CircleDance -- chapter 27&28 (JB)
by Jan on February 19, 19100 at 13:08:40:
Good afternoon, angels! This continues my J&B adaptation of Linda Lael Miller’s “That Other Katherine,” and Tina Wainscott’s novel, “On the Way to Heaven.” Previously, Brenda hired private investigator Anna Devane and learned that Sonny had probably engineered her murder so he could become engaged to Lily Rivera. Brenda is the only one who knows where there is proof that Sonny has ties to the mob. When Jax was called unexpectedly to Gstaad on business, Brenda decided to go by herself and get the proof so that Jax can sever ties with Sonny. I’ll be doing several consecutive chapters of CD since they will all be building to the story’s climax. Your feedback is most appreciated. -------------- Jan
Chapter 27
Trouble Jacks came racing into Jax and Brenda’s bedroom. He almost tripped twice over his long, floppy ears. The black leather sling-back sandal he held in his teeth weighed him down for only a second as he raced to a spot near Jax and Brenda’s bed.
Brenda appeared in the doorway only seconds later. She pointed at Trouble, who had planted his rear under the bed. Only his chest and front paws still showed, along with the half-gnawed shoe, which he placed temptingly on the floor in front of him. “Trouble……” Brenda crooned, tiptoeing towards the bed. “Give mommy back her shoe……”
Trouble yipped softly. As he panted, more drool dripped down in the shoe, causing Brenda to cringe. But for the moment, the dog didn’t move.
“That’s a goooooood doggie.” Brenda tried to keep a pleasant expression on her face as she drew nearer to the canine commando. “Just a few more steps and then I’ll have my shoe back and I won’t have to turn you into cockapoo stew…….”
Brenda’s hand was only inches away from her shoe when Trouble sprang. He barked loudly, causing Brenda to startle and lose concentration. That split second was all it took for Trouble to grab the shoe again and disappear totally under the bed.
Brenda sputtered angrily and dropped to her knees next to the bed. “Trouble Jacks!! You come back out here right now, do you hear me?” She slapped the floor twice with her flat hand for emphasis.
“Did dat dog get to his hideout with one of your shoes again, Mrs. Brenda?” Brenda didn’t move from her position on her hands and knees but swung her head around to glare at Thomas. He was leaning against the doorjamb lazily with his arms crossed. “You want me to get you a rake from the pool guy? Maybe you can pull some of Trouble’s loot out from under the center of the bed with it……”
Brenda pushed herself up to a kneeling position and clapped her hands together briskly to dust them off. “You know, you have to admit one thing – that dog is brilliant. The bed is so big and I’m so short that there’s no way my arms are long enough to reach him when he’s right in the center.” She extended her lower lip to puff at her hair, which had fallen in her eyes. “And since Trouble hasn’t taken a fancy to Jax’s shoes in a while, I can’t expect any help from him…..”
Thomas walked into the room. “You want me to try?” He bent his knees a little, looking under the bed. “I’ve got longer arms than you, and God only knows what that dog has got under there.”
Brenda rose to her feet and pushed her hair back off her face. “No, Thomas, that’s OK.” She glanced towards the two open Louis Vuitton suitcases on the bed. “I really don’t need that shoe and I should finish packing if I want to make my flight.”
Thomas folded his arms again and a stern look came over his face. “I guess I don’t need to tell you again that I think this is a bad idea, Mrs. Brenda.”
Brenda grimaced and grabbed some folded silk shirts from the bed. “No, you don’t. You’ve already made that perfectly clear.” Thomas remained rooted in place. When Brenda saw his obstinate stance, she sighed and went over to him. “But Thomas, I just can’t tell Jax about this trip.”
She hadn’t even told Thomas about all the details of her plan. As soon as she had made the decision, she decided that the sooner she left for Port Charles, the sooner she could be back in Malibu. Jax would be none the wiser and she would have the information to convince him to sever ties with the mobster. Brenda put her hands on Thomas’s folded arms gently but he just snorted and looked off towards the French doors.
“Batting those big brown eyes of yours ain’t gonna change my mind, no it ain’t, Mrs. Brenda.” He sighed. “ Now, I’m not gonna ask what you’re doing.” He looked back to stare deeply into her eyes. “Cause your aura is still nice and pink and pretty, so I don’t think it’s anything that would hurt Mr. Jax or Master Jon.” He narrowed one eye and raised the eyebrow above it. “But Mister Jax, he can’t see your aura like I can, and he might get the wrong idea if he comes back and you’re not here…….”
Brenda patted his arm for reassurance. “Well, that’s all the more reason I should get going! That way I can get my business finished and be back before Mr. Jax gets home from Gstaad!” She leaned up and kissed Thomas on the cheek. “But I appreciate your concern – really I do!”
Thomas sighed again and then turned and went back to the door. “I’m gonna check on your taxicab, Mrs. Brenda. You call me if you need anything.”
“I will, Thomas, and thank you.” Brenda watched until he left the room and then sighed loudly. She turned back to the bed in time to see Trouble’s pink nose and the tips of his paws. “Well, you little scavenger, did you decide to give Mommy back her shoe?” She crept up to the bed but as soon as she got near enough to grab the dog, he disappeared into his hideout again. “I thought so,” she hissed, putting her hands on her hips.
Brenda glanced down at her wristwatch. “Dummit! I’d better get going or I’ll never make that plane!” She looked around frantically and started quickly packing up the rest of the clothing that was neatly stacked on the bed. When she heard a noise at the door, she didn’t turn around but just called out, “If that’s the cab, Thomas, just tell them that I’ll be there in a few seconds. I’m almost finished packing……”
There was a five-second pause before Brenda heard another voice from the door. “I can see that for myself.”
She straightened up and spun around, her face completely drained of color. “Jax!” He was standing in the doorway, his suit coat slung over one shoulder and his tie pulled un-knotted but still around his neck. The hurt look of betrayal in his eyes made her feel nauseated. “You…….you’re back early……”
Jax walked slowly into the room. “Our meeting broke up early, but I decided to just fly home and surprise you.” He peered around her at the suitcases on the bed. “Looks like *I’m* the one who got the surprise instead,” he added bitterly.
“Now, Jax, don’t go jumping to all the wrong conclusions.” {You can’t tell him the truth. First of all, he would never believe you. And second, Jax has such a white-knight complex that he would insist on coming along. You just have to make up some plausible story that he’ll believe to buy you a few days alone in Port Charles.}
“OK.” Jax crossed his arms and stared at her pointedly. “Then tell me what conclusions I *can* jump to.” He nodded towards the suitcases. “Taking a little trip?”
“Actually…….YES!!” Brenda quickly turned back to the suitcases and threw in her makeup case as she spoke. “Lois and I found out about this wonderful new punk rock group that’s performing back east.” She zipped up one suitcase and turned back to him with a broad smile. “I was going to tell you about it on the phone, honey, but it’s really not that big of a deal.”
“Really?” Jax didn’t change position.
“Really!” Brenda walked over to place her flat hands on his chest. “We just need to listen to a few sets and then talk them into signing with L&B…….” She shrugged her shoulders and smiled innocently. “It shouldn’t take more than two or three days, tops. I thought I could get it all taken care of and get back before you missed me!”
Jax returned her smile, making Brenda suspicious. “Well then, since I’m back early, why don’t I just come along, sweetie?” He pulled her into his arms but Brenda noticed that his embrace was not as warm as usual. “You know how much fun we had on that last little trip we took together.” His voice dropped to a low, suggestive tone.
Brenda pushed him away to go back to the bed. “Oh, honey, I thought about waiting until you got back so we could go together, but I know how much you hate all that loud punk music.” She threw a bathrobe into the other suitcase and zipped it shut, too. “You said it gives you a headache.”
“So then why are you so intent on signing this particular group to L&B?” Jax’s frown appeared earnest. “Hard rock isn’t exactly your usual stock and trade.”
She shrugged and smiled brightly. “Diversify! Isn’t that what you’re always telling me? That it’s a brilliant business tactic?!”
Jax’s eyes turned cold as ice. “Brilliant in business, but not in real life.” He sighed and stared down at the floor. “Jerry just told me on the phone before I left Gstaad that he was taking Lois to the Riviera for a few days since there was nothing important on the horizon for L&B.” Brenda tried not to let the horror of being caught in the lie show on her face. “You’re busted, Brenda. I know there’s no punk rock group – no L&B contract to be signed.”
“Jax……” Brenda went over and tried to put her hand on his arm but he pulled away. “It’s not what you think……”
She gasped aloud when he grabbed her arm tightly instead. “Then tell me what it *is*, Brenda. The truth this time.” He pulled her against him and bent towards her until her face was only inches from his.
Tears gathered in her eyes. “I…….I can’t, Jax.” His grip on her arm relaxed and she stepped away from him. “I just……..I have to do something, but it doesn’t have anything to do with us…….”
“It’s Miguel, isn’t it?” The pain in Jax’s voice sliced through Brenda like a knife. “First you convinced me to let him off scot-free, and now you’re going to join him – wherever he’s hiding……”
Brenda rushed over to grab Jax’s arms. “No, Jax! I swear that’s not it!”
“Then tell me, Brenda!! Tell me what’s so trucking important that you have to sneak away without me knowing about it!”
Brenda reached up to cup the side of Jax’s face lovingly but he flinched at her touch. “Jax, I told you that I changed after Jon was born, and you know it’s been true. I *haven’t* lied to you…….I’ve been faithful to you……God, I LOVE you, and *only* you, Jax! How many times do I have to prove it to you?”
“Then why can’t you prove it to me now?” he whispered. “Why can’t you just tell me where you’re going?”
Brenda’s lower lip trembled. “Jax……..I *swear* I’ll tell you the truth about everything after I get back.” She took a shaky breath. “But for right now, you’ll just have to trust me.”
Jax’s eyes flared slightly and he pulled away from her. “Trust you?” He nodded his head. “Like I trusted you about the dog?” He backed up a few steps with each phrase. “And about the sister I never knew you had? And about letting a homicidal maniac get off with a slap on the wrist for almost killing us both?” Jax’s voice shook with barely-controlled rage. “I’d say I’ve MORE than proven myself in the trust department, Brenda. I think you OWE me the truth on this one.”
“And I WILL tell you the truth, Jax…….” The sound of a car horn outside made her jump. Then she exhaled softly and her lips set in a grim line. “As soon as I get back.” Brenda turned around and grabbed the suitcases off the bed. “That’s my cab – I’m going to miss my flight if I don’t go now.”
She brushed past him on her way out of the bedroom. Jax didn’t say a word until she was almost out of the room. “Brenda!” She froze but didn’t look back at him. “If you leave now – like this, with no explanation……” Brenda turned back to him, her eyes wide with the unasked question. Jax stared down at the floor as he finished his statement. “…….I’m not sure…….” He cleared his throat. “I just can’t do this again.”
“What are you saying, Jax?” Brenda whispered.
When he looked up at her, Brenda saw the tears in his eyes. “Don’t worry about rushing back anytime soon. There won’t be anything here for you to come back to.”
It hurt for her to breathe. Brenda felt like someone was wrapping steel bands around her chest and pulling them as tight as possible. “Then I’ll just have to take that chance,” she whispered fiercely. “Because I know that I love you, Jasper Jacks. And I think that down deep, you know that, too!”
Brenda was running down the hallway with her suitcases when she heard the car horn again. She was about to go out the front door when she heard it – the sound of crashing crystal coming from their bedroom, followed by a wail of human anguish she hoped to never hear again in any lifetime.
***********************
“Excuse me, Miss? Can I get you anything else?”
Brenda looked up from her steaming cup of coffee into the face of a matronly woman. {Yeah, Ruby – I’d like one of your famous cheeseburgers. You know, with the lettuce and tomato, and the dill pickle spear on the side. And the crinkle cut fries that I would dunk in the mayonnaise. The ones I used to eat it every day for lunch when I lived here. And you would tease me about how I was the only customer you had who could eat your cheeseburgers and fries every day and never gain an ounce.} “No,” Brenda replied weakly, “I’m fine for now, thank you.”
Brenda hadn’t felt much like eating ever since leaving Malibu the day before. All she kept hearing was the sound of Jax’s voice as she left. She had checked into the Port Charles Hotel but had lain awake all night. The one advantage to that was having plenty of time to formulate her plan to find the proof of Sonny’s guilt and get back to Jax as quick as was humanly possible.
{You have to get into Sonny’s penthouse. He probably still keeps all of his paperwork there. And you can’t just waltz over there uninvited. You’ll have to lay some groundwork – get him to invite you over there. So first, you have to meet him somewhere…….} It didn’t take long for Brenda to decide that the best place to run into someone in Port Charles was Kelly’s Diner.
Brenda had spent many an hour in Kelly’s when she was Brenda Barrett. Sonny had even met her there for lunch many times. She had to hide the tight feeling in her chest when she saw the proprietor, Ruby again……the feeling that she just wanted to run to Ruby and throw her arms around her and confess who she “really” was. But of course, Ruby would have thought that she was crazy. Even now, the sound of Ruby’s voice made the butterflies in Brenda’s stomach stop fluttering. “Are you sure I can’t talk you into some of my chili?” Ruby grinned, and then blushed slightly. “I like to think that it’s the best in town.”
“And she’s right.” A male voice came from over Ruby’s shoulder. When the buxom woman moved to the side, Sonny appeared at her elbow. “You won’t find anything finer up and down the entire East Coast than Ruby’s chili.”
{Bingo.} Brenda tried to contain her excitement and gave Sonny a coy smile. “Why, Mr. Corinthos! What a surprise!”
Sonny showed enough teeth to attract every dentist in the county. “Mrs. Jacks,” he nodded, extending a hand. He pointed back over his shoulder towards the door with his free hand while grasping Brenda’s fingers firmly with the other. “I *thought* that maybe it was you when I came in the door.” Brenda finally tugged gently and got her hand back. “But I thought that you and Jaaaaaasper had gone back to the West Coast……some crisis in Gstaad he had to handle?”
It was killing Brenda on the inside, but she managed to return Sonny’s smile. “That’s true……” She waved her hand with annoyance. “Although after a while, they *all* seem to be crises. The only thing that changes is the name. Gstaad……Hong Kong……Manhattan…..” She put on her best “oops-I-shouldn’t-have-said-that” face and then waved towards the empty chair opposite her own. “But here I am, going on about my own problems, while you’re just standing there. Won’t you join me?”
The lights inside Kelly’s gave Sonny’s hair an oilier-than-usual sheen. “I’d be delighted,” he crooned, sliding into the vacant chair. He glanced up at Ruby, who was still standing next to the table, waiting for his order. “Why don’t you just bring me a cup of coffee for now, Ruby.” He looked up at Brenda and raised one eyebrow in a slightly suggestive manner. “And then, maybe later I can convince Mrs. Jacks to be brave enough to share some of your wonderful chili with me.”
Ruby nodded and left them alone. Now that her plan was actually going to be set in motion, Brenda found herself more nervous than ever. {What if Sonny doesn’t invite me to dinner? What if he’s really not the slimeball that I think he is? How will I ever manage to get into his penthouse? I *have* to get that proof. If I go back without it……..after the way I left Jax………if he’s still there when I get back…….}
When Sonny opened his mouth to speak, Brenda’s fears were put to rest. “Sooooo, Mrs. Jacks…….it must be difficult for you…..being trapped at home with a new baby while your husband’s off gallivanting around the world in the name of business…..”
{And I’ll just bet you’re willing to hold my hand and make it better, aren’t you?} Brenda sighed theatrically and stirred her coffee with her spoon. “Yes. I thought that maybe the baby would make a difference, you know…..that Jax would stay home more with us, particularly when it was a son.” Beneath the table, she stabbed the spiked heel of one shoe into the toe of her other foot until it drew tears. Tears that looked like the anguished tears of a neglected wife to Sonny. “But it doesn’t seem to be making a difference, and when I found myself trapped in that house alone with the baby, and then he just kept crying and crying……”
Sonny placed his hand over Brenda’s and leaned towards her. “I’m so sorry, Brenda.” When Brenda lifted her eyes to stare into Sonny’s, she knew he could see the tears threatening to spill out and down her cheeks. Sonny had always had a soft spot for a crying woman. He grinned at her lewdly. “You don’t mind if I call you Brenda, do you?”
She sniffed loudly – again, for show. “Of course not – Sonny.” Brenda turned her hand over to gently clasp his. “You know, I was really hoping that I might find you when I came back here.” She batted her eyes at him. “I never exactly got that tour of the city that you promised me.”
They sprang apart when Ruby suddenly appeared with two cups of coffee. The matronly woman smiled at Sonny but then as soon as she turned her back and bustled away, Sonny reached for Brenda’s hand again. “I’d love to make good on that offer, Brenda. Are you free tomorrow afternoon?”
Brenda’s heart sank. “What about today?” She was embarrassed to act so brazen, but she didn’t want to take any longer than necessary in getting the information she needed.
Sonny grimaced and let go of her hand. “Unfortunately, I have some business appointments this afternoon that can’t be postponed at this late date.” He smiled and winked at her again. “Had I known that you were going to be in town earlier, of course, I would have re-scheduled them.”
{Same song, different verse. Business appointments that can’t be postponed. Translation – mob powwows with other murderers and general sleazebags.} Brenda sat back and folded her hands demurely. “Of course – I understand completely, Sonny.” She batted her eyes again until she thought her eyelashes would fall off into her coffee. “An important man like yourself must have a lot of contacts to keep up with.”
Sonny preened at the compliment. He shrugged his shoulders and stared down into his coffee. “Well, I don’t know about that…….” Then he smiled at Brenda. “But you never answered my question about tomorrow afternoon….”
“Tomorrow afternoon would be excellent.” Brenda leaned forward, her coat falling open to reveal the low-cut blouse she had worn specifically in hopes of running into Sonny. “But I have to warn you that sightseeing often makes me very………hungry…..”
She followed Sonny’s eyes as they stared down into her cleavage and then came back up again. “Hungry?”
Brenda fought rising waves of nausea as she slid one foot up the side of Sonny’s leg. “Ravenous.”
Sonny’s eyes widened and he shifted in his seat uncomfortably before smiling at her again. “Then perhaps we should plan on dinner following the tour…….”
Brenda sat back in her chair but still kept her foot at Sonny’s ankle, rubbing it intermittently. “I like the sound of that.”
“Good.” He nodded and his eyes sparkled with lust. “I’ll make reservations at a place I know near here. It has excellent cuisine and the staff is very…….discreet.” He chuckled a little. “We like to call it “the no-name.””
At first, Brenda was disappointed. She had hoped Sonny would invite her to his penthouse for dinner. While he was preparing the main course, she planned to find the incriminating evidence and sneak out before she became the dessert. But after seeing the look of animal lust in his eyes, Brenda decided that maybe eating in a semi-public place was better after all. She wasn’t sure she could fend him off for an entire meal in the event that she wasn’t able to find all of the evidence immediately. And the less time she had to spend with him alone, the better.
Brenda rose from her chair and extended her hand to Sonny elegantly. “I’ll be looking forward to tomorrow afternoon then – Sonny.”
Sonny’s eyes darted around the semi-deserted diner. Once he was sure that nobody was looking, he placed a quick kiss on the back of Brenda’s hand. “So will I – Brenda.”
She couldn’t resist. The temptation had been there ever since she first lay eyes on him again as Brenda Jacks. While looking deeply into his eyes, she leaned down and whispered near his ear, “The plans for tomorrow just sound so…….amazing.”
Even before Brenda straightened up again, she could see Sonny’s body flinch. She fought the triumphant grin that threatened to erupt when she saw the pallor wash over Sonny’s face. She knew that using that word would get a reaction from Sonny. It was Brenda Barrett’s favorite word – and she had said it *exactly* the way “she” used to say it.
Before he could say another word, Brenda winked at him. “I’ll meet you on the docks around two tomorrow, Sonny.” She breezed out of Kelly’s, a spring to her step and her head held high. Hopefully, in 30 hours, she could say goodbye to Port Charles – and Sonny Corinthos – for the last time.
******************
“OK, there, little man…….” Jax bounced Jon on his hip and paced across the bedroom floor once again. He glanced down at the carpet once, surprised that he didn’t see a path worn there. Narrowing one eye, he held his unhappy young son up so that their gazes met. “You hardly slept at all last night, you woke up at 5:30 this morning, you only took a 45 minute nap since then……” Jax sighed loudly. “Frankly, my little friend, you’re going to kill me if you keep this up.”
Jon’s lower lip quivered for about three seconds before he cut loose again with a wail that made Jax’s eardrums quiver. “OK, OK – I get the picture. You’re not happy.” Jax shifted Jon over his shoulder and tried massaging his back with a sigh. “Welcome to the club.”
how was I to know, I’d miss you so
loneliness up ahead
emptyness behind
where do I go
from the bottom of my broken heart
there’s a thing or two I’d like you to know
you were my first love
you were my true love
Jax paced the master bedroom a few more times, but Jon was still fretful. When he passed the large bed, Jax eyed it longingly. He chewed on his lower lip, glanced back towards Jon’s crib, and then looked over the baby’s shoulder at his brimming blue eyes. “You know, I’m *not* supposed to do this. Your grandma Jane will probably tell me you’ll be warped for life because I did this…….” Jon sobbed loudly again. “But grandma Jane’s not here, and I am,” Jax growled with determination.
Holding Jon tight against his chest, Jax went to the bed and sat down gingerly. He kicked off his shoes, scooted back further on the bed, and then eased himself down to a prone position with Jon still in his arms. When the baby seemed to quiet a little, Jax slowly reached out with his right hand to grab Brenda’s pillow. Just as he suspected – her scent lingered on the pillowcase. Honeysuckle and jasmine teased his nostrils, making the ache in Jax’s heart only grow larger.
from the bottom of my broken heart
even though time may find me somebody new
you were my real love
I never knew love
‘til there was you………
Jax fought the memories that crowded their way into his brain. He stuffed the pillow next to his right side, and then shifted Jon to the crook of his right arm. The baby wriggled around a few seconds, but then his entire body seemed to relax when he caught his mother’s scent. “Sssshhhhhh,” Jax whispered. He lay his head back on his own pillow and closed his eyes. The baby nuzzled his face into Jax’s chest and clutched his shirt. Jax opened one eye just in time to see Jon lose his valiant battle with Mr. Sandman.
Father and son had slept peacefully for about an hour when Jax woke up with a start. He looked around in confusion for the source of the noise, but then grimaced when he saw Trouble sitting in the doorway of the master bedroom. From the glint in his eye, the way his tail was wagging, and the red rubber ball he held in his mouth, Jax realized the awful truth: the canine member of the Jacks family had slept like a rock the night before and was ready to play.
“Ssshhhhhh….” Jax slipped his left finger up to his lips in an attempt to prevent Trouble from waking the finally-sleeping baby. Trouble whimpered softly and waggled his rear end, still anxious to play. Jax glanced once towards Jon and then back at the dog. “Mommy’s not here to play with you, you little stinker,” he whispered. “Go find Thomas and make *his* life h*ll for a while.”
Trouble cocked his head to the side for a few seconds, but then walked slowly over to the bed. “What the bloody h*ll…….” Jax frowned and tried to lean over the side of the bed as Trouble disappeared from his sight underneath it. Looking back towards Jon, Jax gingerly slipped his right arm from beneath the sleeping baby. Jon made some soft baby noises but then re-adjusted himself on Brenda’s pillow and drifted back into a deep sleep.
Just as Jax swung his long legs out of the bed, Trouble re-appeared from beneath it. He proudly trotted about three feet away from the bed and turned back to face Jax, tightly holding a trophy in his teeth: Brenda’s black sling-back sandal. Jax frowned but then shook his head. “You little devil,” he murmured. “I’ll bet Brenda’s been looking all over for that shoe.”
As Jax reached out to take the shoe away, Trouble dropped it and scampered back under the bed. Jax rose from the bed and crouched down next to it, lifting the dust ruffle to peer into the darkness. “What *are* you doing under there, you little scoundrel?” Trouble’s head re-appeared a few seconds later. This time, he held one of Jax’s brown cashmere socks in his teeth. Jax swore softly. “THAT’S where that sock went!” He grabbed it away and Trouble yipped happily, diving back into the darkness for more loot.
Jax got down on his hands and knees and put his head to the floor. “If you don’t bring me everything you’ve got stashed in there, you little scamp, there’ll be no more doggie yummies for you!!” he growled. Trouble liked this new game and proceeded to bring out several more of Jax’s socks, one of Jon’s un-used disposable diapers, Thomas’s blue oven mitt, and an assortment of Brenda’s shoes.
Early during the “confession,” Jax had sat down on the floor next to the bed, propping his back against the mattress. He folded his legs Indian style in front of him and tried to carefully sort the various items as they appeared. Most of them drew a smile – the disposable diaper, completely soaked with doggy drool, rated a scowl – but it was when Jax was going through Brenda’s shoes that he found it.
It was stuffed inside the toe of one of her high heels. Jax had tossed the shoe off to the side but when the crumpled piece of paper fell out, he frowned and reached for it. Trouble pounced towards the paper but Jax shooed him away with a frown. “What’ve you got here, boy?” He grimaced as he unfolded it. “Yuck – it’s soaked with doggie spit, too. Probably nothing impor……”
It felt like a heart attack. The blood pounded in Jax’s ears and he broke out in a cold sweat. As he slowly made out the red, handwritten word, Jax’s hands started to tremble visibly. It was only part of a typed sheet, but even the few words that Jax could make out drained the color from his face. As he looked up at the silent dog, Jax’s lips trembled. “Trouble? What the bloody h*ll is this?”
To be continued……..
Music credit: “From the Bottom of my Broken Heart,” by Eric Foster
White, recorded by Britney Spears on her CD, “Baby One More
Time”
chp 28
Good afternoon, angels! This continues my J&B adaptation of Linda Lael Miller’s “That Other Katherine,” and Tina Wainscott’s novel, “On the Way to Heaven.” I’ve been waiting to write this crucial chapter ever since the story began, and I hope I’ve done it justice. Enjoy! ----------- Jan
Chapter 28
Jax fought the strangling tightness in his chest as he stared at the small scrap of paper. It was only a quarter of a page – torn and mangled from Trouble chewing on it liberally. But he could see the handwritten word in red ink as clearly as if someone said it aloud – “MURDERER!” There were even several exclamation points after it, lending a sense of urgency and desperation to that “voice.”
Jax glanced up at Jon, who was still sleeping peacefully with his back nestled against Brenda’s pillow. Then he looked back at Trouble, who was barely peeking from beneath the bed. “Trouble!” he hissed. “Come out here!”
Trouble eyed Jax warily. As he scooted farther back under the bed, Jax realized that the dog thought he was going to be punished. “No!” Jax put out a hand to Trouble and managed to smile at the furry scavenger. “Come on out,” he urged, patting the floor with his hand playfully. “Come on – I’ll play a game with you.”
Trouble inched his way towards Jax. When he was within his reach, Jax grabbed the dog by his collar and pulled him towards his lap. “That’s a good dog,” Jax murmured, rubbing his fur absently. He couldn’t tear his eyes away from the scrap of paper. He was drawn to the word in red again and caught his breath when he noticed the large arrow drawn between the handwritten accusation and a name in the text of the article.
{Sonny Corinthos? A murderer? Could it be the same man? It HAS to be – how many other men named Sonny Corinthos could there be in the world? But why does Brenda have this folded piece of paper in her closet? Why would SHE think that Sonny is a murderer?} Questions whirled in Jax’s brain and he knew the only solution was to find the entire article and get all the details. He gazed deeply into Trouble’s eyes and sighed. {If only you could talk……}
Trouble started to wriggle in Jax’s grasp, anxious to collect on the promise of playtime. Jax held him as tightly as possible and leaned down to whisper to him. “Where did you find this, Trouble?” He held the scrap of paper up to the dog but then shook his head and swore softly. {What did you expect, Jax? The dog can’t exactly answer you…..} He took a deep breath and then decided to try a different tack.
Jax reached for the shoe where the paper had been hidden. “Find more shoes like this one, Trouble. Go find Mommy’s shoes.” He held the shoe up to Trouble’s nose. The dog sniffed at it happily and only hesitated a split second before prancing away, his tail held high in the air. Jax followed as he headed for the walk-in closet. He glanced back towards the bed to make sure that Jon was still sleeping and then went inside, turning on the light.
Trouble was tunneling into a large stack of shoeboxes in the back of the closet by the time Jax arrived on the scene. His head was buried amidst lids and tissue paper. Only his furry rear end was visible as it wiggled with the effort to pull out more “treasure.” Jax suppressed a laugh as he watched the little criminal suddenly pop out of the stack and land with a thud on his butt and hind legs. But when he turned to Jax, the dog was proudly holding the matching high heel to the one that held the first scrap of paper.
Jax caught his breath and walked slowly over to the dog. “That’s a good dog,” he crooned softly. “Now give Daddy the shoe……” Putting his large body between Trouble and the door of the closet, Jax assured himself of victory this time. The dog eyed him cautiously and was about to dart between his legs when Jax reached out and grabbed the shoe from his mouth. Trouble thought it was all a game and pranced around Jax happily. But when Jax put his hand inside the shoe and it came back empty, he didn’t share his playmate’s joy.
He crouched down next to the pile of shoeboxes. “Where did you find that shoe, Trouble?” Jax pushed aside some boxes as Trouble nudged his way under his arm and sniffed some of the discards. He tried to make it easier for the small dog and when Trouble’s tail started wagging, Jax suspected they were getting closer. The dog started to shake all over and his tail was going faster than a broken metronome. When Jax touched one particular box and Trouble yipped softly, he held his breath. He pulled the box out and removed the lid to find several folded papers, the top one mangled and torn.
“Got it!” Jax ruffled the fur on top of Trouble’s head. “Good dog!” Jax never thought about the fact that he was praising the puppy for tearing apart Brenda’s closet. He shifted his weight where he was and sat Indian-style on the floor, his back braced against the wall of the closet, as he opened the folded sheets. Trouble soon lost interest in the game and pranced away as Jax’s eyes first widened, then narrowed with a frown.
The entire article was some kind of obituary. Jax turned the paper over and decided it must have been printed from the computer, since it wasn’t an original. The words “Port Charles Herald” jumped out at him – making it obvious that it WAS the same Sonny Corinthos. He took the mangled corner of the article that Trouble had stashed in his treasure trove and pieced it back with the rest like a puzzle. There was also no doubt about the word written in red – “MURDERER.”
Jax vaguely noticed that there was another marking in red on the sheet – the date of the article had been circled. He frowned at the date – it seemed familiar. But then, as he read a little further, it felt like a furnace exploded inside his body. Jax’s breathing grew ragged.
Julia Barrett gave her sister’s eulogy……………Your dog misses you, you know. I still can’t believe how much she looks like Princess. Maybe you should have named her Princess the second.
A sister named Julia? A dog named Princess? Jax rubbed his eyes with his hand and his chest heaved. {No. Brenda was devious, but this is even TOO diabolical for her. To take advantage of some dead woman’s identity – to use the details from her obituary and construct another personality, just so that she could eventually run away with Miguel…..} He flashed back to Brenda’s nightmares about a sister he never heard of named Julia and a dog named Princess. He read on, even though tears started to cloud his vision.
Anyway, she knows when she looks at me that I’m totally in the dark when it comes to taking care of her. She still sleeps next to your bed, and every morning she looks up like she’s expecting you to reach down and touch her……
More flashes from Brenda’s nightmares made him realize the extent of her scheme.
“She used to sleep by my bed, and I could reach out and touch her. “Now she’s ggg…gone......everything’s just.....gone.....”
Jax blinked his eyes rapidly and looked down at the printout again. When the red ink drew his gaze to the date, a flashback slammed against his chest like a sledgehammer.
“I’m NOT Mrs. Jacks………I saw YOUR Brenda yesterday, Jax. I saw her in heaven………YOUR Brenda died, and I took her place………When your Brenda flat-lined yesterday, my soul got a second chance in her body.”
Jax crumpled the paper into a wad in his fist and rose angrily from the floor of the closet. {YOU BLOODY FOOL!!! She did it to you AGAIN!} He shook his head at her deviousness. {Oh, she was a master planner, all right! She waited until she could come home from the hospital and find some other poor woman who died on the date she “died.” Then she found out as much as she could about this Brenda Barrett and used it with you……sprinkling in little details, just to make it sound plausible.} He raked his fingers through his hair and muttered expletives under this breath until he felt like he was going to explode.
Jax strode out of the enclosure and closed the door behind him, leaning against it for support as his chest heaved. When he opened his eyes, they were cold and emotionless. {Well, at least you’re onto her now. She can’t lead you around like a puppet anymore. When she comes back – IF she comes back – you can just confront her with this and tell her that the game’s over.} Jon’s soft whimper caused Jax’s eyes to fly open. The baby shifted in his sleep but then quieted again. Jax walked over to the bed, the paper still held tightly in his fist.
{My poor angel. You don’t deserve this. You deserve a mother who loves you – not a……..a…….} Jax closed his eyes as memories played out on a screen behind his eyelids. Memories that contradicted the “evidence” he’d just found. The way Brenda’s face looked when Jon rolled over for the first time. The peaceful contentment she seemed to get when she was nursing him, before the formula problems. The way she sang to him and nuzzled him affectionately.
He took a shaky breath as his eyes shot open. {But what else could this printout mean? Brenda’s different, that’s true……but if it’s not some scheme of hers, why did she keep this?} Confusion clouded Jax’s brain until he was ready to scream. {You have to stop thinking about this……looking for hidden meanings that aren’t there. You need to forget about it. To find something else to distract you. Work.} Jax opened his eyes and tried to take a calming breath. He would go to the study and work for a while. That would get his mind off all of the puzzling events of the afternoon.
After moving some pillows so that Jon was effectively hemmed in on the bed, Jax grabbed one of the baby monitors and went to the door of the bedroom. He only closed it halfway, making sure that his baby monitor was switched “on.” Trouble followed him out of the room but took up a “guard” position in front of the door, resting on his belly with his paws outstretched.
It only took a few seconds for Jax to reach his study. He walked to the desk and planted himself in the chair with a vengeance. When he looked down and realized he still held the crumpled printouts in his hand, he threw them into the metal trash can with a resounding “thunk.” Turning back towards his desk, he reached for his briefcase and the files on the docks project.
{But even if this was all some big cover-up for a rendezvous with Miguel, why would Brenda have labeled Sonny a murderer?} Jax remembered her dislike for Sonny when they visited Port Charles. He grimaced. Despite his wife’s infidelity, his good business sense told him he couldn’t afford to be involved with a man who had criminal connections.
Jax was leafing through the file, looking for any other information that Jerry might have given him, when he found it. {You must have stuck it in there by mistake – when Robin brought it to you.} He held up the employment contract that Brenda had signed just before they went to Port Charles. When he looked down and dug deeper in the file, he found the original one that Robin told him Brenda had signed the day after Jon was born.
He looked back and forth between the two. {The signatures match perfectly. Handwriting can’t be faked. Obviously the same woman signed these two.} Jax frowned. {Then why did Robin need another one? What did she say?} His eyes widened as he remembered – the signature didn’t match one from several months before.
Jax hesitated for a few minutes and then thrust the employment agreement towards a far corner of the desk. He picked up the latest correspondence from Jerry, leaned back in his desk chair, and started to read it, chewing on his knuckle as he did. But after a few minutes, he realized that the words he was trying to read were only gibberish. Against his best intentions, his gaze was drawn back to the employment agreement.
{You’re not going to have any peace until you get this settled, Jax. It shouldn’t be that hard to do.} He thought about it for a few seconds and then turned to the other side of the desk, reaching down to the bottom drawer. He pulled out a small box marked “Cancelled checks – 1998.” He didn’t have to look any farther than January 3 to find one that Brenda – or the Brenda he knew at that time – had signed. When Jax held the cancelled check up against the employment contract, he was glad that Jon couldn’t hear his shocked expletive.
Even to the untrained eye, the two handwriting samples were nothing alike. The signature on the check was stilted and sharp. The letters were all tall and had only narrow loops. The letter “J” in the last name was printed, alphabet-style. On the other hand, the signature on the employment contract was more rounded. The “a’s” had large loops, even with swirled stems. The tops of all the letters were circular, and the “J” in “Jacks” was romantically cursive.
Jax tried to tell himself that maybe the check was just an aberration – maybe Brenda’s hand had been sprained and her handwriting was extraordinary that day in 1998. But after going through several months of checks and finding the signatures all to be alike, he leaned back in his desk chair and closed his eyes with a long sigh.
{So her handwriting’s not the same. And she claims memories from her past that jive with this “other” Brenda’s life. But that doesn’t make her the other Brenda! She still looks like my Brenda!} Jax’s eyes slowly opened and he shook his head, trying to force the disturbing questions from his mind. {But she’s so different in other ways, too.} More contradictions flashed through Jax’s mind…….the morning she shared breakfast with him, including the yogurt that she had never been willing to try before; the way she had responded the first time he kissed her; the way she enjoyed and even initiated French kisses; the way she selflessly gave him pleasure when they made love, instead of just waiting to see how many times Jax could bring her to her peak. Jax closed his eyes as his hands started to tremble. {Is it possible? That her *soul* got a second chance in my Brenda’s body? Could such a thing even happen? She kept trying to tell me that …… in the hospital, after Jon was born……}
Jax swore softly under his breath again and slammed the desk drawers closed. He sat back in the chair and put his knuckle to his lips. {You’ll never rest until you find out if it’s true or not……but how can you possibly hope to verify something like this…….} Jax’s eyes narrowed as he glanced down towards the trash can and discarded printouts. He called himself ten kinds of fool as he retrieved them and then sat up straight at the desk, smoothing out the wrinkles. As a plan formed in his mind, he chewed on his lower lip, and then picked up the telephone, punching the “0” button.
“Yes, operator….I’d like directory assistance for Port Charles, New York…….The number for either Harlan or Julia Barrett, please……..”
{They’re going to think you’re crazy. What are you going to say? “Hello, this is Jasper Jacks from Malibu, California. I’m calling because I think ….. well, I’m trying to find out if it’s possible…….maybe your dead daughter’s spirit came back from heaven and is living in my wife’s body……}
A feminine voice brought Jax out of his ruminations. “Hello?”
“Yes, uh…….I was calling for either Harlan or Julia Barrett……” Jax could hear the hesitation on the other end of the phone. “I’m calling regarding Brenda’s death…….”
There was a few more seconds of silence. “This is her sister, Julia.” Her voice was frosty. “But if you’re calling about some kind of cemetery plot or perpetual memorial, we’re really not interest……”
“No, no – nothing like that!” {Relax, Jax – it’s probably like you first thought. Brenda just found a convenient scapegoat in their loss and used the information in the obituary to her advantage. There’s nothing to be nervous about.} “I…..uh……” Jax leaned back in the chair and closed his eyes, trying to concentrate. “I was a business acquaintance of Brenda Barrett and I just learned of her death today.” He paused, waiting for some reaction, but there was none. “I wanted to tell Julia and Mr. Barrett how sorry I was to hear of their loss.”
There was another cool pause. “What did you say your name was?”
“Jacks.” Jax sat up straighter in the chair. “Jasper Jacks.” More silence. “I met Brenda through a mutual friend…..”
“Well, I don’t remember Brenda mentioning your name.” Jax held his breath. Julia sighed. “But then again, I’m finding out more and more each day that there were things I never knew about my sister.” Another short pause. “I suppose you knew her through Lucy and the modeling thing…..”
“…..The modeling thing! Right!” Jax seized on the unwitting slip. Julia obviously didn’t connect his name with the docks project or any other business enterprise, so Jax was safe in assuming any identity he wanted. “I called Lucy because I needed a model in a hurry for a quick job and she recommended Brenda.”
“Well, Lucy certainly saw something that none of the rest of us did. Brenda just seemed to blossom when she was modeling.”
Jax could hear the raw pain of grief in her voice and a momentary twinge of guilt made him grimace. “I…..uh……I read the account of her funeral in the newspaper and excerpts from the eulogy you gave. You must miss her very much.”
Julia’s voice was suddenly cold. “It’s very difficult to lose someone you love, Mr. Jacks. Obviously you haven’t experienced that.”
{I really don’t know what I’ve experienced. That’s what I’m trying to find out.} “I’m sorry. I certainly didn’t mean to make the situation worse…..”
Julia sighed again sadly. “And I apologize, too. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that. It’s just that some days are worse than others, and lately I just can’t stop thinking about Brenda, you know? Almost like she’s still here but I just don’t realize it……”
Jax swallowed hard. “And if she *was* still around? If you had a ……second chance?”
“Well, for one thing – I wouldn’t make fun of Brenda’s modeling career …..” Jax could hear the regret in her voice. “I always told her that it wasn’t a *real* job, like mine. I told her that maybe if she went into the business world like I did, daddy would pay more attention to her. Then she could get over the ridiculous notion she had that daddy liked me better.”
Jax’s breathing became shaky. {She talked about it – that night after the nightmare. That her father liked Julia better than her. But lots of sisters have sibling rivalries. Or my Brenda could have even called up this woman and talked to her on the phone. That doesn’t prove anything.}
“There’s just so many things that I should have said to her, you know?” Julia’s voice was close to breaking. “So many things that I realize now, and wish I had a chance to still say…..”
Despite the fact that he was trying to find out the truth about Brenda Barrett and if she might be connected to his Brenda, Jax couldn’t help but feel sorry for Julia. “Look, Miss Barrett, I didn’t know Brenda that well, but I’m sure that she knew you loved her.” Jax could hear Julia’s sharp intake of breath. “In fact, there were probably things that she regretted not telling you, too.”
“You mean like not telling me to jump off the nearest cliff?” Julia laughed sarcastically.
“And the sad part is……I really loved her, down deep. And I probably never said it.”
“No. She probably regretted never telling you how much she loved you, too.”
“I remember that when we were in 5th grade, I had to write an essay about the person I admired most in the world. I wrote it about Julia…..although she never found out.”
Jax was surprised when he heard Julia’s soft sob. “Actually……she did tell me that she loved me…..although she never knew that I found out about it. There was this essay she had to write in the 5th grade about someone she admired.”
Jax was squeezing the telephone so tightly his knuckles were turning white. “And she wrote it about you?”
“Yeah – and I wasn’t supposed to find out.”
“I made my teacher, Mrs. Livingston, *promise* never to tell Julia about it.”
“But the 5th grade teacher knew about our little problems at home,” Julia said ruefully, “and so even through Brenda swore her to secrecy, the teacher told me anyway. I don’t think Brenda ever knew that poor Mrs. Livingston broke her promise.” Even though the blood was starting to beat a loud tattoo in his ears, Jax could hear Julia’s voice soften. “You know, you’ve given me a wonderful gift today, Mr. Jacks.”
He could barely get the words out. “I have?
“Yes. I haven’t thought about that essay in years. And poor Mrs. Livingston passed on about ten years ago, I think. You did a wonderful thing, pulling that memory out of my subconscious.”
Jax had to raise the receiver to his forehead so that Julia wouldn’t hear his anguished cry. It wasn’t beyond the realm of possibility that the Brenda Jacks he married would research someone on the Internet and try to assume their identity as part of some grand scheme to be with her lover. But this – this was a private secret. Something that only three people knew about. The dead teacher, Julia Barrett, ……..and Brenda Barrett.
“Mr. Jacks? Are you still there?”
Jax wiped the tears from his eyes. “Yes, Miss Barrett, I’m here.” He rubbed his nose with the back of his hand. “Well, I didn’t mean to take so much of your time. Would you please extend my most sincere condolences to your father on his loss?”
“I’ll do that, Mr. Jacks.” He could hear Julia’s polite smile through the telephone. “And if you’re ever in the Port Charles area, please don’t hesitate to drop in and say hello. Any friend of Brenda’s is a friend of ours.”
Jax managed to hang up the phone before his breath escaped in a loud whoosh. He doubled over in the chair as though someone had punched him, hanging his head between his knees as waves of dizziness and nausea washed over him. When he came back up, his face was still pale. He rested his elbows on his knees and covered his mouth and nose with the fingers of both hands, breathing hard.
{A friend of Brenda? I’m more than a friend of Brenda, Julia. I’m MARRIED to her!! Or to her spirit, or soul, or whatever you’d call it……} He rose from the desk chair and walked to the French doors, staring out at the breaking waves on the beach. Putting his hands on his hips, he tried to control his heartbeat, which was still racing so fast it felt like it was going to explode right out of his chest. {But HOW could it happen? This isn’t a movie, for God’s sake!!! This is real life!! Things like that only happen on soap operas……}
“Mr. Jax?” Thomas’s gentle voice behind him caused Jax to jump. “Are you alright?” Jax turned back to find the houseman standing in the doorway with a stack of envelopes and magazines in his hand. Thomas frowned and walked into the study. “I thought I would just bring you this mail but…..you don’t look so good.”
Jax took a long shaky breath. “I’m fine, Thomas – really.” He laughed a little and took slow steps as he went back to the desk.
Thomas raised one eyebrow as he came to the chair in front of the desk. “Yeah – well, you look awful pale for someone who’s fine.”
Jax sank into the chair and attempted another casual laugh. But when it rang hollow again, he sank back into the depths of the chair and sighed. “Do you have a minute to talk?”
Thomas shrugged. “Sure.” He sat down in the chair facing Jax, placing the mail on the desk in front of him. “What’s up?”
Jax frowned for a minute as he considered how to begin. “Thomas……do you believe in reincarnation?”
“Reincarnation?” Thomas quirked one eyebrow at Jax. Then, he suddenly picked up a magazine from the mail and rolled it lengthwise. “You mean – like do I believe that fly sitting on the top of those envelopes is my late mother-in-law come back to earth?” Jax jumped when Thomas brought the magazine down with a loud thwack on the fly. “One can certainly hope, can’t one?” His gleeful smile tried to erase some of the tension from the room.
Jax shook his head. “Be serious, Thomas.” He leaned forward and folded his hands on the desk. “I mean like in life after death – heaven and hell and whether or not someone can get a ……. second chance.”
“Ahhhhhh……” Thomas raised his eyebrows and smiled wisely as he settled back in his own chair. He pursed his lips, folded his arms, and looked Jax in the eye. “My great-grandmother, rest her soul, was an Aboriginal priestess -–did I ever tell you that?”
Jax smiled and relaxed back in his own chair. “No – I don’t think you did.”
“No matter.” Thomas raised a flat hand in front of him in a gesture of unimportance. “Great-Grandmama,” he went on in an earnest voice, “always used to tell us that life was a circle.” He gestured off towards some distant point. “The cow eats the grass to become fat. The man slaughters the cow for food. The man eats the food. Then the man dies, and his body is buried beneath the earth. It becomes one with the soil, which nourishes the grass, which the cow eats……..”
“Is this the Aboriginal version of the Farmer in the Dell?” Jax’s voice belied his impatience.
Thomas sat forward in his chair, his eyes piercing Jax’s soul. “She used to say that ALL of us live in a circle, Mr. Jax. Our Maker sends us to live on this earth with a purpose. Some of us accomplish that purpose and when they die, those people go to their just rewards. Some other people are not so lucky the first time around. They need more chances to accomplish what they were meant to do in life……” Jax nodded quickly. His heart was racing again, despite his best efforts to calm it. He rose from the desk and went to the bar, taking a glass noisily from the stack with shaking hands. As he attempted to pour some Scotch into it, the amber liquid splashed all over the counter. “This is about Mrs. Brenda, isn’t it?”
Jax spun back around, the Scotch completely forgotten. “You knew it – right from the beginning, didn’t you?”
Thomas smiled. He glanced over at the desk and picked up the printouts, fingering them gingerly. “Not all of it. I knew that she was different. I knew that she wasn’t the same woman on the inside – where it counts.”
Jax walked back to Thomas and crouched in front of him. He braced his hands on the arms of the chair and his eyes brimmed with tears. “But HOW did you know? I’m the woman’s HUSBAND, for God’s sake! Why did you know and I didn’t?”
“I didn’t know everything in the beginning, Mr. Jax. All I could see was that her *soul* had changed.” He tipped his head humbly. “And for that gift, I thank my Great-Grandmama as well.” Then he lifted the papers that Jax had found earlier. “As for the rest……well, I didn’t find out about what really happened until I went with Mrs. Brenda and she told Miguel.”
Jax’s eyes widened and filled with rage. “She told Miguel?” He started to breathe harder and his knuckles gripping the chair turned red. “She told that bun of a snitch and didn’t tell me??!!”
Thomas reached out to put his hand over Jax’s for reassurance. “She *tried* to tell you, Mr. Jax.” Jax tried to jerk his hand away but Thomas held it fast. “Apparently right after Master Jonathan was born…….”
Jax turned his face away from Thomas and swore guiltily under his breath. “I told her she was crazy. I threatened to have her committed.” He looked back into Thomas’s eyes. “But it *does* sound crazy, Thomas – even now!” He gestured towards the paper in Thomas’s hand. “Even with all that proof, I’m beginning to think that I’m part of some monumental Twilight Zone episode!”
Thomas gripped Jax’s hand tightly. “I understand that this is a lot for you to comprehend, Mr. Jax, but it is the truth. And Mrs. Brenda only told Miguel about it so that he would understand that she wasn’t the woman who loved him anymore. It was the only way he would ever agree to leave the two of you alone.”
Jax nodded his understanding. He rose to his feet and walked back to the desk chair and sat down, leaning back to prop his elbow on the armrest and settle his chin in his fingertips. “So Miguel knows the truth, and now you and I. Anybody else?”
Thomas shook his head. “I don’t think so.” He put the papers back on the desk.
Jax buried his face in his hands. “God, Thomas…….When I think of some of the things I said to her, especially right after the baby was born…….” He raised pained eyes to meet Thomas’s gaze. “She didn’t deserve any of that.”
“You shouldn’t think of that, Mr. Jax. You should just remember how things are NOW, and how much she loves you and Master Jon.”
Jax smiled weakly and nodded, but then suddenly his face lost color. “Oh, my God…..Thomas!” He sat up abruptly and started pushing papers around on his desk. “Where is Brenda now? I mean, I thought she was running away with Miguel, but if she’s not, then what the bloody h*ll IS she doing?”
Thomas’s lips formed a thin line. “Probably something she shouldn’t – at least not alone.”
Jax’s eyes widened and he reached for the papers. “If she thought that Corinthos had something to do with her death……..I mean, with Brenda Barrett’s death…….” He paused a split second and then picked up the phone, punching the buttons with a vengeance. As he put the receiver to his ear, he lowered the mouthpiece and spoke to Thomas, who was already on his way towards the door. “I left Jon sleeping in the middle of our bed. Go check on him and then tell Robin I’ll be leaving town for a few days.”
Thomas gripped the doorjamb on his way out. “You want me to come along? Or to call Mr. Jerry?”
Jax shook his head. “No. She’s my wife. I’ll handle it.” He drummed his fingers on the desk nervously until he heard a voice at the other end of the line. “This is Jax. Get the jet fueled and cleared for immediate takeoff.” His voice was grim as he stared out at the ocean. “I’ll be filing a flight plan for Port Charles, New York.”
To be continued…….