Missing by dndmom (sequel to GNO)

[JRK Archiver]

This is the sequel to Girl's Night Out so please read that story before reading this one.

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 1

Dillon knocked at the office door, but entered before he heard Skye's invitation. "When were you going to leave?" he asked.

Skye raised an eyebrow, and checked her watch. "Dillon, the plane doesn't land for another 3 hours."

Dillon sat in the chair across from Skye's desk,leaning forward anxiously. "Well, yeah, but theres travel time, and I was kind of hoping we could stop off somewhere so I could pick up some flowers."

"Which would account for an hour, at most."

"Well, what if the plane lands early?"

"The plane isn't going to land early."

Dillon sighed. "Aren't you at all excited about this?"

"They've only been gone a week, and you've talked to Georgie every day, at least twice, not counting the constant instant messaging."

"Well, yeah, but it's not the same...."

Skye looked at her cousin and smiled. She did understand, to a certain extent - she missed talking to Mac. She and Mac weren’t involved the way it was obvious Georgie wanted them to be involved, at least not yet, but she did enjoy spending time with him, and with Georgie and Maxie, and she was looking forward to seeing the Scorpio family get back from Christmas in France. "How about we leave at 11:30?"

"11:00?" Dillon asked, hopefully.

"11:15." Skye offered.

Dillon grimaced and nodded. "OK...I'm going to head to my room. Maybe Georgie sent me an email or something before they left."

Skye smiled, "You mean you haven't checked already today?"

"Well, yeah, but it gets delayed sometimes, you know?"

Skye shook her head and smiled as Dillon left, and then looked at the stack of mail in front of her...it would be nice to get Georgie back in to work - she'd only been working for Skye for a couple of months, but had managed to make herself nearly indispensable in that time. Now, when some of the suppliers called, and Skye tried to send in orders herself, they'd politely declined, and said they'd call again when Georgie was back. Skye reached for the letter on the top of the stack, opened it, and pulled out the invoice book to make sure it matched....

Skye had been so absorbed in her work, she hadn't noticed the clock. Dillon knocked on the door again, and Skye looked at her watch - 11:15, on the dot. She straightened the desk up quickly, and yelled, "Coming!"

Dillon went to the coat rack, and held out Skye's coat to her. "There's a flower shop on the way to the airport, on Perkins street."

Skye shook her head as she put the coat on, "Tyler street - there's a cookie shop next to the one there. If you're getting flowers for Georgie, I can at least get something for Mac too." Dillon smiled and held the door open, following Skye to her car.

Dillon looked around the car as he got in. "You cleaned?" he said, surprised. The usual six inch deep layer of trash in the back seat was missing, and the empty boxes in the cargo area were gone.

"Well, if there are going to be six people, and luggage, then we're going to need all the space we can get..." Skye fastened her seat belt, and pulled out of the parking lot. The flower shop was only a few blocks away - Dillon went in to buy flowers, as Skye went to the cookie shop. She picked out a 12 inch chocolate chip cookie, and had the store write "Welcome home!" on it...the stomach might be the way to a man’s heart, and she couldn’t cook worth a damn - but she could buy with the best of them.

When she got back to the car, Dillon was already there. She saw three bouquets - "Three?" she asked.

"I didn't want Felicia and Maxie to feel left out."

"Ah..." Skye said. She'd known that Felicia was going to be there, but hadn’t really thought about it. Felicia and Mac had been divorced for years, and Skye and Mac were really just friends, but Skye still felt awkward around her. And Felicia had developed a habit of quietly leaving whenever Skye was around...

They got to the airport just after 12, and had nearly an hour to wait before the plane would get in. Dillon found the baggage carousel listings, and checked it against the itinerary Georgie had given him. "Carousel 3," he announced.

"You want something to eat?" Skye asked, "Isn't there an ice cream place around here somewhere?"

Dillon shook his head, "No - thanks, too keyed up to eat."

Skye stopped walking and looked at him. "Who are you, and what have you done to Dillon Quartermaine?"

Dillon had walked a few more steps before realizing Skye had stopped. He went back to her, hooked his arm into hers, "Come on, " he said as he dragged her forward, while she tried to hide her smile at how serious he was. They sat by the baggage carousel, and Skye started leafing through a newspaper that had been left on the seat next to her. Dillon tapped his foot nervously for a few seconds, and Skye glanced over at him with a disapproving look. It took Dillon a minute to notice Skye’s glare, and, when he did, he got up and started pacing. Just as annoying, Skye thought, but at least far enough away to ignore.

After a while, Skye stretched out, and nodded off - she was awakened by Dillon’s cell phone. Dillon was startled, and reached into his pocket, fumbling with the phone briefly as he opened it. He checked the caller ID, and smiled, his eyes lighting up. “You’re here!” he said as he answered the phone. He listened for a moment, and then turned to Skye, “They just landed,” he announced.

“I figured,” Skye said, smiling.

Dillon moved toward the railing surrounding the baggage area, and kept an eye on the escalators leading to the gates, a smile on his face as he talked with Georgie. Skye collected the bouquets and the cookie, and, her arms full, joined him by the railing. “They just got off the plane, “ he told Skye. In another few minutes, Skye saw Georgie on the escalator, anxiously trying to get past a group in front of her that weren’t moving. “I see you – I’m by the railing, “ Dillon said, waving. Georgie looked up from the escalator, and, as soon as she saw Dillon, she started waving back enthusiastically. When she hit the lower level, she sprinted for the opening in the railing that surrounded the baggage area.

Dillon ran for the opening himself, and Georgie jumped into his arms – he lifted her into the air, and spun her around, kissing her. Most of the people in the immediate vicinity had turned to look at them, smiling, Skye included.

Skye looked back at the escalator, and saw Mac and Maxie, loaded down with their own luggage, and the bags that Georgie had left behind. Skye tapped Dillon on the shoulder, “Hey – Mac’s here. Tone it down.”

Georgie and Dillon broke away from their kiss, and Georgie noticed that Skye was there. “Hi, “ she said, her face beaming.

“Hi, sweetie. Did you enjoy France?”

“Not bad – but it’s good to get home.”

Maxie joined them, shoving a backpack between Georgie and Dillon, “Hey, Dillon, “ she said, her voice tired.

Dillon looked at Maxie, and then remembered, looking over to Skye, who handed him the bouquets. “Um, welcome home, “ he said, laughing a little, and handing bouquets to both Georgie and Maxie.

“What, no kiss?” Maxie asked, pretending to pout.

“Hey, back off, “ Georgie warned playfully, “he’s taken.”

“Where’s your Mom? “ Skye asked.

Maxie sighed, and started talking so rapidly that Skye wondered if she were breathing, “Do you believe it? She actually got a new case while we were on vacation. One day we’ve got all these plans to see the tourist stuff, and the next thing you know, she’s all “go on without me, I’m sure you’ll have a great time.””

“So, she’s still there?” Dillon asked.

Georgie nodded – she and Dillon still had an arm wrapped around each other. Mac approached them, pushing an overflowing baggage cart. He saw Dillon holding the flowers that had been meant for Felicia, and commented, “Really, Dillon, you shouldn’t have.”

Skye laughed, and handed the cookie to him, “This is for you, “ she said, taking the last bouquet from Dillon, “And these were for Felicia. Maxie said she had a new case?”

Mac nodded, “She didn’t give me any details – said she shouldn’t be more than a couple of days.” He peeled the plastic off the cookie, broke off a piece, and then passed the cookie to Maxie. “Thanks- the only thing worse than French food is airplane food.”

Skye shook her head, “In Paris a week, and I bet you ate at McDonalds every day.”

“I would have – but they wouldn’t let me!” Mac exclaimed.

“Georgie and Maxie?”

“And Robin – two girl’s giving me the “But Dad” look is bad enough – when you throw in another one with a “But Uncle Mac,” I didn’t stand a chance.”

“And it wasn’t that bad, was it?”

Mac grimaced, “I had Robin translate the menu for me, so I was able to steer clear of some of the more…” Mac looked for a word.

“Adventurous foods?” Skye suggested.

“Objectionable items, “ Mac finished.

Maxie broke off a large chunk of cookie, and handed the rest to Georgie, “Mac’s right about the airline food, though – thanks for the cookie. You’re a goddess, I don’t care what Dillon says.”

“Hey!” Dillon started to complain, but was cut short as Georgie stuffed a piece of the cookie in his mouth.

“OK, “ Mac said, “Do we have all the bags?” Georgie and Maxie looked over the cart, and both nodded. “Right – then lets get going – I want to get home.”

“This way,” Skye said, leading them toward parking. Dillon and Georgie lagged a few steps behind, while Maxie described their trip for Skye, continuing on as they loaded the car up and
then all piled inside.

When Maxie paused for a breath, Mac broke in. “You know what I’d like?”

“For Maxie to stop talking about Paris?” Georgie asked – Maxie responded by hitting Georgie over the head with her bouquet.

“Fifth amendment on that one, “ Mac said, with Maxie hitting him with her bouquet in response as well. Mac laughed and continued, “No – I’d like a home cooked meal. Skye, Dillon – you’re invited.”

Georgie and Dillon both looked at Mac in surprise, and, in unison, asked, “Really?”

Mac shook his head, thinking – I’m not that bad, am I? “Yes, really,” he responded.

“Uh, thanks,” Dillon said nervously.

“Um, Dad?” Georgie started.

“Yes?” Mac said – he had an idea of what she was about to say.

“Dillon and I haven’t seen each other in a week, and I was wondering if…” Georgie paused, trying to figure out the least objectionable thing she could describe to Mac.

Mac sighed – he’d been right. “Home by six for supper.” He ordered.

Georgie smiled, “Thanks, Dad.”

“Geez, “ Maxie muttered, “talk about wrapped around your little finger….”

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 2

Dillon stretched out, running one hand up Georgie’s back, and his other hand over her hair. He hugged her closer and laughed. “God, that was amazing.”

Georgie smiled, and looked up at him, laughing as well. “Yeah, it was, wasn’t it?”

“We’re getting pretty good at this.”

Georgie shook her head slowly, a sly smile in the corner of her mouth, “Nunh –unh…I think we need more practice.”

Dillon smiled back, “A lot more practice…”. He put his arms around Georgie’s waist, pulled her up toward him, and kissed her. She reached up, putting her arms around Dillon’s neck, running her fingers through his hair. He brushed Georgie’s hair off her shoulder, and kissed her neck. She moaned softly, and pulled lightly on his hair – Dillon sat up, lifting Georgie up, and swiveled her backwards onto the bed. Georgie reached over to the nightstand for the box of condoms…

There was a loud knock on the door – Georgie and Dillon froze. “Is it locked?” she asked.

“Yeah – maybe they’ll go away.”

Tracy’s voice came through the door - “Dillon – I know you’re there – I need you to do something.”

“Or not, “ Georgie sighed. Dillon’s mom was at the top of the list of people she didn’t want to see right now.

Dillon sighed, and dropped his head, his forehead leaning against Georgie’s. “I’ll get rid of her.” He pointed her to the shoji screen in the corner of the room – a present from Brooke after she’d walked in on them once too often. Georgie grabbed a blanket from the bed, wrapped it around herself, and kissed Dillon on her way to hiding behind the screen. Dillon looked for his pants – their clothes were scattered around the room, and it took him a couple of seconds to find them. After he pulled his pants on, he flung the door open, and yelled, “What!?”

Tracy looked at Dillon, her expression half amused, and half a sneer. “And Happy Holidays to you too, “ she said, brushing past him into the room, and surveying it. “Have I interrupted something?” she asked, picking up Georgie’s bra.

Dillon crossed the room, taking the bra from Tracy, and stood in front of the screen. He ignored her question. “You said you needed something?”

“Darling – I’m so glad to see that you’ve given up on that.. what was her name? She was completely wrong for you.”

“Mom – you said you wanted something. Tell me what, and then leave.” Dillon said, trying not to lose his temper.

“Sweetheart, I can’t tell you how pleased I am with this. You know that girl was just after your money – she’d have ended up pregnant and claiming you’re the father, and ruined your life.”

“Hey!” Georgie yelled, moving out from behind the screen.

“Out! Now!” Dillon ordered his mother.

Tracy looked at Georgie, and her smile disappeared. “Oh. You’re back.” She said simply.

“Yes.” Georgie said, staring at Tracy, not wanting to say more, worried that her temper would take over.

“When did you get in?”

“This afternoon.” Georgie answered, her voice toneless.

Tracy sneered again, “Well, you do work fast.”

Georgie’s mouth dropped open, and she was about to lose her temper, but Dillon beat her to it -

“That’s it!” Dillon yelled, handing the bra to Georgie, and pushing Tracy out of the room. He followed her into the hall and closed the door behind him, “I’ve had it. She’s part of my life – and if you can’t treat her with respect, then you can’t be part of my life. Understood?”

Tracy’s mouth was drawn into a taught line, “Are you saying you’re choosing her over me?”

“If you’re going to make it that – then yes.”

Tracy frowned, and tucked her purse under her arm. She looked down her nose at Dillon. “You’re going to end up regretting this, “ she said as she stomped away, hoping that Dillon didn’t see the tear in the corner of her eye.

Dillon watched her walk away. He didn’t have a choice – it wasn’t Georgie that Tracy objected to – it was that it was possible for him to love someone more than he loved her. Dillon sighed, and opened the door slightly, peering into the room. Georgie sat on the corner of the bed, still wrapped in the blanket. Dillon sat next to her, and hugged her tightly. “I’m sorry, “ he whispered into her ear.

“Why does she hate me?” Georgie asked, her voice breaking.

Dillon pulled back, putting his hands on Georgie’s shoulders, and looked into her eyes, “It’s not you – it’s that I love you.”

Georgie sniffed, her eyes starting to tear up a little, “You know what? Loving you is a lot more important than what she thinks of me.”

Dillon smiled, and framed Georgie’s face with his hands, kissing her softly. They laid back down on the bed, holding each other, until they both drifted off to sleep.


Skye and Maxie were at the supermarket, trying to figure out what to make for supper. They’d dropped Mac off at the house, so he could sort the luggage and the mail that had accumulated behind the front door. Skye pushed the cart, following Maxie, who was continuing her story about the trip to Paris – she was at the part Georgie had asked her not to talk about in front of Dillon – where two young French men had spent a day following Georgie and Maxie around Paris after their Mom had started on her new case. Maxie and Georgie had nicknamed the pair “Pierre” and “Jean Claude”.

“Were they cute?” Skye asked.

Maxie smiled, “Pierre was. Jean Claude… well, let’s just say it didn’t look like he’d mastered the art of personal hygiene.”

“Ouch, “ Skye laughed.

“They backed right down when Pierre grabbed Georgie and kissed her. I don’t think they expected her to give him a right hook.”

Skye smiled proudly, “That’s my girl.”

Maxie laughed, “Mac said the same thing.”

Maxie led Skye to the checkout, and Skye looked at the contents of the cart. “So – what does this turn into?”

Maxie held up a large container of chili powder. “Chili. Bobbie gave me the recipe.”



Tracy had taken a wrong turn when she tried to leave the Haunted Star, and ended up finding herself on a bar on the upper deck. She looked inside and sighed. What the hell, she thought, I could use a drink. She sat down at the bar, and the bartender asked, “What would you like, ma’am?”

Tracy looked at him, and wondered if he were old enough to drink. “Vodka martini, two olives.” The bartender returned a minute later, setting the drink on a coaster in front of her. Tracy took a sip, and looked at the bartender in surprise. “Young man, this is the best vodka martini I’ve had outside of Manhattan.”

The bartender smiled, “Thank you, ma’am.”

“Where did you learn to make them?”

“My mother owned a bar back in Texas – I’d help out when things got busy.”

Tracy smiled. “That can’t have been legal.”

The bartender smiled back. “I guess not. Lucky thing the sheriff was her best customer.” He started to wipe down the bar, “Will you be running a tab, ma’am?”

Tracy finished off the martini. “Oh, yes. And, another one of these, please.” Tracy extended her hand, “I’m Tracy Quartermaine,” she said, knowing the value of being on good terms with her bartender.

The bartender shook the offered hand, “Deacon Winslow.”



Georgie reached over Dillon to hit the snooze alarm. They’d set it as soon as they got to the room so they’d be sure to leave in time to make it back for supper. Dillon blinked, and groggily asked, “What?”

Georgie sat up, and started collecting her clothes and putting them on. “We’ve got to get to my house – that was the third snooze. I didn’t want to wake you, but we sort of ran out of “extra” time.” Dillon sat up, yawned, and started trying to scratch his back. Georgie saw he couldn’t quite reach the spot he wanted to scratch, and knelt behind him, scratching the spot it looked like he was aiming for.

Dillon groaned, “Up a little…right….down, “ he directed, with Georgie following along. “Mmmm,” Dillon hummed as Georgie found the spot he’d been trying to reach. He smiled, “Have I mentioned how much I love you?”

“Not in the last five minutes, “ Georgie said, kissing him. She got off the bed, and threw Dillon’s clothes at him. “We should get going. Unless you want to tell Mac why we’re late.”

Dillon pulled his shirt over his head, yawning again. Georgie stood in front of him, and hugged him to her chest. “Ok, “ Dillon said, his voice muffled, “You really need to stop that if we’re going to get out of here soon.”

Georgie smiled, and pulled back. “Party pooper.”

Dillon put his socks on, “Not me. If it were up to me, we’d stay in bed until morning.”

“Sleeping?”

Dillon smiled, “Well – that’s one option.” He stood up, hugging Georgie, “And we really need to leave before I start thinking of the other options.”

Georgie kissed Dillon quickly, and grabbed his hand, “OK – let’s go face the family dinner.”



Mac sat at the dining room table sorting through mail as Skye and Maxie brought in two bags of groceries. He looked up, “Well, you two are running late.”

Maxie stuck her tongue out at Mac, “Hey, I’m a picky shopper.”

“You had some messages on the answering machine, “ Mac said to Maxie, as he stood to take the groceries from Skye. Maxie’s eyes lit up, and she shoved her grocery bag at Mac as well. Mac shook his head, and watched Maxie run to the answering machine. Skye held the kitchen door open for Mac, and they started unpacking the groceries. Mac looked at the container of chili powder. “Oh no,” he muttered.

“What?” Skye asked.

“Chili?”

“Yeah – she said it was Bobbi’s recipe.”

“It is, “ Mac said, looking across the counter, and pulling some of the ingredients aside, “But it’s Maxie’s interpretation of Bobbi’s recipe.”

“And that’s a bad thing?”

“For most mere mortals, yeah, “ Mac grabbed a bag of hot peppers, and a bottle of Cayenne, and opened the cabinet over the fridge, hiding the items behind a pack of paper towels.

Maxie returned to the kitchen, a smile on her face. “Is your social life still in good standing?” Mac asked.

“Do you really want to know?” Maxie asked.

Mac thought for a second. “Actually, no, I don’t think I do.”

“Smart man, “ Maxie said, starting to push Mac out of the kitchen, “Now leave – we’ve got cooking to do.” Mac waved to Skye on his way out. Maxie looked at the ingredients on the counter, seeing that some items were missing. She thought for a minute, and started searching the cabinets – when she got to the one over the fridge she pulled out the hot peppers and cayenne that Mac had hidden. “He’s such a wimp when it comes to chili, “ Maxie laughed.



Dillon had parked his car in the lot in back of the docks, and Georgie and Dillon had taken the stairs down to the dock by Kelly’s as a shortcut. Georgie slipped on a patch of ice, and Dillon caught her before she hit the ground. He helped her up, and they both laughed, with Georgie kissing Dillon as he pulled her up. Dillon hugged Georgie and whispered in her ear, “We need to get going, remember?”

Georgie looked in Dillon’s eyes, and nodded – but then she looked past him to the sidewalk by the top of the stairs and rolled her eyes. “”Aren’t they cute?” alert, 11 o’clock.”

“What?” Dillon asked, confused, turning around to look where Georgie had indicated. Jasper Jax and Courtney Matthews were at the top of the stairs looking down at them and smiling – and Georgie was almost right. “Not quite – that’s not just an “aren’t they cute” – it’s an “aww, aren’t they cute”.”

Georgie smiled, “So – when do we graduate from cute to hot and sexy?”

Dillon narrowed his eyes, “Um – if you weren’t paying attention, that was a couple of hours ago.”

Georgie hit Dillon playfully. “No, moron, you’ve always been hot and sexy. I mean have people look at us and think sexy instead of cute.”

“Oh…,” Dillon said, and smiled. “Well, whatever mademoiselle wants.” Dillon grabbed Georgie, spun her around, and dipped her, giving her a long, unmistakeably sexy kiss. He pulled her back up, and spun her around to face Courtney and Jax. He bowed to them, with Georgie following his lead and bowing as well.



Jax and Courtney looked down at them, laughing. “I have never been that young.” Jax shook his head.

“So much for “aren’t they cute”,” Courtney said.

“You know, I think that was a not very subtle way of asking to be left alone.”

“Actually, for Dillon, I think that was subtle.” Courtney and Jax waved at Dillon and Georgie, and then turned to leave, with Jax putting his arm around Courtney. Courtney reached into her pockets for her gloves, and found one missing. “Hang on a second,” she said, retracing her steps to look for the glove.

“What is it?” Jax asked.

Courtney held up one glove, “I’m missing one, “ she explained.

Jax turned around to look, and saw it back by the stairs. “There it is, “ he said, going back to retrieve the glove. He looked back down to Georgie and Dillon – they were back to “cute” mode. He turned back to Courtney, but caught something in the corner of his eye, and looked back down to the docks.

There were two figures in the shadows behind Dillon, moving toward the teenagers. Jax moved a little closer – something was wrong, but there wasn’t anything obvious. Concerned, he started down the stairs – that was when he saw one of the figures held a gun.

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 3

Courtney saw Jax start down the stairs, and went back to the railing to see why. Georgie and Dillon were still there, but there were two men on the docks…they looked familiar she thought. One of the men was well over 6 feet, and muscular. The other man was smaller, and something about him was disturbing. She saw something glint in the light illuminating the dock – and realized that the smaller man had a gun, and was moving toward Dillon and Georgie. “No!” she yelled, reaching down to pull off her heels so she could run down the stairs to help.

Georgie and Dillon turned to look at Courtney, surprised by her yell. The smaller man was startled, and brought the butt of the gun down over the back of Dillon’s head. Dillon collapsed, and Georgie screamed, trying to keep him from falling to the ground – but the larger of the two men pulled her away from behind, pinning her arms to her side with one of his arms, and stopping her screams with a gloved hand over her mouth. Georgie struggled to break free, but the larger man was too strong.

Jax ran toward them, and was about to tackle the larger man, but the smaller man spun around, and shot at him. Jax collapsed, shot in the leg.. “We’re going,” the larger man said gruffly to the smaller one, as he dragged Georgie to the alley in the back of the dock. The smaller man looked at Courtney, approaching them quickly, and aimed the pistol at her. “Now!” the larger man ordered, and the smaller man reluctantly followed, muttering something, obviously not wanting to leave any witnesses.

Courtney ran to Jax, “Are you ok?” she asked.

“I’ll be fine – we’ve got to get the police, “ Jax grimaced – it was about the same spot where Faith had shot him.

“Call them, “ Courtney said, “I don’t want to let them get away.” She followed the two men to the alley.

“No! You’ll get hurt!” Jax yelled, watching her run after the men, and unable to follow. He pulled his cell phone out and dialed 911.

Courtney reached the parking lot at the end of the alley, and saw the two men shove Georgie into the trunk of a black Lincoln Continental. Georgie was struggling, and tried to climb out as they closed the trunk – it slammed painfully against a leg that she’d tried to wedge out of the car. The smaller man pushed her back into the trunk, and the larger closed it again.

Courtney ran to the car, but the smaller man heard her, and spun around, taking aim. The larger man yelled, “No!”, and pushed the gun out of the way as the smaller man shot – Courtney heard the bullet rush past her ear. “Idiot – she’s Sonny’s sister!”

The two men got into the car before Courtney could reach them, and it sped away. Courtney checked the license plate – MWP767. She picked up a rock and flung it at the car – it got the back right tail light, breaking the red cover and leaving a spot of bright white light in the middle of the red. She collapsed to her knees, trying to catch her breath, and pulled out her cell phone.



Lucky, Liz, Nicholas and Emily had been in Kelly’s, with Mike taking their order when they heard the first shot from the dock. “Call 911!” Lucky yelled, racing out the door, with Nicholas a step behind him. Emily and Liz looked at each other for a moment, and ran after them as Mike headed for the phone in back of the counter.

Lucky raced to the dock – most of the crimes in the area had been there. He looked down at the dock, and saw Dillon Quartermaine on the ground, a small pool of blood under his head – Jasper Jax was next to him, his leg bleeding, but he was trying to stop the blood from Dillon’s wound. “This way!” he yelled to Nicholas, taking the stairs two at a time.

Jax saw Lucky and pointed to the alley, “They took Georgie Jones – Courtney is chasing them – the alley!” There was another shot – all the color drained from Jax’s face.

Lucky and Nicholas ran through the alley – they found Courtney in the parking lot, she looked up at them – she hadn’t been able to get a signal, so couldn’t get the information to 911. “They’ve got Georgie – black Continental, New York plates, MWP767, right tail light has a broken cover“ she said breathlessly. Lucky pulled his radio out, and called the information in. Nicholas helped Courtney to her feet, and, she continued, “Two men, one over 6 feet tall, about 250 pounds, dark hair. The other, probably about 5’8’’ or so – maybe 160 pounds, dirty blond hair, kind of scraggly looking.” Lucky relayed the information again. Courtney leaned against Nicholas – the cold was starting to hurt her feet – “I think they may have worked for Sonny or Jason at some point – they recognized me.”

Nicholas noticed Courtney was barefoot, “Look – sorry if this is forward, but,” he picked her up, “Your feet look like they might be painful.”

Courtney nodded, “Thanks.”

The three of them headed back to the alley – forensics might want to go over the area, and Lucky thought it best if they disturbed the scene as little as possible. Lucky took off his jacket, and put it on the ground next to Jax – Nicholas helped Courtney down next to Jax, and she reached over and hugged Jax, tearing up. The EMTs had arrived, and were putting Dillon on a stretcher – Liz tended to Jax’s leg while they waited for a second ambulance. Jax looked at Courtney, “Are you ok? There was a shot.” He held her at arms length and looked her over, making sure she hadn’t been wounded.

She nodded, “I’m fine – the only thing wrong with me is cold feet. How’s Dillon?”

“I don’t know, “ Jax muttered, “there was a lot of blood – but it was a head wound, and they always bleed a lot.”

Courtney closed her eyes – “They got Georgie…there wasn’t anything I could do…” she started to cry.




Mac answered the phone – “Scorpio.”

“Mac, it’s Rick Lansing.”

“I’m still on vacation, Rick.”

“I know Mac – I’m sorry…it’s, “ Rick swallowed, and took a deep breath, “Mac it’s Georgie.”

Mac’s felt a knot in his stomach, “What?”

“She’s been kidnapped. We’ve got a very good description – we’re about to issue an Amber Alert, but wanted to tell you first.”

Mac stumbled backwards, bracing himself against the couch. “Kidnapped…” he repeated, letting it sink in. Stop – think like a cop, not a father, he told himself. “Dillon should have been with her,” he said, thinking out loud.

“He’s on his way to the hospital, along with the two witnesses.”

“Witnesses? Why are they going to the hospital?”

“They tried to help Georgie – I know that Jasper Jax was shot, I’m not sure if Courtney Matthews was injured, or if she’s just going with Jax.”

“What happened to Dillon?”

“The initial report says head trauma, I haven’t got any further details.”

Mac thought for a moment – he needed to be at the hospital – that’s where the witnesses were, and where the interviews would be done. “Thanks for calling. You don’t need to tell me I can’t work on this – but please promise me that you’ll get the details to me as soon as you get them – no matter what they are.”

“You’ve got my word on that. I’m sorry, Mac - you know we’ve got everything on this.”

“I know…thanks.” Mac hung up, and leaned against the couch, digging his hands into the fabric. Why Georgie? Mac had tried to teach Maxie and Georgie everything he’d learned about how to survive. He knew she was a smart girl – but he hoped she’d been paying attention.



Tracy polished off her fourth martini, ordered another, and turned back to the argument she’d been having with JD, the equipment manager at L&B, who had showed up at the bar shortly after she did, and who, by now, had a half dozen empty longnecks in front of him. She was arguing that the entire music industry needed to be reinvented in the age of the internet, that the album format had been an outgrowth of the media used by the music- with a change in the media, there needed to be a change it the format. JD was more of a traditionalist, and argued that the established format would survive the technological changes. Both Tracy and JD were impressed that the other’s argument seemed to get more eloquent the more they drank.

Deacon started to take away the empty bottles and glasses, and glanced up at the television – there was a news bulletin, and the “Amber Alert” crawler at the bottom of the screen caught his attention…it was about Georgie. “Shit, “ he muttered, running from around the bar to find Luke – he’d want to know about this.

Luke was at the pool table, leaning over it, sizing up a shot. Deacon ran to him, and tapped him on the shoulder, telling Luke about the alert. Luke’s mouth dropped open, and he stared at Deacon for a second – then he ran back to the television, turning the volume up. “Everyone! Shut the hell up!” he yelled, trying to quiet the bar so he could hear the announcer.

JD and Tracy stopped arguing and looked at the TV. Tracy’s face lost all color as she listened to the details – Dillon would have tried to stop the kidnapping, and they’d said someone had been injured, but hadn’t mentioned who. She pulled out he cell phone and dialed Dillon’s number – there wasn’t an answer.

The announcer finished, and they went back to the regular program, but the crawler kept repeating the details about the car and the kidnappers – Luke went back to the pool table and jumped on top of it. “Ladies and Gentlemen – I need your attention!” he announced. “A lot of you know Georgie Jones – the blond girl who works for Skye. They just issued an Amber Alert – someone kidnapped her. The details are, “ Deacon handed him a paper that he’d written the information on, “Black Lincoln Continental, New York plates, MWP767, cracked right tail light – two kidnappers – they’re armed, and have already shot someone, “ he glanced back at the paper, “One kidnapper – over 6 feet tall, 250 pounds, the other 5’8”, 160, scraggly blond hair.” Luke turned around, surveying the customers, “We’re closing now – and I expect every one of you who’s sober enough to drive to be out there looking for Georgie.” He looked around – they were all staring at him in shocked silence. “Well – get going!”

Luke jumped off the table, and went back to the bar as the room emptied out. Tracy stared at her cell phone, wondering who to call next. Luke put his hands on Tracy’s shoulders, and pushed her back so she was sitting up straight and looking at him. “Dillon’s a survivor – Quartermaine all the way through. He’s ok,” Luke tried to assure her, not entirely sure he believed it himself.

Tracy nodded, staring blankly ahead. Deacon looked at JD, and shrugged. JD motioned for Deacon to move closer, and spoke softly so Tracy wouldn’t hear. “That’s Ned and Dillon’s Mom.” Deacon nodded, finally realizing why this was hitting her so hard.

Tracy’s phone rang, and she jumped, staring at it. She looked at the caller ID – it was Alan, and she started shaking her head. Alan would have been at the hospital – if he were calling…the phone rang again, and she kept staring at it. Luke took the phone from her hand, and Tracy didn’t protest. “Alan?” Luke asked.

“Who is this?”

“It’s Luke – Tracy’s at the Haunted Star…we saw the Amber Alert, “ Luke explained.

“Tell her Dillon’s ok – he has a concussion, and needed some stitches, but he’s going to be ok. We just need to keep him for observation for a day or two.”

Luke sighed – at least there was some good news, “Thanks – we’ll get her over to the hospital.” Luke shut the phone and looked at Tracy. “Concussion, and stitches, but Alan says he’s going to be ok.

Tracy nodded, and reached for her phone. “Thank you, “ she said hoarsely, collecting her jacket and purse, and walking unsteadily away from the bar.

“No, no, no, “ Luke said, following her. He motioned to Deacon and JD, “Deke’s going to take you to the hospital, and then he and JD are going to look for Georgie.” Deacon nodded, and both he and JD put on their jackets.

Tracy nodded, trying to keep her face impassive, “All right.”

Deacon took her arm to help steady her walk, “This way, ma’am,” and the three headed to the parking lot.

Luke looked over the now empty bar…he had people looking for Georgie, but there had to be something else he could do. He considered the facts he had – they had taken Georgie while there had been witnesses – that lessened the possibility that it was a random wrong time, wrong place incident – unless they were really stupid, they’d have waited for a better time. So they had been specifically after Georgie, and hadn’t cared who got in the way. As far as he knew, Georgie hadn’t made any enemies like those two – it was most likely that they were hired muscle.

He wondered who might have hired them….this was classic Cassadine, but Helena was dead, and probably didn’t even know or care that Georgie existed. Tracy would have specified that Dillon not be injured – and, given her reaction, had been as surprised as anyone else. If there had been anything for her to let slip, she would have, especially after a couple of Deke’s martinis.
Lorenzo Alcazar? He might blame her for his niece’s death, but he would have just had her killed – there was too much risk that it would be traced back at him with a kidnapping.

So – not one of Georgie’s enemies, and not random….

Luke closed his eyes – the best way to get revenge on a parent is to hurt their children, he thought, remembering back to when Lucky had been kidnapped. Mac was police commissioner, and Felicia was a private investigator – God knew how many enemies they might have. Hell, there was Frisco too – he probably had more enemies than Mac and Felicia together.

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 4

Georgie forced herself to stay calm – Mac had taught her and Maxie that staying calm and observing her situation would be her best chance for survival. OK – she thought, is there a way out of the trunk? She reached around looking for the release cord that should have been inside the trunk – she found it, and tried to pull on it, but there was no resistance. They must have cut the cable.

There would still be the remote release lever for the trunk – she found the latch and felt for the wire. It had been cut as well, too short for her to use it to open the trunk. She tried pulling on the latch, but didn’t have the leverage she needed to open it.

Did the rear seats fold down? She tried pushing them, and looked for a release for them, but there wasn’t any.

Mac told her once about a little girl who’d been kidnapped, but had knocked out the tail lights from inside the trunk, and was rescued when the police pulled them over – she reached to the corner of the trunk, and felt for the connection to the lights, but the back of the lights was covered with something smooth. In the dark, Georgie felt the covering – it was smooth, but had an almost fabric like texture.

Duct tape, she thought, following the line of the tape until she found an edge, and then digging her fingernails underneath it until it peeled up. She ripped off several strips, and wound them around the latch where the wires had been cut. The end of the cut wire sliced into a finger, but she barely noticed – she threaded the tape through an opening in the metal framework of the trunk for leverage, and tugged on the tape - the latch released.

Georgie’s heart raced, and she quickly grabbed the trunk lid to keep it from swinging open so the men wouldn’t notice. She got onto her knees, and lifted the floor covering up, looking for the jack – she might need the tire iron from it.

The car slowed down, and turned – Georgie took a deep breath, pushed the trunk open, and jumped out, trying to roll. As she hit the ground, her breath was knocked out of her, and, when she finally stopped rolling, it took her a moment to get it back. She looked over at the car – it had stopped a little further on, and the two men were getting out. One of them had a flashlight, and shone it back in her direction. Georgie grabbed the tire iron and dived for the undergrowth by the side of the road.


Dillon’s head throbbed, and there was a ringing in his ears. He opened his eyes slowly, and grimaced at the brightly lit room. After a moment, he tried again and looked around – he was in a bed – a hospital bed? he wondered. Ned stood nearby, his arms wrapped around Brooke, who had her head buried in his chest. Dillon tried to ask what was going on, but all he was able to manage was a groan.

Ned looked over at him, and Dillon thought he saw an obviously forced smile. “Hey, little brother,” he said, his voice cracking. Brooke turned toward Dillon, and he could see tears rolling down her face, her mascara tracing lines down her cheeks.

Dillon tried to sit up, “What…” he started to ask.

Ned walked over to him, “You need to stay still, you’ve got a concussion and need to rest.”

Dillon tried to remember what had happened, and then he realized Georgie wasn’t there, “Georgie?” he asked.

Ned swallowed, and Dillon saw Brooke take his hand, “She’s fine – you just need to rest.”

Dillon shook his head – he knew Ned well enough by now to know when he was lying. “If she’s fine, then I want to see her,” Dillon said obstinately, swinging his legs around to the side of the bed, and swaying a little as he got dizzy…he noticed he was in a hospital gown.

Brooke went to the bed, and took his hands – he looked at her. He’d never seen her so upset – his heart started racing. Brooke took in a deep breath, and closed her eyes, “Dillon – you and Georgie were attacked tonight.”

“Attacked?” Dillon asked, beginning to put the pieces together. “Where’s Georgie?” He demanded, starting to get alarmed and trying to climb out of the bed – Ned grabbed Dillon’s arm, and pushed him back. “I need to see her!” Dillon protested loudly, struggling to get past Ned. Ned held Dillon in place, helped a moment later by an orderly. Monica had heard Dillon yell, and entered the room unnoticed, administering a sedative that would force Dillon to rest, whether or not he wanted to.



Georgie held her breath as the men passed by on the road, looking for her. They had turned off the highway, and were on a narrow dirt road. Georgie could see lights in the direction they’d come from – that had to be the highway. If she could make it back there, she could get help..

The men started combing through the underbrush, one on each side of the road. She looked past the brush on her side of the road – the trees were too dense for her to run through them.

The smaller one – the one who had hurt Dillon – was getting closer. Georgie grabbed a stone from the road, and tossed it in back on the man. He turned, going back toward the car, and Georgie ran for the highway, limping slightly on the leg that had been caught in the trunk door, the adrenaline helping her get past the pain.

Georgie heard footsteps catching up behind her, and, as she felt a hand grab the back of her coat, she spun around and swung blindly with the tire iron – the smaller man stumbled and fell. She ran for the highway again – but there were more footsteps. Georgie tried to swing the iron again, but it was the larger man this time, and he knew she had a weapon. He grabbed the tire iron with one hand, and Georgie’s coat with the other. “Sorry, little lady, not this time,” he said, wrapping his arm around her and dragging her back toward the car.

The smaller man got up, massaging his stomach. As the larger one passed with Georgie, the smaller one reached out and took a swing at Georgie’s stomach. The larger man was ready, and caught his fist, pushing the smaller man back to the ground. “She’s supposed to be delivered unharmed, remember?”

“The bitch hit me with a tire iron!” the smaller man grumbled, as he struggled to stand up again.

“Christ – she’s a kid. How much harm can she do?” The smaller man still glared, “Look – suck it up. You want to explain why you had to hit her?” The smaller man grimaced, and shook his head. The larger man dragged Georgie back to the car, picked her up and threw her back into the trunk.

She heard him sit on the lid, and then what sounded like a phone conversation. “The tracking is on…yeah, I know – the kid got in the way….her leg’s busted up a little, but she found her way out of the trunk, and she sure as hell could run on it….yeah – the car’s set up…’kay, we’ll be here.”

Georgie hit the backlight on her watch – 7:03…she should have been home now, watching Dillon nervously try to make conversation with Mac. And Dillon….one minute they’d been together, in each other’s arms, and the next, he was falling, and she was being dragged away. She bit her lip – don’t start crying, you won’t stop, she told herself. He had to be ok – right now, he’d be looking for her, along with Mac.

She sat hunched over in the trunk, trying to listen to the men’s muffled conversation. After what seemed like hours, she heard a car pull up, and thought, excitedly, that they’d help her. Then she realized that the car had stopped and the two men were talking to whoever had been in the car. It had to be whoever was at the other end of the phone.

The trunk opened, and she was pulled out again. There was a van – she saw “DiPaolo and Sons Electricians” written across the side. The larger man dragged her to the back of the van, where two other men, their faces in the shadows, opened the doors, and pushed her in. One of the men pulled open an equipment cage inside the van and shoved Georgie in. They locked the cage, and the door. Georgie looked around – even less of a chance to get out of here. There was a blanket and a bottle of water – she wrapped herself in the blanket and dropped to the floor, numbly wondering how long it would be before she got another chance to try to run - or until Mac and Dillon showed up to rescue her.



Maxie didn’t remember the exact words Mac had used – all she remembered was picturing Georgie locked away somewhere. Years before, she and Georgie had been kidnapped, and she remembered how scared Georgie had been, and that helping her through it had been the only way that she’d been able to cope herself. And now, her little sister was alone.

She kept trying to call Felicia, but there wasn’t an answer – she did the math – 6 hours later, it would be the middle of the night there. Felicia probably couldn’t hear the phone – when she was tired, she’d sleep through anything.

Mac had taken them to the hospital – for Maxie and Skye to visit Dillon, and, although he didn’t say, she knew so that he could talk to the witnesses. He might not be officially on the case, but he would definitely be on it unofficially. And, knowing that Mac would do anything for Georgie, or Robin, or her was reassuring.

Skye sat down next to Maxie and handed her a cup of cocoa. “Thanks,” Maxie said, taking a sip. It tasted unusual, and she looked at Skye, “Vodka?” she asked.

Skye smiled weakly, “You looked like you needed a sedative.”

“Where’d you get it?”

“Hey, “ Skye put an arm around Maxie’s shoulder, “I’m a Quartermaine.”


Mac looked through the blinds in the examining room to the waiting room outside. Skye and Maxie were sitting next to each other talking, and Skye had her arm around Maxie – he was glad she was there for Maxie. Felicia should have been there, but Skye had stepped in to fill the void without even being asked. He’d tried to reach Felicia, but she hadn’t answered either her cell phone, or the phone at her hotel room. She was probably on a stakeout. Robin might have been able to reach her, but he didn’t want to call her in the middle of the night right now – if he waited a little longer, there might be something more hopeful to tell her. He heard a throat being cleared behind him and turned around - Courtney and Sonny stood by the door.

Courtney crossed the room to Mac, and put her hand on his arm. “Mac, I’m so sorry,” she said, her voice wavering.

Mac shook his head, “What you told the police about the men and the car may be the best chance that Georgie’s got. You couldn’t have done any more – you put yourself in danger for her. Thank you.”

Courtney sighed, and looked back to Sonny, who approached them. “I may not have been in as much danger as you think.” Mac looked at her quizzically. “The men recognized me. They knew I’m Sonny’s sister, and that stopped them from shooting me.”

Mac looked to Sonny, who moved closer, standing between Courtney and Mac. “From what Courtney said, I think I know who the men are.”

Mac shook his head, “You need to tell the police this, not me.”

Sonny held up a hand, “I already have. But I wanted to tell you personally.”

“OK, “ Mac nodded, “Who are they?”

“They used to work for me, but they don’t now. One of the men made some, “ he paused, looking for a polite phrase, “…inappropriate comments. Jason knew them better than I did, and he’s telling the police everything he knows now.”

“Do you know why they might have taken her? Any idea at all?” Mac asked – he’d take pure speculation at this point.

Sonny looked down for a moment, and then back up at Mac. He shook his head, “No. But, from what I know of them, I think they were working for someone.”

“Why?”

Sonny frowned. “I’m careful about who I hire. Especially since I’ve started having children in my life. I know what these men have done in the past, and they’ve never kidnapped little girls – believe me, I would have known. They took her because they were paid to take her.”

Mac grimaced and looked at Sonny. “I’m not sure if that makes this better or worse.”

“Better, “ Sonny assured him, “If they were paid to take her, then she’s got value to them, and to whoever hired them.”

Mac considered this, and nodded, “Good point. But what kind of value?”

Sonny shook his head, “I don’t know.” He looked to Courtney, and squeezed her arm as he turned to leave. By the door he paused and turned back. “Mac – if you need anything from me to find her, please don’t hesitate.”

“Thanks. If it comes to that, I will.”



Mac found Dillon’s room, and sat in the chair by the bed watching him sleep. It was ironic – he used to think this kid in the hospital bed was the most dangerous thing in Georgie’s life, and now he wished he still thought that way. He leaned forward in the chair, and rubbed his eyes. He was exhausted, but there was no way he could rest.

He heard a sound by the door, and looked up – Skye was in the doorway. “Maxie fell asleep, “ she explained.

Mac laughed humorlessly, “How?”

There was a slight smile at the corner of Skye’s mouth. “I spiked her cocoa.”

Mac shook his head in disbelief, “I never thought I’d say “thank you” to someone for that, “ he got up and hugged her.

Skye hugged him back. “I’ve got more vodka. You could use some rest too, “ she said softly, a note of concern in her voice.

Mac pulled away, “Thanks, no, “ he shook his head. “It wouldn’t help.”

“OK, “ Skye nodded. She went to the bedside, and brushed a stray hair from Dillon’s face. “He looks so young, “ she whispered.

Mac stood next to her. “I was thinking about how dangerous I used to think he was.”

Skye smiled sadly, “Monica said she had to sedate him. He was looking for Georgie.”

“Does he know yet?” Mac asked. Skye shook her head. “It’s going to hit him hard. He’s going to wonder how he could have let it happen.”

Skye looked at Mac, worried, “You know there wasn’t anything he could have done.”

Mac nodded, “I know, and, if he thinks about it, he’s going to know. But he’s still going to get torn up over it.”

Skye looked at the expression on Mac’s face. “You’ve been there, haven’t you?”

Mac grimaced, and nodded, “I’ll tell you about it sometime.”

There was a knock on the door, and they both turned. Lucky looked into the room. “Rick wants to see you, Mac.”

“Have they found something?” Mac asked. He felt Skye reach for this hand.

Lucky nodded, “They found the car, but it looks like they moved Georgie to a different vehicle.”
Mac’s face hardened, and Skye squeezed his hand harder. “Forensics is going over the car now, but Rick wanted to talk to you.”

Mac nodded, and let go of Skye’s hand, moving his arm around her shoulder. She slipped her arm around his waist, and they followed Lucky out of the room.

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 5

Rick had commandeered Alan’s office to interview the witnesses. Normally Mac would have been interviewing them, or one of the senior detectives, but Mac was too close to the case, and none of the senior detectives were available. He had calls out, trying to get everyone in town back from vacation, but time was the most important thing right now.

Lucky opened the door, “In here,” he said to Mac, who entered, holding hands with Skye. Rick hadn’t known about that – he wondered briefly how long they’d been involved.

“Lucky said they moved her to a different car, “ Mac prompted.

Rick nodded, “That’s what it looks like. We found the car Courtney described, and forensics is checking it.” Rick motioned for Mac to sit down, and Lucky pulled a chair to the table for Skye as well. Rick sat down, and slid a folder across the table to Mac. “It looks like they planted this – they were pretty careful about cleaning up the car, so it doesn’t seem likely this would have been left. I was wondering if anything in this might mean something to you.”

Mac looked from Rick to the folder, and opened it. “What…” he gasped as he looked at the contents – there were photos of Georgie, dozens of them. He looked up at Rick.

Rick nodded, “They’ve been dusted for prints.”

Mac started to leaf through the photos. Some of them were recent – there was one that was obviously taken in Paris a few days before. He recognized other specific ones – Georgie and Dillon in costumes for a Halloween party, and at a dance at the high school, but some of the photos didn’t have a point of reference – Georgie at Kelly’s, or the Haunted Star. He paused at one from the Haunted Star. She was dressed in a short skirt, tight top and heels – it looked like something Maxie would have bought and hid from him.

Skye saw his concern, and looked at the picture. “That was the night her drink got spiked.”

Mac looked at her, “She wasn’t dressed like that when I saw her.”

“No, she was in a nightgown when you caught up to her, “ Skye reminded him.

Mac shook his head, “If I had seen that outfit, she’d have been grounded a lot longer, “ he muttered absently. He paused again – there was a picture of Georgie, in a shower, possibly at school. It was grainy, as if it had been taken on a picture phone. “Jesus, “ he said softly.

Skye looked at it. “Oh, “ she said quietly.

“Oh?” Mac asked, surprised that she seemed to know about the picture.

“That must have been one of the pictures Tracy blackmailed Dillon with.”

Mac looked at her, shocked, “She did what?”

Skye looked nervously from Mac to Rick, Rick’s expression mirroring Mac’s. “I’m sorry – I thought you knew.”

“When? What happened?” Mac demanded.

Skye took a deep breath, “It was right after the fire. Dillon had the deciding vote for Tracy to take over ELQ, and Tracy wasn’t sure he’d vote for her, so Tracy talked Sage Alcazar into taking those pictures and posting them on the hospital web site. Dillon found them, and took them off the site, but Tracy told him they’d re-appear somewhere else if he didn’t do what she wanted.”

Mac, Rick and Lucky all had their mouths open in shock. “My God, “ Rick said.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me?” Mac asked.

“I don’t know, “ Skye shook her head, “I guess you were in the hospital, and they didn’t want to get you upset.”

Mac turned the last picture face down, and closed his eyes. “Rick, when this is over,”

Rick interrupted him, “Conspiracy to commit child pornography. I’m sure we can find witnesses to testify against her.”

Skye nodded, “Me, for one.”

Mac looked up. “Thanks.” He shuffled through the photos again. The one from the shower appeared to be the earliest. “Whoever took Georgie probably took all these pictures – except for the picture Sage Alcazar took. How would they have gotten that?”

“It was on a web site,” Rick suggested.

“It can’t have been on there for long – and it’s a private web site – Maxie and Georgie needed a password to log on to get their schedules.”

“OK,” Rick nodded, continuing the logic, “Would Tracy have given someone this?”

Skye shook her head, “No. Felicia found out about them, and Tracy knew if the pictures ever surfaced again that Felicia would have made sure she ended up in prison.”

“Sage would have had the originals,” Lucky suggested.

“And, since she’s dead, her uncle would have them, “ Rick completed the thought, “Lucky – could you find Mr. Alcazar, and ask if we could have a word with him?”

Lucky nodded, “On my way, “ he said, heading out the door.

“It’s a red herring, Rick,” Mac sighed, leaning back in his chair, “They want you to split your forces chasing down Tracy Quartermaine and Lorenzo Alcazar, so you’ve got less to focus on who took her.”

Rick nodded, “Yeah, it’s possible. But you know I have to chase it down.”

Mac sighed, and buried his face in his hands, “Yeah, I know.” Mac sat back again as a thought occurred to him, “Dillon’s in most of these pictures as well.”

“That’s hardly surprising, “ Skye commented.

“No, but maybe he might be able to connect the dots on them – maybe there was someone who would have been at all the locations they were taken, ” Mac said, looking from Skye to Rick.

Rick shook his head, not understanding where Mac was going, “We’ve already got a description – Jason Morgan gave us everything he and Sonnny had on them. Hell, I can give you their grandmother’s phone numbers if you want.”

“It doesn’t just stop with them, Rick. They were hired – they’re probably going to be bringing Georgie to whoever hired them. Maybe that person took the pictures.”

“Or maybe someone else who was hired? Or the two men we already know about?” Rick commented, playing Devil’s advocate. He didn’t want Mac to get his hopes up on something that might not pan out.

“Look, Rick, “ Skye interrupted, “Even if it’s a longshot, it’s worth a chance.”

Rick sighed – fighting them on this would only make it worse. He nodded, “Is Dillon awake yet?”

“No – Monica gave him some pretty strong sedatives,” Skye answered.

“Ok – I’ll have him look at the pictures when Dr. Webber says he’s in good enough shape.”



Dillon was disoriented when he woke. The room was dark, but he could make out Ned in the chair next to the bed, slouched down, with his legs stretched out, and asleep. Dillon tried to sit up, but immediately got dizzy, and fell back onto the bed. He felt around until he found the control to move the bed up, and raised the head of the bed. Ned heard the bed moving, and sat up, rubbing his eyes, and then looking at his watch. “Go back to sleep, “ he told Dillon.

“What’s going on, Ned?”

Ned looked uncomfortable, “You need to rest.”

Dillon closed his eyes and swallowed. His head was fuzzy – not in pain, but not very clear, “Look, I promise I won’t try to get out of bed again, but you’ve got to tell me where Georgie is.”

Ned sighed, stood up, and walked to the window. He looked out the window, and then back at Dillon, frowning. “You and Georgie were attacked, “ he started. Dillon nodded – he remembered Brooke saying that before. Ned continued, “They came up behind you, and knocked you out. There wasn’t anything you could have done,” Ned paused.

Dillon’s mind raced through what seemed like a million things that could have happened. “Go on,” he prompted, trying to sound calm.

“Georgie’s been kidnapped. There’s an Amber Alert out for her.”

Dillon felt himself go numb – somehow kidnapping hadn’t occurred to him…he shook his head, and looked at Ned in disbelief. “No….that’s impossible – we were on the dock – there were people around…”

Ned nodded, and sat down in the chair again, leaning forward, “There were witnesses - they tried to help. Courtney got a description of the men and the car. Apparently the men used to work for Sonny, and Jason was able to give the police the exact identities of the two men.”

“So, if the police know who they are, then they can find them, right?” Dillon asked hopefully.

Ned looked down, then back up at Dillon. “Look – the men know they’ve been identified, and they’ve got to know that letting Georgie go is their best chance.” Ned hoped that his voice sounded more certain than he actually was.

Dillon shook his head, “No – it doesn’t make any sense. Why would they -”

“I don’t know, “ Ned interrupted, “From what I overheard, they think someone hired them, but I don’t know why.”

Dillon’s mind raced – he had to do something….”They used to work for Sonny?” Ned nodded. “Could I talk to Sonny? Or Jason? I just need to ask them - ”

“Ask them what?” Ned interrupted. He knew Dillon, and that he’d try to get out of the hospital and look for Georgie at the first chance. And Monica and Alan had told him very clearly that he couldn’t let that happen right now.

Dillon fell back in the bed, and ran his hand over his hair, “I don’t know, Ned, “ his voice wavering, “I just need to do something.” He looked at Ned, and his eyes started to tear up, “God – I was with her, and they took her from me…I’ve got to…” Dillon’s voice trailed off, and he stared into the darkness, trying to sort out what he should do next.

Several minutes passed – Ned began to think Dillon had fallen back asleep. “Ned?” Dillon asked, his voice calm.

“Yes?” Ned answered, a little startled.

“I need to talk to Jason.”



Georgie pulled the blanket over her head – it had gotten colder, and the coat she’d been wearing was the one she’d put on in Paris that morning. She checked her watch again – 10:12. They’d been on the highway for what must have been 2 hours, but had been driving more slowly, over a bumpier road for at least half and hour now. The van turned, slowed down a little more, and then stopped. This is it, she told herself, another one of Mac’s lessons: the best chance to escape is when you’re being moved from one place to another.

The back door to the van opened, and several flashlights blinded her. She saw a shadow as someone got into the van and unlocked the equipment cage. As the door opened she saw an arm reach down to grab her – she dived under the arm, and slipped past the man. The other men by the door hadn’t expected her to run, and she slipped past the two of them. She ran blindly, her eyes still affected by the flashlights. She headed for where she thought the road had been, but was tackled from behind, and hit the ground hard, one of the men grabbing her legs.

“Is she ok?” a voice behind her asked – it didn’t sound like one of the men who’d taken her.

Someone reached down and pulled her up, checking her over, “Yeah – she’s fine.” The man grabbed her, and pulled her toward a building. Her eyes were starting to adjust to the dim moonlight – it looked like a house. The man dragged her past the door – she took a quick look around. It looked like four men – the two who’d taken her, and two others. He pulled her through a living room, and roughly shoved through a doorway, locking the door behind her.

Georgie picked herself up from the floor, and ran back for the door – it was locked. She looked around the room – no windows, but two other doors – she checked them – bathroom and closet. No windows there either. She looked around the room. Bed…bookcase….radio….dresser. She opened the dresser – it had clothes – underwear, bras, socks….and, disturbingly, in her size. There was a closet next to the bathroom. She looked at the clothes in there. Not her style – too formal….too old. But they were in her size as well. The adrenaline she’d been on ever since this started began to shut down, and fear started to wash over her. Some of it was fear for herself, and some if it that something had really happened to Dillon….she felt herself start to tremble all over.

The door opened and she spun around, her hands gripping one of the dresses in the closet to stop them from shaking. There was a man in the doorway – familiar, but she couldn’t quite place him. “I’m sorry for the travel arrangements, “ he said, “but I required your assistance, and couldn’t take no for an answer.”

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 6

Jason hadn’t expected the phone call, but Ned insisted that Dillon wanted to talk to him. When he thought about it, it made sense - it’s what he would have done in the same situation - try to bring in resources the police wouldn't have access to otherwise. He’d just walked into his penthouse when his cell phone rang, and had stepped back out into the hall to take the call. As he put the phone back into his pocket, and hit the button for the elevator, he heard a voice behind him. “Have they found her yet?” Sam asked.

Jason turned around and shook his head. “Dillon wanted to talk to me. I’ve got to get back to the hospital.”

“He’s okay, then?”

“Okay enough to talk at least.”

Sam walked over to Jason, and hugged him, “Be careful, “ she said, looking up at him, and flashing him a brief smile. She backed away from him a short distance, “You know - I don’t get it. She seemed like such a nice kid - they both did. Why would someone do this to her?”

Jason shook his head, “Maybe her family?”

Sam shook her head, “Her fam….,” she started to say, and then she realized what Jason meant. “I forgot, her dad’s the police commissioner.”

“Mac’s her stepfather, actually. Her biological father works for the WSB. And her Mom’s a private investigator.”

Sam shook her head and whistled. “That’s a lot of suspects.” The elevator arrived, and Sam stood on her toes, gaving Jason a peck on the cheek. “I know it’s not likely - but, if there’s anything I can do.”

Jason nodded, and hugged her briefly before he got in the elevator. “Make sure you lock the door, “ he said before the doors closed.

Sam looked over to Max, who was pretending he hadn’t seen her and Jason, and smiled shyly at him. Max looked at her and smiled. “Don’t worry about the kids here - right now, this is probably the safest place in Port Charles.”

Sam smiled at Max and nodded, “Thanks. Good night, Max, “ she said, as she headed back into the penthouse.

“Night, “ Max replied.



Dr. Steven Webber was in the middle of examining Dillon, and, as far as he could tell, there wasn’t any permanent physical damage. He wished he could tell the teenager’s family that there wouldn’t be any lasting psychological damage, but that depended a great deal on whether the commissioner’s daughter were found.

Ned hovered just behind Steven, and worriedly asked, “Well?”

Steven turned around, and flashed his best bedside manner smile. “It looks like he’s going to be ok. I’d still like to keep him here for observation for at least a day.”

Ned nodded, “I’ll tie him down if I have to.”

“Thanks, Dr. Webber, “ Dillon said distractedly as the doctor left. He looked at Ned, “Where’s Mom?”

“She was here before, “ Ned assured him, “but she was getting hysterical, so Grandfather talked her into taking a sedative. She’s asleep in Monica’s office - do you want to see her?”

Dillon shook his head, a frown on his face. “No - she’d get in the way, “ Dillon grimaced as a flash of pain hit him in the temple, “Hell, she probably hired them.”

Ned shook his head, “Look, I know she didn’t like Georgie, but she’d never -“

“Never what?” Dillon interrupted angrily, “Never trick her into breaking up with me? Never con someone into taking naked pictures of her? Never try to pin a murder on her?”

“This is different.”

“Oh yeah? Explain to me how. Explain to me how, in her twisted mind, this is different.” Dillon leaned forward - the sharp pain had stopped, but there was still a dull throbbing.

Ned pushed him back, “Look - calm down. You know this is different.”

Dillon closed his eyes, “To you, or to me, yeah, it’s different. But she’s not like you or me. You tried to warn me, but I wouldn’t listen.” Dillon laughed bitterly, “You know what she said to me today? She made me choose between her and Georgie, and I chose Georgie, and she said I’d regret it. Then - a couple of hours later, guess what?”

Ned shook his head, “Look, I know she’s capable of doing terrible things. But she didn’t do this.”

Dillon looked at Ned, his eyes blank and cold, “You sure about that?”

There was a knock on the door, and Rick Lansing looked in. “Dr. Webber said I could talk to you if you felt up to it.”

Dillon nodded, confused, “Do you have someone?” he asked, wondering why the DA would want to see him instead of the police.

Rick shook his head, “I’m sorry - but Mac is too close to this to be in charge, so I’m taking the lead until one of the senior detectives can make it in.”

Dillon nodded, “OK - talk about what?” Rick entered the room, followed by Mac. Dillon tensed up when he saw Mac, and struggled to think of something to say, ending up with just looking at him and saying, “Mac - I’m sorry. I should have…” Dillon tried to think of how to apologize for letting someone take her, but his headache only started getting worse.

Mac went to the bed, and put a hand on Dillon’s shoulder. “There wasn’t anything you could have done. If I’d been there, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything either.” Dillon started to shake his head, wanting to tell Mac that there had to be something, but Mac held up a hand to stop him, “Look - honestly, I’ve never liked you very much, so you know I’m not going to just say something to make you feel better about this. It’s not your fault. I’d blame you if I could, but there isn’t any way I can. Right now, we need to focus on finding her, instead of being distracted by misplaced guilt.”

Dillon nodded slowly. He agreed that they needed to focus on finding Georgie, even if they disagreed about it being his fault. Especially if Tracy were behind this. “What can I do?” he asked.

Rick moved the bed table over the bed and put the folder of pictures on top of it. “They moved Georgie to a different vehicle, but we found the original car they used, and this was left inside. We think they left it intentionally, but we’re not sure why at the moment.”

Dillon looked to Mac, who looked away and swallowed. “Some of this may be disturbing, “ Mac warned.

Dillon looked over to Ned, who smiled weakly and nodded. Dillon opened the folder, and looked at the first picture. “What the hell?” he asked, looking at Rick.

“I’m sorry, we don’t know anything about where these came from. We were hoping you might see something in the pictures that we’ve missed.”

Dillon closed his eyes. Focus, he told himself. You can’t change what’s happened, but you need to stay calm to fix it. He opened his eyes and looked at the pictures. Kelly’s…the docks…the Haunted Star….it looked like someone was stalking her.

He stopped at the last picture. He’d seen it months before, when Tracy blackmailed him with it, and he hoped that he’d never see it again. “Oh God, “ he muttered weakly. Even Ned would have to see his point now.

Ned looked over at the pictures, and saw the one from the shower. “Is that…” Ned started, not wanting to say too much in front of Rick and Mac.

“Yeah, “ Dillon replied, “It’s one of the pictures Mom blackmailed me with.”

Ned looked at Rick. “We know about the blackmail, and, after Georgie is found, we’ll be pressing charges against your Mother,” Rick explained.

Ned sighed and nodded. He’d wondered why that hadn’t happened earlier, and began to think that Dillon might be right about Tracy being involved in this.

Dillon took the shower picture, and turned it face down, looking at Ned. “Could Tracy have hired them?” he asked Rick.

“We’re investigating that, “ Rick answered.

“I don’t think she did, “ Mac commented. They all turned to him, “Think about it, “ he continued, “If she had done this, she would have made sure that you wouldn’t be hurt, and there’s no way that picture would have been left in the car. Whoever did this is trying to feed us some false leads.”

Dillon nodded, not saying anything. He didn’t want to think it was Tracy, but he couldn’t be sure either way. He looked back at the pictures, Ned looking over his shoulder. “Who’s that?” Ned asked, pointing at a figure on the docks. “He’s in a lot of the pictures, “ Ned explained.

Dillon looked more closely. “That’s Mr. Jenkins. He’s a homeless guy who hangs out around the docks.”

Mac moved around to the side of the bed, and looked at the picture. There was someone sitting on a crate on the dock, but he couldn’t make out much of the face. He had on a long coat, and a hat, and it looked like he had a beard. “How do you know him?” Mac asked.

Dillon looked up. “He’s always there, “ Dillon explained. Rick raised an eyebrow, and motioned for Dillon to explain a little more. “After school, we usually stop off at Kelly’s for some coffee, and then we head down to the dock to get to the Haunted Star. Mr. Jenkins asked Georgie for some money once, and she gave him her coffee instead. She’s been bringing him food, and spare blankets and stuff ever since then.”

"Was he there tonight?" Rick asked.

Dillon thought back, and shook his head, "I don't remember seeing him. Sometimes when it's cold, though, Mike lets him crash in the back of Kelly's."

"Do you know anything more about him? A description? He might have noticed whoever it was that took the pictures following Georgie"

Dillon swallowed, and thought for a minute, "His name is Charles Jenkins. Kind of hard to tell his age - I'd guess somewhere in his fifties. About my height - kind of skinny. He was always smoking - Georgie kept trying to talk him into quitting. Or moving to a shelter or something. He used to joke with her that she was worse than his mother."

Rick jotted down Dillon's comments, and then quietly excused himself to send someone to look for Jenkins. Mac looked at the picture more closely, but couldn't make out any more details. "Anything else?" Mac asked.

Dillon shook his head. "I'm sorry - I wish I could help more."

Mac nodded, and put a hand on Dillon's shoulder. "We're going to get her back, " he assured Dillon.

Dillon smiled weakly, "Yeah...sure," he said, trying to fake a little enthusiam for Mac's sake.

Mac noticed, and put on a strained smile, squeezing Dillon's shoulder. "Get some sleep," he ordered. Dillon nodded, and Mac turned to leave, motioning for Ned to follow him into the hall. "I'm going to put a guard on his room, " Mac informed Ned.

Ned looked at Mac, confused, "Is he in danger?"

Mac shook his head, "I don't know yet, but I'd rather not take a chance. When does he get out?"

"Dr. Webber wants him to stay in for observation for 24 hours - if he's ok, he gets out then."

"Is he going back to the Quartermaine mansion?"

Ned shook his head, "I don't think so. He thinks Tracy's behind this, and, even if she isn't, he's not very forgiving toward her past with Georgie at the moment."

Mac thought for a moment, and then nodded, "I'll get some men over to the Haunted Star, then. It should be a little easier to monitor, at least."

Ned nodded. "I'll stick close to him as well." Ned extended a hand, and Mac reached out and shook it. Ned turned back into Dillon's room, and looked at his brother. Dillon was staring at the pictures, trying to see something more in them. Ned sat in the chair by the bed, hoping that Mac was right about Tracy not being involved in the kidnapping.



Georgie looked at the man by the door, still not able to place him. He smiled at her, and she dug her fingers into the dress more firmly - there was something unnerving about his smile. He undid the band that held his hair into a neat ponytail, and prompted Georgie with, "I shaved."

Georgie's face fell as she finally recognized him. "Mr. Jenkins?" she asked, shocked.

"Ah yes, my dear, " he approached her, and Georgie felt herself retreating away from him into the closet. Jenkins noticed her movement and stopped approaching her. "I really must apologize. This is a poor way to repay your kindness. And you have been unfailingly kind, my dear young lady."

Georgie swallowed, and tried to keep her voice steady, "Why?" she asked.

"As I said, I require your assistance. As soon as this little task is completed, you'll be back with your family and your young man."

Georgie tensed up even more than she had been. "Dillon's ok?"

Jenkins nodded, "I've been monitoring the news from Port Charles. Mr. Quartermaine is expected to make a full recovery."

Georgie closed her eyes and sighed, feeling herself starting to tear up. She forced herself to stop crying, but her voice broke a little when she spoke next, "When can I go back?" she asked.

"I'm not entirely sure at the moment, but, believe me, the last thing I want is to keep you cooped up here for the rest of your life, " he said, smiling that unnerving smile again.

Georgie nodded. "What do you want me to do then?" she asked, her jaw clenched.

Jenkins shook his head, and waved a finger at her. "Not just yet, my dear. You'll find out when you need to," he said, and motioned for Georgie to move to a chair by a table near the bookcase. Georgie moved slowly, starting to feel the bruises she knew must be covering her body, and sat in the chair. Jenkins pulled a bottle out of his pocket, and took out two pills, placing them on the table. The nightstand had a pitcher of water and a glass - he poured out a glass for Georgie, and ordered, "Take the pills."

Georgie looked up at him, "What are they?"

"It will help you to sleep tonight. I do insist on this, and, if you're going to be obstinate about it, I'm afraid I'll have to ask some of my more persuasive employees to convince you." Georgie looked up at him, took the pills and swallowed. Jenkins smiled back at her, "And, if you could just demonstrate that you're not hiding the pills under your tongue?" The thought had crossed Georgie's mind, but she figured he'd have accounted for that, and didn't want to antagonize him. Georgie opened her mouth, and moved her tongue so he could see the pills had been swallowed.

"Thank you, Miss Jones. Sleep well - we'll talk more tomorrow." He turned and left, and Georgie heard the door lock behind him.

Georgie closed her eyes...Mr. Jenkins....she'd never done anything to him. Neither had Dillon. What could he want? He hadn't tried anything sexual...Thank God for that, she thought, her skin crawling. But Dillon was going to be ok...and he'd find her, she knew it, she thought as the pills started to take effect and she drifted off to sleep.


Mac was back at the PCPD, looking over the evidence collected from the docks. They hadn't found Jenkins, and Alcazar was out of town, so there weren't any more witness interviews for the evening. He started to go through the evidence bags, matching them up with the locations where they had been collected...

His cell phone rang, and Mac dropped a couple of the evidence bags, startled. He looked at the caller ID - Felicia, and answered, "Felicia?"

"Mac - what's going on? I've got a million messages to call you or Maxie - is everyone ok?"

Mac took a deep breath, "Georgie's been kidnapped."

The phone went silent for a moment. "Who took her?" Felicia asked.

Mac sighed, "We don't know yet. There's an Amber Alert out, but we haven't got any solid leads to where she is yet."

The line was quiet again, but he thought he heard Felicia say, "My God, " softly on the phone. "I'll be on the first plane I can get," she said, her voice wavering a little.

"She'll be ok, " Mac tried to assure her, "she's a smart girl."

"You taught her to survive, " Felicia agreed.

"I hope she was listening."

"She was - even when she said you were making her life miserable, she still listened."

"Thanks," Mac said, "Get home soon. Maxie needs you."

"I'll be there tomorrow."

"Bye, " Mac said, hanging up. He sighed, and looked down at the bags he dropped. As he picked them up, he examined them. There was a coffee cup. A lost glove. A cigarillo. A movie ticket stub.

Mac paused and looked back at the evidence. He pulled the chart that showed the location of the evidence - it had been found by the crate where the photos had shown Jenkins had been sitting. Mac's heart started racing - it was impossible. He looked back at the pictures - Jenkins was sitting on a crate, smoking, as Dillon said he had. It had been his mistake to assume that he had been smoking a cigarette. And it fit together - there was one person that would tie the pieces together. One person who should be dead.

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 7

Mac knew the first thing to take care of would be to protect any other potential victims. Maxie and Dillon were at the top of the list, but there were others to be considered: LuLu Spencer, Lucas Jones, and Cameron Webber at a minimum. Brooke Lynn Ashton - if his niece were kidnapped, Dillon would probably do as much to rescue her as he'd do to rescue Georgie. Michael and Morgan Corinthos were potential targets as well - but a call to Sonny was all that would be needed to protect them. Mac thought for a moment - Sonny had offered to help. His penthouse was like a fortress...it would work perfectly as a safehouse. Mac sat down in front of a computer terminal and pulled up Sonny's arrest records to get his phone number, and dialed. "Corinthos residence, " a voice answered after the second ring - it sounded like Michael Corinthos.

"Hi. Is this Michael?" Mac asked.

"Yeah. Who is this?"

"Hi, Michael. This is Mac Scorpio. Can I talk to your Dad?"

There was a pause. "You're not going to arrest him again, are you?"

Mac smiled weakly, "No, I'm not. My little girl is in trouble, and your Dad offered to help."

"I heard about that - it was on the TV. I'm sorry."

"Thanks. Can I talk to your Dad?"

"Yeah - one second, " Michael said. Mac heard a thud - Michael must have dropped the phone, and then, in the distance, the sound of Michael yelling for his father. Mac smiled nostagically - it wasn't just Maxie and Georgie who did that.

There was another voice on the phone, and Mac heard a muffled conversation in the background. "Hi Mac. What can I do?" Sonny asked a moment later.

"Hi, Sonny. I think there's a chance that some other kids in Port Charles might be targets of the person who ordered Georgie's kidnapping."

"Who?" Sonny asked.

"If I'm right, anyone connected with the Spencer family or my family."

There was a pause, "So Michael and Morgan?"

"Yes. I wanted to give you a heads up on it, and to ask a favor."

"Sure - whatever I can do to help."

"Your penthouse is one of the best guarded places I can think of. I'd appreciate it if you could keep an eye on the kids."

"Not a problem. Michael will love it - he loves playing host. Who will we be having as guests?"

"My daughter Maxie, Dillon Quartermaine, Brooke Lynn Ashton, LuLu Spencer, Lucas Jones and Cameron Webber."

"Cameron Webber? Liz's little boy?"

"Lucky has been seeing a lot of Liz - that could make him a target."

"Good point. I'll send someone for Lucas - do you want me to have some of my people collect the other kids?"

"No - I'll get them over there."

"Got it. But, if you know who might be taken, do you know who's behind this?"

Mac sighed, "I've got a theory, but I need to check with Dillon on something first. If Dillon confirms my suspicions, believe me, you'll know."

"OK - I'll be waiting."

"Thanks, Sonny."

"No problem, " Sonny said hanging up the phone. Sonny looked around the penthouse. Four teenagers, one almost teenager, and one infant. For his own peace of mind, he'd need to get Kristina over here as well. They could put the girls up here, and the boys in Jason's penthouse. And they'd need pizza. Half of them plain cheese and half of them pepperoni. He'd been a father long enough now to know that was a requirement.



Jason knocked on the door to Dillon's room, and, after a few seconds, Ned pulled the door open. "Thanks for coming over," Ned said, ushering Jason into the room.

"No problem," Jason replied, walking over to Dillon's bed. "Ned said you wanted to talk to me?"

"Yeah, " Dillon said, sitting up a little higher. "I need your help."

"To find Georgie?"

Dillon nodded, "I know the police are doing everything they can, but there are some people who won't talk to the police. But they will talk to you."

"That's what I figured, " Jason replied.

"Will you help? I mean, I could pay you, but you've got more money than I do, so that probably wouldn't matter, and I could say something about us being cousins - "

"I'll help you, " Jason said, trying to interrupt Dillon.

Dillon didn't notice, and kept trying to persuade Jason, "but you hate the Quartermaines - not that I blame you at all. There was this one movie - German, 1931, Fritz Lang, "M", with - "

"I said I'll help you, " Jason interrupted again, smiling a little.

"Peter Lorre, where the underworld tries to find a serial killer, and -"

"Dillon!" Ned shouted. Dillon stopped talking, and looked at Ned. "He said he'd help, " Ned repeated.

"Oh, " Dillon said, turning to Jason. "Thanks. I'm sorry - I guess I'm just a little desperate right now."

"Not a problem - what do you know?" Jason asked.

Dillon pushed the folder of photos to Jason. "The police found this in the car that Georgie had been in. It might have been planted, so I'm not sure how important it is."

Jason leafed throught the photos - surveillance, centered on Georgie. Dillon was in most of the photos as well. At each location the photos were all at the same angle - maybe they had a fixed camera? He'd have to check with some people he knew who might have installed them - he stopped at the blackmail photo, and looked at Dillon.

"Tracy blackmailed me with that, " Dillon explained.

"You're kidding, right?" Jason asked.

"No. I wish I were. It's different from all the other pictures, but it's there."

Jason nodded, and went back to the other photos. His cell phone rang, and Jason excused himself, and moved to the corner of the room. "Yeah," he answered.

"Jason - I got a call from Mac Scorpio. He thinks some other kids might be targets, and asked if we could keep an eye on them at the penthouse."

"Why?"

"He didn't say - said he had to check some things out but he'd get back to me."

"OK. What do you need me to do?"

"One of the kids we need to keep an eye on is Carly's brother. Can you pick him up, and bring him back here? I already called Bobbi," Sonny said.

"OK - I'm with Dillon now. He asked if I could look into things from our end. Figured there were things we might be able to find out that the police couldn't get."

"Smart kid, " Sonny said approvingly, "He's on Mac's list about who needed to be put under protection, but Mac said he'd take care of getting the other kid's over here."

"OK. I should be done here in a couple of minutes - I'll get Lucas as soon as I get out of here. Do you know where he is now?"

"Bobbi said he was at Kelly's, with Mike."

"OK. Anything else?"

"Nope - that's it. I've got the junk food on order, and Mikey is breaking out the video games."

"Sounds...interesting," Jason commented.

"Yeah, well, get back soon. I'll need help riding herd on this."

"Got it, " Jason said, hanging up.

Jason went back to the bed, and took the photos."Can I hang on to these?" he asked.

Dillon nodded, "If there's anything, " Dillon started to say, but was interrupted when Mac opened the door and barged into the room.

Mac nodded to Ned and Jason, and put a thick book on the table in front of Dillon. "Mug shots?" Jason asked.

Mac nodded, "I've got reason to believe that Dillon will be able to recognize Charles Jenkins in this book, " Mac pushed the book back toward Dillon, "Keep in mind, he may look a little different - no beard, hair a bit different, but, please try to account for that."

Dillon looked at Mac, and then opened the book. "Somewhere around page 87, " Mac prompted, not wanting to single out the photo he thought Dillon would identify, but wanting to speed up the process.

Dillon moved to the page Mac suggested, and looked at the photos. Some of them were close - but not quite right. In retrospect, there was something unnerving about Jenkin's smile, and something missing in his eyes. Something that really couldn't be captured completely in a photo, but a very distinctive feature. Then he saw it. The cold and vacant look in the eyes gave him away. "Number 1258, " Dillon said.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, " Dillon said, "He looks a lot older now, and a lot thinner, but that's him."

Ned and Jason looked at the picture that Dillon had selected. "Is that - , " Jason started to ask.

"Yeah - it is, " Ned confirmed.

"What are you talking about? Do you know him?" Dillon demanded.

Mac leaned on the bed table, and checked the picture again himself. "Yeah - they do." He turned to Ned and Jason, "Look - it's possible that he's after other kids as well. Sonny has agreed to keep an eye on all the kids. I need your help to get them over to Sonny's penthouse."

Jason nodded, "I'll be picking up Lucas when I leave here. You need me to get anyone else?"

Mac nodded, "Could you get Cameron Webber?" Jason nodded, and Mac turned to Ned, "Can you get Brooke? And tell Luke Spencer to bring Lulu?" Ned nodded as well.

"Hello - " Dillon interrupted, "What the hell is going on here?"

"As soon as all the details are out, it's inevitable that we'll start talking about it, and the only place I can be sure isn't bugged is Sonny's. He sweeps the place, right?" Mac asked Jason.

"Yeah - I'll check it out again tonight."

Mac nodded, "Right - Dillon, get dressed. You'll be going with Jason, " Ned started to protest, "I'll talk to Dr. Webber- I expect Elizabeth with insist on going with Cameron, so there will be a nurse there."

Dillon looked at the three men, unsure of what to do. "This is worse than her just being kidnapped, isn't it?"

"Yeah, I think so. Hurry up - get dressed," Mac ordered.



It had taken a couple of hours, but everyone had finally made it to Sonny's penthouse. The younger children were upstairs, with Leticia keeping an eye on them. In the living room, Mac surveyed the worried faces that looked at him - everyone he'd asked to be here had arrived. Sonny had insisted that his daughter Kristina be included as well - Mac couldn't blame him, but that had gotten Ric and Alexis added in to the list of concerned faces. He looked around the room, taking roll - Bobbi, Carly and Lucas in one corner; Skye and Maxie, with Luke nearby; Ned and Brooke - Lois was missing - maybe she was out of town? Lucky had an arm around a worried Elizabeth. Jason and Sam stood near the door, next to Sonny and Mike. Dillon sat near Ned, but on his own. "What's going on, Mac?" Elizabeth asked.

"I'm sorry about this, and I hope I'm over-reacting, but Dillon was able to identify someone who is most likely the one who had Georgie kidnapped. It was from a mug shot from a few years ago - but - to be sure, " Mac handed a print of the mug shot to Mike. "Do you recognize this man?"

Mike nodded, "Yeah- he's a lot younger in the picture, but he's a homeless guy that hangs out by the docks. He used to crash at Kelly's when the weather was really bad."

"Went by the name of Charles Jenkins?"

"Yeah. This looks like it's from a mug shot - so I guess that was an alias?" Mike asked.

"It is an alias. His real name is Cesar Faison."

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 8

Dillon looked at the room around him. Some people, like him, had obviously never heard of Cesar Faison before - but some had. Dillon shook his head, "Who?"

Luke answered, "Faison. Bad guy. Has a grudge against me, Mac and Felicia. And, " Luke turned to Mac, "if I remember correctly, not a big fan of Dillon's dad either."

Mac nodded, "Dillon, your father helped stop a scheme Faison was working. If this is about revenge, you could be in danger as well."

"So - he kidnaps someone he's doesn't even know to get back at her family? And against her boyfriend's long lost father?"

Lucky answered this time, "He's done something like this before - when I was about Georgie's age, Faison kidnapped me. He was working for Helena Cassedine then, and, for a while, everyone thought I was dead. Before I got back to my family, he'd brainwashed me into working for Helena."

Dillon turned to look at Lucky - Lucky was pale, and Elizabeth was holding his hand. "Brainwashed?" Dillon asked, alarmed.

"Not this time, Spielberg," Luke answered, "The only reason he brainwashed Lucky was because it was part of Helena's twisted plan to get back at Laura and me. And, I gotta disagree with Bubba and Junior on this one - Faison wouldn't kidnap Georgie for revenge - it's not the way his mind works, and, as far as I know, with the wicked witch of the East dead, there isn't anyone who's depraved enough to pay him to set up another brainwashing regimen. If he took her, he's got another plan - we just need to figure out what."

Dillon closed his eyes - it was two steps forward and one back - they knew who had her, but not where or why. The pain had come back, and he grimaced, "What do we do, Mac? How do we find her?"

Mac took charge, "Rick - can we keep this under wraps for a while? I don't want Faison to know we're on to him yet."

Rick nodded, "I'll keep it as quiet as I can."

"I'd like to keep as much of this away from the PCPD as possible. A lot of the officers know Georgie - I don't want anyone playing cowboy."

Rick nodded, "Agreed."

Mac looked over at Lucky, who nodded, "Georgie's like a daughter to a lot of them - they'll shoot first and ask questions later."

"OK - so they don't get this lead for as long as we can keep it from them. We need to start investigating as well - we know where the car was left. It was on a back road, but there were witnesses who saw someone on a cell phone by the car - so, we need to get the records for the cell phone towers nearest the area for the few hours before the car was found."

Rick nodded, "I can get those."

Luke shook his head, "Sorry Mr. DA, but there'll be a trail if you do it. I can get the records without anyone ever knowing they've been got."

"Luke's right, " Mac agreed, "He can get the records more quietly than you could."

Rick looked a little uneasy, but thought for a moment, and then nodded, "OK - under the circumstances."

"Right, then, " Mac said, "Rick, Lucky - we'll need copies of any reports the police have on this - forensics, witness statements, whatever the department gets."

Both Rick and Lucky nodded, "You'll get them," Rick agreed.

Mac turned to Ned, "Ned- I need you to run interference with Tracy. She's not going to like Dillon being here, and the last thing we need is her making it obvious where the safehouse is." Ned nodded, and Mac turned to Jason, "Jason, Sonny - I need you to check out the docks. See if anyone knows anything about Faison from when he was playing Jenkins - something they wouldn't tell the police." Jason and Sonny both nodded. Mac looked back around the room, and continued, "Right now, there isn't anything more we can do. Everyone needs to rest up as much as possible - we'll need as many resources as we can muster once we start getting some information to work with."

The room was silent for a moment as everyone digested the information, and then slowly started collecting their belongings to leave. Mac walked toward Elizabeth, and motioned for her to move aside and talk to him quietly. "Will you be staying here?" he asked.

Elizabeth shrugged, "Yeah - I guess I will. I don't want to get too far away from Cam."

Mac nodded, "Could you keep an eye on Dillon? Your brother wanted to keep him for observation for a while, but, once he identified Faison, it wasn't safe for him in the hospital."

"Absolutely, " Elizabeth smiled a little, "It'll keep me from climbing the walls until they find that bastard."

Mac pulled his briefcase from the floor behind the couch, and took out a folder, handing it to Elizabeth. "Steven told me to give this to you."

Elizabeth leafed through it, "Dillon's chart, " she said. "It lists medications? " Mac handed her two bottles from a jacket pocket. Elizabeth looked over the labels and nodded. "Got it, " she said, closing the chart. "Don't worry- he'll be fine, " she said, placing her hand on Mac's arm.

"Thanks," Mac replied.

Elizabeth went to Dillon, and knelt next to his chair. "Hello, " she began brightly, "I'm nurse Webber, and I'll be keeping an eye on you during your stay at Chez Corinthos."

Dillon smiled weakly, "Thanks, Liz, but I'll be ok."

"Yes you will. Especially with me taking care of you." Elizabeth looked at the bottles, and took two pills out of one. "Take these, " she ordered.

Dillon shook his head, "Look, I'm ok - "

"Take these, " Elizabeth interrupted, "or I'll get Lucky to hold you down, and I'll make you take them." Dillon looked at her - she was smiling, but obviously serious. Dillon nodded, took the pills and swallowed them. "Thank you, " Elizabeth said. She looked past Dillon to the door, "Jason?" she called.

Jason looked away from the conversation he was having with Mike, "Yes?"

"Dillon's going to be asleep in the next 15 minutes or so - could you take him to his room?"

"What did you give me?" Dillon asked.

"Your prescription. You need your rest - there isn't anything you can do at the moment, so you need to rest up until there is something to do."

Jason walked over to Dillon, and put a hand on his shoulder, "Don't even try arguing, " he advised. Dillon got up, and followed Jason out of the penthouse to Jason's penthouse across the hall. Jason led Dillon up the stairs to a guest room - when they got there, Jason pointed to a door, "Bathroom's there, " he reached down and handed Dillon a TV remote, "Remote, " and then he pointed to the bed, "and there's the bed. Get to sleep." Jason turned to leave, closing the door behind him. You had to admire Jason's economy of phrase, Dillon thought. He looked around the room, and stretched out on the bed, turning on the television. Dillon started changing the channels, and stopped on the news - the weather was on...it was getting colder....Georgie had been wearing a light coat.. she always got cold so easily - she would borrow his jacket most of the time....he hoped she found another jacket, he thought as the medication kicked in and he drifted off to sleep.



Luke checked through the listings on his cell phone, and hit the call button when he found the entry he wanted. "Luke?" a voice answered.

"Hey, Deke. Your dad still with you?"

"Uh - yeah. What do you need?"

"Some of your Dad's skills from his disreputable past, and some of your computer skills."

"Ok...." Deacon said uncertainly.

"I'll meet the two of you at the Haunted Star in about 30 minutes."

"K- see you." Deacon said, hanging up, and turning to his father, in the passenger seat next to him. "Luke says he needs us."

"For what?" JD asked.

Deacon shook his head, "Said something about your disreputable past, and my computer skills."

JD frowned, "I wasn't disreputable...."

Deacon smiled, keeping his eye on traffic so he could pull a U-Turn to head back to the Haunted Start, "Yeah, you were," he said quietly. JD smiled.



As Mac pulled out of the garage at the penthouse, Skye put her hand on his arm to get his attention and mouthed, "Is the car bugged?"

Mac shook his head, "Jason had someone check the car - it's clean."

Skye nodded, and asked, "Faison is that bad?"

"Yeah, " Mac said softly, "I just wish I knew what he's up to."

"It's not revenge?"

Mac shook his head, "No - probably not. Luke's right about that - Faison always had a profit motive."

Skye frowned as she thought something over, "You know - there was something that both Dillon and Mike said..." Mac raised an eyebrow, and Skye continued, "They both said it was the same man in the picture, but he was a lot older - a lot thinner."

"OK?" Mac asked, wondering where she was leading.

"Well, how old is the mug shot?"

"Decade at most."

"People don't change that much in a decade - unless something is wrong."

Mac's eyes widened - he wondered why he hadn't caught it himself - "He's sick..." Mac said, his voice trailing off.

Skye nodded, "Could be." She yawned, "What does that mean, though?"

Mac shook his head "I don't know yet." They came to a red light and stopped, "Would you like me to drop you off at your house?" Mac asked.

Skye shook her head. "No....I don't want to be home alone tonight. Can you drop me at the Quartermaine's?"

Mac raised an eyebrow again, "You must be desperate." Skye chuckled softly. "There's the spare bedroom at the house, " Mac started to offer, and Skye began to shake her head, "Look - I promise to be a gentleman, and we're both going to be back at the penthouse first thing in the morning anyway."

Skye considered the offer, and nodded, "Thanks. I would feel safer."

They pulled up to the Scorpio house, and Mac paused after getting out of the car, looking at the window to Georgie's room. He knew that both Dillon and Georgie used to sneak in and out of the house by the window to Georgie's room - there was a tree branch that was close enough for that to be possible. He kept telling himself that he should cut the tree back, but he never had. If someone had used that to sneak into the house to grab her, he wouldn't have been able to forgive himself. Skye walked around the car to him, and took his hand, "You want some coffee?" she asked.

"You're going to make it?" he asked skeptically.

"Hey - if you can drink the sludge at the police station, you can drink the sludge I make."

Mac smiled, "Thanks, that would be good." Skye pulled on his arm, but Mac pulled it back and kissed her hand, "I'll be in in a second," he explained, handing the house key to her - she nodded, and walked to the door. Mac sat down in the car and stared at his phone for a moment. He didn't want to make the call - it might only escalate matters....but how much worse could it get now? He dialed the phone number he'd memorized years before.

"DiAntonio's Cleaners, " a voice answered.

"I'm checking on a jacket I left - the name is Scorpio, " he said.

"One second, " the voice replied. Mac heard a couple of clicks on the line, and then a familiar voice came on, "Mac?"

"Sean? Didn't expect you to be up at this hour."

"And I never expected to get a call from you on this line. What's wrong?" Sean Donnelly asked.

"Georgie's been kidnapped."

"What?"

"She was on the dock, and two men grabbed her. We've got two witnesses who've identified Cesar Faison as being in the area before the kidnapping."

There was silence on the line for a moment, "Faison..., " Sean repeated. "Do you trust the witnesses? They couldn't have been bought?"

Mac sighed. He knew Sean had to cover all the bases, but it still felt like wasting time. "I know both of the witnesses, and they weren't bought."

"You the official lead on the investigation?"

"No - I'm too close. The DA's in charge for now."

"Baldwin?" Sean asked, surprised.

"No - DA is a man named Rick Lansing now."

The line was quiet for a moment, but Mac thought he heard some typing in the background. "I'm getting people on this now - someone will be in touch in the morning."

"Thanks, Sean," Mac said.

"Look - if it's Faison, she's most likely safe at the moment. You know how he works."

"Yeah - I know, " Mac said half heartedly. He paused for a moment, and then decided that he should make a request. "Could you get this to Frisco?"

"He's already on the notification list."

Mac sighed - he should have figured that out already. He was too tired to think straight at the moment. "Thanks again, Sean."

"Get some sleep if you can, Mac - you sound dead tired."

"Next on my list. Give my best to Tiffany."

"Will do, " Sean said, hanging up the phone.



Georgie woke up, and looked around the darkened room, disoriented. It took a second for her to remember what had happened, and her confusion was replaced by a dull sense of fear. She struggled to sit up, and sat at the edge of the bed, giving herself a minute to get her balance. She stood up unsteadily, and looked at herself - someone had changed her into a nightgown. She took a step, and the leg she'd caught in the trunk nearly collapsed under her - she pulled the gown up enough to look at the leg - it had been bandaged, and was numb.

She thought she heard something and froze, holding her breath so she could listen to the faint sounds more closely. They were coming from by the door - she limped over to the door, and pressed her ear against it. Jenkins was yelling at someone - she didn't catch all of it, but the gist of it was that he was angry that both she and Dillon had been injured. There was another voice, and the yelling stopped - footsteps approached her door. She backed away toward the bed, and stood by the end of it. She heard a couple of locks rattle, and the door opened. Jenkins stood in the doorway, silhouetted in the light for a moment until he turned on the light switch inside her room. Georgie blinked at the sudden brightness. "You should be asleep!" Jenkins stared at her, his voice angry.

He was holding her here, and he was angry because she couldn't sleep? "Sorry - I woke up, " Georgie explained, looking at him angrily. She was able to stop herself from telling him to go to hell, and settled for saying, "I didn't see the schedule posted anywhere." Under the circumstances, she wasn't sure if talking back was being brave or stupid.

She saw Jenkin's eyes become a little less angry, and a smile at the corner of his mouth. "My mistake," he replied. He reached into his shirt pocket, pulled out a small bottle, and took out a pill. He extended his hand toward Georgie, "You need another one of these."

Georgie looked at the pill....No, she thought. Cooperation wasn't going to help here, she started to believe. And Mac had taught her to think, but to also trust her instincts. She stood up a little straighter, and said, in a firm voice, "No."

Jenkins smile grew a little, and he leaned back, crossing his arms. "You know I can force you to take this?"

"I know. But what incentive do I have to cooperate with you other than to save myself a few bruises?"

Jenkins laughed, "Brava!" he exclaimed, "You raise a very valid point." He walked to a chair by a table in the room, and sat down, motioning for Georgie to take the other chair by the table. She limped to the chair and sat down, her hands folded in her lap. "Within reason, what would you like?" he asked.

"I want to go home," Georgie answered, looking straight into Jenkins eyes.

"I said within reason," Jenkins reminded her, returning her stare.

"How is that unreasonable?"

He leaned back, and crossed his legs. "You're right, it's not unreasonable. But, it's also not possible at the moment. You will go home, but you have a task to do for me first."

"What sort of task?"

Jenkins thought for a moment, opened the bottle, and put the pill back inside. "Miss Jones, I have a proposition for you." Georgie crossed her arms, and leaned back in the chair, waiting for him to continue. "I need your help for a medical situation. Several tests will be required, and, if the tests are positive, you will undergo a procedure. When the procedure is completed, you will be returned home. I will not answer any direct questions about this medical situation. However, for each time you cooperate with the pills, you will be allowed to ask one question, which I will answer truthfully." Jenkins smiled at her.

Georgie looked at him, and considered what he said. She was surprised she hadn't noticed before how disturbing his smile was...

Georgie stood up, leaning against the table to take the weight off her bad leg. What options did she have? If she didn't agree, she'd still have to take the pills. If she did, she at least might be able to get some information that would be helpful. Maybe he'd lie, maybe he wouldn't - but she had better odds trying to out think him than trying to fight his men. She looked at Jenkins, "All right - I'll do it."

"Excellent, " Jenkins smiled, standing up, and going to the door. "In light of our deal, I think you can forego the additional medication this evening.Try to rest up tonight - we'll be starting in the morning, Miss Jones." Jenkins left the room, and Georgie heard the locks on the door turning.

Georgie limped back to the bed, and sat on the edge. She was still a little fuzzy from the sedative Jenkins had given her...medical procedure? A transplant of some sort, maybe? Bone marrow? But the odds against a stranger being a match were huge...unless he'd gotten her medical records at some point. She had been tested before - she was in a registry. But why wouldn't he have just asked her? Why assume that she'd refuse, and just kidnap her? Georgie fell back on the bed, and covered her face with her hands...she wanted to cry, and hit something, and scream at the top of her lungs. But she wouldn't - she needed to keep herself together so she could think her way out of this. Georgie stared up at the ceiling and thought about Dillon, and how helpless she felt as she was being dragged away from him, watching him fall to the ground. Jenkins had said Dillon was going to be ok. Georgie didn't care if he lied about everything else - she hoped he hadn't lied about that.

[JRK Archiver]

Chapter 9

Georgie had gotten into bed, but hadn't been able to sleep. She had been trying to think of the most useful question she could ask - but, short of asking about the one thing she'd been told she couldn't ask about, had drawn a blank. She started to think about Jenkins - why had he pretended to be homeless? He could have just as easily showed up at the Haunted Star if he wanted to talk to her - between working for Skye and visiting Dillon, she spent most of her time there, and she knew all the regulars.

Unless....

Luke must know him, she realized. He must know him, and not like him. And Luke was usually pretty accurate about that kind of thing.

Georgie decided on her first question.

She sat up in bed, and looked around the darkened room. No clock, and her watch was gone - she had no idea if it was day or night. The light in the bathroom had been left on, and that gave her a little light to see by. She went to the closet and looked through it - her clothes weren't there. She found a robe and put it over her nightgown, sitting down in one of the chairs by the table. Last time she'd gotten out of bed, Jenkins had known about it almost immediately - so there had to be some sort of surveillance in the room. She started to look more closely at the walls and ceiling - it would most likely be fairly high up to get reasonably good coverage of the room. She didn't see anything....maybe behind the vent? she thought - it was across from the door - it would be a good spot...

As she looked up at the vent, she heard the locks rattle again - she sat up straight in the chair, and folded her hands in her lap. Jenkins stood in the doorway again, and switched on the light. He smiled at her, "You're up early, Miss Jones," he greeted her.

"I guess so, " Georgie said - don't say too much, she told herself.

"Are you ready to begin?"

"Yes, " Georgie answered. She heard her voice break a little – she swallowed, and thought, don’t let him see how scared you are. She felt her heart start to race.

"As to our deal, " Jenkins started, sitting in the other chair, and putting a pill and glass of water on the table, "What is your question?"

Georgie looked at him, hoping to be able to read something in his face when he heard the question, "Why doesn't Luke Spencer like you?"

Jenkins appeared startled, and then, after a moment, smiled broadly and laughed a little. "That's quite perceptive. What gave me away?"

"You didn't need to pretend to be homeless - but it was a good way to hide," Georgie said, still watching him.

Jenkins leaned back, and crossed his legs. He pushed the pill toward her, "Take the pill and I'll answer."

Georgie looked at the pill...she didn't want to...but, he could force her to, and things would be worse then. She picked up the pill, swallowed it, and then took a sip from the water glass. "Your turn."

"He dislikes me for many reasons, " Jenkins leaned forward, "and I could spend a great deal of time recounting them." Jenkins stood up, and walked around the chair, leaning on it's back, "I did promise to answer you truthfully, however - and, in the interest of brevity, perhaps I should answer with just one thing." He smiled again, and as Georgie's eyes started to get heavy, she heard him finish his answer, "My real name is Cesar Faison."



Georgie was looking down at him, smiling, looking into his eyes….her hair fell onto his face, and he brushed it back, running his hand down her neck to her back, trying to pull her closer….but he couldn’t – she started pulling away from him…he reached up to keep her from going away, but couldn’t stop it….he saw the look in Georgie’s eyes change to fear, and heard her whisper, “I love you, Dillon.” She moved away further, fading into the darkness. He tried to chase after her, and, as she faded away completely, heard her whisper again, “Help me….”

Dillon sat up, sweating, his heart racing….he looked around the room frantically, trying to find her. Then it hit him….this was Jason’s spare bedroom. And he was here because Georgie was gone. He closed his eyes…remember what Liz had said – save your strength until there is something you can do.

Dillon rubbed his eyes, and stumbled to the bathroom to splash some water on his face. He looked at his watch – 8:35. He went back into the bedroom and looked around – there was a bag by the door – he checked through it…Ned must have gone to his room and gotten some clothes for him. He started to rummage through the bag for a fresh shirt, but stopped as he heard something from outside. He paused…Tracy's voice was unmistakable. As Dillon opened the door, Jason pushed his way into the room, and closed the door behind him. Jason put a finger to his lips, motioning for Dillon to keep quiet - he then opened the door slightly so they could hear the argument below.

"-he's here, and if you don't let me in to see him, I will call the police, and -"

"And what?" Dillon recognized Sam's voice, "Why in the hell do you think he's here anyway?"

"I have my sources."

"Yeah, well your sources are wrong, " Sam replied sarcastically. "So why don't you take your Mother of the Year act on the road, and get out of here - I'm not buying it."

"Excuse me?" Tracy's voice was indignant.

"You heard me - you might be able to fool some people, but no mother who loved her child would ever be able to do what you've done to him."

"What are you talking about?"

"The photos? Blackmailing your son? He's just a kid - what in the hell were you thinking?"

"You're insane. You belong with that brain damaged - "

"MAX!" Sam yelled, "Get her out of here now!"

Dillon heard a deeper voice - it must have been Max, and then Tracy again, "All right. I'll leave - but I will be back for my son."

Dillon heard the door slam - Jason shook his head, "You know - I'm sort of glad I don't remember growing up around her."

"She's not that bad. She just gets that way when she's worried." Dillon said reflexively.

Dillon tried to push past Jason out of the hall, but Jason stopped him, "No - give Sam a minute to calm down." Dillon raised an eyebrow and shrugged, "Trust me on this, " Jason said.

Sam's voice called up to them a few moments later, "It's ok - the coast is clear." Dillon and Jason started down the stairs, and Dillon saw Lucas and Ned cautiously entering from the kitchen. Sam looked from Dillon to Ned, "Look - guys, I'm sorry, but I can't stand that woman. I know she's your Mom, but -"

"She brings that out in people, " Ned finished.

"We need to get her under control, " Jason commented.

"I have a plan, " Ned replied, a little sadly, looking at the door. He turned back to face the group, "We need to distract her. As long as she thinks Dillon is here, she'll keep coming back. So we need to make it look like Dillon is on the road, and have her chase after him."

"A decoy?" Jason asked.

Ned nodded, and reached for a bag he'd left in back of the couch, pulling out a bottle of hair product, and handing it to Lucas, "Think you can pull it off?"

Lucas looked at the bottle, and then at Dillon. He turned to Ned, "You're kidding, right?"

Ned shook his head, "Look - if we do your hair like Dillon's, put you in Dillon's clothes - and keep you at a distance, we should be able to get Tracy following you instead of focusing on here."

“Following me where?” Lucas asked cautiously.

Ned sighed. “I’ve got a couple of calls to make – I’ll tell you when I know for sure. Dillon, could you get him ready?”

Dillon looked at them for a moment, “Look, Ned, are you sure this is a good idea? You know how Mom’s going to feel when she finds out you’re tricking her.”

Ned put up a hand to stop Dillon, “I know – but what I’m planning is something that I should have done a while ago – the first time I saw Mother messing with you and Georgie.”

Dillon nodded…he trusted Ned - at this point, more than he trusted their mother. He took the bottle from Lucas’s hand, and headed up the stairs, “Follow me – first, we fix your hair.”

Lucas started up the stairs after Dillon, “Seriously - you call that fixed?”




Mac stumbled to the bathroom, and started to open the door without thinking – but, when he heard the shower running, closed it quickly. He’d almost forgotten that Skye had spent the night. He leaned against the wall and closed his eyes. He was glad she’d been there last night. At first, he’d thought he’d been glad she was there for Maxie…but he was beginning to realize that he’d needed her as well.

There was a noise from downstairs, and he heard Felicia calling, “Maxie! Mac! Is anyone here?”

“Up here!” he called, heading for the stairs, meeting Felicia halfway down. They hugged quickly, and he grabbed her bags, taking them up to her room.

“Is Maxie here?”

Mac shook his head. “She’s at a friend’s house – I’ll fill you in on a few things once we’re ready to head out.”

Felicia narrowed her eyes and looked at Mac, mouthing the question, “Bugged?”

Mac mouthed the answer back, “Maybe.”

Felicia nodded, “Look – you get dressed, I’ll make us some coffee, and you can catch me up.”

Mac nodded, “OK – see you down there.”

As they both headed back into the hall, the bathroom door opened, and Skye emerged, wrapped in a towel, with wet hair. She stopped short, and stared at Felicia. “Welcome back,” she said cautiously, with a nervous smile.

Felicia’s mouth hung open for a second, and then she realized it was, and she closed it. “Good morning, “ she said, a slight edge to her voice. She brushed past Skye, and as she headed down the stairs, yelled back at them, “Hurry it up, you two – we need to get to work on this.”

Skye closed her eyes, and started shaking her head. “She thinks we spent the night together.”

“You slept over – that’s all.”

Skye crossed her arms, and smiled a little – even the good ones could be clueless. “Would you buy that one from Georgie?”

Mac smiled, “No – I wouldn’t. But we’re not two teenagers…and besides – why should she care? We’re not married anymore.”

Skye chuckled, “It’s not that simple, Mac.”

“So explain it to me.”

Skye thought for a second – she really couldn’t explain it in a way that wouldn’t open up another can of worms. How could she explain that she had wanted to sleep with him – but knew that now wasn’t the time to make things more complicated. Especially when she wasn’t sure about how he felt yet…and knowing that it would have been more about her needing comfort than anything else. She shook her head, “Look- we’ve got to get back to work looking for Georgie. Give me a couple of minutes to get dressed, and I’ll be downstairs.”

“OK, “ Mac said, watching her as she went back to the bedroom. He knew that Felicia wasn’t happy that he’d started seeing Skye, but he hadn’t thought she might be jealous…that was pretty high on the list of things that wouldn’t help right now.




Ned stepped out onto the balcony and pulled the card from his wallet. He’d written the number down shortly after Dillon got to Port Charles, as soon as he’d seen their mother start manipulating him. He kept finding excuses not to make the call…but now, there weren’t any excuses left. He pulled out his cell phone and dialed.

“Hello?” a familiar voice said. He thought he heard a child in the background, and the voice sounded busy…it would be 6am on the West Coast, but she’d always been an early riser.

“Don’t hang up, Jenny,“ Ned said – the first thing he could think of. The line was silent. “You still there?” Ned asked.

“You asked me not to hang up.” The voice was cold now. She’d realized it was him.

“It’s about Dillon.”

“Dillon?” she said, surprised. “Do you know where he is?”

“He’s in Port Charles. He’s been here for a while.”

“Port…No – we have a PI – he should still be in Europe somewhere.”

Ned sighed, “Tracy probably bought him off. Look – he’s been here for a little while now. But right now, he needs his father.”

There was a pause. “What did Tracy do?”

“Dillon’s girlfriend has been kidnapped – and Tracy could potentially…interfere… with trying to get her back.”

“Girlfriend? He’s not old enough for a girlfriend, is he?”

Ned smiled sadly – he had a hard time seeing Dillon as almost grown up sometimes too. “Yeah – he is. You know her – Georgie Jones?”

The line went silent for a moment. “Georgie? Felicia’s little girl?”

“Yeah – she was kidnapped last night, and Dillon got a concussion in the attack. I need to get him away from Tracy for a while – and Paul is the one person I know of who can legally keep her away from him.”

“We’ll be out there on the next – “

Ned cut her off, “Look – Dillon might be in danger. Can I bring him to you?”

The line was silent again. “When can you get out here?”

Ned smiled, “I’ve got a friend who can fly us out today.”




When Dillon and Jason got across the hall to Sonny’s penthouse, Luke was already there, with Deacon and JD. JD saw Dillon, and patted him on the back, “How you holding up, kid?”

Dillon nodded, “Bout as well as you’d expect.”

Deacon was leaning over a laptop, but when he saw Dillon he called to him, “Hey, come over here for a second.”

Dillon went over to the laptop, and saw that Deacon had an email account on screen – when he looked a little closer, he realized it was his email account. “Hey! You can’t read my mail!”

Deacon looked a little guilty, “Look – I didn’t want to, but Luke thought there might be a clue in there.”

“How’d you break in?”

Deacon shook his head, “Please – I just needed to plug “Georgie” in as the keyword to a password hacking program, and I was into the account in 5 minutes.”

Dillon shrugged, “OK – so you’re into my email. Is there anything?”

Deacon pulled up a message, “This came in this morning.”

Dillon looked at the message – there was no subject line, and the text just had a link. He looked at Deacon – Deacon motioned for him to click on it. A web site came up – it looked like there was a web cam, but the room was dark. They watched for a few moments, but nothing seemed to be happening. He was about to turn away, when a door to the room opened, and a light snapped on. There were two men – one looked like Faison, and the other larger man was carrying….

It was Georgie.

He watched as they pulled the covers back from the bed, placed Georgie in the bed, and then tucked her in.

Dillon stared at her, unable to look away from the screen. Please…just move…any sign that you’re alive, he thought.

And then, she did…her arm moved, and she rolled on to her side.

Dillon sighed – she was alive. He didn’t know where she was – but she was alive. That meant that he could find her.