Kevin had gone to PCPD to talk to Mac. Partly because he wanted to help, partly because he had to feel like he was doing something besides sitting around waiting for Ryan to strike next. A squad car was at the lighthouse, which where Eve had insisted on staying. As far as she was concerned, Ryan wasn't going to get the satisfaction of disrupting her life. Kevin smiled at how determined she was, but he also made it a point to be sure it wouldn't get her killed.
His cell phone rang. "Hello?"
Eve spoke quickly. "Hey, it's me. I have a problem, that I think you should handle."
"What?"
"Well there is a truck here, with two men, and all of Lucy's things from the firehouse. What do I tell them? Hey, I don't want this! Kevin! They're trying to give me Sigmund!"
Almost laughing out loud at the mental picture that formed in his mind, Kevin answered her.
"I'll call Lucy and see what she wants to do with him. I'm sure she hasn't talked to Scott. I'll call you right back." Hanging up the phone, he dialed Lucy's cell. It rang several times before a familiar voice answered.
"Hi, Kevin, nice of you to call. But, you were looking for Lucy, weren't you? I just love this caller ID function. I would have never known it was you."
"Where is she?"
"How should I know? I have her phone. I don't have her. What, you lost track of her again? How is she, by the way?" Ryan was surprised to realize he really wanted to know.
"How do you think she is? Where are you?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm going to tell you where you can just come down and get me. Do I have stupid written on my forehead? I think not. Just know that I am. And make yourself crazy wondering where. Bye!"
After Ryan hung up on him, Kevin dialed Jax. Don told him that Lucy was with Victor. So he dialed Victor's number. Victor answered, then gave the phone to Lucy.
"Hi, Kevin." Her voice sounded wary.
"I just called your cell."
"Ryan took it."
"I know. I just talked to him."
Inhaling sharply, Lucy looked at Victor and Mary. "What did he say?"
Her tone told him she was terrified. "Nothing. I didn't tell you to scare you. I told you so you can get it disconnected."
"I didn't think about it. Thanks. It that it?"
"No." He wasn't sure how to go about this. "Eve just called me. There is a truck at the lighthouse. From Scott."
She didn't answer.
"Lucy?"
"I'm thinking. Can I call there and talk to them?"
"Of course."
"Okay, bye." She hung up before he could answer. When she dialed the lighthouse, Eve answered. Lucy took a deep breath before speaking. "Kevin told me to speak to the movers."
There was a long moment of silence before a man answered. "Yeah?"
Giving him the address to the cottage, she instructed him to not tell Eve where he was taking her things. He took the address, then told her in no uncertain terms that Sigmund was not welcome back in the truck.
"It's only ten miles."
"No way. The duck stays here. The guy at the firehouse tipped me $40 to take him here. End of the road."
Victor tapped Lucy's shoulder. "Leave him there. I'll go get him and meet you at the cottage."
Smiling, Lucy spoke to the phone. "Let me talk to Eve again."
"What?" Eve sounded frustrated.
"Victor is going to come by and get Sigmund. Just put him out back until he gets there. Please."
Sighing, Eve agreed to keep Sigmund until Victor came for him.
Hanging up, Lucy turned to Victor and Mary. "I need to get over there.
I'll meet the two of you there?"
"We'll be there with duck in hand." Victor hugged her again.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --By the time Victor and Mary got to the lighthouse, Kevin was back.
"How is she?" Kevin approached them.
"As well as can be expected. She's trying to get on with her life." Scooping Sigmund into his arms, Victor started towards the door.
"Wait! Victor, where is she?"
Victor studied him for a moment before replying. "She found a place to stay, and she's okay. That doesn't mean she's ready to face you. I don't mean to make it sound like she's angry. She's not. At least not with you. But when she's ready for you to know where she is, she'll let you know."
After they left, Kevin looked at Eve. "And the movers wouldn't tell you where they were taking her things?"
"Kevin, for the last time, she told them not to tell me. It's obvious to me she doesn't want to see you. Why isn't it obvious to you?"
Eve could see how much that remark stung, but it was the truth. She wasn't too thrilled about how much that fact bothered Kevin.
A few days later, Lucy decided it was time to tell Scott what was going on. She was shaking by the time she reached the firehouse. Deliberately going while Serena was at school was not what she wanted to do, but the scene that she was sure was going to take place would not be good for her.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --When Scott opened the door, he started to close it again.
"Scott, wait. Please."
"Why? What more could we possibly have to say to each other?"
"We've been friends for too many years to let it end like this." Stepping in the door, she made sure he couldn't shut it.
"I really don't want to see you right now."
"Too bad, Pal. I have a few things I need to tell you." Tears came, and she shrugged. "Actually, you'll probably figure I got what I deserved."
Scott had seen her cry before. It didn't phase him any more. "I really don't want to hear that Kevin changed his mind again."
"He didn't. To be honest, he didn't change his mind in the first place."
Scott was confused, but still too angry to care. "I don't want to hear about your love life, Lucy.
What I really want is for you to leave."
"Scott, please. Just listen to me."
"I don't want to. I want you to turn around, and go. I don't care if it's to Kevin, or the moon! Just get out of here."
"I want to see Serena."
Shaking his head, Scott pushed her out the door. "That little girl, that you claim you care so much about, has been crying since you left us. You've done enough, Lucy. You've hurt me before. More than once. I always understood that was just you. But now you've hurt Serena. Something I thought you'd never do. And I'm done with you. Get out, Lucy." He slammed the door, and could hear her crying on the other side. Sighing, he went upstairs. He knew that he would have to let Lucy see Serena sooner or later. But let her think about what she'd done.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --Luke wiped the bar down and joined Lucy at a table in the corner. "Is today the day you're going to finally tell me what's going on?"
"What?"
"In the last month, you've become a regular fixture around here. I get the message that Baldwin is no longer a concern, but why? What happened?"
Lucy had been debating telling him what happened for a couple weeks. But she'd always chickened out. Felicia and Mac had been incredibly supportive, but she still felt like she'd done something incredibly stupid. Victor had been a godsend, he'd come to see her almost everyday. But there was something that she couldn't tell any of them. Not until she was sure. And she was also afraid of knowing for sure. The queasy feeling that she'd been feeling all day took over. Standing, she ran to the bathroom.
Once she began to get sick, her knees started to shake and she couldn't get up. After almost 10 minutes, Luke knocked on the door. "Lucy? You alive?"
"Luke! Can you help me?"
Worry stamped on his face, he picked her up and carried her to the office. "Okay. Spill it! What's going on?"
Crying, she told him the whole story. When she told Luke that it had been Ryan she'd left Scott for, Luke sat next to her and held her hand. "Oh god, babe. Why didn't you tell me sooner? You've been alone all this time?"
Nodding, she leaned back and closed her eyes, willing herself to not get sick again. "I feel so stupid. I believed every word he said! I believed Kevin wanted me back."
Pulling her to him, Luke held her. "Luce, you wanted him back so badly.
I knew that, Baldwin knew that. Hell, babe, everyone who knows you knew that."
"Except it wasn't Kevin. I feel like an idiot for thinking he would want me back."
"We all make mistakes, Luce. Like believing there's hope when there isn't. Wanting to believe there's a chance."
"Why do I get the feeling we're not just talking about me, here."
"Right now, we're talking about you. What was that scene in the bathroom all about?"
All it took was the way she looked at him.
He whistled. "No way. You know for sure?"
Shaking her head, she pulled away from him. "No. I'm not sure I want to." Tears came, and she tried to fight them.
"And, if you are...."
"It's Ryan's." That was all she could say.
"Come here." Luke pulled her back to him and held her while she cried.
After a few minutes, she started to get control of herself again.
Luke looked at her. "The first thing you need to do, is find out for sure. Now."
"I'm scared."
"I know. But you need to know. I mean, if you're going to have a baby, you need to know. If you're not sure what you're going to do-"
"Luke, get real. If I'm pregnant, I'm going to do everything in my power to make sure I have this baby. I'm just not sure what I'm going to do about the father."
"What do you mean? What can you do about him?"
Her eyes met his. "Make damn sure he never finds out. You know what he is, Luke. If he found out I had his baby, what do you think he would do to me? To the baby?" She shook her head. "I need to find a way to make sure no one ever finds out who the father is."
"How? Like lie about due dates? Come on, Lucy. You've been obviously alone for a while. Do you want to invent some mysterious lover and hope everyone buys it? Or find someone else to..."
Her eyes met his for a moment, then she shook her head. "No. I don't want to drag some poor innocent bystander into this. Do you have any idea how much trouble that man would be in if Ryan found out? What do you think Ryan would do to the man he saw stealing his child? No. I'm not sure what I'm going to do, but getting some innocent man killed isn't the answer."
Taking her hand, Luke stared at her. "I'm telling you right now, if Ryan gets anywhere near you or the baby, it will be the last mistake he ever makes."
"Luke, I appreciate that. But we're getting ahead of ourselves. I'm not even sure-"
"Yes, you are. I can tell from looking at you. You're sure. You just don't want to be."
"I'm afraid to be."
Sighing, Luke put his arms around her. "Look, I'm not going to raise any more kids, but if all you want is a name to protect yourself and the baby, use mine. Hell, it's not like anyone would be surprised if we had."
Lucy could barely speak to answer him. "I can't drag you into this. You have no idea what you're offering."
"You want child support?"
"No!"
"You want a weekend father?"
"No! That's the last thing I want."
"So, all you need is someone to blame, and someone who can take care of your ex-shrink's psycho brother if he makes an appearance. What's the problem?"
She wasn't convinced.
"You've got time. Think about it. I'm not offering to make an honest woman out of you, or save your spotless reputation."
They both started to laugh.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --Lucy took Luke's advice. The next day, she called Dr. Newman, and was relieved to find out the doctor had another office on the other side of town. The last place she wanted to go was GH. This was NOT something she wanted on the grapevine until she decided what she was going to do. Sure enough, she was pregnant. Dr. Newman got her started on all the normal prenatal vitamins and something for the morning sickness. Lucy didn't offer any information about the father, and getting the hint, Dr. Newman didn't ask. The doctor did tell Lucy some things that Lucy was already aware of. Avoiding stress was important, and, given her medical history with pregnancies, she wanted to see Lucy every two weeks.
When she arrived home, she tried to make at least one decision concerning the baby. Telling Victor was going to be the first thing she did. A decision made, she headed upstairs to change her clothes before going to see him.
A knock on the door stopped her.
When she opened it, she was beyond shocked to see Kevin standing there. "What are you doing here?"
"Can I come in for a minute?"
Without saying anything, she stepped back so he could walk past her.
"It's been over a month. I've been waiting to hear from you. I wanted to know how you are."
Standing a few feet away from him, she stared at him. "Better. How did you find me?"
"Small town. Asked around." The way she was standing a distance from him, and the way she was staring at him told him she wasn't convinced who he was. That hurt. "Lucy, how can I convince you I'm Kevin?"
She shrugged. "I'm not sure you can. To be honest, I'm not sure it matters. Good twin, bad twin. You both took your turn at me. Who hurt me worst? One of you may want me dead. The other one sure as hell made me wish I were. You both took my feelings, what was going on in my head, and used it against me. You both hurt me where you both knew I was the most vulnerable."
Lucy knew right then that he was Kevin, and she'd hurt him more than she'd ever thought she was capable. The pain on his face made her realize it. Comparing him to Ryan on that level was absolute worst thing she could do to him. But she didn't say anything.
It was the truth.
When he finally spoke, his voice was strained. "I was worried about you. I didn't come here to upset you."
"And just what did you think seeing either one of you would do to me?" At that moment, she wanted him to leave. Because what she really wanted to do was tell him she was pregnant, and that she wished it was his. The only thing that stopped her was the fact that it wouldn't accomplish anything.
He knew where the attack on him was coming from, but it didn't stop him from feeling like she was ripping his heart out. The last thing he'd ever wanted was for her to hate him. Much less think he was the same to her as Ryan. "I guess I'll go. I'm sorry. I didn't come here to hurt you."
After his car backed out of the driveway, Lucy sat on the stairs and put her face in her hands. Eventually, she'd have to tell him she was pregnant. But then, he was a bright man sooner or later, he could just figure it out for himself.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --When Victor opened the door, he was obviously delighted to see Lucy. "How are you?"
"Confused."
"I have to tell you, that was Kevin at your house earlier. He called here quite upset after he left you."
"I know. Well I didn't, but I figured it out. I know I said some horrible things to him."
Leading her into the living room, Victor shook his head. "It's about time you give him what he's had coming for a long time for the way he's treated you."
"Lucy!" Mary saw her from the door to the kitchen. "We're going to have dinner in a few minutes. Are you hungry?"
She was starving, but she didn't want to intrude. "I should have called.
That's always been a problem with me. Ask Kev-" Stopping herself, she shook her head.
"I'm not Kevin, and I don't care if you show up at 3AM without calling. You want to see us, you come over. Got it?" When she smiled and nodded, he continued. "Now, are you hungry?"
"I am starving." She paused before continuing. "Actually, I came over here because I wanted to tell you something."
"Well?" Victor looked at her.
Lucy glanced at Mary, who stepped towards the kitchen. "I'll leave the two of you alone."
"Actually, no." Lucy was surprised by the fact that she wanted to tell Mary. "I'm kind of glad you're both here. I mean, I've been wanting to tell someone, but I've been afraid. I mean afraid to find out, not afraid to tell anyone. As soon as I found out, you two were the first people I wanted to tell. I just need to figure out what I'm going to do. I mean, I know what I'm going to do, but there's some things I need to figure out before I-"
"Good lord, girl. You're making me dizzy. Take a deep breath, and just say it. It can't be that bad." Mary walked to them and smiled.
"It's not. Well, in a way it is, I mean-"
"Lucy! I'm an old man, I'm not going to live forever."
She smiled at him. "I'm pregnant."
Mary grinned and put her arms around Lucy's neck, but Victor stared at her. "There's more to this, right?"
In that instant, Lucy went from hugging Mary to crying on her shoulder. "It's Ryan's!"
"Honey, it doesn't matter. You're going to have a baby, that's what matters." Mary sat with her on the sofa, handing her a tissue.
"It does if Ryan finds out." Victor sat on the other side of her. "That's what you're afraid of, right?"
Nodding, Lucy wiped her eyes. "All I've ever wanted was a baby. I'm going to make sure nothing threatens this pregnancy. But I wanted to tell you that you're going to be a grandfather. I know how much you looked forward to it. I also know this isn't exactly how you thought it would happen."
"I agree that Ryan finding out would be the worst possible scenario. What are you doing to protect yourself?"
"Not telling many people about the baby right now. I'll figure out something before everyone figures it out."
Mary, always being the nurse, took Lucy's hand. "You need to not worry about Ryan to the point it stresses you too much. It's not good for the baby. Now, what are you doing? Vitamins? Exercise?"
The confused look Lucy gave her made Victor laugh. "Mary likes to mother people. You'll get used to it."
The thought of being mothered both fascinated and terrified Lucy. Either way, it would be a new experience.
When they sat down at the table, Mary put an extra helping of vegetables on Lucy's plate. "One for you and one for the baby."
One again, the totally speechless look on Lucy's face made Victor laugh.
Through dinner, Lucy kept looking at Mary like she was going to bite.
Victor was highly amused, and kept laughing to himself. The upcoming months were going to be amusing.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --After dinner, the three of them sat in the living room. Mary had realized she was actually scaring Lucy, and backed off a bit.
Putting her head back, Lucy found herself completely relaxing for the first time in ages. Victor looked at her. "You look like you're about to fall over, Lucy."
"I feel like it. I'm exhausted."
"You're welcome to-" A knock on the door interrupted Victor. Opening the door, Victor was shocked, and not entirely happy, to see Kevin. Oblivious to Victor's expression, Kevin walked past him rambling. "I had to get out of the house. I can't get what she said to-" His voice died out when he saw Lucy staring at him.
Kevin sighed. "Okay, this wasn't a good idea either." He started to leave.
"Kevin, wait." Lucy stood and walked to him. "I guess I took everything out on you today. I'm just trying to decide what.... Who.... I've got a lot on my mind. And you really caught me at a moment I just couldn't take one more thing."
"I wanted to help you. Not hurt you."
"I know. I just couldn't find a way... I almost told you..." Looking at Victor, Lucy went on a total rant. "I should tell him, right? I mean, family and all that.
He's... he's a part of this too. To a point, I mean, not in the sense that... I guess I'll tell him. He'd figure it out, anyway, right? Then he'd want to know why I didn't tell him. But I don't know why I didn't. I almost did."
"Lucy!" Kevin's voice came out sharper than he intended, and, when she looked at him, he finished, quieter. "Whatever it is, just tell me. I did something? You want me to stay away from you? What is it?"
"I'm pregnant!" Once again, Mary was holding Lucy while she cried.
A completely speechless Kevin stared from Lucy and Mary to Victor. "She's..."
Victor nodded.
"It's...."
"Ryan's." Victor's voice was quiet.
The implications of the situation hit Kevin, and he sat down. By then, Mary had calmed Lucy to the point she could look at Kevin.
"You know Ryan can NEVER find out."
"Gee, Doc, you're quick."
Once again, he'd said the wrong thing. "Are you okay? Have you seen a doctor?"
"Yes. And yes. The only thing I'm worried about is Ryan. I'm not telling many people about this until I figure out what I'm going to say about the father. But, this baby is Victor's grandchild, and your nephew. So... here I am." She looked at her watch. "And I need to go. I'm tired. Kevin, I won't be so mean to you next time. Victor, Mary, thank you for dinner. It was great."
Victor hugged her again before she left.
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --Scott was in the kitchen when the doorbell rang. He heard Serena scream Lucy's name, and he ran into the living room.
On her knees at the door, Lucy was holding Serena, trying not to let the child see how hard she was crying.
"Why haven't you come to see me?"
"Honey, it's so complicated. I don't know how to tell you."
"One of those adult things, right?"
"Yep! You are so smart!" Lucy looked up. "Scott."
He didn't answer. Serena was so happy to see Lucy. She didn't really understand why Lucy had moved out of the firehouse, but not seeing her had made her so sad.
"Guess what? I have a new house. And I want my favorite pumpkin to come see me."
"Really? When?" Serena's eyes lit up.
"Soon. Okay? I really need to talk to your daddy for a minute, okay? I'll come up and say goodbye before I leave."
After Serena was gone, Scott glared at Lucy. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
"Scott, we are going to talk about this. I hurt you. I'm sorry. But I've been punished enough. I want to see her. I want her to come see my house."
"Your house with Kevin? Quite frankly, I don't want to hear about it. So go say goodbye to Serena, and get out of here."
"No! When are you going to let me see her again?"
"I don't know." Grabbing her arm, he pulled her to the stairs. "You're lucky I'm letting you see her now."
"Stop it! Scott talk to me!"
"I don't want to talk to you, Lucy. I want you to get out of here!" He got a little rougher with her and she started to pull away from him.
"Let go of me!"
"I'm going to drag you up those stairs, then I'm going to throw you out. The next time you want to see Serena, you call first. Got it?!"
Feeling Scott drag her up the stairs, she had a sudden flashback of another staircase. Scott. And a baby. A baby she lost when she fell down the stairs. "Scott! Let go! No!"
When she shrieked, Scott let go of her and backed away. The sound of panic in her voice was something he couldn't mistake. "What?"
"I'm pregnant." Her voice was quiet, and Scott backed away from her, suddenly feeling guilty for grabbing her.
"That was quick."
"You don't know the half of it." Suddenly she was crying again.
Really not wanting to buy into this, but unable to turn her away, Scott stared at her. "Let me guess, Kevin's not ready to start a family this soon?"
Crying harder, she walked away from him.
"Lucy, this is not the sound of a happy woman, who has everything she wanted."
"Scott, you'll probably get a laugh out of this. At least an I told you so. Again." Sitting down, she told him the whole story.
For a few minutes after she finished, Scott said nothing. It took a while for everything she'd told him to sink in. When he finally spoke, his voice was quiet. "The baby is Ryan's, right?"
She nodded.
Pushing a piece of hair off her face, Scott looked at her. "What are we going to do with you?"
"Shoot me and put me out of my misery?"
"You know, it was bad enough you left me for the shrink. I mean, taking the back seat to the love of your life was hard enough. But for a real nut-case? Lucy, that's a little hard for me to swallow."
When she started to cry, he stepped closer to her. "I'm kidding. Bad joke. I'm sorry." Pulling her to the sofa, he sat next to her. "Okay, I'm going to tell you something. You killed something in me when you left. But you didn't kill the fact that we've been friends for more years than I'm willing to count. What are you going to do?"
"Well, for starters, I moved into Brenda's cottage. I waited to decorate one of the rooms until Serena could pick out what she wanted. I want her to come stay with me sometimes."
"I guess I can live with that." Scott sighed. God, her smile was beautiful. "What else do you need? Bodyguards? What are you doing to make sure he doesn't find out about this?"
"I haven't decided yet. I'm not that far along, yet. Once I get past the first trimester, I'll have to think about something."
"Let me know if I can do anything."
"Just don't hate me. That's all I want from you. I know you have every reason to. I would hate me, if I were you."
Scott finally really laughed. "If you were me, you'd hate you, and if I were you, I'd hate me."
After taking a few seconds to think about it, she laughed. "You know I love you. You're my pal."
"If this is how you treat you pals, please, do me a favor. Hate me."