SoapQueen89

The courtroom -- The family walked into the courtroom, Ric and Alexis followed them in and they all took their seats. Sonny was yet to arrive to the courtroom, only his attorney was sitting at the defense table. The side door opened and the guard walked in with Sonny by his side. Sonny handcuffed in front and led to his seat at the table with Victoria. The guard sat him down in the seat hard and it took all of what Zander had in him not to snicker at the thought of Sonny spending the next 20 years of his life in prison. It was what his family had been waiting for for the last 15 years. All got quiet in the courtroom as the bailiff asked everyone to rise from their seats as the Honorable Judge Cooper walked in and took his seat on the bench. Cooper struck down his gavel to open court and then looked out across his courtroom at all who were there to witness the verdict. Carly, Jason and Elizabeth sat behind Sonny, as Zander and Emily along with Elenore sat waiting on the opposing side. Judge Cooper looked sternly at Sonny before he began to read what he had written down for himself. "I must say, I am not surprised to see my courtroom filled this afternoon. Mr. Corinthos you must be a popular person to have so many people wanting to hear what fate I will be dealing you today." Cooper began as he looked down at Sonny, who just smirked in return. "Well, now as you all know I have reached my decision about Mr. Corinthos and the charges that have been pressed against him. And I won't leave you in suspense any longer. Mr. Corinthos, please rise." Sonny and Victoria rose from their seats as Judge Cooper looked down upon them from the bench. "Mr. Corinthos before I put forth this verdict on you, do you have anything to say in your defense?" Cooper asked as Sonny looked up at him. "No sir I don't. I don't think anything I would have to say would change your mind, you obviously have reached your decision, and I don't think I or anyone else can change it." Sonny spoke up. Carly leaned forward in anticipation of the verdict and reached out her hand to her husband for support. "Okay then, I guess I will continue. In the case brought against you Sonny Corinthos, you were charged with Murder in the first degree and I have reviewed all the evidence and the testimony brought before me over the last few weeks. Taking into consideration all that I have heard from both sides and the witnesses that have testified in this court, I find that you, Sonny Corinthos are innocent of the charge of Murder in the first degree. After reviewing all of the evidence, I am ordering this case to be a case of justifiable homicide." "You have got to be kidding?! Sonny killed my father, your honor! I was there!" Zander rose from his seat and protested the judge's ruling. "Mr. Smith, sit down!" Judge Cooper demanded as Ric rose from his seat and tried to calm down a very angry Zander. "We'll get him another way... trust me." Ric whispered to his brother as he sat back down next to Emily. While there were outbursts from Zander, Sonny embraced his wife who sat behind him, along with Jason and Elizabeth. A smirk came across Sonny's face and Zander noticed, which made him more angry and it took all of what was inside him to stay in his seat and not cause mass chaos in the courtroom. Zander flinched forward and Ric and Emily both reached for him to keep him in his seat as they both noticed why he was so anxious to get up. Elenore slouched down in her seat and held her hand to her head, she knew now she would never be able to be with her family, she still was in danger, and now more then ever. Judge Cooper rapped his gavel on the bench and brought his courtroom to order once again. "This is not the time or place for explanations of my ruling, but I would like to see Mr. Smith and company in my chambers. Mr. Corinthos, you are free to go." Judge Cooper ordered and struck his gavel down for the last time. "Court's dismissed." the judge got up from his seat and stepped down, he waited by the side door for the bailiff as Sonny and his family celebrated as they walked out of the courtroom. All Judge Cooper could do was shake his head at the spectacle he was witness to. After exchanging glares with Sonny and those with him, Zander and his family, along with Alexis, did as they were ordered to do, they went to meet with Judge Cooper in his chambers. Zander stormed into the judge's chambers and voiced some harsh words before Ric could stop him. "You do realize you just put the most wanted man on the east coast back on the streets?! Sonny is guilty as sin and you know it!" Zander shouted leaving off some steam still inside him. Ric came up behind him and tried to get control of his brother before he got himself arrested. "I'm sure Judge Cooper has a very good explanation as to why he left public enemy #1 back out onto the streets." Ric said to his brother and then glared over his shoulder at Judge Cooper. "Let's hear what he has to say before we go throwing around accusations." Ric continued as Zander listened to him. "Okay let's hear it! Do tell ... I'd like to know why you left my father's killer loose!" Zander still shouting as Emily and Elenore stood just inside the door with Alexis. Ric trying to regain some control of the situation. "Would you have a seat and perhaps I will tell you why, Mr. Smith." Cooper said as he took off his robe and sat down behind his desk. Zander reluctantly took a seat and Ric did too, their mother taking a seat as well next to Ric, waiting hear the explanation too. "My reasons for my decision are this .... I had a meeting this morning with two federal agents who have been working on a case for the past 5 years, and though I cannot tell you the details, my decision was heavily weighed on what they had to tell me. Along with a few other discrepancies in the testimony, I had to rule the way I did. As I understand it, with this verdict, Mrs. Smith you are still in protective custody of the federal government, however, after what I heard this morning, your paperwork for release is underway. That is IF you are willing to move here to Port Charles to be with your family. Even though I don't agree with your son's choice of business and wish myself that I could sentence him to 20 years, Zander is one person who could protect you better then any one else. With that said Mr. Corinthos may be out on the streets, but he won't be for very long." "Okay that's all well and good, your Honor, but how do we know that the fed's case will stick. This isn't the first time Sonny's been under investigation by the FBI." Zander questioned knowing he'd be in the same boat had it not been for some delicate handling of the situation by his attorney. "I can't answer that for you, Zander. I don't know and I can't guarantee you that Mr. Corinthos will be seeing the inside of a jail cell. I can't discuss the case the federal government has nor can I predict what will happen. I can tell you that I can keep your family together, if that's what all of you want?" the Judge replied as he looked towards Elenore. "Mom? That's what you want isn't it? To live here in Port Charles with us?" Ric asked as he reached for her hand and held it. She seemed to be off someplace else in deep thought and was snapped back at the touch of Ric's hand. "Oh, yeah that's definitely what I want. I want my family together, we've been apart way too long." "Good, then if that is all, I have some work to do before the next case." Judge Cooper said as he tried to empty his office so he could get some work done. The family left the judge's chambers, still questioning his decision and it now became a wait and see situation. Zander had some calls to make to his men, he needed to add more security now that Sonny was back on the streets, for how long he didn't know, but if the federal government couldn't rid their lives of Sonny, Zander was ready to make it happen.

Ric's office at the Courthouse -- Ric sat in his office behind the desk when the phone call came in. He called Zander and was the bearer of news that the judge was reconvening court that afternoon, he had made his decision. Ric collected the files on his desk and placed them into his outbox, then stood from his seat and smoothed out his jacket and tie, buttoning the jacket before walking towards the door. He picked up his briefcase before leaving his office and heading for a meeting with the FBI about his mother's case. He was hoping to hear a conviction that afternoon and if he did, he wanted to be sure his mother would be out of danger if she'd stay in Port Charles. A meeting room - 3 floors down -- Ric walked into the office, two gentlemen in suits were already there waiting for him. He set down his briefcase on the conference table and then approached the first man. "Mr. Brooks ... it's nice to see you again." Ric said politely as he extended his hand. "Mr. Lansing .. you, too. This is Mr. Cooper." Brooks said as he introduced the other gentleman to Ric. "Cooper? Any relation to our Honorable Judge Cooper here in Port Charles?" Ric question as he shook Cooper's hand. "He's my father." Cooper replied and smiled. "I see." Ric replied and then went to his briefcase to get the paperwork needed so they could get started. "I just received a phone call that the verdict is in on Mr. Corinthos. And I wanted to cut through some of this red tape that needs to be cut so my mother can reside here in Port Charles, that is if we get a conviction." Ric continued as the two gentlemen stepped forward and began reading over the paperwork Ric had already completed. "If you get a conviction this afternoon, Mr. Lansing, the government sees no reason why your mother couldn't move to where ever she feels most comfortable. I understand you and your brother both live here now, is that correct?" Brooks asked as he read over one of the documents. "Yes that is correct. Our mother would like to move here, if that's possible. She'd like to be close to the family." Ric replied. "We understand her needs, Mr. Lansing. If a conviction comes this afternoon, we'll see the paperwork is filed and your mother can be released from our protection." Cooper stated as a smile came over Ric's face. "Thank you. I'm sure my mother will be happy to hear this news." Ric replied with a smile as his cell phone rang from within his blazer pocket. He excused himself from the meeting to take the call. "Lansing." "Cut through that red tape yet?" Zander voice was heard from the other end. "Actually yes, and I'll tell you all about it this afternoon when you get to the courthouse." Ric replied as the two gentlemen he was meeting with said their goodbyes. "We'll be in touch, Mr. Lansing." Brooks said as he walked passed him, still on the cell phone with Zander. "Who was that?" Zander asked after he heard the other voice. "Mr. Brooks. I was meeting with him about mom's situation. I hope you are on your way to the courthouse, court reconvenes in 30 minutes." "Already here .... we're in your office." "I'll be right up." Ric replied and flipped his phone closed. He gathered his things and headed up to his office to meet with Zander. Ric's office -- As Ric reached his office, he saw Alexis approach from the opposing direction. She seemed to be in a hurry as she scurried down the hall towards him. She and Ric's relationship had grown closer over the past few weeks. Ric had asked her for coffee one afternoon and they had met at Kelly's, and then it was lunch going over paperwork for the trial, and finally last week Ric asked her for dinner. She was hesitant at first, but it was just dinner, so she thought. It was becoming quite clear that dinner wasn't all that had happened that night at his place. "Hey ...." she greeted Ric and he cautiously gave her a peck on the cheek. "Hey ... I was just about to go in and meet up with Zander and Emily, they're waiting for me in my office." Ric replied as he showed Alexis the door to the office. "Good ...." she said trying to catch her breath from being so rushed. Ric opened the door to the office and the two of them walked into together, noticing the eyes upon them, along with the smiles on the faces of those who were staring at Ric and Alexis's coziness. Ric walked in and set his briefcase down by the door and Alexis went to say hello to the family. As Ric stepped further into his office, his mother greeted him with a loving hug. "So, how did your meeting go?" she asked as she pulled back from him. "The meeting went fine. The government as no problems with you moving to Port Charles or where ever you want if there is a conviction this afternoon." Ric replied with a smile. He saw the smiles that came across their faces, but there still was some doubt with his mother. It concerned him that she'd be worried about living in Port Charles, and he wondered why she had doubts. "Mom? What's wrong?" Ric asked as he leaned forward against the desk. "Nothing is wrong, Ric. It's really great news about me being able to live here with my family." she replied and pasted a fake smile across her face as doubts filled her head. She couldn't help but remember Emily's relation and hearing the name Quartermaine again. It had been years since she had heard the name, but she wouldn't soon forget the memories. Ric looked bewildered to his mother and she just smiled. He shrugged off her reaction to his question and focused on what was at hand, Sonny's trial and conviction as he looked down at his watch and noticed they didn't have much time to get back down to the courtroom. "We better get going....Judge Cooper hates tardiness." Ric said as he got up from his seat and buttoned his jacket. The five of them headed down to the courtroom to hear the verdict, all of them hoping Sonny Corinthos would be spending the next 20 years behind bars.

At the cabin --- Emily and Elenore had taken Devon for a walk down to the lake, leaving Zander alone in the house to work in peace and quiet. With his mom staying with them, it was a little more crowded and alot more noisy then before, so to give him time to do some paperwork, Emily decided to give him a break from the family for a little while. Zander sat at the desk staring at the paperwork in front of him, he knew exactly why he was still looking at the same page for the last 20 minutes, his mind was filled with memories of his past, he wish he could forget. Though the memories of his father's shooting had dissipated, new memories filled their place now, those memories of he and his mother, and what they endured after his father's death. The moving around from town to town, not really settling down any one place so he could call home. Elenore had always told her son that it didn't matter where they lived, they had each other and that was enough. And he guessed it was, but looking back on the life they led for years after Frank died, he would never want that for his children or for Emily. He got up abruptly from his seat, his head spinning from the numbers he had been staring at for the last hour, he needed something to get his mind off of the business for a while. As he walked into the kitchen, he noticed a date circled in red and wondered why it was marked. He hadn't noticed it before, he made a mental note of it and he'd ask Emily when she came back from the walk with his mom and Devon. As he sat at the round table, the red circle caught his eye again and he stared at it till it became fuzzy. He remembered the last time he had seen one of those red circles and a smile came across his face. Numbers once again filled his head, this time, the numbers were dates, and dates he remembered quite well. He sipped the coffee he had just poured in his cup and grinned. Emily and Elenore waltzed through the front door with Devon giggling like he always did and Zander got up from the table and when to greet them. "Did you have a nice walk?" Zander asked as he walked towards them, Devon reaching for him as he got closer. Zander took Devon from Emily and smiled at him. Devon giggled into his chest as he buried his face against his daddy. Zander held Devon against him and he wrapped his little arms around Zander's neck and held on as Zander walked with him into the living room. "We had a nice walk and a nice talk, dear." Elenore said as she sat down with them. "Talk? I'm sure that talk was about me ...." his words drifted off when he heard the snickers come from the ladies who sat with him. "You and then some, sweetheart." Emily replied with a grin. "And while you were out talking about me, I noticed something myself." he got up from his seat and took Emily's hand. "Come with me ....." he said as he led her to the kitchen. They stood together in front of the calendar with the big red circle around the date and pointed at it, to show Emily what he had discovered. Her eyes widened, he never looked at the calendar hanging on the wall for as long as they had been living at the cabin, yet today of all days, he noticed it. She had made that red circle quite a few days ago and just kept her eye on the days that went by, hoping. He noticed Emily's reaction to his discovery and grinned, he knew what it meant. Emily saw the grin come across his face, and thought she better say something before he jumped any further with his conclusions. "Zander .. I'm ... this doesn't mean that I'm ..." she stuttered as she tried to get out the words so she could explain the red circle. Emily had her own suspicions but she didn't have the proof that she wasn't or even if she was, she needed another week to be positive, she had to deter him for a little while longer. The longer she paused before explaining the more excited he got and the more convinced he was that she was pregnant again. "Look the red circle doesn't mean anything ... I mean it probably meant something at one time, but it doesn't mean anything now. Let's just forget we saw it, okay?" she said hoping he'd agree to forget that it was there and not to worry about why it was there. She hated to cover up why it was there, but she wanted to be sure before she'd tell him. It wouldn't be the first time that she thought she was pregnant and wasn't. And with the risky pregnancy she had with Devon, she just wanted to be sure before turning their life any more upside down. Zander raised an eyebrow to her explanation, and certainly didn't believe her. Emily was never a good liar, he saw right through her but trusted her enough to tell him when she was ready to. He knew what kind of stress would fall upon her again if she were pregnant, it was a rough pregnancy with Devon, and he understood her motives for not wanting to tell him if she wasn't sure. "I'm sure you'll tell me when you're ready to ...." he smiled and walked away from her. She laughed nervously, taking one last look at the red circle then glancing down at her flat stomach and smiled.

Judge Cooper's Chambers -- "It's nice to meet you, Emily .... I'm Elenore." Zander's mother replied as she extended her hand to Emily. "I wish I could say that I've heard a lot about you, but Zander's been pretty quiet about his family over the years." Emily smiled. "It's okay, dear. I have my boys with me now and of course a new family with you and my grandchild, we can start anew and forget about the past." Elenore proclaimed. "I'm sure your sons would like that very much, as would I and Devon." "Good." Elenore replied and then looked at Ric. "How did the case go?" "The judge is in deliberations. It may be a while. He has a lot of testimony and evidence to review." Ric replied as the two boys huddled together with their mother. "How soon do you have to return?" Zander asked, his mind already thinking of an option to keep his mother a little longer in Port Charles. "I don't really know Alex. But I can't be away for very long, the danger is still out there." she replied and wondered what he had working in his mind. "Zander, I have an idea ..." Emily spoke up. "I hope your thinking of what I'm thinking, sweetheart." "I'm sure that I am .... why don't she come stay with us for a while. A few days perhaps." Emily suggested and Elenore became worried about bringing more danger to her son and his family. Zander pulled Emily to him and kissed her as a thank you for thinking of her idea. "And don't worry about the danger, Emily and I are staying at one of the safe houses right now, it wouldn't be any trouble at all to have another guest. There's plenty of room." Elenore looked at Ric and then at Zander and Emily's smiling faces. "I would have to clear this with the proper authorities first." Ric said wanting to do this by the book. "Okay, you go clear the red tape and I'll have one of the men take mom and I back to the cabin, Marcus can take Emily to pick up Devon at the Quartermaine's. You can meet us later and let us know what you've been able to accomplish." Zander suggested to Ric. Elenore became excited to know she'd be spending some time with her family and she would be able to see for the first time her grandson, she was anxious to have some quality time with her sons. Zander pulled his cell phone from his jacket pocket and called one of his men, then he'd call Marcus. "Thomas, I need you to pick me up at the courthouse." Zander ordered. "And let's do the pickup on the side street, we have a delicate package come with us." he added as he winked at his mom. He hung up with Thomas and then called his other driver, Marcus to pick up Emily. He made the arrangements and closed his cell phone before stuffing it back in his suit jacket pocket. Zander stepped out into the hallway and held the door open for the rest of them, Ric heading towards his office after saying his goodbyes, while the others went to the side exit and waited for Thomas and Marcus to pick them up. Marcus was waiting for Emily as soon as they arrived at the side exit. Zander kissed her goodbye and assisted her into the back of the limo. "I'll see you back at the cabin." he said before he closed the door and then Marcus whisked Emily away. "She's even more beautiful in person Alex. You make me very proud." Elenore said and she kissed his cheek. It was the first time he could remember hearing that from either of his parents. All he's ever wanted was to have his parents proud of him and proud of what he had accomplished. He could finally say that his life was now complete.

Judge Cooper's Chambers--- Zander tried to focus his eyes on his mother, as warm tears welled in them. He had thought for so long that she was dead and now she was standing before him, it was all too surreal for him to comprehend at the moment. All he wanted to do was hold her in his arms and never let her go again. Elenore wiped her eyes from tears and released her grip on her son and offered him a seat so they could talk. "I'm sorry about all this Alex, I didn't want you involved in all this." Elenore said to her son as he sat across from her at the table. "I know but it's alright now ... I know the truth now and you're okay. That's what matters to me." Zander replied as he reached across the table and offered his hands to her to hold. "How are you, Alex? I mean really." she asked with concern. "There is so much to tell you, I don't even know where to begin." he replied wondering how much she knew about his life with Emily or if she knew about taking over his father's business. "A good place to start would be at the beginning." she cracked a smile towards him. Zander noticed that his mom glanced down at his hand and smiled when she saw the gold wedding band, so he thought he'd start with Emily and his family. His mom had not known about Emily or Devon, and he wondered how much she would like his wife, his mom a hard one to please sometimes. "You're married?" she asked when she saw the gold band on his left hand. "Yes to a wonderful woman who I adore. We've been married about 4 years now and we have a little boy, named Devon." Elenore's face lit up when she heard that her son had a child. She had always wanted grandchildren and it overjoyed her to know that her son did her proud in that respect. "Devon's with Emily's parents today, but I can show you a picture if you'd like to see one?" Zander said and he pulled his wallet from his pants pocket and opened it up, showing his mother a picture of his family. "This is Emily and Devon..." his words drifted off as his mother took the wallet in her hands and the tears began to fall once again. "He's adorable, Alex. He's got alot of you in him." Elenore remarked about Devon. "Your wife, she's beautiful Alex." she added as the images of her son's family burned into her memory for safe keeping. "Thank you .. they are my life and I don't know what I would do without them." "So, tell me about business. I read in the newspapers that you took over Frank's business when he passed away. Is that true?" his mother asked and Zander taken back that she knew about that. "Yeah, mom ... that's true. I have taken over the business, once Uncle Joe passed away, he had inherited from Frank and I was next in line when he died. It's doing well, Emily and I can't complain about the lifestyle it entails other then the danger we live in daily but that's to be expect in this business." "I'm sure when your wife married you Alex, she knew what came with it. She looks to be a very strong woman, Alex." his mother gathered from the picture she was still holding in her hand. "She is that. She's been my strength at times, and I am so grateful to have her in my life." Zander replied just as the door to the room opened and Ric stepped inside, Emily in tow. Elenore looked up and smiled at her son, and then noticed Emily followed behind him. Ric went to his mother and embraced her as she stood from her seat. Emily walked in and closed the door behind her. Zander stood from his seat and pulled her to him and into his arms, giving her a kiss on the cheek as she fell into him. "Mom, this is my wife, Emily."

Judge Cooper's Chambers -- Ric glanced around the room to see who was in attendance and then focused back on his mother who still had his hands in hers. He pulled a chair from the corner of the room and sat down next to her. She latching onto his hands once more as she stared at him, memorizing every inch of his face. Judge Cooper introduced everyone in the room to each other and then opened the case file that laid on his desk in front of him. Ric noticed that Sonny's attorney was not present and began to wonder if she had been called to the meeting or if the judge was not going to to give in to his request to let his mother testify. "Are we all in agreement here about Mrs. Smith testifying in chambers instead of open court?" Judge Cooper asked of those in his office. Ric looked at his mother wondering who had made the decision for her to testify in chambers, but he thought too it a better solution then in open court where she would be amongst strangers and the press. "I have one request your Honor, that is if my mother agrees to it as well." Ric began and looked towards his mother sitting next to him. "And what is your request counselor?" Judge Cooper asked as he looked over his wire rimmed reading glasses. "If my brother and I could have some time with her before she goes back? My brother has yet to see her and I think we need to have some time spent together as a family, just the three of us." Ric's request didn't sound unreasonable to Judge Cooper. "I have no objections. Mrs. Smith?" Judge Cooper replied and gave it to Ric's mother now to decide. A smile came over her face as she thought of spending time with her two sons. "Alex is here?" she asked of Ric. "He will be, I told him and it was his request to see you." Elenore was elated to hear that her other son would be arriving soon, and she agreed to meet with them after her testimony. Ric knew Zander would be overjoyed with the news of meeting with their mother afterwards, it was what he wanted. "Okay, I guess we're all finished here, we'll get her testimony on record and we'll reconvene in say 30 minutes." the Judge ordered as the others stood from their seats and left his chambers, leaving Ric and his mother sitting in their chairs still. "I'm going to see if Zander's here yet." Ric said as his mother left go of his hand reluctantly. Ric got up from his seat and left the judge's chambers to go look for his brother. Ric wasn't looking for his brother long, before he found Zander and Emily sitting on a bench outside the courtroom waiting. Zander stood up from his seat as Ric approached. "So, did you see mom yet?" Zander asked anxiously. "I did. She's in with Judge Cooper now. We're going to take her testimony in chambers and she's agreed to spend some time with us before they take her back home." A smile came across Zander's face. "So .. is she alright? Tell me ....how does she look?" Zander anxious to hear all about his mother. "She's fine. I didn't get to talk with her much, but she's very anxious about seeing you." Ric told him. "I have to get back to chambers, but I'll be back out soon to get you." Ric added as he led his brother back to his seat with Emily. When Ric returned to the judge's chambers, he saw Sonny's attorney enter and he followed her in. His mother still in her seat, and she turned to see Ric come in and sit back down beside her. Ric saw the look on her face of concern. "He's fine, mom....." Ric said and his mom cracked a smile. The stenographer took down Elenore's lengthy testimony word for word. It had taken a little longer then expected, so Judge Cooper was ready to reconvene his court as soon as they had finished. Ric had decided that he would care on the case before Judge Cooper and allow his mother to spend some time alone with Zander in one of the empty witness rooms down the hall from the courtroom, Ric would join them later after the Judge's ruling. The tall gentleman in a suit escorted Elenore to on of the witness rooms to meet with Zander, and Ric went back to the courtroom to let him know he could meet with her now. Ric approached his brother who sat waiting for him outside the courtroom and Zander stood once again from his seat. Ric accompanied by an officer that would take Zander to meet Elenore in a room down the hall. Ric explained to Zander that she was waiting for him and that he'd be there as soon as the judge gave his ruling. Zander went with the tall man down the hallway to the room where Elenore was waiting for him. Zander's insides were tied in knots, his palms were moist, his heart was racing, it was the first time he would see his mother in 10 years. He took a deep breath and opened the door of the witness room. As he did, she turned to see who was coming into the room and as she recognized her son's face, a smile came across hers. Zander stood in the doorway, not sure what to do, but his instinct was to rush over to her and embrace her as any son would. She reached out her arms to him and he rushed to her, falling into her loving embrace. Tears welled in his eyes as he wrapped his arms around her and held her close to him. She latched on to his upper arms and pulled from him to take a better look at her son. "It's really you isn't it, Alex .." she sniffled back the tears and smiled.. "Yeah mom, it's really me."

At the hospital -- Zander stopped in his tracks and looked down at his brother in disbelief. He didn't want to believe what Ric said to be the truth, he was at the funeral, he saw the casket being lowered into the ground. His mother was dead. Ric pulled him back down to the couch and had Zander sit with him once more. "What you mean she isn't? She's dead Ric, I know, I was there." "I know, so was I but trust me, she's not dead. Our mother is alive, Zander." "No Ric, you're lying! Why are you telling me this?" Zander replied not believing what Ric was telling him, he saw what he saw, his mother was dead. "I'm telling you this, Zander, because if all goes right, she's going to testify this afternoon. And I wanted you to be prepared when she enters the courtroom." Zander looked at Ric in shock. "She's what? How could you let her testify, Ric?" Zander asked as it seemed now to be sinking in that his mother really was alive and he needed to protect her like he had always done before. "I need her Zander .... she's an eye witness for this case against Sonny! I have to put her on the stand! You don't get it, do you?" "No I don't, why don't you explain it to me?" Zander said as he sat back down with his brother waiting for an explanation. "After Frank died, our mother went into hiding, you were quite young yet, so I doubt you'd remember, but she went into protective custody, you know, new identity, place to live ...." Ric's words drifted off as he noticed Zander drifted off to some far place as he remembered the life after his father was killed. "I remember we moved around alot, we never really had roots anywhere after Frank died." Zander remembered. "Right, you were moved around alot because Sonny had his men hunt you down, Zander .... you and mom ... Zander, she's been on the run ever since." "Then Sonny knew about me the entire time, he knew I was his son when I came to town. But if he wanted us so bad, why am I still here, why hasn't he killed me yet if that's what he wants?" Zander was so confused at Sonny's actions against he and his mother. "I don't know Zander, you're going to have to ask him that. I can only imagine that he enjoys the thrill of the hunt, and keeping you around perhaps he thought mom would re-surface one day." "I remember after we left the house in Florida, they moved us to upstate New York for a while, near the Canadian border someplace, and I was about 15 when I left home, I couldn't handle it anymore. I had read in the newspaper that mom had died and I returned to our home in New York for the funeral. Dammit Ric, how could you keep this from me? We're brothers!" "I'm sorry I had to ... I didn't know how to tell you and I didn't know if I should tell you. I didn't want you going looking for her, Zander. She's been hidden for the last few years, I didn't know where she was till a few days ago." "You knew this entire time she was alive?" another blow to Zander hearing that his brother knew about their mother being alive for the past 10 years. "I had my suspicions, but I had no proof. I didn't want to bring any more danger on her by looking for her, Zander. And she's still very much in danger until Sonny's behind bars .... which is why I need her in that courtroom today, so we can put an end to this once and for all." Ric and Zander sat and talked awhile about their mother, till Emily appeared at the nurse's station. Ric had to meet Judge Cooper about his mother testifying, and hadn't much time to get to the courthouse. "Look, I have to meet with Judge Cooper in 20 minutes about this situation, but I will see you in about hour back at the courthouse." Ric said as he got up from his seat. "I want to see her Ric, I want to see her before she takes that stand .... you owe me that much." Zander demanded from his brother. "If there's time, I'll see if I can get in to see her before she testifies." "Before who testifies?" Emily said as she came upon the tail end of their conversation. Ric said his goodbyes and left Zander to explain things to Emily about their mother. Zander led Emily to the couch and sat her down. A worried look came across her face as Zander sat down next to her. "Before who testifies, Zander?" Emily asked again and Zander sighed heavily not sure how to tell her about his mother. "My mother .... Ric's making the arrangements to have my mother testify against Sonny this afternoon." Emily giggled. "Well, that can't happen Zander .. your mother's dead, she has been for sometime." Zander looked at her still not quite believing it himself. "No, she's not ... my mother is alive ..." At the courthouse -- Ric walked down the dreary corridor towards Judge Cooper's chambers, he was expecting just a meeting between he and Judge Cooper but when he opened the door to the office, he was surprised to see who was sitting there waiting for him. He stepped into the office, and she turned around to see him stand before her, she smiled at him when she recognized her own son. Ric dropped his attache case on the floor and went to her. He looked at her, his eyes focused on her every feature remembering everything about her. It had been so long he had seen her, he was hoping he hadn't forgotten, and he didn't. She grabbed onto his hands, her hands were cold as ice, and then they reached up and touched his face, as if she was remembering him as well. "Is it really you, Ric?" she asked as Ric stood before her in disbelief she was really there with him. "Yeah mom, it's me."

Two more of Zander's body guards have been cast. These two young hopefuls are part of the Michael Bruno Group. They will be portraying two of the bodyguards, Trent and Jerry, respectively. "Trent" Will be portrayed by Dean Cochran, most known for competing on SOAPnet's "I Wanna Be A Soap Star." "Jerry" Will be portrayed by Jason Campbell

The Courtroom -- Ric noticed that Zander and Emily were both missing from the courtroom still and leaned in to Alexis to ask if she had known where they had gone to. He became concerned about his brother and Emily as he was asked if he had anymore witnesses. "If I may beg the court's indulgence, and ask for a short recess, my next witness has not arrived yet and I'm waiting to hear when that will be." Ric asked the judge for some extra time. The judge looked down at his watch and noticed it was almost lunchtime. "We'll take a brief recess for lunch. Court will resume at 2pm." he ordered and struck his gavel down to close the morning session of the trial. After the judge had left the courtroom, Alexis turned to Ric and asked who this witness was he was waiting for, she had read his witness list and she didn't see any witnesses that weren't in the courtroom that morning. "I'm waiting for a phone call from one of my staff, he's suppose to be getting another witness here for me, but I'm not sure how it's going to turn out. If I can get the witness here, Sonny's for sure going to prison." he was being very cryptic with her. "Care to tell me who this person is? You know surprise witnesses will call for an objection from Sonny's attorney." she reminded him of the legalities of it all. "If it works out the way I hope it will .... the witness will be .. my mother." he replied and saw her eyes widen. "You mean your's and Zander's mother?" she questioned shocked to hear that Zander's mother was alive. "I thought she had passed away a long time ago, Ric?" "That's the catch, she's been in protective custody for the last 15 years, and I don't know if I have the clearance to get her in the courtroom to testify just yet." Ric replied and a shocked Alexis thought about what this was going to do to Zander. "You know Zander has been told she died, have you even thought about your brother's reaction to this and that you knew about it and didn't tell him?!" Ric hadn't realized what it would do to Zander to see his mother again, his focus had been all about this case against Sonny. He knew he had to find Zander and tell him about their mother, he deserved the truth, and it was time to tell his brother that their mother was alive. Judge Cooper had accepted Ric's request of a private meeting in his chambers and asked Ric to meet 30 minutes before reconvening court. Ric still had to tell Zander about their mother, but he still hadn't had the phone call he had been waiting for, so he wanted to ask Judge Cooper for a continuance of at least 48 hours. At the hospital -- Ric had an hour before his meeting with Judge Cooper and had found Zander at the hospital getting his hand tended to by Bobbie. Zander saw Ric standing just beyond the curtain waiting for him and he noticed his brother looking worried about something, Zander had hoped it was nothing concerning the case. Bobbie finished up the last of the bandage on Zander's hand and left him get up off the gurney as she put away the supplies she used. "You should clean that tomorrow and re-bandage it, I'll give Emily the supplies to take home." Bobbie explained and Zander nodded in acknowledgment before leaving the cubical to see his brother. As he emerged from behind the curtain, Ric stepped forward and guided him the chairs to talk. Ric didn't know the best way to tell his brother about their mother, and he knew Zander would be furious with him for not telling him sooner. "There is something you need to know, Zander." Ric said as he led him to the couch and sat him down. "Okay, what's that?" an unexpecting Zander replied. "There's something I need to tell you about our mother." Ric began. "What's there to know, Ric? She died quite a few years ago .. end of story." Zander replied as he got up from his seat and Ric stopped him from going. "No, Zander she didn't."

A few new additions will be added to our roster. The following roles have been cast and for the duration of The Storm, they are recurring roles. The following actors may become contract players upon completion of The Storm, as the story moves into it's sequel, Wicked. Character Actor "Elenore Lansing-Smith" Will be portrayed by Anna Stuart. Probably most well known for her role on Another World as Donna Love. "Elenore" will debut in the upcoming episode #40. Zander's bodyguards have been cast. These roles are currently recurring but will become contract roles upon entering Wicked. "Thomas" - Zander's right hand man. Will be portrayed by Eric Dane. "Cory" Will be portrayed by Michael McLafferty "Marcus" Will be portrayed by Mykel Shannon Jenkins "Frank" Will be portrayed by Josh Casaubon "Wade" Will be portrayed by Jeff Henry "Greg" Will be portrayed by Tyler Alexander

The Courthouse -- Zander stormed down the hallway, and punched the first wall he came too with a closed fist. He pulled back his hand, the knuckles all red from the small drips of blood that seeped from the cuts the wall had made when his fist connected with it. He shook off the pain and stormed down the stairs, his temper still flared. As he walked down the front steps of the courthouse, the defenseless trash can that sat on the sidewalk found itself air born as Zander kicked it with his foot, trash scattered as the can flew and then hit the cement. He was angry with at himself for giving Sonny's attorney the shadow of doubt to use from his testimony, and he was angry with Sonny for being a bastard of a father who didn't give a damn about him. His temper flared even more as he thought about so many years he had without a father because of Sonny, because of what he did and probably get away with. He ran his hands through his hair in frustration as he paced the sidewalk trying to cool down. Emily was worried about her husband and went looking for him. She found him outside the courthouse and just watched him from a distance, keeping an eye on him so he didn't do something stupid. She knew what kind of temper Zander had, and anyone who would get near him during this time was in for alot more then they would bargain for. Zander had release the anger he was feeling before going back into the courthouse, and he stood down on the sidewalk, his fists clenched at his sides. He looked up towards the sky and just left it all out. It came from deep inside him, he felt it in his gut as it built inside him and he released it in a loud scream. The anger, the pain, the hurt .. all of it left him and he shook off the little bit that was left. Emily heard his cries from inside the doorway of the courthouse and rushed out the door to be with him. As she came down the cement steps, he turned to see her coming towards him. She ran into his arms hoping he was alright and he wrapped his arms around her, holding her close to him. His heart racing and his breathing erratic, she looked up at him and saw the pain still in his eyes. "Are you okay?" she asked as they stood together underneath a lit streetlight. "Now that you're here with me, I am." he replied as he held her close and her head leaned in tight against his chest. Emily noticed his blood soaked hand and knew something had happened. "Zander ... your hurt." she said as she took the bloody hand in hers and examined it for cuts. "Yeah, the wall won." he chuckled and then winced as she poked at the cuts on the hand. "I'll be fine." he added and she looked up at him. "We're going to take you to the hospital and get your hand checked out." she noticed his reluctance. "And I want no arguments." she said sternly. Zander reached into his pocket for his cell phone to call Marcus to pick them up. Marcus was not too far from where Zander and Emily were and had told Zander he'd be there in a few seconds to pick them up. Zander and Emily waited underneath the street light for Marcus and Zander noticed his limo making the turn onto the street only a few short blocks from where he and Emily were standing. Marcus pulled the car up to the curb and climbed out to go open the back door for Zander and Emily. He then opened the trunk and got a towel for Zander's hand. He handed it to Emily who applied pressure to Zander's hand, hoping to stop the blood from coming out of the wounds he had. "Take us to GH, Marcus ..." Emily instructed when Marcus got back into the car. He nodded in acknowledgment and turned the car around and drove to the ER. Meanwhile at Sonny's trial -- Inside the courtroom, Ric was about to call his next witness. "The prosecution calls Detective Jake Steele." Jake got up from his seat and walked towards the witness box. He took a seat in the chair and waited for Ric to ask his questions. "For the record, Detective .. please tell us your name, occupation and where you are from?" Ric asked. "Jake Steele, I'm a Detective with the Miami Police Department, Miami Florida." the detective replied. "Thank you. And what makes you involved in this case, Detective?" "My father was the investigating officer on this case 15 years ago, Mr. Lansing. He retired a few years ago and I inherited his quest to find out what happened to the deceased, Frank Smith. My investigation led me here to Port Charles and to Frank's son, Zander Smith." "Did you make initial contact with Mr. Smith when you arrived in Port Charles?" Ric asked of the Detective. "I tried to but when I arrived there had been a shooting a few days prior and Mr. Smith was in the hospital, heavily sedated, so there was no chance to talk with him at that point, I had to wait a week or so till I got the chance to meet him with him face to face and to talk about the case." "Can you tell us, Detective what led you to Port Charles and Zander Smith?" Ric asked. "Most of the leads that my father had been investigating had been exhausted, but there were a few that he hadn't had the chance to chase after, and that's where I had begun my investigation. Zander's mother and her accusations against Michael Corinthos was a good place to start. I read through the reports from 15 years ago, hoping to find a report from Mrs. Smith, but found nothing which sent up a red flag for me as to why she hadn't reported the alleged crime. So my investigation with the death of Frank Smith, started 8 years prior with the alleged assault of Frank's wife. It all led me here to Port Charles to find Zander." Steele replied. "So when you met with Zander, you already knew he wasn't Frank's son?" Ric asked wondering why Steele hadn't told Zander the truth from the beginning. "I didn't have conclusive evidence of that fact, but I had my suspicions, yes. The reports that I had access to didn't give me much to go on, and there were things reported in the case file that didn't add up. I just needed to finish what my father had started, it just so happens it led me here." "Thank you Detective Steele. Nothing further from this witness, your Honor."

The courtroom -- Zander stood up from his seat and felt all the eyes in courtroom were now on him. He buttoned his suit jacket and walked to the witness box, and before he sat down, he unbuttoned it again. He noticed Alexis and Emily both smiling at him, trying to reassure him he was doing the right thing and he would be okay. Ric walked towards him as he straightened out the crinkle in his suit jacket. Zander smirked when he noticed that Ric was still meticulous as he was when he was younger. Ric stood in front of him and paused a moment before asking his first question. "Mr. Smith, would you please tell the court your relationship to the deceased?" "Frank Smith was my father." Zander replied, not giving away that he found out Sonny was truly his father. Frank was the only father he had known. "And when Frank died, how old were you?" Ric questioned. "I was 8 years old." "At that age, a traumatic experience was difficult to handle, wasn't it?" "Yes it was, very difficult." Zander replied and once again the images of that night flashed one by one in his mind. "Please tell the court in your own words, what happened the night that Frank Smith died." Zander sat straight in the chair and cleared his throat before he began telling his story. "It was after midnight, and I couldn't sleep, so I went downstairs to the kitchen to get a drink. I noticed that my father was in his study, the light was still on and it shone underneath the door. I went to the kitchen and got my drink. As I walked back to the stairs, I passed my father's study again. The door was ajar this time, and I heard voices arguing inside." Zander began and Ric interrupted his story with a question. "Did you recognize these voices that were arguing?" Ric asked of his witness. "The voices were my father Frank and his right hand man, Michael Corinthos." Zander replied and he glanced over to Sonny sitting at the defense table. "For the record, Michael Corinthos is the defendant Sonny Corinthos." Ric stated and then let Zander continue his story. "The argument ensued and shouting could be heard from inside the room. Frank threatened Michael, he had betrayed Frank and Frank told him that Michael knew what happened to those who betrayed him. Frank pulled a gun on Michael, and Michael then pulled his gun on Frank. Michael told Frank that Frank would be the one to pay and then Michael shot him." Zander finished his story and Ric picked it up with another question. "Mr. Smith, what was the argument about?" "The argument was about my mother and the affair Michael had with her 8 years prior." Zander replied knowing that this question was leading to his paternity. "This act of Michael with your mother, was it consensual? Ric asked, making sure not to mention the word rape in his question. "No it wasn't. When Frank found out about the details of the event, he was furious with Michael. Michael threw it in Frank's face that he wasn't my biological father and that infuriated him more to know that his wife had another man's child." "Mr. Smith, are you the child of the non consensual act between Michael Corinthos and Frank's wife?" Ric asked. "Yes .... I am." Zander stuttered the truth. "Michael Corinthos is my father." Zander's eyes drawn to Sonny looking for a reaction from him, but got none. "Thank you Mr. Smith ... no more questions for this witness, your Honor." Ric finished his questioning of Zander and returned to his seat at the prosecution table. Victoria stood from her seat and stepped towards Zander in the witness box. He had become more relaxed now that Ric's questioning was over, and Victoria noticed. She had hoped now that he was more relaxed his guard was down as well. "As you testified, Frank pulled his gun first .. is that correct?" Victoria asked her first question. "Yes Frank pulled his gun first, but ...." "So, Mr. Corinthos was being threatened bodily harm by Frank, so Sonny pulled his gun in self defense." Victoria twisted the truth. "Self defense? No that's not what I saw. What I saw and heard was Sonny threaten Frank and then shoot him." Zander stood his ground against Victoria's questions. "But Sonny only threatened Frank after Frank threatened him .. correct?" Zander sighed heavily because he knew Victoria found a discrepancy in his memories of that night to shed a shadow of doubt that Sonny shot Frank in cold blood. Zander sat and pondered his answer to her question. He didn't want to say the wrong thing and as he sat in the witness box, Ric noticed Zander tense up. He needed to get his brother off the stand and quickly before Sonny's attorney had devoured Zander completely. Flashes of the shooting revolved in and out of Zander's mind as he sat in his chair. He jerked in the chair as he heard the gunshot go off in his head. He was reliving that nightmare over and over again and he had to rid himself of it happening again. "Look, I know what I saw and I know what I heard! Sonny Corinthos shot and killed Frank Smith!" Zander shouted from the witness box. Victoria's eyes widened at his outburst and went back to the defense table. "We have no further questions, your Honor." Zander's body was shaking in anger as he stepped down from the stand. He walked passed Sonny and glared at him. Sonny stared coldly in return and smirked as if he just got away with murder. Zander clenched his fists at his side and walked passed Ric and reached for Emily's hand to go with him. She did and followed him out of the courtroom. Zander was feeling nothing but anger for the man who was his biological father. His anger overwhelmed him and walked away from Emily, leaving her standing outside the courtroom, alone and worrying about him as she saw the anger consume him.

The cabin -- The alarm went off at 6:30am, like every morning before and Zander turned over and smacked the clock till the alarm stopped buzzing. He rubbed his face with his hands trying to revive himself from his restful sleep. The day had come he dreaded, Sonny's trial started this morning and he and Emily were to be there by 10. He turned over and watched her sleeping peacefully. "Em .. baby..." he said softly as he caressed her arms to wake her. He leaned in and kissed her cheek which aroused her some as she turned in towards him and groaned. "What time is it?" she asked sleepily. "It's 6:30 .. we have to be in court by 10, so get your tush in gear. Today is not the day to sleep in." he replied as he climbed from the bed and walked towards the bathroom. She turned over and grabbed his pillow in her hands and pulled it to her. She curled up with it and dozed back to sleep. He emerged from the bathroom and noticed she was still in bed, curled into a ball with the pillow to comfort her. He walked towards the closet and opened the doors to see all the dark suits hanging on display. He picked out one of his black suits and a deep blue dress shirt to match. He walked with it in his hands over the bed and laid it down as he sat on the edge of the bed. She began to stir as the alarm buzzed again after the 10 minute snooze had passed. She laid on her back and her eyes opened slowly, the sunshine was hard on her sensitive morning pupils as she protected her eyes with her hand. "You're not wearing that are you?" she asked as she saw the black suit laying on the bed beside him. "What's wrong with it? You know I only have 2 colors in my wardrobe." he cracked a smile. She rolled her eyes and cracked a smile at his remark about his taste in clothes. He looked over his shoulder at her as she propped herself up against the head board and yawned. "What are you wearing?" he questioned and she raised an eye brow. "Clothes?" she snickered. "I don't know, maybe my red suit." she shrugged. "Okay you wear the red suit and I'll wear the red shirt, satisfied?" he smirked and then went to the closet and picked out the red silk dress shirt. "Okay .." she yawned and climbed from the bed. She walked into the bathroom and closed the door. She opened the door and peered out. "Are you okay?" she asked. She was expecting him to be nervous about the trial but he didn't seem to be at all shaken up about what was going on today. "Yeah I'm fine." he replied as he shoo'd her back into the bathroom. He heard the water being drawn for the shower as the images of that night returned in his mind, just like a silent movie, he remembered more vividly the details of the shooting. His body jerked as the gun went off in his head and he tried to shake it off before she emerged after her quick shower. She noticed he was a little shaky when she returned to the bedroom, he was a little uneasy on his feet as he walked towards the bathroom once more. "Are you sure you're okay?" she asked as he steadied himself against the doorway. He shrugged off her question and went into the bathroom closing the door behind him. She felt something had happened while she was out of the room, another vision she suspected. He had been having them more frequently since the hearing, but they were not consistent. The shooting of his father had haunted him for so long, she had hopes that after Sonny's trial, things would be easier for him and the nightmares would fade away. At the courthouse -- Zander and Emily dropped off Devon at her parent's for the day, and arrived at the courthouse before 10. The doors of the courtroom stood open, as they walked across the hallway they were met by Ric. Zander didn't look at all relaxed by then, he was fidgety and Ric noticed. Ric patted Zander on the back as the three of them walked into the courtroom together, as they walked down the aisle, Zander noticed Carly sitting in the first row behind the defense table. She didn't make eye contact with him and he thought it best not to stare in her direction. He and Emily took seats in the first row behind Ric and Alexis, who was already sitting at the prosecution table waiting. Emily smiled as she saw the look between Ric and Alexis, she thought it was sweet how the two of them were with each other. She and Zander sat together and waited for his turn in the witness box. She trying to keep him relaxed as they listened to other witnesses that Ric had called for the prosecution. Zander glanced over towards the defense table and caught Sonny's eye. Their eyes made a connection and Zander certainly didn't feel the love coming from his so-called father. Sonny may have been his biological father, but he truly was never going to be his dad. Frank Smith was all of those things to Zander while he was growing up. He felt the love from Frank and he spent time with Zander, even though he ran the biggest organization on the east coast, Frank still made time for him .... and Sonny took that all away from him. Sonny's attorney finished with the witness and he existed the box. Ric stood up and looked over his shoulder at Zander sitting behind him. "Mr. Lansing, call your next witness if you will." the judge announced and Ric buttoned his suit jacket. Ric turned towards Zander and called his name .. "The prosecution calls, Zander Smith."

Zander's warehouse -- Zander walked into the warehouse with another man, Cory. He was Zander's General Manager, for the lack of a better word. Cory oversaw everything that came and went from the warehouse and knew the inner workings of all that happened there. Cory and Zander walked into the office and Zander took a seat behind his desk. Cory sat down in the chair after he closed the office door. "So tell me about the partial shipment we have sitting here. What's missing, how much is missing, and who's responsible for taking it?!" Zander demanded to know. "The best we can tell is, it was no amateur, this was a professional hit. And since Morgan isn't cooperating with us, we've run out of culprits. There isn't anyone else in Port Charles who would have enough balls to steal the large amount that was taken. Besides no one else would have the connections to make such a large amount disappear like it has. It has to be Morgan. He's seriously becoming an annoyance, sir." "Yes I know he is, but I made some promises that I can't go back on, at least not yet. So Morgan still breaths till I say so. We just have to keep our eye on him for the time being. Which is why I want to heighten security around here and I'll be adding a guard on Emily at all times." Zander wanted to be sure his family was protected even if his gut instincts were wrong. It was going to come to a head between him and Jason, he could feel it. The tension between the two organizations had been building for some time and after the explosion a month or so ago, it was becoming quite apparent that there would be more then just a shipment lost, soon enough. "We have another shipment coming in at the end of the week that will fill what we lost with the first one. I'll be sure to have extra manpower here at the warehouse." Cory replied as Zander flipped through some paperwork that laid on the desk. "Good and I want a 24 hour watch on this warehouse after it comes in. I don't want anything happening to it." Zander instructed as he looked down at his watch. "Why don't you go home to your wife and son, sir? Gregory and I can handle things here." Cory suggested as he got up from his seat. "Randy can take you home." Cory added. Zander got up from his seat and walked towards the door, passing Cory. "I want to take a look at that shipment first." Zander said as he walked out of the office and waited for Cory to follow. Cory led the way to the very large containers that had arrived a few days earlier. He saw a few other men standing off in the distance and motioned for them to come and help him open the boxes so Zander could take a look for himself at what was missing. Three big burly men approached and helped Cory open the containers that Zander wanted to see. Once opened, Zander sifted through the paper stringy packing in search of the product that was deep within the crate. Zander reached in with his hand, up to his elbows in packing and pulls from the crate a clear plastic package filled with white as snow powder. Cory pulls a pocketknife from his belt loop and stabs the bag with the tip, extracting some of the product from the bag as he removes the knife. He licks the knife with his tongue to taste the quality of the powder as the others look on and waited for his stamp of approval. Zander walked away from his men once Cory nodded that the product was quality powder and the men nailed the crate shut once more. Zander put his hand to his head and massaged his forehead with his fingers as Cory approached him. "Do you want to distribute the stuff?" Cory asked and Zander turned on his heel towards him. "It's business as usual, Cory." is all Zander said as he began walking towards the enormous overhead door to leave. Cory walked towards the others and called for Randy. "Take Zander back to his wife at the cabin." Cory slapped Randy on the shoulder as he passed. "And don't let him out of your sight till he's inside the house!" Cory hollered after Randy. Randy waved in acknowledgment and followed his boss out the door to the limo that was parked in the alley. Zander looked down at his watch and noticed he had spent more time at the warehouse then he had expected to, so he used his cell phone and called Thomas to see if everything was okay at the cabin. "I take it everything went smoothly getting Emily back?" he asked as Thomas answered. "Yes it did, no problems here." Thomas replied. "Good, Randy's driving me back now, I'll be there shortly." Zander closed his phone and put it back in his jacket pocket as Randy opened the back door of the car. "Is everything alright, sir?" Randy asked noticing his boss looked drained. Things were not fine with Zander, he had a bad feeling about things for a while now, he just couldn't shake it. He was hoping that the feeling would pass, like all the others before had. He sighed deeply as he lied to his guard ..."Things are just fine, Randy ....." With that, Randy closed the limo door and climbed in behind the wheel of the limo. Zander wasn't sure which is was more worried about, the fact that at that very moment he had a couple hundred thousand dollars in powder in his warehouse, or that he had his wife and child at home waiting under guard for their protection. He leaned his head back against the seat and closed his eyes to rest them. He was so completely drained from what had been happening over the past few weeks, he was surprised he knew his own name. He just hoped that the trial would be over soon and he could finally put the past behind him and concentrate on the present and what the future held for he and his family.

In the limo -- The rain still pouring down in buckets, Marcus drove as fast as he could trying to keep the car under control as they passed the city limits sign. "About 20 more minutes, sir ..." he said as they passed into the Port Charles limits. Emily trying her best to keep the child comfortable, but she knew with an ear infection there wasn't much she could do to take the hurt away. She held him against her, he still wrapped in the blanket, she tried to bounce him gently in her arms. Marcus must of given the limo wings because it didn't take long before they were pulling up to the hospital's ER. Marcus stopped the car and got out. He rushed to the back door and left Emily out, Zander climbed out the other side and the two of them raced in together. At the hospital - ER -- Bobbie was on duty and was jotting down some notes on a clipboard when she heard Devon's screams as Zander and Emily rushed through the sliding double doors of the ER. Bobbie dropped what she was doing and went to see how she could help. "We think he has an ear infection ...." Emily said as Bobbie guided her quickly along to one of the exam rooms, Zander following close behind. "Well he definitely has a fever." Bobbie replied when she saw how flushed he was. As they turned into an exam room, Monica and Alan rushed through the sliding double doors of the ER. They looked around frantically for Emily but didn't see her, but they did hear the screams of their grandchild. They followed Devon's cries and found Bobbie giving him an initial exam. Emily turned to see her parents standing inside the curtain and went to them. "We got him here as quickly as we could." Emily said with a worried look on her face. Alan wrapped his arm around her and tried to comfort his daughter. "He's going to be okay now, he's in good hands." he said as Bobbie looked up and smiled. "How long has he been like this?" Bobbie asked as she took an shiny instrument and checked Devon's ears. "He's been crying for over an hour and I just noticed the redness at his ear a little while ago, before we got here." Emily replied and then went to her husband's side as they watched over their child. "Well, it's good you brought him in when you did. One can never be too careful with ear infections and fevers, especially in a child his age. We'll give him something for the pain in his ear and also for the fever." Bobbie explained as Emily reached down and caressed the back of Devon's head. Bobbie left the room to go get the medication Devon needed and Monica and Alan stepped farther into the room. Emily still worried about Devon, as was Zander. Devon had never been sick like this before and it scared both of them. Monica noticed the scared look on their faces. Emily heard Zander's cell phone ringing inside his jacket pocket. He looked down at Emily and saw in her eyes she didn't want him to leave her, that he needed to be there instead of doing business. He wrapped his arm around her and she leaned back into him. The ringing of the cell phone could be heard as the two of them watched over their son, Devon. The stormy summer night was the longest night of Zander and Emily's life, or so it seemed. Devon's fever broke a few hours after he had gotten the medication he needed and they were allowed to take him home the next morning. Outside the hospital - in the limo -- The skies cleared for the beautiful sunshine, white puffy clouds could be seen in the blue sky for miles and it felt like a calmness had come over the city of Port Charles. Zander escorted Emily down to the limo which was waiting out in front of the hospital entrance. Marcus was waiting for them as he stood with the back seat door open. He helped Emily climb in and waited for Zander to follow her. Before Zander did so, he gave Marcus a few instructions. "You will take her and Devon back to the cabin, but you will be dropping me off at the warehouse .... there's some business that I have to take care of." Marcus nodded before Zander climbed in the back seat of the limo and he shut the door. There was still the matter of Zander's missing shipment to take care of, and thought since he was in town, he'd take care of it now. Marcus drove the warehouse as his boss instructed and stopped the limo in the alley behind the main building. "Marcus is going to take you and Devon back to the cabin. I have some things to take care of here in town." Zander said to Emily and then leaned in and gave her a kiss. "This is about last night's phone call, isn't it?" she asked before he got out. He evaded her question with another kiss. "I'll be back as soon as I can." he replied as he got out of the car. He closed the door behind him leaving Emily and his son inside. Marcus stood guard by the car as Zander walked to greet his other man, Thomas who was approaching. "I want you to go with Marcus back to the house with Emily. I don't want her to be alone out there." Zander said concerned. "Are you expecting something?" Thomas asked before getting in the limo. "Let's just say I'm taking precautions. I'll have someone bring me back in an hour or so." Zander replied and Marcus opened the door for Thomas. He climbed in and sat next to Emily, Devon wrapped in the blanket in her arms. Emily wasn't expecting to have company on the ride back to the cabin, and it worried her that perhaps Zander thought she needed the extra protection. "Something bad is going to happen, isn't it?" she asked Thomas as Marcus got behind the wheel and started to drive away. "That's why he sent you along with me ..." she continued. "It's just an extra precaution, Emily. Nothing to be concerned about." Thomas replied trying to calm her fears the best he could without giving her too much information that she didn't need to know.

At the cabin -- The hard rain pounded against the glass windows as the thunder rolled amidst the dark storm clouds, and Emily sat in the wooden rocker, rocking Devon back to sleep. The storm had kept him up and his cries could be heard throughout the house. She had tried everything with him to get him to go back to sleep, from bouncing to walking to singing and now rocking, nothing seemed to work, he was still crying and he was very sleepy. She heard footsteps upstairs and knew Devon had now waken up Zander. She sighed heavily as she saw him appear on the stairs. "Is he okay? He's crying an awful lot, isn't he?" Zander asked as he came into the living room. "He's just scared of the storm I guess. Nothing is working to get him back to sleep. Here maybe you have better luck then I did." she said as she handed Zander the scared and still screaming child. This was the only part of parenthood Zander hated the most, a screaming child. And between he and Emily, Devon had a good set of lungs on him and he was using them to their fullest potential tonight. He started walking him around the room, bouncing Devon in his arms as he walked. "I tried that already ...." Emily said as she watched Zander walk around the room. "It didn't work for me either." she added and got a smirk in return from Zander. Every loud roll of thunder sparked another screaming episode from Devon. Zander pressed his soft lips to Devon's forehead to feel if the child had a fever, perhaps he was sick rather then just scared from the storm. Devon did feel a little warm, but he didn't think it was anything to be concerned about, the child had been crying and screaming for the last hour, he was bound to be perspired and warm. As Zander carried Devon around the room, Emily noticed that her son was rubbing his small hand against his left ear alot, it was a sure sign of ear infection. She walked up to Zander and stopped him from walking. She pressed her lips against Devon's forehead and felt he was warm to the touch, she also noticed that his ear was cherry red. She became more alarmed that her child was sick after noticing the two main symptoms of an infection. She hadn't been a mother very long, but she knew the important things like when her child would be sick. She took Devon from Zander and tried to calm him against her. "We have to get him to a doctor, Zander ... he's running a fever." she said as Zander checked Devon again. Zander quickly turned and ran up the stairs to get Devon's blanket and Emily went to get her coat. Zander came down the stairs with a blanket in his arms and took Devon from Emily so she could put on her jacket. He handed Devon back to her and the blanket he covered his son up with. He grabbed his jacket and opened the door for them, turning off the lights as he closed the door. Marcus sat waiting in the driveway and pulled the car up to the front porch. Emily and Zander hurried to the car in the down pouring rain, she covering Devon the best she could as she raced to the limo. Zander opened up the door for her and she climbed in, Devon still wrapped in her arms. Zander climbed in behind her and closed the door. "Get us to the ER at General Hospital as fast as you can, Marcus!" Zander instructed and Marcus nodded as he turned the car around quickly and drove out the long drive to the main highway. It was about an hour drive from town, and Zander hoped they would get there in time. He didn't know much about child illnesses, but he knew enough to know that every second counts when dealing with child fevers. As they sat in the back of the car with Devon, a little more calmer now then before, but still tugging at his ear, Zander called Monica and Alan to meet them at the hospital. The Quartermaine Mansion -- "Quartermaine residence .." the voice said as someone picked up the phone at the mansion. "Alice .. It's Zander ... are Emily's parents there? It's an emergency..." he replied very much concerned about his child and hoping the only two doctors he trusted with his son were home. "Yes they are .... hold on, let me go get them." Alice replied and set down the phone. She went to look for Drs. Quartermaine, and she hurried when she realized something must be terribly wrong for Zander to call so late. She found Monica in the study working on some paperwork. "Monica ... Zander's on the phone and he sounds really panicked. He says it's an emergency." Alice said as she entered the study and hurried towards Monica. Monica picked up the phone that sat on the desk beside her. "Zander .. what's wrong? Is it Emily?" she asked now concerned for her daughter. "No, it's Devon .... Emily thinks he has an ear infection and he's running a low fever. We are about 25 minutes from the hospital .. will you meet us there?" Zander replied as Monica heard Devon's cries the background. "Alan and I will be right there .. we're on our way." Monica didn't even say goodbye, she hung up the phone and called out for Alan. He came running from the other room and rushed into the study. "What's wrong?" he asked as she rushed passed him and latched onto his arm as she did. "We have to get to the hospital, Emily and Zander are bringing in Devon, he's sick." Alan didn't ask questions but he did tell her he'd drive them there.

"Emily! .... " he was shocked to see her standing there listening. "Don't do anything yet, I'll call you back." he continued and flipped closed his cell phone. "You're going to have Jason taken out, aren't you?" she said as she came down the stairs and rubbed up against him as she passed by. "He's my brother, Zander .. how could you do that to me?" she scolded her husband for even thinking such an awful thing. "Emily, listen to me .. this is business, it has nothing to do with family relations." Zander tried to make her see that what he was doing was protecting what was his. "Screw the business, Zander! This is personal and I can't believe you were ready to take out my brother without a second thought!" she hollered back at him in return. "Wait a minute, Jason wouldn't take a second thought about taking me out! But you're okay with that!" "No I'm not okay with that ... Jason promised not to touch you, Zander .... he promised me he wouldn't!" she cried and fell down into the cushions of the couch as she sat down. Her face buried into her hands and she leaned over her knees like in pain. Tears began to fall from her eyes and she began to cry, cry out of disgust, cry out of disappointment and sadness that this was happening to her family. "Wait you saw Jason? When?" Zander asked as he went to her and sat down with her on the couch. "This morning before Damien nabbed me in the parking garage. I was there to see Jason about you!" she snipped back as she brushed off his consoling and got up from her seat. "When were you going to tell me this, Emily? You know with one phone call world war 3 could start between Jason and I!" he barked back. "I'm sorry .. in all the chaos this morning I forgot to tell you, okay?!" Her forgetfulness could of cost her, her brother's life, or worse, her husbands. Guilt of not telling Zander overcame her. "What did Jason have to say?" Zander asked. "I convinced him not to come after you .. at least not till all this mess is over with Sonny." "Well thank you for going to bat for me, Em .. but I think I can handle Jason!" he replied thinking now his reputation with Jason was damaged at least some by Em going to battle for him. "You know I didn't only do it for you Zander, I did it for me and Devon too! I don't know what I would do if we lost you!" tears began to trickle down her cheeks once more. She almost did lose him, not too long ago and she was never going to go through that again, whether he liked it or not, she was going to protect him if she could. He went to her and pulled her to him, she stood up and wrapped her arms around him as she cried against his chest. "I'm sorry, Zander. I guess being a mob wife I am not." she sniffled back the tears, her voice muffled against his chest. He wrapped his hands around her cheeks and lifted up her chin, her eyes red and puffy from crying, he wiped the tears away with his thumbs. "Now you listen to me .. I don't ever want to hear you say that, okay. It took alot of guts to go to Jason this morning. That was a very bold thing to do and I thank you for going there on behalf. Em, you are the best thing that has ever happened to me, you know that and I don't know where I'd be without you. This life isn't easy and I never said it would be, but I will protect you and keep you safe the best way I know how, but you have to tell me where you're going so I can protect you from another Damien Smith. Okay?" he said as he cracked a smile hoping she understood that if she had told him she was going to see Jason, he would of been more on his guard to protect her and Damien may have never found her in the parking garage. She understood and agree the next time she'd go into town she'd tell him and not leave herself unprotected like she had this morning with Damien. "Okay, I promise but you have to promise me something too, Zander." she replied. "What's that?" "You have to promise me not to go after Jason, he promised me he wouldn't come after you, now I want a promise from you that you won't go after him." He didn't answer her and flipped open his cell phone and dialed. She watched him wondering what he was planning on doing now. "Thomas .. leave Morgan alone." .... "Yeah you heard me, leave Morgan be."....."Yeah this is a direct order, I don't want Morgan touched, you got that." Zander flipped closed the cell phone and stuck back in his pocket. Emily stood up from her seat and went to him. She wrapped her arms around his waist and looked up at him. "Thank you for calling off your plans ..." she said as he pulled her into him. "No, thank you for making me realize just what's important..." his words drifted off as he couldn't help but think of the day he'd get his chance to take down Jason Morgan.

The Cabin -- "I don't want to hear that Cory .. what's the problem?" Zander asked as he walked into the other room to talk business. "Those containers that came in this morning are not filled with all of the product, some is missing." Cory replied. "How much is missing, this time?!" Zander replied sternly. "Enough not to make the quota and certainly enough to cause concern, sir." This was not what Zander wanted to hear, his mind filling with ideas of who would steal from his warehouse and be bold enough to do so. "Dammit .. this is the third shipment in 6 months that we've had problems with!" Anger consumed him as he began to pace the floor of the kitchen. "What do you want me to do about it?" Cory asked waiting for more instructions "I'll take care of this, Cory. Just let it sit for now. Gregory, Thomas and Marcus are on their way back to the warehouse on Pier 12 to clean up a mess that was made earlier, I want you to go meet them and assist them with that. Keep me posted." Zander ordered and flipped closed the phone in disgust with the situation. He walked back into the living with purpose and noticed Emily had laid down and fallen asleep while waiting for him. He scooped her up in his arms and carried her up the stairs to the bedroom. As he laid her down on the bed, she sighed. Sleep was probably the best thing for her, right now. He covered her with the blanket that laid on the edge of the bed and kissed her cheek softly. He walked towards the door and turned off the light. He closed the door quietly and walked down the hall to check on Devon. His naps in the afternoon were usually a few hours and he had just put him down before all hell had broken loose at the warehouse. Devon slept peacefully in his crib and Zander closed the door, leaving it ajar slightly. He walked quietly down the hall and then down the stairs. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone once more. He needed to find out who was stealing from him, though he had an idea, but he had hoped he was wrong for Emily's sake. Zander made a few phone calls to some of his contacts. The shooting that had almost taken his life a few months ago was still being investigated, though the police didn't have any new leads, the trail was going cold and it was becoming more and more clear that he and Jason would soon find themselves in alot more trouble then either of them bargained for, he suspected. His thoughts went immediately to Jason as the culprit of his missing product. Jason would certainly be bold enough to come into the his warehouse and he would have the means to make the product disappear into the streets and not be found again. Zander deep in thought was startled back as his cell phone rang again. He flipped it open and answered it hoping it was better news this time. "Sir, it's Thomas. It's been taken care of." Zander heard from the other end of the line. "Good. Now I want you and Gregory to find out what the hell happened to the rest of that shipment that came in this morning! You can start with Jason Morgan!" Zander instructed his men before closing his phone. Thomas flipped closed his cell phone and told Gregory what he had been instructed to do. The two of them left the warehouse knowing what needed to be done to get the answers their boss was looking for. As they walked down the docks on a mission, the person they were looking for was standing a short a distance from them. The two men stayed back and just watched as Jason held a conversation with someone else he was with. On the docks -- Jason handed an envelope to the stranger and the stranger took it. He shoved the overly stuffed envelope in the pocket of his leather jacket and walked off. Jason left standing alone on the docks, Thomas and Gregory approached him. "So now, Zander sends his goons ... where's the boss man himself?" Jason asked as the two men walked up on him. "The boss man is none of your concern Morgan." Gregory snapped back. Jason didn't waste his time on pleasantries and pulled his 9mm from the back of his waist band as the two men came closer. "There is no need for the weapon, Morgan. We didn't come here to hurt you. Just to talk." Thomas replied as Jason held the gun in his hand, steady. Jason's glared at the two men, not yet ready to put his weapon away, held it tight in his hand. His finger laid gently against the trigger, ready to shot if he needed to. The two men were calm, not showing fear at any time while standing in front of Jason with his gun pointed at them. "What does your boss want to know?" Jason asked as Thomas walked around him to the other side. "The boss wants to know where his shipments have gone to, Morgan." Gregory stated as he didn't back down, like Jason expected him to. "Oh so Zander thinks I took them? And he sent the two of you to make me confess?" Jason laughed at Zander's intentions. Thomas and Gregory stood their ground with Jason, they weren't going anywhere till they had the answers they had come for. Jason wasn't about to confess to Zander's men, he had no intention to give them what they had come for. He put his piece back in his waistband and began to walk away from the two men. "We aren't finished with you yet, Morgan." Thomas said as he stepped towards Jason. "Yes, I believe we are." Jason replied as he quickly pulled his piece again on the two men. "I have nothing left to say. And you can go back and tell your boss whatever you like, but I am not the one who took his product." Jason added as he backed away from the men, his gun still pointed in their direction. Jason disappeared into the darkness and Zander's men stood on the docks alone. Thomas flipped open his cell phone and called Zander to give him a report as to what just happened. At the cabin-- "Sir, Morgan's not cooperating. He's not giving us anything." Thomas said as he reached his boss. Zander sighed. He knew it would come down to this, he was just avoiding the inevitable. "You know what to do to Morgan, he's stolen from me for the last time." Emily was hidden in the shadows of the stairs as she heard Zander's orders and she cried out .... "Zander, noooo!"

In the limo-- "You didn't come here to hurt him, did you?" Emily asked now afraid for her husband's life. "Of course not. I came to help him, Mrs. Smith. It's Emily isn't it?" Damien replied as he leaned forward and laid his hand on her knee. She pulled herself from his hand quickly. "Yes it is, and I wish you didn't do that." just the thought of being in the car with him made her nervous and afraid. He may have been Zander's uncle but it didn't give him the permission to make advances like he did. "I'm sorry, it isn't my intention to make you afraid, Emily. I just wanted for you to take me to see Zander. I had exhausted all my avenues to find him, so when I saw you come to town ... well, I thought you'd be able to help me." he explained as she heard the driver's side door open and Marcus slip in the driver's seat. "Marcus are you okay?" she called to him keeping her eyes focused on the man who sat before her. "Yes, maam, I'm fine. Are you okay?" he asked genuinely concerned for her. "Yeah, I'm fine. We can go home now." she replied and instructed Marcus to drive back to the cabin. "But ... " Marcus hesitated and began to question her instructions. "It's okay Marcus, I'll call Zander once we're out of the parking garage, I'm getting no service whatsoever right now." Marcus started the car, and drove out into the traffic of main street, and Emily pulled her cell phone from her bag. She hadn't realized that she left the phone on and it quickly dialed the last number she had called, Zander was already on the other end listening and knew about Damien before she realized he was there. "Don't talk, just listen." Zander instructed. "Tell Marcus to take you the warehouse, he'll know which one and tell him that I am there waiting for him to pick me up." he continued. At the cabin-- Zander had already set a plan into motion to rid him of his uncle and the problems that were about to arise. He had men already set at the warehouse, while hanging on with Emily's cell phone, Zander used the phone in the cabin to call who he needed to, for his men to be waiting at the warehouse. He knew his uncle was about to take everything he worked so hard to keep and he wasn't about to let it happen. He couldn't let Damien take everything from him, though worried and afraid for his wife, he made sure his men knew to do what they needed to keep her safe. She was to be safe at all costs. Emily did what she was told before they got too far towards the end of town. "Marcus ... you are to take us to the warehouse, Zander is there, he had to go in to meet some suppliers. He asked if you could bring his uncle there instead." she lied hoping Marcus understood his instructions correctly from Zander. "That's good, baby. Now when you get here, I don't want you to get out of the car. When Marcus gets out and opens up the back door, you let Damien out first and Marcus will close the door, leaving you inside. You understand?" Zander instructed her. "Yeah I do. We'll see you in a few minutes." she flipped closed her phone and knew there were steps being taken at this moment to ensure her safety, but she was still afraid and worried about the ambush they were about to drive into. Marcus pulled the limo up to the back of the warehouse and stopped the car. He got out and came to the back door and opened it, Damien wasn't suspecting a thing as he climbed from the back seat and Marcus closed the door quickly leaving Emily inside away from harm. When the it closed, the doors locked automatically, a safety feature Zander had installed when he bought it. Marcus heard the doors lock and then walked Damien into the warehouse without questions. In the limo -- Emily sat inside the limo, and she jumped in her seat startled when the shots rang out. A few seconds later the back door opened and a few of her husband's men got in. Marcus climbed in the driver's seat and started the limo. "Let's go Marcus .... now!" one of the men ordered from the back seat as Emily sat frozen in her seat but filled with worry and concern about Zander. "We have to get Mrs. Smith back to the safe house!" he added as the limo pulled away in a hurry, leaving tar from the tires on the pavement. "Where's Zander? Please tell me he's back at the cabin!" she yelled in a panic worried about her husband. "He's fine .... we're taking you too him now." Gregory said as he put his weapon back in it the holster he was wearing. "And Damien?" she not sure she wanted to know what happened to him but asked. Neither of the men answered her and she figured it was for the best, she already knew what had happened to the man, the look on their faces was enough. Gregory's cell phone rang as the limo raced through the city streets. He flipped it open and answered it. "Yes sir, all taken care of. Yes sir, she's right here." he said and handed the cell phone to Emily. "Zander?" "Emily, are you alright?" he asked concerned for her. "Yeah I'm fine, I was worried about you ..." her words drifted off as the night of the shooting months prior flashed in her mind. "I'm fine, sweetheart. The boys are going to take good care of you." he said calmingly. "Oh my God, Zander, I was so scared. Damien just came out of nowhere, he was in the car, Zander! I didn't know what else to do but to do what he said." she replied frantic, tears began to fill her eyes as she told her husband about what had happened. Emily sniffled back the tears and tried to calm herself down, she wanted to be the strong wife who could handle such situations, but her fear got the better of her. "I know but your safe now, and the boys are going to bring you back to the cabin." Emily wiped the tears from her eyes and an "I love you" passed across her lips before she handed the phone back to Gregory. She sank deep into the back seat of the limo, still shaken from what had happened. "Gregory, I want you to take good care of her till you get here, you got that! She's upset and scared .... I want you to do all you can to make the ride up here comfortable for her." Zander instructed him. "Yes sir, don't worry, we'll take good care of her." Gregory replied before closing his phone and slipping it back into his jacket pocket. He wasn't quite sure what he could do to curb Emily's fears but he would do what he was told. The limo turned onto the dirt road that led back to the cabin, the hour drive seemed like an eternity for Emily. Marcus pulled the limo up in front of the house and Gregory opened the door and stepped out. He helped Emily from the back seat as Zander came out onto the front porch. Emily's eyes locked on him standing there and she ran towards him thankful they both were alright and she was back with him again. At the cabin-- Zander came down the steps of the cabin and met her with an embrace. She fell into him and wrapped her arms around his neck tightly. Tears filled her eyes once more as she held onto him, not wanting to let him go. His hands caressed her back as he held her against him, trying to comfort her and letting her know she was safe now. Gregory, Thomas and Marcus stood and watched the tearful reunion and waited for their orders from Zander. "Shhhh .. it's okay, baby." his voice soothing to her as he whispered the words to her. He pulled away from her for a brief moment to give the boys instructions, but she lingered beside him not wanting him to leave her. "I want you to go back to town and make sure there is nothing left to find of my uncle! You got that?!" Zander barked with Emily still with him. The three men nodded in acknowledgement of their orders and got back into the limo. They headed back to town like they were told as Zander and Emily walked back to the cabin, she still shaken. His arm wrapped around her, and helped her up the steps and into the house. Zander's cell phone rang as he helped his wife to the couch. "Dammit, now what?" he replied as he flipped open the phone and answered it. "Sir ... It's Cory at the warehouse .. we have a problem."