Through the Darkness, Chapter Nineteen

CHAPTER 19

August, 2013

Starr went into Llanfair’s kitchen to just get away.  She was becoming depressed with the lack of leads they had to even work with.  They’d been over the case files Nora had brought over ten times and they hadn’t tuned up anything new.  While she appreciated all the help Jessica, Brody, Det. Jobek and even Natalie were giving, every moment that passed without any news made her more and more fearful of the worst.

She went to the refrigerator to look for a soda but didn’t find any there that she would drink.  In a moment of rage, she slammed the door and let out a scream.

“Are you alright sweetie?” a voice asked her.

She was ready to turn around and yell at her Aunt Viki.  She should know how Starr was feeling.  Why would she ask that stupid of a question?  But then, she saw it was her Aunt Tina.  Her father’s voice in her head reminded her that would be the one to ask such a stupid question.  “I’m fine,” she replied.

“Then you like to take your frustration out on refrigerator door?” Tina questioned again.

Starr wanted to cross her arms and act like a petulant seven year old again, but she couldn’t.  Her face went straight from anger to tears.  Tina walked over to her and enveloped her in a hug.  “It’ll be alright, honey.  Your dad will be back,” she said, soothingly.  “If for no other reason than to haunt me.”

Starr chuckled at that.  Although Tina had been away for much of her childhood and no one really spoke fondly of her, she did appreciate her aunt’s presence.  While it was absolutely clear that Aunt Viki adored her father, Tina’s take on Todd was much more weary, a loving big sister, but one who lived to annoy  “Thank you for that,” Starr said.

“Come, sit down.  I’ll make you a cup of tea.  That’ll help, right?”  Tina led her to the table and then went to the stove.  Starr was rather surprised to see her aunt move so deftly around the kitchen, filling the pot with hot water and putting it on the stove.  When the water boiled Tina set out two cups and saucers and poured the water, letting the tea bags seep.  “I know you are worried about Todd.”

“I’m getting more worried about my mom.  She’s been through this before and I know the last time, it nearly killed her,” Starr said.

Tina nodded.  “But she knew she was having his baby and that gave her comfort, Starr,” Tina told her.  “Your father will come home.  I promise you that.”

“Of course he is,” Jack said, coming in.  “We’ll never be rid of him.”

Starr was usually ready to jump down Jack’s throat for any comment he made about their father, but she saw the glint in Jack’s eye.  It was the same teasing look Todd bad.  That put her at ease.  “Now we need to just reassure Mom,” she said.

Natalie and Jessica came in then just then.  “Hey, Mom was looking for you,” the blonde said.

“Oh, Starr just needed some time alone,” Tina explained. 

“Yeah, thank you for that,” Starr replied.

Natalie’s eyebrows went up to her hairline.  “Aunt Tina comforted you?”

“I was just telling her about when Todd was thought to be lost in Ireland.  He came back from that.  He’ll always come back for his family and Blair especially,” Tina said.

Natalie looked to Jessica.  “Didn’t you hate that Todd was your brother and that he was married to Blair?  From the stories I heard, that was the impression I always got.”

“Yeah, I remember when Mom told me that they had gotten remarried, you threw out the word ‘exorcism’” Jessica added.

Starr and Jack moved their attention back to Tina.  Instead of their aunt looking uncomfortable by the reminder, Tina admitted flat out, “Yes, I hated that Blair married him.  But I was right for my reasons.”

“Because he had learned he was Victor Lord’s heir, right?” Starr asked.  She was remembering the story now.

“Yes, it was because of that.  She did just marry him for his money.  Trust me, I know that scam,” Tina said.  Then, after an exaggerated sigh, she said, “Because I did something similar with Cord.”

Starr narrowed her eyes.  “You did?”

Tina nodded and looked quite proud of herself.  “I found out that Cord was Clint’s son by one of Asa’s maids.  Asa didn’t approve of the idea of a half-Mexican grandchild and sent the woman away.  Cord came to Llanview to look up his mother’s old ‘friend’ and I put the pieces together.”

“Much like Mom put the pieces together that Todd Manning and Irene Manning could be related,” Starr responded.

“And then when I did get the proof, I may have rushed Cord down the aisle to share in his windfall.  And then I was presumed dead, came back, we remarried a few more times, the last without our children there, and well…”  Tina’s voice trailed off.

“So the reason you’ve hated Mom all these years is, she stole all the moves from your playbook,” Jack surmised. 

Tina looked thoughtful for a minute, then nodded her head, a wicked smile on her face.  “And much like Cord and I, Blair loves your father deeply.  And that love will sustain her when he can’t be here.”  With that, she left.

“Words of wisdom…from Tina Lord Roberts?” Natalie asked, perplexed.

Jessica went over to the refrigerator and pulled out the orange juice.  As she poured herself a glass, she said, “You know the saying.  A broken clock is right twice a day.”

Starr smiled at that thought.  That broken clock had given her back her hope.

********

When Todd awoke, he found himself on the lower bed.  He sat up immediately and looked around.  He was still in the same room.  Tentatively, he called out, “Victor?”  He was answered by a low moan.  Todd stood up and looked at the top bunk.  Victor was rubbing his eyes obviously waking up himself.

“What happened?” He asked.

“I think they may have pumped in some knockout gas,” Todd guessed.  “They must have figured it was the only way to come in without us rushing them.”

“How long have we been out?”

Todd shook his head.  “I have no idea, but I figure it’s been a while.”  Todd looked to the door again.  “We have got to find a way out of here.”  He heard the panic rise in his own voice.

Victor must have caught onto it too.  “Alright, calm down.”  He actually showed a measure of concern for Todd.  “We’ll get out of here.”  Victor went back to the door.  “What’s come over you?”

Todd put his hand to his forehead.  “I think the quack was right.  I don’t know, I’m just getting anxious for some reason.  My head’s…my head is getting noisy again.”

“Noisy, what do you mean?”

Todd closed his eyes, trying to settle on a mental image.  “Starr was singing up in a club in Port Charles and when she was going to make her debut, Blair came up.  After the show, we went back to my hotel room.  I had arranged a romantic dinner…candlelight, good wine.  I told Blair then and there that she quieted the voices in my head…she has the power to calm me down.  And now, I feel…I feel it slipping away.”

Victor looked to his brother.  “That was the first clue to me.”

“What was?”

“I remember all the times when I went searching for that.  I had the memory of the calming effect.  And I never found it, not with Blair.  Not even with Tea, to be honest.”  Todd opened his eyes and look at his twin.  “Don’t get me wrong, I sense a connection with Tea, but it was never anything like that.”

“When did you realize that?” Todd asked.

Victor looked to be searching his own memories for a minute.  “I never felt it.  Even when I first got to Llanview.  I saw Blair, I felt there were feelings there, but there was something missing.”  Then he looked at Todd.  “Until you just said it, I couldn’t even put it into words.”

“I was so lost for a time there.  I felt like I was being drugged.  Blair was all set to get married and I came back and told her her fiancé wasn’t who he said he was.  Turned out, the guy shared the same face as an international arms dealer.  And I could see she believed me, I could see it in her face.  And I went back to Port Charles, fully confident that she’d be right behind me,” Todd said, caught up in the memories.  “And she never came.”  Then he shook his head.  “But again, being around her, I was calm and at peace.  I barely even registered the cat fight she got into with Skye Chandler Quartermaine.”

“Skye Chandler…that shrink’s daughter?  She hooked herself up with another guy?” Victor asked.

“No, she thought Dr. Alan Quartermaine of the New York Quartermaines was he father.  Even after it was proven false, he adopted her.  But she was involved with this guy that had the same face as Blair’s moronic boyfriend and she same to help me prove it was indeed the same guy,” Todd explained.  “Anyway, I was calm again.  And, like, the minute I got back, the noises started up again.”   

“You should just marry her again,” Victor said almost derisively.  Then, he added, “You really should.”

Todd smiled again.  In his mind, he saw Blair’s face as she took his hand and slipped on a wedding band.  “We did.”

“You did what?” Victor asked.

“We did get married,” he replied feeling that calm he always felt with Blair in his life.  “Just before I left, she wanted us to get remarried.  I…I didn’t want to,” Todd said, catching his brother’s look.  “It wasn’t because I didn’t love her or want to be with her…”

“It was because you were afraid for her,” Victor finished.  “I know the feeling.  Tea wanted to know what was going on, demanded I give her answers.  I couldn’t.”

“What happened, Victor?  Why did you run?” Todd asked.  Victor didn’t answer and Todd’s voice got louder.  “Victor, talk to me.  Like it or not, we have to work together.”

Victor let out a breath as be began to unburden himself.  “There was a guy that I saw in the coffee shop.  He had the same tattoo that I was branded with.”

Todd saw he was finally getting somewhere.  He reached for his brother’s wrist and pushed up his sleeve.  “I’ve had run-ins with this symbol.”

“The guy was probably after me,” he replied, seemingly trance like.  “I had to get out, get out soon.”  Then, as if hearing his brother’s words, he said, “You’ve seen this symbol?”

Todd let out a humorless laugh.  “I knew you were alive before you barged into the argument I was having with Delgado.  Why did you think I punched you?”

“Cause you love me so much?”

Todd held up his brother’s arm.  “I got a message about you on a note, with this symbol,” Todd said, pointing to the tattoo.  “And they wanted me to finish what I started.”   

Victor seemed to see a pattern.  “He was there to do the job if you didn’t.” 

“Maybe,” Todd replied.  “Someone wants you dead, brother.  Someone who’s actually not me, but they want me to do the dirty work.”  Todd leveled his gaze at his brother.

“Then we need to figure out who that is,” Victor said, meeting the stare and smiling, a mirror image of his twin.