Malcolm had circulated round the room and moved through the party once the ceremony had been concluded, and for once, despite his initial misgivings, the lieutenant actually blended well here, for the Vulcans took his personal reserve as quite appropriate, and his responses pleasingly laconic in comparison to those of Archer and so those Vulcans who wished to converse with Humans, zeroed in on Malcolm.
All this attention though, did not keep Malcolm from seeing Trip returning to the party with a slight smile of satisfaction, which Malcolm unfortunately had reason to now recognize as a sign that he'd recently been intimate with T'Pol, and when T'Pol returned to the party in a dress much less elaborate than her wedding gown, well, Malcolm was no fool. Still, he'd tried to nip this whole thing with T'Pol in the bud by allowing Archer to see Section 31's concerns, but apparently that wasn't enough to cause Trip to end things with T'Pol, at least until this whole thing was over.
Even that's not enough, thought Malcolm. Pulling back is not enough. If T'Pol's been lying to us this whole time about Norik, and if she can't be trusted than she's a fucking liability, and I won't stand for that.
Just then, Malcolm felt someone approaching, and to his surprise it was T'Pol.
"A beautiful wedding, T'Pol," said Malcolm, out of politeness.
T'Pol gave a slight wave of the hand to indicate that it was of no account, and said, "We should talk, Mr. Reed. In private."
"All right," said Malcolm, watching T'Pol closely. "Where?"
"Follow me," said T'Pol.
She led the man to the front yard, which had been festively lit, and a few tables laid out for guests who cared to spend time watching the stars, but it was a bit chilly for that, by Vulcan sensibilities, though Malcolm found the slight chill bracing. It was there that T'Pol gestured that Malcolm might sit, and then joined him. Expecting the possibility of foul play initially, Malcolm relaxed somewhat, for they were in full view of fifty guests, through the house's large windows.
"So?" said Malcolm.
"When I said I did not know Norik, I was not telling the truth, Mr. Reed," said T'Pol.
"Go on," said Malcolm, not sure where T'Pol meant to take the conversation, but pleasantly surprised by her admission: perhaps she was no traitor.
"Yes," said T'Pol. "Well, Norik was my superior at one time, Mr. Reed. I was one of his operatives."
"I see," said Malcolm. "Why did you lie to me?"
"Truthfully," said T'Pol, "I did not believe, and I still do not believe that Norik could be mixed up in something like this nasty kvo'ratt business. I had hoped to speak to the man privately in person before we acted, and ask about his involvement in this matter, if any, and the reason for it all."
"I understand," said Malcolm with a nod. "So why tell me now?"
"It occurred to me that in the unlikely event that Norik is indeed mixed up in this," said T'Pol, "we would all be in danger. He is quite capable, and I have no right to keep such information from you, in that case. I apologize for not telling all of you of my acquaintance with Norik. I'll speak of it with Mr. Archer tomorrow. You speak with Trip."
"All right," said Malcolm, relieved that T'Pol had come through after all: she might lying still, but her confession gave her a bit more credibility in Malcolm's eyes.
The rest of the night was anti-climactic. Though custom usually dictated that T'Pol follow Koss to her mate's house, T'Pol had the option of beginning her marriage with a time of quiet contemplation on her new state and the responsibilities which came along with it, and T'Pol made use of that option, to her mother's open disapproval, but then T'Les had long hoped that her daughter might settle down and live a proper Vulcan life, instead of serving with the V'Shar, or worse yet, wasting her time on a Human starship. Still, T'Pol was T'Pol…
In any case, T'Les' opinions of T'Pol's obstinate nature was irrelevant to the four conspirators for they had a tough choice to make.
The Vulcan they were after, Norik, was after all a member of the High Command, and interfering with him, questioning him under duress, torturing him, killing him, any and all of these things would carry a heavy penalty, either death, or long imprisonment and then a mind wipe upon release. What's more, all they had to implicate Norik in this whole matter was the word of a Denobulan, now dead… Although T'Pol believed that the Denobulan had been speaking truth, that belief would not hold up in a court of law, nor in their conscience, if Norik was truly innocent, and they harmed Norik in order to force him to make a confession to a crime in which he had no part at all.
What's more, T'Pol had made it clear to the rest that Norik was no fool, as he breathed subterfuge as a remnant of his long career spent with the V'Shar, and he was well guarded as a member of the High Command, and so T'Pol suggested that they allow her to make contact with Norik: he would make time for her, as a courtesy to their common service to the V'Shar, as a kindness for their past relationship in which Norik had acted as a mentor to T'Pol.
"Why do you want to talk to him?" said Archer. "You think Norik will be honest with you?"
"Not necessarily," said T'Pol, "though I hope so. However, I will have the best chance to spot subterfuge if Norik offers me such. I know Norik as well as any."
"I don't like it," said Trip, his slightly raspy voice sounding quite sexy to T'Pol. "If T'Pol speaks to him about this matter, Norik will be forewarned."
"I assure you, Mr. Tucker," said T'Pol, "If Norik was involved in this matter, then he is aware that former members of the Enterprise are on Vulcan now, and he is having us watched. I told you, he is competent."
"You're just guessing here, T'Pol," said Trip.
"I've known the man for eleven years," said T'Pol, looking at each man there, "and I am giving you my opinion that the best way to approach Norik is to speak with him first. To resort to violence without any proof of his guilt would be a mistake."
"I agree," said Archer, for no matter the changes in them all since the deaths of thirteen of his crewmen at the hands of those genetically modified horrors, he still held to a code of honor, and Norik deserved a chance to speak of his innocence, if such was the case.
"Speaking to the man seems the proper course," said Malcolm slowly, after a moment's thought.
"Fine," said Trip, "but we're making a mistake that's gonna come bite us in the ass, sooner or later."
"Such is the nature of life, Mr. Tucker," said T'Pol, glad that logic had ruled the day. "Now, a shuttle can see us to the capital city in under an hour. I will contact Norik's office, ask for an appointment. Excuse me."
Twenty minutes later, T'Pol returned, and said, "I have an appointment with Norik two days from now."
Archer nodded, Trip sighed, and Malcolm looked lost in thought.
They spoke then for another half hour, then Trip & T'Pol excused themselves so that T'Pol might speak to Trip, Archer went to sleep, and Malcolm retired to the serenity garden in the back of the house, where he activated an unusual comm unit given him by a man named Harris, when Malcolm had sought the man's help, in avenging the deaths on the Enterprise.
The comm unit reached out, and made a connection with one of a half dozen StarFleet vessels in Vulcan orbit, then loaded Malcolm's encrypted message for Harris into the buffer, and would deliver it to Harris, piggybacking on the next ship to Earth transmission without revealing it's presence to any.
"So, you have something to say to me?" said Trip, looking down at T'Pol, who had knelt in front of the coffee table in her room: things had been tense between them in the hours since Archer had told Trip of the contents of Malcolm's PADD unit.
"Please, Trip," said T'Pol, gesturing that Trip should kneel or sit across the table from her.
With a sigh, Trip lowered himself to the floor, and knelt, facing T'Pol and waited for T'Pol to speak.
"Yes, well," said T'Pol, "As I was trying to say earlier—"
"Just tell me this. Did someone put you up to it? Are you obeying orders?" said Trip, quite agitated now. "Was any of it, any of what happened between us real?"
"Someone put me up to it? Obeying orders?" said T'Pol, quite confused now. "Trip, what are you talking about?"
"You know what I'm talking about!" said Trip. "You admitted as much just a few hours ago. I know, T'Pol. I know everything."
"What do you know, Trip?" said T'Pol, looking at Trip inquisitively, for it was clear that their thoughts were not syncing up. "Tell me."
Over the course of a minute, Trip told T'Pol of Archer's words, and told T'Pol that the source of those concerns was something read on Malcolm's PADD unit.
"Ok," said T'Pol, understanding now. "I will grant you that such things might be done, though rarely so. The V'Shar might order it, if the need is great, but I assure you that nothing of that nature passed between us."
"But you admitted it!" said Trip.
"I admitted no such thing, Trip," said T'Pol, "and that's not something for which I was apologizing."
"Than what?" said Trip.
T'Pol took a deep breath to calm herself, and gave a lenghty, and quite adequate explanation of the psychic Bond formed between mates, and its implications. Trip had remained silent the entire time during which T'Pol had made her explanation, and he remained silent even after T'Pol had fallen silent, and T'Pol remained silent as well, respecting the man's need to consider the nature of her words.
Finally, Trip said, "So you and I are linked by this Bond, mentally and spiritually."
"Correct."
"And you were not manipulating me in any way?" said Trip. "You did not generate my feelings for you, or heighten them through this Bond?"
"No, Trip," said T'Pol. "The Bond can not be used like that. It can not be forced upon one's mate. Both mates must willingly allow the ties between them to form and bind them together, even if subconsciously. The Bond can not be manipulated in any way. It is pure. It is what you Humans call love."
"I see," said Trip.
"Do you believe me?" said T'Pol, studying the man closely.
"Yes."
"And how do you feel about being mated to me, Trip?"
Trip thought back to all the things they'd gone through together in the time since they'd first met, the close calls they'd had that could have easily ended with one, or both of them dead, of all the private moments they'd shared…
He thought off all those things, and though he'd never have imagined that he'd have a Vulcan mate one day, Trip smiled broadly, and said, "I feel good, T'Pol. I feel great!"
"Truly?"
"Yep," said Trip, still smiling. "It seems I have a Vulcan wife."
"You do," said T'Pol, quite relieved at Trip's acceptance of what must be.
"Does your mom know?" said Trip.
"Oh, no," said T'Pol. "Vulcan though she is, she will blow her top when she finds out."
"What about Koss?" said Trip.
"The wedding is invalid in case of a Bond to another," said T'Pol. "I will announce it when this is all over, and ask forgiveness of Koss."
"It will have to be a hell of an apology," said Trip. "Vulcan or not, Koss will be pissed."
"You have a talent for understatement, Mr. Tucker," said T'Pol.