Sam checked her watch and smiled to herself knowingly, watching the prey step off the launch at the Windermere pier. From her vantage point near the tunnels, she could almost make out the frantic look on the nurse's face, the look that had taken up residence as soon as Sam had mentioned Hayden's shooting. Just as suspected, the nurse had wasted no time getting on the next launch to the island, something Sam and Hayden knew she would do the minute Sam laid the bait for her. Sam had left her standing outside Kelly's and gone straight to the hired speedboat that she used to drive herself to the island, knowing she had only a matter of minutes to get in place before the nurse would show up. Now that the bait had been bitten, it was time to activate the trap that had been set the night before.

Given that Hayden was still staying at the castle, it had been easy for her to plant the bugs in Nicholas' study, his bedroom, and the library. Sam didn't think one was needed in the bedroom but had to agree when Hayden pointed out that given the company they were expecting, the room should definitely be at the top of the list. She'd also had time to plant the tiny motion censored cameras in the study and the library, the feed from which was accessible on their phones and laptops.

Sam entered the castle by way of the deserted tunnel running in back, joining Hayden where they had decided to take up position in a room adjacent to the study. The camera feed had shown Nicholas sitting behind the vintage oak desk engrossed in what appeared to be legal documents of some kind. Knowing that she had no time to spare, Sam quickly set up the long range microphone and engaged the recording device on her laptop before getting comfortable to watch the upcoming premier. Thanks to her tech genius brother-friend Spinelli, who was in both their ears via earplugs, they had the latest in high tech devices for this mission, so Sam knew the two scheming toads didn't stand a chance. It wasn't long before their gamble paid off in a big way.

The nurse didn't even try to mask her alarmed state as she torpedoed in through the front door, immediately sounding out Nicholas' name as the library camera picked her up peering first in that room before she closed in hurriedly on the study. "Nicholas! Nicholas! Where the hell are you?"

The dark prince rose from his chair, appearing surprised by the urgency of the summons, eyeing his friend concernedly as she tore through the doorway. "Elizabeth, what is it, what's wrong?"

She closed the gap in mere seconds, grabbing the prince by the forearms as she pleaded, "Who have you been talking to? Who did you tell?"

He seemed puzzled by her questions. "Who did I tell what? Elizabeth, please, calm yourself." He laid his arms out on hers and guided her towards the sofa. "Here, please sit down and tell me what's wrong."

"She knows, Nicholas, she knows…how? Did you tell her? Why would you tell her anything?"

Nicholas looked worried for her as she clearly wasn't making any sense. He moved to the wet bar and poured a glass of water, taking it back to her and helping to raise it to her lips. "Elizabeth, you have to calm down, here, drink this," he prodded, grabbing her hand to help her grasp the glass and lift it so she could drink.

Sam and Hayden watched as the nurse took a long gulp and Sam couldn't help rotating her fingers in the air as though silently prompting her to get on with it. She checked the recording device again to make sure it was running, before turning back to the camera feed, marveling at the clarity from the tiny device. She loved playing with the new toys Spinelli always seemed to come up with, many of which he either built himself or added his own signature touches to improve performance. Spinelli was a genius.

Sam watched as Nicholas attempted once more to get the woman to tell him what had her in such a state. "Okay, take another breath and tell me what's going on?"

Elizabeth followed instructions, inhaled deeply then said, "Sam…what did you tell Sam about Hayden's shooting?" Sam's back immediately went up and she shared a knowing look with her accomplice, both looking back to the feed with renewed interest.

Furrowing his brows, the prince asked, "Sam? Why would I talk to Sam about that?" He started to look uneasy then. "Okay, maybe you better start from the beginning. What's got you so spooked?"

Sam listened keenly as the nurse went on to relay their earlier conversation, ending with her parting words. "Nicholas, she practically threatened me with jail!" She jumped up from the sofa, wringing her hands together as she started crying to him, "I can't go to jail. My boys need me, I can't go to jail for this!"

Sam and Hayden smirked at each other, knowing the nurse was on the verge of giving them everything they needed. The prince, who looked a lot more calm, seemed to be losing his patience with the woman's dramatics.

"Nobody's going to jail, Elizabeth, you didn't do anything."

"That's not what Sam said! She said I'm an accomplice because I knew and kept quiet? Is she right? Can they really lock me up for not saying anything?" Her eyes grew large in her head as she appeared to contemplate that outcome. "I can't go to jail, Nicholas!"

The prince took a deep breath and tried again to calm the woman. "Nothing is going to happen to you, Sam was blowing smoke trying to rattle you. She knows less than nothing, I assure you."

Sam and Hayden started slowly losing faith. Neither one of the culprits had outright admitted to the crime, instead they were merely talking around the subject. Sam would not let the plan fall to the side. Obviously the woman needed to be prodded some more. Quickly breaking out her cell phone she sent a text to the nurse, knowing that it would give her the final push. 'You might as well have pulled the trigger yourself. How do you look in orange?'

As they watched, the nurse's phone beeped with Sam's message and the minute she lifted it from her scrubs her panic amplified in earnest. She poked the phone out to Nicholas. "See, look at this!"

The prince took the phone then handed it back to her after reading the brief message. He scoffed as he replied, "Sam is toying with you, Elizabeth, don't let her."

Her head was shaking from side to side as she started making circles around him. "No, no, she knows something. I know how that bitch operates and she's taunting me because she has something on us." She whirled around to face him. "I still can't believe you tried to have her killed. Why, Nicholas, why did you have to go that far? And then to have messed it up this way? We'll never be able to get rid of the greedy little tramp and now they're going to use this to separate me from my boys."

Hayden looked over at Sam and shook her head admiringly. "Remind me never to get on your bad side again…I mean, all is forgiven now, right…you don't still hold the whole Jake Doe thing against me, do you?"

Sam shushed her as she tried to listen, "Shh…she's about to crack, I can feel it," she whispered, one hand pressing on her earpiece, the other one pointing the microphone towards the study, "come on, Elizabeth, come to mama."

Elizabeth was circling him again. "How did I let you get me into this? Nothing has gone the way it was supposed to. Jason left me, Monica suspended me, everybody hates me, and now I could go to jail and leave my boys without a mother!" She stopped moving and placed her left hand akimbo, while resting the other hand on her forehead as though checking her temperature. She started to cry and it obviously bothered the prince. He gathered her in his arms, rubbing one hand along her back to soothe her.

"Elizabeth, I would never let this touch you. You had nothing to do with it, so Sam is just bluffing." She cried for a minute before she pulled back from his chest and looked in his eyes, shaking her head again.

"You didn't see her Nicholas, she knows. She knows that you tried to have Hayden killed and that I knew about it. She knows." Her eyes searched his eagerly for answers.

Hearing the admission Hayden jumped up from where she was sitting on the chair and started towards the door, but Sam, having anticipated that move as soon as she heard the nurse's declaration, was quick to remind her they needed more.

"Hey, easy there, Princess! We may have her, but we don't have him, not yet." She pushed Hayden back towards her seat adding, "we're almost home."

Elizabeth was jabbering again. "I bet you Hayden put her up to this? She's determined to ruin my life and now she has help."

The prince didn't sound too concerned. "Neither one of them are smart enough to figure any of it out, and if by some fluke they do, they'll never be able to prove anything." He looked her in the eye in the attempt to drive his point home. "Relax, if they do anything to hurt you, my guy will not miss again. He botched her shooting the first time, he knows better than to fail a Cassadine twice."

Sam smiled and looked over to Hayden. "Got 'em!" But Hayden was halfway across the room. Sam put down the microphone and followed quickly, catching up as she entered the study. Elizabeth was still playing violins in the prince's arms.

"It's just so unfair. Everyone in this town take and take what they want and nothing happens, but the minute I try to take something that I want, all hell breaks loose? How is that fair?"

"LIFE isn't fair, didn't anyone ever teach you that, you complacent nimrod?" Hayden was ablaze. She stopped in front of the prince who had released Elizabeth when he heard they were no longer alone. "You pompous son of a bitch, you tried to have me killed!"

Sam peered from her cocky cousin to the nurse who looked like she was about to pass out, and added, "really, Prince Nicholas? Murder? You make Helena proud, I'm sure."

He acted cool. "Sam, to what do we owe your unwelcome intrusion in my home?" Sam opened her mouth to respond when she heard the resounding slap as Hayden connected her hand to the prince's cheek. To his credit, his manners were steadfast, merely grinning with his mouth open as he lifted his hand to soothe the spot. "Was that really necessary?" he drawled.

"How dare you! Who the hell do you think you are playing with my life?"

He didn't miss a beat, purposely ignoring her outburst as he dressed them down, "ladies, and I do use the term quite loosely, please state your business then leave."

"You can stay arrogant all you want, cousin, I'm sure that, and your good manners, will serve you very well behind bars."

He laughed openly at her statement. "So, you think you'll be able to shake me the way you have Elizabeth? Really, cousin, I expected better from you. I don't know why, but I really did."

"Oh, don't worry, I have better, but since Hayden is the one you tried to murder, I'll let her do the honors."

Hayden picked up where Sam left off, "you needed to keep Jason's identity from his wife and family so badly that my LIFE didn't matter to you? What kind of person are you?"

Sam was looking from him to the nurse, who had gotten so shaky that she had to sit down on the sofa. She looked terrified. "Of course not, Hayden. They were both so desperate to have their own way that they didn't care who they hurt, or even murder to get it, isn't that right, Elizabeth?" Sam knew that her using the word over and over would annoy them both.

The nurse started shaking her head and was about to say something when the prince cut her off, "if you're both done throwing pointless, baseless, accusations around, you can leave now."

Sam didn't answer him, just whipped out her phone, held it up and wiggled it for dramatic effect as she waited for both the dark one and the nurse to wonder her intent. Then pointedly sticking out her finger, she held it over the button for a second while she stared at both of them with a look on her face as though to ask, what will she do next, right before she pressed play and their voices filled the room.

At the recorded sound of them discussing Hayden's shooting, the nurse sank back even more into the sofa and burst into tears. Nicholas turned his head to look at her for a second before he eased back around to face both women standing there, just in time to hear himself say, relax, if they do anything to hurt you, my guy will not miss again. He botched her shooting the first time, he knows better than to fail a Cassadine twice.

To his credit, Sam thought, he was still not flinching, but he couldn't hide the new worry in his eyes. She knew that he was aware that they had him, but he would play brazen up until the very last, his decorum demanded it. Sam had never felt more sorry for the way he was raised as in that moment. It had to be hell on a kid to have to go through the stoicism and the regiment of a Cassadine upbringing, one that it appeared turned them all into killers and maniacs. It was usually at times like those that she was glad she didn't know them growing up. Anything was better than living as one of them.

Just then Nicholas lost his cool and moved rapidly towards Sam, grabbing at the phone in her hand, but she was too fast, moving it out of his reach and sticking it in her back pocket. He lunged at her, gripping her arm harshly, shouting, "give me that! You had no right to tape me in my home. Give me the damn phone!"

And that's when all hell broke loose. From out of nowhere, Jason was there, charging in from the doorway and rushing at Nicholas with murder in his eyes. "Get your fucking hands off my wife!"