Little Sister
Chapter Twenty: Redemption
Author's Note: Happy Holidays, everyone! This chapter's not exactly full of yuletide cheer, but I hope you like it. I struggled with it quite a bit, and despite how it may seem, we're not quite at the end of the story yet. Enjoy!*
"Alexis …"
She turns away from Mikkos, curling up in a fetal position on the bed. Soon, they will leave this apartment and return to Greece. After forcing her to give up her baby for adoption, he has inexplicably and repeatedly attempted to engage her in conversation, in a way he has never done before. With her mother and father both dead, it should have been perfectly natural for him to step into the role of parent, but he has never even attempted to do that, until now. How ironic that he is finally trying to be some sort of parent to her, while at the same time robbing her of the opportunity to be a parent herself. Robbing her of her baby girl … her sweet, innocent little baby girl…
"Leave me alone."
"Alexis, it is for the best. You did the right thing." She sits up and turns to face him, eyes blazing with anger.
"I did the right thing? What the hell are you talking about? You didn't even give me a choice! I wanted to keep her!"
"I know you must feel …"
"How would you know how I feel? Did you have a daughter you were forced to disown?" Mikkos flinches at her words and her tone. She doesn't understand why her reaction seems to pain him so, but she is glad of it. She wishes she could hurt him as much as he is hurting her now. But then his face hardens.
"It's really terribly mundane and very common, Alexis. You made an imprudent choice, and now you are suffering the consequences –"
"Choice? What makes you think any part of it was my choice?" Mikkos stares at her.
"What do you mean?" Alexis stares back at him, opens her mouth to speak, and then closes it, defeated.
"Nothing, I meant nothing. Now, just go away," she whispers.
"Alexis, I spoke too harshly. I … apologize. I know this is hard on you. If there is anything I can do to ease your pain…"
"Except for giving me my daughter back, right?" She snaps. "Please stop pretending that you care. You're no different than Helena; I'm just an inconvenience to you. You don't give a damn about me!"
"God damn it, Alexis, I am your FATHER!" Surprised and confused by this vehement declaration, she leans forward, staring at him. Mikkos takes a deep breath.
"What I mean is, for all intents and purposes, I am your father, your parent, and I love –"
"No you're not and no you don't!" Alexis snaps, her eyes filling with tears.
"Please, Alexis …"
"Where's Stefan? I want Stefan! You really want to make me feel better? If you won't give me my daughter, then bring Stefan here. He's been more of a father to me than you ever have!" With nothing further to say to him, she turns away, curling back up into a ball, refusing to acknowledge that he is still standing there, silent. After a moment, she hears his footsteps retreating from the room. She fingers the lock of her daughter's hair she has hidden beneath her pillow, and cries herself to sleep.
Stefan arrives the next day.
"Little one?" Alexis eyes fly open at the sound of his voice, and she bounds from the bed and into his waiting arms.
"Oh Stefan! You're here, you're here," she breathes, burying her face in his shoulder. They have not seen each other since he visited her at the clinic, and she has missed him so.
"My daughter …"
"I know, I know. I'm so sorry it has to be this way."
Stefan holds her until Mikkos' voice intrudes on their reunion.
"Stefan, I need to speak with you."
Stefan reluctantly releases his little cousin. "Yes, father," he says dutifully, working hard to cover his irritation. He kisses Alexis' cheek. "I'll just be a moment."
He follows his father across the apartment. He stops when Mikkos stops, waiting for the man to speak.
"Do you know who the baby's father is?" Thought it shouldn't, the question takes him aback.
Stefan hastens to make his expression blank and impassive. "No, I do not." Mikkos eyes him appraisingly.
"I think that you are lying, my son."
"Think whatever you want, father. Punish me if you like, for my supposed falsehood, but I have nothing else to say to you on the matter. Now, if you are not going to ask me anything else, I will return to Alexis. That is why you summoned me here, is it not? To help her through this?"
He sees pain in his father's face. It is surprising, because the man is usually so unreadable to him, but the expression is unmistakable. Years later, he will look back with understanding; for all his flaws, his father truly loved Alexis, and it hurt him that Stefan could comfort her in a way he could not.
He returns to see her holding something in her hand. "What is that?" She sniffs.
"A lock of my daughter's hair," Alexis says softly. "One of the nurses was kind enough to give it to me. Oh god, I … I just hope she'll be alright."
Stefan sits back down beside her and puts him arm around her. "Of course she'll be all right. She's a fighter, and she's strong."
"How do you know that?" Stefan tries to smile.
"Don't you remember when I was at the clinic? She kicked, Alexis. She kicked very hard."
***
"This is all my fault," Stefan said.
"You're damn right it is!" Nikolas shouted, still clutching a sobbing Sam in his arms. "You had no right to keep her from us!"
"No," Sam said, her sobs subsiding. "I understand, I get it now. I know what you see when you look at me, uncle. I am nothing more to you than the physical manifestation of your guilt."
"No Samantha! Please try to understand, I was only trying to … to protect you, and your mother –"
"If you had protected her, I wouldn't BE HERE!" Sam screamed. "But you failed, and I am a constant reminder of that! Not to mention a reminder of Stavros. I know you hated him just as much as Alexis did, so why wouldn't you hate me?"
"By that logic, I should hate Nikolas as well. But I don't; I love –"
"Oh spare me! Nikolas already told me you secretly believed he was your son for most of his life –"
"Before any tests were falsified, before he was even born," Stefan countered, talking over Sam, "I loved him! Because he was Laura's son. And …. I love you, because you are Alexis' daughter. I just … I was afraid. I was afraid of my guilt and my shame, my own inadequacies. I was afraid Helena would find out about your paternity, and I could not fathom her reaction. I was afraid of … this. I was afraid we would not be able to keep the truth from you, and … I was afraid Stavros would hurt you from the grave."
Sam collapsed against Nikolas, falling to the ground. "Sam …" he gasped, his voice shaking.
"Alexis hates me."
"That's not true," Stefan said.
"Of course it is!" Sam wailed, as Nikolas cradled her. "How could she not? You told me you thought she would never recover from the loss of me, but what you really meant was that she would never recover from what my father did to her!"
"That's not the way it was!" Stefan shouted, his voice as tremulous as her own. "You don't understand! She told me … she told you me you were her reward for enduring everything that … happened, she … she was so angry at our father for taking you away …"
"Oh, god. Did Mikkos know too?"
"No, I was the only other one that knew. I … I swear to you, I planned on taking it to my grave, rather than cause you this pain, I … you have to believe she loves you, Samantha. She always has. There were so many times she wanted to seek you out. It was I who always dissuaded her, it was I who kept the two of you apart, because …"
"…because you knew this would destroy me," Sam whispered.
"It was my sin and my mistake to underestimate you, Samantha. I know now what I recognized back then; that you are stronger than this!"
"How do you know?" Sam gasped.
"I felt you kick, Samantha. You are your mother's daughter. I always told Alexis she was stronger than she knew, and the same is true for you. You kicked so hard … the same way Nikolas did." Sam cried softly as Nikolas' grip tightened on her. "Laura never blamed Nikolas for the way he came into the world, and Alexis never blamed you. You were not hated or reviled by her; you were beloved, always."
"Well, isn't that just a pretty little lie."
All three of them turned, to see the man who had set on this madness in motion. His smile was more of a leer, and he had Alexis in his grasp, holding a knife to her throat.
"Alexis!" Stefan stepped forward, and Valentin drew the knife closer, pressing the tip into her neck just hard enough to make her bleed.
"Stay back, Stefan, or I'll slash her throat. Straight across the vocal cords, just like Helena did with her mother. Would you appreciate the symmetry of that, dear Natasha?" He shook her, laughing as she whimpered in pain. "Hmm? I suppose not. Now, little sister, tell your incestuous spawn the truth! Tell her you can't stand the sight of her, tell her you hate like you hated her father!"
Alexis struggled in grasp. "No! I love her – I love you, Sam! I carried you in my body for nine months, and when you were born, I wanted to hold you forever and never let go!" Valentin laughed, gripping her tight enough to bruise.
"You're a liar."
"No I'm not, Valentin! Go to hell!"
"If I do, I'm taking you with me!" Nikolas' eyes darted to Stefan, who nodded imperceptibly.
"Let her go!" Nikolas shouted. "It's me you want, isn't it? I'm the Prince, I'm the one whose very existence has kept you from grabbing all the money and the power, aren't I?"
Valentins' manic gaze shifted to Nikolas, and his grip on Alexis slackened just the tiniest bit –
Stefan attacked him as Alexis twisted out of his clutches. Valentin let out a wordless scream of rage, trying to push past his brother to plunge the dagger in Nikolas' throat –
Nikolas ducked out of the way, pulling Sam with him. Valentin was forcing Stefan over the parapet, and Stefan was clutching at his wrist, trying to prevent himself from being stabbed –
They tumbled over the railing together.
"NO!" Nikolas screamed. "Not again, uncle, uncle!" He rushed forward, but it was too late. He stood there, shaking.
"Nikolas …" Sam called out.
He turned to see Alexis and Sam embracing. "I love you, I love you, I love you. None of the rest matters, Sam, I love you…."
Sam held her mother tight, burying her face in her shoulder. "I know, I know. I love you too, mommy…."
Nikolas walked over and embraced them both. It was several moments before they came to their senses and pulled apart.
"We … we have to go see … we have to find …" he did not say, their bodies, but both Sam and Alexis understood his meaning, and nodded grimly.
They made their way down to the bluffs, and found Valentine at the edge of one of them, lying on his back, his mad eyes wide, the knife plunged into his chest. They all stared at him as his face contorted in pain, and he gasped his last words:
"I just … didn't want … to be … ignored."
Nikolas crouched down so that his face was inches from Valentin's. "I don't hate you; I don't love you," he whispered. "For all that you have done, I will simply … forget you. I will ignore you forever." Valentin's eyes locked with the Prince's, and Nikolas saw the expression of horror that flashed across his face, before his features slackened, as his last breath left him and he died.
"He's gone," Nikolas confirmed, and they all breathed a sigh of relief. He looked around.
"Where …"
But though they all searched the bluff, they could find no trace of Stefan's body.
"He … his body … it must have fallen into the water … right?" Sam asked, as they all exchanged uncertain glances.
"I suppose," Alexis said. Nikolas and Sam looked down at Valentin's body.
"What are we going to do with him?" Sam asked.
Nikolas locked eyes with her. "A dead body will bring the police, and along with them, questions I don't want to answer," he said. "Let him meet the same end as his brother."
"Do you mean…"
He took her hand. "Let's kick hard, Samantha."
They were strong; it barely took any effort at all. The body rolled over the edge and into the water. Nikolas put his arm around his little sister.
"You are safe, little one. And you are loved. It's all over now."