Reunion - Michael Jan Friedman [101]
When he looked up, he saw Greyhorse advancing on him. But behind the doctor, the phaser glow was getting darker. “Carter,” Picard gasped. “Don’t do this. I hated what happened to Gerda too—comb there was no other way.” The big man stopped, towering over him. He grunted scornfully. “That’s it,” he said. “Go ahead. Beg.” He got down on his haunches, came closer than he should have. “I want to hear you beg.”
The captain knew he wouldn’t have another chance. Planting his heel against the side of the platform to get
his whole body into it, he launched a blow at the center of the doctor’s jaw. It landed more solidly than he might have hoped, jarring him all the way to his shoulder. There was a sound as of cracking ice and Greyhorse fell backward. Pressing his advantage, Picard staggered to his feet and made for the door, where the hot spots were getting angrier than ever. I can make it, he told himself. I can-Then he felt something grab his ankle, and his feet went out from under him. He hit the deck and Greyhorse whipped him around again toward the transporter platform. Owing at the carpet, the captain managed to stop himself short of the live disk. But the doctor had other ideas. Again, he drove a booted foot into Picard’s ribs, robbing him of what sense had been restored to him. Then, picking the captain up like a rag doll, he took a step backward, preparing to hurl him to his death. He was stopped short by a sound like all the banshees of hell as the doors to the room burst open. Greyhorse whirled to see what had happened and the captain groped for the big man’s shoulder, trying to anchor himself against being flung into the transparent beam. But with what seemed like no effort at all, Greyhorse lifted him even higher.
The room was filling with a flood of security officers, led by Worf. To Picard’s surprise, Pug Joseph was right beside him. They pointed their phasers, but stopped short of using them on Greyhorse once they saw the situation. Numbed, battered, the captain could only watch.
“Go ahead,” cried the doctor. “Shoot me. And before I fall, I’ll see to it that Picard’s atoms are scattered through the void.”
Worf stuck out a hand to hold his people back. “Put him down,” he said, “and we will talk.”
Greyhorse laughed. “What is there to talk about? A rehab colony— maybe the same one where Gerda lost her soul?” He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”
“Carter,” Pug interjected, taking a step forward. “What are you doing? He was your captain, for godsakes. He was your friend.” The doctor’s mouth twisted. “My friend? Then why did he kill the only person I’ve ever loved—the only one who ever made me feel human?” He glared at Joseph. “y did you?.. The security chief shook his head. “I didn’t kill Gerda, Carter.” “Didn’t you?” the doctor asked. “You stood by like all the others and watched as they took her away. You-was Picard wasn’t quite certain what happened next. But somehow, it seemed that Greyhorse was hit from be-hind. The deck rushed up and hit the captain hard, and a moment later Pug was kneeling at his side. Twisting his head, Picard tried to see what was going on. What he saw was Greyhorse, crouching like a beast at bay—held there by a figure in black and gold wielding a phaser. It took the captain a moment to realize that the figure was Idun Asmund. She glowered at the doctor. “You forgot to lock out the other disks,” she said. “You remembered everything else-but you forgot that.”
“Traitor,” he spat out. “How can you side with them? They killed your sisterf