Many thanks to those who've wished me well on my studies and to those who took the time to review. Your thoughts and observations on the chapter are inspiring in this stressful time. Why am I writing updates while studying? If I don't, I'll certainly lose my mind; this is a great study break for me. I am, however… there has to be a different word to use other than exhausted, but that's what I am. Blah.

Enjoy! Please keep your reviews coming!

Chapter Fourteen

Hauntings

Refusing to move forward until his two cousins walked through the door, Nikolas, as a young gentleman should, held the apartment door open for the ladies.

--- "But Cousin Alexis, you said we could watch whatever I wanted! Can't we try another store?"

Alexis and Nikolas had been having this same discussion since she had purchased new movies for the children: the entire Ice Age series and The Princess and The Frog. She had searched for Avatar at three different stores, but to no avail. Because of the popularity of the movie, it was not only sold out, but the salesman informed her that it would probably remain that way for the next week to come. In addition, he informed her that it was a PG-13 movie and perhaps unsuitable for her young children. Such an admission caused the mature boy severe heartache.

--- "Nikolas, this conversation is quickly becoming circular. Shall we simply not watch the movies we picked out for you and watch instead the one Sam chose first?"

She switched to Russian so that her daughter would not understand her. She was teaching the girl Greek and would move onto Russian once she attained a firm grasp on the language; it did not seem as though it would be much longer.

--- "No, Cousin."

She walked into the kitchen area and set the bags onto the island. She returned to English as she looked at the young boy she viewed as her nephew, but loved as her son.

--- "Okay, now are we done with this conversation?"

The boy, while typically well-mannered, was still quite spoiled; he was used to getting everything he requested from his father. He had had his heart set on seeing the popular movie. He crossed his arms and sat on the couch.

--- "Yes. I'm sorry Cousin Alexis. I didn't mean to be disobedient. May we still watch my movie first, please?"

Sam had been growing annoyed that her cousin was intruding on her time with her mother and doing so by acting as a brat. While she had grown to love the boy and his father, she enjoyed having Alexis to herself as in that way she did not feel embarrassed when she grew upset over minor things. She also did not want her mother to cry in front of the two boys lest she appear babyish; Sam was protective of the woman's image. She was, to say the very least, anxiously awaiting Nikolas' departure.

--- "Mommy, I don't want to see that movie."

It was no secret that Sam's viewing choice was strictly on princess movies, but Nikolas was having no part in such a film; according to him, such films were inappropriate for a young boy. As a result, being that Avatar was no longer an option, he had attempted to choose G-Force, but Sam complained about the animals on the cover; they reminded her of the rats that bit her skin throughout the night while she slept on the living room McCall's floor. Therefore, much to Nikolas' chagrin, Alexis shook her head and forced him to put it back onto the shelf. After much discussion, she compromised for the Ice Age movies with a deal to watch the first one before he was made to watch a girl's movie.

--- "Baby, just give it a chance—"

The little girl shook her head as she watched her mother unpack the bag of movies, popcorn, and other snacks they had just purchased.

--- "But it's boring!"

Nikolas, hearing his cousin's complaints, interjected from the living room. He did not want to be forced into watching her movie; he had already seen most of her other princess movies while visiting the apartment. He would not allow her to win this time.

--- "Not everything has to have princesses and fairies, Samantha. Besides, all of the movies end exactly the same!"

Sam, standing in the kitchen area turned to scowl at the boy.

--- "I wasn't talking to you, Nikolas!"

The young boy put his hands up in defense.

--- "I'm sorry Samantha, but I do not like them. It's not fair that every time I come here, I have to watch a movie made for girls—"

--- "But this is my Mommy's house and that's a movie for boys!"

Nikolas stood in protest.

--- "That isn't true! This movie is for everyone!"

Sam leaned into her mother's leg.

--- "Mommy! Tell him!"

Alexis put a packet of popcorn into the microwave.

--- "Nikolas, why don't you go into the bathroom and wash your hands? And buddy, take your sneakers off; make yourself comfortable."

Alexis was determined to get the boy to loosen up, at least when in her home. He nodded and walked out of the room.

She turned her attention back to her daughter. She bent to meet her daughter at eye level. She put her hands on the tiny girl's waist and looked into her beautiful face attempting to ignore the features she shared with Stavros hoping that he would not make another appearance just to remind her of their similarities; despite what he said, her baby girl was nothing like him.

--- "Sammy, you haven't even seen it yet. Give it a chance, you might like it."

Sam played with her mother's hair.

--- "What if I don't like it?"

The young mother watched as Stavros appeared behind the girl. He attempted to place his bloodied hand on her shoulder, but Alexis gasped and quickly scooped her up into her arms.

--- "Don't you dare touch her!"

He smiled at her as blood dripped down from his busted lip down onto his chin until it pooled at the tip waiting to splatter onto his already soiled shirt. He used his torn shirt to wipe it away.

--- "But she's mine, dear Alexis."

She looked at Sam, who seemed to notice the change in her other's temperament, stared back at the woman with eyes so similar to her father's.

--- "Mommy?"

To ease her nerves, she smiled at the girl and gave her a kiss on her cheek. She refused to justify the man's comments with a response.

--- "Chipmunk, I don't think Nikolas is going to like the movie you chose either, but he's going to watch it anyway; that's what we call a compromise. Remember this morning, he didn't want to go to the park; he wanted to go to the library instead? Well, I think it only fair that because he did something he didn't like, we now allow him to choose the first movie we watch. Right?"

Sam nodded.

--- "Okay. Will you sit with me?"

Stavros laughed at the young girl.

--- "Look at what I gave you, Alexis! You finally have someone to love you! No need to thank me yet, honey. I'm patient."

She glowered in his direction, but was shocked at was she saw. He stood with broken bones on his leg and arm, his right eye was blackened and swollen shut, and his shirt was riddled with splotches from what clearly seemed to be his own blood as he had clearly been badly beaten; she went to imagine the state of his body's damage underneath the clothing, but quickly realized that she would never again want to see the man nude. As he stood in her presence, she was disgusted; she was grateful neither her daughter nor young cousin could see him.

--- "It looks like you got what you deserved, you son of a bitch."

He sighed.

--- "Listen to the mouth on you in front of our beautiful little girl! Tsk… tsk… I would hate for her to hear the way you speak to her father; what would she think of herself?"

--- "She wouldn't think anything as she'd never know who you were."

He mockingly laughed at her.

--- "Careful now, Alexis, the walls have ears."

She took a deep breath, ignoring the dead man. She set Sam onto the counter beside her and away from Stavros' grasp. She grabbed a bowl from the cabinet.

--- "Of course I'll sit next to you sweetheart."

Stavros winked in Sam's direction, but the girl, of course could not see him.

--- "I'll see you and your mommy around, little one."

Alexis turned around to glare at him just as he, with his visibly broken arm, reached out to forcefully pull her into his savage-like embrace. Terrified, she dropped the bowl onto the ground, startling Sam.

--- "Mommy?"

The young mother covered her face to hide Stavros' image, but she knew she could not ignore the girl who had become so in tune with her emotions.

--- "It's alright, baby; Mommy thought she saw something."

She quickly picked up the bowl and set it on the counter. She wiped her tears and once again took her daughter into her arms.

--- "Mommy's just acting like a big old baby over nothing. She's fine."

Sam wiped a tear from the woman's face.

--- "Was it something scary?"

Alexis held her daughter's little hand in place on her cheek.

--- "Nothing I can't handle. Don't worry about Mommy, okay chipmunk?"

Hearing Nikolas approaching, Sam laid her head onto her mother's shoulder. She whispered softly so as to not embarrass the woman.

--- "If you want to take another bath, I'll leave you alone. You don't have to stay with me, Mommy; I'll be good and watch the movie with Nikolas. You can even use my bubbles; I won't mind."

She took a deep breath; her daughter was more observant than she had ever thought. The girl had noticed that she was taking numerous showers a day, but she had never thought she would be so bright as to realize that the need came after Stavros touched her. Regardless of the way he had appeared to her, be it in human form, a decaying corpse, or as he just had, as a bloodied dying form, he still made her skin crawl.

--- "Mommy will be fine, my love; sitting with you makes her feel better."

She looked at Nikolas who stood beside the refrigerator staring at them.

--- "Cousin Alexis, may we watch the movie now?"

Sam groaned in annoyance and buried her face into her mother's neck. Alexis smiled at the boy.

--- "Yea, in a few minutes, honey; I'm just going to put the popcorn in the bowl for us. Sam, why don't you go wash your hands and use the bathroom before we start the movie."

Sam nodded and gave her mother a kiss on the cheek before allowing the woman to put her down. She wanted terribly to help the woman and make her feel better the way she had and continued to do for her. She tapped her leg.

--- "If you don't want to use my bubbles, you can borrow Danny if you want, Mommy."

Alexis smiled at her daughter; she knelt in front of her.

--- "Thank you chipmunk, but you're all I need. But, I tell you what; if Danny wants to watch the movie with us, he's more than welcome."

The little girl smiled widely. She tapped her mother's nose with the tip of her finger.

--- "I'll ask him!"

Alexis laughed and playfully swatted Sam's bottom just as the girl ran from the room. Regardless of what he said, Stavros could and would never taint the love she had for her little girl.

Mikkos fixed his suit jacket from the struggle he had just had with his wife. He wished that he could have said that he had never seen the woman so enraged, but that would certainly have been a lie. Helena was angry, cold, and bitter toward everything and anyone who dared speak negatively about her… their son. She put Stavros on a pedestal for the world to see; alas it seemed as though she was the only person who failed to seem him for who and what he was. At least that was what he had thought for years.

He looked at Stefan who stood still as stone glaring at his presence. He cleared his throat before speaking to the man; he knew this was not going to be a pleasant exchange.

--- "Are you alright?"

Stefan looked at the man standing before him with absolute hatred. Throughout his childhood, the man stood silently watching as his wife and son use both he and his cousin as punching bags. Now, having heard that his son was a rapist, that he had raped that girl, the only words that he thought prudent to vocalize were, 'Are you alright?' If he had inherited his mother's violent temper, he would have murdered his father on the spot.

--- "You are a piece of work, Father; are you aware of that? I have just stood in this spot and told your wife that your son raped Alexis… no, ALEXANDRA, and the only thing you have to ask me is if I'M alright? Father, when the hell did you begin to care about my welfare? God, when did you begin to care about anyone else but yourself and your Cassadine Empire?"

Mikkos picked the letter opener from the floor and returned it to the desk from where it had been taken.

--- "You might not respect me when you are in your home or in the states where I've heard you've decided to move, but Stefan, you will not disrespect me in my own home. I will not allow you, regardless of how angry you might be over something of which I had no control—"

The younger man slammed his fist on the desk; he interrupted his father.

--- "The HELL you didn't have any control over what happened to Alexis. YOU were the cause of it all. YOU! You sat idly by with a cigar in your mouth and the evening or morning paper in your hand and let those bastards terrorize her."

Mikkos remained calm as he spoke to his son. He rarely raised his voice when he spoke. His composed demeanor therefore was always seen as cold and disconnected. But, this view was wrong; he did care. He had tried on numerous occasions to stop the reign of terror against Alexis, and to some extent Stefan, but it fell on deaf ears. When he saw the abuse had begun to escalate to dangerous levels, he sent the girl away. Considering what had happened to her, it was clear he had been too late; he had allowed the cruelty to go on for far too long.

--- "I attempted to speak with your mother about the discipline—"

Stefan felt as though he were in a twilight zone; there was no way this man who ran a multi-billion dollar company could be so daft.

--- "DISCIPLINE? She never did anything to deserve to be treated as she was! She was raised in this home and left to feel as though she didn't belong and that she was unworthy of love. And then, when she finally began to feel like a human being and love someone and feel loved, you ripped it away from her! And worse, you threw her beautiful daughter to the wolves. You LET her be abused, Father; in your self-absorbed complacency, you ALLOWED your son to rape her!"

Mikkos, for the first time, felt a pent-up anger rise up within him against the younger man. This was an accusation he could not accept. If he could have stopped it from happening, he would have. He could never… it was cruel of what Stefan accused him.

--- "I did NO such thing! I didn't know! I didn't… Look, I've made a lot of mistakes in my life; I know this. I've allowed things to be done, people to be hurt… abused… you… Alexis… and I… I didn't do anything to stop it. In regard to that child, I did what I thought was right! I put her where she needed to be… where I should've… Stefan, there is so much that you don't understand—"

Stefan stared at the man willing him to finish his statements. There were holes in the story; he wanted them filled. He wanted to return to the states with something to give his cousin. He wanted a why.

--- "Well, I'm here; tell me, Father. Please, help me understand how you had Alexis in this house for eleven years and stood silently as Mother and Stavros verbally and physically abused her? Please, explain away the despicable way that bastard spoke to her—"

--- "I can't—"

Stefan shook his head in aggravation.

--- "No, Father. It's not that you can't; you simply won't. You won't explain your inaction because then you would be forced to admit your guilt and that is something you would NEVER do. No, you are a proud Cassadine man! You are far to proud to admit that you ruined that girl's life and that of her child. If you won't help me, please know that I will figure it all out myself. I never needed you growing up, I certainly don't need you now."

Mikkos narrowed his eyes at his son; he was tired of being made to feel as though he were the enemy. He wanted a chance to speak and explain in his own time when he was certain of it all, but he was met with only hostility and anger. Considering the personal stake Stefan seemed to have in instilled upon himself, he wondered if his wife had struck a nerve in the man.

--- "You know, it's interesting that you are so passionate about all of this—"

The younger man frowned.

--- "I'm sure such an emotion is perplexing to you father; it's part of my human reaction and tendency to empathize with others. You would have to take your head out of your own ass to realize that there are others who exist in this world to know such a feeling."

Mikkos was infuriated. He had reached his wit's end at the level of disrespect her was being shown.

--- "Why don't you ask me what you want to ask me, Stefan? Why don't you ask me why I didn't protect YOU? Why I didn't love YOU enough or make YOUR mother not hate YOU? Why don't you ask me that? Why don't you stop hiding behind Alexis and what happened to her all those years ago by a now dead man and be a man. Ask the questions you have always wanted answered! Stop hiding behind Alexis!"

Stefan could not lie; the way he had been treated all of his life by his mother had always bothered him. It was true, in some way he might have been venting his own anger at his father, but this was not about him. He was, as he had always been, there for her; he picked her up when she fell. He had returned to the home in which they had grown up, to do just that.

He spoke in the calmed of voices.

--- "You know what, Father? I can't be concerned with that pathetic witch. I've known that she's hated me from the moment I was born, and I have been subjected to her abuse for years; I took and accepted it because I didn't know any better. But Alexis… you took her in. You brought her into this home instead of allowing her to live with people who might have treated her with dignity and kindness, and you watched for YEARS as she suffered at the hands of your wife and son and you did NOTHING about it—"

--- "Stefan—"

--- "No, let me finish! You accused me of being here for my own sake; you owe me the right to say my peace."

Mikkos sat at the desk and allowed his son to continue.

--- "I don't know from where she came before coming to live here, I'm sure she doesn't either, but God, I can only imagine that she lived in a home filled with love because it's only from her that I learned what love was! Of whatever she might have forgotten about her early life, she managed, in spite of the torments of this hellhole, to retain the ability to love, to be kind and to respect. That's something she certainly NEVER learned here. How could she when you people do not know a thing about such traits. Don't you dare tell me that I'm speaking on my own pathetic childhood with your disgusting sorry excuses for human beings; I'm talking about ALEXIS, ALEXANDRA, and whomever she was before she came here! I'm not speaking FOR her, Father; I'm speaking on my OWN behalf concerning my best friend, my cousin, and my sister who right now is breaking into a million pieces and I don't know how to fix her! And I swear to you, just as I did Mother, Father, that if she's lost to me, I will kill you myself."

Mikkos was shocked by the man's words. He knew Stefan and Alexis shared a bond, but to kill? Stefan was not so evil…

--- "You don't mean that—"

He scoffed at his father's doubt.

--- "The hell I don't! If something were to happen to Alexis, don't you know it would be a domino effect? She falls, Samantha falls, then I, and then finally Nikolas. Can't you see that? If she continues down this path, she will take that beautiful girl with her and there is nothing that I can do to stop it; that child will follow her mother to the ends of the earth."

This was still something shocking for which he was slowly piecing the reasons why the child was returned to Alexis and how she… existed.

--- "How… how… is the child?"

Stefan once again scoffed.

--- "You are on a roll tonight, Father. I must say that I'm astounded by the sudden display of concern tonight. Are you ill?"

--- "Stefan, please—"

He pulled his cell phone from his breast pocket; he noticed the missed call from Alexis.

--- "Ah, look at that! It seems that our dear Alexis had called me; would you like me to return the call and have you speak with Samantha?"

Mikkos sighed; there was no point having such a discussion with the man. Regardless of whatever he said, he would only be met with sarcasm and anger. He thought it best to simply give the man the files he had been looking over for the past two weeks. He hoped they might see that he was not the man they presumed him to be.

--- "No, that's not necessary, Stefan. Will you please follow me to my office; I have something I would like for you to take back to Alexis."

Stefan shook his head dismissively. Why could his father not understand him when he spoke? We did he find it so difficult to actually speak with his cousin; if he tried, he would find out how extraordinary she was.

--- "I am not your messenger, Father; I'm quite certain I've told you this."

The older man shook his head as he walked out of the room not caring whether or not Stefan chose to follow him; he was tired of his disrespect. He returned a few minutes later with a folder holding the copied contents of the material he had been reviewing from the moment he had spoken with Alexis. There was so much to explain, but he either did not know how or simply did not have the answers. They would have to trust him.

--- "There is quite a bit of information in here that will shock you both, and others that will seem unforgivable. I don't have an excuse for them except that I did what I thought was best. I know you're not her messenger Stefan, but please just tell her that… I'm sorry."

He placed the file onto the desk.

--- "Have a safe flight home, son."

He walked out of the room before Stefan could deny his request.

At some point, she had begun to doze off during the movie. It was not that she did not find it to be interesting, she simply found it easier to sleep when the sun was still up; too many scary things went through her mind at night. She did not know how to turn them off.

--- "Don't you look pretty. Did you fix yourself up for Stefan? You thought you were meeting him here, did you?"

Unfortunately, it seemed as though the times of day had begun to merge; there was no escape. He came to her in her waking and sleeping hours, bringing images and memories she had been taught and forced to forget. She wished she could close this chapter in her life as she had previously done.

She did not like what he was inferring of the relationship she had with her cousin. She looked at him in disgust.

--- "He's like a brother to me."

Encircling her like a hawk awaiting it's prey, he smiled at the fear emanating from her pores.

--- "So, if Stefan is like a brother to you, how do you see me?"

He could have been an incredibly handsome man, but his evil nature distorted his Adonis-like good looks. To her in a literal, yet figurative, sense, he was the spawn of Satan. She swallowed hard, but afraid to speak. She averted her eyes.

--- "As nothing."

He raised an eyebrow.

--- "Really? Now my feelings are hurt! Nothing Alexandra? Really?"

She slowly nodded her head feeling her heart rising to her mouth as he approached her unbuckling his belt with each step.

--- "Hmm, I suppose we'll have to change that, won't we?"

Sam grew restless; she found it to be funny enough, but she was growing hungry. She also hated that Nikolas had placed himself beside her mother; she was not willing to share something she had missed all of her life. Her childish thoughts never considered that he might also be longing for maternal attention.

--- "Mommy?"

Alexis, still in deep thought as to the events of that night, took in a deep breath to calm her nerves. She heard her daughter, but her brain did not allow her to respond.

--- "Mommy?"

Sam tapped her mother's arm; it seemed to take the woman from her trance. She looked down at the girl.

--- "Hmm?"

--- "I'm hungry."

Alexis smiled at her daughter; not long ago, Sam would never have informed her of her hunger. She unwrapped her arms around both children.

--- "Okay, I think I should make something for us."

Nikolas grimaced.

--- "But Cousin Alexis, you can't cook—"

Sam leaned over her mother in order to give the boy a dirty look.

--- "My Mommy can cook! She can make cereal, Chef Boyardee, Poptarts, Easy Mac and sandwiches!"

Nikolas rolled his eyes.

--- "That's not real food, Samantha."

--- "YES IT IS! Just because it's not fancy chicken and… and… shrimp like Cousin Stefan likes to buy, it's still food, Nikolas."

Alexis smiled at the exchange; she loved that her daughter was so defensive and protective of her.

--- "It's alright, Sam—"

The little looked up at her mother.

--- "No, he's wrong!"

Nikolas shook his head.

--- "Father said that sandwiches, cereal, and that other stuff you mentioned, aren't dinner. He said that Cousin Alexis is to order an adequate meal for us. He also said that she's not to be courageous in his absence because he loves us far too much to come back from his business trip to a couple of sick or dead children."

Sam leaned into her mother and pouted.

--- "Well, he's wrong."

Nikolas glared at his older, yet smaller, cousin.

--- "He's never wrong, Samantha."

Alexis tried not to laugh, but she knew she needed to speak to her beloved cousin about the conversations he had in front of his precocious son.

She put her hand on the top of the boy's head.

--- "Stefan told you that, Nikolas?"

The boy blushed; he immediately held his head down in shame.

--- "No, Cousin."

Alexis lifted his little chin.

--- "I know he didn't, buddy. He said all of that to me last night when we spoke on the phone. Were you eavesdropping?"

Sam smiled as she figured Nikolas would get into trouble for doing such a thing. She had been smacked around before whenever Evelyn thought she was listening to conversations she had been having with Cody in the living room where she was made to sleep. She didn't want Nikolas to get spanked, but she did not appreciate his insult toward her mother. She wanted him to be, at the very least, punished; more specifically, she wanted him to be placed in time-out for the amount of time it would take his father to retrieve him.

--- "Yeeeeees!"

Stavros laughed from the corner chair; she had hoped that he might have finally left, but there he was, again.

--- "My goodness, she is a feisty little thing, isn't she? She's so much like her father, don't you think?"

Her daughter was nothing like him.

--- "She's certainly nothing like you and your mousey self. You could never stand up for yourself."

Alexis glared in his direction, but narrowed her eyes at her daughter.

--- "Samantha."

Sam stared at her mother innocently.

--- "I bet he was, Mommy, otherwise he wouldn't know anything… and he doesn't."

Nikolas frowned and crossed his arms onto his chest.

--- "I was NOT, Samantha. You weren't even there; how would you know?"

Sam stuck her tongue at him, but quickly put it back into her mouth when Alexis gave her a stern look; she knew the woman hated the poor habit she had picked up from one of her television shows. She hid her face in embarrassment into her mother's side.

--- "Sorry Mommy."

Alexis rubbed her daughter's back. She knew with the emergence of her daughter's personality, she would soon have to begin punishing the previous shy and quiet child. She was not looking forward to the task as it was obvious to her that Sam felt as though she were a disappointment whenever scolded.

--- "It's okay, baby; but you have to learn to keep your tongue in your mouth."

--- "I will. I promise. Don't be mad."

She kissed the top of the girl's head.

--- "I'm not, baby."

Sam nodded to acknowledge that she had been spoken to; she continued to keep her face from view. Alexis knew she would emerge shortly.

--- "Were you eavesdropping, Nikolas?"

Nikolas had tears in his eyes. He quickly rubbed them to shield his sign of weakness. Knowing how brave his father was, he never liked to cry in front of others; it was improper.

--- "That wasn't my intention; I promise, Cousin Alexis. I was simply waiting for him to read me a nighttime story before he left for his trip. I didn't mean to listen to his conversation. I apologize; it was rude."

Alexis wrapped her arms around the visibly upset boy, bringing him into her.

--- "I believe you buddy, but I think you should make it a habit to, when an adult is having a private conversation, either not listen to it, or to step out of the room until you're certain the conversation has ended."

He nodded.

--- "I'm sorry."

Alexis messed with his hair.

--- "It's okay, Nik. How about you finish watching the movie while I figure out what to order."

She stood from the couch and moved to the kitchen area; Sam quickly followed her.

--- "Can we have pizza?"

Ever since their first dinner with Stefan and Nikolas, whenever given the option, the young girl requested the meal.

--- "Aren't you tired of pizza, honey?"

Sam smiled at her.

--- "No, it's good!"

Alexis lifted her onto the counter.

--- "Ok—"

Nikolas knelt onto the couch and turned to look at the mother and daughter.

--- "I don't like pizza, Cousin Alexis."

She tapped the counter remembering the look of disgust the young boy and his father had had on their faces when they realized they would have to eat the meal with their hands. When they were given a fork and knife and actually tasted it, they found the meal to be substandard for their high-quality taste buds.

--- "Ah, I forgot about that. Sorry, chipmunk."

Sam grabbed her mother's arm; the boy was once again infringing on her desires.

--- "That's not fair! Mommy, he doesn't like anything."

Nikolas protested the mischaracterization.

--- "I do! I just don't like pizza… at least not from this country."

She ignored him.

--- "Mommy, can we have pizza please? Nikolas doesn't have to eat."

Alexis glared at her daughter. She would never leave the young boy hungry. She could not do to him what had been done to her when she was a child; it was cruel.

--- "Samantha—"

Sam's eyes began to well up with tears.

--- "Sorry."

She knew the young girl had not intended to suggest such a thing, but it bothered her nonetheless; was Stavros getting to her? No, he could have been. Her belief in Sam's innocence and the influence she had on her was far too great to have been infected with the likes of the McCalls or even worse, her father.

She stood in front of Sam, looking her directly in the eyes.

--- "Sweetheart, I want you to listen to me, okay?"

The tears had already begun to stream down her cheeks. She used the back of her hand to wipe them. She felt so stupid; she had been doing nothing that day, but making her mother reprimand her. She was bad. Evelyn had told her that numerous times; perhaps she was right.

--- "I messed up again. You can send me to bed early or… or… take Danny away… I don't deserve him."

Alexis smiled sadly at her baby. She hated knowing that she might have made the girl cry.

--- "You didn't mess up. I just want you to understand that certain comments aren't acceptable because they can make someone feel bad."

Sam made a face; she did not entirely understand what her mother was telling her, but she did not want the woman to think she was stupid. Alexis, on the other hand, took her little face into her hands and wiped her tears away with her thumbs.

--- "Chipmunk don't cry. Do you remember what it felt like when Evelyn threatened to not feed you? And the nights you went to bed hungry because she didn't think you needed to eat because she said you were being bad?"

--- "Like now?"

She shook her head.

--- "No Samantha. You are not being bad nor are you ever bad. You're not always going to do or say things that Mommy will like, but that will NEVER make you bad. You are good."

Nikolas knew he should not eavesdrop, but he did not like that his cousin was crying; his father had told him that she was sensitive and would need everyone's help to make her feel better. He would do just that.

--- "I think you're really good, Samantha! If you want to get pizza, I'll eat it. And I promise, I won't complain about how horrible it tastes. I'll even let you eat my slice, if you want!"

Sam turned to look at him. She smiled at his generosity.

--- "Thank you, Nikolas. But… um… if I eat your pizza, you're gonna be hungry. Mommy doesn't want you to be hungry. I don't want you to be either. I'm sorry I said you didn't have to eat."

Nikolas returned the smile, while Alexis hugged her girl.

--- "That's my good girl."

Alexis grabbed the book of menus from the drawer. She noticed Stavros still seated in his seat watching her every move; she would have loved to throw the book at him, but she knew it would be pointless.

--- "Really Alexis, you should just face it; that child reminds you so much of me it's making you crazy! You can claim your looove is enough, but you see me in her; it's killing you right now. Goodness, I'm dead and here you are seeing me all bloodied and ruining your chair. You may want to seek professional help; this isn't normal."

He passed his hand on the chair's arm; it was clearly quite expensive. He leaned back comfortably into it hoping to stain it. He continued to taunt her.

--- "That worthless Stefan decorated this place for you, didn't he? Oh, I beg your pardon; that was rude. You don't have to answer that; but, I know he would do anything for you."

He rubbed his wounds, playing with the dead skin that barely covered the opened gashes. He made a face and looked back at her.

--- "I always found that to be quite interesting… and perhaps a bit disturbing."

She began to flip through the book cursing Stavros as she searched for something that could appease both children. She could feel an impending breakdown, but she needed to keep her composure in front of Sam and Nikolas. She wished Stefan had not left for an impromptu "business" trip; Stavros made himself scarce when he was around her. Even in death, the mad was a coward. Nevertheless, she took a deep breath to calm her nerves.

--- "Now, we're going to have to compromise. Okay?"

--- "I guess, but Mommy?"

Alexis looked over at her daughter.

--- "Hmm?"

The little girl looked over to Nikolas who had resumed watching the movie. She leaned into her mother's side and looked up at her.

--- "I love Nikolas, but I still like it better when it's just you and me… no boys allowed."

The young woman smiled at her daughter. She took her face into her hands and covered it with kisses. It was moments such as those that allowed her to distill the horrible thoughts Stavros attempted to implant into her brain against her daughter.

--- "You're my little chipmunk, you know that?"

--- "Nope, she's a monster. That's how you see me, right? Isn't that what you called me the night we made love?"

She once again began to feel her skin crawl; she wanted to scratch her skin until it bled. They did not make love; he raped her! There was a very large difference between the two acts.

Sam nodded.

--- "I don't want to try snails or any other bug again."

Alexis took a stool from underneath the island and pulled Sam into her lap.

--- "Don't worry about that honey; we won't order anything you don't want to eat."

Stavros walked over to them and pulled out his own seat. He smiled at the woman before moving close to her.

--- "You know, I didn't like escargot either."

The young mother shut her eyes for a moment as she waited for him to disappear.

Stefan read through the contents of the file numerous times. He looked through the birth certificates, adoption certificates, documents acknowledging legalized name changes, death certificates, pictures, and newspaper clippings; it was all rather overwhelming. He was certain his cousin was unaware of any of this. There was no way she was otherwise things would have been completely different. She would have been different and not on the verge of a complete mental break. Sam would have been a normal child. And he… he would… well, would he have been any different? Any better?

Alexis was lost; he knew this. She was trapped in a world that was created for her for some unknown reason that regardless of the amount of times he read the paper, he could not find the answer. She was Natasha Cassadine, Alexandra Davidovitch, and now Alexis Davis; each with a life of her own. Each holding secrets that were attempting to unlock after several years within his cousin's brain. It was no wonder Stavros was haunting her; he was the largest of the secrets she had tucked away with Mikkos' name and identity change… or was he?

Sam was barely fixed. She was better, there was no question about that, but she was being held together by tape rather than glue. At any moment, be it in words, actions, or memories, that child's world could come crashing down onto her; he was not sure if, at that point, anyone would have been able to save her. She was abused… so very abused… needlessly. Could she ever fully recover from the life she lived for nearly her entire life?

It was strange; as he read through the file for the twenty-fifth time, he could not help but think that perhaps in all of this, he was the only one who faired well. Of the secrets and lies, he got her… he got them both. He was grateful. Was he a bad person for almost feeling grateful to his father, a man with an apparent God-complex, for his actions and inactions that put both Alexis and Sam into his life? He was not sure if it made him bad, but it certainly made him selfish.

Stefan did not know anything anymore. The only thing he knew was that he would not let the pieces of her life continue to blow in the wind; he would catch them all and return them to her. That was the least he owed the woman…

After bathing the children before bedtime and giving up her place in the bed to Nikolas, Alexis lied on the couch in the living room with a Law Review journal. She missed writing for the prestigious journal, but she could not leave her still traumatized daughter; she still needed a lot of her attention that law school would not afford her. Sam's needs were of paramount interest to her; she could always return to school.

--- "Ah, we're all alone now! Is our monster asleep?"

She rubbed her eyes; Stavros' visits were more frequent and more vivid. She feared that at any moment the man would completely materialize and whisk her daughter away from her. Alas, she may have thought herself to be going crazy, but she would have been damned if she had allowed such a thing to happen… again.

--- "Goodness Stavros! Don't you have SOMEWHERE to be? I mean, I'm sure your mother wouldn't mind a visit from you. Go there. Leave me alone."

He walked around the room looking at the various books on her bookshelf and the pictures of Alexis, Sam, Nikolas, and Stefan that decorated the place.

--- "Actually, I'm right where I need to be. Really, how could you love that child seeing as you hate me so much?"

Her eyes followed him as he limped about the room. The bone in his leg was popping out through his pants; if he were not dead, he certainly would not have been hobbling around the room as he was.

--- "It's easy; she's the best thing that ever happened to me."

He picked a picture of just Alexis and Sam; he smiled, causing a bit of blood to drip over Sam's image. He attempted to wipe it off, but it smeared onto Alexis' image.

--- "I'm flattered."

She wished he would stop touching her things.

--- "Don't be. She is the ONLY good thing that came out of what you did to me, and you know what? In some very strange way, I thank you for that."

--- "You're welcome, pet."

She was at her wit's end with the man, ghost, or whatever he was. She threw her journal onto the coffee table and approached him; for the first time, she did not feel as though a thousand worms and maggots were crawling all over her. She felt empowered by the words that were about to leave her mouth. She wanted him to hear, understand, and leave her. She wanted this to stop. She wanted to be able to hug, kiss, laugh, smiled, and even scold her daughter without any comment from him. She wanted to live without any fear that she might become so mentally unstable that Sam would be taken from her. She wanted to give the child a sense of normalcy that she herself did not have as a child. His presence was impeding all of this.

--- "I want you to know one thing and perhaps this will get you the hell out of my face all of the damn time. When I look at her, I don't see you at all. You think I should, but I don't. When I look at her, I see me as a child, abused and neglected, but I'm changing that. Sam, despite what you, your mother, and your father might think, was not a mistake. She might have the misfortune of sharing genetic DNA with you three assholes, but she's one hundred percent mine and I won't let you taint that the way you did everything else you touched when you walked this earth. I love my daughter, but understand that I will ALWAYS hate you. You are an evil creature whom I hope is rotting in hell. Now, get the HELL out of my house!"

Stavros gripped his chest where his heart should have been, but had begun to rot away from the moment he had been born.

--- "Hmm… harsh words coming from a child like you—"

She frowned at him.

--- "Damn it Stavros, what does that mean? Stop speaking in f*cking circles. Say what you have to say and get the hell out of here!"

He passed his hand along her cheek causing her to blanche.

--- "Oh, then I couldn't watch you squirm the way you do whenever I'm around. This is far to enjoyable."

He took a deep satisfying breath before nodding away from her.

--- "Oh damn, it seems we've company; this is my cue to leave. I'll be in touch, my little mouse. Give Samantha a kiss from her daddy."

She turned to notice Sam, holding Danny, standing at the bedroom doorway.

--- "Mommy?"

She was not shocked to see the girl awake.

--- "Hi baby, what are you doing up?"

Sam had grown accustomed to having her mother beside her.

--- "I don't want to share a bed with Nikolas."

--- "You don't? Why not?"

The little girl, being quite embarrassed, shrugged.

Alexis smiled at her daughter.

--- "Come over here, silly goose."

She ran into her mother's arms. Alexis held her tightly against her for a moment; she sensed something off with her. Sure enough, when she pulled Sam away from her, she noticed that she had begun to cry. She grew concerned; the girl had been, aside from the arguments with Nikolas, fine. This was exactly why she did not feel she could handle the responsibilities of school and taking care of her emotionally damaged daughter at once; her baby needed her more. She would figure everything else out later.

She carried her to the couch.

--- "What's the matter, Chipmunk?"

Sam rested her head onto her mother's chest. She yawned.

--- "Nothing."

Alexis rubbed her daughter's back as she lied back onto the couch keeping the girl on top of her. She knew the child would soon fall back asleep.

--- "Samantha, Mommy can't help you if you don't tell her what's going on."

Sam rubbed her eyes as she sighed.

--- "I just missed you. I woke up and you weren't there. I got scared."

Unquestionably her girl had had her recurring nightmare of Evelyn attempting to steal her away.

--- "Do you want to stay here with Mommy?"

The child, without looking up, nodded her head.

--- "Can Danny stay too?"

Alexis shifted uncomfortably on the couch; she decided that she might need to invest in a sofa bed or simply a separate bed for her daughter so that she would not have to give hers up when Nikolas slept over. On second thought, seeing as Sam either woke up most nights from the nightmare, or clutching onto her for dear life, she wondered if might want to consider finding a new apartment; this one certainly must have held bad memories for the girl. Maybe Stavros would stay behind with the memories. She could close another chapter in her life.

--- "Of course he can stay, sweetheart. Are you comfortable?"

Sam yawned again. She nodded; she was comfortable anywhere near her mother.

--- "Can I see Danny… um, my brother… I… I miss him."

Alexis wrapped her arms around her girl unsure of how to respond to her question. She would have loved to reunite Sam with the brother she had loved for six years, but she was terrified that they might encounter Evelyn in the process; she did not want to take such a chance, but she certainly did not want to disappoint her daughter.

--- "Um, how about we discuss that later? Okay?"

There was no response; Sam had fallen asleep comfortably in her arms. Alexis lied there just listening to the child's soft breaths; it was the only thing that kept her calm throughout her restless nights. She anxiously awaited daybreak.

17