Babble: I came across this fic the other day and realized I hadn't posted it here yet so I thought I'd throw it out. It's an offshoot of the rave/Dead Ted fiasco. It features those players, Emily, Elizabeth, Gia, Nikolas, Lucky, Zander, plus I worked in more of the mob angle, i.e., Sonny, Jason, Sorel, Francis…
It's a short little ride only 4 parts but I hope you come along for it. One more thing when I wrote this I pictured the actor who originally played Zander Smith. He was older, bigger, darker, and there was no hint of Zem if he played him, you can picture who you want, I just wanted to tell you what I did.
There's violence, character death, and a lot of fun I hope. I'm going to post it all in one shot so if you open the link leave me a reply please.
Distribution: Ask me first.
Stephanie
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The Rave: Realizations
~Car~
"So everybody knows what the plan is?" Nikolas Cassadine turned sideways behind the wheel and addressed the others in the car.
"I tell you which guy I saw coming out of the hotel room." Gia Campbell spoke up, this was only the fifth time in the last 15 minutes that question had been asked.
"I start talking to him." Elizabeth Webber said from her seat in the back.
"Yes and you try to find out what car he drives." Lucky Spencer told her shifting on the passenger seat to look at her.
"And while you check out his car, I'll keep an eye on Elizabeth." Nikolas finished. "Remember don't drink anything he gives you."
"I know Nikolas." Elizabeth said wearily, she just wanted this night over with already.
"Can we get on with this already? I'd like to get away from you people as soon as I can." Gia said nastily, pushing on the back of Lucky's seat.
"Alright let's go." Nikolas opened the door and pushed the seat up to help Elizabeth out of the car. "Are you sure about this?" He asked her softly.
"We don't have a choice do we?" She looked over at Gia. "Would you trust her with this?"
"No." Nikolas admitted looking at Gia who was talking to Lucky. "Remember the signal we made, if you feel uncomfortable give it to me, and we'll leave."
"Lucky won't like that." Elizabeth answered just as quietly.
"I don't care." Nikolas told her.
"Look I don't think we should all go in together, too noticeable." Lucky said. "Gia and I will head in, then Nikolas, Elizabeth you should come in last."
Elizabeth automatically nodded her head, she didn't feel like talking to Lucky. He had told her again today that she should be with Nikolas, and for the first time when she looked at him, she didn't feel anything. That scared her.
The sound of Gia's laughter drifted back to the pair by the car, when the couple headed for the deserted building that was overflowing with people. She didn't want to be here, she didn't want to go to a rave full of people to look for a murderer. It seemed unreal to her that she would even voluntarily do it. She hated dressing like this, she felt exposed and uncomfortable, she would much rather be at her studio, and lost in her painting. After being blocked ever since she'd first heard about Lucky, she was finally feeling creative again.
Sighing she realized that her emotions were finally evening out again. The turmoil that she'd been feeling ever since April, was gone, she was feeling in control again. She was in control of her life for the first time since last February.
Nikolas leaned against the jag and studied his friend. She had been through so much since he had met her, and she had come through it all, stronger. There were times he had worried, times he had despaired, times that he had questioned her, but in the end she had known what she was doing. For a while he had even thought he was in love with her, thankfully she was wise enough to see that it would never have worked, because they were better friends then anything else.
He shook his head, at the time he had hated it, and fought her on it, until he finally realized that she was right. He had wanted to take care of her after Lucky had "died." He had convinced himself that in order for him to do that right, he needed to take Lucky's place in all aspects of her life. He had been so wrong, he was only glad that their friendship had survived his foolishness. She had become his best friend, even more so then Emily, because his feelings for Emily were always changing. He also knew her almost as well as she knew him. "You've given up haven't you?"
Jolted out of her thoughts Elizabeth looked at him. "What?"
"Lucky, you've had enough haven't you?"
Elizabeth shrugged but was quiet.
"Avoidance again, I guess I have my answer." He was sad, but he couldn't say he was surprised. He had watched her fight for Lucky since April, he had watched while she tried to turn herself back into the girl that Lucky had first fell in love with. Watched while she censored herself, and what she was feeling so she didn't set Lucky off, or worry anyone else. In other words he had been watching her die inside for months now. But when he'd picked her up tonight he could see a change in her eyes. He had seen her opened sketchbook on the couch, the charcoal on her fingers, and knew she was finally letting herself feel again.
"I don't know what to say to that." Elizabeth finally said after another minute of silence.
"Only the truth, that's all I want to hear."
She crossed over to him. "Are you sure you want the truth?"
"It becomes real once you say it out loud." Nikolas told her putting his hands on her shoulders.
A car pulled in the lot, the headlights swept over them and Elizabeth stepped back. "I think you should head inside now."
Sighing he reluctantly headed for the door. Sooner or later they would finish this conversation, but now they had other problems to deal with. "Remember," he paused a few feet away. "Give me the sign and we're gone."
She smiled at him and nodded.
Saying it out loud makes it real. Did she want it to be real? Leaning against the car, she could feel the heat of the cooling engine. If she admitted it was over with Lucky, she would be ending a dream that she'd had since the second week she moved to Port Charles. She thought she had lost the dream once, so she had mourned it and put it away, but once Lucky came back, the dream of ever after with him had to return as well. But he didn't want ever after with her, the question was did she still want it with him? She was beginning to realize that she didn't. She pushed off from the car and headed for the music pouring out of the building, now wasn't the time to be thinking about things like that.
~Inside 2 Hours Later~
Elizabeth took another sip of her water. She had managed to find a bottle that hadn't had its seal cracked, she'd had to fight a blonde for it, but in the end she had snagged it.
"You know you can at least try to look as if you're having a good time." Lucky's voice came from behind her. "You know mingle."
"What I can't hear you I'm deaf." Elizabeth said without turning around. "Has Gia seen him yet?"
"No," Lucky replied swaying to the base that permeated the room. "There's another rave tonight, he's probably there now, but will be heading this way, so get ready."
"Can't wait." She muttered, watching him move off.
With a sigh she headed for the other room, no actually she danced her way into another room, turning down several requests a long the way. She thought Frat parties were supposed to be the pick-up spots, but she thought Rave's had them beat. She was bumped hard from behind the same time someone tried to cut in front of her, it sent her water bottle crashing to the floor.
"I'm sorry." The guy who bumped into her said at once, bending to retrieve her water bottle. He held it out to her, but there was only a swallow left in it. "Sorry." He repeated sheepishly.
Elizabeth smiled slightly, great she was thirsty now, and somehow she didn't think she'd find another unbroken bottle. "It's okay."
"Let me get you something else to drink." The tall dark-haired man moved closer so he could be heard over the music. "It's the least I can do."
"That's okay, I'm fine." She said immediately.
"Alright if you change your mind let me know." He told her with a smile. "You don't look like you're having fun."
"What gave you that idea?" Elizabeth was shoved again from behind, and turned to glare at the idiot behind her.
He smiled at her. "You haven't talked to anyone but a couple of people since I've been here, you haven't danced, and you've hardly smiled, those are pretty telling clues."
The first trickle of alarm went through her at his words and she took an instinctive step back.
"And now I've spooked you."
"Why were you watching me?" Elizabeth asked.
"You're a beautiful woman who is definitely out of place." He said with a charming smile. "In other words your intriguing."
She couldn't help but smile at that, no one had called her intriguing before.
"A real smile, I'm so fortunate."
"What you are is funny." She shot back flirting a little.
"Actually I'm about as out of place as you are. I don't go to many raves." He held out his hand. "My name is Zander Smith."
"This is only the second one I've been to." She took his hand. "I'm Elizabeth Webber.
~Other Room~
"Come on Gia do you see him or not?" Nikolas asked, the smoke was giving him a headache and he was ready to leave.
"Not yet your holiness." Gia sniped. "Don't worry I'll tell you when I see him."
Nikolas shook his head, attitude was all she seemed to possess. It was a shame that such a pretty package was empty. "Just keep your eyes open."
"Hey guys." Lucky said coming up to them.
"Why are you here?" Nikolas demanded. "You're supposed to be watching Elizabeth."
"Relax the guy is not even here yet, but I did find out his name." Lucky told him, taking a drink of a soda.
"Well are you going to keep us in suspense forever?" Gia asked.
"It's Zander Smith."
~Outside~
Emily Quartermaine nervously pulled at the blonde wig she was wearing, before taking a deep breath and heading inside. This was her problem so she was going to help fix it.
Scanning the crowd, she avoided the elbows and moved into the mass of bodies. So far so good she had made it inside and she hadn't seen Nikolas or the others yet. She knew he would freak if he knew she was here, but she hated being left out of things.
"Hey babe let's dance." A stoned guy with no hair stepped in her path.
Why did people feel the need to pierce their eyebrows? "No, I'm looking for my boyfriend."
"Well you found another."
God he even had his tongue pierced. "No he gets mad when I talk to other guys, in fact the last guy I talked to finally got out of the hospital, after my boyfriend ripped out his nipple ring."
The guy flinched and melted back into the crowd.
Emily smirked and headed for the next room.
~Other Room~
"Thanks." Elizabeth took the water from Zander. She saw that the seal was broken and looked up at him warily.
"Do you want me to try it first?" He asked.
She looked back at the bottle, he seemed nice, but you could never be to sure.
Reaching over Zander took the bottle from her hands. "Let me." He took a long drink from the bottle.
"Sorry."
"Don't be I don't blame you for being careful." Zander told her. "I have a little sister, and I tell her repeatedly to do the same thing. But she doesn't listen to me, she's such a brat."
She laughed and took a drink. "I'm the brat in my family."
"Really? You don't act like it." Zander moved closer to her, his hand slipping in his pocket for the X and Roofies he had there.
"Trust me, the motto in my family was if something goes wrong, blame Lizzie."
Emily paused in the doorway when she saw Elizabeth talking to a taller dark-haired man, who had definitely spent some time in a gym. She wondered if that was the guy they were looking for. Hearing Elizabeth's laugh she relaxed it couldn't be, Elizabeth sounded to comfortable. She stepped back from the door, when Elizabeth turned to look her way.
When Zander moved it took only seconds, the pills that were in his hand, were now in her drink.
Elizabeth turned back towards him. "That is not Kid Rock. He doesn't even look like him."
"Oh I guess the shades and the red ball cap threw me." He said with a deprecating smile. He moved closer to let someone pass and deliberately jostled her hand that was holding the bottle, causing some bubbles to stir, and hiding the dissolving pills. "Sorry."
"It is a bit crowded in here isn't it?" Elizabeth asked, "and warm." She lifted the bottle and took a big swallow.
"Yes it is." Zander agreed hiding a smirk when she took another drink, it wouldn't be long now.
~Other Room~
Nikolas was still standing by Gia when a blonde with cornrows caught his eye. She had come to an abrupt halt about five feet away from him. Before he could focus on her, she had turned around and disappeared into the crowd. He looked after her, there was something familiar about the way she moved.
"So I haven't exactly figured out which one of the Bobsey twins are you hooked up with? The princess or the waitress?" When he ignored her, she tugged on his arm. "Hello, you could at least pretend to listen to me, after all I am helping you, and at great risk to myself I might add."
Nikolas looked back at her, "The only reason you're helping is because I'm paying you too, so don't try to give me that spiel."
Gia huffed out a breath at least the blonde one was fun to talk too. This one was so stiff, it was too bad, he was definitely the better-looking brother. "Look I'm going to look around again."
"Okay," Nikolas agreed it was time to check on Elizabeth anyway.
~Other Room~
"Are you hot?" Elizabeth asked fanning herself with her hand. "I'm hot all of a sudden."
"There are a lot of people here."
"I know, I hate crowds too. All those bodies pressed against you, I like the open, I like to be free." Spreading her arms, she hit a passing girl but didn't notice or care. "But what I love more than anything else is the feel of the wind when you're on a motorcycle. Have you been on a motorcycle?"
He opened his mouth to answer but before he could she was off again.
"I have I used to go riding a lot, almost every day. When you race with the wind, and there's nothing but the noise and the wind, it is so great. Do you have a motorcycle?" She asked taking his arm to steady herself when the room seemed to spin. "Did we just have an earthquake?"
"No." Zander moved his hand to her waist.
"No you don't have a motorcycle, that's too bad. I love them. Of course I've only ridden with Jason, do you know Jason?"
"Who is Jason your boyfriend?" He asked slipping his arm around her waist so she rested against him.
"My boyfriend?" She giggled. "Only in my dreams, but he is my more than friend. Don't you think that's nice? More my friend, I mean more friend." She frowned. "Do you have a motorcycle?"
"Actually I do." Zander said. "Do you want to go for a ride?"
Elizabeth squealed and gave him a hug. "Can we? Do you know the cliff road? I have missed it so much, you're not Jason but I can pretend." She took another drink. "No I can't there's only one Jason, buy you have a bike so that will be okay. Do you know Jason?"
"Elizabeth." Lucky's voice came from behind her.
She groaned and buried her head in Zander's chest. "That's not Jason is it?" She whispered.
"I don't know." He whispered back. Sometimes this was his favorite part, the girl's unpredictability after he gave them the drugs. A part of them was still striving for control, but the biggest part of them was already flying.
"Elizabeth," Lucky took her arm and turned her around. "You're stoned," he accused her in surprise.
~Other Room~
Emily turned around and ran straight into Nikolas. She quickly lowered her head, and tried to brush by him.
His hand closed over her wrist. "What the hell are you doing Emily?"
Emily yanked her arm free, kept her back to him, and put on an accent. "No Hablas Englais." She had only taken a step, when the blonde wig was jerked from her head. "Owww, Nikolas."
"You learn English so quick." Nikolas turned her around to face him. "What are you doing?"
"I wanted to help." Emily crossed her arms over her chest when he glared at her. "It's my problem and I haven't done a thing."
"Emily we didn't want you here because the guy knows what you look like." Nikolas explained.
She yanked the wig from his hand. "Duh, that's why I came in disguise."
He snorted, "And it took me what a minute to recognize you?"
Emily was jostled closer to him from behind. "I would hope that you know me better than him, and that is why you recognized me."
He could smell her perfume, and realized that he had recognized her because of the way his body had reacted when she ran into him, not because he saw past the blonde wig. He shifted closer, his hand taking hers, "Emily..."
"He's here." Gia interrupted cutting off whatever he was going to say to her.
Nikolas blinked at her. "Where?"
"In the other room." She recognized Emily. "What are you doing here princess?"
Emily rolled her eyes and followed Nikolas.
~Other Room~
"Is this your boyfriend?" Zander asked.
"Nope, no, no, no." Elizabeth shook her head, sending the room spinning again. "He was but that was before he died. Now that he's alive again he doesn't want me anymore."
Zander looked down at her that was a new one.
"I'll tell you a secret." Elizabeth gestured for him to lean closer to her, before going on in a loud whisper. "I don't want him anymore either." She giggled again.
"Come on Elizabeth." Lucky took her arm and tried to pull her away from the guy she was with. "We need to go now."
"No." She snapped pulling free. "We are going for a ride." She told him haughtily. "He's not Jason but he has a bike."
"You're not going anywhere with him." Lucky told her reaching for her again.
"She says she doesn't want to go with you." Zander told him, smacking away Lucky's hand and shoving him back a step.
"Keep out of this." Lucky snapped. "Come on let's find Nikolas."
"Ugh." Elizabeth groaned. "There he goes again. Lucky was I so in love with you that I didn't realize how stupid you were?" She went on not even seeing the look of shock on his face. "How many times do you have to hear that I don't want to be with Nikolas before you grasp the concept? Do I need to get a tattoo here on my stomach?" She demanded pulling at her shirt, exposing her flat stomach. "Nope not going to do that, don't like needles. So I will make you a recording, on it I will say Nikolas is only my friend over and over again. If you listen to it while you sleep it might sink in, like os…oz…ozzy…ozmoranus."
"Osmosis." Zander told her.
"Yeah what he said." Elizabeth nodded. "If I told you everyday that I wasn't in love with someone, how many times would you have to hear it before you believed me?" She asked Zander.
"Once would work for me."
"You're smart, do you have a bike?" Elizabeth asked finishing her bottle.
"Yes, we're going for a ride remember?" Zander said slipping his arm around her waist and heading towards the door at the back of the building.
"No you're not." Lucky moved in front of him. "You won't take her anywhere."
"Lucky move." Elizabeth snapped while fanning herself again. She wanted to feel the wind so bad, she was so hot and she knew it would feel so good. She frowned at Zander he wasn't Jason, but he had a bike, so maybe it would still work.
"Lucky?" Zander repeated with a laugh. "I doubt you live up to your name very often."
Lucky looked past him to Elizabeth and held out his hand. "Please Elizabeth, please come with me, I need to talk to you, please baby."
Elizabeth looked at his hand, and then back into the blue eyes that once meant everything to her. "No."
Lucky's face-hardened into anger and he took a step closer, only to fall to the floor when Zander decked him.
"Did he fall down?" Elizabeth asked when Zander pulled her towards the door. One minute he had been standing in front of Zander the next he was on the ground. She looked back at him. "Do you think he's hurt?"
"Nah, he just slipped." Zander kept a hold of her hand and worked his way through the crowd.
A feeling of unease worked its way through the fog that she was feeling and a part of her tried to hang onto it. "Nikolas." She called when she spotted his dark head.
Nikolas turned around in time to see Elizabeth disappear out the door with some guy. He let go of Emily's hand and took off after her, shoving people out of the way, and stepping over his prone brother trying to get to her. "Move." He yelled driving one person into the wall, before he finally got to the door.
"Nikolas."
He heard his name coming from the right and hurried towards it, only to jump back against the building when a black Buick came flying up the alley, sending rocks flying everywhere. He had an instant to recognize Elizabeth in the passenger seat before she was gone.
"Elizabeth," he raced for his Jag. He had the keys ready and opened the door quickly, he could still see the taillights, up the street. He slid behind the wheel and never even looked at Emily when she opened the passenger door and got in beside him, the door was still open when he put the car in gear and took off after Elizabeth.
~Cedar Court Motel~
"I thought you said you had a bike." Elizabeth slid out of the car when he opened the door for her.
"I do." Zander took her hand. "I just need to get the key, it's inside." He gestured to the row building behind him.
"You live in a motel?" Somewhere deep inside of her, her dulled instincts were telling her to run, but they were easy to ignore, because of the prospect of a bike ride.
"No." Zander explained easily. "A buddy of mine borrowed the bike, he's staying here. I'll just get the keys from him."
Zander stopped outside of room 24, the light was burned out by the door, he dug in his pocket for the key, and had to step back to find the right key.
The night air was clearing the fog in her head somewhat and she took a slight step back. "Isn't your friend home?"
"No, he's out with his girlfriend." He found the right key and slipped it into the lock.
"I'll wait out here for you then." Elizabeth took another step back, only to stop when dizziness hit her.
"Come inside Elizabeth." Zander held the door open.
Elizabeth looked around the mostly empty parking lot. Something was wrong, what was it? "I don't see any motorcycles." She said slowly, taking another step back, so she was off the porch and back on the graveled lot a few feet away from him.
Zander moved closer to her. "It's here Elizabeth."
Elizabeth shook her head trying to clear it "I think I want to go back to the rave now."
"I thought you wanted to feel the wind." Zander lowered his voice, he needed to get her inside. He used this place because it was on the outskirts of town, and only had a few rooms occupied at anytime, but he didn't want to push it.
"No." Elizabeth took another step back.
"You said the wind made you feel free." Zander went on. "Wasn't that what you said you and Jason always did, ride the wind?"
Elizabeth smiled then, "You know Jason?"
"Yes I do." Zander said moving close enough that he could take her hand. "In fact Jason is the friend I was telling you about, it's his bike we're going to take."
"He's here?" She lit up at that thought only to frown. "You said he's with his girlfriend. He has a girlfriend?" Why did that hurt so much?
"Yes Jason and her will be here soon." Zander tugged on her hand, they were almost there.
"No." Elizabeth whispered, it wasn't fair that he had a girlfriend. She tugged on her hand. She didn't want to see him with a girl. "Now I really have to go."
Zander yanked on her arm pulling her into him. He wrapped his arm around her waist and bodily carried her into the room, slamming the door behind him.
"Jason." She screamed his name automatically and struggled trying to free herself from him. His arm was locked around her waist, and it tightened even harder when she tried to knee him in the groin. Her head, which was already spinning began to pound and the room began to go dark.
~Crossroads~
"Do you see anything?" Nikolas asked coming to a stop in the middle of the road. He looked in all directions but saw no sign of the car anywhere.
"No." Emily said tearfully.
"Goddamn'it." Nikolas pounded on the steering wheel. He had gotten caught behind a station wagon, and it took an agonizing ¼ mile before he could get past it, and that was long enough that he had lost the car. He had lost Elizabeth. "She didn't want to come tonight. She never said anything, but I knew it. God why did I let her come?"
"Nikolas stop." Emily cried when he started hitting his head on the steering wheel she took his hand pulling on it until he looked at her.
"She called my name Em, she called me for help." He looked at her. "She needed me and I let her down."
"We will find her." She told him, she wasn't going to let him give up. "Let's check the motels around here."
Nikolas looked at her in shock, then slowly nodded his head. As much as he hated it, she was right, he reluctantly put the car in gear. He wanted to find her so bad, but he didn't want to find her there.
~Room 24~
She could feel his lips on her neck, then his breath on her face, she could smell his cologne mixed with his sweat. But underneath that she could smell his soap. It was the soap smell that took her back to another time, it was the smell that pushed past the paralyzing terror she was feeling. It was the soap smell that gave her the strength to fight him, strength that she normally didn't have.
He tilted his head and she bit his ear hard. Zander yelled and jerked back from her, she pushed at his chest, bringing her feet up to kick him off of her, then dove for the door. As soon as she got to her feet the room spun, and it slowed her down. Falling into the door, she ripped it open heading for the safety outside. Turning back to see where he was, she ran into someone. Elizabeth screamed and immediately started fighting against the hands that held her in place.
"Elizabeth it's me, you're okay, Elizabeth."
The voice got through and she stopped struggling looking up at him, "Jason?"
"Yes, you're safe." Jason told her, keeping his arms around her when she started to shake.
"Zander…your friend…" She pointed back to the room she had run out of.
"He won't touch you again." Jason said.
Zander ran out of the room, coming to a halt when he saw a tall guy holding Elizabeth. "Let her go."
Elizabeth jerked at the voice.
"It's okay Elizabeth." Jason said soothingly never taking his eyes off the man on the porch, he could see the blood coming from his earlobe. "Wait by the bike."
"There is no bike." She said before she looked. She was wrong, there was a bike here now, it was parked next to the car she had rode here in. "Your bike is here. He said it was here, and it's here, he said you were here, and you're here, he said you had a girl…" She trailed off.
Jason heard her words but didn't pay attention to them, his focus was on the man that was heading towards him. "Go to the bike now." His tone left no room for argument and Elizabeth went to the bike.
"What did you give her?" Jason asked softly. If the other man had known him, he would have realized that softer his voice got the angrier he was.
"None of your business, all of this is none of your business." Zander came to a stop a few feet from him. He was bigger than the blonde so he didn't feel the least intimidated. "This is between me and my girlfriend."
"She is not your girlfriend. And you will never touch her again." Jason's voice was softer still.
Zander heard the lethalness in the man's tone, and reevaluated his opinion of him, when he caught sight of the coldness in the other man's icy eyes. Wariness entered his system, and he countered it by taking a swing.
Jason caught his hand easily enough and shoved him back.
Zander never even saw a flicker of reaction on the other man's face, and a feeling of unaccustomed fear went through him. He swung again, and Jason blocked him easily, but this time he countered with a right of his own. Zander's head jerked at the contact and he staggered back. Jason moved closer and swung again. Again and again his fists flew, the precision with which he dealt with Zander, was economical, there were no wasted movements, and he did not stop even when Zander fell to the ground.
"Jason." Francis stopped his arm mid swing.
Jason turned on him and Francis flinched at the violent coldness in his eyes. "You know we need him alive." Francis jerked his head, but his eyes never left Jason. "Besides do you want her to see this."
Elizabeth the thought of her, broke through his anger and he lowered his hand. He looked towards the bike and saw a wide-eyed Elizabeth sitting on it, clutching the helmet to her chest. He looked back towards Zander who was unconscious on the ground. "He lives for now." He turned towards her again. "I'll call Sonny, you better hang around."
Francis sighed in relief, he really hadn't wanted to try to physically stop Jason.
Jason paused in front of the new guy Mike. "You let this get way out of hand." He told him.
The coldness in his boss's voice, and the violence he had just seen Jason do, made Mike start to sweat. "I didn't know who she was at first."
Jason leaned closer to him. "That doesn't matter, you shouldn't have let him take any woman in that room." He looked over at her again. "You have a day."
Mike swallowed hard and looked at Francis when Jason continued to the bike. "What does he mean I have a day?" He asked nervously. "He isn't going to kill me is he?"
Francis shrugged. "You might wish he had when he's done with you." He pointed to Zander who was still unconscious. "He never even broke a sweat with him, and he's bigger than you."
Mike started to shake. "You understand don't you?"
"I guarded that girl for six weeks." Francis told him coldly. "If there is anything left of you when he's done it will be my turn, and after that it will be Johnny's. Not to mention what Sonny will do when he hears."
"Mr. C-Corinthos?"
"Yes he likes that girl, he's not going to be happy you let her get hurt." Francis turned away and couldn't help but kick Zander once.
"Yeah."
"Sonny it's me." Jason said into the phone, stopping a few feet from the bike out of her hearing distance.
"What's wrong?"
"I'm blown, Zander Smith will definitely recognize me." Jason said.
"Damn'it how did that happen?" Sonny pinched his nose. "We need to find out who else is working with him and Sorel, Jason, you know that. How could you let yourself get blown?"
"He came back to the motel with Elizabeth." Jason explained shortly.
"What?" Sonny lurched to his feet. "Is she okay?"
Jason gripped the cell hard in his hand. "That new guy Mike, he let her go in the room with him, even though she was fighting him, by the time I arrived, she was screaming and came running out of the room with him behind her."
"Is she hurt?"
"I don't know, she's drugged, she scared, and she saw me beat him up." Jason snapped. "I got to check on her."
"Go, don't worry about anything but her." Sonny said immediately.
"I wasn't going too." When he went on his voice was low. "When were done with Zander, he's gone."
"I know." Sonny agreed. He hung up the phone slowly. How the hell did Elizabeth get mixed up in this? He shook his head, he could hear the anger in Jason's voice so clearly. He knew that Zander wouldn't be around after his usefulness was used up. He picked up the phone again and called Francis. "Francis, has Zander woken up yet?" Sonny paused for the response. "When he does this is what I want you to do."
Francis hung up the phone and shook his head, sometimes his boss's deviousness surprised even him. He glanced at the motorcycle and saw Jason talking to Elizabeth.
~Bike~
"Are you okay?"
Elizabeth shook her head automatically her eyes locked on a prone Zander.
"Elizabeth." Jason touched her chin, gently turning her head so she looked at him.
"Jason," she said with a smile. "Are you really here?"
"Yes." He smiled in relief, when he didn't see any bruises on her face. She looked fine except for the drugged quality of her eyes.
"I've been looking for you." She said suddenly. "Well actually I've been looking for your bike." She looked down. "Hey I found it." Her face lit up. "That means we're going for a ride right?"
"Right."
"I get to drive?"
"No." Jason took the helmet from her hands, set it on her head and hooked the chinstrap for her.
"But I found it and believe me that wasn't easy." Elizabeth pouted. "So I should drive."
"No." Jason shook his head.
"Give me one confeet, condrete," She blew a hair out of her face. "Tell me why not."
"Okay I'll let you drive if you tell me one fact about Uzbekistan." He crossed his arms and waited.
"Usedtrek, Uzfed, Uz." She groaned "That's cheating."
"I won so move back." Jason told her.
She grumbled under her breath but slid back on the seat. "Whoa." She muttered when he climbed on and brought the bike up. "Are you sure you remember how to fly?"
"I think you're flying enough for the both of us." He started the bike. "You think you can remember how to hold on?"
"Jason if I hold on to you this time I'm not going to let you go." Elizabeth told him.
Jason half turned so he could see her. He saw the serious look on her face. "Good." With that he turned around and put the bike in gear, sending them off into the wind.