Mac Scorpio listened to his footsteps thump against the hard wooden planks, the only sound save for the relentless slapping of water against wood. He didn't make a habit of hanging out down on the docks, knowing that Sonny's corporation had a strong hold on the whole area. In the last ten years, the area had altered into something that he almost didn't recognize. It was now riddled with shoot outs and gang wars, the safety of this sleepy town shattered forever.
Maybe that's why his feet had led him down here. He alone was responsible for the decade long crime wave that spread throughout Port Charles. Being the commissioner of police, he was powerless to stop it, failing every single resident of this once peaceful little town. He had failed as a commissioner, much as he had failed as a father.
The danger of the area didn't scare him, not tonight. The darkness melded with his mood, the danger and fear a constant reflection of what his life had become.
He froze his repetitive moment when he recognized the familiar clicking sound approach him from behind, a hesitant leather on wood. He turned around to face whomever had intruded upon his privacy, only to come face to face with the one person he wanted nothing to do with tonight.
His daughter, or at least what was left of her, stood in front of him. She wore a tight tank top and short skirt, despite the frigid winter night. Remembering the three layers of woolen socks he had donned that morning, he realized just how much Maxie had changed. Perhaps Georgie had been right, and he had simply been too blind to see what she had become.
"Hi, daddy." She grinned at him sweetly while attempting to surreptitiously pull the skirt lower. It refused to stretch, remaining plastered to her upper thigh.
He cringed at the name, knowing it was only used when she wanted him to do something for her. It had been years since the term had been used in affection instead of manipulation.
"So it's daddy now, is it?" he answered her bitterly, not returning her cheerful grin.
"What's your problem?" she asked, the smile vanishing from her face.
He sighed, rubbing a hand over his face, "We need to talk Maxie. And no, it can't wait."
She had opened her mouth to protest, but now it remained closed. She sat on the hard wooden bench behind them, and Mac had to wonder if it was anything more than curiosity that made her stay.
"Please. Please tell me what everyone's saying isn't true." His mind flashed to the rumors that had been circulating around the PD for the last few days, squeezing his eyes shut while waiting for her answer.
"Why are you so willing to believe the worst about me? Why is everybody so quick to forgive Lucky and admit that he's changed, but I get stuck with the reputation of a monster?"
"This isn't about anybody else. I'm asking you, Maxie. Did you or did you not fake your pregnancy?"
"Why can't you just be on my side?"
"I'm trying to be. But first I need an answer."
She hesitated, "Well, yeah. So I lied. It's not like anybody died…"
Mac stood up, not able to face her any longer.
"That's the problem, Maxie! You made everybody believe that your child DID die! Including me…"
"Mac, I had to do something. Otherwise he would have just gone running back to Elizabeth, like he always does. It's pathetic."
And that's when he realized that Georgie had spoken the truth. Every horrible fact that had come out of her mouth a few hours ago were more than just strange delusions. He now knew that his daughter had gotten one of his officers hooked on drugs. Had seduced him with a combination of her body and those tempting white pills. Had actually faked a pregnancy and subsequent miscarriage in an attempt to gain his attention. Mac thought he might be physically sick.
"Your Aunt Bobbie gave you a second chance at life all those years ago. And this is how you choose to repay her? By shattering her nephew's life?"
"Don't bring BJ into this," she mumbled, her voice less sure than it had been, "I knew you'd take Lucky's side. Everybody else has. And why would you possibly take your daughter's side on this? You never have before."
Mac's head was flooded with images, the little girl that had grown up before his very eyes. He remembered how fragile she had been in the hospital after she had overdosed on drugs. After the hard road they had taken her on, how could she possibly want to inflict the same pain on another human being?
"I'm so disappointed in you. I know things haven't been easy for you, Maxie, but I never would have thought you could possibly be capable of such horrible things."
He moved away from her, unable to even look at her, "Maybe I failed you even worse than I thought. And for that, you'll never know how sorry I am."
He chanced one last look at her before shaking his head and walking away. With Frisco and Felicia absent for most of the girl's lives, Mac had been the only parent they had known. And as it turned out, they probably would have been better off with anybody but him. He brought his fingers through his hair in frustration before heading for home.
Maxie clasped her hands together as she watched him walk away. She could have imagined it, but she was almost positive she had seen tears running down Mac's cheeks in that one silent moment. Tears that she had caused.
There seemed to be a lot of those these days. She tried to remember the last time she had seen Mac Scorpio cry, but the memory evaded her. It didn't exist.
She had scattered memories of her weeks in the hospital, foggy with drugs and time. She could recall the distant voices of her mother, her father, her friends. But Mac had always come to her side, stoic and strong and brave. His eyes were red and rimmed with the tears he had shed, but he had never once allowed himself to break down in front of her. Not ever.
Until tonight.
Mac had never been anything but kind to her. He had allowed her to have a normal and happy childhood. She had never felt the void that her father had left in her life because Mac wouldn't allow it. He had loved her completely, and she didn't deserve it.
And now, the last person that she had in her life was gone. She was entirely and utterly alone.
She let her head fall into her hands, the tears coming at a furious rate. She had hurt so many people. She had made more mistakes in the last year than she could even count. And she had betrayed the trust of the only person who meant anything to her.
And despite how much she wanted to, she had no way to take it all back.