Chapter 18
Ties that Bond
Three days passed, and Ben and Kyanan hadn’t left Kara’s bedside. The remaining Jack Crew members had stopped by earlier to let them know they had returned from Rona, and to check in on Kara.
Kynan’s head was resting on the edge of the bed next to Kara’s waist. He was sound asleep, but he still held Kara’s right hand in his own. Ben was trying to fight off sleep himself. His head kept bobbing up and down as he tried to stay awake, and every time it did, he reflexively squeezed Kara’s left hand.
And then he felt something, and his body jolted alert – Kara’s finger twitched in his hand. His eyes shot open, and he straightened his back.
Kara’s fingers contracted and relaxed again, but this time more slowly. “Kara!” Ben said excitedly as he bolted to his feet and hovered over her. Kynan’s head popped up reflexively, and he, too, jumped to his feet perfectly alert. “Kara!” Ben said again.
Kara’s eyes twitched, and then her eyelids slowly separated and blinked rapidly until they were squinted open. She looked from side to side, taking in the image in front of her. “Look at that,” she struggled to say through labored breaths in her familiar Irish accent. “My two most favorite men in this universe.”
Kynan’s eyes started to water, and a frog grew in his throat. “Mo bán, mo bán,” he gently said to her with a crack in his voice as he squeezed her hand and ran his other fingers through her hair.
“A dhaidi, don’t cry,” Kara responded, though it was clearly difficult for her to do so. “I’m okay.” And then Kynan lost it. The tears started to flow down his face, and he leaned over and buried his head next to hers, touching her cheek to cheek. He sobbed with praises of joy in his heart.
Ben lifted Kara’s hand that he’d been holding, and he placed it on the back of Kynan’s head. Kara glanced up at him with red, teary eyes and struggled to give him an appreciative smile. Ben knew that this was a moment that he didn’t need to share with them, so he left the room and took up a seat in the hallway.
Ten minutes later, the door slid open, and Kynan walked out of Kara’s room. Ben stood out of respect as Kynan approached him and put a hand on his shoulder. His look was somber, and his eyes were bloodshot.
“Ben,” he started as the concealed frog in his throat tried to hinder his voice, “every ounce of logic and reason I have searing through my body is screaming at me to be the good father and to tell every teenage boy to steer clear of my daughter. And you’re a teenage boy.” Kynan’s eyes started to well up with tears again as he moved his hand to the back of Ben’s neck and pulled his head in close until their foreheads touched. He looked deep into Ben’s now watering eyes and with gritted teeth he said, “But boy, you saved my daughter’s life. You saved my little Kara! You become the man she deserves, you hear me, boy! You become the man that she needs! Because she deserves you, son! You deserve each other! And you already have my blessing!”
Tears began to stream down both of their faces as they embraced in a man hug of understanding.
Ben would be devoted to them both for the rest of his life, and they would be equally devoted to him. They were a family.
Kynan let him go and motioned him towards Kara’s door. He was no longer able to cognitively speak because he was so overwhelmed with emotion. But Ben understood what he meant, and so he walked into Kara’s room as Kynan replaced him on the chair.
Ben walked over to Kara’s bedside and grabbed her hand as he sat down next to her. He couldn’t find the right words to say, so he kept quiet while he looked at her soberly.
“My dad told me about what happened,” Kara said. It sounded as though her voice didn’t hurt as much anymore. “Ben, it breaks my heart. I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t…don’t do that, Kara,” Ben replied guiltily with a slow shake of his head. “You’re here, in this bed, because of me. This is all my fault.”
“This isn’t about laying blame, Ben; this is about you saving me.”
“It shouldn’t have happened, Kara. You shouldn’t have needed saving. If I would have just died with my parents, you wouldn’t be like this.”
“Don’t you do that to me, Ben. Don’t you dare do that! You can’t live your life with that kind of guilt, and you can’t blame yourself for my actions. I could have chosen not to go, but I knew the risks.”
“Did you, Kara? In my worst nightmares, I never dreamed something like this would happen to you. I never would have thought someone could be so twisted.”
“No one could have known. Not you, not my dad, not even Colonel Stoddard. It wasn’t conceivable until it became a reality.”
Ben sat there quietly. He was too ashamed and heartbroken to speak.
“Ben,” Kara said after a moment of silence, “please don’t dwell on what could have or should have been. You did right. You did what was necessary. You killed that evil man to save me.”
“And I’d kill a thousand more to protect you,” Ben said reflexively, and he meant it.
“I know you would, and that’s why my heart will always belong to you.” Ben’s eyes opened wide as he heard her say this. “Now you better tell me that you love me, Ben, before I change my mind.”
Ben’s hands started to shake nervously. Kara always had a way of throwing him off kilter, but he didn’t care about that anymore, especially after what had happened between them. The truth was the truth. He stood up respectfully, and with a cracked voice, he leaned down towards her and said, “I love you, Kara Whelan. And I will always love you.”
“Good,” Kara replied with a heartwarming smile as she reached a hand up to his shirt and pulled him down close to her. And then she softly whispered, “Now, as gently as you can, prove it to me.”
She moved her hand around the back of his head and pulled him into her, lightly pressing her lips against his.
“I love you, too,” she whispered to him. “And I will always love you, Mister Ben Taylor.”
*************
Captain Gedeon Baas sat on the small single-sized bed jetting out of the wall in his enclosed cell on the Payra warship. The door to his cell slid open, and a powerfully built older man, with a shiny bald head, wearing a high-ranking Payra officer’s uniform, walked through it alone. Gedeon stood up straight out of both shock and respect for him.
“It’s been a long time, Kalob,” the officer said coolly in Payra’s formal language, calling Gedeon by his real name.
“General, it’s…I don’t know what to say, sir,” Gedeon replied, and he meant it.
“Then don’t bother saying anything,” the man said sternly. “The President has made it clear that you will stand trial for treason, and she has every intention of making this the most high-profile trial in the past hundred years.”
“I knew the risk,” Gedeon told him, “and I will gladly accept any punishment that is bestowed upon me.”
“Yeah, doubtful. You’ll regret saying that,” the general replied gruffly.
“No, I won’t. I’ve learned the truth, and my crew has the evidence. The President can have me killed if she wants, but my crew will vindicate me.”
“We’ll see about that, Kalob. In the meantime, don’t expect any favors from me. I came this close to losing my career because of you.”
“I’m sorry that’s how you see it.”
“So, tell me. Is it true that Azaria’s son is alive?”
“If you’re asking me this, then it means that coward Terrell must have gotten back to you. Or whatever his real name is.”
“Not to me,” the general said, shaking his head. “He’s the President’s stooge, and she trusts him. He said Azaria’s son murdered his partner, and now she wants his blood.”
“Murdered? That’s an outrage! It was self-defense! They were captives! I suppose he didn’t bother showing her video of it, did he?”
“There’s no video.”
“Then how did he manage to broadcast them torturing Celia to the ship I was on?” Gedeon asked, calling Cadence by her real name. “You must’ve seen it! I know you were scanning the area! They forced me to watch. They told me the only way I could save her was by surrendering.”
“Of course, we scanned for broadcasts,” the general was annoyed. “We saw all of them. There’s no video of this, because you’re lying!”
“That makes no sense!”
“Okay, prove it!”
“Let me go, and I will. My team will have it, and it will show something else, something incredibly important. I don’t know how it’s possible, but I swear on my life that Ben transcended, became Vigo. He broke out of his chains and beat Kaevan to death with only his fists. He broke Terrell’s arm in the process.”
“Vigo? Ridiculous!” the General fired back. “Why do you do this, Kalob? Why do you always lie like this? Trying to save yourself? Trying to be a martyr for a fool’s cause?”
“I don’t lie! I’ve never lied to you!” Gedeon shouted.
“Likely story,” the general retorted while shaking his head. “Once again, the man with wild conspiracy theories and outrageous accusations has no proof. Just keep stirring it, you fool.”
“The truth will out, sir, the truth will out!” Gedeon said confidently.
“Is that one of those stupid Earth idioms?”
“Its origins are from one of their most beloved writers in history. A famous poet and playwright of romance and tragedy. A man by the name of William Shakespeare.”
“Sounds like a buffoon to me, but I would expect nothing less from you. Always finding a way to fight the system.”
“To each his own.”
The general shook his head in disgust and turned to leave the cell. He glanced to the side of the door, and it opened automatically, but he paused for a moment and then twisted his head to the side.
“Kalob…as much as it pains me to say this, thank you for saving my daughter. Losing one was hard enough.”
“Don’t thank me, Caius,” Gedeon responded. “Thank your grandson.”
To be continued…