Gardens in the Rain, chapter 7
2100 hours. It had taken all day, but evidently Spock and Uhura had finally found something. Kirk pushed his nightly paperwork to the side when he received the call from Uhura, and hurried to the science lab.
The door whisked open, and they both looked up from the computer.
"What did you find?" asked Kirk.
Spock tilted the computer so that Kirk could see over his shoulder. "The log entries we found this morning under Ensign Gato's user identification were not originally created by Ensign Gato. Someone else made those requests and rather clumsily used Gato's identification to cover his trail. We are not dealing with a computer expert, and it appears likely that we are not dealing with more than one person."
Kirk sat down at the table. "But I take it you don't know who did this?"
"Correct. While the changes to the computer log were unwieldy, they were nevertheless effective."
Kirk pursed his lips in frustration, but Uhura touched him lightly on the arm and murmured, "There's more, Admiral."
Spock nodded. "Indeed there is. We have located the 'leak.'"
"Excellent! Where is it?"
"As we suspected, someone tapped into the computer and is monitoring our usage. Once we ascertained that the log entries were altered, it was not difficult to follow the path our suspect took. We are fortunate that this person's computer skills are unsophisticated. I can easily build a 'wall' around the corrupted routines and limit what we allow him to observe."
Kirk leaned back in his chair. "If someone is looking at everything we do on the computer, can't you trace it back to a location on the ship?"
Shaking her head, Uhura said, "Our person isn't very good at this, but he does know enough to avoid sending the information directly to another computer. It's all stored in central memory, and the audit trail has been wiped."
Everyone was silent as Kirk digested this information. Finally, he turned toward Uhura. "Commander, what happened with your communications 'bug'?"
Smiling ruefully, she said, "I had to fix it before communications were disabled for real. I never did pick up any unauthorized transmissions or coded messages."
"Do you anticipate that it will cause difficulty again tomorrow?" Spock asked.
She laughed. "Oh, you never know. Maybe I didn't fix what I thought I fixed. Those communication relays are tricky."
Kirk glanced over at Spock. "Spock, could we invent something and make sure our spy sees it?"
"Yes. Once I construct a barrier, we will be able to channel selected data. In order to avoid arousing suspicion, we must allow our infiltrator continued access to broad-based routines such as normal communications—hence the need for Commander Uhura's 'bug'—but we can prevent his monitoring other routines, such as scanning, and ensure that he sees only what we wish for him to see."
"Good. Let's come up with something so juicy he'll have to send it immediately, and show it to him in the morning when Uhura is on the bridge to monitor communications."
"Might I suggest that our fabrication be a complicated one?" asked Spock. "That will allow Commander Uhura additional time to attempt a fix on the source of the transmission."
Uhura nodded. "Good idea, but even if it's a long message this might still take several tries. I'll have to figure out the protocol before I can even begin to locate the transmitter. You know, I could really use Scotty's help on this."
"I agree. We'll bring him up to speed in the morning." Kirk looked across the table. "In the meantime, let's call it a night. I want everyone fresh tomorrow."
...
Holding her wine glass loosely in her lap, Uhura closed her eyes and leaned her head against the back of the sofa. She breathed slowly as the soothing melody of "Clair de lune" rolled around the room, and she willed her taut nerves to relax.
After a moment, she opened her eyes to see Spock watching her.
"Are you unwell?"
She smiled gently. "I'm just tired. I haven't slept much the past few nights, and I was so invigorated all day that I didn't stop long enough for it to catch up with me." She scooted over until her thigh brushed against his. "Now that I'm sitting quietly, it hit me. That's all."
"Perhaps I should leave so that you—"
"No." She put her hand on his knee to stop him. "Please stay. I would really like to feel you next to me in bed."
"If you are tired, you should sleep. You pointed out last night that your bed was small, and that has not changed. My presence will only disrupt you, unless, of course, you desire more than sleep."
"No, all I want to do is sleep." Sighing, she said, "Last night I just felt uncomfortable being with you. Actually, even though I know it's illogical, I still feel like someone's watching us. It's creepy. And now that I've got the idea in my head, I can't get rid of it. I don't know. Maybe you should go."
"No one is watching us. No one was watching us last night. It is safe to assume that no one was watching us on the Lexington, either, since we have found the source of the leak."
"So now you want to stay?"
"No. I am merely explaining why your feeling of 'being watched' is illogical."
She tried to keep exasperation from her tone, but she knew she wasn't entirely successful. "I know it's illogical. That's what I said."
"And I agreed with you. It is obvious that you are overtired. I will leave."
"Spock!" Rubbing her face, she lowered her voice. "I really want you to stay."
He spread his hands. "Why? If my presence makes you uncomfortable—"
"It's not you. It was just the idea of someone watching us."
"No one is watching us."
"I know that!"
"Then obviously I do not understand. Why are you uncomfortable?"
"I just am."
"'I just am' is not a good reason. Logic dictates—"
Throwing her hands into the air, she exclaimed, "Maybe I just want to be comforted! Reassured that we're really alone and always were! Hell, if you sweet-talked me, maybe I would want to have sex."
"We are truly alone, and even though I cannot state so definitively that we always were, the point is now moot. You know that as well as I do." He shook his head. "And did you or did you not say that you only desired sleep?"
She set her glass down hard on the table and shoved her hair away from her face. "Forget it! Just forget it! If I have to explain it to you, then forget it!"
His voice finally reflecting his own frustration, he said, "Explain what, Nyota?"
"Nothing!" She stood. "Just go back to your own quarters. I'll see you in the morning."
Coming to his feet, he raised both eyebrows. "That is what I proposed in the first place."
"Then do it!"
They glared at each other for a moment before he nodded tersely. "Very well."
"Fine."
He walked toward the door. At the last moment, he turned, and for an instant she thought that maybe he would apologize for being so unmindful of her needs, he would come back and draw her into his arms...
"Tomorrow morning when you run your scans," he said, "perhaps they would be more fruitful if you adjusted the Broussard transceiver to register omega—"
Intending to tidy the sofa, she grabbed a pillow and slung it back down against the arm. "I already thought of that! Good night!"
He drew himself up. "Good night." Holding her gaze for another moment, he finally walked out the door.
She watched as the door swished shut, and then she picked up the sofa pillow again and tried to make it stay where she wanted. Damn thing! Why did it keep falling over? She punched it back into place. And why did she have to spell it out when all she wanted was a little tenderness and understanding?
Finally getting the pillow to stay propped up against the arm of the sofa, she stomped back to her bedroom.
...
Stepping into his quarters, Spock took a deep breath and tried to find his control. What had just happened? He had been willing to stay, but Nyota had contradicted herself so many times that he could not comprehend exactly what she wanted from him. Indeed, she acted as if he should have known her wishes without her having to state them, and when he attempted to explain that such an attitude was illogical, she became offended.
Clearly, he was not the only person in the relationship who experienced difficulty with open communication.
Opening the front of his jacket, he walked back to the bedroom in search of his meditation robe.
...
"Admiral, are ye saying that we have a traitor? Right here, on board the Enterprise?" An expression of shock on his face, Scotty drew back and looked around the table as if the traitor were sitting there with them.
"That's correct, Mr. Scott," said Kirk. "We need your help locating him. Mr. Spock and Commander Uhura determined yesterday that he's tapping the computer, so our plan is to feed misinformation in hope that he'll try to transmit."
Scotty nodded slowly. "Aye, that should do it. What can I do to help?"
Uhura spoke up. "I'll be on the bridge when Mr. Spock activates the false data. Hopefully I'll be able to detect the transmission, and I want you to help me get a fix on it."
Gazing across the table at Scotty, she studiously avoided the dark, calm eyes of the person next to him. Her spat with Spock seemed silly after a good night's sleep, but she still thought that he had been insensitive. What had gotten into him recently, anyway?
"I'll do what I can, lass. What sort of false data did ye have in mind?"
Spock clasped his hands and rested them on the table. "Last night, I implemented the changes that will allow us to limit computer access. In addition, I created graphics that show the Potemkin and the Lexington en route to Nistras Three. Our 'scans' will capture an unusual energy signature from the Potemkin, one that cannot easily be described."
Although his voice was as even as always, had he paused overlong after the words 'last night'? Unable to resist, she finally looked over at him. His eyes, full of questing intelligence as always, were trained on her almost as if he was trying to read her thoughts, and she felt her chest tighten at the sight of his uncertainty. Suddenly ashamed of her ill temper last night, she dropped her gaze and pretended to study the padd in front of her.
"Very good. Something like that will get their attention." Kirk rubbed his chin and glanced over at Uhura. "Commander, how much time do you need to prepare?"
"Give me about five minutes to check in with Captain Ames and another ten on the bridge with Scotty, and we should be ready."
"Done." Looking at Spock, Kirk asked, "Can you do your part from the bridge?"
"Affirmative."
"Excellent." Kirk stood. "While the three of you prepare, I'll alert security and give the other bridge officers a quick need-to-know briefing. Let's get this show on the road."
...
Uhura gratefully accepted a cup of coffee from Yeoman Smithers and turned back to her board. What a disappointment! After all the high drama earlier—Spock's casual nod to signal that his 'scans' had run, her own excited monitoring of outbound communications, Scotty's attentive wait—nothing had happened. Absolutely nothing. Spock had warned them that they shouldn't expect immediate results, but nine hours? She had been forced to fix her 'bug' four hours ago and now had to rely on sheer brainpower alone.
She took a large mouthful of coffee and winced. Ouch. Too hot. Glancing up, she caught Sulu's sympathetic smile and shook her head ruefully. Although he didn't know all the details of their mission, he knew enough to understand that this had been a very long day for her.
She mirrored his smile before turning back to her board. Ensuring that the automatic controls were set to signal detection of any outbound message, she started another series of manual scans.
...
Alone in the science lab, Spock ran a new set of routines against the statistics he had culled last night. He had estimated that the spy would transmit within five hours of his planting the data, but much more time had elapsed and there was still no sign of activity. Therefore, it was logical to wonder if perhaps the spy had tapped into the computer from an access point other than the one he and Nyota had identified last night. The odds were approximately seven hundred and fourteen to one against such an occurrence, but he wished to narrow those odds even further.
As he waited for the results of his current test, he thought back to the morning's meeting. Nyota had sat directly across from him, stiff and silent—in short, she had not been her usual amiable self. Was she still angry? Why had she become angry in the first place? She had been vague, he had wanted her to specify...
Tightening his lips, he looked down at his hands and forced himself to acknowledge the fact that he saw today what he had not seen last night; specifically, he had been obtuse and uncooperative. He had known perfectly well that she desired solace, but he had been unwilling to provide it. He had become exasperated with her inability to see the logic of the situation. Even now, he experienced a small surge of annoyance as he remembered their discussion.
But... he was not entirely certain at whom that annoyance was directed. A guilty uneasiness tinged his thoughts as he reviewed his recent actions. Four nights ago, she had demanded to know how he could insist that the flame was sufficient. In response, he had spoken of the Vulcan way, but what he had not told her paled in comparison with what he had. Circumstances had prevented any sort of serious conversation the night after that, but two nights ago, he could not deny that he had leapt at the opportunity to leave before she could bring up any sort of awkward topic again.
He took a deep breath as he remembered the expression on her face when she had detected that he was not being entirely honest with her. She deserved so much: warmth, honesty, unabashed laughter like that she had shared with Srikanta. Of all these, honesty had always been the one thing he could provide, but even that was no longer a constant.
The computer signaled the end of his search, so he returned his attention to the data on the screen.
...
Sipping her coffee, Uhura glanced up at the sound of the lift door and watched as Spock approached. He stopped when he stood directly next to her.
"Anything?" he murmured.
"No. What about you?"
He shook his head. "Nothing. I am convinced that we isolated the only source of computer infiltration."
"So either our spy backed out, or he isn't on top of things."
"Correct." He paused, glanced away for a moment, then met her eyes again, and she wondered what else he wanted to say. Before he could continue, though, they both heard a beep from her board.
"Spock!" she whispered. "This might be it."
She nodded briefly at Scotty as Spock moved to the science station. Her hands flying across the controls, she heard Spock quietly call Admiral Kirk to the bridge.
There it was. Definitely an unauthorized transmission. Origin... Enterprise. Not an unusual frequency, but she didn't recognize the protocol. She had to find out what kind of transmitter this was before they could hope to pinpoint it. Holding her breath, she muttered, "Come on, just a little more, just a little more..."
The transmission stopped.
Resisting the urge to slam her hand down on the board, she replayed the transmission. If their spy happened to check her use of the computers right now, he'd know that she was up to something, but she hoped that he was too busy sending his little message.
She saw from the corner of her eye that Kirk stood next to the science station, watching his first officer work furiously. She hadn't even heard the admiral come to the bridge. The message replayed again as she darted a glance at Scotty, but judging by the set of his shoulders, he wasn't doing any better.
She continued to work her controls, and suddenly the random noise in her ear mutated into a recognizable code. Straightening triumphantly, she crowed, "I couldn't get a fix, but I have an identification!"
Looking at Scotty, Kirk strode across the bridge. "What about you?"
"No, Admiral. I didna have enough time. But if we can get him to do it again, we'll have him."
Spock left his station to stand beside Kirk. "We can assume that he is now interested in any additional data we might gather."
"Send him something else," Kirk commanded.
"Yes, sir." Spock returned to his station.
Moving toward his chair, Kirk said, "Will it take you long to come up with something?"
Spock leaned over his board. "No. I intend to create a scan that will show a third starship joining the other two. I will be ready in approximately eight point three minutes."
Kirk nodded and sat down, so Uhura reached for her coffee. Cold. Uncaring, she pushed it to the side. She didn't want it anymore, anyway.
End chapter 7