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He noticed the way she crawled through the tunnels, how she would favor her left side ever so slightly. It made sense that she was hurt. That man, or whatever he was, hit her pretty hard. In the moment, his instinct was to rush to her side and defend her, but she made him promise to let her handle this as it played out. Something about a show of honor and strength that she needed to do to gain their trust.
Still, he felt every muscle in his body tense up and dare him to move toward her as his weapon made contact with her torso. He’d never seen a woman take a hit like that just to stand and face her attacker with a smirk. Despite how he worried for her, he had to admit, it was sexy as hell.
She tried to hide it as they made their way back to the bar, but he could tell. As captain of his unit, it’s his job to make sure his men make it out okay. Part of that is recognizing when they need medical attention. This was no different, except he was sure Katrine was more stubborn than any of the men in his regiment.
He crawled out of the tunnel first and offered her his hand to help her stand as she emerged from the opening. She took it and put much more force into standing up than he anticipated. She was definitely hurt.
After she briefed her people on what they had accomplished on their mission, she took to working on preparing the weapons they needed for the fight that was to come. Captain Miller saw this as his opportunity to check on her.
“How are you feeling?” he asked as he helped her sort through the ammo that was strewn across the bar top.
“Fine. Ready to take this ship back,” she answered without thinking.
“Were you a navy gal at one point?” he asked.
“No,” she replied. “Why?”
He smiled as he answered, “You referred to St. Clare as a ship.”
She stalled out for a second as she realized her mistake. She naturally feels relaxed around Chakotay, even if he doesn’t know that’s really who he is. These little slips are mistakes she can’t help but make around him, it seems.
“My father was in the navy,” she answered, coming up with something on the spot. “I guess I just picked it up from him over the years.”
“Got it,” he said, buying it completely. “But I don’t believe your answer to my other question.”
“What other question?” she asked, focusing on the ammo she was counting as best she could so she didn’t drop her guard again.
“Are you okay?” he repeated. “I know you said you were, but I saw the way that…man hit you. I also saw the way you favored your left side on the way through the tunnels, and the way you’re standing with your weight on one side.”
“It’ll heal,” she said shortly. “There’s no time to deal with it right now.”
“That’s not true,” he argued. “Your team is still decoding the latest intel, and that should take about an hour. And we’re still waiting for my lieutenant to return from his scouting mission with your singer. Let me take a look.”
“I’m fine, I promise. There’s plenty of work we need to get done right now.”
“Katrine, with all due respect, I won’t take no for an answer. As captain of my unit, it’s my job to make sure my men make it through each day alive and well. I’ve lost too many of them to this war so far, and I’ve learned, if you have the time to tend to an injury, you need to do it. You never know if those few moments could save a soldier’s life.”
“I’m not one of your soldiers,” she retorted, though listening to the raw emotion in his voice, she felt herself softening to him.
“No,” he said, “but I can still help you, Katrine. And your people need you. Please.”
There was something about the way he said her name that made her lose all resolve. Something about the way he said please that made her lock eyes with him and see through the scripted holodeck personality. Something that made her absolutely sure she was about to agree.
“Alright,” she answered finally, never moving her gaze from his.
He nodded, trying not to show how much relief he really felt. “I’ll go grab my first aid kit from my rucksack. You go lie down on the sofa and I’ll be right there.”
She made her way to the sofa on the back wall by the stage. As she lowered herself down, she felt the pain in her side shoot through her whole body. She knew she could call the doctor, or scan herself with a tricorder, which she was planning to do once she could get away from the others, but something about his request made her know he wasn’t going to focus on the mission unless he knew he didn’t need to worry about her. It would only take a couple of minutes, and for his peace of mind, she could always certainly spare that.
She managed to get herself into a mildly comfortable position on the sofa when he approached her carrying a small bag.
“Comfy?” he asked with a lighthearted smile.
“Of course,” she said with a wince as she adjusted a bit.
“Here,” he said, taking off his jacket and placing it under her head so she could have a pillow. “Hopefully that helps a bit.”
“Thanks,” she said, having a hard time figuring out if Captain Miller was this uncontrollably chivalrous or if pieces of Chakotay’s personality were starting to come through.
“Where do you feel pain,” he asked as he settled down on his knees next to her.
She brough her hand up to her left side and brushed her fingers along the length of her torso from her ribs to her hips. “Basically all through here, but I’m sure it’s just radiating from a specific point where his weapon made contact.”
“Probably,” he agreed. “Where did it hit you?”
“Right under my ribs, I think,” she answered.
“Would you mind if I lift your shirt so I can see if there’s bruising,” he asked cautiously.
She shifted with a wince so she could get her turtleneck off completely, and then she pulled the bottom of her tank top up to just below her chest so he could get a good look. She hoped he wouldn’t notice the goosebumps that she could feel spreading throughout her exposed skin. She was nervous. Was it because she wasn’t sure what Captain Miller was going to do? Or was it because she knew it was Chakotay caring for her?
“That was some hit,” he exhaled as he looked over the bruising that spread throughout her side and stomach like abstract art. “You’re all kinds of pretty colors.”
“I’m sure,” she replied with a sigh.
“This won’t take long, I promise,” he said, reaching into his bag. “I’m just going to check your vitals and then examine the injury.”
She nodded as she watched him pull a stethoscope from his med kit. “Did you train as a medic?”
He smiled, putting the ear pieces into his ears. “Never meant to. But when you’re out in the field and you’re in charge of a team, you do what you gotta do to get through each day.”
“I understand that,” she replied truthfully.
She gasped a bit as he placed the stethoscope on her chest.
“Sorry,” he apologized, adjusting the bell just above her heart. “I should have warmed it up first. I’m just going to make sure there’s no indication of internal bleeding or lung puncture. Just lie still and relax.”
Relax…something he himself was having a hard time doing. He knew he should concentrate on listening to make sure her heart wasn’t working overtime, an indication of blood loss or internal trauma, but instead he just let it resound in his head for a moment. There was something about this woman that affected him in ways he didn’t expect.
He shook himself out of his thoughts after just a beat, and continued his examination, listening to her heart in a few places around her chest, careful to stay on top of her tank top so he didn’t make her more uncomfortable.
“Gotta check your lungs now,” he explained, shifting the stethoscope to a new spot. “Breathe deeply, and definitely tell me if breathing causes you pain.”
She nodded and started to take slow, deep breaths as he listened all over. It didn’t hurt much, but she definitely felt pressure in the point of injury as her lungs expanded. “It hurts a little, but it’s nothing too bad.”
“Good,” he said, shifting the bell one more time, over her ribs just above the injury. “One more deep breath.”
She complied, and she exhaled, he sat back, placing the stethoscope down.
“I’m sorry about what you’ve been through,” she said. “All this war, losing some of your crew.”
Captain Miller sighed. “It’s the price of war. A price none of us are ever ready to pay. But it’s my job to keep the cost to a minimum as best I can, and I thank the stars every day that I’ve done as well as I have.”
“I’m sure you’re a great Captain,” she assured him. He smiled back, such a genuine smile that again, she wasn’t sure who was looking back at her, Chakotay or his character.
“Thank you,” he replied. “You are great leader yourself.”
He shifted his gaze to her middle, and continued with his examination. “I’m going to feel around for swelling and make sure there’s no internal bleeding. This probably won’t feel the greatest.”
“I’ll handle it,” she smirked.
“Like a champ,” he smirked back.
He gently pressed his hands into her side and her middle. She tried to stifle her groans at the pain, but he heard them and apologized several times as he felt around. After a few moments, he stopped, brushing his fingers lightly against her skin as he backed off.
“I feel intense swelling around your kidney, but I don’t feel any sign of blood pooling.”
Kathryn bit her lip as the pain from the pressure subsided, and she nodded in acknowledgement.
“Sorry,” he apologized quickly, “I shouldn’t have been so graphic about it.”
“No, it’s alright,” she said. “I’m not squeamish about this kind of thing.”
“Good,” he said, and he picked up the stethoscope again. “I just want to be sure that there’s no bleeding so I’m going to listen again, this time around the injury. Is that okay?”
“Yes,” she agreed.
“Do you mind if I lift your shirt again so I can get a better listen?”
“Of course,” she allowed, and she lifted the bottom of it again, resting it just above where the bruising started.
“Thank you,” he smiled as he placed the bell on her skin again. “This is the last thing, I promise. Then you can get back to counting bullets.”
She smirked at him again as she replied, “Good, and you can help sort them.”
He chuckled and matched her gaze briefly. “Yes Ma’am.”
He listened all around her middle, careful not to press the bell to firmly into her bruised skin. He closed his eyes so he could concentrate on the sounds, and she found herself watching him. He looked the way Chakotay always looks when he’s meditating or on a vision quest, far away and in an entirely different universe. She wondered if Chakotay knew who he was, would he be doing this same thing right now…or at least the 24th century version of it.
As she laid there, she had to admit to herself: she didn’t hate this. She definitely wanted to get back to taking her ship back, and eventually scan herself to get a more in depth diagnosis of her injuries, but there was something…nice about the way Captain Miller was caring for her. Something comforting in his touch, something calming in his expression as he listened to her. Something about him being privy to some of the most private parts of her, the sounds of her heart beating and her breathing. She knew she had to get back to work, but she also made sure to note this moment as one to remember.
“Katrine?” Captain Miller asked.
She shook herself out of her thought. “Hmm?”
“I said you’re going to be fine. There’s no sign of internal bleeding, though I’d venture to guess that you have some nasty bruising on your kidney and a bruised rib or two.”
She smiled at him. “Thank you for caring for me, Captain. I’m glad I’ll be okay…like I said I was.”
He laughed quietly. “At least we know for sure,” he countered.
“Yes,” she agreed. “Thank you again.”
“No problem,” he answered, packing his kit back up. “Maybe next time I won’t have to beg you to let me take care of you.”
She chuckled as she replied, “Maybe next time it’ll be me having to take care of you.”
“I sure hope not. I prefer to be the one taking care of my people.”
“Well since I’m not one of your people, that doesn’t apply to me,” she reminded him.
He smiled as he gave her his hand to help her up.
“You’re right, you’re not one of my men,” he agreed. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to take care of you.”
He walked away to put his kit back in his bag, leaving her to get lost in her thoughts once again.