Jason, Carly, and Michael returned to Port Charles late Sunday afternoon. As the resort manager had predicted, they were able to pick up a new serpentine belt for the truck at one of the auto parts stores in Penn Yan. It didn’t take Jason long to replace it.

After dropping Carly and Michael off at the brownstone, Jason headed back to his penthouse. He was still thinking about everything Carly had told him last night in that dark motel room. He knew now what a huge impact losing the baby had on her. And he felt she was right not to tell Sonny. What was the point? They had never been a couple who shared the joy of knowing they created a new life. If Carly wanted to spare Sonny from sharing the pain now, he would respect her wishes.

And if Bobbie, Alan and Monica believed he was the father, let them. He hated to carry on another lie, but he knew he would, if it came to that.

Carly’s secret wasn’t the only thing on Jason’s mind as he returned home. He couldn’t stop thinking about his own renewed feelings and desires. Had they not been interrupted, he knew he would have told her everything last night. And he was pretty sure they would not have spent the rest of the night in separate beds.

But there would be plenty of time for that, especially if the idea now forming in his mind worked out. His plan would require the cooperation of at least two family members. Unlocking the penthouse door, he decided to get started immediately on making that plan a reality.

***

Across town, the phone rang in Ned Ashton’s suite at the Port Charles Hotel. He was surprised to hear from Jason on a Sunday afternoon.

“Ned, do you have time to talk?”

“Sure. But I hope you’re not phoning to tell me that you and Nikolas have called off the truce.”

“No. Working with Nikolas is not a problem for me. And this isn’t about L&B.”

“Okay. Then tell me all about whatever it is.”

Jason explained the plan he had in mind, and Ned’s role in it. When he was finished, Ned found himself nodding at his end of the phone line.

“Jason, that’s fine with me. But you know you’re going to have to talk to Monica about this.”

“I know. But I wanted to make sure it was okay with you first.”

“Tell Monica I think it’s a great idea.”

“I’ll do that,” Jason said, as the cousins exchanged goodbyes. “And thanks, Ned.”

***

Monica Quartermaine was in her office at General Hospital the next morning when someone knocked on her door. “Come in,” she said absently, as she looked at a patient’s chart.

“Is this a good time to talk?” her visitor asked.

Monica looked up at the sound of his voice. “Jason! Of course, it’s a good time! There’s nobody I’d rather see right now.”

Monica got up from behind her desk to embrace her son. He hugged back, then they both sat down to talk.

“How was your weekend with Carly and Michael?” Monica asked, as casually as she could.

Monica had never liked Carly. She would probably never think of the younger woman as a friend, much less a beloved daughter-in-law. But she had to admit Carly had changed a lot for the better since that dreadful accident. She was showing more of a sense of responsibility toward her son. And she had been more than willing to cooperate with the Quartermaines about spending time with Michael.

“It was great,” Jason answered. “Michael really loved the zoo. We had a little trouble getting back, but nothing we couldn’t handle.”

Monica nodded. “Good. I’m happy to hear things went well.”

“That’s kind of what I want to talk to you about this morning.”

Jason looked straight at his mother as he continued. “I want to spend more time with Michael. And I know you don’t want to hear this—“

“Wait,” Monica interrupted. “I don’t know why you think I wouldn’t want you to spend more time with Michael, but nothing would make me happier! Your father feels the same way. We all do.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Jason paused for a few seconds, looking down. When he looked up at Monica again, he spoke slowly and quietly.

“I know you don’t want to hear this, but Michael really doesn’t have a father any more.”

Monica looked stricken, as Jason continued.

“I get that you and Alan are both still hoping AJ is going to come out of this thing, and be the same person he was before the accident. But you can’t count on that. Even if he does wake up, you and I both know how much people can change because of an injury. I never came back the way you wanted me to, did I?”

“Jason, I’m grateful you came back at all! What are you asking?”

He paused again, then said firmly, “I want to be Michael’s father. I was once, and I want to be again. Can you accept that? And could you be happy for us, if we found a way to make it happen?”

Monica was silent, as thoughts and pictures banged around in her mind. Thoughts of AJ lying in a bed at the rehab center contrasted with visions of Michael playing happily with Jason and Carly. Would she be betraying her older son by agreeing with his brother that this would indeed be the best thing for Michael? And for Jason, as well, she thought.

“Yes on both counts,” she finally answered. “You’re right. Michael needs a father. And I can’t think of a better one than the man who raised him for the first year of his life.”

Jason smiled. “I was hoping you’d feel that way.”

“But you have to tell me something, Jason. Are you talking about just spending more time with Michael--or are you talking about you and Carly and Michael becoming a family?”

Jason looked down again, gathering his thoughts. Monica waited patiently for him to answer.

“I told Bobbie Spencer last year that I couldn’t imagine my life without Carly,” he said. “I thought that was over for a while. But now, I know it was never over. I want us to be together, all three of us--and I think she does, too.”

Monica wasn’t surprised at his answer. “Jason, I can’t lie to you. You wouldn’t want me to. Carly is not the woman I would have picked for either of my sons to get involved with.”

“But we both did.”

“Yes. And it’s obvious you still are.” She hesitated just a second before continuing. “I can accept that. No matter what’s happened in the past, I’ve always believed you had only the most loving intentions where Michael is concerned. And when it comes to Carly, you know what you want. I trust your judgment. If the three of you want to be a family, you have my support. All of it.”

Monica reached across the desk to squeeze Jason’s hand. “And I don’t think your father or your grandfather will feel any differently. But if they do, just leave them to me. Now, is there anything else you want to talk about?”

“Yeah, there is.” Jason looked his mother straight in the eye as he went on, “It has to do with a place to live.”

“For you?” she asked in surprise. “Aren’t you happy living in your penthouse?”

“I’m okay with it. I’m talking about Carly and Michael.”

“They seem fine living with Bobbie.”

“They are. But Michael is getting moved back and forth all the time, spending part of the week with you and the rest at the brownstone.”

“Do you not want him living with us at all any more?” Monica asked softly. “Because I have to tell you, it’s meant a lot to us that Carly has been willing to share him with us.”

“That’s not what I mean at all. He’s really happy. He knows you love him. I just thought maybe we could work something out where he could be with all of us, but still stay in one place.”

“What did you have in mind?” Monica asked curiously. She couldn’t imagine where this was going.

“I was thinking, maybe Carly and Michael could move into the gatehouse. Ned isn’t living there any more, and he told me it’s fine with him if it’s okay with you. That way, Carly and Michael still have a place of their own, but you can all just walk over and see them any time you want. And Leticia can take care of him on the days when Carly is working at Kelly’s.”

Jason paused a second, then continued, “Look, I know you don’t like Carly. And it’s your house. So if you don’t want her living back there again, I’ll drop this. I haven’t even brought it up with Carly yet.”

“Jason, stop! I’m so happy to have you back in this family that I wouldn’t object if you asked me to let Godzilla live in the gatehouse! You go ahead and tell Carly about your idea, and if she likes it she can move in as soon as she wants to. Tomorrow, if you like.”

“Thank you,” Jason said quietly.

“You’re welcome. Now, do you have time for a cup of coffee in the cafeteria?”

“Sure.”

Jason and Monica got up and headed out the door. Neither noticed a man standing in the hall, just outside Monica’s office. And they didn’t see him follow them at a slight distance, listening to everything they had to say.

“I’ll tell Carly about this later today,” Jason said. “Maybe Emily could bring Michael over to the penthouse. We could all talk about it, and maybe go out to eat afterwards.”

“I think that’s a great idea,” Monica concurred. “When should I tell Emily to be there?”

“I’ll probably get home from work around 5:00, so any time after that. If I’m late, Johnny’s got the key. He can let them in.”

“I’ll tell her. And Jason,” she said, “I really do think this is a good idea.”

“So do I.”

As Jason and Monica made their way to the cafeteria, the man who was following them down the hall headed for a pay phone in the hospital lobby. He dialed a familiar number, and began talking quietly when someone answered at the other end.

“Mr. Sorel? I just saw Morgan. He’s going to be home today around 5:00. Would you like to be there to meet him?”

“Yes,” Joseph Sorel answered. “Yes, I would.”

***

Jason arrived for work at L&B a short time later. The first thing he did was call Carly at the brownstone.

“You working at Kelly’s today?” he asked.

“Yes. Bobbie and I are going to drop off Michael at the Quartermaines, then I’m working the lunch shift and early afternoon. Why?”

“Do you want to stop by my place later on? Emily is going to bring Michael over to the penthouse. I thought maybe we could all eat dinner together.”

“Sure! What time?” Carly really liked it that these days and evenings together were becoming more frequent. All of a sudden, it seemed that life was really good.

“How about around 5:00?” Jason was saying. “If I’m a little late, Johnny can let you in.”

“Okay, see you then!”

***

There was one other thing Jason wanted to do that day before going home to the penthouse to meet Carly, Emily, and Michael. He left L&B a little early that afternoon, and drove to the rehab center located just outside the Port Charles city limits.

“I’d like to see AJ Quartermaine,” he told the receptionist on duty.

As Jason signed the visitors’ book, the receptionist called a nurse.

“Mr. Morgan, I’m Miss Kyle. I’m afraid we can only allow family to visit Mr. Quartermaine.”

“I’m his brother,” Jason said quietly.

“Oh, I’m sorry--I didn’t know, from your name—“

“It’s okay. Can I see him now?”

“Yes, of course.”

Nurse Kyle guided Jason down the hall to AJ's room. “He’s right in here. I’ll be out here in the hall, if you need me.”

“Thanks.”

Jason went inside and sat in the chair next to AJ’s bed. “Hello, AJ. It’s me, Jason,” he began. “I don’t know if you can hear me, but if you can, there’s a few things I wanted to tell you.”

He looked at his brother’s unmoving face. “I’m really sorry about what happened to you, AJ. I would have been back sooner if I’d known, but I didn’t.”

Jason knew he wasn’t going to get any response. But he paused anyway, before continuing. “I just want you to know Michael is going to be okay. I know you love him, and he’ll know it, too. Carly and I will tell him, when he’s old enough to understand. Look, I know you and I didn’t get along there at the end. But if you can hear me, I want you to know I’ll always take care of Michael. And he won’t forget you.”

Jason stood up. He never saw the merest of flicker of movement from AJ’s left hand.

***

Around 5:15 that afternoon, Emily Quartermaine arrived at the Harbor View Towers. As requested, she had brought Michael along. Juan came along, too--he and Michael were waiting downstairs in the car right now, as Emily went upstairs to find out exactly what Jason had in mind.

The elevator door opened, and Emily screamed.

The door to Jason’s penthouse was wide open, but there was no sign of Jason or Carly anywhere.

And out in the hallway, Johnny was lying on the floor in a pool of blood.

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