She's going to help us. She has to help us.

Valentin ran a thumb across the entries, holding them in one of his hands. As disconnected as Alexis Davis was to the current Cassadine family, he still held high regard for his cousin. Victor's idea of "in-house" help was as smart as it was foolhardy. Alexis could absolutely track down the subject of the birth certificate, provided the person asking was someone she felt deserved the help.

Thank God she was in her office at The Invader.

"Come in!" Alexis's voice was slightly muffled by the door. Valentin gently pushed it open, Alexis's smile greeting him, "Well, this is a surprise."

"Can't I come visit my favorite cousin?"

"Not if you have an angle you're aiming for."

"You know me so well."

"...Sit down."

As Valentin shut the door, he swiftly approached Alexis and dropped the documents in front of her. He took a seat on one of the office chairs as she thumbed through the papers.

"Where did you get these?" Alexis asked, her face colored with confusion.

"The Wyndemere study," Valentin replied, crossing his legs. His hands were clasped over the elevated knee, "They're from Helena's journal."

"Thank you. I couldn't have figured it out from the delicate cursive," Alexis's glare caused Valentin to smile, "Did you rip these out?"

"They were found like that, stuffed in one of the desk drawers."

"They definitely looked aged. Why exactly are you bringing these to me?"

"I was hoping you'd be able to help me track down the parties in the entries."

"I can't help you with Irina."

"You know about her?" Valentin raised his eyebrows.

"You can thank Ethan Lovett for that," Alexis chuckled softly, "When he stayed at Wyndemere, he ran into Irina."

"She was in the castle?"

"As a plant for Helena. She was supposed to make Ethan fall for her, and then she'd kill him."

"Clearly that was a success."

"According to Ethan, she turned the gun on Helena, but it fired a blank. Helena had one of her goons shoot and kill her in response."

"Kill her?" Valentin asked, cocking his head to the side, "That's not how the entries read."

"I don't know what Helena did with her daughter, but according to Ethan, who was there, she's dead."

"But she could be out there."

"If she is, I can guarantee you won't be able to find her."

"Fair," Valentin nodded, reaching into his blazer and pulling out the folded birth certificate, "Then how about finding this one?"

Alexis read over the document, her brows furrowed in confusion the more she took in the content, "...What is this?"

"Ethan never mentioned it to you?"

"I don't even think Ethan knew," Alexis looked at Valentin with wide eyes, "Irina had a son?"

"According to that document, yes."

"And you're sure it's not some ploy from your mother that she never went through with?"

"Maybe it is," Valentin shrugged, "Maybe it isn't. That's why I want your help to track him down."

"And why would finding him benefit you?"

Valentin sucked in his lips, his eyes dancing under Alexis's gaze. He racked his brain to make up an excuse, to give Alexis any legitimate-sounding reason he could so Victor would get the help he needed. By extension, it would bring Valentin closer to Charlotte; anything was worth it to get her back home.

"...This isn't about you, is it?" Alexis pursed her lips, "You're not interested in Irina, you're not interested in tracking down your nephew. You're interested because of Victor."

"...You got me," Valentin put his hands up.

"Oh," Alexis laughed, "For a second, I thought you developed some compassion."

"Me? Never," Valentin smiled in response, "but the point stands: my father wants to find this wayward family member. He's hoping you could help."

"Yeah…I don't think so."

"Why not?"

"A number of reasons," Alexis leaned over to hand the documents back to her cousin, "First, I would never help Victor. Second, Sam's got enough on her plate as a PI. Third, we don't know if this birth certificate is even authentic."

"Let's assume it is."

"Excuse me?" Alexis asked with an incredulous smile as Valentin set the documents back down on her desk.

"Let's assume the birth certificate is authentic."

"Okay, fine. Let's assume the birth certificate is real. Let's assume that Irina did, in fact, have a child. Do you think tracking him down is worth upending his life?"

"How would meeting his mother's family upend his life?"

"The guy's in his mid-twenties," Alexis stood up, pacing the room, "He's probably living a peaceful little life. He's probably got a job, a family of his own, completely oblivious to his maternal family. And ultimately, I'm sure he's happy. Why change that?"

"This is an opportunity for him to be with said family. As far as we know, he's only had his father. He doesn't know about the colorful cast of characters he's related to through his mother."

"And that's just it. He doesn't know about us, and he doesn't know that we're aware of his existence."

"Which is all the more reason to find him."

"Well, for starters," Alexis sat on the edge of her desk, folding her arms, "We don't know where he could be. All we know is that at some point, he and his father left Amsterdam."

"So he could still be in Europe."

"Maybe, who knows?" Alexis sighed, "Why are you so invested in finding this guy for your father?"

Valentin felt himself freeze for a split second, the thought of letting Alexis in on Charlotte's predicament crossing his mind, "Family, Alexis. This young man is family. He bears family DNA, even if he lives under his father's name."

"He's Helena's grandson. By definition, he's not a Cassadine."

"Doesn't matter."

"It does matter. Irina was kept secret from everyone until Helena trotted her out to kill Ethan. If she were family, we'd all know about her."

"And now we do. Maybe her son was just another secret waiting to be exposed," Valentin stood up, pacing behind the chairs, "Instead of killing a Spencer, my sister tried to kill our dear mother. I can imagine that she's not a fan of our family."

"And thus you think her son wouldn't be aware of his maternal heritage."

"Precisely. That's why we should seek him out, to bring him into the fold so we can make this family whole."

"This family has never been whole," Alexis laughed, returning to her seat behind her desk. Valentin followed suit, "Look, I admire how fervently you're trying to dig up dirt for your father. As much as I want to help you, I know that helping you means helping your father, and I'm not going to let this young man become another victim of his. Leave him alone."

"...Do me a favor," Valentin stood up, his hands in his pockets, "Give it a day; really consider my request. If you still don't want to help, I'll come back tomorrow and get the papers from you. Otherwise, I expect to hear from your daughter about what she discovers."

Alexis dropped her head down as Valentin approached the office door. His hand rested on the doorknob, turning to look at Alexis one last time.

"Don't you think he deserves to have a connection with his mother?"

"Nikolas, so nice of you to join us."

Damnit, Nikolas thought as he stood in the doorway to the living room. Ava was seated on the sofa while Spencer was seated on the adjacent chair. Victor stood nearby, moving to approach his nephew.

"What's this about?" Nikolas asked.

"I think it would be best to discuss the events of yesterday," Ava replied.

"We don't have to do this," Nikolas sighed, sitting down on the sofa. Ava moved to the furthest cushion in response, "especially with Spencer here. He doesn't have to be involved."

"Actually, Father," Spencer began, "Ava told me that whatever is going to be discussed will be important for me to know. As far as I'm concerned, I've got every right to hear what you're going to say."

Nikolas shot a look at Ava, who smirked at him in response.

"Tell us, you two," Victor spoke up, "What was it that Dexter found on the shore behind the castle?"

"In truth, Uncle Victor," Ava turned her smirk to the older man, "it's not a question of what, but of who."

"Who's Dexter?" Spencer asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

"He works for Sonny," Nikolas said, "He was sent to help us find some things on the beach."

"Uncle Sonny sent some enforcer to dig things up on the beach?"

"Yes."

"No," Ava cut in, glaring at her husband, "he helped us find someone."

"Who?"

"Yes," Victor added, "Who did he help you two find?"

"Esme."

While Victor and Spencer exchanged confused looks, Nikolas put his head in his hands. Ava observed each man's behavior, trying to figure out the next course of action.

"This guy helped you find Esme on the beach?" Spencer asked, looking directly at Ava.

"Indeed, and he was quite successful."

"Why would Esme be on the beach?" Victor followed with, "That seems a bit out of character for her."

"Because she was forced down there."

All eyes were on Nikolas as he pulled his head up. His dark gaze locked onto Ava.

"Forced?" Victor repeated.

"Yes."

"How?"

"Why don't you ask my wife?"

"Are you turning this on me?" Ava stood up, shooting daggers at Nikolas.

"...What did you do to Esme?" Spencer asked, the curiosity in his eyes slowly turning into anger.

"You see what you've done, Ava?" Nikolas stood up, looming over his wife, "It's bad enough Sonny and his goon know what happened, but now you're dragging my family into it."

"All of this is because of you!" Ava retorted, "This stress, this agony, this chaos! It's on you and your terrible behavior!"

Nikolas's attention darted between his great uncle, his wife, and his son. Victor's confusion, Ava's contempt, and Spencer's rage all dug into him. His eyes were bloodshot, beginning to sweat bullets. Panic clouded his mind, and he desperately searched for an out. When his eyes landed on Ava in his haze, he got one.

"...Are you happy with yourself, Ava?"

"What?" Ava asked in response.

"Are you enjoying all the scorn being thrown my way over this?"

Ava looked between Victor and Spencer before going back to her husband, "Well, now that I'm actually taking in the scenery, yes."

"Of course you would," Nikolas spat, walking behind the sofa, "That's just like you, isn't it? You take glee in the situations you caused."

"Excuse me?!" Ava shot up, her face turning red.

"What happened with Esme was a result of your behavior."

"I did no such thing!"

"Really? Because her blood is on your hands!"

"What happened to Esme?" Spencer repeated in a hiss, glaring at Ava.

"They got into a fight," Nikolas explained, "and during the tussle, Esme fell off the parapet."

"And that's why Dexter was here," Victor said, "He helped you recover the body."

"Right."

"Esme fell?" Spencer pondered, slowly getting to his feet, "Or was she pushed?"

"I did not push her," Ava snapped.

"Why should I believe you? You've had it out for her since you met her."

"And now she's getting the satisfaction of offing her," Nikolas chimed in.

"Enough!" Victor's voice boomed, startling the family. All eyes fell on him, "That's enough! We are family; we're not going to squabble over this."

"Easy for you to say when you're not directly affected by what she did!" Spencer retorted, "My stepmother killed my girlfriend!"

"Spencer," Victor growled, "take a lap."

"But-"

"Take. A. Lap."

Spencer hoped his glare could cut down his great-great uncle. He sifted through all the things he could say, all the words he wanted Victor to hear. Rage and disgust flowed through his veins, and it took every fiber of his being to not lash out at the guilty parties.

Esme Prince was dead. Trina's guarantee of freedom from the hell she suffered was gone.

"You can hash it out with your stepmother at a later time," Victor spoke up, snapping Spencer out of his thought spiral, "Right now, the adults need to have a conversation."

"We're not done discussing this," Spencer slowly stepped away from his family members, giving each of them that same sharp glare. When his eyes landed on Ava, he wanted to make it count:

"You screwed Trina over. She'll most likely lose her freedom because you decided petty, pathetic revenge was more important than her. Her life is over and it's all your fault. I hope you know that, and I hope it haunts you at every waking moment: sitting with you, weighing on you until the day you die."

Ava bit her lip as Spencer marched off. She wanted to believe he was bluffing, that his words were from pure anger at the situation the family was caught in. A small part of her, sitting at the back of her mind, disagreed. It took every ounce of her not to let the grief she felt overtake her.

"Well," Victor cleared his throat, "that was rather rude."

"Spencer's just angry," Nikolas reasoned, "He didn't mean what he said."

"How can you be sure?" Ava asked, her voice trembling in its delivery.

"He's grown to be a bit…brash," Victor chimed in, "I don't dispute how terribly you've both behaved, but anger and bickering won't get us anywhere. He'll get his chance to express his feelings at a later time, but for now, we need to come up with a game plan."

"What did you have in mind?"

"Well, for you, my dear Ava, let this serve as your eviction notice."

"...You're kicking me out?"

"I have to."

"Why?"

"I can't have you jawing with your husband while we navigate this Esme situation," Victor reasoned, "Together you are a liability-"

"But separated we're not," Nikolas cut in.

"Sound logic," Ava pursed her lips, nodding slowly, "but why is it that I have to leave Wyndemere?"

"Well, this castle is for members of the Cassadine family…"

"...Oh," Ava said, looking between Victor and Nikolas, "I see how it is. I guess I'll be taking my leave then."

"Excellent decision."

"I'm sure Nina will give you a premium suite at the Metro Court," Nikolas said, his hands on his hips.

"I know she will," Ava shot him a look.

"You should get going, Ava," Victor said, looking down at the woman, "Can't let your friend give that nice room to someone else."

Ava backed away, looking between the two men, "Just remember, dear Uncle Victor. I was responsible for tracking down Esme. I hope you consider that as you construct your plan with the philanderer you call your nephew."

Victor and Nikolas watched in silence as Ava turned the corner, heading upstairs. Nikolas quietly gulped as Victor softly chuckled to himself. He turned towards his great nephew with a smile on his face.

"What?" Nikolas furrowed his eyebrows.

"She's quite the comedian," Victor laughed, "Taking credit that really belongs to Dexter."

"She told Sonny about what happened," Nikolas corrected, "and he sent Dex. What do we do about that?"

"...Leave Dexter to me, Nikolas," Victor donned a sinister grin, "For now, we need to handle the Esme of it all. Her body is one with the pine barrens, but I think an exorcism or two of her spirit is quite needed. First with this family, and then, when we have our ducks in a row, Port Charles as a whole."