Dr. Lee greeted Spinelli and Maxie with a smile.

"Hi you two! How are we doing?"

"Okay." Maxie replied.

"Alright. Maxie, why don't you sit on the table here? Spinelli, there's a chair you can use." She waited for them to situate themselves.

"Okay, now Nadine sent over the results of the test at the clinic, so let's move ahead and figure out the due date. Do you know when conception occurred?"

"July 15th." They answered in unison.

Dr. Lee was surprised. "Okay. Then that puts you at 9 ½ weeks. That gives a tentative due date of April 21st."

"Forgive me, Doctor, but shouldn't the Fair One be due in March?"

"Pregnancies aren't actually nine months, Spinelli." She explained. "Full term is 40 weeks."

"Oh, continue."

"I'm a little concerned because of your heart, Maxie. It shouldn't prevent you from carrying to term, but you may need to be more careful than others."

Maxie nodded and squeezed Spinelli's hand.

"Now, I'm going to do an ultrasound, just to check things, and then a full exam. When you're ready, just lay back.

--

Maxie and Spinelli were passing the nurse's station.

"You think Dad will want it for the fridge?"

"The photographic evidence of our progeny? Refrigerator, if not his desk."

"Maxie?" Patrick called from the station.

"Hey Patrick, want to see our baby?" She waved an ultrasound picture in front of him.

"Let me see." He examined the image. "Looks like a Jones, all right."

"Very funny. Where's Robin?"

"Still in with Robert. And…" He leaned on the counter. "She was hoping you two would go back in."

Maxie looked at Spinelli. "I don't know…"

"No, Fair One, it's okay. We will visit, for my expectant sister's sake."

"Okay." They made their way to Robert's room.

Robin and Robert were talking quietly when Maxie and Spinelli came inside.

"Hey Robin, want to see a picture?" Maxie tried to ignore Robert in the bed.

"The baby? Let me see!" Robin grabbed the picture. "Oh, looks just like their cousin, clearly related."

Maxie giggled.

"Robin," Robert looked at Spinelli standing at the end of his hospital bed. "How about you and Maxie compare photos outside?"

"Uncle Robert?"

"No, Maximista, let the Jackal speak to him."

Maxie kissed his cheek, and she and Robin went outside.

"Why don't you sit down, kid…sorry, Damien?"

Spinelli made his way to the chair. "Only Uncle Mac calls me Damien."

"I noticed Maxie calls you Spinelli."

"That's what Stone Cold calls me, everyone has followed suit."

"Stone Cold?"

"Jason Morgan, my employer. The Jackal does his computer work."

"Why do you call yourself the Jackal?"

"Because I am the assassin of the internet."

Robert sighed. "Look, Spinelli, you deserve to know why I wasn't there. When I knew your mother, it wasn't long after a man named Faison tried to kill Anna and I in an explosion. I'd been traveling, trying to stay undercover. I met your mother at the grocery store, of all places. We dated for a while, but one day I saw one of Faison's men in town, so I took off. I didn't know she was pregnant."

Spinelli had been silent, just listening. "She died, you know. When I was born."

"I didn't know." Robert pushed himself up. "I'm sorry. She was a lovely woman."

"It was the Jackal's fault."

"I beg your pardon?"

"The Jackal killed her."

"No you didn't. Who told you that?"

"My granny. I'm afraid the Jackal was a real disappointment."

"Kid, what happened to you?"

"Pardon?"

"What happened to make you…how you are?"

"How I am?"

"The nicknames, the nervousness, working for Morgan."

"Nothing happened. Sure, the Jackal was not popular in school and is skilled online, but other than having no parents, it is a childhood that many experience. And no tests will prove otherwise."

"Tests?" Robert asked, concerned.

"Doctor Doom wishes to have the Jackal tested for…" Spinelli made air quotes "…'personality disorders'."

"And you don't want that?"

"No, there is nothing wrong."

Robert decided to change the subject. "How did you get into computers?"

Spinelli grinned. "I wrote an essay for a contest. First place was a laptop. Once I had it, I became the Jackal."

There was a knock on the door. Robin poked her head in. "I'm so sorry, but Maxie needs Spinelli."

"Is something wrong with my Maximista?"

"I don't think so. She got a phone call and said she needed you."

"Go take care of your girl, kid." Robert told Spinelli.

After he left, Robin took his place in the chair. "So…no yelling."

"No yelling."

"Spin's really great. And once you spend enough time with him, you understand him without problems."

"Who's Dr. Doom?'

"Dr. Hunter. He's the new hotshot here at GH."

"Has he treated Damien?"

Robin nodded thoughtfully. "A couple of times. Spinelli had this 'Asian Flu' a couple of months ago and another time when he was dehydrated. Why?'

"Damien said something about the doctor wanting to test for personality disorders."

Robin huffed. "There's nothing wrong with Spinelli, I'm going to have to have a talk with Dr. Hunter."

"You don't think there's anything wrong? The kid calls himself by some made up name."

"You want to know what I think? I think he was lonely growing up, unpopular, probably smarter than anyone at his schools. I don't think he had many friends so he created an elaborate fantasy life where he was the hero. There's nothing wrong with that. I do think, however, that he spent so much time in his fantasy world that he had difficulty separating it from reality."

"You think he's delusional?"

"No. I think once he spends more time in reality, where a lot of people care about him, he won't have as much trouble. And Maxie helps, because that girl is a constant dose of

reality."