Chapter 18: A Test of Wills

Alexis sits at a table in Kelly's when Gina comes down from her
apartment. Alexis flags her over.

Alexis:"Hi, Gina. Do you have a minute?"
Gina has a seat. "Sure. I wanted to tell you last night how in awe I am
of you. I know how much you loved Sonny, and yet you are holding it
together. I'd be in a million pieces right now if I were in your shoes."
A:"Thanks, but looks can be deceiving. I find it helps to keep busy. I
wanted to tell you, Sonny's will is being read today. Since you are
named, you should be there. It's at eleven o'clock this morning." She
hands a business card to Gina. "Here's the name and address of the
lawyer. Do you need a ride? I can have the driver swing by.."

Gina looks at Alexis in surprise. "No, that's okay. Are you sure I'm
named in his will?"
Alexis:"Yes. We discussed our wills at length when we married." Alexis
notices Laura walk in and gives a wave. Laura makes her way over. "I'll
see you at the reading, Gina."
Gina gets up from the table when Laura arrives. "Thanks Alexis." She
turns to Laura. "Hi Mrs Spencer. I am so sorry about your husband. He
was a wonderful man. I wish I'd gotten to know him better."
Laura takes a seat."Thanks Gina. We all miss him."
Gina:"Well I won't keep you. I'll see you later, Alexis. Good bye Mrs
Spencer." Gina leaves.

Laura:"Hi. Thanks for meeting me here instead of the Grill."
Alexis:"I had to see Gina anyway. I am sure you are as tired as I am of
being asked how you are doing. I'll cut right to the reason I asked you
to meet me. I want to make you an offer."

The waitress arrives at their table. Alexis orders herbal tea and Laura
orders coffee.

Laura:"I'm all ears."
Alexis:"I'm going to Greece. I thought you might want to come along."
Laura considers the implied meaning for a moment. Then she smiles with
determination."Yes. I think that's an excellent idea. When are you
leaving?"
Alexis:"I leave later today. I can delay until tomorrow morning if you
need extra time to make arrangements for your children."
Laura gets up from the table. "Let me talk to Ruby in the kitchen. I'm
sure she'd be happy to take care of Lulu and look after Lucky. I'll be
right back."

Alexis watches Laura leave, noticing a strength in Laura's walk that was
absent when she entered Kelly's. Yes, going to Greece would be good for
both of them. Alexis's thoughts are interrupted by Jason.

J:"Alexis? Are you ready?"
Alexis looks at her watch. "You're early. Have a seat. I have something
to tell you."
Jason takes a seat. "I'm listening."
Alexis takes a deep breath, preparing for a fight. "Laura and I are
going to Greece. We have some unfinished business with Helena. I need to
do it alone, Jason."
J:"No way. I'm going."
A:"Jason, I want you to respect my decision. I can't hide behind you for
protection all my life; I'll go crazy with fear. Laura and I need to
handle this ourselves."
Jason: "Out of the question. You'll have to kill me and all of the
bodyguards first. Sonny made it my job to protect you and his baby."
Alexis(angrily):"You would deny me my revenge?"
Jason: "No, I won't interfere with your plans for Helena. If you ask, I
won't say a word the whole trip, and I'll turn my back when you put a
bullet into the old witch, but I'll be there to keep you safe." Laura
returns to the table.

Alexis glares at him. "Fine Jason. But no other bodyguards. Just you.
And you will follow my orders to the letter."

Laura:"What did I miss?"

Alexis:"Jason insists on coming along."
Laura: "What is it with men? Do they really think we are so helpless and
stupid that we can't defend ourselves?"
Alexis:"Apparently."
Jason:"Insult me all you want. I'm going."
Laura:"Then maybe you can help us with Stefan. He's going to try to stop
this."
Jason:"Leave it to me."
Laura(smiling with amusement):"Oh, I'd love to see you try and stop him,
Jason. By the way, Alexis, I can be ready to leave this evening."
Alexis:"Excellent." She leans over the table in excitement. "Now this
what I thought we'd do...."

.......................

At a respected downtown law office, Sonny's beneficiaries are gathered
for the reading of his will. In attendance are: Alexis, Mike, Robin,
Jason, and Gina.

Lawyer:"I want to introduce myself. I am George Valentine, Mr Corinthos'
attorney. I will be reading his last will and testament. Once everyone
has a seat, I'll get started."

He waits for everyone to be seated. "I, Michael Corinthos Jr, being of
sound mind and body, declare this as my last will and testament. I
revoke all previous will and codicils. I am married to Alexis Davis
Corinthos. I have no children."

Jason takes Alexis' hand as she rubs her stomach in sadness. The lawyer
continues.

George:"I give the Charles Street Foundation and the General Hospital
Pediatric ICU $50,000 each in charitable donations in the memory of my
first wife. I give Gina Williams $75,000 in a trust, to help with her
education." Gina's eyes fill with tears of gratitude. Robin leans over
and gives her a hug.

George:"I give Robin Scorpio $500,000 in a trust, to help pay for her
medical expenses." Robin's mouth opens in shock.

Robin(in a whisper to Jason):"I had no idea!"
Jason:"I knew he would do something."

George clears his throat, signaling that he's ready to continue. "I
give my wife, Alexis Davis Corinthos, the penthouse we live in. I give
my father Mike Corbin, my interest in Luke's Place." George takes sip of
water.

George:"Finally, I leave my shares of ELQ Stock to Jason Morgan."

Jason pales."No, this can't be. Alexis, you should..."
Alexis leans over and hugs him."No, Jason. This is how we wanted it to
be."

George interrupts them both. "Mr Corinthos instructed that I give you
both letters at the reading of the will." He hands them each a letter.

Jason opens his letter first. He sees two pages; the first is a page
full of numbers. the other is a letter addressed to him. He reads it.

Jason,

I couldn't be prouder of you if you had been my own brother. The
business is yours. The men will follow you because you have proven
yourself time and again.

I trust you with all the lives that are important to me. Please look
after Robin. If the trust I have set up for her isn't sufficient, I want
you to pay her expenses. Enclosed in this letter are the accounts that
hold most of my assets. They are yours. I have provided Alexis with an
account of her own, should she wish to cut her ties with her family. I
am confident you will help her if that time comes. Destroy this letter
after you read it.

Sonny

Jason's face is covered in tears as he rereads the letter. Meanwhile,
Alexis reads her letter from Sonny.

My Darling Alexis,

I want you to know how much I love you. The time I've had with you has
been the happiest time of my life. My heart is full again because of
you. I feel complete.

I know we had an understanding when we married that you wouldn't inherit my estate unless we had children. However, I want you to have a way out of your family should you need it. Enclosed is an account number. The funds can buy you a new identity and a new life. Jason will help you
anyway he can.

Darling Alexis, I love you with my heart and soul. Never forget that.

All of my love,
Sonny

Alexis(voice choking with tears):"Jason? Can we go now? Please?"

Jason(putting his arm around her):"Let's go."

Once inside the limo, Alexis buries her face in Jason's chest and cries.
"I can't believe he's gone, Jason. It isn't fair! He should be with
me..." Her body shakes with sobs as Jason holds her tightly.

Jason(tears glistening in his eyes):"I know, it's not fair at all."

.......................

Stefan opens the door to Wyndemere to find Cassidy.

Cassidy(smiling mischievously):"Hi."
Stefan(eyes smiling at her) "Cassandra, come in. You took quite a risk
coming here." He motions her in.
Cassidy:"I waited until he left." She walks into the front hall. Once
the door is closed she gives him an enthusiastic hug. He hesitates,
unused to this kind of affection. After a moment, he tightens his arms
around her.

Stefan:"It has been too long."
Cassidy:"Yes, it has." She ends the hug reluctantly and allows him to
escort her into the living room. "Lovely decor. So warm and cozy."
Her voice drips with sarcastic amusement.
Stefan smiles. "Would you care for something to drink?"
Cassidy:"No thanks. So tell me, how's the old bat?"
Stefan:"She is the same. The doctor reports that the damage is
permanent. She is incapable of speaking clearly or moving the left half
of her body. He said it was a miracle that she lived. "
Cassidy:"More like a curse."
Stefan nods in agreement."I take it the reunion with your father went
well."
Cassidy:"Yes, very well. Alexis was thrilled to see me too."
Stefan:"So how long do you plan to visit? Hopefully long enough for a
chess match. I am curious to see what you have learned since the last
time."
Cassidy:"I have no plans to leave. And I would love a rematch. I've been
practicing with one of the best."
Stefan:"Surely you don't plan on staying in Port Charles..."
Cassidy:"I know it may prove inconvenient for you, but I want to bond
with the rest of my family. I've already lost one family member before I
had a chance to know him. I've no intention of missing out on the rest."
Stefan:"This matter has to be handled with the utmost delicacy,
Cassandra. I've have taken great care in building a foundation for
family reunification. I won't have you rushing in and destroying what I
have built."
Cassidy:"I have no wish to destroy what you've done. But I won't wait
anymore.It has already cost me knowing my brother, Sonny"
Stefan:"We will discuss it later. Now, I want to hear all about your
latest assignment."

........................

Laura escorts Justus into the Spencer living room

Laura:"Thanks for meeting us here, Justus."
Justus:"Laura, I'm glad to do anything to make your life easier."
Lucky shakes Justus's hand. "Hi Justus."
Laura:"Luke's will should be pretty straightforward."
Justus:"Yes it is. There is one minor change the accountant informed me
of this morning. I'll explain it at the end."
Laura:"Let's get this over with."
Justus takes the will out of his briefcase and begins reading.
Justus:"I, Luke Lorenzo Spencer, being of sound mind and body, declare
this to be my last will and testament. I am married to Laura Webber
Spencer. We have two children, Lucky Spencer and Lesley Lu Spencer."

Laura and Lucky hold hands for strength as Justus continues. "I leave
the pink Cadillac and my interest in the club to Lucky Spencer. The
management of the club will be provided by Mike Corbin until Lucky is 21
years old. The proceeds from the club will support the family until
Lulu reaches the age of majority." Lucky looks at his mother in
amazement.

Laura nods. "Yes. This is how we both wanted it to be, Lucky."

Justus waits until he has their attention again. "I give my wife, Laura
Webber Spencer, and my daughter, LesleyLu Spencer, the family home in
equal shares. I leave the rest of my estate to my wife, Laura Webber
Spencer."

Laura:"Thank you Justus."
Justus:"The change is this life insurance policy, Laura. The accountant
made me aware of this last night. It looks like he took it out about a
month ago." He gives the document to Laura to inspect.

Laura looks puzzled. "This is very odd, Justus. Luke didn't mention this
to me. I'm sure he would have. And where in our budget would he come up
with the money for a policy for a half million dollars?

Justus:"I thought it was odd too. Want me to look into it for you?"

Laura:"Please. I would do it myself, but I'm going out of town for a few
days." Laura escorts Justus to the door.

Justus:"I'll get right on it. Hopefully, I'll have some information by
the time you're back. Bye Laura, Lucky."

Laura:"Good bye Justus. Thanks again."

Lucky:"I wish you'd take me with you, Mom. Dad would have a fit. You
could be walking into a Cassadine trap."

Laura:"Your Dad would understand. And you know I have to do it on my
own. It's the only way I can live through this. Besides, I need you to
make sure Lulu is safe. You are the only one I can trust with her
safety."

Lucky(resigned):"Fine, but I don't have to like it."

Laura gives Lucky a big hug. "Thank you, Lucky. I knew I could count on
you."