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Chapter 5
Luke's Club
Lenore gets to Luke's around 6:30, and doesn't see Sonny or Luke Spencer anywhere. Robin, Brenda, Mike, Mac, Katherine, and Jason are standing near the bar talking softly.
Lenore stays in the background, waiting for Sonny. Suanne had asked her to make sure
that Sonny doesn't play on Brenda's sympathies. This would be the perfect opportunity for
disaster. Sonny's wife also died in an explosion.
Jacks Penthouse
Jax is getting ready for dinner, when there's a knock on the door. He opens it to Miranda. "Listen, this is not a good idea. Brenda's going to be home any minute." Jax says to her. "I doubt it," Miranda says. "You didn't hear yet, did you. Luke Spencer's wife died in an explosion tonight. Since Brenda and Robin are such good friends, I assume they're together." "How...What do you want?" Jax asks.
Miranda, not knowing the bombshell Jerry had dropped on Jax, walks in and sits down. "I want to talk. I'm tired of just waiting around, Jax. You asked me to stay, but I don't think that's such a good idea," Miranda says launching into her Miranda the noble martyr act. "You know, you're right," Jax says as he walks over and stands in front of her. "It's time we had a little chat, Miranda. Or should I call you Melanie," he says as his eyes turn a steely blue. Miranda jumps up and says, "How..." her face pale. "Apparently you broke the terms of the agreement, Miranda," Jax says and begins to pace. Jerry paid me a visit today, and had quite an interesting story to tell." "Lies!" Miranda yells.
"Oh, please. You're smarter than that, aren't you? Don't you know Jerry would have proof to back it up? I don't know how I could have been such a fool. You're good, I'll give you that. I don't know why I never saw it. You didn't want to meet my family, you always gave me some excuse. The funny thing is, I was going to leave the family business and start a new life with you. What were you going to do about that, Miranda?"
"Listen to me, Jax. Jerry's right. I only married him for his money. But I was young and stupid, Jax. I moved on with my life. I never had any intention of doing the same thing to you. I loved you Jax. I still do." "Don't. Don't think you can play me again, Miranda. Where did Stefan Cassadine fit into your 'love' for me?! You KNEW he was a rival! What were you doing, feeding him information?!" "NO! I knew Stefan before I met you Jax. You just don't get it. You don't walk away from the Cassadines. I was trying. I never loved him, I loved you," she says with tears in her eyes. Miranda sits back down on the couch.
Jax walks over to his desk, and says, "Well, if you never loved him, that makes these even more disgusting," throwing some photos in her lap. She looks at the photographs of her and Stefan in bed together, and pales. "Jerry did this..." she says softly. "No. YOU did that!" Jax yells. "What do you want from me, Jax?" Miranda asks. "I want you to sign the divorce papers you will receive tomorrow. After that, I don't care what you do," Jax says. "Leave, now." He walks over to the door, and holds it open. Miranda walks over to him, saying, "This isn't over, Jax. I love you, and I know you still love me."
Jax slams the door behind her. He walks over to the couch, where she had left the photos,
and throws them into the fireplace.
PIC Headquarters
May had been listening to the confrontation as she searched for information on Melanie James. She had come up with some very interesting information. Melanie, A.K.A. Miranda is twenty-seven years old, having been born in 1969 in Greece. Melanie had lived at the Cassadine compound since she was ten. Her mother had been a nanny for Nikolas Cassadine, and Melanie had grown up there. Melanie had worked for the Cassadines as a maid from the time she was 14. At the age of 20, she had disappeared from the island and had turned up in Paris. She had met and married Jerry Jacks, but the marriage only lasted two weeks. She had been divorced, and disappeared again. She had reappeared a few months later as Miranda Jameson, in Melbourne Australia. Stefan Cassadine had also appeared in Melbourne around the same time. The twenty-year old Miranda had married nineteen-year old Jasper Jacks in 1990, and had "died" a few months later in the explosion at the Timoria opal mines. She had reappeared yet again in the Philippines, and had stayed there until now.
There was nothing to enlighten May as to whether Stefan Cassadine was aware Miranda
had survived the explosion.
Wyndemere
Stefan is walking near the pier around 7, when Nikolas and Alexis arrive in a boat. "Nikolas! Where have you been, I was worried," Stefan says to his nephew. "Tell me you didn't do it, Uncle!" Nikolas says with tears in his eyes. Stefan pales and steps back involuntarily as if he'd been struck. "I swear to you, Nikolas. I never wanted Laura to die. She's your mother, I only wanted you two to have the chance to..." he chokes up and turns away. "Who, then! Who killed my mother?!" Nikolas yells. Stefan turns to Nikolas and says, "I promise you Nikolas. Whoever did this will pay dearly." Even if it turns out to be Helena, Stefan thinks to himself.
Suanne is standing in the bushes, nearby on a hunch. When she had heard Jerry tell Jax that Miranda and Stefan had been lovers, she wondered if it was a coincidence that both Miranda and Stefan are in Port Charles. She watches the confrontation between the Cassadines, and then sees Alexis and Nikolas walk toward Wyndemere.
Stefan takes out his cellphone, and calls one of his men. "I want to know who set that explosion in Rochester. I want every available man on this, and I'd better have an answer in 24 hours." He makes another call, "Find Miranda Jacks and bring her here immediately."
Well, I guess I'll be here for a while, Suanne thinks to herself, and resigns herself to a long
wait.
Somewhere on the docks
Laura is sitting on the hard floor of a warehouse near the water. Lesley is sitting nearby, humming to herself. Laura had gone into the house to see her mother. Luke had been inside, and pulled her outside just before the explosion. This is wrong, Laura thinks to herself. I can't do this to Nikolas. Luke told me that Stefan set the explosion, but I don't believe that. Who, then. Helena? She shivers at the thought. "Mother, are you okay?" she says to Lesley. Lesley merely smiles and continues humming her little song, lost in her own world.
Luke, Sonny, and Tom arrive, and Sonny says, "Okay, I've got a car for you. Tom's here he'll check out your mother." As Tom is examining Lesley Laura says, "Luke, this isn't right. I can't do this!" Luke rolls his eyes, and says, "Think, woman! Stefan tried to kill you tonight! Who's next? Me? Lucky? Lu?" "NO! Listen to me. Stefan is not a killer. If he had been a killer, my mother wouldn't be alive now. He saved her life, Luke. He saved our daughter's life. I know you hate the Cassadines, but Stefan's not like them. My SON is not like them. I won't do this to them. I won't abandon my son again. Not for you, not for anybody. It's too cruel."
Luke turns to Sonny and Tom, "You two get Lesley in the car. I need to speak to my wife." After the three are outside Luke says, "Listen to me. Let's just say for the sake of argument you're right. If Helena fooled all of us, and had that explosion set, none of us are safe, Laura. Use your brain! This is twice now that she's tried to kill Lesley. I'll say one thing about the old bat, she's persistent. It's safer for everyone, if we let her, or Stefan, or whoever, think you're dead. IF Helena set the explosion, and IF Stefan cares so much for you, maybe he'll go after her Laura. If he hates her as much as he claims to, then I won't have to go after her. My bet is that Stefan set that explosion, though. And I will probably have to pay a final visit to Helena just to be on the safe side. Let this play out, Laura. We'll stay just far enough away to be safe but close enough to let you see what kind of man Stefan really is. Please, Baby. If not for me do it for the kids. OUR kids. You want to keep them safe, don't you?" Laura sighs, and says, "Okay. But I won't make you any promises about how long I can keep this up."
Holly has been walking, and notices an abandoned warehouse. She sees Sonny Corinthos,
and ducks back into the shadows. She sees him and another man helping an old woman
into a station wagon. She watches in shock as Luke and Laura emerge from the warehouse,
and also get into the car. Lucky Spencer also walks up with a dog, and the family hugs and
gets into the car. Some of Sonny's goons are wandering around, and Holly decides she's too
close for comfort. She retreats farther, and then uses her cellphone to call Suanne.
Spoon Island
Suanne answers her phone on the first ring. "Suanne," "Suanne, it's Holly. This is so weird. Laura's not dead. She and Luke and Lucky, and the baby, and some old woman just got into a station wagon. Looks like Sonny is involved. It looks like they're making a disappearance." "How much more complicated can this get. Listen, let them go. Just keep an eye on Sonny, and tell Lenore where he goes. Tell her not to let Sonny get to Brenda. He'll probably try to play on her sympathies, pretending this brings back memories of Lily. Then stick close to Mac for a while. I've got the Miranda situation under control for now. She's going to be meeting Stefan Cassadine tonight. Turns out they're very close friends, and she was cheating on Jax with him. I've gotta go, here she comes."
Jacks' Penthouse
Jax is pacing the floor, and looks at his watch again. 7: 30, way past time for dinner. He's tried to call Brenda, but she's not answering her cellphone. "Where is she?" he thinks to himself. He's not concerned about the absence of Jerry. "Jerry's dropped his little bomb. Now he's probably gotten bored and left already," Jax says to himself. The phone rings. "Jax here." "Jax, it's Jerry. Sorry, but something's come up. I'll have to take a raincheck on dinner." "You haven't seen Brenda, have you?" "No, not since I left the two of you. Why?" "Never mind." Jax hangs up, and tries Brenda's number. Still no answer.
Meanwhile, Jerry has gotten in his rented BMW and is driving to the docks. He had put a tail on Miranda, and the guy had finally found her. She was at Spoon Island. "So much for the new improved Miranda," Jerry thinks to himself. In the past six years, he'd come to understand her, but he still didn't like her. She could scream until she was blue in the face about her love for Jax, but he didn't believe her. She didn't know what love was. She was a user. She wanted money, and to "be someone". "She isn't going to get that at Jax's expense," Jerry says. "She's so twisted, she probably believes she loves him, but all she'll do is make her miserable."
As he pulled up at the docks, one of his men, Jimmy, is waiting with a speedboat. "So, she's
at the island? You're sure?" Jerry asks. "Yeah. She's there. She was escorted there, but she
wasn't kicking and screaming." "Okay, let's go." The two men get in the speedboat and
head toward Spoon Island.
Luke's Club
Lenore is sitting in the background, trying to remain inconspicuous. Mike, Robin, Jason, and Brenda are there. Katherine's hovering, playing step-mom to Robin, but nobody's really paying her any attention. Lenore's cellphone rings. "Hello?" "Lenore, it's May. I don't suppose you have any idea where Brenda is, do you?" "Yeah, actually. She's right here. At Luke's. Why?" "She's late for a dinner date with Jax. He's not too happy about it." "Well, what should we do?" Lenore asks. "Don't do anything. I've got an idea. Just keep her away from Sonny." "That goes without saying," Lenore responds. "Later, May."
Just then, Sonny walks in. Lenore watches as Brenda and Robin hover around him. "Sonny, where have you been?" Robin asks. "Trying to keep Luke from doing something stupid. He's gone. He's taken the kids and left. I'm not sure when or if he'll be back," Sonny responds. Sonny goes and sits down at the bar and orders a drink. Mike hesitates, but thinks better of it.
"Now what do I do?" Lenore thinks to herself. Her cellphone rings again. "Now what?" she thinks. "Yeah." "Lenore, it's Holly. Laura's not really dead. It was a fake-out. Sonny's in on it, too. Don't let him play on Brenda's sympathies." "Okay, I'll do my best."
"Well, here goes nothing," she thinks to herself. She walks over to the group. Robin is the first to notice. "Lenore!" The two hug in greeting. "Hi, I'm sorry. This is a bad time, isn't it, Mr. Corinthos." "I told you to call me Sonny," he replies. "Have a seat." Brenda is eyeing Lenore suspiciously. Sonny says, "Brenda Jacks, this is Lenore Williams. She's our new hostess here." "Oh, well, nice to meet you," Brenda says and then turns back to Sonny. "Are you okay?" she asks with concern. Lenore's mind is racing for a tactic to make Brenda remember her husband, when Jax walks in.
"Jax!" Brenda exclaims. Seeing the look on his face, she looks at her watch. "Oh, my god! I
forgot, I'm so sorry!" She rushes over and hugs her husband. "That's okay, but I was
getting worried. Why didn't you answer your cellphone?" "Oops, I forgot. My battery's
dead!" Brenda answers. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to worry you." "Well, Jerry's
skipped out on dinner, but are you ready to go?" Jax asks. Brenda sneaks a look at Sonny,
then says, "Okay, let's go." On their way out, Lenore hears Brenda ask, "By the way, how
did you know I was here?" "It was the strangest thing. I got this note under my door. It
said 'Brenda's at Luke's Club." Jax responds. Lenore smiles to herself and thinks, Thank
you May!
Spoon Island
Suanne has just gotten the call from Holly about Laura and Luke's deception. She hangs up when she hears a speedboat approaching. She hides in the nearby bushes and watches as Miranda gets out of the boat, accompanied by a burly-looking guard. "Okay, you got me here. I don't need your help. I can walk perfectly fine by myself!" Miranda yells wrenching her elbow out of his grasp. "Mr Cassadine is expecting you at the house," the man replies. "House?" Miranda says looking up at Wyndemere. "More like a castle, but that's Stefan for you. He'd find the only castle left in the United States and live in it," she says with a smile. She walks up the path to Wyndemere.
Suanne waits until the guard has gone off, and Miranda is a safe distance away, before she follows. She walks through the more overgrown parts of the grounds, in order to hide quickly when she hears any goons approaching. She finally circles Wyndemere, and ends up behind it. Her speedboat is moored nearby. She is contemplating how to get into the mansion. "I've got to hear that discussion!" she thinks to herself. She is so intent with finding a safe way into the building that she doesn't hear the man behind her until he has grabbed her from behind. He clamps one hand over her mouth, and with the other arm, he holds her arms by her side. "Don't scream, or we're both dead. I'm not a guard, I don't want to hurt you," she hears a distinct Aussie voice whisper. She nods assent and when he lets her go, she whispers, "What a way to say hello to an old friend, Jerry!" She turns to face him, and almost laughs at the shocked look on his face.
"Suanne? What the devil are you doing here?" Jerry asks. "This is not the time or the place to explain, Jerry. I have to hear what Miranda and Stefan are saying!" "Why?" "I'm not going to waste valuable time arguing with you!" She walks away from him, but not very far. He unceremoniously grabs her and throws her over his shoulder, whispering, "I'm not going to let you get us both killed!" She struggles, but he's too strong. "We're going back to Port Charles, Suanne. Whether you like it or not!"
Suanne spends the entire time in the boat back to the mainland glaring at Jerry. She even
contemplates murder, but luckily for Jerry, she sees no weapons in sight.
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