The Inferno Rises

by dispatcher652

Ric is shot just when he makes the decision to try and make things right with Alexis. Will he be able to make it right with her or will outside influences make it difficult for them. Also, who or what is the Inferno? Ric/Alexis Lucky/OC Jason/Elizabeth

8. Chapter 8

A/N: Happy Holidays everyone! I have had this chapter in my computer for a while and totally forgot it was in there. It's a long one. I hope you all like it.

I don't own General Hospital or its characters because if I did Greg Vaughn would still be on the show and so would Ric Hurst.

Previously on General Hospital

Lucky didn't know what to say as Keesha looked at him with the same questioning hungry look in her eye. Soon his question was answered when Keesha smiled and told Lucky what he wanted to hear.

"I want this if you want this Lucky?" Keesha said.

"I do. I want you Keesha." Lucky said.

Lucky pulled Keesha into a passionate embrace that left her breathless with want and desire. They made love on the living room floor and forgot all about the world beyond where they where. Tonight there were no ghost of long lost boyfriends, no ex-wives, and bad memories. Just Keesha and Lucky and the magic they were making.

---

One week later....

Three times he walked away from the room then walked back. He wasn't sure if he should be there or not but he needed to say his peace so he turned back around and walked back towards the room to try again. Of course once he reached the room there was another obstacle he had to face. The same one he dealt with day in and day out. Cops. He laughed to himself because they were always around when he didn't need them.

Alexis was sitting by Ric's bedside watching him for any signs of life. She had been there all week long. The hospital had placed a bed in Ric's room after Alexis made it clear that she wasn't leaving until Ric woke up. The administration tried to argue against Alexis staying in Ric's room but Nikolas and Jax stepped in on her behalf and quieted them down. Having a nephew and a best friend on the board of directors does come in handy, especially when they say they will pull all the funding the hospital needs for the next fiscal year. After that Alexis got all she wanted and more.

Alexis held Ric's hand in hers and moved a stand of hair out his face. While looking at him she noticed that the swelling in his face had gone down which made her happy but there were still plenty of black and blue marks that made her frown. Alexis looked at her watch and knew that another round of chemo was coming up and that she would have to leave soon. The only time Alexis left Ric's side was when she needed to attend her chemotherapy appointments. Sam,Nikolas, and Jax would stay with Ric while Alexis was going through her chemo treatments. Each time they would promise over and over that if he so much as twitched they would call her back.

The chemo treatments were wiping Alexis out. She was tired of being sick and sick of being tired from them. Her only saving grace was that the treatments were working and the cancer was showing signs that it wasn't spreading and may possible be going into remission. Alexis told herself that soon this will all seem like a bad dream. The nightmare called cancer would be over and maybe she and Ric could start a new fairytale of their own.

Alexis checked her watch again and noticed that it was getting late and Nikolas should be arriving soon. She was grateful for all that Nikolas was doing for her. He was going above and beyond to make sure that she was happy and well taken care of. After every chemo appointment he would stay with her and wrap her up with all the blankets she needed. Alexis would always tell him that she was fine and that he could leave but Nikolas would just tell her it would simply be bad manners for him to leave her like this and no real prince would leave a damsel in distress. That always made her smile.

Alexis looked at her watch one more time. She was starting to get really impatient because she had to be on time for her chemo appointments. The last time she was late the tech was not happy and told her she needed to be on time because when she was late then everyone else is late for their appointments. Alexis didn't argue she simply apologized. Which was so unlike her. Usually she would have put the tech in their place and not even thought twice about it, now she just let things like that go. Strife like that just took too much energy to care about and she needed all the energy she had for Ric. Alexis did make a promise to herself that once she felt better she was going to visit that tech and give them the tongue lashing they so richly deserved.

As Alexis continued waiting for Nikolas to arrive she heard someone shouting outside the door of Ric's room. The voice sounded familiar but was still kind of muffled through the door so she couldn't quite make it who it was. Whoever it was sounded angry and upset that the two officers weren't letting him pass. Alexis tried to block out the noise and focus her attention on Ric but soon the noise became too loud.

"Oh this is ridiculous." Alex said getting upset over the noise.

She got up from her seat and kissed Ric on the forehead telling him she would be right back.

Alexis was now pissed as she approached the door and flung it open. Who in the hell would be making such a racket in a hospital she thought? Once she stepped out and side and saw who it was she knew exactly why there was such a commotion.

"Sonny! What the hell are you doing here?" Alexis asked.

Sonny Corinthos looked away from the two rookie cops that were trying to restrain him over to the now angry Alexis.

"Look Alexis, I didn't come here to cause a problem and I'm sorry for the noise. I just wanted to see Ric." Sonny said.

Alexis laughed. She didn't mean to but she couldn't help. It was the funniest thing she had heard all day.

"What's so funny?" Sonny asked.

"The fact that you think I'd let you get with in a foot of him." Alexis said.

"I'm not here to hurt him Alexis." Sonny said.

"You're damn right your not. I'm not going to let you hurt him. Now go away before I have these nice officers call for back up and escort you out the not so nice way." Alexis said.

"Alexis, wait." Sonny asked.

When Alexis didn't stop and started to go back in the room Sonny felt himself start to loose his cool and he yelled to get Alexis' attention.

"Stop!" Sonny yelled.

Alexis froze in her tracks. She knew that tone that Sonny was using very well. She had heard him use it many times when he was angry about something. It had been along time since he used it towards anyone. The medication he was taking and the sessions he was doing with Lainey had calmed Sonny's temper down quite a bit since being diagnosed bi-polar . Or so Alexis had thought.

Alexis turned back around and saw that Sonny was even taken back by the way he called her.

"I'm sorry Alexis. I didn't mean to yell at you. I just needed to get your attention and not have you turn your back on me until you here me out." Sonny said.

"Sonny,why are you here?" Alexis asked.

Sonny looked at Alexis and couldn't really answer her. There were so many reasons why he was there that it would take all day to explain them to her.

"Alexis, just let me see him." Sonny said.

Alexis laughed again.

"Again with the laughing. What's so funny now?" Sonny asked.

"You. Me. This whole thing. You hate Ric. He hates you. Hell I hate you and you hate me. Yet here you are asking to see a brother you can't stand. I find this whole situation hilarious. If you want to see your brother you better give me something better then you just "need" to see him." Alexis said.

Sonny was about to give up and just go home but the reason why he was there still nagged at him.

"A promise." Sonny said.

"A promise? No I need more." Alexis said standing with her arms crossed.

"That's all you gonna get. What I have to say is not for you." Sonny said.

Alexis was about to tell Sonny that he could stick his "That's all you gonna get" where the sun don't shine but she stopped when she looked Sonny in the eye. She always thought that Sonny had the most expressive eyes she had every seen. They told so much about him. It was one of the things that first attracted her to him. It wasn't the power,or the expensive suits like the he was wearing right now, or even his money. It was Sonny's eyes. When she looked into his eyes she could see exactly what he was thinking or feeling. When Sonny was happy his eyes would light up like diamonds and then he would give you that million dollar smile that would melt you like butter. Then when Sonny was angry, that thought sent a shiver down Alexis' spine. When Sonny was angry his eyes would go from a warm mocha to dark black like a sharks eyes, cold and lifeless. Alexis had seen that stare many times when she worked for Sonny and had even earned herself one those cold lifeless stares when Sonny found out that she was keeping Kristina away from him. This time when she dared to look into his eyes she didn't see Sonny's cold eyes,or the bright diamonds, what she saw shocked her. It was concern. Genuine concern for Ric.

Alexis motioned Sonny to follow her away from the prying eyes and ears of the officers who were still wondering what was going on. When they were far enough away she whispered to Sonny.

"I just gotta know. Are you here to kill Ric?" Alexis asked.

Now it was Sonny's turn to laugh out loud.

"Oh god, you are." Alexis said.

Sonny stopped laughing and shook his head no. He leaned over closer to Alexis and whispered very quietly.

"If I wanted him dead, it would have already happened." Sonny said with a wink.

Alexis nodded her head and understood all to well what Sonny just told her. If Sonny really wanted Ric dead it would have happened already and she wouldn't be at Ric's bedside but at his grave site.

"Sonny, if you hurt him so help me.."Alexis whispered and stopped when Sonny held up his hand like he was surrendering.

"I'm not here to hurt him. I'm here to deliver on a promise that is long over due. So, you gonna let me pass?" Sonny asked.

Alexis shook her head and against her better judgment she shook her head yes.

"Ok. Ok. You convinced me. You can go in. Let me just tell the officers it's ok for you to go in." Alexis said.

After telling the officers who seemed a bit surprised that a known mob boss who hated his District Attorney brother was now being allowed access to him Alexis walked back over to Sonny.

"It's alright for you to go in. Hans and Frans won't give you any trouble." Alexis said.

"You sure? They don't seem like they are too comfortable with me going inside." Sonny said looking over at the two rookie officers.

Alexis looked at Sonny and shook her head.

"Well it's a little expected Sonny. It's their job to hate you. To them you are the Anti-Christ and I should be pouring holy water on you to cleanse you of all the evil inside of you." Alexis said.

Sonny couldn't help but smile. The one thing he always loved about Alexis was her sharp wit.

Alexis looked down at her watch and saw that she was late for chemo appointment.

"Look Sonny I gotta go. I'm late for my chemo appointment and the tech is a bitch and half when I'm late. I usually have Nikolas, Jax, or Sam stay with Ric to watch him and let me know if he moves but none of them are here yet. So... I was wondering... if you would like to stay until I get back?" Alexis said forcing the last part of her sentence out.

"Yeah, yeah I'll sit with him until you get back." Sonny said.

"You sure?" Alexis asked.

"I'm sure. Thank you Alexis. It says a lot that you trust me with him." Sonny said.

"Oh... I don't trust you Sonny. I don't trust you as far as I can throw you. The only reason I asked you is because you made a good point. If you wanted him dead he would have already been in the ground and as sick as that is it's a comforting thought to me because now I know that Ric will be ok. It also lets me know it wasn't you who did this to him. Now, I have to go and I will be back two hours." Alexis said.

"You go on counselor and I will see you two hours and don't worry. He'll still will be breathing when you come back." Sonny said.

"He better be." Alexis said then started to head towards her appointment.

Sonny walked over to Ric's room door and walked past the two officers who almost looked like they were going to try and block his way. Sonny chuckled as he walked by them into the room. Rookies, always trying to prove something Sonny said to himself.

Sonny had to steady himself as he opened the room door. He was still trying to gather the courage and do what needed to be done. Taking a deep breathe he pushed the door open and entered the room. The first thing Sonny hears coming into the room is the beeping from Ric's monitors. How many times has he heard that sound while visiting this hospital? Too many he thought. As he gets closer to Ric's bed he hears more sounds he has become all to familiar with in his time as mob boss of Port Charles. It's not surprising to Sonny that these sounds don't phase him in the slightest anymore. He has lost so many people over the years that it doesn't bother him like it used too. What does bother him is feeling like he could have done something to prevent whatever happened to the people he cared about. Something that could have possible made the difference to keep them from ending up in the hospital and being hooked up to machines like the ones Ric was on now.

Sonny finally reached Ric's bedside after the slow walk from the door to the bed. He looked Ric over and shakes his head in disbelief. He couldn't believe that the body in front of him was Ric's. Sonny had never seen Ric like this before. He never seen Ric looking so beaten down. Even literally. Ric had always been a thorn in Sonny side from the moment he re-entered his life. Just a scheming bastard that just wouldn't quit until he got what he wanted and even though Sonny wanted to put a bullet in Ric's brain he knew that couldn't for two reasons. One being the obvious that he was and his brother and two was something he totally blocked out until his recent session with Laney and a conversation Sonny had with his daughter Kristina. Two was a promise that he made to Ric many,many, years ago and one that he told his daughter he would keep.

Sonny sat down in the seat next to Ric's bed. It was a seat that he was sure Alexis had sat hours in watching and waiting for some time for Ric to show some proof that he was still alive.

There was a knock on the door and Sonny looked over his shoulder and saw the door open and one his favorite person walked in.

"Hey you! What are you doing here?" Sonny asked smiling.

"What am I doing here? The question is what you doing here?"she laughed.

Sonny got up out of his chair and walked over to give Robin a hug. He hadn't seen Robin since the birth of her daughter and seeing her was truly a sight for sore eyes .

After the hug ended Sonny walked back to his seat next to Ric's bed while Robin moved to the other side and checked Ric's vitals.

"So how's he doing?" Sonny asked.

Robin waited a second before she answered Sonny as she was still getting Ric's vitals. She walked over to Ric's chart and wrote his vitals down and then looked up to Sonny.

"He's actually doing a lot better. His vitals are improving every day. The swelling in his brain went down and that's fantastic. It means that he is making a real turn around. When he first came in we weren't sure he would make it but Ric is a survivor. You can never knock him down for long." Robin said.

"Yeah he's a tough bastard. God knows how many times we've clashed and he was still able to get up afterwards and fight like nothing happened." Sonny said.

Robin put Ric's chart back down and moved closer to Sonny. She sat on the edge of Ric's bed and took Sonny hand in hers.

"You never answered my question Sonny. Why are you here? What's the real reason?" Robin asked.

Sonny leaned back in his chair and tried to get as comfortable as he could. He would never reveal to anyone except Robin or Jason what he was about to say out loud. They were the only people he could just be himself with or feel a little vulnerable and not have to worry that they were going to use it against him like Ric did.

"I'm here to try and fulfill a promise I made years ago that I didn't even realize I made until today." Sonny said.

"A promise you made years ago? I don't understand. Was it a promise you made to Ric and what do you mean you didn't realize you made it until today?" Robin asked.

"You know I'm in therapy right?" Sonny asked.

"Yeah with Lainey. How's that going by the way?" Robin asked.

"It's going good. At first I thought this was going to make me weak by admitting my faults but it's really helping me see what that I have some serious issues I need to deal with and one of them is Ric." Sonny said.

"So what about this promise? What does it have to do with Ric?" Robin asked. She was glad that Sonny knew he could open up to her like this. She knew that very little people got to see this side of Sonny and she was glad that she could be one of the fortunate few.

"Well, I had my session with Lainey today and we where discussing my childhood. You know about my mother, Deke,and all that stuff that I don't like to normal talk about. While talking about my mom I remembered somethings about her pregnancy with Ric that I had totally blocked out. The memories came flooding back and I was totally overwhelmed by them. It took me by surprise." Sonny said.

"What did you remember?" Robin asked.

"I remembered holding Ric in my arms right after he was born." Sonny said.

Robin couldn't help but gasp in surprise and cover her mouth that was gaping open.

"Sonny, oh my god!" Robin said.

"Yeah, that's what I said when I remembered. Robin, I was amazed at how clear the memory was and how I could recall it with such clarity like it was yesterday. Did I ever tell you about my mother's pregnancy?"Sonny said.

"No not really. I just remember you saying that it was a bad time for you because of Trevor." Robin said.

"It was a bad time and Lainey said that's probably why I blocked most of it out. Trevor hated me so much that I blocked out what was really one of the best times of my life with my mom." Sonny said.

"I'm so sorry to hear that Sonny. You know that you don't have to tell me anything you don't want to right?" Robin said.

"Yeah, I know but I'd like to share it with someone and I couldn't think of a better person to share with than you." Sonny said.

"Thank you Sonny." Robin said.

Sonny took a deep breathe then started his trip down memory lane. "When my mom found out she was pregnant she couldn't have been happier. She was so in love with Trevor that it blinded her to all his faults. I remember her telling Trevor that she was pregnant and he was ecstatic to know that my mom was bringing a child of his in the world. He always told my mom that he and his wife couldn't have a child because they were not in love like he and my mom where. What he forgot to mention was the the fact that he wasn't home enough to have a kid with her. Trevor had so may mistresses he didn't need sex from his wife, he just need the money and the prestige that came along with her. Anyway, when my mother was far enough along Trevor wanted to move my mother out of the city so his wife wouldn't find out. So he told her he was sending her to Martha's Vineyard where she would be able to rest. My mother loved the idea but she wouldn't leave without me and begged Trevor to let me go. Well Trevor didn't trust me since he thought I pushed my mother down the stairs because of the baby." Sonny said.

"Which was a lie." Robin said.

"Exactly and thankyou. My mother begged and begged and finally Trevor gave in and let me go with my mother to Martha's Vineyard. My mom and I stayed in this huge house that was right on the beach. It had butlers,maids,and everything my mother needed to keep her comfortable. When I came there I thought we were living in a castle." Sonny said laughing.

Robin couldn't help but laugh when she saw Sonny laugh.

"Hey I was a kid from the city and five years old. So this was like something out of story book for me. I had never seen anything like it before and for the first time in my life I felt free and alive. While staying there my mother and I would walk up and down the beach and we would talk for hours. She would tell me that I was going to be a big brother and that it was my job to protect my little brother or sister because that's what big brother's do. She said it was a huge responsibility and that since I was the man of the house that I needed to help raise the baby with her. When my mother told me that Robin, I was on cloud nine. I mean being told that I was the man of the house and that I was going to be a big brother and had a responsibility to help take care of my new brother or sister made me feel like I was all grown up. From that day on I made sure that my mother and the baby were taken care of. I made sure my toys were put away, and that my bed was made,and that if my mother needed anything I was right there to get it for her. Whatever she needed I was there. Then at night just before going to bed I would talk to my mom's stomach. I would tell the baby I couldn't wait for it come out so they could meet their big brother who loved them very much and was ready for the responsibility that god and mommy was giving me." Sonny had to stop there because he could feel a lump in his throat.

Robin looked at her friend and could see the pain on his face from dredging up these memories. She could see that it was tearing him up to remember all of this.

"Sonny you don't have to continue if you don't want to. It's ok." Robin said.

Sonny wiped the lone tear coming down his face then waived Robin off when she asked if he was ok and then regained his composure that quick.

"Nah, I'm fine. I just got caught up for second but I'm better now. Where was I, oh yeah I remember now. Well, things were going great with my mom and I just being alone together. Then one day as she and I were talking our daily walk down the beach she started having back pains. They were getting really bad so she said we needed to go back in the house. By the time we got back she was on the phone and telling the doctor it was time and the baby was coming. The doctor came quick and my mom was taken into one of the back bedrooms. I remember the doctor telling the maid and butler that there was no time to get to the hospital because the baby was coming now. I ran into the room to check on my mother and she told me to just sit on the couch like a good boy and wait until someone comes to get me. She kissed my forehead and told me to go. She was in so much pain and I was scared and told her that I didn't want to leave but she said she was ok and to just wait outside and before I knew it I would be saying hello to the baby. I did as I was told then sat on the couch and waited, and waited,and waited. I had sat so long I didn't even know I fell asleep on the couch until the doctor came over to me and woke me up. The doctor smiled down at me and told me that there was someone waiting to see me. I ran into the room and there was my mother looking tired,warn out, but happy. Really happy. She was holding the baby in her arms and it was wrapped in a light blue blanket. That's when I knew that it was a boy. I was a big brother to a baby boy. My mother looked over to me and smiled and called me over to sit next to her. I ran over and and she made room for me on the bed. She asked me if I wanted to meet my new baby brother and I yelled yes. The baby started to stir in her arms and that's when I found out that babies don't like loud sounds. She lowered the baby so I could see him and Robin, when I saw my new little brother I knew that he was made for me. I knew that god had made him just for me and I was put on this earth to protect him from all harm. I loved him so much and I just met him. Then my mother surprised me and asked if I wanted to hold him. I was so excited and when she placed his tiny body in my arms I cried. I was so happy I cried. I kissed his little forehead and when I looked down he was smiling at me. My mom said it was gas when I said he as smiling but I knew better. I introduced myself to him and told him that I was the voice he had been hearing in my mommy's tummy and the baby cooed and smiled again. My mom asked one of the maids to go get the camera off the nightstand in her room. She wanted to take a picture of her boys. After the picture of us was taken I promised the baby that I would always watch over and take care of him no matter what because he is my responsibility. I told him that nothing and no one would ever hurt him while I was around." Sonny said.

Robin looked at Sonny and saw his facial expression start to darken and knew this is where the story must take a bad turn.

"After the picture was taken I gave the baby back to my mom and we just sat there smiling and looking at the baby. It was a real nice family moment. But just like everything in my life that makes me happy it was quickly taken away." Sonny said.

"Trevor." Robin said.

"Trevor. My mom and I had no idea that one of the maids had called Trevor and told him the baby was on the way. When the bedroom door opened my mom had just put the baby back in my arms so I could feed him. When Trevor walked in and saw that he rushed over and snatched the baby right out of my arms. I asked to have him back so I could feed him but Trevor just laughed at me. He said that I hoped I enjoyed that little moment because that will be the last time that I ever get to touch his son again. I begged him to give him back and told him that he was my responsibility. He was my family. Trevor leaned down to me and said the only responsibility a little bastard like me is good for is to watch over the roaches in my apartment because I was just like them. Nobody wants them but everyone's got one he said. Then he told me I was not and never will be apart of this child's family. I ran out of the room crying while my mother tried to call me back. I cried and I cried until I feel asleep. The next thing I remember I was waking up in a car and being told that I was being taken to my aunts house in Brooklyn and that my mother would join me when she was better." Sonny said.

"What happened when your mother came home?" Robin asked.

"When she came home she said that the baby was with Trevor and that he would have a better life with him. We never really spoke about it after that. She did give me something and told me to always keep it close to my heart. " Sonny said then reached in to the inner pocket of his jacket and pulled out a picture and handed it to Robin.

Robin looked down at the picture and started to cry. It was a old picture of Sonny holding a newly born Ric in his arms. Through tears Robin smiled at how happy Sonny looked. Even his mother who Robin had only seen in one other picture looked happy with her boys. In the other picture Sonny showed her his mother was looking away from the camera and off in to the distance like she looking for something. Now Robin knew what she was looking for and why she had the far away look on her face. Robin gave the picture back to Sonny who was held it in his hand and smiled down at the image of his younger self.

"This picture is what started it all ya know. I was going through some stuff of when I was kid to show Micheal and Morgan when I found an old book I used to love to read when I was kid of beaches. When I picked up the book the picture fell out and I looked at and started to get flashes of memories I didn't understand. I made the appointment with Lainey and here we are." Sonny said.

Robin wiped her tears away with her hands and tried to take in all that she was told. There was still a question that hung in the air she thought that needed to be answer.

"So, the question still is...why are you here Sonny?" Robin asked.

"I'm here to deliver on that promise I made so many years ago. I know that Ric and I will never be best friends or the kind of brothers that can have each others back but still feel responsible for him. I still want to protect him. When I look at him lying there like this, apart of me knows that if I had been watching out him like I do for Jason that maybe I could have prevented this." Sonny said.

"Sonny, you shouldn't punish yourself like this. You don't know if you could have stopped this or not. You all of people should know that things like this can't always be prevented. And let's face it you and Ric are truly like oil and water. Whose to say that if you did grow up together that you would've had a great relationship as brothers? You could've been together and still be right where you are now." Robin said.

"I know but I just can't help but feeling like this is my time to try and make things right. To try and make sure that he is around to finally heal some old wounds. Besides, it would make Kristina happy. She loves Ric and she asked me to make sure that he is ok so he could come home and make Alexis and Molly happy again. I told her I would take care of it and I will. I'm going to find out what happened to him and make sure that who ever did this deals with me." Sonny said.

"Are you sure you want a relationship with Ric?" Robin asked.

"Look, I'm not stupid. I know I won't be able to trust Ric as far as I can throw for awhile but eventually I hope we can reach a point where we can just be civil to each other. I think that would make my mother happy and maybe that little boy inside this picture would feel better knowing that his promise was kept." Sonny said.

"I hope so Sonny." Robin said then looked to her side when she felt beeper vibrate. "I gotta take this. Patrick needs me for a consult. You gonna be ok?" Robin asked.

"Yeah I'll be fine. He's not going anywhere too soon and can't speak so theres no chance of an argument. So yeah, I'll be fine." Sonny said.

"Ok. Then I will leave you and Ric to yourselves." Robin said getting up off the bed. As she headed towards the door she turned back around to Sonny.

"Hey? You gonna show Ric that picture?" Robin asked.

Sonny turned to her and shook his head. "No. That's one memory I'm not ready to share yet. I kinda wanna keep that with me a little while longer."

"Gotcha." Robin said smiling then walked out the door to meet Patrick.

Sonny turned back around to Ric and sat there quietly for a few minutes just looking at him. After about fifteen minutes of sitting and listen to the machines in the room work Sonny started to get thirsty and started to reach for the pitcher of water on the stand near Ric's bed. When he got up he looked at Ric and could have sworn he saw Ric's finger on his right hand move. He walked over closer to the bed and looked at Ric's right hand to see if it would move again but it didn't move. Sonny chalked it up to just seeing things and went back to getting his water. While Sonny's looked away Ric's finger moved again.

---

Alexis was wheeled back in to the room by Nikolas who was still apologizing for being late because he was taking care of a business deal. She tried to tell him that she understood and held no ill will against but he still kept at it. Finally she told him if he wanted to make it up to her he must promise to take Kristina horse back riding at Windemere this weekend. Nikolas of course was all to happy to take his favorite cousin horse back riding and even sweetened the deal by saying both Kristina and Molly could come and keep Spencer company for the weekend since Emily would be off giving him an extra pair of hands with the kids.

Alexis thanked Nikolas and was pretty sure that Sam would thank him too. She had been watching the girls all by herself since Alexis had moved into Ric's room and even though she never complained about it Alexis knew that Sam would probably enjoy a little time to herself.

When Nikolas and Alexis entered the room they found Sonny was still in the room reading a newspaper while he waited.

Sonny heard the door open and turned to see Alexis being wheeled in by Nikolas. He saw the look of shock on Nikolas' face and knew that Alexis must not have told him who was sitting with Ric.

"So is he still breathing?" Alexis asked while Nikolas rolled her towards her bed.

Sonny chuckled.

"Yes he is. The pillow that I put over his face was taken to long to work so I gave up." Sonny said folding his newspaper up.

Alexis looked at Sonny and glared at him.

"I'm just kidding counselor. He's just fine. Although I gotta tell that my eyes must be playing tricks on me because I thought I saw his finger move." Sonny said.

"You what?" Alexis said as Nikolas helped her in the bed.

"I thought I saw his finger move but when I went to go look again I didn't see anything. I sat here the whole time watching for something else to move but nothin'. Look I gotta go and meet Jason." Sonny said.

Sonny walked over to Alexis who looked hell. He could see that she was shivering and pulled the blanket up over her.

"Thank you Sonny. For not killing him I mean." Alexis said through chattering teeth.

Sonny knew what she was really saying to him through that thank you.

"No, thank you. You really helped me out here today and for that I owe you. Take care of yourself... and him." Sonny said pointing to Ric.

"I will." Alexis said.

"Nikolas." Sonny said.

"Sonny." Nikolas said.

Even though both men were not fond of each other because of past issues they eventually found that life was easier being civil to one another.

Once Sonny left the room Nikolas breathed a small sigh of relief. The room just seemed less stuffy now that it was Sonny-less. Nikolas looked at Alexis and noticed that she was still shivering.

"Do you want some more blankets? I notice that you only have one again. When I leave here I'm going to meet Emily for lunch and when we are done I'm going to get you your own blanket." Nikolas said.

"Nikolas you don't have to do that. Enjoy your lunch with Emily. I'll be fine and the nurse can always bring me more blankets. Go have your lunch with Emily I'll be fine." Alexis said.

"Alright I'll go but I'm still bringing you a nice warm blanket later." Nikolas said kissing Alexis' head.

"Ok but nothing girly or pink. I hate pink. And no flowers. Nothing bright either." Alexis said making a face.

Nikolas laughed and nodded. "Your wish is my command. Nothing girly, pink,or flowers. Just dark colors nothing bright. Is that about right?"

"Yes." Alexis yawned.

"So black it is." Nikolas said.

"Perfect." Alexis said pulling her blanket over head for warmth.

"I'm going to get you another blanket before meeting Emily for lunch. I'll be right back." Nikolas said then left the room to go get a blanket for Alexis.

Alexis looked over to Ric while she waited for Nikolas' to return and wished that she would get some sign of life from him.

"I know you're in there Ric. Gimme a sign." Alexis said.

Just then Ric's finger moved.

Alexis couldn't believe what she just saw. Maybe her eyes where playing tricks on her. After all she was pretty tired and it could be wishful thinking on her part. So she called out to Ric louder this time.

"Ric, if you can hear me move again." Alexis said.

Right on command Ric moved his finger again.

Alexis needed to get over to Ric and see if she could make him move again but her body was so weak.

"C'mon Alexis it's only a short distance away you can make it." Alexis said.

Slowly Alexis pushed herself up off the bed. It took all the effort she had to stay up. She grabbed on to the railing of her bed and used it help steady herself. When she was fully able to sit up she put her blanket over to help try and keep her warm. Alexis was about to try and take her first step when Nikolas walked back in and saw what she was about to do and quickly ran over to her.

"What were you thinking? You know you're too weak to trying and walk by yourself. What was so important that you couldn't wait for me to get back?" Nikolas said.

"He moved. Ric moved his finger twice. I called out to him and he moved. I need to get over there. Nikolas help me." Alexis said.

Without another word Nikolas quickly picked up Alexis and carried her over to the chair that she had been sitting in for a week faithfully waiting for a sign and now it was here.

Alexis grabbed Ric's left hand while Nikolas went over to the other side of the bed to see if Ric moved his finger again.

"Ric...can you hear me? If you can please move again." Alexis said.

She looked over to Nikolas who shook his head to indicate he didn't see anything so she tried again.

"I know you're there please keep trying. You have to come home. We're waiting for you." Alexis said.

Alexis looked up at Nikolas again hoping he saw something. Nikolas was about to shake his head no but then he saw two of Ric's fingers move. He picked up the call button and pressed it.

"We need some help in here. Get the doctor now!" Nikolas said to the nurse over the intercom.

Nikolas turned his attention back to Alexis.

"Whatever you are doing keep it up." Nikolas urged.

"Ric, please move again. C'mon baby move." Alexis said.

Nikolas looked at Ric's hand watching for another sign of movement but there was none. He silently asked for Ric to move so Alexis wouldn't be disappointed. Nikolas was brought out of his thoughts by the room door opening and seeing Patrick,Robin, and Emily come in.

"What's going on? The nurse said you needed help?" Patrick asked.

"He moved. His finger moved." Alexis said.

"Are you sure?" Patrick asked.

"Yes, Nikolas and I both saw it."Alexis said.

"Ok, let me have a look." Patrick said.

Patrick moved over to Ric's side and took out his pocket light and shined it in Ric's eyes.

"His pupils are showing no reaction to the light. There is a good chance that it may have been a reflex. Nothing more." Patrick said.

"It was not a damn reflex! He moved when I called him." Alexis said angrily.

Alexis knew what she saw and was not about to let anyone dismiss it as if was nothing.

"Try again to call him Alexis." Emily said walking over to Nikolas' side.

"Yeah, it wouldn't hurt to try again. If he's in there you can reach him." Robin said.

Robin loved her husband but sometimes Patrick's bedside manner was a little on the rough side. He had come along way but he still needed some work.

"Ric, you need to try and move you need..."Alexis was interrupted by Emily.

"No Alexis. Talk to him how you would normally talk to him." Emily winked.

At first Alexis didn't know what Emily meant but then she got it.

"Alright Ric, enough is enough. I have been sitting here for a week now waiting for you and frankly I'm tired of it. It's time to get off your ass and come back to the world of living so I can whip your ass in court. Because we all know I'm the best lawyer this town has ever seen and I can out argue you on my worst day. The only way you can prove me wrong is waking up so get up." Alexis said.

They all waited and still there was no response.

"Alexis, you tried. Maybe we can try later." Robin said.

Alexis shook her head. She knew it was now or never.

"No I know he 's in there." Alexis said.

Alexis used all the energy she had left and stood up out of her chair and leaned closer to Ric.

"Ric! Wake up ! They are counting you out but I'm not. Do you hear me? I'm not! You need to wake up and prove them wrong. You need to wake up and prove me right because you know I hate more than anything to be wrong. Come on Ric!" Alexis said starting to cry.

Nikolas walked over to Alexis and tried to pull her away but she shrugged him off.

"No! Let me go!" Alexis yelled.

"Alexis your going to make yourself ill. Please stop this." Nikolas begged.

"No! He wouldn't give up on me so I'm not going to give up on him. He has got to much to live for." Alexis said then turned back to Ric.

"God dammit Ric, open your eyes! Open your eyes! Open your eyes." Alexis said then collapse on top of Ric's chest crying.

Alexis sobbed on Ric's chest and through each sob she asked Ric to open his eyes. Then she felt someone stroking her hair.

"Oh my god!" Emily said. "Alexis you did it."

Alexis turned her head and saw Ric's eyes were finally open and that it was his hand stroking her hair.

"Alexis we need to get in there so we can work. I need you step aside." Patrick said.

"Good work Alexis." Robin said.

"I knew he was in there." Alexis said as Nikolas helped her out of the way.

As Ric was being worked on and another nurse came in the room one of the cops stopped them as they were going inside.

"Hey what's going on ?" he asked.

"The patient is awake. Excuse me I have to get inside." the nurse said walking past the officer.

The officer took out his cell phone and dialed the station.

"Detective Spencer, it's Officer Barrett at the hospital. I just wanted to let you know that DA Lansing is awake. Ok, we'll see you and Agent Ward in about twenty minutes.

When the nurses and doctors were done checking Ric, Alexis was allowed to move back over to him. He looked so tired but his eyes were full of life. Ric looked up at Alexis and a small tear left his eye. She gently wiped away the tear and grabbed his hand that was slowly reaching up towards her.

Ric tried to talk to her but found that he was having a hard time. Alexis saw Ric's lips moving like he was trying to say something.

"Don't try to speak. You have a tube in your throat helping you to breathe. Your throat is going to sore for a little bit so don't speak." Alexis said.

Alexis wiped away a strand of hair away from Ric's face. He tightened his grip on Alexis' hand and she smiled at him.

"You heard me huh?" Alexis asked.

Ric slowly shook his head yes.

"You always said I had a big mouth that you could hear me a mile away. I guess you were right." Alexis said.

Ric laughed and started to cough.

"I'm sorry. Too soon for humor huh?" Alexis said.

Ric smiled and started to feel his eyes get heavy and wanted to go back to sleep.

Alexis kissed his head and looked into Ric's eyes.

"You go to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up." Alexis said taking her seat next to him.

Nikolas walked up behind Alexis and hugged her. "You did it. You never gave up."

"I knew he was in there. Now you and Emily go to lunch. I'll be ok." Alexis said.

"You sure? We can stay or bring our lunch back here to sit with you." Nikolas said.

"No go. He's awake and ok so I'm ok. You two have a god time." Alexis said.

"Ok. I'll see you when I get back. Just promise if you need anything you'll call the nurse." Nikolas said.

"I promise." Alexis said.

Nikolas hugged Alexis then left the room with Emily and the others.

Alexis turned back to Ric while he slept soundly holding her hand with a smile on his face.

---

Twenty minutes later Lucky and Keesha walked off the elevator towards the nurses station. They asked for Patrick and Robin to be paged so they could get an update on Ric's condition. When the nurse advised they should be there shortly Lucky and Keesha walked over to the small lounge area to sit down and wait for them.

Lucky looked over to Keehsa who was texting something on her phone. He smiled as he watched her concentrate on what she was doing. It was so cute.

Things were progressing very slowly between them since the night they spent together and that was fine, if you consider warp speed slow. Lucky remembered waking up the next morning with Keesha in his arms. Somehow they had made it up to his room and into his bed. He remembered that they made love at least twice on the living room floor and may have one more time when they made into the room. When Lucky woke up that morning the images of that night came flooding back into his brain. He went to go try and sit up when he noticed Keesha lying securely in his arms. The feel of her there sent an unexpected shiver through him both then and now as he sat there watching her. There was something about being in her presence that calmed him and warmed him all the same time. While Keesha was still texting on her phone and seemed throughly distracted Lucky thought back to that morning and the conversation that took place between Keesha and him.

Lucky's bedroom one week ago

The sun shined bright through Lucky's bedroom window. The storm had passed as if nothing happened and in it's wake was a beautiful blue sky with birds chirping happily away. The sound of the birds and the rays of the sun beaming down on him were what brought Lucky out of a peaceful sleep. He hadn't slept like that in a long time. His nights seemed to be plagued with fits of restlessness since Elizabeth left. Lucky had become so used to another person's presence in his bed that the absence of it was driving him insane. Days weren't so bad because he was hardly at home but nights were the worst. They made him remember what he lost and what he knew he was never going to get back but this morning, this morning was different somehow. He just couldn't figure out why. The dread that he usually felt at waking up in the morning was gone. The coldness coming from the other side of the bed was no longer there. He hadn't even opened his eyes yet and he knew something in the room was different. Something made this a place he wanted to be in again. Then he heard it. It was the sound of someone breathing. Next he felt it. The feel of someone snuggling up next to him letting out a content sigh. Lucky's eyes shot open and his brain became fully awake. He looked down and saw the person laying in his arms was none other than the lovely and quite the bed hog Keesha ward.

Lucky chuckled lightly as he noticed very quickly that Keesha had him on the edge of the bed and had taken up most of the covers.

He felt Keesha readjust herself in his arms trying to find a comfortable position. Once she did she settled down and went back to sleep. What struck Lucky the most about that moment was that during that moment he pulled Keesha closer to him and her body fit him like glove. She molded right into him like she belonged there. The warmth of her body and her breath on his chest was such a good feeling. He didn't want it to end.

While the room was still quiet he laid there, held her, smelled her hair ,and let his hand stroke her sleeping form. Her skin was soft and thoughts of last night drifted through his brain. Images of them on the floor exploring and tasting each other floated back to him and he couldn't believe how vivid those memories were. The only thing he didn't remember was how they got up to his bedroom. The details of how they did didn't matter right now, what mattered was what the women sleeping in his arms would say when she woke up. Would she regret what they had done? Would she run out the room screaming that he took advantage of her during a vulnerable moment? All these thoughts made him more than a little nervous. So, he decided to do the only thing he could think of. Which was to quickly get out of bed before she woke up. Yeah, it was the cowards way out and he felt horrible doing that but if Keesha regretted anything that happened last night he would be heartbroken. Lightly as he could he started to move bust stopped when he felt a pinch on his side.

"Who said that my pillow could move?" Keesha said sleepily.

"Ouch." Lucky laughed while rubbing his side.

Keesha opened her eyes and the bright sun made her close them right back. She opened them slowly, letting the light in a little at a time then finally opening them fully to let the light and everything around her in.

The only reason why she had even woken up was because her pillow, namely Lucky had moved. She was enjoying having him so close. It was the first time in a long time that she felt comfortable enough to have someone so close to her. Usually she would have kicked the guy out or made up some excuse like she had to work in the morning and that's why they couldn't spend the night but when she had woken up in the middle of the night and found Lucky's strong arms holding her, she found that she was wasn't fleeing or looking for the exit. She liked where she was. She liked the feeling of Lucky against her, pulling her closer to him and kissing her head absentmindedly in his sleep. When she looked down she saw her fingers were intertwined with his and they were a perfect fit. Only once before had that every happened to her but that, was a another lifetime ago.

Keesha sat up looking at Lucky who was still rubbing his side from where she pinched him.

"Oh it wasn't that bad." Keesha said.

"Says the pincher. I think the pinchee knows better. Are you always this feisty in the morning?" Lucky asked.

Keesha giggled. "Only when someone pulls my nice warm pillow out from under me. Where were you off too?"

Lucky looked away while he was trying to think of something, anything, other than I was going to leave you in the bed because I didn't want to take the chance of you hating me or rejecting me. So, he said the first thing that came to mind.

"I was...going to..go to the bathroom." Lucky said.

Keesha moved so that Lucky could go to the bathroom like he said. She watch as he threw on his underwear and quickly walked to the bathroom then shutting the door behind him.

Keesha sat there and shook her head. She knew what was going on. She'd played this game to many times with her being the one to make excuses to leave so she knew what Lucky was doing. He was running she thought. He was running away because he regretted what happened and he couldn't face her. Great she thought. I finally find a nice guy who made me fell more alive in one night than I have in years and I scared him off. Keesha suddenly felt the need to get out. She got out of bed and looked for her clothes. When she didn't see them she remembered that they must still be downstairs. Crap she said to herself. She looked around the room and saw Lucky's PCD shirt sitting on a chair in his room. Keehsa walked over to the chair and quickly put the shirt on. As the shirt fell over her face she smelled Lucky all over it. His scent was in ever inch of that shirt. When the soft fabric caressed her bare skin it was like Lucky was all over her again. Keesha was so enamored in the feel of the shirt she didn't hear Lucky come out of the bathroom.

Lucky had been in the bathroom long enough. To his surprise he really did have to go so the excuse was only a partial lie. When he walked back out he was greeted to an unexpected and most beautiful sight. There was Keesha standing there putting on his PCD shirt. He leaned up against the door frame of the bathroom and couldn't help but watch the show in front of him as she pulled the shirt over her naked body and let it fall over her slowly. The shirt hugged all the right curves and accentuated her already long legs. He looked on and stayed quiet not wanting to break the magic of what he was seeing. She was hugging the shirt to her and taking in his scent that was left on it. God, this girl never ceased to amaze him. She made such a simple things like smelling a shirt sexy and intimate all at the same time. He couldn't help himself when he whistled at her. He almost lost it when he watched her almost jump out of her skin.

"I'm sorry." He said laughing as he walked over to her.

"So not funny Spencer." she said as she met him halfway.

They stopped in front of the bed and looked at each other like two teenagers that just had sex for the first time. All nerves and not really know what to say after. So Keesha went first.

"Lucky I...I..." for some reason she could get the words out to tell him how she really felt about last night.

Lucky took it as she regretted what happened and that the look on her face showed it. He turned away from her not able to look at what he thought was disappointment or regret in her eyes. So he decided to clear the air since she couldn't.

"Keesha it's ok if you regret what happened last." Lucky said still unable to look at her. He wasn't able to hide the disappointment from his words or his body language.

Keesha couldn't believe what Lucky was saying to her. How could he think she regretted anything that happened last night? Foolish man she thought and stupid her for not letting him know how she felt the moment she woke up. Keesha placed her hand gently on Lucky's back and made him turn around to face her. She looked at his face and it looked like he had lost his best friend. She needed to tell him how she felt. No she thought, she needed to show him. Keesha tilted Lucky's face up to hers and kissed him just as she had last night with the same fire and passion. She felt Lucky's arms pull her in closer to him and the kiss deepened much to both his and her delight. By the time they pulled apart there was nothing but heavy breathing between them. Lucky touched his forehead to Keesha's as he tried to steady himself.

"Are you trying to tell me something Agent Ward?" Lucky said with smile.

Keesha giggled again and rolled her eyes. "Boys are so dense." she joked.

Now it was Lucky's turn to laugh.

"We can be. Sometimes we just need to hear things to understand better." Lucky said.

Keeshe looked into Lucky's eyes and loved how she could just get lost in them.

"Lucky, I don't regret anything that happened last night. I know we said we would take it slow and see where this goes but I'm not upset that we are where we are." Keesha said.

Lucky let out a breath that he had no idea he was holding. He was so happy to know that Keesha didn't regret anything. That last night held some meaning for her as well.

"I'm glad you told me that. I got very nervous this morning when you woke up. I was hoping that you had no regrets. Last night was definitely something I don't regret. It was spontaneous,sexy, and it just felt right. Did we take it slow? No, not by any means but like you said, I'm not upset where we are now." Lucky said.

"Is that why you went into the bathroom so quickly this morning?" Keesha asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Well partly. I really did need to go once I got in there. The other part was I couldn't handle the possibility of you thinking last night was not as great as I thought it was. Keesha you have no idea how wonderful it was to wake up with you in my arms this morning. It was like a void in my life was finally being filled with something other than loneliness and self pity. I was happy when I woke up this morning before I even opened up my eyes just because you where there." Lucky said.

Keesha intertwined her hands with Lucky and brought them up for him to see.

"You see that. That's what I saw last night when I woke up in your arms. I saw my fingers locked with yours and they fit like they were meant to be together. I felt you pull me closer to you and hold me in a way that no one has in a very long time. When I told you I suck at relationships I wasn't kidding. I'm usually the one who runs out the door or makes some excuse to leave because when everything was said in done, I always felt like there was no reason to stay. No reason to give more than just my body. Last night in your arms I felt this growing need to stay in them. To feel your warmth all around lulling me back into a peaceful and content sleep. If that's what you call regret then yes I regret it and I want to regret some more." Keesha said.

Lucky looked at their fingers together and looked passed the obvious difference of color and more to the way of how they did fit together. He placed his palm against hers and noticed that his hands were the same size as his. Whenever he did that to Elizabeth his hands always looked like a giant size compared to her tiny delicate ones. This time with Keesha, they seemed normal next to her dark elegant hand. He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed it.

They stood in silence for the next couple of minutes just holding each other and enjoying the feel of one another.

"So no regrets?" Lucky asked softly breaking the silence.

"None." Keesha said.

Suddenly Lucky's alarm clock went off and they both knew that it time to get ready and face the world.

"How about you take a shower while I get breakfast ready?" Keesha said.

"No, you cooked dinner last night so I got breakfast. What you can do is come downstairs with me and keep me company while I make breakfast because I really like you in my shirt and I wanna see you in it a little while longer." Lucky said.

"Oooo...Detective Spencer... you are a very naughty boy." Keesha said.

"You have no idea but I'll show you after breakfast when we take a nice shower together." Lucky said his voice husky with desire.

"I can't wait." Keesha said with delight.

Lucky grabbed Keesha's hand and they walked out the bedroom together and down the stairs towards the kitchen. When they got to the bottom step Keesha stopped and looked back up the stairs and then to Lucky with a puzzled look on her face.

"What's wrong?" Lucky asked.

"Nothing, I was just wondering. How the hell did we get upstairs?" Keesha asked.

Lucky lost it when she asked that question. He had been wondering the same thing.

"I have no idea. I was going to ask you. I'm just glad we did. C'mon let's eat." Lucky said walking to the kitchen with a still wondering Keesha in tow.

A smile came to Lucky's face as he remembered their shower activities that morning. Since that morning they agreed to try and take things a little slower and even tried the first couple nights away from each other but that didn't last when they kept finding ways to enter each other's room. They finally came to the conclusion that they just couldn't fight the urge to be without one another at night so Keesha started sleeping in Lucky's room. They did however decided that it was just sleeping. No sex, but that too was starting to wear thin on both of them.

Lucky was brought out his thoughts when he heard two loud girlish squeals. He looked up to see Robin and Keesha hugging each other and poor Patrick trying to recover from being to close to the ear splitting noise they just let out.

"Oh my god Keesha you look so good! Is my dad treating you ok? You let me know if he's not." Robin said.

"Me? Look at you! You look so beautiful and you]re a mommy now. Robert keeps a picture of you and Emma on his desk. I see it everyday when I'm in his office. You should see the look of pride on his face. He loves being a grandfather. Don't let him tell you any different. So... I see you did find the love of your life since we last saw each other in Paris." Keesha said.

Robin blushed a little and Patrick smiled.

"Yes, I did. Keesha this is my husband Patrick Drake and Patrick this is one of my dear High School friends Keesha Ward. Who I have missed so much. We have so much to catch up on." Robin said.

"It's good to meet you Keesha. Robin talks about you whenever she pulls out her High School photo album and pictures of you two in Paris." Patrick said.

"So what brings you here?" Robin asked.

"Keesha and I are working on Ric's case together. I got a call from one of the officer's guarding Ric's room tell me he was awake. Can we see him?" Lucky asked.

Patrick bristled at Lucky's question. He hated when the police were in such a hurry like this. He knew knew that had a job to trying to catch the person who put Ric in the hospital but the patient needed to recover. Not be badgered by the police and their non-stop questions.

"Look he really needs the time to rest." Patrick said.

"I know that Patrick but the person who did this is still out there and we need Ric to tell us what happened. He's the only chance we have at nailing this guy and trying to figure out how big this thing really is." Lucky said.

Keesha and Robin looked back and forth at Patrick and Lucky and knew this was soon going to turn in to a pissing match where no one would win. It was time for cooler heads to step in.

"Well how about we compromise?" Keesha said.

"Good idea." Robin said.

"I'm listening." Patrick said.

"Ok. How about when we speak to Ric and you be in the room with us when we question him?" Keesha said.

"And if anything happens then you can always step in to take over." Robin said.

Keesha laid her hand on Lucky's shoulder and she feel him relax under her touch. She didn't noticed the smile across Robin's face when she noticed the gentle interaction between them. Robin knew she and Keesha were most definitely catching up now. She thought this might call for a trip to Jake's with the girls.

"That sounds like a good idea to me." Lucky said turning to Keesha and smiling.

Robin looked at Patrick and he melted when his wife looked at him with pleading eyes. She always knew how to tug at his heartstrings like no other women could.

"Alright but at the first sign of anything. The interview is over. Are we clear?" Patrick asked.

"Crystal." Keesha said.

"Lead the way Doc." Lucky said as they all followed Patrick towards Ric's room.

Elizabeth was getting some items from one of the supply closet to stock up one of her patients rooms. Once she got what she needed she headed out of the room and started walking towards the patients room. She stopped when she thought she heard a familiar voices in the hallway. She turned around to see that it was Robin ,Patrick, and then Lucky. Elizabeth was going to call out to them when something stopped her. It was the person who was walking next to Lucky. The women next to him looked awfully familiar but Elizabeth couldn't place her. What she could place is the happy expression on Lucky's face while talking to her. It had been a very long time since she seen that look on his face. That look brought a smile to her face and something else she didn't expect to feel. It was a sense of relief. Relief that Lucky was finally starting to let go of the past. Finally starting to move on from their now dead relationship. Now there would be no more feelings of guilt on her part for being so happy with Jason. She would have to tell Jason about the mystery women that Lucky was with during lunch at Kelly's during her break. She looked at her watch and saw that she had ten minutes until her break so she quickly walked off towards her patients room to drop off the supplies and then it was off to see Jason.

There was a knock at the door that Alexis was thankful for because it brought her out of another one of her nightmares about Ric. She looked over to Ric and was glad to see that her nightmares were not true and that he was still alive and still holding on to her hand while he slept.

There was another soft knock at the door and Alexis told whoever it was to come in.

Alexis turned around to be greeted once again by Patrick and Robin and behind them walked in Lucky with another face she hadn't seen before.

"Back so soon? And who did you bring along for the ride?" Alexis asked.

"Alexis, this is Agent Keesha Ward. She is with the WSB and my partner on this case." Lucky said.

"Your partner? What happened to Rodriguez?" Alexis asked.

"He's still my partner. This is only temporary while we work on Ric's case." Lucky said.

Keesha stepped forward and offered her hand to Alexis.

"Miss Davis I'm so very glad to meet you finally. I read the brief you wrote about the Ericson case last year. It was brilliant." Keesha said.

Alexis took Keesha's hand and smiled. "You read it huh? Thought it was was brilliant? I like you already. She's a keeper Lucky."

Just behind Keesha was Lucky making a kissing noise like she was sucking up. For that he received a quick elbow to the stomach. Keesha leaned over to Lucky and whispered to him.

"Watch it Spencer. I know where you live."

Lucky smiled and rubbed his stomach where Keesha hit him.

Robin looked over to Lucky and saw him rubbing his stomach.

"Lucky are you ok?" Robin asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Pulled a muscle in the shower this morning. Nothing to worry about." Lucky said.

Robin nodded then turned her attention back to what was going on.

Alexis looked at Lucky and Agent Ward and her legal mind started putting some pieces of the puzzle together.

"If your with the WSB and here with Port Charles PD then this thing must be bigger then you originally thought. Something big is going on and Ric's just the tip of the iceberg. Am I right?" Alexis asked.

Lucky was surprised that Alexis put things together so fast. But he should have known, she was DA of Port Charles at one time, so cases like this were really nothing new to her. Now he just needed to figure out how much to tell her without giving his whole case away.

"You're right Alexis. Ric is just the tip of the iceberg. There is more going on here and we are just starting to put things together. That's why we need to speak to Ric now. He's the only one who can give us the clues we need to finding out who did this to him." Lucky said.

Alexis knew better than anyone how important it was to get the victim's statement as soon as possible. Any little clue they could give could possible help solve the case. There were many times just like this one where the victim was injured and needed to be awakened before they were truly ready to be. Most of those times there were angry family members arguing for their loved one not to be badgered with the constant questions the officer or detectives would have. Alexis never understood why people would want to stand in the way of an investigation that could possible solve a crime and help find out who put the one they care for in the hospital in the first place. She would go back forth, sometimes pleading, sometimes yelling, for their cooperation. More often than not she would get people to cooperate and then win the case making all the discomfort everyone involved suffered well worth the headache. Now at this very moment with Ric she understood why the families fought so hard for for their loved ones not to be disturbed. There was a serious struggle going on inside her between the wife and the lawyer. The wife inside of her screamed for them all to go away and leave him alone while the lawyer in her knew that she had a duty to make sure that the bastard that did this to him was caught. The battle didn't last long because as always the lawyer in her won out. That side of her knew, that if Ric was to be safe then he needed to help and tell all that he knew.

"Do what you need to do Lucky." Alexis said.

"Thank you Alexis. Can you wake him?" Lucky said.

Alexis nodded then proceeded to call Ric's name. At first he didn't respond when she called him and that made Alexis worried. She called his name again and gently touched her finger to his face. His eyes opened this time for her and she smiled down at him.

"Hey sleepy head. You have visitors. You up to seeing them?" Alexis asked.

Alexis watched as Ric slowly shook his head.

"Listen, I'm going to examine him first and ask him some questions just to gage his responses. Just basic things like his name, if he recognizes people in the room, knows where he's at, stuff like that. If he answers those questions ok he's all yours." Patrick said.

"That's fine. We're ready when you are." Lucky said.

Patrick walked over and started to examine Ric. Once he saw that Ric's pupils were equal and reacting to the light he started taking his vitals. Satisfied with the results Patrick moved on.

"Hey Ric, I know it's kinda hard to talk with the tube down your throat and I'm sorry about that. If you continuing to improve the way you are the tube will be out tomorrow. Now, I'm going to ask some questions just to gage how you're doing. Just some basic stuff ok? If you understand me just nod." Patrick said

Patrick watched as Ric nodded. "Good, now I have a pen and a pad for you to write on ok? Lets's see if we can sit you up here." Patrick pushed the buttons on the bed so Ric could sit up a little better to be able to write. Once he saw that Ric was at the right angle he passed the pad and pen to Alexis. She placed the pen in Ric's hand with the pad underneath and listened closely as Patrick started his questions.

"Ok Ric, here's your first question it's an easy one. What's your name?" Patrick asked.

Alexis looked at the pad and watched as Ric wrote something bdown then laughed when he was done.

"What did he write?" Robin asked.

"Bugs Bunny." Alexis said as the room broke out in laughter.

"You must be feeling better because your being a smart ass. Now just tell us your name?" Alexis chuckled.

Ric wrote again and this time he wrote his name.

"Next question. Do you know where you are?" Patrick asked.

"Hospital." Alexis said.

"Good." Patrick smile. "Do you know who that lovely women is standing next to you is?" Patrick asked.

Ric looked over to Alexis and smiled as best as he could then wrote his answer down.

Alexis looked at what he wrote and couldn't help but start to get misty eyed.

"He wrote my wife." Alexis said.

"Good job Ric. Now I have someone else here who needs to talk to you." Patrick said waving Lucky and Keesha over.

"Do you remember who this is Ric?" Patrick asked.

"Lucky Spencer." Alexis said.

Ric looked over to the women standing next to Lucky and wrote down his question.

"New partner?" Alexis said.

Lucky smiled. "No I still have Rodriguez. This is Agent Keesha Ward with the WSB. She will be partnered with me during my investigation." Lucky said.

"It's good to meet you sir." Keesha said.

Alexis looked back at the pad as Ric wrote down something else. She looked at what he wrote and tried to stifle a laugh at what he wrote.

"What?" Lucky asked.

"He wrote he likes her better. Keep her." Alexis chuckled.

Despite himself Lucky smiled. It was no secret that Rodriguez and Ric never got along. The arguments they would have over cases where legendary, so he could see why that after only meeting Keesha for thirty seconds she would be an improvement over what he normally had to deal with.

"I'll let him know you said that." Lucky said then stepped closer to Ric.

"Ric, I'm sorry to be asking these questions while you are recovering and I'll try to make it quick so you can rest. Can you tell me what you remember about what happened to you?" Lucky asked.

Alexis watched as Ric wrote something down on the pad. It took her a second to try and understand what he wrote but once it was done she had to try and hide her reaction from Ric.

Lucky looked over at Alexis and caught her reaction to what what Ric wrote. Whatever it was upset her and she was trying to hide it.

"Ric honey, I need to talk to Lucky and Patrick for a second." Alexis said.

Alexis watched Ric right something down and smiled.

"No, everything is fine. I'm just concerned about the stress this is having on you. Gimme a minute ok." Alexis said.

Alexis walked out the room with Lucky and Patrick right behind her. They followed her a few feet away from the room and they both watched as she paced back and forth in the hallway like a caged animal.

Lucky touched Alexis' arm to get her to stop and turned her towards him.

"Somethings wrong?" Alexis said.

"What do you mean somethings wrong?" Patrick asked.

"Alexis what did he write down?" Lucky asked.

"The train wreck. He wanted to know if we caught Manny and if the baby was ok?" Alexis said.

"The train wreck?" Patrick asked.

It took Lucky a second but then he remembered.

"The one that Manny caused almost killing everyone we know and causing Alexis to go into early labor. That was... " Lucky was interrupted by Alexis.

"A year and half ago. There is something wrong with his memory."Alexis said getting agitated.

"Yeah but he remembered that Rodriguez was my partner. At the time of the train wreck Jessie was my partner not Cruz. So maybe it's not all bad." Lucky said

"Patrick, what does all this mean?" Alexis asked.

"It could mean a lot of things but I won't know until I get Ric in for tests. I also want Lainey to talk to Ric. Maybe there is something psychological going on here." Patrick said.

"So what do we do in the meantime? Ric isn't stupid. He'll know something is wrong. What do we tell him?" Alexis said.

"Until I know what's going on with him I'm not sure how this he is going to react knowing what happened to him." Patrick said.

"So what? We lie to him then?" Lucky asked.

"It's not really lying to him. Everything you are telling him already happened so it's not a lie. Look, all I'm saying is that we don't know what caused Ric's amnesia so I don't wanna take the chance of the truth causing anymore damage. So for right now I say stick to the train story until the test are done. What do you think Alexis?" Patrick asked.

Alexis listened to both Lucky and Patrick and knew they were both right but she could only make one decision so she went with the one that was best for Ric.

"We lie. When are you going to do those test?" Alexis asked hoping she was doing the right thing.

"Tomorrow morning after we remove the tube from his throat." Patrick said.

"Good. Now when we got back in there let me do the talking. Ric will see right through the both of you. You both just follow my lead." Alexis said.

Alexis walked in with Patrick and Lucky right behind her. She walked over to Ric who immediately started writing on his pad. Alexis looked down at the pad and smiled.

"Yes nosey, everything is ok. I just had to talk to Patrick and Lucky because I don't want them tiring you out with questions. Patrick reassured me that Lucky asking you questions shouldn't be too much for you. Now the answer to your question is yes. Manny was caught and our little girl is just fine." Alexis said.

Ric wrote on the pad again to Alexis.

"Her name is Molly. I can't bring her here yet for you to see her but I did take pictures of her so I'll bring those for you to see. Now, Lucky needs to talk to you about what you can remember. You and I can talk later about Molly." Alexis said.

Lucky played along and spoke to Ric for about twenty minutes about the train wreck. It had been awhile since the incident and Lucky surprised himself at how much he remembered about it. What surprised him even more was Ric was going right along with it. Every question he asked Lucky or Alexis had an answer that seemed to satisfy Ric.

Keesha in the mean time stayed quiet during the whole thing and just let Lucky talk. She didn't understand what was going on but figured that Lucky would explain later why he wasn't talking about the shooting.

Patrick looked over at Ric and could see that he was getting a little tired and that this charade they were playing was starting to wear on everyone that knew what was going on.

"I think that's all for today. I don't want Ric getting too worn out." Patrick said.

Ric wrote on his pad and Alexis looked down at then shook her head no.

"I know you can go on but I think Patrick is right. You shouldn't push yourself too hard. If Lucky needs you he knows where to find you." Alexis said.

"Yeah. Besides we have other people we need to interview. You just take care of yourself and if I need anything else I can get with you or Alexis. Take care Ric. Robin, Patrick, Alexis, I'll see you guys later." Lucky said.

"Miss Davis, DA Lansing, it was good to meet you both. Take care." Keesha said.

As Keesha and Lucky walked towards the door Robin excused herself and followed them out the door. Once all three of them were a few feet away from the room Lucky informed Keesha and Robin about Ric and the problems with his memory and why the three of them did what they did.

"I was wondering why you were talking about that and not the shooting. How long ago was this train wreck?" Keesha asked.

"A year and a half ago but like I told Patrick, Ric mentioned Rodriguez and he wasn't my partner then so maybe somewhere in Ric's brain lies the clues we are looking for." Lucky said.

"Well between Patrick and Lainey I'm sure they will be able to help Ric and his memory. Look I gotta go but it was really good seeing you Keesha. We have to get together. Wait I know, the girls usually get together and go to a bar named Jake's on Friday nights. You have to come." Robin said.

"Well, let me see what my schedule is on Friday. Depending on how things go with this case I may not have anytime. So no promises but I will try. Now come here and give me another hug." Keesha said.

Robin walked over to her friend and gave her a big hug. She really hadn't realized how much she missed her High School friend.

"I'm so glad you're back. It's really good to see you again Keesha. It feels like old times." Robin said.

Keesha pulled out of the hug and looked at her friend. She couldn't get over how Robin looked pretty much the same as she did in High School and that she still had the same sparkle in her eye that always made Keesha smile. Lucky was right. There are still people in this town that care about her and Robin was one of them.

"It's good to see you too Robin. You take care and I will call you about Jake's" Keesha said.

"See ya Robin." Lucky said.

Lucky and Keesha started walking towards the elevators discussing the case after Robin said her good byes to them.

"So, now that our lead witness has no memory of what happened what should be our next move Agent Ward?" Lucky asked while pushing the down button.

Keesha smirked as Lucky used her tittle.

"Well Detective Spencer, I think we should return to the scene of the crime and then look at Ric's computer files at the station and see what we can find." Keesha said.

"ET's went through that area with a fine tooth comb. I don't think we'll find anything at the crime scene." Lucky said.

"Humor me Lucky. I just keep thinking there is something there that we may have missed. I'm going to call the station and have Cates send the evidence list to my Blackberry. I wanna go over it again when we get there as well as everything else. We need to get in this guys head and retrace his steps before this case gets any colder." Keesha said.

As the elevator doors opened and they stepped in Lucky had an idea as the doors closed.

"Are you going to press the Lobby button or we gonna stay in the elevator all day?" Keesha asked.

"Sorry. I just had an idea and I got distracted." Lucky said pressing the lobby button.

"What's up?" Keesha asked.

"Well it was when you said get in the guys head. I was wondering if the 911 call picked up anything? A voice or the conversation between Ric and the suspect. Maybe that might help us get into this guys head."Lucky said.

Keesha watched as Lucky called on his cell phone to the dispatch supervisor and asked for a copy of the 911 call Ric made.

"Yeah, I need it asap. You're the best. I will deliver the usual fee when I pick up the tape. Thanks bye." Lucky said.

"You're usual fee?" Keesha asked as they walked out of the elevator towards the exit.

Lucky looked at Keehsa and smirked as they made their way to the car.

"Uh-huh. My dispatchers are the best at what they do and even better when you treat them right. All they ask for is a fee for the service they provide." Lucky said.

"And what fee would that be?" Keesha asked as they reached the car.

"What every women wants." Lucky smiled.

"Sex?"Keesha asked.

"No! Chocolate. My dispatchers love chocolate. Get your mind out of the gutter Agent Ward." Lucky laughed.

"Sorry but if I were that dispatch supervisor and I saw you walking into my office I don't think chocolate would be enough for me." Keesha said.

"I know that was supposed to be sexy but I can't help but get creeped out because the supervisor is a sixty-six year old grandmother of two with a voice like Roz from Monsters Inc." Lucky said.

Keesha completely lost it and started laughing so hard she was crying.

"This is not funny. You have no idea the images that are running through my head now thanks to you." Lucky said.

Keesha wiped the tears from her eyes and looked at Lucky who truly looked disturbed by the pictures his mind was creating.

"Oh Lucky honey, I'm so sorry." Keesha managed to get out through her snickering.

Lucky was about to start the car when he noticed what Keesha said to him.

"Did you just call me honey? So we have graduated to pet names?" Lucky smiled.

"I guess we have." Keesha said.

"That means I have to find a name for you. What do you think of sweetie, sugar, darlin', baby girl, brown sugar, or Rodriguez's favorite sweet thang?" Lucky chuckled.

"I think you should start the car Detective. You have a tape to collect." Keesha said.

Lucky started the car and headed out of the parking lot of the hospital teasing Keesha along the way with more horrible pet names for her.

Meanwhile back up in Ric's room Alexis was still answering some of the questions Ric had. She knew he knew something was wrong by the questions he continuing to ask her but she careful not to say anything that would clue him in on what was really going on.

While Ric wrote down another question she let a yawn escape her lips. Ric scratched out what he was going to write and wrote another question instead. Alexis looked at Ric shook her head yes.

"I'm only a lit bit tired. Nothing to worry about." Alexis said.

She was lying. Alexis was exhausted. Both emotionally and physically. The chemotherapy had drained her body of all it's energy and she was running on empty. The only thing keeping her awake was the adrenaline from Ric being awake. As soon as that was gone she knew she would crash. She just hoped that it wasn't in front of Ric.

Ric looked at Alexis and could see she was tired and that she looked like hell. He felt bad asking her so many questions but she was his only resource of information. Ric knew Alexis was not telling him the whole truth about what happened to him and that maybe right now would not be the best time to press the subject. Which was fine because right now he was just glad that he was alive and with the women he loved. He decided to ask one last question before letting Alexis rest.

Alexis saw Ric's hand moving and knew he was writing yet another question. She really wasn't in the mood to keep lying to him but once she read the question she rationalized that she wouldn't be lying to Ric when it came to the answer. She would just be telling him something that he technically already knew. She looked at Ric and smiled. She took the pad out of his hand and sat down in the spot where the pad was and looked at him. Alexis took Ric's hand in hers and looked into those eyes that she thought she might never see open again and started to answer his question.

"You wanted to know about more about Molly? That's one topic I never mind talking about. Let's see where do I start. Well she's a fighter just like her parents. It was a little touch and go for after they got her out of the tunnel but she held on. That kid is going to be tough as nails when she gets older and she...Ric...she's beautiful." Alexis sobbed out.

Alexis didn't mean to start crying but the memory of having Molly in the tunnel and almost dying while giving birth to her was still something she didn't like to think about. They all came pretty damn close to losing their lives thanks to that maniac Manny and Molly could have been one of his causalities. The decision to represent him haunts her everytime she holds Molly in her arms.

Alexis took a moment and wiped her eyes then quickly composed herself. She felt Ric tighten his grip on her hand just like he did when she was giving birth to Molly. He was so supportive that day and even though she wouldn't have admitted it to him then, she was grateful for his presence and the love he showed her during that time.

"I'm sorry. It's just hard thinking about that day and what we almost lost. Um..where was I..oh yes...beautiful. She is so beautiful and she looks like you more than me. As a matter fact both girls look more like their fathers. Not that it's bad thing but I think after nine months of carrying them I should have gotten a little more than she has my nose." Alexis said.

Ric tried to chuckle but the damn tube made it hard for him to laugh. He loved to hear Alexis go off on tangents like this. It was so her. As he listened to her talk more about Molly he couldn't shake the feeling like he hadn't heard Alexis' voice in a long time. Her voice was a comfort that he latched on to and never wanted to let go of.

"What else...ah her eyes. She has the bluest eyes I have ever seen. They are blue like the ocean. When you look into them you feel like you could get lost in the depths of them. The doctors say she will loose the color and that they will turn brown but I think they are wrong. And she is stubborn. Boy is she stubborn. Wonder where she got that trait from? I know. I know. You don't have to tell me. She got it from you." Alexis said.

Ric was able to raise an eyebrow at Alexis and she laughed at the look he was giving her.

"Ok, maybe be she got some of that from me as well. The nurses learned quickly how stubborn she could be when they tried to feed her. She didn't want any of them to feed her only..y..she only wanted family. I couldn't feed her because I was being treated myself so Nikolas had to do it. As soon as she was in his arms she looked up at him then quieted down and took her bottle." Alexis realized she almost messed up by saying you. She knew she couldn't afford to make that mistake again. So she decided that this conversation needed to end.

"Anyway, she's perfect Ric. When you see her you will fall head over heals in love with her. Look, it's been a long day and although I would love to tell you more about our daughter I really need to rest and so do you. Do you mind if I get some sleep?" Alexis said.

Ric shook his head no then made a sign with his hand that he wanted to write something down.

Alexis grabbed the pen and the pad and gave it back to Ric as she moved out of the way so he could write. She looked down at what he wrote and felt her eyes start to sting with tears again.

"You don't have to thank me for telling you about our daughter. It was my pleasure." Alexis said.

There was a knock on the door and a nurse poked her head through the door.

"Hello, is it alright if I come take to Mr. Lansing's vitals? I also have a black blanket here courtesy of Mr. Cassadine for you Miss Davis." the nurse said.

"It's fine and thank you. I'm just going to get some sleep while you do that." Alexis said taking the blanket from the nurse.

She got up off of Ric's bed and kissed his head then moved out of the way for the nurse. Alexis slowly made her way over to her bed and crawled under the blankets. They were so warm and inviting and she was glad to be underneath them. The last thing she saw before her eyes closed was the nurse taking Ric's vitals. She fell asleep soundly knowing that Ric was alive and with the words that he had written on the pad were just for her. It was three little words that she had missed so much. I love you.