Suns (LGBT - Sci-fi - Romance)

Chapter 15

Chapter 15 

Viktor Rice swept into the small clinic, brushing everything before him. "Where is my son?" he demanded. "Who's the Medic in charge?" 

"I'm sorry sir, your son is?" Hannah asked, coming around the reception desk to greet the tall, silver haired Colonel. He was frowning, emphasising the harsh lines on his face. 

"Captain Rice." 

Hannah smiled at the stern looking man, she knew anxiety took people in different ways. "He's this way sir, follow me. Medic Rahmin is in charge of his case, I'll just let him know you'd like to speak to him."  

Without waiting for an answer, Hannah led the way down the short corridor to the Captain's room, sending the message on her wristcom as she walked. She knocked politely on the door before opening it. 

"Captain Rice? You have a visitor." She turned to the Colonel. "I'll be at the Reception desk if you have any questions, sir." 

"Hmph," said the Colonel, "She seems efficient enough." He was looking Stefan over, hiding his worry under a veneer of brisk authority. "How are you Stefan? You look pale." He pulled the chair up that Connell had been sitting in only an hour before. "Tell me what happened." 

XXX 

"What do you mean Nick Connell is your Lieutenant here?" he asked as evenly as he could. The whole thing sounded an unmitigated disaster. Stefan had been recognised, his history was about to be blown open for everyone to stare at and wonder over. The whole thing made infinitely worse by the fact that his son and Connell were working side by side, ramming the connection into people's faces, giving the gossip new life. "Why didn't you tell me? I could easily have got him moved somewhere else." 

"And that's exactly why Dad. I'm a grown man, I can fight my own battles." He fought to keep his voice calm and reasonable, his father hated it when he got emotional, but he had to make his father understand. "I'm serious, I don't want you to interfere. I have to handle this myself." 

"I can see you're doing a great job so far!" commented his father sarcastically. Asserting his independence was all very well but Stefan didn't realise how much damage could be done to his career. 

"I'll manage. The truth was bound to come out eventually, I'll simply have to ride through it." 

"What do you mean the truth?" the question came out with the force of a whip crack, startling the Captain. 

"Why the fact that Mars was my birth father. What else would I mean?" for the first time, Stefan felt a tendril of doubt. Was there something his father hadn't told him? 

"Nothing, that's enough believe me. Just keep Connell at arm's length, you can't imagine the rumours and insinuations that will be flying around as it is. I wish you'd let me get rid of him. In fact I wish you'd transfer out of here completely. The talk will die down soon enough if you're not here to be a target." The Colonel frowned intently, willing Stefan to yield to his greater experience. 

"I can't Dad. I need to face this here and now, otherwise I'll always be running from it." He tried to get the Colonel to meet his eyes properly, to admit he was right. "You've always told me to face my fears, not to hide from them. That's what I'm trying to do." 

Viktor Rice felt an unwilling pride. Under other circumstances he would have agreed with him, it was just that Stefan had no idea, no idea of the damage such gossip could do. He wasn't at all sure that he was prepared to allow him to take the risk. He didn't admit, even to himself, that he was afraid, afraid that Stefan would find out far more than he needed to know.  

Although he wasn't a demonstrative man by any standards, he'd grown to love Stefan with a fierce paternal pride. He couldn't bear it if he turned away from him now. He couldn't think of much he wouldn't do to stop that happening. 

XXX 

Sitting in front of his console unit in Huan, Liam Connell didn't know whether to laugh or cry. Mars had a son! A son who looked so much like him he felt as if his heart was being squeezed in his chest. Nick had sent him a holovid along with the news. He hadn't quite believed it until he saw for himself. 

"And you say Mars never knew?" he asked Nick again, Mars had certainly never told him he had a son. 

"Apparently not. Stefan's mother brought him up on her own, but when she got ill, terminally ill, she tried to contact him, presumably to ask him to take care of the boy. But Mars was dead and Rice got the message in his place. He went to Bast and adopted Stefan, brought him up as his own son." 

"Rice brought him up? Sweet god, if only I'd known," cried Liam, exactly as Nick had known he would, "I would have adopted him myself. How is he? What sort of man has he become?" 

"I'm still finding out. A bit repressed as one would expect with his upbringing, very much trying to do things by the book, but I think he's got a heart hidden in there somewhere. Every so often he relaxes and he's like a different man." Nick cleared his throat. "He's straight, though ... unfortunately." 

For a second Liam didn't understand, then, "Nick! That's not funny. You're teasing me, right?" 

"He's got the most adorable smile ..." 

Liam groaned. "Just ... be careful, I don't want you to get hurt. Keep it light and friendly between the two of you, don't get too close. I know what I'm talking about here, believe me, none better!" 

"I'm doing my best. Seriously though Dad, he wouldn't believe me when I told him you and Mars were friends. I asked him to talk to you about what really happened, I'm pretty sure the Colonel has told him the official version and nothing else, but he didn't want to. He saw it as being disloyal to Rice." 

"Loyalty huh? I bet he got that from Mars rather than Rice! You're right, I'd really like to talk to him, tell him the truth about his father." Liam paused for a minute, struggling with his deep dislike of the Colonel. He tried to be fair. "In all honesty, it's quite possible Rice doesn't actually know the truth, that Mars wasn't a rapist I mean. After all, that was the story Mars himself promoted at every opportunity!" 

"Maybe. In any case, I think Stefan deserves to know that it wasn't true. It can't be good for him to believe that about his father." 

"I agree. He probably feels ashamed, guilty even on his behalf." 

"I think you're right Dad," Nick answered slowly, his recent conversation with Stefan making more sense to him now. 

"Unless you don't want me there, I think I'll take a trip to Aykut. I'll just talk it over with your mother, see if she can spare me for a week or so, and let you know." 

"That would be great," Nick replied thankfully, he hadn't liked to ask. "I'm sure Colonel Rice will be here any day, if he isn't already!" Suddenly he had second thoughts. "Er, is that a good idea? The two of you in the same place together?"

 “We’re both older and wiser now.  I’m sure we can act in a civilised manner,” Liam lied cheerfully.