From: Sonny (6:02 PM)
Got a call - not guilty.
Well done.

Dex breathed a sigh of relief, a smile on his face as he read over the text. He reclined on his gray-white sofa, his legs crossed at the ankles on his wooden coffee table. It had been a few days since the jury went in for deliberations, and while his knowledge of the trial was scarce at best, the amount of times Michael ranted over the phone about the circumstances led him to believe the "nudge" he gave the foreman would've cut the meeting down to a matter of hours.

From: Michael (6:04 PM)
Are you home?

To: Michael (6:05 PM)
Yes.

From: Michael (6:08 PM)
I just parked, be there in a few.

Dex sighed, putting his phone down on the sofa cushion. What took minutes felt like mere seconds as he jumped to his feet, Michael's fist beating against his brown wooden door.

"Dex, it's Michael!" he shouted, "Open up!"

"Sheesh…" Dex muttered, greeting Michael's stern expression, "are you trying to get me kicked out? All that banging's going to earn me another noise complaint."

"We have to talk," Michael brushed by the man, standing between the sofa and coffee table.

Dex closed the door behind him, sighing in annoyance, "About?"

"The trial. I need an update."

"Sonny says there's a verdict."

"And?"

Dex gave his boss a small grin, "Not guilty."

"Thank God," Michael closed his eyes and sighed, clapping his hands together, "Trina gets to go free, and you still have your in with Sonny. Things are looking up."

"Thankfully," Dex sighed, taking a seat on the sofa, "It was pretty close to failing."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I found the juror and spoke with him outside of Kelly's. He was the only person outside so I thought that I could pull it off without interruption."

"Someone interrupted you," Michael put his hands on his hips.

"Josslyn did," Dex sighed, throwing his head back, "She came out and grilled me for talking to the guy."

"She got involved?!" Michael's eyes were sharp.

"No? Maybe? I don't know. She got in my face over it and how Sonny sent me to do it."

"Don't get Josslyn involved in this, Dex. Stay away from her."

"Oh, I plan to," Dex's tone was firm as he got up, "and for the record, I didn't ask for her to get involved. She inserted herself into the situation: might wanna do something about that."

"Regardless, you have a responsibility to keep your work more covert and to not mess with my family."

"I'd be able to do that if I didn't have people butting into what I do whenever they felt like it. Trust me, I'll keep my distance, but it shouldn't just be me."

"...Whatever," Michael shook his head, "What matters is that you pulled off the jury tampering and you're getting closer to my dad as a result. The closer you get, the more you'll see and the more evidence we'll have to put him away."

Dex nodded his head. Michael nodded back in understanding, a silence filling the void between them.

"...Well," Michael cleared his throat, "I've got to get to Charlie's Pub."

"For?"

"Trivia night. It's hospital-themed, so my girlfriend, Willow, wants to try her luck. Plus, I'll get to see my other sister."

"Your other sister?"

"Kristina."

Dex raised his eyebrows, "She's your sister?"

"Well, adopted sister, but my sister nonetheless. We've both been so busy with work and our personal lives, so going and seeing her is great for me."

"That's…" Dex blinked, "That's great."

"It is," Michael nodded, "What's also great is you not being there."

"How so?"

"Kristina is my family too, and between you and me, she's been through enough. The last thing she needs is getting swept up in this mess and getting involved with you."

"We've already met, and I'm not going to-"

"You're not going to bother her," Michael brushed past Dex, "Leave my sisters alone, and leave my family alone. You're in town for one reason and one reason only: to take down my father. Stick to it."

"And who are you to dictate what Kristina can and can't do?" Dex spoke up as Michael opened the door.

"I'm not telling Kristina, I'm telling you. I write your checks, Dex, and if you want to get your payday, then do what I tell you. No exceptions."

Dex flopped onto the couch as Michael slammed the door shut. Her folded his arms, a dejected child sitting in an empty space. His mind jumped to Kristina, to the potentially full bar and the mix of people she'd be serving, and a small part of him begged to defy Michael's orders, scratching at the back of his head. Eventually, he relaxed his posture and turned on the TV, flipping between channels. Time ticked on, and the scratching grew more present.

Stay the course, Heller, Dex thought to himself, settling into his spot, stay the course…


"Well, you're a sight for sore eyes."

Kristina beamed as she stood in the doorway to her mother's office. Alexis smiled back, gently dropping the manila folder onto the desk.

"So are you," Kristina replied, gently closing the door behind her, "You've been so busy here that seeing you is like seeing Bigfoot."

"Are you here to make fun of me or just to see me?" Alexis stood up, dusting her jeans off. She walked towards her daughter and wrapped her in a tight hug, "I'm glad you dropped by."

"Me too," Kristina nodded as she sat down, "It's a nice detour before work."

"Ah, I see," Alexis smirked as she sat in her chair once more, "You need an escape."

"Don't get excited; I love my job. I just know that tonight is going to be packed."

"Why?"

"GH Trivia Night."

"Oh," Alexis pursed her lips, "Well, Godspeed to you."

"Thanks, Mom."

"How have you been?"

"I'm good," Kristina replied, "Like I said, I love my job, and while our family's a bit of a war zone, things with Dad are okay."

"...Not happy with him and Nina?"

"I'd be lying if I said I was. But it's his life, so all I can do is be happy for him. I may not like it, but I'm in no position to judge."

"You are allowed to be unhappy about it, you know."

"That doesn't mean I need to make it public."

"That's fair," Alexis chuckled, "Anything else to report?"

"Well, I got to meet Dad's new hire."

"New hire?"

"Yeah, he hired a guy to work in his coffee business."

"And you think that's what he's actually doing?"

"That's what he says he was doing, but I know he's in Dad's mob business."

"Oh God…" Alexis groaned. Kristina put her hands up in response.

"Mom, you have nothing to worry about," she said, "He and I only talked once or so. He's super busy with Dad. Nothing's going to happen."

"And you're sure about that?"

Kristina paused, biting part of her upper lip. She felt a tugging at her heart when Dex entered her mind, his smile making it skip a beat. She looked down for a brief moment, unsure of what to say. Alexis looked her daughter over before sighing, a hand against her forehead.

"Mom," Kristina spoke up, "it'll be okay. Dex is busy, I'm busy, we met once-"

"He works for your father; you're going to see him more regardless."

"In what way? He'll be working, and so will I!"

"That doesn't stop anything."

"Oh my God," Kristina rolled her eyes, "I'm not into him like that, and even if I was, it's my life and I'm going to live it how I want!"

"Do you really want mob life inserted into yours so intimately?" Alexis sat up straight, "I know that you've had your brushes with it, but take it from me, getting involved with a mob man completely changes everything."

"Well, like you said, I've been in it before. I can handle it."

"Kristina-"

"Look, Mom," Kristina stood up, adjusting the purse hanging off her shoulder, "Dex and I aren't anything. I'm a bartender, he's a mob man. We lead completely different lives, and unless something crazy happens, it'll probably stay that way."

"Keep telling yourself that," Alexis got up and walked around her desk, placing her hands on her daughter's shoulders, "I just want you to be safe and happy, cookie. Dex is an unknown not worth messing with. You deserve a man, or woman, who will treat you right and keep you safe."

"...You know, you're handling this way better than Dad," Kristina giggled.

"Well, credit to your father, he knows more about Dex than both of us combined. It would be prudent for you to heed his words."

"I could do that, or I could just…be the adult I am and live my life. Whatever happens, happens."

"Okay…" Alexis let out a breath, hugging Kristina, "Don't you have somewhere to be?"

"I do," Kristina smirked before pulling away, "Thanks for talking with me, Mom. You can get back to your story now."

"Oh that?" Alexis pointed her thumb at the manila folder, "That's just another hit piece from Smoltz. One day, he'll understand The Invader's new purpose."

"For your sake, one day soon," Kristina smiled before turning and leaving the room. Alexis made her way to her office door, watching the young woman go to the end of the hall and turn the corner before closing the door with a soft click.

Kristina tapped her foot on the elevator floor all the while, waiting to reach the parking garage. Seconds felt like minutes before she arrived, immediately getting into her car and making her way to Charlie's. People spilled out from the entrance as she turned the corner, and her knuckles whitened as she did her best to avoid hitting the people who shot out in front of her. She was grateful no one snuck their way into the employee lot. Getting out of her car, she dusted herself off and touched up her hair, spinning her head a full 360 degrees before walking into the bar from the back door.

"Krissy!" TJ called almost immediately, waving from a table. He and Molly donned big smiles, and she mirrored them as she walked over.

"Hey, guys," she began, "excited for tonight?"

"Absolutely," Molly nodded, "I'm a sucker for trivia and since TJ works at GH, I think our victory is guaranteed."

"We'll see about that. I heard the competition's going to be fierce."

"Says who? Willow?" TJ asked, "If it's a rival she wants, it's a rival she'll get."

"She and Michael are a few tables away if you wanted to talk to them," Molly pointed to a table by the front window, and Kristina smiled sadly at the couple who sat there, giggling and holding hands.

"...Maybe later," she responded, "I have a bar to tend to. Can I get you guys anything to start?"

"Just some water for me: designated driver here."

"I'll do an Old Fashioned," TJ replied as the front door opened. The trio immediately looked up to see who walked in, and Kristina could hear her heartbeat echo in her ears as she noted the patron. Gelled dirty blonde hair, dark green button down under a dark brown leather jacket, navy blue jeans, and brown loafers. She felt a part of her melt when his blue eyes locked with her brown ones. She did everything she could to keep her composure, but his smile made it quite difficult.

She could only think one thing: Crap.