Gia lay breathlessly beneath Nikolas' arm. He had been sleep for over an hour, but she couldn't seem to turn her brain off. She should be able to enjoy the afterglow of their ecstasy, but instead, she felt as if she were tied to a bomb. Any minute it would go off.  When Nikolas woke up, she'd have to concoct some lie and break up with him. That, would be like divorcing her own soul.

She moved Nikolas' arm to his side and rolled over to look at him. He was her very own angel. "I can't do it!" she declared much too loudly. Nikolas stirred but didn't wake up. She leaned down to kiss his forehead. Next to his ear, she whispered, "I won't do it, my love. I'll find away to save us. I'll do what it takes."

Gia eased herself off the bed carefully. In the dark, she scrounged up some jeans and a shirt. She left her bedroom, avoiding the squeaky floor boards. In the living room, she found some scruffy tennis shoes and put them on. She left the apartment, her mind set on self-preservation.

~*~  ~*~  ~*~

Emily stared out at the rippling black water. She leaned against the wooden railing that lined the docks, hoping that maybe it would give way. Perhaps the cold water would revive some of the sense she seemed to have misplaced. Was she really the kind of person who would ruin her best friend's happiness just to spite someone?

She shook her head in dismay. When it came to Gia, Emily knew that, YES she was certainly that kind of person. There was something about Taggert's sister that made her the stereotypical catty female. Everything Gia did rubbed her the wrong way. And she would like nothing more than to make her as miserable as Emily had been when, already reeling from the ordeal of awaking beside a dead body, she had received those terrifying phone calls. Calls that had ripped her open and pushed her fear to hysterical proportions.

She wanted to watch Gia twitch.

Emily closed her eyes as she relived the summer her life had spiraled out of control. She saw flashes of events. Ted's bare back as he lay nude next to her. The drug paraphernalia sprawled on the night stand. Lucky bounding into her room to save her.

And then, as her life kept unfolding, she couldn't help but be moved by Nikolas' continued loyalty to her, as he handed her a stack of cash to pay off the blackmailer.

When she had vivid nightmares, as she still sometimes did, Nikolas had been the one she called in the middle of the night. When the rushes of images came and she awoke, sweaty and scared, it had always been his number she called. He was the steadiest person she knew.

And, until recently, the most sad.

Emily dropped her head into her hands. What had she done? She had seen a remarkable difference in Nikolas. Lately he had been, well....happy. As close as Cassadines got to happy. It seemed as if  a dark fog had lifted from his life. She could see it more clearly each day.  Sure, Gia always had her hand out, was a spectacular sight to behold  when  she was pumping Nikolas for something. Money...that apartment he was paying half the rent on...the diamonds he gave her Valentine's day...all of the clothes he paid for. But the fact was, he didn't mind. He didn't care that she was using him, even though she and Elizabeth had forced the issue as far as they could. He didn't want to hear it. And, as sick as it made Emily to think of  that braided-parasite attached to her friend's wallet, she had to admit that Gia felt the same way.

Nikolas and Gia were in love. It burned Emily to know that this was true. She had always hoped that maybe, someday, Nikolas would return her feelings.    

Emily ran a hand through her hair. She knew that wasn't going to happen. She had to step back. She had to let Nikolas be happy and if ...GIA made him happy, then she wouldn't interfere.

Emily smiled to herself. She was going to prove that she was better than Gia. She would do the right thing. She turned away from the water and starting walking down the dock with a new confidence in her step. 

As she strolled down the pier, the  midnight wind howling around her, she was completely oblivious to the tiny red laser dot that was trained on her forehead.

Somewhere, a sniper cloaked in darkness  pulled the trigger  and murdered an innocent.

Emily Quartermaine...dead at eighteen 
~*~  ~*~  ~*~

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

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