Later

Eight years later – ( soap time, 8 years )

Jax sat at a desk. Papers were crumbled and strewn across it, a half drunk cup of coffee stood next to a half eaten sandwich…that even in its unappetizing state reminded him that he was starving and wondering why he was handcuffed to the desk he sat at.

The police commissioner came out of his office and barked at Taggert. "Why hasn’t this been taking care of."

Jax watched and studied the man in charge. Mac Scorpio was no longer the commissioner and worked strictly as a Private Investigator now, the new police commissioner had a very strong presence, and seemed to be able to make Marcus Taggert jump.

Taggert looked up from his desk and glanced at Jax, a bitter scowl across his face. "Alex, is making sure all the evidence is taken care of correctly sir, and Mr. Jacks lawyer has yet to arrive."

"Your lawyer would be?"

"Alexis Davis-Jacks." Jax stated rubbing his eyes with his free hand. "Could I get a drink of water?" He asked, wondering what was taking Alexis so long to arrive, and just why his short, ELQ business visit to Port Charles, had turned so hellish.

Alexis came into the room then and hurried towards Jax. "I don’t believe this." She whispered to him, and tossed her briefcase onto the desk and opened it, and pulled out a note pad. "Sean, I would think you would be finding more appropriate suspects for this murder."

Sean gave Taggert a look, which caused Taggert to jump up. "Yes, sir." Taggert said and took off.

Sean then turned to Alexis his face unreadable. "Alexis, I trust your judgement, but given this man is your ex-husband, maybe you are being a bit blind."

"My relationship with Jax, is irrelevant, and I would like to understand why he was arrested."

"He was found over the body, holding a gun."

"Why were you holding the gun?"

Jax sighed. "I need water. And I just, I walked in found him on the floor of the room, and the gun was near his chest, I wanted to check his vitals, and when I bent down I picked up the gun to move it out of the way, when Taggert and Garcia burst in."

Sean nodded. "You had an argument with the victim earlier this week?"

"Who told you that?" Jax asked.

Alexis sighed. "Jax did you and AJ have an argument."

"Yes, we did, over an ELQ business deal, he was making yet another bad business move, I wanted to set him straight, and let him know if he continued to keep ELQ barely in the red, constantly teetering on bankruptcy I would be challenging him for the CEO position. Things got a tad heated, that is all."

"Witnesses?" Alexis prompted.

"Carly, Jason, Sonny, Edward, Alan, Monica, Emily, Michael, and the butler, oh and Lucy Coe."

"Was anyone else in the Quartermaine livingroom when you found AJ."

"No."

Sean bent down and looked Jax in the eye. "Why were you in the mansion uninvited?"

Jax sighed. "I wanted to visit Lila’s grave before I left town, she was buried in the Rose Garden, I let myself in, to do that unnoticed. I go there every time I visit Port Charles."

Sean nodded. "She was an true lady."

Jax met his gaze. "Yes, Lila, was."

Sean gave Alexis a look. "He can go, but he can’t leave town."

"I have a business deal in Juneau…"

"You can’t leave town, Mr. Jacks."

"Jax, it is okay, you can stay with us." Alexis whispered, motioning with her head towards the cuffs.

Sean nodded, "Oh, Harry, free Mr. Jacks please."

A young rookie came up and unlocked Jax’s hand from the cuffs.

Jax stood up. "Can we get some water, and food."

Alexis took his hand. "Are you okay?" She asked forcefully.

"I am dazed and hungry." Jax responded.

~~~~~

Venus Ardanowski glared at herself in the mirror as she fit her gun into its holster. She sighed and pushed her hair off her face, when her phone rang shrilly.

"Ardanowski." She said sharply into the phone. "Hi Sean. Yes, I am on my way to the airport now, the conference was nice and boring, thanks for…who?" Her eyes grew round. AJ Quartermaine had been murdered.

"Who are the suspects? One so far, you want me to…okay, hold on." She hurried around her hotel room for a pad and pen, found one and grabbed the phone and pulling the top of the pen with her mouth, said, "Okay Sean?"

"I want you to keep on eye on this first suspect, and get what you can on his background for me. You might know of him, he lived in Port Charles for awhile, back when you first did. Jasper Jacks, goes by Jax."

V’s eyes widened. "You want me to tail Jax." She whispered, her voice full of amazement a sense of Déjà vu crawling over her. Jax, it had been years since their last correspondence of any of kind, longer sense the last time he and she had seen each other. He had been still married, oddly enough to Alexis, and showing her Ireland, when she and he bumped into each other. He was so in love with Alexis, V had felt it was a new emotion for him at the time, she herself had just fallen totally in love with Simon. They had said hi, chatted caught up, and promised to stay more in touch. Despite how hurt she had been to find out the huge lie Jax along with Alexis, Ned, and Chloe had told her and Simon. Jax had called and wrote for at least half a year, then she equaled the effort, having forgiven him somewhat, then correspondence dwindled as life took over.

Then she and Simon, found that they viewed life too differently, and V had gone back to work as a cop in Massachusetts, meeting Sean Donley a police chief there. They had bonded over Port Charles and Felicia, one day, and soon V found herself adopted by the sometime gruff teddy bear and his wonderful colorful wife, Tiffany.

When Sean had been contacted to resume his old job in Port Charles, he had brought V with him, wanting her on his police force.

"Jax?" She whispered into the phone again. "He and I were friends once, way in another lifetime. I worked for him."

"Then it will be easy for you to keep an eye on him. I don’t think he is the killer V, but I have a feeling, the killer will use Jax’s bad luck."

V nodded and rubbed her forearm. "I see. I got to get going, or I’ll miss the plane. Jax…" She said her voice full of conflicting emotions. "Am I in charge of this case…"

"No, Taggert and Garcia have point, but you will be used for where ever I think you are needed."

V nodded, something she knew, Sean could see in his head and hung up the phone.

~~~~~

Jax fell into Alexis’s couch and glanced around her home. Their, old home. "You haven’t changed the place much." He said, running his hands through his hair. "I feel dizzy."

"You must be in shock, finding AJ dead like that, the gun right there." Alexis said tossing him a blanket.

He gave her a look.

"You are shivering, and aren’t you supposed to keep people in shock warm, or is it cold. I never was very nurturing."

Jax took her hand, "Lexie, you can be very nurturing." He held her wrist. "Thank you."

Alexis smiled wearily. "You are my friend, Jax, you always were that first. How are things going with Flavia….is that her name."

Jax shook his head and pulled her down to the couch. "Why is it, whenever I attempt to bring us back to our level of intimacy, you mention whoever I might be casually dating…"

"It’s the masochist in me, Jax."

"You mean the Cassadine. I just need, Lexie right now, not Alexis, my friend I call every month or so, or Alexis my lawyer, I need Lexie the mother of our son. Where is he? Catching up with him, is the only good thing about this mess, besides seeing you."

"JK, is with his friends, a party, Tiffany Hill should be bringing him home, in an hour or so."

"Who?"

Alexis touched Jax’s face. "She runs the TV Station, she is married to the police Commissioner. They have a daughter who is 14 and a son who is JK age, 6."

Jax nodded. "Your friends with him."

"Donley. Not exactly, I think he likes me though. He is very close to Felicia and Mac, as well as V."

"V!" Jax looked up and into Alexis’s eyes. "V, is here, in town! Why haven’t you told me?"

Alexis looked surprised. "I thought you knew. She has been in town for about a year and a half, she came with Donley. She and JK get along great, she has been teaching him how to paint."

Jax stared at his ex-wife. "I, lost her. I would call and write, but you know how it is….it drifted, then after our…I lost her last address and number when I moved to Nome, and haven’t been able to find her. She is never listed. How is she? She still distant, from all the lies we told her."

Alexis sighed, remembering Jax’s pain when V had been told about how and why they had gotten married in the first place, how she and Simon, hadn’t been told. Alexis had felt two inches tall, as V had questioned their silence…she had seemed to understand, but Jax had told her, that V had been hurt, mostly by him. The next six months, he had initiated most the contacts between the two…then it seemed to equal out. But time and fate, had kept the two friends from really talking. "No, not really. She seems fine, we talk all the time…she is great with JK. We do lunch, me, her, Felicia and her partner, Sara. I thought you knew she was in town."

"She’s a cop again." Jax asked, idly rubbing Alexis’ hand with his fingers.

"Yes." Alexis felt too close to him suddenly. "I am going to make you some coffee, and put together the guest room."

"Lexie…"

"Yes?"

"I…" Jax looked at her and then looked down. "Make that coffee strong….I don’t think I want to go to sleep anytime soon."

To be continued…………