Jason looked up from his pizza, "Who are you and what have you done with Elizabeth?" he joked.
"I'm serious! Today when we were shopping for stuff for their baby's room, she was a totally different Carly."
Jason nodded, "I know. I saw it with Michael, but nobody believed me." He shrugged, "Their problem though I guess."
Elizabeth nodded as she finished off a slice of pizza. As she stood to start cleaning up, there was a knock at the door.
Elizabeth went to answer the door.
"Sonny!" She tried to keep him out in the hall so he wouldn't see the pizza her and Jason had ordered for their dinner, but he pushed his way in.
"Oh man," he groaned when he spotted the delivery box. "You guys kill me, you realize that, right?"
Jason just shrugged, "We can't all be master chefs like you."
"I never said you had to be, but it's not like I don't live right across the hall!" He laughed, but Liz and Jason knew he was serious. Ever since Liz and delivered Lila, they had little time to do anything for themselves, let alone fix a home cooked dinner. But that was all right with them.
A cry came from upstairs. "I'll go check that," Elizabeth said, knowing Sonny hadn't come over to criticize their dinner.
"Sorel's moving men in. Quietly." Sonny looked at the fire in the fireplace. "Really quietly. Benny almost didn't catch it."
"How many?" Jason asked.
"Too many."
"Get another guard on Elizabeth and Lila." Jason paused, "If anything happens to them, I'll never forgive myself, Sonny."
Sonny merely nodded, he felt the same way about Michael, Carly, and the child inside her. "Benny wants to take him out."
"Should have been done a long time ago."
Sonny nodded again, "I thought he would learn." Sonny rubbed his face as he sighed. "I'll set up a meeting."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Terrific. I will be ready."
He placed the phone on the cradle.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Elizabeth?" Jason peeked into Lila's room to see if she was still there.
"I'm in here!" she called from their bedroom.
Stopping at the door frame, Jason could only smile. "My beautiful girls. What would I do without you?" He carefully lay down on the bed, careful not to disturb a hungry Lila.
"What's the matter?" Elizabeth could see it in his eyes. His worry, his pain.
"I'm putting another guard on you, for now." He didn't say why, and she didn't ask.
"OK. Well, I'm going to meet Monica and Lila for lunch tomorrow. I told you that, didn't I?"
Jason nodded, caressing little Lila's cheek. "Grandmother will
be pleased to finally meet her great grand daughter. And she'll like
you too. Just be careful. Edward might follow her."
Elizabeth took his hand, holding it against her face. "I can handle
Edward," she said as she kissed the palm of his hand.
"I know," he replied as he moved closer to his daughter. "Just be careful in general, ok?"
"Of course."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
At the same time:
"Carly!"
"I'm in the baby's room!" she called from upstairs.
She looked up from her wall paper swatches as he came into the room, "Hey babe, what's up? Do you think we should just do a border, or paper the thing?" She looked back at the swatches.
Sonny chuckled to himself, "I don't care, really. You do what you think is best."
"You're no help!"
Sonny ducked as she threw a book at him. "So what did you need?"
He cleared his throat, "I'm putting another guard on you and Michael."
Carly looked at him, "And I don't suppose you'll tell me why?"
Sonny shook his head.
"Figures." She turned back to the books.
"You won't try to lose them?"
Carly sighed as he asked the question for the thousandth time, "No I will not ditch the guards."
"Good."
This is going to end soon, he thought to himself as he walked out of the room.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"She has a lunch meeting at the Port Charles Grill, sir."
"Yeah, and if I know Mrs. Corinthos, she'll be out shopping, again."
Sorel nodded. Things were going better than expected. Not only did he have a meeting with Corinthos himself in just two days, but fate seemed to be handing him the perfect bargaining chips.
"Alright gentlemen, here's what you'll do..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Thank you so much for the lunch." Elizabeth hugged Monica and Lila, before packing up her daughter for the ride home.
"You're more than welcome dear," Lila replied. "I've never seen
Jason so happy." Elizabeth blushed at the compliment.
Monica watched little Lila as she spoke, "I agree Elizabeth. You've
breathed new life into this family."
Elizabeth's blush deepened, "Well thank you, but the truth is, I've never been happier." She left Lila and Monica get in a few last kisses and hugs before strapping little Lila into her car seat.
"I hope we can do this again," Lila said.
Elizabeth smiled, she really loved these women, even if their husbands were a little harder to get along with. "You are more than welcome to stop by the penthouse any time," she offered. "I know Jason would love to see you."
"We'll be sure to take you up on that," Monica replied, grateful to still be part of her son's life.
Elizabeth talked with little Lila as she watched the two women leave. "Well now Little Miss, did you have fun?" She smiled as Lila replied by drooling on her new outfit.
"Time to go home." Lila gurgled, as if she could understand her mother. Liz played along, "Yeah, home. To see Daddy." She started to pick up the seat and diaper bag, when she caught a whiff of Lila's diaper. "My, my, little Lila. We'd better go change that diaper! Wouldn't want Daddy to know what a messy little girl you are," she joked.
Francis caught up with her in the lobby, "I just have to change Lila's diaper Francis, then we can go."
Francis nodded as Louis rounded the corner. "Whenever you're ready Miss Webber." He watched her enter the ladies room. "Hey Louis-" he started to say to his partner, but was stopped with a silenced gun shot to the head.
Louis waited a couple of paces before cracking open the ladies' room door, "Miss Webber! We have to go! Now!"
Elizabeth's heart froze. Quickly putting on the diaper, she grabbed her daughter and the bag, leaving the car seat behind.
"What's going-" her words stopping as she caught sight of Francis on the floor. "Oh my god," she whispered, clutching Lila tightly. She couldn't move, but Louis pushed her forward.
"Let's go!" he yelled at her, breaking her out of her daze. As they ran outside, the driver pulled up with the limo. Liz jumped into the back, Louis stayed up front, checking to make sure nobody was after them.
As they sped away, Liz took a moment to catch her breath, and her thoughts. She knew things like this could happen, but it still took her by surprise. Francis! she remembered. He was always so nice to me, and little Lila. Lila started whimpering then, seemingly able to sense the danger around her.
"Shhhh," Elizabeth whispered in her ear as she rocked her. After
a couple of minutes, she glanced out the window. This is not the
way to the penthouse.
"Louis?" she called up to the front of the limo, but received no answer.
"Louis!" She glanced around frantically, a million things going through
her mind. Spotting the door handle, she tried it, but it wouldn't
budge. The door was locked.
Elizabeth sat, with her daughter in her lap, and prayed.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Across town:
"Tony!"
"Yes Mrs. Corinthos?"
"What do you think?" Carly pointed to two cribs, trying to decide which one would be better.
"Uh, Mrs. Corinthos. I don't know." She always asked him what he thought, and he dreaded it. But today would be different.
She gave him a hard shove, "Why can't you guys ever give your opinions?!!" She brushed her way past him, "That's fine. Be that way, I'll just come back with Sonny."
Tony gritted his teeth behind the smile plastered on his face, "What ever you say Mrs. Corinthos."
"Jack! I'm ready to go home! Let's go!" She searched for the second guard, but didn't spot him anywhere. Before she could turn around to get Tony, she felt something hit her in the head. "Tony," she managed to whisper before slipping into a dark abyss.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sorel looked in on the three charges he had acquired, and smiled.
"Perfect."