Please see disclaimer and author's notes on the first chapter.
Kathryn felt like she had a lead blanket draped across her. Her entire body felt heavy and weighed down. After several minutes, she finally managed to get her eyes open, and for once she was disappointed that she didn't find herself in sickbay. Then she remembered: she wasn't on Voyager anymore. But she was on a ship. She could feel the thrum of the engines, and she'd been a spacer long enough to know when a ship was at warp. She just wished she could remember how she came to be here, and where the clothes she was wearing had come from. She couldn't remember having ever replicated grey sweats.
She smelled coffee. With a tremendous effort, Kathryn managed to roll her head to the side. There was a man sitting in a chair close to where she was lying, holding a cup of coffee between his hands. He extended the steaming mug towards her. "I owe you a cup of coffee."
Kathryn's eyes narrowed at this greeting, and then her memory came rushing back. The bar. Irish whiskey. Charles Tate. The hotel. Oh God, the hotel. She'd had sex with him and then he'd…he'd drugged her. She clenched her jaw, and with a rush of adrenalin pushed herself up on her elbows. The room began to spin and she sucked in a breath through gritted teeth.
"Take it easy," he said, standing up and moving towards her.
"Don't touch me," Kathryn gritted out, halting his movement. She swallowed and gulped another breath down. She managed to sit all the way up and then swung her legs off the small rack. She leaned her back against the bulkhead, appreciating the coolness of the metal. After two more slow breaths, she opened her eyes and barely held back a snarl as she eyed the man she had so recently slept with. God, she was a fool.
He offered the coffee mug again, and she eyed it with disdain. He shrugged and set it down on the low table near her before sitting back on his chair again. "You should try it. It would probably help with your headache."
Kathryn pulled her captain's mask into place as best she could. "Why?"
"The sedative I gave you knocked you out for almost twenty hours, and I know from experience it usually leaves a person feeling hung-over."
Kathryn glared at him. "I wasn't talking about the headache. Why have you done this?"
"Oh, that. I work on contract. I'm getting paid to bring you to my employers," he said. "I've been assured that no harm will come to you. They just want to use you for leverage against the Federation."
Kathryn snorted. "The Federation does not negotiate for hostages."
"It's my understanding you're going to be more like an honored guest. Some kind of a ritual thing for their culture. They take a prize from the faction that wants to ally with them. If the faction is strong enough to retrieve their prize, it's a sound alliance." He leaned back. "And you are definitely the best prize the Federation has right now."
Prize. It had all been a ruse, nothing more. Kathryn buried the bitter surge that threatened to rise within her. "I see. So you're nothing more than a delivery boy."
She was happy to see him grimace slightly at that. She studied him now. The dark hair was now blonde. The deeply tanned skin was a lighter shade of olive. The eyes were a bright green instead of the dark brown she had looked into after that first kiss. He had obviously done his homework and had adjusted his appearance to garner her trust. She wondered if the lust she had seen had been an act as well. Kathryn cursed herself for how easily she had been played. The name Charles Tate was just a small step away from Chuck Tate, which sounded almost like…
God, was she really so obvious? "What's your name?"
He opened his mouth. "Char…"
She cut him off, "Don't."
He stopped. "What do you want it to be?"
She glared at him for his flippant response. "I want you to tell me one true thing."
"I wasn't lying when I said I was sorry." He stood and headed towards the door of the small cabin, wanting to avoid any further emotional entanglements. "We've still got several hours before we arrive at our rendezvous point. There's a small refresher in the corner you can use."
"If I'd left the bar, what would you have done?" she asked before he could leave.
"I'd have overpowered you in the alley, or followed you to your home and taken you from there." He stepped through the door. "While we were in that bar, I found out I liked you, Kathryn Janeway. You're an amazing woman. I'm sorry I had the contract before I met you, but I'm not sorry about anything that happened between us."
He activated the door, and it slid shut with the locking mechanism noisily snapping in place. Kathryn sat forward, putting her head in her hands and closed her eyes. She knew she shouldn't be as upset about this as she was. It wasn't as though she had been looking for a relationship. Hell, she hadn't even been looking for a one night stand. What did it matter that he had had ulterior motives? The sex had still been good. She sighed and sat up straight, the muscles in her lower back protesting the sudden movement. Okay, the sex had been really good.
She stood slowly and stretched. She really needed to get her head on straight. She needed to find a way out of here; she could worry about her one night stand later. Kathryn began to survey the small cabin looking for any obvious means of escape. Her gaze came to a rest on the coffee mug. She leaned over and picked up the warm mug, inhaling its aroma before taking a sip. She huffed. Hell, even the coffee was good.
Kathryn had been asleep on the small rack when she suddenly started, wide awake. She tried to assess what had changed to make her wake up. Had she heard a noise? No, it was quiet. She realized that was exactly what had awoken her. They had dropped out of warp and the thrum of the engines had quieted. She sat up to wait for Tate's return.
In an effort to put some emotional distance between herself and him she had decided to only refer to him by the last name of his alias. After searching every inch of the cabin and finding no way out, she had quickly used the sonic shower before lying down again. At the time, she had still felt sluggish and drowsy from the drug in her system, but now she felt alert and normal.
She heard the lock on the door rattle open and Tate entered the cabin, closing the door behind him. She noticed he carried a phaser this time, and she raised an eyebrow at him.
"You felt the need to come armed?"
He smiled slightly. "The stories of your many escapes from enemies are fast becoming legend. I don't want to add my name to the list."
"Too late."
"Maybe for your list of enemies," he said, taking a few more steps towards her. "But I'd like to keep my name off the list of places and people you've escaped from."
She eyed the set of manacles he carried in his free hand. "There is no 'maybe' about it, especially if you intend to try putting those on me."
He sighed, but his hand holding the phaser never wavered. "Kathryn, I don't want to hurt you, but since I can't say the same about your intentions towards me I must insist you wear these."
She didn't move an inch.
He raised the phaser to chest height. "I will stun you if I have to."
He held out the manacles again and stepped closer to her. She narrowed her glare and held out one arm. The corner of his mouth twitched upward, but he was smart enough not to smile. He slipped the wrist restraint over her hand and pushed a button that contracted it tightly. He gestured for her to do the same with the other hand. She moved it up and slid it through until her wrists were crossed, and the second manacle tightened down.
He nodded slightly and stepped back through the door. Only once he was safely on the other side did he motion for her to join him. She rolled her eyes at him as she stepped past him, aggravated that he really did seem to know what he was doing. He wasn't about to give her any opportunity to escape.
They proceeded towards the back of the small ship where the ramp had been lowered. Exiting, Kathryn could see that they seemed to be in the shuttle bay of a much larger ship. There were a group of aliens standing in a half circle at the foot of the ramp, waiting for them.
Having never encountered this species, Kathryn eyed the aliens standing in front of her. They had long, flowing white hair with purplish skin. They all stood more than three meters tall and wore outfits of dark blue. Three of the aliens stood in the middle of the semi-circle and had swatches of a heavy golden fabric draped from their shoulders. She noticed the rest of the party all wore black material over the blue. Kathryn surmised that the ones with black must be soldiers or body guards as they were all armed.
The alien in the center, who also happened to be the shortest of the three, bowed deeply and spoke with a deep sonorous voice. "Welcome, Captain Kathryn Janeway, to the Perubian flagship Nighthorse. It is an honor to meet you in person."
"The honor is all yours," Kathryn quipped.
The Perubian looked confused for a moment before giving what Kathryn assumed to be the equivalent of a shrug. He continued, "I am Ambassador Lelac."
Kathryn nodded, but before she could say anything the ambassador addressed Tate, "Why is this woman in restraints?"
"Personal safety."
"Hers?"
"Mine," Tate clarified.
The ambassador glanced at Kathryn and she gave a small innocent shrug of her shoulders. "Release her immediately. We are concerned only with her safety, not yours."
The ambassador spoke firmly, and Kathryn saw half of the guards turn their attention in Tate's direction. Kathryn smiled sweetly and extended her hands towards Tate. He pushed a few buttons on the manacles and slid them off. She instinctively rubbed her wrists.
The ambassador addressed her. "I wish to inquire if you are undamaged?"
Kathryn didn't answer right away, wondering exactly what he meant. Tate spoke up when she didn't.
"I assure you, Ambassador, the Captain is in excellent condition. I haven't touched her."
"I wouldn't say that exactly," Kathryn said, turning towards him. "As I recall, there was quite a bit of touching."
Tate grimaced and Kathryn saw the aliens that were focused on him tense and shift their weapons in his direction. He hadn't been kidding about these aliens regarding her as an honored guest.
The ambassador spoke again, and this time his voice carried a hint of menace, "Captain Janeway, if this man has harmed you in any way, we will address the matter immediately."
Tate swallowed and looked nervous. "Kathryn, if you don't explain that I didn't hurt you, they will kill me."
"Trust is such a fragile thing isn't it?" She said, staring him down. He held her eyes only for a moment before looking away. She gloated in his misery momentarily before relenting and turning towards the ambassador. "I have not been harmed in any way, Ambassador."
The ambassador made a hand gesture, and the guards returned to their original positions. Then he addressed Tate, "Mr. Logan, your payment will be in your account in one hour. Your business here is finished. Captain Janeway, if you will accompany me."
Tate made a low bow and turned to leave. Kathryn reached out and touched his arm. "Tate, I need you to let my mother or my sister know that this is just a game and that I'm alright."
He balked. "I can't…"
"I just saved your life, Logan." Kathryn's voice hardened as she emphasized his name. "It's the least you can do, all things considered."
He gave her a curt nod. "I'll get word to them."
"Thank you," Kathryn said and headed towards where the ambassador was waiting for her. One problem down. A hundred more to go.
The doors to extravagantly decorated quarters opened before Kathryn, and the ambassador ushered her inside. "These quarters will be yours until we reach our planet. You are free to come and go as you please. We will provide an escort for you outside of the quarters and a lady to help you with anything you need inside of your area."
"Oh, that really won't be necessary," Kathryn protested, but Lelac waved her off. "Ambassador, would you please explain to me what exactly is going on?"
Lelac served her a drink that smelled suspiciously like coffee, and gestured for her to have a seat. "You are an integral part of a tradition that goes back centuries for our people. Legend has it that our first tribes were constantly fighting amongst each other until one day the tribal leader's son kidnapped the daughter of their rival. The two tribes went to war and after several days of fighting a third tribe took advantage of the situation and attacked the two now weakened tribes. Only by fighting together against their common enemy were they able to defend themselves. After the battle, they decided that as the two strongest tribes they would work together instead of against each other from that point on."
"Since those early days, we have continued this tradition. When we have the prospect of a new ally we enact the old tradition, albeit on a more civilized level than our ancestors."
"I see." Kathryn pinched the bridge of her nose. "Does the Federation know that this is the way your people do things?"
He seemed surprised by her question, "No, of course not. How could we gauge their protectiveness if they were aware that this was all just pomp and circumstance? The Federation is a noble organization that my planet would be more than willing to join, but traditions must be followed."
She leaned forward. "We have a 'tradition' that does not allow us to negotiate for hostages. Any demands you make for my release will not be met. It's simply not how we operate."
He smiled. "In a few days they will know we have you, and that it is expected for them to come and rescue you."
"In a few days? What happens in a few days?"
He waved his hand as if it were unimportant. "A message buoy has been left near your planet, and will send images of you as well as our prerecorded message at the coordinated time of our arrival home."
Kathryn cut off his explanation once again. "Wait. What images of me? We were well away from Earth by the time we rendezvoused with you."
"Mr. Logan recorded an image to prove that no harm had come to you. It is a part of the message that will be sent."
"Mr. Logan never took an image of me while I was conscious. It will prove nothing." Kathryn was livid. She hoped like hell her mother wouldn't see the image, and she also hoped Tate had taken it after he had dressed her. She took another breath and tried to calm down. "How long will I have been gone by the time they receive this message?"
"Seven days."
"You're going to make them wait an entire week before you let them know where I am and that I'm all right?" She asked incredulous.
"It's tradition," the ambassador said a little sheepishly.
"It's deranged," Kathryn mumbled to herself and reached a hand up to rub her temples. The headache that was starting felt as bad as one centered on temporal mechanics. "After these seven days, what happens next?"
"Negotiations can begin once one of your ships arrives. If your Federation had prevented us from taking you, we would have held negotiations on your planet. Since they were unable to do so they must come to us, but we will still expect them to rescue you, of course," he explained. "It's all part of the…"
"Tradition," Kathryn finished for him. "Yes, I'm beginning to understand, but Ambassador, you said it's going to take us a week to get to your planet. That means it's going to take at least that long for the Federation to dispatch anyone, and only after they arrive can you begin negotiations. This could easily take over a month."
Ambassador Lelac nodded happily.
Kathryn wanted to strangle him. "What exactly am I expected to do during all of this?"
"Relax, my dear Captain. Enjoy yourself. You are our honored guest." He got to his feet and headed towards the cabin door. "It has been a very exciting day. I'm sure you'd like to get some rest."
"Wait, Ambassador, please. I do have one request. Allow me to record a message and send it to my mother. She has no idea this is a tradition, and I'd really rather not worry her anymore than I already have."
Lelac's shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry, Captain. I cannot allow this. At least, not at this time. Perhaps when one of your ships arrives."
The door closed behind him, and Kathryn slumped against the wall. If only she could talk to Starfleet, she could get this all straightened out in a manner of minutes. At the rate this was going, she'd be lucky to see Earth again this year.
Cont to part 3