~*~Chapter 77~*~

Elizabeth waits anxiously on the beach, staring up at the house. V watches her pace, knowing that she’s worried about Lucky being inside.

“Do you think they’re okay?” Liz asks nervously.

“I’m sure they’re fine. They know how to take care of themselves.”

Liz sighs and stops pacing. “You’re right, I have no reason to be worried. Any minute now, they’re going to walk out of that house, right?”

V looks up at the house and chuckles. “You’re good, you know that?”

“Why?” Liz asks, turning to look at the house to see Lucky and Laura walking towards them. She smiles, relieved, and walks towards them. “Did you find everything?”

“Right here,” Laura says, holding out the letters. On the top is the envelope that holds her wedding ring. Liz opens it and pulls it out by the chain.

“Why is it on a chain?” Lucky asks, confused.

“When I thought you were dead, I wore it around my neck to feel closer to you,” she explains, sliding the ring off of the chain and placing it back on her finger. “But, once I knew you weren’t, I got nervous about wearing it. I didn’t want Helena to see it by accident and get angry, so I put it back in the envelope to keep it safe.”

Lucky nods, touched that she would take the risk of wearing it, even if it was just around her neck. “We saw your murals in the baby’s room. I’m surprised Helena let you do that.”

“Well, I think she figured it would keep me out of trouble. I didn’t know how long I would be here, and I wanted my baby - our baby - to know what Port Charles looked like. Plus, it made me feel like I wasn’t quite so far away.”

“Well, they’re beautiful. I just can’t believe you were able to do them so detailed from memory like that!” Laura says as they start down the beach, heading for the boat.

Liz chuckles. “Frankly, I’m not sure how I did them either. I guess I was inspired. I missed Port Charles so much. This island may be paradise for some, but it was nothing more than a prison for me.”

~*~

Luke and Sergei are on the boat’s deck, sitting across from one another, studying each other in silence. Neither knows what to say, so they just stare.

Luke knows that the man in front of him is his son, but can’t get past the fact that he was raised by Helena Cassidine. He may be a Spencer by blood, but he’s still a Cassidine by breeding. Sergei is having a similar war with himself. While he knows Luke is his real father, he still has 20 years of Cassidine upbringing fighting him. All his life, he was taught that Luke Spencer was the enemy, that he was evil. He glances at his watch nervously, then looks at the island, watching the beach.

“You really do care about her, don’t you?” Luke asks softly, not sure why he is saying it.

Sergei looks at him in surprise. “Yes, I do. But I also know that she belongs with Lucky, so you don’t have to worry.”

Luke nods. “That’s quite noble of you, but don’t be surprised if he doesn’t warm up to you right away. No matter what your intentions are now, the fact remains that you slept with Liz. It will take a while for him to get past that. Trust me, I’ve been there.”

Sergei nods. “Stefan?”

“I see Helena’s been giving you history lessons. I’m sure her version was a little warped, but the basic facts probably didn’t change. Now, Count Vlad and I were never buddies, but I did manage to get past it with Laura.”

“Count Vlad?”

“That was my pet name for Stuffy....Stefan.”

Sergei smiles and shakes his head. The man was definitely a character! But, so far he seemed pretty harmless. “Well, I hope he’s able to forgive her like you did, because he was all she ever thought about. Even when she thought he was dead, she would stand out on the beach and talk to him. She would take Mikkos out there and talk about him nearly every day. I thought it was strange before, but now that I know he’s Lucky’s son, it makes sense.”

“Hm,“ Luke grunts. “No offense, but we’re going to have to change that kid’s name, pronto.”

Sergei nods, smiling. “I thought you might.”

~*~

After trudging along the beach in silence, the boat finally comes into view and they pick up their pace. “Almost there,” Laura says, out of breath from the long hike. They quickly climb aboard and find Luke and Sergei on the deck. The two men look up at the noise, but smile with relief when they see everyone has made it back safely. Lucky frowns and ducks down into the sleeping quarters.

“Should I leave him alone?” Liz asks Laura softly, not sure how to handle this.

“Do whatever you think is best,” she answers.

Liz sighs, looking wistfully at the door. Finally, she takes a deep breath and opens it. Everyone watches quietly as she heads down, letting the door close behind her.

“Well, how long do you think it will be before the cowboy forgives her?” Luke asks, sitting back in his chair.

“If he’s anything like you, and we all know he is, it may be a while,” Laura says,, dropping herself into the chair next to him.

“Nah, he’s not as bad as his old man. He doesn’t hold grudges like I do. I have a feeling things will be as good as new between them by the time we land in Port Chucky.”

“I have to agree with Luke,” V adds, leaning against the railing. “Lucky missed her way too much to turn his back on her now. Anyway, it’s not like he was a perfect saint while she was gone, either.”

“What do you mean?” Laura asks, unaware of what happened with Kimber.

“Remember the day Emily’s baby was born, you called me to find him, because he ran out of the hospital? Well, I eventually ended up at his house, and round him in his bedroom with Kimber. Now, there wasn’t anything going on, at least, not yet, but I have a feeling if I hadn’t shown up when I did and thrown her out....”

“Wow,” Luke says, shocked by the news. “He must have been really drunk that night!”

“Why do you say that?’ Laura asks, still trying to process the information.

“I’ve seen the girl, she’s not his type. Actually, no one’s his type, except Liz. But I could tell that day in Jake’s that he didn’t like her.”

“Yeah, well, unfortunately, Kimber likes him a whole lot. I just hope she behaves herself once we get back,” V mutters, trying to ignore the nagging feeling she has about the woman.

~*~Chapter 78~*~

“Lucky?” Liz asks softly, creeping down the stairs. He’s sitting on one of the beds, staring out the porthole. She walks up to him and sits down on the bed across from his, waiting for him to look at her.

He slowly turns his head and looks at her, his eyes cold and unfeeling. She flinches slightly at the iciness of his gaze, then looks down at her lap.

“What do you want me to do? Do you want me to apologize, to beg for your forgiveness? Tell me what you need, and I’ll do it. Lucky, I love you so much, I can’t bear losing you now, not over this.”

He looks away again, the emotion in her voice slowly breaking down his resolve. “I don’t know,” he says softly, his voice cracking slightly.

Liz sighs and looks up at his profile. “I don’t know, either. I don’t know how to make things right with us again. It’s not something I planned, or even wanted, you have to believe that. All I’ve thought about since I was brought to that island was how much I missed you, and how much I wished you would find me. I would sit out in the garden, or walk along the beach, and imagine you coming around the corner to take me home. I would dream every night about you rescuing me. I would talk to you all the time, everyone on the island probably thought I was crazy. I didn’t care, though, because talking to you was what kept me sane. That, and writing these letters.” She tosses the pile of letters onto the bed next to him and waits for a reaction.

Lucky slowly turns and looks at them, then up at her, his eyes cold again. “What am I supposed to do with those?”

“Read them. I wrote them to you, after all. Maybe they will help you understand what happened to me there, what I went through. You don’t have to read them all now, or ever. I just thought you had a right to see them.”

Lucky nods, but doesn’t pick them up. Instead, he turns back to the porthole. Every fiber in him is screaming to read her letters, but he’s too stubborn to do it in front of her. He figures if he ignores her long enough, she’ll leave.

~*~

“I think I’ll leave you three out here for a while. You probably have a lot of discuss. I’m going to go see if Jax wants any company,” V says, walking over to the door that leads to the wheelhouse. They just nod and watch her leave, knowing she’s right, that they do have a lot to catch up on. Once she’s gone, Laura turns to Sergei and smiles.

“I know this must be weird for you, it certainly is for us, but I’d like for us to get to know you better. I wish I had known about you sooner.”

Sergei nods, not sure what to say. “I know.”

“So, did you have a good childhood? Or, did Helena spend the whole time training you to be the heir?” she asks bitterly.

He shrugs. “It was okay, I guess. She wasn’t around all the time, so I was pretty much raised by the servants.”

Laura looks at him sadly, not sure what else to say to him. “Well, I know we can’t get back all the years we missed, but we’d like to be able to share the ones that are left with you. Right, Luke?”

He nods, still wary of Sergei, but willing to give him a chance.

~*~

“Hey,” V says, stepping into the cabin. “How’s it going up here?”

“Okay,” Jax responds, smiling over his shoulder at her. “What brings you up to this neck of the woods?”

She takes a seat next to him and sighs. “I felt kind of weird out there. I mean, Luke and Laura just found this son they never knew they had, and Lucky’s angry with Liz. It’s all way too tense for me!”

“I can’t see what you mean. I just hope he finds a way to get over this soon. It’s a shame for them to finally be reunited, and then suddenly be so distant again.”

“What would you do? I mean, if this had happened to you and Chloe, do you think you could forgive her?”

“I don’t know. I mean, their situation is kind of unique, with the whole Spencer-Cassidine thing, but if I were Lucky, I think I’d understand that she wasn’t given much of a choice. He’s just being stubborn right now, I’m sure he’ll get over it soon.”

V sighs and gazes out the window. “I hope so. He deserves to be happy again.”

“Even if it mean he retires from his singing career before it even gets started?” Jax asks, grinning at her.

She laughs and shakes her head. “What kind of person do you think I am? The last thing I care about right now if his singing career! If he never sings again, that’s fine with me, as long as he’s happy. We’ll make plenty off of the album sales, and I’m sure he’ll continue writing for L&B like he was before this all happened. I never really expected the singing to be a long-term thing, it was more a way to distract him from his grief.”

Jax nods in agreement, thinking. “Hey, whatever happened to that ‘little hussy’ you were ranting about a few weeks ago?”

V sighs and shakes her head. “I don’t know. She’s still around, and that’s what worries me. I was just talking to Luke and Laura about her. I have a feeling she’s set her sights on Lucky, and it’s not going to be easy to shake her, even when Liz gets back.”

~*~

“So, what, you’re not speaking to me now?” Liz asks, frustrated by Lucky’s silence.

“Nothing to say,” he answers bluntly.

She sighs and stands up, tired of the stalemate between them. “Fine, I can see we’re not going to get anywhere like this, so I might as well leave. I’ll be up on deck if you change your mind.” She starts to walk towards the stairs, but Lucky suddenly turns and speaks, stopping her.

“How?”

She turns and looks at him questioningly. “Excuse me?”

“How?” he asks again, looking angry for the first time since they boarded the boat. “How could you...with him?”

Liz stares at him in disbelief for a moment, her eyes flashing with a newfound rage. “How? Lucky, how can you ask me that? After everything we’ve been through together, can you honestly think I would ever willingly be able to sleep with another man? I didn’t have a choice, Helena was tossing threats all over the place, and I didn’t know what else to do!”

Her voice suddenly drops, but is still filled with anger, so that she practically hisses the rest of her rant. “Don’t you realize that having Sergei do that to me was like being raped all over again? Even worse, it was like being raped by Nikolas! Just think about that before you pass any more judgment on me, okay?” She turns on her heel and stomps up the stairs, too angry to face him any longer.

Lucky sighs and picks up the pile of letters, figuring he might as well read them. Anything to block out what she had just told him, to distract him from the pain he was feeling.

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