Way of No Return (Champions of the Crystal Book 8)

Chapter 22.3

It was Aurora who had the idea to notify Homeworld of the probable location of the Wayships and Praxatillian fleet that had been caught up in the Way; Ford could have kicked himself for not thinking of it sooner. Communications were difficult, but Baldaran agreed that this was a priority worth detailing a courier for. Homeworld might have the ability to reach the missing fleet, while Praxatillian resources were already stretched thin.

Between trying to restore some normalcy to Seuréa's disrupted life and responding to requests from the Miahn councils, Aurora had precious little time to assist Ford, but he found that her calm presence and willingness to listen made missing Sabrina just a little more bearable. Late the next night, as they sat beside Sabrina's bed after everyone else was asleep, Aurora said, "I have been told that digging out Giandrah is a low priority, as there are no life signs there. Scotty was evacuating it when I last saw him, and we know he escaped, so is it safe to assume there truly is no one left there?"

Ford started to speak, then paused. "I am sorry, Aurora. There is no one alive there, true, but Aunt Imari did not leave. Her body is there. Mother put it in stasis, but we should dig it out when we've dealt with the needs of the living."

Aurora looked away for a moment, pressing her lips together. "My mother will be so saddened," she said after a moment. "And that adds considerably to my list of tasks to be dealt with. The funeral of a First Chair will involve representatives from all planets in the Realm."

"There is no possible way that is happening in the immediate future," Ford said. "We've got relief ships from Lthos stuck in long orbits because our near space is still impassable. We can't even get new communications satellites to remain in orbit yet."

Aurora nodded; she was one of the parties in the daily royal briefings, after all.

Ford reached over to rub Bennie's fur, causing the tabby to begin purring. He was grateful for this little moment of normality in his current life. There was consolation in being able to take care of the cats' needs when there were so many problems he couldn't solve.

Trixie, who was curled up against Sabrina's knee, lifted her head and gave a little interrogative trill. Ford gave her a scratch under her chin, and she gazed at him through lowered eyelids before going back to sleep.

What does a girl have to do around here to get some attention too? Sabrina's thought was weak and fuzzy but contained enough humor to make him smile.

He got up from his chair and bent to press a kiss onto her lips. "Why, hello there. Are you going to wake up this time? Aurora's been here for days and you haven't said a word to her."

Sabrina's eyes fluttered open, and she managed a slight smile for him. "Hi," she croaked out.

Aurora handed Ford a glass of water, and after some careful maneuvering, Sabrina was able to drink. "I'll get the doctor," Aurora volunteered.

"They need to evaluate you for surgery," Ford said. "Don't worry, everyone's fine for the moment."

Trixie got up, stretched, and began nosing Sabrina's hand, wanting to be petted.

"The baby?" Sabrina whispered, moving her fingers to comply with Trixie's request as best she could.

"Getting stronger every day. She's in the next room. You can see her in a minute."

Aurora returned with the doctor, and at Ford's nod went to get the baby. Stecklan put his head in the door to smile at Sabrina, but he didn't interrupt as the doctor went through his questions. Sabrina managed to answer coherently, to everyone's relief.

"Excellent, your highness. We will perform the procedure tomorrow morning. You will require perhaps a day's worth of monitoring afterward, and then I will release you to your own doctor's care."

Sabrina looked at Ford, and he winced a little. "Our physician was killed," he said softly. "Our friend is a pediatrician, but she is not qualified to practice here yet."

"Ah. In that case, we shall have to wait and see," the doctor responded. "I will let you rest, your highness."

"Thank you, doctor." Sabrina was already looking past him to where Aurora stood with a tiny bundle in her arms. Ford adjusted the bed so she could sit up as much as her damaged frame would allow, then sat on the edge of the bed and helped settle Lily into her mother's arms. "I never even got to really look at her," Sabrina murmured sadly.

"She's beautiful, and perfect, except she still has some trouble breathing at times," Ford said.

The baby began to make little fussy noises, which her father recognized as the prelude to a good cry. "I think she's hungry," he said. "She's getting better at nursing. You missed all the hard parts."

Sabrina blinked back tears. "This time can you make sure there's nobody who needs saving to interrupt us?"

Ford chuckled, dropping a kiss into her hair. "If anybody needs saved, I'll do it myself. You take care of our princess."

They gazed down at Lily as she began to nurse, and Ford slid an arm around Sabrina's shoulders to help her stay in a sitting position. The family ignored everything happening around them, secure in their own little world, and Sabrina and Ford felt a rush of gratitude that they had all survived to have this moment together.

Never again, Ford thought, trying not to think about how close they had come to disaster. Sabrina frowned a little, but she was too tired and too wrapped up in her daughter to pursue the conversation right now, and after a moment Ford relaxed again and let himself be in the moment.