Chapter 23

"Damnit!" Sonny slammed the phone down on the receiver hearing the dial tone after it was cut off. He couldn't believe it, Sam was alive and she called him of all people. He tried replaying the strange conversation that he had with her, she kept asking about Jason, so why didn't she just call Jason instead of him? Maybe that didn't matter, maybe she just couldn't get a hold of anyone, the important thing was that Sam was alive and Jason and her family think she's dead. Picking up the phone, he dialed Jason's number hoping that the man he called brother wouldn't hang up the phone in his face.

Jason grip on the steering wheel was so tight that his knuckles were completely white. Visions of Aidan's murder were dancing in his mind like a freakin Broadway Musical. Doctors said that his brain damage wouldn't let him dream, but they couldn't be more wrong because Jason dreamed and he dreamed big. He dreamed of Aidan's blood running down his hands as he punched into his chest and ripped out his heart, watching as the other man died slowly and painfully. Oh yes, he could dream. The sound of his cell phone ringing brought him back to reality. He held it up to see the caller ID, Sonny. He stared at the name for a few seconds wondering what the other man wanted. But the real question was… Did he care? Not really. He ignored the looks he received from Lucky and Nikolas and kept his eyes on the road. He needed to focus on finding Sam not dealing with some crisis that Sonny found himself in the middle of. Letting the call go to voicemail, he gripped the wheel once again and this time he dreamed of having Sam in his arms once again.

Voicemail. Sonny hung up, not sure what to think and wouldn't admit that his friend ignored his called, Sonny called the penthouse. He was slightly disappointed when he heard Alexis answer. Sighing, Sonny realized that since he was the one to tell her that Sam was dead, then it was only fitting that he be the one to tell her that Sam was really alive. "Alexis…"

"Sonny, I don't have time for you right now, I'm in the middle of my own crisis, I do NOT have time to deal with yours. Call Diane!"

"NO, Alexis don't…." Before he could finish that sentence, the dial tone interrupted him. She hung up. And she told him to call Diane. Damn it! For once in his life, this was NOT about him. "MAX!" He shouted as he headed for the door. "Get the car!" Apparently he needed to do this face to face since no one wanted to listen to him long enough for him to tell them that Sam was alive. He knew he messed up, and this would give him the chance to make it up to his friends.

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She could tell that he was pissed, pissed and trying his best to control his temper. The proof was in the way his fists clenched the disconnected wire so hard that they turned white. She knew that she wasn't supposed to call anyone, he had told her not to, told her that it wasn't safe, and she believed him, she knew that he would protect her, he had already risked so much for her, but she couldn't help it. A part of her still didn't want to believe that Jason was dead, her soul still couldn't accept it, and she just thought that if she heard it from Sonny that it would make it real. She could hear his harsh breaths, seeing the dark flush of anger tint his cheeks, she knew he was trying to control his temper so she started to apologize. "Aidan, I'm so…." She was immediately cut off.

"Who did you call?"

The tone of his voice was void of all emotion, cold, so unlike him. For a second, just a split second she was afraid of him, but she knew that he wouldn't hurt her. Right? Her voice shook when she spoke and she could feel the tears building once again. "Look, I'm really sorry, ok, I just… I just…."

"WHO DID YOU CALL?!"

She flinched so hard that she jumped back in shock. He had never, NEVER spoken to her in that tone, that harsh, unforgiving dangerous tone. He was always sweet, always gentle with her and patient, never like this. She realized then that there was a part of Aidan that she never really knew. She didn't want to add more fuel to the fire so she answered him. "Sonny." She knew he would ask why, and instead of waiting for him to ask, she volunteered. "I needed to know. I needed to hear it from him." The "it", meaning Jason's death. She still couldn't say it out loud, it broke her soul to think about it.

"I told you what happened, I told you everything you needed to know. MY word should have been ENOUGH!"

"I guess it wasn't enough, Aidan." She felt the tears fall and let them stay there. She didn't have the strength to brush them away and she sure as hell didn't have the strength to argue with him. She was too tired, too tired to deal with anything. "I thought… I thought that if I heard Sonny confirm it, then… then it would become real…." She choked on the sob that was about to break free. "I needed… I needed him to tell me… to hear it from him… but I couldn't really hear him… and then the phone… the phone disconnected."

"I already told you Samantha, I spoke to him, I spoke to Sonny. He knows where you are and he told me to keep you safe and that's what I'm trying to do. Now, please, go get some rest, I'll have dinner ready by the time you wake up. Ok?"

She felt his arms wrap around her and for the first time since she has met him, she felt unsafe. She almost wanted to cringe away from him, as if a small part of her mind was cautioning her, telling her to turn away. Heeding the warning, she did just that. Nodding her head, she turned and headed back to the bedroom.

Sinking down on the bed, she wrapped her arms around her body and rubbed them. She was cold even though the temperature in the room was fine, she felt chilled. Something wasn't right, something was bothering her. She thought about Aidan's words, his reaction to her using the phone, the cold tone of his voice, his stiff posture. It didn't seem to sit right with her. She thought back to the brief, broken conversation that she had with Sonny, and then it hit her. Her eyes widened in realization when she remembered hearing him saying, "Oh my God Sam! We thought you were dead…. Where are you?". If Sonny knew everything then how come he didn't know that she was alive?

Her eyes immediately lifted to the bedroom door, the small panel of wood that separated her from Aidan. Could he have lied to her? Could there be more to Aidan that she didn't know? Could Jason have been right about Aidan all along? The grief swept through her again, like a tidal wave, crashing down on her. Oh God… Jason… She couldn't do this, she couldn't break down like that any longer. She had to get her emotions in check, had to control herself so she could find out what the hell was really going on because something wasn't right. Something was seriously wrong with this picture, and Aidan was suddenly acting like the enemy. She needed to get back home.

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Carefully knocking on the door, Sonny tried to hold back the urge to just bang through it. He would've barged in if the damn door wasn't locked. He lost his cool. "DAMN IT ALEXIS, OPEN UP!" He didn't pause to hear anything, didn't pause to check if someone was on their way, he banged on the door this time, harder. "JASON? SPINELLI? OPEN THIS DOOR!" He was about to pound again when his fist suddenly met air and he had to grab a hold of the wall to keep from falling forward by the sudden opening of the door.

"What the hell is the matter with you? Huh? What do you want?" Alexis was fuming, nostrils flaring, eyes narrowed and she was close, so close to kicking his ass. She hadn't heard from Jason, not Lucky, or even from Nikolas. Spinelli had deserted her and ran away to his bedroom to do his tracking their out from under her eye and she had no idea what to do but to sit here and wait and pace and hyperventilate.

"What is the matter with me? What is the matter with you? Why did you hang up on me?" Looking around the penthouse, he realized that it was empty. "Where's Jason, I need to talk to him, to both of you?" He pushed past her without waiting for an invitation.

"Damn it Sonny!" Alexis slammed the door in Max's shocked face before she whirled around to give the other man a piece of her mind. "I told you, Jason is busy and none of us want to hear your problems…."

Throwing his hands up in the air, he couldn't contain the shout. "Oh for God's sake, this isn't about me!"

"Then what is this about?" Alexis gave up, the faster he said what he needed, the faster he would leave. She crossed her arms over her chest and waited.

Taking a deep breath, Sonny nodded then began. "I was sitting at home when I got a call. When I picked it up, I didn't hear anything, then there was static and it seemed that the phone was cutting out…"

"Oh just get to the point."

He took a deep breath, she was right, there was no sense in stalling, she needed to know. "It was Sam. Sam is alive." At first he thought the shock was from Alexis not believing that her daughter was alive but her next words confused him.

"Oh my God, what did she say? Did she say where she was? Did she say anything that could tell us where he has her?" She lost her patience when she saw the confusion on Sonny's face. "Oh for God's sake, I couldn't get you to shut up and NOW you want to play mute. What did my daughter say!?" She shouted out hoping to jar him from his stupor.

"Wait… wait…" Sonny shook his head to get over the shock of what he just realized. "You KNEW? You knew that Sam was alive?"

"Of course I knew, I'm her mother. Now tell me what she said."

"How did you know? Did she call you too?"

"Never mind that right now, just tell me… Did she tell you where she was?"

Automatically shaking his head, Sonny answered her. "No. It wasn't a good connection, she kept on cutting out, but I heard her voice."

Taking a small comfort in that, Alexis felt her eyes tear up. She missed her baby girl and she wanted more than anything to hold her. She didn't know why Sam would call only Sonny, not sure what her daughter's thoughts were, she just knew that she couldn't sit still any longer. Feeling more determined than ever, she grabbed her coat and purse and grabbed a good strong hold of Sonny's sleeve. "Come on." She yanked the door open and started to pull him out. "I'll tell you everything on the way to Akron."

"Akron? What's in Akron?"

"My baby girl and your enforcer."

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He waited until she closed the bedroom door before Aidan snatched the phone off the counter and stormed out of the cabin. He couldn't hold it in any longer, couldn't hold back the anger that was consuming his soul. She almost ruined it, she almost bloody RUINED IT. "SON OF A BITCH!" He smashed the phone down on the railing, once, twice, more, harder and harder until it shattered beneath his grip. Taking a deep breath, he tried to rein it in, tried to force the rage down, he couldn't get upset with her, he couldn't show this side of him. Samantha was just being curious, curious and cautious. Of course, he would expect nothing less from her. He knew her, he knew the woman he loved. It pissed him off to no end knowing how much she grieved for Morgan's supposed death, but he couldn't hold it against her. Morgan brainwashed her into thinking that she loved him. But no longer. He has her now and he will do everything he can to keep her. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his phone and dialed the only person he knew that would help him.

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Robin was at her desk going over her patient's files. She wanted to hurry, to do her best to get it done so that she could get home in time to have dinner with her family. Patrick had finished early and picked up Emma, now she wanted to join them desperately. The shrill of her cell phone startled her. She groaned thinking that it was for another consult. "Doctor Scorpio here."

"Robin? Robin… I need your help."

She was shocked to hear his voice on the other line. "Aidan? Oh God Aidan, what have you done?"

"Please… Robin, you're my family, the only person I can trust…"

Her eyes misted at the desperation she heard in his voice. He was her family and she couldn't believe that he would do something like this. Maybe it was a misunderstanding. At least she prayed it was. "Is it true? Do you have Sam?"

"Yes. Yes I have her."

She couldn't believe the disappointed she felt. "How could you do this? Aidan, everyone thinks Sam is dead, her family, her sisters, her mother, Jason…."

"FUCK MORGAN!"

She jumped at the roar, she had never heard that from her cousin, never heard that side of him. She guessed she never really knew him, especially to do something as horrific as this. "What's going on? Please Aidan, you have to bring her back?"

"I can't. She… she… doesn't want to come back Robin. She loves me and she wants to be with me, not Morgan. And I need your help… please… I have no one else to turn to. Samantha and I want to start our new life together. We love each other."

She closed her eyes as the silent tears fell. Hearing the desperation tone in his voice reminded her too much of Lisa. She knew he was lying, she knew the love that Jason and Sam shared was out of this world, overwhelming at times the love that they have for each other. She knew because it was the same love that she shared with Patrick. She loved him more than life itself and she would do anything for him, even kill Lisa. And that's what Jason would do. He will kill Aidan. She wanted to help her friend, wanted to do anything she could for him, but how is she supposed betray her cousin, her family, her blood. Maybe if she could get to him first, talk to him, make him see that he needed professional help. And if that failed, then she would call Jason. "Ok, ok Aidan, what do you need?" She could hear his sigh and it broke her heart. He came to Port Charles because of her, he came to protect her and now she needed to try to protect him.

"I need money, as much as you can spare and I swear that I will pay you back. Please Robin, I need this."

She forcibly swallowed the sob down her throat, and tried with all her might to keep her voice calm when she felt anything but. "Where do you want to meet?"

"I can't be away from Samantha too far so I need you to come to Akron. Meet me in Akron Falls County Park in two hours. Thank you, oh thank you Robin for helping me. I knew I could count on you. And thank you for introducing me to Samantha, I owe it all to you."

He hung up before the cry broke free from her lips. It was all her fault, she had brought him here. But how did she know? How could she have known? Hanging up the phone, she stared at it for a moment. Should she call Jason? And if she did, how was she going to keep him from killing Aidan? She knew she wouldn't be able to. Hopefully she would be able to talk to her cousin and get him some help. Grabbing her keys and purse, she ran out the door making a quick call to Patrick, telling him that she was going to be late. She couldn't tell him the whole truth, he wouldn't let her go if he knew that she was going to try to stop her cousin from going totally insane… just like Lisa.

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Hearing his cell phone ring, Jason yanked it out of his pocket. His patience was wearing thin and his rage was out of control, he needed to concentrate and think of a plan, he didn't need the interruption. "What?" He growled out.

"Jason, it's Cody, we got a hit. Aidan called Robin Scorpio a few minutes ago. We had her phone tapped. He asked her for a lot of money and to meet him."

"Where?" His tone was emotionless despite the elation that he was feeling that he finally had something more to go on, something that would bring him that much closer to Sam.

"He told her to meet him in Akron Falls County Park in two hours. Milo and I are on our way, following Doctor Scorpio. She stopped at the bank first." After hearing Jason agree, he added. "But there could be a problem. Apparently Sonny and Alexis are on their way to Akron as well. Max called and told us that somehow Sam called Sonny…."

"What?" Jason heart stopped at the mention of her name. She called Sonny? Why not him? "Why would she call Sonny?"

"We don't know, Max said that the line was really bad and the phone cut out. Sonny tried to call you but you didn't answer, so he went to the penthouse. The next thing Max knows is Alexis threatening him and making him take Sonny and her to Akron."

Feeling a pang of guilt for not answering his phone when Sonny called to tell him about Sam, Jason pushed it aside instantly. "I don't need this shit. I don't NEED any more complications. I want to find that bastard and KILL HIM! And I NEED to find Sam." Taking a deep breath to control himself, Jason spoke again. "Call Max, see if you can make them turn around and head back to Port Charles while you follow Robin. She might be a problem." Hanging up the phone after Cody accepted his orders, he was immediately questioned by Nikolas and Lucky. Not willing to risk Sam's life any further, he told them the plan. They would keep Robin occupied while he made sure to care of Aidan. With pleasure.