OF COURSE, while working on this memo for my externship, a story idea came to mind which sort of makes-up for (but not replaces) the shelved ONCP. Here it is.

Translation of title: A Relative Misfortune

Totally UNEDITED. I have to finish this memo… If you like it, I'll perhaps find the time to edit it later.

Chapter One

Clocks and Time

Alexis Davis, twenty-two years old and in her final year of law school, the top of her class, the editor of the Law Review, and president of Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, was on the fast track to success. In fact, she had already procured a job at a top-notch law firm in New York City. Despite the cards dealt to this orphaned girl, raised in a household lacking in all semblance of love, but for her beloved Stefan, she was beating the odds.

As she sat in her apartment one night, distracted over the thoughts whirling through her mind, and staring at the telephone trying to convince herself to not make the phone call she so desperately wanted to make, her doorbell rang. She looked at her clock; it was one o' clock in the morning. She had not been expecting anyone, and even if she had been, they certainly would not have been visiting her at such a late hour.

She grabbed her robe and wrapped it around herself before looking into the peephole. There standing on the other side of the door was a straggly looking woman, who clearly had been drinking, holding the hand of a very young child, who could have easily passed for three, but not much older than four years old. Alexis' heart began to race; while the small child appeared so young, she had a feeling that the beautifully filthy child was exactly six years old.

--- "May I help you?" She called through the door as she continued to study the child.

The woman looked at the little girl and back at the door.

--- "My name is Evelyn McCall—"

The rest of whatever the woman was saying was completely lost to the young woman; her head exploded with the conversation she had had with Stefan just an hour prior.

Flashback

She held a letter in her hands that contained no postmark and no return address; it was simply addressed to Ms. Alexandra Davidovitch. She had found it slipped under her door as she was rushing out to class that morning.

Although she was a bit taken aback by the use of the name she had once used, in what seemed like a former life, she was too overwhelmed with the deadline she needed to meet in regard to her law review article, to take the time to review the contents of the letter. It was not until she returned home later on that night, completed her reading assignments, showered, chosen her suit for her internship the next morning, and written her opening statement for the commencement of the upcoming moot court competition, that she remembered the letter she had placed on her dining room table. She sat down on her couch with a bowl of popcorn in hand, and began reading.

"Miss Davidovitch,

You don't know me, but I'm the woman who has been raising your child—"

She nearly choked on her popcorn as she read the opening line; the woman clearly wasted no time as she cut to the chase in revealing whom she was. With her heart racing in her chest, Alexis continued to read.

"Look, I can't do this anymore. I already have a kid with enough problems; I'm not cut out to raise some other broad's burden."

She put the bowl on the table as she fumed at the words on the page. As Alexis had had no choice in the matter, she did not want to give her daughter up to any random family who might hurt her; she loved that child with every fiber of her being, and had begged and pleaded with Mikkos to ensure her well-being. He had promised her that he had found an infertile couple to take care of her baby; he promised her that she would be loved the way she would have been had he allowed her to raise the child.

Despite her desire to pick up the phone and call the wretched bastard man, right then and there, she regained enough composure to continue reading the letter.

"I know that this is really harsh on my part, but I'm sorry. We're about to be evicted from our home, and she has nowhere to go. I mean, my sister has agreed to take us in, but she only has space for three of us. So, seeing as you must be old enough to take care of her (her name is Samantha, by the way), I figured that you might want to have her back.

I'll be in touch.

Evelyn McCall."

Alexis felt as though she were about to have an anxiety attack. She took several deep breaths to calm herself as she managed to walk to her bedroom and recover her inhaler. She took several pumps before finally being able to once again breathe regularly. Despite catching her breath, her heart remained broken at the realization that people who were not only financially unstable, but who also clearly had no love in their heart for the child had been raising her daughter. She was even more disgusted with Mikkos for having arranged such an adoption.

Instead of calling him, however, she decided to call the only person she could trust; she needed to speak to Stefan. She looked at the clock; it was six in the morning in Greece. It was rather early to be calling him, but etiquette could certainly wait considering her daughter's current predicament.

********

Stefan rolled over in the bed at the sound of his ringing phone. He looked at the clock; it was six in the morning. He begrudgingly sat up and answered.

--- "Hello."

Alexis smiled at the sound of her beloved cousin's voice. Were it not him, she would not have survived her life in the Cassadine household. On nights when Mikkos, who in his cold fashion also ensured her physical well-being, was out of town, Stefan took it upon himself to make certain that she had something to eat before going to bed. In addition, he was the one who purchased clothes for her when she outgrew the ones she had worn day in and day out. If it had been up to his mother, Alexis would unquestionably have either starved to death, or simply been an ignorant pauper cast out of the Cassadine fold upon her eighteenth birthday. In fact, Helena intended to do just that, three years ahead of schedule, when it was discovered that Alexis was pregnant.

In the end, it was Stefan who had managed to convince Mikkos to allow Alexis to continue with her education, and take the pregnancy to term. He had tried as well, through her persuasion, to convince his father to allow her to raise the child. This plea, however, fell onto deaf ears; while Mikkos, to Helena's chagrin, agreed to allow Alexis take the pregnancy to term and to continue with her education, he conditioned this allowance on the child being given up for adoption.

Although Alexis had wanted her child more than anything in the world, she knew that there was no way, at sixteen, and despite Stefan's generosity and kindness, she would be able to raise her. Had she attempted to defy her cousin and keep the baby, she would not have put it passed Mikkos or Helena, to freeze Stefan's accounts to inhibit his ability to support her; they knew that he was her benefactor. Without an education, experience in the workforce, or money, Alexis knew that raising a baby would be impossible, and quite frankly selfish. She realized that the only choice she had in the matter was to agree to Mikkos' term and give the baby up for adoption.

Despite having to give her up, Alexis owed a debt of gratitude to Stefan for helping her the way he had, for her daughter was alive and perhaps soon to be in her arms.

--- "Hello Cousin."

Stefan was shocked to hear Alexis' voice on the other line.

--- "Alexis, are you aware that it is rude to call upon someone before nine o'clock?"

She smiled at the sound of his voice.

--- "Stefan, are YOU aware that it is rude to tell someone that their actions are rude?"

She heard him chuckle on the other end of the line; he could never stay upset with her for too long.

--- "Why are you calling me this early? Is everything alright?"

Alexis took a deep breath and explained the letter, the way in which she came into possession of it, and of its contents.

--- "I am so angry, Stefan; more angry than you could ever know. Mikkos promised me that my baby was going to be well taken care of. He told me that he had arranged for her to be raised with a good couple, one who could not have kids of their own, and who wanted children. Yet, here we are, six years later, and I get this letter that my daughter has been living in squalor and with someone who clearly doesn't love her enough to—"

She could not continue as she felt the tears rising up in her throat; she could not believe that Mikkos had betrayed her the way that he had.

Stefan could hear the pain in her voice. He had no words that would make her feel better about the situation.

--- "Lex, I'm coming."

The tears flowed freely from her face; that's all she needed to hear from him.

--- "Thank you."

He nodded his head on the line as though he could see her. As he was about to hang up the phone he quickly put it back to his ear.

--- "Alexis?"

She sniffled.

--- "Yes, Stefan?"

He cleared his throat before speaking.

--- "Under no circumstances are you to call Father—"

--- "Stefan—"

He cut her off before she could continue speaking.

--- "You will not call him, Alexis. Not until we figure out what is to be done about this situation."

She frowned over the line; there was nothing else to be done but to take her daughter from those people.

--- "What is to be done? I think there's only one thing that can be done, Stefan? I'm not given much of a choice. And I have to tell you, I'm fine with that—"

--- "What about your education?"

She did not know what to think about this conversation; she was not sure if Stefan was actually trying to convince her that she should not take her daughter back because of the effects it might have on her education and her career goals or if he was concerned about the consequences having her child in her life would have on his and the money in his accounts.

--- "If you're concerned that Mikkos and Helena will freeze your accounts, Stefan, don't worry; I will tell them that you will not help me in anyway. In fact, I will assure them that if you offer or attempt to provide in any way for me or my daughter, that I will turn you down and return anything that you've given me. I don't want—"

He cut her off.

--- "Alexis, how are you rejecting me before you even know what's going on? I would never try to keep your daughter from you, and quite frankly after everything that we've been through I'm offended that you would accuse me of doing something like that. I was merely trying to tell you to wait until we knew for certain what was going on before we, TOGETHER, confronted Father about his lies. He went against his word to not only you, but to me as well; I think we are both due an explanation."

Stefan was livid over his father's betrayal. Because he viewed Alexis as a sister, the child was, for all intents and purposes, his niece. He provided Alexis with the money to procure the appropriate nutrition and unbeknownst to his parents, flew on his own dime to Maine each month, to take her to her doctor's appointments while she was pregnant. He loved the child, and the news that she was perhaps neglected was as infuriating as though his own child were in the same predicament

--- "I am going to book a flight as soon as I get off of the phone with you. I do not want to take the family jet because I don't want them to know that I am on my way to see you. I will call you back with the details as I have them."

Alexis let out a breath. She did not know what she had done to deserve to have him in her life.

--- "I'm sorry, Stefan—"

--- "It's alright, Alexis. Goodbye."

He hung up before she had a chance to respond to him.

Now it was the waiting game.

End of Flashback.

And so the waiting was over. Just a mere hour after hanging up the phone with her cousin, there they were on the other side of the door. Alexis took a deep breath and opened it.

--- "Please come in."

Her voice came out softer than she had intended it, but she was nervous. Evelyn walked into the nicely decorated apartment and was immediately disgusted.

--- "I see you've done well for yourself while I was raising your kid."

Alexis turned around from locking the door to stare at the woman.

--- "Excuse me?"

Evelyn could not hide her anger toward the girl; there she was struggling with two kids and a good-for-nothing husband, while this rich kid was more than capable of raising her own brat.

--- "You opened your legs, shot a kid out, and tossed her away, but all the while you were more than capable of taking care of her. Looking at this place, I can tell that you're just a little rich kid who didn't want to be buckled down to her mistake."

While the woman was talking, Alexis could not help but look at the young girl who stood quietly behind the only mother that she had ever known. However, upon hearing the word mistake in reference to her daughter, leave the lips of the woman who had allowed a defenseless child to be so malnourished and underweight, Alexis found her voice; it was angry and fierce.

--- "Excuse me, but with all do respect, which from the looks of it, isn't much, but you don't know anything about me or about my life to judge me for giving my daughter up for adoption. If you knew anything at all, you would know that I didn't have a choice in the matter. Despite wanting nothing more to raise her and to make sure that she was well taken care of, which is more than I can say about you, my cousin, who took me in when I was orphaned as a toddler, by the way, threatened to completely cut me and my other cousin off—"

Evelyn rolled her eyes as she passed her hand along the mahogany dinner table.

--- "Who is he, this kid's father?"

Alexis shook her head in absolute repulsion that the woman would think that she would have had a child by her cousin.

--- "You know what, I'm not even going to justify your statement with a response. Now, having never wanted to give my daughter up, I will be more than happy to take her off of your hands since she is, according to your letter such a burden to you."

Evelyn pushed Samantha toward the young woman.

--- "You know, I really could have just dropped her off at some church or something, and you would have been none the wiser. I didn't have to come all this way to bring her to you."

Alexis picked up and wrapped her arms around the little girl who at first seemed quite shocked at the gesture, nevertheless laid her head onto the kind stranger's shoulder. She was weightless in Alexis' arms; Alexis wondered when she had last had a meal.

--- "Aren't you kind? Now, if you'll excuse me, but this child looks as though she hasn't had a bath in quite some time, and is probably hungry and tired. So, please leave me your contact information, and I'll be sure to have a lawyer contact you—"

Evelyn smirked before going to the door.

--- "Eh, a lawyer; I'm sure your family has one already on retainer. Don't worry, princess, you'll be hearing from me soon enough about little Samantha."

She opened the door and stepped out of the apartment without a second thought about the little girl she had raised for so many years. Even more stunning, however, was the fact that the child seemed unconcerned with Evelyn's departure or the fact that she had left her in the care of a complete stranger.

Alexis held tightly onto the child. She did not care that she was filthy and smelled quite unclean; those were problems that could be easily resolved. The bigger problems concerning her daughter's emotional well-being, her supposed family's reaction to having her daughter in her life, and of course, the legalities of her current custody, weighed heavily on Alexis' mind. She was not letting her baby go, not a second time.

She put the child down so that she could more easily speak to her.

--- "Hi honey, um, did your mo—, um, did Evelyn tell you who I was?"

The child nodded her head.

--- "She said that I was going to live with my mommy. Is that you?"

Alexis wiped the tears that rolled down her cheeks at the sound of the child's voice.

--- "Yes, yes that's me. Um, you can call me Alexis, Lexi… Mommy… whatever makes you comfortable."

Sam smiled slightly, but quickly stopped smiling when she noticed the look on her mother's face; the child's teeth were deplorable. Alexis was grateful that they would soon fall out, and with her guidance, her daughter's hygiene would be as it should be.

Alexis stood up and held her hand out to her daughter and led her to the bathroom.

--- "Do you mind if I give you a bath, Samantha?"

The little girl shook her head; it had been days since she had had one.

--- "Do you have—"

She stopped herself from being so presumptuous as to ask for something from someone she hardly knew. Alexis noticed the her trepidation.

--- "What is it, honey?"

--- "Nothing."

She bent down and smiled at the girl, hoping to put her nerves at ease.

--- "Sam, do you mind if I call you Sam?"

The child smiled and shook her head. Alexis squeezed her daughter's cheek.

--- "You have a beautiful smile, Sam."

She blushed.

--- "Thank you."

--- "Now, what is it that you wanted to ask me? Honey, you should never be afraid to ask me for anything, okay?"

Sam nodded before looking down at her hands and quietly speaking to the woman.

--- "I wanted to know if you had any bubbles."

Alexis bit her lip and shook her head.

--- "Unfortunately, I don't—"

She noticed the girl's face drop in disappointment. Alexis lifted her daughter's little chin, so that she was looking at her.

--- "But I tell you what, Sam, tomorrow morning when the stores open, we'll go and pick some up, okay?"

Sam, who had never had a bubble bath, but had seen them on television commercials, was ecstatic. She wrapped her arms around Alexis' neck and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

--- "Thank you."

It broke Alexis' heart how something so small could mean so much to her child. It was ironic really, not too long ago, she herself was in the same position as her daughter.

She took her daughter's face into her hand and kissed her dirty little forehead.

--- "Baby, as much as I can help it, you will never want for anything."

She walked Sam into the bathroom and filled up the tub. She then began to undress the child, and aside from the emaciation she had expected to find, Alexis did not anticipate that her child would have bruises and scars all over her tiny body. As she looked her daughter over, her heart was breaking all over again, and rage filled within her; she had to ensure that she kept it at bay, so as not to frighten the girl. She took a deep breath and lifted the girl into the tub.

Sam who had tensed up once Alexis had undressed her, relaxed once she sat in the warm water. She smiled up at the woman.

--- "It's warm."

Alexis grew nervous.

--- "Is it burning you? I'm sorry, I can add more—"

Sam laughed softly.

--- "No. It's okay."

Alexis let out a sigh of relief. She decided that she would allow the girl to play in the water for a little bit as she threw her ragged clothes into the wash.

--- "Sam, I will be right back; I just want to put your clothes in the washing machine. Tomorrow I'm going to buy you some new clothes and underwear, but for now, we need to get these washed."

Although she was only six, Sam's face burned with shame at being so dirty, especially considering how clean her new mother was. She felt tears welling in her eyes, but she wet her face so Alexis would not be able to tell that she was crying.

--- "Okay."

Alexis quickly went into the linen closet and threw the clothes into the washing machine. She then found a large t-shirt to put on the child for the night. She went back into the bathroom and got to work on scrubbing the child of the filth that had accumulated on her body.

It astounded her how her clean white tub quickly turned black from the dirt on the small child. She washed her from head to toe, and decided that she would undoubtedly wash her again in the morning to ensure that every last remnant of the McCalls' filth was off of her daughter.

When she finished, she wrapped a towel around the girl, and lifted her from the filthy tub. She dried the girl off, passed lotion on her tiny body, combed her hair and pulled it up into a ponytail.

--- "Look how pretty you look."

She sat Sam on the bathroom counter so that she could look at herself.

--- "I smell good; just like you."

Alexis nodded and kissed her daughter on the top of her head.

--- "Yes you do. Now we're going to brush your teeth. I believe I have an extra toothbrush here."

She took a toothbrush out of its packaging and placed toothpaste onto it.

--- "Okay, honey, open up."

Sam complied with her mother's request. Because the toothbrush was too big for her tiny mouth, Alexis took her time and gently brushed the little girl's teeth. When she was done, she was amazed to realize that the child's teeth were not as bad off as she had originally thought; just as she was left filthy, her teeth had been left unbrushed for days.

Alexis was quite pleased with her handiwork; her daughter was truly beautiful. She smiled at her.

--- "Ah, you're as cute as a button, Sam."

The small child blushed once more.

--- "Thank you."

Alexis was shocked that despite the shameful way in which her daughter had clearly been treated, she was so well-mannered.

--- "You're very welcome, honey. Now, are you hungry?"

She nodded her head.

--- "Okay, so let's see go fix you a bowl of cereal, and then we're going to have to brush your teeth again before you go to bed; it is—"

She looked at the clock; it was now two o'clock in the morning.

--- "Well, it's two in the morning. So after you eat, you're going have to go to bed."

--- "Where am I going to sleep?"

Alexis smiled at her daughter.

--- "Um, you can sleep with me for now; I have a big enough bed. Eventually, we'll see about getting you your own bed."

Sam smiled widely at the thought of sleeping in a big bed; she had grown accustomed to sleeping on the floor in the living room. Alexis squeezed her daughter's dimpled cheek.

--- "Look at that! You have dimples just like me."

Sam laughed aloud for the first time since meeting Alexis; it warmed her mother's heart to hear that sweet laughter she had been deprived of for six long years. She picked Sam up and carried her to the kitchen.

--- "Sam, honey, I'm going to warn you now that Mommy [ahem], that I, aside from popcorn and things meant for the microwave, can't cook. So, you and I will be eating out a lot. I hope you don't mind."

The child shrugged her shoulders.

--- "Okay."

Alexis smiled at her daughter and placed a bowl in front of her.

--- "I hope you like Frosted Flakes."

--- "I never had them before."

Alexis poured the cereal into the bowl.

--- "Well, Sammy, right now, they're my favorite."

Sam took a bite of the cereal and smiled.

--- "Mine too."

As the little girl ate her bowl of cereal, Alexis quickly put the washed clothes into the dryer; she anticipated that clothes so small should take but twenty minutes to wash. She then quickly scrubbed the tub and sink clean. She was truly disgusted at how someone could allow a child to get so filthy.

She walked back into the kitchen to find Sam kneeling on the stool over the sink washing her bowl and spoon.

--- "Aw, you didn't have to do that, sweetheart."

Sam looked at the woman.

--- "But I finished eating. If I want to eat tomorrow, I have to clean after myself."

While Alexis understood instilling manners into a child, to make her feel as though the only way in which she would be able to eat was to play Cinderella, was unacceptable. She questioned where Mikkos had found these people; they were not fit to raise a gnat, let alone a child.

She walked up to her and took the bowl and spoon from her tiny hands.

--- "Sam, a chore is not a barter for food."

Sam frowned at the woman. Alexis tried to think of a better word.

--- "Honey, you don't have to clean to eat. Regardless of if you leave your dishes in the sink, I will not leave you hungry. Do you understand me?"

The little girl skeptically nodded.

--- "But—"

Alexis shook her head.

--- "Nope. No, buts. Sure, chores are meant to make you responsible and help you learn how to clean after yourself, but it's never a reason to not give you the things that are important. You have to eat, shower, and have someplace clean to sleep. Those things will never be taken away from you. Now, let's brush your teeth again, and then off to bed."

After Sam's teeth were rebrushed, Alexis took her to her bedroom. It was then she noticed her suit hanging in the closet, and realized how much drastically her life had changed in the past couple of hours. She had a lot of reevaluating to do, but she decided that it was not going to be done that night; she would figure some things out the next morning. For now, she was going to enjoy her first night with her daughter finally back where she belonged.

She pulled the sheets down and tucked Sam in.

--- "I'm glad you're here. We have a lot to talk about, but it can wait until tomorrow."

Sam leaned forward and gave the woman a hug. She had not felt that clean and safe in all her short life.

--- "Thank you."

Alexis nodded and kissed her on the forehead.

--- "You're very welcome. I'll be right back."

She then stepped into her closet to grab a new pair of pajamas, as carrying her filthy daughter and cleaning out the bathroom soiled the other pair. She decided to take a quick shower before going into bed.

--- "Sam, I'm going to—"

She heard soft snoring, and noticed that the child was fast asleep. She walked over to her and gave her a kiss on the cheek before stepping into her bathroom.

After she quickly showered and changed, she got into bed. Almost immediately, the sleeping child rolled over and laid her head on the young woman's chest. Alexis kissed her on top of her head.

--- "Good Night, my little chipmunk."

That was the nickname she had come up with for her daughter when they laid her in her hands for the very first, and what appeared to be the very last, time all of those years ago.

Sam breathed in deeply, subconsciously realizing that she and her mother shared the same scent; she smiled in her sleep.

--- "Good Night, Mommy."

In that moment, upon hearing those sweet words from her baby, Alexis determined that regardless of any burden that may follow, there was no way in hell she would allow anyone to take her daughter away from her again. This was a burden that she gladly welcomed.