Unsettling Realizations

By Didi

Disclaimer: General Hospital, property of the ABC which in turn is property of the Walt Disney Company; which just means that Walt Disney owns the universe. It is not, by any means or wishful thinking, owned by little ole me. I am in no way associated with the show and by no means have any control of the direction of how it is going. No malicious intended by this "borrowing" of characters from the show and no profits are being created, invented or made… though donations are welcome in the form of lovely reviews.

Summary: Luke gets an invitation, Lulu reaches out, Cooper makes Jason understand and Claudia visits an old friend.

Timeline: Nowhere in this universe or even of the next. This timeline is infinite and stretched out in some semblance of order, donut shaped and sugar glazed. And if you actually understood that, it is perhaps a good time to seek some professional help… or a nice visit to Shadybrook.

Author's Note: I love Genie Francis and seriously wish GH will just hire the woman back on a reoccurring basis or something because her and Anthony Geary just brings down the house every time. But the storyline they came up with this time… "Lulu has a break down?" Seriously! Did they not do this storyline an hundred times before that? And only allowing Lulu and Laura scenes? (Yes, I know it was storyline dictated.) What the heck was that all about?! What a complete and utter waste of Genie Francis' talents. (Not that I didn't think that the Lulu and Laura reunion wasn't heartfelt and awesome in every which way… and both actresses better get Emmy nods for this!)

Rating: T

Key: "Spoken," "Thoughts." ("Spanish") Any questions?

Chapter 21 - Sideways

Computers weren't always friendly for someone that's always relied on his charm and sweet honeyed tongue to make his way in the world. But Luke Spencer was a great believer in adapting to one's changing environment; it's one of those skills that makes him a survivor. Plus he's managed to find all sorts of useful things to do with the ever changing and widely used information highway; there's always another method of getting around a barrier when it came to the unseen world of data and bytes.

Though at the moment, Luke was rather wishing he wasn't quite so apt in finding things out the way he's been doing. He didn't like that someone's been tapping into classified police records about his family, especially his son. Or that someone's been looking into the medical records and police records on his beloved Laura and even his little princess. Or that there's been several attempts at hacking into his own rather dubious financial records through back channels that hadn't been used in… well… Luke was certain glad that most of his more colorful funds were offshore and under assumed alias and such… things he was certain that his lovely blushing bride of a wife didn't know anything about. Tracy was a lot of things but trusting wasn't one of them. But Luke had his doubts as to the identity of the recent attack on his family secrets; they certainly wouldn't be looking at Lucky's police academy records if they were merely after money or blackmail material…

Picking up his phone, Luke dialed an old and familiar number. It rang several times.

"Yeah?"

"Well hello to you too, Sunshine," Luke greeted charmingly.

"What is it Luke?" Sonny answered in the impatient manner those around him had grown use to by now.

Cutting the nonsense, "What's going on involving my baby girl?"

"What do you mean?"

"Someone's been poking their dirty noses into my family business. I want to know if it's got anything to do with you."

A long pause followed and Luke can almost hear the wheels churn in Sonny's head. It didn't exactly relieve his unease. "I'll get back to you."

"A name, Cointhos," Luke said in that tone of his that meant business… mob business. No one messes with Luke Spencer's family and hopes to escape unscathed. "Sonny, I want to know who's got a bead on my girl."

There was another pause. Luke knew that Sonny was weighing business with fatherhood; he too had a little girl. "Someone grabbed Lulu, you know that right?"

He made an impatient sound. "Yeah."

"We think it was the Zaccharas."

"Lulu's safe now though, right?" There was enough menace there. "I just spoke with her a couple of hours ago."

Sonny took that tone from few but Luke was an old friend. "Yes."

"Good, now I want to know who decided to use my girl as bait."

"I'll get you a name."

"Quickly?"

"Yeah but Luke…"

"What?"

"Don't go after them yourself."

"Them?" he asked quietly, carefully, "So you do think it's more than the Zaccharas then."

Spencers are smart… and they're quick on their feet… and they're also impulsive. "I'm getting confirmation first. Let Jason handle it."

"Don't you think Jason has enough to do without this?"

"Jason is better at this than anyone else," Sonny reminded him with a carefully neutral tone. No matter what, this was still a business. "Let Jason do what he does best. We're trying out best to keep Lulu safe."

Luke frowned at the phone. "Don't try; do."

"Right," was the only answer and then he clicked off.

Sighing with exasperation, Luke considered it a moment. He would be totally against his nature to just sit around and wait for someone else to do what was necessary when it came to his own. And though his resources wasn't as great or as far reaching as some of his 'associates,' he was more than capable of a few tricks up his sleeves.

Picking up the phone again, he was surprised to be greeted by a sooth voice. "Good morning, Mr. Spencer."

Blinking for a moment, "And this is…"

"A person of interest," was the carefully oiled voice of an educated but not a refined man. "I think you and I can help each other with a mutual problem, to the benefit of both."

"Really? And how do you figure that, Mr….?"

"Lancing, Mr. Spencer, the name is Lancing."

That left a sore taste in Luke's mouth. "Like our esteemed D.A."

There was a quick intake breath and nothing more. "I think it would be in both of our interest to meet."

"Really?"

"That is, if you care to keep your daughter out of harm's way."

That was totally the wrong thing to say. "Where? When?" Silently adding, "And how would you like to die?"

"Tomorrow, Savoy Café, Eastside waterfront, 2:00 PM."

"I'm there," Luke bit out and then hung up with a click that almost snapped his phone in half. No one but no one, threatened his baby girl. And if Ric Lancing was involved… "I knew I should have killed that low life when I had the chance."

-&-&-&-

"You don't have to wait on me, you know," Lulu muttered around a mouthful of soup and chicken. "Oh… this is good."

"The hotel sent it over. I don't trust my cooking," Carly answered honestly as she watched her cousin eat. "By the way, your brother moved out of the hotel and back in with his wife. He says he'll stop by later with Nicholas, Cameron and Spencer so you better prepare yourself for one serious lecture about safety and stuff like that. Oh, and now would probably be a good time to tell you that you look like you've lost some serious weight."

"I feel like I've lost some serious weight," Lulu admitted as she pinched herself in the arm. Nothing but skin and bone with some muscle underneath. "All this shooting and bleeding and kidnapping and running… talk about stress. It'd be a miracle if I didn't lose some weight because of it." She didn't want to think about her brothers' visit; or the fact that at least one of them is going to try to talk her into moving in with them, but if the kids are here…

"You scared me, you know," Carly said soberly as she picked at the quilt on Lulu's bed. "Watching you is like watching myself ten years ago, running into the same pitfalls and going down the same wrong turns," she shook her head and didn't finish the sentence with an advise that she knew was going to be ignored by the youth. "Be careful, okay? You're not going to get a lecture from me about right and wrong and all the bull people are going to be throwing at you. I don't get to do that. But I do get to tell you to be very careful. Don't lose yourself in the middle of all this. That's the worse thing that could happen to you."

Lulu watched Carly for a moment, seeing the dull light in the once firry woman that she's learned to love. It's a vague and dim memory but it held, Carly had lost herself once too. It scared Lulu to see it in her cousin's eyes. "My mom lost herself too. Is that what you're afraid of? That I'll end up like my mom?"

"No," Carly replied in earnest, the thought really never crossed her mind. "You're stronger than Laura; you got her goodness and looks but Luke's strength. Don't let that scare you; you're not going to end up like your mom. Ending up like me, on the other hand…."

"What's wrong with ending up like you?" Lulu replied fiercely. This whole self deprivation routine is so unlike the usually confident Carly. "Smart, successful, two beautiful kids, great house, great wardrobe, money in the bank… a girl can do a lot worse."

Carly laughed, it was a genuine laugh of appreciation. Reaching over, she ruffled Lulu's hair a moment and wished, not for the first time, that she had a little girl like this one. "Always remember who you are Lulu, don't let anyone take that away from you."

The finality of the way she said it hit Lulu's heart like an arrow fired at close range. And being one to not really beat around the brush, "What happened with Jason?" The silence sat like a rock in the middle of a bed of flowers; heavy and out of place. Regret was late in coming and prudence was never her strong suit. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked. It's none of my business."

Chuckling with less mirth and more exasperation, "And when has that ever stopped a Spencer?" Carly gave her cousin a knowing look.

Grinning, "True…"

With a sigh, an acceptance that she's trying to really settle in her heart, Carly answered with a very simple, "Nothing. Nothing is happening now and nothing ever will. Lesson learned and it's time to move on." She wonder if this lesson was going to stick this time. "I've got a life to lead and kids to take care of. And Jax is…" she sighed. Carly wondered momentarily where her former-lover/fiancé/partner was at and what he was doing, but let it go just as fast. Since the Aussie jerk hadn't even bothered to call or write or send a smoke signal in weeks despite the chaos in town lately, she wasn't going to extend her already depleted energy wondering about him. "Well, Jax is not here. I'm not going to make another mistake with Sonny and there's no one else around. I think I'm going to just concentrate on being a good mom for a while." She made a face. "As soon as they bring my boys back from wherever they've hidden them."

"Are you okay with that?"

"What? My boys being hidden? If it's safer for them to not be around right now, I can deal with it."

"I meant about Jason."

"Are we back on that?"

"I didn't know that we had gotten off the subject."

"Lulu…"

"Jason is your best friend. You once said that he was your soul mate."

"I know what I said," resentful of having her own words thrown back at her. "And I now know that it's not true."

Shocked, Lulu choked on her own breath.

"I think I grew up a little in the last few weeks," Carly admitted quietly, almost to herself really. "And I'm finally opening my eyes to some stuff that I didn't really want to see before. But that's okay. It's probably for the best." She gave Lulu a quick glance. "Speaking of which…"

"Oh no," Lulu groaned and leaned back in her bed, "Why do I feel a 'Protect Lulu Plan' coming at me at full speed?"

Carly laughed out loud. It was funny… it really was. "Stop that! We're only trying to…"

"Protect me, got it." She whimpered. "Okay, give it to me quick," then covered her ears.

"Nothing much to it. Stay here, stay out of trouble, stay safe. You'll get shadows and stuff but that's it. Just… stay safe."

"That's it?"

"Yeah," nodding.

"Really?" she looked around the room as if trying to see something there. "What's the catch?"

"No catch," Carly said quietly. "It's really as simple as that. But I want to make it clear that I really want you to stay here… here, as in: in this house. Sonny's got men spread so thinly right now with problems that they can't really spare any more to do guard duties with us. The boys come first so I want them to have the top notch people."

"Naturally," Lulu agreed.

"So you and I have to make some sacrifices along the way. Being stuck here is just one of them. But we'll have shadows if we absolutely have to leave the house. And in your condition, I'm not sure you should. I don't want to over burden the guards by having you and me running all over town."

Lulu groaned again, the restrictions made her wish she hadn't turned herself back over to the tender loving care of the Port Charles Mobsters. "You're being awfully reason about this? There was a time when you would have been kicking and screaming and…"

"That was then," Carly replied, her eyes saying a lot more than she wanted to, "and this is for the best. We… we all need this to stop."

Reframing from saying anything more, Lulu nodded and pushed her lunch away. "I'm sleepy."

"Then you rest," Carly advised with a quick smile as she got up and took the tray away. "Do you want me to wake you later for… whatever?"

"No, I'm good," Lulu pulled the covers a little closer, mostly because her body truly was trying to recover and she still felt cold from the blood loss and fever. "Can you just wake me for dinner? And if Lucky or Nikolas comes…"

"I'll make sure you get to see them," Carly kissed the girl's brows. "Sleep well." She closed the door and sighed, more concern for the girl now that she's talked to her. There was something in Lulu's voice and eyes that didn't sit well with her… it really was kind of like looking into the past and clinging at the what the future holds.

Lulu waited half a second after the door closed and she was sure that Carly had left to do whatever it is she needed to do for her businesses. The look in Carly's eyes had been a little scary: a longing for something Carly was now sure she couldn't have. Lulu didn't like to see her cousin this way, defeated; it wasn't the Carly she knew. Picking up her phone, the one she had gotten from Jason to replace the one she had lost, she dialed out. She hoped that Jason was true to his words and the phone wasn't bugged. "It's me: Lulu."

There was a short pause. "Are you all right?"

"Safe and tucked away."

There was another short pause, this one tinged with disappointment. "So no chance of me seeing you then?"

"Now why would you want to do that?"

"Because I want to. Do I really need another reason?"

A quick smile bloomed on her face and she took heart. "Too many guards and too many people will worry if I try to sneak out. I can't do that to them."

"Are you all right?"

"I'm okay," she answered honestly knowing that with Carly around, nothing was going to get to her. "Are you okay?"

Johnny's hand tightened on his phone, his threat thumping hard in his chest. On the one hand, he was sorry that he had worried her when she had so much more to be concerned about; on the other hand, he felt ridiculously good about the fact that she had been thinking of him. "I'm fine, nothing happened, no one knows."

"Good," she gave a sigh of relief. "Now all we have to do is keep Jason from finding out who you are and all will be…"

"No chance of that, Lulu," Johnny answered with all honesty. "From what I heard, Jason Morgan is as thorough of an enforcer as they come. He is going to know. It's just a matter of when and how."

"Why do you sound so calm about it?"

"I can't panic."

"Is that a physical condition?"

"No." He laughed, it wasn't meant to be funny since she said it so seriously but he laughed. It was good to hear her voice; it reassured him. "It wouldn't do me any good to panic over something I can't control. I'll just have to wait to see his next move before I do anything."

"Do?"

"React," he corrected.

"Johnny…" she frowned and wonder how she was going to ask then decided that the straight forth approach is probably her best bet. "Are you part of the business?"

"Are you?"

"No."

"Good," Johnny said with finality, "You shouldn't be. It's an ugly business."

"So says the guy that carries a gun."

"See, first hand knowledge."

She smiled. "I have a really bad feeling that things are going to get a little hairy around here. Be careful, okay?"

"You too," he whispered and listened as she said her goodbye and hung up. He sighed and turned to look out the window of his bedroom/prison, watching the red swamp roses reach for the sky and the pink lady's lace roses crawl out from among the fence. Lulu was like those roses, trapped within the walls of a confine and yet still reached for freedom. Unlike him, who locked himself within even knowing something better was just beyond those walls. But now…

Picking up the phone, he glanced briefly at the clock as the phone rang and rang. "Where are you?" He shook his head and wondered if he made a mistake, "I'm in my room. Find me when you get in."

-&-&-&-

"Where have you been?" was the question that greeted Cooper Barrett as he walked into his dark and what should have been empty room. To say that he was startled was putting it mildly. Flipping the light swatch, Cooper forced his hand from this service weapon even after seeing that Jason Morgan wasn't arms… visibly.

"What is it? Did you find Lulu? Did something happen to her?"

"I asked where you've been," Jason repeated, his face emotionlessly stoic.

Swallowing the panic in his throat, Coop shut the door with a quick kick of his heel and turned to face one of the most dangerous men in town. "Mac has been busting my chop about the whole business with taking Lulu out of town without authorization. I've been on patrol duty for the last twelve hours as part of my reprimand." He turned and regarded Jason with a steady look and a serious intent. "Did you find Lulu?"

There must have been enough concern and starch determination in Cooper's eyes to make an impression. "Lulu escaped on her own," Jason answered in the same neutral tone he used about everything else in life, as if he hadn't just conceded to Coop. "She stayed out of sight until she was sure she was safe then made it back into town without detection." He didn't add the part about her mysterious benefactor and he was going to keep it to himself until he got some actual answers.

"Is she all right?" Cooper wanted to know. The sense of relief that washed through him was almost palatable. At least that was one less thing to hang on his conscious; Lulu was safe, that's really all that he needed to know.

"She's fine," or will be… at least that's what Jason was told. He knew about the minor infection and the persistent low grade fever and how it's being treated by Carly, but other than that, he hadn't really had any interaction with Lulu since Carly sent her to bed. If fact, he hasn't seen Carly since that faithful night in her living room… when she walked away from him.

When she walked away….

"Can I see her?" Cooper asked, already knowing the answer but needing to ask anyways. He wanted a chance to explain, a chance to tell Lulu how very sorry he was for the role he played in the disaster that continues to haunt him. "How the hell am I ever going to make this right again?"

"Lulu's not seeing anyone except family right now. We're limiting her exposure. It's safer that way."

It was on the tip to his tongue to explain that he was no danger to Lulu, but his actions to date couldn't back him up. "You're going to keep her prisoner?"

"No different than when I sent her off with you," Jason pointed out.

Coop couldn't really argue with that. He sighed resigned to this and sat down, not all together sure he was relief or not. The silence stretched, surprisingly enough, not uncomfortably, "What's going to happen now?"

"To you or to Lulu?"

"To Lulu," he answered automatically, no longer startled that that he was more concerned for her future than for his less assured one. He was good at a lot of things, lying to himself wasn't one of them.

"She'll stay safe until we figure things out. Someone made a bad play. Now we have to fix it." He eyed the young soldier for a moment seeing something he didn't like in the boy: the stiff posture and dead eyes, it was Jason fifteen years ago just before he walked away from the Quartermaines and before Sonny took him in and simply let him be. Trapped between worlds that demanded something from a person, it eats away at the soul. "What does the police know about what's happening with Lulu."

"Nothing other than Lucky got a call from her and she's safe… for now. Mac is pissed when Mr. Spencer, Lulu's father," he clarified, "refused police protection." He didn't need to go into the choice words that Luke Spencer had used while chewing out the police force for endangering his precious daughter's life or Lucky Spencer's icy cold agreement while glaring at Cooper.

"Keep your ears to the ground, I want anything related to us," Jason got up and head for the door. "And report anything or anyone new that comes up on the radar, something big is coming at us."

"How big?" Cooper asked, assuming that he was still assured of his life for now.

"Big," Jason answered and opened the door, "and telling your friend Logan was a bad idea."

Even knowing that Logan can keep a secret better than anyone he knew, Coop still felt icy fingers of fear crawl up his spine as he assured Jason, "He won't talk."

"He better not," Jason warned then walked out.

It wasn't really a warning, Cooper understood that; it was a promise. If anything happens to those Jason protects, he was going to hold Cooper and Logan responsible… and he would extract his revenge with a pound of flesh… guaranteed.

Putting his fist though a wall, Coop gave himself a moment to feel all the anger, frustration and helpless guilt that came with ever breath he took these days. Taking a breath, than another, he mentally told himself to calm down and deal with it. This wasn't the time for him to lose control.

But first things first, dialing out, he wondered what the reaction would be. "Logan, it's Coop. Call me when you get this. And watch your back, Jason know."

-&-&-&-

The chiming doorbell barely made a dent in the screaming tantrum that Molly was throwing over breakfast and Ric was definitely in no mood to entertain. Mashed bananas were flung all over the dinning room and he groaned to think of the complaints he's going to get from his housekeeper. "Hang on!" he called toward the vicinity of the front door. "Just a minute!" and suddenly found Molly's baby spoon shoved up his nose. "Molly," he reprimanded.

"Now that's a sight I hadn't expected to see. Richie Lancing: the dotting daddy."

Ric turned so fast he almost tripped over his own feet, only the horrible thought of dropping his precious daughter kept him from falling on his butt as he stared in at the woman in the doorway. The voice was the same but the rest of her… What had once been skinny arms and toothpick legs covered by knee length shorts under oversized shapeless tee-shirts that never matched the fraying pair of untied red sneakers was now a curvy body encased in a black dress of designer quality and a pair of "kick-ass" red heels. To say that she had blossomed… well, that was an understatement. "Claudia."

"You remembered," she smiled, her red lips curved dangerously with a smile worthy of a feral cat cornering a mouse. "How sweet…" she glanced at the messy baby in Ric's arm and her smiled turned softer. "And this is…?"

"My daughter Molly, we were just having some breakfast." Ric explained quickly, closing the opened front door. He glanced at the door again. "Um… was that unlocked?"

"I learned a lot in Europe," Claudia replied easily, dropping the lock pick kit into her purse and set it down on the coffee table. "Please," gesturing toward the dinning room, "don't let me interrupt your breakfast."

"Thanks," he smiled and put his sniffling baby back into her highchair. "Well, this is a surprise."

"Really?" she asked, sitting down across from the pair and watched with hawk-like eyes. "You mean your father didn't tell you that I'm back in the states?"

Dropping the bowl and spoon, he startled Molly into tears again. Only partially distracted, he stared at the calm, curious woman across from him. "What? What did you say?"

Claudia's hard eyes softened for a moment for the boy she had once known in this man, the one that she had shared her first kiss with, the one she ran to when things got rough at her house. Despite the physical change, she could see the boy that he was still in his eyes. "I take it your relationship with your father improved over the years as much as mine has with my own dear old dad."

"Probably less so," Ric answered with some sense of control. "I haven't spoke to that man in almost twelve years."

"Um…" she kicked her shoes off and lifted her feet onto the next chair. "So you got four more years of alternating being screamed at and ignored, huh?"

"Pretty much sums it up."

"Why did hell did you wait that long to leave?" Claudia asked as she reached across the picked up a stuff purple elephant. It was a cute little thing, she remember giving Johnny one similar as a baby.

"Not really much of a choice on my part," Ric answered and spooned more bananas into Molly's resisting mouth. "Come on, honey…"

"Where's her mom?" Claudia asked. Women didn't like her with good reason. She didn't usually care but Ric was a friend. She came around the table when Molly flung her breakfast at her father again. "Is your wife going to mind me being here?"

"We're divorced," Ric replied calmly, evenly and then allowed Claudia to take the bowl and spoon from him. "Be careful, she likes to throw food."

"I can see that. But I'm use to having much more dangerous things thrown at me," she laughed and spooned bananas up. "Open up that hanger baby, here comes the mighty B56 coming in for a perfect landing!" she whirled the spoon high above a fascinated Molly's head and then brought it down into her open mouth. "Yummy?"

Molly spat it out, narrowing missing Claudia's dress.

Frowning, Claudia sniffed the banana and made a face. "What the hell did you put in this thing?" then tasted it with her pinky. "Blah… no wonder she won't eat it."

"Banana and oatmeal. Isn't that what you're suppose feed a baby?"

"Not together," she made a face at him then turned and shook her head in sympathy at the curious wide-eyed Molly. "You poor baby…"

"All right, all right…" Ric groused, "I'm still new at this."

"You're still an guy," Claudia said with a laugh, one that reminded Ric of a funny little girl with pigtails and a shy smile, before being a Zacchara got to her. "Come on," she motioned her head toward the kitchen. "I'll make her something."

"You can make baby food?" Ric asked in disbelief.

"Couple of Uncle Rudy's guys got their jaws broken once," she gave him a look asking him not to ask too much over the 'how' part, "Only way to handle it is to basically wired their jaws shut. It was baby food for them for six weeks. I learned all kinds of tricks."

"Um… Family business huh?"

"You should talk," she found more bananas in the fruit basket, "Lawyer?"

"At his own game," he countered. "What's your excuse?"

"I have Johnny to consider," Claudia explained.

"Ahh…"

She gave him a glare worthy of the woman that she's become.

"Johnny," he repeated with a knowing nod as he shifted Molly in his arms. "And how is little brother?"

"Trapped in that house between my father and yours? How do you think he is?" She smashed the bananas with a spoon, using more force than necessary. The most recent reports she'd gotten wasn't promising in the least. "Actually, it's part of the reason I'm here."

"I figured you didn't just happen to be in town." He didn't hold it against her, not with everything she'd had to go through in life. He should know, he was there witnessing it first hand for a good many years. "What's up?"

She searched the cupboards a bit. "I haven't seen my father yet though I planned on it once I'm ready. Your dad on the other hand…"

"And how is he?" because he couldn't stop himself from asking.

"His usual charming self," she said with candor, "But you know how he feels about me…"

"Be careful Claud," he said seriously as she brought over mashed bananas. "From what I hear, my father isn't just a mouthpiece for Anthony Zacchara anymore. He holds a considerable amount of power now… more than he did all those ears ago."

"And what have you been hearing?" she asked as she spooned banana, water and cinnamon into Molly's open mouth.

"Too much and not enough," he was willing to share with Claudia… provided that she did the same. "I'm not in that business, I don't want to be. I've got Molly to think about."

She understood it well. "You and Molly aren't part of this. I promise."

And with Claudia, her word is her bond… as it has always been. Ric motioned toward the dinning room again. "There's been rumbling about the Zaccharas wanting to expand outside of New York. They've moved further north recently, controlling some of the sea ports over and across the harbor. Port Charles would be an excellent addition to that expansion."

"You think my father is wanting to move into the Corinthos' territory?"

It didn't surprise him that she knew about Sonny; the Claudia he remember was good with details: she had many escape plans made up ready for when she was eighteen and can take her brother away. "I think my father wants to move in on Sonny Corinthos' territory." He gave her a look of warning… warning for her safety. "Did I mention that Sonny Corinthos and I share the same mother?"

Her eyes went big. "You're kidding."

"Nope," he gave her a shrug and watched his daughter open her mouth for more food. "Hey, she's eating that."

"That's because this is good verse that sloop you were trying to give her," she spooned another bite into Molly's mouth while avoiding her reaching hands. "Is that why you're here now? In Port Charles?"

"Partly," Ric answered. "Sonny and I don't get along for most parts but… we have an uneasy truce between us right now. For the kids' sake. My father and Sonny on the other hand…"

"Oil and water?"

"Try fire and napalm. They hate each other."

"Really…." She tilted her head, amused by this wealth of information.

Ric watched her, his own eyes careful in picking up on the subtle details and the change in her. "Claudia…"

She made a face. There were few people in the world she counted as friends, and of those few she did she was careful to take care of them. "I know, I know, he's your brother and I shouldn't…"

"That's not what I was going to say," he interrupted carefully. "Sonny and I have a very contentious relationship; we've agreed to stay out of each other's businesses. And Sonny's made his choice in life, and what he does isn't exactly a 9-to-5 kind of desk job; he knows the risks. I'm just asking that…" he shifted Molly in his arms, holding her a little closer. "Sonny's got three kids and…" he looked at Molly with her bright curls and her mother's inquisitive eyes, "And he's got two exes that have worked very hard to keep those kids out of harm's way. Can you just try to keep them out of it? I'm just asking you to try."

Claudia's face softened as she looked at the little angel in Ric's arms and knew exactly what he was talking about. "I don't ever bring bystanders into this business if I can help it; kids especially. I don't plan on starting now."

He nodded slowly, glad to hear it. "Now…" getting down to the business at hand. Claudia didn't come here just to chit-chat and play catch up. "What's on the agenda?"

To be continued…