Cassadines Dont Divorce~~~(Stefan and Bobbie, Circa 1997)

From: Rebel



Introduction.
Imagine for a moment, that it is June 1997 in Port Charles. Stefan and Bobbie are still married. Bobbie is working with Luke to foil Stefan's computer virus to take over the world. Stefan has been spending a lot of time with Katherine helping her to heal, which culminates in her walking on stage at the Nurses Ball. (No, don't spend too much time with particular image, it's not a pretty one). This is the stage I've set for this story. It takes us back to the time where Bobbie tries to drug Stefan to gain entrance into a certain wood box which she believes contains information/disks that Luke needs to defeat Stefan. The story will be short, no more than 5 chapters by my current estimation, but since I'm not done, I'm really not certain.

I have changed a few significant details of GH history for this story: The computer virus, Stefan's relationship with Katherine, and the identity of Damian's Murderer. Also note, as far as Stefan knows, he has no sister, Alexis or otherwise.

The beginning of this story:

Bobbie steals some drugs from the GH controlled substance closet so she can put Stefan to sleep and steal his medallion, since his medallion is the only one that will open it. She pours the Port. Alexis calls to warn Stefan. Stefan switches glasses when Bobbie isn't looking and drinks it all. He pretends to sleep...... I have taken the liberty of stealing a large proportion of the GH dialogue to suit my own purposes. Thank you GH for the wonderful scene I had the joy of stealing from! Special thanks to GrandDuchess for posting Stefan and Bobbie's scene for me and to Xara for sending me the soapzone update for that episode. They were both crucial for the first part of this chapter. Thanks as always, go to my partners in crime, Barky and Deb.
Reb


Chapter 1
Sliding off the bed with Stefan's medallion clasped in her hand, Bobbie, dressed in a revealing black negligee, walks over to the map on the wall and pulls it open to reveal a small cubby which holds an ornate box.

Stefan slips up behind Bobbie as she stands in front of secret panel. His voice is feral as he grabs the arm of the fist that holds his medallion. ''What do you think you're doing?''

Bobbie gasps in pain and alarm as she tries to pull away. ''You're hurting my arm.''

Stefan holds her fast, indicating her clasped hand. ''Then open it.''

Bobbie struggles futilely, blustering in an attempt throw him off. ''Stefan, this is my bedroom too, why are you doing this?''

''I said open it!'' Stefan demands more furiously. Damn her, she was ruining everything. He knew she doubted him, with Luke whispering in her ear whenever his back was turned. He suspected she had buckled under Spencer's pressure, but this... drugging him so she could sneak behind his back to break into his private lock box. It was more than he imagined. Clearly he underestimated his wife's ability to lie and connive. Completely.
Giving up the fight, Bobbie opens her hand, displaying his necklace with the medallion. Stefan removes it from her grasp, but still holds her arm fast. ''What were you doing with this? Hmm?'' His voice is silky, threatening. How far would she push this farce? What lies would spew from her lips? Already she was more Cassadine than he ever imagined she could be. His fury is growing by the second. To think all he'd done for her! He had laid the world at her feet, protected her from the harsher realities of her life! Gave her whatever she wanted before she could even ask for it.

Bobbie improvises, but her voice betrays the lie. ''It fell off when you fell asleep. I was putting it over here in a safe place.''

''That's funny..'' Stefan pretends to go along with her for a moment. ''I don't remember falling asleep.. It must have been the Port. Do you think it was the Port, Barbara? You barely touched yours.''

''It was giving me a headache.'' Bobbie feels the noose tightening around her neck as her words sound false even to her own ears. Stefan knew, he knew! How much did he know? Oh God, what would he do to her now? Would he hurt her? Would he hurt Luke? She had survived quite a lot in all her long often difficult life but Stefan.. she'd never known a man as secretive as him. She couldn't know what he was capable of.

Stefan brings the wine glass to her lips, trying to force her to drink the
tainted substance. ''I switched glasses, didn't you notice? This was supposed to be my glass. Come now, drink. This Port is the best. Tell me that the best isn't wasted on you.''

Bobbie pushes his hand away, knocking the glass to the floor. Stefan's voice rises to a bellow.''WHAT KIND OF POISON DID YOU USE?''

''Poison? Why would you think I would give you poison?'' Bobbie struggles feebly against his tight hold. Oh God, she was done for now.

Stefan pulls her against him, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her. ''I KNOW about your raid in the controlled substance closet. Alexis thought it was a strange way to commence a child's education. I want the truth, NOW.''
Bobbie changes tactics, using her feelings of betrayal to fuel her defense. ''Stefan, you have no right to play the injured party here. You have been lying to me for months, sneaking around behind my back. DO YOU THINK I'M BLIND!?''

Stefan stares at her incredulously. Had he completely misjudged her? Had he married a viper as ruthless as his mother? ''FOR THAT.. You were going to murder me in my own bed!?''

Bobbie laughs brittlely, her anger and fear churning in her stomach with the result of giving her eyes a misty look.''Kill you?! You would have woke up tomorrow, just as cold and as ruthless as you are right now. BUT, by then, I'd have a little proof in my hand..'' With a toss of her head she indicates the safe box. ''THAT IS where you keep her disgusting love letters.. ISN'T IT?!''
''How did you know the box needed my medallion to be opened?'' There
was only one person who could have given her the idea. ''Say his
name,'' Stefan breathes against her cheek. ''Say it.''

''I figured it out myself,'' Bobbie retorts.

Stefan pushes her away from him. If he held her for one more second, he might just commit murder.''You have neither the wiles nor the experience for that kind of deduction, Barbara.''

Bobbie lashes out. ''Do you have any idea how it felt, how it turned my stomach, lying in bed next to you and knowing what you are? First you shoot her, and then figure, hey, she's on her back...if you had killed her, would you have climbed up on her corpse?''

Stefan, closing his slate gray silk robe with a vicious tug, sneers at her. ''I know exactly who fed you that crude and fantastical story.'' Raising a condemning finger at her, he accuses. ''You betrayed me with my mortal enemy, your brother!''

Bobbie's eyes flash angrily, the hurt and betrayal that's been simmering on the surface erupts. ''That's right. Luke wants to see you burn in hell, and I want to light the match!''

''Aren't you ever going to grow tired of being pimped by your brother?'' roars Stefan, cutting her to the bone.

The cruelty of his attack is like a physical blow. Bobbie's eyes fill with tears. It's the same thing all over again. All her marriages come down to this. But she wouldn't crumble, not in front of him. She would hurt him as much as he's hurting her. ''That pimp saved your nephew's life!''

Stefan circles her, wondering at the extent of her betrayal. How long has she been playing him for a fool, how long has she been at Luke's beck and call? ''So, did Luke coach you from the first, Barbara? From the moment of my proposal? Or perhaps even before then?''

''No,'' Bobbie admits. Even now, after weeks of working against Stefan, of knowing his true nature, it still cut to the quick how much of herself she'd invested in this marriage. God, she had loved this man once, this monster. Where is the kind man she once knew? Was he ever there? ''NO, I was stupid enough to love you, Stefan. I turned against the brother who raised and supported me to be with you, his sworn enemy. I turned away from the one man who I could always count on to tell me the truth. But you, you only used me! You have no right to feel disappointed now. I am what you made me!''
Stefan takes hold of her trembling shoulders and shoves her into the nearby chair. When Bobbie tries to rise, he glowers at her, intimidating her back into the seat. ''Unless you want to spend the night in jail for poisoning me, you will sit there until we are finished.'' Moving to the secret panel, he removes the ornate wooden box and places it on his dresser. Taking his medallion, he slides it into the lock and turns. The locks gives way with a soft snick. ''Love letters? You think I would secure such drivel in this safe?'' The disgust drips from his tone. ''Come Barbara, you need more practice at lies because yours are such poor ones.''

Opening the box, Stefan notes with satisfaction that the false bottom, under which the computer disks are kept, is untouched as if I would be so obvious? Neither you nor Luke would ever have found them, Barbara. His fingers graze a video tape before grasping the manila folder and pulling it out. ''For your information, the only possessions which require such safeguarding are those that threaten our family. Yours and Mine.'' Closing the box up again and locking it, he turns to face her.

Bobbie eyes the file in Stefan's hands suspiciously. ''I'm not interested in anything you have to show me unless it's proof of what a lying manipulator you are! Just let me go. Our marriage is finished. You don't love me, and I certainly don't love you!''

''Did our marriage agreement ever contain a stipulation that we love or even trust each other? I think not,'' He retorts sarcastically.''Trust has been a foreign concept in Cassadine marriages from the beginning, and you've confirmed the age-old tradition with your faithless behavior.'' Pacing in front of her he continues. ''No, our marriage is far from finished. We will never be finished. Remember what I promised when I proposed to you? Cassadines do not divorce.''

''You have to be kidding me?! What possible reason could we have to remain married? Some antiquated tradition?'' Bobbie rolls her eyes. ''Well it's not enough to keep this Cassadine bride married. We will be divorced, with or without your consent.''

''We will remain married,'' Stefan reiterates, as if she never spoke. ''If for no other reason than for our children. They will not be made to suffer for their parents' mistakes. We will raise our children together. All of our children: Nikolas, Lucas, and your daughter.''
Bobbie's flinches with pain at what she considers a brutal comment. ''How could you be so cruel as to bring her up when you know she's dead?! That's low, even for you.''

''Your daughter, dead?'' Stefan drops the file into her lap. ''No, that is a story your 'honest' brother concocted to keep you in the dark, to keep you in line. Shortly after we were married, I did a little research of my own and found out the truth.''

Bobbie pales, her hands shake as she lifts the file off her lap. ''What do you mean? Are you saying she's not dead?''

''She is alive and well,'' Stefan answers, his lips curling into a cruel smile. ''And she is living in Port Charles. Your loving brother has known the whole time. He has been lying to you for months.'' Putting his hands on the armrests of the chair, he leans over until they are face to face. ''So tell me, Barbara. Who has been sneaking around behind your back?''

Bobbie swallows convulsively, her stomach roiling like waves in a storm. His eyes show enough malicious satisfaction for her to believe his ridiculous assertion. But no, Luke wouldn't lie to her! He wouldn't make her think her daughter was dead?! Why? Why would he be so cruel? ''You're lying! You're making this up. I don't know what game you're after, but I don't like it!''

Just as he feared. Luke had made deep inroads with his wife, causing her to believe the worst of him. The distraction of Katherine caused him to ignore the warning signs. But no more. Stefan pushes off from the arms of her chair. ''Look for yourself.''

''No, I won't!'' Bobbie thrusts the file at him, shaking her head vehemently while tears are already gathering in her eyes. ''I won't look at this, it's all lies. This is all some cruel fabrication on your part to keep me under your thumb. It's the only thing that makes sense.''

''I never thought of you as a coward, Barbara. In fact, one of the many qualities which drew me to you was your steadfastness. That you didn't shrink from the truth, no matter how difficult.'' He shakes his head angrily as he goads her. ''So you will turn a blind eye to your brother's lies to spite me? Even if it costs you knowing your daughter? Your loyalty is touching, if misplaced.'' He thrusts the file back at her. ''Look, Barbara. Look and decide for yourself. You are intelligent enough to discern what's truth and what's fiction. Unless he's destroyed that quality in you too?''

Bobbie snatches the file back and with shaking hands opens it. The first thing that greets her is a picture of Carly Roberts. Beside it is a copy of a photo she has spent countless hours gazing at. It's a black and white picture of the little girl she gave up for adoption. The air in her lungs leaves in a woosh and her vision dims. It's a good thing Stefan forced her to sit or she's sure she would have passed out from the shock.

Stefan watches her in the ominous silence and catches the brief flash of hope before the devastation and grief take hold. He would have spared her this, if only she had trusted him, if only her blasted brother hadn't interfered. He would have waited, found a way to build a bridge to Caroline and then let the mother and daughter relationship develop naturally. He crushes the sentimental feeling quickly. He has no time for it now, he is at war. Sentiment would have to come later, when his family is secure.

''No, oh God no.'' Bobbie's voice is no more than a hoarse whisper.

Stefan crosses his arms in front of him, the picture of arrogance.''Yes, Barbara. It is all true. I would not lie about something this fundamental to our family. It affects not only you and me, but our children. I would not subject the children to a trauma of this magnitude on a whim. Whatever else you can say about me, you know this.''

Caroline Benson aka Carly Roberts, raised by her adoptive mother, Virginia Benson.... The words begin to blur. Bobbie closes her eyes, unable to read the specifics. She can barely absorb what she's seen already. She feels like she's drowning, losing all sense of perspective. Tonight was supposed to be about what? Revealing Stefan to be a lying conniving snake. Helping Luke do what? Right. Save the world from some deadly computer virus. All that seems insignificant, like some farfetched fairy tale compared to the nightmarish reality of her here and now. Luke lied to me. He lied to me again! Bobbie forces herself to look at Stefan. ''How.. how long have you known?''

''I had her investigated after we wed, in preparation for a custody battle over Lucas, which I believed was imminent given his father's hostility. I had all of Tony's weaknesses investigated, which included his walking midlife crisis.'' Coming to a stop in front of her, he strokes his mustache and goatee thoughtfully. ''Countless hours I agonized over telling you, but all I could see was the pain it would cause you. I wanted to spare you.''

Bobbie's laugh is short and shrill. ''So you thought, 'I'll keep this around and when she steps out of line I will bash her over the head with it.' Have I got it right?''

''Punish you like this? Even as furious as I am? No.'' Kneeling in front of her, his face is fiercely possessive. ''What drives me to tell you now is my conviction that you deserve to know the truth about your sainted brother. The man you believe over your own husband. When we talked of marriage, I warned you he would stop at nothing to break us apart. And look at us tonight? You attempted to drug me. Even now, when I furnish you with the truth, you question my motives.''

Bobbie's tears flow more freely at each condemning word. But even in her agony at being betrayed, she keeps her brother's secrets. ''You've been lying, keeping secrets for months. I'm not blind and stupid, I've seen how you look at that woman! What was I supposed to do? Wait until I found you two in our bed?''

Stefan sees her lie for what it is, slight of hand. While Bobbie probably has knowledge of his dealings with Katherine and is hurt by it, he is certain this isn't the real purpose for the drugging tonight. No, Luke is on the trail of the computer chip in the base of the Faberge Egg. And with Barbara's nervous behavior of late, it isn't hard draw the conclusion she's involved and holds him responsible for the power outage at GH which almost cost Audrey her life.

The antidote to Bobbie's suspicions of him would be the revelation of Luke's betrayal of her and the rest of the family. Once he was through exposing Luke's treachery, there would be no reason for Bobbie to believe any of Spencer's ravings, Cassadine plots or otherwise.

''So this is what Luke has been whispering in your ear? That I have some secret amour for Katherine Bell? That somehow my wish to help a crippled woman has transformed into a great love?'' Stefan snorts. ''Please, what romantic drivel. Tell me, Barbara, who is assisting Katherine with her physical therapy, hmmm?''

''Carly---'' Bobbie closes her eyes. Of course. Luke's supposed source on Katherine was none other than her own daughter, the one who has hidden her true identity all along, the very one in cahoots with Luke. And such a reliable source of information, too. GOD How could she be so gullible? What else has Luke lied about? If he could lie to her about his own wife being dead, why is she surprised that he would lie about Caroline or anything else for that matter? What a fool she is!

''Yes, I can see you understand how suspicious this all is. How infuriated I would be to stand accused by my wife on the basis of claims made by the two most consummate liars in Port Charles!'' He leans over again, grasping the arms of her chair and penning her in, hammering her with his words. ''And for this you want to forsake our marriage? Demolish the stable loving home we provide for our children? All because of lies and insecurities your brother has planted in your mind to rob you of the happiness you have found with me. And I know you have been happy in our marriage. I won't have it, Barbara. I won't have it.''

''I... I don't know what to think anymore.'' Bobbie clutches the file to her breast. Her daughter was alive... alive. It was still incomprehensible. She can't even begin to make sense of her feelings about that. But now, she needs answers about Luke's involvement. Luke had to have a reason to lie like this, he wouldn't be this cruel for sport. He would do it to protect her. But would he lie about Stefan if he believed he was protecting her? Of course he would. And if she didn't believe him, Luke was capable of manufacturing evidence so she would be forced to believe him. On those points Luke and Stefan are exactly alike.

''I have tolerated his presence in our lives, I have acquiesced to your longing for a relationship with him because of how important he is to you.''

Kneeling, Stefan takes her tear-streaked face in his hands and holds it firmly. ''But no more. I will not tolerate him taking you away from me, I will not stand by idly and allow him to destroy the family we have struggled to build, the loving home we have created for our children. You are my wife. I will not release you from your obligation to me, to our family. Tell me, does our family mean nothing to you? You would throw it all away for the paranoid ramblings of your brother?''

Bobbie's face crumbles, her emotions in such an upheaval she doesn't know what's up or down. ''You know I love our family! I love our life! I....'' Bobbie's voice dies. God, she has no idea how she feels about Stefan anymore. For weeks she's convinced herself she hated him, or at best he meant nothing to her, but now she isn't sure of anything.

His hands are soft yet resilient on her cheeks, comforting. A part of her wants nothing more than to surrender, to let him wrap her in a cocoon until she's healed. But she can't trust him. Not yet.

Stefan senses the war in her, her yielding to the emotional pull he's exerting, then feels her withdrawal. Letting his hands drop from her face, Stefan rises. Bobbie feels bereft from the loss of contact.

''Now I wonder why Luke would cajole you into breaking into my safe box in the first place,'' He ponders aloud. ''Certainly he had no idea it contained the file on Caroline. So he was after something else. Did he tell you what it was?'' He asks, not expecting an honest answer. He walks over to the box, unlocks it, and lifts out a videotape. ''Perhaps this?''

Chapter 2