Chapter 18
Sneaking down the second floor hallway, Luke snorted to himself. He couldn't imagine that he would hear anything of importance from eavesdropping on Lulu and Nik.
He slowed as he turned the corner to Stefan's study. There. That's where they were. With the ease of long practice, he moved quietly toward the door, eyes alert for any sign that his presence had been noted.
Within Stefan's study, Lulu was curled up on the sofa by Nikolas, her head against his shoulder.
"It must have been tough for Lucky when Mommy and Daddy broke up, huh, Nik?" Lulu was asking.
"Yeah." Nikolas answered in a monotone. "It was."
"Worse for you to grow up without Mommy," Lulu added thoughtfully. "But you had Papa and Mrs. Landsbury and Aunt Alexis." Lulu had thought of this many times, but a life without her mother made no more sense to her than life without sunlight. She could not fathom it.
"I was okay," said Nikolas, "most of the time."
"How could you have been okay without your mommy?"
Nikolas tightened his left arm around her shoulder. "It was hard, but I had Father. I loved him more than I can say. I still do. " He went on, "But I always felt badly about ruining Lucky's family. After we came to Port Charles, they were never happy again.
Lulu looked up into his face. "That wasn't your fault, Nikolas. You came to save me. You needed your mom."
He looked away from her, toward the fireplace. "You saw what they were like downstairs. Laughing and talking. That's the way they used to be. They were very happy."
Lulu nodded. "It looked like they were having so much fun." she added wistfully. "But, I'm not sorry that I don't remember that," she continued fiercely. "It doesn't matter. I didn't miss anything. I have you, Papa, Sergei, Mommy, and Grandma Lesley....."
"Don't." Nikolas interrupted. "Don't lie. Not to me. Not to yourself."
Lulu's eyes widened, and her cheeks flushed.
"You looked at them today and wondered what it would've been like. If they'd stayed together, I mean. What fun you might have had. Admit it."
"Maybe. A little..." Lulu said quietly, "but," she continued stoutly, "you can't miss something you never had. I feel sorry for Lucky. I bet it was hard on him, but..."
"Of course you can miss something you never had!" Nikolas added with authority. "Of course you can!" His voice became gentler. " You can also decide to be thankful for what you do have. Not to waste time being bitter about what you might have missed."
He turned and held her by both shoulders. "I don't want you to lie to yourself. I don't want you to waste even one day pretending that you don't wonder what it might have been like if your mom and dad had stayed together. It's okay to wonder about that.
"Pretending makes people angry and bitter. Sometimes they get all twisted up inside - so twisted up that they can't tell what's true from what's not. You can choose to be happy, but you can't make that choice if you're lying to yourself. Do you understand me?" Nikolas stroked her hair.
Lulu stood up on her knees on the sofa and wrapped her arms around her brother. "Yes, I think so. But Nik, this is the way it is for me. You are my beginning. If you hadn't come to Port Charles, I wouldn't have any life to worry about. Lucky might have kept his family, but you wouldn't have found yours. I would have died. Sergei wouldn't ever have been born."
Nikolas buried his face in her hair, so she wouldn't see his tears. It smelled of baby shampoo, of comfort, and home. All the strangeness of the day - Luke and Alexis at the dinner table, the surprise guest whom he was sure meant nothing but more trouble - for a moment, none of it mattered.
"I love you so, Nikolas," she whispered and kissed him.
In the hallway, Luke shoved his hands across his eyes hard, and took a deep breath. His acquaintance with scripture was of the hit and miss variety, but he knew there was a verse about a little child leading them somewhere.
He straightened up, lifted a hand, hesitated with it in midair, then finally knocked on the doorframe. Lulu and Nik looked up. They had been so engrossed in their conversation that neither had been aware that they might have been overheard.
"Excuse me for disturbin' you, but I was just lookin' for ya, Lulu," Luke began awkwardly. He stopped for a moment, like a hurdler eying the distance before his last, most important trial. The antique clock ticking on the far wall seemed to mark eons rather than seconds. He felt the palpable tension emanating from Nikolas, who wiped his face with as much nonchalance as he could muster.
"I overheard a little of what you two said. It occurred to me that I'd never properly thanked you for savin' Lulu's life. Or for bein' such a fine brother to Lucky either, for that matter." Luke put out his hand toward Nikolas.
For a few, long seconds Nikolas looked at the proffered hand in disbelief. Then he extended his own.
Lulu watched the men shake hands, then hurled herself at Luke. "I am the thankfullest girl in the whole world!" she proclaimed.
Luke swung her up into his arms, and pressed her close to him, kissing the side of her head. He looked at Nikolas before he replied in an unusually gentle tone. "You did okay when they handed out brothers."
__ __ __
After Sergei was tucked into bed, Laura gently closed the door to the nursery and made her way down the hall. Turning the corner, she waited for a member of the security staff to head upstairs. On a day like this, Stefan would not permit any of the children to remain unaccompanied for long. He felt that confused comings and goings of guests and the excesses of holiday merriment were an invitation for kidnappers or terrorists. She nodded at the steady young man who passed her on his way to the nursery. Her baby would be in good hands. She could relax.
Stefan was alone in the conservatory. He leaned toward the fire, idly poking it. He tossed the poker back in place with unusual force, straightened up, turned, and saw her at the top of the stairs. His heavy-lidded eyes lit up. His brilliant smile diminished, but could not conceal the tell-tale circles under his eyes, the lines of tension in his face. She saw what a casual observer would almost surely miss. There was something very wrong with her stoic husband.
Her hand trailed down the bannister as she made her slow descent into the room. Once she reached the foot of the stairs, she steeled herself for the confrontation she had delayed too long. "All alone?" she asked.
He answered her question with a grave smile. "Yes. Alexis walked down to the stables. I'm not sure where the others are. She said that Luke is with Nikolas and Lesley Lu. It seems improbable, but...." He shrugged expressively. "I am not sure where they might be."
"I'm sure they're fine." She nodded, then stepped closer. "I promised myself not to do this. But when I came downstairs and saw you ...." Laura began. "I can't wait. Tell me what's wrong."
He cupped her face in one hand. "You know me too well. It terrifies me."
Her eyes searched his. "I can't help it. I'm frightened. You said that woman died of natural causes, but there's more. About that woman's death or maybe something else. Please tell me."
He took his hand away from her face and turned back toward the fire. "I am keeping a secret. One which is not mine to divulge."
"A secret that concerns us, our family?" she asked.
"Yes." He turned around, and tears glinted in his eyes.
Butterflies danced in her stomach. The room shifted off its moorings and the floor swayed beneath her feet. She gasped and stepped backwards, away from her husband. This was clearly worse than anything she had expected.
The bright blue eyes gleamed against her ashen face. Her voice trembled. "Will you stay with me?"
"Yes. Of course."
"Will things between us change, because of this secret?" The painful uncertainty in her voice shredded his composure.
"No! Fate could not be that cruel!" He pulled her toward him. "Nothing could change the way I feel about you!" He wrapped his arms around her, and kissed the nape of her neck. "Never doubt that."
When Luke, Lulu, and Nikolas came downstairs they found them there, entwined in each other's arms, oblivious to anyone else.
__ __ __
Fortunately, before anyone could become embarrassed, Lucky and Liz flew in the doorway, flushed from racing each other across the island.
"It's time for "Miracle on 34th Street!" Liz said. "It's a must do on Thanksgiving. We're on our way to Gram's to watch it, and wondered if we could take Lulu."
Lulu's eyes widened.
"It's fine with me," Laura said.
"I need to talk with father privately," Nikolas encouraged her. "Why don't you go with them?"
"Alexis and I are about to take off, so go ahead." Luke grinned at Lulu.
"Are you meeting us later, Nik? asked Lucky.
"Yeah, I'll call you in about an hour, and we'll decide where and when."
"Okay, then. We're set." Lucky turned to his mother. "Mom, Stefan, thanks for the great dinner. We'll call tomorrow."
"Good. We'll come pick Lulu up later ourselves. Wenders has the night off."
Stefan added, "They are lighting the town Christmas Tree in the square at 8:00. Lesley Lu, your mother and I will pick you up at Mrs. Hardy's house and take you to see the festivities, if that would please you."
"Yes! Thank you so much!" Lulu hugged Stefan and Laura before scampering out the door with Liz and Lucky.
Laura returned from seeing them out and said, "Stefan, why don't you and Nikolas talk here? I'll just pick up a shawl. Luke and I'll go out in the rose garden. We need to have a private word also."
Luke rolled his eyes heavenward and wondered idly where Stu had gotten off to. There was no escaping Laura now. She had been superficially charming all afternoon, but one disadvantage of a long marriage was the ability to see when the other person's irritation had escalated from slow simmer to a furious, rolling boil. He was about to get scorched and knew it. He followed Laura outside reluctantly. Knowing that he deserved the tongue-lashing he expected didn't make anticipation of the pain any more pleasant.
__ __ __
As soon as the door closed behind Luke and Laura, Nikolas began. "I had hoped that you would bring this affair out into the open, but I can't wait any longer to address this issue. What are you and Luke doing to Mother?"
Stefan's brows drew down into a puzzled 'V' shape. He crossed his arms over his chest and rocked back on his heels. "This has been a most exhausting holiday. You aren't the first to feel compelled to unburden yourself to me. However, in your case, I find myself both bewildered and insulted. Under what circumstances can you imagine that Luke and I would work together against your mother? The very idea is ludicrous."
Nikolas's dark eyes flashed with anger. "You let Luke bring his so-called guest here today. What could be the point of that?"
"I believe that Luke still thinks that we are in someway responsible for the death of the gentleman's wife. He probably enjoyed the idea of unsettling me on a holiday."
"How could Luke be that oblivious to the obvious?" Nikolas snarled.
"What is obvious? Last time you were home you made some vague accusations and stormed out. Perhaps," Stefan continued coldly, "You might be more direct. I too, am tired of waiting. Tired of waiting for you to come to the point. What are you talking about?"
"Luke's guest. Mother's father. My grandfather. Why did you find him? He never wanted us before. Why now?"
Stefan's eyes narrowed. "How did you come to this conclusion?" He looked around the room cautiously before moving closer to Nik, and laying a hand on his arm. Son, speak quietly. How did you find out?"
__ __ __
Outside in the garden, Luke brushed some debris from a stone bench before sitting down. "I might as well make myself as comfortable as possible," he said.
"How could you bring that man here today? You heard Helena threaten me. "
"You've never let her dictate your life before," Luke answered lazily. He looked at her through half-closed eyes.
Laura paced up and down the path in front of her ex-husband. "How much do you know about him?" she asked. "What's in it for you?"
He shrugged innocently.
"I know you. You had a reason for bringing him here today."
"His wife died recently. I thought that he might like a home-cooked meal."
"His wife died?" Laura stopped pacing. "That's terrible, but..."
"In Cambridge," Luke continued. "Sudden death. Just fell over at a party."
Laura's eyes narrowed. "Oh, my God. This is the family.... You're trying to convince this man that Stefan killed his wife?"
Luke squinted into the reddened sun. The day was beginning to die. "Actually, Stu's convinced that the death was natural, but I've never trusted Stefan. Never will," he added icily. "It amused me to watch your beloved squirm today. I know him well enough to know that he's up to somethin.' I just don't know what. That's all."
"Luke, you've taken a terrible risk for no good reason. Helena hates me. She specifically told me not to get involved with this man. You know how lethal she is. We're too old to play dangerous games for no reason."
"Yeah." He scratched his upper lip thoughtfully. "I guess I should ask him some questions. See what he's really up to here. I don't get her interest in him myself."
Laura added "Could this Stu be working for Helena? It's unusual for a man of his age to make friends with a little girl like Lulu. Could he be part of some scheme to hurt her or get to us through her?"
"Perhaps," a quiet voice answered from beyond the hedge, "your questions should be directed to me."
Stu and Lesley walked through the open gate and faced Laura.
 |
 |
Cathy's
Stories