Eight

"Captain Kirk?" Jim looked up from his drink and raised his eyebrows at the pretty ensign who was approaching. Only slightly reluctant, he turned away from the view of his ship and gave the woman his full attention. She smiled. "Ensign Janet Roberts. Very pleased to meet you."

"Pleasure is all mine," said Jim, shaking her outstretched hand. He raised an eyebrow at her slight blush, but refrained from commenting. "What can I help you with?"

"Admiral More is on hold for you in conference room four," replied Roberts. She indicated for him to follow. "I was instructed to fetch you. He says it is urgent."

"Admiral Patrick More?" asked Jim incredulously. When Roberts nodded, he directed her to lead the way, a slight frown marring his features. Pat More was Victoria's father, and they'd been neighbours in Iowa for years, but he had only met him once since they'd moved away. Pat had been friends with Admiral Pike, and they'd exchanged a few words at the funeral. He was still in San Francisco, as far as Jim knew, and the last communication load from Earth had reached Yorktown that morning. Wondering what the admiral could want that warranted a private interview, Jim dismissed the ensign outside the door, thinking it would be best if he took the meeting alone.

Roberts did not seem confused in the slightest by his dismissal, and it made Jim wonder if that was what the admiral had instructed her to do anyway. Aware that he was in civilian clothes but knowing it couldn't be helped now, he pushed open the door and stepped inside. Immediately, his eyes widened. "Tori?"

"Hey, kid," said the woman sitting opposite the screen. Pat More's face was on it, more wrinkled than the last time Jim had seen him, but his green eyes were the same as his daughter's, and right now they were both watching him carefully.

Without a second thought, he crossed the room and enveloped her in a hug, his relief almost making him stammer. "Where the hell have you been?" he demanded, pulling back and almost shaking her in his disbelief. "Sulu said you were in the Plaza when it went down and no one's heard from you since. I've been trying to call you but I –" at Victoria's pointed look, he swallowed his questions and, reluctantly, turned to the man on the screen. "Admiral More, sir."

"Sit down, James," the gravelly voice was still familiar even after all these years. Pat looked tired, and worried, and even a little smug. "I see what you meant, Vickie," he said to his daughter, who visibly winced at the nickname. "He'd recognize you no matter what."

"Oh, yeah!" forgetting the admiral again, Jim turned to Victoria and tugged on a lock of her hair pointedly. "What the hell, Tori?"

Victoria sighed. Her normally red, untamed locks were tied back in the regulation chignon, but they were a midnight black now. She had obviously dyed her hair, something Jim knew for a fact she had vowed never to do. The thick, wire-rimmed spectacles perched on her nose were also not ones he had ever seen before. Victoria had never needed glasses. The eyes behind them were definitely not hers – they were a dull brown, and looked slightly moist. She didn't look spectacularly different, of course, but she was no longer as striking as she'd been before, and Jim was sure he wouldn't have recognized her if he'd seen her around the base. "It's a long story," she said finally. She squeezed his hand. "I'm sorry I've been avoiding you. I can explain, I promise."

"You haven't got anything to explain, Tori," said Jim gently. He wrapped his arms around her again, kissing the top of her head. "Damn, you scared me. I always thought I'd die before you."

"Don't joke, kid," she scolded, and Jim was relieved to hear that her voice was steady. Victoria pulled back and patted his cheek affectionately. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Of course I'm okay, it's you we've been worried about," Jim shook his head. "You could have just come and met me in front of the crew, we've all been worried sick."

Victoria smiled a little and looked away, giving Jim the chance to examine her properly. She looked exhausted. She had always had an unlimited amount of energy, and their random meetings over the last few years had told him that had not changed, but he had never seen her look so drained. There were a few cuts and bruises on her face, her right hand was wrapped in a bandage and she seemed to be favouring her left leg. Almost as if her knees had given out, she sank into the chair she had previously occupied, gesturing for Jim to take the one opposite her. He obeyed immediately. "Sulu's having a complete meltdown," he continued gently, cradling her hand in both of his own. Her fingers dug into his palm with more force than necessary. "Hell, I think Bones has been trying to call you too, and the man can barely work a phone! I even called my mom to try and find you," Victoria's lips twitched at his admission, but she didn't speak, despite her assurance that she could explain. "What's up?" he asked finally. "Are you in trouble?"

"It's a long story, James," said Pat, finally speaking again. Jim turned to him immediately, not feeling even the slightest bit awkward for his behaviour. Victoria was as good as his family, and Pat knew that better than anyone. "I'm glad to see you're so concerned, though."

"Did something happen?" the lack of information was getting frustrating. "Tori," he turned to her, noting with some surprise that she was still holding his hand tightly, almost as if she needed the support. "Tell me, are you in trouble? Do you need help?"

"Jim, it really is a long story," sighed Victoria. "I need to make sure you know what you're getting yourself into if you –"

"I thought you were convinced that James was the best option, Vickie," Pat interrupted before Jim could reassure Victoria. He spoke condescendingly, and Jim was forcibly reminded of the few times Pat had been home from his constant work for Starfleet, when Victoria had looked after him when he was a child. Captain More hadn't been any nicer than Admiral More, addressing his daughter by a nickname she clearly disliked and talking down to both her and Jim any chance he got. But he'd been away most of the time, leaving the children to do as they pleased without enforcing too many rules, and they had both been grateful for that.

Victoria's eyes blazed, and Jim was sure she was remembering the same thing he was. "That doesn't mean he can't have a choice in the matter, dad," she spat out the word like it was venom. Jim winced.

"The situation has changed," said Pat firmly, not at all perturbed by her hostility. Victoria turned red. She had always hated how dismissive her father had been of her. Jim realized, if she really was in trouble, it had to be huge for her to go to him. "I understand your friendship and your affection for him, but I do not think Captain Kirk has the time and the ability to assist us in the way we require."

"Perhaps if you let me speak to him alone, I will be able to judge that for myself."

"We've done things your way, Victoria. It didn't work."

"This is my mess," she snapped suddenly. "I am the one who is living this nightmare, Admiral More, not you, so do me a favour, shut the hell up, and let me talk to my kid."

Jim held his breath. Pat More was not a man to be talked to so flippantly, even he knew that.

To his surprise – because he'd seen fights between Pat and Victoria get ugly even before she was an adult – the admiral merely turned to him with a blank expression on his face. "James," his tone was conversational. "If Victoria did need help, would you be willing to assist her?"

There was no hesitation. "Anything," said Jim immediately.

Pat didn't look convinced. "You will likely have to lie to many people for possibly a long time," he said, his tone hinting that he didn't think Jim was up to it. "The higher-ups know what we are going to ask of you, but very few other people can be let in on this."

It was starting to make sense now. "You want to put Tori on my ship?"

"Victoria would like to accompany you for the rest of your mission, yes," said Pat. His choice of words made it very clear that he was not in favour of this plan. "I will leave you both to discuss details. I have a file that you can feed into your records for her, so that if someone searches for a list of your crew members they will come up with her verified backstory. Is that acceptable?" Jim nodded once. He knew he didn't have a choice in the matter. "I understand that Hikaru is your pilot, correct?" another nod. "That is unfortunate. It would be ideal if she were to be on a ship where no one knows her, but she's stubborn. I must insist, however, that the list of people who know that you have Dr. Victoria More on your ship should be as small as possible. Do you understand me, James?" Pat's green eyes bore into Jim's blue ones relentlessly. "No one can know it's really her."

Jim nodded mutely. Pat nodded once, and then abruptly shut off the screen. As soon as he was gone, Victoria sighed.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered. Jim turned to face her in surprise. She looked like she was about to cry. "I didn't want to involve you, Jim, I promise, but I don't have anyone else I can trust."

"You can trust me," Jim assured her, squeezing her shoulder comfortingly. Tears were streaming down her cheeks now. "Come on, Tori, I haven't seen you cry in years," he tried to coax her into calming down. "I'm glad you came to me for help, I promise. You know you're family, right?"

"I know," she sounded as though the idea broke her heart. She took off her glasses and wiped her eyes, giving him an apologetic look. Jim merely sat back, hoping to convey the level of understanding he knew she needed. Eventually, she put her glasses back on and cleared her throat. "This isn't going to be easy, Jim."

"I know," he nodded. "Tell me."

And so she did.

Jim's head was spinning when she was done. As if understanding that he would have questions, Victoria conjured up a paper file seemingly out of nowhere, pushing the old-fashioned means of communication towards him. "You can read that if you decide to help me," she said quietly. "If you don't, just burn it. I don't want anyone to know what happened. And I hope you know I won't hold it against you if you can't help me," her green eyes were full of understanding. "It's dangerous, and you have your own crew to think about."

"You've looked out for me since I was a kid, Tori," said Jim. He tugged the file towards himself, and saw her eyes widen. He smiled. "I can look after myself, and my crew would not hesitate to help you if they knew your story. We'll keep you safe, and we'll be safe too."

"Does that mean –"

"Welcome to the Enterprise, Dr. More," the boyish grin that always made her smile was back. He held out a hand for her to shake.

Victoria laughed, a little breathlessly. "Thank you, Captain Kirk." She took his hand.