Chapter 91
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"Jerry?"
Jerry stopped in his tracks, looking over at the familiar voice. "M..."
"It's me. How do you like my new look?" she pushed her glasses up over
her long blonde tresses.
"It's...different." Jerry sat down next to her. "Mac is looking for
you..."
"I figured. I'm glad you came, I wasn't so sure you would."
"Well, when Dad called, and told me that you were looking for me, I knew
you had to be pretty desperate. And it had to be pretty important, since
Dad even bothered to tell me. Either that, or it involves Jax in someway."
"This has nothing to do with Jax. I need your help."
Jerry groaned. "I can't do that." he stood from the park bench.
"Jerry, please. Mac isn't the only one looking for me. So is Stefan, and
Nikolas, and...Helena."
"Helena? Why?"
"Because, she hates me. Because I know too much, and I got her in trouble
and Stefan was able to banish her from Port Charles, and she feels that is
my fault....she promised revenge on me. And now there's no one at all to
protect me. Except for you. Can you help me, Jerry. Please?"
Jerry thought for a moment. And finally he answered. "Okay."
"Really?" Miranda's eyes lit up and she reached over to give him a hug.
"Don't." Jerry managed to push her away. "There's a catch here Miranda."
"What *catch*?"
"I will help you get away, and get you settled, like we did when we wanted
Jax to think you were dead. And you will have everything you need and you
will be fine. Helena, and no one else will get to you..."
"But...?" Miranda waited.
"I won't be getting to you either. I won't even know where you are...."
"Jerry..."
"And if you come back, looking for me, I will deny everything to the ends
of the earth. And then you will be on your own. So I will help you, but
only as long as you know that this is truely goodbye. Forever."
One Month Later.
"These calls are from Keesha's cellular phone.
Greece...Russia...London...Madrid...." Mac pushed the records away from
his desk.
"She's been searching for someone." Alex Garcia admitted as he glanced
through her phone records. "And Stefan Cassadine went to her house about
a day after you brought Jax and Nikolas in here for questioning. Do you
think we've been looking at the wrong Jacks and Cassadine?"
"Meaning."
"We've been wondering what Nikolas and Jax are up to, and we've come up
with nothing. But Stefan and Keesha? Keesha's making all of these calls,
and Stefan...we all know Stefan would do anything for Nikolas. Keesha was
the one who visited Miranda all of those times she was in prison. Perhaps
she was the one who wanted to get her out of town. Remember, Miranda kept
screaming she set her up, maybe Miranda came up with proof."
"But..." Mac shook his head.
"Look, I don't like it either. But facts are facts. Aside from Nikolas,
the person Miranda had the most contact with was Keesha. And the person
with most to gain without Miranda in town was Keesha. And the person best
to help her, aside from Jax, is Stefan."
"That's just it, I can't imagine Keesha doing anything without letting Jax
in on it."
"Miranda was in love with Jerry, right?"
"Miranda *is* in love with Jerry."
"And Jax and Miranda were married once, they must have loved each other..."
"Trust me, there's none there anymore..."
"That's what they say...but...listen. If Keesha *did* do something to
Miranda, and Miranda had proof of it, wouldn't Jerry have found out.
Which means..."
"That Jax would have found out, and they'd be at odds." Mac groaned. All
of this made a lot of sense.
"Or, Jax would have found out and been upset at Keesha..."
"Come in!" Mac called to the knock at the door.
"If this is concerning the Jamison file, it may be dropped." Dara came
in, closing the office door.
"Dropped?" Mac asked.
"The FBI is taking over, effective immediately."
"Why?"
Dara shrugged. "Didn't say...but Mac, I think it's time you let go
anyway."
Mac sighed.
"There are crimes in this city to deal with...leave Miranda and her
problems to the feds."
"Coming!" Keesha called, walking over to the door, carrying Laurence in
her arms. "Who is it?"
"FBI."
Keesha blinked and slowly opened the door. "Yes?"
"Mrs. Jacks?" The agent flashed his badge.
"Yes?"
"May we come in?"
"What is this about?"
"Miranda Jameson."
"Why don't you tell me from the doorway."
"Ms. Jameson has been found."
"So?"
"She's been murdered."
Keesha was quiet. Miranda was dead? "Are you sure?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, people thought she was dead before...but anyway...why are you here?"
"Because, next to her body, was your name, scribbled in her handwriting..."
"What?"
"Can we do this somewhere else?"
"Sure...why don't you call Alexis Davis-Ashton...she's my attorney...and
set something up, other than that I have nothing to say..." Keesha
started to close the door.
"You're friends with the Cassadines aren't you..."
"What part of *nothing to say* don't you understand." Keesha closed the
door, leaning up against it, her heart racing. Miranda was dead...and the
FBI thought she was involved....Laurence looked at her, yawning before
resting his head on his shoulder.
Keesha took a deep breath. No. She couldn't do this, she couldn't worry
about this, she couldn't take any chances. "Time for your nap?" she spoke
quietly to Laurence, carrying him upstairs.
Outside of Kelly's
"Aren't you friends with Jason Morgan?"
Jax's eyes clouded over. He took a drink from his espresso drink.
"Guess not." Nikolas realized. "Then how do we find out where could
Miranda be? I can't imagine it taking so long to find her."
"Unless she's had help lately."
"From who?"
Jax shrugged. "Your grandmother for one. If Helena's hiding her, you and
I won't be able to find her."
"You don't seem too worried." Nikolas noted.
Again Jax shrugged. He *wasn't* worried. If it was taking he and Nikolas
so long to find her, that meant that Jerry hadn't found her
either-assuming he had gone looking. And as long as Jerry couldn't find
her, Jax could care less if Miranda was ever found again....
"We have to talk." Jerry stood next to the table. "Alone." he glanced
over at Nikolas.
"All right." Nikolas stood. "Call me."
Jax nodded and watched as Nikolas left. "What?"
"Call him for what?" Jerry asked.
"Business."
Jerry sat down across from Jax. "You shouldn't turn your phone off."
"Why?" Jax reached into his pocket, taking his phone out and clicking it
back on. A second later, the phone rang.
"That's why..."
"Hello...hi honey..."
Keesha had called Jerry, looking for Jax. She wouldn't tell him why, just
that it was very important, and she needed to talk to him right away.
"Can you please come home?" Keesha kept her voice as calm as possible.
"Sure thing. Why?"
"The FBI was here a few hours ago and..."
"I'm on my way." Jax hung up, running off and leaving Jerry alone.
"Miranda's dead?"
"Looks that way. And even in death she's trying to make my life a living
hell..." Keesha sighed deeply, laying her head against her knees with a
groan.
Jax knelt down on the floor across from her. "Hey..."
Keesha looked up at him.
"Don't let her do this to you. They don't have anything on you, at all,
or else we'd be having this conversation in the police station. That
means they're fishing, but there's nothing here for them to catch."
"I suppose..."
"You've been in town all of this time. You're here everyday, when have
you had time to go, find Miranda, and kill her. None of that makes any
sense."
"Stefan."
"Stefan?"
"I've seen Stefan a few times...what if...."
"Don't worry about it. Don't let her do this to you now..."
Keesha nodded. "Alexis wants me to meet her down at the police station.
She figures it would be best to go now so they don't think I have anything
to hide. Can you come?"
"Why don't you go on...I have to handle something here."
Keesha nodded. "I suppose." she sighed, standing from the couch.
"You've told me everything?" Alexis reiterated.
"We've talked for an hour. About a woman I haven't seen or heard from in
over a month. We've exhausted this conversation entirely..." Keesha took
a deep breath, trying to keep herself...and the baby...calm. She had to
focus on the baby....
She wished Jax had come...
Alexis held the door open and Keesha walked in, her senses overloading on
the noise-ringing phones, and the mumbled voices...nothing good ever
happened here...and everything always tied into Miranda...Keesha closed
her eyes.
She really wished Jax had come.
"Yes...I'm Alexis Davis-Ashton-and this is my client Keesha Ward-Jacks.
We're here..."
"Go on home." the agent didn't even bother to look up from her work.
"What?"
"There's nothing to find, there's no need for your client to talk with us.
We're sorry for inconviencing her." The agent left, leaving Keesha and
Alexis dumbfounded.
"So...then they said that there was no reason for us to talk..." Keesha
stretched out in the middle of the bed. "I guess that's over..."
"I told you not to worry, didn't I?" Jax sat down at the edge of the bed,
looking down into her eyes.
"Yes...you just know all I see." Keesha teased, reaching over and
tickling Jax's side. He grabbed her hand, lacing their fingers.
"I love you." he whispered quietly, reaching over and kissing her softly.
Jax pulled back, grinning as Keesha smiled up at him. "Monday is a busy
day for you I know...You can go back to work now." she yawned.
"Okay..." Jax reached out, playing with her hair as Keesha closed her
eyes.
"I can do that." Luke nodded. "But..."
"I know. I owe you." Jax looked out into the water.
Luke paced the pier. "So, let me get this straight. I'm going to make
sure her tracks are covered..."
"There is *nothing* to cover."
"There must be, or else you wouldn't be here. It must be something bad..."
"I will make this quick. You are my last resort. Jerry cannot find out
about Miranda, so I can't go to him. I don't trust Stefan right now, so I
can't go to him. That leaves you-either you can make this go away or
not..."
"Make what go away?"
"This damn investigation!" Jax took a breath, lowering his voice once
more. "You have connections, I know you do. And Keesha does not need the
stress right now...but the FBI will just hold onto this unless something
makes it go away...you can do that faster than I can. Look, I'm not
asking you to do this for me, I am asking you to do this for her.
She...she cannot be worried about this right now..."
"Because of the child she's carrying?"
Jax didn't answer.
"Okay. I'll help. But, you just said it, not me...I am doing this for
her-because of her grandmother, I sure as hell am not doing it for you.
But I hope you know, I rarely do anything for free. There could be a
price..."
"I'll pay whatever you want."
"I don't want any money...I probably won't want anything. I'm just putting
you on alert."
Jax nodded.
Luke walked away.
He didn't want anything from Jax. But he may want something from Keesha.
Because Keesha had been around that blood-sucking Stefan lately. And she
would be the last person Stefan would be on guard from. Luke smiled,
pulling out his cigar as he walked up the stairs.
Jax bent down, resting his head against Keesha's chest as she slept
peacefully. He closed his eyes, listening to the slow beating of her
heart. Jax trailed his fingers ligtly down Keesha's side, reaching over
and going underneath her shirt, resting on her stomach.
Shani
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