Chapter 26
Lucky stared out the window, tapping his fingers
on the pane. “When do you think they’re coming?” He asked Nikolas without
turning around.
“It will be a few hours yet, probably. They’ll
wait until it’s dark.” Nikolas replied.
“They are coming, right? This listening device is
only one way. What if it’s broke, and they don’t know Daniel and Helena are
moving us tonight?” Lucky persisted.
“Lucky, relax.” Nikolas said. “Even if the device
was broke, Luke would come and get you out. He wouldn’t leave you here with no
idea of what was going on. They’re coming, and everything will be all right.”
Lucky nodded, still not turning around. He still had Daniel’s old Cassadine
medallion with him, and he turned it over in his hands. Staring out at the
woods behind the house, he leaned against the window frame to await the arrival
of help.
“We’re coming, Cowboy, don’t worry.” Luke
whispered. He was driving the van, with Laura beside him. Alexis and Stefan
were in the back. They had rigged the listening device up in the van, and were
listening to Lucky.
Laura put a hand on Luke’s shoulder. “He knows in
his heart that we’re coming, he’s just a little nervous.” She said.
Luke nodded. “I know, but he shouldn’t have to
be.” He replied. “He shouldn’t have to be in that house. He shouldn’t have to
be tortured by Forst. He shouldn’t have to have all those memories.” Luke’s
voice was dry, and he paused, and took one hand off the wheel to pick up a
soda. Putting it back down, he continued. “I swear Laura, that man will regret
laying a hand on a my son.” There was determination behind his voice, and Laura
knew better than to argue with him.
It was dusk when the two vans pulled over to the
side of the road, and into the woods. Jason, Liz, and Emily covered the vans
with branches, while the others prepared themselves. Alexis stared at the gun
Luke pushed in her hand, and watched as he turned to pack a small case with
lock picks and other tools.
“Why do I have the sudden urge to order someone named
Baby Face out on a hit?” She asked.
Luke smiled to himself. “Don’t tell me you’ve
never handled a gun before ‘Tash.”
“No, I haven’t. I guess we all can’t be lucky
enough to have worked with the mob.”
“Hey now, you don’t have to have been with mob to
learn how to shoot.” Luke said, giving her a grin. “They just teach you the
best.”
Laura smiled, and quickly loaded her gun expertly.
Alexis looked at her eyes wide. Laura chuckled. “It doesn’t take too much
talent.” She said. “I was surprised how quickly I learned.”
“I wasn’t.” Luke said, giving her a peck on the
cheek. “Stefan, how about you? You all set, or do you need a little Tai Chai
practicing to become one with your gun?”
Stefan looked at him straight faced, doing his
best to hide his smile. “I think I have it figured out, thank you. The guns
will only be used for intimidation purposes, right?”
“If your asking if we are only going to shoot if
forced too, the answer is yes.” Luke replied. “Now let’s get going. It’s dark,
and I don’t want to miss them.” Stefan nodded, and the foursome took off
through the woods.
Nikolas paced back and forth. He was trying to
stay calm, but was losing the battle. It would be much harder to escape once
they left the house, so their best bet on getting out was tonight. There was a
knock at the door, and he jumped. Lucky still stood unmoving at the window.
“What?” Nikolas asked irritably as Helena walked
in.
“I know it isn’t pleasant for you to be here, but
you needn’t bark at me.” She said. “I simply came to inform you that we will be
leaving in about half an hour.”
“Where are we going?” Nikolas asked, knowing the
answer.
“To a town called Polk in Colorado. That’s were
the Ice Princess is.” She walked over to Lucky, and stood behind him. “Lucky,
you must believe I don’t want you dead. That’s Daniel’s plan, not mine. Once
you help us with this, I’ll be more than willing to send you home unharmed.”
“What are you doing?” Nikolas asked. “Is this some
last ditch effort to get us to trust you? I think you wrecked all chances of
that when you brought us here. You’ve ensured I will have a life of hell being
‘The Cassadine’, and you’ve practically signed a contract on Lucky’s life. Why
don’t you just leave and let us at least have a little peace.”
Helena looked at her grandson sadly. “I know my
ways have not always been the best.” She said. “But you must believe the only
goal I have ever had in mind was only to give you the life you deserve, and
that includes owning possessions that are rightfully yours.”
“Did you ever stop the think that the life you
think I deserve might not be the life I want?” Nikolas asked. Helena was
silent. She didn’t want to admit it, but the thought hadn’t crossed her mind.
Brought up like she was, she assumed everyone wanted a life of royalty. “I’m
sorry, Nikolas, I guess I never thought things all the way through. I will do
my best to give you what you want.”
“Then why don’t you let us both go right now?” He
asked.
“Because it’s Daniel calling the shots now.” Lucky
said from the window, his back still towards them. It wasn’t a question it was
a statement. Nikolas looked at him curiously, and Helena knowingly.
“Yes, I’m afraid that is the way of it right now.”
She admitted.
“Why would you let him be in control?” Nikolas
asked.
“He’s threatening her.” Lucky said. “And she’s
afraid. Luis was her brother, and he killed him. Who knows what he would do
next.”
“You’re right. I’m afraid now that if I do
anything, he would still kill you.” Helena’s words came out tired, like someone
finally admitting they had been defeated. Nikolas stared at her in surprise. He
still thought this was a game of hers, but it was certainly her best one.
“Lucky,” She continued. “If I had the power to do
anything for you right now, I would.”
Finally, Lucky turned around and looked Helena
straight in the eyes. “Would you bring me back to my parents?” He asked,
echoing the words from his dream. Helena stood still, thought racing in her
mind. He had remembered her from that night. The night she had first begun to
fight Daniel for his life. She said nothing, only repeated her actions of long
ago. Walking over to Lucky, she gave him a hug, and left the room.
Outside, Laura and Alexis stood by the edge of the
woods, as Luke and Stefan snuck to the house. The crouched next to the door,
and Luke quickly picked the lock. He got his gun out, and checked it one more
time to see that it was loaded.
“Count, I need you to do me a favor.” He said, not
looking up. “If we happen to run into Forst, you go on and get the boys out.
Don’t wait for me.”
Stefan looked at him for the first time with
admiration. He understood he’d do the same for Nikolas. He nodded at Luke, and
they carefully entered the house.
Chapter 27
Stefan and Luke looked around them as they
entered. Their thoughts were the same as the boys when they first came. The
house was the gloomiest they had seen. They were at the end of a small hall,
which connected the backdoor with the rest of the house. A man was standing
guard at the other end, his back to them. Luke and Stefan shared a glance,
gloating. Helena didn’t expect them to find them so soon, not knowing they had
set the boys up to be taken, and therefore did not tighten security. Luke
guessed she only had guards stationed at each entrance. Motioning to Stefan,
Luke crept up behind the guard, and tapped him on the shoulder. As the man
turned around, Stefan knocked him out with the handle of his gun.
“That wasn’t bad.” Luke whispered, as he tied the
man’s hands together, and duct-taped his mouth.
Stefan nodded at him. “Perhaps there isn’t too
much difference between our families.” The words escaped his mouth before he
realized what he was saying. He looked up Luke, who took no notice, at least it
seemed. He didn’t let himself read too much into it, though. It was only the
stress of the situation and the desire to get his son back that kept Luke from
denying any truth to his last remark.
Walking out of the hallway, they found themselves
in the main room of the house. Doors lined each side, and the stairs wound
around in the middle. The guard was stretched out in a chair by the front door,
asleep. Stefan chuckled, as he went over to assure the guard would stay that
way for a while. Luke, on the other hand, was uneasy. This was easy, and
experience had taught him that easy was not always a good thing. He helped
Stefan tie up the guard and put him in a closet so he wouldn’t be noticed. They
turned to the stairs then, and to their hoped for reunion with their sons.
Daniel paused as he was looking at map, tracing
the route he thought best and most inconspicuous for the trip to Polk.
Something told him all wasn’t right. His mind told him he was paranoid, but
intuition told him otherwise. There were two kinds of bad guys, those who
logically covered every detail, and those who went by their gut. The first were
successful half the time, the other always. He smiled as he placed himself in
the right category, and walked out of his room and down the hall. Daniel Forst
was a man who never failed.
Nikolas and Lucky were both pacing now. Since it
was too dark to see, window watching had been given up. They checked their
watches periodically. Helena had come in and said they would leave in half an
hour about twenty minutes ago. Time was running out. Lucky stopped and stared
at the door when he heard footsteps outside. He looked at Nikolas and smiled,
letting out a sigh of relief. This was it. His father had come. He started to
the door, but stopped dead when it wasn’t his father who came through the door.
Slowly, Stefan and Luke made their way down the
hallway. Both were calculating which room was the boys from what they had heard
over the listening device. Stopping in front of one halfway down the hall, Luke
looked at Stefan, who nodded. Luke prepared to pick the lock, and stopped in
surprise when he felt the knob turn. He tried to ignore the voice in his head
screaming about how wrong this was, and pushed the door open. He and Stefan
stepped inside, and found Nikolas sitting on his bed. He stood immediately, and
went to them. Stefan hugged him. Luke waited impatiently.
“Where’s Lucky?” He asked as soon as they parted.
Nikolas said nothing, and both men noticed the worried expression on his face
for the first time. A thousand thoughts raced through Luke’s mind. He was about
to ask again, when a voice behind him stopped him.
“Don’t worry, he’s right here.” Daniel said,
stepping out of the bathroom, with Lucky in front of him. Luke began to rush
forward. “I wouldn’t do that.” Daniel said, as he drew a gun up to Lucky’s
head. Luke stopped; sweat breaking out on his forehead. He tried calculating in
his head. Even if he could reach his gun before Daniel could do anything, he
couldn’t get a clear shot without hitting Lucky. Trying his best to stay calm,
he forced out his words as steady as he could.
“What do you want? I’m sure I could help you with
nearly anything, just let my son go.”
Daniel smiled at him crookedly. “You’re probably
right. From what I’ve heard over the years, you’re a man of many resources. But
I’m afraid this is one of those times when ‘nearly anything’ doesn’t cut it.
I’m after the Ice Princess and the control of the Cassadine family, which are
two things only they boys here can help me with.”
With a warning glance at Luke, Daniel stepped
forward, pushing Lucky along. He nodded his head over at Nikolas. “Are you
coming, Nikolas? I hope you remember how your brother’s well being counts on
your good behavior.” Nikolas nodded, and stepped with Forst to the door.
Stefan stepped forward. “Look, I think we can make
a deal.” He said. “Spencer and I only want the boys’ safety. If you’d be
willing to give us that, I think we could help you with what you want. I’ll
transfer all control of the Cassadine empire to you. I’m sure Alexis could find
a loophole somewhere to make someone else the heir. All you have to do is let
us come with you and the boys, and let us all go once you have the Ice
Princess.”
“I admit that is a very good proposition. But see,
to go along with it, I’d have to trust you two, and be willing to do some
teamwork. And the truth is I’m suspicious of you if you breathe wrong, and I
never did play well with others. So I think I’ll just stay with my plan, thank
you.”
Stefan glared at him. “Things will be easier on
you if you cooperate with us!” He yelled. “You are sure to be caught on your
own.”
Daniel held the gun more firmly to Lucky’s head,
and clenched his teeth. “You are in no position right now to be doing any
yelling.” He said. “That is, unless you want young Spencer to have one more
hole in his head. That probably wouldn’t bother you too much, right? It would
just be one less Spencer in the world.”
Luke stood unsteadily. His mind was spinning. He
wanted to tear Daniel’s smug smile of his face, but couldn’t endanger Lucky.
Habit also had him wanting to lunge at Stefan. But logic won the war in his
head this time. Despite how little he trusted Stefan, he knew he would never
let harm come to a child. Nikolas looked at his uncle. They communicated their
feelings silently. He glanced over at his brother, who had his eyes closed. He
prayed he could handle this.
He had been trying to stay focused on what was
going on, but it was impossible for Lucky. Once Daniel put the gun on him, he
went back to the past. Seeing that man he had been forced to kill. A voice in
his head screamed at him that it was only fair for him to die this way to know
what he had done to that man. He shook his head. No, that wasn’t right. Daniel
had forced his hands over his to pull the trigger; it was Daniel who had killed
that man. And he would not let it get to him now. He would not let Daniel kill
him too, be it physically or mentally. Opening his eyes, he looked at his
father. Luke calmed down when he did. He saw determination in Lucky’s eyes, not
fear. Stefan finally spoke, answering Daniel.
“You hurt that boy, and I will come at you with
everything I have just as if it were Nikolas.” The words were soft yet icy, and
said so much. Daniel was a little shocked, but didn’t let it show. One thing he
hadn’t counted on was the Spencer’s and Cassadine’s uniting. This could be
okay, though, he thought. It would be a lot more interesting this way.
“I guess I’ll watch my step, then, Stefan.” Daniel
replied. “Now I’m sorry, but it really is time for us to be going.” With that,
he backed out into the hallway, his eyes never leaving Stefan and Luke. Nikolas
followed, giving one more glance back to his uncle. Daniel closed the door to
the room, and locked them inside. Then he relaxed his hold on Lucky, but still
keeping the gun on him. They walked quickly down the hallway and stairs, and
out through the front door. Helena was out there waiting for them.
“Run into a little trouble?” She asked, smiling.
Daniel ignored her and told her and the boys to get in the van. He climbed in
the front, and cursed out loud when it wouldn’t start. Lucky grinned at
Nikolas. His dad had tried his way, and he recognized this as his mom’s.
Getting out, Daniel opened the hood. Taking this as their chance, Laura and
Alexis crept to the van. Lucky saw them in the side mirror. He thought for sure
Helena did too, but she made not notice of it. He heard the lock being picked
then, still nothing from Helena. The back doors opened, and the boys crept out
to Laura and Alexis. Now Lucky knew for sure that Helena was purposely not
hearing anything. They turned to go, when once again Lucky felt Daniel put a
gun on him.
“I’ll give you two credit for being craftier than
the men, but it still isn’t going to work. Now, I’m a little tired of this, and
need to be going, so why don’t you just return my spark plugs.”
Laura handed them over, telling Lucky she was
sorry with her eyes. She got an ‘it’s okay mom, everything is going to be fine’
look in response. Daniel backed her and Alexis up to the house just as Luke and
Stefan were coming out. It hadn’t taken them too long to get out of the room
Daniel locked them in. They had to admit they were defeated, now. Jason would
come, but the best he could do now was to just pick them up and follow the
boys.
“It’s been interesting, but I must leave.” Daniel
said. “Perhaps we’ll run into each other some other time.” He then replaced the
spark plugs, got the boys back in the van, and took off. On the steps of the
house, Laura crumbled into Luke’s arms. No one said a word as they waited for
Jason to come get them.
Chapter 28
Jason had come soon after Daniel had taken off,
and they had all been driving now for a couple of hours, tracking him. They had
driven back to the other van, and were split up just as they were before.
Stefan drove the second one. No one talked there, they just stared or slept. In
the first van, Jason glanced back at Emily and Liz in the rear view mirror.
They both looked devastated.
“They’ll be all right, you know. This was just a
minor set back.” He said to them. They either didn’t hear him, or didn’t
believe him. “Hey.” He said a little louder. This time he got them to look up.
“We’re still going to get them out.”
Both girls nodded. Liz felt the tears filling up
her eyes, and couldn’t stop them from coming. Emily leaned over and gave her a
hug.
“Emily, Lucky helped me so much and protected me
from everything. I thought I was supposed to do the same for him now, but
Helena and Daniel still have him.” Liz sobbed.
“I know, but that’s not your fault. It’s not
anybody’s. You have done a lot to help Lucky. You helped him sort out all those
dreams and flashbacks he was having. Going to Helena’s was something he had to
do for himself. I’m sure he doesn’t regret that even now. He found out what
Daniel was up to, and was able to stand up to him. Nikolas and him are
confident now, and they’ll make it out.” Emily replied, tears streaming down
her own face.
“She’s right, Liz.” Jason said. “Lucky grew up
learning how to survive situations like this, and Nikolas isn’t stupid.”
Liz nodded. “I know, but what if Daniel and Helena
are still too powerful for them? Nikolas will end up living like the perfect
little heir under Daniel’s control, and Lucky will be killed.”
No one responded to her this time. They were both
scared about this thought themselves. Jason turned on the radio to a station
that played slow, soft songs. The girls leaned back, and soon fell asleep, with
their worries still invading them in their dreams.
“I don’t mean to be an unruly captive here, but
would it have been too much to ask to get a van that actually had seats in the
back?” Lucky asked irritated.
Daniel glared at him in the mirror. “You should be
happy we got the van we did, it allowed you two to sneak out the back and
nearly escape.”
“Yeah, thanks so much. I enjoyed being held at gun
point and all.” Lucky replied.
“For someone whose life is in danger, you think
you would be a little less irritating to your kidnapper.” Daniel said.
Lucky sighed, and stretched his legs out. Nikolas
did the same, and exchanged a glance with Lucky. It was awfully uncomfortable
sitting on the hard floor of the back of the van. They had been in there
forever, too. Impatiently, Nikolas started to drum his fingers on the floor.
Picking up the beat, Lucky joined him. Soon, they both began slapping the floor
with their hands like they were playing drums. The sound echoed around the van.
“Enough!” Daniel finally yelled. “If you two don’t
stop it right now, I’m going to stop and inject you with a sedative!”
Lucky and Nikolas stopped, and laughed. “Sorry if
we were bothering you.” Nikolas said sweetly. “We were only trying to lighten
the mood of the trip.”
Helena turned around and looked at them from the
passenger seat. “Why don’t you open that box in the corner.” She said. “There
are a couple of pillows and blankets, and a radio in it. Perhaps you could
listen to some music instead of making it up yourselves.”
“Perhaps we could.” Lucky said cheerfully, as he
opened the box. He turned on the radio, and quickly picked out a station that
played heavy metal. He grinned at Nikolas, and turned the volume up as a
Metallica marathon started. It didn’t take long for Daniel to become irritated
again. He pulled over to the side of the road, reached back to grab the radio,
and threw it out the window. Pulling back onto the road then, he let out a
satisfied sigh. Helena turned to look out her window, and brought a hand up to
her face to hide her smile.
“That was just a bit extreme, don’t you think?”
Nikolas asked.
“Look,” Daniel said agitated, “I need you two to
get the Ice Princess, but you don’t have to be in perfect health for that. And
if you want your little brother to live after the Ice Princess is in my hands,
you both better behave. Now just lay down and sleep before I kill you.”
“It might be for the best if you both did get some
rest.” Helena said. She was proud that both of the boys were standing up to
Daniel and not being threatened by him, but she was afraid they were pushing
him a little too far.
Lucky and Nikolas decided they had annoyed Daniel
enough for now, so they listened to Helena and laid down.
“Don’t be nice to them Helena, they won’t learn to
obey you.” Daniel said sternly.
“There is no need to be grumpy towards them.” She
replied.
Daniel looked at her suspiciously. “I hope your
not turning soft on me here. Why didn’t you hear the boys get out when Laura
and Alexis tried to get them back?”
Helena smiled at him sweetly. “Well, my dear, I
hate to admit it, but I am older than I used to be and my hearing is not as
good. Add that to the fact that I was being entertained by what an idiot you
looked like trying to fix the van, I was sufficiently distracted. Besides, I
thought you had everything under control.” This seemed to shut Daniel up, and
Helena leaned back happily.
In the back, Lucky watched them amused. He
wondered if it was unhealthy to get so much entertainment out of being
kidnapped. But after the disappointment of not getting away earlier, he and
Nikolas had to be light hearted in order not to fall apart. Glancing down at
the floor, he saw Daniel’s gun. Unable to drive with it in his hand, he must of
thought it would be close enough by his feet. He slightly nudged Nikolas’
shoulder, and pointed it out to him. Lucky turned over onto his back.
“You know, Nikolas, this is just like a slumber party,
isn’t it?” He said nonchalantly.
“Yeah, I guess it is.” Nikolas replied, wondering
what Lucky was getting at.
“Yep.” Lucky repeated. He sat up and punched his
pillow a few times. “You two ever been to a slumber party?” Lucky asked to
Helena and Daniel.
“I don’t believe I know what you are talking
about.” Helena said.
“You don’t know what a slumber party is?” Nikolas
asked, sounding surprised. “That’s too bad, they’re a lot of fun. It’s a pajama
party where everyone stays up all night.”
“If everyone stays up, how can it be called a
slumber party?” Daniel asked.
“Well, you’d have to go to one to really
understand.” Lucky said. “There are all kinds of rituals.” He gave Nikolas a
look, and they prepared themselves.
“What kind of rituals?” Daniel asked
“Scary movies, truth or dare, pillow fights.”
Lucky rambled, as he and Nikolas suddenly sprang to their feet and hit Daniel
with their pillows. Unable to see, Daniel swerved of the road, and the van hit
a tree. The impact threw them all off balance, making Daniel unable to fight
back yet. Lucky dropped to his knees and grabbed the gun. Helena tried to get
it away from him, and was rewarded with a sound smack in the face from Nikolas’
pillow. Daniel got up from his seat and lunged at Nikolas. Helena rummaged in
the glove compartment for anther gun. They were all stopped by the sound of a
gunshot breaking through the windshield. Lucky stood with the gun, frantically
pointing it back and forth between Helena and Daniel. Taking a moment, while
everyone was still surprised, he composed himself.
“Give me the other gun.” He said to Helena. He got
no resistance from her. “You.” He continued, pointing to Daniel. “Let him up.”
Daniel slid back, and Nikolas stood up, and walked over to his brother’s side.
“What do you two think your going to do?” Daniel
asked. “We’re in the middle of no where. Hand over the guns now, and I’ll
forget all about this whole incident.”
“No such luck.” Lucky said, smiling. “Or no such
lucky, pun intended. We’ll be fine, thank you.” He handed the other gun over to
Nikolas, and hoped no one noticed how hard he was shaking. Opening up the
driver’s door, the boys climbed over the seat and out of the van. Lucky shot
both of the front tires, and then he and Nikolas took off running down the road.
Daniel looked after them and cursed under his breath. Taking out his cell
phone, he quickly called some of his guards. He wasn’t giving up yet.
Chapter 29
Nikolas was trying desperately to keep up with
Lucky. They had been running for forever it seemed, but probably just a few
minutes in reality. Looking behind his shoulder, he didn’t see anyone following
them. He reached out and grabbed Lucky’s arms, and brought them both to a stop.
“Do you think it’s possible to just start walking
at a brisk pace now?” Nikolas asked between breaths. “There’s no way they could
get that van to move, and I doubt Daniel or Helena are marathon runners.”
Lucky let out a small nervous chuckle as he
swallowed hard and tried to make words come out. It proved impossible, though.
He just nodded at Nikolas. Then he smiled at him broadly. All he could think
about was that they had gotten away. He chuckled again, longer, than he was
laughing as hard as he could. Tears came to his eyes, and soon Nikolas was
worried he had become hysterical.
“Lucky, are you okay?” He asked. Walking over, he
laid a hand on Lucky’s shoulder, which his brother pulled around him, hugging
him. Nikolas stood there awkwardly for a few seconds, than smiled and embraced
his brother back. They had gotten over their feud for a while now. It might
have taken forever, but they had even eventually become friends and cared about
each other. But Nikolas knew now this moment had changed them even more. Now
they were brothers, in every sense of the word. He realized blood had little to
do with it.
Pulling back, he laughed as he messed up Lucky’s
hair, and they continued walking down the road. “So what do we do now?” Nikolas
asked. “We’re pretty much out of danger, but Daniel was right. We’re in the
middle of nowhere.”
Lucky nodded. “Well, we need to keep moving, just
in case. Daniel will have people coming after us, but Dad and Mom and Stefan
should get to us before then.” He replied. Your medallion has a tracking device
in it too, so they know right where we are. They were probably only about ten
minutes behind Daniel’s van, so I guess we just keep walking and wait for them
to come.”
Nikolas took his medallion off and dangled it
between him and Lucky. “Well then, they should know that we’re both really
hungry.” He said, grinning wickedly at Lucky. “And we expect a four star meal
when they get us, and rooms in the finest hotel they can find.”
Lucky smiled, and played along. “Yep, and don’t
forget we want to be waited on hand and foot for the rest of our lives.”
Stefan, Alexis, Luke, and Laura all cried and
laughed as they listened to Lucky and Nikolas making their demands more
extravagant and ridiculous.
Luke looked at Laura with a sparkle in his eyes.
“They did it babe, they did it all on their own.” Smiling back at him through
her tears, Laura slid over and rested her head on his shoulder. In the front,
Alexis put her hand over Stefan’s on the wheel as she got out her cell phone
and called Jason. She told him how Lucky and Nikolas had gotten free, laughing
over how their rituals from the slumber party had helped. On the other end she
could hear Liz and Emily screaming and jumping up and down, and Jason telling
them to sit down and put their seat belts on. She put the phone away happily,
and they all sat impatiently as they drove to the boys, none of them able to
take the smile of their face.
Ten minutes later, Lucky and Nikolas lay crouched
in the ditch as they watched two vans approaching. The moment they were sure it
wasn’t Daniel; they ran to their parents. They had all barely gotten out of the
van before they were giving hugs all around. In the ecstatic confusion of
everyone going from one person to another, Stefan found himself hugging Luke.
Both quickly pulled back and walked away, trying not to acknowledge it, but
everyone saw and were in stitches.
After a few minutes, Luke looked anxiously down
the road. “Look, I don’t want to break up the reunion here, but we need to get
going before we get spotted.” He said, and everyone agreed. Not wanting to let
her sons out of her site, Laura insisted they ride in the first van with her.
Liz and Emily were sad to not be able to stay with Lucky and Nikolas, but knew
they needed to spend time with their parents. To even the passenger numbers a
little, Alexis rode with the girls and Jason. Laura shooed Luke and Stefan up
front, and rode content in the back between her sons, holding a hand of each.
Soon all three of them were asleep, the boys leaning their heads on each of
Laura’s shoulders. Quietly, Luke picked up Laura’s camera and took a picture of
them.
“Laura will treasure that picture.” Luke explained
to Stefan. “She always liked sentimental stuff like that.” Stefan only smiled.
“All right, I kinda think it’s cute too.” Luke sighed. “Give me a break, I just
got my son back.” Stefan smiled wider and kept on driving.
“Sir, I’m sorry, but it appears the boys have been
picked up by their parents.”
Daniel frowned at the news told to him by one of
his guards. “That at least means you have an idea of where they are, right?” He
asked.
“Um, not exactly.” The guard said, shifting
uneasily. “We saw them all getting into the vans, but then, well, my men were
not trained enough to keep up with them. They were experts at losing people.”
“Of course they are experts, you idiot. They lost
people for a living for ten years!” Daniel paced back and forth. “Wait a
minute, you said two vans?” He stopped pacing and looked at the window. When he
spoke again, it was more to himself than to his guard. “I suppose it would be
more comfortable with four adults and two children if they had two vans. But
the boys would want to stay together, and I doubt either Cassadine or Spencer
would stand for being in a different vehicle. Alexis might, but Stefan and Luke
and Laura would stay near their sons. So, then, who is in that other van?” A
small, mischievous smile spread across his face. “Who indeed?” He repeated, as
he turned to face his guard. “Please tell Helena to come see me at once. I have
a few plans to run over with her.” The guard nodded and left, as Daniel sat
down and chuckled to himself.
Chapter 30
Early the next morning, the Spencer’s,
Cassadine’s, and friends piled into yet another emergency safe house. They all
collapsed into chairs or couches. Luke checked his watch.
“Well, why don’t we all get some sleep for a few
hours, then we’ll plan what we do next.” He said.
“Next?” Nikolas asked.
“Ya. Sorry kid, but as much as we all want it to
be, this isn’t over yet. We know why Helena and Nikolas took you, but that
won’t stop them from coming after you again. We’ll have to beat them at their
own game if we want any peace.” Luke replied.
Nikolas nodded, and then looked over at Liz and
Emily. “I’m sorry we got you two involved in this.” He said.
“Don’t be.” Emily said. “If I wasn’t here, I’d be going
out of my mind with worry. This way, I get to have a little adventure, while I
drive my family crazy.”
“It’s still dangerous for you to be here.” Lucky
said. “Dad, is there a possibility that Liz and Emily could go home before
something happens?”
“Lucky, we don’t want to go!” Liz exclaimed. “I
know you don’t want us to get hurt, but we feel the same way. We have to be
here to know what’s happening.”
“Well, I’m going to have to side with the girls on
this one.” Luke said. “By now, the Quartermaine's and Audrey have alerted the
police to your absence. I know you each called home once, but I doubt letting
Edward know that his granddaughter is off on another adventure with the
Spencer’s put him at ease much. So, if Helena is smart, and I have to admit she
is, she knows your both gone. It won’t take her long to figure out where you
are and who you are with. I’m sorry to say this, but that means that you both
are targets.”
Lucky sighed, and leaned his head against the
couch. “So what do we do to get this all over with for good?”
“I believe I have the answer to that one.” Stefan
said. “We must take away the so called ‘trophy’ that is won by whoever has
control of both of you boys. Which means we go on to Polk, and get the Ice
Princess before Helena or Daniel can.”
Helena stared out the window of her hotel room.
She turned when she heard the door open, and frowned at Daniel. “I’m surprised
you have the nerve to show your face.” She said coldly. “A man of your
reputation should know better than to leave his gun by his feet.”
Daniel walked forward, standing face to face with
Helena. “And a woman of yours should not let mistakes of her employees ruin her
plans.”
“My plans?” My employee? I’m sorry, but I thought
you said time and again that you were in charge now, and you would someday
‘rule’ the Cassadine’s.” Helena replied. “So what are you saying now? Since we
have messed up, suddenly you don’t want to be responsible for everything?”
“My dear, I have not messed up. You maybe, by
letting the control of your family slip through your fingers. But I have just
run into a snag. This will all be made up for soon. Not only will I get the
boys back, but they will come to me on their own.” Daniel said.
“How in the world do you plan on accomplishing
that?” Helena asked.
“Simply by changing my targets. To catch the prey,
you just need the right bait.” With that said, Daniel turned and walked out of
her room. Helena stared after him with contempt. They may all have the
impression that she had gone soft at the moment, but she would never lose sight
of her number one goal. She would rule the Cassadine family.
“So how far away is Polk?” Alexis asked, as she
and Laura looked over a map of Colorado.
“Well, we drove a lot last night, so it should
only be about six hours from here.” Laura replied. “If we take off soon, we
should be there by nightfall. Then we can check in somewhere, and get the Ice
Princess tomorrow morning.”
Alexis nodded, then looked up at Stefan. “So, once
we get the ‘trophy’, how do we keep Helena and Daniel from still trying to take
it and the boys away from us?”
“It shouldn’t be that hard, actually.” Stefan
replied. “Once we get back to Port Charles, we can press charges against both
of them. Not only for taking Nikolas and Lucky this time, but for kidnapping
Lucky before, too. Helena would have had to get custody of them before, in
order to become head of the family. She probably would have bribed a few
judges, but that won’t even work if the boys testify against her. Since they
are in our care, she can’t keep that from happening. So it’s just a time race,
really. We need to get back to Port Charles and get Lucky and Nikolas on the
stand, before she is able to grab them again and keep them quiet.”
“I wish we could find some other way, though. It
was hard enough for Lucky to open up to us, but how can he repeat all that in a
court room?” Laura asked.
Luke squeezed her shoulder. “It will be hard,
babe, but he’s strong. We’ll be there to support him, and he’ll get through
it.”
“Speaking of them, where are they?” Jason asked.
“They’re outside talking with the girls.” Alexis
replied. “I think it would be nice if we gave them about an hour to relax
before we took off. This might be the only break they have for awhile.”
The others agreed, and they sat to eat lunch.
Jason grabbed four extra sandwiches, and went outside to join the teens. They
talked casually for a while, joking and laughing, until curiosity got the best
of Liz.
“What happens after we get the Ice Princess?” She
asked, unknowingly echoing Alexis' words. Jason explained that they would have
to press charges against them, trying to make it sound easier than it would be.
“That means I’ll have to get up on the stand,
then, doesn’t it?” Lucky asked, a little pale.
“Yes, it does.” Jason said sympathetically. “But
don’t worry. I have a few friends, and I’ll make sure it’s closed to the
public. The story will still probably get out to the papers, but I’ll just beat
up anyone who says anything to you, all right?”
Lucky smiled and nodded his head. “It will all be
worth it to get Helena and Daniel behind bars, right?”
Nikolas laughed. “Yeah, can you imagine Helena in
stripes?”
They all chuckled, but they were still a little uneasy. They were all in for quite a ride.