Hannah waited an hour to cool down before confronting Lucas. She met with Steven, catching him up to speed regarding the reason for Lucas' behavior. The reason made little difference; Steven was livid, as livid as he would show anyway. He'd always been the quintessential admiral with bottomless self-control. They agreed Hannah would be the one to do the talking and report back to Steven. After their conversation, Steven left to turn his attention to Jane, leaving Hannah sitting alone in a conference room he had commandeered as a place for her to settle while the defense committee gathered for Jane's hearing.

When she was alone, Hannah folded her arms on the conference table and rested her head on them, trying to clear her mind to think objectively. Her thoughts were in turmoil. Jane's predicament had brought her to the edge of what she could manage emotionally; Lucas' attack threatened to push her over. Anxiety bubbled under the surface of her apparent aplomb as she tried to wrap her mind around the fact that today she could lose both her daughter and her friend. But is Lucas even my friend anymore? Hannah asked herself. He tried to kill my daughter. She concluded that what she really wanted to do was go down to Lucas' cell and beat the crap out of him. However, such an action wasn't correct behavior for a captain in the Alliance Navy. So, instead of rushing down to Lucas' cell, she stayed put until her simmering anger had submitted to her stronger will.

When she felt she could converse with Lucas rather than assault him, Hannah made her way to his cell. She passed through detention security having been granted clearance by Steven to see her XO. A guard led her down to a cell, a small room with a secured lock. The guard opened the door with his omni-tool and let her inside.

The cell was sparse, a bed in one corner, a steel folding chair in the other. A small washbasin and toilet occupied a third corner. Lucas had been lying on the bed when she entered. He looked to the door, saw it was her and sat up, leaning with his back against the wall. He avoided her eyes. Hannah tried to read his expression, but his face was blank. She walked over and pulled the chair out from the corner, sitting down. She stared at Lucas for a few seconds. His head was lowered and he picked at the bed cover.

"You've been relieved of duty effective immediately," Hannah began.

Lucas assented quietly. "I already knew that would happen. I betted on it."

Hannah took a long breath to steady her mind. What really bothered her was that Lucas' act had been premeditated. It wasn't like he'd just seen Jane and lost it; he'd gone out of his way to track her down.

"How did you get to Earth?" Hannah demanded. "You realize you're AWOL." It was then that Hannah noticed the hooded jacket Lucas wore over his uniform to keep out the chill of the cell. "You followed me," she said, recognizing Lucas as the hooded figure that had piqued her interest after she left the Orizaba at Arcturus.

"I had to know where you were going," Lucas explained, eyes still on the cover of the bed.

"So...what? You have some secret ship I don't know about?"

Lucas actually chuckled. "I wish. No, I looked up merchant ships before we got back to Arcturus. Managed to pay my way onto one headed to Earth."

Understanding shook Hannah inside and if looks could kill, Lucas would have been incinerated instantly. She understood now that when she'd pleaded with Lucas back on the Orizaba to hear Jane out, he'd already decided to kill her.

"How could you do this to me, Lucas?" she asked carefully, working to maintain her cool. "You betrayed me."

Now Lucas' head snapped up. "I betrayed you? Your daughter killed Keta and you've been acting this whole time like Keta means nothing to you!"

Hannah immediately protested. "I care about Keta. I don't want her to be dead. But if she is, I understand why it had to happen."

Lucas let out a cry of frustration. "Your daughter's twisted your mind!"

Hannah narrowed her eyes at Lucas. "What are you…"

Lucas interrupted. "Have you ever considered that Jane's a Cerberus agent? That she's on their side? Huh?"

Hannah's veneer of calm disappeared as anger filtered through her words. "She isn't on their side! In fact, she left them."

"So she tells you," Lucas came back cynically. "How can you believe her? She's been working for them this whole time. How do you know that blowing up the Bahak system wasn't an act of terrorism backed by Cerberus?"

"Because she wasn't sent there by Cerberus," Hannah defended Jane. "Hackett sent her there to rescue someone. It was a personal favor to him."

Lucas shook his head. "So Hackett's as deceived as you are. It's the only thing that makes sense. Your daughter's a Cerberus agent using the Reapers as an excuse to carry out her own agenda."

Hannah paused a moment before she replied, stewing in her anger and biting back her retort. It was obvious Lucas had been listening to biased news for too long. She wondered if his ideas were the general opinion of the galaxy, that Jane was nothing but a Cerberus agent bent on acts of terrorism. Hannah inhaled slowly, forcing herself to regain control over her emotions and thoughts.

"I know Jane. She's the same as she was two years ago at the Battle of the Citadel. She would never support terrorism."

Lucas looked askance at Hannah. "So she never worked with Cerberus?" His tone implied a clear challenge, one Hannah knew she couldn't exactly defend against. Jane had worked with Cerberus. If she confirmed this, Lucas would claim it as proof his erroneous conclusions were correct. How could Hannah explain that her daughter had worked with a terrorist organization for a good cause? Even in her own mind, her every explanation seemed weak. So she forwent even trying to explain the truth to her former XO.

"Let's just set Jane's motives aside for a moment," Hannah said instead, turning back to the personal implications of Lucas' actions. "How could you do this to me? You know how much Jane's death tore me up. You were there for me when it happened. How could you even think of taking her from me again?" Hannah heard her voice tremble at the end, her outrage getting the better of her.

Lucas sighed, dropping his eyes to the bed again. "I know how it looks to you. I didn't want to hurt you, that wasn't my intention."

"Then why?"

Lucas' head rose to look her in the face. "Because Jane's a danger. If she'll destroy an entire system, what do you think she'll do next? I didn't want to chance that."

Hannah snorted. "Don't make your act sound noble, Lucas. You didn't do this for the good of the galaxy."

Lucas shifted on the bed. "Keta meant a lot to me," he whispered. "I did it for her and the galaxy." The tenor of his voice rose. "Your daughter took out a rogue Spectre at the Battle of the Citadel. Well, it was my turn to take out another rogue Spectre. Your daughter went the same way as Saren, using her unrestricted power for her own purposes."

Hannah clenched her teeth together. Lucas was so deluded, she couldn't reach him. Talking to him was useless. She didn't want to be anywhere near him anymore. If she stayed here, she'd soon rush across the room and pummel him to death. She stood up from the chair.

"You're going to be brought up on charges of desertion and attempted murder you know."

Lucas laughed sadly. "Yeah, I know. Jane gets all the glory for killing a rogue Spectre. I'm going to get a prison term. Ironic, isn't it?"

"Jane defended the Citadel from an armed and ruthless turian. You fired on an unarmed woman walking down a hallway. Why don't you mull that over for a while!" Hannah marched to the cell door, stomping through it as it opened, seething inside. The guard had remained and locked the door behind her. Hannah punched the hallway wall, her anger at Lucas' twisted logic exploding. Then, sadness overwhelmed her. She'd just lost the man she considered to be her one and only close friend.

Hannah sat outside the defense committee chamber, thoughts of Lucas pushed away as she listened intently to her comm. She hadn't been allowed to follow Jane inside as the meeting was meant to be entirely confidential, but Steven had made sure she could hear what was going on. She was pretty sure what Steven had done wasn't legal, but she was grateful for his consideration and willingness to put his own reputation on the line so that she wouldn't be cut out of the loop concerning Jane.

Even though she hadn't gone inside, Hannah had observed the members of the committee file past when they entered the room. She'd been surprised and encouraged by one face in the bunch: her old captain, Maddock. She knew Maddock had retired soon after Jules returned from Omega. Maddock had sent her an e-mail, thanking her for bringing Jules back home and informing her that he was leaving the life of a ship's captain to go home to Earth so he and Lourdes could pull out of galactic concerns and make their family a priority. However, Hannah hadn't been aware that someone had convinced Maddock to sit on the defense committee. When she saw him, her eyes lit up in hope. Maddock refrained from conversing with her, but acknowledged her presence with a nod, his face stone as always when something serious demanded his attention. Hannah thought that Maddock might be able to sway the committee in Jane's favor. He knew Jane, knew who she was, that she would never have destroyed an entire system out of malice, but as a last desperate act.

After the members had entered the chamber, Hannah had taken a seat in the lounge outside the door, her ears attentive to the proceedings unfolding inside. The committee leader began by summarizing the situation, then asked Jane and Anderson to provide a legitimate explanation of the events. Anderson had deferred to Steven who related why he'd sent Jane to Bahak in the first place. Jane picked up the story to describe how events played out as she attempted to carry out Hackett's request. The committee scrutinized every decision Jane had made, asking numerous questions. Jane responded as best she could, speaking honestly and simply as Anderson had instructed. At the end of her story, Anderson intervened and asked the committee to allow Jane to describe other things she had witnessed, the Collectors and the human reaper.

Jane had just launched into her previous experiences when Hannah was distracted by a beep sounding from her data pad. She pulled the pad out of her pocket and looked down, trying to both pay attention to Jane's words and determine who was contacting her. An icon flashed, telling her she had an incoming call. Hannah figured she'd better take the call; for all she knew, Jenson needed her input on something concerning the Orizaba. She stood and moved down the hall, finding a quiet alcove where she could take the call without being disturbed.

When Hannah's screen came to life, the face on the other end caused her to suck in a startled breath. Four black eyes stared back at her and the scar on the right side of the face left her with no doubt: she was looking at Keta La'ali.

Hannah pulled the comm out of her ear and gaped in disbelief. "Keta?"

"Hi," Keta said. Hannah couldn't tell where she was. The background behind her was a generic gray wall.

"You're alive," Hannah stammered out. "Lucas said you went to Aratoht…"

"Yeah, I did. But not for long," Keta clarified. Her face took on a look of repentance. "I didn't mean to worry him."

"He thinks you're dead."

Keta sighed. "Grufax…grufax…"she muttered in a tone that expressed not disdain, but sorrow. "I was in and out of the Bahak system before it was destroyed."

"So, where are you now?"

"It's better if I don't say. I've been trying to reach the grufax. I was out of touch for a while. Apparently, I gave him quite a fright. Anyway, I thought maybe I could reach you and then talk to him."

Hannah swallowed hard. "Um…" before she told Keta what had happened with Lucas, she wanted to make sure she and Keta were still on good terms. "Aren't you upset about Bahak? Your brother died."

Keta grimaced. "I was." She paused, scratching her scar. "But…I actually think your daughter must have had a good reason."

Hannah eyed Keta skeptically. "You seem to be the only batarian in the galaxy with that opinion."

Keta laughed. "Most likely. You know the Hegemony's got an astronomical price on your daughter's head now. She'd better watch her back day and night." Keta paused for a moment. When she continued, Hannah heard deep regret in her voice. "Truth is, I knew Hedef would end up dead in some tragic way. He loved the Hegemony too much. They turned him into a good, brainwashed little soldier. Our reunion wasn't congenial. He would have turned me in if I hadn't gotten out quick."

"So…you aren't mad at Jane for killing 300,000 batarians?"

Keta shook her head slowly. "You know all this talk about Reapers. I believe it. I had a friend, a scientist who worked on this artifact the Hegemony found. It scared her to death. She said things similar to your daughter, so similar I can't ignore it as coincidence."

Hannah breathed a sigh. "I'm glad you don't hate Jane."

Keta shrugged her shoulders. "I hated her for a couple days. Then I thought of you, your kindness, loyalty and I just thought you wouldn't have raised a daughter who'd knock out a system for no reason. Take that plus her visions of Reapers, I can put two and two together. So, about my grufax…"

An uncomfortable ache gripped Hannah's chest as she prepared herself to deliver unpleasant news. "Keta, Lucas is at Alliance headquarters here. He thinks…you died and well…he tried to kill Jane."

Keta's four eyes widened. "He'jas!" she shouted out.

"He's under arrest for being absent without leave and attempted murder."

Keta's eyes blinked rapidly. "What are his chances of getting off?"

"Not good," Hannah admitted.

Keta frowned, then spoke quickly. "I've got to go. Can you get a message to him?"

"Sure."

"Tell him I sent him an e-mail. I want him to read it."

"Okay."

"See you round."

"Wait, Keta." Hannah smiled gently. "I'm glad you're alive."

Keta smiled back. "Yeah, thanks. Bye." The screen went blank as Keta shut down the call.

Hannah turned on her heel, striding swiftly back to the detention center, embarrassingly excited about throwing this new turn of events in Lucas' face.

Hannah stomped into Lucas' cell and crossed the room in seconds. Lucas was lying down on the bed just as before. Hannah forcefully plunked his data pad onto his stomach. "Turn it on and check your e-mail," she commanded shortly. She pulled back from Lucas' bed and paced while he sat up and thumbed on his data pad. Hannah kept flicking her eyes towards him, probing his reaction. She knew he'd seen Keta's e-mail when his eyes became wide as saucers. He put a hand to his head and ran it nervously through his hair.

"She's alive," he breathed out.

Hannah rounded on him. "Yeah. I just talked to her. You tried to kill Jane for nothing." Hannah stared Lucas down with her hands on her hips.

Lucas tore his eyes from the data pad and looked to Hannah. He swallowed. "Still…Jane's a rogue Spectre, she shouldn't have killed those batarians." His voice sounded weak and unsure.

"Oh come on, Lucas," Hannah growled out. "You don't really know that at all. You'd worked up this excuse in your head to make killing my daughter a moral act. Well it wasn't!"

Lucas shook his head, turning back to the data pad and reading Keta's e-mail again. "Isn't she upset?"

"No. In fact, she trusts Jane. Get that. My closest friend, a human, won't give my daughter a chance, but a batarian I've only hung out with twice believes her."

Lucas met Hannah's critical gaze and gulped again. "Yeah…uh…" he stammered, searching for words and not finding them.

"You blew your entire career because you let your emotion get the better of you." Hannah shook her head. "I don't know whether I should feel sorry for you or smash your head into the wall."

Lucas lowered his head and placed his data pad on the bed. "What was I thinking?" he whispered. Hannah was ready with a snide reply when she realized tears had appeared in Lucas' eyes. She'd never seen him cry, ever. Her heart softened, just a little, as she watched Lucas dissolve into a broken man.

"You were thinking with your heart instead of your head," Hannah chastised. "You should have learned by now that a good Alliance officer thinks with his head no matter what his heart feels. Goodness knows how many times I've had to put my personal feelings aside just to do this job right."

Lucas brought a hand up to his eyes and wiped them. His cheeks had reddened. Hannah perceived her lecture had hit home. "I've done everything wrong my whole life," Lucas confessed. "My son, Keta, now this."

Hannah contemplated the man in front of her, trying to figure out how to respond. She was confused. Both anger and pity vied for her attention, producing in her a wellspring of tumultuous emotion that immobilized her ability to reply quickly.

Lucas' remorseful face looked up at her. "I'm sorry. Tell Jane I'm sorry. I just…I thought it was right…I…"

Hannah folded her hands over her chest, anger winning out and opening her mouth. "I can tell her, but it's too late for you, isn't it? You made your bed and now you're going to have to lie in it."

"Yeah," Lucas mumbled.

Hannah snatched up Lucas' data pad from the bed in order to return it to the officer on duty at the detention center, then walked back to the door. "I've got a meeting to get back to. Jane's defending actions that she hated to take. Losing the batarians in the Bahak system killed her. She hated to do what she did and she's broken up over it. I told you to give her a chance. Well you didn't. So now you get to man up for your actions just like she is."

As Hannah headed out the door, Lucas called after her. "Wait!"

Hannah paused in the doorway, looking back over her shoulder. "What?"

"How does Keta know I love her?" Lucas' question took Hannah by surprise since she'd expected another weak excuse for his behavior, not curiosity concerning the e-mail he'd received.

"I sent your message, the one where you finally told her how you felt. It was about time. And now…" Hannah left the last part unsaid. Lucas groaned.

Hannah exited the door and glanced back as it closed to see Lucas lay back on the bed, his hands covering his face. As she strode back down the detention hallway, she glanced at Lucas' data pad. It was still on and Keta's e-mail graced the screen. Hannah couldn't help but read what it said.

Grufax, so, you have to think I'm dead before you admit you love me? I've known it for months. I wondered how long it would take you to get over yourself and be honest with me. So, I bet you're wondering how I feel. Well, truth is, there isn't anybody in the entire galaxy I'd rather spend my life with. Never thought I'd feel that way about a human. We live in crazy times, huh? Write me back when you can. –Keta

Hannah slowed down her pace, fury at Lucas filling her. This moment should have been a happy one for her. She should have been congratulating Lucas and Keta on their ability to look past prejudices and love each other. But now, any chance for a relationship had been ruined through Lucas' stupidity.

Hannah stood in a short line, waiting to turn Lucas' data pad back in to the on duty officer. As she did, she forced herself to let go of Lucas and their friendship. By the time she handed his data pad over, she'd determined she'd never think of him again.

When Hannah made it back to the defense committee chamber, she found Jane sitting in the lounge outside, her guard Vega right next to her. Hannah marched straight up to them.

"What's going on?"

Jane gave her a wan smile. "They're talking. Deciding what to do with me."

"How do you think it went?"

"I'm not sure."

"Good," Vega said, his confident tone contradicting Jane's uncertain statement. "The commander told them like it was. I saw their faces. I wouldn't be surprised if some of them crapped their pants right there."

Jane laughed. "Great image, Vega." She sighed. "I'm glad you're so positive anyway. From my perspective, all I saw was skepticism."

"Give them a chance, Commander," Vega said. "They're smart. They'll figure out they need you."

Jane smiled with half her mouth, amused at Vega's confidence. Hannah sat down in an easy chair. "Did you see Maddock?"

Jane nodded. "When I saw him, I thought maybe I stood a chance. I mean, he knows me. That has to stand for something."

"So now we wait."

"Yeah," Jane said, sighing loudly.

"Any idea how long it will take?"

"They didn't say. Who knows."

Hannah sat down in an easy chair and leaned back, tapping her fingers impatiently on the armrest. Time seemed to crawl by as she waited for the chamber door to open. She kept compulsively looking at her omni-tool and was always surprised by how little time had gone by. Ten minutes, then fifteen, then thirty. Hannah tried to make small talk with Jane and Vega, but no one seemed to be able to find much to say. Finally, after almost an hour, the door opened and Steven and Anderson stepped through. Hannah stood. Jane looked at them expectantly.

"They want to see you," Anderson informed Jane. "It's time to make your consequences official."

Jane nodded. She reached out and squeezed Hannah's hand, encouraging her, then walked back into the chamber with Vega, Steven and Anderson. Hannah quickly stuffed her comm back into her ear. She strode back and forth, unable to sit as the knots in her stomach tormented her. She heard the head of the committee speaking in his solemn voice.

"The committee is divided regarding the reality of these so-called Reapers," he began. "As such, we are not willing to act until further proof has been obtained. We propose to work with the batarians to investigate the Bahak incident. Whether they accept our help or not, we will investigate your actions on our own. While the investigation is underway, Commander Shepard, you will remain under house arrest in the detention center. Your title will be removed. No one is to salute you at any time. Understand that this is not a statement of your lack of guilt; it is simply a reprieve until such time as our investigation is complete. You will stand trial when we deem the time is right. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir!" Hannah heard Jane's voice proclaim dutifully.

"It is so here ordered that Commander Shepard be stripped of her post as Commander of the Normandy and that she be placed under house arrest to be monitored at all times. Admiral Anderson, I assume you can take care of your charge and make sure she gets back to her cell?"

"Yes, sir."

"This meeting is adjourned."

Jane was the first to come out the door, Vega at her side, Steven and Anderson following behind. Hannah ran up to Jane and gave her quick hug.

Jane smiled grimly. "It's not over yet."

Anderson put a hand on her shoulder. "But you've got some time to prove your words. I don't want you to waste a moment of your time, Shepard. I don't want you sitting on your butt in that cell. I want you detailing everything you've seen and experienced. We're going to convince the other half of that committee that you're right."

Shepard nodded. "Yes, sir."

"Will I be able to see her?" Hannah asked, afraid Jane's being under house arrest would mean her time with her daughter had come to an end.

Steven answered her question. "I'll work out a schedule for you to see her."

"Mom," Jane said. "I told you I want you out there, not here."

"I know, but I still have leave for a week, right, Steven?" Hannah said, looking to her friend. Steven nodded.

"Alright," Jane consented. "But only a week." She eyed Hannah, Hackett and Anderson in turn. "You guys have to pick up the fight where I left off. I promise, they're on their way and the holocaust they'll bring will put every war we've ever seen to shame."