• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

would only worsen as the dreadful reality gradually set in. He saw only his wife, with her bright smile and lively eyes, and his little daughter, whom he had never yet been able to hold as a father ought. From what he knew about Chairman Kaleh and from the little he had seen of her, Telek had no doubt but that she would carry out her threat. He wondered if she would take out her anger with him by sending in interrogators to torture Torrith and Rakki before butchering them, or if the murders of his family would be quick and painless. He suspected the former, and the thought brought a little moan from him. His mind went back to the day, so brief a time and yet an eternity ago, when he had first encountered this Captain Kathryn Janeway.

'1 am working to reconfigure protocols to penetrate the radiation stream of the wormhole," Telek had told the Federation captain, his mellifluous voice sounding sincere even in his own ears as he uttered the tie as he had been ordered. The woman replied, her voice warm and husky and as richly sincere as his own. He would give them time to think about seeing him, to anticipate the contact that would, they hoped, bring them closer to their own quadrant It was richly ironic that these lost Federation lambs-if lost they truly were-had found a Romulan wolf instead of a good shepherd.

Shepherd. The unconscious word choice made Telek wince.

"Good night," he had told Janeway, remembering that the ensign who had patched through his com-

muniqu6 had told him that Janeway was asleep in her quarters.

"Good night," she had replied-a little pleased, a little surprised. Telek frowned. He was not a man to whom deception came naturally, and the more he heard, the more convinced he had become that these people were indeed telling the truth. It seemed impossible, but Telek R'Mor, member of the Romulan Astrophysical Academy and head of a highly classified intelligence research/project, had lived long enough-and seen enough-to rarely employ the word "impossible." /

He had his orders, and was prepared to execute them. Then he saw these lost, lonely voyagers and all the best-laid plans of the Tal Shiar went up in flames. The clever, yet-Telek felt certain-not calculating Janeway had gotten him to reveal that he had not seen his wife in over a year and had never held his seven-month-old daughter. He had spoken of a price paid-and how unexpectedly high that price had been.

When, to his utter shock, Janeway revealed that they'd figured out a way to transport themselves through his wormhole, Telek had been hard-pressed not to give himself away. He didn't remember what he'd told her to allay her suspicions-some nonsense about "can't permit Starfleet personnel on this vessel," and summoning a troopship to take on the crew if the transport did prove to be successful.

A bad slip, that. What so-called low-ranking scientist would be able to ask for and get a troopship so

quickly, even in such an unusual situation? But Janeway, flushed with excitement, had not noticed it.

Then had come the remarkable journey, not just through space but also through time. The regret that he was not able to help these humans. The offer that came to his lips so unexpectedly to warn Starfleet not to send Voyager on its last mission. The connection he felt with this small female, with her proud eyes and warm smile.

And the return home, with their precious messages to loved ones enclosed in his hand.....

She was waiting for him, troops at her call. He knew her, of course, though he had never met her. His project fell under the auspices of the Tal Shiar, and the face of Chairman Jekri Kaleh was as familiar to Telek-perhaps more so, these days-than that of his wife.

"Chairman Kaleh," he stammered, trying to regain his composure. "What an unexpected surprise. How may I serve you?"

She did not answer him at once, merely turned and gestured outside the worn. A tall being entered. His hair was long and pale, and he resembled the humans