"Mac, how's the investigation going?" Lucky asked him as Mac stopped in to see him.

"It's coming. I have the semi-driver on charges of reckless endangerment of an officer. I offered to plead it down if he was willing to give up Helena, but he claims to have no knowledge." Mac explained.

"And there were no witnesses that saw anyone grab her from the car?" Lucky questioned while his face contorted in pain from his broken ribs.

"No; nobody has come forth with any information. Spencer, maybe I should go so you can relax."

"I'm not going to relax until we find her, so you might as well stay."

"Can I at least call a nurse in for you; give you something…"

Lucky shook his head. "I'm on anti-inflammatory; and I refuse to take anything stronger. What about forensics? Any trace of blood? Did they find the tracking device?"

"The tracking device was located in the car with a small amount of blood. Robin tested the tea, and yeah it was spiked; it was some compound to disorient and make ill but not deadly."

"Does that mean we're still under the assumption that she wants Sam alive?"

"Yeah, but for what I don't know." Mac replied.

"I might." Alexis said coming into the room. "Can I go on the record saying that I had no idea?"

"No idea about what?" Mac questioned. "Are you in trouble?"

"When Helena started bringing up Valentin there was no way of me knowing that I knew him and even more so that he…" She started to cry.

"That he, what?" Lucky questioned.

"To her there's no end. Someone betrays her and her terror reigns down from generation to generation, and it won't stop until she is laid to rest. She wanted us to know; she wanted us to find out to twist the knife in our back."

"What are you talking about?" Nikolas stepped into the conversation.

"I was only sixteen, I didn't know…"

"Oh my God." Mac reacted. "Where's a doctor? Nikolas talk to Robin, compare the traces of Sam's blood to Valentin's DNA."

"What? Why?"

Lucky turned to Alexis who was just about panting. "Is it true? He's her father?"

"He was just a nice boy I met at the spring formal. We spent the whole summer together and… He knew me as Alexis Davidovitch and I knew him as Lars Christian. He was going away for a couple weeks at the end of the summer and before he left we got very close. He didn't call me when he got back; I figured that he got what he wanted from me, and then the school year started and I found out I was pregnant. I think he tried calling a couple of times, and I told my roommate to tell him I wasn't there anymore. I was afraid of my father finding out who he was and hurting him."

"He didn't know you were pregnant?" Lucky inferred.

"Maybe he did." Nikolas responded. "The date of death was June 13th, 1980. About one month after Sam was born."

"She found him because of me." Alexis realized.

"No, Alexis. You tried to protect him." Mac held her hand. "Don't go blaming yourself."

"So Valentin's plot involves capturing his daughter." Nikolas attempted to piece it together.

"Who happens to be part Cassadine and part Scorpio, does that mean the Spencer's are still a target?" Lucky questioned.

"I don't know, but I'm not going to sit here and find out. I'm going out to Greece today." Nikolas replied sternly.

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

"Here's some breakfast." Michael said putting a cereal bowl in front of Kristina as she sat at the guest room desk.

"Thank you, but you really shouldn't have to do this."

"We're siblings. We look out for each other, that's just what we do. You were, well are, there when I need you and now I'm going to do the same." Michael replied.

"Don't you have school?" She questioned.

"No; I realized yesterday that I'm not quite ready yet."

"What happened?"

"I realized that going to school was more than just sitting in classes, doing assignments, and reading literature. There are a lot of other people there distracting you from those very tasks."

"What you are saying is a bunch of kids were making the day unbearable by reminding you of the one thing you had gone there to try to forget?" Kristina assumed.

"That's exactly it. So, until I can get to the point where I am comfortable enough to deal with it here there's no way I can go back, and honestly I have learned from my mother that the best cure for handling your own problems is by tackling somebody else's. So if there is anything you can think of that I can do I am all ears."

"Besides driving me up to New Hampshire I can't think of anything." Kristina replied.

"What's in New Hampshire?"

"A boy that I think I really need to apologize to. That's where I went yesterday. Sam, Lucky, and I went to see this boy that I was supposed to randomly bump into and get his to spill whatever information he had about his family."

"Sam had you working on a case with her?"

"Yeah." She smirked. "I didn't think I was going to like him so much, though, and then last night when I heard Sam gotten taken I called him back to get more information."

"You don't think he understands?"

"No; I think he does. That's part of the problem. He seemed so nice, and so understanding, and I'm just scared that I pulled him into something that his family got out of with the death of Valentin or Laertes, or Lars; whatever you want to call him."
"I don't think that visiting New Hampshire again is going to help keep him out of this. Whatever this is; when did I get so behind on what's going on?"

"About the time your mom went missing." Kristina reminded him and then explained the situation more clearly.

***********

"What are you making?" Joey asked Stella.

"Just a recipe my grandma used to make me all the time, but it looks like we're missing yeast." She said after digging through the cabinets.

"You know there's a simple solution to that." Claudia smirked.

"Why do I have the sinking suspicion that she's up to something?" Joey questioned that scheming glance.

"I.. I'm not up to anything. I was just going to offer to speak to my father about you two going out and getting supplies from the supermarket."

"Don't listen to her." Stella warned. "She is definitely up to something, but I could use the time out and about so if you are willing to take me…"

"I think I can handle that." He replied. "Are you going to be okay?"

"I'll be fine." Claudia assured him. "This boy has a lot of growing to do before I'm in any danger."

"You are so sure it's a boy?" Joey questioned.

"I know it is." She replied confidently. "And nothing is going to prevent me from bringing him safely into this world."

"What are you going to name him?" Joey asked her.

"I can't get off from Giovanni." Claudia replied. She wasn't sure after naming her daughter Gianna if she would want to go that route with her son, but as she searched through names she just kept going back. "Giovanni Miguel Corinthos."

"I like it." Stella smirked. "But how did you decide?"

"He's named after the two most important men in my life." She explained. Giovanni being the Italian form of John and Miguel the Spanish Michael.

"Isn't that sweet? I'll be sure to let him know that." Anthony grinned. "Right before he fires the slug right into his father's chest."

"You must be senile if you think I'm going to let you have any sort of influence over my child." She replied.

"Careful or you may not have any say." He threatened her.

"Oh believe me, old man, try all you want death will not stop me from keeping you away from my son!" She fumed.

"Okay, Claudia, calm down." Stella warned her. "Maybe you should bring her…"

"No; you two should go. Don't worry. I'll play nice with daddy."

***********

"Nikolas, I want to go with you." Ethan said catching up with him in the hall.

"I can't let you do that." Nikolas said heading towards the elevator.
"What is that supposed to mean? I know you're a Prince somewhere, but you don't have any say over what can or cannot do."

"I know that, but you're needed too much here."

"Needed? To do what? Hang on to a hand and say everything is going to be okay? I can't do that! If you can't tell, my family is kind of falling apart right now. I have to do something. It's too late for Carly, but if I can help bring Sam back to Lucky… You have to know that I can be helpful." Ethan pleaded his case. He had already proven his worth when rescuing his father that summer.

"Fine; meet me at the jet in an hour. Don't be late or I will take off without you." Nikolas warned him.

"You're really going?" Mercedes asked with tears brimming her eyes. She had brought Emma to the hospital daycare.

He opened his arms inviting her in for a hug. "I'm sorry, but I have to. Nikolas shouldn't be out there alone. I know the Cassadine estate, I mean, not nearly as much as Nikolas does, but if I can be helpful at all I need to know I'm doing everything I can."

Mercedes swallowed her own tears. "What if I told you that I needed you? I don't even know if I can step into that house and hold Britni knowing…"

He squeezed her tighter. "I know you can, but if you really believe that you can't get through this without my support than I will stay."

She snickered knowing that she was going to regret saying the next thing. "You really would, wouldn't you? Okay, no. I'm just being selfish. You don't what you have to, just come back to me."

"Are you sure?" He asked still hanging on to her.

She nodded her head against his chest. "Yes; I'm sure. Just try to save our happy ending too."

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

"Um, sir? I'm going to have to ask that you leave." A man said to Jason. Somehow he had fallen asleep on the boat. "We're closing up for the night, and we can't have anybody on these grounds."

"I'm sorry." Jason shook his head trying to wake up.

"Good dream? You had a smile on your face."

"Yeah; I guess so. It was the life I was supposed to have; a small intimate wedding for me and a big public reception for her." He laughed.

"This was the woman who disappeared here?"

Jason nodded.

"Do you have a picture?" The guy questioned.

Jason dug into his wallet to pull out the most recent one had of her.

"She's beautiful."

"I don't suppose you've seen her?" He inquired not caring how crazy it made him sound.

"Chasing ghosts?"

"Maybe, but the more I sit here the less convinced I am of that. I know Carly. She wouldn't give up. The more she hears I can't the more determined she becomes. I just have to find her."

"How do you do that?"

He turned around to see the blood soaked stain. "How many hospitals do you suppose are in this country?"

"Several, but there's about five that specialize in head trauma. I know because my sister was in a severe car accident last year."

"Is she okay?"

"Yeah, the doc fixed her up real good. Here is the card; maybe this can point you in some kind of direction."

"I appreciate that. You wouldn't also be able to point me in the direction of a good dive bar, would you?"

"Sure I would." The man said writing some directions on the back of the card. "Good luck." He encouraged before Jason walked off to let him close up.