Author's Note: I do not own Star Wars, Anakin Skywalker, Padmé Naberrie or any other characters. It's all Lucasfilm property: I write stories for fun, for free.
IN THE EYE OF THE STORM
Chapter 20
The day they left Boston for Las Vegas was mild with passing clouds. Ideal weather for a flight. In Las Vegas they expected similar weather as in Boston, only a little colder.
"Have you got everything we need? Passports too?"
She started laughing out loud and nearly spilled the champagne she was sipping. "Are you asking because I told my parents I'd pick you up, go to Las Vegas and marry you?"
"Was that just for fun?" he made a playfully offended face.
"I have the passport, but joking aside, we're not getting married. I'm so nervous about this probate and I don't know why. What has he prepared for us?"
"Maybe other people we know are invited as well, we don't know."
It was a seven hours flight, they were alone on a six to eight passenger jet that Anakin had booked just the two of them, but it was comfortable. They also got something to eat and drank champagne all the time.
"Anakin, I'm getting tipsy."
"Enjoy the flight, tomorrow there will be a surprise, maybe an unpleasant one...although, I don't know, he can't do us any harm."
"There is nothing. I don't know why we are so nervous."
"We are landing soon, the limousine I ordered, is waiting for us."
"WOW, you have too much money, don't you?"
"We are having a good time Angel, that's why I booked rooms in Bellagio."
"Are we going to visit casino too?"
"You mean if we're not lucky in love, we should win a lot of money at roulette."
"If there's any truth to that..."
"We'll find out the truth."
The ordered limousine was already waiting to take them to the hotel. Padmé got in the back, Anakin followed. She slid over to him and leaned on his shoulder as if she was scared and wanted protection. He felt it, pulled her closer to him and hugged her.
"Nothing can happen to us, Padmé." And kissed her hair.
After checking in, they went to their rooms, freshened up and then ate at La Cirque, then they went to casino. They didn't win. Unlucky in the game, lucky in love.. and vice versa...that can't be true. What you can't miss when staying in Bellagio is the amazing computer-controlled water show. They were fascinated.
After breakfast next morning, they made their way to the lawyer who invited them for reading of the last will Bradley Simon's. They took a cab to 3325 Sahara Ave. They were shown into an office, the lawyer was waiting, as was a man they didn't know.
After the greeting, the lawyer began:
"I am the lawyer for the late Mr. Bradley Simon and welcome you to the reading of his probate. Two persons and one foundation are included in his probate; Miss Padmé Naberrie, Mr Anakin Skywalker and the foundation of the deceased, represented by Mr. Michael Simon. At the request of the late Mr. Bradley Simon, it should be stated that thirty million dollars will go to the foundation, the sum will go to the appropriate account after the tax has been paid. Mr. Simon you may go."
The man said goodbye and left.
"Miss Naberrie, you are considered with forty million dollars after last will. There's a personal sealed letter I need you to sign for me. I also have a sealed letter for you, Mr. Skywalker, which you must sign for, as well as a sealed cassette containing three Blu Ray discs. These will be given to you on condition you look at the contents together with Miss Naberrie. Miss Naberrei, after the taxes are paid, the money will be transferred to your account. That's all. Do you have any questions?"
"I don't have any."
"I don't have either."
They said goodbye. Receptionist had called them taxi and they stood in front of the building, waiting without words. After a while she was not sure if it was right she did.
"Should I have refused the money?"
"No, why? He certainly has his reasons for doing this. I am now just very excited to read this letter, and you?"
"However. We'll go to the hotel, read the letter and I'll come to your room and we can watch the disc together, just like he wanted."
Arrived at the hotel, both of them took their own way to the rooms to read the letters.
Padmé sat on the bed read the letter and was crying.
Dearest Padme,
I loved you from the moment we collided in the corridor, back in our junior year.
Unfortunately I had any luck, you had eyes only on Anakin Skywalker.
You always denied it, but everyone saw that you loved him, that playboy, and at the end you became a couple.
It was hard to see how beloved girl is happy with another boy.
I didn't begrudge him that luck, but I knew you chose him and would follow him everywhere.
I wanted something to remember, over and over again.
That's why I recorded our farewell party, the whole farewell party on Blu Ray discs.
I danced with you, held you in my arms.
I've watched this over and over again in all this years.
And after this dance came the fatality; Pat who pounced on Anakin, you who only got part of the action and ran away.
I found out a little later that you were missing, we were all looking for you.
It hurt me terribly that you wanted to end your life because of him.
I suffered with you, but I held myself back, glad you were no longer with him, angry at him, didn't want to see him anymore.
I figured my chances with you, we had contact, you remember.
It was nice to see and hear that you were getting better and it seemed you got over that horrible time after breaking up with him, but every time I called you I heard the opposite in your voice.
You never stopped loving him and I could have saved you a lot of pain if I had handed over the disc to clear up the things right away.
Time passed and I wondered what would be said, why I was holding it back for so long.
I didn't want you to suffer, I wanted to see him suffering and he suffered.
I met him once in our first year in NFL.
He was not the same Anakin Skywalker.
On the field he was focused, but later in the evening I met him in the bar.
We exchanged some ugly words but he wasn't up for a fight, he seemed depressed and drank a lot.
This party recording would have saved you a lot of heartache and pain had I released it early, but I didn't.
I am a bad person.
Maybe that's why God punished me with this disease and I am bound to die.
Please forgive me if you can.
Go back to Anakin, he is not to blame for that what happened.
I love you Padmé
Well, if you're reading this, it means...I loved you, Padmé.
She didn't know that Bradley loved her, loved her enough, wishing not to see her with Anakin together. She was also angry about the further content of his letter, how could he do such a thing.
So upset she ran to Anakin and knocked on his door. He opened it and wasn't surprised to see her in tears. He knew immediately her letter contained something similar to his. "Come in, Padme."
She held the letter in her hand. "I'm going to read you these awful lines now." .. and she read.
"Inconceivably. I didn't think anyone could do such a thing. I'll read you my letter now."
Hello,
I've been thinking for a long time how to address you Skywalker, or at all.
So just a hello.
I have to admit, no matter how mean that sounds, I hated you from the start.
From our freshman year you were the amaizing quarterback, great leader of the team, the star.
You could always do everything a little better, and by the ladies, the famous Columbia University playboy.
That bothered me less than that the girl I loved had her eyes only on you and then you made her yours.
It hurt.
I wanted to see you suffer like I did, and when you lost her, I took it as a kind of satisfaction.
The three Blu Ray CDs I'm leaving, you should watch with Padmé.
After midnight, what's relevant happened, Pat, you, Padmé running away, search, everything.
I should have given you this recording much sooner.
You both suffered, needlessly, I realize that now, just before I die.
I didn't want Padmé to suffer, I wanted her to be happy, even if you're the only one who can make her happy.
I've done a lot of things wrong in my life, holding back this recording was one of them.
I hope it hasn't changed so much in your two lives that you can't find each other again.
Skywalker, go and make her happy.
Brad
Silence. After a while she dared to say. "Let's see the disc."
Anakin put the disc in, connected the Blu Ray player to the TV in his room and started recording. He played right up to the point around midnight where Padmé danced with Bradley. The minutes after were that, that changed her and Anakin's lives forever. Now she saw how Pat throw himself at Anakin, his hands clutching Pat's forearms, she saw herself in the background and in a second, she turned and ran away, and now she finally saw what all her friends claimed much later; Anakin pushed Pat away rather roughly and was left alone, waiting for her.
Padme started to cry. If she had stayed just five seconds longer, she would have seen everything and the terrible thing would never have happened.
The recording continued and Padmé cried.
"Do you beleave it now, Padme? Your friends were right. I would never be involved with any other girl, I would never have done that to you and I didn't need to, I loved you too much, only you."
"It was my fault, I shouldn't have run away. It was overreacted. What have I done to us, Anakin?" she cried more and more desperate.
He sat on the bed, leaning his back against the headboard and patting the spot next to him hoping she would understand to come. She did, laid her head on his chest and continued to cry.
"Don't cry, Padme. We can't change the past. I could also say it was my fault. If I had stopped Pat before she threw her arms on me, you would had nothing to see...but that's how it happened. I would say, there are to much of if I and if you , they are no longer of any use."
"I know, but without all of that, we'd still be together, maybe...maybe, or even without that, we had broken up, who knows."
"I would never have left you."
She started crying again and it went on all night. He sat there holding her and she cried on his chest. It was good that she could do it and Anakin felt good to be able to comfort her. Sometime… they both fell asleep.
.
.
Best regards from Germany