Disclaimer: The usual blather

Feedback: How about this, let me know if anyone wants me to keep posting this here, or if I am only taking up space.

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What If…

Chapter 28

~Penthouse 3~

"Ouch." Sonny murmured.

Jason turned around and shot him a glare. "Did she say anything to you?"

"She didn't say a word the whole time. By the time I found her at Jake's she had already been inside, I tried to get her to talk, but she wouldn't. Finally she said she was tired and wanted to rest." Sonny explained. "And then you walked in."

"Damn." Jason rubbed at the tension at the back of his neck. He had seen the hurt in her eyes, and that bothered him more then the anger that was there too. He knew not telling her what was going on was going to be a mistake. "I should have talked to her."

"When Jason? It's not like there was a lot of time for you to discuss things."

"I know that but I also knew I needed to tell her about the changes and I didn't. I just wanted a little more time. Sometimes I have no clue how she will react to things so I decided to wait." He looked back up the stairs. "And now she feels like she was blindsided and believe me she doesn't like that feeling."

"So go talk to her now, we have some time before we need to meet Benny." Sonny prodded looking at his watch.

Jason was turning to head up the stairs when the penthouse door opened and Adam walked in the room. "The car you wanted is downstairs." He held out a set of keys. "It's on parking level 4."

"Thanks." Jason took the keys and headed up the stairs. "I'll be right back."

"Good luck." Sonny called cheerily.

"Is there a problem?" Adam asked in concern.

"You're not married or involved are you Adam?" Sonny asked moving towards the door.

"No Mr. Corinthos." Adam stepped back and let him pass.

"Then you wouldn't understand." He moved over to his own door. "We need to leave in ten minutes Johnny. You'll have to get Jason then."

Johnny winced slightly. "Okay boss." He waited until the door closed before turning to focus on Francis who was leaning against the wall across the wall. "So Francis, you want to do me a favor?"

~Bedroom~

Rory stared around the spacious room in disbelief. Before she had been with Jason bedrooms this size had been nothing but images on a TV screen. Normally when they traveled they went middle of the road, and that suited her fine. She didn't need the fancy stuff that her Uncle seemed to thrive on. But there had been times, like in Puerto Rico that they had stayed in suites, and the opulence those large rooms afforded could become addicting.

She shook her head and hardened her heart to the King sized bed with the blue comforter, and throw pillows that looked as inviting as the clear blue of a lake on a warm summer's day. The deep plush, cream carpeting didn't do anything for her, neither did the Armoire and dresser set, that would have made any antique dealer weep. She ignored the fireplace and then stepped up a small step that led to the sitting room area. Her eye fell longingly on the window seat and its three-sided window that it looked out of. Just because she had always wanted a window seat, didn't mean she was happy to find one in a place she'd had no intention of staying in. In a place that she had been shanghaied too.

The anger was coming back and she looked around the room again, dismissing the beautiful furniture in favor of the hard realization that none of her bags were in the room. With trepidation she crossed to one of the two double-doored closets in the room and opened it. As she had feared her meager clothing selection took up a small amount in the expansive walk-in closet. She moved out of the closet when she heard the main door open behind her.

Jason stayed near the door and watched her when she came out of the closet. The temper was still evident in her eyes and in her face. She didn't get really mad at him very often. They argued that was true, but Rory loved to argue, so it wasn't that bad. What was different was when they fought. No matter how rare of an occasion it was, it always ripped him. When they fought it was brutal, mostly because he hated the feelings fighting with her brought out in him. He hated to hurt her, and yet sometimes they couldn't help it. "I know your upset and you have a right to be."

"Gee thanks for the permission." She jeered lightly.

"Don't be like this."

"What am I supposed to be like Jason?" Rory demanded. "Yesterday I woke up in a room over a bar, and was happy there. Now look at me. I've been put up in some fancy penthouse without you even asking me if I wanted to be here."

"There wasn't time to talk." Jason hedged. "You were gone before I could get back to the hospital."

"And you were gone when I woke up." She tossed back. "Look Jason I'm not stupid so don't treat me like I am."

"I have never treated you like you were stupid." Jason responded hotly moving further into the room.

"You didn't until right now. I may not remember much of yesterday, but I can remember the day before that." She moved closer until she could see his eyes clearly. "You had been hinting about moving into a bigger place for a couple of days now." She saw the guilt flash in his eyes and knew she was right. "Do you deny it?"

"No. I did want to move into the penthouse." Jason admitted.

"And you couldn't ask? You had to wait until I was flat on back and couldn't say anything?"

"No." Irritated at her dismissal of her accident he shot back. "I made a decision, what I felt was the best decision, for your safety."

"Bullshit." She snorted. "Do you really think I believe that? That my accident is the reason we're suddenly in this place?" She poked him in the chest. "Don't insult me like that."

"I'm not insulting you." Jason pinched the bridge of his nose in frustration. This wasn't going well.

"Jason you know me better then I know myself at times. If you had come to me and asked me to move into the penthouse because Sonny wanted you too or because you needed too, what would I have said?" She caught his arm with her good hand when he tried to pull away. "What would I have said?"

"You would have moved in without a question." Jason admitted quietly.

"Right," hurt she dropped her hand. "You knew that and you chose not to ask me. Instead you waited for a time when I couldn't say no and moved me. And just now you tried to pass it off that the only reason we moved was because of the accident, and that's how you treated me like I was stupid."

Her words cut deep because they were true. "Rory…"

"Stop Jason, I'm too tired to fight with you right now, or to go into what else you neglected to tell me." Rory backed away when he reached for her. "Somewhere along the line you decided to change the rules in our relationship. I need to see if I can live with that. Because despite what you may be thinking I do have a say in our relationship."

Stung he could only stare at her for a long minute. "What do you mean by that?"

"Jason." Johnny's voice drifted up the stairs. "I'm sorry but we need to go."

Rory turned and headed for the window. "You better go."

"Not until you tell me what you meant by that." Jason followed her to the window but she didn't turn around.

"Jason." The call came again.

"In a minute Johnny." Jason yelled back in exasperation.

"Go on Jason we can fight later." Rory sidestepped him and headed for what she assumed was the bathroom.

Jason stared after her torn over which direction he should go. The fact that Rory wasn't arguing with him meant that she was more hurt than angry. He hated the fact that he had hurt her, and her tired suggestion of wondering about their relationship shook him to the core. But Johnny was right he did need to go. He had to be with Sonny when they delivered the news of the death of their men, to their families. "We'll talk later."

"Whatever." Rory kept her back to him and walked into the bathroom.

"I got a vehicle for you to use." He called loudly. "It's on parking level 4." He dropped the keys on the bed. "Francis would drive you wherever you want."

Rory sneered at that statement.

"But I know you'd rather drive yourself, so he'll just follow you." Jason waited in vain for a reply. "Bye Rory." He waited another minute and then left the room.

"Bye Jason." Rory whispered to her reflection, knowing that she was acting childish, and doing something about it, were two entirely different things. She made a face and pushed her hair back to look at the bandage on her forehead. Even with the makeup her bruised cheek, and stark white bandage certainly made a statement. And that statement wasn't good.

What had she meant by that remark? She moved out of the bathroom and paused thoughtfully by the bed. She hadn't even known what she was going to say when it had come flying out of her mouth. Judging from the look on Jason's face it had surprised him as much as it had surprised her. Jason, she frowned when she thought about him, she was too hurt and mad to think about him right now, she needed a distraction. Her eyes fell on the car keys on the bed.

Technically it was probably too soon for her to go for a drive. After all she had suffered a pretty major head injury, not to mention her arm was in a sling. She bent over and picked up the keys and headed for the door. She didn't even have her license or her insurance information. She moved down the stairs and headed for the phone, dialing a number from memory she hummed Mickey while waiting for it to be picked up.

"Ello."

"Emily its Rory. What are you doing?"

"Avoiding art class." Emily ducked into a bathroom she was passing. "Where did you disappear to? Francis was pissed."

"Enough about Francis, I was thinking about your problem, and I have a solution." She looked around in vain for a clock. "What time do you get out of class?"

"If you have a solution I'm ready now." Emily said excitedly.

"Be out front of your school in 20 minutes." Rory ordered and hung up the phone. The phone book she was able to find easily enough and she looked up the address of the school. Then headed for the door.

Francis turned to look when the door opened behind him. "Ms. Nichols," he eyed her and the phone book in her hand warily. "Did you need something?"

"Yeah just a minute Mr. Francis," Rory shoved the phone book in his hands and stepped back to move to a closet by the door. As she figured a coat of hers was hanging in it and she awkwardly began to put it on over her sling.

"Let me help." Francis grabbed the edge that kept slipping to the ground and placed it over her injured shoulder. "Are you going out?"

At least he said you instead of we, that was a definite point in his favor. Rory smiled brightly. "Yes I'm picking up Emily," she held up the keys. "Jason said there was a car for me on parking level 4?" She moved past him towards the elevator.

"That's right." Johnny had briefed him about Rory, but he hadn't quite believed it. Judging from Jason's expression when he had left a short while before and the way she had lost him earlier, he was beginning to. As such he was going to be very careful around her.

"So Mr. Francis, do you like being a leash holder?" Rory started off when the elevator doors opened and glanced over at him. "I must say you're the best dressed leash holder I've ever seen."

Francis cocked a brow in her direction but didn't rise to the bait. "I like to look my best."

Rory smothered a smile, he was going to be fun.

The car came to a halt and Rory jostled him slightly. "Sorry, caught me off guard." She said with a grin and moved off of the car and surveyed the partially filled garage. "Which one…" Her voice trailed off when she spotted it. "He wouldn't."

"Adam said its in slot 412." Francis pointed in the direction she was looking.

Rory moved closer and aimed the key chain at the vehicles and hit the button to deactivate the alarm. As she had feared the Midnight blue Dodge Durango's headlights flashed once in response. "That little shit."

"Excuse me?" Francis asked. "Is there a problem with the vehicle? Jason said this was the model you preferred."

"I bet he did," she muttered moving to the driver's door. "Well you can tell him it won't work."

Confused Francis just nodded his head and opened the door for her. "Anything you say Ms. Nichols."

That caught her attention and she focused on him again. "Are you a smartass Mr. Francis?"

Francis closed the door after her. "You'll have to be the judge of that Ms. Nichols." He moved quickly to a dark black Ford Explorer Trac truck, parked beside her. "I'll be right behind you."

Definite smartass, this really was going to be fun. She cut off that train of thought and started the vehicle. She had forgotten that she was mad at Jason, so nothing was fun. "Remember that Nichols. He moves in when you're least expecting it and you find yourself living in the Drummond's penthouse, before you even have a chance to say Whatcho talking about Mr. D.?" With that admonishment she put the Durango in gear and took off.

~General Hospital~

"I guess what they say about Doctor's doing anything to pad the bill is right." Gabriella spoke mainly to herself, making sure to keep her voice low. "Oh well." She put the samples she had taken from Rory Nichols in the cooler, for use by the technician to run a DNA comparison. She hadn't known a paternity test was necessary for a head injury, but this hospital was an odd place to work.

Lucky walked out of the room adjacent to the lab, as soon as she disappeared down the hall. He didn't have much time, the tech would be back from his break anytime now. He took another quick look around before pulling a homemade scanner from his pocket. He attached the clamps to a plastic card that looked like a credit card and slid it inside the electronic lock. The door beeped at him but the lock didn't give. Frowning he typed in an access code on his scanner and waited while the numbers began to cycle through his program.

"Come on." He urged it to hurry when the ding of the elevator sounded from around the corner and footsteps began to head in his direction. The locks clicked and he opened the door and disappeared inside. He paused by the door, listening for the footsteps and tensed as they neared him, then breathed again when they kept going past the door.

He hurried to the desk first and checked the inbox for the fake work order request he had drafted for Rory Nichols, by Dr. Jones. Then he moved onto the first storage unit looking for her samples. He finally found them in the third unit and quickly pulled them out. He opened the small cooler he had brought with him, and put both the blood sample and the tissues sample in them. With a thoughtful smirk he headed for the door, eager to get on with the next part of his plan.

Lucky opened the door cautiously but the coast was clear, he quickly left the room and pulled hard on the door, making sure the locks clicked behind him, then headed for the elevator. Lucky was whistling when the doors opened, and began to move inside before realizing it was already occupied. "Mrs. Hardy."

"Hello Lucky." Audrey looked up from her clipboard. "I heard you were hurt yesterday. You haven't had a setback have you?"

"No." Lucky said quickly. As always being around her made him miss Elizabeth even more. He had always known that Audrey loved her granddaughter but it wasn't until Elizabeth's accident that he realized just how much she had loved her. The spark seemed to have gone out of Audrey's eyes, a spark that had yet to return.

The urge to tell her the wonderful news that Elizabeth was back, surged in him, and he fought it back. He wouldn't tell her until he had the proof to back it up. He knew she would believe Rory was really Elizabeth, but he needed the proof to convince Rory that she was. Until he had that, he wouldn't let Audrey be hurt by Rory's rejection.

Audrey debated on asking Lucky if he had heard about the girl that supposedly looked like Elizabeth. The girl had checked out before she had the opportunity to see her, herself. But Amy swore she looked like Elizabeth, and after some prodding, both Bobbie and Monica had reluctantly backed up her story. That had shaken her deeply. The thought of someone else in the world that looked so much like Elizabeth both thrilled her and worried her. Perhaps it was for the best that Rory was gone before she saw her.

"I'll talk to you soon Mrs. Hardy." Lucky moved out of the car as soon as the doors opened, he took a step then turned back to face her. "I should have some good news when I do. Some very good news."

~L&B~

"Nikolas." Gia announced her presence with a cry and the slam of the door. "You'll never guess what happened."

Ned's eyes met Nikolas and he jerked his head in her direction. "We can finish this later."

"Thanks." Nikolas turned around in time to catch a very excited Gia. "What happened?" He asked when she finally let go of him.

"Carly set up this modeling shoot, well more like a jaunt. I'm going to be going to Paris, Athens, Rome, Barcelona, Moscow and London. Kind of doing the woman of the world campaign." She couldn't keep the smile off of her face. She had tried to act blasé when Carly had told her about it, but it was hard to keep that up, as Carly described what all she would be doing. Her mother was going to have to see that modeling wasn't just something to laugh off anymore. That this was a career that was taking her places.

"That's great." Nikolas moved to sit on a chair facing her. "I know how hard you've worked for this. How long will you be gone?"

"Three weeks." She took his hand. "But you haven't heard the best part. Carly okayed it, so did your mother." She shook her head in disbelief. "I even talked to Ned and he agreed."

"Agreed to what?" Nikolas asked.

"That you can come with me. Just imagine it we'll finally have time to explore all those cities you have been telling me about." She moved closer and threw her arms around his neck. "This will be so perfect, I think we could use some time away from Port Charles and everything here."

Nikolas' arms tightened around her automatically. Leave Port Charles? The thought reverberated in his mind. How could he leave now when everything was so confused?

~Durango~

"This car is soooo nice." Emily ran her hand over the leather seats. "I can't believe your driving already. I mean should you be driving? Because I have my license."

"No I can drive just fine, it's not a stick so there's no problem." Rory answered briefly pulling the SUV back into traffic. "And I suppose this piece of crap will do until I can get a car I really want."

Emily looked over in surprise. "This is a piece of crap?"

"Yes and he is so not going to get around me that way." Rory groused. "The damn thing shimmies when it shouldn't, and drives like a tank. I mean look," she took her hand off the wheel and the vehicle kept moving in an arrow straight line down the road. "See how much it moves? You got to keep a hold of it or you pitch off to the right."

"Did you just take some medication?"

"Emily you're not helping." Rory shot her a warning look before focusing on the traffic again. "You're brother thinks I'm going to get so attached to this thing, that I'll let him buy it for me. Well he is sadly mistaken. But why am I not surprised?" She went on and answered her own question. "After all he is mistaken about a lot of things, where I'm concerned."

"What did Jason do?"

"You're brother just reminded me why I dislike men at times." She glanced in the rearview mirror and saw Francis right behind her. He was better at sticking then most were. "And he is not going to get around me by getting me a car. Not even one I might have mentioned, once or twice in passing, how much I liked."

Ever the logical one Emily tried to be helpful. "A good thing about it though, is it's not a stick. With your arm in a sling, you wouldn't be able to drive your car even if it was drivable."

Rory took her eyes off the road to glare at her and only turned back when a horn began to blare in warning. "I like sticks, they give you power." She whipped around a stalled taxi and kept on flying. She bit down on the thrill the power of the engine gave her. "Besides this thing is so big, it doesn't handle near as well."

Emily took in Rory's one handed maneuvers as she whipped around three cars, switching lanes like an old pro, and nodded her head. "And listen to that radio it's all distorted."

Rory frowned at the radio, which was coming in clear as a bell, the base was reverberating in the back, giving them a pleasant ride. "Bite me Emily."

Emily laughed and after a minute Rory joined her.

"So what is your plan?" Emily asked after another few minutes.

"I found a free clinic in a neighboring town," she gestured to the phone book on the floor. "We'll head there and you can get an exam, that way we'll know for sure, and you will still have your anonymity."

"I could find out today?" Emily asked hopefully.

"Not today," Rory explained as they pulled up to a red light, and casually checked her rearview mirror. "But they'll take the test and give you a physical, and you should have the results in a day, two at the outside."

"That would be great."

Rory glanced up at the light that was about to turn, and then at all the cars that had joined them at the stoplight. The light turned green but Rory stayed where she was. Almost immediately the horns started. "Oh nuts." Rory cried and began to fidget in her seat.

"What's wrong?" Emily asked looking to the floor automatically when Rory focused on it.

"I broke a nail in the accident." She held up her good hand and ignored the horns.

"Rory it's green." Emily gestured to the road.

"I know." She fidgeted around some more, as some cars began to go around her and flipped her off as they did so. "Same to you buddy." She kept one eye on the rearview the other on the light. "Come on Mr. Francis."

"Francis?" Emily cried turning around to look out of the window. "Francis is here? He can't know. He can't follow us to the clinic."

"Chill Emily." Rory grinned when Francis got out of his truck and began to walk towards her car just as the light turned yellow.

Rory stepped on the accelerator and tore through the intersection, her taillights clearing it just as it turned red. She kept an eye on the rearview as Francis ran for his truck. But by the time he reached it the busy intersection was flowing with traffic blocking his advance after her. To be on the safe side, Rory did a series of turns designed to lose any pursuer while Emily kept her eye out the back window. "There we go, no more Mr. Francis."

~Limo~

No one had said a word since they had left the last house. The two men in the back, as well as the two men in the front were all lost in their own private thoughts, their own private hell.

Max was finally realizing just how dangerous his job could be. He hadn't been around during the previous power struggles. He had come up the ranks as a courier, but no one he knew had ever died before. And now three of his friends were dead, all in the same night, and all by the same killer. For the first time, he let himself look past the thrill of the job and realize the uncertainty that came with it. Could he deal with the harsh reality of his job?

Johnny wondered how many more people would die before this was over. He knew his bosses well enough to know that they didn't deliberately put their men in harms way. Even the lowest man on the totem pole, got more respect then they would have from any other organization. But death still won sometimes, no matter how careful you were. How many victims would death claim before it was sated again?

Sonny's eyes were closed, he was trying to banish the face of the woman they had just left from his mind. Trying but failing. He knew he would never forget her face, like he would never forget the face of the father of the other man who had died. But even over those faces, the image of Manny's sister haunted him. Sister Mary Elena. She had watched her brother die, said rosaries for Manny, and then she had said them for him, and Jason. Praying for their souls, as they plotted the vengeance she knew was coming. She prayed for them, yet offered no rebuke, or even tried to talk them into turning the other cheek. Sister Mary Elena was an enigma, and her face would haunt him more then the others.

Jason shifted beside him drawing his focus to his partner. This had hit him hard, but something else had hit Jason even harder. He had a feeling that his conversation with Rory had not gone well.

The muted sound of a cell phone ringing drew the attention of three of the occupants in the car.

"Morgan."

"Jason its Francis. I lost her." He waited for the explosion that he knew was going to come.

Jason sighed wearily and closed his eyes. "Somewhere along the line you decided to change the rules in our relationship. I need to see if I can live with that. Because despite what you may be thinking I do have a say in our relationship." Her words came back to haunt him again. "Was she driving?"

"Yes she's in the Durango you got her. She picked up Emily and then stalled at a light…"

"And when you went to check on her she floored it and disappeared." Jason finished for him. "Don't worry Francis it wasn't your fault. To put it bluntly, no one stays with Rory unless she wants them too. No one."

Sonny looked over with a frown at that remark.

"So what do you want me to do? We got Lojack on the vehicle you want me to activate it?" Francis asked when he realized Jason wasn't going to go off on him.

"No," Jason pinched the bridge of his nose the image of what Rory would do if he tracked her by her car, was not a place he wanted to go. "Go back to the penthouse and wait, if she isn't back in two hours call me."

"That's it?" Francis couldn't help but press for more. He couldn't believe that she had lost him just like that. It was the first time in close to 6 years that someone had lost him. And the fact that Jason didn't seem surprised really burned him.

"Yes." Jason confirmed and closed the phone.

Francis closed the phone and reluctantly reached for the ignition to start his car, at the same time someone tapped on his window. He smothered a groan when he saw the blue uniform, signaling a cop. This was not his day.

Sonny waited for Jason to speak, but he just stared out the window. "Rory lost Francis?"

"Yes."

"How could she have done that?" Sonny demanded.

"From the way he described it, she lost him on purpose. Other times she just loses people by accident. It's all a game to her." Jason explained.

"This isn't a game Jason, doesn't she know that?" Sonny snapped. He was going to have to talk to Francis this was twice she had lost him.

Johnny kept his mouth shut, he had absolutely no problem visualizing Rory losing Francis, and he raised the privacy window when he heard the direction the conversation was taking.

"Man old Carny got beat." Max said with a perverse grin. "Just wait until the guys hear that." Francis Carnivale was always one of the final tests any new guard or driver had to take, before graduating to the next level. He ranked them on how well they did at trying to follow him, or lose him. No one had ever beaten him, well Morgan had lost him once but that was over 6 years ago. Since then no one had, so for him to get toasted by a girl, he shook his head in glee, he couldn't wait to get off work and tell that story.

"You haven't met Rory yet have you?" Johnny offered casually.

"We drove her from Jake's. She seemed real quiet." Max replied.

"I wouldn't gloat too much then," Johnny warned him. "You better wait until you meet her."

"Why? She's just a girl what could she do?"

Johnny shook his head, the boy had so much to learn.

~*~

"How would she know that Sonny? As she reminded me a little while ago, I haven't told her a damn thing. Instead I've been treating her like she was stupid." Jason snapped.

"You would never treat her like that," Sonny argued. "There are things she can't know about."

"She knows that and she never asks about my job. But this wasn't about my job Sonny, it was about her, and I didn't talk to her, I just made decisions for her. She won't stand for that." Jason turned back to the window.

"You're acting like she's going to leave." Surprise tinged his voice. "Do you think she's already left?"

"No. Rory's not made that way. If she were to leave she'd tell me to my face before she walked out the door. She doesn't run and hide from things, or confrontations." Jason's voice grew quiet. "But she isn't afraid to leave."

Nervous for Jason, Sonny tried to think of the words to reassure both Jason and himself. "Can't you call her?"

"Her phone was in the car."

~PCPD~

"Counselor two meetings in one day, how did I ever get so lucky?"

"You left in such a rush Lieutenant that we never finished discussing some things." Alexis focused on the tall Lieutenant. "Did you need to get to the music store? I hear there is a sale on 80's CD's."

"What sale?" Detective Garcia looked at Taggert in question.

"What do you want?" A grumpy Taggert asked her stepping behind his desk.

Reluctantly Alexis wiped the smile from her face. "Ms. Nichol's belongings, those that have been cleared anyway, I'm here to pick them up."

"Now you know that as evidence in an ongoing investigation I can't just give them out."

Alexis pulled a form from her briefcase. "Here is a listing from Dr. Ford, itemizing those articles that his office has completed their investigation of. On this you will see that her purse, including all items in it can be released. And since we all know what a pain it is to deal with the DMV you certainly don't intend to keep her belongings from her, now do you?"

Taggert took the list with a scowl and scanned the list. His eyes widened slightly when he caught something surprising, but he quickly cleared them and signed the list. "You can pick them up in processing." He told her signing the form quickly, anxious for her to be on her way.

Alexis took the form and eyed him warily that was far too easy. His bland expression met hers, but she saw a glimmer in his eyes that signaled that cat that ate the canary look. She had a feeling he was up to something. "Thanks Lieutenant. Remember if you want to speak with any of my clients you will need to speak with me first."

"Certainly counselor." Taggert agreed with a grin. "Do you need some help finding processing?"

He was definitely up to something, but she would have to wait to see what it was. "Lieutenant," she nodded at Garcia. "Detective."

Garcia watched her clear out of the room, before focusing on Taggert. "What did you see?"

"Let's head to forensics." Taggert opened a drawer and pulled out an envelope.

"Why?"

Taggert tapped the envelope in his hand. "Something wasn't on that list that should have been. We need to find out why."

~Port Charles Hotel~

147, 148, 149, 150, with a small grunt of exertion Marin powered his way through the last pushup, then sat back on his haunches and glanced at his watch. He had shaved another 3 minutes off his time.

Satisfied he got to his feet and crossed to a table, snagging a towel to wipe the sweat from his brow while he did so, he sat down and began to study the papers spread open there. It had been a little costly but the informant had come through with the plans for the Harborview Towers. Now all he had to do was find the weakness in them, and he would have access to the penthouse level. Morgan might think that he had increased Rory's safety, but he hadn't. He loved a challenge, and that was what Morgan had provided him. Getting to them while they were in the most secure building in the city was a challenge he wouldn't be able to walk away from.

He reached for the phone, then stopped when a thought crossed his mind. "Maird." How could he have forgotten? Infuriated he picked up the phone and threw it across the room. That was twice he had made a mistake in this assignment. That was two more then he allowed himself to ever make. "Hopefully it was lost in the water."

~Durango~

"I still can't believe you lost Francis like that." Emily was feeling so much better. The exams had gone well, and she hadn't been afraid of seeing anyone she knew. With Rory being there, and bandaged up, most people thought Rory was the patient and she was the friend offering support. It had worked out beautifully. Now all she had to do was kill time until they phoned with the results.

"Emily it can be easy, you just got to know the philosophy, once you have that down, you can do it too." Rory explained. She was doing her best to keep the speedometer down to at least being in the range of the speed limit. Since she didn't have her license there was no reason to invite trouble. But as much as she hated to admit it, the Durango was growing on her.

"What philosophy?" Emily's eyes widened as Rory whipped between an 18-wheeler and a Lexus with only a few inches to spare.

"Well it's not exactly a philosophy it's more like a motto to live by. Once you understand it, and fully embrace it, your life will be so much easier."

"So tell me already." Emily snapped giving into temptation and grabbing the oh shit handle as they took the exit from the freeway about 20 miles faster then they should have.

"Never underestimate a man's ability to underestimate a woman." Rory said with a grin. "Those are words to live by."

Emily laughed. "That is your secret in life?"

"Yes," she shot her a glare. "And don't laugh it works wonders."

"I bet so." They were on a straightaway now, nearing her house and the excitement of riding with Rory had eased some. "So where did you learn to drive like this?"

"Well that is a funny story, I owe it all to my Uncle Gabe and Mike Villalobos."

"That name sounds familiar." Emily wrinkled her nose and tried to place it.

Rory giggled. "Do you remember hearing about a standoff in Illinois that happened a couple of years ago?"

"Something about the DEA?"

"Yeah see Mike is an old friend of my Uncle's. He used to be ultra military, a Semper Fi wannabe, who never made it in the Marine's himself," she glanced over at Emily. "Flat feet, and between you and me, I don't think he would have passed the stress test either. He's not wrapped too tightly if you catch my drift."

"Gotcha."

"Anyway, about, I don't know, 5 years ago he does a reversal, instead of being an aging Mr. Paramilitary Uncle Sam, he switches to a free love/free experiences guru, but he still believes in a right to bear arms. He hadn't changed that much. As such he decided to secede from the United States when they wouldn't legalize Marijuana." Rory shook her head at the memory. "Him and his followers held off the DEA in rural Illinois for about 2 months until someone in the DEA got the bright idea to try to burn them out."

"Oh god I remember that now." Emily laughed. "And the fields they burned were hemp."

"Yep. That was our tax dollars at work." Rory grinned. "So while the Feds were stoned out of their minds, Mike and his crew escaped."

"My Government professor told me about the case. Weren't his followers mainly female?"

"Yes, sadly that is the rest of Mike's legacy. He has some guys with him, but remember he believed in free love, so he encourages women to follow him." Rory explained. "So he gets these women like Teresa, Tina, and Angela to follow him, and in the end he doesn't really want any of them."

"Why not?" Emily was fascinated.

"Well at one time, before he went a little nuts he had a wife named Deb. Once Mike 'lost it' Deb moved on, and in with a guy named Scott. Well that sent Mike over the edge, so basically wherever Deb moves, he moves his crew after her."

"God is he dangerous?"

"No, that's the kicker, Deb still sneaks out and sees him sometimes, she just won't leave Scott."

"That sounds like a soap opera," Emily murmured. "But how does that have to do with how well you drive?"

"I've known Mike, through my uncle for about 5 years now. He taught me how to drive. While he was all into Uncle Sam, he took all these combat driving courses among other things, and he taught me. So every year, I track him down and take a refresher course in trade. Last year Jason went with me. Those two didn't exactly hit it off, but it was funny to watch them." Rory smiled at the memory until she remembered that she was mad at Jason. "Your brother, insisted that I wouldn't need those skills. But as you can see I did and do. He's just pissed because I always lose him whenever we race, and it doesn't matter what vehicle I'm in, he can never stay with me."

Emily wisely didn't offer any comments on her brother and instead she asked. "What do you do for Mike in trade?"

"Oh Mike likes to get into places he shouldn't and I…" Rory stopped herself. She was getting along with Emily but she was still a bit young, and Jason's sister. "Lot's of different things."

Curiosity was burning inside of her but Emily let it slide. "Here's the drive."

Rory slowed and pulled in the drive looking for a house that wasn't in view yet, she grew quiet and the Durango slowed even more as the moved up the long and curvy drive. A quarter mile later a large mansion came into view. This was where the Jason Quartermaine part of Jason had grown up. The house itself was easily the size of a small office building only it sprawled instead of going skyward. In the distance tennis courts and a stable were barely visible. "Nice place."

"Yeah." She could see the tension in Rory and tried to put her at ease. "I thought it was so huge the first time I saw it. But it's really not as big as it looks."

So instead of a major league football team playing here, a minor league team could, Rory thought dourly. The fact that Jason had money never really concerned her. But after hearing about his $5,000,000 slush fund and seeing what he was used to, their differences really struck her. Unfortunately for her, those differences were hitting her while she was already unsure about her future with Jason. Her good hand tightened on the steering wheel, and smelling the new car interior for the first time in hours, she brought the Durango to a sudden stop.

"Do you want to come in?" Emily asked when she got on the ground.

"No I better get going." Rory mustered a smile for Emily. "Call me when you hear something, if not before. We're at…" she trailed off then went on. "Jason's old place, the penthouse, I don't know if the number has changed or not, but you can reach me there, for now anyway."

"Alright, thanks again Rory." Emily slammed the door and stepped back from the SUV, she waited outside until the taillights disappeared from view. She wasn't real eager to face dinner at the Q's. She still hadn't talked to her mom about the biopsy, so it was uncomfortable being around her. But until she had her own life figured out, she couldn't begin to focus on the possibility of her mom's cancer returning. With a loud sigh she turned around to head for the door. She had only taken a step when a black blur disengaged itself from one of the bushes and intercepted her.

"We need to talk Emily." Zander stepped closer to her.

~Penthouse 3~

Night was slowly claiming the glory from the day, but the brightening stars escaped Jason's notice while he stood at the window looking out at the darkening sky. Waiting was never easy for him. It used to be that the only things he really waited for was doing something for Sonny, or doing something with Robin if she came by. Gradually his world had expanded and he had grown accustomed to waiting, at least in his professional life. With what he did for Sonny he couldn't rush his work no matter how much he wanted too at times. But personally he still hated waiting, especially when he was waiting for the woman in his life and the fight that was sure to happen when she arrived.

Robin and him had rarely fought, at least not the way he and Rory did. Their fights had centered on his work, and her feelings that he was letting Carly use him. It was never real personal between them, they fought about the things around them. Carly and him argued a lot, but that was Carly. Normally it faded into exasperation for him, long before it would with her. Maria had never fought with him, but what they'd had was nothing more then a brief interlude. No Rory was unique, she drove him crazy the way no one else had, and yet their relationship was the healthiest.

Frowning he moved back into the room. It was strange being back in the penthouse. Looking around now he couldn't help but remember the different times he had spent in this place. The first had happened when it wasn't even his place, when it still belonged to Katherine Bell. He remembered a night he had spent here with Robin, a night in which they had first admitted that they wanted to be with each other.

Next came the images of Carly and Michael. Even though the showplace furniture she had brought in, had been replaced by more toddler friendly furniture, Carly's stamp was still in the room somehow. And now he was back in this place. A place that he thought he would never return too, after the way he had left it that cold January, yet here he was, he had to wonder if Rory would stay in it with him.

He looked up when the door opened and the relief came when he heard her voice.

"Now Mr. Francis don't be like that. It wasn't your fault you lost me, I wanted you to lose me," Rory explained with a grin. "If it makes you feel better I lose Jason all the time."

Francis shook his head and didn't give her an inch as he opened the door wider.

"Pout much?" Rory teased while looking inside. When she saw Jason her smile disappeared and her back stiffened. "Thanks Mr. Francis."

Francis felt the arctic breeze coming off of her and quickly closed the door. Every time he had thought about getting involved with a woman again, memories of his last catastrophe and seeing his friends getting raked over the coals always made him banish the thought. Playing the field was so much healthier.

~*~

Rory moved to the closet and slid out of her coat easily enough, getting it on the hangar was another story. With her arm in a sling it was difficult to get the jacket to stay on the hangar, after the third time it slipped she just let if fall to the floor and closed the door. She took a breath to brace herself and then turned around to look at him.

"Can we talk?" Jason asked.

"Now you want to talk to me?" Rory sniped then shook her head, she didn't want to act like this. "Forget that, what do you want to say?"

Jason waited until she perched on the edge of the soft, white loveseat before starting. "I know I messed up. I should have told you about wanting to move here, and about Francis."

"Yes you should have." Rory agreed

"I'm sorry I didn't." He sat on the coffee table facing her.

"Why didn't you?" Her eyes searched his unreadable blue depths. "This wasn't like you."

"I don't know," he said honestly.

Rory's eyes flashed briefly before she spoke. "That's not an answer Jason, it's an evasion."

"I don't know why I didn't tell you, I just didn't. I was going to, but then everything happened all at once and there wasn't time. You found out on your own, and I know that hurt you. All I can do is say I'm sorry." He took a chance and touched her hand and she didn't pull away.

She studied his eyes, the regret was easy to see in them, so too was pain and anger. His normally clear blue eyes, were swirling with several emotions, too many for her to identify right then. "I spent most of the afternoon thinking about this. I was going be calm and rational when we had this conversation. No yelling, or accusations just talking. Now that it's time to have this civilized fight and I don't really don't know what to say."

"Do we have to fight? Can't we just agree I messed up and let it go?"

Now she pulled her hand away from him. "I trust you more then I've trusted anybody in my life before. Because of that trust, you have the power to hurt me like no one ever has."

Jason flinched but was quiet.

"I know you would never intentionally try to hurt me, but a part of you knew what you were doing. A part of you knew, that I would be hurt by your keeping me in the dark about something that concerns me." She paused for a minute before going on, trying to make sense of her racing thoughts.

"If you were to come through that door and said we had to run, I would take your hand without a second's hesitation and I would run with you. When we were safe, then, and only then, would I ask you why we were running. And if you told me that someone was trying to hurt you or me, because of your job, that's all you would you have to say. The only other thing I would ask you is, how many were there, and what they looked like. I wouldn't ask you why, because it would be none of my business." She got to her feet and moved so she was standing behind the loveseat.

"But if, when I asked you, you told me that I was the target because of something I did, then I would ask you why. I would ask you who, when, everything. Because then it would be my business. As such I would demand to know everything, and to make decisions, I wouldn't give you that control over me."

"I was trying to keep you safe," Jason corrected. "I wasn't trying to control you."

"Yes you were Jason. You could have said at anytime that things were getting crazy and we needed to move here. You could have come back in the room this morning and told me that you had to leave, but there was a guard named Francis who would be there for me, instead of just sticking your hand in long enough to grab your coat, and avoid me." Rory accused him.

Jason ran a hand over his cheek and got to his feet. "You noticed that."

"Jason there isn't a thing about you that I don't notice. You always hated when the Quartermaine's would try to make decisions for you, guess what I hate that too."

Stung Jason fired back. "I was doing this out of concern." He couldn't believe she was comparing him to the Quartermaines.

"You know what? I bet they said the same thing to you." Rory shot back, she could feel herself getting angry again. The little pains that were in shoulder and in her head were fading because of her temper and for that she was grateful, but she couldn't help the slight wince when she moved to abruptly.

"I picked up your prescription its on the desk." Jason saw her wince and was immediately concerned.

"I'll be fine, I don't want to take anything. I don't like the way the drugs make me feel."

"You don't like to lose control." Jason corrected.

"Neither do you." She held up a hand. "And before you go comparing me to the control freak next door. Remember I only try to control my life, not everyone else's."

"Still you can't always control everything." He stepped closer, and could see the pain in her eyes and felt pain in his heart when she backed away from him.

"I know, believe me I know. I spent years of my life having no control over anything." She busied herself by straightening a pillow on the couch. "I can't even tell you how many times Gabe woke me up in the middle of the night, saying we had to run. Or how many times I would fall asleep in one place, only to wake up in another. I had to go, because he was my guardian, I didn't have a say because I was too young. But finally I was old enough to question him. And one day I even refused to leave."

She slumped down wearily on the couch. "One night he came to me and told me to run and I said no. I was 15," she shook her head and smiled a little at the memory. "He was stunned and tried to order me to go."

"That didn't go very well I bet." Jason sat beside her.

"No. He discovered that I was in fact my mother's daughter. So he ran, one step ahead of the law I admit, and I stayed behind."

"He left you alone when you were 15?"

"I declared my independence at 15," Rory corrected. "Anyway I found him again a few months later, and from then on it was different. He talked to me like an equal. He finally realized I had a say in my own life. Since that point I've made sure anyone I was close too, knew that too."

Rory shifted so she was facing him, and reached up with her good hand and pressed it to his cheek. "As much as I need you in my life Jason. I'm willing to walk away from you. I need you, but I need to be able to look at myself in a mirror more. I'm not an appendage or some doll that only lives to be around you. I make my own decisions in life. And I won't give that up, and I would never ask you to, so I can't believe you asked me too."

His hand covered hers. "I didn't."

Rory sighed heavily. "Yes you did, by just letting things happen, you did." She pulled away and got slowly to here feet. "You need to decide Jason. You need to decide what kind of relationship you want to have with me. The one we had before we hit Port Charles where we were partners, or the one that's developed in the last few days, one where you make all the rules. Choose carefully, because we'll both have to live with it." She warned him then headed for the stairs.

Jason stared after her, the bitter taste of her ultimatum filling his soul.