Disclaimer: I don't own Star Trek , though MACO Lt. Kaitlyn Donovan does belong to me.
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The End Justifies the Means
Chapter 14
MACO Headquarters, Interrogation Room
Major Hayes stopped beside Corporal Torres and leaned on the table, "You are not being very helpful." he stated. "That's not going to be good for you."
Torres glared at Hayes, but remained quiet.
Hayes sighed and left the room. He turned and frowned as Lt. Donovan and Harris came down the hall. "What are you doing here? You're supposed to be getting some sleep." he pointed out to her.
Donovan nodded, "I need to speak with Torres - Harris will explain." she stated and went in the room before Hayes could protest. Her emotions were raw and she wasn't sure if she could keep her cool, but she had to try. They had to find out how to disarm the bomb.
She sat down in the chair across from Torres and watched him carefully.
He looked away quickly. He looked at his hands, the table, the floor, the ceiling - everywhere but at her.
She knew guilt was a powerful emotion. She folded her hands gently on the table and kept watching him.
Torres shifted uncomfortably in his chair after ten minutes. He was growing agitated, "Did you come to intimidate me?" he demanded. He frowned when she didn't say anything. He looked down at her hands, "I didn't think you'd get back to your apartment so soon. I only meant to knock you out - then you woke up!" he squeezed his eyes closed as he remembered the panic that had flooded through him when she had sat up. He had acted on instinct and choked her in hopes that she'd blackout. He hadn't gotten any sleep that night, thinking that she'd remember and he'd get hauled in for questioning. He put his head in his hands and exhaled deeply. He wished he had gotten caught then, because that meant that he wouldn't have sabotaged the shuttle. He couldn't believe it when he'd gotten to the Dock Yards and Commander Keppler had confronted him. Keppler had told him that Donovan was on to him, then he handed him a small explosive device and showed him where to put it on the shuttle. Torres looked up at her, "I'm sorry, Ma'am." he said quietly.
Donovan leaned forward slightly, "What are you sorry for, Corporal?" she prompted him.
"Breaking into your home, attacking you - leaving you wounded." he stated.
"What else?"
He frowned, "I put the explosive device on the shuttle." he admitted to her. Torres was glad that they had survived. She was his mentor. Lt. Donovan had taken him under her wing when she'd first spotted his potential six months ago and she had quickly tutored him in the responsibilities of being a team leader. He had let her down. He'd let them all down.
"Corporal, who gave you the device?" Donovan questioned him.
Torres closed his eyes. He was sure that Keppler and the others would kill him if he talked. But maybe, if he told Donovan everything - maybe Keppler could be stopped.
She touched his arm gently and focused on him intently, "Corporal Torres, I need you to write down everything that you know about this plot and everyone involved." she said out loud as she quickly sifted through his memories of the past few days. She removed her hand and stood up and handed him a PADD, "Start with how you met them."
Torres nodded slowly, then began to type everything out about Terra Prime and Commander Keppler.
Lt. Donovan stepped back out into the hallway and leaned against the wall. Keppler had given him the device and Torres had met him at a Terra Prime rally. Evidently, Torres didn't like Vulcans and had come to a rally out of curiosity. They had quickly honed in on him and Keppler had used him to find out more about the MACOs. Torres hadn't placed the bombs on the Enterprise, nor had he killed Rhodes. She had gotten a glimpse of the security console that Keppler had shown Torres where to place the device on the shuttle. Perhaps they could search that console for more information. She quickly pulled out her PADD and sent a secured message to Lt. Reed and told him what console to search through. She looked up as Hayes and Harris came out of the Observation Room and walked over to her.
"He's writing up a storm." Major Hayes stated and watched her closely. She didn't look well. "You really need to rest." he pointed out to her.
She nodded, "I will."
Hayes went back into the Interrogation Room to check on Torres.
Harris looked at her expectantly.
"He didn't plant the bombs on Enterprise. Keppler gave him the explosive device that he put on the shuttle. I just sent a message to Lt. Reed and told him the console that Keppler had last been working on. Hopefully that will help." Donovan explained.
Harris frowned, "That will take too long." He studied her carefully, "You could question Keppler, then wipe his memories." he suggested.
Kaitlyn sighed softly, "I'm not rested, he might remember." she explained.
Harris shrugged, "We'll have to take that chance. The bomb has to be disarmed." He looked at her pale features, "I'll have him beamed here into the other Interrogation Room." He quickly stepped away and made a communiqué.
Kaitlyn closed her eyes and tried to center herself. She had to focus.
Harris quickly went into the other room. A minute later, he opened the door and waved her in.
Keppler was unconscious on the floor.
Harris shrugged, "I thought this would be easier for you."
She nodded and knelled on the floor beside him. She touched his arm and searched his mind to find out about the bomb. She watched as he built the bomb carefully. In his mind, he went over each step as he put it together. She gently pushed his mind into thinking he was dreaming. She pulled back from his mind. They didn't have much time, this bomb was meant to be detonated soon - not wait for the Warp Engine Test. She stood up, "I know how to disarm it, beam me up there."
"Kaitlyn, you are in no condition to disarm a bomb. Write it down." Harris objected.
She shook her head, "I can see it and I know what to do, I can't explain it right now. Clear the area and beam me into Engineering." she directed him. "Beam him back to his bed." she indicated Keppler.
Harris weighed the odds, then nodded.
Engine Room, NX-01 Enterprise
Kaitlyn walked slowly over to the matter-antimatter assembly and carefully looked over the bomb and where it was attached. She looked into the satchel of equipment and took out the micro calipers and a scalpel. She replayed in her mind what she'd seen Keppler do and did everything in the reverse order. She sighed softly thirty minutes later as she carefully pulled the device out and put it down in a shielded case. She touched her implant, "The device has been disabled."
She and the bomb were quickly transported off the ship. Harris took the bomb with him for testing and she headed to a bunk and collapsed into a deep sleep.
Her dreams were vivid. She dreamed of her first shuttle crash when she was ten, the one with her father and a Vulcan Scientist named T'Mira. They were heading back to San Francisco after the group had finished its research on some aboriginal cave drawings in South America. The flight had been uneventful for awhile, then she recalled the feeling of her stomach dropping. She distinctly remembered her head hitting the ceiling of the shuttle before she blacked out.
When she came to, the shuttle was not moving. T'Mira was running a scanner over her and frowning at the readings. Kaitlyn was scared, she'd never seen a Vulcan show such emotion before.
"Are you okay, T'Mira?" she asked the older woman softly.
The Vulcan quickly schooled her features, "I will be fine." She glanced to the left.
Kaitlyn followed the woman's gaze as it fell upon her father, "Will he be okay?" she questioned cautiously. He was not moving.
"Yes. I have reset his broken arm and leg, but he is still unconscious." She stated matter-of-factly.
Kaitlyn couldn't move her neck, but she gazed to the front of the shuttle to the pilot. She could see the slash at his throat from debris that had come through the front windshield of the shuttle when it had crashed. He'd lost a lot of blood.
"Mr. Gordon did not survive his injuries." T'Mira explained softly.
The young girl looked at the Vulcan carefully. "Why can't I move?" she inquired.
T'Mira looked at the readings on her scanner, "You have sustained considerable injuries." She knew the girl did not like to be treated like a child, so she went on, "You have several breaks in your bones throughout your body, including your spine. You also have many internal injuries." She looked at the girl carefully, then to the front of the shuttle. "Kaitlyn, I do not have the equipment I need to repair all of your injuries, and our communication system is broken."
The girl looked at the Vulcan, "I can tell you how to repair the communication system."
The Vulcan's eyebrows disappeared into her bangs, "You can tell me?" she questioned with a hint of incredulity in her voice.
"I read the manual on the system a few months ago." the young girl explained to her. The Vulcan still looked doubtful. "If it doesn't work, I doubt we will be any worse off than if we do nothing."
T'Mira glanced at the broken comm system, then back at Kaitlyn. "I must find a way to stabilize your condition first." She was quiet for a moment, "I will teach you some basic meditation techniques." she decided.
Kaitlyn looked at her thoughtfully, "Why?"
"The pain may become very great for you soon, you will need to be able to meditate to ease your pain." she stated.
Kaitlyn watched the Vulcan and wondered if she would get in trouble for what she was about to say - she hadn't even told her father. "I am different than everyone else."
T'Mira kept her expression even, "We are all different, Kaitlyn." she pointed out.
The young girl frowned, "I am different than other humans, T'Mira. I broke my leg one night, after I fell off my bed. Father had specifically told me not to jump on the bed, but I did it anyway. I was afraid to tell father, so I slept on the floor and decided I'd tell him in the morning. At first, it hurt, but then the pain went away. When I woke up the next morning, my leg wasn't broken - I was fine."
T'Mira took a deep breath, "It is more likely that you sprained your leg." she stated.
"It has happened a few times since then." Kaitlyn said softly. "Please don't tell father." she requested.
T'Mira was watching the human child curiously.
Kaitlyn narrowed her eyes, "Why don't you read my mind if you don't believe me?" she asked angrily. "You are a Syrannite - don't you practice mind melding?" she questioned the Vulcan.
The Vulcan's lips parted and she blinked several times. T'Mira looked at the young girl sprawled out on the floor of the shuttle with life threatening injuries. How could this human girl know about the Syrannites, or mind melds? No Vulcan spoke of mind melds, it was forbidden and one could be punished for such deviant behavior. "I do not know of what you speak about, child." T'Mira stated firmly.
Kaitlyn closed her eyes, "No one ever notices me when I go with father. I hear a lot of things, I see a lot." she opened her eyes and looked at T'Mira. "Because I'm young, no one questions when I pick a book off a shelf and start to read. That's how I learned Vulcan." she whispered.
"From reading a book off a shelf?" T'Mira shook her head in disbelief. The child was becoming delusional from her injuries.
The young girl sighed softly, "Show me the scanner." she requested.
T'Mira did as the child requested. She would have to find a sedative in the medical kit for the girl.
Kaitlyn frowned at the readings on the Vulcan scanner, "It says I have a punctured spleen, T'Mira."
The Vulcan's head whirled to the child in disbelief. So few humans knew the Vulcan language - and here was a child that claimed she learned it from reading a book. "What Vulcan book did you read?"
"The Teachings of Surak." the girl stated.
"It takes much discipline to read The Teachings of Surak. I do not understand how a human child could read it." T'Mira was confused. It would explain how the child knew of mind melds. She looked at the young girl, "You would allow me to see in your mind?"
"Yes. I want to know what it is like. Will I be able to see in your mind?" the girl questioned.
"We will see how it affects you." T'Mira glanced at the girl's father. She should ask for his permission, but he was still unconscious. If she could mind meld with the child, perhaps she could ease the girl's pain. She made her decision, "Please relax as much as you can, I will not hurt you."
The young girl smiled softly, "I know you won't."
T'Mira placed her fingers on the child's face gently, "My mind to your mind, your thoughts to my thoughts. . ."
The Vulcan opened her eyes and looked around to find Kaitlyn. She was standing in an old fashion library, filled with rows and rows of books. She looked up at the glass dome and the stars filling the sky outside.
The young human child stepped out at the end of the row and waited for T'Mira.
T'Mira walked to the child, "Where are we?" she questioned, thinking that perhaps they'd slipped into one of the child's dreams.
"This is where I keep everything I learn, silly - how else would I find it?" the child questioned the Vulcan woman. "What would you like to learn?"
"I would like to see what you know about Vulcans." T'Mira stated.
The girl smiled and reached for the Vulcan's hand and led her down a few rows to a single, small shelf of books. She reached for The Teaching of Surak and handed it to T'Mira. "I only have one shelf of Vulcan books - I'm hoping to read more soon." the girl shrugged.
T'Mira opened the book and gasped. She could actually read the words on the pages. It was unusual to see such detail in someone's mind. "Do you understand this?" she asked the human child.
"Most of it. Would you like me to read it to you?" she asked the Vulcan.
T'Mira nodded and handed the book to the child. Perhaps her own Vulcan mind was supplying the words on the pages.
The child looked at the Vulcan woman, "In English or Vulcan?" she questioned.
"In Vulcan, please." T'Mira requested. Her eyes widened as the child began reading in Vulcan. She let the child read for another few minutes, then stopped her. "Thank you, Kaitlyn." She had known all along that this child was intelligent, but not to this degree. She looked around the library, "Are these books everything you've read?" she questioned.
The child nodded, "Yes, but some of these are the information that I've learned." She walked to another shelf and showed T'Mira the book. "This is my book on the aboriginal drawings we just visited. When I learn more information about the people, I will put it in this book." she explained to the Vulcan.
T'Mira looked at the child, "You have a very organized mind. I suggest that when you meditate, you come to this place." she suggested.
"Okay." the girl smiled.
"Kaitlyn, what happens with unpleasant things - where do you put them?" she asked softly.
"In books. I put them there, then put them on the shelf so I don't have to worry about them anymore." the girl motioned for the Vulcan to follow her.
The child pointed to a shelf in a darker corner of the library. "They are there, in those books."
T'Mira walked over slowly, "May I look at one of them?" she asked for permission.
"What would you like to see?" the girl looked curiously at the Vulcan.
"When you broke your leg and did not tell your father." T'Mira requested.
The girl pulled a book off the shelf and held it close to her body, "You won't tell father?" she questioned.
"I will not tell your father about this incident." T'Mira stated.
The child raised an eyebrow, "Or anything else you learn in this book?" She knew adults chose their words carefully, so they could tell half-truths.
T'Mira was surprised the child was analyzing her language. "I will not reveal to your father what I learn in this book." she promised.
The young girl handed her the book titled 'Secrets'.
T'Mira opened the book and saw a much younger version of this child jumping wildly on her bed, then she fell and her body slammed to the floor. She sucked in a quick breath as the pain flared through her. The child sat up through the pain and looked at her leg. The child was right, it was definitely broken - T'Mira could see the bone out of place under the skin. The child frowned as she studied her leg and a tear ran down her cheek. T'Mira watched in surprise as the child pushed on the bone and put it back in place. She looked curiously at the child. The girl was showing indications of mental shielding at this young age - T'Mira had not felt the child's pain when she reset the bone in her leg. The child then laid on the floor and went to sleep. When the child woke, she stood up and walked around. The girl's leg had healed. How was that possible?
T'Mira flipped through other pages in the book and saw other times when the child had been injured and had healed quickly by herself. T'Mira closed the book and put it back on the shelf. "You have never spoken of this to your father?"
The girl shook her head slowly, watching to see what the Vulcan woman would do next.
T'Mira sighed softly, "That is a heavy burden for a child to carry alone. If you need to speak to me about anything else, I will listen." she offered to the child and held her hand. She was curious to know why the child didn't want to tell her father.
"I don't want him to treat me differently. I don't want him to fear me." the girl answered the Vulcan's unspoken question.
T'Mira's eyes widened, "You can hear my thoughts?" She started to step back from the child, but then steadied herself. This reaction was what the child was afraid of - being feared.
"I learn to do things fast. I can hear your thoughts now that you are holding my hand." the girls explained.
T'Mira nodded, "I think we have done enough now - I will remove myself from your mind." She stated, then pulled back slowly.
The Vulcan woman opened her eyes and watched the child sleep. She was now filled with questions. How could this child heal herself? How had she learned to mentally shield herself? Why was this child so different from other humans? She would make sure she looked after the child's education. A mind such as this could not be wasted.
When the rescue shuttle arrived three days later, the doctors were amazed that the child had sustained no injuries. Even her father, who had woken up the day before had been surprised.
xxxx
Lieutenant Kaitlyn Donovan sat up on the cot and quickly reoriented herself. She hadn't thought about that crash in a long time. She supposed her mind had brought it back to the surface because of what happened yesterday. She stood up and quickly looked at her watch. 0500. She got her pt clothes and toiletries out of her bag, then headed to the locker room to change. She felt well rested, she had definitely needed it.
xxxx
Kaitlyn's feet pounded the ground as she made her way through the last stage of the obstacle course. She scaled up the wall and threw her body over, then she went to the next obstacle and pulled herself up the first level of the platform. She reached up and climbed to the second level and went to the edge. She jumped over to the log three feet away and steadied her balance, then raced down a sloping log, then dropped down to the ground. She ran to the three story rope and started to pull herself up to the top. Her closest squad member was just now dropping to the ground from the log. She smiled to herself as she reached the top of the rope and rang the bell. She slowly worked her way back down and watched as Buchannan reached the top and rang the bell, then came down after her. He nodded to her and they walked a few feet away to watch the others as they quickly came over the last few obstacles.
"Ma'am, you're going to have to tell me how you pulled ahead - I was keeping pace with you until the last quarter mile." Buchannan stated.
Donovan smiled, "I always pick up speed then - you should know that by now."
He looked at her curiously, "You were faster today." he pointed out.
Kaitlyn didn't think she had been faster than usual, "It must be because I got a good night's sleep." she shrugged it off. She turned her attention to the squad members coming in and encouraged them loudly to keep going, that they were almost done.
She glanced back at the course and watched as the last of the unit came through. One by one, they completed all of the obstacles, climbed the rope and rang the bell.
Lt. Donovan nodded to all of them as they gathered around. "Everyone did a great job today - on the run and the obstacle course. Go shower and enjoy the rest of your weekend." she dismissed them.
"Ooh-rah!" they said in unison, then headed to the locker rooms.
Donovan waited back as the squad leaders came over to her. "Did anyone lag?" she questioned them.
"No, Ma'am. Everyone was running a good pace today." Corporal Zane stated.
Corporal Paulson agreed, "It could be because we told them to start hydrating two days ago." he pointed out to her.
Lt. Donovan nodded, "Good, maybe that's all we really needed to do. Hydration will be essential on Mars, start to go over the environmental challenges with your squads this week during your meetings." She looked over her squad leaders, "Anything to report on our current mission?" she asked.
Zane snorted, "Commander Keppler was furious that he was taken off the Dock Yard Security Detail, I'm pretty sure he broke a few things in his apartment." he said.
Donovan nodded, "Good - maybe he'll slip up and make a mistake."
Corporal Paulason glanced at the others, then to Donovan, "Ma'am, we're sorry about Torres - we didn't pick up on his affiliation with that group, and we should have been able to."
Lt. Kaitlyn Donovan shook her head, "Terra Prime was cautious with him and they used him. Just take note if anyone else mentions Terra Prime. Monday afternoon we'll need to go over the Security for the Banquet." she stated.
Her squad leaders nodded, then headed to the locker room. Kaitlyn walked down the corridor of MACO Headquarters and sighed as Major Hayes stepped out of his office and motioned her to follow. She walked into his office and closed the door.
Hayes was standing at the window, looking out to the obstacle course. "They did well today." he commented.
She nodded, "Yes, they did." She knew he didn't want to discuss the pt session this morning. She waited patiently.
"You disabled the bomb on the Enterprise last night?" he questioned and turned to her slowly, his arms crossed.
"Yes, Sir."
Hayes frowned. He wanted to know how she knew how to disable that bomb. But if he asked, he might end up regretting it. He sighed softly, "Torres' hearing will be later this morning. He's pleaded guilty to all charges." he explained.
"Do you need me to attend?" she inquired.
"No, you go ahead and focus on your mission." he said softly. He was still reeling over the fact that it had been Torres that had attacked her and put an explosive device on the shuttle. He looked over Donovan, she looked better than she had the past week. "You did good work last night." he stated.
Kaitlyn nodded, "Thank you, if you'll excuse me?" she requested.
Hayes nodded and dismissed her.
0750 - Starfleet Headquarters
Lt. Donovan quickly listened to the message from Lt. Reed on her PADD before she stepped into Starfleet Headquarters.
His image came up on the PADD quickly. "I ran through all of the files on the computer to see what Keppler had been accessing, quite a bit of it is highly classified and he copied the information. I've attached a list of everything he accessed, so you can analyze it too. I heard they took Corporal Torres into custody last night - I'm sorry that it was one of your own men that attacked you. I also wanted to thank you for disarming the bomb. I don't know how you did it. I'd like to be able to meet with you one day and discuss it, though I don't think it will be anytime soon if Harris has any say. Keep me informed with what you learn, and I'll do the same on my end. Reed out."
She watched the screen for a few seconds. Not only was Keppler getting O'Dell to steal information, but he was gathering a lot on his own. She quickly opened the attachment and scanned through the listing. She frowned and clicked off the screen. She was going to have to sit down and really analyze all of the list, and she didn't have that kind of time at this moment - she needed to get upstairs.
She touched the flashing icon for an incoming message.
This one was from Harris.
"Work with Paxton. Find out all you can about his mining facilities. We need you to be able to detail everything you remember for our records. Also, learn as much as you can about what he is doing with the information he has been collecting. I'll meet with you later tonight." Harris stated, then the message automatically deleted.
Kaitlyn Donovan looked up at the building. This was going to be a very busy week. She took a deep breath and headed inside to Admiral Forrest's office.