Sinful desires

Carly fights her attraction to Sonny, but is it out of love for Franco or fear of a secret being revealed? Nina vows to let nothing -- not even menopause -- stand in her way of having a baby. How far will she go? Will sweet Sabrina turn sinister to avenge Gabriel's death, and will Ava's baby pay the ultimate price? Sinful desires have consequences even in the name of love.

"Whatever is done for love always occurs beyond good and evil" -- Friedrich Nietzsche

These words seem especially fitting as several dark, ominous storylines began to unfold this week. Most of the focus seems to be centered on Ava as her chickens appear to be returning home to roost.

Ava proved to be quite the clever minx earlier in the week when she managed to temporarily break free from her gilded cage to dash to the hospital for a chat with Franco while stealthily evading Sonny's army of goons and gumbas who are intent on nabbing her. Ava was desperate to enlist Franco's help to get her mitts on Carly's copy of A.J.'s incriminating recording, but alas, Franco is currently spending time in the land of delusion and denial when it comes to Carly and, more importantly, Carly and Sonny.

Ava's day went from bad to worse when she bumped into our new resident psycho bad girl, Nina Clay, then had a little tte--tte with Sabrina, who had just been told that Ava had arranged for the accident that had killed Gabriel. This was incorrect information, of course, but Carlos didn't know that because he had been led to believe Ava had put Rafe behind the wheel by Ava herself when she decided to take advantage of the tragedy to manipulate Carlos into confessing to A.J.'s murder.

I had mixed feelings about Sabrina's return because even though I find the actress charming, the character has always seemed rather lost. Subsequently, I never really got into her. I don't dislike Sabrina, but I'm not in love with her either. I found Sabrina most enjoyable when she was first introduced as an Ugly Betty meets The Princess Diaries' Mia Thermopolis ingnue with a raging crush on the young handsome doctor. It was the stuff of romances and a refreshing break from all the heavy drama.

I loved Sabrina emerging from her cocoon as a beautiful butterfly during the Nurses Ball, but truth be told, after that, it started to get boring. My interest began to wane despite Britt's claims that she was pregnant with Patrick's baby. I felt that Patrick and Sabrina's relationship was never really tested with this storyline.

Admittedly, happily ever after endings seldom work for me on soaps. I like couples to face challenges that force them to keep fighting for each other, so they can emerge from their trials and tribulations, stronger than ever. I don't envy the writers for having to write for couples long-term because it's not easy to keep soap opera couples both happy and interesting without eventually boring the viewers.

I'm not sure what to make of this new side of Sabrina. Her sudden shift to the dark side doesn't really feel organic to me, even though she suffered an undeniably tragic loss. Patrick went through the same experience, but he managed to pull himself back from the brink of his malevolent and vengeful urges under far more difficult circumstances than Sabrina is currently facing.

The one thing that I had always liked about Sabrina was her inherent goodness and sense of right from wrong. She might make some missteps, but she never set out to harm anyone. It simply wasn't in her nature, yet that now is in question.

I was annoyed that Sabrina didn't tell Patrick about her talk with Carlos, even though Patrick had been completely open and honest with her about everything, including Robin and Jason. It's hard for me to see Sabrina in a sympathetic light when I know that Ava is actually innocent of wrongdoing in this particular instance. I don't care so much about what happens to Ava, but I don't want to see anything happen to the baby because of Sabrina's actions.

Then again, Sabrina isn't the only threat to Ava's unborn child.

It appears that Nina is hatching her own diabolical plot against Ava, and chances are it's going to have something to do with taking Ava's baby away from Ava. Not only does Nina have a deep-seated desire to replace the baby she miscarried when her mother injected Nina with an overdose of antidepressant, but Nina is frothing at the mouth to punish Ava for sleeping with Silas and giving him a child.

What Nina's plans are is anyone's guess at this point, but there has been a lot of foreshadowing that even led Rosalie to question if Nina intended to steal Ava's baby. It's going to be interesting to see how this all plays out.

In other news, it was announced -- or rather, finally confirmed -- that Billy Miller will be stepping into the role of Jason Morgan.

I am thrilled about this news because I think Billy Miller was a fabulous choice to play Jason. If anyone can take the iconic role of Jason Morgan and make it his own, it's Billy. He's a phenomenal actor.

Now the big question is, what Jason will be like. Will he be the Stone Cold Jason Morgan of old -- Sonny's best friend and secret weapon -- or the prodigal son of the Quartermaines who once had aspirations of becoming a doctor until his brother drove him into a tree one fateful night? The latter seems highly unlikely, but I wouldn't put it past Victor Cassadine to plant a sleeping tiger in the midst of Port Charles. Victor seems determined to turn Jason into an assassin extraordinaire, but Victor is far too clever to make it obvious to Jason's unsuspecting loved ones that Jason is a ticking time bomb.

It's also possible that Robin somehow managed to rescue Jason before Victor could carry out his plans for Jason, in which case there's no telling what Jason will be like.

Regardless who Jason turns out to be, four ladies are set to have their worlds rocked by his return: Monica, Sam, Liz, and Carly.

I am most happy for Monica because she has lost so much over the years that she deserves to have at least one of her children by her side. I'm sad that it's not A.J. and that we will never get a reunion between Jason and A.J., but I'm satisfied that Monica will have Jason back. She always had a special place in her heart for him that no one, not even her other children, had been able to touch. Monica has paid her dues, so she deserves to have her favorite child back in her arms after all the heartache and loss she has suffered through the years.

However, Jason's return could spell a lot of trouble for Sonny because Jason might not take too kindly to learning that his brother had been wrongly accused and murdered by Jason's best friend. Even before Jason "died" he had expressed deep regret over his treatment of A.J., so it would be fascinating to see Sonny and Jason on opposite sides, especially with Michael and Carly in the middle.

Sonny will also be facing another adversary in the form of Franco when Franco finally catches Sonny and Carly in the act. It seems inevitable because Carly can't stay away from Sonny, and Sonny can't keep his hands off Carly.

I don't deny that Sonny and Carly have chemistry, but watching them rekindle their love affair is rather like watching a train wreck unfold in slow motion. You know it's going to end in a grisly disaster, but you just can't look away.

I loved Morgan's reaction when Kiki told him about his parents' latest escapade. I completely agree with Morgan that Sonny doesn't know where to draw the line when it comes to relationships. Then again, Sonny is a mobster and criminal, so why should he draw a line anywhere? Oh yeah, because he expects unwavering loyalty from those around him.

I know that I might be in the minority here, but I would really love for Sam and Patrick to end up together, even with Jason returning. Why? Because they are fun to watch, and it would serve Robin right. Plus, I really don't want Danny to be around Jason while Jason is under Victor's control. Those Cassadines are a ruthless bunch who wouldn't hesitate to use Danny to further their agenda.

Poor Liz is going to have her hands full of exes returning from the dead because once Fluke is exposed, Ric should be returning to town to pick up where he and Liz left off. Something tells me that she'll still be unattached because I can't see Nikolas smoothing things over with her anytime soon, and Jason seems fated to hover in Sam's orbit for a while, since she's his wife and the mother of his only living child.

I was quite proud of Liz for standing up to Nikolas the way she did when they talked at Dante and Lulu's loft. Liz was right; Nikolas was being a royal ass. How can he say that he's never stopped being in love with Liz yet still have feelings for Britt? In my book, that's not being in love -- with either woman.

I don't want Nikolas to end up with Britt, but he kind of deserves it at this point. I can't wait until the truth hits him square in the face and he's filled with regret. If Liz takes him back then, I hope she makes him work for it because he needs to prove that she's his one and only.

On the Maxie/Lulu abduction front, things took an interesting turn when it was revealed that Victor was behind the plot to steal the Aztec jewels and take the girls hostage. Now what his plans are for Lulu remains unknown.

Could Victor be trying to secure Lulu's capture because she's a Spencer, or is there a more sinister plot afoot? Could the imposter Luke be linked to Victor? My gut tells me no.

Fluke has his sights firmly set on Sonny not Lulu. In fact, Fluke seemed to go out of his way to avoid Lulu.

I suspect that Victor took Lulu for another reason. Stavros, Helena, and Faison all spring immediately to mind because two were about to be thawed, and the other's body was never recovered. In soaps, that is significant and one of the main signs that someone is not as dead as we were led to believe.

Finally, did or didn't Lucky adopt Cameron? You be the judge:

Spencer: "But Cameron's your cousin."Josslyn: "Na-ah. Uncle Lucky isn't his real dad."Spencer: "But he still adopted him -- that counts."Josslyn: "Who can keep it straight anymore? One day he's Cameron Webber the next he's Cameron Spencer then back to Webber again. But he stays dreamy." [Giggles]Things that tickled my fancy

Meow, the claws come out when Ava and Nina meetNina: "You're definitely Ava Jerome."Ava: "So I am. Now, if you'll excuse me, I have somewhere to be."Nina: "I almost didn't recognize you. You lack that youthful glow that those pictures burned into my brain. Time's a cruel mistress."Nina: [Chuckles] "I said, 'mistress.' I made a joke."Ava: "Don't quit your day job."

Nina reaches out and touches Ava's pregnant belly with both handsAva: "Don't touch me."Nina: "What's wrong?"Ava: "Have you never heard the phrase, 'look, don't touch'?"Nina: "I'm sorry. You're not a museum piece?"Ava: "No, but I am a human being, and I like my personal space."Nina: "I wanted to touch your baby."Ava: "Well, next time, ask permission."Nina: "May I touch your baby?"Ava: "No."Nina: "Wow. With an attitude like that, your child has a very tough life ahead."Ava: "And nothing but sunshine and daffodils await your potential offspring, I'm sure."

Britt and Liesl talk about Levi/Peter after Liesl learns about Maxie and Lulu's abductionLiesl: "Ah, yes. I had the misfortune to meet him at the nurses' ball. He had an absurd name."Britt: "Levi Dunkleman?"Liesl: "An alias, no doubt -- as phony as that so-called Australian accent he sports."Britt: "Oh, he's Australian. I mean, at least I think he is. Does it matter at this point?"Liesl: "Britta, Britta, if that miscreant is Australian, then I'm Canadian."

Ava returns home empty-handed after meeting with FrancoJulian: "What happened? You strike out with Franco?"Ava: "He totally blew me off. That deluded fool refused to help me nail Sonny. He's convinced that his relationship with Carly is solid."Julian: "But you did say that Franco moved in with her?"Ava: "Every time Sonny snaps his finger, Carly goes running. Franco is a distant second. He just doesn't see it."Julian: "Love is blind. I guess that rule even applies to psychos."

Josslyn talks about hiding Spencer in her bedroom for a few daysMichael: "I can't believe you hid Spencer in your room for days."Josslyn: "He's very compact."

A minute with Nina's special brand of crazyNina: "Show me how to goggle baby equipment."Rosalie: "What?"Nina: "I need baby supplies."Rosalie: "Oh." [ Chuckles ] "Uh, it's Google, not goggle."Nina: "Like that makes any more sense. Whatever. I just need stuff. Babies need stuff. I need to be prepared."Rosalie: "Nina, what if your cousin's right? How are you gonna have a baby if no matter what you think of the doctor, there's a good chance that you can't?"Nina: "Have you learned nothing? There's no such word as 'can't.' Do you think that Ava's having a boy or a girl?"Rosalie: "Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a second. What exactly are you saying?"Nina: "Just wondering."Rosalie: "Nina, you're not planning on stealing that woman's baby, are you?"[Nina blinks innocently]Rosalie: "Nina, you're not planning on doing something crazy, are you? Like stealing Ava Jerome's baby?"Nina: "Oh, my God. Are you kidding me? Why would you say that to me? Talk about crazy. Ro, you're the one who needs to see the shrink."

Until next time, dear readers, take care. Liz Masters

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