Mikhail was getting to the point where if he had heard of a drink before, he understood the English word for it.

Toby came up to the bar. "Let me have a coke, Mikhail," he said.

Three women who bore some resemblance came in and sat at the bar.

Colleen, Melinda and Mary Ellen Delaney frequently got together after work to relax. Colleen was a counselor, Melinda a domestic relations lawyer, and Mary Ellen a reporter. The three sisters were close in age and had always been close.

"If they charge this juvy as an adult, how come you can't print her name?" Melinda asked Mary Ellen.

Toby could hear them talking, and he half listened.

"We could, but sometimes we don't just because we are required to, and it avoids complaints."

"It's considerate," Colleen said.

"Even a newspaper is considerate at times," Melinda said.

"Sure," Mary Ellen grinned. "Especially the Port Charles Gazette. The public won't suffer. She's not a major criminal or anything. It's not as if people have to look out for her in a big way."

"She even helped avoid a big accident," Colleen observed.

"That's true," Mary Ellen said. "I think it's kind of overdoing it to charge her with Driving Under the Influence. Technically, she did it. Nobody ever looks at the technicalities from that side. They're always saying someone gets off on a technicality, but here, someone is being charged on a technicality."

"I hope the penalty at least reflects that," Melinda said. "They could make it minimal. Community service, say."

Clay came over to them. "Sitting here instead of at one of the tables?" he asked his three sisters.

To Mary Ellen, he said, "I'm not going to tell you her name."

Toby listened more. Somehow, the conversation got more interesting when it involved the bartender.

Mary Ellen laughed. "I know who it is, Clay," she said. "She is charged as an adult. I just didn't print her name."

"Then why'd you print mine?"

"You didn't do anything wrong!"

"Now everyone asks me about it."

"Tries to find out who she is, eh? Well, how does she cover this with her mother?"

"The car broke down."

"And you took her home."

"Yes. Simple, really."

"It still makes me nervous she's not 18 yet," Melinda said.

"Just a few more weeks," Clay said.

"Let me take this order," Mikhail said to Clay.

"You're welcome to them," Clay grinned.

The three sisters gave their orders to Mikhail.

"He's so cute, that bartender," Mary Ellen said. "He speaks a little better English every week."

"You talk to him?" Colleen asked.

"Not that much," said Mary Ellen. "Enough to know he knows a new word or two."

"And to observe that he's cute," Melinda said, smiling. "I like his dark hair and dark eyes. Where's he from?"

"His name's Mikhail," Mary Ellen said.

"Not Miguel?"

"Hey, Mikhail," Mary Ellen said. "Tell my sister your name."

"Mikhail," said Mikhail to Melinda.

"Do you come from Russia?" Melinda asked.

"Duh," said Mary Ellen. "Like Sergei, the owner, Melinda."

"Yes," Mikhail said, politely. "I American now."

"Oh, yes," Colleen laughed. "You're an immigrant."

"Yes," Mikhail said. "Legal."

The three sisters laughed. "Don't worry, Mikhail," Colleen said, thinking Mikhail wouldn't understand her, only her sisters, "you're cute enough to stay even if you aren't!" Her sisters cracked up anew. Mikhail smiled a little, going along with the humor without knowing what was funny.

Toby went to his Mom's house, to find the Port Charles Gazette for yesterday. There were none left in the vending machines. It wasn't a high run paper. He found the article. It had a byline of Mary Ellen Delaney.

He read the article. It was a weird story, really. But nothing really bad had happened. There was more than one girl in the world who be turning 18 in a few more weeks. Taryn just mentioned it so often, was all. He had this on the brain. He wondered if it was Clay's sister. But Clay had not seemed to be talking about a sister. How she was going to cover it with her mom resounded in his head, too. But that would be true of any 17 year old girl. But then why didn't they say "parents" or "Mom and "Dad?" It was a big coincidence that this girl had a mother only at home.

And it all sounded like something Taryn would do.

But that didn't mean she was the one who had done it.

It was just strange.