Chapter 2

"Well, when did you last see him? "

Beverly stared off into the eerily pink sky. It was nearly dawn and the air was chilled outside of her bungalow. She shivered. "Around midnight...maybe." She glanced at Will. " Where is he? He's not answering his communicator."

"I know. Look, I know Troi already probably asked you this, but was he acting normally? Did he say anything strange?"

Beverly sighed and glanced around the courtyard, wishing Jean-Luc would just reappear from the fog. "Um, no...he was fine," she said simply.

"Well did he say anything when he left-"

Beverly rubbed her forehead, wondering how many questions and answers it would take for one of them to become uncomfortable. She bet it would be Will who would break first. "Look, Will...I last saw him awake around midnight. I thought we had both fallen asleep, and I don't know exactly when he left, because I didn't hear him leave," she added, shooting him a meaningful look. "So when I woke up and he was missing, I eventually left and returned to my room," she finished, gesturing over her shoulder.

Riker nodded, now slightly embarrassed at his misstep. After another awkward moment, he cleared his throat. "Troi, Data and Geordi are out looking for him right now. Any idea where he might have gone?"

She shrugged, and then glanced up at him quickly. "Oh! That damn artifact!"

"What artifact?"

"He found it yesterday afternoon out in the desert. It was all I could do to pry him away from the thing. You know how he can be with archaeology." Will nodded. "Anyway, he wanted to have it examined or something, and probably decided to go searching for any experts who might possibly be awake before dawn," she added wryly.

"There have been reports that a Risan man, an art dealer, was murdered just about an hour ago. So when you called me to see if he was with me, I became concerned that maybe the captain was in danger."

"Of course," she said, peering off into the distance with growing concern. Then she gave him a tight smile. "But I think we both know he can take care of himself."

Geordi spotted Troi and Data and jogged over to their agreed upon meeting place. "Anything? He asked.

Troi shook her head. "Among the three of us, we've covered the downtown area...there really aren't that many places to go...and besides, the authorities have blocked off a wide area around the crime scene." Suddenly she felt a familiar sensation in her mind, and turned on her heel.

Captain Picard's loose fitting shirt hung open carelessly, and he walked with a slight limp as he approached.

"Sir!" Deanna hurried away from Data's side. "Are you alright?"

He seemed to just notice them, and appeared at first confused, then annoyed. "Of course" he answered somewhat gruffly. "I might ask the same of you three," he said, adjusting his shirt and putting his hands into his pockets. "What are you doing out and about at this late hour?" He squinted in the rays of the now rising sun. "Or perhaps it's a bit early to be awake."

"Sir, there was a murder reported near the marketplace this morning. And you weren't answering your communicator..." LaForge trailed off, now sounding like he was wondering whether they had overreacted. Picard fixed his chief engineer with a probing stare, which gave way to subtle amusement, as he noticed that LaForge had a smudge of what appeared to be lipstick on the side of his Visor.

"I see," said Picard, aware that Troi was silently observing him. "How tragic and...unusual for Risa. All the more reason to end shore leave early," he added curtly.

Troi stepped forward. "Sir, did you-"

He quickly cut her off. "Thank you all for your concern, but I am quite well. I simply decided to take a walk to enjoy the fresh air. Now if you will all excuse me..."

"Captain," Data called after him.

Picard hesitated and turned back. "Yes?"

"Are you injured? You appear to have fallen."

Picard looked down at his pant legs, and wiped away some drying mud. The fabric over one knee was torn. Then he straightened and smiled confidently at them. Something about his gaze looked strange, but then passed. "Yes. I tripped and fell in the dark. So clumsy of me." With that, he turned again and walked away swiftly through the courtyard.

She knocked several times before he called out for her to come in. When she finally entered, she found him standing next to his bed, shoving clothes into his compact suitcase. She walked over to his side, arms crossed, and stood there for a moment, but he was so intent on this mundane task that he didn't seem to notice. She took another step closer to his side and teasingly elbowed him in the ribs. To her surprise he jumped slightly.

"Oh, hello," he said, offering her a small, perhaps even sly smile.

"In a hurry?"

He finally clicked the case closed and stood up straighter. "No," he said. "But I have issued an order for all personnel to return to the Enterprise. I thought it appropriate to set a good example."

She eyed him curiously. "I don't believe you...there's something else going on with you, and I'm going to find out." She suddenly hugged him around his waist and brought her lips to his neck. "Just a few hours ago you told me you had no intention of going anywhere, and then I wake up to find you abandoned me in your bed Jean-Luc. Now what am I supposed to think? And then Riker with his 20 questions..."

He laughed, and kissed her quickly. "I'm sorry, Beverly, I didn't intend to abandon you or to send my first officer into a tizzy. I came back, didn't I?"

She grew still and looked at him closely, still holding onto his waist. "Out with it. What happened? Where did you go?"

He shrugged casually. "Nothing happened at all, and I simply wandered the city limits."

"Were you looking for someone to assess your newfound treasure?"

He smiled, but then it fled his features almost immediately. "Yes."

"And did you find anyone?"

"No," he said without pause.

"And you didn't run into any trouble?"

"No." The skin around his eyes crinkled good naturedly when he smiled again. "Were you worried about me?"

She pulled him closer. "Maybe. Maybe I missed you. This is a new relationship after all...I have needs."

He laughed, as she pushed him onto the bed, and her momentum took her down with him. She linked hands with him but he didn't allow her to pin him immediately, which turned into something of a wrestling match. He began to laugh again as their breath began to quicken and she found his mouth, silencing his laughter. Giving in to the kiss, he felt her hands brace on his stomach as she moved over his lap. Bending over him she gasped as the heat between them began to grow. Suddenly, she ceased her wonderful rocking motion, and he felt her rise up and look at him.

He shifted his head to look up at her, barely finding the words to speak. "What's wrong?"

She grabbed him lightly by the palm. "What happened to your hands?" Her voice betrayed her alarm, and he carefully extracted his hand from hers.

"Nothing," he murmured.

She moved off of him, rolling onto her side as she grabbed his hand again. This time he reluctantly relaxed it so that she could see.

"Jean-Luc, you have cuts all over your palms. You said nothing happened," she accused him.

He laughed, but stopped abruptly when he saw that she was serious. "Beverly, it's nothing. It was dark, and I nearly fell on my face walking along. I used my hands to break my fall." She still watched him with growing disbelief, but relaxed to a degree, kissing the heel of his hand gently.

"I'm fine," he reassured her softly.

Suddenly there was a knock at the door Beverly groaned and dropped her head on the sheet. "It just has to be Riker."

"Captain," Riker called out from behind the closed door. "I'm sorry to bother you sir...but the local authorities are asking to speak with you immediately before we depart for the Enterprise."

Hi, thanks for checking out this story. Peace. -PP