When Cassadines Fall

Father's Day

Hong Kong.

Jerry and Jason step off the plane along with the contingent from ELQ. They are met by a representative of the government who eases their way through customs and drives them to their hotel. The traffic is murder. Perhaps not literally but there are scads of cars, motorcycles and bicycles. Jason looks out the window to the giant skyscrapers. The teeming hoards of humanity kind of remind him of New York City but the difference is apparent in the next instant. All of the signs are in Chinese... everyone looks alike. And everyone seems to be looking at them.

"This is actually getting off light." Jerry says from behind him. "The Brits did a lot of business here, still do. There are a lot of folks who speak some English and are used to dealing with the round eyes. You head into the mainland and fewer and fewer will have ever seen an anglo outside of television and not many of them own TVs." Jerry keeps his voice low. "And if we have to head inland you might as well kiss your quest goodbye. There is no way we'd be able to cover the whole country let alone get anyone to talk to us."

Jason grunts his reply. He'd noticed the tour guide eyeing him and Jerry. To cover for show he picks up his camera and takes a random shot of the crowd outside of the bus.

"And that's another thing. Ditch the camera if we go exploring. Taking pictures is a quick way of being hauled in for a spy. You want a picture get a postcard."

They pull up to the four star hotel in the downtown business district. As they step off the bus they are greeted by a representative of the company who is bowing, shaking hands and then offering a business card as each of the party steps off the bus. The Chinese speakers among the Quartermaine contingency make similar polite gestures making it a time consuming preposition.

"What time is it anyway?" Jason mutters rubbing the back of his neck. He and Jerry are a couple back in the line.

"Here or back home." Jerry smiles as he greets the company rep. He bows politely, shakes their hand and then offers up a card that has his name and fake title on it. The back of the card says the same as the front only in Mandarin. Jerry slaughters a phrase or two in Chinese that has the rep wincing but smiling at his efforts. Jerry then turns to Jason and introduces him. Jason who'd been watching Jerry tries to do the polite thing.

The rep after the introduction adds in heavily accented English. "It is very good to meet all of you. If you will follow me I will show you to the rooms reserved. The presentations will not be until tomorrow after you've had a chance to recover from journey."

"How soon can we tour the plant in Shanghai?" Jason questions.

Jerry winces. The guide is too polite to and replies calmly. "That is on your itinerary. In your room, sir."

Jerry shifts his overnight bag on his shoulder using that as a distraction for the glare he gives Jason who just shrugs. "Don't know about you, mate but I'm done in. Get me a room and you won't see me til tomorrow." Like herding cats Jerry moves the party from ELQ along. "I do need to call my wife back in the US..."

"The hotel operator will place the call for you just call the front desk." The guide suggests. The jet lagged party crowds onto the elevator. Their luggage would come up later. One by one they are dropped off in rooms in the luxury hotel. Like hotels anywhere in the world it has it's amenities. Jerry goes into his and immediately goes to the phone to request the overseas line knowing it might take awhile.

Jason walks into Jerry's room after dropping his stuff in his own. "So when do we go?" Jason says impatiently.

Jerry picks up the itinerary from by the phone. "You knew going in that we had the meet and greet tomorrow. We'll fly up to Shanghai that night after the reception and do the tour the day after that."

"We're wasting time."

"No, we're checking the lay of the land. That's never a waste." The room phone rings back startling Jerry. "That was fast." He picks up the phone. "Hey Luv.... Yeah, we arrived in one piece. Let the word out on that." Jerry looks over at Jason and covers the mouthpiece. "Ya mind? I'm talking to my lady here. Get some sleep. You'll need it." Jason frowns but leaves. "Yeah, Bobbie, I'm back. Any word on that package that was delivered to Madeliene?"

KC walks down the halls of GH as is her habit from being in many different hospitals over the course of her career is greeting every familiar face. A few days in a new place and there are more and more familiar faces. "Good Afternoon, Mrs. Spencer." KC says cheerfully as she walks into Laura's room. She picks up the clipboard to check out how Laura did over night. "Looks like you're bout ready to get a bunch of stitches removed. You've made a quick recovery so far. If you were up and around I'd be telling ya to take it easy. While some of the stitches might be coming out you're still going to be tender." KC walks over to the wall where there is another picture by Lulu. "Your daughter has got some real talent here."

"Thank you."

KC turns around suddenly to find Luke and Lulu standing there. "Hello."

Lulu looks over at Laura. "Mama's still asleep?"

"Yes. But we're still on the edge of that being a good thing." KC takes a seat so she is eye level with Lu. "Your mom had a lot of injuries from the accident. Her being asleep means that the she hasn't been in pain from the accident."

"Gramma hates her cast." Lulu says softly.

"I bet it itches." KC says with a smile. "Is that another picture for you mom?" Lulu nods. "May I see?" KC unrolls it. "Well I see you and your Daddy... is this your house?"

"It's the house here." Lulu comes around so she is beside KC. "And this is Lucky and Nikky."

"And this-- is this a pony?"

Lulu giggles. "That's Foster."

"Skillet head." Luke mutters. "I'm going to have to get that damn mutt back from Carly."

"Daddy." Lulu shakes her head. "You know Foster won't fit in the apartment. He'd get bored and eat your couch."

KC looks up at Luke. "Big dog I guess."

"Did you get the result of the tests?" Luke finally asks not able to hold the question back any longer.

"Lets talk out in the hall."

"Stay here with your mom, Princess. Let her know what happened at school today. I'll be out in the hall with Doc Red." Luke offers her a hand to assist her from the chair and then drops it immediately. He leads the way out of the room and to the hallway. "Tell me."

"This is nuts." Dara says aloud as she is pacing. "Jerry Jacks can't just..." Dara waves her hands around. "...and decide he's Maddy's father. There is no DNA, no evidence. And then he turns around and dumps a small fortune into an educational trust."

Alexis watches her pace. Dara had left the day before but had been back bright and early to continue her research. "I guess most people wouldn't complain."

"So establish a scholarship for the daughter of Lisette Reynolds. But to claim to be her father?!"

"It doesn't really matter." Alexis shrugs. "Maddy is over 18... you were at her party. Hell Jerry was at the party. Paternity is irrelevant at this point.. maternity is irrelevant."

"And where did Jerry get the money? The FBI and IRS cleaned him out. Is he doing his laundry using my niece? What the hell is Jerry dropping in Maddy's lap?"

Alexis leans her head against her closed fist. Her elbow rests on the long table. "Good Question. All kinds of questions here. And Jerry's not a bad guy. I'm sure he'll be able to document where the money came from. There is no reason to believe he's setting her up for the feds."

"He's a criminal!"

"Oh Please! Get out of the prosecutor mindset! Criminals have kids too! She doesn't have to take the money."

"Maddy isn't going to use the money. She doesn't like having Jerry listed as her father on an official paper. She wants that thing gone."

"Dara..." Alexis muses aloud. "You know there is more to this. Lee Baldwin walks up to Maddy and drops this in her lap. It's not an opening volley.... it's not Baldwin's style. Lee springs when the trap is already laid."

"Oh... Oh... don't tell me." Dara starts shaking her head. "Maddy will freak."

"You know this one."

"He already filed a Voluntary Declaration of Paternity. Son of a bitch. Where?"

"Did Lisette ever take money from the state? Food stamps, Aide to dependent children, welfare, women, infants and children? Anything that would give the state standing in this?"

"I don't know for sure but I bet in Louisiana, in New Orleans. Lisette and I weren't in contact. Haven't been in contact really since Maddy was a baby. Lisette and my mother had big blow up number six billion; she moved out. There were a few phone calls after that but never anything... real."

"So if we were working for Jerry... what would we advise?"

"File the Declaration and cut the state a check for the money they put out."

"And as soon as they cash the check..."

"Collateral estoppal. One court declares something to be true-- all other courts go along with it. Lee comes at this from two angles. You know that Louisiana isn't going to give the money back. So now Maddy isn't just fighting with Jerry... she is fighting the state. But it's so permenant. There is no DNA... no testing that has been done. I would never advise a client to do that. NEVER."

"And you know why.... cause the state doesn't stop support payments once paternity is initially established. The guy finds out later... whoops I'm not the daddy after all... maybe cause they filed a declaration before DNA was readily available. So sorry-- It's in the best interest of the child to be supported."

"I saw a lot of that on the net when I was researching yesterday." Dara finally sits down across from Alexis. "Paternity Fraud. This is the first time I've seen it work to the father's favor-- the alleged father."

"It's all supposition for now. You need to find out if Lisette took aide... and if Jerry did file down in New Orleans. And how far Maddy wants to fight this."
 

An hour later at Wyndemere Lite. Alexis knocks on the front door. She waits a minute and then knocks again. Louise is walking by. "Yoohoo!!! They never answer the front door! If you want to talk to Nik or Leiney-- you have to around to the back door."

"Oh. Thanks." Alexis kind of rolls her eyes but then cuts around on the cleared path around the house. As she walks up to the kitchen door she sees Nik within. She knocks on the door. Nik sees her and opens it up. "I tried the front but there was no answer."

"Oh sorry. I didn't hear it."

"Some lady who was out powerwalking told me to come around back if I wanted to talk to Nik or Leiney?"

Nik snickers. "That's Louise. The reason why we don't need a community newsletter. Do you want some tea?"

Alexis unbuttons her coat and strips off her gloves tossing them on a chair. "Please. May I say a kitchen looks good on you? You're the first Cassadine that has ever been said about. But I think Stefan likes it that you are a first for a lot of things."

"Then you should have been here the night..." Nik's voice drops to a secretive hiss. "...He did dishes."

"Oh did you get pictures?"

Nik brings the tea tray over to the table and sets it by Alexis. He crosses to the other side and takes a seat. "I am very happy to see you, Aunt. But I have a feeling this isn't a social call."

"It's more of a fact finding mission." Alexis admits as she pours the tea. "You can't ask me any questions. Just answer them if you will. Is Madeliene here?"

"No, I don't expect her for a few hours." Nik glances over to the clock. "Why do you want to talk to Maddy?"

"Answers no questions remember." Alexis considers stopping now. It would be better coming from Maddy. "Do you know if Maddy or her mother were ever on public assistance?"

"No. Maddy took care of her mother. She started handling the bills when she was very young. When we went down to New Orleans to settle Lisette's affairs. The apartment Lisette stayed in belonged to Maddy. The rents on the other apartments paid for the utilities and the mortgage, I think. Maddy paid the corner grocer for her mother's bill. She'd been sending money on a monthly basis for her food and other necessities. Maddy said..." Nik tries to remember exactly. "That her mother sold her stamps for anything Maddy didn't pay for."

"Oh my darling Nikolas." Alexis sighs. "And I suppose you thought that Lisette was a stamp collector." She shakes her head.

"You know Maddy got a kick out of that one too. I'd really like to know the joke since I seem to be the butt of it."

"They are called Food Stamps, issued to people living at or below the poverty level so they won't go hungry. If Lisette was selling her stamps that means that she was selling them on the sly to buy things not covered by the program."

"Like cigarettes or alcohol."

"Like cigarettes or alcohol." Alexis agrees. "It's against the law. Selling them, buying them, buying things not covered by the program. So this was still going on just before Lisette's death?"

"Where is this going? Is someone trying to press charges against Maddy?" Nikolas demands.

"I'd like the answer to that one too." Maddy says from the door.

"You're home early." Nikolas rises from the table.

"Since I was out last night, I figured I'd help tonight. So is someone pressing charges on me for something?"

"This would be better coming from your Aunt Dara." Alexis rises.

Maddy blocks her way to the door. "Oh no. You're the one asking questions. Now I want answers. Why are you questioning Candy about me? What is your business? What does Aunt Dara have to do with it?"

Alexis' voice takes on a gentler tone to try to bring Maddy down. "You dropped a legal question in Dara's lap. She has been doing research at my place. We think we've worked the angles but there is still one more thing to be verified. What she is working on now."

"What's that?" Maddy demands. Alexis looks over at Nik significantly. "Whatever! You think he's not going to hound me until he finds out whatever you have to say?!"

"Fine." Alexis takes a deep breath. "There is a form called a Voluntary Declaration of Paternity. DNA is not needed for it. Dara is researching if Jerry filed one... it he did it would have been down in New Orleans."

"No way a guy can just walk up and file a form."

"Sure he can." Alexis disagrees. "It's not filing for custody. There are no social workers involved or home visits. It's a just a declaration of financial responsibility. You and Lisette were on public assistance for at least a little while you were a minor. The state has an obligation to collect that."

"And if Jerry did file one of these forms?" Nikolas asks.

"Then the next stop would be to cut the state a check for whatever assistance you or Lisette received."

"What does that have to do with me?" Maddy says flatly.

"The ball is in your court to prove that Jerry is not your father now. And you won't be just fighting Jerry but also the state of Louisiana. Do you really think they are going to give the money back?"

Maddy groans. "Fine. I'll do DNA. That'll get him to back off. The guy is deluded."

"Do DNA if you want." Alexis picks up her coat and gloves. "If Jerry paid Lisette's bill with the state, the state isn't going to care if you are a 99% match or 0%. Happy Father's Day six months early."

"That's just crazy!"

"Dara can fight it. I could fight it. Any lawyer in the country could fight it. But by precedent..." Alexis shrugs. "...we'd lose. The state doesn't just define family by blood. And yeah, I think Jerry was nuts to do this. I can't believe that Lee Baldwin went along with this-- without proof. Jerry can't go back either. Even if you proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Jerry isn't your biological father... in the eyes of the court-- he is. If he filed the declaration... and if Louisiana cashed the check. It's a neat piece of lawyering-- not something I've ever heard being done before."

"You think this is neat!"

"It's a neat piece of lawyering." Alexis restates. "I can understand from your standpoint why it would be disheartening."

"We don't know that Jerry's filed this thing."

"Not yet. When I left for the day, Dara was still looking it up."

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