| Chapter 7 The sun was coming up over the horizon. Luke stood there watching it with a lost look on his face. �You ok?� Bobbie asked placing a loving hand on her brother�s shoulder. Luke might not be her brother by blood but in her heart he would always be her brother. �I�m fine,� Luke said patting Bobbie�s hand as he turned away from the window and went to get his hundredth cup off coffee. �Luke, why don�t you go lie down. I�ll come get you if there is a change in Lucky�s condition,� Bobbie pleaded with her brother. �No. I�m not leaving him,� Luke said taking a look over his other shoulder to look into the room where Lucky laid hooked up to all kinds of machines. Laura was sitting in a chair resting her head on his chest listening to his breathing. �Ok,� Bobbie said with a helpless expression on her face as she turned went to the desk. �How�s things going?� Amy asked looking over at Luke. �It isn�t. Neither one of them will walk more then a few feet away from Lucky! Amy, they can�t keep this up. Alex told them this is going to be a long fight. Sooner or later they are going to have to take a break,� Bobbie said looking over at her brother wishing he would just sit down and rest for a moment. Luke was pacing the floor like a caged animal. She knew that sooner or later this was going to cause problems. ************************************** Down the hall, in one of the waiting rooms. Nikolas sat in a chair looking at a magazine as Lu slept on the couch beside him. Zander walked over pulled up a chair and sat down leaning on the back of it. �What do you think about all of this?� Zander asked. �About Lucky�s stunt or about AJ stealing Emily�s journal?� Nikolas whispered putting down the magazine. �About AJ. You know Mikkos just was well as I do. He had that look in his eyes when he left this morning and he is out for blood. What do you think he was ordering Stefan and Victor to do?� Zander asked. �I don�t know but it can�t be good. I saw Emily leaving just as they were talking and I�m sure she knows something is up from the look on her face when she left. I really hate to see her get hurt. I know Lucky really has feeling for her,� Nikolas said rolling his head trying to work the kinks out of his neck. �Yeah, I know he does too. So, what do we do about it?� Zander asked. �I guess the only thing we can do is make sure Emily understands that no matter what happens we are her friends and that we don�t have anything to do with what Grandfather is cooking up,� Nikolas said. �Let�s hope Stefan and Victor could talk some sence into Mikkos,� Zander said but both Nikolas and Zander knew that was impossible. When Mikkos got an idea in his head it took almost an act of god to get him to change his mind. ********************************************* Ned woke up early that morning and headed out to find Jason. It took Ned a while but he found Jason hard a work watching the men unload a shipment at the coffee warehouse. �You are a hard man to find,� Ned said as he walked up behind his cousin about ten that morning. �I didn�t know you were looking for me,� Jason said turning around smiling a puzzled smile at Ned. He was wondering why he was there. Ned normally didn�t come around looking for him just to have conversation. �Yeah, I wanted to talk to you about Em,� Ned said quietly trying to keep his voice down to keep the men around him to over hearing. �She ok?� Jason asked turning to face Ned with a worried look on his face. He knew he should have taken her home last night. �Yeah, physically.� Ned said and he pointed to the office. �Can we go in there and talk for a moment?� �Sure,� Jason said handing and he handed the clipboard over to foreman. Jason and Ned walked towards the office and closing the door behind them and blocking the sound of workman out. Ned waited until Jason was seated before going on what he came to talk about. �Emily told me what Mikkos is planning for the family because of AJ�s assine stunt. I was hoping there was something you could do to prevent it. I know you don�t really care about Grandfather or Alan, but Jason they are not the only members in this family. Everything that Mikkos could do could hurt Emily and Grandmother as well. I was hoping for their sakes you might try it.� Jason nodded his head and said, �I know what they are planning. I talked to Victor last night about it and assured me that he would not do anything that directly hurt Grandmother. Mainly, because she is the only one that treats him with respect. He has grown fond of her and I know that Emily isn�t a target at all. Mikkos understand Lucky�s fondness of her. As for my mother, I�m afraid because of AJ she is going to suffer along with all of you. They are not planning hurting any you physically but that doesn�t mean they will try to cause some harm,� Jason said sadly. �Damn,� Ned cursed as he sat down in hard wood chair that was in front of the desk. �I was hoping to get more but I am grateful that Grandmother isn�t going to be harmed. I don�t think she has many dark secrets out there but their might be one or two. As for the rest of us, the only thing we can do is keep our heads down.� �Yeah, I�m sorry. I would rather see AJ suffer alone then watching everyone pay for his mistakes. I know that he did this without thinking of anyone but himself as usual,� Jason said coldly. �Yeah, JR, has a way of making us all pay for his mistakes. He never gets to face them on his own,� Ned said sounding very frustrated at that moment. ********************************************* Stefan and Victor spent most of the night working on carrying out Mikkos orders. Stefan hung up the phone and rolled his head back. �That�s it,� He muttered as he looked at the clock and stood up stretching. �We now own the second largest paper that prints in this town. The first story that will print tomorrow will be on The Quartermaine family!� Victor hung his phone up and said smiling. �Good and I have the story.� �Good for you,� Stefan said. He wasn�t happy what he was about to do. He really didn�t think the Quartermaine�s should suffer for AJ�s mistakes. He wished his father could just take this out AJ and leave the others alone but Mikkos wasn�t in the mood to be kind to anyone at this moment. Victor eyed Stefan coolly and handed him that morning�s paper over to him that just had been dropped off by one of the staff just moments ago. �Before you start feeling sorry for the Quartermaine family. I think you better read this,� Victor said to his nephew. Stefan took the paper and read it. As he read it his heart fell completely down to the bottom of his stomach. �Where did they get this? Lucky didn�t know about all this?� Stefan asked holding up the paper waving it in front of Victor�s face. �I think our reporter found someone that used to work for the family back then. She had an idea what to look for and I don�t think it was hard to track the rest of the information down,� Victor commented. He was planning of finding out who it was and fix the problem but for now he was going to give this woman the respect she deserved, after all she didn�t quit that was for sure. Stefan wasn�t giving her that much. He paced the room and tried to think about how and who would have talked. �Where is Alexis?� Stefan asked finally. �At home with her child, I talk to Sonny and she already saw the paper. She isn�t happy,� Victor said sadly. �Damn,� Stefan snapped knocking the papers that lay on his desk all over the floor. He didn�t care that people would think he was a murder. What Stefan was upset about was the fact that the world now knew that Merck had attacked Alexis or tried to. Her secret was out there for all the world to read. *************************************** Alexis paced the floor throwing things around in a complete rage. �I�ll sue,� she yelled as she paced. �I�ll make sure that woman couldn�t print the fashion news when I�m done!� �Alexis, calm down,� Sonny said walking behind his wife picking up things as he went. �You can�s sue her or the paper.� �The hell I can�t! That is a bunch of packed of lies. She didn�t come to me and confirm any of this! She just found a bunch of liars that so happen thought they saw something and went by that. That is depuration of charter that what that is and I�m going to sue!� �Alexis, breathe� Sonny begged her as he grabbed his wife by the arms and held her in one place. �Going on like this is only going to wake the baby.� Sonny pushed Alexis gently into the nearest chair and once there he poured her a drink to calm her down. After Alexis had a few sips he said, �Now, taking the paper or this reporter to court would make matters worse. You know that! So, what we are going to do is go about our lives and when someone asks if it true. We will say, �No comment�. Ok?� �Sonny but they..� she started to speak but she couldn�t. She broke down and cried. Sonny sat bent down held his wife and let her cry it out. ****************************************************** Mikkos stood off to the side watching his private Jet make a perfect landing. A few moments later, the jet rolled to a stop just a few feet in front of him and the door was shoved open. Angelic appeared then and made her way down the stairs greeting her brother warmly. �How are you?� she asked hugging Mikkos. �I�m fine. How was your trip?� Mikkos asked as they walked to the limo letting the staff deal with her luggage. �I wish I made this trip on a better note. How is Lucky?� Angelic asked as they climbed into the car. �No change. Alex says it will take time. I have put all my faith in her,� Mikkos said sadly. �I wish you would put a little bit of that faith in God!� Angelic said smiling sly at her brother. �Don�t start,� Mikkos warned Angelic. �I�m not in the mood. I haven�t slept at all and right now hearing a lecture from you isn�t high on my list of things to do.� Angelic nodded her head and hugged Mikkos. She could tell he was in one of his moods. She could tell by the way everyone jumped around him, as they walked towards the limo. He was in prince mood and that wasn�t good for anyone. In fact, that could be almost unbearable! So, Angelic asked about the details on Lucky�s accident and his condition keeping Mikkos and avoided talking about his faith or lake of faith in God! ************************************************* Angie sat at her desk working on her next story about the Cassadine family when her phone rang. �Hello?� Angie said in a rushed voice as she picked up the phone. �What? Yes! I�ll be there. No, thanks,� Angie said slamming the phone down and grabbing her purse. �What�s up?� One of her fellow reports asked watching the young woman rummaging around her desk looking for something. �Angelic Cassadine just landed. I�m hoping she might have a few words to say to me,� Angie said with a smile as she ran out the door with keys to her car in one hand and her note pad in the other. Her fellow report shook her head and wondered what kind of words would any Cassadine have to say to Angie after her least editorial. **************************************************** Angelic walked into Lucky�s hospital room saw the small form of the young boy in the bed and quickly made the sign of the cross. She walked up over to where Luke sat in a chair near his son�s bedside and placed a loving hand on his shoulder. �How are you doing?� Angelic asked quietly. Luke looked up smiled a sad smile at the nun and went back to looking at the monitor. It was the only sign Luke had to tell him that his son was alive. It told Luke Lucky�s heart beat, his pulse and respiration but nothing could tell Luke when or if Lucky would ever wake up again. �I�m holding up,� Luke said finally. �Where�s Laura?� Angelic asked noticing that Lucky�s mother wasn�t in the room at this moment. �She took Lu for a walk. I thought it might help to get her out of the room for awhile. She keeps on looking at Lucky�s every twitch as a sign that he was going to wake up,� Luke said sadly as he ran his hand over his son�s cheek. The skin was warm and to Luke that was just another sign that Lucky was alive. Angelic sat down in the empty chair on the other side of Lucky�s bed and said, �How about you join her. I�ll sit here for you,� Angelic said smiling at Luke as she pulled out her rosary. Luke shook his head turning down Angelic offer and he went back to watching the numbers change on the monitor. Angelic nodded her head and quietly started to say her prayers. ****************************************** A little while later, Angelic was walking heading down to the cafeteria when a young woman walked up to her and asked in a rushed voice. �Are you Angelic Cassadine?� Angelic turned looked at the young woman trying to figure out who she was. When it was clear that this young woman didn�t work for her brother or was a member of the hospital staff. Angelic asked in a cautious voice. �Yes, I am. Who are you?� �I�m Angie Richardson. I�m a reporter for one of the local newspapers in town. I�m working on a story about your family and I was wondering if you would comment on the least article I wrote,� Angie said holding up her note pad and pen ready to write down anything Angelic had to say. Angelic read the article that was in the paper. She looked at the young woman in a loving but sternly. She cleared her throat and said, �Yes, I would like to comment about your article. I think it was very well written even though your facts were a little off. I think you should get your story straight before you print something like that in a paper where people will take it as fact.� �I did check!� Angie said taking offence that anything she wrote wasn�t true. �No, you did not. You didn�t contact me and most of that article was about me. For your information, Mikkos did not know what was happening between me and my father. In fact, no one in the house knew about the truth until I finally told them after Merck�s death. As for Stefan, killing his grandfather in cold blood? I don�t know where you got that information at but you oveously been told a pack of lies.� Angelic said coolly. �Then what happened to him?� Angie said. Mikkos showed up about then and spoke for his sister. �Stefan was only defending his sister and my uncle�s death was consisted self defense by the local authorities. If you would have contacted them they would have been gladly given you the report on the matter,� Mikkos said in a cold empty tone. He had always been ready for someone to point the blame for Merck�s death against Stefan. He always thought it would have been Helena but no matter. The papers were drawn up and put in a file with an old friend of his as the investigating officer. All the papers read that Merck was killed trying to attack Alexis sexual and Stefan was only defending her. Merck death was the result of that. Alexis wasn't able to comment much about it because of the shock she was under and because of the age of the children. No public report was made about it and Merck's death was handled quietly. �Where was this?� Angie asked. Mikkos gave her the town where the report could be found then he put his arm around his sister and said, �Now, if you don�t mind. I think we given you enough time.� The pair left the reporter standing there to stunted to respond and by the time she got her mind working again. Mikkos and Angelic had stepped into the elevator and vanishing quickly. Angelic looked at Mikkos and asked, �When was that report done?� �Right after I found out what really happened. I knew if Helena ever found out about Merck�s death that she would try to make trouble for Stefan. I figured it might be a smart idea to deal with the situation before it happened then later,� Mikkos said smiling slyly at his sister. Angelic shook her head and laughed. She should have known her brother would have every base covered way before things were really needed. Chapter 8 Back to Trials of Love |