Chapter 12
One of the benefits of being in the Royal family is having access to several estates that range from the majestic and noble Royal Palace which has acted as the main royal residence since the very early days of the monarchy, as well as the more… martial fortress of Gallo Castle in the mountain regions of the country. It is this estate for which Sola chose to meet with the Peevish architect. Part of her hoped that the long trek to the castle would put him off and he would refuse… but she knew that was highly unlikely. In any case, the castle itself was an intimidating thing in itself. Built to withstand a siege, and once housing an arsenal that would have blasted away any army; now it mainly serves as a training ground for the Royal Guards.
The car carrying Mister Janren pulled up slowly at exactly the right time. The guards were in the middle of a shift change and so the number of uniformed soldiers on the premises was double what it normally was. Even from the third story, she could read the look of startled surprise on his face as he quickly moved out of the way of a squad of soldiers marching across the driveway. She carefully hid her smile as she made her way to her office where he would be brought momentarily. Sitting in the leatherback chair, she put on a show of reading through some of the papers that had been brought to her earlier in the morning. Most of it was notes from the ministers in government and very little of it held her interest for long, but she felt that she needed to look busy and show this man that there were more pressing things that she could be worrying about instead of tending to his ego.
The door to the office opened, and a servant announced Janren's arrival. The architect walked in, his eyes looking over every detail of the room before directing his gaze on her. He bowed his head, "Your Majesty," He said.
"Mister Janren," Sola returned, gesturing for him to take a seat. She put her papers down and folded her hands over her desk, cutting a figure she hoped was intimidating. "I understand you still have a problem with how I handled the construction of the children's house."
He nodded, "Yes, I do. Lott Dod is a liar and a crook. I know he hasn't built those kids a home that will last."
"That is a strong claim," Sola said through gritted teeth, "Do you have any proof."
Mister Janren visibly stiffened as he took a slow breath, "I used to work for them."
That made sense… the man's grudge was not with her, but with his former employee. It seemed that it was just her luck that she would get dragged down with them. Collateral damage perhaps.
Mister Janren continued, "I was to build a small office building for a start up company based in Keren. They sent me third-rate materials and when I told them that I needed something better to make it last, they shot me down." He shook his head and sighed, "I did what I could with what they gave me. But after two years, the building caught fire. Ten people were killed." His eyes met hers as he leaned forward and pointed a finger, "What they did to that building is the same thing they did to your children's home. I don't want something like that to happen again."
There was something poignant in the way he spoke. It was clear he had regrets about what had happened in that building, something that seemed to be the root of this conflict between them and that made her feel something she had not expected to feel herself. Regret. Regret for brushing his initial concerns off, regret for not being more sympathetic. Her father once said that a good ruler can read people. A good ruler can know if there is something more driving a person, and will know how to respond. Sola had not known any of that when it came to Darred Janren. Too quick to turn him away, too stubborn to see beyond his blunt words… she had not thought to ask more questions, or even look into things herself.
Now knowing the depth of his animosity for Lott Dod, she could see there may be a sliver of truth to what she had ignored. And while she still clung to the hope that maybe he was wrong, a gut feeling told her that it might be too good to be true. Sola clenched her hands tightly as she took a moment to compose herself. "What do you suggest?" She asked. "Closing it would be a field day for the press, and if you are right, there is no guarantee that anyone would trust my word on its safety for a second time."
He thought about it for a moment, "I can send an inspector over and have it be on paper that he's checking for an unusual power fluctuation in the breakers. That would give him access to the basement where the foundation would be at its weakest."
She nodded twice as she wrung her hands. "And if it is… under code… what then?"
He said nothing but his eyes betrayed his silence. It would be bad. "I'll have a better idea once I know how bad the foundation is."
With the meeting concluded, Sola dismissed him and sat alone in her office as she thought over everything. The eyes in one of the photographs on her desk caught her attention. The deep brown eyes of her father. Proud eyes that shown with a deep love of family and country. She could only imagine what he'd say to her now, and none of it was flattering. At the moment, she felt as though she were the farthest thing from the Queen she was born to be. Right now, she felt as though she were a failure to her father's legacy.
Their feet dangled over the edge of the stone pier on the edge of the lake house. Her toes just barely grazed over the surface of the water while his could submerge just past his ankles. He'd playfully kicked water in her direction a few times as they leaned against one another as they waited for Paddy to retrieve the boat from the boathouse. It shouldn't be much longer before they are back on a train bound for Theed and a return to her normal life and the selfish part of her wanted to delay it as long as possible. Unconsciously, her hold on Anakin's hand tightened and he responded by bringing her hand to his lips and kissing each of her knuckles with affection.
"You know, I could come back as soon as next month…" he said.
Padme shook her head, "No, I can't ask you to do that…"
He gave a shrug, "It wouldn't be a problem. I'm known to disappear a day or two after a weekend of heavy drinking with friends." He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and leaned in close to her ear, kissing it lightly as he whispered, "A clandestine rendezvous with a foreign princess doesn't seem like that much of a stretch."
Padme laughed and jabbed his ribs with her elbow as she shook her head at him. "You're ridiculous."
"You love it."
She did. She really did.
The water splashed higher on the pier as Paddy came into view rowing the boat in their direction. Adeptly, he stabbed one of the long oars into the water, securing it in the sediment underwater as he carefully spun the boat around so that it could be backed in along by where they were sitting. Anakin helped Padme stand before helping Paddy secure the boat to the pier.
The older man tipped his sunhat at them both and smiled as he climbed up. "Everything to your liking?" He asked.
"Absolutely," Padme answered, taking the man's hands in hers. "You've always taken such good care of this place."
He waved off her praise, "Oh, please, the place practically takes care of itself! All I care about is that you leave here feeling better than you did when you arrived." He said, he hunched over and stared deeply into her eyes and scanned the rest of her face and posture before standing tall with a proud smile on his face. "And it looks like you are! You don't have that mopey look on your face that makes you look like an angry old man!"
Anakin let out a bark of laughter that he quickly covered with his hand once he saw she directed her eyes at him. Padme turned back to Paddy and shook her head. He was the only one who could get away with talking to anyone in her family like that.
The old man laughed and walked behind her to pick up their luggage and loaded them in the boat, "Best we get you two back. Your decoy is good but she is no replacement for the original."
There was a weight that loomed over both of them as they made their way back to the capital and the closer they got, the heavier it seemed to grow. Padme rested her head on Anakin's shoulder on the train, seeking what comfort she could from him as every second brought them closer to their separation. He whispered sweet nothings to her and kissed the crown of her head, but none of it made her feel better about returning. From the moment her feet touch the ground in the train station, she will have to quickly seek out her escort back to the palace, and from there, her work as Princess resumes. And as for Anakin, he's supposed to be taken straight to the airport by another albeit not needing the desecration that her party will use. It meant that this train ride would be the last place they would see each other until they both have the time to arrange some kind of meeting.
The train whistle blew as it pulled away from the station. The next stop was theirs, which meant this was time to say goodbye. Padme picked her head up and looked up at Anakin's eyes just as the realization dawned on him as well. He gave her a sad smile as he brushed the backs of his knuckles along her cheek before leaning in to kiss her. Padme savored every second of it, breathing him in as she molded her mouth to his, and memorized every inch of him she could. Her hands ran along the back of his neck, twined her fingers in his hair, ran one hand down along the broad expanse of his chest. She leaned into his hands as he held her close to him, his grip a little tight on her waist, and yet gentle as they skimmed along her back. No words were exchanged between them. There wasn't a lot of time left for words and so, they simply stayed locked together, prolonging the inevitable as long as they could.
Another blow of the whistle announced their approach and, reluctantly they pulled back as the train pulled into the station. Anakin ran his thumb along her cheek and he gave her one more light kiss before resting his forehead against hers. Around them they could hear the other cabins begin to empty themselves of passengers, but neither of them seemed to care. "I love you…" He whispered against her lips. And she couldn't help but to kiss him again, returning the sentiment between kisses. Outside, she heard the conductor shouting directions to other platforms, and they both sighed, neither wanting to draw too much attention. Pulling apart, they both grabbed their belongings and made their way out to the platform. They walked side by side until she caught sight of Typho and Dorme standing in the main hall trying to look inconspicuous as they waited for her. At the other side of the hall, she saw another Royal Security officer dressed as a valet carrying a sign with "SKYWALKER" written in big bold letters.
This was it. Standing at the edge of the main hall that would push them in opposite directions. Padme and Anakin stood face to face and held each others hands. Anakin gave her a gentle squeeze and forced a smile to his face. "I will see you again," He said, before releasing her hand and walking away from her towards the security officer that was to be his valet.
I will see you again… not… goodbye. It was such a small thing to say, and yet there was a sincere promise in them. Padme smiled as she watched him leave, hopeful that again would not be too long a wait.
