Ch.5 Delusion or Reality

"Hey" Carmen ran after her. "Hey." The ones in the front heard him. The nausicaans turned around in their seats.

T'Pol ran down the aisle to where the Nausicaan was seated. "I know where I have seen you before."

The nausicaan got out of his seat and stood. "What?"

She reached him and got in his face. "Where is my daughter?"

He looked her in the eyes. "I don't know what your talking about."

She pointed a finger in his face. "You know perfectly well you attacked Enterprise years ago." Carmen finally came and pulled T'Pol away from him. "I saw you on that ship. Both of them." she took a breath. "You couldn't get back at the captain..."she raised an eyebrow. "so you sought your revenge on his daughter."

"You are a lunatic." the other one told her.

T'Pol cried out. "Where's T'Lin?"

Carmen had a hold on her arm. "Hold it. Back up. Have you seen these men before?"

She looked at Carmen. "Indeed." She felt him let go of her arm.

The nausicaan spat out. "No she has not."

"I saw them approximately six years ago when they attacked Enterprise."

He smiled like it was funny.

Carmen turned to him. "Is this correct, sir?"

The nausicaan pointed with his hand. "I've never seen this vulcan before in my life." The other one intervened "Neither have I."

A passenger said "What do you expect them to say, 'You got me'?"

The stewardess came up the aisle. "Shouldn't we move this to one of the galleys?"

The nausicaan turned to her. "Why? I didn't do anything." he turned to Carmen. "I've never even seen this vulcan before."

"Where'd you take my little girl?" she said holding the tears.

"Aren't you listening?" he spat at her. "I have never seen her." he turned and saw all the other passengers looking at him. He turned back to Carmen. "Not that it's any of your concern, but I was at the Vega Hilton last night on business. We both were and neither of us left the hotel." he tilted his head. "Would you like to see our bill?"

"It's a bit unorthodox but.." he nodded to him "if you wouldn't mind."

The nausicaan turned and knelt to get it from his bag. Carmen put a hand on his weapon just incase.

He unzipped his backpack. "When I travel with my children, I have an eye on them at all times. I don't lose them and blame somebody else." He got up and handed the bill to Carmen. Carmen looked at it. "Satisfied?"

That male passenger whispered to the person next to him. "A bill doesn't prove anything."

The nausicaan was getting agitated. "Satisfied?"

The same passenger. "Are you gonna let him talk to you like that?" Pointing to the nausicaan. The stewardess near him turned to him. "Sir." Trying to quieten him down.

T'Pol was getting impatient. Carmen handed the bill back to him. He turned and grabbed her arm. "Let's go."

T'Pol wouldn't budge. She looked straight at the nausicaan. "Where is my daughter?"

He yelled at her. "I spent the night watching a movie, you crazy..."

T'Pol broke from Carmen's grasp and launched herself at the nausicaan. "Where's T'Lin?" She knock him down and tried to strangle him. "Where's my daughter?"

Carmen pulled her away. "Come here, come here!" In the process a stewardess was knocked to the ground. A male steward helped her up. "It's ok. I'm ok. It's ok." Carmen dragged T'Pol to the galley near.

The nausicaan was helped up by his friend. He turned to everyone. "Anyone else have any questions for me?" No one answered him. "Then you'll have to find a few other Nausicaans to harass."

The male passenger before stood up from his seat. "Sonofabitch!" The male steward near him stopped him. "We're gonna take our seats now." he turned his head. "All of us! Right?" The nausicaan sat down in his seat.

Shaking at her arm. "I can cuff you, understand that?"

"They have T'Lin why would you want to cuff me." pointing at her chest.

They paused to let two stewardess by. He got back in front of her. "Ok. You think those nausicaan were surveilling you last night."

She nodded her head. "Yes."

"For the purposes of kidnaping your daughter...and stashing her until we dock?"

She nodded her head more. "Yes."

He straighten up his posture. "Mind if I ask you an obvious question?" she nodded. "If they knew where you lived, why not take her from there?..why take her on a shuttle with no means of escape?"

She looked down. "I do not know."

"And let's not forget, her name isn't on the manifest. How could two passengers pull that off?" looking straight at her.

"Obviously they'd have to have someone from the crew involved."

"Jesus!" He grabbed her by the upper arm and pulled her in the galley. "Think about what you're asking me to do. Approach two Nausicaans on a shuttle and accuse them of criminal conspiracy."

"They have my daughter. I don't give a damn about being politically incorrect." anger in her voice.

"Fine let's go and arrest both of them, just as soon as you answer me one more question. Why would anyone want to take your daughter? What makes her so special? What makes you so special?"

T'Pol took a minute to think. "I'm a commander in Starfleet. That is what this is all about." she pointed to herself. "Why they picked me?"

He had a astonished look on his face. "They pick you? For what?"

She shook her head. "I don't know. I think their hijacking the shuttle. I think my daughter is a hostage." she looked at him.

"You know what your husband's death is starting to make a lot more sense to me" nodding his head. "A couple more hours and even I'm ready to jump."

T'Pol could feel the tears coming. "He fell. Jonathan fell." she looked up at him.

"Sure he did" nodding.

-Beep- Ladies and gentlemen, the captain's turned off the seat belt sign, you are now free..."

T'Pol moved to see that the passengers were getting up. "What is he doing?" she turned back to Carmen. "What is he doing?" she walked passed him and made her way to the stairs they just went down. She went up the stairs and glanced at the other passengers getting up. She turned made her way toward the cockpit. She pushed her way through a crowd of people. When she was passed them she saw the captain coming toward her."What are you doing? Are we done looking."

He took her arm and discreetly said. "If you just come with me."

T'Pol jerked her arm out his grasp. "I am not going anywhere."

"We're not going to discuss this here." lowering his voice.

"Where is my daughter? Where is she!" shouted at him.

"She's dead, godammit!" raising his voice.

She could feel her emotional barrier breaking with emotion in her voice. "You found her."

"No, I didn't find her, Ms. T'Pol." he said softly.

Before she was able to say 'I don't understand' he led her to the galley where the stewardess was waiting. The captain took a sheet of paper from her. He looked up from the sheet to T'Pol. "This is from Vega Hospital. That's where your husband was pronounced dead. Is that correct?"

She swallowed. "Yes."

He looked to the floor. "Your daughter was also taken there."

She shook her head. "No...she wasn't there when it happened. She was with me at the observatory I was showing her how to find earth and vulcan."

"Ms. T'Pol, according to the director at the morgue there" he breathed in. "Your daughter T'Lin died of internal injuries at 1:23pm." he was stepping closer to her. "He took her with him off the roof. Didn't he?"

T'Pol was stepping back away from him. "No..T'Lin wasn't even there. She was at the observatory. She wasn't even there. She wasn't even there!" T'Pol was starting to feel disoriented. She look around "You're crazy. You're all crazy." Her attention snapped back to the captain.

"She was never on board." stepping up.

"No..I carried her on board." pleading to him.

"Ms. T'Pol, I can't tell you how sorry I am."

"She must be...so scared." emotion in her voice.

"But my main responsibility is to the safety of these passengers and I can't allow anyone, no matter how tragic their circumstances, to jeopardize that." getting closer to her.

T'Pol was backing away from him. "She doesn't know where she is."

He looked down then back at her. "Our space marshal is going to escort you back to your." he turn to him. "Mr. Carmen, would you take her back to her seat now?" he turn to go back to the cockpit and Carmen put a hand on her back. He also had a hold of her left arm. T'Pol slowly made her way to her seat. She purposely bumped into a woman, which made Carmen loose his grasp on her. T'Pol started running. Carmen had to move the woman in his way to run after her. "Hey!" Some passengers yelled out. "What she doing?" "Stop her!" "Grab her!" When T'Pol reached the next section the Nausicaan came out of nowhere. He grabbed her by the shoulders and swung her around toward the seats. T'Pol hit her head on an arm rest on the way down. She landed on her back. -moans- Her breathing slowed down and everything faded to black as she slowly passed out.

TBC