THE DEPARTED

Chapter Thirteen

Before long, the determined trio made their way into Sabe's hideout. It had been easy for them to get there and even easier to find, which was not a good sign. Sabe was up to something, of that they were sure, but the question was how far she was willing to go to get what she wanted.

Padme pushed that thought deep into the back of her mind. The last thing she needed to think about was her children's possible fates. She desperately tried to convince herself that since Sabe only thought of Luke and Leia as Anakin's children, she wouldn't dare harm them. But Sabe was insane and there was no telling what she would do to get Anakin.

She glanced quickly at Anakin, who instinctively caught her gaze and smiled reassuringly. She weakly smiled back and they urged on with Obi-Wan following closely behind them. They searched each room one by one yet found no trace of Luke and Leia.

As they entered the last room of the retreat, Anakin felt his heart sank at the sight. Empty. Unable to stop himself, he flipped over a nearby chair in frustration. His chest heaved breathlessly and somehow his eyes found Padme's. She looked so frightened and seeing her like that made him feel more helpless than he had ever felt in his entire life. She was hurting, his children were missing, and it felt like there was nothing he could do. Years of Jedi training had never taught him what to do in this situation.

He heard Padme gasp and turned quickly to her as she grasped his arm tightly.

"I feel them, Anakin. They're here somewhere. They're so close…"

With that, the trio was on the move, overturning every object in the room in search of some clue. Before long, it was obvious that they weren't going to find anything. Padme's heart began to race when she felt it again. It led her to the closet that Obi-Wan had already searched through, but this time, she dug a little deeper and found an opening on the side of the closet. Anakin and Obi-Wan watched in shock as Padme gently pushed it open, revealing a winding staircase. Without hesitation, all three immediately descended down the staircase.

Whatever they had entered, it was dark and dungeon-like. The walls were made of cracked stone and the entire place had a musty, stale smell. There were only a few candles attached to the wall to light their way and there was only one way they could go. The path was a long and winding one and soon, they began to think that maybe they were headed in the wrong direction.

Just as their hope was almost gone, a creaking sound floated through the air. Anakin motioned for them to stop and all three reached out with the Force. Anakin's eyes shot open at what he felt and he quickly nodded to Padme and Obi-Wan, who had also felt it.

They were running now, each step taking them closer to what they were looking for. Without warning, they stopped in front of a wooden door as the creaking sound grew louder and louder. Anakin inhaled deeply and pushed open the door only to reveal Sabe, who was sitting on a rocking chair with one of his children in her arms.

Sabe smiled softly and raised her hand gently towards Anakin. "Oh Anakin, I knew you would come. I knew you wouldn't be able to stay away from me for long."

Anakin shook his head and took a step closer. As Sabe came more into view, he could only stare in shock at the image. She was wearing a delicate white wedding gown but it was the crazed look in her eye that scared him the most. It even seemed like she didn't even notice that Padme and Obi-Wan were also in the room. His eyes searched the room for his other child and he sighed deeply when his eyes found his child.

He took another step closer to her. "Sabe, you have to give them back. They're not yours."

Sabe's face twisted in confusion. "What are you talking about? Ben and Brema are our children, Anakin. How can you say that to me?"

Anakin closed his eyes briefly and moved even closer to her. "No, Sabe. Their names are Luke and Leia. Padme and I are their parents. You have no right to them and you never will."

Sabe started shaking violently and tears streamed down her face. "Why are you saying this, Anakin? I love you! I want to be with you and our children! Why can't you let us be happy together? We could be so happy…you and me and our babies…"

Anakin shook his head quickly. "No, Sabe. You give my child to me right now."

Sabe shook her head furiously and clutched the baby tighter, causing him to cry out.

Seizing the opportunity, Padme hurried to the nearby crib and gathered Leia tightly in her arms. Seeing the movement in the corner of her eye, Sabe's gaze snapped to Padme and her eyes narrowed icily.

"You." Sabe sneered. "You've tried to take everything from me but I beat you. I took everything from you. Isn't that ironic? Now you have nothing."

Padme froze for a moment, hesitation creeping up inside her for only a moment. She swallowed and pushed the feeling of immense fear back down. She was sick of being kept down, of always being the scared, cautious one. Sabe thought she had beaten her. But she wasn't through fighting yet.

Padme ignored Sabe's comment, walked back to Obi-Wan and placed Leia carefully in his arms. She paused for a moment and took a deep breath before taking her place beside Anakin.

"What? You don't have anything to say, Padme?"

"Shut up." Padme snapped.

Sabe paled and glanced nervously at Anakin who stared calmly back at her. Padme stepped closer to Sabe and revealed her light saber.

"Give Luke to Anakin right now."

Sabe laughed haughtily and shook her head. "Why should I listen to a word you say?"

Padme smiled smugly and ignited her light saber, placing her blade dangerously closer to Sabe's neck.

Sabe swallowed and her face tightened in obvious fear. After a few moments, Sabe nodded and surrendered Luke to Anakin's arms. Anakin stepped back softly, his eyes undecidedly moving from the scene before him to the child in his arms.

"What are you going to do now?" Sabe asked shakily.

"I'd like to kill you actually." Padme replied coolly, her eyes never leaving Sabe's.

"Padme…that isn't the way. We need to take her back to Coruscant so she can be tried." Anakin intervened.

"I'm sorry, Anakin. This has always been about Sabe and me. You and our children were just a pawn in her game. But the game's over, Sabe. I won."

Sabe hesitated for only a moment before defiance triumphantly returned to her eyes.

"You're not going to kill me. You don't have the guts."

Padme's eyebrows raised and she cocked her head confidently to the side as she stepped closer to Sabe, bringing her deadly blade even closer to Sabe's neck.

"Oh I don't? Well, Sabe, I've dealt with more from you than anyone should have to deal with in an entire lifetime. Your whole life has been dedicated to destroying mine. I walked into all your traps because I thought that we had actually been friends at one point. But we were never really friends, were we? I was just a hurdle you had to get over again and again to getting what you wanted whether it was the throne or Anakin. Kidnapping my children was the last straw. You deserve to be pay for everything you've done to Anakin, our children, and to me. You're pathetic and you're sick."

"You won't kill me. You're a Jedi."

Padme's eyes narrowed and she leaned in closer to whisper in Sabe's ear: "Not anymore."

With those condemning words, Padme flicked her wrist and Sabe's head tumbled to the ground.

Anakin sighed deeply and laid his hand on Padme's shoulder. "It's over now, Padme. Let's go."

Padme deactivated her light saber and turned to Anakin with tears in her eyes. She smiled up at him and rested her head gently on his shoulder. After years of pain, it was finally over. She didn't have anything to be afraid of anymore, not Sabe, not giving into her feelings, not Anakin, not anything. For once, she had hope that her life was finally going to be what it always should have been.

She smiled back at Anakin again before Obi-Wan placed Leia carefully in her arms and led them back to their ship.