In the Family

Chapter 6

"Good food warms the heart and feeds the soul."

Adrienne Posey

Jim and Leonard beamed down to an area close but not too close to Doris Stemple's home. It was 6:30 and on Nara it was getting close to what the old Scots dialect called the gloaming, an Old English verb meaning the glowing part of the evening, it was twilight on Nara.

Both men stood and looked silently at the beguiling, pleasant scene around them. To the left of them shadows lay across the grass, but the trees were still full of color and light. The cedar trees were laden with its cones all in rows on the great spreading branches, and the thorn trees were red with berries, as it was their fruiting time. Other trees which spread their branches went as far as Jim's eye could see. There was lush green turf under their feet as they walked the short distance to Doris' home. It was a large, a very large green space that had been created here.

"Looks like a lot of big earth trees were planted here. Must have been planted first thing 85 years ago. They're doin' real well too, the environment must agree with them."

Jim nodded, looking around in appreciation. All his life, Jim had responded to beauty of anykind, taught by Winona Kirk to see beauty even in the strange and unusual. "It's beautiful here, Bones, very beautiful, idyllic almost. A lot of extremely hard work and precise, detailed terra forming algorithms went into creating this. It'd be a shame if the mining conglomerate were to spoil any of this."

"We'll just have to make sure the Antares Corporation doesn't get the chance to do that," Leonard stated.

The evening was turning cool and Leonard was happy they'd changed into civilian attire. The warmth of his wool sweater felt good. Jim, being Iowa born, the cold bred into the very marrow of his bones, had dispensed with a sweater, but wore a warm, flannel green checked shirt with his soft casual brown cords. Leonard was sure Spock would still be in his uniform. Informality was anathema to the Vulcan, to all Vulcans, so far as Leonard's limited experience with them had shown him.

It was a short pleasant walk, and they soon reached Doris' front door. Jim knocked lightly and the red door was opened immediately by Spock. Leonard smiled to himself, he was indeed still dressed in his Starfleet uniform. Doris appeared beside him. She, too, had changed, and was wearing a soft blue wool skirt and a matching light sweater. "Come in, come in. Dinner will be ready in half an hour. Meanwhile how about a drink? Leonard, Spock says you enjoy a good bourbon. I think I have something you'll enjoy."

"I do enjoy a fine bourbon, Doris. What do you have on hand?"

"It's a Four Roses bourbon from Kentucky. I was fortunate enough to receive several bottles as a going away gift when I left earth."

"I wasn't aware the Four Roses distillery was still in business," Leonard told her.

"It is. It's been in business since the 1800's. Of course it's changed owners many times down through the years, but they're still producing fine bourbon. Jim, what about you, what would you like?"

"I'll have the same, Doris. Bones has converted me to bourbon drinking by introducing me to some fine bourbons."

They sat down in the comfortable chairs facing the fireplace, Jim and Leonard sipping at their bourbon, and Spock with a cup of tea. Doris joined them with an expectant look on her face and looked at Jim. "I have a timer set for the dinner entrees," she explained. "Go ahead, Jim."

"I contacted my friend, Gavin Bradford at SIS, Doris. He's happy to help. He despises dishonest dealings of any sort that reflect poorly on the Federation or Fleet. If you knew his history you'd know why he's so adamant about loyalty to the Federation and our Fleet ideals. He'll dig deep, have no fear. Gavin is lucky he has a colleague, also a friend of ours, a young officer named Sonnai Connolly, who is an expert at finding anything that anyone tries to hide. We've worked on missions with them before and can vouch 100 percent for their ethics and honesty."

"You can say that again," Leonard murmured. "No one better."

"I did some digging myself," Jim added. "Didn't have much time, but I did have time to read about the law suit against Antares and the ruling by the judge." He grinned. "The judge raked the company over the coals, and their team of lawyers too. Told them they better fix their messes fast, that he was going to keep a close eye on the whole process. Threatened to disbar the lawyers for shady practices. They slinked off with their tails between their legs. I understand the mining sites were completely restored, and fast too. So I think we have a good precedent for finding and proving they have been less than honest. However the "buying" of votes on the Council committee may be difficult to prove."

"If I may make a suggestion, Captain?"

"Of course, Spock."

"After we, Commander Bradford, and Lt. Connolly, have gathered all facts, and proven without a doubt the duplicitous plans of the Antares Corporation, I suggest we place everything in Sarek's hands. As President of the Federation Council, it would be almost impossible to negate what he brings to the Council and the committee. As an added measure of redundancy, we would also give all the evidence and findings to Admirals Boyce and Barnett to present to the Admiralty. I sincerely doubt that any Admiral would have the courage to contest the facts."

"A brilliant idea, Mr. Spock."

"I agree, Spock," Doris added. "I doubt if anyone would have the gall to go against Sarek and his report of the Antares mining practices or for that matter the recommendation of two of the most important Admirals in Fleet."

Leonard nodded. "Also the three men are incorruptible. Their word is their bond and no one can say differently."

"So we'll proceed with our investigation on that basis," Jim said, looking pleased.

The timer chose that moment to ring. "Dinner is ready," Doris announced. "I hope you enjoy it. Everything we're eating has been grown or raised here and is completely organic and non replicated."

Leonard sighed in satisfaction. He loved nothing more than a home cooked meal made with good fresh ingredients.

They sat down at the kitchen table and Doris plated and served from the kitchen counter. "I hope you don't mind, but I don't have much room for formality in this kitchen," she smiled.

"We don't mind at all," Jim assured her. "At the farmhouse we usually eat in the kitchen."

"The foods I cooked are all vegetarian, Spock. You may eat them at will."

Doris was an excellent cook, Jim decided, tucking in with pleasure. Her cooking was on par with his mother's, and that was saying something. He and Bones glanced at each other and smiled, easily reading each other's minds. Bones was a big fan of Winona's cooking and baking. He liked nothing better than to keep her company in the kitchen when he visited the farm with Jim.

On Doris' kitchen table were a butternut squash ravioli dish, a baked fresh asparagus and cheese casserole, a goat's cheese, fig, and onion tart. Also, to Jim's delight, sitting on the counter was his favorite dessert, apple pie.

"Please, have seconds. You too, Spock. The ravioli recipe was handed down to Amanda and me from our grandmother's recipe collection. You may have eaten it before."

Spock nodded. "I have. I recall this dish, cousin Doris. Mother made it for us when she could acquire the butternut squash. It is not grown on Vulcan. Father and I liked it very much."

As they ate, Doris told them she had spoken with Mayri and she was drawing up a guest list for the birthday party. Doris would look it over tomorrow morning to make sure the Antares representatives were on the list. She and Mayri would plan everything tomorrow, decide on the caterers, and the minimal decorations she had in mind. "I prefer fresh flowers rather than other kinds of decorations," Doris confided. "But I suppose there must be something with a big 60 on it," she laughed. "Mayri was very definite on that point. She's a dear child, very affectionate and protective of me. She assured me she'd take care of everything, and I have no doubt she will. She's very efficient. She said tomorrow morning, after we we decide what type of food I want, she'll arrange for catering, sit down with me to write and send out all the invitations, plan the decorations, order the flowers, and, of course, decide about the birthday cake," she grinned. "i know it will be very short notice, but parties and celebrations are usually quite impromptu here."

"Mayri seems to have abundant energy for her tasks," Spock commented dryly.

"Sounds like she has enough energy to power the warp core," Jim laughed. "This a very enjoyable meal, Doris. Your cooking rivals my mother's and that's the highest complement I can give you."

Doris beamed. "Thank you, Jim. I do enjoy cooking, especially here where everything is fresh and locally sourced. Shall we adjourn to the living room for coffee and pie?"

The men rose and began to clear the table. "No, no, leave everything. I'll take care of cleaning up later."

"I will assist cousin Doris, we will make short work of it," Spock assured Jim and Leonard.

Over apple pie and coffee, the conversation turned serious. "Could we get a copy of the Antares prospectus that was given to the Federation Council committee, Doris?"

"I'm afraid I don't have a copy, Jim. They completely bypassed me and my entire department. The prospectus and report went directly to the Admiralty subcommittee. It was quite deliberate I can assure you. They want to keep us in the dark as much as possible. Not even the Governor of Nara received a copy. A blatant snub to her authority. She filed an angry protest, but Antares Legal told her it was not required for her to get a copy of their prospectus. If I'd had a copy, I would have been able to rebut and contradict almost every descriptor of their methods and assurances that Antares made."

"Damn," Jim said softly. "That prospectus would have been extremely helpful."

"It is of no matter, Captain. I will ask father to send a copy of the Antares prospectus directly to you on the ship via an encrypted message and attachment. As the Federation Council President, he can access any document sent to any committee or individual on the council. His security level is the same as the C in C and the Federation President."

"That'll be a great help, Spock. I want to go through that prospectus with a fine tooth comb. We'll put legal on it. With all the experience that department has had with treaties and First Contact agreements, nothing is going to get past them."

"That's a great idea, Jim." Then to Doris. "We'll go at these guys from all fronts. Jim is real good at this stuff, there's none better."

"Bones…" Jim protested, horribly embarrassed at Bones' fulsome praise.

"Nothin' but the truth, Jim, as any of our Enterprise crew will attest to. You're gonna' get to the bottom of this, and that Antares Mining Corporation won't know what hit them!"

"And on that note, you and I better be getting back to the ship, Bones." Jim rose. "Thanks for a fantastic dinner, Doris. We'll see you tomorrow morning. Spock will go with you in the morning before classes begin, and Mr. Scott will scan your office, comm, and computer for listening devices. I hope Commander Bradford will have some information for me when we get back to the ship, but it may be too soon. After you, Spock, and Scotty are finished I'd like us to get together to visit the sites you think are the most likely to be mined. I'd like to get a clear idea of the possible ecological consequences to the different areas. I'd also like to invite Mr. Sulu to accompany us. He's by way of being our premier botany expert on the ship, and he has an eagle eye, honed by his expertise in fencing."

"Of course, Jim. Please invite anyone from the ship you think would be helpful."

"I, too, would like to see those sites, Cousin Doris. A holo of the area as well as a written description of the number and variety of the plants and animals living in those areas which would be impacted by the mining would be invaluable as we acquire evidence and collect facts. Mr. sulu could help with that. I also think Father would be interested in seeing the locations of possible mining sites so I will forward the holos to him and my mother."

"Good thinkin', Spock. Nothin' like actually seeing the real thing, what's there that could be despoiled, ruined by sloppy mining methods. You know, Doris, I've been thinkin' too. It might be helpful to offer alternatives to the subcommittee, you know search out reputable mining companies, those that take care of the environment, those that are aware about the impact of mining methods and have come up with alternative, sound methods. You know," he added thoughtfully, "we do that with surgical techniques too. It's those that were deemed too risky, too dangerous to use on folks, that led to better and safer techniques."

"That's brilliant, Bones! The subcommittee would be a lot more willing to see reason if they were offered some good alternatives, reputable mining companies to choose from and they can negotiate the revenue split with them. It's a fantastic idea."

Leonard gave him a shy smile. It was usually Spock who came up with the good ideas, and he was happy he'd thought of this one. "Happy you think so, Jim, but what do you think, Doris?"

"I think that's an excellent idea, Leonard, if the subcommittee will go for it." She looked dubious.

"If father thinks it's a good idea, cousin Doris, he will throw his considerable weight as President of the Federation Council behind it. I doubt there is anyone on that sub committee who would go against Sarek. It was too late for him to do anything about the Antares Corporation, since the prospectus was done in a clandestine manner, and he knew nothing about it, but now it will not be possible to do that again. I will be happy to that research for you, I have access to the ship's computer from my padd."

"Thank you, Spock, that would be a big help, and the search will be off site, another good thing."

"Good plans." Jim flipped open his communicator. "Good night, Doris, Spock, we'll see you in the morning."

Doris nodded. "Leonard don't forget you're scheduled for a visit to our hospital and Terra Forming facility at 3:00 in the afternoon."

"I'll be ready, Doris. Looking forward to visiting your hospital."

"We'll see you two in the morning. As soon as I get back to my cabin I'll touch base with Commander Bradford," Jim added. "Enterprise, two to beam up."

"Energizing," came the voice of the transporter officer."

The two men stepped off the transporter platform. "Evening, Mr. De Salle. Everything nice and quiet?"

"Captain, Doctor," De Salle greeted them politely. "Yes, Captain. All quiet. How was your evening, Sirs?"

"Very enjoyable, Lieutenant. Enjoyed a great home cooked meal, didn't we, Bones?"

"Sure did. Dr. Stemple is a fine cook."

"Glad to hear you enjoyed yourselves, Sirs. Doctor McCoy, Lt. Uhura said to let you know you have a message from the Captain's mother. She placed it in your message queue. You also have a message from the Captain's nephew. It's also in your queue."

"Thank you, Lieutenant. Well now," Leonard said, looking pleased as the two men walked to the lift. "Did you hear that, Jim? Bet it's the recipe for Win's buttermilk biscuits. Say Jim, do you think your mom would mind if I shared the recipe with Doris? Bet she'd really enjoy making those biscuits. And I wonder what Peter has to allow?"

"I think Ma would be flattered and happy to share the recipe, Bones, and no telling what Peter is up to," he grinned.

"I think so too," Leonard grinned happily. "Your Ma is always generous with her recipes. "

"Bones, you want to come with me to the briefing room while I check in with Gavin? You can read your messages there."

"Sure. Be good to see Gavin. Been a while. Hope he's found out something about Antares."

"I'm hoping too, but he and Sonnai really haven't had much time to work on it."

They entered the bridge and Jim waved down Lt. Hannity who was in the Captain's chair. She too needed con time, and had taken over for Chekov for Beta shift. "Looks like everything's quiet," Jim smiled at her.

"Oh, yes, Captain. It's been very quiet."

"Good. Hannity, Dr. McCoy and I will be using the briefing room for a while. Carry on."

Once in the briefing room, Jim turned on the soundproofing and locked the door. "Lt. Uhura, please connect me with Commander Bradford at SIS and encrypt the comm call."

"Yes, Captain. It will be a few minutes, comm relays have a lot of traffic today."

"No problem, Lieutenant. Bones and I aren't going anywhere."

The two men sat back and Leonard looked knowingly at his Captain. "This issue's turned out to be is a lot more complicated than you first thought it would be, hasn't it, Jim?"

"Yeah, Bones. A corrupt mining corporation, possible bribery of members of a Federation Council subcommittee, a possible ecological disaster looming, Ambassador Sarek's involvement, not to mention the head of SFM and the sector chief, intimidation, listening devices, and spying on a private Federation citizen. So yeah, it's a lot more complicated than I thought it'd be."

Leonard sighed. "When has one of our missions ever turned out to be simple?"

"To my certain knowledge, never," Jim sighed. "Bones, why don't you go ahead and read your messages from Ma and Peter while we're waiting?"

"Good idea." Leonard opened his comm and waited for his queue of messages to load. Sure enough, Winona had sent the recipe for the buttermilk biscuits. She added a note that she and Peter would pick up Joanna and Saffron at the main transporter station in Des Moines. Joanna was traveling with a transporter escort and they would hand off Joanna to Winona as per Jocelyn's instructions. Leonard nodded satisfied. Jocelyn had been a lousy wife, but she was a careful and nurturing mother. He opened Peter's message, chuckled, and looked at Jim.

"What?" Jim asked.

"Peter says when Joanna gets there Winona has given them permission to comm T'Lane, Lady Amanda, and Mr. Sarek, so the three of them can see Saffron and how much he's grown. He says T'Lane already told him they'd be happy to hear from them. Peter's going to ask T'Lane to have Queen Cleopatra on hand so she can see both Sorrel and Saffron, so she knows how well he and Joanna have taken care of her kittens."

Jim laughed out loud. "It's doubtful if Cleopatra cares, but it's awfully nice of them to indulge Peter and Joanna."

"It sure is, but you know Jim, Vulcans really dote on children. It gives me hope for the whole shebang of them."

"Bones…" Jim's scolding was interrupted by the beep on his large comm.

"Commander Bradford for you, Captain."

"On screen, Uhura. Gotta' take this, see you tomorrow, Bones.

"Good night, Jim.