Scott and Kimberly walk into the PCPD station.
Scott: (to Taggert) �I wish to speak with my client.�
Taggert: (in a droll voice) �One moment, please, Mr. Baldwin.�
Scott glares at him as he walks off to get Stefan..
Five minutes later.
Stefan is sitting on one side of the table in the conference room. Kimberly and Scott are sitting on the other side.
Stefan: �So, when am I getting out of here?�
Kimberly: �I�m going to go talk to the judge about that. He�s here for some reason.�
Stefan: (as Kimberly leaves) �Scott, I have to get out of here and go see Mackenzie.�
Scott: �I understand. By the way, I heard that Mackenzie is doing fine and she�s going to be released tomorrow.�
Stefan: �And I have to be there when she gets out.� He pauses. �Do whatever it takes.�
Meanwhile, down the hall in the other conference room, where the judge is.
Kimberly hears voices coming from the room as she walks up to it.
Voice #1: �How much will it take?�
Judge: �Half a million. In cash.�
Voice #1: (laughing) �A half a million is all it�s going to take to keep Stefan in jail?�
Judge: �You got it. I don�t like those Cassadines.�
Voice #1: �Neither do I. Sending Stefan to prison will avenge Stavros� death for Helena.�
Kimberly, shocked, flattens herself against the wall and tries to recognize the voice.
Judge: �Then it is settled. Half a million dollars in cash to be delivered to me in one hour or I will release him.�
Voice #1: �Fine.�
Kimberly ducks into the office next door as the voice comes out. She recognizes him as Ari, Helena�s manservant.
After Ari is out of sight, Kimberly proceeds to the door of the conference room and knocks on it.
Judge: �Come in.�
Kimberly enters the room, an unreadable expression on her face.
Judge: �Well, well, Ms. Corday-Baldwin. What can I do for you this morning?�
Kimberly: (standing in front of the table) �I would like to speak with you regarding the possible release of Stefan Cassadine into his sister�s custody.�
Judge: �I�m sorry, Ms. Corday-Baldwin, but that is impossible. The PCPD can not release Mr. Cassadine.�
Kimberly: (challenging him) �Why not?�
Judge: �Because it is up to me if he is released, and I consider him to be a flight risk.�
Kimberly: �Is that so?�
Judge: �It is.� He stands up. �Now, if you will excuse me, I have a golf game with the mayor to get to.�
Kimberly: (blocking the door) �Sit down.� Her voice is filled with fire.
Judge: �How dare you tell me what to do. I can have you disbarred.�
Kimberly: �Go ahead and try. Because if you do, you know what I will do in return?� she leans close to him. �I will have you arrested for accepting a bribe to keep Stefan behind bars.�
The judge opens his mouth to object, but Kimberly cuts him off.
Kimberly: �I heard you a few minutes ago. You are planning to accept half a million dollars from Ari Legaspos, employee of Helena Cassadine, to keep Stefan in jail.�
The color drains from the judge�s face as she goes on.
Kimberly: �Now there are two things I could do here. One is that I could call the cops in here to arrest you.�
Judge: �And the other?�
Kimberly: �Option number two is you work with me. Listen carefully. You will leave this room with me and go tell Mac Scorpio that Stefan Cassadine is going to be released into Alexis Ashton�s care, or I will see you behind bars for twenty years.�
Judge: �You�re bluffing. Helena will kill you if I tell her what you�re trying to do.�
Kimberly: (leaning close to him, in a venomous whisper) �I am not afraid of ANYONE. Now, are you going to comply with my plan, or not?�
Judge: (beads of sweat beginning to pop out on his forehead) �Fine. You win.� In a low voice. �For now.�
Kimberly smiles triumphantly.
An hour later.
Alexis walks into the PCPD station to find Stefan waiting for her. He is dressed in the clothes he was wearing when he was arrested and he looks dead tired.
Stefan: �Alexis, I have never been so glad to see you in my life.�
Mac: �Alexis, I need you to come with me and sign Stefan�s custody papers.�
Alexis: �Okay. Stefan, I�ll be right back.�
Mac�s office, a few minutes later.
Alexis: (looking up from the papers) �Mac, he isn�t dangerous. You know that.�
Mac: �I do, but the rest of the world may not.� He pats Alexis on the back. �Just keep Stefan out of trouble, and away from the press and you should be fine until the hearing.�
Alexis: �I can�t let my brother go to prison. He was protecting me.�
Mac: �I understand that.� He pauses. �But that judge is another thing.�
Alexis: �What do you mean?�
Mac: �There�s something fishy going on here. He was dead set on keeping Stefan here until the hearing, but he suddenly changed his mind? I don�t buy it.�
Alexis: �Talk to Kim. She was the one who arranged it with him.� She signs the last paper and then turns to leave. �I�ll see you later.�
Mac: �Say hello to Ned for me.�
Alexis: �I will.� She leaves and goes back to Stefan and they head out of the building.
Stefan: �Ah. Fresh air. It�s such a relief.�
Alexis: �Well, brother dearest, you are in my custody for the next seventy two hours. Where do you want to go?�
Stefan: �You need to ask? I want to go see Mackenzie.�
Alexis: �I thought so.� She smiles. �I never thought I would see the day that I would be in charge of keeping you out of trouble.� She laughs.
Stefan: (mock glaring at her) �Get over it.�
Alexis: �Fine. Take the fun out of it.� She smiles again. �My car is over here.�
Ten minutes later.
Stefan and Alexis walk into Mackenzie�s room at GH.
Mackenzie is laying in bed, watching talk shows. Her eyes light up when she sees Stefan. She gets out of bed and walks over to him.
They look at each other for a long time before Mackenzie jumps into Stefan�s arms.
He holds her tight for a long time, and then kisses her gently.
Alexis quietly leaves to go talk to Bobbie, who was working at the nurses station.
Stefan: �Oh God, Mackenzie, I never thought I would hold you in my arms again.�
Mackenzie: �I missed you so much.� She hugs him tightly. �I take it that Kim and Scott got you out?�
Stefan: �Yes, provided that Alexis baby-sits me until the hearing.�
Mackenzie: �I want to go to it.�
Stefan: (leading her back to the bed) �No, no, no. you need to rest.�
Mackenzie: (amused) �I see that jail hasn�t changed you. You�re as strict as ever.� She laughs. �But I am going whether you like it or not.�
Stefan: (laughing) �I see that a near death experience hasn�t made you lose your stubborn streak, Ms. Cisnaros.�
Mackenzie: �Lose it? Stefan, my stubbornness is the only reason I am here right now. I am what you could call a fighter.� She gives him a kiss. �I want you to know that I don�t think that you�re a murderer. I know that you were just protecting Alexis.�
Stefan: (relieved) �I would have done the same thing for you. Or Christabel. Or Nikolas. I will fight until the end to save my family.�
Mackenzie: �I hear that we�re going to be staying at Casa Ashton for a while?�
Stefan: �I have to until the hearing, and then Alexis pointed out that if this goes to trial, staying in town where I can be seen easily would make me look better.� He smiles. �I hope you don�t mind.�
Mackenzie: �I don�t mind at all.� She smiles suggestively. �But will we be able to have any privacy with my brother and your sister sleeping down the hall?�
Stefan: �I don�t think they do a whole lot of sleeping around there.�
Mackenzie: �Meaning?�
Stefan: �Hannah gets up all night.� He laughs. �Alexis told me that Christabel started counting how many times Hannah cried last night.�
Mackenzie: �I can�t wait to see Christabel. I missed her a lot.�
Stefan: �Alexis told me that she was very worried about both of us.� He pauses. �You know, she thinks of you as her mother.�
Mackenzie: �I know.�
Stefan: (going on) �And so do I.� He puts his arms around her and kisses her softly.
Mackenzie: �I love you, Stefan.�
Stefan: �I love you too, Mackenzie.�
The nurses station down the hall.
Alexis: �Avery told me that Lucas has started teaching her to play soccer at school.�
Bobbie: (smiling) �Lucas thinks of Avery as one of the few girls he knows that doesn�t have cooties.�
The both start laughing.
Just then, Monica comes walking up, dressed in an elegant light blue suit, her hair swept up in a French twist.
Bobbie: �Well, well, Mon. You look very nice today.�
Monica: (distracted) �What? Oh, hi, Bobbie. Hi, Alexis.� She looks up and down the hallway.
Alexis: �Monica, are you okay?�
Monica: �Yeah, I�m just fine.�
Just then, Gregory gets out of the elevator and walks towards them.
Monica blushes. Bobbie and Alexis don�t think anything of it.
Gregory: �Good morning, Bobbie, Monica and Alexis. Alexis, what are you doing here?�
Alexis: �Stefan was released into my custody and he�s here visiting Mackenzie.�
Gregory: �Ah.� Just then his phone rings. �Gregory Fortino... what do you mean, smashed it? I just left my car a few minutes ago... fine... I�ll be down in a few minutes.� He hangs up his phone, his face flushed with anger.
Bobbie: �Gregory, are you okay?�
Gregory: (angry) �It seems that someone waited until I left the parking garage to take a golf club or something to my windshield and break the whole thing. I have to go downstairs.�
The three women watch as he runs off.
Down in the parking garage, Alan, watching from a distance, laughs to himself as he watches Gregory race to his silver Jaguar convertible.
Alan: �Never mess with Big Al.�
A half hour later, Monica knocks on Gregory�s office door.
Gregory: �Come in.�
Monica: (closing the door and coming over to the desk) �How�s your car?�
Gregory: �Currently minus a windshield. When I get my hands on whoever did this...�
Monica: �You sound stressed.� She walks behind his chair and starts massaging his back.
Gregory: �That feels good.�
Just then, his cell phone rings again.
Gregory: �Hello? This is Gregory Fortino.� He pauses. �What do you mean, the front tires are gone from my car? And what, what do you mean? Aren�t you fools employed to provide security for the parking garage... I�ll be right down.� He hangs up.
Monica: �What now?�
Gregory: �The two front tires are gone, the back two are flattened, and there seems to be a large amount of honey all over the interior, with feathers sticking to it.�
Monica: (trying to keep a straight face) �Who would do that?�
Gregory: �I have no clue.�
Monica can�t help starting to laugh.
Gregory: �You find this amusing?�
Monica: �Not really. But,� she smiles. �Most vandals just beat the car up. Who would take the time to steal the tires and coat the seats with honey and feathers?�
Gregory: (smiling slightly) �A criminal with way too much time on their hands.�
Monica: �I�ll go downstairs with you, if you�d like.�
Gregory: �Are you sure that you want to risk that?�
Monica: �What? The chief of staff casually talking to the chief legal council?� she shrugs. �It�s no problem.�
Gregory stands up and heads to the door. Monica grabs him and gives him a kiss.
Monica: �That is for sympathy.�
Gregory smiles as they head to the elevator.
Alexis and Bobbie are still standing at the nurses station. Julia has joined them. They all look up as Monica and Gregory pass by.
Bobbie: (as the elevator doors close) �I didn�t know that they were such good friends.�
Julia snorts under her breath. Alexis looks at her.
Alexis: �What was that supposed to be?�
Julia: �Didn�t Ned tell you about the elevator being broken here yesterday?�
Alexis: �No, but what does that have to do with anything?�
Julia: �Let�s put it this way. When the elevator got fixed, it stopped on this floor and Monica stepped out, adjusting her clothes, followed by Gregory.�
Bobbie: (laughing, but shocked) �NO! Monica and Gregory? No way.�
Alexis: (slightly amused) �It is possible. Gregory can be quite a Casanova. And Monica must be pretty starved for, uh, love, with the way that Alan is acting.�
They exchange a collective look.
Bobbie: �I wonder if Gregory�s windshield being bashed in has anything to do with his little liaison with Monica.�
Alexis: �Could you imagine what would happen if Alan found out?�
Julia: �Monica doesn�t even know that we know.� She pauses. �So we can�t tell anyone. Not even our significant others.�
Alexis: �I agree.�
Bobbie: �So do I.�
Just then, Alan steps out of the elevator and heads towards them.
Alan: �Good morning, all. I was wondering if you have seen my wife.�
Alexis, Bobbie and Julia look at each other nervously.
That night.
Ned and Alexis� house.
Alexis comes downstairs to find Ned and Stefan watching TV.
Ned is trying to explain the purpose of Jay Leno to Stefan.
Alexis: (at the top of the stairs) �Isn�t this a cute scene? My husband and my brother watching a little TV together.�
Ned: �Scary, huh?�
Alexis: �I was going to go with surreal.�
Stefan: �This has to be the stupidest show I have ever seen.� He grabs the remote off of the coffee table and changes the channel. �Much better.�
Ned looks in horror at the Russian movie that is on the foreign channel.
Ned: �Good Lord, what is it with you Cassadines that you prefer this crap over nice, normal television shows?�
Alexis: (sitting down next to him on the couch) �No, no. I watch Frasier with you.�
Ned: (kissing the top of her head) �So, there is hope for you yet.�
Alexis smiles as she playfully hits him.
Ned grabs her hand and kisses it.
Stefan: �I can�t wait until Mackenzie is here.�
Ned: (teasingly) �Why? You can�t stand our mushy stuff?�
Stefan: (laughing) �No, but you two are a little cheesy.�
Alexis starts laughing and lobs a throw pillow at him. It hits him in the face.
Alexis: (throwing her arms up in a victory sign) �Score!�
Stefan: (glaring at her) �I knew that if you married Ned, you would become strange.�
Alexis: �Strange? I�m normal, compared to you, Mr. �Do you have Madera, at Berg�s House to Tequila.� She starts laughing.
Stefan just sighs.
Stefan: (standing up) �I think I�ll go on up to bed.�
Alexis: �Good night, Stefan. By the way, the sheets are of the highest thread count we could find, just for you.�
Ned starts laughing as Stefan heads upstairs.
Ned: (pulling Alexis into his lap) �Have I ever told you that your sense of humor has greatly improved since you married me?�
Alexis: �You�re a terrible influence on me.�
Ned: �I know.� He grins. �Isn�t it wonderful?�
Alexis: (grabbing the remote and changing the channel) �Yes.� She stops on MTV, where N�Sync�s �God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You� is beginning to play.
Alexis: (in a low voice) �Would you care to dance, Mr. Ashton?�
Ned: �I would be honored to.� He takes her by the hand and they stand up and begin to sway back and forth to the music.
Can this be true, baby, can this be real? How can I put into words what I feel?
My life was complete, I thought I was whole, Why do I feel like I�m losing control?
Never thought that love could feel like this and you changed my world with just one kiss
How can it be that right here with me, there�s an angel. It�s a miracle.
Your love is like a river, peaceful and deep.
Your soul is like a secret that I never could keep.
When I look into your eyes, I know that it�s true.
God must have spent a little more time on you.
Ned pulls Alexis closer and nestles his face in her hair.
And all of creation, all things great and small. You are the one that surpasses them all.
More precious than any diamond or pearl,
You broke the mold when you came in this world.
And I�m trying hard to figure out, just how I ever lived without.
The warmth of your smile, the heart of a child. That�s deep inside, as we purify.
Alexis tips her head up and gently kisses Ned�s lips.
He softly sings along with the chorus.
Ned: �Your love is like a river, peaceful and deep.
Your soul is like a secret that I never could keep.
When I look into your eyes, I know that it�s true.
God must have spent a little more time on you.�
Never thought that love could feel like this and you changed my world with just one kiss
How can it be that right here with me, there�s an angel. It�s a miracle.
Your love is like a river, peaceful and deep.
Your soul is like a secret that I never could keep.
When I look into your eyes, I know that it�s true.
God must have spent a little more time on you.
A little more time on you.
Ned and Alexis look at each other as the song ends.
Alexis: (in a whisper) �Let�s go upstairs now.�
Ned: �I was just thinking that too.�
He goes over and turns off the lights and the TV, and then goes back over to Alexis and sweeps her into his arms.
Ned carries Alexis up to their bedroom and gently lays her down on the bed.
Alexis: (as he goes to close the door) �Come here, Mr. Ashton.�
Ned comes to stand at the end of the bed. He looks down at her.
Ned: �Yes, Mrs. Ashton?�
Alexis: (in a soft voice) �Make love to me.�
Ned: �It would be a honor for me to do so.� He removes her robe and chemise, and begins to slowly kiss down her body.
Alexis moans as his lips travel freely over her body.
Alexis: (moaning) �Ned... Ned... you�re... driving me... crazy... Ned.� She moans again as his lips reach her inner thigh.
Ned: �Is there something that you want, Mrs. Ashton?�
Alexis reaches up and pulls him on top of her. His clothes are quickly shed, and they give themselves up to each other, and to the night.