"Brenda!" Jerry's breath caught in his throat and the blood drained from his face as he stared incredulously at the sight in front of him: Brenda, alive and well, dressed in one of Jax's shirts, and standing in the kitchen eating a sandwich. He must be more exhausted than even he had thought possible to be seeing visions! He leaned against the frame of the kitchen door and blinked several times.

Brenda put down her sandwich and appeared as shocked to see Jerry, as he was to see her. "Jerry..."

At the sound of Brenda's voice, Jerry was across the kitchen in two steps and picked her up in a bear hug. "Brenda!" he laughed. "I've never been so happy to see anyone before in my life! You're alive! Jax believed you were alive, and you really are!" He eased her back onto the floor and looked at her seriously now. "Are you okay? Where have you been? How did you survive?"

Brenda modestly pulled Jax's shirt down to cover herself a little more, and went to sit down at the table. "I'm fine. I washed up quite a ways down river, and someone found me and revived me. I had no memory of who I was or what had happened up until just this morning. And as soon as I remembered, I made my way back home to Jax." She looked up at Jerry, who was beaming at her, and she wondered if she should broach the subject of what Jerry and the family had done to Jax, but then Jerry answered that question for her.

"Jax must be on top of the world with this miracle," Jerry began. "He really needed this now...Jax nearly fell apart after your disappearance, and then with..." His voice trailed off.

"With the discovery that his family had been lying to him his entire adult life?" Brenda's eyes filled with tears as she looked up at Jerry. "That sure can do a number on a person, can't it, Jerry?" Brenda shook her head sadly as she continued to look Jerry squarely in the eyes. "How could all of you have done this, Jerry?"

Jerry looked down at his feet and sighed, "It was only going to be for awhile, but once we got in, we got comfortable, and they got comfortable with us as well. The money was easy, and none of us ever wanted to go back to being poor again."

"So, you sold your self-respect - and Jax's as well - for quick and easy gain?" Brenda sighed loudly and then took a deep breath before continuing, "You all know how Jax feels about the mob and anything to do with it! Look how upset he was about Sonny and my involvement with him - and he had every right to be! There is no good side to the underworld - that's why it's called the underworld - it's seamy and seedy, and no matter how you try to whitewash it - or launder it, in your case - it will always be dirty money!" Brenda spat out at Jerry.

"She's right, Jerry." Jerry and Brenda both turned, startled at the sound of Jax's voice.

Jax had entered the kitchen unnoticed, and was standing in the doorway wearing nothing but a pair of torn jeans and a grim look on his face. He strolled over to Brenda and bent down to kiss her tenderly. "I woke up and you were gone. At first I panicked that I had dreamed today and that you were still gone, but then I realized you must have come downstairs for something." He stroked her face lovingly. "Are you alright?"

Brenda smiled gently up at him. "I'm sorry that I was gone so long. I hadn't meant to be. I woke up feeling sick, and I realized that I hadn't eaten in awhile so I decided to fix myself a sandwich," she glanced over at Jerry, "and that's when Jerry arrived."

"And what are you doing here, Jerry?" Jax asked, glaring at Jerry as if he were an intruder rather than family.

"I was worried about you, little brother," Jerry answered weakly. "Your machine was picking up on the first ring and had been doing that for hours, and I was beginning to imagine all sorts of terrible things..."

"More terrible than being betrayed by my family, Jerry?" Jax interrupted Jerry with a tirade. "Were you imagining something more terrible than that? Because I sure as hell can't think of anything that's much worse than that at the moment!" Jax shot back at Jerry.

Jerry looked down at his feet and shifted uncomfortably. "I guess I have that coming, little brother."

"You sure as hell do!" Jax spat out, his words dripping with venom.

Brenda blanched at the anger and hurt in Jax's voice. She hated that Jax felt like this, but Jerry and John had it coming and Jax needed to get this off of his chest. But he doesn't need me here to witness their emotional showdown, she thought as she cleared her throat to remind Jax and Jerry that she was still there. Jax and Jerry both turned at the sound.

"I'm sorry, Brenda," Jax began, but Brenda cut him off with a raise of her hand as she stood up to head for the door.

"Don't apologize, Jax." She rubbed her hand gently across his cheek, and then kissed his lips softly. "I'm going to head upstairs and get a shower and give you and Jerry the privacy you both deserve." She then gave Jerry a brief hug and whispered into his ear, "Don't push, Jerry. He has a right to his anger. Let him have his say." Then aloud for Jax to hear, she said, "Thanks for the warm welcome back, Jerry," and then she was through the door and up the stairs without a backwards glance.

Jax and Jerry both watched silently as the door swung closed behind her. "She's something else," Jerry's voice finally broke the heavy silence that had enveloped the room with her departure. "She nearly dies, and is gone for two weeks with no memories of who she is, and when she returns, she looks more beautiful than ever, and is as spunky as ever."

Jax couldn't disagree with Jerry there. "She certainly is something else. She's a walking miracle. She survived hell to come back here, and she certainly didn't deserve to walk back into this mess that you and Dad brought down on the family."

Jax sat down in the chair that Brenda had vacated, and stared at Jerry. "When Brenda was involved with Corinthos I worried about her safety constantly - even when we weren't together. The only good thing Corinthos ever did in his miserable life was to leave Brenda, and even then he didn't have the nerve to tell her good-bye to her face. But at least he was trying, in his own feeble way, to get her away from that way of life. But then my loving family has her in nearly as much danger as Corinthos did, but she and I just didn't know that! They say ignorance is bliss, but in this case ignorance could have gotten Brenda killed just as easily as this!" Jax snapped his fingers in Jerry's face. "Brenda and I got a miracle when she survived the accident and came home, and I won't allow the backlash from your mob involvement to touch us or our baby now! Do you understand that?" He looked solemnly at Jerry, but instead of looking contrite, Jerry was grinning back at him like an idiot, confusing Jax. "I said, 'Do you understand that, Jerry?'"

Jerry just let out a whoop and grabbed Jax into a bear hug. "She didn't lose the baby? She's still pregnant? God, this is a miracle!" He let go of Jax and pulled away, his eyes still twinkling. "You're gonna be a dad, and I'm gonna be an uncle!" he laughed as he slapped Jax genially on the back.

Jax smiled a bit in response. "Yeah, Jer, it really is a miracle, isn't it?" Then his face sobered again. "I thought I had lost her and the baby once, but they came back to me. I won't risk losing them again - and this time forever - by having them caught in the crossfire between the family, the feds, and the mob." Once again he looked Jerry squarely in the eyes as he sadly announced, "And that's why I have to keep Brenda and the baby as far away from you and Dad and Mum as possible. None of you will have any contact with them for as long as it takes to get this all straightened out - or forever, if need be."

Jerry's face fell as the full impact of Jax's words hit him, and for the first time since all of this began, Jerry began to realize that his and his dad's actions had cost them the one thing that they had always wanted - to see Jax enjoying a happy and secure future with his family growing around him.

Tom sighed as he wearily closed the door to his Brooklyn apartment, Charlie in tow. They had just come from Charlie's final walk for the night, and Tom was exhausted. It was 8:45 p.m. and nearly 12 hours since he had left Angel/Brenda with Jax. He had spent the past several hours at the agency poring through all the information that had been gathered on the Jacks family and their involvement with the mob, hoping to...

Hoping to what? Hoping to find out that Jax was just as guilty as his father and brother? Yeah, a part of him had really wanted that, so that he could sweep in and rescue his Angel from this lying man whom she only thought she loved, but once he showed her the proof of Jax's deceit then she would gladly come back to him...

Back to him? Who was he kidding here? Back to him implied that she had been his to begin with, when the truth was she had always been Jax's - even when she couldn't remember who he was. He sighed again as he realized the foolishness of his arrogance in thinking that even if he had found proof of Jax's active involvement in his family's schemes that Brenda would ever leave Jax. No, she would have waited patiently for Jax to serve his jail time and then be there with open arms - and open heart- when it was time for his release.

But this was all moot, as Tom had quickly learned as he had scrutinized the evidence that the agency had on the family. Jax was clean, and the agency knew it, but they were hoping that by leaning on Jax, the golden boy of the family, that Jerry and John Jacks would be more willing to testify against the people that the agency really wanted: Marco Leone and his dangerous branch of felons.

In fact, the agency planned to offer the Jacks family a very sweet deal for that very testimony - all charges against Jax would be dropped and he would be allowed to keep all his personal holdings that are separate from J&J Jacks, the family itself would be stripped of their holdings and not allowed to participate in any market activities over the next ten years, and no prison time would be served by any member of the Jacks family. It was a good deal, and the Jacks family would be crazy not to take it. It was a quick and easy way out of a very sticky situation - of Jerry and John Jacks's own making - and everyone would go away satisfied - except, of course, Marco Leone and his ilk. Hopefully, they could finally nail Leone and that dangerous brood of his, and they could all sleep a lot easier.

Sleep-that sounded so good to Tom right then. "Night, Charlie," he said as he patted the dog on the head and fell onto his bed, fully clothed. And Tom Langan was asleep literally before his head hit the pillow...

Dan Wilkerson patted the packet of information that he had in his hand. This job was undoubtedly the most important one that Mr. Leone had ever entrusted him with, and Dan's chest swelled with pride as he realized the confidence Mr. Leone had in his loyalty and his capability. The future of the "family" was riding on this little mission - and his life was riding on it as well, since he knew that if he failed to carry out his job that he would be killed as quickly and as effortlessly as Mr. Leone sent back a wine that displeased him.

Dan took a deep breath and settled himself into the back seat of the limo that Mr. Leone had provided to take him to the airport and to Mr. Leone's private jet that would take him to his destination. No, he thought, I won't fail at this. I have never failed Mr. Leone before, and I won't this time either. Besides, how difficult could this possibly be? He just needed to get that little insurance package from the Jacks family and keep the package hidden for as long as it took for the Jacks family to keep their mouths shut about their involvement with Mr. Leone and his various enterprises. Mr. Leone had told him that he trusted him to handle things any way he saw fit, as long as the package was not irreparably damaged. Dan liked the way Mr. Leone had phrased that. He smiled as he pulled the picture of his intended target out of the packet and fingered it, licking his lips salaciously. "Ms. Barrett, you don't know it yet, but you are going to make me a very happy and a very satisfied man - in more ways than one."

Brenda shut off the water and reached for the large, fluffy, white bath towel as she stepped out of the shower and headed toward the bedroom. She caught sight of her reflection in the bathroom mirror and stood mesmerized, looking at her naked profile. A smile curled her lips as she gently rubbed her right hand across the slight bulge where her once flat stomach had been. She had spent hundreds of hours doing countless sit-ups to get that rock hard and flat abdomen, but now she was thrilled that it was starting to disappear.

"Hello, little one," she whispered softly. "Your daddy and I are so happy that you are coming to be with us."

"Daddy..." she giggled. "Jax is going to be a father, and I'm going to be a mother..." That final thought sobered her as she finished wrapping the towel around her and walked into the bedroom to get her gray, satin pajamas. Brenda knew that Jax would be a wonderful father - he was nurturing and loving beyond reason sometimes - but what about her? What kind of a mother would she make? Heaven knows she had never had a loving, motherly presence in her life, and when her mother had reappeared in her life, she had tried to kill her. Not on purpose, of course, but still she had tried - and nearly succeeded - in killing her.

Her mother's mental instability was genetic, and Brenda still had not found out if she, too, had that gene that could make her try to one day kill her own baby. Brenda shuddered at that thought. No! She didn't have the gene. God would not have spared her life and the life of her child and brought them both back to Jax, just to turn around and cruelly snatch both of their lives from them once again in an even more insidious way. No, she would concentrate on the hope that she had not inherited that dreaded gene from her mother and that she would never let any harm come to this baby - now or ever. She would do whatever she had to do to protect it and to protect Jax as well.

She finished buttoning the pajama top and ran the comb through her towel-dried hair, then headed for the door to go back downstairs. She hesitated at the doorway and went back over to her dressing table and picked up the ultrasound. "I think it's time that Uncle Jerry got to meet you, little one," she laughed as she patted her stomach and ran out the door and down the stairs, ultrasound picture firmly in hand.

"Jax, forever is a long time. We're family. Family doesn't cut each other off," Jerry pleaded.

"Family!" Jax exploded. "I don't think you or Dad or even Mum can tell me what a family does and does not do these days! A few days ago I would have bet my life that you all knew what family meant and how family should treat one another, but you disabused me of those fantasies a couple of days ago, Jerry, and, as you and Dad always said, I'm a quick study. I learned very quickly that my only family is Brenda and this baby, and I'm going to do whatever it takes to insure their safety! And that means I will keep you and Dad and Mum as far away from them as necessary until I know that 'your associates' won't try to get to you through her." He slammed through the door and into the living room with Jerry following closely behind.

"Well, I agree with you there, little brother," Jerry said, as Jax turned around, surprised by Jerry's sudden acceptance of his proclamation. "Surprised?" Jerry asked, cocking his eyebrows quizzically at Jax. "I agree that you have to keep Brenda far away from us for now, but I don't agree that it should be forever. Once we have this thing hammered out with the feds and things get back to normal, there is no reason to keep her or the baby from us."

Jax ran his hands through his hair and sighed, "All I know is that right now, I want to get Brenda and the baby as far away from all of this as possible!"

"Does anyone else know she's alive?" Jerry asked, settling onto the couch.

"Huh?" Jax whirled around and looked at him, not fully comprehending what he was asking.

Jerry looked at him like he was a child who did not understand a lesson. "I asked if anyone else knows that she's alive? Has she seen or spoken to anyone else since she came back?"

Jax shook his head. "No, Tom - the guy who found her - brought her here rather than to the police station to wait. He knew that we were being arraigned at 6 this morning and decided that it was better for our reunion to take place in private than at the courthouse or at the jail. He didn't want Brenda to have to face the glare of the public just yet."

"Thank goodness for that," Jerry began. "Wait...How did he know about the early arraignment? That was secret. No one but the police and the court and the feds knew about it," Jerry finished.

"Well, are you ready for this little bit of irony?" Jax laughed ruefully. "It seems that Brenda's savior and protector for the past two weeks is an agent for the FBI, and anything mob-related is right up his alley!"

Jerry let out a low whistle. "What are the odds of that, little brother? Pretty remarkable, huh? Of course, Brenda always did seem to hit the long shots now, didn't she?" And for the first time in what seemed like forever the two brothers laughed genuinely together.

"Well, this could work out very well," Jerry continued. "You say that Brenda has not spoken to anyone here? ...So no one knows she's alive, and that means that Leone doesn't know it either, and he can't use her to get to us."

Jax picked up Jerry's train of thought. "So we keep her hidden and continue on as if she died two weeks ago..."

"Bingo!" Jerry said. "But you can't keep her here, Jax. Dad's case jurisdiction has been transferred to New York, and he and Mum will be here in a few days, and despite how you might try to keep them away from here, you know that they will still try to stop by to see you. Also, Ned and Alexis will be in and out with the case, and Robin will stop by on occasion. And the more people who know that she's alive, the more likely there will be an inadvertent leak to the wrong people."

"So, that means that I will have to send her away not only from you and Dad and Mum and all of this mess, but I have to send her away from me as well, and the sooner the better..." Jax realized aloud.

Brenda had descended the stairs just in time to hear the last bit of conversation as Jax declared that he was sending her away from him. "Noooo!!!" she shouted. Jax and Jerry both looked up at the stairs, startled by her presence and even more so by her anger. "I just found my way back to you, Jax, and I am not leaving you again - come hell or high water!"

Tom tossed fitfully on his bed, trapped in a dream world that he couldn't seem to fight his way out of. He could faintly hear Angel calling plaintively for him to find her, but she was a disembodied voice lost somewhere in a thick, swirling fog. He groped wildly through the mist, calling for her, and telling her he was coming.

Finally, the mist cleared and Tom could see Angel standing in the crystal clear water of the Charles River that flowed behind his cabin. She was wearing a gauzy, white dress that billowed out behind her as the breeze gently hugged the material around her body, and Tom could see that she was very pregnant. She was smiling at him and she looked so beautiful, so full of life. She had her arms outstretched to him, and she simply whispered his name, but it sounded like pure poetry to Tom.

But then her pure white dress turned a ghastly red and her beautifully robust complexion began to pale and the once crystal clear Charles River ran crimson beneath her as she slowly began to fall back away from him - and there pulling her away was Marco Leone.

"Angel!" He was calling wildly for her and trying desperately to get to her before Leone pulled her completely under the deadly waters that were now swirling around her, but his feet were frozen to the spot. And the more he struggled to get to her, the faster Leone moved her away from him and the further he dragged her into the water, until finally she was swallowed completely by the blood red water, and Leone was left standing there laughing at him as she disappeared.

"Nooooo!!!!" Tom gasped and sat up in the bed. He was saturated from head to toe, but he didn't care about that. All that he could think about were her final words to him that now echoed in his head: "Why did you let this happen, Tom? I trusted you..."

Fighting to find the light, he switched it on and then grabbed for the phone and dialed, trying to catch his breath and calm his rapidly beating heart as he waited for his party to answer. Unfortunately, the answering machine clicked on instead of the party he wanted, and Tom waited impatiently for it to finish its spiel before practically shouting into the phone, "Jax! Pick up if you're there! This is Tom Langan, and it's very important that you get back to me right away! Angel's...Brenda's...life is in danger!"