Dark Matters_ Cloak and Dagger (Book 1) - Christie Golden [22]
"No!" Telek interrupted harshly. "No, do not attempt to apply any type of radiation to this. It reacts in a completely unpredictable fashion."
"Then we're back to trying to remove it," said Janeway. "But how? We've discussed surgery, but from the look on your face, Doctor, that would appear to be tricky."
"Beam the stuff out," said Torres.
"It cannot be dematerialized," said Telek.
"Oh, come on," said Torres, exasperated, "if it's matter, it can be dematerialized."
"I repeat, dark matter is not matter as we know it," replied Telek.
Torres threw her hands up and made an exasper-
ated noise. "So, you've shot down all our ideas. What's yours?"
He did not reply for a moment, then said softly, "We need to find the Shepherds."
"I hate the Shepherds," Subcommander Verrak muttered to his superior officer as they worked, side by side, trying to decipher Telek R'Mor's encrypted notes.
"You are not alone," Jekri whispered back. Her face was still hot at the memory of the tongue-lashing she'd received from the Triumvirate. A reprimand was never a pleasant thing, but the three had vented their anger upon Jekri for things Lhiau had done. The unjustness of it rankled. She would be more than happy when victory in the Alpha Quadrant was assured and the Shepherds had gone back to wherever it was they'd crawled from.
"The Triumvirate was wrong to address you so," said Verrak, growing slightly more bold. "It is Lhiau's arrogance that has upset them."
"The Triumvirate is never wrong," said Jekri, "even when it is misguided. Do you understand?" She shot him a look from silver eyes.
Swallowing, the young man nodded. Jekri turned back to her work, feeling Verrak's gaze linger on her face for a moment longer.
She knew her subcommander was beginning to develop feelings for her, and that both of them realized how inappropriate such feelings were. Mates and children were fine for simple folk like scientists
and artists. Politicians-especially those whose work required an intimate acquaintance with the darker side of life-needed to have more control. It had been a long time since Jekri had permitted herself the indulgence of a coupling, and she had never been able or willing to make herself vulnerable to something as dangerous as love.
Verrak was a loyal and hardworking member of her immediate circle. That he was sometimes comforting to be around and definitely attractive was irrelevant. He, however, did not seem to have as much control over himself as she did, and she worried that his emotions might cause him to make a mistake. And mistakes were something Jekri would not tolerate, not at this juncture.
"The Shepherds have already given us sufficient apparatuses to cloak thirteen warbirds," Verrak continued, keeping his eyes on the screen as he spoke. "We know they can operate when the ships are at warp. There are those who think the Triumvirate may be missing a rare opportunity, mat we should launch our attack on the Federation now, before these Shepherds have a chance to change their minds."
Apprehension spurted through Jekri. She glanced up. There was no sign of Lhiau, but that didn't reassure her. How were they to be sure that these Shepherds couldn't make themselves invisible, or listen from a great distance? There was so much about the Shepherds they didn't know, and Jekri even doubted what Lhiau had chosen to tell them.
"We made a bargain with them," she said, her
whisper sharp and angry. "We must uphold our end. We must get Voyager and Telek R'Mor back before we can implement our plan to attack the Federation. Besides, Voyager is necessary to our success."