(Present Day on Voyager)
"Come in" she called to the visitor who rang the chime to her quarters, knowing full well it was the doctor coming to check on her as he always did at 1900 hours every evening.
"How are you feeling Captain?" Asking her as her scanned her with his tricorder.
"Same as last evening at this time. I am fine, no sign of feeling ill in any way so you tell me, how am I doing?"
"Well, your white blood cell count is starting to come up but not nearly enough to fight any infection. I detect no pathogens in your blood stream. If you continue to improve you may be able to get out of your quarters in about 7 days."
"I can t believe it! Is it really necessary for me to be exiled from the crew for another week?"
"Captain, you may not feel weak but believe me, with a low white count like this you are susceptible to any number of maladies that would quickly become a serious illness. Rest assured the ship is functioning well with Commander Chakotay on the bridge."
"I know, he keeps me informed daily. I just miss seeing the crew and being around the ship"
" If you like, I ll scan the Commander and give him prophylactic antibiotics. He may visit with you for a short time this evening if he stays at least 10 feet away from you. You sit on the couch and he can sit here at your table."
"I ll take what I can get. When can he come by?"
"I had a feeling when I saw you last night that you were getting, as Mr. Paris says, Cabin Fever . I asked the commander if he would be willing to take the medication, which of course he said he would help out in any way he could. I scanned him yesterday in the event you d want him to come by. He ll be in in a little while."
"Thank you Doctor, I realize I m not the most appreciative patient but I am grateful for the expert care you ve given this crew and me over these 7 years."
"Thank you, Captain. I ll inform Commander Chakotay of your request."
With that he took his leave of the captain and smiled as her doors swooshed closed behind him. "
Did she agree Doctor?"
"Affirmative Commander. This exile of hers as she calls it has had a beneficial result. Her blood pressure is down, she has gained some weight, her color has improved and she no longer has dark circles under her eyes so she is sleeping better at night. She should be ready to return to the bridge in 3 days but I told her it would be more like 7. As her physician I couldn t have asked for a more therapeutic intervention for her. She would never have agreed to this had it not been for the mishap with the gel packs; but that should stay between us."
"I whole heartedly agree with you Doctor. And your secret is safe with me."
"Come in Chakotay."
"You knew it was me?"
"Sure, the doctor told me you'd be by. I m sorry you had to take an antibiotic just in case you had an infection brewing some where."
"No problem"
" So tell me all the scuttlebutt from around the ship"
As they sat on opposite sides of the room the topic of conversation varied from Sandrine s and the pool tournament to the latest edition of Voyager Forum"
"Have you read the story with the main character being called Kathryn? he asked.I heard some of the female crew talking about it in the mess hall. B lanna gave it 4 stars."
"Yes, I have to say I was taken aback when I saw the name but I love the historical romance genre so I read the whole thing. I liked it so far. Have you read it?"
I can t say I have. I m more the historical swashbuckler type. Let me know if it has some action in it, then maybe I ll see."
They had a platonic visit and in keeping with the doctors orders he bid her a good night and left her to continue the story of The Healer .
Maud realized soon enough that Kathryn was a very capable midwife. She was eager to learn and Maud taught her many new things. Kathryn was good, but Maud had so many more years experience that when they weren t out delivering babies, Maud talked about possible complications and expected outcomes. Kathryn took it all in and she taught Maud many healing techniques, the herbs and spices etc that she used for the treatment of many common ailments. They were very compatible and becoming good friends fast.
At first Samantha and Naomi watched Edward whenever Kathryn had to go with Maud to attend a delivery, but soon enough Kathryn left the child with Maud and went on her own. The outlying community accepted Kathryn after a few years and began to call on her for treatment of skin rashes, stomach ailments, fevers, and more. Edward grew into a strong young boy. He was playful, smart as can be, and the joy in her life. She was amazed at how fast he grew out of his clothes. "Your father must have been very tall". she thought to herself.
She was visiting with Samantha one evening when a rider came through the yard.
"Good evening Chakotay. What brings you all the way up here?" Samantha called out.
"God evening ladies. The men and I were patrolling the northern border looking for looters. Have you seen or heard of anything out of the ordinary?"
"No, but Ill go get Joe. He s finishing up in the barn."
With that she got up to fetch her rider looked to Kathryn and he began.
"Good evening, I m sorry to disturb you. My name s Chakotay. I know Joe Carey from boyhood. We served together on a schooner when we were lads and have stayed friends since. I wanted to make sure everything was alright."
Extending her hand to him she said "I'm glad to meet you".
Lingering with her hand in his she was amazed by his dimples and his smile. She realized that she still had her hand in his grasp and pulling it back she thought he was the most handsome man she had ever seen.
"Are you new to these parts?"
"My son Edward and I live down the road with Maud Duncan. We ve been here almost 5 years."
I guess I haven t been up here in a long time."
Soon Joe came out of the barn with Samantha and greeted his old friend."
"What's this I hear about looting? And how have you been Chakotay?"
Getting off his horse Chakotay embraced his friend. "
I know it s been too long Joe. How are you?"
"We' re all well thank you. And you Chakotay. You ve kept to yourself. A man can go crazy grieving by himself. When he has friends he should let them help. Come. We must talk inside over a cup of coffee. Excuse us ladies while we catch up and discuss this matter of the looters."
"By all means Samantha said."
As soon as the men went inside Samantha told Kathryn his story.
"His wife had died in childbirth about 6 years ago. He was devastated. The child was a constant reminder of his loss so after hiring a wet nurse to feed him, Chakotay began taking more time out at sea as he had done when he was younger. You see his father, the laird, owns a whole fleet of ships and Chakotay captained one of the ships on many sailings up the coast. The shipping business prospered but at what expense? The child stayed at the castle with the laird and his wife while Chakotay was out at sea. It happened that one of the hands on his ship was a drunkard. While loading some cargo into the ships hold he was staggering around and fell. Some of the barrels broke open. Chakotay heard the crash and when he went to investigate, the hand was about to strike a match and light a torch to see what he had done. Chakotay screamed at the man. He barely reached the man in time, stopping him from lighting the match. You see the cargo was gunpowder. Had the hand lit the match, the whole ship and all her crew would have gone up in flames! He dismissed the crewman immediately. In retaliation, the man threatened Chakotay and threw a punch. Chakotay had him thrown off the boat. Disgraced, the man drank himself into a stupor and fell asleep on the road home. His wife found him in the morning and in no time the whole story came out. She blamed Chakotay for her husbands death. She was the wet nurse hired for Chakotay s son so while he was out on the ship, she sneaked off with the child. The note she left said in effect that since she had no one left, he wouldn t either. She had lost her only child a month before Chakotay s son was born and now she lost her husband. Her mind snapped and no search turned up any clue as to where she had gone. Her brother was gone too so it was assumed that he took her away in fear of when Chakotay returned home. When he did, the trail had gone cold and the child was never recovered"
" That is so sad!" exclaimed Kathryn." If I ever lost Edward I don t know how I would live."
Samantha added that Chakotay should find a mate. "No one should be alone."
The meaning was not lost on Kathryn. Samantha suggested she date whenever an eligible bachelor came into the town. But Kathryn wanted no part of it. She had her responsibilities and she had her Edward. She didn t think a man would ever really accept another man' s child. No, she accepted her fate that she couldn't marry, wouldn't marry for Edward's sake. She would never put her happiness above her son's.