Post 22

The early morning sunlight filtered through the window as Kyp lay there, wishing he could stop time. Today was the day and all he wanted was to stay here in bed and tell the world to go away. He pulled Jade tighter to his side and buried his face in her hair. She was on her stomach, sprawled halfway on top of him and he took the hand that was resting over his heart into his and sighed. Last night had been amazing. He had let all his barriers down, forgotten about all his doubts and worries and simply loved her. If only it were that easy in the light of day.

Looking over at the chrono he groaned lightly. He had five hours left with her and he could think of a few things he would rather be doing than thinking.

"Have you even been to sleep?" Her voice, husky with sleep, brought his attention back to her.

"No." He whispered back.

"You need sleep Kyp. You're going to be busy today."

"I already have been." He joked and closed his eyes when she laughed quietly. Jade lifted her head up to look at him and rested her chin on his chest. Searching her face, he couldn't help but smile. Gods she was beautiful, even when she first woke up. How the sith could he leave this?

"I'll survive." He finally answered her. Her brow creased in a frown and he reached over to smooth it out. Jade closed her eyes and committed the feeling of his touch to memory. She wanted to be able to recall what it felt like when he had touched her last night. When she was old and gray, she wanted the memory to be able to sustain her, because she feared there wouldn't be any more between them. But she didn't have the luxury of time to dwell on her fears right now. She could do that later, when all she had was time to think.

"Kyp…" He silenced whatever she had been about to say with a kiss. Shamelessly, she ran her hands over the hollows and planes of his body, memorizing them for her dreams. His taste and texture were burned into her as he turned her over to loom above her. Kyp left her mouth to trail kisses down her neck and she conveyed her restlessness by lightly scratching his back.

"Five hours is a long time love." He whispered in her ear as his tongue gently traced the delicate shell of it.

"Then stop wasting time." She whispered back.

"We'll be landing in a few hours sir." Bela nodded absently at his guard and anxiously tapped his fingers on his thigh. He couldn't believe he was actually going to ask her. They couldn't keep living like this. It wasn't fair to either of them and he had decided to finally put them both out of their misery. He just hoped she accepted it and moved on with her life. That she was able to forgive him.

"Wake up sleepy head." A voice whispered in her ear. Jag's ran the back of his fingers softly down her arm and smiled when she finally moved. Her head turned towards him and when she opened her eyes and smiled, his heart beat a little faster.

"So last night wasn't a dream?" She asked quietly. When he shook his head, she sat up and wrapped her arms around his neck, holding him close.

"You do realize that you're making it extremely hard for me right now, don't you?"

Jaina pulled back and raised an eyebrow at his comment. The mischievous look in her eyes did not bode well for him.

"Now what would I be making…" Jag silenced her with a kiss and then fell back into the bed together.

"When is he landing?"

"In a little over two hours."

"Good. Let me know which platform. I want to be there."

Iella looked up as Kyp walked into her office. His eyes were bloodshot and she wondered if he had even gotten any sleep last night. He sat down in a chair near her and leaned back.

"Jared's taking her to his apartment right now." Iella nodded and sighed. "Everything ok?" He asked concerned.

"Yeah, I just hate waiting."

Kyp laughed and crossed his arms in front of him. "I know the feeling. I assume he's still scheduled to be here in an hour?" She nodded her head at him and went back to the datapad she had in her hand.

"Do you think he'll resist?" Kyp asked quietly, the silence making him uncomfortable.

"No. He won't want a scene. Even if he does, I don't think it will be an issue."

"Is that one of the reasons you want me there?" She looked up, startled at his question, but he didn't look angry. Merely curious. It took her a moment to recover.

"Partly."

"What's the other part?"

"Because I don't know what his guards are going to do. I need someone there who can subdue them if need be and with you I don't have to explain anything since you already know about the case."

"That explains the first part Iella. What's the other reason?"

Their gazes met and he raised his eyebrows, waiting for an answer. The door opened and she sighed unconsciously at the save. Standing she didn't look at Kyp again, hoping he wouldn't be bold enough to bring it up with others here. She knew he wouldn't forget though. How do you tell a man that you once hated more than anything else, that you felt safer with him in the situation?

When everyone had finally settled into a seat somewhere, she started their final meeting.

"We've managed to get a platform close to the Planet Security building to have Bela land in. The only thing we have to worry about right now is him getting suspicious and running. I'm hoping that he's arrogant enough about not being caught that he doesn't suspect anything."

"The prosecutor thinks that he can convince a judge to rush a trial date so we can get him squared away in a prison cell. The sooner we can get this started the better, but it depends on the judge we get. So keep your fingers crossed."

"Knight Zekk will be joining Master Durron with the security force to make sure everything runs smoothly. I don't want any of you there in case something does go wrong. You'll be needed during the trial. You're welcome to stay at the security station and watch his interrogation but I would rather none of you did in case you're called as witnesses. Which most of you probably will be when the defense gets its hands on our names." Iella paused and looked over the group.

"After this, the hard part is over for most of us. You all know the drill, keep your mouths shut with the media and only share things with the people in this room."

"You're awfully quiet." Jared commented as he parked the speeder by his apartment building.

"Sorry. Just thinking." She said quietly.

"Well stop. It's making me nervous." That got a smile out of her. Jared hopped out of the speeder and came around to take Jade's bag from her. They walked two flights up to the apartment and Jade was silent the whole way. Jared keyed the code and stood back to let her go in ahead of him. Intel had come over that morning to sweep the room and add their own gadgets to make it a little safer so he wasn't too worried about it being compromised. At least not yet.

The small apartment was not far from the Jedi temple, which had made Kyp feel a little better. If worse came to worse then they could always bring her back there for a short time. Jared set her bag down just inside the door and scratched his head in nervousness.

"It's not much."

She turned her head to smile at him, putting him a little at ease. "It's fine Jared. I'm just sorry you aren't getting paid very much."

Walking into the room, he motioned for her to take the only chair and settled himself on the couch.

"No biggie. It's enough for me. There's really no need for a tour. This is the living room, there's the kitchen, the bedroom is there and the fresher is next to it." He told her, pointing out each thing when he came to it.

"Why did you start working for Bela? I don't think I've ever asked you that."

Jared chuckled at her question. "Well, it wasn't really by choice. I needed a job and he needed a guard. I definitely wasn't his first choice, but Edward said he had to fill the position as soon as possible. I never asked why."

Before she could ask another question, he jumped up and headed towards the tiny kitchen. "You hungry?" Looking back he saw Jade shake her head and he frowned. "You didn't eat anything this morning."

"My stomach is in knots. I don't think I can eat anything right now." She responded, as she stood up and walked over to inspect some holos on a shelf.

"I don't think I've ever seen you not eat."

"Yeah, well it's not every day your husband gets arrested either." She mumbled, trying to hide a yawn.

"Why don't you go lay down. I'm sure you didn't get enough sleep last night." Jade turned to find Jared leaning against the counter, a smirk on his face.

"Now why would you say that?" She asked, trying to keep a straight face and not succeeding.

"Oh I don't know. Call me crazy."

"That would be stating the obvious."

"I highly doubt you and Durron were up playing Sabaac all night."

"Maybe we were playing strip Sabaac." she joked.

Jared grinned and pointed at her. "Now that, I believe. But I'll kill him if that's what you were doing."

Jade laughed. "Why?"

"Because he was supposed to be doing something else, not wasting time playing a game."

She shook her head. "I can't believe we're having this conversation." Jared laughed and a smirk came to her face. "But I guess when you're not getting any yourself you have to live vicariously through Kyp and I."

Jared looked up and glared at her. "Cold Storm, cold."

"Nothing but love for you Jared." She shot at him, then turned to walk down the hall. "I think I'll go take a nap now."

Kyp stood to the rear of the hangar, arms across his chest, trying to patiently wait for the shuttle to land. Surprisingly, Bela's pilot hadn't question the landing change, but he was taking an awful long time to touch down. He felt Zekk glance over at him, but didn't take his eyes off the ship. Iella stood just outside the landing circle alone. The rest of the security force had moved back up against the walls, not wanting to alert Bela that anything was out of the ordinary.

The ship finally landed and a minute later the ramp came down. Two guards preceded Bela down the ramp, and he himself looked to be distracted by the data pad in his hand. When he finally did look up and see Iella, a frown came to his face.

"Is everything all right?" He asked as he moved to stand in front of her.

"It will be soon." Kyp heard her say, as Bela and his guards finally noticed the security force that started towards them. He saw the resignation in the senator's gaze as he realized what was happening. The guards were confused for about a second, and reached for their weapons. Kyp felt Zekk tense up next to him, but kept his calm and was relieved to see the guards change their minds soon after.

"Bela Mnaa, you're under arrest for slave trafficking." Iella finally said as security subdued Bela's guards.

"I want to talk to him."

Iella turned to the master standing next to her and gave him an appalled look.

"You're kidding, right?"

"No, I'm not." Kyp said as he shot her a glance. "Just give me 10 minutes."

"Kyp…"

"Look, if I had wanted to kill him I would have done it in the hangar. Or before that. Nobody wants him to go to prison more than I do. I just need a little time with him before you start."

He could feel her gaze on him but didn't turn to face her. Finally, after a few minutes, she sighed and he knew he had won.

"10 minutes, that's it. After that, the holo's go on." Kyp nodded as she turned to go and get rid of the guard outside the interrogation room door.

Bela looked up at the person entering the room and frowned.

"Master Durron."

Kyp inclined his head in acknowledgement. "Senator."

"I must say that I'm surprised they're having you interrogate me."

"I'm not here to talk about your side job Mnaa. I have something else I want to discuss."

"Do I need my lawyer?"

"Not for this. I just need to satisfy my own curiosity." Kyp waited for Bela to allow him to continue then crossed his arms and leaned back against the wall by the door.

"Did you ever love her?"

Bela sat back in the chair and furrowed his brow. "I assume you're talking about my wife."

"Well I'm sure as hell not talking about your mistress." That comment garnered a raised brow from Bela. Looking away from the master he sighed quietly.

"Yes."

"Then why the hell did you start a family with someone else?"

"Is there a particular reason for these questions Master Durron?"

Kyp didn't say anything for a moment, trying to figure out just how much he wanted to divulge to the man. He finally decided nothing.

"Just answer the question."

"At first I think I did. Love her. It wasn't like she deserved though. I finally realized that I married her because she would make the perfect wife for a senator. I wouldn't have to worry about her embarrassing me or doing something that would bring attention to the media."

"So she was a trophy wife." Bela simply nodded and Kyp was surprised at how calm he himself was right now. "You do realize that she's the farthest thing from that." He said as statement more than a question.

"I do now." He said quietly, then looked like he wanted to say something else but paused. Kyp nodded at him to tell him to continue.

"I never wanted her to get hurt."

"Yeah, well it's a little too late for that now. I want you to realize something Mnaa." Kyp said as he walked over to the small table the senator was sitting at. Laying his hands on the surface, he leaned down to put his face closer to the other man's. "Your wife won't be standing by your side, trying to help you get out of this or making you look good. You just dragged her down into the dirt with you and you better pray to whatever Gods you worship that she comes out of this in one piece and smelling like Corellian roses."

Kyp held the man's gaze for a moment, then turned to leave the room.

He nodded to Iella on his way out of the interrogation room, but said nothing. Without thinking about it, he left the building and made his way to Jared's apartment. Picking up his comm, he called the younger man.

"Obath."

"I'm on my way over." Kyp told him then turned the unit off.

Even though he knew the code, he rang the door chime anyway. The door swooshed open and Jared simply nodded at him, moving to let him in. Kyp didn't say anything, just shouldered his way past the younger man and stopped when Jade looked up at him from her place on the couch.

"Guess I'll give you two some privacy. "

"What do we need privacy for?" Kyp asked, knowing full well what Jared meant. Jade giggled as Kyp rolled his eyes, the door swooshing shut behind Jared. They stared at each other for a moment before Jade stood and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. He didn't hesitate to pull her close and place a kiss on her temple.

"He's in custody." Kyp whispered and felt her relief wash over him. Jade leaned back to look at him.

"He didn't resist?"

"No. His guards started to, but changed their minds. Not sure why." He told her, leaning down to give her a brief kiss. Breaking the kiss, he rested his forehead against hers and sighed.

"You ok?" She asked him quietly. He nodded briefly, opening his eyes to smile at her.

"Do you two need me to leave?" Kyp turned to find Jared leaning against the wall of the hallway. "What, you need five minutes?"

The master glared at him, which just caused Jared to laugh. Kyp let go of Jade and turned to face the other man.

"We need to get you a woman Obath."

Jared held up his hands and shook his head. "No thank you. I'm just fine as I am. I'll let you guys have all the fun."

"That's a good idea Kyp. I'm sure we can find someone who'll take pity on him." Jade said, turning her best smile on Jared.

"I hate you two."

The next morning…

Jared head jerked up from the book he was reading when he heard the door chime. He glanced over at Jade in the kitchen, fixing lunch before he walked over to answer the door, his hand on his blaster. Kyp always called before he came over and he didn't feel like taking any chances.

"Who is it?" He called out and could practically hear Jade freeze behind him. No one answered him, so he reached down to call Intel on his comm when the door opened on its own.

He didn't have time to raise his blaster before pain blossomed in his chest. The distant sound of Jade yelling came to him, but everything else faded with the dull roar that rushed over him.

"Jared! Don't…"

The unmistakable sound of blaster fire met Jade's ears as she whipped around to the table to pick up the blaster she had set there earlier. Turning she brought the weapon up in front of her, aiming at the intruders.

"Now is that really necessary ambassador." The man's gravelly voice said as he walked out from behind one of his men. Jade fought to control her fear as two more men followed him into the apartment. She felt Jared's pain in the force, then suddenly felt nothing. Shifting her gaze to one of the latecomer's she noticed a small cage on his back and realized he was carrying a Ysalimari. He walked in her direction a few steps and she sick. This was not good.

The man, who seemed to be the leader, watched her for a moment then nodded to one of his men who left the room.

"What do you want?" She asked, sounding braver than she felt.

"Why, we're here for you my dear." He laughed at the confusion that came to her face.

"I'm not going anywhere with you." She told him, forcing his smile to deepen.

"But you are. One way or another. I much prefer you walk out on your own, but either way will suffice."

Jade's eyes darted between the three men that were blocking her only escape, then chanced a glance to where Jared was. She fought to keep a sob from surfacing. They had apparently blasted him point blank in the chest, but he was still alive. She could hear his labored breathing, but that really didn't make her feel any better. He needed help and soon.

When she looked back to the man she saw a smirk on his face that made her nervous. He reached down to raise his blaster and kneeled beside Jared, never breaking eye contact with her. The muzzle of the weapon was put up against her friend's head and she knew the man would finish Jared off without blinking. Her arm wavered for a moment before she closed her eyes in defeat. If she left with these men, maybe Jared would have a chance. Surely someone had heard the noise.

She slowly lowered her blaster and threw it in their direction. One of the man's cronies walked over and wrapped his hand around her upper arm in a painful grip, dragging her back over to his boss. He stood, still grinning at her and when she was stopped in front of him, he reached out to fun a finger down her cheek. Jade jerked her head away from his touch and heard him chuckle.

"Thank you for being reasonable ambassador."

"Reasonable is not a word most would associate with me." She spat back at him, refusing to let him intimidate her.

He just smiled then nodded to his men. "Put her in my speeder. We're meeting at the warehouse."

"I don't know most of my client's real names. They send me what they're looking for and what they want to pay for it, then I find it. Simple as that."

"And this is the complete list?"

"As of right now yes." Bela told the man sitting across from him. They had arrested him four hours ago, but it felt more like four weeks. Iella watched through the one-way mirror, massaging her temples as she tried to fight the headache that had been threatening for a while. Bela had only told them a little more than what they already had. Of course that was enough to put him away for a long time, but she had been hoping to get more.

"The man who you bought most of your slaves from, Shaw, what can you tell me about him?" The agent asked.

"Besides the fact he's an asshole, not much. He wasn't much for small talk. Knew more about you then you would ever know about him. I couldn't even tell you if Shaw is his real name."

"Your guards all knew about your dealings?"

"Yes. Except Jared. He came on staff a little later and Edward didn't want him involved since he didn't know if he could trust him."

The agent paused for a minute, looking down at the data pad in front of him.

"Where is your head of security?"

Bela's head snapped up to the agent and he frowned. "You don't have him in custody? "

Now it was the other man's turn to be confused. "No, he wasn't on your shuttle with you."

"Edward came back to Coruscant two weeks ago." Bela told the man, his frown deepening.