Yes, I'm back! Sorry about the delay, but I hit a major case of writer's block. It does seem that setting up a message board for my stories has spurred on this burst of creativiity. If any of you are interested, please come visit. The link is hereThe House Cassadine
A/N: The song mentioned here is not only one of my favorite romantic songs on its own merit, but it is also one of the themes of one of my favorite soap couples--Mason and Julia Capwell (played, of course, by Lane Davies amd Nancy Lee Grahn).
Now, on with the story.
CHAPTER FOUR
The Church of the Holy Royal Martyrs was not as grand as many of its counterparts in Russia, but it still was breathtaking, even in its half completed state. The original small chapel had been enlarged on massive proportions, filled with icons and mosaics, many of them purchased with generous donations from the coffers of the Cassadine and Villianov families. The construction was nearing completion for an anticipated wedding between the two esteemed and Father Vasiliy Choberofsky was grateful that the sawdust and dirt would soon be forgotten. It was most difficult to conduct services in the site.
As Father Vasiliy looked on at the workmen, he was surprised to see the young face of Melanie Davis accompanied by a gangly young man. He knew the lady, of course, as the granddaughter of Prince Mikhail, the church's primary sponsor, but had seen little of her at services. As young Ms. Davis looked around, she spotted him and pulled her companion along with her.
"Good day, Princess." Father Vasiliy bowed formally to her. He was from an old tsarist family that revered the memories of Old Russia. To greet this young woman in anything but formality would be disrespectful.
As it was, Melanie blushed deeply. "Please Father, you really don't need to be so polite," she told him.
"My dear, I must. You are born of a noble house. If I treated you as just some commoner I would be dishonoring myself, my family and the generation before me," Father Vasiliy remarked. He then cracked a smile. In the few times they had met, mostly at functions her grandfather had held, it had become something of a game between the two of them.
As she returned his smile, she held her hand out towards Spinelli. "Father, I would like you to meet my friend, Damien Spinelli. He and I have been working on a project and we hit a roadblock."
"It's not so much of a roadblock. The Jackal, Assassin of the Internet, can defeat any problems he and the Royal One encounter," Spinelli began. He then noticed the look he was getting from Melanie. When he quieted down, she pulled out a printout of the window they had encountered.
"The problem we have, Father, isn't so much technological, but linguistic," Melanie explained.
Father Vasiliy read the page. "This is Cyrillic." When Melanie nodded sheepishly, he gave her a reproachful glare. "I never believed I would live to see the day that a Princess Royal, a member of one of the oldest, noblest families of Mother Russia, would be unable to read the tongue of her ancestors."
Melanie shrugged her shoulders. Angela was the one who had the interest in all things Russian. As the Orthodox priest continued to glare at her, she asked in almost a whisper, "Can you help us translate it?"
Father Vasiliy shook his head as he beckoned the young people into his office. As they went in he promised himself that he would have a talk with Prince Mikhail about the Russian education of his granddaughter. This one may be lost, but he would still need to properly train the little ones.
LUKE'S CLUB
Sam McCall was going over the alcohol inventory when her hand moved to her stomach once more. Over the past day or so she had noticed she was doing that more and more. She still had a hard time believing it. She would at last be a mother. She was at last in love with someone who loved her back fully and she even had a wonderful family to go along with him. Her mind wandered a few minutes more until a voice startled her out of her thoughts.
"Excuse me, but are you Sam McCall?" the man asked.
She nodded and approached him. He handed her a clipboard and pointed to where she should sign. After she did that, he handed her a large box and left. She set it down on the bar and stared at it. It had a postmark from San Francisco. Thinking, she couldn't place anyone she knew there. She was about to open it when she heard Lucky and Luke coming from the back office.
"Sam, is something the matter?" Lucky asked.
She shook her head. "This was just delivered to me, but I don't know anyone from San Francisco." She showed him the box and he looked up at his father.
"Well, open it darlin'. We won't know anything more if it stays that way," Luke told her.
She opened the box, finding it quite heavy. Inside was an ornately engraved wood box with a lock. On the top was a bas-relief of a coat of arms. Sam tried to open it but the top was locked tight. Luke went to a drawer and got out his lock pick tools. He went to work on it and after a struggle, he managed to get it open. Inside was a letter on an embossed page, a small photograph and a medallion. Luke took the medallion, Lucky took the picture and Sam picked up the letter.
It was from a law firm in San Francisco, dated in 1980.
My dear young lady,
If you are reading this, then the time has come. I have been hired by your family to help you find them. The reasons why they could not raise you are many, but they can be summed up in one concise statement: It was for your safety. Now they must feel that it is safe for you to be brought back to them. Still, it was not made easy for you. You must take this medallion to an Orthodox priest. Any will do; they will all recognize the seal of this family. With any luck, this information will lead you back into the arms of your family.
Please do not try to contact me unless all other paths have been exhausted. We have been asked to be discreet in this matter.
May your search be successful.
Yours truly,
Evgeniy Marmazov
Luke looked up at her. "The medallion isn't familiar at all," he remarked. "I should know. Having poked around in the affairs of the Cassadine family for years, I've seen my fair share of them." Luke re-examined the box. "It does have the same lock design as that damn egg Lulu had."
When Sam gave Lucky a questioning look, Lucky supplied the details. "When Nikolas first came into our lives, he gave Lulu a Faberge Egg. She loved it but there was some kind of computer chip in it and they used it to screw up the hospital computers." Lucky shook his head. "It's a long story." He watched as his father went over the wooden box. "Maybe I should call Nikolas. He may know about it."
Sam shook her head. "The letter said I should talk to a Russian priest. I think we should go there first. If they don't know anything, then I'll talk to Nikolas." She sat down in the chair nearby. Something about this felt...strange, but also, right. All she knew was that she had gained a family and maybe, finally, would be able to discover who she really was.
HARBORVIEW TOWERS
Angela Davis Cassadine finished applying her makeup when she heard the door open to the penthouse. As she made her way down the steps she was overjoyed to see Mickey standing in the living room, clad in a handsome tux. As they kissed he dipped her slightly, and then brought her up.
"Are you ready for tonight?" he asked her.
As she nodded a look came over her face. She eyed him with an amused suspicion, asking him, "Where are we going tonight?"
As he pulled her hand he answered with an air of mystery, "We're going down memory lane."
They got in the car and drove down to the dock, walking to the front of Kelly's. The look of suspicion grew in Angela's eyes. "Sweetie, if we were just going here, I got a tad overdressed."
"All special occasions call for being overdressed." As he pulled her hand, they walked into the darkened diner. "I believe this was the place where you first came to when you arrived in Port Charles, right?"
Angela nodded at the memory. "Ruby Anderson was behind the counter. I remember asking her how to get to Spoon Island and she shot me a death glare. It was only later that I learned who her family was."
As Angela was reliving the memory, Mickey moved over to the jukebox and chose a song. Dan Hill's Never Thought came through and he held out his hand. "Dance with me," he said.
As she took his hand she replied to the command, "Always and forever." As they danced Angela thought back to the first time they danced, on the patio of Aunt Eugenia's country home. This had been the song that had come up for some reason and, after that dance had ended, Mickey had declared it their song, even though they had just met.
As the song ended they parted and Mickey kissed her hand. "I thought a few trips to the past were in order before we stepped into the future." With that, he sunk to one knee, reached into his pocket and opened a ring box. Inside was a two-carat diamond, marquis cut, with two round diamonds on either side. It was a simple but elegant ring. "My father gave my mother this ring. He kept it all these years, hoping I would give it to a woman I loved as much as he loved her." He took her hand, kissing it. "I am but a simple nobleman, of a humble house. I know I am not worthy of you, a Princess Royal, but I know of the view of love which your family holds. I do love you, for your spirit, your heart and your grace. Say you will marry me."
Angela had tears in her eyes. She was speechless, which anyone who knew her would say was a remarkable accomplishment. When she found her voice, she said through the tears, "Of all the corny, cheesy..."
Mickey looked alarmed. This wasn't the reaction he had hoped for when he planned out this night. He was too stunned to respond. Thankfully, Angela regained control of herself. "Yes, I'll marry you. Oh yes, I will."
Mickey smiled as he stood. He kissed her brow, her cheek and then her mouth. He took the ring out of its box and slipped it on her finger. She was in full-blown tears by then. The ring securely on, they kissed again, swaying to unheard music, blissfully happy.
