PART TWELVE

Chakotay landed the shuttle on a small rise about thirty meters away from the cottage. The moment the hatch opened, he was out, running down the gentle slope. From the scans he’d run on the shuttle's computer, Kathryn was in the house. His heart hammered against his ribcage the moment he saw light streaming from the cottage.

"Kathryn!" he called as he ran the short distance and up the ramp that led to the patio. The doors were wide open. "Kathryn!" he called again. Through the carpeted lounge he moved, then almost stumbled against her as he reached the alcove. Kathryn lay on the floor on her back, her arms outstretched, her head to one side. She was just barely breathing. He touched her face and pulled his hand back in alarm. She was burning with a high fever.

"Oh, Kathryn..."

He had come prepared and he flicked open the medical tricorder, trying not to cry out as he recorded her temperature. Right at that moment Kathryn stirred, and her body convulsed for a few seconds before crumpling again.

Chakotay lifted her in his arms and carried her to her bedroom. The door to that room was open and the light was on. He lay her down and rolled her in the bed cover before tapping his commbadge.

"Chakotay to Doctor Paris."

"You found her," Elizabeth Paris replied.

"Doctor, she's hardly breathing. Her temperature is 39.9° C and she went into convulsions when I arrived here. There are signs that she has coughed blood and has vomited."

"Professor, the twenty minute journey in the shuttle may be too late. Your wife has acute pneumonia. Your EMH is here and ready to prepare for transport. Doctor Paris out."

Chakotay had just enough time to haul Kathryn against him, her head lolling as he cradled her in his arms. Then he very gently lay her down again and stood, waiting for the transport. Seconds later Kathryn dematerialised.   

"Please let them be in time..." he murmured.

He closed up the cottage, switching off all the lights as he went. He had left the hatch open and by the time it closed,  he had initiated the start-up sequence. Seconds later the shuttle lifted off. He entered co-ordinates and engaged autopilot. It would take him at least fifteen minutes to reach Starfleet Medical. Kathryn was now in capable hands. But he couldn’t relax, instead thinking of the harrowing last hour after he had contacted the hospital.

Elizabeth Paris, who was visiting her last patient before she left for the day, responded.

"I suspect something has happened to Kathryn, Doctor Paris. She has not responded to my calls and I can tell you she is never late."

"Be here in ten minutes, will you? I'll have information for you by then," she told him, and he wanted to curse because she sounded so calm.

"Thank you, Doctor. I'll be there."

When he got to the hospital, Elizabeth Paris was waiting for him.

"You have to go now. We're transporting you to your shuttle. Kathryn is somewhere on the island. There has been a storm in the last few days; she may have been caught in it or there may be an injury of some kind. There might be injury of some kind. Here is a range of co-ordinates," she had said without preamble.

Careful not to break Federation regulations for flying too fast at a 5km altitude, he  had piloted the shuttle, crazy with worry that something had happened to her. Even if she were injured Kathryn would have tried to contact him. The storm occurred on Monday. If she were in the storm Monday...

He had closed his eyes, trying not to think of the worst that could happen. Naxos had a population of three thousand. Kathryn's cottage was on the south-western shore and those were the co-ordinates given to him. He had run a detailed scan and quickly determined the exact co-ordinates. All he had to do was link to Kathryn's tricorder, which she seemed to have left open and activated. Then he scanned for life signs around the house.

One life sign.

He shook his head. Kathryn looked near death. Her body was so weak, burning up with fever. He had seen how she must have struggled to cough. There were blood spatters on her pillows, the bed cover. There was pus from the coughing. Pneumonia. He thought how hard it must have been to breathe alone. How long had Kathryn been lying there? No more than a few hours. She must have heard her vid-com beep, for she was lying unconscious near it. He swore under his breath. Why didn't she tell him she wasn’t well ? She must have become sick days ago.

He arrived at Starfleet Medical in record time.

****

"Professor, you can't come in here," Voyager's EMH said as Chakotay barged through the doors of the theatre where he saw Doctor Paris working on Kathryn.

"Try and stop me," he bit out. The doctor threw up his hands, thinking it better not to anger him more. Chakotay bent down and kissed Kathryn's  lips as she stirred restlessly.

"Professor, we've done everything. She'll be fine. We've managed to bring down her fever. It had exceeded 40° C during transport."

"Thank you, Doctor," he said, sitting down on the chair by the bed and taking Kathryn's hand in his.

She stirred again, thrashing her head from side to side.

"Ché..." Her voice was so low, he doubted that the other two heard.

"Don't worry... I am here, Kathryn. I'll never leave you..."

"Ché..." the name broke from her parched lips again.

After that Kathryn drifted again into a restless slumber. She was at least breathing normally.

"Chakotay," Elizabeth Paris said gently, "we're going to transfer Kathryn to a ward. Could you wait outside, please?"

He didn't want to leave Kathryn's side, but he saw the kindness in the doctor's eyes. They had done everything possible. All Kathryn had to do was wake up. He rose stiffly from the chair and waited outside. Two nursing officers came and wheeled Kathryn away to a ward and he followed them, waiting until they were finished settling her in. He pulled up a chair and sat down next to the bed, holding Kathryn's hand. Doctor Paris arrived a minute later and checked Kathryn over again.

"She looks very ill, Doctor," he said softly, as he rubbed the back of Kathryn's hand.

"I can only conclude that she was caught in the storm that ravaged the island."

"But that was on Monday!"

"Enough time and conditions to make her so sick. We've cleared her lungs. She won't get convulsions again. Her temperature is still high, but it's coming down gradually. She'll wake up, don't worry so..." Elizabeth smiled gently at him. "I'll be here in the morning. Doctor Robert will be attending her during the night."

"I'll stay here," he told Elizabeth.

"Professor, I didn't think we'd be able to get you away from Kathryn's side!"

***********

He lifted her warm, listless hand and pressed his lips against the back of it. The other hand caressed her hair, damp and limp which hours ago, had clung to her skin when he found her. Now there was a little more colour in her cheeks and her bosom heaved rhythmically as she breathed. He could only imagine her pain of the last few days. When he had spoken with her last week she had looked radiant, a new light shining in her eyes, her gaze unwavering as she spoke with him.

He had wondered idly if she felt ready to come home, whether the five weeks spent on Naxos had now served its purpose. He had never seen Kathryn like that before, except when they had been on Risa, and hope had still been part of her contract of love with him. It humbled him and thrilled him at the same time, that Kathryn had always, even before she left, indicated that she would come back to him. He wondered if the past week had been a watershed in which she had come to a decision.

"Only you will know..." he whispered against her hand. It was as if Kathryn heard him, for her head turned to his voice. His heart fluttered erratically as it seemed to him she would open her eyes.

"Ché..." she murmured again. Chakotay's eyes closed. He felt a prick of tears as he leaned forward and kissed her mouth.

"I'm here, my love. I'm here...don't fret, please..."

"Ché..."

After giving a long sigh she became quiet again. He rested his head against her, thinking he would just close his eyes for a few minutes. Kathryn was more restful that she had been when he found her.

Hours later he opened his eyes sluggishly. It was light. He looked at Kathryn and she was stirring again. He heard the door open.

"Ah, I see our patient is about to open her eyes."

The doctor's voice grated on him as he took Kathryn's hand again and held it tenderly. Her head moved, turning towards him. He ignored the doctor and had there been fifty people in the ward he would have ignored them too

"Kathryn..." he whispered as her eyes began to open. He held his breath. Kathryn opened her eyes tiredly, but they fixed directly on him. Her lips were dry from her ordeal; her throat, working to project a sound, was an effort which tired her even more.

"Ché...Ché..." 

"Oh, Kathryn, my love... I've missed you so much, so much..."

"Ché...?"

"Yes, I am here, my beloved. You've been ill. You are safe now. I will never leave you..."

Then he lifted her in his arms and held her for long moments. He thought he heard her sob. Her arm had come up and clutched him round his neck, but it fell back weakly again. He wouldn't let her go and kissed her forehead, her damp hair, her lips. Only then, did he lay her down tenderly, brushing her hair away from her face. Her eyes never left his. He saw how her bosom heaved as she sighed. She whispered "Ché" once more, then quietly closed her eyes and fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.

He brushed his lips tenderly over hers, his tears burning and dripping on her cheek. Standing up, his body creaking from the long hours of sitting in one position. The doctor nodded, then quickly busied himself monitoring Kathryn's condition while Chakotay stood at the window and waited for the EMH to finish.

Chakotay looked out over the sprawling gardens with benches dotted here and there, by a small duck pond, a large tree, beautiful rose beddings. In the distance he could even discern Boothby with his ever-present wide-brimmed hat. Once, he had wanted to steal every rose from Boothby's garden and give them to Kathryn. He vowed that he would give her one every day as an affirmation of his love, his loyalty and his devotion.

Kathryn. Love of his life. Kathryn who called him Ché. Kathryn who looked as if she had been touched by the heavens, by the magic of the blue Aegean when he spoke with her a week ago. Kathryn who looked vibrant, full of life. Kathryn, who loved him. He brushed furiously at a tear that threatened to roll down his cheek. He had missed her endlessly, had not slept a night through since she had gone. Kathryn who was willing to share his bed again even if...

He gave a silent cry of rage at Seven of Nine, who still thought that he would cast in his lot with her. He turned to look at the woman on the bed. Kathryn deserved everything good, and she deserved a husband who could tell her that the past had happened, but that it was where it needed to be. He was free of the evil that had held him captive for so long, free to take Kathryn into his bed and worship her body so that she responded in the way he’d always know she could.

The doctor was almost finished with his report. Chakotay turned to face the garden again. What if he hadn’t called last night? A sharp stab of pain made him clutch at his chest. The EMH came to stand next to him, touching his shoulder lightly.

"Admiral Janeway will recover fully, Professor. You saved her life. Another half an hour and we might have lost her."  There was a pause. "You require rest."

Chakotay nodded. He could do with a good sleep, preferably in his bed. He wondered why the doctor hovered by his side and wished he would go away. Then he sighed. He was tired, overwrought and overjoyed that he had Kathryn back with him, thanks to the two doctors who had saved her life.

"Professor..."

"What is it?" he asked softly, facing the EMH whose eyes looked worried, or curious.

"I don't wish to sound too intrusive here. But while we were treating your wife, she called the name "Ché" in her delirium. And just now when she woke up, she called that name again..."

There was a long pause. The EMH gave a little cough.

"Who is Ché?" he asked.

Chakotay looked at him, feeling his face grow warm. He wondered when they were going to ask. His eyes filled with a sheen of tears but he graced the doctor with a beatific smile.

"I am Ché."

Then he gave Kathryn one last look and turned to the door, leaving a baffled EMH in his wake.

*************** 

After a much needed shower, Chakotay fixed something to eat, then sat in the lounge facing the wide window. All the time, he thought of Kathryn and his heart sang wildly.

Naxos in the Aegean had been a long shot, a desperate attempt to save their marriage. It had taken so much out of him, and Kathryn had been wonderful. Wonderful! They had sat for two nights and planned the strategy.

"I have a suggestion, Kathryn. A way in which you could make your vacation perhaps more meaningful...exciting..."

"Fire away, Chakotay," Kathryn had replied, a lot more amenable towards than she had been in a long time. She was prepared to tackle anything, if it would help. Anything but seeking outside counselling or dissolving their marriage.

He had dared to touch her cheek where she had been sitting on the couch, entering data on a PADD, her feet drawn up under her. She had looked very comfortable, which made voicing his suggestion easier.

"Well, you know that a vacation can turn out to be pretty rewarding if a woman travelling alone meets a handsome stranger and..." He had given a cough when he saw her frown. "Forget it. It's not going to work."

"And there is an immediate attraction?"

"Like that," he added, feeling bolstered by her enthusiasm. "They uh... meet eventually, and she..."

"It could work," Kathryn said, an unaccustomed shine in her eyes. She looked like he had seen her so many times on Voyager, when she was ready to tackle something unknown, something new.

"That's okay with you?"

"Great. And how will I meet this handsome stranger?" she asked. He thought she was teasing, but she had been serious.

"That will be my concern.There must be as much of a surprise element as possible. So I won't tell you anything more."

Kathryn had stared long at him. He could see the wheels turning in her head. The idea was great.

He would court her and, hopefully, it would be very romantic. Who knew, in that setting, with the air of clandestineness about it, if it might just improve their relations? Kathryn had always thrived on the unknown, sometimes secretive things. If he were willing to embark on such an undertaking, she would play along.

After the first night, she had been demanding, persuasive, cajoling him to impart more details, but nothing she tried would work .

"Nothing is going to help, Kathryn," he said to her the night before she departed for Naxos. When they went to bed later, she had sighed and fallen asleep in his arms.

The first weekend there, he had briefed a young man at the craft market to play along. And Stavros had been brilliant at matchmaking. That first weekend he spent watching Kathryn from a distance. She had been achingly familiar to him and just as painfully lonely and aloof. The day she stood at a stall fitting on a straw hat, he wanted to rush to her and kiss her, so beautiful she looked. She had not particularly been looking out for the 'handsome stranger' she was expecting and he had liked that. So he observed her, making sure she never saw him or became aware that someone was watching her.

Then, the second weekend, he had followed her from a distance, made sure he remained inconspicuous until he had seen her walk to the small temple at Lexos. He had wanted to go inside and introduce himself to her, but decided against it.

When she stood outside the chapel holding her espadrilles in one hand and looking his way, he thought he was going to die. But, he reminded himself that he had to take things slowly, that he was going to court her properly.

"Ché Banderas..."

He had chosen the name in memory of a deceased cousin, who lived on Dorvan V and died during the Cardassian massacre.

After that... Chakotay shook his head and closed his eyes. He hadn't known that Kathryn's body could be the music to the lyre he played. Everything had worked out far better than he had expected. He had rushed every Friday to get to Naxos and stay at the hotel. Then, the day Kathryn asked him to stay with her the whole weekend... He knew then that they were on their way to healing.

He worshipped her. The weekly communications became an exercise in agony for him, knowing that the past weekend they had made love with so much passion, tenderness, fierceness. That first time together... He would remember the way Kathryn responded to him to his dying day.

Kathryn brought him the peace he had craved for so long.

He couldn't sleep properly for thinking of her, staying awake to the early hours of the morning, wishing the week would end and the weekend was upon him. Back and forth to Naxos. No wonder Kathryn kept telling him how tired he looked.

Chakotay sighed again contentedly. He needed to rest and when he lay down on their bed, he fell into a dreamless sleep.

*********

He woke feeling refreshed, but realised with a start that it was already late afternoon. What if Kathryn had woken up and he wasn't there by her side? He showered and dressed quickly. A thought struck him and he walked into their bedroom, taking Kathryn's old baby blue robe from the hook behind the door for her to wear at the hospital.

"You're not going to take this old robe to Naxos," he remembered telling her when she packed her luggage.

Kathryn had immediately replicated one, in pure white fleece, her eyes gleaming a little before she said archly, "For the stranger I'm going to meet..."

Only when he made it to the transport and sat down in his seat did he look down and see he was wearing one navy and one black sock. Grinning to himself, he decided to ignore it and pretend he didn't know about it.

Kathryn's ward suddenly felt light-years away, and he was a little out of breath by the time he reached her door and entered. He stopped dead in his tracks. She was standing by the window and as he entered, she turned her head. Her face looked soft, her eyes warm. Despite her illness, she must have taken time to wash her hair and it shone, falling into her neck, curling inwards. His hands went limp and the robe he carried fell to the floor. His heart was in his throat, throbbing furiously, heating up his face, making his hands clammy.

Why was he feeling so damned nervous? Was it the memories of their heady days and nights on Naxos that made him suddenly embarrassed? He had had no constraints making love with her and she had never once complained. In fact... Kathryn had been a moon flower, a queen of the night, a tigress and temptress and mewling kitten and wanton hussy. Her blue-grey eyes had changed colour when she was deeply aroused, becoming dark, dark as the Aegean, changing from its brilliant blue to inky black. She had made him cry out her name in passion more times than he could remember. This woman who stood before him was looking soft and demure and overwhelmingly sexy... He closed his eyes, then opened them again.

The same Kathryn stood there. How was she going to receive him?

"Come here, Chakotay..." she beckoned him gently.

He moved, step by slow step until he reached her. Kathryn took his hand in hers, and pulled him closer to stand in his embrace. His arms enfolded her. He gave a sob as he pressed her fiercely against him. "My love..." he heard her say, the words followed by tender endearments such as he’d only heard her shower on him in their bed at Naxos, in the sea, on the beaches where they made love, or simply sitting outside on the patio, or walking up the mountain at Samothraki to look at the mainland where Poseidon watched the Trojan War. Kathryn, who called him 'my love' when they stood in the ruins of the Temple of Apollo on Palatia. Kathryn's hands were in his hair, caressing, tenderly brushing away the dampness on his cheeks, dropping little butterfly kisses on his lips.

And he?

He could only hold on to her, his anchor, too afraid to let her go lest he plunge into the ink blue ocean like Icarus had once plunged into the Aegean. Quivering fingers combed through silky strands of hair, and all the time his heart was thundering against hers. And like a contented baby, Kathryn nestled against him. She felt so tiny, so incredibly fragile and strong at the same time. Finally, she released him. There were tears in her eyes.

"Ché...Chakotay..." she started, her voice tremulous, "I dreamed of you. Every night and every day. I struggled to live through the week, waiting for the weekend when you would come and be with me..."

"I am healed, my Kathryn," he said soberly.

"So am I, Chakotay."

"Seven of Nine - "

"Is gone now. Forever."

"She came to our home yesterday, just before I had to contact you..." He paused, noting how Kathryn's eyes kept shining instead of growing dark with pain every time he mentioned Seven's name. "She wanted me back, Kathryn. You know how she left Meghan alone on an alien planet, sick and unable to care for herself. What Seven did with her life after that I don't know and I don't particularly care. I sent her away."

"You were always strong."

He pulled her into his embrace, her warm, soft body that clutched so naturally at him. Tears dropped onto her hair. The words... How often in the last month hadn't he thought of regrets, of three years lost in which he and Kathryn had become strangers sharing a bed?

The words poured from his heart in fevered entreaty.

"Forgive me, Kathryn...for everything..."

She responded by kissing him, and her touch was a benediction, a promise of a new life together. He knew that there would be times that he'd think again of the past three years with her and how she’d suffered, and like now, he knew that Kathryn would kiss away his fears.

"There were times that I wanted to give up, Chakotay. That I wanted to walk away from this marriage that delivered so little, gave so little joy. And then I thought that my love for you had never changed in ten years. There was once a time that we were best friends, that you would have done anything to make my own life worthwhile. I am nothing without you. What I give you now is unconditional."

"I always thought you were a remarkable woman. Yesterday... You know, I was busy courting my wife in the most romantic setting in the universe. I couldn't see past my Kathryn." He smiled tenderly, remembered how once, he couldn't see past Annika. "I was impatient to talk to you and I was being held up by Seven."

Kathryn stared pensively out the window. Then she looked at him again and cupped his cheek.

"It's over now..."

"Oh, no, sweet Kathryn. We're only beginning. The real test must still come." Kathryn's eyes widened; she frowned. He enjoyed her momentary confusion, his insides swelling with heat as her eyes gleamed again. "But first..." He bent down to pick up the robe that slid from his fingers and helped her put it on. "We'll take a walk in the garden. You're looking so much better than you did last night when I thought I would have no more reason for living, if you weren't there to share the rest of my life with me."

"I think I'll enjoy calling you Ché," Kathryn said, her mouth curving at the side. He became serious.

He was quiet for a moment.

"Chakotay?"

"I love you, Kathryn. On Naxos...I know you thought of me as Ché, and..." He sighed deeply.

"And I heard you, Chakotay," her voice deep with emotion. "I heard you last week when you said those words as Ché."

There was a pause in which he heard the distant ocean of the Aegean accompanying her words.

"And I hear you now, my love."

************** 

End Part 12

PART 13 [FINALE]

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