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Carly stood before the mirror
and smoothed the front of her dress, a smile spreading across her face.
She touched a hand lightly to her hair, and began to hum in satisfaction.
She walked out the living room and stood in front of the fireplace, rubbing
her hands together near the flames, still humming. Now she only had to
wait.
She turned to the
coffee table near her and glanced at the pictures lying on top. She could
not help but grin at a picture of Robin and Brenda together in the park.
They both looked so happy. Now neither would ever be happy again. Carly
was startled out of her blissful reverie by the sound of the door opening
behind her. She whirled around and found herself face to face with Jason.
"Carly?"
Robin knocked on the
door to Brenda's cottage, feeling more than a little foolish. Brenda came
to the door and smiled brightly at the sight of her friend. She closed
the door halfway and placed herself carefully between it and the frame.
"Hey," she said brightly.
"I'm sorry," Robin
apologized. "Is this a bad time?"
Brenda laughed. "Of
course not. Jax was just----leaving."
Robin blushed and
turned away, embarrassed. "Never mind," she said. "I'll come back later."
"No!" Brenda exclaimed,
and pulled her back with a fierce tug on her arm.
Robin laughed slightly,
and brushed her hand against her arm. "If you're going to *insist* I guess
I'll come in," she said, and walked past Brenda into the cottage.
Jax was seated on
the couch in nothing but a pair of slacks, pulling on his. He nodded at
Robin as she walked in. "Excuse me, Robin," he said. He smiled apologetically.
"My shirt is in the wash," he said.
"Oh!" Robin laughed.
"Don't worry about it. Uncle Mac would go around without a shirt all the
time. It isn't as if I haven't seen a man's chest," she said, and flashed
him a smile.
Jax only nodded, then
stood and hurried toward the door, pausing long enough to give Brenda a
kiss on the cheek. He grabbed his coat off of the rack and secured it around
him, then walked out into the cold. "I can't believe he's braving it in
this storm," Brenda said when they heard his car engine start.
"Me either," Robin
agreed. "I don't know where it came from. The wind picked up while I was
on my way over, and the next thing I knew it was pouring."
Brenda shrugged, then
sat on the couch in front of the fireplace, sighing contentedly. "Nothing
like a warm fire in the middle of a storm," she said, and sank further
down on the couch. "Too bad Jax had to leave," she added.
"Too bad I had to
show up, you mean."
Brenda shook her head,
then shot her friend a nasty look. "Robin! I told you. Jax was already
leaving. He has a meeting with Jerry at his penthouse tomorrow. He wants
to be there in the morning when Jerry gets there."
"Doesn't he trust
him?" Robin asked.
"Trust Jerry?" Brenda
scoffed. "That man couldn't be trusted with a dime." She shook her head.
"He doesn't need his brother snooping around his place while he's gone,"
she said.
Robin attempted a
smile, but failed miserably. She collapsed beside Brenda on the couch and
sank her head into her hands.
"Hey, what's wrong?"
Brenda asked in concern.
"I think Jason's been
lying to me," she said simply.
"About what?"
"Everything, Brenda."
Tears stung her eyes, but Robin bitterly wiped them away. "Carly's back."
"You're back."
"You know I couldn't
stay gone for long," Carly said, moving toward him. "I knew you'd come
here, too. That place you've got with Robin is a hell hole."
"Carly," Jason said.
"How did you know I would be here?" he asked, frowning.
"I know you, Jason,"
Carly responded. "You couldn't give this up. Not even for *her*."
Jason inhaled deeply.
He was afraid this would happen. "You know, then."
"Yes, I know!" Carly
exclaimed, and laughed. "Jason Morgan, did you really think you could keep
a secret from me for long?" She shook her head, her curled hair bouncing
playfully around her temples. "I know you too well, Jason."
"Obviously," he said.
"How much do you know?" He paused and looked around the penthouse. "Are
you alone?" he asked.
"Of course not. Michael's
in his room sleeping. It's nice that you didn't move any of his stuff over
to your new apartment."
"I had to have somewhere
for him to sleep when-"
"When what, Jason?"
Carly asked quickly. "When you came to your senses and left Robin for good.
*When* exactly were you planning on telling her your little secret, Jason?"
Jason stared at her
silently, stunned. "You didn't-"
"Oh, *yeah* I did,"
Carly said. "She was really surprised," she said, and smiled. "I have to
say I was very pleased. I wasn't expecting the reaction I got."
Jason curled his hand
into a fist, and slammed it down on the table in frustration. Carly watched
smugly. "What did you tell her, Carly?"
"The truth! Not that
she's any friend to that."
"Did you tell her
everything?" Jason asked, turning to her again with blazing eyes.
"No," Carly said slowly.
"If you mean everything I know, then no, I didn't tell her everything.
I didn't tell her about Sonny," she said.
Jason sighed and leaned
heavily against the door. "You were out of line," he said darkly.
"*I* was out of line!"
Carly exclaimed. "You didn't bother to tell your girlfriend you were still
working for the mafia, and *I'm* out of line! I only told the girl the
truth. I thought it was about time somebody did."
"Oh come on Carly!"
Jason shouted angrily. "You don't give a *damn* about Robin and you know
it! You just wanted something to hold over her head. You knew a secret
about me that she didn't!"
"No, *you* knew a
secret that she didn't!" Carly retorted hotly. "*You* have been keeping
secrets, Jason! Why didn't you tell her about *me*, Jason. Huh? When were
you planning on telling her that I was being released? When I showed up
on your *doorstep*?!" She laughed bitterly and fought to keep her voice
from shaking. "Well, that's when she found out. Oh, yeah, she got a *nasty*
shock."
Jason stared coldly
at Carly, at a loss for words. They both glanced toward the stairs at the
sound of a door shutting. "Hey!" Sonny called from the steps. "What's all
the shouting about?"
Jax squinted and tried
to see through the heavy downpour. He could barely see through the windshield,
despite the wipers and headlights. He used his right hand to wipe away
some of the fog from the glass, but it only clouded again. He cursed under
his breath and strained to find a place to pull over.
The blast of a horn
startled Jax as a pair of headlights burst into view. He pulled the steering
wheel hurriedly toward him, and barely avoided a collision with the oncoming
car. He felt his heart racing and forced himself to take a deep, steady
breath. The rain continued to pound mercilessly.
"Carly?" Isn't she
supposed to be at the hospital?" Brenda slid to a new position on the couch.
"I guess she was released,"
Robin replied. "Jason didn't even bother to tell me . She just showed up
at the apartment and took Michael out of my arms."
Brenda breathed in
deeply and made a disgusted face. "The world would be a better place without
HER," she remarked.
"Well, I think I'm
going to have to get used to life with her if I'm going to continue my
relationship with Jason." Robin paused and looked at Brenda sadly. "Though,
if what she said is true, I don't know if I'll want to."
Brenda cocked an eyebrow.
"Must be bad."
Robin sighed and stood,
then started pacing the room. "It's worse than you could imagine."
Jax exhaled heavily,
and gripped the steering wheel harder, forcing the disturbing images out
of his mind. He wiped his hand, which was slimy with sweat, across his
pants leg and concentrated again on the road. The rain was beginning to
let up, but only barely. The storm was by no means weakening.
Jax's mind and heart
raced. He thought briefly of his earlier conversation with Brenda, and
how she had tried to convince him to stay the night, and cursed himself
once again for his stupidity.
There was no warning
this time. Jax took the corner a little fast, perhaps a bit faster than
was wise in the current weather, and his tires squealed in protest. He
turned the wheel quickly, but felt the car skid over into the opposite
lane. An image of Brenda flashed through his mind as the headlights barrelled
toward him, and her face carried him down into oblivion.