One Of Those Days by iletudrive

[JRK Archiver]

“Unique Unlimited,” Johnny corrected automatically, earning a glare from his boss in the process.

“If this Unique,” Sonny snarled the word. “Is so superior why the hell haven’t I heard of them before?”

“Because of your bias,” Johnny answered simply.

“My what?” Sonny rested his hands on the desk in confusion.

“It’s true,” Benny picked up the slack. “We’d love to use Unique but you would never allow it. So we go with other firms, and with 3 warehouse bombings you can see the results we get from them. It’s too bad about your bias.”

“I know Unique even guarantees their work. After that first fire, if it would have even happened, they would have been all over the place,” Johnny chimed in. “Most of the guys take all their defensive training there. And Francis, man he practically lives for what he calls their toy section, you know the explosives, the guns…”

Benny and Johnny both jolted when a glass went careening past Johnny’s ear and smashed against the wall behind him.

“What @#%$ bias?” Sonny yelled all but shaking with rage.

“Unique is a company owned and operated by a woman. Most of their employees are women. Considering how you feel about women in,” Benny swallowed hard when Sonny’s eyes got even colder, “your business, we never mentioned it.”

“Right you’re okay with Ms. Davis representing you as your attorney, but you won’t deal with women in any other way in business,” Johnny finished lamely.

Sonny turned away from them trying to battle back the worst of the temper. He couldn’t scream at them no matter how much he wanted too because what they said was right. He would have never hired Unique for anything.

After a minute of silence Benny nervously cleared his throat. “Sonny?”

“Do we know who wanted Jason?” Sonny kept his back to them.

“No, it was done very quietly. Until Jason was nabbed, we didn’t even know about it.”

“How about where Jason was supposed to be delivered?”

“The plane was going to Boston, that much we know,” Johnny said. “Unless they filed a bogus flight plan.”

“We need to find out who wants Jason, to do that we need to get to this company who snagged him,” Sonny turned around. “Then they need to be punished. I want to know everything on this company. Where are they located?”

“New York City.” Benny answered.

“Then that’s where we’ll go,” Sonny’s face-hardened into a mask. “Find me a hammer to break them Benny.”

~Waterfall~

Elizabeth could hear the water long before she actually saw it, and the urge to dive into the water was very strong. She’d had a shower less then a day ago, and also crashed in a large body of water several hours ago, yet she still felt dirty.

It was probably because of the weather. It was only mid-morning according to Jason, and it was October, but it was also very hot and humid. She wasn’t used to the tropical weather, and the dizziness was coming more often, with every step she took. She probably just needed food, at least that’s what she was telling herself. She was very good at telling herself things, she was just tired of listening.

“Elizabeth are you okay” Jason touched her arm in concern.

Blinking she tilted her head to look up at him. “What?”

“I said are you okay?” Seeing her flushed face he pressed a hand to her forehead. “Do you feel okay?”

“I’m fine.”

Jason lowered his hand and studied her doubtfully.

“I’m a little hungry that’s all,” Elizabeth shifted on her feet. “I haven’t eaten anything today.”

“I’ll find us some food. Right now just get a drink,” he gestured to the clearing behind him and the waterfall.

Elizabeth nodded and moved towards the waterfall.

“It’s probably best to drink the water as it falls,” Jason told her.

“How do you know that?”

“I don’t really,” Jason admitted. “I don’t know where the water is coming from, but it’s probably clearer then what’s pooling here.”

Focusing on the small lake that had formed at the bottom of the waterfall, she almost groaned in want. The water looked so inviting she’d like nothing better then to dive in and get clean. “At least there’s enough water to clean up.”

“Why don’t you take a bath?”

Elizabeth all but goggled at him at that remark.

“I-I mean, there’s no soap but you can get cleaned up, take off your clothes and rinse them off, while I get some food,” Jason took a step back from her.

“Are you sure it’s okay? What about snakes?” Her last encounter was a little too vivid in her mind.

“Stay near the falls where there is some current.” When she still hesitated he frowned at her. “What?”

“I don’t have anything else to put on while the clothes are drying, so I think I’ll just dab,” she untied his jacket from her waist and crouched beside the water.

“I have a better idea,” Jason moved past her, pulled his shirt off and plunged it into the water. “I’ll rinse this now, and spread it out in the grass to dry. With the heat it shouldn’t take too long. You can put it on while you wait for your clothes to dry.”

Elizabeth didn’t hear a word he said. Her eyes had locked on the muscles in his back as he rinsed the shirt and wouldn’t budge. There was a drone in her ears that no doubt meant he was talking, but she didn’t care. When he wrung out the shirt he shifted, and she saw a different set of muscles get defined when he exposed his chest. She’d had models in her art studies class, but she had to admit that this was the first time she’d ever seen a perfect chest. Even the faded scars on it, suited him, somehow making it that more appealing.

Jason spread the shirt out on the grass and turned back to Elizabeth, who hadn’t moved in the last few minutes. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

She managed a nod but knew better than to try to speak.

“Take your time, I won’t go far. If something happens just yell,” misinterpreting her hesitancy he picked up his jacket and went on. “I’ll whistle or call out to let you know when I’m coming so you’ll have privacy.”

“Okay.” Elizabeth kept her eyes on him until he disappeared from view then sank wearily to her knees. Keeping her distance from him was going to be harder then she thought.

~Devil’s Thumb~

“The Devil’s Ghost. That’s not good is it?” Manny asked.

“No,” Francis agreed.

“Dominguez still runs the island doesn’t he?”

“Yes and he doesn’t like visitors.” Francis began to move towards the dock and the waiting speedboat. “We’re still behind the blonde and her friend too. I don’t like that.”

“Do you think the rumors are true?”

“What rumors?” Francis gaze slipped past Manny when a flicker caught his attention. For a minute he thought he saw someone he recognized, but the crowd shifted and he was gone.

“About the Devil’s Ghost?”

“It’s not haunted it that’s what you mean. The reason people don’t return from there, is because Dominguez’s crew kills them.”

“Not that, I meant about the animals. Do you really think there are some there?” Manny pressed. He had a fascination for animals.

“Manny sometimes I worry about you and I don’t have time for that now. Right now we need to focus on finding Jason before Dominguez or the blonde does, or if we can’t we better pray no one on that island recognizes him.” Francis untied the boat and pushed it away from the dock.

“Won’t they just kill him on sight?”

“Not if they know who he is, if they recognize him,” Francis sighed. “Well let’s just say he might wish he was dead.”

“You’re sure he was the one that survived? That is was him in that parachute?” Manny asked.

“I know he’s alive and the only thing that will convince me otherwise is if I see his body,” Francis answered honestly.

“Well if it was him in the parachute, what does that mean for Elizabeth?”

He couldn’t afford to think about Elizabeth right now, if he did it might mess him up. Instead he put on his sunglasses and started the boat.

~Waterfall~

Elizabeth ran her fingers through her wet hair trying to get the tangles out as best she could. Strange as it had felt to strip naked and wash in a waterfall, she really did feel better, not to mention cleaner. Checking her pants, and finding them still damp she settled back down in the grass to let them dry.

Jason’s shirt came to her mid-thigh, leaving plenty of white leg exposed to the bright sun. Her eyes couldn’t seem to move from the fascinating bruises she had on her legs. Bruises that looked like the fingers of a hand.

In that instant the memory came back to her. Shooting the man with the scar, then fighting with him. Him holding on to her trying to pull himself back in the plane. Then the sound of the impact her foot had made when she’d kicked him in the head so he would let go of her. She hadn’t meant to kill him, she hadn’t wanted too, but he was still dead. And she was now a murderer.

“I don’t want to be a murderer.”

Feeling the sting of the tears behind her eyes she quickly closed her eyes and tried to think of something else, anything else. If she lost it now it wouldn’t do anybody any good. Besides if she lost it now, she would no doubt try to lean on Jason and he didn’t want that. There would be plenty of time for her to break, after they got off the island.

A whistling sound came to her ears and she automatically tensed up.

“It’s okay Jason,” Elizabeth called out getting to her feet and tried to brace herself.

It didn’t help.

The sight of him, bare-chested, his face serious as he moved towards her carrying his jacket with fruits and what looked like leaves coming out of it, she still found herself unable to breathe.

“I found some food for us. Some berries and also some roots and figs. It’s not a lot but it should take the edge off.” Crouching he carefully laid the jacket on the ground before squinting in the sun and looking up at her. “I’ve already eaten so go ahead and knock yourself out.”

“Are you sure their safe to eat?”

“Yeah I recognized them, their indigenous to the area, and harmless,” he reached down and pulled out a clump of juicy looking red berries. “Don’t just eat these though, eat the roots as well, or you might get sick off the sweetness.”

He began to rise and for the first time realized what she was wearing, or should say what she wasn’t wearing. His shirt dropped to her mid thigh, exposing surprisingly long looking legs. The shirt itself was still damp in places and slipped from one shoulder exposing the creamy white skin to view. The shirt was large on her, but thanks to the dampness it clung to her breasts, outlining them in the thin blue cotton. Pulling his eyes from her chest he lowered them until they landed on the livid bruises on her legs.

Noting his stillness, Elizabeth followed his gaze, belatedly remembering the bruises that she didn’t want to explain, at least not yet. Turning around she moved towards her clothes. “I’ll get dressed and give you some privacy.”

Recognizing her retreat for what it was, a diversion, he let her go. He’d get to the bottom of what had happened while he was unconscious sooner or later. But for now it was time to get cleaned up. With a final look at the bushes she had disappeared behind he moved towards the waterfall unbuttoning his jeans as he moved. He gave a passing thought to the fact she might be watching him then immediately shook the thought away. Elizabeth wasn’t that type. Carly would have stayed out and watched him strip. But Elizabeth wouldn’t.

Elizabeth moved a branch a little further out of the way and kept her eye trained on Jason as he began to undress. She was finally going to get an answer to the boxer or brief question and wasn’t about to let a little embarrassment drive her away.

~Port Charles~

“Stavros. Where have you been? I have been looking for you forever.” Helena cried loudly into the phone when she recognized her son’s voice. “Where are you?”

Nikolas paused in the entry of the salon, hearing her words he quickly moved back and to the side to eavesdrop.

“Mother I am a grown man. I hardly to check in with you,” Stavros reminded her icily.

Recognizing the tone of voice Helena knew she was going to have to be very careful if she wanted to regain the upper hand. “Of course my darling. You may do whatever you want.”

“I always have.”

“I know Stavros. I only meant that your stamina might not be fully back yet. The doctor has told you not to overdue.”

“No one tells me what to do mother. Especially not you. Don’t forget who your are speaking too.”

“Of course My Prince,” Helena spoke quickly. “Will you be returning soon? I am most anxious to reunite you with Nikolas.”

“I’ll be there when I choose, right now,” he studied the two men on the speedboat. “I have other matter to attend too. As for Nikolas, do not tell him anything until I return.”

“As you wish,” Helena agreed. “When will you return?”

“Do not question me anymore Mother. It’s very tiring. I will be there when I chose to be, and I will bring a surprise when I do come back,” he waited until the speedboat disappeared out of the harbor before heading for his own boat. “Goodbye Mother.”

“Wait Stavros, how can I reach you? Stavros?” Helena angrily hung up the phone. “Andreas.”

“Yes Madame?” Andreas quickly appeared in the salon.

“The Prince has been detained, so our plans have to be pushed back for a time. Make sure you keep a close eye on Nikolas.” Helena poured herself a sherry. “And Andreas, keep looking for Stavros, quietly of course.”

“Yes Madame.” Andreas bowed and quickly left the room.

“My darling what are you up too? We’ve come so far for you to mess it up now,” Helena murmured.

Nikolas moved quickly down the hall and made his way off the boat being careful that no one saw him. The fear and worry had him by the throat so for the moment the knowledge of what he had heard wasn’t there. Helena had sounded like she was talking to Stavros. His dead father Stavros. A man who had died more than 20 years ago. A man he had seen in a glass coffin just yesterday.

Feeling sick to his stomach by the time he reached the docks he leaned wearing against the wall. Could Helena’s plan really have worked? Was his father still alive? Where was he if he was? His eyes flew open when he remembered what he had done after he had seen his father the day before. He had checked his messages, Stefan’s and then Elizabeth. “Oh god Elizabeth.”

Could Stavros have heard her message to him? Was he after her? Nikolas began to walk quickly down the docks. He had to see if Stavros was still in that coffin. Because if he wasn’t then there was a good chance he was going after Elizabeth.

~Waterfall~

Doing her best to be good, Elizabeth was sitting in the clearing looking in another direction instead of at the waterfall, as she nibbled on the food he had found. The image of Jason naked under the waterfall was one she was never, ever going to forget, but now she was trying to be good, so after throwing the shirt in his direction she had given him his privacy.

Pulling his jacket closer to her, his knife slipped out of the pocket. Feeling the heat of the sun beating down on her, she picked it up and began to cut the soft material of her sweaters, in an attempt to cut off the long sleeves. Even though the sweater was lightweight the last thing she wanted was something on her arms.

“Be careful.” Jason spoke from directly behind her and she jumped.

“Ow, Jason don’t do that,” Elizabeth cried out, not bothering to look up at him she searched for where she had just nicked herself with the knife.

Concerned he crouched down beside her, brushing her hands away he checked the knick himself. It was only a scratch, but the small trickle of blood coming from her shoulder bothered him. Picking up the sleeve she had already cut free he pressed against the blood until the flow stopped.

Noting his frown she tried to lighten the mood. “Will I live Doc?” The teasing expression vanished from her face when he raised his eyes to her. The serious light she saw in those blue eyes of his wiped the smile from her face.

“I don’t like the fact you were hurt,” Jason whispered.

“I wasn’t,” Elizabeth reassured him just as quietly.

He glanced at her legs and the bruises now hidden by her pants, then back into her eyes. “Yes you were. And I wasn’t able to stop it.”

Touching his hand she tried to soothe. “Don’t it’s over with now.”

“What happened?”

Jolted she blinked and pulled back, only then realizing how close their faces were.

Jason seemed to realize their proximity at the same time because he withdrew as well.

“Are you hungry?” Elizabeth asked brightly focusing on the jacket again. “I left you some berries in case you are.”

“Elizabeth…”

“I was thinking about that trap you fell in Jason. Someone went to all the trouble to build it, and then hide it, why would they do that? Were they hunting animals or humans?” She got to her feet and kept talking. “Hunting humans just like in that book, and all of those movies on TBS late night. It’s always some rich millionaire wanting to hunt people for sport, and eventually he gets taken out by one of his prey,” she sucked in a breathe. “I think my favorite one right now is Surviving the Game, but that’s because of Ice-T. I like him for some reason, I don’t know why he’s normally always the bad guy, but there’s still something about him. I can’t say much for his name though, why do they have to make up names like that?”

She wasn’t going to tell him what had happened, the longer he listened to her, the more he realized that whatever had happened was bad. But she wasn’t going to tell him. Watching her nervous movements as she began to tuck the food in his jacket pockets, he decided to back off for right now.

“So do you think someone built that trap to trap animals? It was pretty deep, I don’t know why they would need such a deep trap unless it was for an animal that can jump. Kind of like a big cat. But cat’s aren’t indigenous to this area are they?” She had originally begun this conversation to stop him from asking questions, but the more she talked the more nervous she got. Who had built that trap and why?

“Do you ever take a breath when you get going like that?” Jason asked.

“I breath through my nose,” she smiled a little ruefully. “I did go off didn’t I?”

“Just a little,” he got to his feet and brushed the dirt off his pants. “I think it’s time to get out of here.”

“Sounds good, do you know where we are?”

“I think,” he stopped speaking abruptly and looked back into the brush.

“Wha…” she stopped when he held up his hand.

Elizabeth was about to speak again when she heard a rustling sound coming from the brush. Jason shifted so he was shielding Elizabeth, bending down he retrieved the knife, and handed her his jacket.

Her eyes grew wide when she heard the sound of a cough in the distance. It looked like they were about to find out who else was on this island.

[JRK Archiver]

Part 8


~Devil’s Ghost~

Elizabeth never knew Jason could move so quickly. One minute she was standing behind him looking in the direction the voices were coming from, and the next she found herself crouching in a stand of bushes on the far side of the waterfall. He had been, quite simply, nothing but a blur. A blur which was now crouched directly in front of her, peering though the bushes and blocking her view.

In an effort to see around Jason she changed positions, earning herself a glare in response. A glare she promptly ignored and kept shifting as quietly as possible in order to see. She wasn’t about to be left out of anything. Jason apparently knew better than to argue because he shifted his focus back towards the clearing.

Elizabeth finally found a spot that allowed her an opening to view the clearing. That it happened to be pressed so close to Jason’s left side that she was leaning against him, was all the better for her. Keeping her expression bland she ordered her breathing to settle and focused on the area next to the pool just in time.

Her eyes widened as first one man came out of the bush, followed quickly by another. She should have been thrilled to see other people on this until now deserted island. And she would have been except for one small detail. Both men were armed with guns very similar to what Scarman had pointed at her the day before.

Life on this particular island had just gotten a hell of a lot more interesting.

~Port Charles Underground Lab~

Nikolas made yet another turn in the labyrinth like maze of the building, trying desperately to make sense of the conversation he’d just overheard. The thought of his father being alive, much less walking around, was incomprehensible to him a day ago, was now looking true. Two more right turns and he would know for sure. The question of what he would do if Stavros wasn’t in his glass coffin occurred to him but that was as far as it went. The man that was his father just couldn’t be alive.

Hesitating outside the door that led to the chamber that should hold his father, he found he didn’t want to open the door and find out. As long as he didn’t know for sure, he could still cling to a belief that he still harbored down deep in his heart, a belief that his father was not the cold-hearted monster that everyone but Helena made him out to be. Was it so wrong, he wondered, to want to believe that there was a small part of good in the man who had helped to create him?

As a child Stefan had helped foster the belief somewhat. He didn’t know why, Stefan certainly had no love for his brother. Perhaps it was because of the way he had been raised, Nikolas didn’t know for sure. But for whatever reason Stefan had let him believe that Stavros wasn’t a monster. It wasn’t until he was older, when his mother had come back in his life, that Nikolas had begun to learn the truth about Stavros. He thought he’d banished the hope that his father wasn’t a monster years ago. But now faced with the closed door he realized he’d only buried the hope deep in his heart.

Realizing he could stall no more Nikolas slowly pushed the door open. The room was pitch black, remaining in the doorway his hand fumbled for the light switch on the wall. The harsh fluorescent lighting flooded the room, stinging his eyes, causing him to blink. Clearing the spots from his eyes, he focused on the empty glass coffin. It seemed the monster was in fact back, and on the loose.

~Devil’s Ghost~

It was times like this that Elizabeth cursed the fact she had been more interested in staring at Lucky Spencer then she’d been in listening to her Spanish teacher. She’d come out of Spanish with an even deeper crush on Lucky and a D in the course. Her limited vocabulary consisted of asking where a bathroom and a telephone was. Both phrases did her little good at the moment.

Frick and Frack as she’d dubbed the newcomers, were carrying on a conversation in such rapid fire Spanish that all she could do was stare. Judging from the sudden increase in tension in the man next to her, she realized Jason was having no such language problems. And whatever it was he was hearing he didn’t like it. Her eyes widened when she realized Jason had his knife open and clutched firmly in his right hand.

Clutching his arm hard until he looked at her she gestured to the knife and shook her head. Narrowing his eyes he purposefully turned back to Frick and Frack. What was with this sudden suicidal need to attack things with a knife? First he wanted to go after a snake and now it looked like he was ready to attack two men who were armed to the teeth. She had been right when she called him an idiot. Swallowing a curse that would do no good, she determinedly worked two fingers through the belt loop of his jeans and kept them there. He wasn’t going anywhere.

Jason moved closer to the edge of the bushes and she instinctively yanked him back, by tugging hard on the belt loop. When he didn’t even turn to look at her she knew they were in trouble, and she shifted her attention to see what was going on. “Frick” had found her shirtsleeve and was holding it, both of them took a sudden interest in their surroundings. Elizabeth didn’t have to speak Spanish to understand that this wasn’t a good development. Her suspicions were only confirmed when “Frack” pulled a knob on his gun locking it into firing position.

She couldn’t help but jolt when she felt Jason’s breath on her face, then his lips against her ear. “Get ready to run. When I say I want you to go out the other side of the bushes and don’t stop until I tell you.”

Elizabeth shook her head and pointed at him.

He didn’t have time to fight with her about this. “I mean it you run when I tell you,” he reiterated the order.

Determination settled on her face and Elizabeth opened her mouth to speak. Moving quickly Jason pressed a finger to her lips quieting her. Elizabeth drew back and turned until she could whisper in his ear. “I’m not leaving you.”

In spite of himself Jason began to get angry. “You’ll go when I tell you too.”

Narrowing her eyes she shot back. “Why? So you can be slaughtered when you foolishly attack two armed men with a lousy pocketknife? I don’t think so.”

“Elizabeth I know what I’m doing.”

She couldn’t help but roll her eyes at that statement causing him to glower at her. “Then why have I been saving your ass left and right for the last day? Remember the redhead? The plane? The snake?” She hissed.

The mere fact that their argument was being held in heated whispers into the other’s ears didn’t lessen the impact of the words. Neither one budging an inch. Their next volley of barbs was stalled when Frick and Frack caught their attention again.

Frick had unearthed a radio and was reporting his find to someone on the other end. Jason shifted again until he was shielding Elizabeth as Frack moved closer to them to investigate. Elizabeth searched the ground looking for anything she could use as a weapon. All she could come up with was a flat rock about the size of her hand. Between her rock and Jason’s knife they were in a world of trouble.

Jason barely breathed as he watched the man poke his gun into a bush a few feet away, lifting the branches in an effort to see in the dense undergrowth. This wasn’t looking good. If it was just him he might have taken the risk and tried to disarm the man before he was discovered. It would be risky but with the element of surprise he might be able to take him. But he wasn’t alone, the body heat against his back reminded him of Elizabeth’s presence, as if he could forget her.

There was no way he was going to do anything stupid, no matter what she may think, not while she was with him. He wasn’t about to put her in any more danger than she was already in. So that left him between a rock and a hard place. Preparing himself he shifted his grip on the knife in his hand. Their only option, as he saw it, was to wait until the man decided to explore this bush. When he did, Jason would stick him with the knife, grab the gun, Elizabeth, and hopefully be out the back of the bushes before his partner knew what had happened.

He didn’t particularly like that scenario but it was the only option he could come up with. If they tried to sneak out the bushes, they would be heard, so they had to attack first then run. Taking a chance he risked a look back at Elizabeth, she caught his eye and angled her head closer. “Be ready.”

Nodding she rested her hand on his back, feeling the tense muscles there. She knew he would be even tighter when he was ready to move and figured every little bit of notice would help. Unconsciously she slowed her breathing until it matched his, and shifted quietly until she was crouching behind him mimicking his pose, her hand never leaving his back.

In spite of Sonny’s influence, he had never prayed very much. The last time he remembered doing so was when he had found Michael, safe in cabin. But he was praying now. The man came to a halt directly in front of him, and the tip of the gun began to lift the branch in front of Jason. His mind cleared, and a familiar calm descended upon him. He knew what he had to do, and was more than capable of doing it. Just a little closer and it would be time to strike, just a little…

Abruptly the gun withdrew, then so too did the man, as his partner barked out an order. Another rapid-fire conversation took place as the man continued walking away to join his partner by the water. Narrowing his eyes in speculation Jason concentrated on the conversation of the two men. He didn’t let himself take a deep breath until both men turned around and began walking out of the clearing.

Hidden by Jason, Elizabeth had no idea what was going on, but when Jason moved forward she was right on his tail. Stepping out of the bushes Jason brushed the sweat off his brow, taking a final look in the far direction, before turning to face Elizabeth. A reluctant smile crossed his features when he saw her expression. “What were you going to do with that?” Jason whispered gesturing to the rock in her hand.

“Knock you out if you tried anything stupid like attacking,” Elizabeth whispered back.

Again he couldn’t help the smile.

“What happened?” Unsure of what was going on Elizabeth kept her voice low and looked around.

“Someone found something on another part of the island, they were ordered to check it out,” Jason explained. “We have to follow them.”

Her eyes went wide at that pronouncement and she immediately shook her head.

“Elizabeth I know where we are now,” stepping closer he took the rock from her hand. “We need to get off this island as soon as we can, and we can’t let anybody see us.”

“Is it that bad?”

“Yes,” he hadn’t lied to her before and wasn’t about to start now. “Those men can lead us to a compound, there we can get a boat or possibly a plane. But either way they know a way out of here.”

Sighing Elizabeth studied their clasped hands, what he said made sense, but she couldn’t help but remember the guns the men had carried. The sight of the men and the guns were bringing up memories she didn’t want to deal with, but she knew he was right.

“Elizabeth do you trust me?”

“Of course,” her response was immediate and her focus returned to his face.

“We have to do this,” Jason informed her softly.

“We’ll stay together right? You won’t try to send me away or go off on your own will you?” She hated asking for reassurance but needed to hear it.

Unsure of where the sudden doubt she was exhibiting was coming from, Jason took time they didn’t have and reassured her. “I would never leave you alone in this situation. Especially not now that I know where we are. I promise you I won’t leave you alone.” Giving into temptation he caressed the softness of her cheek. “If I tell you to run I will be on your heels, I promise.”

A promise from Jason was more then she’d hoped for and more than enough reassurance. “Then we better go before we lose Frick and Frack.”

Blinking at the names she said, Jason turned, his hand automatically taking hers to lead the way.

~Beach~

“Wasn’t it thoughtful of someone to leave this fully gassed up jeep for us to use?” Hawk asked shooting a cheeky grin in his boss’s direction.

Jessica merely tightened the scarf in her hair. “I’ll be impressed when you can get it started hotshot.”

“Oh ye of little faith.” Sticking his head under the hood he began to fiddle with the engine.

“So what does this do to your theory of the island being haunted?” Pulling the gun from her shoulder holster, she popped the cartridge free to check the load. Even though she had loaded the darts herself, she was professional enough to check her weapon, often.

“Who says ghosts can’t be mechanized?”

“Hawk it’s a Hummer, fully loaded with bullet holes in the chassis, somehow I think the only ghosts we’re going to find on this island are the kinds with guns and a drug problem.”

The engine roared to life and Hawk slammed the hood closed. “It’s going to make for an interesting hunt don’t you think?” Grinning he jumped in the driver’s seat next to her. “Who will retrieve the prey? The dopers or us?”

Lowering her sunglasses Jessica aimed a cool look in his direction. “Sometimes Hawk you really do worry me.”

“That’s a good thing to hear.” Hawk leaned closer until their faces were inches apart. “Because you scare the hell out of me all the time.”

~Warehouse~

Not caring who saw him, Nikolas Cassadine burst into the Corinthos/Morgan coffee warehouse, and made a beeline for the offices in the back. He came to an abrupt halt just before he ran into a mountain of a man, whose hands were the size of his head. “Can I help you?” The gravel voice that rolled out of the mountain certainly fit.

“I need to see Sonny.”

“Mr. Corinthos isn’t in,” came the reply.

“Where is he?” Nikolas demanded answers and the mountain refused to reply. Having neither the time nor the inclination to be intimidated he moved closer and lowered his voice. “I need to see him now, I have information concerning Jason.”

A spark of interest flickered in the mountain man’s eyes yet his expression never changed. “Give me the message I’ll make sure it gets to Mr. Corinthos.”

“No, I’ll tell Sonny, but only Sonny,” Nikolas backed off the step and waited.

“You might want to rethink that.”

Smiling coldly Nikolas went on. “And you might want to rethink your position. What will you do if Jason dies and Sonny finds out you wouldn’t let me help him?” It was a gamble, the man before him could probably break him in two. He’d had some martial arts training but wasn’t stupid, there was no way he could take the mountain physically, but he could take him mentally. The longer the mountain took to make up his mind the more confident he became.

“Wait here,” the mountain said finally before moving down the hall to make a call.

Nikolas swallowed his sigh of relief. It wouldn’t be good to look too relieved, he hadn’t seen Sonny yet. He was determined to remain strong, and he wasn’t leaving until he got some information from Sonny Corinthos. That information was Elizabeth’s precise location. If Stavros was going after her there was no way he was going to rely on Sonny to help her. Sometime during the trip from the lab to the warehouse he’d come to the unsettling realization that he would have trusted Jason with Elizabeth’s safety. But Jason was missing and he knew, in spite of what Sonny might say to the contrary, that his main concern was finding Jason, not Elizabeth. Whereas, Elizabeth was his primary concern.

“Come with me.”

Nikolas jolted at the terse order. For such a big man, he could move softly when he wanted too. Nodding Nikolas followed the mountain out of the warehouse.

~Trail~

Elizabeth had never noticed just how loud a person really became when they were making a conscious effort to be quiet. The more she scanned the ground for noisy twigs, the more she seemed to find that she couldn’t avoid them. Jason, she couldn’t help but notice, seemed to have no such problems. He was moving as smoothly and quietly as always, every movement the picture of control. Envy was such a pithy emotion, yet she couldn’t help but wallow in it at the moment.

Jason set a pace that kept them well back and out of sight of Frick and Frack. At first she’d been concerned that they would lose them, yet quickly realized her fears were misplaced. Frick and Frack had a smoking problem, and whatever it was they were lighting up wafted to them on the breeze every now and then. And even though the smoke was diluted by dozens of yards it was still powerful enough to give her a headrush. Already feeling off-balanced the exposure to the obviously laced pot wasn’t something she enjoyed.

“Are you okay?” Jason couldn’t keep the question in any longer. Although she had kept pace easily enough her color had steadily decreased until she appeared almost waxy.

Startled at the quiet question for a second all she could do was blink at him. “I’m fine.”

Jason noted the way her eyes slid away from his when she answered the question and his stomach clenched in concern. If she fell ill he didn’t know what he could do to help her. “You need to be honest with me.”

Looking pointedly over his shoulder in the direction of Frick and Frack she avoided his plea. “Shouldn’t we be going? We don’t want to lose them.”

Refusing to budge Jason merely crossed his arms over his chest and waited.

She tried to remain strong, she really did, but she’d never been able to refuse him, when he looked at her like that. And he was right, they needed to be honest with each other. So she would be honest at least to a point. “The smoke it’s making me dizzy. I already had a headache because of our less than filling snack earlier, so I guess my equilibrium is a little off.”

Concerned Jason placed a hand on her forehead to check for a fever. “You don’t feel hot.”

If he kept his hand there and kept looking at her like that she soon would be. “I’ll be fine.”

Studying her eyes he had the feeling she wasn’t telling him everything, but he decided to let it go. He’d keep an even closer eye on her and had to trust that she would tell him if she started feeling worse.

Uncomfortable with his scrutiny Elizabeth stepped back then around him. “We better go.” Knowing he’d follow she began moving down the path.

~Airport~

“Max says you have something to tell me.” Sonny barely waited for Nikolas to enter the private room in the terminal before he pounced.

So the mountain had a name. Mt. Max, somehow it fit him. Shaking off his thoughts, he focused on the mobster. Sonny was a different person then Max. He was going to need to be at the top of his game if he wanted to get the information he needed. “I found out something you need to hear.”

“It must be pretty big if you were willing to risk being seen by hunting me down. You do realize that Helena shouldn’t know we’re speaking,” Sonny reminded the younger man.

“At this point I don’t much care what Helena knows,” Nikolas shot back. “In fact she probably already knows.”

“What do you mean by that?”

“I mean that there is good reason to believe that Helena not only knows Elizabeth is alive, she’d already sent someone after her to kill her,” Nikolas explained briefly.

The only change in Sonny’s expression was his eyes, if possible they grew even colder. “Who?”

“My father.”

~Beach~

“You know somehow I thought the island would be bigger,” Manny commented.

Francis merely threw a bag at him and clambered off the boat.

“So which way oh wise one?” Manny asked after another minute of study.

“Inland, there’s a compound about 5 miles in.” Francis shouldered his backpack and began leading the way.

“Won’t Jason hug the coastline looking for a boat?” Manny asked what he thought was a logical question. Francis was so convinced that Jason was the one that had survived that Manny was trying to put himself in Jason’s shoes.

“No,” Francis kept his answer brief. It didn’t work.

“Why?”

“Once Jason figures out what island he’s on, he’ll know to move inland to stay out of sight. Speaking of staying out of sight we better move before Dominguez’s welcoming crew arrives,” Francis answered.

“How do you know we’ve been spotted?”

“Because he has lookouts posted around the island,” Francis snapped. “Jesus Manny you know he has a major drug factory here. You think he doesn’t keep track of who lands here? Hell they cover the airstrip until they want to use it, so there are no unauthorized landings.”

Manny moved quickly to catch up with his friend. “How do you know so much about this island?”

“Once upon a time I lived here. Now shut up and come on.”

The longer the day went on the more he found out about Francis. Another thought occurred to him and he hurried to catch up. “So you’d know what kind of animals they have here? What are they? Tigers, lions, leopards? Oh I know cheetahs.”

Rubbing a hand wearily over his face Francis couldn’t help but wish for Johnny. At least he knew when to shut up.

~Jeep~

“Are you sure this is a road?” Jessica demanded.

“Sure. Can’t you tell by the ruts?” Hawk answered glibly, even though it did feel like his teeth were about to be shaken loose of his jaw. Triple A would never approve this road.

Deciding it wasn’t worth the effort to glare at him, Jessica focused on the only map they had of Devil’s Ghost. To say it was crude was putting it mildly. Other than the highest and lowest point and the length and width of the island there was precious little else on the map. At this rate it was going to be like looking for a needle in a haystack. And this time the needle would be aware she was coming. She’d lost the element of surprise with Jason Morgan and she didn’t like that. Catching Morgan off-guard had been key in her earlier capture of Morgan. It was a whole different ballgame now that he knew someone was targeting him.

Added to that was the unpredictability of their location. She liked to have all the information necessary before moving on a target. That required research, a lot of it. She hadn’t had time to research this island and she’d already discovered something she didn’t like. A jeep in this condition in the middle of nowhere could only mean one thing. There were drug runners on the island and that raised the stakes considerably.

“Want to turn back?” Hawk asked suddenly. He knew his boss better than most, and he knew she didn’t like rushing into places unless she already had 5 exits in her pocket.

“And give up a bounty?” She glanced in his general direction. “I never quit. Nor do I fail, I still have two days to bring this bounty in and I intend to deliver.”

“Just checking, you seem kind of green,” Hawk teased.

“Between your driving and your company, it’s a wonder I’m upright,” Jessica taunted icily.

“Darling you love me, you know you do,” grinning rakishly at her he waited until she lowered her shades before winking.

“Keep your eyes on what you call a road or I’ll leave you here to rot Hawk,” she shot back refusing the impulse to smile.

[JRK Archiver]

~Trail~

Exercise must be good for her because she no longer felt nauseous or lightheaded. She must be looking better as well because Jason wasn’t looking at her near as often as he had been. But he still had hold of her hand and she liked the feeling too much to let go, even though a part of her knew she should. His rejection of her at the snake pit was still fresh in her mind and in her heart, but even that pain wasn’t enough to make her stay away from him. She needed to face the truth here, she’d get as close to Jason as he’d let her get.

“I remember the redhead shooting me, and the next thing I remember is waking up on this island. You said we were on a plane. How did that happen?” Jason posed the question out of nowhere and judging from the way she tensed up, he’d caught her off-guard, which had been his intention.

Carefully choosing her words, Elizabeth answered. “After you were shot, these men in a car showed up, they threw you in the trunk, and headed for the airport.

“You were in the house right?” He saw her nod from the corner of his eyes. “So how did you get to the airport?”

Dropping his hand Elizabeth nervously ran a hand through her hair. “I don’t think that matters now. Who cares how we got here. The important thing is the fact we are here, and now, we need to figure out a way out of here.”

Increasing his pace to keep up with a decidedly nervous Elizabeth he decided to keep the pressure up. “Did they snatch you out of the house? I need to know if they were only after me or if they wanted you too. It may be the only way to figure out who was behind this.”

His brand of logic was difficult to ignore and she had to admit he had a right to the information. “No they didn’t grab me. I followed them to the airport. Honestly I don’t think they even knew I was with you. The redhead said she had a bounty on you, but in order to collect it you had to be alive upon delivery. Sca…” Elizabeth stopped abruptly she didn’t want to talk about him.

Jason noticed her sudden agitation and the way she began to rub her temple. Something she’d said or almost said had spooked her and he was determined to find out what. “How did you get to the airport?”

It was a testament to her agitation that Elizabeth just blurted out the answer, without thinking of the consequences. “I took your bike.” When he stilled beside her, those consequences crashed into her full force.

“You what?” Jason asked quietly hoping he’d misheard her.

“I didn’t have a choice. They were getting away. They were taking you away from me and I couldn’t let that happen. If I’d taken the time to go inside and call Sonny you would have been long gone. So when I saw your bike I took it,” she explained quickly.

“And let me tell you, you were concerned about nothing. I had no problems whatsoever in handling the bike.” She deliberately blocked out the screams of the nun she’d almost run over, not to mention the curses from the ice cream vendor she’d side-swiped. And she firmly banished the final image of his bike from her mind. Wedging the bike so hard between a concrete wall and a trash bin that it was stuck upright probably wasn’t the smartest thing she’d ever done, but she wasn’t stupid enough to admit to Jason what had happened.

“Do you realize you could have wrecked? That you could have been hurt or even worse killed?” Jason demanded. Again the unfamiliar mix of anger over the risks she had taken and fear over what could have happened to her mixed inside of him until they were unleashed on an unsuspecting Elizabeth, who was refusing to be intimidated.

“Jason it’s yesterday’s news, literally. So let it go,” Elizabeth snapped. “We better catch up with Frick and Frack.”

“To hell with Frick and Frack. How could you be so careless with your life?”

Angered Elizabeth turned to face him. “I was careless as you so cavalierly put it, because I was afraid you were going to die. Why can’t you get that through your thick head? Everything I’ve done in the past 24 hours has been in an effort to save your life.”

“Elizabeth lower your voice,” Jason warned her.

“No you need to hear this.” Anger overrode her commons sense and as a result her mouth ran ahead of her brain. “Everything I did, from stealing your bike, to sneaking on the plane, to shooting and fighting with Scarman, to jumping out of the airplane wrapped around you, to the snake pit. Everything I’ve done has been to help you, and I won’t listen to you condemn me for it, especially when I know that if the situations were reversed you would have done the same for me.”

“Who is Scarman?”

Elizabeth staggered back at the question. She hadn’t meant to let that slip. Unbidden the sound of the crunch of his nose breaking as she kicked him, came to her, followed by the memory of his eyes as he realized he was falling. Horrified by the images her stomach rolled and her head began to throb.

Jason reached out for her when she began to shake, but she stepped quickly out of reach.

“He doesn’t matter. Frick and Frack matter, we need to find them,” desperate to get away from his question she turned and began to jog in the direction she’d last seen the pair.

Upset at himself for pushing her too hard, and concerned because he couldn’t call after her, Jason put on a burst of speed and caught her right as she entered a clearing. Both of them came to an abrupt halt at the sight of Frick and Frack who were standing about 10 feet away from them. Frick had his back to them, while he seemingly pissed in the wind. But Frack was looking right at them.

Jason never even hesitated. Turning quickly, he grabbed Elizabeth’s hand and tugged hard, propelling them back in the direction they’d just come from. They managed to reach the relative safety of the tree line when the first volley of bullets hit the ground behind them.

~Jeep~

“Stop the jeep,” Jessica ordered.

“What?” Hawk obliged immediately.

“Be quiet and listen,” she snapped.

Hawk was about to speak when he heard the distinctive sounds of gunfire coming from somewhere left of their position. “There was a fork in the road about a ¼ mile back.” He put the jeep in gear trying to maneuver a sharp turn in the narrow roadway.

“Hurry up,” Jessica hissed. She only got paid if the bounty was alive.

~Trail~

“Could you get a fix on what direction the shots came from?” An out of breath Manny asked when Francis paused in their run.

“I think they came from West of here. There’s an old bush trail in that area, it could be coming from there.” Francis took off leaving Manny to catch up if he could.

~Bushes~

Elizabeth’s sides were killing her, and her lungs felt aflame. She’d once considered herself in reasonably good shape, but she wasn’t, not really. Even the prospect of being shot wasn’t going to be able to motivate her for very much longer.

“Come on Elizabeth,” Jason urged from her side. She was tiring badly, he could see it, but they hadn’t lost their pursuers yet.

Biting her lip Elizabeth forced herself to go on. Judging from the burning she felt in her throat, she didn’t have much left, and at that moment down she went. Jason pulled her back to her feet in a minute. She was even too tired to jolt when a bullet hit the ground she’d just been sitting on.

“Run.” Jason yelled, yanking on her arm to propel her in motion.

Running was one thing she knew how to do above anything else. But she had a feeling running wasn’t going to get her anywhere, not this time.

~Jeep~

“Watch out.” Jessica’s warning came the same time the glass windshield exploded.

“Christ.” Hawk fought to maintain control of the jeep as another volley of bullets cascaded down on the jeep. Whoever was shooting at them had high ground cover. That meant they were screwed.

~Bushes~

Elizabeth fell for the fourth time, or was it the fifth? She didn’t remember or care. She only knew that this time she didn’t think she was going to be able to get up. Gunmen or no, she was spent.

“Get up,” Jason was breathing hard and his lungs were beginning to burn. “We need to keep going,” already he could hear the nearing pursuit of their chasers.

“I can’t go on,” Elizabeth gasped out the words. “I’ll hide, you go.”

“No,” yanking her to her feet he ignored her scream of pain. “Where you go I go that’s the promise I made.”

“Jason,” she weakly tried to argue. But Jason would have none of it. He took off again, this time he was half carrying, half dragging her, but he didn’t seem to notice.

Compelled by his determination Elizabeth dug deep, finding her last vestige of strength she began to move under her own power again.

~Trail~

“Christ that’s a lot of gunfire,” Manny was bent over at the waist trying to catch his breath yet he still felt compelled to speak. He simply had too. “Francis?”

Frowning he looked around for the man who should have been right in front of him. He’d taken one step forward when he heard the sound of a gun cocking from directly behind him. Next he felt the cold steel of the weapon at the base of his neck. “@#%$.”

~Cliff~

“Now what? It’s a dead end.” Fully exhausted Elizabeth sank to her knees at the edge of the cliff. “We’re trapped.”

Jason looked right, then left. They were on some sort of cliff face, and the sides were too steep to climb down. Looking back the way they came he could already hear Frick and Frack closing fast. She was right they were trapped.

Moving to the edge he looked over the edge into the rapids below. The drop was about 50 feet. “Get up.” This time he was gentle as he pulled her to her feet, but gentle or not he was determined.

Leaning heavily against him Elizabeth raised her head. “Now what?”

“We have to jump.”

Sure that she’d heard him wrong she merely stared.

“It’s our only option,” he led her away from the edge before she had a chance to see just how big of a jump he was talking about.

“Are you insane Jason? I’ve already tempted fate by jumping out of a plane with no parachute. I think I might be pushing my luck if I try cliff diving.”

“We’re not going to dive, we’re going to jump, feet first,” Jason explained calmly. “And this time I won’t be unconscious, I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

“Jason,” closing her eyes she tried to swallow her fear. “Are you sure there isn’t another way?”

“I’m sorry Elizabeth. Either we stay here and get captured, or worse shot, or we jump,” he explained honestly. “The choice is yours. I’ll do what you say.”

Looking in his eyes she realized he would do just that. If she said she wouldn’t jump, he wouldn’t either. Instead he would probably attack Frick and Frack to they couldn’t hurt her. And in doing so he’d probably get killed. “You’ll be with me?” She asked shakily.

“I’ll be right behind you,” Jason vowed. The sounds of crashing through the underbrush were getting louder and he knew they were almost out of time. “What’s it going to be Elizabeth?”

“I guess we jump.”

Before she could change her mind Jason shifted her position until she was facing the edge. “I want you to run as hard as you can and at the last second jump. Try to keep your feet together. When you hit the water, start kicking for the surface. There’s probably a cave at the base of the cliff head right for it and wait for me.”

“What? Wait for you? Where are you going to be?” Elizabeth demanded.

“Right behind you, I already told you, where you go I go.” Leaning forward he kissed her briefly. “Now run.”

Obeying his order automatically Elizabeth took off nearing the edge she couldn’t help but scream as she pushed off into nothing. She was free falling all over again.

Jason waited for her to jump before he took off after her. He was about 3 feet from the edge when someone hit him in the middle of the back pinning him to the ground.

~Splash Down~

Elizabeth hit the water hard, harder than she had the day before. Like her last time in the water, for a second she was too stunned to do anything but drown. But remembering Jason’s words she began to kick her way to the surface and the daylight.

At least that was what she tried to do. But when she went to kick she felt something latch around her ankle holding her in place. Startled Elizabeth kicked again, and all she managed to do was entangle her other leg as well.

Feeling desperate she began to thrash about in the water, trying to kick herself free. Whatever was holding her responded by wrapping itself tighter around her legs. What breath she had left came out of her as panic began to over take her, and a steady stream of bubbles made it’s way to the surface. Trying to calm herself she tried to relax. She didn’t need to worry, Jason would be here soon. He’d free her. After all he promised. And Jason always kept his promises.

[JRK Archiver]

Part 9


~Water~

Elizabeth's lungs were burning, her energy rapidly being depleted. The sunlight flickering down through the water was gradually beginning to fade. Some part of her began to realize that Jason, in spite of his promise to the contrary, wasn't coming. With her last reserve of strength she bent down and focused on the weeds that had wrapped so tightly around her ankles. Maybe because her struggles had slowed, or maybe because it was almost too late to do any good, whatever the reason, a calmness descended over her and she managed to free one leg, and then the other.

Looking up, the surface seemed like a tiny pinprick of light, very far away. Kicking weakly she tried to propel herself towards it. She managed two kicks before she wondered why she was even trying. Her lungs didn't burn anymore, she didn't even feel anything anymore, it just seemed easier to just float. And without consciously being aware of it that's exactly what Elizabeth began to do. Though free of the weeds she continued to float below the water in her watery grave. The pinprick of light faded until there was nothing left but the comforting blackness.

~Cliff~

Jason hit the ground hard. His attacker’s weight propelling the air out of him in a rush. The stunning surprise he felt lasted only an instant, but an instant, was an instant too long. The sound of the hammer being cocked on a handgun, sounded very loud next to his ear.

"All right this is what we're going to do." Came a heavily accented masculine voice. "On the count of three you're going to get up slowly, keeping your hands where I can see them at all times. If you don't," he pressed the barrel of the gun against Jason's cheek. "I'll shoot you. You understand?"

"Yes," Jason agreed immediately. A portion of his brain was busy counting the seconds since Elizabeth had jumped. If he didn't jump soon she would start calling for him, and his attacker would know where she was. There was a chance, a small chance, but a chance, nevertheless that the man thought they had split up. He wanted to reiterate that chance, and give her as much of a lead as he could.

The weight on his back eased as his attacker regained his feet. Biding his time Jason obediently waited for the man to count to three before he began moving. Getting to his knees his eyes scanned the ground looking for anything he could use as a potential weapon, but he saw nothing. Placing his hands in the dirt he pushed his way to his feet, keeping his back to the man with the gun.

"Turn around slowly, and keep your hands out to the side."

Doing as he was told Jason turned and faced the man. The man was about 2 inches shorter and thirty pounds heavier than Jason and was standing about 3 feet away. The gun aimed in his direction was very steadily aimed at his chest. The man obviously wasn't a novice.

"I've seen those movies too my friend. Open your hand." The man ordered.

"What?"

"You're hand," he gestured with his free hand keeping the gun level. "Open it. I'm not stupid I know what you did."

Sighing Jason reluctantly opened his left hand releasing the handful of dirt that was there.

"Did you think I was an idiot?" The man demanded stepping closer in outrage.

The minute he moved so did Jason. Throwing the other handful of dirt in the man's eyes Jason took him down in a tackle. The man's yelp as the rock stung his eyes quickly turned into a groan when Jason's weight hit him. The height advantage Jason had, was offset by the weight advantage of his opponent but as they began rolling on the ground each fighting for leverage, fighting for control over the gun, neither one had the advantage.

Jason had been in many fights and so apparently had his foe. His hands tightened on the barrel of the gun trying to shift the direction of it away from his chest. Gaining the advantage for a minute Jason rammed a knee in the man's unprotected groin. His foe screamed in agony and his hold loosened on the gun. Jason wasted no time in wrenching it free, but before he could get a proper hold of it, the man hit his hand sending the gun flying and launched himself at Jason's throat. The momentum took Jason off his knees and the man landed heavily on top of him, his hands wrapped around his throat.

The fight began in earnest, Jason recognized the drug-induced madness he saw in his opponent's eyes. It explained the strength the other man shouldn't have had, it also explained why he exhibited almost no reaction to Jason's blows. The hands tightened on his windpipe cutting off his air supply, and all during the struggle, a part of his mind was screaming that he was taking too long, that he had to get to Elizabeth now. Trying to banish the thought before it could distract him Jason clasped his hands together and brought them down hard on the other man's back.

The blow was enough to weaken the other man's grip and Jason grabbed the man's hand and pulled it free of his neck by wrenching hard on his thumb. Caught off-balanced by the pain the man leaned heavily to the left trying to ease the pressure. Jason kept his right hand flat and slammed it palm first into the other man's sternum as hard as he could. Resistance gone the other man began to wheeze in agony.

Jason swung again this time a punch to the man's throat. The punch caused him to groan and collapse back on the ground. Hitting him twice more to make sure he was out, Jason then checked the man's pockets. Coming up with a compass, a lighter and two additional clips of ammunition Jason looked around for the gun and pocketed his supplies.

Spying the gun a few feet away he hurried to it and picked it up, checking to make sure the safety was engaged he jogged towards the cliff anxious to find Elizabeth. Bullets riddled the ground in front of him sending dirt and debris flying, stopping him in his tracks.

"Drop the gun and turn around." Came the terse command.

~Trail~

"Take it easy there man. What's your problem?" Manny tried to speak calmly.

"Who are you?"

"Ease up," Manny cried when the gun pressed harder into his neck. "I'm nobody. Just someone who made a wrong turn somewhere and got off on the wrong island. I'll just correct myself, and head back to my boat. You'll never see me again."

"I don't think I believe you."

"Wait." The words were cutoff when he was struck hard at the base of the neck by the gun. Stunned Manny fell to his knees then slumped forward.

"No I definitely don't believe you." Each word was punctuated with a vicious kick to Manny's unprotected ribs and kidneys.

Eyes crossing in pain Manny fell hard to the ground, too dazed to do anything but groan.

"If you are just a tourist why do you have a gun?" His attacker demanded, yanking the gun free of Manny's holster. "No you are a thief. And on this island we execute thieves."

Forcing his eyes open, in spite of the pain, Manny looked up into the barrel of a shotgun. He had time for a brief thought of his sister before the shot rang out.

~Fire Trail~

"Jesus Hawk if you keep driving like this we won't have to worry about dying by bullets, we'll die by your hand instead." Jessica warned her companion.

Yanking hard on the wheel, Hawk managed to maintain a somewhat semblance of control as he made a sharp turn, only one tire had been in space, he considered that an accomplishment. "Look sweetheart anytime you want to drive you're welcome to the wheel. But until then you want to try something useful like maybe taking out one of those snipers in the trees?"

"It's kind of hard to shoot someone you can't see," Jessica pointed out tartly.

"Well you better start seeing them, because judging from the way this road keeps narrowing with every turn we make, and the fact the cliffside drop keeps getting closer, I'd say we're almost out of road. Once that happens we'll be running," risking a glance in her direction he grinned rakishly. "And I run so much better without any lead additives."

Jessica ignored him, concentrating instead on loading the other guns with live ammunition. Another bullet went into the dash in front of her drawing her focus on the tress. Whoever was shooting at her seemed to be playing with them. She didn't think anyone was that bad of a shot that meant as long as they wanted to play her and Hawk would be fine.

"Hold on!"

The warning had barely reached her ears before she felt Hawk's hand on her chest trying to stop her forward momentum as the jeep rammed a log that was blocking to road. Even with the seatbelt she was wearing and his hand her head still managed to connect with the dash.

That was all she remembered.

~Airport~

"Your father? What the hell do you mean your father?" Sonny demanded. "According to Luke he killed your old man years ago."

"Surprise Luke is wrong yet again," Nikolas couldn't help but snap back. "Stavros Cassadine should be dead. He would be dead if my Grandmother hadn't interfered and played God. It's a long story that we don't have time for. I need you to tell me where you sent Elizabeth. I need to find her before he does."

"Tell me the story Nikolas," Sonny ordered.

"Tell me where Elizabeth is," Nikolas countered.

"The plane is fueled and ready to go." Johnny entered the room interrupting the staring contest. "What's going on?"

“Where are you going?" Nikolas demanded.

Ignoring the question Sonny asked one of his own. "What's this about your father going after Elizabeth?"

"I got the information on the plane crash." Benny entered the room with his eye on the file in his hand, and failed to notice Nikolas until it was too late.

"What plane crash?" Nikolas asked.

Sonny leveled a long look at his accountant/fact finder and debated what to tell the kid.

"She called from an airport." Nikolas' mind raced working through possible scenarios. The only scenarios he could think of made him feel ill. "Was Elizabeth on an airplane?"

Sighing Sonny realized he was going to have to tell the kid something. "Maybe. We have a report that says she was but we don't know for sure."

Somehow Nikolas managed to get the next question past the lump in his throat. "And that plane she was supposedly on, was that the one that crashed?"

"Yes."

Nikolas staggered back. It was all his fault. Everything was his fault. This had been his plan, and he'd dragged Elizabeth into it. It was his Grandmother that had put Elizabeth in danger in the first place, and the only reason his Grandmother was around at all was because of him. It was all his fault. "We're there any survivors?"

Sonny couldn't help but feel for the kid. After all he was feeling many of the same emotions himself. Anger, disbelief, guilt, always guilt, he could see that reflected in the younger man's eyes. "A witness saw a single parachute."

Hope, it crashed into him. "One?" Swallowing hard Nikolas forced himself to look at the other men in the room. "Who else was on the plane?"

"We're not positive how many were on the plane," Sonny hedged.

"He," Nikolas pointed to Benny who was doing his best to blend in the background. "Said he had a report on the crash. So let's hear it."

"Nikolas I think you need to…"

"I think he needs to answer my question." Incensed the Cassadine Prince straightened his spine and met the mobster's look with one of his own. "Now."

Suddenly finding himself faced with a man instead of a boy Sonny wearily shook his head. He really didn't have time to deal with this. "Fine. Jason was on the plane with at least two other men, besides Elizabeth. Only one parachute came out of the plane, so there was only one survivor out of a possible four."

"1 in 3 actually," Benny interrupted.

"What do you mean?" Sonny turned away from an ashen-faced Nikolas.

"Divers reached the plane. The pilot's still strapped in his seat, so he definitely wasn't the one in the chute." Benny glanced needlessly at his already memorized file before going on. "He also didn't die in the crash. He was shot repeatedly. Apparently they found bullet holes all through the cockpit and in the instrument panel. Preliminary thinking is indicating that the bullets are what caused the crash."

Closing his eyes Sonny briefly sent up a prayer in thanks or in concern he wasn't sure. "Did they find anyone else on the plane?"

"No. Both the NTSB and the DEA have taken an active interest in the crash, both because of where the flight originated from and also because of the way it crashed. The Feds are crawling all over things." Benny grinned, they'd caught a break with that. "That means they'll be enough leaks that we'll know everything they do within an hour of them knowing."

"Keep listening." Sonny pointed towards the plane and jerked his head at Johnny getting him to move as well. Soon only him and Nikolas were left in the small room.

"You think its Jason don't you? You want him to be the one in the parachute."

Hearing the accusation Sonny couldn't help but wince. "Yes I think Jason was the one who survived. Do I want him to the one who lived, even with Elizabeth on the plane? Yes."

"Bastard." Nikolas managed before stepping away trying to control his anger, his frustration, his … grief?

"I know I am." Sonny agreed quietly. "I also know that you're hoping its Elizabeth that survived even though you know Jason was on the plane."

"It's different. Jason worked for you he knew what to expect. Elizabeth went to you for help. She went to you for protection. We both trusted you to provide her with that protection. You were supposed to save her life not kill her." Nikolas remarked scathingly hoping to inflict damage on the man before him.

Sonny nodded again, quietly taking the blame on his shoulders. The weight he already bore on his shoulders almost overwhelmed him at times, but he accepted the new weight, all of it was a burden of his making. He'd been thinking the same thing for hours now, but finally hearing the words aloud seemed anti-climatic somehow. "I know."

"Where did you send her?" Nikolas asked roughly. There was still a chance she'd never gotten on the plane at all. As small of a chance that was Nikolas was willing to take it, to cling to it, to hope.

"I can't tell you that. Believe me Nikolas I have people searching for both of them. I'll keep you informed."

"I don't think I can believe you Sonny. You haven't kept me informed about anything so far, and you have this bad habit of missing things. Like missing Sorel, like missing the fact my aunt was still nearby when you blew up your penthouse, like sending Elizabeth into an even more dangerous situation than she was in here." Not caring that he was coming dangerously close to threatening the mobster Nikolas moved closer. "So you're going to tell me where you sent her and I am going to find her, while you concentrate on finding Jason which is all you want to do anyway."

"You're walking a fine line Nikolas," Sonny warned him. "I'll only tolerate so much from you. I told you, we will find out what happened to her."

"But your focus in on finding Jason not Elizabeth right?" Nikolas pressed. "That's what you want to do the most isn't it? Find Jason?"

"Boss?" Johnny stuck his head back in the room interrupting the tense scene. "The pilot says there's a storm front moving in. We need to leave if we want to get out ahead of it."

Sonny nodded and Johnny withdrew.

"You're upset and concerned about your friend so I'll let what's been said here, stay here, and I'll keep you informed," Sonny stated in conclusion. He'd wasted enough time with Nikolas.

"You don't get it do you?" Nikolas cried. "This isn't only about you or Jason, or even Elizabeth anymore. This is also about my father, whom I afraid to say, is every bit the monster that everyone says he is."

"And?"

"And for some reason he's focused on Elizabeth. He knows I was supposed to kill her and instead I got her away. He knows I care for her, and he's very much like Helena. He likes to take people away from people who care about them and break them. He was there when I got Elizabeth's message. He heard what she said, and he disappeared right after he heard that and even Helena doesn't know where he is." Nikolas reasoned aloud trying to pull out a coherent reason for the sinking feeling in his gut. "Maybe he's trying to bring her back to me. Maybe he thinks she left me for Jason, maybe he just want's to see if he can still stalk someone, I don't know. All I know is he's going after her, I know he is, and he won't stop until he finds her or unless someone stops him."

Uneasy at the image Nikolas' words were creating in his mind Sonny tried to deny them. "There's no way he could know where she is."

"I was with my father, whom I thought was dead, when I got her message. I went straight to you. I thought I heard someone behind me once or twice but I didn't seen anyone, you remember you heard something too. After I left how focused were you on watching your back?"

Sonny grew quiet remembering all the orders he'd been distracting Johnny with as they walked to the car.

"It is possible that he followed whomever you sent to find Jason and Elizabeth. And it is possible that he is still following them."

"Why?"

"Again I don't know for sure," Nikolas all but shouted in frustration. "Helena once tried to gain my favor by brainwashing Lucky into pushing Elizabeth at me. Maybe Stavros is trying to gain it by bringing back the woman I spent the last few weeks telling everyone I not only wanted but was obsessed with," he theorized. "How the hell should I know what is going on in his mind? He should be dead. Helena froze him for 20 years who's to say his brain has even unthawed yet?"

"Froze?" Sonny repeated in disbelief.

"We don't have time for this," Nikolas snapped. "Let me ask you something. How hard would it be for me to find out where a plane crashed landed that was carrying a pilot that was shot to death? How hard would it be for me to start searching the surrounding islands until I found the correct one? How difficult would it be for me to start dropping names like Sonny Corinthos and Jason Morgan on those islands until every authority and enemy of yours in a 100 mile radius is crawling all over them searching for Jason?"

Incensed Sonny moved closer. "Are you trying to threaten me?"

"I'm not trying anything," Nikolas corrected his voice as cold as Sonny's was angry. "And if you have any idea about ordering that mountain outside to make me shut up you might as well erase it now. I'm well prepared for this. I've documented everything that has happened these last few weeks, including your involvement. People like Taggert and the Feds will find it very interesting reading believe me."

It wasn't often that he underestimated people, but he had definitely underestimated Nikolas. All those long ago warnings he'd heard from Luke about how diabolical the Cassadine's were, came back to him just a little too late. In spite of himself he couldn't help the modicum of respect he felt over Nikolas' actions.

As bluffs went, Nikolas thought it was a pretty good one, and kept his face calm as he waited to see if Sonny bought it.

"Johnny, Max." Sonny bellowed and the doors on either side of the room opened to admit the respective guards. "Give me your sat phone Johnny."

Puzzled Johnny handed it over.

"Here," Sonny shoved the phone in Max's hands. "You're accompanying Mr. Cassadine."

"Where am I going?" Nikolas asked.

"The island and beyond. You'll find your crazy father and Max will take care of him. We'll keep you informed of our progress and you'll keep us informed as well." Sonny snapped angrily.

Nikolas nodded knowing better than to speak.

"Your father has a day's head start on you so you better move your ass." Sonny focused on Max and lowered his voice when Nikolas stepped away to make a call. "Keep a close eye on him," he paused for a beat before going on grumpily. "While you're at it, keep him alive."

Max nodded his eyes focusing on the Cassadine Prince who had just become his charge.

"We need to get airborne, Johnny will call you and fill you in on the details we have so far." Sonny called out instructions not really caring if Nikolas was listening or not and moved towards the door.

"Thanks Sonny."

Pausing at the door Sonny turned around and grinned a little nastily. "I'm sending you to the Devil Nikolas. You shouldn't thank me for it."

Chilled more so by the grin than the words Nikolas didn't know how to reply.

~Trail~

Manny collapsed back on the ground caught off-guard by the unexpected weight of his attacker. Puzzled he worked up enough strength to push the man off of him and over to the side. Sitting up gingerly, the gaping hole in the back of the man’s head quickly explained to Manny what had happened to him. Pushing the body the rest of the way off, Manny began the laborious process of getting to his feet.

“Francis?” Manny looked around expecting the older man to come out of the bushes with a blistering lecture on his lips. But Francis remained stubbornly absent.

Pulling the gun from the man’s lifeless fingers Manny continued to scan the area. Francis should have alerted him to his position by now. Unless, his hand tightened on the gun, unless Francis wasn’t the one who had saved him. But if he wasn’t the one then who did? And why?

[JRK Archiver]

~*~*~

Stavros hummed softly under his breath, keeping the sights of his gun trained on Manny who was searching the area.

The gun in his hand pleased him. It wasn’t the specially crafted colt that he’d had made especially for him years ago, but it fit his hand well, and the kick was minimal. He also approved of the power he realized with a smile. He’d taken the man down with one shot. The specialized load of the ammunition also left a larger than normal hole in the victim. He’d always been fond of larger than life things.

He was pleased to note that he hadn’t lost his knack for killing. Of course he never really thought he had. Killing was a craft he’d been honing since he was 12 and killed his first. He had a vague recollection of the slovenly stable hand that had missed the warning signs of distemper in his favorite stallion. His punishment killing of the stable hand had been his first kill but certainly not his last.

Humming again he kept the gun on Manny who was relieving the weapons from the slain man before moving away. Debating Stavros wondered if he should take him out now or wait until later. Before he could make up his mind Manny disappeared into the bushes.

Reluctantly pocketing the gun Stavros began to move again. It was for the best he always enjoyed the hunt almost as much as he enjoyed the kill.

~Cliff~

"Drop the gun." The order sounded again.

He could spin, firing the gun at the same time hopefully hitting the man without getting hit himself. As soon as the thought crossed his mind he banished it. This was real life not one of those larger than life brainless action flicks that Johnny seemed to live on. As such Jason reluctantly dropped the gun.

"Put your hands on your head and turn around nice and slow."

Jason complied turning until he focused on the man holding the gun. This one was at least 7 feet away and was showing no inclination to move forward. The diminutive man's hand shook as he pointed the gun at Jason and he felt uneasy. Unlike the unconscious and much larger man on the ground this one was decidedly nervous, and that made Jason nervous. Shaking fingers against a trigger were never a comforting sight.

"Just take it easy," Jason murmured quietly.

"You be quiet," the man stammered back before looking at his partner on the ground. "Jorge wake up."

As soon as the man's eyes left him Jason inched closer.

Catching the movement from the corner of his eye, the man focused on Jason again. "Don't move."

Jason shrugged his shoulders. "You might want to check on your friend, he doesn't look so good."

The gun wavered then shifted slightly as he looked at his friend on the ground again. "Jorge?"

Again Jason took advantage of the man's inattention by moving closer.

The man holding the gun was torn and that wasn't good. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Jorge had said all he would have to do was walk around the island with a gun and wave it at the workers to keep them in line. He wasn't supposed to have to fire it, he wasn't supposed to chase people and shoot at them with it. And now Jorge was on the ground and the tall gringo who put him there looked like he could break him in two without much effort. In spite of the fact that he was the one holding the gun he felt intimidated. "Jorge," he pleaded with his cousin to wake up.

His attention was diverted too long and Jason took advantage diving the few yards separating them and driving them both back into the bushes. The man he'd hit immediately dropped the gun and began screaming, begging him not to hurt him. In frustration Jason brought his elbow up catching the simpering man under the chin. Jason watched the man's eyes roll back in his head before passing out.

Barely resisting the impulse to hit the man again out of sheer frustration for delaying him. Jason got to his feet and moved towards the gun on the ground. Picking it up he moved to the cliff and scanned the water below. Frowning slightly when he didn't see Elizabeth he had to remind himself that she was probably directly beneath him clinging to the cliff like he'd told her too.

Jogging back a few steps he paused long enough to survey the bushes behind him, he was tired of being caught off-guard. Seeing no one he took off for the edge of the cliff in a dead run. Keeping the gun held high over his head he jumped for the water below.

~Fire Trail~

Jessica became aware that she was still alive merely because of the throbbing in her temples. At that precise moment she would rather take death. Groaning, her eyes fluttered open, only to close again when her feet began to spin dizzily. Pushing back from the dash she kept her eyes closed until the strange sensation of vertigo passed. The buzzing in her ears gradually faded and she became aware of another noise. Forcing her eyes open she focused on Hawk who was unconscious, his head on the steering wheel, blaring the horn.

Temporarily forgetting her own aches Jessica focused on her companion. "Hawk?" Checking for a pulse she was ridiculously relieved when she found it. Uncomfortable with that she eased his head off the wheel and back against the headrest, blessing the silence that occurred at her move. His angelic face was smooth and clean of bruises, except for a small red mark just under the hairline on his temple. It figured he was the only person who could come out of a head on crash looking better than when he went into it.

Her attention shifted beyond him when she heard the sounds of someone approaching through the bushes beyond. Pulling the gun free of Hawk's holster she leaned over him until she was resting her head on his chest. Jerking her head, so her hair fell over her eyes partially shielding her face, her hand tightened on the gun. Watching through the strands of her hair she played possum and waited for the bushes to move again and tell her where the visitor was coming from.

~Bushes~

Francis picked his way carefully through the underbrush, his eyes continually searching for the hidden snares and traps that he knew were liberally littered throughout the island. He had particularly vivid memories of this part of the island and the pits he’d been made to dig here, and he quickly banished them. Life on this island had been a particular brand of hell that he’d love to forget especially the last days of it.

Manny had disappeared quite some time ago. He knew he should have gone back for him the moment he’d realized that Manny wasn’t behind him, but the sound of gunfire had been so close, he’d been compelled to keep going. By the time the sound of gunfire had faded Manny had been left far behind.

Francis had the advantage in the fact he knew the island like the back of his hand. He had to believe that Manny had learned enough, and was good enough to keep alive on his own until Francis could get back to him.

Knowing he was close to where the final shots had come from Francis slowed his pace even more. Checking his gun carefully, Francis flicked off the safety. Moving stealthily through the bush and trying to avoid the leaves that would give his presence away, he neared the edge of the bushes, preparing to move out into the clearing.

~Water~

Jason hit the water hard and immediately kicked his way to the surface, trying to get the gun out of the water as fast as possible. Breaking the surface he blinked the water out of his eyes and turned his head looking for Elizabeth.

But she wasn’t there.

Frowning Jason moved his arms keeping himself afloat while scanning the shoreline expecting to see a familiar brown-haired woman giving him the glare she seemed to have perfected in the past couple of days.

But she still wasn’t there.

“Elizabeth?” Trying not to be heard he called out her name quietly while beginning to swim towards the cliff. Maybe there was a cave. A cave that he couldn’t see and she was hiding inside of it. Within a few strokes he knew that wasn’t the case.

“Elizabeth?” He called again a little louder this time.

There was still no answer.

Fear. It wasn’t an emotion he was familiar with so it took a minute for him to identify the emotion that was clogging his throat. His focus shifted to the clear water surrounding him.

Not caring who heard him he screamed her name, throwing the gun he once thought was so important away, Jason dove under the surface of the water. The sun streaming through the water gave him plenty of light and he used it to search the depths for her.

Moving frantically through the water Jason searched, hoping to find her, and at the same time hoping he wouldn’t. He had taken too long. His lungs were already burning for air. If she had been underwater this whole time that would mean she was dead. Shaking his head Jason broke the surface gasping for air.

I promise you I won’t leave you alone.

Rocked by the memory of his vow Jason dove under the water again desperate to find her. The water soon stilled, waiting for the latest emergence. But when Jason finally did emerge again, he was alone.

[JRK Archiver]

Part 10


~Water~

Jason dove under the surface repeatedly, always searching, and always, in the end, coming up empty. Feeling the ache settle in his muscles, the pain in his sides every time he tried to take a breath, indicated he would soon begin to hyperventilate, yet he still couldn’t stop looking. If he stopped looking then he would have to admit something that was incomprehensible to him.

That Elizabeth was dead.

Down he went again, searching the rocks that littered the bottom of the water, and still he found nothing. Surfacing again Jason turned shadowed eyes on the clear blue sky above him. A faint breeze rippled the water brushing his face. His fists were clenched and were desperate to unload on someone, anyone. Anything to stop the pain and fear he was feeling.

Readying himself to dive again Jason stopped abruptly when a faint sound reached his ear. Kicking his feet to remain above water he listened hard desperate to hear it again so he could pinpoint the origin. The wind changed and sound drifted to him again.

He’d always been a literal man. He’d had to be. He rarely dreamed, he didn’t have the capability or patience to imagine. He believed in what he could see, what he could feel, that was what was real to him. Faith was not a concept that had much play in his life. But at that moment he made himself believe.

Surging forward, his strong arms and powerful kick propelled him quickly through the water. Moving with the weak current Jason moved out from beneath the base of the cliff and the slight pooling of water that had formed a mini-lake and moved out into the river. Realistically he knew that the current was much too weak to have pulled Elizabeth from the mini-lake into the faster moving river. Even if she had been unconscious it was unlikely that she could have been carried that far.

But that unfamiliar emotion called faith had him by the throat and he was willing to trust enough to believe that, that was what had occurred. Keeping his strokes steady he moved into the current chasing the elusive noise that filtered to him on the wind.

~Fire Trail~

Jessica’s breathing was nice and easy her body relaxed, giving every illusion of being dead to the world, it was a perfect illusion, except for, however, her firm grip on the gun. Cocking the hammer back and putting the gun in firing position Jessica waited for the next move to be made.

The rustling sound came again drawing her focus on a clump of bushes about 10 feet from the disabled jeep. Hawk’s heartbeat remained strong and steady under her ear and for that she was grateful. The steady beat indicated that his head wound wasn’t serious and he’d wakeup eventually. Given their current predicament she couldn’t help but hope he stayed unconscious a little while longer.

The noise came again and Jessica barely breathed, every instinct on full alert. When a deer emerged from the bushes she all but screamed in relief. Not bothering to stop the groan Jessica closed her eyes, and without thinking, buried her face into Hawk’s chest.

Pulling back abruptly when she realized what she was doing Jessica frowned in censure and brought a hand up to check the mark on his forehead. She ran a finger lightly over the wound, then shifted abruptly and hit him in the back of the head.

“W-What?” Hawk jolted alert. “What happened?”

“Nice try hotshot, I know you were awake long before now so cut the act,” Jessica informed him icily.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Hawk replied grumpily, shifting in his seat he checked his forehead in the rearview mirror.

“Your heart rate spiked a few minutes ago indicating your wakefulness,” she leveled a glare at him, tapping his gun on her thigh, and waited.

“You know sweetheart,” he drawled grinning in her direction. “Any man’s heart rate would spike if they woke up with you draped all over him.”

“Why do I even bother?” Jessica wondered aloud and crawled out of the jeep.

Hawk moved out of the jeep a little slower, cautiously checking how his head would react to the movement. The pounding behind his eyes told him, more than the loss of consciousness, that the injury was more than just a bump on the head. Catching sight of his frowning boss he took another breath to prepare himself before joining her. When jousting with his boss he had to be functioning on all cylinders, or she’d ride roughshod all over him.

“So where do you think the shooters have gone?” Hawk asked when he joined her in front of the jeep.

Shrugging Jessica worked on the kinks in her neck. “Does it matter? I don’t think we want to be here when they decide to check on us.” She pointed to the grille of the jeep that was seemingly embedded in the tree. “Do you think we can free it?”

His eyes moved from the jeep to her. “You mean you’re asking my opinion?”

“Brawn,” she pointed to the jeep and then squeezed the muscle in his arm. “It’s the only reason I work with men.”

Hawk whistled under his breath. “Remind me to find Anton when this is all over with and kick his ass.”

Perplexed Jess looked at him. “Why?”

“He obviously didn’t do a good enough job on relieving your sexual frustration.”

Barely restraining the urge to hit him, Jessica’s hand tightened on the gun she still carried in her hand.

Knowing how lethal his boss could be and realizing that he’d probably pushed her as far as he should while she was armed, Hawk focused on the Hummer again. “We could probably free it but I think it will take too long. Besides we drew a lot of attention in this baby, we’re probably better off on foot.”

“I agree, let’s grab our stuff before someone finds us.” She took a step only to come up short when he touched her arm. Coolly arching a brow she looked up at him. “Yes?”

“Can I have my gun?” He inched closer. “Or do you just want to play with my power some more?”

This time she couldn’t stop the grin and soon a matching dimpled smile appeared on his face. “Here,” she shoved the gun in his hand and moved to the jeep. “Sometimes I feel like I’m your babysitter not your boss.”

Ever the flirt Hawk wasn’t about to let that remark slide. “Anytime you want to tuck me into bed, I’m willing.”

Sliding back into the teasing, bickering relationship they had was second skin to her and Jessica didn’t even bother to turn around, she merely brought her elbow back hard, catching him in the ribs. “I’m sure you say that to every female you meet. And as tempting as that offer is, I’ll pass, as usual.”

Grinning he stepped back to let her pass before reaching in the back of the jeep and grabbing his bag. She always said that and certainly acted like she wasn’t interested in him. But she had a healthy interest in his love life, and also enjoyed brushing against him whenever she could. Smirking to himself he couldn’t help but believe she was more affected then she let on.

~Bushes~

Francis stepped cautiously out of the bushes, spying the two unconscious men on the ground immediately, his grip changed on the gun and his eyes sharpened on the area around the men. Keeping the gun trained on the main closest to him he moved forward until he could check the man for a pulse.

Finding it immediately Francis shifted his focus onto the larger man. Even from where he was crouching the man’s labored breathing was audible. Spying the empty holsters on both men, he began searching the ground for the weapons. His intent shifted when he saw the footprints.

Getting to his feet Francis moved to study the prints left in the soft earth. A quick scan of the unconscious men, showed that they hadn’t made all of the prints. Both men were wearing hiking boots and the most dominant print that was visible came from boots, motorcycle boots. Boots like the kind Jason always wore.

Manny would have argued that Jason wasn’t the only person in the world who wore motorcycle boots, and he’d be right. Crouching beside a particularly well-defined print, the first smile all day drifted over Francis’ features, taking years off his face. Many people wore motorcycle boots, but not all of them had a slight nick in the heel of the boot. A nick that left a distinguishing mark with each step the owner took. He had seen that mark before. He could remember vividly, a particularly rainy night Jason and him had spent tracking a courier of Sonny’s through the mud to get back a missing shipment.

His hunch was right, Jason was on this island, and he was alive, or at least he had been no more than 20 minutes ago when the last of the gunshots had sounded. Francis’ focus fell on the prints again and he began to frown, as he followed the path of the prints to the edge of the cliff.

“Jason tell me you weren’t that stupid,” Francis muttered under his breath, moving towards the cliff. Looking over it his eyes searched the water far below.

Shaking his head he turned around to study the scene again, his attention was then caught by a moan coming from the men. Moving towards them quickly he couldn’t help but hope it was the smaller man who was waking up, and for once, luck was with him.

“Ohhh…” the diminutive man groaned. To Hector it felt like his jaw was on fire. Keeping his eyes closed he brought his hand up to check his jaw. He wouldn’t have been surprised to find it shoved up past his nose. But the jaw was there where it was supposed to be. As long as he never spoke, or breathed through his mouth again, he thought he might be able to live with the pain.

“Wakey, wakey,” Francis ordered, lightly slapping the man on the cheeks.

Screaming in pain Hector’s eyes flew open. Closing them immediately he tried to slip back into unconsciousness, but the man who was slapping him wouldn’t let that happen. Moaning he shook his head and tried to speak. “It hurts.”

“I’ll make you a deal,” Francis offered. “You answer my questions and I’ll make unconscious again.”

Hector’s eyes flew open.

“Good now that I have your attention.” Knowing the gun wouldn’t be necessary Francis set it on the ground next to him. Relaxing slightly he kept one eye on the other man who was still unconscious. “Where’s the man who did this to you?”

Hector’s eyes darted around the small clearing then he shrugged.

“Okay,” Francis pulled a picture from his pocket. “Is this the man?”

The question proved to be unnecessary. The man took one look at the photo and began to shake in fear. And even though Francis had known Jason was alive, having it confirmed with a nod of the man’s head, still made him feel relieved.

“Did you shoot him?” Francis asked.

Hector’s mouth dropped open in shock and he almost passed out in pain. Francis steadied the man before he could fall back to the ground.

Francis hesitated a long time before asking the next question. He already knew the answer, so there was no point in even asking it. There had only been one parachute seen, and Jason was confirmed as being on the island. There were no other footprints on the ground besides Jason’s and the men chasing him. But like he had to ask the man to identify Jason, he still had to ask the question. “Was there anyone with him?”

Hector immediately shook his head no. He’d been taking a piss when Jorge had spotted the intruder. The whole chase the only person he’d seen was the tall gringo. He shuddered to think what would have happened to him if the gringo hadn’t been alone.

Closing his eyes Francis lost what little hope he had left. Reacting without thought, he swung out sending the man into unconsciousness again. Getting to his feet he moved back to the cliff to search the water. He hadn’t seen any blood on the ground. He could see the spent bullet casings on the ground near the edge, but again his focus was on the footprints. He wasn’t positive, but all the evidence that he could see pointed to the fact that Jason had ran to the edge and jumped over the cliff.

There was no reason to explain why Jason would have done this, unless there had been someone else chasing him. Moving back to the men, Francis pulled a beat-up walkie-talkie from the belt of the larger man. If Jason had made it to the water, he’d better get out of it as soon as he could. If he didn’t, shrugging Francis began moving back in the direction he’d come from. Jason had no idea what he was in for if he didn’t

~Shore~

Jason moved along the shoreline as quickly and quietly as he could although he probably didn’t have to worry about being quiet. The raft he was shadowing with it’s two loud occupants probably wouldn’t have heard him if he had been chasing them on his Harley. His focus was trained on the raft, or more particularly on the pale hand hanging over the side of the raft that was barely visible.

The fingers on the hand had never moved, the hand never moved, but Jason couldn’t take his eyes off of it. Since finding the raft and seeing the hand hanging over the side, that little kernel of unfamiliar belief inside of him began to grow.

The men brought the raft to a halt, bringing it to a partially destroyed dock on his side of the river. One of the men leaped free to tie the rope off on an old post, then headed to the shore, his partner soon followed. Jason observed them for another minute before moving back into the bushes.

Backtracking to a bend in the river Jason made sure he was out of their line of sight before easing back into the river. Moving out to the middle of the river he took a deep breath and submerged. Keeping underwater he moved in the fast moving current, picking up speed as he went. Surfacing slightly to gauge his distance, he began working against the current and swam until he emerged on the far side of the rubber raft, out of sight of the men on the beach.

Taking a chance he rocked higher out of the water to see where they were, noting they were still distracted he quickly powered himself out of the water and into the bottom of the raft. The raft was narrow, Elizabeth filled most of the space. Coming down hard on her, he began to worry when she didn’t move or moan in reaction to his weight. Tensing he brought some of his weight off of her frame, trying not to squash her and listened hard for any sounds from the shore. But the only sound he heard was their laughter.

Easing slightly to the side, he brought his hand up to check her pulse. His hand had barely touched her neck when her fist connected hard with his nose. Caught off-guard he fell back. The stinging in his nose caused his eyes to shock. The shock of her unexpected move faded quickly and he caught her fist before she could swing again.

Seeing the signs of panic he moved quickly pressing his weight down on her and covered her mouth with his free hand. Her eyes flew open and he could see the anger and fear in them but no recognition.

“Elizabeth.” Jason whispered in her face and held her down as gently as he could until her struggles stopped and the fear faded from her eyes. “I’m going to take my hand away. But I need you to be quiet. Those men are still nearby.” He explained in whispers and when she nodded he took his hand away.

“Are you okay?” Jason asked.

“Where were you?” Elizabeth hissed, her hands balling into fists again.

“Yell at me later.” Jason risked a look over the side of the raft. “Right now we need to get out of here.”

Trying hard to swallow the fear she was feeling Elizabeth nodded and tried to obey. Taking the first easy breath since she’d awakened from hell into a nightmare, she focused on what Jason was doing. Her eyes didn’t even widen when she saw the now familiar knife in his hand. She was beginning to believe that the knife was surgically attached to his palm.

“When I cut the rope we’ll start to drift with the current. Keep down and try not to move, hopefully they won’t see what is happening until it’s too late for them to swim out and stop us.” Jason explained as quietly as he could.

“Okay,” Elizabeth whispered back, relieved that he wasn’t going to attack the men with his knife.

“Put your hand back up on the side of the raft where it was.” Jason ordered and when she didn’t comply immediately he moved it himself. “Keep it limp, just like you did when you were faking before. I don’t want them to know you're awake.”

Elizabeth watched as Jason took another breath before positioning himself on the side of the raft, keeping his body between hers and the shoreline. His head was just a little below the arm that was hanging over the side of the raft, and he began sawing on the thick rope.

“Jason.”

“Shh.”

“But Jason…”

“You have to be quiet.” Jason jolted in surprise when a large Bowie knife appeared next to his face. His eyes moved from the knife to Elizabeth whose eyes were narrowed in anger.

“It might be quicker if you used this,” she whispered sweetly.

Taking the knife from her cautiously Jason nodded. His nose still stinging where she had decked him, he was relieved that she had chosen to use her fist instead of the knife she’d obviously found. When the blade cut the thick rope after one slice and he was even more relieved.

The raft began to move and Jason tried to shift his thoughts from Elizabeth to the delicate matter ahead. This was the trickiest part. If the men spotted the raft too soon, they could swim out to catch it. If that happened, he could only hope the men would leave the guns onshore. If they didn’t it could get a little hairy.

In spite of his best intention his eyes sought out Elizabeth and his breathing grew easier. He’d been so terrified that he would never see her again, that even in this dicey situation, he loved looking at her. Her expression was calm, her eyes locked on his. He’d almost believe she was relaxed, except for the quick rise and fall of her chest, as her breathing spiked, no doubt in fear.

Her latest dunking in the water seemed to have shrunk her sweater even more and it exposed the flat pale skin of her stomach. The sweater clung to her like a second skin and he was a bastard to be thinking about, and noticing the way her breasts moved with every breath she took. She was breathing hard because she was afraid and he was busy remembering a time she’d breathed hard because she was aroused.

Jason wasn’t used to feeling so many conflicting emotions at once and he wasn’t exactly comfortable with either them, or his thoughts. He needed to concentrate on something else, something he knew how to handle, something…

A cry from the shore distracted him from his thoughts and his grip tightened on the hilt of the knife. Elizabeth didn’t move, her hand remained limp over the side just like he’d told her. The sound of splashing water reached his ears and Jason tensed. He really didn’t want to kill anyone, especially not in front of Elizabeth, but he may have no choice.

“Close your eyes,” he whispered sharply as the sounds of splashing drew closer.

Shaking her head Elizabeth’s eyes remained stubbornly open.

Elizabeth knew why he wanted her to close her eyes. She could hear the sounds of the pursuit and she knew what would happen when their pursuer reached the raft. He’d more than likely think that the raft had merely slipped free of the dock. With her position seemingly unchanged he would have no reason to believe she was awake, or that there was someone on the raft with her.

So when he reached the raft he’d probably try to pull himself inside of it and use the paddles to get back to the dock, instead of just pulling the raft by the rope. When that happened Jason would stab him. Oh there was a chance that Jason might just hit him tying to knock him out, but that was a slim chance. Jason wouldn’t risk her safety and that’s what he’d be doing if he didn’t knock the man out immediately.

More than likely what would occur would be quite simple. The man would grab the edge of the raft to leverage himself inside the raft, and when he did that Jason would stick him with the knife. She didn’t want that to happen. She had no desire to see anyone die, much less have Jason be the one doing the killing in order to protect her. And yet that was the precise reason she couldn’t close her eyes and look away. He would be killing for her and she would never condemn or blame him for that.

The logical part of her brain reminded her that this was probably what Jason would do even if she weren’t with him. But that part was easily ignored. She was here and she knew without a doubt that Jason would do anything to protect her. Even if he was a little late at times, she still knew that.

The raft picked up speed and a slight exclamation escaped her lips in spite of her vow to the contrary when it hit something. Expecting to see their pursuer Elizabeth was confused when she realized the jolt had come from the opposite side of the raft. Before she could question it, there was another jolt and then another.

Seeing Jason’s intent she reached out and shoved his head down while she sat up herself. She was supposed to be on the boat while he wasn’t. They needed to keep that misconception going for as long as possible.

Looking back the way they came she didn’t see their pursuer anywhere, turning to look ahead her mouth dropped open in surprise. The hand that had been holding Jason’s head down, now yanked hard on his hair trying to pull him up. “Jason.”

“What?” Shifting to his knees he tried to see what had her so panicked. “Oh man,” he muttered when he saw the rapids they were rapidly approaching.

“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Elizabeth yelled in disbelief. “I feel like I’m trapped in the movie Speed, I’m Annie and your Jack, and I have no idea who Dennis Hopper is.”

“What?” Shaking the question off Jason picked up one of the paddles and moved towards the front of the raft. “Stay in the middle of the raft and hold on. Try to find a life preserver if you can.”

“And to think I once wanted to go white water rafting,” she grumbled. Her hand curled around a rope that ran the length of the raft. “Jason I have to warn you, now isn't a good time for us to go swimming."

"Why?" Jason barely even heard her comment his focus on the approaching rocks.

"Because my feet are tied. Whether I find a life preserver or not, I'll sink," Elizabeth gestured to the rope around her ankles when he turned to look. "You better keep us upright."

Frowning Jason focused on the rocks again. Things had just gotten a hell of a lot trickier.

[JRK Archiver]

~The Four Seasons~

“Benny why are we in a hotel? I said I wanted to go directly to Unique Services.”

“Unique Unlimited,” Johnny absently corrected his boss.

“Why?” Sonny shot his guard a quelling stare and Johnny began to move about the spacious suite they were in.

“You also said you wanted me to find a hammer we could use on Unique,” Benny reminded his excitable boss calmly. “I don’t have one yet.”

“Benny.”

“Sonny,” refusing to be intimidated Benny got to his feet and paced away from his laptop. “Unique is a sole-proprietorship. The owner might as well be a ghost, all I have on her is a name. Margaretha Geetruida Zelle, if you can believe that. I can’t even find a picture of her.”

“Why do I know that name?” Johnny muttered mainly to himself.

“The company is 8 years old, it doesn’t have any outstanding loans, they’ve been operating at a high rate of profit since their second month. Their security is the best I’ve ever encountered. I can’t even get a confirmed list of current employees much less ex-employees. She runs a tight ship. If our organization ran like this we’d never have a leak or a traitor problem. This Zelle woman knows what she’s doing.”

“I swear I’ve heard that name before.” Johnny dropped into Benny’s vacated seat when Sonny shot him a death glare. “Or maybe not.”

“I don’t want to hear that Benny.” Ignoring his guard Sonny moved to get himself a drink. He seemed to think better when he held a glass in his hand. He hated to think of it as a weakness, although he knew that’s how most would perceive it. Except for Jason that is. Frowning at the bitter liquid he’d just poured Sonny moved away from the glass. “We need something we can use if we want to find out who wanted Jason and why.”

“I know that and I’m trying,” Benny picked up the glass his boss didn’t seem to want and swallowed some of the fiery liquid. “Unique is clean Sonny. I can’t even pick up a whisper on the owner, unless it’s a job offer. All I can tell you is that she’s white, she’s between 25 and 35, and anywhere between 5’7” and 5’9”. I can’t even tell you what color of hair or eyes she has, or even what nationality she is, because no one has any pictures of her. She alters her appearance the way some people change their hair color. She’s the best example of a human chameleon I’ve ever come across.” Benny’s shoulder slumped in defeat. This was the first time he’d ever failed his boss. And he’d picked the worst possible moment to fail, with Jason’s life on the line. “It’s like she doesn’t even exist.”

“Of course she doesn’t exist.” Johnny all but crowed in triumph and had both men turning on him in surprise. “She’s been dead for almost 85 years.”

~Airport~

Nikolas couldn't help but be impressed, they'd breezed through customs in half the normal time. He had a feeling it was due more to the Mountain he was traveling with and his boss, than it was his obscure royal lineage. The Custom's agent's eye's had nearly doubled in shock when they went through the line. He had a feeling the man was already spending the money he was no doubt bribed with, in his mind.

Moving briskly to the waiting Jeep, Nikolas got inside and waited for his companion to do the same, but the man made no move to get in the vehicle. "What's wrong now?"

Max ignored him, his focus on the reflective windows of the doors behind him.

"You know if you continue not speaking this is going to be a real long trip," Nikolas remarked caustically. The Mountain had barely even grunted in his direction the whole plane ride down here. Nikolas didn't mind a little silence, but 5 hours of silence was enough, even for him.

"Wait here." Max ordered abruptly then disappeared back into the terminal.

"What?" Giving up when he realized he was talking to himself Nikolas settled back in the jeep. He couldn't believe he was doing this. This sort of adventure was the kind that Lucky used to tell him that Luke and Laura had gone on all the time. But it wasn't something that he ever thought he would be undertaking himself. He couldn't help but wish that Lucky were here, with him, in this mess. But if Lucky were here there would be no need for them to be here at all. The only reason Elizabeth had ever wound up on this island was because of their plan to help Lucky.

Surprised when the jeep began to rock and his companion climbed inside, Nikolas turned tired eyes on his silent companion. "What was all that about?"

"I thought someone was following us," Max explained briefly.

Nikolas waited but the Mountain merely turned on the jeep and pulled out into the fast moving late day traffic. "And?" He finally prompted.

"I guess I was wrong."

Taking a breath Nikolas tried to center himself and find his Chi the way his uncle had always taught him to do. "Where are we going?"

"The docks."

"Why?"

"To catch a seaplane."

"You know this is going to take a very long time if you don't start answering my questions with a little more detail," Nikolas pointed out in what he hoped was a calm voice.

Max shrugged.

"Look if there is a chance that Elizabeth never got on that plane we need to take that and search this island."

"She was on the plane."

"You don't know that for sure," Nikolas argued a bit desperately. "Until we know for sure I think we should search this island for her."

Max brought the jeep to a halt in the middle of the road and ignored the immediate blaring of horns coming from directly behind him. "We found out that a man fitting your father's description rented a seaplane and followed Francis and Manny to the island chain that we think Jason landed on. I was informed that your goal in this was to stop your father before he could kill anyone. To do that we need to get on a plane and follow him unless you think your father is wrong."

"Jason wasn't the survivor Elizabeth was," Nikolas corrected the guard immediately. If he had to believe she was on the plane, he was going to believe that she was the one that was alive.

Max didn't even blink he merely waited.

"Fine we'll take the seaplane, but if we don't find anything we are coming back here and searching this entire island until we find Elizabeth." Nikolas conceded sharply.

Turning his attention back to the road, Max began to hum under his breath as he put the jeep in motion.

Nikolas almost groaned when he recognized the song. La Vida Loca by Ricky Martin, a song that Emily used to bombard him with in order to torture him at L&B. This was going to be a long trip.

~*~*~

"So do you want me to keep following them?" The Cabbie asked when the traffic began moving again.

"Yes, and whatever you do don't let them see you," came the reply from deep in the backseat where his passenger was hiding.

Sighing under his breath the Cabbie did as he was ordered. Between the creepy fare last night and now this one, he was thinking it was time to find a new line of work.

~Fire Trail~

Manny emerged from the bushes and took a careful look around before moving closer to the Hummer. Placing a hand on the hood, he could feel some residual heat coming from the engine. Whoever had rammed it into the tree limb in the middle of the road hadn't left that long ago. Fingering the bullet holes in the hood a little thoughtfully he wondered where the occupants had went, and if they had went voluntarily or not.

Tucking the gun back in his holster he squatted by the grille to see if it could be detached from the tree. When given the choice between walking and riding he'd always choose riding. Especially since he'd just about fell in 3 traps that were hidden in the trail on the way up here. Bullet-ridden or not, the Hummer had to be safer than walking on the ground. Wrapping his arms around the limb as best he could Manny tugged as hard as he could trying to move the tree limb. But the limb never moved.

Changing his focus he moved to the Hummer and got in, the vehicle started right off, and Manny put it in gear trying to back it off the limb. The engine gave a loud roar, the wheels began to turn and the vehicle began to shimmy, but in the end it went nowhere. Taking his foot off the gas Manny waited a minute before trying again. This time the engine began to whine and the smell of burning came from either the engine or the tires, yet he still kept his foot on the gas.

The Hummer violently pulled itself free of the limb and took off several yards in reverse. Caught off-guard Manny fought to control the wheel and took his foot off the clutch killing the engine immediately.

"Do you think you could be any louder?"

The quiet question coming from right next to him startled Manny so much he began to curse, any thoughts of reaching for his gun went completely out of his head. Risking a glance he knew why he wasn't dead. "Francis?"

"Jesus Manny I know I trained you better than this. You were so busy trying to move this beast an entire army could have snuck up on you and you never would have heard them. You shouldered your gun instead of keeping it out where you could grab it easily, you didn't move when you heard my voice," Francis lectured. "Are you trying to get yourself killed? Let me know I'll be happy to do it for you if you are."

"Enough with the lectures Carny," Manny grumped but the grin on his face gave away the relief he was feeling at seeing his friend again. "Where did you disappear to?"

"I was tracking the shots. I told you to keep up," Francis stepped back to look at the Hummer. "I suppose you want to take this from now on?"

Manny gave his best puppydog look, the one that always worked on his sister.

Sighing Francis moved towards the front. "We need to move the tree out of the way. We have to stick to this road. It's the only one that runs parallel to the river."

Moving gingerly Manny joined Francis. "Why is that so important? I thought you said we had to go inland."

"I found out that Jason is on the island and judging from the evidence I saw I think he's in the river. We need to head him off. Grab the other end," he ordered before picking up his side of the tree.

Thrilled with the news Manny made no move to pick up his end. "This mean that you were right all along then, Jason is alive. This is fabulous news. Wait until Mr. Corinthos finds out he's going to be so happy."

Setting the tree down with a slam Francis looked over to Manny with weary eyes. "It also means that Elizabeth is dead."

Sobering Manny shuffled his feet, he'd only met Elizabeth Webber once so he didn't feel the personal loss that Francis obviously did, but that didn't mean he didn't hate the fact she was dead. He'd just forgotten about her being on the plane. "Fran…"

Cutting off the apology Francis bent over the tree again. "We need to move this out of the way and get moving. Jason needs to get off the river as soon as he can."

Bending Manny tried to get a grip on his side of the limb, his ribs screamed loudly in protest, and he knew one of them was probably broken, but he made no sound. And when Francis said to lift he lifted the limb in spite of the pain.

~The River~

"I don't believe it. We made it," her eyes sparkling in adrenaline and joy, she all but glowed. "We have got to do that again."

Jason wearily slumped back against the side of the raft and eased his death grip on the paddle he'd been using to propel the raft away from the rocks. Closing his eyes at her words Jason merely groaned.

"Are you okay?" Shifting through the water that was in the raft until she was next to him Elizabeth reached out in concern.

Feeling her hand on his forehead he stayed where he was minute longer soaking up her warmth, before opening his eyes. "I'm fine."

"Okay," realizing she was still touching his face she dropped her hand and awkwardly shifted until she was sitting farther away from him.

Noting her withdrawal Jason felt a pang of loss. Taking advantage of the now calm river they were on he shifted until he was crouching at her feet, and reached for the knife she had found to cut the ropes off of her. "What happened?"

"When?" Needing a distraction to keep from herself from touching him Elizabeth pulled the backpack she was leaning against around so it was sitting on her lap and began to look inside.

"How did you end up in the boat?"

"When I hit the water I went down hard. Some reeds wrapped around my ankles and I couldn't get free. I figured you'd be right behind me so I didn't panic right away. But you never showed up." Her focus was on the bag so she didn't see the way he flinched at that remark. "I managed to free myself, but by then I could barely think, or move, I didn't see the point in trying to find the surface, I guess I gave up. The numbness was just so appealing to me. Hallelujah," she pulled out a tin of Altoids and quickly popped one in her mouth before handing the tin to Jason. "Fresh breath is a good thing."

Taking the tin from her, for a moment all he could do was stare at the tiny mints. The casual way she had described her giving up, and willingness to drown haunted him.

"Jason?" Elizabeth noticed his stillness and focused on him. "The mint?"

Taking one he handed the tin back to her. "What happened then?" He asked roughly, emotion making his voice, sound rougher than usual.

"I don't really know," thoughtful she tried to puzzle it out. "I remember just wanting to stay in the dark. Then the next thing I know I'm gagging because someone with onion breath is blowing air in my mouth. Let me tell you that was not a very pleasant way to wake up. They must have seen me in the water and got me out. I don't know," she went back to digging in the bag. "Those mints must not have been onion man's."

"Forget about the damn mints," Jason cried out suddenly surprising them both.

"Why are you so angry?" Elizabeth demanded. "I'm the one who should be angry not you. Where the hell were you? You promised me you would be right behind me, and yet the first time you were supposed to keep that promise you were nowhere to be found."

"I know I'm sorry," he tried hard to swallow his unreasonable anger. She was right he didn't have the right to be angry with her. "The men chasing us caught me on the cliff before I could jump. I jumped as quickly as I could, but obviously I was too late."

Anger didn't hold a chance in the face of his obvious guilt and the emotion fled. "Don't worry about it, we're together now. A little more water-logged than before but we're together." She deliberately didn't ask what had happened to the men on the cliff and both of them knew it.

"I am sorry," his eyes sought hers out.

"I know." Getting lost in his eyes was a risky proposition for her, and her self-preservation instincts kicked in just in time. Breaking the look she focused on the bag again. "Maybe the goon squad had food with them."

A little surprised by her withdrawal Jason swallowed the sigh and picked up the protective sheath for the bowie knife and slid the knife in it, before tucking both in his boot. Looking around for any other sort of weapons he saw none.

"Uh-oh," Elizabeth murmured.

"What?" He focused on her and almost groaned when she held out, what appeared to be, a brick sized bag of cocaine.

"Is that what I think it is?" She asked quietly.

"Probably we are on Dominguez's island after all." Taking the coke from her he didn't even hesitate, he just tossed it into the river. "Is there any more?"

"Yes," she held out two more bags and watched him send them both in the water.

Soon the bag only held the box of mints, a blanket and a canteen that had been left in the bottom of the raft. Taking the backpack from her, Jason put it on.

"Who is Dominguez?"

"A man we don't want to meet if we can help it." Jason answered as briefly as he could.

"It would be worse for you if he knows who you are won't it?" Elizabeth asked with sudden insight.

Considering not answering her for a moment, Jason instead felt she had earned the right to know all they were up against. "Dominguez is an old enemy of Sonny's. If he knows I'm on the island, you're right things will only get worse."

"Can he recognize you on sight?"

"Yes."

"Can," she hesitated. "What about the men on the cliff?"

"They didn't recognize me, as far as they're concerned I'm just an intruder." Jason answered. "So it won't matter what they say."

"Good," her nod in relief turned into one of dismay when she realized something. "Are we moving faster again?"

"Yeah we are," growing concerned Jason shifted so he was looking ahead again. "Oh @#%$."

~Fire Trail~

"Jesus Francis where's the fire?" Manny demanded when he crashed heavily into the door for the third time.

"I told you we need to get Jason off the river as soon as possible."

"Why? What is there some sea monster in its depths?" Manny asked.

"No worse," Francis replied shortly.

"What's worse than a sea monster?" Manny asked in curiosity.

~River~

"Is that what I think it is?" Elizabeth moved until she was beside him at the front of the raft.

"I think so." Tightening the straps of the backpack he focused on her. "Did you find a life preserver?"

"No." Was it was strange that she wasn't even surprised anymore? "Jason what the hell is a waterfall doing in the middle of a river?"

"I don't have time to answer that. We need to jump and swim for shore."

Frowning down at the swift moving current Elizabeth shook her head. "I don't think so."

"You'd rather go over the falls?" Jason asked shortly, taking her arm to move her to the side of the raft. "I'll be right with you the whole way."

"That's what you said last time," she reminded him bitterly. "And look how well that looked out."

"Elizabeth…" he began in a pained voice.

"Save it Jason I guess we're jumping." She looked over at the fast approaching falls. "Out of curiosity just how big of a drop are the falls?"

"I know there are two major waterfalls on the island. One is manageable probably only 30 - 40 feet," Jason broke off. "We need to jump now."

"What about the other waterfall?" Elizabeth demanded.

"It's a lot bigger." Jason answered finally.

"You do realize that with my luck that this is the waterfall you don’t want to tell me about don’t you?" Elizabeth cried.

"That's why you are going to swim harder than you've ever swum before and I'm going to be right there with you the entire time." He took her hands and squeezed them in reassurance. "Do you trust me?"

"Always." Sighing when he let go of one of her hands she focused on the water and readied herself to jump.

Noise exploded around them the instant they jumped. Surprise quickly turned to fear when she recognized the sleek silver missiles coming through the water towards her as bullets. Surfacing, she had time for a breath before Jason jerked hard on her hand pulling her under again. Swimming hard, he let go of her hand and she began fighting the current, trying to dodge the bullets, and make it to the shore. She felt rather than saw Jason right beside her, doing his best to shield her from the bullets, his comforting presence compelled her to move her tired arms through the water even harder.

The water around her suddenly turned red and caused her to stop in surprise, looking back she realized Jason was no longer right behind her, instead he was limp in the water. Reaching out she managed to grab the back of his shirt and dragged him to her. Surfacing briefly to take in air she tilted his head back so he could breathe as well. The sound of gunfire came again but she ignored it, and instead tried to keep her grip on Jason. Moving awkwardly, while keeping an arm around his neck, she tried to backstroke her way to the shore.

The attempts were proving futile, the current was moving far too fast for every two feet she managed in the shoreline's direction they moved another five feet in the direction of the falls. Jason's dead weight was weighing her down but letting him go was never an option. Kicking desperately she tried to keep his back pressed to her chest and moving out of the current.

Without warning the current ripped Jason out of her arms and he began floating to the falls. Reacting instinctively Elizabeth swam after him, she managed to grab his arm right before he plunged over the falls taking her with him.

[JRK Archiver]

Part 11

~Free Falling~

She flew through the air with the greatest of ease, that brave little girl on the flying trapeze….

The only thing was, she wasn't brave, and this sure wasn't easy. Elizabeth was sick and tired of having her feet leave the ground with no concept of if they would ever return. The only good thing about this particular trip was the fact that she wasn't alone. Her grip on Jason's arm was tight and his weight was making them fall much faster than her weight alone would, and yet, it still felt like she had been hovering in mid air for hours now.

Abruptly and without warning the fall stopped and she hit the water harder than she had any other time in the last day. Her momentum propelled her so far down that the sun was just a tiny sliver of light somewhere far, far above her. Hitting the water as hard as she did made her lose her grip on Jason, but at that precise moment she couldn’t even think about what that meant. Her main concern at the moment was how to get her suddenly deadened muscles to respond to her commands and move.

Pinprick needles of pain soon morphed into what felt like bombs ripping through her body with every move she made. Her mouth was open, yet the energy it would take to close it was lacking at the moment. Her body felt like it had been asleep and then woken up all at once by being jolted with 1,000 volts of electricity.

Finally, in spite of the pain, she began to move towards the dim piece of light miles above her. Closing her mouth she propelled herself through the water. Closer, and closer to her goal, she actually began to think she might make it when she caught a flicker of movement from the corner of her eye. Turning her head to see what it was, the only thing she saw at first was a large, dark shape. The black blob as defined by her oxygen deprived brain was moving in the opposite direction as she was, down to the bottom and she had already turned away when she realized that the blob was in fact Jason.

Lightheaded from lack of oxygen, her lungs didn't seem to be burning as badly as they once had, and even in her confusion she knew that wasn't a good sign for her continued well-being. Yet in that instant none of it mattered. Without giving it a moment's pause she turned and went after the descending Jason into the darkness of what seemed about to become their watery grave.

~Cliff~

"Well will you take a look at that? Someone's pet monkey is trying to escape." Hawk let out a long-low whistle startling the small man in the clearing.

"Who?" Hector broke off when a fiery bolt of pain ricocheted through his broken jaw. He glanced down at his still unconscious cousin. Why wouldn't Jorge wake up and stop all these people from hurting him? It was all Jorge's fault, he thought and gave the unconscious giant a kick to the shoulder.

"Temper, temper," Jessica tsked following Hawk into the clearing.

Hector's eyes widened at the sight of the beautiful blonde. He didn't think he'd mind if this one wanted to spank him, as long as the spanking was done in private and in the right area. He tried to smile and almost passed out at the foolhardy move.

"Ahhh Jess, Shorty here likes you," Hawk teased.

Moving past Hawk her boot happened to come down hard on his foot and he let out a hiss. "Well honey what happened to you?"

Hawk rolled his eyes at the return of the Southern Belle with the fake honeyed concern dripping from each word she uttered and began scanning the area trying to make sense of what had happened there. There was a fight that much was obvious and somehow he didn't think it was between Shorty and the sleeping giant.

“Don’t mind Bubba over there, he’s a bit touched in the head,” Jessica drew the man’s focus back on her and ignored Hawk’s _expression. “He’s never been right, but after all these years I’m used to him, after all it isn’t his fault that he is the way he is, what with his parents being cousins and all, he was kind of doomed from the start don’t you think?”

Hector gulped when the man in the question focused a cross-eyed stare at him. Would this day never end?

“Some people think I ought to feed him more than I do, but I like keeping him lean and just a bit hungry. It makes him meaner, and when he’s mean no one will go after him,” Jessica explained and watched the short man pale even more. “Oh don’t worry sweetie,” she patted his hand. “Bubba here never hurts anyone unless I want him too,” she drawled in reassurance.

Closing his eyes Hector gave into temptation and kicked his sleeping cousin in the ribs, Jorge grunted but other than that didn’t move.

“You know it looks to me like you ran into my boyfriend, or should I say my ex-boyfriend,” Jessica drew his focus back on her. “He’s around six foot, blonde spiky hair, blue jeans, t-shirt, and motorcycle boots?” The man flinched at her rundown of Jason Morgan and she knew she was on the right track.

“I’ve been looking for him for a few weeks now, if you want to know the truth, he’s the reason I’ve been keeping Bubba here so hungry,” Jessica lightly touched the man’s swollen jaw. “Did he do this to you?”

Hector didn’t want to answer, he didn’t want to get anymore involved then he already was, not even to help the beautiful woman before him … then Bubba growled from behind him and he nodded desperately.

“I thought so. Did you see what way he went?”

Hector shrugged.

Jessica’s smile was wide. “Now I know we aren’t supposed to be on this island, and as soon as we collect my ex, Bubba and I will be gone. You can’t blame me for wanting to get vengeance on him now can you?” Her smile turned mean. “After all if it’s one thing a Southern woman knows, it’s how to handle a man who has done her wrong.”

Grunting more in disgust than in trying to play the character Jessica had created for him, Hawk went back to surveying the ground while Jess spun her web. Some men were so gullible it was pathetic to have to claim as men.

~Jeep~

"Francis I don't think you should be going so fast on this road," Manny pointed out, reaching desperately for his seatbelt. "Is this even a road?"

"Relax I know the road," Francis replied increasing his speed.

"That's comforting," Manny, muttered tightening his belt as much as he could without sending his spleen through his spine. "So why are we in such a hurry?"

"This river has a waterfall in it."

"How big of a waterfall?" Manny wanted to know.

"At least 80 feet," Francis answered shortly and drove the jeep off the road to the right and into the knee length undergrowth.

"Now I know this isn't a road," Manny cried when the Hummer began to bounce up and down.

"We need to get Jason off the river before he gets to the waterfall," Francis explained briefly before focusing his attention on the drive.

~Shore~

“The first thing you are doing when we get back to Port Charles is going on a diet. No more #4’s for you,” Elizabeth huffed. “The first thing I’m doing is joining that new health club.”

Falling quiet Elizabeth concentrated on the now familiar task of dragging an unconscious Jason around. This time the water helped to propel him, but all too soon the only movement came from her already spent muscles.

With a final hard tug Elizabeth lost her grip and fell back on the ground. Jason’s body came down on her legs pinning them underneath him. Gasping in air she stared up at the blue sky and rested her aching body. The sun seemingly revolved, once, then twice, and she closed her eyes until the dizziness passed. She waited a few more minutes to be sure before reluctantly sitting up.

“Jason,” she tutted softly at the unconscious man, “what am I going to do with you?” Moving gingerly she lifted his upper body up until she could work the waterlogged backpack off of him. “How is it that you still smell good?” she wondered aloud when he fell back against her.

Shaking her head at the unfairness of it all Elizabeth moved carefully until she was crouching beside him and carefully began to take stock of his injuries. She knew from the tinge of the water that the bleeding had finally stopped but now that they were back on dry land it had picked up again.

“Oh man,” Elizabeth picked up his arm and let out a sigh of relief when she saw an exit wound on the back of his arm, at least she wouldn’t have to dig for anything. Returning his arm to the ground she moved to the crease on his forehead, but that injury was still sealed. “It’s a good thing you have a hard head.”

Her focus shifted to the backpack and she checked it for any kind of supplies that could be used to patch him up. The canteen and an old ratty blanket was all she saw, and with a weary sigh she dumped them out on the sand. Next she reached into his boot and pulled the Bowie knife from its sheath.

“Shirt or blanket?” She asked the unconscious man. “Well Rip I guess its up to me to decide and for you to tell me later what I should have done instead.”

Feeling parched she reached for the canteen, relieved to find it over half full, she took a long drink. Gasping in surprise when the liquid hit her mouth Elizabeth began to cough. When she recovered she peered curiously inside the canteen. Whatever was in there sure wasn’t water.

Her gaze shifted to Jason’s bloody arm, the knife in her hand, then back to the canteen. “There’s nothing wrong with Dutch courage,” she informed the deserted beach before taking another long sip.

~New York City~

“What the hell are you talking about now Johnny?” Sonny demanded.

Johnny recognized the look in his boss’ eye. It was the one that meant you waste my time and don’t be surprised to find yourself on the milk run again. “Well,” he cleared his throat and tried again. “I remember where I heard that name before.”

“What name?” Benny asked.

“Margaretha Zelle,” Johnny prompted. “Fran … I was watching this biography on A&E and it was about her.”

“You were watching A&E?” Sonny asked doubtfully.

“Yes,” Johnny answered defensively. When Sonny and Benny’s expressions remained dubious he explained. “I was with Francis.”

“That explains it,” Benny murmured.

“Anyway,” Johnny glared at the others. “They did this bio on Mata Hari, whose real name happens to be Margaretha…”

“Zelle,” Sonny finished for him before turning to his fact-finder. “Why didn’t you catch this?”

Johnny preened while Benny shifted his feet.

~Beach~

“You know this is the exact reason why I studied my Gram’s medical books.” Elizabeth chirped while her hands were busy cutting up the blanket. As usual talking to him helped to calm her nerves. “After finding you in the snow that time, I figured there was no harm in being prepared in case it happened again.” Pausing in her work she patted his chest and lowered her voice. “And I have to tell you Jason, you being injured seems to happen a lot, so it’s a good thing I did study.”

Reaching for the canteen she took another long drink. “I guess it’s time to do this.” Picking up his arm she placed his hand on her knee and reached for the bandage she’d made. “Oops almost forgot.” Dropping the bandage she grabbed the canteen and brought it to the wound. “I really hate to waste this,” she muttered regretfully before pouring some of the alcohol on his open wound.

The intense burning in his arm jolted Jason into wakefulness. He immediately made a move to sit up only to be pushed back down to the ground.

“Take it easy.”

Blinking the cobwebs from his mind Jason gradually came to realize where he was and more importantly whom he was with. “Elizabeth?”

“You were expecting someone else?”

“No.” Jason tried to sit up only to have her shove him back down.

“Stop fidgeting. I need to get this bandage on your arm,” Elizabeth gave him a warning glare than began wrapping his arm.

Tilting his head he studied her actions, when she cursed under her breath his attention shifted to her face. He wasn’t surprised to find her chewing on her bottom lip. The smile that image brought to his face faded when he noted how pale she was, and how deeply her eyes seemed to be sitting in her pale face. Her fatigue was obvious and it caused him some concern.

“Almost got it.” Determined to get the bandage on, she forgot to be gentle and yanked hard on the two ends of the blanket bandage, before tying them together. “Did you moan?”

Ignoring her question Jason flexed his arm, when she dropped it, checking her work. “Nice job,” he gave his approval reluctantly then noticed she wasn’t listening to him.

“Of course it’s nice work, I told you’ve I’ve been studying,” Elizabeth reminded him tartly when she quit drinking.

Recognizing the glint in her eye Jason merely nodded his agreement and sat up, this time she let him. Flashes of color surrounding them on the beach caught his attention. Frowning he picked up one of the larger pieces, glanced at the bandage on his arm, then looked at what was left of the blanket, which wasn’t very much. Elizabeth’s off-key humming caught his attention and his focus shifted to his companion.

Her face, which had been ashen just a few minutes ago, now was sporting rosy cheeks, along with a red nose and he immediately grew concerned. She hadn’t felt well earlier in the day. If she got sick while they were on the island he didn’t know what he would do.

“Well Jason, our luck’s holding.” Elizabeth pointed at the waterfall and nearly poked him in the eye. “That fall was definitely not a small fall.”

“No it was the big waterfall,” he admitted, bracing himself for her retort. But none arrived instead she took another drink.

“How are you feeling?” Jason asked.

“Me? I’m just peachy. I’m not the one that was shot remember? All I did was go flying.” Setting the canteen down she stretched and nearly poked Jason in the eye again. “How’s your head?”

His focus on the canteen, he gave an absentminded reply. “It’s fine the bullet just creased me.”

“That’s good,” Elizabeth murmured through her yawn. “Oh my god you were shot in the head?” Concerned she shot to her knees and yanked his head closer. “Where? I don’t see anything.”

Jason found himself with his head pressed against her chest. Shock held him motionless but not for long. As quickly as she had pulled him in, Elizabeth shoved him back with a frown.

“I don’t see a bullet wound.”

“I told you it was only a crease,” was his response to her accusation.

“Oh that’s right,” she reached for the canteen, but Jason was too quick for her. “Hey!”

“What’s in the canteen?”

Elizabeth shrugged then glared at him. “You can say thanks you know.”

“What?” Feeling the heat of her glare he looked up from his study of the liquid inside the canteen.

“I did save your life … again. How many times does this make in the last three days?”

“Elizabeth…” Jason began but Elizabeth cut him off with a short wave of the hand that he had to duck.

“I was making my way to the surface, trying not to drown, but before I could get there and begin breathing again, I see you.” She poked him hard in the chest. “And are you swimming to help me after pulling me over the waterfall?” She demanded and he opened his mouth to reply. “No not you….” Jason’s mouth slammed shut.

“Nope Rip, the blob, was sinking to the bottom. But did I give up? Did I ignore you so I could breathe again? No not me, I swam after you and saved your life yet again. And what do I get for my trouble?” She spread her arms and caught him on the chest. “Nothing as usual.”

Jason set the canteen down with a slam that made no noise in the sand. She had come close to dying again and he hadn’t been able to help her. He hated that, he hated the fact that he had let her down again. “I’m so…”

“I know your sorry,” Elizabeth sing-songed and reached for the canteen. “If we ever do this again, you’re going on a diet first.”

Jason pulled the canteen from her hands. “I think you’ve had enough.”

“Now you get bossy. I knew it would happen,” Elizabeth grumbled.

Ignoring her he smelled the liquid in the canteen but smelled nothing, finally he took a small sip and fire burned a trail down his throat.

“You know I don’t think this sweater is made of very high quality material.” Elizabeth complained while Jason began to cough.

“What?”

Frowning down at her sweater which had now shrunk to the size of a tube top she held out her arms, tightening it even more over her chest and shook slightly. “Maybe I’ll start a new trend,” she sighed in despair. “I only wish I have more jiggle to fill up the sweater.”

Jason’s eyes moved automatically to her chest. “What you have is fine.”

Her frown disappeared and her smile was wide when her eyes met his. “You’ve been looking.”

Unnerved Jason took another drink and promptly began coughing.

“Jason your ears are turning pink,” she marveled with a laugh. Throwing her arms around his neck she drew him closer.

His embarrassment lasted as long as his resolve and neither had a chance against the feeling of her in his arms. He was past wondering why, with the difference in their sizes, she fit so well in his arms, he had finally learned to accept it. All too soon he felt her trying to pull back and reluctantly let her go. She didn’t go far however, she merely pulled back far enough to study his face.

“I’m glad you weren’t hurt worse,” she whispered.

“I really am sorry I wasn’t there to help you,” he responded just as softly.

“Don’t worry at the rate we’re going you’ll have your chance,” Elizabeth grinned. “Don’t frown.”

Responding automatically to her order he tried to let go of the worry her words caused.

“There is no point in worrying in advance, believe me, I know,” she informed him.

Her smile was, as usual, impossible to resist and a small one in response made its way to his lips. Reaching up he brushed some sand from her cheek and she leaned into his hand. Drawn to her he tilted her head up and moved closer. His lips were inches from hers when Elizabeth shoved him away, reminding him of all those frustrating times last winter.

“I don’t think we should do this,” Elizabeth sat back on the sand. “We both know what will happen if we do kiss. You’ll regret it as soon as we stop. You’ll say it was a mistake. That it was just the moment that made you kiss me, and that it will never happen again. And when you say that it will feel like you ripped another layer of skin off of me.”

Jason flinched.

“I don’t like pain Jason. With my past I should be used to it by now, but I’m not,” she sighed sadly. “I really don’t think I can stand hearing you say that kissing me was nothing more than a mistake.” Thoroughly depressed she reached for the canteen.

“Elizabeth,” Jason’s voice was sharp in exasperation but by the time he got the canteen from her it was empty and her expression was mischievous. “How much of this have you had?”

“Not mu…” she hiccupped. “Not much at all.”

Either, Elizabeth was lying, she was a one-drink wonder, or the alcohol had hit her stomach and went straight to her head. Whatever the case he had a feeling that both Elizabeth and to a degree, himself, would be feeling it later on. But at the moment Elizabeth’s mood seemed to be happy, knowing that could change any minute he realized they should probably get moving while she was being agreeable. “We better go.”

“Okay,” Elizabeth agreed readily yet made no move to get up.

Shaking his read Jason grabbed the canteen and waded into the water.

“Jason I’m not pulling you out of the water again,” she warned him.

Ignoring her he rinsed the canteen out and filled it. Wading back to shore he picked up the backpack and shoved the canteen and blanket into it, before putting it on.

“Don’t forget this,” Elizabeth held out the Bowie knife.

Concerned Jason quickly took the weapon from her. “Time to leave.”

“You go ahead, I like it here.” Elizabeth yawned and leaned backward.

Resigned Jason bent, picked her up and over his shoulder. Laughter rang out on the deserted beach. Moving purposefully he headed for the tree line. The sooner they were out of sight the better off they would be.

“You know Jason I changed my mind. Anytime you want to kiss me I’m willing,” she informed his rather firm butt, and was rewarded with a slap on her own. “Hey!”

~Airport~

“Are you sure about this?” Nikolas asked doing his best not to let his concern show.

“If you want to stay here go ahead.” Was Max’s only reply.

Glaring at the mountain of a man, Nikolas followed him, somewhat reluctantly from the small terminal and made his way to the lone seaplane tied to the dock. Would he feel more reassured if his companion spoke more? Or if the ancient plane didn’t look like a string and a prayer held it together? He thought so, but was afraid he was out of luck in both cases.

“Do you really know how to fly one of these planes?” Nikolas couldn’t help but question.

Sighing wearily Max eyed him coldly. “If I don’t you’ll be the first to know.”

Annoyed Nikolas glared at Max who was either oblivious or just could care less. Muttering Greek under his breath Nikolas finally clambered inside the old plane. One day he was going to punish Sonny Corinthos for saddling him with the cretin known as Max for this trip.

~Beach~

Francis moved cautiously into the clearing his eyes trying to take in every potential threatening area at once. He knew Manny had his back, and despite his comments to the contrary, he knew the kid was good, he had a lot of potential. If he lived that long that was. His eyes swept the area once, twice, then gave Manny the all clear signal and let his guard down slightly.

“Looks like this is where he came ashore.” Manny pointed out the strips of fabric on the ground and the faint outline of a large object in the sand that hadn’t been erased by the water lapping the shore yet.

Nodding slightly Francis moved toward the waters edge trying to read the scene. When he got to the shore he spied the familiar tracks of a boot print with a nick in the sole. Manny was right Jason had come ashore here and from the looks of the area he was alone when he did and able to walk out on his own as well.

“The tracks lead off in this direction,” Manny took a step in the direction of the tree line. When Francis didn’t say anything he turned to see what was going on. Francis was still scanning the ground as if he was looking for something. His _expression dimmed and he felt every ache in his body when he realized what his friend was doing.

Francis finally stopped looking at the ground and wearily made his way to join Manny.

“Did you see any other tracks?” Manny asked quietly.

Giving a terse shake of his head Francis checked his watch. “I can’t put this off any longer. We missed our last check-in. We need to get to higher ground and phone in, Sonny needs…” Francis swallowed hard. “He needs to know Jason is alive and Elizabeth is dead.”

Manny silently trailed his partner into the bush. Whoever had done this to Jason and Elizabeth would pay, he knew that. But he just now realized how much others were already paying and they hadn’t done anything to deserve it.

~Clearing~

“So what did you see?” Jessica dropped the honeyed drawl as soon as they stepped back into the bushes and away from the clearing at the edge of the cliff.

“Bushes were broken, there were lots of footprints, more than just the giant and your latest conquest back there,” feeling her glare Hawk summed up. “I think Morgan went over the edge.”

“Damn the man,” Jessica muttered.

“That’s not all.” Hawk was the one drawling this time and he waited until her eyebrow had arched and her eyes were shooting darts at him before going on. “We aren’t the only one following Morgan.”

That thought gave Jessica a moment’s pause and she took a long look at the area around them.

“Boss?” Hawk prompted after another minute. He wanted to continue with the hunt but knew if his boss called it off that would be it.

“It was probably just another guard,” Jessica decided finally. “There’s no way any of Corinthos’ people could have found him by now. We better move on.”

Hawk’s grin was lethal, he shouldered the rifle and gave a sharp salute. “A hunting we will go.”

“Why didn’t I bring one of the others on this job?” Jessica wondered aloud, moving from the trail she headed deeper into the bushes.

“Darlin you know why. You miss me too much when you don’t see me every day,” Hawk reminded her cheekily.

“Where was that pit we found?” Jessica asked. “I believe I found its next occupant.” She deliberately fell silent even though she could feel the bastard’s grin on her back.

[JRK Archiver]

~*~

Hector let out his first easy breath when the sounds of the visitors passage finally faded. This was the final straw he was never coming back to this island of hell. Jorge groaned and Hector couldn’t help but kick his cousin again, it was all his fault. Jorge jerked into semi-wakefulness and Hector immediately backed off. His cousin was never very friendly after a beating.

Shifting his attention to the opening that the blonde and her growling companion had disappeared through. Hector gave a passing thought to calling her back and warning her about the other stranger who had been asking about her boyfriend. Jorge began cursing behind him and the thought drifted from his mind.

~New York City~

Surprisingly he didn’t throw the phone against the wall. In fact he closed it softly, more softly than he usually did and automatically returned it to his suit pocket. Moving slowly, almost woodenly he crossed to the window and stared at the New York skyline and the barely visible setting sun. His room was high enough that he could see the light that filtered through the skyscrapers, but the dark was there as well.

“So much darkness,” Sonny whispered against the cold glass.

“Boss?” Johnny asked after another minute of cautious study.

“Benny,” his voice was too rough, too hoarse, too emotional and he didn’t like it. “Do you have a list of all of Unique’s employees?”

“I do, or at least all the employees we can verify work there,” Benny replied nervously.

“Good.” Sonny turned from the window, determination and anger lining his face. “Bring it.”

Benny and Johnny eyed each other in question while their boss picked up his coat and headed for the door.

“Where are we going boss?”

“Unique,” Sonny’s eyes were as dark as the darkness inside of him. “I have the hammer to break them.”

~Puddle Jumper~

Nikolas was almost asleep when the mountain began to hum. Startled because this was the first noise his traveling companion had made without prompting, Nikolas opened his eyes then immediately wished he hadn’t.

Max was … well the only thing he could think of was that the mountain was happy. The humming faded and a smile formed. The smile was okay, nothing grotesque, but it was the _expression behind the smile that spooked Nikolas. To him it appeared that Max was demented.

The plane banked to the right then quickly righted itself.

“Is there a problem?” Nikolas asked but the giant merely began to whistle and banked the plane to the left.

Nikolas was disgusted to find himself fidgeting slightly and immediately stopped it. Princes didn’t fidget, no matter what, they didn’t fidget. How many times had he heard that? Steeling his back and his resolve Nikolas was determined not to show his concern.

The plane banked dangerously to the left causing his head to hit the window and things in the back of the plane to roll around. “What the hell is your problem?”

“You know I’m really a good pilot,” Max began in a conversational tone. “And I’m not as dumb as I look.”

“That is good to know. Now what are you doing?” Nikolas braced himself when Max banked again.

“I know lots of things. Things like how much weight should be in a plane and how that weight should be distributed inside the plane.”

“So?” Nikolas tightened his seatbelt.

“We have more weight in the plane than we should.”

More concerned with the bucking plane than he was with what Max was saying, Nikolas’ reply was pithy and in Greek.

“Do you know what that means?”

“What?” Nikolas cried.

“It means we have a stowaway in back,” Max announced calmly.

That pronouncement captured his attention, Nikolas’ eyes darted to the back of the plane but all he saw were blankets and a few crates.

“Take the stick.”

Horrified Nikolas turned his focus back on Max. “What?”

“Fly, while I go see to our visitor.” Max was already unfastening his seatbelt.

“You want me to fly the plane?” Nikolas’ face drained of color.

“Just keep it level and I’ll be right back.”

“No,” Nikolas yelled. “You fly I’ll investigate.” His fingers fumbled with the safety clasp on his belt.

“Mr. Cassadine…”

“You fly, I’ll find out who is here with us.” Nikolas freed himself and pulled the headset from his head and the sound of the engine and wind immediately filled his ears.

Nikolas scrambled from his seat and hunched over in the cramped quarters, he had taken a step towards the rear of the plane when Max thrust a small but heavy club in his hand. He looked at Max in question but Max merely shrugged and jerked his head towards the rear of the plane.

The smallness of the plane, as well as the bucking of it made movement difficult but Nikolas kept his focus on the one place that was large enough to hide a person. Was it is his imagination or did the lump under the blanket moan when Max banked sharply again? It had to be his imagination because it was too loud to hear anything in the plane.

Tightening his grip on the bully club Nikolas drew near the lump on the floor. Crouching next to it he saw the lump move under the blanket and raised the club high in the air above the lump. The hand he held out to pull the blanket free was remarkably steady. Taking a deep breath he yanked the blanket free and prepared to strike.

~Trail~

“Do you have to breathe so loudly?” Elizabeth asked grumpily.

Jason didn’t bother to reply. He knew her drinking would come back to haunt him and now it had.

Rubbing her temples Elizabeth continued to mutter under her breath while she followed Jason. Her focus was on trying to calm down enough so the red would fade from her face. She was mortified when she thought back to how she had acted with Jason. Whatever had been in that canteen had gone straight to her head. At the moment she’d welcome a pit to fall into, even if it did have a snake.

“Do you want some water?”

Jason’s voice broke into her reverie as he held out the canteen. She eyed it dubiously and Jason took a long swallow before offering it to her again this time she took it and drank greedily.

“Take it easy. Who knows when will be able to fill it again,” Jason cautioned.

Obeying automatically Elizabeth put the lid on the canteen and handed it back to him. “Where do you think we are?”

Jason shrugged and tried to hide the wince when he felt the shaft of pain that movement caused. His body ached more from hitting the water than it did from the bullet. But since Elizabeth hadn’t said a word in complaint he wasn’t about too.

“As usual you are a fountain of information.” Elizabeth muttered darkly.

“We went over a waterfall, on an island I’ve never been too, I’m sorry if I’m a little unsure.”

“How do you know we went over the falls? You were unconscious remember? Maybe I drug your ass to the shore before we went over the side,” Elizabeth shot back.

“Is this the time that you start yelling at me again?” Jason asked hotly.

Elizabeth spun around to fire a retort and the world continued to spin even after she stopped causing the retort to die on her lips.

Seeing her pale and stagger Jason was at her side quickly and urged her to sit on a fallen log while he crouched in front of her.

“I feel dizzy,” Elizabeth murmured. She was so tired of feeling weak and dizzy.

“Just breathe deeply,” Jason pushed her head down.

Elizabeth closed her eyes until the feeling of vertigo passed. When it did she tried to sit up only to have Jason push her head back down again.

“Enough Jason,” she swatted his hand away and sat up. Seeing the wounded look in his eyes she immediately felt bad but by that time it was too late.

“Are you okay?”

“I’m fine it’s just after effects of the alcohol.” Elizabeth reassured him.

“Are you sure?” Jason remained unconvinced. “You didn’t feel well earlier.”

Elizabeth’s eyes slid away from his. “That was because I was hungry. I’m fine now.”

“Elizabeth?”

“We probably should get a move on.” Elizabeth tried for cheery and made a move to get up but Jason didn’t budge.

“I think its time you were straight with me.” Jason’s _expression was serious.

“What do you mean?” Again her eyes danced nervously away from his face.

“It’s time for you to tell me the whole story Elizabeth. I want to know what brought you to Sonny’s villa, what drug you took to fake your death, what happened on the plane, and what’s happened since we landed on this island.”

Unnerved she dropped her eyes and belatedly noticed that his hands were on either side of her on the log, effectively pinning her in. She raised her head to look in his eyes and recognized the look of determination in them. He wasn’t going to be put off this time.

~*~

Stavros hummed quietly to himself while he studied the pair before him. Dark and light. The contrast between the couple made them a striking pair. Raising the rifle he had appropriated from an idiot guard to his shoulder he sighted the woman through the scope.

It would be a pity to finish the woman before he was able to taste her. She definitely caught his fancy. It was also a pity that he would need to strike from so far away. He preferred killing up close. The closer you were to the victim the better it was. You got to smell the blood, the fear, you could almost taste it at times. It was very addictingl.

His hesitation lasted only an instant he hated to deprive himself of any sort of pleasure and he wasn’t going to start now. Backing quietly into the bush he put the rifle strap over his shoulder, pulled his handgun out and began moving cautiously down to the unsuspecting pair.

~*~

“Jason I really think we should get moving. You said yourself it wasn’t smart to stay in one place for long.”

“We’ll be fine.” Jason recognized her tactic for what it was, an evasion. “Why did Sonny send you to the villa?”

“You didn’t want to know the details remember?” Elizabeth was determined not to mention Lucky’s name.

“I want to know now,” Jason’s voice was soft but firm.

The last thing she wanted to do was mention Lucky and watch him shut down again. Or worse start treating her like she was one of the Quartermaine’s. She’d made a promise to herself that she wouldn’t mention Lucky. That she wouldn’t try to explain her actions, her reasoning’s. To accomplish that she couldn’t talk to him about Port Charles at all.

When it became apparent that she wasn’t going to answer he changed tracks. “What about the plane? What happened between you and scarman?”

Jolted, Elizabeth shot to her feet causing Jason to fall back on the ground. “That doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is getting off this island.” Moving quickly she took off down the trail. “We better move.”

“Elizabeth,” Jason got quickly to his feet but she had already disappeared into the thick bushes that lined the old trail they were following.

Elizabeth risked a glance over her shoulder and sighed in relief when she didn’t see him. Maybe he’d drop his questions for now. Satisfied she turned back around and came to a halt a few inches from the barrel of a gun.

[JRK Archiver]

Part 12

~Plane~

A shriek echoed around the small interior of the plane. Hearing it Nikolas was able to stop the club inches from the brown-haired girl's head. "Emily?" His weak question illustrated his shock.

Emily Quartermaine peeked through the fingers of the hands covering her face. "Y-yes."

The club clattered to the floor of the plane and quickly rolled away. Hearing that Emily dropped her hands to study her one-time friend. Nikolas looked as shocked as she'd ever seen him. "Are you going to let me up?"

"I ought to throw you off the plane." Nikolas responded even as his ingrained manners came to bear and he helped her into a sitting position.

"It's good to see you too," she grumbled and immediately found herself being smothered in a hug. The hug was so familiar and comforting that she couldn't help but respond. She may be alternating between feeling hurt or angry when she thought of him, but they had been friends too long for her not to feel anything.

"How did you get here?" Nikolas pulled back to search her face then moved on to search the plane looking for a wheelchair. "Can you walk?"

"I'll show you if you let me." Emily replied. She was getting tired of being on the cold hard floor of the plane. She hadn't really thought about the realities of her plan when she snuck on board the plane. If she had she would have brought a cushion with her.

The sound of banging caught his attention and Nikolas turned to look at the cockpit where the Mountain was waiting. Although Emily and him had been speaking quite loudly in order to be heard over the roar of the plane they weren't loud enough that Max could hear them. Getting to his feet he hunched slightly out of deference to the compact interior of the plane and to help Emily get up. The sight of her standing under her own power warmed his heart. She appeared to be a bit unsteady but he hoped that was due to the rocking of the plane and not because of any physical limitation.

They began making their way up to the cockpit. "Take the seat." Emily nodded and climbed awkwardly over the control panel to take the co-pilot's seat, while he pulled down the jump seat behind them.

"Ms. Quartermaine," Max nodded at her.

Nikolas was surprised by Max's behavior. He was acting like he'd just run into Emily at Kelly's not like she'd been discovered as a stowaway of a private plane. "What are you doing here?"

"Max how are you?" Emily ignored Nikolas' question.

"Fine," Max replied. "I hope you weren't to uncomfortable back there."

Emily heard Nikolas make a noise that sounded like a growl and smothered a laugh. "It was a bit bumpy especially when you started practicing your roll technique."

Max blushed at her words and Nikolas was agog at the sight of the Mountain blushing.

"I saw you at the airport in P.C." Emily finally decided to answer Nikolas' question. "I recognized Max and wondered why you were traveling with one of Sonny's men, so I decided to follow you."

"You decided to follow us." Nikolas parroted too surprised at the moment to be angry. He merely shook his head in wonder as the day turned even stranger.

~Woods~

Frozen in place Elizabeth could only stare down the barrel of the gun that was inches from her face. Spanish filtered past her ears and then went on over her head. She had no idea what he was saying, probably something about not moving, which she was only too happy to oblige. The man seemed to realize she couldn't understand him and his eyes narrowed in speculation. When his eyes shifted past her to check out the direction she'd come from she could only hope Jason was still sitting on his butt somewhere and wouldn't come barreling upon them. She recognized the odor coming from the hand-rolled cigarette that hung from the man's lips as marijuana and felt he might be a little too trigger happy for her peace of mind.

Holding her breath she waited to see what happened next and tried not to flinch when the man lowered the gun and moved closer. She remained tense however because even though the gun was no longer pointed at her head it was firmly gripped in the man's tattooed hand. Up close and personal to the man she tried not gag, apparently he had an aversion to water and such things as showering or doing laundry. Biting her lip she decided not to mention it.

"American?" The man asked in heavily accented English.

"Yes," she nodded and watched the man's eyes change yet again. This time they went wary and almost before she was aware of it he had pulled a piece of rope out of his pocket. One end of the rope had been formed into a loop that he quickly slid over her wrist and tightened until it was tight against her skin. Another loop was formed and slid over her other wrist and that was tightened as well. Soon her hands were bound in front of her. The speed and efficiency in which he'd accomplished that move with only one hand told her he had plenty of practice tying people up. It wasn't a comforting realization.

Once she was bound he moved around her and soon she felt his hands on her back, then her legs as he checked her for what she could only assume were hidden weapons. Her only consolation was that his touch remained impersonal, she hoped it would stay that way. The gun poked her in the back and he gestured in a direction, taking that to mean she was to move, she forced herself to walk. Moving into the brush that covered a path she could only wonder where the hell was Jason?

~*~*~

Jason remained in the bushes a few feet from where Elizabeth and Dominguez's guard were standing. His gut had clenched in anger while watching the guard tie her up and then search her for weapons, and yet he remained where he was hidden. He couldn't take the risk of moving to soon. He needed to make sure the guard was by himself before he made his move. He had to wait in order to keep the risk to Elizabeth's safety at a minimum.

He knew what he was doing was smart and really the only move he could make, but that didn't mean he liked it. In fact his blood began to simmer as the guard prodded her with his gun to get her moving. He caught a glimpse of her expression and instead of the fear that he'd expected to see he saw a touch of anger in her expression. Recognizing it, he realized she was probably cursing him, wondering where he was. Shaking his head in ill-timed amusement he waited until they disappeared from view before moving after them as quietly as he could.

~New York~

Sonny swaggered through the doors of Unique Unlimited like a man who already owned the place and was about to strip it for parts. Johnny gave a passing thought to the bespectacled young man sitting behind the receptionist desk then decided to save his pity for someone whose fate wasn't already sealed.

"I want to see your boss." Sonny announced loudly.

"Ms. Zelle is out of the office." The receptionist responded with a mechanical smile. "She is expected back next week if you'd like to make an appointment."

"I don't make appointments." Leaning over the desk Sonny closed the appointment book startling the receptionist.

"I'm sorry?" His smile faltered. This was not going the way it was supposed to. He wasn't trained to handle situations like this. "I'm sorry Mr. Mr?"

"Corinthos," Sonny supplied and watched the younger man's eyes bug out from behind his lenses and knew it had been recognized. "My name is Sonny Corinthos and I suggest you find me someone to speak to."

A woman who had been about to enter the lobby heard that pronouncement and quickly scrambled back until she was hugging the wall in the hall. What was Sonny Corinthos doing here?

"Mr. Corinthos," a striking African American woman entered the lobby. "Perhaps I can be of assistance. I'm Meg Barnett the general manager of Unique."

Leaving the slowly disassembling receptionist in his wake Sonny moved quickly towards the woman.

Her face remained composed but Meg watched his approach warily. The fact that one of the most notorious mobsters on the East Coast was in her office meant trouble not only for the company but her boss as well. "What can I do for you?"

"You can tell me who placed the bounty on Jason Morgan." Sonny snapped.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you’re talking about," she replied smoothly.

"Don't toy with me Ms. Barnett." Sonny smiled feeling in control. He'd recognized the look in the woman's eyes, she was an operator, that knowledge reassured him. He was used to handling operators and he had no doubt he would handle her. "I know your company is the one responsible for the snatching of my partner Jason Morgan."

"If your partner is missing…"

"In fact I imagine that is where you boss is at the moment," he went on. "What I want to know is who placed the bounty that your boss so foolishly decided to accept."

Meg held her smile even as she cursed her boss. She'd advised against taking the bounty on Morgan but her boss had been looking for a challenge. Now her worst fears were coming true. Something had gone wrong with the Morgan jack and whatever that was it had led to Corinthos' discovery of their company being the one behind it. "Mr. Corinthos, I'm afraid you've gotten some bad information."

"Don't," he warned her. "You really don't want to play around with me, not right now, not after what you've done."

The threat of violence in the man's eyes surprised her. From her research of Corinthos she knew he had an ingrained sense of honor when it came to women. Her boss believed it was that code of honor that precluded him from hiring their company when it was obvious that he could use their expertise.

Sonny took a breath and used the delay to try to battle back his rage. He needed to hold it together. He couldn’t explode yet, not until he knew who it was that had started this disaster that had cost Elizabeth her life. “Your jack is over.”

“Mr. Corinthos.”

“It was over when the plane carrying Jason Morgan, your two flunkies and an innocent girl crashed into the ocean, killing everyone on board with the exception of Jason,” Sonny informed her coldly.

The woman eavesdropping in the hall moved a little closer trying to hear better.

“Mr. Corinthos,” Meg started and then trailed off when his words penetrated. She knew there had been a problem with the payment for the jack but she hadn’t been informed that the plane had crashed. The two idiots on board weren’t a great loss, they were drug smugglers by trade and had only been hired because of the plane, so they weren’t a great loss to humanity. But what was this about an innocent girl?

Sonny could read the questions in her eyes. Questions she refused to ask and inched closer. “Elizabeth Webber was on that plane. She’s dead because of your jack.”

The woman in the hall staggered back against the wall in shock, her mind began replaying conversations she’d had with Elizabeth.

“If you people bothered to research Jason at all then you should recognize her name. You should also realize what she means to Jason and that means you ought to know what he’ll do when he finds out she’s dead,” he taunted.

This time Meg couldn’t keep the worry from showing on her face.

“You better tell me who placed the bounty.” Sonny’s voice was soft but that didn’t belie the menace in his eye.

Johnny kept busy scanning the lobby. They were beginning to attract some attention. Cataloging them was his business and he was very good at his job, so far he hadn’t spied a gun on any of them. He wasn’t sure if it was his boss’s menace or his glare that kept them at bay, but so far they were merely watching the show. A flash of color caught his eye and he focused on the entry to a hall behind the receptionist desk, but by the time he’d focused on it the woman was gone. He was struck by a nagging feeling of familiarity, dismissing it for the time being he went back to his job.

“Jason won’t ask any questions.” Sonny went on, inching closer until they were almost sharing the same space. He lowered his voice and kept his eyes locked on hers, he could have been seducing her except for the words he was saying. “Jason’s been compared to a machine, a Borg if you will, in this case that’s an accurate assessment. He won’t stop, he won’t be swayed by begging or bribery, he’ll just keep coming until he knows who hired you and punishes everyone that contributed to her death.”

“I’m sorry that you lost a friend,” Meg tried to counter and calm her fears at the same time. “But the fact remains I don’t know what you are talking about.”

“If something should happen to Jason, if he should die as well,” he went on like she hadn’t even spoken. “I’ll be honor bound to complete what he started.”

Not liking the increased attention his boss was garnering Johnny took a step forward and cleared his throat. Sonny nodded in response and Johnny raised the radio to alert the driver to bring the car around.

“I know who you are Ms. Barnett. I know where you live, both here and in Paris,” he paused to let that sink in. “I know where to find most of your operatives as well.” Was it wrong to enjoy the way she’d paled? “I’ll give you until noon tomorrow to get me the information. If I don’t have it by then…” he let the threat hang in the air, turned and left as dramatically as he’d arrived.

The woman who had been eavesdropping collapsed against the wall when she heard the door close. Noise began filtering around the lobby again when people began moving from the lobby back into the offices she walked into the lobby and crossed to Meg. “Whew I don’t envy you.”

Meg leveled a glare at one of their best operatives, using the time it took to do that to try to settle her breathing. The threat Corinthos had leveled certainly packed a punch.

“I thought we didn’t do mafia bounty’s.”

“We don’t.” Meg forced herself to walk while she explained. “This wasn’t a mob snatch, the boss had a personal guarantee about that.” She checked her watch and swore lightly. “She missed her first check-in I’ll have to tell her about the girl at the next one. She needs to know about the new threat.”

“What if she doesn’t check-in?”

“We’ll follow standard procedure.” Meg rubbed at her temple suddenly she had a nasty headache. “The boss has to miss three check-ins before we move in.”

Nodding she stayed where she was after Meg disappeared. If they followed procedure a whole day would pass before they moved in. Somehow she didn’t think Sonny would wait a full day for answers. The only question was could she?

~Trail~

“Did you hear something?”

Jess paused to listen then shook her head. “Nothing but the same noise we’ve been hearing all day,” she pronounced after a minute and began to walk again.

Hawk took a step to follow then came to a halt again. The hair on the back of his neck had risen a sure sign that trouble was coming. Turning he looked carefully at the bushes that surrounded them, searching for the source of the trouble that was making him uneasy, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. They weren’t alone, he knew that, yet he saw no signs of where their watcher was. For the first time in years he felt a sense of fear. Whatever was watching them was evil, the likes of which he’d never seen.

Amalie, his riverboat driving Creole Grand Mere, had been a medicine woman on the Bayou. She had raised him and trained him to believe in evil, in all of its many forms, so he had no trouble saying the word, or identifying what had spooked him now. Somehow he knew it was the purest form of evil watching them now. Moving on instinct he hurried after Jess and caught her arm. “Run.”

Jess took one look at his face and complied. He herded them off the overgrown trail they had been following to the relative safety of the trees. They’d barely made the cover of the tree line when the dirt behind them began exploding in their wake.

~Woods~

Francis held up his hand to stop Manny when the faint sound of gunfire reached his ears. Both men looked back in the direction of the shots.

“You think that could be about Jason?” Manny asked when the sound of gunfire faded.

“No.” Francis’ response was immediate. “We’re definitely on Jason’s trail, he somewhere ahead of us. Whatever the shots were about they have nothing to do with Jason.”

Deferring to Francis’ superior knowledge was something Manny was used to doing so the shots were easy to dismiss. “We still on his trail?”

“Yeah,” Francis gestured to the overgrown path. “It’s difficult to track him. I only catch a glimpse of his track every few feet or so. The nick in the boot tread tells me we’re on the right track. I only hope he stays to the trail, if he doesn’t he’s going to be a bitch to track."

~Trail~

Stavros tripped over an overgrown root and went sprawling. Cursing richly he got to his feet and brushed the dirt from his face. He wasn’t sure how the man had realized he was being hunted but he’d managed to grab the blonde and get them out of sight before he could stop them. The fact they’d gotten away, bothered him. The sight of the blonde had awakened his carnal instinct, once aroused they were hard to deny. In fact he wasn’t sure how to deny them, as the Prince he’d never had to. It had been such a long time since he’d hunted, he wouldn’t be denied for long.

Glancing in the direction the pair had disappeared he was tempted to follow, to execute the man and take the woman. The temptation was so strong he actually took a step from the path to follow them, then remembered why he was on the island in the first place. He was there to find Elizabeth Webber, to make her tell him where the Ice Princess was, once he knew that he would punish her. He would have fun punishing her, in fact he might arrange for Nikolas to join them to witness the punishment and learn how he was supposed to keep a woman in line. It was his right, his duty, as Nikolas’ father to teach him how to take control. Decided he turned back on the path to continue on the way the pair had been going.

~Plane~

“You never answered me Nikolas. Why are you with Max? And what's this about Jason and Elizabeth?” Emily asked.

This time it was Nikolas who ignored the question. “I didn’t know you were back in town.”

“I just arrived,” she admitted then mad at herself for answering his question she took a jab. “I wasn’t aware you even knew I left town.”

Nikolas flinched and looked away from her, his mistake was in meeting Max’s glare, which he returned with one of his own. The glare had the desired effect, however, and he turned back to Emily. “I knew you were gone.”

“You couldn’t prove it by the amount of cards and letters you sent. I guess I should be used to it after all you didn’t even bother to come to see me when I was in town at GH.” Emily was still bitter, she still felt hurt that the only one of the four musketeers who’d bothered to come see her after she’d been hurt was Elizabeth. And even her visit had been more about her and Lucky then anything else.

“There’s been a lot going on,” Nikolas admitted. “However, that is no excuse. You were my friend, I should have been there for you.”

His guilt was easy to read and when Emily felt herself weakening she changed the subject. “Answer my question. Why are you with Max?”

Nikolas looked towards Max for guidance but the Mountain was taking an extreme interest in the darkening horizon.

“Nikolas?” she prompted. “Jason was with me until last week when Sonny called to ask a favor.”

“I’m glad you weren’t alone.”

“Don’t try to avoid my question, you’re not good at it.” When he looked at her in confusion, she went on. “Compared to the Quartermaine’s or Jason you’re a babe in the woods when it comes to evasions.”

Recognizing the determination in her eyes he realized he was going to have to tell her something. “The favor Sonny asked Jason to do was for me … and Elizabeth.”

“Jason didn’t mention that.”

“I don’t think he knew,” he admitted.

“What happened Nikolas?” Emily buried her anger and learned standoffishness and studied him, he was really upset about something, and the sight of that was making her nervous.

“Elizabeth had to get out of town. No one could know where she was and she needed protection once she got out of town. We went to Sonny and he contacted Jason,” he admitted in a rush.

“Why did Elizabeth have to leave town?” She wanted to know.

“That doesn’t matter now,” he evaded and wasn’t surprised when she glared at him. “Something happened when she got where she was going … Jason was kidnapped.”

The words were so unexpected that Emily could only blink.

“Did you hear me?”

“Jason was the one that was kidnapped?” Emily asked doubtfully.

“Yes and apparently Elizabeth followed the kidnappers and snuck onboard the plane the kidnapper’s placed Jason on.” Nikolas stopped and hoped she wouldn’t question him any further. He didn’t want to be the one to tell her that Jason may be dead, or even worse, that Elizabeth was dead.

“What happened then?” She knew him well enough to know he was holding something back. When he didn’t answer she clutched his hand. “Tell me.”

“The plane went down, there was only one survivor,” he kept a hold of her hand when her grip went lax in his.

“No,” she instinctively denied the awful words. “He can’t be … she can’t be.”

Faced with the sudden devastation in her eyes he knew he could hold nothing back. “We don’t know who survived.”

Emily’s eyes filled. “No.”

“I’m sorry Emily. I’m so sorry.”

“No,” she lashed out, slapping at him. “You’re lying.”

“I’m sorry,” he kept apologizing and just let her flail at him. Finally he caught her arms and crouched awkwardly half-behind, half-beside her seat and pulled her head to his shoulder. Eventually he felt her tears against his neck. “I’m so sorry.”

~Trail~

Elizabeth couldn’t help muttering under her breath. Jason seemed to be taking his sweet time coming to help her. How many times had she saved his butt in the last few days? She didn’t wait to help him, she just charged in and it had worked time and time again, so where was he?

The rope was chafing her wrists, she was dying of thirst, her dizziness had returned, and her knees were killing her because of the number of times she’d fallen on her forced march. She never realized how much a person used their swinging arms for balance while they walked, until the time had come she couldn’t use them.

The man behind her suddenly swore, curious she turned to see what his problem was just in time to see all hell break loose. The guard that had been herding her like a sheep was now holding a hand to his throat and cursing. Her eyes widened in surprise when she recognized blood coming from between his fingers. Before she had time to figure out what had happened Jason emerged from the bushes behind the armed guard and charged him.

The guard’s focus had been on her face, which apparently wasn’t a poker face because an instant before Jason reached him he whirled around to meet the charge. She couldn’t help but scream when the sound of gunfire and groans came from the men in front of her.

~*~*~

“Did you hear that?” This time it was Manny who called for a stop. “It sounded like a gunshot.”

Francis nodded and quickened his step. “It came from ahead of us.”

~*~*~

Jason and the guard seemed to have survived the gunshot without injury. The gun went flying and landed near her feet while the men kept up their brutal fight. Scrambling for the gun Elizabeth awkwardly picked it up and pointed it at the two men on the ground in front of her.

The memory of the last time she’d held a gun crashed into her and the gun began shaking in her hands. The last time she’d held a gun she’d killed a man. She hadn’t meant to, she hadn’t even thought she’d hit scarman when she fired, but she had. She had hit him in the arm and when that happened he’d lost control of his own gun and it fired crazily killing the pilot and crashing the plane.

Now she was holding another gun and this one was pointed in Jason’s direction. There was no way she could risk shooting it. She might hit Jason. She was just going to have to hope that Jason won the fight, or if she had to fire Jason was nowhere near where she was aiming. Her focus returned to the fight and to her untrained eye it seemed like Jason was losing. Her fears were confirmed when the guard got his feet under Jason’s stomach and kicked him backwards. Jason flew back and landed hard on the ground and she winced in sympathy when she saw the awkward angle of his body.

The guard got to his feet and moved after Jason who seemed to be stunned because he was making no effort to get up off the ground. Catching the gleam of a knife in the guard’s hand she didn’t hesitate. Dropping the gun she ran forward, launching herself at the unsuspecting man. She crashed into him hard and they both fell heavily to the ground.

Aware of the knife in the man’s hands yet desperate to stop him from hurting Jason, Elizabeth fought as best she could, but she was handicapped both by the ties on her wrists and by her weakened condition. In spite of her valiant effort the fight was doomed from the very beginning. She tried to keep him pinned by grinding his face into the ground, she could hear his muffled curses and ground harder. The guard reared back violently and bucked her off sending her flying backwards through the air. She barely had time to scream when her body connected with the ground, her head with a rock and darkness claimed her.