Destiny’s Child

"Well can we commence this discussion. I wish to know more." Stefan said, barely hiding his curiosity behind a thin veneer of nonchalance. He was further distracted at the feel and sweet scent of the redhead in his arms. Bobbie was trembling slightly and Stefan pulled her more snugly to his side. "Are you all right?" He inquired into her ear.

"Yes yes I am." Bobbie replied quietly. The sight of Jerry with V Ardanowski set her teeth on edge. She had always seemed just this side of desperate, chasing after Jax as she had, It seemed she had moved on and not up in the world. Bobbie wondered if Ms Ardanowski knew just what kind of man her ex was.

"I need Red's services first," Jerry reluctantly admitted, extending his bloodied hand. He didn't want her help but since she was here and was a damn good nurse, he'd use her services. Of course, Jerry couldn't fail to recall how she filled out that uniform like it fit like a glove.

Bobbie gasped, focusing on the quarter size hole in Jerry's palm. "How did that happen?" She inquired softly, motioning for a first aid kit from the silently observing Mrs Landsburry.

"I caught it on the pier." Jerry replied, startled by her nearness.

"He was helping me free my shoe and couldn't resist a peek up my skirt." V said with a devilish grin. "When I took offense at his lack of manners, I trod his foot into the planks." V almost laughed at the shocked horror etched upon the count's face. Did they really think she was serious?

"It figures Jerry." Bobbie muttered as she cleaned the wound and bandaged it.

As soon as she was done, Jerry pulled his hand back. "Thanks Red, you're too good for him you know?" Bobbie's eyes widened in shock and Stefan's flashed.

"Jerry what qualifies you to many any assumptions about Stefan?" Bobbie asked. Her Spencer temper was simmering to the boiling point.

Suddenly all of it was too much for Jerry. The gothic trappings, the calculated arrogance all hearkened back to a time when he had been young, vulnerable and crushed by this family. "As his ex brother in law I'm qualified to make some character judgements." Jerry seethed.

"You agreed not to bring that up." Stefan warned, his calmness dissolving slowly into quiet fury. He shrugged off Bobbie's warning hand on his arm. "You damn near ruined Alexis' life. You will never refer to that sham of a marriage again." As Stefan's voice steadily rose, the two women knew the situation was already out of their control.

"Alexis and I had a damn good life until your family massacred everything I held dear." Jerry said, anger and heartbreak warring for control. He was barely aware of V's calming presence drawing small circles on his back.

V stood in shock, torn to shreds at the pain in Jerry's voice. Whatever had happened it had been something major. His jaunty demeanor was gone, leaving in its wake a lost and broken man, a man V needed to comfort and help heal. "Jerry don't do this now." She pleaded in a quiet voice as she watched his struggle for self control.

"I did no such thing." Stefan's voice had quieted. As he studied the floor, Bobbie could tell that whatever had occurred, he blamed himself.

"No your father did." Jerry replied in the same empty voice. "And my wife damn near lost her life, my two children died and I lost her, I lost Alexis. I lost my whole family all because your damn family never thought I was good enough. So what did you people do? You tried to eliminate all of us. But only the weakest died. The rest of us try to survive wondering why we were the lucky ones. Who appointed the Cassadines God Stefan?"

"Do you think I ever wanted that? Do you think I derived pleasure from seeing you both in hospital beds?" Stefan retorted. "Do you think I wanted to bury my niece and nephew?"

"Yet you did nothing to stop it." Jerry replied, anger taking center stage in his tone again. "I suppose you thought a nice drive along Monaco's winding roads sans breaks would be character building." He shook his head in disgust. "And you want to be aligned with these people Red? The sex can't be that good. I always heard he was a bit of a stuffed shirt in bed."

V gasped. The pain was making Jerry lash out at the innocents here. "Come on Jer, let's get some air." V said quietly, leading him slowly outside into the gardens. Before she closed the door, she cast a sympathetic gaze to Bobbie. Somehow, it would come to these rivals to help soothe the deep wounds of the past.

~~-*~~

"I kissed her Ned." Jax recalled with a goofy smile on his face. Ned Ashton slid onto the next barstool and regarded his friend.

"Hello Jax how are you today and who did you kiss. Please don't say Chloe." Ned said with a small smile. His distant cousin was threatening to take over every aspect of the Q life and Ned needed an outlet.

"Chloe?" Jax asked in confusion. "No Ned, V. I kissed V! Why would I kiss Chloe?" Jax shook his head. "It's V I've been infatuated with for a long time Ashton."

"Oh" Ned said. He had no idea Jax had been interested in his assistant and had no idea how to assimilate this information. "How did you come to kissing V exactly?" He asked before sipping his drink.

"Well she was at Jerry's apartment and…" Jax sighed as reality intruded. "She and my brother were quite cozy."

"So you kissed her?" Ned asked in confusion. "That makes no sense whatsoever Jasper. Did she kiss you back?" Ned wondered if Jax had totally taken leave of his senses. "And did you just kiss her because she was in your brother's apartment putting the moves on him?"

"She wasn't putting the moves on Jerry. It was the other way around." Jax insisted.

"Well may the best man win." Ned toasted, wondering which brother that might be.

~~*~~

V hurried after Jerry as he strode through the gardens. He had been almost docile when led to the bench but after a few minutes of empty silence, Jerry had started back for the house. "Stop please" V pleaded. She had never seen a friend in such a state of pure anguish before and didn't know how to ease his burden and pain. Finally, V gathered Jerry close and rocked him back and forth. "It's ok to cry Jer."

Jerry looked up finally and the horror in his eyes almost took V's breath away. "I loved them V." He said in a quiet voice. "So bloody much. Then one night it was all over. They were Gone Venus. Gone! Two little graves were all we had left." He said in tears. He couldn't speak after that pronouncement; his tears were cutting off all ability to speak. V moved closer and pulled his head to her shoulder, rubbing his back and stroking his hair. Despite the circumstances, she felt like she could help.

~~*~~

"One night it was just over." Stefan intoned as he downed some Vodka. The confrontation with Jerry had left him shaken to the core. He had known his family hated Alexis' choice in a mate, but he had never expected them to go as far as they had. Shaking his head, Stefan raised his horrified gaze to Bobbie's eyes. "I wanted to stop it, but I didn't know where and when Father might strike. I never thought he would take a chance with Alexis or the children. That in the end was my fatal mistake. Two children died as a result of my negligence. And now." He shook his head and poured more vodka with shaking hands. "That young woman outside may turn out to be one of us. Much as I must find out the answers, I do not want her to be a Cassadine. For her own sake, not for ours."