~@~@ Complicated Ch. 8

I disclaim

~~~

" Benny's been checking every possible lead, and he still got nothing."

Sonny listened to Jason only partially as he stared out at the river. Someone was muscling in on his territory, shipments were being delayed, dealers were getting more brazen, and no one seemed to know anything. That was just the tip of the iceberg on a very bad month. Carly was in her ' Sonny doesn't love me' moods, where she was constantly questioning him and his actions, Alexis finally agreed to let him keep Kristian for the full weekend, but only if he could guarantee that Carly wasn't acting up which no one could ever do, and Mike wanted him to find out what was wrong with Courtney.

"Sonny, you listening?"

" Yeah, I'll call Luke, and have him look into it." Sonny turned and gazed at his friend intently, Jason had no influence with Alexis or Mike, and Carly was too far gone, to listen to him, but Courtney at least tolerated him, glad to be rid of at least one problem he grinned at the younger man. " Jase, I need a favor?"

" Sure, what's up?"

" I need you to find but what's wrong with Courtney, Mike says she getting distant, she hasn't call her mom in weeks." Jason tenses when he hears her name, but put on his mask, and prays for calm indifference." Could you stop by Kelley's and talk to her, see if she'll open up to you."

" Sonny I…"

"Well Well Well, if isn't Angerboy and Sonny Capone." Taggert stepped out of the shadows, and walked down the steps, until he was only a few feet from both of his enemies." Dec. Cates, I want you to meet heads of the Corinthos/Morgan Mafia…. oops I mean coffee warehouse."

Jason's eyes narrow as he sees the man Taggert is introducing, the same guy that he saw talking to Emily at the Kelly's the night she arrived. He hadn't paid enough attention that night to find out who the man was, but now that he had a name and a profession, he was certainly going to run a check on him.

" No need." Sonny took a step in Jagger's direction as he nodded his head. " Jagger and I are old friends, and I believe he and Jason when to school together."  

" Oh that's nice, so they'll have something to talk about while you and I have a conversation."

" Sure, why not, I'm in a giving mood." Turning he catches Jason eye, and motions for a moment alone with Taggert, before stepping away toward some piled up crates.

Jagger glanced toward Jason, and almost shivered. This guy was nothing like the Jason he had known years ago, that Jason would have attempted polite conversation, this one merely stared at him with annoyance or was it anger, he couldn't really tell. " You knew him?" Amazed that the he spoke, he raised an eyebrow at the question. " Quartermaine, you knew Jason Quartermaine?"

" We went to high school together, we weren't really friends or anything, in fact we kind of hated each other."

" You're Jagger." The last name sounded familiar, and now he remembered not the memory, but what Robin had told him. " Jagger Cates, the guy that married Jason's ex-girlfriend."

" Yeah Karen."

" But you're not with her anymore?"

" No we're divorced."

Jason nodded disturbed by the news." Stay away from my sister."

" Excuse me."

" You heard me, I saw you talking to her, and I don't want to see it again."

All confusion over what Morgan was thinking was cleared up quickly, because the blonde looked like he wanted Jagger's head. " I don't take order from you, or anyone on who I talk to."

" I'm only telling you once, to stay away from my sister."

" I don't care…" Jagger's rebuttal is cut off by the faint call of his name; he turned his head and could hear it clearly.

" CATES." " We're moving, come on." Taggert said as he moved quickly up the stair, not even checking to see if his partner was behind him.

" Jason, you okay?" Jason stared after Jagger, it was strange he already hated Cates, and somewhere deep inside him, he knew that part of it was because of Jason Quartermaine.

" Yeah, I'm going to go take care of that stuff."

" See ya."

~~~

Emily sat in the courtyard outside Kelley's sipping her coffee and reminiscing, if concentrated she could almost hear her friends laughter.

" Emily?"

She felt her self tense at the sound of the voice, but called on her breathing exercises to keep her calm, after all as one time Elizabeth Webber had been her best friend, and though she wasn't now, she saw no reason to show a weakness." Hello Elizabeth."

The chill in her voice was hard to miss, and Liz admittedly begrudgingly that it was justified. " I heard a rumor you were back in town."

" Well tell Amy, I said Hi." Picking up her paper she began absently skimming the headlines, trying to block out the woman standing in front of her.

" Em can we talk?"

Bending the paper slightly she caught the older women's eyes, reading them quickly, her ex friend felt guilt and remorse, but that wasn't really her problem. " We already are, this back and forth question answer thing is called small talk."

" Wow, you've changed, the Em I know wouldn't be this cold." It wasn't just her business clothes, which looked like nothing Emily ever owned it was an overall persona. Liz sat down across from her, pleading with her eyes for some recognition.

" The Em you know hadn't been exiled to the far reaches of earth cut off from family, and abandoned by friends or one friend specifically. "

" About Zan…."

" What the hell are you doing here?" Both women turned toward the door to Kelley's and visibly paled, Carly stood poised in the doorway seemingly ready to attack.

Emily dropped her paper and began searching her memory for any outstanding conflicts with her ex-sister-in-law, she and Carly were never friends, and at certain times of the year had a nice little truce going, but it was always hard to figure out when the truce was in effect, and when you were a moving target. Fortunately, she remembered that the last time they spoke they were allies, which meant the fury in the blondes' eyes was meant for Ms. Webber. " You should answer, the silence will only annoy her."

" Carly, not that it's your business, but Emily and I are talking."

Emily raised her eyebrows, she didn't really remember claiming to be an active participant in the conversation, and certainly didn't ant to draw Carly's fire.

"Strange it looks like Em's reading the paper." Carly moved from inside the doorway, and glared at her most hated enemy. " I thought I told you that I didn't want to see you around here again."

" Well Luke… you know him, he's the owner, he tells me I'm welcome anytime." Liz said as she took a step away from the table and thus closer to Carly.

" Please Luke's unbalanced, and only half owner, the other half owner, my mother doesn't want your bony two-faced ass back in here."

Emily watched in silence, the women were beginning to circle each other liked caged lions, and although it would be fun to watch she knows that being involved in a public fist fight her second day on the job would make her look bad." Ladies, and I use the term loosely, can we stop the bickering and just call a stalemate."

" You're right Em, I have gallery opening to prepare for." Turning away form from Carly's hateful glare, she meets her friends eyes." Can I call you?"

" Yeah my number is 555- yada yada blah blah." Liz gave a sigh of disappointment before walking off.

" Nice work Quartermaine, I didn't think you had it in you." It was time like this that Carly had to admit that she actually respected and even liked the youngest Quartermaine. She had been dealt some hard blows, but unlike her oldest siblings didn't drown her self in her past addiction, and instead fought back and let her past problems help strengthen her. " Of course you kicked her to the curb about five years too late, but it's nice that you could catch up with the rest of the class."

" Hello Carly, how are you?"

" I'm good, I hear you're practicing law, isn't that an oxymoron considering you're a Quartermaine."

" No you're thinking of if I was a Spencer, see the Quartermaines have no aversion to the law, we just like to improvise and make them our own."

" Riiight, well since you're no longer a Webber worshipper I guess you're an appropriate role model for your godson, so I guess if you stopped by the penthouse you could have some time with him." " As long as you remember the rules."

" Of course, see ya tomorrow?"

" Yeah." Carly walked out of the courtyard, stopping briefly to granting the woman a small smile." Welcome Home Emily."

" Thanks Carly."

~~~

" Hey Cowboy."

" Dad." Lucky sat down at the bar, and wondered how to start the conversation, he needed advice about Emily, and there was no one else better schooled in the Lucky/Emily history then Luke Spencer. " I was wondering…"

" I saw Little Darlin'." Luke grinned at the sight of his son speechless. " Didn't I tell you?"

" Tell me what?"

" Tell you that one day Emily Bowen Quartermaine, would leave the men of this town breathless, and it looks like her first victim was you." There was a certain pride to be right, and an even bigger one to call your son's soul mate and he did. The day he met Emily Bowen he had taken Laura aside and told her that one-day the girl was going to be his daughter-in-law. Even when Lucky was with Elizabeth, he had held out hope for Emily, she was stronger, and had proven early on that she could handle life as a Spencer. " Was it the business suit, cause I got to tell you it gave me heart palpitations."

" Could you not check out Emily, it gives me the creeps, and I don't need any more competition."

" Competition, Darlins' only been back 48 hours, how many hearts did she set afire?"  

" Who knows, counting the cop next door making eyes at her, and my brother, I have two so far."

" The Prince." Luke puts his glass down with a grimace; step-daughter-in-law wasn't nearly as appetizing as daughter-in-law. " I thought he was corrupting the model."

" They broke up."

" Well then you just have to brand the girl, don't you screw this up."

" What do you suggest, I've tried being subtle, but Em's just ignoring all my hints."

" That's your problem, Spencer's aren't subtle you're probably confusing the poor girl." Luke motions for his son to come closer. " What you need to do is be yourself, Darlin' can't be fooled by your tired lines and come ons, she's part Quartermaine she knows bull when she sees it. " " If you want to get Emily you need to be Lucky."   

~~~

I bet you guys want to know what happened when Sonny and Taggert talked, while keep guessing, because you won't find out for several chapters.

Also people having been trying to guess Emily's stalker, and I got to tell you it's not her father or and ex-boyfriend, but I'm a little surprised that no one guessed Helena Cassadine, (it's not her), but I'm still a little surprised.