Written in 63 minutes.

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Monday, September 16, 2024

PCPD: Conference Room

Diane paused at the threshold of the conference room, lifted her brows at the sight of Molly, Dante, and Chase standing in the middle of the room, staring at one another. “You all look as though you’ve seen a ghost.”

Molly blinked, then took a deep breath. “Diane. You’ve got great timing. The, ah, audio reports are back. And the digital forensics.” She looked at Chase. “I asked them to be sent in duplicate to save time turning over discovery to Diane.”

“Yeah. Yeah.” Chase shook himself slightly, then handed Diane a second manila envelope.

“Am I in for a surprise?” Diane wanted to know. She set her briefcase on the table and slipped the first report out of the envelope.

“Well, yes and no, I guess. Um, both files are AI generated. We thought the tip was fake, especially after Chase and Dante chased down the voice on the line—” Molly reached for the report from Chase. “Amy Driscoll.”

“Amy? Well—” Diane paused, skimming the second report, then lifted her eyes to the trio. “I’m sorry, the second audio file is an AI generated file of Jason telling Cates to come to the boathouse? And it specifically mentions the deal? Are you kidding me?”

“So this is the first time you’re hearing they had this audio file,” Dante said, and Diane just made a choked sound of frustration. “Right. Of course it is. You’d have been shouting to the heavens that you had exculpatory evidence.”

“No, they most certainly did not mention this,” Diane said with gritted teeth. “They are absolutely shameless!”

“How does that work? Aren’t you representing both of them?” Chase wanted to know. “Could the FBI claim that they didn’t turn it over because you also represent Jason?”

“If I wanted to use this to free Elizabeth, I’d have to drop Jason as a client. And let me tell you, he’d fire me if it meant he could make this go away for her. But fortunately for us all —”

“It’s fake,” Molly finished. “Which means it’s neither of them. But that doesn’t change the fact the FBI kept it from you. And Diane, there’s more. That second report—it’s a digital analysis—Chase, you read it. Why don’t you tell her you found?”

“I’m not done,” Chase began as Diane shuffled papers, “but the conclusion was that John Cates’ laptop shows evidence that he generated it. There’s apparently some searches or trails in the cookies. Traces that he deleted it. We don’t have the full dump of his phone yet,   the FBI put a rush on that file—”

“Before Elizabeth’s arrest,” Diane finished. “I don’t understand. I don’t—” She looked at them. “I was so sure they were going hard after Elizabeth because they didn’t have the evidence to arrest Jason. They wanted her to testify against him. They tried so hard to break Jake and Danny’s alibi. But if they had this—”

“They had a tip that put Jason with knowledge of the gun and its location, and a voicemail luring Cates to the scene of the murder. They have more on him than they do on Liz when you add in the motive.” Dante squinted. “But they not only left him free—”

“They didn’t put up any obstacles to Jason being named as Elizabeth’s custodian even though his felony record ought to have disqualified him,” Diane finished that. “I knew it was a gamble, but I thought the FBI couldn’t resist being able to keep him under surveillance.”

“And there’s no risk since they’re innocent,” Molly said, and Diane tipped her head in acknowledgment. “Okay. Okay. So they’re playing games. Why? And how does that get us to the murderer? Because that’s what matters.”

Dante leaned against the table. “The voicemail would have answered the big question — why did the murder happen there? Cates set up his own murder. Why?”

“Anna said something about the Pikeman case. That it blew up in Cates’ face and he wanted to force Jason back into service, to take down Sonny,” Molly said. “And I think we can all agree that Cates was…a little unhinged by the end. He went after my sister, and he was the driving reason Ava gave that statement blaming Kristina for the fall—” Her voice wobbled slightly, and she took a minute. “They had some sort of ridiculous story that Cates wanted to push Sonny into ordering an hit — and giving the job to Jason. But that never worked for me.”

“You’d have to be in the inner circle to know Jason and my dad are keeping their distance. Jason said he wanted to be out. Dad’s respecting that,” Dante said, “but Cates might not know Jason was serious about that new leaf.”

“It all seems to come back to this Pikeman case,” Chase said. “The FBI didn’t know that this file was AI, so Cates was going rogue—”

“Good news for our jurisdiction,” Molly cut in, and Chase nodded.

“And they would have buried this file,” Chase continued. “Not put a rush on it. My sense is that thought this would come back genuine. And maybe they wanted to use that to push Elizabeth into changing her story. Let’s say Caldwell is working the theory that he believes Jason did this. He has enough to arrest him, sure. But he doesn’t have the smoking gun. He needs Liz to say Jason was on scene or that she knew about the gun. And they need the boys to drop their alibi. That voicemail? Might have swayed some people.” He paused. “They wanted to use it, Diane. They didn’t want you to explain it away. And yeah, it’s crappy they didn’t turn it over right away, but—”

“They could argue they were waiting for confirmation of its veracity. I know. Still—” Diane huffed. “But why would John Cates want to make someone think Jason lured him to his own murder?”

“Because it wasn’t supposed to be a murder,” Dante said. He straightened. “He wanted revenge. It’s about Pikeman. It’s always been about that.”

Davis House: Living Room

“I don’t know what I would have done,” Alexis admitted, taking a seat next to Sam on the sofa, handing her a mug of coffee. “But walking out on him—”

“Mom, you haven’t heard the way Danny talks to her,” Kristina piped up from her perch on the armchair across from them. “It’s brual. Sam’s allowed to have a breaking point.”

“I keep thinking—” Sam sighed. “I keep thinking that I gave up, and that Danny will never forgive me. Should I just go get him? I could do that. I have custody—”

“And Jason’s already threatened to go after you in court,” Alexis reminded her daughter, gently.

“He won’t do that. He’d have to tell them about me leaving the PCPD, and it would just bring up everything Dante tried to bury.” Sam chewed her bottom lip. “It would all be for nothing, you know? And if my kid is the reason Elizabeth ends up in jail again, well, that’s not going to help anything.”

“But they wouldn’t really do that, would they?” Kristina asked. “The government, right? I mean, you said they weren’t even at her house—”

“They were on her property,” Alexis said. “It would be enough for her bail to be revoked, pending a hearing. They could lock her up, delay the hearing a few days. Anything to make this situation even worse. I gotta tell you, there’s something almost personal about the way this is happening,” she told Sam. “Ever since Valentin went on the run and the Pikeman case blew up, Cates was looking for a way to fix his career. But it’s not just about him. You’d think with him gone, they wouldn’t push this ridiculous case against Kristina. But it’s going full force ahead. I still have to fight in federal court to get the case tossed, and it’s not a lock to make that happen.”

Kristina grimaced. “Don’t remind me.”

“You’ll be acquitted. I’ll destroy Ava on the stand and it’s her word against yours,” Alexis reminded her, and Kristina nodded. Alexis returned her attention to Sam. “I know it’s hard to step back, to let everyone cool down. Jason wants to take a whack at being Danny’s dad, let him. He won’t be able to handle it.”

“He hasn’t been a full-time dad in years,” Kristina added. “He’ll be calling by the end of the week, begging you to get Danny.”

Sam sighed, sipped her coffee. “I hope you’re right.”

Hanley Federal Building: U.S Attorney’s Offices

“Knock, knock.”

Reynolds lifted his gaze from the absolutely brutal reports that had just landed on his desk about the Cates murder, and immediately straightened, grinned. “Hey! You weren’t supposed to be back until next week!”

Gia Campbell smiled coolly. “It turns out I’m just that good.” She edged the door closed behind her as she came across the threshold. “I heard through the grapevine you’ve got some cases in Port Charles.”

“Don’t remind me.” Reynolds grimaced, returned to his seat. Gia lowered herself elegantly into the chair across his desk. “You know the city?”

“A little. My brother was a cop there before he went with the DEA, and then he did a few months as an interim commissioner last year. He’s relocated since…” Gia’s smile tightened. “A few family setbacks. I lived there for a little while before law school. I thought I might be able to offer some insights. You’ve got the FBI agent murder, right?”

“Yeah, and an attempted murder. It’s a mess.” Reynolds lifted his brows. “I could use a second chair. Because—” he lifted the reports. “It just got worse. And my day didn’t start that great.”

Gia smiled. “I thought you’d never ask.”

Port Charles High: Cafeteria

The cavernous room was practically deafening as teenagers milled around, checking out friends’ tables, grabbing lunch, screaming across the room to people they knew — the usual chaos.

Except for the end of the table where Aiden, Rocco, and Danny were sitting, the trio of teenagers reunited for the first time Saturday night. Rocco had been pulled out of the one class he shared with Danny for his interview with Chase, and neither of them saw Aiden until lunch most days.

“So, ah—” Danny cleared his throat, looked at Rocco. “How’d it go with Chase?”

“Fine. Not much to say. Just telling the same story I did then.” Rocco shifted. “You know, that I saw Aunt Liz leave the terrace with Michael. Did—are they interviewing you again?”

“I don’t know. I doubt it. Dante was there when the FBI asshole interviewed me, and I didn’t say anything new.”

“He’s supposed to come to our house tonight,” Aiden said almost dully. “With Dante. I guess Chase can’t talk to Jake because of his dad. They’re related, I guess. And Dante’s my uncle, so—they’re—” He made a gesture with his hand. “I hate it. Why do we have to keep telling them?”

“Because they wanna prove your mom didn’t do it. And Michael’s her alibi. That’s good,” Rocco offered. “Because no way Michael’s gonna crack.” He paused. “I’m sorry. For messing with your mom’s bail. I, uh, I didn’t really get it until yesterday. I didn’t…” He stared at his lunch tray. “I mean, it was cool getting away with shit when it comes to my dad, and Sam, but like, your mom’s in real trouble, and I don’t wanna mess that up. Did we?”

“Jason says things are okay. But I know they were really scared. I don’t know if they’re not saying it because we’re kids, but I—I don’t want my mom to go back to jail. Your dad was cool,” Aiden added in a hurry, “and, like, I’m super grateful that he came to stay so I didn’t have to go to Grandma Laura’s, but all the same—”

“Yeah. I—I’m really sorry, too. I told him that yesterday,” Danny said to Rocco, then looked back at Aiden, but  I kind of feel like I should keep apologizing. Like daily. It didn’t seem like such a big deal, and then it was, and it’s…it’s not…” His voice faltered at the end. “Did my mom say anything about me?” he asked, though his gaze was trained on the vegetable medley on his tray.

“Your mom’s not saying much of anything. I think she and my dad are ticked at each other. Maybe they don’t know how to handle this. We really fucked up, man. Between putting Aunt Liz on the chopping block, my dad having to pull favors from other cops, and now Dad and Sam are fighting—” He grimaced, shook his head. “It all sucks, and we’re the problem. I hate it. I just wish I knew how to fix it.”

Warehouse: Main Floor

Jason got his second surprise visitor of the day a little after three — but this time, he didn’t mind the interruption.

Elizabeth weaved around workers on the floor, flashing friendly smiles at some of them until she reached him near the edge of the cargo dock. “Hey. I’m not catching you at a bad time, am I?”

“No. And even if you were, I wouldn’t care.” He gestured towards his office, and she followed him inside. “How was work?”

“Good.” She set her purse on the table. “It was nice to be back in my routine. Getting the boys to school, handling patients and my nurses…” She leaned up to brush her mouth against hers, and he caught the edge of her jaw before she could pull back, deepening the embrace briefly. “And I liked the additions to that, you know. Waking up with you. Hearing Danny bickering with Jake over the shower.”

He rubbed her shoulders. “I liked that, too. Thursday, though—” he tipped his head when she just grinned. “I made sure I don’t have to be here.”

“And I am definitely not covering anyone’s shift.” She kissed him again. “I came to tell you that I got Danny an appointment on Friday with one of the counselors. It’s in the afternoon, so you’ll have to sign him out of school early.” She bit her lip. “You can do that, right? I mean—”

“I…should be able to do that. But—” He sighed. “Dante’s coming tonight to talk to Jake. So maybe he can make sure. I hate that I have to do that. I should have been here. I should have always been available to him.”

“We can’t go back, right?” She stroked his chest lightly, and he covered her hand. “All we can do is move forward. Dante will get it done. He loves Danny, and wants what’s best for him.” She bit her lip. “There was some other news — I assume Diane is finding out today — but the PCPD found out who left the tip about me — or who was supposed to have done that.”

“They did? Who?”

“Amy Driscoll. A nurse at GH. You don’t really know her,” Elizabeth added, “but I think they picked her because she’s got a reputation for being a gossip — and lied for months about being the writer being a gossip column pretending to be a male writer. It was before you came home from Russia,” she clarified when Jason furrowed his brow. “Huge scandal.”

“That’s…an interesting choice,” Jason said, and she nodded.

“That’s what I thought. It was a big story — seven years ago. It’s ancient history. If that’s why Amy was picked, I think—I think it means that who ever is doing this—” She paused. “It’s someone who knows us. Who knows the people around us. It’s terrifying, really.”

“I agree—” Jason paused, when he heard a knock at the door. “Hold on—” He went to open it, and stepped back. “Diane. Good timing—”

“Oh, and Elizabeth is already here—I just finished sending you a message to meet me here—” Diane set her things on Jason’s desk. “We have had some big developments today. I just came from the PCPD —”

“I know they found the voice behind that tip,” Elizabeth volunteered. “Chase and Dante did a great job finding that so fast—”

“It wasn’t hard. The FBI never bothered to look,” Diane said. “Which is one thing I’ll be mentioning when I file my reply to whatever nonsense the state says this week in response to our motion to dismiss. And yes, I know they found the voice — but they also confirmed the file was AI.” She paused. “And so is the second one.”

“Right, the mystery file. What is it?” Elizabeth wanted to know.

“A voicemail luring John Cates to the scene of the murder,” Diane said, then paused, almost for dramatic effect, “a voicemail that sounds exactly like Jason.”

“What?” Jason demanded and Elizabeth scowled.

“That’s ridiculous!”

“You haven’t even heard the most insane part — John Cates manufactured the voicemail. He was luring himself to his murder. Because it wasn’t supposed to be a murder,” Diane said. “We think—”

“He was trying to set me up for something,” Jason said grimly. “What, was he planning to punch himself or something? To get me on assault? Something to get leverage on me so I’d be forced to work for him again?”

“That’s the working theory, yes. We think he wanted revenge for the Pikeman investigation. And I think…I think that’s why the FBI has targeted you, Jason. Even with the evidence that says neither of you did this,” Diane continued. “They want Pikeman. They want Valentin, and  they blame you for the investigation’s failure. For Valentin getting the jump on them and escaping arrest.” She tipped her head. “You don’t look surprised, Jason.”

“It’s not the first time that Pikeman has come up in the investigation. Or today. I think—” Jason leaned back against the desk. “I think we need to talk about what happened. And how Valentin got away.”

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