Tuscany, mid 1970s, New Year's Eve

"So when do I get to hear the rest of the story?"

Bella moved cautiously to begin with but Tony soon discovered her objections to the dance floor had more to do with the number of strangers in the room, many watching with a critical eye than any lack of expertise. She'd had lessons, private ones he suspected. Once in his arms and focused on the beat, she forgot about the rest of the elegantly costumed crowd though not the set of portraits or the intrigue they represented.

"You keep this up and I'm going to think you a closet romantic," he teased.
She eyed him curiously, thinking he was serious perhaps. "Certainly not. I make no secret of the fact I'm hopelessly sentimental."

The tune they danced to was smooth, with a slow but complicated rhythm and as she relaxed into the feel of the music, the distance she'd kept between them gradually diminished until she was pressed up against him, or more accurately, the multiple layers of fabric she was wearing. Still, she smelled divine. And in her eyes, beneath the sparkle of excitement was a depth that spoke of an inquisitive mind and just a hint of melancholy.

"This is a story," he nodded towards the portraits as they came into view again, "without a happy ending."
"So were The Iliad, and Romeo and Juliet. It hardly made them less romantic."
"You found The Iliad romantic?" he asked, unable to hide his amusement and she grinned a bit sheepishly this time.
"I admit that I sobbed at Hector's death."
Taking the hand he'd held firmly to guide her around the dance floor, he lifted it up to his lips for a kiss.
"What was that for?"
"Surprising me. Usually it's Achilles and his fate the girls weep over," he told her with half a smile. "And if not him, then Patroclus."
But he hadn't finished speaking before she was rolling her eyes at him. "Achilles was not tragic. He spent half of the story pouting like a child and the other half taking revenge for something that was completely his fault in the first place."
"Ah, but it is our flaws that lead us to tragic ends."

He wasn't sure if it was what he'd said, or the way he'd said it but all of the sudden, she was gazing at him, searching his eyes though for what, he had no idea and instead of explaining herself, she asked instead, "Is that what happened to Lucio and his brother?"
"You have quite a singular mind, don't you?"
"My father's term isn't so flattering," she sighed. "He says I'm pig headed."

He was tempted to tell her why her father behaved as he did, but only for an instant before coming to his senses. It hardly mattered. And in this instance, age and experience had better uses.. "I am not your father," he reminded her gently.
She lowered her eyes demurely at the implication but at the same time, wore an impish grin. "In that case," she said, sliding her hand around his neck, "how about you quit avoiding the subject and answer my question."
"The ghost story?"
"Yes please."
Leaning closer he said, "As you wish. " His lips hovered barely an inch from hers, "but don't say I didn't warn you."
He got the impression she assumed he was going to kiss her and though tantalizing, he held back.
"So, the brothers Portinari..."
The song they'd been dancing to ended but another, with a more upbeat tempo began and without warning, he spun her around and dipped her backwards.

"Once upon a time," he whispered, lifting her upright again by the hand and then pulling her closer, "back when the crooks that ruled Tuscany were the de Medici, the eldest, and least responsible of the Portinari brothers was sent with his father's blessing to France, an officer attached to Catherine de Medici's escort at her betrothal. The length of time he spent there is unknown but upon returning, he brought back with him a bride, a lady who by all accounts was extravagantly beautiful, much more so than the future queen of France and every bit as devious…"


Basement in the Kiriakis Mansion

And when you lost her you really didn't know how to handle it.

Nicole had retreated to the doorway of the room where Victor had locked up his grandson a few hours earlier.

She felt like they'd lived through this already…her stuck in some wretched situation only partially of her own making, desperately in love someone who looked on her as damaged goods…and Brady, wanting to believe in her but not willing to take that leap of faith unless he was high or maybe the allure had been nothing more than escaping a woman incapable of sharing the life he craved.

And this hadn't ended well the last time either.

"I was scared, Brady," she told him, knowing that wasn't the entire truth but unable to put the rest of it into words.
"Of losing EJ…"
"It wasn't that simple and yes damn it, I like him but it wasn't a situation I dreamed up for god's sake.
"We're not talking about Victor," he told her stubbornly, "this is about you, and EJ and Sami's baby."
"No, we were talking about my baby and to tell you the truth, I'm not convinced the miscarriage had anything to do with nature taking its course."
"Nicole…" he warned.
"Oh come on Brady. Victor made a deal with Stefano that involved me getting in-between EJ and Sami and then marrying him and you think they didn't have their own ends in mind? You can bet neither pictured me the mother of the next DiMera heir."

Brady was silent at first, for an increasingly awkward minute but then he shook his head. "No matter who is responsible, what you did amounted to kidnapping. You didn't do that for me, or Sydney."

She knew where this was heading and a tiny part of her heart leap at the idea he was jealous but the rest of her, especially her head rebelled. How dare he point the finger at her. If not for his grandfather, she wouldn't be in this mess. A relationship with EJ DiMera wasn't her idea and the very suggestion that she shouldn't have allowed herself to develop feelings for him because of Brady infuriated her beyond reason.

"So, if I did it for EJ or better yet, to teach Sami a long, overdue lesson, I'm just a no-good whore like Victor says?"
The adjective seemed to hit Brady like a slap in the face and he quickly looked away. "I didn't say that…"
"Of course not. Mr. Black is a gentleman," she sneered. "Part of that obnoxious and exclusive club where speaking the truth is considered bad manners but there are plenty of prizes to be won for insinuating it. It's all in the description, right?"
Despite his embarrassment, it was apparent her words angered him. "Calling me a hypocrite won't change the facts."
"No?" Nicole rolled her eyes. "Tell me Brady, does that little speech go for everyone involved in this mess cause I'm hardly the only one who contributed to the spot Sydney is in right now and at least I can say I did it for the benefit of one of her parents. That wasn't Victor's motive, or Stefano's and I can promise, it wasn't Sami's either."
But Brady's exasperation was getting the better of him now. "This is the DiMeras we're talking about, damn it. You know what becomes of the people who get close to them. Pretending otherwise makes you an even bigger hypocrite than me and where do you get off questioning Sami's motives?"
"Easy," she snapped. "Her whole damn history. And since you weren't around, I can tell you, she had no qualms when it came to jumping into the sack with the guy she decided afterwards was some kind of monster. He's good enough for sex, even good enough to raise Johnny and Allie but when it came to Sydney, he was no better than Stefano."
"But her lies were told to protect Sydney from Stefano and the ones you told EJ did the exact opposite."
"EJ doesn't look at his father that way," Nicole insisted.
"Past tense."
"What?"
"EJ didn't look at his father that way," Brady pointed out, "but I suspect that's about to change."
"Why? Because he lost a brother who's only thought when he was dying was to tell EJ about Sydney so he could make him look a fool?"

Brady gazed at her for a moment. It was obvious he was debating what he wanted to say to her next, whether he should confide in her and she felt a second of doubt. She'd listened to that entire conversation back in the parking garage of Sami's apartment building. All of it, including Johnson and the Bradys' speculation about Tony. Not that she'd taken it seriously of course. The guy was dead…

"I'm curious how someone as shrewd as you've shown yourself to be can be so blind when it comes to EJ and his family."

Brady's comment yanked her back to the argument at hand. "Blind," she echoed, and instantly felt stupid.
"How many months did you spend trying to con my grandfather when the two of you were married?"
Nicole rolled her eyes. "From the minute I said, I do since he was blackmailing me with a murder I didn't commit."
"And yet you fell for everything that came out of Tony's mouth."

Nicole opened her mouth, all ready with a smart-ass remark when the implications of his comment sank in. "The guy's dead," she insisted, as though she were trying to convince herself as much as him, "and yeah, I know he invented some bullshit that bitch of wife of his could…"
"You spoke to Anna?" he interrupted her and she rolled her eyes.
"Yeah, not that I'd describe the run-in we had as a conversation, exactly."
"You mean, she'd already been the hospital and talked to her sister-in-law and Daniel…heard all about your behavior, I'd guess."
Nicole glared at him now. "He threatened me. YOU heard him for god's sake, Brady."
"Apparently not."
For a second she stared, not comprehending what he'd said and he actually laughed. Loudly. Even when the echo died away, he was still shaking his head.
"That family has kept Salem twisted up in knots for two decades and you didn't even consider the possibility any of them might pull a fast one behind your back."
"Who," she scowled, "Tony?"
She obviously didn't believe him.
"What if I told you that he was in that chapel earlier this afternoon," said Brady, "watching EJ confront you."
"I'd say its possible Victor drugged you. And anyway, I don't see what he has to do with this," she complained.
"You don't want to see…"
"And why the hell would I? He behaved like a first class jerk to me."
"You're missing the point."
"What? That I should of just rolled over and let him paint a W on my chest so he could prove to his father he wasn't a pushover?"
"The man spent twenty years banished to an island. He hated his father's guts."
"So?"
"So, it either wasn't Tony, or his game was to stick it to the old man," explained Brady, rather impatiently now, "and he'd already plenty of warning about which side you were on."
"Yeah, Sydney's."
But Brady wasn't buying it. "More like keeping EJ beholden to Stefano."

Nicole squirmed and then quickly folded her arms across her chest. "It wasn't like that," she told him firmly. "All everyone else cared about was trying to change him, and Sami most of all. God, she did nothing but harp continually about how he ought to distance himself from his father and be a better person and all that bullshit and I could see how much it was killing him. I just wanted him to be happy."
"Like the rest of his siblings…the ones who are dead or locked up or worse, take after Stefano?"
"Thanks, but I heard that lecture once today, from my thankfully not to be, future sister-in-law and I'm sick of it. My father was a monster too."
"All the more reason not to encourage the relationship."
"BRADY."
"Its actions that count, darling and if after our screw-ups we don't learn that simple truth, the merry-go-round you're stuck on will keep right on going."
"I didn't ask to be here."
"Okay, but you can still make your own choices."
"Oh yeah, and end up ten feet under."
Brady shook his head. "You're much to clever for that and the shenanigans you've been so busy pulling over the last few months prove it beyond any reasonable doubt."
"Except," she countered, pointing at him, "according to you, for all the wrong reasons."
He eyed her a moment and then glanced down. "Not wrong. But I know the lengths you'll go to when you want something…or someone."
"But it wasn't EJ. Don't you see, it wasn't about wanting him. It was Sydney…"
"Eventually perhaps, but not the night you switched babies so you could have Sami's child. If this was about you wanting children of your own, you had Mia's. Your actions that night had only one motive, Nicole."
"You're wrong…"

Their argument had grown louder at the end, drowning out the sound of footsteps or anything else and the sound of Philip's voice interrupting them made Nicole jerk around and bump her head on the door jam. "OW!"

"Nice seeing someone in this household doesn't care about being discreet."
"Philip." Her heart was pounding in her chest as she turned to see him lean his shoulder against the wall across from her. "What the hell are you doing down here?"
He cocked an eyebrow, first at her and then his nephew who was still sitting on the bed inside the room. "I've come to rescue him," he said with a nod of his head.
"Nicole beat you to it," Brady told him dryly.
Again he glanced from one to the other, more amused this time. "Alright, then I'm here to suggest both of you shut up before you alert everyone in the house what you're up to…whatever the hell that happens to be since it hardly resembles a rescue attempt."
"You mean someone like Victor?" smiled Nicole sweetly. "Since you're here now, that should take you all of a minute."
"Don't tempt me," he growled, looking down at his feet as though suddenly wanting to avoid eye contact with her.
"You're going to lie to Victor…for me?"
"Now you're just being idiotic."

Nicole glanced over curiously at Brady who shrugged and gingerly climbed off the bed to join them in the doorway.
"Well, if you're here to help," he said to Philip who still had his head down,
"we'd appreciate you fixing the monitor in here until we're off the grounds at least, preferably for a few hours after that."

"You don't have to go with her." The younger man faced Brady now, ignoring Nicole as though she wasn't even standing a foot away and Brady's eyes widened at the implication.
"Granddad…"
"I know what Victor did."
"No, I don't think you do know what he's been up to these last few months."
"He cares about his family, Brady. He cares about you."
"Is that how you'd feel if you woke up in here?" Brady hadn't meant to take his frustrations out on Philip but hearing the younger man stick up for Victor at the moment pushed all the usual buttons. "I mean, maybe I'm just overreacting and if you were in my shoes, you'd be thanking him for saving you from the wrong woman but that's not exactly how I recall it working last time around."
He was glaring coldly by the time he was done and instantly Philip bristled. "This situation is completely different. It's not about Chloe any more and given that you insist on hanging out with a woman who tried to kill Victor, what you do you expect him to do?"
"To begin with, stop behaving like a hypocrite."
"Wanting to keep us safe makes Victor a hypocrite?"
"You know that's not what I what I meant."

Philip turned his eyes to Nicole for a moment. They'd darkened considerably. She'd kept quiet so far, well aware that in reality, the argument between them had little to do with her, and besides, however upset Philip might be with Brady, he still owed her since she'd cleared him of Tony's death at the hospital. He might pretend otherwise, but Philip wasn't his father. Not yet, at least.

That meant he wouldn't let Victor get his hands on her. Using her to stick it to Brady though was an entirely different matter and he'd heard the argument she was having with Brady before he interrupted…the one about EJ.

Still, the last thing she was expecting was what came out of his mouth next.

"Have you been helping EJ keep this a secret from all of us?"
"Keeping what a secret?"
"His mother," snapped Philip impatiently, certain she was lying.
Confused, Nicole stared and shook her head. "I have no idea what the hell you're talking about."
"Just the way you had no idea whose Sydney's mother really was," he snorted. "Yeah, I know."
Obviously something was up but she didn't know what he was expecting out of her. "EJ never talked about his mother."
"And you, being the inquisitive creature you are, never asked."
"No, I didn't. I had no reason to ask…"
"What about when Baker told you?"
"Come on Philip," interrupted Brady finally, "just leave her be and spit it out, whatever the hell it is."
"I'll never understand how you could dump Chloe for this murdering…"

That was too much for Brady after the night he'd had and within seconds, he'd pinned Philip against the door jam, his arm pressed to his throat. "My marriage is none of your damn business," he hissed furiously, "and neither is my relationship with Nicole."
"She's lied to you about EJ."
"You keep saying that but you haven't explained…"
"His mother was Isabella too."

Instead of letting go and stepping away, Brady's arm pressed harder, exerting more pressure on Philip's windpipe. "I swear," Philip managed to whisper hoarsely, "Baker told Victor earlier tonight…that's why Father brought Sydney here, so he could protect her."

"EJ? But that's crazy."

Behind Brady, Nicole had to agree. And even if it was true, she didn't believe for an instant that EJ had known…but Stefano did. And Baker. Unless it was all a trick Stefano was playing on Victor.

"And you knew?"
Suddenly, Brady was in front of her, demanding an answer and Nicole felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. If he refused to believe her, or understand the pressure she'd been under when it came to Sydney, he was never going to believe that Baker hadn't shared this secret with her too. She shook her head.

But the pain and betrayal in his eyes continued to burn, unwavering and without a doubt that she was lying to him.