Title: The Road Less Traveled

Author: Christy AKA Fallen Angel

Disclaimer: Don't own it! Never will! Wish I did!

Sonny has a little sister. Sonny Corinthos has a little sister. Mike has a daughter. Bella is Sonny's sister and Mike's daughter. Weird.

"Weird." Emily flopped back on the couched and tried to take in all she had learned. Now she was beginning to understand how the past few days had been for Sonny, learning one new thing about her after another.

"Very weird," Lucky agreed as he sat next to her on the couch. Emily turned to look at him just in time to see him scrunch up his face like a little boy trying to figure out a puzzle.

"What are you doing?"

"Thinking," Lucky answered as he turned to look at her.

"Don't hurt yourself."

Just as Lucky was about to answer, Sonny came walking back into the penthouse. He looked at Emily and Lucky sitting, stunned, on the couch and Jason leaning casually next to the fireplace. Of course he would be calm and controlled, Sonny thought, he didn't just find out about some long, lost sister.

"How is she," Jason asked as Sonny closed the door.

"Okay, I guess. She's going to spend tonight with Brenda, Gia, and Michael at your place. The social worker…or whatever will be back tomorrow to see what I decide."

"What do you mean decide? I thought she was staying here," Emily asked suspiciously as Sonny started walking over to get himself a drink.

"She is. I meant decide about Mike."

"What about Mike?"

Sonny looked over at her for a second, before lifting up the glass in his hand and looking down into it. He stood there for a second, mesmerized as the dark brown liquid swirl in his hand. "Ms. Tierney," he began slowly as his eye stayed focused on the bourbon, "believes I should apply for custody of Bella. She says that and looking for Mike are my only option. Either way I'll need, at least, temporary guardianship or something like that."

"You not gonna do that are you?" Emily asked disbelievingly, "Just apply for custody without trying to find Mike."

"She says I have to show proof that I tried…something about an ad in the paper."

"Yeah, but Sonny, you're gonna do more than that right?"

"Why should I?"

"Look, don't get me wrong, I know Mike and I love him, but also know he isn't really fit to raise a child. But Sonny you've got to at least let him know what's going on."

"Why?"

"Why?" Emily looked at him indignantly and then to Jason and Lucky for some sort of assistance. No help there, either. "Because he's her father."

"Maybe he should have acted like it!"

"That's not fair Sonny."

"I don't have to be fair to him!"

"No, your right. You have to be fair to her!"

Sonny looked at Emily for a second, studying her, trying to decide if she was right. Should he tell Mike? Was that even his job? Who cares, he thought as he look down to the drink in his hand and finally swallowed its dark contents.

"Listen," Jason, who had been standing silently, finally decided it was his turn to weigh in. "Sonny. We should at least let Mike knows she's safe."

"Is she," Sonny asked skeptically?

Emily and Lucky's heads both whipped up and Jason just pinched the bridge of his nose. "What do you mean?" They all asked simultaneously.

"Victoria," Sonny answer, "Bella's mother, she made all these arrangements, to find Mike, a week before she died."

"That…" Lucky began, "is not a coincidence. Is it?"

"Doubt it." Sonny looked around the room cautiously before he sat down in his chair and relaxed.

"You think it's about business," Jason asked carefully and waited for Sonny to shake his head in response.

"Wait. No. It couldn't be."

"What are you talking about," Sonny looked at Emily like she was a child who just spoke out of turn at a family meeting. "You think this is a coincidence?"

"No, Sonny. I don't believe I've ever been that naïve, but just because it wasn't some freak accident doesn't mean it has a damn thing to do with you. I mean, probably, this woman didn't even know you exist. And you surely didn't know about her. So what does killing her—no warning, no reason—have to with you?"

"Nothing." Lucky answered cautiously, "She's right. Any one of our enemies would have made sure you knew who killed her and put your little sister in harms way."

"So what, it was just a shot at her?"

"Or Mike," Jason looked to Sonny as he answered the question and, in turn, everyone looked at him. "You know Mike, he attracts trouble. Doesn't mean to, just does."

"Yeah," Sonny agreed. "He does."

"So maybe Bella's mother was trouble or maybe something caught up to one of them. Trust me Sonny, you don't make arrangements for your child unless you think you might need them—not that quickly."

"Alright," Sonny grimaced at Jason and scrubbed his hands across his face. "Put one of the guys on it, we need to find Mike and figure out what happened. But we can't worry about it too much right now, not with everything else we've got going. Does Bella have a guard?"

"Yup," Lucky supplied.

"Good," Sonny nodded at Lucky and then looked at Emily who was sitting smugly, smiling at him. He ignored the look on her face and pointed at her, "We need to get you ready for tonight."

"I'm ready," she said indignantly. "I've studied the files…"

"No, the FBI's files aren't good enough," Emily wanted to laugh out loud; Sonny had said FBI in the same way she'd imagined him saying dog shit. "You need to really understand what you're getting into. Trust me."

She sobered quickly. Trust me, he'd said. Could she?

Emily looked into Sonny's eyes trying to find something, anything that she could believe in and hang onto. She stared him for what seemed to be an eternity for all in the room and decided, "Okay."

"Alright," Lucky grinned and threw a set of files on the table in front of him and Emily. "These beautiful little files hold all of our personal info on the bosses that will be there tonight."

"Vito Corelli," Emily said as she looked at the picture of the man on the first file she'd picked up. He had short, black, silky hair with a little salt and pepper added to the sides. His light green eyes shown out from the picture and accentuated his dark olive skin.

"Good choice," Lucky commented. "Old school. He plays by all the rules laid out years ago. He's one of the very few left that even remember the rules before La Cosa Nostra, but he doesn't really like women in the business. Especially Faith."

"Good point," Sonny agreed, "but he does seem to have a soft spot for fiery brunettes."

"Perfect," Emily smiled.

"Yeah," Sonny grinned. "Rumor is that his wife ran his business last year when he was in the hospital."

"Heart attack, right?"

"Yup! Good girl, Emily. I guess the good-for-nothing-FBI does get things right sometimes, huh," Lucky flinched forward as Emily smacked the back of his head. "Anyway, since the heart attack he's been better than ever."

"Alright next?"

Jason leaned over and picked up a file off of the table and handed it to Emily after he checked the name. "Anthony Marciano."

"Tony!"

"You know him," Jason asked her suspiciously?

"Yeah, he usually works out of Vegas, but I dealt with him about a year and a half ago in Mexico. A couple of months before his father died."

"What do you remember?"

"He's quite, damn near sweet, usually, but if you make the mistake of pissing him off… There's no question, he's a mobster through and through," Emily grimaced as she remembered his usually warm brown eyes hardening when she told him one of his men had betrayed him.

"He's the youngest of three brothers," Sonny started. "The oldest was supposed to take over the family business, but refused when he got married. Tony was the only one of them who couldn't say no to his father. And, as you know his father was killed."

"Yeah, I remember. Bank heist gone wrong. He actually did just happen to be in the wrong place etc, etc."

"It just about tore the kid apart," Sonny said. He remembered Tony sitting, a brother on each side, stoically for over an hour as the funeral service and paying of respects went on. Then back at the Marciano estate, Sonny stumbled on him in his fathers study. Shoulders that were usually strong and broad were slumped over and shaking as sobs racked the youngest Marciano's body. His black hair was covering up his eyes and it reminded Sonny of a little boy, years before, locked in a closet with now way out…

"Next," Emily captured Sonny's eyes as she lifted the last file and handed it to him.

Sonny looked into her brown eyes, he'd expected pity, annoyance, something, but all he got was compassion shinning back at him. He shook his head as he noticed her reaching out to take his hand; instead he took the file from her. "Dante Verdicof."

"You know him?" Jason looked over at Emily as she scrunched up her face trying to remember if she recognized the name.

"No, I don't think so."

"Okay," Sonny wasn't surprised; he didn't think she'd moved up quite far enough to have dealings with him, yet. "He's Demetri Valencia's second, but Demetri is dying and being one of the last of the old school guys, along with Corelli, not one has asked him to step down. Demetri and Dante are two of the very few mixtures of Russian and Sicilian families. Dante is Demetri's nephew."

"Nephew," Emily looked around confused. "I may be wrong, but I thought Demetri had sons. And good lord to all of the men in that family have names that begin with DV? It's really confusing!"

"No, actually they don't," Sonny, grinned as Emily held up the two files trying to remember which was which. "And, yes, Demetri does have two sons, he didn't want the in the business."

"Oh. So who is gonna be there tonight nephew Dante or uncle Demetri?"

"Don't know. Sometimes Demetri is up to it…sometimes not."

Now it was Emily's turn to scrub her hands over her faces as she picked up the next file, "Oh lord, my favorite asshole."

"Sorel," Jason supplied as he walked around to the back of the couch and looked at the file over her shoulder.

"Anything I should know about him?"

"Yeah," Lucky answered. "He was Moreno's second and he's about two times as dumb."

"Well since Moreno was an idiot, I guess that's good to know," she laughed as she reached for the next folder and frowned—considering. "Well, I don't need to be briefed on this one."

"Yes, you do," Sonny waited until he was sure she was paying attention before continuing on. "I don't care what you think you know about Andrejs Nikolai, he's dangerous. I don't want you alone with him—not tonight."

"But…"

"No," Jason interrupted from above her. "Sonny's right. We've all heard about him, but no one here has ever seen him in action. I don't want you alone with him especially with Faith and…"

"Candyboy," Lucky supplied happily, breaking the tension and making everyone laugh.

"Yeah, sure. Especially not with them there."

"I don't get that," Emily sat back and looked up at Jason. "How do those two have any power?"

"Jax has enough power in the legit business world to be a possible threat for anyone on that front. And Faith is just too crazy for anyone to go there—yet."

"Okay, who's the last file?" Emily picked it up and looked at it and thee threw the file back on the desk as like it had bit her. "Ugh! You're kidding me right."

"Would we do that?" Lucky looked over at the file and couldn't blame her, he had the same response when he found out that Danny Marciano was also going to be at the meeting.

"Great. Danny. My least favorite Marciano."

"Everyone's least favorite Marciano," Lucky added. "At least it's easy to tell him apart from the rest of the family. He's the only blonde haired, blue eyed one in the bunch."

"Yea, well, word on the street was that Danny's mom cheated on dear old dad and rather than admit he couldn't control his wife he just raised the bastard child. I, personally, don't believe that. Father and son are too much alike for my taste."

"Wait," Lucky held up his hand, "this always confuses me. Danny is Tony's…what?"

"Cousin. Tony's father is Danny's uncle…"

"But Danny's father isn't related to Tony's father?"

"Right," Emily answered and then looked over at Lucky who seemed to be more confused than ever. "Oh my gosh, it's not that hard! Look Tony's father is the brother of Danny's mother. Got me? Good. Okay when Danny was born he didn't take his father's last name, his mother wanted him to have her families name. Understand now?"

"Yes mother, but this would all be much less confusing if we only had one Marciano to deal with."

"Good point," Emily agreed.

"Most people would agree with that," Sonny added. "But about ten years ago the Marciano family split. The good, loyal half ended up with Tony and his father. And the rest with Danny and his father. For a while Danny's dad kept business moving, but since he died five years ago Danny just keeps getting weaker and weaker. That's what makes him dangerous, he'd do anything to move up. Anything."

"Good to know…" Emily trailed off as she noticed another file on the floor in front of her; she looked around the table and counted all that was there. Seven. That was right, wasn't it? "Who's this?"

"Alcazar," Jason answered as he looked at the folder.

"Lorenzo?"

"Yeah, you know him?"

"Of him," she answered and opened up the thin file.

"Welcome to the club," Lucky said. "No one knows much about him. He's sort of the wild card, but Happy and Bashful over there don't seem too worried about him."

Emily looked up at Jason and grinned at the confused look on his face, "The seven dwarfs Jase."

"I have a family, Em."

"I thought you and Michael only read travel books together."

"I do," he answered almost shyly. "Bren likes the fairytales."

Lucky busted out laughing before the words even left Jason's mouth. "You read your wife fairytales? That's…"

"Sweet," Emily said as she lifted her boot encase foot and brought it down on Lucky's. "Really sweet. And anyone who thinks differently will deal with my wrath."

"I'm shaking."

"Shut up, Dopey."

"As much as I love to sit here and listen to the two of you argue back and forth…" Sonny interrupted the fight that was ready to break out between Lucky and Emily and looked directly at Emily. "We need to get ready."

"He's right," Jason responded quickly, glad for the subject change.

Lucky and Jason both head toward the door as Sonny picked up the files off of the table in front of Emily. She watched the three men for a second, stunned before saying, "Hold on. Where are you two going? I thought we were all going to this meeting together."

"Crap!"

"Crap what," Emily asked looking as Jason and Lucky standing at the door. "Jason? Crap what?"

Sonny took one looked at the confused and worried look on Emily's face and almost cursed himself. With all the stuff that happened with Bella they'd forgotten to tell Emily about the change of plans.

"Em, we're not going."

"You two go ahead," Sonny interrupted before Emily could respond to Jason revelation. When Jason and Lucky were both out the door he turned and looked at Emily.

"What the hell is going on?"

"We got a call before you got back, that's why we pulled out the files to brief you. There is a late shipment that's coming in tonight; Lucky and Jason have to meet it."

"Both of them?"

"Yes. Don't worry. I'll be by your side the whole night."

"Promise," Emily asked?

Sonny was about to give a smart elleck answer when he looked over and saw the look on her face. Vulnerability. Natural vulnerability. Interesting.

"Yeah, I promise. Come on, let's go get ready." He smiled at her as he led her upstairs with his hands resting protectively on her lower back.

"Hello old friend," Vito Corelli smiled as Demetri Valencia was led into his hotel room by his second in command.

"Long time Vito. How are you?"

"Good, good, fit as the day I was born."

"You were nearly two months premature in the 1930's"

"Yes, well, I am an old man you know."

"Don't remind me," Demetri replied as he shook his head.

"You both do well enough," Dante replied from behind his boss's wheelchair.

"Sweet boy," Demetri smiled as he patted the younger mans hand. "Would you mind giving me some time alone with my old friend?"

"Sure…"

"No." Corelli interrupted. "There's no need to kick the boy out. He probably understands more of this than either of us old men do."

"Alright. Stay," Demetri motioned for Dante to sit down and the younger man followed orders.

"So, Sonny Corinthos," Corelli said as he settled back into his chair. "Did either of you have any clue that he would come into the drug trade?"

"No sir," Dante answered.

"Call me Vito."

"Yes, sir."

Vito Corelli threw his head back and laugh boisterously, if Dante hadn't known better he would have expected the walls to shake as the laugh rumbled through the room.

"You trained the boy well," Vito pointed out.

"Yes," Demetri answered casually.

"Still humble I see. Anyway, what do you thin Corinthos is up to? It's not like he needs the extra money or territory he could gain from this. Why come in how when he's nearly untouchable, this could put that old target back on him?"

"Word is," Demetri answered, "that he started this when he met Corey Wilson, but my feeler say there were signs before that."

"Yes, well Ms. Quartermaine is a mystery isn't she?"

"Who?"

Corelli looked to Dante, who shook his head to signal that he hadn't yet given his boss that information. "Sorry old friend I thought someone had told you…"

"It's my fault," Dante said and bowed his head at Vito Corelli as apology for interrupting. "I should have told you before."

"Tell me now," Demetri answer coldly.

"Corey Wilson, the women whose been making a name for herself these past few years," Dante looked up to makes sure his boss was still following, when Demetri shook his head he continued on. "She's also Emily Quartermaine, Jason Morgan's little sister."

"Well then, things sure are different then they were when we were younger."

"Yes they are. Have you used her for anything Demetri?"

"I don't…" he looked to his second in command for an answer. "Dante?"

"Almost, once. On a deal we had in Prague about a year back, but we handed it ourselves instead."

"Uhh…David, the little, unloyal bastard."

"Yes, well, it happens," Corelli responded with a bit of humor in his voice. "I've known a couple of men who've used her very unique services. Being a woman she can get into places most others can't. They say she's very good at whatever she'd being hired for, hitter, courier, muscle even, the list goes on…"

"You think she's using Corinthos?"

"No," Dante answered his boss's question. "They say she's loyal to a fault to the people she loves."

"But you're not sure," Corelli asked?

"I'm sure Corinthos is safe, but anyone who crosses her… We'll I wouldn't do it."

"Well then," Corelli answered. "None of us will. As a matter of fact, we should just sit back, relax, and enjoy the show."

"I haven't seen a good show in a very long time," Demetri responded.

"Daddy, Daddy, Daddy." The little girl with short black hair and almond shape black eyes came running through the dinning room of the estate her and her family lived on.

"Zoe, Zoe, Zoe," Tony Marciano reached down and lifted the little girl up off of the floor and into his arms. "What's the problem, Pixie?"

"Protect me!"

"From who?"

"Mama!" The little girl looked over her should warily and then back to her father. "She's coming for me!"

Tony grinned at the lower lip that his daughter had sticking out and looked down finally noticing the purple robe that was wrapped around her tiny body. "Is she?"

"Uh huh," his daughter stared up at him with the most serious look he had ever seen in her eyes.

"Could that be because you're supposed to be getting a bath right now?"

"Uhhh…"

"Yes that could be exactly the reason." Looking at the woman it would be obvious to tell where the little girl got her striking black eyes from, but the long brown hair and lengthy body didn't pass from mother to daughter. The woman smiled at her child and the looked up at her husband and kissed his cheek. "Hello my beautiful husband."

"Hello my beautiful wife."

"Daddy," the little girl wiggled in her father's arms.

Tony leaned down and kissed her on her chubby cheek, "And my beautiful daughter."

"Hi Daddy!"

"Are you torturing your mommy?"

"I don't thinks so," she looked over to her mother, confused. "Am I mommy?"

"Yes, Pixie you are."

"Oh, yes Daddy I am," she smiled proudly up at her father.

"Well stop it," he laughed as he pulled his daughter up so she was nose to nose with him.

"Okay Daddy," the little girl answered before falling back into the routine she shared with her father and giggling so that he would pull her back away from his face.

"And go finish your bath," he said as he set her down on the floor in front of him.

"Fine, but I don't like it."

"Fine, but I don't care."

Zoe stopped mid-stride, turned, hands on her hips and whined, "Daddy"

"Pixie."

"Don't be mean, please."

"Alright Pixie go get your bath."

"K, Daddy."

"You've created a monster," Marisol Marciano smiled at her husband.

"Just like her mommy," he answered as he turned and wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Oh yeah right," she laughed as she hit him on the shoulder. "Look again buddy, with the exception of the eyes that girl is the spitting image of her daddy."

"She is isn't she?"

"Yes she is," she answered as she leaned back into her husband's strong arms and rested her head on his shoulder, smelling him—a mix of cologne, sweat, and something that was pure male and pure Tony.

"Mari…"

"Promise me."

"I promise," he answered without even hearing what the promise was. It was a ritual they'd shared from the day after their daughter was born.

"Good."

"Mommy," Zoe yelled from down the hallway. "I'm ready!"

"Go give your little monster a kiss before you leave."

"Okay," he said as he walked down the hall to his daughter.

"Tony," he wife said almost desperately trying to get his attention. "I love you."

Tony grinned out into the dark as the hallway became a dark garage, the safety he'd felt at home quickly melted away and he was flanked by two guards. His wife's beautiful smile faded just as the hallway had and he remember that she was in Las Vegas with their little Pixie and he was in Port Charles alone.

"Are you ready sir," the guard to his right asked as the limo stopped in front of them.

"Yeah," he answered and the looked down at the wedding ring on his finger. He turned it gently as he did when he was thinking of his wife and whispered into the night air, "I love you more."

"Who the hell is the mystery guy anyway?" Danny Marciano stepped carefully into the shadows of the alley and for a second was reminded of a movie he once saw where the main character went in an alley that looked a lot like this one and didn't come out alive.

"You'll see," Joseph Sorel answered cryptically.

"I don't want to see. I want to know!"

"Patience Mr. Marciano," Andrejs Nikolai glowered as he stepped out of the shadows, "is a virtue. Just one of the many you don't have."

"Who the hell are you?" Danny squinted trying to get a better look at the man, but the black hair and the dark clothes made it nearly impossible for him to get a good enough look.

"My friends call me Nikolai. My loyal employees call me sir. And I prefer it if you didn't address me at all."

"Listen asshole," Danny grumbled as he stepped forward, but was cut off by something gripping his throat—first lightly, but the more and more pressure was applied until he could barely feel even wisps of air making t to his lungs.

"I suggest," Nikolai smiled as he squeezed tighter, "that you shut up and listen."

Danny shook his head in agreement until he was released and he broke into a fit asking, between coughs, "What…What do you want from me?"

"What part of shut up and listen was confusing to you?"

"Non…Sorry."

"Good boy," Nikolai responded coldly as he stepped away from Danny and looked at Sorel who was standing quietly in the corner—it hadn't taken near as many warnings to train him. "This isn't about what I want, at least now yet. It's about what you want and what I can give you. If, and only if, you play by my rules."

"What do I have to do?"

Nikolai smiled and his white teeth contrasted brightly in the dark alley causing shivers to move up Sorel's spine.

"How do we do it?"

Jax rolled over as he caught his breath and pulled Faith back over him, where she had been straddling him only minutes before giving him one of the best fucks of his life. "Like this," he answered.

"Excuse me," she grinned mischievously knowing exactly what he meant.

"No, I will not excuse you," he answered as he flipped them both over so that he was straddling her waist. "I think," he trapped her hands above her head with one hand and moved the other down the length of her taut body, "that you need to pay Lorenzo Alcazar a visit."

"Ummmm…" Faith laughed biting at his lips—as he reached down to kiss her—drawing blood. "What kind of visit?"

"The kind that ends the way our first one did."

"I hope he can handle it," she said as she lifted her hips and ground into him.

"I don't."

Lorenzo Alcazar stared out the window of his limousine as the driver maneuvered it through the streets of Port Charles. Port Charles. The city where his brother was murdered not even a year before. What the hell was he doing in this town?

Business.

Everything. He reminded himself, everything, came down to the almighty dollar.

He'd spent years learning that rule from his father and his brother, who felt the need to pound in a little harder in the years when Lorenzo actually decided he wanted a family. A family that—like his brother—left him in a violent and predictable manner that came with the business.

His pregnant wife was killed nearly twenty-four years before in a car bombing that had been meant for him. For him and his brother and his father, all of who survived. The people who were meant to die in this business rarely did, it was usually the innocent bystanders who ended up on slabs in the morgue with their families tearfully standing over their bodies.

This business, as his father reminded him after Luis was shipped home to be buried, was not for the faint of heart.

"Mr. Alcazar?" The driver turned and looked at his boss.

"Yes."

"We're hear sir, are you ready?"

Am I ready?

"Of course," Alcazar smiled as his door was opened for him, "I'm always ready. It's my job."