Part 5
Tony Dimera wasn't checking on anything inside St Marks, he'd fibbed to his nerve-wracked son for good reason, one that Lucas would both understand and appreciate later. One that Lucas, being a father to young Will likely already understood and appreciated. Tony was checking on the security his operatives had arranged, in odd cooperation with Shane Donovan's ISA agents. This was only the second time the two groups had worked together, and they all hoped to have far more success this time in running their common enemy to ground. Then, with only seventeen minutes to go before Sami and John started up the main aisle, Tony's cell phone buzzed and he was on a conference call with Donovan, Hope Brady and her young son, Kim Collier, John and Carly Manning.
Carly spoke first as it was her news they were just getting. "My g-d, I don't know how I was so foolish! He deceived me over and over again and now
I find he's done it again. Lawrence made certain I'd believe he'd become overwhelmed with remorse and regret at his deadly alliance with Orpheus'
girl. Instead, I only today learned that my ex is ... bedding her, and she's not as old as Sami! You need to be on the watch for both of them.
But I'm very sorry to say I think Lawrence is the greater danger to all of you, I'm quite sure he's gone insane. I know I said that before, but I wasn't convinced of it until now. You see ... he ... Lawrence called Nicholas and said he was coming back to the States, and back to Salem to collect his
son, and Kim ... Kim Brady Donovan."
"He won't get within twenty miles of her!" Shane growled. Nothing in more than fifteen years had happened to change his love and care for Kimberley and their kids. Nothing would. And his Gaelic temper was flaring as John spoke up.
"That's not the plan, Commodore. We will stop them from doing any harm they might have in mind. I've given my oath on that. We all have. But we must let them think they have a chance to win through this time, or the games' over. My adopted brother has been moving towards insanity for a long time. The only thing that has changed is that he's alone. His parents are long since gone. His son and his ex want nothing to do with him, that's plain. And Vivian is here today. But she has said she wants no harm to come to anyone in Salem, and for once, I believe her. Because she loves Nicholas more than she loves herself. Always has."
"Dr Manning." Tony interjected now. "Did my cousin Lawrence say what means he was using to reach Salem?"
"He said he'd fly in and out again before anyone could lift a hand to stop him. And he loathes commercial flights. So Nicki and I believe he'll be using a personal jet. If he was telling our son anything truthful at all, then he'll be coming from Montreal. Are you certain we can stop him?"
"I assure you, dear lady. If nothing else I will stop this madman from harming my son and his family with my last breath." Tony swore. "And he may in fact be surprised by the welcoming committee he finds in Salem. Not a single person at St Marks today wasn't devastated by his scheme."
"Then, I'll keep Nicki here ..." Carly told them, carefully foregoing to say where. "And if he should never see his father alive again, so be it. Please, all of you, keep safe, be very careful."
"We will, Carly. And we'll send up the all clear just as soon as we've stopped them." Hope put in, from her post with Shawn at the airport. "The signal we agreed on. You won't be able to miss it."
"Thanks, friend."
"No," John said quietly. "Thank you for this heads up."
"So," Tony said turning to his brother. "What is this signal? Where is Dr. Manning that we could send a signal that ..."
"An old fashioned kind of sky-writing I think is what Hope had in mind." John smiled tautly. "Lets get everything that isn't in place set up. Kimmy, you know Shane and Phil are gonna want to throttle the both of us for this, but it looks like we may have lucked out, except that that makes you the principal bait."
"Perfectly aged Irish whiskey cheddar. To catch a perfect rat." Kim quipped. "And you men folks don't get to have all the fun, you know! G-d I wish Roman and Bo were here to get in on this party."
"So do I. So do we all." Hope answered, and then signed off.
"So, I think you know what you'll probably need to do?" John asked Kim.
"Stall him in his tracks? No problem. I'll have Carly's ex tied around my little finger again before he can say Glochamora."
"Then we'd better get to our respective places." Tony agreed. "I believe there was mention of a wedding being held here today."
Five breathlessly rushed minutes later, Jeannie Donovan stood at the main entry to the body of the church. She wore a ruffly concoction of pale sage sateen, tied in a shiny bow at the waist, and held a wicker basket almost overflowing with rose petals. Behind her stood Stephany Johnson, on the arm of her cousin Will Roberts, sharing possession of a satin pillow with two golden rings. Their outfits were less frilly, more subtle and complimentary in colors culled from autumn apples.
Lined up behind the youngsters were Cassie Evans Dimera and Phillip Kiriakis in gleaming bronze outfits, that glowed only a little less than their glances at each other. Then came Andrew Donovan and Belle Evans Black in darker sage silk tux and gown, lighting the church with their grins. And the fourth couple, Billie Reed and Mike Horton wore shades of garnet-blue-red that caught every eye. These three handsome couples drew sighs of appreciation from everyone in the pews, and that brought happy relief to all three designers. And at the other end of the aisle, standing straight as a soldier on parade ground stood Lucas Roberts, with his father a calming presence at his side.
When the music started Jeannie started pacing down the aisle, stopping only to shower as many guests as possible with her flowers, as well as the white cloth running the length of the church. And unlike the rehearsal only the night before, the youngster remembered not to pause and share a kiss with everyone close enough to reach. She was marking the path for the bride to follow, and that somber responsibility was marked on her smiling face. When all these celebrants reached their appointed places around the main altar, the music changed and John appeared at the far entry with a smiling, bright eyed Sami on his arm. He kept murmuring encouragement to his stepdaughter, who felt an urge to do what Jeannie, had done last night, stopping to hug and kiss everyone she could reach. Instead, she laughed and blushed and settled for throwing a kiss in both directions.
"Pinch me, will you?" she asked her stepfather. "I can't believe this is real!"
One after another smiling, happy face turned to the bride to be, applauding and sighing over her gown, and joining in her laughter, including Todd Curtis, waiting at the altar for all of them. Sami thought she'd never felt so wanted, so loved and welcomed in all her adult life, not by so many people. She'd signed and sent out more invitations than she could remember right now. And looking around St Marks, it seemed to her as if every single invitee was here.
"Nobody here wants anything but you and your guy together, Twinner. Believe that." John answered. "And nothing is going to keep that from happening, today."
"John, be careful, how do we know what might jinx it?" Sami demanded, still nervous
"Because everyone we love is here with us, Samantha Gene. Everyone. Close your eyes for a second and you'll feel them."
Sami did as she was bid and gasped, happily. Without a single doubt she could sense all her lost best beloveds crowding the church in spirit to share the day with the living. Eric and Caroline, Bo and Sean Brady, Alice and Jenn, Abby and Austin, all seemed to be smiling at her, nodding wordless good wishes, and love. And of course, as she took her first step down the aisle, Sami felt Roman and Marlena standing at her shoulders, grinning and winking at her for luck. Then Sami looked all the way down the aisle, and saw the two faces that meant more to her than any others in the living world. Will was grinning so widely his face seemed about to break. But Lucas was looking back at Sami with the gentlest smile she'd ever seen on his face.
"Well, we'd better get going." she whispered to John. "Cos we're keeping my family waiting. And that won't do."
And in the next moment, a clear, madly laughing voice rang out. "No, that won't do at all." Lawrence James Alamain cried out. "What is the matter with all of you?"
Everyone in St Mark's turned to find their common enemy, straddling the marble communion rail with automatic pistol in one hand and a gleam in his dark eyes that made it clear he cared nothing for shocking them.
"This is only November!" Alamain continued. "Your families aren't all here today, dear adopted brother Forrest, or John or whatever in hell your name truly may be! More than half of the families you claimed were yours are in the ground a few miles from here! Fifty-eight people you lived with, knew and even claimed to love died four months ago you cold-blooded, utterly plebian idiots! Sons, daughter, wives, husbands, mothers and fathers, babies and your own beloved matriarch died because you were too slow witted, and too careless to save them. At.. at least I cared enough to end their miserable, grubbing, lonely and unwanted existence! So now they're dead, and you sit here grinning like the fools you are, celebrating ... celebrating what? A bowdlerized fertility rite? I always knew the people of Salem were cold, hard, heartless blue-collar hypocrites. But this, this has to be a new low!"
Father Todd Chandler Curtis walked down the steps in front of the altar and moved towards Alamain, but two women called out to stop him.
"Todd, keep away from him!" Liz called out fearfully.
"She's right, Father Todd. This is what I signed on to take care of." Kim Collier replied. "This crazy bastard is my patient. Let him be and get ready to get this show back on the road on my say so."
"Kimberley!" Alamain called out, looking both confused and delighted ."You're here waiting for me? You got my message, then? But ... something's clearly gone wrong. Where is my son? Where is Nicholas?"
"Lost to you, boyo." Kim answered calmly. "Nowhere that you can ever harm a hair on his gorgeous head. He's gone."
"No!" Lawrence howled. "He came here with the faithless slut who birthed him! I know he did. Now bring me my son!"
"Caterina is not here, nephew." Vivian Alamain walked out of the crowd. "She divorced you last year, long before she thought you'd taken the cowards way out. And if you think she or I would let you anywhere near my Nikki, then you're crazier than your own father."
"My father was not crazy!" Lawrence shouted at her, his face growing dark red with rage. "And I didn't come all this way to mince words with you, Auntie. Why should I believe you've taken common cause with a woman you never wanted to know her own son was alive?"
"Nikki is the only common cause I have with Caterina von Leuschner. We would rather die than let him come to harm. Better than that, we'd rather you died. Deal with it."
"He is my son! You both kept him from me for years, and I want him back!"
"Why?" Tony Dimera strolled over as if to find out the time of day in Hapsburg. "Does some inheritance we haven't heard about devolve upon your illegitimate son? And if so, how? Everyone here knows and could care less that young Nicholas was born out of wedlock. Funny how it happens that you are legitimately an Alamain and yet so much more of a crazy bastard."
"You, you should know how that works." Alamain growled. "You have three bastards of your own, as I understand. And all of them are dead as of today along with your daughter in law to be and her son, unless you bring me my son, Dimera!"
"No, Lawrence. No." another woman's voice, clear and carrying and seemingly full of affection rose from the bride's side of the church. And following it, Carrie Brady walked up closer to Alamain than anyone else had dared.
"Young Caroline. My, my how you've changed" the madman exclaimed.
"But in a good way?" Carrie asked. "Lawrence, I remember when you first came to Salem. You didn't know Carly was here, not for sure, you didn't know John was your adopted brother, you didn't even have a son, as far as you knew. But you were kind to me, more than generous. You understood so well how angry I'd become because my father had been replaced by a fraud. You seemed to understand me better than anyone I'd ever known. I loved that. And I thought I loved you. Maybe I did. Maybe that's why noone else, at least, no other man could keep my heart. Do you think that's so? Did you love me too, Lawrence? Did you care about that angry, bitter, troublemaking girl who didn't know what was going to happen next in her life? Did I remind you of your lost Caterina? Do I now?"
"Well ... no ... you ... your hair's different, its darker, now. And your eyes are so very sad ..."
"My dad died four months ago." Carrie said simply, letting her tears for Roman Brady slip down her cheeks. She never took her eyes off of Alamain, or the pistol he cradled now against his chest. "I've tried to get past that, but added to the others ... Lawrence, you said once you wanted to help me. Did you mean it? Do you? Will you help me, please?" She took another step towards Alamain and reached out her hand to him.
"Carrie, no!" John, Sami, Kim, Kayla, Tony, Lucas, and Anna cried together.
"Shut up you fools." Lawrence growled. "Clearly, Carrie is the only one who understands the pain you are all hiding from. She has a wise and loving heart, which is more than I can say for the rest of this horrid little town."
"See, I knew you would understand, Lawrence. I hurt so bad. You always understood how much I hurt inside when my father was gone, when he came back and then wasn't really my father at all. All the lies, all the fraud, all the pain. It's got to be more than I can bear up under. I lost the men I'd loved more than myself this summer. And before that I lost the man I threw all of my life away for. I can't stand it any longer. Please, Lawrence. I know your pain runs just as deep. Please, they can't. But I know you want to. Can't you make it stop hurting?"
No one but Carrie and Alamain were moving now inside St Marks. And no one was looking at anyone but that strange pairing. And Carrie had been moving so slowly, and talking so softly that only the church' acoustics allowed the others to hear what she said now, as Carrie put her hand over the pistol and drew even closer to their enemy. "Make it be over." she whispered, and was so close that the gun lay hidden between them. "Please."
A scream froze in every throat, and no one could utter a sound. Then, in another blink of an eye, Ops was behind Lawrence knocking him unconscious to the marble floor. And Carrie was standing still grasping the pistol, shaking like a windblown leaf. Without knowing how she got there, Sami was at her sister's side, holding her while Ops gently got the gun away and its safety locked. In another moment the horizontal aisle before the chantry was filled with people crying and hugging and nervously laughing in relief.
"Heck of a way to break up my wedding, sis." Sami giggled, never letting Carrie go for a minute.
"Yeah well paybacks are ..." Carrie tried to joke but instead let herself be pulled into the embrace of Anna, Tony and John, followed quickly by Kayla, Kim, and dozens of others.
"Carolina Anna, why?" was all Tony could think to ask his stepdaughter.
"Because he asked Kim to be here. He expected Kim to try to talk him down. Oh, you want to know how I knew that? Easy, I took a page from Sami's book, I eavesdropped on the lot of you, when Carly called. Maybe Shane and Ops can get the ... bastard to tell us where his partner is. I hope so. I'd like to kick her ... "
"Caroline Anna Brady, I'd say I was ashamed of you," Kim began. "But it would be a complete lie. I'm so proud, and so would your Dad be. In fact, I'm sure he's braggin all over the Highest Heaven."
"Yeah? Hey, maybe I should be a cop?" Carrie grinned.
"No way, not a chance. If they kicked me out, do you think they'd keep you cos your last name's Brady?" Billie laughed, rushing up to hug her former roommate. "So was mine, once!"
"Look folks, this is all thrilling, and I'm glad noone got hurt, really. But I was supposed to be married by now to the mother of my children." Lucas complained. "And I don't thinks she's up for a rain delay."
"Absolutely no way!" Sami agreed. "You said yes, remember?"
"Absolutely." her bridegroom to be grinned back, with a laugh lighting his dark deep-set eyes.
"Then lets get straightened out and get this show on the road." Billie suggested. Her tone brooked no argument and neither did the congregation. It took a surprisingly short time for them to settle back where they'd been, and to circumvent the slightest possible wisp of bad luck, John took Sami around the pews to the right and back to the main entry again.
"Okay," Billie laughed. "Places, Lights, Music, Action!"