The restaurant
"I have to ask this," Carly said, "But is there a reason Jason and Sonny haven't figured out who you're related to. I'm assuming that they would have gotten your name off the flight list, considering the flight attendant got your name."
"Off my personal passport," Kellie said, "Legally, my name is Kellie Riley Alcazar. But as far as most of the world is concerned, I'm Kellie Riley. Whenever my name goes into a database like a flight list, my last name automatically disappears. That's the easiest way to explain it with out going into all the high tech mumbo jumbo."
"Fair enough," Carly asked as Lorenzo and Skye entered the restaurant. They stopped by their table.
"Evening, Mrs. Corint," Lorenzo began to say.
"Ms. Benson," Carly corrected.
"Of course," Lorenzo apologized, "I guess congratulations are in order then."
"Thank you," Carly said, "for everything."
Lorenzo looked questioningly at Kellie who shrugged it off.
"And Miss Riley," Lorenzo said.
"So this is who Sonny was fuming about earlier," Skye said.
"Word gets around fast in this town," Kellie said, "By the way, Miss Quartermaine, my people in South America wanted me to thank you for keeping them updated on Lorenzo's condition and other events that had bearing on things south of the border."
"Excuse me?" Skye said, "You and Lorenzo are business associates?"
"Yes, I tend to run things behind the scenes" Kellie said, "You probably spoke with Jorge Mendez."
Skye thought for minute.
"Jorge… yes," Skye said, "Tell him he's welcome."
"Our table's ready," Lorenzo said, "And Miss Riley, I would advise you to steer clear of Mr. Corinthos for the remainder of your stay."
"I don't think I'll have a problem avoiding his majesty," Kellie said, "I'm headed out as soon as I'm done here."
"Have a safe trip then," Lorenzo said. He and Skye went to sit at their table.
"Wow," Carly said as soon as they were out of earshot, "How can you sit there and not even acknowledge."
"Carly, I know you mean well but stay out of my relationship with my uncle," Kellie said, glancing over at Lorenzo's table, "I burned my bridges a long time ago."
"Then build new ones," Carly said, "From what I can see, he wants to build them just as much you do."
"It's complicated, Carly," Kellie said, irritated, "I promised him I'd send a postcard every once in awhile okay."
"Miss Riley," a uniformed officer said, "You've been served." He handed her papers and left.
"Son of a.." Kellie said, reading them over.
"What is it?" Carly asked.
"Your ex husband is dragging me on the witness stand when he tries to get your divorce declared invalid," Kellie said, "I can't leave town."
"I'm sorry," Carly said.
"It's not your fault," Kellie said, "If you'll excuse me…I need to get some fresh air."
Kellie got up from her seat and hurried out.
From across the room, Lorenzo and Skye witnessed the whole thing.
"It's obvious you're concerned about her," Skye said, "I'm guessing your family is close with hers. Go."
"Thank you, Skye," Lorenzo said, getting up, "I'll explain when we get home."
Outside, he found Kellie steadying herself against the side of the building.
"Just keep breathing," he heard her tell herself.
He tapped Kellie on the shoulder, startling her.
"What's wrong?" Lorenzo asked.
"Carly's being Carly," Kellie said, "At JFK, the attendants used my last name and I had to explain that and Carly just got on my case about being distant with you. She means well, but"
"The papers the officer brought," Lorenzo interrupted, "What were they?"
Instead of answering, Kellie handed Lorenzo the papers.
Lorenzo read the papers and waited for Kellie to say something, trying to get a read on her.
Kellie shifted uncomfortably under Lorenzo's scrutiny.
"Someone's telling me I can't leave," Kellie finally said, trying to remain in control, "It reminds me of…"
She was unable to finish the sentence and turned her face so Lorenzo couldn't see it.
"You feel trapped," Lorenzo said, turning Kellie's face towards him, "Look at me."
"Dammit," Kellie muttered as tears slowly started to fall down her face.
Lorenzo pulled Kellie into a hug.
"It'll be okay," Lorenzo said, "I promise."
After a minute, Kellie pulled away.
"I'll have my driver take you back to my place," Lorenzo said, "You can stay there."
Kellie shook her head, "Uncle Lo, you really don't need to go the trouble. I'm fine on my own."
"Enough," Lorenzo said, "I let you walk away before because I thought it was what you needed. But I can't stand by and watch you shut the world out anymore. I don't care that you can expertly handle more weapons than all the armies of the world combined. I don't care that you can make the most powerful of men shake where they stand. You're my niece and I want to take care of you."
Kellie glared at him and got ready to argue, but thought the better of it.
"Fine," Kellie said, "But you have to finish your evening with Miss Quartermaine."
Lorenzo nodded to a guard that was standing near by.
"Call the driver, see that Kellie gets back to my place," Lorenzo said, "Then make sure someone picks her stuff up from Jakes."
"My bike's at Jakes," Kellie said.
"Send two men to get her stuff and the bike," Lorenzo said, "Make sure the driver comes back here to get Skye and myself."
Carly walked outside carrying Kellie's jacket.
"I figured you might need this," Carly said.
"Thanks," Kellie said, taking her jacket, "I'm sorry I ran out."
"Don't worry about it," Carly said as the car came around, "We'll have to go out again since you'll be around it looks like."
The driver got out and opened the door.
"Sure," Kellie said, quietly. She got in the car.
Lorenzo and Carly watched the car drive off.
"I'm glad she's letting you take care of her," Carly said, "although I'm sorry it's because of Sonny's ego."
"I could kill Corinthos for reminding Kellie of her torturous marriage," Lorenzo said.
"Get in line," Carly said.
"Lorenzo," Skye called, coming out, "Should I tell the waiters to hold the food or?"
"I'll be right in," Lorenzo said, "We'll have dinner and I'll explain everything on the ride home."
"Your meal is on me," Carly said, "It's the least I can do."
The Penthouse
"Open up, Jason," Carly said, knocking on the door, "I know you're there."
Jason opened the door.
"I knew Sonny would try to have the divorce declared invalid," Carly said, "But his latest stunt.."
"What stunt, Carly?" Jason asked
"He's dragging Kellie into court as a witness and according to the paperwork, she can't leave town," Carly said, "It completely freaked her out. I'm not quite sure why. Maybe something to do with her marriage."
"It was a forced marriage, I know," Jason said, "I'll talk to Sonny and see what I can do."
"Thank you, Jason," Carly said, "She helped me and now."
"I need to make some phone calls," Jason said, "Do you know who her uncle is? Apparently, Luke knows her and mentioned something about an uncle."
"Uncle, really, she hadn't mentioned it," Carly said.
"And you're a bad liar," Jason said.
"Just let it go, Jason," Carly said, "For now."
"Luke told me the same thing," Jason said, "She's from South America, so it would have to be someone in Alcazar's organization."
"Nope," Carly said, heading for the door, "Now go beat some sense into Sonny."
"You know I'll find out one way or another," Jason said as Carly slammed the door behind her.
The Greystone
Why didn't you wait for Stan and I to finish getting information on Kellie Riley?" Jason asked, "before getting a court order keeping her from leaving town."
"I couldn't risk her leaving town," Sonny said, "I need her to get the divorce thrown out."
"You should have just let her leave town and found some other way," Jason said, "All you've managed to do was get on her bad sad."
"You're over reacting," Sonny said, "She's a small-time arms dealer. We throw some money her way that divorce will be thrown out in no time."
"Sonny let me see if I can't explain this to you," Jason said, "Kellie Riley married Esoterra when she was 16."
"So she married young," Sonny said, "It's simple. She's a gold digger."
"It was an arranged marriage, Sonny," Jason said, "Her parents whoever they are sold her for political gain most likely and never looked back."
"I don't understand why this is a big deal," Sonny said, "The girl made a choice; these are the consequences."
"I called some people in South America," Jason said, "I was able to get some information about the marriage. Kellie Riley was a possession to him. She didn't eat, sleep, or so much as breathe without his consent. She could never go anywhere. She was a prisoner. He beat her constantly. And rumor has it played mind games to torture her."
"One more reason she probably helped kill him," Sonny said.
"But she doesn't oversee things directly," Jason said, "For the most part she doesn't touch the money. She travels all over the world because she can't stay in one place for very long without feeling trapped. You just sent her back emotionally to one of the worst places possible."
"You don't know that," Sonny said.
"Carly came to see me after the papers were served," Jason said, "Kellie freaked out and had to leave dinner."
"Her issues are not my problem," Sonny said, "My concern is getting my wife back. That girl is going to help me do it."
"Forget about the emotional issues," Jason said, "That girl is practically a ghost and someone wants it that way. We had to dig really deep to find up the information we did, Sonny. If you mess with her, I guarantee you'll be messing with people we don't want to provoke. We still don't know why she was even in Port Charles in the first place."
"I don't care what I have to do," Sonny said, "I will get Carly back. Either you're with me or against me."
"We'll talk in the morning," Jason said, "Think about what I said.
The Car
"Alright, Lorenzo," Skye said as they got in the car, "I want to know exactly what is going on."
"There's no easy way to break this," Lorenzo said, "So I'll just say it, Kellie isn't just a business associate, she's my niece."
"So Luis had another daughter," Skye said.
Lorenzo shook his head, "I had a sister, Haley, who my father didn't meet until she was a teenager. My father had his mistress killed, brought Haley, who was pregnant with Kellie at the time, to the family home. A few years later, Haley tried to leave with Kellie. She paid with her life doing so. Kellie saw the whole thing."
"If she wasn't in town to see you then why is she here?" Skye asked, "And what was that whole conversation about back in the restaurant?"
"I'm not sure why she's here," Lorenzo said, "As for my relationship with Kellie, it's been practically non-existent since my father forced her into a marriage with the devil for political reasons. I found out too late to stop him. Kellie's husband kept her prisoner, among other things."
"Obviously, she's not with her husband," Skye said, "So what happened?"
"Her husband's dead," Lorenzo said, "The details as to how aren't important. Kellie got her freedom and control of his businesses. I saw her once after everything. She hated me, blamed me for…I never saw her again until a few days ago."
"She needed someone to blame, you were there and your father was dead, I'm assuming," Skye said, leaning against Lorenzo.
"She's at the apartment," Lorenzo said, "Corinthos in his stupidity got a court order to keep her in town until he loses in court over the divorce fiasco. You saw how she was when she left the restaurant."
Lorenzo's apartment
Skye found Lorenzo sitting at the foot of Kellie's bed watching her sleep.
"She looks so peaceful," Lorenzo said, "You wouldn't know everything she's survived."
"You two were close before everything, weren't you?" Skye asked.
"Yeah," Lorenzo said, "I was one of very few people who didn't treat her like a possession or a bastard. Luis had no use for her and Sage was at boarding school. The servants humored her presence. I failed her when she needed me most."
"She needs you now though," Skye said.
Lorenzo didn't answer.
"Come on," Skye said, "You should get to bed. You've had long night and only got out of the hospital two days ago. You can talk in the morning."
Lorenzo slowly got off the bed. Before leaving, he leaned over Kellie and whispered, "Good night, Sobrinita."
A/N: Sobrinita means little niece
