Note: Hee hee. The only reason I was able to do this was because of the lovely pink pony Jen sent me for Christmas. It has magical powers; I'm not even gonna lie. I have named the pink pony Phar Fig Newton. He (yes, the pink pony is a he) likes to sit on my leg as I write. Yay!
Chapter Nineteen
The penthouse was dark and eerily silent as Jason wearily let himself in. He waited for the answering machine to indicate whether or not Courtney had called at the house, but he was only met with deathly quiet. His footsteps were heavy on the polished hardwood as he moved into the room, looking about it uncertainly. For the first time in a long time, he felt like a stranger in his own house.
He tossed his keys onto his desk, one of the two pieces of furniture in the main room that had survived his fiancé's compulsive redecorating disorder. Leather creaked as he wrestled with his jacket, managing to get it off and flinging it to the couch before he moved toward the pool table in the corner. He passed it slowly, wearily, trailing his fingertips over the green felt as he headed for the balcony. The cold air assaulted him instantly as he threw the doors open, but Jason welcomed it. Dressed only in a blue sweater over his white undershirt, he faced the howling wind head-on, closing his eyes against the frigid rush.
He stood like that for a long moment, hoping the whistling gusts would drown out the whirlwind in his head. It had been nearly three hours since he left his older brother standing alone in a room above Jake's after spewing out a long-winded story about drugs and rival mobsters and accidents. AJ had been in top form tonight, pulling on every bit of venomous Quartermaine dialectic at his disposal.
He didn't believe him.
Or at least, he was trying his best not to.
The wind billowed past him into the penthouse, upsetting the small bamboo frames that Courtney had used to set out pictures of miniature trees and flowers. Jason didn't even flinch as the frames fell with a clatter, the glass cracking and splintering upon impact. He just held his eyes closed against the wind and waited. He waited until the heaviness in his chest abated, leaving him room to think.
The moment never came.
Presently, when his lips were blue and his nose was beginning to run, Jason slowly shook himself out of his silent reverie. Reluctantly, he grasped the cold golden handles and closed the balcony doors, shutting out the powerful gale. He didn't spare a glance at the shattered glass and upset flower vases as he turned, and made his way toward his desk with slow, powerful strides.
The number he dialed on the penthouse phone was one he knew by heart, but his fingers were slow as they fumbled to press the buttons. After a couple minutes, a sleepy voice answered.
"Jason?"
He let a controlled breath whistle out his nostrils. "It's me."
Courtney let out a yawn. "Hey. What's wrong?"
It was a moment before he could speak. "I just wanted to see how you were."
He heard her chuckle, pleased with his concern. "I'm fine. In fact, I'm better than fine."
A muscle in his jaw ticked. "Yeah?"
"Mm-hmm." He could almost see the smile on her face. "The island has been wonderful, Jason. I can't tell you how beautiful it is here. It's just what I needed, and I feel so much better now."
Jason's hand gripped the edge of his desk as he leaned forward slightly. "Thinking of coming back soon?"
The tone shifted, and he could clearly hear the nervousness in his fiancé's voice even as the younger woman struggled to disguise it. "Why, you miss me that much?"
The forced giggle at the end of the question made him clench his jaw. "Just wondering when you wanted to come back."
Courtney sighed softly. "Not right away," she admitted. "I just want to stay on a bit longer…"
He waited for her to continue, but the woman had simply trailed off. Easing himself down on to his black desk chair, he wrapped his long fingers around the armrest in a vice-like grip. Courtney remained silent on the other end of the line, and he himself had absolutely no intention of filling in the silence.
There was no way that AJ was right. There was no way that Courtney could have run Elizabeth over with her car and then allowed her ex-husband to help her cover it up. He had nearly broken AJ's face in for the accusations, but that hadn't stopped his older brother from spitting them out. In the end, however, he couldn't even tell Jason where the car was, giving him absolutely no reason to believe the man.
Still, the 'absolutely no reason' produced nagging doubts that he had hoped his fiancé would be able to put to rest. But she was just making him more suspicious.
"So…how are things back in Port Charles? How're Carly and Michael?"
"Fine."
"That's good. Tell them I said hi, would you?"
"Yeah. Michael asked the other day when you were coming back."
"Gosh, poor little guy. Tell him…tell him I don't know yet. There are some…there are some things that I need to sort out."
That had him interested. "What sort of things?"
Her laughter was forced and artificial. "Oh, you know, just some stuff. Everything's kinda gone haywire since Alcazar…I just need some time to be alone, to think about everything, decompress. I just have to get away from everything in Port Charles."
The last line had him grinding his teeth. If AJ was right…so help them both.
"I have to go, Jason, but I'll call you soon, okay? I love you. Bye."
"Bye." Looking down at his closed cell phone, Jason was sorely tempted to give into the urge of just hurling it across the room, taking delight in watching it shatter into a million tiny shards of plastic and circuitry. Somehow, he managed to resist.
Taking a deep, cleansing breath, he leaned back in his desk chair and tipped it back onto two legs. There was no way that AJ had been telling the truth. There was no possible way. Courtney hated him; she'd never put herself in a position where she owed him anything. And AJ would stop at nothing in the world to get Michael – was he honestly supposed to believe that a little guilt upon finding out that it was Elizabeth forced his older brother to abandon what he had made his worthless life's mission?
But the doubts continued to roll through his head.
Courtney claimed that she needed to take some time to herself, to get away from Port Charles in general – but something in that brief conversation made him think that she was talking of a specific incident. And Alcazar had become more ruthless in the past weeks, and yet suddenly, it was as if he had vanished into thin air. What if AJ was right, and the moblord really was just biding his time, content and secure in the knowledge that he had something that could bring down not one but two of the most powerful families in Port Charles? He and Sonny had the prime shipping routes on the eastern seaboard while the Quartermaines had the best waterfront property; if any of this was true, Alcazar had struck gold.
What if AJ was right?
The warehouse was beginning to come to life as the sun rose to claim Port Charles. He could hear the guards and staff start to trickle in, talking about last night's game or last night's hot date. The smell of freshly brewed Corinthos-Morgan coffee wafted down the hallways from the massive staff lounge and the paperboy had just finished hauling in the morning stack of papers. The nighttime custodians were leaving, already storing their brooms and mops away in the supply closets as the employees filed into the building.
Jason's strides were long and purposeful as he marched through the third-floor hallways. He had been unable to sleep since Courtney's phone call a couple hours ago and still wore his worn blue jeans and rumpled t-shirt under the omnipresent leather jacket. He hadn't bothered to shave since the morning before, and his jaw was now lined with prickly dark blonde stubble, making him look all the more haggard and unkempt.
But appearance was the last thing on his mind as he rounded the corner to the relatively secluded east wing where the top men in the Corinthos-Morgan organization set up shop. He made his way toward the third door on the right and pushed it open without bothering to knock.
"Benny."
The aging accountant looked up from the reports on his desk, his expression grim and his eyes bloodshot. Wearily, he tipped his head in greeting and reached for the freshly filled mug of coffee on his desk. "Jason."
"What have you got?"
"You're right – it's like he's disappeared," the accountant replied, thumbing through several small stacks of papers in order to find what he was looking for. He extended the reports to Jason, who scanned them quickly. "Alcazar has halted the majority of his operations in the Tri-State area and hasn't even been seen at his mainland residence – any one of them. Sources indicate that he's retreated to his yacht. We have reason to believe that he has been afloat for the past week, at the very least."
"What else?"
"I'm waiting on Enzo and his team for further reports," Benny replied uneasily, not liking the look in Jason's eyes. "We've had the room of Alcazar's main enforcer bugged, and Enzo is handling the wiretaps. I'm expecting him to check in any moment now."
Jason dropped the stack of reports onto Benny's desk and braced his hands on the edge, leaning closer toward his long-time employee and speaking in a low, determined voice. "I need to know why Alcazar's halted operations on the mainland. Last weeks he was in talks with the Swedish financier – Irving. I need more information on that and whether they're any closer to making an alliance. The Sandoval family's been meeting with him since he came to the States; get me a file on that collaboration. I need to know what is making Alcazar think he's got the upper hand."
"I'll take care of it, Jason," Benny assured his boss grimly, clasping his hands over his desk. "But would you by any chance be able to tell me what exactly I'm trying to-"
"There's a chance he has evidence on us." That was as far as Jason was willing to go in terms of an explanation. "I need to know if it's true before I can handle anything."
Benny pursed his lips, knowing from the tone of the younger man's voice that he was worried this time. There were very few things that scared Jason Morgan regarding the business, but whatever this was, it was big. "I'll take care of it, Jason."
"Call me as soon as you hear anything."
"Will do, Boss."
Without another word, Jason left the Morgan-Corinthos warehouse and headed straight for Sonny's penthouse, all the while wondering just what in the world he was supposed to tell his best friend.
"He's laying low and I don't like it."
Those were the first words out of Sonny Corinthos' mouth when his right-hand man brought up the topic of one Lorenzo Alcazar.
"I don't either. This time is different. This time-"
"This time it's like he has something on us," Sonny finished, his obsidian eyes trained on his stoic enforcer.
Jason nodded grimly, rubbing his chin as his best friend turned around and poured himself half a glass of bourbon. "He's not cocky, like he was before. He's waiting, biding his time, and no one knows anything."
"You said you had Benny on it, right?" Sonny looked to Jason for affirmation. "Then we'll know soon enough."
A tense silence lingered between the men and Jason turned toward the balcony, hoping that Sonny didn't read anything besides frustration in his eyes. He hadn't told Sonny about everything that AJ had told him; Sonny would never believe it. In fact, Jason himself was surprise to find that he was gradually beginning to. Still, he refused to fully consider the charge until Benny came up with some information. Time was a key factor in this situation; if Alcazar moved first, things would get very bad very soon. But their accountant always managed to win the race against time, and Jason could only hope that his luck would hold out.
If Benny found the answers that AJ had claimed to be true, then he'd have to tell Sonny everything and they'd both have to find a way to move on from there. Until then, he was going to keep it to himself.
"I think it's best that Courtney's away right now." Sonny's voice broke through Jason's silent reverie. "I would send Carly and Michael to the island, too, but if I can't come up with something better than a hunch or suspicion, Carly'll fight me tooth and nail on it."
Jason didn't answer, though he agreed: it was best that Courtney was away right now. It was best that she stayed at the island until he had all the answers he was looking for; only then would he trust himself to be able to deal with the situation.
He glanced at the clock that ticked loudly above Sonny's desk. It was mid-morning; AJ had probably managed to crawl back to the Quartermaine mansion by now. Either that, or he was at the hospital getting his broken ribs patched up.
Shrugging his shoulders to relieve the tension that had gathered there, Jason looked at the clock one last time, preparing to leave. He was just about to tell Sonny that he'd call him if he heard anything when footsteps thundered down the stairs and the next thing he knew, a five-year-old redhead was launching himself into his arms.
"Jason! Jason! You're here!"
Despite the lack of sleep and the weight of the Alcazar situation, Jason's face relaxed and he grinned down at the little boy in his arms. "Hey, Buddy, you're up early."
"I have to go to school," the child informed him. "Mom says I have to get up early because I take so long getting ready, but she's the one that takes forever!" Sonny chuckled as he watched Michael rub his fingers over his cheek and around his eyes, illustrating why Carly took so long in the mornings. "Are you staying for breakfast?"
"I can't, Buddy – I've got to get to work, too."
Michael's face fell, and his plush bottom lip stuck out in a childish pout. "Aww, do you have to? I never see you anymore. You're always at work or the hospital."
The light in Jason's eyes dimmed. "I know, Michael, and I'm sorry. But you know that your Aunt Emily is really sick right now, and she's just starting to get better. It's important that I spend time with her."
"And Lizabeth," Michael agreed, and Jason looked over the little boy's shoulders to see Carly descend the steps, rolling her eyes at the mention of the petite brunette. "Mom said she had an accident, and she doesn't remember who she is and that you're the only one she'll talk to."
Carly huffed as she passed the three men on her way to the coffee Sonny had left out on the dining table for her, but Michael paid her no heed as he looked to his uncle for a response.
"That's right, Buddy. She's not doing too great right now, either."
"I went and sawed Aunt Emmy on Monday," Michael announced happily. "I brought her flowers, and she really liked them. Mom says we're gonna go again soon, and that I can stop and see Lizabeth, too, if I want. I made her something that I think she'll really like."
Jason looked over at Sonny, concerned, but his old friend nodded wisely. "Michael, you remember what I told you about Elizabeth?"
The boy turned over his shoulder to look at his father. "Uh-huh. You said not to be sad if she doesn't remember my name, and try not to talk too much about the stuff we used to do. I'm not gonna do that – I'm just gonna give her my picture and say that I hope she feels better. I don't wanna make her mad or sad."
"You'll be fine," Jason assured the boy, hoping that he was right. The new Elizabeth wasn't much for children, even the ones that she had been remarkably close to in the past, like Lulu Spencer. "Listen, why don't you go get ready for school, and I'll stop by tonight and tuck you in? Okay?"
"Okay," the boy nodded happily, already hopping out of his uncle's arms and racing back toward the stairs. "Bye, Jason!"
Carly's eyes were on her best friend the whole time and as soon as Michael was out of earshot, she spoke up. "You leaving, Jason?"
He locked eyes with Sonny, a silent understanding passing between the two men. "Yeah, I'm on my way out."
The blonde took a gulp of coffee and swallowed it before setting her mug down on the table again. "You going to the warehouse…or the hospital?"
He paused, his hand on the doorknob and his back to the blonde. "The hospital."
To both his and Sonny's relief, Carly didn't say anything and just took another sip of her coffee. Jason pulled the door open, nodded to Max, and pulled it shut behind him. Sonny glanced at his wife, watching as she set down her mug and moved toward the stairs, her partly open white robe billowing behind her.
"She's still found a way to get her hooks into him," was all the blonde said, knowing that she didn't need to clarify whom she meant. "Some things never change."
Sonny let out a slow sigh as his wife ascended the steps to help Michael get ready and rubbed his hand over the dark stubble that had formed on his jaw and chin. He should have known better than to expect anything else from Carly.
"Jason!"
He stopped in mid-step and cringed upon hearing his mother's voice. He had been lucky enough to avoid his parents during most of his recent visits to the hospital, but apparently his luck had run out this morning. Letting out a sigh that sounded more like a growl, he turned and met Monica's curious gaze.
"Are you here to see Emily?" Her small smile widened when he nodded. "Guess who was in her room half an hour ago?"
He wasn't much for guessing games; instead, he just shoved his hands into his pockets and quirked his brow, waiting for Monica to tell him.
"Elizabeth!" His mother's eyes were bright and pleased. "She wanted to visit Emily a while ago, but they kept missing each other. But finally, they got together this morning and you know, Jason, I think it did them both a lot of good." Monica knew she was rambling in an attempt to hold her son's attention, but she couldn't help it. Jason had become a frequent visitor to the hospital since Emily and Elizabeth were brought in, and even though it was selfish of her, she wasn't above using his visits to snatch a few minutes of his company.
"That's good," Jason replied honestly. "Is Elizabeth still there?"
Monica shook her head. "Emily was tired and went back to sleep, and Elizabeth said she wanted to eat lunch a little early. One of your guards – I think Francis is his name – went out to Kelly's and got her a sandwich and some coffee."
He nodded, already backing up a step in an awkward attempt to extricate himself from her watchful gaze. "I'm going to go check in with Elizabeth-"
"Oh, Jason, I'm sorry – she already went to her physical therapy appointment." Monica's eyes were apologetic as Jason's shoulders sagged. "She's got her heart set on getting out of here in about two or three days, no matter what Alan and I say, and she wanted to get that out of the way as soon as she could. She said something about how she hated being thought of as handicapped and how she planned on running circles around her coach."
There was light laughter in his mother's voice, but Jason wasn't amused. He rolled his shoulders again, trying to ease the tension that had taken up residence there. "Okay, if neither of them are around right now…I'll just come back later."
Monica nodded jerkily as Jason tipped his head at her and excused himself hastily, already heading toward the elevators. With a soft sigh, she turned and walked briskly back to the Intensive Care Unit where Alan was getting ready for a surgery. Jason would be back soon enough.
Jake's eyes landed on him as soon as he set foot in Jake's for a very late lunch. He had gotten stuck at the warehouse and didn't feel right leaving until he felt he had things under control, and now there was nothing he wanted more than a sandwich and a cold beer. As soon as he was done, he'd be going back to the hospital to see Elizabeth. If there was any chance – any chance at all that she remembered anything about the accident – he wanted to know. But he wasn't going to push. In fact, he knew it was pointless to talk to her about the accident until he had iron-clad evidence that AJ was telling the truth. Still, something inside nagged him to stop by and see the petite brunette.
The blonde matron already had a cold beer waiting for him as Jason took his seat, and in a matter of minutes she produced his usual order. Jason had just taken his first bite when she reached behind the counter and pulled out a sealed envelope.
"AJ was here a little while ago." Her voice was bland and betrayed nothing. "He said to give this to you."
She slid the envelope across the counter and waited for him to claim it. Jason stared at her then heavily dropped his hand on the paper. Jake backed away and retreated to the far end of the counter to serve a couple of the guards another round.
Cramming half of his sandwich into his mouth with one bite, Jason studied the closed envelope. After a long pull from his bottle, he turned it over and easily ripped it open, pulling out a single piece of paper. It was a short typed note addressed to AJ and bore the signature of one Lorenzo Alcazar. Jason's grip on his bottle tightened as he carefully read each line.
Apparently, Mr. Alcazar had seen it fit to request the presence of his older brother for a one-time meeting three days from now on the docks by Elm Street. If AJ didn't show, he would not be pleased with what would happen next, the note informed him. The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the arrangement that Mr. Alcazar had proposed at an earlier meeting.
A muscle in his jaw ticked as Jason crumpled the note in his fist. Alcazar must have been very sure of himself if he was cocky enough to send AJ a personal note. But then again, he wouldn't put it past his older brother to have forged the entire thing to back up his story.
He glanced at his watch and swore. It was already late afternoon and he had still heard nothing from Benny. Shoving the note in his pocket and the last of the sandwich in his mouth, Jason drained his bottle and headed for the door. The hospital would have to wait.
Benny was on the phone when Jason walked in, and he could tell from the look on the accountant's face that a report concerning Alcazar was coming in. He waited tensely in front of the desk, his hands shoved deep into his pockets as Benny listened carefully to the speaker on the other end, his pen moving quickly across a stenography pad.
After a few grunts and mono-syllabic replies, Benny hung up and turned around to face his boss. "I've got what you wanted."
Jason braced himself when the older man handed him the pad. As he skimmed it, Benny began to relay the specifics.
"Talks with Irving fell through; there's no more to be done on that. The Sandovals – the ones that relocated from the West Coast, have their eye on the syndicate here. They're looking to take down the five families and set up operations on the east coast. The long-term goal is to merge with the West Coast syndicate and run a transcontinental operation like the one Don Rosales originally planned to about forty years ago."
The accountant clasped his hands over the front of the desk, watching as Jason scanned his block print. "The Sandoval family saw its resources somewhat significantly depleted during the transition, and saw it as no coincidence that at the same time they made the move here, Alcazar showed up from overseas. There's been talk of a collaboration between the two organizations; ideally, Alcazar would help finance the takeover and his people would run things with the Sandoval family."
"More on Alcazar."
"Ah," Benny nodded, loosening his tie and glancing away from Jason in an uncharacteristic display of apprehension. "Enzo recorded two conversations that could be about what you said earlier. Stan transcribed them and faxed them over to the office and…here."
Jason's phone rang at the exact moment that Benny handed him a stack of papers bearing the transcription of Enzo's recordings. Letting out an irritated sigh, he quickly flicked it open. "Morgan."
"I need you at the penthouse now. Something's come up."
"I'll be there in five minutes."
Without another glance at Benny, Jason tucked the papers into a manila folder and left the office, leaving the accountant to rub his temples wearily, exceedingly relieved that he would not be present when Jason read the content of those reports.
"They want a meeting."
"What?"
"The Sandoval family wants a meeting," Sammy Tagliati clarified as Jason stared at Sonny. In the hours that had transpired since Jason had left the penthouse that morning, Sonny had received word from both the Sandoval family and the other families that there was to be a meeting. Since Sonny's stronghold was most convenient in terms of location, the other families had quickly dispatched a representative and now several men with dark suits and darker hair prowled Sonny's penthouse, polluting the air with thick cigar smoke.
Sonny had already asked Carly and Leticia to keep Michael at the Brownstone until he called them, and the mob boss now paced his penthouse, dressed only in his pressed trousers with his white oxford shirt rolled up to the elbows.
The enforcer for the DeGiacammo family had already opened up the bourbon and Sonny was passed a glass, which he accepted gratefully and downed smoothly. Jason looked around the expansive main room of his best friend's penthouse, leveling each man with a strong but neutral look. He didn't trust the vast majority of them further than he could throw them, but whether he liked it or not, they were all in this together.
With a sigh, he tossed his keys and phone onto Sonny's desk and shrugged out of his leather jacket, draping it on the back of the chair. Dressed now in his dark denim jeans and a clean navy sweater, he crossed his arms over his chest and glanced around wearily. "What do we know?"
The eldest son of Don Rinaldi snorted as he set his drink down on a coaster. He may be a mobster, but that didn't mean he lacked manners. "Nothing – that's just the problem."
Sammy ran a dark hand through his slicked back hair and braced the other hand on his hip as Sonny continued to pace in front of him. "We received word that the Sandoval family would like to meet with the heads of the five families and any other necessary parties at a time of our convenience. They claim that since they are new arrivals to the eastern seaboard, they wish to start things off on the right foot."
"We were given a few tentative dates," Sonny spoke up, rubbing his hand over his mouth, "and a few locations."
"They're all fairly neutral," sighed Don Giagnorio. "One for each territory represented by the organization."
"We have to do it," Sonny agreed wearily. "No one here likes it, but we all agree that it has to be done."
Jason nodded, understanding the implications. "Who's coming?"
"You and me, and I figure we can take Johnny and Max," Sonny answered, slipping his hands into his pocket as he turned to face the room. "Don Rinaldi isn't going to be able to make it, so Ernesto will be taking his place."
The man in question nodded. "I'll be bringing my enforcer, Emmanuel, as well as Grimes." A wave of murmurs ran through the room as the men agreed.
Don Giagnorio lifted two fingers. "I will be present, along with my son, Mario, and our two enforcers."
Sammy and a grey-haired don looked at each other, and the younger man was the first to speak. "Don Ciccio and I will be bringing our enforcers, two of our top guards, and our top legal aide."
The head of the final family nodded sagely. "I'll be there with my brother, our enforcer, and the head of the business organization."
"Twenty-five, even," Sonny murmured. "From their side, we're expecting Don Sandoval and his four sons. I think that as far as location goes, it should be here in Port Charles."
A chorus of both protests and agreement rose, but quieted down as Sonny raised his hand. "The No Name has several concealed rooms in the back that have withstood raids in the past. This is the territory that Lorenzo Alcazar is most after, in this town, and we have good reason to believe that the Sandoval family is seeking to forge an alliance with him."
Don Giagnorio stood up abruptly from his seat on the couch. "How can you know this? We've heard nothing-"
"I will have my men send over reports as soon as possible and get you all up to speed," Sonny assured them as Jason took up his usual position behind his right shoulder. "We may be able to lure Alcazar into some type of action that will allow us an advantage," he reasoned. "Also, it is possible for us to fortify the No Name with our men just in case something goes wrong. The time for an official syndicate meeting in Port Charles is very good right now; the police still give us some trouble, but the elections this past year were very good for us. I think it will go down smoothly if we agree to meet here."
Jason looked around the room as Sonny finished off his speech and he could see the wheels turning in the representatives' heads. There wasn't a single man in the room that liked the idea, but he knew enough to know that the situation wasn't any better in their own respective neck of the woods. Sonny was right; Port Charles was the best option.
"I accept," Sammy finally spoke up, earning a somber tip of Sonny's head.
"So do I," added Don Ciccio.
"I accept on my father's behalf," agreed the oldest Rinaldi son.
"I will be here," Don DeGiacammo wearily sighed.
Giagnorio was the last one to hold out, but even he finally relented. "Now that we are all decided on that matter, what do we do next?"
"Now," Sonny began, casting a look at Jason over his shoulder, "we plan."
"Jason, dear." Lila Quartermaine smiled brightly up at him as he stepped off the elevator, and Jason couldn't help but smile back. Casting a weary glance at his grandfather who stood behind her wheelchair, he slowly knelt and took her wrinkled hand in his.
"Hello, Grandmother."
"It's quite late, dear," she noted in a serious voice, and Jason couldn't help it when the corner of his mouth quirked up.
"For you and me both."
The older woman's eyes twinkled. "We were here to see the girls," she informed him, looking up at her husband who nodded stiffly. "I felt well enough to get out of the house, and thought I'd make the best of it. They're both doing so much better, Jason."
Edward cleared his throat gruffly when he saw Jason's eyes twinkle. It was troubling that the only time the Quartermaine family could pull together was during a health crisis, but he had come to terms with that and accepted it as it was. He knew that despite how Jason may feel toward the rest of the family, his feelings for Emily ran deep – as did his feelings for Elizabeth. He still remembered how Jason had accepted his strength upon learning that the spirited artist's life was in danger; it was quite out of character but it was a rare moment of meaningful communication between the two of them. He knew Jason would never act on that again and would sooner forget about it, and he wasn't going to bring it up himself, either, if it caused the young man any discomfort. Sometimes, it was best to accept a situation as a result of circumstance and move on.
"Elizabeth fell asleep while we were with her," he informed his grandson, "but Emily is still awake and I'm sure she'd like to see you."
"Oh, she'd like that very much," Lila agreed, patting Jason's hand. "Why don't you go see her now, darling? She has enough energy to run a marathon. It's beautiful." He smiled at that and she patted his hand again before releasing it. "Goodnight, dear."
"Goodnight, Grandmother."
He stood and moved back, holding the elevator open for Edward as he pushed Lila inside, and then turned and walked toward Emily's room. He was disappointed that he had missed Elizabeth again, but at least Emily was up for a visit. His little sister was propped up in bed playing with a small puzzle composed of several pieces of oddly shaped wood that somehow fit together, and a bright smile lit up her face when he quietly stepped in.
"Jason," she sighed happily as he leaned down to hug her. "I'm so glad you came."
"And I'm glad you're so much better," he informed her, settling down close to her side. "When are they gonna let you out of here?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "I'm not really sure; probably not for a while. Some days are really good – like today – but other days aren't. Mom and Dad just want to keep an eye on me and make sure I don't take another dive."
He nodded, his eyes lingering on the puzzle she was playing with. "What's that?"
Another grin lit up her face, making her eyes sparkle. "Elizabeth gave it to me today." She laughed at the surprised look in his eyes. "Yeah, she gave it to me. She was here today, you know."
"I heard," he replied quietly, taking the puzzle from her fingers and studying it.
Emily's eyes dimmed slightly as she recounted the events from earlier in the day. "It's so strange sometimes, Jason. She's…She's a lot like Lucky was when he came back after the fire. It's so easy to forget that she doesn't…remember all the stuff we used to do, or everything that's happened. I spent most of my time trying to fill her in on everything, but she made me stop because she was afraid I'd tire myself out."
Emily's hazel eyes lingered on her brother as he stared down at the puzzle, idly fiddling with the pieces. "She's so different, but in a lot of ways, she's the same. She seems…stronger now. Does that seem weird? I mean, she just had this horrible accident, she's in a hospital for crying out loud, but she just seemed…strong. She was strong in a quiet way. It's something that I've never really seen in her." She smiled to herself, lifting one shoulder in a shrug. "She kind of reminds me of you."
His cerulean orbs shot up to meet his sister's at that remark. "What?"
She could sense that he didn't like that very much and did her best to put him at ease. "I just mean that she's a bit different now. She could so easily slip into depression or a woe-is-me mindset, but she's tough, you know? She's not going to go down like that. It's like she knows that she's the only one she can count on to take care of herself; if she wants to be fine, then she will be. And she doesn't talk that much anymore; she's like you in that way, too. She doesn't say something just to say something, and when she does talk, you can tell she's carefully thought about what she's going to say. And she doesn't sugar-coat or bull-shit. You're both alike that way."
It still didn't sit well with him, but he nodded, understanding what his little sister meant.
"And did you know that she's got this, like, really freaky deal with numbers going on?" Emily asked with a strange smile of disbelief. "I mean, she picks up on all the little details and puts them together, and you can just tell she sees things differently now. It's pretty cool."
A boyish grin tugged on the corner of his mouth, and Emily was surprised to see her big brother's cerulean eyes twinkle. "Yeah, I noticed."
She smiled back at him, playing with the edge of her blanket. She knew it was somewhat sensitive territory, but that didn't stop her from asking. "Are you gonna go see her now?"
Jason shook his head. "Edward said she was asleep; I don't want to bother her."
Emily nodded. "Okay, gotcha. She said that she was going to do her best to bust out of here in about two days. She managed to convince her PT coach that she can walk and run and everything else, and that she's not some sort of vegetable. You can tell that it bugs her when people try to treat her like she's fragile. I mean, she's mostly healed from the accident – like, she still has a couple cuts, but they're healing, too – and even though she can't remember, it's not like she's made of glass. She hates it when people treat her like she is."
Jason looked down at the puzzle in his hands and turned it over, running his finger along the edge. "I know."
He could feel his sister's eyes resting on him as she played with the sheets. "Jason…what do you think?"
"About what?"
"About her leaving the hospital." Emily was nibbling on her lower lip when he looked up at her, and Jason found himself wondering for a moment if she had picked up that habit from her best friend. "Do you think she's ready?"
He weighed his words carefully, finally settling on replying, "I think that Elizabeth knows what she's feeling best. I get that Alan and Mulrow are worried about her, but I don't think she's out to endanger her health or her recovery by leaving too soon."
"I think so, too," Emily replied, relieved. "I thought I was the only one. John wants to keep her here for observation, but I told him he'd better not even say that to Elizabeth or she might hurt him."
Jason rolled his eyes at the mention of the doctor but kept quiet.
"But what about…do you think she's ready to get on with her life? I mean, not like that," Emily added hastily, pressing her fingers to her temples. "I mean, where is she going to stay? Is she going to get a job right away? Does she have any plan?"
Jason scratched his jaw with a heavy sigh. "She hasn't talked about that; I didn't want to force her to. But I'm starting to see that Elizabeth doesn't really do anything without a plan."
That brought a hesitant smile to his sister's face and she nodded to herself, doing her best to suppress a yawn. "Okay, okay, that's good. Yeah. And, I mean, it's not like Mom and Dad are going to just let her drift away or anything. I'm sure they'll try to move her into the house or at least set her up at the hotel or something."
"Not that she'll agree," Jason finished confidingly, earning a smile from the younger woman.
"Never," Emily chirped. "After all, they'd just treat her like she was glass."
"And we've already established that she hates that," Jason agreed, amused, as he set her puzzle onto her night table. "And you can stop holding back your yawns, Em; I can tell you're exhausted. I'm gonna head out."
She pouted at him when he pressed a kiss to her forehead. "But Jason, I'm not tired."
"Yes, you are," he informed her, tucking her dark hair behind her ear. "Get some sleep, and I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Okay," she got out around a yawn. "Sorry you missed Elizabeth. I guess I wore her out."
Jason smiled at her and dimmed the lights. "Night, Emily."
"Night, Jason."
It was late when he got back to his penthouse – very late. He had told himself he wasn't going to disturb Elizabeth, but that hadn't stopped him from creeping into her room and watching her as she slept. He had no idea how long he stayed, but he was beginning to realize that it was too long. His tired and aching muscles protested bitterly as he let himself into the penthouse and shrugged out of his jacket. He hadn't slept in two days and what with the crises that had developed over forty-eight hours, it was definitely catching up to him.
His answering machine was silent in the dark penthouse, indicating that his fiancé had not called. And Jason didn't care. He set his phone and keys down on the desk and was about to run upstairs to catch a few hours of sleep when he noticed the file that he had left on the desk before going to Sonny's penthouse for the meeting with the families.
In his rush, he had been unable to read through the transcripts and now, he wanted to kick himself for it. It was very unlike him to let something like that slip his mind, but then again, today had hardly been a normal day.
Muttering under his breath, he stalked back to his desk and snatched up the manila folder before turning on the lights. Wearily, he shuffled over toward the pool table where the light was the best and leaned against the wood as he thumbed through the pages. The first few were inconsequential; he could see why Enzo and Benny saw fit to include them, but he knew they were irrelevant.
After quickly ruffling past those first few pages, Jason slowed his pace. One page in particular caught his eye and he pulled it out of the packet. His intense eyes hungrily scanned each word before he reached for the next page, then the next. His knees buckled as the full meaning of the words washed over him, and Jason leaned back heavily against the pool table. It was all right there, in neat black typeface on a clean white page.
AJ was right.