The Devil's Heart - Carmen Carter [78]
“Come.”
The counselor stepped forward through the opening doors, then paused on the other side of the threshold until the sliding panels had closed behind her; she needed the barrier to help her block out Riker’s anxiety. Taking a deep breath, Troi cleared her mind of expectations, then approached the captain’s desk.
She had planned to begin this session with a casual conversation, thus constructing an oblique approach to probe Picard’s mood. As soon as she drew near, however, the empath sensed an intensity of emotion that would not yield to such subtle methods. Although the captain was looking straight at her, his mind was focused on the book he held and on the Heart, which rested near his right hand.
“You’ve been very absorbed of late,” remarked Troi.
“I’ve been following a hunch,” said Picard. She read an excitement, almost an exultation, in that statement. Her timing was fortunate; he was in need of an audience. “I believe that T’Sara saw a pattern in the Heart’s travels to different worlds, and that is how she tracked the stone to Atropos in the first place. Although any record of her conclusions was destroyed in the attack of the campsite, many of the original pieces of the puzzle are still here in her writings.”
“Tell me more,” said Troi. She was mildly curious about the Heart, but even more curious about the captain’s reaction to it.
“For instance,” Picard said, “the Heart appears in both Andorian mythology and early Klingon history. But how could it possibly have traveled from the healers of Andor to the emperor Kessec? The key lies in the records of the first Andorian/ferengi contact the Ferengi threatened wholesale slaughter of the populace if they were not provided with “trade” merchandise.”
“How charming.” She noticed that the lines of his face were more pronounced than usual. Had he lost weight in the last few days?
“Among the items of tribute may have been the Heart. However, unaware of its true value, the Ferengi merely loaded it into the hold of a freighter and carried it away.” Picard opened the book to a marked place near the back.
“T’Sara’s appendix includes the ship’s manifest; it lists “assorted baubles and trinkets” which were later traded to the barbaric natives of a technologically primitive world known as Kronos.”
“This is all very fascinating, but what is its significance to our current mission?”
“Deanna, you must see that the Heart is going somewhere. It also has a mission.”
“Really?” she said. “I’m not sure that I would have drawn that conclusion.” But Picard did not appear to hear her doubt.
He swiveled around his desk viewer so she could see the star map on its screen. His enthusiasm flaring like an aura around him. “If I can chart where the Heart has been, perhaps I can determine where it is going, its final destination … and its motivation.”
“You make it sound alive.” She reached down and picked up the Heart. She sensed nothing from the stone, but Picard’s shifting emotions were obvious.
“You resent my holding it. Why?”
“Not at all, Counselor. I’m simply concerned that—” “Riker to Captain Picard. We’ve picked up a distress call from Starbase 193.”
How ironic, Troi observed, that it was Riker himself who was interrupting the session, one that he had specifically requested.
“On my way, Number One,” called out Picard, quickly rising to his feet.
Troi stepped aside to let the captain pass, but he stopped just long enough to pull the Heart from her hands. With a frosty smile, he said, “We shall have to continue this discussion some other time.”
Instead of putting the Heart back on the desk, Picard carried the stone away with h im.
Like every member of the bridge crew, Lieutenant Worf held himself