Dream a Little Dream

Chapter 16

Zander ran from the pool area, and stopped at the gate. He looked around wildly.

He saw the walkway to the front yard was blocked by people and a huge refreshment table. The puffs of cigar smoke on the other side of garden revealed people were there, too. And he couldn't turn around.

He grabbed the gate post as a wave of nausea passed through him. When it passed, he caught his breath and started towards the house. If he moved fast, he'd be through there, out the front door and away from this house of horrors forever before ... anyone ... could stop him. He checked his pocket for his car keys. He'd parked with the family, so he didn't have to worry about a valet, or having his car blocked. He kept focusing on just moving his feet – he couldn't think about what he'd seen when he opened the pool house door or he would fall to the ground and go mad right there.

After a few moments of paralyzed shock after the door opened, Emily and Nikolas were able to move again. They had to stop Zander before he reached the house, or anyone else. They had to keep things under control.

“ZANDER!” Emily screamed, to get him to stop. It didn't work. She ran after him, hobbled by her high-heeled white sandals and having to keep one hand behind her back to hold her unzipped dress up. Nikolas had grabbed his jacket and was buttoning his shirt. Hurriedly tucking it in, he followed Emily.

Standing with some of the other men, puffing his cigar, Cameron heard the scream and his heart stopped. It reminded him of the screams when Pete's body was discovered. Dropping his cigar, he sped towards the house. The others followed.

Zander blindly stumbled across the patio, narrowly missing a waiter with a tray of canapes. He brushed against Lucy, who tripped and fell seat-first into an urn-style planter.

He stormed through the French doors and into the parlor. Alan and Monica were in there, as was Tracy.

“Zander! What's going on?” Monica barely was able to get that out before another beseeching screech of Emily's reached the living room. Alan grabbed Zander's arm.

“Zander?” he asked, looking into the young man's face, filled with pain and anger. Then he turned to see Emily totter in, still clutching the back of her dress, followed by Nikolas. He dropped Zander's arm.

“Oh, my God,” he breathed. He didn't need to be told anything. Neither did the guests, who had all rushed in after hearing Emily's screams. Her hand holding her dress up, the wet trails still shining in her neck and chest above her dress, the disheveled hair, the smeared lips, all told the story. Nikolas was similarly rumpled, his face and neck splotched with sparkly smears from Emily's lip gloss. Part of his wrongly-buttoned shirt was still untucked. Luke looked at him, then down at his crotch, and then back up again. Nikolas took the signal and zipped his fly. He then gently zipped Emily's dress.

Luke was almost amused at seeing the Prince so thoroughly ruffled, but then, across the room, he saw Laura's agonized face. He went over to her and stood behind her, holding her shoulders. Cameron edged towards Zander, shock slowly turning to fury.

Alexis and Stefan stood side by side. Her eyes grew wide as the reality of the scene hit her. Stefan was devastated for Zander, and filled with a cold rage against Nikolas and Emily.

AJ and Jason came in, and stood beside Carly. Ned and Justus went over by Tracy. Skye and Lorenzo stood beside Jason.

“What is the meaning of this?” Alan asked dumbly.

“Let me explain,” Zander said, in a tight voice. “Your daughter's been getting her jollies with Prince Nikolas tonight! And who knows how many other nights! How long has this been going on, Emily?”

She stood, mute, with eyes beseeching him to stop.

“HOW LONG?” he thundered. She cowered, her face screwing up and her lips wobbling.

“There's no need to talk to her like that!” Nikolas interjected.

“Shut up!” Zander shot back. “I don't need someone who pretends to be my friend while screwing the love of my life behind my back telling me what's right to do!”

“Zander ...” Emily began in a weak voice.

“The only thing I want to hear from you is the answer to my question,” Zander said sternly. “How long have you and Nikolas been doing this?”

“Not long,” she said.

“How long, Emily?” he persisted

She opened and shut her mouth a few times, then let the pretense drop.

“Since last year,” she whispered. Monica closed her eyes in pain and turned her face towards Alan's shoulder.

“Since last year?!” Zander echoed sarcastically. “Not long at all, no sir! How long were you going to keep this up, Emily? Were you going to stop when we got engaged? Maybe you would have carried it on after we got married! Why, in God's name, didn't you just break up with me? Or did you like having two men falling at your feet? Must've been quite the ego trip for you! ”

Emily was trembling as she heard Zander dragging her true love in the dust.

“I'm sorry, Zander ...” she began. “I didn't mean to hurt you ...”

“Then what did you mean to do?” Zander asked. “Carry on like this indefinitely? Have your cake and eat it too while keeping poor, stupid Zander in the dark?”

“No, Zander, I would have ... you know ... eventually,” Emily said. “It was never the right time ...”

“Never the right time to be honest, at least with yourself?” Zander sneered. “Never the right time to break my heart, but still come out smelling like a rose? Maybe Nikolas wanted to time it right, for some sort of Cassadine International publicity thing. Maybe get some royal wedding plans in the works? And, all the while, there I was, happy, thinking I'd grabbed the brass ring, that I was good enough for someone like you. But all I really got was a fistful of crap, and being publicly shown that all I'm good for is to be used a humiliated by a slut like you!”

Emily slowly looked around at the assembled crowd, not looking them in the eye. She couldn't see Laura's heartbreak, Alexis' misery, Cameron's rage, the Quartermaines' pain and shame, or Stefan's barely checked fury. No one took up for her after Zander's slur. But then Nikolas spoke up again.

“How dare you talk to her like that!” he shouted, pulling himself together to sound somewhat like a prince.

Zander laughed mockingly.

“How dare I?” he chortled. “Oh, that's rich. You called yourself my friend, you came to my apartment, you'd go out with us, you looked me in the eye as I talked about how much I loved Emily, told you about my plans for a life with her, and all the while you're betraying me with her! What kind of friend does that? And yet you try to put on your Prince Nikolas airs with me?! You're the prince of nothing besides that steaming pile of crap you call a soul!”

Stefan struggled inwardly. Seeing the Cassadine prince, the nephew he adored, so thoroughly humiliated tore at him. But he couldn't muster up any sympathy. Nikolas had brought this all on himself. Why, he wondered, if they weren't going to do as he'd said, why couldn't they just keep up the pretense for one more night? Just one more night! Why did they have to drag Laura, Cameron, Alexis, and Emily's family into this in such a degrading manner? Poor Monica and Alan, he thought. This was supposed to be their night of joy, celebrating Jason's return. Instead ... this.

“Zander, please ... I-I-I'm sorry ... but ...” Emily stammered. Zander held up his hand. He didn't want to hear any more of her whining.

“You know what, Emily Quartermaine? You can go to Hell,” he spat. “And you can take your boytoy with you.”

With that, he turned and left.

“Alexander, wait!” Cameron called, pushing through the crowd. Alexis and Stefan followed him into the front hallway. Cameron looked out, and saw Zander's car peel out and zoom down the Quartermaine drive. Terror surged in his veins.

“I have to follow him ... I have to find him,” Cameron said hollowly. “I can't lose another son ...”

His voice broke.

“You won't,” Alexis said. “Let's go.”

“No,” he said. “I have to do this alone. I couldn't help Pete, or Zander after Pete died. I have to help Zander now.”

Cameron took Alexis' face in his hands and kissed her softly. He turned to Stefan.

“Please, Stefan, take Alexis home?” he asked. “We'll sort through this mess later. I have to go.”

“I will, Cameron,” Stefan said. Cameron saw the misery on his face, nodded, then turned and left, yelling for the valet.

Alexis turned back towards the living room, where silence had reigned since Zander left. She walked to the threshold, and looked witheringly at Nikolas and Emily.

“How could you?” she asked. “Oh, Nikolas, how could you?”

She couldn't say anything more. The tears blocked her throat. She turned around and walked away. With one dark glare at Nikolas and Emily, Stefan followed.

Alan looked from the doorway over to Emily.

“It's a good question,” he said huskily. “How could you?”

“Dad ...” Emily beseeched him. “You don't understand ...”

“You're right, Emily,” Alan said. “I don't. You were supposed to be better than this. How could you do that to Zander? He loved you so much! What you did ... it was just plain wrong. If you'd fallen out of love with him, why couldn't you just break up with him? Why, why did you have to ... carry on like this with him for months?”

Alan looked with disgust at Nikolas, the man who had led his once fine and noble daughter down a path of selfishness and degradation.

AJ caught a glimpse of Leticia beckoning him at the top of the stairs. “The boys,” he whispered to Carly. “I'll handle it.”

Carly nodded, looking furiously at Emily.

“And, not just Zander, but the rest of us,” Monica spoke up. “For months, we've been so worried about you, thinking you were just working too hard in medical school. We've done nothing but love and support you. And, tonight, when we should be celebrating the miracle of having your brother back with us, you drag your seedy behavior right into the party, in front of all our friends! And what about your sister? This should be the happiest night of her life so far, and Lorenzo's, too. And you tainted it because you and Nikolas couldn't control yourselves for one stinking night!”

Emily's face was stricken with pain. Nikolas was right. No one understood their true love. She edged closer to him, and he put his hands protectively on her arms.

“Congratulations, Emily!” Tracy called from the side of the room, raising her glass in a mocking salute. “You are the reigning champion of Quartermaine party disasters. I think Michael's safely off the hook now, Carly. I don't think he'll be able to top this.”

“SHUT UP, TRACY!” The Quartermaines shouted as one. Tracy took it equably. Seeing high and mighty Emily tumble so ignominiously from her perch was worth it.

“Emily,” Jason said, stepping towards her. “Why? Earlier this week, when I tried to talk to you about things, you clammed up. All these months, you could have talked to Mom or Dad, or AJ, or Carly. You didn't have to do this.”

“You don't understand!” Emily burst out, stamping her foot. “No one understands! It's love! True love! And all you all can do is criticize!”

“Twoo-oo-oo wuuuuv...” Carly croaked mockingly, imitating the speech-impeded bishop in “The Princess Bride.”

“SHUT UP, CARLY!” The Quartermaines yelled. Luke shot her a death glare, with a glance at Laura. “Sorry,” Carly mouthed to him. Luke winked at her to let her know he shared her ill-timed opinion.

“No, Emily,” Jason said. “Love doesn't make you hurt people the way you have. This ... it's just pure selfishness ... and cruelty ...”

Nikolas stormed past Emily to confront Jason.

“Shut up!” he shouted. “You don't talk to her in such a way!”

He took a swing at Jason, who knocked him down with a fist to the jaw. Everyone gasped. Laura turned her face to Luke's chest, fighting an impulse to jump in because it would only escalate things. Nikolas sprawled on the floor, sat up, and looked menacingly at Jason.

“You claim to love my sister?” Jason said, standing over Nikolas, fists clenched. “But you treat her like your dirty little secret! You lock yourselves up in that mausoleum over on Spoon Island to play Prince and Princess, above the rest of the world and the consequences of your actions! You're nothing but a spoiled brat, and you've turned my sister into one! Now get out of here!”

Nikolas stood up. He held out his hand to Emily.

“Come,” he said. “I think we've had enough of your family's wretched abuse for one night.”

“Emily ...” Skye said. “Don't go. We can work this out ...”

“I belong with Nikolas now,” Emily said coldly. “If he's not welcome here, then I leave with him.”

“Then don't let the door hit you on the way out,” Monica said in disgust. The family turned to her in surprise. Tracy was impressed.

“I've had it,” she said. “Your antics ruin our night and you try play the victim?! Grow up, Emily! Stop trying to star in your own little soap opera, with you and Nikolas as the center of the universe! Either suck it up and face the fallout from what you've done, or run away with your playmate.”

Emily looked sadly at her family.

“I should have known you wouldn't understand,” she said, and, taking Nikolas' hand, she left with him.

* * *

The guest knew what to do from past Quartermaine disasters. Leave, and do it quickly and quietly.

Gail gave Monica a hug. “Call me tomorrow,” she whispered. “I'm here, whatever you need.” The other women followed with hugs and sympathetic hand squeezes.

The men showed sympathy in their usual way, with a shoulder pat.

Luke and Laura left, with Laura wishing she could fall into a nice, deep hole. They were silent at first as they drove home in the pink Cadillac, then Laura spoke.

“You might as well say it,” she said. “I know you've got some wisecrack.”

“Sorry, Angel, I can't make my usual sparkling witticisms when you look like that,” he replied.

“I just can't believe it!” she said. “What on earth has gotten into Nikolas? And Emily! She's the most level-headed of the Quartermaines, and tonight she made Tracy look like a paragon of rectitude!”

“There's some strange sort of alchemy going on with those two,” Luke said. “Did you hear them? They were totally into this 'me and you against the world' zone. And there's no reason for it.”

“I don't know,” Laura sighed. “Nikolas has always been The Prince. And the Quartermaines have always made a lot of Emily, treating her like she's the second coming of Lila ...”

Luke snorted.

“Maybe they've both been built up a little too much,” he said. “You bent over backwards – too far, I've thought sometimes – to make up to Nikolas for being kept from him when he was a kid. You tolerated a lot of crap from him that you never would have stood for from Lucky or Lulu because of it. And Vlad made him the center of his world for so long. Trained and tutored him to be the Cassadine Prince. Unfortunately, Nikolas missed a few lessons along the way. Namely, that the rest of us aren't his peasants.”

Laura looked away sadly.

“And Emily, like you said, has been puffed up so much she could be a Macy's Parade float,” Luke went on. “Did you see Tracy's face? She was eating it up. Emily will never be able to do her high-and-mighty lectures to her again. Tracy will tear her to shreds, then pick her teeth with the bones. And poor Cameron. It must have been hell seeing Zander suffer like that, especially after everything they've been through.”

A short silence followed.

“I have to go see him, Luke,” Laura said. “I have to know he's all right ... Maybe I can get through to him.”

Luke shook his head.

“No way, Darlin', not tonight,” he said. “You're so upset you won't be able to reach him. And he's so full of the high drama of tonight, he wouldn't be able to hear you. It could only make things worse. Wait, Laura. At least until tomorrow. Sleep on it first.”

Laura let out a ragged sigh. She turned her tear-stained face to Luke.

“You're right,” she said. “We're all too strung out from what happened to make any sense of it tonight. Let's just go home. Although I doubt I'll get much sleep tonight.”

* * *

Alexis poured out some tea and refilled the kettle for when Cameron came home. She and Stefan were sitting at a cozy white round table tucked into the bay window in the kitchen of hers and Cameron's home. She'd put Ida to bed in one of the guest rooms, asking her to take Kristina out for the day the next morning. Alexis knew Cameron would need her.

They'd spoken little since leaving the Quartermaine estate. Their pain, shame and disgust were too much for words. After a few sips of the tea, Alexis broke the silence.

“You knew,” she said.

“Yes,” he said, looking at her sadly. “I'd had my suspicions for a week or so, then you came to me with that financial statement last week. It wasn't hard to put two and two together from that. The next night, I went to Wyndemere and found them together.”

He made a face, remembering the sight.

“I confronted them,” he went on. “Nikolas was so full of himself, like he was entitled to do whatever he wanted, and to hell with anyone else. It was so like Stavros that I was terrified. I felt like I was fighting to save his soul, in a way. So I threatened them.”

Alexis waited, her eyes wide.

“I told them that if Emily did not end her relationship with Zander within a week, that I would go to him and tell all,” Stefan said. “I guess they decided that I was bluffing, and they would call me on it, because they obviously did nothing. The thing is, the jig would have been up tomorrow. Zander had agreed to come see me at noon. But they couldn't keep their hands off each other for one night...”

Alexis made a sound of disgust in her throat.

“I'm so sorry, Alexis,” he said. “I acted the way I did hoping I could spare you all. I wish ...”

“It's not your fault,” she said firmly. “You did everything you could to try and make things right. I don't know what has gotten into him ...”

“I'll tell Cameron everything, except about the financial statement, when he gets home,” Stefan said. “He probably won't take it well, but I won't hide from it.”

Alexis squeezed his hand. “We'll get through somehow,” she said. “We survived Helena and Stavros. We can survive this.”

* * *

“Boy, that was some night,” Lucy said to Kevin as they lay in bed.

“I knew we could count on the Quartermaines for a floor show, but that was a little too Jerry Springer for my taste,” Kevin said wryly.

“Oh, Doc!” Lucy said.

“Sorry,” he said. “I'd love to get those two on the couch – separately, of course, because there are some things I just don't want to see. For all their talk about true love, they sure bring out the worst in each other. Nikolas was always so serious and responsible. And Emily was the last Quartermaine you could ever call a selfish brat. I hope someone – Stefan, Laura, Alan, Monica, Jason – can get through to them. They need to be brought back to Earth.”

Lucy sighed.

“I'm glad Mother Quartermaine didn't live to see this,” she said. “Seeing Emily carrying on this way would have destroyed her.”

“I wish she was there,” Kevin said. “Emily's fairy-tale delusions would have never stood up under Lila's gentle, but firm, questioning. It would have been just what the doctor ordered.”

Lucy hugged him.

“You always make sense, Doc,” she said with a kiss.

* * *

Cameron walked into the house around 2:30. He saw the kitchen light on, and went in to see Alexis and Stefan still at the table. Alexis got up to put the kettle to boil for more tea.

“I didn't find him,” Cameron said, putting his white face in his hands. Alexis stroked his thick, wavy hair. She and Stefan said nothing. They knew he was in the grip of fear that Zander would end his life as Pete had done.

The kettle whistled. Alexis put fresh tea in the pot, and filled it. Setting the little hourglass timer, she put the pot on the table. They sat in silence as the sand drained into the bottom. Alexis poured a fresh cup for everyone.

“I don't understand this,” Cameron said. “If anything in the world was a sure thing, it was Zander and Emily. They seemed so happy. I mean, they were both busy and tired a lot, especially Emily, but I just chalked it up to a demanding school schedule. I would have never suspected ...”

Stefan looked away, sadness and guilt in his eyes. His nephew had brought all this unhappiness down, and he'd failed to stop it. Even in the fiery pits of Hell, Helena and Stavros were likely having a good laugh at his expense right now.

The phone rang. Everyone stared at the others for a moment, afraid to answer. Cameron jumped up and ran to answer it.

“Zander?”

Stefan and Alexis held their breath.

“Oh, Lucky. I'm sorry, I was ... What? He's there? What's that?”

A long silence followed as Cameron listened. The blood had come back to his face. Stefan squeezed Alexis' hand in relief.

“Okay. Okay. I'll be there first thing. Are you sure everything's all right? Mmm-hmmm. Okay. Thank you so much for calling, Lucky. You may have saved my sanity. Thank them for me, too. I'll see you then. Good night.”

He hung up. Stefan and Alexis looked at him expectantly.

“He's safe,” Cameron said, letting out a long breath.

“Thank God,” Alexis whispered.

“Lucky Spencer found him outside Vagabond,” Cameron said. “Blind drunk. Lucky brought him in, and sat him down hoping to sober him up. Zander told him everything. Brian Beck was there, too. Zander was in no condition to leave, so Lucky grabbed his car keys and he and Brian pushed him upstairs to this little apartment Lucky keeps for himself. Sometimes he stays there if he works really late. Anyway, Zander started getting sick, so Lucky put a bucket by the bed and called Karen Wexler. He was worried about alcohol poisoning. Karen's there; she checked him out. He's totally passed out now. Karen put him on an IV just to be safe. They'll stay with him while he sleeps it off. I'll go down there tomorrow to bring him home. He's in no state to be left alone right now.”

“Lucky and Brian are fine young men,” Stefan said. “And Karen did a good thing tonight.”

“How are you two doing with this?” Cameron asked. “I know this hadn't to have been an easy night for either one of you.”

“No, it wasn't,” Alexis said. “Seeing Nikolas that way, it was pretty painful. It was like landing in a bizarro world, where nothing makes sense. We left right after you. I couldn't face listening to any more of Emily's simpering, or any self-absorbed claptrap from Nikolas.”

Stefan decided it was time to make a clean breast of things.

“I'd been hoping this would be avoided,” he began. Cameron's face darkened.

“You knew?!” he cried. “Then why the hell didn't you say something, Stefan?”

Stefan told Cameron of his recent discovery of the affair, and how he'd threatened them to set things right, or else. Then he told of how he'd arranged a meeting with Zander for later today, to tell him the truth.

“Sorry for jumping on you, Stefan,” Cameron said. “I should have known you'd never do anything to hurt Zander.”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” Stefan said. “I apologize to you. I'd hoped to break through to them, and make them do the right thing. My efforts obviously failed. Now all I can do is wonder if I should have done something else, or something more ... anything, to have spared Zander this.”

Cameron shook his head.

“You did everything you could,” he said. “Ultimately, it wasn't up to you. The people who should have done the right thing didn't. And now everyone else has to pay for it.”

* * *

Skye and Lorenzo sat in the rose garden. Everyone else had gone to bed quietly. There was nothing for any of them to say.

Skye twisted her lovely engagement ring.

“You know,” she said. “I wouldn't blame you one bit if you jumped up and ran away screaming. Anyone in their right mind would want to get away before being tied to this family.”

Lorenzo put his arm around her shoulders and hugged her to him.

“I guess I am crazy,” he said. “Crazy for you, sweetheart. Because I'm not going anywhere.”

She leaned her head on Lorenzo's shoulder, and sent up a silent prayer of gratitude.