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The Triumph Of AJ Quartermaine
Chapter Seventy Nine
Men of Action
The brownstone late at night-- Jerry kneels in front of the fireplace and slowly feeds page by page Carly's file from Ferncliffe. Part of him wishes that he hadn't read it first, but something done can't be undone or forgotten. So totally focused on the task he doesn't hear Bobbie arriving home from working a second shift at GH until she is right behind him. "What are you doing?"
"Destroying evidence."
"Evidence of what?"
"Carly's stay at Ferncliffe. That was the call last night. AJ called saying he wanted the file destroyed."
"Jerry, You can't do that. Carly may need that file later." The nurse in Bobbie is screaming to grab the file from the fire but she is slowed by Jerry's demeanor. The hair goes up on the back of her neck. Jerry was hotter than the fire. Something was going on.
"Do you really think anything that quack had to say has any relevance where your daughter is concerned? This thing has about as much value as one of the Nazi's hypothermia studies." Jerry tosses the final pages in the fire and throws his brandy in on top of it watching as the pages go up in alcoholic whosh.
"I know I told Carly I wanted her to be the one that told me what in the hell was going on but I'm not so sure anymore." Bobbie says fearfully. "What did they to do my baby?"
"Nothing to address her mental health issues. Nothing to make her trust doctors. Nothing to make her trust anyone. Everything to make her as crazy as she was claiming to be." Jerry falls silent. "I hate this, Bobbie. There's nothing I can do. If she were missing, I'd find her. Something threatening you or yours, I'd blow it up or kill it. But I don't know what to do. And I hate having to do nothing. It's not me." Jerry sighs leaning back against the couch watching the flames. Bobbie crawls onto the couch behind Jerry and gently brushes his hair back from his forehead.
"My man of action." Bobbie says softly. "Sometimes just being there is enough-- more than enough. And you always have been: there for me, there for my kids. Honey, I've seen the way that Carly relies on you. I think that's my fault because she hasn't been able to rely on me. I trust you, your judgment-- should I press Carly to find out what happened at Ferncliffe?"
"No. You're right; it has to come from her." Jerry muses. "But know it when you're going in, Bobbie, none of this is Carly's fault. And Evans deserves far worse than Carly dished to him."
"If I don't pick a fight with her she's going to suspect something is up." Bobbie teases even as her eyes fill.
"Well then tell her she needs a haircut. That's the fight Lady Jane always picked with me when she couldn't find one."
Lorraine Miller's apartment. A feeling of unease breaks into Lorraine's slumber. Tossing and turning she wakes and looks over at the clock. She reaches for the bedside lamp and flips the light on. She smothers a scream when she sees the man sitting at a chair by her bed-- silent and grim. "Look, I told you she came to me; I was minding my own business."
"If you were minding your own business then you wouldn't have this, would you?" Jason holds up a copy of Carly's medical file. "It's a good feeling to wake up, isn't it? Most people take it for granted-- don't, Lorraine. Every day is a precious gift."
"What do you want?" Lorraine stammers.
"Your good health, Lorraine, at least until the trial is over. You're Taggart's star witness. Nothing can happen to you until the that trial is over unless Taggart finds another witness. If the DA's office calls a surprise witness then they won't need you, will they?"
"Carly." Lorraine says flatly sitting up in bed.
"You don't know her name. You don't say it on the stand. You don't say it in the press. Bring her into this ever and your nights of taking waking up for granted are over. But like I said-- rest easy; I'm going to make sure that nothing happens to you. I'll be watching, Lorraine. Sweet dreams." Rising from the chair, Jason disappears into the shadows as silently as he arrived.
"How do I let that bitch drag me into these things?" Lorraine laments to the empty room.
Happy Family house.
"So that's the scoop. Carly's afraid to drive; she's getting over it, but it'll be a long time, if ever, that she is going to be able to handle the crew out there. The press are all over the story and they're hounding her until something new comes along. She needs a driver but more than that she needs someone that can pull her out of a sticky mess. Since you pulled me out of the last sticky mess I was in-- I immediately thought of you." AJ finishes filling Jordan in.
Having gone through the gauntlet at the end of the drive, Jordan frowns. "I suppose mining the end of the drive would be out of the question?"
"It's a little permanent for what I hope is a temporary situation." AJ quips.
"What about Foster?" Emily asks from the doorway.
"What are you still doing up? I thought that you crashed hours ago." AJ asks.
"Too much excitement. Reggie would be turning the hose on them. I think he enjoys that. Especially when it is cold outside. But the Spencer's dog-- he's great with kids, but he's got these teeth-- Really big ones. And since he's a Spencer dog, he doesn't like suits or anything that smells like a suit. Since Lucky moved to the garage, Foster has been living mostly over at the mansion with Annabelle and Raoul. Cook is getting sick of him tipping over the garbage cans."
"This dog makes the dog in Turner and Hooch look well adjusted." AJ tells Jordan.
"A dog is a good idea. It would make them think twice before jumping the fence." Jordan considers then unable to help it, yawns. "Sorry, I'm still in another time zone."
"No problem lets call it a night. I'll see you in the morning. I'm not going until late and that way we can find out what Carly is up to for the day." AJ heads upstairs as well to his room. Emily to Carly's and Jordan to the spare room where he'd dumped his duffle upon his arrival. Carly is already in bed but she is sitting up reading the information that she had taken from the courthouse. "Hey." AJ starts easing out of his work clothes.
"Hey. Did Jordan get settled in?"
"Yeah, he agrees with Emily's suggestion that we should get a dog. One with big teeth."
"I've never had a dog." Carly looks perturbed. "Mom, Virginia, and I always lived in rentals with pet clauses.
"And I grew up in boarding school. The only one of us with any pet experience is really Emily. Grandmother has a dog but you never see her." AJ gets ready for bed and crawls in next to Carly. "But I kind of like the idea. You're the one home fulltime. What do you think?"
Carly bites her lip. "I'd be worried about Michael. I guess it depends on the dog."
"Wait and see." AJ agrees. "What did you find out?" AJ starts looking over Carly's shoulder at the paperwork from the courthouse. He breathes in the scent of Carly and quickly loses interest in leases and deeds. AJ kisses her on the nape of the neck. Carly's head shifts slightly encouraging him. He reaches across her with his left hand and gathers the papers together setting them on the bedside table. Carly straddles AJ keeping her balance using the sturdy iron headboard and her uninjured arm.
"I found out I've been looking forward to sleeping in this bed." Carly's slides the back of her hand down AJ's chest. A secret smile takes hold as she watches the way his body reacts to her touch.
"I've been looking forward to it since I saw you on it in the store showroom back in New York." AJ growls.
"I know." Carly teases. "You weren't exactly...subtle. I didn't know someone could write a check that fast." Carly laughs as AJ tangles the sheets between them as he reverses their positions and starts to swear. AJ stops her mouth with his and reaches over to turn out the light.
The mansion.
Cook comes in and doesn't turn on any more lights but instead leans up against the door and sighs. Opening her eyes she groans. "We aren't going to make a habit of this. I'm not baking just to make you fat."
"I have to eat takeout cause you have the night off and you're complaining cause of a little piece of pie?" Edward grumbles. "I've had a hard day." Edward flips on the light. He stares at Cook. "Have you been crying?"
"Let's not even compare days, old man. I think I've got yours topped. Oh and by the way you still owe me the bail money, you cheapskate. And for Gas."
Edward reaches into his wallet and pulls out the money he owes Cook. "Is this about that man that keeps calling, that Judge Porter? You're not in any trouble, are you? I've got damn good lawyers for situations just like this."
"I don't need one of your bloodsuckers. You keep them busy enough." Cook snarls halfheartedly. She slumps in the chair across from Edward. "Was at the courthouse today, saw the sharks gathering for Evans."
Edward takes another bite of the banana cream pie. "I know, saw it on the news. Carly likes to ride, doesn't she? What if I bought her a horse? You think she'd like that?"
"I think the DA would bring you up on more charges if you gave Carly a horse. Wouldn't that be tampering with a witness or something? Look old man, you got yourself in this mess. You'll just have to wait it out. I'm going to bed." Cook goes up to her room and pulls a book from her bedside table. Inside the front cover is a faded picture of a younger Cook and Judge laughing together at a table outside the family bar back in New York. Cook remembers the conversation with Judge just moments before she had come into the mansion.
"I tried to find you in Paris where you said you had a scholarship to go to school. I went back to the bar as soon as I got leave. No one would say where you went. Your uncle kicked my rear and sent me packing. What happened, Cookie? Is Johnny my son? Why didn't you get hold of me?" JD blurts out unable to stand the suspense any longer.
Cookie shakes her head. "What happened? Me and the family had a falling out. Come on, JD, there was no way that it would have worked. Look at the two of us. Even back then you were a mucky muck lawyer-to-be and I was slinging drinks. There was no way that it could have worked. Hanging with me just would have messed up your life and all of your plans. I went down to Virginia to go to school. I met my husband-to-be down there."
"Husband?" Judge is confused. "But..."
"After he... died, I took back my maiden name." Cook explains. "Johnny kept his daddy's name. Things fell apart for awhile there and Johnny stayed with my folks. He's a good kid-- a strong man. I don't agree with some of the things he does. I wish he'd stick to cooking. Johnny's good-- and it would be the third generation of my family in the business. But..."
"But you can't tell your kids how to run their life. I know that one too. After my wife died and I had the two girls to raise."
"It's been kind of easy to keep track of how you been doing, JD. You make the news. I almost contacted you after your wife died but I didn't know what to say to you. Nothing has really changed. We still don't fit."
"I don't believe that. We always Fit. I looked for you for years. I recognized you the minute I saw you at Ms Benson's house." Judge protests.
"Oh I think that you can call her Carly since you were siding with her today in the bar." Cook reminds Judge.
"She reminds me of you." Judge grins. "And I thought that you were going to slap Luke when he called you honey."
"I nearly did. I must be mellowing. You remember?" Cook laughs softly
"Yeah, quite the introduction we had all those years ago. I think my jaw still hurts." JD teases.
"Well that taught you." Cook tilts her head to the side.
"What was I suppose to call you? You wouldn't tell me your name. I don't think that you actually told me your first name until after we'd been sleeping together for over a month and even then it was like pulling teeth, Margarita."
Cook groans. "Don't call me that. What was my mother thinking?"
"Cookie, I had fun tonight. I want to see you again-- soon."
Cook reaches for the door handle and opens the door. "I had fun tonight too, JD. It was good to catch up on old times. But that is what they were-- old times, good times for sure but over. We've both got complicated lives. I've got my hands full with Johnny and the Q's. You've got a plateful with your girls and your job. We didn't really get to say goodbye before. Goodbye JD. It was a hell of a ride." Cook gets out of the car not waiting for his answer and walked directly to the kitchen never looking back.
Cook looks around the rooms that make up her life now and then back at the picture of two people deeply in love-- a path not taken. "Damn."
Judge's house.
He walks in slamming the door and throwing down his keys. "I don't think so, Cookie. I'm not letting you call it quits on us again. Not without a fight."
"DADDY! A package came for you. I signed for it." A voice calls out from the family room.
"Darn it, Rita! Did you at least make sure it wasn't ticking?" Judge calls out irritated.
"Yeah Dad, I'm not stupid. It had proper postage and post marks and a return address and everything-- DUH."
"Go to bed." Judge says finally. "Just go to bed. I'll see you in the morning." Rita stomps up the stairs. Judge takes the package from the entryway table and seeing the private detective's return address opens it up. Skipping the report he goes straight to the attachments. The first is a birth certificate for JohnDavid Porter Cook and the last is a clipping from the sentencing of Margarita Lee to 10-15 years in the second degree murder of her husband Marshall Lee. "Oh Cookie, I think you left out a few things tonight."