Dear Readers, due to an injury to my right hand and difficulty with typing, chapter 11 will be delayed for two weeks. Thank you for your patience and understanding as my hand heals.

In the Family

Chapter 10

"now the plot thickens very much upon us"

George Villiers,

2nd Duke of Buckingham

Jim materialized at the side exit door.

Bones was already kneeling on the ground by Mayri. Spock, Doris, and the two police officers were standing around him. Spock, hearing the transporter jingle looked up. "Captain," he moved to make room for Jim. Doris was calm, but she was extremely pale.

Jim nodded to the two officers and knelt too. "Bones, what happened to her?" Mayri's eyes were closed and she looked ashy pale, small, and frail as she lay on the hard ground. Bones was examining her with gentle hands and his medical tricorder.

"Just a minute, Jim." Leonard slowly finished his examination and pulled out a hypo. He depressed it gently into Mayri's carotid artery.

Leonard looked up and met Jim's worried eyes. "She'll be alright, Jim. She was struck on the head by something hard and knocked unconscious. Look." He turned Mayri's head gently to the side, and showed them the thick braid that had come partially undone. "Her braids cushioned the hard blow, saved her from a severe head trauma. She has a mild concussion, but that's all. It could've been a lot worse, a fractured skull. I gave her a mild stimulant, she'll be coming around soon. Doris, come kneel here beside me. I want you and me to be the first faces she sees. The rest of you back away. She'll be disoriented and I don't want her frightened by seeing all of you around her."

Everyone moved back. Doris knelt by Mayri, took her lax hand in her own and rubbed it. There was a soft moan from Mayri and her eyes fluttered as she tried to open them.

"Talk to her, Doris. It'll help her come back to consciousness."

"Mayri, wake up," Doris' soft voice pleaded. "Come on now, open your eyes." She patted the small hand. "Wake up, Mayri."

There was a soft moan, and Mayri slowly opened her eyes, blinked, closed them, then opened them again.

"There you are, darlin'," Leonard leaned in to her line of vision. "Nice to see you awake."

"Dr. McCoy?" Mayri murmured, her bewildered eyes met the kind blue ones. She blinked rapidly, then noticed where she was. "What happened? Why am I on the ground?" Her hand came up to her forehead in bewilderment.

Her eyes widened as she saw Doris kneeling by her side. "Dr. Stemple! What are you doing here? What's going on? Did something happen to me?" She shifted restlessly, alarmed, and tried to get up.

"Wait, wait. Easy, easy, Mayri, be careful. Here now, let me help you. You've been injured, Mayri, but you'll be alright." Leonard gently helped her sit up. "Do you feel any dizziness, sweetheart?"

Mayri shook her head and winced. "Not…dizzy, but my head hurts terribly." She moaned softly and bent her head into her hand.

"I can fix that. Don't move your head too much." Leonard pulled another hypo out of his med bag and injected it into her arm. "You're headache will feel better in a minute, then you can move a little more."

Jim knelt down. "Mayri…"

One of the police officers also knelt beside Jim. "We need to question her, Doctor."

"In a minute, both of you. She's still a bit disoriented."

Doris put an arm around Mayri and she leaned in to Dr. Stemple's warmth. "Do you remember what happened, Mayri?" Doris asked softly. "Do you remember what you were doing here, why you came back to the University?"

The girl nodded. "Yes, I remember, Dr Stemple. Today I was going to choose the flowers for the party, it was the last thing on my list, but I ran out of time. I had to get to my classes, because I had two classes back to back this afternoon. After class I went back to my dorm room to place the order, and then remembered I left the florist's information on my desk. I got on my bicycle and came back for it. I left my bike in the stand by the side door, but that door was locked, so I went around to the front. The front doors were unlocked and I took the lift to your office, Dr. Stemple. I looked everywhere, but I still couldn't find the florist information. Then I remembered I had stuffed a bunch of padds in my back pack and it probably went in there with all my class assignments padds. I came back down the other lift to the side exit door to get my bike. When I opened the door, there was someone standing there. I was startled and I backed away, but then he grabbed me. I struggled and then felt something hit the back of my head! The next thing I knew I was on the ground here with all of you around me! Who would do something like that? And why?"she asked angrily

"That's what we're trying to find out, Mayri." Jim beckoned to one of the police officers. "Officer…"

"Marchan, Captain."

"Bones, is it alright for Officer Marchan to question Mayri? Is she up to it?" Jim asked.

"I'm up to it, Dr. McCoy. I'm feeling better," Mayri answered for herself.

"Someone get a chair for her, lets get her off the ground," Leonard ordered. Spock hurried into one of the classrooms and brought out a desk chair. Leonard helped her get up and gently guided Mayri down to the chair. "Sit, darlin', first I wanna' check you thoroughly." Mayri sat patiently while Leonard gently felt her arms, ribs, shoulders, neck, and back. He ran the tricorder over her lower body, and used his comm light to look into her eyes. Her pupils retracted, but sluggishly, so definitely she had a mild concussion. "Can you undo your braids for me?"

Mayri nodded and reached up with shaky fingers to undo the two intricate braids that made up her yellow hair crown. Leonard combed through her scalp with gentle skillful fingers and spread out her long hair. He parted the hair at the top of her skull and when his fingers touched the abrasion and the large bump there, Mayri winced. They all leaned in to look and saw there was blood coming from the deep abrasion and large bump at the top of her head.

"It looks as if she was struck with some force, Dr. McCoy," Spock commented.

"Yeah, it does. Mayri, sweetheart, I'm going to clean the abrasion and then I'll close it with the tissue regenerator. First I'm going to numb it though, because it's quite deep. You'll feel a little pinch from the analgesic hypo."

"Jim…," Leonard murmured looking around for his bag.

"I'm here, Bones." Jim handed him the med bag he was still holding.

"Hmm, let's see. Best to use the auto suture first," Leonard mumbled to himself, looking at the contents of his bag. "Then the tissue regenerator." He looked at Mayri's thick long beautiful hair and sighed regretfully, there was no help for it. "Mayri, I'm sorry, but I'm goin' to have to cut off a small area of your hair and shave the area. I think you'll be able to cover the shaved area with the rest of your hair."

"It doesn't matter, Dr. McCoy. My hair grows fast and I have a lot of it."

"Also, darlin', I'm afraid there'll be no paintin' your hair any color at all for a few days, okay?"

She nodded. Leonard worked fast, cutting and shaving the area, suturing the wound, and regenerating the scalp. "There, I'm all done. Good as new. Won't even leave a scar. I'm going to give you a prophylactic antibiotic too, don't want to chance an infection." He brought out the hypo. "Little pinch. Feeling' better now?"

"Yes, thank you, Dr. McCoy, I'm just feeling tired," she sighed softly.

"That's normal for a head injury, but if you feel worse, you say so, young lady, is that clear?" Leonard looked at her sternly. "Concussions are nothin' to fool around with." Leonard spoke gently to her, but inside he was seething. To think someone had done this to this sweet young woman. It was unconscionable! If it hadn't been for those thick braids of hers the blow might have killed her!

Mayri bobbed her yellow head and winced. "Please go ahead with your questions, Officer Marchan. I want to help."

"What can you tell me about the person who assaulted you, Miss Mayri. Even a small detail you might have noticed about the person who hit you would be helpful."

Mayri closed her eyes obviously trying to remember. "It was a man, I'm sure of that; a tall man, he loomed over me and I saw him look over my head into the hallway when I opened the door. I didn't expect to see anyone there, so I was startled," she frowned. "Somehow I got the impression I startled him too, he moved back, then forward."

"Do you think he was trying to come inside, or he'd already gone out?" Jim asked, with an apologetic glance at Officer Marchan for interrupting. He was after all only a guest here on Nara.

Mayri screwed up her face trying to remember. "I don't know, Captain. He was just there outside the door. I got the impression of someone tall and heavy set. I felt his arms when they went around me and they were muscular and thick."

"Did you get a glimpse of his face, or was he masked?"

"No mask, but he turned me around so fast I really didn't get a look at his face…except…." She stopped, obviously thinking.

"Except what, Mayri?"

"I just remembered. I was struggling so hard against him that my arm brushed up against his lower face. I felt a beard."

"Are you sure, Miss Mayri?" Officer Marchan asked, taking rapid notes on his padd.

"I'm sure. The beard felt thick and coarse on my arm." Mayri shuddered, and rubbed at her forehead fretfully. "Then he grabbed me tightly by the shoulders, turned me around, and…." she stopped, her eyes widened.

"What? What did you just remember?" Leonard asked her.

"I remember feeling both his arms around me, holding me tight, because I was still struggling. I think I stepped on his foot because I heard him grunt and then something hit my head. There must have been someone else there behind us, the person who hit me!" She added, sounding surprised.

"That's good, Mayri." Jim said. "You're doing very well, every little detail helps, you have a remarkable sensory memory."

Mayri sighed. "It all happened so fast, Captain Kirk. I wish there was more I could tell you, but I don't remember any more." She closed her eyes, obviously very tired now.

Leonard looked at Jim and Officer Marchan and shook his head. "Okay, that's enough for now. I can tell her headache is getting worse. It's bed for you, young lady." He looked at the police officer. "Can someone take Mayri and Dr. Stemple home, Officer Marchan?"

"Of course, Dr. McCoy. We have the ground car police transport just outside in the front. Timmons, you escort Dr. Stemple and Miss Mayri to Dr. Stemple's home. You know where it is."

"Of course, Sir."

"Officer Timmons, please check the inside Dr. Stemple's house thoroughly. We don't want any more surprises. Maybe you can stay with them until Mr. Spock returns to the house?"

Timmons looked over at Marchan who nodded. "Good idea, Captain."

"Doris, you or Spock check on Mayri every couple of hours. Wake her up and make sure her pupils are retractin'' properly. Spock knows the drill. I'll tell him before he goes back to your house. All Enterprise officers have to be certified in field medicine in case of an emergency. We make sure they're all up to date on that certification. There might be some dizziness, nausea, and another headache, but that's not unusual with a mild concussion. Spock will comm me if he's concerned about anythin' and I'll be on call in case you need me…"

Leonard was confident about Spock. All Starfleet senior and junior officers were certified in first aid and rudimentary field medicine. Leonard made sure they had a refresher course every six months, and Spock also made sure of every officer attended. The two doctors, Leonard and Geoff, Leonard's Head nurse, Christine Chapel, and Senior Nurse, Tonia Barrows taught the course and certified all the officers for that six months. If for some reason Jim couldn't attend due to his work schedule, Leonard or Geoff certified him by himself on a different day, but attend he must.

"Mayri, you'll probably want to sleep on your side, too, so as not to re-injure that bump. Doris, I'll give you some medication for her head pain. Fix her something light to eat and it's absolutely imperative you or Spock wake her every two hours and check for pupil retraction. That's how we'll know the concussion is gettin' better. The most important thing for her to do is rest. Mayri, you'll feel better in the mornin', you may go to the office in the afternoon for a little while, but no classes and you can't do anythin' strenuous."

"We'll take good care of her, Leonard. Don't worry. Come now, Mayri, let's get you home so you can rest. I'll lend you some night clothes and a toothbrush, and in the morning I'll give you breakfast in bed, how's that."

"Oh, Dr. Stemple!" Mayri sounded scandalized. "Not in bed!"

Doris chuckled, and with Mayri, between her and Timmons, they walked slowly through the hall and out through the front door. Jim, Officer Marchan, Spock, and Leonard watched their slow process for a minute then Marchan led them down the hall to the camera monitoring room.

"Officer Marchan, don't want to step on any toes, but I'm here at the request of Dr. Stemple. I hope you don't mind."

"Happy to have the help, Captain. We don't have much criminal activity on Nara."

"So Dr. Stemple has informed us," Jim said. "Is the building clear?"

"Yes, Captain. We checked every office and classroom right away. We haven't checked the outside parameter though."

"I'm sure whoever they were are long gone," Jim said. "Are there cameras in the entire building?"

"Yes, Sir, cameras inside and outside the building, on every floor, in every hallway, and in the lifts. We haven't had time to check the feeds yet."

"Let's just hope the cameras weren't disabled," Jim said. "Where exactly is your control room?"

"It's this way, Captain." The officers led Jim, Leonard, and Spock to a door that was flush to the wall and difficult to detect.

"A well camouflaged door," Spock murmured to Jim.

"That's good, probably the perpetrators didn't even notice it."

Officer Marchan pressed at an unseen panel and it opened. He pressed his thumb on the flat scanner and the door opened. "If we didn't do something like this, the kids would constantly try to get in here," he explained. "It's amazing what they do before they realize they're being filmed."

Jim's eyes twinkled at Bones'. "I'm sure it is."

Spock went to the main terminal and stood looking down at the set up.

"Spock?"

"There are many cameras throughout the building, Captain. It will be more efficient for me to eliminate the feeds from earlier today. The time stamps should prove helpful in isolating the feeds close to the break in event. Officer Timmons explained there is a camera mounted almost directly across from Cousin Doris' office. It is hidden by the raised molding on the ceiling."

"That's fortunate. Hopefully they didn't see it."

Spock, working at lightning speed, his long fingers flying, eliminated all of the earlier day and afternoon feeds, until he finally slowed the flashing holos. "We are coming to the approximate time when Mayri entered the building from the front door." The three men watched silently. "There she is," he pointed as Mayri entered the door and walked hurriedly to the lift. The camera in the lift showed her impatiently tapping her foot and then exiting on the third floor. The third floor hall camera picked her up as she entered Dr. Stemple's office, her bright yellow hair clearly visible in the dim office light. Inside the office they saw her looking on her desk for the padd, then under the desk on the floor, and behind her on the file cabinet. She finally gave up and went back into the lift. The first floor hall camera followed her to the side exit and she opened the door. "There!" Spock exclaimed.

A large shadowy man grabbed her at the open door. They saw her struggle against him as he turned her around exactly as Mayri described. They saw a second man come up suddenly behind her and hit her hard on the head. The first man lifted the unconscious girl and laid on the ground by the exit door, then both men hurried inside.

"There they are," Jim exclaimed!

Inside the dimly lit hallway, the camera caught the two men as they walked with their heads down to the lift. They were dim shadowy figures with bent heads inside the lift and when they exited to go into Doris' office. Inside, still keeping their heads down, they began their search for whatever they were looking for, looking at and throwing padds on the floor, checking Doris' computer files. One of them opened desk drawers and pulled everything out. They could see they were talking to each other, but there was no sound, only vids.

"I wish I could read their lips," Jim said, "but the angle is wrong."

One of the men angrily kicked at the desk chair and it rolled away. The other gave him a sharp negative gesture and beckoned to the door in a "let's go" gesture.

One of the men opened the door and stuck his head out to check the hallway. As he turned his head back to speak with the other one, he forgot to bend his head. "Got him!" Jim exclaimed. "Freeze that frame, Marchan and enlarge it. Let's see what the bastard looks like."