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The Quintessential Q
Chapter Fifty Eight
Spider Web
Rebel and other squeamish folks, pass on the first part of this chapter. I'll put double breaks around it. As always when I throw in all the characters this is a long one. Everybody and their mother is in this one.
Using the counter and cabinets for balance, Emily makes her way to the bathroom to let Rita out. She'd given herself a little time to recover. Back when she'd been getting high with Matt it was different. Smoking pot laced with heroin had never affected her this way; yeah, she'd been hooked. Once she'd had the pot laced with heroin, pot on it's own just didn't give her the same feeling of release from the cares of living in the Quartermaine chaos. If Matt hadn't died... if Dorman hadn't died... if she hadn't taken that almost header off the roof... if she hadn't finally gotten into treatment-- she probably would have gotten around to the needles eventually. She knew from her time in treatment that throwing up wasn't an unusual reaction to using heroin. And the damn needles. Emily shudders and mutters to herself. "I hate needles. I've always hated needles."
She remembers the treatment group where members had gotten up and walked out when one of the newbies had waxed poetic over the feeling of the needle piercing the skin, drawing back the plunger to see the blood mix with the drug and then injecting the solution. She'd hung out with the rest of the group during the breaks while they were smoking like fiends and slamming down hot beverages more sugar than coffee. The stories then had been even more explicit. Addicts who hadn't been able to score and instead had just stuck themselves to see the blood in the syringe- pumping the plunger in and out to get a mental buzz. Women in recovery trying everything-- makeup sure but also tanning beds to get tan and reduce the evidence of the track marks on their arms, hands, legs, or neck. Addicts reduced to tears as they grabbed IV set ups from fumble fingered nurses and doctors who were using them as pincushions looking for a vein that had yet to be collapsed from extended drug use. Wanting the poking done with 'cause it was putting them back in a unhealthy place, they'd inserted the IV themselves. Emily feels the warm wet in the elbow of her right arm and swears bringing her forearm up, folding it tight against her upper arm. "I'll be right there, Rita. Rita? Are you okay?" Emily grows concerned as there is no answer from the bathroom.
Rita stares in the remaining pieces of the mirror knowing she hadn't made a mistake. It had to be done. She hears Emily calling her from the other room and finally answers. "Yeah, I'm still here. Don't appear to be going anywhere. Wish I had a Snickers bar."
Emily opens the door finally and looks at Rita standing there in her undershirt and riding pants. "Oh honey." Emily shakes her head. "What have you done?"
"What needed to be done."
"Your beautiful hair." Emily laments seeing the lengthy braid that was now winding it's way around the basin of the sink.
"It'll grow." Rita says flatly. Emily can hear Cook coming through Rita like she's almost channeling her step mother. "No sonovabitch is gonna use me against me like that again. I understand now."
"Understand what?"
"Why Cook killed her husband."
"She what?! I mean I heard rumors and I know she's hot tempered but...."
"Johnny saw the whole thing. Johnny says his ma filleted him like a fish after he swung her around the kitchen by her hair and knocked her into the fridge. My brother was younger than I am now when it all happened."
"Johnny wouldn't have told you that...."
"I was eavesdropping on his talk with my dad before Daddy and Cookie got back together. Johnny was trying to get Dad to back off, leave Cook alone. Leave both of them alone. If he had asked me I would have told him there was no way. When my dad gets a notion..."
"Yeah, " Emily hobbles over behind Rita and brushes her fingers through the hacked remains of Rita's hair. "And I think it's genetic, he passed it on to both you and Johnny."
Rita changes the subject. "What were the lights?"
"The guy who was playing tether ball with your head took pictures before they left."
Rita's eyes narrow. "Isn't that interesting." Her mind races with the possibilities. Possibilities that probably wouldn't occur to most preteen girls. Wouldn't occur unless they'd been practically raised in a courthouse and have fathers who don't censor their ghoulish choices of reading materials.
"Yeah, it pretty much confirms this is about me and not about you. I'm so sorry, Rita. I got you into this mess."
"Well yeah, but it's not like they sent us an engraved invitation and we RSVP'd for this little shindig." Rita says absently.
"You have been spending way too much time with Cook."
Rita frowns but focuses on Emily and not her own thoughts. "Johnny says the same thing." Rita looks up at the narrow painted window in the bathroom. It hadn't gotten any bigger there was still no way she was going to fit through. She looks down at the braid in the sink. Rita feels her way along the walls of the apartment until she almost trips over what she is looking for-- Emily's leather jacket. She slides on the oversized jacket and heads back to the bathroom. Putting the seat cover down on the toilet she hops up on it. "Step back, Em."
"Be careful, Rita; don't cut yourself." Em knows what is coming next but still winces at the sharp shatter of the window. "Are you okay."
"I'm going to get one of these jackets when I get out of here." Rita replies. "Considering the way I ride my bike I think Daddy will go along with it." She leans over and grabs her braid from the sink. Using the other end of the ribbon that Cook had plaited in her hair it seemed eons ago she anchors the braid to a shard of glass extending it out the window. Rita hops off the toilet and brushes her hands off carefully shaking her shoulders within the jacket to make sure there are no little pieces of glass still adhering to her. "It's not quite Rapunzel..."
"But if they get close, anyone who knows us will know what it is and where we are in the building. Good thinking, kid." Emily compliments Rita. "And the jacket will be on me... when we get out of here."
"When we get out of here." Rita nods.
Alexis runs a hand through her already mussed hair. She leans over and punches Ned firmly in the arm.
"OW! What was that for?" Ned protests as he rubs his arm. She'd nailed him in exactly the sweet spot between the muscles and it hurt like a crazy.
"Did you have to spread out her assets so damn much? I swear I'm looking at a mini model of the Cassadine Industries."
"Thank you." Taggart doesn't look up from the papers he is looking through. He was fighting a losing battle with distraction. The names and numbers were all starting to blend together and he was afraid that he was going to miss something. The something that would bring those two little girls back to their families.
"For what? That was an assault." Ned winces as he continues to rub his arm.
"This is an assault, or at least cruel and unusual punishment." Taggart rubs his eyes. "Why? Why this labyrinth of dummy companies and spider web of investments?"
Ned shifts in his seat. "It's a Quartermaine thing."
"No wonder Quarterbrain does so well in the mob." Taggart mutters. "He was learning to launder money from the time he was sucking on that silver spoon."
"Lieutenant..." Alexis opens her mouth to continue.
"Stow it, counselor." Taggart gripes. "That was my freedom of speech in action not an indictment of one of your clients."
"This is a waste of time!" Ned stands and starts to pace behind the conference table where all the papers are spread out. "Emily doesn't do anything hands on with any of these companies. It's just money..."
"A hell of a lot of money." Taggart snorts but watches as Ned paces.
"Emily is hands on with only a few things..." Ned starts ticking them off on his fingers. "...school, modeling, Deception."
"The promenade for ELQ." Alexis nods.
"And the coffee kiosks and church." Taggart adds. Ned and Alexis stare at Taggart. They would have gotten around to the kiosks but the church angle? Taggart pulls out his notebook returning to the interview with Johnny Cook AKA Johnny Porter. Every Sunday, Subject attends Queen of Angels, Goes to brunch with Morgan and/or Corinthos and then returns to her brother's house with minor child, Michael Morgan. After dropping him off she goes to General Hospital to do visitations to parishioners who are being treated there."
"What?" Ned's jaw drops. "I don't know anything about that."
"Garcia got the last from her priest down at Queen of Angels." Taggart admits. "The nurses were amazingly tightlipped about it. Finally got Amy Vining to open up."
"Let me guess the officer who interviewed Nurse Vining filled out his uniform in all the right places." Alexis closes her eyes. "This is getting more and more complicated. Nobody is going to kidnap Emily for visiting with the sick." Just then her phone rings. "Alexis Davis...." Alexis pauses and then rising to her feet tells Ned and Taggart. "I have to take this." She walks out of the room with the phone still pressed to her ear.
"Sonny or Stefan." Ned grimaces.
"What?" Taggart questions.
"Nevermind." Ned looks back to the paperwork.
Taggart watches Alexis like a hawk. If Ashton was right then in all likelihood the call was about this case. Taggart wanders out to the detective bull pen stopping to get a cup of water from the cooler and pounces on Alexis as soon as she hangs up the phone. "Well?!"
Alexis shakes her head. "Helena's whereabouts check out. And nobody new has been visiting her in the last month-- just her usual cronies and sycophants. No red flags are going up as far as her accounts or telephone bills."
"Like you would tell me if she was." Taggart knows Alexis is telling the truth but can't help the dig. Frustration had set in from the time he had looked at the skid mark on the road. Nothing drove him nuttier than a missing kid unless it was two.
"Nikolas is insisting on full disclosure with this." Alexis admits. "He has put all the resources of the family on getting Emily and her companion back unharmed."
Taggart winces. "Great. More amateurs. You did make it clear to them that there is a press blackout on this?"
"Cassadines do not air linens in public."
"Yeah, right." Taggart's attention is split when Officer Rick catches his eye. "What you got, Officer?"
"Lt., Jerry Jacks brought this by a second ago. He says you were expecting it?"
"Damn straight." Taggart grabs the envelope and rips it open to reveal the video tape within.
"What is it?" Alexis asks curiously.
"Tape of the horseshow. Jacks says it is specifically the last class that Rita Porter was in. So this was taken within a half hour of her and Emily Q being kidnapped." Taggart slaps the tape in his hand. The only VCR was back in the conference room. He'd run the tape through once and then send it down to be duplicated and the original put in evidence.
Jerry stops by the brownstone after the police station. "Any word?"
"Nothing." Bobbie shakes her head. She glances down at her watch. "It's been over twenty four hours, Jerry."
Jerry shrugs putting on a game face. "No surprise there, Luv. They have to make us sweat to get the big bucks. They'll contact the Q's soon enough."
"I know you're the voice of experience in all this, Jerry but..." Bobbie bites her lip. "I'm worried. I know it's selfish and I shouldn't even be thinking this but Carly wasn't looking good when AJ took her home. I heard her talking to Taggart. She blames Katherine for all this."
"She could be right." Jerry says coldly.
"But she could be wrong. I don't want my daughter back in jail, Ferncliffe or wherever they are sending the nut cases these days because she shot someone again."
"And AJ isn't going to be much help right now with his little sister missing." Jerry agrees. "Get Michael dressed to go out."
"What?"
"It's time for him to go home. Carly needs something to do. If she has to take care of Michael then she's not going to go haring off after Katherine or any other tangents, and she isn't going to put Michael in harms way." Jerry puts his jacket back on to head back out. "Bobbie, this means you can't babysit Michael while Emily is missing. Whatever Carly does to try to talk you into it." As soon as Bobbie has Michael bundled up for travel, Jerry walks the toddler to the car and buckles him in. Sliding behind the driver's seat, he pause before starting the car. He grimaces and then reaches for his cell phone. The phone is answered promptly. "Jax, I need a little help here."
Jax snaps his cell phone shut and then sits down in a nearby chair, his knees momentarily unwilling to hold him. "Oh bugger."
"Jasper Jacks!" Lady Jane protests her son's vulgarity vehemently.
"What's happened, my boy?" John asks curiously at the same time. "Who was on the phone?"
"That was Jerry. He's on his way to Carly's. Emily Quartermaine and Rita Porter were kidnapped after the horseshow."
"But, but... that was yesterday and you're only finding out now?" Jane shakes her head. "That doesn't make sense."
"Be grateful he called at all, Mum." Jax puts on his coat and stuffs the cell phone in the pocket.
"Where are you going?"
"Deception. Jerry is going to have his hands full with Carly, and Ned is probably busy with the Q's." Jax runs his hand through his hair. "Jerry wants me to eliminate Deception and/or Katherine Bell as reasons."
"I'm going with you." John puts on his coat as well.
"Wait!" Jane insists. "Did your brother say if he was taking Barbara to her daughter's?" When Jax shrugs and shakes his head no. "Drop me off at Barbara's house."
Jerry is coming up the walk with Michael in his arms just as Carly is leaving. "Oh no you don't, girlie."
"She'll talk to me." Carly says grimly. "I'll beat it out of her."
"Why did I know that was where you were going?" Jerry asks rhetorically. He transfers Michael to Carly's arms. Carly takes Michael automatically. Jerry takes Carly's arm and turns her around back to the house. "Where is your husband?"
"AJ went to ELQ. Taggart wants a list of suspects from that angle. But he is wasting time. Damn it! Jerry, You know that b-i-t-c-h has Emily."
"Bitch." Michael says clearly smiling at his mother.
"Oh honey, this is not the time to prove how smart you are." Carly kisses Michael's forehead. "Auntie Em is in trouble and Mama has to get her out."
"Mama can do more than enough damage from right here." Jerry insists. He can't help but grin at Michael. The kid was a whip that was for sure. "I have a copy of the tape I took at the show. Whoever has the kids had to have been there to plan when they were going to snatch them. Come on. Let's find out if Katherine was even there."
"Like she would do her own dirty work." Carly protests but allows Jerry to haul her into the study. She plops down on the couch with Michael while Jerry drops the videotape into the machine.