Luc

The tears rolled down Mimi's face as she drove, she had never felt betrayal like this before. Wouldn't it be just her luck that the one person to ever betray her would be the first person she ever fell in love with, the man she was still deeply and completely in love with. She was so stupid! She had warned herself over and over again, but she hadn't even listened to her own good advice.

Love was for the suicidal, the gluttons for punishment, the foolish and the unlucky!!!

'FUCK LOVE AND FUCK LUCK!' Love was an exaggerated infection of the heart and Luck was dead!

Mimi squealed the car to an abrupt stop in front of Lyndsys ultra posh, high security apartment building. The front tire rolled up on the curb while the rest of the car was parked sort of slanted on the street. She jumped out of the car, mindless of the fact she was only wearing Jacks huge t-shirt and absolutely nothing else under neith. She ran barefoot to the main door. Thank god Alfred knew her, because dressed as she was he probably would not have let her in. He nodded, respectfully keeping his gaze down. She went to the lobby and rang the little pearl tipped gold buzzer with Lyndsy's name printed on the gold plate next to it. She rang it twice impatiently, than hearing a car pull up, she held it until Lyndsy answered.

"Who is it?" Lyndsy asked.

"It's Mimi, let me in." she said looking behind her to see Jack was in the passengers seat of the car. Luckily the valets who were now cursing as they parked her car were slowing down him and a line of cars forming behind him. "Hurry!" she cried and Lyndsy buzzed her up. Mimi sprinted to the elevator, relieved that it was ready and waiting for her.

Lyndsy hearing the panic in her friend's voice was already at the door waiting for her, she watched Mimi walk out of the elevator, sprinting down the hall to greet her.

"What's the matter?" she asked worried, than Mimi froze as the familiar buzz penetrated her ears and made her heart skip in her chest.

"No!" Mimi started running as Lyndsy took a step inside to see who it was.

"Lyndsy it's Jack." that voice went straight through to Mimi's heart.

"Don't let him in!" she cried reaching for Lyndsy hand just as it went to press the button to let him in.

"It's Jack." she said looking at her strangely, reaching for the button again.

"It's not Jack." Mimi shook her head, tears burning her eyes, she wished it was Jack, she wished she would wake up this second and it will have all been a bad dream or a terrible joke. The pain was so intense she even wished she would wake up and have never of met Jack Smith.

"I need you to let me in Lyndsy." he pleaded, the desperation in his voice making tears instantly spring to her eyes.

"That's definitely Jack." Lyndsy said nodding her head.

"Yea, but he's not really Jack."

"Huh?"

"That's Jack's voice, but that's not Jack." Mimi tried to explain.

"Now I'm really confused, how is Jack not really Jack?" she asked in bewilderment.

"He's been lying about who he really is."

"What?" Lyndsy was genuinely confused.

"Lyndsy!" Aries pressed the buzzer again.

"His name is not Jack Smith."

"Yea right," she grinned, "I'm not falling for it." Now she hoped this was just a bad prank.

"I'm serious." Mimi grabbed her hand again, pulling it away from the button. Lyndsy finally saw the truth in her eyes.

"Really?"

"Yes."

"How? Why?" she threw her hands up shaking her head in shock.

"I don't know."

"Who is he?"

"I don't know." Mimi frowned. He told her the name, but he could be lying about that to for all she knew, she didn't know what to believe, but she found it almost impossible to believe he was this famous movie star.

"Lyndsy you have to let me up, I need to talk to Mimi." Aries said and Lyndsy seeing the tears pool in Mimi's eyes pressed the speaker button.

"Jack?" she asked looking into Mimi's hurt eyes, wanting to know what the hell was going on, "What's your name?" she asked.

"Lyndsy just let me up and I'll explain"

"Tell me what your real name is." Lyndsy took Mimi's hand.

"Aries Stark." his voice tore through the speaker and ripped through Mimi's vulnerable heart like bullets. Mimi, unable to control her emotions any longer, cried out. Hearing him say that damn name, was he crazy as well as a habitual liar? He heard her anguished cry and needed to hold her immediately, he needed to explain.

"Mimi please, baby, please talk to me." he pleaded, "just listen to me for a minute-"

"No!" she snapped pressing the speaker button, "You're a dirty filthy fucking liar! I trusted you," she cried hard

"I'm sorry, please-

"NO!" she snapped back to her anger, "I never EVER want to see you again!" she yelled than ran into Lyndsy room. Lyndsy watched he friend run off and put her head down. How the hell had this happened?

What had just happened??? Right before she had gone to bed, her and Luci were just talking about how happy they were with the ways things were going with Mimi. They were running a lucrative restaurant, they were hopelessly in love with each other, unable to even keep their hands off each other, and they had just left for a little romantic rendezvous. Now they hated each other, Jack has a secret identity and Mimi was distraught and broken hearted.

WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED???

"I'm sorry Jack, she doesn't want me to let you in, try calling her later or something." she said realizing the blunder, "I mean...Aries." she said the word confirming the reality of this situation. Her best friend was dating an elite celebrity; a celebrity who the world thought was dead and murdered.

"Holy shit." she said under her breath, dumbfounded.

***

He stood looking up at the tall building, looking at Lyndsy's window. How could he leave like this? He couldn't bare the thought of her hating him. But how could he stay? He didn't like Lana, he never really had, but he had a conscious and no way would he let her just go to jail for his murder. He had to leave no matter how much he needed to stay.

He stood there, the breath stolen from his lungs, cursing himself for not being honest from the beginning. What the hell had he been thinking? Did he honestly think he would be able to build a relationship on lies? His head was spinning viciously, how could he just leave her? His legs were happily cemented to the sidewalk below his feet, his body refusing to move, his brain demanding he go up there and make things right between them. What could he do? He couldn't force her to forgive him; he couldn't take back his lies and he couldn't let Lana rot in jail for a crime she didn't commit.

"What have I done?" he questioned himself as he took one last good look at the building, hoping to see her face just once before he got back into Rip's car and left her.

***

"Don't you think you should at least let him explain?" Lyndsy asked gently, pushing Mimi's hair back from her face.

"I've had enough explanation for one day." she said pitifully, turning her back to Lyndsy and burying her face in the pillow.

"Mimi-" she didn't have to see her face to know she was crushed.

"No!" she snapped at her friend, "I'm sorry." she said turning over, she didn't mean to take it out on Lyndsy, she loved Lyndsy.

"I know." Lyndsy nodded, Mimi was the best friend a girl could ask for, she had been there for her during her sticky engagement, her on again off again relationship with the former love of her life.

"I just-" she was crying too hard to finish.

Lyndsy didn't know what the hell was going on, her brain was still trying to register the fact that Jack Smith, the only man her best friend ever dated, had sex with and loved was actually Aries Stark. All Lyndsy knew was that regardless of her personal opinion or lack there of, her friend needed her right now. Lyndsy saw the tears threatening to spill from Mimi's eyes, the brunt of the betrayal written all over her face, so Lyndsy did the only thing that she could do to try to help, she pulled her into her embrace.

"Let it out." she said hugging her tightly as Mimi cried her heart out.

***

"I'm really sorry, man." Rip said with all honesty. If he felt bad before, it was nothing compared to what he felt this very second seeing the look of defeat on Arie's face. This particular movie star had been the smuggest of the smug, running through one woman after the other. Now he sat in Rip's passenger seat, his head in his hands, completely and utterly defeated.

"It would have happened eventually." he said, his voice sounding insignificant and lame to his own ears. He could feel his heart splitting apart as he gazed out of the dirty car window watching the little town pass by by him. This had been his town, the place he was happy to call home. This town had brought him all the luck in the world but now he was leaving and he was leaving behind the one woman in this god forsaken world that he had truly, deeply and madly loved.

"Yea, but I should not have-"

"Forget it." he nodded, not wanting to discuss it any longer.

***

"Do you mind if I stay here tonight?" Mimi asked.

"Of course not, I'd prefer you would." Lyndsy said, relieved that she would not have to argue with Mimi to stay.

"Thanks, I don't want to be alone." she said with sadness in her eyes that Lyndsy had seen there before.

"Your never alone, Mi, you'll always have us." she smiled and hugged Mimi. "You need a long hit bath to relax your body and ease your mind." she pushed a long wave from her tear stained face.

"Yea." she nodded. Relaxation sounded like heaven.

"Lots of Lavender oil, vanilla candles and chocolate."

"Bliss." Mimi plastered a fake smile on her face, Lyndsy knew that smile, she had seen it a time or two before.

"One more thing." she said as she walked over and poured a glass of wine into a crystal flute, "this will accent the candles and the chocolate." she smiled handing her the glass.

"Thank you." she said sincerely and Lyndsy smiled

"Go get done, Luci will be here soon."

***

Luci and Marz stood with their jaws dropped exceedingly low, their eyes as wide as they could possible go; Lyndsy had a grin on her face.

"You're lying." Luci said in disbelief.

"I swear it, he's really Aries Stark." she said "Think about it, think about him with out the beard,"

"I don't see it at all." Luci said shaking her head

"They're playing a trick, "Marz smiled, "and a MADD weak one, did you two run out of ideas?"

"For real this is the worse one yet, next time you should pick something more reasonable."

"More believable." Marz finished seasoning the steak as Luci continued to cut up the onions and peppers. Lyndsy raised a brow, than went into her room and got out a copy of the latest celebrity skinz, she grabbed a black marker and drew in a beard, moustache and colored in the pale blue eyes. She walked back out into the kitchen and dropped it on the counter before them; they both stopped what they were doing,

"Now do you believe me?" she asked, hands on her hips.

"Oh shit." Marz said in shock

"It is him." Luci picked up the magazine, "I can't believe it."

"Holy shit!" Marz said as it sunk deeper into his brain.

"This is, this is-"Luci shook her head in disbelief and astonishment, "This is Aries."

"Jack is Aries."Marz and Luci looked at each othe in amzement.

"I know." Lyndsy said looking down at the doctored magazine cover, "How did we not see it?"

***

He and Rip took turns driving back to Hollywood. Aries was beginning to panic as he left; the further he drove from her and the thinner the air got, the worse he felt. It felt like an iron hand was inside his throat suffocating him with each squeeze; it was getting damn near impossible to breath. He could feel it taking over him, his head began to spin again, the brightest of lights flashed in and out of his eyes, his limbs jerked and spasmed and he could not bring air into his constricted lungs.

"Pull over." he snapped to Rip who promptly did as Aries requested. Aries bolted out of the car, taking deep breaths, trying to control his breathing. It felt like the hands were inside of his chest now- choking him and grabbing at his lungs.

He had to get himself under control. He dropped to his knees right there on the side of the road. He looked up to the sky, praying, wishing, and begging for her forgiveness and her understanding. How the hell did you leave half of your heart behind and just keep going?

*** Leslie Malone decided to move out of her posh penthouse, she couldn't bear another night there. Every room held a painful memory, every room held a secret the two of them had shared. She wasn't sure what the hell was going on, brad had still not contacted her and she had absolutely no idea where he was. The one thing she knew for a fact was that it was truly over this time, brad obviously wanted nothing to do with her. He had up and moved in with that whore he called his girlfriend.

It was time for her to move on, she couldn't live in her past and she refused to be crushed by a man who obviously had not truly loved her. She had been such a fool.

The tears poured down from her face as she packed her things and threw away all the mementos she had kept from her and brad over their time together.

She was cleaning out her junk drawer when she found her old cell phone. It was the one and only thing that Bradley had ever bought for her. Unfortunately it had broken a few days before he left her, maybe it had been an omen she had over looked, a sign of things to come. She couldn't even call out anymore, the only thing that worked was the answering machine and it still managed to take pictures.

She wanted to strip every trace of him from her life and she was ready to throw it away when she remembered the 1st message he had left her, telling her happy birthday and how much he loved her.

She stood up than walked over and sat on the bed, opening the phone. To her complete and utter surprise she had a new message, from brad. Her heart raced, and the butterflies in her stomach had actually flown up into her throat. She listened to the message.

"Les, I need your help." it was brad and he was whispering, "I'm at Aries Starks mansion, I think I've been drugged, I need you to come get me, Leslie please, I'm sorry for everything, just come get me now, please, something's wrong, she's pregnant I think he's going to... "

The phone went dead and Leslie felt a chill that went to the very core of her bones.

***

Aries put on a baseball cap and his trusty sunglasses; he was back in Hollywood, and here they recognized him.

"Ask to speak to detective Angus." Rip said, "He's the most trustworthy guy and it's his case."

"Wait here, I'll be right back."

"I will."

He took a deep breath before walking into the police station.

"I need to speak to detective Angus."

"Is he expecting you?"

"No."

"What's the name?"

"Jack Smith." he said the name for the last time, wishing for a life that he could not have. He watched the officer pick up the phone.

"There's a Jack Smith here to see you." he said than nodded, than hung up the phone. "Just have a seat; he'll be right with you. Aries nodded and went to sit down. Less than 5 minutes later his name was called.

"What can I do for you." Angus asked

"I have some information about the Aries Stark murder, if we could speak some where private."

"Of course." he said leading Aries into his small but functional office. He had heard every story in the book, every fable, tall tale, fantastic created works of fiction, elaborate schemes and straight up lies. At this point he had a dozen crazies who had confessed to the murder of Aries Stark, he had thousands who swore they lived next door to him, half as many who thought it was their roommate. But for some reason Angus knew straight off the bat that this man, whoever he was, had something very relevant that pertained to the case. "Have a seat." he motioned to the chair facing his desk, while he went and sat behind his desk. "So you have information about my case?" he asked

"Yes." Aries said, deciding the best way to tell him was to just go ahead and show him. Angus watched as the man took off his hat, than his sunglasses. He looked so familiar. As he continued to shed the disguise Angus almost gasped

"Aries stark." he said in surprise. It took a lot to shock him, he had seen a lot during his career, but this man managed to shock the hell out of the detective.

"Yes." Aries answered. Both men turned to the loud gasp, turning to see Cruz, his jaw to the floor, his eyes wide and a look of awe and total disbelief contorted his features.

"Y-your Aries Stark!" Cruz belted out a little too loud.

"Close the door." Angus said, not wanting the crowd that would gather once they realized Aries stark was in the office.

"You're alive!" Cruz said incredulously.

"Yes." Aries nodded

"Oh shit, can I have your autograph? Im a big-"

"Cruz." Angus stopped his partner than turned back to Aries, "I have a corpse with your name on it and I have a pregnant women in police custody for your murder."

"I know, I came as soon as I found out, it's the only reason I came back at all."

"I appreciate you coming back and clearing this mess up, and I hate to have to ask, but I am going to need you to stick around for a little longer, just until everything is straightened out."

"I understand, but I want to be discreet about this, I have a new life now, I don't want the paparazzi to find me." he said to the head detective in charge, "after everything is taken care of I have all intentions of disappearing again." he said. Angus could feel mans frustration, and sympathized with him. He imagined after a while all the intrusion and invasion would finally get to you and Aries stark had been on the top and in the publics eye for a long time.

"Than I don't recommend going home quite yet. Lana invited the media in and the paparazzi has the place surrounded watching her every move."

"Lana's living at my house?" he asked.

"Yes, she has been since we were first notified of your disappearance." he watched Aries reaction, he was not happy about this.

"Disappearance?"

"Miss Lutz called us and said you had just disappeared.

"She knew I was leaving."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course I'm sure, she begged me not to go after i told her." Aries said with all certainty.

"Thank you." Angus said as he made a metal note of the conflicting statements.

"You can contact me any time at this number," Aries grabbed a pen off his desk and wrote down his cell phone number than handed it to the detective. "Just let me know how I can help."

"Thank you Mr. Stark, your co-operation is much appreciated." he smiled and Aries knew immediately this was a trustworthy man. Some people exhumed such goodness and honesty it could easily be detected in their eyes and their smile. Detective Angus was one of those genuine people.

"Call me Aries." he said sliding his hat and sunglasses back on, than with a nod of the head, he discreetly left the office.

***

Lana had just dismissed Julio the pool boy after 3 hours of competitive sex. There was something about the guy she almost liked, he was sexy, had a phenomenal body and he could fuck for hours. If only he knew when to leave without being told, he would be the perfect toy. He was hanging around entirely too much now that they were fucking, but he didn't realize that was all he was to her, a good submissive fuck.

Lord knows she needed it after a rather distasteful and humiliating night in jail. Thank god she still had access to Aries bank account or she would probably still be in jail. All she had to do was write a check and send it with her chauffer to cash and presto, she made bail.

When she saw dectective Angus at the door she was happy she had not let Julio talk her into another round before he left. Angus had already caught her in the middle of the act before, once was more than enough.