Marla was tired. For three nights in a row she gave up most of her sleep keeping an eye on him, which really seemed odd to her. Here was the most dangerous man alive, damn near immortal and someone had to protect him from organ harvesters.

She folded her arms on the desk and slowly lowered her head to them. Just a real short nap, that was all she needed. No visit today; she'd continue the interview tonight. The sound of her office door sliding open and someone clearing their throat brought her out of short nap, only it hadn't been short. She had been asleep two hours. Wiping her face with the back of her hand, she looked up at Cdr. Spock.

"Do we have an appointment?" she asked apologetically and adjusted her uniform to look less crumpled.

"No," Spock replied evenly, "but I was hoping I might have a word with you."

"Yes, certainly, how can I help you?"

"Why are you spending the night with Khan?"

That sounded insulting to her ear, and it would have been coming from any other man, but this was Cdr. Spock and Vulcans were not so abstruse. "He believes those men will return, and I want to be there when they do."

"And what will you do if they do?"

"I haven't given it that much thought," Marla confessed.

"Commander, I have looked at the security files and no one was seen entering his cell block. He has lied to you."

Marla stared at the Vulcan in disbelief. Of course Mr. Spock would not lie, Vulcans were notoriously truthful. But why would Khan lie to her? To get another cell? "Are you denying me access to him?" she asked, unsure of who to be angry with.

"Of course not," Spock answered in that same even toned voice. "I am merely informing you that we have found no signs of an assault on him. We examined the security footage and interviewed the men on duty. No one saw or heard anything."

He inserted the chip into her monitor and showed the external corridor. No one or anything entered the cell block that entire night. Khan had lied to her.

Marla hated being played for a fool and it showed in her face. Khan had promised not to hurt her, but he had not promised to be honest with her. "Thank you, Mr. Spock. I will take care of this. Right now."

Driving to the holding cells at the base hospital, she flashed her badge at the head security petty officer on duty and walked on in. Khan was secured and bitted, and being a good judge of body language, he probably guessed she had discovered his little ruse. Standing over him, momentarily fixated on his eyes, she gathered her wits and said, "You lied to me. Mr. Spock came to my office with proof that no one assaulted you." Khan closed his eyes, his face unreadable. "I won't be coming back tonight," she continued. "We'll resume our interview tomorrow." Since he could not dispute her accusation, she left his cell immediately. On her way down the external passage she noticed a small partially hidden alcove. Looking inside she noticed several small monitors overhead with controls. On one of the monitors she could see Khan just lying there with his eyes still shut. Gazing down at the control panel there were switches and buttons for all kinds of stuff, including an emergency release.

Deciding it wouldn't be wise to be seen there, she went on her way. That evening in her apartment she couldn't get rid of the restless feeling that had settled over her. She had become used to a routine in only three days and now missed it. Sitting down to read a digital plate, she found a book she liked and started reading it. Black Beauty popped into her head and she remembered she hadn't finished it. It was bad luck to put a book down and not finish reading it.

Dammit! Dammit! Dammit! She did not need to go back to the cellblock, but she clearly wanted to. So what would her excuse be, she wanted to get her book? Did she even owe that lying son of a bitch an explanation? She needed to reestablish their boundaries.

Well this wasn't going to end well if she didn't go to the cellblock and retrieve her book and let him know how disappointed she was in him. Oh yeah, that would scare him. Sitting in an overstuffed chair with her legs under her, she tried watching some entertainment on the main monitor, but she kept thinking back on that man. She couldn't even bring herself to think his name to herself.

Oh hell! Khan! The son of a bitch was named Khan, and he had lied to her, and now she felt like an idiot. Maybe this was as good a time as any to give him a solid piece of her mind, Getting up, she got dressed in something casual and headed out the door.

She arrived at the cellblock and flashed her badge at the gate guard. He looked at it a moment and then waved her in. Parking the car in the virtually empty lot, only a few cars and vans present, she entered the building and followed the dimly lit passage to the lifts and up to the third deck.

Playing over what she was going to say in her head, she glanced at the alcove and saw something that puzzled her. Back tracking she stared at the monitor first in stunned silence and then in anger. Khan hadn't been lying, and he was in greater danger now. There were men in the cell with him, and they had him at their mercy.

What she did next was the most dangerous thing she could have done, she hit the emergency release button, freeing Khan and unleashing a monster on those men. It took him only a split second to realize that he was free. Marla watched him rise up like an avenging angel. Marla had to stop him. Sprinting down the passage, she slammed her hand against the bar that opened the doors and entered a scene of pure horror. "Khan! Please don't kill them! Please!" He ignored her as he violently punished the guards who were all in on it. The civilian with the briefcase huddled in sheer terror beside the gurney and bolted for the open door. Khan snatched him by the back of the shirt and threw him against the wall.

Marla moved towards Khan and shouted, "Khan, don't kill them! Please!" One of the panic stricken guards, spun around and fired at her. The pain was exquisite, throwing her against the wall. Black confusion ate her thoughts and sent her tumbling down a stairway of unconsciousness. Her last coherent thought was, he wasn't lying.

Marla woke to Dr. McCoy's face peering closely at hers. "How do you feel?" he asked curiously.

"My shoulder hurts," she answered with a loud gasp.

"Another inch to the side and you would be dead," McCoy admonished her. "What were you thinking?"

Marla thought about Khan and it crushed her. "How many people did it take to kill him?" she asked brokenly.

"Kill who?"

"Khan. What did you do with his body?"

McCoy looked confused. "Khan's not dead…sorry to say. "

Marla sat up. "He's still in lock up?"

"Yes. He was the one who notified us that something had happened. He could have escaped but didn't."

"He didn't?"

"No, when security arrived he was sitting on the gurney with you unconscious in his lap. The Medtech agent was writhing on the floor with two broken legs. Unfortunately Khan killed the other men." As enraged as he had been, she was surprised that he had spared the technician. "Commander," Bones interrupted her thoughts, " I don't know what he's up to, but there is a reason why he didn't leave and it involves you. And it's not good."

"Maybe he's just tired of running," she opined, "or maybe he knows he can't get away."

"Or maybe he has a long term plan and needs you to pull it off. Commander, he can't be trusted. Mark my words, he is dangerous." He didn't like the thought that jumped into his head. "Marla, he didn't leave because he has something special in mind. Please be careful."

"I remember everyone thought he was lying to me," she protested and lay back down. It hurt too much to move. "Does he know I'm going to be all right?"

"I expect he may have had something to do with that." Of course the moment he said it, he regretted it. She would want to know how, and he would be required, maybe not, to tell her how Khan had used his own blood to bathe her wound, which had sped up her healing. No, there was no way in hell he was going to tell her that. "He called, remember?"

"I'll have to thank him."

"When you feel better," McCoy said. He didn't tell her that Mr. Spock wanted to speak to her about how Khan got free. Most people just assumed Khan freed himself. Mr. Spock wasn't so sure.