"Grandpa Mike please slow down!" Sara shouted as Mike rounded a corner a little too fast. Her hands were gripping the bottom of her seat, her knuckles white.

"Sorry I'm scaring you, just trying to get you out of town as fast as I can." Mike replied as he barely slowed down.

"You're not really scaring me, I just prefer to have one brush with death today," She replied sarcastically.

Mike chuckled and slowed down to normal speed. "All right, all right, is that better?" He asked and glanced over at Sara who nodded and relaxed.

After a moment silence Sara says, "Where did you learn to drive?"

Mockingly, "You don't like my driving? Between you and Sonny I guess I just can't do anything right."

"Grandpa, you know I didn't mean it like that." She mocked back.

"I know sweetheart. I know." He chuckled. "Where did I learn to drive? I'm not sure you need to know that."

"That bad, huh?" Sara inquired.

"Maybe." Mike said and then winked at Sara

"Aww Grandpa, I have to know now." She said as she smiled and gave Mike a killer smile, dimples and all.

"Girl, you sure know how to charm a guy."

"And don't I know it?" She said with confidence, flashed another smile, and winked.

Mike looked her up and down again. "I bet you do, I don't think I like that though."

"You don't have to worry about me Grandpa, I know how to take care or myself. Are you going to tell me about your driving experiences or not?"

"You sure are stubborn aren't you?" "From what I hear, it runs in the family," she answers a bit cockily.

Mike gave Sara a knowing look and they both cracked up in a fit of laughter.

A few minutes later… Mike starts in., "Well if you must know, I must have been about 9 or 10 when I was haniging out with my big brother and his friends. It was a hot summer day on an abandoned dirt road near the outskirts of town. Sid should never have "borrowed" his father's brand new pick up truck….."

"I said we have no comment." Ned said for the hundredth time to the swarm of reporters at his doorstep.

"Mr. Ashton, if your daughter survived are you absolutely certain that her friend didn't?"

Putting on his best Quartermaine "lie when the truth won't work face", he replies, "If I wasn't so sure then why do I have a daughter crying her eyes out because she just lost her friend?" Why was he even talking to the press he wondered? This wasn't helping matters. They kept asking the same questions, and most of them he couldn't answer. Then one question caught him off guard.

"Mr. Ashton is it true that Miss James is the really the only child of the greatest love story of the century, the Mobster and the Model; Sonny Corinthos and Brenda Barrett Corinthos?" The crowd of reporters gasped. They wanted to know the answer to this outlandish inquiry and at the same time they were wondering how they had been outscooped if there was a chance that this was true.

Ned looked the reporter straight in the eye, "That's the most ridiculous thing I've heard. Where did you come up with that idea?"

"I have my sources." The reporter answered.

"Your sources need to be checked because that is absolutely not true." Ned answered sternly.

"Mr. Ashotn how did you daughter meet Miss James?"

"I've had enough of these ridiculous questions. I will schedule an official press conference tomorrow. Until then, please leave." With that Ned went back inside the gatehouse with shouts of "Mr Ashton…, Mr. Ashton….., Mr. Ashton….." screaming in his head.

Lois heard the door slam and came downstairs. "Nedly how'd things go out there?"

"I think I handled them okay, but we have a problem now," Ned answered.

"What? What's wrong?" Lois asked with her blue eyes full of worry.

"One of the reporters has information about Sara being Sonny and Brenda's kid. We need to contact Sonny and Brenda, Mike, and Luke. I don't know where they got the information, but I denied it."

Lois stares at him in shock for a minute. "How'd they find out? Do you think Sara is really safe?"

"I hope she is. I'm sure Sonny is taking all precautions concerning Sara, but we need to inform someone about what just happened to keep her safe."

"Yeah, okay. Mike was taking her somewhere that's what she said, right? Better call him for an advanced warning." Ned was already at the phone trying to get a hold of Mike.

***

In London, it's getting to be late morning/early afternoonish (I know my time zones are misconstrued). Everyone is changed out of their pajamas and are in day clothes. Jason has gone off on a mission (to be explained later).

"We've made sure Sara was safe, now could someone please tell me what the hell is going on?" Sonny said as he started to get agitated.

"Yes," Brenda said at the same time as Tom said, "No."

Brenda threw him a look that Tom knew well; I'm tired of you telling me what to do so leave me alone. Sonny looked like he wanted to throttle Tom right there on the spot. He had never trusted the guy and now he knew why; he had taken Brenda from him, how he didn't know but he was going to get answers. Both were about to chew him out, but it was Julia who started in on him, "Honey, it's about time Sonny was in on this. There isn't a point to keep him in the dark anymore. The more help we have right now, the better."

"But Jules..."

"Tom." She warned with a stern voice. She took his hand and started dragging him towards the back of the house. "Come on, let's give Sonny and Brenda some time alone."

"But.." Tom protested as Julia shot him a look that said don't you dare argue with me. He shut up fast and allowed himself to be dragged out of the room. As they left, Julia turned around and winked at Brenda, and mouthed the words, "you owe me one."

Brenda nodded and chuckled softly. Julia sure knew how to handle Tom, Brenda had never seen him give in so easily. Not that she minded, she didn't feel like getting into a dragged out argument with Tom at the moment. She glanced over at Sonny who was staring at her intensely. God she missed the way he looked at her. She wanted to get lost in his gaze and never find her way out. She smiled her bright smile at him shyly and said, "I guess I have a lot of explaining to do, huh?"