See Introduction for pairing, disclaimer and summary.

Chapter 3

The Encounter

Two nights later Chakotay was outside talking to Paul
the chauffeur when Tom, Nick and Ray came prancing out
of the house. They climbed into the hover-car.
Chakotay leaned in and looked at Tom.

"Going somewhere?" He voice filled with sarcasm.

"Yes, I have a concert at Don's," Tom answered
smugly.

"You should've told me," Chakotay demanded as he got
into the hover-car himself.

"Why? He has obligations. This is one of them," Ray
announced.

Chakotay ignored the annoying little man. He may be
Tom's manager but Chakotay found him to be rude and
obnoxious at the best of times.

"I told you the way I work, Tom. I don't have a clue
about this place. The security, entrances and exits,
the layout. I can't work blind." Chakotay couldn't
hide his anger, nor did he want to. Tom just sat back
and seemed to be ignoring him.

Ray spoke up again, "Don has security. This place is
fine."

Once again Chakotay ignored him. "I don't even know if
this place 'Don's' has a backdoor."

"Look, Chuck, back off. This is his job and that job
is my responsibility." Ray didn't realize he had just
made a tactical error. The expression on Chakotay's
face changed Ray's thinking, quickly.

"You back off, Ray. His *life* is *my*
responsibility. My *job* is to keep him alive."
Chakotay roared. "Now either shut the fuck up or I'll
shut you up permanently. The name is Chakotay, not
Chuck or Chuckles. Cha-ko-tay. Remember it or you'll
be unable to speak anyone's name for along time."

Tom finally spoke quietly. "Chakotay calm down. Ray
shut up." He took a deep breath. "Look, I'm sorry I
didn't tell you about this. I thought Kathryn gave you
my schedule. I'll make sure you get the rest of the
itinerary for the foreseeable future tomorrow. As for
tonight, I can't cancel now. It's too late. I'll cut
the show short. Four songs, no more, then we'll go." 

"I don't like this Tom." Chakotay was frustrated. His
first *real* outing as Tom's bodyguard and he would be
going in blind. 

"I can tell, but I made a promise, a commitment. I
don't back away from those lightly." Tom noticed the
smirk on the other man's face. "Not anymore, I don't.
Please, Chakotay. I have to do this. Tomorrow we'll go
over everything and change whatever you feel needs to
be fixed."

"Fine. But I *will* be on stage quickly if I think
it's necessary." Chakotay sighed. He hated giving in
like this, but he wouldn't ask Tom to break a promise.

The hover-car pulled up in front of The Pavilion.
Chakotay saw the crowd, no the mob. "Paul, is there a
side or back entrance to this place?" He called out to
the driver.

"Yeah, around to the left."

"Good. Pull around and get as close to the door as
possible." He turned to Tom. "You do *not* get out of
the car until Nick and I have cleared a path.
Understand?" Tom nodded. He wouldn't fight Chakotay.
Tom knew he wouldn't win.

When the hover-car came to a stop Chakotay jumped out
followed closely by Nick. Without the need for words
the two men surveyed the outside of the building,
noting that this was the only way to get in or out on
this side of it. The crowd that had been out front
began to descend on them. Chakotay yanked the door
open and silently ordered Tom out. Ray followed
quickly, if he hadn't Chakotay would have slammed the
door on his leg. Quickly ascending the stairs, before
the horde of fans could get to them, they went through
the door Nick had been holding open.

Inside the hallway was dark, no bright light,
something that made Chakotay extremely uncomfortable.
Ray took the lead at this point, walking towards a set
of doors. Greeting them was Don Fry, owner and manager
of the pavilion. "Good to see you Tom," he said as he
extended a hand. 

Tom took the offered hand, "Good to see you also Don.
It's been too long." He stepped through the door Don
had been standing in front of. Inside Tom found his
usual crowd of trusted friends. Kathryn and Jenny were
among them. He smiled at Kathryn, "You're in big
trouble woman. You forgot to give the big guy my
schedule, and I got crap for it." He leaned in a
kissed her cheek to soften the blow of the scornful
words. She had the good grace to look horrified. 

"I'm so sorry, Chakotay. It slipped my mind," She
said, as she looked passed Tom at Chakotay.

"It's done now, Kathryn. Forget it. Just get me the
rest of his schedule first thing in the morning." 

She nodded her agreement then turned to Tom. "You
want me to talk to Don?"

"No. I'm here. I made the commitment. Besides, this
isn't for me it's for the kids," He answered. He sat
in front of the mirror and allowed Jenny to work him
over. This was his time to relax and get prepared. As
she fixed his hair, covered any blotches on his face,
Tom focused on the show, his performance. 

Chakotay sat and watched the process. Not what Jenny
Delaney was doing but what Tom was doing. He could see
Tom go through a myriad of emotions. The end result
was a calm, collected, and determined man. Chakotay
couldn't help but be impressed with the younger man's
ability to move through his thoughts as quickly as he
did. 

All too soon Tom was up and ready to go. Chakotay had
been so lost in his own thoughts that he forgot about
his job. {Not a good thing, old man.} He thought to
himself. Fortunately Nick wasn't so slacked. He came
through the door and informed Chakotay of all the
necessary stats. 

"Chakotay, this crowd is wild. I'm not all that
comfortable with this myself. I always hated this
place," Nick sighed. Then he continued his assessment
in a hushed tone. "Ray's wrong. Don doesn't have
security here. He says it ruins the atmosphere too
much to have big burly guys stalking around." 

Chakotay stiffened at Nick's words. Just another
reason to break that little shit Ray's neck. He was
going to have to talk to Tom about how much control
and trust he had given his manager. "All right Nick.
We'll have to pay real close attention. Tell me is the
crowd blocked from getting on the stage?"

Nick shook his head. "Nope. They can climb up on it
if they want to, and they have in the past."

"Shit," Chakotay hissed. "We don't have enough
manpower with us to stop that from happening." He ran
his hand through his hair as he worked through the
ramifications of this whole affair. Deciding quickly
what had to be done. "You go to the other side of the
stage and be ready.  If one person, I mean if one
person even looks like they are going to climb up on
the stage, I want you to discourage them anyway you
can. That includes knocking them on their asses." 

Nick couldn't help but smile at that order. "Sure
thing boss. I'll be my pleasure." 

Anymore conversation between the two of them came to
an abrupt halt as Don opened the door and told Tom the
crowd was so ready for him. Tom smiled, gave Don a
thumbs up, then looked at Chakotay. The older man's
face clearly showed him he wasn't happy. "Chakotay,
don't worry. Four songs and we're gone. What could
possibly happen in thirty minutes?" Tom then turned
and walked out of the dressing room.
 

Chakotay sighed and followed him. He didn't want to
startle Tom by telling just how much could happen in
*less* than thirty minutes. It only took a minute for
a bottle to go flying across the room and hit him, or
worse a bullet. That thought caused Chakotay to
shutter. Snapping down on the memories that threatened
to invade his mind, he straightened his spine and
began his own survey of the "lay of the land". Not
that he didn't trust Nick, the tall, burly brown
haired guy was good. Greg had trained him well. Oh how
he wished Greg was here now. That was one man Chakotay
*always* trusted and counted on. 

Once they reached the side stage, Nick took his
position on the other side, ready to spring into
action. Chakotay did the same, closer to Tom  then the
other man. He also had a better view of the audience
than Nick. Eyes long trained to see what the normal
person wouldn't he scanned the crowd. Looking for the
betraying stance, the evading eyes, anything that
would give Chakotay a hint as to whether the stalker
was in the building. He had no doubt the crazed
lunatic was in the house, he just wasn't sure if said
nutcase would act on his threat in a public forum. 

Tom ran out on the stage after a short introduction
by Don Fry, the noise level grew louder as he did. Tom
was the consummate performer. Greeting the crowd as he
would an imitate friend. Giving each and every one of
them the feeling that he was there just for their
private entertainment. 

"Are you ready to rock?" Tom shouted and a collective
"YES!" was screamed back at him. He smiled. "Let's go
then!" He yelled into the microphone as he started
singing his newest song. The crowd went wild,
screaming and singing along.

 Chakotay watched as the masses pushed forward,
wanting to get as close to the stage as possible. His
body tensed, his senses sharpened. He hated this,
hated watching no named people clamor ever closed to
the object of their fantasies. He never handled it
well with Rose, and now, again, he was allowing his
own emotions cloud his judgement. He shook off the
desire to storm the stage himself and pull Tom away.
Concentrating on the people right in the front, part
of him worried that one of them would get hurt if and
when the people behind them pushed too hard.
 

One song flowed into another, the crowd loving every
note. Tom looked like he was in heaven, pleasing the
crowd and being pleased by their reaction to him. Then
suddenly things changed, someone jumped on the stage
before Chakotay or Nick could react. When Nick did
finally run forward, Tom stopped him with a hand held
up. The singer then turned to the fan, smiled and
nodded for him to leave the stage. The fan obliged and
jumped down, only for his actions to be mirrored by
yet another fan. This one seemed a bit more aggravated
or was that enthusiasm? Chakotay wasn't sure but he
didn't want to find out. He stepped forward to 'help'
the guy off the stage only to have Tom stop *him* this
time. As the blond continued to sing, he smiled at the
young man, touched his arm and again nodded for him to
leave the stage. This time the action was met with a
bit of resistance, but he complied.

Just as Chakotay breathed a sigh of relief, someone
grabbed a hold of Tom's ankle and pulled him off the
stage. Tom yelled, Chakotay and Nick jumped into
action. Chakotay ran across the stage, knocking back a
few people who had jumped on in the confusion. Nick
bolted into the crowd, trying to get to Tom. It was
Chakotay who got there first; he grabbed Tom and
pulled him away from the sea of people. Nick and he
began pushing through the crowd, not caring if anyone
fell. From the side stage Ray watched, smiling to
himself as the crowd took Tom away from the stage.
{This is good. Perfect.} He said to himself. 

Chakotay screamed into the transmitter on his wrist,
ordering Paul to get the hover-car to the side door
now. People scattered as the wall that was Chakotay
and Nick barreled through. Once outside, they pushed
Tom into the car. As the door was shut behind
Chakotay, he ordered Paul to get them the hell out of
there. Leaving Ray, Kathryn and a few others behind.
They were not his concern, only Tom was. 

When Chakotay checked on Tom, he was pale and shaken.
"That's never happened before," he whispered, then
shut his eyes.

Nick nodded, "Really Chakotay. I've never seen them
*that* wild before."

Chakotay said nothing. He was too angry, too shaken
himself, to speak. If he did, he knew he would scream,
and he couldn't, wouldn't do that. Turning away from
the other two, the bodyguard stared out the window.
The decision had been taken away from him. He had to
leave, his emotions already had caused him to slack
off and Tom almost paid the price. He'd talk to Greg,
find out how Harry was doing. Greg would handle this
better. There would be no messy emotional stuff for
Greg to deal with. He'd tell Tom in the morning.

When they arrived at Tom's house, Chakotay helped the
blond singer out of the car and saw to it that he got
to his room and into bed. No words were spoken, none
could be found. Tom was obviously in shock and
Chakotay was in turmoil.  Once Tom was settled into
bed, Chakotay stroked the younger man's face, hoping
to convey a sense of peace so he could sleep. Chakotay
left him and went to the kitchen. He needed time to
collect himself before he could settle himself down
for the night.

While he stood in the dark, eating an apple, Ray came
storming in. The manager stopped dead when he saw who
was in the room. Then he charged at the bodyguard
intent on knocking him on his ass. Chakotay simply
stepped aside and watched the weasel slam into the
counter. Shaking off the blow, Ray brought upon
himself, he stood and growled at Chakotay and lunged
again. This time Chakotay stopped him with a forearm
to the mid-section. That knocked the squeaky little
man back a couple of feet. His back hit the counter
and he grabbed it so he wouldn't fall. Chakotay,
unaffected by the 'attack', wiped his mouth and began
to leave the room. Ray noticed a carving knife on the
counter and picked it up, but before he could decide
what to do with it, he heard a slight 'swish' pass his
ear followed quickly by a thunk. When he turned to
locate the sound he noticed a hunter's knife buried in
the cabinet next to his head.

"I'm not going to have this discussion with you
again. Fuck with me and you're a dead man," Chakotay
growled as he pulled his knife out of the wood and
walked off.

Ray stood in the silence shaking, he knew it had been
stupid to attack the big man, but he was so angry at
the other's interference with his plans, he couldn't
help it. He had set it all up, he got a couple of
people willing to be a bit more aggressive. He paid
well for it. It was all for publicity, when word got
out that Tom Paris was being stalked record and
concert tickets sales would go through the roof. He'll
have to talk to Tom, make him understand that the
stupid bastard of a bodyguard had to be controlled.
He'd get Tom to see things his way, he always had. On
that note Ray left the kitchen for his own room.

*~*~*~*~*~*

The next day was all too quiet at the Paris home.
Kathryn came by quite early and upon seeing the state
that Tom was in, cancelled the day's rehearsal. The
entire household had heard what happened the night
before and were just as stunned as Tom had been.
Everyone seemed to be moving at a slower, more
cautious, pace. 

Tom stayed in his room for most of the day. He needed
time to assimilate what had happened. Both the rage in
the crowd and Chakotay's actions. He couldn't remember
a time when the older man had moved so quickly or
expelled more strength then he had last night.
Perhaps, if Tom was honest with himself, he had always
felt that strength and reveled in it when they were in
the Delta Quadrant, more so when they were lovers.
Chakotay always made him feel safe and protected. Last
night was no different. He had to get a handle on
*those* emotions. He couldn't let the other man know,
that even after all this time; Tom was in love with
him. 

Somewhere around mid-afternoon Ray knocked on Tom's
door.  Not waiting for an acknowledgement, Ray
entered.

"Tom, we need to talk. That display of burly power
last night was unacceptable," Ray spat.

"Chakotay was doing his job, Ray. I was in trouble
and he stepped in. That's what I'm paying him to do."

"Tom, be real. He brutalized fans, knocked them out
of the way. I wouldn't be surprised if we get slapped
with a law suit from a couple of them."

"Let the fuckers try and sue me! They were the ones
who attacked *me*." Tom stood and began pacing the
room. "I don't understand. Why in hell did that
happen? Never, never has the audience ever reacted
that way before. It scared the hell out of me," he
admitted.

"You're over reacting you know that don't you? They
were just being enthusiastic," Ray answered. He needed
to bring Tom back under control.

"Is that what you call what happened? Enthusiasm?
Give me a break, Ray. They were out of control and you
know it." Tom ran his hand through his hair. "I'm
going to go and talk to Chakotay."

"Tom he can't be in charge of your life. That's my
job."

"No. Ray, I'm in charge of my own life and as of
right now Chakotay is in charge of making sure I don't
fuck it up."

"You're firing me?" Ray was stunned.

"Yeah, I am. You shouldn't have lied to Chakotay
about Don's security. You put me in that situation, a
situation that could have gotten me killed." Tom was
angry. Then something hit him like a ton of bricks.
Ray had been 'handling' him for years now and he never
realized it. "You set that up, didn't you? You did
something to get those people that riled up. I know
you, Ray, so don't fucking lie to me," Tom yelled. He
was pissed, more at himself for allowing it to happen
than at Ray for doing it.

"Tom, it was a bad call. I thought we could use the
stalker for publicity. If the crowd got carried away
we could use that too."

Tom stood stunned for a second as the admission sunk
in. "Get the fuck out of my sight now," Tom screamed.
"If you ever darken my doorstep again, I'll let
Chakotay finish what he wanted to start in the car
last night." Tom turned and pushed a button on his com
system. 

"Hey Tom. Whatcha need?"  Nick's voice came over the
speaker.

"Nick, Ray needs help getting the fuck out of my
house. See that he gets it."

"Sure thing, Tom." If he was surprised, Nick didn't
let it be heard in his voice.

"Oh, one more thing. Make sure all security codes are
changed as soon as the bastard is gone. I'll see to it
that he can't get in the building downtown."

"Okay. Boss." The speaker went dead. 

"Good-bye Ray. And fuck you." Tom turned and left his
room. He had to find Chakotay. Talk to him; make sure
the big man wasn't too pissed at him for his error in
judgement. As Tom stormed through his house, the
startled help just moved out of the way, even Neelix
didn't try and stop him. Word had spread quickly that
he just fired Ray. Admittedly, Neelix was glad, he
never liked the manager. 

Tom found Chakotay in the cottage. He heard music
lofting through the air. When the lyrics started he
knew exactly who it was. Rose Benson's voice was
undeniable the most beautiful Tom had ever heard.
Although he didn't recognize the song, the emotionally
plead was all too familiar.

When darkness is upon your heart and soul, I'll be the
light that shines for you.
When you forget how beautiful you are, I'll be there
to remind you.
When you can't find your way, I'll find my way to you.
When trouble comes around, I will come to you.
I'll be your shoulder when you need someone to lean
on. 
Be your shelter when you need someone to see you
through, I'll be there to carry you.
I'll be there.
I'll be the rock that will be strong for you, the one
that will hold on to you.
When you feel that rain falling down, when there's
nobody else around,
I'll be.
When you're there with no one there to hold, I'll be
the arms that reach for you.
When you feel your faith is running low, I'll be there
to believe in you.
When all you find are lies, I'll be the truth you
need.
When you need someone to run to, you can run to me
.
I'll be your shoulder when you need someone to lean
on. 
Be your shelter when you need someone to see you
through, I'll be there to carry you.
I'll be there.
I'll be the rock that will be strong for you, the one
that will hold on to you.
When you feel that rain falling down, when there's
nobody else around,
I'll be.
I'll be the sun when your heart's filled with rain,
I'll be the one to chase the rain away.
I'll be your shoulder when you need someone to lean
on. 
Be your shelter when you need someone to see you
through, I'll be there to carry you.
I'll be there.
I'll be the rock that will be strong for you, the one
that will hold on to you.
When you feel that rain falling down, when there's
nobody else around,
I'll be.
 

When the song was done, Tom felt a strength he hadn't
felt in years. Hearing those words and the obvious
meaning them, he steeled himself to face the one
person who would be his rock. He knocked and let
himself it. He found Chakotay sitting on the small
couch, deep in thought.

"She had the most beautiful voice I've ever heard,"
Tom whispered, somewhat afraid to break the peace that
was on Chakotay's face.

"That she did." Was the soft reply.

"That song, I've never heard it before."

"No one has, she recorded it for me alone."

"Oh. I'm sorry. I was intruding," Tom said
remorsefully.

"No. It's okay." Chakotay sat up in the chair. "Did
you want something, Tom?"

"Yeah, I wanted to apologize for last night."

"Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything
wrong Tom." Chakotay was confused. "Although I was
wrong. I can't do this. I can't protect you the way
you need. I'm going to talk to Greg. See if Harry's
well enough for him to be left alone. Greg can do the
job better."

"No! Chakotay, listen Greg can't be here right now.
Harry still needs help. His injuries are *my* fault. I
allowed Ray and others to hide things from me and
Harry paid the price." Tom paused and ran his hand
through his hair. I took a sat across from the other
man, inhaled sharply and continued. "I know that you
will do whatever you can to protect Miral and me. I
trust you. Just trust yourself."

Chakotay said nothing, just nodded his acceptance of
the plea and the challenge. 

"Good. Now, please don't get too angry at what I'm
about to tell you. I did handle the problem myself but
you need to know." Tom paused, waiting for Chakotay to
again acknowledge acceptance.

"I reserve the right to get angry or not until after
I hear what you have to say," Chakotay answered.

Tom understood what he was saying. "Ray set up last
night."

"What?"

"Ray, he paid, I don't know how many people, but he
paid them to get rowdy. For the publicity."

"That son of a. I'll kill that weasel," Chakotay
roared.

"I fired him before I came here." Tom assured him. "I
suddenly realized that he had been 'handling' me in a
manner which wasn't his. I gave him far too much
control. It's my own fault. After B'Elanna and I got
divorced I spent a lot of time trying to make sure I
didn't lose touch with Miral. Then when B'Elanna died,
I needed to place my attention squarely on Miral. I
let Ray run things. When I was sure that Miral was
okay, it was too late to take back the control," Tom
sighed. "To be honest, I sort of preferred that he had
control over so much. It allowed me to concentrate on
the music, he worried about everything else."

"Why would he put your life in danger like that?"
Suddenly another thought hit him. "If that weasel is
behind the threats he'd better hope he finds an out of
the way planet to hide on," Chakotay snarled. "I'll
hunt him down and kill him with my bare hands."

Tom couldn't help but smile. "Ah, my fiercer
protector. I have no doubt his days are limited. But I
don't or can't believe he would truly cause me or
Miral any harm."

"Tom, you could have been stomped to death last
night. That is *not* in your best interested."
Chakotay looked out the window. "Where is he now?"

"Nick was helping him gather his things to leave. I
don't know if he's gone yet."

"Well, perhaps I'll go and help him find the door
that much quicker,"
 Chakotay growled as he stood up. 

Tom stopped him. "No. Leave that to Nick. How about
we spend a little time catching up?" Tom smiled. "
Tell me more about your business."

Chakotay sighed, "All right." So began the tale of
'Dorvan Protection Services.'

TBC