Chapter 4
"Two bacon cheeseburgers with everything and two waters please." Patrick smiled at the waitress as he gave their order. "Need to make sure we are hydrated for later."
Robin laughed at him. "Dr. Drake, are you planning on trying to get me drunk?"
"No – that's why I am making sure you get plenty of water before when go to Jake's." Patrick looked around at the restaurant and then back at Robin. "Enough stalling – tell me what is going on."
Robin sighed. "I guess I should start with after we got back from Paris. I had graduated from medical school…"
Patrick winked at her. "Top of your class?"
Robin blushed. "Yes but that is not the point. Anyway, Roger and I agreed that we would move back to the states once I graduated and there was an opening in Oregon, not far from where his brother lives, so we moved there. Roger joined the fire department and I was working at the hospital. My mom would visit…"
"Your mom?"
"That's right – you don't know. It turns out that she didn't die in the explosion, we found out when we were in Paris, and that she had amnesia. I went to see her, she got her memory back and rejoined the WSB." Robin decided a short summation was her best option.
"And your dad?"
She shook her head sadly. "No." She took a deep breath. "Anyway, we settled in to a nice, normal life."
"And Roger's brother?" Patrick remembered that Roger had never been that close to the man.
"Hated me from the beginning." Robin laughed. "Actually, he hated that his brother married an HIV positive woman. He was certain that I was going to infect Roger or Michelle. He even tried to get custody of Michelle after Roger died."
"Bastard." Patrick had always been very protective of Robin in college and hated that people treated her differently because of her HIV status.
"He failed miserably. He left town and we haven't heard from him in years." The waitress brought their waters over and Robin stopped to smile at the young woman. "Thank you."
Patrick barely noticed the pretty young woman, his attention was completely focused on Robin. "Yes, thank you."
Robin took a drink and continued her story. "About a year after Roger died, Michelle met Dean." The disdain she felt for the boy was evident in her voice. "He was older and swept her off her feet. Six months after they began dating she found out she was pregnant. He completely abandoned her – wanted nothing to do with her or Rylee. I stood up for my daughter and told him if he really felt that way then we wanted nothing to do with him. We decided to move back to this side of the country and, before we left, had him sign relinquishment of parental rights papers."
"Where did you move to?" Patrick was completely enraptured with Robin's story.
"Well, Roger's parents were buried in Vermont and we buried him with his parents so we decided to move there." His parents had passed away before Michelle was born. "It was a small town in middle of nowhere but we loved it. Michelle got her GED while I worked at a small hospital and, once Rylee was born, she took some college classes online. It was all going really well."
"Until…" Patrick prodded her gently to finish telling her story.
"About a year ago a patient came into the ER one night to get some stitches. He was a local businessman and, in a small town, that meant he held a lot of power. He thought that meant it entitled him to any woman he set his sights on and he wasn't used to being told no." They were interrupted as their waitress brought them their burgers. Robin took a bite and groaned in pleasure. "Man this is so good."
"Kelly's is the best." Patrick took a fry and ate it. "So this patient came into the ER?"
"He took a liking to me and I wasn't interested. Apparently this was not good enough for him because he continued to try and get me to date him. Flowers, candy, jewelry, stuffed animals for Rylee…"
"He knew about Rylee?" Patrick was surprised.
Robin nodded her head. "Oh yeah, he found out everything he could about me. Pretty soon I saw him everywhere. He was at the hospital all the time or he just happened to be in the same restaurant that we were eating in or at the park at the same time we were or…"
"He was stalking you." Patrick's voice took on edge as his anger took over.
"Yes, he was stalking me. I talked to the police but they said that he hadn't done anything illegal so there was nothing they could do." She took another bite of her hamburger and a moment before finishing her story. "A couple of months ago that changed. He showed up at my house and pushed his way in. He said he couldn't understand how someone like me could afford to turn down someone like him – it wasn't like I was beating men off with a stick."
Patrick noticed the pained look in her eyes as she recounted what happened that night. He reached over and took her hand in his. "It's okay Robin, you can tell me anything."
"Michelle had taken Rylee to a birthday party for one of her friends so I was home alone thank God." Tears came to her eyes. "He grabbed me and kissed me. I fought back immediately and he slapped me to the ground. I remember my head bouncing off the linoleum in the kitchen and then he was on top of me."
Patrick squeezed her hand. "Robin, did he…?
"No. I managed to knee him in the stomach and ran to the bathroom, locking myself in. I called the cops and he was arrested." She wiped a tear away from her face. "He pleaded out and was sentenced to two years in jail for assault and battery. I got my restraining order and, when we found out that Michelle had been accepted into the nursing program, made the decision as a family to change our last names and move to Port Charles."
"Why Soltini?"
"My mother hid me with a woman for the first six years of my life."
He remembered her telling him about her grandmother. "Filomena?"
"You remember." Robin smiled sweetly at him, her first real one since she began her story. "Her last name was Soltini and it was a way to honor her."
"Is he still in jail?" Patrick was worried for Robin and her family.
"Last time I checked, yes. The records of our change in name have all been sealed and there is a permanent restraining order in place for me, Michelle and Rylee. Hopefully, we will never see the man again." Robin finished off her burger. "Sorry you asked?"
"No, I understand you better now." He looked down at their now empty plates and called the waitress over. He handed her a few bills and told her to keep the change. "So, ready to have a little fun? Say tequila shots and darts?"
"That is the best offer I have had in a long time." Robin stood up and held out her hand to him. "Ready to go?"
"You bet." Patrick happily took her hand and walked with her out the door.
