Chapter 74 Collaborations

Saul Tigh stepped into CIC and caught the Admiral's eye with a flick of his own towards the wardroom.

"Colonel," Admiral Adama acknowledged, "I'll join you in a moment, " he said, before turning back to the inventory list he was reviewing with Comm Officer Dualla.

Tigh let his single eye rake the room's occupants, surprising many inquisitive stares that quickly dropped back to their tasks. With arms crossed behind his back, he strolled to the wardroom and entered to wait for his Admiral's arrival.

As Bill Adama closed the hatch behind him as he stepped into the wardroom, he took time to do a more thorough scrutiny of his previous XO. Noting the white-haired man's sharp turnout and carriage, Bill gave an internal nod of satisfaction, then waved his officer to take a seat.

"What can I do for you, Colonel?" the Admiral asked, already thinking—hoping—he knew why his friend was here.

"Want to get my old job back, if you're still willing to have a battered relic like me at your side?" Saul asked with a slight hoarseness to his voice, a little afraid what the answer might be as he settled straight-backed into the indicated chair opposite his commander.

"No one I'd rather have with me," Adama stated, a weathered grin tugging at the corners of his mouth. "Besides, we relics have to stick together. How soon you ready to resume your duties, XO?"

"You've got me when you want me. I'm sick of my own company and it's about time to start pulling my share of the load again," Tigh answered, relief lightening his tone. Casting a glace at the closed door leading to the brains of Galactica's systems. "So, I hear you've had Captain Agathon as your acting-XO. How's he done?" Tigh casually asked.

Not fooled by the other man's nonchalant manner, Bill knew Saul was asking if he was even needed anymore.

"Helo's done well. Good man and an excellent officer. He'll make a fine commander one day. But there are…issues," Adama admitted.

"What? Just because he's shacked up with a Cylon?" mocked Tigh. "Same Cylon you pinned Lieutenant wings on? Now what about that might rile anyone's feathers, huh," he scoffed, rubbing his hands on his uniform slacks before pushing to his feet.

"You're not going to have any trouble with Lieutenant Agathon are you, Colonial Tigh," the Admiral asked sharply, letting his eyes narrow as he rose to his feet, too.

"Course not, Bill. Long as she does her job and keeps her nose clean, guess she's your problem, not mine," Tigh returned.

"Not good enough. Sharon Agathon—Athena—is a respected member of my crew now. I've given her my trust because she damn well earned it. As my XO, I have to know that you can handle any personal issues you have working with a Cylon. Can you, Colonel?" he demanded, locking his steely gaze with the other man's.

Tigh came to attention and steadily met his commanding officer's stare. "Sir, if you say that Athena is golden, then you can be assured I'll treat her with kid gloves."

"Don't have to go that far, Saul. Just treat her like the rest of the crew," Adama relented.

"Speaking of crew…" Tigh rubbed his chin as he debated, unsure how to broach what he needed to say.

Adama was perplexed by the variety of emotions that flitted across the other man's face, then quirked an eyebrow as Tigh sank back down into his chair with a resigned sigh.

"What's bother you, Saul?" Bill quietly prompted, resuming his own seat with his hands and elbows leaning forward on the table that separated the two men.

Tigh was silent as he thought about Sam Anders. He knew the man hadn't made it back to the Galactica, hadn't survived his captivity in Cylon hands. No one had told the Colonel any details, but he'd heard enough to know that Captain Thrace's husband had died in the detention center before the rescue.

Pulling his attention back to the present, Tigh admitted, "I frakked up, Bill. I trusted someone and a Resistance raid was ambushed because of it…twice." Not able to remain sitting, he abruptly stood and wandered over to stare at the framed picture of Bill and his sons. He picked up the photo and wondered if things might have been different if he and Ellen had had children. Setting the frozen family moment down, he swung back to his old friend who was intently watching him.

Breaking the silence of the wardroom, Saul stated, "It was Ellen. She knew our plans. Gave them to the Cylons." Lowering his eyes to the clenched hands at his side, Saul remembered how those hands had held his wife's lithe form that last night together. How it was with his own hands that he had ended her life.

As Bill watched, his old friend seemed to shrink and his heart drain away, leaving Saul once again looking like the lost refugee they'd rescued from New Caprica. Rising, Adama moved to stand in front of the other man and gripped the lean arms at the elbows. He didn't question how Saul had known of his wife's guilt. If he said Ellen had collaborated, then she had. Bill could tell there was more the Colonel had to say, but words seemed unable to break past the man's clenched jaw.

Giving his friend a slight shake, "Tell me what happened to Ellen," the Admiral softly commanded.

"After the second 'incident', when you sent Boom—Athena—to the surface and the Cylons were waiting, the Chief pointed out that this time there was only one person that could have given us away. I confronted her. Told her I knew. Demanded to know who she'd told about the raid and how long she'd been supplying information." A pained sigh escaped Tigh, but he forced himself to continue, "Turns out that preacher skin-job, Brother Cavil, had come to her, threatening to arrest me again if she didn't supply him with Intel on the Resistance," Saul flatly stated, but Bill could feel the arms beneath his hands shake as the emotions within his XO fought to find a way to escape his tight control. "She did it because she loved me, Bill. To protect me. And, Gods know, I'd have been tempted if they'd threatened her instead," he confessed.

The Admiral strongly doubted this last statement. The Colonel knew there was no way he could've trusted the Cylons to keep their word. And betrayal was not something that Saul Tigh would have been able to live with. Which begged the question of how his wife had died.

"What happened to Ellen?" Bill repeated, already pretty sure he knew, but also knew that his friend needed to get everything out in the open where it could be faced…where they could face it together.

"You know, Bill…I think she knew what I'd put in her cup, but she drank it anyways." Saul's composure crumbled as he remembered rocking Ellen's warm body in his arms as her breathing got shallower…and finally stopped.

After a few moments, Colonel Saul Tigh straightened and thrust his chin forward, refusing to let the self-pity drag him down again. He had too many debts to repay to spend anymore time wallowing at that well.

Relieved, Bill let his hands fall to his side as he saw the change in the man before him, recognizing the XO's bulldog personality surging out of the darkness of the New Caprican memories.

"Is there anything I can do? Anything you need?" Adama asked.

"Yeah, you can let me see Starbuck," came Tigh's surprising request. He watched as the Admiral hesitated, and met the Adama's evaluating gaze as it scrutinized his own.

"Ok, I can arrange that," Bill said. "I have her working on fleet contingency plans in my quarters this afternoon. How about you review those with her?" he suggested.

"That'll do," Tigh agreed. Then, "I gave her some advice once. Don't think she was better off for it. I know we had it different there, but guess I'm thinking she could maybe use an experienced ear—or two." Saul Tigh gave a smirk as he added, "Still got both of those."