Chapter 28
She looked peaceful, Audrey thought. She could almost pretend Elizabeth was just sleeping in her room rather than lying in a hospital bed hooked up to wires and tubes. She grasped the unconscious girl's hand needing to reassure herself that Elizabeth wasn't dead.
It had been three days since Elizabeth was shot and she hadn't regained consciousness. The doctors were keeping her sedated to give her body time to recover from the surgery. They hadn't been sure she would survive the surgery, but Audrey had known better. Elizabeth was a fighter. She wasn't going to let a gunshot wound keep her down.
A tear fell down Audrey's cheek thinking about what Elizabeth had to wake up to. Lucky was dead and she was badly injured. Elizabeth would be in intense pain both physical and emotional. Audrey remembered how hard Elizabeth had taken Lucky's first death. She had turned wild, going to bars and hanging out with Jason Morgan. Audrey had tried to warn her about what a dangerous man he was, but Elizabeth hadn't listened. Now look at where that got her. She was fighting for her life.
That monster killed Lucky and shot Elizabeth. Audrey was glad he was in jail. She didn't want Elizabeth to worry about him coming after her again. The police had put a guard at the door to insure that wouldn't happen. Not that Jason himself could touch her in jail, but Taggert was afraid Sonny Corinthos would try something to remove the only witness to the shooting.
Audrey couldn't believe Elizabeth had called these people friends - these men who would kill her without a second thought. She couldn't believe the gall of Sonny Corinthos asking her how Elizabeth's was. She doubted Mr. Corinthos cared one bit about Elizabeth's condition. He was more concerned about his employee in jail than Elizabeth.
"No, Jason," Elizabeth whispered.
Audrey leaned down to see if she was waking but realized Elizabeth was just dreaming. She brought her hand up to Elizabeth's forehead. She hated that even in sleep Jason Morgan was tormenting Elizabeth. She promised herself that as soon as Elizabeth was able, Audrey would take her away from Port Charles and protect her from that horrible man.
Elizabeth was screaming but no sound was coming out. She saw Lucky and Jason. She wanted to run to Jason, but she couldn't. She looked down and realized her feet weren't moving. They were rooted to the ground and she couldn't lift them. She tried to scream again. She couldn't let Lucky hurt Jason. She couldn't. She wouldn't be able to live if Jason died. In slow motion she saw the bullet leave the gun hading straight for Jason. As hard as she tried she couldn't move. She could just stand and watch as the bullet entered Jason's body causing him to fall back to the ground. He was dying, and she could do nothing.
"Jason!" She opened her eyes and tried to sit up. The intense pain stopped her.
"Elizabeth, shhh, it's okay," she heard her grandmother's voice but couldn't see her. "Jason can't hurt you anymore."
Elizabeth squeezed her eyes shut. She tried to raise her hand but the pain was too much. Where was she? Why did she hurt? Where was Jason? Was he all right? "Where am I?"
Audrey rested a hand on Elizabeth's shoulder. "You're at the hospital. You were shot, but you're going to be okay."
Elizabeth looked around as much as her head could allow. She saw the IVs and machines verifying what her grandmother told her. She was in the hospital. She'd been shot. For a second she couldn't remember how she could have been shot, then it all came back - Lucky, Jason, the gun.
"Jason! Where's Jason?" She needed to know if Lucky had shot him too. She didn't want to think that Jason was dead.
Audrey tried to calm her. "Jason can't hurt you anymore. You don't have to worry."
No, she couldn't mean Jason was dead, Elizabeth thought. Jason couldn't be dead. She would know. "Don't lie to me. Jason's not dead. Tell me where he is."
Audrey was stunned. She hadn't expected this kind of reaction from her granddaughter. "Elizabeth, you need to calm down. You don't want to pull any stitches. You're still recovering from surgery. Your heart is still weak. You don't want to cause a set back."
Elizabeth refused to listen. She tried to sit up again ignoring the pain. She needed to make sure Jason was all right. She wasn't going to calm down until she saw him. "I want to see Jason. Where is he? Take me to his hospital room. I want to make sure he's going to be okay."
Audrey reached for the call button. She needed help to stop Elizabeth from hurting herself. A nurse ran into the room going to the opposite side of the bed. She injected a sedative into the IV. Within seconds Elizabeth stopped struggling and was asleep.
Audrey was stunned. Something wasn't right. Elizabeth was worried about Jason. She was ready to injure herself to find out where he was. Elizabeth hadn't even asked about Lucky. What kind of control did Jason Morgan have over Elizabeth to make her forget about Lucky? Audrey knew she'd made the right decision. She was going to get Elizabeth away from Jason Morgan. She didn't care what she had to do.
Elizabeth woke the next day to hear shouting in her room. She glanced around remembering she was in the hospital. She'd been shot. She remembered getting upset the last time she woke, and her grandmother getting a nurse to sedate her. She wasn't going to cause any trouble this time. She needed to know what had happened that day at the park. She needed to make sure Jason was all right. She needed to convince Lucky to get the help he needed. None of that would happen if she were unconscious. She turned her attention to the two people still arguing in her door way.
"I don't care what you say. Jason did not shoot her," Emily yelled. "He is not capable of doing that."
"My God, can you hear yourself?" Nikolas reciprocated. "Your brother is a killer. That's his job."
Elizabeth was confused. Who did Jason shoot? How could he have shot someone if he was in the hospital fighting for his life? Nikolas must be mistaken. "Nikolas," she called to him quietly.
"My brother would never hurt her. He would protect her with his life," Emily continued arguing. She couldn't hear Elizabeth over the yelling.
"Emily," Elizabeth tried a little louder.
"Oh, really. Then explain why she almost died, and he didn't have a scratch on him," Nikolas countered.
"Nikolas. Emily. You guys stop shouting," Elizabeth yelled as loud as she could, causing pain to shoot throughout her body.
Her friends immediately abandoned their argument and rushed to her bedside.
"Elizabeth, how are you?" They both spoke at once.
She remained still allowing the pain to become a dull ache. "I'm going to be okay. What are you two arguing about?"
They turned to each other then back to her.
"Nothing, it's not important," answered Nikolas.
Emily agreed, "Yeah, you don't have to worry about it. You just need to concentrate on getting well."
Elizabeth could tell they were hiding something. "You were arguing about Jason. Is he all right? What room is he in?"
Nikolas didn't understand her question. "What do you mean 'what room is he in'? Do you mean in the hospital?"
Elizabeth gave him an exasperated look. "Of course I mean the hospital. Where else would he be with a gunshot wound?"
Emily shared Nikolas' confusion. "What gunshot wound? Jason wasn't shot, you were."
Elizabeth looked to Nikolas for confirmation. "He's not hurt? He wasn't shot?" She sighed in relief when he shook his head. Jason wasn't hurt – more importantly, he wasn't dead. "Then where is he? Why isn't he here? What were you arguing about?"
"Jason's in jail," Nikolas said. He couldn't believe Elizabeth was concerned about the man that shot her.
Elizabeth wondered if her hearing need checking. She couldn't have heard Nikolas correctly. "Why is he in jail?"
"That's where they put violent criminals," he replied.
"Nikolas don't," Emily's words were laced with warning. She didn't want him upsetting Elizabeth. She didn't know if Elizabeth was strong enough to deal with what was going on.
"I'm sorry, Emily, but I'm tired of the two of you gushing over the great Jason Morgan. You both refused to see who he really is. You are arguing with me telling me he isn't capable of killing when we both know he's killed more people than he could probably count. Elizabeth is so brainwashed her first thoughts when she wakes up are about the person who shot her rather than her boyfriend." He gave Elizabeth a pointed look. "Have you even thought about Lucky? Do you even care about what happened to him?"
The image of Lucky's hate-filled face came to her. Did she care what happened to Lucky? As much as he hurt her, she did still care about him. He was her first love. She wanted to help him, to find the right doctors that could make him better. "Of course, I care about Lucky. He needs professional help. Maybe you could help me convince Luke and Laura to get him the attention he needs."
Nikolas looked at her as if she had lost her mind. "Lucky's dead, Elizabeth," he said harshly. "Jason killed him."
Elizabeth heard Nikolas but couldn't seem to understand the words he had spoken. It took a moment for his words to finally sink in. Lucky was dead. Jason killed him. Tears formed in her eyes. She cried for her first love. Guilt filled her. If she had only seen how troubled Lucky was maybe she could have gotten him the help he needed and none of this would have happened. Instead she'd been shot and Jason had killed Lucky in self-defence.
Emily sat beside her and gave her a gentle hug. She didn't want to hurt Elizabeth more than she already was. She didn't know what to say. What do you say to a woman whose boyfriend had died for the second time, murdered by her best friend?
"This is all my fault," Elizabeth said wiping away a tear. "I should have known he needed help. I should have been honest with him. It didn't have to be this way."
Nikolas' mouth twitched. "This is not your fault. Jason Morgan is an animal. He deserves to be punished for what he did. I hope the DA asks for the death penalty."
"Nikolas, please," Emily didn't want to hear that anymore. For four days that's all he could say. She had tried, but he refused to listen to her. He wouldn't accept that Jason hadn't killed his brother. He sided with the evidence even if it was circumstantial.
Elizabeth couldn't believe the hate she heard coming from Nikolas. If she closed her eyes she could swear Lucky was in the room. "Jason was defending himself. He shouldn't be punished for that."
Her statement shocked both of her friends.
"Have you lost your mind?" Nikolas was livid. He didn't care that Elizabeth was lying on a hospital bed. What kind of blinders did both Emily and Elizabeth have about Jason? "That man shoots you and kills your boyfriend in cold blood, and you say he was defending himself."
"What is going on here?" Bobbie came running into the hospital room. "Nikolas, what are you doing? Elizabeth is still recovering from her surgery. She doesn't need you yelling at her. If you can't calm down, I'll have the police officer remove you from this room."
Nikolas couldn't look at Elizabeth. He wanted to shake her until she saw the truth. He clenched his hands. He needed to leave before he did something he would regret. Without another word he stalked out the room leaving the three women stunned. They had never seen him like that before.
"Elizabeth, are you okay?" Emily was worried this was all too much for her. Jason would never forgive her if something else happened to Elizabeth. She realized now that this was what Jason had tried to warn her about. He knew something like this would happen and wanted to make sure she was there to help Elizabeth through it.
Elizabeth was lost in thought. Did Nikolas say Jason shot her? Why would he think that? Was that why Jason was in jail? Did they think he shot her and then killed Lucky? She needed to talk to Taggert to set the record straight. "I'm fine. Emily, you don't have to worry about me. I'm not going to break if Nikolas yells at me." She squeezed her friend's hand to reassure her then focused on the nurse checking her IV. "Bobbie, can you call Taggert and tell him I want to make my statement?"
Bobbie wasn't sure Elizabeth could handle any more conflict today. She was about to decline when she saw the determination in the younger woman's face. She could see Elizabeth wasn't going to take no for an answer. "I'll speak to the policeman outside."
"Could you also call Alexis for me and tell her to come too?" She knew Jason trusted Alexis with all his legal problems. If Jason had been arrested, Alexis was his lawyer. Elizabeth knew it would be a good thing to have her present when she spoke to Taggert.
"Sure," Bobbie replied. "But I don't want you to overexert yourself. You need to rest to give your body a chance to heal. I want to you sleep for a while. I'll get both Taggert and Alexis to come by after lunch okay."
Elizabeth hadn't realized just how tired she was until Bobbie spoke. She needed to be alert when she made her statement. She shifted her gaze to Emily. As tired as she was, she wanted to know about Jason. How was he doing? Why was he in jail when he should be out on bail? What was she thinking? He shouldn't have been arrested in the first place. He was only defending himself, wasn't he? She needed to know everything that had happened after she was shot and since she been in the hospital.
Emily could see Elizabeth had lots of questions for her, but she knew Elizabeth needed to rest. Emily wasn't sure she could answer any of her questions anyway. Taggert was keeping everything very hush-hush. She figured he was doing everything he could to make sure Sonny couldn't make any of the evidence disappear. Taggert wouldn't even let her see Jason. She couldn't believe it. What did he think she was going to do, slip her brother a nail file or attack the guards so Jason could escape?
"I haven't been able to see him, but Alexis tells me he's okay," she answered Elizabeth's silent question. "He's worried about you. I know he'll be happy to hear you're awake. Alexis is the only one who's been able to see him. She knows more about what's going on than I do. Why don't I let you sleep, so you'll be strong enough to deal with Taggert when he comes? They'll be here before you know it, and Alexis can answer all of your questions. I'll come back later, okay, if you're not too tired."
Elizabeth agreed and gave Emily a small wave as she left the room. She was tired but she didn't want to go to sleep. She didn't want to dream about Jason dying. If she closed her eyes, she knew she would she Lucky's face staring back at her. He was dead and Jason was in jail because of her. This was all her fault. She didn't deserve either man's love. She needed to make everything right. She couldn't save Lucky but she could Jason. She could get Jason out of the nightmare he was living and then she would leave Port Charles. Carly was right. She wasn't good enough for him. He deserved someone who would love him and put him first. All she had done was played with his emotions and cause him to fight for his life. Jason was better off without her, she thought before closing her eyes and falling asleep.