Star Trek RPG - Mission #3: "Some Other Side of Paradise"

The Security detail proceeds to the exit closest to the Sandoval Colony's buildings, and opens the door. It is raining hard. A lightning flash fills the sky in the near distance, followed a few seconds later by a rumble of thunder.

Mrs. Hsu folds her hands on her desk and says, "I have heard that Vice Adm. Hardin is a suspect in Mr. Wilson's murder, and that there may have been some corrupt dealings between them. I know little more than that."

At the door, taking a few deep breaths and looking outside Rangin can't help but quip to himself. "Let's get ready to rumble."

Kylah watches Mrs. Hsu and keeps her gaze neutral. "There is not much more than that, to be honest. Except that Hardin and Wilson's connections appear to go back some time, and involved bribes to ensure and possibly retain WR&R's license for this property here on OC3." For the first time Kylah realizes just how vindicated her suspicions have been; every time she questioned Hardin's vacationing here at the resort, she received the response--repeatedly--'goodness no, Hardin has nothing to do with the license renewal, he cannot influence the decision!' At least my instinct was right about one thing. For all the good it did me.

She goes on, her confidence growing. "I should stress that there is no direct evidence linking Hardin to Mr. Wilson's death, and other than Hardin asking for more money, I am not entirely certain there is a motive. However, Hardin has behaved in a--a suspicious way. He stunned me and Mr. Graham with a rather vicious weapon, and has attempted to escape. Although I am not certain how... but I will come to that. I have several questions for you, if you will be patient."

If there is a chair available, she will take a seat, even though she has not been invited. Not only is her knee bothering her a little--probably exacerbated from collapsing after the stun--Kylah also wishes to be at eye level with the older woman. "Firstly, I must ask you about the Sandoval Colony--how often is it patrolled by your security, or inspected or cleaned by your maintenance staff? Could there be anything else out there, either within or nearby the Colony houses, where someone might hide?"

"Next, to address the background. Does this corruption come as a shock to you, considering how close you were, professionally and personally, with Anthony Wilson?"

"In what context have you ever heard Mr. Wilson refer to the Vice Admiral? Or, for that matter, anyone else at WR&R--have you ever heard Hardin's name mentioned as even a useful contact?"

"Did Mr. Wilson seem distressed or in any other way unusually affected by the knowledge that Hardin was visiting here?"

"Had you ever seen or heard Mr. Wilson and Hardin interact? What about Lt. Cmdr. Ebling?"

"What of your own interactions, if any, with Hardin?"

"What were Mr. Wilson's ambitions? Was he a man who cared a great deal about money or his job titles? Did he ever mention a great desire to join the WR&R board of directors?"

"Do you believe there was any pressure on Mr. Wilson, financially, arising from... well, debts, or his family, or expensive habits, or... anything?"

Kylah, who has of course been monitoring Mrs. Hsu's emotions the entire time, pauses for a moment to consider her next questions.

Mrs. Hsu seems upset but trying to keep a grip on her emotions. Kylah's general impression is of truthfulness under stress.

Kylah asked, "Firstly, I must ask you about the Sandoval Colony--how often is it patrolled by your security, or inspected or cleaned by your maintenance staff? Could there be anything else out there, either within or nearby the Colony houses, where someone might hide?" - Hsu responds, "The Colony buildings are patrolled rarely, but inspected or cleaned every few weeks. They don't need much. If he wanted to hide, there are the buildings themselves, of course, and the woods and scrub brush around there, and the hilly countryside."

"Next, to address the background. Does this corruption come as a shock to you, considering how close you were, professionally and personally, with Anthony Wilson?" - "Yes, it does. I always thought Anthony was a very honest - financially honest - person."

"In what context have you ever heard Mr. Wilson refer to the Vice Admiral? Or, for that matter, anyone else at WR&R--have you ever heard Hardin's name mentioned as even a useful contact?" - "He only mentioned Hardin a couple of times that I remember, just as someone he had had a subspace message from, as being a key person in Starfleet, and so on. Nothing of any substance."

"Did Mr. Wilson seem distressed or in any other way unusually affected by the knowledge that Hardin was visiting here?" - She shakes her head. "No. Not at all, that I saw."

"Had you ever seen or heard Mr. Wilson and Hardin interact? What about Lt. Cmdr. Ebling?" - "No, other than what you saw yourself once your ship arrived."

"What of your own interactions, if any, with Hardin?" - "Nothing that I can remember. All of his dealings would've been with Anthony."

"What were Mr. Wilson's ambitions? Was he a man who cared a great deal about money or his job titles? Did he ever mention a great desire to join the WR&R board of directors?" - "Yes, he was ambitious, and hoped for a greater role in the company. Now and then he would hint at connections at Corporate, and imply that he would be going higher in the company. He never mentioned the Board of Directors specifically, but it didn't take too great a leap of the imagination to guess he had that in mind someday."

"Do you believe there was any pressure on Mr. Wilson, financially, arising from... well, debts, or his family, or expensive habits, or... anything?" - "Not that I know of, or that he ever spoke of."

Graham asks Delaney to clarify how the lightning strike detection modification of the tricorder works, including its range: his original intention was to have the other two Security officers take a position between the trio of Saint-Croix, himself, and Gelil and the remainder of the party waiting under cover for the all-clear signal. However, based on Delaney's answer he modifies his order so that they remain within range of Ranging's modified ticorder. He indicates that the group should move together within range of it assuming the all-clear is given as well.

If there are no objections or concerns, he reminds Saint-Croix and Gelil to try to time their movements to follow lightning flashes, then nods for her to take point and follows in the formation he previously outlines.

Rangin accepts the tricorder and listens to Lt. Delaney's instructions about how the modifications work before nodding his readiness to Graham.

"Thank you for your answers thus far, Mrs. Hsu. I understand this is difficult and you are--you might be distressed at learning such things about a man you thought you knew." Kylah glances down at her tricorder, tapping it to bring up her notes. "So Mr. Wilson did not confide in you regarding his apparent relationship with Vice Admiral Hardin. Do you find that unusual--for him to be so secretive with you?"

"Given what you know now, and what you presumably know of your corporate atmosphere, do you believe it possible that someone on the WR&R board, or someone else in above Mr. Wilson in the corporate structure, would have encouraged such methods to obtain the license to build on OC3? It is difficult to imagine Mr. Wilson would have taken such an extraordinary step on his own without revealing it to at least one of his superiors. In fact, do you know if Mr. Wilson was even involved so closely in the negotiation stage? He was not an administrator then. Can you give me some names of people who might have been involved as well as Mr. Wilson?"

"Who audits your financial books? I know you have an accountant, but he clearly was not... well, he could not have been the sole person responsible for the resort's funds. And Mr. Wilson appears to have been siphoning funds from WR&R for some time--including actual physical money. How would he have accomplished this for so long without anyone noticing?"

"May I ask you... I could not help noticing a certain coolness between you and your husband when you both visited the CP. Have you confided in Mr. Hsu about your affair?" If she says yes, Kylah will say: "I understand if you do not wish to answer this, but I would be grateful if you tell me how he responded. Was he shocked? Did it seem that he had suspected something was wrong?"

"There are some follow-up questions I need to ask, to confirm data that we have learned during the investigation. I am sorry if I repeat questions you have already been asked." She glances down at the tricorder again before returning her calm gaze to Mrs. Hsu. "There is one other ship, other than Lord Fastolfe's, that remains in orbit--the Trimalchio. If I recall correctly, it is a private yacht. Do you know to whom it belongs, and how long it has been here? If you do not know offhand, I would appreciate your checking the manifests for me."

"When precisely did the Hwuen guests arrive here?"

"At one point Mr. Hsu mentioned that regarding all the necessary activities that were put into place both before and after Mr. Wilson's murder--the creation, import and erasure of a looped security video, the attempted security breach at shortly before 18.00, the multiple transports, the destruction of the security logs--the only people who possessed the technical expertise to have done all this were Mr. Wilson, Mr. Hsu, you, and your 'chief technician.' Clearly he was not aware at the time that Vice Admiral Hardin was capable as a computer programmer and could have performed these activities." Assuming he was blessed with perfect timing and extraordinary speed, and the ability to be in multiple places within mere moments. "At any rate, I would like to close the circle, just to be certain. Mr. Hsu was never asked to clarify: who is your 'chief technician'? I do not recall meeting anyone with that title."

"Now to turn to the state of Mr. Wilson's suite... it did not appear to have been cleaned or attended to in a while. There was dust around the furniture, rotting food in his refrigerator, the bathroom did not seem freshly clean--the glass had been used, apparently by you. The same can be said of the bedding. I hate to be blunt, but evidence of Mr. Wilson's sexual activity was still plain, as was your and his DNA. But according to your message on Mr. Wilson's communicator, you and he had not been... together... for at least three days." Kylah takes a deep breath. "However. The morning he died, a member of your cleaning staff named Tim Harris was seen entering the room. What would he have been doing, if not dusting, cleaning the bathroom, changing the sheets?"

"Speaking of the evidence in the room. We found two DNA samples that did not belong to Mr. Wilson. One is likely yours, although we have not identified it yet--it would be extremely helpful if you would allow me to take a sample, just a strand of your hair, for comparison. You see, the second DNA sample is unidentified. Of course it might belong to the cleaner, but on the other hand, it might not. Did Mr. Wilson have any other... I am sorry but there is no way around this: did Mr. Wilson have any other intimate relationships?"

"Can you please remind me, what was your schedule--and your husband's--the night Mr. Wilson was murdered? How did you learn of his death?"

Kylah girds herself for the next question but her voice is still calm and casual. "I need to confirm something with you. You have told us that you did not have any contact with Mr. Wilson after the introduction. To quote you: 'We didn't meet yesterday after your ship arrived; I never heard back from him after my message to him.' Your message to him was at 19:44, and referred to Lord Fastolfe's behavior. So the last time you saw Mr. Wilson alive was during the introduction and Fastolfe's attack?"

Delaney says, "The tricorders will maintain a continuous scan of nearby electrical potentials and overhead atmospheric conditions, and should give at least two or three seconds' warning before a lightning strike. It will make a loud buzzing when lightning is imminent; you should immediately drop to the ground if you hear that. The buzzing will stop when the danger passes. It's not perfect, and I can't guarantee 100% accuracy, but it's the best I could do in such a limited time."

Kylah says, "So Mr. Wilson did not confide in you regarding his apparent relationship with Vice Admiral Hardin. Do you find that unusual--for him to be so secretive with you?" - Mrs. Hsu replies, "Yes, I would. Other than, well, the fact that we were keeping our affair secret, I didn't think he had any such secrets from me."

"Given what you know now, and what you presumably know of your corporate atmosphere, do you believe it possible that someone on the WR&R board, or someone else in above Mr. Wilson in the corporate structure, would have encouraged such methods to obtain the license to build on OC3? It is difficult to imagine Mr. Wilson would have taken such an extraordinary step on his own without revealing it to at least one of his superiors. In fact, do you know if Mr. Wilson was even involved so closely in the negotiation stage? He was not an administrator then. Can you give me some names of people who might have been involved as well as Mr. Wilson?" - "Before this, I would have been very surprised to learn that the Board would be involved in such misconduct. Even now, it's hard to grasp. Mr. Wilson was involved somewhat closely in the negotiations as an advisor, but wasn't part of the actual WR&R team." She checks a WR&R file on her computer. "The team included Marianne Evarts, senior vice president for acquisitions; Ed Chambers, senior vice president for governmental relations; and Peter Kim, a special projects officer."

"Who audits your financial books? I know you have an accountant, but he clearly was not... well, he could not have been the sole person responsible for the resort's funds. And Mr. Wilson appears to have been siphoning funds from WR&R for some time--including actual physical money. How would he have accomplished this for so long without anyone noticing?" - "Accounting and auditing are, as you suggest, primarily handled offworld. There are in-house personnel at Corporate who do that, and one of the major CPA firms on Earth handles overall corporate auditing for legal compliance and stockholder assurance."

"May I ask you... I could not help noticing a certain coolness between you and your husband when you both visited the CP. Have you confided in Mr. Hsu about your affair?" - "You and I discussed this before, I think. I have not told him. I would really rather not tell him."

"There are some follow-up questions I need to ask, to confirm data that we have learned during the investigation. I am sorry if I repeat questions you have already been asked." She glances down at the tricorder again before returning her calm gaze to Mrs. Hsu. "There is one other ship, other than Lord Fastolfe's, that remains in orbit--the Trimalchio. If I recall correctly, it is a private yacht. Do you know to whom it belongs, and how long it has been here? If you do not know offhand, I would appreciate your checking the manifests for me." - "The Trimalchio was chartered by Mr. Palver, the Rhaandarite billionaire. It arrived the day before your ship did."

"When precisely did the Hwuen guests arrive here?" - "I believe they've been here about a month."

"At one point Mr. Hsu mentioned that regarding all the necessary activities that were put into place both before and after Mr. Wilson's murder--the creation, import and erasure of a looped security video, the attempted security breach at shortly before 18.00, the multiple transports, the destruction of the security logs--the only people who possessed the technical expertise to have done all this were Mr. Wilson, Mr. Hsu, you, and your 'chief technician.' Clearly he was not aware at the time that Vice Admiral Hardin was capable as a computer programmer and could have performed these activities.... At any rate, I would like to close the circle, just to be certain. Mr. Hsu was never asked to clarify: who is your 'chief technician'? I do not recall meeting anyone with that title." - "Our chief technician is Yolanda Gaines. She's been with the company since... well, it seems like forever."

"Now to turn to the state of Mr. Wilson's suite... it did not appear to have been cleaned or attended to in a while. There was dust around the furniture, rotting food in his refrigerator, the bathroom did not seem freshly clean--the glass had been used, apparently by you. The same can be said of the bedding. I hate to be blunt, but evidence of Mr. Wilson's sexual activity was still plain, as was your and his DNA. But according to your message on Mr. Wilson's communicator, you and he had not been... together... for at least three days." Kylah takes a deep breath. "However. The morning he died, a member of your cleaning staff named Tim Harris was seen entering the room. What would he have been doing, if not dusting, cleaning the bathroom, changing the sheets?" - "I don't know. Tim is... well, not the most diligent of our staff, I've sometimes thought. He might have done a very once-over-lightly cleaning, if that."

"Speaking of the evidence in the room. We found two DNA samples that did not belong to Mr. Wilson. One is likely yours, although we have not identified it yet--it would be extremely helpful if you would allow me to take a sample, just a strand of your hair, for comparison. You see, the second DNA sample is unidentified. Of course it might belong to the cleaner, but on the other hand, it might not. Did Mr. Wilson have any other... I am sorry but there is no way around this: did Mr. Wilson have any other intimate relationships?" - "You're welcome to take a scan of my DNA or remove a hair. I don't know of any other such relationships Tony might've had." She sounds bitter. "I thought we were true to one another. I trusted him in that way, and many others. Too many others, it now seems."

"Can you please remind me, what was your schedule--and your husband's--the night Mr. Wilson was murdered? How did you learn of his death?" - She blanches. "Didn't we discuss this already? I'd rather not go over all that again."

Kylah girds herself for the next question but her voice is still calm and casual. "I need to confirm something with you. You have told us that you did not have any contact with Mr. Wilson after the introduction. To quote you: 'We didn't meet yesterday after your ship arrived; I never heard back from him after my message to him.' Your message to him was at 19:44, and referred to Lord Fastolfe's behavior. So the last time you saw Mr. Wilson alive was during the introduction and Fastolfe's attack?" - "I think so, but honestly, I could be wrong. The last few days have just been a whirl. Sometimes hours seem like months, you know?"

Kylah takes down all of the information, particularly the names of the negotiating team. She frowns slightly when Mrs. Hsu mentions that she has not revealed the affair to her husband. "Yes, Mrs. Hsu, of course I know we discussed your affair before, and the fact that you did not think he knew about it. But that was prior to seeing you with your husband in the CP later that afternoon. It was plain to see that he was upset--indeed, he rather noticeably avoided looking at you. For this reason, I thought it possible that you had confessed to him in the interim. I am afraid I must ask, do you know why your husband behaved so oddly?"

She is also surprised to learn that Palver owns the Trimalchio, not to mention the time of his arrival. "I beg your pardon, Mrs. Hsu, but--if Mr. Palver arrived the day before, why was he not introduced to the spores that day?" And a day before our arrival... that would be the same day that Kjaerstaad and Ferguson pinpointed the transporter signal scans. Hmm. She decides to talk to Palver again.

In response to the Hwuen's arrival: "And what sort of guests have they been? When I spoke with them, they appeared to have very... unusual needs. Did you ever see or hear Mr. Wilson dealing with them? Also, do you have any record of their having required additional spore treatments? They seemed rather cagey on that subject when I asked them--I had the definite sense that the spores were not always effective."

On Tim Harris: "Considering he left dust, rotten food and stained bed sheets in the suite of the hotel's administrator, I must say I find it an understatement to say that he is merely 'not one of your more diligent workers.' And yes, if I may please take a scan of your DNA?" Kylah will use her tricorder to do so (if she can--if she is not equipped, she will simply take the hair sample). As she does, she says softly, "I am sorry that there is a possibility he was untrue to you, Mrs. Hsu. But with respect, you and he were both untrue to your sworn life-partners. Could one really expect loyalty in such a man? In fact, was there any plan, spoken or implied, for you to remain with each other? Did you... did you ever consider leaving your spouses?"

"Speaking of spouses... for some reason we never received a reply from Mrs. Wilson. I suppose she might not have received the message, and she is possibly unaware that her husband has died. On the other hand, it might have been on a news broadcast, or WR&R might have contacted her directly. In either case I would have expected her to get in touch with the place where he worked to find out the details of his death. I find it unusual, to say the least. What if anything can you tell me about Barbara Wilson? You mentioned when we spoke before that she once visited and you stayed away--so this visit must have been in the last several months. Do you remember when, exactly? I am sorry to ask about such a difficult subject, but you are the only person I can think to ask about such things."

Finally, regarding the schedule the night of Wilson's death:

Kylah is very still and looks at Mrs. Hsu very soberly. "I have looked over the data, Mrs. Hsu. And the truth is, no, I do not think you have ever given a complete account of your evening, nor has Mr. Hsu given his own. I would like to remind you that I am investigating a man's death, and I must know the answers to these questions. I have been extremely patient but right now, my colleagues are hunting down one violent man--a man who attacked me, personally, barely an hour ago--who may not have acted alone. And my patience is thus wearing very, very thin."

She sits back, keeping her gaze on the older woman. "I must also mention that I am somewhat surprised that you are uncertain when you last saw or spoke to a man you seem to have cared for deeply. Fewer than two days have passed, Mrs. Hsu. His face and voice that day should still be clear in your mind. Can you truly claim that you have not thought of that last look he gave you, the last syllable he spoke..." Kylah's own voice is hoarse. "I lost both my parents nearly a dozen years ago, and I promise you I recall very clearly the last time I saw each of them alive. Those final memories have never and will never fade. I cannot believe you are any different.

"Now please." Kylah clears her throat and retains her professional objectivity as best she can. "Oblige me. Even if you believe you have given your report to me, pretend I have amnesia and must hear it again. When and where did you last see and speak with Mr. Wilson? And what were your movements and actions the afternoon and evening before Mr. Wilson died, up until the moment you heard he had been killed?"

Kylah says, "Yes, Mrs. Hsu, of course I know we discussed your affair before, and the fact that you did not think he knew about it. But that was prior to seeing you with your husband in the CP later that afternoon. It was plain to see that he was upset--indeed, he rather noticeably avoided looking at you. For this reason, I thought it possible that you had confessed to him in the interim. I am afraid I must ask, do you know why your husband behaved so oddly?" - Hsu says slowly, reluctantly, "I think he suspects, but he hasn't asked me directly, and I haven't told him, about the affair. Anthony's - Mr. Wilson's - death has made things more... uncomfortable between us."

She is also surprised to learn that Palver owns the Trimalchio, not to mention the time of his arrival. "I beg your pardon, Mrs. Hsu, but--if Mr. Palver arrived the day before, why was he not introduced to the spores that day?" - Remember that Hsu said Palver had chartered the yacht, not that he owned it. "I don't know why Mr. Palver waited a day before undergoing spore introduction."

In response to the Hwuen's arrival: "And what sort of guests have they been? When I spoke with them, they appeared to have very... unusual needs. Did you ever see or hear Mr. Wilson dealing with them? Also, do you have any record of their having required additional spore treatments? They seemed rather cagey on that subject when I asked them--I had the definite sense that the spores were not always effective." - "I've heard of no problems with the Hwuen, or that they required additional spore treatments."

On Tim Harris: "Considering he left dust, rotten food and stained bed sheets in the suite of the hotel's administrator, I must say I find it an understatement to say that he is merely 'not one of your more diligent workers.' And yes, if I may please take a scan of your DNA?" Kylah will use her tricorder to do so (if she can--if she is not equipped, she will simply take the hair sample). As she does, she says softly, "I am sorry that there is a possibility he was untrue to you, Mrs. Hsu. But with respect, you and he were both untrue to your sworn life-partners. Could one really expect loyalty in such a man? In fact, was there any plan, spoken or implied, for you to remain with each other? Did you... did you ever consider leaving your spouses?" - Mrs. Hsu looks coldly at Kylah after the Communications officer's statement beginning "But with respect." She sits sullenly as Kylah scans her with a tricorder, which is sufficient; no hair sample is necessary.

"Speaking of spouses... for some reason we never received a reply from Mrs. Wilson. I suppose she might not have received the message, and she is possibly unaware that her husband has died. On the other hand, it might have been on a news broadcast, or WR&R might have contacted her directly. In either case I would have expected her to get in touch with the place where he worked to find out the details of his death. I find it unusual, to say the least. What if anything can you tell me about Barbara Wilson? You mentioned when we spoke before that she once visited and you stayed away--so this visit must have been in the last several months. Do you remember when, exactly? I am sorry to ask about such a difficult subject, but you are the only person I can think to ask about such things." - "No, I don't remember."

Finally, regarding the schedule the night of Wilson's death:

Kylah is very still and looks at Mrs. Hsu very soberly. "I have looked over the data, Mrs. Hsu. And the truth is, no, I do not think you have ever given a complete account of your evening, nor has Mr. Hsu given his own. I would like to remind you that I am investigating a man's death, and I must know the answers to these questions. I have been extremely patient but right now, my colleagues are hunting down one violent man--a man who attacked me, personally, barely an hour ago--who may not have acted alone. And my patience is thus wearing very, very thin." - "I'm sorry to hear that," she says, sounding not sorry at all.

Kylah goes, on, "I must also mention that I am somewhat surprised that you are uncertain when you last saw or spoke to a man you seem to have cared for deeply. Fewer than two days have passed, Mrs. Hsu. His face and voice that day should still be clear in your mind. Can you truly claim that you have not thought of that last look he gave you, the last syllable he spoke..." Kylah's own voice is hoarse. "I lost both my parents nearly a dozen years ago, and I promise you I recall very clearly the last time I saw each of them alive. Those final memories have never and will never fade. I cannot believe you are any different." - Hsu stares at her.

"Now please." Kylah clears her throat and retains her professional objectivity as best she can. "Oblige me. Even if you believe you have given your report to me, pretend I have amnesia and must hear it again. When and where did you last see and speak with Mr. Wilson? And what were your movements and actions the afternoon and evening before Mr. Wilson died, up until the moment you heard he had been killed?" - "I've told you all I know; I don't remember anything else. So much has happened. Now, is there anything else, Ensign? I'm really very busy," she says, picking up a data tablet. "This place still has to be run."

Kylah has a strong sense of the older woman's barely-suppressed anger and irritation.

"Do not fear, this place may soon be much easier to run since it will be under a complete lockdown--if Starfleet demands it," Kylah says quietly. "And the fact that there is one violent perpetrator running loose, and quite possibly a co-conspirator within the bounds of the hotel right now, give us a good reason to do so."

She leans forward. "I do not care that you are furious with me, Mrs. Hsu. I regret that you are under such distress, but frankly I no longer care much about that, either. You have not told me of your activities the night of the murder. At least twenty-seven members of your staff have been gracious enough to give those statements, and they barely had a connection to him. But you were the closest person to Mr. Wilson on this planet--both professionally and personally. As such it is beyond me that you believe you can brush aside my questions."

Pulling in a deep breath, Kylah shakes her head. "You are putting me in an extremely difficult position. Your obstinance is making me more suspicious and concerned, enough to request a warrant to detain you as a material witness if I must. And it also makes my continued discretion increasingly impossible to justify." Her tone softens somewhat. "I do not wish to intimidate you in this manner. I assure you, if Mr. Graham were here he would be far worse. But he is not, his life is in jeopardy while seeking Hardin. Thus I am here, and it is my duty to get these answers, and in his stead I will do whatever it takes to do so.

"So be reasonable, Mrs. Hsu. I am asking the most basic question anyone would ask during an investigation of this kind--and your refusal to answer is exceedingly uncooperative and thus puts you under a very bright spotlight. I do not think you wish to be there. Now tell me: your schedule the day and night of the murder."

Mrs. Hsu takes a deep breath and says firmly, "After Hardin and the others were introduced to the spores, I attended to my responsibilities around the resort. I worked here until about 6pm or shortly thereafter, then had dinner alone in our apartment. I read for awhile and then watched a vid. Lionel got home about 10:30, and we talked for an hour or so. We were in bed by midnight, and were asleep until we were called by Resort Security about the discovery of Mr. Wilson's body early the next morning."

Kylah watches Mrs. Hsu for a silent moment after the woman finally recites her alleged schedule. "Thank you," she says without much inflection. "I do not know why I had to pull that out of you." Which is a lie--although not as serious a lie as the one Mrs. Hsu has just told.

"I wish I could tell you that will be all. But a man is dead, two Starfleet officers have been attacked, one of the highest-ranking officials in Starfleet is apparently corrupt... and this resort is the center of it all. As you are the current administrator, you should expect to be questioned and deeply involved in fixing this chaotic mess." Kylah turns to leave but before the door whooshes closed behind her, she darts a final cool glance at Mattie Hsu. "A good administrator would want to be involved."

She walks out into the hallway, her heart pounding. It takes about two seconds for her to contemplate her next move--and she now hastens along far more quickly than her leg prefers, this time toward the Security Office. Meanwhile, her hand lifts her communicator.

"Kylah to Lt. Garcia. I have an urgent request. The witness statements--according to Ensign Mahmoud, it seems confirmed that multiple people of particular interest were in the nightclub the night of the murder at the same time as Mr. Wilson. I need to hear every mention of him--and those who spoke with him. According to the sworn statements*, at the nightclub, Wilson spoke with Hardin, Fellim Palver, and Mrs. Hsu. We need to know any times given for these sightings, and also the names of the witnesses; I wish to speak with them to confirm what they saw. Can you look that data up for me, please? I am now heading over to the Security Office, and will hopefully be speaking with Mr. Hsu if I find him there--if not, I will seek him out." Delaney's indiscretion flashes into her mind, and she adds hastily: "Oh, and when you contact me with that data, please be discreet and say nothing in detail until I let you know I am alone?"

Assuming Garcia agrees, she thanks him and will switch over to contact Mr. Hsu. "Mr. Hsu, I need to speak with you without delay. I am heading to the Security Office as I wish to consult with either Patel or Peters, but if you are elsewhere I will change my plans. Where can we meet?"

* See post #2589.

Garcia acknowledges Kylah's request.

Mr. Hsu says, "I'll meet you in the Security Office in, say, ten minutes."

Kylah's jaw clenches for an instant. She does not want to give him ten minutes. "Yes, of course. I suppose you are still working on the headcount?" she asks, hoping to keep him on with her as long as possible. "Do you have any news yet on how that is progressing? It must be nearly twenty minutes from when we last spoke." Desperate to think of something else to say, she adds: "I have not yet had a chance to consult with my superiors on whether to recommend a lockdown on the hotel. It will be difficult to enforce, and I do understand your reasons for preferring that we not take that route."

She will continue to move as quickly to the Security Office as she can.

Rangin looks out into the storm waiting for the lead off of point and hoping he can use the modified tricorder correctly to stop anything bad happening to the group.

Mr. Hsu says, "The headcount is almost done. That's what I'm checking on now."

Delaney stands next to Rangin and sets his phaser-1 on stun. He does not look eager.

The sky is very dark. Rain falls in torrents and there is another roll of thunder.

"All right, let's go, Graham says," leading the advance team out. "The rest follow at a safe distance, then remain under cover when we make the final approach."

"Thank you, Mr. Hsu. Your staff have not met any resistance to the requests for checking in, have they? Not that there is much we can do about that, but I admit I am curious to know who if anyone might have objected to the apparent intrusion on their privacy." Kylah reaches the Security Office and, if she needs to, will reach for the doorchime or whatever other means are necessary to identify herself and request entry.

Assuming she is allowed in, Kylah looks around to see who is on duty. She does not know the security staff very well, not having been here before, and she examines the room with some curiosity. "I am Ensign Kylah," she says, even if she is repeating information she has already given. "I believe you have spoken to, or at least met, Ensign Graham, the mission chief. While he and the other Yorktown crew members are in the field searching for one of our prime suspects, I am--I am currently acting as chief investigator here at the resort." The absurdity of the situation strikes her anew. Why is anyone talking to her? She is clearly of low rank and looks no older than her 23 years. She tries to act as if she is perfectly at ease in this strange and likely undeserved role.

To whoever is stationed in the Office, she says: "I am here to follow-up on the people who were near Mr. Wilson the evening of his death. In particular, I would like to confirm the guests and staff members who were present in the Starfire Nightclub at the same time as Mr. Wilson. The timetables do not appear to add up, and I need assistance to understand where everyone was. Will you or one of you, if there are multiple staffers here assist me, please?"

A young and scrawny Security Officer Felix Gaines is the only person in the Security Office. He hears Kylah out and seems quite tongue-tied to be alone in her presence. "Uh, well... sure. Whatever I can do to help, ma'am. Miss. I mean, Ensign! Let me take a look at, uh, the records."

Ens. St. Croix leads the Yorktown search party out into the storm, towards the low hill which separates the resort from the buildings of the Sandoval Colony. She sets a brisk pace. Five meters behind her is Graham. Ten meters behind him and five meters to his left is Spec. Geilil, the Canopian. Fifteen meters directly behind Graham, in a loose grouping, come Crewmen Harper and Friedman, Lt. JG Delaney, and Ens. Rangin. Everyone has phaser-1s drawn and tries stay low. A lightning bolt splits the sky off to your right, but the modified tricorders don't buzz.

Everyone is soon soaked to the skin. Rangin steals a glance back at the resort, its lights still ablaze beneath the dark and lowering skies, remembering a time not too long ago when he was warm and dry.

See post 3129 for Graham's preliminary marching orders.

Surprised by this officer's nervousness, Kylah walks over to him. As she does, she takes a sharp look at the monitors in the dim hope that she might see any of the team. The weather looks worse, if anything--the rain and clouds are so oppressive it barely looks like daytime.

"Thank you," she says, reluctantly returning her attention to Gaines. "Now, we know Mr. Wilson's precise schedule, according to your colleague Mr. Patel, who checked the vid records for us." Kylah has already called up the relevant information on her tricorder, although she memorized it on her way over here. "He was seen eating at En Francais from 7:57 to 9:07. He then walked around, 'talking to guests and staff members' according to Mr. Patel, until 9:38, which is when he went to his office. Finally he left there at 11:02 and arrived at his suite at 11:12."

She leans over to examine whatever Gaines is doing, looking from him to her tricorder and then back again. "However, there are some discrepancies in this timeframe. Nowhere in all this does it mention that he went into the Nightclub. But we have multiple witnesses who saw him there. I would like to make certain exactly who went in and out of that Nightclub, starting at, say, 8:00, and ending whenever the last person left. Can you get that for me, please? The individuals in whom I am particularly interested, in addition to Mr. Wilson, are Fellim Palver, Lord Fastolfe, Vice Admiral Hardin..." Kylah hesitates only slightly. "And Mrs. Hsu."

Rangin keeps the steady pace through the rain and concentrating on the tricorder, waiting for it to buzz while keeping an eye on the others around him, all similarly soaked to the skin.

The only fleeting amusement for Rangin is that as the smallest one out there in the storm, at least the others would be hit before he was.

Gaines seems even more nervous to have Kylah leaning close, and swallows loudly several times. He says, "Sure, I'll... uh, I'll start checking all that now." He fumbles for the keyboard. "When do you think he might've arrived at, um, the nightclub, ma'am?"

The search party advances through the driving rain. The base of the hill is not far distant.

Graham stays attuned to the position of the team, his modified tricorder, and, most especially, any threats up ahead. Under normal circumstances he might have allowed himself a hint of hope things might go well, but this mission has been much less than normal circumstances, all things considered, he thinks...

Kylah frowns a bit. She does not understand this man's nervousness, which would be evident even to someone who lacked any awareness of others' feelings--Collins, for example. He must be afraid of Starfleet in general, Kylah thinks, finding it impossible to believe someone could be intimidated by either her physical presence or her minor rank. But, just in case, she backs away, knowing all too well how uncomfortable she has felt multiple times throughout this mission. "Are you all right, sir?" she asks softly, trying to read the officer's emotions. "I do not mean to pry but you seem highly agitated. The situation is being handled, I promise you. It is highly unlikely there is any danger here at the resort."

She hopes this allays some of his nerves, since there is no time to waste. "At any rate, as I said, I would like to start at 8:00, noting who entered and exited the club. If any of the specific guests I mentioned are unfamiliar to you, I will let you know when I see them, and will ask to pause the recording."

Kylah realizes that Gaines is not fearful of her or Starfleet, but is inarticulately and strongly attracted to her. His skills with the keyboard are also less than impressive, at least while she stands so near.

St. Croix reaches the base of the hill, as the others follow behind. There is a flash of lightning and almost instantaneous loud crack of thunder that seems almost overhead, but the tricorders still do not buzz.

Discovering the source of the man's incoherence, Kylah flushes. She does not know whether to be flattered, embarrassed, disgusted or angry, and so her reaction is a cocktail of all four. "Please, Mr. Gaines," she says sharply, backing further away as her hands clench into fists. "There are lives at stake and we are searching for evidence to identify a murderer. If you cannot handle the controls due to... whatever your problem is... then kindly let me sit down and I will run through the recording."

He stammers, "I, uh, don't know what you mean, miss. I'm just, you know, trying to do what you asked me to do."

There is a long roll of thunder from outside, and the lights dim again, a little longer than last time.

Rangin looks skyward through the impenetrable curtain of rain and lets out an explosive sigh of relief, while shaking his head. The cold and wet not really bothering him any more, it just something to be tolerated.

But the storm is almost overhead and he is so glad not to be going over the hill.

Kylah wants to slap him on the back of his head, but she just stands near the door and counts to ten. "And I appreciate your assistance," she says with restraint. "But is there anything I can do to make you work faster? If so, let me know and I shall do it. Because it should not be so difficult for a professional like yourself to punch in a time and date and call up a specific point in a video."

When the lights dim she looks anxiously at the screens. Losing the electricity would be disastrous for her plans. And she's not particularly keen on being stuck here in the dark with this dimwit. "Please, Mr. Gaines. We might lose power any moment."

St. Croix begins ascending the gentle slope of the hill, while the rest of the search party maintains its intervals behind her. The rain continues to pour down.

Gaines flushes crimson and says, "I can do this, ma'am. Give me a minute."

Rangin is too oblivious to St Croix's change of trajectory until she has already started up it. He hopes that she remembers she is supposed to be skirting round the base of it instead of trying to go straight over the top.

Rangin wonders if all Security people are really that dumb and if that is the case a lightning bolt to the head probably won't make that much of a difference. How could it fry non-existent brain cells.

Graham calls to St. Croix, who can barely hear him over the sound of the wind and rain, but she nods and changes her route, quickly descending and moving around the base. The rest follow. It is a longer route but not quite as exposed to lightning.

Gaines finally finds the surveillance tapes for Starfire on the night in question, just as Kylah is seriously considering filleting him with her knives, and begins searching at 8pm (2000 hours). She can see the timestamp on all the footage. Fellim Palver was already there in the nightclub at that time, and remained until 11:06pm. Lord Fastolfe arrived with his entourage of four at 9:17pm and remained until 1:40am. Vice Adm. Hardin arrived at 10:07pm and left at 12:42am. Wilson appeared in the nightclub at 11:22pm - not having come through the front door, as everyone else did - and stayed until 12:03am. He did not leave by the front door, either; it looks like he walked towards the kitchen before going out of frame. Mrs. Hsu arrived at 11:30pm, spoke with Wilson and then left at 11:37pm.

Wilson and Fastolfe did not speak with one another at any time, apparently. Wilson spoke with Vice Adm. Hardin for just over six minutes, then a little later with Palver for two minutes, and then with some other guests, each for between two and five minutes.

Kylah is so focused on watching the video that she returns to leaning close to Gaines, no longer caring what he thinks or does--frankly, he might no longer be in the room as far as she is concerned.

She keeps her gaze moving among the various pieces on this grim chessboard.

Unless Fastolfe possesses access to a time machine, or the time of Wilson's death is incorrect, the rock star is definitely cleared. Just as Kylah expected, but she is glad to find herself vindicated on this score.

Fellim Palver... Kylah thinks back to his alibi. His words do not add up, she realizes, a tingle of alarm running through her. She is certain he claimed he did not speak to Wilson after the introduction. And that he was back in his suite by... was it nine o'clock? Eight-thirty? She quickly checks the notes on her tricorder. 8:45, she sees. A far cry from just past 11:00. A two-hour discrepancy is not so easy to explain. I must speak with him again.

One of the biggest surprises is Hardin having left so late: 12:42am. Of course, Kylah already knew prior to the doomed interview with the Vice Admiral that he'd almost certainly lied about speaking to Wilson--that was why she pushed him, giving him another chance to correct himself. Now, as if the damning file contents and the vicious stun attack hadn't been enough evidence of his ulterior motives, the video has proven Kylah's suspicions correct.

And yet... Look at how long he was in the nightclub. Wilson's time of death ranges from midnight to 12:30am. Of course, it is entirely possible that the time of death is a little off--surely such things are only an approximation. Still, if Hardin is the actual murderer, one must give him time to get from the Starfire to the conference room. And to access the knife. And to do whatever other planning was necessary. And there is the fact that Wilson did not even die right away. He died from blood loss, according to T'Var's autopsy report. That did not happen the instant the knife pierced his flesh. Which pushes the time of the actual attack a little earlier, not later.

Hardin being at the nightclub so late... it seems to make his being the killer impossible, or at least very unlikely. Without an accomplice I do not see how he could have managed this.

Ironically it is the inconsistency that Kylah was most expecting--the one she's suspected for the past hour--that upsets her the most and makes her take a deep inward breath, needing the oxygen and the time to digest what she sees. Her heart pounds in her ears.

So Mrs. Hsu did lie. There was a tiny possibility that the witnesses who claimed to see her in the nightclub had been incorrect, but now the proof is visual and incontrovertible. Her claim to have been in her suite with Mr. Hsu was indeed false. Why did she hide this from Kylah? What was the point of pretending, given that Kylah knows about the affair? To protect herself?

To protect her husband?

Kylah bites her upper lip in thought. "Thank you," she says softly after the recording stops. "May I ask you another favor, Mr. Gaines? Are there surveillance cameras that display the sixth floor--in particular, the corridor with the Hsus' suite? If so--and I know this may be awkward, given that they are your supervisors--but I need to confirm their arrival and departure activities... going back to 9PM that evening, as I do not know what Mr. Hsu's schedule was." She swallows nervously, more aware that Mr. Hsu is on his way, and murmurs insistently to the young security officer: "And I will greatly appreciate it if you do this as quickly as possible."

Even as she speaks Kylah's fear increases. Things may be more complicated than the others on her team realize. She desperately wishes she contact Graham or Velir without putting them at risk, but does not dare do so lest she repeat Delaney's mistake.

Hardin is being tracked by nearly the entire Yorktown landing party. They know to look out for him. But if someone else is involved... where is he, or she?

Even in the rain, Rangin can feel himself breathing a sigh of relief. Fortunately, if you set Graham off down one path it seemed he would follow it and thankfully he was paying attention to St Croix's actions.

Before the exceedingly slow Gaines can respond, Kylah's mind seems to sharpen and she narrows her eyes. "Just a moment," she says suddenly. "The timestamps... some of them are after midnight. But the security cameras were supposedly sabotaged and went offline. How could this be? Is the nightclub surveillance part of a separate system?"

She peers more closely into the frozen video screen. "Surely no one could have gone in yet again and faked this video, could they? Mr. Hsu has been working with the Yorktown's own experts to ensure that the security systems were safe."

Impatient, Kylah reaches over Gaines's annoyingly clumsy hands and takes it upon herself to plug in some times for the video--in particular, the time when Velir, Graham and T'Var would have been in the nightclub. She is not keen on seeing whatever confrontation Velir had with Jan, but spotting her colleagues will help her properly figure out whether the video timestamps are accurate. She knows Velir and the others arrived after 9:30, and while Velir left earlier, Graham and T'Var said they left at 10:15 on the dot.*


* See #1370

Graham shakes his head. Give a sprinter point and they'll instinctively want the shortest, most direct route, he thinks after correcting St. Croix's course. At least it turns out I will be audible if I shout like hell "get down!" if Delaney's contraption goes off.

With that one hiccup they are otherwise making good progress, he thinks, and continues to be hyper-focused on the group's position and what lies ahead. He spares a moment's thought: at least I don't have to worry about Kylah, at the moment--he feels confident her research might turn up more leads, but out here she'd probably feel obligated to sneak ahead to take point herself to prove... something...

Gaines looks aggrieved but does not move Kylah's hands away. He pushes back from the desk, though. The timestamps seem to be accurate. He goes to another terminal, checks a security database and says, "The Starfire camera was installed more recently than the others, and I guess it's on a separate control circuit. Looks like it wasn't affected by the wipe of the main system."

St. Croix leads the search party around the base of the hill to the left. The group is still on open ground, but a lightly-wooded area is now only a few dozen meters ahead. The Sandoval Colony buildings are perhaps another five minutes' walk beyond that, at an angle to the right.

Thunder again rumbles overhead. The rain seems to be diminishing a little. The thick grass underfoot is very wet and slippery; Graham and Friedman both almost fall.

Kylah straightens with an exhale, her mind racing. "At last some good fortune," she murmurs. "Something this killer did not have the wit to destroy." I wonder that Mr. Hsu did not mention it, she thinks with a quick glance at the frozen video before shaking her head. "So this appears to be accurate after all."

She turns to Gaines and takes a tentative, apologetic step closer. She cannot afford to burn a useful bridge, not when Hsu could walk in at any moment. "Thank you for checking on that for me. I am very sorry to have been so impatient, but the stakes are so high..." With a gentle lift of her arm toward the panel, she looks at the young man with a hopeful, nervous smile. "Please, will you help me with what I asked before? If there are any cameras on the sixth floor near the Hsus' room--is there footage from that night?"

Another thought occurs to her: "And also, can you please save that nightclub footage and lock it down, sending me a copy? I do not want it to be... harmed. This is extremely important evidence."

Gaines says, "There's no camera on the sixth floor, it looks like." He secures the footage by password and sends a copy to Kylah's shipboard account and to the CP.

Mr. Hsu walks in. "The headcount is complete; it looks like no guest or staff are outside except for Hardin."

Deep in thought and about to remark on the oddity of there being no camera on the Hsus' floor, Kylah naturally gives a little start when Hsu walks in. She thanks Gaines again without giving any details and turns to the security chief.

"That is good to hear," she says, looking at him as neutrally as possible. "I have been trying to collect evidence to determine precisely where Hardin was, and to find any other witnesses that might have seen him. In doing so I have discovered some curiosities that..." A hesitation gives her a little more time to think. If she is finally going to address Mrs. Hsu's behavior--and what, if anything, Mr. Hsu knows about it--she cannot do so in front of Hsu's employee. "Actually, I wonder if there is a place we might speak in private? Do you have an office here?"

Even while trying to gauge his emotions, Kylah is busy trying to decide whether to reveal the fact that she has seen the nightclub surveillance video.

"Of course," the resort security chief says, gesturing to a door. Mr. Hsu's office is about half the size of his wife's. It is cluttered but comfortable. He moves a stack of data tablets from a chair for Kylah to sit, and settles in behind his desk.

Kylah gives a nod of gratitude and sits down, smoothing her skirt while keeping both feet firmly on the floor. She does not expect anything to happen, of course. But after Hardin's attack surprised her so completely, she knows it is better to stay alert.

"I am glad everyone is accounted for," she begins. "I know I speak for my colleagues when I say how thankful we all are for your diligence in what must have been difficult task." Her voice turns more sober. "Unfortunately I have not yet heard anything from the crew who are tracking Hardin; I do not suppose there are cameras wherever they are, since I did not see them on the monitors outside. But once there is news I will share it with you.

"Meanwhile, while they have been taking care of apprehending him, I--and another colleague--have been looking over the evidence and statements. We wish to have a solid case, once the Vice Admiral is taken in." Kylah moistens her lips, glancing down for a moment in preparation. "As... as it turns out, some of the activities in the nightclub as seen by witnesses do not quite match what we believe is the timeline of events."

Naturally she omits the fact that the list of witnesses now includes Kylah herself--and Gaines too, for that matter. "But before we get to that and since I am speaking of timelines, while re-examining the evidence I realized that we never asked you for a statement. We have an idea of most of the staff's whereabouts and movements the night Mr. Wilson died, so for the sake of completeness I suppose I should finish with your own. I hope you do not mind... I am sure you understand the need to get as much information as possible."

She smiles and shrugs apologetically, taking out her tricorder and checking her notes. "So... perhaps we might start a bit earlier in the evening, perhaps a half-hour before that attempted security breach at... was it 5:30pm? A little later? Let us start there, with whatever you were doing when you were alerted of this would-be breach, and continue until you were notified that Mr. Ackerman had found Mr. Wilson's body." Kylah looks at him encouragingly.

Just a few more minutes Rangin thinks to himself and then we find out what the hell is going on. He wonders if Hardin is even there or if this has just been a wild goose chase, but given how they approached the colony, if Hardin had tried to double back they would likely have seen him.

Just a few more minutes

Hsu looks at the ceiling and thinks. "Well, let's see - I was here when I learned about the breach. Peters came in and told me. We did our best to figure it out, and I checked with the resort computer people, and then I went to meet with your landing party. It was a busy day. I had a quick bite to eat for dinner and kept working - went on patrol for awhile, but I was available by communicator, as I always am - and got home about 10, 10:30. Mattie and I talked for awhile and then turned in. I was asleep when Ackerman called about finding Mr. Wilson's body, well after midnight."

The Yorktown search party is just making its way through the cluster of trees when one tricorder, and then the other, begin to buzz loudly.

Although she is keeping her face relaxed, Kylah does her best to concentrate and determine whether Hsu is being truthful. Not that her empathic powers helped her much with Hardin, but perhaps Hsu is easier to read. She can only try.

Once he mentions his wife and their apparent bedtime, she just nods and looks down at her tricorder. She knows Mrs. Hsu lied; is he lying as well?

She thanks him and adds casually, "I am extremely impressed on how well you performed the initial investigation with so little rest, Mr. Hsu. I wish I were as efficient--why, you could not have had more than four hours' sleep, if you were asleep by... what, 11:00 or so?" She hesitates, leaving him time to answer if he chooses.

"I should tell you that I have uncovered some--some extremely important new information. On the night of the murder, Vice Admiral Hardin was apparently in the nightclub much later than we realized. He spent the evening at the club and left at 12:42." Swallowing, she looks at Hsu unwaveringly. "As we know, Mr. Wilson died between midnight and 12:30--and considering that he bled out rather than dying instantly, we must assume that the attack occurred at least five or ten minutes before that specific half-hour window.

"Clearly," she continues, "this raises serious doubt as to the assumptions about Vice Admiral Hardin. He may be corrupt, he may be dangerous--as I know all too well. But he does not seem to be guilty of the murder." Kylah's voice softens. "Not without an accomplice, at any rate. What do you think of this, sir?"

Hsu seems a little guarded but honest. Kylah senses he may be holding something back, though.

He says, "Yeah, I was probably asleep by 11 or so. I didn't look at the clock. I tend not to sleep much during the work week, and I do take naps now and then. I know the doctors say it doesn't work that way, but I also sort of get caught up on sleep on the weekends." He drums his fingers on his desk. "I suppose Hardin might've had an accomplice, or even more than one, but I don't know who that could be, or how he and the other, or others, would've pulled it off."

Kylah nods absently at his talk about napping, now safely convinced that Mrs. Hsu must be spoken to as soon as possible. "Yes, I hope you are right about being able to catch up on sleep. If it is true, I have about two weeks' worth coming to me," she murmurs. Her voice is still quiet when she continues. "You must forgive me... you know I am not a security officer and thus no expert on such things. But I must admit I am confused that after hearing that Hardin was not in the vicinity of the murder, you still think he only might have had an accomplice. And you seem to find it harder to conceive of multiple people committing this crime than only one. Can you help me understand your reasoning? This was such a complex--almost convoluted--plan, requiring so much activity and careful timing. Would it not be easier to believe many hands were behind it?"

Here it comes... thinks Rangin as the tricorder's buzz. "Everybody down!" he commands out to those around.

Rangin drops and waits for the imminent bolt to strike close by.

Hsu frowns and shrugs. "I'm not a murder investigator, miss. I'm just a security guy at a resort; this is all waaay above my paygrade. From what I've read, though, murder conspiracies are pretty rare - usually it's just one person."

Everyone in the search party drops to the wet, somewhat muddy ground. An instant later, a lightning bolt strikes a tree about ten meters to Graham's right. The tree is crisped. Everyone's ears are left ringing with the boom of the lightning strike; many see spots before their eyes, but it soon passes. There is a strong odor of burning and the tang of ozone in the air. The rain seems to diminish just a little more.

Flunking hell, Graham thinks, looking up from where he'd dropped to his belly when Rangin yelled. That was as close as I ever want to be to a bolt of lightning again... He turns and gives a thumb up in the direction of Rangin and Delaney before jumping up and waving the team forward.

"I see," Kylah says slowly. "Then you must believe the murderer of Mr. Wilson is still entirely unknown to us? Since, due to--to multiple witnesses placing him at the nightclub at the time of Wilson's death, Hardin seems to be eliminated as the killer. Unless he has a twin, a clone, or some other extraordinarily unlikely double." She shakes her head apologetically. "I do not mean to press you, Mr. Hsu. It is just that I am only an Ensign and like you, such investigations are 'far above my pay grade.' I would sincerely value your opinion."

She exhales, trying to decide whether the dicey topic of Wilson's affair is worth a risk. Then again, there is little time to waste by being hesitant. She must know whether this man is aware of his wife's infidelity.

"There is an angle we have not explored much," she begins. "In looking at the motives for the crime, we have mostly paid attention to Mr. Wilson's business dealings--not surprisingly, since so much evidence pointed to the possibility that he was involved in some underhanded financial schemes. But from what little I have heard about murders, I know the vast majority are committed by someone close to the victim, and for reasons that are... personal.

"Which brings me to Mr. Wilson's private life," Kylah says. "Throughout the investigation, we have heard multiple rumors about Mr. Wilson having affairs with women during his time here, and there is also the physical evidence of recent sexual activity in his suite. And--" Now that she is finally broaching this topic, her throat seems as arid as the Southern Deserts on Elas. She wishes she could find something to drink--ideally, anything to take away her nerves. "And there are also two messages on his communicator from a woman... she did not leave a name, but their close relationship was clear."

When she continues, Kylah makes sure her tone is as neutral and free of insinuation as possible, measuring his emotions all the while. "As Chief of Security, with access to so many cameras and staff who patrol the grounds, you probably know more than you even wish to about the personal lives about the guests and workers. So I wonder... have you--have you any idea who might have been... intimate with him?"

Rangin nods back at Graham, glad to see that the bolt had struck somewhere nearby and not any of the crew. Rising to his feet and making sure the tricorder is is still monitoring, he starts to move forward again.

That's twice I've got Delaney to save lives, he thinks, I wonder what the hat trick will be.

Hsu takes a deep breath. "I was wondering when you'd ask me about that. Wilson... well, he liked women. Probably too much. It was no particular secret here. He had at least three affairs, maybe three flings would be more like it, that I'm aware of with guests, one of whom was here for several months. I'm sure there were others, maybe many others. None of them are here now, though. And in fairness, I never saw it affect his work."

Rangin sees that the modified tricorder seems to be working fine. The Yorktown search party rises from the ground, wet and now muddy, and moves forward, through the small grove of trees and out into the open. The rough-hewn buildings of the Sandoval Colony are dimly visible ahead through the darkness, perhaps three minutes' fast walk away. They are suddenly illuminated with a glare when lightning crashes over the horizon to your left.

Way too close for comfort thinks Rangin and he hopes the group can get to the colony sooner rather than later.

Looking through the rain, is there any sign of lights or activity in the colony buildings or is the area out front deserted.

Kylah has the sense that Hsu is more uncomfortable than he lets on, and that his mind is racing. It is difficult to tell how truthful he is being. Kylah finds that her own fatigue has markedly diminished her empathic sensitivity.

Rangin, peering through the gloom, sees no lights or activity among the buildings ahead. The search party is now entirely in the open.

Graham takes as good a look as he can at the area ahead, and, assuming nothing is obviously amiss, gestures to St. Croix and Gelil that the advance team should pick up the pace and head for the nearest building.

Rangin sits back on his haunches and waits with the other tricorder as the advance team head across the open area to the nearest building.

"Eyes peeled everyone," Rangin calls out to the remainder of the group although they should hardly need reminding given the situation.

A dull headache is making a reappearance over Kylah's left eye. This happens often when she must concentrate harder to channel her empathic abilities, which tend to ebb along with her physical strength. It is not even remotely comparable to the agonizing pain from the stun field, and she does her best to ignore it.

Hsu's enhanced distress, as inchoate as it is given her weakened focus, is evidence that she has struck a chord somewhere. Kylah decides to take one last push. "That is highly informative, thank you. Although... he has either found a new partner or there is someone else about whom you do not know. The communicator messages referred to their having a--a--" Annoyingly, she finds herself stumbling in embarrassment when trying to come up with a word that is both accurate but not lurid. "--An encounter," she finishes at last, "as recently as four or five days ago. And the last message was sent the afternoon he died. So this unknown person is still here.

"I wonder," she murmurs, frowning as if deep in thought. "You mention only guests, but could this person not be a staff member? What is the corporate policy on such relationships? Perhaps he was trying to end things, especially considering the scrutiny that was being placed on him, and his partner did not take kindly to the rejection. Or there may have been a third party... an ex-boyfriend. There are a myriad of possibilities, I fear."

Kylah shrugs, still trying to keep her attitude as casual as possible. But there is no realistic way to pretend that this is not important information. She has a spark of inspiration and stands up, gesturing to the door. "Well, I should not detain you, and I am very grateful for your time, Mr. Hsu. I suppose I will have to do more research--discreet, of course, but such an intimate connection really must be identified, do you not agree?"

Hsu shifts uncomfortably in his seat. "Yeah, sure, well, thanks for coming by. We'll keep an eye out to make sure Hardin doesn't try to sneak back into the resort. All the exterior doors remain locked, and my people will make sure they stay that way."

The search party crosses open ground and draws nearer to the buildings. The rain is falling a little harder now. Graham can see that the closest is a farmhouse, perhaps big enough for a family of four or five. A barn is just behind it and to the right, from his perspective. St. Croix and he are already within phaser range.

Nodding--and acting as if she has not noticed that Hsu has answered none of her questions--Kylah starts to leave, then hesitates. "The exterior doors are locked... Will my crewmates--or I, for that matter--be able to get back inside using our thumbprints? I would not want them stranded out there, if someone should need to return for any reason. Does this not also bar all of the guests staying in the house residences from entering?"

Hsu says, "Your original party members still have their thumbprints in the database; they can get back in, or call here to be let in. The guest houses are all within the resort perimeter and guests living there can come and go, remaining on the premises, as they wish."

Graham gestures toward the farm house. He now has the tricorder in one hand and his phaser in the other. Graham is momentarily bemused by the thought of Rangin's reaction if the team would have had the firepower to lay down a field of true suppressing fire: ideally phaser rifles, but phaser II's at minimum. Horror that they were damaging historical artifacts, he assumes--of course, WR&R and some people in Starfleet might also feel the same way, he notes.

As it stands the phased I's have too little power and punch for that sort f thing. He hopes Hardin doesn't have anything better.

The search party approaches the farmhouse and Graham silently directs its disposition with hand gestures. St. Croix is now by the door, phaser in hand, ready to open it - or kick it in. The storm seems to be interfering with tricorder scans but, as far as Graham can tell, the house is unoccupied. He and Rangin pick up no life form readings nearby other than the Yorktown personnel.

The wind blows much harder in gusts several times, and the rain begins falling hard again.

With a brief grateful look--at least Hsu answered one question to her satisfaction--Kylah leaves his office, rests a hand on Gaines's shoulder with a murmured "thank you," and heads off into the corridors once more.

When alone, she pauses and pulls out her communicator. She sends a text-only message to Garcia letting him know about the video data that has been sent to the CP. Many suspects are in view. I have noted their activities but if you can look through the recording and add your fresh vision to it, that would be most helpful. Thank you. -- KYLAH

Next she considers her next move. I must confirm the autopsy findings, she decides. She hopes that the storm is not causing any problems in communication as well as transporting. In an effort to improve reception, she walks up to whatever window is nearest. The rain has turned the outdoors into a landscape of melting trees and outbuildings.

And out there, somewhere, are her colleagues.

Unconsciously Kylah presses a hand against the glass, feeling the coolness and wishing her weak telepathic abilities--so rarely seen and almost never at any great distance--could impart some warmth to the team she has abandoned. Her eyes glaze over like the rain-soaked glass. Velir, are you all right?

With a swallow she clears her throat and lifts her communicator again to speak in a firm voice. "Ensign Kylah to Dr. Villa."

Graham slings his tricorder and gestures for St. Croix to follow him while Gelil hangs back. Once Gelil is in position Graham signals a three count and on three will turn the handle and attempt to open the door, phase in the other hand. His expectation is that the door will open but if it does not he is ready to step back and kick it open immediately on finding any resistance.

Rangin watches the three in the advance party head across to the first building and prep themselves by a doorway.

He can't help but be concerned that he cannot find any life form traces in the area. He wonders just how bad the mixture of radiation and electricity must be for the tricorders to not even be able to do a simple heat scan of the area.

At least the light is gloomy given the time of day and darkness is not set to fall for many hours yet.

Dr. Villa comes on after a few seconds. Her voice is clear. "Villa here. What can I do for you, Mr. Kylah?"

The door to the farmhouse opens easily; Graham and then St. Croix charge through. They are now standing in an open common room, similar to the one Graham saw during his earlier tour of the colony. The room is dark but for the narrow beams of light coming from the business end of his and St. Croix's phaser-1s. An old wooden table with four chairs is to the left, and a bench with homespun cushions. To the right is a kitchen with wooden cabinetry and a deep sink. Two doors, both closed, are beyond that to the right. There is a long roll of thunder outside.

Rangin switches from a lifeform scan to a heat scan. He picks up nothing other than the members of the Yorktown search party gathered nearby. Readings beyond ten meters or so are severely degraded. He gives a shiver as a thin, cold rivulet of water runs down his back.

"Good afternoon, Dr. Villa," Kylah says, relieved to hear a somewhat familiar voice again. "I need to ask you about Mr. Wilson's autopsy findings. I am checking on alibis down here and it is vital to know the window of opportunity needed to commit the crime. If I remember correctly, Dr. T'Var told us that the time of death was approximately from 0000 to 0030. I understand that it is impossible to be exact in such things, but I was wondering if there is any leeway in those times--could it have been earlier or later? Or does that half-hour interval already take the uncertainty into account?"

She takes a deep breath. "Further, I am trying to determine the difference between the time of death and the time of his attack. According to Dr. T'Var's report, Mr. Wilson died of exsanguination, which as I understand is not necessarily an instant death. Thus, that might narrow the window further--it pushes the relevant time period earlier.

"I know we might be talking only a matter of few minutes from when the knife entered Mr. Wilson's body until his life functions ceased. But from what I have judged of the various suspects' movements, our known timeline must be as precise as possible. Some people would have been available to commit an attack at, say, 0050, but not 0025."

Kylah's hand tightens slightly around the communicator. "So, given the nature of his injury, can you tell roughly how long would it have taken him to die--and thus, what are the earliest or latest times that the actual attack could have taken place?"

Dr. Villa checks her records and says, "The autopsy indicated Wilson's time of death was between 2330 and 0030. It could've been 15 minutes or so to either side of that, I suppose. Stabbing like this usually results in death within five minutes or so."

Kylah nods, slowly letting her hand drop from the window glass. "I see. Yes, of course, I remember now about the autopsy findings. I was mixing that up with what we know about Mr. Wilson's activities. He was seen alive a bit later than 2330, so..." She does not bother to continue. For a fleeting moment she has the impulse to ask why the autopsy record would not simply take those extra fifteen minutes--no, the extra half hour, really--into account, and thus estimate Mr. Wilson's death as occurring between 2315 and 0045. But she is neither a doctor nor a bureaucrat, and cannot understand their strange ways. "At any rate, this is extremely helpful. Thank you, sir. Kylah out."

As she closes the communicator, she feels a curious swell of emotion that she cannot quite identify. It is not triumph, it is not fear. It is some unnerving combination of the two.

Kylah stands very still at the enormity of the confirmation she has just received. Even assuming the very latest possible time given for Wilson's death--12:45am--this means the murderer attacked him at 12:40.

Hardin did not do it. Not by himself.

She stares out at the window. The Vice Admiral has an accomplice. Possibly--maybe probably--more than one. Then she nearly laughs, although it is not joy but near-hysteria that nearly propelled the laughter from her: the truth is, whatever Hardin did, it could all be a horrible coincidence. He might not be involved in the murder at all.

Looking down at the communicator, she wishes it were safe contact the others outside. But she has no idea where they are, if they have all silenced their communicators, if they have even turned them off altogether. If she sends even a text, and the notification somehow alerts Hardin or another unknown enemy, she would never forgive herself. She would be as foolhardy as Delaney had been--worse, because she has personal experience of what they are up against.

Kylah forces herself to start moving again, heading back to the elevator to the administrative offices. As she walks, she takes some comfort in the fact that Booker Graham will not assume Hardin is alone. If anything, the man is probably preparing (if not outright hoping) for an entire platoon of cloaked Romulans out there. She certainly trusts Velir to have considered the possibility. If they are very fortunate, perhaps she is right and Hardin really isn't to blame for the murder, in which case his stunning of Kylah and Graham might be as violent as he is likely to get. So Velir, Graham and the rest might not be deadly peril after all.

The thought cheers her somewhat. At least, until the elevator door closes and she realizes that this would mean that the killer--whether or not Hardin's accomplice--is probably still on the grounds of the resort.

This grim possibility is still floating around her mind when she arrives at the administrative area and, once again, asks to seek Mrs. Hsu.

Mrs. Hsu is still at her desk. Her mouth sets in a hard line when Kylah is shown in. "Yes?" she asks curtly.

Kylah remains standing and keeps her right hand down at her side. She sincerely doubts Mrs. Hsu is dangerous, but she will not be attacked twice in a day; in this position she has access to both her knife or her phaser, in the unlikely event either are necessary.

"I would say I am sorry to bother you, Mrs. Hsu. But that would be a lie," she says calmly. "Although at least that would make us nearly even. Though not quite. You have told me two lies, at least. Your husband appears to be lying as well, but I am not sure if he is doing so knowingly, or merely out of husbandly concern."

Looking over Mrs. Hsu's desk and her demeanor, Kylah tries to determine what the other woman has been working on since she left. "I have some sympathy for your predicament. Perhaps having lied to your spouse for so long, you believe you can get away with doing the same to me, and with as little consequence. But you cannot. I neither care about nor judge you for your extramarital activities. So unless they are somehow related to Mr. Wilson's death, there is no purpose in your evading the truth."

Kylah steps closer and lowers her voice. "So. I want you to tell me the facts about your last conversation with Mr. Wilson, as well as your activities the night of his murder."

Graham gestures for Saint Croix to cover the closed doors and wait, then waves Gelil in to take a position in the doorway to the farmhouse. He points Saint Croix to the left of the closed door on the left, while he takes a position to the right of the closed door on the right. He checks his tricorder again for a closer reading of what might be behind the doors.

If he finds nothing alarming, he will indicate that Saint Croix should wait while he opens his door.

(If he finds the space behind his door obviously clear--such as a small empty closet--he will visually look it over and then move to cover Saint Croix opening hers, on his signal. However if it is not obviously clear--for example, a room with another door leading from it--he'll pause to re-group the team).

Mrs. Hsu seems a little flustered, but crosses her arms and leans back in her chair. "And why should I do that, if you're convinced I've already lied?"

Graham's tricorder shows no lifesigns, but various wooden, metal and ceramic objects. St. Croix and Geilil take up their positions, and the alien nods to Graham. He opens the doors to reveal a bathroom and a small bedroom, respectively.

"I will tell you why," Kylah says, remaining perfectly still although her heart is pounding. "It is because, despite your having been deceitful, I would very much like to be convinced that it was nothing more than a last flailing vestige of your guilty conscience at having conducted an affair."

She softens her tone a fraction. "But you and I know there are far worse things than infidelity, Mrs. Hsu. If your lies had nothing to do with the murder, then please, give me the explanation. I need to know whether I am wasting time on you. There are other suspects and I would like to eliminate as many distractions as possible. Lord Fastolfe was our first distraction. Now there is Hardin."

After a hesitation during which she calculates her next move, Kylah plunges forward. "His corruption and violent behavior made his guilt of Mr. Wilson's murder seem like a natural conclusion. At least, it did before I personally uncovered proof, barely twenty minutes ago, that Hardin did not wield that knife.

"That does not mean he was not involved at all," she adds more slowly. "He may have conspired with, or even threatened, someone else--perhaps more than one--who performed the actual deed. But Vice Admiral Hardin did not, could not, have been in that conference room when Mr. Wilson was attacked."

Kylah takes a deep breath. "Someone else was there. Someone whom Wilson met, obviously on purpose, given his attempt to be clandestine. Was it you? Or did you just ask him to go there, luring him to a third person's knife?" Her gaze pierces the other woman's eyes. "That is why I need to know your activities, Mrs. Hsu. Because if you do not tell me otherwise, I will be working off the theory that you led Mr. Wilson to his death--by your own hand, or possibly even your husband's. And that means a search warrant at the very least, an arrest as a material witness at the worst."

Rangin continues waiting outside with the rest of the group keeping his eyes peeled across the colony buildings waiting to see if anything moves.

He calms his nerves by telling himself that Graham will at least be thorough in searching the first building before they can all move in and begin the house to house search, though he does wonder if Hardin is still here at all. Why run towards the Colony buildings, what could possibly be here for him?

Mrs. Hsu snaps, "I don't know what you're talking about. I didn't kill Tony; I loved him. Now, I've told you all I know. I've answered all of your questions. I'm not going to repeat myself and give you the chance to twist or misinterpret again what I say. Please leave, Ensign."

Rangin and the others remain in the rain, phasers and tricorders in hand, their attention directed outward as Graham, St. Croix and Geilil search the farmhouse.

"I have not twisted nor misinterpreted a thing. And you have answered my question with lies," Kylah snaps right back. "I know you did not spend all evening in your room, Mrs. Hsu. I know you where you went, and what you did, less than an hour before Mr. Wilson was killed. And it was not sleeping in bed with your husband."

She leans forward. "Please do not talk to me of love, as if it is a shield against hatred. One turns easily into the other when betrayed. Besides, even love can be superseded by ambition--or fear. If someone created either of those emotions within you, who knows what you might have done?"

"Now, I will leave, as you asked me to. But first I am giving you one last chance to explain yourself, because there are all sorts of reasons for your behavior that have nothing to do with Mr. Wilson's murder. Your refusal to so much as utter a single one is giving me no choice but to assume the worst. One more time: What did you say to Mr. Wilson that night?"

"Building clear," Graham says to his two companions. He adds a nod. "Good work, people. Now let's get everybody's asses out of the rain..."

Graham steps outside and assesses the surroundings, then positions himself, St. Croix and Gelil at the doorway and corners of the building to cover the angle of approach from any threat from inside the Sandoval colony areas as best they can. "All right folks, building is clear, proceed to our location at good speed, two groups ten yards apart." He keeps his communicator in one hand and phaser in the other.

As the call comes across from Graham,. Rangin breathes a small sigh of relief.

Arranging for Dr T'Var and Lt Delaney to be in the first group, Rangin calls out, "Ok, you heard him, front group move across."

After they have started and been given enough space, Rangin will move across with the second group to the relative safety and welcoming dryness of the Sandoval Colony building.

Hsu rises to her feet, reddening, and snaps, "I have nothing more to say to you. Get out. Just get out!"

The search party takes shelter from the rain on the porch and inside the farmhouse. Everyone is dripping wet. There is a crash of lightning near the horizon to the west, and then a long roll of thunder.

Kylah is surprised that Mrs. Hsu cannot hear her pounding heart. This is not a role she is used to; normally she would have backed out by now. At this point, two days into this hellish mission, Kylah has grown so angry, tired, scared, sickened, and fed up with everyone on OC3 that her misery seems to have given birth to some new, fierce side she did not know she possessed.

She has not said the magic word, Kylah thinks viciously. Fastolfe was smart enough to say it. She is not.

A sudden thought makes her smile, catlike, "If you are so desperate for me to leave, you really ought to call Security. Here, let me." Without bothering to ask permission, she presses a button on the comm panel on Mrs. Hsu's desk. "Kylah to Mr. Hsu," she says sharply. "You are needed up here in your wife's office. Please meet us here at your earliest convenience."

She releases the button, disconnecting the call before Hsu can respond. Raising an eyebrow at Mrs. Hsu, Kylah waits a second before murmuring: "Now we will properly compare your stories, and see how well they match with what multiple eyewitnesses have to say."

And because she is not completely reckless, Kylah lifts her communicator. "Kylah to Ensign Russell. Assuming all is quiet where you are, could you please leave your current post--making sure Ensign Barbour remains in place--and join me in Mrs. Hsu's office, in the administrative area? There is no immediate threat. But I would like a Starfleet Security presence."

Rangin sweeps a hand back across his head and flicks off the water, keeping it out of his eyes and looks round at the rest of the team all sodden and not happy. Well, at least they know how I felt a half hour ago.

"Well what do you know, we made it across without being struck by lightning." he comments trying to lighten the mood but it doesn't really appear to work.

Here in the relative dry, he starts to think about what the next steps are, rechecking the tricorder for heat signatures and life forms in the area, hopefully not as affected by the storm inside the building as outside. Looking at the readings, he realises he is missing one person there and his minds drifts back to wondering how Kylah is doing back in the resort. She probably wouldn't appreciate being soaked like everyone else there, but she would probably want to know they at least made it across without being hit.

He opens his communicator and thumbs a quick message to her knowing that Graham is going to want to start sooner rather than later: Arrived intact, starting next phase. Stay safe, Velir.

Mr. Hsu does not respond. Ens. Russell says, "Acknowledged. On my way."

Mrs. Hsu appears very taken aback. Then she frowns, turns off her computer and says coldly, "If you won't leave, I will." She heads for the door.

Rangin sees no change in his readings. Being inside the farmhouse does not appear to improve tricorder functions as the storm continues outside.

At a loss for a second, Kylah thinks: She must not leave! Better for her to remain in one place where Russell can watch her. She steps nimbly in front of the door and holds up a hand. "No, Mrs. Hsu. I will not chase you out of your own office. You may stay here, and I will go. I would have preferred to show the footage from the Starfire club to the both of you, but your husband will suffice. Considering that he is covering for you, I suspect he will not be terribly surprised by what he sees--except perhaps by the fact that you were so foolish as to rendezvous in such a public place."

Kylah walks out of the door. She waits to see if Mrs. Hsu will let it close behind her, or if she will follow.

Once outside, she lifts her communicator to find a message from Velir wating for her. Her heart gives a frantic flop when she hurries to see what he has written. Then she exhales in relief. He is safe, at least for now. She hopes this means it is all right to contact him, at least by text.

Her fingers work in a blur and it is a wonder her message is coherent: Thrilled to hear from you, I have been worried and desperate to pass on vital news. I have uncovered proof Hardin was in Starfire at time of murder. If he is guilty he did not work alone. Please be careful, he may have accomplices with him!

Sending it off, Kylah remains near the office in case Mrs. Hsu comes to her senses or either Mr. Hsu or Ensign Russell shows up.

While checking the tricorder and shaking his head Rangin gets the response from Kylah and his jaw drops for a moment before he recovers himself. He quickly responds with Thanks. Will let all know.

He heads quickly across to Graham to let him know what Kylah has uncovered and hoping he is not quite as much in the zone as before or at least receptive to what Rangin has to say. Maybe after detailing the path across, Graham might actually listen. Twice in one day would be a record.

"Mr Graham, I've just received an update from Ens. Kylah. Looks like Hardin has an alibi for the time of Mr Wilson's murder. If he was involved, he's likely to have accomplices."

Mrs. Hsu nods stiffly, and the door whispers shut behind Kylah. The Communications officer waits near the office. After a few minutes, a passing WR&R clerk sees her there and says, "May I help you, ma'am? This area is off-limits to guests, I'm afraid, unless you're accompanied by a staffer."

Rangin looks out and sees that the sky seems to be brightening in the distance, and the clouds are not as thick or dark there. It appears the storm may be passing sooner than predicted.

Kylah's patience is on a knife's edge. The gnarled tangle of her nerves over the past few days seems to have condensed into a tight knot over her left eye, and the stranger's words only seem to make it throb harder.

She turns slowly to scowl at the staffer in disbelief. "I beg your pardon? Are you aware that there is a murder investigation going on? An investigation conducted by Starfleet, which owns the rights to the very land beneath this resort and has ultimate governance over it?"

With military sharpness, she whips her pointing finger at the insignia over her chest. "I am not wearing this uniform to attend some masquerade party for your spoiled, dilettante guests. I am Ensign Kylah, temporarily in charge of the resort end of this operation. And I am here because I am waiting for one of our Security officers, who will take this position for me when I choose--and I do mean choose--to leave."

Her hand moves from her chest to her temple, massaging it for a few seconds before she continues. "I know you are just doing your job," she mutters. "I am sorry to have snapped at you, but there is at least one dangerous person, almost certainly two, in the vicinity. There are lives at stake here, not just the guests but staffers like you, and my own crewmates. To be frank, we have gotten precious little assistance from WR&R staff considering both your jobs and your very lives are on the line as long as this murderer is loose. Right now, I just need to think."

She leans against the wall and tries to count to ten, but only makes it to five before she turns to the staffer again. "If you would help me despite my probably having caused your resentment, you would go far in being of service to this investigation. I very much need to speak with your Chief of Security. I tried to contact him before but I am not certain he heard me. Will you please get in touch and tell him that Ensign Kylah needs to see him up here, as soon as possible?"

The staffer, with a fixed smile, goes to a nearby wall comm unit and calls Mr. Hsu, who responds that he is en route.

Ens. Russell arrives. "What's up?" he asks.

Once the group is inside Graham smiles and points with a thumb over his shoulder "Bathroom is on the right if anyone needs it."

He gestures to St. Croix. "Rotate one Security officer with eyes out the door and tircorder on maximum scan. I want to keep the light level in here low, but see if we can use the old trick of warming something up with a phaser on low power--cast iron pot, hearthstone, whatever--so folks can dry out a bit."

"Lt. Delaney--I'd appreciate your recommendation on what kind of range and reliability we can get out of our tricorders in terms of covering these buildings...for example, could two teams create an overlapping field of coverage across multiple buildings, or are we going to be limited to just trying to get a peek behind each building's door."

He's taking a deep breath and thinking about a search pattern when he gets Rangin's update.

His smile disappears, but he nods as he rubs his chin. "That's a prudent assumption anyway...of course the question is, does that mean the accomplice is here--or back at the main compound?"

He hails Kylah. "Mr. Kylah, what have you and Garcia dug up?'

Rangin has a horrible thought as he stands by Graham waiting for Kylah to answer. One of his worst fears had already come true, one of the top people in the Federation had been shown to be corrupt, but if he wasn't the killer, then maybe his accomplice was from Starfleet as well. It would make sense, anyone else on the planet other than the staff would be co-incidence.

But who?

The Research station was accounted for, at least Rangin thought they had been, but that only left Ebling...and the six of them?

Surely Not? Kylah had been in no condition and besides she was sharing with T'Var and she would have noticed if T'Var had left. Graham? Well, Rangin didn't remember him returning, but although he was a killer everything else would have been beyond him. Frankly, the same went for Collins, who had been about as capable as a wet paper bag at the start of the mission, even though she had started to grow into the role.

But that just left Lt Delaney. He had had a room to himself, no-one had seen him again until the morning, he had the technical capability to carry out the hacking attempts and cover up records, he been delaying the team just getting here. Hell, they only had his words as to when the body was moved. What if he had lied and the body had been shifted earlier or later?

A shiver made its way down Rangin's spine as he began to wonder if they were carrying the accomplice with them. He resolved to double check all Delaney's work to be sure as well as checking for any outgoing unexpected comms in the area. Better safe than sorry.

After all, who would suspect loveable, affable, quiet, stick-to-the-background Lt Jim Delaney? He would be the perfect accomplice.

Kylah thanks the staffer despite the cold smile--she probably deserves it--and greets Russell effusively. It flashes through her mind how lucky she is that the WR&R employee is here, because she is so relieved to see a fellow officer that Kylah almost wants to embrace him, near-stranger or not. Indeed, if it were Velir, the staffer's presence would not matter at all.

After greeting Russell, she draws him further aside and speaks quietly. "When I contacted you I was not certain Mr. Hsu would be arriving, and I thought I would have to leave here. Since she is now a suspect--to me, anyway--I would like her under surveillance. However, things are slightly different now. Mr. Hsu is on his way, and I will interview the two of them together. Considering the... personal nature of the topic, I think privacy will be warranted... but once I am through, I would like you to remain out here, perhaps unobtrusively, and to keep one or both of them in sight should they leave. I hope that--"

Her communicator interrupts her. She begs Russell's pardon and responds to Graham. "I am glad to hear from you, sir. I did not dare contact you while you were in the field. I just told Velir that I--" Her words cut off for a second when she realizes he asked about Garcia as well. Of course, he would not expect her to have been alone for so much of the time. And he likely thinks me incapable of discovering such evidence on my own! Kylah continues more carefully. "I wanted to confirm the witness statements that mentioned seeing Mrs. Hsu speaking with Wilson that night. As you know, she insists she never saw him after the spore introduction. I thought video footage of the nightclub would clear up this debate, and when we reviewed it, her story was proven false, as I suspected."

Kylah does not elaborate that the 'we' who reviewed it was her and the WR&R security guard. She hurries on: "But what is most important--I found that the camera footage did not end at midnight after all!" She quickly explains how it was saved thanks to having been installed separately. "...And it was quite clear that Hardin did not leave the club until 12:42. I made extra certain that the time had not been altered--I used your own visit to the nightclub to judge whether the footage timestamps were accurate.

"I then contacted Dr. Villa, and she confirmed that according to the autopsy results, the very latest Wilson could have been attacked was 12:40--even allowing for an extra fifteen minutes after the estimated time of death." She suddenly has to smile despite the seriousness of the situation. The truth is, she is proud of the work she did to back up her theory.

"Meanwhile, Hardin could not have reached the conference room any earlier than, say, 12:47. So while he could have performed the subsequent activity with the transporter, and he may have ordered the murder in the first place... there is no physical way he committed the attack. If his corrupt partnership with Wilson is behind this crime, Hardin would have needed an accomplice to stab Wilson. I think it quite likely that this person is with him now--there might even be more than one. I wanted to warn you so you know this is a possibility."

Kylah pauses and glances at the office door. "I am now outside Mrs. Hsu's office. Ensign Russell is now with me instead of Lt. Garcia." That should satisfy Graham. "Mrs. Hsu has refused to explain why she lied about seeing Wilson at the nightclub, though I have not shown her the footage that disproves it yet. Mr. Hsu backs up Mrs. Hsu's story at least as far as her having been in her suite the whole evening.

"I am aware this might have nothing to do with the murder. It is quite possible, even probable, that the lie is simply yet another attempt to deny her adultery, and nothing more. But at this point I am unwilling to give her the benefit of the doubt, and I am frankly tired of their stubbornness. So... so I thought I would show them the footage together, giving them no time to coordinate their stories. Ensign Russell will of course be nearby."

Kylah takes a deep breath. "And that, sir, is what I have come up with."

St. Croix nods and gives orders for the rotation of the search party. She heats the cast-iron stove with her phaser, set on low, and those who can crowd around it to warm themselves.

Delaney rubs his chin and says, "Let me see what I can do with the tricorders."

Ens. Josiah Russell says, "OK, whatever you need." Kylah is impressed by his air of calm and willing helpfulness, so unlike her recent experiences with Mrs. Hsu. Five minutes pass, then ten, and Mr. Hsu still has not arrived.

Rangin adjust his tricorder to see if there are any signals are leaving the area and then goes across to Lt Delaney, ostensibly to see if he needs a hand, but in reality to check on what he is doing.

Rangin sees no lifesigns or heat sources leaving the area - in fact, he sees none of either, other than those now in the farmhouse.

Delaney has the back off his own tricorder, a diomagnetic probe in hand from his hip toolkit, and is tinkering with the tricorder's innards. It is again beyond the scope of Rangin's own technical expertise. The young engineer notices Rangin's attention, smiles wearily and says, "Still a lot of atmospheric interference, but it seems to be dropping off, fortunately...."

Graham listens carefully to Ens. Kylah's report.

He can hardly believe his ears and his eyes: the team made it in good order to the Sandoval building's, Rangin is being helpful without complaint, and Kylah's delivering a crisp report on real progress.

"Taking credit" is the last thing on his mind; instead he tries to piece together how things might continue to turn around: In hindsight, Collins was obviously unwell, he thinks. And I had my head up my ass...maybe we're on an even keel now...

"That's good work, Ensign," Graham says after she finished. "Excellent work." He lowers his voice and moves a little away from the others. Given Kylah's ups and downs on the mission, he adds quietly, "You should, ah--I hope you feel proud of it."

He frowns and adds after a pause. "It may not only be the case that Hardin has an accomplice, it may be that Wilson tangled with the wrong people trying to get out from under or take out Hardin, and the Admiral's solely on the lam because we found out he was dirty. So one or more bad guys may be at the main compound."

He exhales deeply. "We'll get back there was soon as we take Hardin into custody--continue exercising caution, as you've been doing."

Exhaling silently, Kylah realizes she has been holding her breath while Graham responded. Her cheeks feel warm at his unexpected and, from the sound of it, genuine praise. She pays close attention to the possibility he has raised.

"Yes, Mr. Graham. I hope I can get Mrs. Hsu to open up to me--she knew Wilson best, she is second-in-command here... Most of all, as I said to her, she is a distraction. The affair is probably unrelated and if she would just tell me the truth, likely we would at least no longer need to focus any energy on her. Oh--I should mention Mr. Palver--he was also at the nightclub and spoke to Mr. Wilson, which is inconsistent with what he told us. He may be worth a visit after I am done with the Hsus." Probably ruining their marriage in the bargain.

She hesitates and says: "And thank you very much, sir. I... I appreciate the encouragement. It means a great deal to me." Looking down at the floor, she adds softly, "If I may say something, Mr. Graham? The rest of the crew... people like Dr. T'Var and Velir... I know them well, and have seen them in combat. They are brave but careful, as they should be. But what I sense from you is that you may risk yourself to complete a job. I am sorry to be so forward, it is just that I just want you to... to take care of yourself, along with the rest of the crew. Whatever our difficulties may have been, I do hope you come back safe and unharmed."

A glance at her chronometer makes her frown, and she clears her throat when she continues. "I should not keep you. I am still expecting Mr. Hsu..." Why is the man taking so long, is he walking backwards? "I will not contact you myself so as not to risk exposing your position, so I would be grateful if you would keep me informed, when you have a chance."

Mr. Hsu then arrives, a little out of breath. "Sorry. We had an alarm on one of the exterior doors, which are all locked. False alarm - but we had to check it. We confirmed from vid footage that no one went in or out."

Kylah turns to Hsu, her own interior alarm bell going off. "Are you certain, Mr. Hsu? Such footage has been faked before." She suddenly recalls the adjustment Velir performed on her tricorder--which, as she recalls, scans automatically to indicate Hardin's presence and should warn her without her needing to check. Even so, she pulls out the device to ensure that it is still working.

"Anything I can do to help or need any suggestions as to what to search for, Sir?" Rangin decides to find out what it is that Lt Delaney is actually doing to the tricorders, while waiting for Graham to give out the search orders for the other buildings.

Hsu chuckles a little ruefully. "I thought the same, but no, we confirmed it's recent and untampered-with footage. That's why it took me longer to get here. Sorry." Kylah's tricorder appears to be working fine other than sensor acuity dropping off sharply past a few dozen meters. There is no trace of Hardin.

"I don't think so," Delaney says distractedly to Rangin. From what little the Coridanite knows of tricorder innards, the young engineer seems to be acting appropriately.

Kylah is glad that the tricorder is working as expected--hopefully it will give her an alert, just as Velir assured her, if Hardin is nearby. She is also glad that Hsu confirms the footage is intact--although, his assurances are not necessarily to be believed. Her eyes try to read Hsu's mood. Meanwhile, still on with Graham--and not wanting Hsu to enter his wife's office to speak with her alone--she asks Hsu to wait a moment, lifting a hand to request his presence.

"I beg your pardon, Mr. Graham," she says quickly. "Mr. Hsu has just arrived. Is there anything you wish me to impart to him before I go?"

Graham's not sure how to respond to Kylah's comments, but Hsu's arrival gives him an out. "Just have him make sure the perimeter of the facility is secure...let's not have Hardin warming his toes back in his room while we run around in the rain on a wild goose chase." He pauses a second. "Graham out."

He pulls up a map of the Sandoval buildings on his tricorder and moves to see how Delaney--and now, it looks like, Rangin as well--is progressing with his modifications.

Hsu says, "Short of posting a guard at every door, which I don't have the staff to do, yes, the perimeter is as secure as I can make it."

Delaney says, "Another few minutes and I think I can do this."

Lt. JG Haakon Kjaerstad comes on the open comm channel; all Yorktown personnel can hear him. "Mr. Graham, had you authorized use of the resort's transporter? The resort systems status board shows that it's being powered up."

Kylah's head whips around to Mr. Hsu and snaps, "I thought the transporter room was secure!" She then turns back to the communicator. "We're heading there now, Mr. Graham."

Her mind races. She does not want to leave Mrs. Hsu alone. "Russell, stay here as I suggested earlier. Kylah to Garcia," she adds over the communicator. You heard Kjaerstad? Meet me at the transporter room ASAP."

She shoves the device back on her belt and takes out her phaser. "Mr. Hsu. You can stay here and be guarded by Mr. Russell, or join me on the way to the transporter. You first," she adds, refusing to let him get behind her."

Graham's taken aback by Kjaerstad's report. "Hell no--"

Great. I'm worried about an unlocked door and somehow the bad guys have access to instant transport anywhere they want, while I sit here surrounded by Security while a cryptologist and my comms officer are the rapid response team...

"Override it from the security office," Graham replies. "If you can't specifically override it, kill the power. Take the resort's whole goddamned grid offline if you have too. My responsibility."

Hsu blanches. "Uh...."

Kjaerstad reports, "Trying to shut it down remotely... no luck. We're locked out of the transporter console system. I'll try to shut down the power grid. Stand by...."

Was I right they did have remote access to the transporter all along? Rangin thinks, and then realises that Kylah is heading that way. If it is Hardin, he hopes she made those modifications to the tricorder, but he can't help but worry about what could happen int he next few minutes. Given everything, he wonders if he could make a run back across in the rain

Rangin then quickly turns to Delaney, "Sir, we discussed someone having remote access to the transporter. If it is powering up the transporter, how do we find it if its active?"

Mr. Hsu's slowness to react electrifies Kylah with anger and mounting alarm. She grabs Mr. Hsu's hand. "A Security Chief should react quickly to such a situation. That you are not doing so makes me wonder why. You are coming with me--now go!" She jerks at Hsu's arm to shove him in the direction of the fire exit--after hearing Graham's order to shut down the power grid, she does not want to be stuck in an elevator if everything goes black. A sudden instinct makes her glance back to Russell. "Take a quick look in Mrs. Hsu's office, make sure she is still there. Assuming she is, keep your phaser trained on him--if he makes a move against me, stun him."

Kylah starts off to the stairwell and the quickest route to the transporter room.

Delaney tells Rangin, "I can't tell from here. I don't have a tie-in to the resort control systems." Lightning flashes on the horizon, and there is another boom of thunder.

Hsu angrily snatches his hand back from Kylah, and pushes her back as she turns to go. "You're not my boss!" She keeps her footing, however, and races away. A few seconds later, her communicator beeps and Russell reports, "Mrs. Hsu is not in her office."

Kylah almost stumbles when she hears the news confirming her suspicion. "Do not let Mr. Hsu out of your sight," she says as she runs. "Hold him however you have to and ask him where she would go!"

When she reaches the stairs she gallops down, feeling the pressure on her left knee but ignoring it just as she has done for her headache over the past half-hour. "Kylah to Kjaerstad and Garcia--keep an eye out for Mrs. Hsu, she is missing and might be near the transporter room; Kjaerstad, you might find Mrs. Hsu on the cameras." Her voice is shaky both due to nerves and the stairs. "Kylah to Graham! Mrs. Hsu must have been the one to transport. I was outside her office the whole time after the interview but when I asked Russell to check, she was gone! I am sorry I did not stay with her, if I had just done so, I--I should have thought of the transporter, I should have scanned her or kept her with me--"

She nearly slams into the wall when taking a longer jump off the bottom two stairs and curses silently. Then she is through the door and continues racing to the transporter room.

"Don't beat yourself up about it," Graham replies calmly to Kylah. He wishes he had time to indulge in the long string of profanities that have come to mind, but the fact is that the situation has changed: there's nothing to be done but to adapt to it...

"Kjaerstad, if the train has left the station, obviously don't kill the power: alert resort security they hold detain Mrs. Hsu for Starfleet personnel--and not follow any of her instructions. As Mr. Kylah, suggested, look for the missus on the cams...Kylah will rendezvous with Garcia and take the transporter offline."

He glances around the room and grimaces. Two fugitives, no guarantee there isn't a third person involved--and now the team's poorly distributed..."

He quickly runs through a mental list:

Main compound has cameras, assuming sensors are still offline, here I need Delaney's tricorder wizardry...

Resort doc is a weirdo but not currently a suspect, so still counts as option if medical care is needed, so I'll keep T'Var at hand here...

But I want to shut this front down quickly and have done with it so we aren't split...


"Rangin, Harper, get ready to get wet again - assuming Yorktown still doesn't recommend transport, you'll hoof it back to the resort to back up Kylah."

"Delaney, T'Var, you'll secure this location. Friedman, you're with me, St. Croix and Gelil you're the second search team here."

"Any questions?" he says, with the communicator channel still open.

Kjaerstad says over the open channel, "My board shows the transporter is still in its warmup sequence, not that it's been used yet. It looks like I don't have the ability to shut down the entire resort's power grid from here, and no one's answering from the power plant. Should I go there? I have Garcia checking the surveillance logs for the past ten minutes."

Russell replies to Kylah. "Acknowledged. Mr. Hsu has taken a seat and I'll keep him there."

St. Croix, Harper and the others are ready for Graham's next orders. They have no questions.

"Delaney," Graham asks, "How long does the transporter need to warm up?"

Rangin smiles ruefully, its seems he is destined to spend the afternoon soaked to the skin, he hasn't even fully warmed up as well since they got to these buildings.
"Whoever is trying to transport in this weather is going to have trouble, the storm isn't over. Hopefully safeties will cut in before someone regrets it.", he asides to Graham and Delaney

He checks the tricorder with the modifications and heads to the door. "Harper, front and centre. On Ens. Graham's mark." Looking outside at the still pouring rain, with the sunshine still so far away, Rangin wonders if he can get back in time to assist. At least going this way, they can go faster, instead of waiting to see if they would be fired upon by Hardin.

Rangin plots a faster course than the one coming in, skirting closer to the top of the hill and hoping the worst of the lightning has passed.

Kylah overhears Kjaerstad's news about the transporter and barely prevents herself from skidding to a halt. She forces herself forward.

"But--but she was gone!" she says aloud, her breathing now a bit labored. "I was outside her office the whole time, how else could she have disapp--Kylah to Russell!" The names are almost yelped when a thought strikes her. "See if there is a hidden door or anything in her office--be sure to take Hsu with you."

She sucks in air more deeply, approaching the corridor leading to the transporter room. It cannot be another secret door, this a resort, not some villain's lair in a melodrama, she thinks bitterly. Only a few more seconds pass before Kjaerstad's last words sink in. Garcia is checking the surveillance logs? That cannot be, I told him...

Alarm seizes her muscles, but she is now only a few yards from her destination. She slows down and finally stops, lifting her phaser and practically collapsing against the wall. Her gaze is riveted to what she can see of the transporter room doors in the distance.

"Kylah to Kjaer--Kjaerstad," she says as quietly as she can while catching her breath--not easy to do with fear and adrenaline rushing through her. She is careful to keep this off the open channel, aware that Hardin might be able to listen in. "Garcia was supposed to meet me here. Why did you change his orders, I am now all alone!"

Delaney looks off into the distance, thinking. "Uh... their model, let's see, it's a IGE 903A... from a cold start, maybe three, four minutes?"

Crewman Harper's expression is hardly cheery, but she's ready to go.

Kjaerstad replies to Kylah, "I can't both try to shut down the transporter or power grid and review surveillance footage, so I asked Garcia to do it. But I'll send him to the transporter room now."

Russell shortly replies, his voice echoing a little, "There's a maintenance crawlway above Mrs. Hsu's office's bathroom. It looks like she might have gone through it."

Kylah closes her eyes for three seconds to gather her emotions. He could not ask that hotel security person to help with the footage, instead of dragooning Garcia away from helping me? But why should this surprise her? It is clear that the Yorktown Security crew do not value the lives of their colleagues. And the idea of Mrs. Hsu somehow climbing up to the ceiling to scuttle through some crawlway like a spider is so absurd Kylah has to suppress hysterical laughter.

Of course she does not bother to ask why Russell did not investigate the office enough to notice this crawlway before; after all, he is Security and she in comms, so naturally it would be up to her to consider identifying a fugitive's escape route. Hardin may not be the only corrupt person in Starfleet. Vargas has peopled his staff with imbeciles.

Reluctantly she puts her phaser down and lifts up her tricorder. Having performed the adjustments Velir suggested--so that the tricorder will automatically warn her if Hardin is in the vicinity--Kylah scans the area for any life signs. "Kylah to Graham," she murmurs, trying to keep her voice from sounding as tense as she feels despite her bone-dry mouth and tight throat. "I am keeping this private as Hardin may be available to hear an open channel. Russell has just told me Mrs. Hsu escaped using a crawlway. Meanwhile I am within range of the transporter room and am scanning for life signs now."

She keeps her back against the wall and as noiselessly as possible sidles closer to the room. Her gaze shifts back and forth from the tricorder to the transporter room doors--and now and then looks up at the ceiling, half-expecting Mrs. Hsu to drop down on her head. Kylah swallows with difficulty. "Suggestions would be appreciated, sir."

Rangin looks at Harper and nods, "I know how you feel. If we go follow me."

"Mr Graham?" he calls further back into the building.

Graham can hear tension in Kylah's voice, and it commands his full attention: in point of fact, he doesn't feel great about sending two non-Security officers on this particular assignment, although he's determined to build their confidence rather than express any reservations.

He focuses intensely on visualizing the hallway and the door to the transporter room, closing his eyes in the process. "Don't worry," he says calmly and firmly. "I know you and Garcia probably didn't do a lot of training for things like this, but it's going to be fine. I'll talk you through how to conduct the entry..."

Kylah stops her forward movement and takes a slow, deep breath. Graham sounds so certain and encouraging. She vows to draw confidence from his words--but then her heart gives a flop when she realizes he is unaware of her situation.

"Garcia is not here," she says, soft and urgent. "I told him to meet me, but Kjaerstad needed him to look over the footage. I am alone."

Kylah remembers that Kjaerstad just said that he was sending Garcia. Her tricorder shows a single human female in the transporter room; there is still no sign of Hardin.

Noting the reading in her tricorder, Kylah adds in an exhale: "There is only a human woman in there. My tricorder does not sense Hardin. Kjaerstad did say he would send Garcia to me, but if the transporter has already begun..."

She swallows, thoughts tumbling in her mind. How long has it been since they first learned the transporter was powering up? Two or three minutes now, surely. She has no idea how much time they have, but it cannot be very long. Garcia might as well be back on the Yorktown.

"I think--I think I must stop her." Her hoarse voice is barely audible even to her. She starts moving toward the doors, eyes wide and fixed. "Please, sir," she says, suddenly feeling very small. "Tell me what to do."

Kylah can just barely hear a humming noise get louder from beyond the door. It does not sound like a Starfleet transporter.

Graham's eyes snap open when Kylah says "I am alone."

What the hell... is the first thing that leaps to his mind, but although his pulse is pounding in his forehead, he's detached from feeling angry about how his orders may have gotten fucked up and is instead almost ticking through things in slow motion:

I am alone. Bad answer.

A minute or two left to stop the transport, based on what Delaney said.

Forget it, or wait...you know that's a worse answer back to her, Booker.


Graham mutes his communicator briefly, looks up, and points to Rangin. "Resort's transporter room, go, now." He doesn't yell: yelling would do a disservice to the urgency he feels.

He knows they'll only arrive in time for relief...or first aid. But it's something.

He crouches down and closes his eyes, bending his head down toward the communicator, picturing the scene in front of Kylah, engaging his own muscles to mimic the motions he's going to describe.

He can feel her uncertainty: he puts every ounce of energy into conveying confidence in a maneuver he must have done a hundred times.

"Listen to me, Mr. Kylah, you're going to do just fine. When you're ready, the transporter room door is going to open by sliding left to right with a "whoosh." You've heard that sound a thousand times or more: picture every Federation standard door you've ever passed through, and feel the timing of it: one smooth motion, in the time it takes to breath "whoosh.""

"You remember how we entered the house the other day? Take your phaser in your right hand, arm bent, close in front of you. You're going to lock your eyes straight down the center line of that weapon: you shoot what you see. And you're going to lock your hips and your torso together too: you move as a single unit, hips-gun-eyes. This makes you faster than a bad guy waving his arms and waggling his head around. Try it once now: point, swivel from about 45 degrees left of center to 45 degrees right in the space of that whoosh."

"When you're ready, we're going to go "1-2-3, whoosh." Put yourself just to the right of the center of the door. Angle yourself about 45 degrees looking to the left: you're going to sweep the room from left to right, and that door is going to be your shield: as it opens, you're covered from the right side of the room, and you're moving with it, swinging during that whoosh from left to right, looking right down your phaser. This makes you faster than a bad guy waggling his head and swinging his arms around."

"It's not the most natural thing, but I know you can do it. It's...like a sport, or a dance... Check your settings, medium stun, maximum dispersal. You set yourself ready to move in one smooth motion across the "whoosh..." We know there's only one person in there, so you stop when you have her n your sights..and you fire in that same smooth unified motion if you see anything but hands in the air."

He pauses. "When--if--you're ready, keep your communicator channel open, count 1-2-3, move with triggering the door..."

What if this were Elizabeth on the other end of the line? enters Graham's mind. He pushes it back, because he can't coach Kylah if he's vomiting.

There's a nod from Rangin and he calls to Harper, "Double time." He bursts out into the rain for the third time, not looking up and across but shielding his eyes slightly and only looking a few feet ahead as he starts to put down a steady jog up the hill.

As the storm is passing and given the need for urgency, Rangin plots to go up and over near the crest of the hill, keeping a listen out for the sound of the tricorder buzzing. It's faster than the route they came in by and hopefully not quite as dangerous as it was ten minutes ago.

Rangin wonders what they are heading in to, Graham didn't exactly say much other than they were needed there. Why was he talking about Mrs Hsu vanishing, and not following her orders. Had she been Hardin's backup and accomplice. Surely she wasn't stupid enough to transport in or out given the weather.

All he knows is that Kylah is over there...and while he didn't want to lose any more friends as they tried to find Hardin, for pity's sake they needed his help to get here in one piece, when it comes down to it, she matters more than they do. After the last day when he had found out what she really meant to him, and him to her, how they had held each other close and kissed under the moonlight, Rangin's only focus was to get back to make sure she was safe and to do anything to be with her.

Rangin picks up his pace slightly, not wanting to think of what could be happening but only knowing that he had to get there as quickly as he can.

Kylah edges closer to the door but it does not open when it ordinarily would, given her proximity.

Rangin and Harper jog away from the farmhouse, towards the low hill that lies between the Sandoval Colony buildings and the resort. Harper easily keeps pace. The rainfall is not too heavy now. Soon they are at the base of the hill and heading up. There is a rumble of thunder in the distance, perhaps to the west, but Rangin's tricorder does not buzz.

Concentrating so hard on every word of Graham's instructions that they might as well be burned into her brain, Kylah nods to each point he brings up. Her heart is beating loudly--she cannot believe whoever is inside of the room cannot hear it.

She nods at each point he makes. When they searched the empty houses yesterday Kylah never dreamed she would be doing this alone. His precautions then had seemed unimportant since she had sensed the houses were empty, but now...

At one moment when he gives her time to respond, she answers quickly: "I am doing as you said, sir," she whispers, moving closer to the door. "But--but I cannot use both hands or I will not be able to keep in contact with you through my communicator."

Then his instructions continue and she memorizes them. Eventually the flow of his voice stops. While he spoke she was anchored and safe; now she feels adrift and lonely. Her tongue flicks over her dry lips, wanting to ask what the chances are that the door is locked--but when it does not seem to recognize her, the question is answered before she can utter it.

"The door..." She wants to laugh or cry, or both. After all this she is impotent. "The door is not opening! Can Kjaerstad open it for me?" Listening more carefully she adds: "This does not sound like our ship's transporters, or Elasian ones either. I do not know if it is beaming someone in or out. What should I do?"

Kjaerstad says over her communicator, "The door controls are locked out, too. The transporter warmup cycle should be nearly complete by now. If you can't force the lock, I think you'll have to blast the door open."

"Yes," says Graham. "Do it, Ensign."

Rangin stops thinking about what might be happening ahead and keep telling himself to focus on what he knows. And what he knows, at this point in time, could be written in large type across the back of his communicator.

One, two, one, two he concentrates on setting a steady pace up and across the hill, the beat in his head matching the steps, both for him and Harper although it would be quite likely that Harper is easily faster than Rangin.

Kylah hears the orders although she can hardly believe her ears. She whispers "Y-yes sir. Going off communicator. I do not feel comfortable aiming with just one hand. I--I will report if I am able." Feeling as if she is casting aside a life-jacket while drowning, she fumbles the device onto her belt.

With ice-cold and clumsy fingers, she adjusts her phaser setting so it is capable of what the men are asking her to do. She grips the weapon in her right hand while balancing her wrist with the left, stands back, and stars at the doors over the phaser's short body. Taking as slow a breath as her tightly knotted diaphragm muscles will allow, she then exhales and forces her mind to count, just the way Graham told her:

One.

Two.

Three.

Adrenaline surges through her, her fingers tighten, and she shoots.

Rangin and Harper crest the hill and head down the other side. They can easily see the lights of the resort ahead, through the rain and slight fog.

Knowing time is of the essence, Kylah quickly sets her phaser-1 to Disintegrate. As she depresses the firing contact, a blue-white beam leaps out of the small hand weapon's emitter, straight and true. The door and part of the wall to either side are at once melted through in a perfect circle a little over two meters across. Her eyes are a little dazzled.

Wincing and blinking to clear her vision, Kylah uses her thumb to lower her phaser's setting back down to medium stun while she dashes forward to the left edge of the newly formed entrance. The weapon is now beneath her chin, and she aims it in the same direction as her swiftly darting gaze, moving from left to right in an effort to see what is in front of her.

Her mind also blasts forward, trying to identify the emotions of the person inside--likely Mrs. Hsu, but at this point she cannot assume anything. Kylah's powers may be weak but she is desperate and hopes any inkling will be of help.

Graham's instructions for shielding herself with the door are, of course, no longer valid. Neither is any thought of stealth--that option disappeared along with the cavernous hole that was once the transporter room's door. Instead she protects her body with the edge of the opening and hopes the occupant is both blinded and shocked.

"Freeze!" she screams. "Drop anything you are holding and put your hands in the air!"

Kylah looks around the still-smoking edge of the doorway and sees Mrs. Hsu, looking very startled, by the transporter control console. She does not raise her hands.

Stepping out past the entrance, Kylah closes the gap between her and the older woman, phaser now aimed directly at Mrs. Hsu. "Last warning. Step away from the console, Mrs. Hsu. Now." She flicks a glance down at the panel, hoping to understand whether the machine is preparing for a beam-in or a beam-out, before returning her dark gaze to Hsu. "What are you doing with that transporter? Who are you allowing in here--or where are you going? Tell me!"

Graham stands, staring at the communicator in his hands, mentally timing how long things ought to take to happen--assuming all was going well, that is...

How many times have you given a "go order?" he thinks. He frowns. It's harder when you're giving the order than when you're carrying it out--I'm responsible. That's what you've been running from for a decade, isn't it, Booker? Taking responsibility for...


He blinks. One thing at a time, dammit.

Mrs. Hsu seems irresolute for just an instant, but then dives for the transporter controls.

Years ago at a feast back on Elas, a teenaged Kylah sat beside a particularly taciturn, suspicious Klingon. Though he was not Aldaan's guest of honor, he was an important advisor, and her assigned task was, as always, to win him over. Yet even getting Mek'tor to speak to her seemed impossible.

She only managed to engage him by crafty application of her empathic abilities as well as her knowledge of Klingon culture. It was an important victory, in part due to what Mek'tor taught her about the Klingons' view on defeat: that to survive such an indignity was honorable only when one learned and grew strong enough to win another day.

Now, many years and light years from that dinner, Kylah sees Mrs. Hsu hesitate instead of obey her command. In a flash, the realization of what the woman is about to do--despite all Kylah's warnings throughout the day--brings Mek'tor's lesson back to her, specifically the phrase he uttered without intending the young girl to understand.

She has only seconds to prepare with a sharp inhale. Just as Mrs. Hsu makes her move, Kylah also lunges at the console. Simultaneously she tracks Mrs. Hsu with the aimed phaser, slams her finger down to fire a stunning blast at her target, and spits out: "qaqmeH Hegh SuvwI' law' puS taH qoH!"^*



* Idiomatically: Better to fall as a warrior than stand as a fool.

As they head down the far side, Rangin still breathes deeply as Harper and he move along and down. At least having crested the hill and heading down, Rangin thinks that at least one good thing has happened. They're unlikely to be hit by any lightning between the side of the hill and the resort, given the other higher things around them.

But still, if anything bad were to happen to Kylah, would he ever forgive himself...

Hsu is caught in the nimbus of the stun effect and falls senseless to the floor.

Rangin and Harper are now in an open field and approaching the outermost extent of the resort's gardens. The rain seems to be diminishing a bit.

Once the stun hits its target, Kylah barely spares Mrs. Hsu a thought. She has gripped the side of the transporter console to help her balance after practically leaping over to it. Now she stares down and tries to make sense of the display, only shifting her gaze briefly to the transporter pads themselves to see if anything is happening. Suddenly she realizes she is trembling and dizzy--as if she has not taken in enough oxygen given the stress and exertion--and gulps down air to clear her head.

Now she has two issues to solve. First, is the transporter merely in the process of warming up, and Mrs. Hsu plan was to execute a timed beam-out to... somewhere? If so, Kylah must determine where that location is.

The more frightening alternative: Is someone attempting to beam in? If this is the case, who...from where...and how many? And most important, should she--can she--stop them?

Wide eyes scanning the console, Kylah remembers her communicator. She keeps her phaser aimed at the pads while at the same time yanking the communicator up and open.

"Kylah to Graham! I stunned her, I--I have stunned Mrs. Hsu. She disobeyed my orders and was trying to get to the transporter. I am now in control of the room, but I--" She desperately tries to understand the panel and mentally curses her relatively few hours of training regarding Engineering--most of which did not involve transporter technology. "--I am not sure what to do. If someone is beaming in, would it be better to confront them or stop the process without knowing where they are? Perhaps I can hold them in the buffer. I do not know!" Trying to contain her emotions, she asks in a calmer voice: "I do not suppose you were able to send any officers to me?"

Graham's relieved when the communicator comes back to life in what feels like only a few seconds longer than it would minimally take to clear the room. He chastises himself for not knowing enough about Kylah's service record to know how often--if ever--she's had to use force in the line of duty. But first things first...

"Good work, Ensign," Graham responds, not wanting to waste time but feeling absolutely certain some immediate acknowledgement and reinforcement is necessary. He continues--both to the communicator and his colleague in the house--"Lt. Delaney--urgently: get on the line and help Mr. Kylah freeze the transporter process, if possible." He adds "And yes, help is on the way."

While anticipating Delaney jumping in--Graham's reasonably familiar with transporter controls, but the guy apparently recognized its model number from eyeballing it, for god's sake--Graham adjusts his communicator to narrow band to Rangin and Harper and Garcia. "Back up Ens. Kylah in the transporter room--expedite."

While heading across, Rangin can feel the communicator go off. He slows slightly as he reaches back to grab it from its pouch and can just about hear Graham's words echoing through the rain.

He slows down slightly, sucking air into his lungs as he shifts gears and responds. "Two minutes to transporter room."

Flicking the communicator shut and putting it away, Rangin shouts to Harper, "Go, transporter room, fast as you can, I'll be right behind you," while picking up the pace to as fast as he can, while still leaving him able to respond to anything when he gets there.

One-twenty, one-nineteen, one-eighteen - he counts down in his head as he races towards the resort.

Kylah sees that the transporter is ready to energize. She does not recognize the coordinates it is set for, but can tell that it is not on the surface of Omicron Ceti III. She notices a small civilian-made phaser atop the console.

Garcia arrives in the transporter room seconds later, out of breath, his own phaser-1 in hand.

Delaney says via communicator, "Take a picture of the console, or describe it for me, please, Mr. Kylah."

Rangin and Harper arrive at the same exterior door to the resort from which they departed. It is locked, and for a maddening second or two the door control panel seems not to recognize Rangin's muddy and rain-slicked thumbprint, but eventually the door slides open. They race through the door and down a hallway, towards the transporter room.

Relieved to make the shelter of the resort, Rangin is not happy as the door initially refuses to budge. While jabbing his thumb to the control pad, he draws his phaser-1 swearing that if it doesn't open in the next two seconds, it is going to be opened whether it likes it or not.

Relieved to see it open, Rangin nods to Harper and, while keeping his phaser-1 drawn, the pair race down the corridors ready to assist.

Shocked to discover the weapon, Kylah stifles the emotion in order to get out her tricorder. "Here is the image, Lt. Delaney," she says, hating how weak her voice sounds, and submits the scan to Delaney. As she does she sees Garcia arrive, and she gives him a quick look of recognition before returning to the console. She is grateful to see him but resents that he left her to face this alone.

"Mr. Graham," she continues while waiting for Delaney to analyze the image, "the transporter is set to energize and the coordinates are off-world. The Yorktown should contact the Trimalchio--I have learned it is Fellim Palver's chartered yacht--to check their status. And they--I think they should also scan for any cloaked vessels in the vicinity."

Kylah darts a glance at Garcia. "Please search Mrs. Hsu and get her out of the way--and guard her. I wish we had restraints." With a swallow, she eyes the unfamiliar phaser again.

She was armed after all. She was probably reaching for the weapon. Kylah cannot suppress a shudder but keeps her focus on the transporter.

"Understood," Graham replies, starting to pace.

"Graham to Yorktown," he says, switching channels.* "We intercepted Wilson's deputy trying to use the resort's transporter. The coordinates are off-planet." He stands by Delaney, trying to look over his shoulder. "Be advised target may have been a ship in orbit--one of those known, or another cloaked. Still an unsecured scene but we may have coordinates in a minute. "

Off line, he addresses the others in the room. "We'll get after Hardin soon enough, but only after the transporter's secured. And..." He glances at T'Var and exhales. "Well, fortunately, unless Harper and Rangin pick up sniffles from the rain, we don't need your services for any of our folks again. Let's hope we can keep this up."



*I assume he has to do something and it's not smart enough to switch - although Cortana/Siri are both smart enough now :)

Delaney looks over the image Kylah sends him, and cross-references to a file on his own tricorder. "The transporter is set to beam out one person. It's locked onto the bridge of the Trimalchio, the yacht, as you guessed, Mr. Kylah. Good work."

Garcia gently pulls Mrs. Hsu away from the transporter console and lays her, arms and legs straight, along one wall. He searches her and says, "Nothing on her but a small datapad and stylus."

Rangin and Harper then arrive in the transporter room, having startled or scared several resort guests and WR&R staff in the corridors and plazas along the way.

After a few moments, Capt. Singh comes on the comm line. "Thank you, Mr. Graham, Mr. Kylah. I'll order both the Trimalchio and the Fastolfe's Chariot to raise shields to prevent unauthorized transport, and we'll do the same. We're beginning a scan for any cloaked vessels... but of course, not finding anything is no proof that there's nothing there."

Kylah is trying to take in all the new information when she sees the unbelievably welcome sight of Velir rushing in through the new entrance to the transporter room. Her breath catches in her throat when he arrives, but she can do no more than sweep her worried gaze over his soaking wet figure before the Captain's voice arrests her attention.

She waits until Singh finishes before acknowledging her words with thanks, after which she asks Delaney: "Please, sir, how do I shut the transporter down and return access to Lt. Kjaerstad?"

Then: "Mr. Graham, it is possible Mrs. Hsu was not unauthorized. These criminals must have had escape routes, particularly Hardin; the Trimalchio is convenient for that purpose. Not to mention that I already have some suspicions about Mr. Palver.

"Anyway, sir, I know getting to Hardin is essential, but I wanted to ask you: between Mrs. Hsu's attempt to flee after I unraveled her alibi, and Mr. Hsu's backing up her cover story--and he might have been responsible for locking out Kjaerstad's access to shutting down the transporter... both or either of them had means, motive and opportunity to kill Wilson. Russell is with Mr. Hsu now; I would feel safer with more than one security officer on him, and in fact I would like to bring both the Hsus somewhere secure for further questioning. Are we allowed to detain them based on what we currently know?"

Only as she finishes does she let herself turn to Velir again. She cannot speak her feelings aloud, but her eyes try to express just how achingly grateful she is to see him.

Relief. Blessed relief is all Rangin can feel as he rounds the final corner and sees that Kylah is safe. The adrenaline wears off quickly and from being alert and ready, he holsters the phaser-1 and bends over taking deep breaths while listening to Kylah speaking and watching the drips from the end of his nose slowly collate and drop onto the floor.

Once she has finished, he stands back up and looks across at the people in the room. Garcia with an unconscious Mrs Hsu with Kylah behind the console. He would love to reach across and hold her tight, letting her know how much she meant to him...

Standing straight, he nods at Kylah. "Mr Graham sent us back to assist following your call and we came as quickly as we could. Apologies for our appearance, it's still a bit wet out there." His voice may be calm, but his eyes look at her as the only person who matters in the room.

"What can I do for you?" he asks waiting for her.

Graham ensures the Yorktown knows the coordinates were confirmed as the Trimalchio, then responds to Kylah. He resumes pacing.

"I recommend you consolidate forces around the resort security office and commandeer some nearby offices. For sure, at the moment we need to detain and question Mrs. Hsu. I'd also send Harper to swing by and join Russell in bringing the mister to a separate office nearby. I'm not sure we have against him but--given this development, it's a solid basis to re-interview him."

He pauses a second. "We certainly want to talk to Palver as well, but first things first." He frowns. He'd prefer to continue the search for Hardin with the team he has, but at the same time there is Starfleet protocol to consider. "If Mrs. Hsu needs medical attention I can send the Doc to you."

In the brief time while Graham concerns himself with the Trimalchio coordinates, Kylah hears Velir's comments and sees--feels--the intense warmth of his concern for her. When he apologizes for his appearance she nearly cries and laughs. It is not only so very Velir to make such a remark, but the truth is that to her, at this time, his appearance is wonderful. Perfect.

"You are here, and you are safe," she says softly, muting the communicator. "That is the best thing you could have done for me."

She hears Graham speak again and quickly restores the volume. "Yes sir, the security area is ideal--thank you. Regarding Mr. Hsu, all we have against him are my own suspicions and knowledge of the strangeness of his behavior. Since he attempted to corroborate his wife's alibi, his own is just as suspect as hers. And he outright refused to help me secure the transporter when it suddenly sprang into life--this despite being the Security Chief! But I--we--can ask him about all that.

"Mr. Palver is a concern to me. He could beam aboard his ship and we would never get a chance to speak to him. A multi-billionaire with his reputation and resources is even more of a risk than Lord Fastolfe was." Fastolfe. Kylah shakes her head--it seems a long time since she has thought of him. Indeed, it feels as if it has been months and months since he was considered the obvious killer by so many. Yet it has been only a day. Impossible to believe.

She hurries on, focusing now on Palver. "The Trimalchio might contact him once they know we are on alert. This would not matter if he is not involved, but we should plan just in case he is, just to be safe, do you not agree? What if... What if I do as you say and commandeer some rooms, and get Harper, Russell, and Garcia to keep an eye on the Hsus... and then perhaps Velir and I might visit Palver? Haste might be essential as far as he is concerned, given his access to the ship.

"Mrs. Hsu will need some time to recover at any rate, and frankly the longer Mr. Hsu is kept uncertain as to what is happening, the better. He will be even more alarmed and annoyed than he was before. Such a state will make him vulnerable to mistakes. And speaking of Mrs. Hsu..."

Kylah's gaze has fallen on the phaser still lying on the console. She can remain on the hard ground like an abandoned rag doll for all I care. Her voice hardens slightly. "She was only stunned--you and I survived much worse. As far as medical attention is concerned, I would not wish to take Dr. T'Var from your team. I believe Velir is capable of basic first aid to check her vital signs now. Then once she is in a secure area, could we not contact Dr. Halsey, if necessary?" Kylah looks expectantly at Velir, her questions aimed at him as much as Graham. "What do you think?"

Rangin nods her at her though slightly surprised she called him Velir at this point, instead of Ens. Rangin. "Yes. If she has just been stunned I should be able to deal with it. I'll check her over now."

Rangin heads across to the prostrate figure and begins to check her vital signs. Noticing the datapad, while he is checking, he gestures to Garcia, "Sir, if that is Mrs Hsu's datapad, you may wish to examine it. If she was fleeing, so to speak, it may contain valuable information."

Kylah turns, overhearing Velir's words. Considering his light chastising her of wishing to search Mr. Hsu back in the transporter room not long ago, she is surprised to hear his suggestion. Privacy and admissibility have always seemed very important to him. "Wait--are you certain we would be permitted to use whatever we found? She was not conscious to give consent, and of course we have no warrants..."

Now she interrupts herself and lifts the communicator again. "Mr. Graham. Can you request search warrants for both Hsus, their suite and their offices? And a material witness arrest for each, using their lies about their alibis and their persistent refusal to answer questions as just cause? For Mrs. Hsu we can add attempt to flee as well."

Lt. Thalen on the Yorktown acknowledges Graham's update on the Trimalchio transporter lock.

Delaney tells Harper how to shut down the transporter while Rangin and Kylah are talking. Harper then leaves to assist Russell in keeping Mr. Hsu secure, and to arrange for separate rooms in which to hold the Hsus.

Rangin's biosign scan shows that Mrs. Hsu is in a typical stun state. Her vital signs are stable and normal, under the circumstances, and she does not appear in need of any medical attention. Kylah knows from her training that a Human woman of Mrs. Hsu's age, weight and health will remain unconscious for about ten minutes after being stunned with a phaser-1.

"I agree it makes sense to consolidate your--the--team and interview Palver if the situation is under control," Graham replies to Kylah.

He's almost bemused by the situation and the--efficient, effective--nature of their interactions in the last five or ten minutes. Maybe she focuses better when she's scared shitless, he wonders. Maybe I'm subconsciously convincing myself I'm just giving order to Faisal who's using a falsetto... He takes none of the explanations seriously but does wonder how to keep things running this smoothly...

Maybe we just communicate better when we're not face to face. An image of Kylah pops into his mind. At one angle she is reminding him of Elizabeth. At another he recalls her evening dress. He's not at all sure which one is more uncomfortable...

He clears his throat. "As you know, legal support may take some time, but we'll get on it, as expansive as I can finagle it," he answers. He's not sure how to sign off. "Stay safe, Ensign," he concludes.

Graham hails the Yorktown and makes the best case he can to support a request for: search warrants for Mrs. Hsu's person, office, and quarters; the same for Mr. Hsu; Palver's person and quarters; and the Trimalchio; and the ability to take the Hsu's into custody.*

After a moment, he addresses the team in the colony house. "All right, let's saddle up. St. Croix, Gelil, and I will move house-to-house. Doc, Delaney, you're our scanning team and our backstop to make sure he doesn't slip out behind us. I'd love to hear--well, I'm sure you would too--that tricorders will have enough range and fidelity to enable you to use this house as a home base...but I'm guessing you'll have to trail us and get wet..."


*Not sure if the Federation has MWA's, they are even controversial here/now. :)

Kylah thanks Graham and before he signs off makes sure to ask him to let her know when he is in a secure position himself. "And you keep safe as well, sir," she finishes.

When the rest have gone, suddenly Kylah and Velir are alone with Garcia and the unconscious body of Mrs. Hsu. She glances down at the woman who has caused her such trouble for the past two days. "I have not been stunned by a Federation phaser--although I have come close," she adds with a sidelong look at Velir, remembering Pourtash's aggressive stance on the Sakathian station. "I know that she will be out another ten minutes, but how much longer until she is fully cogent? Given that this was a medium stun at close range? I do not want her to claim later that we questioned her when she was not in full possession of her faculties.

"So... do we move her now or must we wait? I could contact the infirmary and have one of the medical staff assist Lt. Garcia in bringing her to one of the examination units there. It is close by, as is Security, if I am not mistaken. That will be private and, I imagine, there will be a way to keep her in place until we are ready for her." Kylah's eyes narrow slightly. She realizes she would very much like to be the first person Mrs. Hsu sees when she wakes up. That small satisfaction will be denied her if they go to check on Palver first. Still, if the Hsus are secure, it seems logical to make certain of Palver, as Graham suggested. She will rely on Velir's advice to make the final decision. "What do you both think?"

She bites her lip and glances at the console. Then she checks to see if she has any evidence bags left; if not, she will see if Velir has one.

Cmdr. Vargas responds to Graham's call about additional search warrants, records the necessary information and says, "We'll submit the requests right away."

Graham's team moves out. The rain is only drizzling now, and there is a definite brightening on the horizon as the storm clouds begin to clear there. Delaney's adjusted tricorders now have slightly better range. Still no sign of Hardin. The next buildings are a pair of smaller farmhouses and a barn.

Garcia says, "It might make sense to have the resort's doc check her out, but she seems to be doing OK. Probably best to wait, I don't know... a full half-hour or so before she's questioned?" Neither he, Rangin nor Kylah have any evidence bags left.

"She should recover, although getting an all-clear from one of the docs here would be sensible," Rangin agrees with Garcia, "also holding her for her own safety in the infirmary sounds like a reasonable idea. I would hazard a guess that anywhere else we could put her, she would be able to get out of with given her access."

Rangin thinks for a moment, ""It's probably easier to get the infirmary staff to transport Mrs Hsu across from here and save any issues about maltreatment. One of us should head back to the OP and grab some evidence bags for the datapad." Sighing sadly and feeling guilty before looking at Kylah, "You are quite right, we can't just appropriate the datapad to see what she was doing. I'm sure whatever data is on it, will stay there until we need it."

"I don't know whether to tackle Mr Hsu first and confront him with his wife's actions to see how he reacts or to track down Fellim Palver." Rangin smiles slightly, "Actually, we shouldn't really have to, did everyone check in?" he asks Kylah, "if so, we can find out where he checked in from and get who ever is in security to make sure he is still there."

Standing up and looking round, Rangin nods noticing that the transporter has been turned off and then notices the phaser. "Where did she get that from, I guess there's is something else we will need an evidence bag for." Whistling in surprise, he suddenly looks round at Kylah, wondering if she had known Mrs Hsu had been armed. "Did you know she had a phaser?"

Rangin looks at the phaser to see what setting it is on.

Listening to her colleagues' thoughts on the proper way to deal with Mrs. Hsu, Kylah nods. "Yes, you are both right. It will also look better if the medical staff are accompanying Mrs. Hsu. Although I do think one of us must be with her the whole time. I did not think how easily her administrative access might make her a security risk if she is left on her own anywhere near a computer or even a comm panel. And she has displayed an ability to escape through the walls like a mole," she adds darkly.

Kylah then contacts the infirmary, asking for one or two members of the medical staff to attend the transporter room as soon as possible to assist with a patient. If Halsey (or whoever takes the call) has any questions she deflects them and says he will be briefed when they arrive. Kylah will thank the staffer and then ends the conversation.

She then looks up at Garcia. "Sir, I hate to use a superior officer for such a menial task, but... would you please run to the CP and get a supply of evidence bags? Get enough for all of us to have a small supply on hand. When you return, you can accompany Mrs. Hsu to the infirmary to keep an eye on her. Unfortunately you will have to explain to the good doctor what happened, too, although be careful what you say to him. The less anyone knows what we do, the better. If you can avoid revealing that I stunned her, all the better. Keep things vague. Perhaps you can say that you are guarding her for safety's sake. At least that is the truth."

Holding the communicator in both hands, she continues to ponder Garcia and Velir's suggestions about the Hsu/Palver situation before speaking again. "I suppose... since we have at least a half-hour window before we must deal with Mrs. Hsu, it would be prudent to locate and talk to Mr. Palver." She cannot help giving Velir a little questioning glance, hoping it is the right decision, before continuing. "I believe Mr. Hsu can keep, for now, at least as long as we have him guarded well. Palver's ability to escape to his ship is a concern. And we are so short-staffed that we cannot just send off some security officers to guard him as well as the Hsus."

Kylah tries to get her ducks in a row. All right. First, find Palver. "Kylah to Kjaerstad," she says, looking at Velir in gratitude for his idea. "We need to confirm the location of Fellim Palver without alerting him in advance. Can you please access to the head count data made by the resort security team--either on your own, ideally, or by asking one of the staffers--and find out where he was last seen?" She then explains that the remaining skeleton crew will primarily be based in the security area, including holding Mr. Hsu there.

When through, Kylah realizes that she had better be certain that Mr. Hsu is still being handled. She uses her communicator again, somewhat dryly amused that for one of the first times during this mission she is doing what her job usually entails--ferrying information to and from others.

"Kylah to Russell and Harper. Mr. Russell, you will be joined by Mr. Harper, who is on the way to provide backup. Harper, please fill Mr. Russell in on the latest events, but do so discreetly. His ears only." She does not want Mr. Hsu knowing what has happened to his wife yet. "Russell--status report on Mr. Hsu, please?"

It is while she is waiting that Velir asks her about the phaser. Turning pale, Kylah just shakes her head and waits to hear what Russell has to say about Mr. Hsu.

Rangin sees that Mrs. Hsu's phaser was set on heavy stun.

Garcia goes and gets evidence bags and sterile gloves from the CP. Two medics come from the Infirmary and get Mrs. Hsu; Garcia then accompanies them back to the Infirmary.

Russell reports, "Mr. Hsu is still cooling his heels here in his wife's office; I've told him nothing. Harper just arrived."

Kjaerstad says, "Mr. Palver was in the library when the headcount was taken."

Graham, St. Croix and his search party advance through a light rain to the farmhouses and barn.

Rangin takes a deep sigh of relief when he sees that it was only set to a stun setting. But even so, it would not have taken much to set it to something more lethal and given there had been one murder here already...

Taking the evidence bags from Gracia, he carefully bags the datapad and then the phaser for evidence. As he does so he shudders: it could have been Kylah lying there unconscious and alone while Mrs Hsu ran, or worse dragged her along to the Trimalcho and they could have been none the wiser

Once Garcia has left with the medical staff, he turns to Kylah, "I have them bagged, and once they are dropped off, I'm ready to help you any way I can."

Rangin stops, looks at his feet and then back up at her, "It was set to heavy stun, nothing stronger, but even so, I...as I was running across from the colony I kept thinking of all the bad things that might be happening and all I wanted was to find you safe. Thank you."

"All right people," Graham says as they approach the farmhouses and barn. "Same building enter-and-clear strategy: scan at the door, St. Clair and I enter, Gelil as back-up a little ways back and hopefully out of range of whatever the hell that device is Hardin has up his sleeve."

"Doc, Lieutenant--you'll take position at about the limit of the Delaney Special tricorder, eyes and scans on what's going on around all of us."

If there are no questions, Graham heads for the nearest of the three buildings.

Once everything--including Mrs. Hsu--has been attended to, Kylah finds herself alone with Velir. She hears his words as if through a canyon.

All cadets learned about stun settings at the Academy. Now the highest setting is heavy stun, her instructor had said. Useful for silicon-based creatures or anything massive. Too much juice to use on most humanoid life forms. Although it's unlikely to harm with only one shot. But more than one can cause serious damage to the central nervous system. Multiple stuns could lead to death.

Kylah inhales sharply. She already experienced one incredibly powerful stun field less than two hours ago. What if Mrs. Hsu had fired after all?

The intense pressure over the past fifteen minutes seems to collapse in on her. Kylah moves unsteadily toward Velir. "I was worried about you too. While I was here, the whole time I hated the fact that you were in the storm, headed toward Hardin with who knows what weapons he has, and all that lightning and the Berthold Rays and... I felt sick at how cowardly I was, staying behind while the rest of you faced such danger. And then... we learned about the transporter."

She shakes her head. "I had to run here at once, and I ordered Garcia to join me. When I arrived, I was alone. I asked where he was, and apparently Kjaerstad had overridden my order, since he needed assistance with a task. I do not know why Garcia chose to act as he did. All I know is that they left me to stand here, alone."

Kylah puts her hand on Velir's forearm, steadying herself, and says in a hurried whisper: "I did not mean to do this by myself, I did not mean to be reckless, just to make up for my own cowardice earlier. But I had to get inside to stop the transporter. Kjaerstad and Graham told me to blast the doors, and so I did. And there she was." She cannot even use Mrs. Hsu's name. Her fingers feel cold, even so close to Velir's warm skin.

"She would not answer my questions. I ordered her to back away, but then she rushed to the console. I thought she was just going to use the transporter, so I stunned her before she got there. It was only after, when I saw the phaser, that I suspected that was what she wanted. She probably intended to attack."

Her fear for him and her own circumstances now make her weak where before she had tried to be so strong. Trembling, Kylah looks into Velir's lovely, concerned eyes. "Please do not be angry that I did this by myself. I swear I had no other option." She swallows and lowers her voice. "You asked what you could do for me. I know time is of the essence and we must carry on, but... will you please hold me? Just for a moment?"

With Graham in the lead, the search party approaches the cluster of three buildings. Tricorders pick up nothing, and a careful entry-and-search of the first farmhouse reveals no one. The pattern is repeated in the second house, and then the barn. Searches of the next farmhouse and a toolshed have the same result. Just as the Starfleet personnel are about to go on to the next house, Delaney's tricorder bleeps. "It's a Human male lifesign," he reports, wiping a wet strand of hair from his forehead, "directly ahead of us."

"Of course," Rangin embraces her gently, cradling her head and letting her rest against him. "Kylah, know this, I do not think any less of you and above all, you are not a coward. Scared, nervous and worried, perhaps, but that doesn't make you a coward. When it came down to it, you did what you had to do. You didn't let your fears stop you on the Sakathian station and they didn't stop you here. You are a brave woman who I am very lucky to know."

Hearing what she has said make Rangin feel so lucky to be there holding her. He closes his eyes and squeezes her slightly feeling the heat she radiates under his touch, warming his rain sodden skin.

"As for Kjaerstad and Garcia, I may have to ask, politely of course, what on earth they were thinking removing backup from a colleague heading into danger?" Rangin shakes his head. "But that can wait until later."

"Now, let's go put this evidence into the CP, dry off and then tackle Fellim Palver. See what he has to say for himself." Rangin reluctantly lets Kylah go, but they still have a job to do, "Ready?"

Once his arms enfold her, Kylah closes her eyes and lets herself exhale. The words are as much a comfort as the compact but strong body against her. Does he really see me this way? Is it possible that I truly seem brave to him? Such a vision of her is hard to comprehend, knowing how many doubts constantly cloud her mind.

But he is sincere. She knows this without having to read him--their contact enhances her ability to sense his feelings, but she does not need her empathic skills to know Velir means what he says. That is, quite simply, one of the reasons she is allowing herself to feel so much, so soon.

When they part, she realizes just how wet his uniform is, because now her own is clinging to her, and her neck and chest are damp as well. She shivers a bit but hides it by looking around as if to see if they have forgotten anything.

"Yes, I am ready," she says at last, turning her face back up to him with a small, tender smile. "You are so kind Velir. Thank you for that. I hope you know how much more I would say, if time were not so short. But yes, we must hurry to Mr. Palver."

Kylah crosses her arms over her chest, somewhat self-conscious about the wet uniform, and starts to leave. "And he is in the library, of all places. I am impressed the resort offers such intellectual pursuits!"

"Well there's our guy," Graham says. He gestures to St. Croix and Gellil. "You two approach from the left, Doc, you're with me, we'll approach from the center-to-right. Staggered movement, taking cover, no need to rush--assume he's armed with a distance weapon. Distance, Lieutenant?"*

* Graham's intent is that the 2 pairs approach the person's location from 2 different angles - depending on the layout of the buildings I expect that could mean really wide to one direction and more or less straight, or about equally angled left and right... in sum 2 angles that are intelligent given the actual layout.

Rangin looks at Kylah in her wet uniform and then down at himself. "Ah, my apologies, I appear to have gotten you slightly damp as well. Perhaps we should dry off before we tackle Mr Palver instead."

Rangin holds up the evidence bags, "Not to mention putting these safely away in the CP. Then we get to see what the library looks like. I wonder if they actually have proper books there, given this resort, or if it will be just datapads. Let's go." Rangin heads for the door hopefully with Kylah alongside him.

Rangin and Kylah step into the hallway to see resort security Officer Peters approaching. He does a double-take when he sees the blasted-out door to the transporter room. He asks, "Uh... what happened? And have you seen either of the Hsus? I haven't been able to reach either."

The farmhouse in which the lifesign appears is bigger than the first one searched, and has two stories. Delaney says, "It looks like the reading is coming from the first floor of that house. It's about three hundred meters away." Graham and the others can just see the house through the drizzle and slight fog rising. They approach as Graham ordered.

"Ah, Officer Peters," replies Rangin conversationally as if blast holes were an everyday occurrence in Starfleet. "There has been, what one might delicately say, an incident here. Mrs Hsu is currently on her way to the infirmary, but I am assured that she will make a full recovery under the excellent care of your physicians. It would not surprise me if Mr Hsu is also somewhat detained as well, due to this. I do not believe that disturbing them at this time would be a good idea."

He smiles politely at the officer, "Is there anything we can help with? Certainly if there is news for the Hsu's or a status update on the security and safety of the resort we would certainly be interested to hear it." Rangin looks across intently as if awaiting the security officer to report to the two Ensigns.

The buzzcut, barrel-chested guard seems quite taken aback. "Well... no, I was wondering where they are. What happened to Mrs. Hsu? I'd better go see her."

"Officer Peters," Kylah says quietly. "I know this is distressing, but I am afraid you may not see her right now. She is being guarded by our crew members, and I assure you her safety is paramount; we believe she knows something that may assist us in solving Mr. Wilson's murder. The truth is, she was stunned by someone who was trying to obtain that information." Kylah hopes Velir does not mind her explanation. It is true, after all, even if not entirely forthcoming.

"Due to this turn of events, Mr. Hsu will also be devoted to assisting us with the investigation for at least the next couple of hours. For now, our Lt. JG Kjaerstad is helping us establish a presence in your security offices, since it is clear we must consolidate our resources."

She hesitates and adds, "We are heading in the general direction of the security office now, if you would join us so we may talk." With a quick glance at Velir, Kylah starts walking, not wanting to lose precious time dealing with anxious staffers.

"Actually I am very glad to have run into you, Officer," she says with an earnest nod. "You see, things happened so quickly we have not had a chance to communicate any of this to the staff yet. Can you tell me if Mr. Hsu has a second-in-command, so to speak? Who is in charge of security when he is not available?"

Her mind races. And I suppose we must find someone to handle the administrative details in Mrs. Hsu's absence as well. It is absurd, we should not be worrying about the running of this resort now! She wonders if someone up on the ship might contact WR&R and let them arrange such things.

At Kylah's glance, Rangin gives a brief nod and marches along side her on their way, gesturing at Officer Peters to join them, while Kylah continues to speak.

He waits to see what answers Officer Peters has although from memory, which admittedly at the moment was running on empty, he wonders if Mr Khosvogel was Mrs Hsu second.

Peters looks at the Starfleet pair oddly for a moment and says, "I'm Mr. Hsu's second-in-command, I guess. It's never really come up before, but I have the most seniority on the security staff. I think I'd better go talk to Mr. Brett, the office manager, about all this."

Kylah nods. "Oh yes, please do speak with him, that would be a great help. Thank you for telling us about Mr. Brett, as I just wondering who might handle things in Mrs. Hsu's absence. As I am sure you can appreciate, our priority is finding Mr. Wilson's murderer, and by doing so, ensuring the safety of the staff and guests. The rest of the details related to running the resort are none of our business and I am glad to have that taken off my mind."

With a grateful smile, she adds, "I will have someone from my ship contact Mr. Brett to give him a status update. Afterwards, if he has any other questions, please have him contact me--my name is Ensign Kylah, by the way, I do not believe we have met." Kylah extends her hand to shake his. "Mr. Graham, our mission leader, has put me temporarily in charge of the investigation here in the resort while he is out in the field." Assuming he shakes her hand--or even if he doesn't--she then returns her arm to its position folded across her chest, hoping he does not notice the clingy state of her uniform.

"Since you are head of security pro tem," she goes on, "I do hope you will maintain the integrity of the resort's exits and entrances. We have one fugitive who may or may not be dangerous outside, and possibly another criminal inside. Ensuring that no one may leave or enter the buildings other than known personnel will greatly assist us in tracking these people down."

Kylah stares confidently at him. "I know we can count on you. Ensign Rangin and I will be busy interviewing witnesses and potential suspects, but of course, you too should feel free to contact us with any urgent matters. Lt. Kjaerstad will be in the security office, as I mentioned, and he will be best equipped to assist with any security-related issues. Good luck, Officer, and thank you again."

She smiles a second time, warm but professional, and strides a little more quickly down the hall. Ideally he will go scurrying off to this Brett individual, and she and Velir will be rid of this pest.

From the flicker of Peters's eyes, she can tell he does notice the clinginess of her wet uniform. But he shakes her hand politely and says, "Yes, we'll keep the outer entries secure until we get the all-clear from you." He leaves.

Rangin nods at Officer Peters. "Thank you," he says as he leaves.

"Shall we continue?" he asks Kylah

Kylah agrees and maintains her brisk pace, still heading to the CP so they can drop off the evidence. She then gives a tight shake of her head as she pulls out her communicator. "These staffers try my patience. They seem to think this resort can run normally, as if nothing has happened. Perhaps we should have paraded the lot of them past the bloody corpse of their late supervisor. Then they might have their priorities straight."

With barely a hesitation, she snaps open the device in her hand. "Kylah to Lt. Thalen. Sir, I do not know how up to date you are on the goings-on here." Kylah quickly briefs him on having placed the Hsus under temporary guard. "Ensign Rangin and I will be busy conducting interviews, but we are getting some resistance from the resort staff, who are asking questions and treating us like interlopers, as perhaps we are.

"It might be necessary to WR&R to let them know that they are now without three top employees--at least until we determine what role, if any, the Hsus had to do with all this. Apparently there is an office manager, a Mr. Brett, who might be able to take care of things. But deciding whom to put in charge should be WR&R's decision. I doubt they will be interested in hearing from an Ensign. Besides, we have three murder suspects to deal with, and that should take precedence over pacifying a corporation. What is the proper protocol, sir? Can someone up on the ship communicate with them?"

Lt. Thalen replies from the starship high above, "Thank you, Ensign. I'll have the Captain or First Officer contact this Mr. Brett. Doubtless he'll wish to update WR&R as to what's happened."

Rangin and Kylah arrive at the CP. Security Spec/1 Ji Coringu, a Kobliad woman, is there alone, spot-checking the outer doors of the resort complex via the surveillance camera system. She stands as you enter.

Graham leads the Yorktown search party forward. The rain has tapered off a little bit more; there is another roll of thunder off in the distance. The farmhouse is now clearly visible ahead, nestled in a grove of trees. Delaney, checking his tricorder, says, "The lifesign is in the corner of the house farthest from us, inside but along the outer wall."

"At ease, and carry on, Mr Coringu." Rangin nods to standing Security Specialist. "Anything of importance to report," he continues as he puts the evidence safely away and while wondering where the nearest sonic shower is, can't resist getting another coffee from the replicator. He's earned it.

He nods to Kylah enquiringly to see if she wants anything to drink?

Kylah greets the security officer, a little startled--she has completely forgotten about Coringu since whenever it was they last saw her--possibly when speaking to Mrs. Calvin, she recalls vaguely. If she had remembered that there were other security officers around she would not have assigned Garcia to watching Mrs. Hsu.

Then her anger over the transporter room mix-up is sparked anew. If Kjaerstad had Coringu on hand, why had he felt it necessary to pull Garcia from acting as Kylah's backup in an emergency? Fortunately things worked out well, but it was no thanks to Security. Which is pretty much the motto of this mission, she thinks darkly. But she is also upset with herself for not being aware of the Starfleet personnel who had been available to her.

She walks to Velir and says, absently, "No, thank you." In an undertone, she adds: "Velir, I am concerned... I did not remember Mr. Coringu at all. If I had I would not have thought Garcia was the only one available to help me investigate the transporter room."

Turning away from him slightly, she pulls the front of her uniform covering her chest and tries to air-dry it by fluttering the material back and forth. She is still deep in thought. "Graham was forced to put me in charge because I was the only one of the original landing party to stay behind from the Hardin mission. He would never have done so if there had been another choice." With a sigh she looks downwards. "You and I both know I am ill-suited for such a role. I am thinking... now that you are here, perhaps you should run things."

Quietly back to Kylah, Rangin responds." I though Mr Graham called in everyone from Security at the resort apart from those guarding Lt. Cmdr Ebling, those in the security office and Garcia, so you can also consider me slightly surprised as well that Mr Coringu is here in the CP."

He looks down at Kylah doing her best to dry off while he himself has been leaving a trail of drips everywhere. "I believe you are doing just fine with being in command of matters here while Mr Graham is doing his best to apprehend Vice Adm. Hardin. Not only do I think that you are quite capable of performing the role, I also think he would prefer you in charge of matters around the resort than I."

Kylah casts a grateful but rueful smile at Velir. "I appreciate that, although I wish the latter were not so. Collins would certainly be horrified to find I had been left in charge. I suppose it is some comfort that apparently Lt. Kjaerstad forgot his own team composition as well--unless his leaving me without backup was an attempt to... what is the word my fellow cadets used... frag me."

Her smile fades. "Hopefully this will not last long. At any rate, if I am to be in this unearned position, I should at least know the current complement of Starfleet crew at our disposal." She takes out her communicator. I should just strap this to my ear. Why do we have that capability on ships but not in the field? Something should be done about that, she thinks irritably.

"Kylah to Lt. Kjaerstad. Sir, Ensign Rangin, Mr. Coringu and I are in the CP. Mr. Coringu came as a bit of a surprise to me, albeit a pleasant one," she adds hastily with a nod at the other woman. "But to make sure I am up to date on our personnel, can you confirm exactly which security team members are still at the resort, and their current stations? As far as I know, Lt. Garcia is at the infirmary, Ensigns Russell and Harper are with Mr. Hsu, you are in the Security office, and..." What was the other guard's name? Barker, Barbary...oh yes. "And Ensign Barbour should still be with Ebling. Can you let me know if this is correct, to your knowledge?"

When she gets her response, she will follow it by contacting each of the named officers and asking them to confirm their status--she is especially interested in Garcia and the two in charge of Mr. Hsu. Perhaps I should have Coringu switch with Harper, and put Harper on Mrs. Hsu... She looks at her chronometer to check the time.

Graham acknowledges Delaney's report. Verbally or by direct line via communicator he directs St. Croix and her partner to check the outside of the house for entrances other than the front door: if there is an entrance, they are to position themselves to cover that exit from the building. If not, they are to position themselves by the windows nearest the life sign (taking care to stay out of sight and line of fire while taking position). Graham and T'Var position themselves at the front door, preparing to enter. He positions Delaney to one side of the front door--whichever side offers the nearest stretch of solid wall, so he's not exposed to fire from inside the building.

Graham asks St. Croix to report where they've taken position, and whether they've found another entrance.

He gestures toward T'Var. "Ah, I realize this is probably outside of a medical officer's job description, Doc...are you OK with making a forced entry here, with an armed suspect?" He pauses, chastising himself for putting her in the position of making the entry versus providing back up when he had two Security officers available.

Lt. Kjaerstad says, "Last I heard, Garcia was in the Infirmary with Mrs. Hsu, Russell and Harper were guarding Mr. Hsu, and Barbour was guarding Lt. Cmdr. Ebling. I've sent Rawlings and Nelson to double-check all the resort entrances. Everyone else is with Mr. Graham out in the field, I believe. I'll ask everyone to update their current positions, if you wish."

Rangin is about to respond but Kylah starts using her communicator, so he settles for supping on his coffee while listening on Lt. Kjaerstad reporting back.

Kylah replies, "Thank you, Lt. Kjaerstad. Yes, if you could ask everyone to check in with me, please do. I would particularly like to hear from those in charge of guarding the witnesses and suspects. Also, can you confirm what time you have, sir? I would like to make sure we are synchronized."

Once Kjaerstad confirms the time, she will disconnect and wait for the others to get in touch with her. She looks back at Velir with a straight expression. "There are more Security officers on the planet than I realized. I thought Mr. Graham left only four behind when you went to look for Hardin. I wish I had known; I would have liked Rawlings by my side when I blasted into that transporter room. Having seen him, he could probably have opened the doors with a tap of his hand."

She lowers her voice. "Velir, I hope you do not mind my waiting until we hear from the others before going to Palver. I just want to make sure those who are being guarded are still in custody and the officers are safe. I also realize I have not caught you up on the evidence I found regarding Hardin, Palver and the Hsus." She quickly explains the video footage she discovered, as well as her interviews with Mr. and Mrs. Hsu prior to the woman's attempted escape and Mr. Hsu's delay, which may or may not have been intentional.

"I am greatly looking forward to interviewing Mr. Hsu," she concludes. "For one thing, I would like to know if he was aware Mrs. Hsu possessed a weapon." With a sigh, she contemplates changing her mind about the replicator. It feels like a very long time since she ate anything. But she would feel guilty about having anything to eat while the rest of the team is out endangering themselves. She looks back up at Velir. "Do you have any recommendations? I am sure I have missed some angle."

"I'm certainly not going to complain about having more Security Officers around," agrees Rangin before listening to Kylah fill him in about the new video footage. He can't help but feel proud of her, doing the best she could alone and responsible for handling everything here.

"It does look as though Vice Adm. Hardin is running for some other reason, but we can leave Mr. Graham to handle that. I think you have covered it all, and I agree we need to talk to Mr Hsu or Fellim Palver next. I'd suggest Mr Hsu, if only to also let him know about his wife at the same time. I still need to dry off first though. Once everyone has reported in, let's go. I'm going to dry off as best I can."

Rangin heads for the dryers in the rest room. "Oh and one other recommendation: take two minutes and grab something to drink or eat, you'll need it, after everything you have just gone through. We can take it with us to the interviews."

Kjaerstad asks everyone to check in, and they do, confirming his recollection as to who's where. Russell and Harper have now moved Mr. Hsu to an empty suite in one of the hotel towers.

It is now 1603 hours.

Kylah frowns slightly at the news about Mr. Hsu. Why does it seem that the Security crew members are incapable of following her orders? On Mr. Graham's suggestion, she had specifically requested that Hsu should be taken to one of the offices in the Security area. If there was either a practical or strategic reason why this idea proved to be unfeasible, very well, but surely a change in orders should be something they should have asked her about first.

It is not merely a matter of their being unwilling to some nonentity from Communications barely out of the Academy; before he left to search for Hardin, Graham himself told the crew members at the resort that she was temporarily in charge. They are, in effect, disobeying the mission commander's own orders.

When all this is over, she thinks as she orders herself a cup of chicken soup and a large glass of water, I will inform both Graham Vargas of this team's laxity. Not that it will matter. Security stick together like badly cooked rice.

Sighing, Kylah sits at her favorite terminal and, while taking hungry sips of the soup, reads through all the references to Palver from the various interviews and other notes compiled over the past few days. Now that she knows that the Trimalchio is his chartered yacht, she also looks up information about this vessel, if there is any in the evidence. Thinking about this, she somehow drags an interesting item out of her memory: her first day back on duty after the Sakathian mission had been partially spent compiling subspace traffic. One of the items she had noted was that the Trimalchio had also stopped at Starbase 27 not long before the Yorktown. Which means... probably nothing, but on the other hand...

She finishes listing items she wants to include in the Palver interview. By the time she finishes her soup and the water, she is ready to go once Rangin returns.

St. Croix and Geilil go and look, and report there is only the single entrance to the farmhouse. Delaney and Friedman take up positions so that the windows are covered. Dr. T'Var says calmly, "I made several forced entries against armed suspects when I served with the V'Shar, the Vulcan security service. I am ready and able, Mr. Graham."

Rangin returns feeling slightly drier than before and notices Kylah at the work station looking intently at him. He is also happy to see the cup and glass on the side behind her,. so at least she has had some nourishment.

"Well, it's not perfect, but I'm drier so it will do for the moment. I'm ready to go for the first interview. Lead on."

Graham reminds himself not to get on T'Var's bad side and nods. He makes sure his phaser is set at a wide-angle, medium stun setting and asks her to do the same. He checks his own tricorder one last time to get the clearest read on the location of the life-sign he can and ensure it is still stationary. Assuming nothing is concerning, he nods to T'Var. "I lead, on three..."

At two he checks the door handle: if it is unlocked, he opens it on three. If it is not, he kicks it in.

Kylah puts the cup and glass away whatever you do with used replicated dishware and, suddenly aware that she has not asked the security officer about what she is doing, says, "Mr. Coringu, have you seen anything unusual you need to report?"

Unless there is nothing new, Kylah will thank Coringu for her continued diligence and then leave with Velir to see Mr. Hsu. Her preference would be to speak to Palver first, but she respects Velir's advice too much to ignore it.

Velir would be interested to hear Mr Coringu report, as he recalls asking her earlier as they walked into the CP but doesn't remember her responding.

Once she has finished, he turns to Kylah, "The reason I want to speak to Mr Hsu first is that I am curious to find out what Mr Hsu's reaction to his wife's actions will be. Also if he can shed any further light on why she would run to the Trimaclhio before tackling Fellim Palver who is likely to deny any knowledge of what she was up to, even though it was his chartered ship. Also, with Mrs Hsu in the infirmary, Mr Hsu should really be notified by them instead of randomly finding out from someone else like Dr Halsey, even despite their actions."

Rangin stops and asks, "However, that is my opinion and its your lead, if you wish to do something different I will back you up."

Kylah blinks at Velir in surprise, not only at his sudden and atypical outburst of words, but that he seems to have accurately read her thoughts. She walks with him down the corridor toward the hotel tower where Hsu is being held. "I have been anxious to talk to Palver... you anticipate me rather eerily, Mr. Rangin," she says with a twinkling glance before she sobers again.

"But you are right, of course. As I have mentioned, I still think of Mr. Hsu as a suspect. His account of his actions the night of the murder is just as false as his wife's, and while it seems to be covering her activity, he might well be covering his own. Also, his delay in responding to my numerous urgent requests for a meeting earlier was so egregious that I wonder if he was busy ensuring that we had no way to shut down the transporter."

She shakes her head as they approach the elevator, where she presses the UP button. "Still. I suppose the man has the right to know his wife is in the infirmary. I objected to Graham's treatment of Lord Fastolfe. I should not emulate it once I get a modicum of power of my own." Kylah turns slightly again to Velir. "I admit I resent him for practically shoving me away when I tried to get him to accompany me to the transporter room."

After the elevator doors open, she enters, waits for Velir to join her, and presses the button for the floor where Kjaerstad told her that Russell and Harper had taken Hsu.* "So I do not think he will be well-disposed to me. Then again," she adds dryly, "by now you should take that as a given for everyone we meet."



* Hell if I know what that is! But I assume he told Kylah the room number because why wouldn't he?

Coringu says, "No, ma'am, nothing in particular to report. I'm just monitoring the situation here, as I was asked to do by Mr. Kjaerstad."

Graham finds the door is locked. He kicks it down and charges in, with T'Var close behind, both with phaser-1s in hand. The farmhouse is dark and smells musty. Graham knows from tricorder readings that his suspect should be forward and to his left.

The two Security guards, Russell and Harper, admit Rangin and Kylah to the otherwise-empty suite. Mr. Hsu is pacing in the bedroom just beyond the sitting room. "What the hell is going on?" he blurts out.

"I would ask you to calm down, Mr. Hsu, but I do not think it likely to gain any result." Kylah walks a little closer to him, watching the man carefully. "Firstly, I need to inform you that your wife is in the infirmary. I assure you that she will be fine; she is just recovering from being stunned not long ago. A necessary act due to her actions, as you will learn."

She takes a deep breath and, throughout the following questions, keeps her voice firm but measured. "Next I need information from you, and I need you to be as honest as you can. I want to know your account of your actions, and Mrs. Hsu's actions, the night of Mr. Wilson's murder. Please be aware that I have witnesses, and indeed my own eyes, that can prove your earlier statement to be false."

"When I contacted you earlier today requesting your presence rather urgently, why did you continually refuse to respond to me? What really caused your delay--nearly fifteen minutes after I first contacted you--in arriving up in the administrative offices? Did you perform any work that might have caused the security department to lose access to the transporter controls?"

If he says no to the above question:"What would be necessary for someone to have shut down the security room's access to the transporter controls? Who would have such technical knowledge apart from yourself?"

"When we were informed that someone had initiated the transporter's warm-up sequence, and you knew a murderer is on the loose and likely trying to escape, why did refuse to assist me in stopping whoever was responsible?"

"What personal weapons do you and your wife possess? Have you ever known Mrs. Hsu to have or use any weapons?"

"When did you last speak with your wife?"

"I spoke with Mrs. Hsu earlier about her own alleged alibi for the night of the murder. I was aware that her account--which matched the version you told me--was a bald lie, and I asked her for the truth. She would not change her story despite being given every opportunity to explain herself. I then left her alone in her office, but remained outside the entire time. As you well know, having been there, once the transporter was activated, I asked Mr. Russell here to check that Mrs. Hsu was still in her office--and, as you also know, she was not. She had escaped through the crawlspace in the bathroom, which I think you will agree was strange behavior indeed. Can you explain why she would have done this?"

"Which leads me to why your wife was stunned, Mr. Hsu. Or, to be more direct--why I was forced to stun her. When I arrived at the transporter room--alone, thanks to you--the door was locked. I could hear that the transporter was beginning its process. With no other choice, I blasted open the doors to find your wife, Mrs. Hsu, near but not at the controls. The transporter was ready to energize. I told her to back away and keep her hands up. She did not. I ordered her again, this time asking her what she was doing with the transporter. Her reaction was to leap for the console--where she had a phaser ready and set for heavy stun. At that point I was left no other choice but to stun her. Do these actions on your wife's part surprise you? Can you explain them?"

"Do you have any idea why she was initiating the transporter and preparing to flee?"

Kylah will wait for his answers before continuing. She will, to the best of her ability, attempt to monitor his emotion throughout.