Christmas Eve is bittersweet in Port Charles.

Kate is in New York, but sad that she is not with Sonny. Sonny misses her but keeps a stiff upper lip. Skye visits Luke in the hospital just before his surgery, but Tracy throws her out. Alan, her conscience, appears and reads the Nativity story to her and tells her that Christmas is about family. Dillon surprises her by staying in Port Charles and offers his shoulder to cry on, which she accepts. Bobby, Lucky and Lulu also show up and Luke is wheeled into surgery. Luke has another out-of-body experience during the operation. He walks through fog until he comes to a gate. Upon entering, he finds a pianist playing a Sinatra tune and a drink sitting on the piano, which he downs. He walks over to a microphone and does a touching rendition of "My Way."

At Mac's house Felecia tries to tell Maxie how much she loves her, but Maxie is still bitter. Mac comes in and tells her that he has invited Felicia for Christmas, and that they all need each other.

Carly, Jax and the boys are very happy and enjoying the fun of Christmas. As they are preparing to leave for the hospital Christmas party, Carly faints. Jax asks if she is pregnant, but she says, "No, it's a touch of the flu." Jax and the boys leave. She stays home. Sonny drops by with Christmas presents for Michael and Morgan. Carly senses that something is wrong. She asks if Kate has left him. Before he can answer her, Jax and the boys come home. They give Sonny his presents and have a sweet time together. He leaves, but not before telling them that they should spend Christmas with their mother, instead of him, because she is ill. A short time later Jason arrives with presents. Carly comments on his hair cut. Jason is touched by the present he receives from the boys. It is a photograph of them with Liz.

Sonny goes back to his lonely house, hoping for a message from Kate. Max tells him that no message has been left, because Kate, who had called earlier, asked him not to tell Sonny that she called. At the same time Kate arrives in her New York hotel room after attending an A-list party. She hopes for a message from Sonny, but when she calls the front desk there is none.

Still under the influence of anesthesia, Luke continues his dream where he concludes that the real value in life is family, not money. He regrets that he did not spend more time with his family, but overall, he is satisfied with the life he has led.

In a montage, with a voiceover by Anthony Geary singing, "I'll Be Home For Christmas," Luke walks through a set of gates into the fog. Luke's family comforts each other in the hospital waiting room. Carly, Jax, Michael and Morgan are a typically happy family. Maxie hands Felicia a present addressed to her from Georgie. Jason looks in from the outside as Liz and her sons hang stockings. Sonny goes upstairs alone and Kate is also alone in her hotel room.

Due to the Christmas holiday, today's episodes of all your favorite soaps were pre-empted for various holiday programming. This pre-emption was anticipated and there will be no "lost" episodes as a result. Programming will resume on Wednesday, December 26th.

On behalf of everyone involved in Soap Central, I'd like to take the time to wish you and your family a very happy and healthy Christmas holiday. For our friends of other faiths and in other countries, we invite you share in the spirit of the holiday season as your celebrate holidays and festivals of your own.

Dan J Kroll
Founder, Soap Central

Carly is at home with her family. She gets Morgan ready to go sledding, but Michael says he would rather hang out with Sonny. Jax comes in as he hears Carly fail at dissuading Michael from emulating Sonny. He goes over to Michael and instead of trying to change his mind, changes his focus to that of "Big Brother" and convinces him to go out and go sledding with Morgan. Carly call Jason.

In New York, Kate is in her hotel room waiting for room service when Trevor drops in. He tells Kate that she has made a wise decision to leave Sonny. Further, he will now magnanimously get her job back. He insists that he, not Sonny, was the target of the "hit" and that Kate saved his life. Kate recognizes him for the liar he is and tells him so in a very ladylike, yet devastating way. As he leaves, Trevor lashes back that she has closed the door to getting her job back and the door to his heart.

At Sonny's place, Jason is doing his best to calm Sonny down and get him to think logically. Jason suggests to Sonny that his concern about Kate has overcome his judgment. Sonny denies it, but does comply with Jason's suggestion that instead of rushing out and killing Johnny Zacchara, that they continue to study their options and allow for the fact that Trevor might be manipulating the situation. Jason heads for Carly's place, but not before Max tells Jason about the safe house he found for him. Jason tells Max that only the two of them will know that this safe house exists.

Luke regains consciousness to find Tracy asleep in a chaise lounge beside him. She wakes and tells him he slept through Christmas day. The surgery has been successful. Lulu and Johnny meet by accident in the lobby of General Hospital. As they exchange pleasantries, Lucky arrives and orders Johnny away from his sister. Lulu is angry about his high-handed behavior, but keeps it in check as they go visit her father. She leaves as soon as she can. Luke suspects that something is wrong, but before he can wheedle it out of Lucky, Bobbie arrives and they have a heartfelt talk. The doctor also visits Luke and tells him that he needs to watch his diet. He also warns him to give up cigars and alcohol. Tracy agrees that he will, but Luke does not give his agreement. When Tracy leaves the room, he calls his contact for Cuban cigars and is pleased to hear that a new shipment has arrived.

Diane arrives at Sonny's and he berates her for sending Kate back to New York. Diane gives as good as she gets and lets Sonny know in no uncertain terms that she believes Kate is better off without him. Before Sonny can respond to her, Lulu arrives, allowing Diane a quick exit. Lulu defends Johnny and tries to convince Sonny that they are both being played, but Sonny closes his mind to any possibility except the one he wants to see. He discourages Lulu and warns her to stay out of the conflict between the two men. He refuses to listen to her reasoning and has Max show her out. After she goes, Sonny receives a phone call from one of the men watching out for Kate, who tells him that she had a visit from Trevor.

When Jason arrives at Carly's home, Jax is gone. She tells him that she is concerned because Michael wants to be a mobster when he grows up. Jason assures her that neither he nor Sonny want Carly's sons to have the life that Sonny and Jason lead. Jason also tells Carly that he thinks Michael's feelings will change, and that most likely he is seeking a way to feel less helpless in the wake of Emily and Leticia's deaths. Aspiring to be a mobster is a way to gain control Jason tells her.

After Trevor leaves, a dejected Kate opens the door to Warren, the publisher of "Couture" magazine. Before he can say anything, she tells him about her visit from Trevor and assures him that she understands that he would have to bow to Trevor's blackmail and be unable to offer her job back. She will still like him, she says. When she finishes, Warren dumbfounds her by telling her to let him handle Trevor. He tells her that the magazine is faltering without her. He offers her an increased salary and other perks to come back. She agrees to look over the contracts. After Warren goes back to his office, Clarice calls Kate about the magazine. While they are talking, Sonny knocks on Kate's door.

Trevor meets Johnny at the Overlook and again lies convincingly to Johnny who is not as wise to his prevarications as is Kate. Trevor tells Johnny that they have to kill Sonny before he kills them. Trevor leaves Johnny to his contemplations. A few minutes later Lulu arrives and tells Johnny that he has to run away because she is now convinced that Sonny will kill him. He wants to know why she cares. Unbeknownst to Lulu and Johnny, they are under video surveillance. The male and female operative watching them believe that Lulu is Johnny's girlfriend, and thus the key to getting to Johnny, for their as yet unknown reasons.

Jax goes to the hospital to pay his respects to Robin over Georgie's death. Patrick sees them together and is jealous. Robin goes to her OB-GYN and tells her that she is ready to get pregnant, even if it means using a sperm bank.

After leaving Carly, Jason goes to the safe house. There is a knock on the door. When he opens it, Liz is there. He tells her he had to see her. They embrace.

Jason shows Liz the safe house he and Max found. He tells her that they can go there to be together and not worry about anyone seeing them together. They kiss and are about to share a meal together when Spinelli calls him to tell him that the police are at their home questioning him about Georgie's murder. Jason tells him not to say anything more to them until he gets there. Lucky and Detective Harper show Spinelli some unsent emails from Georgie addressed to him. In the emails Georgie pours out her feelings for Spinelli in them. Spinelli tells them he didn't realize the extent of her feelings for him. They accuse him of killing Georgie because he tried to return his feelings toward her and she changed her mind so he killed her. Spinelli vehemently denies killing Georgie because she was a cherished friend. Jason shows up and tells them to leave Spinelli alone after they try to drag him back to the police station for more questioning. Jason tells them that Spinelli was with him around the time of Georgie's murder and that he was helping him look for the real killer. Lucky tells them to stay out of the investigation and to tell them what they have found out and asks them if they know who the killer is. Jason and Spinelli don't tell them they suspect Cooper Barrett. Spinelli asks them if he can keep the emails from Georgie. Harper tells him he can have them since they are copies of the real emails anyway. Spinelli is very sad about finding out that Georgie was falling in love with him and he didn't have a clue. He tells Jason that he had a chance at having real love and may never have it ever again. Jason tells him that he doesn't know that for sure. Jason decides to go visit Emily's grave at the Quartermaine crypt. He thanks her for her unconditional love and support as his sister. Meanwhile, Maxie hangs around Kelly's. Cooper finds her there and tries to give her support. She tells him that he is the best thing that has happened to her. Logan ends up showing up to ask Cooper about Johnny Zacchara. Maxie doesn't want to hear about Lulu and tells Logan to go away. Logan pesters her and refuses to leave right away. Cooper comforts her. Maxie pulls away and tells him that she wonders if Georgie may have recognized the killer from the day when he tried to strangle her in her home and wonders if that is why she was murdered. She tells him that she only remembers that the killer smelled sweet but doesn't remember what he looked like. She also tells Cooper that Georgie was worried about her being hurt by him if she continued to see him again. She doesn't tell him about Georgie's suspicions that he could be the killer. Meanwhile, Lulu argues with Johnny in the park. Johnny refuses to listen to her defend Sonny to him and try to get him to not start a war with Sonny. Johnny doesn't like her around Logan also and tells her. She tells him that she is giving Logan another chance and that she doesn't want Johnny that way. Johnny doesn't believe her and tells her that if he pursued her right now he could get her for himself if he wanted to. Lulu storms off and goes to the hospital to see Luke. She gets a copy of Luke's dietary restrictions from Epiphany. Later, she meets up with Logan at the hospital. She gives him a big hug. He is relieved when she tells him that she is willing to keep trying to have a relationship with him. He invites her to go around town with him. They get on the elevator together. Suddenly, an unknown woman appears and asks them to hold the elevator for her. She gets on and thanks them. She turns out to be a member of some mob family that wants to do business with Johnny. She has been following Lulu around town to get some idea of her routine. She reports back that Lulu goes to the hospital every day to see her father. The other man is pleased that they know where to find Lulu. She suggests to him that they grab Lulu if Johnny doesn't agree to their deal at the meeting. Trevor shows up at the park to see Johnny. Johnny refuses to take orders from Trevor about having bodyguards around him all the time. Trevor stresses how important the meeting they are having with one of the families is going to be. Later, Johnny sees Lulu and Logan hanging out together and looking cozy together inside Kelly's.

Robin and Carly trade insults inside the waiting area of Dr. Lee's office. Carly brings up the past again concerning Robin's past relationship with Jason and how Robin blew it when she told AJ that Michael was his son and took him away from Jason. Robin points out that Carly had a hand in all of that as well. Carly insinuates that Robin can't keep a man long enough to have a baby because of her cold, selfish personality. Robin tells her she is out of line for getting into her own personal business. Carly tells her she made it her business by asking Jax to father her baby. Robin tells her that she is selfish for not giving Jax a baby herself. Robin storms off after telling Kelly she will talk to her later. Carly gets examined and learns she isn't pregnant and that she won't be able to conceive on her own without some medical interventions. Meanwhile, Jax runs into Alexis outside of Kelly's. He tells her that he and Carly are going to buy a hotel in Hawaii but that is not what he wanted for Christmas. He tells her he wants a baby. Later, Carly shows up late to Kelly's to meet Jax. He asks her what made her run late. Later, Robin gets information about sperm donor websites from Dr. Lee. Patrick watches them talking. He makes a comment to Liz about how practically perfect use to be enough but not for Robin. Liz tells him that if you try for a perfect life you end up with nothing. She tells him that she has learned that nothing is perfect and that it is o.k. for her right now.

Sonny shows up at Kate's hotel room to try to convince her to come back to him and return to Port Charles. Kate tells him that she doesn't fit into his life because it is too dangerous. She admits she is scared when he accuses her of trying to run away from life again and from him. She tells him about Trevor's visit after he tells her he came because he heard Trevor showed up to see her. She tells him about how she got her job back to work for "Couture" magazine even though she hasn't officially accepted it yet. She gets a call from her assistant about some layout. She yells over the phone for her assistant to show up ASAP. Her assistant shows up late and is full of apologies. Kate warns her that if she is late again she will fire her and find another assistant to take her place. The assistant runs off to do her work. Kate looks over the new layout for the magazine. Sonny watches her at work and isn't too pleased with what he sees. He thinks she is turning back into the uptight woman she was when he saw her again in his office all those months ago. She tells him that she has to be tough if she wants to work for the magazine and make it perfect. Sonny tries to convince her again to go back to Port Charles with him and be more of herself again. She tells him she can't go back to him and then see him get himself killed or herself killed. Sonny surprises her when he tells her he will fit into her world if she can't fit into his.

Kate talks to Warren on the phone. When they hang up, Sonny comments how she took care of Warren in that conversation. It's nice the old Connie is still there beneath Kate's surface. He tells her it's going to be easier for him to fit into her world than she thinks. He goes to answer the door and is greeted with another man telling him he's gorgeous. When he sees Sonny's dimples, the man tells Kate that if Sonny was the reason why she left Couture, he doesn't know why she ever came back. While Kate looks at some things for the magazine, the gentleman tells Sonny that Kate can be brutal in her world. There's a knock at the door and Sonny answers it. They tell him he's a long way away from home. Someone is there to deliver a message from a few of the New York families. While Kate and her friend work, Sonny assures the fellow mobster that the Zacchara family will be taken care of and he is not in town for business. Max and Sonny go back into Kate's room and her friend appears quite smitten with Max. After Max and Julius leave, Kate and Sonny laugh about Max's reaction to Julius. Kate still doesn't think Sonny will fit in to her world. She warns him that he's going to be jumping in to the deep end at the New Year's Eve party tomorrow night.

Trevor tells Johnny that Sonny is in New York right now. Trevor has a meeting with a huge importer who wants to make a deal with him. If they handle this right, they could get rid of Sonny and take over Port Charles. Johnny needs to go to this meeting alone to prove that he is in charge. He should go unarmed, too. They need him, so they won't hurt him. Johnny tells him he thinks Trevor wants Sonny and Johnny to kill each other. He could get another crack at Kate with Sonny out of the picture. Trevor denies it and says that Kate is out of his life forever. Trevor doesn't see Johnny go to his desk and get his gun. Trevor is talking about how they need allies if they are going to take down Jason and Sonny. Trevor tries to give Johnny advice. He tells him to start with monthly shipments and always look his client in the eye. Don't let them think he is a pushy lunatic. Trevor reminds Johnny that he's no Anthony Zacchara. Johnny tells him not to be so sure about that.

Jason talks to Milo about getting information from their informants. He wants to know every move that the Zacchara's make. Liz calls and Jason tells her he misses her. They have to be especially careful right now. Sonny is away and Jason is in charge. They can't get caught and let their enemies use Liz or Jake to get to Jason. Sam interrupts and knocks on the door. Sam demands to know if they are going to get involved in an all out war with the Zacchara's. Jason tells her he can't reveal that information to her. She wants to know if she needs to get her mom and sisters out of town. Jason says that steps have been taken to protect them. Sam reminds him that if Jason were able to protect everyone without any doubts, he would be with Liz and Jake. Sam assumes that Kate left town in order to be protected.

Alexis meets with Jerry at the Metro Court. He notices the change in hair color and compliments her. She wants to get straight down to business. He tells her he needs some transactions down on legal forms. He talks about slander and appears to be inferring to her. He tells her that he wants to take a large amount of money out of the country without the government finding out. She reminds him that her nephew is hurting right now because of something he did to him. She's not going to let him hurt anyone else. Jerry claims that he is not responsible for Nikolas. He did what he had to do to survive. The situation in Port Charles is becoming serious and he plans on keeping everyone he cares about safe. Alexis leaves, but Jax stops Jerry from leaving. He hands him some papers combining Jerry's contacts with Jax's resources to help people. Jax wants them to be partners. Jerry says he doesn't deserve this and can't do. He apologizes and leaves. Jax runs into Alexis later and tries to find out what is going on with his brother. Alexis reveals nothing about their client/attorney relationship. Jax asks her if she thinks it's possible that Jerry has changed.

Nikolas sits at home on the couch and Emily appears. He is relieved to see her. She wasn't in Switzerland with him, but he doesn't think he would have been able to hide that from the doctors. Lulu and Lucky show up and ask if the doctors found what was wrong with him. Nikolas explains that they ran tests but nothing has been discovered yet. The rages haven't been as bad since Emily's funeral. He feels her presence and it calms him. Nikolas tells Lucky about Harper trying to arrest him. He wants Lucky to find Emily's killer at any cost, even if he was the true killer. He tells them they all know that people can hurt the people they love even in ways they thought they couldn't. As if on cue, Liz shows up. She was curious what the doctor's found. She knows she should have called since she's not family anymore. Emily (only Nikolas can hear her) says yes, she is still family. Lulu tells her that she is still family. Stuff happens, things change, but not what the four of them meant to each other. They had an amazing bond. Emily would have wanted them to keep that. Nikolas tells her she doesn't know how right she is, and he hugs Liz. Lucky tells Liz that Lulu is right. A lot has gone on between them, but maybe they can get together for coffee and talk. Liz's phone rings. She tells him she has a lot going on right now and she has to take this phone call. She leaves and answers the phone. It's Jason. He tells her about Sam showing up before so he had to cut her off. He wants to meet with her now. Suddenly, Milo comes in and tells Jason that Johnny Zacchara is making a move. Jason cuts his conversation with Liz short again. Milo tells him that the information he received comes from a reliable source. They can't figure out why Johnny would be meeting with a known drug dealer. Jason says they will take care of it. He calls Liz back and tells her they can't meet tonight. He hates the situation, but he tells her that when the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve, they are going to be together.

Alexis and Sam show up at Wyndemere, anxious to find out about the doctors in Switzerland. Emily asks Nikolas why he's not telling everyone that the doctor's found a tumor. Nikolas finally reveals to everyone the truth. It's an inoperable because it's too risky to attempt surgery. The doctor's think it's genetic, so Nikolas advises Alexis to get herself and the girls tested.

At Kelly's, Spinelli sits depressed over the loss of Georgie. He sees some of Georgie's things that Mike cleaned out and asks if he can have them. Mike agrees. He asks Spinelli if he can take a look at the blender and Spinelli gets right to work. Spinelli observes Coop come downstairs and Logan approach him. Logan says he saw him at the pier last night and knows what he is up to. It has to stop. He was walking on the pier at night in all black. He knows he was looking for the killer. Spinelli can't stand anymore of the conversation and makes an excuse to leave. Coop questions why Logan was out on the docks. Logan sidesteps his question and leaves, with Spinelli watching.

Johnny walks in to his meeting and the man he is meeting Jr. Johnny tells him to call him Mr. Zacchara. The man talks about Anthony and how he had power and meant business. The kind of respect Anthony received has to be earned. Johnny stands up and pulls out his gun. He is quickly taken down by a goon. The man tells Johnny that his father would have never made that kind of mistake. Johnny asks which one of them is Moreau. The man tells him he's lucky Mr. Moreau isn't there yet. Johnny stands up and asks if this is how Mr. Moreau does business. They tell him he's lucky Mr. Moreau agreed to a meeting at all. Johnny grabs a bat and knocks out the guard. He holds a gun to the man's head and tells him his name is Johnny Zacchara and he wants to hear him say it. He obliges. Johnny tells him to remember his name. Tell Moreau not to disrespect him and keep him waiting. Make sure Moreau gets that message.

The woman who was previously following Lulu walks up to Jerry and asks, "How would you like me to handle this Mr. Moreau?"