A look of dawning understanding crossed the enigmatic mans face. “Ah. You were expecting a thorough and coercive interrogation. Under normal circumstances, I would not hesitate to do just that to anyone who has been such a close associate of the late Doctor Ehrehin. However, I have agreed to forgo thatand to do what I can to keep you from falling into Valdores hands.

Trip ran a hand over his frown‑crumpled brow, and nearly recoiled from the highly corrugated texture of his artificial forehead ridge. Jeez. My great‑granddaddy could have scrubbed his overalls on this thing.

“Why? he said aloud.

“It is a personal favor to an associate of mine on Vulcan.

That didnt tell Trip nearly enough. “Who are you talking about?

“Someone with whom youshare a close mutual friend, Commander, Sopek/Chuihv said.

Someone in the spy trade on Vulcan is saving my bacon?Trip thought, astonished. Although he had no idea for whom the other man was doing favors, he felt certain he knew the identity of the “close mutual friend he had in common with this unnamed individual.

TPol.

That womans determined to go right on trying to rescue me, one way or another,Trip thought, his feelings of helplessness and frustration threatening to boil over. Whether Ive asked for her help or not.

“You are an extremely fortunate individual, Commander Tucker, said the Vulcan double agent. “You have cheated death more times than any other man I have ever encountered.

Trip shrugged, feeling worse rather than better despite the compliment. After all, it wasnt as if hed had a lot of control over his destiny over the past few weeks; he was getting damned tired of being able to do little more than merely react to events as they happened.

“If everything youve just told me is true, then my luck wasnt good for much more than pure survival, he said. “After all, it didnt let me get wind of Valdoresremote hijacking system until after youdid. And if this thing actually works, it could be at least as dangerous as anything else Ive uncovered in Romulan space so far.

Sopek/Chuihv nodded. “Indeed.

“On the plus side, Trip said, “I suppose I can assume that youve already told the VShar all about this remote‑hijacking thing.

“Of course. And it is more properly referred to as the arrenhehwiuatelecapture system.

Thats easy foryou to say,Trip thought as he tried to imagine wrapping his Alabama‑Florida accent around that particular verbal mouthful.

Aloud, he said, “I really should get in touch with my superiors about this, too. Just to make absolutely sure that the restof the Coalition sees this threat coming.

The other man shook his head. “Im afraid we need to maintain communications silence at present. At least until after I am reasonably certain that Valdores forces can neither listen in on us nor pursue.

Thats pretty damned convenient, too,Trip thought. He studied the other mans face, but found it as inscrutable as that of any Vulcan hed ever met. Well, Ill know which side hes really on after the first big Romulan military engagement with this new weapon goes down. If Coalition ships really do see this thing coming in advance, then I might be able to afford to trust this guy. But if the good guys end up getting caught with their britches down again, the way it happened at Coridan

He suppressed a shudder.

Of course, it wasnt as though he had a lot of alternatives at the moment to taking his captors words at face value. After all, challenging this man too much could get him just as dead as Phuong, any number of favors to friends of mutual friends notwithstanding.

“I suppose youll have to put a lot of light‑years between this ship and Romulus pretty quickly if you want to stay ahead of Valdore, he said, eager to change the subject to something a little less volatile. “Whats your heading?

The other spy gazed contemplatively at a bulkhead as he considered how much to reveal on the subject. Evidently deciding that Trip was harmless to him nowor perhaps having concocted another convenient liehe said, “We are presently making best speed for the Tezel‑Oroko star system.

Trip had no trouble maintaining a blank expression; though he thought he might have heard that systems name before, he assumed it was distant enough to lie beyond the “Here There Be Dragons point on his mental star charts.

“Whats at Tezel‑Oroko? he asked.

“The intelligence services of both Vulcan and Earth are jointly constructing a covert listening post near the systems edge, the other man said. “Its purpose is to monitor military activity inside the boundaries of both Romulan and Klingon space.

“All right, Trip said. “So why is thisship going there? There I go, challenging this trigger‑happy thug again. Ive really got to watch that.

Sopek/Chuihv did not appear offended in the least at the question. “A freighter that had been expected to bring some of the last technical components and other matйriel needed to bring the listening post online is overdue. We are going to do whatever we can to assist the listening posts crew in dealing with any related supply‑line deficits or security problems.

Trip nodded in silence, a strange calm suddenly descending over him, displacing most of his earlier frustration and despair. He found the feeling remarkable, especially given that there was still a very good chance that he was soon to die among enemiesdigested in the proverbial belly of the beast, no lessno matter what he tried to do to alter his circumstances.

But damned if it doesnt feel good to be charging off todo something,he thought. Actually performing a rescue instead of just waiting around for the cavalry to arrive.

Unless, of course, Sopek had just handed him the Vulcan equivalent of what Trip could imagine his father calling a line of pure horse puckey.

FORTY‑ONE

Tuesday, July 22, 2155 Gamma Hydra sector

J ACQUELINE S EARLES DIDNT KNOW PRECISELYwhat she expected the end of the world to sound like; but the continuous shuddering groan the Kobayashi Marus warp core sent through the fuel carriers entire structure sounded enough like a doomsday knell to convince her that the end had grown uncomfortably near.

“Vance! The rising din of the overstrained engines forced Searles to shout to be heard across the narrow expanse of the fuel carriers bridge. “The dilithium chambers getting too hot! I have to shut the whole propulsion system down!

“We have a scheduleto keep, Jackie, said Kojiro Vance, who seemed far too calm and collected to have a firm grasp of the current situation.

Executive Officer Arturo Stiles, who stood beside the Kobayashi Marus eccentric master and commander, displayed a far better understanding of realityas well as a good deal less equanimity. “Whats the point of keeping to the schedule if we dont get where were going in one piece? he said.

The captain merely sat contemplatively in his worn leather‑upholstered chair, stroking his chin as he weighed the dire warnings of his two most senior officers. For all Searles could tell, Vance might have been gazing into his closet and ruminating over which one of those damned pirate shirts he was going to wear next. She hated to think she might have no choice but to take command just to keep everyone aboard the Marualive; there would be repercussions afterward, and the last thing she needed right now was to lose this job.

Correction,she thought. The last thing I need is to get vaporized because my boss is obsessed with delivering the mail on time.

Fortunately, Vance himself took that fateful decision out of her hands a moment later. “All right, the captain said, his shoulders sagging despite the broadening effect of the epaulet‑like decorations that adorned his blousy tunic. He fixed her with an almost pleading gaze. “Take us out of warp, Jackie. At least until you can sort out whats going wrong back there.