~*~ Chapter 19 ~*~

Fog rolled slowly over the hill where half a dozen police cars, and about twice as many offices sat quietly watching the activity at the number 11 dock, just outside of Sonny Corenthos' control. A dark blue sedan rolled up next to the other cars. Out of it, stepped officer Taggart of the PCPD. Quickly, yet silently he moved through the crowd of officers toward Mac, who was on his cell phone making final preparations. "Are you sure your information is solid. If we bust the wrong person, especially THIS wrong person… Alright, but if you're wrong, we'll all be crucified."

Mac slammed his cell phone shut, just as Taggart handed him a piece of paper, "It looks like the informant's suspicions were justified. It took a lot of digging, and a few alias changes but it looks like our suspect has a history of this kind of thing." Taggart looked around at the dozen or so police officers in the shadows "Looks like the gangs all here." He said jokingly.

Mac smiled back. "Are you kidding, this is the biggest drug bust in Port Charles history, possibly the biggest in the Eastern Seaboard, we had officers try to come out of retirement for this…hell Jagger even called me, he tried to get me to authorize him to fly back to join this, and he's in San Francisco!"

Down at the warehouse a car pulled up outside on the docks. Janelle slowly stepped out holding a package in her hand. A burly man dressed in a leather trench walked out and gave Janelle a peck on the cheek "Good to see you made it Sis… Do you have it?"

Janelle handed over the package "I received it in the mail yesterday. I just couldn't get away from the DA, and his annoying daughters."

The man tore open the brown paper on the package to reveal a small wooden cigar box. Eagerly, he pulled open the lid, and discarded the Cubans sitting inside. Layered on the bottom of the box, neatly set in, was a clear bag full of diamonds. Janelle peered into the box over her brother's shoulder. "About 9 million dollars worth there… with the other shipments like this; it appears that our 27 million dollar price tag has been met." Janelle remarked. Her brother smiled as he sniffed one of the cigars, "I just love Colombians, don't you?" inquired her brother.

Back on the hill Mac watched the exchange through a pair of binoculars. "Well it looks like the party guests have all arrived, signal the officers, this goes down fast, and it goes down now. Janelle and her brother apparently have a knack for quick escapes." Taggart got on the radio to the officers. "Ok this is a go, Mac and I will lead. Keep the lights and sirens off until you see us light ours up. We want the element of surprise on this one guys." As if someone shot a starter pistol and yelled go, the officers raced for their cars eager for the action.

In the warehouse men of all nationalities were busy loading boxes full of heroin on to a truck that would be carrying it to a boat waiting outside at the docks. Along the wall sat barrels of ether used to cut codeine into heroin. Janelle followed her brother over to a sports car that was sitting quietly in the back of the warehouse. "Like it? I just had it shipped over from Italy this morning," he said as he caressed the hood of red car.

"I figure this way if we get busted we'll be in Maheco before they can catch up." He joked Janelle just rolled her eyes.

"You know that's just an excuse for buying a new and expensive toy. And did I say lately I hate when you try to fake a Mexican accent you're not good at it. That was a nice clean job you did on Pete…He wouldn't have had to meet his maker if Baldwin's stupid kid wouldn't have gotten mixed up those boys, but Pete did his job, he created the diversion that we needed. Besides, no one in this backwards little town is smart enough to link us to this, we won't get…"

The two siblings were interrupted by the sounds of police sirens surrounding the warehouse. The workers brandished their guns in a futile attempt to ward off the officers that stormed the warehouse. One by one, the workers dropped their weapons not wanting to engage in a gun fight they knew that they couldn't win.

Suddenly the warehouse echoed with the sound of the sports car firing up. Janelle's brother turned to see his sister tear out of the back of the warehouse in his new car, without him. Looking back he saw the warehouse full of cops. Mac and Taggart stood in the middle of the warehouse and watched the sports car flee the building. Both pulled their guns, but it was too late, the car was gone before they could pull a bead on it.

"Get someone after her; she's not getting away this time!" Mac yelled franticly. Taggart, who was watching his commander, noticed a metallic reflection off of Mac's forehead. He spun on his heels, as time seemed to slow to a crawl; Taggart drew his weapon on Janelle's brother who was now pointing a nice shiny 9 mm at Mac's head. Taggart was able to get off two shots; the first streaked past grazing the "would be" gun man in the cheek. The second hit cleanly in the man's throat. In a third and final shot, the 9mm went widely off aim as the man fell to the ground with only a low wet gurgle emanating from his bullet pierced windpipe. The bullet from the 9mm hit a barrel of ether, causing sparks to fly into the flammable liquid. Instantly the barrel exploded into a ball of flames knocking Mac and Taggart to the ground. "Get out! This place is going to blow!!" the two men yelled in unison as they recovered from the blast and started to run out of the building themselves leaving Janelle's brother's body to its fiery fate.

The red sports car pulled up to the hill overlooking the warehouse that just moments ago was a hive of activity with cops watching the same building. As the warm red glow of the fire rose up through the foggy night air, Janelle just stood there watching her life go down in flames.

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At the firehouse, Scott, Karen, and Serena sat at the dining room table. The two girls couldn't help but to laugh at Scott as he shook paprika all over the spaghetti that he had placed on his plate. As he looked up from his plate, he shot a smirk at both Karen and Serena, "that's enough out of you two. You two have this nasty habit of ganging up on me." He smiled to himself because he knew that he loved every minute if it.

"Well, Dad" Serena said taking another bite of her buttered noodles, "the only thing that you have ever wanted was for Karen and I to have a strong bond with each other."

Scott shook his head and chuckled "you've got me there, kiddo. So Karen," he said changing the subject, "have you heard from Chris? How is his conference going?"

"He called last night. He said the conference is going well. He misses being home…but he only has two more weeks."

Scott recognized the look in Karen's eyes. He knew that she missed Chris and really needed him to be there for her and Nikki. He gave her a gentle smile and patted her hand, "he'll be home before you know it, honey."

Karen nodded and gave a small a smile. "So, what's the story with Janelle? Have you two gotten any closer?" she asked changing the subject with a sly grin and winking.

"Yeah dad, should Karen and I be gearing up for a new stepmother?" Serena chimed in.

"There you two go again…no, we are just two adults who enjoy each other's company."

"Yeah, right…" Serena and Karen said together sarcastically as they exchanged a look.

Scott's smile faded as he began to think more about Janelle. He couldn't shake the feeling that she might be in some kind of danger. He looked back down at his plate and began to twirl his fork in his spaghetti.

"Is something bothering you, dad?" Karen asked when she noticed his sudden mood change.

"No, not really….it's more of a feeling that I have. I can't help but to feel that Janelle might be heading for some kind of trouble or danger."

"Why do you say that?"

"It's just a feeling that I have…I mean…why didn't she know before today that her brother was going to be in town tonight?"

"Maybe it was a last minute trip…" Karen tried to reason out with her father.

"Yeah, maybe…but I smell a rat…I think there is more to this flight to Chicago that…" Scott replied but was interrupted by the sound of the front door slamming. They all turned to see Janelle coming through the door pulling a gun out her purse and waving at the group.

"Rat's home…" Serena announced quickly moving behind her father and her sister.

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Mac stood outside the burning warehouse as a set of headlights roll up to the scene, in the background the flashing lights and blares of the fire engine sirens could be heard in the distance. Rhonda stepped out of the car, and approached the commissioner. "So, it was Janelle, wasn't it?"

Mac nodded his answer as he continued to write notes in a pocket notebook, and a smile grew across Rhonda's face. "I knew she couldn't be trusted. At least now she'll be put away for a long time, so she can't hurt anyone else."

Mac turned to face his informant. "The information you gave us was good, but she had an escape plan."

Rhonda's smile quickly fell into a frown "You mean she got away! How?!" Rhonda struggled to comprehend how she could escape from a raid consisting of a majority of Port Charles's finest.

Mac put a hand on Rhonda's shoulder "I know you're worried about Scott, and the girls. I have an APB out for her, but the car she drove off in was an Italian sports car. We couldn't catch her even if we did know where she was headed. Our best bet is to just wait until she stops…" Mac's thought was interrupted by a ringing in Rhonda's handbag. Reaching in, she found her cell phone and answered it. Rhonda pulled the phone from her ear and handed it to Mac, "I know where she is."

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"Janelle, what the hell are you doing?" Scott asked backing away from her but remaining in front of his daughters.

"Oh look, the gang's all here well except for the little princess in the hospital," Janelle said ignoring Scott. "Things didn't go exactly as planned tonight and now I need some insurance. And that is exactly what you and your pain in the ass kids are going to give me."

"I'll help you in any way that I can…just leave my girls out of this…" he began to plead with Janelle.

"Shut up you idiot. These two spoiled brats are the reason that I'm in this mess."

"How dare you…" Karen yelled at Janelle trying to move toward her. Scott grabbed Karen's arm and pushed her behind him again.

"Karen, calm down…don't instigate anything here…" he said trying to keep things as composed as possible.

"Yeah, Karen, listen to daddy," She said aiming the gun at Scott. "You know, Baldwin, you really need to keep better tabs on your kids. Unfortunately they both take after you and have a knack for falling into the wrong crowd. Things were going so good for me, and those two boys were creating the perfect decoy…Until they passed it to the wrong person. If that girl wouldn't have driven the car that night, you never would have made it your personal mission to find justice."

"You're where the boys got the marijuana?" Karen asked in shock.

"Oh honey…come on…the weed was small potatoes. It was just enough to send the department on a wide goose chase."

"Your stupid drug ring almost cost me and my baby our lives," Karen yelled unable to contain her anger. Scott turned toward Karen just enough to put his arms around her and still keep an eye on Janelle. "You need to calm down, Karen," he said "going off like that is just going to make matters worse." Karen looked deep into his eyes, she let go of her anger just enough to let a single tear roll down her cheek. As he looked at Karen, Scott pulled all of his courage together and took Karen and Serena's hands in his as he turned toward Janelle.

"If it's insurance that you want then fine…take me, leave my daughters alone. I can get you what you need," he tried to bargain with her.

"You think you have me figured out don't you, Baldwin? I'm sure you thought that you were the one that I was after the whole time…wow…that's quite an ego you have. But actually, your not the bargaining chip that I need right now…she is," Janelle said waving the gun in Karen's direction. "And right now, I have a sniper out there with a high powered rifle zeroed in on your baby girl's head, so what do you say we cut the chit chat and you and the little one move over there next to those pipes going up the wall."

Scott saw the fear in Karen's eyes but knew the best thing to do was listen to Janelle. He took Serena by the hand and moved her over to wall like Janelle ordered. Janelle followed them while pulling two pairs of handcuffs out of her purse and cuffing them to the pipes. "There …should hold you for now."

Scott continued to plead with Janelle for his daughter's life. "Come on, Janelle…Karen can't do anything for you, I'm the DA, I can get you whatever you want. Please just leave Karen out of this."

"See now, that's where you're wrong counselor, I'm sure you know by now that Sonny Corinthos has a soft spot for the princess here, and he would do just about anything for her. Well that is what I need. Isn't that right, Kari?" Janelle said grabbing Karen by the back of the neck and pulling her toward the door. She tried to fight Janelle off like Jagger had taught her years ago, but she was still very sore from her surgery and each thrust that she tried to make just brought on more pain. Instead all she could get out was a small cry for help to her father.

Hearing her call out to him was more than he could take. He began to think about many times that she must have called out for him when she was younger only for him to not be there for her. He turned and began to kick the pipes as hard as he could; hoping that adrenaline and anger would be enough to break the pipes and free him and Serena.

Janelle ignored the struggling pair and forced Karen out of the door at gun point using her as a human shield. No sooner than Janelle and Karen stepped onto the porch, four police cruisers storm up to the firehouse. Turning to find another escape route, Janelle spotted three more cars sent to cover the back. Mac stepped out of one of the cruisers with his gun drawn, as the other officers took positions behind their car's doors. "Drop your weapon Janelle, we have you surrounded, don't be another statistic like your brother." Mac ordered.

Janelle peered at the commissioner not quite sure she that she understood what he is saying "Roberto, he's…"

Mac nodded "He pulled a gun on me, we had no choice." Janelle had figured that if she escaped she could break him out, or have her lawyers get him off on a technicality. She never though he'd end up like this. Enraged Janelle pulled up on Karen, if this town took her brother she was going to take something from it.

Cries of 'drop it' echoed throughout the neighborhood as the various officers yelled commands at Janelle. Just as Janelle was ready to pull the trigger, Rhonda burst forward from the sideline and knocked Karen to the ground taking the bullet, which was meant for her only daughter, squarely in her own shoulder. Mac fired a single shot that hit Janelle in the knee. She dropped to the ground, as Taggart and a group of officers rush in and pinned her down. Other officers rushed forward, as if on some unheard command, to rush Karen and Rhonda to safety.

Among the frantic yells outside, one coming from inside the firehouse could be heard. "Could someone spare a handcuff key, and get us off these blasted pipes!" Mac directed an officer to go and release Scott and Serena. Once released, the two came rushing out of the firehouse franticly, knowing only that they had heard two gun shots. "Would someone explain to me what's going on! Where is my daughter?" Scott commanded.

Scott stopped dead in his tracks and stared down at the now handcuffed Janelle. "Why don't you ask Janelle Marchero, AKA Janelle Alcazar." Mac answered "Alcazar!"

Scott questioned overcome by shock.

Mac pulled out of his pocket the neatly folded paper that Taggart had given him earlier. "Roberto and Janelle Alcazar…cousins to Lorenzo and Luis Alcazar." Scott simply looked down at Janelle who was being hoisted up by the officers as one hastily bandaged her leg in preparation for the EMTs to arrive.

Turning back to Mac, "How did you know that she'd come back here?" Scott inquired. "Ask her." Mac answered pointing past Scott's shoulder to his youngest, who was still standing in the door way. Coyly Serena smiled, as she pulled her cell phone out of her pocket with the attached headpiece still draped around her neck, "Rhonda made me promise to put her on speed dial."

Scott turned back to look at Rhonda and Karen, who were both being bandaged by the EMTs. He put his head down as a big smile painted his face. He walked over to Serena and pulled her into a tight hug, "That's my girl…" he said putting his arm around her and walking toward Karen and Rhonda, who were both sitting on the bumper of the ambulance. Scott leaned over and kissed Karen on the top of her head, "You okay, honey?"

"I'm fine," she said as tears stained her cheeks from the stress of the situation.

Scott looked at Rhonda glancing at her arm now in a sling, "One of these days, Rhonda…I'm going to learn to listen to you." He gave her a gentle hug as Serena sat down on the bumper next to Karen and laid her head on her shoulder. Karen put her arm around Serena's lower back and tilted her head to Serena's and whispered, "thanks, sis."