9 am…
Skye put down the cup of tea Ben had offered to her. She had already spent too much time talking with her ex-husband and asking him how he and his wife Viki were doing. As much as she would like to pretend that this was nothing more than social call, the truth was that it wasn't. She was here on a lie, a masquerade, so grand that although many knew of it, only she knew the complete truth.
Roscoe thought she was here on business. Her family back in Port Charles thought she had either left for a business trip, or to run an errand for Roscoe. Rinoa thought Skye had left because her friends in Llanview needed her help. Emily and Zander knew that Skye had gone to great trouble to fund their trip, but they had no idea how she had gotten the money, and that she had to replace the money quickly before anyone discovered the huge sum of money missing from ELQ accounts.
Only Skye knew the truth. Only Skye knew that she was here in Llanview to seek the assistance from two old, but rich, friends: Ben Davidson and Max Holden. They were her only two chances here in Llanview. If they turned her down, she would have no choice but to go to Pine Valley and ask the Chandlers for help. And that was something she was trying to avoid- she didn't want to chance bringing Roscoe's attention back to the residents of Pine Valley, as Proteus supposedly had been taken care of, and she didn't want to be forced to ask Adam for help.
"Ben," Skye started softly, but with an urgent note in her voice, "I need your help." Ben looked worriedly at Skye. Jax and Rae had already been over, and they had informed Ben of Skye's current connections to the mafia. And, with his own past to the mafia, and Skye's knowledge of it, he would have hoped that she would have known better. But he couldn't admit to her that he knew what sort of trouble she was in. He couldn't admit to her that Jax and Rae were digging into her past. "What's wrong?""I, uh," Skye hesitated. She couldn't tell him what kind of a mess she was in. But she did have to tell him that she was in a huge mess. "I made a bad decision. Several bad decisions, actually. And, uh, I've been trying to fix them, but… to fix them I had to borrow a lot of money. And I need to pay it back."
Was this where the mob came in? Jax and Rae had been very vague about it.
"And you want me to give you the money?"
"Not give," Skye corrected. "Lend. Even loan, Ben. I'm willing to pay interest."
Borrowing money from the mob was never a good idea. "How much do you need?"
"Two million," Skye smiled lightly. "That's all."
Ten thousand, sure. He even could have given her up to a hundred thousand. But two million? Ben stared in silence at Skye. He scratched his head. Two million dollars. There was no way he could get that sort of money to her. "That's out of my league," Ben said regretfully. "I'd help you, Skye, in a heartbeat, if I could. But I just don't have access to that kind of money."
But he was Asa Buchanan's son. He was entitled to his own fortune, if only he accepted his heritage and bloodline. And he was married to Viki, a wealthy woman in her own right.
But if Ben wasn't willing to go to these sources, the she wasn't going to ask him to.
Ben looked down at his hands. "You've got good credit, right, Skye? Why don't you just go to the bank and get a loan? I'm sure you'll be approved."
But then there would be a paper trail. And Roscoe would be suspicious. Edward might find out she had stolen from ELQ. And she'd lose everything. She couldn't admit to anyone, not Roscoe or any of the Quartermaines, about how she had given Emily, Zander, and Michael the stolen ELQ funds.
"It's complicated," Skye said, crestfallenly. Ben had been her top choice to obtain the loan from. "I do need the money, Ben, but I can't ask the bank for it."
"Why not?"
"Because I can't," Skye said shortly. Ben may have turned her down, but there was still one other person in Llanview she could ask: Max Holden. And, unlike Ben, Max actually liked and wanted to be the Buchanan heir.
*******
General Hospital…Rinoa smiled winningly at the nurse in front of her. "Thank you so much," Rinoa said warmly, her dark brown eyes glowing.
"No, thank you," the nurse replied. "There can never be too much donated blood, you know? Every little bit helps, Ms. Lockhart." And the fact that Rinoa was the daughter of Monica Quartermaine, a respected doctor at the hospital, was an additional bonus. None of the other Quartermaine children, save for the long departed Jason, had ever shown any interest in the hospital.
Rinoa patted the bandage on her elbow. "Well, just doing what little I can to help the world," Rinoa said with great humility.
More importantly, she now had all the information she needed. There was ample blood supply, of all blood types, at the hospital, and, in the unlikely chance that Courtney got into a critical life-endangering accident, she shouldn't have any problems recovering. Both Quartermaine doctors were working tonight, and Courtney would be in more than capable hands if anything went wrong with Rinoa's plan.
*******
Llanview… Crossroads…
Skye: She must've been feeling pretty bad.
Cristian: How do you know?Skye: Because she didn't feel any better until she passed out.
Cristian: You saved her life, you know.
Skye: She saved mine. I was about to take a drink. I hope she comes out okay.
Cristian Vega and Jennifer Rappaport had nothing but praises when speaking of Skye Chandler.
"We never met until that night," Jen informed Jax. "We just ran in different circles." Besides that, Skye was a good amount of years older than the below drinking age Jen.
"She saved Jen's life," Cristian added thoughtfully. "But when we tried to thank her for it, she always returned the appreciation right back to us, and said that Jen saved her, because she had been thinking about drinking again."
Skye: I was trying to wreck my life but your friend made me realize how much better it was to save it.
She had admitted to him on New Year's that she had once had a drinking problem. But she had beaten it, and was now a recovering alcoholic. The residents in Pine Valley had known that Skye had beaten the problem, but, apparently, after leaving Pine Valley, Skye had been seriously tempted to return to the bottle.
And, according to Rae, Cristian, and Jen, Skye's temptation to start drinking again had been exactly after she found out she had been adopted into the Chandler family, and that she was the daughter of a woman she despised.
Jen bit her lip hesitantly. Rae had assured them that this man wasn't digging into Skye's past to hurt her, and that Jax was actually trying to help Skye. And Skye was the reason why she, Jen, was alive today. "I have a… friend, I guess, named Al. His father knew Skye really well. I could introduce you to Al, and he can introduce you to his father."
*******
General Hospital…11 am…
Rinoa turned the page of the magazine she had been reading. In all appearances, she was doing nothing more than waiting for her mother Doctor Monica Quartermaine. Her feet patiently tapped to an unheard rhythm against the tiled floor of the hospital.
Although it seemed as if Rinoa was doing nothing more than reading a magazine, that wasn't the case at all. Rinoa's mind was far and away from the fashion magazine she was holding. Her eyes, although they occasionally roamed over the contents of the magazine, were not focused on the clothes on the models. Her mind, instead of being focused on the magazine, was focused on the evening that she was to have that night. She was going out with AJ and Courtney.
It had been a long while since they had gotten together and hung out. She, Rinoa, had been too busy helping Skye out with her secret plans. AJ and Courtney had, on the other hand, been perfectly fine spending their time alone together. Well, as alone together as two people surrounded by mobsters could be. Neither Sonny nor Roscoe had lightened the amount of men they had assigned to the couple. In many ways, both AJ and Courtney felt as if they were a royal couple.
Carly Corinthos and her son, Michael, had supposedly left on a vacation. AJ had been livid, but, with Courtney's soothing words, had accepted the fact that Carly had complete custody of Michel and could take him anywhere, anytime, she wanted to.
With Carly out of the way, Rinoa, AJ, and Courtney were now planning on heading over to Club 101. Rinoa wanted to open her own rival nightclub and, in the process, steal all of Carly's business from her. But, first, Rinoa needed some ideas. She didn't want to steal or use Carly's ideas, but she did want to know the type of people that Carly's club was attracting. With that information, then, Rinoa could create a club catering to those people's wants and needs. And, with cheaper pricing on drinks and food, and with additional perks to the club, stealing Carly's patrons shouldn't be too hard.
Now, that was what Rinoa had been thinking. She hadn't been thinking about the magazine or the fashions within it.
Additionally, contrary to what she had told everyone, Doctor Monica Quartermaine was not the person Rinoa was waiting or. She had told everyone that Monica had been the person she had been waiting for. But that had just been an excuse, a mask to cover the real reason why Rinoa was at General Hospital.
An elderly, aged woman sat across the room. Her hair had not been washed recently, compliments to her current accommodations. She was seated on a wheelchair, and a muscular man in a dark blue uniform stood cautiously beside her.
Helena Cassadine was the woman seated in the wheelchair. A Port Charles police officer was standing protectively over her, and Helena had no choice but to remain inert in her chair. But her face was anything but still. Her eyes had been roaming the hospital, and she had spent many hours contemplating the most strategic way of breaking out of prison. And, until just a few minutes ago, she had been resigned to the fact that she was going to have to do it on her own without assistance from anyone or anything, in any shape or form.
But then she had saw a familiar face, a face that Helena had never forgotten, but had never had the opportunity to summon. Rinoa Cassadine.
Yes, Rinoa had been raised by people hand-selected by Stavros and Helena. Rinoa had been raised to believe and stay true to the Cassadine family. She would not betray her precious grandmother, or allow her grandmother to rot in federal prison, would she?
Without moving her head, Rinoa's eyes lifted off the page. She locked gazes with the woman sitting the room. The corners of her mouth tilted up. Her mouth opened slowly, but no noise came out. The importance of the gesture had been the movement, not the noise or lack of.
Soon.
Helena Cassadine easily hid her excitement. She had an excellent poker face, as any Spencer could attest to. It was next to impossible to read Helena's thoughts when she wanted to keep them hidden. On the other hand, it was laughably easy on how simple it was for her to manipulate and confuse her victims into doing exactly what she wanted them to do.
Soon.
Soon, Rinoa had promised to her grandmother, soon, Helena will be free from this prison.
*******
Max Holden's office…3 pm…
Max Holden and his son weren't on the best of terms. In fact, that was a major understatement. Al and Jen also weren't on the best of terms. Al had been in love with her, they had been engaged to married, but then she had walked out on their ceremony when the truth about his lying about his inability to walk came out. She had left him and returned to Cristian, the man she was in love with, and a man who loved her in return. Despite this, however, Al and Jen remained on talking, albeit awkward, terms.
And so, here Jax was, in Max Holden's office, about to talk to Max, presumably about business.
"So what can I do for you?" Max asked. "My son told me you had some sort of business proposition for me."
To Jax, the man reeked of slime. There was something greasy about this man, something slick and completely dislikable. And this was the man, according to Rae and others in Llanview, whom Skye had obsessed over for several months. But, in the end, had decided that he was beneath her and that she deserved more. And that had been followed by Skye's decision to leave Llanview to go to Port Charles to look for her biological father.
Jax didn't like this man, not in the slightest. He didn't trust him, and he didn't want Max to know the real reason why he was in Llanview. "Business," Jax went along with Jen and Al's story. "Just business." Jen and Al had warned him that Max's credibility was awfully low, and, Jax's instincts about this man agreed with their assessment.
Besides, if it really had been Skye that had dumped Max, then he wouldn't be an objective source of information, would he? This man would only hold bitter memories and recollections.
What had she seen in him? What had changed her mind about him? Jax wasn't planning on bringing Skye's name into the conversation. For now, he only wanted to get to know Max, to find a reason why Skye possibly could have been interested in him.
She didn't even knock. She didn't even bother warning them of her imminent arrival. She twisted the doorknob, pushed the door open, and, armed with a friendly grin and warm greeting on her mouth, Skye Chandler Quartermaine barged through the office of Max Holden. "Max!" Skye greeted brightly, her desperation strengthening her charm and warmth. "Remember me?"
But then the smile froze, and the jaw dropped in partial surprise and in partial horror. Her eyes widened, fixated on the one person in the room that she would never have expected to see right then in that instant. "Jax?!"
And he was as surprised as she was. But he couldn't show it to her. "Miss Chandler Quartermaine," he welcomed her.
"The two of you know each other?" Max asked, a smirk on his face. "How interesting."
But Max's words went unheard and unnoticed.
"What the Hell are you doing here?" Skye demanded. "Why in the world are you in Llanview?" So this was where he had gone for an "indefinite amount of time"?
"Business," Jax said vaguely. "Mr. Holden and I were just about to start a business meeting."
"Business meeting?" Skye echoed, disbelief ringing strongly in her voice. "What kind of business?" She glared suspiciously between the two men in the room.
"It's private," Max answered quickly, but all with a slick smile on his face. "Mr. Jacks, if you don't mind, I'd like a minute alone with Skye."
"Why is he really here?" Skye demanded as soon as Jax had left the office. Her suspicion heavily interlaced with her words. "What kind of business deal is that man trying to make with you? Is he really here to talk business?"
Max sat down on the edge of his desk. He hadn't expected to see Skye again so suddenly. It had been, what, about a year since the last time the two of them had spoken. "So how are you, Skye?"
"If Jax really wants to do business with you," Skye said scathingly. "Then I'd have to advise you to think twice before you sign any type of document with him. The man's ruthless, Max. He's a corporate raider, and he makes his living out of taking over companies and making them his own."
"Are you speaking from personal experience?" Max asked wryly.
"Personal," Skye said curtly. But, in her case, it hadn't been the company that had been lost. Something more personal, more fragile and precious, had been at stake, and had, in the end, been lost.
"Interesting," Max smiled toothily.
Skye frowned. This wasn't turning out anything like she had hoped and prayed for. Jax's presence had thrown her completely off balance, and everything she had planned on saying to Max had flown right out the window, replaced only by confused thoughts and angry emotions.
"Skye?"
Just what was he doing in Llanview? Why would he be interested in any of Max's business? Granted, the man was wealthy, but he was, by no means, a great businessman with a ripe business to take over. Max and his business were nothing, in the grander scheme of things, and Jax had no real reason to be the slightest bit interested in Max's businesses.
"Skye?" Max repeated.
Skye's eyes narrowed in irritation. Going to Max and asking him for a favor, for a loan of two million, now sounded worse than going to Adam Chandler and asking for the sum. She had dumped Max, not the other way around. She didn't want to go back to him and ask for a favor. If any, he should be coming to her and asking for favors.
"I just came by to see you and check how you were doing," Skye lied. "I was in town, and I thought I ought to stop by and check on you. Especially since, you know, I never had the chance to say goodbye to you last time."
She'll have to book a flight to Pine Valley the first chance she got.
*******
Llanview… Outside Max's office…Jax didn't like the message Ben had left on his phone. He didn't like it at all. According to Ben, Skye had come to him seeking a huge loan. She said that she needed the money badly, but she couldn't and wouldn't tell Ben why. Worse, she absolutely refused to go to the bank to obtain the money.
It stunk of Roscoe.
And now, here Skye was talking to Max privately. Was he her next target, the next person she going to ask this outrageous loan from?
*******
Quartermaine residence…8 pm…
He had known it would only be a matter of time. He had known that it would only take a short while for Skye to screw up, and to prove herself unworthy of being CEO of ELQ. And, now, with the financial report of ELQ in his hands, he finally had the proof. Skye, maybe it was Roscoe, was embezzling money from ELQ. ELQ was missing two million dollars, and it didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened.
Regardless of who did it, whether it be Roscoe or Skye, Skye would be dethroned for this larceny.
*******
Club 101…A little after midnight…
"I don't like the atmosphere," Rinoa decided aloud. "It feels like it wants to be a nightclub, you know, a place where you can dance your heart out. But it fails miserably. It's like half nightclub, half coffee shop or something. The lighting's off, and there's just not enough room to dance or anything."
"And I don't like the way the tables are practically on the dance floor," Courtney spoke up. "This place can definitely use more floor space."
"And don't even get me started on the bartenders," Rinoa fumed. "I've never met a bartender half as sour as any of those over here."
"Don't mind them," AJ advised. "They've all been corrupted by Carly's poison."
"Meaning, as Sonny has a cult devoted to worshipping him, so does Carly," Courtney said dryly.
"Well, my club won't have anyone like them," Rinoa swore. "My club is going to be staffed with the nicest, politest, bartenders. And they'll all know their drinks, and not one of them will ever have to refer a customer to another bartender because that bartender doesn't know what the requested drink is."
Courtney hid a smile. Of the three of them, only Rinoa was drinking alcohol. Courtney was still under-aged, and AJ was a recovering alcoholic. "The only thing I really like about this place are the bathrooms, but even the bathrooms can use some work. In your club, Rinoa, make sure you have lots of full-length mirrors. I don't think Carly's bathroom had a single one."
"Full length mirrors, check," Rinoa nodded. "Any other suggestions?"
*******
Wyndemere…2 am…
It had to happen eventually. It really hadn't been a question of if, as Nikolas and Gia had hoped, but when. And, to answer the question of when, the time was now.
They had been eating popcorn, drinking soda, and watching a DVD when it happened. Liz had been snuggled up on one couch, armed with a pillow and blanket. Lucky had sat on the floor right in front of the couch Liz occupied. Sarah had claimed one end of the other couch, with Nikolas and Gia taking the opposite end. The movie had been Moulin Rouge, and the scene had been the part where Christian, Ewan McGregor's character, had first thought up of the idea of having a secret love song with his one true love, Satine, Nicole Kidman's character.
And that was when Liz's memory returned. And it returned with a vengeance.
She turned away from the screen, her eyes focusing on the royal prince and his fiancée. They had lied to her. They had tricked her, confused her, and led her to believe something that had been a lie.
Her memory had been coming back, albeit slowly. Talking with lawyers and journaling in her notebook had helped. And now, with the movie blaring in the background, and Nikolas and Gia cuddled up to each other, as if they were guarding a secret, everything fell into place.
"Turn off the television," Liz ordered suddenly, her tiny body shaking with rage. She pushed the blankets off her body and stood up. "Turn that damned thing off."
*******
Club 101…Rinoa brought her glass of white wine to her lips. With the glass half-blocking her face, her eyes darted around the room. AJ and Courtney were dancing, and both of them seemed free of thoughts of anyone else other than each other. Rinoa put down her glass. She licked the bottom of her upper lip.
Stealthily, without attracting any attention, she took out a small white packet from her beaded evening bag. She kept it tucked under her right thumb, in the center of her palm. She pulled Courtney's Diet Coke towards her.
Courtney did say that the Diet Coke tasted too bland. And she herself had added a few packets of sugar to sweeten the taste. If any of Sonny's or Roscoe's men were keeping tabs on them, then her dumping a package of a white powdered substance shouldn't arouse any suspicions. For all they knew, she was a friend trying to help her friend sweeten her drink.
Rinoa's right hand moved towards the packets of white sugar on the table. She pretended to pick one up, when, in reality, she hadn't. The white packet in her hand was the same white packet she had withdrawn from her purse. Rinoa partially ripped the top part of the package off. She tilted it on its side and emptied the white substance into the glass of Diet Coke.
Rinoa dropped the emptied package on top of the other emptied packets of sugar. She took a gentle hold of Courtney's straw and began stirring its contents. The powder had a very slight taste to it, but only the most aware tongue would catch it.
Rinoa picked up a packet of sugar and poured its contents into Courtney's glass. Now, if someone asked her, she could honestly say that she put sugar in Courtney's drink.
Rinoa put Courtney's drink back in its rightful place. She was getting tired of this charade of being a non-Cassadine, a name she happened to be very proud of. She wanted to announce her birthright, that she was the daughter of a Cassadine, and that she was the sister of Nikolas Cassadine. But this couldn't be done, not yet at least. Courtney was still pursuing a court case against Gia, and if Rinoa was going to help Gia by framing Courtney for reckless driving, then Rinoa was going to have to pretend that she had no ties to the Cassadine family. Well, at least, for now. If Courtney and AJ knew that she was a Cassadine, they wouldn't be as trusting of her as they were now.
But as soon as Courtney had another "accident"… An accident that proved she was a bad driver… an accident that "made" Rinoa realize how accidents happen all the time and how precious and short life was…
No one would suspect Rinoa for framing Courtney. They had become good friends, and Courtney was Rinoa's brother's girlfriend. And no one would be suspicious of Rinoa's sudden change in heart and decision to make known her paternity, and her sibling relationship to Nikolas. If any, only Monica's character would be attacked, for trying to keep Rinoa's father's identity as a secret, and that was something Rinoa was perfectly fine with.
*******
Wyndemere…"Liz," Sarah frowned. Their grandmother would never approve of the language Liz was using. "What's wrong?"
Nikolas picked up the remote control and paused the movie. "Elizabeth?"
They had lied to her. They had both lied to her. "Judas. Liar. Traitor," Liz snarled through clenched teeth. She glared at Nikolas and Gia. "Both of you."
"Liz?" Lucky asked questioningly. He stood up beside her. "What are you talking about?"
Under the blankets, Nikolas squeezed Gia's hand reassuringly.
"Sonny's sister didn't run the red light," Liz exploded. "Gia did! I remember everything, Lucky. And Courtney is innocent." Liz jabbed two accusing fingers at the royal couple. "They lied to me, Lucky. They lied to everyone. They told everyone that Courtney ran the light, but she didn't. Gia did, I'm positive."
Nikolas rose to his feet, and Gia followed suit. "Elizabeth, you're getting confused. And that's exactly what Sonny's lawyers want. They want you to cast the blame on Gia. They're just trying to confuse you."
"Yeah, Elizabeth," Gia agreed. "If Alexis was running the case, I wouldn't question their tactics. But, you know, Alexis isn't Courtney's lawyer. She turned down the position, and let Sonny's other lawyers take it." Alexis had stood firmly on her ground and had refused to help Sonny and Courtney prosecute her nephew and his fiancée.
"Don't try to squirm your way out of this one," Liz scoffed. She crossed her arms angrily in front of her. "I know what happened. I remember everything. Your drinking, our arguing, the song on the radio, you taking your eyes off the road, the red light… everything!"
Sarah looked suspiciously at Nikolas and Gia. She had always had her suspicions, but, until now, nothing had seemed definite. "And Gia didn't even take the blood alcohol test." Sonny's lawyers were having field day over that missing piece of information.
"Look," Nikolas said sharply as he raised his right hand angrily, "Gia is not to blame for the incompetence of the staff at General Hospital."
"Hey, don't even think about blaming us," Sarah retorted. "We know the procedures, and we know what to do when an accident arises. You and Gia lied to get out of taking a blood and alcohol test."
"I can't believe you did this to me," Liz said, outraged. "To me, Nikolas. I thought we were friends, and that we trusted each other."
Now wasn't that the pot calling the kettle black?
*******
Club 101…2:30 am…
Rinoa could feel the alcohol in her system. She could feel it running through her veins and all over her body. There was no way she was would be able to drive tonight.
And, soon, Courtney wouldn't be in any condition. She had drunk all of her drink, and very hurriedly, at that. The dancing had made her thirsty, and the cold Diet Coke, despite its drugged status, had been the perfect solution to her parched throat.
"AJ," Rinoa mumbled, "I can't drive like this. I think I drank too much."
AJ frowned. He had warned Rinoa that she was drinking too much, but she had ignored his advice and had continued ordering the wine. It was as if she was trying to drown her sorrows or something. But, when confronted, Rinoa had adamantly denied against such an idea. "I agree. How many glasses did you have anyway?"
Rinoa shrugged her shoulders weakly. "Too many." She wasn't so drunk so that she couldn't think logically, or so much that she couldn't recognize that she was drunk.
"Come on, Rinoa," AJ sighed. He held a hand out to Rinoa. "You need to sleep this off."
Courtney twirled AJ's key ring around her fingers. AJ was going to drive Rinoa's car, the black Jaguar, back with Rinoa in the passenger seat. She, Courtney, was to drive AJ's car, his silver Porsche, back to the hotel.
She didn't feel like calling it a night and going back home. She felt alive and exhilarated, and she wanted to spend hours more at the club. But AJ had been worried about his little sister and if men would take advantage of her inebriated state. And so he had made the decision to take Rinoa home. And then it had been her choice, Courtney's choice, to follow along.
But it wasn't as if she really had a choice. Sonny's and Roscoe's men freaked her out, and she didn't want to chance being alone with them. For that matter, she didn't want AJ to leave her side. There was no telling what her brother would do to him if given the chance.
*******
Wyndemere…Nikolas, Gia, and Sarah had all left the room, leaving Lucky and Liz to themselves. And that was the way Lucky had wanted it. He needed to speak to Elizabeth alone.
"They lied to us," Liz seethed. It felt like the thousandth time she had said that already. "After all we've been through together, I can't believe they felt they had to lie to us."
"We have been through a lot," Lucky agreed quietly. "And we've all lied to each other at one time or the other."
"Don't even compare those times," Liz interrupted. "They were completely different circumstances."
"You and Nikolas lied to Gia to save me and to protect her. I lied to you, led you to believe my feelings for you were as strong as ever, to protect you. And now Nikolas lied to you, and everyone else, to protect Gia. I don't see much of a difference," Lucky said softly.
"Courtney," Liz said angrily. "There's a difference. Someone completely innocent got involved and took the blame."
"Was she completely innocent?" Lucky countered. "From what I heard, she was emotionally distressed that night. Maybe if she hadn't been upset, she would have seen Gia running the red light, and she could have avoided Gia's car."
"I can't, I can't believe what I'm hearing from you," Liz stuttered. "Are actually you taking their side?"
*******
On the road…2:45 am…
AJ took a quick glance to his side. Rinoa was too quiet.
Her eyes were wide open, and they were trained on AJ's silver Porsche up in front of them. Her mind was fuzzy, but not too fuzzy so that she couldn't recall what her plan of action had been. But, it was fuzzy enough to realize that her plans had too many holes in it, and that there were so many possible unforeseen problems that could arise.
"You okay?" AJ asked, breaking the cloud of silence. "Do you feel sick? Do you want me to pull over?"
What if Courtney ended up driving into innocent bystanders? What if she ended up killing someone? What if Courtney died? There was no guarantee that the ample supply of blood or the skills of the doctors at General Hospital could save her, let alone anyone else caught in the accident. The plan had been for Courtney to drive her car into a streetlight or a telephone pole. And there were so many of them from Club 101 to Port Charles Hotel. And there were so many turns that had to be made, that in Courtney's drugged state, she was bound to have an accident, right? And no one else had to be involved. And it was so late in night that there shouldn't be any cars traveling around or innocent bystanders littering the street.
But what if…
"AJ, I just want to get home," Rinoa urged. Courtney was speeding in AJ's car, and she and AJ were beginning to lose sight of Courtney's car. "Can't we go a little faster?"
Rinoa didn't have to ask twice. AJ stepped down on the gas pedal. He pushed it gently, so that the Jaguar didn't pick up too much speed too quickly. He didn't want to make any sudden movement and cause Rinoa to go ill. But, like Rinoa, he was worried about Courtney's driving. She was going over sixty, for sure, and she was picking up speed.
*******
On the road…Sarah was back in Wyndemere, waiting for the chance to speak to her sister. Lucky and Liz had been left alone to discuss the situation. And Nikolas and Gia had decided that they needed some time alone, by themselves, and away from the mess that was threatening to explode in their faces. Nikolas had suggested driving through the streets of Port Charles, and Gia had readily agreed.
Gia clenched her hands tightly against each other. "Do you think Lucky's trying to get Liz to help us, or do you think he's also against us?"
Nikolas sighed. Lucky was his brother, or, half-brother, and the two of them had been through some rough times. And, although Lucky hadn't admitted it, he must have long ago realized that Nikolas and Gia had been hiding something. But, even then, he hadn't called them on it. He hadn't confronted them or asked them for the truth. "I think," Nikolas hesitated, "that Lucky is on our side."
"You think or you hope?" Gia sighed.
*******
Wyndemere…"I'm not going to stand against them," Lucky said softly. "Liz, they're our friends."
"Exactly. They're supposed to be our friends. But look at what they did to us, to me! I almost died, Lucky, and Gia couldn't even accept the responsibility," Liz said angrily, her eyes flashing.
"There would be no point in pursuing this," Lucky said somberly.
"No point?" Liz echoed. "You do know, don't you, that there's going to be a trial, and I'm going to be called up as a witness? Do you just expect me to continue to lie?"
"You lied to protect me," Lucky reminded Liz again. "And Gia did get hurt in it, much more than Nikolas and Gia's lie hurt Courtney or you. Courtney only got a slap in the wrist, and a small fine. If you ask, I'm sure Nikolas and Gia will do all they can to make sure Courtney doesn't get in any more trouble."
"How can you say that it didn't hurt me?" Liz demanded. "My friends lied to me, and you expect that it didn't hurt me?"
"You and Nikolas lied to Gia, and the two of you broke her heart. Which one of your lies hurt the other more?" Lucky asked gently. "I'm not condoning what Nikolas and Gia did, but Liz, I really don't see why you'd want to come forward with this. Just leave it alone."
"And lie in court, under oath," Liz said bitterly.
"They're our friends, Liz. If the truth came out at this point, and everyone found out that Nikolas and Gia tampered with witnesses and gave false testimony…" Lucky shook his head. "There's no point in going through all that, Liz."
"You don't see the point?" Liz asked accusingly. "Of course you don't. Because you're not in love with me anymore. And you can't see why something like this would hurt me so much."
*******
On the roads… 3 am…The streets were deserted, for the most part. The only cars traveling at this hour should belong to people going home from a party or from a fun night out on the town. In one particular section of town, that had been the case for four of the cars. They were headed towards Port Charles Hotel, coming from the direction of Club 101.
But there was a fifth car, a red BMW convertible, in the area. This car belonged to a couple who were, in every sense, just driving around without direction or purpose. There had been a fight, an argument, in their home, and they had left so that, hopefully, everyone could cool down. Neither people in the car had felt like being in a crowd, so they had elected to drive around town, and enjoy the presence of the other in the car.
Five cars, a fated night.
The first driver, in a silver Porsche, whose driving skills had been impaired by a planted drug, was speeding crazily and making wide turns, and often impeded on the adjacent lanes.
A second driver, in a black Jaguar, followed the first car closely, and kept his eyes on the speedometer and wondered what in the world the first driver was doing.
The third and fourth drivers, who were only doing the job assigned to them, also had thoughts similar to the second driver. Why were the cars in front of them speeding so crazily?
All four of these cars had been going in the same direction.
But the fifth car had been going in the opposite way.
Rinoa's plan was about to explode in her face.
From a bird eye's view, the silver Porsche, the one that had been driving recklessly, had complete blame. Although the car was small, and it should have cornered perfectly, the driver of the car had been going too fast, and she turned the car wildly, so that it ended up taking the lanes going the opposite direction.
The red BMW convertible had no choice but to swerve to its left, going directly into the opposing lane. The driver of the black Jaguar tried to turn away, but both the red BMW and the black Jaguar had been speeding, plus the red BMW had been going down on a downhill slope. The black Jaguar never had the time to flee from the oncoming car, and the onslaught that promised to follow. The red BMW smashed into the driver's side of the black Jaguar.
From behind, the fourth and fifth cars veered to the side, as both drivers tried desperately to avoid the chaos before them. Luckily, they both escaped unscathed.
The first car veered to the side, and its driver came tumbling out. Her blond hair flew in the wind as she scampered down the hill towards the wreck. Upon reaching the two cars, the red BMW and the black Jaguar, the blond woman screamed out two names. She fell to her knees, tears gushing out of her eyes, as the intensity of the situation hit home.
The men in the third and fourth cars came out, and it was obvious that one group wanted to take the blond woman far and away, while the other group wanted to make sure everyone stayed together.
One group called and reported the accident to Sonny Corinthos. The other group called and reported it to their leader, Roscoe. In a few minutes, everyone that needed to be notified would be notified. The ambulance and the police would come. And a family member, now running a desperate errand to amass funds, would soon find out. And, when that happened, everything would become secondary, secondary to the well-being of the man she called her brother, and to the woman she has come to consider her as her sister.
From a bird eye's view, the accident had been completely the blond woman's fault.