General Hospital spoilers: Ava and John Cates partner in a Sonny takedown plot?

Toward the end of the General Hospital episode airing on July 10, John Cates (Adam J. Harrington) interrupted another contentious argument between Sonny (Maurice Benard) and Ava (Maura West), this time at the Metro Court.

Sonny and Ava were going back and forth over who was the better custodial parent for Avery (Ava & Grace Scarola), with Sonny claiming to have a line of witnesses ready to testify on his behalf, and Ava countering he’s still just a mobster. The latter argument is rich considering Ava at one time helped to run things with the Jerome family, but we digress. As the two continued in their back-and-forth, John strolled in the doorway asking if Ava needed assistance.

It’s no secret that Sonny loathes John, a feeling that’s mutual, so Sonny is likely to leave Ava’s room eventually to prevent himself from doing something ill-advised to an FBI agent. With Sonny gone and seeing the effect John has on him, will Ava get the bright idea to partner with John as she heads into a nasty custody battle? We think so.

Also, earlier in the same episode, Ava met with the infamous pharmacist who has been giving Sonny the wrong dosage of bipolar medication. Using her own brand of manipulation, she persuaded the pharmacist to do her the favor of doing more than just giving Sonny the wrong dosage of medicine. She coerced the medical professional into giving Sonny complete placebos the next time Sonny needed a refill. With Ava determined to make Sonny lose his cool in public to bolster her claim that she should have sole custody of Avery, having him off his medication helps ensure that happens.

With Sonny off his meds, Ava now just needs the right provocation to set the kingpin temper’s off. This is where John comes in. We can imagine a scenario in which Ava fills John in on her custody predicament and asks for his help in exchange for any information she has on Sonny’s criminal enterprise. Considering she was one of his closest confidants at one point, she may have more than enough to help John build an actual case against Sonny.

Ava could ask John to pretend to be interested in her romantically, and take her out on dates in public, hoping Sonny catches them. She could even orchestrate a moment where Sonny spots her and John cozy with Avery present, knowing that such an image could push Sonny too far and prompt him to erratically respond. His behavior would be precisely the thing to sway a judge to side with her in court.

However, let’s say Ava doesn’t clue John in on her scheme and just flirts with him, pretending to like him. Not knowing how dubious Ava’s ways can be, he falls for her charm and she attempts to date him in public, hoping for the same result of Sonny losing his cool. Ava still gets what she wants in this scenario, but runs the risk of John coming after her if he finds out he’s being used.

If either one of our predictions comes true here, Sonny is in for a crushing blow as a judge would likely side with Ava if Sonny lets his temper get the best of him. However, if Sonny finds out about Ava’s role in switching his medicine with placebos, she’d likely lose custody of Avery and be in grave danger. Sonny’s wrath is legendary, but Carly (Laura Wright) is the one Ava should be afraid of.

New episodes of General Hospital air on weekdays on ABC. If you miss an episode, you can catch up on Hulu.