"Miss?" the transport driver called back to his lone passenger. The woman had been sitting in the same seat for his past three cycles. "Did you miss your stop?"
"What" she responded absently?
"This is the third time we've come to the end of the line. Where exactly are you going miss?"
"I,,," Christine looked around the empty transbus not quite certain how she'd gotten there. "I'm not sure."
"I'm shutting down for the night. There's a public transporter inside the terminal, or I could flag down an aircab for you."
"Thanks, that won't be necessary." Gathering herself together she disembarked into the busy terminal. Even at this hour of the night the transport hub was teaming with activity, and she found moving through the noisy crowd strangely soothing.
As a doctor she recognized her symptoms; she was in shock. Her mind was still reeling from the momentary linking with the Ambassador. The images and emotions were tumbling through her mind some barely discernable others crystal clear. It was another woman's lifetime, but somehow her lifetime as well.
"Kaiidith!" Several patrons stopped and regarded her and she realized she must have spoken aloud. What is, is Christine. Surak was correct. There was no logic in denying the reality of a situation. Acceptance and moving forward was the only logical choice. Ambassador Spock's path was with his people on New Vulcan; her path was here with Roger.
That was it. She needed Roger, needed him to hold her, to tell her he loved her. She had loved him deeply once in another universe, she could love him deeply again. Christine was flooded with a feeling peace and lightness of heart she'd not felt in many years. It was just past nineteen hundred hours. Roger would still be at the Institute working. Scanning the overhead monitors she found the directions to the public transport station.
The line moved quickly and within ten minutes she ascended the transporter platform. She closed her eyes as the shimmering beam caught her and within moments delivered her to the station across the street from the Korby Institute.
Christine felt momentarily overwhelmed, as she always did when entering the richly appointed lobby of the Institute. It was an imposing building, much like Roger himself Christine mused. The receptionist smiled as Christine approached the desk.
"Is Dr. Korby still here?"
"He's in his office working. He did ask not to be disturbed… but I'm sure that didn't include you Dr. Chapel. Shall I ring him?"
"No," Christine smiled, "I want to surprise him."
The outer office was dark except for the glow of the computer monitor on the desk of Roger's secretary Jan.
"Stop pouting it's not attractive."
Christine jumped hearing Roger's voice from the office behind her.
"How can you be such a heartless bastard?"
She recognized the other voice immediately as that of Andrea Mason, Roger's research assistant.
"Andréa, you've known from the beginning I was going to marry Christine. These histrionics are absurd. Nothing between us will change."
The office door was half closed, but Christine could see Roger clad only in a pair of silky lounging pants as he handed his naked lab assistant a class of wine.
"Do you actually expect me to be happy about this? I'm supposed to walk down the aisle as the maid of honor with a smile on my face and watch you marry her?"
"I expect you to stop being childish and do as I say. Do you realize that once she says 'I do' we'll have thirty billion credits. Certainly I can expect you to be happy about that. Do you have the slightest idea of how deeply I've gone into debt keeping the Institute afloat, not to mention all of the lavish trips and expensive jewelry you're so fond of cherie?"
"But I love you Roger."
"Be that as it may, but on Monday six billion credits in loans come due, and if I don't marry Christine Chapel tomorrow as planned not only will we lose everything we've worked for but we will most likely be spending the next few years in prison as well."
"Prison?"
"I'm not sure our benefactors will appreciate the manner in which we've diverted their contributions. You signed off on the transfers my dear making you liable as well. I believe 'fraud' might be the technical term. Now come over here and be a good girl."
Andrea set the wineglass down on the desk as Roger released the closure on his pants letting them slide to the floor. Taking the girl firmly by the shoulders he guided her to her knees and positioned himself accordingly. Christine watched in morbid fascination as Andrea grasped Roger's erect penis and moved it toward her ruby red painted lips.
She retreated silently into the lift, emerging in the lobby a few moments later.
"Was he surprised?" The perky receptionist enquired.
"He…he was working on a project. I didn't want to disturb him." She walked toward the exit, and then turned back to the young woman. "Please, don't tell him I came by."
"No problem. See you tomorrow Doctor."
"Yes… tomorrow."
She managed to get out the door and halfway down the block before vomiting on the sidewalk.