Thick as Thieves 2: Under Your Command

Chapter 26

Deeper in the woods, Michael and Taylor were walking together in silence. It was unbearable. He still wasn't sure where he stood with the Commander. It seemed like there were a thousand things to say but no way to say them.

He squeezed rainwater out of his uniform, finding the dampness increasingly unpleasant. His lower lip trembled as the air cooled around them.

"Sun's going down," Taylor said, noticing Michael's shivering. "We'll need to get to a camp soon. I just hope Terra Nova knows what it's in for."

"Jim should have it handled," Michael reassured him, though he had been anxious about it himself. "We were expecting the worst. Jim's done a good job prepping everyone."

Taylor raised an eyebrow. "Good to hear he's been doing a good job in my absence. I knew he would. How has the colony been?"

"On edge. Worried...about you. About everything...It took them a while to accept me back. Most of them still haven't, but I'm working on it."

"Well, you were convincing," Taylor said, looking over at him. Michael instantly felt a pang of guilt hit him, as if someone had just run him over with a Rhino. "How did you manage to convince Jim to trust you?"

"When I changed my mind about the deal." He suddenly felt ashamed. "I was wrong about Nichol, about all of it."

"Well. Better late than never," joked Taylor. "What made you change your mind?"

Michael smiled. "Crazy as it sounds, it was Alicia. I just thought of her and...it was like she was guiding me, reminding me who I was."

Suddenly, he stopped. Noticing this, Taylor halted too, turning around to look at his son. Michael was watching the floor guiltily.

"Dad, I made a mistake leading you to that portal." He risked looking into his father's eyes, seeing that familiar stern look. But his father's features softened.

"Son, I'm not gonna lie to you. Whether you believed in that deal or not, you took a huge risk. You risked my life and the lives of everyone in the colony. I don't take that lightly. But, seeing Nichol's whole operation, how she manipulates people, it opened my eyes." He sighed deeply. "I understand why you did it. You thought you were saving Wash and your child. And I didn't make it easy on you while you were here. You or Lucas." Michael watched intently as his father came closer, a remorseful look on his face. "I admit it. I failed you both. I treated you like my soldiers rather than my sons. I let it get too far and I'm sorry for that."

Michael was surprised to hear his father apologise properly. He was speechless. Years of being made to feel ashamed, insubordinate, treasonous. Finally, the old man was apologising for all of it?

"Maybe Lucas will always hate me," his father continued regrettably. "Maybe you will too. But I hope not. Whatever trust has been lost between us, I want to help repair it. From both sides."

Michael nodded slowly. He wanted that too. It might take a while to get there, but he was willing to try.

"Dad...I am sorry. Lucas got in my head. He kept saying all these terrible things and I realised I felt them too. I did hate you. Everything that's happened between us...I felt so disconnected from you. I resented you for it. For throwing me away like you did with Lucas. I was angry. All those months working for Nichol just made it worse. I felt alone. I felt like there was no other way. I'm just trying to make you understand what it was like."

"I'm beginning to," Taylor admitted. "I know I rule with an iron fist. Perhaps I can try to change that."

He smiled at Michael. He was just about to carry on walking when Michael stepped towards him.