Stavros walked around Gia's hotel room. It had been cleaned out. No one seemed to know who did it or when they did it. The security tapes had been immobilized for twenty minutes.
He knew she couldn't have done this alone. She wasn't in any condition to. He had assured that when he branded her. He had wanted her to call him for help but the call never came.
"Where are you little sparrow?" He would find her. He had an empire to rebuild and that sniveling brat Stephan had raised was far too weak to rule it.
No Gia would have his children and he and Laura would adopt them. An evil smile spread across his face. He couldn't wait to tell Laura but after he found Gia.
Gia slept until late afternoon. When she opened her eyes she saw Jason asleep in the chair next to her. Her eyes filled with tears as she remembered the night's events.
"No." She whispered blinking them away. She wasn't going to cry, at least not now. What was she going to do? Make a list. When she worked at the rape crisis center some of the women said they made it through the day by writing everything they needed to do down.
She tried to sit up but the pain was intense. She groaned. Jason jumped out of the chair and looked around the room.
"Sorry." She whispered looking down at the blanket that covered her. "It…"
She blushed.
"You have a tear." She looked up at him. "Monica fixed you up and gave you these. I sent Johnny to the store for more supplies. What did you need?"
"A pad and a pen. I need to plan my day." She looked away from him. "I need to use the restroom."
"Let me help you." His voice was so soft that Gia wanted to cry again.
"Please, don't pity me." She whispered. Jason knelt near the bed and took her hand.
"You are the last person on this earth I would ever pity." He smiled at her. "You know what Em calls you?"
She shook her head.
"Gia the destroyer." She laughed a little. "She said you are fierce. I don't know what she meant by that but she was smiling when she said it."
"Thank you."
"I expect a favor in return."
"Like what?" She asked frowning.
"Hey, you're not that sexy." She laughed. "I was thinking about that Sweet potato pie you were bragging about."
"Humph, you need to by pretty darn special for me to make grandma's Sweet potato pie." She squeezed his hand. "Now help me to the restroom."
Jason helped Gia stand and get into the room. He waited at the door as she read and followed Monica's instructions. When she finished he helped her back into bed just as Milo knocked on the door.
Jason knew that would be her lunch. Carefully opening the door he blocked Milo's view into the room, not that he was looking. Jason simply wanted Gia to feel protected.
Jason spent the rest of the day helping her with a daily list of things she could do. He nixed all the ideas that would over stress her.
Jason left her after she fell to sleep. When he had left the room he took her purse and prepared to do something he promised he would not do.
He took out Gia's cell phone. Rolling through the contacts page he took a deep breath. He picked up after the second ring.
"Hey, baby sis, how are you doing?" Jason heard a lilt to Taggart's voice he had never heard before.
"This is Morgan." Jason could hear whatever Taggart was sitting on hit the ground.
"Morgan? Why the hell do you have Gia's phone." He screamed.
"I need you to listen carefully. This is not about you or me, Gia's in trouble." Jason heard the other man take a breath. "Are you in a place where you can talk?"
"No."
"Get to one then call me back at this number." Jason rattled off the number to his cell phone.
"I'll call you in five."
"Taggart, I haven't touched her. The business hasn't touched her. She didn't want me to tell you…" Jason hesitated. "Brother to brother if it was Emily I'd want to know."
There was a brief pause then a sigh.
"I'll call you in five." Taggart closed his cell phone.
Righting his chair he walked out of the P.I. Business he owned. On any other day he would be able to talk but today Sam was testing new equipment. Whatever 'lil' bit' had gotten herself into it was big or Morgan would not have called him.
"Gia ." He whispered as he ran to the parking structure. He climbed into his car and raced to the top. His car provided some protection from eve's droppers but the little round device he attached to his cell phone would give him total privacy. Dialing Morgan's number. "What's wrong with my sister?"
"Lucien Cane is Stavros Cassadine." Jason said bluntly. "Last night he raped Gia."
Marcus felt the life drain out of him. While working for the P.C.P.D. he had seen photos of Cassadine's handy work. The girl usually didn't make it out alive.
"Cassadine is dead." He whispered breathlessly.
"According to Monica he showed up at the New Years fund raiser. Either way Gia fingered him as he attacker."
"Did Mac arrest him?"
"Gia didn't want to report it."
"WHAT?" Marcus hit his fist on the steering wheel. "This isn't one of your mob molls. She needs a help and that bastard needs to be in jail."
"Gia doesn't want to see anyone. She allowed Monica to help her but beyond that she won't talk to anyone else. Hell, Taggart, she's an international model the press would eat her alive and with his connections Cassadine wouldn't see a minute of jail time. You know that better than anyone how it works here."
"Get her ready. I'm bringing her here."
"No, if she finds out I told you she'll lose it and she's barely hanging on." Jason looked back at the house as he paced in the back yard. "He's already got men looking for her…"
"And they'll be watching me and Mom." Taggart sighed. He hated the thought of trusting Morgan but he knew he had to. "I want a call once a day. Morgan you'd better keep her safe."
He closed the phone without waiting for a reply.
"Oh, God." He sobbed into the steering wheel.
He had become a cop to protect his little sister from evil. Instead he led it to her door. Marcus could see the irony in the situation. He tried to keep Corinthos away from her but he introduced her to Lucian Cane. How could he have missed it?
Wiping the tears from his face he drove back down to his parking spot. Sam was waiting for him.
"So?" She asked.
"So, what?" He turned his back to her but she grabbed his arm.
"Why did Jason call you?" He started to ask how she knew but remembered his wife was super spy.
"Someone hurt Gia." Sam gasped and looked around. With Marcus racing out of the office and all the secrecy this was big and dangerous.
Taggart pulled her into his arms. He laughed when their child kicked him.
"I know you don't believe this but Jason will take care of her." She stroked his face tenderly. "Sometimes he can be better than a therapist. He won't push her or drug her."
"Yeah, I guess I should be glad it was him and not Corinthos who found her." He sighed and pulled her closer. "I can't do this today. Can we please go home?"
"Only if you cook." She laughed when he made a face. Sam hugged him close to her. She knew what he couldn't say. He was terrified for his sister, but Gia was stronger than anyone knew. Hell she had pushed the two of them together.
Yeah, it would be alright.