Notes: No New Reviews, so we shall just go straight into the story.
Story-
Kelly's, the next morning-
Ric, on his way to the office, instead decided to take a small detour into the restaurant. It wasn't that the food was the best, or that it had a certain ambiance. His reason for stepping in was always the same, Elizabeth. The woman he loved had spent most of her time since they had their unfortunate falling out working there in order to support her art career. It still made Ric sad when he thought about the fact that she was wasting her time, her beautiful hands that could craft masterful pieces of art that would touch so many people, and instead using them to serve people and clean up after them. She deserved more, and he could provide it. If only she would let him. Sadly, Elizabeth had flourished in her independence, and actually enjoyed her job. He suspected that it had something to do with that newly emerged nephew of his. For some reason, which was far beyond his ability to comprehend, Elizabeth and Damian had forged a fast friendship. It actually wasn't that hard to understand. Elizabeth was kind and compassionate and would want to be just about anyone's friend. She obviously saw how desperate the boy was for a friend, any friend, and took pity upon him. How else would she justify befriending a Corinthos, or even a Corinthos by blood if not name?
Elizabeth saw that Ric was standing there, obviously thinking about something. "Ric?" She asked, trying to get his attention. He looked at her, but it was obvious he wasn't there with her. Instead he appeared to be lost to her like he was when he was often plotting something against Sonny and Jason or one of the other people that he felt deserved to pay for some reason that had caused him suffering. She frowned, she really did not like it when he got like that. "Ric!" She exclaimed, not yelling at him, but making it a point that her voice was loud enough to get his attention.
It worked, Ric snapped back into the reality that he was in and smiled at Elizabeth, "I'm sorry, I was thinking about something."
"I can see that," Elizabeth replied blankly.
"I'm sorry, Elizabeth," Ric apologized again. "I was just thinking about why you were so nice to everyone."
"People respond a lot better to you when you're nice to them than when you're being malicious, Ric. I respond better to you when you're being the Ric that I love rather than the Ric that I feel so much disappointment and hatred for." Elizabeth looked into his soul, "I can see that you're acting more like the second Ric than the first. Why?"
"Elizabeth, I love you, and I want to keep you safe. At times, I have been the one that has put you in the way of danger, but that is all behind me now. I wish only to protect you from being hurt again like you were when you lost our child."
"What are you getting at?"
"You know what it's like to be around people that are involved in Sonny's operations. You were in love with Jason for god only knows how long. It cost you, didn't it? It hurt you a lot, and I don't want to see you get hurt again." Ric sighed, "With that in mind, I don't see why you're so adamant about being friends with Damian."
"Damian's a good kid, Ric," Elizabeth defended him. "I realize that he's Sonny's child, and I know the risks that come with that, but so does he. In fact, I guess I'm trying to help him in a way that no one could ever help me. I know what it's like to love someone that you can't be around because you're constantly in fear of something happening to them or to you. I've been hurt by it, and I don't want anyone else feeling the pain that I felt. He's a smart kid, I know he is, but he doesn't have much experience in life, and if I can help him with that I will." Elizabeth sat on the stool, "Besides, you don't need to worry about him being hurt for awhile, he went back to Los Angeles for the weekend."
Ric's jaw almost dropped, "Los Angeles?"
"His family lives there, he wanted to visit them. I'm happy that he's taking the time to get away from everything that's been causing him problems in Port Charles lately. The breather should help him."
Ric thought back to seeing Faith and Zander talk on the docks the night before. They were going to California, that much he knew for sure. He was a lawyer, he knew how to piece together pieces of a puzzle. It didn't take a brain surgeon to know that she was planning something. "Do you care about him?" Ric asked.
"He's my friend, of course I care about him."
"And you'd want to protect him if you knew that something bad was going to happen, wouldn't you?"
"Yes, Ric," Elizabeth sighed. "That's what friends do, they look out for each other and keep them safe."
"He's in trouble, Elizabeth," Ric said.
"What kind of trouble could he be in? He's going back home."
"Faith is going after him," Ric informed her. "I saw her and Zander talking on the docks last night, they said they were taking a trip to California. I don't know for sure that they're going after him, but it's a pretty damned good guess."
"You've got to do something!" Elizabeth pleaded. "You're the ADA!"
"Elizabeth, I don't have any power outside of Port Charles, and it sure as hell doesn't stretch to the other side of the country!"
"I won't let him get hurt, Ric!" Elizabeth was nervous now, extremely nervous. She knew what a sick person Faith was, and how she would do anything to get what she wanted.
"Neither will I, not if he means so much to you," Ric exited Kelly's at a fast pace.
Elizabeth looked behind her to a fellow worker, "Cover for me, please." When the girl nodded at her, Elizabeth grabbed her coat and followed after him.
Elsewhere-
Faith smiled as she saw Maxie bound and gagged. She ran a finger up Maxie's cheek, "You know, despite the fact that you're Scorpio's daughter I never put much worth into you as a part of this little game that we play. It's a miracle how much can change when you start falling in love with powerful people's sons. Now you're worth more to me than you ever could be if you were just Mac's kid. Don't try and struggle, dear, those binds were fastened by myself. Believe me when I say that I know my way around tying people up to things." Faith walked away, "I'm sure daddy's just so worried about you, he's probably got all his best people looking for you. Of course, most of the PCPD are incompetent fools who couldn't find an elephant in a port-a-potty, but that isn't for me to really be the judge of, is it?"
Zander walked in and looked at Maxie. He still felt pained that he had to do that to her, but he didn't have a choice. "We're flying over California now, Faith."
Faith smiled, "Maybe, after I take over Sonny's territory, I'll go to Disneyland to celebrate. Sure, traditionally you're supposed to go to Disneyworld, but I don't feel like flying to the other end of the country again. Watch after her while I look around."
Zander gave a shallow nod, "Of course." With Faith gone, Zander undid the gag around Maxie's mouth, "I really am sorry about this."
"If you were, you wouldn't have done this," Maxie said, disgusted. "You lied to me just to get me here, and now you're going to use me and Damian in something that neither of us are involved in."
Zander sighed, "You're wrong, Maxie, and you don't realize just how wrong you are. Whenever you take even the smallest step into the life there is no way to get out. Damian should have never come to Port Charles and you should have never started hanging around with him. Now that you have there is nothing but pain in both of your futures. You fell in love with the worst possible person that you could have, Maxie. I don't know what to tell you other than you should have picked someone else."
"I won't stop loving him!" Maxie sneered.
"Then I can't help you."
Maxie cried a little, "I'm going to die, aren't I? We're both going to die."
Zander touched her shoulder, softly, "I won't let anyone kill you, Maxie. I feel bad enough dragging you into this, I won't let them end your life. You've helped me too many times, I owe you that much."
"I don't want him to die, Zander!" Maxie wept some more. "Even if it costs me my life, I don't care, I just want Damian safe."
"You love him so much that you would throw away your own life for someone that you don't even know?" Zander wondered.
"I don't know him very well, but I know that he is the best person that I can be with, and there is nothing that anyone can tell me that will stop me. Didn't you feel this way about Emily when you first met? The way that everyone was trying to keep you two apart, but you knew that you cared for her so much. Wouldn't you throw your own life into the fire, just to protect her? Even now?"
Zander laughed, "There was a time that I would have believed you, Maxie. There was a time that I believed in true love. Some idea that people could end up fighting against anything in order to be together. But that part of me is dead, and you know what killed it? Emily fell in love with someone else under the pretense that she did it in order to protect me from seeing her die. She married me because she felt she was going to die, that's the only reason she did those things. I thought we could be happy, but I was kidding myself. I should have known that she wouldn't end up in my arms at the end."
"Maybe she wasn't right for you," Maxie said.
"She was, Maxie! I know it, and she knows it. She's just too blind to see past Nikolas!" Zander started to storm off, but he turned around and gagged Maxie again, "You have my word that nothing will happen to you, but I will not extend that promise to your boyfriend. I don't owe him anything and I know that if you keep seeing him you're only going to die."
Maxie's tears became more intense as she thought of Zander's warning. She knew it wasn't true, she knew that they would find a way to survive.
48
Story-
Kelly's, the next morning-
Ric, on his way to the office, instead decided to take a small detour into the restaurant. It wasn't that the food was the best, or that it had a certain ambiance. His reason for stepping in was always the same, Elizabeth. The woman he loved had spent most of her time since they had their unfortunate falling out working there in order to support her art career. It still made Ric sad when he thought about the fact that she was wasting her time, her beautiful hands that could craft masterful pieces of art that would touch so many people, and instead using them to serve people and clean up after them. She deserved more, and he could provide it. If only she would let him. Sadly, Elizabeth had flourished in her independence, and actually enjoyed her job. He suspected that it had something to do with that newly emerged nephew of his. For some reason, which was far beyond his ability to comprehend, Elizabeth and Damian had forged a fast friendship. It actually wasn't that hard to understand. Elizabeth was kind and compassionate and would want to be just about anyone's friend. She obviously saw how desperate the boy was for a friend, any friend, and took pity upon him. How else would she justify befriending a Corinthos, or even a Corinthos by blood if not name?
Elizabeth saw that Ric was standing there, obviously thinking about something. "Ric?" She asked, trying to get his attention. He looked at her, but it was obvious he wasn't there with her. Instead he appeared to be lost to her like he was when he was often plotting something against Sonny and Jason or one of the other people that he felt deserved to pay for some reason that had caused him suffering. She frowned, she really did not like it when he got like that. "Ric!" She exclaimed, not yelling at him, but making it a point that her voice was loud enough to get his attention.
It worked, Ric snapped back into the reality that he was in and smiled at Elizabeth, "I'm sorry, I was thinking about something."
"I can see that," Elizabeth replied blankly.
"I'm sorry, Elizabeth," Ric apologized again. "I was just thinking about why you were so nice to everyone."
"People respond a lot better to you when you're nice to them than when you're being malicious, Ric. I respond better to you when you're being the Ric that I love rather than the Ric that I feel so much disappointment and hatred for." Elizabeth looked into his soul, "I can see that you're acting more like the second Ric than the first. Why?"
"Elizabeth, I love you, and I want to keep you safe. At times, I have been the one that has put you in the way of danger, but that is all behind me now. I wish only to protect you from being hurt again like you were when you lost our child."
"What are you getting at?"
"You know what it's like to be around people that are involved in Sonny's operations. You were in love with Jason for god only knows how long. It cost you, didn't it? It hurt you a lot, and I don't want to see you get hurt again." Ric sighed, "With that in mind, I don't see why you're so adamant about being friends with Damian."
"Damian's a good kid, Ric," Elizabeth defended him. "I realize that he's Sonny's child, and I know the risks that come with that, but so does he. In fact, I guess I'm trying to help him in a way that no one could ever help me. I know what it's like to love someone that you can't be around because you're constantly in fear of something happening to them or to you. I've been hurt by it, and I don't want anyone else feeling the pain that I felt. He's a smart kid, I know he is, but he doesn't have much experience in life, and if I can help him with that I will." Elizabeth sat on the stool, "Besides, you don't need to worry about him being hurt for awhile, he went back to Los Angeles for the weekend."
Ric's jaw almost dropped, "Los Angeles?"
"His family lives there, he wanted to visit them. I'm happy that he's taking the time to get away from everything that's been causing him problems in Port Charles lately. The breather should help him."
Ric thought back to seeing Faith and Zander talk on the docks the night before. They were going to California, that much he knew for sure. He was a lawyer, he knew how to piece together pieces of a puzzle. It didn't take a brain surgeon to know that she was planning something. "Do you care about him?" Ric asked.
"He's my friend, of course I care about him."
"And you'd want to protect him if you knew that something bad was going to happen, wouldn't you?"
"Yes, Ric," Elizabeth sighed. "That's what friends do, they look out for each other and keep them safe."
"He's in trouble, Elizabeth," Ric said.
"What kind of trouble could he be in? He's going back home."
"Faith is going after him," Ric informed her. "I saw her and Zander talking on the docks last night, they said they were taking a trip to California. I don't know for sure that they're going after him, but it's a pretty damned good guess."
"You've got to do something!" Elizabeth pleaded. "You're the ADA!"
"Elizabeth, I don't have any power outside of Port Charles, and it sure as hell doesn't stretch to the other side of the country!"
"I won't let him get hurt, Ric!" Elizabeth was nervous now, extremely nervous. She knew what a sick person Faith was, and how she would do anything to get what she wanted.
"Neither will I, not if he means so much to you," Ric exited Kelly's at a fast pace.
Elizabeth looked behind her to a fellow worker, "Cover for me, please." When the girl nodded at her, Elizabeth grabbed her coat and followed after him.
Elsewhere-
Faith smiled as she saw Maxie bound and gagged. She ran a finger up Maxie's cheek, "You know, despite the fact that you're Scorpio's daughter I never put much worth into you as a part of this little game that we play. It's a miracle how much can change when you start falling in love with powerful people's sons. Now you're worth more to me than you ever could be if you were just Mac's kid. Don't try and struggle, dear, those binds were fastened by myself. Believe me when I say that I know my way around tying people up to things." Faith walked away, "I'm sure daddy's just so worried about you, he's probably got all his best people looking for you. Of course, most of the PCPD are incompetent fools who couldn't find an elephant in a port-a-potty, but that isn't for me to really be the judge of, is it?"
Zander walked in and looked at Maxie. He still felt pained that he had to do that to her, but he didn't have a choice. "We're flying over California now, Faith."
Faith smiled, "Maybe, after I take over Sonny's territory, I'll go to Disneyland to celebrate. Sure, traditionally you're supposed to go to Disneyworld, but I don't feel like flying to the other end of the country again. Watch after her while I look around."
Zander gave a shallow nod, "Of course." With Faith gone, Zander undid the gag around Maxie's mouth, "I really am sorry about this."
"If you were, you wouldn't have done this," Maxie said, disgusted. "You lied to me just to get me here, and now you're going to use me and Damian in something that neither of us are involved in."
Zander sighed, "You're wrong, Maxie, and you don't realize just how wrong you are. Whenever you take even the smallest step into the life there is no way to get out. Damian should have never come to Port Charles and you should have never started hanging around with him. Now that you have there is nothing but pain in both of your futures. You fell in love with the worst possible person that you could have, Maxie. I don't know what to tell you other than you should have picked someone else."
"I won't stop loving him!" Maxie sneered.
"Then I can't help you."
Maxie cried a little, "I'm going to die, aren't I? We're both going to die."
Zander touched her shoulder, softly, "I won't let anyone kill you, Maxie. I feel bad enough dragging you into this, I won't let them end your life. You've helped me too many times, I owe you that much."
"I don't want him to die, Zander!" Maxie wept some more. "Even if it costs me my life, I don't care, I just want Damian safe."
"You love him so much that you would throw away your own life for someone that you don't even know?" Zander wondered.
"I don't know him very well, but I know that he is the best person that I can be with, and there is nothing that anyone can tell me that will stop me. Didn't you feel this way about Emily when you first met? The way that everyone was trying to keep you two apart, but you knew that you cared for her so much. Wouldn't you throw your own life into the fire, just to protect her? Even now?"
Zander laughed, "There was a time that I would have believed you, Maxie. There was a time that I believed in true love. Some idea that people could end up fighting against anything in order to be together. But that part of me is dead, and you know what killed it? Emily fell in love with someone else under the pretense that she did it in order to protect me from seeing her die. She married me because she felt she was going to die, that's the only reason she did those things. I thought we could be happy, but I was kidding myself. I should have known that she wouldn't end up in my arms at the end."
"Maybe she wasn't right for you," Maxie said.
"She was, Maxie! I know it, and she knows it. She's just too blind to see past Nikolas!" Zander started to storm off, but he turned around and gagged Maxie again, "You have my word that nothing will happen to you, but I will not extend that promise to your boyfriend. I don't owe him anything and I know that if you keep seeing him you're only going to die."
Maxie's tears became more intense as she thought of Zander's warning. She knew it wasn't true, she knew that they would find a way to survive.
48