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The Quintessential Q
Chapter Fourty Six
Lookout
Having decided that going straight home would be no fun at all, Nik and Emily head to Kelly's. Emily pulls out the cell phone Nik gave her, grinning at him as she does and calls the mansion to check on Reggie and inform Lila of her plans. Nik casually listens while keeping his eyes on the road; he waits to comment until Em is off the phone. "It's really great the relationship you have with Lila. There is no way I'd have any kind of relationship with Helena and Lesley tries but we just don't have that connection."
"Lesley loves you." Em protests not even touching the Helena connection with a ten foot pole.
"I know she does but she spent so much time away from her family because of the Cassadines and since being reunited with her family she has spent most of her time trying to recover. Lesley had a lot more to come back from than I did with my stroke."
"How is she doing?"
"Down in North Carolina right now. The doctors down there are good and more than that she trusts them. After being dependant all those years, she is striking out for her independance."
"You don't mind Kelly's, do you?"
My place would be better but I can't push. Nik thinks. "Not at all. Hopefully we'll run into Lucky. He's still trying to adjust to his windfall."
Emily laughs. "Yeah, right! Like he'll ever really adjust. How much did the IRS end up taking?"
"Half. They evidently nail people with sudden unearned income. Course Lucky is starting to feel like he earned every penny of the estimated remaining ten million with as much attention as the stocks have dumped on him. Last time I called him he was trying to avoid some of those tabloid television reporters."
"This is the kind of stuff that would put ratings through the roof." Emily nods. "So how is he doing it?"
"Lying, scheming and following his father's footsteps as a master of disguise and evasion. Not to mention the unlikelihood of someone actually living at the bike shop, is throwing off the reporters a bit. They expect anyone who had that much money to be going hogwild living at the PC Hotel or buying a house or something. I don't think Lucky has spent any of it. Alexis handled the IRS for him. Since he totally blames me for this fix, maybe you could help him out."
"Me?!"
Nik glances over at Emily. "Oh don't go all modest now. Lucky knows you have a better clue than he does what to do with all this."
"I guess. If he asks, I'll give him some ideas. What does Liz have to say about all of this?"
"She really doesn't care other than tripping over the reporters. Liz has been trying to keep things as normal as possible. I think it's been a weight off her shoulders though."
"How is that?"
"Well it makes is impossible for her parents or Audrey from pulling purse strings to try to control her."
Emily slides back into the comfortable leather seat of the jag. "True. And both of them finally being over eighteen has to play into it too. The money was the last real lever. Lucky let Liz know she doesn't have to worry about where her tuition money is coming. It drives Carly nuts that because I'm still underage I have to rely on Ned and the family to manage the money I earn as a model or being a consultant on the prominade project."
"There are remedies for that." Nik says quietly.
"I know but I couldn't do that to the Quartermaines not after everything they have done for me."
"I know. As angry as I've gotten with my father, I can't imagine cutting legal ties with him. Okay, maybe I've thought about it but..."
"Yeah, but." Emily nods. "It's the but that keeps coming back to bite ya." They pull into the parking lot of Kelly's. Emily unfastens her seat belt and waits as Nik comes around to the passenger side to assist her from the lowslung vehicle. Nik keeps a hold on her hand as they walk into Kelly's. Tammy is flying solo in the slow part of the day until the dinner rush starts until Liz gets there.
"I thought maybe we could go out tonight." Nik suggests as he hands Emily a menu. "Cafe Matisse perhaps?"
Emily winces. "Well I know you haven't already made reservations."
"How do you mean."
"Cafe Matisse lost their lease; they are officially out of business. I called Carly on a break between classes. She is up to her ears in prepping for the horseshow tomorrow. It didn't stop her from crowing about Cafe Matisse though."
"Excuse me?" Nik asks.
"She hated Cafe Matisse. But she is no big fan of sauced anything and not being able to read menus."
"What horseshow?"
Lucky answers up from behind his brother. He'd been able to enter unnoticed through the kitchen. "The only topic of conversation whenever talking to my little cous, Lucas. He and Thunder are going to be making their debut. I stopped by the brownstone on my way here. Jerry was threatening to put lead weights on the munchkin's ankles to keep him off the ceiling. What does Carly have to do with it?" Lucky pulls out a chair at Em and Nik's table and sits in it backward resting his arms on the back of the chair.
"Rita is riding Mr Roberts. It's Mr Roberts debut as well..." Emily waits a second thinking and then continues, "...and Carly's really too as part of the horsey set of PC."
"She's an excellent rider." Nik says then winces when he realizes he let something slip opening the door to complicating questions.
"When did you see Carly ride?" Emily asks.
Nik takes a deep breath. "You left something over at the cottage that belonged to her. I returned it this morning."
Emily blanches. "Oh hell." Emily rises from her seat. "Tammy looks really busy I think I'll go grab our sodas."
"What was that all about?" Lucky asks.
"The videotape was left at my cottage." Nik notices that Lucky doesn't ask which videotape. "You knew about it."
"I told you Elizabeth and I had assisted in submarining Katherine." Lucky shrugs. "We edited the tape while Emily was on punishment. How did you get it?"
"I think it fell out of Em's bag the night of the movie marathon." Nik sighs. "It made for an interesting morning. I confronted both Katherine and Carly."
"Oh double whammy." Lucky shudders.
"They both gave me much to think about. But yes, it was a relief to go to the house and fight with a new furnace."
"Somehow I never pictured you becoming the Cassadine version of Bob Villa."
"Bob who?"
"Never mind. I wanted to talk to you about that. Is the offer still open for the carriage house?"
"Of course."
"How soon? I ran into Inside Edition when I was leaving for class this morning. I was able to lead them away from the shop before Elizabeth had to leave but we have to get out of there. The club and Mom's place are out. I've already seen crews staking them out."
"The loft of the carriage house is livable especially in comparision to the bike shop. The bulk of the exterior work will be done this week on the house, so Larry will be able to move the staging area to the interior of the house soon. But you'll be living in a construction zone. The front of the house is blocked off so the only access for the work vehicles is by the carriage house." Nik reminds Lucky.
"As long as it has light for Elizabeth to paint, heat and privacy, noise is not a problem."
"Larry knows who you are. You can stop by anytime and see the place, see what you need to make the move."
"The sooner the better."
"The sooner the better for what?" Emily comes back with the sodas.
"I need to move out of the bike shop; it's getting a little bit crowed over there. I got a line on a place where hopefully the press will never look." Lucky's face shows his firm resolve. "If it pans out I'm moving this weekend."
Emily makes a face. "Well I was about to offer to help but I'm going to be tied up with the show all weekend. Sorry."
"Oh it isn't going to be much of a move. My backpack, a sleeping bag and that's about it. Going to finally make use of that damn money to bury my tracks a little."
"If Carly didn't have the vet student living out at her place that would have been perfect." Em laments. "And the computer and everything is already set up."
"I'm trying to get away from the press." Lucky reminds her. "Carly is a press magnet. But you're right about the computer. Between the card the bankers gave me and a computer whatever place I end up in could be outfitted in short order."
"Well if you want you can use my office at Deception." Emily starts digging through her purse; she takes the keys to Deception off her ring and offers them to Lucky. "You were going to look at the computer security set up there anyway... make a few recommendations. Stuff I can take to the computer techie guys?"
"Deal." Lucky takes the keys from Em. "I'll have the keys back to you before Monday."
"I'll be tied up with the show until then. I don't even think I'm going to make early mass on Sunday."
Nik starts to swear internally. It was looking more and more like this weekend was shot. "You're probably wanting to crash early." He asks disappointment clear in his voice.
Emily studies him for a moment and then decides on a course of action. "I should. And Grandfather is still calling the alarm company every morning to find out what time I get in. Would you like to go for a drive maybe? Something to clear my head before the craziness ensues tomorrow?"
Nik stands and walks around to Emily's chair holding it for her as she rises. "Tell Elizabeth we're sorry we missed her and I'll be around this weekend to help you move." Nik says in a rush before Em can change her mind. Soon they are in the jag and Nik is about to turn the key when he looks over to Emily. "Where to?"
"You'll see." Emily starts giving Nikolas directions. The winding road out of town to the hill looking over all of Port Charles. "I don't know if you have ever been out there before."
"Nope, you?"
"Well I'd heard of it." Emily admits.
"What is this place?"
"Lookout point."