Two Kirks And A Vulcan

Chapter Thirty One

*please pretend Spock isn't mind melding with the Horta in the chapter photo 😂 I'll attempt some kind of photoshop later lol. *

Jim entered Sick Bay and saw a ghastly scene. Bones had worn eyes but brightened when he saw Jim. Spock was sitting by Alex, his hand resting near hers laying on the bed. He jolted when he saw the captain and stood up.

"She'll be fine now Jim. Just some rest and no missions. I'm not exactly sure what they did to her," the doctor said.
"Something terrible, and because of me," Jim whispered as he approached her bedside. Spock pulled up a chair for him. Jim noticed the bruises and cuts on her face. He didn't want to know what other scars she would have.
"When will she wake up?" He choked.
"I want her under at least a day. She needs to heal. I don't know how the hell she did what she did. She has a couple of broken ribs, countless bruises and cuts..." Jim bowed his head.
"I shouldn't have let her join. She should have stayed home."
"Jim, this woman just saved two men and Sarek from the damn Romulans! She deserves a medal or something! You shouldn't beat yourself up for this Jim!"
"She is a Kirk after all. She'll recover," Spock added. Jim smiled weakly at his friends.
"She certainly needs a promotion. Or a proposal. Whichever would come first," Jim grinned as Spock stared at him. McCoy smiled and glanced at Spock.
"Better get a ring then." For once, Spock seemed at a loss for words as he stared at the captain.
"What do you know? A speechless Vulcan! Now that is a rare thing!" Bones laughed.
"I... do not know what to say," Spock muttered.

Bones followed Jim out into the hallway.
"Will she be okay?" Jim asked as McCoy sighed.
"She's banged up Jim. She'll recover physically, but I'll have to see about the rest. I don't know what they did to her or how willing she'll be to deal with it," he admitted.
"At least she has Spock. Surely he'd tell me if he thought something was wrong..."
"Jim, he'd tell you anything if it was about her. Especially if he wants to be your brother in law." Jim smiled softly.
That would be some wedding."
"One I hope to witness," McCoy smirked.

Spock was left alone and stayed by Alex's bedside. So much had happened, he didn't know what he would say first when she would wake up. He grabbed Alex's hand and fell asleep that way.
Later, he thought about mind melding with her to see if she was alright, but McCoy insisted she was. He wondered what the Romulans did to her. It would not have been kind. He glanced around to make sure Nurse Chapel or Bones was there. He started to put his hand near her face for a mind meld, but felt intrusive.
Surely Alex would tell him what happened?
Spock became too anxious to wait and put his hand on her face for a mind meld. "My mind to your mind, my thoughts to your thoughts..." he said as he closed his eyes. First Alex felt alarm in her mind before Spock could reassure her it was him instead of somebody else. Her memories jumped around as he was in there, he saw the Romulan ship through her eyes, her being tied up in the chair and being tortured. He thought he saw some tools the Romulans could have used sitting on a table by her. He could not see the captor's face. Spock began to feel her pain transference to himself. His face frowned and he was overwhelmed with pain as he flinched and broke off the mind meld. He blinked back a tear.