UNDERSTANDING

Part Thirty-Nine

THE NEXT NIGHT

Joanna stood outside the club in the long line of people waiting to get in. They had been standing there for an hour, and they were close to the door now. She just hoped they could get in. If they couldn't, the whole thing was blown. As they stepped closer to the doorman, Joanna shot Jared a worried glance, and he gave her a reassuring smile. She looked him over, and fought back the urge to giggle at his appearance. They'd spent hours in the motel getting themselves ready and the end product had left them both laughing so hard they almost couldn't breathe. He had donned a wig that made him look like he was balding in the middle, with a ring of hair around the edges. There was a moustache on his face, and she was slightly disappointed because it covered up one of her most favorite things about him.........his lips. Partially covered by the hair, only half of them peeked out the bottom. He wore glasses with fake lenses, and had even decided to add a little extra padding around the middle. He was dressed all in black, and he looked very in style and very "in charge." He looked like someone important. She held onto him and tried to play her part as well. The trophy. That's what she was. Someone to hang on his arm and look good. She wore a skimply little black dress, very short, and very backless. High heels gave her an extra few inches, and she had donned a blond wig. Her face was caked in makeup, and she looked every bit the rich man's girlfriend.

Just as they stepped up to the doorman, Jared threw his arm around Joanna's shoulders, and looked expectantly at the man, faking a look of complete confidence. "Who are you?" the doorman asked.

"Rocco Brunetti," he replied cooly, as if it were obvious. The doorman looked him up and down, and did the same to Joanna. When his glances lingered too long on her, Jared spoke up in a deadly calm voice, "Can we enter now, or would you like to grope my girlfriend before we go in?"

The doorman blushed slightly, and pulled the rope back allowing them to enter. They walked in the club, and both focused their eyes to the dim lights and smoky atmosphere. They began to walk to the bar, where they knew would be the easiest place to spot Sorel from. Jared let his arm go around her waist, and was surprised how right it felt there. He ordered drinks for them as they both started scoping the place out, looking for signs of any dealings that might be taking place. Jared checked his watch. "It's 7:45," he whispered to Joanna. Just as he said that, something caught her eye. She put her hand on his arm, and nodded toward where her father was now headed to the stairwell. They looked at each other, and began to follow as soon as they were out of sight.

At the bottom of the stairs, Jared stopped Joanna, and said, "Just follow my lead. No matter what happens, just follow what I do." She nodded, and they headed up. They went slowly, looking around suspiciously, making sure no one knew they were there. They stopped at the top of the next floor, and when they heard voices coming, Jared pulled Joanna into a corner. "Who's there?" someone shouted.

Joanna raised frightened eyes to Jared, and they knew that the man had heard them coming up the stairs. Before Joanna could even react, Jared pulled her to him and crushed his lips over hers. He kissed her hard, hoping the man would find them and think they were lovers trying to get away from the crowd. The man was still there, and calling out to see who was there, however, so Jared let his hands begin to roam. Although this was not a very romantic setting, Joanna felt herself being drawn into the kiss, and when his hands started roaming a moan escaped her lips. She felt his tongue pushing at her lips, and she eased them apart to give him access to her mouth. The kiss deepened, and soon they were oblivious to all around them. Moans escaped both their throats, and they strained to get closer to one another. They both stilled, however, when they heard the gun calked and broke the kiss to find themselves staring at the tip of the gun pointed at their heads.

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AJ Quartermaine knocked on the door to Helena Cassadine's yacht. When he'd called that morning to make the appointment with her, she'd seemed more than ready to talk business with him. He was taken to the sitting room, and told to wait for Mrs. Cassadine there. He went over his strategy in his head, mentally preparing himself for schmoozing one of the most dangerous women he'd ever heard about. He'd heard she had a thing for young men, and he hoped maybe to use that to his advantage, and flirt with her a little bit.

Lost in thought, he didn't hear her enter. "Mr. Quartermaine. What a pleasure to see you."

AJ jumped up quickly, "Please............call me AJ, and I can assure you Mrs. Cassadine.......the pleasure's all mine. You look lovely this evening." He kissed her hand when she placed it out to shake his.

"Oh, AJ........Please, call me Helena." Bingo, he thought, she was a sucker for a flirt. "So, what brings you here, AJ?" He could tell she was ready to get down to business.

"You mean besides tales of your beauty? I think we both know what brought me here........Helena." He gave her a wicked grin and she took the bait.

"I assume you came to talk about Candolphine? Edward has been trying for months to get me to sell that to him. What makes you think you will be any better at it than he was?" She gave him a wicked smile right back.

"Oh.............I don't know. I'm younger, stronger.............maybe more good-looking?" He walked over to stand right in front of her, letting himself get a little closer than normal.

"Oh, I would definitely say better looking..............yes to the younger part.........but it's the stronger that I'm interested in." He saw her eyes twinkle, and allowed himself an inward shudder. He hoped, no he prayed he wouldn't have to do what he thought he was going to have to do. Just then, a movement over Helena's shoulder caught his eye. A woman peeked her head in the door, and mouthed "Help Me" to him. Helena followed his gaze to the door, but by the time she looked, the woman was gone. AJ's eyes grew wide, but he regained his composure quickly.

"Well Helena, you may just get your chance to find out. But for now, let me just assure you that I AM the stronger one. No doubt about that." He grinned at her, and leaned his head in until he was barely touching her face, then drew back abruptly. "I think that about covers it for tonight. I just wanted us to get acquainted, and I think we've done that quite well. I will be back Helena, and I will get that business." He looked her in the eye as he said this, then turned and walked out, thinking about the woman who had begged for his help.

As soon as he left the room, Helena, still feeling wicked after the games she'd just played, whispered. "We'll see about that, AJ Quartermaine, we'll see about that." He just might be a nice distraction.

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Carly and Sonny lay wrapped in each other's arms on the couch. They had just put Michael to bed, and were sharing some quiet time with each other. Carly nestled in closer to Sonny, and moaned a sigh of sheer contentment. "There's nowhere else in the world I feel safer than when I'm in your arms, Sonny."

He tightened his hold on her, and whispered, "Yeah?"

"Yeah." They lay there in silence a few more moments, and Carly's thoughts drifted to Helena. "What are we going to do about Helena, Sonny?"

Sonny thought about it for a moment, and figured he'd better let her in on a few things. "Well Carly, I've got someone working on it."

She raised her head up, and looked at him anxiously, "Who?"

"You remember when we captured AJ and Joanna?"

It seemed so long ago, but she definitely remembered. She nodded yes.

"Well, I didn't want to kill them, Carly...........especially AJ because of Michael. I struck a deal with them both. Basically, I own them until such time as I see fit that their debt to you and I is paid."

She looked wide-eyed at him. "What are you telling me Sonny? You let them go?"

"Well, yes and no. They have been let go, but they will not be free for a long time. Joanna is working to bring Sorel down, and AJ...............well AJ is working on Helena Cassadine."

"So AJ and Sorel's daughter are walking around Port Charles and you what...........forgot to mention it to me?" She was getting angry now, and Sonny could tell he needed to do soemething to quell both her anger and her fear.

"Carly..........listen to me. Neither of them is going to hurt you. I've got 24-hour surveillance on them. AJ has been severely threatened and if he ever even sees you, he is to run, not walk, the other way. They can't touch you."

She calmed a bit and lay her head back down. "I trust you Sonny, but what if they mess up and work against us? Can we be sure they will do as told?"

"You can bet on it. Joanna's got a personal henchman watching her every move, and AJ's got guards, and they've both been threatened with death for disobedience. I took care of that myself......................they believed it, trust me."

She breathed a sigh of relief, and said, "Well, AJ might be able to get close to her. Do you think he can do it? Has he learned anything yet?"

"No. Not yet. He's spent most of this time getting back into the good graces of Edward adn Company. He's got a meeting with Helena tonight. Some business deal involving ELQ."

He felt her body relax in his, and knew she was getting sleepy. "Carly?"

"Hmmmmm?" she moaned, feeling her eyelids getting heavier.

"You're not mad at me.............for keeping this from you?" He asked tentatively.

"Of Course I am Sonnyco, I'm just too tired to get up and beat the crap out of you......" She let her eyelids close as he chuckled. "You better look out for me in the morning, though."

He kissed the top of her head, and ventured out, "Carly?"

"Hmm...." she barely whispered out.

"I love you." He said simply.

"Love you......." Then she was asleep, and Sonny held her closer, and let his eyes close, too. Truth was, he felt safer in HER arms than anywhere else in the world.

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"Hello?" Johnny answered his phone sleepily.

"Hello? Johnny?"

"Chloe? Is that you?" He asked struggling to sit up, but failing miserably, his body all wrapped up in the sheets. "Are you alright?"

"Could you come over here?" She asked in an urgent voice. "I think someone's trying to kill me." The line went dead, and Johnny jumped out of the bed, suddenly fully alert.

"Chloe??? Chloe??" He asked over and over. Finally realizing he would get no answer, he got dressed quickly and ran out the door. He said a silent prayer on the way that she would be okay.

UNDERSTANDING

Part Fourty

"Chloe!!" Johnny burst through the door of the penthouse, and looked around. He did not see her in the living room, so he took off for the back of the house, screaming her name. "Chloe!" He ran through the bedroom door, and finding nothing there, he ran into the bathroom. As he came through the door, he heard a loud yell, and something hitting him over the head. He slumped to the floor, and as he lost consciousness, he vaguely heard someone calling his name.

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"What are you doing here?" the man with the gun asked.

They both looked wide-eyed at the gun pointed at their faces, "We just........we just wanted to get away from all the noise for a while............you know?" Joanna managed to stammer out.

The man with the gun looked them over for a few minutes, checking out their disarrayed clothing, and the girl's just-kissed look. They both had flushed faces, and they didn't look dangerous. His face broke out into a smile, "Well......I guess I can understand that. Maybe you should go back to the club now."

"Yes........yes sir." Joanna stammered again, and began rearranging her clothing. The man smiled again and walked away. Jared watched as the man walked down the stairs to the club. He was obviously not going up where the meeting would take place, and he breathed a sigh of relief. He looked down at Joanna, and she looked up at him, both still reeling from that earth-shattering kiss, and finding themselves with a gun in their face. They held each other's gaze for what seemed like years, until finally they caught themselves. "We need to get up there," Jared said, pulling her behind him. "Stay quiet this time, and stay behind me."

They slinked down the hall and rounded the corner, but jumped back quickly as they saw guards at a door down the hall. Joanna looked questioningly up at Jared, and he put his finger to his lips, telling her to be quiet. He peeked around the corner, and knew he wasn't going to get any closer..................he definitely wasn't going to be hearing anything tonight. They waited for what seemed like forever, and finally the door to the room opened. Jared peeked his head around the corner to see what was going on. What he saw surprised him. There saying goodbye and talking to Sorel was none other than the most dangerous female he'd ever heard tell of...................Helena Cassadine. A guard looked their way, and he jumped back, and in the process knocked Joanna down. She let out a yelp. They heard voices in the hall, and loud footsteps running their way. Jared let out a breath, and jumped up as fast as he could, dragging Joanna along with him. They ran as fast as they could down the stairs and out the door. The guards were still following, but they could not quite catch up. Jared dragged Joanna out the door of the club, and they high-tailed it across the parking lot, and to the car. He had trouble getting the door unlocked, and the guards got close. Joanna screamed, and then she heard the lock come up. She swung the door open, and jumped in. Jared quickly started the car, saying a silent prayer thanking God the car started with no trouble. They peeled out of the parking lot just as the guards reached their car, cause Joanna to scream yet again.

When they got out of the parking lot and down the road, Jared turned on a back road, trying to make sure no one was following them. When he was sure they weren't, he looked over at Joanna. Her eyes were wide, and her chest was heaving from heavy breathing due both to the running and her fear. "You okay?" he asked.

She nodded, but kept on looking straight ahead. That was a little too close for comfort. Those guards chasing after her had been ones she'd known all her life. She couldn't believe all they'd been through that night. She leaned her head back on the seat, and closed her eyes. She was tired. "So, did you see anything?" she asked.

"You'll never believe who I saw there with your father." He couldn't wait to see her face.

She picked her head up and looked over at him. "Who?"

"Helena Cassadine."

"WHAT?" she almost yelled. What was her father doing with Helena?

"I don't know what's going on there, but I will have to tell Mr. Corinthos as soon as possible. Tomorrow we start investigating this a little further. Now we have something to look for specifically, so it will be a whole lot easier."

"Yeah." She looked at him, remembering the kiss they'd shared. "Jared........."

He saw her nervous look, and knew what she was thinking. "I know what you're going to say, Joanna. I was totally wrong to kiss you in there, but it was all I could think of at the time."

"Oh, I know that. It's okay. I was just gonna say thanks for keeping me safe in there. It was kinda scary....................." her eyes lit up, "but kinda fun, too."

He smiled at her. He knew she had a dangerous side. "Yeah." He looked away, and back to the road. He needed to think of other things. She didn't need to know that the kiss they'd had was haunting him. The feel of her body against his........the feel of her lips on his. He breathed a sigh. He'd be getting no sleep tonight, that was for sure.

Joanna leaned her head back once again, and closed her eyes. She remembered how kind he'd been with her last night when she'd told him of her father, and the abuse she'd suffered as a child. He was so gentle, and waking up in his arms this morning had been as close to heaven as she'd ever been. She couldn't tell him that, though. He was sent to watch her...............and he could kill her if she made the slightest mix-up. But that didn't mean she couldn't dream about him, did it? She drifted off to sleep doing just that.

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Sonny woke up with a start when he heard the phone ringing. He disentangled himself from the sleeping Carly, and walked over to the phone quickly. "Corinthos."

"Mr. Corinthos, this is Jared."

"Yeah Jared, what's happened? Did you find out anything at the meeting tonight?"

"Well, we couldn't get close enough to hear what was going on, sir, but we did see who Sorel was meeting with."

"Who was it?"

"Sir..........it was Helena Cassadine."

Sonny drew in a quick breath, and sat there in silence for a moment. What in the world was Helena doing with his worst enemy?

"Sir?"

"Yeah, I'm here. Alright, good work Jared. I assume you know what to do. Start looking for anything you can find on this. I want to know what this is about............Soon."

"Yes sir. We're on it."

"Is Joanna behaving?"

"Yeah. She's doing alright. I don't think she's going to be a problem."

"Good. If it looks like she might go back on the deal, you just remind her what I've got waiting for her."

"Yes sir."

Sonny hung up the phone then, and looked over at his whole world sleeping on the couch. What was Helena up to now? He needed to get in touch with Johnny, and he needed to get in touch with AJ Quartermaine. He was going to be the key to finding out what this was all about. He dialed Johnny's number and got no answer, so he decided it could wait till morning. He walked over to the couch, and picked up Carly in his arms. She stirred slightly, but when she saw that it was him she snuggled closer to him and threw her arms around his neck. "Hmmm, Sonny?"

"Yeah baby. I'm just taking you up to bed."

"You gonna stay with me?"

"You better believe it, babe. Nothing could keep me away."

He carried her up the stairs, lay her down, and curled up behind her. He enveloped her in his arms, and she moaned softly, and fell back to sleep. Sonny couldn't sleep however, he now had way too much to worry about.

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Johnny woke up a few hours later, feeling a cold rag being pressed to the bump now growing on his head. Chloe was holding the rag, and tears were running down her face. When she saw his eyelids open, she let out a grateful moan. "Johnny........"

"Chloe?" he managed to whisper, though his head was pounding and his whole body hurt.

"Johnny, I'm so sorry. Are you okay?"

He was waking up now, and he struggled to sit up, but his body would not have it. He lay back, and said, "What happened?" Then he remembered her phone call, and said, "Are you okay, Chloe?"

"I'm okay Johnny, this is all my fault." She wailed, tears running down her face. "I'm so sorry."

"Tell me what happened."

"Well, I called you because I thought someone was in the penthouse. I had just had a dream about Helena trying to kill me, and I heard a noise. Maybe I panicked, but I called your number, and when you answered..................I was so scared Johnny." She was sobbing now.

"Shhhh, it's alright Chloe. The phone went dead. What happened? Did someone try to hurt you?" He reached a hand out to brush away some of her tears.

"Oh Johnny...........I'm so stupid. I thought I heard another noise, so I just slammed the phone down and went to hide. Then when you came in, I thought you were someone trying to kill me, so I.....................I hit you with a golf club.........." she wailed, "I'm so sorry, Johnny." She put her head down on his chest, and he reached down and pulled her head up.

"It's alright, Chloe. You were just trying to protect yourself. Are you sure you're okay?"

She nodded, her tears beginning to subside. "I was so scared I'd killed you Johnny. Does your head hurt very badly?" She brought her hand up to run it over his wound. "I didn't want to hurt you Johnny."

"It's alright Chloe...........I'm gonna be fine. I thought you were dead." He brought his hand to her chin, and pulled her closer to him. "I was so scared."

"What were you scared of?" she whispered.

He brought her face within inches of his. "That I'd never get a chance to do this......." And he brought his mouth down on top of hers in a crushing kiss. She moaned, and let him continue. She wanted this too. When he pulled away, she held her breath, waiting to see what he would do next.

He raised his eyebrows questioningly, and she giggled, and eagerly closed the distance between them. He was surprised at her forcefulness, but when they kissed the sparks flew. This was the kind of passion they'd only dreamed of, and neither wanted to let it go too soon.

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AJ knew what he had to do. His next meeting with Helena was tomorrow, and he had everything all ready. First thing he planned on doing was finding that woman. She'd looked so much like someone he knew, but she was dirty and scruffy. He could've sworn it was.................no, that couldn't be it. Whoever it was, he was going to help her. She looked as though she could use it, and maybe in exchange for his help, she'd give him a little help, too. Corinthos' goons were breathing down his neck, and he had to get something on Helena soon. He looked over at the mini bar, but quickly looked away. He could not.............no he would not go there again. Look where it had gotten him now. The next time, it would get him dead. He checked his supplies for the meeting once more, and decided to turn in. Tomorrow should be a very interesting night.