Chapter Seven
Dr. Liara T'Soni walks with a purpose as she enters Memorial Hospital. Liara talks the clerk at the front desk. The clerk tells Liara which floor her daughter, Lieutenant Kaja T'Soni, is having surgery for the bullet wound in her shoulder and that Kaja is still in surgery. There is also a human waiting to hear news about Kaja. Liara thanks the clerk and heads to the elevator.
Dr. Cassandra Mitchell, who is still in her blood stained clothes is sitting waiting to hear from someone to give her any news about Kaja. Her hands and arms still have Kaja's blood on them. Cass hasn't even taken the time to clean herself up. All she cares about is how is Kaja doing. She sees Liara walk into the waiting area. "I'm so sorry, Dr. T'Soni." Cass starts crying again.
Liara has an angry look on her face, but it softens when she see how this is affecting Cassandra. Dr. T'Soni sits next to Cass. She places her hand on the human's arm, "Tell me what happened, Cassandra. The police only told me Kaja was shot and was brought here."
Cass wipes the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. She looks at Liara with regret. " After we left your house, we went to her apartment for the rest of the evening. The apartment she rented is a few blocks from mine, so she offered to walk me home. When we got to my building, Anika Franzen was waiting outside my building. There were two men with her. I've never seen them before. Della was across the street. I don't know how she knew, but she saved Kaja's life while Kaja saved mine. Della shot one of the men while Kaja dove on me to keep them from taking me. Anika hit Kaja in the face with the butt of her rifle while the other man grabbed me and was dragging me to a car. Kaja then put him in a stasis field to allow me to get away. That is when Anika shot her. Della shot Anika before Anika shot Kaja, but she still got the shot off. The police arrested Della for killing both Anika and one of the men with her."
Liara listens very carefully to everything Cass is telling her. "Sounds like your friend caught you both by surprise. Does Anika even know Kaja? Something doesn't sound right. Why would Anika Franzen do this? Kidnap her own friend?"
"I don't know, Dr. T'Soni. She was acting strange. I've never seen her act like that before. Maybe she was trying to keep me from Kaja. I don't know. I wish I did. At least I would know why. Not knowing is hard," replies Dr. Mitchell with tears streaming down her face.
"It will be alright, Cassandra. Kaja is like her father. She even has the knack of getting shot while defending people," comments Liara as she thinks back to their vacation when Commander Shepard got shot defending people on Shanxi.
Cass looks at Liara then down to the floor. "I feel responsible. This is my fault." The human covers her face with her hands and continues to mumble, "It's my fault."
The Shadow Broker places her arm around the archeologist. "Cassandra, this is not your fault. It's only your fault if you knew about it ahead of time. And from your reaction, I don't think you knew about it."
Dr. Mitchell looks at Liara again and shakes her head while saying, "I would never do anything like that. Especially to someone I deeply care about."
As Liara tries to comfort Cassandra, an asari doctor walks in the waiting area to speak with Dr. T'Soni. When the doctor walks in both Liara and Cass stand up to greet her. "Please, have a seat," comments Dr. T'Sakos. Cass and Liara sit back down as instructed. "My name is Dr. T'Sakos. I am the doctor who performed surgery on Lt. T'Soni. She is out of surgery and in the recovery room. Everything went well. She is a very lucky asari. She was hit with a modded ammo I have not seen before and it did a lot of muscle damage to her shoulder. The fragments didn't hit anything vital. I will be keeping Lt. T'Soni here for the next several days before I release her. She should be in room 618 in about twenty minutes."
Liara stands up to shake the doctor's hand. "Thank you, Dr. T'Sakos."
"You're welcome, Dr. T'Soni. I'll be back in later in the morning to check on her. If you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer them." remarks the asari medical doctor.
Cass asks, "What are the chances of Kaja being released before Monday, doctor?" Cass doesn't want Kaja getting into more trouble with Matriarch Jilianea. The Matriarch wants a report about her meeting on Monday, but if Kaja isn't able to attend. What will happen to Kaja?
"Probably not before Monday. Lt. T'Soni might be released on Monday or Tuesday. I'll know in a couple of days," answers Dr. T'Sakos before she leaves the waiting area.
"Is Monday Kaja's meeting with the asari Councilor?" asks Liara.
Dr. Mitchell nods her head, "Yes, Kaja's commanding officer, Matriarch Jilianea, wants a report of this meeting within twenty-four hours. She seems very pissed off about it. I was with Kaja when she contacted Kaja. She came very close to revoking Kaja's shore leave."
Liara folds her arms across her chest and puts a hand on her chin thinking. "I'll take care of that, Cassandra. I'll contact both the Councilor and Jilianea to let them know what has happened. Maybe I can arrange to have the meeting moved or something." She turns to face the human, "Cassandra, let's get you cleaned up. Then go and be with Kaja. I'll go home to see what I can do about this mess."
Cassandra looks at her arms and dress. "I am so worried about Kaja, I don't even remember getting blood all over me. Will you do me a favor?"
Liara answers, "Of course. What do you need?" The Shadow Broker walks with Cassandra to the restroom, so Cass can wash the blood off her arms and face.
Dr. Mitchell hands Liara the key card to her apartment. "Will you go by my apartment and get me a change of clothes? My address is 1428 Solstice Way. Apartment 2C"
"I'll get your clothes then I'm headed home to try to see what I can do to fix this," answers Dr. T'Soni as she take the apartment key from Cass. She gives the human a motherly hug before she leaves.
"Thank you, Dr. T'Soni," replies Dr. Mitchell before Liara leaves. Cass dries off her arms and face then heads towards Kaja's room.
When Cass walks in the Kaja's room, she sees the asari lying on the bed with heavy bulky looking bandages around her left shoulder and a bandage over the wound on the right side of the asari's face. There is a machine keeping track of Kaja's vitals and she also has an IV in her right arm. Cass moves one of the chairs next to the bed, so she can sit next Kaja. She takes Kaja's hand and holds it tenderly because of the IV. "I'm sorry this happened, Kaja. I feel responsible even if your mom says it's not my fault. I feel like it is my fault. It was my friend that shot you, Kaja. Why she did what she did is something I'll never know. Unless Della knows what Anika's problem is with you." Cass places her head on the bed and starts to fall asleep.
Two hours later, Liara returns with a change of clothes for Dr. Mitchell and news for her daughter. It took some heavy persuasion from the Shadow Broker, but Liara talked the Councilor into moving the meeting from the Citadel to Elysium. Even if Dr. T'Sakos releases Kaja on Monday or Tuesday, she'll be in no shape to travel. Liara also contacted both Liv and Gaia to tell them about what happened. Liv is on the next shuttle to Elysium, while Gaia can't leave in the middle of shoot. Gaia did promise to come as soon as she is able to leave Earth.
The elder asari walks into Kaja's room to see her daughter resting and looking peaceful with Cassandra sleeping in a chair with her head on the bed. Liara sets Cass' clothes on the small table next to the bed then sits in a chair on the far side of the room. Dr. T'Soni sits there thinking Kaja is too much like Leia. Seeing her daughter lying there looking beat up, reminds her again of their first family vacation. A few tears trickle down Liara's cheek when she thinks about that trip.
Every hour a nurse enters the room to check Kaja's vitals and the IV bag. The nurse smiles at Liara who is busy reading over a data pad. The Broker has instructed Glyph to forward any information about Anika as soon as the drone finds any information. Liara needs to find out why Dr. Mitchell's friend tried to kidnap her and how Della knew about it. Something in Liara's gut is telling her Cassandra's friends were up to something. And Dr. Mitchell didn't know about it.
About 0630 Kaja wakes up. She looks around the room wondering where she is. She moves to get comfortable and it reminds her of the events in front of Cass' apartment and her failure for allowing herself fall for an ambush. Her left arm is immobile and in a position across her chest. Her face hurts as much as her shoulder does. Kaja grits her teeth when she reaches out to stroke the human's hair. Cass is still sleeping with her head next to the asari's hand.
Feeling a hand on her head, Cass opens her eyes to see Kaja awake. Giving Cass a grimace to go with her smile, Kaja asks, "Are you okay, Cass? They didn't hurt you did they?" She wants to give Cassandra a hug, but it hurts to move. So, Kaja decides to caress her cheek instead.
"Not really. Few bruises on my arm from him grabbing me. I'm scared and worried, but okay," answers Cass. She places a tender kiss on the back of Kaja's hand. "I also feel this is my fault. I don't understand what happened or why Anika would try to take me against my will."
Liara continues to sit on the far side of the room. She keeps on eye on the data pad in her hand as she watches the interaction between her daughter and the human archeologist. Liara is sure Dr. Mitchell is in love with her daughter. She doubts Cassandra would still be by Kaja's side otherwise. A slight smile appears on Liara's face then quickly fades when she looks at Kaja's bandages. It doesn't go unnoticed by the Shadow Broker that Kaja's first thoughts were about Dr. Mitchell's welfare.
Kaja closes her eyes and tries to remember where she has seen the human who grabbed Cass before. He's either Blue Suns or Eclipse. She is certain he is from Omega. Same with the merc Della shot. Impressive, Kaja is thinking of Della's handling of the situation, but the investigator in her is screaming Della knew too much. She thinks Della either double crossed Anika after their talk at the museum and Cass saying something to her. Or Della happen to stumble upon them. It's most likely the former. That latter is dumb luck and Kaja doesn't believe in dumb luck. Things happen for a reason.
She opens her eyes and says, "I remember where I have seen him before. It was on Omega last year. He's with Eclipse and we cross paths when I was working on a case. My investigation had nothing to do with him or Eclipse, so I didn't give what happened a second thought. I did recognize him last night. But I couldn't remember from where. I thought maybe he was either Blue Suns or Eclipse. I knew he was trouble." Kaja pauses to think about Della Appleton. Della being there is too convenient. The asari wonders if Della always carry a pistol with her?
Cass is looking at Kaja, listening to what she is saying. "I've never seen either one of the men before. I know Anika or thought I did." Cass still feels guilt about what happened. She feels it's her fault. Because of friends and their involvement in this.
The investigator in Kaja is looking for signs from Dr. Mitchell. She sees a few. Deception isn't one of them. Add in Liara sitting quietly on the other side of the room and Kaja is almost certain Cass had no part in this. Kaja knows her mother has already started digging for dirt on all involved. She also knows if there is a hint of involvement from Cass, her mother wouldn't allow Cass in the room.
Dr. T'Sakos walks into the room looking over a data pad. "Good morning, Lieutenant. I see you're up. My name is Dr. T'Sakos. I'm the doctor who performed surgery on your shoulder. You're a very lucky huntress." The medical doctor notices both Cassandra and Liara are still with the huntress. T'Sakos thinks it's always good to see family support for a patient. The doctor runs her omni-tool over Kaja's wounds.
Looking at the reading, Dr. T'Sakos nods her head in approval. "Everything is looking good. You received a concussion from the blow to your face. Your shoulder is going to take some time to heal. The ammo used was a modded combination of shredder and armor-piercing. It did a lot of damage to the muscle around your shoulder. I will be keeping you here for a few days, Lieutenant. I have already contacted Matriarch Jilianea and updated her on your condition. I'll be back in a few hours." Dr. T'Sakos smiles at both Liara and Cass before leaving the room to check on another patient.
"Thanks, doc," says Lieutenant T'Soni. Waiting for the medical doctor to leave the room before asking, "Mom, how common is that combination of ammo here on Elysium? I've only see it used by mercs working in the Terminus."
Dr. T'Soni moves her chair closer to the foot of the bed. "I've never heard of that ammo being used here on Elysium. Eclipse doesn't have a presence here either. I have found a few things, Cassandra, that should relieve your guilt." Liara points to the clothes on the small end table. "I brought your clothes. You were sleeping when I arrived, so I put them there."
"Thank you. What did you find out, Dr. T'Soni?" asks the archeologist.
"Please, call me Liara. As you know, Cassandra, I'm an information broker. I've done some trading and received a copy of Della's statement to the police at the police station. It is very different from the statement she gave at the scene." Liara hands Cass the data pad with Della's statements on them.
Dr. Mitchell is reading over Della's statements. The first statement is from the crime scene. Della only says she shot both Anika and the Eclipse merc to protect Dr. Mitchell and Lt. T'Soni. The second report is from the detective assigned to the case. Della goes into more detail about what happened. While reading the report, Cass' face loses it color After reading the data pad, she hands it back to Liara. "I...I..can't believe those were my friends."
Cassandra feels the devastation caused by her oldest and closest friends actions in the pit of her stomach. She can't believe her friends were willing to kidnap her to see if Kaja cared enough to hunt for her and to lure Kaja into a trap. All so Anikia could join Eclipse and for her cousin to get back at Kaja for what happened on Omega. She looks at Liara who is giving her a reassuring grin then turns her head to look at Kaja. Kaja looks like she is uncomfortable and in pain. Seeing the asari huntress in the condition she is in causes Cass to turn back to Liara and ask, "Liara, will you give me a few minutes alone with Kaja? Please."
Dr. T'Soni nods to Cassandra. "I'll see if the cafe is open yet and get us something to eat. What would you like, Cassandra?"
"I'm not very hungry. I would like the largest coffee you can find. Thank you," replies Cass.
Liara pats Cass on the shoulder then leaves the room. She leaves the data pad on the corner of the bed next to the human. When Cass hears the door close, she leans over the wounded asari to give her a gentle kiss on her lips. "I know if I don't tell you, your mother will. Anika and Della set us up, so Anika could join Eclipse and for her cousin, Jimmy, to get even with you for what happened on Omega. Della had a change of heart after talking with you at the museum and seeing us together when you were walking me home. She didn't want them hurting you because she knew it would devastate me." She lightly runs her hand over Kaja's left cheek with care. "I love you, Kaja. Your mom is wrong. I still feel guilty about what happened." She sits back in the chair and holds Kaja's hand
Kaja isn't surprised when Cass explains what is in the police report. Kaja wonders why there hasn't been a detective or an officer to take her statement of the events. Kaja rubs her thumb across Cass' hand as she thinks about what to say to relieve Cass of her guilt. Every time she smiles her face hurts, but she keeps the smile on her face regardless. "Cass, people you thought you knew did this. Not you." The asari grimaces as she moves closer to the human sitting next to the bed. She looks into those hazel-colored eyes and says, "I still want to be with you and I'm sorry I ruined your dress, Dr. Mitchell." She gives Cass a smirk then lies back. The machine resisters an increase in Kaja's discomfort and administers a sedative. The asari closes her eyes and falls back asleep.
Cass looks down at her dress then to the sleeping huntress. "You do know how to lighten the mood, don't you." She kisses Kaja's forehead softly then grabs the fresh set of clothes and walks into the room's bathroom. There is a small shower and Cass uses it to finish getting cleaned up. When she walks back out of the bathroom, Liara is back with something to eat and a two large coffees.
"I know you said you were not very hungry, but I got you a raspberry danish to go with your coffee. You do need to eat something, Cassandra," says Liara when Cass comes out of the bathroom.
"Thank you, Liara," replies Dr. Mitchell as she takes a sip of coffee. "You're wrong. Reading the data pad didn't relieve my guilt."
Placing her hand on her chin, Liara sighs softly to herself. She places her hand on Cass' shoulder. "Then you're not seeing why. Allow me to explain why you shouldn't feel guilty, Cassandra. You're the reason she is still alive. Not the reason it happened in the first place."
Cass is shaking her head not understanding. "I don't understand."
"This has to do with Eclipse and what happened last year on Omega. Nothing to do with you. Why Della went along with it, I don't know. Maybe to protect you. That is something I've yet to find out," replies the Shadow Broker. She is only having Glyph send her non-sensitive information to the data pad. There is more waiting for her at her office, but she isn't going to leave Kaja alone. Liara is sure Dr. Mitchell has to work sometime today. "Your relationship with Kaja is why Della saved her life. That is why you shouldn't feel any guilt. You got caught in the middle. I'm sorry."
Dr. Mitchell sits in the chair. Letting Liara's explanation sink in. Now Cass understands why her friends didn't want her to approach Kaja in the amusement park parking lot. The human looks at the wounded commando, she holds the asari's hand, smiles then places a soft kiss on the huntress' hand. "I don't know what to say." There is a long pause of silence before Cassandra continues. "Liara, thank you for explaining this too me."
The human archeologist sitting next to the bed, holding the asari's hand is replaying the events that brought them here. The more she thinks about what happened at the amusement park, the more Cass remembers Anika and Della both were talking in hushed tones when she arrived then they acted like Kaja was Gaia to change the subject. Cass suspects when she waved them off, they went and started planning something different. She gently squeezes the blue hand as her thoughts move to how Kaja is willing to sacrifice herself to protect others.
"Will it always be like this? Kaja putting others safety before her own?" asks Cass when she looks over in Liara's direction. Getting out of the chair, Dr. Mitchell grabs the coffee and small bag containing the danish and sits back down.
Dr. Liara T'Soni has wondered the same thing. She looks at her daughter when she answers, "I don't know. It depends on what she does about being in the military. Commander Shepard was the same way, Cassandra."
Cassandra Mitchell sits and eats her danish while thinking there are two things she is sure on. One is her feelings for Lt. T'Soni. Two, she wants to go to work early, but doesn't want to leave without telling Kaja first. Cass is hoping she can go in early, hurry up and get the new display ready. Then she can return to Kaja's side. The human already knows she wants to stay at the asari's side as long as Kaja is in the hospital.
Same with Dr. Liara T'Soni. The Shadow Broker is staying with Kaja as well. Liara notices Cass' reaction to everything. It warms Liara's heart to see how they interact with each other and how Cass is with Kaja when Kaja is sleeping. It outweighs the worry and concern she has for her eldest. She worries about Kaja's involvement with Eclipse and her being in the military. Her concern is about Kaja's happiness and her future if she does leave the asari military.
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A/N: I hope you enjoyed this weeks chapter. See you next week.