Monica started her young life in a rough way. Orphaned at a young age, Monica was raised in a foundling home. She found herself wanting to be part of a real family. The woman who became a sort of surrogate mother to her, was a counselor, named Gail Adamson. Gail encouraged Monica to do well in school and apply for Med school. Monica pursued her dream of becoming a doctor. She also fell in love. His name was David Langston. David proposed to Monica and they planned to marry. However, David was drafted to serve in Vietnam. Monica was heartbroken when David was eventually considered MIA and presumed dead.

At about the same time, Monica had just learned that she was pregnant. It was too painful for her to lose David during this time. After long deliberation, Monica chose to put her baby up for adoption and finish med school to honor David's memory. She was unaware that the memory of David and the choice to give up her daughter would come up again years later.

Monica finished med school and fell in love with a fellow doctor, Dr. Rick Webber. However, their romance was short-lived when Rick went on a mission to Africa. He sent her a letter, breaking off their engagement. Monica was devastated and kept the letter a secret. Soon after, word was sent that Rick was killed in a plane crash. Monica found comfort in the arms of Rick's younger brother Jeff, a fellow med student. Monica confused that comfort for love and agreed to marry Jeff, who was in love with her. They graduated from med school and received internships at General Hospital in Port Charles, NY. Monica's marriage to Jeff was not happy for long. Jeff became jealous when other doctors hit on Monica. Jeff also felt he was living in his late brother Rick's shadow which made him feel insecure. Monica was shocked to learn much later that Rick was actually alive and heading to Port Charles.

Monica decided to head him off in New York and plead with him not to reveal what the letter he sent her actually said. Monica was surprised to learn that Rick had second thoughts about them and still loved her. He confessed that he still loved her. Monica was also still in love with him but married to Jeff. Monica tried to stay away from Rick despite how she still felt about him. Monica found she couldn't stay married to Jeff and have his children, knowing she really loved Rick. She tried to get a divorce but realized she needed Jeff's consent for a divorce. She decided to refuse to sleep with her husband to get him to grant her a divorce. Monica's marriage continued to deteriorate when a woman named Heather Grant went after Jeff for herself and used her ex-husband to get information to use against Monica to get Jeff. She got hold of the letter Rick sent Monica when he was in Africa and plotted so that Jeff got a hold of it. Jeff confronted Monica with the letter and asked her if she still loved Rick and then attacked her in a sexual way. Monica fought him off and took off to find Rick. She tore her own dress and told Rick that Jeff tried to attack her. Rick comforted her and they made love. Monica's problems weren't over when she realized that Dr. Leslie Faulkner was in love with Rick and found out she was pregnant. She thought the baby was Rick's until his sister set her straight. Monica confronted Leslie and told her to stay away from Rick and that they were having an affair. Jeff found out about their affair and disappeared at some bar. Jeff was found in the back room of the bar unconscious with a bullet in his brain. Rick blamed himself because of the affair and broke it off with Monica. Monica decided to stay married to Jeff after he regained consciousness. She wanted to keep her job at General Hospital and to be close to where Rick worked. Jeff decided to give his marriage a second chance. Monica agreed to have Jeff's baby but secretly took birth control pills. Monica was insanely jealous to see Rick get closer to Leslie and was devastated when Rick and Leslie announced their engagement. Monica asked Jeff for a divorce which he granted. Monica confronted Leslie and threatened to expose their affair and ruin Rick's career if Leslie didn't break off their engagement. Monica took off and didn't hear Leslie scream when she fell down the stairs. Leslie lost her baby and took off for awhile but ended up marrying Rick to Monica's dismay. Monica decided to start over and concentrate on her career. She was helping with the building of a new cardiac wing at General Hospital when a new doctor on staff, helping to fund the renovation, caught her eye. His name was Dr. Alan Quartermaine. Monica was assigned to assist Alan and the two butted heads throughout the project. That combativeness softened into romance by early 1978.

Alan decided to stay in Port Charles and work at General Hospital after the project was completed. He confessed his feelings to Monica and they became engaged. Monica found herself dealing with Alan's jealous behavior when he found her working closely with Rick at GH. He constantly questioned their relationship. Monica found herself dealing with her feelings for Rick. After GH was quarantined, Monica and Rick found themselves working closely together to stop this deadly disease from claiming more lives at GH. They tried to fight their feelings but couldn't for long. They ended up making love.

Monica learned she was pregnant soon after and didn't know who the baby's father was. She was hoping it was secretly Rick's but Rick's rejection of continuing the affair made Monica give her marriage to Alan another chance. She gave birth to a son and named him Alan Jr., still unsure if it was Rick's or Alan's. She did confess her affair with Rick to Leslie while giving birth. Monica also had to deal with a very mean, jealous sister-in-law named Tracy, Alan's kid sister, who tried to prove Alan Jr.(A.J.) was really Rick's so that own son Ned would be the next heir to the Quartermaine fortune. A.J. turned out to be Alan's after a birthmark was discovered that was a common Quartermaine birth trait. Alan found out about Monica's affair with Rick and plotted his revenge by plotting to kill Monica and Rick. His plan backfired. However, Monica ended up staying with Alan eventually when Rick went back to his wife Leslie. Monica still couldn't help herself when it came to working with Rick. Monica still pursued him and rejected Alan. Alan had an affair with a woman named Susan Moore, who became pregnant by him. She gave birth to a son, named him Jason. Alan refused to divorce Monica and marry Susan but agreed to financially support Jason. When Alan reluctantly filed for divorce later, Monica retaliated by vowing to put the Quartermaine mansion up for sale. Monica owned the mansion legally because Alan had put the house title in her name as a wedding gift years before. Alan went back to Susan but found he wasn't attracted to Susan anymore and realized he still loved Monica. Monica added fuel to the fire and sued for full custody of Alan Jr.

Eventually, Alan and Monica reconciled. After the murder of Alan's former mistress, Susan, Monica agreed to let Alan raise Jason in the mansion and eventually thought of him as her son. Alan and Monica spent the remaining years having extra-marital affairs after one or the other felt rejected by their spouse. Monica started an affair with former WSB-agent Sean Donely. Alan left town, faked his own death, and set Sean up for the murder. Monica and Sean broke up and Monica found out that Alan was hiding out in some small town somewhere, as a boarder of some widow, named Charity. Monica exposed Alan's scheme to help clear Sean. Monica resumed her marriage to Alan. Around 1989, a young woman named Dawn showed up in town. She eventually revealed to Monica that she was her long-lost daughter, whom she had given up for adoption all those years ago. Monica took her in with open arms and the two women eventually formed a close mother-daughter bond. Dawn fell in love with Monica's nephew Ned, whom Monica had an affair with out of town, unaware that he was Alan's nephew. Dawn learned about their affair after ease-dropping on their conversation. Monica and Dawn's relationship became strained for awhile because of this discovery. Dawn forgave Monica for her affair with Ned. Dawn ended up annulling her marriage to Ned. Monica was devastated when she learned that Dawn was killed by some enemies of Dawn's new boyfriend, Decker Moss. Alan's affair with Lucy didn't help matters. When Lucy and Alan's affair ended up on the front page of the local paper, Monica was humiliated and filed for a divorce. Monica was further upset when Alan was forced to marry Lucy shortly afterward to avoid an all out scandal. However, Monica found herself becoming close to Alan when they worked together at GH and Alan realized what a mistake his marriage to Lucy had been. Alan dumped Lucy after he learned that she had gotten pregnant by Scott Baldwin and tried to pass the child off as his. Alan romanced and seduced Monica to take him back and the two remarried in 1991. Monica was shocked one evening when a cardiac patient was admitted at GH. He turned out to be David Langston, Monica's long lost first love. Monica treated him and eventually confessed to her friend Bobbie that David was Dawn's father. Alan got jealous when she began spending all of her spare time sitting at David's bedside. David's daughter, Nikki arrived when she heard about her father's plane crash. Monica treated him for a serious heart condition that needed surgery. Nikki resented Monica's close bond with David and was devastated to learn that her father and Monica were once engaged and had a child. David died from an apparent heart attack and could not be saved. Nikki sued Monica for malpractice and liability in her dad's death. Monica ended up cleared when his condition proved to have already existed and had been terminal. Alan's support of Monica during her trial strengthened their marriage. Monica's marriage to Alan was as strong as ever, until tragedy struck. Monica had been feeling discomfort in her breasts and had finally had a mammogram done at GH. The results showed a lump in one breast. Monica had a biopsy done and was later diagnosed with breast cancer. Monica was scared that she was going to die. She decided to check into a prestigious cancer treatment center in Arizona. She befriended a woman named Paige Bowen who had breast cancer as well. Paige had a young daughter named Emily. Monica befriended Emily as well. Paige's cancer had returned and it was not good news. The cancer had spread to her lungs. She asked Monica to raise Emily after she died since there was no other family accept for a sister that she was estranged from and didn't trust to raise Emily. Monica agreed to raise Emily. She invited Paige and Emily to move into the mansion so Emily could meet the family and get to know everyone.

In early 1995, Paige died. Monica had a hard time getting Emily to accept her as any kind of mother figure. Monica resented the fact that Alan had such an easy time bonding with Emily, she rejected his support and comfort. Monica had to have a mastectomy and that feeling of insecurity caused her to reject Alan sexually as well. This put a strain on the marriage. Monica turned to someone else to feel sexy and wanted. His name was Dr. Pierce Dorman, a new young doctor on staff at GH. Pierce flirted with her and gave her compliments all the time. Monica pursued an affair with Pierce. Later, she learned Pierce was supplying drugs to young kids through another kid who was one of Emily's classmates. Emily was exposed to the drugs and got addicted. Monica learned about Pierce's involvement and how he was using Emily as revenge for her rejecting him and stopping their affair. Monica was furious and lured Pierce to a hotel room outside of Port Charles. She drugged him with a drink and tied him up in a chair when he was unconscious. She tried to get him to confess what he did on tape while he was tied up. Monica's son Jason, who had been in a car accident and woke up a different person, came to her aid and used his ties with the mob to prevent her from being arrested. Monica's rejection of Alan took its toll and when she finally decided to get close to Alan, Alan withdrew from her and the whole family. Monica was shocked to learn that Alan was addicted to painkillers and had become a junkie. Monica kicked him out of the mansion when he refused to get professional help. Monica took over as chief of staff at GH. Monica's cancer had gone into remission and she was stronger than ever. Alan's efforts to help kick his addiction took a toll on the marriage. However, Alan stepped in and saved the life of Mac Scorpio, after he had been shot at his club, where Alan happened to be when it happened, and Monica was reassured that all was not lost with Alan. Monica took Alan back when he finally got professional help for his addiction and returned to his old self. Monica found herself concentrating on her children's lives. Monica reached out to understand her estranged son Jason, so she could see her grandson, Michael. She found herself protecting A.J. from the scheming Caroline "Carly" Corinthos Jacks, who managed to get A.J. to marry her and then rejected him later. Monica found herself going through menopause as well, which she mistook as a possible pregnancy. This brought her closer to Alan.

Monica found herself feeling insecure about Alan's past relationship with Rae Cummings, an old flame with whom Alan had fathered a daughter -- that he knew nothing about. His daughter, Skye Chandler, also knew nothing about her father. Skye's presence would become a thorn in Monica's side for a while and create tension between her and Alan since he tended to side with his newfound daughter.

While A.J. was courting Courtney to goad Sonny, he fooled Alan into thinking that he actually loved Courtney. Alan then agreed to help the couple escape the hospital via helicopter when Sonny came looking for them. Alan was later furious to learn that A.J. had lied to him and was only using Courtney to get at Michael. Alan and Monica were less than thrilled when A.J. and Courtney returned from their getaway to announce that they had gotten married. When Skye pointed out that A.J. was showing signs of drinking again, Alan agreed with her but Monica refused to side with Skye. A.J. and Courtney moved into the mansion where Alan could hardly stomach A.J. spinning his web of lies to Courtney.

When Rae returned for a brief visit in order to talk to Alan about Skye, Monica responded by serving Alan with divorce papers. Alan continued to fight with Monica about her support of A.J. and his quest to get Michael back. Alan finally won the war when Monica, prompted by words from Jason, told A.J. to stop using Courtney to get to Michael or move out. Monica then reneged on her divorce from Alan and they reconciled.

Alan's jealous side came out when later when Rick Webber returned to town to be part of Laura's upcoming wedding. Alan was livid to see his wife in several animated conversations with Rick and even more upset to see them dancing together at Luke's during a party for the hospital. He warned Rick to keep his hands off his wife, and Monica reveled in Alan's attention.

Alan's black sheep sister Tracy came into town briefly a few weeks later. Ever the conniver, Tracy revealed to Skye and Alan that Skye was not his daughter. Tracy had known at the time that Rae was pregnant that Alan was not the father so she blackmailed Rae into leaving town. But much to Skye and Monica's surprise, Alan told Skye that he would always think of her as his daughter.

Emily had also returned with a secret of her own: she was suffering from breast cancer. Alan found out when Monica tried to have her treated at another hospital. Together, Alan and Monica supported Emily and convinced her to seek treatment. But even after treatment Emily only seemed to get worse. Alan and Monica couldn't believe their daughter was going to die. But she recovered and after briefly trying to make her marriage to Zander work, she left him to be with Nikolas.

Alan and the rest of the family were baffled to learn that A.J. had managed to empty the family's bank accounts and take off into the sunset with the money. A few weeks later Emily and Nikolas announced their engagement and Nikolas' bankrupt financial status. But their financial problems seemed to be over when Emily and Nikolas announced that they had found a sunken ship that had belonged to the Quartermaines several generations ago. The ship had contained a lot of treasure and Nikolas and Emily planned to hire Sam to salvage the treasure. Then the families would split it down the middle. Alan and Monica agreed to the split in order to support Emily, but Tracy had other plans. She pretended to go along with it but really made her own plans to pay Sam to give them the whole treasure. However, Sam took off with the treasure, leaving behind a disgruntled Quartermaine family.

The treasure came back to the Quartermaines when Nikolas and Emily were able to figure out where Helena, who had stolen it from Sam, had hidden it. The couple held an auction of the treasure with the intent of splitting the proceeds equally between their two families. However Luke stole the treasure and the PC hotel where the auction was being held caught on fire. The attendees had just started to evacuate when the firefighters closed down the elevators, leaving everyone left trapped in the auction room. Although Alan had wanted Emily to go in the first group, Monica persuaded him to go since doctors would be needed to help the injured. Eventually everyone made it out alive. Edward nearly died from a heart attack soon after, which greatly shook Alan. He encouraged Edward to pretend to be senile to escape responsibility for the hotel fire. It was later proven that the fire had been deliberately set, letting the Quartermaines off the hook. So Edward tried to get back the CEO position at ELQ. Alan and Monica voted against him out of fear of his health. But Edward eventually won against Tracy.

A few months later Alan was shocked to find out that Lila died in her sleep. The whole family was grief stricken, especially Edward. However, none of them could claim any of Lila's money for one month. Lila had left a stipulation in her will that a judge would award her estate to the person who acted the most virtuous in the next month. Monica and Alan were disqualified within the first week after they tried to conspire against the rest of the family. The money chase was put on hold during a particularly scary evening at home. A storm knocked out the power in the house, an accident on the road left everyone stranded for awhile, and then Sage Alcazar was discovered stabbed to death in the basement freezer. Mac arrived by helicopter to find the killer. Alan and Monica cornered who they believed was the killer by the boathouse. However, it was only Faith. The real killer turned out to be Mary, who was after Emily in order to get "Connor" (Nikolas) back. In the confrontation with Mary, Nikolas shot her to protect Emily. Mary was then hospitalized where she showed signs of a serious mental break.

As the family recovered from Mary's attacks, Nikolas and Emily again found themselves involved in another attempted murder. After Nikolas's grandmother, Helena, threatened and eventually cursed Emily (the antidote to the curse was to kiss in the Garden of Aphrodite), the couple understood just how desperate their situation was. After the curse was broken, Helena cornered Emily on the cliffs and tried to murder her. Nikolas saved Emily, but even after he had forced the knife from Helena's hand, he threw her over the cliffs, and it appeared that she had died. Nikolas later confessed to the murder, but the couple decided to still go through with their wedding. Both Alan and Monica shared their reservations with Emily, but she was determined. Continuing their unwavering support of their daughter, Alan and Monica each testified on Nikolas's behalf at his sentencing. Nikolas was sent to prison, despite the testimonies on his behalf. Monica and Alan encouraged Emily to move back in to the Quartermaine mansion, but she decided to remain at Wyndemere.

Monica experienced many difficult losses in the next few years, starting with the news that Michael had been kidnapped. Both Monica and Alan blamed Sonny's mob connections. While Michael was still missing, Justus delivered the devastating news that A.J. had been murdered in the Bahamas. Monica and Alan were dealt another blow when Emily informed them that Michael was dead. Monica struggled with her own grief and was concerned when Alan turned to alcohol. She tried to shock Alan into sobriety by threatening to sell the mansion.

Alan and Monica received some happy news when they learned that A.J. was still alive, although their happiness was short lived. Alan learned A.J. had kidnapped Michael and faked both his death and Michael's when he found them hiding at the mansion. Alan realized it would be best for Michael to return to Sonny and Carly and A.J. turned against him. During an altercation with Jason, A.J. broke his back and was hospitalized. While in the hospital, he was smothered to death. Monica told Jason she saw Michael standing over A.J.'s bed, but she agreed to keep quiet to protect her grandson. Dr. Thomas was later revealed as the real killer.

Monica and Alan disagreed over Jason's role in A.J.'s death. Alan accused Monica of once again choosing Jason over A.J. Her fury with Alan reached a high point when she saw Alan secretly remove something from a hidden spot in the garden. It was confirmation that A.J. had hired Dr. Thomas to kill Jason after he was injured in the accident A.J. had caused while intoxicated ten years ago. Dr. Thomas had injected Jason with medication to stop his heart, but Alan resuscitated Jason. A.J. confessed his crime in the form of a letter and planned to turn himself into the police. Alan interceded and convinced A.J. not to confess. Monica believed A.J. would still be alive if he had been forced to face the consequences of his actions ten years earlier. Monica and Alan separated briefly while Monica worked through her anger but eventually forgave Alan and reconciled with him.

Both Alan and Monica were extremely concerned when Emily divorced Nikolas and moved in with Sonny Corinthos. Emily claimed she was only helping Sonny with his children, but Monica and Alan believed a romantic relationship was developing. When Emily turned down an offer from Monica to assist on a rare procedure to spend time with Sonny instead, they confronted her. Alan threatened to have her expelled from medical school if she continued to see Sonny and Alan banned her from the family home. Monica was relieved when Emily ended her relationship with Sonny and reconciled with Nikolas.

In early 2007, Monica was frantic when many of her loved ones, including Alan, Emily, Jason, and Dillon, were trapped and held as hostages inside the Metro Court Hotel. A man named Mr. Craig, who was later revealed to be Jerry Jacks, locked down the hotel and trapped everyone inside while he waited to open a briefcase from Lorenzo Alcazar. Alan suffered a heart attack while he was held hostage and was the only hostage released early. He collapsed as he exited the hotel and was taken immediately into surgery. Monica performed surgery on Alan but she knew his chances at survival were slim due to the extensive damage his heart had suffered. She was able to profess her love for her husband one final time before he died.

When Alan's last will and testament was read, Monica was shocked to hear that Alan had named Tracy as his primary beneficiary. Monica knew Tracy and Luke had altered the will and badgered them constantly to allow Alan's will to be followed the way it had been written, with any of Jason's future children as the main beneficiaries. Tracy claimed she could see Alan's ghost and that he was haunting her. Monica helped Edward arrange for Tracy to be committed to Shadybrook.

Monica's pain did not end with the death of her husband. Just a few months after his death, Jason visited Monica and delivered the news that Emily had been murdered, likely by one of Jason's enemies. Monica pushed Jason away and instructed him to never visit her again. She blamed Jason for Emily's death and banned him from attending Emily's funeral. She refused to chance her stance on Jason's attendance at the funeral even when Sonny pleaded with Monica on Jason's behalf.

In the aftermath of Alan and Emily's deaths, Monica struggled with her grief and turned to alcohol, even when she was on duty at the hospital. She returned to work immediately after Emily's death. Her first surgery after Emily's death was on Tracy's husband Luke Spencer. He needed a quadruple bypass surgery and was on the operating table when Monica froze. She had a vision of Emily. Another doctor stepped in, but Luke flat-lined temporarily. Although he recovered, Tracy filed a malpractice lawsuit against Monica when she realized Monica was drinking throughout the day, including at work.

Monica responded to Tracy's lawsuit by kicking Tracy and Luke out of the mansion. Tracy quickly turned the tables on Monica when she realized Monica's car had been in an accident around the same time Sam McCall was the victim of a hit and run accident. When she was confronted by Tracy about her car, Monica claimed her car was stolen.

Monica agreed to allow Tracy and Luke to remain at the mansion in exchange for Tracy's silence about the accident. Jason found proof Monica had been behind the wheel while intoxicated and had hit Sam. Monica confessed to the police and Jason hired his attorney, Diane Miller, to represent Monica. She was sentenced to rehab and community service.

Monica was initially pleased when Jason arrived to visit her at the rehab center. Monica's joy was quickly halted when Jason explained the reason for his visit. He was there to deliver the news to Monica that Michael had been shot in the head by a stray bullet and was in a permanent coma.

The deaths of both Alan and Emily had taken an extreme toll on Monica, but she was able to conquer her dependency on alcohol. She was given a unique gift on Christmas of 2008. She received a special pair of glasses that allowed her to see Alan. They quickly fell into their usual pattern of bickering and then exchanged words of undying love.

When Monica returned to work after her time in rehab, she continued to serve as the chief of staff. She was in the operating room performing a surgery on a man named Earl Bragg when a bio-toxin was released from his body. He carried capsules of the dangerous bio-toxin inside of him and the surgical team accidently cut into one. Everyone in the operating room, including Monica, passed out from their exposure to the toxin. Monica was taken to Mercy hospital and made a full recovery.

At the same time the bio-toxin had entered the hospital, a woman who looked just like Emily applied for a job at General Hospital. Her name was Rebecca Shaw and Monica was immediately taken with her. Rebecca claimed she had never heard of Emily, but Rebecca experienced a breast cancer scare soon after she settled in Port Charles. Monica bonded with Rebecca and shared her own experience with breast cancer.

Nikolas was also intrigued with Rebecca and he sought Monica's approval in pursuing a relationship with Rebecca. Monica assured Nikolas he was not disloyal to Emily or the memory of her and encouraged him to move forward with Rebecca. In time, it was proven that Rebecca was Emily's twin sister. They had been separated at birth. Rebecca knew about Emily and planned to use her connection to Emily to con the Quartermaines and Nikolas. When Monica learned the truth, she stood by Rebecca and financed Rebecca's pursuit of a new life outside of Port Charles.

Monica and the rest of the Quartermaines received a surprise when they learned Luke's marriage to Tracy was never valid. Everyone was initially overjoyed to have Luke and his schemes out of their hair until they realized how miserable Tracy was without him. Luke faked a heart attack to gain sympathy from Tracy. Monica allowed Luke to move back in to the mansion while he recovered on one condition. Luke had one month to convince Tracy to marry him. Luke succeeded and did marry Tracy, but Monica was out of town and did not attend the wedding.

Monica saw an opening to get to know Michael when Edward hired him as a summer intern at ELQ. Monica went to Michael's office where she found Tracy snooping through Michael's desk. Monica accused Tracy of trying to sabotage her grandson, so the two women argued. During the argument Tracy blurted out that Michael wasn't Monica's only grandson. Tracy tried to take back the careless comment, but Monica demanded to know what Tracy had meant by the remark. Tracy reluctantly told Monica that Jake Webber had been Jason's son. Monica was overcome with grief and hurt as she recalled the brief interactions that she'd had with Jake, and the missed opportunities to get to know her grandson.

After the initial shock regarding Jake's paternity wore off, Monica confronted Jason and Elizabeth separately and shared her anger and sorrow over the opportunity she missed to be a grandmother. Jason apologized for his decision and promised to make more of an effort to include Monica in his life in the future. Soon after, Jason was involved in a car accident and rendered unconscious. Monica learned that Jason was engaged to Sam and the women bonded when Monica agreed that Sam should make the medical decisions on Jason's behalf.

Jason seemed to have recovered from the accident and Monica presented Sam with Alan's ring to give to Jason. Although Sam and Jason had a private ceremony, she celebrated their marriage and wished them the best. After the newlyweds returned from their honeymoon, Elizabeth was hospitalized and called out for Jason. He comforted Elizabeth and Monica feared that Elizabeth would come between Jason and his new wife. Monica hid her concern but she hinted to Sam that they should have a child. She was thrilled when Sam announced a few months later that they were expecting a child and that she would have a role in the child's life.

Monica feared for her son again when he suffered seizures caused by swelling in his brain. An exploratory surgery into Jason's brain revealed that his current brain swelling was caused by a particle of the dashboard from Jason's original car accident with AJ. Monica briefly imagined what Jason might have been like if he had never been in the accident and remained a Quartermaine. She realized his life may not have turned out any better and they may not have been any closer and she decided to accept who Jason had become.

Monica consulted with the top doctors about the best course of treatment for Jason and it seemed his only option was to wait for Robin Scorpio-Drake to develop a drug protocol that could be surgically implanted by Patrick Drake. As Jason waited for the treatment to be developed he asked Monica to care for Sam and his child in the event of his death. She promised that she would look out for his family but assured him that would not be necessary because he was strong and had so much to live for. Jason did survive the surgery but his close friend Robin was presumed dead after creating the drug protocol. Sam decided that Jason should not learn of Robin's death until after he had recovered and Monica agreed with Sam's decision.

Jason made a full recovery after his surgery and Monica looked forward to her role in the life of Jason and Sam's child. She was heart-broken when Jason visited her and announced that his twin brother, Franco, had raped Sam and was the father of her unborn child. Monica reminded Jason that she was not his biological mother but she loved him regardless and that Jason would feel the same once he held Sam's child. She hoped that Jason would take her advice but instead she received word that Sam's child had died at birth.

Monica remained hopeful that Sam and Jason would bond over the loss of the child and would eventually reconcile their differences. Her wish came true and more when Sam's child was revealed to be alive and Jason decided to raise the baby as his own. However the night Jason took his wife and son home with him, he was involved in a mob-related shooting at the pier and fell into the harbor after being shot. He was presumed deceased and Monica was forced to mourn another family member.

In the midst of the latest tragedy, Monica contacted someone and shared the news of Jason's death. The person was her son A.J. and he returned to Port Charles to be with her. During their reunion Monica revealed that she had allowed everyone, including Alan, to believe that A.J. was dead in order to prevent him from serving time in prison for shooting Alan. Monica appreciated A.J.'s visit but she asked him to leave town immediately before anyone else learned he was alive. A.J. disregarded her instructions and instead made contact with his son Michael.

As Monica feared, A.J.'s presence in Port Charles was discovered and he was forced to face the pending charges against him. Although she had initially pushed him to remain in hiding, she was glad to have him close by when Edward passed away. Monica was with her father-in-law during his final moments. Edward acknowledged Monica's love and devotion to the family and he bequeathed a portion of ELQ to her.

After Edward's passing, Monica encouraged A.J. to rebuild his relationship with Michael and she supported A.J.'s decision to date Elizabeth Webber. Monica also helped A.J. gain enough votes to overtake Tracy as the CEO of ELQ. She was overjoyed to see A.J. in such a positive place with Elizabeth and Michael in his life.

However Monica's joy quickly changed to concern after Tracy ousted A.J. at the helm of ELQ based upon information that Sonny's girlfriend Connie Falconeri had uncovered. A.J. turned to alcohol and was arrested for Connie's murder. As a result of A.J's arrest, Monica lost her position as Chief of Staff at the hospital. A.J. was found not guilty although he was still unable to recall if he had killed Connie while intoxicated and Elizabeth ended their relationship.

Monica tried to help A.J. get his life back on track but her efforts were unsuccessful. A.J. continued to drink until he was shot and killed. Monica was forced to mourn the death of yet another child and wished that she could join her children and husband in the afterlife. In her grief, she was visited by the spirits of Emily and A.J. They tried to bring her peace and reminded her that Michael and Danny needed her presence in their lives. Michael and Monica offered each other support after A.J.'s death. When Sonny confessed to A.J.'s murder, Michael walked away from the man that had raised him and returned to the Quartermaine family. Monica was thrilled with her grandson's decision and believed that her troubled son was finally at peace after Michael procured proof that A.J. had not killed Connie.