Part 37: Stumbling Steps
Caroline Adama was up with the dawn, which was slightly unusual for her, as she would normally have slept right up to the first sounding of her bedside alarm. There wasn't much wonder as to why: between her pseudo-confrontations with Bill and Duras, the whirlwind turnaround with Kara, and her persistent worries over Lee -- well, the fact she managed even four hours of natural, unmedicated rest was a welcome development.
That didn't mean she was immediately ready or willing to look in on her two eldest. She brewed herself a strong draft of Tauron coffee, certain it caused her pupils to dilate as it made the kitchen momentarily vibrate with the first sip, then forced herself to take three more mouthfuls before feeling sufficiently strengthened to at least peek into the children's bedroom. Caroline half-expected the room to be a wreck, with clothes, books and (godshelpthem) the odd bloodstain strew all over.
Standing at the threshold, Caroline was greeted by a sight that was actually significantly more shocking. The room appeared virtually untouched, with only a couple of binders lying open on the desk the first obvious sign of someone having been there. Frowning, Caroline boldly took a half step further in and looked toward the bed. Her neck and ears were suddenly burning at the sight of Kara's bare shoulders and back peeking out above the comforter that covered her and Lee, whose likewise uncovered torso could be seen lying underneath Kara, his left arm thrown over her with his hand disappearing under the comforter over her backside.
It took no imagination to conceive what put the satisfied grin on both their faces. Caroline truly couldn't help the blush that surely turned her cheeks stark red as she focused on the floor and away from the bed. What mother, after all, really wants to visualize what kind of -- intimate acts passed between her children?
Shaking off such visions, Caroline quickly stooped and picked up the various items of clothing the pair had left strewn on the floor. She shook her head at the sight of a missing button on Lee's uniform jacket, and took an extra moment to hold the nightshirt up, visually checking for tears in the silk. She wouldn't have put it past those two to destroy each other's clothes in an effort to --
Caroline again shook her head clear. She quickly balled up the laundry and quit the room, closing the door behind her. It occurred to her only after sending everything down the laundry chute that she'd just taken what clothing Kara might have called her own. Not that that was any great crisis, mind, as Lee would surely find things she could wear.
"Ugh," Caroline groaned, again having to force herself to stop thinking in that direction. There were things a mother simply didn't need to know or imagine. Of course, such -- images -- were persistent and insidious. A piece of once-scandalous advice parted to her at the girls academy came to mind: Once you see someone naked, you can't not see them naked.
The same apparently held true for one's children.
Therefore, if she wanted to ever be able to be in the same room as Lee and Kara and not end up blushing, she needed to get her mind out of that bedroom and onto other things. Thankfully, a few dozen practical matters demanded her attention.
Caroline returned to the kitchen, via her office to retrieve the folder she'd pulled out of the safe the previous day, mind quickly listing the phone calls she needed to make before the pair slumbering upstairs finally roused. For strength, she topped off her coffee mug. For courage, she forced a single large gulp of the tepid brew down her throat. This time, Caroline had to blink away a constellation of spots that popped into existence over her vision as she reached for the wireless phone on the wall. Her fingers thankfully remembered the digits she had been planning to punch, even if her vision was now shaky enough she couldn't distinguish between the keys.
The party on the other end picked up after five tones, by which time Caroline felt her nerves and vision evened out to where she could communicate coherently. "Sherenford Maintenance and Services. How can we assist you?"
"I need a cleaning crew to go through a single story residence near Delphi Fleet Academy and ready it for regular habitation. I have an existing account with you."
"Name on the account, ma'am?"
"Last name is 'Adama', first is 'Caroline'."
"One moment, ma'am." Caroline picked up her mug, but decided against another sip.
A completely different voice picked up from there."Mrs. Adama?"
"Yes?"
"Ah, good morning."
"Good morning. Are there -- is there a problem?"
"No, no, Mrs. Adama. We just needed to look up a couple things here." The voice on the other end was young and earnest. Caroline didn't recognize it, but then she didn't call this service more than once a year, if even that.
"So, um, is the residence you need cleaned your house in Caprica City?"
"No." Caroline decided to say nothing further, and quickly found herself grinning at the mischief she was doubtless causing the poor lad on the other end.
To his credit, the party on the other end persisted at his own steam. "Oh. Okay. Um, we also have a vacation cabin outside Delphi on record."
"Getting closer, son."
"Well, there are no other properties in your file. Is it a new property?"
"Not exactly." Caroline paused for effect, ultimately deciding to put the other party out of his momentary misery. "May I ask who I'm speaking to?"
"Uh, David, Mrs. Adama."
"Well, Uh David, it's actually my son's house that needs to be cleaned out and likely fumigated."
"Well we can certainly see to that, Mrs. Adama. Address?"
Now it was Caroline's turn to stumble as she spoke. "Oh, its -- it's a one-story prefab on the perimeter of Delphi Fleet Academy. The number and street name escape me at the moment."
"Okay. How quickly do you want the work done?"
"Would the next 72 hours be doable?"
"Should be. How quickly can you get us the full address?"
Caroline thought for a moment, and then answered, "Give me an hour. Two at most."
"That'll be fine, Mrs. Adama. I'll have the work order drawn up in the meantime. The order number will be ready when you call back."
She nodded, only to realize this couldn't be seen over the wireless. "Yes, fine. Talk to you shortly, David. Thank you."
She cut the connection and let herself fume for a moment, feeling the fool. That could have certainly gone better. Caroline also realized this was the first time she'd seriously thought about Kara leaving her house -- and of Kara and Lee living together.
The thought alone was enough to leave her momentarily paralyzed, as it presumably would any mother. Caroline was honest enough with herself to acknowledge the issues on that score ran considerably deeper and with a much longer history, most of which her children were completely unaware of. She chose to deal with this the same way she had the past three years; that is, focus her attention and take action on something else entirely.
There was a pragmatic calculation to this; there was no way in all the gods created worlds she was going to disturb those two upstairs, and certainly not to apprise them of the thousand and one verbal cuts she'd applied to Kara's name over the years. There was no excuse for any of it, and realistically nothing to be done on that score. Better, Caroline had long ago decided, to put her energies into more practical pursuits.
Like calling in some legal reinforcements, just on the off chance the JAD decided it wanted her daughter's head rather than her forgiveness. She needed someone demonstrably prepared to go toe-to-toe with Kennet Waynes if need be. Caroline remembered the few times her late father-in-law spoke of his colleagues, with one name invariably coming up in the harshest of tones and contexts.
'A dirty, underhanded Aeran you can't trust with pocket change or a single compliment,' was Joe Adama's description of his one-time clerk, always adding, 'but damned if he doesn't play the Court like a stick-bowl game.'
With a grin, Caroline dialed a new number and again patiently waited for a response. The other end proved a bit slower in answering this time, something Caroline tried hard not to feel irked at. "Buchanna, Ingersol, and Gage," answered a chipper, girlish voice. "How may I direct your call?"
"Romo Lampkin, please."
Caroline's grin immediately faded at the girl's reporting, "I'm sorry but Mr. Lampkin has gone to work for the Public Litigators Office. Is there someone else I could direct you to?"
With a small sigh, Caroline answered "Not -- not at this time. Thank you."
"Thank --" She cut the connection before the girl finished. A bit rude, maybe, but Caroline didn't wish to lance the unfortunate receptionist with her frustration. Damnit, she cursed silently. She would have to think of somewhere else to call now. This was a pity as nowhere else immediately came to mind. The only other attorney she had regular contact with was her Estate Agent, who had more in common with a crème-puff pastry than an Officer of the Court.
Well, surely a few more calls around would solve that small matter. Once word got out the eldest of the Darden heirs was looking for representation, she would surely have firms competing for her attention. It shouldn't prove too hard to find someone then.
That empowering thought in mind, Caroline recalled she needed to call the cleaning service with the address to Lee's house. Moving quickly to her office, she rooted about in the desk drawers for several frustrating minutes, ultimately finding the copy of the Lease to the house that Lee had left with her. Why it was buried in amongst last year's tax returns, she had no idea.
Paging through the small packet with one hand, Caroline reached for the wireless phone on the desk with the other, fingers again punching the code automatically. Again, response was almost instantaneous. "Sherenford Maintenance and Services."
"May I speak to David, please?"
"One moment." Caroline winced at the firm's choice of phone music. Fortunately, she didn't have to suffer the pipes-and-keys version of "How Great a Labor" for very long.
"Hello?" asked a familiar voice.
"Hello, David? This is Caroline Adama."
"Yes, ma'am. I have the work order written up for you. Do you have the address of the residence?"
"I do," Caroline nodded. "Its 12-1 Archon Path, in Delphi."
"And you said this was at the Delphi Fleet Academy?"
"Just outside its perimeter, not on the Academy grounds itself."
"Okay, no problem. Will someone be there to let us in or do we need to collect keys?"
"Do you have a specific date you can do this?"
"The earliest we can be there is, um, just a second." Caroline felt relieved to know she wasn't the only one who was completely disorganized in this. "The twenty-second is our earliest opening. Do you expect this will be a full-day job?"
Caroline thought for a moment. "Well, the place hasn't been occupied in over a year. I expect it'll need to be fumigated at least twice."
"I'll put it down as a two-day job, then. About the keys, ma'am?"
This made Caroline pause and debate with herself for a few seconds. "I'll meet you there." It was a risk, given the distance involved. She was still nervous at the prospect of leaving Kara alone and unsupervised for any length of time. She couldn't take it for granted Lee would be there with her; while he surely wouldn't willingly leave her side, he could just as easily be called back to the North Wing or off to Picon. Caroline could easily see it happening now that Duras had taken an interest.
Then again, some degree of trust would need to be built between them if Kara was ever going to feel secure in their relationship (provided it survived the next few days). A trip to Delphi and back would take just a half-day at worst. Kara would likely appreciate the peace and quiet as well.
It wasn't the soundest or strongest argument Caroline could come up with, but it served to reassure her snap decision.
"I'll be there," she repeated quickly. David acknowledged this and provided her the work order number, then bid her a good day. Caroline returned it and cut the connection, happy that at least one thing was working out as she hoped.
There were, however, still other matters to attend to. She made two more calls, one to acasual acquaintance at a law partnership in Caprica City, followed by one to the offices of the local Reform Temple. The first was an innocent-sounding inquiry for a recommendation for a contract attorney; there was no conflict of interest involved, as her acquaintance specialized strictly in tax law. The latter call was more personal in nature, and a priestess promised to visit the next day.
There was one last call to make, but Caroline felt the need to put that one off a short bit. She had already made good progress on her plans for the day. Besides, she felt a pang of concern for her children upstairs, and decided to take a quick peek. She'd be eternally grateful if they would just sleep the day through.
Ascending the stairs and moving down the hall, there was no indication either Lee or Kara had roused. It wasn't until she was just two paces from the half-open door that Caroline heard a low grunt emanating from her son's bedroom, followed by another. She paused, only to literally stumble back when Kara's voice audibly hissed, "Godssssss -- yesssssss."
Caroline felt herself blush again and carefully tip-toed back down the hall, her fingers plugging her eyes and voice box humming the Colonial Anthem just loudly enough to drown out anything else.
An hour, two cups of coffee, half a glass of wine, a club sandwich, and two-thirds of a sleeve of cookies later found Caroline back in her office, nerves just settled enough to where she was ready to make the last phone call she planned for the day. She paged through the blue folder and found the number she needed, her remarkably steady fingers dialing the number even as she kept a white-knuckle grip on the receiver. Caroline didn't allow herself to think about just how jumbled her nerves were, concentrating instead upon the dial tone in her ear.
Her throat went dry when the other side picked up. "Hello?" a wholly unfamiliar voice asked after several seconds. "Hello? Is someone --?"
"Um, hello? Mr. Rand?"
"Yes."
"Dallan Rand?"
"Yes, this is Dallan Rand. Who is this?"
"My name is Caroline Adama."
She took a deep, gulped breath.
"I'd like -- I need to speak to you about your daughter, Karissa."
Two days later.
Caroline had been sitting in her car for a good half-hour, waiting for her hired cleaning crew to arrive. In that time she'd walked around the house Lee and Kara were planning on moving into, coming away decidedly unimpressed and with more misgivings than ever. Enough where, even though she had keys, she had zero interest in examining the interior. Her decision to call in the professionals was clearly a sound one; certainly the prospect of Lee and Kara tackling cleaning this place out by themselves didn't bear thinking about.
Unit 12-1 Archon Path was barely more than a large prefabricated shack and looked no more homey than such. Its fiberglass walls were streaked with grime and the lawn surrounding it overgrown; only a once-a-month mow by the Academy grounds staff kept it from becoming a total blight on the area.
Not that it would been more noticeable if it did as Archon Path was one of those poorly-planned and inadequately-funded developments the military had slapped together so it could offer its swelling ranks somewhere other than the BOQ a home. Between the serviceable but unimaginative architecture, cheap property rates, and the fact it was marketed mainly to unmarried Fleet personnel who lived in active deployments, neglect of the property was inevitable. Caroline was mildly surprised the Caprican Health and Safety Commission hadn't stepped in by now.
She was debating whether hiring a landscaper was merited when a cargo van rumbled up the road from the opposite direction. Caroline was relieved to see the bold lettering on the side declaring SHERENFORD MAINTENANCE SERVICES. The van moved on a short ways, then made a sharp U-turn and came to park behind her. She waited until its passengers began to disembark their vehicle before leaving her own.
"Mrs. Adama?" the driver asked as she approached. Caroline took note how the four men were all dressed in work coveralls and a couple were already wore masks and goggles.
"Yes, I am." She led them to the front door, pulling the house keys from her handbag without further comment. The front door was unlocked and cracked open, the smell of mildew and dust immediately, causing Caroline and the leader to back up several steps.
The latter turned back to the van and called out "Conroy! Break out the rest of the masks!"
"Got 'em!" the blonde haired man already wearing one waved and pulled the rear doors open.
"I'll leave you to it, then," Caroline said, handing the keys to the team leader and headed back to her car. She gave the cleaning crew a last look and drove off.
Somewhere along the way home, she wasn't sure exactly where, she stopped at the traffic lights and offered a small thanks to the gods that none of them asked about why her left cheek was red and swollen. Explanations for that would have proved – embarrassing, to say the least.
Tbc...directly ahead, if you dare!