Sorry for the delay on this chapter. I had two separate chapters for this one written ahead sometime ago, as well as other chapters for this story. But as I sat and began rereading them, I just loathed them. I rewrote the two chapters into one. And I do plan on some rewrites on later chapters as well. Not all but a few of them. It's amazing how you can write something that works on time and after some time has gone by it just sucks. (To the writer at any rate). So I apologize for the minor delay.

Again much thanks to all the readers out there who are taking the time to come back to this chapter after chapter. I appreciate it very much as I do those who take the time to give feedback. All of this I am grateful for.

-Schemer

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CHAPTER FIFTY TWO

The sound of the incoming tide that could be heard faintly over the crackling of the security curtain, was one of the few remnants left to remind one that this was supposedly a place of paradise. The grounds that surrounded the partially covered veranda gave only scant clues to the fact it had indeed been apart of a one time beautiful tropical gardens. The wind that rode along the tide had become cooler as if nature herself was aware of the ugliness that was being rendered on her.

Several of Rossenber's men were in the midst of security sweep that had been going on for several minutes. Little was being left in tact as they stormed through the flowering bushes leaving them mangled and broken, as well as stepping carelessly on anything remotely recognizable as green foliage. They carried weapons in hand signaling that preparations were done and the program was one heartbeat away of beginning. Nothing more was to be left to chance and no one was to be left alive if found.

"One would say they are done hiding and ready for business." Murmured Liberty, the turquoise stare moved from one clump of guards to another as they moved furiously through the grounds.

"One would say." Kirk acknowledged his gold flecked hazel gaze narrowing at the snap of faint green directly in front of his face as the security screen fluctuated. "Now if we had a better idea of that intended business. They seem to be very closed mouth about it even to this point."

A corner of Liberty's mouth twitched as she sucked in a breath. "Maybe that means we still have a chance. When no one is willing to gloat about their impending deadly deeds on the cusp of their being set into motion, wouldn't you then like to think they might believe we could still stop them before said deed is done?"

"It's glimmer of hope Liberty." Eyebrow rising slightly as he looked over at the woman, Kirk could help but let a tiny half smile appear. "Hope doesn't need to sound any more complicated than necessary."

Folding her arms, Liberty gazed after the man as he began prowling the covered veranda area they had been ushered into that overlooked the expansive lush grounds. After a few moments she shifted her weight from one foot to the other and wiped the attempt of minute smile from her face as she stared ruminatively at the grounds now being laid to waste by Rossenber's men.

They had been bidding their time in the luxurious furnished cell for the last fifteen minutes silently observing the steadily growing tension as time continued to tick away toward the unknown heinous event. Neither finding any comfort in amply ostentatious golden-pink marble floored terrace, aware that it was nothing more that Rossenber's taunting humor again.

Once the force field had been activated behind them, they had gone off to their own corners to quickly collect their own thoughts and possibly regain some control over any emotions that might have tried to break free from their bridles. If Rossenber had expected either of them to stage any type of high minded indignation or sarcastic contempt play for him, he would've been disappointed since he barely gave them his usual noxious smile before vanishing again.

Kirk admittedly had to force himself to bite his tongue and seek a momentary solitary spot for his own temper and sanity before choosing to join Liberty at the veranda edge facing the ongoing ravaging hunt. In his own mind he knew it was nothing but show for either their benefit or perhaps for Rossenber himself in some attempt of flexing his muscles independently of whomever it is that was the mind of it all. He recalled the words that Liberty had used back in the transporter room before they were so unceremoniously herded to their stockade by the sea, it was then easy to suspect that she had struck the nerve she had been intending. At that point, the anger he had been struggling to keep abated abruptly diverted itself as he had quickly latched on to what could be a miniscule shard of optimism, as he again replayed the scene.

"What's happened to McCoy?" He abruptly asked halting in his reflective prowl then swiftly rejoined Liberty at the force field.

Coming out of her own dark reverie, Liberty frowned slightly at the Admiral before pushing her lips to one side as she replied in a feigned bored tone.

"By now he's probably sitting sullenly in Nogura's office waiting to see if they think he's certifiable or being ignored like a giant Georgian elephant in the middle of the Security hub in Headquarters. Depends if he was smart enough to let Eugene do some of the talking after they arrived."

"How are the odds?" The short pointed question came with a satisfied quick nod as Kirk clasped his hands behind his back and fixed his expectant stare on the woman's face.

Half turning to face the man, Liberty gave him a hard, vaguely amused look.

The switch had been completely flipped and the man of action and quick decision's had emerged full blown. Without a second thought, nor a moment of hesitation to second guess his judgment, he had picked up his well worn mantel and seemingly chose to temporarily accept her into his tight battle worn kindred. No matter how the bad the taste was going to be to his palette.

For a brief moment she nearly flirted with an attempt with what may have been a smile but quickly smothered it, well aware that too much might have been assumed by it. If she was expected to handsprings because of this unspoken honor, he was in for a rude wakening but she doubted that was the case. He was too far into this to care what she thought in that department to worry or be indignant any further. The here and now was everything. And everything was on the verge of disintegrating into apocalyptic dust. Especially for the man standing in front of her.

The lips twitched again. A brief alliance was one thing. She could accept that in somewhat grudging willingness. The idea that it was expected to be accepted without a word in request beforehand had a way of being a concoction that burned long after it was digested for her. For now, she would let it go. There were officers in Starfleet Headquarters who never be offered this chance and would gladly slit one another's throat for this moment, let alone planets of wannabe cadets. She would allow it to pass but guaranteed herself as well as the Admiral it wasn't going to be forgotten.

"You're not going to tell me that you don't have some type of answer for me, sarcastic albeit, are you?" Kirk suddenly asked breaking that slightly festered thought that had been running around the darker reaches of Liberty's mind.

"I just wondering how are you gonna sleep with yourself at night, when it comes to light that the two of us had to work in collusion to save Starfleet's neck." The twitch finally twisted itself into a quarter of a smile, as Liberty cocked her head to the right. "I mean if we somehow manage to walk away from this somewhat in tact and breathing."

A slight grimace flashed over Kirk's face as he shot a badgered glare out towards the beach then just as quickly fixed a sever stare on the woman.

"I'm not a fool Liberty."

"I don't recall saying you personally were."

"I don't recall calling you one either." A tight cutting smile briefly appeared on the Admiral's face when he noted an eyebrow ever so slightly twitch. "So I would hazard to say that we are both aware that we need to work together in whatever fashion is the best at the given moment. If you want to have nice long misanthropic argument about it later, I'll schedule time for it when I can find it. Like it or not, this brief compromise is the only shot that either of us or Starfleet may have. And I know enough to know you're too much of a fighter to just sit back and let this happen to you."

A sly smile came forth as Liberty began to forage in the front pockets of her jeans until retrieving a crumpled cigarette. Tucking it into the corner of her mouth she started searching another pocket until she managed to withdraw a broken wooden match.

"You got me." She acknowledged with a faint nod before igniting the match with her thumbnail and immediately lit the halfway crushed cigarette. "That last bit. Very good."

"Thanks. I wish I could say I got if from clean living, but we both know that would be a bald faced lie." Grunted Kirk while watching the bent end of the cigarette glow like a tiny hell fire.

"No argument. I will say I'm flattered by it." Liberty let the smile fade a degree. "Next time don't assume on compromises. Ask."

This time Kirk allowed his own smile to grow a fraction. "Assuming was much easier when you really didn't have that much of a choice. Besides I see very little point in asking someone if they want to live or die. I've found they generally are fond of going on living."

"You didn't learn that from Starfleet." Snorted Liberty, a doubtful glint in her eyes that had an amused shadow to it. "It consists of too much common sense."

"There a number of things I've been forced to learn that Starfleet doesn't know about." He countered, as he glanced back out at the grounds as a group of guards ran by. "Like odds. Which you're going to tell me about."

"Odds." Liberty repeated blowing a stream of white smoke into the field screen and sent it softly crackling as it ate up disintegrated the substance. "I know Eugene. If your Doctor can manage to fan dance their way into Nogura's office, if he can't disengage the device he'll keep damages to a minimum that'll shame the Council."

The corner of Kirk's mouth jerked at the last few words, but refrained from a suitable retort as he studied the woman from the corner of his eye. "In your opinion, what are the chances of Dalcrom setting off the device early?"

As a miniscule line appeared along her brow, Liberty narrowed her gaze a fraction in the only indication of her suspicion. "I wouldn't know. However we are talking about an unusually large mass assemblage of ego's here. I doubt whoever is behind this is going to be moronic enough to sabotage their one time of gloating in the face of Starfleet and the Federation. They've managed to outsmart and outmaneuver them, if you were in their shoes would you miss the chance to rub it in?"

"Not hardly." Sighed Kirk feeling another wave of frustration sweep over him as he pinched the bridge of his nose forcing himself to ignore the ever growing headache. "I suppose we should file that as a hidden stroke of luck."

"I suppose. But I doubt Mother Fate would like to take credit for it, considering the group of people were discussing here. On either side." Taking another drag from her cigarette, Liberty eyed Kirk with an irksome scowl.

"How well do you know Rossenber?" He finally asked very much aware of the intense, irritated stare that was piercing him closer than he would admit.

"Ah! Finally!" There was no tinge of triumph in her voice, instead it seemed to have exasperation and tedium weaved together in the syllables. "You took your time getting to that question. I hate to think it's due any notion that what was said back in the transporter room by the bastard."

"You're evading the said question, Liberty." Growled Kirk feeling his head slowly taking root along his spine and swiftly making it's way further along.

"So I am." She sighed after one finally puff the crushed the cigarette under a boot heel, before pinning a rigid searching look on Kirk. "Originally I met him over ten years ago a million miles from here. He went by the name of Jarrod Byrnes then, but then he enjoys going by many names. He likes to make deals with everyone and anyone over anything. All generally gaining him everything if he wants it or not. The wealth that he has is all illegally gained. And if he has the time and the audience he would be more than willing to tell you how he went about it. The last time I encountered him was four years ago at Starbase 37 in passing. He was slipping easily through a trap set by a Federation investigation on his way to Aesargell Si VII and set up a nice little extortion ring in their government. I've never taken him seriously when he ever offered me any of his 'business enterprises', even when we were first forced to meet. I always have this feeling that he's more disappointed in me than anything else, hence the way he likes to tangle and entwine the truth and his own fabrications. To be truthful though, finding him in this is more than a little surprising to me."

For several seconds Kirk remained silent as he digested everything said and trying not to second guess what hadn't been said. Personally he believed Liberty's disdain was real when it came to Rossenber, or Jarrod or whatever the hell the man wished to call himself. It was very easy to grasp that she never hid much of anything when inquired. What he was finding increasingly aggravating and equally perplexing, was the necessity of the forethought one had to have before making that inquirer and expect to get all the information that you would like. And he was as certain as Vulcan culinary writings weren't high on the Klingon's reading list, that he didn't have half of everything she knew. But he had no time to argue with her over the matter, however it would be something that he tuck into his own mental files for later use. If there was a later for them.

"Meaning?" He finally barked while turning on his heels and pacing the distance to the closest pillar.

Giving a the answer some deliberation as an eyebrow rose a number of centimeters, Liberty stared toward the horizon then back at Kirk when he turn to face her again.

"Meaning I never knew him to ever work for anyone else." There was a pause as she pursed her lips in her period of mentally thumbing through her recollections. "He isn't the type who likes to share the riches of the crime with anyone. He see's no point in it and just as easily leave no one around to make an argument about it. And the whole scale of this operation is larger than anything I've known him to become involved with. I've known him to wrap up unsuspecting governments and full capacity starbase with intricate bows with little effort. Yet,...this Dalcrom business is more than he cares to bite off. More so, considering he's not the one holding all the pieces."

There was hesitation, slight though, in Kirk's steps as he turned from the corner pillar and briefly gazed around the now sealed off veranda before leveling a calculating stare on the woman. He hadn't yet decided completely on the connections these dots were starting to make, but there something going on amongst the individual players of Dalcrom that some of them weren't aware of.

He had the words of that effect on the tip of his tongue when the sharp crackle of the force field that surrounded them was deactivated and he was forced to keep his thoughts to himself. As he moved to face the doorway, he took a note of the expression on Liberty's face that mirrored his own thoughts and the smile grew a fraction as she met his gaze.

Moving through the wide doorway, Rossenber's smile was still in place as he glanced from one Kirk to the other. Behind him was Tane, as well as three guards all with phaser's tightly held and steadily aimed at the pair of Kirk's. The glint in Tane's gray glare was literally willing Kirk to even halfheartedly ponder the notion of making one iota of a wrong move. Seemingly aware of the simmering volcano behind him, the corner of Rossenber's mouth tugged upwards even more as if to goad the Admiral on.

"I would apologize for the weaponry, but it is a necessity as we all know." Rossenber explained with a small wave towards the deadly devices that flanked him on either side. "Besides, I wouldn't want you to think me rude, by believing that you would come without too much of a quarrel. Altho Tane would have appreciated the chance."

"It's refreshing to know that there are still some manner's out there." Liberty grunted with a deep cut of sarcasm, while giving the Admiral a less than impressed look.

"If that's what you want to call it." Kirk made a point of meeting the hardening look of Tane as he spoke. "Deportment and intimidation have at times blurred their lines when it suits the individual. There's nothing wrong with a little incivility from time to time."

Eyebrows rising in mock surprise, Rossenber absently tugged at the sleeves of his coat his smile continuing to grow. "My, my...I have a feeling that it might be an interesting next few hours after all."

TBC