Chapter Three
Tip tap tappity tip.
Sitting otherwise still in her car, Courtney nervously tapped her nails on the wheel. It had been fifteen minutes since the accident, and AJ still wasn't here.
Stupid loser. He probably left me here to rot. Once a bastard, always a bastard.
Her headache was returning, but she hadn't brought along any of her pills. Sighing in frustration, she pulled a cough drop from the dashboard and leaned back in the leather seat. The CD player attachment caught her eye and she pulled out her disk holder, flipping through the disks until she found her Frank Sinatra CD. Slipping it into the drive, she leaned back and closed her eyes.
"Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away
If you could use some exotic booze
There's a bar in far Bombay
Come fly with me, let's fly, let's fly away"
"Mr. Quartermaine, we'll be taking Ms. Webber to the hospital now," the young ambulance attendant informed him. "Will you be accompanying us?"
AJ looked numbly around. The intersection had quickly been closed off, police tape wrapped around the lamp posts and detour signs on all four streets. A large fire engine closed off one side of the intersection, and police cars were strewn nearby in the same fashion.
Elizabeth's Acura had been pulled away from the lamppost, and heavy metal cutters had been used to tear off the door in order to extract her. Glass from the headlights was still littered on the pavement, and police investigators were already inspecting the scene of the accident. Tire treads were being examined, as well as the damage to the car, all in hopes of deciphering the force of impact and any other clues identifying the driver.
Guilt welled up within him, and AJ fought off the tears that invaded his eyes. She was gone. And it was his fault; he'd let her get away. And now he'd have to pay the price. With his guilt, his unyielding conscience. He didn't even know he had one of those.
He turned back to the attendant, who was barking orders to the other paramedics. Elizabeth's small frame, already strapped safely onto a stretcher, was being slowly loaded into the cab of the ambulance. Damn.
"I'm coming, too."
The young man nodded and motioned him into the cab, walking around to the drivers' side and pulling himself in.
He switched on the lights and siren as the other attendants quickly began slamming the doors. "Two minutes to the hospital."
Jason leaned against the wall, his head facing the ceiling. Nikolas walked quietly over and stood next to him, mimicking the older man's stance. Sonny tapped his shoulder and motioned that he and Carly would be outside. Jason nodded and watched them leave.
Emily's condition had improved for a while, but as quickly and unexpectedly as she had revived, she drifted off again. He knew the brief moment of hope had taken its toll on his parents. Watching them, he felt his heart go out to them.
Monica was slumped in one of the uncomfortable plastic chairs, pulled up directly to her daughter's bedside. Alan stood behind her, head bent sorrowfully, his hands placed tenderly on her shoulders.
Jason's eyes swept quickly around the room. Zander was on the opposite side of Emily's bed, fast asleep. His arms were folded over the blankets, cradling his head, and the boy was out cold. Probably a combination of mental exhaustion, fear, and pain.
Lucky had holed himself into a corner, a glass of water resting next to him. His knees were pulled up halfway to his chest, his elbows resting on them. His hands were in his hair and his head was bowed. Jason could tell he was also half-asleep. The strain of the day had gotten to him as well.
Edward noticed his grandson's wandering eyes. Swallowing, he willed his feet to move and soon stood next to his "prodigal thug". Leaning back against the wall, he shot Jason a sideways glance.
"How are you holding up, my boy?"
Surprised to hear his grandfather's voice, Jason answered as calmly as he could. "I can't believe this is happening."
Edward nodded, his eyes trained sadly on his only granddaughter. "All we can do is hope and pray." He ignored Jason's snort at pray, and continued. "She'll be out and about before we know it."
Jason nodded, a soft smile on his face. "Guzzling down cheese fries and sodas with the rest of the Scooby gang."
"Gracious," his grandfather murmered. "Is that what they're calling themselves these days?"
Jason snickered. "Skateboarding through the park with Zander again."
"Horseback riding at Wyndemere again with Nikolas," Edward offered.
"Volunteering at the hospital with Mom."
"Tutoring Georgie in Pre-Calculus."
Jason nodded. "Remember when Georgie was doing parabolas and cubic functions? Emily took her to the park and they shot baskets while doing their calculations."
Edward laughed softly, attracting Alan and Monica's attention. "She forgot how to calculate the vertex. I remember she called me during a board meeting, since I used to tutor her when she was in high school."
"No kidding," Jason replied.
"Why, yes," Edward nodded. "I was busy and told her so. When she came home that evening I inquired as to how her tutoring session went, and she answered that she'd called Elizabeth and she knew exactly what to do. She said Georgie had a wonderful time, and that all three of them went to Kelly's for cocoa afterwards."
He sighed, not noticing Jason's silence. "She and Elizabeth always loved their cocoa. Remember when Emily moved out for a while, back when she was with Zander. She lived at Kelly's for a while. Every time we'd come visit her, she and Elizabeth would be at the counter, hot chocolate in hand."
He looked towards the ceiling, smiling at his memories. "Elizabeth even taught her how to paint. Watercolors, of course. Emily painted the rose garden and Elizabeth painted the gazebo and they gave them to Lila. They're both still hanging in the drawing room upstairs."
He looked towards his grandson, suddenly aware of his silence. "I called her," he informed him, his eyes boring into Jason's as if attempting to gauge his reaction.
Jason nodded, looking down at the sparkling tiles.
Edward stared at him a moment longer before surprising them both by placing a hand on Jason's shoulder. "She'll be here," he assured before moving back to the seat AJ had abandoned.
Jason stared at him from across the room, waiting for Edward's pale blue eyes to meet his own.
I know, he mouthed silently.
The ambulance flew down the roads as motorists pulled to the side. AJ held on tight to the arm handle and was relieved when he spied the emergency entrance of GH before him.
Before he knew it, the ambulance was parked at the gate and the paramedics flew into action. They opened doors, barked vital stats to the attendants that rushed up, and helped unload the stretcher.
"Mr. Quartermaine," spoke his driver. "You're requested to take the service elevator up to your floor. We'd prefer if you weren't in the way right now."
AJ nodded and sprinted for the elevator. Once inside, he pulled out his cell phone.
Snickers. M&Ms. Butterfingers.
Courtney mulled over the choices, jingling the coins in her hand. Which one did she want?
Deciding on the Butterfingers, Courtney pulled the candy bar from the tray and twirled around in the gas station, bumping into a nearby customer.
The man shot her a dark glare and slowly withdrew to the Slurpee machine, his dark eyes watching her as she walked to the register.
Courtney slid the candy bar over to the cashier and paid for it in change, receiving a look from the young man.
She picked up her Butterfingers and walked slowly over to the tabloid rack, perusing Chelsea Clinton's secret honeymoon.
Her cell phone rang, causing her to jump and almost drop the spread of a half-naked former First Kid. Irritated, she snatched it from her pocket and answered it without even thinking.
"Hello?"
"Courtney. It's me."
"AJ," she bristled. "What the hell is your problem? I've been waiting for almost twenty five minutes!"
The high pitch of her voice caught the attention of the man by the Slurpee counter once more.
"Bite me."
"What!"
"I said, bite me, you ungrateful bitch."
"You can't talk to me like that! In case you've forgotten, I'm Sonny Corinthos' sis-"
"You could be Sonny Corinthos for all I care, you twit," came the answer. "Don't forget for a minute that I'm the one saving your worthless fat ass."
"Gee, how can I?" Courtney sneered, ripping a bite from her Butterfinger. "You'll never stop saying so. So typical of you."
"Just do us all a favor and shut up."
"Only if you remove the stick up your ass."
She could hear her ex-husband growl into the phone. "Do you even know who you hit, you insipid little bitch?"
She rolled her eyes. "Enlighten me, AJ."
"Elizabeth."
Her breath caught in her throat. "Webber?"
"No, sweetie, the Queen. You ran over the Queen. Prince Willie's never going marry you now."
"Bastard. I don't believe you."
"That's the deal, sweetie. You ran over Elizabeth." He clenched his eyes shut as images from the accident bombarded him again.
"#."
"Yeah, that's probably the right word for it."
"AJ, what am I going to do?"
"Woah, you're asking me? Right after you finished cursing me to hell and beyond?"
She groaned in frustration. "Damn it, can you actually be mature and move past that long enough to help me?"
He chuckled bitterly. She never ceased to amaze him.
"I mean, I didn't know it was Elizabeth. What the hell am I going to do when everyone finds out?"
AJ leaned against the elevator wall, mulling over her question. What the hell am I going to do when everyone finds out?
"AJ?"
"Yeah." He remained silent, lost in his own thoughts, as she babbled on almost hysterically. Would it be wrong to play this to his advantage? Would he be insulting Elizabeth in doing so?
"You there?"
"Yeah."
"Well?"
"Well what?"
"What the hell am I supposed to do!"
He thought a moment, stepping out of the elevator on to the main floor. He walked toward an isolated corner and lowered his voice. "Get to the hospital."
"What?"
"Get to the hospital. Dispel any doubts that you were involved. Catch a cab, hitch hike, offer sex in exchange for transportation, I really don't care, just get here."
"You-"
"Then, come visit Emily. Tell your brother you parked the car outside the hospital rather than in the covered lot because it was much quicker. Then, when you get out, pretend someone stole your car or something."
"But what about-"
"Don't worry about the car. Leave it in the gas station. I'll take care of it."
He clicked his phone off and walked hastily back to Emily's room, praying he had made the right choice.
Courtney hung up then dialed another number.
"Hi, I'm calling to request a cab."