Double De-Briefing

Posted on Wed Jul 13th, 2016 @ 3:39pm by Jarad & Kaeli & Patch

Mission: Further Challenges
Location: RIS Opius

* RIS Opius *

“Thanks,” Kaeli murmured. She squeezed a little more water from her hair as Patch draped a towel around her shoulders, then began to rub her back. “That feels wonderful.”

“My pleasure.” He slipped the towel off her shoulder and brushed his lips over her bare skin. “Feel better now?”

She nodded slowly. “I do. I know it’s mostly mental, but at least I’ve washed Rekar off me and now you can touch me without me feeling bad. I apologize again. I didn’t want you to have to...you know.”

“No more apologies,” he insisted. “We all have to do things sometimes we don’t like. Besides, you won’t have to go there again.”

She turned her head to look at him over her shoulder. “To where? Rekar or Romulus?”

“Either,” he answered. He dropped the towel and slipped his hands over her bare back. “You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. Besides, I’m here, you don’t have to worry about anything.”

“No I don’t.” It was an absolute lie. The fact that he was here with her and they were on their way home was a big worry. In a few days they would be on 900 and what the hell was she supposed to do then? The past two weeks had been so easy, so pleasant, so….good. There had been none of the usual conflict she had with Jarad, conflict she knew might explode once he learned what she had done on Romulus.

It had been a risky trip and and could seriously destabilize things in that area. She should care about that but she didn’t. All she cared about was that the man who had broken her so completely was dead. And with Patch there were no recriminations, no lectures about how it was dangerous or how it could all blow up. There had been his help in carrying out her mission then nothing but a heartfelt welcome home, a good scrub in the shower and now, the prospect of a cozy evening spent avoiding the universe. The only worry she had was that Patch had grown attached, as he had demonstrated by his comment regarding overhearing her and Rekar. Since she was being honest with herself, she had to admit she had grown attached to him too and therein lay the serious problem.

“Kae? Are you in there?”

She realized he’d been trying to get her attention while she was lost in her thoughts. “Yeah.”

“Your terminal is beeping. Priority code.”

“Dammit!” She hoped immediately that it wasn’t Jarad. She wasn’t ready to deal with him just yet. She hurried out to the bedroom, grabbed a shirt and tugged it on,then trotted to the terminal and sat down. “Incoming signal is Romulan, she informed him. “You might want to stay out of sight. You are an escaped prisoner after all.” She grinned as he ducked back into the bedroom and opened the channel. The face of Halloran appeared.

“Hello Kaeli.” He looked back at her from the monitor, his expression composed. “My apologies, I seem to have pulled you from the shower.”

“It’s alright, I was out and drying off.” She forced herself to be calm, keeping her breathing even. She knew Halloran would be watching her closely. “How are things there? Anything new to report?”

Halloran shook his head. “No. Tindam is adamant that he had nothing to do with it. The medical staff is reporting that there seems to be no external cause. According to them, his heart simply stopped. You may not know this but he had been diagnosed with cardiac issues about six months ago. Stubborn as he was, he refused to slow down.” His expression softened. “I’m sorry. I know you and he were close. I wanted to see you before you left but I didn’t get there in time.”

Kaeli nodded slowly. She suspected that Halloran knew better than anyone the story of her relationship with Rekar and had likely watched the video feed of today’s romp with Rekar closely.

“Thank you. I should have called you directly, I know, but he was talking to me and then suddenly, he collapsed and I panicked. Tindam was close and well, you know the rest. I just can’t believe he is gone.”

“If it helps, he was thrilled to have you back with us, and with him too,” Halloran assured her. “As am I.”

“It does, thank you.” She let out a slow breath. “So it was natural causes? You’re sure? Because if you have the slightest suspicion someone killed him, I will turn this ship around and come find them.”

Halloran nodded. “The doctor was surprised it hadn’t happened before now, especially given his activity level. So, I know he had you on assignment, carry on with it. I look forward to hearing your reports on the Butcher.”

“Very well. And I suppose congratulations are in order? I’m sure you’ll do a fine job. He depended heavily on you. How soon do you want me to return?”

“We can decide that once your first report on Jarad is in. At that time we will discuss your next move. Just do as Rekar ordered and get close to Jarad once more, get back in his confidence.” Halloran frowned slightly. “We are releasing Tindam. He has indicated his wish to remain in my service. As such, since I have a soft spot for you, I’ll give you this. Warn your Bajoran friend that he might come looking for her. I will not order it but I cannot determine what he does on his own time.”

“Thank you. We’ve worked together a long time, you and I. We’ll do good.”

“We will.” Halloran smiled finally. “My condolences, Kaeli. We’ll talk soon.”

The screen went black and Kaeli slammed her fist on the desk. “Fucker!” she hissed.

“Easy.” Patch stepped out of the bedroom. “Isa?”

“Yes, but at least he gave me fair warning. That was his way of saying ‘look out for Isa but I won’t stop Tindam’. Maybe it’s good he likes me, otherwise he never would’ve given me that warning.”

“So….” Patch crossed his arms and leaned against the desk. “He’s expecting reports on Jarad. How’s that going to go?”

“I can tell him anything I want to,” she replied. “They think Jarad and I parted ways some time ago and so Rekar ordered me to work my way back into his good graces, cozy up again. As I warned him, that will take some time, so I’m good for now. A few made-up reports and I’ll string Halloran along. No worries.”

“Not that I am worried so much about Jarad, but does he know about all this?”

Kaeli nodded. “Yeah. Funny thing about that. Boroca had given him the same orders - to find me and get close to me again, then report back so they know what I am up to. Neither was the wiser, though that might be tricky now that Boroca is gone. Drekkar is next in line I think.”

Patch shook his head. “And I thought working for Suresh was twisted.” He reached out to stroke her cheek and the terminal beeped again. “You’re popular tonight.”

Kaeli checked the control panel on the desk. “Coming in from 900, you know what that means.”

“Yeah. I’ll make like a ghost and do my best to resist strolling out here and nibbling on your neck while he watches.” Patch gave her a wicked grin.

“You are hilarious,” she said, her tone dry. Once Patch was out of sight, she opened the channel.

Jarad’s eyes widened in surprise when he saw Kaeli. Clearly, he hadn’t expected her to reach her. “Oh. So you finally decided to answer.”

“I did. How are you Jarad?” she asked. She looked up, hearing Patch, and watched as he left the kitchen, skirted the edge of the room so as not to be seen by Jarad and moved up behind the monitor to leave a glass of wine on the desk for her. Then he stretched out on the sofa.

“I’m alright.” Jarad paused, watching her gaze shift. “Who’s there? Is it that Cardassian?” His tone, far from being harsh, was noticeably sad.

Kaeli reached for her glass and held it up. “I was just looking for my glass, that’s all.” She fluffed up her wet curls. “How are things on 900? Is Drekkar still celebrating?”

“He’s taken a short break for business.” Jarad smiled finally. “Calls coming in from Cardassia, the council checking in as you can imagine. What about you and Isa? Is she still dancing around his ashes?”

Kaeli nodded. “You could say that, yes. She actually has finally unwound a little and I’m glad. It’s about time that particular ghost stopped haunting her.”

“What about your ghosts Kae?” he asked.

She hesitated, wondering which ghost she meant. Was it possible he’d already heard about Rekar so soon?

“Which one?” she finally asked.

“Any of them,” he replied softly, “but I meant on Romulus. That’s where you were isn’t it? I just got word that Rekar is dead. Did it help?”

“How do you know it was me?” she asked.

“Because,” he answered. “I know you better than anyone in this universe. He deserved it. Hell, I would have carried you there on my back to get to him if it had been necessary.”

Kaeli pursed her lips and nodded. “I know. It’s over. We are on our way home finally.”

“Good.” Jarad smiled once more. “I’ve missed you so much. I’m sorry. I realized I didn’t say it when we talked just after you left Cardassia. I should have said it sooner, but it’s been almost impossible to reach you.”

She nodded. “Thank you. We will be home in a few days. We have….”

“Some things to work out. I know. I’ll be waiting, my darling. Tell him if he hurts you I’ll kill him. See you soon.”

The channel closed and Kaeli sighed aloud. He made it impossible to stay mad at him. He’d always had a gift for that and it worked on her like a charm. She had to admit she missed him, but now it was complicated. It was the perfect description, even if Patch thought the term was overused. Patch himself was at the center of those complications. He was a breath of fresh air she wasn’t so sure she could give up. Patch’s hands on her shoulders brought her out of her reverie.

“Message received. It’s better that you talked to him again,” he said. “What happens when we get home?”

“I don’t know,” Kaeli answered honestly. “But that is almost a week away. I don’t want the days until then overshadowed with that worry. This week is ours. I want to eat, then I want to get cozy for a while until it’s our turn to spell Zarv on the bridge. I don’t want to think about anything but us.”

“I like that plan a lot,” he agreed, pulling her from her chair to hug her close. He’d meant what he said. He knew already that he wasn’t willing to simply turn and walk away.

Complicated indeed.

*****************
Kaeli
Caught In The Undertow

Patch
Making Plans Of His Own

Halloran
Putting Kaeli’s Mind At Ease

Jarad
Anticipating A Homecoming