Devolution TOC

Chapter Forty-Seven

9:20 AM

Lucky held his aunt's portable phone in his hand, and he dialed the number he'd memorized by heart. He leaned his head back on the wood-veneered headboard and looked around the room as the phone rang and rang. Bobbie had unfortunately started an adult doll collection, and the walls were lined with posed dolls from various time periods. There was the Scarlett O'Hara doll with long dark curls and a crimson satin dress and next to her was Pocahontas with her raven locks and genuine deerskin dress. Lucky scoffed. No wonder he couldn't sleep a wink last night. All those possessed dolls stared at him with their hinged eyelids and staring glass eyes -- thirty surly-looking female dolls outnumbered him. He shook his head. Bobbie must have thousands of dollars invested in those things.

Lucky nervously tapped his foot on the bed. Tears crept up on him, and he said under his breath, "Come on, come on…" On the seventh ring, the phone picked up, and instead of the answering machine, Emily Quartermaine's voice softly answered, "Hello?"

"Em, um, hi it's me, Lucky."

"Lucky! I missed talking to you last night."

"Me, too," he said softly. "It was so busy at Bobbie's, and I couldn't get to a phone."

"Are you okay?" asked Emily. "Your voice sounds different."

Lucky sighed and placed his hand over his face. "No," he said in a small teary voice.

Emily's voice softened "What's the matter? Can I help?"

"No, nobody can help me," Lucky said as he gripped the bedspread in his left hand and squeezed the fabric. "Emily..." he paused. "I don't feel so good."

"What do you mean? Do you have the flu or something?"

"No," he said, hesitantly, still not elaborating. After a silent minute, he added, "I'm tired and I can't remember things."

"Well, it's the holidays, silly. Are you sure you're not stressed? The famous Quartermaine dinner is probably still wearing you out," Emily laughed.

"Maybe," Lucky replied. He changed the subject. "Em, are you wearing the necklace I gave you?"

"Yes! I haven't taken it off since the night you gave it to me. I love it!"

"You'll always have my heart, you know that, don't you? I want you to always remember that."

"Oh, Lucky I love you, too," said Emily. "Ohmigosh. Lucky, I have to go. I'm already late. I'm going shopping with my friend Wendy. Can I call you back tonight?"

Lucky sat there on the bed crying silent tears. "I don't know," he said.

"Well, I'll try to call anyway. I love you, Lorenzo!"

"Bye, Em."

~*~*~*~

10:30 AM

Lucky walked into the living room where Bobbie was drinking a cup of tea and reading a women's magazine with her feet up on the leather sofa and a crocheted afghan covering her lap.

"There you are, sleepyhead," she said merrily. "Are you going to sleep all day?"

"No," Lucky replied heavily as he sat down in a chair.

"You missed breakfast, you must be starving," she said. "Hashbrowns and sausage. There's some left over in the fridge, can I warm some up for you?" she asked.

"No thanks," Lucky said. "I'll go make some coffee if that's okay."

"Let me show you where everything is," Bobbie offered as she rose from the sofa and walked over to Lucky. She placed her arm around his shoulder and squeezed as they walked together toward the kitchen.

"Lucky, I have some good news to tell you."

"What's that?" Lucky responded as he started opening up one kitchen cabinet after another, bypassing plates and bowls and looking for coffee mugs.

"Tony and I are getting married again."

Lucky was shocked. He closed a cabinet door and turned around. "What? That's great."

Bobbie frowned lightly. "Don't sound so enthusiastic, Lucky."

Lucky jumped at the sound of his aunt's disappointment and forced a more cheerful tone. "No, no, I'm…that's super, really, Aunt Bobbie." Lucky smiled, hugged her, placing a light kiss on her cheek.

Bobbie made a face. "Phew, Lucky, your hair smells so bad of cigarettes. When did you start smoking?"

"I used to smoke before…before the pneumonia," Lucky admitted, leaning on the counter and waiting for his water to boil in the microwave, watching the timer count down the minutes. "I picked it up again."

"That's real smart, Lucky." Bobbie said sarcastically. "You almost die of pneumonia and now you're smoking again. What am I going to do with you?"

Lucky's cheek twitched as he clenched his jaw. "Um...Aunt Bobbie…where are you going to live? You and Tony, oh, and Lucas I mean?"

"We haven't decided yet. There's a lot to talk about. I'd like to sell the Brownstone and buy a real house." Bobbie saw the hurt, anxious look on Lucky's face. "Of course, wherever we live, you'll be with us. I love having my family all together," she said happily.

Lucky didn't say anything as he took his mug full of boiling water from the microwave and set it on the counter. He unscrewed the top of the instant coffee and spooned out a generous amount, dumping it into the water and swirling it around with his spoon.

~*~*~*~

11:30AM

"Hey you guys," Lucky called with his gloved hand cupped over his mouth. The brisk air made a white steam puff every time he exhaled a breath. He stood at the top of the hill and waved at his uncle and cousin who had just sledded madly down the hill and toppled off the large Flexible Flyer sled. Father and son were far enough away that their voices sounded muffled, but Lucky could hear Lucas' trademark shriek as the little boy spotted his older cousin. Lucas grabbed hold of the sled's rope and ran as fast as he could up the hill as dad trudged at a slower pace behind him.

"Getting too old for this," Tony complained when he reached the top of the hill and bent over puffing with his gloved hands on his snow-caked, blue-jeaned knees.

Lucas hopped up and down like a Jack Russell terrier. "You're next, Lucky!" he shouted. "You're coming down the hill with me, and I'm going to drive." Tony looked over at Lucky and laughed "Good luck. He's a reckless driver." Lucky straddled the sled and sat down behind Lucas, circling his hands around his cousin's waist. "Okay, Lucky," Lucas said excitedly with his tobogganed head turned. "Are you ready? Ready, set, GO!"

Lucky pushed the sled off with his legs, and Lucas frantically maneuvered the reins of the sled, jerking it back and forth so that the sled flew zigzaggedly down the snowy hill. The sled finally came to a shaky rest when Lucky used his feet as stops to prevent them from spilling off.

"Yippee!" Lucas shouted. "We did it. We didn't crash. That's the first time today. You're great, Lucky." Lucas hugged his cousin tightly, his arms around Lucky's hips and his head leaning on Lucky's lower chest. Lucky smiled and patted his cousin on the head with a snowy glove. "Let's go again!" shouted Lucas as Lucky followed him up the hill.

At the top of the hill, Lucky went over to Tony who was resting on a cardboard box. "I hear congratulations are in order. I'm happy for you guys." Tony accepted Lucky's gloved handshake and grinned. "We told Lucas at breakfast and would have told you then if you were there." Tony looked at Lucky with a raised eyebrow. "I'm glad Bobbie told you." Lucky shifted his feet and looked down at the ground. "When's the wedding?" he asked. "Oh, heavens, nothing is decided yet," snorted Tony. "Give us some time to get used to the idea first." Lucky nodded. Lucas ran over to them impatiently and said, "Can we go down the hill now, Lucky?"

After five trips down the hill with Lucas, Lucky grew tired and winded and his side ached where he'd broken the rib. "Just one more time," he reminded Lucas breathlessly. "Then, I need to rest." Lucas' response was to jump up and down, seat himself on the sled again and jerk the reins in anticipation of another downhill slide. This time, Lucas' manic excitement got the best of them and the two cousins dramatically spilled off of the sled midway down the hill. Lucky landed solidly on this stomach with the side of his face ground into the snow. Snow forced its way up under his shirt and inside his pants, and he also had a mouthful of snow. The icy moisture burned into his skin, and he felt woozy and out of it. The sun was high in the sky, reflecting bright rays onto the white snowy crystals, and making a rainbow effect in Lucky's vision. He lay there entranced by the play and interchange of light and his fatigue.

Lucas immediately recovered from his fall and bounced over to Lucky. "Get up," he commanded, pulling on Lucky's right arm and waving it up and down. When he let go, Lucky's arm lopped back down into the snow. Lucas looked up the hill. "Dad!" he yelled as he ran fast. Lucas reached Tony in no time and pointed down at Lucky, who lay very still. "He won't get up," Lucas said.

Tony ran down the hill toward Lucky with Lucas following close behind him. Tony reached Lucky and bent down, placing a hand on his back. "Is it your rib?" he questioned. "Are you all right?" Lucky was still zoned out and didn't answer. Every time he blinked, his vision swirled in a psychedelic dance of colored light. Lucky jerked and turned over on his back. "I'm too tired to get up," he sighed. "Just let me lay here," he said closing his eyes.

Tony turned toward Lucas. "Go to the car and get your glucose tablets out of the glove compartment and bring them to me, please, Lucas?" Tony turned back to Lucky. "When's the last time you ate?" he asked. "And I want an honest answer."

Lucky sat up carefully, leaned back on his elbows and said, "I think it was the Quartermaine dinner."

Tony exclaimed, "That was almost two days ago! Why aren't you eating?"

"I'm not hungry," Lucky replied wearily. "It makes me sick to think about it."

Lucas returned with the bottle of glucose tablets and handed it to his father. Tony shook out two purple, grape-flavored tablets and said to Lucky, "Open up."

"Dad, is Lucky a diabetic, too?" asked Lucas in a quiet, curious voice.

"No, your cousin doesn't eat when he's supposed to," said Tony.

Lucas nodded sagely. That would knock me on my butt, too, he thought.

"Come on," said Tony, hoisting Lucky to his feet. "We all could use some lunch."

~*~*~*~

Later that evening…

Lucky crossed the threshold of Wyndemere and smiled at his brother. "Thanks for suggesting that we meet here, Nikolas," he said. "I needed a break from Tony and family and they from me, I think."

"I thought it would be best to meet before Christmas Eve, that way I can avoid traveling on Christmas Day," Nikolas said.

Lucky followed Nikolas into the living room. Nothing had changed since the last time he was here. Most of the furniture was covered with protective white slipcovers, and the place had an uninhabited feel. "Any buyers for Wyndemere?"

"No." Nikolas laughed and shook his head while running a hand through his immaculately groomed black hair. "Too old, too gloomy, too roomy - oh, and surrounded by damp, polluted river water as well. I suppose uncle wasn't thinking in terms of investment potential when he bought the property."

Lucky nodded as he sat down on the black horsehair Victorian settee that wasn't slipcovered. Nikolas joined him on the other end. Lucky pulled a pack of cigarettes out of his jean jacket. "Do you mind if I smoke?" he asked his brother while tapping one cigarette to the surface of the pack. Nikolas shifted uneasily. "No, but I didn't know you smoked," he said. "Are you picking up my bad European habits now?" he chuckled as he accepted a cigarette from Lucky.

Lucky lit up and sat back. "Cigarettes are made from good old American tobacco and don't you forget that. Hey, do you have an ashtray?" Nikolas rose and returned with two crystal goblets. "Best I can do," he apologized. "Most things are packed up and who knows where."

Lucky looked around the room appraisingly and flicked a long ash into his goblet. "Maybe that's the problem. The place doesn't look like anyone could live here except for a ghost. If you paid a decorator to lighten up the interior, you might be able to sell."

"That's a definite possibility," agreed Nikolas. "Or I could hang onto Wyndemere and not worry about it. Hire help to keep the place up." Lucky looked at Nikolas sharply and shrugged. "Where's Mo-nique?" he asked with a cocked eyebrow.

"Shipped her back to France," said Nikolas. "Tart of the month - too Cassadine. Had to change that." Lucky bent over and howled with laughter. Nikolas' shoulders shook as he caught the moment and laughed repeatedly. When Nikolas recovered and wiped his eyes, he returned the favor and asked Lucky, "How's Emily?"

Lucky's eyes lit up. "Oh, Emily, yeah, Emily's great. I had dinner at the Quartermaine's a couple of days ago. I swear it shaved whole years off my life. But, Edward's going to teach me how to play golf - Quartermaine style."

"Too funny," agreed Nikolas. "Sounds like you made it past the guard dog."

"With a few bites on my behind," Lucky said. He changed the subject. "Do you want to exchange our Christmas gifts now?"

"What about discipline and waiting for the good things?" teased Nikolas.

"Yeah, right," chuckled Lucky, waving his cigarette. "Bring it on."

Nikolas left the room, and Lucky took a very deep drag off of his cigarette, not realizing that the ash was so close to his skin. The burning ash assaulted Lucky's finger, and he yelped loudly and dropped the cigarette onto the floor. He frowned, his brow creasing as a memory of burning flesh and cigarettes burst to his consciousness then fled back as quickly as it came. When Nikolas returned, Lucky was sitting and staring blankly at nothing, slumped over the side of the settee.

"Lucky!" Nikolas called out in alarm. Lucky remained blanked-out, and fear surrounded Nikolas' heart. He roughly shook Lucky by the shoulders. Lucky sat up and ran a tentative hand over his eyes. "Where were you, brother?" Nikolas asked gravely. "Because you definitely weren't in this room when I came back. You're all spaced-out. Lucky, are you okay?"

"Fine!" Lucky said defensively. "Do you want your Christmas gift?" Nikolas looked at Lucky closely, and shrugged. "Sure," he grinned. Lucky reached into the bag he'd brought with him and produced a small, nicely wrapped package. Nikolas tore the paper off and smiled broadly "An electronic desk manager," he said. "Thank you, Lucky." Lucky pointed out several features of the instrument and said, "I programmed it for you so it is all ready to go. You can download to a regular computer, too. You have all the Port Charles names, addresses and phone numbers you'll ever need. I even programmed in Eli's Ribs. They ship all over the world, did you know that?" Nikolas chuckled. "He's trying to make me fat, okay…"

"I'm glad I have a technical brother," Nikolas said. "You definitely have that talent. I'm the wordsmith I guess, the man with the mouth." Lucky pushed Nikolas' arm. "You can say that again." Nikolas reached behind the settee and produced a large, rather oddly shaped and wrapped gift. "Your turn," he said. Lucky eagerly unwrapped his gift and let out a low whistle. "This is TOO COOL!" His hands held a new guitar, an expensive, top-line brand. Lucky looked up with bright eyes. "Thanks so much, Nikolas. This means a lot to me."

"Can you play us a song?" asked Nikolas. "I don't know," said Lucky. "It's been so long, two years I think, since I've played. I'll probably have to learn all over again. But I'll try something simple." Lucky held the guitar and lightly strummed the strings, getting a feel for the instrument. He played a simple folk song and smiled. "Well, I'm rusty, but I think I still have it."

Nikolas clapped. "Definitely."

~*~*~*~

When Lucky left Wyndemere, he had a lift to his step even though he was more tired and sluggish than he'd ever been in his life. He opened his car door and gently laid his new guitar in the back seat. Lucky sat in the driver's seat and looked down at the black hole fried into the car's interior red carpet. He sighed and rested his head on the steering wheel, trying to feel better so that he could drive home safely. As he relaxed, a creepy feeling came over him. It was a feeling that made him want to run and hide, to crouch down in a dark closet, cover himself with clothes and never come out.

"You're not worth it, sweetie…"

Lucky panicked. His breaths came fast with a croupy sound. His sweating hands searched frantically for a paper bag. He knew there had to be one somewhere in his car. His head started spinning from lack of oxygen by the time he finally found the brown bag from his cigarette carton purchase. He placed the bag over his nose and mouth and breathed in deeply. Some instinct told Lucky that this was going to be a very long night.

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