First, a note regarding updates for next week: Don't count on 'em. I am moving next week on my normal update day, and I'm not sure when the
hubby will want to pack up the computers or when we'll get them set up at the new place. Now, could I decide to take a break from unpacking and update next
week? Sure...but I'm not gonna say it's definite so I may not post until August.
Next...thank you to all for your replies on the last chapter. I didn't expect, or really even want anyone/everyone to understand or forgive Emily. I just wanted people to understand why Jason and Elizabeth would be there and why they would need to talk to her. I'm glad I appeared to have accomplished that. But yep...she's dead and I was more interested in how it affected Jason and Elizabeth. We've got a couple of chapters dealing with the aftermath...as well as some other fun and games that really could not have come at more inconvenient time. But that's the fun of it.
Back Chapters at My Site and The Archives
Chapter 69
~Harbor View Garage~
By the time they reached the towers, the snow that had been threatening began to fall. As they pulled into the garage, Jason turned off the wipers, cutting one of the few steady sounds in the car. They hadn't spoken since they left the hospital and Elizabeth didn't know for certain, but suspected that like her, Jason just didn't have the energy or ability to say anything.
Emily was dead. While they hadn't expected her to survive, it was still hard to process. She wasn't thinking about all the pain and anger of the last couple of months, she was remembering chocolate milkshakes, hot chocolate - three packets split two ways, brownies and ribs, dances and summers on the lake. She couldn't talk about any of it, so she'd sat in silent rumination.
Jason pulled into a spot and turned off the engine, but neither of them made an effort to move. He closed his eyes and rested his head against the leather seat. Elizabeth sighed and leaned against the door, her temple resting on the window.
"I could just sleep here," she said wearily. "I don't even want to move."
"I just want to get on my bike and ride," he admitted. Then he sighed heavily, "But I know I can't. Not just the weather but…"
"You can't leave because you need to be here," she said in understanding.
"Yeah," he agreed, and she knew in that word that he really hated being in charge. He had less freedom, more responsibility and she knew it pressed on him. "I don't want to go to my penthouse…it's too big…too much."
"Cameron's at my gram's," she told him in offering. "When I called her she said not to worry about rushing over in the morning. You can come up if you want."
He paused a moment and she wondered if he would say no. She really believed he would have kissed her on the rooftop, but he pulled back. Would he pull back even more now? Not just in the moment, but preemptively so that it didn't happen again? She had a feeling that they would not discuss what happened; they never seemed to talk about things like that. They just moved on and never dealt with it.
"Yeah," Jason finally said, "If you're sure you don't mind."
"I wouldn't have offered," she told him. "I know I won't be able to sleep tonight and I don't want to be alone."
"Neither do I," he admitted. Opening his door and coming around to hers he offered his hand, "Come on."
He put his hand on her back as they walked to the elevator. A guard stepped forward unobtrusively and Jason said, "Have Max cover anything. If I'm needed, call my cell phone. I'll be at Elizabeth's for a little while."
The guard nodded and melted back into the background. They stepped onto the elevator and went up to her apartment. She dropped her keys on the end table, her purse on the floor and kicked her shoes off. Running her hands through her hair and then rubbing her eyes, she turned blindly in a circle. Jason slipped his jacket off and set it on a kitchen chair. They paused in the room and looked at each other, almost as if they weren't sure what they should do.
"I'd normally ask if you ate," she laughed awkwardly. "But I'm not hungry and I couldn't even look at food right now."
"I couldn't either," he admitted, taking a step towards her.
"I just…I feel so lost," Elizabeth told him, her hands clutching together. "It doesn't seem real. It doesn't seem right. I mean I'm standing here, and nothing feels right in my own home. How can it be right when Emily's dead?"
Jason quickly crossed to her and wrapped his arms around her. Her breath stuck in her throat as she sobbed. "It's not right. She was supposed to be beat this. She was supposed to be better. She was supposed to get married and have children and we'd be friends again and our children would play together and…"
She lost the ability to speak and Jason held her tighter. "It's not right, Jason. It's not right."
"No," he said into her hair, his voice thick and rusty. "It's not. It's not."
Clinging to him, she sobbed. She needed him to ground her tonight when she felt lost. Yet, she knew she couldn't burden him with her grief. He had lost so many people, and had just sent Sonny away with no guarantee of return and he ran the organization. He had nobody to talk to, and she had vowed to be there for him. She would be strong and allow him to lean on her. That meant not falling apart on him.
Pulling back, she shook her head and dashed at her cheeks. "I'm sorry. I didn't meant to…I'm going to…I'll be back."
Then she turned for her bedroom. She needed to wash her face and gather herself. She couldn't ruin things with Jason by taking more than he could offer.
~Port Charles Harbor~
It was a beautiful sight to see the shell of the illustrious Corinthos-Morgan warehouse. It hadn't been completely destroyed, but it was quiet which meant the destruction had disrupted their operation. Manny knew that their secondary warehouse was overrun and if he wanted to really put the screws to the rival mobsters, he would go after it. But Manny had no plans for that. He wasn't interested in going after their business; he was interested in going after the men.
Manny wanted to avenge his brother's death, and he was going to destroy the men who killed him. He'd cut his Christmas trip home short because his moles had given him some very interesting information. Jason Morgan was now running the Corinthos Organization. Sonny Corinthos had ostensibly gone to the tropical island for family reasons. However, Manny's mole told him that Corinthos had cracked. Morgan was hiding the fact that his boss was crazy.
The smart thing to do was take out Morgan and send the organization and the city into chaos. Then he would track down Corinthos, whether on the island or wherever Morgan had stashed him, and take him out. Morgan wouldn't see the attack coming, especially while he was so distracted due to his sister's death. Morgan was too distraught, which made it the perfect time to strike.
That was why Manny had returned. He was going to find a place to hole up, since Morgan's men were crawling all over the place which included the warehouse on Pier 17, and wait. Sooner or later, he'd find the perfect time when Morgan was vulnerable and not guarded, and take him out. It would probably be sooner, since the lovely Miss Quartermaine's funeral would be coming.
~Elizabeth's Apartment~
Jason told himself that if he was smart he would leave here right now. He would leave before Elizabeth returned, or right after she returned. He couldn't be rude and just disappear on her. Not tonight. Not when she was broken up over Emily's death.
Tonight had changed things between them. He hadn't intentionally thought or intended to kiss her. But when he'd been up on the roof holding her, clinging to her because there was absolutely nothing else that made sense to him, it had just felt like pure instinct. All the time they'd been spending together, the feelings that had returned, when he held her…it was natural to him. He wanted to kiss her. He'd needed to kiss her. And the desire couldn't be attributed solely to Emily's death.
His sister's death may have been the reason he was holding Elizabeth, but he was not so far gone in his grief that he didn't know what he was doing. That was why he hadn't kissed her. Because he knew everything would change and he couldn't lose Elizabeth just because he hadn't been able to control himself.
Elizabeth was beautiful and wonderful and gave of herself so purely. The problem was that she was too pure for him. He killed people, he was a criminal and now he was running one of the largest organizations on the East Coast. He didn't deserve to be her friend, and definitely not her lover. Especially now that she was a mother. He wouldn't be able to bring anything good to her life, and he couldn't be selfish and taint her just because he wanted her.
Jason didn't know how to tell her all of that so she didn't feel bad. He feared voicing it would ruin things anyways, and he was more afraid of not having Elizabeth at all. Maybe it was best to follow her example. If she wasn't going to talk about it, then maybe she realized that it had been the moment overwhelming them. They recovered their senses and were putting it behind them.
He couldn't think of it any longer because Elizabeth came back out, her face scrubbed free of make-up and her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail. Her eyes were red and puffy, but she was struggling to remain dry-eyed in his presence. How could he leave her like this? She was shattered and yet she was trying not to show it. For his sake.
Elizabeth was trying to be strong for him. She was always trying to take care of him, and she was trying to do it again tonight. She always fed him, listened to him, shouldered his burdens when she could and did her best to give him a place of refuge to come to when he needed it. Even now she was burying her guilt and her grief and all her loss so she could help him with his.
He closed his eyes and then silently crossed the room. Gently he touched her arm and led her to the couch. He would not abandon her and he would not be selfish. Tonight they would help each other. Tonight, they would grieve together.
Sitting down and stretching out his legs, he pulled her to his side, holding her close. She curled into him, burying her face and cried. All he could do was hold her in return while his own grief flowed.
~Safe House~
Damien Spinelli was not thrilled with Jason Morgan's hospitality. While the bulky sentinels that guarded him had finally relented and supplied him with orange soda - the nectar of the gods - and bar-b-que chips, they certainly did not provide all he asked for. They also did not let him out of their sights so he was unable to attempt to procure it himself. There was also no computer or video games and he was quite bored. Cable TV was most unsatisfying and not entertaining.
The only variety he got was when the guards changed. Then he had new faces to make up names for, since none of them gave their names or even really spoke. So The Jackal would amuse himself by babbling, having long-winded monologues that he knew annoyed his captors. They no doubt wished they could gag him, but instead would glare at him while he laughed.
Spinelli wasn't laughing tonight, though. Because the guards were firing very real bullets, and someone outside was firing back. He could hear the missiles hit the house and he suddenly had the realization that this was nothing like his video games. This was real, and potentially very deadly.
"Keep down," the guard Ritchie commanded. "And don't even think of trying to escape."
Spinelli clutched his beanie in his hands and shook his head. He had no intention of going out there where bullets were flying and unknown people were. At least in here it seemed like the guards were trying to protect him. While he didn't particularly like being held by Jason Morgan and his motley crew, he wasn't in a rush to leave them at the moment.
Ritchie grabbed his shoulder and commanded, "Let's go."
Spinelli's eyes widened. He didn't want to leave here. Leaving here would be a very bad idea.
"I don't think it would be…wise to leave here," he shook his head most strenuously. "Why would we leave here?"
"Because we've been compromised," he retorted. "We don't know who found us and we are not going to stay here and have someone come back or call in reinforcements."
His mouth formed a perfect 'o' before it snapped shut abruptly. He got up from his knees crouching on the balls of his feet. He was ready to run whenever Good Ritchie told him to.
No. He wasn't. He needed his computer. Grabbing the guard he pleaded, "My computer. We can't leave my computer behind."
"You can get a new one, kid."
"No. I…I can be of help to Mr. Morgan. Track Mr. Lansing for him since he seemed…most angry with my former employer. But I need my computer because I have it set up and configured exactly how I need it. Do you know how much unnecessary time would be wasted when all it would take is a few simple-"
"Stan's got your computer, you nerd," the guard grumbled. "So shut up and go."
"You couldn't have told me that, Dumb Lugnut?" he groused. Then he asked, "Has Darkwing broken my encryption codes yet?"
Ritchie just rolled his eyes, grabbed Spinelli by the scruff of his neck and hauled him to his feet. With a command to move, the guard pushed him forward forcefully. Spinelli complied and figured soon enough he would find out whether Stan had been able to hack into his computer or whether he remained the Master of Technology.
~Elizabeth's Apartment~
Jason woke with a crick in his neck and his arm completely numb. It took him a moment to remember where he was, but when he did he looked over at Elizabeth who was still asleep resting on his shoulder. Then he remembered why he was asleep at Elizabeth's and his chest constructed with painful tightness. His sister had died last night; succumbing to the cancer that had returned.
Using the arm not holding Elizabeth to his side, his scrubbed his hand over his face. He knew he needed to talk to Alan and Monica and find out when the funeral was, and he should check in with Max to see what was going on with the business side, but he didn't want to move. Sitting here with Elizabeth, where the ache of losing Emily hurt a little less, was the only place he wanted to be right now.
Gently he eased his arm out from behind Elizabeth, lying her down on a pillow, and then stood. He stretched the tightness out of his muscles and walked quietly around the apartment. A few minutes later he heard Elizabeth's voice behind him.
"Jason?"
He turned to find her in the doorway to the kitchen, pushing her hair back that had escaped her ponytail. She still looked utterly devastated, but also lost and confused. "Hey."
"I…I could hear sounds but…I thought maybe you'd had to go."
With a rueful chuckle he said, "I was making breakfast."
"You cook?" she asked, then blushed and looked down. "Sorry."
"Come sit down," he told her and put a plate on the table. "Sonny taught me to cook when I first went to work for him. He thought I should know and so I let him. I…I don't tell many people or cook very often."
"So all this time I've been cooking for you, inflicting my paltry efforts on you and you know how to cook?"
He sat down across from her, "The food was good and Cameron's lucky he was a mother who's learning to cook because she wanted to take care of him the best she can. I appreciated you trying to look out for me and not letting me get away with neglecting myself. Just because I can cook doesn't mean I did, so…thank you."
Toying with her fork, Elizabeth didn't answer. Jason wondered if he'd gone too far, but couldn't try to backtrack because there was a knock on the door. Elizabeth practically ran out of the room to answer it. A few seconds later she was back with Max who looked uncomfortable about being there.
"Max needs to talk to you," Elizabeth told him. "I need to call my grandmother and then get ready to get Cam. So…I'll talk to you later."
After she left and he heard the door to her bedroom close, Jason turned to Max with a glare, "What are you doing here? This is Elizaeth's house; we keep business out of here. You don't come here; you call me."
"I know," Max nodded. "But your calls were going to voicemail and I needed to get a hold of you. I know not to come to Miss Webber's unless it's an emergency. This is an emergency."
"What happened?" he demanded with a furrow of his brow.
"Manny Ruiz is back in Port Charles."
"What?"
"He knows things about the organization," his second said anxiously. "He showed up at the safe house where we were keeping the computer geek. I don't think he expected anyone to be there, but he wasn't going to get caught. Scott's dead, but Dan thinks he got a shot into him. Our guys are going to search the area in the full light and look for blood."
"He showed up at our place?" Jason was incredulous at the mobster's audacity.
"Perfect place to hide," Max stated. "Right under our nose."
"What about this Spinelli guy?"
"Ritchie got him out. I told him to bring him here. I've got him in a place on the floor below. I wasn't sure if Manny knew all of our safe houses. I've got a team who's going to inspect 'em and watch them in case he tries again. I think we shouldn't trust the use of any of them."
"I agree," Jason said on a sigh. "Tell Bernie to start offloading them slowly while starting to find some new ones. I only want a few people to know. If we've got a mole, then we're not going to let a lot of organization know."
"I'll get on that," Max promised, looking eager to escape. Before he left he said, "I'm sorry about Miss Quartermaine, Boss. For both yours and Miss Webber's loss."
"Thank you," he said, clenching his jaw slightly. Then he said, "I'll be up to my apartment soon and I want to go over everything."
"Okay," the other man nodded. "I'll call Bernie and get him started on the plan."
Then Max left and Jason scrubbed his hand over his face. Manny Ruiz coming back was not a good thing, especially not right now. It was just one more thing he needed to handle when he already had so much to deal with. But he needed to tell Elizabeth Manny was back, and he wouldn't just disappear without saying good-bye. He wouldn't do that to her, because he wouldn't treat her like she didn't matter to him. No matter it have appeared to her last night.
Next...thank you to all for your replies on the last chapter. I didn't expect, or really even want anyone/everyone to understand or forgive Emily. I just wanted people to understand why Jason and Elizabeth would be there and why they would need to talk to her. I'm glad I appeared to have accomplished that. But yep...she's dead and I was more interested in how it affected Jason and Elizabeth. We've got a couple of chapters dealing with the aftermath...as well as some other fun and games that really could not have come at more inconvenient time. But that's the fun of it.
Back Chapters at My Site and The Archives
Chapter 69
~Harbor View Garage~
By the time they reached the towers, the snow that had been threatening began to fall. As they pulled into the garage, Jason turned off the wipers, cutting one of the few steady sounds in the car. They hadn't spoken since they left the hospital and Elizabeth didn't know for certain, but suspected that like her, Jason just didn't have the energy or ability to say anything.
Emily was dead. While they hadn't expected her to survive, it was still hard to process. She wasn't thinking about all the pain and anger of the last couple of months, she was remembering chocolate milkshakes, hot chocolate - three packets split two ways, brownies and ribs, dances and summers on the lake. She couldn't talk about any of it, so she'd sat in silent rumination.
Jason pulled into a spot and turned off the engine, but neither of them made an effort to move. He closed his eyes and rested his head against the leather seat. Elizabeth sighed and leaned against the door, her temple resting on the window.
"I could just sleep here," she said wearily. "I don't even want to move."
"I just want to get on my bike and ride," he admitted. Then he sighed heavily, "But I know I can't. Not just the weather but…"
"You can't leave because you need to be here," she said in understanding.
"Yeah," he agreed, and she knew in that word that he really hated being in charge. He had less freedom, more responsibility and she knew it pressed on him. "I don't want to go to my penthouse…it's too big…too much."
"Cameron's at my gram's," she told him in offering. "When I called her she said not to worry about rushing over in the morning. You can come up if you want."
He paused a moment and she wondered if he would say no. She really believed he would have kissed her on the rooftop, but he pulled back. Would he pull back even more now? Not just in the moment, but preemptively so that it didn't happen again? She had a feeling that they would not discuss what happened; they never seemed to talk about things like that. They just moved on and never dealt with it.
"Yeah," Jason finally said, "If you're sure you don't mind."
"I wouldn't have offered," she told him. "I know I won't be able to sleep tonight and I don't want to be alone."
"Neither do I," he admitted. Opening his door and coming around to hers he offered his hand, "Come on."
He put his hand on her back as they walked to the elevator. A guard stepped forward unobtrusively and Jason said, "Have Max cover anything. If I'm needed, call my cell phone. I'll be at Elizabeth's for a little while."
The guard nodded and melted back into the background. They stepped onto the elevator and went up to her apartment. She dropped her keys on the end table, her purse on the floor and kicked her shoes off. Running her hands through her hair and then rubbing her eyes, she turned blindly in a circle. Jason slipped his jacket off and set it on a kitchen chair. They paused in the room and looked at each other, almost as if they weren't sure what they should do.
"I'd normally ask if you ate," she laughed awkwardly. "But I'm not hungry and I couldn't even look at food right now."
"I couldn't either," he admitted, taking a step towards her.
"I just…I feel so lost," Elizabeth told him, her hands clutching together. "It doesn't seem real. It doesn't seem right. I mean I'm standing here, and nothing feels right in my own home. How can it be right when Emily's dead?"
Jason quickly crossed to her and wrapped his arms around her. Her breath stuck in her throat as she sobbed. "It's not right. She was supposed to be beat this. She was supposed to be better. She was supposed to get married and have children and we'd be friends again and our children would play together and…"
She lost the ability to speak and Jason held her tighter. "It's not right, Jason. It's not right."
"No," he said into her hair, his voice thick and rusty. "It's not. It's not."
Clinging to him, she sobbed. She needed him to ground her tonight when she felt lost. Yet, she knew she couldn't burden him with her grief. He had lost so many people, and had just sent Sonny away with no guarantee of return and he ran the organization. He had nobody to talk to, and she had vowed to be there for him. She would be strong and allow him to lean on her. That meant not falling apart on him.
Pulling back, she shook her head and dashed at her cheeks. "I'm sorry. I didn't meant to…I'm going to…I'll be back."
Then she turned for her bedroom. She needed to wash her face and gather herself. She couldn't ruin things with Jason by taking more than he could offer.
~Port Charles Harbor~
It was a beautiful sight to see the shell of the illustrious Corinthos-Morgan warehouse. It hadn't been completely destroyed, but it was quiet which meant the destruction had disrupted their operation. Manny knew that their secondary warehouse was overrun and if he wanted to really put the screws to the rival mobsters, he would go after it. But Manny had no plans for that. He wasn't interested in going after their business; he was interested in going after the men.
Manny wanted to avenge his brother's death, and he was going to destroy the men who killed him. He'd cut his Christmas trip home short because his moles had given him some very interesting information. Jason Morgan was now running the Corinthos Organization. Sonny Corinthos had ostensibly gone to the tropical island for family reasons. However, Manny's mole told him that Corinthos had cracked. Morgan was hiding the fact that his boss was crazy.
The smart thing to do was take out Morgan and send the organization and the city into chaos. Then he would track down Corinthos, whether on the island or wherever Morgan had stashed him, and take him out. Morgan wouldn't see the attack coming, especially while he was so distracted due to his sister's death. Morgan was too distraught, which made it the perfect time to strike.
That was why Manny had returned. He was going to find a place to hole up, since Morgan's men were crawling all over the place which included the warehouse on Pier 17, and wait. Sooner or later, he'd find the perfect time when Morgan was vulnerable and not guarded, and take him out. It would probably be sooner, since the lovely Miss Quartermaine's funeral would be coming.
~Elizabeth's Apartment~
Jason told himself that if he was smart he would leave here right now. He would leave before Elizabeth returned, or right after she returned. He couldn't be rude and just disappear on her. Not tonight. Not when she was broken up over Emily's death.
Tonight had changed things between them. He hadn't intentionally thought or intended to kiss her. But when he'd been up on the roof holding her, clinging to her because there was absolutely nothing else that made sense to him, it had just felt like pure instinct. All the time they'd been spending together, the feelings that had returned, when he held her…it was natural to him. He wanted to kiss her. He'd needed to kiss her. And the desire couldn't be attributed solely to Emily's death.
His sister's death may have been the reason he was holding Elizabeth, but he was not so far gone in his grief that he didn't know what he was doing. That was why he hadn't kissed her. Because he knew everything would change and he couldn't lose Elizabeth just because he hadn't been able to control himself.
Elizabeth was beautiful and wonderful and gave of herself so purely. The problem was that she was too pure for him. He killed people, he was a criminal and now he was running one of the largest organizations on the East Coast. He didn't deserve to be her friend, and definitely not her lover. Especially now that she was a mother. He wouldn't be able to bring anything good to her life, and he couldn't be selfish and taint her just because he wanted her.
Jason didn't know how to tell her all of that so she didn't feel bad. He feared voicing it would ruin things anyways, and he was more afraid of not having Elizabeth at all. Maybe it was best to follow her example. If she wasn't going to talk about it, then maybe she realized that it had been the moment overwhelming them. They recovered their senses and were putting it behind them.
He couldn't think of it any longer because Elizabeth came back out, her face scrubbed free of make-up and her hair pulled back in a loose ponytail. Her eyes were red and puffy, but she was struggling to remain dry-eyed in his presence. How could he leave her like this? She was shattered and yet she was trying not to show it. For his sake.
Elizabeth was trying to be strong for him. She was always trying to take care of him, and she was trying to do it again tonight. She always fed him, listened to him, shouldered his burdens when she could and did her best to give him a place of refuge to come to when he needed it. Even now she was burying her guilt and her grief and all her loss so she could help him with his.
He closed his eyes and then silently crossed the room. Gently he touched her arm and led her to the couch. He would not abandon her and he would not be selfish. Tonight they would help each other. Tonight, they would grieve together.
Sitting down and stretching out his legs, he pulled her to his side, holding her close. She curled into him, burying her face and cried. All he could do was hold her in return while his own grief flowed.
~Safe House~
Damien Spinelli was not thrilled with Jason Morgan's hospitality. While the bulky sentinels that guarded him had finally relented and supplied him with orange soda - the nectar of the gods - and bar-b-que chips, they certainly did not provide all he asked for. They also did not let him out of their sights so he was unable to attempt to procure it himself. There was also no computer or video games and he was quite bored. Cable TV was most unsatisfying and not entertaining.
The only variety he got was when the guards changed. Then he had new faces to make up names for, since none of them gave their names or even really spoke. So The Jackal would amuse himself by babbling, having long-winded monologues that he knew annoyed his captors. They no doubt wished they could gag him, but instead would glare at him while he laughed.
Spinelli wasn't laughing tonight, though. Because the guards were firing very real bullets, and someone outside was firing back. He could hear the missiles hit the house and he suddenly had the realization that this was nothing like his video games. This was real, and potentially very deadly.
"Keep down," the guard Ritchie commanded. "And don't even think of trying to escape."
Spinelli clutched his beanie in his hands and shook his head. He had no intention of going out there where bullets were flying and unknown people were. At least in here it seemed like the guards were trying to protect him. While he didn't particularly like being held by Jason Morgan and his motley crew, he wasn't in a rush to leave them at the moment.
Ritchie grabbed his shoulder and commanded, "Let's go."
Spinelli's eyes widened. He didn't want to leave here. Leaving here would be a very bad idea.
"I don't think it would be…wise to leave here," he shook his head most strenuously. "Why would we leave here?"
"Because we've been compromised," he retorted. "We don't know who found us and we are not going to stay here and have someone come back or call in reinforcements."
His mouth formed a perfect 'o' before it snapped shut abruptly. He got up from his knees crouching on the balls of his feet. He was ready to run whenever Good Ritchie told him to.
No. He wasn't. He needed his computer. Grabbing the guard he pleaded, "My computer. We can't leave my computer behind."
"You can get a new one, kid."
"No. I…I can be of help to Mr. Morgan. Track Mr. Lansing for him since he seemed…most angry with my former employer. But I need my computer because I have it set up and configured exactly how I need it. Do you know how much unnecessary time would be wasted when all it would take is a few simple-"
"Stan's got your computer, you nerd," the guard grumbled. "So shut up and go."
"You couldn't have told me that, Dumb Lugnut?" he groused. Then he asked, "Has Darkwing broken my encryption codes yet?"
Ritchie just rolled his eyes, grabbed Spinelli by the scruff of his neck and hauled him to his feet. With a command to move, the guard pushed him forward forcefully. Spinelli complied and figured soon enough he would find out whether Stan had been able to hack into his computer or whether he remained the Master of Technology.
~Elizabeth's Apartment~
Jason woke with a crick in his neck and his arm completely numb. It took him a moment to remember where he was, but when he did he looked over at Elizabeth who was still asleep resting on his shoulder. Then he remembered why he was asleep at Elizabeth's and his chest constructed with painful tightness. His sister had died last night; succumbing to the cancer that had returned.
Using the arm not holding Elizabeth to his side, his scrubbed his hand over his face. He knew he needed to talk to Alan and Monica and find out when the funeral was, and he should check in with Max to see what was going on with the business side, but he didn't want to move. Sitting here with Elizabeth, where the ache of losing Emily hurt a little less, was the only place he wanted to be right now.
Gently he eased his arm out from behind Elizabeth, lying her down on a pillow, and then stood. He stretched the tightness out of his muscles and walked quietly around the apartment. A few minutes later he heard Elizabeth's voice behind him.
"Jason?"
He turned to find her in the doorway to the kitchen, pushing her hair back that had escaped her ponytail. She still looked utterly devastated, but also lost and confused. "Hey."
"I…I could hear sounds but…I thought maybe you'd had to go."
With a rueful chuckle he said, "I was making breakfast."
"You cook?" she asked, then blushed and looked down. "Sorry."
"Come sit down," he told her and put a plate on the table. "Sonny taught me to cook when I first went to work for him. He thought I should know and so I let him. I…I don't tell many people or cook very often."
"So all this time I've been cooking for you, inflicting my paltry efforts on you and you know how to cook?"
He sat down across from her, "The food was good and Cameron's lucky he was a mother who's learning to cook because she wanted to take care of him the best she can. I appreciated you trying to look out for me and not letting me get away with neglecting myself. Just because I can cook doesn't mean I did, so…thank you."
Toying with her fork, Elizabeth didn't answer. Jason wondered if he'd gone too far, but couldn't try to backtrack because there was a knock on the door. Elizabeth practically ran out of the room to answer it. A few seconds later she was back with Max who looked uncomfortable about being there.
"Max needs to talk to you," Elizabeth told him. "I need to call my grandmother and then get ready to get Cam. So…I'll talk to you later."
After she left and he heard the door to her bedroom close, Jason turned to Max with a glare, "What are you doing here? This is Elizaeth's house; we keep business out of here. You don't come here; you call me."
"I know," Max nodded. "But your calls were going to voicemail and I needed to get a hold of you. I know not to come to Miss Webber's unless it's an emergency. This is an emergency."
"What happened?" he demanded with a furrow of his brow.
"Manny Ruiz is back in Port Charles."
"What?"
"He knows things about the organization," his second said anxiously. "He showed up at the safe house where we were keeping the computer geek. I don't think he expected anyone to be there, but he wasn't going to get caught. Scott's dead, but Dan thinks he got a shot into him. Our guys are going to search the area in the full light and look for blood."
"He showed up at our place?" Jason was incredulous at the mobster's audacity.
"Perfect place to hide," Max stated. "Right under our nose."
"What about this Spinelli guy?"
"Ritchie got him out. I told him to bring him here. I've got him in a place on the floor below. I wasn't sure if Manny knew all of our safe houses. I've got a team who's going to inspect 'em and watch them in case he tries again. I think we shouldn't trust the use of any of them."
"I agree," Jason said on a sigh. "Tell Bernie to start offloading them slowly while starting to find some new ones. I only want a few people to know. If we've got a mole, then we're not going to let a lot of organization know."
"I'll get on that," Max promised, looking eager to escape. Before he left he said, "I'm sorry about Miss Quartermaine, Boss. For both yours and Miss Webber's loss."
"Thank you," he said, clenching his jaw slightly. Then he said, "I'll be up to my apartment soon and I want to go over everything."
"Okay," the other man nodded. "I'll call Bernie and get him started on the plan."
Then Max left and Jason scrubbed his hand over his face. Manny Ruiz coming back was not a good thing, especially not right now. It was just one more thing he needed to handle when he already had so much to deal with. But he needed to tell Elizabeth Manny was back, and he wouldn't just disappear without saying good-bye. He wouldn't do that to her, because he wouldn't treat her like she didn't matter to him. No matter it have appeared to her last night.
