To Hell and Back

Khaat's father apparated them into the living room, and Brian put Khaat tenderly on the sofa. He simply transfigured her clothes into a silk gown for her and accio'd pillow and blankets and made her comfortable there. He flicked his wand towards the kitchen to start to brew some of the pumpkin spice tea that she liked. Robert began checking the house to be sure it was not breeched and was clear. Brian devoted his attention to Khaat. She was his first priority. He was forcing himself to swallow his anger at Jack for now, but he had his mind made up that if Jack defied him again, he was likely to either suspend him or fire him. Depending on how serious a breech it was. Brian did not like his orders being questioned. Not where Khaat was concerned. And he was seriously pissed right now.

"I'll have you some tea in a moment," he told her softly. She rested her hand on his to stop him. "Yes?" he asked. She motioned, cradling a baby in her arms to ask him about Abbey and Dakota. "Your mother has them in Paris. They're safe. I promise, Baby. Your father is going to bring them. I swear. They'll be right here as soon as we get things settled here. We'll bring them all straight home. You need anything else?" She simply pointed back at Brian. "Me? You already have that," he smiled, kissing her forehead.

Jack aperated to the grounds checking he out side of the biulding apart from a few ancshiose animals with he let out into a padock nothing was a miss . He walked back to the main house and around it again nothing but few blown over chairs . setting them upriht he moved inside.

"All secure captin" he said looking at Robert then to Brian and Khaat "some of the animals needed letting out so i did that, I'll secure them tonight after final rounds , Sir" he said and moved to stand by the porch doors feeling he had now started his job as body guard.

"Thank you, Jack," Robert replied. "Go get your children, Brian. I'll be here."

"Gladly," Brian said, apparating out.

"You're on thin ice with your commanding officer, Jack," Robert said simply, turning and leaving to go to the kitchen. He filled mugs with the pumpkin spice tea, assembled a tea tray and brought it back in with him. He put it on the coffee table and handed the first mug of tea. "There, Dear. Try that. That will help you to be able to soothe those jangled nerves a bit. I want you to just rest. Sleep if you can. That will help you heal. You know that."

Brian apparated back a few moments later, with Katherine beside him. He had Abbey in his arms, and Katherine had Dakota. Robert went over and kissed Kate softly. "She's fine, Kate. Really. I made sure," he said to her reassuringly.

"If you say she's fine, then she is," Katherine smiled at Khaat. Brian went over, seeing Khaat setting her teamug aside and reaching for Abbey. He put Abbey on her lap, and Khaat wrapped her close to her, sighing a deep sigh of relief. She was good medicine for Khaat. It was reassuring for her and Abbey seemed to be delighted to see Khaat again.

jack turned to face Robert as he spoke "yes sir, but I would rather be on thin ice and know he and Khaat are safe, than be a sheep and make a mistake, captian. " he said turning to look back out into the yard his mind focused on his job now, he was not meaning to be disrespectful not by along shot but he knew with Brian focusing on Khaat some one had to think of both of them alowing robert and katherine to continue there lives and that was his job.

"Let me make this abundantly clear," Robert said calmly."because I want to be sure you completely understand it. You are not captain of this organization. I am. You are not First Mate. Brian is. As such, I have given him the power to act in my stead. If Brian makes a mistake and leads you into difficulty that could have been avoided, then that issue is between Brian and me. Are we very, very clear? It is not your position to defy him openly. You put him in a position where he has no choice but to discipline you. And you put me in the position where I have no choice but to back him up. I cannot allow this sort of open defiance in my organization, and neither can Brian. That's the bottom line. If you defy him, you're also defying me. I really don't care what you want. If Brian sends you ahead to clear a location, then you do it. If you don't like it, go toss pizzas or something because you're not who I need. Do I make myself very clear?"

Khaat looked at her father. He seldom used such strong terms, but Jack did deserve it. What the hell was it with him, and Steven and Ronata? Could neither of them be a team player? She was concerned for her father's organization if they were going to continue to be the root of defiance. That always bred corruption, and Khaat didn't like that thought at all.

Jack was a little shoked by his words but knew he was right he faced Robert and hug his head "yes sir" he said softly "won't happen again" he said he felt like a small boy being told off by the head for doing something wrong but as he tough about it he realised he had , Brian was his boss he had made a vow to always obay brian and Robert no matter what the order and he realised he ahd not done that now he felt bad.

Standing up he lifted his head looking at Robert inside he pulled himself together and changed he was a team player and no longer a lone gun he had to stop thinking that way.

Khaat settled in with Abbey, feeling a bit more safe with so many people she loved so closeby. She sipped at her tea and held Abbey, as Abbey settled in, trying to suck on her hand as she laid on Khaat's chest. Home. She was really home. That was almost overwhelming in itself. She watched Abbey slip off peacefully into sleep, untouched by the danger that Khaat herself had found herself in. It made her feel so odd, so different, so...changed now. She felt that this had changed everything and she would never ever be the same again She wondered if she would ever be right, ever be herself, ever again in her life. It made her feel such loss, and that only wrapped walls and walls around the silence she was already trapped in. She was starting to believe she would never get out, never speak again. No one knew what haunted her. And she didn't want them to ever know. That was asking too much of any human being. She vowed she was never talking about it. She felt her own prison becoming stronger and darker around her.

Robert noticed the shift in Khaat immediately. As though there had been some sort of muggle power failure in the room. He looked at her and walked over to her and cupped her cheek in his hand. "Hey," he said to her, "Come back. Don't let yourself get stuck there. Stop thinking about it so much. Here. Drink your tea." He put the teamug in her hand. "You need to be doing something."'

She pointed to Abbey, indicating she was doing something. Holding Abbey. "That does not count if she' s sleeping" Robert frowned. He accio'd her book that she had never had time to read. "Here. Read a book or something. Do something. You can't just lay here and spin in your own thoughts. Get your brain busy doing something productive. Read."

She did not want to read. But he was not going to let her get locked inside herself. "Youd' better keep her brain busy, guys," Robert said. "Don't let her go deeper into that shell of hers. She's not up to training with you, but she does need to not lay there replaying that crap in her head."

jack looked at Robert and Brian he could understand there thinking "hey Khaat I have a jigsaw i havebeen stuck on you think you could help me with?" he asked accioing a jigsaw puzzel with 5000 peices and held it waiting to see what she would say "I'll help but the boys will rib me rotten if i don't do this " he said asnd shifted on his feet.

Khaat liked jigsaw puzzles, but she hadn't done one, not fairly anyway, in a long time. She had seen Remus cheat at one at one time, learned the cheating spell, and never did one fairly since. She tried to promise herself that she would not cheat this time. Well, she would try not to. Then it registered. She could not cast the spell. Not by herself, anyway. Without being able to speak words she could not cast a spell. Her wand was useless except for threatening purposes. Her only nonverbal magic was her healing skill.

She looked at Jack, trying not to be frustrated, and nodded. She was out, it was over, and life had to go on. Voice or not. It was that simple. She was never, ever going to reveal the nightmares that she had been dealt. Never.

This made her feel so different, so unlike everyone around her. No one really understood. They said they did, but they were just being kind. She could not think of anyone who really knew what it was like. It made her feel completely alone.

Her father shoved her tea at her again and picked up Abbey, who slept through being picked up by her grandfather. "Go do something. Refill your tea and do something," He repeated, laying the sleeping baby on his shoulder.