Posted by Lieutenant Commander Daggum Hammor (Chief Operations Officer) in Elsewhere- A Honeymoon

Posted by Lieutenant Commander Faye Calloway (Chief Intelligence Officer) in Elsewhere- A Honeymoon

(snip)

Kodell nodded, and it might have seemed to simple a reply, but he had been taking in everything Faye and Daggum were saying. His mind slipped to the casual remarks his mother used to make about sport and he all but shuddered. He had been avoiding it yes, and Kodell could taste bile in his throat. “I’m sorry to you too. It might not have been me specifically, but you’re right, traditions are no longer a good enough excuse to keep doing something.”

He wanted to tell Daggum to take care of Faye, but he knew all too well that Faye didn’t require that. Kodell gazed at Daggum thoughtfully. “Faye can take care of herself, but in the moments when she can’t, I’m glad she has someone like you to help.” It wasn’t a line either. Kodell was utterly sincere.

Upstairs amongst the books, Faye had opened her pendant and let the warm heady spice and citrus scent ground her into reality. She was fighting the urge to be back there in those moments. To remember them with more innocent eyes. But that would only hurt her. Tears slipping down her face, she leaned against the side of a bookshelf a moment before sliding down, letting out a quiet sob. Cameron’s expression of regret and sadness, and yes of disgust, was more prominent than she would like right now. His was a tragic story that should never have been that way. Neither was hers. But here they were, him dead and her walking a delicate tightrope between standing tall and slipping into a dark pit of despair. Yes, she had done the work, that much was true. But that night on the holodeck when she had had her breakdown and confessed this whole thing had only been a piece of it. Even the subsequent conversations with different people had been just about admitting it had happened. This right here though was the reality of it all. This now was her facing a demon and the realization that it would never be okay. It just… was. She had been through something unimaginable and her mind still reeled with the pain. But as her tears slipped down her cheeks, she could feel a little bit of it slipping away with them. One by one. Would it all disappear? No, never. But it wouldn’t be this painful weight she struggled to carry.

After a few minutes, Faye appeared in the atrium, her steps down the stairs ever so slightly lighter. She surveyed the two men. “Glad to see everyone intact,” she said, a tiny smirk tugging at her mouth. She gave Daggum a reassuring nod that she was okay, despite her red eyes.

Focusing on Kodell, Faye took him in, letting her mind puzzle over things until she came to a conclusion. “There’s one thing you can do for me.”

“Name it,” Kodell said easily.

“Sell me the copy of my dad’s book.”

“Faye… you can have it. I owe you that much.”

Faye shook her head. “No. Then it’s a gift and it will be yours. But if I buy it outright, it’s mine and there is no debt between us, no matter how subtle. I can’t be tied to this place anymore. So you can sell the book to me, at a discount from its likely high price if it makes it easier, and we can call this done.”

There was finality to her words and in that moment Kodell understood that this time would truly be the last time he saw her. No matter how he felt about it, what she was asking was for control over how they parted. Of all the things he owed her, that was the least he could do. “Consider it done. I’ll bring it out of the case before you go. You were going to go see Linella again, yes?” Faye nodded. “All right then, I’ll go do that and meet you by the door.” Kodell rose, bowed to her, and then moved up the staircase, leaving Faye and Daggum alone again.

Shaking her hands out, her eyes blurred with more tears. “Ohhh, you have no idea how badly I want a drink right now.”

~Faye

“Oh, pretty sure I do.” Daggum replied and stood up and took her in a giant, full body hug. “You did good. I’m really proud of you, Faye. Not many people could face this like you are. And you stayed with me. I’d say that is a ‘giant feather in your hat’, as Paul would say. Not sure what it means exactly, but the sentiment is clear enough.”

His arms were both support and a balm for Faye in this moment as she blew out another shaky breath. “I didn’t know if I could either, but I think later I’ll be glad we came here.”

He squeezed her one more time and then let her go. “Go see to your friend.” He then took Faye’s chin in his fingers and tilted her head so they looked each other in the eye. “And if she wants out, we can make that happen, Faye. Right now.” he whispered. Daggum knew the odds were slim after so long as a slave that she’d want to leave. But he would never not give a slave a chance at freedom.

Daggum

Gazing at her husband, Faye looked skeptical before she gazed out the glass door that led into the hallway in the direction of the kitchen. “We could do that,” she said thoughtfully. “I’ll ask if she wants to go with us. Can only give her the option.”

Taking Daggum by the hand, Faye led him out of the atrium and down the hallway in a circuitous route back to the kitchen. When they reached the main corridor she pointed to the right. “Front door is that way. I’ll meet you in the entry in a few minutes. ” And then Faye turned left.

In the kitchen, Linella was chopping vegetables and humming to herself. Faye slipped in silently and leaned against the wall, not saying anything just now.

“You going to to just stand there or are you going to help?” Linella said not even turning to see who was there. She knew.
Faye grinned. “Happy to help but I’m heading out.”
“Not even going to stay for lunch?”
“I… think we’ve stayed long enough. Tackled demons and all that.”

Linella set down the knife and turned to face Faye, holding her arms out. Faye simply moved to embrace the woman. “I’m glad you came by, Faye,” Linella whispered. “I’m so glad to know you’ve made something of your life. You deserve it.”

“You do too,” Faye whispered. “You still can, it’s not too late,” she added, pulling back to gaze into the Trill’s lovely eyes. “You could come with us. Dag and I have a fancy ship we’re using right now for our honeymoon. Very high tech and secure too. We can get you out, you just have to say the word.”

For a moment Linella looked like she was even considering it but she gave a small smile and shook her head. “Oh Faye, my situation was never yours. I did a lot of bad things and I got myself into a lot of trouble. If I hadn’t ended up here, I’d be in prison. “This”-she gestured to the space around them-“is the best case scenario and it’s not a bad life, for me. You needed more than this. My goodness I still remember the look on everyone’s faces when they realized you could hack the security system if you wanted to. You were meant for so much more. I was meant to have a quiet life repaying my debts in a way that had some dignity.”

“But you’re not free!” Faye said.

Linella lifted her hands and cupped Faye’s face. “My girl, if I wanted to go, all I would have to do is ask him. Like I said, my situation is not yours. And after all these years I’ve long earned his respect. Hell, I could ask to be properly employed if I wanted to, but I’m okay here, truly. This is not a bad life for me. I promise I’ll be okay.”

There was a romantic notion that Faye had to set aside just now in freeing the woman who had also been a mother to her. Then she’d have two moms in her life. But romance had its time and place and this was not one of them. “Okay,” she said quietly with a nod.

The Trill pulled Faye into a tight hug and kissed her on her forehead. “Go with your new husband and live an amazing life. Just… dream big, okay?”

Faye pulled back and grinned. “I’m going to be a starship captain.”

Linella beamed. “Oh yes, you are. I can see that. Be well Faye, and leave this place behind now, promise?”

She studied her for a long moment and then nodded. “Promise.” Faye gave Linella one final hug before exiting the kitchen and making her way to the entrance. She gave Daggum a nod. “I’m done. She’s okay here,” she said, her tone sombre.

Kodell was coming down the grand staircase, a cloth wrapped object and a datapadd in hand. He stood before Faye and Daggum and handed Faye the padd. “Whatever amount you feel is appropriate,” he said.

Accepting the device, Faye took her time accessing the small amount of funds she had stashed away. She had never told Daggum about it because it wasn’t like it was necessary with their lives in Starfleet, but having had life toss her to the side on more than one occasion it had been a tiny safety net in case she truly had nowhere to go. Now she had Daggum and they would make those decisions together.

She entered in the full amount of her savings. It wasn’t enough to cover the actual price of the book on antiques market but it wasn’t a joke either. It would do for their purposes. Without a word, she handed it back to Kodell steading her emotions to make it through this final moment. Kodell glanced at the padd briefly but the amount wasn’t a concern. He offered her the wrapped book. “It’s right that you have this.”

“I agree,” Faye said before taking a deep breath. She stepped closer to the man who had turned her world upside and sideways all those years ago and gazed deeply into his eyes. “Whatever might be true about life here and the circumstances of it, I did love you. That was real, even if I couldn’t face the implications of everything else. I learned a lot here, about how I might move forward, about turning to productive work to keep my mind okay. I needed help later to make those skills useful but it did start here and… I’m grateful. Goodbye, Kodell, be well.” She leaned in and kissed him tenderly on the cheek.

“Goodbye, Faye,” Kodell whispered before she pulled away. Then he gave Daggum a nod.

Faye turned to her husband. “Alright, let’s go. Onwards,” she said, holding the book carefully.

~Faye