Alexis looked at the man who approached the two of them, her eyes flashing annoyance. He was slender in build, with ebony hair and hazel eyes that she sensed never missed a single detail. She also guessed he was light on his feet, resting his weight on the balls of his feet and that he had a tongue of silver, heightened with a propensity for deception. She glanced puzzled at Julian who had seemed to recognize Jerry Jacks on sight.
She knew him only by reputation.
Jerry was the oldest son of one of the wealthiest tycoons in the world who had started a small business in Australia and had turned it into a financial empire, which had tendrils throughout the global economy. Jerry's father had moved his family to Anchorage of all places to branch out into a new venture. Jerry's younger brother, Jasper had been his father's son if not his heir and had grown into a formative businessman whose methods of acquiring companies to add to his father's empire at least courted allegations of unethical behavior. Jerry on the other hand wanted little to do with the family business but was content to blow his allowance on booze, women and the occasional adventure. Last she'd read in Outside magazine his latest challenge to tackle was to reach the summit of Mt. Everest. She didn't wait with baited breath to read about whether he'd checked that accomplishment off his bucket list.
She wondered where and when Jerry had crossed paths with Julian. She folded her arms looking at the both of them.
"Okay now that you've made your introduction, what is it that you want Mr. Jacks?"
He chuckled easily enough, more than a hint of the accent of the country of his birth on his tongue.
"Oh Darling, you can call me Jerry…I have heard so much about you, good things of course."
He seemed genuinely interested her and friendly, not that she trusted him one bit. She tilted her face at him.
"Fine Mr. Jacks, but don't call me 'Darling' and while we haven't met I have learned everything I need to know about you…and your brother for that matter from my cousin, Stefan."
He had the grace at least to grimace slightly. Julian had said nothing, frozen in his position his eyes on both of them. Jerry didn't seem fazed by her word or her tone. He shifted on his feet slightly. Watching him, Alexis had the feeling that he was like a wildcat balanced on his toes impatiently while waiting to pounce on unsuspecting prey.
Problem was she didn't consider herself prey to anyone let alone a spoiled playboy.
"I assure you all of it is true except for the part that I treated Stefan in any manner. I did as he requested and he didn't like my…work product so we parted her ways amicably."
That wasn't the way Stefan had told the same story. Stefan had been enraged when he had arrived back at the office after a meeting with Jerry. He'd gone into his office and closed the door and it'd been an hour before he'd reappeared again.
"That might be but I want nothing to do with you Mr. Jacks. I think you should have stuck to wasting your time on your social calendar and not on business."
She knew that he'd become bored with life as an over privileged prince of sorts and had wanted a piece of his father's business. Only she suspected that his methods were even more unethical than his brother's. He took a step closer to her and Julian also moved like two pieces on a chessboard countering each other. Right now she didn't have use for either one of them acting in anyway that involved her. She put up a hand.
"Look Mr. Jacks. You're wasting your time. You should go back to the party."
He didn't look pleased.
"Why…I wanted to meet you, see you in the flesh and I have to say you're everything Stefan said you'd be only he didn't say you were so beautiful…"
Alexis sighed.
"Go back to the party. Mr. Jerome and I have business to discuss."
Jerry smirked, leaning even closer to her. She couldn't deny that he was handsome and very, very charismatic. That's what most likely attracted women to him but it wouldn't work on her and yet… no, and with that she stepped backward from him. He shook his head.
"Mr. Jerome do you even know anything about him? About his father, his family? His father is the most ruthless crime boss in this part of the Eastern Seaboard. And the man he works with Dino Antonelli is cut from the same cloth."
Alexis shrugged.
"I know all I need to know. Besides as you must know, I come from a ruthless clan myself even if I wasn't really a part of it."
Jerry shook his head.
"I and Mr. Jerome have had dealings. He comes from very ruthless if poorly bred stock, not that I'm judging him for it, actually I find it quite impressive but you…"
She cut him off with one steely glance.
"I grew up with the Cassadines who engaged on extortion and other crimes on a global scale. Two are dead, or at least in deep freeze and one's rotting away in a prison. They held governments hostage with their power, something I have yet to see any two-bit bottom feeding mafia organization do."
Julian winced a bit at her description but he couldn't take his eyes off of her. And by the end of the evening's party she would have a little more respect for him and his business but first things first…he needed Jerry to go on his merry way before he divulged any secrets.
Jerry was all about secrets, acquiring them and selling them to the highest bidder. That made him dangerous.
Jerry glanced at the both of them.
"Okay I will leave but now that I've seen you Alexis Davis, I know you and I will meet again on a much different and rewarding playing field."
She rolled her eyes.
"I doubt that and I would advise keeping your distance from my cousin. If you value your reputation and your life in that order."
He smirked.
"Okay until we meet again…and darling, we will meet again…."
He took leave of the both of them and they watched him walk down the corridor until he faded into darkness. Julian turned to Alexis.
"I can explain…"
She shook her head, wanting to forget she'd ever encountered the infamous Jerry Jacks.
"I don't want to hear it. Whatever you…he did that's between the two of you Though I can't imagine it would have reached a better conclusion than his dealings with Stefan."
Julian looked at her then and knew she was right but also knew he had to keep that to himself. Still he felt concerned.
"I think you've attracted his interest and I don't think that's a good thing."
She turned towards him, her lips curled into a smirk.
"Oh really, you know you don't have to be chivalrous now because it's not going to get you any closer to the information you want from me."
He sighed.
"That's not my concern…Yes I'm interested but Jerry Jacks is definitely not a man you want to get involved in…in any way."
She put her hand on one of her hips, not believing what she was hearing. She never let a man tell her what to do…except for Stefan on occasion but in the timbre of Julian's voice, she did detect a hint of concern. That did unnerve her though she'd never show it.
"Don't worry about that not that it's any of your business. Stefan's cut ties with him and so should I."
They continued down the corridor.
"So you do whatever Stefan tells you to do?"
She didn't even glance his way, just continued to look towards the next fork in the road of this impossibly large mansion.
"I do what he wants. I owe a lot to him…If it weren't for Stefan, my formative years would have been much more difficult. Besides he and I agree on so many things…"
He grabbed her arm then and she instinctively pulled away. Irritation flooded through her that he would dare touch her so early in the game. He didn't seem to care.
"What about the things you don't agree on?"
She thought back then, hearing the beat of her heart inside her chest. After all there had been but one thing that had stood between her and Stefan. But she'd buried that memory so far away she could barely remembered it ever even happened. Her eyes darkened, her body tensed.
"That's none of your business Mr. Jerome. Now where is this grand library you've been telling me about? Surely we should almost be there by now."
He didn't respond immediately. She took that as a sign to continue.
"This boss of yours without a name or a face owns this grand estate, with this impressive library and yet he remains a shadow in your business operations. That tells me that there must be a reason for that…and it's probably related to your own somewhat illegal business operations."
His brow creased.
"I thought you weren't judging me since the family that raised you was so much worse."
She conceded that, barely. So much about him fascinated her though she'd never admit it. Stefan had given her orders on what to do and what information she needed to bring to him by the end of the gala. She intended to go through with it and yet…something about him seemed familiar. But that was easily explained away by the fact that she must have seen him in the media. After all, he and this girlfriend of his worked for newspapers and any familiarity with him must be attributed to that. Her notorious family rarely spent any time out of the spotlight.
She smirked. Sensing some defensiveness in his words and that did intrigue her. That remained alien to her because there'd never been an instance when she'd felt compelled to defend the Cassadines or be offended on their behalf. Now with Stefan maybe, but he had always been a different brand. That had been why Helena had always treated her second born with scorn and Stavros had teased him without mercy. When Mikkos and Helena's crown prince hadn't been torturing her he set his sights on his younger brother.
Not that it mattered now since Stavros was dead. He'd been killed by that Luke Spencer after Stavros had tried to reclaim his bride Lasha who had escaped from the island.
Leaving her own son behind without a backward glance. Alexis always smiled when she thought of her second cousin Nikolas Mikhail Stravosovich Cassadine who had just started his early studies with a tutor and was already able to read. He'd wanted for nothing, and Alexis had spent as much time with him as she could while on the island. She found that he filled a void in her own life, made her forget…she blinked her eyes not wanting even the memory to betray any tears in front of Julian. She had a job to do. Julian arched his brows almost playfully.
"If you are going to judge me, then you must know me a lot better first…"
She hesitated still trapped in a memory and then nodded.
"Fair enough…"
They continued onward. As she examined the elaborate décor of the corridor right down to the paintings by Van Gogh, Picasso and even a Jackson Pollack on the walls, she knew that his boss had to be someone not only rich and powerful but with impeccable taste in the arts. She glanced at him but he wasn't looking at the artwork. His eyes looked ahead and she knew he had something planned she just didn't know what.
Fair enough she had her own plans too that she'd outlined with Stefano. She had made it clear to her cousin that she would do whatever it took to get the information he wanted. She would warm up to Julian to get him to lower his guard but it would be without feeling. That part of her had died some years ago.
They continued walking…and at this point she thought this corridor seemed endless and then they turned at a juncture and headed down another one.
"Where are we going now…"
That's all she could ask because she was still processing what had happened during their encounter with Jerry Jacks. She knew the two men knew each other and had dealings with each other and yet, Julian had stood between her and Jerry perhaps without realizing it. Almost on instinct and that stirred something inside her. That feeling of elusive familiarity returned.
Maybe she filled the edges with her memories and saw what wasn't there.
The corridor seemed to be far different than the other one…and she heard the sound of what sounded like a downpour of rain on a shingle roof. The rain soothed her raw edges from everything else that had happened and the effects of the wine continued to relax her.. The rain soothed her raw edges from some distant memory that had invaded her mind. A snapshot from a moment of time in her life when she'd been but a teenager, the most traumatic time of her life. .
When she had first arrived at the party, she hadn't noticed any signs of inclement weather…but maybe it had been a quick moving storm.
Maybe it would move out just as quickly. Much more quickly than the tempest brewing inside her for reasons she didn't understand.
Now she looked at him and took in his impressive looks…his broad chest which stretched his business suit, the narrow waist and below…she sucked in her breath at the impressive bulge there. Then she looked at his face and she knew he had known where her eyes had fallen.
But he said nothing and they walked down the corridor. There were windows where the rain streamed down and darkness reigned in contrast to the brightness of the corridor.
"Where are we?"
He stopped and moved closer to her.
"We're almost there…to the place I promised to show you…"
"Your employer's library…?"
"In a matter of speaking…You'll really like what's inside, beyond your wildest dreams if you're into first edition literature from different cultures, in different languages."
She smiled.
"I am fluent in five languages so I should be just fine."
"You'll see …but there's something I want in return…"
That seemed to impress him, judging by a glimmer in his eyes. She still didn't know why he had brought her to this library. She'd thought his main directive was to lure her away from the party. Now she knew, it hadn't been a no strings attached arrangement at all.
Ah, she knew there had to be a catch somewhere.
She folded her arms.
"Okay what do you want then?"
His eyes penetrated hers…and she felt exposed under his gaze…
"You know what I want, several things, the first being the name of the real CEO of Cassadine Industries..…"
She rolled her eyes at that. She knew that had been his primary interest in her. Not that she could blame him because after all she was after the same thing, only involving who really was in charge of the Antoinelli organization. Was it really Victor Jerome as she and Stefan had suspected?
Still she couldn't act eager for that information.
"Don't talk in riddles please…just tell me what I have that you want?"
He smiled even wider, his eyes still on her.
"I want to get to know you better Alexis…"
She felt taken aback at his words and just stared at him. This hadn't been at all what she'd been expecting.
"You want what...?"
Julian eyed her directly and she felt a rush of heat fill her that came from absolutely nowhere that made any sense.
"You heard me…I want us to become better acquainted…"
She shrugged.
"You want us to work together? You want your organization to work with Cassadine Industries."
He nodded.
"That's a big part of it but that's not all of it. I want us to become better acquainted in other ways."
She read his intent in his eyes and shook her head.
"You're crazy…you can't just say things like that."
He took a step closer to her.
"Oh yes I can Alexis. You and I both want information from each other. The best way to get what we both want is to align ourselves together."
He lowered the tone of his voice and he pushed her against the wall but gently…his hands braced on either side of her. She knew she should feel offended and she did but she also felt a wave of excitement fill her.
"You left the party, and now you're here where no one can see or hear you…or even remember you existed," he said, "I can do whatever I want with you and only the two of us will know..."
She chuckled in her response, even as her heartbeat quickened inside her chest.
"The same applies to you Mr. Jerome. How do you know that wasn't my intent all along? To lure you away from the party to get what I wanted?"
He smirked.
"You mean what your cousin Stefan wanted…."
She shrugged, still smiling at him
"What's the difference, our interests are the same.
Julian looked at her a long moment, almost as if he were studying every feature on her face, every curve in her body. She felt then he was almost about to go for broke.
He didn't disappoint her.
"I see that and for the two of us as well…and I will do what I want and what I want is for us to join forces and work together. We can get a lot more accomplished that way."
She almost shrank away from his words. No, Stefan wouldn't be pleased for her to join in any alliance with the man in front of her. Even though she felt this mysterious pull towards him. It didn't make any sense not towards a stranger, especially not one on the opposite side of the Cassadines.
She shook her head again, even though he had her cornered, she refused to believe him…even as she felt her legs weaken but not from fear. She couldn't believe what he was asking of her, only it didn't seem he was asking.
"No, I don't want to do anything but go back to the party…if this is why you lured me away from it was to persuade or even coerce me into giving you the information you sought.."
He tilted his head. The subtle shadowing in his eyes made her wonder if her words offended him.
"Do you know which way to go to get back…which corridor to take? This mansion is huge. It's my employer's monument to himself and his own success."
She knew the answer to that question already but fell silent. He leaned even closer to her.
"No…you don't…it's not like you thought to leave a path of stones…or even breadcrumbs to find your way back…I don't think so. I also don't think that either of us is going to give each other the information we want. We're both constrained by obligations and loyalties to those we answer to…."
The certainty in his voice made her tremble. Not that she was afraid. She had exorcised that emotion forever from herself. She felt that he was challenging her and that invigorated her.
"What….would happen if I didn't do what you wanted? You can't do anything to me that hasn't been done already."
His face softened slightly when he heard her words.
"I'm not doing anything. I just need your help. I don't want to work against you. I just think if the organization I work for combined with the Cassadines it would be lucrative for both of us."
That intrigued her despite her intentions. She folded her arms looking at him.
"Why? Why would you think that?"'
He paused.
"I'm working with Dino…because my father wouldn't allow me to work for him. He built up this business empire but there's an illicit side of it and the only way I could work for him was if his business was strictly legit."
"I don't understand…you work for Dino Antoinelli who works for someone else who won't even reveal himself. Dino might claim to be a furniture importer specializing in antiques from abroad but that's just a cover and we both know that."
He looked down at his feet and she knew her words had struck a chord with him.
"I'm aware of that but Dino is making his business choices based on his relationship with my father. There must be some bad blood between them."
She pursed her lips, seeing that this revelation wasn't easy for him.
"Perhaps but that's your problem and it has nothing to do with me, Stefan or Cassadine Industries."
She felt impatience and wanted to return to the party but her back was still literally against a wall and he didn't seem interesting in moving away from her.
"It might…my father seems intent on trying to exploit the vacuum left by Frank Smith in Pt. Charles and in fact, one of Smith's enforcers, a man by the name of Sonny Corinthoes came to deliver that message but Evan ordered him to be beaten up instead."
She waved her hand.
"I don't pay attention to the mob clashes that take place routinely in the eastern seaboard and the only thing I know about Pt. Charles is Mikkos' using it to make a point."
"I don't agree with my father. I don't want my family business to be stained by his bad choices. I would think you would understood."
His words stung her slightly but she wasn't going to be influenced by them. She was sticking to Stefan's plan no matter what.
"I'm not going to help you Mr. Jerome. My loyalty is to Cassadine Industries. I might despise most of the family members but Stefan…he's always been good to me and I'll be in return."
Julian didn't seemed concerned at her words, she felt his nearness to her and it should have irritated her but instead she felt calm.
The timbre of his voice hardly soothed her, nor did his closeness to her. She knew she had a choice to make. She just didn't know if it'd be the right choice.