Star Trek Voyager: Lost and Found

Star Trek Voyager: Lost and Found (Chapter 5)

Chakotay walked out of the hospital in a dazed detached state which he had never known in his life previously. Such was his almost deranged focus on getting to Starfleet Headquarters that he was deaf to Tom Paris’s attempts to get his attention until Tom grabbed him by the shoulders.

“Hey, Chakotay…you need to go back to hospital…we’re doing everything possible…” Tom was deeply disturbed by the deathly pallor which had settled across his friend’s face.

Chakotay, still reeling from his exchange with the Admiral and Doctor, responded instantly with a sharpness which Tom had never heard in his soft voice before. “If they were doing everything possible, she’d be back by now…”

Tom felt an overwhelming pity for the visibly crushed man. “Chakotay, listen I…”

Chakotay sensed and resented the pity, “No, you listen! If this had happened to B’Elanna, God forbid, you’d be doing exactly what I’m doing now…”

“I know, I know I would, you must be going out of your mind…come on I can get you into the search meeting…my dad is helping to coordinate the search.”

Chakotay didn’t need to be told twice, he sprinted past security and into Starfleet Headquarters, Tom apologising for him as he followed close behind.

In the large conference room, Chakotay immediately spied Admiral Paris and ran up to him. “What’s happening?” he asked him urgently.

“Chakotay! Have you recovered?” Paris paused when he saw Chakotay wave the question away impatiently. “She…was transported off of the surface. The signal has proved untraceable. But we do have one lead…”

“Well?”

“The attack you suffered and the subsequent disappearance of Seven is almost identical to a kidnapping in Moscow more than four months ago, Alexander and Lyudmila Stonetsky, their daughter was only saved because the son in law intervened, do you know of any connection that you or Seven has with these people?”

“Seven has never been outside of San Francisco since Voyager returned, that couple has no connection to either of us as far as I’m aware. Can they tell us anything about who took them?”

“That’s just it; we’re yet to find them…”

Chakotay tried not to let the meaning of these words sink in just as a young lieutenant spoke to the Admiral. “Sir, we have read the records of every known ship in Earth’s orbit and there’s nothing to suggest any of them are responsible, we’ve also activated all the scanners in Federation space and there not a trace of her unique life sign.

“Have you informed our allies?”

“Yes sir, all the embassies have been asked to alert their security services to the situation.”

“Good, good. Anyone have anything to ask the eyewitness which may help further our cause?”

A serious looking female Vulcan ensign stood up. “If I may Admiral?”

“Of course.”

The woman swivelled her head round to give Chakotay a cold penetrating gaze. “Forgive me Commander but it seems only logical to ask this question, how can you be certain that this is not a Borg ploy to use up the Federation’s strained resources, she has returned to them in the past…”

“If she wanted to return she could have gone at any time! Willing participants aren’t normally hit over the head! Willing participants don’t scream as I’m shot…” Chakotay snarled at the woman.

Admiral Paris pulled him back. “Don’t overreact Chakotay...it was just a question, I’ll have her reassigned…”

“It wasn’t a question, it was an accusation! If everyone in here thinks like that I’ll look for her myself!”