A/N – Thanks for the comments!
Chapter 24
Elizabeth pushed the plate away, unable to eat another bite. Her stomach is still a bit off due to the drugs and all the excitement. When her phone rang, she jumped and then answered it.
"Hello?"
"It's me."
Liz stood and went onto the porch. "Is everything okay?"
"Yes. Johnny is sleeping although he's having nightmares, but honestly, I just wanted to see how you are holding up." She can't imagine how frightening being held by Anthony must have been.
"Oh Sarah, everything is such a mess."
"Talk to me."
Liz told her everything that happened, and Sarah is so pissed that Patrick would hurt her like this. If it turns out that Patrick is the one who drugged her, he is going to be in a world of pain.
The doorbell sounded, and Liz hurried to the front of the house. "Sarah, I have to go for a minute. Can I call you back?"
"I'll be here."
Liz opened the door. "Hi. You're Claudia, right?"
"Yes. May I come in?"
"Sure. Is everything okay?"
"No, it's not. I wanted to talk to you about last night."
Liz led her to the living room. Audrey hung back in the kitchen and listened.
"I was the one that brought you to Patrick's house last night."
"Oh. I found out someone drugged me."
"I think that was an accident and they were gunning for me. I'm so sorry."
A million thoughts are running through her mind. So, Patrick didn't drug her, but he certainly took advantage of the situation.
"It was your father?"
"Yes. I heard what happened at the hospital and feel awful about it."
"You're not responsible for his actions."
Claudia turned slightly away to hide her tears.
"You're not telling me something."
She wiped some tears away. "Sorry, I usually have more control over my emotions."
"I think you get to be emotional."
"It's my fault all of this happened. My father was sick and," She stopped to gather her thoughts, "when I was younger, I was raped and he killed the man because he had hurt me."
Liz gasped. "I'm so sorry."
"He kind of went crazy after that and decided that anyone who hurts me needs to be handled."
"Johnny?"
Claudia nodded as tears streamed down her fact. "My father has been setting the fires. I heard him arranging for one yesterday, but he caught me, and they injected me with a sedative and I woke up inside a container. I guess I made some noise and Patrick heard me and rescued me. It took me a minute, but I remembered and called Johnny and then Julian to get the guys out of the building, but it was too late. My dad was also responsible for all those deaths from the earthquake. I don't know how to get beyond this or let it go."
"Patrick is on my shit list right now, but I'm glad that he helped you. Your father was irrational and that wasn't your fault. In his own sick way, he loved you." She is very thankful that she doesn't have to deal with something like that.
"He just had a crappy way of showing it. If Johnny had died, I'd never forgive myself. I don't think I can for Sonny. Johnny must hate me." She abruptly stood.
"Claudia! Please don't go." It was too late, because she had already run out the door.
Liz sunk onto the cushions and called Sarah. Audrey slipped upstairs. She had heard enough and wanted to call Lila.
"Who was at the door?" Sarah asked.
"It was Claudia."
Sarah frowned. "What happened?"
"She told me everything. I guess someone was trying to drug her and the waitress got our drinks mixed up."
"So, Patrick didn't drug you, but he certainly used it to break you and Jason up."
"She's hurting and thinks all of this is her fault. It turns out something horrible happened to her when she was younger, and her father took care of the guy and then proceeded to go psycho on anyone who hurt her."
"Are you saying all the fires were set up by Anthony?"
"Yes."
"Jesus…"
"I know. It's bad and Claudia is punishing herself for it. Her dad drugged her last night and put her in a trunk and hid it in the emergency area."
"What!"
"Patrick found her though and Claudia tried to warn the guys, but it was too late."
Sarah is stunned. "This story just gets crazier by the minute. What are you going to do?"
"I'm going to confront Patrick eventually. What he did was so underhanded and Jason—what if he was distracted? I texted him right before. Maybe I made things worse."
Sarah sighed. "Please don't go where you are going. It won't do any good. That bastard Patrick and Anthony are to blame for this. I want to punch Patrick in the face."
"You can't."
"Why not?"
"Because he's dying. I don't think he's lying about the tumor."
Sarah leaned on the door frame as Johnny stirred.
"He's waking up."
"I'm going to go to the hospital first thing in the morning to see Jason. Somehow, I'm going to have to make him understand. I just don't want to upset him."
"Oh Elizabeth, I'm so sorry that you are dealing with all of this. I love you."
"I love you too."
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Audrey dialed her phone. "Lila?"
"Audrey? Is Elizabeth okay?"
"Kind of… Something bad happened between her and Jason." Audrey quickly ran through everything she knows, leaving Lila at a loss for words.
"Are you still there?"
"Yes. I'm just—I want to strangle Patrick and bring Anthony back from the dead and kick his ass."
"Get in line…"
"When Jason wakes up, he might not want to see her."
"Then you're going to have to encourage him to do otherwise. He doesn't have all the facts. I know how hurt he must have been, but they love each other, and he needs to be reminded of that."
Lila sighed. "I can't even imagine how devastated he was, but she was drugged and what Patrick did is just so low. I don't care about his reasoning. There is one thing I know, he won't be doing any consults at General Hospital if I have anything to say about it."
"Just hold onto that revenge. I'm not totally against it, but Jason has a head injury and Patrick is the best."
"I don't know if I trust him touching my grandson."
"He might be a jackass, but he's arrogant and wouldn't ruin his medical reputation like that. Just give it a couple of days until you know Jason is out of the woods and then let's talk again." Unfortunately, since what happened had nothing to do with his medical license and he hadn't slept with Elizabeth, there wasn't much they could do career-wise unless Liz chose to have him arrested. Part of her is hesitant to ban him because what if there is a critical patient that needs him. That would punish a patient, not Patrick. The whole situation sucks, and she is not sure how to proceed.
"Fine." They'll wait until settle down and then put their heads together for the best solution before approaching Elizabeth and Jason.
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Johnny sat up. "Who was that on the phone?"
"Elizabeth. How did you sleep?"
"I'm fine. Is she okay?"
"Well, it has been a shitty day for her in many ways." Sarah told him everything and Johnny rubbed his face and pulled her into his arms.
"I shouldn't have met with Claudia. It just fueled Anthony's rage. I hate that Elizabeth got caught in the crossfire. Jason is going to be so upset. This totally explains his mood after we went to Patrick's place. I can't blame him, because I think I would have burnt that house down. Elizabeth didn't deserve to be treated like that and Patrick needs to pay for his actions."
"Oh, he's going to pay alright, but right now, I'm more concerned with you. Talk to me."
"I can't talk about Sonny right now. I'm barely holding on. If Jason doesn't make it…"
"He will. We need to have faith. Will you please eat something for me?"
"Okay."
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Mac watched a sedated Diane sleep. They had moved her to a regular room for observation. Occasionally, she whimpered in her sleep and it killed him. He considered Sonny a friend, so he'll watch over as will the other men.
Francis moved into the room. "I'll take over."
Mac turned and faced him. "Are you alright?"
"I'm still standing. You need a shower and probably should check in with your superiors."
"You're probably right. I just didn't want to leave her alone."
"She won't be. We'll all take turns."
"I'm taking the station off the grid."
"Does Ric know?"
Mac nodded. "Yeah, I called him once I knew Robin was with him. I'll call you later."
"Okay. Max has the next shift."
Francis took a seat in the chair Mac had vacated as he listened to him walk away. Diane suddenly sat up panting and he moved to her side and held her.
"You're okay."
"He's not coming back, is he Franny?"
"I'm so sorry."
"I can't do this alone. I just can't."
He held her face. "You won't have to because all of us are going to see you through this."
"I don't know if I'm strong enough."
"You are one of the strongest women I know. You'll take care of yourself and make sure the baby is fine while all of us dote on you."
Tears fell as she struggled to accept his kindness and he embraced her again.
"Just rest, Diane. I'll be right here. Tonight, Max will be here and then tomorrow morning, I'm going to take you home."
"He'll still be there—his smell, his clothes and style. Oh Francis, what am I going to do?"
"You're going to mourn and then do your best to get through it day by day."
"Are you going to do that to?"
"I'm going to try."
She only lasted a few more minutes before falling back asleep, so he gently laid her down and then covered her. The next few months will be rough, but he has a feeling once she sees that baby on an ultrasound, it will be very real for her and she'll fight to keep a part of Sonny alive.
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Robin held Ric as he cried. She had never seen him so distraught and is worried. Her and Sonny had always been close, so she is devastated as well.
"Take some deep breaths," she said softly.
"You don't understand."
"I do. I think sometimes you forget my history with him."
"I didn't have enough time. I tried so hard to get close to him."
She rubbed his back. "And you did—the two of you got closer every day."
"He never totally embraced me. I had to watch him treat Jason the way I wanted him to treat me and it hurt, but I never gave up."
Robin is aware of his bitterness towards Jason. It wasn't an everyday occurrence, but it was there and was born of jealousy. "They have history too. Ric, please don't go to the dark place. Sonny wouldn't want that."
He inwardly seethed. This is mostly Jason fault. He always pushed the boundaries and now his brother is dead because of it.
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The next morning, after clocking in, Liz frequently checked on Jason to see if he was conscious. Apparently, he had briefly opened his eyes a few times and then fell back asleep. The smoke had taken a huge toll on his body, but at least he is showing signs of life and is breathing well enough that they took the tube out. Patrick hadn't shown his face yet, but when he does, there will be hell to pay.
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Sarah watched as Johnny slept. He was a wreck the night before and not much better in the morning. Losing Sonny and not hearing any word regarding Jason is eating away at him. When his cell started to ring, she grabbed it. "Hello?"
"This is Alan calling from General Hospital."
"Alan, it's Sarah. How is he?"
"He's awake. They are doing tests, but things are starting to look up."
"That's excellent news. I will let Johnny know."
She ended the call and Johnny fought the fog in his head and opened his eyes.
"Hey."
She smiled. "He's awake."
His body jolted as he sat up. "We have to get there."
"Jump in the shower and by the time we get there, his tests should be finished."
After he stretched, he pulled her up against him. "Thank you for staying with me."
"That's what girlfriends are for. I'll make you some coffee."
He kissed her forehead and then rushed into the bathroom, eager to see his best friend.
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It had been an hour since Jason had tried to talk. Elizabeth waited patiently at the ICU desk, but it was like an endless stream of family was already ahead of her and she wondered if she should stay away until he was doing a little better. She was relieved to see her sister and Johnny walk in and ran to them and embraced Sarah.
"How are you holding up?" Sarah asked.
"I'm fine, just worried." She hugged Johnny. "You look tired.
"I am, but I will rest better when I know he's out of the woods." They just couldn't lose two of their men.
About a half hour later, Johnny entered the room and their eyes locked and when he tried to speak, he had to lower his eyes to keep his emotions in check.
"Johnny…" Jason's raspy voice was slightly above a whisper.
Sarah rubbed Johnny's back, encouraging him to move closer.
After sitting in the chair, he wearily rubbed his face. "You don't know how good it is to see that you're awake."
Briefly, Johnny squeezed Jason's hand and then pulled back.
"They said you're going to be okay, that your airway was not injured and only your hard head got messed up."
"Hurts..."
"Don't be an idiot and refuse the pain meds. I know you don't like them, but it's necessary."
"How are the guys?" Jason coughed a few times, the ache in his head making his eyes fill with tears.
"They are worried about you."
Jason slightly frowned. "How is Sonny?"
Johnny buried his face in his hands as a slight sob left his lips and Jason is stunned by the implication.
"No…"
His monitors started to go off and Epiphany hustled into the room.
"Jason, you need to calm down."
He was trying to get out of the bed, not believing Johnny. Sonny had to be waiting to see him in the hallway. The alternative was too unbearable.
"Look at me dammit!"
Her harsh tone made his eyes snap to her and then she placed her hands on his face. "You need to try and breathe deeper or you're going to pass out. Do you understand?"
He slightly nodded, trying to reign in his anger, but he just couldn't. One of his hands briefly tightened around her arm as he fought to stay present, but it was a losing battle.
Doctors rushed into the room and Sarah dragged a distraught Johnny into the hallway.
Once they determined he was stable, Monica stayed by his side and his door was closed to visitors. About a half hour later, he woke up slightly agitated and she smoothed her hands over his hair as she spoke to him softly.
"You need to stay calm if you want to get out of here in a few days."
He is so tired he can't even talk. His eyes pleaded with her to tell him that Johnny was wrong, and she could tell what he wanted to know. She never thought that he would ever look so desperate and then he thought about when he saw Elizabeth with Patrick and figures it was probably close.
"I'm sorry about Sonny."
A tear spilled down Jason's face.
"But, I'm not sorry that he saved you."
Jason's eyes grew wide.
"He did what I hear he always does and took care of you. He'll always be looking out for you now."
His eyes closed as her fingers raked against his scalp.
"He loved you like a brother and nothing can ever change that. I know your heart is breaking right now, but I need you to take deeper breaths."
He tried and only managed to hack for a few minutes as a result. Calmly, she put the mask over his face. "Go to sleep. Your body is so tired. I won't leave you."
Their gaze held for several long seconds before Jason finally gave in and drifted off.
