Kendall was pacing the living room of her condo, not even pretending to clean the house anymore. She was feeling awful and thoroughly frustrated with her life. She had a nasty cold and she had been attacked by the stomach flu at the same time. She was so tired that she couldn't sleep, hadn't been able to eat for a few days, and Greenlee was obsessing about getting pregnant. As if Greenlee didn't have enough problems with fallout from the Lavery brothers' implosion, she was still moving forward with baby-making central. And as her best gal pal (and how was she going to get out of that job), Kendall had to listen to Greenlee go on and on ad nauseum (literally for the past couple of days) about little Ryan or Greenlee Jr. When the doorbell rang, Kendall was tempted to throw something at it and not even check to see who was there. The fact that she was feeling lonely since her psycho boyfriend had been jailed was entirely beside the point.
"I don't care who's there, I'm not in the mood," Kendall started ranting as she yanked open the door. Standing in front of her was a smiling Zach holding a tray containing a bowl of chicken soup and a pot of tea. She paused briefly before replying, "No… no… take it away…"
Zach just laughed and walked straight into the condo, noticing that it was spotless. He set the tray on the kitchen counter and turned to look at her questioningly, "Are you feeling better?"
"I clean when I'm upset… or I don't feel good… and I'm both… okay?" She said defensively.
"Okay… I just thought some soup might help you feel better…" Zach answered. "No strings… remember?"
"I remember… no strings… but you don't have to keep checking on me like this. I'm not stupid… I know Bianca asked you to keep an eye out for me, but I'm a big girl and I can take care of myself," she said in irritation.
"I know… I just like your company… and in case you haven't noticed… I'm coming up a little short on the friends list right now," Zach laughed.
"What… no sarcastic crack about my ability to take care of myself?" Kendall asked in surprise.
"No… I think I'll leave that to your mother… and your so-called friend Greenlee. My version is bringing soup to a sick friend and offering to clean her place… which I obviously don't need to do. However, if I'm ever feeling poorly… I'd certainly enjoy having you vent your frustrations on my place," Zach said, continuing to smile broadly. "Now, let me take care of you for a little while. Why don't you sit down here and have this soup, and then get ready for bed early. Do you need some cold medicine?"
Kendall looked at him in amazement, "Who are you and what have you done with my neighbor Zach Slater?"
He just laughed and steered her to the counter, "Eat up… chicken soup is the best thing for a cold."
"Um… uh… I don't… I don't think…" Kendall stammered as she ran toward the bathroom after getting a whiff of the soup. A few minutes later she returned, looking a little paler than when she had left.
"I'm sorry," Zach said. "I thought you said it was a cold… I didn't realize…"
"Oh… Mother Nature has it in for me… I do have a cold AND the stomach flu."
Zach handed her a cup of tea, "Here drink this… it's watered down tea… try that for starters…"
"What are you still doing here? Don't you know that a man is supposed to run the other direction from a sick female?" Kendall said as she sat and sipped her tea.
"Sorry… I must have missed that memo. Plus, I spent the last month allowing our niece to do all manner of disgusting things to my best suits… I think I'm getting used to Kane women and their excretions," he answered. "Anyway, I just had a thunderbolt leave my office and need to talk to someone about it… you were handy."
"Gee… now I'm handy… is this the way you treat all your old lovers?" Kendall ask sharply.
"No… just the ones I'm madly in love with," he quipped. At her shocked expression he hastened to add, "A joke, Kendall… a joke."
She looked relieved, a little too relieved for his taste, and sipped her tea, "Okay, spill. What kind of thunderbolt visits casinos these days?"
"A thunderbolt named Hannah Nichols," Zach replied, settling back in his chair and enjoying the effect of his words.
"Hannah Nichols… as in Ethan's mother Hannah Nichols?" she asked excitedly. At Zach's nod she continued, "Where has she been? Why did she show up now? Has she been to see Ethan?"
"I'll answer all of your questions… one at a time… she had a story to tell… and it was… unsettling to say the least," Zach answered. "And you'll never guess the biggest news… it turns out that I'm not Ethan's father after all."
"WHAT?" Kendall nearly shouted. "No… wait a minute… Michael was too young… Michael's not… I mean who? … but the DNA test?"
Zach laughed dryly, "He's still a Cambias… but he's not my son… he's my brother."
Kendall choked on her tea, "Oh… my… isn't that just wonderful… I've really had the Cambias hat-trick. Three Cambias brothers and they all end up in my bed…"
"Not exactly… you were in my bed I believe," Zach answered calmly. "And no one will ever know unless you've decided to share it with them. I believe we agreed to never discuss or admit to our little… uh… tryst in Paris."
"I know… and I'm not discussing it with anyone but you…"
"Haven't you heard? I'm one of the evil Cambias brothers, I can't be trusted," Zach said with a smile.
"You're really enjoying this, aren't you?" Kendall said. "If you're going to terrorize me, you can do it after you get me some more tea… it's the first thing I've been able to keep down in days."
"Days? I thought stomach flu was only 24 hours…" Zach said as he refilled her cup and diluted it. "Maybe you need to see a doctor?"
"Unless you have a medical degree hiding in your deep and secret past, I'd appreciate it if you kept your opinions to yourself. Doctors are for the emergency room, and I'll be just fine," Kendall snapped in reply.
"So sorry… I forgot that you Kane women snarl when cornered… well, back to my little bombshell," Zach said. He couldn't seem to stop smiling, even though Kendall was not in nearly the good mood he was in. He'd have to think about this later—was it Kendall that made him feel good, or was it the news about Ethan?
While Kendall relaxed and sipped her tea, Zach explained all that he had learned from Hannah, and what Ethan was going to have to face. When she learned about the rape, she turned another shade of pale and he was afraid for a moment that she was going to run out of the room. However, she regained her composure and continued to listen quietly.
"You have no obligation to Ethan… even though he's not my son, he's still my family. But you know what it is like to be the child of rape… and how devastating it is to receive that news. I honestly don't know if Hannah will tell him the whole truth, or find a way around that piece of information… but I need to know how to help my… my brother," Zach finished.
"Zach… I don't know that you can help him… I do know that I can't help him… I can't go back to that crazy place again—I've worked too hard to get out of it," Kendall began.
Zach held up his hand, "No, I don't want you involved… I came looking for advice… a shoulder… and a friend."
"Well, you've got all three… as long as you keep pouring this tea… and maybe I could try some soup now?" Kendall replied.
"How about we start with some crackers… and work our way up to the soup?" He answered as he rooted around in her cabinet. After finding a box of crackers he took out a plate and brought her a few with a fresh cup of tea. "There you go… now… I have a confession to make."
"Oh… this ought to be good… your last confession landed you in jail," Kendall said with a twinkle in her eye.
"Very funny… I just found out that the man I thought was my son isn't… and all I feel is… relief. I care about him, but suddenly I'm not responsible… or guilty…" Zach answered.
"Considering the way you've treated each other… you both deserve to be relieved. I'm sure that Erica would have been thrilled to get news like that when we were at odds… but things change over time… you may still get a chance to be a part of his life… if you want to, that is," Kendall said softly.
"I want to… but now I know that I didn't desert my unborn child, that I didn't doom him to that indifferent upbringing by the Ramseys… and maybe one day I'll get to be a father… from the beginning—as it should be—with a woman I love," Zach said as if to himself.
"That's a good goal, Zach… you work on that. But leave me out of it… there's no way I'm doing anything to perpetuate the species… I'm too messed up myself and the last thing any kid needs is me for its mother," Kendall said stridently. "It's bad enough having to deal with Greenlee's daily maternity crisis, that's plenty for me. I'll just be Auntie Kendall and give 'em back to their parents when they get on my nerves."
"You don't fool me, Kendall. I've seen you with Miranda… you have a lot more maternal instincts than you give yourself credit for. And you know what it is to be unloved and unwanted… any child of yours will be very lucky indeed," Zach answered her softly. Noticing that she was looking tired, he helped her to her feet and walked her into the bedroom.
Despite her weak protests, he helped her into a nightgown and tucked her into bed, "I've seen you naked, Kendall, it's perfectly safe. Now just get some sleep and I'll check on you in the morning." He cleaned up the dishes, turned out the lights and locked up before leaving for his own empty condo. He didn't examine his motives for taking care of Kendall, and chose to ignore the sudden flare of passion that he had felt as he put her to bed by herself.
