Episode 146

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Episode 146

Scene 1:

"Who was at the door?" Georgia asked when Ian reappeared. He glanced at her distractedly, almost looking through her it seemed. "Ian? Is everything okay?"

"Sure, everything is fine," Ian muttered picking up his wine glass and staring at the liquid swirling in it.

"Are you sure? You look upset..."

"I said I was fine!" Ian snapped. "Do you have to know my every thought? God, what is it with you anyway, Nurse Georgia? You come off all sweet and kind but then you turn into a harpy whenever we get intimate. Like we were married or something. Well I've got news for you. We're not married and we'll never be married. So just cut the act okay?"

Georgia recoiled, stunned by his outburst. Hot tears formed behind her eyes at his stinging words. This was wrong. Just ten minutes ago he had been sweet and had wanted to know everything about her. Now he was accusing her of being a nag? Maybe Jory was right, she thought angrily, pushing the tears away. Maybe Ian McCormick was really the egomaniacal jerk he came off as to other people.

"What is the matter with you?" She choked out. "I just asked a question..."

"Yeah, a question I answered and you decided you had to ask again. You know what, Georgia? I'm not in the mood for this. In fact, I'm not in the mood for you."

"So, what? You want me to leave?" She stared at Ian waiting for an answer. He locked eyes with her, remaining silent, but his eyes said everything. "You do. Oh my god, Ian. Who are you?" She slid off the stool, reaching for her purse on the counter. "Ten minutes ago you were sweet and funny and charming. And now, you're some paranoid jerk! God, Jory was right about you all along. You don't care about anyone but yourself."

"Oh, Jory. That's right. I forgot Jory Conlan knows everything," Ian replied with a roll of his eyes. "Well, I hate to tell you this, my dear, but Jory Conlan is as mixed up as they come. The boy has never decided which way his flag flies if you know what I mean. A man as indecisive as that can't be so insightful that he would know how I tick. And he certainly couldn't figure out a woman like you."

"He knows a lot more about you than I thought he did. I should listen to him more. He said you would break my heart," Georgia snapped back.

"I've broken your heart? I find that hard to believe. After all, we never really had much of a relationship except sex. And even that...well, you aren't the first woman I've lusted after and you won't be the last. You were fun while you lasted but you bore me now."

She slapped him then, watching as his head snapped to the side from the strength of the blow. A small red patch formed on his cheekbone where her hand had connected. "I hate you, Ian McCormick. I can't believe you would use me like some toy. Don't ever speak to me again." She backed out of the room, staring at his face, allowing herself to break down only when she'd hit the elevator. So much for her Prince Charming.

Scene 2:

Dinah paced the waiting room like a caged animal. The effect of it made Noah edgy. He didn't like bringing Dinah to the police station but he had made a promise to Tyler. For some reason, Noah couldn't quite understand, they had bonded over Ty's predicament and wanted nothing more than to see the other. It was almost nice to see them care so much about each other, even if Noah thought their loyalty to each other, especially Dinah's, was a little misplaced.

"What's taking them so long?" Dinah muttered making another pass by him.

He reached out an arm and snagged her hand, stopping her from continuing the round. "Would you sit down? You're making me crazy with all that pacing," he said, pulling her towards the chair next to him.

"I can't sit down," she told him jerking her hand free. "I've been sitting or lying down for days now."

"Fine, but could you keep the pacing to a minimum?"

Dinah sat reluctantly staring at the door Tyler would come through. "Are you sure he wants to see me?" She asked again.

"Yes, Dinah. He asked for you specifically," Noah repeated again. They had gone through this twice already. "What's the matter?"

She looked over at him, her eyes brimming with tears. "This is my fault too. He's only here because of me. If I had just..."

"All right," Noah cut in sharply. "This is not your fault. Tyler is in jail because of someone else. You tried to help him. He knows that and he appreciates it. Why else would he have asked me to bring you here? So stop it, Dinah. I don't think Tyler will want to hear this from you. He needs you positive and upbeat. He needs you like you always are. Do you understand?"

She swiped at the tears in her eyes and nodded dropping her chin to her chest. "I know you're right...." She started as the door swung open and Tyler entered the room, followed closely by a guard who took his place by the door. Dinah's head snapped up at his presence and the tears started again. Noah stood, vacating the chair next to her for Tyler.

"Dinah, don't do that," Tyler said sitting next to her. He glanced at the guard before putting an arm around her shoulders. The guard looked away, pretending not to see the contact. "I'm so glad to see you," he continued. "You don't know how worried I've been..."

Noah tapped lightly on the exit door letting the guard outside know he wanted out. He didn't really want to ruin their time together. Besides he had another promise to Tyler to fulfill. He reached into his pocket for his cell phone and walked towards the lobby as he dialed.

"Times-Picayune," a nasal voice answered after the second ring.

"I need to speak with Angelina Tejera," Noah replied, looking around the room.

"One moment please." The line went quiet while he was on hold, the wait seeming to be never ending. "I'm sorry, Miss Tejera is out at the moment. Would you like her voice mail?"

"Yes," Noah replied instantly, almost relieved that he wouldn't have to speak to the woman himself. It wasn't that he minded calling her. He had promised Tyler he would, after all. But she was still a stranger to him and vice versa. The person making this call should really be their brother. The operator transferred him and he waited through the greeting before taking a breath and plunging into what he wanted to say.

"Hi. My name is Noah Wallace and I'm calling from Conlan's Glen, Virginia. Your brother, Tyler, asked me to call you and let you know what was going on. Um...he's okay. He's in...custody, though I'm sure your brother Nicolas has probably told you that. Uh...he wanted to let you know he was okay but that he hoped you would come. Miss. Tejera, I know Ty is innocent but I'm not so sure he's going to get off. He really needs some support and I really hope you'll come. If you need to reach me, my cell phone number is 555-8417."

He ended the call, shoving the phone back into his pocket. Okay, so it wasn't the best message in the world, but it would do, Either she would come or she wouldn't. That was up to her now.

Scene 3:

"So. You feel like talking about what happened today? Because I would really like to hear about it."

Joshua Manning looked up from his empty beer bottle, staring angrily into Honey's eyes. He didn't give a damn what she wanted. Jamie Mason had let him down in Florida and he had no intention of rolling over and forgiving the man. Why should he? He was left to the wolves and eaten alive, while Jamie returned to his wealthy family and lived the good life. Snagging the empty bottle, he pried himself from the recliner and stalked towards the kitchenette. There were only two cold Michelob's left out of the six pack he'd brought home with him. Too bad there was no buzz to go with them, he thought pulling one of them out and twisting the cap off.

"Well?" Honey demanded from the doorway. "Come on already."

He tilted the bottle back and let the cold beer slide down his throat. That felt good. Not much else felt good these days, but he could always count on that. Josh turned towards her, fist clenching the bottle. "I don't want to talk about it," he said at last.

"Oh really? Well that's a big shock. Come on, who is that guy to you?"

"Just a guy," Josh snapped pushing past her back to his recliner in the living room. Honey followed stubbornly glaring at him the entire time. "What?"

"He rattled you. Pissed you off. I want to know what the guy did that was so bad that you would turn down his offer of a job."

"You eavesdropped." It was a statement of fact, not an accusation. He had almost known that she would. After all, he really hadn't told her much of anything when it came to his past.

"Yes, I eavesdropped. What was I supposed to do? You wouldn't tell me anything!"

"Why should I have to?" Josh snapped. "That guy doesn't mean anything to me. He's just someone I knew once in a different life. That's all."

"Then why did you agree to see him?" Honey persisted. "I mean, someone contacts you out of the blue and you drop everything to go see him. Why?"

Josh's lips curled into an angry snarl. "I didn't drop everything," he muttered.

"No, you're right about that. Because you haven't been doing anything worth dropping! Come on Josh," Honey went on, her tone changing from harsh and critical to soft and pleading. "Talk to me. Tell me why he rattles you. I know his name. It's Jamie Mason. He gave me his card." She pulled it out of her pocket and dropped it on the table next to him. "He's from Virginia. How do you know him? Did you live in Virginia? Talk to me!"

He finished off his beer and set the bottle aside. Sighing heavily, he got up from the chair and went to the patio doors that overlooked the street. He'd tried so hard to forget it all. Tried to forget what Nicolas Tejera had done to his sister, Jessica, what she had done to herself, and how Josh had let them ruin his chances for happiness. But it was always at the front of his thoughts ready to make him feel miserable at the drop of a hat. He'd been in love with a beautiful woman. And he'd thrown it away just because of who she was related to.

That was likely the worst of it all right there. If he closed his eyes, he could still see her at that beach house in Florida right before everything went to hell. That was before Jamie left and before Nicolas had completely ruined Jessica. The trip to the beach house was the last time Josh remembered being happy. After that it was all down hill. He hated Nicolas Tejera for his part in how Josh's life had fallen apart but he was perhaps angrier with Jamie Mason.

Jamie had always been a friend to him until he'd returned to Virginia and then nothing. He hadn't heard anything from the man until today. When the new owners of the hospital forced Josh out, Jamie had been silent. When he lost his medical license because of them, he had tried to contact Jamie but had been ignored. But now, here he was expecting them to be pals again? Josh wasn't that forgiving.

"Joshua," Honey said interrupting his thoughts. She was at his elbow, looking up at him with worry. "Please talk to me. Why can't you tell me who this guy is?"

"You want to know who he is?" Josh asked, his fists clenching at his sides. "He's a self-centered bastard who doesn't give a shit about anyone unless it suits his purposes. Is that what you want to hear?"

"It's a start. Why don't you want to take that job offer? You know we could use that money."

Josh sighed and pulled Honey close to him, embracing her. She was always looking out for him. And for them. She'd been good to him and he'd done nothing but use her without thinking twice. "You should know...I worked for him once before. And he left me high and dry. I don't want that to happen again."

"It won't. I'll be with you this time. You won't be alone," she answered smiling up at him. "Will you at least think about it? For me?"

He owed her that much. She had always been there for him. It was his turn to be there for her. "Okay. I'll think about it," he said after a moment. "For you. But not for him."

Scene 4:

"I'm so glad to see you," Tyler smiled. "You don't know how worried I've been. Nicky hasn't been able to tell me anything."

"I haven't seen him," Dinah answered getting her tears under control.

"I didn't think so. But you're here now. How are you feeling?" He removed his arm and pushed the chair away to get a better look at her. She was paler than normal, but he wasn't sure that wasn't because of the tears or not. She was definitely thinner and a tinge of sadness and anger slept behind her eyes.

She shrugged one shoulder, the uninjured one, lightly. "Well enough to be out of the hospital...thank god. I think if I had to spend another night there, I probably would have killed myself," she added seriously.

"That bad?"

"Tyler, they all blame me." He didn't respond but let her continue, knowing she had to let it all out before she would listen to him. That was what being on the run with her for two months had taught him. "My mother wouldn't even come see me. Did you know she left town with my sister? Sold the house and everything. Galen had to go get my things before she threw them out. Kelly must blame me too but I don't know. I mean, it isn't as if she liked him. She always told me she hated Dad." She sighed and rubbed her forehead. "Galen doesn't blame me. But then, I think he always wished someone would kill Dad. After all, Dad is the reason Galen lost Kelly and he almost lost Mia to Dad too."

She stood and paced the room for a minute, coming back to the chair and slumping back into it, all her restless energy dissipating as quickly as it had come.

"They wouldn't let me go to the funeral. Everyone else went. Even Piper went. She told me about it. Said how nice it was... The one thing she didn't tell me though...you know they didn't even mention me during the service? It's true. I was left out of it. Even his obituary. I overheard the nurses talking about it outside my door. I think they did it on purpose. I didn't mean for any of this to happen!"

"I know. If it means anything at all, Dinah," Tyler said when she had stopped. "It's not your fault at all. It's all mine. This started with me because I had some stupid idea that running was the answer. And I dragged you into it. That wasn't fair and you should really be angry with me. Not yourself."

"No, I'm not angry with you. I couldn't be. Besides, Galen and Noah...god, even Piper, all I have is you."

"Well, just try not to blame yourself. We've both made mistakes and your dad was no saint," Tyler pointed out.

Dinah nodded and tried to smile for him. It looked more painful than pleasant. "How are you? Are you okay?"

"I could be better," he shrugged. "But all in all not bad. Nicky is trying to find me a decent lawyer. Right now, they have this public defender talking to me and he's useless."

"Someone will help you. I just know it."

"Yeah, Nicky will find one. He won't let me stay behind bars for the rest of my life." Tyler grinned again. He reached for her hand, squeezing it in his. "I owe you a lot, you know."

"You don't owe me anything," she returned, flushing deeply.

"Sure I do. When I get out of here, I'm going to find some way to repay you for everything you've done for me."

"Repay me?" She laughed lightly. "Fine, but don't expect me to let you. After all, I did what I had to do. And I'd do it all again."

Tyler gazed at her seriously. She would too. She would risk everything to help him even if it meant having to relive the nightmare of the past week. He felt an absurd moment of affection for her. She was loyal and he trusted her above everyone else, if only because she had been the one person to always help him no questions asked. And she'd paid a hefty price by doing so. Well, he would pay her back somehow as soon as he was out of this and their lives were back to normal.