His words slammed into my brain with a nearly audible slap and I jumped. Rather than letting me go, he squeezed just a bit harder and I looked up into his calm blue eyes. As if to prove his statement true, the sounds of movement suddenly came from the outer rooms. I swallowed hard and looked toward the door.
"It will be fine."
His soft voice settled into my mind and I became calm for the briefest of moments. "I know." I replied and, on impulse, leaned over to plant a quick kiss on his cheek.
His delighted chuckle spread warmth through my body and I rose to my feet. I tugged at my tunic with a nervous motion and heard another snort of air that might have been a laugh.
"You look fine. I'm sure the intruder will be appreciative."
I turned and shot him a look that was laced with both amusement and anger. "Just stay here until I know who it is."
"Of course I will." He lifted an eyebrow in my direction. "It would be highly improper for me to interrupt a tryst of some sort."
"What?" My voice was shocked and I struggled to keep it down.
He lifted a finger to his lips and pressed it hard against his trembling smile. I could see him fighting laughter.
"I think I've finally ruffled that cool exterior."
I shot him another quick look, this one decidedly more angry than the previous had been. "I'll be right back." And then I was off down the dark hallway.
"Chiara." The voice startled me so that I screamed aloud. I turned to find Kett standing in the darkness and I clamped a trembling hand over my mouth in an attempt to calm myself. When he reached to touch my arm, I lashed out and slapped at his hand.
"What are you doing here?" My voice was angry and I fought to control my breathing. "You frightened years off of my life!"
"I'm sorry." Kett's voice was soft as he moved toward the outer rooms and grabbed a lamp. "Have a light?"
He held the lamp out to me and I took it with trembling fingers. A shaky turn of the switch and it came to life in my hands casting a warm soft glow about the room. Once lit, I could see Kett's features in the soft glow and I felt my knees weaken.
"What is it? What's wrong?" My voice was high-pitched, nervous. He took a deep breath and pursed his lips before turning to put the lamp on a shelf. "Kett!" The urgency was overwhelming now and I felt the tension within me beginning to rise again. I watched as he inhaled deeply once again and turned back to me. His eyes focused on me and he opened his mouth to speak when something caught his attention in the hallway. I turned back around to see Ben standing in the doorway, dressed in his tunic. He looked as if he hadn't been near death just a few hours earlier. Kett and Ben eyed each other, two krayt dragons circling each other without moving. Though no words passed between them, the communication was overwhelming.
The room began to spin and I reached out for the wall to steady myself. At the motion, both men snapped to my aid, each reaching for an arm. Kett's fingers found my arm first and he pulled me to a low chair settled in the corner. I looked up and saw that his eyes still had not left Ben's.
"Kett! I need to know what's wrong." I tried to keep the panic from creeping into my voice. "Is it Marynne? Or Beru…?" At my question, I felt Ben step next to me, his tunic brushing my shoulder.
At this, Kett finally broke his gaze from Ben's and looked to me. "No no. It's not Marynne or Beru."
"Storm troopers?" The words were a strangled squawk as I imagined regiments of Storm Troopers descending upon Tatooine. I knew that if they came, it would be the end of Ben. I looked up to see him standing next to me, his arms crossed over his chest and I knew that he could read the fear in my gaze. He placed a hand on my shoulder and shook his head. Something he'd felt in the Force had settled his spirit, but his eyes were still full of concern.
"No. No storm troopers." Kett knelt down in front of me and sighed. "It's your grandmother."
Kett's words were careful, gentle, as he watched my face. "Someone came shortly after you left yesterday. They said that she had suffered a paralytic fit and was calling for you." He swallowed hard and he looked down at the floor before going on. "We didn't know where to find you so…"
My hands were resting in my lap and I found them mesmerizing. I couldn't tear my gaze away from where they lay, white and trembling. I stared at them for the longest time before I lifted my gaze back to Kett's.
"Did they say how long she had?" My thoughts were tumbling, racing, aching. All I could think about was my grandmother after my father had passed away. Even with her grandchildren, she had still felt that she had lost the light in her world. Her tired gray eyes, rimmed with red, haunted my vision.
"No. It was Bing. You know how talkative he is." I chuckled. Bing had been my grandmother's companion for the latter half of her life. Though well known for certain exploits in the trading sector before he met her, he had calmed down into a life of relative obscurity since meeting her. And he often reminded those in the family that he liked it that way. Kett raised concerned eyes to meet mine again. "Though he did say to hurry."
I nodded once and lifted my eyes back to where Ben was now leaning against the doorway. "I'll need to go." He nodded in return, a concerned frown crossing his brow. I continued, "Kett can get you back home. I really need to…" I rose from the chair, my mind already packing what I would need for the journey.
"No. I can't." Kett's voice startled everyone in the room. He stood and looked at me, his face determined.
"What?"
"I can't take him…" he turned to look Ben up and down, his words hard and clipped. "wherever he needs to go." I raised an eyebrow at the disgust in his voice. Kett turned back to me. "Mos Anchora is on the other side of Bestine. Your grandmother's homestead is far beyond that. You cannot go there alone. I don't care how confident you are."
"The suns are already coming up. If I leave within the next hour, I can probably make it before sunsdown tonight." I stood and felt a calm warm peace wash over me. I knew what I needed to do. Nothing would stop me from getting to her side. "Even if not, it won't be long after sunsdown. And I'll be leaving here well before the hour is out."
"I can be ready within the hour. I'm going with you. You will not go alone." Kett moved toward the door.
"If you go with me, who watches the farm?" My words caught him by surprise and I watched him turn, an angry glare on his face. "Are you going to leave Marynne alone for days? Maybe weeks while I go to be with her?" At that, his face fell and he sighed. He knew that I had a point. "You can't leave her alone."
"But you cannot go to Mos Anchora alone. Marynne would kill me."
"I would agree." Ben's voice, though soft, held an authority not to be breached and I smiled.
"You don't even know Marynne. You shouldn't speak about things which you do not understand." My words, though humorous, lacked amusement. I tried to press myself through the doorway in which Ben was standing. He didn't move, his blue eyes boring into mine. "I'm going. Kett's staying. What you do is up to you." My voice was harder than I had intended it to be and I instantly felt shame rise up in me as I tried again to shove past him. "Now let me through please. I would hate to cause you injury after nursing you back from our unfortunate hoi broth incident."
Ben looked at Kett and spoke, his voice light. "She's got spirit."
At that Kett fought a smirk. "No sense sometimes, but spirit, yes."
I shoved past Ben in the doorway and ignored the looks that passed between him and Kett. The two of them looked as if they had shared the galaxy's deepest darkest secret. I went to my room to put some things together. A few minutes later my bags were packed and I was ready to get supplies for the trip. I turned to find Ben leaning against the door, arms crossed over his chest.
"Would you like company?"
"What?" His words stopped me cold and I wondered if I had heard him correctly.
"I asked if you would like company on your trip."
"You?"
"Well, since you've already turned down your other offer of an escort, it seems that I am your last choice."
"I'm not choosing an escort." My voice was hard as I shoved past him. "I don't have time to take you back to the caves for your things and I'm not waiting for you to go and come back. I'm leaving as soon as I get packed."
"Well," Ben's voice was calm as he followed me into my mother's apothecary. I began to grab things from the shelves and shoved them into a bag. "my obligations on Tatooine will not miss me for a short time." He looked back at Kett and I saw a glance pass between them. "And Kett has most graciously volunteered to supply me with a few things that I might need."
"Fine. I need no details." I shoved past both of them. "Meet me at the speeder in twenty minutes and be ready to go."
