Chapter Text
I
Janeway-Paris home
Berkeley, California
January 2380
Kathryn
Tom’s office door is open, so I won’t be interrupting anything critical.
“Could you come out to the living room?” I ask. “We have a situation.”
His eyebrow goes up. “What’s going on? The baby’s OK?”
“Kieran’s fine. Lewis is here with an attorney. He won’t say why, just that they need to talk to us.”
Tom frowns as he gets up. “Well, let’s see what he wants.”
ooo
Lewis is fiddling with a couple of PADDs, while the attorney, whose name is Hobson, is sipping the coffee our household manager brought out.
“So, Doc, what can we do for you?” Tom asks as we take our places on the couch.
“As you may know, Seven gave birth to a little boy on Dec. 23. His name is Erik,” Lewis begins.
Tom and I both shake our heads. “No, we didn’t know; we haven’t been in contact,” I say. “I’m sure Chakotay’s over the moon about it.”
Lewis and the attorney exchange a look. “Er, the Commander isn’t in the picture. She wouldn’t talk about what happened, but she returned to Earth alone.”
Hobson clears his throat. “I’m going to assume that you don’t know about this, either: Ms. Hansen hired me last month. She said she couldn’t care for her child, so we set up a guardianship designation. It names you two as Erik’s temporary guardians for three years.”
Our mouths drop open; Lewis and Hobson shift uncomfortably. “She left a letter explaining this,” Hobson mutters as he digs through his briefcase.
I take a quick read, then hand it to Tom. It’s short and to the point: She didn’t want “the father” in hers or Erik’s life. But the last line gets my attention ...
I can’t keep Erik safe. You and Tom are the only ones I can trust to do so.
So where is Seven, and where’s the baby?” I ask.
“I have Erik,” Lewis says. “The hospital was granted emergency custody since he is still recovering from hemocythemia from his fetal transfer. As for Seven, she left the hospital the day after Erik’s birth. I found her letter and a copy of the guardianship documents on my desk.” His tone sounds perfectly professional, but his facial expressions tell a different story.
“You know, we have a baby,” Tom says, pointedly looking at Lewis. “Has anyone looked for the kid's father? I remember a DNA match at Kate’s first appointment.”
“She declined the match,” Doc says quietly. “It is considered a medical procedure, and she had the right to refuse. She also declined to list the father’s name on Erik’s birth certificate.”
“So, what happens if we say no?” I finally ask.
“Then Child Services takes over,” Hobson says, outlining legal procedures, foster care and the like.
“And if we say yes?” Tom asks. Hobson outlines more legal procedures, including a home study and a court hearing.
Tom looks at me. “I don’t know. Something’s not right” I nod. “No, it’s not. All we know right now is that she wants to give us her son and keep him safe from … what?”
“Perhaps you should take time to think about this,” Lewis urges, “perhaps contact your attorney. “Erik will be all right for the moment.”