72. Learning To Say Goodbye

April, 2010

Martha was beginning to feel faint. Afaitu still hadn't shown up, and the delicious aroma of other people's breakfasts was nearly enough to make her want to trip a passing waitress laden with delectable items that were headed to some other table.

Sipping on her second cup of coffee was not enough. She'd barely touched dinner the night before—still overwrought from having seen her son and getting her first glimpse of his wife and her grandchildren. Now, she was in danger of starving.

"Oh, Jim, this waiting just cannot be borne," she burst out while watching what appeared to be a plate of crepes and mouthwatering bowl of fruit waltz by their table. Turning her head back to look at her manager, her eyes flashed in annoyance at his smirk. "Where is he? I thought he was going to meet us at ten? Why, it's nearly half past. It'll be time for lunch soon!"

"I've never known you to be so worried about eating, Martha."

It was true. As a working actress, she typically erred on the side of eating very little. The camera was no friend to those who over-indulged. But the worry and stress of the last days—well, really since she'd landed in Tahiti, or perhaps from the day she met Afaitu—had seen her nibbling on even more unsubstantial quantities than usual. Now, she was hungry. For news. For plans. For her son. For his family.

For food, as her nose picked up a warm cinnamon and sugar bouquet that made a direct impact on her salivary glands.

"Make fun all you want, Jim, I'm starving. Oh, where is that man?"

Jim nodded towards the door. "He just walked in."

"Finally!"

She waved at the waitress while Jim raised his hand at Afaitu, who wove his way through the crowded room to their booth.

"Sorry I'm so late," he said, leaning over to kiss Martha's cheek before taking a seat next to her.

"Well, we were getting a little worried about you," Martha remarked, eyes lighting up when the waitress stopped to take their order. Afaitu waited until his coffee cup was filled and they'd ordered before turning to other matters.

"I spoke with Rick first. He told me that he and Kate will be coming back by Ari'i's cargo ship."

"By cargo ship? But isn't that awfully slow? That'll take several days, won't it?" Martha complained. She couldn't imagine why they would choose to take such a plodding pace when they could be back in nearly an instant if they took a plane.

"He didn't say why they decided on it, just that they had. Ari'i will be in place by tomorrow morning."

"Tomorrow! Heavens, another day yet?" Martha was horrified at the delay.

"Yes, and then they'll need to load what they're bringing. Rick mentioned that he and Kate are sorting that all out now."

"Well, I suppose they do have a lot to cull. Ten years and all," she mused. "But that doesn't mean they still couldn't use a plane to return."

Jim reached across the table and covered her hands with his. "Martha," his eyes intent on hers, "think about what a change this will be for the children. I don't know Richard, not yet, but I do know Katie. I'm sure Richard and the others have explained the attention that's waiting for them when they re-appear. Gosh, I'm sure it was not easy talking her into the video interview in the first place. Do you really believe that she'd then want to pick them all up and plunk them down into the mayhem here?"

"Well, no, not when you put it that way. I just want to see them. Touch them. And now I have to wait! How many days, do you think?" she wondered, turning towards Afaitu.

"I haven't checked the weather, but if there's nothing bad I think it will be about a 5 day journey by boat."

"Five days! That's…that's far too long, surely!"

"They won't be pushing hard like they did when they were trying to get to Kate. This will be a moderate pace; to keep them all comfortable."

Afaitu felt his heart lurch; he'd come to really like this woman. Seeing the silent tears roll down her face as he delineated the timeframe for them made him feel awful, even if he knew it was probably the best option for Rick and Kate's family.

He looked helplessly at Jim, who gave him a small shake of the head and looked pointedly away from Martha. Time to move the conversation to other topics.

Picking one that he knew would be well received, he blurted out, "The Naval liaison called me: Grollet is in custody."

"Oh, thank God!"

"That's great news!"

Jim and Martha's replies were simultaneous. Martha looked at her manager and gave a watery laugh. "At least we don't have to worry about that awful man causing any more trouble for Richard and Katie."

"No, not anymore. I talked to a government minister last night, after the broadcast had been digested. Due to the criminal charges, including attempted murder, that Grollet is facing, the French High Commissioner in Papeete was ordered by Sarkozy himself to remove Grollet from office. I'm not totally sure it's constitutional, but a special decree was ordered. Grollet is no longer president, and believe me when I tell you that the government will do nearly anything for us. They did not want Grollet to be on camera labeled as 'President' nor do they want to be seen as causing any sort of obstruction for the Rodgers family. This level of cooperation is going to be a huge boon for us. Why, they even offered to return Rick and Kate in one of the French Naval ships!"

"Well, that would be faster! Did you tell Richard about that option?" Martha pressed. She was desperate for them to arrive.

"I did, and Rick rejected it. I don't blame him in this instance, however. It's the same ship that is carrying Grollet back to face justice."

"Oh!" Martha's face collapsed. "I can't blame them for wanting to avoid travelling on that ship."

"One thing we need to decide is where the family will stay once they get here. I think it will useful to gauge the press corps' level of interest in them over the next few days. The government offered the use of a military base for housing but Rick indicated this was not a top choice for them."

"I suppose the hotel suite I have wouldn't be optimal either," Martha mused. "The press seem to be everywhere in the lobby and it's nearly impossible to come and go without them noticing. Which is why that—that Meredith loves it so much."

"Rick asked about Mo'orea. He said he thought it would be better than Tahiti since there's no airport. I don't agree with him, though."

"Why?" Jim asked. "Wouldn't that keep the numbers of press down?"

"I doubt it. It's a 45 minute ferry ride, and I'm certain that many of the press will simply hire ships to take them back and forth at will. It'd be a huge boon to fishermen here, as they'd make a killing with their boats for hire. But it wouldn't keep them away. And it might be worse: there's nowhere to escape to, unless it's by boat. I don't think we want to be boxed in like that."

"That does make sense. So, Papeete then?" Jim didn't know much about French Polynesia, but he had been impressed with the capital city and its surrounding suburbs.

"Not necessarily. Fa'a'ā is actually larger than Papeete, and is where the airport is located. It's the commune to the south of Papeete. Papera is the commune to the south of Fa'a'ā; they're both close to Papeete, but perhaps being outside of the capital would be useful."

"Commune?"

"Sorry, it's a French term. It's basically the smallest territorial division, in terms of administration. Think of it as a town. For example, Paris is a commune. Largest commune of all, in fact."

"Well, I would help you look, if I could, but I feel helpless as I don't know enough about the locations we're talking about," Jim offered.

"No, I realize this is going to be a decision that is largely on my shoulders. I'll narrow down the candidates and have you look at the descriptions to see if anything jumps out at you. You both have much more experience in avoiding the press than I do, obviously."

"Oh, yes, darling, I'd be happy to help in any way," Martha twittered.

"Are there any items that I can help with directly?" Jim didn't want the entire burden of the kids' return to be Afaitu's to carry.

"Indeed, there is one. And that is dealing with the American Embassy. This is by far the most complicated issue that we'll be facing, and will determine just how long Rick and Kate's family must stay here. For things to move forward, everything is dependent on this."

"Well, I made some contacts in the State department when I first learned about Richard being alive. Perhaps they will help."

"I do hope so. I'm told this is an unprecedented situation, and ironing it out is going to be a headache that is made even worse by the fact that the Embassy is in Fiji and not here."

"Will they have to go to Fiji?" Martha inquired. "It might be an advantage in terms of losing press."

"Eventually, they'll have to," Afaitu stated baldly. "But it's not so simple—just like everything that has happened so far. Neither Rick nor Kate has a current passport. Don't even get me started on the children. They have no birth certificates, so passports are out of the question in the initial phase. No, they cannot go to Fiji right away."

"Then how on earth is this going to be resolved?" Jim demanded.

"The Embassy will have to come to them. Or at least the Consulate. You officially have a job, my friend."

Jim gulped. Suddenly he couldn't wait for Celeste to arrive. Her skills in negotiation were going to be invaluable to get this mess fixed.

"What're you doin' with those? Why're all these baskets out here? What're we doin'?" Patrick sprinted up to his mother as Salesi's retreating back disappeared down the trail towards the waterfall.

It was mid-afternoon and the camera crew and their guides were just returning. Rick wandered out of the kitchen to greet them as the boys wandered around the baskets that he and Kate had placed just outside of the structure.

"Ugh, you boys need to go shower. Were you wrestling in mud? Don't touch that, Alex," Kate admonished.

"But mom, those are my toys! Why are they in a basket?"

"Shower first, then we'll talk."

Alex looked mutinous and Rick saw an argument brewing. The boys were covered in mud from head to toe. Tamahere hadn't fared much better. "Do as your mother asked, please," Rick ordered. Grumbling, his sons walked off to the house while Rick turned to Tamahere for answers. "What happened, anyway?"

His friend grinned at him. "Well, we'd done all the scenic shots and the boys showed us the bamboo groves and places like that. Then the crew asked about gathering food and stuff. So, the boys were filmed discussing how they would pick a coconut, for example. When we got to taro harvesting, they each picked a really big plant."

"They don't usually do the taros. Kate or I do."

"Well, they sure didn't mention that. They were out in the water; you know that shallow grove away from the waterfall?"

Rick nodded.

"I think they each picked the biggest plant they could find and started pulling. Of course the plants wouldn't budge, so I went out to see if I could help. It took all three of us to get one of them up, but it was so hard we fell when it finally gave way and we got covered in mud."

"You pulled it out? All the way?"

"Yeah. What do you do?"

"I usually just cut one of the corms off from the side and pull that out."

"Huh. That would have been a better idea. Well, anyway, it was a messy business. Luckily it was the last shot they needed."

"Where is the crew?"

"Down at the beach. They were going to upload the video and rest for a bit."

"What about lunch?"

"No worries there, my friend. Your sons gathered more than enough for a meal and showed them how they'd prepare it. I was impressed; you've raised them well."

"We taught them skills as soon as they could walk. We figured if anything happened to us, they would have to know how to survive."

"Well, they are true Polynesians at heart. I'm going to go have a swim and change. I'll meet you back here before dinner?"

"Yes. We're packing what we want to take in these baskets. Salesi is helping us store some things in the cave."

As Tamahere strolled out of sight, Rick heard the pounding of little feet running towards him. Looking up, he saw Alex and Patrick racing each other; Alex was leading, given his longer legs. Glancing in the kitchen, he saw that Kate was working at the fire while Sarah played in her playpen. For now.

"Careful, boys," he cautioned as they nearly fell after Patrick gave Alex a slight shove.

"Dad, he pushed me! Knock it off, Patrick."

"Hey, both of you need to calm down for a minute. Go sit on your stools. Now."

Sullenly they dragged their feet over to their chairs in the kitchen while he followed. Kate gave him a questioning look. He reassured her with a quick grin then turned back to his boys.

"Alex, you were wondering what your mother and I have been doing with these baskets. Well, after you guys left with the camera crew, I spoke on the phone to my friend Ari'i. Do you remember me talking about him?"

"Y-yeah!" Patrick shouted. "He was the first mate on your ship, but he got sick."

The boys were well acquainted with some of the facts regarding how he and Kate had come to be on the island. They knew all about Anapa and Hina and how wonderful they had been. They'd not been told about Grollet in any detail, however. He and Kate both thought it wasn't a story that the boys would understand, having never met—until now—other humans. They didn't have any real concept of people doing bad things for what appeared to be no reason.

"Less shouting, Patrick, please. But you're right, he was the first mate on the Iriata and he was sick when Anapa broke his leg, so he wasn't on the ship when it sank."

"Is he comin' here too?"

"Yes, actually he is. He's got his own ship now. It's called the Vaitiare and that's how I got here. The little boat we have here on the island can't go very far. His ship and crew will be here tomorrow morning."

"How many more people are coming?" Alex's wrinkled brow and biting of his lower lip were identical to his mother's look when she was worried about something. It was so adorable, Rick wanted to just give him a big hug and try to reassure him all would be well. His son's shy nature would lead to a lot of stress in the coming days.

"Two or three more will come from the big boat and join us on the island. I'll have to go out to the boat when it gets here to guide them in through the rocks."

"It must not be a very big boat," observed Patrick.

"No, it's really huge. Larger than from here to our house."

Both boys' eyes grew big at this declaration.

"Then how's it gonna fit through the channel, Daddy?"

"It's not. It'll stay out past the rocks. They have a little boat that they'll send to the island."

"Can we come with you?"

"Please, please, please?"

Rick looked uncertainly at Kate. The boys wouldn't get in the way, but he wasn't sure if it would be the right time to introduce them to the ship and crew. They wouldn't have much time to look around, and it might be a bit overwhelming.

Kate moved to sit next to her husband and join the discussion.

"I don't think that's a good idea, guys."

"Aww, mom, we wouldn't be in the way, promise."

"Why? Please, mommy."

"Stop whining, Patrick. Your mom's right, tomorrow morning isn't a good time for you to go to the big boat."

Patrick's bottom lip jutted out and Rick nearly laughed. Alex looked downcast, and, not for the first time, both of their parents had a stab of fear about how they were going to handle all the changes about to upend their lives.

"Do you boys understand that we're all going to get on the boat?" Rick could see the surge of excitement race through each boy, petulance immediately forgotten over the exclusion from the morning's excursion.

"We are? HOORAY!"

"YES!" Alex punctuated his happiness with a fist pump. It was a gesture he'd picked up from his father, and Kate found it both hilarious and endearing. "When do we get to go on it?"

"Probably tomorrow afternoon. We'll start loading stuff, and you guys can help."

Both boys bounced in their seat, while Rick looked at Kate in concern. Neither child seemed to understand the reality of leaving the only place they'd ever known. Sure, they'd talked about rescue with them at times, but it had been an abstract concept—until now.

"Do you guys remember when I gave you your own notebook, paper and pens in the cave that I told you we'd be leaving?"

Alex wiggled in his seat. "You mean when mommy started crying?"

Kate gave him a shy smile. "Yes, Alex, when I started crying. What did you think when Daddy said we'd be leaving?"

"Well—I don't know." He quirked his eyebrows up, all curiosity and wonderment. "Will it be like when we go to the beach for a whole week? A vacation?"

"Yes and no, Alex," Rick explained. "It means we won't be on the island anymore. We're going to Papeete first. Do you remember what Papeete is, Patrick?"

"The capital."

"That's right, the capital. Capital of what?"

"French Pol'nesia."

"Very good. But it's Pol-y-nesia. Ok?" Patrick nodded, shoulders thrown back and chest puffed out. Kate had to spin around on her stool so she didn't laugh out loud at her little scholar.

"Anyway," Rick stressed, giving his wife a wink, "we're going to be leaving. You guys remember how I got on our boat and left? Now, I didn't mean to leave right then, that was an accident due to the storm. But, I found other people and they all helped me get back to you guys. Now, we all get to leave."

"You were gone forever, Daddy. How long will we be gone?"

"I was gone forever because it took me weeks and weeks to find the other people. The ocean is really, really big, which is why we've never seen any boats while we've lived here. But now, other people know we're here. They didn't know, before. So we're going to leave the island and go live somewhere else now."

Alex's gaze pinned him in place. "You mean we're leaving and not coming back? Ever?"

"Yes, Alex, we're leaving. Remember how I told you that your mommy and I used to live in America? We'll be going back there." His whisper of 'I hope' was caught only by his wife, who reached out and grabbed his hand.

"That's why we have all the baskets out here, guys," Kate added. "Dad and I have started putting stuff that we want to take with us on the boat and then to where we'll live next in the baskets. That's why the blocks and toys are in there. You don't need them tonight; we'll be too busy. But you need to tell us if there's anything we haven't packed that you want to bring."

"You-you-you mean we're not taking everything?" Patrick blinked his eyes, turning from one adult to the other. "W-w-why not just take everything?"

"There's not room, for one thing, Patrick. And we don't need things like our old plates. There'll be new ones where we go to live," Kate explained, with a small grin. Rick reached over and gave her a light pinch, though he had to admit he'd been ridiculous.

"What about our bed? And our house?" Alex whined. He couldn't imagine leaving his house behind. The only other place he'd ever slept was on the beach, and that was not comfortable at all. Especially in rain.

"We can't take them, and we won't need them. At first, we'll have beds on the boat, but later we'll have a new house, in America. It'll be different from our house here, but we'll find one we all like. But we'll never forget how great the house we lived in here has been. After all, your mom and I built it together. It's been a great place to live."

Patrick suddenly spoke up, the break in his voice reflecting his concern. "B-b-b-but what about—what about all our pets?"

"Uh, right. Your pets," Rick repeated, stalling for time. A desperate glance at Kate showed she was just as unsure as he was in terms of handling this.

"Yeah, our pets! You know Daddy! Henrietta, Henny Penny, Loosey Goosey, Chicken Little and Turkey Lurkey. Those are the chickens. And there's Smaug, 'n Gandalf, the wizard lizard. They're comin' too, right?"

"Uh, well, you see, Patrick, um…"

Mercifully, his wife took over. "Patrick, the chickens can't come. There are too many of them, and they wouldn't like the boat ride. But, Daddy and I will talk to Ari'i. He comes from an island that's not too far away," she heard Rick cough at this little falsehood and kicked him under the table, "and I'll bet he'll be more than happy to take the chickens to his home. That way they can still live on an island, but they'll have someone looking after them."

Patrick's lip quivered and even Alex's eyes looked to be filling with tears as the reality of what their move was going to cost them began to set in for the first time. "A-a-and our lizards? They don't take up much room, promise."

"Sweetie, I know how much you love them. But I think they'd be happier staying here. Right now they have a whole big island to live on, and lots of other lizard friends to visit. They'll be lonely if we bring them with us."

Big, fat tears were now rolling down both boys cheeks. "They won't be lonely, they won't! They'll have me and Patrick. Please, Mom," Alex begged.

"Boys, I know it seems really hard, but your Mom's right. You're not going to have time to look after the lizards. They need to be warm; here on the island, that's easy. But on a boat, it's not. You'll understand when you see where we'll be sleeping on the boat when it gets here. And once we get to Papeete, there's going to be so much to see and do and learn about. Smaug and Gandalf can't go everywhere with us; they don't let lizards go in certain places. And we can't bring them to America, either."

"But why?" Patrick cried.

"They have special rules about lizards and animals. You'll understand one day, but they aren't coming."

Both boys sobbed in earnest. However, they were a close knit family—it was impossible not to be on an island with no other people to turn to. So, they both sought comfort in their parent's arms: Alex went to his father and Patrick to his mother. After the worst of the tears seemed to have been released, Rick decided to bring up a topic that might cheer them up somewhat.

"We're gonna be going in the boat to Papeete, like I said earlier. It'll take a few days though, 'cause Papeete is far away. But, once we get there you're gonna get to meet some special people. Do you know who's waiting there for you?"

The two boys had stopped crying and had listened intently to the information. Patrick didn't move, all snuggled up to his mother with his head on her chest, but Alex had leaned back, curious to know more. "Who, Dad?"

"Your Grandmother and Grandfather."

He pretended not to notice Kate's little glare. They'd discussed who made up their little family for many years with Alex; Patrick understood it less, given his age.

"Really? Grandmother Rodgers? And Grandpa Beckett? We'll get to meet them?"

"Yes! I already got to see my mother, your Grandmother. She came to visit Papeete before I got a chance to come find you guys."

"Why didn't she come with you to get us then?"

"Well, I was in a hurry to get to you and so it was better that she stayed in Papeete. Grandpa Beckett came after I left, so I haven't actually met him, just like you. And your Mom has never met my mother before, either. We'll all get to know each other better in Papeete."

"Are we going to meet a lot of people?"

"Yes, Alex, we are. But Mom and I will always be with you, no matter what. And you don't have to talk to them if you don't want to. Mom and I can talk for you if you're feeling nervous about something, ok?"

Alex wrapped his arms around him and settled back down onto his chest. Rick hoped that a few snuggles would get them through the rest of the trials to come. He knew that was asking a lot, and there was no way to shelter them from further hurt.

Didn't mean he couldn't wish for it.