Luke arrived in Port Charles at the request of his sister, Bobbie, to help her split up Scotty Baldwin -- who Bobbie wanted for herself -- and Laura Webber. Luke took a shine to Laura's innocence, and she was drawn to Luke's unconventional lifestyle and love of adventure. Although Bobbie's plan didn't work, after marrying Scotty, Laura went to work for Luke at the Campus Disco. Luke was ordered by the mob to kill Mitch Williams, a corrupt politician who was campaigning for the Senate with the promise to crack down on organized crime. Feeling trapped and about to die no matter what he did, he confessed to Laura the night before the hit that he loved her and ached to make love to her. Almost delirious with his anguish, he kissed Laura and pulled at her clothes, but she ultimately resisted. With music pulsating in the background, Luke raped Laura on the dance floor of the Campus Disco.

In 1980, Frank Smith pressured Luke into proposing to Frank's daughter Jennifer. On Luke and Jennifer's wedding day, Scotty read a letter from Laura to Luke in which Luke was named as her rapist. As Luke was about to exchange vows with Jennifer, Scotty boarded the yacht and proceeded to start a fight with Luke. Luke fell overboard, and Laura thought he had drowned. However, as she paced the docks, he reached out of the water and grabbed her leg. Luke and Laura then swiped Frank Smith's little black book, which once decoded, would detail the criminal activities of Frank and his organization, and took off on the run. When Frank discovered they had taken the implicating book, he tried several tactics to flush them out into the open. Eventually, he sent a hit man after them.

Luke and Laura had a wonderful time on the run from Frank Smith. Laura was unsure at first about breaking her marriage vows to Scotty, so they waited to make love. When the hit man caught up to them, he didn't reveal his identity, and they all worked together at a tavern. But then another hit man arrived in town to kill all of them. Eventually, Luke cracked the book and turned it over to the cops, and Frank Smith was jailed.

Luke and Laura returned to a farm they had spent happy days on and consummated their relationship. When they returned to Port Charles, they were met by reporters. Startled by memories of the David Hamilton situation from her past, Laura blurted out to the reporters that she was Mrs. Laura Baldwin and had been unfaithful while away. Heartbroken, Luke sulked away from Laura despite Laura's willingness to divorce Scotty.

While Luke and Laura were working for ELQ, the adventure of the Ice Princess began. Luke was in search of this stone for Alexandria Quartermaine, but when he became friends with Robert Scorpio, a secret WSB agent, Luke learned that the Cassadines were after it and Alexandria was conspiring with them. When Victor Cassadine obtained the stone, he jumped on his yacht with his brother Tony and set off for the Cassadine tropical island. But Robert and Luke stowed away on the yacht and discovered a third stowaway: Laura. When the yacht docked at the island, the trio hid while the Cassadine brothers met up with their older, evil genius brother Mikkos in his underground cavern.

Luke and Laura enjoyed the tropical paradise while Robert utilized Victor's mistress, Tiffany Hill, who hated Mikkos' secret plan, to find the entrance to the cavern. Mikkos revealed his plan to use the formula in the Ice Princess to create a substance capable of altering the climates of the world. When the group of four do-gooders entered the cavern, Mikkos issued an ultimatum: surrender or he would use his freezing machine to freeze the world, starting with Port Charles. But Luke and Robert were able to turn the machine on him and freeze him along with Alexandria and Tony. Victor went to jail, and the world was safe from the Cassadines.

When the trio returned to Port Charles, Laura divorced Scotty and, in 1981, Luke and Laura were married. After they exchanged vows, Helena Cassadine, Mikkos' widow, placed a curse on them. A year later, Laura disappeared on the docks of Port Charles, and Luke went crazy with worry. A New York City reporter, Jackie Templeton, arrived in town in search of her own Laura: her sister. Together, Luke and Jackie discovered that David Gray, a mysterious man who wanted to steal treasures from the Port Charles Museum, was behind both disappearances. When Luke discovered that David had killed Laura, he killed David in a fight.

Despondent over Laura's death, Luke took off and went camping. While camping, he met English con artist Holly Sutton. She embroiled him in a scam involving oil, but her conscience got the best of her, and she revealed the truth. They became lovers temporarily until they had a fight and Luke took off by himself. He was caught in an avalanche and broke his back. When he discovered that Port Charles, including Holly and Robert, believed he had died, he decided not to return.

Luke later changed his mind and returned to Port Charles, only to discover that Holly had married his best friend, Robert Scorpio. Luke severed his friendship with Robert. He was then elected mayor of Port Charles. One day, Laura appeared on the lawn of his mansion, and he could hardly believe his eyes. She had not died; Stavros Cassadine had kidnapped her, taken her to Greece, and held her captive. Stavros followed her to Port Charles and was killed when he fell down the stairs during a fight with Luke.

Luke and Laura then resumed their life on the run from Frank Smith. They moved to Canada, and Luke fathered his first son, Lucky. In 1993, they returned to Port Charles with Lucky. Frank Smith was finally killed in Puerto Rico, and Luke was able to settle in Port Charles safely with his family. He opened a blues club with Sonny Corinthos. Luke and Laura then had a daughter, Lesley Lu.

In 1996, Lesley Lu became very ill with aplastic anemia and was in need of a bone marrow donor. It was then that Luke learned that when Laura had been kidnapped, she had been told that Luke was dead and had married Stavros Cassadine. She bore him a son, Nikolas, who turned out to be a perfect match for the bone marrow that Lesley Lu needed.

The Cassadine/Spencer war had started. Suspicious of Stefan, Luke and Laura faked Laura's and her mother's deaths. While Laura and Lesley were in hiding, Luke was able to figure out that Stefan planned to take over the world with a computer virus put in the world's financial systems. Lucky used his computer skills to help Luke secretly stop Stefan from doing this. The next battle in the war involved Luke trying to dig up some dirt on Alexis and Stefan to try to break up their partnership. He was able to get Alexis banished from the family and then immediately set to work trying to convince her to take down Stefan. In the process, Luke discovered that Alexis' real identity was Natasha Cassadine, Mikkos Cassadine's illegitimate daughter. He used this information to blackmail her into helping him.

Luke enjoyed battling Stefan, but a bigger enemy was about to arrive. Enter Helena Cassadine, Mikkos' widow, who had cursed Laura and Luke several years earlier on their wedding day. When Helena arrived in town in late 1997, Luke increased his efforts in getting Alexis to side with him against the Cassadines. But it was Helena's efforts against Alexis that convinced Alexis to join forces with Luke. They plotted to kill Helena at Stefan and Katherine's engagement party at Wyndemere by luring her onto the parapet, where Luke had loosened the railing, and she would fall to her death. But things went terribly wrong when Katherine went out on the parapet first and fell to her death instead. Luke managed to convince a horrified Alexis not to confess to Stefan their part in Katherine's death.

Instead, Stefan was arrested, and Luke tried to frame both Stefan and Helena for the murder. However, Luke's wife foiled the plan when she took the stand in Stefan's defense and stated that she had been on the parapet when Katherine fell; she corroborated Stefan's statement that he had not pushed Katherine, so he was found not guilty. That revelation was devastating enough to Luke, but then Laura confirmed his worst fear -- she told him that she and Stefan had engaged in an affair while she was missing, and Luke concluded that Nikolas was actually Stefan's son. Laura also realized that Luke was responsible for the loose railing that had led to Katherine's death and couldn't forgive him. Luke decided to take his shock and anger and leave Port Charles for a while in order to pull himself together.

When Luke returned a few months later, Katherine was back from the dead, and Laura was involved with Stefan. So Luke went to work patching up his relationship with his son, Lucky. Before Luke had left, Nikolas had blurted out to Lucky that Luke had raped Laura years before. Lucky had confronted Luke, and Luke had told Lucky what had happened on that horrible night in the disco. Disgusted, Lucky shut his dad out of his life.

Luke and Lucky were slowly repairing their relationship when Lucky was presumed dead in a fire that broke out in Jason's bike shop. Luke and Laura were devastated, but unable to turn to each other for comfort. Hurting, Luke had a one-night stand with Tammy Carson in his bar. Then he sought comfort with Felicia Jones, who tried to distract him by getting him to help her research Lila Quartermaine's memoirs. Together, they unearthed a deep, dark Quartermaine secret: Lila had killed her fiancé, Elliot Thompson, in self-defense years earlier, and Edward had covered it up. Luke and Felicia agreed to keep their discovery a secret.

Herr Krieg approached Luke with an offer to smuggle diamonds. When Luke wanted to call the shots, Herr got upset, and Luke discovered Herr's true identity: Cesar Faison. Faison had killed Robert Scorpio and Robert's wife, Anna Devane. Afraid that Faison was after Felicia, Luke agreed to smuggle the diamonds. When Felicia went with Luke to Mexico to get the diamonds, Faison confronted the duo and demanded the diamonds in exchange for Felicia's life. Luke agreed in order to protect Felicia, who he was developing feelings for.

Felicia and Luke headed back to Port Charles, but it wasn't long before Faison figured out that Luke had given him fake diamonds. Faison kidnapped Felicia and demanded the real diamonds. Roy DiLucca, an old friend of Luke's who was back from the dead, helped Luke track Faison to his lair to rescue Felicia. But Felicia and Luke got trapped. Uncertain of how much longer they would live, they nearly made love, not realizing that Faison was taping them. Felicia and Luke managed to get Faison into the room so Luke could knock him out, although Felicia got shot in the process. Then Mac showed up, arrested Faison, and rescued the adventurers.

Helena helped Faison break out of jail after he was charged with kidnapping and killing Katherine; his boat blew up with him on it. Before he died, he was able to tell Luke something very important: Lucky was alive. Shaken, Luke took off to Europe and began to investigate Faison's statement. Europe didn't lead anywhere, so in February of 2000, Luke returned to Port Charles and confided in Felicia. She agreed to help him search for Lucky, and they went all over the world in their search. It wasn't until they were in Spring Lake, near Port Charles, that they caught a glimpse of Lucky. They tried to get to him, but Stefan whisked him away, proving to Luke that Helena and Stefan were both responsible for Lucky's disappearance.

Since Luke had proof that Lucky was alive, he told Laura, who was overcome with joy, which was mixed with horror at Stefan's involvement. In the spring of 2000, she confronted Stefan, who denied it, but Laura continued to believe Luke. Luke and Laura teamed up and set off on a long journey to find Lucky and return him home. They followed Helena's clues and found themselves on a trip down memory lane as they traveled from their old boat, the Haunted Star, to Ice Princess Island, where Felicia caught up with them and begged to help them, and then on to Texas, Lucky's birth place. They searched the cabin they had lived in there, but didn't find anything.

Laura tried to get Felicia to back off and go home, but Luke told her she could stay. Felicia found a rock outside nearby that Lucky had carved his name in, but then fell over the side of a cliff. Laura was forced to rescue her, and they continued the search. They finally located Lucky at the Triple L Diner in British Columbia. When Luke spotted Lucky, Lucky slugged him and took off. Confused, Laura went back to Port Charles to wait in case Lucky returned, while Luke continued to search for Lucky. Lucky finally returned to Port Charles, but he was definitely not the same as before. He was still very angry about Luke raping Laura. Luke vowed to undo whatever Helena had done to him.

In the meantime, Stefan had mysteriously disappeared and was presumed dead. Luke was the only suspect, but his alibi was airtight, since he had been with Felicia the night Stefan disappeared. Against Luke's wishes, Felicia testified that she had been with Luke the night of Stefan's disappearance. Luke was free but his relationship with Laura was strained even further. Luke eventually figured out that Helena had performed some kind of brainwashing on Lucky. Luke threatened to kill Helena and even kidnapped Nikolas in desperation to get Helena to talk. When Luke figured out that the Ice Princess somehow figured into Lucky's programming, he decided to go after it. He asked Felicia to go with him, but she declined. Luke wasn't able to get his hands on the Ice Princess and returned to town empty-handed.

Felicia and Luke began to explore a possible romantic relationship. However, when Luke came across some disks belonging to Helena, he became so distracted that Felicia gave up on trying to convey her feelings to him. When she finally did tell him that she loved him, he couldn't return her feelings, and they broke up. Luke then enlisted Dr. Kevin's help in deprogramming Lucky, but the programming was too deep for him to reach. In a heart-breaking scene, Luke and Laura finalized their divorce and looked back on the good times they'd had together.

Luke and Roy began sniffing around the sublevels of General Hospital's basement, trying to find Helena's lair. Luke also secretly teamed up with Nikolas to get information on Helena's plans and on how to reverse Lucky's programming. Laura wasn't sure of Luke's plan and worried about Nikolas' safety, but ultimately went along with it. It wasn't long before Luke got a first-hand look at Helena's plans in action. When Luke finally found his way into Helena's underground lab, she showed up and taunted him. She showed him Stavros, who shocked Luke by waking up and describing the night of his "death," which had only been witnessed by Luke and Laura.

When Lucky showed up, Luke urged him to run. But Helena tapped into Lucky's programming to force Lucky to inject Luke with a bio-toxin that would render him ineffective in trying to stop her plans. Luke was dumped in an alley, where the virus immediately began to have an effect on him. He didn't know what year it was and kept mixing up his memories of the past with current events. He found his way back to his place, where he found Lucky. Due to his programming, Lucky couldn't remember what had happened to Luke.

Helena showed up after Lucky was gone to see the effects of her handiwork. In a brief moment of clarity, Luke nearly strangled her, until Stavros burst in. Bobbie found Luke and got Tony to examine him, but Luke ran away before they could get him treatment. Roy and Melissa found him in the Cassadine crypt and stashed him in a cabin. While Laura tried to care for him there, she was nearly able to make some sense out of his confused ramblings.

Tony delivered the antidote he'd used on Lucas. Unfortunately, it didn't work, and Luke escaped from the cabin. Laura found him and got him to the hospital for proper treatment. He began to recover, although he was still weak. Luke wanted to personally help take down Helena, so he escaped from the hospital and went to Helena's lab. He found Laura and Stavros in a room and physically fought with Stavros. But he was still weak from the bio-toxin and no match for Stavros. However, later on, Luke was able to push Stavros into a bottomless pit. Helena was arrested, and the Cassadines were finally defeated.

Luke then set his sights on winning back Laura. He invented a fake mission and enticed her to go along. The old sparks between them ignited, and Luke proposed to Laura. She took a little time in answering, but she finally agreed. However, life got in the way of their plans for a wedding. Jennifer Smith had returned and swiped Luke, intent on marrying him. Laura tracked him down and, together with Roy and Felicia, rescued him. Helena escaped a few months after her arrest, and Luke was upset to learn that Nikolas had given her money in order to protect Gia instead of his family. Luke managed to find Helena and personally escorted her to prison.

Luke celebrated Helena's imprisonment and counted Nikolas as his enemy still. When he tried to get Lucky to spy on Nikolas, Lucky refused. Then Carly was presumed dead in a car accident, and Luke comforted his disbelieving sister. When Carly turned up alive, Luke investigated who was behind the body double and DNA match to make it seem Carly was dead. Soon Luke discovered that Helena had put an imposter in her own place in prison. He tracked her to a convent, where he ran into Laura, who'd tracked her missing engagement ring to the same place. They found Helena there and had her shipped to a convent in the Arctic Circle.

Finally the lovebirds could plan their wedding. Laura realized that she was missing some memories of her past involving the garage attic in her parents' old house. Luke promised to help her solve the mystery. Together they discovered that Rick was involved. Laura continued to have flashbacks and they discovered that Rick had been having an affair with a woman named Theresa Carter. Luke tracked down the woman, who was really hired by Rick, and he went with Laura to see her.

Laura was satisfied by the story Theresa told them, but Luke wasn't. He found the camera Theresa had talked about in her story and had Lucky develop the film. One of the pictures showed a young Scott Baldwin covered in blood. When Laura had a major flashback the night of their rehearsal dinner, she went to the attic, where she confronted Rick. Luke also followed them to the attic and whisked Laura away from the scene, leaving Rick dead on the floor.

Luke hid with Laura in a barn. He had to tie Laura up because she was afraid of him and kept trying to run from him. Luke continually had to remind Laura that he was protecting her and that Rick had died by her hand in self-defense. Laura nearly returned to her senses, but ended up running off before they returned to Port Charles. She found her way back to the attic, where she had flashbacks of killing Theresa and of killing Rick. Luke found her there, dressed in her old, tattered wedding dress.

Realizing Laura was suffering a mental breakdown, Luke went along with her wedding hallucinations and shared tender vows with her. Then Scott and Mac showed up, arrested him for Rick's murder, and took Laura for psychiatric evaluation. Wanting to protect Laura, Luke claimed to have killed Rick. He bargained with Scott for one last visit with Laura. But Laura didn't recognize him as anything more than a bad man who had hurt her. As an orderly wheeled her away to transport her to London for treatment, all Luke could say was, "Goodbye, my angel, goodbye."

With Nikolas' help, Luke escaped from custody during transport to another prison. He tried to visit Laura in London, but his visit seemed to worsen her condition. Luke joined a chain gang, despondent over losing Laura. Lucky and Elizabeth tracked him down and took him home. Wanting to punish himself somehow, Luke made every effort to get himself arrested, even setting the police station on fire. He would have died in the fire if Lucky hadn't rescued him. Alexis used Laura's taped confession to blackmail Scott into keeping Luke out of jail. Scott wanted Luke declared mentally unstable, so Alexis found him a shrink. Luke even opened up a little about Laura to his new therapist.

Soon after, Luke spotted a mysterious blonde woman in the park and pushed her out of the way of an oncoming car. Although he repeatedly ran into her after their first encounter, no one else ever saw her and doubted her existence. She called herself Summer and told Luke that she was a high-priced call girl. Luke hired her to help him re-enact special moments between the Spencers. But no matter what they did, Summer couldn't replace Laura, although Luke was somewhat captivated by her. They developed a unique friendship, and he even convinced her stop being a call girl. Summer finally became real to the rest of the world when a desperate Luke sat on the ledge of General Hospital, and she showed up in front of his therapist.

Although Luke wasn't actually dating Summer, he was still shocked to find out that Summer had also been dating his son, Lucky. He stopped seeing her, and she briefly returned to her call girl profession. Eventually, the truth was revealed that Nikolas had hired Summer to keep Luke's attention away from trying to find Laura. Nikolas had promised to give Summer information on the whereabouts of her brother. Summer hadn't planned on meeting and falling for Lucky in the process. Luke agreed to forgive her but told her never to scam him again, or he would kill her. Then Luke, Summer, and Lucky went in search of Summer's brother. The adventure quickly turned into a treasure hunt for some lost Cassadine coins. In the end, Luke beat them all to the treasure and informed them that the coins had been replaced by fakes.

Luke and Lucky's relationship began showing signs of strain, and the situation with Summer hadn't helped. Luke blamed Lucky for giving total control over Laura's medical treatment to Nikolas, a Cassadine. Summer got caught in the middle of a physical altercation between Luke and Lucky when Luke discovered that Lucky and Nik had hidden Laura again. She ended up knocking Luke out to get him to let go of Lucky. Later, a drunk and doped-up Luke returned to Lucky's place and mistook Summer for Laura. Luke talked to "Laura" lovingly, and Summer went along with it, feeling sorry for him. He pulled a knife and promised to protect "Laura," but when Lucky arrived, Luke left. Later, Summer helped Lucky trick Luke into being committed to a mental hospital.

When Summer was pushed off a cliff at Nikolas and Emily's engagement party, everyone suspected Luke at first. But Lucky quickly realized that Luke wasn't responsible. Luke left town for a while anyway. When he returned, he discovered that Lucky had become a cop, and Stefan still wasn't behind bars for killing Summer. So Luke kidnapped him and held a televised mock trial of Stefan, at the end of which he declared Stefan guilty. Stefan and Luke had their final showdown on the cliff where Summer had fallen. Stefan allowed himself to be impaled by Luke's knife and then fell to his death.

Lucky was forced to arrest Luke, who didn't run away at first and seemed almost proud of his deed. But Luke was not willing to do time for Stefan's murder and fled from police custody. He hid out in Jax's lake house, where Skye happened to be staying. He convinced her to help him attend Stefan's funeral in secret and then to help him scam the Quartermaines out of money so that he could go on the run in style. But his original plan got replaced when he discovered the cards from the Dead Man's Hand that AJ had hidden away. Luke managed to get his hands on all five cards and auctioned them off to the highest bidder at the Halloween costume party. Jax won the bid and had just wired Luke the money when the room was filled with gas. Everyone passed out, and a mystery person stole the cards. Luke tried to get the cards back, but Jax ended up with them and raced off to get them back to his father before his father died.

Luke was not happy to find out that Nikolas had discovered a suicide note left by Stefan, which meant that Luke would not be tried for murder. Uncertain what to do with his newfound freedom, Luke didn't have to wait long. The Haunted Star had returned to Port Charles Harbor. Sam had won a boat in a poker game, and the boat turned out to be the Haunted Star. Suddenly, several people, including Luke, were interested in opening a casino in town. Luke wanted to use the Haunted Star for the location, and Sam had the title to the boat. Luke had a gambling license, so he and Sam teamed up. Luke also wanted the Dead Man's Hand as a centerpiece for the casino.

Sam wormed her way back into Jax's life and managed to get the cards back from him. However, her victory felt hollow, and she gave the cards to a homeless man: Luke. Luke's other partner, Skye, began making plans to turn the dumpy Haunted Star into a fabulous casino. Luke even found a stash of cash to bankroll his new business. The cash turned out to belong to Faith Rosco. When she demanded the return of her cash, Luke basically told her "finders-keepers." Faith kidnapped Skye as a bargaining chip, and Luke had to rescue Skye when Faith dumped her overboard, tied to a chair. Faith decided she would play Luke in a game of poker. If she won, he would launder money for her, but if he won then she would leave him alone. For reasons of his own, Luke let Faith win.

Luke opened the Haunted Star but continued his quest to take down Helena Cassadine. Luke learned Tracy and Helena had worked together to break apart Nikolas and Emily. Helena provided Tracy with millions of dollars to save ELQ, the Quartermaine family business. Luke wanted both the money and to be rid of Helena. Nikolas had been sent to prison for murdering Helena, but Luke believed she was still alive, as her body had not been found. Luke was already working with Skye Quartermaine at the Haunted Star, but he recruited another member of the Quartermaine family to keep tabs on Tracy. Luke convinced Tracy's son Dillon to spy on his mother.

Emily Quartermaine, Nikolas' fiancée, also had a plan to draw Helena out of hiding. Emily had Connor Bishop, a Nikolas look-alike, pretend to be Nikolas. Helena appeared long enough to shoot at Emily. Emily was fine, but Luke's son, Lucky, was not. Lucky had jumped in front of Emily and taken the bullet. Luke was unaware at first that Lucky had been shot. He was out of town, searching for Helena.

When Luke arrived back in Port Charles, Lucky was on life support. Luke decided to turn off Lucky's life support, but friends and family filed a court order to stop Luke. Luke believed he was settling Lucky free. Luke won the legal battle and prepared to say goodbye to Lucky. Luke sang Lucky a song he used to sing to Lucky as a young child, and then he unplugged the machine. As Luke said his final goodbye, Lucky began to breathe on his own.

Lucky and Luke did not have a joyful reunion. Lucky was furious that his father was ready to give up on him. In one of his arguments, he brought up Luke's rape of Laura. Skye overheard, and changed her mind about becoming involved with Luke. Skye claimed she was finished with Luke, but she still begged Jason and Sonny to spare Luke's life. Faith Roscoe had kidnapped Sonny's children. Faith claimed to have murdered Sonny's son Michael, who was really still alive. Sonny was furious that Luke had been business partners with Faith. Luke's friendship with Sonny was enough to save him, but Sonny encouraged Luke to head out of town for a while.

Luke spent his time out of town, looking for Helena. He did chase her back to Port Charles. Helena shot Luke at close range on the Haunted Star. Tracy witnessed the shooting and attacked Helena. Skye walked in and saw Luke covered in blood, lying on the floor. She confessed that she cared about him. Then Luke sat up and teased her about caring for him. He was wearing a bulletproof vest, but insisted he be admitted to the hospital. Skye and Tracy went along with his plan to make everyone believe he was seriously injured. It was a plan to draw out Helena. When Helena showed up at the hospital to kill Luke in his weakened state, she was captured.

The Cassadine money Luke was after was in the hands of Tracy Quartermaine, and she was not willing to share with Luke. Luke hatched a plan to trick Tracy into marrying him. He arranged for Tracy to believe her son Dillon and his girlfriend Georgie Jones had run off to Las Vegas to get married. Tracy rushed to Las Vegas to stop the wedding, but she believed she'd gotten there too late. Then Tracy became extremely intoxicated and married Luke in her drunken state. When she woke up, she learned Dillon and Georgie had not gotten married.

When Luke and Tracy returned to Port Charles, the Quartermaine family quickly advised Tracy to annul the marriage. Luke claimed the marriage had been consummated, but he would divorce Tracy for a large sum of money. Skye made Luke jealous by flirting with Lorenzo Alcazar. Edward suggested Tracy should catch Luke having an affair with Skye. Luke stated he was over Skye and only had feelings for "Spanky Buns," his nickname for Tracy. Privately, Skye told Luke she would not be intimate with him until he divorced Tracy.

Tracy and Luke remained married and continued their verbal sparring. Tracy refused to give Luke any money, and Luke refused to accept a divorce. Luke decided to enter a partnership with his niece Carly. Carly was recovering from a nervous breakdown when Luke approached her. Carly was divorcing Lorenzo Alcazar. Luke wanted Carly to get Lorenzo's ELQ shares in the divorce settlement. Carly did get the shares, but kept them for herself. Luke came into some money when he overheard Jasper Jacks admit he'd switched paternity results to read that he was the father of Courtney Matthew's baby. He blackmailed Jax by promising not to tell anyone Nikolas Cassadine was the baby's father.

Luke's daughter, Lulu, was causing some trouble of her own, stealing from the Quartermaines and speeding around in Edward's car. Lucky and Leslie, Laura's mother, both talked to Luke. They told him he needed to be a parent to Lulu. Tracy and Luke agreed they had horrible parenting skills in common. Lulu and Luke spent a little time together at Christmas when they both visited Laura in Shadybrook at the same time. They had just started to reconnect as father and daughter when Luke took off again. He planned to force Tracy to divorce him by making Tracy believe he was out to kill her. Tracy found out what Luke had planned and faked ingesting rat poison Luke had planted. Tracy faked her death, which caused Luke to go into hiding.

Lulu decided to clear her father's name and set out to find him. Luke was posing as a doctor in a remote area in Africa. Unbeknownst to him, he had picked up a rare and highly contagious form of encephalitis. Shortly after Luke left the village, Robert Scorpio burned the village down to prevent the deadly virus from spreading. Robert Scorpio set off to stop Luke from returning to Port Charles, but it was too late. By the time Robert arrived, Luke had already passed the virus around the hospital. Lulu, Sonny, Nikolas, Sam McCall, and Skye were all infected, as was Luke himself.

Strangely, Luke had the most direct exposure to the virus but was able to recover quickly. The hospital staff used Luke to create an antidote. Luke agreed to the risky procedure as long as Lulu was the first to receive treatment. More residents of Port Charles became ill. Carly and Jason found an antidote to the virus, but it arrived too late for Dr. Tony Jones, Courtney Matthews, and Sam McCall's brother, Danny. They all succumbed to the virus.

Robert Scorpio had plans to extradite Luke to stand trial in the Maarkham Islands. To stall Robert, Luke and Tracy planned to renew their vows. Luke stood Tracy up and instead took off with former lover, Holly Sutton. Luke helped Holly steal some precious jewels. Robert Scorpio and Anna Devane showed up in the Maarkham Islands to catch Luke and Holly. Holly escaped, and Luke returned the stolen jewels.

While Luke was in the Maarkham Islands, his children were not doing well. Lucky was battling a severe addiction to prescription painkillers and having an affair with Maxie Jones. Lucky got hooked on the painkillers after he injured his back in a train crash the night he married Elizabeth Webber. Lulu set up Dillon Quartermaine to believe his wife, Georgie, had cheated on him. Lulu used Dillon's pain and anger to seduce him. She got pregnant and wanted to have an abortion. Dillon wanted to keep the baby. The Quartermaines threatened to file a court order to prevent her from terminating the pregnancy. Luke returned home to support Lulu. He assured her he would stand by whatever decision she made. Lulu decided to terminate the pregnancy.

Luke felt he and his children needed Laura. Luke authorized treating Laura with an experimental drug. Luke believed the benefit of having Laura return, even for a short time, outweighed any other risks. The drug worked, and Laura emerged from her catatonic state. She believed it was still her wedding day. Laura remembered everything and was reunited with her family.

Luke and Laura set a date to remarry. Luke kept his marriage to Tracy a secret. He knew Laura would not be with them for long. After the wedding, Luke told Laura the effects of the drug were temporary. She spent time with each of her children, and the family celebrated Christmas early so she could enjoy her favorite holiday. When Laura returned to her comatose state, Luke took off again.

When Luke returned, Lulu was trapped inside the Metro Court hotel. Mr. Craig, also known as Jerry Jacks, had trapped numerous hostages inside the building. Luke was desperate to rescue Lulu. Mr. Craig wanted a code that would open a briefcase. Luke tried to trade phony numbers for Lulu's life to be spared, but his attempt at negotiating did not work. The hostages remained inside. Lulu survived, but Tracy's brother, Alan, died. Luke and Tracy forged Alan's will. They made Tracy the beneficiary of Alan's estate instead of his wife or daughter. Alan's ghost haunted Tracy.

Luke's enemy, Scott Baldwin, returned to town. Scott was upset Luke had authorized the experimental treatment for Laura. Scott planned to take Luke to court to fight for guardianship of Laura. In court, Scott was going to bring up Luke's rape of Laura. Luke did not want Lulu to find out about the rape. Luke moved Laura to another facility so she was hidden from Scott. Scott filed kidnapping charges against Luke. Luke stayed out of town. Scott threw Tracy in jail because she had helped Luke. Tracy hired a private investigator to gain leverage over Scott. Tracy learned Scott had a son in Port Charles, Logan Hayes. Logan was dating Lulu.

A paternity test confirmed that Logan was Scott's son. Logan and Lulu had become serious, but Logan cheated on Lulu with Maxie Jones. Logan wanted Lulu back, but Lulu had started to move on with Johnny Zacchara. Scott attempted to make up for lost time with his son. Scott and Logan struck a deal with Lulu. Lulu gave Logan another chance when Scott dropped the charges against Luke. Luke was not happy Lulu had given Scott's son a second chance.

Luke and Tracy attended the Black and White Ball held at Wyndemere. The night turned deadly when the Text Message Killer and Anthony Zacchara arrived. The guests at the ball hid for safety. Luke was searching for Lulu. She was Anthony's target. Anthony found Luke and laughed while he watched Luke have a heart attack. Emily gave Luke medical attention at Wydermere, but he suffered a second heart attack before reaching the hospital.

Luke needed to have surgery and was ordered to make changes to his lifestyle. He claimed he would rather die than give up his vices. Monica performed quadruple bypass surgery, but her focus was not clear. Her daughter Emily had recently been murdered. Monica froze during the surgery when she saw a vision of Emily. Luke had his own vision on the operating table. He had a vision of his version of hell. He was a cop and family man living an adventure-free life. Luke survived the surgery.

Luke's attention turned back to his family when Lulu was in Shadybrook. She killed Logan in self-defense, but Scott wanted her to pay for her crime. Lulu had visions of Logan. She visited her mother often. After one of Lulu's visits, Laura woke up. Laura defended her daughter to Scott. He enjoyed telling Laura that Luke was married to Tracy.

Laura learned her recent marriage to Luke was not valid. Scott and Laura made a deal. Laura left town with Scott, and Scott dropped the charges against Lulu. Luke and Tracy found out about the deal and set out to find Laura. When they found her, Luke and Laura had a brief reunion. Luke admitted he loved Tracy. Laura decided to move to France to continue her treatment.

Tracy wanted to end her marriage to Luke. She believed she ranked second compared to his love for Laura. Luke was committed to proving his love for Tracy. He faked a heart attack, but Tracy knew better than to believe him. Then Tracy was exposed to a dangerous bio-toxin released at General Hospital. Luke was truly concerned about Tracy, and she began to trust Luke's love. At the same time, Luke hired a young man named Ethan Lovett to work at the Haunted Star. Ethan and Luke bonded quickly, and had many shared physical characteristics and mannerisms. Ethan was Luke's son with Holly Sutton. Luke had never known Holly was pregnant.

Tracy's insecurities resurfaced when Holly briefly returned to Port Charles. Soon after Holly left town, Luke disappeared. Everyone assumed Luke had gone after Holly, but Helena had actually kidnapped him. Ethan, Nikolas, and Lulu received a message that Luke was in trouble. They rescued him in Greece. Helena then kidnapped Tracy, and Luke was taken hostage, as well, when he tried to rescue her. Helena held Luke and Tracy in a dungeon. Tracy became ill. Luke confessed their marriage was not legal, but said he wanted to get married as soon as they escaped.

When Tracy and Luke returned home, Tracy kicked Luke out. Luke faked a serious heart attack with help from Maya Ward and Ethan. He asked Tracy to marry him, and she agreed. Luke, Tracy, May a, and Ethan flew to Las Vegas for Tracy and Luke's wedding. Luke and Tracy had many drinks. Ethan and Maya tried to help Luke and Tracy through the ceremony, but Ethan and Maya accidentally ended up married instead. Luke asked Tracy to marry him again, and Tracy agreed. She had a few requirements Luke had to meet. He had to sign a prenuptial agreement, and he had to agree to marry at Christmas, Laura's favorite holiday. Luke met both of Tracy's terms, and they were legally married.

Lucky was about to be married, as well. He was going to marry Siobhan McKenna so she could remain in the country. Luke was in a hurry to get to the courthouse to witness the wedding. On his way there, he hit and killed Lucky's adoptive son Jake. Luke drove away, unaware he had hit Jake. His family began to wonder if alcohol had been a factor in the accident.

In the aftermath of Jake's death, Luke confessed that he had consumed his normal amount of alcohol before getting behind the wheel but he was not intoxicated. He said he had driven along the dark stretch of road with his music blaring and believed he had hit a pothole. Luke was devastated when he learned that he had been the driver that had hit Jake. Luke vehemently denied any accusations that he had a problem with alcohol. He realized his family and friends disagreed after they drugged him and tied him to a chair in order to conduct an intervention.

At the intervention, Luke's family and closest friends spoke about the effects his drinking had on each of their relationships with him. Tracy and his children refused to have contact with him unless he sought help. Luke eventually conceded to treatment for alcohol dependency but he took off immediately after he checked in to a rehabilitation facility. He went to the bordello in Jacksonville, Florida where he had grown up but Lucky tracked him down and asked him to return home. Luke refused and took off again.

A few months later, Luke secretly returned to Port Charles and quietly spied on his family. When his presence was revealed, Ethan welcomed him home but Lulu and Lucky were not as forgiving. Luke also tried to make amends with Tracy but she pushed him away and proceeded with a divorce.

Tracy did inform Luke that he had a grandson and explained that Aiden was revealed to be Lucky's son. Luke paid a visit to Aiden and while he was there, Lucky called from Ireland and asked Luke to take Aiden to the hospital. Luke honored Lucky's request and Aiden was diagnosed with a rare blood disorder and was in needed of an immediate blood transfusion. Luke offered his blood but his family assumed his blood would contain alcohol although Luke insisted he had been sober for months.

While Luke continued to make amends with his family, he accepted a job from his niece Carly in exchange for free room and board and the Metro Court hotel. Carly asked Luke to dig up dirt on Johnny Zacchara and Luke turned to Skye Quartermaine for information. She supplied Luke with Johnny's birth certificate which proved that his biological parents were actually Claudia Zacchara and deceased mobster Gino Soleito. Luke was not able to reach Carly to share the information so he sold the document to Sonny instead.

Although Luke had found a place to stay other than the Quartermaine Mansion, he still found time to visit his "Spanky Buns" Tracy. She was coerced into a marriage to Anthony Zacchara and hoped that Luke would save her from marrying Anthony. Instead, Luke attended the wedding and played the role of the best man at the ceremony and wished Anthony luck with his new wife. Luke also delivered breakfast the next morning to the newlyweds and inquired about the wedding night.

Luke was sidetracked from bothering Tracy when Ethan unknowingly became involved in one of Helena's attempts at revenge. Helena had instructed her daughter Irena to seduce Ethan and had planned for Irena to kill Ethan so Luke would experience the pain Helena had felt after Luke had killed her beloved Stavros. Luke and Ethan both ended up at Wyndemere in the clutches of Helena and her henchman. Helena was about to kill Ethan when Holly Sutton entered and announced that Robert Scorpio, not Luke, was actually Ethan's father.

Helena accepted Holly's claim but took hair samples to run a DNA test of her own before she disappeared. After Helena left, Holly assured Luke and Ethan that she had lied to save Ethan's life so they had only gained a temporary reprieve from Helena. Luke asked Ethan and Holly to go along with the lie that Robert was Ethan's father after the sudden death of Robert's daughter Robin. Robert struggled to accept Robin's death and contemplated ending his own life until Luke announced that he had a son to live for. Luke sent Ethan off with money and contacts and instructed him to lead both Robert and Helena on a wild goose chase around the globe.

With Robert gone searching for Ethan, Luke filled in and supported Anna through Robin's funeral. He helped Anna deal with her grief and shared his own grief over killing Jake. With Anna's encouragement, Luke paid Coleman to change the name of his bar Jake's to The Floating Rib. He and Anna delighted in the homage to the former Port Charles locale. Luke also made peace with Elizabeth and told her about the Jake Webber Fund that he had created.

Luke continued to spend time with his friend Anna and he asked her to move in to his suite at the Metro Court. Tracy was jealous of the new living arrangement but she softened towards Luke after he remembered her birthday and presented her with a pony that was a descendant of her beloved childhood horse. Tracy was touched by Luke's thoughtful gift and later she explained how Anthony had blackmailed her into marriage. Then she asked Luke to help her remove Anthony from her life.

Luke delayed his response to Tracy when he learned from Dante that Lulu was missing. Luke told Dante about the conversation he had with Lulu prior to her disappearance in which she revealed that she believed that a police officer was behind a recent string of attacks on women. Lulu had suspected that Ronnie Dimestico was the assailant and Luke had warned her to be careful. Dante rescued Lulu from Ronnie and took her to the hospital after she was grazed by a bullet that Ronnie had fired.

Luke met up with Lulu in the hospital and was relieved to know his daughter was fine. After Lulu's experience with Ronnie, she confided in Luke that she enjoyed the rush she experienced while she was in danger and she felt as though she had a better understanding of the addiction to life on the edge that both Luke and Lucky loved so much.

Once Lulu was safe, Luke decided to help Tracy deal with Anthony after he realized she was going to get rid of Anthony with or without his help. Luke made plans to have Anthony shipped off to a prison in Uruguay. They finalized the details and Tracy called Anthony and asked him to meet her at the Quartermaine boathouse. When Tracy arrived later at the boathouse, she discovered Anthony's dead body and accused Luke of killing him. He saw Anthony's body and accused Tracy of the crime. The two argued over who had killed him until they heard the police on the premises.

Tracy and Luke moved Anthony's body to the terrace and posed him in a chair. When the police stopped by and questioned if they had heard gunshots, Luke and Tracy pretended that Anthony had fallen asleep after consuming too much alcohol. The police moved on to other parts of the estate and Luke and Tracy went inside to speak with Monica. When they returned to the terrace, Anthony's body was gone. As they wondered who had moved the body, Luke and Tracy went to the boathouse and planned to dispose of the gun they found in the boathouse. They planned to throw it into the lake but the police arrived and arrested Luke and Tracy for Anthony's disappearance. They were later released for lack of evidence that Anthony was dead.

Although the police were unaware that Anthony was deceased, Luke shared the truth with his daughter and she suggested that they tell Dante. Luke disagreed but he turned to Lulu for advice again after Tracy admitted that she wanted him back but Luke had recently slept with Anna and wanted to pursue a relationship with her instead. Lulu advised him to be honest with Tracy regarding his feelings for Anna. She also recommended that Luke tell Anna that Anthony was dead and that he, not Robert, was Ethan's father.

Luke agreed to be truthful with Anna and Tracy and he made plans with each woman. Before he could meet with either of them, Heather cornered Luke at the Haunted Star and confessed that she had disposed of Anthony's body so that Luke would not be charged with murder. Heather claimed that she was the woman for him because neither Anna nor Tracy would go to the same lengths to protect him. When Luke did not respond in the way that Heather had hoped, she clobbered him over the head with a wine bottle and rendered him unconscious. Then she took Luke to an abandoned cabin in the woods and held him there. When he awoke, he questioned how long Heather planned to hold him in the cabin. She responded that he would be there until he gave up on Anna and Tracy or until they gave up on him.

Luke started to worry that perhaps the women in his life would give up on him after Heather left him unattended and without food or water for an extended period of time. Under the effects of dehydration, Luke imagined a conversation with Lulu, Tracy and Anna in which they all accused him of breaking the promises he had made to each of them and the women decided not to rescue him. After the imagined visitors, Luke received a food and water from a real visitor dressed in a horror movie costume. He begged the person to set him free but to no avail.

Shortly after the masked visitor left, Heather returned to check on Luke and he accused her of trying to kill him because she left him without food or water. Heather apologized and admitted that she had been detained by the police. Luke was thrilled to learn that Anna was closing in on Heather and he believed that Anna would realize that he had been kidnapped. His elation turned to fear after Heather showed Luke a syringe of LSD that she intended to inject Anna with.

Luke begged Heather to spare Anna and instead offered that he and Heather take the LSD together and then have sex. She turned down the offer and left to go after Anna with the syringe of LSD. Luke worried for Anna's safety and realized that he needed to escape in order to thwart Heather's plan. He managed to light a candle on fire and tried to use the flame to burn the ropes that restrained him to a chair. Luke accidentally dropped the candle and started a fire in the cabin while he remained trapped inside. Anna arrived, followed closely by Heather and the women engaged in a struggle. Anna prevailed and rescued Luke from the burning cabin. After they emerged, Heather pointed a gun at Anna but Luke jumped into the path of the bullet instead. He was hit by the bullet and treated at the hospital.

As Luke recovered, both Tracy and Anna visited him. Tracy confronted Luke regarding his feelings for Anna and he admitted that although he cared deeply for Tracy, he wanted to pursue what he might have with Anna. When Anna visited, she shared her plans to follow a lead regarding the possibility that Robin may still be alive. Luke cautioned Anna not to get her hopes up after Anna shared that Heather had been the source. Once Luke was released from the hospital, he joined Anna in Switzerland and was there for her when she was unable to find Robin. Luke then confessed that he, not Robert, was Ethan's father and he left to break the news to Robert while Anna reconsidered entering into a relationship with Luke.

After Luke returned to town, he planned to be with Anna but her feelings were complicated by the return of her presumed dead husband Duke Lavery. Luke doubted "Duke's" story that he had been imprisoned in a Turkey all the years he had been away and warned Anna that he was an imposter. When Luke's suspicions pushed Anna and "Duke" closer, Luke asked Robert to look after Anna while he went to Turkey. Luke spent time in the same prison where "Duke" had been held captive and was surprised to learn that his story had checked out.

Once in Port Charles, Luke learned that Cesar Faison had impersonated Duke while the real Duke had been in the Turkish prison until Faison took him captive. Faison was imprisoned while Duke settled in to town and hoped to return to his life with Anna. Luke refused to step aside and let Anna know that he was in love with her and wanted to be with her.

Luke was forced to let Anna go after she decided that Duke was her one great love and reminded Luke that Laura was his. Luke pondered Anna's words after Laura returned to town with Scott Baldwin and announced her engagement to him. Laura's wedding ceremony was interrupted with the news that Lulu had been kidnapped. Luke and Laura joined forces to track down their daughter. They believed that Helena was behind her disappearance and they confronted her at sea aboard the Haunted Star.

Luke was shocked to discover that Helena had kidnapped Ethan as well and Helena declared that Ethan must die in exchange for Lulu. Luke, along with Laura, Ethan, and Lulu's husband Dante, were able to turn the tables on the Helena. Luke shot and killed Helena and then sent Ethan away as a decoy while he and Laura continued their search for Lulu.

Helena's henchmen turned the tables on Luke and Laura and they found themselves on Cassadine Island, prisoners of Stavros. They were shocked to learn that he was alive and behind Lulu's disappearance. Luke and Laura, along with Dante, rescued Lulu from the cryogenic chamber in which she had been held. They locked Stavros in the temperature controlled room and left him to freeze to his death. Lulu suffered from a bout of amnesia following her time with Stavros but eventually made a full recovery. Luke and Laura bonded on their adventure and shared a kiss upon their return to Port Charles. Afterwards, they realized that the romantic chemistry between them was no longer there. Laura went on to marry Scott and Luke wished them well.

In the weeks that followed, Luke's health began to decline rapidly and he collapsed while visiting with Tracy. Luke insisted that he was fine whereas Tracy believed that Luke's consumption of alcohol had caught up with him. At Tracy's insistence, Luke agreed to find out what was wrong and was stunned to learn that he had been poisoned with a rare radioactive substance. After he learned the results, he received a posthumous message from Helena in which she admitted that while he may have killed her, she retained the upper hand in their ongoing game. Helena went on to explain that several months earlier, she had arranged for Luke's earring to be replaced with one that leaked the deadly toxin into his body. Helena's message also included a hint that a cure did exist, but that Luke would not find it in Port Charles.

With Anna's assistance, Luke discovered that Jerry Jacks had also been injected with the same radioactive substance, Polonium 210. Although Jerry was presumed deceased, Luke left town with the hope of finding Jerry and a possible cure. Luke's search for Jerry led him to Sean Donely in Ireland and then to Cassadine Island where Jerry resided. When Jerry realized that Luke had also been poisoned, he made Luke his captive and planned to test a small dose of the cure on him. However, Tracy sneaked onto the island and turned the tables on Jerry. With Tracy's help, Luke gained access to the entire dose of the antidote and they escaped.

Luke ingested the antidote and medical tests confirmed Luke's believe that he had been cured. Tracy continued to watch over Luke for any signs of relapse. While on a mission for Tracy, Luke happened upon Heather Webber and discovered that she had kidnapped his niece Carly. Before he could summon assistance, Heather's associates knocked him out and spirited him away to the Miscavige psychiatric care facility. Luke was held there for over a month and injected with various medications until his rescue.

After the ordeal at Miscavige, Luke behaved differently. He was distant from Lulu at a time when she needed his support and he became engaged to Tracy. Meanwhile, he made sexual advances toward Michael's girlfriend Kiki Jerome and was revealed to be the secret backer of the Jerome family crime syndicate. Luke covertly planned to destroy Sonny Corinthos and admitted that he planned to marry Tracy with the sole intent of gaining access to ELQ. He ordered Julian to import and sell drugs in Port Charles and went to work at ELQ. When Tracy's son Ned questioned Luke's interest in the company, he married Tracy in an impromptu ceremony held during the middle of the Nurses Ball.

Immediately after Luke and Tracy married, Ned informed them that Tracy had been voted out of ELQ. Luke encouraged Tracy to fight for her position within the company while he secretly met with Julian. During their meeting, Julian notified Luke that he was finished with organized crime. Luke refused to accept his resignation and sent the message via a bullet in the chest of Julian's son Lucas. When Lucas did not die immediately from his injuries, Luke planned to finish the job until Julian arrived and vowed to return to work.

Luke's odd behavior continued. He conspired with Cesar Faison, Larry Ashton, and Helena Cassadine as he led the residents of Port Charles to believe that the real Luke Spencer had been imprisoned in Miscavige while an imposter committed the crimes. Meanwhile, Luke became fascinated with his former childhood home on Elm Street but reacted severely when anyone mentioned his older sister Patricia. He went on to attack Dante in that home and arranged for a bomb to be placed on the Haunted Star where he had gathered his family and friends. Dante and everyone on the boat survived but Luke evaded police custody.

Tracy and Lulu realized that Patricia might have some answers, so they raced to find her unaware that Luke was on a mission to find and silence Patricia. Luke held Patricia's daughter, Valerie Spencer, at gunpoint and forced her to reveal her mother's whereabouts. Dante joined Lulu and Tracy in the search, and soon everyone converged at the assisted care facility where Patricia was living. Patricia revealed that as a teenager, Luke had stood up to his abusive father in an attempt to protect his mother. In doing so, Luke had accidentally struck his mother in the head with a baseball bat and she died from her injuries. He went on to kill his father with the same bat but Luke was unable to recall either event. Patricia, with help from Bill Eckert, had covered up what Luke had done and they disappeared from Luke's life in hopes that he would never remember what had transpired.

The revelation about Luke's childhood and the medical treatment he received afterward helped Luke to acknowledge that he had suffered a mental breakdown following his parents' deaths that triggered a dark side to periodically emerge and wreak havoc through the years. Luke admitted that the instances in which he had left town and disappeared was his attempt to deal with the times which he referred to as when he was "not right in the head."