When Cassadines Fall ~ The Detour

Nik's eyes slowly open. It's still dark outside and the space next to him is still warm. He groans. It's Saturday. But Maddy is self employed so that just means she gets a later start... on Sunday. Saturday is just like every other day for her. He knows she is already up and out. And there is no way he's going to go down to the corner store. The work crews there have the day off. "Ah Hell." He rolls out of bed and starts to the adjoining bathroom. He runs a hand over his face and finally sees the sticky note that is stuck to the mirror.

    Candy-

    I'll be back from the rounds early. Granny Lesley, Lulu and I have hair appointments. You're in charge of Luke's laundry.

    L. Maddy.

Nik snorts at that. It's the deal Maddy worked with Luke. Nik and Lucky got the privilege of babysitting their little sister on Saturday but Lulu came with all the laundry Luke could generate. A chore Maddy promptly delegated to Nik which would surely send Luke ballistic if he knew-- or maybe not. He'd thought that maybe things would change a bit with Laura home from the hospital but Lulu had been on the phone to Grandmother assuming she'd be coming to stay over even with Laura just home from the hospital. He'd seen the concern in Lesley's eyes but she'd covered quick enough with a reminder about Lulu's regular riding lesson.

The shower shampoo and shine doesn't take long. It's not as fun when there is only one, and soon Nikolas is down in the kitchen pouring himself a cup of coffee from the vacuum pot that never seemed to be empty.

Lucky and Liz stroll in not too much later both look as if they haven't been to sleep at all. "Morning."

"Should I ask?" Nikolas looks from one to the other.

"Larry's place is clean..." enough. "Elizabeth got a headstart on prepping that wall for the mural thing." Lucky yawns. "Tell me I'm not going ice fishing. All I want is to crash."

"Maddy left a note saying Lulu has a hair appointment with grandmother this morning. I'll give Lulu her riding lesson after."

Lucky nods. Nik is basically letting him know that he can sleep until noon.

Elizabeth picks up on it too. "If the FedEx guy comes by we're expecting the mural supplies. Lucky was able to find a supplier who would expedite. Don't wake us. OH and kill the kids if they start the snowblower before ten." Liz lets Nik know her plan for Saturday morning.

Lucky strings an arm around Liz's neck and cuddles her close. Neither bother with coffee they aren't going to be awake that much longer. "Night, Nik."

"Morning, Lucky." Nik replies wryly.

Maddy raps on the kitchen door entrance of Porter's and is surprised when Emily opens the door. Not that Em is still with Johnny but that she is up this early. "Good morning."

"Morning isn't for like three more hours." Em counters. "But the coffee is on."

"Great. I'm about ready for a refill."

"I'm just putting in the last batch." Johnny calls from the kitchen.

"Okay." Em and Maddy go pour themselves some coffee. There is a little bit of time until the danishes come out, and cooled just a little. There is no use in putting out the rest of the pastries in the van. The dog seemed to have an affection for anything she considered an abandoned danish... and the five second rule didn't seem to apply unless there was a human there to time it.

"So..." Maddy grins and gives her best Dr. Phil imitation. "How this working out for ya?"

"Well lets see... Dad can't say much since he's not living at the mansion either. Mom blames it all on Carly."

"What did Carly have to do with it?!"

"Nothing, but Mom blames Carly for everything. Ned keeps opening his mouth as if he is going to say something and then shuts it again real fast. That happens a lot since I'm seeing him every day at Deception. Grandmother stopped by and saw me at work. We talked and made plans to keep Monday nights at the mansion going.

"Mr. Q stopped by the Corner store and talked to me."

"Oh?" Em leans in at that.

"Yeah, I asked him how he could be so smart and such a blockhead. He should have known better than laying out an ultimatum like that. Thing is now that he's had time to think you know he's going to be up to something."

Em's eyes narrow and she nods consideringly. "Last time I saw him was at Rita's game on Thursday. In fact he was too quiet. Well not quiet but he didn't bring it up. Kept the topics to the basketball game, the horse show and a healthy donation to the Chow's housing fund."

"Definitely up to something." Maddy nods. "You check to see if there is any unexplained stock movement on Deception?"

"He wouldn't dare!"

"Oh please."

Em sighs. "Yes, he would. Well that would be better than him coming after Johnny. Poor guy. We've been good and evidently will be until after my birthday. I'm counting the days."

"Isn't that kinda closing the door after the horse is long gone?"

Em gives her a dirty look. "Not much longer, Maddy."

Which has Maddy just watching Em with a widening grin as she looks over the lip of the coffee mug. "So I take it's not going to be a big party. Just you, the mister and a locked room?"

"Best plan I've heard so far."

"Good Morning, Nikky."

"Good morning, Princess." Nik replies to his little sister who is still dressed in her pjs.

Lulu has already learned. She looks at the dry erase board to find out where everyone is. "Is Maddy going to be back in time?" She worries with a furrowed brow. Last time only Grandma and Maddy had gone to get their hair done and she really wanted to go with them.

"Without a doubt." Nik says confidently. "But just in case why don't you make sure that Grandmother is awake and will be ready to go when Maddy gets back. I was thinking that we could riding after you finished your hair appointment."

Lulu looks at her big brother very seriously. "You can't come before noon because no boys are allowed. It's just me, Grandma and Maddy. But Elizabeth can come if she wants."

"Elizabeth and Lucky were over at Maddy's friend Larry's new apartment all night getting it ready for him. They're going to be sleeping until noon at least. Why don't you give me a call when you're ready to go riding and I'll walk down and get you?"

"Okay." Lulu looks at the clock. "I'm going to make sure Grandma's ready."

"Um princess?"

"Yeah, Nikky?"

"You might want to reconsider what you're wearing too." Nikolas teases.

Lulu sticks her tongue out at her big brother and goes racing off in her pjs to make sure her grandmother is awake.

Breaking your arm is a good way to figure out how to simplify your life. Lesley Webber had made all the adjustments so that whenever she is on a tight time frame there is nothing much that needed to get done-- and really who cared what her hair looked like if she was going to get it shampoo'd and set. "Pepsi."

Nik goes over to the fridge and pours his grandmother a Pepsi. He didn't know if she'd always been addicted to the bubbly caffeinated soft drink. But she is now. "Here you go. Did Lulu wake you up?"

"I was awake. Sorta." Lesley says wryly as she takes a seat at the kitchen table. She looks over at the dry erase board after having a sip of her Pepsi. She sighs and closes her eyes. "I needed that." She opens her eyes again. "Lulu is changing now."

Nik takes the seat across from Lesley. "Grandmother...."

"If you're going to share with me your concerns about Lulu wanting to come stay over here after just a few days of Laura being home don't bother. I'll know more after the hen party."

"Hen party?"

With her good hand Lesley starts holding up fingers. "Me, Maddy, the hair dresser, the hair dresser's daughter-- nothing will remain secret."

"She did say no boys allowed." Nik starts to get the age old curiosity of exactly what goes on in those places.

"Forget it, Bub." Lesley reads him like a book. "Take up golf."

"Get out."

"Excuse me?" Johnny looks up from his prep area. The restaurant doesn't open until 11:30 on Saturday but there is plenty to get done.

"Get out." Cookie demands. She grabs her white jacket and buttons it over her lightweight shirt. "Rita and I have it from here. She wants to get some hours in and isn't going riding until this afternoon. JD is off meddling in someone else's business so I've got some free time."

"JD is meddling? Since when?!"

"Oh please! What is a judge but the biggest of buttinskis? He's just doing it unofficially this morning."

"Ma?" Johnny is already cleaning off the blade of his knife and putting it away and stepping out of the prep area.

"Rita's friend Mei is going to be staying with us while her grandmother is out of town. It just makes sense since the girls are best friends and are going to be going to the same place Monday thru Friday."

"And does Mei know this?"

"She will." Cookie steps up into the prep area and does a quick check of everything to make sure where she is. "Frank working tonight?"

"Yeah." Johnny really doesn't like the idea but the reservations are light for tonight and figured he'd get as much done as he could in advance so that the Frank couldn't screw things up. Frank isn't a bad chef. He just isn't gifted and it shows in comparison. "So if you're working what am I supposed to be doing?"

"That's pitiful, Johnny." Cookie looks at him. "Go get Em and go see a movie. Go ice fishing. Go tweak a recipe. Hell go make peace with the Quartermaines. I don't give a fuck what you do just don't be doing it here!"

Realizing he is plucking his mother's last nerve, Johnny shrugs. "Okay. I'm outta here." Johnny walks back thru the storeroom planning on taking the elevator up to the apartment above. He wouldn't be taking Em to the movies. Since he was supposed to be working today, Em had gone into Deception to talk to her team and find out if Edward had been sticking his greedy sticky fingers in her corporate pie. Ice Fishing had never been his thing. Preparing the fish after sure... no problem but sitting around freezing his balls off waiting for the fish to bite made him a firm believer in dynamite and for some reason the fish and wild life people frowned on that. But the last two suggestions had some merit to them. There was a recipe he was working on... and if it turns out it would be something to add to his list of Specials. Johnny opens up the elevator and steps in, hitting the up button.

Rita looks both ways before coming out of her hidey hole back in the storeroom. She comes into the kitchen. Because Cookie and Johnny are cooks they get to wear the white jackets but she just grabs her apron and folds it up so that it will fit. "I can't believe that you kicked Johnny out of his own kitchen."

Cookie buffs her short unpolished nails on her white coat. "Skills, Girl. He'll be ticked later."

"You said you had something major for me." Rita stays on the far side of the invisible dividing line between Cookie's space and the rest of the kitchen.

"Yeah." Cookie takes a look around to see if there is anything that is going to blow up in the next two minutes and then goes back to the office. "Do your regular prep..." Cookie waits until she sees Rita's nod. "...and then start in on this."

"What is this?"

"This is the last health and safety inspection. They do everything on a checklist so nothing is missed. I want you to go over this place with a fine tooth comb and make sure every single thing on this list is right... and if it's not- make it right. And if you can't make it right then make a note of it for Johnny. Your brother has the hottest restaurant in town but he has some people out there that wouldn't mind if he fell on his ass. And a bad one of these equals a sticker in the front window, a write up on the health department web site, and locked doors. Got it?"

Rita nods. She knows Johnny has enemies. Some are holdovers from the days when he used to work for Mr. Corinthos. Then there are the people who used to work at Café Matisse. Johnny had pretty well driven Café Matisse out of business by stealing all their customers. The Head Chef over at the Port Charles Grille must be getting pretty desperate by now too. Em moving in with Johnny had to have ticked off the Quartermaines. Carly had nothing nice to say about Emily's grandfather, or her mother either. And then there is Viki. Although Viki is probably too stupid to even think of something as basic and necessary as a heath inspection. Rita glances over the checksheet. "I'm going to need your thermometers."

Cookie knows it's true but is reluctant to give up any of her tools. "Come back and ask when you need them. Take care of everything else first."

Lesley watches as Maddy and Lulu get their hair braided. If she had more guts when she first broke her arm she would have gotten her hair braided too-- but that first appointment with Maddy had been the first seeing the braiding process too. It's so much more convenient and actually less mess than dealing with her hair on a daily basis. But hindsight is 20/20.

Lulu had taken to having her hair braided for just that reason. She had a tough time taking care of her hair since it was prone to tangling and the braids let Maddy take care of it the night before and then the baby could just get ready for school with one less hassle, which Luke had appreciated even if he didn't know it once the baby had gone to live with him.

First it has been simple little french braids and then Lulu had talked Maddy into really braiding her hair, like Maddy's, only Maddy had added beads to the ends. This is Lulu's first time having her hair professionally braided. Lulu had been teased at school because her hair had been tangled but as far as Lesley knew she hadn't received any grief over her braids. Course that could be because Lucas had threatened to kick ass on anyone who made trouble for his little cousin.

Laura might not remember Lulu, and that is sad. But even being raised mostly by Laura and Lesley down in North Carolina, Lulu is all Spencer; she's just quiet about it. Her instinct is to observe before jumping in. The jumping in is all Spencer. Having her hair tangled was an embarrassment. But being different is something to be proud of. Lulu might be the littlest of the Spencer pack but in any other pack especially a pack of eight year olds-- she is alpha. Lesley relaxes with a Pepsi and some pastries that Maddy had brought from the kiosks. Her hair is already done. So she's just catching up on the gossip.

The hairdresser's daughter is the one that is actually braiding Lulu's hair. Maddy's is going to take more since she wears her braids smaller and her hair longer. But the daughter knows that she has someone in her chair that isn't going to mind something a little funky that is just going to rock in her brag book. "Your mom going to help keep these up?"

"I know how to take care of them." Lulu says softly. "Maddy showed me and I took care of it by myself when I stayed just with Daddy at his apartment."

"Lulu's Mom just got out of the hospital so they're back at my daughter's house recouping." Lesley explains. "She was in the same accident I was in." Lesley holds up her casted arm. The hairdresser and her daughter were two of the first people outside of family that she saw when coming back to Port Charles. They'd seen her in the original Frankenstein cast and knew what a nasty accident it had been.

"Oh bless her heart! That poor thing." The hairdresser nods commiseratingly.

"She doesn't know anybody." Lulu says simply. Explaining the situation. "She acts like she does so nobody feels bad but it's just pretend. Daddy, Grandma and her friend Stefan are the only people she knows and she looks at them funny all the time too."

"Baby, you've seen pictures of your Daddy when he married your Mama I'm sure." Maddy hands the hairdresser a clip with very little prompting. "I'm sure he doesn't look the same as when they got married." Maddy looks at Lesley to get confirmation that this is a good topic to be on or if they should be changing the subject fast.

"Daddy had yellow hair and it was really long and curly." Lu goes to nod but then thinks better of it. "Now his hair is really short and grey. Mama's hair is pretty much the same though."

"Oh that won't do." The hairdresser declares. "Bring her next time we'll give her an update."

"I'll suggest it." Lesley nods. "The girls will be ready for an appointment in about three weeks?"

The hairdresser's daughter nods. "Right. But it won't be an all day thing like a rebraid. What does your mama think of your braids, Baby?" The hairdresser and her daughter had picked up on Maddy and Lesley's habit of calling Lulu baby instead of by her name and it automatically flows.

"Well since she doesn't remember anything she thinks I've always had them." Lulu kinda grins at that. "Daddy shows her pictures but I look really different from when I was a baby."

"You look just like your brothers." Maddy emphasizes. "I thought that Niknik got his coloring from his daddy but now I'm not so sure. Granny Lesley?" Maddy raises a brow.

"That's between me and Miss Clairol." Lesley jokes before adding to what Maddy started. "And you've got a build like your Daddy and Lucky-- lean and strong."

"Lucky she is learning to cook from me though." Maddy looks in the mirror at the hairdresser. "Lucky and Niknik are both next to useless in the kitchen. They'd starve to death if their dialing fingers ever break."

"They're getting better, Maddy." Lulu defends her brothers automatically even though she is the first one to call them on cheating when they call Eli's for ribs or have Mrs. Lansbury come over to cook.

"They can't make biscuits from scratch-- not the way you can." Maddy declares. Both the hairdresser stop in mid-braid to look at the little girl, pretty impressed by that achievement.

"That's true." Lu agrees and then clarifies what she'd said before. "They're getting better. They're not good."

With that all the girls crack up. The tradition of the male bash has been carried on to another generation.

Em happens to look up from her desk when Jax is walking past her doorway at Deception. "Jax!"

"Hey Em." Jax doubles back. "What are you doing here? If you're here on Saturday don't you spend it down in R&D with your crew?"

Em shoves her hair back out of her face, massaging her fingers thru her scalp as she does so. "They know I'm here, but they know I've got my own problem to work on."

"Oh?" Jax comes into the office and takes a seat. "What kind of problem?"

"Have you seen any movement on the Deception stock? Anything suspicious or just putting the hair up on the back of your neck?"

"You think Katherine Bell is ready to wreck havoc or something?" Jax jokes. Then he reads Emily's face and leans forward. "What?!"

"I kind of ticked off Grandfather. And Grandmother is trying to smooth things over but..."

"You think he would come after your company?"

"You want to call Ned and ask how many times Grandfather pulled the rug out from under him at ELQ?" Em reaches for the phone.

"Let's not. I was in on a few of those and we've been getting on so well lately." Jax says wryly. "What kind of time frame are we talking?"

"I guess about a week ago until from now on. I moved out of the mansion and cut the puppet strings. Don't get me wrong. I know Grandfather loves me and I adore him too but he can't handle no strings."

Jax has been around the Quartermaines long enough to know that Em is absolutely right. "You know what to look for. We've gone over it often enough when we were strategizing how to take down Helen of Troy. Have you seen anything?"

Em shakes her head no. "But I'm not dumb enough to think that you've showed me everything you know; let alone every dirty trick that Grandfather has up his sleeves."

"Thanks for that-- I think." Jax laughs. He slouches back in the seat and reflects on the last week. Since the Federal Government had finally returned his Letters of Marque, he'd been spending more time investigating his next juicy plum to pirate rather than riding herd on Emily here at Deception, even with the additional acquisition of Helen of Troy.

Emily has been here full time since she'd finished up Homeschool High School and actually freed him to raid to his heart's delight and a much fatter bank account. Any questions she had she ran by Ned or emailed him. But as he'd proven to himself and his father in the past, Em may say she didn't care for business but she is a little sponge of business knowledge-- often times not even knowing what she did know. Deception has turned out to just be the foundation. The company has already blown up dramatically since Em had managed to wrestled it away from Katherine Bell. "What do you think?"

Emily grimaces. "If he's up to something, I can't find it. I've been running widgit scenarios all morning until the numbers are blending together."

"Widgit?"

"Yeah, the one you pulled on AJ back when he was in charge of the domestic side of ELQ, and the sea crane development. He was so busy getting the DNA stuff together on Michael that he let a contract expire. You bought the widgit company, bent him over the table on the renegotiation of the contract and used that to pay off the company and finance your way back onto the ELQ board."

Jax winces. "Once again. Thanks, I think-- although I prefer to not think of it as bending AJ over a table."

"I'm sure AJ would prefer to not think of it that way either." Em leans back in the big leather chair and brings up one foot, tucking it under the other. "I know he's up to something. I just know it. Maddy could smell it coming off of him. The smugness."

"Maddy?" Jax perks at the mention. Maddy is his niece but she would have nothing to do with him or the rest of the Jacks preferring to go it alone, or rather to throw in with the Cassadines, the Quartermaines anyone but her real family.

"Grandfather stopped by to see her down at the corner store. She's almost got it ready for the Chows. Or it will be ready once the all the appliances are delivered and all the licenses are obtained."

"I don't get it." Jax shakes his head. "Why Edward would be so nice to Maddy? It's just bizarre." And why Maddy would be so nice to Edward and so cold to her real family.

"Oh puleeze." Emily rolls her eyes. "Maddy is tall, gorgeous, has a voice like honey and specializes in giving a person what they want. I don't think she's ever had an awkward, gawky day in her whole life. I'd hate her if she hadn't been such a good friend. Of course, Grandfather adores her. And he has from the first meeting back in High School Hell. She went all mint julep on him, flattered his business mind. She refuses to go into business with him, or even work for him, so there is the whole no strings thing that drives Grandfather nuts. And yet, she hangs on his every word like gospel- doesn't blow him off like Ned, AJ, Jason, or even Aunt Tracy."

"She could learn just as much from Jerry, from my father."

"Don't start." Em warns. "I know you stuck with Deception because I'm tight with Carly and you were trying to get out of Jerry's doghouse. And now you're sticking with me because of Maddy-- you'd much rather be off reaping and pillaging." Em waves her hand as if indicating some far off land.

"Don't get too big for your britches, Em. I have a life here too." Jax reminds. "V, my parents and thanks to Bobbie things are thawing between me and Jere."

"They won't be for long if Maddy makes a run for it. Or if the Cassadines get involved."

"The Cassadines are already involved." Jax counters.

"Yeah. Which for some reason makes me think widgets. You?" Em suggests with a tilted head.

Jax's eyes narrow and he slowly rises from his seat. "You are an evil, evil child."

Em fakes a pout. "Not for much longer."

"Johnny is a lucky man." Jax comes over and gives her a kiss on the cheek. When he steps back and Em can tell that something has occurred to him. She looks up at the big Aussie. "I don't think he's coming after Deception."

"He's not?"

"No. You said it yourself. He wants strings. Tie you right back by his side."

Em starts beating her head against the desk. "Oh no, no, no. Not that."

"I think you can forget about getting out of ELQ board meetings."

Nikolas stands in the middle of the outdoor ring adjacent to Carly's stables above the Deception spa. He watches his little sister carefully as she trots Thunder around the ring. I'm really going to have to convince Carly to put in an indoor ring. It's almost February. Lucas' welsh pony is game for anything and has the good manners that you'd expect from a well trained horse. And with Lucas graduating to the bigger horses in order to compete against Rita, all of the saddles and gear had been available for Lulu-- with the exception of the helmet. They'd gone out and had that specially fitted to his little sister. "I can see your hands moving." Nik calls out.

Lulu's hands still right at the base of Thunder's neck. The minor correction has her doing the whole check list so she straightens in the saddle and tucks her heels down. She looks over Thunder's ears to the path in front of her. "Is that better?"

"Much. Keep it going, Baby. Posting is much easier isn't it?"

Lulu nods. Nikky had started her trotting by having her sit a trot and she'd almost been flung out of the ring, like fighting against the motion of a pogo stick. "Thunder wants to go faster. I can tell."

"Slow steady squeeze." Thunder instantly responds to the increasing pressure by moving into a smooth canter. "That's it. Nice and easy."

"When do I get to go out on the trails?" Lulu demands.

"When it isn't freezing. When the trees have leaves and there are little baby bunnies hopping in the woods."

"Wimp."

"I can always tell when you've been hanging around Maddy."

Maddy answers from the fence railing where she is watching Nik work with his sister. "What was your first clue? The braids or the fingernail polish? And really, Candy, I know I'm feeling maligned-- you wouldn't catch me hiking thru the snow even if I had a horse to do all the work. I wouldn't have called you a wimp for that."

Nik walks over to the fence and gives Maddy a kiss and caresses her face. "Hey gorgeous."

Maddy shivers. "Your lips are cold."

"You're not... yet. Go in the office. We'll be done here soon."

"I'll put the kettle on."

Nik nods. "I made copies of some of the faxed sales. They are on the coffee table."

"For the Chows or for Larry?"

Nik shrugs. "Either, both. Where is Grandmother?"

"I took Granny Lesley home. I didn't know how long you'd be at the lesson. There seemed to be signs of movement at Lucky and Elizabeth's place. It's Lucky's day to cook. I think Mrs. Lansbury put pizza on the menu for today."

"Mrs. Lansbury put pizza on the menu?"

"Sure. Course it's from scratch. And it might involve some sun dried tomatoes and artichoke hearts but it will be pizza. She knows you have Lulu every weekend. Oh and Mr. C called while I was at the house. He's going to have to go out of town on Monday for some errand he isn't talking about and wants to have a match on Sunday night."

The dog. "And he invited himself to dinner?"

"He did ask who was cooking. Evidently KC has to work. This out of town thing must have come up suddenly." Maddy frowns at that and her eyes narrow. Things don't sneak up on Stefan. It's not his nature.

Going for the distraction and hoping this uncle appreciates his efforts, Nik leans in and gives Maddy another kiss. "Then it's a good thing you're cooking tomorrow night. You can have a game while I do clean up."

Now she knows something is up. Nik volunteering to do clean up?! "Ha! As slow as he moves he'll go from your place to the airport. I should tell Mrs. Lansbury to send his bag along with him." I'll find out what you two are up to.

Em lets herself into the apartment over Porter's restaurant. She is startled when she hears Johnny call out to her. "Come in here and try this."

"Johnny? I thought you were working." Em drops her satchel by the door and hangs up her jacket on the coat tree.

"Ma kicked me out of the kitchen. She's up to something. And Frank is working tonight. Left me with the day free."

"If I would have known...." Em comes into the kitchen and hesitates at the threshold. Sure, Johnny had invited her into the kitchen-- but after so many years of dealing with Cookie she isn't going interrupt during the creative process.

"I know you were busy checking up on your grandfather." Johnny gets out another spoon and dips it into his concoction. He blows on it and indicates with the tilt of his head for Em to come closer. As soon as she draws near he holds the spoon to her cupping his hand under it to make sure nothing spills. Em takes the taste and slowly savors. "What do you think?"

"Shush. I'm worshiping at the shrine of your greatness." Em looks up at him. "Please sir, May I have some more?"

Johnny leans in and gives her a quick kiss. "Set the table."

Em gets everything together and sets the table while Johnny dishes the classic French style cassoulet. "It turned out really well. I know you've been working on it for awhile.”

"It still takes too long. I need to streamline it some more before I'd be able to use it in the restaurant. And even then it would be a catering dish rather than a special." Johnny tears apart the bread and offers some to Em.

"Well if you didn't make the stock from scratch... that would trim a day off." Em takes the bread and sets it on the small plate beside the bowl. She looks at Johnny who is looking at her in horror. "Okay biting tongue now."

"Store stock is filled with salt and preservatives not to mention you can't find mutton stock at the grocery store."

"You don't shop at the local grocery store anyway! How would you know?" Em counters. "Oh this is so good." Em closes her eyes. "Who cares if it takes three days to make?! I bet it'll be even better tomorrow."

"Probably. Which is good because I made enough for an army." Johnny says ruefully. "So, tell me what you figured out."

"I was chasing my tail all morning eliminating one thing after another. Then Jax showed up."

"Jax." Johnny has the same disdain that anyone that has ever worked for Sonny or Jason shares. Jerry isn't too bad. After all he'd cut the Jacks loose and thrown in with the Spencers.

"Yeah, he reminded me of something Grandfather threatened to do months ago. Before the take over of Deception even."

"What is that?"

"Give me shares in the company... in ELQ. That way I have to deal with him."

"You could always sell them."

"That wouldn't be fair to AJ and Carly. Besides I'm sure that if Grandfather has decided to go that route he's also schemed a way to make sure that I can't sell the shares. He's still steaming from all the times that strangers have gotten a piece of the company. One of the reasons he's hasn't gone after AJ well... hard the way he did in the past to Ned is because AJ got all the stock out of hostile hands away from Aunt Tracy and Katherine."

"And because he's a afraid of Carly skinning him alive."

"That too." Em agrees.