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"Good-bye, Shepard. Let me say that now in case I cannot later." Thane hit send on the message, and waited to see what would happen when it was submitted.
Nothing.
A day later, still nothing. Even changing the ID key on the message to a false name hadn't helped him reach her. He thought of her there on Earth, alone, trapped in an endless cycle of tribunals and questions and waiting for more of the same, and his heart went out to her. She must be so worried about him, about her ship, about all of her former companions.
And he was worried, too, not for her safety but for her overall well-being. Her frustration and her concern over the imminent arrival of the Reapers must have her near the boiling point, he imagined. He felt somewhat guilty that he had not attempted to convince anyone that the Reapers were coming … but who would have believed a drell assassin? And not jailed him, of course. Cerberus knew; surely the Illusive Man was working toward a solution. Perhaps Shepard was having better luck on Earth convincing those in charge to prepare for the threat than he imagined, he told himself, trying to believe it.
Truth was, his concern was for a much deeper and more selfish reason. Here in the hospital, he imagined that what remained of his life might be slightly prolonged … but it was unclear how long Shepard would be held, and every day increased the chance that he would never see her again on this side of the sea.
With that thought in mind, he left his quarters here in the hospital, chafing somewhat at the monitor he wore on his wrist. It made sense, of course—if he should collapse, the hospital wanted to know where he was—but he was used to remaining anonymous, hiding in the shadows, no one knowing when or where he went, and now that was a thing of the past. It was worth it for Kolyat's peace of mind and for their fragile but strengthening relationship, he told himself. And he was still anonymous in one sense: He had given the hospital a false name, so that no one would know he was Thane Krios. He took little pride in his fame among certain circles, but it was a useful tool if wielded in the right places and times.
At the C-Sec office in Zakera Ward, he asked for Bailey, and was shown to his tiny, cramped cubicle. Bailey looked up at him from behind his monitor with his usual harried expression. "Oh, it's you," he said with some relief. He tapped a couple of keys and stood up, reaching out to shake Thane's hand. "How are you feeling today?"
From anyone else, Thane would have been annoyed that every conversation began with that question, but Bailey had a genuine concern not just for Thane himself, but for the effect of Thane's declining health on Kolyat, and so he answered graciously, "Much the same, thank Arashu."
"Glad to hear it. You come down to check on your boy? I sent him off to the marketplace to trail a couple of pick-pockets for me."
"No, not today. I had a different question." Thane glanced over his shoulder and shut the door. "Are you able to discern the whereabouts of Commander Shepard?"
Bailey grimaced. "I hate to tell you, but there's no such person any longer. They've stripped her of her commission," he hastened to add to correct any misimpression he might have given.
"So … she is a prisoner?"
"More or less. Can't get much besides what's in the news vids—and can't trust those, anyway, since that Al-Jilani person really has it out for Shepard—but seems like the batarians want blood for what happened, and the Alliance is using her as a bargaining chip to secure trade routes or some such nonsense."
Thane closed his eyes and shook his head. He should never have allowed her to turn herself in. Or, at the very least, he should have made her use her status as a Spectre to do so here on the Citadel and turn herself in to the Council, instead.
"Is there any chance you can get a message to her?"
Bailey shook his head regretfully. "Wish I could, but they've got her email locked up tight. I can tell you no one's accessed her messages, so they're not reading them, just holding them until they decide what to do with her. Maybe once my promotion goes through in a few days, I'll have better luck ... but I doubt it."
"I see. Well, thank you, my friend."
"Wish I could do more."
"You have no need to wish such a thing. What you have already done for me and mine is beyond what anyone could have asked."
"Yes, well …" Bailey cleared his throat, uncomfortable as always with being thanked.
"Are we still planning to have dinner with Kolyat in two days' time?"
"Looking forward to it." Bailey nodded at Thane and sat back down behind his terminal, tapping it to life again.
Thane let himself out of the office. So, there would be no contact with Juniper as long as she remained on Earth. He would have to content himself with memory, and with his near-ceaseless prayers on her behalf. "Goddess Arashu, she is Your warrior. Watch over her and protect her now in this time of her captivity, keep her strong in mind and heart and body, keep her prepared for what is to come … and bring her home to me before there is no more time, I beseech you."