~~1~~

Tucked away on the edge of town, nestled up against the New England coast line, Port Charles University made a wonderful picture. A sprawling campus, historic buildings and a brand spanking new stadium. The college pamphlet bragged over the academics, sports teams and facilities.

What it left out, Elizabeth grumbled as she shoved her hands deep into her jacket pockets, was how the town had it's very own mob.

It was hard for her to wrap her head around. Port Charles on first glance seemed like all the other towns up and down the coast. It's harbor was a mix of coastal village with small shops and walkways. At the far end, was the industrial area. Where the buildings were a little run down, but still seemed to belong against the waterfront. The residents seemed to be everyday sorts. Hard working, family loving people.

When she'd first heard about the darker version of her new home, she nearly peed herself laughing. Mobs didn't reside in towns like Port Charles. They lived in places like Jersey. Or larger cities, Chicago or even New York. Eating in Italian restaurants with their cronies as they talked shop.

It didn't take long for her to realize the stories weren't just small talk she'd overheard at an underground party. Port Charles was the home base for Sonny Corninthos and his right hand man Jason Morgan. The two 'coffee importers' spent more time at the police station than some of the cops did. The newspapers loved writing about their recent escapades and run-ins with the law. Marriage, birth of their children, nothing was too small for the small town rag.

Elizabeth wasn't stupid. She'd just fallen face first in a pile of crap and she had no idea what her next step should be. Hell, she didn't even know if she had a next step. Her brain quickly calculated three very unpleasant options. Keep the information quiet and live with the consequence. Go to the police, admit she was intercepting someone's private email and hand over what she'd learned. Or finding a way to slip what she just learned to 'alleged mobsters' , pray they never linked it back to her and live like a hermit on campus until she graduated and escaped.

The first option, didn't sit well with her. This wasn't some dirty little secret she could just sit back and laugh at. Going to the police, yeah she wasn't even going to go there. She had some pretty strong feelings where police officers were concerned. It hadn't really been an option she would spend much time pondering over, but being logical she had to admit it was one.

So she was left stuck in a corner.

Hurrying up the sidewalk to the entrance of her dorm, Elizabeth weaved her way through the loitering students. Barely registering the greetings thrown her way, she slipped through the open door and headed straight to the stairwell.

After her last experience in the elevator she swore she'd never take the elevator again. Being forced to become a voyeur to a couple's make out session was a little much bonding for her. She'd rather take the claustrophobic, mold smelling stairway. On the plus side, it helped against the Freshman ten.

Half a flight from the third floor, Elizabeth could already hear the muttered sounds of dorm life. The bass from multiple stereos playing music, laughter of other students as they came and went from rooms all balled up into one. There was never a dull moment on her floor, and for the first time Elizabeth really wished for some peace and quiet.

Making it to her room, with only a nod to a few, Elizabeth turned the handle and knew her much needed solitude was not going to be. With a sigh, she listened as her roommate ranted on the other side.

Maxie Jones was in the middle of one of her royal fits. Knowing her roomie was just warming up, Elizabeth considered heading to the library, before shaking her chocolate brown curls. The day before midterms, the last place she was going to find any privacy was the campus library.

Stepping inside, she eyed Maxie wearily as the blond stalked from one side of the room to the other. One to use her hands when she talked like a flagger directing a plane to land, Elizabeth was careful to stay out of her way. The last time she hadn't been so careful and almost got a black eye.

"You stood me up!" Eyes wide, Maxie's voice was already at screeching level, meaning she was more than ten minutes into her conversation. After two months, Elizabeth was well versed on the stages Maxie went through, while arguing with her secret boyfriend. "Do you have any idea how stupid I felt?"

Stopping, her hand still raised in the air, Maxie smiled brightly. "Hey Elizabeth. I thought you were hitting Kelly's to get some studying done."

This was another Maxie thing Elizabeth had to get used to. Her unnatural ability to go from flaming rage, to bubbly cheerleader. At times it unsettled her, but knowing there were a lot worse options for a roommate, Elizabeth quickly adapted.

With a slight shrug of her slender shoulders, Elizabeth grimaced. "Ran into a roadblock."

"Tell me about it." Maxie shook her head. "Every time I try to sit down and concentrate I can barely get through the first chapter." Her wide smile vanished. "No, I don't need your help studying. You can't even make an appearance for lunch. And I don't want to hear any more excuses. I gotta go."

Without waiting for a reply, she tossed her phone onto her bed. "So why do you look like you're gonna blow chunks?"

A little taken aback, Elizabeth really didn't know how to answer that. Most times Maxie was a little self-centered. Not really in a mean way, most of the time she was just a little flighty and all over the place. If there was a way to Major in lip gloss and high end fashion, Maxie Jones would figure out how to do it. There were days Elizabeth felt frumpy and downright plain compared to her.

"Just stressing out about tomorrow." Maxie was second on her list of who she didn't want to tell. In fact, she'd rather shove her car keys into an electrical socket before opening up to her roommate.

Seeing how her uncle, who had actually raised her, was Police Commissioner and lived only twenty minutes away, Maxie was defiantly on the do not tell list. Besides, exactly how would she explain how she'd come into possession of the information which was currently giving her heartburn. She doubted a short explanation would do it, she'd be put into a position of explaining more than she wanted to share.

"Tell me about it." Spinning around to her dresser and picking up a tube of gloss, she liberally applied the sheen. "My uncle called again to remind me if I don't have a C average I have to move back home."

Placing her backpack on her desk, Elizabeth resisted the urge to remove her laptop out of habit. She couldn't trust herself not to bring up the program that was currently causing her problems. At the same time she couldn't just stand there and do nothing. The downside to time sensitive information was there was never enough time.

"Where are your grades at now?" Knowing Maxie would just keep talking whether she participated or not, Elizabeth had an idea slowly forming in her head and wondered if her roommate could be persuaded to give up some vital information without becoming too suspicious.

"About there." At least her roommate knew how to make her smile.

"Need help on anything?"

"Uh yeah, if you by any chance have the answers in your pockets I'd happily take them off your hands."

Another smile tugged at Elizabeth's lips. "If I had the answers I wouldn't be studying."

Flinging her lip gloss onto the cluttered mess on top of the dresser, Maxie sighed. "We need a computer geek to hack into the tests and get the answers." Her words slowed as a wicked gleam settled in her eyes as she turned around to face Elizabeth.

Seeing the look, Elizabeth was quick to squash whatever her roomie was scheming. "That only happens in movies and on TV and it never turns out well." Besides after the day she was having, it was painfully clear today wasn't her lucky day.

"So a little off topic, and yes I am changing the subject, you won't believe who I ran into at Kelly's today." The plan she had been cultivating wasn't quiet formed yet, but not really knowing how to steer her new friend into direction she wanted required a level of verbal skills she knew she didn't possess.

"That skank down the hall?"

Blinking a few times, Elizabeth felt as though her brain had just been stunned. Another skill Maxie had, stunning her audience. "Um, no. Jason Morgan."

Apparently she had her own ability to stun, because it was Maxie's turn to look shocked. "Oh please tell me you aren't another Jason-worshiper. This town already is at it's quota and I would hate to lose you to the dark side."

"Jason-worshipper?"

"Women who follow every move Jason Morgan makes. They've memorized every iota of his life. Make fools of themselves as they drool anytime he's spotted. I wouldn't be surprised if there weren't a few secret shrines around town."

"I can assure you I am not one of them." Not fully convinced Maxie wasn't pulling her leg, Elizabeth tried not to laugh. "I forgot my jacket and he stopped me before I left."

With a sigh of frustration, Maxie threw her arms in the air. "See that's how it starts. Jason does something nice and then women fall all over themselves."

It was the opening she was waiting for. Maxie was a local, and by growing up in town she would be able to regurgitate more information than Google. "Jason is it? Perhaps you're a closet shipper."

"Me?" Pressing a hand to her chest, Maxie shook her head vigorously. "Eww gross. He's old."

"Old?" This time Elizabeth did laugh. From her terror stricken state she could tell Jason Morgan couldn't be any older than twenty-six maybe twenty-seven. "He can't be that much older than us."

"Like seven years older." Making a face, Maxie shook her head. "Maybe and I mean 'maybe' my view has been skewed because I've pretty much known him for years."

"Is he as bad as the papers make him sound?" This was what she needed to know. Needed to analyze just how he may react if she were to share with him what she needed to before washing her hands clean of the mess.

"He's not that bad." With a careless shrug, Maxie looked thoughtful for a moment. "I mean he's no boy scout. His family, and I don't mean the one he shares blood with is his world. He'd do just about anything to keep them safe."

That really didn't clear anything up and Elizabeth was getting a little frustrated. What she needed to know was if he was someone who would just accept what she had to share without much fuss. Or was he the stereo typical gangster type she saw in movies. The type how'd know how to keep her quiet and have no qualms making it happen.

"Yeah, but is he the bad guy the papers have made him out to be?"

Apparently she shouldn't have pushed, because Maxie was starting to look uncomfortable. "Are you sure you aren't becoming a Jason-worshiper?"

"Of course not." Eyes wide, Elizabeth shook her head. Knowing she needed to pull back so not to freak her roommate out, she slipped out of her jacket and hung it in the closet.

"Hey he wasn't with anyone, was he?"

"Just some guy about our age." Looking over her shoulder, Elizabeth watched as Maxie's face turned red.

"Brown messy hair? Clothes that looked slept in and a brown knock off messenger bag?"

Nodding slowly, Elizabeth was left speechless as her roommate started muttering under her breath and grabbing her jacket.

"I forgot I had a study group." With the horrible lie barely off her lips, Maxie flew out the door before slamming it behind her.

With a feeling of unease, Jason nodded to the guard stationed at the door before entering his penthouse. After his confrontation with Sam that morning he didn't know if he was walking onto a battlefield, or ice cold silence. He was praying to ice cold silence.

Instead, he found Sam sitting in the center of the couch, her bare feet crossed on the coffee table in front of her, reading another parenting magazine which was resting on her swelling belly. Her eyes turned to him, and she flashed him a brilliant smile.

"I didn't expect you till later."

Pausing before tossing his keys onto the desk, Jason sent her a skeptical look as he shed his jacket. "I won't be here long. Just needed to grab a few things."

"Listen Jase, about this morning." Her expression was void of the furious rage he'd seen earlier. Had Sam been any other female he would've believed she was actually sorry. But he knew Sam wasn't like any other girl. "You were right. I was putting you into this imaginary role of being my baby's real Daddy. You've been so good to me. Taking me in, putting up with my hormones. I know I've been acting like a crazy person."

Crazy didn't even cover it, Jason thought silently. "I meant what I said this morning Sam. We need to find you somewhere else to live."

"I know." And there it was, that flash of anger in her eyes. She may be a great con artist, but she wasn't that good. "And I was totally wrong coming onto you like that. I know what you did by coming forward was only to cover Sonny's ass."

Nodding, Jason wasn't overly convinced of Sam's change of mind. He should've seen this situation coming to a head weeks ago. Sam was an opportunist and that alone didn't make her a bad person, it just made her a person with an agenda.

.

Perhaps he'd allowed himself to be fooled for a little while. With the prospect of having a chance of being a father it had made him lose sight of reality. But the entire situation, her pregnant with Sonny's child, living here while Carly lived across the hall unaware, was disgusting.

"I have something to do tonight, but tomorrow I can help you look for a place. There may be a few empty spots in the building." He wished it would be that easy to detangle himself from the entire mess. But that would be too much to ask for. There would be years of pretending of being the child's father. Knowing that a child looked to him as it's father, while he stood by lying threw his teeth. He'd never be mean or ever make the child feel unwated. But no matter what, he'd know he was lying.

All because Sonny couldn't keep it in his pants.

"I've been thinking about that." Pushing herself off the couch, her stomach causing it to appear ungraceful, Sam stood up. "I'd rather not live in the Towers. It's been awkward living across the hall from Sonny."

"Fine." Relived, Jason nodded. "We'll look tomorrow." Not feeling there was anything else to say, seeing he'd said most of it that morning, Jason headed off to the kitchen. He needed to grab something to eat, there was no telling how long he'd be gone that night.

Spinelli had found an anomaly on the warehouse computer system. Or at least that was how he tried to explain it during his long impassioned speech. For all Jason was concerned the kid could've been talking about the mating rituals of grub worms. What he did understand, was someone had hacked past Spinelli's 'fortress of solitude'.

It wasn't like they kept anything incriminating on the warehouse systems. Whoever had gotten in had only found the accounting information of a legitimate coffee business. The mundane numbers that charted the incoming shipments and out going sales. Then there was the payroll, of all the taxpaying, hard working employees.

Perhaps their 'other' information was safe, but the breach explained the issues they were having with shipments lately. Missing or destroyed crates weren't going to devastate them financially, it was just the inconvenience that was a pain in the ass. With more important things to worry about, he hoped whatever Spinelli had up his sleeve would put an end to his warehouse concerns.

Then he could concentrate on getting Sam set up in a place of her own. Maybe somewhere across town. There were a few places he'd noticed were up for sale. It wouldn't take much to get her out on her own, seeing he and Sonny would be footing that bill. It would be setting up the guard rotation and ensuring Sam wasn't giving them the slip that was going to be a pain in the ass.

Once he had those two smaller issues taken care of, he could turn his complete attention to the leak. Bennie was already looking into a few leads, and while the older man was really good at what he did, Jason wouldn't be able to relax until he was able to find out how had turn on him and Sonny.

If everything went well, and it usually never did, by this time next week everything would be back to normal.