Chapter 12

Kira was irate. Two days after Rathaus left, he contacted her to say that he would be longer than originally expected. This was their honeymoon, she thought as she threw another datapadd down upon his desk. He communicated with her only once to say that he would be late and ask her to send an important document that he had forgotten.

During this time, her languor slowly began to dissolve, increasing her energy, her curiosity, and her annoyance. Suddenly everything irritated her, even the pressure of her betrothal bracelet on her wrist. Within a few days, she began to leave it in her room.

She was not particularly taken with the great Pirovania. It was a vast, beautiful estate, but it held little for her. It was too quiet, too peaceful and too perfect. Everything was meticulously maintained and absolutely tasteful. It told her nothing of the man she had married, and, in his continued absence, she was desperate to know more about him. Alasia was too quiet and uncommunicative. Under her influence, the entire household staff became voiceless ghosts. Goltar seldom visited the mansion and barely spoke when he did. When she tried to send messages to her friends on DS9, Kira discovered that the comm. systems were down and hours of trying to repair the problem failed. She felt cut off from the rest of the world.

Three days after his departure, his computer console caught her eye. It was nearly the only place on the entire estate that she had not explored, yet it seemed to be the one place where she might find the answers that she sought. At first, she ignored her curiosity, mindful of his privacy and request. As she continued her searches, however, her interest grew and in no time, she found herself requesting access. Oddly enough, the computer sprang into life at once. She had expected to need a password or code to get in.

A moment of guilt shot through her as she thought of the man who obviously trusted her enough not even to protect his precious computer files with an access code. As she scrolled through the files, she was shocked to see files bearing her name. Some of the files had not accessed the computer since they had met and married. Aflame with curiosity, she immediately opened it, but her body grew cold as she studied the file. It contained everything about her - biographical information, service record, comings and goings, and even all her recent personal correspondence sent from DS9. Obviously, he had managed to compromise station security. He had been stalking her since at least the end of the war. Her horror grew as she realized the consequences. She had obviously been duped by a con-artist. Her marriage was planned well in advance.

As hard as she tried, however, she could not come up with a motive. The war was over; Bajoran politics had reached a relatively calm spot. Rathaus had even actively campaigned to get her to leave the station instead of using her position to gain power and influence. Worse still, were the implications on her judgment. She, a decorated war hero, the commander of the quadrant's most strategically important space station, had fallen for the whole scam. Now, she was trapped within a force-field on an insignificant planet few people had ever heard of.

With no other options, she realized that she had to conceal the extent of her knowledge from Rathaus in the hope that an opportunity to escape would present itself soon. She quickly wiped her commands from the computer's memory core. She then returned upstairs to her room where she replaced her betrothal bracelet and tried to think of a better plan. Sitting on her balcony in the sun, however, her recent flurry of activity caught up to her. Her anger and fear dissipated somewhat and she dozed off.

Within a few days Rathaus returned from his trip, relaxed and pleasant. Kira's mood had drifted back into languor and complacence by the time he arrived. She remembered her discoveries, but no longer felt alarmed or threatened by them. She could always confront him later, but at the moment, he was so charming and attentive, it was no longer a major concern.