Vectors by Dean Wesley Smith, Kristine Kathryn Rusch Page B

cure for this disease. We are making progress, but it's not enough, and it's not fast enough. The more minds we have working on this, the better."
    "You can link with doctors and researchers all over Cardassia," Dukat said.
    "It's not enough," Kellec said. "We've contacted Bajor as well, and the physicians there are as tired and as stumped as we are."
    Dukat sensed they already had a solution. They were simply preparing him to hear it. Which meant he wouldn't like it.
    "I have heard rumors," Kellec said, "that the Federation dealt with a virulent cross-species disease recently, and found a way to contain it."
    "You heard this-what, a few hours ago, when you received that wonderfully sweet message from your ex-wife?"
    Kellec flushed. Good, Dukat thought. The doctor had gotten a bit too arrogant for Dukat's tastes. It was good to give him a bit of his own medicine.
    "No." Kellec was obviously struggling to maintain his composure. "I knew of this before." "So why didn't you ask her about it?"
    "Because I thought someone might be listening in," Kellec snapped.
    "But," Narat said quickly, "the contact did give us an idea."
    So, Narat was going to present this idea. And he was going to present it as his own as well as Kellec's.
    "I'm waiting," Dukat said.
    "Kellec's ex-wife, Dr. Katherine Pulaski, is one of the Federation's best doctors. She is currently not assigned anywhere."
    "If she's one of the best, why doesn't she have an assignment?" "She will," Kellec said. "The Federation is arguing within itself. There's too much demand for her services."
    "So how does this apply to us?" Dukat asked.
    "We'd like to bring her here. Have her work with us, and focus on the research itself," Narat said.
    "No," Dukat said. "I will not have the Federation here."
    "She wouldn't come as part of the Federation," Kellec said. "I could ask her to come for a family emergency."
    "No," Dukat said again. "She's Federation. And I will not have them here." How many times did he have to repeat himself?.
    "Don't say no yet, Dukat," Narat said. "There's another, quite compelling, reason I think we should go with this plan."
    Dukat crossed his arms. All he needed was the Federation to get its hooks into this place. They'd been looking for ways for years to discredit the Cardassians. This would be a first step. "What's your compelling reason?" "She's human," Narat said.
    Dukat shrugged. "Chances are, she will not get this plague." "So?" Dukat asked.
    Narat put a hand on Dukat's arm. "Think of it. Right now, you have Kellec and me working on a cure for this disease. We can't keep up with both the research and caring for the patients. If one of us succumbs or, even worse, if both of us do, that's effectively signing a death warrant for you, Terok Nor, and all of Bajor."
    Dukat stared at Narat's hand until Narat moved it. "We'll send for someone from Cardassia Prime, then," Dukat said. "But would they come'?"
    Narat's question hung between them for a moment. Dukat didn't have an answer. Or maybe he did and didn't want to face it. What would he do, if he were on Cardassia Prime and making decisions from there? He wouldn't see the death, wouldn't smell it. The lives here would be statistics, except for the handful of people he knew, and even then, he would have to evaluate their importance to Cardassia. Coldly.
    He closed his eyes. In that situation, he would ask himself: Is it worth sending a needed doctor or medical researcher off Cardassia Prime on a mission that may or may not succeed? Or would he be better off letting everyone die and letting the plague die with them? Then, after some time had elapsed and someone had discovered a cure, sending in a cleaning crew and beginning all over again?
    He knew the answer to that. He knew it. He would do the most efficient job he could, the one that would bring the best results. If Central Command saw what this disease did, they would do anything they could to keep it from coming to Cardassia Prime. They would help from