“Correct. And there’s no reason to trouble them with the news just yet. At least not untilafter we conclude the current operation. The distraction and morale difficulties the revelation of Suran’s death would cause now are in no one’s interest.”Donatra’s dark eyes lit squarely upon Troi’s. “However, I didn’t want to giveyou any reason to suspect that anything might be amiss aboard theValdore .”
No doubt because you’re justifiably wary around empaths and telepaths,Troi thought. As are most people who like to keep deep, dark secrets.
“I appreciate your candor, Commander,” Riker said evenly.
“Thank you, Captain. We shall await your ‘go’ signal. Donatra out.”
The Romulan commander’s face vanished, to be replaced by an image of the Valdore,which dominated the viewscreen. In the background lay the lumpen, rocky cylinder of the Vanguard colony and a swarm of sleek, single- and double-hulled Romulan warbirds. The vessels were arrayed around the asteroid habitat in precise formation, arranged into a pair of pyramids whose bases touched while bisecting Vanguard. The invisible tethers of tractor beams held the entire assemblage together.
Will touched his combadge, and it chirped gently in response. “Riker to Dr. Ra-Havreii.”
“Ra-Havreii here, Captain,”the chief engineer replied, his words frosted noticeably with a broad-voweled Efrosian accent.
“Be ready to give us lots and lots of power, Commander. And then probably lots more on top of that.”
“Acknowledged, Captain. I will make you as close to omnipotent as the laws of physics will allow. We’re as ready as it’s possible to be down here.”
Beneath Ra-Havreii’s lightweight banter, Troi sensed a wave of sadness and regret that pushed against equally powerful crosscurrents of hope, trepidation, and confidence. She knew of the engine-room explosion aboard the Lunathat had occurred under Ra-Havreii’s watch, during the prototype vessel’s maiden flight. She suspected he might be reliving that fateful incident right now.
“That’s all I ever ask of a chief engineer, Doctor,” Will said, grinning. “Riker out.” He turned, facing Troi again and fixing her with an inquisitive gaze; she knew his mind was still on their exchange with Donatra.
“Donatra’s not lying, Will. She didkill Suran. And under the circumstances she reported to us, at least in essence.”
Will nodded, his expression serious. “I didn’t think she’d try to lie right in front of you, especially about something as serious as killing Suran.”
“Me neither. But she’s definitely holding back something.”
“About Suran?”
Troi shrugged. “Perhaps. But whatever it is she’s concealing, I think it must be something quite important.”
He sighed, apparently satisfied that there was no way to solve this mystery anytime soon. He turned toward Dakal, and quietly ordered him to send Donatra the “go” signal she was waiting for.
Troi stared straight ahead at the Valdore.
Just what is it you think you still have to hide from us, Donatra?
She had no answers. Only the hope that their ally’s penchant for keeping secrets would get no one else killed.
Chapter Nineteen
U.S.S. TITAN,STARDATE 57047.6
When Titancame out of warp, Riker could feel it right through the bridge deck plates. He stood restlessly just in front of the forward flight control console as Ensign Lavena brought the impulse engines on line, guiding the starship and the towing convoy toward the last leg of its journey back to Romulan space.
Remaining aboard his ship while key members of his crew—specifically Vale, Tuvok, Keru, and most of Titan’s medical staff—were elsewhere, and quite possibly in danger, was an aspect of command that he doubted he’d ever get fully used to. Even when he knew that he’d deployed his people where they were needed most. After all, the Neyel soldiers Riker had deputized as Vanguard’s peace-keepers needed some oversight to ensure that minority species, such as the cattle-like aboriginal Oghen, were treated well.
Besides, the away team would still be in danger, even here,he reminded himself for perhaps the hundredth time. He thought of his wife, who had finally—if reluctantly—agreed to return to their quarters for a few hours of much-needed sleep. According to Dr. Ree, her time on Vanguard working among the refugees had left her emotionally exhausted, no doubt because of her powerful empathic sensitivities. Deanna isn’t any safer than the away team just because she’s come back aboardTitan . None of us will be safe until after this mission is over. And maybe not even then.
He turned toward Cadet Dakal, who was working the ops console situated at Lavena’s right. “Aft view, please, Cadet.”
“Aye, sir.”
Dakal touched the panel before him, and the image on the viewscreen suddenly shifted to the starfield that lay astern of Titan,and the multitude of Romulan warbirds that followed her only a few hundred kilometers behind.
In another context, the sight of dozens of heavily armed Romulan vessels approaching from astern, and in apparent battle formation, would have thrown Riker’s nervous system straight into fight-or-flight red alert status. Despite the close working relationship he had developed with Commander Donatra, his pulse quickened as he studied the swooping, aggressive lines of the phalanx of warships, several of which moved quickly out of position and back again from moment to moment as they responded to Titan’s navigational hazard data. Brief golden-orange and emerald flashes of light speared the empty space near the dodging warbirds as local space continued its violent process of unraveling. With the assistance of a fleetwide subspace radio-linked computer network, tractor beams and warp fields alike made near constant adjustments to the shifts in ship distances and spatial geometries.
“This had better work,” he said, thinking out loud.
From behind him, a deep, sonorous voice answered. “Your staff has given it a strong vote of confidence, Captain.”
Riker turned and found himself facing Akaar, who stood on the upper bridge, a position that made him look positively gigantic.
“And I agree with them, Admiral,” Riker said, more for the sake of bridge morale than for Akaar’s benefit. There really was no good alternative to optimism, under the circumstances.
But this stunt will either get us home or make us all very dead. We could still end up stuck here while Magellanic space finishes erasing itself.
Riker returned his attention to the main viewscreen. Focusing past the dozen or so ships that were visible in the foreground, he studied the bulbous, slowly spinning shape that Donatra’s warbirds had so carefully shepherded here over the past two days.
The Vanguard habitat lay at the center of the escort formation, whose constituent vessels even now continued weaving and yawing to avoid the rips the Red King was constantly tearing into the fabric of local space, all the while maintaining tractor beam contact with Vanguard. A tactical overlay showed the elaborate cat’s cradle of intersecting beams that linked each ship in the fleet—including Titan—with the ancient O’Neill colony in order to find safety for the two million or so anxious souls contained within. For a moment, Riker could imagine that the Romulan ships truly were the predatory birds they resembled; only rather than pursuing prey, they were guarding a precious egg whose hatching was imminent.