-1Chapter Three

Michael hadn't said a word since Lauren left. He sat on the couch with his arm covering his face, not moving a muscle. Kevin would have wondered if maybe he'd fallen asleep if it wasn't for the occasional hitch in his breathing. It was like he was crying inside.

"She'll be back," Kevin assured his distraught brother, sounding far more confident than he actually felt. He had never seen Lauren this angry before. "She loves you, Mikey. You can find a way to make her understand."

"What is there to understand, Kevin?" Michael finally said as he got up from the couch and began pacing the room. "I lied to her. I looked her right in the eyes and lied to her repeatedly when she begged me to be honest with her," Michael walked over to the bottle of scotch and poured himself a drink. "How am I supposed to make her understand that."

Kevin didn't know what to say. He'd never seen Michael like this before, except for when he thought that Lauren had died in that explosion. Kevin had hoped never to see that look of emptiness in his brother's eyes again.

"So, I guess we'd better go bail mom out." Kevin suggested. Michael let out a sharp, bitter laugh.

"She can rot in jail for the rest of her miserable life for all I care." Michael said as he slammed his glass down and poured another drink.

"You don't mean that, Michael." Kevin reasoned. The look Michael gave him then told Kevin in no uncertain terms that he was deadly serious. "She's our mother."

"She's a parasite, Kevin, and she won't stop until she's ruined both of our lives," Michael sat back down on the couch and picked up the baby book that Lauren had been looking at earlier. "She may already have."

"Then we should at least go down there to find out how much she's told the police about our involvement, right?" Kevin asked, trying a new angle. Michael sat and contemplated that for a minute. Kevin was right. They needed to find out how much the police knew so they could do damage control. Michael didn't know how he was going to get Lauren to forgive him for this, but he wouldn't be able to do anything if he was behind bars.

"Alright, fine." Michael said in defeat as he grabbed his keys off the coffee table and headed out the door with Kevin following him close behind. "But after this, I'm done. That woman is dead to me."

Kevin and Michael arrived at the police station a little while later. Michael approached the front desk and asked to speak with Det. Webber.

"He'll be right with you, Mr. Baldwin." the clerk informed him politely. Michael turned to look at Kevin who was cowering near the water cooler.

"Could you try and look a little less guilty, please?"

"I can't help it, Michael! What if she's told them everything? What if..."

"Councilor," Det. Webber bellowed from the other end of the squad room. "What can I do for you?" Michael approached the taller man at the front desk.

"I understand that you have Gloria Abbott in your custody and that she has been granted bail. I'm here to post it." Det. Webber looked at him in confusion. BR
"Mrs. Abbott's bail has already been posted." Michael couldn't mask his shock.

"Really? By who?" The detective looked at him suspiciously.

"Your wife."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Thank you so much for bailing me out of jail, dear." Gloria said as she sat in the passenger seat of Lauren's Benz as they sped down the highway. "I was expecting Michael though."

"I'm sure you were." Lauren said under her breath.

" I know it looks bad, but I'm completely innocent of course. I mean what possible motive would I have for contaminating the GloAgain cream?" Gloria lied to her daughter-in-law as she nonchalantly looked in the rearview mirror while re-applying her lipstick. "Our exit is coming up soon, honey. Shouldn't you switch lanes?"

"We're not going home, Gloria." Lauren said calmly as she pressed her foot down on the accelerator. Gloria slowly closed her lipstick and returned it to her purse. She turned to look at Lauren, really look at her for the first time since she'd arrived at the police station. Her eyes were puffy and bloodshot from crying, her jaw clenched in anger. Suddenly Gloria felt that she may have been better off staying in jail.

"Lauren, sweetheart. Is everything alright?" Gloria asked nervously.

"No," Lauren said. "But it will be." Lauren turned to look at her then and what Gloria saw in her eyes convinced her not to say another word until they reached their destination, wherever that may be.