Apparently engrossed in the mug of bloodwine he was drinking, Grenn was in fact on high alert and keeping a careful watch on the various occupants of the restaurant. He had noticed the way the two tera'ngan males were watching Chrissie, and not liking it in the slightest, had been prepared to take action should they make even the slightest move against her. He was not completely surprised when the boss joined him at the bar. "Is everything all right, sir?"

No, Krang thought. No, everything was not all right. He did not say that to Grenn, however. Instead, he nodded. "It's fine. Keep an eye on those two, though; I do not trust them."

Grenn frowned. He was already doing so. Nothing was going to happen to Chrissie on his watch. "Do you want me to have them arrested?"

"No," Krang said, and if there was regret in his voice, it was understandable. "I am sure you know, Grenn, that there is an unspoken treaty with regard to this place. Provided they do not step out of line, I would prefer to honour that truce."

Bustling over to take his order, Grapok caught the tail end of the conversation. "The room is filled with warriors who are loyal to you. We will be watchful. There is no need for you to be concerned about your mate's safety." At Krang's nod, he continued, "Now, what can I get you?"

Making his way back to his mate and her 'friends', Krang placed the tray of drinks in the centre of the table. They were talking about the trip to Mauritius, he realised as he sat down next to Chrissie and took one of the tankards of bloodwine for himself – not Inigan vintage this time, but still, it wasn't bad quality.

"… You should have seen him," Chrissie was saying as she helped herself to another portion of the gladst. "Playing beach volleyball with a bunch of kids – and getting wiped out by them as well. And as for that tree…" She paused, giving her mate a look of pure mischief.

He glared at her. "Don't you dare!"

"Tree?" Kirk was genuinely interested. There might be ulterior motives for this meeting, but for the moment, he was enjoying himself. And was the Klingon blushing? "I think I want to hear this story. What happened?"

"Oh… well, we went to the botanic gardens," Chrissie said obligingly. "I'd wanted to go there for years but never thought it would actually happen. Anyway…"

Krang growled, a low, warning sound that sounded very threatening to Sarah and Kirk, but that Chrissie knew was actually a promise of very pleasurable retribution once they were alone.

She paused for a moment, considering the wordless threat and then dismissing it. Whatever 'punishment' Krang had in mind for later, she was pretty sure she was going to enjoy it. "I'll take the risk." Ignoring his protests, she launched into a highly exaggerated account of his battle with the golden-flowered tree. "…he sneezed and sneezed…" By the time she finished her story, even Sarah was laughing.

For all his apparent displeasure, Krang was, in fact, very pleased with Chrissie, even if he wished she hadn't decided to embarrass him with that ridiculous story. She was doing very well, better than he'd expected considering her lack of training and he made a mental note to tell her so once they were safely home.

He leaned back in his chair, his body language declaring to anyone who cared to look, that he was completely relaxed and enjoying the company of good friends. It was only the faintest note in his voice that betrayed the tension he felt. Never raising his voice, he nevertheless allowed it to carry as he made use of the subject she had introduced. "It was a good holiday. Chrissie-oy, did you bring the photos for your brother?"

She tensed imperceptibly, aware that this was the most dangerous part of the whole transaction. Krang had told her that he would be using a very small, undetectable jamming device that would prevent their conversation from being recorded, but if they were seen handing over illegal documents then there would be serious trouble that maybe even Krang's influence couldn't get them out of. Nor would the device prevent them from being overheard and was what was worrying Chrissie. The restaurant was far busier than she had expected when she'd suggested this. Maybe she thought nervously, they should abort and find somewhere a bit quieter. It would be perfectly normal wouldn't it, for Sarah to invite them back to her flat for coffee after dinner? No, not there. She did not, she realised, ever want to go back there again. Nor did she want any member of the resistance, not even Sarah, in the home she shared with Krang.

Had it not been February and freezing cold, a walk in the park would have been ideal. Not just because of the awful weather, she rejected that option. All their reasons for choosing the Neutral Zone were still valid. Who would expect treason to be happening right in the middle of a crowded restaurant?

"Chrissie?" Krang's voice interrupted her thoughts, bringing her back to reality.

"Oh… um… the photos…. Yes, I did." Reaching into her bag, she pulled out an envelope and opened it, retrieving the first of the photos and handing it to Sarah. The brightly coloured image showed Toni and Fina, wearing their swimsuits and playing on the beach. "We took these pictures in Mauritius. Would you mind giving them to David?"

Of course," Sarah said, "I'd be happy to. Accepting the photo, she studied it carefully; as far as she could see, it was just a holiday snap, nothing special. Reaching across the table, she took the envelope from Chrissie and glanced through its contents. More holiday snaps. "I'm sure David will be glad to have these," she said coolly. Sliding the photo back into the envelope and putting it in her bag, her fingers encountered something small and hard inside the envelope. She paused, looking up and giving Chrissie an enquiring glance. "So, what is all this about? You didn't invite us here to admire your holiday photos."

"You are correct," Krang acknowledged, letting out a low growl that wordlessly warned Sarah to watch her attitude. With some satisfaction, he saw the human woman flinch. "Inside that envelope, you will find a data chip. I am sure that the technology on Kirk's ship will be able to access its contents."

Kirk leaned forward, helping himself to a piece of bread from the platter in the centre of the table. "And what will we find on this data chip?"

"It contains a list of names which I am giving to you as a sign of my good faith," Krang said bluntly. "I am ordered to find and execute any and all scientists who may have… will have, rather... played a part in the development of warp drive. The execution order includes their families, aides, assistants and any students who may work for them."

There was a shocked silence and for a few seconds it felt as though time itself had stopped and the entire world had come to a halt. In the end it was Sarah who broke the silence, and with it the spell that held them all motionless. About to take a drink of the disgusting (in Krang's eyes, at least) brown, fizzy substance that was inexplicably popular amongst the Terran population, she set the glass down on the table with enough force that had it not been half empty, would have sent its contents spilling onto the table. "Why don't you just kill us all?" She almost spat the words and it was only the hand Kirk placed on her arm, fingers squeezing in a gesture that was both support and wordless warning, that allowed her to retain control of herself and keep her voice low. "Why don't you just bombard us from orbit and destroy our entire planet while you're at it?"

"It may still come to that," Krang said coolly. "Certainly, my government would not be completely displeased should that come to pass."

Tightening his grip on Sarah's arm, Kirk leaned forward. Stay calm, he reminded himself. Don't let this escalate. Spock's logic was needed here, not his own gung-ho approach to problems. "Am I right," he asked, doing his best to channel his first officer, "in assuming that by giving us this warning, you do not agree with your government's stance?"

"No, I do not," Krang growled. "These orders are dishonourable and I will not obey them."

Kirk let out a breath he hadn't even realised he was holding. "Well, that is a beginning. I assume, also, that you are asking for our assistance?"

"Again, you are correct." It was Krang's turn to sigh. "This is not something I can do unilaterally. As you point out, my government is not known for its tolerance of disobedience. The likely chain of events is this: I will be removed from my post and my second in command will be expected to take over. If he too refuses to obey – and I think he will – then someone will be sent from Qo'noS, someone more like Karg who will not hesitate to carry out mass executions.

"So why are you telling us this?" Sarah asked coldly. Kirk's grip on her arm had been tight enough to bruise and she rubbed it absent-mindedly as she spoke. "What do you expect us to do?"

"We expect you to help," Chrissie hissed. Despite her best intentions, she was starting to get angry with Sarah's continued belligerence. "It's as much in your interest as ours…"

She never got a chance to finish. "Ours?" Sarah kept her voice down but her tone was scathing. Unintentionally, Chrissie had quite blatantly declared just whose side she was on in this conflict. "Listen to yourself! You're human, one of us, but you'd rather whore yourself to the enemy…"

Krang's growl was filled with cold fury. For all his Imperial Intelligence training, he was still a Klingon and the insult to his mate was intolerable. "You will not say such things!" His hand strayed instinctively to the knife in his belt as he spoke, starting to draw the weapon from its sheath.

"Krang." Chrissie placed her hand on his, the touch gentle but firm, delicate fingers caressing him as her voice called his attention back to her. Neither of them was aware of Kirk quietly castigating Sarah, asking with asperity if she was trying to get them killed and reminding her that they were here to do a job.

"Krang-oy, look at me." He did so, not liking what he saw. Her face was pale and she looked as though she wanted to cry. Satisfied that she had his attention, she continued, "She is not being fair, but she has reasons for her anger. Let the insult go, Krang-oy, and do what we came here to do. That's more important than anything else."

Slowly, reluctantly, he nodded.

Not letting go of his hand, she leaned towards him and kissed his cheek. As she'd hoped, the gesture calmed him and she relaxed slightly as she felt the killing tension drain out of him and discipline reassert itself. For now, disaster had been averted but they had come so close! With mild surprise, she realised she was trembling and wanted to be sick. Nausea rose in her and fighting it back, she got to her feet. "Krang, I am going to the bathroom."

Any anger Krang had felt at Sarah was replaced by concern for his mate. "I should take you home. You are unwell." He started to rise but with surprising strength, she pushed him back down.

"I am fine," she told him, hoping very much that she was speaking the truth. "I just need a moment. Maybe you can finish this while I'm gone so that when I come back, we can just finish our meal and go home."

Reluctantly he nodded. He did not like her going off on her own, but he could not follow her into the toilets. "As you wish."

Krang kept his eyes on his mate until she disappeared through the door to the toilets. A movement caught his eye and he tensed, but it was only Grenn. The young soldier unfolded himself from the stool on which he had been perched and with the faintest nod towards Krang, lazily made his way towards the ladies' room, taking up a guard stance by the door. Grenn had been here several times before and already knew the layout of the place. The door led to a small washroom with sinks, hand driers and, of course, several toilet cubicles. There was no other exit and any threat to Chrissie would have to go through him.

The security captain relaxed slightly, knowing that Grenn would keep her safe. Come to think of it, the young guard was not the only one. As Grapok had pointed out earlier, if the resistance were to make a move against Chrissie, pretty much every Klingon present would leap to her defence.

"I'm sorry!" To Krang's surprise, it was Sarah who broke the awkward silence that had fallen. "I… maybe I should go and make sure she's all right."

"You will do no such thing." Krang snarled. He thought he saw shame and concern in the human woman's gaze, but it was too late for that. "Do you not think you have done enough damage? Leave her in peace; she does not require your assistance or your apology."

Sarah nodded jerkily and not knowing what else to do, reached for a piece of bread from the basket in the centre of the table. She buttered the bread and took a bite, chewing it and swallowing before she spoke again, her tone subdued, nervous, and much politer than it had been. "So, what do you need us to do?"

"It is my hope," the Klingon said carefully, "that as representatives of the Federation and the local resistance, you may be able to come up with ideas to solve this problem and prevent a tragedy."

Kirk nodded thoughtfully. "I'm sure that between us we can come up with a satisfactory solution."

Sarah frowned. She was tense, knowing that what she was about to say was inflammatory to say the least, but she was speaking now as a representative of her planet and she had no choice. "On behalf of the resistance, I must tell you that there is only one solution that is acceptable to us – leave Earth!"

Big thank you again to RobertBruceScott and Solasnagreine for their continued support and kind words, and to Linny, my wonderful Beta.

The next chapter might take a while, because I have to make some major decisions at this point, so please bear with me.