Chapter 12
Sam closed her eyes and took a couple deep breaths. She had taken to doing meditation exercises with Spinelli in their PI office where they were safe from the foot traffic that managed to find it's way to Penthouse 2.
Spinelli peeked his head inside the birthing room and held up her favorite morning concoction. Sam opened her eyes and licked her lips knowing chocolate goodness was coming her way.
"Close the door." She whispered to Spinelli. "I'm not supposed to have this." She took the cup from Spinelli's hand.
"Fair Samantha, Mike says hello and he made it extra chocolately, but don't blame him for the caffeine rush." He dropped his laptop bag on the floor and settled down next to her on her hospital bed. "I'm so excited." He kept his voice low. "Little Miracle is coming. How long before they kick me out of here?"
"We'll take our chances. I want you to stay." Sam took long satisfying sips of her hot chocolate. She rested her head on Spinelli's shoulder. "This is unreal. I can't believe I'm having a baby."
"Fair Samantha, are you scared? Like do you think of Baby Lila?"
"I'm glad you asked. I am terrified."
Robert and Anna waited outside of Franco's heavily guarded room.
"You don't want to be in there, right?" Robert asked.
Robin approached them. "Probably not a good idea to even be on this floor. It's gonna be a total spectacle if the antidote breaks Franco out of his coma."
Anna slipped into work mode. "And then we get whatever answers we need to stop this operation. There's a bigger picture here. Franco was or is apart of the something disastrous. I want to be in that room. I have authority to be in that room."
Nikolas shut off his computer and checked his desk one last time before leaving. He ran into Helena on his way out the door of his office. "Grandmother?"
Helena took Nikolas' hand and pulled him back into his office. "I've missed my favorite grandchild." She kissed his face.
"I'm your only grandchild. What are you doing here?"
"I have news."
Nikolas looked at his watch. "I don't have much time. Hopefully you can tell me where to find Stavros."
"I swore I'd always give you my honesty, but I will never sell out Stavros. He's being protected."
"Helena, this is why you and I don't have the relationship you desire us to have. I try to meet you halfway and you end up doing things that force me to do what I can to protect Stefan and Alexis against you. I hate having to choose, but I'd choose them over you every time."
"It hurt me that you just gave away my gift to you of Spencer..."
"Spencer wasn't mine to keep Grandmother."
"Don't think that I didn't imprint my seal into Spencer's infantile mind."
Nikolas took a deep sigh. "Now you're just talking crazy. If you're talking about your whole Ice Princess programming crap, I don't have time. I need to get to GH to see Sam."
"Ah." Helena tapped her cheek. "Does she creep in your forbidden dreams, Nikolas?" She flashed him a cunning smile.
He grunted. "You don't know anything about my dreams. Sam is very important to me. She's family." He turned to leave.
"It never stopped Stavros." Helena divulged.
Nikolas stopped and turned back to her. "There you go again...saying crazy stuff. Stop it Grandmother. I'm nothing like Stavros. I never have been and I never will be. I should not have gone along with your plan for Spencer to be my heir."
"Next time I'll make it appealing and wrap it up in a bow of innocence. You don't even need to know the gory details."
Nikolas eyed Helena. "We'll talk later. Don't be seen around here."
Alexis couldn't remember the last time she jogged. She ran off the launch and stopped on the docks to catch her breath.
"Hey there." Ethan's hair and clothes were disheveled as he sunk down on the bench behind her drinking from a flask.
Alexis wiped the sweat from her brow and looked at him. "What are you doing? Why do you look homeless?"
"Cause I slept on a bench all night. My dad is missing. If it weren't for a dead body showing up at the Haunted Star, I'd think he was just on another adventure. I can't be at the Haunted Star until they're done with the investigation. I got no place else to go."
Alexis sat down next to Ethan. "You have that nice penthouse apartment that you bought from Johnny."
"Don't take me literally."
"Oh." She laughed. "I get it. You feel like a vagabond. I know that feeling. I think my lake house will finally be back to normal soon, but then I have to pack up and go back to Greece for whatever obligations I've promised my brother that I'd fulfill."
Ethan offered his flask. "It's gin. I don't really care for whiskey and scotch. I only drink them so I can relate to him."
Alexis waved it away. "I'm still a bit hung-over from last night."
"What happened last night?"
"Sonny and I did potent vodka shots."
Ethan's face broke out a toothy grin. "Oh God. You don't need to finish the story. You're running."
"Let's talk about you. Are you having sex with my daughter?"
Ethan coughed and spit out his drink. "Whoa. How did we get here? I didn't mean to imply that you and Sonny did anything kinky. But to answer your question, Kristina and I are not having sex. Probably not anytime soon."
"She wants to marry you."
"Really? I don't do marriage. It's like a albatross around your neck. What's it for? Luke is married to Tracy and they're never together. Plus he's pining after Skye. And Laura is his soul-mate. It didn't work out with Maya and me so what was the point of marriage? Luke and Tracy were more fun when it wasn't real."
"Kristina is very delicate at the moment and a day doesn't go by that she doesn't talk about you. She said she loves you."
"I have trouble with that word love."
"So does Sonny. And I have to tell you, from a girl's point of view, it's confusing. I know actions speak louder then words, but Kristina hangs on to your every word."
"It feels good to be loved." He took a drink from his flash. "It's better to have loved and lost then to not have loved at all I guess. I care about Kristina a lot. But I miss Maya sometimes. I just feel like there are boundaries with Kristina that I can't cross especially because of what happened to her with Keifer. So it's eggshells city sometimes with her. It's not her fault. Just how it is."
Alexis fell into a daze. She started to remember a little of why she was thrown by Sonny's touch that morning. She rested her head on the back of the bench.
"You alright?" Ethan asked. "Is it something I said?"
"Kind of. But not your fault in a bad way. I just had a flash of a memory about something that happened to me. You're right. Kristina needs to get to a better place and come to grips with what happened to her or it will seep into every relationship that she has."
Lorenzo and Jason entered the birthing room with Spinelli still clinging to Sam's side.
"It's a party!" Sam held out her arms to Jason.
Dr. Lee walked in. "Uh, you all can not be in here."
"What if we're quiet?" Jason asked. "I think Sam would really like it."
"Please Kelly?" Sam begged.
Dr. Lee gave in. "Fine. And I thought Franco's room was going to be the crowd-pleaser."
Dr. Matt Hunter stepped out of Franco's room to a crowd forming in the lobby. He walked over to Robert and Anna. "So the antidote was injected through his IV. We'll see what happens."
"Can I go in?" Anna asked.
Matt stepped aside. "Go for it...at your own risk."
Patrick followed Anna into Franco's hospital room. Franco was still comatose. His arms were pinned and cuffed to his bed. He was strapped in tight as if he was a baby in a car seat. Anna searched him with her eyes for any signs of movement.
"I'm going to wait." She said as she sat down in a chair near Franco's bed.
"I don't think that's a good idea Anna. You're too close to this. Lucky and Dante are here. This floor is crawling with cops. He won't get away."
"That's not why I want to stay. I just want to know why?"
"You're not going to get the answers you want."
Anna continued to watch Franco.
Patrick gave up. "Ok." He said. "You're just as stubborn as your daughter...and apparently your son." He left the room.
Patrick found Stefan perched outside Franco's room. "How is it that you have such a powerful drug? We tested it in the lab. Aren't you worried that Interpool is gonna start asking questions?"
Stefan stood tall with subtle offense. "I don't have to answer to anyone. The antidote came about after my mother was rendered paralyzed and mute many years ago. I used the antidote to save her. That is how it was originally obtained. My family is heavy with alchemists. I know my brother, Stavros', games. He was the last to see Franco conscious. He's hiding something within Franco and I fully intend to find out."
The labor pains riddled Sam's body. She knew it was time when she could see lips moving on the people in the room but could hear nothing being said. Jason kneeled down next to her bed ready to do his part as her coach. Spinelli freaked out and pulled himself and his laptop into a corner to write down every occurrence in hopes to use it for his sequel. Lorenzo covered his eyes wondering why he agreed to be there. He unbuttoned a couple buttons on his shirt and hoped he wouldn't pass out from exhaustion.
Nikolas started to walk in the room, but Epiphany hurried over to him.
"Oh no you don't." Epiphany warned. "I was told it's a packed house in there."
"You do know my family runs this hospital?"
Epiphany threw her hands on her hips. "You know I don't give a damn."
Nikolas laughed. "Just for a couple minutes. Mother my I?"
"Alright. I didn't see you go in there."
Nikolas rushed inside and shut the door.
Alexis stepped off the elevator. "Epiphany!" Alexis said. "Can you help me find Ric Lansing's body?"
Epiphany stared at Alexis in disbelief. "Are you not aware that your daughter is giving birth in that room over there?"
Alexis looked towards the door. "Oh no. I'm sorry. Can I go in?"
"You, of all people in there, should be in there."
Alexis walked in the trenches of childbirth reminded of her own. Jason acknowledged Alexis with a wave as Sam focused on pushing. Lorenzo noticed Alexis walk in and meander to the opposite corner.
Spinelli got up and moved over next to Alexis. "I'm glad you made it Goddess Mother. So I hacked into the new accounts." He whispered to her.
Alexis looked at Spinelli. "Where are you taking her?"
Spinelli was perplexed. "Excuse me?"
"When is this going to be over?" Sam yelled.
Alexis snapped out of it. "What did you say to me?" She asked Spinelli.
"The accounts you gave me. I'm ready to do your bidding." Spinelli became concerned by Alexis' blank stare.
"We're close everybody!" Dr. Lee exclaimed.
Sam held tight to Jason's hand. "Can you tell if the baby's going to be ok?"
"He'll be fine." Jason tried to reassure her.
Sam shook her head. "No. It's not he." She said between breaths.
Jason was bewildered. "What? Are you sure?"
Anna thought maybe she was seeing things as she watched Franco slowly move. "Franco?" She went to his monitor and watched for any change. "I see progress no?"
Matt walked in and checked the monitor. "Yeap. It's working. I'll let everyone know."
Anna looked down at Franco with his eyes still closed shut. "If you can hear me..."
"One more push Sam." Dr. Lee coxed her.
Sam gave it one last push before Dr. Lee pulled the baby out in view. The room went silence.
Nikolas' eyes grew wide. "Is it missing a body part? Shouldn't it be a boy?"
"I'm going to have to readjust the nickname." Spinelli scratched his head.
Lorenzo snickered under his breath. "Obviously someone made a mistake. I say we put her back. But she's absolutely stunning."
Dr. Lee held Jason and Sam's wiggling baby girl. "It was a rough month at General Hospital. We kind of mixed up the ultrasounds. We told Sam about it and she figured she'd surprise you." She said to Jason.
Alexis curled up on the bed next to Sam just relieved for it all to be over. "And no one is going to take her away." She said to Sam.
Dr. Lee handed Jason the baby girl. He seemed almost relieved to finally have some balance in his household. He sat down next to Sam. "She's perfect." He said still a bit thrown.
Sam was almost afraid to touch her fearing she'd break her. "And she's mine?"
"She's yours." Alexis said.
"What are you going to name her?" Nikolas asked. "Spencer's going to be disappointed. He was hoping for baby Max."
Sam took the baby in her arms. "I don't know. I just can't believe she's even here and she's moving. And I feel like a weirdo."
"You shouldn't." Lorenzo said. "You've had a string of bad luck. So it's normal to be cautious. I felt the same way when Lila Rae was born."
Dr. Quartermaine entered Franco's room just as he slowly opened his eyes. "Anna?" She said. "Has he responded?"
Anna remained focused on Franco. "Trying. Franco? Can you hear me?"
Franco looked at Anna. "Mother may I?" He mumbled.
Anna leaned into Franco. "So you know I'm your mother?"
Robert walked in. "Any response?"
Franco was groggy as he moved his head from side to side. "Protect the Queen." He rambled on.
Stefan walked in. "What has he said?"
"Something about Mother may I protect the Queen." Anna said.
"That sounds like Helena's programming." Stefan surmised.
Anna grew agitated. "Or he could just know who I am." She touched Franco's arm. "Do you know who I am?"
Franco struggled to stay alert. "Anna Devane Lavery Scorpio Hayward."
Anna smiled. "Good. We're getting somewhere."
Alexis got off Sam's bed. "If you all don't mind, I need to step out for a minute." She left the room and took a deep breath as she made it back out to the lobby.
"Did it go ok?" Epiphany asked.
Alexis gave the thumbs up as she pounded on the elevator buttons in frustration.
Franco drew an audience as Lucky made his way in. "Did he say anything?"
Kevin stared at Franco regaining conciousness. "He's showing signs that he's definitely been programmed by Helena Cassadine." He paused. "Franco, do you know where are you?"
Franco nodded. "General Hospital."
"Good." Kevin said. "I'll just ask you a series of questions if you don't mind."
Alexis rushed into Franco's room pushing through the crowd. "Don't you say a word!" She yelled at Franco.
Franco complied and remained silent.
Everyone looked at Alexis.
"Is there a problem Alexis?" Patrick asked.
Alexis figured she'd make it up as she went along. She didn't anticipate the deviation of Sam and Jason's baby factoring into her getting to Franco. "I...he is entitled to proper representation."
Stefan eyed Alexis. "My sister doesn't know of the words she speaks. She has had a long day."
"Don't you dare apologize for me." Alexis pointed at Stefan.
Kevin looked at Alexis. "And you intend to be his attorney? I don't know if that's a good idea."
"I want to talk to my attorney." Franco said with weakness in his voice. He closed his eyes.
Anna stood up from Franco's bed. "We should leave them alone." She ushered everyone but Alexis out of the room.
Franco opened his eyes again when the coast was clear. "What kind of game you playing with me? You're just like me Alexis."
"God. You're still talking shit." Alexis shook her head. "You're nothing but a pawn. Did Helena teach you how to play chess too? It's the weakest piece in the game and there's more like you where that came from."
Franco struggled to move his arms but realized he was chained to his bed.
Alexis snatched Franco up by his hospital gown. "You going to answer to another Queen now. And we're going to play by my rules."
"What do I get out of it?" Franco asked.
"What did you get out of answering to Helena?"
"Noted." He closed his eyes.
Alexis released him from her grasp. "Maybe you'll get the pleasure of finally seeing Helena meet her demise."
