Chapter Eighteen: Let the Games Begin
It is the day of Lucas' arraignment. Sami and EJ had agreed that it would be better if she sat with Will to show him support. Tony and EJ sat in the chairs directly behind her. Most of the other Salemites were in attendance, as well. Kate was standing by Lucas, whispering nonstop into his ear. Will leans over and asks Sami in a low voice if she really thinks his dad shot EJ. "Will, honey, I didn't actually see your dad shoot EJ, but it looks bad for him. Maybe your coming to court isn't such a good idea." Will shakes his head. "No, I wanna be here. I wanna find out for myself what really happened." Sami brushes his arm with her hand and pulls him into a hug.
John and Marlena watch as EJ leans forward and pulls a stray hair off of Sami's back. Instead of dropping it, he holds onto it, wrapping and unwrapping it around his finger. "I can't believe Sami left Lucas for EJ. I mean, if she hadn't done that Lucas wouldn't have been driven to shoot EJ, I'm sure." "That's a fact," John replies, "and let's not forget, he's a DiMera. You know how obsessive they get." Marlena nods emphatically. "Yes, look at how Stefano never leaves me alone." "Well, he leaves you alone now," John points out. "Yes, I suppose he does," Marlena says, frowning. "I wonder why that is?" she thinks to herself.
The attorney representing the prosecution (let's call him Mr. Smith) is deep in discussion with Mickey. Mickey nods his head and walks over to the defense table. "You know, Lucas," he whispers, "if you enter a guilty plea they've promised a lenient sentence. It's not too late to change your mind." "Are you out of your mind," Kate screeches at Mickey, "there's no way he's pleading guilty. I don't care if he did it or not!" "Mom!" Lucas elbows her, "keep your voice down." Kate looks up to see almost everyone in the courtroom staring at her. She lifts her chin up defiantly, smoothes down her skirt, and sits down behind Lucas. "Thanks, Kate, "Mickey thinks to himself, "that really helped."
Tony watches EJ playing with a strand of Sami's hair. "God, he looks practically lovelorn," Tony thinks to himself. "This kid needs to be toughened up a bit. I doubt he's got what it takes to keep a woman like Sami in check." His thoughts are interrupted by the entrance of the judge. "All rise…" Tony sees that the presiding judge (let's call him Judge Abrams) is on DiMera payroll. "Hmmm…, I wonder if Father had anything to do with this," he ponders.
"Be seated," Judge Abrams says, taking the bench. Mr. Smith and Mickey both stay standing, as does Lucas. "Mr. Roberts, you have been charged with the attempted murder of a Mr. Elvis DiMera, a.k.a. EJ Wells. How do you plead?" Mickey shuffles some papers in an attempt to look like a competent lawyer. "My client pleads not guilty, your honor." "Due to the flight risk of the defendant and the nature of the crime, we ask that bail be set and ten million dollars and that his passport be confiscated," says Mr. Smith. "So be it," says the judge. "Don't worry, baby, Momma will get you out of jail just as soon as I can." Kate rubs Lucas' back as he's taken back into custody.
Sami acts surprised to see Jack when she finds him waiting for her in the parking lot, sitting on the back of her car. "Jack!" she exclaims, leaning forward to give him a hug, "what's up?" Jack looks down at her. "I think you know," he says, seriously.
Stefano sits in his study, reflecting on his conversation with Tony. "Antony is jealous of Elvis," he thinks to himself, "I'll have to watch out for him." He thinks back to the last time he saw EJ.
*****
*flashback* "Well, you were right, my son. How did you know she would come to me, anyway?" he asks EJ as he vacates his hiding place in the room. "Because I can always count on Samantha to be Samantha," EJ replies with a smile. "I knew she'd come to you, even after I asked her not to. In fact, I was banking on it." "Oh?" Stefano asks, curiously. "You're a lucky man, Elvis. Most of us never get to experience the kind of love you share with Sami Brady." "And by coming to you she gave you the opportunity to see that firsthand. "You don't have to take my word for it; you've seen it with your own two eyes." Stefano chuckles and shakes his head. "She's a cunning little vixen, isn't she?" Stefano says, slapping EJ on the back. EJ laughs. "She sure is," he replies appreciatively, "and she's going to make a great DiMera one day."
*****
Stefano reflects back on his visit from Sami. Even though EJ had told him to expect to hear from her, Stefano was still relatively surprised when she had called and asked to meet with him. He immediately agreed. Sami had started the conversation by saying that she was here against EJ's wishes, and that in fact she had promised him not to come, but felt she had to anyway. Stefano inquired as to the purpose of her visit, and why EJ wouldn't want her to come. Sami sat across from Stefano and looked him directly in the eyes. "I've asked EJ to help me with something that's very important to me, and his assistance will require him doing something I do not think you will approve of." "You want him to help you exact revenge on Lucas and Kate," Stefano stated matter of factly. "You know everything, don't you, Stefano?" Sami asked him ruefully. "Well, it's obvious, don't you think? I hardly thought you were marrying Lucas out of the kindness of your own heart. So, you've come up with a plan, and that plan involves my son. What is it that you want him to do that you think I will not like?" Sami lays out her plan to Stefano as he listens, watching her intently. When she's finished, he stays quiet for some time, and Sami fights the urge to look down at her shoes and instead maintains her eye contact with Stefano. "What you ask of Elvis is no small thing. What does he get in return for doing you this great service?" "My never-ending gratitude," Sami replies. "Gratitude?" Stefano asks her, a bit taken aback. "Yes, gratitude. He already has my never-ending love. He will always have that, no matter what he does… or doesn't do." Stefano gets up from his chair and sits on an ottoman directly in front of Sami. He puts his hand on her neck, gently, and speaks softy but with the utmost seriousness, "You know the death that will await you if you hurt my son." Sami's jaw and lips tremble, and her eyes fill with tears, but she does not let them fall down her cheeks. "I would willingly face that death, because it would reunite me with the one that I love. I could not live without him; I would not want to even try." Stefano looked into the liquid pools of her eyes and saw truth there. There was no doubt in his mind that Sami loved EJ as much as he loved her, that she was as bound to him as he was to her. Stefano braces himself on her shoulder to lift himself back to a standing position. "We all do what we must do, Samantha. You are no exception. Have a good day, my dear." He clears his throat and take's Sami's hand, brushing it gently with his lips. Her tears finally spill over as she hugs Stefano and whispers thanks to him.
"Yes," Stefano thinks, coming back to the present, "we all do what we must do, and I feel I must give Samantha's cause a little help of my own."