The Dimera factory was a shell of its former self, hints of its glory days told in the steel and copper stacked away in corners and the heavy machinery far outdated and weathered by the climate. It should have been stripped years ago, would have been by looters at the very least if so much fear didn't surround his father. Even those desolate knew not to cross Stefano Dimera in this town, unless they had a death wish.
EJ knew it was a deliberate thing as he entered. There was a reason his father had chosen this place. Like a graveyard it stood in homage to things past, the shadows in every corner daunting. It was intimidation and fear; watchwords the great Stefano lived by, the grand motto of his life and it unfortunately extended to his own son. Recognizing now with the clarity of hindsight how he had been controlled, made him sick. For the fear of failure, of being a disappointment, of not being worthy to carry the Dimera name, was all a manipulation, the seeds planted by Stefano to ensure he had the perfect soldier and heir. He wished he had seen then.
Walking inwards, EJ was careful to stride confident, sure into the lion's den or more accurately viper's nest. It was the final chess game he would play with his father.
The sudden flood of light momentarily blinded him. Stefano always did have a flair for the dramatic as he stood ever the master of games at the head of a cold medical table. EJ held him in his sights, gun drawn, but he knew it was a battle he would not win. He didn't intend to win.
The soft shift of multiple feet behind him caused him to turn as his father sent a maniacal grin his way. He stood, shoulders squared as Stefano motioned him to the gurney, as his mad scientist stood at the side.
Taking a cursory glance at the multiple contraptions there, he dared not hazard a guess as to what they all were, but he knew his father's purpose. Stefano was nothing if not consistent and EJ was determined that this day, it would be his downfall.
"Welcome, my son," he said.
The only thing that confused him in all this, was the exaggerated wink Dr. Rolf sent his way as he lay on the cold steel bed.
Sami sat fuming in the car as she drove to the location Barney had sent her. Ditching her guard had been no easy feat, but she had accomplished it.
If she could have, she would have wiped the earth of any trace of Stefano Dimera a long ago. That man had taken far too much from her family. Even before she was born, he was terrorizing the Bradys. It was time for him to die and she would make sure of it, even if she had to put the bullet in his head herself.
The only thing she could truly say that man had even done right, was EJ. EJ, who had been raised by that monster, and yet existed within him such a capacity for love that it often blew her mind away. If Stefano was cold and unfeeling, EJ felt too much and yes, in the past, it had led to poor choices on his part, but she had also made poor choices in that regard. It was the first thing that drew them together besides the obvious attraction. They were kindred spirits.
So when she found him, she was going to kick his ass. First, though, she would tie him to the bed and screw his brains out, then kick his ass. She had to remember to insert in there somewhere a talk about how he was not allowed to go off half-cocked against his psychotic father. Sami Brady wasn't having it. They had a family and a home and a marriage to plan and God knew what Stefano had in that sadistic head of his.
When she finally caught up with Barney he was a few blocks away, his guy scoping out the building and what he had seen had made a sick feeling settle in her stomach. EJ had been the first to enter the building all alone while John waited to enter stealthily. Barney guessed and she agreed that it was likely an ambush for Stefano Dimera, but seemingly out of nowhere a sniper had appeared on the roof dropping men like flies. Those who were able to get cover were quickly surrounded. Barney's man had held back, not in a position to take out the sniper or help her step-father.
Sami, frantic with worry, swallowed against the knot of dread she felt tying up her stomach; for this wasn't the time for fear, but action.
It was time for a plan.
John gave in to the urge to curse a blue streak as he felt the cold metal press against his back. He would have risked a bullet except that EJ was in there, lying strapped to a table. Stefano had been ready for them. Of course he had been ready for them. The bastard always had an ace up his sleeve and now he had put his own nephew in that man's clutches to be programmed as a pawn, a soldier, his life to be stolen as surely as John's life had been.
He had lost all those wonderful moments to the machinations of this man, his brother. He had lost memories of his children's birth, Sami, Carrie and Eric growing up, he had even lost the feel of Blondie's lips and having her in his arms. Stefano had taken it all from him.
"My pawn," he looked at his brother as he approached.
"Fuck you you sadistic son of a bitch!"
"Such language, brother," he shook his head, tsking in mock horror, before turning to Rolf. "Rolf, I wish my pawn to be silent."
John watched with menacing stare as Wilhelm approached him. After everything, his betrayal stung and John would make sure the man in front of him burned in hell before he did.
"I will kill you," he hissed at the Austrian scientist.
"If this fails," the man answered, a tad nervously, "I will let you."
John started to struggle, but was soon held immobile by Stefano's goons, eyes shooting daggers at the man who sat across from him.
As he realized that Rolf held a card in his hand, he fought a surprised smile.
He had been wrong, they all had been wrong, not a possum, not a weasel, but a mole.
Raising his head from the table, EJ caught the smile, his uncle sent his way. As far as he was concerned, there was nothing to smile about, Stefano had won. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence, so he should be rather used to it, and yet this time he thought the outcome would be different - more fool him.
Dr. Rolf had strapped him down securely to the metal gurney, the cold temperature, making his back ache. It was one of the things he had suffered with ever since Lucas had shot him, but EJ knew he would go through it all again if it meant having Samantha by his side.
At least he could take comfort in knowing that Samantha and their children were far away from this place. They were safe and they knew how much he loved them. It was all he had ever wanted and while he would have loved an eternity in her arms, he was content in the knowledge Stefano would get nowhere near them. Marco would make sure of it. The contingency plan had been in place the moment he had walked away from his father. New identities and money enough that his family could live life in peace, until the old man finally croaked. Despite his moniker, the Phoenix couldn't live forever.
Worrying for his uncle, he listened as Stefano commanded Rolf to shut him up. When EJ saw the playing card held in Rolf's hand, he was confused. It was one his father used for all his pawns, a trigger for the hypnosis. EJ himself had wielded it under Stefano's command. It had been an effective device for control – had been. It was one of the things his uncle worked on from the beginning, a way to reverse Stefano's mind-control hypnosis. Rolf had spent the last few months conditioning him and EJ knew it no longer had an effect. It was as useless as any other card in a fifty-two deck.
Finally, it made sense, Rolf's stupid wink, the small smile, his uncle had sent his way. Rolf was on their side.
"Sami, you're behind…" Barney spoke as they huddled around.
"The hell I am!" She immediately responded and he turned her way with a sharp look.
"Sami! I get it, your old man and your stepdad are in there, but you are pregnant."
"And as good a shot as any of you!" She charged, flinging an arm out to encompass the men standing around.
They were dutifully ignoring the exchange as Sami knew most of them as guys Barney worked with over the years and were privy to quite a few of their blowups.
"Which is why we need you to take out any stragglers," Barney answered reasonably. "Do you think for one second I could live with myself if anything happened to you? Once we get through you get to your dad and your guy, let them out. If we know anything about Stefano it's that he'll try to control them rather than killing them."
Sami heaved a sigh, nodding because they didn't have time for this and a small part of her recognized that Barney was right. She was pregnant and she couldn't afford to get hurt.
"Now Rosco, you got the sniper, I want this quiet," He spoke to the smallest in stature. Having seen him climb trees and scale walls like he was born to do it, she understood why Barney sent him to the roof.
"Surprise is our only advantage. Brad," he turned to the blond haired, blue eyed former medic, "you check to see if anyone on the ground is still breathing, do what you can and when you hear the first shots, call the cops. Darin, Petrov and Tom, you're with me on the first wave. Anything that points a gun your way, you shoot. Aaron, Yusef and Sami are second wave. If you can't stop it you kill it."
He turned then making sure his gaze encompassed them all. "Now that everyone knows what they're doing, let's go."
John stared straight ahead, maintaining an unnaturally still appearance as his brother stared into his eyes.
"Always a pawn, never a king." He could hear the sneer in Stefano's voice and had to fight the scoff that rose in his throat at the man's arrogance.
The men at his side released his arms and still John remained immobile. He knew he had to time it just right and even then, there was a slim chance of success. There were the two at his side, two by the door, four on the perimeter and still a sniper. They weren't many, but they were enough to take them all down. He didn't know how they were going to get out of this one, but at least if he went down, he was taking his 'dear' brother with him. At this point it was a matter of necessity. Stefano would not rest until they were all dead or under his control, and John for one had enough of the back and forth with his mad brother to last a lifetime. He just hoped his nephew understood, for no matter what he did, Stefano was still his father and John knew EJ would always hold an affection for him.
He looked at EJ, luckily he was in his line of sight, so he could see everything without having to break cover. So he waited, watching for the perfect moment. Stefano, of course, was pontificating, never knowing that it would be his last speech. When the sound of gunshots rang out outside, he finally had the distraction he needed and John pounced.
Wilhelm was sweating under his lab coat as he moved away from John to the gurney where Elvis was strapped down. He was not designed for espionage, especially against a man who held grudges over generations. Yet, he was ready.
He prepared two syringes, the first filled with saline and the other, was filled with the drug he wanted to inject into Stefano that would render him incapacitated.
Sidling up to Elvis, he hoped Stefano's heir had understood the wink he had sent him as it was all he could accomplish under the watchful eye of the Phoenix. There was little doubt John was ready or that he understood the significance of using the card. That had been the easy part. The difficulty would come with defeating the guards. Even though John had been trained as an assassin, Stefano had enough men to take him down. So they would need Elvis conscious and fighting if any of them were to get out of there intact..
He returned to the table, subtly loosening the strap on Elvis's arm so he could escape when the time was right and injected the saline.
"Sleep, my son." Stefano cooed and Rolf watched as the younger Dimera actually struggled as though fighting sleep, before closing his eyes and evening out his breathing.
"Let's get to work," Stefano commanded, expecting him to unquestioningly obey.
Suddenly, the sound of gunfire erupted on the outside and Wilhelm thanked whomever was responsible. This was their chance. He flew at his former master with the second syringe in hand.
The gunshots were the perfect distraction. EJ didn't think, he didn't wait a breath as his eyes shot open. Pulling against the restraint which Rolf had loosened, he finally got his hand free before working on the other one and then, his feet.
Jumping down, he ran immediately to John's aid as he battled not one but two guards. EJ was impressed as his uncle held his own. He grabbed the nearest object, a metal chair, bringing it down hard against the goon's back. The man fell like a sack of potatoes. His uncle meanwhile, had wrested control of a gun and ran to where Rolf was fighting his father.
"What is the meaning of this?" Stefano charged, eyes filling with rage.
Rolf didn't answer, catching sight of John as he approached from behind, grabbing Stefano arms. The shock of betrayal filled his father's eyes and EJ had to look away as Rolf plunged the needle into his neck.
"Now vat iz how you do it!"
EJ shook his head, staring mournfully at his father's slumped form. If only Stefano hadn't been so hell bent on revenge. If only he loved more than he hated. If only…
He had, but a moment before the sound of feet coming their direction jolted him. The door flew open and in charged…
"Samantha?"