Disclaimer: Paramount owns all.

Rating: R to NC-17 for sex, violence, drugs and other stuff.

Trip found himself standing on his favorite Florida beach on a warm, breezy summer night. There were more stars in the sky than Trip could count and the air smelled of salt, sand and seaweed and the sound of the waves crashing soothed his ears. The beach, which was kept secret by the locals and thus never overrun by tourists, and its fragile dunes had been all but destroyed by the Xindi attack. Or had it? It looked the same as it had when he was a teenager and he and his friends would cut school to spend the day in the surf. At night, they'd build a campfire and drink beer and talk about girls. More than a few times, Trip had brought a girl to this beach. Hell, he'd lost his virginity on prom night, right here on this beach.

Speaking of which, he noticed the shadowy figure a girl sitting on a blanket and looking out toward the surf, her back to him. Not a girl, really, but a woman. She turned and he recognized his wife's elfin face. How was it that she was here?

"Thy'la," she whispered.

He approached her. He didn't remember quite why he was so glad to see her, but he was. He knelt next to her and gathered her petite, Vulcan form into his arms.

"Are you all right?" he asked.

"Yes," she said.

He kissed her on gently but passionately the the mouth, and she responded, opening her mouth to him. Her form seemed to fit just right in his arms, and she wrapped her arms around him and molded her body to his. She wore a bright yellow sundress - the kind that Florida girls wore. Very un-Vulcan, he thought as he slipped it off her body in between kisses. He gasped when he realized she wore nothing underneath. None of his high school girlfriends had ever done anything like that or kissed him the way she was kissing him. Her hands soon divested him of his Starfleet uniform. Why was he wearing that? It didn't matter. He was just so happy to be caressing her form and to feel her to the same to him. Her coppery scent mixed with the smell of the ocean soon he found himself inside her.

"God, I love you," he said.

"And I love you," she said clearly, without hesitation. Strange, he thought, usually she needed to be pressed into saying it aloud. She only said it in her mind -

Trip opened his eyes and looked down at her, realizing where they were, but it was too late to stop. He continued to finesse her with his fingers and nibbled at her ear. He whispered to her in Vulcan and soon she came, punctuated by a series of gentle moans. He soon followed.

"It feels so real," he said.

"It is real," she said, "It's just in the mind, not the body. Although I imagine your body will have responded as if I were really there," she said in teasing voice.

"Great," he said, "I'll change the sheets before you come back - where are you? How are you?"

Reality was starting to creep into the illusion.

"As much as I enjoyed that, do you really think its appropriate given your situation?" he continued.

She reached up and placed a finger gently on his lips.

"I think it is very appropriate. I miss you, and your presence relaxes me and helps me focus."

"Do you know where they are taking you?"

"I'm not certain, but I believe we are headed to the mining colony. Ston told me we are not returning to Romulan space but we are going somewhere under the Empire's control," she said.

"Has he hurt you? Or Hoshi?"

"I haven't seen Lt. Sato since she was taken away yesterday. However, the captain of this vessel assures me she is safe and well-cared-for. He strikes me as truthful."

Trip sighed with relief. He brushed the side of her face with his hand. He knew she could survive this. She had been through worse scrapes, and he had to tell himself she would be okay.

"Malcolm found the security officer who was bribed so you could transport out of there," replied Trip, "and he's meeting with Javon soon. Javon has agree to help find you."

"Gratifying," she said, "especially since he aided Ston with information about me. Although, I don't believe Javon knew what my brother intended."

"He's really your brother?"

"Yes, he's the youngest of my father's four sons. Apparently he feels disconnected from his family since the death of his mother, so he is attempting to create a new one with me. My father is ignorant of his actions."

Trip didn't like the sound of that.

"He means me no harm," she said.

Trip heard just enough hesitation in her voice to know that she was attempting to convince herself of that.

"Should I use the ring? I'll contact him and he can send a warbird to pick up his psycho son. . ."

"That may yet be necessary," replied T'Pol, "but wait a few days. I believe the captain of this vessel did not wish to become involved in the kidnapping of two Starfleet officers. He may well be convinced to let us go."

Trip pulled her into a hug.

"If one hair on your head is harmed. . .if one hair on Hoshi's head is harmed . . .so help me . . I'll . . ."

"Remain calm," she said, "and tell the captain to head toward the mining colony as soon as possible. It is the most logical course, given my reasonable certainty that is where we are headed."

He hugged her tight.

"Don't go yet," he said.

"You are needed to assist in our rescue," she said, "I will return if I have any new information. You do the same. I love you."

Trip leaned back and entwined his fingers in hers in what was a Vulcan gesture of intimacy. He send his love back to her that way before she disappeared.

****

T'Pol awoke in her room on the freighter and immediately sensed she was being watched. The room was sparse but comfortable with a port side window and a private bathroom. She had even found clothes in the closet, which was a thoughtful touch. Her brother may have been a lunatic, but at least he wasn't going to make her wear the same uniform every day.

She turned around to find him standing in the doorway.

"Have you been there long, brother?" she asked.

"Just a few minutes," he said, "you were moaning in your sleep. I didn't want you to be scared."

"I appreciate that," she replied without emotion.

"Breakfast is ready," he said, "You can come in your nightclothes so it won't get cold."

"Will Lt. Sato be joining us? I am eager to see that she is well," said T'Pol.

Ston thought about that for a moment.

"I can arrange that," he said.

"That would be most gracious of you," she said.

Ston reached out his hand to her, clearly wanting to her to take it.

"I'm sorry," she said, "but Vulcans do not hold hands with people they have just met, even family. Perhaps in time. . ."

T'Pol lowered her eyes in feigned subservience.

"I saw you hold the human's hand," said Ston, "when you were on the station. You did it outside the cafe."

"He is my mate," she said, "It is appropriate that we hold hands."

Ston squinted at this but said nothing. He gestured for her to follow him, which she did.

He led her down a long hall to a dining room about the size of the Captain's mess. The were no crew in the hall and all the doors were closed.

She saw the table had been set and a spread of food displayed. It was mostly meat, something which made her vaguely nauseous, but there was Plomeek soup. She sat down at the table.

"Help yourself," said Ston as he reached for what appeared to be the comm system. "Maleek, bring the human woman to breakfast. You can join us, too."

Ston flipped the button. T'Pol helped herself to the soup and some tea.

"I'm glad there are four chairs," said Ston.

Hoshi and Maleek arrived a few minutes later, and T'Pol was relieved to see she looked unharmed. She also appeared calm and collected, for a human. Hoshi had been through worse captivity than this, and she was more than capable of keeping herself emotionally together.

"Good morning, Lt."

"Good morning, Commander."

T'Pol thought she saw a flicker of reaction from the captain - the one called Maleek - at the sound of their ranks.

"Have you been treated well?" asked T'Pol casually.

"As well as could be expected, except for being held captive of course," replied Hoshi smoothly.

Their eyes locked, and they both understood the necessity of playing along. Soon, all four people sat around the table, enjoying the breakfast.

"So," said Hoshi, finally breaking the awkward silence, "it looks to me like Vulcans and Romulans are an awful lot alike."

T'Pol sipped her soup.

"It is not widely known, but Vulcans and Romulans are the same race," said T'Pol casually.

"It's no secret in the Empire," said Maleek, turning to Hoshi, "but we've kept it quiet outside of our borders. My understanding is that until recently, very few Vulcans knew the truth. Several thousand years ago, a group of Vulcans left because they rejected the teachings of Surak. They found their way to Romulus and founded the empire."

Hoshi's eyes widened. She knew this was huge news, and she guessed that T'Pol already knew. No wonder Starfleet had been so secretive about the Romulans over the last year, she thought. This could wreck the coalition. Thinking back, she also felt stupid for not recognizing that Romulan and Vulcan had the same root language. It was obvious, now that she thought about it.

Ston seemed frustrated by this conversation. He huffed a little and slammed his cup down. He looked over and noticed that Hoshi appeared to be finished with her meal.

"You can take her back to her room now, Maleek," said Ston.

"Will I be able to see her later?" asked T'Pol.

"If you like," said Ston, exasperated.

T'Pol nodded at Hoshi, and Maleek led her out of the room.

"Thank you for letting me see her, brother," said T'Pol softly.

"You're welcome," he said.

Ston scooted his chair to be closer to T'Pol.

"I'm sorry I had to kidnap you, but it was the only way I could think of to spend time with you."

T'Pol did not react for a moment.

"You could have introduced yourself on the station. I would have been happy to spend time with you," she lied, thankful for all the practice at play acting that she had gotten since living among humans.

"Would you have? See, I couldn't be sure. I thought maybe you were under some mind control by the humans. . .that you were not able to think clearly . . ."

"They do not control me. I make my own choices," she said.

Ston didn't like that. He grabbed her wrist.

"Then why did you mate with a human? Why would you do that?"

T'Pol looked at him, for the first time actually scared of him.

"I wanted to," she said simply, unable to think of a lie that would please her brother and unwilling to deflect blame to her husband.

"It doesn't make sense," he said, "even Father said so."

"Not everything makes sense," she replied softy, "So father is disappointed in me?"

Ston nodded.

"Join the club. He's not easy to please. He really only likes Enme. That's my oldest brother. He's not much younger than you. Maybe by six or seven years."

"What is he like?"

Ston shrugged.

"He's in the military - went to the academy and everything. He leads campaigns on the far side of the empire. Father likes that. It brings our house honor."

T'Pol nodded. She needed more information.

"Well," she said gently removing herself from his grip, "why don't you tell me about yourself?"

****

Trip sat in Archer's ready room drinking a big glass of bourbon, even though it wasn't yet noon.

"So, how are you so sure she's all right? Hoshi too?"

Trip sighed.

"It's a Vulcan thing. They are telepaths, and they can communicate with their mates over long distances."

Archer shook his head. Vulcans would keep something like that quiet.

"And it works with you two? Even though you are human?"

"Yup," said Trip as he finished his glass and poured another.

"Well, that's handy. Especially in this situation," said Archer.

Trip started on his new glass of bourbon, and Archer was worried. Trip rarely outdrank him these days.

"For example, I just got a real sense that she's creeped out by something that Romulan kid did to her. . .she's okay, but she's not happy to be there and I can't do a damn thing to help her. . ."

"We'll pick up Malcolm in a couple of hours and head off to the mining colony. Kill two birds with one stone. . .rescuing our people will be top priority, of course."

"I know, Captain," said Trip

To hell with being on duty, thought Jon, and he poured himself another glass.

"We've been through worse than this," said Jon, "and she'll be okay. I'm sure of it."

Trip took a deep breath. He wanted to be sure as well.

Jon poured himself a generous second glass to match Trip's."

"Make sure you sober up before we reach the mining colony," said the captain, "That's all I ask."

"You do the same," said Trip.

****

Malcolm sat across from the Vulcan intelligence officer called Javon, who was calmly sipping Vulcan tea in the cafe of the Vulcan section of the station.

"My ship docks in less than two hours," said Malcolm, "So, I would appreciate any help that you can give me."

Javon looked him straight in the eye. Malcolm was grateful the man had agreed to meet with him, but he had been angry about how long he'd had to wait to see him.

"This incident has nothing to do with the tensions between the Empire and this quadrant of space," said Javon directly.

Malcolm sipped his Vulcan tea. It was hardly a good China Black, but he had come to appreciate the care with which Vulcans brewed their tea. Only the British did better.

"How do you know? And assuming that is true, what does it have to do with?"

"Some of the crew of the freighter that took your officers lack the Vulcan laconic nature. They gossiped around the station."

Malcolm waited patiently for Javon to continue. He did.

"The ship was hired by a patrician Romulan named Ston. He believes himself to be your Commander T'Pol's brother. The crew believed they were simply getting themselves involved with a brother-sister reunion. None of them knew it would become espionage or kidnapping."

Malcolm shook his head.

"So why didn't they rebel? If only one civilian is involved. . ."

Javon raised his hand.

"Romulan society doesn't work that way. This Ston is of the very highest caste. They are not in a position to alienate him. For all they know, his actions have the blessing of his family. I don't believe that to be the case, however. I have a contact at the mining colony, and apparently a fixer of some kind has arrived there."

Malcolm exhaled. He was doing his damnedest not to think of Hoshi in a personal way. The best he could do for her was stay focused on her rescue.

"What's this fixer going to do?" asked Malcolm.

"Unknown," said Javon, "However, the Romulans are not stupid. They know that the death of two Starfleet officers isn't in their interest right now."

Malcolm nodded.

"Can you stay in communication with us? If you hear anything at all from your contact, will you let us know?"

Javon finished his tea.

"Yes," he said.

****

Maleek and Hoshi stood in the observation room of the freighter. Maleek spoke in a whisper.

"Stay calm," he said, "You're to be released once we get to the mining colony."

Hoshi searched the young Romulan's face for deception. She saw none, nor had she heard it in the cadence of his speech.

"What is going on?"

"Commander T'Pol is his half sister," said Maleek, "and he thinks he's rescued her from the clutches of you humans. He's convinced himself that T'Pol has been brainwashed."

Hoshi digested this news. She didn't even want to ask how this could be, but she did have great sympathy for her colleague.

"Here's the deal, though," continued Maleek, "When Ston gave her that dilithuium, he committed treason. That changed everything. The Empire is furious. We've been told to play along until we get to the mining colony. It may be hard for you to understand, but we've got to follow his orders until we get there."

Hoshi nodded.

"I promise I'll protect you," said Maleek, who wasn't sure why it was so important to him that this human, this inferior human, understand that he was honorable.

"I thought the Romulans were all about intimidation," said Hoshi.

Maleek smiled.

"We do that well, but we have honor," said Maleek, "and we're not supposed to be in the kidnapping business."

"Right now," said Hoshi, "I'm more worried for T'Pol than I am for myself."

****

Several hours later, T'Pol found herself wanting to nod off. She had been listening to her brother talk on and on about his mother, their father and their brothers. He told her about pets he had, and school projects that he was awarded prizes for. He told her about his favorite foods and his favorite music. T'Pol had been feigning interest the whole time, but her stamina was fading.

"You're so beautiful," said Ston, "more beautiful than your pictures."

He reached up and touched her face. T'Pol used all her Vulcan control to not cringe.

"I'm so glad I found you," he said, laying his head on her shoulder.

Perhaps it was the fatigue or perhaps it was the eeriness of his touch, but T'Pol instinctively reached up and gave him a nerve pinch.

Ston collapsed on the floor.

Knowing he would be unconscious for a few hours, she got up and left the room, closing the door behind her. She thought for a minute of holding him hostage, but that seemed too risky.

Instead, she made her way down the hallway. The freighter was of Vulcan design, so she knew its general outline. She decided it would be best to find a console so she could confirm their position.

She found one, and determined that they would very soon be at the mining colony. The ship was faster than it appeared.

T'Pol looked up, and she saw a member of the crew standing there. She prepared herself for capture, but the young man simply walked on as if she had every right to be there. What she didn't understand was that she, as the acknowledged older child of the ProConsul, held more sway than her captor. The crew would not dare touch her. This was why Ston had brought along Hoshi.

Not knowing what else to do, and unwilling to find and escape pod without Hoshi, T'Pol headed back to her room. Before she did so, she stopped yet another crew member in the hall.

"My brother has fainted," she said, "He is in the dining room. Please attend to him."

The young woman nodded and headed in that direction, and soon Maleek appeared, with Hoshi at his side.

"Ston has fainted," said T'Pol.

Maleek knew she was lying, but he didn't care.

"I was just telling Hoshi that we'll release you once we get to the colony. There's a man there to take Ston into custody. He may not even wake up before we arrive."

T'Pol felt relief wash over her. It wasn't complete, but she felt better.

****

Three hours later, the freighter landed at the mining colony. Ston had not yet awakened, and Maleek was happy to escort his two guests onto the landing pad. The director of the colony greeted them formally, as if they were state guests. Hoshi and T'Pol, who had started to feel less like victims, both surveyed their surroundings. This would prove to be a valuable intelligence-gathering opportunity.

Unfortunately, no one in Maleek's crew had had the courage to restrain the unconscious Ston. So, he appeared in the ship's doorway holding what appeared to be a particle weapon.

Maleek's eye's widened in fear. T'Pol stepped in front of Hoshi.

"I'm sorry, brother," she said clearly, "You passed out. I had one of the crew attend to you."

"You're lying," said Ston, "Why are you lying?"

His hands were shaking as he approached her. T'Pol suppressed her fear. Ston was inexperienced with weapons, which was far more dangerous in a situation like this than had he been experienced.

T'Pol's Vulcan ears heard footsteps behind her, but she was too focused on Ston to turn and look. The footsteps drew closer and closer and finally walked around her. She saw the back of a Romulan male, tall and youngish, as he approached Ston. He stood between her and the disruptor. She noticed that the the two men looked much alike. Hoshi, for her part, noticed that all three siblings looked alike.

Suddenly, the stranger fired a weapon and Ston collapsed to the ground. He screamed in pain and a patch green blood appeared on his shoulder.

The Romulan stepped over to Ston and kicked his disruptor out of the way. He then gestured to some men, who came with a stretcher.

"Sometimes I wish Romulans bothered to have stun weapons," said Enme, "It would be less messy in a situation such as this."

Once it was clear that Ston was strapped to the gurney and on his way to the medical facility, Enme turned to the new arrivals.

"Maleek," he said nodded, "Your assistance to our family is duly noted and appreciated. I give you regards from my father. Please take your ship and go, and your part in all of this will be overlooked."

Maleek shot a look at Hoshi.

"It was a pleasure," he said, "I'm sorry we'll be fighting on different sides."

With that, Maleek headed off to his ship, and the door quickly closed behind him.

"And here I thought that my brother couldn't annoy anyone more than he could annoy me," said Enme to T'Pol.

"But then I learned of you," he continued.