Chapter One
Port Charles, New York. It was a typical ocean-side town, if Nadine had ever seen one. It was the kind of town that no one would miss if a tidal wave washed it away. The residents cumulatively acted as if they were seperated from the rest of the world. Half of them were snobs, and the others would have been if they had been born with anything to be snobby about.
Nadine glanced at the man in the passenger's seat of her Park Avenue. "What did you find?"
He was a shady man, but not in a slick way. He seemed a bit frumpled, like a high school English teacher, but he wore tacky mirrored sunglasses that were constantly sliding down his oddly shaped nose. At her no-nonsense tone, he flipped through his legal notepad. "I've got an itinerary of both his and her normal daily activities, and I found out what they both have scheduled for the date you mentioned. I also have a list of that security information, and a few other odds and ends."
She took the piece of paper from his hands. "Thank you. You'll be paid promptly and fully. And remember-- you never saw me and we've never done business, all right?"
He nodded shortly and all but jumped out of the car.
"Stupid moron," she muttered. The amatuer notes could have been collected by a five-year-old. There was no such thing as a good private detective these days. They were all so scared of the law. She should have done it herself, she scolded. That would have eliminated any witness and any road back to her.
She pulled a selected suitcase out of the backseat and found the desired items. With a little help from the styling products she had picked up back home, she would have no problem fitting her desired role.
Ten minutes later, she pulled out of the parking lot looking like a new woman. She smiled at the photo on the dashboard... one of the many photos she had of the unsinkable Lucy Coe. "Lucy, dear, it's time to pay your dues." She laughed softly and headed out.
Chapter Two
Lucy came out of Dr. Newmann's office with two identities. One part of her was elated. She wanted to jump up and down and kiss every person she saw. The other part was devastated. This tied her to one man, which under normal circumstances she would have wanted.
Living with Scott had turned out to be full of interesting pleasures and, as she had just positively learned, many definitive consequences. In recent weeks, with the General Homocide murders in the past, she had tried to patch up her relationship with Kevin. Things were improving. They were on speaking terms, and not even "tense" terms as it had previously been. Their conversations weren't just cordial, they were downright friendly.
This, however, would drive the final wedge between herself and Kevin. She could only hope he wouldn't be too devastated.
As fate would have it, she headed down the hospital corridor only to find Kevin standing in the Nurses' Station. She couldn't tell him, not before she told Scott. It wouldn't be right. Would it?
"Lucy," Kevin smiled as she approached. "What brings you here?"
Her face froze. "Nothing much."
He glanced at the papers in her hand. "Prescriptions?"
"Uhh.." she folded the papers. One confirmed her pregnancy, and the other prescribed a new vitamin pill specifically for pregnant women. "No, no, just... papers."
Ellen approached from the staff room. "Hey, Luce, I just talked to Dr. Newmann-- whoops," she looked at Kevin. "I'm sorry, I'm interrupting."
Kevin looked from one woman to the other. "Dr. Newmann, you said?"
Lucy shot Ellen a sharp look. "Ellen, how nice to see you."
Kevin eyed the papers again. "Were you with Dr. Newmann?"
Lucy ignored him completely. "Ellen, have I told you how different you look lately? That modern- diva look really works for you."
Kevin: (to Lucy) "Forgive me for prying, but did you have tests done?"
Lucy: (to Ellen) "It really is a nice look, but I think I would have gone for a darker blue skirt with that color blouse."
Kevin (to that pregnant lady, La Luce): "Lucy?"
Lucy (can we say "impolite"?): "Although the jacket really works with those shoes."
Kevin: "Are you pregnant, Lucy?"
Lucy turned to face him slowly, like a child who had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar. "What makes you think I'm pregnant?"
Kevin gave her a pointed look. "Are you?"
There was a pregnant (no pun intended) pause before Lucy meekly nodded. "I just found out."
Kevin didn't say anything for a moment, then he nodded. "Congratulations. I'm sure you and Scott will be very happy together."
"Kevin, please don't be like this."
"Be like WHAT?" Kevin's voice climbed to a shout. "Be like another one of your passings who gets to watch while to you move on to your next bed-mate?"
Lucy struggled to come up with a snappy comeback, but instead she turned on her heel and stomped away. Kevin grunted and headed in the opposite direction, leaving Ellen standing shell- shocked in the middle of the Nurses Station. "Spoiled love," she said aloud to no one. "Doesn't it stink."
Chapter Three
Eve clenched the bundle of roses in her sweaty fists. She was so nervous, and yet so blissfully happy. This was the night she was going to tell Kevin how much she loved him. This was it.
She stepped out of her car in front of the Lighthouse just as another car pulled in. The twilight offered little visual assistance, but it only took her a minute to figure out who the person was who had stepped out. Lucy.
How did she do it? How did Lucy time her every appearance to ruin some plans Eve had with Kevin? Was the woman psychic?
Lucy began to walk down the the path towards the Lighthouse. Eve considered following her up, but the idea of a cat fight didn't appeal to her. She stayed beside her car and called down. "Lucy!"
Lucy turned but didn't speak. Eve rolled her eyes. "Kevin's not here!" she shouted.
Lucy stood there for a moment in the darkness, and for a moment Eve wasn't sure she had heard her. The sound of a third car drew her attention away, though, as Kevin pulled up.
He stepped out, looking as handsome as always. "Eve," he greeted. "I wasn't expecting you."
She smiled slightly. "I brought take-out and a video. Can I be blatantly rude and invite myself over?"
"Sure," he smiled and headed down the path to his house.
Eve opened the back seat to get out her goodies as Kevin walked closer to Lucy. It was so dark. Eve could barely see them, but the rising moon shed enough light to reveal Lucy by thye front door. Eve pulled out the take-out boxes, video, and flowers and watched the two.
Something was different about Lucy. She was standing awkwardly, with her arms folded. Kevin was standing about ten feet away from her, obviously trying to figure out what to say.
Suddenly, Lucy's arms swung out in front of her and Eve heard the distinct sound of three gun shots. Kevin fell to the ground on the walkway in a crumpled heap. "Kevin!" Eve dropped her armload and ran up to him as Lucy darted away.
"Lucy, what the hell are you doing?!" Eve screamed as she knelt beside Kevin's still form. "Get back here! Get back here, Lucy!!"
Eve fumbled for her pocket flashlight and, upon finding it, looked for the wound. "Oh, God, Kevin," she normally was prided for keeping a cool head in emergencies, but there was so much blood... she felt for a pulse and found an extremely weak one. Too weak. The blood was gushing out of the hole in his chest. It covered her hands as she tried to apply pressure and find her cell phone at the same time.
"Just hold on, Kevin," Eve heard Lucy's car pull away. What the hell had she been doing? Had she come there intending on killing him? Eve dialed 9-1-1. "I need an ambulance and the police at the Lighthouse. I have a man, mid-30's, with a gunshot wound to the chest. Pulse is weak." She tossed the phone aside and pressured the wound. "Hang on, Kevin, just hang on.."
It seemed to take forever for the ambulance and squad cars to arrive. Eve backed off as Frank and two other EMT's took over the situation. Mac Scorpio aprroached Eve.
"What happened?"
Eve blinked at the stone-cold expression on Mac's face. This was his best friend, she realized. "I know it sounds hard to believe... but I saw it happened.... he came home, and she was waiting on the doorstep... and she shot him."
"Who?"
Eve closed her eyes. "Lucy Coe."
***
Serena was the one who answered the door when Mac and his crew reached the firehouse. Her face lit up, which only brought Mac's spirits down. He hated having to do this as it was, and having the little girl around wouldn't help. Serena smiled. "Hi, Mr. Scorpio."
"Hi, Serena. Is Lucy here?"
"Uh-huh. Come on in," Serena opened the door for the men. "Daddy! Lucy! Mr. Scorpio's here!"
"Mac, hi, what are you--" Lucy stopped midsentence as she entered from the kitchen and saw Mac with the police officers. "I take it this isn't a personal call."
Scott came in. "What's going on?"
Mac sighed. "I hate this. Lucy, where were you this evening?"
"I had an appointment at the hospital and then I came home."
"Did you stop at Kevin's house?"
Lucy's eyes flashed in remembrance of their exchange. "No."
Mac was speaking through his teeth. "Lucy, I have a witness and a security video tape that shows you at Kevin's tonight."
"So?" Scott shrugged. "What's the deal?"
"The deal is," Mac's face was expressionless. "Kevin is in critical condition at GH because apparantly Lucy shot him."
"What?" Scott and Lucy managed to shriek in unison. Lucy's face was pale. "Mac, that's crazy. I would never shoot Kevin. I would never shoot anyone. And I was not at the Lighthouse tonight!"
"Eve Lambert saw it all--"
Scott snorted. "Like that proves anything."
"--and Kevin's security cameras caught the whole thing on video. They show you shooting Kevin. I'm sorry, Lucy. I'm placing you under arrest."
"What? No, no, no, no, Mac, you're making a huge mistake here!" Lucy squealed as one of the officers cuffed her.
"You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can not afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you...."
Serena's eyes were wide with fear. "Lucy, what's going on?"
Lucy tried to smile for her surrogate daughter's sake. "It's okay, pumpkin head. You stay here with daddy. Everything will be okay."
Scott grabbed his phone. "I'm calling Lee. He'll meet you at the station."
"Scott," Lucy called. "I didn't do it. I'm innocent. I didn't shoot Kevin. I didn't." She continued to proclaim her innocence until the officers pulled her out of the firehouse. The sirens filled the air, and then they were gone.
Serena waited until her father was done on the phone before she spoke up. "Daddy?"
"Yes?"
"Did... Did Lucy try to kill Kevin?"
"I don't know, baby," Scott pulled her into his arms. "I don't know."