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When Cassadines Fall
Do the Right Thing
After making sure that Ricky had washed his hands, Miz Sophia dishes him up a bowl of beans and rice. As if nothing had happened she returns to the table. Maddy toys with her food stirring it around, her appetite ruined by the earlier unpleasantness. Had Lisette really... "Granny, they said Lisette married him, married Billy Bob."
Sophia shrugs. "I suppose it's possible. The girl didn't have the sense God gave a goose sometimes. I know that Billy Bob asked her more than a few times. He knew he was onto a good thing. Never had to get off his fat ass unless it was to get a longneck."
"No way was mama that stupid." Maddy denies.
"Well I'm not saying it wasn't a weak moment. Who knows what Lisette was thinking. I minded my own business." Sophia adds. "We'll find out if the cops actually show up. Those boys will have to produce some kind of proof for them to investigate."
Ricky snorts. "Yeah right. They'll show up if only to hassle Madeliene and work the situation to their own advantage. I think it's time for you to get out of Dodge again. You had the right idea the first time."
Nikolas stiffens. Even if what Robideau's son was factual his tone was disrespectful. "Last time I looked this was a free country. Maddy can come and go as she pleases."
Ricky snorts. "Yeah right."
Sophia looks over at Maddy her glance filled with warnings. The testosterone overload was evident. Neither of the boys were satisfied with the outcome of the fight and were ready to take on each other. Maddy nods. "Nikolas, can I talk to you outside?"
Uh oh. Nikolas Something major is up. Nik rises to his feet and escorts Maddy out onto the back porch his hand reassuringly at her back. "Are you okay?"
"No, I'm freaking out about now. Thanks for asking." Maddy quips back. Her hands are shaking in reaction and she tucks them in her jeans pockets. "Day for surprises eh?"
"Maddy, you know those men have no case. They can't touch you or this house even if your mother was married to their brother. This is your house... you have the papers for it and you're emancipated-- a legal adult. They can't touch you. It was just an intimidation."
"Scary to think that Billy Bob was actually the most evolved of his family. You must wonder what the hell you walked into. You should go home. Take your uncle and Mr Q back to Port Charles."
"Like I told Robideau. It's a free country. Should has nothing to do with it. You need friends right now. And I'm going to be here for you."
"You didn't sign on for this." Maddy denies.
"I don't recall signing on for anything. I'm here because I want to be." Nik holds out a hand. "Come here." Maddy takes his hand. He leads her over to the glider on the porch and sits down with her next to him. Nik wraps an arm around her shoulders pulling her close. "Now tell me what is going on in that head of yours."
"She'd tell him that."
"What?"
"That it was her house. That there was a trust fund. Lisette never would have said that it was me. And I never said different cause it was none of his business. Did I set my own mother up? Did he marry her and kill her to get the house? To get the free ride? Did he force me out with this in mind all along?"
"Well if he did then he miscalculated." Nik retorts and then winces. That was scarcely comforting. He hugs Maddy closer. "Maddy, you told the cops what was going on in that apartment. The only one responsible for this mess is Billy Bob Harris."
"But Mama..."
"Like you said it's none of Billy Bob's business who owned the house." Nik shudders wondering what would have happened if Harris' had known that Maddy was the one who owned the house. "Maybe it was Lisette's way of protecting you. She might have stayed with the guy but I'm sure she must have known what he was like."
"I just don't understand why!" Maddy protests. Her eyes well with tears. Nik pushes her head to his shoulder and starts rubbing her back letting her cry it out.
"Your father raised you with better manners than that." Sophia says gruffly. "Maddy just lost her mother."
"I know. I went to get her, didn't I?" Ricky stares down at the red beans and rice. "There is nothing here for her now. Nothing but trouble. It's already started. A fed showed up at Dad's this morning making threats. Evidently a fed who tracked Maddy to Port Charles and back."
Sophia raps Ricky's knuckles with her spoon. "You are NOT going to tell Maddy that. She has enough on her plate as is and I won't have you pressuring her to leave so you can sleep easy. How selfish can you be?"
"The Bitch is dead! I don't see why my dad has to go down with her!" Ricky blurts out. "Maddy being here stirs up nothing but trouble."
"Evidently more selfish than I thought. Your grandmother must be spinning in her grave to hear that kind of talk coming from your mouth. Pete can take care of himself. He doesn't need his son making his decisions, or Maddy's either."
"Old woman..."
"You keep a civil tongue in your head while you are sitting at my table!" Sophia roars. "I won't be disrespected in my own house!"
Ricky winces knowing he's gone too far. "Sorry."
Sophia takes a deep breath. It's up to her to calm the waters. "I know that you didn't come over here expecting to run into those two throwbacks. I know that you got your blood up and want to beat up something and believe me I understand, it was all I could do to manage to aim my gun at the floor rather than blowing their damn fool heads off and saving the gene pool."
Ricky grins ruefully. "Yeah, that's one way of putting it."
Sophia stiffens hearing the sirens. "Are you carrying?"
"What?!"
"Give it to me now! Before the cops show up." Sophia holds out her hand. Ricky reaches for his gun. "Harness too. You know they'll search you." Ricky slides off his coat and hands her the harness and the gun.
"I'm going to want that back."
"Well if the cops can't find it then you'll get it back!" Sophia bustles back to her room and pulls up the boards over her hidey hole in the closet floor and then sweeps a bunch of shoes over it. She walks out to the kitchen in time to remind Ricky. "You be cool." Sophia shakes a finger in his direction.
"I know how to deal with cops."
"NEW ORLEANS POLICE OPEN UP!"
Sophia looks over at Ricky. "Cool." She mouths the reminder. She opens the door. "Officer, is there a problem?"
"We had a report of gunfire at this residence." The officer at the door has his hand on his sidearm. His partner already has his drawn. The officer sees Ricky at the table and recognizes him. "Keep your hands where I can see them."
Ricky places his hands on either side of his plate. Sophia moves in the way of the officer. "I'm afraid that was my fault. There were some trespassers next door and they wouldn't leave when I told them to. It was a good thing I had it pointed to the floor. I should have called you, figuring you'd have heard about it from the neighbors or somethin."
"Ma'am, step out of the way." The officer brushes Sophia aside so he can keep an eye on Robideau's spawn.
The partner follows into the house. "Where is the gun, Ma'am."
Sophia steps away next to the fridge. "It's in that drawer there." She points knowing the officer would rather check it himself.
The officer cautiously opens the drawer seeing the .45 in plain view. Securing his weapon he reaches for the .45 and sniffs it. "It's been fired."
"I told you it had." Sophia says indignantly.
"Stand up and put your hands up against the wall." The officer tells Ricky not taking his hand from his own sidearm.
"Is there a problem, officer?" Ricky politely asks as he stands and turns to face the wall.
The officer kicks Ricky's legs further apart and efficiently starts searching him looking for any weapons. "Officer Safety. You don't mind, do you, punk?"
"Not at all." Ricky snorts. "Anything that makes you feel safer, Officer."
Maddy sees what is going on in the apartment and pulls away from Nik. "Stay here. Don't come in. Whatever happens don't come in." Maddy knocks on the back door so the officers aren't surprised when she comes in. "Miz Moriz, did you call the officers about the trespassers?"
"Someone did, Madeliene." The other officer tucks the spent .45 in his belt and looks Maddy over carefully. Unlike the youth his partner had up against the wall there wasn't any obvious place that this one could be hiding a firearm.
"Miss, can I have you raise your hands and turn around please." Maddy slowly does as he says. "Thank you." The first officer finishes frisking Ricky and turns him around and plops him back in the dining room chair.
"Now about these trespassers. The complaintants claims to be the rightful owners. Brothers in law of the deceased. They said that you interfered with their rightful claim."
Maddy shakes her head. "They are in error, sir. They might be brothers in law of the deceased but they don't own anything here."
"Baby, you don't have to explain anything to them." Ricky says in a bored tone. "Wait for the lawyer to clear this all up."
"It's just a simple misunderstanding, sweetheart." Maddy tells Ricky. "Officer, the ... deceased was my mother but she wasn't the owner of the house. I am. Those men have no claim to the property and no business being here."
"You own the property." The officer's brows both go up in disbelief.
"My Grandmother left it to her. She knew it was true love-- isn't that right baby?" Ricky replies sarcastically.
"She knew what you are like, sweetheart, and wanted to protect my interests if you kept tomcatting after we had kids." Maddy puts her hands on her hips playing to the audience.
"Tomcatting? You faithless bitch!" Ricky snarls getting into it. "You're the one chasing zippers." He makes a move as if to rise and the officer pressed him back down into the chair.
Maddy throws up a hand and tosses her head back. "Whatever."
The partner whistles to get the attention back to the matter at hand. "Miss, do you have proof that you own the property."
"I've been out of town."
"Chasing zippers."
"Zip your lip." The cop flicks Ricky in the back of the head. Ricky gives him the evil eye.
"But you can check the court record I'm sure. I'm the registered owner. My ID is in my purse." Maddy points to the couch. The cop not watching Ricky opens up Maddy's purse and hands her her wallet. Maddy opens it up and pulls out the ID.
"This is a New York driver's license."
"I've been going to school out of town." Maddy explains. "I needed a little distance-- you understand."
"Perfectly." The officer agrees glancing over in Ricky. He calls in the info to dispatch and verifies it and then hands the ID back to Maddy. "We'll let the claimants know they were in the wrong on this one. Miz Moriz, you need to be more careful with handgun."
"You're going to give that back right? I have all the permits for it." Sophia asks.
"Yes, ma'am. But you're going to have to pick it up at the station. I'll give you a receipt for it." The officer starts writing up the incident report keeping it short. "And if you fire it off again inside city limits we'll be writing you a ticket." He adds patronizingly.
"Of Course, Officer." Sophia says politely biting her tongue.
"A detective may stop by later to follow up." The officer gives the receipt book over to Sophia to sign.
"Are you boys hungry?" Sophia reaches into a cupboard and pulls out some plastic containers. She half fills then with rice and then tops it with the red bean mixture and seals up the containers grabbing some disposable spoons from another drawer. "Here you go. We really appreciate how nicely you handled this." She ushers them out the door and then leans against it with a sigh. "Whew. That was a close one."
"You know you're not going to get your gun back." Ricky tells her.
"Yes, I will. I know who to talk to downtown." Sophia corrects him.
Nik comes in the from the back. "Sweetheart?" He asks Maddy.
"Give them what they expect to see. You weren't it. Cops are like Cassadines; they jump to conclusions." Maddy tells him.
"Thank goodness you did as Maddy said and stayed outside." Sophia shakes her head. "You never know what you're going to get when the cops show up. That could have been messy. Even the best of them go from zero to sixty in nothing flat. You and Ricky could have both ended up downtown nursing your lumps."
"I can't believe you fed them." Ricky protests.
"Catch more flies with honey rather than vinegar." Sophia reminds him.
"Dad is going to hear about this." Ricky grumbles. He frowns over at Maddy, knowing this is all her fault.
Maddy winces. "We handled it. Poppi doesn't need to get involved." Maddy looks over at Nikolas. "And there is no reason for your uncle or Mr Q to know either."
"O'Meara is going to be here next." Ricky tells Maddy.
"I can handle O'Meara." Maddy reminds him.
"Yeah, bet you can. It'll be a twist on the story. Now the NOPD will think you're doing me rather than my old man. Or maybe they'll think you're doing us both."
"You're out of line." Nikolas protests.
"Am I?" Ricky rises. "I'll talk to you later, Madeliene. When the watchdog isn't around." He leaves out the front door.
"So angry." Sophia shakes her head.
"I have to finish the back flower beds." Maddy says tersely and walks out the back door. Nik goes to follow her.
"Let her cool off." Sophia directs.
"He had no business talking to her that way."
"There is a lot of history there, young man. Things you don't know about. Leave it be." Sophia shakes her head. Nik goes over to the back window and watches as Maddy weeds the flowerbeds below.
Dara marches up the front path and knocks on the door. The occupant knew she was coming. She'd been announced at the gate. Sure enough the door swings open, Dara takes a step back she'd forgotten how blasted tall this guy was. You could get more than one kind of pain in the neck being around him. "Thank you for seeing me."
"You said it was regarding, Madeliene."
"We've got a problem and I want your backing."
"Excuse me?!" Pete can't believe what he's hearing.
"I know what's been going on down here and I want my niece out of it."
"Perhaps you should tell me what is going on here... since you know it so well."
"Like I said yesterday I appreciate all the help you've been over to Maddy over the years but now you've set her up to be a target and I won't have that!"
"Oh have I?"
"I'm sure I'm not giving anything away by saying that everyone is keeping an eye on you and your dirty dealings. You may intimidate or buy off everyone around here but I am not going to have my niece used as bait to get you. You and I both know she's the one who is going to get hurt while they're trying to take you down."
"Really." Pete says noncommitally.
"If you cared about her at all you'd be putting her on the first plane back to Port Charles!" Dara starts getting ticked by Pete's attitude.
"And you don't think they would try to use her in Port Charles to get to me? Your boyfriend perhaps-- the chatty Det Taggart?"
Dara snorts and shrugs. "So Jacks told you about him."
"And if he hadn't, the FBI agent who visited me this morning did. The agent with his hand out." Pete rubs his fingers together in a nonverbal sign for money. "Maddy was safe, or safer up in Port Charles before your boy in blue opened his mouth and drew attention to her. Now she is safer here where I can protect her."
"Or she can just drop you like a bad habit and she won't need protection at all!"
Pete half smiles. This one is a firey like Madeleine. Too bad it's more than obvious that she rides the rails of the straight and narrow with blinders on to all that is interesting in the world. "Madeliene will not appreciate you coming to see me. When she asks for my opinion I'll give it to her. I suggest you do the same. Have a nice day, Ms Jensen." Pete opens the door and waits until Dara slams out in a huff. He shuts the door calmly behind her.
Jerry comes out of the kitchen carrying two coffees. "Pistol isn't she?" He hands Pete one of the cups. "You don't really believe that Maddy is safer here."
"Non. But it was fun watching the little pidgeon getting her feathers ruffled. Perhaps now she will go back to her boyfriend and tell him to keep his fingers from my business."
About an hour later, Dara still steaming comes up the walk to Lisette's apartment. She stands out of the way as movers from the Salvation Army take a couch down the stairs to a waiting van. She runs up the last few stairs. "Madeliene?"
"Aunt Dara, I'm in here." Maddy calls out.
Dara walks into the apartment shocked by the change from the night before. Was it only the night before? All of the debris is gone-- all of the furniture is gone. All that is left is a few boxes of Lisette's personal things. "You're almost done."
"Nikolas helped." Maddy gives credit where due. "You just missed him; he went back to his hotel. I told him I wanted to be alone before the funeral tomorrow."
"Do you want me to make arrangements for us to fly back tomorrow after the service?" Dara pushes a little.
"I don't know." Maddy looks around the empty space. "I think I'll fly back with Mr C. since their jet is already here. Do you want me to talk to them for you?"
"I prefer to be on a bigger plane. With someone other than a Jacks piloting."
"Oh?" Maddy says absently not really listening.
"They play a little fast and loose with the rules for me." Dara realizes that Maddy isn't listening. "Maddy, is everything okay?"
"Not really. I found out today Lisette married Billy Bob. Do you think if I stayed it I could have stopped it?"
Dara recoils at the thought of her sister married to her murderer. "I don't know. I don't think so. Lisette did what she liked always. Who told you she married him?"
"His family. When they came to claim the house and promised to take care of me."
"Oh My God!" Dara flinches. "Are you okay? Did they hurt you?"
"No. Granny Sophia ran them off." Maddy says distantly. "I'm really tired I think I'm going to go lay down."
"Yes, of course." Dara agrees not knowing what else to say. Maddy walks away from her and into Sophia's apartment. Sophia who had seen Dara coming up the walk comes over to Lisette's apartment. "How bad was it? Harris' family showing up?"
"Could have been worse. It's a sorry thing to say when Lisette got the cream of that blighted crop. I don't think they'll be back anytime soon."
"I have got to get Maddy out of here." Dara starts pacing. "Back to Port Charles where she'll be safe."
Sophia looks at her knowingly. "This is about more than Billy Bob's kin showing up."
"I'm a District Attorney up in New York. I see what it's like for women involved with these mob guys. They end up dead-- collaterial damage. The boss up there had his wife blown up in a car bomb meant for him. His girlfriend was nearly killed when someone opened fire on a shower door... that she happened to be behind at the time. O'Meara hasn't told the feds that Maddy is back here but Robideau says he was already visited by the feds. Maddy isn't safe here."
"You talked to Pete."
"Of course I did. I thought he might be reasonable. I thought that he cared about Maddy." Dara laughs without humor. "Boy, was I wrong. He won't lift a finger to get her to leave."
Sophia shakes her head. "That's 'cause he knows Maddy." She leans in closer and keeps her voice low. "Maddy is perverse that way. Someone tells her what to do and she'll just drag her heels in and start going another way. I'd love it if Maddy stayed... to have her across the hall again. But Maddy left here under her own steam and she'll do it again when she thinks it's necessary."
"She's just a little girl."
"Not for a long, long time. Maddy knows how to take care of herself. Respect that. She'll do the right thing."