"Who says that Helena isn't going to find me here?" Mischa questioned Nikolas once she settled into one of the rooms at Wyndemere. "I bet she knows the tunnel system here better than you do."

"I'm sure she does, but we're currently playing her game. She's going to sit back and enjoy the torment as we struggle to make a decision." Nikolas explained.

"What if Dr. Scorpio-Drake finds the antidote? Then what?"

"Then we hope that General Katsaros is able to apprehend my Grandmother and deal with her there."

"What if I took away her reason for coming after me?" Mischa suggested.

"What do you mean by that? Get an abortion?" He looked at her in horror.

"I didn't ask for this." Mischa defended herself. "It's not like I had unprotected sex and am considering it as a form of birth control; besides having this thing inside of me puts me at a greater risk."

"As long as that child is inside of you you're protected." Nikolas argued. "You have nine months of guaranteed survival. I understand that this wasn't your choice, but I'm asking you to please consider the joy it could bring to its mother and father. I promise to keep you safe, and I will make your contribution worth while."

"You're going to pay me to have this baby for your brother and cousin?" Mischa asked him.

"Just like one would for any other surrogacy. Name your price."

"You think that's what I want? Monetary compensation? And no offense to you, but I'm not exactly sold on the idea that you can protect anybody. Samantha McCall is your cousin and she got a needle of poison stuck into her neck while you and the Hellenic army stood back and watched."

"Maybe; but what's your plan? Have an abortion and run away? You would be signing your own death warrant. My grandmother isn't widely known for leaving stragglers, and do you really want to be looking over your shoulder every day for the rest of your life?"

"I thought you said the Hellenic army will take care of her?" She countered.

"How will you know that they did?" Nikolas proposed.

"Sam's mom and boyfriend are going to be looking at turning me over if we get to the third day with no antidote." Mischa replied softly. "Tell me the truth, is that why you want to keep me here?"

"I won't let that happen."

"Are you sure? Do you think you can look at your cousin hooked up to a respirator to keep her breathing and not break down to Helena's demands? Do you think you can keep your brother from taking me in himself?"

"It won't come down to that."

"You don't know that! Look me in my eye, Prince Cassadine, and tell me that you're willing to stand up against the family you love in order to protect me."

"If that's what it takes, then yes."

XXXXXX

"Kristina, have you heard from mom?" Molly asked her sister.
"She's staying at the hospital with Sam." Kristina replied.

"Can we go see her?"

"I asked mom about that, and she said that Sam is sleeping right now but maybe later on this afternoon." Kristina answered.

"But I'm going to dad's this afternoon." Molly replied.

"I'm sure he would be willing to bring you by."

"She's going to be okay, right?"

"Damon said his dad isn't going to stop until he finds both Helena and the antidote."

"And you believe in him." Molly observed.

"Yeah; I do. Damon really is a good guy. All he wants to do is help."

"I'm not sure that's all he wants." Michael said coming into the conversation.

"If by that you mean does he want to get to know me better and take me out when this is over? He might have mentioned something to that effect." Kristina admitted.

"Wouldn't that be kind of weird?" Morgan asked from the steps. "Isn't he kind of related?"

"He's related to Sam, not me. It's been proven beyond a shadow of doubt that Laertes was a Scorpio and not a Cassadine."

"The commute is kind of long." Michael replied hoping to instill some doubt.

"Not if I transfer to Briarton-Griggs." Kristina proposed.

"You can't do that!" Molly objected. "If you leave Madison I'm never going to be able to see you."

"You'll see me, and I haven't decided anything."

"Seriously Krissy, you don't know Damon. I don't understand how you could even be thinking about a transfer because of some guy." Michael added.

"I've done research, it's a good school." She argued. "And maybe, just maybe, I want to get away from the craziness around here."

"You want to get away from us?" Morgan questioned disappointedly.

"Morgan, that's not what I mean. Don't you think we would all be safer somewhere else?"

"I did feel safer with dad in LA." Molly admitted.

"There's something very wrong with that statement." Michael pointed out the irony.

"Come on, Michael, it's not like you haven't thought about going away for college." Kristina stressed her point.

"What? I thought you said your first choice was PCU?" Morgan questioned.

"I don't know." Michael shook his head.

"This is silly; if I learned anything from being out in California it's that we need each other." Molly spoke up. "Especially now."

"This is where our family is; where our life is." Morgan added.

'Where our family is dying around us.' Kristina thought to herself.

XXXXXX

With doctor's permission Lucky laid in the hospital bed with Sam wrapped up next to him. She claimed it was easier to breathe when she wasn't lying on her back. He watched her sleep as it seemed to become harder and harder for her to push the air through her lungs. He looked to the monitors to assess her oxygen level.

"It's still within the normal range." Liz assured him.

"Have you heard anything from Robin?" Lucky asked her.

"The tox screen just came back from the lab, she's reviewing it now. This is going to work out." She encouraged.

"I know it will; it has to." He said holding onto Sam.

"You really do love her." Liz observed, not meaning it to sound as condescending as it did. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. I just…"

"Thought she was a rebound? That may have been how it started the first time, but it grew a lot deeper than a physical attraction. For the life of me I can't recall the reason we called it off."

"You said it was because…" Liz attempted to remind him of Sam's decision to start the P.I. business.

"That's what I said, but I think it was more about giving the boys what I thought they needed."

"I think we're both happier, and the boys are better off how things are." Liz replied.

"I agree with that."

"Lucky, have you thought about how a child with Sam is going to affect your relationship with the boys?" Liz asked him.

Lucky looked at her in confusion. "I haven't had time yet to process the idea of having a child with Sam, and currently my focus is on keeping Sam alive, but I don't see how having a child with my DNA is going to change my relationship with the kids I've already raised."

"You're right this isn't the right time." She backed up.

"No wait; what exactly are you asking? Do you honestly think I'm going to love them any less because I have a kid of my own? How could you even think…?"

"I don't, but this would be a child that would be living with you and thus get attention that you're unable to provide Cam and Jake."

"And I would explain to Cam and Jake that fact doesn't make them any less important to me. It just means they have a little baby brother or sister to play with when they are with me. Liz, you aren't planning on using this to take Cam and Jake…?"

"No. I wouldn't do that." Liz replied, as she did Sam started coughing.

"Sam!" Lucky directed her to a sitting position as she tried to clear her lungs. Sam clung onto Lucky while regaining her breath.

"Honey, are you okay?" Alexis asked running into sound of her daughter choking. Sam nodded her head yes as she pushed to gain a normal rhythm.

"I'm going to go see how Robin is fairing." Liz volunteered and backed out.

"Sam; we can have the doctor put you on oxygen." Alexis stated hoping to help.

"No." Sam shook her head. "I'm fine, if we can just raise the head of the bed a little further."

Lucky did as suggested and held her tighter against his chest. "I trust you to tell me what you need." He whispered pointedly.

"I will. Mom, do Molly and Krissy know?"

"Yes. They know; they want to see you if you think you're up for it." Alexis replied.

"It's probably best that they do now." Sam replied hoping that if it did come down to oxygen or a respirator they wouldn't have to see her like that.

XXXXXX

"Oh my God, Ethan!" Mercedes threw her arms around his neck.

"Somehow I knew I would find you here." He grinned as he stood outside the Drake home. "May I come in?"

Mercedes stepped out of the way to let him into the empty living room.

"Where is everyone?"

"Ms. Devane was called out on assignment. Mr. Scorpio is with your aunt, and Robin is…"

"At the hospital, I know. What about Patrick?" Ethan asked her.

"He had a conference or something." Mercedes explained. "Apparently Dr. Quartermaine scheduled it for him and then forgot until last minute. He was going to gone for a couple of days."

"And the rug-rat?" Ethan asked in the most enduring way possible.

She nodded her head up. "Taking a nap."

"Does this mean we get to celebrate my safe return?"

Mercedes looked to see if the baby monitor was on; as soon as she confirmed it she embraced him again. "Yeah, I can see what we can do about that."

"Oh good." He replied and tossed her on the sofa on top of him. There lips met and she reached to feel up his wash board abs. Ethan cradled her neck while biting her bottom lip. She moaned back in pleasure as she pulled the button down shirt off his shoulders and then went for the t-shirt underneath. It was more than celebrating a safe return; it was celebrating life. Life that was so fragile it could be taken at a moment's notice.

XXXXXX

"I was going to propose." Jason said still sitting at Carly's bedside. He wasn't sure if he had ever talked that much in his life, but he wanted her to know everything about her life, and her family; who she was and what she needed to fight for. He hoped that she could hear him. "I was; where it all started at Jakes. The limo was supposed to bring you over and after dinner and a game of pool I was going to give you this." Jason said taking out the ring he had picked out for her. He slipped it onto her left ring finger and interlocked his fingers with hers. "Carly, I stepped aside for too long. I played the role of best friend while we both got into relationship after relationship with the wrong person because I feared… but never could I imagine this. I know I wasted too much time, but we deserve this opportunity, don't give up!"

"She wouldn't dare." Patrick said standing in the doorway. He was still in bewilderment as he saw her lying there. It didn't matter what he told, Patrick couldn't fully believe it until he saw her with his own eyes, and even then in the back of his mind he wondered if they were playing tricks on him.

"You're here." Jason looked up to see him.

"The OR is being prepped as we speak." Patrick replied. "I need to scrub in, but I was hoping to have a couple minutes with her as her friend."

"Sure." Jason went to stand up.

"When it was you facing that table one thing was very obvious to me she would stop at nothing to make sure you made it back to her. It didn't matter who she had to fight with, plead to, or try to seduce as long as the outcome was that you made it through."

Jason smirked. "I'd offer to sleep with you if you think it would do any good." He quipped.

Patrick chuckled. "No; that's really okay. The point is that I have never seen anyone with as much fire to get their way…"

"That was before Jerry Jacks got a hold of her. I don't know… I've been here all day reminding her of that girl that would fight for everything; what if she can't hear me?" Jason gulped.

"She didn't survive and stroke and ship wreck to die on us now." Patrick assured him. "Besides, I'm not letting her go anywhere, not on my watch."

Jason kissed Carly's hand staring at the ring. "Did you need me to take it off?"

Patrick shook his head no. "Leave it." He watched Jason exit the room and sat next to her. "There was a day that I thought we really did stand a shot. I know now that the role we served in each other's life was to get us to this point; I appreciate you being what I needed when I needed it. All I've wanted for you since then is the same joy and fulfillment that I've gotten from love. Carly, you have that with Jason, so as someone who cares about you and your happiness I am going to plead with you to scrap and claw and do whatever you can to get it back. You have survived the impossible, don't leave us now."