The scene opens in the bedroom of Zander and Emily's penthouse apartment, the bedroom is dark, dimly lit by the storm that's brewing outside the window.

The rain pounded hard against the elongated window, the wind outside howled as the storm made it's presence known. Zander stood looking out across the bay into the darkness as the lightning flashed in the distance, thunder rolled across the sky and he turned and with concern and worry in his eyes towards the one true love he has ever known, the woman who had his heart, his wife, Emily. She lay in slumber only a few feet from him and the flashes of light that filtered in through the window as the storm drew closer illuminated her form just enough so he could admire from across the room.

The early morning hours drew near and he was restless, he couldn't sleep, he slipped quietly from bed, so as not to wake her. He gazed out the window into the midnight and wondered if his life was to end in tragedy as well. He had always known that the life he led was dangerous and deadly, but it was the only life he knew. His father was in over his head, killed by his rival when Zander was just a boy, but old enough to witness the murder and know who had done the deed. A man who was close to his father's side through out the years, his father's right hand man, a dirty player in the game who only had one thing to gain by killing his long time boss, power. Power and greed were the motives for his father's death, and he couldn't allow power and greed take over the life he had worked so hard for.

The dark, dangerous, and sometimes deadly life had always been on his mind, he could never guarantee or promise he'd return, he couldn't promise he'd be home every night at a reasonable hour, he couldn't promise a life of safety and security, the only thing he could promise was that he would protect and love his family. His wife, Emily, knew that walking into this relationship and then marriage ... But he was still worried and fearful of the life she'd have if God forbid he was to leave one evening and not return. If tragedy struck and he'd be killed by a rival organization it would devastate her, she'd be lost with out him. He was in way to deep to turn back now, there was no way out. His life now threatened by another powerful organization who wanted control of the territory he was handed down by his family. He had never thought he and Sonny would be on opposing sides, their relationship was never cozy but they were friends and had been for some time. Now his mentor was the one who was threatening to take his life.

Had never wanted to bring fear into the eyes of those he loved, and lately he had seen it in the eyes of his wife and child. He couldn't leave the life he built for himself, he couldn't make promises or guarantees to Emily or to his child that he'd always be with them, he couldn't turn back now, there was too much at stake.

The storm raged on outside as he thought about all his options, there didn't seem to be answer for him as he stared out into the darkness. The driven rain pounded against the glass as he turned and walked towards the bed. He brushed back a stray strand of Emily's auburn hair and softly kissed her cheek. Tenderness and devotion filled his eyes as he watched her sleep. He quietly left the bedroom and walked down the stairs, he knew there was no sleep for him tonight, he had a lot on his mind. Only dressed in his black silk pajama pants, the tile of the living room floor was cold as he stepped down off the last step of the stairs. His feet patted across the floor as he picked up a clean glass from the wet bar counter. He poured himself a drink, he didn't care what, it needed to be strong. He poured himself a double and walked towards the mahogany desk. He sat in his chair, opened the file that lay on the desk, and stared down at it. He ran his hands through his cool black hair and wondered if his rival, Sonny Corinthos was as restless as he was. He flipped the folder closed in frustration and took the last swallow of his drink, he grimaced as it went down his throat. He set the glass on the desk and walked away leaving it there till morning. He headed back up the stairs towards the bedroom.

He slipped in quietly and walked to his side of the bed. He sat down on the edge of the bed and laid back down. He folded his arms underneath his head and stared at the ceiling. She heard him come in and slip back into bed. She moved slowly towards him and wrapped her arms around his waist, she nuzzled in close and laid her head on his shoulder. Still unaware what was on his mind, she closed her eyes again and fell back asleep in the arms that she knew would protect and love her always.

He drew in a deep breath and closed his eyes, his mind raced with worry, fear and concern as all his thoughts could give him was what ifs. He slowly moved down and laid his head on the pillow, hoping he could fall asleep. The storm now upon the town of Port Charles, it raged on as the thunder rumbled and the lightning cracked loudly as it struck the ground across town. It shook him awake in a cold sweat fearfully he had been the victim of a gunshot. He still groggy from sleep, felt up and down both their bodies fearing the worst. He found nothing wrong as he awoke fully and breathed a sigh of relief it had only been the storm.

Across town someone else worries --

She heard the key in the door as she lay awake on the couch waiting for him to come back from his midnight meeting at St. Timothy's church. She removed the afghan from her body and rose from the couch to meet him as he opened the door and stepped into the apartment.

"Oh thank God!" she rushed into his arms so glad he was alive. She had been having nightmares of a fateful night like this night and finding out from one of the guards he had been shot.

"Hey, hey it's okay. I'm alright. I'm home now." he replied as he tried to comfort her worries.

She looked up at him, he drenched from the rain. She touched every inch of him, finding him in one piece, no wounds to speak of. He looked at her confused as to what she was doing.

"Elizabeth, what are you doing?" he asked as he felt her hands touch him all over.

"I'm looking for war wounds, what do you think I'm doing?" she replied in a serious tone as he chuckled at her actions.

"I'm okay...really." he answered as he removed his leather jacket and hung it on the back of the desk chair.

"Well, I ... I wanted to be sure." she said still concerned about what could of happened tonight.

He and she walked together towards the couch and sat down. She covered herself with the afghan once again as she felt a chill in the air that gave her the quivers. She leaned into him as he wrapped his arm around her. He kissed the top of her head and rubbed up and down along her arms with his hand.

"I was worried about you....you didn't call and I didn't know what to do, Jason." she flinched as the lightning outside struck once again. She jumped frightened by the storm that raged on outside. He held her against him in the hopes of soothing her fears.

He could only imagine what she feared for him. He had been leading the dangerous life for a long time and he told her before initiating a relationship with him that it would not be a life she would of hoped for. He had told her from the beginning he couldn't promise her a life of security, a life free from danger, all he could give her was a dangerous lifestyle with guards and guns.

He slipped out from underneath her and covered her up with the afghan. He brushed back a stray strand of hair from her face and gently touched her cheek with the back of his hand. She was the most precious thing in his life, he would protect her at all costs. He turned and walked towards the window. He stared out into the darkness as the lightning flashed and the thunder rumbled so he could feel it in his gut.

Jason knew he was in too deep to leave the organization, there was no turning back. He wasn't surprised that the rival organization wanted the territory he and Sonny had possession of. It was prime real estate that would bring in huge dollars to those who had possession of it. He wasn't shocked to hear that his brother in law was the opposing party who was in after it, the territory he had possession of, laid against the territory already owned by Zander's family. There was a war about to begin, he was fearful for his sister and his wife. He glanced over his shoulder and watched her sleep so peacefully, he went to her side and scooped her up into his arms. She wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled in close. He carefully walked up the stairs and to the bedroom. He laid her down gently and covered her with the blankets. She turned into the pillow and sighed. He smiled and walked to the other side of the bed. He removed his tee shirt, and then his jeans and boots. He slipped into bed beside her as she felt the warmth of his body against her and she was overwhelmed with the feeling of security.

For tonight, he was home safe and his arms wrapped around her. For tonight, he was home unscathed from the storm that raged on.

The next morning --Zander and Emily's Penthouse

The late night summer storm blew through Port Charles only to leave behind a beautiful sunrise and a clear blue sky. Emily awoke early that morning by the sound of Devon's crying. She quickly slipped on her ruby silk robe and her terry slippers, she looked over her shoulder to see Zander still sleeping soundly for the first time that night. He'd been restless last night, though he didn't realize she was aware, she was. She stood up from the edge of the bed and went to Devon's room to comfort him. When she reached his room he had pulled himself up to the collapsible side bar of the crib, his face lit up when he saw his mommy standing in the doorway of the nursery. He not quite 7 months old, was her and Zander's miracle. She had been told by countless doctors that she would have a difficulty becoming pregnant, and if she were to become pregnant, she would have a hard time carrying the baby to term. Both were pleasantly surprised when she found out she was carrying Devon. Doctors had put her on the strictest routine because she was at risk. Plenty of bed rest and absolutely no stress ... a difficult thing not to have when she's married into the mob lifestyle.

Devon, a dark haired little boy, was certainly happy to see his mother when he woke up every morning. Emily not knowing how having a child would change their lives, she was just overwhelmed with being a mother. She reached into the crib and lifted him up to her. He smiled and cooed as his mother just smiled at how big he was getting over the last few months. He'd be walking and getting into mischief in no time. She had to laugh at the faces he was making as she stood and held him close to her. She changed his diaper and got him all ready for the day. The morning sun created funny shadows on the Noah's Ark wallpaper of the nursery as Devon smiled and pointed to the sunspots that were scattered on the walls. She headed out the door of the nursery with Devon in her arms as she peeked in at Zander and noticed he was still sleeping. She left him sleep and took the baby down stairs for breakfast.

She sat Devon in his highchair and took out a bottle of milk and his baby food from the refrigerator. She laid a terry bib on the counter and grabbed a baby spoon from the drawer. Devon sat waiting patiently as he watched his mom gathering his breakfast. She was surprised at how good he was when it came to feeding him. He rarely made a mess for her to clean up or was fussy with what she was giving him to eat. She sat down in front of him and opened up the jar of strained bananas. She put the terry bib on him and snapped it closed in back. He cooed at her and she smiled and laughed with him. She turned when she heard the pattering of bare feet from the living room. Zander had awaken and walked across the tile floor of the living room and into the kitchen.

"Morning sweet heart..." he said and kissed her on her cheek and then said good morning to his son as he brushed the side of his pudgy cheeks. "Any coffee?" he asked as he walked towards the cabinet for a coffee cup.

"Sorry, honey ... didn't get a chance to make a fresh pot." she apologized as she spooned another small portion of strained bananas for Devon. Zander began to fill the filter with coffee just as the phone rang. He stopped what he was doing and went to answer it. Emily rolled her eyes cause she knew this was only the beginning of their day, it was sure to get worse as the day went on.

Zander came back in a few minutes, without saying a word he went back to making a fresh pot of coffee. She noticed his demeanor and didn't ask who was on the phone. She finished giving Devon his strained bananas and handed him a bottle of milk. He grasped onto the bottle and started to suckle the tip. She held it for him as he drank so he wouldn't drop it on the floor.

Zander filled his coffee cup with his morning caffeine fix and took a seat at the table with his wife and son. He looked at Emily feeding his son and wondered if all of the danger was worth it. How life with his family away from the mob would be different. He ran his hands through his hair and answered his own questions .... what other life did he know ... why worry about the what ifs when all they were, were his dreams.

Jason and Elizabeth's Penthouse across town --

Jason's morning began like any other morning as he turned towards Elizabeth to watch her sleeping peacefully. He brushed back a stray strand of her hair and kissed her gently on her lips. She stirred as she felt the sensation of his soft lips on hers and returned the gesture as she wrapped her arms around him.

"Good morning, beautiful..." he said as she began to stretch out the sleepiness in her body. She yawned and looked at the digital clock that sat by the bedside.

"Jason ..." she whined as she noticed it was only 5am. "It's so early ..." she continued as he smiled and caressed her upper arm with his strong hand.

"Yeah, it is .. but I wanted to tell you that I would be leaving again for a few days, and I couldn't leave before I did." he said as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and saw that he was dressed in a black tee shirt and jeans.

"For how long?" she asked as he sat up and reached for his watch that sat on his night stand next to the bed.

"I don't know .. I'll have to call you when I get there." he replied hoping she wouldn't push the subject with him about where he was going.

She noticed the look on his face and thought better of asking any more questions that she knew he couldn't answer. He leaned down and kissed her gently, she wrapped her arms around his neck not wanting to let him go. He reached up and pried her arms from him as he got up from the bed. He knew she wanted him to stay, but he had to leave her for a while, he'd be back soon enough. He gave her one last longing look and grabbed his duffle bag as she watched him walk out the bedroom....always on her mind, if it would be for the last time.

She turned and sunk her head into the down pillow as she heard him return as the door squeaked as he opened it slightly. She turned towards him as he peeked in "I love you..." he said as she smiled and said "I love you too..." He blew her a kiss and was off to somewhere she didn't know.

She laid in bed alone, with nothing to think about but what would be happening to him while he was away from her. She knew he would return in a few days, he would come back to her as he had done many times before. She turned onto her side, reached out her arm and caressed his side of the bed....still warm from his body, she grabbed his pillow and held it close to her, still having his scent deep in it's fibers, she took in a deep breath and closed her eyes. He would come back to her .... she just needed to believe that.

*Note: If these episodes are too long, please let me know and I'll cut them back.*