Nikolas nodded. He went to make the call, and Lucky continued to read the file. He wanted to know what he could about the
guy, before he showed up. He half listened to Nikolas' conversation with the compound as he read. "This is Nikolas Cassadine.
I'm calling on behalf of my grandmother...Something has occurred and Alexander must be sent to Port Charles, New York,
immediately...I'm not joking...Do you have any idea who I am?...I shouldn't have to tell you my name more than once!
Grandmother will hear of this! I'm Nikolas Cassadine, as in the heir...That's more like it...Yes...Yes, my men and I will meet
them at the airport, and then the men with him can return to the compound... Yes, that's all...Goodbye."

"Impressive," Lucky said, still reading. "I can't believe this," he said a few seconds later, tossing the papers onto the desk.

"What?" Nikolas asked.

"She treated him like a prince. I thought that she'd torture him or something."

Nikolas walked over and looked at the papers. As he read, he had a strange feeling of deja-vu. It hit him. Alexander's
day-to-day life was very similar to what his had been like when Helena was in charge. "She was grooming him," he said softly.

"Huh?" Lucky said.

"She was grooming him. In case she couldn't get control of me, she'd use him. She's always known that Alexis is Natasha She
also knew that there was a good chance that she wouldn't get to me. She trained him to be the heir, an heir that she could
control. She still tried for me, because it's not easy to displace an obviously legitimate heir." Nikolas the got worried. "Who
knows what he's going to be like. I mean, he might actually like Helena."

"Oh great," Lucky said sarcastically. "Just what we need. A male Helena."

"Well, he's on his way. I guess we'll just have to find out what he's like when he gets here. In the meantime, I need to get some
"men" to go with me to pick him up. Maybe we should go tell Mother and Luke what's going on."

They headed for the hospital and explained what was going on. Luke called Jason, and got a few men 'on loan'. "He said to
send them back in one piece this time," Luke said. "He sounded a little down. I wonder what's up."

Ned had just entered the room. "He had a rough day. How is she?"

"The same,' Luke said. "But the boys have good news. Alec is on his way. They're going to meet the plane late tonight." Ned
nodded and went back to sit by Alexis' bed. Maybe her son could reach her. The Spencer's and Nikolas quietly left the room.

Laura turned to the boys. "I talked to Audrey a little while ago. She's going to go with Sarah to a special hospital, and will be
gone several weeks. Elizabeth can't go, so she'll be staying with us for a while."

"We need to find a place for Alec to stay too," Lucky said. "You know what. Nik and I'll go out to the cabin and clean it up
before we go to the airport. That way, the three of us can stay out there. Besides he might open up quicker without adults
around." Luke and Laura looked at each other. They weren't thrilled about the Cabin, because of what had happened there, but
they felt secure now that Helena was gone. Laura nodded.

Lucky and Nikolas went to the cabin. The police had done a good job of cleaning the place up. They didn't have to do much.
They went to the airport and got Alec. He was stiff and incredibly quiet. Nikolas sent his guards back to the compound on the
next plane out and then Jason's men dropped them off at the cabin. They explained the situation to Alec, and they had never
seen a person more relived then he was. He was ecstatic that Helena was dead. Something that surprised him was that his
mother was still alive. He had always been told that she was dead. They explained everything that Helena had done.

Weeks passed. Lucky, Lizzie, Nikolas, Emily and Alec spent a lot of time together, and they found that they all got along
wonderfully. Alec spent a lot of time at the hospital with his mother. He got to know Ned really well, and through him and
Nikolas, learned a lot about his mother. He had never waned anything as much as he wanted her to wake up.

Sonny was remaining in Port Charles for an undeclared amount of time. He and Brenda never saw each other, and he kept a
low profile. Sarah's condition didn't change and Audrey stayed with her, so Elizabeth continued on at the Spencer's and the
guys stayed at the cabin. The DNA test's had come back proving that AJ was Michael's father and the trial was coming up
soon. Carly had a hearing coming up, and Bobbie was still supporting her. Emily spent as much time away from her family as
she possibly could. They were driving her crazy, she said often. Emily was still angry at Jason for lying to her and she couldn't
help but side with AJ. The Q's were driving AJ crazy too and he ended up moving out of the mansion and into an apartment. He
prepared carefully for when Michael would join him. That brings us up to the day of the arraignment trial of one Mr. Murty.

Chapter 51

The five of them were out at the cabin enjoying the sun. It was a beautiful day. Lizzie was a little on edge, but everyone knew
why, so no one mentioned it. At around one o'clock, Lizzie got up. "V said that she'd call around now with news about the
trial." Everyone nodded.

Lucky got up to go with her, knowing that she needed him to be there. She smiled at him gratefully. They walked slowly to the
cabin, holding hands. They had just entered the cabin when the phone rang. "Perfect timing," Lucky said.

Lizzie answered the phone. "Hello?...Hi V...WHAT!?" Lucky looked at Elizabeth in surprise. "How could they?...Why?...I
don't believe this," Lizzie said, tears starting to stream down her face. "You have so much on him...I don't understand...No...I...I
don't know. V, I could finally sleep again."

Lucky's heart broke at that simple statement. They couldn't really have let him out could they? Lizzie hung up the phone. She
was crying in earnest now. Lucky pulled her into his arms. "What happened? What did she say?"

"They had to let him go," Lizzie said, her terror clear. "They made some sort of mistake. They had to let him out on some
technicality. How can that be Lucky? How can they let him go? He was caught. It's supposed to be over. Why can't it ever be
over?"

Lucky felt rage overtake him. The monster that had hurt her was back on the streets with nothing to worry about. He couldn't
believe it. He deserved to be in jail. He**, he deserved to be dead, if Lucky was perfectly honest with himself. Lizzie could feel
the tightening of Lucky's muscles and backed away to look at him. "Lucky," she said slowly. She could see the anger and hatred
in his eyes.

"I have to, Liz," Lucky said calmly. "I have to."

"Lucky don't. It won't help anyone. I need you to be with me, not in jail. Lucky please."

Lucky shook his head. "I have to, Liz," he said grabbing his keys and heading for the door.

"Lucky, don't do anything you'll regret." He kept going. "LUCKY!"

He turned in the doorway and faced her, "It'll be alright, Liz," he said. He ran out to his car. It was time for the b*****d that
had hurt his Liz to pay for what he had done. He heard Liz shouting after him to stop, and Nikolas yelling his name, but he didn't
stop. He couldn't let Elizabeth's attacker continue to go unpunished.

Nikolas called Lucky's name as he jumped in his car. He heard Lizzie yelling as well. Lucky pealed out of the driveway and was
gone. Nikolas ran over to the cabin where Lizzie was standing on the porch with tears streaming down her face. "Liz, what is
it?" he said. "What happened?"

"They let him go, Nikolas," Lizzie said. "They let him walk out of jail as if he had never done anything wrong. He just got to
leave."

"What?" Nikolas said shocked. "Wait, where's Lucky going?"

"I don't know," Lizzie said. "But I think that he's going to kill him."

"What?"

"Go after him, Nikolas," Emily said. She had come over right after him. She put her arms around Lizzie who was obviously in
shock. "I'll take care of her. Go get Lucky before he does something that can't be taken back."

Nikolas nodded and jumped into his own car. He hoped that he would be able to get there in time. Alec and Emily led Lizzie
into the house and tried to help her in any way that they could.

Lucky drove straight to Mr. Murty's house. He ran up the stairs and burst into the house. Murty was sitting in his living room,
relaxing. He was out of jail and he was enjoying being away from a cell. He wasn't prepared for anyone to be coming after him.
He looked up in shock as Lucky burst into his house.

"Lucky," he said. "What can I do for you?"

"I'm not here for a visit, Mr Murty," Lucky said simply. "I'm here to kill you."

"You should leave, or I'll be forced to call the police," Murty said. "Go ahead," Lucky said. "But do you honestly believe that I
would stay in jail, when they let you out? I don't think so. They might even make mistakes on purpose as thanks for taking such
scum off the streets. Yeah, that's what I think." Lucky was tired of talking. He flew at Murty. Murty was surprised at the fury of
his attack, which gave Lucky the upper hand in the fight. He could do little more than defend himself. Lucky's fury made it
impossible to mount his own attack.

The whole time that they were fighting, Lucky was thinking about his conversation with Lizzie. She had begged him not to do
this. He had said that he would always listen to her. His attack slowed. He had promised to let her make decisions for herself. If
she didn't want him to do this, then he couldn't do it in her name, so he shouldn't be doing it. He put in one last good punch, and
then stopped, pushing Murty away from him, onto the floor. "You know what?" he said. "You're not worth it. You're beneath
contempt, and there's no way that I'm lowering myself to your level, even to get rid of you." He turned and left. His anger still
burned, but there was no way that he was going to betray Liz, even to kill the man that had hurt her. She needed him more than
he needed to kill Murty.

Nikolas drove up just as Lucky drove off. He ran up to the house worried at what he'd find. He burst into the house and found
a bruised and bloody Murty, but a live one. He breathed a sigh of relief. Lucky hadn't killed him. Murty had just gotten to his
feet. "Nikolas!" he said. "What are you doing here?"

"This," Nikolas said, punching him in the face, knocking him to the ground again. "That's for Lizzie, and Emily. You had better
stay away from them, and Lucky, or I'll make your life hell. I'm a Cassadine, I can do that. In fact, we excel at it. If you know
what's good for you, you won't report this." Nikolas turned and left the house. He still had to find Lucky.

Nikolas caught up to Lucky when he stopped at the docks, to think. He walked over to where Lucky was standing, staring at
the water. "You really scared Lizzie, you know," he said quietly.

"I know," Lucky said, still staring at the water. "I realized that in the middle of the fight. I also realized that I had no right to do
anything if she didn't want me to. I just want so badly for him to be dead."

"It can be arranged, you know. You don't have to do it yourself," Nikolas said. Lucky looked up at him in surprise. Nikolas
shrugged. "It was just an idea." Lucky shook his head and they walked to their cars. They headed back to the cabin.

About halfway to the cabin, Nikolas was surprised to see Lucky pull over to the side of the road. He pulled in behind him and
ran over to Lucky's car. He found him leaning his head against the steering wheel. "What is it?" he asked.

Lucky reached over and turned up the police scanner that sat on his dashboard. "I repeat, the victim is one John Murty. DOA.
No suspects. Investigation in progress. Out."

"Oh, god!" Nikolas said.

"I didn't kill him, Nikolas," Lucky said desperately.

"I know," Nikolas said. "I saw him right after you left. He was still alive."

"They're going to think that I did it," Lucky said.

"No," Nikolas said.

"Yes they will," Lucky said. "I have to get out of here. I can't go to jail Nikolas. I can't."

"Look, let's just get back to the cabin and we can talk about this." Lucky nodded.

Nikolas went back to his car and they drove the rest of the way to the cabin. They went in. Lizzie, Emily and Alec could tell
immediately that something was wrong. "What is it?" Lizzie said.

"Murty's dead," Lucky said. Liz's knees buckled and she dropped to the couch. "I didn't kill him, Lizzie," Lucky said. "I swear.
When I left he was beat up, but he was breathing. I promise you."

"I saw him leave, and I went in after him. Murty was alive."

Lizzie let out a sigh of relief. "I'm sorry, Lizzie," Lucky said. "I shouldn't have gone after him like that."

"It's okay, Lucky," Lizzie said. "You didn't kill him, and you're here. That's what matters."

"But if you didn't do anything, then why do you look so worried?" Alec asked.

"Because, they're going to think that I did it," Lucky said. "I'm thinking that I should leave town for a while."

"Where would you go?" Lizzie said.

"I helped my cousin disappear a while back. I'm the only one that knows where he is. I'll go visit him. I can't stay here and get
locked up, Liz. I just can't do it."

"And I can't stay here without you," Lizzie said. "If you go, I'm going."

"So am I," Nikolas said.

"Me too," Emily said.

"As will I," said Alec.

"Okay," Lucky said. The first order of business was for Nikolas to go into town and withdraw money from his account. He
returned to the cabin and they were just about ready to leave when the phone rang. Lizzie answered it.
"Hello?...Really?...Yes...Yes, I'll tell him. Yeah, see you soon. Bye." She turned to Alec. "I'm afraid that you can't come with us
Alec," she said. "Alexis is awake. It's time that she saw her son, don't you think?

Chapter 52


They had sent Alec to the hospital and then headed out. They stopped at a pay phone and Lucky hurriedly called his cousin. He
told him that they were on their way and that they should be there in the early morning. Sly was happy to hear from his cousin,
though he could sense that something was wrong. He said that everyone was welcome, the more the merrier. Lucky got back in
the car and they headed out. He told them about how Sly had gotten into some trouble with the mob, and how Lucky had
helped him to disappear. "Maine's a good state to disappear in," he said. "Especially for us. We have no known ties there. It's
perfect." The rest of them nodded. They changed cars numerous times, and then headed out of New York. They got into Maine
at about one o'clock in the morning and got to the area near where Sly was living at about five am. The girls had slept most of
the way, but woke up when they got close to their destination.

Before long they were lost. They had been driving around in the fog for an hour. They had passed the same places two or three
time, but the funny thing is that they hadn't made any turns. They had just stayed on the main road. Lucky had just gotten off the
phone with Sly and had told him some of the buildings that they had passed. He knew where one of them was so he had told
them to turn around and go wait there. They had turned around and were going by a place where the road was incredibly close
to the water. The fog was thick so they didn't see the deer until it jumped out into the road. Where it thought it was going none
of them knew, but Lucky's automatic reaction was to swerve to avoid hitting it. The car hit the guardrail, which gave way,
sending the car into the water.

Lizzie fought her way to the surface. She gasped for air, relieved that she had made it. She looked around for the others in the
dark. She saw Nikolas with Emily, who was having trouble staying above water, but she couldn't see Lucky anywhere.
"Lucky!" She cried, treading water. "Lucky! Where are you?" Nikolas helped Emily to shore as Lizzie began diving in a
desperate search for Lucky. Nikolas returned to the water, and started to help her. He noticed that she was having a harder and
harder time reaching the surface each time. "Lizzie, you have to go to shore!"

"NO!" Lizzie cried. She hollered for Lucky again. "LUCKY! LUCKY! Where is he? Nikolas, I can't find him. I can't find him.
LUCKY!" Nikolas pulled Elizabeth to shore, though she was desperate to continue looking for Lucky." HELP ME NIKOLAS.
I CAN'T FIND HIM!"

How do I get through the night without you
If I had to live without you
What kinda life would that be
Oh I need you in my arms, need you to hold
You are my world, my heart, my soul

Nikolas pulled her up on the beach but she fought against him, trying once more to go into the water after Lucky. Nikolas
managed to hold her back, and she looked at him accusingly and said, "HELP ME, please Nikolas! Help me, help me find him,
please. Please." She begged him, unable to believe that Lucky was gone and that Nikolas was doing nothing. "HELP ME,
NIKOLAS! I can't, I can't find him, Nikolas. Please. I need him, I need him so much! WHY WON'T YOU HELP ME!"
Elizabeth collapsed, her entire body shaking as sobs tore through her. Nikolas looked at her helpless. He wished that there was
something that he could do. Some way to explain to her that if Lucky had survived they would have found him by then. Some
way to show her that this was hurting him as much as it was hurting her. That he would give anything, anything to get Lucky
back, but it was impossible. Lucky was gone.

If you ever leave
baby you would take away
everything good in my life
and tell me now

Elizabeth gazed up at Nikolas, a glazed, terrified look in her eyes. She looked pitiful, soaked to the bone, her hair hanging in
strings around her face. "He can't be gone," She said in disbelief. "You just didn't look carefully enough. We have to keep
looking. Please," she begged. Nikolas couldn't resist. As long as there was a chance...

"Okay," Nikolas said. "I'll go look again, but you have to promise me that you'll stay here with Emily."

Liz nodded and then watched as Nikolas went back to the water and swam out to where the boat had sank, to make one last,
desperate search for his brother.

How do I live without you?
I want to know
How do I breathe without you?
If you ever go
How do I ever, ever survive
How do I, how do I, oh how do I live

Sly continued down the road when they don't meet him and was horrified to see the broken guardrail, where there had
obviously been an accident. He found Elizabeth and Emily on the beach. He only knew that Lucky was coming with friends.
"Where's Lucky?" he asked Emily.

Elizabeth looked up at him and he was shocked at the horrified look in her eyes, "Nikolas is looking for him," She said in a dead
voice.

Sly looked in horror to the water. That didn't sound like what he had wanted to hear. "Whose Nikolas? What happened?"

"A deer, the fog, we went off the road, into the water. We couldn't find him, I couldn't find him." Elizabeth broke down into
sobs again.

Sly headed to the water. He had to go help look for the cousin that has been like a brother to him. Brother, that was when it hit
him. The girl had said Nikolas. That must be Nikolas Cassadine, Lucky's half brother. He could remember Lucky mentioning
him once or twice, never in favorable terms. Sly couldn't help but wonder what he was doing there. He swam out and helped
the other boy search for Lucky.

"They're coming back," Emily said. She and Lizzie watched as the two boys exited the water empty handed. Their faces spoke
volumes and the truth was clear. Lucky was gone. Emily felt a horrible pain in her chest and her tears began to fall. She turned
to look at Elizabeth. Her own pain didn't prepare her for the look of anguish on Elizabeth's face. It was a look of pain so raw
and excruciating that Emily felt her own pain double at the sight of it.

Without you
There would be no sun in my sky
there would be no love in my life
there'd be no world left for me

And I, baby, I don't know what I would do
I'd be lost if I lost you

Elizabeth couldn't believe that they were giving up, that he was gone. She couldn't think she couldn't speak. She couldn't accept
this, he couldn't be gone. She felt a crushing pain and let out a cry of denial that came from her very soul. "NOOOOO!! YOU
CAN'T GIVE UP! YOU HAVE TO FIND HIM, YOU HAVE TO." She got up and raced towards the water determined to
look for him herself. Nikolas caught her before she could even get close to the water and held her close against his chest.

"We did all we could. He's not out there. We did all we could."

If you ever leave
baby you would take away
everything real in my life
and tell me

"NO!" Elizabeth shouted. "You didn't. He's not dead. He's NOT DEAD! I have to go look for him, Nikolas. Don't you
understand, I HAVE TO."

"No, Lizzie, I won't let you."

"Nikolas, LET ME GO!!!"

"No, I refuse to let you. If you go back out there you'll die!"

"WHAT DOES THAT MATTER!?"

How do I live without you
I want to know
How do I breathe without you
If you ever go
How do I ever, ever survive
How do I, how do I, oh how do I live

Please tell me baby how do I go on

Nikolas looked at her in shock. "What are you talking about Liz? Your going to give up on life? You can't do that. The last thing
that Lucky would want would be for you to give up," Nikolas said, worried about her state of mind.

"Nothing matters if he isn't alive, Don't you understand? NOTHING matters if he's not with me. NOTHING! If he's dead, then
I may as well be too."

"Don't say that Liz. EVER! The last thing in the world that Lucky would want would be for you to give up on life because of
him. He loved life, and he loved you too much."

If you ever leave
baby you would take away everything
need you with me
baby don't you know that you are
everything good in my life

"See, you're already speaking about him in the past tense. I can't..." Her voice breaks. She starts over. "I can't do this. I can't
see how I can go on, without Lucky in my life."

"You can Liz, believe me. I'm not going to lie, it'll be hard and it'll hurt like hell, but your life was too important to Lucky for you
to throw it away. It would be an insult to his life and his death for you to give up. He would never give up. He would go on,
never the same, but determined to make your life mean something. Can you do the same for him?"

And tell me now
How do I live without you
I want to know
How do I breathe without you
if you ever go
how do I ever, ever survive
how do I, how do I, oh how do I live

How do I live without you?
How do I live without you, baby?
How do I live without you?

"I can't Nikolas," Lizzie said her legs giving way. "I can't. I can't." She dissolved into sobs, unable to believe that Lucky was
gone. Her savior, her love, her life. All gone. Gone to the bottom of the ocean. Gone, just as Lucky was gone.

Chapter 53
 
 

*PORT CHARLES*

Alec walked slowly into the hospital, not really sure of how to handle this situation. He had been looking forward to this moment
for a long time and now that it was here, he was afraid of what was going to happen.

Luke and Laura arrived at the same time as Alec. Ned had called them all as soon as Alexis had woken up. He hadn't told her
that Alec was there, but he had told her that Helena was dead. He knew that Alec wanted to tell her himself. Laura put her hand
on Alec's shoulder reassuringly as they walked towards Alexis' room. "She's waited for this moment for a long time, too," she
said. "She loves you and has always wanted to be with you more than anything in the world." Alec nodded. He knew that. He
was just so unsure about how she'd react to him.

As they got to the door they heard Alexis' voice inside. "You called Luke and Laura right?" She asked. "Even though Helena's
dead, there's a lot that I need to tell them."

"You can tell us later," Laura said from the doorway. "First there's someone who wants to meet you."

"Laura!" Alexis exclaimed. "What do you mean that there's..." Her voice trailed off as Alec slowly entered the room.

"Hi Mom," Alec said. "I'm glad that you're finally awake."

The word Mom crossing this young mans lips was a sound that Alexis had never thought that she would hear. His face was one
that she had given up hope of ever seeing. "Alec!" She said, her voice breaking, tears streaming down her cheeks. She held her
arms out to him, wanting nothing more than to hold her baby in her arms once again. Alec moved quickly to her bed, a sob
catching in his throat. He too had longed for this moment. They held onto each other for a long time, no one saying anything.

"How?" She said finally, looking over Alec's head first at Ned, and then at Luke and Laura. "How did you find him?"

"We didn't," Luke said. "Nikolas and Lucky found him, the day after Helena died. We'll tell you the whole story sometime, but
for the moment, I think that it's important that you and Alec get to know each other."

Ned got up and Luke and Laura turned to leave the room. "Wait," Alexis said. "Where is Nikolas?"

Laura turned to face her old friend, surprised at the concern in her voice. "He's with Lucky, Liz and Emily," she said. "Why?
Why are you still worried about him? Helena's dead."

"Laura," Alexis said slowly. "Things aren't always quite what they seem. Yes Helena is dead, but the truth is, that her child that
was most like her, still lives."

"What do you mean?" Laura said. "Not Stefan?"

Alexis nodded, "He hid his true nature better than Helena did. I trusted him all of my life. She knew though. He was so like her.
That's why she hated him so much, not because he was weak, but because she couldn't control him like she could control
Stavros. The worst thing about his is his ability to make people trust him. To make them believe that he is a good and kind man.
That is his most powerful weapon. His ability to make people believe in him, as I did for many years."

"How did you come to the conclusion that he wasn't all that he seemed?" Luke asked, amazed that he had been right about the
bat.

"I heard him plan something, something so horrible that I couldn't even imagine that he was the same man that I had grown up
with."

"What?" Laura asked.

"The murder of *my* son if his men ever managed to find him. This man that I had loved like a brother all my life was willing to
kill *my* son. He knew that I was Natasha, and that my son posed a threat to the inheritance. I...He could have done any
number of other thing in order to secure the lines of inheritance, but he only saw one way. Helena's way is control, Stefan's is
death. The only reason that he kept Helena alive was the result of some twisted loyalty to the woman that had given birth to him.
After I heard him plot against my son I did some research and so many things fell into place."

"Like what?" Laura asked.

"Stavros death for one," Alexis said. Luke and Laura looked at her in surprise. "I know it's generally thought that Stavros died
as the result of his injuries from his plunge down the stairs. The truth is that Stefan hired someone to kill his dear brother in
hopes that with Stavros dead you'd return to the island to be with him. The plan obviously didn't work. There are so many other
things though Laura. So many. I just knew that I had to get out of there. I just knew. That's why I set Katherine up to be
Natasha. It was an attempt to be banished from the family. I knew that he'd figure it out, and that he'd banish me for it. I was
more sure that he would let me live that way. He respects things like that. If I had known though Laura, I never would have left
Nikolas there alone. I promise."

"If you had known what?" Laura asked, scared at what the answer might be.

"If I had known that Stefan would try to kill Nikolas I never would have left. I thought that he wanted to secure Nikolas'
inheritance, not kill off all his competition for it. If I had known, I would have told you and Luke the story I'm about to tell you a
long time ago."

"Why would Stefan want to kill Nikolas?" Laura said in a shocked voice.

"Power. He wants control of the family, but more than that he wants to get back at you. He loves you, but his love for you is
mixed with a hatred for you which is just as strong. He projected that hatred onto Nikolas. It's because of the fact that the love
was also there that you never realized that much of the intensity of Stefan's feelings for Nikolas was hatred instead of love. He
would have killed him long ago, but he knew that you could get Luke to avenge a dead Cassadine son, even if you couldn't get
him to accept a live one."

Luke rubbed his eyes. "What story were you talking about?" Luke asked. "When did Stefan try to have Nikolas killed?"

"I always had a bad feeling about that shooting outside your club. The way that Stefan was so upset that I had okayed the
surgery, even as it was allowing the doctors to save his life. It was as if he didn't want Nikolas to be alright. I investigated on my
own. I talked to Jason. He said that his men investigated it and found that though it had been set up to look like a hit on him, he
wasn't the real target. Nikolas was. When I learned that Luke had helped to save his life, I realized that the secrets that I had
been holding onto for so long should have been revealed long ago. I realized that Luke should have known that the life he was
saving, was the life of his son, not his enemy."

Luke sat down hard in the nearest chair, unable to believe his ears. Nikolas, his? He couldn't believe it. His son. He had treated
*his* son, his own flesh and blood like the enemy. How could that be? "How, how could you know this, and why didn't you
ever tell us?"

"I changed the results. They always said that Stavros was the father of your children. No one knew who his real father was
except for me. I couldn't let her kill your children. After you left the island it was impossible to tell you. I didn't want Nikolas to
be killed, and I didn't want to die. There is more. I don't know how to say this Laura, but Nadia...Nadia is still alive."

Laura felt faint. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Nadia...How? How? I don't understand."

"Helena was testing my loyalty to the family. She knew that we had gotten close. She decided that I needed to be reminded of
my place. I was prepared though. We were all pretty sure that you were going to have twins. I knew how Helena thought. I
knew that one of those babies would be killed at birth. I had some friends off the island. I told them what was going on, in the
strictest of confidences. We were determined to do everything we could to save the life of such a small baby. The night that you
gave birth, I called them. I know that this is really awful to say, but lucky for Nadia, a baby girl had been stillborn that same
night. We were desperate, so they stole the body from the morgue and brought it to the island. You're lucky that she didn't
decide to have her killed in front of you. That would have ruined everything. Some of the servants helped and when Helena sent
me out with her we managed to make the switch. I arranged for a family that I trusted to adopt her, and I've kept a close watch
over her since. I didn't know how to tell you about her without signing her death warrant along with yours and mine. Any
contact and Helena would have known. I didn't want to risk that. I told her all about you and your family the few times that I
saw her. She grew up knowing the entire story of her birth and of her supposed death. I sent her pictures of Nikolas, Lucky,
Lulu and you and Luke. She does know about you."

"Where is she? I want to see her." Laura said, unable to believe that this was actually happening.

"I promised never to reveal where they lived for safety purposes and I'm going to hold to that, but she can be on her way here in
a few hours. I just need the phone." Ned handed her the phone and she was soon talking to someone. Luke was still in shock.

"The boys!" he said. "We have to tell them about this." He turned to Alec. "Were they going back to the cabin after they
dropped you off."

"I think so," Alec said, looking a little guilty.

"They didn't," a voice said from the door. They turned to see Detective Taggert standing in the doorway. "You wouldn't happen
to know where they would go would you?"

"Why do you ask?" Luke said, in a slightly threatening manner.

Taggert wasn't too happy about this himself though so he let it pass. "We have to question Lucky," he said slowly. "Regarding
the murder of one John Murty." Everyone in the room except for Alec jumped in surprise.

"Why Lucky?" Laura asked.

"Because he had motive, means, and his fingerprints are all over the house," Taggert said in a pained voice. "He's our number
one suspect."

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