Despite her exhaustion, Kara felt utter happiness at entering senior officers' quarters. She was home. She had survived her trip to Caprica, she had found the arrow, brought it back safely, and she had found survivors. It broke her heart to leave Sam behind, but she would return for him. After all, the President owed her a favor now, and how could anyone say no to rescuing survivors? As she undressed, she glanced over at Lee's rack. She'd been slightly hurt that he hadn't been there to greet her in the landing bay along with his father. In fact, it was kind of odd the way the Commander had left in such a hurry. Something about Sharon, but of course he would be upset to learn that one of his pilots was a Cylon. She sure as hell had been. She'd counted Boomer a friend. She sighed. She'd counted Lee a friend too. Surely he wasn't still angry about her stupid indiscretion with Gaius Baltar. If he was, well, that was his problem. She glanced towards his rack and was surprised to see it was empty. Was he still in his office at this hour?
"Hey Starbuck, glad to have you back!" Hot Dog said, coming up beside her.
"Thanks," she smiled. It was nice to have been missed. "Hey, um, have you seen Apollo?"
"You haven't heard? He's been in the brig!"
Kara couldn't help it – she actually giggled at the thought of that. "No way! Lee by-the-book Adama is in hack? What'd he do? Forget to sign everything in triplicate or something?"
"He...committed mutiny," Hot Dog replied seriously.
Kara's eyes widened. Had Hot Dog actually said mutiny? Apollo? She shook her head. Lee mutinied? Those two words just didn't belong next to each other. Her eyes narrowed again. "No frakkin' way! You're making that up, Costanza!"
Hot Dog shook his head. "No, Sir! It really happened, honest! He put a gun to Colonel Tigh's head!"
There was still a part of Kara that simply could not believe this was anything but an elaborate prank. The rest of the squad was probably listening from their racks waiting to see if she would buy such an outlandish story. But Hot Dog looked so serious. And Lee wasn't here...Lords of Kobol, Lee held a gun to Tigh's head? She would have paid big money to have seen that!
"Okay...if you're telling the truth..." she began, "...and I'm not saying that I think you are or anything," she said loudly to the room, "tell me why in the gods' names Lee would do something like that."
Hot Dog looked uncomfortable.
Ha, I've caught him out! Kara thought. He did make it up!
"He was trying to prevent Commander Adama from overthrowing the government," Hot Dog finally answered. He looked very nervous now, and had assumed a defensive posture as if he feared Starbuck was about to punch him in the mouth.
Kara noted this, and realized he wouldn't have risked incurring her wrath for a simple prank. My gods, had the whole fleet gone to hell in a hand basket while she was gone? "Wait a minute." She was still reeling from the idea of Lee committing mutiny and there was no way she could wrap her brain around what she'd just been told about Commander Adama. She shook her head. "You're trying to tell me that the Old Man staged a coup?" Kara was incredulous. "But he and the President were together in the landing bay to meet me. How could that be?"
"Well," Hot Dog lowered his voice, "I think they um….kissed and made up or something." Kara's eyebrows rose but she didn't comment. "Anyway, Apollo was in hack and then the Cylons attacked and we were boarded, so they let him out, but then he accused Boomer of being a Cylon! Can you believe that?"
Kara's expression became serious. Lee had known about Sharon? Or at least suspected? How? She put aside her thoughts for a moment when she realized Hot Dog was still talking.
"So then she accused him too. No one's supposed to be talking about it, but everyone is. There's rumors that he isn't even really himself, that he's a Cylon clone. Other people say that's all outrageous gossip, but no one's seen the CAG all day."
Kara had heard one too many too-incredible-to-be-true pieces of information in the last five minutes. She wasn't about to be upset by some bizarre idle gossip. Lee a Cylon? Yeah, right. Who in the twelve worlds thought that one up and how much did they have to drink first?
"You know what, Costanza?" she finally said.
The young pilot swallowed nervously. Maybe he should have just kept his mouth shut.
"I'm tired. I've had a rough day, no- make that a rough week. I'm going to bed. Goodnight."
That wasn't what he had expected her to say. He breathed a sigh of relief as she walked past him and dropped into her rack, halfway closing the curtains as she lay down.
Kara's head was spinning. She couldn't figure out where the grains of truth were in Costanza's tale of woe. There must be SOME truth to it somewhere…but she certainly couldn't discern it. Lee committing mutiny? The Commander staging a coup? Lee a CYLON? No. No way. Tigh hadn't said anything about any of that in her debriefing, and Adama and Roslin had been together in the landing bay just like always. Adama hadn't come to the debriefing but he must have been busy dealing with Boomer. She would surely hear all about that from the commander in the morning. The President would unquestionably want to send a mission to Kobol ASAP to get the map to Earth, and after that, they could send the rescue mission back to Caprica. She'd better get some rest. This might be her only chance for awhile. She'd have a good laugh with Lee tomorrow over this story. Suddenly she thought of something else. "COSTANZA! Get the hell out of senior officers' quarters!" She smiled in satisfaction as she heard the hatch bang shut.
The sound of someone screaming woke Lee. At first he didn't remember where he was or why he ached all over. A few seconds later, it all came back in a rush. He had been accused of being Cylon. He had been tortured and nearly executed. He decided he liked it better when he couldn't remember. He tried to calm his breathing. He looked around. He was in sick bay. It was dark and quiet; it must be sometime during the night rotation. He had vague memories of being brought here, his father holding him, Cottle repairing the broken bones and lacerations. But why? They were all so certain he was a Cylon clone of Lee Adama. What made them change their minds? Was this some new attempt to get information?
"Are you all right, Captain?"
Lee was startled by the soft voice. He hadn't heard anyone approach.
"I...um...yeah. I'm...I'm fine."
The nurse looked dubiously at her patient. He didn't look fine to her. His screams had drawn her attention. He was still breathing too fast. At first she had thought he was in pain, but she had worked night shift long enough to know that injured warriors often had nightmares and she now recognized that this is what must have happened. "Do you want me to send for Lieutenant Thrace?" she asked tentatively.
If Lee hadn't already been lying down, he might have collapsed from shock. No one had dared to even mention Kara's name in his presence since she'd disappeared. "What do you mean?" He finally got out.
"You were calling for her. I thought...well, I thought you might like to see her. Do you want me to have her paged?"
Lee shook his head in disbelief. How could anyone on Galactica not know? "Kara's...gone. She jumped back to Caprica. Who knows if she's even still alive?"
"Oh, that's right," she remembered aloud. "You were sleeping when she was brought in. She came back yesterday. She had some minor injuries but was treated and released."
Lee felt all the blood drain from his face. "Kara's alive?" He breathed. "She's here? On Galactica?"
"Yes," the nurse answered, nodding her head.
Lee's mind raced. Kara's alive, Kara's alive, Kara's alive repeated like a mantra inside his brain. He wanted desperately to see her, to hear her voice, to touch her, to hold her. He wanted to tell the nurse to find her and bring her here, right now if not sooner. But then he realized the lateness of the hour. She said Kara had been treated for minor injuries. If she'd been released then she was okay, but that likely meant she had to go through debriefing and who knows what else. She must be exhausted. This might be the first decent sleep she'd had since she left. He couldn't bring himself to have her awakened in the middle of the night just because he wanted to see her. He also remembered that their last words had not been pleasant ones. She may not want to see him at all. He hadn't even considered that until this very moment. What if he sent for her and she refused to come? He couldn't bear that. Belatedly he realized the nurse was still standing there waiting for an answer. He wasn't about to share his private thoughts and fears with her so he changed the subject completely. "Can I have some water?"
"No, I'm sorry, you can't have anything to eat or drink yet," the nurse informed him.
Lee hadn't really been that thirsty, he was just thinking he would have a drink and then go back to sleep, but the knowledge that he couldn't have anything transformed his mouth into a Scorpian desert.
Unaware of her patient's misery, the nurse checked her watch. "It's nearly time for your next blood test; I'll go ahead and do it now, then you can sleep for awhile."
"Didn't you just take blood?"
"That was a few hours ago. The doctor's ordered blood tests every four hours."
Great, Lee thought. Soon he was sporting a new bandage on his uninjured arm.
"Your monitor readings look pretty good. Let's see how you do without oxygen." The nurse removed it as she spoke. She watched for a few minutes to make sure nothing changed. "Can I get you anything?"
Lee wanted to request a steak, a tall glass of water, Kara Thrace...but he knew he could have none of those, so he just shook his head and closed his eyes. The nurse pulled the curtain around his bed and left him to his dreams.
Lee felt Tigh's fists pummel him into unconsciousness. He tried not to give the man the satisfaction of hearing him cry out in pain. In the end, he wasn't sure if he was successful.
He awoke on a bed in a room that smelled of antiseptic. Sick bay. Lee experienced pure relief. He had been saved!
A man in a lab coat stood with his back to Lee. Doctor Cottle, Lee presumed, but when the man turned around Lee recoiled in horror as he recognized Colonel Tigh!
He tried to get up, to run, but he was strapped down securely. He struggled to free himself, to no avail.
"Going someplace, Captain," Tigh mocked. "I don't think so!" He grinned maliciously and held up the largest syringe Lee had ever seen. Grasping it with both hands he plunged it into Lee's chest...
Lee awoke panting. He was terrified but he couldn't remember exactly why. Feeling the bandages on his wrists, he assumed he was restrained. He tentatively moved his arm. No, he wasn't. He held his arm up in front of his face, examining the dressings. He wasn't a prisoner, then. They had treated his wounds. But why? He didn't have a very good recollection of the night's events. He remembered dream-images, feeling pain and fear, but what had been real and what was only a dream? Did someone tell him Kara was back? Or had he just dreamed that? He remembered looking for her but he couldn't ever find her. That part was a dream, he was certain. Had the other part really happened or was it just his wishful thinking?
"Good morning! I see you're awake already."
Lee jumped when Doctor Cottle spoke; he had been lost in his thoughts. Despite his not recalling the nightmare from which he'd just awakened, he was subconsciously unnerved by the similarity.
"How do you feel?"
Lee had to think about that one. He was still pretty sore, but he wasn't in acute pain. "Okay, I guess."
"Do you know where you are?"
Ah. Those questions. His head did hurt, now that he thought about it. He must have a concussion. It couldn't be that bad, though, as he did know the answer. "Sick bay," he replied dutifully.
"What's your name?"
Lee unwittingly hesitated, remembering what had happened last time he told someone his name.
Cottle saw the fear in his patient's eyes and recognized the reason for his lack of response. He shook his head, knowing there was nothing he could do about that. "How about my name? Do you know my name?"
"You're Major Cottle," Lee replied. Not wanting the doctor to think he was more seriously injured that he actually was, he forced himself to answer the other question as well. "And I'm...Lee Adama, Captain, CFR, 318742."
The doctor felt a moment of pity for the young man as he actually flinched after stating his name, rank, and serial number. He patted Lee's shoulder. "That's right, son. Seems that idiot genius needs to step up security in his lab." He pulled the sheet down to Lee's waist. "Well, let's have a look at you." He slipped his stethoscope under Lee's gown. "Take some deep breaths," he instructed.
Cottle was pleased to hear vast improvement in his patient's breath sounds and the deep breathing had the added effect of helping Lee calm himself. The doctor kept listening a few moments longer than necessary until Lee had settled. The nurse assumed he was just being thorough. He continued his exam, pressing around on Lee's abdomen. Lee could have done without that but he didn't complain. Cottle seemed satisfied and turned to the nurse. "You have his lab results?"
She handed him several sheets of paper which he perused, nodding to himself. "Good, good," he muttered and handed them back to her. "Change the hematocrits to every eight hours, stop the IV fluid, start him on clear liquids and advance his diet as tolerated. Discontinue the morpha; change him to oral pain medication, one every four hours as needed, and discontinue the monitor. He's done fine without oxygen for the last few hours."
The nurse scribbled all that down on Lee's chart and the doctor signed it.
He turned back to Lee. "If your next two blood counts are okay we can stop them, and if you make it to solid food by then, you're out of here." Then he headed off to see his next patient.
Lee's mind was whirling. He was certainly not a prisoner and Cottle had made some disparaging remark about Baltar's lab having poor security. So the test was a mistake after all? Of course HE had known that, but no one else had seemed to give it any consideration. He lay still while the nurse removed his IV fluids and gratefully accepted the water she offered. He never did realize that it was his own screams he'd heard during the night, he just knew his throat was raw and scratchy. When she asked if he'd like to try some broth, he readily accepted. She soon returned with it and a pain pill as well. Lee gulped them both eagerly. When he was finished, she gently cleaned the wounds on his face and applied an antibiotic. He fell asleep while she was redressing his wrists. When she had finished all her tasks, she carefully covered her patient and wondered how in the worlds anyone could think he was a Cylon.
Bill Adama rose early and headed for sick bay, intending to check on Lee before he was due in CIC. Dr. Cottle motioned him aside when he entered.
"How is he? Is he all right?" Bill asked anxiously.
"That's what I'm trying to tell you," Cottle silenced the worried man. "Physically, he's much better. The bleeding has stopped, he's off oxygen and I think the danger of pneumonia has passed."
Adama visibly relaxed. "So he's okay?"
"Physically, he's stable. Mentally, well now, that's a different story."
Adama's eyes widened in horror. "The concussion?" he began, fearing the worst.
"No, no, he's neurologically intact," Cottle reassured. "I meant emotionally. He was accused of being a Cylon clone. More than just accused, actually," Cottle amended. "He's already showing some early signs of acute stress syndrome."
Bill felt at once relieved that Lee hadn't suffered some type of brain damage while simultaneously experiencing a new concern. "How do you mean? What signs?"
"Well, he knows who he is, but he's afraid to tell me. Makes for an interesting neuro exam," Cottle mused. "He's easily startled, has nightmares, that sort of thing."
Bill nodded. "I see. How can I help him?"
"Hell if I know. He'll either get over it or he won't." Cottle took a drag off his cigarette. "I do know this much. You can't make him do it. He'll have to work it out for himself."
Bill nodded staunchly and headed in to see his son.
Lee noted his visitor and came to attention as best he could while lying down and saluted stiffly.
Adama half-heartedly returned the salute. "How are you feeling this morning, son?" He attempted to put Lee at ease by being familiar but Lee wasn't having it.
"My condition is satisfactory, Sir. Thank you for asking, Sir."
"Lee...you don't have to be so formal, son." Bill spoke awkwardly, unsure of how to reach his son.
Lee didn't respond or relax.
Bill sighed inwardly. Lee wasn't going to make this easy. He had spent a restless night thinking of what Lee had been through, being falsely accused and then tortured. If Lee had been captured by the Cylons, he would have tried to escape, or at least hoped for rescue. As a prisoner aboard his own ship, he had no hope of either escape or rescue. Remembering the doctor's words, Bill tried to put himself in his son's place. He closed his eyes imagining the helplessness Lee must have felt. And if that weren't bad enough, he had to have known it was his own father who'd given the order for his interrogation. Tigh had suggested it, but he had agreed. He realized perhaps what had hurt Lee the most was his own rejection. He'd called his son a thing and turned a deaf ear to his cries. He hadn't given serious consideration to Lee's own concerns about Boomer simply because he didn't want to believe it and because he was still angry with Lee for his actions on Colonial One. He'd let his personal emotions cloud his judgment. Despite that, he'd insisted Lee couldn't be Cylon until the seemingly overwhelming evidence and the opinions of those around him convinced him otherwise and caused him to doubt his own son's humanity. A simple "I'm sorry" would hardly make amends. But what would? Had he lost his son despite everything? In the years between Zak's death and the holocaust he had tried to convince himself that he was happy with his life the way it was. He had his life on Galactica and Lee had his on Atlantia. It took the destruction of their homeworlds to bring Lee back into his life. Now that he'd had a taste of what he'd been missing, he didn't want to give it up. He wanted to be close to his son.
He looked back at Lee. The swelling had gone down; his son could open both eyes now, but there was still extensive bruising. He still lay motionless, eyes staring straight ahead, his expression devoid of emotion. Bill's desire for a relationship was obviously not mutual. He had no idea how to bridge the chasm between them and didn't want to do anything at the moment that would upset Lee. He was certain that any overture he made would be rejected, so he fell back on his familiar escape. Duty. "I'm glad you're doing better, son. I wanted to see you before my shift starts. I need to go now or I'll be late." He wanted to reach over and touch Lee, pat his shoulder or squeeze his arm, but he didn't dare. He left quickly, not giving in to the urge to look back.