K'hat'n'dlawa

Reassurance

When Amanda walked past Karen's desk on her way out of the office, she felt the woman's eyes on her- could feel her smirk- without even seeing them. She didn't need to.

She didn't know what she'd done to deserve this. What had she done to make Karen angry enough to frame her and try to put her in prison? She couldn't imagine a person hating someone that much.

Ignoring Karen, she got her bag from where it lay propped up against her desk. Then she went straight to the lift and to the third floor.

Amanda felt her stomach drop several inches when she saw that Sarek was gone for the day. She didn't have a way to contact him either...and if Karen somehow managed to tamper with the security feeds she wouldn't see him any time soon.

Tears stung her eyes. What would she do now? She took a deep, shaky breath to calm herself. Now was not a time to cry. It would not help in any way.

He was her only hope. He had connections- he had influence. And he was the only person she trusted to help her. She had to contact him.

She reentered the lift and took it down to the lobby. When she pushed open the glass doors of the entrance, she found that it was raining.

She wasn't surprised- she didn't seem to have much luck that day.

The thick silver sheet fell from the sky, drenching her immediately. It was cold- one of the things she'd never liked about San Francisco were the cold winter rains. She was shivering uncontrollably, her hair plastered around her face, when the shuttle arrived.

Sitting down near the heater in the back, she pushed her hair out of her eyes and stared out the window at the embassy as the shuttle pulled away. She'd never liked that place...the best thing about working there was meeting Sarek. She'd never liked anyone else there- and they hadn't liked her. But she never would have believed...

Thinking about the preposterous situation wasn't going to change it any. The fact was, she stood accused of stealing confidential Federation information. She didn't know how they would ever prove it; but she was somehow sure Karen had already taken care of that. The fact that she was innocent didn't matter- they had been right when they said the evidence was mounting against her.

Without help, she was screwed.

Amanda didn't how to contact Sarek via holophone- but she did know where he lived.

She felt uncomfortable with inviting herself over but had little choice. She was desperate. She needed to see him- even if he couldn't help her.

After switching shuttles at the station it took her an hour to get to the mansion. But finally, she stood before the old-fashioned cast-iron gates. There was an intercom box mounted next to it and while standing in the chilly rain she pressed the button.

"Hello?" she called into it, hugging her arms around herself, teeth chattering. "Anyone there?"

"Who is this?" asked a female voice. Amanda recognized it as T'Shan's.

"Th-this is Amanda Grayson," she replied as a strong shiver ran down her spine. There was a short silence on the other end.

"And what is your business here?" she now asked, her voice flat.

"I came to see Ambassador Sarek," she said.

"The ambassador is not here. He is at a conference," T'Shan replied.

"I know that- but it's urgent!" Amanda said frustratedly. "I'm sure he wouldn't mind if I waited in there for him."

T'Shan said nothing further. Nearly a minute passed and Amanda started to think she would have to wait outside in the rain. Just as she turned back to the shuttle stop, there was a hum from behind her and the gates swung open to admit her. She sighed in relief as she rushed through and then down the gravel driveway towards the door, which opened before she got there. She ducked inside, grateful for the warmth that immediately enveloped her.