"Nikolas? Are you going in or what?" Gia asked impatiently. They stood in front of Helena's  hospital room the day after her "unexplained" collapse. Try as they might, the doctors couldn't find any reason for Helena's condition.

"NO! You go in. You tell her I said hi," he said, turning to walk away.

She caught his arm. "We decided that it would be a good idea to visit her. She did save my life. We owe her this much."

"We don't owe that woman anything. I'll send her some flowers. Is that gratitude enough?"

"Fine, go home. I'm going in though."

"Why are you so insistent that we see Helena? That woman has been dreadful to you."

Gia blinked. She was running out of reasons to push Nikolas towards his grandmother. It was hard to find nice things to say about a plague. She blinked again. She had better think of something. She still needed some  time to figure out how to get some leverage.

"Gia, are listening to me?"

"Yes, Nik, I am listening to you. But are you listening to me?  That  man had a knife to my throat. It was pressed against my neck and I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think...And then he started dragging me away...."

"Shh. Don't rehash that, Princess. He didn't get a chance to do anything else."

"But he could have! If...if Helena hadn't hit him with that pipe...He could have done anything..."Gia sobbed, falling against Nikolas' chest. The thought of that man's hands all over her filled her with disgust. She knew that it had been staged, that she probably hadn't been in any real danger, but it had been real to her. "If she hadn't shown up, Nikolas-"

He held her in his arms, his hand lightly rubbing her back. "She did. You're fine. I understand the gratitude you feel towards my grandmother. I am grateful, I suppose. We'll go in."

Gia clung to him for a long second. "I appreciate this, Baby."

"I would do anything for you, Gia."

"I know," she said, pulling away and swinging the door open. They were greeted by the sight of Helena propped up in bed. She smiled warmly as they entered.

"Nikolas! You've come to visit?"

"I came to thank you and to see if you were all right."

"I don't need any thanks. As far as my health, the doctors haven't found anything wrong with me. It was probably just the stress of the ordeal." Helena waited a few seconds before continuing, "Speaking of  stress, Gia, how are you coping? I know it must have been a horrifying experience for you."

"It was awful..." Gia muttered, trying not to notice the scathing looks Helena was shooting her way.

"It must have been. I must say, the violence in this country is ridiculous. Poor Emily Quartermaine was murdered on those very same docks."

"Must you bring that up?" Nikolas snapped.

"I'm sorry if I upset you, Dear. I didn't mean to bring up an unpleasant subject. I just wanted to stress the importance of safety. Gia, Nikolas loves you, so I must insist that you heed my warning. Be careful, it would be terrible if something bad happened to you."

"I will certainly be careful."

"Bad things happen everyday, Gia."

"They sure do, Mrs. Cassadine. You should listen to your own warnings, though. You're not a young woman anymore, you should be careful of who you tangle with." Gia watched as Helena tapped her fingernail on top of the tray before her.

"Actually," Nikolas added, unaware of the real conversation transpiring between the two women, "Gia is right. That mugger could have hurt you. He did have a weapon."

Helena nodded her head. "I probably should have called the police instead, but what's done is done. I can only be happy that our little friend is well."

"Yes, we should all be thankful that Gia is safe."

"I certainly am," Gia replied, wondering if she had been there long enough to satisfy the old bag. "We ought to get going, now."

"So soon?" Helena asked, an annoyed edge to her voice.

"We have plans, Grandmother," Nikolas chimed in.

"Well then, I do not wish to make you late. I do, however, wish I saw you more. I'd love for you to tell me about your position at L&B."

"Some day, maybe..."

"We have to go, Mrs. Cassadine," Gia said, moving towards the door. Nikolas was right behind her.

"Nikolas?"

He stopped, turning back around to face her. "What?"

"Have you received any audio tapes in the mail, lately?"

Gia froze. What was Helena up to? Was she breaking the deal? She spun around. Angrily she snarled, "WHY would  he have received a tape in the mail, Helena?"

The woman leaned forward off of her pillows. "Do calm down. I was just wondering."

Before Nikolas could say anything, Gia marched over to the bed. "Why would you wonder a thing like that?"

Helena's eyes gleamed. "Nikolas works for a recording studio. I thought maybe he had received a...what do they call those...when undiscovered artists send in a sample of their work?"

Nikolas was at a complete loss. This was the strangest conversation. Gia was acting strangely and Helena looked like the cat who swallowed the canary. Something was going on...

"It's called a demo, Grandmother."

"YES, a demo. I thought maybe he had the 'heads up' on the newest sensation."

Gia took a step back. Was there any lengths Helena wouldn't go to? Helena was parroting a phrase that Gia had used with Stefan. The woman must know that she told Stefan about the tapes. Gia stared at her hatefully. 'What do you want?' Gia's eyes silently asked.

'More!' Helena's eyes replied.

'I brought him to you. He's here!'

'More!'

'You can't have anymore of him!'

'I want all of him!' Helena's cold eyes screamed.

'Over my dead body!'

'If that's the way you want it!

Gia felt the overwhelming urge to strangle the woman. She pressed her itchy hands against her chest. In a tight voice, she said, "Nikolas, I think we should invite your grandmother to have dinner with us this week."

"Have you lost your mind?" Nikolas asked loudly.

"No, I just want her to know how grateful we are. I know that the old...that she must get lonely. It would be appropriate to thank her with dinner. Like a peace offering."

"Oh Gia, I would love that! Nikolas, are you agreeable?"

Nikolas was lost again. One minute, Gia is dragging him in, then she's pushing him out. And now, she's lingering at Helena's bedside. Weird didn't even begin to cover her behavior. "Why, Gia? We've thanked her. There is no need to give her the wrong impression. She is not a part of my life."

Gia sighed. "She's not, but I am. I want to do this. She saved me when she didn't have to. It is important for me to have her to dinner."

"Then have her to dinner. Just don't expect me to be there," Nikolas said, quickly exiting the room. In the hallway, he leaned against the wall next to Helena's door. He couldn't figure out why he felt as if he were being led into the lion's den.

"Nikolas!" Chloe yelled from down the far end of the corridor. She immediately remembered that she was in a hospital and made a little gesture as if she were zipping her lips closed. When she was close, she said, "I always forget that you have to be quiet in the hospital. It's like the library that way."

Nikolas stared at her. "Are you on your way to see Stefan?"

"Yep-a-rooney. I am addicted to my man and I need a fix. Did you just see Helena."

"Yes, I did. She's feeling much better."

"That's wonderful," she replied cheerfully. "Of course, she did evil things to me, but I don't wish her dead. That's not my style. It's a sunshiny day out, Nikolas. You better get out and enjoy if before winter sets in."

"I'll certainly try, Chloe."

"Good! So, where's Gia? I wanted to ask her about that dress she wore to Helena's party. It was fabulous. It wasn't one of mine, but that's okay! It was great. I think I'm going to steal some of  the designer's ideas, though. Shhh....don't tell Cosmo. I want them to think that I was brilliant on my own."

"I can't imagine why they wouldn't think that."

"You've got that Cassadine charm. Too bad I found Stefan first, huh?'

"Yeah, my loss is his gain, I guess."

"You better not let Gia hear you say things like that!"

Nikolas smiled wanly. "Gia knows I love her."

"You make sure she knows. Don't just assume," Chloe advised, placing a hand on Nikolas' shoulder. "The way you were standing when I walked up, it looked like you were kind of sad. Problem?"

"I think she may have a problem she's not telling me about."

"Oh, well she probably just needs to be ready to tell you. Don' t rush her. And don't push it. Sometimes there are things you don't need to know."

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, that sometimes a secret should be a secret. Sometimes you have to make sure it stays that way."

"I still don't understand," Nikolas replied, clearly confused.

Chloe bit her lip. "Here's an example. Stefan and Helena have a difficult relationship. Sometimes he gets sad...moody and I know that it has something to do with his mother. An old scar or a traumatic event. I really want to know what it is, but I know Stefan would prefer not to discuss it. It's best left in the past. Best for him...Best for me. I'm sure you have things you would rather not share."

Chloe made sense. Perhaps Gia needed to deal with something independently before she confided in him. He could understand that. It was still hard for him to share all of himself with her. Lingering fears that she would leave held him back. "Thank you, Chloe. That was very helpful."

"Hey," she said smiling," I do what I can." She looked down at her watch and whistled melodiously. "Oh boy, I'm late. Stefan and I have reservations. I better go find him. It was nice to talk to you."

"You too, Chloe," Nikolas said, realizing that it was the truth. Would wonders never cease? He moved away from the wall. Gia had been in with Helena for a long time. She was probably still discussing dinner possibilities with Helena.

He knew that she really felt grateful to Helena for her life. If she really wanted to have dinner with his grandmother, then he would attend. He would be polite. It would be torture, but he would suffer through. A realization hit him at that moment.

And he knew, that for Gia, he'd suffer through anything. Even Helena.

End of chapter Fourteen, Please e-mail any feedback by clicking on the mailbox below :)

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