Necessary Evil

Chapter Thirty-Five
FF#251: Cheated.

The Jackal was quite baffled.

Scratching his head, he sat up, observing his surroundings. He was definitely not in Kansas… or his apartment anymore, that was for sure.

The last thing he remembered from the evening prior was falling asleep while battling a lesser god of the cyber world. The imposter had proclaimed himself to be the best, but there was no way The Jackal could let such a contrived boast stand without issuing a challenge. So, he had proceeded to play and wipe the floor with his unprepared opponent, drifting off sometime during the early morning hours. But he was no longer in his living room, and he most certainly had not been sleeping on his couch. His aching back could attest to that.

Instead, he was on the cold, concrete floor on a barren, windowless room. There was no sign of habitation other than one lone chair propped up in front a small, metal table, the fluorescent lights shining above him, and his own disoriented form wearing nothing but his requisite sleeping attire – boxers and socks. As a fitful sleeper, he avoided cloaking his body in binding materials, rather, preferring to leave it free and uninhibited to his restless, dream induced movements. Unfortunately, though, there were no blankets in the utilitarian space, no pillows, and, if the chill in the air was any indication, little to no heat as well.

So, curling himself into as tight of a ball as he could manage sitting up, his yoga classes finally paying off, Spinelli rocked back and forth, hoping the constant action would inspire warmth in his practically numb body. At least his brain was busy. He searched his neurons for clues, attempting to piece together a list of suspects for the crime perpetrated upon him. Who would want to kidnap a book obsessed, closet computer nerd, and, more importantly, what would they want with him? After all, there was no way his current predicament was a dream. The already bruising flesh of his arms where he had pinched himself just to make sure was evidence enough, but he was also completely certain that he had not imbibed on herbal refreshments the night before, instead preferring an unclouded brain as he took on his deficient internet imposter.

"Hello," the young man called out, his voice ringing and echoing loudly in the empty, cavernous space. "Is anyone there?"

When there was no answer, he started to pout, a rather useless but self-gratifying behavior nevertheless. His only companion was his rumbling stomach as it revolved against the rather lackluster hospitality he was being shown at his new accommodations. Without even a second thought, he organized his wish list for whenever someone appeared in the room. First, he really needed to use the bathroom. Secondly, he wanted some food, barbeque chips and orange soda preferably. And, finally, he wanted a computer. At least that way, if 

he was going to be trapped, he could entertain himself… and, perhaps, jackal himself out of captivity as well.

/ / /

The four adults gathered around the diner's table avoided each other's gazes, pretending to be consumed with the drinks before them. Refusing to meet her brother's concerned brown orbs, Elizabeth watched the disintegrating marshmallows in her lukewarm cup of hot chocolate, thankful, at least, for Jason's presence beside her. Speaking of her boyfriend, he clasped his mug of black coffee as if it were a lifeline, noticeably awkward with the situation of having to have breakfast with two people he knew only in name and reputation. Patrick was fidgeting with his empty glass of orange juice, practically praying for his emergency beeper to go off so he could leave the planned breakfast meeting, absolutely refusing to glance in his girlfriend's direction. And then there was Carly, calmly sipping her herbal tea while hiding behind the style section of the newspaper, quite obviously not actually reading.

If she even knew how, the youngest of all four patrons mused to herself acerbically.

It was her fault that they were all there, though, so she felt it was her responsibility to at least attempt to make conversation. Although she had informed Patrick of her plans to leave Port Charles with Jason when he moved, she had avoided the world permanently while speaking to her only living sibling, and she had most definitely not mentioned the fact that they would essentially be on the run from the mob. After all, how did one tell their big brother that? Add to the already complicated situation the fact that they were basically the only family each other had left because of their less than role-model parents, and she knew the neurosurgeon was not going to accept the news easily. However, she needed to tell him the whole truth, and Patrick deserved to know everything.

Still, she was not a glutton for punishment. There was no way she was going to meet with the doctor alone or in private to tell him the news. If they were surrounded by tens of other people in a public place, Patrick would behave, choosing to put his career and his reputation ahead of his own personal feelings, and, if Carly and Jason were both there as buffers as well, hopefully her boyfriend making a good impression upon her big brother and her big brother's girlfriend making a scene, frustrating the brain specialist, and distracting his attention away from her, then all the better. So far, though, that morning in Kelly's, no one was cooperating.

As they waited for their already ordered food to arrive, she found herself wondering just what had managed to wedge its way between Patrick and Carly. Though the couple usually annoyed her beyond thought for she didn't believe that the blonde deserved her older sibling, just a few days prior, they had seemed quite happy with each other. And, despite the fact that they weren't close and didn't confide in one another, the interior decorator had dropped no hints of trouble when she had visited with Elizabeth at her store earlier in the week as they hammered out Carly's involvement in the plan, a plan Patrick knew enough about not to feel lied to or deceived by his girlfriend but not enough to object against.

It was all quite frustrating, and, on top of everything else, there was Mr. Stoic, Silent, and 

Stubborn beside her, refusing to participate in any small talk or inconsequential, irrelevant discussion. He kept glancing at his watch and checking his cell phone, distracting her with his apparent impatience. She knew why he was so on edge. The first part of the plan to take down Ric was starting that morning, but there was nothing he could do to help from the diner, and, selfishly, she needed his support, his strength, with her as she essentially told her brother goodbye.

Clearing her throat, Elizabeth feigned enthusiasm. "So, I'm really glad we could do this before I leave – spend some quality time like this together."

"It's not like you won't be back, Immy." Carly's inappropriate, contradictory snort captured Patrick's attention as he finally glanced in his roommate's direction. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The blonde, in a hushed tone, spoke from behind the paper. "Jason, to the rest of the world, is going to be dead. Just how often do you really think they'll be able to travel back and forth to the states for vacation and family visits?" Scoffing, the older woman mocked, "and you're supposed to be a world renowned surgeon. Remind me to opt for a different doctor if I ever need a craniotomy, okay?"

Without meeting her brother's gaze, the young artist could feel his chocolate irises burning into the side of her face. "She kind of has a point."

"I…" Swallowing roughly, Patrick stumbled with his words. "I don't understand."

And, for the first time since they all had arrived at Kelly's, Elizabeth couldn't hide any longer. Staring her only true family member in the eyes, she confessed, "when I leave town, I'll be leaving for good." Seeking reassurance, even confidence, she searched blindly under the table for Jason's hand, thankful when he found her and twined their fingers together tightly. "I'll never again step foot in the United States, and, chances are, I won't be able to contact you either." Lowering her voice even more, the twenty-two year old confessed, "while I might not be faking my own death, in a few days, a week, maybe two, tops, Elizabeth Webber, as you currently know her, will no longer exist. I'll be using aliases from now on, hiding from my old life while making a new one." Pausing, she tilted her head to the side, meeting her boyfriend's gaze and adding, "with the man I love."

"This is ridiculous, Immy," the neurosurgeon exploded, shoving his chair back in preparation of standing up. Once he was on his feet, he loomed down over the table, narrowing his gaze in challenge towards his little sister. "How can you throw your entire life away, your business, your friends, me, for a man that barely knows you? We need each other. It's been you and me against the world since Sarah died…"

For the first time that morning, Jason spoke up, interrupting the doctor. In a dark, threatening voice, he warned, "do not use Sarah against Elizabeth. You have a right to want your sister to stay in town, to remain a part of your life, I won't begrudge you that, but you will not toss the past in her face. Be a man and fight your own battles, Patrick. Don't rely on 

a ghost to fight them for you."

"Wait a minute," Carly screeched, shoving the unread paper aside. "Who the hell is Sarah, and why the hell haven't I heard of her before this?"

But everyone else ignored her. "You," the surgeon challenged, pointing an accusatory finger in the blonde man's direction, "know nothing about Sarah."

"I told him." Though Elizabeth's words were faintly audible, everyone at the table seating four heard them loud and clear, and Patrick collapsed back onto his wooden chair. "There are… things," the young painter continued, staring at her lap as she addressed her only living sibling, "that you don't know about me and my life. We're not kids anymore, Patrick. A few months ago, when Carly moved in, you essentially told me that I had to grow up, to move on… and out, to put myself out there and finally start living. So, that's what I did. I made a new friend, and, somewhere along the line, that friend turned into something more, and I fell in love with him."

The physician sneered. "There's no way you're in love with a man you just met."

"Actually, Elizabeth and I met several years ago," Jason filled in, offering his girlfriend a gentle, reassuring squeeze of her hand. "And I'm in love with her, too."

"And you told him about Sarah?"

"Again," Carly spoke up, sounding more and more irritated. "Who the hell is this Sarah chick?" Facing her boyfriend, she demanded, "you used to date her, didn't you? What, were you engaged to her at one point? Please, don't tell me you were married before, are now divorced, and kept this all from me. This is perfect, Patrick," the blonde raged, tossing her napkin onto the table in a huff. "Just freaking perfect."

"I tell Jason everything," the twenty-two year old informed her brother, ignoring the screeching decorator across from her. "And he deserved to know about Sarah, about the sister I helped kill."

"You've got to be kidding me," the older woman exclaimed under her breath, slouching in her chair and folding her arms over her chest. Sarcastically, she retorted to herself, "at least I'm now in good company."

And that's when all three sets of eyes turned to her, finally offering Carly the attention she'd been trying to attract during the entire conversation just when she no longer wanted it. Smiling sheepishly, she laughed with absolutely no humor.

"So," the blonde suggested, holding up her empty tea cup. "Who would like a refill?"