General Hospital Spoilers: Victor Left Nikolas His Empire — Will the Cassadine Prince Rule Those Left Behind?

General Hospital spoilers reveal Victor Cassadine (Charles Shaughnessy) had been pulling the strings behind Mason Gatlin (Nathanyael Grey), and this realization is going to leave viewers stunned. But with Victor now dead, the question remains: who is Mason taking orders from?

Rumors are swirling that Nikolas Cassadine (Adam Huss) may be the one secretly ruling the empire left behind by his late uncle. Victor certainly left some interesting tokens of his love to his family members — and others — in the wake of his death. Would it surprise anyone to learn he left Nikolas the keys to manipulating his ex-wife via a shady fella like Mason?

General Hospital Spoilers — Whose Side is Austin on?

For months, Mason has been a pawn in a much larger game orchestrated by an unknown figure. It may soon be revealed that the puppet master was none other than Victor himself. But how did Victor come to be in control of Mason, and when did Austin Gatlin Holt (Roger Howarth), Mason’s cousin, learn of this information? The details remain murky, but one thing is becoming more clear – Austin may be now aiding Mason while keeping Ava Jerome (Maura West) completely in the dark. This is leading fans to question whether Austin is a true ally, a potential love interest, or an enemy in disguise.

GH Spoilers Claim Nikolas Can Ruin Ava From a Safe Distance

Victor’s involvement raises suspicions about the Cassadine family’s role in Mason’s manipulation. Austin had previously hinted that the people behind the scenes were very dangerous and powerful. The Cassadines fit the bill perfectly. Could Helena Cassadine (Constance Towers), Victor’s former lover, have been the mysterious mastermind who put all of this into motion? If so, when and how did Victor take over for her?

While these details remain unknown, what is certain is that both Helena and Victor are now deceased. So, who is Mason receiving orders from today? Nikolas, Victor’s nephew, might have been groomed as his successor. Little does Ava know, she is being deceived by both Austin and Mason — and that her ex-husband is very much alive and trying to ruin her. If Nikolas is indeed the one giving orders to Mason now, it raises questions about his motives and why he is keeping Ava in the dark. Perhaps revenge and self-preservation are driving his actions.

General Hospital Spoilers — Who is Next?

With serious charges looming against him, it’s unlikely that Nikolas will be coming back to Port Charles. Nikolas could be targeting Ava, forcing her to go after Sonny in hopes that the mob master will take her out and he won’t have any blood on his own hands — or Mason’s.

That being said, Austin could be negotiating on Ava’s behalf — unbeknownst to her — with Nikolas to let him finesse this situation. It’s possible that Austin doesn’t want to see any harm come to Ava or Avery Corinthos (Grace Scarola). He appears to have a pattern for picking out these types of women who need to be saved from themselves and protected from his shady grifter of a cousin. Can Austin keep Nikolas at bay by leveraging his crimes against him and convincing Ava to follow Mason’s orders? One of those feats won’t be nearly as easy as the other. Stay tuned for more GH news and spoilers just ahead to see how this pans out.