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"Doppelgänger" by A. Rhea King
Rating: PG CHAPTER 6 Trip secured his communicator in his breast pocket. Trip pulled on a coat, slid a pair of sunglasses over his eyes, stuck a wig of long hair on his head and pressed a hat down on top of the wig. “Remember to put on those sunglasses, Kolin. Don’t want this guy looking you up when this is all over, okay?” “Will do, brother.” Kolin smiled at Trip, giving him a solid clap on the shoulder. “Let’s make General Vignand look stupid.” “Here goes nothin’,” Trip said. Trip turned and walked out of the alley toward the deli. He knew that he was being watched with rifles aimed at him and had to work to hide his nervousness. T’Pol was watching from hundreds of kilometers above them and had given him the position of every soldier in the area just minutes ago. Trip entered the deli, ignoring the people sitting at the tables around him. Trip’s jaw tensed when he spotted Malcolm’s twin with Hoshi and Elizabeth. Sitting behind Hoshi was a twin of T’Pol and Hoshi. “Move in, sir,” Trip muttered, “They’re in place.” # In the alley Archer turned and motioned his people to move out. He and Kolin ran down the alley to a car. Kolin opened the back door and Archer stepped in, pulling a black Trilby hat down on his head. Kolin jumped in behind the wheel and slid on a pair of sunglasses and a black bowler cap. “Do I look like this Haeri Two Scars guy, Kolin?” Archer asked. Kolin smiled at Archer’s reflection in the side mirror. “Spittin’ image. Ready, Boss?” “Hope so. Let’s hope that all night cram session on Iola sticks or this may blow up in our faces.” “You’ll do fine. It will all be copasetic, Boss.” Archer smiled his thanks. Kolin started the car and with a lurch, they drove down the alley toward the road. # Trip sat down across from Admiral Vignand. “Did you bring them?” Admiral Vignand inquired. Trip held up a rolled piece of paper. “Let the ladies go and it’s yours.” “No. Schematics first.” “I don’t trust you.” Vignand leaned back, sliding his arm around Hoshi’s shoulders. She tried to shrug his arm off at first and then froze. Trip looked down, seeing Vignand had a pistol pressed into Hoshi’s side. “THIS ISN’T HALF!” Everyone turned to look at the speaker. Archer was standing in the door of the deli. He wore a black pin stripe suit with the suit coat draped over his shoulders. He walked toward the table with slow, steady strides. Kolin followed him and took Archer’s coat when he pulled it off his shoulders. Archer sat down in a chair. “I am to get half of every deal that you do on my turf, Vignand. You make a deal on my turf and think it’s going to go unnoticed? This is my turf, Vignand, and I have eyes and ears everywhere.” “I was told you were dead, Haeri. And then you live. You’ll have to tell me your secret.” “Tales of my recent death have been severely and perversely altered. You wanna know what I thinkin’, Vignand?” Archer leaned forward on the table. Vignand smiled, “No. Do tell Haeri” “I think you were in on the idea to bump me off, Vignand.” “Why would I want to bump off a business partner?” “I dunno. Why don’t you enlighten me, Vignand?” Archer sat back. “’Cause, Vignand, I am positively certain Jisyca didn’t come up with the idea on her own. That dame is a dumb Dora. She ain’t gotta enough sense to close the door on a diving submersible.” “Half the profits of all business transactions on your turf was an unacceptable demand, Haeri.” “No one double crosses Haeri Two Scars,” Archer stood, grabbing the schematics from Trip’s hand. “No one. Pleasure doing business with you Mr. Tucker.” Archer turned to walk away. Vignand knocked his chair over as he sprang to his feet and aimed his gun at Archer. Jacque and Orela stood on either side of him, aiming their guns at Archer too. The deli burst to life with men throwing papers and coats back to reveal guns that they aimed at Vignand, Jacque and Orela. Trip rose to his feet, backing up a couple steps and pretending to be afraid. Archer pulled a cigar from his breast pocket and took the time to light it and fake a puff off it. He turned his head to look back at Vignand, blowing the smoke out as he did. “Your soldiers are dead, Vignand. My men were waiting here long before yours got here. See, Trip here,” Archer motioned to Trip with the hand holding the cigar, “now he knows how to make a good offer. He only wanted his women and he was willing to give me these schematics for them. Very reasonable demand, don’t you think, Vignand?” “There is a bomb under the table, Ca--, Haeri,” Hoshi blurted, “It’s going to go off in five minutes.” Archer looked at her and then back at Vignand, “Seems everyone’s tryin’ to bump me off. Enough to make some paranoid, ya know?” “Give me the schematics, Harry!” Vignand ordered, “Or the women die.” Archer laughed, looking at the men around them with guns aimed at Vignand. Archer turned around so he could face Vignand. “I don’t think you fully understand the situation, know that? What you think you got on me here, Vignand?” “The women.” “The women aren’t my mols, Vignand. But I did make a deal, so here’s what I’ll promise to you for Mr. Tucker here. You shoot his women, and my men will kill you and both of yours.” Archer motioned to the two women standing on either side of Vignand. “His die, yours die, you die.” Archer faked another puff on his cigar. “On the other hand, Vignand, you and your mols lower your weapons, we walk away with Mr. Tucker’s women, you and your mols live. What’ll it be, Vignand?” Luc slowly lowered his gun. “A very sensible decision, Vignand. Very sensible.” Archer turned to leave. He stopped and spun back around, adding, “Oh, and by the way, our deal is off Vignand. I catch you doing any business on my turf, I’ll kill you personally. Ladies.” Archer motioned to Elizabeth and Hoshi and then to Trip, “Let’s be on our way before the place lights up.” The two scrambled to their feet and ran to Trip. Trip grabbed them both into a hug, slipping the combadges onto them. Archer turned and started walking toward the door. Hoshi turned to say something to Vignand as he aimed his gun at Archer’s back and cocked it. “CAPTAIN!” Hoshi screamed, moving into the line of fire as the gun went off. Archer turned. The bullet hit Hoshi in the chest, the force of it sending knocking her backwards. Archer caught her before she fell, sinking to the floor with her. Trip pulled his phase pistol from under his coat and stunned Luc, Jacque and Orela. “End holograph,” Archer said. The deli became vacant except for the seven of them. “Hoshi? Archer said. Hoshi looked up at him before she fell unconscious. Trip walked over to Archer, pulling his communicator out. “T’Pol, transport immediately,” Trip ordered, “Have a medical team standing by. There’s a bomb in here. Locate it and transport it into space.” Archer picked Hoshi up, holding her to him. “Hang on Hoshi,” Archer said as the two disappeared. # “Hoshi,” her mother called. The sun was shining down through the fronds of the palm above, the pattern of sunlight changing when a light breeze stirred the palm fronds. She watched her eight-year-old hands carefully coloring a space ship that was as multicolored as feathers of a tropical bird. Hoshi looked up from her coloring when her mother called her again. Her mother stepped out of the house onto the deck, her bare feet padding across the weathered boards. She descended the three steps into the sand and walked over to where Hoshi was laying on her stomach on a blanket. Her mother sat down on the blanket beside her and sat a bowl of pineapple and melon cubes between them. She picked up a pineapple cube and Hoshi opened her mouth so her mother could pop it into her mouth. Hoshi turned back to her picture, munching on the sweet tart fruit in her mouth. “What’s this?” her mother asked, pointing at the picture. “That ship they’re building.” Hoshi turned back to coloring her space ship. “The one that will go really fast. Daddy says it will go so fast that you wouldn’t see it go by if you were watching for it.” “Sort of pointed, isn’t it?” her mother laughed. Hoshi laughed, feeling her mother’s hand brush her brow. “Hoshi,” a voice said. The voice wasn’t her mother’s. It was a man’s and she thought it sounded familiar. “Ensign Sato.” Hoshi opened her eyes, looking up at Archer. “Hey,” Archer said, laying his hand on her arm. “Are we back on Enterprise, sir?” “Yes.” “Can we not visit that planet again?” “Promise.” Archer smiled, patting her arm. “Hoshi, thank you. You didn’t have to take that bullet for me.” “I wanted some extra days off, sir,” Hoshi joked. Archer smiled, giving her arm a light squeeze. He leaned over and picked something up off the floor. He held up a bouquet of flowers for her to see and then sat them on a stool near the bio-bed. “Trip’s twin, Kolin, sent these before we left. He and his wife wished you well. You’ve made a proud captain again, Hoshi. Keep it up and you may go home a Lieutenant.” “Oh. In that case I’ll have to get into some mischief, be more insubordinate, stuff like that, so I can stay an Ensign, sir.” Archer chuckled, “I’ll be watching you like a hawk in that case. Get some rest, Hoshi. I’ll check on you tomorrow, okay?” Archer turned and left the Sickbay. Hoshi turned her head, staring at the bouquet of flowers. Hoshi drifted back to her memories, glad she was home on Enterprise again. This series continues in Double the Blind The next Tweens story is We Came, We Saw... |
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