True Love Never Dies

A General Hospital fan-fiction

Disclaimer: Same as before.

Chapter Twenty-One: Rosco makes his move

It was just after 7:00 am when Angel returned to her penthouse. She knew Nicholas would be getting up soon, if he weren't already. The place was quiet as she climbed the stairs.

Nicholas' door was ajar. Angel pushed it open and smiled at the lump under the bed-covers she knew was her son. Reaching for the light switch, she flipped it on and announced, "Rise and shine, little boy."

Nicholas pushed his head from the pillow. His hair was tousled and his face creased from the sheets. "What time is it?" he croaked, as Angel sat down next to him.

"Seven o'clock," she answered. "So, what time did you get to sleep last night?"

"I was reading 'The Lord of the Rings'," he told her in answer.

Angel nodded knowingly. "I understand, so it was late." Shaking her head, she stood up. "Well, come on, it's time to get up. You don't want to be late for the last day before winter vacation."

She left his room and headed to her own. A glance at the clock reminded her that she was running late herself. She hurried to her bathroom to prepare for her own day at school.

Forty-five minutes later, she walked out of her penthouse carrying her book-bag stuffed with school paperwork. She ran into Sonny at the elevator.

"Hey, I thought you would have left by now," he greeted her with a kiss.

"Are you kidding me? I'm late," Angel told him. She jabbed him with her finger playfully. "You're a bad influence, Corinthos."

Sonny dimpled a grin. "I try, baby, I try."

The elevator opened and they stepped in. When they reached the lobby, they headed to the garage where they parted ways, Sonny to his limo and Angel to her own car.

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Sonny spent the day at the coffee warehouse. Jason showed up around noon to report his progress with Rosco. "There's something else you should know, Sonny," he added when he was done.

"What is it?"

"After I left you this morning, I followed Rosco to Kelly's," Jason began, "and I saw Zander."

"Zander? What was he doing there?" Sonny asked.

"I don't know but it looked like he was trying to spy on the guy."

Sonny sighed. "That kid is going to get himself killed one day," Sonny surmised. "What happened? Did Rosco see him?"

Jason shook his head. "I don't think so. I got him out of there pretty fast." He paused. "I just thought you should know."

Sonny nodded. He didn't know what to think of Zander Smith. The kid puzzled him. On the one hand, Angel, not to mention Emily Quartermaine, trusted him. She saw something in him that was worth saving. But all Sonny saw was a kid who screwed up, a lot. And he never seemed to learn from his mistakes, Sonny thought.

It was 2:00 pm when Sonny left the warehouse to meet Angel for a late lunch. School was dismissed early for the winter break so they agreed to meet at Kelly's when she got off work. Sonny and Jason took a shortcut through the docks to Kelly's. Johnny and Max followed closely behind. When they reached Kelly's, the bodyguards stationed themselves outside the diner while Sonny and Jason went inside. Elizabeth was on-duty and Sonny saw Jason's face soften when he saw her.

Elizabeth looked up as they walked in. "Hi Sonny. Hi Jason," she greeted with a smile. "Sit anywhere, I'll be right with you."

They hung up their coats and sat down at an empty table. Elizabeth met them, order pad in hand. "Hi, what can I get for you?"

"Just coffee for now, Elizabeth, thanks," Sonny told her, "I'm meeting Angel."

She nodded. "What about you, Jason?"

"The same. Thanks."

Elizabeth smiled. "Okay, coming right up." She went behind the counter and grabbed the coffee pot. Returning to the table, she turned their coffee cups right side up, and poured each a full cup. "Let me know when you're ready to order, okay?"

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Angel had been running late all day. She breathed a sigh of relief as she parked her car near the docks. Thank God for winter break, she thought. No more running around except to shop for Christmas presents. She did a mental head slap when she realized she hadn't even started her holiday shopping. She dreaded her annual trip to the mall.

Turning off the ignition to the car, she exited and locked it with the remote. A few minutes later, she reached Kelly's. Smiling at Johnny and Max, she opened the door and walked in. Spotting Sonny, she walked over and slumped in the chair. "What a day!" she exclaimed. "Thank God it's over."

"Rough day?" Sonny asked.

"Oh, only if you define 'rough' as having 22 four-year-olds hyped up on punch and cookies," she replied. "I don't think I had a quiet moment in my classroom all day. Everyone was talking over each other." She paused, smiling. "But it's okay, they were sweet. I received a lot of cute homemade Christmas cards today."

Sonny signaled to Elizabeth who returned to their table. "Hi Angel," she smiled, "what can I get you?"

Angel puckered her lips, deep in thought. "Um, I'll have a hot chocolate to start, please. I don't know what I want to eat yet. Thanks, Elizabeth."

As Elizabeth went back to prepare her drink, Angel peered over Sonny's shoulder at the menu. "I don't know why we're looking at this," she laughed. "We're here so often, we know the whole menu."

"Habit, I guess," Sonny laughed with her.

They decided on their meals and enjoyed a leisurely lunch.

When they were done, they left the diner. Sonny and Angel split ways with Jason and decided to take a walk on the docks. Johnny and Max followed closely behind. When they reached Pier 52, Sonny squeezed Angel's hand tightly when he saw Rosco approach them.

Rosco smiled widely. "Mr. Corinthos, what a pleasure." He leered at Angel. "And who is this lovely lady?"

Sonny stepped between Rosco and Angel. "None of your business," he told him.

"Sonny?" Angel didn't know what to think about what was happening. She sensed Sonny's mood change. Just moments ago, they had been making plans for the evening, but now his defense mechanism was up. She didn't know the man standing in front of them but she instinctively knew he was a dangerous man.

Sonny turned to Angel and pulled her close. "It's okay," he tried to assure her, "I need you to go back to Kelly's for me, okay? I'll be there shortly."

Angel stared at him, trying to read the situation. All she saw in his eyes was a silent plea for her to comply. Finally, she nodded. After a beat, she turned and left quickly.

When she was gone, Sonny turned to Rosco. "What do you want?"

Rosco's smile disappeared. His eyes turned cold. "I just want what's due me," he said, simply. "And I don't want you to interfere. I was loyal to Sorel when he was in charge, now that he's out of commission, I deserve the be in power."

Sonny shook his head. "That's for the Five Families to decide," he reminded him, "not for you to act on your own."

"The Five Families," Rosco scoffed. "We both know that they couldn't decide their way out of a paper bag. You're the one who influences their decisions and if you decide to back me, then they'll follow suit."

"What makes you think I'd want you in charge, Rosco?" Sonny asked, "Sorel wasn't smart enough to run his business but you? You're even less qualified. You're not even worth consideration." Rosco started to defend himself but Sonny cut him off. "This meeting is over," he said, turning to go.

As Sonny passed him to leave, Rosco reached to grab his arm. Johnny and Max moved fast. Johnny pushed him away from Sonny and pinned him against a wall while Max shielded Sonny with his body. "You don't hear too well," Johnny growled, "Mr. Corinthos said this meeting is over."

"See what I mean, Rosco?" Sonny said, "You're not smart enough to leave well enough alone." He walked away with Max following closely behind. Johnny waited until Sonny was out of sight before releasing Rosco and following Max and Sonny.

Rosco fumed as he straightened his tie and jacket. He vowed to make Sonny Corinthos pay for the humiliation he just suffered. No one looked down on him and got away with it. He smirked as a plan began formulating in his mind. He knew the perfect way to get to Sonny and he wasn't going to hold anything back in exacting his revenge.

As he walked up the steps to leave the dock, Zander stepped out of the shadows. He had heard the whole conversation between Sonny and Rosco.

To be continued…