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Chapter 10 – Lulu Goes to Ireland to Close the Case
Lulu couldn't sit still on the plane to Dublin. She was nervous about doing this alone and upset over her fight with Dante. She thought about the encounter they had right before she left. He came over to her apartment to try and talk her out of going alone.
Lulu opened the door to find Dante nervously waiting on the other side.
"Hey, come in. I'm just getting ready to leave." Lulu said as she stepped aside to let him pass.
"I have been thinking about this since you told me about it. I really want to go with you." Dante said.
"I already told you that I'm doing this alone. This is my job Dante, not yours." Lulu said exasperated.
"I don't care. I don't want you going by yourself. These people are dangerous no matter how much fun we had with them on that island. They won't hesitate to kill you if they think you betrayed them." Dante tried to reason with her.
"I know that. I'm not stupid. I have been trained for this and I will have back-up nearby. There is no reason for you to be there." Lulu did not understand why Dante could not just let it be.
"I should be there because they know me and I can go right into the room with you. That way if anything goes down, I'm right there to protect you." Dante insisted.
"Dante, I said no. I need to do this alone." Lulu was getting really frustrated. "Just let it go, I'm going to be late." She went to grab her overnight bag.
Dante went up and grabbed her arms and shook her to make her look at him. "What if something happens to you? Where does that leave me? This is dangerous. It isn't a game and this is your life we are talking about. I can't lose you." He said with his face inches from hers.
Lulu shook herself free. "LET GO OF ME! You don't think I know this isn't a game? Why do you insist on treating me like some helpless idiot? I was chosen to do this job without your help and you involved yourself. Now I have to go before I miss my plane and I'm not leaving you here alone in my apartment." Lulu picked up her bag and purse and then marched over to the door and waited for Dante to exit. She locked up and they rode down in the elevator in silence. They exited the building and Lulu went to get in the town car that was waiting for her.
"Lulu!" Dante said as she went to open the door. She turned around to look at him and waited. "I'm sorry. Please just be careful and call me to let me know you are okay? I know you don't owe me anything and you aren't obligated to check in but I'm going to worry every minute you are gone."
Lulu didn't answer right away. "Please?" Dante asked, looking deep into her eyes.
"I'll call you when the mission is over." She acquiesced.
Dante stepped forward and hugged her tightly. "I love you." He whispered in her ear. He pulled back and she kissed him on the cheek quickly before getting into the car. He watched the car take her away and hoped she would be okay.
She knew he was only doing it because he cared but he had to let her do this on her own. She still felt badly for fighting with him when he was only trying to help and wanted her to be safe. She would call him after the mission was complete and let him know she was okay. Maybe they could go out to dinner and talk when she got back. For now she had to focus on the task at hand so she could end this once and for all. She was due to meet her contact at a pub outside Dublin with the rest of the money. He would have the rubies. Once Lulu had them in hand, her back up would move in and make the arrests. The tricky part would be getting out of the way when the chaos ensued.
Lulu arrived at the meeting place and entered the building carrying her large handbag full of cash. She saw Len waiting for her at the bar and she went over to greet him.
"So good to see you again!" Lulu said as she kissed both of his cheeks.
"Trixie, so glad you could make it. Shall we go out back and handle our business? Then we can have a drink." Len offered.
"Great!" Lulu said and she followed him through a door beside the bar. She was surprised to find three other men in the back room waiting for them but she kept her cool. She handed over the bag full of cash and one of the guys counted it. Then Len got out the bag of rubies and took them out for Lulu to see.
"They are gorgeous! Perfect for my wedding day!" Lulu gushed.
That was the cue for the back up to move in. They burst into the room to make the arrests and the thieves started shooting. One of them grabbed Lulu and held a gun to her head. Remembering her training, Lulu tried to remain calm and stopped struggling for a minute to make him think he had won. In the chaos none of the other agents noticed she was taken hostage yet. After a minute Lulu elbowed him in the stomach and when he doubled over she elbowed his head, knocking him to the ground.
Lulu made her way towards the exit and felt a searing pain in her shoulder. She knew immediately that she had been shot. She kept running until she was out of the building. Liam rushed forward and grabbed her to bring her into a van that sped off to take her to the hospital. She could feel herself losing consciousness on the way there. Liam was trying to keep her talking but she couldn't focus on what he was saying.
She managed to find her voice. "Tell Dante I'm okay." She whispered before she finally passed out.
While Lulu was in surgery, her phone rang and Liam answered it.
"Liam? Why are you answering Lulu's phone? Where is she? Is she okay?" Dante demanded.
"Dante, try to remain calm. Lulu completed the mission but got shot in the arm when the arrest was being made. She is in surgery right now to take the bullet out but she should be just fine." Liam tried to assure him.
Dante felt like he couldn't breathe. "You were supposed to make sure she was safe!" Dante shouted into the phone. "Where is she? What hospital?"
Liam named the hospital but then tried to discourage Dante from coming. "She will be out of surgery in a couple of hours and will probably only need to spend a day or two in the hospital before she can go home. It isn't necessary for you to come."
"You listen to me very carefully. This is the woman that I love and she has been shot. I am going to be on the next plane and there is nothing you or anyone else can do to stop me from getting to her." Dante hung up the phone and ran out of his apartment.
A few hours later, Lulu groggily woke up from the anesthesia and found Liam sitting in the chair by her bed.
"Hey!" He said cheerily. "Congratulations Lulu! You did it! Your dad is off the hook and we got almost all of the players on our list."
Lulu smiled. "I did it." She looked down at her arm. "Looks like I didn't make it out unscathed though."
"You got shot in the arm. They got the bullet out and you should only have a small scar. They said you can go home in a couple of days as long as you don't develop any infections." Liam explained.
"Do you know where my phone is? I should call Dante. I told him I would call him when the mission is over so he is probably worried." Lulu said as she looked for her phone.
Liam got up to get her phone from her bag of belongings. "Yes, he was worried. He called and I answered your phone."
"Oh no. Did you tell him I got shot?" Lulu knew Dante was going to be upset.
"I was honest with him. He was very upset and insisted I tell him where you were. I'm pretty sure he's on his way here right now." Liam explained.
"I'm fine, he doesn't have to come here." Lulu felt badly that he was coming all the way here.
"I don't think anything could have stopped him. Now that you are awake and I know you are okay, I have to go get all of the paperwork finished on these arrests. Will you be okay here by yourself?" Liam said as he stood up to go.
"Sure, I'll be fine." She said. She didn't really want to be by herself in this strange hospital but she wouldn't tell him that.
"Great, congratulations on finishing the job. I'm confident we are going to have plenty of assignments for you in the future should you want to continue. We'll make arrangements for you to get home as soon as you are released." Liam said and then he left. She tried to call Dante's phone but it went straight to voice mail. She wondered if he was really coming all the way here. If she was being honest with herself she would be happy to see him if he did show up. She was a little freaked out about being shot and a familiar face would be a welcome comfort. Especially his familiar face. It occurred to her that he was the only person she wanted to see right at this moment. She drifted off to sleep again hoping she would be able to get in touch with him when she woke up.
Dante arrived at the hospital and ran to the front desk. "Lulu Spencer's room please?"
"What is your name sir?" The receptionist asked. This particular patient had a list of approved visitors to prevent any retaliation from the organization she helped destroy.
"Dante Falconeri. Please just tell me where she is!" Dante did not have time for this. His plane had circled the Dublin airport for almost an hour waiting for their turn to land.
The woman checked the list and found his name added to the bottom by the man that brought her in. "You are on the list. Her room number is 1702."
"Thank you!" Dante said as he was already on his way to the elevators.
Lulu woke up with a start and was disappointed to see she was still alone. She tried to call Dante again but his phone went right to voice mail. She sighed. All she wanted was to hear his voice. Just then Dante rushed into the room completely frazzled and out of breath. She burst into tears as soon as she saw him.
"You came." She said smiling at him through her tears.
He rushed forward and sat in the chair next to her bed grasping her hand. "Of course I came. Are you okay? He told me you were shot. Does it hurt? Did they give you something for the pain? Why are you crying?"
"Dante, I'm okay. I got shot in the arm and they did surgery to get the bullet out. I can go home in a couple of days as long as there is no infection. I'm crying because I'm happy to see you."
"You are?" He asked, surprised. He thought she would be upset after the fight they had before she left.
"I am. I'm sorry we fought before I left. I know you were just trying to protect me because you care. I realized when I woke up here in this hospital that your face was the only one that I wanted to see." Lulu confessed.
"It was?" Dante asked hopefully as he brushed the tears off of her cheeks with his thumbs.
Lulu nodded. "I love you."
Now it was Dante's turn to get emotional as his eyes filled with tears and relief filled his heart. "I love you too. So much." He said as he cupped her faced in his hands and leaned forward to kiss her softly. He pulled back and rested his forehead against hers. "You can't get shot again. I don't think I breathed from the time I heard until I finally saw you were okay for myself."
"I can't make any promises but I certainly don't plan on it." She said as she kissed him again. She carefully scooted over to make room for him in the small hospital bed. "Will you cuddle with me?" She asked.
"I would love to." Dante said as he kicked off his shoes and climbed into bed with her. She settled into the crook of his arm as he kissed the top of her head. "So what does this all mean for us Lulu?"
"I don't know what the future holds for us but I do know that I love you and I want to try again. I know that you are a good man and that you made some mistakes but that you love me. I want to give us another chance." Lulu said. "I want us to try and see what happens." She tilted her face up to look at Dante and he was looking down at her with a hopeful, happy look on his face.
He leaned down to kiss her softly. "I love you and I'm going to prove to you that giving us another chance was the only choice to make."
Lulu rested her head back on his chest. "I'm really glad you're here."
"When your arm is better we are going on vacation." Dante declared.
"Oh yeah?" Lulu asked
"Yes. I want to be totally alone with you. No work. No interruptions. No danger. Just us."
"That sounds nice." Lulu said as she yawned.
"Get some rest." Dante said as he rubbed her waist.
"I love you." Lulu said and she snuggled closer.
"I love you too." Dante said as she drifted off to sleep. He couldn't believe she had finally let him back in. He was incredibly lucky that she gave him another chance and he wasn't going to screw it up. He was going to find them a remote spot to vacation just the two of them so they could really reconnect. It would be like the island but without the espionage and danger.
Two days later they were back in Port Charles. Dante stayed by her side the whole time she was in the hospital and now he was helping her into her apartment so she could continue her recovery. Lulu couldn't wait to take a real shower and wash the hospital away. She was exhausted from the trip and emotionally spent.
"I'm going to shower." She said as she headed towards the bathroom off the master bedroom.
"Do you need help?" Dante asked as he followed her.
"No, thanks." Lulu said. She was sure she could at least bathe herself.
"Okay, I'm going to run over to my apartment and just grab some clothes and stuff so I can stay with you for the next couple of days while you recover." Dante said. "Are you sure you don't want my help with your shower? It might be hard to do with one arm."
"No, I can do it. You go ahead and get your stuff. I'm glad you will be staying with me for a few days. I like having you around." Lulu said as she tilted her face up to kiss him.
"I'll be back in 15-20 minutes." Dante said as he closed the door behind him.
Lulu carefully undressed which took a lot of effort with her arm mostly out of commission. Once she finally got all of her clothes off, she opened the door to her large shower and stepped inside. She was trying to scrub shampoo in her hair with one hand when she realized she couldn't actually bathe herself with the injury. Exhaustion and the emotions of the last few days caught up with her and she slid down the wall of the shower and started sobbing in the corner. Dante came back into the apartment expecting Lulu to be done with her shower and settled into bed. He went into the bedroom and heard her wimpering over the running water. He burst in to see what was wrong.
"Baby? What is it? Did you fall? Are you hurt?" He said as he stepped in the shower with all of his clothes on to kneel next to her on the tile floor.
"I can't wash my hair." She cried. "You're wearing clothes in the shower." She looked at him confused.
"I thought you were hurt so I didn't want to take time and get undressed." He smiled at her.
"I'm sorry. I'm just exhausted and I can't do anything for myself." She cried.
"I'm here to help you." He said as he helped her up off of the shower floor. He quickly stripped off his wet clothes and tossed them outside the shower. He lovingly washed her hair and body before quickly washing himself and then rinsed them both off before turning off the water.
He wrapped her in a towel and brought her into the bedroom. He helped her into some underwear and a nightgown. "I'm sorry I had a little meltdown." She said as he was carefully pulling the strap of the nightgown over her injured arm. "You're really wonderful."
"I love you. This is what people do for their loved ones." He shrugged. He towel dried and combed her hair so it wouldn't get tangled. He helped her into bed and gave her one of her pain pills and some water. He put on some underwear and then hung up his wet clothes in her bathroom to dry. When he was finished, he shut off all of the lights and locked up the apartment for the night. Lulu watched him do all of this as he came in and out of the bedroom and felt an overwhelming sense of love for him. He came through for her when it counted.
"What?" Dante asked as he smiled at her when he caught her staring as he shut off the overhead lights in the room.
"I just love you very much. Plus, I like watching you walk around my apartment in your underwear." She said as he slid into bed. She settled into the crook of his arm with her head resting on his chest. "I'm really glad you're here."
"I wouldn't be anywhere else." Dante said and he kissed her on the top of the head. "I planned us a vacation."
"You did? Where? When did you even have time to do that?" She asked.
"You slept a lot in the hospital so I made some calls. I called in a few favors and got us a beach house in Hawaii for two whole weeks!" Dante was so excited.
"No way! How did you manage that?" Lulu couldn't believe it.
"Let's just say some old buddies owed me and I collected." Dante said mysteriously.
"It will be just like our last trip only without the secret spy stuff." Lulu laughed.
"Yes and we will be totally alone. I'm not allowing any interruptions whatsoever." Dante declared.
"And what will we be doing with all of this uninterrupted time?" Lulu asked even though she knew the answer.
"We are going to reconnect and make up for those months we missed together. You are going to wear all of those tiny bikinis and I am not going to have to take any cold showers." Dante said happily. "Your doctor said you would be okay to go in a couple of weeks and I talked to Liam. He said you can't go back on active duty for two months after being shot so that gives us plenty of time for the vacation. I'm still on forced vacation from the PCPD for a few more weeks."
"Looks like you have it all figured out." Lulu said.
"Is that okay? Should I have talked to you first?" Dante asked, suddenly worried that he should have checked with her before planning anything.
"Dante, it's wonderful. I can't wait to go." Lulu assured him. "You thought of everything."
Dante sighed in relief. "You should get some rest."
"Thanks for taking care of me." Lulu said as she snuggled in a little closer.
"Thanks for letting me. I love you."
"I love you too." Lulu drifted off into a peaceful sleep.