As she walked up Lilac Drive towards Lilac Park Elementary School Dr. Monica Quartermaine held tightly to her three-year-old daughter's hand.
"I like you, Mommy," Katelyn Quartermaine said.
"I love you, Katelyn," Monica replied to her daughter's apparent non sequitar. It was definitely better than the alternative.
"AJ didn't let us walk yesterday," Katelyn announced.
"Right, because you had to go directly to your soccer practice on the fields at Community Commons. Today we're going home. Tomorrow Brenda will probably want to drive because Serena has ballet."
"You're silly, Mommy! Ballet is in the morning; Grandma takes me while Brenda goes to school."
"Your ballet class is on Thursday mornings. Serena is in a class for older kids with your cousin Shannon which meets Thursday afternoons," Monica said as they reached the elementary school and started up the walk to the main entrance.
"Why can't I be in Serena and Shannon's class?" Katelyn asked.
"Because you're three," Monica said as she pulled the door open and then held it allowing Katelyn to step inside.
Katelyn seemed to contemplate her words for a moment as they started down the hallway to the lower elementary wing where Serena's kindergarten class was. Then she looked up at her mother. "I'm not going to always be three! I will be four in March!" she said.
Monica smiled and suppressed a laugh. "That is true," she agreed as they reached Ms. Matthews classroom.
Regina Matthews had been in the Port Charles High class of 1979 along with Monica's brother in law John Quartermaine. Apparently, Regina considered John Quartermaine the one who got away. Although technically, John had only left town five years after he had already married Abigail Donely.
Ms. Matthews' room was semi chaos, with the emphasis on chaos, when Monica stepped inside and scanned the room for her niece. She spotted her near the coat closet where Kiefer Bauer was holding her backpack over his head.
After recognizing that Ms. Matthews wasn't going to intervene, Monica picked Katelyn up to remove her from the fray and walked across the classroom. "Kiefer, give Serena her backpack so we can go," she said.
Kiefer shoved the backpack at Serena. Monica adeptly braced herself against her niece to steady her without toppling over herself with Katelyn. In the afterglow she internally complimented her balance. Perhaps her martial arts were paying off.
"That isn't nice! You are not nice!" Serena said.
"At least my dad isn't in jail!" Kiefer fired back.
Monica just wrapped an arm around her niece and led her from the classroom. She attempted to make eye contact with Ms. Matthews to let her know they were leaving but the woman seemed to refuse to meet her eyes.
"Kiefer is lying right?" Serena asked once they were in the hallway.
Monica led her niece away from the swarm of exiting students and parents and crouched down so she was at eye level. "Your father is not in jail Serena, he hasn't been convicted of anything, and he won't be if your grandfather has anything to say about it. However, your father is facing charges and that is why you are staying with us for a while. Kiefer was very unkind to take your backpack and shove you but I think while unkind and tactless I think Kiefer believed what he told you to be true," she said.
"Daddy always says that Kiefer is an example that the apple doesn't fall far from the tree," Serena said.
Monica swallowed hard. Her brother felt that fellow attorney Warren Bauer was a rather unintelligent bully. Their professional worlds had intersected in early 1996 when Scott had prosecuted Cameron Faulkner Jr. for the rape of his secretary in 1995. Graff, Fowler, & Bauer had Warren been overseeing the Faulkner Family Trust at the time so Warrren Bauer had defended his client by trying his victim. Ultimately the jury had convicted but Lexi Starnes had attempted suicide days after the trial and Warren Bauer had appeared on several talk shows insisting that her suicide attempt was proof that she had really made the whole thing up. Monica didn't want to explain any of that to Serena but she was struck by the similarities between that case and the accusations against her brother. The difference was that Scott really was innocent.
"I don't think your father thinks that Kiefer's father is a particularly kind or compassionate individual. Children learn a lot about how to treat others by watching how their parents treat others. Your father takes that responsibility seriously, sadly, some parents don't."
"Is that why daddy is working so hard to get all of this straightened out?" Serena asked.
"Yes, exactly! Come on, let's go find your cousin Kirk on the playground so we can go home," Monica said as she stood up, and led her daughter and niece out of the building.
XXXXXXXX
Lucy Coe relaxed as Rex's jaguar sped along route 60 into Port Charles. Thirty minutes earlier Rex had surprised her at Temptations! and announced that he had completed such a productive, and lucrative, morning trading session that he needed to take the afternoon off and spend it with the woman he was doing it all for. So now they were on their way back into Port Charles and Rex had promised a surprise. Lucy could hardly wait!
"So, I know that you have been missing Serena," Rex said.
"I have, I hate that Scott is keeping us apart like this," Lucy said. She knew that her words employed a bit of creative license. Scott had never truly forbidden her from seeing Serena.
September 9, 1997
Lucy Coe was fuming as she pounded on Scott Baldwin's door. How dare he try to take Serena away? Didn't he realize that Serena wouldn't even exist if it hadn't been for her?
Scott Baldwin pulled the front door open and Lucy nearly toppled inside.
"I have a bone to pick with you, Pal!" Lucy screamed.
"Please keep your voice down. Serena is asleep upstairs," Scott said.
Lucy hated that he could be so calm. "I can't believe that you are trying to keep Serena away from her family!"
"I can't believe that you blatantly lied to me where Serena was concerned. You know I don't want her around Rex Stanton."
"But that is ridiculous. Rex is her Uncle. Dominique would want them to have a relationship."
"I doubt that. From the few things Dominique shared about her uncle I am quite certain she would not want me to let Serena go anywhere alone with him. Regardless, Serena doesn't feel comfortable around him and I'm not going to push the issue."
"You wouldn't even have Serena if it wasn't for me!"
Scott's face paled. He didn't say anything for a moment. "Dominique and I were both grateful that you carried Serena for nine months when she couldn't. In some ways I will always owe you a debt that I can never repay but I can't take any chances with Serena's safety. I think it would be best if you spent time with Serena only at the house for a while," he said.
"You're making a mistake!" Lucy fumed. She opened the front door and stormed out.
She hadn't returned to the Baldwin house after that night. She had been mad and then she had gotten busy. Rex had quite literally swept her off her feet, and into his bed.
"I hate to see you so distraught and I know this isn't what my niece would want so I decided that it was time I did something. I met with an attorney yesterday about our legal options."
"Our legal options?" Lucy asked.
"Originally I wanted to discuss with Mr. Bauer if we could petition for court ordered visitation under the grandparent's rights statute since Dominique and my brother are both dead someone needs to maintain Serena's connection to the Stanton side of the family."
"That is what I have been trying to convince Scott for the past three months!"
"So, Mr. Bauer mentioned that there was a significant chance that a judge would agree with our position but he also pointed out that since Scott doesn't have physical custody of his daughter currently that we might actually be more successful petitioning for custody."
"Scott doesn't have custody? What?!"
"Apparently Scott got arrested on Saturday and CPS filed a CHINS petition. Somehow the court placed Serena with the Quartermaines."
"Dr. Monica Quartermaine is Scott's sister," Lucy said. Why was it that Monica always got everything? Alan, a seat on the hospital board, Serena, the list was endless.
"That I didn't realize. Mr. Bauer suggested that we should approach the Quartermaines and ask them to support us assuming custody."
"Do you really think that they would do that?" Lucy asked.
Rex smiled. "I can be very persuasive," he said.
Lucy contemplated that. He could be very persuasive. Could it really mean that Serena could be hers? "Would you actually do that for me?" she asked.
"I would do that for you, or maybe rather for us. I was hoping we could raise Serena together. I think that is what Dominique would have wanted," Rex said.
"I agree. Let's do this for Dominque!" Lucy said.
XXXXXXXX
Dr. Monica Quartermaine sat on the back patio flipping through a cardiology journal while watching her children play with their cousins. Dylan had come home after school with Kirk and they were messing around with a soccer ball in the back yard while Serena and Katelyn were swinging on the playset.
Monica was most of the way through the results of the trial of a new glycoprotein 2b3a inhibitor when she realized that Reginald had appeared by her shoulder. "Dr. Quartermaine, Ms. Coe is here to see you. She brought a friend."
"Reginald, I know that Edward still hasn't quite accepted life without servants and loves to treat you as his personal butler but I've told you, you don't need to answer the door."
"I didn't exactly answer the door. Mrs. Quartermaine and I were just returning from the Barringtons when they arrived. Mrs. Barrington had several of the ladies from the hospital auxiliary over for tea."
"I see. Ok, now this will make my earlier statement sound incredibly hypocritical, but would you mind showing Lucy and her friend into Alan and my study and then would you mind letting Brenda know I will need her to watch the kids outside for a few minutes while I speak with them."
"I wouldn't mind at all, Dr. Quartermaine."
"Thank you, Reginald," Monica said. As Reginald went back inside, she remembered the last time Lucy Coe had shown up at their house to speak with her. That had been unpleasant to say the least.
May 19, 1989
Dr. Monica Quartermaine gently pulled the hall door to nursery closed after getting her twenty-two-month-old son down for the night. Alan was apparently still scrubbed in some trauma case so she supposed that he was going to miss out on family game night. She also remembered that it was Allison's turn to pick so they were likely playing twister. It was a good thing she was flexible.
Just as she was about to start down the west staircase, she saw her eldesr son AJ coming up the stairs. "Oh, is Robin's mom here to collect her?" she asked.
"I think Robin was planning to spend the night, didn't you notice she came with three bags? Umm anyway, Lucy Coe is here. She says she needs to speak to you."
Monica hadn't realized that Anna expected that her last minute babysitting request disguised as a playdate would extend overnight. Perhaps she should have. "Playdates" had certainly extended overnight in the past but Robin hadn't been thirteen then. She also doubted whatever Lucy had to say would be pleasant. Beyond that, she suspected that she was truly looking for Alan. She took a deep cleansing breath and exhaled slowly. "Thank you. Why don't you take your sister into the game room with Robin and Rosa and maybe you can get the Twister game set up. I will be in once I've spoken to Miss Coe."
XXXXXXXX
Monica closed the French doors which could close the living room off from the rest of the main level of the east wing of their home. Lucy seemed to thrive on drama so she definitely didn't need an audience to perform for. She took another deep breath and then sat down in the wing chair by the fireplace. "So, how can I help you?" she asked.
Lucy dabbed at her dry eyes with a handkerchief. "I'm not sure what Alan has told you but I hope you understand that this is not easy for me."
Monica knew if she had thrown herself at someone else's husband the way Lucy had pursued her husband she would be mortified. Almost exactly two months earlier, Lucy had left Alan a seductive note and key card for a suite at the Port Charles Hotel. Alan had thought the message was from her so he checked to make sure Rosa was available to watch the children and then made his way to the hotel. When he had opened the door, he had followed the trail of rose petals into the bathroom but been aghast when he saw Lucy Coe not his wife in the tub full of bubbles. Traumatized he had turned and run from the suite, come home, and told her the whole story after they put the children to bed.
"If you saw Alan as a physician for some matter, he would never discuss that with me. We both understand and respect the importance of patient confidentiality. Of course, if you're referring to your little stunt at the Port Charles Hotel back in March, yes, Alan told me everything. We don't keep secrets in our marriage so he really didn't have a choice.""
Lucy seemed a bit shocked by Monica's words. For a few moments she was silent. "Ok, well then maybe this won't be as much of a shock for you as Alan was afraid it would be. I'm pregnant!"
Monica supposed that explained Lucy's syncopal episode when she had crashed the Quartermaine Garden Party a week earlier. "Well, congratulations, I'm sure it is a little scary to be pregnant again after the miscarriage. Allison was that baby for us, but it all worked out and I truly hope this pregnancy will go smoothly for you."
"I don't think you're understanding, Monica, I'm telling you I'm pregnant because Alan is the baby's father," Lucy said.
Monica laughed. "Lucy, in order for Alan to be the baby's father he would need to have had sexual relations with you at least once and I know for a fact that never happened. I'm not sure what scam you're running but it won't work. Now, I think it is past time that you departed," she said.
Lucy seemed shaken by the words, or the logic, or maybe both. "But…" she began.
"Lucy, if you're pregnant and unsure who the father is, I can see how that could be disconcerting and scary. I'll admit I can't empathize with that; I've only done things which could produce a child with my husband but I understand, and respect, your right to make other choices. In spite of the sympathy I might find in my heart for you, I think you have already tormented my husband enough so I would ask that you just skip over him and perhaps move onto some man who you did have sex with."
"If you must know, I already told Alan he was the father," Lucy said.
"Oh, and how did he take that?"
"He said it was impossible."
"Hmm, I guess great minds do think alike. So, since we're in agreement on that, I really do wish you the best with the pregnancy, with tracking down your baby's father, but you really do need to leave now because I'm missing family game night," Monica said. She stood up and started walking towards the door.
When Monica opened the door, she saw their nanny Rosa coming across the foyer with cordless phone. "Dr. Monica, your brother is on the phone," she said.
"Thank you, Rosa, would you mind showing Miss Coe to the door?" Monica asked as she reached for the phone.
At the time, when Lucy had left their home without further protest Monica had just presumed that Lucy had tired of her dramatics or accepted the futility of her scam. She hadn't imagined that Lucy had been hoping if she had left quietly that Monica might not mention her visit. Truly Monica hadn't imagined it was possible that her brother could be the father of Lucy's baby when she mentioned it. She had merely been providing an example of the insanity of life in Port Charles. The example had been fortuitous though because she was pretty sure that Lucy would have never admitted the truth to Scott if he hadn't realized that the timing fit and demanded a paternity test. Unfortunately, just when Scott had adjusted his mind to the idea of being a father, Lucy had a second late second trimester pregnancy loss.
That had been a dark time for her brother. He had relocated his law practice to Nevada for reasons Monica still didn't understand. A year later he had returned home to Port Charles with a wife, Dominique Stanton-Baldwin. A wife he had basically forgotten to mention. Their parents had been taken aback and honestly a bit hurt. In contrast, Monica had seen her brother truly happy for the first time in years so forgiving the missed wedding invitation seemed like quite a small thing.
As happy as Scott and Dominique were, Dominique succumbed to a brain tumor before they had a chance to celebrate their second wedding anniversary. Their biological daughter Serena was carried by gestational surrogate Lucy Coe and was born a few weeks after Dominque's death. Scott had been a devoted dad from the beginning which was another reason that the events of the last week had been so unsettling.
XXXXXXXX
While he waited in the study of the Doctors Quartermaine with Lucy, Rexford Stanton considered what he had seen so far of the Quartermaine Estate. It was impressive, and he said with the frame of reference of growing up a Stanton. He felt remiss that he had not uncovered the connection between the Quartermaine and Baldwin families. That was sloppy on his part and could have downstream implications. He was furious that Warren had not pointed out the relationship and the potential pitfalls it might invoke. After all, Warren was the one who had come up with the plan. Of course, Warren's last plan had basically ended up with taking the fall for his older brother serving two years in a low security federal prison.
"I don't think you know how much I appreciate this, Rex," Lucy crooned as she wrapped her arms around him.
"I think I'm starting to. Do not mistake me, Lucy, my love, there is not much I wouldn't do for you. But, more importantly, after Dominique, I consider you Serena's mother. So, I am doing this for you but I am also doing this for my niece," Rex said.
Rex was a bit surprised at how readily the lies came off his tongue. Truthfully, he had considered Dominique a spoiled brat as a child. Years later when he had appealed to her for money, she had turned him down stating that she couldn't support his illegal schemes. Her self-righteousness had been infuriating. She only had that money because he had taken the fall for her father on the insider trading charges. Turnabout was fair play though. So, he would take custody of Dominique's daughter if that gave him access to her trust fund. It was just his way to get back what should have been rightfully his in the first place.
XXXXXXXX
Dr. Monica Quartermaine steeled herself before she pulled the door open to the study she and Alan shared. "Hello, again, Lucy, what might I be able to help you with today?" she asked.
"You can start by giving me Serena and then…."
Monica shook her head as Lucy launched into her rant. Why did these things always happen when she was post call?
A rugged man with sandy brown hair turned around from where he had been gazing out the window and stepped forward to wrap his arm around Lucy. "Honey, I appreciate how devoted you are to Serena but sometimes that emotion and passion is at cross purposes to expressing that clearly. Perhaps allow me.," he said.
Somewhat surprisingly Lucy quieted and watched him with rapt attention. If Monica hadn't known who he was she might have been impressed. But she knew he was Rexford Stanton and Scott had made it very clear that he was to come nowhere near Serena. She could respect that.
Rex stepped forward and extended his hand. "I'm Rexford Stanton. Dominique was my beloved niece. I know she would want Serena with family."
Monica accepted his hand but not his explanation. "Serena is with family, our family, and she will remain here until Scott clears his name, which he will."
"I understand about family loyalty, Dr. Quartermaine. I know you want to believe the best about your brother, but the charges against him are concerning and I feel that Serena needs stability. I assure you this arrangement is not what Dominique would want," Rex said.
Lucy Coe continued to gaze at Rex and nodded emphatically.
"I was fortunate to get to know Dominique quite well while she battled her cancer. When she and Scott initially pursued IVF before she started treatment, they were optimistic that she would respond have the chance to raise her own children. By the time it was unfortunately clear that she might not even meet Serena she made it very clear that she had found her peace in Serena being raised by Scott with the support of our family. Scott fought that for a bit in his grief but we've worked through that. I assure you that if Dominique is looking down on all of this, she is encouraging Scott to fight, clear his name, and find his way back to raising his daughter. If you knew Dominique at all you would know this," Monica said.
"I have spoken to Warren Bauer about petitioning for custody," Rex said.
Rex's choice of attorney was not lost on Monica. Apparently, he had done his homework on that issue. "I assure you that is not what Dominique would have wanted. But if you feel that it is what you must do then I guess it is what you must do. We will do what we must do to protect Serena's life and Dominique's wishes. Now that we both understand each other's positions I think it is time that you left."
"You can't keep us from Serena!" Lucy fumed.
"Actually, I can. In fact, according to the terms of the current CHINS agreement I must. All of Serena's visitations need to be cleared through CPS. You can contact Sarah O'Connor at Children's Services to set something up. Now you may leave our home or I will need to call the police," Monica said as she pointed to the open study door and then escorted Lucy and Rex to the front door.
After she had closed the door behind Lucy and Rex, Monica collapsed back against it for a moment and collected her thoughts. Then she picked up the phone and called her father.