A/N: I know it's been forever and a day since my last update, and
I'm am sorry. All I can say is that I've had things happen that has
left me very little time to sit down and write. I really do hope to
have more time in the future. So a quick recap. Emily and Elizabeth
are at Johnny and Nadine's farm waiting to be taken to Paris safely.
The pair have just met Max and Milo. Emily is smitten with Milo and him
her. Sonny has set a trap for Jason. I think that's the main gist.
As always thank you to all of you who are sticking with me and still
reading and enjoying this story!
~
Jules ~

AJ was feeling restless. He was wired and needed something to alleviate the excess energy that was weighing him down. He knew a small portion of his disquiet was attributed to the tension that had erupted during Emily's birthday celebration. After all, as much as the man hated to admit it, the Quartermaines were his family and the only real relationships he had in this world. He knew he was acting out, but, in all honesty, he didn't care. A small, obscure part felt he should, but he didn't. After joining Hilter's army, he realized he was part of the chosen race - a race where people must be expected to serve him. It was how it should be, and nothing else was ever going to be acceptable to him.
Thinking of being served was what had prompted the blond to head to Madame Tammy's. Finishing his duties sooner than expected, the male had left the base to find the release his tense body was craving. Unfortunately, the Major had forgotten it was early afternoon, and the Madame's house was closed during those mid-day hours to give the sluts time to rest before their evening activities. This was what had truly caused his restlessness. Fidgeting on his heels, the man knew he couldn't wait till the bordello was open for business, so AJ quickly headed to the side of the building and began to scour the narrow walkway for any tramp that was willing to offer it up for money.
He
quickly found what he was looking for. It wasn't hard. There was always
pieces of trash lurking about that weren't accepted into the high dollar
scene of a reputable whorehouse, ones looking to make some cash to live
off of and weren't too particular about what they had to do to get it.
He quickly found what he was looking for - a petite brunette by the name
of Sam.
Immediately, AJ had the hooker go
down on him as soon as money changed hands. She was good, very good,
and she didn't mind it rough. He had pumped her neck so hard that at one
point the man thought he might have broken the bimbo's slender collar.
Fortunately for her, he hadn't. In fact, AJ decided this one was so good
that after his first release he planned to spend a little extra cash
and take her completely while in the dark shadows of the hidden alley.
There was a dumpster over to his left, so, as soon as he came, he zipped
up his pants and pulled her over to where it was located.
Slamming her up against the rust covered metal, the Major,
using his long, lean body to hold the slut in place, reached into his
pocket and grabbed some more bills, quickly stuffing them in her tacky
corset and proceeded to unzip his pants once again. As he pulled her
stained, well-worn skirt up over her hips, he smiled as he felt no
undergarments to delay his quest, but, as soon as he went to put the tip
of his erect member into her wet core, he heard voices. Quietly
cursing, he covered the hooker's mouth with his hand and stilled their
motions.
Seeing terror in the slut's eyes, he bent down and whispered in her ear, "if you stay quiet, I promise you will live past tonight, understand?"
He watched as she nodded vigorously against his hand. Relaxing, he listened as he recognized the two women who were talking - one was Brenda Barrett, General Jax's woman, and the other was the lovely owner of the establishment he was right outside of - Madame Tammy herself.
It was difficult to hear them at first as they were whispering so as not to draw attention to themselves, but, luckily for him, they weren't so quiet that he couldn't decipher what they were discussing. He assumed the pair had thought they were alone and could speak more freely so close to the confines of the whorehouse. He stilled even more as he ascertained by the inflection in their voices that the conversation was important. Leaning ever so slightly to his left but still managing to continue to keep himself concealed, AJ's eyes widened as he discovered what the two women were conversing about.
"Now, you're sure Emily and Elizabeth arrived safely and are okay?"
"Yes, Brenda, I promise you. Reginald himself told me of their safe arrival when I went to visit Lila today."
"Okay, I believe you," the small brunette said and then smiled as she clasped her hands and continued, "and soon they will be in Paris." Silence fell over the walkway for a few moments when AJ then saw the younger woman grab her companion's arm and ask, "how is Lila doing?"
He observed the Madame slowly shake her head. "Not good, I'm so sad to say. She's taken to her bed now, rarely rising, and I feel with Emily gone and her being in that big house all alone it won't be much longer...."
As Brenda and Tammy entered the brothel through the side entrance, AJ lost the rest of what the pair's conversation, but he caught enough to wonder what the hell was going on. Where was Emily? And why was she going to Paris? And who was this Elizabeth person? His mind churned, the blond trying to recall why the name Elizabeth was familiar to him, but the information was just beyond his mental reach. He knew, though, that the name was somehow important. As he continued to try and place the significance of the name, AJ thought about his grandmother. She was obviously sick. When did that happen, and why didn't he know about it? He realized he should probably go see her and soon.
Then,
as rapidly as those thoughts entered his mind, they were completely gone
as the tension he had felt earlier when he first heard the two voices
in the alley disappeared. Quickly, his body recalled where he was and
what he had been planning on doing before he was interrupted. Slowly,
the man lowered his hand from the whore's mouth, and, as he looked down
at the slut, it suddenly dawned on him why the name Elizabeth was so
crucial. It was the name of the girl that he had been ordered to find so
long ago - a very important girl, he recalled.
Well, wasn't this interesting. He needed to go see Colonel
Corinthos with this vital piece of information as soon as possible.
Maybe that's what Jason has been hiding all along. But, first, AJ had
some unfinished business to attend to and and attend to he did.
~~~
It was late, and the dark haired
male was extremely tired, but, no matter what his state, the Italian
knew nothing wasn't going to hamper what he had planned tonight. Sonny
had patiently waited for several hours in an inconspicuous part of the
building to snatch his prey, but the location was still close enough
that he would hear if anyone was attempting to enter his office. Waiting
had never been difficult for him. He knew patience was always needed to
get to the top, and it had now paid off, for, at around midnight, he
heard a noise coming from his inner office.
Leaving
his hiding place, Sonny knew it was now time to see if his intuition
had been correct and his assistant was truly not who he claimed to be.
He had liked Jason right from the beginning and hoped he was wrong about
the young man but knew, if the Lieutenant was not a Hitler supporter,
he would have to be dealt with in only one way. The Colonel had no doubt
that, if Jason came back tonight to sneak into his boss' office, he was
for the resistance, for only someone working against the Nazis would
return to examine the important papers
Sonny had mentioned earlier.
Once he heard the door to his own personal office open and close, the Colonel quietly approached the room. Withdrawing his firearm, Sonny reached for the doorknob and began to turn it slowly. Once he heard the mechanism break free, the man silently pushed the door ajar. The Italian's chin dropped to his chest in disappointment as he saw the tall blond standing over his desk.
Cursing
under his breath and knowing what he must do, Sonny raised his weapon
and said, "I really wish things could have been different."
And then he pulled the trigger.
The gun went off - a loud bang that reverberated around the small room, and, just as the bullet dislodged from Sonny's weapon, the male turned around, shock showcased all over his face.
"What...?" Before he could utter another sound, the slug from the Colonel's gun hit him squarely in the chest, blood splattering all over the plain, white walls.
As Sonny got a clear view of the other man's face, disbelief suffused his own features. Rushing over he grabbed the blonde's broad shoulders without concern of his condition and shook the individual as he loudly asked, "what are you doing here?"
Coughing up blood, the blond tried to speak. "I... I... heard... something you... you should... know."
"What, dammit? Tell me what!"
As the other man tried to speak, Sonny only shook him harder, thinking the harder he did the more chance the words would expel from the dying man's mouth. Hearing the male gasping, he leaned closer to his lips in hopes of understanding what he had to say. But, as he did so, he suddenly heard a roar from the other side of the room. "What the hell is going on here?!"
Abruptly, Sonny turned to face the voice he heard and saw his assistant's angry gaze from the lone doorway, examining the scene before him.
"What have you done," Jason furiously asked.
Calmly, the Colonel raised his firearm once more towards the new arrival, the man who actually was his original target and asked, "what are you doing here?"
He watched as Jason clenched his hands into fists and forcefully replied, "I asked you something first."
Acting every part the boss that he was, Sonny just shrugged his shoulders and evenly said, "it really doesn't matter why you are here. You've seen too much, and now you must die." And, with that, the Italian bent his finger to pull the trigger of his gun.
Jason, though - unlike his older brother, had anticipated the Colonel's move and quickly pulled his own firearm from it's holster and fired his weapon as the other man fired his own. Sonny felt a pain in his chest as his body suddenly lowered onto the man he just shot moments prior, and, as his eyes struggled to stay open, he watched as his assistant clutched his belly and turned to go. But, before the younger man could exit the door, the Colonel spoke, "run if you want, but you will never escape."
As the Lieutenant fled the scene, Sonny finally gave in and completely collapsed, his strength leaving his tired, worn body.
~~~
As he hurried down the building's corridors, Jason knew he had to get away. Moving as quickly as his injured body would allow, the blond clutched his side as he exited the main entrance. Working to keep himself upright so as not to draw any unnecessary attention his way, the blond headed for the motor pool. Luckily, it was late, and no one was about at this particular time of the night. Keeping himself cloaked in the shadows of the various buildings around the base, Jason worked his way to his personal car.
Always keeping a spare key under the driver's floor mat, he hurriedly started the vehicle and headed for the one place he knew he must go. The Lieutenant figured he had very little time to waste. He knew he had to call General Jax and report what had happened but decided to do that once he reached his destination.
Arriving in record time, Jason pulled into the back so as not to alert the staff of his arrival and rapidly exited the vehicle, heading towards his Grandmother's old suite. Once inside, he used one of the phones located in her private rooms to call Reginald. Discreetly, the trusted servant managed to reach Jason undetected. Reginald, seeing the injured male, immediately tried to help. Jason just shook his head. "I need you to quietly get me up to see Grandmother."
Nodding in acknowledgment of Jason's wishes, the older man managed to assist Jason with his request. Once there, the blond immediately left Reginald by the door as he saw his grandmother in bed and looking so pale. Rushing to her bedside without concern of how it may effect his own injury, he quickly bent down to be at eye level with the aging matriarch.
Grabbing the woman's frail hand, Jason asked, "Grandmother, are you okay?"
Lila patted his hand and smiled up at him while softly responding, "I am fine, Jason, I'm fine. Please, don't worry about me." Patting his hand again and squeezing it once, she asked, "now, why don't you tell me why you are here?"
Lowering his head in shame, Jason held tightly onto Lila's hand, unable to say a word. Silence enveloped the room for several moments as he tried to figure out the best way to tell his Grandmother the news which he had brought. Suddenly, feeling her squeeze his hand yet again, Jason raised his pale blue eyes to connect with ones so like his own and swallowed hard before saying, "AJ is dead. I'm so sorry, Grandmother. There was nothing I could do to save him."
Taking her free hand, the woman lightly ran her long, delicate fingers along his cheek and whispered, "I am sure of that, dear." Then she took her forefinger and thumb and gently held his jaw in place before continuing. "But what I worry about now is you. AJ is gone, and I will mourn his loss, because, no matter how your brother acted, he was our flesh and blood and I am sad he is gone, but there is nothing we can now do for him. What I want to make sure of now is that you are safe. Are you? Are you in danger now?"
Jason could only nod his head in response. Squeezing his hand one more time before releasing it, Jason's Grandmother pulled her covers up towards her chin and directly said, "well, then, you must go now."
Staring at the woman who had pretty much raised him, Jason asked, "but what about you? I don't want to leave you."
Sighing, Lila replied, "Jason, I am an old woman." Seeing him shake his head, the elder raised her hand to prevent him from speaking. "Let me finish." He nodded in acquiesce. "I am an old woman. I have lived my life fully the best way I know how. Now, it's time for you to live yours." Seeing his concern, Lila reached anew for her grandson's hand. "It is, Jason, and you know it. Now, please, go with an open heart and don't look back." Staring pointedly at him, she strongly said, "Reginald will take you where you need to go. Do you understand?"
Jason just looked at his grandmother, comprehension evident in his cerulean blue eyes.
Nodding in acceptance, Lila said, "now, go down to the safe and take the papers I procured for you, alright? There is also a small envelope labeled with your name on it that I wish you take. Now, please, make haste." Jason did as he was asked, but felt the gaze of the woman who had helped raise him burn through his skin the entire time he stood up. Before he could leave his grandmother's room, he heard her vehemently say, "and, Jason, you are never to return here again. Do you understand?"
Sighing, he moved back across the room, lowered his head, and kissed his grandmother goodbye. Whispering, Jason replied,"yes, Grandmother, I understand."
Amending her own statement, Lila said, "only when the danger has passed may you do so."
Kissing her once again, Jason murmured, "I understand."
But, as he rose, Jason released his Grandmother's hand and quickly enveloped her in an embrace as the tears the pair had been holding back began to flow. "I love you," the two of them said simultaneously. Then he stood and was gone, leaving Reginald in the room as he went to do as his Grandmother requested.
~~~
It didn't take Lila long to notice the small nondescript blood trail that Jason left behind as he fled the room. Looking at her trusted employee, Lila authoritatively said, "you will take care of him, Reginald, and you too are never to return here either."
"But madame...."
Raising her hand, she interrupted his protest. "No, this is not up for discussion. You will take Jason where he needs to go, and you will stay with him and make sure the grandchildren I have left survive."
Resignedly, Reginald said, "yes, Madame."
"You have been a wonderful friend, Reginald. Thank you for everything you have done for me."
"It has been my honor and privilege to serve you," the butler praised in return. Then Lila watched as he headed towards her - the only employer he had ever known - and kissed her hand. Without another word, Reginald turned and left the room.
Reaching over to the telephone, Lila dialed a number she knew by heart and said, "I need to see you right away." She then quietly hung up the device. Closing her eyes, she patiently waited for her company to arrive.
~~~
Jason could feel his body start to falter as he made his way to his father's old study. The urgency in his movements quickened as he feared he would pass out before he accomplished his task. He knew that he and Reginald needed to leave the house as soon as possible so as not to bring any unforeseen danger upon his Grandmother. The young man was determined that his Grandmother to live out the rest of her days in peace.
Opening the safe, Jason quickly grabbed the contents of what his Grandmother had spoken of but did not take time to examine the documents. He trusted his Grandmother and knew what was needed would be right on top, ready for his access.
As he hurriedly closed the tiny vault, placing the portrait of his mother back in place, Reginald entered the room. As soon as Jason saw the older gentleman, he collapsed. The trusty servant quickly ran over to the younger man's side, but Jason stopped him. "First, I need to make a quick phone call."
Grabbing the phone, the Lieutenant dialed a number he had been assured was secure and left the message he had been told to give if something went wrong. "The stars did not come out tonight. They must be over the horizon."
Then the blond hurriedly hung up the phone and allowed Reginald to assist him to his car out back. As they sped away into the night - to where, Jason had no idea, all he could think about was how quickly things had changed. What was to become of all of them now?


