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Chapter 17

~L&B Records~

Ned stepped inside the studio and looked around for his ex-wife. She had called him last night and asked if they could meet to talk about the company. He was a bit surprised, and suspicious, but he agreed to meet with her, mostly to keep her from getting even more insistent than she already was. He figured she'd press him for information on their daughter, push him for help on getting back in Brook's life, but he didn't refuse her. He knew she had to be hurting over their daughter's decision to live with him, and he wasn't going to be cruel to Lois. He knew how it felt to miss their daughter.

And if she really did want to discuss their business, then he couldn't walk away from that either. This was Lois' dream, but Ned's money was in it as well and he wondered what his ex-wife had on her mind. He figured it was about Sage Alcazar, the teen whom Lois was insistent on making a star, and so he was especially curious as to how this meeting would really turn out.

"Lois?"

"Oh good, you're here," Lois said as she walked out of the office with a sheaf of papers in her hand. "Thanks for coming."

"Sure," he replied, his brow furrowed slightly in confusion as he turned towards the table. She was apparently all business right now. 'What did you want to talk about?"

She sat down and looked up at him. "I was going over the contracts and books last night. I know I've been focused on Sage the most right now, but that's because I love discovering new talent."

"I know," Ned nodded. Lois had always been good at finding and developing new talent. She had certainly been great at directing Miguel's career.

"Our other contracts have definitely dwindled, though. We've neglected some of our talent."

"Miguel's always been loyal," he told her. "And he's still a big draw."

"He is," she nodded in agreement. "But you know we can't rest on the past, or one big star. Which is why I've pushed so hard with Sage. She really could help us catch up with the current market. It's not about albums anymore, it's about that single that will explode on radio and catch fire on MTV."

"I know," he said, wondering where she was going with all this. While he knew they needed a new act, he wasn't sure Sage was the best talent. In a way, Brook was right. Lois seemed to be trying too hard to capture the Britney Spears crowd.

"But our cash flow," his ex-wife sighed, deflating slightly, "isn't that great. With Brook..." she swallowed and blinked. "With Brook not letting Sage use her music, I had to search for the right song that would suit Sage's voice. I used a good portion of our available cash on securing that song."

Ned leaned forward and braced his elbows on the table. "So, what? You need me to pump in some more money? Or were you planning on going to Lorenzo and asking for more and just wanted to let me know what you were doing?"

"No," Lois shook her head. "I've already had a talk with Lorenzo Alcazar and Sage had already given him her version of events with Brook. He won't be giving more money until I prove to him that I can make her a star. After I do that," she snapped her fingers, "then he'll be willing to help out."

She looked down at the papers she'd brought in with her. "So that brings me to my next point. We don't have a lot of money for graphics and publicity. I was talking to Jax yesterday and he gave me a couple of suggestions. An intern from one of the local schools, or there's a local artist who's worked for the company before."

Ned frowned briefly in confusion and Lois laid out some sketches and pictures. "Elizabeth Webber worked with Chloe Morgan and Jax mentioned she'd done stuff for the Nurse's Ball."

He nodded, remembering his cousin and the artist who'd worked with her. "Yeah. She was good. Chloe really liked her, said she was hard working and talented. I think she..." he paused and tried to remember what he'd heard lately about Elizabeth. "I think she's back in town. She had a baby a couple of months ago."

"We couldn't offer her much at first," Lois frowned. "But once Sage becomes the star I know she can be, we can always increase her salary."

She looked down at the samples before her. "She's got talent, that's for sure. The question is, whether she'd be willing to do it...and if she'd fit in with the vision we're trying to create."

Ned could only shrug, not having any idea if Elizabeth was still doing art and if she'd be willing to work for them with having a young child. "I could talk to her, if you want, see if she's even interested."

"Sure," his ex nodded. "She knows you, you used to be her boss."

"If she is interested, then I could arrange for the two of you to talk since so much of this is your vision and project, right now."

Lois seemed to relax and smile at him. "Thank you, Ned. I appreciate this."

He nodded and watched as her face changed, a shadow passing over it as she fidgeted slightly. "Can I...How's Brookie doing?"

"She's good," he said, softening at the misery and loneliness he saw in her. "She's angry and she's lashing out, but she loves you, Lois. You're her mother and you've been a good one. But right now-"

"She doesn't want to be around me," she cut in dejectedly.

Reaching out, Ned covered his ex-wife's hand. "Just give her some time, and some space. The harder you push, the harder she'll fight. She is your daughter after all."

She grinned at that, ever-so-slightly. "Thank you. And I'm glad that...that she's with you. I would hate if she was living somewhere with friends or if we didn't know where she was."

~Kelly's~

Georgie looked over at her sister and friend sighed loudly, "I'm bored."

Maxie and Brook nodded as they slouched in their chair; Maxie idly twirled her straw in her soda and Brook pushed a soggy, limp fry through the remaining cheese that was beginning to congeal. The afternoon was hot and muggy and they all seemed listless after a morning of hanging out at the Quartermaine pool. Lucas had been kept at home because of the situation with his sister, Carly, and Dillon had disappeared into the Quartermaine mansion with his mother after she spotted him outside with the three girls and hounded on him until he relented.

School would be starting in a couple of weeks and it seemed like they should be doing something besides sitting around a diner, but nobody had any energy or ideas. So they seemed destined to while away the afternoon eating junk food and being idle.

"I can't look at another fry," Brook groaned as she pushed away the red plastic basket.

Maxie suddenly stood and looked around. "What's wrong with us? Sitting around like this. Is it because Dillon and Lucas aren't around? Who says we need them to have fun?"

She seemed to spy something across the dinner and her eyes lit up and she practically pranced across the room. Georgie saw her sister grab a newspaper that had been abandoned on one of the tables and wondered what was on the blonde's mind. As she returned to where they were sitting, Maxie rifled through the paper, before folding back the newsprint. "Okay, here it is. This week the Port Charles Cineplex is holding Marathon Movie Nights."

Brook leaned forward, looking intrigued and Georgie spoke. "Marathon nights are good. As long as it's not Bug Night or something equally gross like that."

"Theme nights," Brook realized as she looked at the listings. "What's on for tonight?"

"Natural Disasters," Maxie said, running her finger over the listings. "Dante's Peak, Volcano, Deep Impact, among others."

The three of them looked at each other and shrugged. It sounded better than sitting around the diner being bored.

"Alright, I'll call my dad," Brook nodded and reached for her purse.

Georgie reached for hers and looked at her sister. "Do you want to call Mac or should I?"

~Brownstone~

Carly sat at the table in the dining room, staring down at the grain in the cherry wood top. Her mother always kept the surface polished to a shine, so polished a person could almost slide right off it. That was if a person would even foolishly think of sitting on Bobbie's precious table. Sitting in the room, Carly found the peace and solitude she wanted for the moment.

Her mother was around here somewhere, probably with Lucas and Michael supervising the two. Lucas had exploded last night when he came home and found Sonny fighting with Bobbie because she wouldn't let him in to see Carly. He'd pushed through the door angrily after telling her husband off, only to find Carly standing in the living room listening to everything that was being said.

"Why are you doing this?" Lucas grumped as he glared at her.

"Why are you mad at me?" she snapped, sick of his nasty looks and mutterings under his breath ever since she'd shown up.

"I just don't get why you're doing this," he said pointedly. "Why you won't talk to him when he shows up every day."

"He hit me," Carly said scornfully, as if she couldn't believe she had to explain this to her teenage brother.

He shrugged and rolled his eyes. "Yeah, so what? He shot you in the head while you were in labor and you ended up in a coma. You forgave him for that and went back to him. Given your track record, you'll go back to him this time, too. You're just making him sweat it out 'cause you're pissed he lied to you."

"You have no idea about my life," she said through clenched teeth as she narrowed her eyes at him.

Lucas plopped down into a chair and kicked his shoes off. "Oh, please," he rolled his eyes again. "I know all about your life. I hear about every problem you have from Mom. It's really ironic you're mad he lied to you considering all the lies you've told ever since you came to town. So he fathered a child with another woman? Big deal. You lied like a cheap rug, or maybe that's just a cheap whore, about who Michael's father was. How is what you did any different than what he did?

"So just get over your hurt, pathetic feelings and go back to Sonny. Because I'm tired of you disrupting my life every time you want to punish him." He stood and shook his head at her disgustedly. "Just grow up already, would you?"

He'd left after that and she walked away, not wanting to hear her mother and Sonny argue any more. Her mother had all the anger Carly just couldn't seem to find anymore. She let Leticia take care of Michael and Morgan, just like the nanny had been doing every moment since that night, because she just couldn't deal with Michael's questions again. He was confused and angry and didn't want to see Sonny because daddies aren't supposed to hit mommies.

Lucas' words had haunted her all last night, and she began to remember Lorenzo's desperate words to her back when she thought she was in love with him. He had called Sonny an abuser, that he was verbally and emotionally cruel and dominating and it didn't matter that he'd never used his fists. Carly needed to get away from him. Now that Sonny had hit her, however unintentional the moment seemed, she was able to look back on the past so differently. He was manipulative and controlling, he was cruel and cutting, he did degrade her at times, and it had to mean something that she kept leaving him.

Was it really healthy for her, and especially for her children, to keep doing this? Michael and Morgan had been uprooted so many times that they were confused and scared, Michael especially. Could she really keep doing this to them? Was it really going to ever work between Sonny and her when they fought so bitterly and so rancorously? Maybe love just wasn't enough, especially when she couldn't even say why she loved him anymore. She just didn't feel it, and she was tired of fighting to find it.

She picked up her cell phone and dialed the number of a woman she never thought she'd be seeking out again. It was time to step off the rollercoaster for good.

"Hello?"

"Alexis," she tried to sound strong and imperious, but she found it was hard to keep - or find - the tone. "It's Carly."

There was a brief pause and then the other woman said, "Yes?"

"I want to hire you," she said. "I'm divorcing Sonny."

"I can recommend a good divorce lawyer," Alexis said wearily. "But I don't think it would be a good idea for me to be your lawyer."

"You don't believe me," Carly said bluntly.

"No," she returned the bluntness. "I don't. It's always the same. You'll start the proceedings, then you'll stop them. Frankly, I don't have the patience to get drug into this again. And I don't have the time, not with Nikolas being alive and the family industry on shaky ground."

"You owe me," Carly told the other woman.

"How do you figure that?"

"I'm keeping your secret."

"So this is blackmail," Alexis said tersely after a moment. "It will always come back to Kristina."

"Blackmail's such an ugly word," Carly said, finding the imperial tone she needed. "But I need a lawyer; you're a lawyer. Therefore I'll see you tomorrow."

She hung up before Alexis could respond and looked down at the table. The shiny surface showed the fading bruises on her face and she wondered if she should cover them up or if she should show Alexis exactly why she wasn't going to stop the proceedings this time but would indeed divorce Sonny Corinthos for good.

~Park~

Port Charles Park was a place to meet friends and family, and it was a place to see and be seen by others in town. Today seemed to be no different. Elizabeth had stopped there after picking up information, and registration packets just in case, from Port Charles Graphic Arts College. She'd agreed with her grandmother that getting a degree in that field would be quicker and more marketable than a traditional art degree from PCU. Right now it was just information and thinking, but she was giving it serious consideration. She liked art, but she felt she needed something to provide for Cameron.

Her gram had offered to watch Cameron while she went to the school, and even said that the two of them may go on an outing together. So there was no rush for Elizabeth to get back. Her grandmother suggested she take her time, a moment for herself to just relax; which had led Elizabeth to the park. She just wanted some fresh air and solitude without being completely alone. She could be just another faceless person in a crowd, and that's all she wanted today.

"Elizabeth?"

Her face pursed as if she tasted something sour. She apparently asked for too much today when she wanted to be alone. Her ex-husband walked up to the bench and sat down beside her without asking or waiting for her acknowledgement.

Ric smiled at her and she curled one hand underneath her thigh and felt the tendons strain in her hand. "How are you, Elizabeth?" he asked congenially. "Here with Cameron?"

"He's with my gram," she said, her voice even and calm. And she was very glad her son wasn't around, she did not want him anywhere near him right now. "Can I help you with something, Ric?"

He shifted on the bench. "I was just seeing how you were. I...I know we're not married anymore, but I still care about you, Elizabeth. So if I see you I might occasionally stop and see how you're doing."

"Like we're old friends?" she asked as she turned and arched her brow pointedly at him. When his face softened she scoffed and made him blink in surprise. "We aren't friends. I'm not going to sit down and have lunch or even coffee with you. We're divorced and while I don't really hate you, I don't really like you either."

"Elizabeth?" He was clearly confused.

"First, let's forget for a moment that you're chasing Alexis all over town and have been spotted in some very public places kissing her. Even without the fact that you began pursuing her when the ink on our divorce was barely dry...I simply don't trust you, Ric." She was blunt and wasn't going to pull punches today. "You have lied to me and lied to me. You claimed your vendetta against Sonny was over, and yet I walked in on you telling him you were a better man than him because you were willing to raise another man's child and basically implied you forgave me for getting pregnant."

He winced, "Elizabeth-"

She rode right over, not giving him a chance to work on his lies. "We were divorced, Ric. So frankly it doesn't matter what I did with another man and how you felt about it. I didn't cheat on you with Zander like you cheated on me with Faith. And so what if you were willing to raise Cameron? You're not the first man to raise a child that wasn't yours biologically, and Sonny is certainly no stranger to that. It was always about Sonny with you and I decided to get off the merry-go-round because I'd always end up in the same place. Behind Sonny and hurt for believing you'd changed."

Her ex-husband sighed and slumped his shoulders. "I'm sorry that I hurt you, Elizabeth."

She stood and faced him with pure honesty. "You did. You hurt me worse than anyone in my life ever has. And I will never forgive you for it and I will never be your friend and I don't want to sit and talk to you like we're pals. So do me a favor and just leave me alone."

Then Elizabeth turned and stalked away from him. She had done a lot of thinking about her relationship with Ric while she was in Napa, and she'd come to some realizations. It was those realizations, along with a few things she remembered, that left her determined to not have anything to do with Ric when she returned. It was why she turned down his money when he offered it to her, and it was why she didn't want him anywhere near her son. Hopefully after today's encounter he would not seek her out again any time soon. Because she knew she was going to continue to give Ric a wide berth.

Anxious to get out of the park so Ric was tempted to come after her and try to persuade her to change her mind, she hurried down the path and around the corner. She wanted to shake off her memories and bad feelings, so she had her head down as she searched through her purse for her keys. When she found them, she clutched them tightly in her hand and looked up so she could walk even faster. She had to get out of the park now before she was pulled into overwhelming memories of her painful past.

But instead, she was brought up short when she saw a couple on a bench near the fountain. Sonny Corinthos and Sam McCall were seated together, leaning in towards one another oblivious to everything else around them. They were both smiling and Sonny's dimples were clearly visible. She hadn't seen either of them look like they did - happy and content - in a very long time and she was struck by how perfect they looked together if only the situation were different. But the situation wasn't different and so it was very wrong of Sam to brush her hand over Sonny's thigh and for him to be caressing her stomach like a lover.

She looked around, feeling guilty and scared. Elizabeth expected someone to grab her at any moment and rush her off for seeing something she shouldn't have. But the guards around the pair didn't react and made no move towards her. When Sam sighed and laid her head on the mobster's shoulder Elizabeth closed her eyes and let out a soft groan. Something was very wrong here.

Chapter 18

~Park~

Emily walked through the park, her eyes scanning the faces she saw for a sign of Nikolas, or even Elizabeth. She knew that when she and Lucky had sent her plan into motion, her fiancé and his constant shadow had been here in the park. No doubt they'd witnessed her walk with Lucky, and hopefully it caused them to be noticed. And hopefully it had caused Nikolas to look at her differently, maybe even remember a bit about their life together.

Lucky was at work at the moment; he'd caught a case that forced him into overtime, so she was on her own. She hoped that she might see either Nikolas or Elizabeth, maybe even both, and do a little reconnaissance about where she and Lucky could run into the pair or at least be seen by them. The problem with this whole plan was Cameron. Because of the little boy Elizabeth didn't go out very much, or with a schedule that could be counted on, because she spent time with her son.

As Emily rounded a corner she was surprised to see Elizabeth standing in the path before her. She was just standing there, looking at something with a look akin to shock on her face and Emily wondered what she was looking at. Following the brunette's gaze, she saw it was directed at Sam and Sonny. The pair was sitting on a bench, looking cozy and close and it made Emily's blood boil. Because of all the people to see that gold-digging tramp and cold-hearted bastard together playing happy parents-to-be while Jason was still out of town, it would have to be Elizabeth.

"Elizabeth," she said softly, knowing she had to act friendly with the other woman, and also knowing the scene before them couldn't be ignored.

The brunette spun around, looking shaken and a bit nervous. "Emily. Hi. How...how are you?"

She walked up beside her estranged friend and sighed as she looked at Sonny and Sam. "I'm pissed," she admitted frankly. "At them."

Elizabeth cast a glance at the lying duo and furrowed her brows. "I...I don't understand. It looks like...like Sam and Sonny are getting back together."

"They probably are," Emily seethed.

"But what about Jason?" Elizabeth sounded concerned and Emily wanted to roll her eyes because she was sure it was nothing but a ploy. "It's his baby she's carrying. Is...oh, man. Sonny wouldn't try to and take her and the baby away from Jason, would he?"

Emily ran her tongue over her teeth and crossed her arms. "Turns out it's not Jason's."

The shorter woman's eyes went wide with shock. "What?"

"Sonny told Carly that he's actually the father of Sam's baby. She's no longer in danger of going to jail, and so Sonny announced he's the real dad." She still was angry about that and hadn't yet been able to talk to Sonny about the way he'd screwed over her brother's life.

Elizabeth let out a breath. "Sonny asked Jason to say he was the father?"

"Jason supposedly came up with it on his own," Emily shrugged in disbelief. "But clearly he was just covering for Sonny. I'm sure Sonny asked him."

Elizabeth looked away and pulled her bottom lip in between her teeth. "Maybe."

Emily's eyes sparked at the other woman. "What? You think Jason thought up this lie all on his own?" She shook her head. "Sonny asked him."

"I guess," the other woman shrugged. "Doesn't really matter, does it? Jason would do anything for Sonny and his family."

"Of course it matters," she challenged. "The family thought Sam's baby was Jason's and now they've lost another grandchild to Sonny Corinthos. My grandmother died thinking Jason was having a baby of his own."

Elizabeth shook her head. "After Edward was going to try to help Carly send Sam to prison...I doubt Jason would have let the baby anywhere near the family. Have...have you talked to Jason? Even if it wasn't his baby, he had to have grown attached to it."

Emily grit her teeth and contemplated if she should tell Elizabeth the truth. "He's out of town, I guess. I haven't seen or heard from him despite calling him."

"Oh," the shorter woman said softly. "Well, I...I hope he's okay with this. I know how much it hurt him to lose Michael."

"What?" Emily scoffed. "You're not going to try and go see him? I figured you'd be all over this news."

Elizabeth turned and put a hand to her chest as she took a step back. "What? Emily...I..."

"Oh, spare me," she snapped, knowing she was losing her control, that she was turning her anger towards Sonny on Elizabeth, but she couldn't stop. This wouldn't convince her or Nikolas that Emily had changed, but she wasn't going to sacrifice her brother to the gold-digger standing beside her. "I'm sure you see this as the perfect opportunity."

"What? Emily, no-"

"There's always the chance that Nikolas will remember his love for me, or he just won't want you, and you'll be left out in the cold. You and Cameron. And so here's Jason, not attached, no baby coming, and it's the perfect opportunity for you to prey on his weakness of losing a child and being lonely. He won't have anyone to take care of and we know how Jason likes fixing things, so here you'll come. You and your poor, fatherless child. Perfect instant-family for Jason, and perfect security for life for you. Use your child as a meal ticket."

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes and stepped back, trembling as her hands clenched into fists. "You are way out of line, Emily. I wouldn't use Jason, no matter what you seem to think of me. And I am done having this conversation with you."

Spinning on her heel, Elizabeth stalked away and out of sight. Emily watched her go and then turned her narrow gaze on Sonny and Sam. They had remained oblivious to all that had taken place because of them, had no idea of the mess they had created. Typical. Well, now that they were here, Emily was not going to let this opportunity pass her by. Resolved, she tugged at the hem of her shirt and walked up to the cuddling parents.

When she stopped him front of them, her shoes slapping angrily on the sidewalk, they blinked back into reality and looked up at her. Sonny smiled deeply, "Emily. What can I do for you?"

"We need to talk."

~Alcazar Penthouse~

Sage shook her head in disgust as she ripped off her headphones and dropped the sheets of paper in her hand onto the bed. This song that Lois had given her was pure crap. The melody line was all over the place and Sage knew she was going to have to fix it in order to be able to sing it. The lyrics might be catchy, but they were a little bit corny. Brook Lynn's songs were definitely better. While she might have ragged on the other girl and called her songs stupid, Sage knew it wasn't true. She certainly wasn't going to admit it to anyone, though.

Lois was trying, but this was a small town and she was being hampered. Sage knew she'd probably have better luck getting a truly talented manager if she went to New York City. The downside, she knew, was she would be going up against a much larger talent pool than in Port Charles and could end up being lost in the shuffle. So unless she wanted to be just another wanna-be to some overworked agent, not to mention moving away from Uncle Lorenzo - and Dillon - she was left with this two-bit town and Lois.

Since Brook was throwing a tantrum, Sage was stuck with this song. She could fix it, make it fantastic, but her heart and mind wasn't in it right now. Because she was worried about Uncle Lorenzo. He was busy with business, lots of meetings, hushed phone calls, and whispered conversations in the hall. And, he was also distracted. Distracted by Carly Corinthos, who didn't deserve his worry or concern.

Sage knew the look on his face well, and what was driving him to late night drinking. He was pulling away, even though he denied it. And she knew, just knew, that it was because he was thinking about Carly. And it would be only a matter of time before he got sucked back into her tangled web. Sage couldn't let it happen, because he nearly died once because of Carly, and she wasn't going to let the blonde preying mantis succeed this time.

Since the song obviously wasn't going anywhere, Sage decided to abandon it. She walked over to her dresser and picked up her cell phone. Scrolling through the numbers, she found one she'd put in months ago and hadn't gotten around to erasing. Now she was glad she'd been lazy. Pressing the send button, she leaned back on her bed and let out a breath.

"Hello?"

"Carly, it's Sage Alcazar."

"Sage?" Carly sounded confused, probably wondering why she was calling.

"Yeah, I know we really haven't spoken in months, but I was hoping we could meet today...or even tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry, I'm rather busy," the blonde dismissed her.

Sage clenched her teeth at the imperious attitude of the lying tramp. "Well, I understand. But it was about Uncle Lorenzo."

As expected, Carly took the bait. "Okay. I...I've got some time later today."

"Thank you," Sage smiled into the phone. "How about the park?"

"That's fine," the harpy agreed.

Sage hung up the phone and tapped it against her chin. She was going to make sure Carly Corinthos never hurt her uncle again. She was determined to protect her family

~Port Charles Cineplex~

"I never thought I'd admit this," Maxie groaned as they stepped outside into the balmy night, "but there is such a thing as too many movies."

"Not according to Dillon," Georgie shook her head as she stretched her back. "But personally, three movies in a row...my brain is pretty much numb."

"So's my butt," Brook laughed as the girls started walking down the street. "I swear, Jesse Metcalfe could have sat down beside me and I still would have gotten up to leave."

As they paused at a red light, she looked over at the sisters and asked, "So what should we do now?"

"Well," Georgie replied, trying to sound casual and not anxious, yet failing miserably. "Lucas had to work tonight and Dillon may be there if he could escape his mom."

Maxie grinned at Brook behind her sister's back, but shrugged as she said, "We can go there. I want to see how he's doing with Carly still at his house."

"I don't know her very well," Brook shook her head as they started across the street and turned towards the park to cut through, "but that whole situation sounds crazy."

"Carly Corinthos is nuts," Georgie said decisively.

"Mom doesn't like her," Maxie added. "She totally lied to our Uncle Tony and made him think her baby was his. I know she's Lucas' sister, but I'm glad she was never around when we were younger. Mom thought she was a tramp."

Brook raised her eyebrows slightly. Maybe it wasn't just the Quartermaines who were screwed up. The Jones family may be a bit tamer, but they were whacked out too. Maybe it was families everywhere; or maybe it was Port Charles. She'd noticed that lots of strange things seemed to take place here.

Lucas seemed unhappy the past couple of days, and he'd said that his mom tended to get wrapped up in Carly whenever his sister's life exploded. Brook knew how it felt to be cast aside while her mom focused on a tour or a client. She figured that Lucas could use someone to talk to about it without asking questions about how he felt about his sister.

Besides, Lucas was kinda cool to hang around with. And much better to look at than Tommy Lee Jones running away from lava covering L.A.

~Park~

Carly walked across the park, her heels clicking out her annoyance on the cement. She wasn't sure what made her agree to meet with Sage Alcazar, maybe it was boredom, maybe it was curiosity, or maybe it was guilt. After convincing Alexis to take her divorce case, she didn't have much else to do. Perhaps Sonny and others would think the same thing Alexis had, that the divorce was just a phase until she changed her mind. Well, it wasn't going to happen; she was done with Sonny Corinthos.

She would deal with Sonny the next time he came around, and she would break the news to Michael. Considering his reaction to her bruises, he probably wouldn't fight the news of the divorce as much. And she planned on using Sonny's guilt over her injuries to get an easier custody agreement this time. Sure, Sam McCall was probably back in Sonny's life by now, but she wasn't with Lorenzo anymore, and she was sure Sonny wouldn't fight her, or her stipulations - like she didn't want the boys around Sam very much - this time. Michael would probably also be happier and fight less because she wasn't involved with Lorenzo. She wasn't getting involved with anybody, for a long while. She was going to focus on herself and her children.

She wasn't sure exactly why Sage had asked to meet, but she'd agreed anyway. She was curious, and pretty sure the teen was going to warn her way from her uncle because she'd been angry with Carly after her and Lorenzo's break-up earlier in the year. Carly knew she'd hurt Lorenzo then, and then again several nights ago when she'd had a knee-jerk reaction and ran to him. But his desire to get her to turn in Sonny had woken her up. He would never give up his desire to take her husband down.

Maybe some day she'd find someone new, but she wasn't looking for it. And she just had to convince Sage of that. It should be easy enough, Carly knew about being a troubled teen. She just had to let the girl know her home life wasn't going to be screwed up, and then girl would go back to being secure that her life was cozy and safe with her at the center.

When she arrived at the corner of the park Sage told her to go, the girl was already there. She was pacing back and forth in front of a bench, looking decidedly agitated. Carly could already tell this meeting wasn't going to go well. She walked up to the teen and Sage looked up when she heard the approaching footsteps. Black hair flew behind her as the girl spun around to fix her dark eyes on Carly.

"Sage," she said, coming to a stop several feet from the teen. "You wanted to meet?"

"Stay away from Uncle Lorenzo," Sage said, deadly serious and immediately getting down to business.

Carly wanted to laugh, but refrained. She figured this was what the girl wanted to talk about, and she really didn't feel like wasting her time. Yet even though Carly knew she wasn't looking to get involved with Lorenzo, she also wasn't going to let this little thing think she could order Carly Corinthos around.

"What business is it of yours what I do with my life?" she asked as she crossed her arms over her chest and cocked her hip out to the side. "Or what your uncle does?"

"Because I've watched him," Sage snapped angrily. "And ever since the night you showed up all pathetic and hurt because your husband is an abuser, he's been distracted."

Pathetic? Carly seethed; the girl was pushing it. Sonny hit her and Lorenzo's niece was acting like it was Carly's fault. "How is it my fault Lorenzo's distracted?" she coolly inquired, letting disdain enter her voice. "Your uncle is a busy man. Often with trying to take Sonny down."

"He's mooning over you," Sage snipped. "He's acting just like he was a couple of months ago after you stomped all over him when you were finished using him and went back to your husband."

The girl shook her head and sniffed scornfully. "Frankly, I don't get it. You're nothing. In fact, you're trash. I know about your past and just because you're now a mob wife doesn't erase the fact that you were poor, white trash growing up. My uncle deserves better than someone like you.

"So," her eyes narrowed and she took a step forward. "I'm telling you now, stay away from him. If he comes and tries to help him, ignore him. He'll get his senses back and be much better off for it."

"Are you done?" Carly demanded as she raised a brow. "Look, it's cute that you love your uncle and think you need to protect him from me. But the reality is I don't have time for this. My life extends far beyond your uncle and your jealousy of the time he spends with anyone who's not you."

Shaking her head she mumbled that she was done with this conversation and going home, and with that she turned to go. This was a waste of her time and she had better things to do than placate a rich brat. She had made it several feet away when she heard an odd click and Sage's cool voice.

"Turn around, Carly, I'm not done with you yet."

Carly rolled her eyes tiredly and turned, ready to tell Sage to give it a rest and leave her alone. Instead, she found herself looking at a very angry Sage holding a gun.

~Gazebo~

"You know, if it's going to be this humid, then it should at least rain," Maxie groused as the trio of girls sat for a moment in the wooden structure. If it rained then maybe they'd all be cooler than they were now. It would also give her something to focus on rather than the increasing thought that she was going to be nothing but a fifth wheel at the diner tonight.

She was glad her sister and Dillon seemed to be working things out, but sometimes the drama of their young love was a bit much at times. And their public displays of affection, while certainly not gross or way over the top, could still be a bit tiring. She knew her cousin Lucas liked Brook and she was beginning to think her friend liked her cousin, or was at least starting to, and Maxie knew she would end up dragging everybody down tonight. Because they'd want to include her, while at the same time wanting nothing more than talk exclusively to the object of their affections. She missed Kyle at times like this just because she missed being part of a couple or at least having something to talk to.

But Kyle had headed off to college, and even if he hadn't left early there was little chance of Mac letting him anywhere near her. While Maxie understood, it did leave her feeling lonely sometimes. However, she knew there was little chance of anyone interesting looking at her as anything but the girl who lost her virginity on the internet and so she tended to avoid guys who came up to her and wanted to talk. Maybe she could hope for a transfer student when school began.

"Come on," Georgie said, standing up. "Let's cut through the park. There's that one corner where we can hop the fence and come out closer to Kelly's than if we stick to the path."

"I'm all for a shortcut if it gets us to air conditioning sooner," Brook agreed eagerly as she and Maxie stood.

~Park~

If Sage hadn't been so angry, she might have laughed at the shocked look on Carly's face. Apparently the mob wife was just one of the many people who forgot who Sage was when she first came to town and pulled a gun on Alexis Davis for killing her father. Well, she wasn't going to be scornfully dismissed by this two-bit tramp.

"You may think I'm joking, Carly, but I'm serious," she said, her hand as steady as her voice. "But I've had enough of you and the damage you inflict on everyone around you, especially my uncle."

"Look," the blonde tried, her voice much less imperious than it had been before. "Just take a step back and calm down. There's no need to do anything crazy here, or have a gun."

"Listen to me," Sage growled. "I am not going to just step aside and let you hurt my uncle."

"Okay," Carly nodded her head as she brought her hands out to the side. "I'll stay away from you and your uncle."

She took a step back and tossed her head. "I think your whole family should be given a wide berth from now on."

"We are not crazy," Sage hissed. "We just...protect our own from people like you. You can understand that, right?"

~Shortcut~

"Almost there," Georgie smiled as they rounded the corner of the path and prepared to cut across the grass. "I can practically feel the chilly seventy-two degrees."

Maxie's reply was lost in a bang that caused all three girls to immediately stop. They looked at each other, their eyes wide.

"Was that a gunshot?" Brook asked quietly and a little fearfully.

Georgie looked up and gasped when she saw Sage Alcazar run towards the corner and disappear. On the ground, where Sage had just been, was a form she prayed really hard wasn't a body, but knew it was.

"That was Sage," Maxie whispered in shock. "It looked like she was holding a gun."

"And that's a body," Georgie said raggedly.

They looked at each other, then cautiously moved forward. The only people around were Sage, who had now disappeared, and the motionless body on the ground.

When they got closer, they stopped short and Brook clasped Georgie's arm. "Oh my..."

"It's Carly Corinthos," Georgie breathed out in shock. There was blood staining the blue top the older woman had on, and her eyes were open, staring sightlessly at the sky. There was no sign of movement in her body.

"Is she dead?"

"I...I don't know," Maxie whispered in reply to her sister's question. "We...we have to call the police. We...oh...we have to tell them what we found."

"And," Brook sighed a bit apprehensively. "We have to tell them who...who we saw."

Chapter 19

~Hardy House~

"Elizabeth."

She paused on the stairs and turned to look at her grandmother who was holding out the phone. "It's Ned Ashton."

Frowning and wondering why Emily's cousin would be calling her, she looking down at Cameron who was sleeping in her arms. Her grandmother murmured something quietly to Ned, then set down the phone and came over to her. "I'll put him down in his crib."

"Thank you, Gram," she said distractedly as she passed her son to his great-grandmother. Then she crossed the room to the phone and blew out a breath before picking up the receiver. "Hello?"

"Elizabeth? Hi, it's Ned Ashton."

"Yes. What can I do for you, Mr. Ashton?" she asked. She hoped this wasn't about Emily. She was not up for a conversation about the brunette tonight, especially not with one of her family members.

"I was hoping I could talk to you," he said. "If you're not busy."

"Um, sure," she shrugged. Still not understanding why he, of all people, would want to talk to her, she resigned herself to the fact that it probably was something to do with Emily and it was better just to get it over with. Sitting down on the couch, she said, "Cameron's asleep, so I've got some time."

"Good," he replied. "How is your son doing? How old is he now?"

"He's doing good," she smiled, even if it was in a bit of confusion about the questions and the whole conversation. "He's three months old now."

"A fun age," she could hear a smile in his voice. "You're probably wondering why I'm calling."

"I admit I am," she confessed, hoping this would bring him to his point.

"I was calling about L&B Records," Ned told her and she was surprised, not expecting something like that at all. "We're looking for a graphic artist, and I remembered you from when you worked with Chloe."

That whole experience felt like a lifetime ago and she didn't understand what that had to do with now. Or what Ned was thinking with his job offer. "I'm not a graphic artist," she pointed out.

"I know you don't have a formal degree, but you do have talent," he said sincerely. "I remember Chloe spoke very highly of you and I know you helped out with the Nurses' Ball. You designed a t-shirt for them."

She looked up as she heard her grandmother come down the stairs and she scrunched her forehead in confusion. "Yeah, but like I said I'm not really a graphic artist."

"Lois and I would still like to meet with you," he persisted. "Even if you don't have formal training you probably would still have some good ideas. Please don't say no until you've had a chance to talk to Lois. She's who you'd mainly be working with, and she always has ideas and visions, just not the artistic ability to translate it onto paper like you do."

"Well," Elizabeth said a bit hesitantly, "I suppose I could meet with you and Lois. To talk at least."

"Excellent," Ned replied. "It'll let Lois know and we'll set up a meeting time. If it's convenient, would you be able to meet tomorrow?"

She shot a glance at her grandmother, then shrugged. "I would need to speak to my gram about Cameron, but it's possible."

"Alright. Well, I'll talk to Lois and we'll be contact. Thank you, Elizabeth. Talk to you later."

"Bye," she said, just before she heard the dial tone in her ear. Replacing the phone in the cradle on the table beside her she looked over at her grandmother.

"What was all that about?" the older woman questioned, clearly curious.

"He and Lois want to talk to me about a job at the record company," she said with a disbelieving shake of her head.

~PCPD Headquarters~

"Mac!"

He looked up and saw Officer Murphy running towards him. "What?"

"You need to get down to the park," the man said urgently. "We got a 911 call. Carly Corinthos was shot."

"Shot?" he asked with a raised brow. "Is she being taken to GH?"

"She... Actually, she's dead," the officer replied, stunning his boss. "But, Commish...the reason you should be there is your daughter made the call."

Mac's blood chilled slightly. "Maxie?"

"I'm not sure which one; both of them are there with a friend."

"Brook," he murmured. "Brook Lynn Ashton," he said louder to the officer. "You need to call Ned Ashton and Lois Cerullo. I'll call Felicia."

Then turning abruptly he rushed out to his car. He needed get down to the park for his girls. His police commissioner's brain told him not to worry about the details until he could talk to them and an officer at the scene. But the father in him wouldn't listen, because these were his daughters and a murder was involved. Not just any murder, but the murder of Carly Corinthos. And that was going to be a lot of trouble; trouble his girls had just landed right in the middle of.

Getting into his car, Mac flipped on the radio scanner to find out what news he could before he reached the park. He could only hope he didn't run into a traffic gridlock.

~Gatehouse~

Ned hung up the phone after leaving a message for his ex-wife. He didn't know where she was, and it really didn't matter. He just wanted to let her know that he'd spoken with Elizabeth Webber and she'd agreed to meet with the two of them; tomorrow was convenient for her or the day after. While the young woman might not have formal training, he did agree with Lois about talking to her. Not for Lois' reasons of saving money, but because he believed in loyalty to old friends and former employees.

Elizabeth Webber had impressed his cousin and he remembered she was a hard, and enthusiastic, worker. Now she had a young son to provide for and he'd rather give the job to her than to someone else. So, he hoped she worked out, and he hoped Lois liked her. To that end, he would do everything he could to promote the meeting between his ex-wife and the artist.

When the phone rang, he thought it might be Lois calling him back, wanting to set up a time. He picked up the phone and said, "Yeah?"

"Mr. Ashton?"

Not Lois. "Yes."

"This is Officer Murphy. I'm calling about your daughter Brook Lynn."

"Is she alright?" he asked, his heart stuttering a beat as a thousand scenarios raced through his mind.

"Yes," the man quickly assured him. "I'm sorry, sir, to worry you. But your daughter was a witness to a crime at Port Charles Park earlier tonight and Commissioner Scorpio wanted me to call you and your ex-wife so you could come down to be with her."

"I'll be right there," Ned said immediately, standing and looking around the room. "Is she still at the park?"

"Yes, sir. I'll call Ms. Cerullo."

"Thank you," he said, finding his keys and ending the phone call. Rushing out the door he ran down to his car. He didn't know what Brook saw, but he would get down there to be with her and be there for his daughter.

~Park~

They were 50 feet away from a dead body. Even though the police officers questioning them had situated the three of them with their backs to the other detectives, medical examiners and crime scene technicians swarming around, Georgie knew they were there. Along with the dead body of Carly Corinthos. The brunette's lifeless eyes, along with all the blood seeping out from underneath her back and down her chest, were forever stuck in Georgie's mind.

She looked over at her sister and friend and knew they were scared just like she was. They had seen Lorenzo Alcazar's niece run away from a dead body, right after hearing a gun shot. They weren't dumb, they knew their dad considered him a threat like Sonny Corinthos. His brother Luis had kidnapped her and Maxie and held them hostage to try and force Roy DiLucca to murder Sonny.

Georgie didn't know about Maxie and Brook, but she was terrified about what Lorenzo Alcazar could do to them. He had gotten Dillon into a lot of trouble and danger because he'd hired him to look after Sage. Just because the spoiled little brat wanted Georgie's boyfriend. What would he do now when he found out that the three of them were witnesses to his precious niece fleeing from the scene of a murder? She was scared to find out.

"Maxie! Georgie!"

The girls looked up and Georgie felt tears burn her eyes when she saw her father practically running towards them. She and her sister stood and soon found themselves crushed in a fierce embrace. They clung to him, and Georgie was so glad to have him there. They'd answered some questions already, but she wanted her father's guidance, and most of all his protection.

"Are you girls alright?" he asked as he pulled back slightly, but didn't release them. They nodded shakily and he ran his gaze over them.

"Brook?" he turned to their friend, and Maxie pulled her close into the circle. "We're trying to get a hold of your parents. Are you okay?"

Her nod was quick and tense. "Ye-yeah."

He pulled them slightly to the side, glancing at the officer who had stepped back to give them a moment. "Tell me what happened."

"We..." her sister began, then stopped and cleared her throat uneasily. "We were crossing the park and we heard a sound. We...it sounded like a gunshot so we stopped and looked around. We were frightened."

"I...I saw someone running," Georgie took up the narration when Maxie stopped. Besides, she'd been the one to first see Sage. "It looked like Sage and she was running away. I...I looked at the others and asked if they'd seen her."

"We did," Brook whispered. "We all knew it was Sage."

Maxie took a watery breath. "A-and then we saw there was someone lying on the ground. We...we walked closer and it was...Carly."

"That's when we called 911," Georgie said, feeling her knees weaken. "She...she wasn't moving and her eyes...were just..."

Mac pulled her close as she trailed off, unable to voice how the mob wife's eyes had looked like a doll's. Lifeless and fake. "It's okay," he murmured in her ear. "It's okay."

"Brook!"

They all looked up and saw Brook's father rushing towards them. A police officer stopped him at the crime scene tape, but Mac called out to let him through. He ran towards them and Brook pulled away from Maxie to rush into her father's arms. While he was embracing his daughter, Mac pulled her and Maxie close once more. They both clung to him, needing to feel the safety of his arms.

~Alcazar Penthouse~

Lorenzo heard the front door close and he crossed the tiled floor of the kitchen, his socked feet just whispering in the room. He saw his niece walking across the front room towards the credenza on the side and he wondered what had happened. The guard at the door hadn't said anything about Sage being out; in fact he thought she was inside. As much as he didn't like it, he knew she sometimes snuck out or ditched her guards, despite his repeated warnings to her. So he wasn't going to let this infraction go unnoticed.

"Sage."

She shrieked, actually jumped a bit, and spun around. Her eyes were wide - with surprise and he thought guilt - and she pressed her hand to her chest. "Uncle Lorenzo," she tried to smile. "I-I didn't know you were here."

"Clearly," he remarked dryly as he slipped his hands into his pants pockets. "I didn't know you were out. Enrique seemed to think you were home."

When she remained silent and clutched her purse tightly, Lorenzo pushed. "Where were you, Sage?"

"I-I was...taking a walk."

"Why do you insist on lying?" he growled, his patience worn thin by his long day. Morgan was still alive, he'd found out today, and Corinthos was digging into Carlos' connections. Which was getting dangerously close to exposing him as the man's backer. He was not in a mood for Sage's antics today.

"Uncle Lorenzo," she pleaded, her eyes now wide with false innocence and beguilement. "I'm not lying."

"I'm not in the mood, Sage," he warned her. "How can I keep you safe if you insist on lying to me and sneaking out without your guards? So tell me where you were."

"I was taking a walk," the teen insisted. "I'm sorry I didn't let anyone know where I was going, but you're blowing this way out of proportion. Nothing happened to me."

She was still hiding things from him, and Lorenzo was mulling over what to do with her. How to impress upon her that this wasn't all a game like she thought it was. A knock at the door prevented him from speaking though, and as he started to turn he noticed Sage was ready to bolt for her room. "Stay where you are," he told her sharply before calling out, "Yes?"

Enrique opened the door, careful not to open it all the way, and said, "Detective Peterson is here to see you and Miss Alcazar."

He was surprised that the police also wanted Sage present, and he wondered what exactly she was hiding from him. He looked over at his niece, but she refused to meet his eyes. A clear sign that she knew what this was about and didn't want him to know. Swallowing his irritation at her and the police he sighed, "Send him in."

The detective entered the room, his suit looking rumbled and stained, and stopped just inside the door. "Mr. Alcazar."

"Detective. What can I do for you?"

"I wanted to talk to your niece, Sage." His gaze traveled over her, lingering on her purse. "Were you out tonight, Miss Alcazar?"

She remained silent and the cop raised his brow. "Miss Alcazar?"

"Yes," she finally admitted imperially. "I was out taking a walk earlier."

"In the park?"

"I don't remember," she said, shifting on her feet, and Lorenzo narrowed his eyes. He saw Detective Peterson do the same.

"May I ask what this is about, Detective?" Lorenzo questioned. His niece may be lying to him, but he was still going to protect her from a police inquisition.

"Carly Corinthos was found dead earlier tonight," he said bluntly and Lorenzo felt like he'd been punched. "Several witnesses heard the gunshot and saw Miss Alcazar running from the scene where Mrs. Corinthos was found immediately after the shot."

"Sage?" Lorenzo asked in surprise, and not just a little disbelief. Turning to his niece he felt further shock when she wouldn't look at him. "Sage?"

"Do you own a handgun, Mr. Alcazar?" the cop asked.

"I own several." He shook his head. "You can't really believe Sage shot Carly."

"We have several reliable eyewitnesses," the other man insisted. "We need to question your niece, as well as search her."

"Search her?" Lorenzo demanded.

"We need you both to come down the police station," Detective Peterson informed them. "It would be in your best interest if you cooperate, otherwise we'll be forced to arrest her."

"We'll go," he said, and saw Sage blanch out of the corner of his eye. "But I'm calling my lawyer and my niece will not answer any questions until he arrives."

~Corinthos Penthouse~

It was looking to be another long night as Sonny sat on the couch, a drink in his hand. Jason was still down in Puerto Rico, though the younger man was insisting he was doing better and would probably be able to come home in a couple of days. The investigation Greg had done into Kilkerry Imports revealed it to be a shell company, and that there was a subsidiary here in Port Charles. Greg felt that he was close to breaking the shell and finding the truth of the imports; guards were watching the business on Pier 47 to see who was coming to the business. It was all a matter of time and waiting, and Sonny hated waiting.

As glad as he was that they seemed to be getting close on the business side of things, and as busy as it kept him during the day especially with Jason absent, his nights were a different matter. They were too long, and too lonely. He didn't like eating alone. He did enjoy spending more time with Sam and looking out for her, but he knew that he couldn't spend all his time with her, and he especially avoided spending the evenings with her. They had talked about their daughter and discussed plans for what would happen after she was born, but the specter of Carly hung over them. Unresolved and making it impossible to fully plan things out; and he wasn't going to make the mistake again of using Sam as a substitute because things were rocky with Carly at the moment.

Carly still refused to talk to him, to let him apologize and explain what happened. He really wanted to, but she was once again proving to be very stubborn. She was going to punish him for admitting the truth about Sam and accidentally hitting her. The more time that went on, the worse he brooded over the situation. He grew angry at himself, angry at Carly, angry at the whole situation, and as he sat with a glass of scotch in his hand he knew he was in a lousy mood. Which was part of the reason he'd turned down Sam's invitation to come over for dinner earlier in the evening.

However, the longer he sat, the more he thought about Sam and regretted not taking her up on her offer. They could have dinner without it progressing into more. He wondered why he was being so stubborn about spending time with her; if she even wondered that they only spent time together on his terms. All these thoughts weren't helping him and he fought against the depression he felt creeping up on him. Standing, he crossed to the phone and picked up the receiver; he could call Sam just to see how she was doing and if she needed anything, and maybe he could stop by for a little while. Anything was better than sitting here alone all night.

A knock at the door preceded Max opening it and softly saying, "Mr. Corinthos, there's a Detective Stevens here to see you."

He wondered what this homicide cop could want. Some nuisance stop probably, an unknown homicide the cops hoped to pin on him. They'd probably try to blame Jason as well, and then be extremely disappointed to find out he wasn't even in Port Charles.

"Send him in," Sonny said wearily, as he replaced the phone in its cradle.

The cop entered the penthouse, and Sonny noticed he didn't have the look of Taggert or Capelli when they would come just to bust his chops and try to rattle him. The man stopped a few feet from Sonny and sighed as his shoulders dropped. "Mr. Corinthos. I'm sorry to bother you tonight, but I have some information about your wife. She...uh, she was found shot in the park tonight."

"Shot?" he questioned, not believing the man and wondering what was really going on.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Corinthos," the man said, genuinely sounding sorry. "But she's dead. She died instantly."

"No," Sonny shook his head. "No. There's been some mistake...it's not true."

"I'm sorry, sir. But it is. Your wife is dead."

Chapter 20

~Puerto Rico~

The ringing phone pulled Jason from his sleep and he sat up quickly in the dark room. Briefly running his hand over his face, he flipped on the bedside lamp before reaching for the phone. "Morgan."

"Jason."

All remaining vestiges of sleep disappeared when he heard Sonny's voice. There was a flat, hollow quality to it which combined with the time immediately had Jason worried about what happened. "Sonny. What is it? What happened?"

"It's Carly." The words were strangled and heavy. "She's...she..."

"Sonny," Jason said, his tone a bit sharp with impatience and worry. What had his friend done now and what kind of trouble was she in that caused Sonny to call him? "What did she do?"

"She didn't do anything. She was shot..." Sonny let out a tortured sigh. "She's dead."

"What?" he demanded in disbelief. "She's dead?"

"She was shot in the park," his friend told him. "Died instantly."

"Do they know who did it?" Jason demanded as he climbed out of bed and reached for his pants. He ignored the slight twinge in his side from the healing gunshot wound as it protested his too quick movements.

"The police arrested Sage Alcazar."

That made him pause and he stared dumbly at the wall in front of him, his pants only on one leg. "What? Sage Alcazar?"

"There were witnesses who saw her running from the scene. She had gunshot residue on her hands and they found a gun in her purse. They're still running ballistics, but it was enough for them to arrest her."

Sitting back down on the bed, he felt a bit numb at the news. Carly couldn't be dead. "Is Sage being watched?" he demanded. "Alcazar?"

"Yeah. Max set it up."

"Good," Jason said, holding onto his phone tightly. He didn't want Sage Alcazar to disappear from police custody, or for Alcazar to bribe a judge, get the teen released on bail and then get her out of the country to a place with no extradition treaty. If the girl did kill Carly, he wanted her to pay for her crime, and he was sure Sonny felt the same. Even in his shock.

"I'm coming back," he told his friend. "I'll be there as soon as I can and then we can talk and figure out what to do."

"Okay," the older man breathed out, clearly pleased with Jason's pronouncement. "Thank you. I...I hope to see you soon, Jason."

~Corinthos Penthouse~

Sonny hung up the phone and wearily scrubbed his hand over his face, not really noticing as his skin caught and snagged on the stubble covering his jaw. Jason would be returning to Port Charles. He was glad his friend was coming back; he knew that he would need Jason's stabilizing presence in his life right now. His wife was dead. Despite all the fights, the times he became incensed at her interference and mistrust, despite the separations and divorces, he still loved her.

Maybe it wasn't the healthiest kind of love. It was passionate and explosive, but that fire wasn't just contained to the bedroom. They provoked each other in ways nobody else seemed capable of; two strong-willed individuals they loathed compromise and too often fought for complete supremacy of a situation. Their unbendable wills had led to the fights and separations, but they were never able to stay away from each other. Invariably they always came back for more.

That was why he thought they'd work through this latest fight. They always had in the past; they would do it again. Only now they wouldn't. Carly was dead before they got the chance.

And he would forever be stuck with the knowledge and images that he'd hit Carly. He also knew there would be plenty of people around him who would remind him of what he'd done to his wife. Bobbie would continue to castigate him, and Michael would probably be wary of him. Alcazar knew what happened, and there could be others in the business who also knew. Certainly the guards down in the garage knew, but he thought he could trust them to keep their mouths shut. The worst part of this was Jason didn't know, but that would change soon. If Sonny didn't confess, Bobbie would be sure to tell him why Carly and the boys had really been staying with her.

Jason's reaction was the one Sonny feared. The younger man had always been fiercely loyal to Carly, because of Michael and other reasons. When Sonny and Carly were first forced together, because of the baby and then the FBI sting, Jason had warned the other man to treat her right. Had made him promise to be good to her. Even though in later years Jason had distanced himself from interfering in his friends' marriage, Sonny knew that he'd broken that initial promise to Jason. And this time he fully expected Jason to be angry over the fact.

Sonny kept hoping that this whole thing was a terrible nightmare he could wake up from, but he knew it wasn't. The middle of the night trip to the morgue because he refused to believe Detective Stevens had shattered all those hopes. He'd seen his wife, pale and still on a metal cart, under a white sheet...a lifeless corpse. It was why he was still awake, alone in his house just as light began to slip through the windows from the morning dawning outside. Despite the desire for a drink, he refrained. Because he knew he had to go to his mother-in-law's soon, and he wasn't going to go over there smelling of liquor.

He was not looking forward to the encounter with Bobbie. She would be upset, grief-stricken, and he didn't know how she would respond to him. He also wasn't looking forward to telling his children that their mother was gone. Morgan wouldn't understand it; apart from missing Carly's presence. Michael though was old enough to understand about death and the fact that Carly was gone forever. He'd once thought he'd lost his mother, now he'd have to go through that all over again, and this time Sonny couldn't bring him the miracle of his mother arriving at the church doors as her funeral was about to begin. Sonny didn't know how his son would react to the news, or how he'd respond to him. All he could think about was Bobbie's words about Michael being upset because of Carly's injuries, and knowing that Sonny had inflicted them.

This whole thing was truly screwed up, and he knew he had no one to blame but himself. He had hit Carly, sending her running first to Alcazar, and then to her mother's where she refused to speak to him. His children had once again been uprooted and frightened for their mother, and it was all his doing.

"Sonny?"

He startled at the soft voice in the room and looked over to see Sam standing just inside the door, looking uncertain. "I knocked for several minutes, and Marco finally just let me in."

Sonny didn't reply, just sat there staring at her as she twisted her fingers together, wondering why she was here. Nervously she brushed her hands over her swollen stomach, drawing his gaze to their child growing there. "Why are you here?" he asked, his voice rough and thick.

"I woke up this morning and turned on the TV for company and I heard the news about Carly." She took a couple of steps towards him, but didn't move past the edge of his desk. She stood there, as if uncertain, while her eyes were filled with such caring and compassion it nearly choked him. "I came to see how you were doing. To see if there was anything I could do for you."

"You should go home," he said as he stood and turned away from her. "You should be sleeping; not worrying about me."

"Sonny." Her voice pleaded with him to let her in, but he couldn't give into the temptation. As wonderful as the past few days had been, sitting with her, marveling over being able to freely express his delight about their child, he felt guilty. Carly had been his wife, but he hadn't tried as hard recently to talk to her because she was being stubborn and Sam was there, open with her expressions and feelings and letting him near her and their baby. Now Carly was dead, and Sam was here, offering him comfort, but he couldn't accept it. Not today...maybe not forever.

"I have to go see Bobbie," he said, still not looking at her. He paused and his voice became huskier. "And Michael and Morgan. I have to talk to them about Carly...I have to take care of my sons."

Turning around, he hardened his face in resolve. "You should go, Sam."

~Alexis' Apartment~

She had always been an early riser, but being a mother had just reinforced that habit for Alexis. Early morning was a time when she could get a shower while Kristina slept, and then start the day with the news she didn't want her daughter, no matter how young, to hear. She turned on the TV while on her way to the kitchen to pour a cup of coffee that had brewed while she was in the shower. Her favorite local station was in a commercial break, so she decided to go ahead and pour her cereal now rather than wait for the next break.

As she made her way out to the living room the anchors were chatting about the weather report. It was late August; the report was hot, muggy weather. Nothing new there. Sitting down on the couch, she took a sip of coffee, and then placed it on the table. She had just started to raise a spoonful of cereal to her mouth, but froze when she saw a picture of Carly Corinthos in the top right corner of the screen over the anchor's left shoulder.

"As we reported earlier this morning, we will be following this story through the day. Carly Corinthos, wife of Sonny Corinthos, and owner of The Cellar, a local night club, was found shot dead in the park last night. Several witnesses identified Sage Alcazar, niece of Lorenzo Alcazar, fleeing from the scene."

Alexis gasped and set her cereal down, reaching for the remote to turn up the volume.

"Police questioned Miss Alcazar last night and then arrested her for murder. District Attorney Ric Lansing, brother to Sonny Corinthos, is expected to hold a news briefing later this morning. Police haven't released a suspected motive for Miss Alcazar, although it is known that Mrs. Corinthos' husband, a suspected mobster, has had troubles with Mr. Alcazar and both men have been questioned repeatedly by the Port Charles Police on various incidents, often related to each other.

"Stay with Channel Seven news through the day for the latest developments in this case."

Alexis hit the mute button as they shifted to a different story and stared blankly at the TV screen. Carly was dead. Whether she'd been shot by Sage didn't really matter to Alexis at the moment. She was simply stunned by the news Carly was dead.

She knew it was wrong, but a certain amount of relief coursed through her. Carly could no longer hold her confession about Kristina's true paternity over her anymore. If Sonny knew the truth, he would have barged into her house demanding access to her child. But that had never happened. And now her secret had died with Carly. The threat that Carly had used just yesterday to get Alexis to handle her divorce was gone. She wouldn't be dragged into any more court cases with Sonny Corinthos. And the protective mother in her, the one that never wanted her daughter exposed to the violence and danger of Sonny's life, was glad.

The back of her brain pricked at her, telling her that Ric may have somehow found about Kristina, but she quieted it this morning. Ric might know; Carly definitely had known. And now that part of Alexis that had always feared and worried could rest a bit easier today. She'd worry about Ric later, today she was going to take a deep breath for the first time since the fateful fire in February.

And who said the only news on TV was bad news?

~Quartermaine Mansion~

The minute Edward Quartermaine read about Carly Corinthos' death in the morning paper, he got on the phone. One obstacle keeping him from his great-grandson had just been removed. Now he needed to track down his dissolute, thieving grandson A.J. and apprise him of the news. Surely with the biological mother out of the way, A.J. stood a better chance - especially backed by the powerful Quartermaine family - against a thug like Sonny Corinthos in the custody for Michael.

"Good morning, Father," Alan said as he and Monica entered the breakfast room.

"Great morning," he replied, even as he slammed down the receiver because he hadn't been able to reach his private investigator yet, despite leaving five urgent messages with his office and answering service.

"What are you so cheerful about, Edward?" Monica grumbled as she poured two cups of coffee. She handed one to Alan and looked at her father-in-law questioningly.

"Have you heard the news this morning?" Edward chortled, waving a hand at the newspaper in front of them on the coffee table. "Carly Corinthos was found dead in the park last night."

"What?" Monica spluttered as she set her coffee cup down and reached for the paper.

"Carly is dead?"

"Yes, Alan," he snapped. "Now keep up?"

"Edward, what are you doing?" Monica asked, eying him with a wariness that he scoffed at.

"I'm trying to track down your son, A.J."

Alan raised a brow, "Why?"

"Because now that Carly is dead he stands a much better chance of beating Sonny in a challenge of the adoption. Sonny is a mobster who's going to be going after Lorenzo Alcazar since it was his niece who shot Carly."

"What?" Monica gasped again, but Edward ignored her. He was focused on the bigger, more important picture right now.

"So we need to find A.J. and get him to come back. Then we can get little Michael back where he rightfully belongs. With us."

~Hardy House~

Elizabeth sat on the couch, staring at the TV in shock as the morning news recapped their top story. Carly was dead. It...it didn't seem real. Carly, while annoying, had always seemed larger than life. Invincible. It was hard to imagine she was dead.

While there was certainly no love lost between the two women, Elizabeth would never wish the other woman harm. Especially with two young children who would need her and miss her. She couldn't imagine what those two little boys, especially Michael who had thought his mother was dead two years ago, would go through now.

Thoughts of Sonny and Bobbie fleetingly crossed her mind, memories of that summer Carly was missing resurfacing briefly, but they ultimately rested on Jason. As much as she didn't understand it, she would never deny Jason's relationship with Carly or how much the other woman meant to him. Elizabeth knew Jason had been out of town lately, Emily had informed her of that tidbit that day in the park when she saw Sam and Sonny together, and she wondered if he'd heard the news yet. Surely Sonny would call him, but she could only imagine how that conversation would go - it would all probably depend on what frame of mind Sonny was in.

Just because Jason had recently been upset with Carly didn't mean he would be unmoved by his friend's death. Elizabeth had a brief moment of wanting to call him, to see if he knew and how he was doing, but she quickly got that impulse back under control. While the two of them had talked more civilly recently, they really didn't have the kind of relationship where she felt comfortable calling him up. She especially didn't want to intrude on him while he was out of town; she would wait for him to come back and then she would talk to him. She was sure he wouldn't miss Carly's funeral, unless wherever he was made him unreachable. And if that was the case, then she would never be able to get in touch with him.

But, as she turned off the news and went to retrieve Cameron, she had to admit that she hated having to wait to talk to Jason to see how he was doing.

~Brownstone~

"I'm going to Maxie and Georgie's."

Bobbie looked up and stared at Lucas in shock. Had her son really just said he was leaving on the day they'd been woken up by a policeman to find out Carly was dead. He was going to go out? How could he do that? His sister was dead, yet he didn't seem to be bothered by the news.

"What?" she said. Then she shook her head. "No, you're not. Your sister is dead and I would appreciate if you acted like it."

Her son scowled at her, his mouth firming. "I'm sorry Carly's dead. You may not believe me, but I am. I'm sorry that a human being died, especially like she did. I'm sorry Michael and Morgan's mother is dead and they won't have her around.

"But," he said, his voice hardening, "don't expect me to cry over her. Because they'd be false tears. She never treated me like a brother, she didn't try to get to know me or care about my life. She was like a stranger to me that I only saw on rare occasions. And have you forgotten that she ruined my life, and yours? She broke up you and Dad and you hardly let me see him until recently. So I'm sorry that she's dead, but I am not going to sit around here pretending to feel something I don't just because you think I should."

"Lucas," she sighed. She knew he and Carly had never gotten along like real brothers and sisters, and she knew a lot of that was Carly's doing. Often she didn't seem interested in what was going on with them, and especially with Lucas. Bobbie had never really pressed her daughter about it because she'd reluctantly resigned herself to the fact that Carly only bothered herself with things that affected her. Since Lucas' high school activities didn't directly affect Carly, she didn't attend or even care to make an excuse. It made Bobbie sad, but as a mother she couldn't turn her back on her child, so she couldn't shut Carly out or insist she take more of an interest in a brother so much younger than her.

However, she realized she also couldn't force Lucas to deny his feelings about Carly just because she, or others, may think they weren't proper. He said he was sorry she was dead, and Bobbie believed in his own way he was. Did she really need to force him to stay at the house just for her sake? Or for the appearance they might present to others?

"Mom," he said as he walked over and sat down beside her. "Georgie and Maxie, they understand how I feel. And the fact that it was Sage that killed her...I feel like I can talk to them. Michael and Morgan are upstairs with Leticia, I can't play with them like nothing's happened, that their mother isn't dead. I feel sorry them, but I also honestly feel that their lives will be less disrupted now that she's gone. She was a selfish mother who used her children as pawns in a game against Sonny. How many times have they moved in with us, or stayed for weeks while she and Sonny fought?"

"Lucas, please not now," she pleaded wearily, not up for a fight today. While she knew part of what he was saying she was true, she couldn't do this today. Not on the day she'd found out her daughter was dead. "Go see your cousins," she finally sighed. "Just please don't spend the entire day there."

She sank back against the couch cushions as he stood and left the room. Her head hurt terribly and it wasn't even nine in the morning yet. This was going to be a very long day. She heard voices in the hallway and she sighed as she sat up straighter; the visits by well-meaning friends were apparently about to start.

"Mom?" Lucas said softly, standing inside the doorway. "Sonny is here to see you...and the boys."

She should have realized he would be stopping by today. And sooner, rather than later. Carly was his wife, Michael and Morgan were children; of course he would come by.

"Do you want me to stay?" Lucas asked, his face showing concern.

"No," she shook her head. "Go ahead."

It was probably better if she and Sonny spoke without a lot of other people around. "Tell Sonny to come in."

Her son nodded, and she heard him murmur something low to Sonny, but couldn't make out what it was, before the older man slowly shuffled into the room. Her son-in-law looked rumpled and haggard, and certainly didn't project arrogance and confidence like he always seemed to. She didn't stand to greet him, just sat there watching him.

"Bobbie," he said on a weary note. "I'm sorry...about Carly, and about intruding on you today."

"Are you?" she challenged as he took a seat on the chair near the sofa.

His shoulders momentarily stiffened, and then they slumped in dejection. "I know you don't believe me, you think I hit Carly on purpose, but I am sorry. What happened between us...I have hated myself for it every day. My stepfather beat my mother; I...I can't believe I did the same thing. That I became like the man I hated."

Bobbie sighed, fresh tears coming to her eyes. It was the same thing he had said everyday he showed up, but today she finally allowed herself to put aside her righteous indignation on behalf of her daughter and really hear him. She never thought he was violent towards women; Tammy had once told Bobbie that Sonny protected the prostitutes and didn't put up with pimps or johns beating them. Maybe it really had been an accident with Carly. She had kept him from her daughter, partly on her own anger, but mostly on her daughter's insistence.

Maybe she should have tried to talk to Carly instead of just feeding her daughter's anger. If she had, would Carly have gone out to meet Sage Alcazar or would she have been home with her husband working things out? Could Bobbie have helped keep her daughter alive?

She didn't really know what to say to Sonny, so she made a soft agreeing noise and finally settled on, "I'm sorry, too."

Leaning forward in his seat, Sonny braced his elbows on his knees and hung his face in his hands. "Have you said anything to Michael or Morgan yet?"

Bobbie shook her head. "Michael asked where Carly was this morning when he got up, but I just said she wasn't here and Leticia managed to distract him with breakfast and then with games later on. I...I felt I should talk to you first. You are their father."

He let out a slow breath and said, "Thank you. I... Could you come up with me? I know Michael was upset about seeing Carly hurt, and it may help him if you're there."

Bobbie nodded and stood, her heart heavy with her decision but knowing ultimately it would be for the best. "I agree. I...I also think it would be good if they went home with you today. They'll need their father right now...and you'll need them as well."

Chapter 21

~D.A.'s Office~

Ric walked into his office, an assistant D.A., his secretary and Mac Scorpio following after him. He'd just finished his first briefing with the press, one in which he was relatively benign, yet firm, in his resolve to see the case against Carly Corinthos' killer prosecuted. He'd also made the obligatory warning to his brother to let the city do its job and not turn his wife's death into a mob war. He really didn't expect Sonny to just sit back and not retaliate, but he hoped that the fact that Sage was a 16 year old girl would make his brother pause.

"Hold all my call, unless it's the mayor," he told his secretary. "Any requests from the press or concerned citizens, tell them I'll get back to them."

"Yes, sir," she said as she turned for her desk.

The remaining proceeded into Ric's office where he collapsed into the soft leather chair behind his desk. "I hate dealing with the press," he complained.

"I've never seen you turn down a press conference," Mac snipped from the side of the room where he leaned tiredly against a filing cabinet. It looked like the metal furniture was the only thing holding the older man up. Since the commissioner had been awake all night and it was his step-daughters that had witnessed the crime Ric was willing to cut the man a little slack.

"I'm facing a special election, Mac," he replied. "The mayor may have appointed me after Scott Baldwin disappeared earlier this year, but I am facing a vote from the people to keep this job. I have to keep my name out there. The press is a necessary evil."

The other man just nodded, his face showing his disbelief, but Ric chose not to continue on with the fight. Instead he turned his attention to the other man in the room, Special ADA Mark Fellows. "Mark will be my second chair on this case," he explained to Mac. "I expect you to give him your full cooperation."

"Of course. And what exactly will you be doing with this case?" the cop asked. "You were rather vague with the press out there."

"I intend to try Sage Alcazar as an adult as required under New York State law and charge her with first degree murder. But I don't intend to announce that until you and your officers have gathered me a strong case against her. This wasn't just a random shooting; not given Carly's history with Lorenzo. I want to know why Sage and Carly met and why Sage shot her. Which means you need to reconstruct why Carly was at her mother's place instead of Sonny's."

"Actually, I think I know that," Mac said as he moved towards one of the visitor's chairs. He looked like he was unable to stand any longer as he collapsed into the seat. "The girls are friends and cousins with Lucas Jones and he's mentioned a few things to them over the last couple of days. Sonny and Carly fought-"

"What else is new?" Ric muttered.

"About Sam McCall," Mac informed him and Ric sat up and took a little more notice. "It seems her baby isn't Jason Morgan's, but Sonny's. When he told Carly the truth she got angry and they had a fight. Sonny apparently hit her and she ran to her mother's."

Well, well, well. Seems his big brother was once again unable to keep it in his pants and he had another child on the way. Ric wondered how many other illegitimate children Sonny had running around that he didn't know about. Add in now that Sonny had hit his wife...things weren't looking good for his brother. And they'd get even worse when this information came out, as it was invariably bound to at a trial.

"Did she run straight to her mother's?" Ric asked. He was curious, because Carly had turned to Alcazar earlier in the year and Carly was a creature of habit.

"I don't know," Mac shrugged wearily.

"Find out," Ric ordered. "She and Lorenzo have a history and if Sonny hit her she may have run to him first in an attempt to hurt her husband. That may have been part of Sage's motivation. I want to know everything."

"Okay," Mac sighed, ready to struggle to his feet.

"Do it later, Mac," Ric said, now softening his tone. "Or have one of your officers do it. You're exhausted and you need to get some sleep."

The police commissioner nodded wearily. "Alright. I...I wanted to ask you about the girls. Are we releasing their names as witnesses?"

"You don't want to?" Mark asked, speaking for the first time in the meeting.

"No," he said immediately and with conviction. "Felicia and I are worried, so are Ned and Lois. Georgie and Maxie were kidnapped by Luis Alcazar and held hostage as a means to get Felicia's boyfriend to cooperate with Luis' plan to kill Sonny Corinthos. His daughter, whom none of the girls have gotten along with, shot and killed a woman; their testimony is what led us to arrest her. I don't know what Lorenzo would do with that knowledge. I want to protect them until we have to release their names to Sage's defense team."

"Don't worry," Ric assured him. "We'll do all we can to keep them safe. Because they're minors and given Alcazar's background, we may be able to keep their names out of the press at least."

"Thank you," Mac told him, clearly looking relieved. "I'll..."

"Get some sleep," Ric said. "We'll talk later."

When Mac left, Mark looked over at Ric and said, "Do you really think we can keep their names out of the press?"

"For their sake I hope so. But," Ric sighed as he shrugged. "It's a high profile case. It will be one of the biggest ones in the city's history, probably the state. We're going to get a lot of national attention; people are going to be digging into every aspect of this case."

Mark regarded him for a moment and then slowly asked, "Are you looking at the death penalty for her?"

Ric leaned back and steepled his fingers in front of him. "I don't know yet. It's Murder One, the death penalty is an option. But she is only sixteen years old. To seek it against her would be tough and divisive...I don't know if I want to do that or just go for life and argue for no parole."

~Jones/Scorpio House~

Georgie and Maxie looked at each other when the doorbell rang, shattering the relative quiet of the morning. Maxie picked up the remote and turned down the volume on the movie they were trying to watch; all a part of their mom's attempt for them to be normal today and not dwell excessively on what happened last night. Mac told them that they would do their best to keep the girls' names from the press, but some overeager reporter could have gotten wind of their involvement somehow. Which was why their mom had gone to answer the door and instructed them to remain quiet.

"Come on in, Lucas," they heard her say and Georgie reached over, grabbing the remote from her sister and turned off the DVD.

"I wasn't in the mood to watch a movie anyways."

"Me either," Maxie agreed as they turned their attention to the doorway.

Their cousin walked into the living room with their mother following behind, and they all regarded each other a bit uneasily. Lucas sat down in the chair next to the couch and their mom perched on the edge of the sofa next to Maxie. "How are you doing Lucas?" she asked him.

He shrugged and she frowned a bit. "How's your mom?"

"Sad, upset, all that," he replied. "I'm sorry Carly died and Michael and Morgan won't have their mom around, but she never acted like she was my sister. So I can't sit around and watch my mom feel all upset; especially when I saw Carly hurt her so many times."

They all fell silent after his last words, and Georgie felt her cousin and friend. She knew that he didn't always get along with Carly, so he had to have conflicting emotions about her death.

"I just...I knew you guys would understand so I came over here," Lucas said and looked at Felicia to see if that was okay. She nodded and Georgie was glad that as nervous as their mother was for the two of them she was able to show some sympathy for Lucas' feelings.

He glanced over his shoulder towards the front of the house and then back at his aunt. "Is everything okay, though? I saw the cop in the car outside."

Maxie gasped slightly and looked at Georgie. "He doesn't know," she whispered barely loud enough for her sister to her.

Of course he didn't know, the police weren't telling anybody. This was going to be hard to explain and they both looked at their mom to handle it. Georgie was sure she would be able to explain it best, being sensitive to Lucas' feelings.

"Um," she shifted slightly. "Mac's taking a precaution for the girls."

"What's wrong?" he demanded immediately, sitting forward in his chair.

The three women regarded each other and then their mother took a breath. "The girls saw Sage in the park last night...they're the ones who called the police. So Mac is being careful."

Lucas was still and quiet for a moment and then he leaned back in the chair, looking like a balloon defeating as his eyes grew wide. "You saw Sage? In the park?"

Maxie and Georgie nodded, seeing that he was putting the pieces together and they held their breath to see what his reaction would be. He swallowed and licked his lips slowly. "You saw her shoot Carly."

"No," Maxie said softly with a small shake of her head. "We heard the gunshot, saw Sage running out of the park and saw...Carly lying on the ground."

"Oh," he groaned and leaned forward, burying his face in his hands. Georgie wondered briefly if he was going to be ill. Without lifting his head he asked, "Did she see you?"

"No," Georgie shook her head immediately. "We're pretty sure she didn't. But Dad's being careful because of Mr. Alcazar and what his brother did."

"So you were the witnesses the police only alluded to," he said softly, his face showing his shock.

"And Brook," Maxie told him. "She was with us."

"Oh," he groaned out as he leaned back again. "Oh man. Are you guys okay?"

"We are," Georgie assured him. "Are you alright? She was your sister."

"But you saw her body," he shook his head, his voice shaking slightly. "You saw her body. I...I think I should go. You guys probably are-"

"Lucas," their mom said, slipping off the couch arm and coming to kneel beside his chair. "You don't need to go, honey. I don't think you should be alone right now. I think the girls would like it if you were here."

"Stay, Lucas," Maxie agreed quickly with their mother. "I...I think we all need each other right now."

~Brownstone~

In his life, Sonny had experienced many things that had challenged him. Beginning with Mike's abandonment and going through Deke's abuse, Lily's death, the agonizing decision to leave Brenda on their wedding day and then her death years later, none of them had compared to the pure, debilitating pain of this moment. He thought Carly's supposed death a couple of years ago might have helped him prepare him for this feeling, but he felt completely overwhelmed by the finality of her death.

As he stood outside the room his boys were playing in, he felt inadequate for the task before him. He had to tell them their mother was dead and he was there to take them home. He couldn't allow himself to think about what they'd have to do at home, to adjust to Carly's absence, he had to focus on the now. To accomplish that, he forced himself to open the door.

Morgan, sitting by Leticia's side playing with blocks by himself, was the first to notice his presence. He looked up and gurgled when he saw Sonny and clapped his hands, drawing the attention of the other two. Leticia quickly acknowledged him as she scrambled to her feet, disrupting the game she was playing with Michael. The other boy twisted in his seat to see who had come in and when he saw it was Sonny, his face settled into a hard glare. It put the father a bit on edge, but he knew he couldn't let Michael rattle him because of his guilt.

"Mom's mad at you," the boy stated harshly as he stood and defiantly crossed his arms over his chest. "You shouldn't be here just because she's not here. I won't let you take us away from her when she's not here to stop you."

"I know she's mad at me," Sonny said as he sat down and pulled Morgan onto his lap. "But I'm not going behind her back...I'm here to talk to you about her. Something happened to your mom."

"What happened?" Michael demanded, stepping away from him and back towards his nanny. "Did you send her away? Or did you two fight again and she left? Did you run her out of town after hitting her?"

Sonny sighed heavily and looked over at Bobbie who was standing inside the doorway trying to hide the tears in her eyes. He knew he was on his own to answer his son's questions, and he supposed he deserved the little boy's anger and mistrust over what happened to Carly. Praying for patience and calmness he slowly shook his head. "Your mom didn't run away. She...she was hurt last night. Michael, you mom...your mom died last night."

Leticia gasped softly and brought her hand up to cover her mouth. Michael looked at him, than over at his grandmother. Seeing the look of devastation on her face he quickly looked back at Sonny and shook his head. "No! You're lying!"

Morgan startled at his brother's shouting and Sonny bounced him slightly to calm him down. "I know it's hard to believe, Michael, but I'm not lying. The police told me and your grandmother."

"You said the police lie," the boy challenged.

"They aren't now," he said low and strained. "I...I saw her. I saw your mom. I wish it wasn't true, Michael, but your mom is dead."

"No," he shook his head again as tears flooded his eyes. He ran over to Bobbie and buried his face in her stomach as his arms wrapped around her waist. She brought her arms around his shoulders and bent her head to whisper words of comfort to him.

After a few minutes he calmed and he turned and looked at Sonny with hurt and distrust. "What happens now? Are you going to take us home, or do you not care now that Sam's baby is yours?"

Closing his eyes and swallowing harshly, leaving the feeling of broken glass in his throat, he opened his eyes and looked straight at Michael with intense promise. "I will always care about you and Morgan. Sam's baby doesn't change that. And I do think that we should go, so we can be a family now."

"I don't want to leave Grandma," Michael protested harshly.

"Michael," she said, pulling the little boy's arms from their iron grip around her. "I think it would be good for all of you. You, your dad and Morgan are a family, and you need each other right now."

"What about you?" he sniffled.

"I'll have Uncle Lucas," she told him.

"And she can come to see you any time she wants," Sonny told both grandson and grandmother. "Or you can come over and make sure she's not so sad."

That seemed to help calm the young boy and he took a hesitant step away from her. Sonny looked over at Leticia and said, "Can you start packing up their things?"

"Right away, Mr. Corinthos."

Sonny looked over at Bobbie and said, "I'll get Carly's things later if that's okay? I think we should go back to the penthouse."

She nodded and he was grateful that she was being supportive right now and not fighting him. He just wanted to get his boys home and start the process of adjusting as best they could.

~PCPD~

Lorenzo felt like he was stuck in a nightmare, yet no matter how hard he struggled he couldn't wake up. Never would he have believed h would be sitting across from his niece in a jail uniform with her hands handcuffed to the table between them. Yet, here he sat, across from Sage, unable to deny that she'd been arrested for murdering Carly Corinthos. He hadn't asked her if she committed the crime, the fact that his gun was found in her purse, gun shot residue was on her hands, and her face had held her confession made the question unnecessary.

What he needed to know was; "Why?"

Sage looked at him and he wondered if she would even answer him. She sullenly looked away, then back at him. "That's your first question? Not how am I doing, not did I even do it, but why?"

"Sage," he warned her, remembering how she'd been when she first came to town and had tried to kill Alexis Davis. "This isn't the first time you've hunted someone down. But Carly wasn't Ms. Davis who wasn't punished for murdering your father. Why did you shoot her?"

"How do you know I even shot her?" she challenged him, a bit of petulance entering her voice to remind him she was still a teenager. "What if I told you I didn't?"

He fixed his gaze on her, his brow rising in disapproval at her lies and defiance. "I'll ask you again. Why? She had never hurt you."

"She hurt you," Sage hissed venomously.

He sat back in his seat and rubbed his hand over his face, "Oh, Sage."

"Earlier this year, she led you on, took everything good you gave her and twisted it, spit on it and threw it away. She locked you up in a basement and would have let you die in there while she went back to her husband who shot her in the head while she was in labor," she pointed out with urgent passion. "He shot you at the same time, do you remember? She left you in the basement so her husband could kill you...and yet you forgave her.

"That's why she ran to you after her husband hit her. I heard you guys talking; she refused to call the police on him after what he did. She didn't care about you; it was all about her and her sick and twisted relationship with Sonny Corinthos."

He sat there for a minute in disbelief and silence. She thought she was defending him, protecting him from Carly?

"You may have sent her away that night," his niece said with a sad, disappointed smile, "but I watched you afterwards. You had men watching her and her husband; you would sit at night after you thought I'd gone to bed and you'd brood. Sitting in the dark, drinking scotch...you'd sigh and look like you did when she betrayed you a couple of months ago."

She shook her head and sighed. "I know you, Uncle Lorenzo. You would have forgiven her and helped her if she'd come to you again. I wasn't going to let her hurt you anymore."

"It wasn't your decision to make, Sage," he chided her mildly. "It's my life and my decision."

She pouted, hurt by his words, but didn't speak. Running his hand again over his face in tired frustration and disappointment, he added a sigh to those already hanging in the air. "So why did you meet her in the park?"

"To tell her to stay away from you," she answered completely unapologetically. "And she was arrogant, a complete and utter-"

"Sage," Lorenzo said, disapproval clear in his voice.

"Well, she was," the girl huffed. "And I knew she would eventually try and suck you back into her sick and twisted web. I wasn't going to let it happen."

When she finished, Lorenzo knew he had his answer. However much he disliked it. To Sage, her actions and reasons made perfect sense. She was protecting him, her family, as he had protected her. He wondered how he could failed her, how he could not have prevented her from doing something like this. He should have pulled the reins in tighter after her attempted murder of Alexis Davis, but he thought if he restricted her too much she would resent him and run away. He was all the family she had left and he thought it was more important she was here with him than somewhere else. He should have paid more attention to her, not gotten so caught up in his own life and the people around him. In that regard, he was exactly like his brother Luis who had dumped Sage off at boarding school and only saw her a couple of times a year.

"So what are you going to do, Uncle Lorenzo?" she asked him.

"What do you mean?"

"About me being in jail," Sage pointed out. "Surely you're not going to leave me here."

He winced at the selfish, demanding note in her voice. He felt off-balance and he...he couldn't believe the conflicting emotions going through him. She was family and all his training told him she should have his loyalty, yet he couldn't dismiss the fact that she had killed the woman who held his heart. He needed some sleep and some time to think before he could make any decision. Anything he chose to do, he would also have to weigh it against the knowledge that Sonny Corinthos would have a stake in this matter and could come after Sage for revenge.

Standing, he looked down at her, his face long with weighted emotions. "I have to think about this. Talk to you lawyer when he arrives so he can help you, and I expect you to cooperate better than you did earlier."

Then he turned and left the room, leaving his niece stunned speechless.

Chapter 22

~Gatehouse~

Lois Curello was a woman who liked surprises. Little gifts, big gifts, spontaneous trips, they were all exciting moments that she loved. But she was not happy now. This latest surprise, Sage Alcazar being accused of killing Carly Corinthos, was not a thrill. It was an out-right nightmare.

Right now, she was worried about her daughter. Brookie had found the dead body, and seen the teen fleeing the scene. Her statement to the police, along with that of Georgie and Maxie Jones, had led to Sage's arrest. The girl that Lois had cultivated and tried so hard to make a star, desperately wanting her uncle's money infused into her company, had shot a woman and brought a public relations nightmare into her life. Along with a lot of fear. What would Lorenzo Alcazar do against her and Brook now that Sage was accused of murder?

Brook was more withdrawn from Lois than she'd already been. The teen hadn't said it, but the mother could read the accusation in her eyes. The girl that Lois had fawned over, but Brook had never liked, had shown her true colors. Brook had been proven right in her distrust, while Lois looked like a fool. She knew that Sage had attempted to shoot Alexis Davis right after she first arrived, and Brook and her friends had never liked the girl, but she had ignored all that. She wanted, no needed, Lorenzo's money and so she ignored the past.

Now her daughter was paying the price. She was frightened, didn't want to leave her father's house and spent most of her time in her room. She talked with her friends, listened to music - sometimes angry and loud, sometimes soft and tender - but most of all she ignored Lois. Brook would talk to Ned, but was withdrawn and reticent around her mother. It bothered her, and made her feel bad for her daughter, but she also felt guilty because she knew she had to think about her company.

So much of her current capital had been wrapped up in trying to launch Sage Alcazar's career. Lorenzo refused to invest his money until Lois produced results; it would never happen now. And she was in worse cash straights than she'd been before. She was going to have bills come due soon that she'd barely be able to cover.

Worst of all, the press was all over her company. She always believed that any press was good press, but truthfully she knew that wasn't always the case. This wasn't like when Notorious B.I.G. was shot, or John Lennon; there were no albums already in existence for a curious and morbid public to go out and buy so they could hear the music of a suspected killer. There was only the sordid past of a young woman and her family that the press was latching onto. And there was her unfortunate slip to the songwriter who told the press that Lois had bought his song for Sage because Brook wouldn't let Sage sing her music.

All this press could bury her company unless she generated some new stuff. She'd been cataloging their artists in her mind and trying to figure out what they could do. Ned looked up from his laptop when she snapped her cell phone shut and stood suddenly.

"I've got an idea," she said in answer to his questioning look. "Miguel has been working on a new song. He can sing it in concerts in a few cities, start generating buzz about it and then we can release a live version as a single. In the meantime, we can also start filming his concert and behind the scenes stuff in several places, like him visiting some sights on his days off, and then we release the DVD just after his tour ends. That way the public doesn't feel like they have to wait as long for something new from him."

Her ex-husband nodded, leaning back on the couch and stretching his arms out along the top. "Then he could do a studio version of the track, maybe an extended version, or we could leave it as a live bonus track. Miguel and his manager agreed on this?"

"Miguel said he'd do anything to help us out. Plus, he's a local boy which can only help us with the press here," she pointed out. "Which is why I think we really need to talk to Elizabeth Webber in the next day or two."

His eyebrows furrowed and Ned asked, "I understand getting things started with Miguel, but I don't see the connection with Elizabeth."

"I want to hire her," Lois said frankly.

"You haven't even met her," her ex pointed out.

"So? I'll be honest here. I looked at her sketches and artwork for the Nurses' Ball; she's talented. But most of all, she's a Webber, related to the Hardys. Hiring her would generate some good press for us, and we could use some right now."

Ned frowned, "So you just want to use her?"

"She's talented and we need a graphic artist and she's a single mother looking for a way to provide for her son. The way I see it, we'd be helping each other and we'd both benefit." Lois hoped that when she talked with Elizabeth about it the young woman would see it the same way.

~Corinthos Penthouse~

Jason sat in the plush chair facing the fireplace and stared unseeingly at the wall before him. The room was a combination of the people who lived here, but dominated by two strong personalities. Sonny liked dark wood and bold colors, and Carly liked the best things that money could buy. And considering it was Sonny's money, the room contained nothing but the best. The best was constantly changed and updated because Carly redecorated when she was hurt, or bored, but mostly just because she could.

It was strange to think that if the room changed now it wouldn't be because of Carly. She would never again pull out a bag from Whyndam's and demand he see her latest find, or have to listen to her try and convince him to take her decorating advice. She would never come up with a scheme that would blow up in her face and then expect him to come rescue her. She would never again butt into his life, thinking she could dictate what happened simply because she claimed she knew him best of all and knew what he needed. He was going to miss her.

Despite the times that she aggravated him, and there were many, she was his friend. Most of the time she was selfish, but she wasn't always. And when she wasn't, he was reminded of how she could actually be caring. And she'd had two wonderful children that he loved and he was grateful every day that they were a part of his life.

Yes, he got mad at her sometimes. This latest fight, the epitome of her selfishness, had angered him. But it also hurt him. He was giving up everything to keep her family together, and she had been ready to rip a child from its mother because she hated the other woman. Jason had walked away from her, shutting her out like he had when she slept with Sonny. Yet, even though he was angry, he never once thought she'd be out of his life forever. She would learn to respect his choices, or more likely he would simply accept she wouldn't change; let her grovel and make promises of changing and just move on while bracing for the next event. He never thought they'd never talk again; that his last words to her would be ones of anger.

If he hadn't shut her out, would it still have ended the same way? She could have called him after learning the truth from Sonny instead of running to Alcazar. Would that have made a difference? Would Sage have felt the need to go after Carly?

The door slammed open, bouncing back against the wall and Jason twisted around even as he stood, startled at the sudden interruption of his thoughts. Michael ran to the stairs, never pausing or even acknowledging Jason.

"Michael!"

Jason frowned at the tone of Sonny's voice and looked from the little boy to the man standing in the doorway. "I was talking to you."

"I don't care!" Michael yelled from his perch on the landing of the stairs. "I don't want to be here. I want to be with Grandma. I didn't want to leave. I didn't want to leave with you!"

Sonny closed his eyes and stopped by his desk. Leticia walked in behind him, quiet and meek looking as she held Morgan and headed for the stairs. "Michael," Sonny said, his voice no longer sharp. Now it sounded filled with pain. "Michael..."

"No!" the little boy yelled, his fists balling at his side. "I don't want to be here. You hurt Mommy and you made her run. Now she's dead."

Jason's frown became pinched, a bit confused as Sonny flinched and Michael continued to scream at his father.

"What are you going to do to me?" he demanded. "If I make you mad are you going to hit me like you hit Mommy?"

Jason's shocked gaze swung to Sonny, waiting in disbelief for his friend to contradict Michael. But he didn't, he looked down at his desk with a sigh.

"I didn't want to come with you; I didn't want to see you, not ever! Not after you hurt her!"

"Michael."

The little boy stopped and looked over at Jason when he spoke. In a flash, the red head was off the stairs and flung himself at his uncle. "Uncle Jason! Where were you? Why weren't you there when Mommy needed you?"

Confusion laced with guilt swam through Jason as he held onto Michael. When he looked over at Sonny and the other man once again guiltily dropped his gaze, Jason's disbelief began to give way to anger. Michael's words, however incomprehensible, were true. Sonny had hit Carly.

"Hey, Buddy," Jason said, squatting down to Michael's level, "why don't you go upstairs with Leticia and your brother? I need to talk to you dad, okay?"

He was reluctant and it took a few moments of reassuring him that he wasn't going to leave town again, but Michael finally agreed. Jason promised that it may not be that night because he had some things to do, but they would talk about his mom. Finally placated, the little boy headed upstairs, but not before sending a withering glare in Sonny's direction. Jason watched him go, and then slowly pivoted.

"Jason," Sonny began, nervously rubbing his neck.

Jason stopped him with a swiftly raised hand and a lethal glare. "Not here."

Sonny nodded his acceptance and turned for the door.

~Morgan Penthouse~

When Jason slammed the door behind him, Sonny slowly turned around to face the younger man. His face was hard; his eyes ice cold with their barely contained anger and the vein in Jason's jaw was stretched taut. Sonny knew that his friend would be angry when he found out what happened, but he always thought that would be after he'd worked things out with Carly. She would be able to calm Jason down and make him see it was all just an accident. Now he didn't have that luxury.

"What was Michael talking about?" Jason demanded on a fierce growl.

Holding his hands out to the side, Sonny hoped to diffuse the situation. "Jason..."

"Answer me!" the younger man shouted, his eyes narrowing dangerously. "Did you hit Carly?"

"It was an accident, Jason."

With that confirmation, he seemed to deflate. "You hit her," he said on a ragged whisper. "How? Tell me, after everything that Deke did to your mother...how could you hit her?"

Sonny swallowed raggedly and passed a hand over his eyes. "Jason, I...I know how this sounds, but it was an accident. It was the night I told her about Sam. She was," he let out a bitter snort, "unhappy to say the least. You know how Carly, can...could get."

"I know," Jason nodded. "Sonny, that's why I asked you not to tell her while I was gone. I wanted to be here to help. But you refused to listen to me; you just had to tell her because you were mad at her and you wanted to punish her."

"Yeah," Sonny breathed out as he looked away. Jason had been right to tell him to wait, but Sonny had insisted on telling Carly. It was partly about being honest with her, not wanting any lies between them and their family, but a lot of it had to do with the fact that he was angry about her trying to make a deal with the Quartermaines with his children to get Sam sent to jail.

"So what happened, Sonny?" the younger man pressed. "How did you accidentally hit Carly?"

"We were fighting," he admitted. "Yelling at each other. Carly started demanding I choose. Her and the boys or Sam and the baby. I couldn't have both. If I wanted to know the baby then I should convince Sam to let Carly and I raise it. She just kept pushing and yelling and I just...I turned and walked away to get away from her. To calm down.

"But she just kept coming," he said, his voice becoming rough as the horror he felt from that night washed over him. "I turned around to tell her to shut up...my arm flung out...and she was right behind me. I didn't know she was that close when I turned around. It all...it happened so fast and yet so slow. I could see her falling and I reached for her, but she fell into the bar."

Even now he could see her, her arms windmilling for balance. He could hear the glass shattering and her screams which turned into cries. It played over and over in his mind, haunting him when he closed his eyes, when he stopped moving.

"Sonny."

He looked up to find Jason watching him. The younger man didn't look as angry, in fact it was hard to find any trace of the former fury. But there wasn't any understanding, and there certainly wasn't any forgiveness.

"That's why she ran to Alcazar, wasn't it?" Jason asked.

Sonny nodded.

"So when I asked what happened, why she ran, why didn't you tell me? Why did you lie to me? Why did you think you could hide this?" he demanded.

"I thought by the time you got back I would have fixed this. That-"

"You hoped she would plead with me not to be mad at you," Jason surmised, the anger coming back to his voice and countenance.

He could only feel guilt as he nodded. Sonny had expected Jason's anger and told himself he deserved it for what happened.

"I just..." Jason trailed off and pressed his thumb and forefinger into his eyes. "You lied to me, Sonny. You had plenty of opportunities to tell me what happened, and instead I had to hear from Michael, your son, what really happened. I just...I can't deal with this right now. We need to discuss Alcazar and what happened down on the island, but I can't do that right now. I'm going to go see Bobbie; I'll call you tomorrow."

And then Jason turned and walked out of the penthouse. Sonny figured he would be staying at Jake's still and wondered when the younger man would ever come back, or ever forgive him for what happened.

~Kelly's~

Emily walked into the diner and looked around as the door closed. There was a small group of people eating, and none of them was the person she was looking for. But then again, she could hardly expect Nikolas to come to the small eatery on the docks. Not when he was ensconced at Wyndamere and avoiding her. It seemed he was always holed up there, unless he was visiting Elizabeth.

Everything in her life seemed to be spiraling out of control; nothing was happening the way she wanted it to. Nikolas hadn't remembered his love for her, and the few things he had remembered hadn't helped her cause. She was also certain that Elizabeth was doing all she could to make sure Nikolas stayed mad at her and didn't forgive her. Elizabeth didn't want Emily to work things out with him because the other woman wanted to keep her options open.

Now that Sam's baby was no longer thought to be Jason's, and now that Carly was dead, Emily was sure Sonny would raise the baby. Jason would be shoved aside and left drifting, looking for someone to take care of. Enter Elizabeth. With her fatherless child, she was ripe for Jason's overprotective urges. And with Carly no longer around to object to Elizabeth, she expected her brother to fall back under the brunette's spell, especially since there would be no father to object to him spending time with Cameron. But in case that relationship didn't work out, Elizabeth would have Nikolas in reserve. Which was why she was preventing Emily's reunion with him.

Carly was another reason Emily's life was in turmoil. Ever since the family learned of her death they had been plotting and scheming. Grandfather wanted to find A.J. so they could sue Sonny for custody of Michael. She knew that when Jason found out about that he would be upset and he would do all he could to keep Michael with Sonny. He would say he owed it to Carly, and he would expect her to agree and understand.

However, maybe it was time that Sonny didn't get everything on a silver platter. Maybe it was time that A.J. got the chance to know his son. Carly had robbed him of his opportunity to have a family, and Jason and Sonny had conspired right along with her. Sonny had Morgan, and Sam's baby was due in a few months, why did he need to have A.J.'s son? Her brother wasn't perfect, but neither were Sonny and Jason. They didn't have the right to say that A.J.'s wrongs were greater than theirs and that he didn't deserve to know Michael.

It didn't mean she was looking forward to this fight. Because it was going to become a huge battle. But she thought it might be better to be away from a man like Sonny Corinthos.

The bell above the door jingled and she looked up to see Lucky enter, looking tired. She perked up to made sure to temper her look with sympathy because his cousin had died and he was close to his aunt.

"Lucky," she said as she stood and took a step towards him. "I was hoping to see you; that's why I came here. I'm sorry about Carly. How is Bobbie doing?"

"Hey, Em," he sighed. "I'm glad to see you; it's nice to see a friendly face."

"That's why I came," she smiled at him as they sat down at her table. "I'm here for you, Lucky."

Chapter 23

~Harborview Towers~

As she stepped off the elevator, despite telling herself not to, her eyes drifted towards the door she'd once lived behind. Courtney knew that this was not the time to be thinking of Jason and their failed marriage, but she was unable to completely ignore it. She would never regret loving Jason, but she knew it was for the best that they were no longer married. She couldn't handle the danger and illegal nature of his life, and she was happier now that she was away from it. Being with Jax just made it all the better.

She hoped she didn't run into her ex-husband now because what she came here for was hard enough. She would see Jason later at the funeral, now was about Sonny. Turning towards his door, she dipped her head towards Max, somber-looking in his black mourning suit. "I'm here to see my brother."

He nodded and tapped softly on the door before opening it and announcing, "Miss Matthews to see you, Boss."

Sonny looked at her curiously when she stepped inside, but didn't say anything. He was already dressed for the funeral, his black silk shirt immaculate as always, but his suit coat was hanging on the back of his chair. Casting a glance at the stairs she swallowed and calmly asked, "Are...are the boys here?"

"They're at Bobbie's," he said with a sad shake of his head. "They like being over there..."

"Well, can you blame them?" she snapped now that she knew her nephews weren't there to witness this confrontation. "Michael knows that his father hit his mother. That poor little boy is angry and he's frightened that one day he'll end up like Carly."

"I would never hit my children," Sonny yelled, his hand making an angry slash through the air.

"I bet you also said you would never hit your wife," Courtney said simply.

"You...you don't know what happened," he protested as the barb clearly hit home.

"I know what Carly told me," she shot back. "When she called me, scared and alone and begged me to come home because she needed a friend. I know what I saw when I was with her and the boys and I heard Michael call you a bad man because you hurt his mommy. So, yes, Sonny, he is afraid that one day you'll hit him too."

"I'll explain it to him," Sonny said as he turned and raked his hand through his hair. "He'll understand."

"Will he? Will he understand that Carly made you mad because she was upset you and Jason lied to her? That you hit her because she wouldn't shut up?"

"That's not what happened," he shook his head firmly. "It was an accident. I turned around and she was too close; I didn't know."

"What's to keep you from accidentally hitting one of the boys when you get mad?" she asked him. His eyes flared, but she kept going. "You need help with your temper, Sonny. And until you get it maybe the boys should come live with me."

Her brother's eyes narrowed. "You're not taking my sons."

"They're my nephews, Morgan's my godson, and most of all, Carly was my friend," Courtney said, taking a step towards him. "The day she died she called me and told me she was going to file for a divorce and full custody of the boys. I have to think about her wishes and their best interest."

"So that's what this is about," he sneered, anger tingeing his voice. "You think that because you opened up your little foundation that you'll steal my boys from me. Raise them with your new boyfriend?

"Get out!" he yelled, his arm flinging out like it probably had the night her best friend was hurt. "Get out, you ungrateful cow. Get out of my house!"

Courtney shook her head, but turned and headed for the door. She was more determined than ever to help her nephews.

~Church~

"Thank you for being here, Luke."

Bobbie felt her brother's arms come around her as his gravely voice said, "You know I'm here for you, Barbara Jean."

She turned, trying not to completely break down, her eyes stinging with her grief. Luke gave her a wry grin, trying to cheer her up. "I may not have been Caroline's biggest fan, but she was your daughter. I know you loved her, and I'm sorry for your sake that she's dead."

"Thank you, Luke," she said with a shake of her head. Her brother would never change, but she was grateful he was there and giving her his support.

These last few days had been extremely difficult on her. Planning the funeral, dealing with the media and most of all, missing her daughter. Their relationship wasn't perfect, at times it drove her to her wits' end, but she loved Carly. After giving up her child and figuring she would never know what happened to her, it had been a surprise to suddenly meet her. Especially in the manner they had. But they had gotten past it and had built a relationship.

Bobbie couldn't believe Carly was dead. It had nearly destroyed her when they thought Carly had died going over the cliff two years ago; this time was so much worse. Before it was just a terrible accident, now it was horrible in its tragic nature. She had been murdered by a cruel and selfish girl; Bobbie's daughter had been stolen from her. Through a series of events that Sonny Corinthos had started, Bobbie had lost her baby girl once more.

"Come on," Luke said as he tightened his hold on her shoulder. "We should go in."

She nodded and turned to go, but paused when she saw Jason coming towards her.

"Bobbie," he acknowledged her, his voice low and thick.

"Hello, Jason," she responded. He had stopped by to see her after his return and she was torn in her feelings towards him. Her daughter had died, and Carly hadn't been able to reach Jason after she'd been hurt by Sonny and needed a friend. Yet Bobbie understood why Jason had cut off contact with her daughter. Carly was willing to use her child as a pawn in order to remove Sam from Jason's life simply because she was jealous of any other woman he spent time with. Her daughter had acted selfishly, and Jason really couldn't be faulted for reacting. Yet, if they'd been speaking, he could have tried to intervene and smooth the situation with Sonny and Carly over.

"I'm sorry," he told her once again.

"I know," she sighed wearily. "I know you would have tried, but I don't know that even you could have prevented this."

His face fell, and she reached out, enfolding him to her. She glanced over his shoulder and closed her eyes briefly before stepping back and releasing him. "I'll see you inside," she said, then turned and left quickly as Sonny approached.

Sonny sighed sadly as he watched his mother-in-law Bobbie walk into the chapel with Luke, pointedly ignoring him. While she had supported him in wanting to take his boys home, she was definitely still hostile towards him. When Michael continued to yell at him and declare that he wanted to go back to Bobbie's house, Sonny gave in partway and let them go during the days. She gladly welcomed them back, and last night she finally broke her tentative support, speaking on behalf of Michael who wanted to stay and he let them stay the night.

He was thinking of taking the boys down to the island, just to get away from the hurt and anger of Port Charles. He needed to deal with the threat Courtney had made that morning. He would never let his sister, no matter how much she had helped in the past, take his children from him. But he needed to assure Michael that the little boy didn't need to fear him. What happened with Carly was a horrible accident, but Sonny would rather cut off his hands than ever raise them towards his children. He just needed to make Michael understand that.

First, though, he needed to try to make peace with Jason. He had hardly seen the younger man since he had returned two days ago. Jason had come and talked with Michael, and it was after that that the little boy wanted to go back to Bobbie's. Jason never revealed what he said to Michael, and Sonny was a bit fearful to ask, frightened that his friend might have told his son it was okay to stay away from him. They did talk about business and what happened down in Puerto Rico, but they were a bit stalled as Myers worked to unravel the mystery behind who owned Kilkerry Imports. Jason continued to work on that as well and so he didn't spend much time at the penthouse.

"Hey," Sonny said to the younger man standing stoically before him.

"Hey," Jason replied. His hands were in his pants pockets and he was still looking at Bobbie's retreat. "Is...is Michael coming?"

Sonny sighed and looked away. "He asked to come. I wasn't sure about it, but Bobbie suggested I let him come. To let him say good-bye to Carly. I'm still not sure...but Marco is bringing him a little later. I didn't think he needed to be here for all of the comments from everybody."

Jason just nodded, his face softening at the thought of the little boy. Sonny thought that maybe if he talked about him then Jason would continue to relax. "He's over at Bobbie's with Morgan and Leticia. He wanted to spend time with her and I...I've let him. Bobbie wanted to handle the funeral arrangements and I let her. I don't want to fight with them...like I don't want to fight with you."

"I don't want to fight either," Jason said, his voice low so they wouldn't be overheard. "But I can't forget what you did or that you didn't tell me. I deserved to know."

"Yeah," Sonny breathed out and looked down, burdened with his guilt. "We might have...Courtney came to see me this morning. She...I think she may try to take the boys."

"What?" Jason hissed, his eyebrows rising in surprise.

"She's upset about what happened to Carly and she told me I needed to get help or that maybe it would be better if the boys stayed with her."

"Courtney wouldn't do that," Jason shook his head. "I know she might be upset, but she knows how they mean to you."

Shaking his head sadly, Sonny sighed. "I wish I could agree...but the look on her face. This foundation has gone to her head, and I think she wants to save them...from me."

Looking away, Jason let out a troubled sigh and asked the expected words, "What do you want me to do, Sonny?"

"What is she doing here?"

Lucky turned and looked around, then turned back towards Emily. "Who? Did Sam just go by?"

"No," she shook her head. "Though I wouldn't put it past her to be tacky enough to come. I was actually referring to Elizabeth."

Frowning, he looked at over at his ex-girlfriend. "Why wouldn't she be here?"

"She hated Carly," Emily said bluntly, and with a little bit of bitterness. "I'll bet she only came for Jason. Well, I'm going to let her know she's not wanted."

"Emily." Lucky tried to stop her, but she ignored him and walked over to the interloper.

"I know why you're here."

Elizabeth frowned as she looked at Emily, no doubt upset that she'd been caught. "Hello, Emily," she smiled slightly.

"I know why you're here," she repeated. "You came to sink your claws into Jason. That's why Nikolas isn't here with you; kind-of hard to win back your ex if you've got the other guy you're stringing along beside you."

"Emily," Elizabeth said, lowering her voice and stepping closer. "This is not the place for this ridiculous notion of yours. I am not here to snag Jason as you seem to think."

"Then why are you here? Everyone knows you couldn't stand Carly."

"Funny, people could say the same thing about you. I'm here," Elizabeth said slowly, "because Bobbie's daughter died and Bobbie has always been kind to me."

"So you're not going to try to talk to Jason?" she snapped in challenge.

"Carly was Jason's friend. If I see him, I'll express my condolences just like I would to Sonny." Emily thought she detected a hint of smugness in the other woman's reply.

Rolling her eyes, Emily crossed her arms in front of her. "Right. Pure, sweet Elizabeth."

"I'm done here," the shorter woman shook her head. "Nothing I say will change your mind and for Bobbie's sake I am not going to get into a fight today. Excuse me."

As Elizabeth attempted to step around her Emily reached out and snagged her arm. "Not so fast."

Jason slipped back inside the church after going out for some peace and fresh air. Sonny wanted him to talk to Courtney, make sure his ex-wife didn't go after Sonny's family. The older man felt that if Jason talked to her, showed he was on Sonny's side after what happened with Carly, that she would back off. It wasn't that Jason condoned what happened, but he didn't believe Sonny deserved to have his family taken away from him. He hadn't agreed when she took the boys to Haye's Landing, he wasn't going to support her now.

As he looked around the room at the people inside, Jason saw Courtney come in and he turned away. She was with Michael and his guard right now, and Carly's funeral was not the place for the discussion he promised Sonny they'd have. Plus, he couldn't believe that she'd brought Jax with her; she knew how the Australian and Sonny did not get along. Sam had wanted to come and support Jason and Sonny, but she had agreed it would be better, less confrontational and controversial if she stayed home. Jax should have done the same.

He walked towards the side, hoping to avoid an encounter with Courtney, or anybody else. Instead, he saw his sister having an intense discussion with Elizabeth. Emily was holding onto Elizabeth's arm, who was trying to disengage it without causing a scene, yet she clearly looked unhappy. He remembered the day on the docks with Emily slapped her friend in anger over Nikolas. He suspected his sister was still upset about her estranged fiancé, as well as finding out the truth about Sam's baby. Sonny had mentioned briefly that Emily had confronted him, but Jason didn't know the full details.

Cautiously he edged closer, wanting to diffuse the situation without drawing a lot of attention to it. As he neared them he heard Emily's angry accusations and was a bit taken aback by them.

"You need to stay away," his sister hissed. "I know you're trying to snag him, and I'm telling you I won't let you."

"I've already told you, Emily, I'm not trying to steal Nikolas from you. And I'm not going to suddenly go after Jason, either."

He hadn't realized that Emily was fighting about him and he couldn't understand why they were arguing.

"He's my friend," Elizabeth continued. "And I came here today to tell him I'm sorry, just like I did for Bobbie. I'm sorry if you can't grasp the concept of friendship or refuse to believe me. But I'm getting really tired of being attacked every time I see you."

Elizabeth was becoming flushed and agitated and Jason knew he better step in before she completely lost her composure that she was fighting to maintain. "Emily," he said softly. "Elizabeth."

Both women looked up and his sister flushed guiltily. "Ja-Jason."

"That's enough, Emily. You need to back off."

She affected hurt and indignation but he knew it was really embarrassment at being caught. "Jason."

He ignored her petulant whine because he didn't want the fight he knew she was spoiling for. He wasn't going to let anyone ruin Carly's funeral. "Go inside," he dismissed her. "I'll talk to you later."

Elizabeth felt for her friend as Emily walked into the chapel. She had just been dismissed by her brother, his anger controlled yet visible. It had to hurt, and Elizabeth felt bad that it happened. That it happened in front of her was only going to add to Emily's already highly charged emotions. Turning her gaze from her disappearing friend back to Jason, she nervously tucked her hair behind her ear.

"I'm sorry about..." she said, her hand gesturing vaguely towards Emily's path of retreat. "And I'm very sorry about Carly. I know how much she meant to you."

"Yeah," he nodded slowly. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," she nodded quickly.

"What was Emily-"

"It was nothing," she shook her head. "Don't worry about it."

"I heard my name and you were upset."

"Jason," she said, stepping forward and placing her hand on his arm, "it was nothing. Emily is still just upset. Even if it was something, this isn't the time or the place. Today is about Carly and those that loved her remembering her.

"I know you had been angry with her because of," she paused, remembering that day he told her about Carly scheming with the Quartermaines about Sam's baby. Back then she believed that the baby was his, not Sonny's and he let her believe it. Now wasn't the time to think about another lie of Jason's on Sonny's behalf; besides, it really didn't matter because they weren't on the verge of a relationship like last time.

"About Sam's baby," she finally said awkwardly and Jason looked down. "But I know that she was your friend and you loved her."

His eyes were red-rimmed when he looked up and he said a bit raggedly, "Yeah."

"Then we should go in," Elizabeth said. "I'm sure Sonny, and especially Michael would like you to be with them."

Jason nodded and gave her a soft, "Thank you, Elizabeth. I appreciate...everything."

"You're welcome," she said with a comforting smile.

Then they turned and walked into the chapel. Elizabeth slipped into a pew beside Tammy and the other waitresses who came to show their sympathy for Bobbie. Jason continued towards the front where he awkwardly encountered Sonny before moving past him to sit beside Michael. Elizabeth wondered about the curious interaction, but figured each man was just coping with his grief and the loss of the woman who meant a lot to the both of them.

Chapter 24

~The Cellar~

Jason stood in the corner, a bottle of beer in his hand not because he was thirsty, but because Bobbie gave it to him. She was sure Carly would want him to have it; she'd always made sure to have his favorite brand stocked in her bar, even if he was the only one who drank it. Bobbie had looked so distraught, so insistent he take it, for Carly, that he accepted it. Yet, he couldn't drink it. Somehow it just didn't feel right.

It didn't seem possible that Carly was gone, that they'd had her funeral and she was buried in a plot not far from Lily. He kept expecting to look up and see her circulating the room, talking to people and commanding everyone's attention. She would walk up to him, hand him a fresh beer because his old one was warm and she insisted he couldn't drink a warm beer, talk to him and try to get him to enjoy himself or stay longer because she knew he'd be anxious to leave. She was always trying to make sure everyone enjoyed themselves in her club, especially him. She would always try, even though she knew Jason didn't want to be there but came for her.

He wondered what would happen to Carly's club now. Sonny had fronted the money for it, but it wasn't like he needed to get a return on his investment. Jason couldn't imagine anyone else running the place; it just wouldn't be the same. Plus, it seemed wrong to sell the place, or let someone else run the place that Carly had worked so hard to put together. She had lost one club already, he felt she would rather see the place closed then let someone else take over her dream.

He watched everyone as they somberly milled around the club, eating the food Bobbie had ordered and talking quietly. Carly's mother had handled most of the arrangements for the day; Sonny in his guilt had let her have her way, from the church and flower arrangements to the luncheon afterwards. Sonny was sitting in the corner, silently nursing a drink, his dark glare keeping most away. Michael had gone home after the service, and before the internment, so now Sonny was alone. Except for the few moments a representatives from the different organizations came to pay their respects.

Thankfully the Quartermaines, Monica most likely, had prevailed on Edward not to attend the luncheon. The old man had strode into the church with Monica, Alan and Ned behind him declaring he was there to support his great-grandson. Michael had visited him when Lila died, and he would be there for him now at his mother's funeral. Sonny had looked thunderous and stood ready to fight, but Bobbie had quelled him with a sharp look while welcoming Monica. In a move Jason was sure no one understood since they knew nothing of Sonny's guilt, he backed down and returned to his seat and never looked at Edward until the old man left.

Pure, typical Edward move, and it angered Jason. Presuming to have the right to intrude on Carly's funeral, all for Michael. Sonny was worried about what Courtney would do, but Jason knew the real threat came from Edward whom they would have to watch carefully. Courtney would go about things legally, and ultimately back down when Sonny stood his ground. Edward would resort to underhanded and illegal tricks, because he would never give up his quest to get Michael under the Quartermaine roof. Carly's death would make him ruthless.

"Jason?"

He blinked and looked down, surprised to see Elizabeth standing there. She had spoken briefly to Sonny and Bobbie once she'd arrived, but he hadn't seen her approach. Across the room he saw Emily all but abandon her conversation and glower at Elizabeth's back.

"I just wanted to say good-bye," she said. Fiddling with her purse strap she continued, "I need to get back and pick up Cameron. Gram covered for Bobbie today and Cam's with a neighbor."

Jason nodded and Elizabeth paused, then said, "I really am sorry about Carly. I know she meant a lot to you."

"Thank you," he replied, his grip tightening around his beer bottle.

She took a step back, then tucked her hair behind her ear. "I...I guess I'll see you later."

"Yeah," he said softly, but he doubted she heard it. She was already walking across the room.

Jason's eyes narrowed as he saw her suddenly pivot and plunge through a group of people. She had done so to avoid Emily who had abandoned Lucky and was on an intercept course for her. Setting his untouched drink down, he stepped forward to head off his sister from following the petite brunette.

"Jason," she smiled, trying to be disarming. "I was just going to talk to Bobbie. I haven't had a chance to yet."

"No," he shook his head. "We're going to talk. Now."

~Cemetery~

As Lorenzo stepped through the gates, he looked around, hoping that everyone had gone home. He didn't want to fight with anyone, especially today, but he wanted to come. He wanted to say good-bye to the woman who held a piece of his heart, despite all the things that had happened between them.

He could not believe Carly was dead. She had two little boys who needed her; she was young and vibrant, and too full of life to be dead. Most of all, she had not deserved to die the way she did. For Sage in her misguided attempt to protect him to kill the woman his niece viewed as a threat. Because of this tragedy he lost one person he cared deeply for, even still loved, and stood to lose another.

Because of Sage's involvement, Lorenzo had stayed away from the church and the burial earlier. If it was just Sonny attending, he wouldn't have cared. The man had hit his wife; he had no honor and certainly didn't deserve Lorenzo's consideration. But Carly's mother and children did not deserve to have her funeral turned into a battlefield. It would have hurt Mrs. Spencer to have him at the church and that was why he stayed away.

So he came after everyone was supposed to be gone, most likely to the luncheon at Carly's club. He wanted to pay his respects and say good-bye, but he didn't want an audience. Approaching the gravesite, he sat down in one of the metal folding chairs still under the canopy provided for shade from the late summer heat. The coffin had been lowered to the ground, but the dirt had not yet been placed on top.

With a labored sigh he dropped his shoulders, the flowers in his hand dipping towards the ground. "I'm sorry, Carly. I never...I never thought it would be my own family I needed to protect you from."

Lorenzo had seen that Carly's relationship with Sonny Corinthos was unhealthy. He controlled her, he belittled her, and it made Lorenzo fear that one day it would escalate to violence. Carly had always disagreed with him, even during the time they were together. At that time, though, he was simply so happy in his relationship that he hadn't pushed. When she showed up at his apartment that night, her face clearly showing a bruise from Sonny's wrath, his fears had come true.

All he'd wanted to do was help her. Protect her from enduring further pain at the hands of her husband. Yet, like most abused women, Carly wasn't willing to admit or deal with what happened to her. She refused Lorenzo's help, and he was hurt by her rejection and stubbornness, but he knew he had to respect her decision. Yet he couldn't do that with her crying on his shoulder, so he'd pushed her away that night. He simply never envisioned Sage would act this way.

Letting out another troubled sigh, he leaned back in his seat. He didn't know what to do about Sage. She was his niece, and everything inside him - everything he had learned from his father and brother - told him that he needed to protect her. He should be figuring out how to get her out of jail and off to an uncharted island, or at least to a country with no extradition treaty. Yet, he wasn't doing any of that.

Maybe it was because it was Carly who had died that was causing his loyalties to be split. He felt that he'd been too indulgent of Sage, that he hadn't imposed enough rules on her, or hadn't reacted strongly enough after she almost shot Alexis Davis. He hired Dillon Quartermaine to keep her out of trouble instead of dealing with her himself, even though he knew that most of her behavior stemmed from her want of attention from him. In retrospect he should have been more proactive, and now numerous people were paying the price.

He was worried that Sage would have an even bigger price to pay; more than the fear of the New York justice system. He was worried about her falling victim of mob justice. Sonny Corinthos was an unstable man, but Lorenzo knew he would want justice for his wife. Would it really make him pause that Sage was just a 16 year old girl? He may have let Faith Roscoe live, but the dangerous woman hadn't killed any member of Corinthos' family. Sage had shot Carly in cold blood and Lorenzo feared for her.

It didn't matter that Sonny had hit Carly, or - if rumors were true - that Morgan had been upset with her. Both men would have moved Heaven and Earth if the killer was a man. Was Sage safe because she was a girl? On the other hand, would abandoning her to the state and their so-called justice system be any better? She could face the death penalty if Lansing was ambitious. How could he save her from mob death only to let the state kill her?

He knew he wouldn't solve this dilemma today. This had kept him up every night since the police came and took his niece in for questioning before ultimately placing her under arrest hours later. Carly's grave held no answers for him, any more than it held solace or forgiveness.

Standing, he walked over to the hole in the ground and looked down at the polished wood in the bottom. "I will never forget you," he whispered as he dropped the bouquet and walked away.

~Docks~

Emily wrenched her arm out of Jason's grip, not believing her brother had actually manhandled her, and rounded on him. Elizabeth probably laid her sob story on him and he was so far under her spell he was now going to turn on his own family. She knew this would happen, and she hated Elizabeth for it.

"What?" she demanded of him, her eyes flashing. "Why did you all but push me out of The Cellar."

"Because I want to know what's going on. You've been angry all day, glaring at everyone but especially Elizabeth. I heard the two of you fighting and I want to know why. Why are you arguing about me?"

"As if you don't know," she scoffed. "As if she hasn't already told you everything."

"Tell me you version," he said, his posture softening and his voice becoming less brittle.

Emily eyed him for a moment, but decided that she had to try. If she could just make him see that Elizabeth wasn't the sweet, innocent person everyone thought she was, then she could break him free. She had to get him to understand that it was for his protection; she had to save him. Taking a deep breath, she told herself that she had to be calm so she could explain it to her brother. If she was rational, then he would see that she was only looking out for him.

"She knows that Sam's baby isn't yours," Emily began. "She saw Sonny and Sam together in the park, they were close, snuggling and Elizabeth she..."

"She what?" Jason asked.

"She thought they were getting back together and she wondered what about you and the baby. She was worried Sonny would take your baby from you. When I told her that the baby was actually Sonny's...she acted like she was concerned about you. That you would have begun to get used to the thought of raising Sam's baby and she said she knew it hurt you when you gave up Michael."

"It did," he said, swallowing thickly.

"I know," she said, her voice softening. "And that was why I knew she was going to try to use that to her advantage. She's using you as her back up, or she may have already switched you to Plan A."

"What do you mean?" he cocked his head to the side. "Backup and Plan A?"

He was getting a little annoyed, and she knew she couldn't risk that happening before she explained. "She's keeping Nikolas away from me because she wants him for herself."

Jason barely reacted, just a slight widening of his eyes, but Emily saw it and pounced on it. "She wants a father for Cameron, a rich father. Elizabeth has been poisoning Nikolas against me, keeping him away from me because she wants him."

"Elizabeth would never do that," Jason shook his head.

"No, Jason, don't defend her," Emily cried. "Don't fall for her little innocent act. Now that she knows Sam's baby is actually Sonny's, she's going to come after you. She knows that Nikolas will one day remember his love for me and that she would have to work fast to trap him. Now she doesn't have to.

"She knows how much you love children, how much it hurt you to give up Michael. She knows you're vulnerable right now because you got attached to Sam's baby. And here she is," she said, working hard to keep the sneer out of her voice. "She's got a baby, a ready-made family for the taking. Conveniently for you the father is already dead so he can't take Cameron away. The only person who can do that is Elizabeth, and you know she will. You'll do something and she'll get mad at you, and she'll take her son away as punishment."

Her brother sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. When he lowered his hand, his eyes were pools of sadness and disappointment. "Elizabeth isn't like that, Emily, and you know that. She's not trying to get Nikolas, or me, as a father for her son; she wouldn't use him or anybody that way."

"You think she's all sweet and nice, but she's not," Emily tried to make him see.

"If all she wanted was a father for her son she would have stayed with Ric, but she didn't. She's not keeping Nikolas away from you; he's staying away on his own because he doesn't like you."

Emily gasped and covered her mouth. She couldn't believe her brother had just said that. Jason looked down and sighed. "I'm sorry, Emily. I know it hurts you and it's hard to understand, or accept, but Nikolas doesn't remember who you were to him before this. All he knows is you're the woman who lied to him, and who now won't give him any space when he's asked for it."

"Jason, you know why I can't," she said, her eyes flooding with tears.

"You've explained your reasons, and I know you believe them. But you refuse to see his side of it, and that you're driving him away. Elizabeth isn't taking him away from you." He paused and then continued. "And she isn't trying to trap me, or whatever you think is going on. She told me she was sorry my friend died."

"She didn't even like Carly," Emily protested. "Why would she come to her funeral?"

"Why did you?" he shot at her. "You didn't like her. She came for Bobbie, she came for me; she didn't come to get a rich father for her son. I've never even met him.

"And while you're thinking about that," he said, his tone once again hardening, "think about this. She tried to avoid fighting with you and refused to tell me what was going on even when I asked her. Unlike you, she didn't make a scene at Carly's funeral and she expressed her sympathy for my friend's death."

Then before Emily could speak, Jason turned and angrily walked away from her. For a second time her brother had left her standing alone on the docks, and it was all Elizabeth's fault.

~Quartermaine Mansion~

Alice was nervous when the family walked in; that was the first thing Monica noticed. While Edward liked to have the maid there to welcome him home, take his coat, provide him with a drink, she often tried to avoid such servile spectacles. So for her to willingly meet him there, smiling cheerfully as she helped Edward off with his coat and had a pitcher of martinis waiting, Monica knew that something was wrong.

"Ah, Alice, thank you," Edward smiled. "How nice to see you finally taking my directions to heart. Now, all I want is to sit down and read the evening paper."

"I have it waiting for you upstairs in your sitting room." Monica noticed the way the maid stepped in front of the doors to the den and she wondered who, or what was behind those doors that Alice didn't want Edward or the rest of the family to discover.

Edward frowned, his thick eyebrows lowering and nearly eclipsing his eyes. "What's going on? Why are you blocking me from entering my own den? I want to read the paper in the den where I always do."

"I just thought after the funeral you would want to relax in private. I-"

"Maybe Alice is right," Monica said. Whatever was behind that door, Monica wanted to find out first and then she and Alan could deal with it and how to handle when Edward found out. "The funeral, your search for A.J., you've been focused on Carly and Michael to the exclusion of all else. Including your health."

"Right, Mr. Quartermaine," Alice said soothingly and placatingly. "I was just trying to look out for you the way your family would want me to, especially Mrs. Lila."

"No," a voice said from the front door. They all looked over to see A.J. standing there looking tanned and relaxed. "She was trying to keep you from discovering I was here."

"Why would you hide him from me?" Edward demanded. "I looked for him. I wanted him here. Incompetent staff."

"Yes, Alice," A.J. smiled as he wanted over to the stunned family. "Grandfather wants me here because he wants to get Michael back into the family fold. For once, we are in agreement. But I don't need his help or interference; I have a plan to get Michael back."

"A plan," Edward scoffed and waved his hand dismissively. "Now listen to me, A.J."

"No, you listen, Grandfather," he shook his head. "I will get my son back, and I do have a plan. I am in possession of something that will facilitate my move against Sonny Corinthos. And then Michael will be with me, Grandfather, not you."

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