The Path to Power

Chapter Forty Three

Monday-- Morning, Midday and More

Dara juggles briefcase, coat and coffee to get to her keys and then with a twist of a wrist and kick at the base of the door to get it open. The only reason she is half way caught up is because she'd come in on Sunday to get all her prep work done. Luckily other than a few filings that could get done as soon as the court clerk's office opened today was going to be an office day.

The briefcase is dumped behind her desk. The coat is hung on the coat tree along with her suit jacket. The coffee set on the desk. Hit the message button.

Ms. Jenson? I heard your name from AJ Quartermaine. My name is Lydia Karenin. I'm staying at the Port Charles Hotel. Would you be able to review some family legal work?

Dara writes down the particulars and then goes on to the next message.

"Dara, it's AJ..."

"Speak of the devil."

... I've got a couple of things going on. I need an update on the IRS and I think I'm going to be buying a house. It's vacant now. I'm going to call in an inspector to check it out but then anything you can do to cut down the paperwork would be great.

Dara picks up phone and checks her rolodex to get AJ's work number. When she gets his voice mail she leaves a message. "AJ, don't use an inspector from this county on a property you're interested in buying. Big time conflict of interest. Call someone from a county away at least. Call me when you get in the office to make an appointment."

"Dara, it's Skye. I know I should have called you last week. It was a handshake deal...."

Dara winces at that.

"That's not why I'm calling. I'm sure that will be fine."

"Famous last words." Dara mutters.

"I bought the Herald on Friday. I want to have the business contracts sent over to you. I don't want to miss any deadlines. I'm sure the paper has it's own legal department...."

"If they don't it would explain so much." Dara mutters. She takes down the particulars.

"Is this Dara Jensen's office? Mrs. Quartermaine said I should call you since I got arrested over the weekend. It's total bullsh... um anyway my name is Daw.. um Marshall T. Wilson. And Mrs. Q might call you too. But I'll call back later."

"That was interesting."

"ahem... Ms. Jensen, this is Edward Quartermaine. Some... family issues have come up and I need to amend my will. I can't use Justus since he'll be named of course...."

Dara raises a brow at that. "What on earth did they put in the water this weekend?" If this kept up she was going to have to take on a partner.

"Ms. Jensen, this is Ric Lansing. I was hoping that I could take you to lunch one day this week to talk about a business proposal that I think could be mutually beneficial."

"I hope you'll examine that offer carefully." Stefan interrupts from the door.

"Stefan!" Dara gets up and starts to go to the door to give him a hug and then remembers that she is totally ticked at him and instead turns off the message machine. "That was a privileged conversation." She says instead warningly.

"You have been very... careful to avoid the taint of Sonny Corinthos and his thuggish companions."

"What does Ric Lansing have to do with Sonny Corinthos?"

Stefan winces and half laughs not believing what he is about to say. "Elizabeth Webber told Lucky Spencer who told Nikolas-- Ric Lansing is Sonny Corinthos' brother."

"You're making that up."

"If I were it would be more plausible." Stefan counters.

Dara sits back down behind her desk and leans back, letting her head rest against the top of the chair and closes her eyes. "How was your trip?"

"Interesting. May I?" Stefan indicates the chair on the other side of the desk.

Dara sighs and sits up pulling the chair up to the desk. She reaches for a pen. "Sure. What can I do for you this morning, Mr. Cassadine?"

"Dara..."

"Do you have an alibi for when Detective Andrew Capelli was killed?"

"Dara..." Stefan shakes his head and answers her question simply. "Yes. Jet flight plans and reservations at a hotel in Caracas."

Dara mutters. "I guess it will have to do." Dara puts the pen down again and starts shaking her head. "Within 24 hours, Stefan. Twentyfour!"

Stefan's face is grim. "A fact of which I am not unaware, Dara. Something you might not yet know is that Mr. Lansing was in all likelihood calling from General Hospital. He was admitted for injuries resulting from a mugging."

"Sonny?"

"Lansing was also mentioned in Capelli's call to his employer." Stefan reminds Dara.

Dara groans. "It's not my business. I'm going to make it my new mantra. It's not my business. I left the DA's office. I'm out of the superhero business. I just write wills. It's not my business. Maybe some contracts-- do a little research. Why are you laughing at me?"

Stefan covers his smirk with a smoothing hand over his beard. "Was I?" He asks innocently.

"Stefan, I know it goes against the whole Cassadine credo but how would you feel about actually sharing information with the PCPD? You met Alcazar didn't you?"

"Who did you have in mind?"

"Marcus. Mac."

"You would be there to advise me." Stefan sets his conditions. "And it would occur in this office... before I change my mind. I have an appointment with my niece for ducktime as her stepmother calls it."

Dara winces. That was another one she'd be meeting with today. She's gotten the counter proposal back from the charity. It was a settlement offer that Faith was sure to throw back in their face. "Let me make the call."

"This is a bad idea. This is the stupidest idea you have ever had in your entire life. Hell in the history of stupid ideas this is a capper. If they gave out medals for dumbass you'd be on the top of the podium."

"Georgie, will you Puleeze give it a rest?!" Maxie demands, turning around to glare at her sister.

"Let her get it out of her system." Kyle counters. He looks in the rear view mirror where Maxie's sister is glaring back at him. "Because the only way this is going to work is if you go along with it once we get to the school. I get it. You hate my guts. No problem. You can even hate my guts in public. You can wonder what the hell your sister sees in me. But we hit those doors and it's real."

"I know what to do. Dumbass. I'm not stupid." Georgie snarls.

"Why is she in the car again?" Maxie asks the driver. Her stress level is building the closer they got to the school. If this didn't work then she'd be on the next flight to Texas even if she had to stowaway.

"Because Mac said the only way you'd be in a room alone with Mighty Dong again was over his dead body-- Dong's not Mac's." Then Georgie has a cheerful thought. "But I can lie and tell Mac that I left the two of you alone. Then you would be dead."

"Georgie, I know you're having a really good time right now but I really can't take much more of this and I'd really like to have just a little bit of... support from my sister. I don't want a repeat of Friday. I just want..." to be invisible again.

"This will work." Kyle looks over at Maxie. "By the end of today we're going to be old news."

"It better." Georgie threatens. She bites her tongue as they pull up at the school and into the student lot. There is a flood of students already half racing to the school as the first bell neared. She would have to go straight to class but Maxie and Kyle both needed to check in at the front office because they were coming in off of suspensions. Or at least Maxie needed to find out if she was going to get one for swearing at Mr. Lawrence. Georgie slams out of the back of the car.

Kyle comes around the car and opens Maxie's door. Normally it would just be politeness but the hand he offers her actually ends up half pulling her out of the car. "It's going to work."

"You don't know what it was like." Maxie mutters. Her legs feel like they have cement blocks weighing her down.

"They'll have to go thru me." Kyle counters. He strings his and Maxie's backpacks on to one shoulder and then tucks his arm around Maxie's waist. Maxie half jumps when she feels a hand in her back pants pocket that isn't her own. "Take a deep breath." Kyle mutters.

"Right. Breathe." Maxie strings a finger thru one of Kyle's belt loops. "One perfect couple coming up."

"Oh just bite me!" Faith snarls as she nearly slams Ned's fingers in the door to the Porsche.

"You can't just kill anyone who gets in your way." Ned states as if to a two year old.

"Who says?!" Faith demands revving the powerful throaty engine of the sports car.

"It's the law, Faith."

"Oh Please!" Faith rolls her eyes. "I didn't kill her. I didn't even lay a finger on the scrawny dried up bitter old prune."

"Because I showed up. Damn it, Faith. It's my mother."

"Do I really have to tell you all the reasons why her permanent absence would be a very good thing?! I gave her the option of leaving. She wasn't taking me up on it."

"No-- you told me yesterday, all last night and all this morning." Ned says tiredly. "Faith, she's my Mother"

"You should be able to come up with a better reason than that." Faith states flatly. "Step away from the car."

"Where are you going?!"

"I already told you I wasn't going to kill her. I gave you my word. If that isn't good enough for you then you'd just better take me out now." There is a long pause while Faith glares at her husband. "I didn't think so. So. Step. Away. From. The. Car."

"Where are you going?" Ned demands again.

"To see my lawyer." Faith hits the gas on the car sending gravel flying.

Ned jumps out of the way. "What do you mean you're going to see your lawyer?!" He yells after her.

Alice comes out onto the front porch carrying Kristina. "Um... Mr. A... I couldn't help but overhearing."

"Who couldn't?" Ned says wryly.

"Exactly. Um... Mrs. A had an appointment with Ms. Jensen-- that thing with her grandmother's will."

"Oh." Ned breathes a little easier and relaxes. "Right. I knew that." He looks at his watch. "I should get to the office."

"Yeah. That might be good." Alice agrees with a tired sigh. I need a nap.

"I don't see why we couldn't have this little meeting down at the station." Mac mutters as he opens the door to Dara's office. "It reeks of favoritism."

"Just tell anyone that asks that my coffee is better. And if they'd ever had any of the coffee down at the PCPD they'd know it was true." Dara suggests. "Hey Mac, Marcus."

"So the gangs all here. What's up?" Marcus goes over to the water cooler and gets cup of the chilled water. He isn't much of a coffee drinker.

Mac nods as Dara offers him a coffee by lifting a mug in his direction. Dara hands Mac the coffee and then leads them both to the room that is being used as a library. It has the longest table... the closest to a conference table in her offices. "Stefan Cassadine was out of the country when Andrew Capelli was killed." Dara reminds the newcomers.

"Nikolas said that much." Mac counters but the so why are we here is implied.

"But what my nephew probably didn't mention was that I was out of the country meeting with Alcazar. Lorenzo Alcazar." Stefan steps away from the window and then adjusts the blinds so that while there is light coming into the room the view from outside is obscured.

Marcus comes over and pulls up a chair across from Stefan. "Well that's just interesting. How did you happen to find Mr. Alcazar so quickly after getting the information from Zander about Capelli? Why exactly were you meeting with him and where? What ever you said to him must have pissed him off. We've got a dead cop."

Stefan looks at Mac and then at Dara. Mac takes a seat next to Taggart. Dara the seat next to Stefan. He begins slowly as if there is rust on his voice. "I have had a file on the Alcazars since... before Chloe's death. I knew Brenda Barrett was the companion of Luis Alcazar." Dara looks at Stefan and her jaw drops in disbelief. Stefan continues speaking. "In the course of my research, I identified a number of... usual locations for the family. It was simple enough to update my information after Mr. Smith overheard Capelli's conversation with his employer."

"You knew Brenda was alive and you didn't say anything?!" Mac demands.

Stefan raises a single brow. "Ms. Barrett is over the age of consent. Is that really what you want to discuss, Commissioner Scorpio?" Stefan's tone is combination of bored and taunting.

Marcus intervenes. "Is Alcazar coming after Tasha?"

Stefan nods in Marcus' direction. Tasha's police officer seems to understand the priority. "That is as yet unclear. He indicated no but then the police officer was killed. Ric Lansing was attacked and put into General Hospital. This Alcazar appears to have taken up the flag of his brother-- which would make my sister a target. The Cassadine will not be dropping their guard."

"Well that's just peachy." Mac snarls. we're going to have a bloodbath and it's already started.

"Where was he?"

"I met with him in a small restaurant in Caracas, Venezuela." Stefan shakes his head. "This is all irrelevant. It doesn't matter where he was."

"Only where he's going to be." Marcus nods. "And that's going to be here."

"Eventually. With Capelli exposed, he was no longer of use. He has to have another operative here paving the way."

Kyle pays for his lunch and Maxie's too and then half blocks her when she tries to get away from him herding her toward the table with the A list kids. "Come on."

"Kyle." Maxie mutters.

"It hasn't been too bad so far has it?" Kyle asks. "Don't answer that." He says in a rush. "It's been better than Friday."

Maxie just gives him a look. There are two seats left at the round table. She half smiles at the people at the table but doesn't expect any welcome and doesn't make extended eye contact with any of them. She puts down her tray and drops her book bag at her feet. Kyle does the same making sure that he has a hand resting on Maxie's shoulder when he takes his seat.

"Kyle, have you talked to Beavis?"

"Not since Friday. Why?" here it comes

"Ohmigawd! You haven't heard?! He was arrested for trying to score down on Courtland street. And I have no idea what they did to him down at the police station but he totally admitted to hacking the school website!"

"I would have killed him." One of the girls tells Maxie. "If that little perv had taken pictures of me with my boyfriend. That's just...." She makes a face.

"Wait a minute. Isn't your dad a cop?" One of the others at the table asks.

"Yes." Maxie admits.

Kyle steals the dessert off of Maxie's tray. "And I can tell you straight he was not amused. He didn't know about me and Maxie until that stunt Beavis pulled. I'm on extremely thin ice with him."

"And my sister hates your guts." Maxie adds to cover for anything Georgie might say now and in the future.

"Kyle, I tried to call you over the weekend to let you know what was up with Beavis if you hadn't already heard."

"My Mom is... out of town so I've been crashing with my uncle and his girlfriend."

"That totally sucks. Couldn't you have just stayed at the house? Party would have been at your place, Guy."

"My uncle's girlfriend's place is out on the lake." Kyle says lake with some significance and a little wink. "Nice, quiet, secluded." He toys with a lock of Maxie's hair.

"You totally set up Mr. Lawrence to get suspended didn't you? Not him but you so you could have Friday off with Kyle didn't you, you sly thing."

"It was a beautiful day." Maxie admits. "Really too nice to be in school."

After scarfing all of his lunch and parts of Maxie's, Kyle stands up and puts a hand on the back of her chair. "Come on, Babe. I need to see if it's too late to sign up for summer soccer before we go to class."

"Since when have you been interested in soccer?!" One of the guys asks.

"Since I found out it's either soccer or a j-o-b this summer."

There is a chorus of groans around the table. "Tell me about it! You remember when summers were just for fun?!"

"Yes," Kyle agrees wryly. "I believe it was before I got my driver's license. You ready, Babe?" He grabs Maxie's book bag from the floor with his own and waits for Maxie to stand up. Maxie grabs the trays to return to the dishroom. "We'll see you guys later." The two of them leave.

"One cobb salad, dressing on the side and soft drink." AJ holds out a brown bag. "I really appreciate you seeing me over the lunch hour, Dara."

It feels to Dara as if she's already been there ten hours and there is really no end in sight. She hadn't even gotten Mac, Taggart and Stefan out of her offices and Faith was already in the lobby with a full head of steam. It had been one client after another with barely enough time to make notes let alone think. To get some time for lunch she'd turned the message machine on and now that AJ is here she locks the door. "I'm starving."

"Great idea calling your order in so I could just pick it up. Where do you want to do this."

"My desk is a disaster." Dara indicates with the tilt of her head back to the conference room table in the library. She grabs three folders off of the reception area desk. "They faxed over all the information. What did you find out from your inspector?"

"An inspector one of my inspectors recommended." AJ wants it to be made perfectly clear. "I did get your message this morning. He's going to do a write up on it. But he gave the okay over the phone. The place isn't going to fall down."

"I'd be hoping for a lot more than that." Dara is unpacking her lunch as they are talking and getting everything situated the way she likes.

"The property backs up to Queen of Angels. That's where Michael goes to school."

Both Dara's brows go up at that. "Firing that warning shot right cross the front of the boat eh?"

"Bobbie Spencer lives just a little bit up the street. Don't imagine there will be too much trouble with Taggart living right there. Probably the safest neighborhood for an enemy of Sonny Corinthos to live."

"So the property is a go?" Dara asks reaching for the slimmest of the three folders.

"Definitely. And it's vacant so I want to be able to move ASAP."

"School is going to be out in a couple of weeks."

"Maybe that will make it less threatening to Carly. She'll forget I'm there by the time September rolls around again."

"Doubt it." Dara eats left handed while filling in the blanks on the standard offer sheet with her right.

"Me too. It'll just be good to have my own place again. And the brownstone is actually within walking distance of the office. I won't have to drive to the park to exercise Rosie before driving to the office." AJ says wryly.

"I'll fax the offer over when we're done with lunch." Dara pulls over the next files. "So Mr. Building Commissioner are you going to be going hardball on yourself about building a new stadium for your football team?"

AJ winces. "Another conflict right?!"

"Oh you betcha. I'd advise dropping this one right in the lap of the City Commissioners and find out if they would prefer having the conflict or you moving the Football team from Port Charles and make sure it's an open meeting-- preferably televised so that there are no questions later. Good luck."

"What do you mean good luck?! You're going to be there. I get the feeling the less I say the better."

"Just the kind of client I like." Dara hands over some routine contracts that need to be signed. AJ moves thru them. He glances over the first pages of all of them. They are all as he and Dara had discussed. He signs and moves on passing them back to Dara. "You've got a rookie holdout. Gia's been fielding calls from the GM and the Coach. They prefer dealing with her since they remember her from when she was doing PR for the team."

"What does the Coach say?"

"If the guy doesn't get his butt into training camp then he might be worthless for the season. There is no way to gauge his conditioning. No way for him to learn all the plays. That it will screw up team chemistry." Dara makes little quote marks in the air.

"Dara, you know my bank account better than most. If I'd already gotten all my funds back from the IRS then I could afford to be flexible. But screw it-- no screw him. Some 22 year old is not going to hold up the team. The coach is going to have to plan with what he has now for the season. Just make sure that little punk isn't playing anywhere else this season and if you can arrange it any other season either."

Six foot four, 240. little punk. Yep. "Hardball. Got it. His mama isn't getting a new house this year unless his name is on the dotted line."

"Yep, that's why they call them signing bonuses. And speaking of hardball..."

Dara shakes her head and pulls over the fattest of files. "How is your relationship with Ned?"

"That bad?" AJ gets a sinking feeling.

"It's time to bring some senators in on this one. It took one of Edward's to get the IRS to lock up your money and I think it's going to take another to unlock it. AJ, it could take years. You're just damn lucky to have gotten a portion of it back, to have a job, the team and your seat on ELQ board which all generate income. If this has to go thru the courts... You'll get the money back and be signing the check over to me for fees. I am not kidding. It could take years and hundreds of billable hours-- I'm not just talking lunches here. You aren't broke." Dara adds reassuringly. "You've got the resources to buy the house, hell pay for the new stadium... not that I'd recommend doing that.. it would be better for you to go with the bond measure and have the city/county pay for the stadium like you already have planned. You can't afford a third world country. Maybe an island-- a small island. Not a country."

AJ snorts at that. "I'm not going to kiss it off, Dara. It was wrong. How can the FEDS take my money and not Sonny's? Not Jason's?!"

"It's political now, AJ. We'll win. There is no question of that. It's a question of when and how much will be left."

Coleman shifts from one foot to the other and can't believe he is standing here. This might actually be a first. He'd gotten out of Jakes on time. The evening gal had shown up promptly at six. Monday's were good for that. Kyle had already checked in and was going to have dinner out. Skye was still busy at the office on her brand new job and let him know to not expect her til late. She wants to talk to most of the staff, and the Herald is a 24 hour a day business. Whoever she doesn't see today she wants to at least shake hands with tomorrow. Gave him a bit of time to do some research on his own.

"May I help you?" A very soft but firm voice inquires. Are you lost?

"Yeah. I hope so." Cole clears his throat and then drops his voice down to a whisper too. "Can you show me how to read the old copies of the Herald?"

"How old?"

Coleman shrugs and does a mental calculation. "That's tough. I'm looking for an obituary about 35 maybe forty years old."

"If you have the person's name..."

"Now that would be a problem. It's one of those, I think I'll know it when I see it situations. Female late..." Cole winces. He really doesn't have that much information. "...thirties to early fifties. Survived by husband at least one son."

"And you're planning on going thru five years worth of obits to find her?"

"Yeah. How long do you think it's going to take?"

"My name is Lillian. I think we're going to be well acquainted." The librarian holds out a hand for Coleman to shake.

Coleman winces but takes the hand and gives it a soft polite shake. "That long. Okay. Hell. Well, Lil, my name is Cole. Pleased to meet you."

"Let me show you where we keep the archives and I'll get you started."

Georgie, Maxie, Kyle, Lucas, and Dillon are all at Kelly's doing homework while having dinner. Georgie and Maxie had already checked in with Mac. He's working late because of a new lead in the cop killing. Lucas is going to help his mother close the dinner after he gets his homework done. Dillon to take a break from the fight at the cottage the day before that had stretched into this morning. Ned knows where he is.
And Kyle. Well Kyle is getting the coldest of shoulders from just about everyone. His plan at the high school worked as if charmed. But these are Maxie's friends and they knew exactly what had gone down. Enough of the crew from the high school swung thru Kelly's for it to be important for him and Maxie to be seen together outside of school. And while her father isn't okay with the idea, Kelly's made it tolerable. Evidently Maxie and Georgie's Aunt owns the place.

"Yes!" Georgie raises two clenched fists into the air in a declaration of triumph and then slams her last book shut shoving it into her book bag. "Done. Free at last. Free at Last."

"Um Georgie... could you help me..." Bobbie calls out from the kitchen.

"Spoke too soon." Lucas gives his cousin a grin.

"Lucas, How are you doing?"

"Fine Mom." Lucas calls out and reapplies himself to the books.

"Gees homework is like the soaps ought to be. Miss a day and you miss a lot." Maxie mutters. "I didn't think that they gave out homework on Fridays. Did I pick the one day that they did?"

"Anyone mind if I put some music on? I can't study like this-- might as well be in the library." Dillon asks.

"Go for it." Is the chorus of agreement.

Dillon takes a break from the table and moves over to the jukebox. He sees someone he knows coming toward the diner and opens the door for her. "How you doing, Skye?" It's casually stated but Dillon knows too much for it to be a casual statement.

"Good. You?" Skye asks Ned's little brother. "How is your mother doing?" Skye asks facetiously although hoping for news that Tracy has left town.

"Not speaking to her right now." Dillon admits. "I'm really sorry, Skye. I didn't know..."

"There was no reason for you to know, Dillon. And thankfully neither of us are responsible for the choices our Mothers make."

"No, we just have to live with them."

"True enough." Skye senses someone coming up beside her and half turns. "Kyle?"

"Are you okay? Is he bothering you?" Kyle bristles.

"Down boy." Skye grins. Kyle was taking on all of Cole's pitbull tendencies. "Dillon is Alan's sister's younger son. You've met Alan. And Dillon's brother Ned is married to Faith."

Kyle blanches at that-- images of his six year old self running around in a cape made out of a towel with a black bra on his head flash thru his brain. "Great. Small freaking world."

"Isn't it?" Skye agrees. She looks around. "Is Cole here?"

"He had something he had to take care of after work since he says you'll be working late tonight at the Herald. Uncle Cole's got his cell, I can give him a call."

"No." Skye shrugs. "I'm just getting a bite to eat and then I'm heading back to the office. There is going to be a late staff meeting. I probably won't be in until the paper is put to bed. How did school go?"

Kyle shrugs. "I can get into summer soccer but I'm going to need to get a physical."

Already have that half started... the lab work is already being done at GH. "I'll talk to Alan. He should be able to do that easily enough. Specially if you talk your Uncle into inviting him over for steak dinner. At that point it will be a sure thing."

"Skye?" Bobbie calls out from behind the counter. "I have your order ready."

"Great. Thanks. I'll see you guys later." Skye walks over to the counter and pays for her to go dinner and then leaves.

Dillon and Kyle glare at each other. Kyle is the one that breaks the silence. "Your brother is married to Faith."

"Yeah. How do you know her?"

"She's been friends with my uncle for years."

"Small freaking world."

Dara takes a deep breath and drops her chin to her chest to stretch out her neck. She holds it for ten counts and then tilts her head to the side. ten count Back so she's looking at the ceiling. ten count Head to the left shoulder ten count Next thing start rolling her shoulders both of them together and then one at a time, loosening up a body that has been sitting for too long. Dara glances over at the clock and groans. Ten pm and it didn't look like she was going to get out of here much before midnight. The only thing that is going to be slowing her down is if she starts getting stupid. Dara starts at the sound of a knock on the door.

"Ms. Jensen. It's Ric Lansing. I saw your light on from the street."

Damn Dara stands up and goes over to the door, unlocking it and stepping back. "Mr. Lansing. Sorry. I was planning on calling you back but got a little swamped."

"That's exactly what I wanted to talk to you about." Ric moves stiffly into Dara's office.

"So what was it? Sonny pushing you down the stairs at your father's house on Martha's vineyard or the beating you took down on the docks?"

"Excuse me?"

"You're walking like an eighty year old man, Mr. Lansing."

"Call me Ric." Ric smiles flashing the pearly whites that got him what he wanted most of the time.

"Sure. And you can call me Ms. Jensen, Mr. Lansing." Not buying. "You mentioned on the phone that you have a business proposition for me."

Ric opens up a leather portfolio and pulls out a resume. "I think that our styles would be very complimentary, Ms. Jensen. If we were to form a partnership it would mean you would be less likely to be working until midnight."

Dara takes the resume and studies it like she's never seen it before. "It's very impressive, Mr. Lansing. But incomplete. It doesn't mention your work for Luis Alcazar or the work that you've done for Carly Corinthos." Dara hands the resume back. "It's a small town, Mr. Lansing."

"Evidently a very small town."

"It's big enough for both of us, Mr. Lansing, but we won't be working in the same office because we don't run in the same circles." Dara rises to her feet.

"I'm a very good attorney, Ms. Jensen."

"I know." Dara agrees with a nod. "So was Alexis Davis. I didn't go into partnership with her either. Thank you for stopping by. I'm sorry I couldn't be more helpful. Do let me know when you open your office to referrals." Dara opens the main door to the office and waits impatiently for Ric to leave. As soon as he does, she shuts and locks the door and going into the library that faces down to the street she stands by the shuttered windows in the dark just watching the street below. She observes Ric Lansing getting into his car-- and the car following.

Back Home Next