentenced. No one around here thinks it’s a lie.”

“You should stay a while,” Ned told her. He stepped back from her, rubbing his hands down her arms, to her elbows, then up again to her shoulders. “You know Grandfather will let you have the owner’s suite at the hotel, or Grandmother would love to have you in the house.”

“Maybe. But I was thinking bigger than that. I, um, you ran for this job to do better, you know? To get rid of Floyd and help people. Like those other poor girls. I want—I want to be part of it.”

“Yeah?” Ned searched her eyes, then nodded. “Yeah, that’d be good. I think—you know, Alexis is going to be the City Attorney. And Jax is taking a sabbatical to be my Chief of Staff. I need people I can trust around me. People who won’t let me get away with—” He managed a smile. “With being me.”

Lois laughed, then bowed her head slightly. “Yeah, you need people who will speak truth to power. Jax and Alexis are good at that. I could—I was good at it once. For a while.”

“No one better. Be my Media Director,” he offered. “Or Communications. Or something. Be in charge of the message. Keep me honest. I—I started this because I needed to think about someone other than Brooke. I needed to make sure someone paid. That it could never happen again.”

“And I want to help,” Lois told him. “So, wherever I fit, I wanna do it. For Brooke.”

“For Brooke.”

Ward Home: Front Porch

“I can’t wait to meet Justus’s daughter,” Elizabeth told Jason as they stepped up to the front door. He took the bottle of wine from her and smiled. “Every time he comes over, he has a new picture of her. She’s adorable.”

Jason knocked on the door, then waited. “Thanks for coming with me,” he told her. “I don’t always make a good first impression.”

“You? No,” Elizabeth teased. “I can’t believe it.”

Justus pulled open the front door, grinning at them both. “Hey! Come on in! It’s still chaos here because the movers didn’t…uh…take us seriously when we labeled boxes.” He ushered them into a foyer, closing the door behind them. “Mikki! Jason and Elizabeth are here!”

He shoved a stack aside as they walked through the living room into a dining room where a tall, pretty woman was sorting through a stack of dishes. Her curly black hair was swept into a top loose knot on her head, tendrils falling around her face. “Oh—I am a mess.” She turned to them. “Hey. I’m Tamika. Thanks for coming by.”

Jason handed Justus the bottle of wine. “Thanks for moving up here,” he told her. “Justus is the best lawyer we’ve ever had.”

“We like him, too.” She tapped her cheek, and Justus kissed it. “How about you open that up, let it breathe? We can have a glass and toast our first night in the land of boxes?”

“You want some?” Justus asked them. “Elizabeth, I know you can’t—”

“Oh!” Tamika clapped her hands together. “Oh, I forgot all about it! You’re pregnant. Of course not! Justus, go put the wine away and get some of my mama’s sweet tea for us.” She reached out for Elizabeth’s hands. “How are you feeling? How many weeks?”

“Fifteen,” Elizabeth said with a bright smile. Talking about the baby was her favorite thing in the world. “I’m feeling mostly okay. Tired a lot, but that’s normal.”

“Get your sleep in now because it will be your last chance before—”

“Mama, Mama!” They heard footsteps clattering down the backstairs before a miniature version of Tamika appeared in the doorway, dressed in a pair of denim overalls and a pink shirt. “Mama!”

“Kimi, we have guests.” Tamika raised her brows. “Is that how we act with company?”

The little girl pursed her lips, sighed, then looked at Jason and Elizabeth. “Sorry. Kimi. Nice to see you.” She flicked her eyes to her father. “Daddy, my dollhouse is all in pieces.”

“I told you, baby, that’s how we moved it from Philly.” Justus knelt down to sweep her into his arms. “Kimi, this is Daddy’s cousin, Jason, and his—” He hesitated. “Girlfriend, Elizabeth. This is Kimi.”

“Kimani,” Kimi corrected with a sniff. “I let them call me Kimi.”

“Well, aren’t we lucky?” Tamika drawled.

“Cousin,” Kimi repeated. “Like Jeremiah and Haven? Because cousins mean presents.” She fluttered her lashes. “I like presents.”

“Lord, save me,” Tamika muttered. She plucked Kimi from Justus’s hands. “Elizabeth, you wanna come upstairs with me? We can put Miss Kimani’s dollhouse together while the boys talk shop.” She grinned at her husband. “Look at me. Being all helpful and not even waiting to be kicked out.”

“Uh huh.” Justus kissed her again. “We’ll be quick.”

“I’ll bet.” She looked at Elizabeth. “Come on. I’ll show you around the house.”

While Elizabeth and Tamika went upstairs, Justus motioned for Jason to follow him into a room off the living room—his office, judging by the desk and chair surrounded by boxes. “Sorry about Kimi. She thinks family equals gifts, and with Christmas next month—”

“Michael’s the same way,” Jason said easily. “He’s already working on his list. And you’re right. We’re cousins. I’m—” He rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m working on being more okay with that than I was before.”

“The Quartermaines take a lot to get used to,” Justus agreed. “We don’t really have much to talk about, though. I made some calls to my contacts in the State Department. The FBI is agreeing to help track Ric, but they don’t have any leads yet.”

“Yeah, I figured. Bernie’s been talking to our guys in South America. But nothing.” Jason exhaled with a frustrated air. “It’s like he vanished into thin air. I don’t like it.”

“Me, either.” Justus folded his arms. “But he’ll turn up sooner or later. No one can hide forever. And if he does mean to be gone forever, well—” He lifted his brows. “Would that be so bad?”

“No, but—” Jason paused. “I made Carly and Elizabeth a promise,” he told Justus. “They wanted Ric to go to trial, so they could testify against him—to his face,” he clarified. “And then they wanted him to rot in prison.”

“Ah.” Justus heard the words Jason hadn’t said. “Well, then, it’s gonna harder to keep that promise if we can’t find him.”

Jason nodded. “I know. But—” He remembered Carly’s face that morning, the way Elizabeth had looked the day he’d promised her. “I need to do whatever I can to try.”

Be my friend, hold me
Wrap me up, enfold me
I am small and needy
Warm me up and breathe me
Ouch I have lost myself again
Lost myself and I am nowhere to be found
Yeah I think that I might break
Lost myself again and I feel unsafe
– Breathe Me, Sia

---

Wednesday, November 5, 2003

Port Charles Municipal Building: District Attorney’s Office

Scott Baldwin stepped aside to hold the door as Elizabeth Webber and Jason Morgan entered his office. He dragged a hand through his hair, then gestured at his conference table. “Have a seat, have a seat. I’ll tell you what we know.”

He grimaced slightly, taking a moment to note the irony of this moment. Six months ago, he would have killed to have Jason Morgan walking willingly into his office, but things were different now. His life wasn’t about putting Jason Morgan or Sonny Corinthos behind bars. Not anymore.

Well, it was still a little about making sure Corinthos rotted in hell for eternity, but Scott had turned the corner on Jason thanks to Bobbie Spencer and Elizabeth Webber, who seemed to think there was something worthwhile about Jason.

“I don’t understand how this happened,” Elizabeth said as she sat down. Jason sat next to her, keeping a careful eye on her. It had been only a month since she’d come face to face with serial rapist Vinnie Esposito and survived to tell the tale, even if she’d needed a baseball bat to escape him.

“He was supposed to be wearing an ankle monitor,” Jason said. His expression was bland, almost blank, one might say, but Scott had spent enough time with him to know that Morgan was livid—the way the corner of his eyebrow twitched slightly, the clench of his fist on the arm of his chair, the white knuckles.

“I know.” He exhaled and sat down. “I’ve spent most of the night trying to figure it out. We’re consulting with Crimson Pointe police, but their guys don’t have anything. All they can tell us is that Ric Lansing’s ankle monitor turned off around 8:42 PM last night. They contacted us about ten minutes later. By 9:30 PM, they’d performed a search of the entire Zacchara estate. No sign of him.”

Scott looked at Jason. “Thank you. For allowing your guards to talk to us freely.” He’d been stunned silly when two of Morgan’s men had willingly sat down with Taggert that morning to give statements but grateful nonetheless. “Cassadine’s security also said the same. They all had eyes on the front gates. Nothing stirred.”

“So, what’s next?” Elizabeth asked, her voice tight. She clenched her hands in her lap, stared down at the table. Jason reached over, took one of her fists in his, laced their fingers together, forcing her to relax. She glanced at him, then sighed as she returned her attention to Scott. “I mean, where are you looking? Are you looking?”

“We put out the APB last night and is running in all the major newspapers in the state this morning, even in New York City,” Scott continued. “We’re contacting the FBI to see if we can get their assistance, but since Ric wasn’t charged with anything federal, they’re limited at the moment until we have proof he’s crossed state lines.”

“But you don’t know anything,” Jason said flatly. “Nothing that you didn’t know last night. Ric disappeared, and no one can say where he is or might go.”

Scott met his eyes, then swallowed hard. It was insane to feel like he’d disappointed Jason Morgan, but he also knew that Morgan had let Ric live. He could have had the scumbag disposed of at any point in the last four months since Lansing had been arrested for kidnapping and attempted murder, among the other charges levied for what had happened to Elizabeth.

But Lansing had survived to be released on bail. He’d survived months in Crimson Pointe. If Morgan had wanted him dead, Scott knew Jason could have made it happen. Instead, he had let the case wind through the system.

Now the system had let Elizabeth down. Again.

“No, we don’t. I wish we did. But Lansing has resources that we don’t even know about. I’m sorry,” he told Elizabeth. “I wish—I don’t know—I wish we’d done something different.”

“If Carly and I had agreed to a deal,” Elizabeth said softly, “it might be over. He’d already be in Pentonville or Sing Sing.” She looked at Jason. “Were we wrong? Did we make a mistake?”

“No,” Jason told her simply. “You wanted a trial. You deserved it.”

She swallowed hard and looked back at Scott. “What about me and Carly? We’re the star witnesses against him. I know he was trying to discredit me during our divorce proceedings, but the judge ruled last week that he couldn’t force a property settlement I didn’t want. Ric was trying to delay the divorce so I couldn’t testify against him, I think. But they finalized it—I mean, they gave me a date when it’ll be over. Is that why he escaped now?”

“Maybe,” Scott allowed. “I don’t know. I can’t see what Ric will gain by going after either you or Carly. You might be my star witnesses, but you’re not the only ones. Bobbie and Nikolas both saw the panic room. Cody Paul and Cruz Rodriguez were there when you found the button. There’s the real estate agent, and the footage you gathered during the week Carly was gone—your statements are on the record as well.” He forced himself to smile. “You two are the icing on top of a very well-baked cake.”

He looked at Jason. “And I’m sure that Jason here has made you and Carly as safe as you can be. Especially after what happened in September.”

“Yeah.” Elizabeth looked at Jason with a faint smile. “Yeah, I’m safe. I guess I was just—” She sighed. “I was hoping it would be over. We were going to trial next week—” She rubbed her temple.

“I’m sorry, Elizabeth. I wish this could be different. I promise to keep you loop, okay?” Scott got to his feet and surprised himself by reaching out, extending a hand to Jason, who reluctantly shook it. “We’ll find him. Somehow.”

“I know you’ll try hard. Thanks, Scott.” She also shook his hand, then held it a moment longer. “I mean that. Thank you. For everything you’ve done since he was arrested.”

“I’m just sorry I don’t have better news for you today.” He clasped his other hand over their joined ones, enveloping her hand in both of his. “But you know, you should be proud. For taking down Floyd, standing up for yourself and the other women—and you’ve got a lot to look forward to, you know.” He smiled at her. “Take care of yourself and that baby. Leave Ric to us.”

“Thank you.”

He walked them out, then returned to his office to go over the case one more time, praying for a detail that he had missed.

PCPD: Commissioner’s Office

Mac Scorpio grimaced as he hung up the phone. “Sorry,” he said to the city’s mayor-elect. “It’s crazy this morning with the Lansing case.”

“Yeah, I imagine.” Ned Ashton took a seat and studied Mac for a long moment. “How is that going? I don’t see Floyd stomping in to make demands.”

“No election left to win,” Mac said dryly. “He saw the writing on the wall and left me alone after the Esposito case wrapped up.” He tapped a pencil against the case report. “As for Lansing, we’re still waiting on some footage from red light cameras and speed traps in Crimson Pointe. Hoping for some sign of life. As of right now, it’s like Lansing disappeared off the face of the Earth.”

“Any chance that’s true?” Ned asked carefully. “Lansing, uh, made some enemies in this town.”

“If Morgan and Corinthos had wanted Lansing dead, he’d be dead,” Mac replied simply. “Scott got the impression they’d decided to let him live, at least through the trial. Elizabeth and Carly wanted to testify.”

“So it’s unlikely they did anything before their testimony.” Ned nodded. “I can understand that. I know how protective Jason is of Elizabeth, especially now. If he made her a promise, he’s not going back out. What about the other enemies? The Zaccharas?”

“I can’t see why Trevor and Anthony would bring all this crap on themselves right now,” Mac said. “If they wanted Ric dead, there were easier and cleaner ways. Right now, they’ve got authorities crawling over the estate with a fine-tooth comb. Better for all parties concerned if Ric is shanked in the shower at Sing Sing in a year or two.”

He shook his head. “No, I think Lansing took the chance and split. We’ve got the APB out, and media has been alerted. Baldwin’s working with the U.S. Attorney’s office in Syracuse to get federal help tracking him.”

“So you do know how to do this job,” Ned said, caustically. “It’s nice to see you actually doing something productive for a change.”

Mac exhaled slowly and took the hit. Ned, more than anyone, had earned the right to rake him over the coals whenever he wanted for what Mac had done.

It hadn’t felt so wrong five years ago when he’d quietly closed Elizabeth Webber’s rape case without further investigation. He’d believed Tom Baker had committed the crime and was on his way to jail. He couldn’t have known that Baker had falsely confessed to Elizabeth or that one of his own men had brutally raped her—

Or that Vinnie Esposito would rape six more women, including Ned’s daughter, Brooke Lynn, who had died by suicide earlier that summer.

He couldn’t have known it, but he knew he should have done more. At the very least, he should have done the right thing by Elizabeth five years ago. A DNA test would have excluded Tom Baker. It might not have stopped the later rapes, but maybe they could have caught Vinnie before he’d gone after Elizabeth again. Falsifying that lab report—it would haunt him for the rest of his life.

There was no way to know what might have been different, only to live with the consequences of his actions.

“Everyone wants Lansing brought in,” Mac said after a long moment. “I’d be surprised if he were still in the jurisdiction, but…” He trailed off.

“I’m not here for an update, but thank you for it all the same.” Ned got to his feet. “You know why I’m here.”

“I do.”

Ned’s handsome features twisted in a sneer. “Look at you, like a fucking martyr, ready to take your punishment like it will make a difference.” He shook his head. “It won’t. You can go quietly, you can go angrily, I don’t care which.”

Mac thought Ned did care—that he would prefer Mac to put up a fight and proclaim his innocence. He was searching for someone to blame, to be angry at. Somewhere to put all the energy, all the devastation from the loss of his daughter. He’d funneled it first into his campaign to replace Garrett Floyd as mayor, but now—

Now Mac wondered how Ned would go on without somewhere to focus that energy. Would he find comfort and solace in being mayor?

“I know what I did. I know it was wrong. There’s nothing I can ever do to make it right, Ned. I put myself in front of the job. I told myself I was doing it because I wanted to take care of my girls, but I should have seen all the other girls I let down.” He got to his feet. “I can throw a punch, I can yell at you. But I don’t want to. You’re right. I’m wrong.”

“Damn right. And I don’t care about your excuses. About your rationalizations. I take office on December 1.” Ned exhaled slowly. “I thought about demanding your resignation the same day, but the person replacing you can’t start until December 10.”

He looked at Mac. “You might know her. She’s been working in Pine Valley the last few years.”

Mac smiled faintly, then nodded as he looked down at his desk. “Anna,” he said quietly. He looked back up. “Anna Devane. That—you couldn’t do better than her.”

“I know. So—” Ned cleared his throat. “I need you to stay until she starts,” he muttered. “I almost wanted to let the department go without a commissioner for nine days because, hell, what difference would it make—but—” He shook his head. “Then Lansing jumped bail. And I know what he can do. What he’s already done. I would never forgive myself if I didn’t do everything I could to bring him in. So you’ll stay until she starts.”

“Of course.”

Ned went to the door, then stopped. He turned back to look at Mac, and Mac was startled to see that some of the hatred and anger had dissipated. “You know, I actually do believe you thought it was Tom Baker. You didn’t know a serial rapist was stalking the streets—”

“It’s my job to know,” Mac interrupted roughly. “I trusted Vinnie. I knew him back then. And he was—he wasn’t like that. Not where you could see.” He’d never seen the monster underneath.

“No. Some demons only come out in the dark. Keep me in the loop on the Lansing case.”

Corinthos & Morgan Warehouse: Sonny’s Office

Sonny Corinthos scowled at his partner, then started to pace the room. “How the hell can they say they don’t know anything?” he demanded.

Jason slid his hands into his pockets and sighed. “Because they had even fewer eyes on the place than I did. Harry and Tito didn’t see anything, Sonny. Neither did the guy Nikolas had watching the place. If the ankle monitor was deactivated—”

“He had help,” Sonny snarled. He whirled to glare at Bernie Abrams, their business manager and adviser. “Have you contacted Anthony? What the hell does he have to say for himself?”

“Trevor told me the same thing they told the police,” Bernie replied. He flicked his eyes to Jason and then back to Sonny. “He went up to check on Ric when he didn’t come down for dinner. He wasn’t in his room. Last time he saw his son was around noon. They didn’t contact the police because it’s not their problem. The police were only notified when the ankle monitor went dead.”

“They’re lying,” Sonny muttered. He jabbed a finger at Jason. “If you’d let me kill this fucker months ago, we wouldn’t be in this position—”

Since Elizabeth had voiced a similar thought about wishing she’d let the whole thing be pleaded down, Jason didn’t argue with Sonny. He wanted Ric Lansing dead, too, but it wasn’t up to him, and it wasn’t up to Sonny.

Carly and Elizabeth had made their wishes clear —to deal with what had happened to them, they both wanted to face him in court. End of story. Sonny had seen the whole thing as a betrayal by his own wife and a sign of weakness on Jason’s part for giving in.

Jason didn’t care. He had made Elizabeth a promise, and he wasn’t in the habit of breaking them. Not after what she’d gone through last summer with Ric Lansing almost killing her, then being attacked by the man who’d raped her as a teenager.

“Baldwin knows something,” Sonny decided. “He’s just not telling you. He hates our guts and isn’t gonna do us any favors. I kept telling Carly that, but she let her mother—and Elizabeth—change her mind. Don’t think I forgot about that—”

“Baldwin doesn’t know anything,” Jason snapped, done with the snide remarks about Elizabeth. “He didn’t have anything to hide. And he hates you. Not Elizabeth.” Or Jason, since Scott had gone out of his way to help Jason keep control of her medical care, but Jason didn’t think Sonny wanted to hear about all the ways Scott Baldwin had played this case fairly.

Sonny was livid that Lansing had slipped through their grasp, and he was worried that the other members of the syndicate might see it as a sign of weakness that Lansing still drew breath. Jason didn’t spend a lot of time worrying about that kind of thing — if he wanted to prove his strength, he just kicked someone’s ass.

“Baldwin wouldn’t lie to Elizabeth. He’d lie to me maybe, but not her. Not about Lansing. He knows she could still file charges against the PCPD and the city for the crap they pulled with both of her cases,” Jason told Sonny. “That’s the reason Baldwin called her in at all. They’re making sure she’s not pissed off.”

“I don’t know why I bother. You’re never going to see it my way,” Sonny muttered. He sat behind his desk, put his head in hands. “Suppose Baldwin isn’t lying. What’s the game?”

“I’m not sure it has to be that complicated,” Bernie offered. Jason looked at him, frowned, and Bernie continued. “Well, the trial starts next week, and the hearing last week made it clear that Elizabeth would be able to testify against him. He can’t drag out the divorce anymore, and he can’t put off the trial. So he split.”

“He’s probably halfway to South America by now,” Jason continued. “He still has contacts from his work with Luis Alcazar. He could disappear in Venezuela or Colombia and pass as a local with his coloring. He knows the language. I agree, Bernie. I think Lansing took his chance and left. I don’t know if the Zaccharas helped him, but it doesn’t change the fact that he’s in the wind.”

“You mean you hope he is. How do we know he’s not just licking his lips, waiting for another chance at Elizabeth or Carly? He was obsessed with Elizabeth. He tried to kill my wife, steal my son to give him to Elizabeth—and you think he’s done with her?” Sonny demanded.

“I’m not ruling that out,” Jason said. “I called Roy DiLucca in Miami. He’s laying groundwork with the Ruiz family to use their network in the region. They use a lot of the same connections that Alcazar did. Ric would probably use the same connections. I talked to Vic on the island to make sure Ric doesn’t get through the Caribbean without us knowing it.”

Sonny nodded. “Okay. Okay. That’s more like it. But that’s supposing Ric is going to South America. What if he’s not? What if he’s staying in the area?”

“The Towers are secure. Since Esposito got in, the PCPD doesn’t get in without a warrant.” Or unless they were cops Elizabeth trusted, but there was no way in hell Jason would tell him that. “And we have keys for the elevators. Stan finished installing that last week. You and I have keys. Elizabeth has one. So does Max, Marco, and Cody because they need access to the penthouse floor. We gave one to Wally on the front desk to let people upstairs—with authorization. No one gets upstairs without someone on the floor who lives there giving permission,” Jason reminded him.

Sonny nodded. “Okay. Okay. And Elizabeth—she should stay in for a while. I’ll get Carly to come stay at the penthouse with the boys until we get this bastard—”

“I—I don’t think that’s necessary,” Jason said, a bit unsettled by that suggestion. Carly had barely recovered from being locked up in the panic room—he didn’t think it was a great idea to ask her to be locked up again, even if it was in a luxurious penthouse. “I think the Brownstone has good security—”

“I’ll ask her anyway,” Sonny said. “Things are better between us, so she was going to come home soon anyway.”

Jason didn’t argue with him. He didn’t know Carly’s mind, and he wasn’t going to pretend he did. “We’re as prepared as we can be, Sonny. I don’t like this either, okay? Elizabeth—she’s pregnant. You think I’m going to take any chances with her?”

“No. No.” Sonny took a deep breath, and some of the anger and tension bled from his face as he met Jason’s eyes. “Of course not. How is she? I mean, with this Ric stuff—she handling it?”

“She’s doing okay,” Jason said, grateful that Sonny had remembered he actually liked Elizabeth. “She’s leading a support group for survivors at the hospital, and it’s helping. And we just had an appointment yesterday with the doctor. She’s good.” Her blood pressure had been elevated, but still in the normal range—nothing they hadn’t expected after Vinnie Esposito’s attack in September.

“Good. Good.” He looked at Bernie. “What’s going on down at the waterfront? Tommy collected on the World Series bets yet?”

General Hospital: Carly’s Room

Carly Corinthos smiled faintly as her mother gently laid a freshly washed and clean Morgan Stone Corinthos back into his crib. “He’s beautiful, isn’t he?” she murmured. She turned her head to face them. “You’d never know everything he’s been through.”

“That’s because he has a strong mother.” Bobbie Spencer leaned over to kiss her head gently. “Get some sleep. I’ll be back to take you home tomorrow.”

Bobbie turned towards the door and stopped when she saw Sonny standing there. “Sonny.”

Carly blinked, then winced as she sat up. “Sonny. I wasn’t expecting you.”

“I wanted to see my son again.” Sonny nodded at his mother-in-law. “Bobbie. How are you?”

“I’m good. I’m going home to check on Lucas, then coming back tomorrow to take both Carly and Morgan home,” Bobbie said, lifting her chin at the final word, reminding Sonny that Carly didn’t live with him anymore and hadn’t in almost two months.

“Mama,” Carly said, pointedly. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Bobbie sniffed, then kissed Morgan’s forehead one more time before leaving. Sonny closed the door behind her, and went over to check on their son. He lifted Morgan out of the bed, and cradled him against his chest.

“How was your meeting with Jason?” Carly asked. “Elizabeth came by after she talked to Scott. She said Baldwin didn’t know anything.”

A muscle in Sonny’s cheek clenched, and Carly knew it was because he wasn’t comfortable with her asking about business. She didn’t consider Ric Lansing to be business related, and neither did Elizabeth.

That was why she’d left Sonny—because he’d refused to remember that it had been Carly who’d been kidnapped, Carly who’d been traumatized by a week inside a cold, dark, panic room, locked up by a man who wanted to kill her and steal her baby. To Sonny, Ric was business. To Carly, Ric was what nightmares were made of.

And she’d left him to make sure Sonny never forget that Carly mattered, too.

“No, according to Baldwin,” Sonny said with a sneer, “they don’t know anything.”

Carly wasn’t in the mood for another go around on Scott Baldwin and her trust in the system, so she nodded. “Okay. But that didn’t tell me anything. What do you and Jason think?”

“We think we need to be cautious.” Sonny set Morgan back in his bed and walked over to sit in the chair next to her bed. “Jason is going to be dealing with Elizabeth’s security, and I—I think it’d be a good idea for you to come stay at the penthouse. Until Ric is found.”

Carly shook her head. “No, Sonny, we’ve talked about this—”

“We have. And I understand that you still have some things to work out—”

Carly narrowed her eyes at that because, as usual, Sonny was making it sound like this was all her fault. “We have things to work out,” she began, but Sonny continued speaking as if he didn’t hear her.

Story of her life.

“But with the new elevator security,” Sonny said, “there’s no place safer for you and the boys.” He hesitated. “I’m not asking you to stay forever, Carly. Just until we find Ric—”

“And how long is that going to take?” Carly demanded. She winced as she sat up further. “Weeks? Months?”

“Days,” Sonny said flatly. “We’re already on his trail, and Jason and I aren’t going to rest until he’s dead. You understand that’s what is going to happen, don’t you? It was one thing to let you get your way when we knew where he was and could control the situation—”

Carly closed her eyes. “Let me get my way—”

“But we don’t know what’s going on. What he’s planning. He’s escaped. I let him live after this, it’s just another sign of weakness. I can’t let that happen.”

She pressed her lips together. “I get it. It’s different now that he’s jumped bail, but that doesn’t mean I’m ready to come home.”

“If you understand it’s different now, then we don’t have any other problems. That’s why you left in the first place, isn’t it?” Sonny asked.

“Yeah, but there were other—” Carly was too tired to argue. “Look. Let me think about it. It’s been a long day, and I just—I don’t know. I’ll let you know tomorrow.”

“Okay.” He picked up her hand, kissed her fingertips. “I love you, Carly. I just—I just want to protect my family. I can’t lose you. Not again.”

“I know,” she said, softening slightly. She knew that he’d suffered a psychotic break during the kidnapping. It had been terrible for them all. Maybe he was right. Maybe it was time to try and put it behind her, too. “I love you, too.”

Scorpio House: Kitchen

Mac dumped a can of soup into a bowl, then shoved it in the microwave to heat. It was a sorry excuse for dinner, but he hadn’t been in the mood to stop anywhere for dinner on the way home.

The day after the election, after Ned had run on a campaign to oust not only Floyd but Mac at the PCPD—well, he knew what people were thinking when they looked at him today.

“You know, you could return just one phone call.”

Mac glanced over his shoulder to see his ex-wife leaning against the door, her brows raised. “Felicia. I didn’t hear you knock,” he said dryly. The microwave beeped, and he took out the bowl.

“I didn’t.”

“I know.” He crossed to the kitchen table and took a seat. “What do you want?”

Felicia sat across from him, studying him for a long time. “Did Ned come by today?”

“He did.” Mac swirled the spoon around in the bowl. “I’m officially fired as of December 9. My replacement starts the next day.”

“He’s already found a replacement?” Felicia asked. She leaned back in the chair. “Well, I suppose I can’t be surprised at that. He did make it clear what would happen if he was elected—”

“And it was obvious even to an insane person Floyd was going to lose in a landslide after that press conference.” Mac exhaled. “It’s Anna,” he said softly. He didn’t look up at her, couldn’t bear to see her face.

Because he knew she was thinking about their conversation last summer when he’d confessed to feeling like the lesser Scorpio brother. He’d never measured up to the great Robert Scorpio in life or in death, and to be replaced by arguably the second-best PCPD commissioner in history—his brother’s widow—

It stung, and Mac was hurt more than he had any right to be. He’d destroyed his own career—he’d let Floyd control the conversation, the narrative—he’d bent over backward to stay in power, to keep his job—

“I’m sorry, Mac,” Felicia said after a long moment.

“Well, Anna will do a good job.” He forced a smile on his face as he finally met her eyes. “And maybe Robin will come to visit more. That’s the best I can hope for right now.”

“Exactly.” She tipped her head. “The girls are on campus tonight. You wanna order a pizza, or are you devoted to that soup?”

Mac looked down at the orange liquid in the bowl, then shoved it aside. “I’ll get the menus.”

Morgan Penthouse: Master Bedroom

Elizabeth unfastened her necklace, then set it down on her vanity table, smiling at her reflection in the mirror. Despite the awfulness of the day, she still liked to take a minute each night to remember the good things in her life.

She was relatively healthy and expecting a child with a man she loved deeply—who loved her nearly as much as she loved him. And they were living together, planning a future. She had friends who loved her, a job that she was starting to fall in love with—

Ric Lansing might have been poking at the edges of her consciousness, but Elizabeth wasn’t going to let him win. Not tonight.

Not ever again.

“Hey.” Jason closed the bedroom door behind him and crossed over her, leaning over to brush a kiss against her neck. She smiled, closing her eyes.

“Hey.”

“How was the rest of your day?” he asked as he sat on the bed and took off his boots. “I’m sorry I wasn’t home in time for dinner.”

“No worries. Emily came over to check on me for the five minutes she could spare me on her dinner break.” Elizabeth turned around to face him. “Nikolas called from London. He wants to set up a dinner when Laura comes home next week.”

“Dinner?” Jason asked, with a pinched expression. “That—I don’t have to—”

“No, you don’t have to go,” she teased. “Lucky is introducing Kelsey to his parents the first night Laura is home, so I don’t want to get in the middle of that. But Nikolas said Laura wants to see me as soon as we can make it happen. I’m so glad she’s coming home. I can’t wait to tell her about the baby. She’ll be so excited for us.”

“Really?” Jason asked, skeptically.

“Yeah. Lucky and I aren’t together anymore, but she was really kind after it fell apart, and we kept in touch.” She hesitated. “I checked on Carly before I had my group meeting.”

Jason looked at her with a worried expression. “How is she? I wanted to see her, but—”

“She’s okay. We’re both a little nervous because Scott didn’t have any leads, and she wasn’t sure if Sonny would tell her anything. I told her you might be okay talking with me, so I’d keep her in the loop.” Elizabeth bit her lip. “I’m sure a lot of it is business related, so I just—”

“We don’t know much yet either,” Jason told her. “We put feelers out to anyone we know in South America. We think he’ll go there because he worked for Alcazar.” He hesitated. “I agree with Baldwin, you know. I don’t think you and Carly are in any danger.”

“You agree with Baldwin?” Elizabeth managed a smile. “I should get that on tape in case I want something later.”

He smiled at her, then stood and pulled her to her feet. “I can’t think of anything you’d want that you’d need to use leverage to get,” Jason told her before kissing her. She sighed and melted against him for a moment—then drew back.

“But if Carly and I were in danger—”

“The elevator security system is up and running. There are only seven keys right now. We might give one to Justus when he gets back from Philly with his family tomorrow. Maybe Bernie and Francis. But it’s going to be limited to the people who need access to this floor.”

“That does make me feel slightly better, but then again—I did let Vinnie up—”

He slid his thumb under her jaw, lifted her chin so their eyes met. “And Cody went downstairs without you. That won’t happen again. And you’re not planning to invite Taggert or any of his people over for dinner, so I think we’re good.”

“You’re right. And don’t blame Cody—”

“I don’t. He blames himself enough for both of us.” Jason stripped off his shirt and pants, pulling back the comforter. “You have Cody during the day, and Marco if you need to go out at night. Is—is there something else I can do to make you feel safe?”

“No.” Elizabeth sat on the bed, then pulled him down next to her. “No,” she repeated more firmly. “And I do feel safe.”

“Are you sure?” Jason asked. “Because Sonny—he wants Carly to come stay in the penthouse. You could—you could stay in for a few days if you wanted—”

“No, that—I have things I want to do. And need to do. I have a meeting tomorrow,” she told him. “It’s—” She managed a smile. “I told you I was hoping to get together with some of the other survivors. Vinnie’s other…” Elizabeth sighed. “In case we want or need a statement at his sentencing next month. Plus, I was hoping we’d feel better if we were working through it together.”

“The first one is tomorrow?” Jason asked. He smoothed his hand down her hair, letting his fingers slide through the strands. “You’re sure? Right now—it’s not public that you were the first—that the others—”

“It will be by the sentencing. They can do the math. And I’m not—it wasn’t my fault what happened to them.” Elizabeth took a deep breath. “It wasn’t their fault they went into the park. Ric isn’t my fault either. So, no, I don’t want to stay in the penthouse. I worked hard—and so did Carly. We both worked really hard so that what happened doesn’t control our lives.”

She leaned forward to kiss him. “Tomorrow, I’m going to work. Then we’re taking wine to Justus and his wife to welcome her to Port Charles. And then, if you’re not busy, maybe we can do something for dinner. Take the bike out before it gets too cold.”

“Then that’s what we’ll do.” He kissed her back, then gently laid her down on the bed.