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When Cassadines Fall
All Before Breakfast
Penthouse #4 Sonny goes over the books with Benny. The profits are up in the Casino in Puerto Rico one of the side benefits of a strong US economy. Plenty of disposable income. Although that venue has always catered to the blue chip babies rather than the blue collars. Jason raps on the door once and then enters. "Sonny... Hey Benny."
"Mr Morgan."
"I wanted to touch base with you on something..." Benny starts packing up his stuff. "Nah Benny. It's okay; you can stay. You know who this is about- Madeliene Reynolds mother passed away last night."
"Madeliene-- Maddy right. Pete Robideau's little girl."
"Right and she buys coffee from us for the kiosks around town. The one that Em's in partnership with."
"Damn. We should go and pay our respects but..."
"Yeah, but. New York is still freaking about Pete coming up here last month. They think you are end running them and going through the Southeast Territory. The old man seems to have the support thing covered. He and Stefan Cassadine flew down to New Orleans last night."
"Cassadine?! Nevermind." Sonny waves off his own question. "Where do we send flowers?"
"From what Edward said a contribution to a battered woman's shelter would be more appropriate."
Sonny recoils. "Her mother?"
Jason nods. "Kinda explains what Maddy was doing up here and why Pete made such a point of telling her he was keeping an eye on her mother. Since he didn't like who she was hanging with."
"I'll go." Benny interjects. Sonny and Jason both look at him. Benny wasn't known for volunteering. It's the way he'd gotten to celebrate his forty year anniversary with his wife the week before. "I'll go to the funeral... pay your respects to Maddy and to Mr Robideau." Jason and Sonny continue to watch him. Being prone to babbling anyway, Benny continues. "Maddy and I go back to when she first moved to Port Charles. She's been buying gifts for my kids, for my grandkids. Hell, she put together the celebration for my anniversary: theater, dinner even made sure Johnny made a special cake for us."
"Yeah, Benny that sounds okay. Get in touch with Robideau's people find out when the services are." Sonny excuses Benny who gathers up his stuff and leaves with a nod. "I didn't know they were so tight."
"Maddy used Benny's name as an introduction to Emily when they went into business together down at the coffee kiosks on the prominade." Jason remembers. "I'm going to head over to the mansion with the old man out of town...."
"Less of a headache."
"True, and Em and Grandmother are close to Maddy." Jason shrugs into his coat.
"Jase."
"Yeah?"
"What was her mother's name?"
"Lisette. Lisette Reynolds. She was Dara Jensen's sister." Jason shuts the door after him.
Sonny looks down at his desk lost momentarily in the past. He pulls out his checkbook and writes a check to the Ward House program for battered women filling in the for portion with In Memory of Lisette Reynolds. Then he writes another check matching the first and fills in the for with his own mother's name.
The mansion. Emily comes downstairs dressed casually and warmly. If she is going to to making the rounds of the kiosks today she had to dress for the weather. Which for November 1st was crisp and cold. Johnny had already called this morning to let her know that he'd taken the pastry orders around to the kiosks and informed the morning staff that Maddy had a family emergency out of town. "Good morning Grandmother." Emily calls out as she before she goes to the breakfast bar and loads up on sliced fruits and a bagel. She sits down next to Lila.
"Emily darling..." Lila begins.
Em looks over to Lila and reads the bad news in her grandmother's face. "Maddy's mother."
"Past away last night. Your grandfather called me early this morning."
"How? What? Is Maddy okay?"
"As well as can be expected. Her mother's boyfriend..." Lila can't even say it. "Edward is going to stay down there for Maddy until he's sure she's okay. At least until the funeral."
"I should go down there too." Emily insists.
Lila shakes her head. "For the funeral certainly, darling, but not now. I think you can do more for Maddy here."
"Taking care of things."
"Yes. Her obligations here are the last thing on her mind I'm sure. But when things settle down I'm sure she'd appreciate that you made sure she wasn't coming back to a mess here."
"Does Ms Jensen know? About her sister?"
"Ned and Alexis were going to go over there this morning to let her know."
Dara Jensen's apartment. Ned presses the doorbell briefly. Then steps back and puts his hand at the base of Alexis' waist. Both of them hear the sounds of footsteps nearing the door and the sound of a masculine voice from within. "Yeah. Yeah." Taggart is still pulling on a shirt when he answers the door dressed in sweat pants and barefoot. "Ms Davis. Mr Ashton?"
"Is Dara in?" Alexis asks.
"Yeah, give me a second." Taggart looks from one to the other. Something is up. Something big. What the hell had the Quartermaines done now that would have the gatekeepers both showing up at too damn early in the morning? Taggart goes into the back bedroom shutting the door after him. Dara comes out a minute later already dressed for work and just putting on her earrings.
"Counselor, I have an office, and I don't do business out of my apartment." Dara says coldly. Alexis Davis is not, would not be, her cup of tea. Smug bitch.
"You need to know this before going to work, Dara." Alexis says softly.
Dara stiffens. Alexis calling her by her first name and being almost nice was putting the hair up on her neck. Taggart comes up behind Dara. "What do I need to know?"
"Ned and I were at a Halloween party last night..."
"What does that have to do with me?" Dara says impatiently wanting the damn shoe to drop.
"Maddy was there." Ned answers. "She got some bad news that freaked her out and she left. Alexis and I found out later that the news was about your sister."
"I'm sorry, Dara. Your sister passed away early this morning." Alexis finally just blurts out. Who the hell knows how to say this kind of stuff? "I don't know any details. You could probably find out more from the New Orleans Police."
"The POLICE!" Dara exclaims her knees going weak. Taggart steps up behind her and supports her. "Where is Maddy? Why didn't she call me?"
"She's in New Orleans. But I don't know exactly where, staying with a friend." Ned offers. "Grandfather flew down to New Orleans when we figured out where Maddy was heading. That's how we know what little we do know." Ned lies smoothly. Marrying the Cassadine family gatekeeper, he'd taken on keeping those secrets as well, or at least as many as Alexis shared with him. As far as the rest of the world was concerned Stefan and Nikolas are in Aspen skiing. Besides he owed Maddy for keeping Helena off Alexis at the party that Stefan had thrown in honor of their recent marriage. And keeping the Cassadines out of the story would hopefully keep Helena out of the mix. "I'm sure Maddy will call you today. Is there anything we can do? Call Justus to get you time off? Get you down to New Orleans?"
"I can call my own boss." Dara snaps. "Sorry. I didn't mean to snap." She turns away from Alexis and Ned.
Taggart steps up. "Thanks for coming by and letting Dara know."
"We mean it, Lieutenant. Anything we can do..." Alexis repeats.
"Lets give it time to sink in." Taggart suggests. He walks over to the door and holds it open in a silent invitation for Alexis and Ned to leave. As soon as they do, Taggart shuts the door and reaches over onto the nearby table where he'd tossed his keys and cell phone earlier. He hits a number on the speeddial.
"Are you calling the station?" Dara hears her own voice through a fog.
"Hell no. I want to know what is going on. I'm calling Carly Quartermaine."
A SUV with the custom plates BRN2SHOP. The cell phone starts ringing. Carly almost swears and then looks in the rearview mirror where her son is watching her. "Mama almost slipped there, Mr Man." Carly hits the speaker on the phone. "Hello."
"Carly, it's Taggart. What the hell is going on with Maddy and her mother?"
"Give me a second. I'm in the car let me pull over."
"The drivers of the world will bow down in gratitude."
"Just wait a minute, buddy. I haven't had a single accident or even a speeding ticket."
"Brag on that one when you've had your license longer than a year." Taggart retorts. He waits patiently while Carly pulls over to the side of the road and puts the car in park. Taggart wishes more drivers would to the same. He'd investigated too many accidents the result of someone more occupied with talking on the phone than paying attention to their driving.
"Okay I'm back."
"What do you know?"
"Long or short?"
"Start short and go long."
"Maddy's mother was beat to death by her live in boyfriend." Carly hears the swearing at the other end. "Yeah, that's pretty much what I said. Now the long version. Everybody that is anybody was at Nikolas Cassadine's new house last night for a combination Housewarming/costume/Halloween party. Maddy helped him put the house and party together. And a little birdy is telling me she's probably been living there too since she left her evil bitch of an Aunt's house."
"Fast forward." Taggart demands not wanting Carly's opinion of Dara.
"A guy shows up at the door. Maddy answers, lets out a scream that would curdle blood and then she disappears. Count Cassadine and the heir go to investigate. Nik Cassadine comes back in says party is over; here's your hat don't let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya. Kicks everyone out. He goes into the library followed by Lucky, Edward and Jerry."
"Jerry?" Taggart groans.
"Yeah, Jerry is tight with one of Maddy's friends down in New Orleans. Anyway. Next thing Jerry is coming out telling me and AJ to take Mama home cause he is flying down to New Orleans with Nik Cassadine and Edward. They were evidently short a pilot and Jerry volunteered."
"Wait a minute you said the Count went to investigate with Nikolas..."
"Yeah, he never came back to the party. I figure he was tailing whoever took Maddy. Maybe he flew down there too? Back to the story. Jerry called me at about 3:30 this morning to let me know what had gone down. Whoever showed up at the door flew Maddy down to New Orleans to say whatever she had to say before her mother died. Jerry's planning on staying down there for at least a couple of days. End of tale." Carly leaves out the part of her conversation with Jerry about Jason and Sonny. Taggart would jump all over that.
"Kay. Thanks for the info. Wait a second-- why would the Cassadines go out of their way to not want to draw attention to them going to New Orleans?"
"Nothing I know directly but channeling Uncle Luke now, if it's something that the Count or Nikky care about then The Old Bat would want to be messing in it."
"Aw hell." Taggart swears. "Look Carly, don't mention the Cassadines and Maddy in the same breath to anyone else." He hangs up.
"Oh you're so welcome." Carly stares at the cellphone not particularly surprised by Taggart's rudeness. "That's it from now on my info is going to Officer Rick, Mr Man. You ready to go to Grandma's house?"
"Lucas?" Michael gets an evil grin. His uncle is his frequent partner in mischief.
"If he's not already at school." Carly reminds her son. "He's a big boy and gets to go to school." Carly makes it sound like a privilege. Michael would be starting preschool soon enough. Might as well get him excited about it. Carly carefully starts the car and looking around pulls back onto the road.
"You have Carly Quartermaine on speed dial." The oddness of that just strikes Dara even with everything else going on.
"It seems only fair. She has me on hers." Taggart says ruefully. "You want me to drive you to the airport?"
"The office first. I have to let.... someone know to postpone my court dates."
"Dara..." Taggart just shakes his head. She'd worrywart if she didn't go by the office even if nobody would expect her to deal with all this on top of a death in the family. So instead he offers. "You want me to go with you? I can get the time off." Taggart takes her in his arms and holds her close.
"I love that you offered. And I may take you up on it yet. Let me go first. Let me see what my sister has done now."
"Dara..."
"No, Marcus. You don't know Lisette the way I know... knew her. I need to do this on my own, at least at first." Dara pulls away and tugs on the jacket of her suit, forcing herself to put on her game face. "Could you drive me to the office?"
"Yeah, baby. To the office and then to the airport. And if Justus gives you any trouble I'll even f' him up for ya. I'd be no skin off my nose. I didn't vote for him."
"My hero." Dara laughs but the sob comes through. She quickly bites it back. There'd be time enough later.
Meanwhile down in New Orleans. Pete sits at his kitchen table. Many might freak considering his legitimate tax bracket that he does something so pedestrian as sit at a kitchen table but some of the best times in his memory were sitting at his mother's kitchen table watching her make something. Somehow sitting at a kitchen table was just a way to get centered. There is a rap on the back door window. Looking up he waves his visitor in. "How did you get by security?"
"Ha you're a funny one." Jerry quips. "How is she?"
"She cried herself to sleep about dawn." Pete admits running a hand over his closely shaved head. "I'm hoping she'll sleep for awhile longer. The last time Ricky checked in with me the cops were still at Lisette's."
"Where is Ricky?" Jerry looks around.
"Pouting somewhere else." Pete shakes his head. Getting up he pours coffee for both of them and then sits back down. "I hit him last night."
"That's not like you, mate." Jerry puts the white bakery bag on the table between them. "Ricky's your pride and joy. You're worse than some old woman with all the pictures of him in your wallet."
"Things change." Pete says softly. "In the last few years, he's been growing away from me. Not from the business mind you-- he's decided he wants to be up to his ears in." Jerry winces in sympathy. Everytime they'd gotten together in the past Pete had bragged on how his son was going to be a doctor, or an engineer hell-- an Indian Chief anything but a lawyer or part of the organization. "Ricky made a crack on Maddy's mother. And I wasn't in the mood for it. The thing is... how he said it was so wrong even if what he was saying wasn't far off. The cops would have walked past this in twenty minutes or less if I wasn't involved. Ricky's spoiled rotten and doesn't like to share."
"Whoa that was a quick flip of subject."
"It wasn't about Lisette-- that crack last night. It was about Madeliene. Each has known of the other even if they didn't spend time together that's why I sent Ricky to Port Charles. I knew Maddy would recognize him. Mere and I were both very involved in Madeliene's life since she came into ours. Her home life was a disaster area, she had none of the things that Ricky takes for granted but he doesn't see that. Only that Madeliene received our attention."
Jerry winces. "I've been on that side of the stick."
"Non, no, don't get me wrong-- I don't think of Madeliene as a golden child. It isn't like how your parents did you and Jax. Madeliene is flawed, a product of her upbringing, or lack of one. I never gave Madeliene more attention than I gave Ricky. And if Ricky's grandmother spent more time with her than with him it is because Maddy worked for her. There is no reason for this hostility. You are a lucky man. You married a woman with children, married for less than a year and already this woman's full grown daughter would go to the wall for you."
Jerry throws his hands up in a whoa motion. "Don't even go there. You met Carly once. You have no idea what she is really like. This is the girl who told me and I quote... Just cause I was knocking boots with her mother didn't mean I can tell her what to do. And on another occasion tried to take my father's eye out with a hoofpick!"
Pete starts grinning. "She didn't?"
"She did. Dad still breaks out in a sweat thinking about it. Next time you're in Port Charles you'll have to meet Bobbie and Lucas." Jerry pulls out his wallet and grabs a picture out of it of Bobbie, Lucas and himself infront of a snowman. "This is my wife and her son."
"And there is no conflict with the boy's father?" Pete looks at the happy family and then returns the picture to Jerry who tucks it carefully in his wallet.
"His father is a freaking psycho-- worse he looks normal." Jerry shakes his head. "And you're about the only person I can say that to. Bobbie and I don't bash the good Dr Jones in front of Lucas 'cause one of these days he might get visitation back. Lucas is a resiliant kid, a great kid. But he's not a teenager yet. When I remember the stuff I pulled on Lady Jane." Jerry shakes his head.
"You think I keep my hair this short for fashion? It's vanity to hide the grey. Every one of them given to me by either Ricky or Maddy. Wait until they start driving."
"Carly just learned this year." Jerry nods in agreement. "Luckily it was her husband's problem. And don't even get me started on sex. Too late I already said it. Lucas is still at the phase where kissing is icky but I can tell he's already got his first crush. Rita Porter. Whatever that girl does he wants to do better."
Pete smiles remembering his meetings with Miss Porter and her brother's restaurant. "She will break his heart."
"You know Rita."
"I met her and her brother when I was in Port Charles. She has a crush of her own."
"Oh?" Jerry ask curiously.
"Unless I'm mistaken I believe she admires... Sonny Corinthos."
"Oh God." Jerry closes his eyes and bangs his head against the table.