18
Luke felt as if his shoulder was going to fall off and his head was going to explode. He looked up at the ceiling, begging that his life would go ahead and end. Really, he wouldn’t mind if it did. Just as long as the pain was gone. The pain in his shoulder, and the pain of the memories accosting him. The memories of raping Laura to the song now playing.
"Had enough? Daddy?" Portia leaned over, leering down at him. Insanity shone in her eyes. The same insanity that was in Helena’s.
"Why?" He barely croaked, trying to face her eye to eye. Despite the Burst of pain in his shoulder every time he tried to set up. He had to know why his own flesh and blood would hate him like this. Why would she torture him, starting with the murder of her mother. "Why are you doing this? To impress Helena? She’s dead, sweetheart. You put her there."
Portia glared at Luke, despising him even more. How dare he even mention that. It was time to bring out the hammer. "How dare you mention that," She walked over to the counter and lifted the sledgehammer she had hidden. "How dare you mention the injustice I did for that slut that called herself my mother. You and her…you contaminated something pure and holy. Something that should never had been soiled by your dirty Spencer blood!" She brought down the sledgehammer down onto Luke’s knees, causing him to wail in pain as they shattered.
As Portia ranted and tortured her father with the sledgehammer, Nikolas, Lucky, and Elizabeth quietly snuck in. Nikolas had to restrain Lucky from going for Portia as he heard his father’s wails.
"We’ll stop it. Just keep your cool," He hissed, knowing just how hot-tempered his brother could be. A hot temper would get both Lucky and Luke killed.
"Oh god," Lucky gasped, instantly recognizing the song playing. He had once played that song at Luke’s, wanting to torture his father with the truth. Wanting to get in his face. Now he wished he had never heard it.
"Lucky?" Elizabeth frowned, noticing just how pale her boyfriend had gotten. "What is it?"
"That song…it’s the song that he raped mom to. Portia’s torturing him mentally and physically. We have to stop her. We have to stop her now," Lucky made another move to go to his father’s aid but was again stopped by Nikolas. "You’ll get you both killed if you go out there now. Lucky, you have to keep a cool head."
"He’s right. Calm down," Elizabeth laid a comforting hand on Lucky’s arm. She looked at Nikolas, hoping that he had a plan that was better then just storming in there. "Well…what are we going to do?"
"It’s time for the Cassadine Prince to make an appearance. I’ll put on an act for Portia and while she’s distracted, you go untie Luke. After you done, get Lucky and Luke out of here."
"Man, look at him. His knees are broken. She can’t drag him over by herself," Lucky protested, eyeing his father’s condition.
"Well then go with her and you both get him out. I’ll keep her distracted until the police arrive."
"Nikolas…I don’t know…" Elizabeth looked at the scene from their hiding place from under one of the tables.
"Elizabeth, you wanted to help. Well then help. Help Lucky get Luke out of here."
Sighing, she nodded. She still had a bad feeling about this, but what other choice did they have. This plan was it. It had to work. If it didn’t…well then all was lost.
"Ok. Let’s get going. Good luck you two," Nikolas slid out from the hiding place, straightening his shoulders. Preparing for the act of a lifetime.
~*~
Portia had put away the hammer and brought the gun back out. It was time to give her father another bullet. Maybe this time in the stomach. But before she had a chance to do so, Nikolas approached a self-important expression in his eyes.
"Portia!" He yelled, getting in front of Portia and Luke, blocking his mother’s estranged husband from view. "What are you doing?"
"Out of the way Nikolas. I’m taking care of family business!" Portia glared at her cousin, not wanting him in the way. "You should understand being the prince and all. Someone needs to pay for what our family has gone through."
"Well then it should be I that does the punishing. Here I’ve been, playing the Spencer’s for fools, just waiting for the right chance to strike. And here you are destroying all I’ve worked for! You moved to soon and now my plans are ruined!"
Portia looked at Nikolas in shock. She had no idea that he was plotting. That the kissing up to the Spencers was all an act. All this time he was playing every single one of them as fools, plotting against them in the meanwhile. And she…like the amateur she was…ruined it. "Oh…my prince…I’m so sorry…I…I don’t know what to say."
"Say you’re sorry for one. Now. What are you doing here. How can I help?" Nikolas took a secretive glance over at the table where Lucky and Elizabeth were hiding. He had to get her out of the room somehow so they could free Luke.
"You bastard," Luke growled through his pain, feeling bad that he had been right about Nikolas all along. Laura and Lucky were going to be heart broken when they found out.
"Shut up! Or I’ll shoot you right now! In fact…" Portia aimed the gun, but Nikolas forced her arm back down.
"Not now. I want to be next, but first, let’s go into the office and discuss this. I have a special torture for Luke…the murderer of my father. I want to run it past you. See if it can be done," Nikolas placed an insistent hand on Portia’s shoulder and steered her into the office, hoping that Lucky and Elizabeth will make good on this chance.
As soon as Nikolas and Portia were out of sight, Lucky and Elizabeth went to Luke and began untying him.
"Cowboy?" Luke looked on in shock. Lucky and Elizabeth were the last people he was expecting to see. "Cowgirl? What the…you have to get out of here. Go back into hiding. Nikolas and Portia…they’re on the warpath. Oh Cowboy, I was right about Nikolas all along. I’m sorry. He’s in cohorts with…"
"Us," Elizabeth whispered, taking repeated glances at the office door, hoping that Nikolas could keep Portia preoccupied for a good long while. "He’s distracting Portia so we can get you out of here."
"You mean all that…"
"It was an act dad. Nikolas would never hurt you. Now let’s make this chance he’s giving us count and get you out of here," Lucky untied the last rope just as Portia returned, wielding a hand gun, ignoring Nikolas’s demands for her to come back. Her eyes widen to see Elizabeth and Lucky and her father, free from his ropes, but slumped in the chair.
"Lucky…so you found him," Portia glared at her brother. "And you brought your little girlfriend with you. How foolish. Let me finish the job I should have finished when I had the chance." Portia’s eyes were full of hatred as she aimed the gun at Elizabeth’s head, who was frozen with fear, certain that this was it. She was going to die.
"No!" Lucky was up in a matter of seconds and soon was in-between Elizabeth and Portia. He grabbed the gun, trying to jerk it out of her hands, but Portia’s hold was tight. Nikolas could do nothing. He was too stunned. All he could do was stand and stare, shocked that all of this was happening.
"LUCKY!!!" Elizabeth’s scream filled the air as the loud bang of the gun ricocheted off the walls of the former club.