Ned wakes up to see Alexis sleeping soundly for the first time in weeks. He gently brushes a lock of hair away from her face.
Just then, Hannah starts crying in the nursery.
Alexis stirs but doesn�t wake up. Ned instantly gets out of bed, puts his robe on and heads down the hall.
Hannah is lying in her crib, screaming.
Ned: �Hannah Grace, what is the matter?� he lifts her out of her crib and puts a pacifier in her mouth.
As Ned sits down in the rocking chair, Hannah instantly stops crying and reaches for his nose. Ned smiles down at her.
Ned: �So you just wanted to be held, didn�t you?�
Hannah gurgles in agreement.
Ned: �So, how are you tonight, beautiful?� he kisses the top of her forehead. �Do you know that you are just the sweetest baby ever?� he laughs as Hannah bats him in the face. �Your mommy says that you�re a Daddy�s girl, you know. But you love us both equally, right? But I don�t mind if you are a Daddy�s girl. Avery was a Mommy�s girl when she was a baby.�
Hannah looks up at him and smiles.
Ned: �You know, Hannah, you have two sisters. Do you remember Brooke? She�s your sister but she doesn�t live here.� He smiles sadly. �Her mommy thinks that I�m a bad influence so she doesn�t want Brooke to come down here.� He sighs. �What do you think I should do, Hannah? Should I file for custody of Brooke or what?�
Hannah yawns and snuggles into Ned�s arms, sucking on her pacifier.
Ned: �Yeah, I guess I should. I love Brooke and I am not going to let anyone take her away from me.� He stands up and goes over to the crib. He kisses her forehead again and sets her down in the crib. �Thanks for listening, beautiful. Have sweet dreams.�
Ned stands at the crib and watches, enchanted, as Hannah falls back asleep.
The next morning.
Alexis wakes up to see Ned propped up on his pillows, staring down at her.
Alexis: (in a low voice) �Good morning, Mr. Ashton.�
Ned: �You look so beautiful when you�re sleeping.�
Alexis smiles demurely and snuggles up against him, her head on his chest. Ned gently strokes her hair.
Ned: �You don�t have to go to court today if you don�t want to.�
Alexis: �Of course I am going to go.�
Ned: (challenging her) �Alexis, why would you want to go back there after the way Helena and her lawyer ripped you apart yesterday? Do you really want to listen to that?�
Alexis: (looking up at him and running her fingers through his hair) �Ned, you�re my husband and I want to show my support for you.� She sighs. �Besides, you wouldn�t be in this position if it wasn�t for me.�
Ned: �How can you even say that?�
Alexis: �Because it�s true, Ned. I am responsible for you being on trial for murder. If I hadn�t run off that day and made myself available for Stavros to kidnap.� Her eyes fill with tears. �If you hadn�t married me, you would be safe right now, instead of in a battle of the Cassadine family.�
Ned pulls away from her and sits up. Alexis sits up too so they are staring at each other.
Ned: �Alexis Brinna Ashton, I can not believe that you just said that! How can you even question us? I have no regrets for anything that has happened since I met you. I love you, Alexis. You have given me two beautiful children. You are my best friend. I would never trade in what we have for anything.� He takes her hand. �ANYTHING.�
Alexis: (tears starting to fall down her face) �I love you, Ned.�
Ned: �And I love you too, brat.�
Alexis: (starting to laugh) �What did you just call me?�
Ned: �You heard me. And I think it fits.�
Alexis: (mock annoyed) �Ned! I am not a brat!�
Ned: �Yes, you are.� He grabs her and kisses her. �And you�re MY brat.�
Alexis glares at him for a moment. Then she wraps her arms around his neck and fully returns the kiss.
Ned: �You kiss pretty good for a brat.�
Alexis just starts laughing.
Two hours later. Inside the courtroom.
Stefan is sitting up on the witness stand. Kimberly is in front of him, getting ready to begin her questioning.
Kimberly: �Mr. Cassadine, please state for the record, your relationship to the deceased, the defendant, the defendant�s wife, and the plaintiff.�
Stefan: �Stavros Cassadine was my older brother. Ned Ashton is my brother in law and he is married to my sister, Alexis Ashton. The plaintiff, Helena Cassadine is my mother.�
Kimberly: �Mr. Cassadine, how was your relationship with your brother?�
Stefan: �I did not have good relationship with Stavros. He treated me as if I were unworthy of his attention because he was the oldest son and I was the youngest.�
Kimberly: �Did he ever physically hurt you?�
Stefan: �Stavros thought it was funny to punch me in the stomach whenever I walked past him. He also hit me on several occasions when I did not agree with him.�
Kimberly: �How did Stavros treat you when he returned to Port Charles this month?�
Stefan: �Stavros somehow found out that Nikolas was my son and not his. He bombed Caf� Mattice because he knew that I was there, along with Nikolas, Laura Spencer, Nikolas� mother, and my girlfriend, Mackenzie Cisnaros. He threatened to kill me if I revealed that he was alive.�
Kimberly: �Tell me about your brother in law, Ned Ashton.�
Stefan: (thoughtfully) �I didn�t like Ned when I first met him. I was afraid that he would hurt my sister Alexis because of his long track record of broken marriages.� He looks apologetically at Ned before going on. �But I was wrong. Ned Ashton is a wonderful man and he loves Alexis with all that is in him. They have two wonderful daughters, Avery and Hannah, and all in all, Ned is a remarkable man who manages to balance a busy career with fatherhood, a marriage and the rest of his family.�
Kimberly: �You just mentioned that Ned loves Alexis with all that is in him. Do you think that his love for her could have prompted him to kill Stavros Cassadine in her defense?"
Stefan: (firmly) �No. Ned Ashton is not a man who would commit murder.�
Kimberly: �I have no more questions for this witness. The defense rests.�
Judge: �Mr. Hall, would you care to cross?�
Steven: �I sure would.� He gets up and heads towards Stefan. �Mr. Cassadine, tell me about your relationship with your sister.�
Stefan: �Alexis and I have been best friends since we were young children. I have always been her protector....�
Steven: (cutting him off) �Protector from whom?�
Stefan: (glaring at Helena) �Protector from my mother and brother. They used to torture her.�
Steven: �Mr. Cassadine, would you describe yourself as a man who would stop at nothing to defend his family?�
Stefan: �Yes. I love my sister, and I would never let anything hurt her.�
Steven: �Mr. Cassadine, where were you on the night of September thirteenth?�
Stefan: (after a pause) �I was at home with my daughter.�
Steven: �Yes or no, you were one of the people who was helping Ned Ashton search for his supposedly missing wife?�
Kimberly: �Objection! He�s badgering the witness!�
Judge: �Sustained. Mr. Hall, please keep your cross strictly pertaining to the facts.�
Steven: �Sorry your honor, but if it would behest the court, Mr. Cassadine, please answer the question.�
Kimberly: (jumping out of her seat) �He said SUSTAINED, Hall!�
Judge: �Ms. Baldwin-Corday, please restrain yourself or you will be asked to leave.�
Kimberly glares at Steven Hall and then sits back down.
Stefan: �Yes, I was helping Ned search for Alexis.�
Steven: �And you are the one who spotted the boat that your brother had stolen?�
Stefan: �Yes. I was the one who saw Stavros and pointed him out to Ned and Jax.�
Steven: (thoughtfully) �Did Mr. Ashton get a good look at Stavros Cassadine?�
Stefan: �You�ll have to ask him that yourself.�
Steven: �It is highly doubtful that Ned Ashton got a good enough look at Stavros Cassadine to have later shot him from behind, knowing that it was him he was targeting.�
Judge: �Mr. Hall, may I remind you that you are for the prosecution.�
Steven: �If you will bear with me, Your Honor, I can prove how this line of questioning is relevant.�
Judge: �Fine, but get on with it.�
Steven: (turning back to Stefan) �Mr. Cassadine, where is your girlfriend right now?�
Stefan: �Mackenzie is in a coma at General Hospital. A large planter fell on her when my brother blew up Caf� Mattice.�
Steven: �Do you love Ms. Cisnaros?�
Kimberly: �Objection! That has nothing to do with this!�
Judge: �Overruled. Continue, Mr. Hall.�
Stefan: �Yes, I do.�
Steven: �I imagine that you were pretty angry about your brother being responsible for your girlfriend�s current medical condition in addition to kidnapping your sister.�
Stefan doesn�t say anything. He is beginning to look a little rattled.
Steven: �Could it be that YOU killed your brother to avenge what he did to Ms. Cisnaros and Mrs. Ashton?�
Stefan doesn�t say anything.
Ned and Alexis exchange a look.
Steven: �Answer the question, Mr. Cassadine.�
Scott: �Objection! He is badgering the witness.�
Judge: �Overruled. Please answer the question, Mr. Cassadine.�
Stefan: �He threatened to kill me. He tried to kill my sister and my girlfriend.� He pauses. �I have two children. I could not risk that Stavros may have done something to Christabel or Nikolas.�
Steven: �Answer the question, Mr. Cassadine. Did you kill your brother?�
Stefan: (in a low voice) �I... I...�
Just then, the courtroom doors swing open and Ari marches inside.
Ari: �Your Honor, I have something you need to hear.�
Judge: �Who are you?�
Ari: �I am an associate of Mrs. Cassadine.�
Kimberly: (unable to restrain herself) �She�s sleeping with him.�
Helena glares at Kimberly. She glares back.
Judge: �Leave this courtroom immediately, sir.�
Ari: (rambling) �I was on the yacht that night with Helena. I saw the gun go off. It was not Mr. Ashton who shot Stavros.�
Steven: �Who did it, Mr. Legaspos?�
Ari: �The man who killed Stavros Cassadine was none other than his brother, Stefan. He shot him from a private dock and fled the scene. I saw the whole thing.�
Steven: (turning around) �Mr. Cassadine? Do you hear that? There is a witness that saw you on the docks that night. Now did you kill Stavros Cassadine on the night of September thirteenth, 1999?�
Stefan: (unable to look at Alexis) �Yes.�
The courtroom erupts into chaos.
Alexis and Ned look shocked beyond belief.
Judge: (banging his gavel) �Order! Order in the court!� he looks at Steven. �Council in chambers, now! Mr. Cassadine, don�t even think about going anywhere.�
The judge storms out of the room, followed by Steven, Kimberly and Scott.
Stefan: (mouthing to Alexis) �I�m sorry.�
Alexis: (mouthing) �It�s okay.�
Ned walks up to the stand with Alexis behind him. Stefan can not look Ned in the eye.
Stefan: �You can go ahead and tell me what a bastard I am, Ned.�
Ned: �You aren�t a bastard. You�re a man who loves my wife almost as much as I do.� He smiles crookedly. �Alexis is lucky to have you watching out for her.�
Alexis: (angry) �But Stefan, how could you have let Ned stand trial for this murder? He could have gone to prison and you would have known all along that he didn�t do it!�
Stefan: �Alexis, I am so sorry. I was planning to confess, but I was going to wait and see if Ned got off.�
Alexis: �And what if he hadn�t? Then what would you have done, brother dearest?�
Stefan: �Alexis...�
Just then, the judge comes back in and goes up to his bench. Kimberly, Scott and Steven walk behind him and take their seats.
Judge: (banging his gavel) �Court is now in session. Will everyone please sit down?�
Alexis and Ned head back to their seats. Ned places a comforting hand on Alexis� back.
Judge: �In light of this new evidence, Mr. Cassadine, you are under arrest for the murder of Stavros Cassadine.�
Everyone gasps. Helena smiles smugly.
The bailiff walks over and slaps handcuffs on Stefan. He looks remorsefully at Alexis.
Judge: �Mr. Ashton, you are free to go.�
Scott: (to Stefan) �I assume you�re going to need a lawyer?�
Stefan: �You�re hired.� He looks at Kimberly. �Both of you.� He looks at Alexis and Ned. �Will you please take care of Christabel for me?�
Alexis doesn�t say anything.
Ned: �Of course we will. We�ll swing by Wyndemere and pick her up on the way home.�
Stefan: (being led away) �Tell her that I love her.�
Alexis watches silently as Stefan is led away. Scott and Kimberly follow him.
Ned puts his arm around Alexis.
Alexis: �Ned...�
Ned: �We�ll talk in the car.�
They head out of the courtroom and get into Ned�s jaguar. He heads for Wyndemere.
Ned: �He was protecting you, Alexis.�
Alexis: (furious) �You aren�t mad that you could have gone to prison for a murder that Stefan committed? Oh come on, Ned. You aren�t that benevolent.�
Ned: �Alexis, Stefan loves you. He was afraid that Stavros was going to rape you again. He had the FBI searching for you, in addition to the PCPD.�
Alexis doesn�t say anything. She just listens to what Ned is saying.
Ned: �Alexis, don�t be too hard on him.� He stops the car in front of the launch that goes to Wyndemere. �And whatever you do, don�t say anything in front of Christabel.�
Alexis: �I�m not that stupid.�
They get out of the car and head over to Spoon Island.
That evening.
Alexis is walking down the hall from putting Hannah to sleep when she sees Christabel sitting on her bed, holding her doll, Adrienne, in her arms, and looking sadly at the wall.
Alexis: (standing in the doorway) �What�s wrong, Sweetie?�
Christabel: (looking up at her) �I miss my Daddy.� Her eyes fill with tears. �And I miss Mackenzie. And I miss my Mommy. Why is everyone going away?�
Alexis: (giving her a hug) �Your daddy is going to be home soon. And everyone is not going away. Uncle Ned and I are here. Don�t we count?�
Christabel: �I guess. But Daddy always kisses me good-night.�
Alexis: (surprised) �Well... what if Uncle Ned gives you a kiss?�
Christabel: �Okay, but it won�t be the same.�
Alexis: (pulling Christabel into her lap) �You know what, Christabel? My mommy and daddy died when I was a little girl. I was your age actually. And every night, I wished that they were there to give me a kiss. But you know what I did?�
Christabel: �What?�
Alexis: �I closed my eyes real tight, and I could feel my mommy giving me angel kisses from heaven.�
Christabel: �Did it work?�
Alexis: �Yep. I knew that she was blowing me kisses even though she was gone.� She gives Christabel a kiss on the top of her head. �And I bet that your mommy does the same exact thing.�
Christabel: �Really? She gives me kisses?�
Alexis: �Yep. And when you close your eyes, you�ll feel them.�
Christabel: (wrapping her arms around Alexis� neck) �Thank you, Aunt �Lexis.�
Alexis: �No problem.� She looks at the clock. �Can you get your pajamas on? It�s almost time for bed.�
Christabel: �Okay.�
Alexis: �I�m going to go check on Avery, and then I�ll be back to tuck you in.�
Christabel: �Uncle Ned too. He tells funny stories.�
Alexis: �I�ll bring him with me.� She smiles as she heads across the hall.
Christabel: (yelling as she gets into bed) �Uncle Ned, can you come here?�
Ned comes waltzing into the room.
Ned: �You rang, Miss Cassadine?�
Christabel: �Will you tell me a story?�
Ned: �I sure will.� He sits down at the end of the bed.
Avery�s bedroom.
Alexis walks in to see that Avery is jumping on top of her bed.
Alexis: �Avery Madelynn, beds are not for jumping on! Sit down.�
Avery: (whining) �Why did Lulu have to leave?�
Alexis: �Because her house got fixed.� She looks at her. �Are you ready for bed?�
Avery: �Where�s Daddy? I want him to tell me a story.�
Ned: (calling) �I�m in Christabel�s room.�
Avery: (pouting) �Why isn�t he telling me a story?�
Alexis: �Avery, Christabel is sad because her daddy is gone for a little while. How about if I tell you a story?�
Avery just stares at her.
Alexis: �Oh come on. I promise that it will be better than the last one.�
Avery: �Okay. But if it is bad, you�re fired.�
Alexis: (laughing) �Fine. Get under the covers first.�
Avery willingly climbs under her covers and looks expectantly at Alexis.
* N O T E * The bedtime stories told by Ned and by Alexis are intertwined. The camera pans back and forth every time one of them finishes a line of dialogue. * *
Ned: (to Christabel) �Once there was a princess named Alexis.�
Alexis: (to Avery) �Once there was a prince named Ned.�
Ned: �Alexis was a princess who was a lawyer. She had a brother named Stefan and they both lived in Port Charles.�
Alexis: �Ned was a prince and a CEO. His family lived in Port Charles and so did he.�
Ned: �One day, on Christmas Eve, Alexis was sitting in a bar, and a man named Ned walked in. He fell in love with her instantly. Can you guess what happened next?�
Christabel: �They got married?�
Ned: �Right you are. So, Ned and Alexis got married and had two kids named Avery Madelynn and Hannah Grace.�
Alexis: �Ned was sitting in a bar on Christmas Eve when a woman named Alexis walked in. She thought he was very handsome.�
Avery: �Is this about you and Daddy?�
Alexis: (smiling) �I never said that this was about me and Daddy.�
Avery: �It is!� she smiles. �But go on.�
Alexis: �Okay. Where was I?�
Avery: �You were saying when you and Daddy met on Christmas.�
Alexis: �Oh yeah.� She pauses for a moment. �Alexis fell head over heels in love with Ned and they got married. About a year later, they had a daughter. Her name was Avery Madelynn.� She smiles down at Avery. �And they thought she was so awesome that they wanted her to have a sister.�
Avery: �Do you mean Hannah?�
Ned: �So, Ned and Alexis decided that they wanted to have a bigger house so they bought a huge white house with a pool and a swing and a lot of rooms.�
Christabel: �Do you mean this house?�
Ned: �You�re a very smart girl. Yes, it is this house.� He smiles. �And one night, they decided to have their niece over. Her name was Christabel, and her daddy was Alexis� brother.�
Christabel: (her eyes wide) �That�s me! I�m in the story?�
Ned: �Yep. Anyway, Christabel spent the night at Ned and Alexis� house and she wanted a bedtime story, so Ned told her a great story, and then she went to sleep. The end.�
Alexis: �So Alexis had another daughter named Hannah Grace, and after that, Ned and Alexis realized that they had the perfect family, and they bought a house and Alexis told her daughter a story and then she went to bed. The end.�
Avery: �That story sucked.�
Alexis glares at her.
Christabel: �That was a great story.�
Ned: �Thank you.�
Christabel: �You tell better stories than my father. He always talks about Russian people and some egg with jewels on it.�
Ned: (standing up and giving her a kiss) �Good night, Christabel.�
Christabel: (as Ned heads out the door) �Uncle Ned?�
Ned: �Yeah?�
Christabel: �I love you. Aunt �Lexis too.�
Ned: (touched) �We love you too, Sweetie. Good night.�
He walks into the hall and at the same moment, Alexis comes out of Avery�s bedroom.
Alexis: �How did Christabel�s bedtime story go?�
Ned: �She loved it. I told her a story about you and me.�
Alexis: (laughing) �I told Avery probably exactly the same story.� She smiles. �But Avery said that it sucked.�
Ned: (putting his arms around her waist as she leans back into him) �A story about you and me? There�s no way that a story like that could suck.�
Alexis: (laughing) �Well, either that, or I�m just a crappy story-teller.�
Ned: �Nah.� He picks up her hand and kisses it. �Hey, Mrs. Ashton, why don�t you tell me a bedtime story?�
Alexis: (turning around to face him) �Only if we can take this into our bedroom.�
Ned takes her hand and they walk down the long hallway to their bedroom.
They walk inside and after locking the door, Alexis walks over to Ned, who is standing over by the bed.
Alexis: (standing close to Ned) �Once upon a time, there was a princess who had lived her whole life on an island, and was very, very lonely.�
Ned watches in amusement as Alexis unknots his tie and lets it fall to the floor.
Alexis: �One day, she moved to Port Charles, New York and met a prince, who was just as lonely as she was.� She begins to unbutton his shirt.
Ned: �I think I�ve heard this one before. Doesn�t the prince fall head over heels in love with the princess the first time he sees her?� he unbuttons her suit jacket.
Alexis: �They became best friends, and eventually they went out on a date...� She slips his shirt off.
Ned: �But the prince was almost afraid of falling in love with the princess because he was afraid that she would leave him.� He pushes her jacket off and moves on to her blouse.
Alexis: �But what the prince didn�t realize was that the princess would never hurt him, because she was as in love with him as he was with her.� She undoes his belt and pulls it off.
Ned: (slipping her shirt off) �And once the prince realized that, he asked the beautiful, angelic princess to marry him, and she said yes.�
Alexis: (starting to unzip his pants) �So they got married and lived happily ever after.� She pauses as she slips his pants off. �And the princess had never felt so loved in her entire life, and she knew that for the first time, she wouldn�t be alone ever again.�
Ned: �Never, ever again.� He pushes her skirt to the floor and gazes longingly at her. �And I think that this is the end of story time for tonight.�
Alexis: �I think so too.� She puts her arms around Ned�s neck and kisses him passionately.
Ned: (between kisses) �I think that the bed would be a more appropriate locale for this.� He picks her up and carries her across the room.
Alexis wraps her legs around Ned�s waist as they collapse onto the bed, Ned pinned underneath Alexis.
Ned: �You�re usually on the bottom, Lexi. Interested in a change of venue tonight?�
Alexis: �Mr. Ashton, instead of analyzing this, why don�t you just take advantage of it?�
Ned: �You took the words out of my mouth.� He reaches up to kiss her.
The kiss escalates into more, and they begin to make slow, passionate love all night.
Ned: (breaking their kiss and looking up at her) �I love you, Alexis Ashton.�
Alexis: �I love you too, Ned. More than anything in the world.�
Ned lowers his mouth down onto hers, and they get lost once again in their passion.