(Kasidy wakes, kisses Sisko and gets out of bed.)
SISKO: Kasidy Yates, where are you going?
KASIDY: Down to my ship. I have a meeting with my engineer. Go back to sleep.
SISKO: You're the captain. He'll wait.
(Sisko pulls her back into bed and starts kissing her neck.)
KASIDY: Oh, is that how you treat your staff? Let them wait around while you sleep in?
SISKO: That's right. In fact, there are days when I never get out of bed.
KASIDY: You're not making this easy.
SISKO: That's the general idea.
(Kasidy gets up to get dressed.)
KASIDY: You are evil.
SISKO: I am a Starfleet officer, the paragon of virtue.
KASIDY: You're more like a parody of virtue. But we'll have to continue this debate another time.
SISKO: I can't wait.
KASIDY: See you later.
(Sisko pulls her pillow over and inhales her perfume, then swaps it for his own.)

[Wardroom]

EDDINGTON: This briefing will contain information considered extremely sensitive by Starfleet Command. Please, do not share it with anyone who doesn't have a level seven security rating. It seems that during their recent invasion of Cardassia, the Klingons inflicted far more damage than we've been led to believe. Two weeks ago, the civilian government on Cardassia Prime secretly contacted the Federation Council and made an urgent request for industrial replicators. And that request has been granted.
DAX: How many replicators are we talking about?
EDDINGTON: Twelve, all class four.
KIRA: The Federation only gave Bajor two CFI replicators.
EDDINGTON: With all due respect, Bajor is just one planet. The Klingons have destroyed the industrial base of literally dozens of Cardassian worlds. With twelve CFI replicators, they can at least start building new power plants and factories.
DAX: Why all the secrecy?
EDDINGTON: Starfleet Intelligence believes the Maquis may try to stop the shipment or even seize the replicators for themselves.
SISKO: It makes sense. The Cardassian military has been so busy fending off the Klingons, they've basically given a free hand to the Maquis in the Demilitarised zone. The last thing the Maquis are going to want to see is a shipment of replicators on its way to Cardassia.
EDDINGTON: Intelligence also reports that the Demilitarised zone between Cardassia and the Federation has become a hotbed of increasing terrorist activity in the past month. We suspect the Maquis have built several new bases in the Badlands, and the Cardassians in the DMZ are getting worried.
WORF: They should be. Without the Cardassian military to stop them, the Maquis have a perfect opportunity to drive the Cardassians out of the DMZ permanently.
SISKO: I take it this shipment is going to pass through Deep Space Nine?
EDDINGTON: Yes, sir. In three days.
SISKO: All right. Let's tighten security on the station. Step up random checks of incoming and outgoing cargo for weapons or explosives, more deputies on the Promenade. You know the drill.
ODO: Understood.
SISKO: Mister Worf, tomorrow I want you to take the Defiant and patrol the Badlands. Show the flag. Let the Maquis know we're ready for any trouble.
WORF: Aye, sir.
SISKO: Mister Eddington, I want daily briefings on this until the replicators are in Cardassian hands.
EDDINGTON: Aye, sir.
SISKO: Dismissed.
(Dax, Worf and Kira leave.)
ODO: The Commander and I would like to have a word with you.
SISKO: Something wrong?
EDDINGTON: Captain, it's come to our attention that there may be a Maquis smuggler here on the station.
SISKO: Oh?
ODO: It's just a theory at this point and frankly, our suspicions are based on purely circumstantial evidence.
SISKO: Who is it?
EDDINGTON: Again, we're still not certain.
SISKO: I understand that. Who? Gentlemen?
ODO: Kasidy Yates.
(After the titles, when this stunning piece of news has sunk in.)
SISKO: Kasidy? Working for the Maquis? That's impossible.
ODO: I certainly hope so. Smuggling with intent to supply a terrorist organization is a serious offence.
SISKO: Where's your evidence?
ODO: Five months ago, Captain Yates was hired by the Bajorans to carry cargo to their outlying colonies. One of her regular runs is from Bajor to a colony on Dreon Seven. It's a twelve hour run for most ships, but she always takes eighteen. The six hour difference is just enough time to allow her to make a side trip into the Badlands, rendezvous with a Maquis ship and then continue on to the Dreon System.
SISKO: That's your evidence? That she was slow in one of her deliveries?
EDDINGTON: There's more. Starfleet Intelligence has infiltrated one of the Maquis cells and obtained a partial list of their contacts in the Bajoran Sector. They all had cover names, of course, but one of their contacts started living aboard Deep Space Nine in the last six months.
ODO: And Captain Yates has been living aboard the station for just under six months.
SISKO: That's damned slim evidence to base an accusation.
ODO: We haven't made accusations. I said we have suspicions.
SISKO: That's right. You did say that.
ODO: Captain, I realise this is an awkward situation for you, but if I could step up my surveillance of Captain Yates?
SISKO: Odo, she's a Federation citizen. You can't just invade her privacy based on your suspicions. You'll have to show me some real evidence before I authorise what you're proposing.
EDDINGTON: If she's really a Maquis, then she's no longer a Federation citizen.
SISKO: The answer is no.
EDDINGTON: Understood, sir.
(Odo and Eddington head for the door.)
SISKO: Gentlemen. There are times we have to search vessels docked at the station. If you can find a reason.
ODO: We'll let you know.

[Springball court]

(There's quite a crowd watching an energetic game. A player thumps the opponent into the wall then scores the winning shot.)
BASHIR: Yeah, Nerys! There you go! Did you see that? The way she gave him the tiniest head fake and then boom, checked him into the wall.
GARAK: Yes, it was quite effective.
(But Garak is watching Ziyal, not the match.)
BASHIR: Stop watching her.
GARAK: Oh, I thought the whole point was to watch.
BASHIR: The point is to watch the game, not the spectators. Especially not that spectator.
GARAK: What does she expect? She's the only Cardassian woman on this station. She must know she's bound to attract some attention.
(Kira ends up in the wall this time.)
BASHIR: Some, yes. Yours, no. (Kira get's tripped.) Oh, come on! That was a foul!
(Still on the floor, Kira catches the ball in her hand.)
GARAK: Perhaps I should say hello after the game.
BASHIR: That's Gul Dukat's daughter, and I can't think of anyone in the galaxy who hates you more than he does. Besides, Ziyal is a friend of Kira's. I wouldn't play around with her if I were you.
GARAK: I simply thought it would be polite to say hello. But clearly, you think I'm incapable of conducting any kind of pleasant discourse without some kind of nefarious ulterior motive.
BASHIR: That's not what I meant. I just think you should leave well enough alone. Why stir up
GARAK: Yes! Well played! Brava, Major!
BASHIR: What happened?
GARAK: A brilliant move on the part of the Major. You should have been paying attention.

[Sisko's quarters]

(Dinner is being cooked. It's green.)
SISKO: Come in.
KASIDY: Did you know you could smell that all the way down the corridor?
SISKO: It's an experiment. Bajoran ratamba stew over spinach linguine.
KASIDY: Don't your neighbours ever complain?
SISKO: Sometimes, but usually it's only an excuse to get a taste of my cooking.
KASIDY: Oh, how sneaky of them.
SISKO: Yes, they're a duplicitous bunch.
(Jake walks in on a kiss.)
JAKE: All right, you two, break it up. I've got a problem. Do either of you know what a Kavarian tiger-bat smells like? It's for a story I'm working on. The computer database has plenty of pictures, but no olfactory information.
SISKO: You're a writer. Make something up.
JAKE: I'm going for a real 'you are there' feeling. The details have to be right. Kas, haven't you been to Kavaria?
KASIDY: Not me. Sorry.
SISKO: Don't you make a regular cargo run to a neighbouring system?
KASIDY: No, Kavaria's out toward the Badlands. I try to stay away from there. You should ask Quark. I bet he knows someone who's been out that way.
SISKO: I thought you made deliveries to Dreon Seven. That's near the Badlands, isn't it?
KASIDY: I guess it depends on how you define near. On my ship, Dreon's a long way from the Badlands.
SISKO: What route do you take to the Dreon System? I imagine you go around the Rolor Nebula.
KASIDY: If you're really this interested in my flight plans, why don't you look them up. You are the Commander of the station, after all.
SISKO: Forget I brought it up. Okay, everyone grab a plate and prepare to be dazzled.
JAKE: You first.
(Kasidy shakes her head.)

[Turbolift]

(Most of the passengers get off, leaving Garak and Ziyal alone together.)
GARAK: You're not going to hurt me, are you? Normally I would simply make a strategic withdrawal at the first sign of trouble, but there doesn't seem to be a way out of here.
ZIYAL: You could always call security.
GARAK: Oh, true. But it would take them a few minutes to arrive, and by then it might be too late.
ZIYAL: I don't think I'll hurt you.
GARAK: I'm gratified to hear that.
ZIYAL: In fact I think it's safe to say you have nothing to fear from me.
(They arrive at the Promenade.)
GARAK: And you, my dear, have nothing to fear from me.

[Cargo bay]

BRATHAW: (a Bolian) This is ridiculous. We have perishable goods in the hold and we cannot allow
KASIDY: What is going on here?
ODO: Captain, we need to make a class two inspection of your cargo before we can allow you to leave the station.
KASIDY: Inspection? For what?
ODO: Temecklian virus. There've been some reports of an outbreak on Bajor, so we're scanning all ships and cargo before they leave the system.
KASIDY: None of my cargo came from Bajor.
ODO: I'm afraid the rules are very strict. No exceptions.
KASIDY: How long will this take?
ODO: Six hours.
KASIDY: Six hours?
BRATHAW: We'll miss the rendezvous.
KASIDY: We'll see about that.
(She goes to a wall monitor)
SISKO [on monitor]: Kasidy?
KASIDY: I'm sorry to bother you, Ben. Normally, I wouldn't do this, but
SISKO [on monitor]: What is it?
KASIDY: It's this health inspection. They're telling me it's going to take six hours, but I need to make a rendezvous with a Tholian freighter in nine hours and you know how they are about punctuality.
SISKO [on monitor]: If it weren't the health concern, maybe, but in this case
KASIDY: Ben, please. I promise to flood the entire cargo hold with baryon radiation as a precaution, but I need to go now or I'll lose

[Captain's office]

KASIDY [on monitor]: The entire consignment.
SISKO: Stand by. Is there any way we can make a shorter inspection?
EDDINGTON: Not if they're going to search for contraband while they make it look like a health inspection. They need time to look for camouflage fields, false cargo manifests, computer records.
SISKO: We probably shouldn't bother at this point. If Kasidy's in a hurry, she'll going to be standing over their shoulders the whole time. They won't be able to make much of a search.
EDDINGTON: Captain, I strongly recommend that we at least try.
SISKO: You are clear to leave the station. Just remember to irradiate that cargo.
KASIDY [on monitor]: Thanks, Ben. I owe you one. See you tomorrow.
SISKO: Do you have something to say, Commander?
EDDINGTON: No, sir.
SISKO: Good. Now, get down to the Defiant and tell Worf he has a change of orders. I want you to follow the Xhosa.
EDDINGTON: Aye, sir. What are our orders if we observe Captain Yates meeting a Maquis ship?
SISKO: Right now your orders are to observe and then report directly to me. Is that clear?
EDDINGTON: Perfectly.

[Bridge]

(Cloaked)
O'BRIEN: The Xhosa's altering course, Commander. Now on heading one five eight, mark three two five.
EDDINGTON: The Badlands.
WORF: Stay with her, Chief.
O'BRIEN: Aye, sir.
(A little later the Xhosa goes into the plasma storms of the Badlands.)
O'BRIEN: Say what you will about the Maquis, they're not stupid. Using the Badlands as their base of operations was a pretty smart move. Not to mention gutsy one.
WORF: They are terrorists, little more than criminals. And criminals always make mistakes.
O'BRIEN: They're just fighting for something they believe in.
WORF: They should be hunted down and destroyed.
O'BRIEN: What for? Defending their homes? Look at what's happened to those people. One day they're trying to eke out a living on some godforsaken colonies on the Cardassian border, the next day the Federation makes a treaty handing those colonies over to the Cardassians. What would you do?
WORF: I would not become a terrorist. It would be dishonourable.
O'BRIEN: I wouldn't say that around Major Kira if I were you. How about you, Commander? How do you feel about the Maquis?
EDDINGTON: I don't have any feelings about them one way or the other.
O'BRIEN: Oh, but you must have an opinion.
EDDINGTON: I do my job, Chief. Starfleet says to find the Maquis, I'll find the Maquis. They tell me to help them, I'll help them. My opinion is irrelevant. What matters to me is doing my job like a Starfleet officer. Anything else is an indulgence.
O'BRIEN: I think I've got something. An impulse signature off the starboard bow.
WORF: Bring us within visual range.
O'BRIEN: Aye, sir.
(The Xhosa has met another vessel.)
O'BRIEN: That's a Maquis raider.
EDDINGTON: And the Xhosa's beaming over her cargo.

[Garak's shop]

ZIYAL: Hello.
GARAK: Hello.
ZIYAL: This is your shop.
GARAK: Yes.
ZIYAL: It's very nice.
GARAK: Thank you.
ZIYAL: You do good work.
GARAK: How kind. Is there something I can do for you?
ZIYAL: I got this holosuite programme from Quark. It's a reproduction of a Cardassian sauna, like the ones they have back home.
GARAK: Yes?
ZIYAL: I was wondering if you might be interested in trying it out with me.
GARAK: Oh.
ZIYAL: I mean, we're the only Cardassians on the station, and, well, the temperature's too hot for almost anyone else.
GARAK: I see. When were you thinking of?
ZIYAL: Maybe the day after tomorrow, say twenty one hundred?
GARAK: I'd be delighted.
ZIYAL: Great. I'll see you there.
GARAK: I look forward to it.

[Sisko's quarters]

JAKE: Morning.
SISKO: Morning.
JAKE: Raktajino, extra sweet. Makapa bread, no crust.
SISKO: What happened to juice and oatmeal?
JAKE: Kasidy introduced me to this. It's great. When's she due back?
SISKO: Tonight.
(Jake dips the bread into the drink and it foams up, alarming Sisko.)
JAKE: Don't worry, it's supposed to do that. The foam tastes like a weird peppermint, and the bread, I don't know what it tastes like. You want some?
SISKO: I think I'll pass.
JAKE: Dad, is something wrong?
SISKO: I'm a little tired. Didn't sleep much last night.
JAKE: I guess you're not used to sleeping alone anymore. Oh, what I mean is, you miss her companionship. You miss talking and sharing insights about command and duty
SISKO: All right. That's enough.
JAKE: I was just kidding.
SISKO: I know. I've just got a lot on my mind.
JAKE: Something happen between you and Kasidy?
SISKO: Not exactly.
JAKE: If you want to talk.
(Sisko puts his hand on Jake's arm.)
JAKE: What?
SISKO: This is important. You and I. Things change, but not this. Forget it. I'm just having a bad day.

[Wardroom]

EDDINGTON: After the cargo was beamed aboard the Maquis raider, the Xhosa took this route out of the Badlands and resumed its course to Dreon Seven.
DAX: Do you know what cargo was transferred to the Maquis ship?
O'BRIEN: From the residual transporter signature, it was approximately eighty percent organic. I'd say food or possibly medical supplies.
DAX: Well, at least we're not dealing with weapons. It sounds like she's only providing
SISKO: Where is the Xhosa now?
WORF: Captain Yates is on her way back to the station. She should arrive at nineteen hundred hours.
SISKO: Thank you. Dismissed.
(Dax turns to say something.)
SISKO: Dismissed, old man.

[Sisko's quarters]

(The doorbell brings Sisko back from his thoughts.)
SISKO: Come in.
KASIDY: Miss me?
SISKO: Were you gone?
KASIDY: Admit it. Without me, you cried yourself to sleep.
SISKO: So, did you make your rendezvous with the Tholian freighter?
KASIDY: Right on time. And thank you for bending the inspection rules for me. We'd have never made it without you.
SISKO: Just don't make a habit of it.
KASIDY: I promise.
SISKO: Where'd you meet the Tholians anyway? The Dreon system?
KASIDY: Yeah. Why?
SISKO: It just seemed odd that they would travel that far just for some medical supplies.
KASIDY: They really needed them. They've got some kind of viral infection on one of their colonies. In fact, I can't stay long. I'm supposed to make a run tonight. But I promise you can inspect the cargo ahead of time.
SISKO: That'll make Odo very happy.
(Jake enters)
JAKE: Hey, you're back.
KASIDY: Looks like it to me.
JAKE: Are you guys doing anything right now? I just got a new holosuite programme that Nog sent me. It's a baseball game between the nineteen sixty one Yankees and the nineteen seventy eight Red Sox.
KASIDY: I'll buy the hot dogs.
SISKO: I'll have to pass. I have to get back Ops. Anyway, Yankees will bury them. You two have fun.
KASIDY: But I'm only here for a few hours.
SISKO: Duty calls. I'll see you when you get back.
KASIDY: Okay.

[Captain's office]

SISKO: She's going on another run tonight. She seemed prepared for a cargo inspection this time, so I doubt you'll find anything.
ODO: Captain, Mister Eddington and I have discussed this at length, and we both feel that if the Xhosa makes another rendezvous with a Maquis raider, we should seize both vessels and arrest everyone aboard.
EDDINGTON: For all we know, the Xhosa may not make another run for months. We shouldn't let this opportunity pass us by.
SISKO: Agreed.
EDDINGTON: Yes, sir. And that does bring up another point I'd like to discuss. In private, if I may.
(Odo leaves)
EDDINGTON: Sir, the CFI replicators are due to arrive here tomorrow afternoon. I'd feel better if I were here to supervise the security detail.
SISKO: Lieutenant Reese can handle it.
EDDINGTON: Yes, sir, he can, but
SISKO: Just say it, Commander.
EDDINGTON: Sir, if the Maquis put up a fight the Xhosa might get caught in the crossfire. If that happens, I can't guarantee the safety of Kasidy Yates. And to be blunt, I don't want that responsibility.
SISKO: I can't say I blame you. The security of the CFI replicators is your priority. I'll take command of the Defiant.
EDDINGTON: Thank you, Captain.

[Cargo bay]

BRATHAW: The inspection team just left.
KASIDY: Any problems?
BRATHAW: No.
SISKO: Kasidy.
KASIDY: I'll be right there.
(Brathaw goes into the ship.)
SISKO: How was the game?
KASIDY: Good. Seven three Yankees. Did you come all the way down here for the score?
SISKO: No. I was just thinking. Why don't we drop everything and go to Risa. Just the two of us.
KASIDY: Now?
SISKO: We won't even pack a bag. We'll walk straight out of here, get in a runabout and go.
KASIDY: What about your station?
SISKO: I have a great crew. They can handle things around here for a few days. Neither of us is doing anything so important that it can't wait a few days.
KASIDY: I'm not sure the Tholians would agree.
SISKO: Let your first officer handle it. Or better yet, tell the Tholians they won't be getting this shipment at all.
KASIDY: I don't think I can do that, Ben. I have a commitment to fulfill. But if you want to take a runabout and wait for me on Risa, I'll meet you there.
SISKO: Forget about it. It was just a crazy idea. Have a good trip.
KASIDY: Thanks. It as a tempting idea, Ben. I wish I could take you up on it.
SISKO: So do I.

[Bridge]

(Cloaked)
O'BRIEN: They're reducing speed.
SISKO: Match their velocity, Chief.
WORF: These are the same coordinates they used for the last rendezvous.
SISKO: Any sign of another ship?
ODO: Not yet. But our sensors are extremely limited in the plasma fields.
O'BRIEN: They're turning again. Looks like a holding pattern to me, sir. Either the Maquis are late or the Xhosa's early.
SISKO: Either way, we wait with them.

[Garak's shop]

(Quark is having a fitting.)
QUARK: Can't you do something about these lapels?
GARAK: Such as?
QUARK: I don't know, I'm not a tailor. Just make them look good.
GARAK: Oh, make them look good. And all this time I thought you wanted me to try to make them look bad. I wish you'd said that before. It's so much simpler when the customer explains what he wants.
QUARK: Rudeness will get you nowhere. I don't need another waiter. Now, I want more room in the shoulders and these cuffs are completely unacceptable.
KIRA: Garak, can I talk to you for a minute?
GARAK: Of course, Major. Excuse me.
QUARK: Sure.
GARAK: Now, what can I do for you, Major?
(Kira slams Garak into the wall)
KIRA: Listen closely. I don't know what kind of sick game it is you're playing with Ziyal, but it'd better stop and it better stop right now.
GARAK: I can assure you, Major, I have
KIRA: I don't want to hear any of your lies. Now, that girl is here under my protection and I swear if you do anything to hurt her, I will make you regret it. Is that clear?
GARAK: As Tabalian glass.
KIRA: Good.
(Kira leaves)
QUARK: You told her. The pants are about a metre too long. So, are you cancelling your date with Ziyal?
GARAK: It's not a date. And how do you know about that?
QUARK: You're a man, she's a woman, it's a date. And they are my holosuites, after all.
GARAK: I was going to cancel. I've had visions of Ziyal presenting my head to her father as a birthday gift.
QUARK: That's a little paranoid, wouldn't you say?
GARAK: Paranoid is what they call people who imagine threats against their life. I have threats against my life. But after my little chat with Major Kira, I feel much better.
QUARK: You do?
GARAK: Isn't it obvious? If Ziyal planned to kill me, Kira would not be trying to warn me away. On the contrary, the good Major would also welcome my untimely demise, and do nothing to interfere.
QUARK: Unless that's part of the plan.
GARAK: What do you mean?
QUARK: Oh, you know. Kira acts like she doesn't want you to go so you'll feel everything's okay, and then you go anyway. Nah, it's too complicated.
GARAK: Of course.
QUARK: Now they're too short.
GARAK: What?
QUARK: The pants.
GARAK: Oh.

[Bridge]

ODO: This is wrong. Terrorists don't work this way. If your contact doesn't show up for a rendezvous, you leave. You don't stay in the Badlands going in circles for five hours.
WORF: Perhaps. But it is also possible that her cargo is so valuable to the Maquis that she will wait as long as it takes to make the delivery.
ODO: I think she's already made her delivery, and you were the cargo. Think about it. If anyone but Kasidy Yates was on the Xhosa, would you be commanding this mission yourself?
SISKO: You're saying someone wanted me here. Why?
ODO: I'm not sure, but one thing's certain. We're not going to find the answers sitting here staring at the viewscreen.
SISKO: You're right. The answers are over there. Let's go. Mister Worf, you have the Bridge.

[Xhosa Bridge]

BRATHAW: Still nothing.
KASIDY: This is getting ridiculous. All right, let's send a coded message to
(Alarm)
BRATHAW: Tachyon surge. A ship's decloaking.
(The Defiant appears on the viewscreen.)
KASIDY: Oh my God.
(Sisko, Odo and two security beam in.)
KASIDY: Ben, what are you doing here? We've been
SISKO: Don't say it. I know that you're a smuggler. I know that you've been working with the Maquis, and right now I don't care. But I need to know what your orders were. Were you told to draw me out here so the Maquis could attack the station?
KASIDY: Ben, I
SISKO: Jake's back there. And whatever your feelings are for me, I can't believe you would put him in danger.
KASIDY: I was supposed to meet a Maquis ship at these coordinates. I don't know anything about an attack on the station, and I doubt the Maquis would try. I didn't know you were following me, but after our last talk, I suspected that you might be out there.
ODO: If that's true, why didn't you abort the mission?
KASIDY: I was told that these medical supplies were urgently needed and that I had to be here no matter what. I tried to tell them that I'd made too many runs in the past few days, that I was just asking to get caught, but they wouldn't listen.
SISKO: They knew you were going to be caught. That's why they didn't send a Maquis ship here to meet you. Everything's been building to this. They needed to draw me away from the station. Why? If they aren't planning an attack, what other reason could there be? What could be happening (penny drops) Happening on the station?

[Wardroom]

(Eddington is briefing a security detachment.)
EDDINGTON: I've received new orders from Starfleet Command. The CFI replicators in cargo bay seventeen are to be transferred aboard a Vulcan freighter which should arrive at any moment. This operation is to be carried out in complete secrecy. No one aboard the station is to know about it.
REESE: Does that include the Bajoran security detachment, sir?
EDDINGTON: Absolutely. Also, as of this moment, we're observing communications silence. No comm. traffic in or out of the station for the next nine hours. Understood?
REESE: Aye, sir.
EDDINGTON: Dismissed.
(Security leave, Kira enters.)
KIRA: You wanted to see me?
EDDINGTON: Yes, Major. I'm afraid I need to take command of the station for the next few hours.
(And he shoots her, then locks the wardroom behind him.)

[Bridge]

O'BRIEN: We've cleared the plasma field, Captain.
SISKO: Get us back to the station, Chief. Maximum warp.
O'BRIEN: Aye, sir.
SISKO: Any response from our hails, Commander?
WORF: No, sir. Deep Space Nine seems to be under a communications blackout.
SISKO: Keep trying.
ODO: You realise we'll probably never see the Xhosa or Captain Yates again.
SISKO: It's a possibility.
ODO: I'd say it's more than that. If I'd been allowed to leave a security detail behind
SISKO: Our priority is to get back to the station, Constable. Captain Yates is my responsibility and I will thank you to leave it at that.
ODO: As you wish.

[Airlock]

(At an upper pylon.)
REESE: The replicators have been secured in the ship's hold, sir.
EDDINGTON: Very good. We'll be departing in five minutes and I'm leaving you in command until Captain Sisko returns.
REESE: Me, sir?
EDDINGTON: You have a problem with that, Lieutenant?
REESE: No, sir. It's just that it's unusual for a junior officer to be left in
EDDINGTON: If you're not up to the job, I'll find someone else who is. The safety of this station may depend on you and I need to know if you can handle it.
REESE: You can count on me, Commander.
EDDINGTON: Good. Now go to Ops and take command.
REESE: Yes, sir.
(Reese leaves the airlock. Eddington takes off him comm. badge and puts it on the bulkhead before the door seals behind him.)

Captain's log, supplemental. The Defiant has returned to the station but it seems that Commander Eddington is still one step ahead of us.

[Ops]

O'BRIEN: All Federation Starships near the Badlands have been alerted to look for the Vulcan freighter.
ODO: I doubt they'll find it. Eddington anticipated every contingency. I'm sure he had his escape route well planned.
KIRA: What do we tell the Cardassians?
SISKO: The truth. He fooled me. And he got away with it.
KIRA: He fooled all of us.
SISKO: Everything that happens on this station is my responsibility, Major.
O'BRIEN: Incoming message for you, Captain. It's from Commander Eddington.
SISKO: Put it through. In my office.

[Captain's office]

(Sisko switches on a wall monitor.)
EDDINGTON [on monitor]: Captain.
SISKO: Mister Eddington. I have just one question. Why?
EDDINGTON [on monitor]: Will knowing my personal motivation change anything at this point?
SISKO: No, I don't suppose it will.
EDDINGTON [on monitor]: Then let's table that for now. The only reason I've contacted you is to ask you to leave us alone. Our quarrel is with the Cardassians, not the Federation. Leave us alone and I can promise you you'll never hear from the Maquis again.
SISKO: Unless you see another shipment you want to hijack.
EDDINGTON [on monitor]: You keep sending replicators to Cardassia and you're going to have a lot more to worry about than hijackings.
SISKO: I don't respond well to threats. I thought you would know that by now. But I'm beginning to see that you don't know me at all.
EDDINGTON [on monitor]: I know you. I was like you once, but then I opened my eyes. Open your eyes, Captain. Why is the Federation so obsessed about the Maquis? We've never harmed you, and yet we're constantly arrested and charged with terrorism. Starships chase us through the Badlands and our supporters are harassed and ridiculed. Why? Because we've left the Federation, and that's the one thing you can't accept. Nobody leaves paradise. Everyone should want to be in the Federation. Hell, you even want the Cardassians to join. You're only sending them replicators because one day they can take their rightful place on the Federation Council. You know, in some ways you're worse than the Borg. At least they tell you about their plans for assimilation. You're more insidious. You assimilate people and they don't even know it.
SISKO: You know what, Mister Eddington? I don't give a damn what you think of the Federation, the Maquis, or anything else. All I know is that you betrayed your oath, your duty, and me. And if it takes me the rest of my life, I will see you standing before a court-martial that'll break you and send you to a penal colony, where you will spend the rest of your days growing old and wondering whether a ship full of replicators was really worth it.

[Holosuite - Cardassian sauna]

(A lady lizard is basking fully clothed on the hot rocks when the door opens.)
ZIYAL: Garak.
GARAK: Hello.
ZIYAL: Doesn't it feel good? The station can be so chilly sometimes.
GARAK: Yes. It's quite pleasant.
ZIYAL: Aren't you going to lie down?
GARAK: Not just yet. I have a question I'd like answered first. Why am I here?
ZIYAL: Excuse me?
GARAK: Why am I here? Am I to believe that you've invited the sworn enemy of your father simply to enjoy the heat?
ZIYAL: You really think I asked you here to kill you? Well, it did occur to me. Kira and my father both told me that you used to be an agent of the Obsidian Order. That you had my grandfather tortured and killed, and that you could easily kill me without a second thought.
GARAK: Although I seldom credit the Major or your father with being entirely trustworthy, in this case they're both telling the truth.
ZIYAL: You know what else is true? I don't care. I'm half-Bajoran and that means I'm an outcast back home. I can't go back and neither can you. So we can either share some time together or we can ignore each other. I spent five years in a prisoner of war camp by myself. I don't need your company. But if you'd like to stay and share the heat with me, maybe tell me something about home that I don't know, then I would welcome your company. And I get the feeling you would welcome mine. Either way, it's up to you.
GARAK: Well, it seems I won't be needing this anymore.
(He puts his weapon down by the door, goes to the rocks and lies down.)
GARAK: So, what shall we talk about first?

[Cargo bay]

SISKO: Just you?
KASIDY: I dropped my crew off at a Maquis base. I had to come back, but I didn't see any reason to drag them here just to face a prison sentence.
SISKO: You didn't have to come back either.
KASIDY: Yes, I did. And I think we both know that's why you left us alone out there. To see if I would. I'm not going to stand here and apologise for what I did. You had your duty, I had mine.
SISKO: I still have my duty.
KASIDY: I know. And I know I'll probably going to prison. But I came back because of us. Because despite all that's happened, I still love you, Ben. I don't want to throw that away. Do you?
SISKO: No.
(They hug, hard and long.)
SISKO: Lieutenant Reese.
(Reese and two security enter.)
KASIDY: I'll be back.
SISKO: I'll be here.