Author's Note: Month 2 as in two months after Dante left. Brenda is taking over Crimson soon because Kate is leaving for another magazine.
Month 2
Dante walked into the office of Benjamin Garrot, infamous British mob boss.
"Christopher Foreman," he began, using Dante's undercover name. After a pause, he continued. "You've been with us for about two months now, correct?"
"Yes, sir," Dante replied.
"Mmm. So, I think I can trust you now, yes?" he asked.
"If you say so," Dante said.
"Okay. I need you to take care of something for me. There is a warehouse a few blocks from here and I need you to make sure everything that's supposed to be there is there, and that nothing's there that isn't supposed to be. Anything other than weapons, drugs or whiskey, and I need to know. Just get back here as soon as possible, and if there's anyone inside, get rid of them," he finished. Benjamin gave Dante the directions and dismissed him.
Dante exited the office and went out onto the street. He sat down on a bench and ran his hand through his hair. He just needed a few minutes free of mob-related chaos before getting back to work. He let his mind wander back home to Port Charles and his family, mostly Lulu.
He remembered the day he took Michael and Morgan to the Yankees game, the day they moved into their new house, the family dinner he and Lulu had hosted, their wedding day, their honeymoon... The memories went on and on. He wished more than anything he could get over with this mission and get home to his wife so they could get on with their lives without all of the drama of his job.
He looked up and saw a young couple walking down the street, his hand resting on her very pregnant stomach. They smiled at each other, and Dante could feel the happiness radiating off of them. That should be us, he thought. He felt horrible, leaving Lulu alone, especially when they had just gotten married a month ago and they should be starting their family now.
He got up and headed over to the warehouse, hoping to God he could get this investigation over with as soon as possible.
Lulu awoke to morning light streaming through the windows. Squinting her eyes open, she reached out for Dante on the other side of the bed, wanting to pull herself closer to him, but she couldn't find him. She opened her eyes all the way, and reality came rushing back to her. Dammit, why does this happen every day? she asked herself. Sitting up, she crossed her legs and pulled his pillow onto her lap, trying to breathe in the hint of his scent that remained. She could feel the tears in her eyes and tried to blink them back, but a few managed to escape before she could control them.
She walked into the hallway and peeked into Michael's room; he was still asleep. He finally had a day off from community service at the hospital, so she let him sleep and went downstairs to get ready for work.
A half hour later, Lulu arrived at Crimson, her heels clacking loudly on the floor.
Maxie looked up from her computer and said, "About time you got here!"
"Sorry... I'm only fifteen minutes late," she replied.
"Still, we have the spring issue deadline tomorrow, plus there's like a million shipments coming in today and we have to send half of them off, then we have a meeting at four and you know Kate's going to be on top of us all day, especially since Brenda's taking over in a few weeks and this is the last time she'll ever get to torture us so we're going to be busy all day!" she babbled.
"Maxie, okay, calm down, we got this covered," Lulu said, trying to convince herself more than her friend.
Maxie let out a loud moan and swung around in her chair to face her friend.
"What?" Lulu asked.
"How come you can be all level-headed and stuff when your husband is off in England risking his life and I'm such a mess?" she exclaimed.
"Oh, Maxie, it's okay. You're always a mess," she said, earning a glare from Maxie before she added, "And it's not so easy for me, either."
Maxie rolled her chair over to Lulu's desk and said more quietly,"I know it's hard, Lulu. I'm sorry. Is there anything you need?"
"Thanks, Maxie, but no, I'm okay," she replied. Just then the elevator doors opened and Kate stepped out with Brenda following.
"Maxie! Lulu! What do you think you're doing?" she shouted.
"I was just trying to help her-" Maxie stammered.
"With what? If it's not work-related, don't do it. Do you hear me? We are very busy, and if you can't keep up I can find new assistants! Get back to work!" she yelled and walked into her office. Maxie braced her heel on the edge of Lulu's desk and pushed herself back across the room
Brenda sent her an apologetic look, and Lulu gave her a wave of the hand to indicate it wasn't her fault.
Turning back to the computer screen, Lulu tried to get some work done so her life wouldn't fall apart even more.
