Back again with a little more! Things are finally grinding to a halt... Thanks to everyone for taking the time to review. You know it's appreciated!

While I was away, there was an interesting discussion on Skiffy. I'm not sure who started it (I have a LOT of catching up to do) but there's a scene in this chapter that kinda reminds me of that conversation... So I'll dedicate it to the AR thread there.

Disclaimer: As always, I'm just messing around with them, and fully acknowledge that only Meyes is mine - and please note I never mean to offend.


Too High a Cost
By: Mariel

-xxxxxxxxxx-

Chapter 34

Containment

Having finally finished messing with the minds of young nuggets, Kara gravitated back to Lee's office and sat on the other side of his desk. Her feet resting comfortably on its paper-strewn top, she silently perused a newspaper she'd confiscated during the briefing. After a short while, she looked up.

"How do you suppose they get hold of these rumours and print them so fast?" she asked.

Lee grimaced at his work as her words filtered into his consciousness. It made no sense to him that 40,000 or so people required more than one daily newspaper, let alone the odd assortment of dailies and weeklies that seemed to abound amongst the fleet. He strongly suspected, however, that it boiled down to people's endless capacity for gossip. On Galactica, the two most popular papers were The Morning Post, which reported what might be considered 'real' news, and The Evening Watch, which concentrated on amusing people with the latest lies, speculation, rumour, and gossip. He thought it telling that the evening paper was always the thicker and more anticipated of the two.

Shifting his attention away from his paperwork, he looked up and again felt torn by the enjoyment he got from Kara's presence he knew he had no right to feel. Shrugging at her question, his voice was unconcerned when he asked, "What rag are you reading and what are they going on about this time?"

"The Evening Watch. They're talking about your father," she answered. Tossing the paper across the desk to him, she added, "And Roslin."

He frowned. "My father and the President?"

Now more interested, he reached out and pulled the paper closer.

The headline made him groan.

Adama and Roslin:
Has a Close Call Brought Them Closer?

blazed across the front page in large, red letters. It was accompanied by an old, grainy photograph he knew had been taken pre-New Caprica. It caught his father and Roslin in a moment of shared amusement as he guided her though a hatchway, and he had seen it used more than once to illustrate this sort of article. He'd always known it was simply one of those shots caught by accident and taken out of context, but now that he knew what he knew, it screamed an intimacy that shouldn't have been there. There was, he realised, something about the way his father held her arm and looked down at her... and something about the way she looked up at him and smiled...

His eyes quickly skimmed the 'story'.

Finished, he tossed it away from him in disgust. "That's garbage."

Kara disagreed. "They're usually pretty desperate for scandal, but this time, they're kinda on the right track, don't you think?" Moving her hands, she explained, "It's obvious they have been fighting, and it did create a lot of worry and unrest, and they have spent considerable time together since returning from Kobol a couple weeks ago."

Lee scoffed at the idea. "In Life Station, with my father in a coma, and only because there was no room to keep them separate!" he reminded her.

"Yeah, but the papers don't care about that part," she said. "And this article was based mainly just on the fact that they negotiated with Valerant together. Think what they'd be saying if the knew where they went after those talks. Your father taking the President to his quarters to frak around for a few hours would make for some really interesting 'news'." She grinned at Lee's reaction to her choice of words and said, "Oh, come on! If they can do it in the great outdoors, they can manage it in the comfort of your father's rack!" She hesitated as a thought appeared to occur to her. "Unless," she continued more slowly, "they've got some sort of weird fetish even I don't want to know about..." Her voice trailed off and she pretended to crease her brow in thought.

"Kara, don't start," Lee admonished. "And please remember that they," he said, indicating the paper, "don't know anything about what my father and Roslin were doing in the great outdoors on Kobol! On top of that, we don't know if they're 'doing it' now, either. Who says they've made up? My father doesn't get over his moods easily, remember, and he can hold a grudge forever."

Understanding that Lee's view of his father would never be like her own, Kara resisted getting into an argument with him over the Admiral's capacity for forgiving and forgetting. Instead, she said, "Well, Helo and Sharon said they were getting along fine, and they should know. My guess is that whether the Old Man and Roslin are indulging themselves or not, there are gonna be rumours flying around like crazy if they aren't more careful, and that's a problem. With the fleet in the unsettled state it is, there could be some serious political fallout if anyone realises some of this so-called 'speculation' is true. People are already afraid, off-balance and discontented. They don't need an excuse to feel more so." She shook her head. "The political ramifications of this could have a serious effect on Roslin's presidency..."

Lee looked at her in surprise. Since when had she become interested in the 'political ramifications' of anything? He sighed. The universe was going crazy. But she was also right. Holing up in his father's quarters together on their first day out of Life Station probably wasn't the most discreet thing they could have chosen to do. They were obviously neither thinking clearly nor considering how their actions might be interpreted. As Kara said, if the press discovered where they'd been all this time, there'd be hell to pay. An occasional rumour about the two of them was to be expected, but to give rumour something concrete to base itself on...that was dangerous.

He took a moment to wish back his previous state of blissful ignorance, then muttered, "What were they thinking? Going there was just plain stupid. And why would they need to be there so long? Thank gods the press aren't allowed free access around here, or they'd be waiting outside my father's door already."

Kara grinned. "Ya think?" Sobering quickly, she said, "They'll need to come up with a cover story and find their way back to Life Station ASAP. Someone needs to warn them what's up."

Lee almost visibly backed away from the thought. Before he could voice his refusal, however, Kara offered, "I'll go, if you like."

Immediately wary, he changed his mind. "No, that's all right. I should probably-" he began doubtfully.

Kara waved her hand. "No, it's okay. Really. I'll be quick and I'll be discreet."

Lee shot her a look of wide-eyed disbelief.

"I promise," she said, trying to keep a straight face.

He continued to look at her, his blue eyes sceptical. Kara was practically humming with mischief. Still, in spite of his reluctance to let her go, he didn't want to discuss this particular issue with his father himself. Knowing he was going to have to let her handle it, he said, "You don't have a discreet bone in your body, Kara. I swear, if you make one comment to them about anything related to sex, racks, river banks or..." His voice trailed of as the numerous possibilities overwhelmed him.

Ever helpful, Kara turned her eyes toward the ceiling and began to count off on her fingers, "...Desks, bulkheads, your father's sofa..." She looked at him and winked, saying "Which must be really awesome," then returned her gaze ceiling ward to blithely continue, "...the lounge chairs on Colonial One, the shower - his or hers, I suppose - the boardroom table, the-"

"Yes. Okay. That's enough," Lee interrupted. "The point is, I don't want them to even vaguely suspect that we know about them. You mention anything I might even possibly object to of a sexual nature in their presence - including locations and positions - and I'll have your hide."

"Ooooooh," she said with a grin. Her influence was slowly taking effect. Positions hadn't even occurred to her. "Was that a threat, Lee?" Shrugging with feigned indifference, she said, "I guess you're right, then. Maybe you'd better go yourself. It might be easier for him to hear about this from you."

His bluff too easily called, Lee tried not to shudder. There was no way he was going to put himself through the embarrassment of interrupting something - or even hinting that he was aware of what they did with each other in their spare time.

Embarrassed by his own thoughts, he winced, then looked at Kara. Nothing embarrassed her.

"Maybe we could just call them," he suggested. "We could suggest they have a look at tonight's paper..."

Kara snorted. "Yeah, right. Like they're going to go out and pick up a paper because we say there's an interesting article in it. We'd still have to explain which one and why. And wouldn't a reporter just love to get wind that they were buying papers to read news about themselves."

"Okay, okay. Someone has to talk to them directly, then," Lee conceded.

"So do you want to go, or not?" Kara asked.

Lee shook his head in defeat. "You want to go, you go. But do it right. Just quietly tell my father you're concerned by something you read in the paper, and you knew he'd want to know about it. Then I want you to give him your copy and get the hell out of there and let him and Roslin figure out for themselves what they're going to do. Do not," he repeated, "let them know that we know about them."

Kara nodded and rose. Folding the paper neatly, she put it under her arm and grinned at him happily. Her game plan only involved heavily hinting, so she'd be fine. Loving the unknown of what she'd find and of how she'd handle it when the moment came, she said, "This has been the most fun day I've had in a long time, and it just keeps getting better!"

Lee groaned. "Behave yourself," he pleaded.

Kara laughed aloud. Lee was coming around to the idea of the Old Man and Roslin being together, she was sure of it.

"You could come with me," she said. Her voice choking with laughter, she added, "C'mon. We could talk to Mom and Dad together. Maybe explain the dangers of being indiscreet."

Still laughing, she ducked the pen he tossed at her and left.

-xxx-

Adama and Roslin emerged from his quarters to find Lieutenant Gaeta waiting patiently outside the hatch with a sheaf of papers in his hand.

Adama smiled slightly. After nodding a greeting and guessing why the young officer was there, he asked, "Cottle doesn't know you're here, does he?"

The young officer shook his head. "No sir, not that I know of." Truly glad to see his commanding officer looking so well, he said a heartfelt, "It's good to see you, sir."

Adama nodded. "Thank you, lieutenant. It's good to be getting back into the swing of things."

Feeling the need to apologise for this unexpected ambush, Gaeta said, "Sorry Admiral, but Colonel Tigh sent me here right after you notified him you were leaving for Life Station. He was sure you'd want to go over some of this on your way there."

Unable to resist taking this opportunity to once again circumnavigate Cottle's rest order, Bill glanced at Laura, then said, "Not a problem. What've you got?"

Used to conferring with his commanding officer as he moved from one part of the ship to another, Gaeta easily fell into formation with the Admiral as he and the President began to walk down the corridor. Looking at the top sheet of paper in his hand, he said, "Richard Valerant called for you, sir. He said thank you for the first loan pilot, wishes to inform you that supply runs have resumed, and reports that two ships are still refusing to allow shuttles to return to them."

Biting back a frustrated curse at people's stupidity, Bill ordered the obvious: "Have Colonel Tigh ask Valerant to remind the captains of those ships that one of the provisions of today's agreement is that no ship with shuttles outstanding will be placed on the supply routes. That should soon bring them into line quickly enough."

Nodding, Gaeta turned to the next item on the list. Glancing at Roslin to include her in this one, he said, "I'm not sure if the President is aware of this yet, but early this afternoon the captain of Colonial One requested docking in our repair hangar until further notice. There's a problem with their air exchange system, and they're worried that the strain of another FTL jump could knock it out completely."

Adama's brow creased in concern. "Why was the problem allowed to get so serious?"

Gaeta shrugged. "It sounds like it got worse fast, sir. They put in a request to have someone look at it a few days before the strike. We were already short of technicians because of the bacterial infection, and other things took precedence. Then things got really crazy and we simply haven't had anyone to send. We've got a few techs who should be back on their feet soon, but looking at the backlog of requests we've got, we still can't put Colonial One at the top of the list. We've got problems out there on ships that won't fit into our hanger that need to be looked at first." He looked at Adama and said honestly, "I can't say when we'll be able to have someone look at Colonial One, sir, but at least if the ship's onboard, she and her crew will be safe."

Adama shared a look with Roslin, who quickly looked down at the passing corridor floor. Gaeta was certain she was trying to hide a smile.

"Then by all means, have Colonial One dock as soon as possible," the Admiral said. Without looking at Laura, he added, "You'll also need to make arrangements for the President's use of our guest quarters. I believe Doctor Cottle will be releasing her from Life Station soon. If there's a problem with the air exchange, I doubt she should be there either before or while they fix the system. I-"

Stopping abruptly, he turned to Laura. "I'm sorry, Madam President. I trust these arrangements meet with your approval?"

Roslin nodded. "Your guest quarters will be more than adequate, Admiral. Thank you for your hospitality. And if I could perhaps use your quarters for private meetings when necessary?"

Gaeta could have sworn her eyes were twinkling.

The Admiral inclined his head agreeably. "Of course."

When Adama turned back to him, Gaeta filed the exchange away in his brain and looked down quickly, ticking an item off his list. "The Flying Star," he continued, "has requested..."

One by one, a small myriad of problems was attended to as they made their way toward Life Station. Turning the last corner before their destination, Adama wondered why Tigh had bothered having Gaeta do this, as most of it could easily have been handled by his CEO. Then he answered the question himself. Walking beside Laura, his mind filled with fleet issues, he realised he couldn't have asked for a better welcome back.

-xxx-

"What do you mean they've left?" Kara demanded. Obviously disappointed, she looked at the closed hatch door and asked, "When did they leave?"

The marine who had told her about the President's and Admiral's departure was brief.

"Thirty minutes ago."

Kara's eyes widened. "Thirty minutes ago! Why wasn't anyone informed?"

Bewildered as to who should have been informed and why, the marine looked at her for a moment before answering stiffly, "I can't answer to that, sir. I was only called back to duty when the Admiral notified Colonel Tigh he and the President were leaving his quarters."

Knowing Adama often dismissed his own marines if Roslin's henchmen were outside, Kara bit back a comment about guarding an empty room. Protocol was protocol, and there was supposed to be a guard at the Admiral's door at all time. Determined to get answers, however, she continued to ask questions.

"So where did they go?"

Surely the marine knew something about something.

"I assume back to Life Station, sir. Lieutenant Gaeta met them and they appeared to be reviewing fleet business when they left." He paused. "I overheard one of Roslin's detail express surprise. Apparently Doctor Cottle hadn't ordered them to be back until 2100."

Her eyes narrowed. They'd left to go back to Life Station more than an hour early. Not sure what that meant, she wondered what the odds were of her sneaking in for a little visit with them in their room without Cottle knowing. The marine already forgotten, she turned and walked away.

-xxx-

Cottle stood in his makeshift lab, looked through the microscope, and made a strangled sound.

Meyes looked up. Though it was obvious just by looking at his face that everything wasn't, she asked, "Everything all right?"

Her question was met with a silence she knew better than to interrupt. Carefully, she finished putting away the reports she'd been filing. Then she sat down and waited quietly while he continued flipping through his notations.

She watched as he scribbled something on the diagnostic sheet. His face held a look that told her he was really concerned about something, so she settled in to wait until he was finished. Everyone needs a confident at some point, and months ago, they'd come to an unspoken acknowledgement that when Cottle needed to talk about something that couldn't be talked about, he talked to her. Somehow, he'd concluded (rightly so, as it happened) that with Meyes there would be no confidences broken or information leaked, just the relief of having someone to say things aloud to.

Someone who, on most days at least, he found surprisingly tolerable and reasonably intelligent.

Finally, he stood back, made some hurried notations on a sheet of paper, and then leaned heavily against his work table. "Things are a little complicated. It's the damnedest thing I've ever seen," he said. "I wouldn't have thought to even look, if it weren't for the fact I know how we cured Roslin's cancer. Damned good thing I decided to recall the blood samples to do the tests myself." He paused. If someone had noticed this, and word had leaked out...

"What is it?" she asked.

Without speaking, he reached for the sheet he'd been making notations on and passed it to her.

Meyes read it, then re-read it. Her eyes wide with shock, she looked up and asked, "But how-"

"Simple, really," he said in his gruff voice, "I guess it's fortunate that they have the same blood type. I'm not sure it would have happened, otherwise." He launched into a brief explanation and when he was finished, Meyes' face screwed up in disbelief.

"But to have her blood transfer into him..."

Cottle gestured, and explained, "It wasn't gallons of it or anything like that. The bullet went through her and then into him. She was lying on top of him and bled all over him, including onto his wounds. It was a simple matter of gravity at work. The cylon element in her blood just went with the flow, and when it met up with the his blood, it felt right at home and simply kept going. It makes perfect sense."

Dana shook her head. "It still sounds pretty amazing to me." Thinking of the internal damage that had been done by the cylon bullets, and of how miraculous his healing had been, she added, "I'm grateful though."

Cottle nodded. "You and me both," he said. He moved restlessly, however, and inhaled sharply on his cigarette.

Meyes expression showed curiosity. "There's more," she said, eyeing him closely.

Cottle hesitated, then confirmed her suspicions with a reluctant nod. "Maybe. I'm not sure. But in the realm of the unbelievable, it might get even better," Cottle agreed.

"How?" she asked.

He looked over at Meyes thoughtfully and suddenly really saw her. Her brow was furrowed, and she'd tried to push her hair behind her ears to keep it out of her face. There were blue-tinted shadows under her eyes, and he suddenly realised that she was pale and maybe thinner than she'd been a month or so ago.

"You eating okay?" he asked abruptly.

She looked at him in surprise, thought a moment, then said, "Don't try to change the subject. But yes, I'm eating fine. When you give me enough time to take lunch."

"Remind me to give you enough time."

"Done," she said. "Now, how does this get better?"

Still, he was hesitant to voice his suspicions. Skirting the issue, he asked, "You think having both the civilian and the military leader running around with cylon elements in their veins isn't enough?"

"I did. Until you said it got even better."

She could see him think damn. And still he hesitated. His reluctance obvious, he handed over the second report he had been scribbling on.

End
Chapter 34