Wyndemere. Living room. Midnight.

A huge pot of coffee was set out on the bar. A map of Port Charles was laid out on the floor. And a laptop sat on the coffee table.

Nikolas, Ethan, and Lucky hovered over Lulu as she argued on the phone.

"I can't tell you why, Spinelli. I just need you to help," she said. She covered the mouthpiece with her hand, "I think if I could just tell him why, we might --"

"No!," all three men said at once.

She uncovered the mouthpiece, and spoke to Spinelli again. "Let me talk to him again, Spinelli. ... Hello? Are you there? ... Jason, all I can tell you is you're going to be very, very sorry if you don't -- hello? hello? Sonny? Oh, thank God. Maybe you can talk some -- what? ... Sure. He's right here."

She handed the phone to Nikolas. Nikolas didn't say anything.

"You there, Cassadine?," Sonny asked.

"I'm here," Nikolas said.

"Good. It looks like I have something you want. You have something I want. Maybe we can work out a deal."

Nikolas hung up on Sonny.

"Why couldn't we just tell him why we want Spinelli here?," Lulu asked.

Ethan and Lucky looked at each other. Ethan made an "after you" gesture to Lucky.

"Because the phones are probably tapped," Lucky explained. He turned to Nikolas. "What did Sonny say?"

"He won't do it," Nikolas said. The last thing he needed was for Lulu to go off on a Claudia Rant. Hopefully, Claudia was fast asleep upstairs. If he could have locked her in the bedroom, he would have. They just got her blood pressure where it needed to be, and now Sonny was putting the screws to her. No wonder her health had been such a mess when he'd first found her in the hospital.

Lulu had turned her attention to Lucky and Ethan. "I can't believe both of you got off the flight. What if he is in St. Petersburg?," Lulu said.

"He's not in St. Petersburg," said Lucky.

"He's not in St. Petersburg," said Nikolas.

"But how do you know that?," she persisted.

"Because she hung up on me the night before she arrived," explained Ethan. "I didn't get it either, at first."

"Helena did not have time to travel from Russia," Nikolas explained patiently. For the third time.

"But why would she have him in Port Charles? Why here?," Lulu asked.

"Because that's how she tortures you," said Lucky. "She's got closed circuit T.V.s set up near every person you love, and she pipes in the images to you. Both to torture you, and to warn you who will be hurt if you try to escape."

"Then I'd say it's better to be on her side," Ethan said. "Do you people ever come up winners against her?" Lucky looked at Nikolas, pleading with his eyes. Nikolas shook his head. No more familial violence today. They had too much to do.

"Hey!" Lulu said in a heated whisper. "She's probably got this place bugged too."

"I'm pretty sure there's nothing set up on Spoon Island," Claudia said from the doorway.

Lulu's mouth dropped open. "She's wearing your robe!," she said accusingly to Nikolas.

"What are you doing up?," Nikolas said to Claudia, ignoring Lulu.

"I didn't want anyone to miss me," Claudia said pointedly to Lulu.

"You're sure there are no hidden cameras or microphones here?," Ethan asked.

Claudia and Nikolas exchanged a look. Helena wouldn't have had to show up if there were any cameras on the Island. She would have known Claudia and Nikolas were faking. "Yes," they both answered at once. Unfortunately, that also meant that Luke wasn't hidden on the Island. Which made things more difficult.

Lucky tried punching some more information into the FBI database. Nothing happened. "This is getting me nowhere," he said.

"What are you looking for?," Claudia asked.

"We need to locate the hidden cameras and then trace them back to where Luke is being held," said Nikolas.

"You need Spinelli," said Claudia.

"You think we didn't try that?," Lulu spat out.

"Lulu," Nikolas said, trying to head her off at the pass.

"Sonny won't give permission for him to help," Lulu continued.

"We can't tell Corinthos why we need the kid because of the phone taps," Ethan added.

Sonny always did like having "hand," Claudia thought. She glared at Nikolas for not coming to get her. Nikolas sighed, knowing exactly why he was getting that look. Claudia took out her phone, and walked away from the others. She dialed.

The other end picked up. "It's me," she said.

"You ready to deal?," asked Sonny.

"I'll call Uncle Rudy if you give us Spinelli. Just for 24 hours."

"Not good enough, Claudia. I want you back here."

"Not negotiable right now. By the way," she said, lowering her voice so as not to be heard, "You so much as whisper in my brother's direction, and I'll make sure your entrails are left in an unholy design on your front doorstep." She continued in her normal tone. "I'm going to tell you what's on the table. You can take it or leave it."

"I'm listening."

"I'll put a temporary fix on your business problems. It should hold until I make a decision about our alliance. You give us Spinelli, and throw in Jason for good measure."

A shadow fell over Claudia. Nikolas was standing over her, fixing her with a stern look.

"Hold on, Sonny." She put Sonny on mute. "What?"

"You're bringing Jason here?," he said.

"No," she said. "I'm bringing Jason to Detective Spencer's house. Because we've established that Luke isn't on the Island. But Sonny will think that Jason is coming to the Island. He'll like that. He'll agree."

"What does that accomplish? What do we need Jason for?"

"Dismantling a bomb. Just in case."

Nikolas considered, then nodded. As she lifted the phone back up, he grabbed her arm. "Does this leave you with any leverage?," he asked.

She rested her hand on her belly and gave him a pointed look. Just as Nikolas opened his mouth to argue, she un-muted Sonny. "Do we have a deal?," she asked.

"Deal," said Sonny. "I'll send them over as soon as you're done fixing things," said Sonny,

"You'll be hearing from Uncle Rudy and the Russians in a few minutes," said Claudia. "Oh, and send Jason and Spinelli over to Lucky Spencer's house," she added quickly. "Thanks." She disconnected the call.

**************************************

Wyndemere. The Living Room. 2 a.m.

Claudia was sleeping on the couch. Nikolas bent down to her and gently shook her awake.

"Claudia. Go to bed," he whispered.

"I'm awake," she said, half-asleep. She opened her eyes and yawned. "Have you heard anything?"

"Not yet," he said, sitting down next to her.

"How much time do we have?," she asked.

"Thirteen hours," he said. "If Helena's telling the truth. It's difficult to know when Helena is lying."

Claudia sat up. "Ask the expert," she said.

"What does that mean?"

"Let me help you figure it out."

"Will you let me help you with Sonny?"

"That's completely different," Claudia said. "And you're changing the subject. Come on. Let me help you out here. What does Helena have to gain by lying to you?"

She was never going to let him help her. He would play along. For now. "Time," he answered.

"Maybe," she said. "But only for what? Forty-eight? Twenty-four hours? That doesn't seem worth it. What does she have to gain by telling you the truth?"

"Time. And --"

Nikolas' phone rang. He connected with the call. "Lucky. ... When? ... " He turned to Claudia and mouthed "They found Luke." He spoke into the phone again. "Good. ..." Nikolas smiled at Claudia in relief.

Claudia's phone rang. She connected with her call. "Hello?"

"It's Sonny. They got him."

"I heard. Thanks for your help."

"You manipulated me."

"It happens."

"Claudia."

"What?"

"I'm an impatient man. And I know -- from experience -- what ... provokes you into giving me what I want. You've been safe because I let you be safe. Because I kept you safe. You have some decisions to make. Make them quickly." The call disconnected.

Nikolas studied Claudia. He didn't like her keeping things from him. Something had happened in that phone call with Sonny earlier. He knew that much when she'd lowered her voice. There was a tension there. He saw that same tension in her now.

Claudia slowly put her phone away and turned to Nikolas.

"Who was that?," he said.

"Sonny. He wanted to let me know that Luke was safe."

Nikolas nodded. He didn't press her further. Maybe they'd both had too much of other people today. "Will you go to sleep now?," he asked her.

"Yeah. That sounds good," she said.

***********************************************************

Nikolas' bedroom. 4 a.m.

Nikolas was fast asleep. Claudia was wide awake.

When she'd lived in Milan, she could do no wrong. Every move was perfectly planned, perfectly executed. And the end result was always exactly as she'd intended. Ever since she'd hit Port Charles, however, she was King Midas in reverse. Whether it was the proximity of her father -- she always grew jittery around him -- or a new impulsiveness that hadn't exhibited itself before, Claudia had never been such a failure. Or so desperate.

Maybe it was a product of being a woman in a world that hadn't accepted women as equals. There was not single woman in the United States who had succeeded in organized crime. Except the one downstairs. In the basement.

Claudia carefully untangled herself from Nikolas. He stirred briefly and then settled again, asleep. Claudia quietly slipped out of bed and then out of the bedroom.

***********************************************************

Wyndemere. Basement.

Claudia nodded to the guard outside Helena's room. He opened the door. Claudia went inside the darkened room, the light from outside spilling in.

Asleep, Helena looked as ordered as she did awake. No fitful dreams for her. Claudia doubted Helena had ever lost a moment of sleep. Or lived in terror of talking in her sleep. How did she do it?

Helena's eyes slowly opened. She turned her head and looked at Claudia, her eyes narrowing in recognition. "What do you want?," she said.

Claudia said nothing, just stared. She didn't know whether Helena was what she was scared of becoming, or what she wanted to become. She left the room.

**************************************************************

Nikolas' bedroom.

Claudia slipped back into the room and then back into bed. Nikolas stirred.

"Where did you go?," he asked sleepily.

Claudia didn't answer.

"Claudia?"

"Just checking on Spencer," she said, turning away from him.

Nikolas turned toward her, put his arms around her, and drew her closer. "How was he?"

"Fine," she said, feeling like she'd lost something precious she'd never get back. It was the first time she had ever lied to Nikolas.