I know this chapter does explain much but I'll fill you in next chapter
Lt. Commander T'para Grayson gazed down at her padd with apathy and utter dread. The words, moved bristly up the screen as her forest green eyes gazed across them. The suicide report came in at about o'four hundred hours, three hours earlier than her usual duty schedule. It wasn't a way she had planned to start her morning.
"What can you tell me Lieutenant?" Kirk, with his face a mask of regret, stepped up beside her and surveyed the scene. In the four weeks she has been on this station never had T'para seen the captain so serious about something. It seemed once one of his officers died under his command he snapped into the reality of being a captain. Served him right.
T'para brushed a stray lock of light brown hair behind her ear "her name is Hara Mcllellan, an ensign working in engineering under Scottys command. She's twenty eight years old and has one brother serving on the USS Aquarius and a mother in Chicago on Earth". T'para released a shuddering breath "death caused by a hypo pack of chorezctazin which lead to severe internal hemorrhaging of the heart and a complete shut down of the nervous system". Green eyes narrowed in on the body sprawled out on the floor before her "She died instantly sir".
The air between the captain and the chief of security laid still despite the buzzing and whirs of her security team around them. The sleep in her eyes was evident and from the exterior anyone who gave a passing glance could tell T'para would like nothing more than to curl back up in her bed ,but her mind ticked with a mystery she wanted to solve. Not once had there been a suicide on this ship nor a homicide. Her detective instincts were kicking in and in that cold damp spot of her gut she felt something wasn't right.
"And you are sure it was a suicide?" Kirks' voice was steady and low, his baby blue eyes not leaving the crime scene in front of him. He too was eager for more.
Another grating breath passed from her lips "yes sir, I checked the security logs. The last time Hara entered her room was at thirteen hundred hours and she was found and pronounced dead at o'three hundred hours this morning. No one else had entered or left since then and I personally scanned the area and there was no sign of a transporter signature anywhere in the room or any indicator of an unaccounted for life sign on the ship".
Jim spared her a thoughtful look "so that's it? She just killed herself without an explanation?"
Her eyes returned to the padd for a brief second then back to him, a frown implanted onto her full lips "it would appear so. I've had her personal logs checked twice and asked her closest friends if ensign Mcllellan had shown any signs of depression or suicidal behavior. Even the counselor, who has had her in for a counseling check up earlier this month reported nothing unusual about her behavior". T'para bit her lip and allowed a long, uneventful pause settle between the two.
Kirk put a reassuring hand on her shoulder "what do you think of this T'para?" If anyone could see past her hard shell it was Jim. He knew when she felt uneasy about a situation.
The half vulcan allowed her hand, which held the padd, to fall down to her side "I don't know Jim. This just doesn't feel right. Everyone I've talked to or has known Hara told me she looked …well happy. Nothing unusual, nothing strange. It just doesn't make sense".
"Suicide never makes sense, even if it has a reason" he replied in a soft voice "there was nothing you could've done. It was her choice not yours".
Stern green eyes met his and melted in like a pair of jade welders. Jim knew those eyes good and well, every since they were five he knew them. It was the 'this is my job and don't you tell me otherwise' look. "Every death on this ship is my fault now Jim. Whether it was self inflicted or homicidal. I should have induced more counseling sessions to determine the sanity of the crew before I came aboard. I shoulda-"
Kirk lifted his hand to silence her "that's quite enough. It's over and done with and nothing can change the outcome. Have you contacted her family?" she noticed his change in tone. She always noticed when he switched from sympathetic friend to serious captain. It was small details as such that gave T'para a good understanding of her best friend.
"Not yet sir I've been on the move since o'four hundred this morning. Doctor McCoy is requesting clearance to move the body to sick bay for an autopsy. We need to confirm this report and send it to forward command".
He pursed his lips and released a small nod "of course, go right ahead and if it makes you feel any better I'll handle the relatives on this one".
It felt as if a weight ,the size of three bowling balls, had been telepathically lifted from her thoughts and she showed it by breathing a sigh of relief "thank you sir". The most dreadful part of any casualty was informing the loved ones of the said victims. Seeing the tears and mental and physical breakdowns of mothers, fathers or any relatives for that matter but it was nothing compared to telling a soon to be orphaned child in a boarding school that will now live the rest of their life alone and without guidance. She didn't want to go through that again.
He nodded once and laced his arms around his back "finish up here lieutenant and when your done get back to bed, you look like you just had a wrestling match with a bunch of Tarkellian boars". The humor in his tone was enough to sedate her whirling mind and allow herself a gentle smile toward Kirk.
T'para smirked, her slightly slanted eyebrows crinkling with her smile "yes sir".
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