Lee Adama was NOT a happy man by the time he got down to the ship's hangar deck. He had a sinking feeling about where that little girl had come from, and wasn't sure if confirmation would make things better or worse. Kara hadn't shared much about her experiences on Caprica twenty months earlier, but she had reported on Cylon breeding farms where they used humans to create a race of hybrids. Generally such detailed intel could only be gathered in one way.
Kat was waiting in the Raptor that would be taking him back over to Pegasus, a duffle bag at her feet. "Welcome to the crew of 'the Beast'," Lee told her as he took a seat.
"Thank you, Sir," she automatically replied, her voice dull.
"Not pleased with the transfer?" Lee guessed. Kat looked at him for a moment, considering whether or not to lie.
"No, Sir," she finally answered.
"Sorry to hear that, Captain." They could have remained in silence for the rest of the flight, but Lee couldn't help himself. "I heard you'll be coordinating patrols and training runs with Captain Thrace?"
"Yeah. The squadrons will alternate shifts between the two ships, and team up as needed for ops. The Old Man put her back in control of the training schedule, though."
"You disagree?"
"There's more and better equipment on the Pegasus," Kat explained, and Lee couldn't argue. "He probably just wants her close by so he can keep an eye on that kid."
Bingo. Lee tried to look disparaging. "What's got the grapevine buzzing this time?"
"It's nothing, Sir, just…People think that kid she brought back is a hybrid. It doesn't take a degree in math to figure out that it just doesn't add up. Starbuck was apparently only held by the toasters for four months. You don't get a toddler in four months."
"Kara was held by the Cylons?" Lee couldn't help but ask.
Kat turned to him. "You didn't know? From what I heard, one of them dragged her off the day they landed, and no one saw her again until she arrived on Galactica with Lieutenant Toaster."
"Messed up math or not, one look at that kid and you know it's hers."
Kat raised an eyebrow. "It's not a kid, Sir. It's a toaster, half-human or not. The thing should be in a cage until someone figures out what it's for. For all we know, it's a bomb."
Lee looked away from her. "Right."
Kara decided she wasn't leaving her quarters for dinner; she didn't know if Lee was still on the ship or not, but she really didn't feel like dealing with him. She got one of her pilots that still owed her from a card game down on New Caprica to bring up two plates from the mess hall, and she and Kacey enjoyed dinner together in peace.
By the next morning, however, hiding was no longer an option. She needed to go spend some time with Sam, and eventually had to get down to the deck for an afternoon briefing with her pilots.
"I was wondering what had happened to you," Sam said as he saw Kara come into his corner of the Life Station, holding Kacey.
"Yesterday afternoon got a little rough," she told him.
"I see. Is today going better?"
"So far."
"That's good. Hey, Kacey," he said to the little girl, curling a finger at her to get her to lean over. "I'm busting out of here today; want to help?"
"No, she does not," Kara answered for her, making the little girl laugh. "You got shot, like, 36 hours ago, Sam. I think that'd probably make the Doc want to keep you around here for a bit longer."
"I didn't want to have to keep him 36 hours ago," Cottle cut in as he approached. "Frankly, he's a more annoying patient than you are, Thrace."
Sam smiled. "She taught me well."
"Amazingly, all the bullets missed the important stuff," Cottle told them. "If you stop being a pain in my ass for the rest of the day, I'll see about letting you sleep in your own bed tonight. But only if you agree to remaining there for a few days. And you stop being a pain in my ass."
"This kid's going to be swearing like a marine before she's even two," Sam told Kara, looking to Kacey who'd been intently listening to the whole conversation.
Kara shrugged. "We're on a Battlestar. That was a given."
They stayed in the Life Station for most of the morning, talking about their quarters and fleet happenings. Lunch was an interesting plate of slop that Sam had just as much fun poking at as Kacey did. Kara finally got up to leave and take the child to stay with Adama while she was at her briefing.
"Captain Thrace," Cottle called to her as he saw her heading for the door, and held up an envelope. Kara hesitated a moment before taking it.
"Thanks," she told him.
She stopped by her quarters on the way to Adama's to get a few things for Kacey, and left the envelope sitting on the desk. She would read it later, Kara told herself. The results wouldn't change anything in the next couple of hours.