His mother was taking too long.

Jim had been pacing back and forth in the lobby area for longer than he thought she should.

Damn his cousin anyway. He was familiar with the Orion colony they were in, Kolar, as it was a well-known hub of the Orion Syndicate. And of course, where their main jails and prisons were.

“Maybe I should check on her,” he said, stopping in front of the Orion manning the desk.

“I’m monitoring the situation,” he assured Jim. “Your mother is safe. She is almost done and should be out shortly.”

Jim huffed and turned away, his gaze caught by the lightning flashing across the sky.

“Do you get electric storms a lot?”

“They are not uncommon.” He pressed a button and the door clicked. “She is coming out now.”

“There you are,” Jim said, giving into the relief he felt at her arriving back in the reception area, seemingly unharmed. He frowned. “And the kids?”

His mom chuckled. “She doesn’t have them in the jail with her, Jim.”

“Well…yeah.”

“They are at a school. Like a boarding school. On Kinavvern.”

He knew Kinavvern, too, as that’s where he, Gary and Bones had visited when they were wet behind the ears Cadets. It was an island colony suspended over an ocean. Very pretty and wealthy.

“Best not to travel there tonight,” the Orion behind the desk spoke up. “Go in the morning. The school won’t let you in until then anyway.”

Jim glanced at him. “Is there somewhere we can stay?”

 “Three doors up from here is a hotel that is welcoming to non-Orions. You’ll be safe there until morning.”

“Thank you,” his mother said, as she put her hand on Jim. “Are you all right? You look a little…defeated.”

“Don’t worry about me,” Jim said. “I guess we have no choice. Let’s go check out this place. Hopefully once we get there tomorrow, we can collect the kids and be on our way.”

 They left the jail and turned to go up as the Orion had said. Jim was on alert though they didn’t seem to be under any imminent threat. But they were in a strange place and he had no one with him save for his mother. They carried bags for their stay and Jim had a phaser but still, he would rather not have any trouble.

“Something happened while I was talking to Melanie. You’re very tense.”

“I don’t like unknown outcomes, that’s all.”

“Mm.”

He could see the sign for the hotel and went to quicken his pace when suddenly an Orion male blocked their way.

He was much slimmer and shorter than the one in the jail and he had reddish brown hair rather than being bald.

“James Kirk?”

Jim had his hand on his phaser and pushed his mother behind him, despite her squawk of protest.

“Yeah, who wants to know?”

“You knew my sister Gaila.”

Jim blinked, processed that. There was a resemblance now that he knew.

“I’m sorry about her death on the Farragut.”

Gaila’s brother shook his head. “She did not die on the Farragut.”

“She’s still alive?”

“No. She passed years ago but not on that ship. She missed the takeoff and was spared.” He glanced around. “When I saw you, I thought…why are you here?”

Jim wasn’t sure it was his business and he was struggling for a polite way to say so when his mother spoke up.

“My niece has two children on the Orion colony Kinavvern. We are headed there to collect them.”

“And your destination now?”

“That hotel,” Jim replied.

Gaila’s brother grunted. “Not there. My name is Tolar. Come with me.”

“I don’t think—”

“I have something to show you,” Tolar said. He gestured to the hotel. “That is not the place for you.”

His mother spoke up again, “I think it’s all right, Jim. Let’s go with him.”

“Okay. Let’s go.”