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The Triumph Of AJ Quartermaine
Chapter Eighty One
Little Pitchers.
The Morgan/ Corinthos warehouse. Crates are being off loaded from ships from Colombia. The warehouse is located on the newly renovated docks in an open portion. The office is located up some stairs. Rita sneaks into the warehouse and starts listening to the dockworkers, the company workers. She pulls out a notebook and makes notes of words that she hadn't heard before. Dad had seen the movie Auntie Mame when he was a kid and had made her watch it when she got old enough-- then he had handed her a notebook. Once a week they'd go over the words and definitions. Some of the words she spells out phonetically mouthing them as she writes. She listens carefully whenever someone mentions Johnny. That was her brother's name, Johnny. She'd seen him down on the docks earlier talking to some of the crew. Then he'd gone back in the office again and she hadn't seen him. He was closeted up there with two other guys-- Morgan and Corinthos... just like on the warehouse sign. Her attention is drawn to the front doors where there is a commotion. All of a sudden there is rush of cops in SWAT gear looking like something out of COPS. She recognizes the cop out front as one who had spoken at her school on DARE day and who had been at the riding academy to speak to Carly. "Oh I am so busted." She moans.
Jason, Sonny and Johnny hear the yells from the warehouse floor and come out of the office after checking the window to make sure it was Taggart and not Moreno. Sonny cocks his head to the side and snarls softly. "Taggart, to what do we owe the pleasure of you bald- headed, knuckle-dragging company."
"Latte Man, heard you got a primo shipment in. Thought we'd come over for an espresso. Or is Coke on the menu today? A little Horse?" Taggart turns to his cops and directs them to start breaking open crates.
Rita pops up from her hiding place furious. "YOU CAN'T DO THAT! IT'S AGAINST THE RULES!"
"Well Well Well-- Corinthos, I heard you liked them young but isnt this a little much?"
Taggart quips. "Aren't you suppose to be in school, little girl?"
"Haven't you ever heard of take a girl to work day?" Rita thinks fast. "I've already been to work with my dad-- so I thought I'd go with my brother."
Taggert looks around. "Who's your brother?"
Rita points to Johnny. "He is." Rita scraps off her company manners and walks over to Taggart sliding her notebook into the backpack and extending her hand for Taggart to shake. Taggart shakes her hand humoring her until she introduces himself. "My name is Rita Porter, I think you know my father. I've seen you in his court."
"Oh hell." Johnny mutters realizing that the little girl had followed him from the judges' chambers this morning. Half a day had already passed what had she heard?
Taggart's eyes narrow at Johnny's utterance. "So is she or isnt she? Your sister that is?"
Johnny pauses and looks Rita over taking in her pleading eyes. "Yeah, she is my curse to bare. Rita, you're suppose to be at the courthouse today." Johnny growls rolling his eyes.
"Well after your talk with Dad this morning, I didn't think that you would mind." Rita grins figuring out that she might get out of this situation yet. "We could always call him, officer, that way I can ask him at the same time if you are allowed to come into somebody's work and just start busting up their stuff. Last time I watched court I saw Daddy throw someone in jail for that." Rita reaches into her back pack and grabs her notebook flipping back a few pages. "Yes, here it is-- probably cause. The other officer didn't have probably cause. Do you have probably cause?"
Taggart grimaces. "It's probable cause."
"Thank you." Rita makes a correction in the spelling. "Here is another word-- while you're here maybe you can define it, that way Dad won't have to later... Warrant. I looked it up on the web and all they had was an 80's rock band but that didn't make any sense."
"Why yes Detective, I'd like to have a definition of Warrant too. And how you should be handing me one before you destroy my business." Sonny flashes a dimpled grin at Taggart's discomforture. Taggart starts growling and waves off his guys.
"I'll be back." Taggart threatens
"Yeah, you and the terminator, baby, or was it the little energizer bunny?" Sonny quips as he waggles his fingers waving bye to the departing detective.
"Well that was fun." Rita laughs.
"I don't think so, little girl." Johnny gets in Rita's face. "Who told you I was your brother?"
"Dad did." Rita says defiantly
"And he knows you're here."
"Well ... not exactly." Rita looks away and bites her lip.
"And let me guess it's not take a girl to work day."
"Nope." Rita shakes her head.
"Be thankful that you were raised by your father rather than my mother 'cause right about now you wouldn't be able to sit for a week."
"Your mother beat you." Rita blanches. "That's terrible."
"It's not to late for your father to learn the benefits of a swat on the butt for brats that are pushing their luck."
"Calm down, Johnny." Jason says quietly. Jason looks at his watch. "Weren't you going to go to the restaurant and check on your other business? Perhaps your sister would like to see that as well?"
"Right Boss. Come on Kid. Don't EVER do that again."
"Do what-- save your asses? Please I knew what probable cause and warrants were when I was seven." Rita says smartly as she follows Johnny from the warehouse.
"Watch your mouth." Johnny demands. "Ladies don't use that kind of language."
"Now you're beginning to sound like Vicki." Rita rolls her eyes.
"Who's Vicki?"
"Your other sister. The one that doesn't know about you yet." Rita says gleefully glad to one up her pain sister. "Oh she is going to throw a hissy. She isn't the oldest anymore. She can't boss me around."
"Watch it. That means I can." Johnny reminds with a quirk of his brow. "Get in the car. I'm sure I can find some pots for you to scrub at the restaurant while we wait for the Judge to show up."
Sonny tells Jason watching the backs of Johnny and Rita as they leave. "I think that Johnny is going to have his hands full."
Johnny and Rita arrive at the restaurant. Rita is silent and kind of sullen having gotten chewed out again in the car. As they walk into the restaurant there is the sound of pots being thrown back in the kitchen. "OH HELL."
"Hey if I can't swear then you can't either. You might influence me."
"I don't have to worry about that now. My mother is here." Johnny winces at the foul language coming from the back room. The chef might be swearing in french but his mother's language was english and plain to all. Rita pulls out her notebook and starts writing down words.
"I don't care where you trained, you overpaid, snooty idiot with delusions of greatness. THere is too much ****ing dill in that sauce. It overwealms the fish. Didn't you bother to taste it before you start dishing it out to the ****ing customers? What are you trying to do? Ruin my son's business? Get out of my way." Johnny and Rita peek back into the kitchen where Cook has a butcher knife pointed in the direction of Johnny's highly recommended french chef. Johnny groans. "Just sit there and shut the **** up you might learn something!" Cook glares at the chef even while she is quickly and efficiently making up another dill sauce. "Taste it!" When the chef hesitates Cook starts lovingly cleaning the knife. The chef takes a bite and then another. "Now THAT is a dill sauce."
"Bitch." The french chef swears even as he takes another bite trying to figure out what the harridan had done to make it turn out just so.
"Idiot." Cook snarls back knowing that she had won the arguement.
"Ma!" Cook looks over at Johnny and then her eyes narrow on the slim girl standing behind her son her mouth agape and frantically scribbling in her notebook.
Cook pulls Johnny aside and hisses in his ear. "What is she doing here? What are you doing with Rita Porter?"
"She followed me to the warehouse after I stopped to see her father this morning. She announced to everyone including Taggart that she was my sister."
Cook reaches up and cuffs Johnny's ear. "I told you to stay away from the Judge. Now you got his kid messed up in your business!"
"Damn it, Ma." Johnny rubs his ear. "I hate it when you do that. Besides the Judge was the one that told her that I was her brother."
"And how did he find out?" Cook snarls. She glares at the chef as he makes a move to leave the kitchen. She points back to the stool in the corner. The chef retreats quietly back to the stool.
"He had you investigated." Johnny admits.
"That distrustful son of a bitch." Cook mutters.
"How long was he suppose to wait for you to tell him? How long was I suppose to wait to find out I had a big brother?" Rita interjects bravely.
"I wasn't talking to you, girlie." Rita shrinks under Cook's focused glare. "Aren't you suppose to be in school?" Cook walks over to Rita standing right over her and getting into her face. "You know what happens to little girls that don't get a high school diploma? They end up washing dishes for a living." Cook grabs Rita by the arm and leads her back into the kitchen. She fastens an apron around her and sets her in front of a heaping sink of pots in steamy soapy water. "Get scrubbing and you're not going to stop until your father gets here to pick you up." Cook looks over to the chef. "What are you doing sitting on your butt? You got people out there that want to eat not look at fancy napkin folds."
"Monsieur Johnny, these conditions are intolerable..." The chef begins.
"Was my mother right?" Johnny interrupts flatly. "The food is the important thing. It is the only thing."
"Shut up and I'll give you my recipe." Cook says resigned to making amends for losing her temper. "Johnny, call the judge and let him know where his daughter is before Taggart does."