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Just a couple of notes here: Dennis has full custody of his daughter Sarah. Olivia was not Sarah's mother, it was just a one-night stand, and she gave Dennis full custody as soon as the baby was born and moved away. Dennis and Sarah live with Iris, and spend plenty of time at the Cory Mansion, so Jake and Paulina, Iris, Dennis, and Matt are in this, as well as the kids, Rachel, Ryan and Vicky, and Jamie and Marley (and as I said, I still see Anne as Vicky and Marley).

I will eventually be going back and writing the story of how Jake and Paulina's son came to be.

I think that's it. In this chapter, news starts to spread that Lucas is alive, mostly at the Cory Mansion, while Lorna tries to set up her parents, and Felicia, Dean and Jenna, and Cass and Frankie deal with the immediate fallout at Felicia's apartment...leading Felicia to make a move that sets up what will happen in part 4.

All feedback is welcome.

Amy

"Reclaiming Forever," Part 3

After the elevator doors had closed, Lucas was still staring at the elevator. Lorna approached him and put her hand on his arm. He turned to look at her. "They'll come around," she assured him. "Just give it some time, Da--Lucas."

Lucas looked at Lorna and was struck by how much she looked like Felicia. "I am your father. You can call me 'Dad,' or even 'Daddy,' if you want."

Lorna's face lit up much like her nephew's on Christmas morning. "Really?" she asked.

"Really," Lucas said. He looked over to Joe. "And you, young man, can call me Lucas. At least until we get to know each other better."

"All right, Lucas," Joe agreed. He paused. "Sir...I mean, Lucas...It's in my nature, being a cop and all, but why were you in the Witness Protection Program?"

"I knew too much about certain people and their activities," Lucas replied.

"Oh god, Rick Madison," Lorna moaned.

"Only partly," Lucas replied. "There was a lot more to it than that."

Lorna spoke aloud then, but she was speaking more to herself than to Lucas. "Dean and Jenna will REALLY hit the ceiling when they find out Rick Madison is part of the reason you had to go away."

"I think they already DID hit the ceiling, my brown-eyed girl," Joe replied.

Lorna shook her head. "You weren't here when Rick Madison was terrorizing Jenna," she told her husband. "Dean got mad today, but he was really keeping his anger in check because of little Lucas, and then because Jenna got upset. When he finds out about Madison..." She trailed off. Then she looked uncertainly at Lucas. "Dad, are you sure you forgive me? You were so angry at me for that tape."

Joe stood silent; he knew about the tape, since Lorna had filled him in on her background and her family history, and the things she'd done long before they met that she was not proud of.

Lucas clasped both of Lorna's hands in his. "Yes, back then, I was angry at you," he said. "I felt like I'd failed Jenna as a father, like I'd let her down. And then when your mother told me about you, I was still so worried about Jenna, because Madison was still on the loose then, plus she had that kid from campus stalking her. And all along, I felt like I'd failed you and your mother, because I didn't realize what was really going on the night you were born, that that witch Abigail deliberately took you away from Fanny and me, and then split us up. And on top of all of that, I was working with the FBI, and no one could know about it. But don't think for one second that I'm angry at you now, Lorna. Even though I didn't say the words, I forgave you in the hospital. And I understood why you did it."

Lorna was on the verge of tears again. "You did?" she asked.

"Do you remember what I said to you in the hospital?" Lucas inquired. "I told you that you looked just like Fanny, but on the inside--"

"I was just like you," Lorna finished in a wavery voice.

"Yes," Lucas told her. He squeezed her hands. "We were both young and ambitious and anxious to make a name for ourselves in our chosen professions, and we didn't care if we had to take shortcuts or do things that we would later regret to get to the top. I did it when I was young, and so did you. I understand why you did what you did with that tape. I was still furious with you, and I didn't approve of what you did, but I got it, Lorna. I got why you did it."

Lorna ducked her head. "If I had known then," she said in a choked voice. "If I had known then that you and Felicia were my parents, I don't know if I would have even gone through with what I did." She looked up. "I really did try to stop it. You didn't believe me then, and you didn't have any reason to, but I really did try to stop the tape from airing that day."

"I know you did," Lucas said. "All is forgiven, honey. Your mother and Jenna and Dean, they all forgave you for it, right?" Lorna could only nod. "I forgive you too."

Lorna swiped at her eyes. "I've missed you so much," she said, her voice still choked. "I didn't know how much until today."

"We have a lot of lost time to make up for," Lucas said, reaching into his jacket pocket for a handkerchief and then wiping Lorna's tears away with it before pressing it into her hand. "And we will. But first, you're going on your honeymoon with your new husband over there."

"Where are you staying?" Lorna asked, clutching Lucas's handkerchief.

"I hadn't gotten that far yet," Lucas admitted. "I came straight here. I figured I'd get a hotel room until I can find something more permanent."

"You can stay at our place while we're gone," Lorna replied. "Someone needs to get the mail and water the plants anyway."

"Sir, I just want you to know, I haven't actually moved in yet," Joe piped up then. "I do have several boxes of my possessions at the apartment, and some of my clothes in the closet, and a toothbrush and razor in the bathroom, but I'm not fully moving in until we get back from our honeymoon."

"Joe, we're two grown, consenting adults over the age of 25 who just got married," Lorna said, amused.

"He's your father!" Joe exclaimed. "I don't want him thinking I was shacking up with his daughter before the wedding!"

Lorna rolled her eyes, her amusement now gone. "You were spending half your nights at my place, and I was spending the other half at yours," she said.

"Lorna!" Joe exclaimed, horrified.

Lucas smiled. "I appreciate your respect for my feelings, Joe," he said, "and I'm glad to know that you respect my daughter so much. But surely you know that Felicia and I were teenagers when Lorna was born. I know how it is, especially in this day and age."

"I do respect Lorna, Lucas," Joe said. "And I love her more than life itself, and I will always take care of her and protect her. She'll never want for anything."

"What is this, 1955?" Lorna asked. "Or is it just Italian men who are old-fashioned and borderline chauvinistic? You know damn well that I can take care of myself, Joseph Carlino!"

"Yes, I know," Joe replied, "but I thought your father would like to know that my intentions toward you are honorable--"

"Like the wedding wasn't a big enough clue about that? He's not an idiot, Joe!" Lorna said.

Lucas laughed then, and the newlyweds stopped their bickering to look at him. "Every father wants to know that his daughter is being taken care of, Italian or not," he said. "But I think that Joe and I both know that you are certainly very capable of taking care of yourself, Lorna."

"Well, as long as we have that straight," Lorna said firmly. Joe just looked at Lucas, who gave a barely perceptible nod of understanding for what Joe was trying to say.

"What time do you have to leave for your honeymoon?" Lucas asked.

Joe looked at his watch. "Actually, we should head back to the apartment to change, and then our flight leaves in two-and-a-half hours, so we'll need to get to the airport and get checked in," he said.

"Come back to the apartment with us, Daddy," Lorna said.

"I will," Lucas said, pushing the button for the elevator. "And then I'll take you to the airport. I insist," he said when Lorna started to say something. "And if you're sure you don't mind, it would be a lot easier for me to stay at your place. I'll try to find something by the time you get back."

Lucas missed the look Joe gave Lorna, and her mouthing, "Go with it," because she knew why he was looking at her that way. Then they got on the elevator and left for Lorna and Joe's apartment.

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The Cory contingent arrived back at the Cory Mansion after the wedding, and Lucas's surprise appearance, in very subdued moods. Ryan and Jamie had loosened their ties and unbuttoned their collars. Rachel was trying to figure out how to tell both Iris and Carl that Lucas was alive and back in Bay City. Vicky and Marley were also both silent.

The doors leading to the patio were open, and they could hear all of the noise coming from the pool. Just as Rachel, Jamie and Marley took seats on the couch, and Ryan sat in a chair with Vicky perched on the arm, Paulina, wearing a white cover-up over her purple one-piece bathing suit came in, carrying her and Jake's one-year-old son Thomas Mackenzie McKinnon, known to all as Mack. Mack was wearing little black swim trunks over his diaper and a small floppy sun hat in khaki. "You're back already?" Paulina asked, not bothering to hide her surprise. "The wedding did happen, didn't it?" She had always felt badly about hurting Joe, even though she knew that Jake was the man for her, and had known that even before they learned he was Mack's father.

"It was a lovely wedding," Rachel said. "And yes, Lorna and Joe are married, and they're very happy."

"Then how come you're already back? I figured the reception would go on for hours," Paulina replied, shifting the squirming Mack in her arms.

"There was an unexpected guest who crashed the wedding," Vicky said.

"Who?" Paulina asked. "It couldn't have been Matt, because he's out at the pool. He, Jake and Dennis are teaching the kids to play Marco Polo. And why would Morgan Winthrop have crashed? He's happily married to Courtney Evans himself."

"It wasn't an ex," Jamie said.

"Then who was it?" Paulina persisted.

"Lucas," Vicky said. "You know, the father of the bride."

"Lucas?" Paulina asked. "That's impossible. Lucas died five years ago."

"No, he didn't," Ryan said. "We just saw him at TOPS not half an hour ago, and he is very much alive."

"Are you serious?" Paulina asked.

"Very serious," Jamie replied.

"Wow," Paulina said.

"That's one way to put it," Rachel said.

They were all silent for a moment, the only noises being the voices of Steven, Kirk, Jamie and Marley's daughter Jessie, Dennis and his daughter Sarah, Matt, and Jake as they came trooping into the living room in swimsuits, carrying beach towels. "We won!" five-year-old Sarah Wheeler was insisting.

"Jessie didn't get me!" eight-year-old Steven Frame insisted.

"No, she didn't," three-year-old Kirk Harrison added.

"I got Uncle Matt," five-year-old Jessie Frame said.

"Oh, no, you didn't!" Matt Cory exclaimed.

Jake and Dennis exchanged an amused look. "Is Uncle Matt being a sore loser?" Dennis teased.

"I got you fair and square, Uncle Matt," Sarah insisted.

"She did," Jake added. "And if we hadn't lost our refs here, maybe Matt wouldn't be pitching a fit right now. What, did the kid need a juice break?" Jake, his hair slicked back from being in the pool with the kids, wrapped his towel around his red swim trunks and approached Paulina and Mack, making a face at Mack, who grinned at his daddy. Then he noticed the others had returned. "What are you guys doing here?" he asked.

"I live here," Rachel replied dryly.

"I think Jake meant why aren't you still at the wedding, Rachel?" Dennis asked. He noticed Sarah shivering and pulled off his own beach towel, revealing his teal swim trunks, and wrapped it around his daughter, then picked her up and held her close to him to help her get warmed up. "We'll go upstairs and get cleaned up in a minute, sweetie," he promised Sarah as she wound her arms around his neck.

"An unexpected guest showed up," Jamie said.

"I thought Lorna and Joe had that 'no ex-anythings at the wedding' policy going on," Jake said.

"It wasn't an ex, Jake," Vicky said. "It was a parent."

"What?" Matt asked, confused.

"Lucas is alive, and he showed up at the wedding," Ryan said.

"Seriously?" Dennis asked.

"Seriously what?" a voice piped up from behind Ryan's chair. Everyone turned to look at Iris Wheeler, who had come to the mansion because she knew Dennis and Sarah were there. "The front door was unlocked," Iris said. "You're back rather soon, aren't you?"

"Grandmother! We played Marco Polo, and Jessie and I were on Daddy's team, and we won! Jessie got Uncle Matt, and we won!" Sarah exclaimed.

"That's wonderful, darling," Iris said, smiling at her granddaughter. "What else is going on?"

"Sarah's getting cold, Mother, so I'll let the others explain," Dennis said. "Come on, honey, we're gonna get cleaned up and dressed." He and Sarah headed upstairs.

"You guys should go get changed too," Vicky told Steven and Kirk.

"Do we have to?" Kirk groaned.

"Yes, you have to," Ryan said.

"Okay, Daddy," Kirk said. He and Steven trudged past Iris and headed upstairs.

"Jessie, baby, do you want some help?" Marley asked.

"Yes, please," Jessie said. Marley rose from her place on the couch and headed upstairs with Jessie to help her get changed.

"Well? Is someone going to tell me what's going on?" Iris said. "I didn't expect all of you to be back from the wedding so soon."

"We didn't expect Lucas to show up at the wedding, but he did," Vicky said.

"Excuse me?" Iris said.

"Lucas is alive, Iris," Rachel said.

Iris's jaw dropped. "What?" she asked.

"He was at TOPS, he showed up for the wedding," Rachel replied. "He didn't know it was happening, but he was there. Dean and Jenna's son found him in the coat-check area, and then we all saw him."

"Lucas is alive?" Iris said. Numbly she sank into the spot on the couch that Marley had vacated. "Where has he been all this time, then?"

"The Witness Protection Program," Paulina and Jake said in unison, thinking of Kathleen.

"That's our guess," Ryan said, "although how he pulled it off, I have no idea."

Jake shrugged. "No one knew when Kathleen did it years ago, either. It's not so impossible for Lucas to have had a similar arrangement," he said.

"Felicia must be in shock," Paulina said. "They all must be in shock--Jenna, Dean, Lorna."

"I'm worried about Felicia," Rachel admitted. "This will be hard on all of them, but it will be hardest on her."

"You'd think she would be happy to have her precious Lucas back," Iris said.

"Part of her is, I'm sure, Iris," Paulina said. "But the rest of her is roaring mad. He let her think he was dead for five years!"
Jake looked uncomfortable then. Paulina, sensing her husband's discomfort, turned to look at him. "That's all water under the bridge for us, Jake," she assured him. "Besides, you had amnesia. It doesn't sound like Lucas did. I'm just saying that I understand how Felicia feels, because I've been there."

"And look at us now," Jake said, putting an arm around Paulina. "We got through it. It was he--it was hard," he hurriedly corrected himself. Now that Mack was starting to talk, Jake was trying to curb his temper so that his son didn't yell at people when he got angry, or use any curse words. "But we made it."

"Felicia's going to need a lot of understanding and support," Paulina said.

"You're right, Paulina," Rachel said.

"Well, Lucas is going to need someone on his side too," Iris interjected.

"No offense, Iris, but I don't think Lucas came back for you," Vicky said.

"Good grief, I've known for years that all Lucas wants is his precious Fanny!" Iris exclaimed. Jake couldn't help himself and started to laugh then. Iris whipped her head around to glare at him. "And just WHAT do you find so funny, Jake?" she wanted to know.

"Your choice of words," Jake hooted. "'All Lucas wants is his precious Fanny'? I never realized you had such a dirty mind, Iris."

"JAKE!" The exasperated shout came from Paulina, Rachel, Vicky, and Iris all four at almost the same time. Ryan faked a coughing fit to smother his grin, Matt couldn't keep from snorting and chuckling, and Jamie just shook his head but wasn't entirely unamused.

"Da!" Mack squealed, smiling and reaching his arms out toward his father.

"Are you siding with the ladies against your old man, Mack?" Jake asked with a grin. Then he reached to take the baby from Paulina. "Why don't I take him upstairs and we'll get dressed?"

Paulina kissed Mack's hand as Mack went to Jake. "Make sure he behaves himself," she called as Jake and Mack headed for the stairs.

"He's a perfect angel," Jake said over his shoulder as he paused at the foot of the stairs.

"I was talking to Mack about you," Paulina retorted.

Jake just smirked at Paulina before heading upstairs with Mack. After the McKinnon men had departed, Paulina looked at Rachel, and she could see how worried Rachel was for Felicia. Everyone knew what had happened when Felicia thought Lucas was dead, how she had started drinking. It was a long, tough road for her to get sober and stay that way. Paulina remembered how hurt Rachel had been after Rachel, Cass and Lorna had staged an intervention with Felicia that had failed. "I'm just going to go and get changed too," Paulina told the others. As she headed upstairs to change out of her swimsuit and join Jake and Mack, she resolved to be there for Felicia, and for Rachel. Paulina was the only person in Bay City who knew exactly what Felicia was going through, having gone through a similar situation herself with Jake a couple of years earlier. And if anything that Paulina had gone through with Jake could help Felicia and keep her on the wagon and set Rachel's mind at ease regarding her dear friend, then Paulina would be only too happy to share her experience and her feelings about that confusing time in her life with Felicia.
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If ever the oxymoron "deafening silence" applied, Frankie reflected to herself, it had to be the very definition of the group of people, including herself, gathered in Felicia's living room. Frankie was seated by Cass on Felicia's couch, rubbing small, soothing circles with her palm between his very tense shoulder blades as he sat somewhat hunched forward, his hands folded between his knees, struggling to figure out how to help his best friend and not be overwhelmed with painful memories of when his life had been turned upside down by a similar situation. Frankie knew she and Cass would have to talk this out after they got Charlie and Wally home and settled in bed. Felicia was sitting on the other end of the couch, leaning heavily against the arm, her head in her hands, trying to process the fact that Lucas was alive and had returned. Jenna, still radiating hurt, was sitting in the stuffed chair adjacent to the couch, hugging a throw pillow to her chest tightly. She, Dean and Felicia were still in their wedding clothes; Felicia was even still wearing her corsage. Dean, his tie and collar button undone, his boutonniere hanging from his lapel about to fall to the floor at any moment, his hair nearly standing on end from all the times he had raked his fingers through it, was pacing in a rectangle around the living room, starting behind Jenna's chair, going around the couch where Felicia, Cass and Frankie were seated, around the empty chair across from the coffee table that matched Jenna's, and past the coffee table back to Jenna's chair, muttering angrily.

"Unbelievable!" Dean shouted, finally breaking the silence. "He lets us all think he's dead for FIVE YEARS, we all go through hell, and he just steps off that elevator like nothing happened!" He was still pacing.

"Dean, it was little Lucas who found him," Frankie reminded her cousin. "And he was hiding in the coat check area. It's not like he barged into the middle of the wedding and objected."

"What is this?" Dean said, looking at Frankie. "First Lorna, and now you, Frankie? Why are you defending that creep?"

"We don't have all the facts yet," Frankie said.

"I wasn't expecting this reaction from you after what that woman did to YOU six years ago!" Dean exclaimed. Then he saw the pained look on Cass's face. "Ah, jeez. Cass, I'm sorry, man. This has gotta be hard on you. I didn't mean to make it worse."

"It's all right, Dean," Cass said. Dean gave him a "give me a break" look. "Okay, it's not all right at the moment, but it will be." Cass reached out for Frankie's hand, and she grasped his hand in both of hers. "But this isn't about me and Frankie and Kathleen. It's about Lucas and all of you."

"I trusted him," Jenna said with absolutely no emotion. "I loved him and I trusted him and I believed in him when he said he'd always be there for me." Now she did get emotional. "And he lied to me! He lied to all of us!"

Dean stopped his pacing and went to Jenna then, standing behind her and placing his hands on her shoulders. "I know, honey," he said. "And it stinks. Everything about this stinks." He sighed. "And we have a big problem on our hands, because how are we going to explain to our Lucas that his grandfather is a lying creep? He's already crazy about him."

Jenna closed her eyes and slumped back in her chair. "I can't even think about that right now," she said. "I know we're going to have to, but I'm just so...Didn't he realize we would have gone with him? He didn't even bother to ASK us!"

"And now he says he has reasons," Dean said sarcastically. "Reasons for lying. Please. Everybody knows that the only reason you lie about something THAT big is because you're trying not to get caught and get thrown in jail or worse!"

Felicia stood up then. "I have to go," she said.

Cass, Frankie, and Jenna were all on their feet in an instant. "Go where?" Cass asked.

Felicia sighed. "I'm not going to go out and get drunk, if that's what you're worried about," she said. "I just...I really need some time alone, all right? I'm going to go over to Lorna's...well, now it's Lorna and Joe's, really...and water the plants. I promised I'd do that while they were gone, and they should be on their way to Paris by now." Seeing how worried they all were, she went to each of them individually to give them big hugs, starting with Jenna. "I'm not going to drink," she vowed. "I am not going to fall apart again. I will call all of you--and Rachel--later tonight. I just need to be by myself for a little while right now, all right?" Jenna and Cass exchanged a concerned look.

"If you need anything, honey..." Cass said.

"I know. Thank you," Felicia replied. She hugged Cass again, then hugged Frankie, and then she hugged Dean and then Jenna. Jenna held on for an extra moment.

"Mom, Dean and I could come with you to Lorna and Joe's," Jenna offered. "We don't have to talk."

But Felicia was already getting her bag. "I'll be okay, honey," she promised. "I'll call you the minute I walk back in this door." She laid her palm flat on the front door. "You need to go and pick up your kids. And Jenna, Dean...be patient with little Lucas. He doesn't understand what's going on."

"He can join the club," Jenna murmured.

"We won't blow our stacks about Lucas to the kid," Dean promised.

Felicia nodded. "Good. I'll call you all in a while. Really, I just need a little alone time to start to clear my head." And then she left her apartment, and Cass and Frankie, and Dean and Jenna, left a few moments later to pick up their children from the farm and head home themselves.
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The short drive to Lorna and Joe's apartment made Felicia feel like she was in control of something, even if it was only her own car. After parking the Mercedes, she headed up to their apartment and let herself in with her key. She managed a smile when she noticed several boxes stacked near the greenhouse window overlooking downtown Bay City; Joe had already begun the moving-in process, although it didn't look like he'd unpacked much, if anything, before the wedding.

Then Felicia heard someone moving around upstairs. Without taking time to wonder or think at all, she frantically searched the room for the first object she could find that would pass for a weapon: a baseball bat undoubtedly belonging to Joe. Picking it up, and remembering that you hold the skinny end instead of the fat end, she lifted the bat over her shoulder and then whirled around when she heard footsteps on the stairs coming down to the living room. "I'll knock your head off with this, I swear I will!" she shouted.

She brought the bat back to swing it and was bringing it forward when she realized who was standing there: Luke! At the exact instant she realized it was him, Luke put his arms up in the universal gesture of surrender and jumped back, saying, "It's only me, Fanny! It's only me!" But the momentum propelled the baseball bat in her hands forward, and the bat connected with a lamp, sending it flying halfway to the front door. The lampshade fell off in mid-air, and the sound of breaking glass heralded the lamp's demise. And Felicia just stood there, still holding that Louisville Slugger, looking from Luke to the shattered lamp, and wondering what, why, and how Luke was at Lorna and Joe's apartment with her.

TO BE CONTINUED
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