Maura found Aric outside, the morning sky just turning pink. He was standing at the fence, looking out on one of the herds on the ranch, lost in thought. She didn't want to startle him, and instead coughed as she approached. He turned to her, smiling at the cups of caf she carried. "Good morning," he told her, kissing her before taking the offered mug.
"You're up as early as usual," she commented. "This is supposed to be a break." She leaned onto to the top rung of the wooden fence.
"I know, but I always find such peace here," he explained, sliding his arm around her shoulders. "Look at the baby rontos! There are so many of them!"
Maura laughed. Aric had helped over the years with ranch operations, and knew this was a very good year for births. "I miss our own little baby," she said, but Aric detected no sadness in her voice.
"I know, I do, too. But you needed a break as much as anyone," he said, kissing her hair. They stood in companionable silence, watching the sunrise.
Corso woke and saw that his wife was still asleep. Moving carefully, he rose and dressed quietly, making his way to the kitchen. Caly was already at work, making breakfast, but she looked so rested and alive he couldn't help but smile at her joy. "Caf is ready, Uncle Aric is already up," she told him, and he gratefully pulled a mug out of the cabinet. "Mom is still sleeping?"
"She is," he said, and saw a flash of worry cross his daughter's face. "She's just catching up, hon. She's okay."
"I guess. I just see the same things that went on after she was brought back to us," she said, trying to articulate her fears. She continued to have dreams of that time, though they had not been as frequent since they'd left Odessen. "I'll keep some food hot for her, but you can call the others in," she instructed and Corso nodded, going out the back door onto the deck. Caly turned to the light, fluffy pancakes, putting them on the platter. I'll keep an eye on her, make sure that she's eating and drinking, she told herself, and resolved to care for her in any way that she could.
Miriah woke and stretched, feeling more normal than she had in a long time. She noted that her back wasn't stiff, and that she was hungry, before she stood and grabbed her soft robe. She'd taken a few steps when she felt her leg muscles quiver and leaned on the wall, slowly making her way to the kitchen. Once there, Caly dropped what she was doing to help her to the table to sit. "Thanks, sweetie. I am so hungry today," she said, and Caly smiled.
"You go ahead and eat, Mom. The others are on the way in now," she told Miriah, setting a large glass of juice beside her plate. "The bantha bacon is very hot, so be careful." She sat down as well, and heard the footsteps on the deck. "Torian is with the company, talking with them about the area and what they may have seen that doesn't seem like anything but might be something. His words," she said, and Miriah laughed. It was so good to hear her mother laugh, she thought, and relaxed a little.
Corso came to kiss his wife, seeing her eyes were bright and rested. "You look wonderful," he whispered.
"I feel good today," she replied, turning to her food. "I'd like to get outside some, if you and Aric think it's safe."
"Sounds good. I'll talk with him once we're done with breakfast," he told her. He and Aric had decided, on the way to Odessen, to leave her detail to have a break as well, feeling that there were enough troops around the property to keep anyone away, and them to keep an eye out at the house. Now, he wondered if that was the best plan, but tried to push away any worry, knowing his wife would know he was thinking on something and worry herself.
Lana was restless. She had been doing exactly what she was told for almost three weeks now, but she was getting a little cabin fever. She had settled on the sofa and had her datapad and holo, and had sent the morning report to Devin an hour ago. Now, she was alone, Tali with Nico out at the park. No one will know, she thought, and stood to go to the kitchen. She was fishing out some fruit and cheese when the door opened and she knew she was caught. Chagrined, she hurried over to the sofa, snacks in hand. Nico only grinned when he saw her. "Sorry, I was hungry and bored," she said, blushing.
"I can only imagine, love. It's got to be hard to slow down as much as you have," he replied, seeing Tali run to her room to put her things away. "Tali was worried that we'd been gone too long, so we hurried home."
"I hate that she's worried," Lana said wistfully. "I want her to be able to be a child, to enjoy the school break."
"She is, I think," Nico told her, taking a cracker from her stack. "She just loves to be with you."
"With you, too." She felt his arm go around her, and for the first time all day, felt content.
Coleen answered the holo to see her mom. "How is my little pumpkin?" she asked, and Coleen grinned.
"She's great! Finally, sleeping better," Coleen answered.
"Good news, then." Aric's face joined Maura's. "We miss you both."
"Any idea when you might be back?" Coleen asked.
"Even if we had a timeline, we wouldn't transmit that over an unsecured channel," Aric said, a playful smile on his face but his words serious.
"Oh, I forget," Coleen sighed. "Well, we'll be glad to see you when you do get home." They chatted for a few minutes before Caitlin started to fuss, and they disconnected the call.
"See?" Aric said. "They're perfectly fine, and you got to sleep all night for almost a week now." Maura smacked his arm but laughed.
"I feel guilty, at least a little."
"You shouldn't," he told her. "We needed the break just as much as anyone. Besides, you didn't seem to regret it last night." Maura blushed, thinking of their nights together that had been missing on Odessen.
"True, very true," she murmured, and took his hand. They walked around the house and saw nothing out of the ordinary, and finally back into the house. Walking up to the sitting area off the kitchen, Aric started. "Mir, looks good if you..." he trailed off as he saw she was asleep, curled up under a throw. He turned to Maura. "Well, maybe later. Do you think she's getting better?"
"She is, it's just going to take some time." Nodding, they made their way back to the deck, enjoying the mild day.
Torian listened carefully as the captain told him about a typical day on the ranch, hearing nothing that would raise any suspicion. It was only as the story drifted to the nearest town that he started to wonder. Here, in the rolling hills, all was well, but there had been reports all over the planet about an influx of people. Not necessarily crime, but just increases in trade and income. Torian thanked the captain and walked out into the bright sunshine. I need to know about the areas that have changed, he told himself, and went to find Aric.
Aric had settled into the lounge chair on the deck that was in the shade, Maura in the sunlight. He saw Torian approaching, and noted his expression. This can't be good, he thought, and waited for Torian to lay out the course of his thoughts. When he was done, and was waiting expectantly for Aric's opinion, the Cathar only nodded. "We do need to know what areas are seeing an uptick," he said, and Torian's face relaxed. "If there are pirates on Dantooine, they would want to blend in to some extent, do things above board to avoid suspicion, which would explain the increase in trade and homes and traffic."
"I thought so," Torian said. "I'll see what I can find out." The young man hurried to the office part of the house, and Aric just watched him go.
"You're not going to go help?" Maura smirked.
Aric shook his head. "His idea, he can run with it," he replied, and saw Maura's eyebrows go up. "I don't have to be involved in everything," he said with a grin.
"Since when?" Maura laughed, and he laughed with her. Sometimes, you have to step back, he reasoned, and closed his eyes. He really had missed being on Dantooine.
Corso had gone to see his ranch foreman, and now was returning to the house. He saw Aric and Maura outside, enjoying the day, and wondered where Miriah was. He went inside to check, and Caly only pointed to the sofa. "She's still not quite Mom," she said softly.
"She will be, hon. I'm glad she's resting." He hugged his daughter and made his way to where Miriah lay, seeing her so totally relaxed somehow reassured him. Mags came in to check as well, and Corso pulled her to the next room. "This is just getting better?" he asked, and she could see his concern.
"It is," Mags said, putting her hand on his arm. "It's been a long time since she's had quality sleep."
Corso sighed. "I suppose you're right," he told her, rubbing his face. "How are you doing here?"
Mags let a soft smile form. "I'm okay, really. At some point I'd like to just see the house again, but there's no hurry." Her voice was soft, and Corso felt the emotion underlying her words. "Mom and I are going to the temple this afternoon to visit, though."
"Anything you need, Mags, you only have to say it," Corso said, and she knew he was sincere. They parted, Corso going to be near his wife. He settled in a nearby chair with his datapad, and got caught up on all the ranch operations while Miriah rested, but his mind kept going back to the visit where they lost Felix, and his worry about Magdalane here. Sighing heavily, he reached over to touch his wife, just to reassure himself that they'd all be okay.
Torian sat back and gathered his thoughts. What he'd found was that there was indeed a large spike in financial data, related to the southern tip of the planet. Maybe the Imps that were here before were just looking to expand, he thought. Maybe the one who killed Felix was more than just a scout for the push to Ossus. If so, then this would be a great base for Imp operations into Republic space. He stood, straightening his uniform. Well, then, he thought. We need to find out who's actually here. He went to find Aric, intent on sending ships up to scout.
Miriah woke slowly, and gradually became aware that Corso was beside her, his hand on her thigh. It felt so good, she hated to move, suddenly feeling the desire she'd tabled the evening before rush through her again. She saw his eyes meet hers and then she was crushed against him, his mouth devouring hers. Her blood sang as he touched her, and she could feel his response as well. He joined her on the sofa, his back shielding anyone who would walk in, but she knew they needed to move to their room. She had just pulled back to look into his eyes when Aric came sauntering in. "Cor," he said. "I'm sorry, bud. Torian has some important news."
Corso sighed and sat up, holding Miriah against him. "Give us a minute and we'll join you in the kitchen." Aric gave a sharp nod and turned. He'd hated to go in there, but he knew they needed to know what was happening.
At the table, Caly placed a platter of finger foods out. They'd decided to not have a formal lunch, trying to give Caly a break from the kitchen, and instead just snack during the day, but Caly was restless and had done some small sandwiches and cut vegetables, as well as some thin sliced, cured ronto wrapped around cheese. Torian had hugged her close in greeting, and told her they needed to have everyone together. Mags and Sarai were already seated with him, and Aric and Maura took one side of the table. A few minutes later, when Miriah and Corso sat, Caly put out pitchers of iced juice and hot tea. They took a moment to get their food and drinks, then Aric turned to Torian.
"Go, Torian. You're up." Torian took a deep breath and described his findings about the regions of the planet that might be seeing some infiltration. When he finished, Miriah's face creased with worry.
"Do we have drones or small craft available to do some surveillance?" she asked, the Commander again.
"We have some drones," Aric assured her. "We probably need to send them up at night, though. I'll get that organized."
"I'll put a call through to the governor, let him know what's going on," she said, sighing. She stood and took her juice to the office, keying the holo. After the brief call, she sat at the desk, and called Lana.
Lana was lounging on the sofa, her hair uncombed, wearing an old shirt and soft pants. When her holo rang, she hit the receive button, expecting that Nico had forgotten something. To her surprise, Miriah's face emerged and she scrambled for some decency. "Commander, I'm so sorry," she sputtered, but then saw Miriah's smile.
"Lana, relax. I just wanted to let you know that we may have indeed found some unusual activity here," Miriah said. Lana continued to smooth her hair, but her attention was firmly on her boss.
"What can we do here to help?" Lana asked, but Miriah shook her head.
"Nothing, really. Just wanted to let you know, and to see if you can get Theron to do a little research here, too."
"Of course, I'll message him now. You look more rested," she noted, and blushed, hoping Miriah didn't take that the wrong way.
"I'm feeling better," Miriah replied. "How are things on the baby front?"
"Really good," Lana grinned. "Don't worry about things here. Devin is doing a great job with the legislative side, and everything is running smoothly."
"Good to hear. Let me know if you need me, okay? And I don't just mean for Alliance stuff."
Lana nodded, her heart warmed. "Will do. Take care there, too." As Miriah's image faded out, Lana sent her message to Theron.
Theron had been told about Saresh's words, and had been monitoring the comms from Dantooine. He'd finally traced the origins to Nar Shaddaa, and only moments before Lana's inquiry had come in, had learned that there was one group who was on the receiving end of the traffic from Dantooine. He just didn't want to be the one to tell the Commander that the Nova Blades had set up shop on an Alliance planet. With a determined stride, he started off to Lana's apartment, not wanting this information to be anything than word of mouth.