chapter9
Chapter 9
PG

Before leaving the hospital, Dr. Meadows had requested an ultrasound to analyze the baby's vitals. Emily had been laying in a hospital bed now for three days and she was anticipating her release. After a little persuasion from Emily, he decided to allow her to go home, however he still wanted the ultrasound done before she left. A duty nurse had rolled the ultrasound equipment in and set it beside Emily's bed. She assisted Emily with her hospital gown as Zander watched from the other side of the bed. This would be the third ultrasound and they were hoping this time they would find out if it was a boy or a girl. Each time before the baby was not in the correct position to see what they needed to see. The technician who would perform the ultrasound had arrived and took her seat in front of the machine. She took the tube of clear gel from the drawer of the cabinet the machine was set on and proceeded to dispense the jelly onto Emily's belly. It was cold to the soft and sensitive skin, as Emily flinched to the cold sensation. As Zander held her hand and looked on, the technician took the wand that was attached to the machine and began to move it in a circular motion across her skin. As she did this, Emily and Zander were focused on the monitor that displayed Emily's uterus which held their unborn child. As the technician moved the wand from side to side, they could observe the position of their baby. A few moments had passed while Dr. Meadows took measurements and the vital signs from the monitor and jotted them down on the chart, Zander heard the door to the room open and Emily's parents were standing in the door way. "May we come in?" Monica asked as she and Alan stood in the doorway of Emily's room. Not wanting to deny her parents of seeing their unborn grand-child..."Come on in....it's your grand-child..." Zander said as he motioned for them to come and observe.

Alan and Monica glanced at each other before drifting across the room to view the monitor that had displayed the baby Emily's was carrying. Emily noticed they had come into her room and gazed at them as they stood behind Zander. He certainly wasn't comfortable with the two of them there, but he wasn't going to deny them the privilege of witnessing this momentous event. "We just stopped by to see how you were feeling and to say that we are so glad everything is fine..." Monica said as Emily reached around Zander with her arm and took her mother's hand in hers and held it tight. "The two of you can stay and watch if you want...can't they, hon?" Emily replied as she looked at Zander. "Yeah sure..I don't have a problem with that." he replied. Zander noticed that Monica was warming up to the idea of her daughter being married to him. Alan on the other hand was not taking the news well, but was making every effort to be supportive of Emily's decision.

The technician hesitated for a moment. "Do you want to see if your having a boy or a girl?" she asked as a smile came over their faces. "We would love to know...we have been waiting for three months to find out...so." Emily said as they stared at the monitor intently. The technician began to point out the outline of their baby, and as she drifted the wand in one direction, she pointed to the head and the baby's arms and legs that were pulled into it's chest. She asked if Emily could move herself a little to the left, it would urge the baby to move it's position so they could view what they were so anxious to see. "So...can you tell us...is it a boy or a girl?" Zander said as he was anxiously awaiting for the technician to announce the baby's gender. "Well...let's see...just a little bit more Emily.." she said as she moved the wand a bit to the left and asked Emily to adjust herself a wee bit more. The four of them watched intently at the monitored hoping to get a glimpse. "Zander and Emily....you are proud parents of....a baby boy." she said with a smile. The room filled with joy with the news about the baby being a boy. They were so elated with the news and were now getting anxious for the day he would arrive. "Emily....you did good." Monica said as she leaned down and kissed her lightly on the forehead. "Me...but I didn't do anything..." she replied as she looked towards her parents with a smile. "You have done more than you will ever know..." Alan said as he was fighting back the tears. It was a touching moment for the four of them. Zander leaned in and kissed his wife softly on her lips as he noticed the stray tears of joy he wiped away with his thumb as he caressed her cheek.

Once the ultrasound machine was rolled away from the bed, Alan and Monica proceeded to the other side of Emily's hospital bed. Monica assisted Emily in adjusting the top portion of the bed so she could sit upright while they visited. Alan stood behind Monica as she sat on a chair he had pulled from the corner. From the looks on their faces, Emily knew that seeing their unborn grand-child was an overwhelming experience for both of them. Both her parents were brought to tears as they observed the monitor and listened to the heart beat. "We are very proud of you..Emily." her mother said as she took her daughter's hand. Zander sat across the bed listening to those words that certainly sounded sincere and heartfelt...but in the back of his mind he was wondering if his wife could ever trust them again. "And we just want you to know that we love you...the family loves you. We know we haven't made things easy for the two of you and ...when we were wrong we say we're wrong." Alan said as he stood over his daughter. "Dad...I haven't been the easiest to parent...I have made mistakes too. But I do not have any regrets about loving Zander. He is my life and nothing has or will change that." Emily replied as she gazed into Zander's eyes for a moment. "I think we understand that now...it took us a long time to realize that." Monica replied as Alan positioned his hands on top of her shoulders.

Zander sat quietly caressing Emily's hand as her parents voiced their feelings to them. He knew how much they loved Emily and how much they needed her in their life. He had never stood in the way of Emily keeping in touch with her parents. He always left the decision up to her if she wanted to be a part of the family. The four of them sat discussing what the future will bring for he and Emily as Dr. Meadows returned. Emily was anticipating her release from the hospital today, so she it was apparently elated when the doctor signed the papers for her to go home. Dr. Meadows gave strict instructions for her to follow until the baby arrived, and Zander promised she would follow them to the letter. He didn't want her to give him a scare like this again.

**********************************************************************************************

Zander assisted Emily from the limo and up the stairs to the door of the apartment. Zander removed his coat and than hers and hung them on the back of the kitchen chairs as she wandered over to the sofa to lay down. She was feeling kinda tired, but that was to be expected in her condition. Zander poured two glasses of OJ and placed them on the coffee table as he took a seat on the arm of the couch. He noticed she had made room for him so he could lay next to her. Although he was skeptical that the two of them would conform to the sofa, but without hesitation he laid down beside her as she laid her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her as he felt the rhythm of her breathing against him. They laid together for some time just holding each other close and listening to the silence of the darkness that filled the apartment.

As they laid there whispering sweet nothings to each other, Zander heard a knock on the door. "Rick, who's here?..he shouted as Rick opened the door to announce Elizabeth and Lucky had come to see Emily. "Oh, sure come on in...we were, uh...just relaxing..." Zander said he rose from the sofa. "Yeah, eh...we can see that." Lucky said with a grin. "So..how are things?" Zander said as he walked over and shook hands with Lucky. "Good...how's Em doing?...We heard she came home so we thought we'd stop and visit." Lucky replied as Elizabeth removed her coat and laid it across the chair. "Ya know, I am in the room....and I am pregnant, not deaf.." Emily said as she tried to sit up from the laying position she was in. "Here, Em...let me help you.." Elizabeth said as she came to her aid. "Thanks..if I get any bigger I'm not going to be able to get off the sofa at all." Emily replied with a giggle. The guys made their way into the living room and took seats closer to the conversation. As the four of them conversed about life in general between two married couples, the girls got side tracked in the discussion by talking about the baby. The guys now found it difficult to converse about guy things and moved their conversation to the kitchen. "Finally, I thought they'd never leave.." Elizabeth said with a smirk. "So, is there a baby in the plans for you and Lucky?" Emily asked as she adjusted the pillow behind her back. Sitting for long periods of time had become distressing, so she needed the pillow for support of her lower back. She couldn't wait till her new baby boy would arrive...right about now, she just wanted him out. "Nah...not yet...there are so many things going on in our life right now...I would like to give a baby our full and undivided attention..ya know." Elizabeth replied as she adjusted the position of her seat. Elizabeth was still painting and had quite a few of her paintings at the local gallery on display. She was doing quite well for herself and her hopes had been to open her own gallery some day. Lucky on the other hand was now working for Deception with his mother as a contracted photographer. The photos he shot of Elizabeth and Gia for the Face of Deception Campaign a year or so ago, had gotten some recognition for him and decided to work professionally as a photographer.

The guys who had been talking guy talk in the kitchen had made the move back into the living room as soon as the girls started to do their giggle thing. The guys knew when the two girls started giggling, it was time to break up the conversation. Zander and Lucky took seats where they could find room as Emily began to mention to Elizabeth about the ultrasound she had earlier in the day. "So, doesn't anyone want to know what we found out today?" Emily began as Zander slid in behind her on the sofa and supported her back against him. "Tell us...what..don't keep us in suspense?" Elizabeth said as she leaned in and rested her elbows on her knees. Zander and Emily glanced at each other as if to decide who should tell the good news. "You tell 'em..hon." Emily said to Zander as he placed his hand on his unborn baby boy. "Well, Dr. Meadows did another ultrasound this morning before Emily came home and we found out that we are going to have a baby boy!" he replied with excitement. Elizabeth and Lucky were overjoyed with the news about their friends having a baby boy, there were congratulations and hugs all around as the friends celebrated the news.

As they were celebrating the good news, Zander attended to the phone that was ringing in the kitchen. "Hello.." Zander said as he held the receiver to his ear. "Yeah, that's fine...I'll be there...I'm leaving now." he replied to the voice on the other end. "I gotta go...I'll be back in a little while.." he said as he leaned in and kissed Emily on her cheek. "Go..I'll be fine..you becareful out there...." she replied as she took his hand in hers. "We can stay with her, Zander....we don't have any plans tonight...besides it would give us time to catch up." Lucky said as he rose from his seat and straightened his pants legs. "Okay...I'm going..thanks." he said as he put on his coat and grabbed his keys from the kitchen table. He turned and looked at Emily sitting on the couch and heard her say the three magic words..."I love you..." as he replied "I love you..too." With that, he rushed out the door as Rick closed it behind him.

*******************************************************************************************

As Zander made his way to the warehouse next door, which was where he was to meet up with Jason and Sonny to discuss Sorel, he kept alert to his surroundings. Even though Sorel was in jail and hopefully for a long time to come, his goons were still walking the streets, so he needed to still becareful as he walked about Port Charles. Zander of course didn't want to frighten Emily with the Sorel situation so he had kept the knowledge about him to himself. He need to protect her from Sorel anyway he knew how...and at the moment keeping her in the dark about the situation was it.

As he entered the warehouse, he noticed a few more of Sonny's guards posted about so he knew that Jason and Sonny had arrived before he did. He entered the warehouse cautiously and meandered back to the office where Sonny held his business transactions. He noticed when entered the office that Sonny was sitting behind the desk in his large expensive leather chair and Jason sat on the wing back chair towards the side. By the looks on their faces, news was not good and he was praying to God that it was not about Sorel.

"Come on in and join the fun...Zander." Sonny said sarcastically as he closed the door and took a seat. "I got here as fast as I could...ya know with Emily and all..I had to make sure she was okay before I left." Zander said as he leaned forward in the chair and folded his hands together. "Is she alright?..." Jason asked as concern overcame his face. "Yeah, she's fine...Elizabeth and Lucky are with her.." he replied as he turned and looked at him. Zander not liking the small talk that was happening began to worry him what was about to be discussed.

"We've got a problem..." Sonny said as he pushed himself away from the desk and rose out of his chair. Zander didn't want to hear that..."what do you mean problem?...Sorel?" Zander asked as anxiety began building inside him by the mere mention of Sorel's name. "Sorel is no longer in custody..." Jason replied as he began to pace the floor of the office. "What?!...what do you mean no longer in custody?!" Zander questioned in a panic. "It seems that he was being transferred to Pentonville from the PCPD after an interrogation by the Commissioner and....well..his contacts followed enroute." Sonny replied in despair. "And?....Sonny tell me..what happened?! Where's Sorel?!" Zander inquired as he rose from the wing back chair he was sitting in. "Zander..we don't know!..Alright, we just don't know!" he responded in disappointment. Jason and Sonny both had wanted to bring the situation to Zander calmly and without trying to aggravate him beyond belief. However the news about Sorel's escape was not setting well with Zander at all...and they couldn't blame him. Sorel had literally terrorized Zander and Emily for months and even after he had been locked up in prison. Sorel had many connections with the outside world and it was any one's guess who had hatched this plan of escape.

As Sonny and Jason glared at each other, as Zander stood there completely oblivious to their conversation. "Zander...Zander, are you okay?" Sonny questioned as he noticed Zander had been worlds away in thought. "Uh, yeah..I'm fine...as fine as can be expected with that psycho out there." Zander replied with apprehension. "What do we do now...?" he continued. "What we do...we do, Zander...Sonny and myself. You need to be with your wife and take care of her and your baby." Jason replied as he glared at Zander. "I just can't sit around like a sitting duck while Sorel is out there..." he replied as the helpless feeling overcame him. "What?!....You want to get dragged back into this, Zander?!" Sonny questioned as he stood behind his desk and slammed his fist down. Zander could see the rage in his eyes as he startled by Sonny's anger towards him. "Sonny, I am in this no matter if Sorel's in jail or not! He has taken everything from me and damn it I am not going to allow him to take my wife and child!" he answered with his own anger as tempers flared in the heat of the moment. "Hey!...guys!...let's calm down and figure out what we are going to do keep you and Emily safe!" Jason demanded as Sonny and Zander's anger began to diminish.

Zander had become overcome with anger as he sat and listened to the plans that were evolving between the three of them. He knew this was a dangerous situation but he was in no way going to allow Sorel take what was his...again. Sorel had already taken his freedom, he had taken over his dreams and turned them into nightmares and he had taken over every part of his being. Even though Sorel had been incarcerated for months now, there was still reason to fear him and what he was capable of. Zander didn't want any harm to come to him or his family, and he had been consumed with intending to do just that. The contempt and anger consumed Zander for so long about Sorel and the dealings he had with him so long ago, he was trying to so very hard to relinquish them. Zander had found himself in a dangerous profession and Emily knew the risks involved by being with him...even after he started working for Sonny. But how could he protect her from something she couldn't grasp...it had devoured him as well and so how could he tend to her fears, when he had fears of his own. He contemplated telling Emily about Sorel's escape but by informing her of the situation would only carry with it more cause for alarm. He couldn't perpetrate anymore anxiety on her because of her pregnancy and being so close to delivering their baby. He had remembered that Dr. Meadows had strictly instructed to him...no stress. Sorel's escape was sure to bring on concern and fear to Emily...he was already concerned about the situation.

"I hate to break into this conversation, guys...but what do I tell Emily?" Zander questioned...even though he was totally oblivious to the words spoken between Jason and Sonny. "We haven't spoken about Sorel in months, and I like it that way...." he added. "Emily.." Jason sighed... as he turned and looked at the concerned face of Zander. "How much does she know about the situation so far? I mean does she know that Sorel can still get to you even if he is behind bars? " Sonny asked as he directed the question to her husband. "Nah..uh, no I haven't said anything about Sorel for months...not since before we got married. Why?" Zander replied with confusion. "Now that he is out he poses more of threat to them, Sonny." Jason said as the three of them sat around Sonny's desk. "I just wanted to protect her, so I haven't mentioned any of this to her. She can't risk knowing, she already is on strict orders from Dr. Meadows." Zander replied as he became more worried as the conversation progressed. "Zander, if this is going to endanger the baby, then you can't tell her..." Jason quickly answered. "Your family comes first..you can't risk another episode with Emily and the baby." Sonny followed. "I know. I know..but what else can I do...she knows me to well...she is going to see that I am wound tight about something. I can't lie to her...I promised I wouldn't lie to her...ever!" he replied as he rose from his chair. "Zander, calm down...we'll think of something." Jason replied as he placed his hand on Zander's shoulder. "But for now we have to find Sorel...for your protection we need to find that son-of-a-bitch!....Like now!" Sonny shouted with exasperation.

******************************************************************************************************

It was getting late as Lucky and Elizabeth decided to leave the loft. It was now quite a few hours since Zander had left for his meeting, and Emily didn't seem concerned. Emily knew he would call if he'd be held up somewhere, so she knew he would be home soon...safe and sound. Elizabeth and Lucky said their good-byes and grabbed their coats as Emily walked them to the door. Rick still standing at his post outside the door watched as they walked down to their car parked in the alley. Emily stood in the doorway of the loft as Rick turned to close the door. "Wait..." she said as she placed her hand on the door as if to hold it open. "Ms. Smith?" Rick asked confused at her actions to hold open the door. "Do you know where Zander rushed off too?" she questioned as they stood at the top of the stairs. "Emily....I don't rightly know. I'm sure he's fine..Johnny's with him." Rick stated as he looked at the concern in her eyes. "I'm sure he is...I just thought..." Emily replied as her words drifted off. "Thought that maybe I'd go hunt him down?" Rick acknowledged her question. "Nah, nevermind...he'll be home shortly I'm sure of it..Thanks Rick." she replied as she reached to closed the door.

Emily looked at the clock hanging on the wall of the kitchen and she noticed that her husband had been gone quite a few hours now. She wondered what could be keeping him. She contemplated about calling him, but dismissed the idea because she trusted him..it was business. Many thoughts lingered in her mind as she laid on the sofa with the afghan covering her. "She knew Zander would never deceive her intentionally...why was she thinking this way...of course not...these were crazy thoughts that she needed to shut out of her mind. Must be hormones!...her only excuse for thinking this way. Zander loved her and has loved her for a very long time...he wouldn't do anything to hurt her. He wasn't like that."

She soon drifted off to sleep underneath the blue afghan that embodied her pregnant form. She awoke to the sound of the creek in the floorboards near the kitchen. "Zander...Is that you?" she questioned still half asleep as her eyes focused on that area of the apartment. "Yeah, hon..I'm sorry I didn't mean to wake you." he replied as he wandered over to the sofa and sat next to her on the edge of the cushion. "I was worried about you. You were gone so long..." she replied as she closed her eyes. "I'm back now..home safe and sound. Nothing to worry about." Zander replied as he stroked her stray auburn hair from her brow. "Zander..." she said wistfully. "Yeah, Em...I'm right here.." he responded as he placed his hand in hers. "Don't leave me...promise you will never leave me..." she asked. "I promise...I will never leave you...never. I love you Emily, why would I leave you?" he asked as he wondered where this was coming from. "I love you too.." she said and with that he picked her up in his arms and cradled her close. He carried her over to their bed and turned down the sheets. As he gently laid her down trying so hard not to disturb her again, he kissed her softly on her forehead and drew the covers over her.

She looked so peaceful lying there asleep...his angel. The angel who saved him from a life sentence, an angel who believed in him and stood by him. He was determined to be her angel now. The thoughts of Sorel occupied his mind, so much so he couldn't sleep. So instead of being restless by tossing and turning he sat on the sofa just wondering what his next move would be. The blue afghan that earlier covered Emily now embodied him as he lye awake on the sofa. The sunrise over the bay was beautiful at 5:30 that morning. He hadn't slept a wink last night thinking about Sorel and where he had disappeared to. He, Sonny and Jason need to catch that bastard before he did any harm to anyone he cared about.

As he rose from the sofa and wandered across the floor to the kitchen, he noticed a piece of paper slip underneath the door to the loft. Zander stopped dead in his tracks and quickly picked up the slip of paper and opened the door to find no one there...not even Rick. He quickly shut the door before sitting down at the kitchen table. He opened up the white slip of paper to read these words....."BOOM!" sprawled across the paper in cut out pieces of colored paper.

Chapter 10