Following the police officer up the cement steps one at a time, Elizabeth paused to study the building. Her heart was pounding so hard, she could almost hear it echoing in her ears. Fear of what she was sure was about to happen made the blood in her veins freeze. It took the last bit of strength she possessed not to crumble into a heap of female hysterics.
There was only one possible reason for an uniformed officer to come knocking on her door in the middle of the night. It meant somehow the Port Charles police found out about Max. It was the only explanation why Deputy Collins wouldn't give her a chance to change into something other than what she'd been sleeping in. She'd had to beg to be able to grab her jacket and purse, which he followed her like a shadow to retrieve.
At least he'd taken pity on her and spared her some dignity by not handcuffing her and stuffing her into the back of the squad car. If he had, there was no possible way she'd be able to keep the waterworks at bay.
Feeling the man's heavy stare, she looked up to find him holding the door open for her. Licking her dry lips, she took a deep breath and climbed the last two stairs. The inside of the station didn't look like anything she'd seen on T.V.. Instead, it looked as though it'd been hit by an ugly stick from the seventies. Panel lined the hallway, with worn rust colored rugs every few feet over cracked limoneum. A few closed doors lined the hallway, along with an assortment of public service posters.
Following the officer through the last door on the hallway, Elizabeth blinked at the harsh glare being cast from the florescent lights. Where the hallway had been deserted, the inside of this room was a flurry of action. This was what she'd pictured. Uniformed men in blue, milling about. Drinking from styrofoam cups while working at their desks.
"This way Ms. Webber." The officer snapped at her when she didn't follow. His tone chaffed at her. Lifting her chin just a notch, she glared at the man. Walking forward and into the small room the officer stood impatiently in front of, she took in the dreary atmosphere.
There wasn't much to look at. Just a table and a few empty chairs. There was a dry erase board lining one of the walls, void of any writing. So this was the room that was the beginning of the end. This was where she'd be told that the gig was up. That she'd broken the law by keeping her mouth shut. Watching helplessly as everything she'd worked so hard for be torn away from her.
She'd be lying to say she wasn't a little upset that all her hard work was for nothing. That her life as she knew it was ending so quickly. But it didn't change anything. She wouldn't have changed a thing. And knowing that, made this easier to swallow.
"Mr. Lansing will be right in." The man practically sneered.
"Actually, I'm already here." Brushing past the officer to get into the room, Ric Lansing smiled charmingly. "Would you like anything to drink?"
Perhaps a cup of Drano, Elizabeth thought bitterly.
Eying the man in front of her, she wondered if anyone ever bought into his pathetic act. "No thank you."
Lifting a hand to one of the chairs, Ric kept up his feeble attempt at playing nice. "Why don't you take a seat." Curious as to how he was going to play this, Elizabeth sucked in a deep breath and choose a chair on the other side of the table. "I want to thank you for coming in. I know it's a little late."
Elizabeth felt trapped, not knowing exactly what to say, she gave him a weak smile. It seemed a good idea. Something told her to keep her mouth shut. Maybe it was from her sick desire for late night movies, but she felt that if there was ever a time to keep her mouth shut, this was it.
"I'll try to make this easy, so you can go back home to bed." Opening a file, Ric seemed to read through a few pages. Elizabeth steeled herself, readying for the onslaught of questions. "Can you tell me where you were tonight around tenish?"
Blinking, Elizabeth frowned, while she wiped her palms on her pants. "I was at Luke's bar."
Nodding, Ric graced her again with another cheesy grin. "I heard you and Emily Quartermaine had quiet a night."
"There was a fight."
"Looks like it was a doosy." Ric guffawed. "Can you tell me what happened after the brawl?"
Okay, Elizabeth thought. This was not what she'd been expecting. It was apparent that Mr. Lansing was fishing for something. "Well the police cleared out the bar and parking lot."
"And?"
"Emily's brother Jason, showed up with one of his friends." Watching the way his eye's lightened up, Elizabeth knew she needed to tread carefully. Ric Lansing was looking for something and she needed to make sure she didn't hand it to him.
"Right. Did Emily call him?"
"Not that I know of." Keeping it simple, Elizabeth shrugged. "I was a little dazed. I've never been in a bar fight before."
"Somehow I can believe that." His laugh was more annoying than his flashy grins. "So when Mr. Morgan and his friend showed up, what then?" Writing on a piece of paper, Ric didn't look up.
"Jason asked us what happened, then offered to drive me home." Knowing that he simple answers were starting to make Ric's smile lose it's shine, Elizabeth kept that small victory to herself.
"Jason is it?" Ric smirked.
"Well it seemed silly calling him Mr. Morgan all night." Seeing that Ric didn't look pleased by her response, Elizabeth remembered the conversation she'd recently had with Laura. It appeared she was smack dab in the middle of one of the them and us wars.
Just because she taught Kindergarten and had an unhealthy love for children's stories didn't mean she was stupid. She may appear to be naive and gullible and perhaps at times she was, this wasn't one of them. She had a firm grasp on human nature, and when someone was fishing for information. After several years living like a Spencer, it was impossible not to.
"So Jason Morgan gave you a ride home." The charming mask was gone, and Ric Lansing was starting to look like a predator.
"Yes." Keeping her response simple, Elizabeth noticed the way the man's lips seemed to pinch.
"What time was that?"
"I really don't know exactly. But if I had to guess, about ten thirty."
Scribbling on his paper again, Ric finished and tossed the pen on the table. "And then what?"
"I invited him in for coffee." Keeping eye contact with the DA, Elizabeth felt her blood boil when an unflattering sneer spread across his face.
"Do you usually make it a habit to invite strangers into your home for coffee?"
The man was almost predictable, but Elizabeth felt stupid. Would she have invited Jason into her home if she hadn't had previous exposure to him? Probably not. "It seemed the polite thing to do. Besides, he's Michael's father. It's not like I've never met him before."
Looking even more disgruntled, Ric leaned back in his seat. "Fine. What time did he leave?"
The sick way he leered at her wasn't lost on her. "About the time it takes to make a nasty tasting cup of coffee and for him to pretend to drink it."
"And that's all that happened?" The sly smile on his lips made her palms itch to take a wild swipe at him.
"What else would happen?" Playing dumb with a degree of sarcasm, Elizabeth was beginning to feel irritated with the entire situation.
The questions he was asking, could've been easily answered from the comfort of her home. There was absolutely no need to bring her here. In her pajamas. Something was wrong about this.
"Ms. Webber, I'm not sure if you're aware how serious this situation is. If I find that you're lying to me, or even stretching the truth a little to protect Jason Morgan, I will press charges against you so fast that your head will spin." Apparently play time was over, and Ric was allowing his true form to shine. "I'll ask again, did anything else happen between you and Jason Morgan?"
"Besides talking for a few minutes. No."
"Do you have a sexual relationship with Jason Morgan?"
"Excuse me?" The question threw her.
Talking slowly, Ric's lips twisted in disgust. "Do you have a sexual -."
"I heard you Mr. Lansing." Elizabeth spat. "But I can't believe you're asking me such a personal question. I have answered your questions, in my pajamas I might add. Something tells me that your line of questioning and the manor in which you're asking, is infringing upon my rights."
"So you're refusing to answer whether or not your relationship with Mr. Morgan is on a sexual nature?"
Glaring at the man, Elizabeth decided her dislike of him had reached a new level. "No. My relationship with Jason Morgan isn't sexual."
Rolling his eyes, Ric shook his head. "I have a hard time believing that. You want to know why?"
"Not really." Tired of the Cat and Mouse game, Elizabeth found herself getting more annoyed. It was rare for her to get to the point where she felt the need to be rude, but the man across from her was pushing her quickly into that territory.
"Well let me tell you anyways. I see myself as an expert on Jason Morgan. He's a dangerous man, who has done terrible things. He's not one known to be inclined to do favors for people he doesn't know. He's got lackeys for that. So when an attractive female tells me that he took the initiative to drive her home, out of the goodness of his heart, I have a hard time believing it."
Remaining silent, Elizabeth knew if she opened her mouth she wouldn't stop talking. The man was a jackass.
"So I will give you one more chance to answer my question." Standing up, trying to intimidate her, Ric placed his hands on the table and leaned in as close as the table would allow. "Do you have a sexual relationship with Jason Morgan."
Biting her tongue, Elizabeth crossed her arms under her chest and glared. "I want a lawyer."
"Excuse me?" Ric Lansing looked as though he'd been slapped.
"I want a lawyer." Speaking slowly, mimicking him from before, Elizabeth felt a streak of rebelliousness shoot through her. "You're out of line. I know it. You know it. I'm starting to wonder what someone who actually knows the law, might say about this."
Several expressions passed across his face, until he slammed his hand opened palmed on the table and straightening up. "Fine."
Stalking out of the room, Ric slammed the door behind him. Growling in frustration, he kicked at a nearby chair, ignoring Mac Scorpio's displeased look from a few feet away. "God damnit."
"What do you think you're doing?" His brows low, Mac's face was flushed.
"What do you think I'm doing?" Ric snapped. "I'm building a case against Jason Morgan."
"Drop it Ric. We both know there's no case."
"Only because Morgan's little slut in there is lying through her teeth." Motioning toward the room, Ric growled. "I have to admit, he sure got her trained fast."
"Or, she's telling the truth." Mac rationalized.
"Oh please."
"Ric, you're already walking a thin line with most of the judges in town. After this you wont be able to get a warrant even if you had hard proof to waive in their faces." Reaching over and grabbing Ric's arm, Mac turned him around. "Do you have any idea how much trouble you're going to be in when Corinthos and Morgan send us a bill for the mess you made tonight?"
"Talking about the invincible crime lord, where was he tonight?"
"In a room full of people." Sighing, Mac shook his head. "Look, I know you want to bring them down. But you aren't going to get them like this. Trust me, I've been where you're standing right now."
Jerking out of Mac's grasp, Ric walked over to the window to stare at Elizabeth Webber. "If I could just break her -."
"It's over Ric. You need to let her go home before she does get a lawyer and sues us for harassment."
"I can't believe Morgan's whore is my son's teacher." Shaking his head, Ric balled his hands into fists.
"Lansing, that's enough." Jabbing a finger at the DA, Mac's eyes flashed. "There's no proof that she's Morgan's girlfriend. She came in willingly, and put up with your questioning until you got vulgar. Morgan's pacing a cell downstairs and his lawyer knows we've got nothing."
"Whatever." Spinning on his heal, Ric brushed past Mac and stormed into his office.
Giving himself some time to calm down, Mac looked over at one of the cops nearby. "Let Ms. Webber know that she's free to go home. Then let Morgan go."
"I want you to know that tonight was the final straw." Stepping forward from the corner he'd been waiting in, Justice glared down at Mac. "This harassment has gone on long enough. But when you pull in innocent woman, then treat them like that . . ." Justice's lips thinned. "I'm going to make sure it'll never happen again."
"Ms. Webber put herself in this position." Not sounding as though he actually believed his own words, Mac Scorpio had to back up his own men. "Maybe this will open her eyes."
The door to the interrogation room opened, and both men looked over to where Elizabeth stood. She looked uncomfortable, standing in her pajamas while her hair was piled on top of her head. Justice gave Mac a look of disgust before approaching her.
"Ms. Webber." Holding out his hand, Justice waited while she eyed him suspiciously. "I'm Jason Morgan's attorney." Seeing that her guard was lowered, he was relieved when she placed her much smaller hand into his. "If you'd like, I can give you a ride home after Jason signs a few papers."
"If you don't mind." Tucking a stray piece of hair behind her ear, Elizabeth suddenly looked years younger than she was. "Just as long as I'm not pulled out of my house in a few hours for more questions."
Her candor brought a smile to his face. "I'm sure you'll be fine."
Noise from the stairwell had all eyes in the room swing over to watch where Jason stood glaring. His eyes swept around the room, until they feel on Elizabeth. His expression darkened, bringing a blush to her face.
In three easy strides he was across the room, his eyes never breaking contact. "They brought her in? Why didn't they just talk to her at her house?"
Justice held up his hand. "Can we get into that in the car?"
Jason let his eyes drift over to where Mac stood, then back to where Elizabeth fidgeted. "Are you okay?"
Licking her lips, remembering Ric's unflattering words, she could only nod. Up until that moment she really hadn't thought much of standing in the middle of a squad room in a pair of lounge pants covered in hearts, with matching tee. But under Jason's scrutiny, she felt almost naked.
"I'm good." Back at that place again where she was unable to look him in the eye, Elizabeth found an interesting smudge on the floor to stare at instead.
"Why is she here?" Not bothering with talking in a low voice, Jason look ed to Justice for the answer.
"Answering questions for the DA." Looking bored, the lawyer gave Jason a look that begged him to wait to ask any further questions.
"Why here?" Asking again, Jason frowned, apparently ignoring Justice's plea, he glared at the officer who was trying to lead him to where his paperwork waited to be signed. "They didn't give her a chance to change?"
"Jason man." Groaning, Justice tried to hush him. "Not here. Can you just sign the papers. I'll give you and Ms. Webber a ride home."
Looking indecisive for only a matter of seconds, Jason let his eyes roam around the room to where everyone seemed to be holding their breath to see what he was going to do. With a scowl, he moved over to the counter and grabbed the pen before scratching his signature in the right places.
Heading over to where Elizabeth was still standing, he placed a hand on the small of her back to usher her out. Before they made it to the door, Ric stuck his head out of his office door.
"Just wanted to congratulate you Morgan." Leaning on his forearm, Ric let his gaze linger on the backside of Elizabeth. "You've got this one well trained."
Jason's brow's lowered, but he wouldn't allow Ric's taunt make him drop his hand. "Would you like to repeat that?"
"Though her request for legal council was a little slow, I'm sure after a few more times she'll get it down pat. Other than that, she was perfect."
"Jason." Justice pulled on Jason's jacket sleeve. "Forget him. Let's go."
Giving one last glance to where Ric was smirking Jason almost pushed Elizabeth out the door.
