CHAPTER EIGHTY FIVE
Trust, Tears and Lies

Even in the false security of her office, she could hear the wind howling outside. The storm had been building since long before dawn. Carly knew that because she had been awake to see it thunder into town. The day had snarled into being, finding Carly lying awake and wide-eyed as the sky turned from dark to storm-roiled grey.

She paced the length of her desk and back again. Her eyes kept falling on the phone perched on her desk. She'd spent a mostly sleepless night and a harried morning. She could have used the storm as an excuse to stay home, but after a little while, she'd known she'd find no peace there. So why not come into the office. She'd hoped to find some sort of escape here, maybe lose herself in work. Anything to stop the fears that kept hammering at her.

Coming to the office hadn't solved anything. She was so tired, so very bone tired, that she could hardly concentrate on anything, but not exhausted enough to close her eyes and get any rest. So she'd gone through a pot and a half of coffee. She'd thought that being around other people would banish the silent fears in her, but every attempt to get some work done, was interrupted by the same thoughts that circled her like a plague of vultures, picking at the carcass left of her calm and forcing memories on her that she'd rather not face..

Her eyes fell on a bright red remote control toy car in the corner. It was one of Michael's favorites; he'd left it here the last time she'd stopped by the office. Just this morning, he'd asked about it and just this morning, at breakfast with him and her mother, she'd promised to bring it home. Carly moved to pick it up and held it tightly in her hands, hoping to feel some small bit of comfort from it.

She sat it down on her desk, then poured herself one more cup and gulped it down, hoping against hope that it would help first, to wake her up, second, steady her so that – thirdly, she could get a grip on herself. Carly was exhausted; all through the night hours, she hadn't been able to close her eyes for more than five minutes at a time. Every time she'd come close to falling asleep, she'd hear Helena's voice, promising her nightmares that had flickered at the edges of her dreams. More than once, she'd jumped out of bed and made her way to her son's room, just to stand in the doorway and reassure herself that he was sleeping. And safe.

I don't owe anyone anything, she tried telling herself for the umpteenth time. Alexis least of all!

In spite of that sentiment, she threw herself into her chair and jerked open a desk drawer. Carly pulled out a phone book, looked up a number and then dialed it. Alexis' secretary answered and one quick question told her what she'd feared. Alexis wasn't in. A few seconds after she'd hung up, Carly was on her feet again.

So Alexis hadn't come into her office this morning. What business was that of hers? Whatever was going on wasn't her fault. It was Alexis' fault for having a crazy old woman as the wicked stepmother to begin with.

And it wasn't as though Helena had left her any choice.

:Flashback:

"What do you need me to do your dirty work for?" Carly had told Helena, after she'd outlined her plan. "After all, I thought you hated Spencers. So why deal with me at all?"

"I use what tools that are at hand." Helena told her. She lifted an eyebrow. "And my dear, you hardly rate as a Spencer; Luke barely registers your presence. But your asset to me is that Alexis is a rival in your romantic equation. We can be of mutual benefit for one another. I would have thought that the satisfaction of removing your rival would appeal to you somehow. Your uncle Luke would certainly understand the motivation- and relish it. Such a zest for life he has…" Her eyes misted over slightly with what were no doubt fond memories – crazy woman – these two had tried to kill each other for years, if the stories wee to be believed, and here she was, smiling about it?

"Luke Spencer." The way she said his name was like a caress on her lips. "Despite his lowly antecedents, he has always proved to be a worthy adversary. If you claim to be a Spencer, then don't disappoint me."

"We wouldn't want that, would we?" Carly snapped. The reference to Luke's ignoring her was an insult that jabbed deep and made her forget her earlier caution.

"No we wouldn't." Helena answered her. "Let me tell you a little story about how I dealt with a would-be rival. Alexis' mother in fact. Along with having the extreme bad taste to have been chosen by my husband for a misalliance; she had pretensions of being an opera singer. And of loving my husband on top of that. Once I realized that he fancied himself in love with her, by giving her children, an object lesson had to be made. I stilled that pretty little voice – by slitting her throat."

"You had Alexis' mother killed?" Carly's eyes opened wide.

"Not precisely." Helena lifted one hand languorously, seemingly examining her manicure. "She died because I wished it, yes, but I didn't have her killed, I did it myself."

She turned a coldly amused yet icy-blue gaze onto Carly and she found herself unable to tear her eyes away. " You see, it's always best to take care of personal matters - personally. I imagine that your Mr. Corinthos is much the same kind of man as my late husband was – dynamic, powerful, a man born to rule others. Such inner power is an aphrodisiac, as I'm sure you know. Well, men like that draw women to them as moths to a flame, and I understand that he has had his fair share. But he married you. Nothing should be allowed to interfere with that."

"Does Alexis know that you murdered her mother?" From the expression that never changed on Helena's face, she knew the answer even as she asked it. Carly watched in silent, shocked, stunned fascination as Helena's only response was a careless shrug.

"I found out later that she witnessed it. Not that it was planned, but it worked out for the best. It might have been a bit traumatic for a young girl to witness such a sight a such an impressionable age, but then again, it's never too early to learn one of life's little lessons, don't you agree? It taught little Natasha her place in life.
"The world can be such a cold place for children. You should be able to understand that. After all, you have a son – an heir - to protect – as did I." Helena stopped examining her fingers and looked directly at Carly. "Won't you do whatever you must to protect little Michael?"

:end Flashback:

Carly's heart thumped painfully in her chest as she remembered the look in Helena's eyes as she had mentioned Michael's name. The unspoken threat had hung in the air between them.

"It's not like I had a choice." She muttered aloud. "That crazy old bat is capable of anything." But she had to come up with a plan that would keep her safe. Her and Michael.

The shrill sound of the desk phone jerked Carly from her thoughts.

"Mrs. Corinthos?"

She didn't recognize the voice and with memories of Helena Cassadine still echoing in her mind, that fact scared her so badly that it took a moment for her to find her voice.. "Wh…Who? What?" she finally managed to stammer

"The name is Cohen; I'm with the District Attorney's office."

Carly froze. Her mind spun and scattered in a thousand different directions all at once. The D.A. office? What did they want with her? Was this news about Alexis? It couldn't be. But what if someone had seen her with Alexis last night? What if someone had fingered her as the last person she'd been seen with? Sudden fear weakened her limbs and she sank down into her seat. Her heart beat so loudly that she could barely hear herself think…"Yes.." she heard herself say. "What can I do for you?"

"It's about your husband. I'm trying to track his whereabouts for the last few days."

"And what does this have to do with me?" Relief made her light-headed.

"I'm sure you're aware of your husband's lawyer, a Ms. Alexis Davis, and her current..ahhh…issues?"

Carly's hand trembled. What did he know? Was this a trick? Did he want to trick some sort of confession out her? Her mind began to frantically race again. "I don't know anything about her!" she blurted out. "I don't keep tabs on her, where she goes, who she sees – it's none of my business!"

"I didn't think that you did, Mrs. Corinthos. It's not what you know, but what your husband knows, that interests me. It may not be your business, as you've said, but it might be your husband's. Oh, pardon me, your ex-husband's."

"Why would her business be any of his? What do you think he knows about her?"

"That is the question of the day, isn't it? What your Mr. Corinthos knows about Ms. Davis, I mean. I was wondering if you could tell me anything about that. Just how close they are?"

Carly's throat went dry. She felt close to collapsing in hysterics. If not for Sonny and Alexis ever growing closeness, none of this would be happening!

"Is she a threat?" he persisted.

From day one! Carly thought furiously. This was all Alexis' fault. If only she had never stepped foot in Port Charles! Helena would have never come here and best of all – she and Sonny would still be together! She felt the betrayal and blinding rage that had exploded within her the night she'd found them in bed together all over again and thru her angry haze, barely heard the ADA's words. They slowly seeped into her consciousness.

"… would she be privy to any of his secrets? Anything that might make her a danger to him?"

"They're close," Carly snapped. All she could think about was the white hot anger and sense of betrayal she'd felt as she'd watch the two of them grow closer. The helplessness she'd felt as she was forced to stand by and watch Sonny give Alexis the respect and an ever-growing sense of loyalty and honor that should have been hers alone. That they had ended up in bed together had been more of a shock to the two of them then it had ever been for her! What fools they had been not to see it coming – and what a fool the two of them had made of her in the process. All those claims of being just business associates, and then oh, they were just friends, and oh—Carly, you just don't understand.

She felt the sharp, deep bite of jealousy all over again and it spurred her tongue. "They've spent plenty of long nights all alone working together and have even taken a trip or two or three on his private jet. I'd guess that she knows all sorts of things. Things that I wasn't privy too, that's for sure."

"So presumably, Ms. Davis' knowledge could be construed as a threat to Mr. Corinthos' affairs. That's exactly what I wanted to know." Cohen replied. The satisfaction barely hidden in his voice brought Carly back to realize what she'd just said.

"W-wait.." she stuttered. "It's not that she was…it isn't… wasn't like that…"

"Thank you so much, Mrs. Corinthos." He said, smoothly cutting into her stammering speech. "You do realize, that as his ex-wife, you are not bound by the husband- wife testifying statute? So I'm sure if we need any more information, that we can count on you, as a law abiding citizen, to help the district attorney's department any way that you can."

Before Carly could explain herself further, to try and take back or fix anything she'd said, he'd hung up in her ear.

Wonderful! If she didn't have enough on her plate! Wound up with emotion, Carly flung herself from her chair and began pacing the room again, feeling more trapped than ever. What had she done? What was she going to do? She argued with herself. She'd done what she had to do… she had to protect her son. Anyone could see that. But now by accident, she'd probably set the D.A. sights on Sonny for Alexis' disappearance. If they didn't know she was missing, then they would soon. And in light of what Cohen had tricked her into saying, it didn't take a genius to figure out that he would be blaming Sonny for it. And if Sonny got wind of that, he would be sure to know that any information about him and Alexis Cohen got had come straight from her own mouth. And he would come straight after her.

Carly shivered at the thought. Helena on one side, Sonny on the other. What was she going to do?

Caught up in her fears, she didn't hear the light tap on the door, so she nearly jumped out of her skin when Jax entered.

"Whoa – Carly!" Jax said. He walked over to her, putting out his hands and took ahold of her shoulders. "What's on your mind that's got you so rattled?"

Carly turned to look up at him, seeing nothing but concern in is bright blue gaze. A passing thought crossed her mind. Jax was rich, powerful and smart. Maybe he could protect her. Maybe he could – but would he? He and Alexis were close… they'd even been married to each other and had managed to stay friends after it had ended. If she tried to tell him what she'd gotten herself into, more than likely, he'd turn on her and throw her to the wolves.

"Carly?" Jax looked at her again. What was wrong with her? She looked worried, but he didn't know about what. Carly's impetuousness could be counted on to get her into as much trouble as her heart did. The question was, which was it? In spite of himself, his eternal white knight rose to the fore and gentled his voice. "What have you done now?"

Carly bit her lip, her thoughts still worried. Jax sounded so – concerned. Like he really truly cared. But could she trust him to help her?

She wanted to, but old suspicions, old habits, old fears died hard. And who had she ever really been able to trust? Tony, AJ, Sonny? In the end, they'd all turned on her. Their forgiveness had only gone so far. And now, here was Jax.

Carly couldn't help but remember Sonny's opinion on Jax. But standing face to face with him, looking into his deep blue eyes, Carly couldn't find it in herself to count on that. She saw the care and concern in his gaze and knew it to be true. He knew something was on her mind. But what would he do if she told him about endangering his precious Alexis?

Carly looked away from him. He'd turn on her like everyone else…she couldn't, she didn't dare confide in him. Her heart fell.

"Carly… Carly?" She hadn't realized he'd been calling her name. Carly blinked and looked up at him again. "Carly, you can talk to me about anything, you know. We're not just business partners. I mean, we don't have to be. If you need someone to talk to, I'm here."

"Don't be so quick to offer your shoulder to lean on." Carly said. She reached out and tentatively touched his shoulder. "They don't call me Hurricane Carly for nothing. I wreck everything I touch."

Jax perched himself on the edge of the desk. "You've been told that so many times, I'll bet you believe it to be true."

"Haven't you been paying attention? Or haven't you noticed the wreckage I tend to leave behind." She couldn't take the look in his eyes and turned away. "It's no joke. I make bad choices, Jax. No matter how good my intentions may start off being, they don't seem to turn out that way. And you're just asking for more of the same if you want to get involved with me."

"We're already involved." Jax answered her. "Our business arrangement has been a success, and we're even talking about expanding. It's why I came by to see you, with the letters of agreement for us to sign for Chicago. So see, not everything you touch turns to ashes."

Carly laughed, but it came out sharp and brittle, and not a happy sound. "There's always an exception to the rule. You don't get it, Jax. Sooner or later, I always say or do something stupid; it's like I don't think.. I get caught up in the moment and I can't see what can happen, and then things snowball out of control and.. and…I never mean to…" To Jax's surprise, and her own horror, her voice choked off as a sob caught itself in her throat.

"Carly.." Without thinking, Jax reached out and took her by the hands. "What's going on?"

She shook her head, unable to speak. Even if she could, what would she say?

"You can trust me, Carly. I'm not going anywhere. If you're in trouble, I can help you. Let me."

Carly's lips parted, but she hesitated. She didn't know what to say. Her own basic instinct cried out against trusting him. But the other part of her was frightened at what she'd gotten herself into without even knowing it until it was too late.

Jax smiled at her encouragingly. Carly's resolve weakened for a moment, but then her fear got the best of her and stopped the confession hovering on her lips.

A knock came at the door, and a second later, Mason stepped in. He raised an eyebrow at the scene before him. "Am I interrupting?" Without waiting for either of them to answer, he stepped inside and closed the door behind him. "I would apologize and leave, but I thought you'd both like to know that one of your waiters spotted Sonny Corinthos getting out of a car a few steps up the street. I told them that I would tell you, Carly. Is there a chance that he might be headed this way?"
Mason paused and looked very carefully at Carly. "Were you expecting him?"

Jax turned back to Carly and was startled by what he saw. Her face had gone pale at Mason's words. Her eyes, when they swung back from Mason to Jax were wide and he could see the fear in them.

"I..I don't want to talk to him." Her throat was so tight, all she could manage was a whisper.

"And you won't have to." Jax reassured her. He stood up and looked at Mason, his bright blue eyes suddenly gone hard. "Keep her company, Mason." He told the other man. "I'll take care of this."

Carly looked from Mason and back at him, unable to speak. Unexpectedly, he leaned forward and brushed his lips across Carly's forehead. "You don't have anything to worry about, Carly. I promise. We'll talk later." Jax said. "You can trust me." He smiled at her again before walking out the door.


His smile disappeared the moment the door closed behind him. Jax's temper rose higher with every step as he walked down the short hallway leading to the club. His hands tightened into fists as he remembered how cold Carly's fingers had been in his. He'd never known how terrified Carly could be of Sonny. No woman should be so afraid of a man, and worse still, of a man she knew, a man she'd been intimate with. And knowing Sonny, he probably didn't care, so long as Carly did what he wanted. He didn't know what Sonny wanted from his ex-wife this time, but if Sonny thought he was going to come in here, into their place of business and frighten her some more, then Sonny had another thing coming to him.

Mason had been right. Just as Jax stepped into the club precincts, Sonny was coming down the stairs. Jax crossed to the room to meet him before he could get more than a few steps into the room.

"What are you doing here, Corinthos?" Before he could answer, Jax continued. "It doesn't matter either way. Carly doesn't want to see you. And so she's not going to."

"Fine. I came to talk to you, not Carly."

The angry challenge springing up between the two men was so obvious that the few waiters and cleaning staff that were present made every attempt to find business that removed them from the immediate vicinity as soon and as far away as possible. Meanwhile the two men squared off facing each other.

Sonny glared at Jax. He didn't come here to fight. Why was it that Candyboy was always trying to get all up in his face? This was not the day for it; he'd woken up feeling unwell as well as uneasy and the feeling had persisted all through the morning. It had left him with a throbbing headache and a band of tension across his forehead that did nothing to ease his temper. If Jax didn't watch his step – and his mouth – he was liable to get more than he bargained for. The wrong word, and Sonny would be more than happy to give it to him. With interest.

But then he remembered why he'd come here. Sonny gritted his teeth, shelved his own temper and shut his mouth.

"Me?" Jax stared at Sonny. "What do you want to talk to me about, Corinthos?" To his total surprise, he saw Sonny's expression change. He actually hesitated before he spoke.

"It's about Alexis. This Cassadine thing."

"You mean Stefan's death?"

"No. This isn't about Stefan Cassadine's death. I know how much her brother's death affected her. I held her in my arms while she cried for him. All night." Sonny told him; the look in his eye telling Jax that he was deliberately reminding him just how close he and Alexis were. But then he blinked and that attitude was gone from his gaze. "But I get the feeling that things are bigger than even that. And I figure you know more about that than me. Maybe."

"So?"

"So, I'm asking. How big is this? How much danger is there for Alexis getting involved in all of this stuff with her nephew?"

"This? Alexis has been involved with this - her entire life. She was a Cassadine before Nikolas was ever born. Her loyalty to her family is something that has always and will always be there."

"I know that." Sonny snapped. "I know all about Alexis' loyalty. I know about the Cassadines, too. I was there when Alexis was kidnapped by the evil step-mother, remember?"

"No you weren't. You were there for the aftermath."

"Yeah, and so were you."

Jax looked away for a moment while both of them fell silent as the memory of Sonny's showing up at Ned's house after she'd been rescued from Helena's last plan to whisk Alexis away from under their noses sprang up between them. Jax was remembering how no one in the room had existed for Sonny once he'd seen her. Neither his anger, or Ned's, hadn't mattered one bit to Sonny.

At the time, Jax had thought it had been Corinthos' usual high-handedness and arrogance. But now he was forced to admit, it hadn't been about Sonny at all. Or rather, it had been about Sonny's need to see with his own eyes, that Alexis was alive and well. And what he had seen in her, what he had seen that no one else had, had been enough to take her out of there.

Alexis had told him later how Sonny had encouraged her to smash things in her apartment as a way to release her fears. And how she had finally managed to open up and share her hatred and fear of Helena with him. Her voice had been full of wonder as she had told Jax how Sonny had taken her in his arms. Unwillingly, Jax recalled how Sonny and Alexis had looked at one another that night and how she had gone with him without a word of protest. Had this thing between them begun, even then? How was it that no one had seen it, not even him?

Sonny was remembering that night too, when he had brought her home, where she had finally been able to take off the mask of being brave and pretending that she was all right, when she wasn't. He remembered how she had smashed crystal and pottery as she vented her anger and had finally sobbed out her fears, ending up in his arms. A rembrance of that same feeling of Alexis needing him prickled along his spine and he couldn't shake it.

When Jax turned his gaze back to Sonny, the other man spread his hand in a conciliatory gesture that surprised him. Sonny exhaled loudly. Obviously, he was having as much trouble being civil in speaking to Jax as Jax was having listening to him.

"Look Jax, I get that it's important. And you know Alexis. She's got to do things on her own. And I don't want to intrude on that. It's just… look, she didn't come home last night, I got a note from her saying she was caught up in this business and that was fine, but I woke up feeling weird this morning…and I guess I'm looking for answers that I don't have. I don't even know if I'm asking the right questions."

As a matter of fact, if Sonny cared to admit it, he still didn't feel right. His mind felt sluggish, as though he wasn't quite awake. Sonny shook his head as though to clear it, but all that did was make his head pound, making him feel worse; the room swam dangerously before his eyes. Before he could think about it, he reached for his head, and pressed at his brow, as though to push away the pain and queasiness. He didn't have time to be sick just now. And he wasn't going to be sick in front of Jax. A small groan escaped his lips anyway.

Jax looked closer at Sonny. He had paled and a cold sweat had broken out on his forehead. "You all right?"

"I'm fine." Sonny answered shortly. He hated Jax seeing this momentary weakness.

"Yeah, right." Jax jerked a chair away from the table closest to them. "Sit down. Before you fall down." When Sonny hesitated. Jax swore quietly and pulled back another chair, and sat down himself. "Now will you sit?"

Sonny gave in and took the seat opposite him.

"You were saying something about feeling weird this morning?" Jax prodded him.

"Like maybe something was going on that I should know about."

Jax had to acknowledge that the concern in Sonny's eyes as he stared into his was genuine. He didn't want to admit it, but it made Jax relent, just an inch.

"Alexis is devoted to her family; I don't need to tell you that."

"No, you don't." Sonny's voice was shaded with deliberate meaning. Despite their shared concern, years of unspoken rivalry was not about to die overnight. "I want to give Alexis all the space she needs. But I'm worried about her and this situation she's in. I tried calling, but this storm…" he waved a hand even as the sound of the wind and rain ebbed and flowed outside. "… I didn't get through. At the same time, I don't want to push…" Sonny couldn't remember the last time he'd felt this helpless.

"You haven't heard from her." Jax said, almost to himself. "And I suppose you want to know if I have?"

He looked across the table, directly into Sonny's eyes. And for what he saw there, for Alexis' sake, he dismissed their long-standing enmity and gave in to his better nature. "I haven't heard from her, Sonny. I will tell you this much; the Cassadine situation is one that could turn dangerous – lethally dangerous - before we know it."

An errant thought crossed his mind. Was he, Jasper Jax, really sitting down and having a conversation with Sonny Corinthos – a conversation that included the word "WE"? Alexis, honey, this would tickle you pink. If I can get myself to tell you about it, that is.

Jax regrouped. "I'll check into the situation on my own. But in the meanwhile, if she does call me, before she talks to you, I will tell her that you're – concerned - and that she should call you as soon as possible. How's that?"

Sonny looked at him for a long silent moment. "Somehow, every now and them you manage to surprise me, Jax."

"Yeah. Sometimes I manage to amaze myself."