Unsettling Realizations

By Didi

Disclaimer: General Hospital, property of the ABC, property of the Walt Disney Company. It is not, by any means or wishful think, owned by any myself or any other of my acquaintances. (Trust me, if it were, the show would be going in another direction all together.) No malicious intent is meant by this "borrowing" of characters from the show and no profits are being created, invented or made… though donations are welcome the form of awesome reviews.

Summary: Lorenzo calls a meeting, Jason makes plans for Carly and Logan has a tough question for Coop.

Timeline: Nowhere on the map. Just keep reading.

Author's Note: When I started this story, it was going to be this short little thing about Lulu and Carly and that I wasn't going to bring the whole freaking cast into the story. Guess what didn't happen? Okay, so I have a hard time writing short little stories, I can't help it! But this story has gotten a little out of hand. I am no longer sure where it's going or if the title still holds true. (sigh) Damn it!

Rating: T

Key: "Spoken," "Thoughts." Any questions?

Chapter 10 – Putting Things in Place

Luke was seething with anger and was doing a less than stellar job at hiding it. Those around him would be a lot more comfortable if he was yelling and threatening. But at the moment, he was silently plotting retribution. And Luke Spencer was most dangerous when he was quiet.

"Say something," Tracy hissed out of the corner of her mouth.

"And what exactly," Luke replied in a low gravel tone that indicated his rage, "would you like to me say, wife?"

Tracy glanced at him worriedly, wondering if anything was going shake the murderous intent she could see in her husband's chipped icy blues. She could see the wheels of revenge churning away in that brilliant mind of his and she could only hope that the days ahead was not going to be filled with bloodshed. And she definitely wouldn't put it pass Luke to shed a little blood over his precious daughter. "You're making people nervous."

"And that would be aconcern how?" Luke asked in an almost conversational manner that belied his homicidal thoughts at the moment. No one hurts his family and gets away with it. No one!

"Dad?" Lucky shifted his jacket to hide the gun he had hastily tucked into his shoulder holster when he made the sudden and unexpected return to the hospital. The call had come in through dispatch and his head had nearly blow off when he heard. "How is she?" By the look on his father's face, one could almost believe… "No," he said in denial.

Shaking her head, Tracy was quick to jump in, "She's okay. Concussion and possibly wrist fracture but she's fine."

All the air went out of Lucky's lungs at the exact same time. "That's… that's…"

"The word is 'good,'" Cruz Rodriguez whispered helpfully from behind Lucky just before he clapped his partner on the shoulder in support. "'Fantastic' could even apply here," he added showing a dimple. "I just came back from the site."

Lucky didn't want to know.

Cruz nodded his head toward the other edge of the room where the newly minted Officer Cooper Barrett was currently sitting silently contemplating the blood on his hands. Moving away from his father, Lucky watched with concern as Barrett didn't move when they approached. They were merely acknowledged by a quick statement of, "It's not mine… or Lulu's," from Barrett before either detectives asked the question that was on their minds.

"Are you okay, Barrett?" Cruz asked, taking a seat next to the obviously shell-shocked officer. The kid was young, too young to be seeing all this… or have seen it already.

"I'll be okay," Cooper answered as he finally looked up. His eyes were a little dead and his heart was just now slowing to a normal rate. "How Lulu?"

"Alive," Lucky said with a smile. "Thanks to you."

"We got lucky," Coop stated very simply. "Those guys were pros and they weren't messing around."

Of that, Cruz already knew. The car had been riddled, as were the two bodies the coroner had to cart away. The commissioner had been just thrilled to find out about the shooting… along with the one outside of the PC cemetery in board daylight. Lucky had been pulled on account of both his father and sister being involved, a decision that practically sent Lucky through the roof before he stormed out of the precinct to check on his yet-again wounded sister. "Can you tell me what you saw?"

"Not much," Cooper replied painfully frustrated by that little fact. "White van, no distinguishing marks, pulled up from our blind side at our four. Positioned itself at our twelve pretty directly. I recognize the maneuver as an old tactic rebels use on convoys. I pulled Lulu out of the car and warned the others to get to cover. The van opened fire on us with automatics; barely got Lulu covered in time." He winced guiltily. "Pushed her too hard on the ground too."

"You saved her life," Lucky informed him with a firm gasp of the younger man's shoulder. "I don't how you did it but thank you."

Cooper shook his head. "Should have moved faster, should have recognized that move sooner."

"Stop it," Cruz warned in a harsh whisper wanting to shake the boy by the shoulder. "You did good; stop beating yourself up for the 'what if's.' It doesn't help anyone." He could already seen the coming onslaught events. Everyone can see that this stank of mob war activities. But… "The car that you were in, it wasn't the same one from earlier."

Pulling himself into solider mode, "No. Mrs. Corinthos noticed an oil link on the SUV and sent it to the shop for repairs. She lent us her car for the time being and stayed here at the hospital on business."

Nodding and taking notes, Crus glanced at Lucky who caught on pretty quickly, "Did you enter through the front or back of the premise?"

"Back," Coop answered, looking at the two detectives, knowing the speculation already. "Lulu wasn't the intended target, was she?" He should feel relieved… he should… but he didn't. It didn't change the fact that someone shot at them.

"There was no way anyone could have known she traded cars with Carly," Lucky speculated with clarity and a great deal of other concerns. "Chances are the hit was on Carly and Lulu just got in the way… kind of like when she got in the way at Jason's." A movement out of the corner of his eye caught Lucky's attention and he turned in time to see Carly standing here, silent and fearful. The urge to lay out the anger and fear for Lulu was there but he ruthlessly curbed it. He was not going to lose control and start pointing the fingers. And by the look in Carly's eyes, no one needed add to what was already tormenting her.

Carly swallowed her fear and her urge to jump in headfirst (not an easy task for her on a good day much less a day like this) and asked, "How is she?"

"Asking for you," Dr. Drake answered as he came in. "Lulu's awake," which was met with a frenzy of movements toward him. Holding up his hand, he stopped them with a quick authoritative look. "And I'm limiting her visitors. She's asked to see Carly first." He pointed down the hall and gave her the room number. "Keep it short and don't be surprised if she falls asleep on you. She took a pretty hard hit to the head."

Nodding, Carly hurried off with a quick glance at Luke, Tracy then Lucky.

"She really going to be all right, Drake? Or were you saying that just for the womenfolk?" Luke asked as he approached his old friend.

"She's got a hard head," Noah replied with a smile, "Much like her old man." He could see the fear in Luke's eyes. "She's going to be fine. It's a minor head wound though I would like to keep her here at least overnight for observations. She's been in and out of hospitals too often the last week."

"You're tell me?" Luke sighed and ran a quick hand through his hair and nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, keeping her here would be a good idea… I'll go see about security with Sonny and Jason."

He may not like the source but Lucky couldn't agree more. "I'll talk to the commissioner about posting additional guards," he turned and looked at the exhausted Cooper. "Cooper, you should probably take off before…"

"I'm staying," Coop said quietly with a kind of assurance that meant something.

"You've been pulled," Cruz pointed out quietly. "No one would blame you if you decide to go now and get cleaned up."

"I'm staying," he repeated a little more firmly. "I'm fine."

"You've been shot," Logan Hayes interrupted with a clouded look as he moved toward his buddy. "How did you not notice the fact that you're bleeding all over the place?" pointing downward at the soaked jean leg. Leaning out the door he had just come through, "Hey! Can we get some help in here?"

Lucky and Cruz looked down at the same time as Logan went to his knees and ripped apart the wet jeans with a practiced hand. The gash wasn't deep but it was long enough to bleed more than might be safe. Coop didn't even react, merely stared down at his own leg like he's never seen it before.

"Oh jeeze," Cruz turned his head and sighed. "What the hell is the matter with you, Barrett?" and pulled his phone out his back pocket. The commissioner is not going to like this at all.

A flock of nurses came in, took one look at the wound and ushered Cooper out without another word. Logan fretted and followed the crowd of blue scrubs while Lucky and Cruz went to work on reporting this newest development.

-&-&-&-

"I hate concussions," Lulu complained as she held her head over a trash can. The dizzy effects of having your brain knocked so hard that it ping-ponged around in your skull wasn't exactly great for her stomach. "It's worse than being shot."

"How so?" Carly asked mildly as she smoothed back her cousin's hair.

"They knock you out when you get shot. With concussions, they just let you sit here and puke."

Carly didn't know whether to laugh or cry. The phone call she got had been ridiculously short and lacked any kind of useful information other than Lulu's been shot at in her car. For thirty seconds, Carly had a horrible imagine of a dead Lulu lying behind the dark SUV until she remembered that she had lend her cousin her car. Then came all those lovely thoughts of wondering who would want to kill her… until she remembered that she'd been married to two mob bosses now and had a rather nice reputation of being a trouble maker around town. The question better asked was who wouldn't want her dead.

"Hey, hey!" Lulu's blue eyes were cloudy with nausea and discomfort but she wasn't blind. "No one knew it was coming… so knock it off."

That was the one thing Carly liked best about Lulu, she didn't waste time with the stupid things in life. "Did you get a good look at the bastards that shot up Sonny's people?"

"Are they all dead?" Lulu asked sadly.

There was no need to answer that.

Taking a deep breath through her mouth and letting it out slowly through her nose, Lulu stared at the ceiling for a moment. "I didn't see anything. Coop had me out of that car and on the ground before I even knew what the hell was going on. After that…"

"Darkness," Carly concluded with a nod. "Not that I'm not grateful for Coop's quick thinking, I just needed something more to go on."

"Don't take this on yourself, Carly," Lulu advised wisely. "These guys are seriously bad news. And if they're willing to kill to get what they want, they are not people you want to be messy around with. Let Jason and Sonny handle it."

Rolling her eyes, Carly smiled that half lopsided cocky smile of hers that usually got her what she wanted in life. "And when has a little gun problem ever stopped me."

"Starting now," Lulu said tilting her chin to the doorway.

Carly turned in time to see Jason step into the room, glaring at her. Blanching, she gave her cousin a good frown. "You couldn't have warned me?"

Lulu shrugged. "I didn't want to see you killed."

"I wasn't going to get killed," Carly insisted indignantly. "I had a plan."

"Oh great," Lulu pulled a face, "one of your infamous plans."

"What does that mean?" Carly demanded.

"They never work!" Lulu replied exasperated then groaned when the movement jarred her abused head and sent her thoughts scattering.

"Easy, easy," Carly held Lulu's head and eased it down to the trash can again. "You really need to learn not to get shot at all the time if you plan on hanging around the big boys."

Lulu made a gagging noise.

Shaking his head at both of them, Jason advanced into the room. "You, the boys and Lulu are all on the first plane out of Port Charles. There's a private jet waiting on the airstrip just outside of town and another South of Boston to take you guys to the island." He paused as both women protested, loudly, in that very indignant, outrage tone he's come to associate with both. After the allotted minute and a half of ranting, Jason held up his hand (which did nothing) and interrupted with, "It's non-negotiable."

"I'm not just going to up and leave," Lulu said angrily, "These guys are not chasing me out of town."

"I've got responsibilities here, Jas," Carly argued just as loudly as if he hadn't spoken. "I can't just pack up and walk away."

Jason pinched the bridge of his nose and wished silently for earplugs. Of course, either Lulu or Carly noticed.

"They boys have had their lives disrupted enough," Carly continued, "I'm not going to yank them out of school for just any old reason. Tighten the security on them or something. I'll electrify my gates if that's what it takes."

"Have you even run this by my dad?" Lulu demanded, "Do you know what Dad would say to me running off to hide from the mob? Come on!"

"How about: that's a real smart idea, Princess?" Luke interjected as he leaned against the doorway. The look on Papa Spencer's face said it all. "Darling daughter of mine, I may have had a lot of interesting times running from mobs but that don't mean I want you any part of it."

"Dad…" Lulu whined suddenly.

"Now Princess," Luke said as he came in.

"Daddy…" Lulu said in argument.

"No," Luke said sternly in that no-nonsense voice he only employed once in a blue moon. "This is the last time someone gets to point a loaded gun at my little girl. You're going to Sonny's island and you are going to stay there until this things clears up or until I'm dead, whichever one comes along first. And you," turning to Carly with the same chipped blue eyes that reflected back at him. "You are going to take those boys of yours, grab Bobby and do a whole month of just playing. Those boys are better off dumb and uneducated then dead or orphaned."

Biting back a retort on the tip of her tongue, Carly was just lucky that Jason was there to physically block her from giving Luke one hell of a bruise. "Not that I need you to be playing security for my boys but I'd like to…"

"Point out that that's twice now someone took a pot shot at someone close to your loving ex," Luke continued on with a distinctively pointed look. "You got lucky this time, Caroline. Next time…" he left the warning hanging there.

Carly growled at him.

Jason shook his head and had enough of the Spencers' usual loving conversations. "I'll have someone pack you and Lulu a suitcase. You leave tonight. We can send for everything else you need."

"Great plan," Logan said with a roll of his eyes, "Except for the fact that Lulu's got a concussion about the size of Texas and it's doubtful that the doctors are going to allow her on a plane where her brain might explode."

"Thanks, Logan," Lulu said dryly, "for that lovely mental imagine."

"She's not going anywhere until the doctors can clear her," Cooper added as he came in after Logan. "And I just spoke with the Commissioner. We're adding security details to your watch and another…"

"You need to go home and sleep," Lulu interrupted as she smiled at her savior, "and probably shower. I can't imagine you're going to be smell too good after like twelve hours in the same…" she leaned over a little on her bed. "What's wrong with your leg?"

Cooper smiled and ignored the question, hiding his torn up pant leg behind the foot of the bed. "I've asked the commissioner to put me back on your detail and…"

"He got shot," Logan piped in without any apologies, "probably while trying to save you."

Carly's eyes went wide. "Are you all right?" going to him to see for herself.

"You were shot?" Lulu's eyes went wide and when she tried to get out of bed, she fell.

"Lulu!" Logan and Coop moved at the same time.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," Lulu assured them with a groan as she leveled herself off the ground with one arm and held her aching head with the other. "After you've been shot, this is nothing," she waved it away and looked at Coop. "You all right?"

Because the rest of the room now had their attention on him, Coop stammered a little as he answered, "I'm fine. It's just a graze."

"Oh good," Lulu replied with a frown. "I'd hate for you to get seriously hurt because of me."

Coop smiled at her concern but added, "I'm not that one that you should be worried about," looking pointedly at the former Mrs. Corinthos.

"What?" Carly asked innocently.

"You're on the next plane out," Jason informed her. "Lulu will follow when she's able to."

Carly set her face into the most mulish look she could muster but before she could say anything, a newcomer had her raising her brows.

Luke had been braced for Carly's arguments and turned when she gave none. "Well, well, look what the cat dragged in."

"You should listen to your friend, Carly," Lorenzo said as he leaned against the doorway. He ditched the cane at home, finding it more trouble than it was worth. Besides, it was time to reassert himself into the game, hiding behind an ailment was no longer a option at this point. There is too much as stake… and the stakes were worth more than most. "Port Charles is no longer safe for you."

"Why am I not surprised that you're behind all this?" Carly replied dryly as she crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes.

"What do you want?" Jason asked, putting himself between Carly and Alcazar.

"A meeting," Lorenzo said, getting down to business, "with Corinthos. We have a mutual problems that needs to be resolved."

"This have anything to do with me?" Lulu asked quite curious.

Lorenzo fixed the girl with his dark unreadable eyes for a moment, carefully noting her defiant glaze with some amusement. The child was showing all the signs of a spirited beauty, much like her cousin. It pained him to remember that this was his son's friend, the person he knew Diego had trusted with secrets. She would have been a good match for his son. "Yes, it is unfortunate that you have been thrown into the middle of this."

"Yeah," Lulu rolled her eyes and made a shooing motion. "I'm suppose to be taking it easy. Can you all leave now?"

"I'll be outside," Cooper said as he moved everyone toward the door.

"Daddy?" Lulu held out her hand. "Can you stay with me?" she asked sweetly.

Luke narrowed his eyes on his precious little girl for a moment before nodding in compliance. "Of course, gumdrop." And sat down by the bed. The girl was up to something.

Carly and Luke traded quick glances that said nothing but everything all at the same time before she moved out of the room. Watching at Cooper Barrett shut the door, she turned on Lorenzo, "You better tell me what the hell is going on right now, Lorenzo."

"There some very angry people out there that aren't too thrilled with the fact that Corinthos is holding a…" he stopped as Lucky Spencer and Cruz Rodriguez appeared. "Good afternoon, detectives."

"What the hell are you doing here?" Lucky physically held himself in check even as he felt his partner's hand on his arm. An unprovoked attack on an unarmed civilian wasn't going to help his sister. "I want you as far away from my family as you can possibly get."

"Calm down Lucky," Carly said as she placed herself between her obviously furious cousin and her latest ex husband. She didn't particularly like to play the calm rational person, seldom as that may be, but she knew that a brawl here would be the last thing they need. "Lorenzo was just leaving."

"LUCKY!!!" Lulu hollered loudly from within. "LUCKY!!!"

"I think your sister is calling for you," Cruz said, giving him a slight push toward the door and away from the mob boss… and Jason Morgan who Lucky has yet to see. There was no need for that confrontation here either. "Why don't you see what she needs, okay?" opening the door and shoving him through with a sigh. Cruz gave Carly a grateful look, telling her that her efforts weren't lost on him.

"I think we should talk elsewhere," Lorenzo interjected smoothly, addressing both Morgan and Carly at the same time.

Jason shook his head slowly at Alcazar. "You have something to say to Carly, you say it to me." He stood by and watch Carly make the mistake of trusting this guy once, he wasn't about to let the smooth-operator try his hand at her a second time. Carly wasn't one of those that took the saying 'once bitten, twice shy' seriously.

"Arrange a meeting, Morgan," Lorenzo repeated and walked away, "before someone you love gets hurt again." He walked down the hall and was halfway out of the hospital before he was joined by his companion. "What happened to you?"

Enrico said nothing for a moment, following Lorenzo out of the hospital to their awaiting car. "Something came up."

"Really now?" he asked, getting in and closing the door behind him.

"The bills has been handled," Enrico replied as he took entered the car. "Skye has been placed under tighter security and the men that lost her replaced. From all accounts, we have Mr. Spencer Sr. to thank for Ms. Quartermaine's timely rescue."

"She and Lila Rae are on their way out of town?"

"Yes."

"This cannot happen again," Lorenzo instructed sternly, "And where were the men following Lulu Spencer?"

"It happened too quickly, they couldn't move into position in time to be effective," Enrico replied, grateful that Lorenzo appear to not want to question his recent absence.

"Double her guards."

"Already done."

"And Carly's as well."

Hesitating a moment, "Morgan's people might suspect something if we add that many people."

"I am arranging a meeting with Corinthos and discussing the current situation so I do not particularly care who knows that I am having men protect Carly and Lulu," Lorenzo replied with that deadly silence of his that have most men fearing for the worse. The silence stretched just long enough for Enrico to fear that Lorenzo was thinking a little too much. "You have been behaving very oddly of late, Enrico. Would you care to explain yourself?"

Enrico felt himself tense. It wasn't the first time he's kept something from Lorenzo and probably wouldn't be the last. But this wasn't some trifle little thing; this was family. And family was most important in their lives.

Lorenzo turned and stared at him with those eyes that can at times turn oh-so-cold. "And why you failed to mention that you had a brother?"

-&-&-&-

Logan toed the chair over and nudged Coop into it. "You look like hell, you know that right? I mean, on a good day, I'd look better than you anyways but at this point, you aren't even in the competition."

"Did you have to tell her I was shot?" Coop groused as he reached down and touched the thick bandage on his calf. He was lucky that it hit nothing but fat, which was why he hadn't felt any pain until the adrenaline wore off. Now it felt like his leg was on fire. The bottle of pills in his pocket would help but he didn't want to dull his senses. With so much a play right now, he couldn't afford to be off his game.

"She asked," Logan replied and tilted his head to look at the bound wound. The bleeding had stopped but Coop was going to be walking funny for a while; calf wounds don't hell fast. He knew from first hand experience just how long. "Besides, she ought to know."

"She didn't need to know," Coop said and glared up at Logan. "Lulu's got enough on her plate as it is."

"You're getting too close," Logan informed him in that non-commenting attitude tone that got him more lapse around boot camp than anyone else in their unit.

"Too close to what?"

"Her," Logan pointed out as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "I see the way you look at her, the way you act."

"I'm trying to do my job," Coop informed his friend.

"No," Logan said rather sadly, with just a hint of pity for his pal. "Started out as a job maybe but let's face it, you're a sap with a real liking for the cute little blonds in need of rescuing; must be that whole boy scout mentality of yours. And Lulu definitely fit the bill. I'm not saying that the girl is anything like the emotional train wreck that is Maxie Jones but Lulu seem to have a nose for trouble."

Coop didn't have the energy to shut him up. "Logan…"

"I know, I know, you're going to say something about laying off Maxie but buddy, I'm telling you…"

"Stop," Coop requested with a glare sharp enough to make an impression. "I can't deal with you and Maxie right now."

"Right," Logan agreed with a quick nod, "because you are too busy protecting Ms. Lulu Spencer, the girl you supposedly see as just a job."

"She is just a job," Cooper insisted, feeling a little heated around the collar. He didn't need to tell Logan that he was coming a little too close to something Coop didn't want to think about. This wasn't the right time… of course, it can never be the right time. "Maxie and I are good together. She's my girl. Lulu is just… she's just…"

"Lulu?" Logan asked rather mildly.

"She's… she's…" he shook his head. Coop didn't want to tell his friend that Lulu was the most exasperatingly wonderful girl he's ever met. And unlike Maxie, she didn't have a tendency to self-destruct. Lulu was simply Lulu, for lack of a better description. She was sweet and kind, short tempered and demanding, thoughtful and considerate, damaged and resilient. She was exactly the kind of girl Cooper always imagined never existing in the world.

"She's what, Coop?" Logan asked seriously as he watched the play of emotions dance across his friend's face, "Be honest here: are you falling for Lulu Spencer?"

-&-&-&-

The ringing phone on in his pocket was distracting at best and an annoyance at worse. Having ignored it twice now, Cruz really had to wonder at the tenacity of the person calling. Putting his pen down, he reluctantly picked up his phone and wondered how much longer this paperwork would take. Answering his phone with his usual cheery, "Rodriguez," he was unprepared for the voice on the other end.

"Hello, little brother."

To be continued…

Thoughts anyone?