Dance with the Devil: Chapter 59

Ric Lansing knocked on the door to Todd’s office.  When he heard the bellow of “Come in,” he opened the door to find his client facing him and another man with his back to him.

“Lansing, glad you could make it,” Todd began.  He then flashed the lawyer a smile.  “Now, I know we discussed the pre-nuptial agreement you drew up for Blair, which I tore up into itty bitty little pieces.  I know you didn’t think that was such a good idea.”

Ric nodded slowly, remembering the incident.  “I still think you should take it under advisement, Mr. Manning.  I can still draw up another one.”

“Well, that’s not going to happen.  So, if you don’t like my decision on that advice, you’re gonna hate what I have for you today,” Todd said.  “You ready for this?”  Another smile, this one bigger, as if taking delight in the other man’s discomfort.  “I want you to draw up an agreement for me to turn over temporary control of Manning Enterprises, including all holdings here and in Llanview, to this man,” he told Ric, sweeping his hand in the direction of the other occupant in the room.

Ric pursed his lips, almost afraid to ask who the other man was.  But, he did finally say, “When you introduce me to this gentleman, I would be more than pleased to draw up the documents.”

A chuckle emerged from the other man.  Then he stood up and Ric took a step back.  Cocking his head to the side, he knew he was seeing a ghost.  “Pardon me for being rude, but, aren’t you dead?” he asked.

Victor Lord Jr. was standing there, blue eyes sparkling, lips curled up in almost a snarl.  Behind him, Todd took great delight in his lawyer’s obvious discomfort.  “Vic, this is my brilliant attorney, Richard Lansing.  He’s the one that got me of for your ‘murder’.  Ric Lansing, I’d like to introduce you to my not-so-dead brother.”

“I don’t think I understand.  You were killed in your home in Llanview.  How in the hell are you alive, here in Port Charles?” Ric asked.

“Well, no one has any idea about that.  But, I wasn’t dead.  I’ve been held a prisoner since last summer.  And, for some reason, I was released,” Victor said, with a nonchalant tone. 

“Uh, huh,” Ric said as he moved over to a sideboard.  He looked at Todd, who didn’t seem to object, and poured himself a glass of scotch.  As he drank it, he shook his head.  “You know, Mr. Lord, your death was a great hassle to my client,” he said, moving into lawyer-mode.

“Well, you are right there.  Caused me no end of aggravation.  I could attribute mental instability, months of separation from my family, frayed relationship with my son, the scorn of an entire community, all to your little disappearing act,” Todd listed.  When he saw the look his brother threw him, he decided to stop.  “But those of my problems aren’t why Ric is here.”  He wheeled around to the front of the desk.  “The weekend, I’m going in for a potentially dangerous surgery on my back.  The doctors don’t know how long it will take for me to recuperate.  So, after speaking with our niece in Llanview who runs things down there, I’ve decided to let my…brother runs things while I heal.”

Ric remember his research from the murder trial.  “You two didn’t have the best of relationships before he…vanished.  Now, your going to just let him run your company for whatever time you need?”

“Yes Ric, I’m giving him carte blanche power for a temporary,” he slid his gaze to Victor, “period of time.  Really, the eight years I was missing, he didn’t do that bad of a job.”

“I made the Sun  a media powerhouse, expanded its reach, and  basically put the Banner into it’s grave,” Victor justified.

Todd was making hand gestures as his brother talked, but then stopped and looked at his attorney.  “We good on that?”  Without even waiting for an answer, he replied, “Good.  Have them on my desk by end of business, Friday.  I want this taken care of before they put me under.”  When Ric didn’t move, Todd made his way to the door, holding it open.  “Chop, chop.  We have only seventy two hours.”

Ric sucked in a breath, grabbed his coat and departed.  Todd slammed the door in his wake. 

Victor leaned back on the desk.  “Where did you find that guy?  What an asshole!  I’d rather have Nora Buchanan as my attorney.”

“Well, as she was the prosecutor on the case and still hate my guts more than twenty years later, that was not an option.”  Todd rolled back to his desk.  “After Starr’s accident, when I got to town, I kinda got into a little altercation with Sonny Corinthos.  I pulled a gun on him in the courthouse, ready to blow him away for killing Hope and Cole.  It made the nationals and Lansing looked me up.”  When Victor gave him a look of not understanding, Todd explained.  “Ric is Sonny’s brother.  Well, half-brother. They don’t have the greatest relationship.  He thought by him getting me off on your murder charges, I’d come back for more revenge on his brother.”

“And did you?” Victor asked.

“Well, I was about to, then I overheard Kate Howard confess that her alter caused the accident.  I eventually blackmailed Sonny into having Michael retract his statement from the night Starr held Little Caesar at gunpoint,” Todd said.

“Wait, what statement that Michael made?”

“Michael Corinthos witnessed Starr threaten Sonny and led the cops to her.  But, really the whole thing was so taken out of context,” Todd continued.  “Look, Starr was…grief-stricken after the accident.  She was under a false assumption that is was Sonny who caused it and she couldn’t let it go.  She got her hands on a gun and, following the example of her dear old dad, took Corinthos at gunpoint back to the scene of the accident.”

Victor closed his eyes.  He could only imagine what Starr had gone through.   “But it was Kate Howard who caused the accident?  Is she in prison?  What happened with her?”

Before he could get an answer, Blair and Carly barged into the office.  Momentarily relieved that the two men weren’t in the midst of a battle, Blair said,  “Well, I have met the infamous Helena Cassadine.”

Todd’s mouth fell open.  From all he had heard of the woman, he really didn’t want any member of his family, not matter how much he dislike them,  anywhere near her.  “Where the hell were you that you saw her?”

“Saw and spoke,” Blair corrected.  She sat down at the table in the corner of the office.  “She was going to have lunch upstairs, but left after making her presence known.  And Jack’s description was accurate.  She reminded me so much of Irene, I wanted to haul off and slug her just for coming near me.”

At the name of Helena Cassadine, Victor’s eyes widened, but was only noticed by Carly.  She said nothing about it, but turned her attention to Todd.  “Here’s the weird thing.  She seemed to make a beeline for our table,” Carly put forth.

“And she made the connection to Jack when I introduced myself,” Blair added.

“Oh, that makes me feel great.  Another Irene Manning circling my family,” Todd mumbled.  It was then that he noticed his brother’s expression.  “First Jack then you, now Blair.  Maybe it’s time I met her.”

“Todd, I don’t think now would be a good time for that,” Blair said with concern.

Todd looked at Blair.  He could tell from her expression she was worried, so he dropped the topic. 

Victor let out a sigh.  “Look, are we done here?” he asked.  “I…I need to get out, get some fresh air.”

Todd looked at him.  “Yeah, I guess.  Besides, I’m not letting you touch anything until we have those papers signed.”

Victor nodded and made his way to the elevator.  Blair and Carly both looked at Todd, who merely shrugged his shoulders.  Then Carly said, “I’ve got to get back to business.  I’ll talk with you later.”  She left and ran onto the elevator just as the doors were closing. 

Victor looked her up and down, but said nothing. for a minute.  Then he commented, “You and Todd seem to be best buds.”

“Well, Todd can be very charming when he wants to be,” Carly replied. 

Victor scrunched his face in disgust.  “He’s never been charming.  I should know, I have his memories.”  As he said that, though, he clearly remembered all the times he had worked to win Blair’s heart.

As if reading his mind, Carly said, “I wouldn’t say that and I think Blair would agree with me.”  She turned to her companion.  “So, you want a tour of Port Charles?”

“No, thanks, I just want to wander around, work some things out for myself,” he told her. 

“I think that sounds great,” she insisted.  “Besides, I think we should talk.”

The elevator opened and Victor walked out of the hotel with Carly hot on his heels.  They walked in silence for a block and Victor turned to her.  “I said I want to be alone,” he growled. 

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea!” she said back forcefully. 

“And why is that?” Victor questioned. 

“Because I saw the look on your face when we mentioned Helena Cassadine,” Carly retorted.  At Victor look, Carly pushed on.  “You’ve met her, I assume?”

“I don’t know what your talking about,” Victor said.  When Carly grabbed his arm to stop him from walking away, he exhaled.  “So what, yeah.  She came to see me at the hospital.  There’s no big deal, right?”

“If you couldn’t tell by the conversation upstairs, it’s best to avoid her.  Trust me, she’s cause enough trouble in this town for a lifetime,” Carly said.

Before Victor could respond, a passerby walked into him accidentally.  “Hey, watch where you’re going!” he yelled.

“Sorry, buddy,” the guy mumbled.

Victor turned back to Carly.  “What, has Todd hired you as my babysitter?” he sneered.

“No, but I don’t think you’re taking any of this seriously.  Stay away from Helena Cassadine,” she warned again then turned back to the hotel. 

Victor walked in the opposite direction.  Putting his hand in his pocket, he found a piece of paper that had not been there before.  Opening it up, it read, “ELM STREET PIER, FIFTEEN MINUTES.”  He managed to find his way there and saw Helena Cassadine standing at the end of the dock, looking out towards an island in the harbor.  He walked up to her.  “You wanted to meet with me?”

Helena turned around, a viper’s smile on her face.  “Yes, we have much to discuss,” she said as a launch pulled up to the end of the pier.  Helena stepped on board and waved for him to join her.  The launch docked a few minutes later at the island and she led him up to the house.  Walking into a richly appointed conservatory, she sat down at a desk that looked as old as Llanfair.  “Now, as to our business.  I have something I know you want.”

“And what would that be, lady?  I don’t know you, I barely know where I am or even who I am,” Victor said.

“I know who you are.  You are Victor Dalby Lord, Jr.  Son of the late Victor Lord and Irene Manning, born January second, 1970.  Second in a set of twins, the elder being Thomas Todd Lord, now Manning, who began and now controls the newspaper, the Sun and it’s various media outlets,” Helena explained.

“That’s very good basic information, Mrs. Cassadine, but it really doesn’t help me,” Victor replied sarcastically. 

“From your birth to the age of eight, you were raised by a nurse who had a specialization in ‘different’ children.  Then, you’re mother, unable to bare being away from one of her sons, chose to take an offer to work in the intelligence sector, but she would have to abandon her daughter.  Her death was faked, her daughter sent to live with her friend and the girl’s sister and you were reunited with her,” Helena expanded. 

Victor eyed her up.  “How do you know this?” he asked. 

“All in good time, my boy.”  She smiled at him and, taking his chin in her fingers, said,  “You almost remind me of my precious son, Stavros.  Another who was unique, and sadly, misunderstood.”  Walking away, she then continued.  “I have much more information about you, as well as your wife and son.  But, it comes at a price.”

Victor’s eye lit up at the mention of Tea.  He considered carefully the path he was thinking of taking.  Carly’s warnings about Helena, coupled with the threats the older woman had seemingly issued to Blair and Jack played in his head.  But they were outweighed by the worries for his family.  Then, with his decision made, he asked, “What do you want?”

Helena almost laughed.  This may be easier than she ever thought.    

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