SoapQueen89

EPISODE 32 Greg's car rounded the corner of 3rd and State Streets, Greg parked the car out in front of a large apartment building and sat collecting his thoughts. He had a plan, the first part of his plan already put into motion, the second part, almost complete, the third part was soon to come. He sat for a few minutes and looked up and down the street, being cautious that no one followed him. He climbed out of the car and went inside the apartment building. He made his way up to the penthouse floor and stepped off the elevator. Penthouse # 3 was his destination and he was a few short steps from it. He walked to the apartment door and knocked. He still shaking, his heart racing a mile a minute, his palms sweating, he couldn't help but be a bit scared. He just betrayed one of the most powerful bosses on the east coast, his life was soon to be cut short if he didn't strike a deal with the person he came to see. He waited in the hallway and heard footsteps coming towards the door. The door opened, and Greg was invited inside. "Hello .... Gregory?" Jason said as he closed the door and Greg walked inside. "Yeah, it's Greg .. Look, I have something you may want." "Oh and you came to see if I'd be at all interested in what you got?" "Yeah that's about the jist of it." Greg's nervousness became obvious. "Why so nervous, Greg? It couldn't be that you are my competition's employee, and by you being here in my penthouse would constitute betrayal, now would it?" the man leaned in to Greg when he spoke and it rattled Greg. "So do you want to deal or not?" "What do you have that I would want, Greg?" "I don't know, perhaps Zander's shipment and his territory to top it off?" The man raised his eyebrow at Greg's offer. But he had to wonder how Greg, a bodyguard, would be able to come up with such an offer. "Care to tell me how you came of this offer?" "Let's just say it fell into my lap." Greg replied and Jason poured himself a drink. "Okay, then let's just say that I'm interested." Greg jumped about out of his skin as the door to the apartment opened and a bodyguard walked in. "Easy there, Greg ..." the man replied when he noticed Greg jumped at the opening of the door. "A bit paranoid aren't we?" "Do you blame me? I have betrayed my boss, and the organization, and to top it off, I'm standing in the living room of the enemy!" "Look, I tell you what .... I do have a place for you here Greg, that is if you want to switch sides?" "What I want is a one way ticket out of town! I'm living on borrowed time! I'm sure by now Zander knows what happened and he's gonna be looking for me!" "Alright, alright. Here have a drink, it'll calm ya down." Jason offered Greg a drink and Greg took it. "You have some stuff to show me or am I taking your word for it?" Jason asked wanting to see what Greg had to offer. "I have some stuff, it's down in the car ... in the trunk." "Go get it ...." Jason ordered his guard. The guard nodded and left the penthouse. Greg knew what he was about to do would get him killed, but he had already loaded the gun by stealing the product and betraying Zander, what more could he lose? He mulled around Jason's apartment till the bodyguard came back, the bag of product in his hand. Jason realized something else was going on with Greg besides the stolen bag of product he had in his car. "You were the one who took a shot at Zander, weren't you?" Jason asked and Greg's eyes widened and didn't answer him. "On someone else's orders ..." Jason added as he contemplated who those ordres came from. Just as Jason was about to put all the pieces together, his body guard came back with the bag of product in his hands. "You say this is part of Zander's shipment?" Jason asked as he looked over the white powder. "Yeah we just got a shipment in." "How much of it?" "A couple million dollars worth, I'd suspect." Jason turned towards Greg and raised his eyebrow, his interest piqued. "Really ... " "Yeah... really. You interested or do I take it elsewhere?" Greg replied hoping that he had made the right choice by coming to Jason. "Oh I'm interested, but I want to see the whole shipment." Greg disappointed by Jason's request. "You get me out of town tonight, and I will tell you where you can find the rest of that shipment." Jason picked up the phone and called the airport. "Have the plane ready in 30 minutes." Jason hung up the phone and turned his attention back on Greg. "Okay ... now tell me where the rest of it is." Jason demanded. "Pier 53 ... warehouse 3A ...."

EPISODE 31 Zander's Warehouse -- Cory and Wade stood watch outside the warehouse, while Greg secured the inside. He lurked about the shadows of the warehouse and checking on the office door more then twice in the last 10 minutes, Greg was nervous and worried that his counterparts outside were on to him and his discreet dealings with Lorenzo. The uncrated product sat in stacks as Greg stared at the millions of dollars that sat in front of him. It wouldn't take but a minute for him to take his own cut and no one be the wiser. He walked over to the tallest stack and snatched a bag from the top. Greg quietly and cautiously made his way to the back of the warehouse and out into the alley where his car sat parked in the shadows. He propped the warehouse door and then scurried to his car, popping the trunk so it was open when he got there. He pulled back the carpet in the trunk and stashed the bag he had hidden underneath his jacket, and pulled the carpet back into place. He closed the trunk quietly, and rushed back inside, looking over his shoulder being sure no one was watching him. He stepped inside the warehouse and closed the door behind him. He leaned up against the inside of the door and breathed a sigh of relief. Just as he did so, he was taken by surprise by a blaring light in his face. "Taking a break, Greg?" Cory asked as he held his flashlight on his friend. "Yeah, I just needed some air." Greg replied as he tried to hide that his heartbeat was racing and he was out of breath. Cory was suspicious of Greg and his excuse, but needed more then just theories and suspicions. Cory turned off the flashlight and turned his back on Greg as he started to walk away. Greg knew just by Cory's behavior that Cory was suspicious about him and there was no way, Greg was going to wait to be caught and face his boss for betrayal. Greg drew his 9mm from his waistband and swung the butt hard against the back of Cory's neck. Cory fell to the ground like a bag of bricks, face down in the dark, Greg turned and ran out the back door of the warehouse. He jumped in his car and took off down the alley, leaving Cory, not knowing if he was dead or alive. Wade had heard the squealing of car tires and saw the bright red tail lights speed down the street and he jumped into action. With his weapon drawn, he entered the warehouse, hoping to find Cory lurking about in the shadows. Instead he found Cory face down on the ground, just beginning to stir. "Cory .. what happened?!" "Greg happened! He blindsided me with the butt of his gun." Cory replied as he rubbed the back of his neck. "Why would he do that?" "I told you before, that something strange was going on .... this just proves it!" "Zander is not going to be happy about this, Cory." "Yeah no kidding and I want to be the one size up Greg for cement shoes!" Cory infuriated at Greg for hitting him in the back of the neck. Greg took off down the street as fast as his car would take him. The product nicely tucked away in the trunk of his car, he headed to the one person he knew of that would be interested in taking down Zander and taking the territory right out from underneath him. Wade helped Cory to his feet, Cory still massaging his neck. "We gotta call Zander." "I hate to do that, but I think in case we have to." Cory replied and Wade pulled his cell phone from his pocket. "You do it." Wade said as he handed the phone to Cory. "Why me?" Cory replied as he looked down at the phone. "Zander like's you best." Wade chuckled. Cory rolled his eyes and took the phone from Wade. He dialed Zander's room at the hospital and waited for him to pick up. "Hello ..." the voice answered on the other end, Cory recognizing it was Zander who answered. "Boss ... we have problems." "What kind of problems?" "Greg ... he knocked me out and took off with a bag of the shipment." "Are you alright?" Zander asked worried about his guard. "Yeah, I'll have a headache till next week, but I'll be fine. What do you want to do about Greg?" "Find him, and bring him to me. I'll deal with Greg!" Zander hung up the phone and Cory and Wade rushed out the door on the hunt for their former friend, Greg.

EPISODE 30 On the docks -- The two burly men took the stairs and headed for the hospital. Trent and Jerry followed Greg close behind, but not close enough that Greg noticed. "I think Cory's paranoid, Greg isn't that stupid to betray the organization." the words slipped from Trent's mouth. "Are you sure about that, Trent? I mean there would a whole lot of money involved if he did." Jerry replied. "Yeah but Greg should know that if Zander found out, he wouldn't live long enough to spend it." "This true, doing something that stupid would be signing your own death warrant. But this is Greg we're talking about." The two men chuckled at Jerry's remark and soon they had arrived at the warehouse, where in a few hours would be filled with brand new product. Trent still laughing under his breath .... "Come on, we got work to do." Zander's ICU Room -- Cory and Wade walked into the ICU area looking for Zander's room. Ric was standing outside watching as his mother sat with Zander while he slept. "You lost, DA Lansing?" Cory asked as he and Wade approached. "No Cory I'm not lost, I just stopped by to see my brother before going back to the station." Elenore emerged from the room when she heard voices in the hallway. "Do you guys mind? This is a hospital." "Sorry ... we just came by too see how Zander was doing." Wade spoke up and glanced into Zander's room. "The boss man is doing fine!" Zander shouted from his bed loud enough so his men could hear that he was awake. Cory and Wade went to Zander's bedside while Elenore and Ric watched on from outside the room. "Aren't the two of you suppose to be at the warehouse with Greg?" Zander asked as his men stood next to him. "Yeah, that's what we came to talk with you about." "There's a problem?" PCPD Squad Room --- Ric took the files from the officer and thanked him. He laid the folder down and opened it up. There was a stack of papers in front of him, bank statements and copies of transactions that had been occurring for the past 6 months. Ric looked over the statements and followed the money from one account to the next, it finally leading him to the original source. He looked up and noticed a few officers gathered around the desk next to him. "Bring in me Lorenzo Alcazar!" Ric ordered the officers. "On what charge, sir?" "Three counts of attempted murder!" he bellowed and Mac came hurrying over to him. "You got proof?" Mac asked before allowing the officers to go anywhere. "Proof enough?" Ric handed the bank statements to Mac. Mac looked over the paperwork in the file and nodded to the officers. "Go pick him up." "You got this evidence, where?" Mac asked as he handed the file back to Ric. "Martinez. He said he found what I was looking for and handed me the paperwork." "Martinez!" Mac called for the officer. "Yes, sir." he came rushing over to Mac. "This paperwork, where did you get it?" "It came special delivery, sir." "Messenger service?" Ric asked wondering who would of went through the trouble of gathering it and sending it to the police station. "Yes, sir. About 20 minutes ago." "Get it to forensics right away and lift the prints. Hopefully the person who sent it, left some behind." Mac ordered. "Do you think the statements are legit?" Ric questioned. "One way to find out." Mac replied and handed Ric the phone receiver. Ric dialed and reached the bank that the funds were drawn on. He checked the transactions with the teller and she confirmed they were factual and had been signed for by the account owner. Ric hung up the receiver and handed the file back to Mac. "They're legit. But is it enough?" "We'll soon find out." Mac replied.

EPISODE 29 Lorenzo's Penthouse -- "Zander's still alive and latest report is that he's going to make a full recovery." said the voice on the other end of Lorenzo's cell phone. "Dammit!!! I swear that guy has 9 lives!" Lorenzo shouted as he took his anger and frustration out on his cell phone and threw it against the wall of his apartment. "Look on the bright side, boss, he's only got 5 more lives left." "He wouldn't have any more lives left if you would of done a better job!" "Hey we can try again .." "No ... we can't Greg, this was a one shot deal! The cops are going to be all over this like ugly on an ape, we can't take the chance try it again." "Look, Zander trusts me, he's got me second in command now, there's no way he suspects one of his own. Lorenzo, I can do this .. I want to do this." "My question to is why? Why do want Zander dead? He's been good to you for a long time, Greg." "I'm tired of being the second, I want to be first for a change. You know how it works in this business Lorenzo, never getting your hands dirty, it's always the other guy who takes care of things for you, yet you get all the credit. Zander would be a big feather in my cap, Lorenzo." "Oh so your doing this for notoriety? You want your name in the paper saying that you were the one who took out Zander Smith, big time mob boss? Are you crazy or just plain stupid? No one does this for the glory, it's all about money and power, not for some front page news story!" "Look, I pretty much come from nothing, Lorenzo. Yeah the money is a major part of it, but so is recognition, acceptance from others like Zander. I've been his henchman for far too long, it's time for me to move up on the food chain. And if that means killing Zander, then .... then so be it." "But see, that's just it ... you had your chance and you fucked it up. I can't take this chance again, Greg. There's too much police activity right now about this shooting. They're soon going to put two and two together and get Lorenzo Alcazar." Greg was obviously disappointed that Lorenzo wasn't going to give him another shot at Zander. In Greg's mind, he didn't need Lorenzo take Zander out and to make it worth his while, he was in perfect position to frame Lorenzo for a killing that he did. A devilish smile came across Greg's face as these thoughts entered his mind, the plan was starting fall into place. "Okay fine. You take care of Zander yourself, Lorenzo. But just know that Zander will be back in business and he will still be a thorn in your ass." Greg replied and turned to leave Lorenzo's apartment. "Greg, wait." Lorenzo walked towards his desk and then pulled on the drawer to open it up. "Here, it's the last installment." Lorenzo handing Greg a overstuffed white envelope. Greg pulled open the envelope and exposed a wad of hundred dollar bills. "What's this for?" he asked shocked that Lorenzo was giving him the money. "Consider it severance pay." Lorenzo replied, his eyes stone cold. "Now get out and if you tell anyone about our arrangement, you won't get time to spend it." he threatened. Greg left Lorenzo's apartment and stood out in the hallway, grinning once again, the pieces to his plan were falling very nicely into place. He stuffed the envelope in his jacket pocket and left the apartment building, heading back to the warehouse. With Thomas and Zander both in the hospital, the warehouse was in need of someone to look after the shipment that was due later that night. On the docks -- As Greg walked down on the docks towards the warehouse, he was met by a few of Zander's other hired hands. Greg stopped dead in his tracks when he noticed them blocking his path. "Gregory ... in a hurry to get someplace?" Cory asked as he smoothed out Gregory's suit jacket with his strong hands. "I'm heading over to the warehouse." he replied standing his ground and not letting on that he had just come from seeing Lorenzo by being nervous. "Oh, well ... we got the warehouse covered, we just came from there. Unless there was another reason you were headed there?" Cory said suspicious about Greg's motives for wanting to be at the warehouse. "Oh, okay .. I just wanted to check a few things out .. thinking you guys might need some help, you know with Thomas and the boss in ...." "Yeah we know ... I have one question for you though before you go." Cory replied as Greg made a step to walk away and Cory stopped him. "What's that?" Greg asked as he felt his heart racing, hoping they didn't notice the over stuffed pocket of his suit jacket. "If you're here, then who's at the hospital protecting Zander and Emily? Weren't you on guard detail?" Greg sighed a relief. "Frank's on Zander and I got Marcus to cover Emily's room. Don't worry, about it, I got it handled." he smiled. Cory raised an eye brow suspiciously and then left Greg go. He had a feeling there was more to Greg then any of them knew. He wasn't ready to bring his suspicions to Zander just yet, he wanted more proof that Greg had betrayed the organization. Cory pulled two of them with him closer. "You watch him like a hawk. You got me. I don't want him out of your sight for a minute." "You think something's up?" Trent asked as he watched Greg walk further and further away from them. "Yeah I do .. and it isn't good." Cory replied and then motioned for them to go. "You really think there's something going on, Cor?" Wade asked. "Yeah I do ... there's just something going on with Greg, I just can't put my finger on it. Come on, let's go see Zander and Thomas."

EPISODE 28 Zander's ICU Room -- Ric had heard that Zander had woke up and rushed to his brother's bedside. He found Alexis and his mother standing outside the room, their noses pressed against the plexi-glass window, just watching Zander with Emily. "Hey, I got here as quickly as I could." Ric said to Alexis when he arrived. "Any word on who did this?" she asked as Ric tried to catch is breath. "We don't have anyone in custody yet, but we're pretty sure on who it was. It's just a matter of time before we catch him." Alan approached them and asked to speak with Zander before Ric went in to talk with him. Ric agreed and Alan entered Zander's room. "So, how are you feeling?" Alan asked as he picked up Zander's chart and reviewed it. "Like I got hit by a truck." Zander replied and Alan chuckled. "Yeah that's to be expected after what you've been through. I just stopped by to check on you." Alan stood at the foot of Zander's bed and pulled back the blankets to reveal his bare feet. It had been quite a few hours since the surgery but Alan wasn't expecting the swelling to go down quickly. "Tell me if you feel anything, okay?" Emily kept Zander's attention towards her so he couldn't see what Alan was going to do. She had been through these tests before and she knew what was coming, she hoped Zander would feel the pen running up and down the bottom of his foot as she smiled at him. Alan ran the bottom of his pen light up and down the bottom of Zander's bare foot, and he noticed he flinched at the sensation. Zander smiled and turned to look at Alan. "You felt that?" Alan said looking for confirmation from Zander. "Yeah I did. But I also feel some sensations, like tingles in my legs." "You will for a while, but it's a good sign that you felt the pen light on the bottom of your feet. The tingling will subside, as the swelling surrounding your spinal cord goes down, you'll get more and more feeling back in your legs and feet. I think right now it's safe to say that you will make a full recovery." Alan explained. While the blanket was pulled up, and Zander's feet exposed, Alan asked him to wiggle his toes. Alan wanted to make sure he had the movement as well as the feelings. Zander did what Alan asked him to, and he smiled. "Yeah, you're gonna be just fine. But we still need you to get some rest. It's going to be the best medicine for you right now and try not to move around too much, you have many stitches in you, and I don't want you opening them up. I'll check back later." Alan said and then left the room, the family waiting to hear Zander's prognosis. "So .... " Elenore began waiting for Alan to tell them what they had hoped to hear. "Zander's going to be just fine. But he needs his rest, so let's try to keep the visitors to a minimum." Alan suggested. Alan left the family and went on his rounds, as Ric stepped into the doorway and Emily turned to see him standing there. She motioned for him to come and Zander saw his brother standing at the foot of the bed. "Hey little brother." Ric said as Emily wheeled herself out of the way, so Ric could get closer. "Hey .. you've been here the whole time?" "Actually I've been chasing down the bad guys." "Oh, well you didn't have to go to far..." Zander replied, referring to himself as being one of them. "Yeah well, I was chasing down the bad guys who shot you and Thomas." "And ... did you catch 'em?" Emily asked. "Not yet, but we're close. We're pretty sure who contracted the hit, it's just a matter of following the paper trail to lead us to the trigger man." Zander winced as he tried to push himself up on the bed. "I had never seen the guy before, so who ever hired him certainly knew that I had been hauled in and was sitting waiting for me and Thomas to come out of the PCPD." "Well, according to what we recovered at the scene, which wasn't much, we determined this guy was a professional." "Yeah but professionals usually don't work with anyone else, Ric. I heard a car leave the scene." "True, but if the person who hired the gunman to kill you, wanted to see his work, don't you think he'd make sure he had a front row seat for the show?" "The only person who would gain from this is Lorenzo Alcazar." "Yes but there are also those who work for Morales, they would have much to gain by having you dead." "I'm thinking that the person who shot at Emily is the same person who shot me." Ric shrugged. "Makes sense. Thing is this person isn't the mind behind the operation, there are bigger fish beyond him, he's just the guy who they hired to take you out." It suddenly got very crowded in Zander's room, as Dr. Meadows came looking for her patient. "Emily, I think it's time for you to get back to bed. You and your baby need your rest too." Zander still weak and growing tired, reached for his wife. Ric stepped out of the way so Emily could get closer to her husband. "You do what the doctor tells you, okay?" he said hoping she'd listen to him. "Yeah but ..." "No buts ... you and the baby need your rest. I'll be fine. I don't want you to worry, okay." Zander smiled and reached up his hand and caressed her face. Emily nodded in agreement. She knew he was right, she did have to take care of herself and their baby and she was getting a little tired. She kissed the palm of his hand and smiled. "I love you, so much." "I love you too, baby.." Zander replied as Ric took a hold of the handle bars on the wheel chair and pulled Emily from his reach, their hands still reaching for one another. Dr. Meadows followed Ric and Emily out of Zander's room, Zander watching his wife leave his side and his mother enter the room after her. "Care for some company?" Elenore said as she sat down next to her son. "I would love it if you'd sit with me till I fall asleep?" Zander remembered how his mom used to tuck him in bed at night when he was a kid. She used to sit with him till he fell asleep, sometimes. Having her near him was always a comforting feeling for him. "Sure...." she smiled. Zander smiled and closed his eyes, he was more exhausted then he thought, and soon he was sleeping peacefully, while his mother sat by his side and held his hand, just like she used to. Emily's hospital room -- "I want you to get some rest now, Emily." Dr. Meadows instructed her very pregnant patient. Ric helped Emily from the wheel chair to the bed and tucked her. She smiled at his bedside manner and laid her head back against the soft plush pillows. "Thanks Ric ..." Emily said and she yawned. Ric smiled in return and walked towards the door as if to leave but turned around ready to say something. "We're going to get him, you know?" "I'm sure you will do everything you can to catch them." "I promise you right now, we will catch them and they will pay for this." Emily was confident in Ric's abilities as an officer of the court, she knew when he said they'd pay for shooting Zander, he meant it and he wouldn't rest until all those involved were in prison for a very long time.

EPISODE 27 Zander's ICU room -- Elenore was unaware of Emily's presence in the room as Alexis wheeled her in to see Zander. "How is he?" Emily asked and startled Elenore. "He's the same, dear." "May I?" Emily asked implying she'd like to sit with her husband. "Oh sure, dear. Alexis and I will go get some coffee or something." Elenore replied as she and Alexis left Emily with Zander. Emily wheeled herself to Zander's bedside and reached for his hand to hold it. She quickly felt a light squeeze and she knew that he realized she was there with him. She brought his hand to her lips and softly kissed it as tears welled in her eyes. "Zander .. baby, I know you can hear me." she whispered to him as her other hand brushed back the nagging forelock from his eyes. "I want you to listen to me, okay .... we're going to survive this, you are going to be as good as new soon and I will be here waiting for you." she whimpered as she felt another squeeze on her hand. "Devon misses you, he loves his daddy so much." Emily said as she continued to talk to her husband. It had been about 6 hours since Zander came out of surgery, and Emily was hoping by now he'd be waking up. She sat a little longer with him, caressing his hand and talking to him, just so he'd know she was there with him. As she sat with him, she looked up and saw her parents standing just beyond the plexiglass window. She laid Zander's hand down and wheeled herself out into the hallway, her father holding the door open for her. "I hope Dr. Meadows gave you the okay to be out of bed, young lady?" Alan scolded. "Dad, I'm not 10 years old anymore. And yes, Dr. Meadows said it was okay for me to out of bed." Emily replied with a smirk. "There's no change?" Monica asked about Zander. "Not yet, he's still hasn't woken up. And to tell you the truth, I'm scared. He should of woken up by now." Alan stood behind Emily and comforted her as he caressed her shoulders. "Give it a few more hours, he's only been out of surgery 6 hours, sometimes it takes longer for some patients to come out of it." Emily sat with her parents in the waiting area across the corridor from Zander's room, she wanted to be near him in case he woke up. "How's Devon? Is he being a good little boy for you?" Emily asked. "Devon is just fine, he's really keeping Alice on her toes." They all chuckled at the thought. "I just wanted to thank you both for taking care of Devon while all this is going on." "There is no need to thank us, Emily. Devon is our grandson, of course we would take good care of him for you." "I know, but I also know how Dad and Zander are, and ...." "And Devon is no part of that. Zander and I have problems yes, and probably always will, but I don't hold that against Devon." "I know, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to imply that the two of you ...." Emily hung her head as she realized what her words had sounded like to her parents. The three of them were startled to hear the alarm coming from one of machines in Zander's room. Monica rushed into the room to see what had happened, while Alan wheeled Emily to the doorway and told her to wait. "Zander! ....." Emily cried out to her husband. Monica checking the machines to find which one's alarm was blaring, and soon the sound stopped. As Monica turned off the alarm, she noticed a pair of eyes staring up at her. "Sorry." Zander whispered to her as a smile came over Monica's face. Alan realized that Zander had woken up and wheeled Emily to his bedside. Zander felt Emily's hand intertwine with his and he rolled his head towards her and smiled. "Hi ..." he whispered, his throat feeling like cotton. "Hi." Emily smiled at him so glad that he was awake. "We're going to leave the two of you alone, but only if you, Zander promise not to pull anymore alarms." Zander smiled, wanting to laugh, but it hurt too much. Monica took his smile as a promise and she and Alan left Emily with her husband. "Aren't you .." the words barely escaped Zander's lips, he trying to talk but with the cotton feeling in his throat, it was making it difficult. "Shhh .. don't try to talk, okay. And yes I'm suppose to be in bed, but Dr. Meadows said it would be okay if I came and sat with you for a while." Emily reassuring her husband that she would be okay there with him. She drew his hand to her lips and kissed them softly, thankful he was alive and grateful that he would be able to see his children grow up. It was her worst fear that Zander wouldn't be able to see his children grow up and be happy. She felt his hand caress her jaw and she leaned into it. Zander wanted to tell her just how much he loved her, and it took all that was within him to do so. "I love you so much, Zander." she whimpered as tears welled up in her eyes. "I .... love you .. too."

Thank you!! Jen

EPISODE 26 Emily's hospital room -- "Bobbie? He is okay, isn't he? Please tell me he's okay." Emily sniffled back the tears the best she could. "He's out of surgery and they'll be taking him to the ICU on the 4th floor, but it will be a while till he wakes up. The doctors have requested only immediate family may visit. It took a while but they retrieved all the bullets, without complications ....." Bobbie stopped mid-thought, like there was something she wasn't telling. "What is it? Tell me!" Emily cried. "Because of where the one bullet was lodged, Zander's quite bruised and his cord is inflamed and swollen, till the swelling goes down, he ... he won't have use of his legs. The doctors are hopeful though that once the swelling goes down, his legs will be full functional. They're just not sure when that will be." "He doesn't know that though, right?" Ric asked as he stood with Alexis at the foot of Emily's bed. "No, he doesn't know that yet, and won't know till he wakes up, which could be another 8 to 12 hours. We're not sure, Zander's always been a fast healer though, so I don't forsee him having any trouble coming out of the anesthesia quickly." Bobbie replied. "I want to go be with him." Emily said quickly as she tried to get out of bed on her own. "You need to stay in bed, Emily. Zander will be sleeping for quite a while, I'll come back and let you know when he's awake." Bobbie replied as she stopped her from going to her husband. "Bobbie, he needs me, I can't just lay here!" "Okay, just so I don't have to worry about you leaving this bed, I will find Dr. Meadows and ask her if it's alright, we don't want to put you or the baby at risk by leaving this room." Emily was satisfied with that. "Okay." "Don't worry about Zander, Ric and I will go sit with him." Elenore spoke up and looked at Bobbie to be sure it was okay for her and Ric to do that. Bobbie nodded in agreement. Emily feeling a little better that Zander wouldn't be alone in the ICU, she relaxed back against the pillow. "I'll stay with you if you want?" Alexis said as she laid her hands upon Emily's legs. "I'd like that, Alexis ... thank you." Zander's ICU Room -- Bobbie escorted Elenore and Ric to Zander in the ICU, Alexis took a seat on the swivel stool next to Emily's bed. Ric and Elenore stood outside Unit # 2, and saw Zander laying lifeless in the hospital bed, tubes and machines attached to him, and Bobbie noticed the scared look on their faces. "One at a time, we don't want to overexcite him with too many visitors just yet." Bobbie smiled caringly. Elenore and Ric exchanged glances as to who wanted to go into the room first, and Ric offered Elenore the first chance to sit with her son. Bobbie opened the door and walked in with Elenore. She pulled the swivel stool to Zander's bedside and sat down. Elenore reached for Zander's hand, and glanced at Bobbie for reassurance. Bobbie nodded. "It's okay, you can hold his hand and talk with him. Trust me, he's listening." Before leaving Zander, Bobbie checked his vitals and stats, making sure all was okay. She smiled at Elenore before leaving tell her that her son was okay. Elenore took Zander's hand in hers and held it tightly. She leaned down and held it up to her lips, giving it a motherly kiss. "Zander .... it's mom, I'm here with you sweetheart...." tears began to well in her eyes as she spoke to him. Bobbie exited Zander's room, Ric staring through the plexiglass at his brother. "I thought you'd like to know, Zander's guard who was shot also, he'll be out of surgery soon." "Thomas? He's going to make it?" Ric asked. "He's holding on for now, we'll have to wait and see." Bobbie walked away leaving Ric focused back on his brother who laid lifeless, yet listening to his mom's soothing voice. Zander could feel his mother's touch, he knew she was there with him, and it reassured him to hear her voice. As she spoke to him, he exhausted himself trying to say something, but to no avail. He was yelling inside, but nothing was coming out. It was like he was trapped within his own body. Elenore continued to talk with her son, and Zander unconsciously realized he could at least tell her he was listening and knew she was there by squeezing her hand. She wiped her tears and smiled as she felt the light squeeze of Zander's hand on hers. "Zander .... I may not have told you this lately, but .... I love you so much." Elenore sniffled back the tears as she held her son's hand to her lips. Trying to get the words out but couldn't, Zander's words just echoed through his body .... "I love you too, mom."

EPISODE 25 Emily's hospital room -- "He's going to be okay, right Alexis .. please tell me he's going to be alright." Emily sobbed. "They're doing all that they can for him, Em ... Bobbie said they won't know anything till they get him into surgery, but he's in very capable hands." Alexis replied not wanting to make matters worse by saying something she shouldn't. "I want to go to the chapel and say a prayer for him, would you go with me?" Emily asked as she dried her tears. "Sure, I'll go with you." Alexis not at all religious but she knew it was important to Emily to find some comfort during this time. Alexis pulled over the wheelchair that sat in the corner of Emily's room to the bed and assisted Emily into it. She grabbed the blanket that lay across the foot of the bed and laid across her lap for warmth. Alexis put on Emily's slippers and then went to prop open the door. Alexis wheeled Emily down the hall to the chapel so they could light a candle and say a prayer for Zander, who was hanging on to dear life. "He thinks alot of you, Alexis." Emily said as she sat with Alexis staring at the lit candles. "I know he does, and I think alot of him." The two of them sat and each saying a little prayer for Zander, and Alexis thought, if miracles were real and really did happen, she had hoped that one of those miracles would happen for Zander now. In the ER -- Ric walked into the waiting room of the ER where he had told his mother to meet him, she not knowing the hospital, he wanted to be sure she wouldn't get lost, the ER was the best place for them to meet. As he rounded the nurse's station, he saw Elenore sitting in the chairs waiting for him. He walked up to her and she stood up to greet him with a hug. "How is he?" she asked as Ric held her in his arms. "We don't know, he's in surgery." "Emily? Does she know?" "Alexis and I told her a short time ago, she took the news as I expected she would." "Take me to her, please, Ric." Emily's hospital room -- Ric did as his mother asked and walked with her back to Emily's room. When they arrived, the room was empty. The guard outside Emily's room told Ric that Alexis had taken her to the chapel. Ric and his mother walked down the corridor towards the chapel, in the hopes of finding Emily there with Alexis. In the hospital chapel -- Emily and Alexis sat in the first pew, Emily leaning on her for support, and neither had heard Ric and Elenore enter the chapel. They walked up to Emily and Alexis, Emily looking up to see Elenore standing there with her arms open. With Ric's help, Emily stood up from the pew and embraced Zander' s mother. "I'm so sorry, Emily." Elenore said softly. "I know, but Zander's going to be okay, he has to be." "We should be getting you back to your room, you know the doctor still has you on bedrest." Alexis reminded Emily and she nodded in agreement. Ric helped Emily back into the wheelchair and pushed her back to her room, Elenore and Alexis following close behind. Emily's hospital room -- The four of them waited in Emily's room, for what seemed like hours, until they had heard anything about Zander. Ric decided not to wait, he went looking to find someone who could give him some answers, leaving Elenore and Alexis with Emily. Ric walked out into the hallway, where he was met by Bobbie who was returning from the OR, to discuss with Emily, Zander's condition. "So ..... how is he?" Ric asked anxious to hear about his brother. Bobbie didn't say anything, just led the way back to Emily's room, where the others were waiting. "I think it's best I tell all of you together." Bobbie finally spoke as she and Ric stood outside Emily's room. Emily sat herself up in the bed when she saw Bobbie enter her room with Ric leading. He held back and Bobbie went to Emily's side, she had a somber look on her face, and Emily knew it wasn't good news.

EPISODE 24 At the ER --- Alexis and Ric raced through the emergency room doors looking for anyone who could tell them about Zander and his condition. They were immediately met by Bobbie, who had just gotten the page that there had been a shooting. "Bobbie! How is he?" Alexis asked as she tried to pull herself together. "How's who?" Bobbie asked as she was in a hurry to get to the patient the paramedics had brought in. "Zander, he was just brought in with a .... gun shot wound ..." Alexis replied as Bobbie was headed back to the triage area of the ER. "Gimme a few minutes ... " Bobbie replied and left Alexis with Ric in the waiting area of the ER. Alexis turned into Ric's arms. "He's going to be alright?" she asked looking for reassurance from Ric. "Zander's in very capable hands, Alexis. He's gonna be alright." "Emily ...." Alexis pulled back from Ric's arms. "I'm sure someone will tell her ...." he replied as he wrapped his arm around Alexis and led her to a chair to sit down. "It shouldn't just be someone, Ric ... she shouldn't hear this on the evening news or from some duty nurse." "Let's wait and see what Bobbie has to tell us and then we'll figure it out. Okay?" Ric tried consoling Alexis the best he could, but he was worried about his brother as well. As they sat waiting for word on Zander's condition, two police officers walked into the ER looking for Alexis. The two burly officers were looking for some answers to tonight's shooting. But to their surprise, Ric wasn't having any of it. Alexis had been through enough and she wasn't in any condition to be bombarded with questions from two rookie cops. The two rookies started giving Ric a hard time. "Look, my brother is in there fighting for his life, and you want to ask questions?!" Ric barked at the two rookies. "But ... you're .." the one rookie stammered. "Yeah I know who I am, now leave before I have both your badges!" Ric threatened to the two rookies. The rookies turned to walk away when Bobbie approached Ric and Alexis who were waiting in the lounge area. Alexis noticed Bobbie approaching and got up quickly, hoping there had been some news. "Well, how is he?" Alexis rushed to Bobbie concerned about Zander. "He's being prepped for surgery, the doctors are not sure on his prognosis. Alexis, he's in very capable hands. I'll be back when he's out of surgery." Ric steady Alexis from behind as he wrapped his arms around her. "There has to be more you can tell us, Bobbie?" "I'm sorry, Alexis, there isn't. We're just not sure where the bullets are lodged until we get in there. I'm telling you all I know right now." "Bullets?" "Yes, bullets. Zander took a few hits, but we're doing everything we can to save him. I'm sorry I don't have more info for you." Bobbie left Alexis with Ric, both frantic with concern. Alexis turned into Ric's arms as tears began to stream down her cheeks, obviously upset as Ric held her against him and comforted her the best he could. "Zander's strong, he'll get through this Alexis." Ric replied in a soothing voice. She pulled back from his arms and dried her tears with her hand. "You know as well as I do, Ric, we don't know that for sure. Ric, he could die! I couldn't handle that, Ric!" "I know, so we have to be strong for him, and stay positive, we can't give up on him. You know Zander, he's stubborn, he's not going to give up, he has too much to live for, Alexis." Ric held her in his arms for a few more moments, then he realized he should be making a few phone calls to family, his mom should know and someone should be with Emily. "Are you going to be alright, I should call our mother and tell her. She shouldn't hear this on the tv news or the radio." Alexis nodded that she would be alright .."What about Emily, we need to tell her." "We will, we'll got together and tell her, she'll need both of us there for support." Ric smiled and then left for a few minutes to call his mother. Ric returned and he along with Alexis walked somberly to tell Emily what had happened. When they reached Emily's room, Ric entered, Alexis followed close behind. Ric closed the door, Alexis stood in silence as she focused her eyes on the floor. Emily felt there was something wrong just by Ric and Alexis's lack of words to her. She saw it in their faces that something bad had happened to her husband and as Ric steadied her for the news, Alexis held onto her hand. Emily's cries echoed thru the empty corridors of the hospital as Ric and Alexis broke the news to her. Alexis sat with Emily while Ric went to meet his mother who was to arrive at the hospital. While Ric was gone, Emily and Alexis comforted each other, both were worried and afraid for Zander who was still in surgery. *Note there will be no more episodes of WICKED posted this week as I will be in LA all week. Episodes will resume on Wednesday 7/18.*

SONBC ANNOUNCES PREMISE FOR "PORT CHARLES: AFTER MIDNIGHT"NETWORKS FIRST PRIMETIME DRAMA BEGAN PRODUCTION JUNE 22 PREMIERES IN LATE JULY Series Reveals What Happens With “Port Charles'” Favorite Characters Manhattan, NY – (July 7, 2007) – Jennifer Snyder, Head Writer of "WICKED" and Consulting Producer/Associate HW of Port Charles: End Game, announced a 'first ever' will be brought to SONBC. In collaboration with Ryan Chandler, Executive Producer and Co-Head Writer of "Port Charles," the two talents will write and produce Port Charles: After Midnight, a night time spinoff of the SONBC Nominated "Port Charles." "Port Charles: After Midnight" will mainly focus on the lives of doctors and nurses at General Hospital as they encounter one crisis after another while working in the ER. In addition, there will be some non-hospital players involved as well. “My idea for the night time spin off will deal mainly with the hospital and the staff who encounter many challenges as they try to work together to save lives. Friendships between the new doctors and nurses will form as some of the cast of "Port Charles" will become entangled in the storylines on After Midnight,” states PC:AM Head Writer, Jennifer Snyder. “We will also be bringing back history as we re-introduce to the viewers The Nurses Ball. As history returns, so does the tradition of Lucy Coe spearheading the plans for the huge extravaganza. We are excited about bringing back the Ball, and we know the fans have missed it immensely.” “The plans for the first season have already been laid out, and you can expect to see many After Midnight characters appearing on Port Charles," says Ryan Chandler. "We have some great surprises set up for viewers, as well as some casting choices that will make you all quite happy." "Port Charles: After Midnight" will be a weekly episode, but episodes could appear more than once a week, as needed. If more than one episode is set to appear, an announcement will be made following an episode of Port Charles,” Chandler says. “Since PC: After Midnight is prime time soap, Jennifer and I can push the envelope and give After Midnight a racier and sexier edge. If you think Port Charles is hot, wait till you see After Midnight.” “Port Charles: After Midnight” began production on Friday, June 22 and will premiere Friday, July 27. Jennifer Snyder, consulting producer/associate head writer for "Port Charles" and Ryan Chandler, head writer & executive producer, "Port Charles'" will write and executive produce "Port Charles: After Midnight". Expect a cast announcement to be made shortly.

EPISODE 23 At the PCPD -- Sal Morales is .. was your contact?!" Ric replied as Zander smiled at him. "Well, Sal had been and then Miguel took over the last few years ...." "They came to Port Charles to see you ..." "Unfortunately yes they did." "Now I see why you wanted the immunity deal!" "Yeah, and now you can uncuff me, I have a wife who needs me." Zander replied as he showed Ric the handcuffs that still wrapped his wrists. Ric pushed himself away from the table and got up from his seat. He stormed out of the interrogation room and an officer came in to release Zander. Zander and Alexis walked back into the squad room and he noticed Thomas was still cuffed to the chair. Zander cleared his throat and Ric glared in his direction. "And Thomas? He was part of the deal, Ric." Zander said as he pointed towards Thomas. Ric motioned for an officer to release Zander's man from the chair. Some of the officers in the squad room blocked the doorway and Zander from leaving. "He's free to go ...." Ric said and shook his head for the officers to move out of Zander's way. As Zander walked towards the door, he heard the loud bang of Ric's clenched fist hitting the top of the metal desk in frustration and disgust. Zander stopped in his tracks but didn't turn around to look back at his brother, as Alexis walked up behind Zander and coaxed him thru the doors of the PCPD and out onto the front stoop. Zander gave Alexis a warm thank you kiss on the cheek .... "If you need me, I'll be at the hospital with my wife." Outside the PCPD -- Zander and Thomas walked down the front steps of the PCPD, leaving Alexis standing alone as she cracked a smile while watching him walk to the limo that was waiting for him. She thought it strange that the street was empty, the silence was deafening, but that was shattered when gunfire echoed through the desolate city street and Zander suddenly fell to the ground. He laid lifeless underneath the lit streetlamp, Thomas lay with him. Alexis watched as the gunman ran towards a car that was waiting for him, Ric and other officers came running out of the police station when they heard the shots. "Someone call an ambulance, we've got two men shot out here!" Ric yelled back as he raced down the cement stairs to his brother's side. A few of the officers raced to their cars and gave chase to the car that sped away into the night. Sirens shrilled as the police cars took after the suspect, Alexis and Ric rushed to Zander. Hoping Zander was still alive, Ric turned him over and checked for a pulse, there was one but it was faint. Alexis knelt down by Zander and laid his head in her lap, she caressed his face and smoothed back his hair as tears stained her cheeks. "We gotta do something, Ric!" Alexis worried and in a panic. "There is so much blood, this can't all be Zander's." Ric noticed as he went to Thomas, who was lying next to Zander. "Is he ....." Alexis asked as she sat with Zander's head in her lap. "No, he's alive, but barely. Where is that ambulance?!" Officers began taping off the scene as they were instructed to do by Mac, who had come down the stairs to assess the situation. Ric stood up and was met by Mac. "Was it a hit?" Mac asked as he observed the two victims lying at his feet. "Yeah I think so." "The shots came from .... across the street." Alexis pointed. "He took off down the sidewalk to a car that was waiting for him at the end of the block." she explained as the ambulance sirens could be heard as it approached. "Well we have officers in pursuit, we'll get him." Mac said and he saw the medics had arrived. Alexis held onto Zander as the paramedics came onto the scene, their medical supplies in hand. One attended to Thomas as the other one knelt down beside Zander. "Ma'am you're going to have to get out of the way, so we can work on him." the paramedic said to Alexis as the evaluated Zander's wounds. "I'm not leaving him!" Alexis exclaimed tearfully as Ric came up behind her and tried to pull her back. "Come on, Alexis, let the men do their jobs ..." he said as she looked up at him, tears could be seen on her cheeks. Zander's blood stained Alexis's shirt and hands as Ric pulled her back from the scene, she focused still on Zander and watched as the paramedics worked feverishly on him. The officers around them treated the scene as a crime scene and one began to ask questions of her. She concentrating on Zander and not on anyone else, ignoring the officer who stood in front of her. Ric wrapped his arm around her ...."Zander's going to be alright. He has to be." tears fell from Ric's eyes as he spoke. Alexis turned into him and wrapped her arms around his neck tightly. Ric motioned for the officer to leave, that it was the wrong time to be asking questions from Alexis. The paramedics got Zander and Thomas both on gurneys and rushed them to the ambulance that was waiting. Alexis noticed and left Ric's arms to be with Zander. "I'm going with him!" Alexis demanded as she approached the paramedics. "I can't let you do that, ma'am ..." "I said I'm going with him!" she shouted again and tried to get into the ambulance. Ric came up behind her and his hands grabbed onto her arms and pulled her back. "Go! Go! We'll meet you at the hospital!" he ordered the paramedics. Alexis turned into him, and glared. "Zander needs me! How could you let him go without me?!" she cried angrily, the ambulance's sirens could be heard as it pulled away. "I know he does .. we'll meet them at the hospital. Come on, I'll drive."

Stand Off Jason, Zander and Faith At the Cellar Zander froze. His hand clenched tightly around the 9mm hand gun as he held it to the back of Jason's neck. Jason's hand still snuggly wrapped around Faith's throat, Zander could see it was hard for her to breathe as Jason squeezed tighter. "Jason, don't make me shoot you." Zander managed to get out as he swallowed hard, trying to not let Jason see him sweat. "Zander, if you pull that trigger it will be the last thing you ever do." Faith watched as Zander got a better grip on the gun and held to Jason's neck ... "Just shoot him already!" she cried out as Jason's hand fit snugly underneath her chin. Zander's mind was racing, his heart was pounding so fast, if he pulled the trigger, it would be because the adrenalin that pumped through his veins gave him the courage to do it. Neither Jason nor Zander flinched as the situation became more intense, the feeling in the room made it hard to breathe. "Let her go, Jason! Now! Or I swear ...." Jason's eyes were cold, they were hard, as they stared through Faith, who was helpless and depending on Zander to save her life. "Or what? Go ahead, Zander .. shoot me! Prove me wrong!" Jason left go of his hold on Faith and turned his attention to Zander, who was still holding his gun pointed directly at Jason. Jason pulled his gun from his waist band and held it on Zander. Faith fell back in the chair behind her as she rubbed her throat where Jason's hold was. "I should of shot you when I had the chance, Zander." Jason said without feeling. Zander's stare became cold, his eyes held no feeling for the man who stood before him. He felt his hands were moist as he adjusted his grip on his weapon. "Are you guys gonna kiss now or shoot each other?" Faith said as she stood beside them. Jason glanced at her with his cold eyes. "Zander's not worth the bullet." Jason replied as his eyes focused back on Zander. "I may not be but you are!" Zander said as he cocked his weapon. Jason's face showed no fear as he stared down the barrel of the gun. Faith stood beside Zander feeling the power as he held his weapon and took a solid stance up against Jason. "Any last words, Morgan?" Faith purred as her hand brushed against Zander's shoulders from one side to the other, keeping her eyes focused on Jason. "He doesn't have the guts to pull the trigger." Jason was confident that Zander couldn't kill anyone, it wasn't in him to do it. The gleem in Zander's eyes was gone, the coldness had already over taken him, his mind was clear, his attention focused on the trigger. Faith leaned in and whispered in his ear. "Shoot him." Zander's eyes drifted to Jason's stare as he felt his finger slowly add pressure to the trigger. Jason still holding his weapon up in defense, he saw Zander make the move to shoot and he did the same. "Don't do it Zander. Cause once you pull that trigger, it's all over, for you and me both." Jason replied. Faith stepped away from the stand off and walked towards the bar. She poured the liquor into a shot glass, she didn't flinch as shots rang out. She looked towards the doorway to see Zander standing over Jason. She walked over with the shot glass in her one hand, and the bottle in the other. Zander put his gun back in his waistband as she approached. "Drink?" He glanced down at the glass, and then the bottle, and then back at her. His hand reached for the bottle ... without saying a word he took a swallow, he could feel the coldness of the liquor all the way down. He wiped the excess liquor from his mouth with his hand and looked down at Jason's lifeless body lying on the floor. Faith stood in the doorway with a smile on her face, she had finally found someone with enough guts to do what others have only thought of doing. Zander stepped over Jason's body without a second thought about what he had done. He walked to the bar and sat down on the stool, he glanced back over to Jason, the coldness in his eyes became a permanent part of his demeanor, the transformation was now complete. He could now say he was a cold blooded killer, and the man who took out Jason Morgan.

<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value=" name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src=" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object> If You See Him, If You See Her by Brooks & Dunn with Reba McIntire If you see him Tell him I wish him well How am I doing? Well, sometimes is hard to tell I still miss him more than ever But please dont say a word If you see him If you see him If you see her Tell her I'm doing fine And if you want to Say that I think of her from time to time Ask her if she ever wonders Where we both went wrong If you see her If you see her I still want her I still need him so I dont know why we let each other go If you see her Tell her the lights still on for her Nothing's changed Deep down the fire still burns for him And even if it takes forever say I'll still be here If you see him If you see her If you see him If you see her Ric, Alexis, Sonny Ficlette Alexis had rushed home from court just in enough time to get Kristina ready for her visit with Sonny. Viola had her all ready to go when Alexis hurried through the door. "Hi sweetums .." Alexis managed to let out as she tried to catch her breath. She dropped her briefcase on the desk then took Kristina in her arms. "Ready to go see Daddy Sonny ...." she said to the toddler as she stuffed her keys back into her purse that she still had draped over her shoulder. Alexis and Kristina headed out the door on their way to Greystone to see Sonny. Max greeted them at the front gate and invited them in. "Sonny's expecting you .." he said as he opened the front door of the manor. Alexis stepped into the house and began to unzip Kristina's coat. She walked into the living room and found Sonny sitting behind his desk doing paperwork. He looked up when he heard Alexis enter the room. "Hey ..." he said as he got from his chair. "Hi .. I'm sorry we're late. I got held up in court." Alexis apologized. "Nah, don't worry about it." Sonny said as he reached for Kristina. "I'll pick her up tomorrow evening after work ..... " "Okay ... we'll be here." Sonny replied as Alexis turned towards the door. "Oh, by the way ... have you seen Ric lately?" she asked hoping Sonny had cause she hadn't. "Not today, he stopped by yesterday though with some paperwork I had to sign. Why?" Sonny replied and questioned her wanting to know about Ric. "Oh no reason...." Alexis said acting suspicious. "I thought the two of you were still separated?" "Yeah we are .. but I haven't seen or heard from him for a while, I just thought you had since he is your attorney." she replied trying very hard to cover up the real reason she wanted to know about Ric. "Oh, yeah he stops by every day at least once ... do you want me to tell him you want to see him?" "No ... I mean .. no that's okay. I'm sure we'll run into each other at the courthouse or something." she replied and Sonny noticing her mannerisms. "Are you okay, Alexis ... I mean you and Ric ...?" "Yeah we're fine ... well at least I'm fine ... but .. well I worry about him, ya know. Don't tell him I said that or anything." Sonny chuckled at her reply. "Okay I won't ...." "Okay ... I'll be back tomorrow ...." she replied and knelt down to give Kristina a goodbye kiss. "See you tomorrow sweetheart." Alexis left the manor and headed home hoping Viola had a hot bath drawn for her with the scented bubbles she liked so much. After the day she had, she needed just to relax. ============================= Sonny went back to working on business as the kids played games upstairs in the game room, and he hadn't even got a chance to finish what he was doing before Ric walked into the living room. Sonny looked up and smiled. "Hi ..." "Hi ..." Ric said as he heard the kids upstairs playing. "Kristina's here?" he asked. "Yeah .. Alexis dropped her off about an hour ago." Sonny explained as he saw Ric's expression change like he was disappointed he had missed her. "How is she? ... Alexis .. how is she?" Ric asked then cleared his throat as if it had dried up of moisture. "She's fine .... why?" Sonny asked curiously. "Oh no reason, I just wondered. We haven't talked in a while, that's all." "Oh and if you're wondering, she'll be back tomorrow evening to pick up Kristina. In case you wanted to be here when she stops by." Sonny replied and a grin on his face. "No that's okay, but could you tell her I still think about her .. you know in not a so subtle way. You're good at not being subtle." Ric grinned. "Why don't you just do it yourself, Ric ... she is still your wife." "Yeah I know but I don't want her to feel uncomfortable .... it's been awkward with us lately. It's probably better coming from you ... you know .. in conversation." Sonny grinned and chuckled .. "Yeah .. okay .. I'll mention it tomorrow." Ric looked down at his watch and noticed it was after 6 .... he still had to go back to the office for files he wanted to work on at home. "I gotta run ... don't forget to tell her .." "I'll tell her ... in conversation." Sonny replied as he picked up some of the toys lying on the couch. "Um .. before you go ... it's okay if you want to go up and see Kristina for a bit." Ric looked up towards the starts and didn't hesitate. "Thanks ...." he replied with a smile as he headed for the stairs. Sonny just shook his head and smiled as Ric hurried up the staircase to the playroom. ========================================== Max opened the door for Alexis as she arrived to pick up Kristina from her overnight visit with Sonny. "Thanks Max..." Alexis said as she stepped into the foyer. "He's in the living room with Kristina .." Max replied and led the way to the living room. Alexis walked in and saw Sonny and Kristina on the couch waiting for her. Sonny turned towards her when she came in and said hello. "Hi ... right on time .." he said as she came upon him. "Yep ... right on time .. Is she ready?" Alexis said as she seemed rushed to leave before she saw someone she wanted to but didn't. "Yeah .. she's had dinner and she's all ready to go .. what's your hurry?" Sonny asked as he helped Kristina off the couch. "Oh well .. it's getting late and Kristina still needs her bath ...and .." Alexis replied making excuses to run. "Oh ... you seem like you can't wait to get out of here just in case you know who would show up ..." Sonny smiled coyly like he knew something he didn't want her to know. "Yeah, well .... we gotta go ... and if you see him .. tell him ... I asked about him .." she stumbled over her words as her stomach was now tied in knots. "You still love him don't you?" Sonny asked as Alexis and Kristina walked towards the door to leave. "No .. well .. " she stammered as she turned around to face Sonny. "He's still .... " Sonny began but was interrupted. ".. loves her .." Ric finished the thought as he walked up behind Alexis. Alexis turned around, surprised to see Ric now standing before her ... "If you see him ... tell him I love him too..." Ric drew her into him and she wrapped her arms around him not wanting to ever let him go.

EPISODE 22 The PCPD -- Alexis placed both her hands on top of the table and leaned in towards Zander. He avoided looking at her by looking at the shiny silver bracelets he was wearing. "Look at me..." Alexis said and Zander looked up. "You need to take this deal Ric is offering you. You have Emily and your children to think about, Zander. You can't very well protect them from behind bars." "Yeah well I can't very well protect them if I'm dead! And taking Ric's deal will just be signing my death warrant, Alexis!" "Look, you signed your death warrant when you took over your father's business, Zander and Emily married you regardless, cause she loves you and she knows you will protect her! She trusts you! You can't go to prison and leave her with Devon, unprotected. You have no other choice but to take Ric's deal!" Zander couldn't imagine his life without Emily and his children, they are his world. He couldn't let his children grow up without a father and making the decision to take the prison term would be leaving without a father for the next 20 years. Alexis was right, he can't protect his family from behind bars. He had no other choice but to take Ric's deal. Alexis saw Zander was thinking over his options and excused herself from the room to talk with Ric. Perhaps leaving Zander to think on what she said would change his mind. She left the interrogation room and closed the door behind her, Ric meeting her when she emerged. "So .. did you talk some sense into him?" "I tried, I'm hoping he makes the right decision." "I hope so too, for Emily's sake. She needs him." "Yeah she does. Do you really need his contact, it sounds like he gave you plenty for the immunity deal?" Alexis asked. "You know the deal, Alexis .... Zander gives us the contact and I'll make sure things are in order for him to get a suspended sentence on these new charges." Ric and Alexis turned towards the interrogation room as Zander emerged and walked towards them. "The deal still on the table?" "You're doing the right thing, Zander." Alexis said as she stepped forward. "Oh one catch though." Zander said as Ric pulled out the paperwork. "What's that?" "Thomas is included in this deal." Zander replied and looked over towards Thomas still sitting and handcuffed to the chair. Ric sighed. "Okay, you give me your contact and you and Thomas can go. I'll work out the deals and give them to Alexis." A smile came over Zander's face. "So, tell me ... the contact?" Ric asked. "Can we not do this out here in the open?" Alexis led the way back into the interrogation room, Ric and Zander followed. Zander took a seat at the long metal table and Ric sat down across from him. Alexis closed the door and went to Zander's side of the table as Ric reached into his coat pocket for a pen. There was a tablet laying on the table in front of Zander and Ric laid the pen on top for Zander to use to write down what Ric wanted to know. "Okay Zander, tell me .... who's your contact?" Zander took the pen in his hand and wrote down his contact's name on the tablet in front of him. He turned the tablet around for Ric to read the name he had written down. "You have got to be kidding!" Ric blurted out. Zander smirked from across the table, "Ric, you wanted my contact and now you have him. I cannot help it he's on a cold, hard slab in the morgue."

Wow! Just wow! I love that you guys remembered the history regarding Days - a great connection! Love this episode and I wouldn't of changed a thing!

EPISODE 21 The PCPD -- Ric walked out of the interrogation room and back to the desk to finish up the paperwork, Alexis followed and asked to see her client. "May I see my client now?" Ric agreed and had Zander uncuffed from the chair, they walked into the interrogation room and Alexis closed the door for privacy. "Has he lost his mind?!" Zander shouted at Alexis and she offered him a seat. "Ric's doing what he thinks is the right thing to do." "The right thing to do? Does he know that this will destroy my family?! I'm not too concerned about my business but Emily will be devastated and not too mention she's at risk right now, Alexis! Being arrested could not of come at a worse time!" "I know, Zander .. I told him that. I'm working on a deal." "What kind of a deal?" "A lesser charge and a suspended sentence." "Alexis, do you know what Ric has in evidence? He's not going to go for that, especially when he has my entire shipment! He's got me over a barrel and he knows it." "Let's not get ahead of ourselves with thinking the worst of your brother ...." her thought interrupted by Ric walking into the room. Ric came in and closed the door behind him. "Okay, you know I've got you on a list of charges that will send your ass to Pentonville for the next 30 years ... BUT, I've thought about it and made a few phone calls." "And ... you're willing to deal with my client?" "IF he can give me what I want." Ric teased. "What more do you want, Ric .... I've already given you more then enough for the immunity deal." "I want the bigger fish, Zander ..... if I get him, I'll deal to a lesser charge, suspended sentence and you go home to your wife and family. If not, well then ....." "If not then .. what? You're gonna send your own brother to prison?!" Alexis spoke up. "Wait, so if I give you my contact, I'll walk on these charges plus our immunity deal still stands?" "That about sums it up." Ric answered waiting to hear Zander's decision. "You know what that does to me Ric? That will put the biggest red target on my forehead, bigger then one I already have on for Jason! ..... " Zander sat and thought about the options he was facing. "No ... no way. I'm not giving up my contact." "You better re-think that Zander ... the deal isn't on the table very long. Remember you have Emily to think about and your children." Ric hoping to play on Zander's weaknesses to get what he wanted from him. "If I do this deal, Ric ... I'm signing my death warrant as well as my family's. I am not putting them in any more danger then they are already in!" "With the evidence I have against you, Zander .... your children will have their own children when you next see them, do you want that?! Do you want Emily to raise those children alone for the next 15 to 20 years? Do you?!" Alexis stepped in and backed Ric off of Zander. "Give me a few minutes with him..." "Fine .. but like I said, this deal is fading fast, so if you want it, you better jump at it pretty quick." Ric walked out of the interrogation room and closed the door, leaving Zander to ponder the consequences of making the deal to save his life from prison or to make the deal and sign his death warrant.

EPISODE 20 Zander's Warehouse -- The officers had cuffed Thomas and Zander and walked them out to the squad cars that were parked out behind the warehouse. As they got to the squad car, Ric turned Zander towards him. "You told me once to do what I had to do, it's my job as DA. Well guess what, my job as DA is making sure criminals that make their lives here in Port Charles get arrested, and unfortunately, brother dear, you are one of them." "You know Alexis will have me out on bail by tomorrow morning!" Zander barked back as the officer shoved him down into the back seat of the squad car and slammed the door. Ric turned away from the car and started to walk back to his unmarked vehicle .... "I don't think Alexis can even help you this time." PCPD Squad Room -- Ric and the officers walked thru the squad room doors with Zander and Thomas both in silver bracelets. "Take a seat ...." Ric said as he showed Zander the chair by the officer's desk. "Hey .. I get a phone call." Zander said and Ric handed him the receiver from the phone that sat on the desk. "You have one call, so you better make it Alexis." Zander dialed the phone and called his attorney. "I need you. I'm at the PCPD." Zander hung up the phone and looked on as the officer talked with Thomas, who sat at the next desk over from where Zander was sitting. Alexis was right, yet again. The deal that he had made with Ric had come back and bit him, and he couldn't help but think about what all this was going to do to his family. It wasn't long before Alexis arrived at the PCPD and found Zander sitting in a chair, handcuffed to the wooden arms. "What's going on here, Ric?" she barked as she approached her client, Ric sitting at the desk filling out paperwork. "What's going on here, counselor is that I am charging your client with possession, distribution and trafficking of an illegal substance. And before you even ask if I have proof ....." Ric reached in the box that sat on the floor next to the desk and pulled the evidence from the box and laid it on the table. Zander laid his head back and closed his eyes because he knew Ric had him dead to rights with what he's got in that box behind the desk. "And you had a search warrant for that?" Alexis asked, her mind thinking quickly of a way to get Zander out of this mess. "Yes I do." Ric pulled the search warrant from his jacket pocket and handed it to Alexis. "This collar is by the book, counselor." "May I see you a minute?" Alexis asked as she motioned to Ric she wanted to see him in private. Ric got up from his seat and followed her into the interrogation room, closing the door behind him. "What are you doing? Do you even know?!" Alexis questioned. "Look I'm not liking this any more then you are, Alexis! But I cannot sit by and watch my brother do his dirty dealings right underneath my nose!" "Okay, what about Zander's deal? He told me .." "Yeah Zander and I have a deal ... I gave him immunity for the murders of Sal and Miguel. Not for drug possession and distribution!" "Do you know what this is going to do to Emily?! Do you even care about your brother or his family?! Ric you can't do this to him and you know damn well that you left very little wiggle room for me to help him!" Ric hung his head because he knew she was right. He didn't think far enough ahead to consider Emily and Zander's family, he was focused more on taking down Zander's operation then what would happen when he did. "Okay what about a deal, Ric? A lesser charge, suspended sentence ...?" Alexis continued hoping Ric would realize that what he was doing. "Help me here, Ric ... give me something." Ric pondered Alexis's offer, but need more time to go over a few things before he'd give her a definite answer. "Look, I'll think about it, that's the best I can do for now."

EPISODE 19 At the hospital -- "Look, the deal was straightforward and it was done between my brother and I. I didn't want to drag you into this Alexis." "Drag ... me into this? Zander, I'm your attorney of record, don't you think you should of consulted with me first before going and making deals with the DA?" "Alexis I didn't have time to consult with you." She sighed heavily. "Okay, so what kind of deal did you make that you shouldn't of ." "Full immunity ...." "Really ... for what? I mean, there has to be a catch?" "In exchange for the information on the man whose been behind all that's been happening around here for the past 6 months." "And Ric was okay with this?" "Well, not at first .. it took a little convincing, but he went with it." "I don't like the sound of that, Zander." Alexis replied. "Ric and I have an understanding ... let's leave it at that." Alexis sighed. "Well, let's just hope this deal of yours don't come back and bite us in the ass." Ric's Office -- Ric returned the PCPD and headed straight to his office. Zander might have gotten immunity from the case about Sal and Miguel but he surely didn't have any deals about exporting and importing illegal product. Ric had no other choice but to write out an arrest warrant for his brother. Ric had seen too much and confiscated too much evidence from the warehouse to look the other way. Ric walked into his office and he was startled to see someone sitting in the chair waiting for him. "Mom?! What are you doing here?" Ric said as he realized it was his mother waiting for him. "I came to visit with you, can't a mother visit her son?" "Yeah you can, but I'm ... quite busy with work at the moment." Ric answered not wanting to write out the arrest warrant in front of their mother, but he had no other choice, he had to act now. Ric sat down at his desk and opened a file drawer. He pulled out the proper paperwork for the warrant and began filling out what he needed to. Elenore sat and watched as Ric made a phone call to the courthouse and she listened as Ric asked for the judge to sign a warrant for Zander. "You can't do this Ric!" his mother blurted out as she rose from the chair. "I can mom and I am. I have evidence on Zander, I can't turn my back on it!" "He's your brother! How can you do this to him?!" "Do this to him? Mom, he's been conducting illegal activities in Port Charles for the last 5 years now, and I've always looked the other way, it's time I stopped and did my job!" Ric grabbed his coat and stormed out of his office, leaving his mother alone worried about what was happening with her two sons. Ric hurried down to the squad room and grabbed a few officers to go with him. The PCPD Squad Room -- "Let's go, pick up Zander." Ric ordered. "Ric ..." Commissioner Scorpio called. Ric turned around to see Mac standing only a few feet from him with a stack of files in his arms. "You're doing the right thing." Mac said. "I'm just doing my job." Ric turned on his heel and he and the officers walked out of the squad room on their way to serve the arrest warrant on Zander for the illegal product and shipments they had found in the warehouse. With Emily asleep still, Alexis and Zander talked for a while in the lounge just outside her room when Zander's cell phone rang. "I'm sorry, I have to take this." he said to Alexis as he pulled out his phone and flipped it open. "What's going on, Thomas?" "I need you here at the warehouse on Pier 53.....right away." "Okay, I'm on my way." Zander flipped closed the cell phone and said goodbye to Alexis, who became concerned something was going down that needed Zander's attention. Zander's Warehouse -- Ric had the officers positioned out of sight, but he had a clear view of the alley behind the warehouse on Pier 53. He had hoped that Zander was still tending to business as usual, and soon enough, Zander would show to check on the shipments that had come in the night before. He looked down at the warrants he held in his hand, they covered all of Zander's warehouses and the vehicles in Zander's fleet. Ric had covered all his bases this time, there was no way Zander was going to wiggle out this time. Thomas was inside the warehouse uncrating the recent shipment when Zander arrived. Ric held back the officers till Zander was inside and then gave him another few minutes just to be sure. "Okay ... let's go." Ric ordered into the walkie talkie he held in his hand. Zander and Thomas were discussing the manifest as Ric and the officers busted through the back door of the warehouse. It had all happened so fast, there was no time to run and Zander was surprised to see Ric with 4 officers approach him. Ric saw Thomas reaching for his 9mm he kept in a shoulder holster. "Don't even think about it." Ric said as one of the officer approached Thomas with caution and took the gun from his side. "Alright Ric, what's this all about?" Zander asked. "This is an arrest warrant and this is a search warrant." Ric handed his brother two folded documents. "Now turn around, I believe you know the drill." Zander rolled his eyes, he couldn't believe this was happening. "How could you do this to me Ric?!" "Why is everyone asking me that! This is my job, Zander. I am here arresting a criminal ... that is you, right?" Ric said as he turned his brother around to face him. "I thought we had a deal?!" "We have a deal on the murders of Sal and Miguel ... we have no deal for illegal product distribution and possession." Ric smirked. "You have got to be kidding!" "Does it look like I'm kidding, Zander? I have enough evidence on you, I can't turn a blind eye on this one. I'm sorry, Zander, not this time."

EPISODE 18 At the hospital -- Zander feeling pretty good about his deal with Ric, he had Thomas drive him back to the hospital to see Emily. He had been gone for quite a while and he was sure she'd be worried about him. Thomas pulled the limo up in front of the hospital and Zander gave him a few last instructions before he climbed out of the car. Zander walked down the corridor towards Emily's room and saw the guard he had posted, was there as instructed. Zander approached and the guard nodded in acknowledgment of his boss. Zander opened the door to Emily's room and peered inside. He noticed she had visitors and he hesitated, but Emily saw him before he had a chance to back out. "Zander .. where have you been?! I've been worried sick about you!" Emily scolded as Zander stepped into the room and closed the door behind him. "I've been keeping you safe ...." he began as he stepped towards her, glancing to her mom and dad standing on the other side of the bed. "You call this keeping her safe?" Alan replied as he pointed out to the guard outside the door. "Dad, please. Zander's doing all that he can to protect me!" Emily spoke up as she reached for Zander's hand. "May I speak with Emily, alone, please?" Zander asked implying for Alan and Monica to leave. "Come on Alan, let's leave them alone." Monica said as she coaxed Alan towards the door. Zander didn't say anything more till he saw the door close behind them. He took a seat on the edge of the bed and caressed his unborn child with his hand. "Now are you going to tell me where you have been? Ric was here looking for you and I didn't know for sure what to tell him." "Yeah I know, I spoke with Ric. He gave me a deal, Em." "What kind of deal?" she replied as she tried to sit up. "A kind of deal that guarantees me the rest of my life with you and our children." "What does that mean? Ric's not looking to arrest you, is he?" she became worried now because of Zander's answer to her. "No, he's not and it's nothing for you to worry about. I have it all under control." Zander tried to reassure her. "Yeah where have I heard that before ..." she snickered and raised his brow. "It's different this time .. promise." he replied. "Okay, Zander .. I trust you that it is." she answered as he leaned down and laid his lips against hers gently. "I won't let anything happen to you, Em. You can trust that." "I do, Zander .. I do." she reached up and embraced him, pulling him to her. He pulled back from her and caressed her cheek with his hand. "Has Dr. Meadows been to see you today yet?" "She was here earlier. She says everything looks good, but still wants me here so she can monitor the baby." Emily replied as she rubbed her hand over her belly. Zander stood up from the swivel stool and removed his suit jacket, he laid back on the chair that sat in the corner and rolled up his sleeves. Emily gave him a confused look, she wondered what he had planned now, as he went to the door and turned the lock. "Well, since Dr. Meadows insists that you spend all the time in that bed, I guess the only way a husband gets some TLC is if he joins you." he smirked as he turned down the lights and walked back towards Emily. Emily moved herself over to make room for Zander, being careful of the monitors she was connected to, he climbed into the bed with her. She leaned into him and laid her head in the crook of his neck, as he wrapped his arm around her and pulled her to him. His hand instinctively laid gently on their unborn baby and her hand joined his. "She's going to be okay, you know?" Emily said softly. "I know .. I'm just worried about the two of you. We've been here before and I don't want anything to go wrong." Zander replied as his thoughts traveled back to when Emily was pregnant with Devon. "Speaking of Devon, I guess Alice isn't tired of him yet?" Zander added jokingly. "Are you kidding? They love having him at the mansion. I'm probably going to have a hard time tearing him away from them when I get out of here. Don't worry about Devon, he's being spoiled rotten as we speak." Emily laughed. "I'm sure he is. Between Edward, Lila and your mother, Devon I'm sure is getting the best care. I'm not worried, just that he's been with them a while now ..." "Mom and dad don't mind to watch Devon, they're glad to have him when they get the chance." Emily replied as she snuggled close to him. Before Zander realized how exhausted they both were, he found himself drifting off to sleep with his wife in his arms. It wasn't very long before a knock on the door startled him awake. He slipped from Emily's arms and walked to the door. He unlocked the door to see Alexis standing in the hallway waiting for him. Zander could see Alexis was agitated. "I just got off the phone with Ric ... when were you planning on telling me about this deal you made with him?"

This was really an awesome episode!! Loved it! Jen

EPISODE 17 Backseat of Zander's limo -- A short time had passed and Zander sat waiting for Ric in the back seat of his limo. He didn't want to give up Lorenzo but if it meant staying out of prison, he'd hand Lorenzo over on a silver platter to Ric. "Thomas ...." "It's 10 minutes since the last time you asked, Sir." "Where the hell is he, Ric should of been here by now." "Maybe he's not going to show, Sir?" "Oh he'll show, he wants answers. This has been going on far too long. If anything, I know Ric and he's desperate to punish someone. He'll be here." Thomas looked in the rearview mirror and saw an unmarked police car pull up behind the limo. "I think your guest has arrived, Sir." Zander turned around to see the unmarked car parked behind them. Ric emerged from the driver's seat and walked towards Zander's car. The back door opened and Ric climbed in. "This better be good." Ric said as he closed the door. "It is but I want some assurances before I give you anything." Zander replied wanting some promises first. "Zander ... " Ric shook his head side to side. "Look, I'm not going down for something I had nothing to do with and if you want the person responsible for it, you'll give me what I want, Ric." Ric sighed knowing Zander knew exactly what buttons to push to get what he wanted. "Okay, what do want?" "I want is full immunity from this case, Ric. No questions asked." "So you are in over your head again, huh?" Ric replied, thinking on Zander's offer. "Do you want this man or not?" "Yes I do want him, but .. full immunity?" Ric contemplated what he should do, he really needed the information Zander had to stop the violence that had been happening over the past few months. "You are the DA, Ric .. you make deals all the time. Now I'm asking for a deal for me. What's the problem?" "The problem is, is that you are my brother, Zander. I don't want to be compromised for giving you a deal of full immunity!" Ric replied laying out for Zander the situation he could be in. "Then I guess you have a choice to make, now don't you? You either give me, your brother the deal of full immunity or no dice. I will go after this man myself and there will be more violence and more killing, Ric. I can guarantee you that!" "Alright! I'll take the heat for this if it comes back on me ..... you have your full immunity." Zander grinned. "Thank you." "Now .... tell me .... who is this person? Who are we up against?" Zander reached in the back pocket of the seat in front of him and pulled out a manilla file folder, at least an inch thick. He handed it to Ric. "This is all the information you need to put a stop to the man. I've done all the leg work for you Ric, all you need to do is prosecute him." Zander said as Ric looked down at the file folder he was handed. Ric opened up the folder and began looking through all the paperwork inside. A picture of the man was attached to the reports Zander's men had compiled. "I don't know what to say, Zander." "A thank you might suffice. And tell me that I will not have to worry about this man again. He has hurt my family, our family, Ric .. I want him punished!" Zander replied reminding Ric that it wasn't only Zander's family but Ric's family as well. Ric looked up from the folder and looked at Zander .... "Oh you don't have to worry about that, Mr. Alcazar will be punished for all he has done, trust me."

EPISODE 16 Zander's Warehouse -- "Dammit!" he scolded as the other officers came running to assist him. "What do you want to do know, sir?" one of the officers spoke up as they watched the dust fly in the air from the limo. "What I want is Zander! And I will bet you anything he was in that damn car!" Ric replied frustrated that his brother was one step ahead of him. "I want an APB out on Zander and all of his vehicles, including the jet! I want him in custody within 24 hours! He has some explaining to do!" Ric barked at the officers who then scattered back to the cars to get started on catching the suspect. As Ric stood in front of the warehouse, the cell phone in his pocket began ringing. He reached in and flipped it open to answer it. "Lansing." Ric answered. "I'm sorry Ric I had to do that." the voice replied, Ric knowing it was Zander on the other end. "Where the hell are you?!" Ric demanded to know. "I can't tell you, I'm sorry Ric but I'm doing this my own way." "Zander! I can't let you do that! ..." Ric's words drifted off when he heard he was talking to dead space. Zander had hung up on him. "Dammit, Zander!" he scolded to the cell phone as he felt the urge to throw it out of anger and frustration. Ric, heavy footed strutted over to the unmarked police car and ordered for other units to get down to the warehouse and confiscate everything inside, including the shipments and the files. He wanted everything. While Zander was playing by his rules, Ric was going to be playing his. Zander wasn't about to run, not with Emily still in the hospital and their baby's life at risk. He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and called Ric back. "Lansing." Ric answered. "Ric .. cleaned out my warehouse yet?" Zander replied but didn't get a chuckle out of Ric. "Actually, yes I have Zander." Ric said bluntly. "You didn't!" "Zander you left me no other choice." Ric replied. "Meet me at the cabin .... and leave the officers at home." Zander instructed. "Zander, I don't take orders from you, I'm not an employee of yours .... I'm your brother!" "Yeah my brother who just happens to be the District Attorney. You'll meet me at the cabin, if you want to catch the person who has reeked havoc on your city, Ric." Zander flipped his phone closed and Thomas drove Zander to the cabin to wait for Ric.

EPISODE 15 Ric's Office --- Ric had come back to see Emily a few times over the next few days and each time he would visit, he had a few choice words for Zander. Ric was become relentless about catching the assailant who tried to harm Zander's family, and Zander stood reluctant to tell Ric anything. Zander was pushing Ric to the point of arresting him for obstruction on top of a murder charge for Sal and Miguel Morales. Ric sat behind his desk and looked over the evidence in both cases, hoping to find a common line other then Zander. He didn't find any, unfortunately. Ric sighed deeply because he knew what he had to do, even though he didn't want to, Zander had pushed him to the point of choosing his job or his brother, and Ric couldn't cover for him any more. It was time Ric did his job. Ric got up from his seat with purpose and grabbed his suit jacket. As he walked down through the squad room he grabbed a few officers to take with him to serve the papers for arrest. He wanted to wait until Emily was out of the hospital and out of danger of losing the baby, but he couldn't wait any longer. If Zander wasn't going to tell him who was after him, Ric would take charge and make Zander tell him. Emily's Hospital Room -- Ric and the officers obvious stop was at the hospital. Zander was more then likely with Emily, he had been by her side every day, what would make this day any different. Ric rapped on the hospital door and waited to enter till he heard Emily's voice from inside and invited him in. She not too concerned to see Ric until she noticed the officers who followed him in. "I take it your looking for Zander?" she said when she saw the officers who stood in the doorway. "Yeah I am, has he been here today?" Ric replied as he looked around the room for evidence of Zander being there with her. "He was here earlier. He left a little while ago." "I guess you're not going to tell me where he went, huh?" Ric asked knowing Emily too well. "Sorry, Ric. I don't know where he went, he didn't say. Can I ask what you want him for this time?" "I'd like to get some straight answers from him for a change." Ric replied before leaving Emily's room heading to the warehouse, perhaps Zander had some business to tend to. Ric and the officers left the hospital empty handed and headed to one of Zander's warehouses down on the docks. If not with Emily, Zander would be conducting business, Ric had only hoped that this time, Zander was amidst paperwork and not business associates. Outside Zander's warehouse on the docks -- The unmarked police cars pulled up at the warehouse on Pier 51, two limos were parked out front. One limo Ric figured was Zander's, the other .... anyone's guess. Ric and the officers proceeded with caution, not knowing what they might find inside. The officer's guns drawn, ready for the unexpected. The door ajar, Ric pushed it open with his hand and peered inside into the empty warehouse. It dimly lit, though there was light in the office towards the back of the large empty space. Ric and the officers cautiously moved within the warehouse, alert for any sudden movements in the shadows. There were large wooden crates scattered about the warehouse, a closer look would tell Ric that Zander was obviously doing business with someone who would take the shipments off his hands. By just walking through the warehouse, Ric would have enough evidence to put his brother away for a very long time. But that wasn't what he was there for, it wasn't what the arrest warrant was intended for, so he had to be blind to the fact that there were crates of illegal product staring him in the face. "Zander! It's Ric, are you here?" Ric shouted as he and the officers walked towards the office. Some scurrying noises could be heard from the back of the warehouse and Ric ordered the officers to go check it out, leaving him alone looking for Zander. Ric opened up the office door slowly, hoping to find Zander at his desk. He was disappointed to find no one there, but a pile of paperwork. Though tempted to see what the pile contained, he kept focus on the task at hand, finding Zander. As Ric closed the office door, he could hear a car engine roar outside the warehouse. He rushed to the door, only to catch a glimpse of the taillights of one of the limos as it sped away down the alley.

EPISODE 14 Emily's hospital room -- Zander picked up the bouquet and carried it out to the corridor. The guard gave him a look of concern. "Marcus, take these and get rid of them. I don't care what you do with them, just take them. And then I want you to call Thomas and get him here, right away. It's urgent." Zander ordered. Zander pulled the note from his pocket and studied it. He wondered if all this time it was Lorenzo Alcazar pulling the strings. The explosion in the harbor, the attacks on the docks, the missing shipments.... was Lorenzo Alcazar responsible? Was Lorenzo Alcazar the person to blame for Emily being in the hospital? Zander's fists clenched around the note card as he thought about all that Lorenzo had done to him and his family. Lorenzo Alcazar was living on borrowed time. Zander sat with Emily, which eased her fears of being in the hospital and her worries about their baby. She had been in this situation before with Devon, and she knew the risks of being pregnant again. She began to blame herself. If she had not been so selfish of wanting another baby for her and Zander, she wouldn't of put a precious life in danger. "This is all my fault..." Emily said as she hid her head in her hands. "It is not your fault. Don't go blaming yourself for this, you and I both wanted another baby. If you take the blame for this, then I should share in it too." Zander replied as he pulled her hands away from her face. The moment was broken by a knock on the hospital room door and Ric peered in. "Am I interrupting anything?" "No, Ric come on in ...." Zander invited as he swiped his hand across his eyes and wiped his tears away. Ric came in and stood at the bottom of Emily's bed with a smile across his face. "Well, you're looking better." Ric said to Emily. "Thanks ... I'm feeling better." she replied as she caressed her tummy. "How's the baby, he's doing well too, I hope?" "Yeah, he's doing a lot better. So says Dr. Meadows. We just need a lot of bed rest." "Good... happy to hear that." Ric replied to Emily then turned his focus on his brother. "Zander, can we talk?" "Sure ... I'll be right outside if you need me." Zander said before leaving Emily and going with Ric out into the hallway to talk. "We got nothing on the assailant from the other night, Zander. Not fingerprints, witness .... nothing." Ric disappointed he didn't have better news. Zander not wanting to tell Ric about the flowers delivered to Emily from Alcazar, he wanted to handle the situation on his own. Alcazar had done this to *his* family, and he would handle it. Zander had enough experience with the PCPD know when that he would have a better chance at making Alcazar pay for his crimes against the family, then any court of law. Ric noticed Zander's expression and realized Zander had something but was keeping it from him. "You know something don't you?" Ric asked and Zander realized Ric saw the wheels turning inside his head about Alcazar. "Sorry, my men came up empty too ..." Zander answered, lying to Ric. "Don't give me that! You know who sent the man to your house, Zander .. you know, don't you?" Zander sighed, hoping he could keep what he knew to himself, but Ric saw right through him. "Zander, you have to tell me!" Ric demanded. "I don't have to tell you anything, Ric! This is business ...." Zander replied letting Ric know where he stood. "This isn't business, Zander .... this is personal! And it became personal when Emily became the target, and you know it!" "Just know that I've got it handled." Zander said as he turned and walked towards Emily's room. "No, Zander .... you're going to tell me who is responsible for this and you're going to tell me right now!" Ric ordered as he grabbed Zander's arm at the elbow, preventing him from going anywhere. Zander yanked his arm away from his brother's grasp and without answering him, Zander walked back into Emily's room, leaving Ric standing alone in the hallway, still waiting for answers.