When Cassadines Fall ~ The Detour

"I suppose I should have asked first." Em asks as she turns down the right side of Johnny's bed at the apartment over the restaurant. She is wearing a man's pajama top.

"I worked for your brother long enough, and my mother for your grandmother long enough to know exactly how this one was going to turn out." Johnny turns down the left side of the bed at the same time. He is wearing a pair of men's pajama bottoms. They were a present from his mother one birthday or Christmas that he'd kept around just in case of a trip to the hospital. They'd finally gotten some use when Em had stayed with him before-- after getting free of the kidnapers. "I'm surprised they haven't showed up yet."

"You did buy the building right?" Em climbs into bed. She hadn't really stayed the night at Johnny's since she'd been hiding out here after the kidnapping. Sure, she and Johnny had been together, dating for months. They'd even been intimate overcoming Johnny's objections of her youth and inexperience. But they hadn't slept together since back then. Napped maybe, but not slept. Even when he'd come to see her in New Orleans, Granny Sophia had been a formidable chaperone.

"Yes, I own the building. And the zoning allows for mixed use. Edward can't mess with the mortgage or the business." Johnny slides in and then turns the light off on his side. The bedroom door is open as is the bathroom door. Inside the bathroom there is a nightlight that breaks the total darkness of the night. Emily hasn't slept in total dark since what had happened. Em climbs into bed but doesn't immediately turn off the light on her side of the bed. "We've been thru this before when you thought that someone might come after me. And I wasn't just watching when Carly took down the Deception Spa. I learned something too." Johnny cuddles Em next to him. "Sooner or later your grandfather wasn't going to be able to ignore that I knew you a little too well."

"Not even for your lemon curd filled pastries." Em hugs Johnny's arm to her.

"So who is going to show up first?" Johnny asks.

Em sighs. "Taggart. Probably in the morning when they figure they can catch us at something."

"Yeah, that was my guess too." Johnny agrees. He reaches over and turns off Em's light. "Might as well get a good night's sleep first."

"Johnny, I'm sorry I dragged you into this."

"I haven't done anything I didn't want to do."

Oh Dark thirty

Maddy is already on her rounds with Cinnamon riding shotgun in the front passenger seat of the van. There are advantages to having a pitbull as a constant companion. She never worried about using the night deposit at the bank anymore. There was actually a time, of course she hadn't told Niknik, where she'd gotten a hinky feeling on someone while doing a deposit. Cinnamon had evidently felt the same way and smiled at the stranger showing off her arsenal of teeth. The person had moved quickly on.

Maddy pulls up to the kitchen entrance of Porter's Restaurant to pick up the supply of pastries for the six coffee kiosks-- part of her daily routine. She'd already been by the Herald and picked up her supply of newspapers. There are just things that go together: coffee, danish and a paper. She made it convenient for the people of Port Charles to get all three. She raps on the back door. "Hey Johnny."

"Sorry-- running late this morning."

"What's up? Was that Em's red SAAB that I saw in the parking lot?"

Johnny gives her a look and then shrugs. "Em moved out of the mansion yesterday."

"And in with you?!" Maddy's eyes get big and so does her grin. "At least I was emancipated. And not sleeping with Niknik. And even if I had been-- he's not that much older."

"Three weeks, Maddy. Three weeks until her eighteenth birthday." Johnny says defensively.

"So who is going to show up first?"

"Em's money is on Taggart."

"I'll put twenty on the Judge."

Johnny winces but then shake his head. "It won't be the Judge. Considering he and my Ma hooked up when she was sixteen."

"Oh-- so liking them young runs in the family." Maddy teases.

"Just shut up, Maddy."

"Love you too, Johnny." Maddy blows him a kiss and then starts loading up trays of pastries into the back of the van. This part of the van is closed off from the rest, otherwise Cinnamon wouldn't just get the day old danishes. As soon as the pastries are loaded up into the van, Maddy slams the back shut. "So I can call Em here?"

"Or at Deception if it's between business hours."

"Right. Have Em give me a call." Maddy goes around to the driver's side and climbs in. Before she is even out of the parking lot she is already on the phone to the one other person she knows is awake. "Hey Niknik-- guess what?"

Edward is up early. Not because Lila had kicked him out of her bed. It had been a close thing but it seemed as if Lila understood his reaction even if she didn't like the outcome. Nevermind that he'd known even before Alexis had rubbed his nose in it. "Under this roof." Edward mutters and shakes his head. He knew better. And Lila knew he knew better.

"Okay. I'm here." Alexis sighs as she comes in through the French doors of the family room. "And there had better be coffee."

"I want to know what I can do about this situation with Emily."

"You?! Not a freaking thing." Alexis is blunt. "You have absolutely no standing in this. You are not Emily's father; you are not her guardian. And I'll tell you the same thing I told Ned last night-- make nice before you lose her. Emily is three weeks away from her eighteenth birthday. She has her own money even if you do manage to block her trust. She already has her high school diploma thanks to the homeschooling. She can handle being on her own a hell of lot better than you can, Old Man." Alexis goes over to the coffee pot and lifts the top. Nothing. Damn. She turns back around. "And if Em isn't with John Cook then she is in all likelihood at Carly and AJ's. And considering how Carly feels about you on a good day... pray she's with Cook."

"There has to be something I can do to make this right with Emily!" Edward demands.

"I don't think buying a horse is going to get you out of the doghouse this time, Old Man." Alexis snaps right back.

Edward straightens. He'd already had it about half planned back when he was convincing Emily to be homeschooled after her kidnapping. "That's it! Here is what I want you to do...."

Jason swings by Queen of Angels to touch base with Father Frank. There are certain improvements to the parish that are community projects but whatever the shortfall is it's made up by Sonny and/or Jason. They'd taken care of the boiler for the school before school started. Now they are just waiting for the end of basketball season so that they can get into the gym and start replacing the hardwood floor. Jason finds Father Frank in the gym putting away gear from PE.

"I talked to Mark O'Leary." Father Frank starts. "He works doing hardwood floors. He'll be able to get a good deal on the flooring and supervise the installation. And the concession sales have been amazing."

"That's cause the girls team has been kicking ass, Father." Jason as is his nature say just what he means. He holds the netted bag so the priest can dump the gear into it.

Father Frank just grins and shakes his head. Most people are on their best behavior around the priest but Jason had always been the one to respect the collar but also invite the man out for a beer and game of pool. The conversations over the table are often unorthodox... Jason's questions about faith and the church are a challenge that he hadn't received since back in school with the Jesuits. "And for that reason we've had to postpone the installation of the floor. We've picked a date that is right after the championship... just in case." Father Frank changes the subject. "How is Li doing?" After hearing her confession, the priest had been concerned about Li and her suicidal thoughts.

"Better. Whatever you said worked. She still doesn't want to see her family." Jason shrugs. "But she is doing everything she can to get ready for them."

Rita and Mei duck back into the girls locker room but leave the door ajar. They'd been late getting out from PE and are already late for class. As soon as Mei had heard her cousin's name she'd grabbed her best friend's arm in a death grip holding her still.

"I talked to Jerry. His friend Leilani and her family have gotten Yuen enrolled in an English class over on Oahu. It is as Jerry suspected. Nobody is surprised to see an oriental face on the island, or one that doesn't speak English. Is there anything on Harry Chow?"

"The letters and pictures have gone out. We should finally see some movement." Jason informs the priest.

Father Frank winces. It's blackmail, extortion. Jason and Sonny had found any family tie that the Red Chinese power structure had in the US... frequently college students, the children of the men in power. There had been no threats made against the progeny but instead information gathered about whatever they were doing that would be frowned on back in China-- drinking, drugs, sex-straight or otherwise, shopping sprees, gambling anything and everything. Nothing that the FBI wasn't doing too, just that Sonny and his associates know better where to look. A few phone calls was all Sonny said it was. And Father Frank had done his own penances as well. Because he'd made his own phone calls too and not just to his local congressman. "The groundwork is already in place just as soon as Harry is released. I talked to the embassy in Shanghai and he'll be received there."

"He's going to need medical attention."

Mei swallows hard fighting to stay silent, knowing that if there is the least little sound that the two will stop talking.

Rita is more skilled at eavesdropping and gives Mei's hand a warning squeeze.

"Yes." Father Frank agrees. "But Harry Chow needing medical attention is a step in the right direction from where he is now."

"If they kill Harry you want to hold onto the info incase you need it in the future?" Jason asks. And that is when Mei breaks. Jason and Father Frank glance over to the noise. Rita knows they are busted and pushes out the door. Grabbing Mei by the hand they make a run for it. Jason winces. "That is going to be a problem."

"Let Li know that her family in Port Charles know she is alive." Father Frank starts going after the girls.

"You don't know what they heard."

Father Frank's retort is exasperated. "Jason, It's Rita Porter." The only person as challenging in religion discussion as Jason...and the child isn't even Catholic.

Jason winces. Johnny's little sister had a habit of knowing everything and being in the middle of it too. "Right. I'll tell Li."

After pausing briefly to study her granddaughter unobserved, Lila announces herself. "Hello Darling."

Emily jumps to her feet from behind her desk at Deception. Em looks behind Lila wondering who else is with her.

"Reggie is putting a few things in the trunk of your car. I know you didn't have time to get more than a few things when you left last night." Lila motors into Emily's office.

Wincing Emily comes around the desk and takes a seat on the couch along one wall of her office. "I am sorry about that, Grandmother. I just couldn't let Grandfather get away with laying down the law like that."

"You were looking for an excuse, Darling." Lila says knowingly. "I know you're ready to spread your wings. You've been taking practice flights for the last year. And yes, Alan and Edward will always think of you as their little girl, their little angel given to them by your mother, by Paige. I wish I could say you were their second chance... or their third..." Lila declares ruefully.

Emily laughs and shakes her head. "You know us too well, Grandmother."

"They are already coming around." Lila nods. "I have a present from your Grandfather. It's not a white flag of course. He will never offer one of those." Lila hands Emily a brown paper bag.

Emily opens it and sees her assortment of nightlights. Edward had sent Reginald out to purchase them the very first night she'd been freed from the kidnapers. Her eyes well with tears. "Oh Grandmother."

"And you and Johnny will come to dinner on Monday night, Johnny's night off, as always. Johnny will bring dessert. He and your grandfather will argue; you and I shall roll our eyes, and everything will be normal."

Em sniffs and wipes at her eyes with the back of her hand. Lila offers her a handkerchief. Em grabs it and brushes at the tears. "I don't know how you do it, Grandmother."

"No drama now, my dear." Lila says calmly. "I want to know exactly how you feel about your modeling career so I know best how to support you."

Emily bites her lip and leans forward resting her elbows on her knees. She brushes her hair back from her face. "I don't know. Johnny asked the same thing... sort of. He says that he does something he loves every day... going into the restaurant, taking ingredients and working his magic."

"Do you feel that way about modeling?"

"No."

Lila nods. "Well then that is your answer. You didn't accept any modeling jobs after the kidnapping. You didn't like your agent before the Vogue job and even if you continued modeling you were planning on changing representation. Darling, one thing we all found out when you were kidnapped was all the things you are involved in. Focusing on the things that are important to you isn't... allowing Edward to make decisions for you."

"Grandmother..." Emily sighs. "If you give Grandfather an inch..."

"Darling, you aren't telling me anything I don't know." Lila laughs. "So make him work for it. He'll appreciate it more. Now about Johnny..."

Emily sighs. "Grandmother... "

"You're almost eighteen. Be very, very careful, My darling Emily." Lila warns. "Alexis has been very blunt in warning both Ned and your grandfather to not interfere. But after all that time of working for your brother and Mr. Corinthos, I don't think you want to be the one to have Johnny thrown in jail for even an hour let alone a day. There are others that would... take advantage of the situation." Lila suggests.

Jason arrives at the grocery store early and is waiting for Li when she gets off the bus. He takes her bookbag from her and puts it in his car and then escorts her into the store. He takes control of the grocery cart leaning his elbows on it and following after Li as she goes around the store.

Li looks back over her shoulder from selecting some produce for the evening's meal. "Something is... wrong?"

"Oui." Jason nods. There would be time enough to work on Li's English later. It's more important now for her to understand what is going down. "I was at church today talking to Father Frank and your cousin overheard part of the conversation. MeiMei goes to school there."

"Merde." Li blanches.

"Yeah, that covers it. Her best friend... hell she's Rita." Jason doesn't really know how to explain it and says Rita's name as if that explains it all. "Same age as Meimei but... she's like Carly in Training. Everything and everybody is her business. It's just a matter of time before she either says something or tries to figure things out and then you're busted."

"You think I should talk to my aunt."

"Your choice." Jason counters. "Your Aunt and cousin have been working hard since your father was arrested. They came up with the names that lead to your mom. Hell we wouldn't have been able to find either of you without the leads they gave. They are worried about you. But that's no reason for you to see them."

"Comment?" What? Even in the short time Li has been living in Jason's penthouse she has come to the conclusion that he doesn't think like other people. Definitely not like anyone she met at the massage parlor. And after her conversation with Jerry and her visits with Carly she has to think it isn't an anglo thing but a Jason thing.

"You want to see them... you see them. You don't. You don't. Your call. Your choice."

Li bites her lip and frowns but turns back to the produce. "Maybe she didn't hear anything."

"Don't count on it."

"Oh my GAWD! I'll kill those little punks. After everything I've done for them!" Maddy is about to turn around and go right back out of the corner store after seeing different colors of spray paint all over the floor of the building.

"Maddy! Maddy, wait!" Nikolas comes out of the office area of the former service station, where they were still storing everything.

"Did you catch them?"

"It was Partner and Larry."

"Excuse me?" Maddy is stopped in her tracks.

"Come on." Nik takes Maddy's arm. "You were right. Partner did already have some sketches done. The two of them showed up here and since the floor is going to be redone anyway... the walls are going to be redone anyway. They just roughed in where everything would be: electrical outlets, plumbing, phone lines, heating and air conditioning, surveillance system."

"Like those guys do on the street so that they don't mess things up when they repave the roads."

"I guess." Nik doesn't have a clue.

Maddy takes a deep breath. "Okay. I'm better now." She wanders around the soon to be corner store and really starts reading what she'd believed was graffiti before. "Did he leave the drawings?"

"Yes, they're in here." Nik indicates the office.

"What did you think?" Maddy asks as she reaches for the drawings on the desk.

"Good start but plenty of room for details." Nik stands behind Maddy and looks over her shoulder. "And I picked these up from Carly's when I was checking on Sheba." Nik shows her the faxes of restaurant liquidations that are going on in the area.

Maddy looks at it. "There is one company that is doing a lot of these." She mutters as she considers the list. Definitely going to have to check out the company. Maybe she can just drop a wish list on them.

"Partner is going to want new." Nik counters.

"Ha. Most new businesses fold within a year. The stuff at these is practically new."

Ricky Robideau looks out his back window and sees a small figure in a winter coat out in his driveway throwing up free throws one after the other. "That girl is crazy." But he puts on his coat and goes outside anyway. "Hey Rita."

"Hey Ricky." Rita bounces the ball twice and smoothly projects it thru the hoop.

Ricky stands at the base of the hoop and bounces it toward Rita. "So which of my body parts has to turn blue before you tell me what is going on... and why you're doing free throws in my driveway rather in your own?!"

"I can go home if you want." Rita tosses up another one.

"I didn't say that." Ricky sighs. He gets the ball and bounces it back. "But you're here 'cause there is something you don't want to tell the judge... you don't want to tell Cookie..." Ricky thinks about it for a minute. "Hell Something you don't want to tell Carly?!"

"You make it sound like I never tell you anything." Rita frowns.

"Is Viki giving you a problem?" Ricky refers to Rita's older sister. He sees her around campus at PCU. But when Viki sees him coming-- she goes the other direction. Ricky had found her out in too many of her schemes.

"Nah." Rita shakes her head.

"Well if it isn't the bane of your existence..." Ricky shrugs. "I'm all out of guesses, munchkin."

"I overheard Father Frank and Jason Morgan planning on using whatever extortion stuff they have-- even if the government kills Harry Chow."

"Any possibility that you misunderstood?" Ricky winces when he sees the look on Rita's face. "Okay. Just had to check. Come on, munchkin. For this I think I'm going to need hot chocolate. You can tell me everything you overheard while you make it." Ricky doesn't give the basketball back but instead tucks it under his arm and goes over to Rita. He puts an easy hand on her shoulder.

"It might take awhile. You don't have to study or something?" Rita hesitates.

"Nah. I'm cool." Ricky walks Rita up to his apartment. Since the kid had helped her stepmother put the kitchen together, Rita knows his kitchen better than he does. She takes off her coat and throws it over a chair and drops her knit cap on top of it. Going into the kitchen she gives Ricky a look when she sees that the only thing he has in the kitchen is instant. "I don't want to hear it. I'm not cleaning scalded milk out of a sauce pan on a regular basis." Ricky says defensively.

"Yeah, but even you could make this." Rita shakes the packets derisively. She goes over to the stove and puts the kettle on.

"Start talking."

"You know about Brother Chow?"

Ricky nods. "Yeah. Jerry went over to check on his family." And that is as much Ricky is saying to the Judge's daughter.

"Mr. Chow's wife is in Hawaii staying with a friend of Mr. Jerry." Rita pulls down the mugs and grabs some spoons. She isn't even looking at Ricky which is good because Rick is already shaking his head in disbelief. "And I think his daughter is staying with Mr. Morgan. It sounded like she's avoiding Mei and her grandmother and that just doesn't make sense. She's acting like she did something wrong. Maddy is fixing up the property on the corner to be a store like someplace she used to hang out by in New Orleans."

"Monroes." Ricky had spent his own amount of time hanging on that corner. Acting like she did something wrong? His eyes narrow at the munchkin's offhand comment.

"Okay." Rita tears the packets open. "Everyone down at school has been praying for the Chows. Specially Harry since he's in the joint and they're going to kill him if Mr. Morgan and Mr. Corinthos can't get him out."

"And how to Jason and Sonny think that's going to work?" Rick snorts. "And quit saying things like joint or Cookie and the Judge are going to ground your reading material back to Harry Potter.

"They're going to get dirty pictures of all the bad guys' kids and blackmail them into letting Mr. Chow go."

It's too late for Harry Potter. Ricky closes his eyes and rests his head in his hands. He knows it's true. Rita couldn't have come up with this one on her own. She did have the worst habit of being in the right place at the absolute wrong time and hearing things she had no business hearing. "Rita..."

"I know. I can't tell my Dad. Cause he's a Judge and there'd be all kinds of conflict of interest. And I can't tell Cookie cause she would tell my dad. I suppose I could talk to Carly. But I looked it up."

"You looked it up. Extortion of foreign officials-- that's covered in your dad's library." Of course she would look it up. That's Rita, do the research and then make the argument. That's probably what the munchkin was out doing in the drive way. Planning on how she was going to pull him into this one.

"Probably. But I was looking up what kind of trouble Li and her mother are in for not being official. Even with Queen of Angels sponsoring them... they could be in jail here for a long time, and they could be deported and not allowed back into the US for years if it isn't done right. But I don't know all of it. There is a bunch of administrative rules. I think that the INS code is as thick as the IRS code!"

"Sounds like they need a real attorney, not just a midget in a kid suit reading to be one the old fashioned way."

Rita smiles at Ricky.

"No, you're not dragging me into this."

"Ricky..."

"Forget it."

"Please. I don't have enough for a retainer right now. If I would have known before Christmas then I wouldn't have been so nice to Viki. But it could be weeks before I have enough saved. And the Chows may not have weeks!"

Ricky sighs. "Fine. I'll make some calls." Ricky's eyes narrow. He'd been sent to Port Charles to keep an eye on Agents Ford and Larkin who were trying to screw over Dara Jensen to get Maddy to play ball against his father. It hadn't worked. Larkin had disappeared into the federal system and Ford had kept a low profile except for...

"What are you thinking?" Rita asks as she puts the hot chocolate in front of Ricky.

Considering he'd been the one to take Larkin out when the dirty fed held a courtroom full of people hostage- including Jensen, her attorney, Rita's dad the Judge and Rita. "Maddy's Aunt would probably be the best bet." Specially since Ford owed her. Big time. Dara Jensen might even think she owes me.... “Definitely Dara Jensen.”