CHAPTER
ONE
Elizabeth is at the counter
wiping off the remnants of food when Nikolas enters, his face deathly pale. She
stops wiping the counter and stares at her friend. The last time he had looked like
this was when he had found out about the fire that killed Lucky. She winces at
the sharp ache in her heart at the thought of her late boyfriend. She wondered
if the ache would ever go away.
"Nikolas set down. What’s
wrong? You look like you’ve seen a ghost," Elizabeth offers a stool.
"I have. Or rather I talked
to one just five minutes ago," Nikolas answered, taking a stool. I can’t
stay long. I have to find Luke. I just wanted you to know about this
first…since you love him too."
"Who? Luke?"
"Lucky," Nikolas looks
at her dead on.
"What about the
Cowboy," Luke Spencer exits the kitchen, a towel in his hand as he stands
behind Elizabeth.
"What are you doing
here?" Nikolas stands up in the presence of Lucky’s father.
"Filling in for Tammy. Now
want to tell me what you’re doing talking about my son?"
Nikolas swallowed. He hadn’t
expected to talk about this so soon. Not without putting his thoughts together,
but now he had no choice. He had to tell Luke about the call.
"Listen, I’m not crazy. I
went through the call in my head over and over again and it could be no one
else but him"
"Nikolas, what are you
talking about?" Elizabeth asked him really confused.
"Lucky Liz! He’s
alive!" Nikolas blurts out. "Just Ten minutes ago he called me and
asked me to help him!"
"What? Cowboy asking you for
help?"Luke glares at the young man setting before him. Just because he was
Laura’s son and the half-brother of his children, didn’t mean he had to care
much for him or believe him for that matter. "Have you been smoking something?"
"Nikolas," Elizabeth
lays a comforting hand over his. "I know you miss Lucky. We all do. But
he’s dead. He’s been dead for a whole year now. There’s no way he could have
called you and asked for help. Someone’s out there trying to mess with your
head."
"Cowgirl’s right Nikky.
Lucky’s dead. Someone is playing a sick joke on ya," Luke nods.
"It wasn’t a joke! I didn’t
believe him at first either! I asked him to prove it! Liz, remember when we
went after that Tom guy? Well Lucky and I were in the room alone looking at my
father’s computer. He had made a comment on the computer and I had made a joke.
Lucky was the only one who heard that joke. So you see, it has to be him!"
Elizabeth looked at him
skeptically.
"I don’t know…"
"Liz please! It was Lucky!
He had asked me to find Luke and tell him that he was in trouble. Helena and
this Faison guy are holding Lucky somewhere in Italy. Lucky was able to get
away for enough time to tell me to find Luke, tell him that he was somewhere in
Italy, and to protect Elizabeth. Please! You have to believe me!"
Luke takes a closer look at the
young Cassadine and recognized the frantic gleam in the boy’s eyes. It took a
lot to get Nikolas all worked up like this and he would only get this worked up
over very few people, Lucky being one of them. "Tell me exactly what he
said Nikolas."
"He said that the fire was a
set up. That he was being held by a man named Cesar Faison and that Helena was
in on it too. And then he asked me to look out for Elizabeth because they’ve
been using her to keep him in line and that he was afraid that they’d make good
on their threats. And he asked me to go find you Luke and tell you what was
going on," Nikolas looked his family’s nemesis straight in the eyes.
"It was Lucky. I know it was and if you won’t help him, then I will. I’ll
fly to Italy and look for him and won’t stop until I bring him home!"
Nikolas begins to get angry at the lack of emotion in Luke’s eyes. He didn’t
think he believed him.
"Wait a minute right there
Nikolas. I’m not saying I don’t believe you, ok. This IS the cowboy we’re
talking about. If there’s any chance that he could be alive…I’m going for it.
But it doesn’t hurt to be cautious about this. Someone may be doing this to
hurt all of us…or it really could be Lucky. And if it is Lucky, that’s all more
the reason to be cautious. As you well know, Helena is a very dangerous woman
and wouldn’t blink a eye in eliminating obstacles. And as for Cesar Faison…he’s
a very dangerous man, killed two of my best friends in an explosion and
kidnapped Felicia Scorpio. If we go out there without any strategy or
anything…we could lose Lucky again before we ever find him. Get what I’m
saying?"
Nikolas nods, glaring down at the
counter. "I just want my brother back. Is that so wrong?"
Luke sighed, for once
understanding where the kid was coming from. He too would move heaven and earth
to get Lucky back. But like he said before, they had to be careful, for Lucky’s
sake as well as their own.
"I understand where you’re
coming from Nikolas, but we still have to be cautious. For Lucky’s sake. Hey,
don’t worry. If Cowboy’s indeed out there somewhere alive, I’m gonna find him
and bring him back. I just need a little more proof."
"What proof do you
need?"
"Was your answering machine
on?" Luke asked. "Did it pick up before you did?"
Nikolas’s eyes widen. "Yes
it did! I’ll go get the tape and play it back!" He didn’t know why he
didn’t think of this before! If anyone knew Lucky’s voice it was Luke. He’d know
if this was really Lucky or just some sick joke. "I’ll be right
back!" He darts out the door.