**A/N – Back from vacation and anxious to be back writing again. It was really nice to come back from having no computer to such wonderful reviews of this story and my other story. It made me sit down and write immediately – even after 8 hours in a car. So, I hope you enjoy this piece as much as I enjoyed writing it!! **
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"Why are you doing this Sonny?" Carly asked. Sonny turned to look at her.
"Carly, you pride yourself on being an intelligent woman. You know why I'm doing this," he said, stepping up to her. Carly tried to step back from him, but was blocked by the two guards holding her.
"I know why you are doing this," Carly admitted, her eyes roaming over her husband's face. "It's both business and personal – I understand that. I understand how you work. But why do this? This isn't going to make anything go away. What is the killing of both of us going to accomplish?" Sonny reached out and ran a finger over her cheek.
"Who said both of you was going to die?" he asked before walking past her to the door, leaving a lot of things unsaid. Carly's eyes met Lorenzo's as the door shut behind Sonny, each pair filled with worry for the other. A guard reached out and took Carly's arm.
"Come, Mrs. Corinthos. We have a place for you," he said as Carly pulled from his grip.
"I don't think so," she said. The guard looked perplexed.
"Don't make me carry you, Mrs. Corinthos," he said. Carly smirked.
"Try it and I'll make you sorry you even tried. So, you'll either have to carry me - which I suggest you don't - shoot me, or get the hell out of here. Take your pick," she said as she subtly placed herself in front of Lorenzo so they couldn't shoot him for her lack of cooperation. Carly knew full well that they *wouldn't* shoot her. Sonny still needed her to inflict this 'torture' upon Lorenzo that he spoke of earlier. But that didn't mean they wouldn't hurt Lorenzo. The guard certainly *could* shoot her – but not without consequences. Carly could see those same thoughts echoed on the guard's face. After a second, the guard shrugged his shoulders, nodded to the guards holding Lorenzo, and they all exited. Carly let out a relieved breath as she watched the door close. When they were alone, Carly rushed to Lorenzo and immediately untied his hands. Her eyes avoided his as she took his arm and helped him to sit, propped up by the wall. When she finally looked up to see his blue eyes watching her, her eyes filled with tears. Lorenzo smiled crookedly as he reached up and wiped one of the tears from the corner of her eye with his thumb.
"You know, with your husband, all the hospital visits and the tendencies of being held captive, I think we're the front runner in the 'Most Bizarre Courtship in History' category," he said softly, his voice slightly hoarse. Carly's eyes closed as his hand ran lightly down her cheek.
"Is that what this is? A courtship?" she asked, her breath catching in her throat. Her eyes opened and locked on his.
"I surmise the word is irrelevant at this point, considering I've surpassed it awhile ago," he said seriously. Carly's heart thudded in her ears as she smiled at him. Her own hand reached up and ran along his jaw line tenderly, avoiding bruises.
"I almost lost hope," she admitted to him as he pulled her to kneeling beside him. His eyes watched her with understanding. "I didn't know what to do. Jason kept calling and he couldn't tell me anything."
"What has Morgan got to do with anything?" Lorenzo asked, trying to hide the suspicion in his voice. Carly shook her head.
"It's not what you think. Jason – he was trying to find you. I asked him to find you," she said, her eyes dropping. Lorenzo reached out and lifted her chin so she was looking at him.
"In return for what, Carly?" he asked softly. Carly's silence told him everything he needed to know. The suspicion became stronger.
"He's Sonny's best friend. And he certainly wasn't trying as hard as he could, now was he?" Lorenzo said, dropping his hand from her chin and looking away from her. Carly's eyes narrowed in thought.
"Jason's my best friend, too. And what do you mean by not 'trying as hard as he could'?" she asked. Lorenzo looked at her.
"Carly, we're still in Port Charles," he said. Carly's mouth dropped open in surprise.
"What?" she asked. Lorenzo nodded.
"They drugged you. You don't know how long you were out for. I heard the guards talking a week ago. Add that to the fact that your husband kept making frequent visits and I figured it out. He couldn't go far from Port Charles for as many trips as he made to see me without causing red flags to go up," he said. Carly shifted to sit down, trying to piece everything together.
"All this time – here in Port Chuck," she said as she unconsciously rubbed a hand over her still-thinning belly. "Do you know where?" Lorenzo's eyes scanned the room they were in.
"Chances are this is one of my buildings," he said. Carly nodded sadly.
"Jason has spent all of this time looking out of country for you. And you were here. The hardest things to find are found in the simplest places," she muttered, causing Lorenzo to smile. He held his suspicions about Jason at bay knowing that it would upset Carly – and he didn't want to upset her, not since she was sitting in front of him. He reached and took one of Carly's hands in his.
"You know the guards are going to come back in here and take you," he said. Carly nodded.
"I know," she said with a small smile. She leaned in quickly, surprising Lorenzo with a soft kiss. Her lips ran gently over his, careful not to hurt him. Carly shifted closer to him as he returned her caress, but she did not relinquish command. She knew his lips and his face hurt from the multiple beatings and she wasn't about to let him pretend it didn't – even for a kiss. The thought pulled Carly back. Lorenzo leaned his head back against the wall, not a bit disappointed, with a smile on his face.
"That was better than my dreams," he said. Carly raised her eyebrow.
"Oh really?" she asked, a teasing smile on her face. Lorenzo chuckled as he reached out and pushed a strand of her hair behind her ear.
"They weren't real. This is," he explained. Carly's smile slipped as she looked around the room.
"This certainly is real," she said. Lorenzo looked around the room as well.
"I could definitely imagine something better than this," he said. Carly smiled again as she looked at him.
"I'm sure you could," she said before looking around again. "I could certainly go for something without cement walls for the rest of my life." Lorenzo watched her and he could see the wheels spinning in her head.
"Carly," he said seriously, causing her to look at him. "When those guards come back in here -"
"Don't worry," she said as she laid a finger over his lips. "I won't do anything stupid." Lorenzo shook his head.
"Carly, I don't worry about you doing anything stupid. You are intelligent, resourceful, determined, and incredibly brave. Anything that you do has a reason. I just don't want you to do anything that you or I will regret later," he said. Carly frowned.
"What would you regret? What would I possibly do?" she asked. Lorenzo was silent for a second.
"Carly -" he started, hesitating for a second. "If you got killed or harmed in any way, I would regret coming to Port Charles … and meeting you." Carly sucked in her breath.
"Why would you regret something that I decided to do?" she asked. Lorenzo smiled.
"Because I got you into this situation to begin with," he said. Carly shook her head.
"I would never -" she started.
"- stand in front of a man, telling a captor with a gun to leave or to shoot?" Lorenzo supplied. Carly gave him a look.
"I knew the outcome of that before I even said anything," she said. Lorenzo was silent.
"Carly, Sonny doesn't plan on the both of us walking out of here," he said. Carly just watched him. "I would prefer that you be the one to do so."
"Well, isn't that funny," she said. "I prefer it to be both of us walking out of here." Lorenzo shook his head.
"It may not happen, Carly," he said. Carly rolled her eyes.
"Have a little faith in Jason – and me – and you for that matter," she said, poking a finger into his shoulder. She winced in apology as he let out a soft hiss of pain when she hit a bruised area. Silence fell again as the two were plagued by their thoughts.
"Carly," he said, causing Carly to look at him. "I know that you made a deal with Jason." Carly looked down at her hands.
"I wanted him to find you," she said unapologetically.
"I know that you agreed to stay with Sonny if he found me," he said. Carly was silent as she tried to piece together the words to deny it to him – and herself. Lorenzo smiled as he took her hand.
"I know how your mind works, Carly. I spent enough time alone to figure some things out - like who you trust, whom you would go to and what types of bargaining chips there would be," he said. Carly didn't feel ashamed at what she had promised to Jason, but she felt sad. Not just sad for her, not just sad for Lorenzo. She was sad for everyone involved because there was no easy way out of this – if they got out of this. With a sigh, she sat against the wall next to Lorenzo. Looping an arm through his carefully and entwining their fingers, she rest her head lightly against his shoulder.
"I should tell you about the time I stuck my ex-husband AJ Quartermaine in a laundry cart – or even about the time I sold Sonny out to the Feds -" she said, changing the subject and causing the man next to her to chuckle.
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Jason walked into Luke's, his mission clear in his mind. The bar was empty except for the white-haired bartender behind the counter.
"Well, Morgan – to what do I owe the pleasure of your exalted company?" Luke asked, not looking up from wiping the glass in his hand. Jason pulled a stool away from the bar and sat down.
"I told you over the phone, Luke. I need your help," he said. Luke rolled his eyes.
"What's my niece done this time?" he asked.
"What makes you think it's Carly?" Jason asked. Luke laughed.
"Process of elimination, my friend. There are only five people on this planet that you would risk life and limb for – or lower yourself to calling me. Your sister has her new husband to do her dirty work, Courtney's dirty work has recently been taken care of, Sonny can – more or less – take care of his own dirty work, and Michael is too young to have any dirty work. That leaves my darling niece. Her dirty work attracts problems like flies to honey. So, what's this about?" Luke asked as he leaned an elbow on the counter. Jason sighed.
"Lorenzo Alcazar," he said. Luke stood up quickly and looked at Jason disbelievingly.
"That's Carly's dirty work?" he asked nonplussed. Jason just looked at the man.
"Lorenzo Alcazar went missing almost three months ago. I have searched for any possible lead on his whereabouts from South America to Europe. No one knows anything. I can only assume that he is still in the States," Jason said. Luke looked interested, but was looking warily at the man sitting in front of him.
"Did you know that he was going to 'disappear'?" he asked. Jason looked confused.
"No, why?" he asked. Luke shrugged as he picked up the towel he had discarded.
"I heard some things," he said evasively. Jason leaned over the bar.
"Luke, that is why I came to you. I know that you hear things – you hear things that I couldn't possibly hear. And if you know something, let me know it, please," he said. Luke looked at his fingernails.
"Tell me what Caroline has to do with this," he said. Jason took his time before answering.
"Because Carly went missing too," he said. When Jason looked up, Luke's eyes were blazing.
"Goddamn it!" he yelled, pounding his fist on the bar and then storming off to his office. Jason, confused, followed him. When he found his way into the room, he saw Luke shuffling through papers on his desk.
"Luke -" he started but was cut off when the man threw a file folder to the edge of the desk where Jason stood.
"That's everything I have on Alcazar. I heard some rumblings of what the man was involved in when he first came to town. So, I found myself doing some digging. Lorenzo Alcazar has gotten himself involved with some high rollers and made himself some dangerous enemies – your associate being one of them," Luke started to explain. Jason nodded.
"That's the business," he said. Luke nodded.
"It sure is. Anyways, after the man came to town and caused quite a ruckus, it came to my ears that Corinthos was calling a hit," he said. Jason nodded.
"Yeah, he and I were discussing it. The only question we had was when I should do it," he said. Luke shook his head.
"I don't think so, boyo. You weren't even a part of this equation. This was between Corinthos and whoever he partnered up with – and it wasn't you," Luke said. Jason's shock was written on his face.
"Who?" he asked. Luke shrugged his shoulders.
"Don't know. Haven't gotten that information back yet," he said. Jason nodded.
"When you do, will you let me know?" Luke looked to think about it.
"Sure, kid," he affirmed. Jason nodded, thinking this new information through. Who would Sonny partner up with? He turned back to Luke.
"Why are you giving me all of this information? You couldn't care less about Sonny, Alcazar – or even Carly," Jason said. Luke smirked.
"Honestly, I still don't see how Carly fits into this mess except that Alcazar stepped on Sonny's toes about her. But – I see Alcazar as a mighty powerful ally," Luke said.
"How?" Jason asked, crossing his arms. Luke laughed joyfully.
"Well – let's just say he has Luke Spencer's public enemy #1 in his debt for millions," Luke said. It took Jason a split second to connect the dots.
"Stefan Cassidine owes Lorenzo Alcazar millions?" he asked, incredulous.
"You bet your mobster kiester," Luke said with a grin. Jason shook his head.
"Never saw that coming," he commented, causing Luke to laugh again.
"The way I see it at this point, if I take care of Lorenzo Alcazar – Lorenzo Alcazar will take care of me," Luke said. "With his help, I could finally get the proverbial Cassidine stone off of my back."
"One less thing for you to worry about," Jason agreed, knowing that an end to the Spencer/Cassidine war would be both a blessing and a curse to the man standing in front of him. Luke nodded as he looked at Jason.
"So, are you going to tell me how Carly is connected to this hoopla?" Luke asked, anxious to hear the gossip. Never let it be said that Luke Spencer didn't like the occasional juicy story. Jason rolled his eyes.
"Sure you want to hear it?" he asked. Luke nodded a few times as he poured himself a shot.
"Sure – and don't sugar-coat it," he said. Jason took a breath.
"Well – you know that Lorenzo Alcazar kidnapped Carly from Ric Lansing. In the time that he had her, he fell in love with her. After Sonny and I got her home, he kept pursuing her – sending her flowers, gifts, other things. In the time between Alcazar taking Carly and Carly's baby being born, she fell in love with him. Sonny figured things out and, according to Carly, things between them have rivaled the Cold War. When Alcazar went missing, Carly came to me, begging me to find him – in exchange for her staying with Sonny," Jason told the older man. There was silence as Luke processed the information. His eyes were wide and he stood bracing himself on the desk. In one fluid motion, he scooped up his previously untouched shot of tequila and quickly downed it.
"Shiiiiiiit," he muttered. Jason didn't know if it was the alcohol or the new information that had him so worked up. Finally, Luke looked at him. "You realize that Sonny is behind this, right? At least in part?" Jason nodded.
"I realize that. It took me longer that it probably should have, but I do realize that. It was Paul Riley that I heard taking Carly when she called me," he said. Luke recognized the name of a long-time Corinthos guard and nodded. Silence fell again as the two men thought over things.
"You realize that if Sonny kills Alcazar, we could have an out and out mob war on our hands if Alcazar's associates figure it out, right?" Luke asked. Jason eyed the folder on the table.
"I don't need those papers to know who Alcazar's allies are. I spent the last month and a half talking to them or hearing about them. He's got four territories backing him from South America and I lost count in Europe. And if he's a Cassidine creditor, he's got territory in Russia as well. That's why I need to find Alcazar, and I need to find him alive. And chances are, if I find Alcazar, I'll find Carly as well," Jason said. Luke nodded.
"If I find out anything about who Sonny's partner is or where they may be holding them, I'll let you know as soon as I can," Luke said. Jason nodded as he bent over and picked up the bulging manila envelope.
"Good. Mind if I take this?" he asked, indicating the papers. Luke waved him away.
"Go ahead. Mi casa es su casa and all that jazz," he said. Jason nodded before exiting the office and finding his way out of the bar. Hopefully, there would be a clue in the pile of papers he was holding as to what exactly was going on.
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**A/N – Do you like? As of now, I'm not sure exactly where this story is going – but I'm liking it. The last part (ten) was a cliffhanger for me as well as for you. Now, I have a little more idea as to what I want – but my fingers, my subconscious and the keyboard now have total control. As much as I'm making Sonny out to be an a**hole in this story, I DO really like him. So, this prompts a question – do you want to see Sonny redeemed in the end? I already have an answer in mind (and it may not be what you think), but your responses MAY be able to change my mind. So, let me know! : ) **