GH2017.55 Back in the Saddle

A week after the last chapter.

The warehouse at 4am. It's a good thing; the neighborhood is still a
commercial/industrial area. The noise once inside the building is intense.
Lucky Spencer goes looking for his sister finding her in the last condo.
She is wearing ear and eye protection and a paper mask over her nose and
mouth. Catching her attention, he waits until she shuts down the heavy
industrial sander. Pulling the mask down she walks first over to the
2-liter bottle of water and taking a quick sip, she looks inquiring at her
brother who is grinning from ear to ear.
Lu: What are you looking at?
Lucky: My sister in about forty years! You've got dust in your hair. It
looks white instead of brown and every little line in your pretty young face
is coated with the stuff. (Reaching into his pocket he pulls out a cigar
but before he can strike a match, Lu freaks)
Lu: Are you insane? Not in here! Come on, let's go outside. (Dragging him
over to the elevator she pushes the down button) Didn't you know that
oakdust is flammable? There is so much dust in the air, that a spark from
you could send the place up!
Lucky: No, I didn't know that. Finishing floors has never been something
that I've done. And the question is-- why are you doing it?
Lu: Time crunch. It isn't hard work but it's time consuming and labor
intensive. It's got to be sanded with three different grades of sandpaper,
then three different coats of finish that have to be dry and cure between
applications . . .
Lucky: You've convinced me; hire a pro!
Lu: I have. But it's a lot of wood! It's also a sign that we're getting
there. The walls are up and finished just waiting on the paint until we get
all the dinging stuff out of the way.
Lucky: Dinging stuff?
Lu: I've heard those power buffers used for the last steps will put a hole
in a wall in nothing flat! Why paint something that is going to have to be
patched anyway? What are you doing here anyway?
Lucky: Very Nice! I hadn't stopped by in awhile. And I come bearing gifts
anyway. Cari went crazy in the club kitchen after-hours. She was chattering
with Mike until she finally wore him out. She made up a lunch for your crew.
Lu: You're loving teaching her to drive; aren't you? It's like having your
own chauffeur.
Lucky: She's good, Lu. And she loves it . . . Yeah, being chauffeured
has it's benefits.
Lu: (seeing the buffet that Cari has put together, goes over to the security
table on the ground floor. Getting on the radio that connects all the crews,
she calls for a break. ) Cari, I can't believe you did all this!
Cari: I was feeling guilty. You've been working all the time to get this
ready on time.
Lu: (reassuringly) I've been having a blast! So you still think your father
would rather be in a hotel?
Cari: We'll find out in three days. Dad emailed me. He and Georgie have
seen the sights. Only a couple more meetings and then they're back. One
of the last errands is stopping at Mom's place on the way back to pick up
the rest of my stuff. Is there anything I can do to help here?
Lu: (handing her a clipboard) Sure. Here's the inventory for tomorrow's
work. Would you verify the supplies are all here? Basically all the stuff
you and Brooke picked out. While I'm sleeping today you might want to hit
the stores and buy the kitchen stuff that none of the tenants seem to have.
Everyone that lives in this building used to live in a suitcase. They need
everything.
Cari: You don't have to tell me. I have a copy of the color wheels for each
condo back at the apartment. Soup to nuts, I'll have them stocked.
Lu: There's this really great outlet mall that has everything you would want
for kitchen and bath. In stock no less.
Lucky: (puffing on his cigar) Road trip! Baby, you haven't seen yet what
the trunk of that Caddy will hold. At least two grown men comfortably.
Three, if they aren't awake to bitch.
Lu: (incredulously) Lucky, I can't believe you!
Lucky: I keep telling you, if it's yours, then you have to know every inch
of it.
Lu: (changing the subject) Has anyone heard from Brooke?
Cari: I checked the messages. She's at a hotel near the club.
Lucky: Booking her into a hotel near each of the clubs was easier than
driving out to pick her up every morning at 2am. She'll come back to Port
Charles before going to the next club. I figured it saved her some wear and
tear. It was also more convenient for Nik.
Cari: Convenient?
Lu: Ignore him. He's being a troublemaker again. ( Swiftly she punches
him in the arm hitting from practice that little space between the muscles
in the upper arm so that it would hurt the worst)
Lucky: OW! Nik should never have taught you how to do that!! No wonder I
need a driver!
You're constantly trying to maim me!

At sea, there is a clamor as the security codes of the ELQ Lila are
overridden while a ship pulls along side. Moving swiftly, Jason, his men as
well as two others board. Resistance is quickly overwhelmed and within an
hour the crew is tied up in the hold next to the guns, missiles and lab
equipment.
Georgie: (looking over her shoulder) Happen to see the sonofabitch that
shot you back in PC?
Jerry: Darlin, you know I never saw him. ( Putting an arm around her
affectionately he gives her a smacking kiss on the mouth) Great to be back
in the thick of things, isn't it?
Georgie: (grinning) You old war horse! Let me get to work. (Shrugging out
from under his arm she holsters her sidearm and pulls out a camera. She
starts taking pictures of the contraband as it is being off-loaded onto the
other boat. )
Jason: (coming up behind her) Aren't you going to have plenty of time to do
that later? WSB is taking possession of this junk.
Georgie: (moving, snapping pictures and talking) Not me personally though.
Jerry and I are heading back to PC. We should arrive a day after you do.
This film will give us a head start and something to do while we wait for
reprisals.
Jason: Hopefully, there won't be any.
Georgie: Have you found your mole yet?
Jason: (Looking hard at Jerry) No, not yet.
Georgie: Come on! There's no profit in what happened tonight. If he were
teamed up with his brother, there are other ways to cause trouble without
taking a bullet.
Jason: They already tried easy...twice, and it didn't work.
Georgie: (growing exasperated) When this whole thing started, he and I were
far away in a cabin without access to a phone; I was feeling lucky to have
electricity! Jason, it doesn't add up. Cut him some slack.
Jason: Let's see how this plays out.
Georgie: Just remember he's no more his brother than you're mayor of Port
Charles, okay? (Ending the conversation, she turns back to snapping photos.)

Rochester in a hotel near one of Lucky's clubs.
Nikolas: (sitting on the edge of the bed his shirt already off and working
on kicking off his shoes) You know-- Rochester is close enough to Port
Charles to drive back?
Brooke: (Kneeling behind him runs her hands over his back before taking a
playful bite at his shoulder) But would you be having this much fun back in
Port Charles?
Nik: I'd be getting more sleep.
Brooke: (pulling him down on to his back she kisses him passionately only
when coming up for air does she murmur against his mouth) You can sleep when
I'm on tour.
Nik: (In a voice just as low) Stay. I'll take you to my family's island in
Greece. We could walk along the cove. Make love in the sea.
Brooke: (Sitting back on her heels she runs the back of her hands over his
chest) You have a deliciously, salacious mind, but I'm not buying it. Don't
fight with me, not tonight. I have to tour and you have to stay in Port
Charles. It's bad enough that we're sneaking around hotels because of this
so-called threat.
Nik: Dear one, I would be discreet anyway. I have a teenage daughter,
remember?
Brooke: How can I forget her? She's adorable. She makes me miss my family
like crazy. I know you need to be careful. I'm not fighting you. (Lifting
her eyebrows suggestively) Unless you want me to?
Nik: (Laughing) You do make me forget.
Brooke: A worthy goal on its own. (With one hand she brushes a finger over
his forehead smoothing the lines of worry.) Babe, I would never do anything
to hurt you. The tour is only three months. You'll have put the bad guys
on the run and then you and I can enjoy ourselves. Won't Stefan be feeling
smug?
Nik: (laughing again) Very Smug. But I think this bed is getting crowded.
Brooke: (shaking her head) Nope. Just me and you. (He raises one hand to
run it through her hair, bringing her face to his; he ravishes her mouth.
As she collapses bonelessly on top of him, he reverses their positions.
Supporting his weight on one arm, he brailles her face, memorizing each
feature. As he traces her lower lip she takes his thumb into her mouth and
runs her teeth along it distracting him again from his worrisome thoughts.)
Here and now, Nik. Or are you trying to tease me again?
Nik: But you reciprocate so torridly when I do.
Brooke: Definitely giving you some bad habits. Come here . . . I won't
bite . . . promise.

Jacks' offshore oilrig where a helicopter has just landed. Jason, Georgie
and Jerry get off. As the helicopter leaves, the trio go into the
structure. The sun is just now rising. The black camouflage war paint
causes a few riggers' heads to turn.
Jason: Never thought I would set foot on one of these.
Jerry: And you still haven't, not officially.
Georgie: (impatiently) You can bond later. Is there a place where I can
change and get this junk off my face?
Jerry: We all need to wash up; we're getting looks as it is. Jason, where
did you leave the company plane?
Jason: Airfield in Spain.
Georgie: Can we catch another lift from you?
Jason: Not a problem. Be ready to go in thirty minutes. (He stalks off in
search of coffee and a place to wash his face.)
Jerry: So what did the crew say, Darlin?
Georgie: Once they got used to my just standing there . . . a few rude
comments on my assets. They were almost relieved when they found out they
were not being released. I think they expected to die if the shipment was
not delivered. No names other than those we already know. Evidently the
guy in Port Charles is keeping an extremely low profile. I think the only
way to catch this guy is the money, Jerry.
Jerry: And I know just the person to help. We have to go to Switzerland
anyway to pick up Cari's stuff. You have the disks?
Georgie: I don't leave home without them.
Jerry: I said it once, I'll say it again. You're a good girl, Georgie
Jones. I think I'll keep you around.
Georgie: Like you could get rid of me! (On a serious note) Jerry, what are
you going to do if your brother is messed up in this?
Jerry: Darlin', I know my brother. He'd have no part of these terrorists.
But Morgan is right, if Jax thinks that ELQ is bleeding in the water; he'll
attack.
Georgie: I hope not.
Jerry: Why is that?
Georgie: I don't do funerals. (With that she walks away following where
Jason had gone. Jerry waits a few moments considering her words before
going inside himself.)

The Apartment: Lu wearily sags against the door after shutting it. Between
the club and the warehouse she has been working eighteen hour days; Lu is
exhausted. Trying to find her second or third wind, she calls out to Cari.
Lu: Cari, Are you home?
Dylan: (coming out of the dining room area) No, she's out with Lucky; they
said something about "soup to nuts" and then they were gone.
Lu: (Exasperated) What in the hell are you doing in my apartment?
Dylan: I told them we had details to discuss about the condo.
Lu: (Muttering) Liar, Liar.
Dylan: Don't even start with me, Princess. 'Cause it takes one to know one.
Lu: Get out. Out of my face, my apartment, my life! (Just then her legs go
out from under her and she sags against the door and slides down it.)
Dylan: (his face showing instant concern as he rushes to the door) Princess,
are you all right? Are you hurt? (He feels her forehead with the back of his
hand and then begins checking for injuries) Why didn't you tell me you were
sick?
Lu: (slapping at his hands) I'm not sick. I'm tired. I'll have plenty of
time to rest once the warehouse is done.
Dylan: Damn it, Lu! You know better than to do this to yourself. No
building is worth wrecking your health!
Lu: I'm not wrecking it-- just denting it a little, and you know why it's
important. That building has to be finished before the bad guys realize
they aren't getting their toys.
Dylan: (Surprised) I didn't realize you knew about that.
Lu: Why else would I be moving back to the island in a week?
Dylan : (Lifting her up and carrying her into her bathroom) Parole revoked,
Princess? Time to go back and do your time in the tower?
Lu: No, it's for my protection, and it's my choice. But even if Daddy had
forced me, don't you think I deserve it after what happened the last time I
was sneaking around with you? Staci almost died!
Dylan: Lu, that could have happened to anyone. It's not your fault; you
don't have to keep paying. I'm not going to convince you; am I? ( She
shakes her head) Okay-- changing tracks. I'm going to go out to your
kitchen and scramble some eggs, make some toast. You're going to take a
shower- a nice hot one that will put you in the mood for bed. After your
shower, you're going to crawl into bed, eat your snack and sleep until you
wake up.
Lu: Fine, Get out of here so I can take that shower. And I have to be at
the club at four.
Dylan: (muttering under his breath as he walks away) Not today, Princess.

Ten minutes later the water shuts off in the bathroom and Dylan starts
preparing the tray for Lu. Walking down the hallway and into Lu's bedroom he
doesn't knock because his hands are full. He sees a towel clad Lu standing
there-- her dark wet hair hanging down her back briefly before she flips it
over her head and bending at the waist starts to towel it dry with a spare
towel.
Dylan: (Admiringly) This is too cruel.
Lu: (Flipping her hair back and turning around shocked) Didn't your mother
ever teach you to knock?
Dylan: No, I don't think she did, but I'm sure a nanny along the way did.
Sorry. (Lifting the tray with two hands) Where do you want me to put this,
and I'll get out of your hair?
Lu: Sorry. ( moving over to the back of her bedroom door, she grabs her
favorite night shirt and robe and moving back in the bathroom, quickly
changes. Calling from the bathroom) Go ahead and leave that on the table;
I'll eat it in a sec.
Dylan sets the tray on a table in a sitting area of the bedroom. Flipping
over the book that Lu is reading; he finds a crafting book about weaving.
Marking her place with his finger, he begins to flip through the book
looking at all the pictures. He glances up as he hears Lu exiting the
bathroom. This time she is covered to her knees with a jersey style
nightshirt. She wears thick socks and a robe over the nightshirt. Her hair
is twisted up in the towel.
Lu: I thought you'd be gone.
Dylan: Just want to make sure if you lose your legs again, you are least in
bed under the covers. Why don't you eat this before it gets cold? You look
like one of my nieces right down to the fuzzy socks that should have been
thrown out years ago. Princess, you aren't my niece and I don't feel that
way about you . . . I never have. I could have stayed at L&E, you know.
The hours are better. They have a kinder, gentler management style; that's
for sure. I came to ELQ because it's here . . . in Port Charles with you.
Lu: Really stupid reason to make a business decision. It was a long time
ago, Dylan.
Dylan: Yeah, but I have never felt anything like it since. I think you're
in my blood, Lesleylu Spencer. (Bending over the now seated Lu, he raises
her face gently with one finger below her jaw and kisses her slowly,
tenderly-- thoroughly) I shouldn't do this; you're exhausted. Lu, if you
want to get rid of me; this time find me a cure because you've got me down
for the count.