THE
MIND ALTERING
ADVENTURE

Chapter Thirty-Six

"Spooked?" Luke asks Frisco. "What is this, some kind of inside joke by a different kind of spook?"

Frisco grins, "Should have known you'd catch that one. My, er, associate, has a slightly warped sense of humor." They are relaxing in Jean-Pierre's secret basement, which is, incredibly enough, equipped with a state of the art lab/medical facility.

Clearly, Jean-Pierre is not your average casino owner. He stands nearby, looking ever so elegant in his tuxedo, his eyes never leaving our Miss Lucy Coe who is somewhat in awe of the dashing Frenchman who, without ever missing a beat, has gone from casino owner/host, to WSB contact.

Lucy, however, has more than just that on her mind. In fact, she appears to be worrying about something. Not that this should surprise us, given the strange turns her life has taken of late.

"What's bothering you, Miss Lucy?" Luke asks, finally.

"Someone was watching us when we came down the elevator," she says finally. "Someone that I know that I recognize from somewhere."

At this, Jean-Pierre pauses. "Was this a rather nondescript looking fellow in a red turtleneck sweater?"

"That's the guy," Lucy answers. "With a bad haircut."

"Lucy," Luke admonishes her, "be nice."

"That is my cousin, Andre."

"Andre? Andre who has a cousin Reggie who works for the Quartermaines?"

Jean-Pierre shrugs. "Unfortunately, that is so. Once a year or so, Andre comes to visit, and usually makes a pest of himself. But, you say that you know him? That could be a problem. You see, for all that Andre is a pest, he never forgets a face. Were it not for his insatiable proclivity for gossip, he would be of immense value to us."

"Then we can assume that Reggie knows all about us by now," Luke mutters. "Time to put Andre on ice."

"Agreed," Jean-Pierre nods. Moments later, Andre is with the group, clearly cowed by his cousin. "Andre," Jean-Pierre says, his voice dark, velvety, and threatening. "How many people have you told about my guests? And don't prevaricate, don't dissemble. I must have the truth, little cousin, or you may be going on a permanent vacation."

Andre, trembling, confesses, "Just Reggie."

"And what, exactly, did you tell him?"

"That Mr. Spencer and Miss Coe met with Frisco Jones."

"Let me handle it," Luke says. "I have a friend who can put the word to Reggie that he needs to have a convenient memory loss." Hmmmmmmm





Sonny picks up the telephone. "Luke?? How goes it?"

"Fine," Luke answers. "In fact, even better than I'd expected, though this has taken a few strange twists and turns."

"Makes life interesting," Sonny comments. "Can you talk about it?"

"Not at the moment. I need a favor, but first, how is everything?" The concern in Luke's voice was evident.

"No changes," Sonny answers. "Nothing going on here, either. I even dropped by Felicia's place, did the kid's party-only weird thing was the little wiener dog and the big purple dinosaur. Not exactly Halloween, but hey, traditions aren't what they used to be."

"Sounds like Barney, but I don't know about the wiener dog," Luke says. "That's a new one on me."

Suddenly, Lucy grabs the telephone. "Sonny, Lucy here, Did you say something about a purple dinosaur and a wiener dog?" She's excited, while Frisco and Jean-Pierre exchange mystified looks.

Luke is intrigued. "Lucy?"

But Lucy is asking Sonny. "You saw a wiener dog? A dachshund? And a dinosaur?"

"Yeah, hey, you said something about a dachshund, didn't you?"

"Yes," Lucy yells "And I also saw a purple dinosaur at another time."

Sonny pauses. "Lucy, you know that I don't believe in this stuff..."

"You don't have to," Lucy tells him. "One more thing. Was there anything about the Wizard of Oz there?"

"Well," he thinks, "Now that you mention it, Felicia kept calling the kids munchkins..."

"Oh, thank you, Sonny!!!" She hands the phone back to Luke and says to Frisco. "Kevin's at Felicia's. I know it."

Frisco's expression darkens, and he says, "He's there?"

"Yes, but don't worry. Kevin isn't a killer."

"It's not Felicia I'm worried about," Frisco mutters. Hmmmmmmm





Ned is smiling, his eyes tender as he looks down into the blue eyes belonging to his darling daughter. A wide grin breaks his face, and he asks Lois, "Do you think that Brooke Lynn will remember me like this?"

Lois laughs and says, "Nedly, it's your voice she'll remember, and all the sweet songs that you recorded for her. You know, we probably should release a tape of Eddie Maine doing children's songs one of these days. No, Nedly, I doubt if Brooke Lynn will ever remember her father as a blond with a full mustache and a goatee. And, that getup!! What did you do? Mug a milkman?"

"You know why I had to come like this," Ned laughs. "But seriously, we're making progress. Grandmother and Reggie have managed to turn up a wealth of information. Seems Reggie has contacts in the most unlikely places and they've managed to tie Luke, Lucy, Frisco, and a probable visit to a castle in the Carpathians."

"You're kidding!"

"Not kidding," Ned tells her. "There is something really weird going on here, because we already know that there are several other players."

"So what are you going to do?"

"Move very quietly," Ned tells her. "I'm going to have a long chat with Mac-he's a good man in a fight."

"I always liked Mac," Lois tells him. "I wonder if he sings?"

"You can ask him when you come back to Port Charles."

"It can't be soon enough for me," Lois tells him. "Give Lila a hug for me. Oh, and here." She hands him a thick envelope. "Pictures of Brooke Lynn for Lila."

Ned smiles, and says, "Until this is over, I want you and the baby safe here. Something tells me that this is going to get very interesting very soon." Hmmmmmm





Stay tuned!! Will Lucy and the others hurry home now?? What about the coffins? What did Frisco mean about not worrying about Felicia?? Will Sonny make Reggie have a memory loss? How soon will Lois be home?? Hmmmmmm

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