Part Thirty-Five

A Week Later

Carly walked through the door at Kelly's looking around for her friend. She spotted Chloe in the corner and walked over to join her. "Hey Chloe!"

"Hey Carly, what's up?"

"Not much, I was just glad you called me this morning. How are you?" She looked concernedly at Chloe.

"Oh, I'm fine. It's just...........well, I had so much fun the other day when we went out........I just felt like talking to you." She smiled.

"Yeah, I had fun, too. So what's going on in your life? How's Jax?" Carly asked, remembering Chloe mentioning they were having some problems.

Chloe grimaced, and rolled her eyes, "Still as hovering as ever. If I have to drink another health shake, or try anymore experimental medicine I think I shall just die. He's getting on my nerves so bad Carly............and there's something else." She hesitated.

"What is it?"

"Well, last night I heard him talking in his sleep about Brenda. I think he's still in love with her...............but really........" she took a deep breath and continued, "there's this other guy......" She trailed off and watched a slow smile cross her friend's face.

"I knew it had to be something else! Who is it?" Carly was excited now, she loved gossip.

Chloe took a deep breath and gave a half-smile, "Johnny...."

Carly practically screamed, "JOHNNY!" Her grin widened, and she urged her friend on, "I knew I saw something there. Details, girl, details!"

"Well, we bumped into each other after you left here the other night...........and he asked me to join him in a burger." Chloe was gushing now, like a schoolgirl, a silly grin on her face. "Oh Carly, I just have to tell you...........he is soooo Cute! We talked about everything over dinner and he was so sweet and attentive. I mean, he told me all about his life...........how Sonny saved him, and how he thought of you guys as the family he'd never had. I almost had tears in my eyes."

"Chloe..........Johnny is the best. I've known him for a while now, and I consider him family, too, and he is so great. Not to mention, he has a great butt............not as great as Sonny's, but I'm probably biased about that." They both laughed, and Carly was excited to share her news with Chloe. "Chloe, if I tell you something, do you promise you won't tell another living soul?" She knew she and Sonny had decided not to tell anyone, but it had been so long since she'd had a friend, she just couldn't contain her happiness anymore. At Chloe's fervent nod, she smiled broadly, "Sonny and I are going to have a baby!"

"Carly, that's so great! I'm so happy for you!"

"I know! I'm so excited Chloe............Sonny and I decided not to tell anyone yet, because.........well, you know, because of last time, but I really wanted to tell you Chloe. You've been a good friend to me, and the only one I've got right now. I'm so glad you can look past what everyone else thinks of me."

Chloe smiled at her new friend, reaching out to take her hand, "Carly, you are a sweetie, and I honestly think the people in this town are missing out. Now.............let's cut the sappy stuff, and get back to the girl talk." They laughed happily, and Carly was about to tell Chloe about her most recent shocker, when Bobbie walked through the door. Carly spotted her, and her face went sober. Bobbie hesitated at first, but walked over to their table.

"Hello Carly...............how have you been?"

"Mother." Carly replied icily. "I'm fine."

Bobbie's eyes glazed over in tears, and she reached out to grab her daughter's hand. "Carly, do you think we could talk about this?"

Carly felt her resolve slipping away. "I guess we need to Mama. Chloe..................can we talk more later? I need to talk with my Mother now. How about lunch tomorrow?"

Chloe saw that they needed time, and decided to leave. "That sounds great Carly. See you then. Bye Bobbie." She got up and left.

Carly watched her leave, then turned back to her mother. "Why don't you sit down?"

Bobbie sat across from her daughter, and, still holding her hand, began to pour out her heart. "Carly, I know you are mad at me...........but there is so much more to this story. I'm so sorry for keeping this from you, but there are good reasons. I promise there are." Tears started to fall down her face.

"Okay Mama, I'm ready to listen." She leaned forward and prepared herself for the story of her life..............the one she'd never known. Bobbie began, "Well, as you know, I was working as a prostitute back in those days. It's not something I'm proud of Carly. In fact, I'm quite ashamed, but I was young, and there didn't seem to be another choice. Well, one night I got a customer, a very rich customer. I was told he wanted someone young and that he would pay well. I met him at a Hotel nearby, and well...........you know what happened. He liked me so much that he bought me for several weeks Carly.........I know it sounds silly, but I fell in love. He didn't seem to care what I was, and he was like a Prince to me..........well, he was a Prince, but that's beside the point. He took care of me, and I loved him. Then one day, he had to leave and it was all over. I went back to Luke, and back to my previous life. A little later, I found out I was pregnant. He was the only one in that time frame, so it had to be him. Luke went to him, to tell him what had happened." Bobbie paused here, and looked at her daughter..........the tears spilling down her face. Her poor child, she had been through so much. She reached out to touch Carly's face. "There's something you should know, Carly. Stefan and I loved you very much. We did not want to give you up..........we had to. Stefan came to me, and we decided to be together, and raise you. Then I met his mother, Helena. She is an evil woman, and she told me of her plans for you, Carly. How you were the next generation for the Cassadines, and how she would never stop until you were under her control. She wanted you to be hers, to mold and train to be just like her. You are the rightful Cassadine heir Carly. After I learned her plans, I went to Stefan, and we decided the only thing to do was to give you up. You would be safe from her forever. We loved you Carly...........we did." She broke down then, and Carly reached out to her. They hugged each other tightly.

Carly whispered to her mother, "I'm so sorry Mama."

Bobbie's head shot up, "It's not your fault Carly. Maybe we should've fought to keep you with us, maybe we should've done a lot of things different. We just did what we thought was right."

Carly nodded her head. She still didn't quite understand how they could give her up. She knew if she would do anything it took to keep Michael with her. "Why didn't Stefan come forward when you found out I was your daughter?"

"We were still trying to keep you safe, Carly. Helena figured it out, though. Just as we always knew she would. I'm so sorry she took you, Carly. She is so evil. She will do anything to get her way, no matter who she hurts."

"I understand that." Carly pulled herself together, and stood up to leave.

"Where are you going Carly?" Bobbie asked pleadingly.

"I've just got to get out of here, Mama. This is a lot for a person to take in at one time. I'm not mad at you. I still don't understand a lot of things, but I'm not mad at you. It just hurts, you know. All my life, I've not really known who I was. Then when I found you, and fell in love with Sonny.........well, I finally made a place for myself. I knew who I was. Now, I have to start all over again. It's just hard." She felt tears come to her eyes, and ran out the door. She just had to get out of there. She needed to be alone. She ran to her favorite place on the docks, knowing Sonny would come by eventually. She looked out across the water at Wyndamere. She was so confused. Maybe she needed to hear what Stefan had to say. She heard footsteps behind her, and turned around to find herself looking straight into the eyes of her grandmother...........Helena Cassadine.

**********************************************

Joanna walked out of her Father's office, a smile of satisfaction on her lips. She'd been asking in subtle ways for a new bodyguard, and her father had just given her what she wanted. She couldn't believe he'd played right into her hands and assigned her Jared. She walked out of the warehouse and to the waiting car and got inside. On the ride home, she thought of her new job. How long would this whole thing take, she thought, if it had taken her a week just to get Corinthos' man in a position close to her. She was glad he had sent Jared, though. If her father ever found out what she was up to, he would kill her, of that she was sure.............but with Jared there to help her, it seemed a less likely thing to happen. When they reached the house, she got out and walked to where he was standing at the front door. "Jared, my Father has assigned you to me now. Mark, you are to take over his place at the door immediately. I just came from my father's office, and he has decided this will work out better for everyone. Come Jared, I need to go now. I'd like to get some shopping done today." With that, she turned and walked back to the car, not once turning to see if he was following. She instinctively knew he was.

Once in the car, he whispered, "Good work, Ms. Sorel."

She nodded, "I know. Call me Joanna, please."

"I only call you that in private, remember? I'm still your bodyguard to everyone but us."

"I know. That's what I meant. So............what do we do first?"

"Have you gotten anything on your father yet?"

"No," she scoffed, "I've been too busy trying to get you as my bodyguard. It's not easy for me to get my way from my father, you know. He hates me." Her expression turned angry, and she looked away from him.

"Well.........I feel so bad for you, Mafia Princess. If you're looking for sympathy, you've come to the wrong place. I don't think your life's been half as bad as mine."

She turned away from him. If he only knew, she thought. "Yeah well..........You don't know everything," she muttered under her breath.

"Ok, let's just get right to it. First thing I want to do is find some way to bug the phones. I want a wire planted in convenient places around the house. I can do all this so they will never be found, but I need your help."

"What can I do? I know nothing about wires and bugs?"

"You, my dear, are going to provide the distraction." He smiled knowingly at her, and she wondered why he had to be so cute. She really wanted to hate him, but he made it so hard.

UNDERSTANDING

Part Thirty-Six

Carly stared up into the glaring eyes of her new grandmother. She stood up quickly and her whole body tensed as she saw Helena make a move to walk toward her. "Stop right there Helena." She put up a hand to ward her off.

"Why, my dear child, I was just coming to greet you." Helena walked toward her and stopped a few feet in front of her. "How have you been Caroline?"

"I'm fine Helena, no thanks to you. What makes you think you have the right to talk to me? I mean, isn't it enough that you turned Jason against me and had me kidnapped? What more could you possibly do?"

Helena smiled at the fiery girl in front of her. "Oh yes, my dear, you are definitely a Cassadine. I can definitely see it in your features, but this temper of yours........it most definitely comes from your Spencer side. As for your question, I'm sure you are well aware that there is more than one way to get what I want." Her voice lost its friendliness, and took on a cool edge. "And you can be sure Caroline, I always get what I want."

"Yeah? Well, you're not going to get me or my son, so you might as well just let go of that thought right now." Carly raised her head defiantly, and her face took on a smirk, not unlike the one on her grandmother's face. "I have plenty of people to protect me, and you should know right off...............I don't back down that easily. I fight for what is mine........I guess maybe that's both a Cassadine and a Spencer trait."

Helena's voice took a deadly tone, "Trust me Caroline, I know how to fight, too. So, be warned, and most of all.................be prepared." She turned and walked away, leaving Carly shivering on the docks. Bobbie had been right, that woman was pure evil. She looked out at Wyndamere, and made her decision. If she was going to fight Helena, she'd need all her resources. She would call him tomorrow. Her tears now long forgotten, Carly turned and headed home. She had work to do.

**********************************************************

Johnny stood nervously outside the door to Chloe Morgan's apartment. He told himself he was a fool, after all she shared this apartment with her boyfriend, but he couldn't get her out of his mind, and he needed to see her. He knocked tentatively, praying Jasper Jax wasn't home and he could talk to her alone. His face lit up when she answered the door.

"Johnny.........hey." She was surprised he was there, especially since she'd just been thinking about him. "What's up?" She opened the door and let him in.

He stood there for a minute thinking of what to say, "Well, not much. I was uh.......just in the neighborhood and I thought I'd stop by." He felt himself blush. Just in the neighborhood? He shook his head. What an idiot.

"Oh, well...........it's good to see you." They just stood there for a few minutes. "So......." she managed to get out.

"So...........I was wondering if............." he paused, gathering strength for his question, "Well.......do you wanna go get some dinner or something?"

"Oh! Sure," she said. Definitely, she thought to herself. "Jax is out of town on business for a few weeks, so it's just been me here alone. Dinner sounds great. Just hold on, let me get a coat." She ran out of the room to check her appearance, leaving an elated Johnny to wait.

Jax is out of town!, he thought, SCORE! Chloe entered the room then, and grabbed his arm. "Alright, Johnny-boy, let's go. I'm starving!" They both laughed, and headed out the door.

**************************************************

AJ looked his grandfather straight in the eye. "It's been a few weeks Grandfather, and you know I've been going to my meetings regularly. Don't you think it's time you let me try to prove myself. Give me some responsibility. Let me do something."

Edward just stared at his grandson. "AJ...........I just don't want anything to happen. Are you sure you can handle this?"

AJ smiled broadly, "I'm positive. Let me start out with something small Grandfather. I can do this, I swear it." Inside, he was praying this would work. Corinthos' goons had already been hounding him about not getting any info yet. He needed to get his job back, and get involved with Helena someway soon. His life depended on it.

"Alright AJ. I'm going to give you this one last chance. If you blow it, there's no more. You'll be out for good."

AJ laughed out loud, "Thank you Grandfather! You won't regret this. What's my first assignment?"

"I want you to get control over a company that I've been trying to get for months now. It's a small company on a small island, but it has a huge factory, and we need it. It's showing great promise, and will no doubt double its worth in the next few years."

"No problem. What's the name of the company?"

"It's called Candolphine.................and it's owned by Helena Cassadine."

AJ could not believe his luck. His Grandfather had just given him the in he needed. Helena Cassadine was about to get the surprise of her life.

****************************************************

Joanna stood hidden near her house, waiting for her cue to start the distraction. She was scared out of her mind. Was she really this good of an actress? She didn't know, but she would find out soon enough. Just then, she saw Jared walk past her, not even bothering to look in her direction. As soon as he made it closer to the house, she jumped out of her hiding place, and screamed as hard as she could. She knew her father was at his warehouse, so no one was home except for the guards. They all came running as they heard her blood-curdling scream.

Jared jumped in surprise. He had known it was coming, and still it had scared the living daylights out of him. That girl had a set of pipes on her. He turned around and pretended to be running in the direction of the other guards, and as they surrounded her, he quickly and quietly slipped away to tend to his chore. He heard her behind him, acting her little butt off. He smiled, she was pretty good.

"What is it Ms. Sorel?" Mark, her former bodyguard asked. They all had their guns drawn, and Joanna knew what she had to do.

She forced herself to begin crying, and shaking violently. "There was a man. He attacked me."

The guards all looked around cautiously, and one asked, "Which way did he go?"

She pointed in the opposite direction of the house, and breathed out, "Please...........get him."

They took one look at her face, and all of them took off down the street. As soon as she saw them round the corner, she smiled to herself, and ran to the house to help Jared. She burst through the door, and ran to find him. "Jared!"

"In here. Hurry Joanna, they'll be back soon!" They both worked rapidly to get everything in place. She was trying her best to remember everything he'd taught her about putting the bugs in place and turning them on. She hoped she wasn't making a mistake. Just as she put the last on one, she heard a noise on the porch. "Jared!" she hissed out, "they're back!" She sat down on the chair in the living room, and pretended to be crying.

The guards ran in the room, and found her there. "I'm sorry Ms. Sorel, we couldn't find anyone."

"Well........" she said, wiping her eyes, "I guess that's that. It was probably just a pervert or someone. I feel so awful. I think I'll go upstairs and get a bath." She stood up, and hurried up the stairs, leaving the perplexed guards in her wake. They went back to their posts, still a little confused, but hey, they didn't ask questions.

Joanna ran into her room to find Jared there waiting for her. "Did you get it done?" she asked excitedly.

"Yeah. What about you?"

"I got them all in place. Whew!" She plopped down on the bed, and heaved a tired sigh.

"Well..............good job, Ms. Streep.............now that was some great acting." He laughed at her glare, and in a few seconds they were both giggling their heads off.

She stood up and said, "You weren't so bad yourself, Mr. Tough Guy. I saw you jump a mile when I screamed though.................Did I scare you?" She laughed harder now.

He looked at her thoughtfully, and their eyes met. Suddenly all laughter was gone, and in its place was tension. They stared for a few moments, their eyes taking on a fiery passion. He cleared his throat, thinking this should not be happening. All of a sudden, his eyes went cold, and he said, "Well, that scream would scare anyone. It was loud."

She was confused at his sudden coldness, and turned away from him. "Yeah, well..........whatever. I was just doing as I was told, boss." When he didn't answer, she turned around to find him gone. "How does he always do that?" she wondered out loud.