Author's Note: If anyone is wondering, Peter is dead, dead in this universe. Hope you're all having a great week.
"Spinelli, what's going on?" Jason asked when he answered the phone.
"The dastardly chairman of doom has snapped," Spinelli said.
"Are you talking about Cyrus?" Jason asked.
"Who else but that fiendish evil…" Spinelli started to respond.
"Spinelli, what happened?" Jason interrupted.
"The PCPD put out a warrant out for his arrest," Spinelli said, "Something to do with drugs in the harbor. He kidnapped Gladys Corbin. I was able to track them down to a warehouse near Pier 55. Brick and a team were able to save her and Brando. But Cyrus is now on the run with a gunshot wound."
"He'll probably try to find a doctor or nurse to patch him up," Jason asked, "How bad was he wounded?"
"I have no idea yet," Spinelli said, "But never fear the Jackal will not rest until he is sure the foul orchestrator of…
"Spinelli, give me the phone," Brick said, taking it from him, despite his protest.
"We just wanted you to be aware of the situation here," Brick said, "I assume Alcazar updated you regarding the volunteer who confessed to swapping Kellie's vests out and putting drugs in the donation under orders from Cyrus."
"He did," Jason said, "He'll probably look for a doctor or a nurse to patch him up. I should be there…"
"No, you need to be with your wife," Brick said, "And figuring out what happened in Nixon Falls and how Sonny ended up there. Spinelli and I have this here as well as Brando. Part of being the boss is knowing when to let your people handle things. We'll do what we need to in order to ensure Cyrus doesn't hurt anybody else. You can focus on your wife and Sonny."
"Do we know why Cyrus took Gladys?" Jason asked.
"To force Brando to prove his loyalty by killing her," Brick said, "And not over what you might think. Brando got Sasha Gilmore pregnant and apparently Cyrus has a thing for Sasha. He took that as insult when he found out."
"Is Sasha okay?" Jason asked, "Do you think she'll need protection?"
"Already working on It," Brick said, "Now how's Kellie?"
"Resting," Jason said, "The doctors are optimistic, but cautious, about a full recovery."
"That's good to hear," Brick said, "And what about Sonny?"
"Diana just let me know, they're on their way to the hospital," Jason said, "She got him released. He'll have to answer questions in Port Charles."
"But with no memory, it looks like the trail runs cold in regards to Julian Jerome," Brick said, "Ms. Miller will shut that down faster than you can blink. Hold on…"
Jason could hear Brick and Spinelli talking quietly but couldn't make out anything they said.
"Tell Kellie we're pulling for her," Brick said, "We got to go. We're getting reports of a potential hostage situation in a residential area."
"Keep me posted," Jason said.
Port Charles – Maxie's Apartment.
"I came over as soon as you called," Brooklyn said when she entered the apartment.
"You didn't bring Bailey with you?" Maxie asked as Felicia looked confused.
"You said it was urgent," Brooklyn said, "I was running errands while Olivia is babysitting. Did something happen with Peter?"
"He's dead," Maxie said.
Brooklyn looked shocked and skeptical.
"Is this legit?" Brooklyn replied, "He's not going to pop out of a coffin like just kidding guys, rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated."
"According to Mac, Anna confirmed it," Maxie said, "She identified the body. He took three bullets, one to the chest, while the building he set on fire burned around him."
"This is Peter we're talking about," Brooklyn said, "I wouldn't put it past him to have some escape plan in place and fake his death."
"There was no faking this," Maxie said, "I talked to Kellie's guard, he confirmed Peter was unresponsive and bleeding when he got Kellie out of the building."
"Kellie? As in Sonny's daughter," Brooklyn asked, "How did she get involved in this?"
"Kellie called in Peter's whereabouts," Felicia said, "And went to arrest him at Anna's request and got shot by Peter in the process."
"I'd say she got the better of him in the end," Brooklyn said, "Three bullets, she doesn't mess around either."
"Maxie, why is Brooklyn here," Felicia asked, "I thought we were going to bring your daughter home.
Brooklyn and Maxie looked at each other.
"I take it you told your mom you've known where your daughter is this whole time," Brooklyn asked.
Maxie nodded, "Mom, Bailey is Louise."
Felicia looked stunned and confused, "Wait..that can't be…but no…but that would mean…"
"I was never pregnant," Brooklyn said, "I faked a pregnancy to get my ELQ shares back from Valentin, but then it didn't go as planned…I knew about Maxie's situation with Peter."
"We had plan for me to give birth and Brooklyn would come get Louise," Maxie said, "But then Peter had his own plan.."
"And kidnapped you," Felicia said.
"I escaped and adapted,' Maxie said.
"Did Dr. Gatlin-Holt know?" Felicia asked.
Maxie shook her head, "The nurse Peter hired had hit him on the head when I called Brooklyn to find us."
"I took Bailey…Louise home," Brooklyn said, "Said I'd given birth unexpectedly in a hotel and that was that."
"I'm just so glad that my granddaughter's been safe this entire time," Felicia said, "Thank you, Brooklyn, whatever your reasons were…"
"The most important thing was keeping Louise safe from Peter," Brooklyn said, taking a deep breath, "I guess you'll be wanting to bring her home."
"Yeah," Maxie said, "I have to admit I'm still struggling to believe Peter's really gone."
"It's a lot to take in," Brooklyn said, "Whenever you're ready….we can make arrangements….I'll tell my family….and uh Valentine."
"Wait, Valentine doesn't know that Bailey isn't?" Felicia replied.
"We figured the less people who knew the better," Maxie said.
Felicia said taking a moment to process everything, "And he's in Nixon Falls with Anna from what Mac said."
Felicia was silent for moment, "I hate to be the one to say this, but I think we need to slow down for a moment."
"I know," Maxie said, "I have to think about what's best for Louise right now. I can't just rip her out of the only home she's know, from the people she knows. It's not like I haven't visited her when I could, but….."
"It's going to be an adjustment," Felicia said, "Maybe spend more time with her at the Quartermaines first, then bring her home. And then Valentine and your family, Brooklyn can…"
"Say goodbye," Brooklyn said, "They really do love her."
"Of course they do," Felicia said, "Who wouldn't love that little girl instantly?"
"Brooklyn, you've been everything my daughter needed," Maxie said, "when I couldn't be there for her. I don't know how I'll ever repay you. But you will always have a place in Louise's life."
"That's right," Felicia said.
Brooklyn nodded stoically, "I guess I should go break the news to my family. I'd call Valentin but if he's…"
"We should tell Valentin first before he hears it from anybody else," Maxie said.
Nixon Falls
Jason was sitting with Kellie who was more awake when Sonny arrived.
"Is it okay if I come in?" Sonny asked.
"Of course," Jason said, "How did things go at the station?"
"Ms. Miller arranged to have any further questions directed at me in Port Charles," Sonny replied.
"Are you okay?" Jason asked.
"As I can be I guess," Sonny replied, "For someone who doesn't remember who he is and was just told he runs a criminal empire."
"I said alleged criminal empire," Kellie said.
"How's the patient?" Sonny asked, "Doing what the doctors tell you I hope."
"So far," Kellie said, "They seem positive about my prognosis."
"Good, there's still a lot I'll need you to catch me up on," Sonny said.
"I'm going to step out for a few minutes," Jason said, "See if I can get Anna to give me any updates. Is that okay, Kellie?"
Kellie nodded.
"Do you mind staying with her?" Jason asked Sonny.
"Of course," Sonny said.
Jason left, leaving Sonny and Kellie to themselves.
Sonny took a deep breath as Kellie tried to figure out what to say next.
"Do you need anything?" Sonny asked, "food, water, more pain medication."
Kellie shook her head, "the nurse was by a little while ago. I'm not really hungry yet. Maybe later you could bring me a chocolate milk shake and French fries from the cafeteria."
"Whatever you want," Sonny said, "If that's what sounds good."
"It will," Kellie smiled.
"The nurse isn't going to yell at me for bringing you food," Sonny asked.
"No," Kellie said, innocently, "No one will."
Sonny looked at her skeptically, "Why do I get the feeling you're trying to pull something over on me?"
Kellie shrugged, "Beats me. I'll ask Johnny to get it if you don't want to."
"No, I'll get it," Sonny said, "Just let me know when you think you might want it."
"Thank you," Kellie replied, "Could you see if my phone is anywhere here. I want to call my kids and make sure they're okay."
"Sure," Sonny said, looking around the room, "I bet you can't wait to get back home to them in Port Charles."
"They're actually not in Port Charles right now," Kellie said, "An enemy went after my youngest daughter in Port Charles. They've been at the island casino in Puerto Rico since at least until things calm down. They're with their Grandpa Charles and Grandma Monica."
"Jason's parents?" Sonny asked.
"Monica is Jason's mom," Kellie said, "Charles is my father-in-law from my first marriage. Though he and Monica are together."
"What happened with your first marriage?" Sonny asked.
"Leukemia," Kellie replied.
"That must have been rough," Sonny said, finding a bag of Kellie personal effects and her phone, "I didn't mean to bring up…."
"It's fine," Kellie said, "We had a great life, once I stopped pushing him away. Unfortunately, with the leukemia, we had time to prepare, knew eventually we weren't going to win….and I just almost left the boys and Alyssa without either parent."
"Hey, look at me," Sonny said, sitting in the chair next to her, "You're a fighter and you survived. Dwelling what might have happened isn't going to help you right now."
"Maybe I should have listened to Johnny and waited," Kellie said, "But the cops weren't showing up and I knew how dangerous Peter was, how many times he'd already escaped…"
"You're weren't wrong to trust your ability or Johnny's ability to handle the situation," Sonny said, "He might have actually killed someone."
"Wait, what?" Kellie replied, "That is not what would have expected you to say. If you remembered who you are, you and I would be yelling at other over my decision to handle the situation at all."
"I can't say that I'm not tempted to tell you that," Sonny said, "But you obviously know what you're doing in these types of situations, I saw the chaos, some of what was you fighting against that Peter. You gave hell that's for sure. I doubt you were expecting a burning building when you walked in."
"Well, no," Kellie said, " But Peter is psycho, or rather was…"
"You adapted, you adjusted, you fought," Sonny replied, "You rescued Phyllis and….and Nina. You couldn't have done anything more. That bastard can't hurt anyone ever again. The only thing you need to worry about is resting, recovering, and seeing those beautiful kids of yours."
"I know," Kellie said, "If Peter had killed me and left my kids without…"
"He didn't," Sonny said, "And based on what you told me, that's always danger for you isn't it. Because of me and the businesses I built, you're in a kind of danger of being a target"
"It's true," Kellie said, "I was a spy and even before that and meeting you, attracting enemies."
"Those enemies," Sonny asked, "Are they still around?"
"No, they're dead," Kellie said.
"So if it weren't my choices," Sonny said, "You might be safer by now."
"Maybe not," Kellie said, "It ultimately took your help and resources to deal with…."
"This is a lot more complicated than I would have thought," Sonny replied.
"Always has been," Kellie said as Nina came rushing into the room.
