A/N: SoapNet watchers – I know it's obvious but newsflash for you. I despise The Gift. Therefore, in retaliation, I will (for the time being) continue to have Rafe kick Caleb's ass at every opportunity.

Just want to keep you informed. That is all. :o) Until 38! xox - G

Chapter Thirty-seven

"Sleep tight Clo." Grant whispered with a smile as he pressed a kiss to her cheek. He walked to the other end of the bed and gently slipped her shoes off her feet.

"mmm." Chloe murmured as she felt him and stirred. She slowly shifted to sit up. "Grant? I'm sorry. Is it time to go yet?"

He bit back a chuckle as he replied. "Go where?"

She rubbed at her eyes and blinked at him, realizing that all the lights were dimmed. "To dinner. Is Becky here to babysit yet? I have to get ready." She said as she swung her legs over the side and moved to stand.

Grant kissed her quickly and caused her to fall back down onto the bed. "Honey." He said with a laugh. "We already went."

"What?" Chloe blinked at him again, her voice confused. "No we didn't."

"Yes." Grant insisted. "We did." He leaned close and whispered into her ear. "You fell asleep at the table."

"NO!" She gasped. And all of the sudden, it began to come back to her. She looked at him with tears in her eyes. "Oh Grant. I'm sorry…"

"Shh." He whispered as he touched a hand to her cheek. "No. I'm sorry. I didn't realize how exhausted you were."

Chloe was going to protest again, but the truth was she was exhausted. "I didn't realize how hard this would be." She said as she stared at her lap.

"Me either." Grant replied as he lifted her chin and made her meet his eyes. He was shocked when he saw how sad she looked. Tears ran slowly down her cheeks and he wiped them away with his thumbs. "Clo? What's the matter?"

She took a steadying breath before she answered. "I love her. I do. Melissa is the most perfect thing I've ever seen in my life. And she's so happy Grant. You know her – she barely even cries."

"Yes. She is the best ever." He replied with a smile. "She's just like her mom." He added in a whisper.

"But sometimes…sometimes I'm just so tired and I think that if someone else could just take care of her for like five minutes. It's like if I could just have five minutes by myself I think.…" She began to cry harder. "Oh my God. Listen to me. I'm terrible. I'm a terrible mother…"

All at once Grant felt incredibly guilty. He drew Chloe close and held her tight. "NO. No. You most certainly are not." He whispered as he ran a hand over her back, desperate to soothe her. "Chloe. You are an incredible mother. You amaze me." He pressed a kiss to her hair before he continued. "I'm sorry. I had absolutely no idea you've been feeling this way. It's been like this for a while hasn't it?"

His words were sweet but as much as it would take a bit more to convince Chloe of that, she couldn't help but feel relieved that she finally admitted the truth. "The last few weeks have been the worst." She sniffled as she continued to cling to him. "I think it just all caught up with me at once."

"OK. Shh. Shh." Grant rocked her back and forth a bit in his arms. He pulled back and stared into Chloe's eyes, happy to see that it seemed she had stopped crying. "Listen to me." He said with a smile. "I think I have an idea."

Despite the ache in her heart he looked so incredibly cute she cracked a small smile. "Oh you do – do you?"

"Yes." He whispered as his lips touched hers. "I do."

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"OK. Let's go." Rafe glared at Caleb, signaling for him to walk ahead.

Caleb shook his head in response. "This is your gig. You lead the way Slayer." He replied, his feet planted solidly on the ground. It didn't look like he was about to go anywhere anytime soon.

"Oh no. I insist." Rafe countered. "I learned the hard way never to turn my back to you." He added bitterly.

"You're still annoyed about that aren't you?" Caleb chuckled despite how off balance he felt. It was taking every ounce of his remaining power to hold himself together.

"Yeah. Just a tad. I was kinda enjoying my life until you ended it." Rafe said with a shrug.

"Remember who it is you're talking to Rafe. Your life – in a word – sucked back then." He sighed heavily. "I actually did you a favor."

"And now I'm doing one for you." Rafe snapped back. "So. Let's have at it. Call them out." He gestured wildly with his arms as he continued. "Do your little "All the powers of darkness heed my call" chant and let's get this nightmare over with."

"You continue to misquote me." Caleb sighed louder.

Rafe took a handful of Caleb's shirt and in one swift movement pounded him against a nearby wall, his patience wearing incredibly thin.

His eyes glittered with rage as he stared deeply into Caleb's. "I am not asking you anymore. I am telling you. Either we clean up this mess right now or I'm telling you I will leave you to the wolves, Caleb. I'll go back to Port Charles so fast your head will spin. And in record time, you'll be playing second to one of your newest creations." He drew him close and slammed him back again. "Is that what you want? Because just say the word and I'm gone."

Caleb's eyes began to glow a soft shade of red. His voice was a dangerous whisper as he replied. "You promise?"

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"Then Papa tried to kiss her awake and that didn't work either." Rachel said with a shake of her head. She sat snuggled up on Alison's lap while Kyle sat nervously across the room from them. "Isn't that supposed to work?" She asked innocently as she stared up at her.

"Well, yes sweetie. But sometimes things don't work out exactly like they should." Alison replied. She gently tucked a strand of Rachel's dark hair behind her tiny ear. "Your father will be back soon and then we'll all start working on making your mom all better. OK?"

"OK." Rachel sniffled. She saw something small, black and furry crossing the floor and changed the subject, as only very small children can. "Did you meet my kitten?" She asked as she scrambled off of Alison's lap and went to pick up the cat.

"No. I don't think I have." Alison replied with a smile.

Rachel stroked the kitten's fur gently as she walked back to her. "Her name is Missy. It's short for Mischief."

Alison laughed a bit as she took the cat from Rachel's arms. How appropriate. The words, "She's very pretty." were coming out of her mouth when the cat hauled off and scratched her arm.

"Ouch!" Alison gasped as she dropped the cat and grabbed her arm, feeling the sting immediately. It figured. She thought to herself. Just another reminder of where she was at the moment. She should have known better.

"Bad Mischief." Rachel said, her little voice stern as she watched the cat scurry off. "No milk for you."

"I'm going to go and find her." Rachel regally announced as she went to search.

"OK Honey." Alison called after her. She had to admit the little girl was incredibly cute and a piece of work. Gazing down at her injured arm she winced as she ran a hand over the scratch.

Hearing Alison's cry, Kyle raced over to her side. "Oh my God." He said, his face draining of color as he saw her wound. "You're hurt. He's going to kill me."

"Oh Kyle relax." Alison sighed as she went to look for a bandage, or something to stem the flow of blood at least. It was no where near life threatening but the cat had some set of claws. She went into the bathroom and was just about to give up when she found a box of band-aids.

Kyle was busy wringing out a wet washcloth, fumbling as he moved to press it to her arm.

Alison sighed again. The poor kid was trying but honestly, he was just making it worse. "Kyle. Kyle. KYLE!" She finally yelled to get him to stop. She took the washcloth from his hand. "That's it. Go." She said as she shoved him none too gently towards the door.

"Go where?" He asked, his eyes wide.

"I don't know. Anywhere but here." She rolled her eyes, completely exasperated. "I know. I KNOW. You have a job to do but you are suffocating me."

Alison'seyes and voice softened when she saw the look on his face. "I'm sorry. Everyone's a bit tense around here. I have an idea." She said as they moved back towards the hall. "Go give Becky a call. She'll be thrilled to hear from you."

His heart leapt at the thought but still he insisted. "Mrs. Kovich. I can't leave…"

"You won't be leaving. There's a phone right over there." Alison pointed to a table at the end of the hallway. "Go on sweetie. I'm fine. I'm going to go sit with Livvie now." She caught the look in his eyes, which reminded her immediately of her husband.

Sighing loudly she moved towards Livvie's bedroom door. "I'll stay right there. I promise." She said solemnly. Kyle didn't like it, but the prospect of hearing Becky's voice had him walking reluctantly away.

As Alison made her way towards Livvie's bedside, the irony was not lost on her. She had a hazy memory of Livvie visiting her in the hospital. She was once again reminded that there was a time when she herself had been unconscious for days on end. And when she woke up she was shocked to find her life was turned completely upside down.

In her case, the cause of all that chaos was Livvie. And though a piece of her heart still ached Alison prayed that when Livvie woke up, she'd be able to go on living her life as she knew it.

Because, deep down,something was telling her that perhaps it was already too late.

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"So what's your idea?" Chloe said with a sniffle, finally calming down.

"You pick a day, any day next week. I'll take care of Melissa. You…" Grant said as he leaned closer. "…will spend the entire day doing whatever you want." He leaned close and punctuated his words with kisses. "Sleep late. Go to the spa. Have someone pamper you all day."

He was distracting her terribly, but she still understood his words. "All day? You'll watch her?"

"Sure."

Chloe gave him a pitying look and rested her hand on the side of his face. "Aw. That's so sweet Grant."

He knew that tone of voice well. "You sound like you don't believe I can."

She started to laugh. "I know that you can. I'm just worried about how this house will look when I get back."

"It'll be fine." Grant insisted.

"Oh I'm sure you think so." Chloe replied. Despite how entertaining she was finding this conversation she began to yawn loudly. Exhaustion was taking hold again as her eyelids fluttered closed.

"As a start, I don't want you to get up tonight. If she wakes up - I'll get her. You just get some sleep Clo. OK?"

"I'm awake now. It's alright." She said though her body began to betray her. Her voice was groggy and her head began to nod.

Just like how she'd fallen asleep at the table Grant thought as he gazed at her and smiled.

Determined to give her the rest she deserved, Grant gently urged her to lay back down. "I'm serious Chloe." He said as he kissed her softly.

"OK…" She mumbled as he head hit the pillow.

"I love you." He whispered against his lips.

"love…" Was all he heard in reply as Chloe once again fell fast asleep.

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"You want this fight?" Rafe said as he released Caleb and took a good four steps away from him. "You want to handle this on your own? BE. MY. GUEST." He stared at him as he added. "But don't come crying to me when the inevitable happens."

The possibilities made him shiver but still Caleb heard himself ask. "And what will that be?"

"There are a hundred scenarios but here's what I think is the most possible." Rafe crossed his arms in front of his chest as he continued. "When you went on your little spree I'm guessing you picked on those who were pretty weak. And now that they have some sort of power, I'm guessing they like it. And when they realize that as they gain strength you lose it, it's only a matter of time…"

"Before what?" Caleb asked.

"Before they think they're entitled to all that you have." Rafe replied, knowing that Caleb already knew the answer.

He couldn't help but feel a tinge of satisfaction as he went on. "Are you ready to give it all up Caleb? Ready to move out of your home? Ready to watch some half rate, amateur excuse for a vampire live your life? And I mean live it. They will take away everything you have."

Rafe was relentless, holding nothing back as he continued his attack. "To watch him with Olivia. To see him raising Rachel. Is that what you want?" He prompted. "Are you just going to give it all up?"

When the only response he got from Caleb was silence he finally finished. "Because you say the word and I'll leave you to it."