Favor for a Favor – I'll Always Come Back
Description: Jason is alive but he needs Robin's help. His fate lies in the hands of her father's enemy. A man she thought was dead or locked up in maximum security. She had just gotten them back but the threat still lurked and she had to get rid of it. She couldn't put her family at risk. She had to end it once and for all. Will she be able to save Jason? Will she be able to bring him back? Will he be the Jason she once knew and loved? This story has a bit of the Sci-Fi feel. Suspension of belief is required in some cases.
Prologue
In the Swiss Clinic, one that had not been shut down to Robin's surprise she sat by Jason's beside. She had no idea how he was alive. She just knew that the bullet wound had healed and he had washed up somewhere near Cassadine Island. Victor had tasked her with reviving Stavros and Helena. He would allow her to see Jason in the distance. She was unable to revive Helena. She had been there for two months before Victor realized that you cannot revive the dead. She had been shot in the head. There was no coming back from that. She wasn't some mythical creature that needed a silver bullet or whatever the story had changed to. Stavros she revived and she regretted it. That man was insane and he scared her but she never showed it.
The substance that Victor had found needed to be cultivated and mined. It was a formula that was discarded by the Russian government intended to give soldiers healing powers and heal the wounded so quickly and completely it would be like it never happened. The problem was that many of the soldiers had gone crazy or developed mutations.
Five months in total in the lab and Robin had been able to find a compound that worked to regenerate cells. It wasn't the speedy solution that they were looking for but it was a work in progress and did not have the risk that the original formula had. Jason was the second person to receive the formula. He had been in a coma, liking from the shock of nearly drowning, or drowning. Robin wasn't told. All she knew is that there was little brain activity but at least there was activity and it was something to work with. He was on life support.
It was his fourteenth birthday. He wasn't sure why it was the first thing to come to mind but it did. He remembered the party, the arguing during the party. He remembered wanting to leave. His 20th birthday, Stone gave him a book. He remembered how strong Robin was and how awful things were for him. That was how it had been for he didn't know how long. He had been warping through the years and struggling to break free. It was the day of her funeral and he was too late.
The monitors went off. Jason's heart rate had increased as well as his blood pressure. Robin thought that it could be the side effects of the medication. He had these sudden jolts in activity before but this was different. She put her hand in his.
"Come on Jason, whatever it is fight through it. Open those blue eyes." She pleaded with him. She talked to him soothingly and he began to calm down. He squeezed her hand.
"Robin." He whispered. His throat was dry.
"I am here. I will get you some water." She said.
"Not thirsty." He opened his eyes. She was a sight for sore eyes. Her hair was in a messy ponytail, her face devoid of makeup and she had bags under her eyes but somehow she looked like an angel to him.
"You're alive? Am I dead?" She smiled at him.
"Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated." He stared at her as she smirked.
"And from what I am seeing so have yours. We have a lot to talk about." She said and got him the water anyway. "Slowly"
"Where am I?" She sighed.
"On the island of not." She shrugged. "We are in Switzerland." He smiled.
"Why did we leave our spouses and run off together?" He teased.
"Well, I was just about to examine you but you sound like you are doing better than I expected." She examined him anyway. "I am going to take some blood and we will run a few scans. That should tell me more. No we did not run off together. You are still very married and I am divorced. I will be right back." She walked out.
Robin was astounded by the results. She told Jason they would talk when they could really be alone. He had no idea what that meant but he played along. Two days later he was walking around and trying to figure out how to escape.
Victor walked into the room. "You are being released Mr. Morgan." Robin looked at him.
"He can go home to his family." She asked.
"Yes he can. You held up your end of the bargain." Victor said.
"And when can I leave?" She asked him.
"When you finish what you have started. I still need you my dear. I will however allow you to leave the clinic since you have proven your loyalty. You remember our deal. You know who is technically on the table. I will expose them if you do not cooperate." He explained.
"I am not leaving Robin." Jason glared at Victor.
"Yes you are Jason. You have a family. This isn't your fight okay. Just take it, trust me." Robin pleaded with him.
"You came back for me and I am not leaving you." He looked into her eyes.
"I will always come back Jason. You need to go." Jason looked at her.
"As touching as this is, if you tell anyone Dr. Scorpio's whereabouts you will put her in great harm. Secrets will be exposed and well, it will not be pretty." Victor assured them.
"I am not leaving her." Victor smiled.
"I was hoping you would prove loyal and gratuitous.j See, we need new blood. Fresh blood and Dr. Scorpio was about to be part of that." He looked at Robin.
"You have your mother's fire, your father's bravado and brains. You are going to a training facility where all the new recruits go. Your job will still be to find the right formula but this will do for now as you can tell by the remarkable results you have seen here." He looked at Jason.
"You would be good in our cleaning crew, special forces. I like it. Your transportation will be arriving shortly." Victor smiled and walked out.
"Jason are you crazy?" He looked at her.
"Not as crazy as you are if you think for one second that I am leaving you here." She sighed.
"Jason you have a son to worry about and a wife." Robin told him.
"Danny is mine?" He asked, she had been waiting to tell him when they were out of there but it seemed as though she was once again captive.
"Yes, Heather Webber switched the results." She took his hand as he smiled in reaction to the news.
"Jason so much has happened. You need to go home." He looked at her.
"Robin I have been gone nearly two years. Danny doesn't know me and you also have a daughter and look where you are?" He looked at her. He had a plan and she knew it.
"I didn't have a choice but you do." Her eyes pleaded with him. He knew that he had to go home.
Chapter One
Jason had managed to use his killer instinct to convince Victor to let him go back to Port Charles. He didn't clue Robin into that fact. He needed to see his family, to make sure that they were okay. Victor didn't trust him so he wore a wire.
Jason walked into the penthouse. Sam and Danny were on the couch with some man. Time stood still as Sam looked up at him. She froze and tears sprouted to her eyes.
"Jason." She whispered.
"I can't stay. I just needed to see you." He moved to her as she stood. He hugged her.
"I can't believe it." She looked at him. He was thinner than she remembered.
"What happened? How are you here?" He looked at her.
"I just woke up from a long nap. I came to you as soon as I could." She looked at him.
"Jason Robin is alive." He looked at her and his face didn't register surprise and he put his finger to his lips.
"She helped you?" He looked at her.
"I haven't seen Robin since the day at the hospital. I have been reading up on Port Charles." He looked at her.
"Besides I was a captive audience while I recover and they enjoy making you watch your loved ones move on. I know that Danny was sick and I hate not being here for him." He looked at Dr. Clay.
"Thank you." Silas was in shock.
"Don't mention it. I am going to leave you two alone." Silas left.
Jason bonded with his son and spent time filling Sam in on what he knew minus Robin.
"There is something I have to do. I would ask you to wait for me but I don't think it is fair." She looked at him.
"It isn't fair. Aren't you going to see Monica or Carly? What about Sonny?" Jason frowned.
"I don't have any time. Carly is marrying Franco and it is so sick that I cannot stand to look at her right now." Jason admitted. "I don't want to talk about them I want to be with you."
Victor smiled at Robin. "He is not coming back. No man would leave her. I cannot believe that mutt is a Cassadine but that is a story for another day." Robin looked at him.
"Good. He doesn't need to come back. You may as well send me to the facility without him." She said holding her head high. She wasn't biting.
"Sounds like a make out session is happening." He laughed.
"Good." He smiled at her composure. She would never let him see what she was feeling inside, alone, once again.
Jason had put Danny to bed. It amazed him how much like him the boy was. He didn't know him but he was at ease with him. He held Sam.
"So Dr. Clay, by the rock on your finger." Sam pulled away from him.
"Jason I didn't know…" He smiled.
"I am not angry or blaming you. I just needed to see you." Sam looked at him.
"I don't know what to do here Jason. With Silas it is different. I don't have to look over my shoulder or worry about Danny being endanger from his enemies. I love him. I gave up hope that we would ever see you again. He puts us first Jason and you don't. Even now you are leaving when you have only been here for a couple of hours." He stared at her. He had feelings for her but having his memories back was a struggle for him. He was mostly Jason Morgan, but Quartermaine would come through acting as a moral compass of sorts.
Jason felt that he owed it to Robin to go back to help her. His eyes filled. "I needed you to know." He pulled an envelope from his back pocket.
"These are signed divorce papers. Only Diane knows that I am alive. Please keep it quiet. Like I said, I can't stay." She looked at him.
"Why?" She sniffed.
"I can't tell you that." He stood then hugged her. "I love you Sam. I gave you those papers because I know it is a lot to take in. If you decide that you can't wait." She looked at him. "Let me have that to hold on to." He told her off her look. "If you can't wait then not being able to reach me will not hold you back." He kissed her.
"Goodbye Jason. I can't wait for you. You can't even choose Danny after all this time." She cried. "Why did you come back?"
"I needed to see my son." He walked out.
Chapter Two
Victor had chosen somewhere hot. They were on an island and she guessed that they were supposed to tap into their survival skills. There were three of them. They had an instructor that taught them martial arts, one for archery, and one for intelligence. Robin knew these things. She sat by the shore alone watching the waves crash and wondering where she was that time. She didn't understand why she needed to be a recruit.
Jason walked past Robin and into the ocean. She stood and followed him. She looked at him.
"You came back? How?" She asked.
"I wore a wire and got information for Victor while I was in Port Charles. I told you that I wasn't leaving you. You had a point. I needed to see Danny." He looked at her.
"We need to figure out how we can overthrow the king and dismantle this new organization." She said to him.
"I figured as much. What do we know?" She looked at him.
"We collect information and discuss the plan when we have built a certain level of trust." She whispered to him.
"Okay. I saw Patrick." He told her as they walked back to the shore.
"He is with Sabrina. Their baby should be due any day now." She said sadly.
"What happened to you Robin? What happened in that lab?" He asked. They had not had much of a chance to talk.
"It is not worth talking about. I survived." She shrugged. "I fought to get home to my family. I held them in my mind and in my heart so that I wouldn't give up."
He took her hand. "Were you given your meds?" He asked. "Are you healthy? It is important to me."
"Yeah, I was in a coma for part of it. I had electroshock because you know me, I hate being confined so I tried to escape multiple times. Then I was moved to Loving. Jerry was there and he needed a cure for polonium poisoning. Then off to Cassadine Island." She explained her captivity.
"And when you came home you had to vie for Patrick's love?" He asked.
"Sabrina is a lovely girl. She loves Patrick and Emma. I expected him to just drop her because of what I had been through but the reality was that I was gone for two years. Things change." She looked out at the ocean.
"They do but how are you?" She looked at him.
"I am tough like that." She smiled.
"Yes but how are you?" He looked into her eyes. "Not how you are expected to be. Not how you feel you should be. How are you Robin?" She didn't look at him. She knew that he would see straight through her.
"I made it home. That doesn't happen to everyone." She said in a distant tone.
"Do you always have to be such a fucking martyr? I know by now you know that I have all my memories and I am struggling with that. SO I remember how you martyred yourself for Stone." She glared at him then stood.
"Fuck you." She walked toward the shoreline and she followed.
"You had every right to be angry then. You had every right to be angry after. You always put the needs of others before your own including mine. Why did you go back into that lab?" She turned to face him.
"Because I had spent not hours but days developing that protocol. You didn't have days." Tears stung at the back of her eyes.
"I lived my life and it hasn't always been a good life. You were just starting your new journey. You didn't owe me that. You should not have done that. Don't you ever do it again." She crossed her arms in challenge.
"You seat up there perched on the high road. You think that you are helping but it is not worth the sacrifice of you. SO don't fucking tell me that you have been okay this whole time. Don't tell me that you did this for me, your parents or whomever. I broke your heart and so did they. You don't owe them and you do not owe me. You should be angry. You shouldn't be selling some story like you are made of Teflon because you are not." She stared at him.
"You remember everything?" She dodged the question.
"How are you?" He asked again.
"I am on survivor fucking island after being home for two months. How the hell do you think I am? I have not been truly happy in years. I thought Patrick and I were getting there after Lisa then boom, I am dead. I thought we were getting there once he chose me then boom she is pregnant and I have another calling. How the hell do you think I am? I want to give up. I want to ask the gods why I am alive! I want to scream and I want to kick, bite, toss, anything to make sense out of my life. That is how the fuck I am." She exploded.
"Does that help? Do you have anymore?" He looked at her then took her hands in his. "No matter what you think, you are not Teflon and you are not infallible. YOU were hurt. You were taken away from your family and they weren't there when you returned. I know how that feels. You don't have to make it okay for everyone else. You have a right to be angry." She walked away but he pulled her back. He hugged her and she cried.
"I can't give in Jason. If I do then they win and I have to make it out of this. I cannot allow myself to give in because then I will give up. Do you know how many times I wondered if I was better off dead?" She looked at him. "Then to come have to only have the thought validated." She covered her mouth to stifle a sob.
"I am sorry. You must know what it is like. I didn't even ask what happened." She looked at him.
"I am not the person I was when I was kicked into that harbor. I realize that. I love Sam but she is happy. She loves that doctor and who am I to try to reclaim a life that was taken away from me. I was asleep for most of it. I wasn't tortured. So if you want to draw parallels. I got the better end of the ordeal." He tried to rationalize.
"Giving up is easy Robin but you are more complicated than that. You don't do easy. You will survive this." She wiped her face.
"Still it must be hard reconciling Quartermaine with Morgan." She deflected.
"Yeah but we aren't talking about me. That is a story for another day." He smiled. "Right now I have an in. So what does this training look like?" He asked as he held her hand and they walked back to the camp.
Chapter 3
Victor showed up for the final day at the camp. He looked at the recruits. There were four in total. He brought in two more.
"Welcome to the hunger games." He laughed.
"Whomever survives the night gets the first case. Dr. Scorpio you are on your own. There will be no partnerships in this challenge. Pick your weapon." He smiled as he circled the recruits. Jason looked at Robin. They both knew the direction they would go. He chose the gun and she chose the machete. He was going to switch with her but Victor stop her.
"That is against the rules." He smiled.
"On to the rules. You each go your own separate ways. Then you begin the hunt the person on your card. The rule is that those without a card are the hunted. You get a head start. Those who remain will come back here and will be taken to be cleaned up and join me for dinner." Victor walked away.
Robin and Jason ran in opposite directions after taking note of who had cards and who did not.
Robin covered herself in mud and sand then circled back to head North. She had used the machete to hack off a few inches of hair to blend in. She covered the machete so that it would not create a glare from the moonlight. She traveled as far north as she could and brushed off the tracks along the way. She climb part of a tree, she wrapped her legs around the tree and leaned back to brush off the tracks. She climbed up into the palms and blended in.
Jason was amazed by how easy it was to shoot someone. It was like it was ingrained in his genetic code. He took out the first guy and kept going north looking for Robin. Along the way he found number 8 bleeding to death. He stopped to help when he saw that he didn't have a card. He heard someone come up behind him. Then he heard them drop. He turned and a machete sticking out from his neck as the blood gushed. He looked for Robin then spotted her climbing out of the tree. He fired off a shot and the other man dropped. She ran to him. He fished the machete out of the man lying on the ground spurting blood. He tried to shield Robin but she helped up the bearded man.
"Leave me Robin." The man coughed. "Tell them I drowned." He stood then walked away. Robin recognized that voice.
"Come on we don't have time. We need to go." Jason pulled her along.
Jason and Robin returned to the camp site. Victor's men waited and took them to the main house. Victor waited.
"That was faster than I thought." He smiled. "You look rather filthy darling." He looked at Robin.
"You may have a bath upstairs." She went upstairs and Jason followed. He showered in another bathroom.
Jason and Robin joined Victor in the living room. There was a spread of a variety of food. Robin drank a bottle of water as did Jason. She refused to eat the food.
"I need you, did you think that I would allow anything to happen to you?" He asked. "Poison? Not really my thing. I know that my family has a history for being criminally insane but I am not insane." Robin looked at him. She humored him.
"No one for conversation." He smiled. "Your first assignment is in Ireland. The clinic in Switzerland has been exposed. We must set up a new clinic. It is your first assignment. Mr. Morgan you will be in charge of handling security and using your muscle to get cooperation. We will also be needing cleaning services after Mr. Eleven gets rid of certain obstacles. There is a cottage prepared for you where you will be reunited with an old friend. In the meantime I am sure that you will find the accommodations here suitable for a good night's rest. Now don't be rude enjoy the feast that the chef has prepared." Robin looked at him.
"You have a few bites and I will consider it but don't choke or anything." Victor laughed.
"You are so much like your mother." He ate a few bites. "Delicious." He smiled and the rest of the group followed suit.
Robin and Jason shared a room. Jason looked at her. "Are you okay?" She sighed.
"I just killed a man."
"You saved my life. You didn't kill him. You defended me and yourself." He hugged her. "We are going to get you home." She shrugged. She had a feeling this was her life.
Chapter 4
Sam had gone to see Patrick. She had the divorce papers with her. She was conflicted about her choice. He invited her in.
"Hey, it is good to see you." She looked at him.
"I am not sure you will think that once you hear what I have to say." She sat down and he sat next to her wondering what she could possibly have to say.
"Did you regret choosing Robin?" He looked at her wondering where the question came from.
"I loved her. I thought she was the love of my life. No, I don't regret it. She threw us away. All for her work." He said bitterly.
"Jason is alive but you cannot say anything to anyone. I just find it odd. Robin goes off to do her work. Jason comes back but he cannot stay. He cannot tell me how he is here and talking to me. He wanted me to wait for him but I can't. Whatever, it is he is putting it not only before me but before Danny." She showed him the divorce papers.
"These are drawn up as if he were a missing person and you want to divorce him legally instead of waiting for him to come home." She nodded.
"That is what Diane said." She sighed.
"He didn't give you any clues." She shook her head. "Robin would never allow you to go through what I went through." Patrick reasoned. Sam was surprised to see him defend her.
"What if she didn't have a choice? You never found it odd that she would leave after fighting for two years to get back to you and Emma?" He ran his hand through his hair.
"I did. I thought it was Obrecht being COS, and everything just came down on her at once. I told her that I would quit. I begged her to stay. We had one last night together and when I woke up she was gone leaving me with a fucking letter." Patrick said.
"I am not trying to upset you it is just that this all seems a bit odd doesn't it?" Sam said.
"If she left us to help him then I am glad she is gone. What about you and Silas? You are getting married. How does this effect that?" He asked.
"It doesn't and I told him that. It is different for me. Jason's life, well, I have changed and it is not a life that I want to go back to. I love Silas. He puts me first and he is great with Danny. We have had some obstacles but this is my life now. He made me a better woman. I am no longer ride or die Sam." Patrick looked at her. She was different. She actually wore colors, no longer looking over her shoulder.
"Then I am happy for you." He smiled.
In Ireland Jason and Robin rang the doorbell to the cottage. They had been given new identities. She was Robin Reilly and he was Jason Moore which was funny since it was his mother's name. Lucky answered the door.
"Come in." He stepped aside to allow them in. He closed the door. "Everything outside is monitored. I am not at the level of trust to not be followed. I am however off of internal surveillance which works for us." Lucky smiled then hugged Robin.
"This is a surprise. I had heard that you were alive however seeing it is another thing." Jason looked at him. "Nice haircut." She had gone for a nice medium length bob to recover the hack job that she did with a machete.
"Yeah, I started it with a machete." She sat down her bags.
"Come on I will show you around then we can have a drink." He gave them the tour.
Jason and Robin sat on the couch as Lucky poured the drinks. "What not happy to see me Lucky?" Jason teased.
"I am happy to see familiar faces." Robin looked at him.
"So you have been working for Victor all this time?" Robin asked.
"I have been under his control all this time. I was doing a job in San Fran when I ran into Lainey who helped me reach a break through. She has been by my side since then but I did not bring her here. He doesn't know that the spell is broken nor does he know the information that I have collected. Why are you here?" Lucky asked Robin.
"I came for Jason and to protect my parents. Faison is on ice. I refused to bring him back but Victor is using him as leverage. They will lose everything if the truth comes out. They were just trying to protect me. He was supposed to let me go once I brought Stavros back but surprise." She raised her arms.
"He lied. So now here we are." She looked at Lucky.
"Victor essentially brought his way into the organization. Before he was appointed head the leader of the WSB was taken out. Victor has taken them into an entirely different direction. He is reorganizing the DVX under the name of WSB. It is quite brilliant when you think about it. He gets to take Cassadine Industries into markets closed to them by manipulating world leaders. He is essentially a terrorist himself and he sells to the highest bidder, WSB protection. He has to be stopped." Lucky explained.
"How do we take them down?" Robin asked.
"I am not a hacker for a reason." Lucky smiled. "I have been sharing information with Anna for the past month now. The originals are all undercover and all working against the head. It is like a pretty game of chess." Robin let out a breath.
"Original WSB?" Robin asked.
"That is my name for them. Or KFC, so we have about ten of us actually working against the organization. You know five of them. I don't need to name them. You need to keep working on the formula because that key piece is evidence." Lucky continued.
"How?" Robin asked. "A weapon?" Lucky nodded.
"X4451 is a chemical agent to be used in chemical warfare. It can take hours, two days at the most to kill the person coming in contact. Your formula will prevent certain people from dying. However, because of the regenerative properties he will have you extract from it a counteragent. It is only just beginning." Robin put her head in her hands.
"This is one of those times where you wish you weren't so brilliant?" She shook her head and Jason rubbed her back.
"He has to die. They all have to die. Lucky." She looked at him. "We will never be free until they are dead." He smirked.
"I couldn't agree more. Welcome to the other side Robin. Our parent's don't need to know." The planning was set into motion.
Chapter 5
Jason knocked on Robin's door. He walked in then joined her on the bed. She looked at him reading his mind. He wanted her out but she was a key part of the plan.
"I am not backing out now." She told him.
"I know but you are not a killer. You let me get my hands dirty so you won't have to." He argued but she shook her head.
"I don't need a gun to get my hands dirty Jason. My hands are already filthy." She hugged her knees to her chest. "How are you handling your memories?"
"I feel like a failure. I am not a doctor. I can shoot someone without blinking. I have nightmares about all of the people I have killed in my lifetime. I wonder if they had families. I wrote a list and thought of confessing. Maybe my karma will come in another way. I lost my son. I may lose my other son." She put her hand on his knee.
"Being part of this organization makes me wonder if you are any different. You did what you had to, in order to protect the family and the business. In that world, you live by the gun and you die by the gun. I don't know. Think of saving the world as penance." He shook his head.
"Still, these visions haunt me and I don't know who I am anymore." She looked at him.
"So let's figure it out." She said. He gave her a blank look.
"Chocolate or vanilla?" She asked.
"Chocolate." She smiled.
"Paris or Sweden?" He smiled.
"Paris." She nodded. "I lost my virginity there."
"Beach or cabin?" He frowned.
"Can't choose. I love to ski and I love the beach." She smiled then took his hand.
"Close your eyes." He did.
"I think I can imagine things now." He admitted.
"Good. Bike or car?" He grinned.
"Motorcycle and a long stretch of road. No helmet. I want to feel the wind in my face." She laughed.
"What do you want to do for money?" He opened his eyes then raised one. She blushed.
"Uh… I don't know. I can't imagine anyone letting me operate. Maybe I will take over ELQ from Tracy. That would be fun. Or maybe something like this. I don't know." She nodded thinking that they were making progress.
"Beer or wine?" He closed his eyes.
"Beer and tequila. I think I am more Morgan it is just Quartermaine's conscience and some of his aspirations coming into play. I have been Morgan for nearly 20 years." He explained.
"This is fun though." She smiled at him. "What makes you happy?" He closed his eyes.
"Taking you to bed." He looked at her and she was at a loss for words. "You asked. It is the last time I remember being truly happy. I have been asking myself why that is. I have been married twice but our time before the Carly came back was the happiest time of my life. I wasn't in too deep. Deep enough but everything seemed so simple." She looked at him.
"Life isn't simple Jason." He pulled her to him into a warm embrace. She tensed at first but quickly relaxed.
"Look at where we are Robin. I know that life isn't simple. Besides." He laid back with her in his arms.
"It was worth putting out there to see you blush all over yourself." She bowed him. "Ouch", he deadpanned.
"You are the only person that I can trust right now. We know Lucky but right now he has more information than we have." She looked at him.
"He has shared that information though. I trust him." He sighed.
"He has been under Victor's control. I am not there yet. You should get some rest. You have a big day tomorrow." He closed his eyes and she followed suit. It was odd being in his arms but it felt like home and she needed that, they both did.