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When Cassadines Fall
Play Hard
Maddy rises from Nikolas' bed. She stretches glorying in the aches in disused muscles. A gal can workout and stay in shape but there are just some exercises for which there is no substitute. Bending over she grabs the nearest garment, Nik's turtleneck and pulls it over her head and pulling her hair out of the way. She grabs her fuzzy socks and pulls them on too.
"Where are you going?" Nik asks half asleep.
"I'm hungry." Maddy explains. "And I bet Cinnamon wants out."
Nik realizes that Maddy is going to leave wearing only the his shirt and the fuzzy socks. He grabs the back of the shirt and pulls her back on the bed. "No way."
"No way what?"
"You aren't going down there like that. My brother may be down there and I really don't want to kill him when we're getting on so nicely lately."
"Niknik, I'm hungry." Maddy complains plaintively. She kisses along his jaw, along his neck. "Feed me. Hell you need to keep your strength up. Beef stew. Liz made a tart."
Nik sighs and rises from the bed. He slides on his jeans and grabs his robe and puts it on Maddy rolling up the sleeves so it doesn't swamp her. Maddy runs the back of her hand over Nik's belly right above the low slung jeans Nik growls. "Don't start. You're the one who wants to eat."
"I've never made any secret of my appetite." Maddy teases. "But I never did tell ya, did I... when I ran track in highschool it was never sprints-- always marathons."
"I'll keep up." Nik says confidently. Taking her hand they go downstairs. Maddy keeps a hand on the robe lifting the length out of the way so she doesn't trip on the stairs. "Looks like everyone left."
"Well duh." Maddy rolls her eyes. "We'll hear about it later. But since Elizabeth was saying before you guys showed up that she just sleeps with a Spencer not that she thinks like one. I think they both realize we're old enough for sleepovers." Maddy walks over to the counter and notices gratefully that the slowcooker is still on. Pushing the sleeves back and then pushing them back again.. and then getting frustrated she finally takes the robe off and throws it over the end of the counter. She rises up on her tippytoes which causes Nik to groan.
He comes up behind her and presses his hands down on her shoulders. "I'll get the bowls. You just keep your feet flat on the floor and please... don't raise your hands over your head."
"You mean like this?" Maddy raises her hands over her head. She grins then gasps as Nik slides in closer behind her his denim clad leg rough against the bare skin exposed by her movement.
"Yeah, Like that." Nik's foot rocks from side to side, his leg barely moving between Maddy's parted legs. He reaches around her grabbing two bowls from the cupboard and setting them on the counter. Maddy grabs the counter for balance her breaths grow short. "I thought you were hungry? What would Granny Sophia say if I didn't feed you?"
"Um." Maddy's head falls back against Nik's shoulder. "A hard man is good to find?"
Lucky collapses back on the bed. "What the hell did you gals do before we got home?"
Liz leans over from where she is straddling him and kisses him on the chest. She squirms on top of him eliciting another groan from her man. "Plotted the take over of the world. Now I see why everyone is trying it. It makes me hot."
Lucky quickly reverses their positions so he has Liz pinned to the mattress. "You better be kidding."
"Just our little corner of it... literally."
Lucky eases his weight off Elizabeth leaning on one arm. "What do you mean?"
"It's one of those stuff rolls downhill things. Nik asked Maddy about the boarded up business on the corner, Maddy asked Emily who owned it, Emily found out who and why it's boarded up and then I called to find out if the why is fixable."
"Called whom?"
"Your aunt. The business is abandoned cause the land might be contaminated... and Jerry and Carly dealt with that when they bought the spa. I thought Bobbie might know the number but instead she put Jerry on the phone." Liz grimaces.
"Jerry's cool." Lucky tells her.
"I know but... Em is convince now he'll be on the trail to find out what ever they're up to. Actually he probably thinks I called for you." Liz flutters her eyelashes. "And how was your day, dear?"
"Fighting for freedom, justice and the American way." Lucky says in a mock superhero voice.
"Oh my hero!" Liz coos.
"Yeah, right. Dara will wish she was in jail after she spends the weekend with Count Vlad."
Liz's eyes go wide. "Oh Taggart will freak! How do you think Ricky finds out all this stuff?"
"I think he's breaking into the DA's office any time he feels like it. He's as bad as my dad. Totally thinks he won't get caught. I reminded him about Larkin at Kelly's."
"He didn't get caught then."
"Ricky pointed that out." Lucky cuddles her closer and pulls the down comforter over the two of them. "Babe, I wish you had been there. The guy was like Foster around Lulu when she was learning to walk."
"What do you mean?"
"Nik and I walk in to give him what's what. He didn't look at either of us. Totally birddogging Little Rita Porter. Just like Foster... just watching until it looked like she was gonna fall into something that would hurt and then..." Lucky snaps his fingers. "He was right there pulling her out. Telling her to get her stuff she had to be at work but not before tearing into Vicki good and proper."
Liz's eyes narrow. "Okay, sounds to me like he knows Rita Porter and that is just weird. I don't think Johnny knows about it. Cause when Maddy was relaying what happened... Em knew Johnny was going to freak."
"She going to tell?"
"I think she's going to set it up so that Rita tells."
Lucky snuggles even closer. "You know I promised you a night out on the town: music, dancing."
"I think that was when we were planning on doubling with Nik and Maddy. and I get the feeling that those two aren't budging for the rest of the night."
"That one has been coming for a long time." Lucky shakes his head.
Emily walks over to the stereo and drops in a cd. Even with the addition of music the apartment has a serenity to it that is just outside anything she is used to at the Quartermaine Mansion. Not even the sounds of the restaurant below filter through. The kitchen didn't stop serving until ten and the restaurant itself closed at midnight. She'd talked to Johnny earlier before things got crazy... before she went over to Nik's place to talk to Maddy and Liz. The reservation book was full all the way to ten. Johnny may or may not be able to get away.
"Hey Em!" Rita comes into the apartment carrying two specials.
"I guess this means you are on your dinner break and Johnny isn't going to get one."
"He's running late. The Mayor is here tonight with like a party of twelve. Daddy thinks the guy is a poser. I know he's a lousy tipper but the Herald seems to like him." Rita deals the plates onto Johnny's kitchen dinette and goes into the kitchen and grabs some utensils. She automatically sets the table like she would downstairs.
"I heard tales about you today." Emily gets drinks from the fridge.
Rita stiffens. "What?"
"You and your sister getting into at Kelly's and Ricky helping you out."
"What do you know about Ricky?" Rita asks suspiciously, taking her seat at the table.
"No, I think the question is what do you know about Ricky." Emily joins her.
"His dad called the house before Ricky got to town, so I knew he was coming."
"Poppi called you?!" That Em hadn't been expecting.
"Yeah. And Cookie likes him, Ricky I mean."
"Which means Cookie doesn't know anything about him. Rita, honey, he is up to his ears in his dad's business and that is like the other side of the fence from what your dad does. I know Johnny doesn't know cause he would have said something to me since I met the guy down in New Orleans."
"Ricky swears he isn't here to mess with my dad." Rita says defensively. "He's after the bad guy who wants to mess with Maddy. And he needs to keep things low key until the guy makes his move. He's met my dad but my dad doesn't know who he is if you know what I mean. And he only comes to the restaurant when Cookie is working-- like on Sunday mornings before we open." She starts digging into her dinner. She might get something to munch on later but this was going to have to tide her over through the end of the evening and cleanup.
Em shakes her head. "Rita, your father would freak. Johnny is going to freak. Hell if Jason and Sonny don't know he's in town they are going to freak too! Ricky is breaking all the rules."
"He's renting a room from your brother so I don't think that he and Mr Corinthos are going to freak too hard. And it's not business-- it's Maddy."
"That is a hair split that is not going to cut it with the Judge, and you know it. Hell if Vicki finds out anything about him... she'll use Ricky to roast you-- she'll go straight to the Judge. And after what I heard about what happened at Kelly's that is a sure thing and you know it."
Rita makes a face. "Okay. I'll fix it."
"Whoa... fix it how?" Em asks suspiciously.
"I'll ask Cookie if I can invite him to Thanksgiving dinner."
"Invite whom?" Johnny asks from the doorway. He brings his own plate to the table and sets it down. He gives Em a quick kiss and then lingers a second or two too long. He slides into his seat and looks across to his sister.
"Ricky Robideau." Rita says defiantly.
At this point, Johnny is really glad that he didn't have a mouth full of food. "Excuse me? Did you say Robideau?"
"Poppi's son." Rita verifies. "And Cookie likes him."
"Oh Ma." Johnny closes his eyes and groans.
"The hits just keep on coming." Emily warns. "Tell him the rest, Rita, or I will."
"Vicki called me wanting to borrow money and she wasn't happy when I said no. She was looking to take it to the next level but Ricky stopped her. He drove me to work today. I bought him an early dinner to pay him back. Ricky says I could take Vicki when she gets out of hand but he didn't want me to get messed up before I had to come to work. But he knows I can take care of things."
Both Em and Rita just watch Johnny waiting for the explosion. Johnny takes deep breaths to hold it off. "Baby, how grounded are you going to be when you tell the Judge about this tomorrow morning?"
"I think Daddy will understand."
"Yeah, right."
"Change of subject. Maddy says the perfect gift for the Judge for Christmas is a pool table." Emily tells her boyfriend. Johnny's free hand is clenched in a fist resting on the table. She reaches out and covers it.
"Oh yeah!" Rita agrees. "He'd love that. But how do you sneak it into the house without him seeing it?" She finishes up her dinner and goes into the kitchen to rinse the plate and stick it in Johnny's dishwasher.
"You'll have to plot that one out, Rita." Johnny says calmly. "You ready to head back down?" Rita nods. "Tell Ma I'll be down in a little bit. I'm just going to finish this up."
"She'll probably start calling in about ten minutes." Rita warns over her shoulder as she exits.
"You okay?" Emily watches Johnny's face carefully. "I knew Ricky might be in town but I didn't know he was stopping in here."
"I'll call Robideau and find out what is going on. What the hell is he doing with my sister?!" Johnny finally explodes.
"Sounds like he is protecting her. Johnny, Poppi called Rita before Ricky even came to town to let her know he was coming."
"Robideau should have called me! Not my little sister for goodness sake!" Johnny throws an arm up. "Hell! He should have called Jason and Sonny."
"We don't know that he hasn't. Rita says that Ricky is renting from Jason."
"Where? Oh wait..." Johnny looks at Em. "The motorcycle shop? Lucky's old place?"
Em shakes her head. "I have no idea what all Jason owns but I guess." Em rises from her seat and comes to stand behind Johnny. With a firm grip she starts working the knots out of his shoulders and neck. "Look on the bright side, Ricky really did come through when Vicki started in on Rita."
"Who is not suppose to be meeting solo with Vicki cause we all know that Vic plays games. Getting into a car with a strange guy. Keeping secrets from her father. Keeping secrets from me. Getting mixed up in the business at all! Rita's got no business even knowing Jason or Sonny."
"They both adore her and you know it." Emily reminds Johnny before the guilts start setting in. "And it's proven in the past for it to be more risky for her to know me than any imaginary organized crime ties. She's coming clean tomorrow."
Stefan sighs heavily and runs a hand through his hair. There is the sound of music coming from the front room. He follows it in. Unobserved he watches Dara at the piano. The fingering isn't perfect but the emotion is clear and melancholy. "Miss Jenson."
"Mr Cassadine." Dara makes a move to close up the piano.
"Don't stop on my account." Stefan sighs. "It's actually quite lovely. I'm not familiar with the tune."
"Doesn't surprise me." Dara continues to play absently from memory. "You seem tired. She glances at the clock on the mantle. "But it is late."
"I was arranging for your niece's birthday present. She is quite a difficult person for whom to shop."
"I wouldn't know." Dara admits. "This will be my first time at her birthday. I sent packages when she was little but after Lisette moved out of our mother's house, she dropped out of sight. I didn't hear from them again until my mother died."
"No offense intended but... stubborn seems to be a family trait."
"None taken. Stubborn is static; it can go either way. Stubborn looks good on Maddy."
Stefan goes over to the liquor cart and goes to pour himself a small libation but pauses. "Would you...?"
"Sure. Whatever you're having." Dara shrugs.
"You seem to be handling things rather well." Stefan compliments as he brings her a snifter and sets it on the piano.
"I think the word you are looking for is numb." Dara replies. She takes a break from the piano to sip the brandy. "You've had your share of this one. Losing the things you define yourself by. The numb will wear off and it'll all hit I'm sure. But by then maybe I'll have a plan."
"It's my understanding that the plan is already in place. You haven't lost anything. You won't lose anything. Alexis will dismantle this plot piece by piece and you will have your justice."
"That's the thing. What kind of justice is it when I don't believe in what... who... I was working for anymore? I've ripped on Alexis for years for covering up the shenanigans you and the rest of Port Charles pull. And now I'm being confronted that my side of the fence is just as dirty. I've blown off my whole life off for my career. Now ain't that a joke? And it's all on me. Thanks for the drink." Dara takes the snifter with her as she leaves the room.
Ricky opens the door to the dance club. A wave of music hits him and resonates all the way down to the bone. Striding up to the bar, he orders a beer and then looks around the place. This is supposedly the hottest place in town. He snorts in derision. Porter's might cut it but there were at least a dozen places down in New Orleans that could teach this place how to get it done. Ricky can feel the eyes of the ladies on him. He can play this game. He'd been watching it for years before he'd joined the bigs. His clothes are expensive and stylish not faddish. This meat market is like something off of Discovery channel just more animals in a mating dance. Ricky picks up his beer and walks up to the second level picking his vantage point. From here he can see the whole club and if what he suspected was true... the show was just about to start.
A group of girls come in from the cold. Quickly they shed their coats and check them. They'd dressed to be noticed in different colorful abbreviated outfits. And yet they all looked alike: all the same age, same general build, the hair color might change but mostly shades of blonde. The gazelles gathering at the watering hole. Ricky watches as various suitors are rejected based on what they are wearing or some other physical flaw: too short, too fat-- predictable. With music this loud, nobody would be picked based on their conversation skills. He waits until the girl of his choice starts dancing and then moves in to the edge of the dance floor. The music changes to a rare slow song. He catches the girl's arm as she is exiting the floor and leads her back out. Vicki tries to pull away. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"
"Dancing." Ricky says real slow as if to an idiot. He holds her almost formally with sufficient distance between the two of them. Nobody can tell that his grip is firm enough to not be escaped from. "We didn't get to finish our conversation earlier at Kelly's."
Vicki really looks at the guy and realizes that this... and the guy who'd tore into her at Kelly's are one and the same. She tries to pull away but Ricky gathers her closer. His arm is like an iron bar behind her back. He releases the hand he is holding. Vicki starts to push against him. "I've got nothing to say to you."
"Good then just shut up and listen." Ricky says softly in her ear. Vicki tenses and stills. The hair going up on the back of her neck and a shiver going down her spine. With his free hand Ricky reaches into his suit pocket and then with a single finger traces the fine gold chain that hangs around Vicki's neck drawing attention to the plunging cleavage of the dress she is wearing. "I hear you have a problem, Barbie. Doll overspent her allowance and blew the engine out of the dreamcar. Skipper isn't going to come through with the cash so that means you're going to have to deal with the Judge. And I don't think that is what you want to be doing, is it, Barbie?" Vicki just glares at him.
Ricky makes sure that nobody can see what he is doing as he traces back up the necklace, his hand warm against her skin. He tucks a fold of bills into Vicki's top lingeringly briefly between skin and cloth before bringing his hand up to cup her face "So now you have choices again, doll. Start living within your allowance and not have to deal with me or the Judge. Or don't and the next time when you come to me..." Ricky presses a kiss to Vicki's mouth. She tries to keep her lips closed but Ricky's thumb on her jaw is enough pressure that Ricky's tongue slips into her mouth. When he is finished with her he steps back.
"I'll never come to you." Vicki hisses furiously wiping at her mouth.
Ricky grins. "We'll see, Barbie."