Jason had secured a private lounge for them to wait in while his men double checked the plane to prepare it for the short flight back to Port Charles. Jason shrugged as he stared out the glass window to the plane below them. He knew, and he was pretty sure Emily and Lucky knew too, that insisting on a final mechanical and security check on the plane was pretty much a delaying tactic, a vain hope that if they waited long enough somehow Maxie would show up. Alive. In one piece. Jason tried to ignore the news report on the small TV in the corner about the explosion at the building. Tried his best not to hear words like casualties....bodies....no survivors. He looked at his watch. Ten minutes and he would have no choice but to get on that plane and leave.

His arm was bandaged, Emily had insisted on calling a doctor and Jason had relented and contacted one of the men he usually used when he needed discrete medical care in the big apple. The doctor had also left a bottle of painkillers for him to take, but Jason hadn’t bothered. He didn’t think there was anything he could do to kill the pain if Maxie didn’t make it through this.

He should have stopped her. Dammit he was one of the most powerful men on the Eastern Seaboard if not the entire nation and he couldn’t save the women he loved. Was this how Sonny felt when he lost first Lily and then Brenda? This intense wave of helplessness tinged with bitter regret. He had lost Robin years ago, but somehow that had been different. When he had assisted in Robin’s suicide in Paris, it had in a strange way been an act of love that brought them back together again after the bitter years apart. He had done what he did to save Robin pain, a futile gesture perhaps considering the amount of pain he had once caused her. Losing her had hurt, but there had always been this awareness in him that Robin had been dying anyway. He had accelerated Robin’s death and he had no real regrets about that, but he hadn’t caused it. AIDS had done that. But Maxie.....damn if Maxie died then he was the only one to blame for dragging her into this mess. She should not have been there. Yes it had been her choice to sacrifice herself so that the three of them could make it, but she should never have been in a situation where she had to make that choice. Never.

“Jason?” Emily’s voice was soft and gentle as she came behind him to give him a comforting hug.

He smiled despite himself. Emily had that affect on him. He could still remember the lanky and awkward teenager who had so easily accepted him after the accident. It was hard to merge that image onto the graceful and elegant women who stood next to him, a mother of a teenager herself and pregnant with her second child. She was a study in contrasts. Vulnerable one moment. Strong the next. Seeing her reflection in the glass, one would never have pictured her holding an automatic rifle or doing half the things she had done today to rescue her son. She’d been through hell this little sister of his and someday he would see to it that she got to enjoy her slice of heaven.

“Where’s Lucky and Jonathan?” He asked her, just then becoming aware of the absence of Emily’s husband and child.

Emily smiled. “Jonathan’s still in shock I think. He and Lucky needed some time alone so they went to explore the airport for a little while. Don’t worry, they took a few guards with them. And no I really don’t want to know how your guards made it through those metal detectors fully armed.”

“I don’t know,” Jason half smiled. “Considering the fact that you married a Spencer maybe you should learn the secret of smuggling guns.”

Emily shook her head. “No thank you. All I want is to go home to Port Charles and live a life of quiet normalcy. PTA Meetings. Soccer matches. Baby showers. God you have no idea how good that sounds.”

“Somehow I don’t think you were ever meant for a normal suburban life. It may sound like a nice fantasy but I bet it would bore you after a month...” Jason stopped when Emily’s face grew pale and she held onto him for balance. “Em?” Jason’s heart leaped into his throat when he saw her eyes roll back before they closed and she became a dead weight in his arms. Swearing softly, he picked her up in his arms an easy thing to do even if she was five months pregnant and brought her to a leather couch against the side of the room. Motioning for one of his men to bring him a glass of water, Jason laid her down and began softly calling her name.

What was it Lucky had said? Nausea. Dizziness. Fainting spells. All side effects of the medicine that was trying to stop that damned virus Helena gave her from destroying the muscles of her heart. Was this just a fainting spell? Or was the medicine not working. He checked her pulse, it was rapid and steady. Her breathing was shallow but even. She’d been under a lot of stress the last few days, from seeing her husband die in front of her, to coming to New York to take care of Helena Cassadine, to learning that Lucky was alive, and to having to rescue her son. He’d give her two minutes to open her eyes before he took her to the hospital. Maybe one minute.

His relief when her eyes flickered open a few seconds later was tremendous and powerful. Gently he helped her drink some water and resisted her efforts to get him to help her sit up.

“You need to rest,” he insisted and suddenly exhausted Emily didn’t put up too much of an argument.

“Don’t tell Lucky,” she asked him in a voice that was too shaky and too weak for his comfort.

“He’s your husband.”

“I know. And I’ll tell him. I promise. Just not now. Jonathan just got his father back. He...both of them... they don’t need reminders of my illness today. At least not for a few hours. It was just a fainting spell, just part of the side effects.”

Jason nodded. “You’ll take it easy.”

It was a command and not a question.

Emily nodded when the door flew open and Jason looked up, an expression of mingled ecstasy and relief on his handsome features.

“Maxie?!”

Maxie leaned back against the leather seats of the luxury car as it made its way towards JFK International. She slanted a look at her father in the seat next to her. “You might as well start lecturing,” Maxie muttered as she closed her eyes. “You know that you want to.”

“You’re 27 years old Maxie. You don’t need me to lecture you.”

“No, I needed that when I was 12,” Maxie said without thinking and then she sighed at the hurt look that crossed her father’s face. “I’m sorry. That was a bitchy comment to make. You guys saved my career today if not my life.”

“Maxie, I just want you to know that if I had to do it all over again.....”

“You’d do the exact same thing, Dad.” Maxie finished for him. “You know you would. When I was a little kid I used to wonder if there was something wrong with me that you left us. Mom used to tell me stories about how you were out there saving the world and sometimes I would wish that something bad would happen to me so that you would come and save me. But as I got older I realized that it wasn’t me or Mom or Georgie, it was you. I love you but you weren’t cut out to be a father. Mom used to say that you weren’t happy unless you were in the middle of the action. I guess you can’t raise kids in the middle of the action. It’s addictive this game we play in law enforcement. And playing it on your team, it has to be downright narcotic. The toys. The intrigue. The glamour. It’s a far cry from the homicide division in El Paso, but I’ve been a cop long enough to know that this stuff gets in your system. It becomes your system. I guess choosing between family and career is something a lot of cops do one way or the other on a daily basis.”

“You know when you were born I never thought I would choose anything over you and your mother.”

“I know. But you did,” Maxie says softly.

“I’m sorry.” Frisco’s tone is sober. “You’re right, I wouldn’t change it but I am sorry.”

“It’s okay, Dad. Honest. I don’t hate you or resent you and I’m not going to write some tell all book or anything. I love you. And I understand. I wouldn’t have ten years ago but as you said I’m 27. I’ve grown up.” An image of Jason holds fast in her mind. “I know that sometimes as much as we want to be with someone we love, it doesn’t always work out. I didn’t have you as often as I would have liked growing up, but I had mom and I had Mac. I had Georgie and Robin and then the boys. I had a family. I had love.” Maxie leaned over to hug her father. “You were there for me today and that counts a lot.”

“You scared the hell out of me. When we figured out what was going down....” Frisco’s voice trailed off. “What in the hell made you think you could take on Helena Cassadine? The WSB has been trying to get something on her for years. Jesus Maxie she was responsible for the death of one of my closest friends.”

“And she kidnapped the son of one of my closest friends,” Maxie said calmly. She didn’t have that many friends and she’d come to value Emily’s friendship a lot.

“You should have told me what you were up to. We would have provided back up.”

“And turned the day into some kind of mini-Armageddon.” Maxie shook her head. “Everything worked out, didn’t it?”

“Barely. A few weeks ago you were on death’s door and today you were flying the not so friendly skies dangling from the bottom of a rope ladder. Even by my standards, what you did was a reckless and stupid move.”

“So much for I’m too old to get a lecture.” Maxie said impatiently. “I told you I was helping friends. It was nothing I couldn’t handle. I’m damn good at what I do and I think today proved that I can handle myself.”

“But can you handle yourself around Jason Morgan.”

“Dad. You want to end this conversation on a civil if not loving note, I would not bring up Jason.”

“You cannot seriously think of becoming involved with the man. Look at what he did to Robin.”

“I know about Jason and Robin. I was there. And I’m not involved with the man. Jason Morgan is not going to be a part of my future. I told you I was here to help Emily.” That’s not strictly lying Maxie appeased her conscience as she smiled at her dad.

There was silence between the two of them for a few minutes.

“So, what are your plans?” Frisco asked as casually as if they had met for coffee at Kelly’s.

Maxie shifted uneasily. “I don’t know. I guess today proved that I’m well enough to go back to work. My job and my condo in El Paso are waiting. Mac is dropping hints about me working for the PCPD. There are good reasons for staying in Port Charles and good reasons for going back to Texas so I guess I’ll just wait and see.” Even as she said it, Maxie realized that the decision had already been made. Staying in Port Charles and running into Jason on the street or worse yet having to arrest him for something was unthinkable. Call it a cowardly act to run back to Texas but she preferred to think of it as survival.

Her thoughts turning to Jason, Maxie barely noticed when the car pulled up to the airport terminal until she had to turn and say goodbye to her father.

Now, looking into Jason’s blue eyes, she put aside all thought for the moment of saying goodbye and let herself be folded into his arms as he moved her quietly into a corner of the room where they at least had the pretense of privacy.

“How did you.....I thought I had...God I have never been so scared...” Jason’s voice trembles and Maxie quietly soothes him with a gentle kiss as she explains what happened.

Jason stares at her as she recounts her escape, an involuntary shudder passing through him as he imagines her standing on that narrow ledge.

“Are you okay?”

Maxie nods. “I’m fine. Even better now that I know all of you made it safely. But I tell you I will be absolutely fantastic when we get back to Port Charles.” A shiver runs down Maxie’s spine. “I don’t care how well we covered our tracks. Helena is going to know what happened. None of us, including Jax and V, are safe after this.” A kind of delayed shock settles in her and she finds herself leaning into his strength, needing to feel his warmth.

“It will be okay,” Jason whispers. “Lucky swears he has a plan and if he doesn’t, we’ll make one up. Helena Cassadine isn’t going to be a threat to the people I love anymore.”

Maxie nods against his chest. She knows he thinks he means it. But all her life people have been trying to get rid of Helena Cassadine. Her father.. Mac. Luke Spencer. Stefan Cassadine. Helena Cassadine was like this twisted and evil Phoenix and Maxie had a sick feeling that she would rise again.

The Airport Snack Bar

When his father had emerged from the building to joining them in the car, Jonathan had stared in disbelief for a full moment before throwing himself into his father’s arms. The whole ride from Helena’s building to the airport had been spent crying in his father’s arms with his mother there too and by the time they made it to the airport, Jonathan couldn’t tell whose tears were whose. Lucky was alive. His father was alive. For over twenty four hours he had operated on the assumption that of the two people he loved the most in the entire world, one of them was dead and the other was in danger. To have them both safe and sound and breathing on either side of him had seemed like all of the presents he had ever received rolled into one. Now, sitting across from his father a short while later. Jonathan is trying very hard to handle himself like a grown up instead of throwing himself in his father’s arms again like he wants to.

“I can’t believe you are alive,” Jonathan looks at his father with eyes that still shimmer with tears despite his best efforts not to cry. “I can’t believe it. I saw the launch explode.” Jonathan’s voice catches involuntarily and Lucky reaches over the table to grab his hand.

“It’s okay,” Lucky’s voice is soft and reassuring. “I’m okay. I’m here.”

Jonathan’s eyes grew distant as he remembered that afternoon. “It was awful you know. The flames and the smell of gasoline were everywhere. Mom kept screaming your name over and over again. They searched for you for so long and then finally we managed to get Mom to go home but it was like she never left that dock, you know? Her body went home, but her spirit stayed there looking for you. Grandma Laura kept crying and Luke just kind of looked sad and broken.” Jonathan shudders as he remembers. “They all came over, all of them. Even Nikolas was there for a while. I was afraid that he was going to make me leave and go back to Wyndemere with him, but Mom didn’t give him a chance. She told him that I was staying, you know in that don’t bother arguing with me it won’t do any good voice she gets.”

Lucky smiles. “And you?”

Jonathan looks down at his soda and pushes the straw in and out of the lid absentmindedly. “I tried to be strong. I knew that you would want me to look after mom and the baby. I really really tried to be strong.” His brown eyes were filled with anguish as he looked up at Lucky. “But I couldn’t handle it. I cried. I was supposed to be comforting mom and she had to comfort me.”

Lucky shook his head. “You comforted each other. That’s what families do Jonathan. They help each other through the worse of times and they celebrate together the best of times. And its okay to cry when you miss somebody just like its okay to cry when you are happy. I love you and I know that If I ever thought I’d lost you forever it would break my heart and I would cry all the time too.” There is silence between them for a moment as Jonathan fights to regain control.

“Do we have to go back to Port Charles?” Jonathan asks suddenly. “I’m sure Uncle Jason would take us somewhere else. I don’t mind being on the run again. I don’t mind anything as long as I get to stay with you and Mom. I don’t want to go back to Wyndemere. I don’t want to lose you again.”

“You won’t lose me again. I promise.” It’s not lost on either of them that Lucky doesn’t make the same promise about Jonathan losing his mother. “ As for Nikolas, I don’t know what will happen there. I hope that we can work out something. Those hours after I woke up after the explosion before I knew that you and your mom were okay and then again after we realized Helena had you, I guess I got a glimpse of what it would be like to lose you and I understand a little bit better how Nikolas feels. Your his son biologically. In every other way I think of you as mine and no father, biological or otherwise, could love you as much as I do. But it has to be a little sad to be Nikolas and to realize what a great kid you are and for you to be a complete stranger to him.”

Jonathan sighs. “Nikolas is okay. But he’s not you and he wouldn’t let me see you or mom the entire time I was with him. Please don’t make me go live with him again.”

Lucky looks at his son who has lost so much and endured so much. If Emily died, he didn’t know if Jonathan could handle it. Hell he knew he couldn’t handle it, how could he expect a 12 year old could to handle it. Jonathan needed to be home with his mother and with his father at least until the baby was born. Maybe after that they could discuss joint visitations or something. He remembered the last angry conversation he and Nikolas had had at the dock just before the explosion. But he also remembered the years after Liz’s death when Nikolas had been there for him. Somewhere underneath that hostility and anger was that Nikolas. He’d do his damnest to try to reach that Nikolas when they got back to Port Charles. For Jonathan’s sake. For Emily’s sake. For his sake. Even for Nikolas’s sake. After all that had happened, he knew his son well enough to know that Nikolas would be far from “okay” if he forced Jonathan to leave Emily now.

“No promises,” Lucky said softly. “But I’ll talk to Nikolas and see if we can’t work something out.” Lucky pauses. “Now do you want to tell me how you ended up in Helena’s penthouse?”

Hesitantly, Jonathan explains about finding the note from his mother and realizing that Emily was going after Helena on her own. “I wanted to help her so I let Helena’s goons grab me. I ditched the guards and hung out in the most public place I could think practically wearing a sign saying kidnap me.” Jonathan shrugs. “I thought I could bargain with Helena not to hurt mom anymore. I thought I could stop her and force her to let mom go.”

“You know how dangerous Helena is. What made you think you could force her to do what you wanted?”

Jonathan’s eyes light up. “I didn’t tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

Jonathan smiled. “Helena Cassadine is a fake.” He then proceeds to tell his stunned father all about what he and Ruby and Michael have discovered.

Greece
The Sanctuary of Our Lady Convent
On the isle of Kronos off the coast of Greece

Laura Spencer gave up holding her nose to block out the smell of fish as she sat in the cabin of the small fishing vessel that she and Luke had bribed to take them to the island convent, just in case the regular twice a week ferry was being watched her husband claimed. Personally, Laura was working under the theory that Luke was trying to relieve his youth by making this “research trip” as much an adventure for the two of them as possible. Laura had no problems with the idea of trying to recapture some of the excitement of their youth, she just couldn’t see how chartering a private boat that didn’t reek of fish would hurt. After all, they had spent that time aboard the Cassadine yacht if Luke wanted to relive old memories, why couldn’t they be memories of the two of them in luxurious accommodations.

She glared at Luke as he entered but he only smiled at her, his white hair cut close to the skin he still managed to get to her like the handsome and compelling curly haired blonde she had met once upon a time. Somewhere inside of her, she had known from the beginning that the two of them were somehow linked. Through good times, raising their family and building a home, and bad times, the rape, Lulu’s illness, their separation, they had always had this sometimes very painful connection. Even when she felt like killing him, like she did now, she knew she would always love Luke Spencer. Always.

That knowledge didn’t stop her from glaring at him.

“I hope you like the smile of fish,” she told him caustically. “Because if you don’t you better get used to it. I think this smell is going to be with me forever.”

“It could be worse,” Luke offered with a smile.

“How?”

“They could be rotting fish.”

Laura picked up a dead fish from the bucket next to her and threw it at her husband. She missed, but just the act made her feel better.

“How much longer?”

“Thirty minutes or so.”

“Where do we start?”

Luke sighed as he sat next to her, reluctantly moving within striking distance. “I thought we’d ask around at the convent. See if any of the sisters remember anything.”

“Luke, Helena is in her eighties. Do you honestly think any of these sisters were alive when she was here?”

“They’re nuns Laura. They haven’t had the opportunity to waste their life in various forms of debauchery. Some of them had to live to a ripe old age.”

“I hope you are right.” Laura’s smile caught Luke unaware.

“What’s so funny?”

“I was just remembering that time in Canada when you took Lucky fishing and the two of you caught all those fish and then you refused to clean them and Lucky tried to and the mess he made......” Laura’s smile disappeared as she thought of her youngest son. “I can’t believe he’s gone. We just got him back and he’s gone.”

Luke put an arm around his wife. “We’ll get through this together sweetheart. Always together.”

Laura nodded as the two of them fell into a reflective silence until the boat landed at the small dock.

There were no cars on the island and the only wheeled transportation, a donkey and a cart, was unavailable so Laura and Luke walked the three miles from the dock to the convent. Once at the convent, Luke knocked at the outer gate and they waited patiently for an elderly lady in a dark frock to appear.

“Can I help you?”

Luke smiled charmingly. “I hope so. My name is Rudolfo Ames. Here is my card and identification.” Luke produced one of the various ID’s they kept from their days on the run. “My assistant and I are researching a book and we were hoping you could help.”

“What kind of book?”

“A biography on one of the most important women in Greece. Helena Cassadine. She talks with great fondness about her days growing up in your convent and we were hoping to come in and talk to some of the sisters and maybe take some pictures.”

“The convent is no longer a school and there are not many of our order left, but we never turn away strangers.”

The gate opened and Luke and Laura entered the convent.