AN: Looking back on this chapter we wanted to add a little more.
Chapter 23 – 14:29 hours - Secured Guest Quarters – USS Haida
The doors to the quarters snapped open as Christine typed in the access code. She hurried in and tossed her bag onto the bed. The sound of the door opening woke the sleeping occupant of the bed. He gave her an accusatory glare when the bag landed near him.
"Did he send you to butter me up?" Christine reached over and petted Ollie, her father's canine companion. The dog gave her a doggie smile and wagged his tail. With a sigh, Christine opened her bag to retrieve the Sky Fox pad.
"At least I have you hear as I listen to this," Christine sunk onto the bed next to the dog. She carefully placed her thumb on the access point, activating the pad. Next, she tapped the highlighted message causing a 10-centimeter hologram to appear above it, and went back to scratching Ollie behind the ears in comforting motions.
"Hey, sweetheart. I'm sorry about all this subterfuge." Richard Skyler scratched behind his head. "You know I hate doing this to you, but to protect Jacob, I need you to listen to me." He returned his hands to his sides, "Jacob took this mission not for me, not for your aunt, but because he wanted to protect you and the children. He knew what he was getting into. While I disagree with him leaving the three of you, I also cannot be angry with him for why he did it because I would have done the same thing."
Christine smirked and looked to Ollie, "Yeah, I could see Dad pulling the same thing on mom and us." Ollie began licking her hand in response.
"Captain Torbin Varel is taking Cerberus as his security team to meet with his wife, General Neoma Saxona. I volunteered to transport his team to the Fomalhaut system. I also knew you would not let them leave without going with them. You have too much of your mother in you." Richard smirked at his daughter. "Jacob and General Neoma were sent as part of a diplomatic mission to Fomalhaut Prime. The General is handling the front facing mission, while Jacob is extracting a team that is trapped there." Richard held his hand up to stop her, "Before you go honey badger on him, it wasn't his idea."he
Christine's hand stopped petting Ollie as she glared at the hologram. First, he had Ollie waiting for her, and now he knew she would throw a fit if she wasn't allowed to come along and save Jacob. She hated that her father knew her so well sometimes.
"Captain Torbin lost contact with his wife seven days ago. This triggered a contingency plan that activated Cerberus to extricate Jacob and his team. We are going into this mission semi blind. All we know is that the Haida is meeting with a medical relief ship, and General Neoma's ship at these coordinates outside of the system. What we will find there," Richard sighed and crossed his arms. "I'm not sure. That will all depend on what Jacob and his team managed to achieve on the planet. I will be honest with you. I know that there is at least one dead…"
Christine's heart stopped for a moment.
"…but it isn't Jacob."
Her heart started beating again.
"Until we beam the team aboard, we won't know if 'Jacob hitched a ride home on the medical shuttle', or if Cerberus is taking the medical shuttle down to bring him home. In the meantime, I need you to hold it together, and follow your mission of escorting a transfer of medical supplies from SB 71 to the relief group. Can you do this sweet pea? The Haida will be at Star Base 71 in 4 hours. "The recording ended. Christine's chin fell to her chest, eyes closed, petting Ollie.
She wasn't sure how long she sat like that until the silence was broken by the door chime. "Enter." Christine turned to the door. "I'm not sure if I should hug you or scream at you."
"Would you rather have been left behind?" Admiral Richard Skyler slowly walked into the room with a chagrined look on his face. Ollie got up and trotted over to his Master.
"I should thank you for Ollie and for the ride. I wouldn't have stayed on the station if I knew Jacob was in trouble." Christine put the pad away, stood and faced her father.
"Ollie is good at comforting cuddles, and I knew you wouldn't stay put even if you were ordered to do so, consider this your professional courtesy, Lieutenant Skyler." Richard stressed that this was Star Fleet business and not personal. "I need not have to remind you that while you are on the Haida, you are a guest aboard and you have a job to do. Outside of your duties, you are to stay out of the way and not interfere." He gave her a stern look. "Am I understood?"
"Yes Admiral," she nodded. "I'll stay with in mission parameters, per orders."
"The Haida has a cache of kloqeithine aboard…." Richard started.
Christine interrupted her father, "The relief team can treat the rash of Cholerica Verminosa that has taken hold on the planet." Richard gave her a knowing glare. She refrained from saying more.
"Bole IV also had a small supply. The relief team stopped there, retrieved that cache, and since they were meeting with the Haida," Richard cleared his throat, "Lieutenant Commander Holtz forgo his normal transport and tagged along to surprise you."
"Sounds like something Jacob would do." Christine rolled her eyes, "So who is really on that ship?"
"Lieutenant Colin De La Vega," Richard smirked. "He is a fine field medic, who has appreciable taste in music, art, and antiquities. He is known to be a pacifist unless it is absolutely necessary."
Christine's eyes narrowed at her father, "One final question, Admiral."
Richard gestured for her to continue. "If I was to come across this Colin in a dark bar, might I mistakenly kiss him, thinking he was my Jacob?"
"Funny enough yes. It is quite possible." Richard tipped his head sideways, "Think you can handle the mission?"
"As long as it goes the way we hope." She shrugged.
Richard's sternness melted, and he placed his hands on his daughter's shoulders, "Have faith princess."
"I will dad." She gave him a weak smile.
"Admiral, we are at the rendezvous point." A voice came over the com.
"Status?" Richard's business mask dropped into place again.
"Two ships. One a medical relief ship from Bole IV with a passenger transfer. The Bajoran transportation ship has six in need of medical attention, and one remains transfer. We are sending a medical team to meet them in transporter room two."
"The Lieutenant and I will meet the team there." Richard gave Christine a side look. "Mind if Ollie stays here while we get Jacob?"
"Just as long as someone picks him up before Jacob and I returned."
"I'll send someone one. I don't want him in the line of fire when the honey badger comes out."
12403.06- USS Haida- Transporter Room
Just as Christine came through the door, four people beamed onto the transporter pad.
"She needs a doctor," A bloodied but standing Vulcan carried a woman off the transporter pad toward the medical team.
For a moment Christine froze. She scanned the room, but Jacob wasn't there. She snapped back to the reality, "How can I help?"
"Over here!" One of the medical team members signaled, and she jumped right in to help.
"What do we know?" Christine knelt next to the bloodied woman.
"This is Lieutenant Allyson Cedoeno. She was second in command. She was tortured." The medical officer filled her in. "Her team was only able to give her basic first aid since they pulled her out of that hell hole."
"Hello Allyson, I'm Christine. I'm going to be taking care of you." Christine began scanning her wounds. "Allyson, you have four broken ribs, and internal bleeding. We are going to transport you directly to sick bay."
"My team," Allyson grabbed hold of her arm.
"We will do our best. Let us take care of you." Christine carefully removed Allyson's hand and placed it on her chest. With a nod, Allyson was transported away.
Christine looked up in time to see two more people beam aboard, and a casket. Soon as one of them appeared his legs gave out and he collapsed to the transporter room floor. Christine jumped to catch him the best that she could.
"Hey Beautiful…" a bruised, and bloody, Jacob looked up at her with a weak smile. "I told you I would come back."
"You did." Christine gave him a watery smile. "But I thought your trip to 'see the doctor' would bring you back to us better than you were before you left."
"Well, you know, rehab can take a lot out of you." He grimaced as he tried not to laugh.
With care, Christine helped him sit up. Her hand never leaving his arm. "We need to get you to sick bay." She started to pull him to his feet, but he stopped her.
"One moment, Love." Jacob looked over to where Richard was guiding people out the door. Richard nodded and winked at him, then left with the rest of the group, leaving the couple alone.
Jacob maneuvered himself onto his left knee in front of Christine, "Before I am carted off to sick bay or another dam mission…." Jacob reached into the chest pocket of his badly damaged leather jacket and pulled out a princess cut diamond ring. "I'm going to do it the right way." Jacob looked up into Christine's face, "I know the future is uncertain, but the one thing I want you to know for certain. I will always be there for you. So, Christine Skyler, will you marry me?"
Christine knelt before him with a smile that would outshine any sun, "Yes."
Speechless, Jacob slid the ring onto her finger, unable to stop smiling.
Sick bay- USS Haida – 18:00 hours
"Dad!" A voice shouted across the Haida's sick bay.
Captain Tobin Varel jogged over to wrap his teenage son in a hug. "Are you alright?"
"A few bruises but nothing Myah can't fix." The young Bajoran officer, a near identical younger version of his father, smiled.
"This must be your son." Admiral Skyler walked up to them.
"Admiral Skyler, this is my son Cadet Neoma Varel. TJ please meet Admiral Richard Skyler your new commanding officer."
"Dad, I just got back …"
"Calm down cadet," Richard reassured the boy. "You are joining my training crew." Richard eyed Torbin. "It was very kind of your mother to bring you and your cohorts to us following your training simulation."
TJ looked back and forth between the formidable men. "I was hoping for a reprieve, but I got a feeling this is my reprieve."
"You are now a member of an elite cadet tactical team Cadet Neoma. If you don't wish to accept it you could be sent back to the academy to debrief to your instructors all that went wrong on your recent mission." Richard offered with a smile.
"I'll gladly accept the transfer admiral. Thank you." TJ caught the drift.
"I'll leave you to your family Captain." With a nod Richard left the men.
As Richard passed General Neoma, she tapped his arm. "Dare I ask where Jacob has gone?"
"Private medical treatment." Richard assured her.
"Ah…" the general nodded in understanding, "When you see him, please tell him thank you for bringing my family home."
"I will, but we are doing a debriefing in a couple hours in my conference room, and" Richard cleared his throat. "Lieutenant Skyler is going to want answers. HARD answers."
"That I have no doubt," she shook her head, "And she will have them."
"Good." Richard clapped her on the arm and made his rounds checking on all the injured in sick bay. He was smiling until he stepped around a corner only to be met with the scariest pair of eyes he had ever seen. "Ah, Lieutenant Skyler, I see you have brought Lieutenant Commander Holtz to sick bay." She didn't say a word. She just pointed into a walled office.
"The Chief Medical Officer said we could borrow their office." With a sigh and a wince, Richard closed and locked the door behind them.
"It is good to see you in better shape than you were when you transported aboard Jacob." Richard attempted to keep things pleasant. He knew what was about to come was going to be anything but nice.
Jacob looked back and forth between father and daughter. "I've had worse." He shrugged "None of my injuries will require a biobed." Jacob took a step back from Christine and leaned on his cane. "I'll be fine under Christine's care."
"That remains to be seen." Richard looked to his daughter. "You have us safely away from prying eyes and ears, what was it you wanted to say sweet pea?"
Christine spun on her heel so she was an inch from Jacob's nose. "WHAT THE HELL were you thinking running off like that?" She then turned her ire toward Richard, "And why the HELL did it have to be him?!" Christine pointed directly at Jacob.
"ANSWERS! I need them NOW!" Christine's fury at the two of them flowed off her like a torrent.
"Telling you to calm down I know would only make you more angry, but can I ask you not ask any questions," Christine started to speak, but Jacob held up a finger, "….yet."
Richard held his hands up in surrender. "Two hours," Christine's ire turned on Richard. "And then we are going to debrief everyone. There you will get you all the answers you want."
"One hour," Christine growled.
"Christine, it will take two hours to connect with Admiral Scott," Richard carefully explained.
"Why, Aunt…"
"It is a long story, Love, and she can fill in a few details." Jacob tried to defuse the situation.
"Sweet pea, take two hours, decompress, see to Jacob's wounds and THEN you can go all…." He looked to Jacob.
"Honey Badger," Jacob filled in.
"Honey badger on us." Richard finished.
Christine looked back and forth between them, "Fine! We will return for answers in one hundred twenty minutes."
"Agreed.' Richard stepped out of the couple's way.
"Agreed!" Christine grabbed the front of Jacob's filthy tee shirt and dragged him toward the door.
"Um, help…" Jacob looked to Richard.
"Not happening. I've got my own problems." Richard smirked.
