You Found Me
Chapter One
Adriana Brown stood looking out over the Elm Street Pier. Port Charles wasn't that bad of a town. It was actually quite nice, especially in the winter. She hadn't actually seen any snow fall while she was here, but a nice layer of it blanketed the town right now. She had never been to Port Charles before, and yet, she didn't want to leave.
This was actually her first time in America. She had grown up in London, a place that she loved very much. Her father was a salesman for a computer software company called Chrome Virus Protection. He traveled all over the world, selling the product. Adriana and her mother got to travel with him, and Adriana loved it. She had been to so many places: France, Greece, Spain, Russia—all over Europe, and even once to Australia. But she had never been to America before, and she found it quite fascinating.
They were in Port Charles to sell the software to the police department, who were in need of a stronger virus protection after many of their electronically-stored criminal profiles had been changed or gone missing. According to Adriana's father, Port Charles was one of the most heavily crime-ridden cities in New York; it was known mostly for its never-ending supply of mobsters. Adriana found this surprising; in her entire week here, she hadn't heard of one single crime being committed. But, a week wasn't a sufficient amount of time to determine anything like that.
Right now, she liked Port Charles. The people were friendly, for the most part. She and her family were staying at the Metro-Court Hotel. The staff was nice and accommodating. Even the owners made sure that the Brown's stay was as comfortable as it could possibly be.
Adriana had just eaten lunch with her parents at a place called Kelly's Diner, which had a really nice owner. Mike, was his name. And he made an amazing bowl of chili.
Adriana's parents were back at the hotel, resting before they went out to dinner tonight. Then, it was back to England in the morning. Adriana didn't want to waste time at the hotel, when she could be exploring a place that she had never been to before, and might never be in again. She had always been curious, even as a child. At sixteen, she might be starting to outgrow it, but it was in her nature. She liked seeing new things.
One new thing that she noticed was an immense building across the water. It was far, but very beautiful. It looked like a castle. She didn't know what a castle was doing near a town like Port Charles, but she wouldn't let that bother her. If anything, it was just another question that she'd try to have answered.
"Enjoying the view?" asked a voice, and Adriana jumped. She had been standing here in the silence for so long, she hadn't expected anyone to show up. She turned around to see a woman in her early thirties standing behind her. She had long, dark brown (almost black) hair, and was wearing black jeans, a black leather jacket, and red high heels.
"Sorry," said the woman. She made her way down the steps, carrying a pastry box in her hands. "I didn't mean to scare you."
"It's okay," Adriana assured. "I've just been standing here in the quiet for a long time. I wasn't expecting anyone to come by."
The woman smiled. "Yeah, I get lost in thought out here, too. Where're you from, England?"
"London, actually," she said.
"I've never been to London," mused the woman as she also looked out over the water. "Always wanted to go, but never got the chance."
"It's a beautiful place," said Adriana. "I can't imagine anyone not liking it."
"So, what're you doing here in Port Charles?" asked the woman. "It's not exactly the world's finest vacation spot."
Adriana laughed. "My dad's here on business."
"Aren't you supposed to be in school?"
"I'm home-schooled," explained Adriana. "I travel with my parents all over the world."
"That's cool!" said the woman. "I wish my childhood had been like that." Adriana noticed as a faraway look appeared in the woman's eye, but she shook it off quickly. She shifted the weight of the pastry to box to her left arm, and held out her right hand. "I'm Claudia, by the way. Claudia Corinthos."
"Adriana Brown," she said, sticking out her right hand and shaking Claudia's. Her shake was strong and powerful, and, for some reason, Adriana couldn't help but like it.
Adriana noticed as Claudia's eyes seemed to perk up, like she had recognized Adriana's name, but maybe she was just seeing things.
"So, enjoying Port Charles so far?" asked Claudia.
"Yeah, I think so," said Adriana. "People here are pretty nice."
"Where're you staying?"
"The Metro-Court."
"Ah, the Metro-Court. Nice hotel. The owners don't like me much, but other than that I don't mind going there."
Adriana decided not to ask. She barely knew this person. "So, have you lived in Port Charles your whole life?" she asked, not really knowing why.
"Almost," answered Claudia. "I lived in Italy for awhile."
Adriana was jealous. "I've never been to Italy," she said. "I've always wanted to go. My dad's gone there a couple times, but I've never been allowed to go."
"Why not?"
"I'm not quite sure," said Adriana. This was true. Her father had never explained to her why she hadn't been allowed to go to Italy those couple of times that he went. Adriana had never pressed it; it probably wasn't anything important. "Maybe he's afraid of the mafia or something," she laughed.
Claudia laughed along with her, but it was only half-hearted. "I wouldn't joke about that," she said.
Once again, Adriana decided not to press it. She looked back out over the water to the castle that she had seen before. Maybe Claudia could answer one of the many questions that she had. "What's that castle over there?" she asked, pointing.
Claudia looked out over the water. "Oh, that's Wyndemere, on Spoon Island. A Greek prince lives there."
Adriana couldn't believe it. A prince, in Port Charles. "Seriously?"
"That's what I said when I found out," said Claudia. "His name's Nikolas Cassadine. Nice guy, super cute."
Adriana laughed. She was about to respond when her cell phone rang. "Sorry," she said to Claudia, looking at the caller I.D. "It's my mum."
"Don't worry about it," said Claudia. Adriana flipped open her phone. "Hello?"
"Adriana, where are you?" asked Mrs. Brown. "You've been gone for hours. Come back to the hotel. It's starting to get dark."
"Alright, I'll be there soon," said Adriana, and hung up. She turned back to Claudia. "Gotta go. Mum's orders."
"Oh, okay," said Claudia, and, for some reason, she seemed kind of sad. Adriana didn't understand why; what kind of adult would want to spend their time talking to a sixteen-year-old? "I guess I'll see you around?"
Adriana shook her head. "Not likely. We're leaving tomorrow."
"Well, then, it was nice to meet you," said Claudia. Adriana smiled, waved, and headed back to the hotel.
*
The entire ride home, Claudia couldn't get her mind off of Adriana. She didn't understand why. She was a stranger. They had never met before. Claudia was sure that there were lots of people with the name Adriana Brown who lived in England. It wasn't an uncommon name. But if she knew her middle name, then she'd know for sure…
Who was she kidding? This was ridiculous. There was absolutely no chance that their paths would ever cross. It had to be another Adriana Brown. It just had to be. Although—
No, there was no although. It didn't matter that they had the same dark brown hair and eyes. It didn't matter that her name was Adriana Brown. There was no chance that this would be happening. None.
But she had said that her father wouldn't let her go to Italy. If, for the sake of argument, she was the same Adriana Brown, it would make sense. But she wasn't, so it didn't matter.
Claudia was so distracted by her thoughts, she was barely paying attention to the road. She made it home in one piece, but she still couldn't shake the image of Adriana from her mind. Her laugh, her smile—no. This was stupid. There was no point dwelling on her. She was leaving tomorrow. They'd probably never see each other again. None of it mattered.
But even as she told herself not to worry about it, there was still that glimmer of worry in the back of her head. If she was the same Adriana Brown, what was she supposed to do?