The Past Catches Up OLTLFF
Matthew breaks up with Michelle because of her lies and she retaliates by kidnapping Drew, which brings an old face back to Llanview and forces everyone to work together to find Drew and Michelle. OLTLcharacters/Pairings: Matthew/Destiny/Jeffrey, Dani/Arturo, Natalie/John/Cutter, Bo/Nora, and Michelle, Nate, Alison
Matthew Buchannan just broke up with Michelle McCall hours ago. It was hard for him to do since they became very close and attached. The sex was okay and she was good company, but he couldn't take the lies anymore. He had to give her up. He sent her packing back to Canada or where ever the hell she is from. It's night. He's lonely and he pours himself a glass of wine.
Destiny bursts into Matthew's apartment, hysterical and crying.
"Des, what the hell are you-"
"Your psycho girlfriend, she kidnapped Drew. She took him!" Destiny falls into Matthew's arms. He hasn't yet wrapped his head around what she just told him. He looks confused and pulls away to look into her crying face.
"What? Destiny, what happened?"
"She broke in and she took Drew!"
"Michelle would never do that. Are you sure it was her?"
"Matthew, I saw her face. She took my baby. Are you going to help me or not."
Matthew starts to panic. "We should call the police."
"I already called them. This is your fault Matthew. Everyone could see that she was shady, except you."
"Then, why'd you come here, huh, if everything is my fault?"
"Because your Drew's father." Destiny starts making calls on her cell phone.
"Who are you calling?"
"Nora and Bo," she says, being short with him. "Shaun's going to meet me, at their house."
Destiny gets in the car with Matthew and they drive to Bo and Nora's house. It is a tense and uncomfortable ride for both of them. Shaun is already there and he hugs Destiny after Bo and Nora, upon her arrival. There is knocking at the door and it's Danielle with her new, much older boyfriend Arturo. Matthew shoots him a nasty look. Arturo ignores him and comforts Destiny with Danielle. After Destiny tells everyone what happened, everyone seems to shoot angry glares Matthew's way.
The commissioner calls in his assistant and niece Natalie Buchannan who has some startling news.
"I did some looking into her background, like you asked," Natalie tells Bo. "Michelle wasn't new to Llanview. She was born here. Her real name is Michelle Lawrence. Bo, she's Mitch Lawrence's daughter and follower. She was sent back here to screw with us through Matthew. But, I guess she started to have real feelings for him and went berserk when he dumped her. I bet Alison Perkins is behind this."
"I don't believe this," Bo says, shocked.
"I know. It's shocking."
"She's a Lawrence, which means she is going to be hard to catch. We need John McBain," says Bo. Natalie bucks her eyes, her heart starts pounding out of control.
"But, John moved to Port Charles."
"I don't care. Get him here. I want him to help us find my grandson," Bo orders. "And let's keep the whole Lawrence thing between us, for now."
Natalie nods in agreement.
"Oh, and Natalie?" Bo asks as she's about to leave. She turns around to see what he wants. "Good work."
Natalie smiles in response and leaves to go make a phone call in private.
Matthew can't believe what is happening. It's one fucked up situation after another, concerning his life. He goes into the kitchen for a glass of water. Destiny follows him.
"What- Are you here to yell at me, some more?" he asks, rhetorical.
"I didn't mean to blame you. This is purely Michelle's fault, not yours. I'm sorry, Matthew."
Matthew stares at her. He can't believe she is apologizing. For a moment, he thinks about apologizing for all the crappy and hurtful things he's said to her, but he doesn't have the courage.
"Michelle's not my girlfriend," he says.
"What?" Destiny is confused.
"We broke up, earlier today."
"Why?" she asks. "Wait. I don't care why. I just hope that Bo can find my baby." Destiny retreats to the couch in the living room where Shaun, Danielle and Arturo are sitting. Matthew can't stand Destiny being this mad with him, so he reaches into the alcohol cabinet and pulls out a bottle of Rose. He is blocked by Nora who takes the bottle away from him.
"What do you think you're doing, Matthew? Is this how Bo and I taught you how to resolve your problems?" she says, sternly.
"Everyone is on my case," he snaps.
"And for good reason," Nora replies. "Your son is missing and you want to get drunk?" Nora stops and collects herself quickly, afraid to say something that might push Matthew even further away. "Bo wants to ask you some questions about Michelle."
"Why would I know anything? I don't have anything to do with her kidnapping Drew."
"No one is saying that you do. He just wants some information on her whereabouts, hangouts. Where would she take the baby?"
"I don't know. Michelle is one big mystery, to me. Our whole relationship was nothing but lies."
"Matthew, please."
"I have no idea where she would take Drew. I can't help," he says.
Dani goes to the door and lets in Clint Buchannan, who immediately jumps down Matthew's throat.
"You will get that freak on the phone and demand she bring back my grandnephew," Clint says, angrily pointing his finger in Matthew's face. Nora gets in front of Matthew protectively. She has never seen Clint this angry before, in her whole life. Clint shoves Nora out of his way and reaches for Matthew and yanks him up by the collar. "Do you hear me, Matthew?" Matthew can't breathe. His mother notices his face changing color.
"Oh my God. He's choking him!" Nora screams. Bo struggles, trying to pull Clint off Matthew and so Arturo and Shaun step in to help, finally yanking them apart. Matthew falls into the chair, on top of Nora. And Clint lands on Arturo. They almost squash Dani, who moves quickly out of the way. Bo grabs up his brother and pushes him down in a chair. Everyone is upset and up-in-arms.
"Are you drunk, Clint?' Bo asks.
"No," Clint says, staring Bo between his eyes.
"You just attacked your nephew, my son. Give me one good reason why I shouldn't arrest you right now and take you down to the station," Bo says.
"I've got one." Destiny stands up, tears in her eyes. "How about we focus on finding Drew, instead?"
"Destiny is right," Nora says. "This is ridiculous." She glares over at Clint.
"You need to leave," says Bo.
"I'm not going anywhere until I see my grandnephew is back and safe," Clint says, standing his ground.
"Fine," Bo says. "But, if you lay one more hand on Matthew-"
"Matthew, I'm sorry," Clint says, half- heartedly to Matthew. He looks at Bo. "Happy?" Bo shakes his head at him, in disgust.
Natalie is in her car, staring at John McBain's photo next to his number on her phone. She hesitates to call him, thinking about the past… and her son, Liam. She takes a deep breath and just as she is about to call, her phone vibrates in her hands. It's Cutter calling. Natalie stares at the phone in disbelief. She answers it, knowing good and well that she shouldn't.
"What?" she says, shortly.
"Don't I get a hello?"
"You don't deserve a hello," she says. "Why are you calling me? We're through."
"I want to talk to you about Niki."
Natalie laughs. "That is the last person I want to talk about right now."
"Natalie, hear me out. Niki and I were over a long time ago, before you and I started seeing each other. What we have now is 100% completely professional."
"That's exactly what I expected you to say. Rama was right about you."
"Niki was just trying to break us up and Rama doesn't know what she's talking about," Cutter says. "They're both jealous. Believe me. Natalie, come over. I need you."
It is a long moment before she speaks, again. Thinking about Cutter's piercing blue eyes, his hot body and the last time they rolled around in the sheets, she can't break the tempting thoughts. "I have something I need to take care of first," she says, struggling to keep her voice even.
"So, you're coming?" he asks, victoriously.
"I'll be over, later." She hangs up the phone. Next, she closes her eyes, not wanting to see that she's allowing this guy to jerk her around- this guy who took advantage of her twin sister when she wasn't well. She forces herself to believe that he is a good guy, even if deep down she doesn't believe it. She gets back to John McBain's number and proceeds to make that call as she pushes the past out of her mind.
Meanwhile, Matthew's phone starts buzzing. He separates himself from the group and goes into the kitchen to answer his phone in private. He sees it's Michelle calling. He immediately answers.
"Hello, Matthew," she starts. "Breaking up with me was a bad idea. How is everyone holding up?"
"If you hurt my son, I swear-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Whatever, Matthew. You care so much about Drew all of a sudden."
"I have always cared about my son," he corrects her, adamantly. "Bring him home, Michelle."
She laughs and taunts him. "Fat chance."
"How much do you want?"
She is offended. "This isn't about money. I love you."
"You can't love me. We weren't even together long enough for you to use that word. And you've never said that until now, so what do you want, Michelle!"
She hesitates and he can hear her erratic breathing. "I want you."
"You're crazy."
"Drew is never coming home. He's my son, now. This is your do-over, Matthew. We can be a family together- you, me and Drew. And then we can have our own babies." Matthew is over-whelmed and stunned.
"Why are you doing this to us? If you want my love, kidnapping my son is not the way to get it. You're going to get caught. That is a promise. And we will never be a family. I want nothing to do with you."
"Goodbye, Matthew."
"No, wait!"
"Oh, you want to speak to Drew? Say bye bye to Daddy, Drew." Matthew can hear Drew suddenly crying in the background. A lump forms in his throat and he is horrified. Michelle hangs up on him. Matthew finds himself wiping tears from his eyes.
Nora comes up behind him.
"Matthew, who were you talking to?" He turns to her and she sees his wet face. Quickly, she grabs him close and holds him. "Matthew, who was that?"
"The kidnapper." He looks up. "It was Michelle."
"Bo," Nora calls him into the kitchen.
"Get her back on the phone," Bo orders.
"What if she doesn't answer?" Matthew asks.
"She will," Bo says. "When she does, keep her on, for as long as possible. We'll trace the call."
An hour later, everyone is at the LPD, Llanview Police Department.
"She's not answering," Matthew says impatiently, after the fifth attempt to get Michelle on the phone.
"She's going to hurt him," Destiny cries.
"She won't," Matthew insists.
"What if she already has," Destiny says.
"We have to think positive," Dani says, rubbing her back. "We can't let ourselves get worked up. That won't help us." Destiny leans on Dani's shoulder for comfort, and the two girls retreat to the chairs.
Natalie enters Bo's office.
"Did you call McBain?" Bo asks.
"Yes."
"Is he coming?"
She hesitates for a moment. "He's on his way."
"Natalie, if seeing John again is going to be too hard for you-"
"I'm here for Drew," Natalie says, cutting him off. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Okay," Bo says. "Natalie, I know we don't say this often. But, I'm proud of you."
Natalie pauses, trying to not get choked up. "Thanks, Uncle Bo. I try very hard."
"It shows."
Natalie turns away from Bo for a second. A tear slips down her cheek and she wipes it away with her finger.
She and Bo start digging up old articles on Mitch Lawrence to look for clues as to where Michelle might be heading.
Matthew walks over to Destiny and pulls her up into his arms. "It's going to be okay. We're going to get him back," he says, cupping her face, looking into her big brown eyes. She nods, then falls against his chest.
Then, Jeffrey King bursts threw the doors. He takes off his blazer and tosses it across a chair.
"Nora called me and told me what's going on," he says. Destiny breaks from Matthew and runs into his arms. "She said you needed me."
"I do," Destiny says, holding onto Jeffrey. Matthew shakes his head, infuriated.
Arturo pulls Dani to the entrance.
"What is it?" she asks, concerned.
"I have to go somewhere. I can't stay," he says.
"Well, where are you going?"
Arturo pauses. "I can't tell you. It's private business."
"You can tell me."
"I'd rather not."
Dani stares at him, confused. "Secrets."
"Don't worry about it," he says. "Do you want me to drop you off at your mother's or do you want to stay here with your friends."
"I want to stay with you."
"Daniella…"
"Don't call me that. My mother only calls me that. My name is Dani."
"I am sorry. I didn't mean to upset you."
"Just go." She pushes him away.
Arturo takes one last, long look at her, before disappearing into the night.
"Something's weird about that guy," Matthew says, standing next to her.
"Mind your own business, Matthew," Dani says.
"You are my business. You're my friend and I care about you."
"We warned you about her," Dani says, suddenly. "But, you didn't want to listen."
"Will you stop rubbing that in my face?"
"I'm only doing it because I care about you," she says, sarcastically.
"You miss having a father. That's the only reason you're even with this guy."
Dani's jaw drops. "You have a lot of nerve, Buchannan."
"Anyone can see this is a cry for help. You need therapy, not a sugar daddy. He can't help you with your daddy issues." Dani rakes her hand across Matthew's face, slapping the taste out of his mouth. He touches his throbbing cheek and looks at Dani, shocked. "You hit me."
"You don't know when to shut up," Dani says, defensively. She ducks outside as it's starting to rain.
"Where are you going?" he yells.
"To find Arturo," she shouts. She vanishes and Matthew contemplates going after her. Then he turns and looks at Destiny wrapped up in Jeffrey's arms.
Dani eventually flags down a cab and it takes her to Arturo's apartment. She lets herself in and takes off her shoes. She sits down on the edge of his King sized bed, and stares at his laptop on the dresser across the room. "You have secrets," she says out loud. Then, she goes and opens up the laptop. "Damn it," she gripes, as the screen asks for a password.