Previously:

Miles admitted to Josie that he was confused about his sexuality and how he identified himself. Josie suggested a night on the town to help him figure out what he truly wanted.

Martine agreed to move in with Tyson, opening herself up to the possibility of a more serious relationship with the father of her new child.

Charlie apologized to Sonya for his treatment of her after Erin's rampage. His understanding friend forgave him, and she made Charlie see that they needed to find Erin before she could hurt anybody else.

 

Pole Position

Miles's mouth dropped open in horror as Josie instructed him to pull into the parking lot of the Pole Position, a gay club in the neighboring town of Bravington Heights. "I cannot go in there! Pole Position? That can't really be what it's called."

Josie took in his mini-freakout with an amused smirk. "You know, it used to be called The Cockpit." She was totally lying, but it was fun tormenting him, nevertheless. "So, yeah. It could be worse..."

She hopped out of the car before Miles could change his mind about the entire situation. She saw him take a deep breath, give a resigned sigh, then come chasing after her.

"I don't know if I want to do this," Miles began, "I mean, what if some guy tries to hit on me and--"

"Isn't that sort of the point?" she interrupted.

"--And," he continued, "--and I don't like him, or whatever. Then I'm stuck talking to some predator all night."

"You're not 'stuck' talking to anyone. That's why I'm here. To bail you out and make excuses for you if need to make a quick getaway."

Miles didn't appear convinced.

"God, you're hopeless! Just be assertive, for once. Stand up for yourself, and if you don't like someone, move on to somebody else."

"Maybe. Maybe you're right," he said. "I'm just not sure I'm ready for all this."

"Well, I can't stay long anyway, so we'll just think of it as taking baby steps tonight. We'll only see what the place is like. You don't even have to talk to anyone if you don't want to."

"How long are we staying?"

"I have to get home kind of early," Josie said. "But you can stay by yourself as long as you want," she teased. "We're moving out tomorrow, so I have to finish up my packing and everything. Living with my mother and her boyfriend ... like that won't be awkward at all..."

"Yeah, that sounds ... not exactly ideal."

"For any of us," Josie agreed. "But until I find a place of my own, It'll have to suffice."

"You could always live with me," he suggested. "I mean, I've got a pretty nice place, but since I was fired from the Highwind, it's been tough scraping together the rent."

"Hmm ... I'll definitely think about it."

"There's only one thing I ask in return..."

"What's that?" she asked.

"Don't make me go in there!" he whined, realizing they were standing right outside the front door now.

"Oh, I don't think so. Now quit making excuses, and get your sweet ass into the Pole Position!"

Miles gave her a scathing look, but reluctantly paid the cover fee and let his hand be stamped with a checkered flag logo. Josie followed suit and headed into the club with him.

"Just so you know, if I hear that phrase from anybody but you tonight, I'm outta here. I'm so outta here."

"Just relax! It'll be fun!" she promised, taking his hand and running ahead to drag him to the bar.

 

Sonya Cortes's House

Sonya sat in the living room, listening to a Tiësto CD and flipping through a gossip magazine. In spite of her attempts to distract herself, she couldn't stop thinking about her visit with Charlie earlier that day. As hurt as she had been when Charlie didn't believe her about Erin, she always understood why he lashed out at her. Charlie was so in love with Erin, and she was asking him to believe the worst about his wife. Perhaps it would have been different if they had seen it all coming, but Erin's behavior was so uncharacteristic that even Sonya would have had trouble believing it, if she hadn't experienced it firsthand.

She still shuddered to think of being attacked by Erin in her own home, helpless in her wheelchair. It hurt even more to think of Misty. Sonya second-guessed herself constantly, wondering if she could have done something more, anything to have saved her friend's life that night...

It was often hard to fall asleep in her own house now, thinking of all that had transpired in just that one night under her roof. Sonya knew there was no way to change what had happened. But she still held out hope that she could have a hand in making things right.

She wanted to find Erin. A part of her was selfish enough to admit she wanted justice for what Erin had done to her, but a bigger part of her knew Erin needed help. Erin was clearly suffering as much as any of them. And Charlie deserved to be reunited with his daughter. Summer needed a capable parent. It was dangerous for her to stay with Erin.

Sonya had to track them down, and she only had one real lead or place to begin. She picked up the phone and dialed...

"Hello?" came a groggy voice from the other end of the line.

"Abe? It's Sonya," she said.

"Sonya?" He sounded confused.

"I was just ... calling to check in," she said, her mind blank. Normally, she was good at improvising and coming up with things on the spot, but for some reason, hearing Abe's voice after all this time threw her off her game. They hadn't spoken in months, but she needed him now. She needed to ask him about Erin, but she couldn't just come right out of the gate firing questions at him. "So, how's Italy?"

"It's four o'clock in the morning here!" he moaned.

"What? Oh, time zones!" Sonya laughed out loud. She hadn't even taken that into consideration before calling. "Sorry I woke you up. I guess this can wait until morning, huh?"

"Are you sure? Do you need something?"

Maybe catching him unaware would be for the best, Sonya thought. It might cause him to slip up and reveal something, assuming he knew anything at all about Erin or Elisabeth...

"I just wanted to ask how you were doing," she said sweetly. "It's been a while since we talked. And how is Elisabeth liking Milan?"

"Elisabeth?" he asked.

"Yeah. Isn't she staying with you and Priscilla?"

"Huh?"

"Elisabeth is with you, right? That's what she told Charlie before she left town," Sonya pressed.

When Charlie told her Elisabeth had left St. Laurent, Sonya found it a bit abrupt, especially coming so soon after Erin's disappearance. She had a hunch that something was going on with the Emerys -- that they knew more than they were saying about Erin. Abe was her only real lead, and Sonya wasn't sure she believed Elisabeth's story about leaving town to stay with her brother.

"Oh, yeah! I think it's been good for her, being here with friends and all, after everything that's happened..."

"So, she is staying with you?" Sonya asked. "Do you think I could talk to her sometime? I have a few things I wanted to ask her. Maybe she knows something that could help us find Erin."

"She's probably sleeping," Abe said, a reluctance in his voice that raised Sonya's suspicions.

"I didn't mean to talk to her right this second..."

"Still, I don't know if it's a good idea," he said. "She hasn't been taking any of this well. Talking about it might be too painful for her."

"Oh, well I wouldn't want to ask anything that might upset her," Sonya said dryly, getting riled up now. Her dog, Jinx, perked his ears up at her from where he was sleeping on the couch. He sensed the change in her demeanor. "Getting hit in the head with a frying pan was sort of painful too, you know? Charlie losing his daughter hasn't exactly been easy on him, either..."

"Sonya..."

"No, Abe! Don't try to talk me down! You weren't here! You don't know what we've all been going through. You didn't see Erin stab one of your good friends and push her down the stairs, did you? She killed someone, and she's still out there!"

The line was silent for so long, Sonya almost thought he'd hung up on her. She knew lashing out at him probably wasn't the best way to go, but she couldn't help herself.

Then he spoke, his voice pained. "What do you want from me?"

 

Pole Position

"Are you liquored up enough to dance yet?" Josie asked Miles, watching him slurp up nearly half of his vodka tonic at once through his straw.

"Getting there," he mumbled.

"Good, because I think this guy's checking you out," she said, nudging her head toward a blond man off to the side of their table.

Miles dared a glance, trying not to appear too obvious, but when he met the guy's clear blue eyes he immediately looked away.

"Is he your type?" Josie asked, sipping the drink Miles had procured for her.

Miles shrugged.

"Tell me your type then, and I'll see what I can find for you," she said. It was like pulling teeth trying to get him to relax and settle in here. She was beginning to think he might be straight, after all!

"I don't think I even have a type. I've only been with one guy, really. I'm not even sure what it was that drew me in..."

"You've only dated one guy?"

Miles's face turned red. "I don't think what we had would be considered dating."

"But you do find guys to be attractive, right? We both think Remy's hot. That's a start."

"Yeah, I guess so," he confessed. "I mean, I can look around and see lots of attractive guys here, but that doesn't mean I'm interested in any of them. There's got to be something more than that."

"That's the same with anyone, though. Physical attraction is only the first thing that draws you in. So, you've been with one guy. I take it that means you dated girls before this happened?"

"Exclusively," he said. "But it never really worked out for me. I didn't get it at the time, but I can see now, looking back, that things were different with those relationships. Something was missing. When I met Dominick, though -- it was a completely different experience."

"I'd say so," she smirked.

"I would have done anything for him. Even when I knew it was wrong, it was like I couldn't even think for myself. I'd never been so ... caught up in someone else so completely," he said, opening up to her.

"But you're not together now. Something changed?"

Miles knew exactly what changed. Everything changed when his sister nearly died because of him. Because of his very association with the D'Amato family and his blinding infatuation with Dominick.

"I just ... didn't like not being in control of myself," he said. "It's a scary thing for someone to have such power over you. I tried to completely overhaul myself. Coming to St. Laurent, attempting to date a woman again and forget everything else. I wanted to change everything about myself and start over."

"I know what it's like to want a fresh start, but you can't deny who you are," she said sympathetically, reaching across the table to take his hands. "You can change for the better ... and still be true to yourself."

"I hope you're right," he said, swallowing down the guilt he felt after the recollection of Dominick. "I think I need another drink."

"Yeah, this is getting a little too intense. We're supposed to be having fun!"

Miles stood from the table.

"Hey, can you get me another?" she called out, waving her empty glass. "I'll be back!"

Josie got in line for the restroom, while Miles headed the other way toward the bar. He was about to order their next round of drinks when someone at his side leaned in to speak to him.

"Let me get that for you?" the man asked. It was the same guy who'd caught Miles's eye earlier that night. And he was even better-looking when he smiled.

 

Sonya's House

Sonya wasn't sure what she expected Abe to say. She wasn't sure how much he knew. But something wasn't adding up about Erin's, then Elisabeth's subsequent departures. "I just want the truth," she said softly, feeling a bit guilty for going off on him. "If you know where Erin is, please tell me."

After a moment's pause, he answered, "I don't know where she is. I'm not lying to you. I just don't know."

Sonya believed him. He might not tell her everything if he did know the truth, but he wouldn't flat out lie about it, either. Not to her. Not after everything she went through to help Erin and Charlie. "And Elisabeth? She's not staying with you, is she?"

"No," he admitted.

"Does she know where Erin is?"

He seemed to struggle with himself, trying decide how much he could or should reveal to her. "Sonya, I can't..."

"I know you don't want to betray either of them, but I don't think you understand how serious this has become." She strengthened her words, pressing him to do the right thing.

"I know how serious it is! I didn't want Elisabeth to do this, but I couldn't stop her. Erin called her and said she needed her help. Elisabeth wouldn't refuse her. Believe me, I tried to talk Elisabeth out of it, but she felt like she had to go to Erin -- to protect her and keep her under control."

"Who's to say Elisabeth is capable of that?" Sonya asked. "If Erin loses it again, Elisabeth isn't going to be able to stop her."

When Erin lost control that night, she didn't even seem to recognize Sonya or Misty. She refused to hear what either of them tried to say to talk her down. When she became violent, she was in her own world, blind to reason.

"Elisabeth could get hurt. I know the rational Erin would never do anything to harm her, but that's not the person we're dealing with anymore..."

"I know," he said, taking in her words.

"But you don't know where your sisters have gone or how to find them?"

"No," he said. "I tried to make Elisabeth tell me before she left, but she wouldn't give it up. She said it was better for me not to know. But she's called me a couple of times now. I made her promise to call and check in, in case Erin lost it again." As he thought about the foolish bargain he made with Elisabeth, his voice became concerned, his words choked. "Sonya, I don't know what to do. I don't know how to help them..."

"You've got to find out where they are," she demanded. "It's the only way to help them both."

"I don't know if she'll tell me."

"You have to make her tell you. Somehow, you've got to find out."

When he was silent again, she continued, "You have to do this, Abe. Please, do it for Misty. Do it for me. If you ever cared about me, you'd want to help me with this. And if that's not reason enough for you, that's okay. Do it for Summer and for Erin. Erin is the one who needs to be helped, and Elisabeth isn't the one who can give that to her."

"I'll try," he promised. "I'll try to get it out of her. You're right. You're so right. I don't know why I thought she could do this on her own."

"If you can help bring her home ... you'll be doing the biggest favor you can do. For everyone."

 

Pole Position

"So, you're from St. Laurent? I've heard it's nice," Miles's new friend was saying to him while the two of them stood at the bar.

"You've never been?"

"I grew up around here. Not in St. Laurent, but nearby. Then I lived in New York for a while..."

Miles looked past him to see Josie returning to their table. She looked around, but didn't seem to notice him.

"Sorry, am I boring you?"

Miles snapped back to attention, focusing on the man's lively blue eyes. He was a little older than Miles, but his casual style coupled with his dimpled cheeks and pale blond hair made him seem much younger than Miles knew he must be. Still, he was definitely appealing, and Miles felt bad for letting his attention wander.

"No! Not at all! I just saw my friend looking for me. I should probably get back to her."

"Damn," he said, a smile covering his disappointment. "I was just about to ask if you wanted to dance, too."

"If you saw me dance, I can guarantee you'd lose whatever interest you might have in me," Miles said honestly. He found himself letting his guard down, getting more comfortable finally.

"If you say so," he shrugged. "Here. Before you go." The guy jotted down his name and number on a napkin and handed it to Miles. "I don't know if you were just being polite, but if you're interested..."

"Oh ... thanks," Miles said, a bit flustered. He tucked the guy's number into his pocket.

"I hope you'll call. We can do something quieter next time, if you'd like," he said over the music. "No dancing."

Miles gave an embarrassed grin, trying not to look too stupidly giddy as he made his way back to his table.

"Where's my drink!" Josie pouted once Miles returned.

"We've gotta go. Now!"

"What's the rush? I thought you were getting us drinks?"

"That guy started talking to me at the bar," Miles said, leaning across the table.

"So?"

"I told him I couldn't dance with him because we were leaving. I don't want him to think I'm a liar!"

"You didn't like him, then?"

"No, I do like him. That's why we have to leave before I make an even bigger idiot of myself."

"I don't get it, but whatever." Josie shook her head and grabbed her purse. "You're so bad at this!"

They headed for the door. "If I'm so bad, then how do you explain this?" He held up the napkin. "He gave me his name and number! He wants me to call him."

"Yay!" Josie said, hugging him. "But I'm only letting you leave if you promise to call that guy for a real date after this."

"I will," Miles said appeasingly. "He seemed nice. It wasn't too awkward once we got to talking."

"You better call him back," she threatened. "If you don't, I'm going to call him for you."

Miles knew it wasn't just an idle threat, either. As they got in the car, he decided it was a successful night after all, despite his best attempts to ruin his own chances.