"So, they're suing her for damages?" Taylor asked Zac, switching the cordless from his right ear to his left.
"Yeah. VLS claims they lost clients when the article came out. At the very least, they want compensation."
"I don't understand. AJ got slapped with the suit the morning the article came out. How could they have lost enough clients to be able to file a suit within a matter of hours?"
"Beats the hell out of me. But it leads me to believe that AJ was right. VLS probably bought a judge." Zac sighed.
"How are you holding up?"
"I'm fine. Manning the fort for AJ. She's gotten so many phone calls; I'm tempted to turn off the ringer. And there's a flock of reporters staked outside the building. It's insane! And AJ keeps apologizing. I don't know what for..." Zac took a deep breath.
"So, how are you holding up?" Taylor asked again.
"Didn't you hear what I just said?"
"Yup. Every word. Too bad you didn't answer my question. I want to know how YOU'RE doing."
Zac sighed. "Alright, I guess."
"You guess?"
"It's just... weird, being on this end of things. I think I'm finally understanding what the family went through when we hit it big."
"I don't know that they're QUITE one in the same..."
"Yeah, I know..."
"So..."
"So..."
"How are things between the two of you?"
"They're fine. Really, Tay. I know I wasn't in such hot shape when I was in Tulsa, but things are okay now. We're working on it."
Taylor nodded his head. "That's good."
Zac smiled. "How's my Goddaughter?"
"Perfect. Perfect in every way. She's sleeping straight through the night now, too."
"AJ's got a picture of Maddy holding Jenn. Supposedly it came out really good. I don't know. I haven't seen it yet. Anyway, AJ wants to make a copy and send it to you and Laura. It may be a while now..."
"Understood. Say no more."
"Becca took a picture of us. AJ and I, that is."
"Yeah? And..."
"We have it framed on our dresser."
"And here, all these years, I thought Ike was the softie."
"He is."
"Yeah, well, looks like you're not far behind."
"Tay, hold on. Someone's at the door."
"You sure you wanna answer that?"
"No," Zac laughed. He put down the phone. About a minute later, he picked it up again. "Tay? I'm gonna have to call you back."
"Is something wrong?"
"No. Nothing's... nothing's wrong. Something just came up."
"Well, okay... Call me later."
"Will do. Bye, Tay."
"Bye, Zac."
Zac hung up the phone and turned around to face the person sitting on the couch. With an eyebrow raised he asked, "mind telling me what you're doing here?"
Before he could get an answer, AJ walked through the door. She headed straight for the kitchen. "Hey, Zac. Hey, Jess," she greeted the siblings in the living room. She got two steps into the kitchen and stopped. Slowly, she backed up. "Jess?"
"Hey, AJ."
AJ shook her head slightly. "What are you doing here?" she asked. Her voice was filled with worry. She was afraid that Diana and Walker had sent their daughter to New York with explicit instructions to bring their son home.
"Have a seat," Zac told his girlfriend. "I was just about to find out." As he spoke, he glared at his sister, arms crossed in front of his chest.
"Zac, cut the crap," Jess told her brother as AJ sat down next to her on the couch. "I came here for help and understanding, not a lecture. If I wanted that, I would've stayed in Tulsa."
"We'll help you, Jess. Won't we?" AJ asked Zac as he sat on the coffee table so he could face his sister.
Jess smiled at her brother's girlfriend. "Thanks. I... I need a place to stay for the week, possibly longer."
"No problem. Stay as long as you like. I have to warn you, though, things are gonna be crazy around here."
Zac stared at AJ, wide-eyed and jaw dropped. He couldn't believe what his girlfriend just agreed to. Didn't she know that it was their duty to see to it that Jess got on the first plane heading to Tulsa?
"I can imagine. I saw the paper at the airport. It was a good article, AJ."
She smiled. "Thanks. Now, if you don't mind my asking, what's your plan? If Zac and I are gonna let you crash here, you can at least tell us why you need a place to stay."
Jess took a deep breath. "I have an audition for Juliard's School of Ballet. If I get in, I'm dropping out of ORU. If I don't, I stay anyway."
"Jess, that's great!" AJ gave her a hug.
"Do Mom and Dad know you're here?" Zac asked.
Jess shook her head. "No."
"Why didn't you tell them?"
"There's wasn't any time. I saw in Variety that Juliard is having auditions. If I sat and, quote-unquote, discussed it with Mom and Dad, I would've missed my window of opportunity."
Zac nodded his head. "What about school?"
"Zac, dancing's all I really want to do. And you and I both know that Tulsa is a far cry from the entertainment capital of the world. If I'm here, more opportunities will present themselves."
He hugged his sister. "Of course you can stay here, Jess." He picked up the cordless. "Right after you call Mom and Dad." He handed her the phone.
"Mom wants to talk to you." Jess handed the cordless to her older brother.
"Yeah, Mom?"
"Did you know your sister was coming to New York?"
"Not until she showed up on my doorstep, no."
"And you and AJ are SURE it's not a problem for her to stay there?"
"Mom, if it was, we would've sent her home already."
"Well, I'm just double-checking. I know there's a lot going on there now."
"Jess is a big girl, Mom. Besides, it's nothing she hasn't seen before. She knows how to handle reporters. And if it gets too crazy for her, I'll put her in a hotel."
"Zachary Walker Hanson! You'll do no such thing! You'll send her home."
Zac took a deep breath. He knew what was coming, even had a speech prepared. He just prayed he could get through it without upsetting his mother. "Mom, Jess isn't a girl anymore. She's a woman. She can take care of herself. I was half her age when I was touring."
"Yes, but you weren't by yourself."
"Jess isn't by herself, either. AJ and I are here."
"I know. I know. It's just..."
Zac smiled. "Empty nest syndrome?"
"Wipe that smile off your face, Zachary. It's not nice to make fun of your mother."
"Mom, I'm not making fun of you. And how did you know I was smiling?"
"I conceived you, carried you in my body for nine months, and raised you. I KNOW when you're smiling. And I know you weren't making fun of me. Can't a mother tease her son? It's so quiet around here now. Mackie's going to be going to college next year, and it'll just be your father, Zoe, and me. I miss the chaos."
"You want chaos? Come here."
"No, no thank you." Diana smiled. "I miss the chaos you and your brothers created, NOT the reporters."
"What's wrong with reporters?"
"Nothing. I'm just waiting for you to marry yours."
"Mom," Zac said, exasperated. "We discussed this when I was in Tulsa."
"I know. It's just... you two are really good for one another. I just wanna make sure you don't screw it up."
Zac laughed softly. "I won't."
"You stand by her, you hear?"
"I fully intend to, Mom."
"And look out for your sister. Make sure she flies back in time for finals. She's GOING to finish school."
"Consider it done."
"Zac?"
"Yes, Mom?"
"I love you, Sweetie."
Zac smiled. "I love you, too, Mom."
"Jess?" Zac called from the kitchen.
"In the living room."
Zac left the kitchen and eyed the living room suspiciously. All the furniture was moved against the walls, leaving an empty space in the middle of the room. Jessica was sitting on the floor in a split. Zac raised an eyebrow. "You ARE gonna put the furniture back when you're done, right?"
"Of course, silly. What's up?"
"I'm making breakfast for AJ."
Jessica's eyes grew so they were the size of quarters. "YOU'RE making breakfast?"
"Well, trying is a better word. Help me, please?"
She nodded, standing up. "Sure." The siblings walked into the kitchen. "What are you making?" she asked her older brother.
"I was thinking scrambled eggs and homefries."
"Sounds good to me. You do the eggs, I'll do the homefries."
"Alright."
The two were hard at work when AJ entered the kitchen. "What the hell is with the living room furniture? Oh, something smells good."
"Don't worry. I'll put the furniture back. I was stretching. And it's the homefries you smell," Jess said.
"I could get used to having you here," AJ told her. "Jess let you near the stove? She must have more faith in you than I do," AJ teased Zac, a smile playing on the corners of her mouth.
"We're family. We support one another." Zac kissed his girlfriend gently on the lips. "Is that a new outfit? I've never seen it before."
"No. It's fairly old, actually. I hate it. I keep it hidden in the back of the closet for special, conservative occasions." AJ sank down into the chair behind her. "This has disaster written all over it." She put her head in her hands.
Jessica turned off the stove. "I'm just gonna go put the furniture back..." she said, not addressing anyone in particular. She was just giving her brother and his girlfriend some privacy.
Zac stroked AJ's hair. "Honey, what is it? Tell me."
She picked her face up out of her hands, tears in the corners of her eyes. "I'm going to lose this suit."
"You don't know that," he said, still stroking her hair in an attempt to soothe her.
"Yes. Yes, I do. This... this is all wrong. The suit was filed too quickly. And... and cases never go to court this fast, either. I'm... I'm gonna lose, and then I'll never write again." The tears cascaded down her face.
"You don't know that you're gonna lose. Remember when you told me it's basically impossible to prove actual malice? How is VLS's attorney going to prove it?"
"It won't matter. If they bought the judge, justice will get thrown out the window."
At this point, there were no words to comfort AJ. Zac knew that. So he embraced her, tightly, instead. She shook in his arms from her sobbing, and Zac gently rocked her. "I'm here, Amanda Jean. I'm here," he whispered.
Zac entered the courtroom and walked straight towards the front. He saw AJ sitting behind a table with two men. The three were whispering, no doubt engrossed in a conversation concerning the case. 'Probably discussing strategy,' he thought, sitting down next to a familiar-looking man in the first row.
"Hey, Zac." The man offered his hand.
"Rick, right?" Zac said, shaking the man's hand.
"Uh-huh. She puts up a good front," Rick said, referring to AJ.
"Yeah. If I hadn't been there, I wouldn't believe she had a breakdown in the kitchen this morning."
"Really?"
"Yup. She's CONVINCED she's gonna lose this thing."
"I gotta admit, things don't look good."
"You're a big help. I'm trying to stay positive for Amanda, and you're telling me things don't look good."
"It's just... this is all moving too fast. I don't like it. Smells fishy to me."
"Think something's going down?"
Rick frowned. "Let me say this. VLS's lawyer... he's a prick. He plays dirty, and he'll make this as painful as possible for her."
"Wonderful." Zac rolled his eyes. "So, what can I do?"
"You? Be there for her."
"What about you?"
"Well, depending on how this pre-trial goes, I might be making a trip." Rick looked at Zac. "But you don't know that," he quickly added.
Zac nodded his head. "Got it."
At that moment, AJ turned around to scan the courtroom for her boyfriend. To see him sitting directly behind her filled her with strength. "Zac, I'm so glad you're here."
He leaned forward and stroked her hair. "I wouldn't be anywhere else, Amanda Jean."
"All rise!" the bailiff instructed.
"Prosecution calls Ms. Amanda Jean Marcetti to the stand."
AJ stood up and walked to the stand. The bailiff swore her in, and she sat down.
The prosecutor stood up, a newspaper in hand. He held it up for her to see, pointing to the headline circled in red. "Can you tell me who wrote this article?"
"I did."
The prosecutor turned to the judge. "I'd like to submit this to the court as evidence."
"So noted," said the judge.
The prosecutor returned his attention to the woman on the stand. "Where did you get the information for your article, Ms. Marcetti?"
AJ took a deep breath. "I respectfully decline to answer the question."
"Well, you have a source in your article that you didn't name. Can you tell the court who that person is?"
"I respectfully decline to answer the question."
"Ms. Marcetti, surely you must realize the seriousness of this situation. You write features for People magazine; you're not a hard-core news reporter. How are we to trust you or your source? So, I'll ask again. Who is your source?"
AJ looked at her editor, Pete, who was sitting at the table with The Times' attorney. Pete nodded his head. She swallowed hard. "I respectfully decline to answer the question."
The judge pounded his gavel. "Ms. Marcetti, I'm afraid you leave me no choice but to hold you in contempt. Bailiff, please escort Ms. Marcetti to the holding cell downstairs."
"Would you be interested in some coffee? Dessert?" the waitress asked with a smile on her face.
Isaac turned to his wife. "Do you want anything, Becca?"
"Yeah, I'll split something with you."
"Cheesecake?"
"With cherries."
Isaac smiled and returned his attention to the waitress. "One coffee, one tea, both decaf. And a slice of cheesecake with cherries, please."
The waitress nodded. "No problem." She turned to Taylor and Laura. "Anything for you?"
"A glass of water and..." Laura turned to Taylor. "Want some tiramasu?"
Taylor shrugged. "Sure."
"And some tiramasu," Laura told the waitress.
"And a cup of coffee, NOT decaf," Taylor added.
"Okay. One decaf tea, one decaf coffee, one regular coffee, cheesecake with cherries, and tiramasu. Anything else?"
"Just the check," Isaac said.
The waitress nodded and walked away.
"We have to go out more often," Laura addressed the group. "I feel like I don't go out much anymore."
Becca nodded her head. "I know what you mean. Maybe the girls weren't too bad, and Zoe will be willing to baby-sit again."
"You know, I'm detecting a flaw in the slaw, here," Taylor said to his older brother.
"Oh? What's that?"
"We never got paid for baby-sitting the younger ones, but we're paying Zoe to watch our children?"
"We baby-sat for free because we're good sons. We're paying Zoe because we're good brothers."
Taylor raised an eyebrow.
"You know, you can rationalize anything if you put your mind to it," Ike said, smiling.
"I see." He smiled wryly at his older brother.
Just then, the waitress came up to the table. She set the food down, and placed the check, facedown, on the table. "Have a good night." She flashed them all one last smile before she left.
"So, have you spoken to our brother lately?" Taylor asked. He opened his mouth and allowed Laura to slip a forkful of tiramasu inside.
Ike shook his head and swallowed a mouthful of cheesecake. "No. I called earlier today, but they were in court. Jess picked up, though. Said AJ was in tears this morning."
"I wish there was something more I could do for her," Laura said, taking a sip of her water.
"Don't worry. Zac'll take care of her. I'm sure he's doing everything he can," Taylor said, giving his wife's hand a reassuring squeeze.
Becca nodded her head in agreement. "Yeah, and then some."
AJ let out a deep, frustrated sigh as she hung up the phone in the bedroom.
"Answering machine again?" Zac asked. He patted his lap, an indication for his girlfriend to take a seat.
AJ nodded her head. Instead of sitting on her boyfriend's lap, she crawled into bed and rested her head in his lap. She looked up at him lovingly as he gently stroked her hair. "I wonder where he could be." She chewed her bottom lip as she contemplated Rick Anderson's whereabouts.
Zac remembered what Rick told him in the courtroom this morning. "Maybe he got a lead," he suggested.
"Yeah. But I beeped him, too. It's not like Rick not to answer his beeps."
"You look so worried. Why?" he asked softly.
"I'm afraid... afraid he might be in danger."
"What kind of danger?" Zac immediately became concerned.
AJ took a deep breath. "A couple of years ago, Rick went out to meet a source. He ended up... he ended up witnessing a... a rape. His testimony... put the two guys away. They're getting out on parole next week."
"Think they'll go after him?"
"It's a definite possibility."
"Now do you see why I worry so much? AJ, if anything... if anything ever happened to you... I... I don't know what I'd do..." Zac choked on his words as he fought to maintain self-control. He has to remain strong. He knows AJ's weak and vulnerable right now, and depending on him for strength and support.
"Zac, I'm not going anywhere." She brought her hand to his face, and traced his lips with her finger. Zac kissed it. A smiled played on the corners of her mouth. "Not even jail kept us apart." She sighed. "I can't thank you enough for paying that fine. I'll pay you back-"
Zac pressed his finger against AJ's lips, silencing her. "You don't have to thank me, and you most certainly DO NOT have to pay me back. When... when you were up on that stand, and... and refused to answer the question three times... I was SO proud of you." He looked into Amanda's eyes, which were rapidly filling up with tears. "I love you, so much," he said, softly.
"I know." She closed her eyes in an attempt to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill over.
"I feel as though I don't say it enough."
AJ opened her eyes, and the tears began to fall. "You do, Zac. You do. I'm just... sorry... for everything my work's been putting you through..."
"Don't be. Just know that I'm always here for you, no matter what."