Author's note: The song at the end of the chapter is Against All Odds, by Phil Collins.

August 15, 2003

Zach walked into the outer room of his office, and saw Beverly sitting at her desk, shoulders slumped, blotting her eyes. She was staring at a newspaper. "Beverly, is something the matter?" She straightened up, startled. "Oh, Mr. Slater. I do apologize for my unprofessional appearance. I didn't expect you in so early." Zach shook his head. "Beverly, I'm not concerned with appearances. I want to know if you are okay." She waved her hand. "Its nothing to do with me. I just saw something so sad about one of my favorite celebrities. I've read Erica Kane's autobiography dozens of times. Oh, what a woman. Anyway, it says here that some horrible man has been arrested for raping her daughter. It was just a month ago that her wedding came to a screeching halt because some lunatic claimed to be the groom's long lost daughter. And now this terrible thing happens." Beverly shook her head. Not one to comment on the salacious interests of the people around him, Zach smiled politely and continued heading towards his office. He was at the door, when Beverly made one final comment. "I hope this spoiled rich boy, Michael Cambias, rots in hell for what he did to that poor girl."

Zach made it to his desk without a stutter and picked up a newspaper with shaking hands. There was an article about how the heir to the Cambias millions was arrested yesterday on rape charges. It was in some town he had never heard of in Pennsylvania. Not content with the sparse newspaper coverage, he went online and did a search. The Pine Valley Bulletin had the most detailed information. What he read there could not have poleaxed him more if he had been slammed in the back of the head with a two by four. The person making the arrest was the chief of police – Anna Devane. He stared at the name for a long time, not sure if he was seeing things. Anna was working as law enforcement in some hick town in Pennsylvania? There went his favorite theory – that she went back to work for the WSB and was deep undercover in some Eastern block country. It was the only theory he had thought of in the past year that eased the pain of her not responding to his letter.

Zach walked to his window. He never wanted to contemplate the other possibility. That she did not return his feelings and couldn't be bothered to even say one last goodbye. So many times he wanted to google her name and find out where she was, what she was doing. But he knew that as soon as he had that information, he would be too tempted to call her. He wanted to stand by his decision to back off, and his promise in the letter that he would let her make the next move. Now he was seeing her name again, juxtaposed against that of his brother. She arrested him for rape. Zach bent over and rested his hands against his knees. He took deep breaths as he waited for the nausea to pass.

How the hell could this be happening? Why couldn't she have warned Zach that she was going to do this? She knew his telephone number by heart. She had called it enough times during that year. She had to have known that he would read about it and be devastated. Did she hate him? Did regaining her memory cause her to resent him in some way? Was that why she never responded to his letter? Zach sat down again. Was arresting Michael perhaps some sort of revenge? No, no, Anna was the most level-headed woman he knew. But surely she couldn't think that Michael would do such a horrible thing? Zach had told her so much about him. How could she possibly believe the daughter of some flaky diva over his brother? Zach kneaded his forehead. That wasn't fair. He knew very little about Erica Kane, and zero about her daughter. This could all be some misunderstanding – the girl was perhaps dazzled by Michael's good looks and millions of dollars. Of course, she had money, but not nearly as much as Cambias. Zach tried to think of some more scenarios. Anna is very intelligent and diligent – she would have done a thorough investigation before making an arrest. She also would have been above bribes. Zach leaned his head back. None of it made sense. It all seemed to point to either his brother or the woman he loved – once loved - undergoing a complete character change. On the one hand, he hadn't seen his brother in many, many years. On the other hand, there was no telling how Amanda would have changed when she went back to being Anna.

He would either have to go see his brother or go see Anna. When Michael helped him become Zach Slater, he had made Zach swear that he would never get in contact with him ever again. Michael said it would be too risky – the old man would find out. Besides, Michael was in a jail cell right now. Zach would have to visit him at the prison, and that would raise all kinds of alarm bells. It would have to be Anna. And it would have to be soon, because the preliminary hearing was set for the 22nd. Once again his hands were shaking as he did some more research online while he formulated his plan. Then he made the necessary phone calls to set the plan in motion.

Zach leaned his head back again, breathing deeply, in and out. He wouldn't need to pack, because he always had a bag at the ready. He traveled a lot these days. In just ten days he was headed to the Gold Coast in Australia to break ground on his fifth casino. He would be spending a lot of time there after that to oversee the construction phase. Unless the situation with Michael dragged out.

Zach was startled when the telephone rang. He picked up and Beverly told him that John Sebastian, a fellow boardmember at the hospital, was on the line. "Hello, John, what can I do for you?" He heard Sebastian clear his throat. "This is more a courtesy call than anything else. I don't foresee any problems. I just got word that we have a very prominent person who is being treated in the ICU for a heart attack. You've probably heard of Alexander Cambias? He was checked in a couple of days ago. He seemed to be doing fine, but he might have heard by now about what happened to his son back East. Michael Cambias was arrested for raping the daughter of a celebrity. All very lurid. Anyway, I'm going down there to make sure that he doesn't take a turn for the worse. If a man that rich dies in our hospital, it could look very bad." Zach closed his eyes. And the hits just keep on coming. "Thanks for giving me a heads up. Keep me posted."

What did he care if the old man kicked the bucket? What did he care? Why did he have to choose Las Vegas to die? Did he somehow know, psychically, that his not-so-dead son was here and wanted to torment me one last time? Zach stood up and went to the closet next to the tiny bathroom. He retrieved his overnight bag, then went downstairs to take a limo to the airport. If anyone asked, he was heading for New York City. But he planned to make a detour in the backwater town of Port Charles.

Anna sat at her desk, her head in her hands. David Hayward had just called with bad news. His examination of Bianca had turned up nothing that could be used in court. Having spent the night in jail, Michael was out on bail. Bile rose in her throat. She didn't know whether she should be more afraid of what Michael might do to Bianca, or what the whole town would be wanting to do to Michael.

She heard a swishing noise and looked up. Seeing nothing, she stood up and went to the door. She looked down and saw an envelope. It had been pushed under the door. She opened the door, and saw that whoever it was had already split. She shook her head and opened the envelope. The contents made the hair on her neck stand on end. It looked like a faxed copy of a handwritten message. "A. Meet me at the Port Charles Hotel. Seven PM tonight. Z." Whatever rush of joy she felt was fleeting. It was obvious that he wanted to see her for one reason, and one reason only. His precious baby brother. Anna gritted her teeth. Damn him. She crumpled the paper in a little ball. Like hell she would drop everything, especially the most sensitive case of her career, to go and have drinks in her old stomping grounds so that the man she loved – once loved – could ream her out for arresting Michael.

Anna threw the crumpled paper in the trash. Damn it to hell. She picked up the phone. While she was checking on flight schedules, Jackson Montgomery walked in the door. When she hung up, he gave her an incredulous look. "Where are you heading off to, now of all times?" She pressed her lips together for a moment, then shook her head. "I need to go to Port Charles for the night. Personal business. I'll be back tomorrow. I know you can handle things from this end, Jack." When he opened his mouth, she held up her hand. "I wouldn't be going if this weren't really important. Just make sure that no one lets Michael out of their sight. I need to go throw some things in a bag." She walked out of the office before Jackson could even formulate a word.

Anna sat at the bar, drinking a martini. Robert used to tease her about martinis, saying that she wanted to be just like James Bond. She would always retort that she preferred being Jane Bond. She was glad that she hadn't run into anyone she knew. She didn't feel like explaining her presence there. Why in the world would Zach choose this place? Maybe it wasn't as conspicuous as Pine Valley, but she was certainly known here.

She took a deep breath, and caught a faint scent. Obsession for Men. She'd given some to Zach as a gift, one time. He couldn't really still be wearing it? She turned around slowly. Zach was standing close behind her, already in her personal space. How had she not sensed him coming up behind her? She really was losing her touch. It had been over two years since she last saw him. He still had the power to turn her brain and her body into jelly. She was already wishing she had worn something more alluring than the severe black dress she had on. Her hair was in a sloppy bun with black lacquered chopsticks sticking through it. She probably looked ridiculous.

Zach thought he had never seen any woman look as beautiful as she did in that moment. She was just like when he first met her – attempting to hide her exotic beauty and passion behind a dark and severe façade. Considering how sad and remote she had been during that first meeting, he was surprised to see that she was even more so now. He could see in her eyes that she felt oppressed by the world. How could regaining her memory make her sorrows even worse? She had her share of troubled memories, but Robin had made him think that she'd been happy, too. Had remembering the loss of her husband, Robert, been that hard to take? Maybe so. He fought the overwhelming desire to take her in his arms and put a smile on her face the way he once had.

"Thank you for meeting me." She lifted her chin. "Well, it would be bad form to leave someone high and dry." He narrowed his eyes. "Yes, it certainly would." He looked up to see the bartender hovering. "Scotch, neat." He looked back at Anna. "So this is Port Charles. The place you called home before your accident. Why didn't you come back here?" She leaned back on the bar. "I did for a few months. I couldn't handle the memories, or the way the place had changed. I decided to go to Pine Valley and get to know my sister and nephew." He raised one eyebrow. "Alexandra has a son?" She shook her head. "No, the son of an older sister. Aidan. He relocated to the Valley, also." He nodded, thoughtfully. "So it was out with the old memories, in with the new." She turned and leaned her arms against the bar, taking a sip of her martini. "Unlike when I knew you, I'm now forced to live with every one of my memories - good and bad."

Zach leaned against the bar, accepting his Scotch from the bartender. "I was always curious about something. You told me about many of your dreams and how you wondered which ones were memories and which ones were just your imagination. I remember there was one series of dreams that we used to laugh about. The one with the alien ascending to his aircraft." Anna choked on her martini. Zach continued, "You insisted that it seemed too real to be a dream. Now that you have your memory back, what is the verdict?" Anna cleared her throat and attempted a shaky smile. "I remember those conversations. You laughed and told me that you occasionally dreamed you were a vampire, but that didn't mean you were one. Interesting coincidence, because Mac told me about some rumors floating around Port Charles concerning recent vampire attacks. Should I be worried about you?" Zach swallowed his scotch, his mouth quirking. "Sounds like a job for the X-files."

He set his drink on the bar and turned to look at Anna. "You know why I asked you to meet me?" There it was again, the oppressed look. "Yes, I know. And I know what you're going to say, so let me get right to my rebuttal. Its been years and years since you last saw your brother. Years that he was under the influence of your father. You've told me all about your father. Michael's a chip off the old block. Only he mutated into something much worse. Did you read about the other arrests made by my department? Fraud, conspiracy, industrial espionage. Multiple times, Zach." Zach shrugged. "Yes, I also read that the charges never stuck." She shook her head. "Your father made an appearance in town after the first arrest to publicly humiliate him. I'm not sure why your brother targeted the Kane women, but after that, he pounced on them with a vengeance. He's tried to steal Enchantment, Fusion. He attempted to rape both Erica and Kendall before he succeeded with Bianca."

Zach pointed to the carpet. "I don't know what evidence there was about the fraud charges, but the assault charges are strictly their word against his, and it looks to me like they had motive to try and get him thrown in jail by any means possible." Anna closed her eyes. "Crying rape is not something the Kane women would do - ever. Erica was raped when she was fourteen years old. Fourteen, Zach. She was so traumatized by it that she completely blocked out the fact that she gave birth to Kendall." Zach waved his hand. "Maybe not Erica, but Kendall has done it. I've done my research, Anna. Kendall claimed that her mother's own husband raped her." Anna sighed. "She was really messed up back then, Zach. And it doesn't matter, because it was Bianca that Michael raped. She is a beautiful, innocent, bright, intelligent, and very sensitive young woman. She is the last person to accuse someone falsely like this."

Zach gripped the banister of the bar. "You are a good judge of character, usually, so lets take your word for it that Bianca didn't do this deliberately. How do you know that this wasn't simply consensual sex, and Bianca was confused afterwards?" Anna cocked her head. "Because Bianca is a lesbian. She has been firm about her sexuality for several years now. There's no question about her consenting to it." Zach pushed away from the banister, walked away for a moment, then walked back. Then he started pacing back and forth. "There's no way. No way that my brother is a monster. This has to be a mistake somehow. Has to be. I'm going to get to the bottom of this, Anna. I'm going to find out the truth. Something which you apparently aren't interested in."

Anna tried to stay calm, but was failing miserably. "Zach. Look at me. Look at me!" He stopped, his eyes boring into hers. "I knew your brother was trouble from the moment I met him. He gave me a chill up my spine, the way your father did. I didn't want to believe that he is who he is. Michael is your brother. You told me so much about him. Zach, I wanted so badly to believe the best about him. But over and over again he proved just how much of a snake he really is. He's a horrible man, Zach. Look, he's out on bail, so I would suggest that you go visit him and see for yourself. You'll see that he has become a predator. He has to be stopped, and as much as I don't want to be the one who has to do it…I will. I will make sure he is put away for a very long time. In a cage. Where he belongs."

Zach stared at her. Two years of deafening silence could not begin to compare to this. His head was spinning too fast to form coherent thought. So this was it. Two years of slowly eroding hope has ended in this dreadful standoff. He became aware of a piano playing. He glanced into the dining room and saw couples dancing. He looked back at Anna. He was surely turning completely insane for what he was about to do. "Well, now that we are completely clear on where we stand….let's have one final dance, shall we?" Anna looked startled, and then wary. She gave an imperceptible nod, so he guided her into the next room and onto the small dance floor. The soloist, a young man seated at a baby grand, was beginning another song.

How can i just let you walk away
just let you leave without a trace
when i stand here taking every breath with you
you're the only one who really knew me at all

When Anna eased into his arms, he almost felt right with the world. Had he really been aching for the touch of her skin for two whole years?

How can you just walk away from me
when all i can do is watch you leave
'cause we shared the laughter and the pain
and even shared the tears

When he had asked her to dance, she'd been afraid. How could she possibly dance with him? How would she be able to get that close to him again, and then watch him walk away? Because that's what he would do. She didn't want to contemplate it. Just like the first time they made love, all she wanted to think about was the present.

you're the only one who really knew me at all
so take a look at me now
there's just an empty space
there's nothing left here to remind me
just the memory of your face

Zach looked down at her, with her head resting on his shoulder. He drank in every feature. He was going to lose her again. Not that he ever had her.

take a good look at me now
there's just an empty space
and you coming back to me
is against the odds
and that's what i got to take

She had truly done it this time. By giving Zach her unvarnished opinion about his brother, she had slammed the door to any sort of reconciliation. Well, she thought. I have closure now. The kicker of this whole heartbreak was that they couldn't say goodbye in peace. They would leave each other feeling just as empty and bitter as before.

I wish i could just make you turn around
turn around and see me cry
there's so much i need to say to you
so many reasons why
you're the only one
who really knew me at all

How was he going to be able to let her go? Like that damn singer said, she was the only one who really knew him, deeply. Completely. How could he possibly open himself up like this to another woman, ever? He always knew in his heart that he would go through life alone. But that wasn't bad enough, apparently. Fate had to show him six months of pure happiness, so that he could truly see how miserable and pathetic he was destined to be.

But to wait for you is all i can do
and that's what i've got to face
Take a good look at me now
'cause i'll still be standing there
and you coming back to me
is against all odds
that's the chance i've got to take

As the last notes of the piano were dying, Zach stepped away from Anna. He gazed at her for a long moment, then turned and walked out the door.