CHAPTER FOUR

Unwillingly, Maxie felt a rush of shame as it flooded through her, leaving her flushed and trembling; her face burned with it; she'd forgotten that Alexis Davis had had a sister who had been killed. That truth swallowed up her own rage and hurt for a moment and made her feel for the other woman.... Maxie stared at Alexis, momentarily stunned into silence, but then the angry pain surging through her twisted her insides into a painful knot.

Maxie didn't want to feel anyone else's pain but her own... empathy and compassion was a feeling she didn't want. It wasn't fair... it wasn't fair at all! Georgie shouldn't be dead. Not her beautiful, smart, compassionate sister. The one that everyone who ever met her had loved and admired. The one that everyone had looked at and then looked at her, and wondered why couldn't Maxie be more like her sister? And the look of empathy - there was that word again! - the look that told her that Alexis did know exactly what she was feeling was almost more than she could bear. So Maxie retreated into the emotion that was much more familiar and comforting to her - anger.

"So what brings you here? What is it that you need to tell us over milk and cookies?" she forced the words past the tightness in her throat. "Have you found out who killed my sister?"

"I have every available resource working hard on this case, but no, we haven't found any new evidence..." Alexis tried to explain.

"Then why are you here?" Maxie spat at her angrily. She could feel the tears starting to spill out of her eyes but instead of bringing her comfort, they just fueled her helpless rage. Her voice rose, choked with emotion and she had to struggle to get the words. A part of her knew she was wrong, but she couldn't help herself. And a part of her didn't want to anyway. "What was so important that you had to come here tonight? If you didn't have anything new to tell us that could help my family, why couldn't you just leave us alone?"

"Stop yelling at Alexis!"

Maxie spun around to see Sam standing in the kitchen doorway, dark eyes blazing. She stepped into the room and kept moving until she was face to face with Maxie. "You want to yell at somebody, then yell at me, because the only reason Alexis is here is because of me. She's here because I had something to tell the two of you and she didn't want me to have to do it by myself."

Maxie saw the protective fire in Sam's eyes and it didn't do anything except to remind her that she'd lost that too - along time ago. Sure, Felicia had shown up when she'd heard about Georgie's death, another empty mouth, mouthing empty platitudes and trying to play the grieving mother role, but it didn't fit her any better now than the loving mother role had fit her before she'd abandoned her and Georgie years ago to pursue her own life.

So to see this protective mother-daughter in effect raked Maxie's nerves with jagged claws of jealousy. It didn't matter that she and Sam had been on their way to becoming friends of a sort, mostly over their dislike of Elizabeth Webber. It didn't matter that they'd recognized kindred spirits in one another. The kick tail, take no prisoners attitude was alive and well in the both of them. They were enough alike to recognize who they were in one another. Somehow, she had never been able to get along with girls her age. Except for Georgie. It didn't matter what she did or what she said, Georgie was always there to stand by her, no matter what.

Or she had been. She was gone now, murdered by some sick sociopath who'd left her sprawled lifeless body in the park like yesterday's trash.

Up until recently, she and Mac had been the only persons that had accepted her without expectations and recriminations. And then along came Sam. A few chance conversations here and there and the two of them had fallen into an easy camaraderie that she guessed could be called a friendship. But Maxie's pain was still too raw and too fresh and the last thing she wanted was friendship and sympathy and tea and cookies. "What, you couldn't pick up the phone and call? Leave a message? Drop off a note? Did you need a new wardrobe change for your television show and that just couldn't wait?"

"No, what I had to say couldn't wait. Or maybe it could - I just don't know anymore!" she snapped back. And just so you know, this doesn't have anything to do with the show. Do you think I'd bother you with something like that at a time like this?" Sam wanted to explain, but couldn't find the words to begin.

"I don't know, Sam. Seems like you have a reputation of being that self-centered, so anything is possible. After all, wouldn't this be a coup for you and your Everyday Heroes?" Maxie shot back. It was so much easier to retreat back into anger as a shield against her hurt. "I'll tell you what - if you leave right now, I'll make sure that you get an extra twenty percent discount for your next wardrobe change!"

"You can keep your discount - this has nothing to do with the show - I told you that!" Without thinking, Sam slipped back into her old habits of attacking with words to defend herself and her own jumbled-up emotions forced the words past her lips before she had a chance to think about what she was saying. "You want to call me selfish- try looking in the mirror! Seems I've heard the same said about you!"

"I've had worse said about me, so what? I'm still waiting to see the camera crew."

"I didn't come here for that..." Sam suddenly realized what she was doing - what Maxie was doing - they were both using anger to hide their pain and fear. It was with a jolt that she realized that they really were more alike than she'd seen. That thought hit her like a ton of rocks and she unconsciously took a step backwards.

Seeing her move, Maxie saw it as a retreat and followed her, looking to attack even harder, to force these unwanted guests from their house. Something in their eyes filled her with dread - whatever it was they had come to tell her, Maxie suddenly knew she didn't want to hear. She didn't know why, but she wanted them gone.

"Why did you come here at all? Didn't you see the big white wreath on the front door? Don't you know that means that this is a house of mourning? Or what you needed to do was so much more important than the little fact that my sister is dead?" Maxie raged at her.

At the word sister, Sam faltered for just a moment; but then she went on. "This is important - to me, to you - to all of us! Would you just let me say what I had to say and stop thinking of just yourself!"

"So I should let you just go on and drop your little news bombshell on us - because it's convenient for you!?" Maxie laughed, and it was wrapped in bitterness. "And people call me selfish!"

"Do you think you're the only one who's ever lost anybody? I had a brother - and he died, too - and a daughter - or did you forget that little fact? Do you think this is easy for me to be here at a time like this? Don't you think knowing that you lost your sister made me remember that I lost my brother and my child and that I don't feel that pain all over again? No, only your pain matters to you, doesn't it?"

"No, it doesn't!" Maxie's voice crackled in fury.

Her nerves already on overload, Sam lost what little control she had. "Then would you please just shut up! For one minute, could you just close your mouth and listen for a change? Is that too much to ask!?"

"Maybe it is too much to ask... but it's easy to fix!" Maxie pointed in the general direction of the front door. "I'm not interested in anything you have to say, Sam. So, get out!" She took a step towards Sam as if she were going to put her out herself. It added to her fury that Sam showed no signs of backing down. "Fine...if that's the way you want it...."

"Samantha!"

"Maxie!"

Stunned into an unbelieving silence by the sudden verbal violence that had sprung up between Sam and Maxie, Mac and Alexis both found their voices at the same time. The shock in their voices caught both young women by surprise. They stared at one another as they realized how horrible and unfeeling they must have sounded to Mac and Alexis. And the both of them were instantly ashamed.

A tense silence spread through the room. Mac was the first to break it. "Why don't we take all of this, go into the living room, sit down and calmly listen to what it is Sam has come to say?"

"I think that's a great idea." Alexis seconded the motion. "We'll take a moment to regroup, get ourselves together and move on and have an adult conversation."

Maxie moved again, this time to Alexis, to snatch the tray out of her hands. "Let's not. Let's just get this over with." Maxie slammed the tray down on the kitchen counter with a harsh clang and turned to face Sam. "You said you had something to say? Well, just say it."

Sam's eyes looked from Maxie's face to Alexis', then Mac and back to Maxie again. She struggled for control.

"Look, I didn't come here looking to upset you, Maxie - or you either, Mac. I found out something I didn't expect to - and it involves you and Mac - whether you like it or not."

"You didn't want to upset us? Too late, it's already happened." Maxie said. "Spill it, Sam. Let's hear this news that just couldn't wait."

Sam's lips parted, closed and then she seemed to gather herself together. "I found out who my father was. He's Frisco Jones."