“Had to report for a physical. Dr. Girani got tired of waiting.”
Kira smiled. “Now that you mention it, I seem to recall Julian predicting you were going to be a problem when it came to your exam.”
Vaughn looked at her as they reached a turbolift. “Does Bashir talk about me behind my back to everybodyon this station?”
“I don’t think he spoke to Morn before he went on leave, but I could be mistaken,” Kira said good naturedly as she stepped aboard. “Habitat ring, level one,” she told the lift. After it got under way, she asked, “Any word from Julian?”
Vaughn shook his head. “My understanding is that he was in London very briefly, then decided to go to Sudan. I think he still has family there.”
“Sounds like he’s trying to get as far from his life here as possible.”
“That’s understandable, I think,” Vaughn said. “He hasn’t taken a vacation in a while, and between that business on Sindorin earlier this year, the mission to Gamma Quadrant, the parasite affair and the subsequent mess on Trill, not to mention his split with Dax…he needed a break.”
Kira frowned. “I hope that’s all it is.”
“Give him time. Once he clears his head, he’ll be back.”
She looked at him, imagining Vaughn must have gone through similar periods in his own life, perhaps more than once. Come to think of it, so had she. Benjamin too, after his first wife died, and then again when Jadzia was killed.
“Ezri seems to be holding up pretty well,” she said.
Vaughn nodded. “All things considered. Joined Trills do tend toward having greater resilience to changes within their lives.”
“I suppose that’s true,” Kira said. “Anything else going on I should know about?”
“I tried talking Girani into joining Starfleet.”
“Let me guess: she shot you down.”
Vaughn shrugged. “Figured it was worth a try. But her mind’s made up; she wants to return to Bajor. Ro made some recommendations for Girani’s replacement, and I narrowed those down to three. Their files are in your personal database.”
“I’ll look them over tomorrow. What else?”
Vaughn told her about Ro’s observations regarding the Militia, and her proposal to reinstate the liaison position. He also informed her that Ro’s recommendation for the job was supported by General Lenaris.
“Really?” was Kira’s reaction.
“She’d like the liaison to start immediately in order to help with her investigation into the Sidau massacre. With your permission, of course.”
Kira considered it. Given the nature of the investigation, it made sense to keep the Militia fully involved. Finally she said, “Have Ro report to my quarters, with the officer’s file, in thirty minutes. I’ll make my decision after I speak with her. But unless there’s something in his record I’m not happy about, I think it’s a sound idea.” The lift came to a stop, and Kira stepped out. She turned and hit the hold button. “Hey, did I hear right? Is today your birthday?”
Vaughn rolled his eyes. “Word gets around, I see.”
Kira shrugged. “You know what they say about gossip…”
“…It’s the only sound that travels at warp,” Vaughn finished.
“So what does someone get a one-hundred-and-two-
year-old human for his birthday, anyway?”
“If you asked Girani, she’d probably suggest a few organ replacements,” Vaughn said wryly.
Kira grinned. “Much too practical. What about dinner and a belated birthday drink at Quark’s tomorrow night?”
“That really isn’t necessary—”
“If it was necessary, Elias, I’d make it an order,” Kira said. “So I trust I won’t have to.”
“Tell you what,” Vaughn said, patting his uniform jacket until he reached behind his back and produced an isolinear rod. “Quark gave me this as some sort of ‘birthday special’ he came up with. It’s supposed to be good for a couple of free drinks, at least. Why don’t we redeem it together?”
Kira arched an eyebrow. “Top shelf?”
“Do yourself a favor and don’t ask that when Quark’s around,” Vaughn said. “Trust me.”
Rena
“Hey, whoa!” someone shouted. “She hasn’t done anything to hurt you!”
Kail’s mug halted in midswing. Rena saw a brown hand wrapped around his wrist, holding it back, and a second later she realized that the hand belonged to Jacob. He started to reach for Kail’s mug with the other….
Suddenly Jacob was in motion. Kail had a lot of muscle to put into follow-through with his swing. But instead of striking Rena, Kail flipped him off his feet. Jacob cried “Whoop!” and then sailed behind the table and onto the fusionstone floor of the tavern.
Everyone in the room—Halar, Parsh, Rena, the staff and customers—took a breath and held it. Rena saw Jacob holding the back of his head with one hand, the dripping mug with the other, and silently mouthing what Rena suspected were colorful obscenities in his native language.
She blanched, couldn’t move. For a long moment, she had to remind her lungs to continue cycling air.
Finally, breaking the silence, Kail slurred, “Wha’s wrong with you?”
Mistaking the question for concern, Jacob responded, “I bit my tongue.” He set Kail’s mug down on the floor and then extended his hand to be helped up, but Kail batted it away.
“Get away from me!”
Rena still couldn’t move. Her eyes locked with Jacob’s, her nerves thrumming from his close proximity.
“Kail!” Halar shouted. “What’s wrong with you?! Help him up!”
Startled by Halar’s chastisement and (Rena sincerely hoped) contrite about what he had been thinking about doing a moment before, Kail backed away from the table, then stumbled toward the door. A moment later, Parsh rose, his hands shaking, his eyes wide. He looked at Rena and recognized that she, too, had seen what his friend had been prepared to do. Helping Jacob up, Parsh stammered, “He…I’m sorry, Jacob…His foreman…” Looking at Rena, he said, “Kail got cut today. His foreman…They didn’t like each other very much and…But that doesn’t mean…He’s normally not like this. He used to be…different.”
Without looking at Rena, Jacob recovered the mug and set it down on the table. “Someone should check on him. You think you know where he went?”
Parsh nodded shakily.
“Then you should go. I’ll see you back at the house. We’ll plan the Yyn trip tomorrow.”
Parsh started for the door, but before he exited, he stopped and said to Rena, “You’re really ending it with him?”
She shrugged, nodded, threaded trembling hands behind her back.
Parsh nodded back. “Good.” And then he was gone.
Rubbing his head, Jacob muttered something in Standard that had the word “kwarks”in it, but Rena couldn’t make it out.
She surveyed him quickly, determined that his wounds weren’t fatal, and found that the momentary paralysis she’d been experiencing abated upon this realization. Time to get the hell out of here. She had no desire to stay around for the next act of the performance, though she’d been positioned for a starring role.
As the doors swung closed behind her, Rena stalked down the narrow wooden dock toward the mainland, her determined steps coaxing a hollow rattle from each weathered plank. The green-black seawater below slurped around the pylons, shushing and hissing with the lunar pull from the heavens. She’d crossed a quarter of the distance, shivering the whole way, when she realized she’d left her wrap on the chair back at the tavern. Nothing could persuade her to return for it. She would freeze all the way up the hill to the bakery before she willingly chose to face Jacob after the humiliating scene that had just played out. She had rejected Jacob because she felt she had an obligation to Topa and Kail. To have him witness the disastrous end of those promises was more than she could stand. Tomorrow, she would face Marja’s disappointment. Tonight, she wanted to deal with only her own.