| �Oh, just great. They pick the one island in all of Greece that happens to be spooky looking.� Brenda dropped the binoculars and sighed. Sonny grabbed them to see for himself. �It�s not����spooky.� It was impressive actually. Easily ten times the size of his island. It looked more like a small country. �Look at those cliffs. I don�t like cliffs.� �We�ll be sure not to let you drive.� Jason grumbled. �So what�s the plan?� Brenda ignored him. �We�ll find a place to dock the boat and speak��..� Sonny stopped mid-sentence. There was a boat approaching. �Jason.� Jason lowered his own binoculars. �I see them.� �See who? Let me see?� Brenda grabbed the binoculars from Sonny before he could respond. �Uh-oh. I don�t think that�s the welcome wagon.� �We don�t know.� �They have guns.� Brenda added. Sonny snatched the binoculars back. The boat was moving fast, straight towards them. �Get below deck.� Brenda nodded. She made a hasty retreat to the cabin. Jason frowned. �How�d you get her to do that? She never does anything I tell her.� �She doesn�t trust you, yet.� �Well she needs to get with the program. If this gets messy, she needs to do what I tell her.� �You need to pick your battles with Brenda. You keep yelling at her about luggage and stuff, she�s not going to know when you are serious.� �I was serious about the luggage. Her traveling habits are out of control.� �She was a model.� �Well she isn�t one now. She packed a humidifier.� �Later, we�ve got bigger problems right now.� Sonny sighed. Jason ran his hand over the gun tucked into the waste band of his jeans. �I�m on it. How many do you see?� Sonny looked again. �Half a dozen. It looks like they�re all armed.� �So we�re out numbered. Think you can reason with them?� �Let�s hope so.� ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ �Grandfather, I can�t take that chance!� Ned slammed his fist down on the table. �It was all a trick? You�re backing down over some phone calls?� Edward threw his arms up. �It was a warning.� �I�m not letting those���..people STEAL my granddaughter!� �Grandfather, we don�t have a choice.� �The hell we don�t! I have connections��.� �Can your connections protect everyone in this family?� �We�ll hire guards.� �I don�t want Brooke Lynn to have guards. Is that what you want for Emily? It�s not enough that we have to keep her on the other side of the country, now we have to have guards on her all the time? And how will Dylan feel about that? I assume you want to protect him too?� �Of course, but his mother is on her own.� �Dylan is a teenage boy. You think he wants guards following him around everywhere?� �I want my granddaughter back!� Ned closed his eyes and took a deep breath. What the hell had he gotten himself into? Edward would never give up now. �Grandfather, why don�t we give Alexis a little time to calm down���.� Ned�s cell phone rang and he hastily pulled it from his pocket. �Hello?� �Mr. Ashton. I see you made it home safely. Your family is well I hope.� Ned froze. The woman�s voice sent chills down his spine even though he had no idea who it was. A slight accent, educated, smooth���..had to be a Cassadine. �Who is this?� �That does not concern you.� �The hell it doesn�t if you are the one who�s keeping me from my daughter.� �She is NOT your daughter!� Well that got a rise out of her. �Let me speak to Alexis.� �Is that one of them? Give me the phone.� Edward snapped. Ned handed the phone to Edward. �Who is this? Where is my granddaughter?� �Mr. Quartermaine. It is�����.well not an honor exactly but�����.I have been looking forward to speaking with you.� �You listen to me missy. If you know what is good for you, you will return my granddaughter at once!� �Your granddaughter? Why, I thought Mr. Ashton would have explained everything to you by now. Skye, Emily and little Brooke Lynn are all fine.� �I mean my great granddaughter, Kristina!� �Perhaps you should talk to your grandson. It seems he has left out a few details.� �I know about your little phone tricks. It will take more than that to stop us.� �Mr. Quartermaine, I find your family simply delightful. Here I thought we had cornered the market on dysfunction but you have taken it to a whole new level. I mean the relationship between you and your daughter Tracey alone���.well, I suppose if you had a better relationship with her, she wouldn�t be residing in Paris. But she seems to have done quite well there. Her son is lovely by the way. I had a terrible time convincing Nicollet she couldn�t see him again. She really seems quite taken with the boy. But I don�t want to encourage a relationship between the two while she is still trying to kick that terrible heroine addiction.� Edward paled, �You leave my grandson alone!� �And then we have sweet Emily. Brave little Emily. Trying so hard in physical therapy. Carlos found her inspiring.� �Now you listen to me��.� �And darling little Brooke Lynn. She made a 96 on her math test. Only missed one, but long division always gave me problems too. You see Mr. Quartermaine, I am actually closer to your grandchildren than you are. I know their daily routines, I know where they go, what they like, when they are vulnerable���..� �You think you�ve won?� �I think you�re more vulnerable than we are. I think, I pose a far greater threat to you than you do to me. I think, Mr. Ashton should tell you everything before you proceed and if he is holding back because of Sonny Corinthos, tell him he needn�t bother, we have that situation well in hand.� �Sonny Corinthos?� �Ask your grandson. I suspect that should end this. But if you need further evidence of my reach, check your id caller. This is Miss Bowen-Quartermaines cell phone.� The line went dead. Edward held the phone out and sure enough, she was calling from Emily�s missing cell phone. �What is it? What else did she say?� �You have some explaining to do.� �I don�t owe you any explanations! This is between me and Alexis.� Edward handed the cell phone back to Ned. So it was true. He�d suspected all along that the child belonged to Sonny. That had to be what she meant. Well now they�d pissed him off but he couldn�t go after them directly. But he�d be damned if some Cassadine bitch would get the best of him. Even if the child wasn�t a Quartermaine, she was still useful. Actually, it was Michael he�d wanted all along anyway. �Grandfather, what ever you are planning, stop it. It�s too dangerous.� �You lied to me.� �And that comes as a surprise to you? In this family it�s to be expected.� �I want to speak to Nikolas Cassadine.� �Nikolas? He doesn�t know anything, I talked to him earlier.� �Perfect. Get him on the phone, invite him over.� �Grandfather, it�s too dangerous. Just drop it, okay?� �Not on your life! Get that boy over here. We aren�t out of the game yet, we still have one card left to play.� ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Xenia tossed the cell phone into the trash. It was worthless now. She�d had to boot it up to a special satellite feed to even get it to work on the island. �Hello pet. What mischief are you up to now?� Stavros closed the study door behind him. Xenia beamed at him from the leather sofa. �I was just tying up loose ends on our latest little project.� He sat down next to her and she immediately moved closer, resting her head on his shoulder. She was so affectionate and starved for attention that they had bonded immediately when he�d returned to the island. She was only a small child when last he�d seen her but she was breathtaking even then. Victor�s only child, she�d run wild on the island because her father had spoiled her completely. She was even more beautiful now, tall, elegant, long soft brown hair that fell all the way down her back, startling blue eyes. She looked more Russian than the rest of them, more like her mother than her father. He found her enchanting, as clever as she was beautiful, as wicked as he was, if not more so. �I take it the Quartermaine�s are handled then?� �Yes.� �And the other matter?� �Corinthos is approaching the island, Gregor dispatched a party to meet him.� �And?� �No report yet. We should hear something soon.� �Splendid.� �Have you spoken with your sister?� �Yes.� �Can she help you?� Stavros stroked her cheek. �We haven�t discussed it yet, but she will, she has no choice.� �You shouldn�t have to force her. It�s her duty.� Xenia grumbled. �Leave Alexis to me.� �She�s changed. I don�t like it.� �Not every woman is as strong as you are my pet.� �This man, Corinthos, he�s very����common.� �Common is a kind description, I�ve met him.� Xenia sat up. �You never mentioned that.� �When I was in Port Charles.� Stavros nodded. �What did you think?� Stavros paused a moment. �He�s����.short.� Xenia laughed. �He�s also insignificant. Why don�t you let Gregor�s men kill him?� Stavros sighed and rose from the couch. �Patience, pet. Good things come to those who wait.� �What if he doesn�t give up? The child is his����.� �If he persists then we will handle it. It may actually be to our advantage to kill him but then again it may not. It is too soon to tell. I prefer to wait.� �I�ve never seen you this patient.� �It is amazing what 20 years on ice will do for you. I�ve waited this long.� �It�s not fair.� Xenia pouted. �You are the Prince, you shouldn�t have to deal with these petty matters.� �Soon, I will have everything I need, until then, why don�t we enjoy ourselves?� He held out his hand, �What do you say to a walk on the bluff? It�s a lovely afternoon, very clear.� �Perfect for viewing ships, or even smaller vessels?� Xenia smirked. �Perhaps we might even see Gregor�s men in action.� Xenia stood and took his hand. �I think a walk before dinner is just what I need.� ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Alexis awoke from her short nap with a start. Her head ached, another nightmare, and then a thought zoomed into her head. Sonny knew. That was what the nightmare had been about, but before that, it was even worse, a dream. For almost a year, her dreams and nightmares always held the same theme. Sonny knew. Alexis was used to nightmares, she suffered with them most of her life. The nightmares were dark and tragic. Sonny hated her. He ranted and raved and told her he never cared about her at all. That he�d slept with her out of pity. He blamed her for the failure of his marriage, said she�d encouraged it. He took the baby. He and Carly raised her together. Alexis never saw Kristina again. Or Kristina would show up on her doorstep, a grown woman, and tell her how much she hated her. In some, Sonny told Helena and Helena showed up and slit her throat. In others, the worst ones, Kristina was killed. The nightmares were endless. There seemed to be no twist too dark, no horror too great for her mind to create. But the dreams were sometimes even worse. Childish dreams she hated herself for having. Dreams where Sonny was overjoyed. He fell to his knees with love and gratitude. He held their baby and smiled like she had never seen him smile. He was transformed in those dreams. He left Carly. Told her he never loved her. He and Alexis and Kristina were together and happy and safe. They were all three very safe. Far away from Port Charles. Far away from the mob and her family and anyone who could hurt them. Sonny worship Kristina, spoiled her, he was endlessly happy. They all were. They moved past old demons, past his life of crime, past her fears, they were someplace magical and their daughter was all that mattered. Alexis would wake up and when reality hit, it was devastating. The dreams made it difficult to even get out of bed at times. It leveled her completely because it could never happen. And she despised that part of herself that wanted it. She sat up. Her clothes were wrinkled, the room was nearly dark. Her head hurt, her heart ached and she was more scared than she�d ever been. Sonny knew her better than anyone. If he wanted to, he could rip her to shreds without any effort at all. And she�d given him that. She�d let him in. Let him past all the barriers, let him into places no one else had ever had access. Stupid, stupid woman. Never again. But even knowing that, she still wanted it again. She shook it off and climbed out of bed. She looked at the clock, she�d really only slept a little over half an hour. How could one person dream so much in half an hour? Enough of dreams, more important matters to attend to, like getting off the island. She grabbed the phone off the night stand. The line was dead. She hit the receiver several times, �Hello?� In her childhood, there had been a switchboard operator. All calls to the mainland had to go through the switchboard. It was an antiquated system that Stefan had never bothered to upgrade because it allowed him to monitor all calls to and from the island. But there was no operator, no dial tone at all. She hung up the phone. She�d just find another one. No one had occupied her room in years, it was possible they had disconnected her extension at some point and simply forgotten to reconnect it. Ya sure Alexis. No way Stavros purposely disconnected the phone. Alexis found her shoes next to the bed and slipped them on. There had to be other phones. She checked on Kristina who was still sleeping soundly and made her way into the hall closing the door softly behind her so she didn�t disturb the baby. �Oh, my, my, my, my. You must be lost my dear. This is the family hall.� Alexis jumped and spun around. �Professor Tindel?� He was still alive? Professor Tindel was a prisoner on the island. One of many Alexis remembered from her childhood. But he was what they mockingly referred to as an �honored prisoner�. Some prisoners were confined to rooms, watched by guards or even kept in small cells in the lower levels. Those were the true prisoners, men and women who posed a threat to the family. Who had plotted against the Prince in some way. Other prisoners had come as guests and for some reason or another, were never allowed to leave. Professor Tindel was one such prisoner. In a meteorological conference, sometime in the sixties, he had dared to disagree with one of Mikkos�s theories. He�d been so bold as to refute it, point by point, in an academic paper. Mikkos invited him to the island to discuss the matter and Professor Tindel had fallen for the trap. He�d been an honored prisoner ever since. He�d lived on the island for so long that he eventually came to think of himself as a guest. He never thought of leaving anymore. He was a small man, very frail. He was nearly bald except for two tufts of solid white hair that stood out on either side of his head. He wore very thick glasses and a brown tweed jacket, no matter how warm the weather was. His bow tie was crooked but his shirt was neatly pressed. Alexis stifled a laugh when she realized that instead of a handkerchief, tucked into the left breast pocket of his jacket, was a sock! The good professor had lost whatever was left of his mind, but he was smiling at her pleasantly. �Professor Tindel, it�s me, Alexis.� �Alexis? There is a young girl here named Alexis.� �No, professor����..that�s me.� �Yes, yes, you have the same name. I see, I see. I�m not completely daft you know. You cannot be in this hall my dear. This is for family only.� �But����.I am family.� �No,no. The Prince�s family. Come with me. We will find our way.� He pulled out his pocket watch which Alexis could clearly see was stopped on 4:00, the crystal had a crack in it. �I�m late for tea again. Adonia will skin me alive. Will you join me for tea my dear?� �I�m looking for a phone actually.� �Oh those things never work. I�ve reported it to maintenance but������doesn�t really matter, who would I call?� �Yes, but I need to make a call.� �Ask the Prince, his phone always works.� �Are there any other phones that work?� �I have no one to call, no one calls me. Where are those blasted stairs?� He led Alexis down another hallway. �Professor, have you seen Stavros use a phone in the house?� �Master Stavros? Are you looking for him? That�s it! You must be the new English tutor. I heard they were hiring a new one.� �No professor, I�m Alexis.� �So you are here to tutor her? Well, you should find her easy enough, just follow the trail.� �The trail?� �Yes, yes. Find Master Stavros, that is easy enough. He is always watched, though sometimes he evades his guards long enough to cause some mischief. Always up to something that one is. And wherever he goes, his shadow isn�t far behind. Young Stefan watches him. Always watching, very quiet. Now that one is very smart, good, bad, I don�t know. But sneaky yes. Very, very sneaky. And where Stefan goes, Alexis lurks. Sad little creature, always in the shadows. Watches Stefan�s back and avoids the dragon lady.� �Dragon lady?� �Shhhhh. Shhhh. Foolish woman! My, my, my, my, do you want them to hear you? You cannot call her that! They are always listening, they know everything we say, everything we do. You must be careful, we cannot all be as free as the littlest one.� �Who is that?� �The little girl. Victor�s monster. The screaming shrew. Runs around barefoot, won�t wear shoes. The only time she is quiet is when she is watching Alexis.� �Watching Alexis?� �Yes, yes. First the young Prince, then his brother, then Alexis and then Xenia. Like a snake they wind their way around this island. Stavros the head, Xenia the tail. Find one and you find the others. But be careful. Cassadine children are not like other children. They are wicked and clever and know more than they should. Here we are.� They�d reached the main hall and descended the stairs. �Are you sure you won�t join me for tea?� �Oh no. I think I will find Alexis, see if we can begin our lessons.� �Very good idea. You do not want your new employer to think you have lost track of the child already.� �So find Xenia���..� �Yes, yes. She is usually watching Alexis, seems to like her, but I don�t think Alexis notices her much. Poor little creature, since her father went away, she has been very lonely.� �Of course.� Professor Tindel scratched his head. �Now which way to the bloody library? I can never remember, east, west?� �It�s down that way.� Alexis pointed and the professor smiled, gave her a nod and headed off�����. in the opposite direction. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The speed boat slowed as it approached the cabin cruiser and finally stopped, cutting the engine. �Mr. Corinthos I presume?� One man stood as the other five stayed seated. They slouched back in their seats as if nothing was wrong. They tried to look bored, their caps pulled down low on their brow but their eyes were busy, very alert. They sized up the vessel and looked for evidence of other passengers and perhaps an ambush. Jason kept his hand on the gun tucked into his waist band. Not that it would do much good. �I am Sonny Corinthos.� Sonny tried to sound bored, but polite. �I am Gregor, head of security for Cassadine Island. I am afraid you are unwelcome here. You must turn around at once.� �I�m here to speak with Alexis Davis.� �And as I said, you are unwelcome here.� �Does Alexis know I am here?� Gregor squinted at him for a moment. �Corinthos, that is a Greek name.� Sonny nodded, �Yes.� �We had a chauffer named Corinthos once. Any relation?� �I don�t know.� �I hope not. The man was caught stealing, I believe.� Gregor turned to one of the other men. �Was it stealing?� �Spying maybe. I don�t remember.� The man shrugged. Gregor smiled, �Yes that was it, reporting family secrets���.he died terribly. Very slow, very painful. The Cassadine family shows so little mercy when dealing with their enemies.� �I�m not an enemy. Alexis knows me. I only want to speak with her.� �But Ms. Davis won�t speak with you so please���� �Won�t or can�t?� Two men stood behind Gregor. Jason tightened his grip on the butt of his gun. �You will turn your vessel around at once.� �Not until I speak to Alexis!� Two warning shots were fired as Jason and Sonny hit the deck. Well, so much for reasoning with them. Jason drew his gun but Sonny held out his hand for Jason to stay down. �Go back to Athens Mr. Corinthos. There are plenty of activities for tourists. Go see the ancient ruins, find a nice beach. But this island and the waters surrounding it are off limits. This will be your only warning.� The engine roared to life and the speed boat was gone. Jason and Sonny were both still lying on the deck. �So we wait until night fall?� Jason shrugged. �We may need a smaller boat, maybe some scuba gear.� Sonny agreed. �Can Brenda even swim?� Jason asked. They both froze. She was below deck and all she would have heard were the two shots. Sonny and Jason sprang up and raced to the cabin. Brenda was curled up on the bunk, shaking. She jumped up the minute they entered the room and ran for Jason, throwing her arms around him. �You�re okay?� �We�re fine. It was just a warning.� There was an uncomfortable silence and Brenda let Jason go, stepped back and shoved him in the chest with both hands, which had little effect. �You scared me to death!� �I told you this wasn�t a vacation.� �So now what?� Sonny cleared his throat. �We�re going back to the main land for supplies. I think you should stay there.� �No way.� �Brenda, look at you, you�re still shaking.� �That�s just because I didn�t know what happened. I should have stayed on deck, with both of you.� �And you would have been shot at, like both of us.� �Maybe they would have liked me.� �Or maybe you would have annoyed them so much they would have improved their aim. You should wait in Athens.� Jason sat down hard on the bunk. �No way. I�m coming back with you. I�d go crazy waiting and you need me to talk to Alexis.� Sonny climbed the stairs and watched the speed boat head back to the island. �If we can even get to Alexis.� |