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The Triumph Of AJ Quartermaine
Strange Bedfellows
The Quartemaine mansion--
Jerry is speaking to Monica and Ned. Bobbie is on the phone to Jason. Reggie has his ear pressed to the door. Cook is waiting for info.
"Jason, I know... I just found out too. Jerry has been trying to find out what is going on." Jason continues speaking finally Bobbie tells him to wait. "Jerry, you should talk to Jason he has some information out of Indonesia."
Jerry winces but takes the phone. "What do you know?"
"We just tried to get a hold of our coffee broker in Sumatra and basically the exports have been suspended due to the unrest."
"Is that all?" Jerry asks impatiently.
"Nope, we found out when we couldn't get through on the phone lines. Communication is down."
"Ah hell. Morgan, I got to go. Here's Bobbie again." Jerry hands the phone back to Bobbie. Jerry moves over to the phone on the desk of the Q's and calls his friend in Australia. "Just heard communications are gone. I need you there to meet them. Take cell phones-- lots of them. Something that isn't going to rely on the communications net..... No, I'm not trying to tell you your business. Look man, it's my woman's daughter. I'll be on my way as soon as I talk to AJ."
Meanwhile Bobbie is on the phone to Jason. "Do you think that Edward did it on purpose to get Michael away from AJ and Carly? Would he go that far?" Bobbie asks.
"Bobbie, I don't think that Edward thought that Carly would go with AJ out of town on business. I know I didn't. He might have been trying to get her alone in the house. What is Jerry doing?"
"Jerry has lots of contacts over there so he is trying to get hold of them before they land. He helped the Quartermaines get ELQ Jakarta back before."
"Yeah, and I remember how." Jason remarks coolly
Jerry calls out from across the room. "Bobbie, remember that line is the one that has your calls forwarded to. If they call home I don't want a busy signal."
"Jason, I have to get off this phone. I know that Carly would want you to worry about Michael first. I'll call you if there is any news."
"Yeah, Same here, Bobbie." Jason disconnects the call.
Jerry holds the phone out to Ned. "Call the Jakarta office."
Ned takes the phone and dials the number. He soon hangs it back up. "All circuits are busy."
"Damn! You know anyone in the State Department? The feds aren't speaking to me right now."
"Yeah," Ned calls down to the gatehouse. "V, could you bring me my rolodex?" Ned hangs up.
"And who would AJ have called to get information on Jakarta?"
"My secretary. Or my ex- secretary since I don't work at ELQ anymore." Ned tries to call his secretary but the line is busy. Finally he calls the main switch board and has someone run her a message to call the house.
Monica finally interjects into this mish mash of a control center. "Where is Edward?"
Ned and Jerry answer as one. "Jail." Then they look at each other.
"Okay, I know he's in jail 'cause he called me to bail him out. How did you know?" Ned asks.
"I had him arrested." Jerry shrugs. "He was trying to break into Carly's house."
"It's AJ's house." Monica says.
"Oh please let's not go there." Ned rolls his eyes. V walks into the room carrying Ned's rolodex. Ned starts making calls to the State Department to get the latest news. Reggie takes in the tension in the room and heads back to the kitchen to talk to Cook and fill her in.
Cook is sitting in the kitchen having coffee when Reggie rushes in. "Carly and AJ are on their way to Jakarta, Edward sent them there. Bobbie thinks it was on purpose so that they will die and lose Michael. Edward was caught trying to break into AJ's house and was arrested..."
"Take a breath before you pass out." Cook takes another sip of coffee. "so the old goat is in the slammer."
"Probably the safest place for him to be. Bobbie is out for blood. I think that she slapped Monica. And Jerry is hot too since Bobbie's worried about Carly."
"Really?" Cook rises and crossing to the cookie jar pulls out a wad of cash. "Give me the keys to your car."
"Where are you going?" Reggie automatically hands the keys over.
"I'm gonna bail the old coot out." Cook slips on her winter coat and gloves and leaves by the back door.
Meanwhile in the ELQ jet--
AJ looks up from his files and rubs his eyes. He looks over at Carly who is asleep with the computer open beside her. Rising he turns off his cell phone and then going over to the laptop turns it off. "Come on, Baby. You are going to end up with a crick in your neck."
"Wha?" Carly mumbles half asleep. She allows herself to be led to the back cabin area where there is a bedroom set up. She lays down on the bed without a word. AJ smiles as she curls up with a pillow. He removes her shoes and finds a comforter to cover her with. AJ rubs his neck, his mind on overload. Finally he buzzes the pilot.
"Yeah, could you give me a wakeup call twenty minutes before we land?" Getting the affirmative AJ stretches out next to Carly. Kicking his shoes off, he closes his eyes and is soon asleep.
PCPD holding Cell--
"Quartermaine-- front and center. You made bail."
"Finally." Edward stands and brushes off the imaginary specks of filth from his clothes. "I knew that Ned wouldn't leave me here." Edward is led to the front counter where Cook is carefully counting out 20's. "You!"
"If my money isn't good enough for you, you can go sit back in the cell. Now shut up or I'll lose count." Cook goes back to counting. When she is finally done. "I want a receipt." She demands. "I know what you flatfoots are like." The cop reddens at the implication but biting his tongue writes out a receipt.
"Where is Ned?"
"At the house, he had something important to do. Now do you want a ride back to the house or are you going to call a cab?"
"I'll take a ride." Edward admits grudgingly as his property is handed back to him. At least he had been spared the indignity of having his shoe laces taken from him since he was wearing loafers. The damn woman would have probably laughed at Edward Quartermaine fumbling to re-lace his shoes.
"Let's go." Cook starts walking from the police station. She stops abruptly and turning to Edward flatly states. "You better pay me back... With interest-- and I want money for gas." As soon as Cook and Edward walk through the police station doors they are accosted by the media.
Edward immediately starts protesting, "No comment, no comment!"
Veronica Bowles is right there with a microphone in Cook's face. "Who are you, How do you know Mr. Quartermaine? Were you involved in the Burglary?
"Get that fucking thing out of my face before I break it off and shove it up your ass, you fucking little ****." Cook snarls shoving Bowles out of her way and making a break to the car where she gets in and guns the motor. Edward moves more quickly than he thought possible fearing that he will be left behind with the rabble of reporters. Barely in the seat, Cook takes off intentionally running close to the curb so that a spray of filthy slush coats the chasing media.
At the warehouse, Johnny delivers lunch to Sonny and Jason who are glued to the news looking for a report on the situation in Jakarta. He is just setting the meals down when he hears the news break about Edward's arrest.
"This is Veronica Bowles outside of police headquarters where Edward Quartermaine, president and founder of ELQ, was just released after being booked on the charge of attempted burglary. While Mr. Quartermaine had no comment his female companion had this to say---" The station cuts away to a tape of Cook cursing out Bowles
"Get that BLEEPing thing out of my face before I break it off and shove it up your BLEEP, you BLEEPing little BLEEP."
Johnny sags into a nearby chair. "My God, Ma-- what have you done now?"
Sonny and Jason both look at him. "Ma?"