Chapter Thirty-five
It was mid afternoon as the two lovers snuggled together. They had both been asleep for a while and Vala noticed that Daniel still was slumbering. His slow, even breathing indicated a peaceful rest, one he hadn't had much of in a long, long time. The door to their room was open but nobody had entered for a while. Doctor Lam told them that she would make sure they were undisturbed and she was good for her word. Daniel would never have gotten the rest he needed if he had been continually interrupted by the medical staff and well-wishers and his private room was the only one at the end of a hallway so there wasn't much noise.
She moved slightly to ease a sore spot from laying in one position for too long and noticed his arm tighten around her to hold her still, but she also noticed that he never woke up enough to realize he did it. Was it instinct? Natural reflex? Whatever it was, she was pleased. 'He loves me. He really does. And, this is so nice, to be together again, to be in his arms. I don't want to be anywhere else.' She dozed for a while and then found herself awake, listening to his heart beating.
She felt movement and looked up to see Daniel turning to face her. He continued to turn onto his left side and put his arm around her back and pulled her into a closer embrace.
'Hey.' His voice was low and rough as he kissed the top of her head.
"Hey, Sleepyhead. How are you feeling?"
With his eyes still closed, he said, "Right now? Pretty good." He paused with a sigh. "We're home, finally. I had a few moments in the last few weeks when I wondered if we would ever get back here."
"So did I."
Daniel felt her start to tremble and soon heard her sniff. He leaned forward to the table and pulled out a tissue. As she settle back into his arms and wiped her tears, he reached for her and tipped her face up so that he could look into her eyes. He caressed her face with his thumb and said, "Want to talk about it?"
She looked up into his eyes as her own glistened with tears and said, "I was so scared. When you left to head back to that beach, in the middle of that storm, I really thought I'd never see you again. You were hurt and weak." Her lip quivered and he watched as she completely fell apart.
He hugged her close and said, "I'm sorry. I really am. I had to go."
"Jack didn't give you a choice."
"Vala, there wasn't one to give." He kissed her forehead and continued. "I knew the risks and knew it was the only way we would get inside to find out who was behind the plot. It's not Jack's fault."
"Yes, it is."
He leaned up, allowing her to lay back on the bed and said, "No. He felt terrible that he even had to ask me to go. He knew I might not come out of there alive. I knew it too but I still knew I had to do it. Don't hold this against him."
She reached forward to caress his whiskered jaw and said, "I thought you were going to die."
He kissed her lips softly and said, "I know. And you know that's a risk we take every time we go through the gate. But, we could get hit by a car while crossing the street. Does that mean we don't step off the curb? No. We try to be careful but there's never any guarantees that we'll come back alive. You know that."
She whispered back, "I know."
"So, stop being mad at Jack. This isn't his fault. Okay?"
"I'll try."
They hugged each other and settled back to relax. He thought he'd heard Cam's voice earlier but it grew tranquil again so they both quieted down.
A few minutes later, Vala sat up and said, I just remembered something."
"What?"
"Let me look at your back for a minute, okay?"
"Sure, why?"
"Well, Sam and I used our healing devices on you and I was just wondering if your back was healed."
He leaned forward as she lifted up his shirt to take a look. "Just as I thought."
"What?"
"No scars! Your back looks great!"
He leaned back with a sigh. "Thank you."
"Well, Sam helped. Actually, she tried the first time by herself and it didn't work. When I joined her with my healing ring, it seemed to make both devices stronger and before we knew it, you were well again."
"Remind me to thank her when I see her, okay?"
Vala smiled and nodded. "Do you remember much about your time in China?"
He paused to think. "Most of it to a certain point. I remember meeting the Director … going on the tour of the CSGC and meeting the people that worked there. They were proud of the work they were doing."
They heard footsteps approaching and then Carolyn pulled the drape back and said, "Okay, Lovebirds. Here's the deal. Daniel, I'm keeping you here overnight for observation. I would bet my next paycheck that you're tired. Am I right."
"Uh… yeah. Exhausted is more like it."
"I am also bringing in a team of counselors for you both. You can work with them on scheduling your appointments."
"Carolyn…"
"Don't argue with me, Dr. Jackson!" Carolyn knew he would balk at the idea but she felt it was necessary and she wouldn't put them back in the rotation until they'd talked to someone.
"But…"
"But, nothing. You were both tortured and abused both mentally and physically. You need this, whether you know it or not."
Vala looked at Carolyn and said, "We'll do it.
0 0
The meeting was scheduled for the next day at 1600 hours and Landry requested that teams 1, 2, 3 and 15 be present. He wanted a complete debriefing and recommendations about how to further proceed. Everyone showed up on time and officers sat at the briefing table while all others surrounded the room, with the exception of Daniel and Vala as they were still recovering from their ordeal.
Landry opened the meeting with a preamble, stating, "Okay, people. Here's the situation: I've contacted the President and he's willing to wait on the proceedings until we get things in place. The Daedalus will be leaving at 1800 for P78-Y45, or as Colonel Mitchell likes to refer to it, 'The Honeymoon Planet.' It will take them three days to get there. They will remain cloaked and in orbit. Teams 1, 2, 3 and 15 will go through the gate and start rounding up Netan's men. Owensville and the surrounding communities will be liberated. After we have Netan and all his men gathered, we'll head back here and approach the IOA. We'll need court testimony from Daniel and Vala and anyone else who witnessed the events there should be prepared to testify. Are there any questions?"
"No, Sir." It was unanimous among those gathered.
A voice from the doorway was heard to say, "Excuse me, Sir."
All faces turned to see Daniel and Vala standing in the door frame. Both were dressed in their BDU's and looked healthy.
"Doctor Jackson. Vala. Aren't you supposed to be in the infirmary?"
"Doctor Lam released us, Sir. Um, I know that this is your operation, but we want to go a long."
"Why?"
"We feel that we might be able to help out with the people in Owensville. The people there trust us, Sir. We were there for along time and we know who you need to contact and which people worked for Netan."
"I'm not sure that's a good idea, Daniel. You are still recovering from your experiences in China."
Doctor Lam walked into the room and said, "I'm going along, sir. I'll keep an eye on them. They will still have three more days to rest before they go through the gate."
Landry thought about it for a minute and said to Daniel, "Do I have your word that you'll listen to Doctor Lam and do as she says?"
"Yes, sir. We do!" Vala said with a smile.
"Good. Next, when all this is accomplished, we're going to set up a long-term diplomatic mission, offering food, medicine and whatever else they need. We have teams that specialize in that kind of thing so it's imperative that we root out all of Netan's men. As I understand it, Netan only had control of one area of the planet. He hadn't successfully taken over the whole of it, so it shouldn't be too difficult. I think that once Netan is captured, his men will give up."
Daniel said, "What about Milford?"
"I want him arrested and brought here for trial."
Daniel looked at Vala and then nodded.
"Okay, then. "Be ready to depart in 2 hours. You have your orders."
0 0
After Daniel was sent off to China, Netan received his ransom money and was pleased with his payment from the Chinese delegation. It's too bad Vala died. He could have gotten double for all his effort, but that was okay. He'd gained the respect of his peers and that counted for a lot in the Lucian Alliance
When one of his guards had come to him to report that Milford had gone missing, again, and wanted to know if they should start a search. He told them, "Yes, put out a notice that he's to be killed on sight. He betrayed me and I want him to pay with his life. Better yet, bring him to me and I'll kill him myself!"
A week had gone by and no Milford. Netan had been furious, as usual. His guards tried to stay out of his way but occasionally they were called before him and cringed under his vicious verbal assault. People scattered in all directions when they heard him bellowing in the hallways as he made his way towards them.
He'd had about half the townspeople pulled out of their homes and imprisoned in his dungeons. The old doctor had been sent to a labor camp. He could take care of the miners for a while until Netan decided his permanent fate.
The grandson, a Doctor Adam Rollins, was currently chained to the wall in the dungeon waiting for interrogation. It took a while to find him and Netan decided to leave him without food or water for a few days to weaken him so that he could get the information easier.
When Netan finally opened the door to Adam's cell, he found the man shying away from the sudden bright light that came in through the open doorway. Adam couldn't tell who it was at first because he could only make out the sillouette's of those coming towards him. But, when the guard flipped on the light switch, Netan gasped and tried to get away. He''d met Netan once before when he'd witnessed the evil leader using a staff weapon on a group of slaves that he'd deemed unfit to work on his farms. The men were undernourished after their voyage with Milford and Netan was furious that Milford hadn't taken better care of them. By the time they reached Netan, they were weak and sick. They were of no use to Netan so he shot them all. After he left, Adam went to the fallen prisoners and checked them over. Of the twenty-three who'd been shot, four were still alive and badly in need of medical intervention. Adam tried but he still lost one man as the injuries were far too serious to treat. The other three survived and the Resistance was able to get them off the planet and back to their homes.
And, now, here was Netan - an obviously angry, vicious man who enjoyed torturing people and did it well. He approached Adam and said, "I've been told by many that you are one of the ringleaders of the Resistance movement. You will tell me what you've been doing and the names of everyone else in on the conspiracy to overthrow me."
Adam looked at Netan and knew it was hopeless. He wouldn't give up any names, if he could help it, but he knew he'd probably be dead before the sun set that day.