The Road Trip Series
by Cher

Booty Call Day - January 25, 2004

"Tomorrow"

Alexis's voice echoed in Cameron's mind as he strode from the psychiatric unit along the sixth floor corridor toward his office, his arms laden with patient charts. Her deadline made it necessary for him to rearrange his calendar so he could go out of town indefinitely and not leave his patients unattended. After she returned from Wyndemere, she said little except they would be leaving tomorrow, Mrs. Lansbury would be coming with them and she had to go out and take care of some business.

The floor was quiet with most of the staff no doubt sleeping off the excesses of yesterday's holiday in the lounge or fortifying themselves with caffeine in the cafeteria. He was reading a chart as he walked, shaking his head at the scrawled notes of the resident who admitted the patient.

"Chicken-scratch," he mumbled as a group of giggling nursing students quickly stepped clear of the tall, broad-shouldered handsome doctor with the intense look on his face. Their eyes continued to follow his backside appreciatively as he walked away.

"Hey, wait up!" A voice sounded from the distance but Cameron was oblivious of everything except the chart he was deciphering.

"Dad, wait up! Where's the fire?" Zander asked, breathing heavily as ran to catch his father.

"What?" Cameron grumbled distractedly then, realizing the voice belonged to his son, finally looked up over the rims of his eyeglasses. "Alexander? What are you doing here?"

Zander looked confused. "You said to meet you here."

He looked perplexed. "I did?"

"Well, not you exactly… Alexis. She said that I should meet you at the hospital because you need to talk to me. Whatever it is you think I did, Dad, I swear I'm innocent."

Cameron thought about it and smiled. Alexis wanted him to tell Zander about their trip and knew he'd get caught up in his work and probably forget the time. She knew him so well.

"I don't think anything of the kind. Come to my office. I need to inform you of a few things…"

"You and Alexis haven't been fighting, have you?" Zander asked suspiciously.

He glanced at his son, his expression already poised for battle. "Why ever would you think that?"

"Well, she just sounded odd like something was on her mind, distracted and a bit testy. I figured you two had one of your stupid arguments again."

Cameron's face filled with a gentle glow he couldn't quite hide. "No, except for a few minor verbal altercations we've found we can actually tolerate each other quite well. I can't speak for Alexis but I know this is the happiest I've been for a very long time. I assume she called because she wanted me to tell you about our trip…"

Zander rolled his eyes as he walked into his father's office. "You two are taking another road trip? Don't you get tired driving around the countryside as an excuse to have sex?"

Cameron blushed red to his earlobes and sputtered, "Alexander! That is not why we do it!"

"Do what? Have sex?" Zander was trying very hard not to laugh at the indignant expression on his father's face.

He glared at his son. "That is NOT what I meant. The road trips are our way of spending time alone together to get to know each other better."

"Come on, Dad, come clean. It's really foreplay, right?" he winked.

Cameron took a deep breath. "I can see there is no reasoning with you when you decide to tease me so I will just smile and let you keep your little fantasies. This trip is not about us, Alexander. It is about Alexis's past and involves Helena Cassadine."

At that Zander stood very still and his jaw tightened. "She didn't try to hurt her again did she?"

He clapped a hand on his son's shoulder as he moved past him to lean against the big mahogany desk. "No but she set something in motion on Halloween when she tried to push Alexis from the parapet at Wyndemere, opening up a mystery from the past Alexis believes she needs to solve. She is convinced that her late father…"

Zander wrinkled his brow in imitation of his father. "That crazy guy… Mikkos?"

"Yes, that he wants her to find something that is hidden away in a secret place that belonged to him and has left clues to guide her."

"Sounds a bit out there to me," Zander said, toying with the picture frame holding Alexis and Kristina that his father now keeps on his desk. "And you don't sound convinced."

He crossed his hands over his chest and pursed his lips. "Not totally but I've seen the clues, actually found two of them myself in an old snowglobe that belonged to her parents. The important thing is Alexis believes it and I have to support her. There is also Helena who seems to be on the same trail and Alexis wants to forestall her finding whatever it is we are looking for."

"You don't know what it is?"

He shook his head. "Or where. The clues in the globe point to her childhood home in England, where she grew up before her Mother died."

"Where she lost Kristina the first time," he whispered softly, recalling the fiery redhead who became his friend and how much he still missed her laughter in his life. She would have set him straight about Emily long before everything started to crumble and maybe he wouldn't feel like every day he was nursing an open gunshot wound to his heart.

Cameron saw the look on his face and realized his son must have been close to Alexis's sister, a fact he was unaware of until now, and he made a mental note to ask her why she never mentioned it to him.

"Yes and where she saw her Mother murdered and lost her memory. If these clues are real and not some figment of wishful thinking, her Father inexplicably is guiding her along a path to find that hidden place. All we know is that it is in a cold climate and he called it Shangri-La."

Zander sat frowning for a minute before he asked, "And you say that Helena may be trying to find the same place?"

"Yes. She left behind one of the clues, a diamond necklace, the night she tried to kill Alexis."

Zander set his jaw, his eyes flashing with resolve as he looked up into his father's eyes. "I'm going with you."

Cameron shook his head gently. "No, you're not."

Zander's eyes narrowed as his jaw jutted out. "Yes, I am. I am not going to be left behind when Alexis… and you… could be in danger. Not going to happen, Dad, so don't try to stop me."

Cameron sighed. "Alexander, I appreciate your concern but I can't allow it."

"Sorry to break this to you, Dad, but it has been a very long time since your right to 'allow' me to do anything expired. I make my own decisions…"

He raised an eyebrow. "Some of which have been questionable at best…"

Zander raised his voice slightly as he gripped the armrest and leaned forward in the chair. "And some have been right on target… all thanks to the woman who gave me a home when no one wanted me and managed to knock some sense into me, the same woman you say you love. So I'm going… whether I go with you or follow behind."

"Damn stubborn… just like her," Cameron grumbled all the while admitting he was secretly pleased his son cared so much… for both of them.

"I'll take that as a compliment, Dad," he said with a crooked grin. "So, what's the game plan?"

"I'm not sure yet except we are leaving for Europe tomorrow. I'll call you as soon as the plans are finalized. By the way, Luke is going with us."

"Well there's a road trip with built-in entertainment value," he snorted as he stood and sauntered out the door.

* * *

"Thanks for meeting me, Nikolas," Alexis said with a smile as her nephew walked over to the table tucked into a corner of Kelly's.

Snowflakes fell from his head as he doffed his coat, one or two coming to rest on the sweep of his long dark eyelashes. "I was wondering what was so urgent you wanted to meet here instead of Wyndemere. Uncle said you stopped by this morning to see Mrs. Lansbury about some dandelion tea for Kristina. He sounded concerned. Is she alright?" he asked as he sat down and Penny hustled over with a cup of steaming coffee.

Alexis knew he was waiting for an explanation but she just longed to sit quietly and look at him for a minute. The solemn dark-haired little boy who shared her love of feeding seagulls and building sandcastles had grown up into a very solemn young man, a man whose legacy buffeted him about with constantly shifting currents and she wondered if he truly understood how his decisions affected those around him. The debacle of his arranged marriage to Lydia aside, his relationship with Emily had hurt Zander and that in turn hurt both her and Cameron. She loved her nephew but Zander has always been like family to her too and she loved him just as she did Nikolas. She didn't want to choose between them but knew some day she would be called upon to do so and she dreaded the arrival of that particular day.

She smiled at him over her glasses as she sipped her tea. "She's fine. I asked you here because I need a favor."

"Whatever you need Alexis."

She locked her gaze into his. "I need a diversion."

He sat up straight and looked around as he lowered his voice. "A diversion? What's happened?"

"You are aware of what almost happened at the masquerade party…"

He looked guilty. "I am so very sorry that Helena managed to get through the security net. I am at fault for agreeing to Uncle's request to have the party in the first place."

Alexis wanted to protect him so she chose not to reveal everything. "Nikolas, it was not your fault. You could have the National Guard there and she would have found a way to get inside. You of all people know what she is capable of at any time. That is not why I mention it now. I've come across some information… relating to Mikkos and to my mother… information about my past that I must follow up."

He was surprised. He knew the stories about his grandfather and Kristin Bergmann, recalling the picture of the stunning woman his aunt keeps on the mantel in her apartment, secretly congratulating his grandfather for finding someone that special to share his life, however short that happiness was. Some wait a lifetime and never find it and others capture it for a mere moment in time like lightning in a bottle. He thought he might have found his true love but the price he was paying seemed very high and it blunted the edges of what should be his joy.

He shook his mind from reverie and asked, "What kind of information?"

She set down her cup and leaned forward. "Let's just say it is a mystery that I am trying to solve… before Helena does."

"Is that why she tried to harm you, to get this information?"

"I honestly don't believe she would have killed me that night. I think her own psychotic personality got out of hand when she saw how vulnerable I was but I think she wants me to lead her to whatever my father hid away. I don't know what it is but she left one clue that night that led to another and now I have a direction to follow."

He stared into her eyes. "I get the impression that you are not telling me everything."

"No, I'm not and that is for your own protection."

"I assume you haven't told Uncle about this either."

She shook her head sadly. "No, I haven't and you cannot tell him anything I am sharing with you. Nikolas, I'm not certain what happened to the brother I loved but he is not the man living in that house. Somehow he buried the Stefan Cassadine I grew up with, the man who raised you and we loved and I don't trust him. So I'd appreciate it if you would keep my confidence in this matter."

"Absolutely, you have my word. Now, what do you need me to do?"

She exhaled a breath and spoke quietly. "I must go away and it is vital that where I am going remains a secret. I have alternative transportation to the final destination but I need you to arrange for one of the Cassadine jets to fly me tomorrow to JFK as a feint. If my movements are being tracked as I suspect they are, I want all interested parties to believe that I am simply on an outing to Manhattan. I have already made arrangements for a car to drive into the city from the airport, lending further credence to my visit there. After that part of the plan is set in motion, the jet will wait at JFK until I call and advise otherwise."

Nikolas thought about his tiny cousin. "Are you going alone?"

"No. Cameron is going with me and I am taking Kristina. If it is not too much trouble, I would like Mrs. Lansbury to come with us."

He was surprised. "Mrs. Lansbury?"

All she said was, "I trust her with Kristina."

Nikolas looked into his aunt's eyes and saw secrets amid the shifting shadows. She wanted the housekeeper with her and knowing his aunt, it wasn't merely for babysitting duty. He noted the trust between them and knew at the heart this was more than a simple request. But he loved his aunt and would accede to her request without comment.

He nodded. "Of course, if that is what you need. We will miss her but I'm sure she will be of invaluable assistance… with Kristina."

She noted his hesitation, knowing he instinctively understood her request had as much to do with what she was searching for as her daughter.

She smiled at him and leaned down to pick up her purse. "Thank you. I will contact you later when the plan is complete. And thank you, Nikolas, for helping and having the good manners not to ask all those pesky questions that must be buzzing about your head."

"Just make me one promise," he asked softly as he leaned over and took her hand in his. "Be careful and contact me if you need my help. I will never let you down."

She leaned in, took his face in her hands and kissed him on the forehead as she did when he was a small boy. "I love you, Nikolas."

"And I love you…always."

* * *

Cameron walked into Luke's Place, stomping his feet to loosen the snow clinging to his boots. He strode over to the bar where Luke was adding up receipts as Ella Fitzgerald serenaded him from the sound system.

I love Paris in the spring time
I love Paris in the fall
I love Paris in the summer when it sizzles
I love Paris in the winter when it drizzles

I love Paris every moment
Every moment of the year
I love Paris, why oh why do I love Paris
Because my love is here

He thought about Paris, the tacky room filled with Marilyn Monroe memorabilia, the old springy bed and the feel of Alexis in his arms, the memory of her scent enveloping his body where he stood. Something changed between them on that trip, she opened up to him about the past she hid away like a precious jewel, fearful it would be stolen away as her childhood was long ago. They came home closer than before and he regretted that Paris for them had become all about Helena with nothing left over for two people falling in love.

I'll take her back after this mess is over, he vowed, show her Paris and what love really means.

Luke hit the calculator with his fist and looked up with a scowl. "Stupid calculator, it is never right. Hey, Quack! Got the cuckoo's nest sorted out so no one flies the coop while you are away?"

Cameron chuckled. 'You could say that. So, where's the package?"

Luke jerked his head in the direction of the dance floor. "Right over there."

Cameron looked and there was Kristina sitting in the middle of a large pink fuzzy blanket on the dance floor surrounded by pots and pans. She was keeping time with the music, banging together pans and giggling wildly at the ruckus she was making. When she saw Cameron join her audience, she grinned and banged them together even harder to impress him.

"And this would be her version of karaoke?"

Luke nodded happily at the noise drowning out Ella. "Kid's got rhythm just like her grandma Kristin cuz she certainly didn't inherit it from Natasha."

Cameron recalled Alexis singing La Vie en Rose to him on the flight back from Paris, a song she refused to translate but one which he knew the sentiment. Her voice was sultry and smoky, as sultry as her eyes when she sang it to him.

"She's not bad but I'm better," Cameron said proudly, remembering his stint as the karaoke king at the country and western bar. One good turn deserved another and the intent behind the words of his song, unlike the French one she sang to him, could not be mistaken.

"You sing, Quack? Saints preserve all our eardrums from the din," Luke scoffed as he drop-kicked the calculator into the trashcan.

"I'll invite you to my next performance… or maybe not," Cameron retorted as he walked over and picked up Kristina. She looked at him and sighed as she snuggled into his arms, exhausted by her performance. She was asleep by the time he put on her snowsuit and set her into the stroller.

Cameron grabbed her diaper bag and looked over at Luke. "Until tomorrow."

Luke lit a cigar and exhaled a puff. "Yeah… tomorrow… when it all goes to hell."

* * *

"Well if it isn't my favorite ex-husband! What a pleasant surprise!" Alexis caroled as Jax walked toward her.

Jax grinned. "Hello, favorite ex-wife, Happy New Year!"

Alexis smiled and said, "I thought you were still away. I haven't spoken to you since before Christmas."

He reached her, wrapped his arms around in a hug and whispered into her ear, "Why are we acting surprised to see each other when you called me to meet you?"

She whispered back, "Just follow my lead… no blonde moments, please."

He blew in her ear and felt her shiver, just the way she did when he teased her during their marriage. "No problem there, you know nature did not make me a natural blonde."

She laughed and blew back in his ear before she pulled away. "Couldn't tell from the decisions you've been making."

Jax was startled by her last comment but it was vintage Alexis to put into perspective in ten words or less exactly what he'd been feeling the last months, especially after his father died. He looked into her eyes and knew immediately the reason for secrecy was important to her.

So he played along. "Well, you know me, I try to keep busy."

They strolled along arm-in-arm talking about general things until they reached the far end of the park and sat in the gazebo.

Jax took her hand. "So, what is all the mystery? You look worried and that worries me. You have Kristina back now, full custody, a wonderful man in your life - and I confess to being just a bit jealous about that one - so what could be so bad that you have to resort to meeting me in the butt-freeing cold?"

She looked up into his eyes and the capacity for caring she saw there always left her breathless. No matter how much they disagreed or walked away from each other, she had no doubt that Jax would always be in her life. And she needed him now.

She told him about Paris, her Mother's handkerchief, the masquerade party, Helena, the snowglobe and what she intended to do.

"I need you to arrange for a jet to meet Cameron, Kristina and me at JFK and fly us to Heathrow, then to Kent. I've already arranged with Nikolas that we will fly on one of the Cassadine jets into JFK as the final destination. A car will take our party into Manhattan…"

His lips quirked into a smile and he chuckled, "Another diversion?"

"Yes, but it won't be us… just some people who surprising enough look exactly like us. We will change to your jet upon arrival where we will meet up with Mrs. Lansbury and Luke and, if I know my stubborn Lewis men, probably Zander."

"Make that one more on this trip," he said quietly squeezing her hand, "I'm going too.

She looked into his eyes and shook her head. "No not this time. People might get suspicious if both of us are gone, try to track your planes. No, you have to be seen around Port Charles so that you are not involved."

He sighed and hugged her tight to him, the floral scent of her hair a fond remembrance of times spent on the couch in their penthouse, falling asleep on each other's shoulders over laptops and a bowl of popcorn. He would do what she wanted, unhappily so, but he would keep a tight check on this mission of hers and be ready to step in whether she approves or not.

He kissed her gently on the lips. "I'm not happy about it but it makes sense. I will be monitoring the situation and if need be, I'll be crashing the party no matter what you say."

Alexis touched his cheek and smiled. 'I'm counting on it."

* * *

Debussy's Rêverie was drifting in the air as she walked through the door, a soothing accompaniment to the tantalizing scents coming from the general direction of her kitchen. She removed her coat and gloves and kicked off her heels before she walked down the hall to where Cameron was casting the magic spells of his cooking.

She leaned in the doorway and watched for a few minutes. He was so engrossed in measuring and mixing and checking the oven he didn't even notice her standing there. He was always this intense about life, be it a patient needing his help or just making a simple recipe. It was as if he threw himself off the bridge into a swan dive, his heart knowing no other way of being in and giving to the world. And she was grateful beyond measure he chose to be part of hers.

"Hey, smells great. Special occasion?" she asked as she strolled in and grabbed a goat cheese and roasted red pepper crostini from the hors d'oeuvres tray on the table.

He playfully slapped her hand and pulled her into his embrace. "No fondling of the appetizers."

She raised an elegant eyebrow as her hand worked its way down his spine. "Does that include all of the appetizers?"

"Well, maybe certain select goodies can be yours… when the chef is off-duty," he chuckled as he massaged her back and kissed the tip of her nose.

"Hope they are as tasty as that last little tidbit," she purred, reaching up to kiss his neck as she untied his chef's apron and threw it across the room.

"And extra spicy," he murmured, his lips meeting hers as he fumbled with the buttons of her sweater, finally giving up and popping them. He can always buy her another sweater.

She looked into his eyes as she ripped the shirt from his shoulders. "I like spicy… makes me hot."

"It does seem to be getting a little hot in here," he chuckled as he unzipped her skirt and it fell to the floor.

"If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen," she laughed breathlessly as she unbuckled his pants.

"Not on your life," he groaned as he crushed her to him. They both lost their balance and fell over onto the table, the tray of hors d'oeuvres skidding along to crash in a heap of goat cheese and peppers on the tile floor.

"There go the appetizers," she pouted as he continued to kiss his way down her body.

He looked up and whispered, "I prefer the main course."

With that Alexis proceeded to receive her first - but most definitely not her last - cooking lesson at the hands and lips of the chef-in-residence.

* * *

"That was a marvelous dinner," Alexis sighed as she sat before the fire rocking a sleepy Kristina in her arms.

Cameron looked up as he threw another log into the fireplace. "And the appetizer segment was pretty much five-star in my book."

She laughed huskily. "It made me ravenous."

He winked at her as he brushed the soot from his hands, sat down and put his arm around her and Kristina. It was peaceful in that room, sitting in the embrace of the glowing firelight but he knew it was just an illusion. For tomorrow they would begin a journey that promised to be anything less than peaceful.

He did not want to shatter that moment but sooner or later they would need to talk about tomorrow so he asked, "Is everything in place for tomorrow?"

She sighed and shifted Kristina so she lay nestled between them, both watching over her as she slept.

She nodded as she snuggled into his shoulder. "It is all planned. We three will fly to New York on a Cassadine jet and change to Jax's plane while our doppelgängers are driven into Manhattan by the limousine service. Luke and Mrs. Lansbury will fly to JFK via public airlines and meet up with us. Alice unfortunately is not able to come but Mrs. Lansbury will be there to take care of Kristina - as will Zander."

He was puzzled since he hadn't mentioned his son's insistence on accompanying them. "How did you know that Zander insisted on coming along? Did he call you?"

She glanced at him and smiled. "No but like father, like son. You Lewis men are more alike than you will ever admit."

"He won't appreciate being relegated to babysitting duty. Remember, he's an action kind-of-guy."

"But he will do it to protect Kristina and I trust him with her life. And speaking of my daughter, she is pooped even after a nap. What in heaven's name did Luke have her doing - peeling potatoes for those greasy chili cheese fries?"

He chuckled as he kissed Kristina and handed her to Alexis. "She was directing the karaoke section. She's a real musical genius in addition to all her other talents. Come on back here after you've diapered, changed and tucked."

She wrinkled her nose and looked at him suspiciously. "Why?"

He winked at her, reached back and pulled a jar of Chocolate Body Paint and two paintbrushes from behind the couch.

"Why, dessert of course."

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