Title: Crash and Burn
Author: Marissa
Keywords: S, H, R (Harm/Mac)
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: None
Summary: A plane crash, commercial flight and a
horseback ride put Harm and Mac's affections for one
another to the test.
Disclaimer: Harm, Mac or any other JAG characters I
mention do not belong to me. I'm just letting them
have a little fun that's all. No infringement intended.
Author's Plea: I am in *desperate* need of a JAG
story editor! I would be willing edit as well for that
person. If you think you're up to the job, please let me
know at marissa113@hotmail.com.
Author's Note: I always wanted to write a story where
I got Harm and Mac on horseback, but I could never
think of a story that where it would make since and
not sound too stupid. Finally, one day when I was
riding my own horse the idea hit me so I sat down
and started writing. Here is the fruit of my labor. I'm
not very proficient in military knowledge so please
don't pay too much attention to that stuff because I'm
sure you'll find a lot of mistakes. Okay, to the story
now. You can see the jacket cover to this story at
http://www.geocities.com/darthvaderx/CrashandBurn.jpg
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Sorry I'm late sir," said Harm as he hurried to sit
down. Mac glared at him but the Admiral said
nothing.
"Well, since the Commander has finally decided to
grace us with his presence, I'll get started," he said
handing Harm and Mac both a file. He didn't even
give them a chance to look over the information
before continuing. "A young Captain out of the Air
Force Academy in Colorado Springs was flying a test
flight when his left engine went out. He said that he
was unable to regain control of his aircraft and
bailed. He ejected and walked away with only minor
injuries but his RIO wasn't so fortunate. He is now
listed in critical condition. The Captain, James
Rodmen is being charged with disorderly conduct
resulting in the serious injury of an officer.
"The accident occurred during a test flight of the new
ZX-15 tomcat. Right now everything points to pilot
error but I want you to go and figure out who is
responsible. The crash site is in a remote area of
Wyoming, but I trust you'll find all your
transportation has been arranged for you," said the
Admiral handing the officers two plane tickets.
"You're plane leaves in a little less than 4 hours so I
suggest you get packing. Dismissed."
Harm and Mac both saluted. "Aye Aye, sir."
Once they were outside the Admiral's office, Harm
turned to Mac. "Did you notice that we're on a
commercial flight?"
Mac laughed. "Yeah. Good luck with those seats. I
assume that we'll have coach."
Harm groaned. "See you at the airport."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Although they never had agreed on a meeting place,
Harm and Mac quickly found each other. After
checking in their bags they made their way towards
the departure gate. Harm felt a little out of place in a
civilian airport in a military uniform, but no one gave
him much notice. He did see more than a few men
openly staring at Mac, but that was to be expected.
He resisted the urge to be the protective male
knowing that this was neither the time, nor the place.
"Harm," Mac said once they were seated. "Have you
done something to piss off the Admiral lately?"
Harm was confused, "No, I—"
"Because sending us on a commercial flight might be
his idea of punishment for you." Harm laughed.
The flight attendant called for boarding over the loud
speakers so collecting their things, Harm and Mac got
up and headed towards the gate.
"I get the aisle," said Harm once they were on the
airplane. Mac said nothing, instead choosing to watch
Harm squeeze into the aisle seat next to her with a
smile on her lips. "This isn't funny." He told her.
"It wouldn't be half as funny except for the fact that
you're making such a big deal about it." Harm's knees
touched the back of the seat in front of him and he
was too tall to really rest his head on the back of the
chair.
Harm sighed and squirmed one last time but refrained
from saying anything.
"In the case of an emergency.." the flight attendant
started. Harm zoned out and slid down in his chair
enough so he could kind of rest his head of the back
of the seat. Then he shut his eyes and tried to sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sometime after the in-flight lunch, Harm's head had
slid off its precarious perch on the seat's headrest and
was now resting on Mac's shoulder. He was still
soundly sleeping and Mac didn't have it in her to
push it off. Instead she reached up and brushed a few
stray stands of hair off is forehead. When she looked
up, she saw that an older woman across the aisle had
been watching her. When the woman smiled at her
Mac looked away and felt herself blush.
Ever since that night on the ferry in Australia when
Mac had basically came out and said she loved Harm
and he had brushed her off, she didn't have the
confidence in him that she once did. Many a night
she had spent trying to convince herself that perhaps
he just wasn't ready to admit to her the way he felt,
but there was always this nagging fear that wouldn't
go away. The fear that said maybe he just didn't feel
the way about her as she did him. It was that fear that
sent her into Brumby's arms. Here was a man who
loved her and while she wasn't sure if she really felt
the same way about him, it was nice to know that at
least someone thought she was special. She glanced
at Harm's peacefully sleeping face. Soon, she
thought. Her heart may have been wounded, but it
wasn't broken yet.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Have a nice nap?" Mac asked him once they exited
the plane.
"I didn't realize I was so tired."
"I think you drooled on me anyway," said Mac,
explaining where his head had come to rest during his
long nap.
"I'm sorry Mac. You could have just pushed me off."
"It's okay. I didn't mind." Harm looked at her, but she
refused to meet his gaze. Harm shrugged it off,
willing himself not to think about what it could mean.
Even though the plane crash had occurred in
Wyoming, they had to fly into the Denver airport in
Colorado because there was no commercial airport
located anywhere in Wyoming. From Denver, they
were going to take a small plane to an airstrip close to
the crash site where an officer was waiting for them.
After they picked up their bags from the baggage
claim, they made their way though the large airport
and found their next flight. The pilot introduced
himself and helped them get seated.
"You might want to buckle your seatbelts. Traveling
over the Rocky Mountains in a small plane can
sometimes get pretty turbulent." Mac looked at Harm.
He knew how badly she got airsickness.
"It'll be okay Mac," he said gently rubbing her on the
back.
"Easy for you to say."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Amazingly enough, Mac made it though the flight
with only a minor feeling of sickness. Harm was a
great help and very comforting to have.
"Thanks for helping Harm," Mac told him after they
landed.
"You're welcome. Think of it as repayment for
drooling on you." Mac smiled at him.
"Commander Rabb and Lieutenant Colonel
Mackenzie?"
"Yes that's us," Harm replied.
"I'm Lieutenant Gunners your guide to the crash site.
If you would follow me please." Lieutenant Gunners
led them towards the parked jeep. Once they were out
in the open air and on solid ground, Harm watched
Mac's previously green color fade and her
complexion return to normal.
"Feeling better Marine?" he asked her.
"Much."
The jeep pulled into a typical military base. Typical
all except for the two dozen horses saddled and tied
up on the outskirts of the facility.
" Lieutenant, what's with all the horses?" Harm
asked.
"It's the most reliable form of transportation to the
crash site. We had them trucked in from a dude ranch
about thirty miles from here."
Mac shot Harm a look. They weren't going to have to
ride horses, were they?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lieutenant Gunners helped them unload their
suitcases from the jeep then introduced them to
Sargent Miles, who was currently in charge of the
crash site.
"The site's pretty cut and dry," Sargent Miles told
them. "The plane's pretty much in pieces and we
haven't recovered the flight data recorder yet. I don't
know what you expect to find."
"When we do we'll let you know," replied Harm.
"That's good, that's good. Now, Lieutenant Gunners
here will arrange for your transportation. I hope you
get this all cleared up."
"We'll try our best Sargent."
"Ma'am, you might want to change," Lieutenant
Gunners said, gesturing towards Mac's skirt. "I think
you'll find it a little hard to ride."
Mac's eyes widened. "We're actually going to ride
horses?"
"Yes Ma'am, it's the only way to get there. There's no
access by road for a car and the forest is too thick for
a helicopter to land. Horseback riding is the fastest
and quickest mode of transportation."
"There is no way you're going to get me on a horse,"
replied Mac, crossing her arms in frustration.
"Come on Mac, where's your sense of adventure?"
"Don't worry Colonel, we'll put you on a nice horse,"
urged Gunners.
Mac glared at the too men. "Fine. I'll do it." The
Lieutenant showed her a place where she could
change. Mac quickly did so, glad that she had
decided to bring along a pair of pants. When she
emerged, she found Harm and Gunners both waiting
for her.
"I'm ready," she announced.
"Of course," replied the Lieutenant. "If you'll just
follow me, and watch your step." He led them
towards where the horses were tied. Mac saw two
other junior officers loading her suitcases onto the
back of another horse. Great, she thought, now all her
clothes were going to smell like horse too.
"Colonel, this is Buddy. He'll be your horse for the
next two days," Lieutenant Gunners said, handing
Mac the reins. Harm looked at the expression on
Mac's face and laughed. "Commander, here's
Major." Harm turned around and was face to face
with what was undoubtedly the largest horse he'd
ever seen. Now it was Mac's turn to laugh.
"I'm going to ride this thing?" Harm asked nervously.
"Don't worry Commander. He's got a bit of temper,
but once he gets to know you he's as gentle as a
kitten."
"Lieutenant, we're ready to start now," a young
officer told Gunners.
"Right. If you just help the Commander and Colonel
onto their mounts, we'll get going," Lieutenant
Gunners replied.
"Ma'am, Sir, this way." Harm and Mac followed the
officer and he patiently explained the basics of horse
riding. "Now Colonel, if you'll just put your left foot
in this stirrup." Mac carefully did so and clumsily
swung her right foot over to the other side of the
saddle. "That feel okay?" he asked her.
"As good as it's going to get I think," Mac replied.
"Commander?" Harm approached his giant of a horse
with caution and tried to get his left foot high enough
to place in the stirrup.
"I can't reach," he told the officer.
"Okay, I'll get you a mounting block, just hang on a
second." So the officer left Harm alone, holding the
reins.
Harm saw Mac laughing at him. "Don't say
anything!"
"Harm, I'm not laughing at you. I'm laughing with
you," she told him.
"Well I'm not laughing," replied Harm. His horse
choose that moment to rub its huge head on the back
of Harm's uniform. "Ahh!" yelled Harm, jumping
back, but it was too late. The horse had already left a
huge green streak of slime his back.
"Okay Commander, I have your mounting block for
you." Harm tuned to face the approaching officer and
in doing so showed him his nicely slimed backside.
The man said nothing but Mac saw the corners of his
mouth twitching. "Don't worry, he usually does that
as a sign of affection. You should be honored
Commander."
"Oh I'm honored alright." The junior officer set the
mounting block next the horse and with its help Harm
was able to finally get on.
Lieutenant Gunners came trotting up on his large
black horse. "Is everyone ready?"
"As ready as we're gonna be," replied Harm. Gunners
turned his horse around and headed out of the base
and towards a tiny single-track trail. Harm gritted his
teeth and prepared to dig his heels into the side of his
horse, but much to his surprise he didn't have to. His
horse started after the retreating Gunners and Mac's
came up behind his. He turned around and faced
Mac. "Here goes nothing."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was almost dusk by the time they stopped at a
small campsite on the side of the trail. There were
already some tents set up and a fire going. Lieutenant
Gunners dismounted and tied his horse to a tree
before coming over to help Mac and Harm.
"This is camp one," he told them. "We should reach
the crash site about this time tomorrow."
"Great," said Mac as she eased herself off her horse,
Buddy, and onto the ground. "Ouch!"
"Feeling a little stiff Colonel?"
"You could say that," she replied. Harm quickly
joined her in her pain.
"Don't worry, you'll feel as good as new in the
morning. If you'll follow me I'll show you to your
tents." Harm and Mac awkwardly followed Gunners
as he led them towards the camp.
"Colonel, this is yours and the Commander and I will
be sharing this one right next to it." Mac went inside
her tent and found her suitcase already waiting for
her. Save for a few horsehairs it was otherwise fine,
and much to her relief it didn't smell like horse.
"Dinner's ready if you're hungry."
"I'm starved," replied Mac. They had barely stopped
for lunch on the trail and that had been over 6 hours
ago. Harm quickly joined them. "Nice shirt," she
said, patting Harm's back.
"Ops, I forgot about that," said Harm, craning his
neck around to catch a glimpse of his stained
uniform.
"It's okay, I'm sure no one will notice. Now come on
before I starve to death," replied Mac, linking her arm
though his.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After dinner Mac decided to take a stroll around the
campsite to see if she couldn't relieve some of the
stiffness in her legs. When Harm found her she was
over by the tethered horses, gently stroking their
noses.
"Hey Marine. What are you doing?" he asked her.
"They are kind of cute, don't you think?" she asked as
she continued to pet her horse.
"They'd be a lot cuter if they didn't make me so damn
sore." Mac laughed and walked a little ways away
into a small clearing. Sighing heavily she looked
towards the sky.
Harm came up behind her and placed his hand on her
shoulder. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she said, running her right hand though
her hair. As he watched her, Harm didn't see the
familiar twinkle of her ring. Frantically he searched
her left hand. Panic gripped him as he realized that he
was too late and that she had already decided to
marry Brumby. However, her ring wasn't on her left
hand either.
"Where's your ring?"
"Back in DC at my apartment," she replied casually,
as if talking about the weather.
"Oh. I'm sorry." He hoped he sounded like he meant
it.
"No you're not Harm, so don't lie to me. I decided
that it just wasn't going to work out." Slowly, Harm
turned her around to face him. The pale moonlight
streamed down upon them, highlighting the tears
shining in Mac's eyes.
"Come here," he said, pulling her into a tight hug.
She wrapped her arms around him and buried her
face in the front of his shirt. Harm let her hold him
and gently rested his chin on the top of her head.
They stood like that for a long time, neither of them
wanting to let go. Finally Harm stepped back,
allowing a little space to come between them. "Is that
better now?" he whispered, his face inches from hers.
"Yes," Mac whispered back, closing the gap between
them. When their lips finally meet, a great wave of
relief and passion washed over them. This was
something that had been waiting to happen for the
last five years. When they finally broke apart they
smiled at each other. Harm soon moved to her neck.
Unable to help herself Mac moaned.
"Harm, we shouldn't be doing this here," she
whispered in his ear.
"I don't care who sees us," he replied inbetween
kisses.
"I know, but someone will and it will get us both in a
lot of trouble."
Harm sighed. "Okay."
"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere," she said,
gently kissing him on the cheek. "Now we better get
back to camp before someone comes out looking for
us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Mac? Can I come in?" Harm's voice woke Mac.
"Sure, come in," she replied groggily. She heard
Harm unzip her tent and come in. He pulled the extra
cot up next to hers and sat down.
"Sorry to wake you, but Lieutenant Gunners snores,"
he told her, reaching out to brush a stray strand of
hair off her face.
Mac smiled at him. "That's okay."
"Mind if I sleep in here?"
"Just as long as you promise not to snore."
"I promise," replied Harm, bending down to kiss her
forehead. He went to lie down, but Mac caught his
hand and pulled him down closer to her. She tilted
her head up and gently placed a kiss on his lips.
"Good night."
Harm grinned. "Good night Mac."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Commander? Colonel? Breakfast is ready!"
Lieutenant Gunners said, tapping on their tent and
making the thin fabric fluff and snap in the light
wind.
Mac went to stretch, but quickly groaned. "I thought
Gunners said that we'd fell as good as new in the
morning."
"I guess he lied," replied Harm from the cot beside
her, not opening his eyes.
After a few moments Mac finally heaved herself out
of bed, moaning as she did so. Once she started
moving around the tent, her muscles loosened up and
she felt better.
"Come on, it's better once you get up and move," she
said to Harm.
"I'm up, I'm up. See you at breakfast," he said, getting
out of his bed and returning to his tent to change.
Once she was fully dressed, Mac made her way
towards the campfire. Lieutenant Gunners grinned
when he saw her. "Rough night?"
Mac glared at him. "No, I slept just fine Lieutenant."
Gunners didn't stop grinning but he didn't say
anything else either. Great, thought Mac, they already
had one person suspicious. How was this going to
work when they got back to JAG? Harm soon joined
them. Mac could practically see Lieutenant Gunners
biting his tongue to keep from commenting.
"Lieutenant, Colonel," Harm said nodding at each of
them respectively.
When breakfast was over everyone headed over to
his or her waiting horses. Mac's muscles protested
when she sat in the saddle, but she bit her tongue and
said nothing. Making sure everything was secure,
they headed out for another day on the trail.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Right after lunch the horse path they were following
widened enough so that two horses could walk side
by side. Harm moved his horse up until he was along
side Mac. Even though he towered over her on his
gigantic horse, Harm could still talk to her quietly
enough and not be heard.
"How's it going?" he asked.
"Gunners is onto us." Harm nodded but didn't say
anything. "He doesn't even know us Harm. What's
going to happen when we go back to JAG?"
"I don't know."
"You know how the military is on relationships
Harm. They'll split us up." Harm wanted to reach
down and comfort her but his damn horse was too
big.
"Don't worry, we'll figure it out," he soothed.
"How?"
"We still have a few days left before we return to
JAG. We'll figure it out by then."
"I hope so."
"I know so." Mac looked at Harm, her eyes filled
with hope. She knew Harm and trusted him. If he
said they would figure it out, then they would.
Like Gunners had promised the day before, they
arrived at the crash site at dusk. Both Harm and Mac
were tired from their long day of riding so after they
quickly retried to their *separate* tents. There was no
need to make anyone more suspicious than they
already were.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next morning after breakfast Harm and Mac
announced that they were ready to examine the crash
site. Lieutenant Gunners introduced them to Ensign
Ferrara who, Gunners said, could tell them anything
they wanted to know.
"We just uncovered the flight data recorder yesterday
afternoon. It was badly damaged so we're having
some trouble loading it onto the computer, but it
should be ready later today," explained the Ensign.
"The impact broke the plane in two. The nose of the
plane is buried in that crater and the tail is upside
down right in front of it."
"The plane broke in two?" asked Harm in
amazement. "How fast was it going when it hit the
ground?"
"Estimates are around Mock two or three, but the
flight data recorder will confirm that. According to
the RIO, Captain Rodmen made no attempt to slow
the aircraft before bailing."
Harm raised his eyebrows. Who had taught this kid to
fly anyway? Slowing down before you ejected was
one of the first things they taught you in flight school.
He, along with Mac and Ensign Ferrara made their
way down to where the broken plane laid. Harm
reached the aircraft first and trailed his fingers along
the planes outside as he walked beside it. Mac knew
he was reminiscing about flying, but remained calm.
He already tried it once, but yet had still come back
to JAG and to her.
"So," Mac asked, coming up to him. "What's your
take on this?"
"Simple. It was pilot error. The kid's engine went out,
he panicked, bailed and crashed his multi-million
dollar aircraft. As they say in the Air Force, 'he just
screwed the pooch'."
"Colonel! Commander!" Harm and Mac turned to see
Ensign Ferrara running towards them. "They have the
data recorder working now, if you'd like to see it."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Ensign had led them to a tent on the outskirts of
camp. Once inside, Harm and Mac found it filled
with electronic equipment. Ferrara led them to an
older man hunched over the computer console. He
saluted them, but gave no introduction.
"Okay, what we have here is your basic test mission,"
the man explained. "It's been done a thousand times.
Mr. Rodmen was doing fine until here." Harm
watched the 2-demtional plane on the screen waver
slightly. "His left engine just burned out. So now his
plane starts to buck and then goes into a spin. It's
scary, but nothing a well-trained pilot can't handle.
This is when it gets weird. It looks to me like he
speeds up his plane in order to make it spin faster,
then ejects."
Harm nodded. "So either Captain Rodmen was really
stupid, or he deliberately tired to sabotage his
aircraft."
"Personally, I think the Captain did it on purpose, but
that's just my opinion," the older man replied.
"And that's what we're here to find out," said Harm.
"Where is Captain Rodmen being held now?"
"I believe he's in the brig back at the base," Ensign
Ferrara replied.
Harm rolled his eyes. "Why didn't Gunners let us see
him before dragging us all the way out here?" Mac
shrugged her shoulders then left the tent. Harm was
quick to follow. When he asked Mac where she was
going she told him that she was looking for
Lieutenant Gunners. They finally found him
grooming the horses.
"Lieutenant? The commander and I have finished our
investigation now and we're ready to head back to
the base," said Mac.
"Finished already?" said Gunners before turning to
squint at the sun. "Well, it's about noon so if you
don't mind arriving at camp one in the dark I think we
could get going."
"I think we can handle it," replied Harm.
"Alright then. If you'll go pack your bags, I get these
horses saddled up."
Both officers headed back to their respective tents to
pack their suitcases. Harm finished sooner than Mac
so he headed over to Mac's tent to see if she needed
any help. When he saw her, Mac had her back to him
so he paused and watched her for a few moments.
"Hello Harm," Mac said without even turning around.
Harm grinned. "How'd you know it was me?"
"I have a sixth sense," she said, turning around to
smile at him. "Come here."
Harm obeyed obediently and next thing he knew Mac
had both her arms around him in a tight hug. She
stood on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear. "Have I
ever told you that I love you?"
"No, but you didn't have to," Harm replied.
"Yes I did," she retorted, giving Harm a full kiss on
the lips.
"Well if it makes any difference then I love you too,"
replied Harm, giving Mac a kiss of his own.
"Of course it makes a difference," Mac said, playfully
swatting Harm on the shoulder. "Now we better get
going before Gunners comes and finds us. I don't
think I can stand anymore of his sarcasm about you
and me."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was four o'clock when the first rain drops began to
fall. Lieutenant Gunners produced the rain ponchos
just as it started to hail. Although everyone was cold
and miserable, Harm still managed to laugh.
"I wish I had a picture of us right now," he told Mac.
"Here we are, on horseback, in the middle of
nowhere, being hailed on." Mac just glared at him
from underneath her hood. That made Harm laugh
even harder. However, his laughter ended abruptly
when Gunners suggested that they might want to trot.
Harm didn't have much time to argue before his horse
started to bounce behind Gunners' horse. If the horse
was "bouncing" then the only word for what was
happening to Harm was a catastrophe. It had been
years since he'd been on a horse. He was fairing
much better than Mac though, for it seemed like she
was going to fall right out of her saddle any minute.
Finally they reached the shelter of the forest and the
hail let up.
It was pitch black by the time they reached camp one.
Tired, wet and weary, they unloaded their gear and
stumbled to their tents.
Mac was nearly asleep when she heard the sound of
her tent being unzipped. The cold, rainy air that
whooshed in made her gasp.
"You still awake?" Harm's voice asked from the
darkness.
"I am now," replied Mac. "Now are you going to pay
me back for making me cold or what?" Harm seemed
confused until Mac lifted up the blankets of her cot.
Grinning like a little boy, Harm shed his raincoat and
quickly joined her under the warmth of the covers.
"Kind of a tight fit," he said as he squeezed onto the
tiny cot.
"I think we'll manage," Mac said, snuggling up to
Harm's body. She pulled the covers up to their chins
and adjusted herself so that they each had an equal
share of the bed. Their heads were just inches apart as
they rested on the pillow.
"What's on your mind Sarah Mackenzie?" Harm
asked her, bringing his hand up to stroke her smooth
cheek.
"A lot of things."
"What kind of things?"
Mac smiled into Harm's eyes. "What is this, twenty
questions?"
Harm laughed. "No, but I just have this feeling that
something's bothering you."
"I guess I'm just a bit miffed as to why you waited so
long. Why did you finally decide to let go *now*?"
Harm sighed. "Because you presented me with an
another opportunity to do so and after I bombed the
one in Australia I figured that it was now or never."
"Australia," Mac repeated. Harm could feel her
physically wince in his arms. What happened in
Australia was always a sensitive subject. "I'm just
glad you finally took the initiative and went for it."
"So am I. So am I," said Harm, placing a soft kiss on
her forehead. Taking her head in his hand, he placed
another kiss on her lips, then on her neck. Unable to
help herself, Mac let out a moan as Harm's lips trailed
down her body before coming to rest in the space
between her breasts. "You still tired?" he whispered
into her skin, sending shivers up Mac's spine.
Mac smiled ear to ear. "Are you kidding? Hell no!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harm awoke just before dawn. He smiled down at the
brown-haired woman sleeping peacefully, her head
resting on his chest. He lightly stroked her hair,
allowing himself to remember the events of the night
before. Sarah Mackenzie; his partner, best friend and
now. . . his lover. Harm felt an overwhelming since
of joy at that word. They were so right together, he
and Mac. Harm's only regret was that he had waited
to long to take action.
"Hey," said Mac's soft voice.
"Hey," Harm replied. He watched as Mac kissed his
well-muscled stomach then made her way up to his
lips.
"I'm glad I didn't have to wait an eternity for you to
come around," she told Harm, brushing his sleep
tousled hair out of his eyes.
"I'm sorry you had to wait this long," replied Harm.
"It was worth it," said Mac as she eased herself off
Harm and out of the bed. "Let's get going. I want to
get an early start today."
Harm mock saluted. "Yes ma'am."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The horses seemed to sense that they were going
home and so their pace quickened. It was only three
o'clock by the time they were nearly back at the base.
Gunners gave them the option of arriving back at the
base in the dark, or staying at a makeshift camp and
taking tomorrow to go the rest of the way. Eager for
hot showers and real beds, Harm and Mac opted for
the former.
At some point that evening, Harm drew his horse
alongside Mac's and leaned down as far as he dared
to whisper in her ear. "By the way," Harm said,
grinning slyly. "I liked your tattoo." Mac glared at
him, but there was a twinkle of mischief in her eye.
Storm clouds gathered on the horizon, but it didn't
rain. Needless to say the small cavalry urged their
tired horses on, anxious to get back to the base before
the storm hit. When they finally arrived at the
military installment it was pitch black and the wind
was blowing in large gusts. Quickly collecting their
luggage, Harm and Mac made it inside just as the
first rain drops began to fall. Both stiff and tired, the
two officers went in their separate quarters and
collapsed on the beds, soon falling into a deep sleep.
The next morning Mac was awakened by a soft
tapping on her door. Expecting it to be Harm, Mac
didn't think anything of covering her pajama-clad
body before throwing open the door. Much to her
surprise, and to the young ensign standing in front of
her, it wasn't Harm.
"Colonel, you have a phone call from Admiral
Chegwideggen. When you're ready, you can take it at
the office down the hall on line two," the Ensign told
Mac. She thanked him then shut her door to dress.
After a quick glance in the mirror to see that
everything was in it's place, Mac made her way down
to the office.
"Hello?"
"Colonel. Is the commander with you?" the Admiral's
terse voiced asked her.
"No, yes," Mac corrected herself as Harm joined her.
"Let me put you on intercom."
"I'm here now sir," said Harm once Mac had pressed
the necessary buttons.
"How's the investigation going?" asked the Admiral.
"We just returned from the crash site last night and
we were going to talk with Captain Rodmen today,"
replied Harm.
"That's what I'm calling about. Yesterday Captain
Rodmen crumbled under questioning and admitted to
sabotaging the aircraft." Harm frowned at Mac.
"Did he say why?" asked Mac.
"Apparently he belonged to some militia group. The
plan was for the Captain to crash the plane so that
they could steal the radar system or something like
that. Anyway, what they weren't counting on was the
speedy response from the Air Force about recovering
the plane. That and the fact that Captain Rodmen
overshot the proposed crash site by about fifty miles."
Harm groaned. "If in doubt, blame a militia."
The Admiral chuckled. "Finish off the necessary
paper work then get on a plane back here as soon as
possible. Expect a full case load when you get back."
"We'll do that sir," said Harm as he hung up the
phone. He took a deep breath and looked at Mac.
"So?" she asked with her eyebrows raised.
"Let's go have some fun with paper work. My
favorite," Harm said sarcastically.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mac stood up and rolled her neck around to release
all the kinks she could feel building up. She and
Harm had been working for two hours and three
minutes exactly and Mac was starting to become
antsy.
"Harm?" she asked, laying her hand on his shoulder.
"I'm going for a walk. Care to join me?"
Harm smiled up at her. "Sure."
So they left their makeshift office and went outside,
opting to follow the horse trail to the accident site for
a short while. Once they were far enough out of sight
of the base, Harm slipped his hand in Mac's.
"I hate to put a damper on the moment, but how is
this going to work once we get back to DC?" asked
Mac, bringing their entwined hands into view.
Harm sighed. "I knew we'd have to face this
eventually. To be honest with you, I really don't
know."
Mac squeezed Harm's hand tighter. "Maybe we
shouldn't have started this in the first place."
"Mac." But Mac refused to look at him. He stopped
short and turned her to face him. "Waiting as long as
I did was the biggest mistakes I ever made. Now that
I finally have you I'm not going to give you up. I'll
sacrifice my career before I'll let you go, Sarah," said
Harm, knowing that using her first name always got
her attention.
"Harm you can't," Mac replied, her voice choked
with unshed tears.
"Yes I can, but I promise you that I won't let it come
to that. Were there's a will theirs a way right? We'll
make this work," he said bending down to kiss her
forehead.
Mac's hands came up to clasp the sides of his face
and pulled him into a fierce kiss. "I love you," she
whispered, wrapping her arms around his middle and
giving him a tight squeeze.
"I love you too," replied Harm. "Now we better start
heading back before they come looking for us."
Mac nodded and wiped her eyes with the back of her
hand. "Okay, I'm ready."
They turned back and headed towards the military
base, arm in arm. The future that lay ahead of them
was uncertain, but full of promise.
THE END
Author: Marissa
Keywords: S, H, R (Harm/Mac)
Rating: PG-13
Spoilers: None
Summary: A plane crash, commercial flight and a
horseback ride put Harm and Mac's affections for one
another to the test.
Disclaimer: Harm, Mac or any other JAG characters I
mention do not belong to me. I'm just letting them
have a little fun that's all. No infringement intended.
Author's Plea: I am in *desperate* need of a JAG
story editor! I would be willing edit as well for that
person. If you think you're up to the job, please let me
know at marissa113@hotmail.com.
Author's Note: I always wanted to write a story where
I got Harm and Mac on horseback, but I could never
think of a story that where it would make since and
not sound too stupid. Finally, one day when I was
riding my own horse the idea hit me so I sat down
and started writing. Here is the fruit of my labor. I'm
not very proficient in military knowledge so please
don't pay too much attention to that stuff because I'm
sure you'll find a lot of mistakes. Okay, to the story
now. You can see the jacket cover to this story at
http://www.geocities.com/darthvaderx/CrashandBurn.jpg
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Sorry I'm late sir," said Harm as he hurried to sit
down. Mac glared at him but the Admiral said
nothing.
"Well, since the Commander has finally decided to
grace us with his presence, I'll get started," he said
handing Harm and Mac both a file. He didn't even
give them a chance to look over the information
before continuing. "A young Captain out of the Air
Force Academy in Colorado Springs was flying a test
flight when his left engine went out. He said that he
was unable to regain control of his aircraft and
bailed. He ejected and walked away with only minor
injuries but his RIO wasn't so fortunate. He is now
listed in critical condition. The Captain, James
Rodmen is being charged with disorderly conduct
resulting in the serious injury of an officer.
"The accident occurred during a test flight of the new
ZX-15 tomcat. Right now everything points to pilot
error but I want you to go and figure out who is
responsible. The crash site is in a remote area of
Wyoming, but I trust you'll find all your
transportation has been arranged for you," said the
Admiral handing the officers two plane tickets.
"You're plane leaves in a little less than 4 hours so I
suggest you get packing. Dismissed."
Harm and Mac both saluted. "Aye Aye, sir."
Once they were outside the Admiral's office, Harm
turned to Mac. "Did you notice that we're on a
commercial flight?"
Mac laughed. "Yeah. Good luck with those seats. I
assume that we'll have coach."
Harm groaned. "See you at the airport."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Although they never had agreed on a meeting place,
Harm and Mac quickly found each other. After
checking in their bags they made their way towards
the departure gate. Harm felt a little out of place in a
civilian airport in a military uniform, but no one gave
him much notice. He did see more than a few men
openly staring at Mac, but that was to be expected.
He resisted the urge to be the protective male
knowing that this was neither the time, nor the place.
"Harm," Mac said once they were seated. "Have you
done something to piss off the Admiral lately?"
Harm was confused, "No, I—"
"Because sending us on a commercial flight might be
his idea of punishment for you." Harm laughed.
The flight attendant called for boarding over the loud
speakers so collecting their things, Harm and Mac got
up and headed towards the gate.
"I get the aisle," said Harm once they were on the
airplane. Mac said nothing, instead choosing to watch
Harm squeeze into the aisle seat next to her with a
smile on her lips. "This isn't funny." He told her.
"It wouldn't be half as funny except for the fact that
you're making such a big deal about it." Harm's knees
touched the back of the seat in front of him and he
was too tall to really rest his head on the back of the
chair.
Harm sighed and squirmed one last time but refrained
from saying anything.
"In the case of an emergency.." the flight attendant
started. Harm zoned out and slid down in his chair
enough so he could kind of rest his head of the back
of the seat. Then he shut his eyes and tried to sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sometime after the in-flight lunch, Harm's head had
slid off its precarious perch on the seat's headrest and
was now resting on Mac's shoulder. He was still
soundly sleeping and Mac didn't have it in her to
push it off. Instead she reached up and brushed a few
stray stands of hair off is forehead. When she looked
up, she saw that an older woman across the aisle had
been watching her. When the woman smiled at her
Mac looked away and felt herself blush.
Ever since that night on the ferry in Australia when
Mac had basically came out and said she loved Harm
and he had brushed her off, she didn't have the
confidence in him that she once did. Many a night
she had spent trying to convince herself that perhaps
he just wasn't ready to admit to her the way he felt,
but there was always this nagging fear that wouldn't
go away. The fear that said maybe he just didn't feel
the way about her as she did him. It was that fear that
sent her into Brumby's arms. Here was a man who
loved her and while she wasn't sure if she really felt
the same way about him, it was nice to know that at
least someone thought she was special. She glanced
at Harm's peacefully sleeping face. Soon, she
thought. Her heart may have been wounded, but it
wasn't broken yet.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Have a nice nap?" Mac asked him once they exited
the plane.
"I didn't realize I was so tired."
"I think you drooled on me anyway," said Mac,
explaining where his head had come to rest during his
long nap.
"I'm sorry Mac. You could have just pushed me off."
"It's okay. I didn't mind." Harm looked at her, but she
refused to meet his gaze. Harm shrugged it off,
willing himself not to think about what it could mean.
Even though the plane crash had occurred in
Wyoming, they had to fly into the Denver airport in
Colorado because there was no commercial airport
located anywhere in Wyoming. From Denver, they
were going to take a small plane to an airstrip close to
the crash site where an officer was waiting for them.
After they picked up their bags from the baggage
claim, they made their way though the large airport
and found their next flight. The pilot introduced
himself and helped them get seated.
"You might want to buckle your seatbelts. Traveling
over the Rocky Mountains in a small plane can
sometimes get pretty turbulent." Mac looked at Harm.
He knew how badly she got airsickness.
"It'll be okay Mac," he said gently rubbing her on the
back.
"Easy for you to say."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Amazingly enough, Mac made it though the flight
with only a minor feeling of sickness. Harm was a
great help and very comforting to have.
"Thanks for helping Harm," Mac told him after they
landed.
"You're welcome. Think of it as repayment for
drooling on you." Mac smiled at him.
"Commander Rabb and Lieutenant Colonel
Mackenzie?"
"Yes that's us," Harm replied.
"I'm Lieutenant Gunners your guide to the crash site.
If you would follow me please." Lieutenant Gunners
led them towards the parked jeep. Once they were out
in the open air and on solid ground, Harm watched
Mac's previously green color fade and her
complexion return to normal.
"Feeling better Marine?" he asked her.
"Much."
The jeep pulled into a typical military base. Typical
all except for the two dozen horses saddled and tied
up on the outskirts of the facility.
" Lieutenant, what's with all the horses?" Harm
asked.
"It's the most reliable form of transportation to the
crash site. We had them trucked in from a dude ranch
about thirty miles from here."
Mac shot Harm a look. They weren't going to have to
ride horses, were they?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Lieutenant Gunners helped them unload their
suitcases from the jeep then introduced them to
Sargent Miles, who was currently in charge of the
crash site.
"The site's pretty cut and dry," Sargent Miles told
them. "The plane's pretty much in pieces and we
haven't recovered the flight data recorder yet. I don't
know what you expect to find."
"When we do we'll let you know," replied Harm.
"That's good, that's good. Now, Lieutenant Gunners
here will arrange for your transportation. I hope you
get this all cleared up."
"We'll try our best Sargent."
"Ma'am, you might want to change," Lieutenant
Gunners said, gesturing towards Mac's skirt. "I think
you'll find it a little hard to ride."
Mac's eyes widened. "We're actually going to ride
horses?"
"Yes Ma'am, it's the only way to get there. There's no
access by road for a car and the forest is too thick for
a helicopter to land. Horseback riding is the fastest
and quickest mode of transportation."
"There is no way you're going to get me on a horse,"
replied Mac, crossing her arms in frustration.
"Come on Mac, where's your sense of adventure?"
"Don't worry Colonel, we'll put you on a nice horse,"
urged Gunners.
Mac glared at the too men. "Fine. I'll do it." The
Lieutenant showed her a place where she could
change. Mac quickly did so, glad that she had
decided to bring along a pair of pants. When she
emerged, she found Harm and Gunners both waiting
for her.
"I'm ready," she announced.
"Of course," replied the Lieutenant. "If you'll just
follow me, and watch your step." He led them
towards where the horses were tied. Mac saw two
other junior officers loading her suitcases onto the
back of another horse. Great, she thought, now all her
clothes were going to smell like horse too.
"Colonel, this is Buddy. He'll be your horse for the
next two days," Lieutenant Gunners said, handing
Mac the reins. Harm looked at the expression on
Mac's face and laughed. "Commander, here's
Major." Harm turned around and was face to face
with what was undoubtedly the largest horse he'd
ever seen. Now it was Mac's turn to laugh.
"I'm going to ride this thing?" Harm asked nervously.
"Don't worry Commander. He's got a bit of temper,
but once he gets to know you he's as gentle as a
kitten."
"Lieutenant, we're ready to start now," a young
officer told Gunners.
"Right. If you just help the Commander and Colonel
onto their mounts, we'll get going," Lieutenant
Gunners replied.
"Ma'am, Sir, this way." Harm and Mac followed the
officer and he patiently explained the basics of horse
riding. "Now Colonel, if you'll just put your left foot
in this stirrup." Mac carefully did so and clumsily
swung her right foot over to the other side of the
saddle. "That feel okay?" he asked her.
"As good as it's going to get I think," Mac replied.
"Commander?" Harm approached his giant of a horse
with caution and tried to get his left foot high enough
to place in the stirrup.
"I can't reach," he told the officer.
"Okay, I'll get you a mounting block, just hang on a
second." So the officer left Harm alone, holding the
reins.
Harm saw Mac laughing at him. "Don't say
anything!"
"Harm, I'm not laughing at you. I'm laughing with
you," she told him.
"Well I'm not laughing," replied Harm. His horse
choose that moment to rub its huge head on the back
of Harm's uniform. "Ahh!" yelled Harm, jumping
back, but it was too late. The horse had already left a
huge green streak of slime his back.
"Okay Commander, I have your mounting block for
you." Harm tuned to face the approaching officer and
in doing so showed him his nicely slimed backside.
The man said nothing but Mac saw the corners of his
mouth twitching. "Don't worry, he usually does that
as a sign of affection. You should be honored
Commander."
"Oh I'm honored alright." The junior officer set the
mounting block next the horse and with its help Harm
was able to finally get on.
Lieutenant Gunners came trotting up on his large
black horse. "Is everyone ready?"
"As ready as we're gonna be," replied Harm. Gunners
turned his horse around and headed out of the base
and towards a tiny single-track trail. Harm gritted his
teeth and prepared to dig his heels into the side of his
horse, but much to his surprise he didn't have to. His
horse started after the retreating Gunners and Mac's
came up behind his. He turned around and faced
Mac. "Here goes nothing."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was almost dusk by the time they stopped at a
small campsite on the side of the trail. There were
already some tents set up and a fire going. Lieutenant
Gunners dismounted and tied his horse to a tree
before coming over to help Mac and Harm.
"This is camp one," he told them. "We should reach
the crash site about this time tomorrow."
"Great," said Mac as she eased herself off her horse,
Buddy, and onto the ground. "Ouch!"
"Feeling a little stiff Colonel?"
"You could say that," she replied. Harm quickly
joined her in her pain.
"Don't worry, you'll feel as good as new in the
morning. If you'll follow me I'll show you to your
tents." Harm and Mac awkwardly followed Gunners
as he led them towards the camp.
"Colonel, this is yours and the Commander and I will
be sharing this one right next to it." Mac went inside
her tent and found her suitcase already waiting for
her. Save for a few horsehairs it was otherwise fine,
and much to her relief it didn't smell like horse.
"Dinner's ready if you're hungry."
"I'm starved," replied Mac. They had barely stopped
for lunch on the trail and that had been over 6 hours
ago. Harm quickly joined them. "Nice shirt," she
said, patting Harm's back.
"Ops, I forgot about that," said Harm, craning his
neck around to catch a glimpse of his stained
uniform.
"It's okay, I'm sure no one will notice. Now come on
before I starve to death," replied Mac, linking her arm
though his.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After dinner Mac decided to take a stroll around the
campsite to see if she couldn't relieve some of the
stiffness in her legs. When Harm found her she was
over by the tethered horses, gently stroking their
noses.
"Hey Marine. What are you doing?" he asked her.
"They are kind of cute, don't you think?" she asked as
she continued to pet her horse.
"They'd be a lot cuter if they didn't make me so damn
sore." Mac laughed and walked a little ways away
into a small clearing. Sighing heavily she looked
towards the sky.
Harm came up behind her and placed his hand on her
shoulder. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she said, running her right hand though
her hair. As he watched her, Harm didn't see the
familiar twinkle of her ring. Frantically he searched
her left hand. Panic gripped him as he realized that he
was too late and that she had already decided to
marry Brumby. However, her ring wasn't on her left
hand either.
"Where's your ring?"
"Back in DC at my apartment," she replied casually,
as if talking about the weather.
"Oh. I'm sorry." He hoped he sounded like he meant
it.
"No you're not Harm, so don't lie to me. I decided
that it just wasn't going to work out." Slowly, Harm
turned her around to face him. The pale moonlight
streamed down upon them, highlighting the tears
shining in Mac's eyes.
"Come here," he said, pulling her into a tight hug.
She wrapped her arms around him and buried her
face in the front of his shirt. Harm let her hold him
and gently rested his chin on the top of her head.
They stood like that for a long time, neither of them
wanting to let go. Finally Harm stepped back,
allowing a little space to come between them. "Is that
better now?" he whispered, his face inches from hers.
"Yes," Mac whispered back, closing the gap between
them. When their lips finally meet, a great wave of
relief and passion washed over them. This was
something that had been waiting to happen for the
last five years. When they finally broke apart they
smiled at each other. Harm soon moved to her neck.
Unable to help herself Mac moaned.
"Harm, we shouldn't be doing this here," she
whispered in his ear.
"I don't care who sees us," he replied inbetween
kisses.
"I know, but someone will and it will get us both in a
lot of trouble."
Harm sighed. "Okay."
"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere," she said,
gently kissing him on the cheek. "Now we better get
back to camp before someone comes out looking for
us.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Mac? Can I come in?" Harm's voice woke Mac.
"Sure, come in," she replied groggily. She heard
Harm unzip her tent and come in. He pulled the extra
cot up next to hers and sat down.
"Sorry to wake you, but Lieutenant Gunners snores,"
he told her, reaching out to brush a stray strand of
hair off her face.
Mac smiled at him. "That's okay."
"Mind if I sleep in here?"
"Just as long as you promise not to snore."
"I promise," replied Harm, bending down to kiss her
forehead. He went to lie down, but Mac caught his
hand and pulled him down closer to her. She tilted
her head up and gently placed a kiss on his lips.
"Good night."
Harm grinned. "Good night Mac."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Commander? Colonel? Breakfast is ready!"
Lieutenant Gunners said, tapping on their tent and
making the thin fabric fluff and snap in the light
wind.
Mac went to stretch, but quickly groaned. "I thought
Gunners said that we'd fell as good as new in the
morning."
"I guess he lied," replied Harm from the cot beside
her, not opening his eyes.
After a few moments Mac finally heaved herself out
of bed, moaning as she did so. Once she started
moving around the tent, her muscles loosened up and
she felt better.
"Come on, it's better once you get up and move," she
said to Harm.
"I'm up, I'm up. See you at breakfast," he said, getting
out of his bed and returning to his tent to change.
Once she was fully dressed, Mac made her way
towards the campfire. Lieutenant Gunners grinned
when he saw her. "Rough night?"
Mac glared at him. "No, I slept just fine Lieutenant."
Gunners didn't stop grinning but he didn't say
anything else either. Great, thought Mac, they already
had one person suspicious. How was this going to
work when they got back to JAG? Harm soon joined
them. Mac could practically see Lieutenant Gunners
biting his tongue to keep from commenting.
"Lieutenant, Colonel," Harm said nodding at each of
them respectively.
When breakfast was over everyone headed over to
his or her waiting horses. Mac's muscles protested
when she sat in the saddle, but she bit her tongue and
said nothing. Making sure everything was secure,
they headed out for another day on the trail.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Right after lunch the horse path they were following
widened enough so that two horses could walk side
by side. Harm moved his horse up until he was along
side Mac. Even though he towered over her on his
gigantic horse, Harm could still talk to her quietly
enough and not be heard.
"How's it going?" he asked.
"Gunners is onto us." Harm nodded but didn't say
anything. "He doesn't even know us Harm. What's
going to happen when we go back to JAG?"
"I don't know."
"You know how the military is on relationships
Harm. They'll split us up." Harm wanted to reach
down and comfort her but his damn horse was too
big.
"Don't worry, we'll figure it out," he soothed.
"How?"
"We still have a few days left before we return to
JAG. We'll figure it out by then."
"I hope so."
"I know so." Mac looked at Harm, her eyes filled
with hope. She knew Harm and trusted him. If he
said they would figure it out, then they would.
Like Gunners had promised the day before, they
arrived at the crash site at dusk. Both Harm and Mac
were tired from their long day of riding so after they
quickly retried to their *separate* tents. There was no
need to make anyone more suspicious than they
already were.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The next morning after breakfast Harm and Mac
announced that they were ready to examine the crash
site. Lieutenant Gunners introduced them to Ensign
Ferrara who, Gunners said, could tell them anything
they wanted to know.
"We just uncovered the flight data recorder yesterday
afternoon. It was badly damaged so we're having
some trouble loading it onto the computer, but it
should be ready later today," explained the Ensign.
"The impact broke the plane in two. The nose of the
plane is buried in that crater and the tail is upside
down right in front of it."
"The plane broke in two?" asked Harm in
amazement. "How fast was it going when it hit the
ground?"
"Estimates are around Mock two or three, but the
flight data recorder will confirm that. According to
the RIO, Captain Rodmen made no attempt to slow
the aircraft before bailing."
Harm raised his eyebrows. Who had taught this kid to
fly anyway? Slowing down before you ejected was
one of the first things they taught you in flight school.
He, along with Mac and Ensign Ferrara made their
way down to where the broken plane laid. Harm
reached the aircraft first and trailed his fingers along
the planes outside as he walked beside it. Mac knew
he was reminiscing about flying, but remained calm.
He already tried it once, but yet had still come back
to JAG and to her.
"So," Mac asked, coming up to him. "What's your
take on this?"
"Simple. It was pilot error. The kid's engine went out,
he panicked, bailed and crashed his multi-million
dollar aircraft. As they say in the Air Force, 'he just
screwed the pooch'."
"Colonel! Commander!" Harm and Mac turned to see
Ensign Ferrara running towards them. "They have the
data recorder working now, if you'd like to see it."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Ensign had led them to a tent on the outskirts of
camp. Once inside, Harm and Mac found it filled
with electronic equipment. Ferrara led them to an
older man hunched over the computer console. He
saluted them, but gave no introduction.
"Okay, what we have here is your basic test mission,"
the man explained. "It's been done a thousand times.
Mr. Rodmen was doing fine until here." Harm
watched the 2-demtional plane on the screen waver
slightly. "His left engine just burned out. So now his
plane starts to buck and then goes into a spin. It's
scary, but nothing a well-trained pilot can't handle.
This is when it gets weird. It looks to me like he
speeds up his plane in order to make it spin faster,
then ejects."
Harm nodded. "So either Captain Rodmen was really
stupid, or he deliberately tired to sabotage his
aircraft."
"Personally, I think the Captain did it on purpose, but
that's just my opinion," the older man replied.
"And that's what we're here to find out," said Harm.
"Where is Captain Rodmen being held now?"
"I believe he's in the brig back at the base," Ensign
Ferrara replied.
Harm rolled his eyes. "Why didn't Gunners let us see
him before dragging us all the way out here?" Mac
shrugged her shoulders then left the tent. Harm was
quick to follow. When he asked Mac where she was
going she told him that she was looking for
Lieutenant Gunners. They finally found him
grooming the horses.
"Lieutenant? The commander and I have finished our
investigation now and we're ready to head back to
the base," said Mac.
"Finished already?" said Gunners before turning to
squint at the sun. "Well, it's about noon so if you
don't mind arriving at camp one in the dark I think we
could get going."
"I think we can handle it," replied Harm.
"Alright then. If you'll go pack your bags, I get these
horses saddled up."
Both officers headed back to their respective tents to
pack their suitcases. Harm finished sooner than Mac
so he headed over to Mac's tent to see if she needed
any help. When he saw her, Mac had her back to him
so he paused and watched her for a few moments.
"Hello Harm," Mac said without even turning around.
Harm grinned. "How'd you know it was me?"
"I have a sixth sense," she said, turning around to
smile at him. "Come here."
Harm obeyed obediently and next thing he knew Mac
had both her arms around him in a tight hug. She
stood on her tiptoes to whisper in his ear. "Have I
ever told you that I love you?"
"No, but you didn't have to," Harm replied.
"Yes I did," she retorted, giving Harm a full kiss on
the lips.
"Well if it makes any difference then I love you too,"
replied Harm, giving Mac a kiss of his own.
"Of course it makes a difference," Mac said, playfully
swatting Harm on the shoulder. "Now we better get
going before Gunners comes and finds us. I don't
think I can stand anymore of his sarcasm about you
and me."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It was four o'clock when the first rain drops began to
fall. Lieutenant Gunners produced the rain ponchos
just as it started to hail. Although everyone was cold
and miserable, Harm still managed to laugh.
"I wish I had a picture of us right now," he told Mac.
"Here we are, on horseback, in the middle of
nowhere, being hailed on." Mac just glared at him
from underneath her hood. That made Harm laugh
even harder. However, his laughter ended abruptly
when Gunners suggested that they might want to trot.
Harm didn't have much time to argue before his horse
started to bounce behind Gunners' horse. If the horse
was "bouncing" then the only word for what was
happening to Harm was a catastrophe. It had been
years since he'd been on a horse. He was fairing
much better than Mac though, for it seemed like she
was going to fall right out of her saddle any minute.
Finally they reached the shelter of the forest and the
hail let up.
It was pitch black by the time they reached camp one.
Tired, wet and weary, they unloaded their gear and
stumbled to their tents.
Mac was nearly asleep when she heard the sound of
her tent being unzipped. The cold, rainy air that
whooshed in made her gasp.
"You still awake?" Harm's voice asked from the
darkness.
"I am now," replied Mac. "Now are you going to pay
me back for making me cold or what?" Harm seemed
confused until Mac lifted up the blankets of her cot.
Grinning like a little boy, Harm shed his raincoat and
quickly joined her under the warmth of the covers.
"Kind of a tight fit," he said as he squeezed onto the
tiny cot.
"I think we'll manage," Mac said, snuggling up to
Harm's body. She pulled the covers up to their chins
and adjusted herself so that they each had an equal
share of the bed. Their heads were just inches apart as
they rested on the pillow.
"What's on your mind Sarah Mackenzie?" Harm
asked her, bringing his hand up to stroke her smooth
cheek.
"A lot of things."
"What kind of things?"
Mac smiled into Harm's eyes. "What is this, twenty
questions?"
Harm laughed. "No, but I just have this feeling that
something's bothering you."
"I guess I'm just a bit miffed as to why you waited so
long. Why did you finally decide to let go *now*?"
Harm sighed. "Because you presented me with an
another opportunity to do so and after I bombed the
one in Australia I figured that it was now or never."
"Australia," Mac repeated. Harm could feel her
physically wince in his arms. What happened in
Australia was always a sensitive subject. "I'm just
glad you finally took the initiative and went for it."
"So am I. So am I," said Harm, placing a soft kiss on
her forehead. Taking her head in his hand, he placed
another kiss on her lips, then on her neck. Unable to
help herself, Mac let out a moan as Harm's lips trailed
down her body before coming to rest in the space
between her breasts. "You still tired?" he whispered
into her skin, sending shivers up Mac's spine.
Mac smiled ear to ear. "Are you kidding? Hell no!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harm awoke just before dawn. He smiled down at the
brown-haired woman sleeping peacefully, her head
resting on his chest. He lightly stroked her hair,
allowing himself to remember the events of the night
before. Sarah Mackenzie; his partner, best friend and
now. . . his lover. Harm felt an overwhelming since
of joy at that word. They were so right together, he
and Mac. Harm's only regret was that he had waited
to long to take action.
"Hey," said Mac's soft voice.
"Hey," Harm replied. He watched as Mac kissed his
well-muscled stomach then made her way up to his
lips.
"I'm glad I didn't have to wait an eternity for you to
come around," she told Harm, brushing his sleep
tousled hair out of his eyes.
"I'm sorry you had to wait this long," replied Harm.
"It was worth it," said Mac as she eased herself off
Harm and out of the bed. "Let's get going. I want to
get an early start today."
Harm mock saluted. "Yes ma'am."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The horses seemed to sense that they were going
home and so their pace quickened. It was only three
o'clock by the time they were nearly back at the base.
Gunners gave them the option of arriving back at the
base in the dark, or staying at a makeshift camp and
taking tomorrow to go the rest of the way. Eager for
hot showers and real beds, Harm and Mac opted for
the former.
At some point that evening, Harm drew his horse
alongside Mac's and leaned down as far as he dared
to whisper in her ear. "By the way," Harm said,
grinning slyly. "I liked your tattoo." Mac glared at
him, but there was a twinkle of mischief in her eye.
Storm clouds gathered on the horizon, but it didn't
rain. Needless to say the small cavalry urged their
tired horses on, anxious to get back to the base before
the storm hit. When they finally arrived at the
military installment it was pitch black and the wind
was blowing in large gusts. Quickly collecting their
luggage, Harm and Mac made it inside just as the
first rain drops began to fall. Both stiff and tired, the
two officers went in their separate quarters and
collapsed on the beds, soon falling into a deep sleep.
The next morning Mac was awakened by a soft
tapping on her door. Expecting it to be Harm, Mac
didn't think anything of covering her pajama-clad
body before throwing open the door. Much to her
surprise, and to the young ensign standing in front of
her, it wasn't Harm.
"Colonel, you have a phone call from Admiral
Chegwideggen. When you're ready, you can take it at
the office down the hall on line two," the Ensign told
Mac. She thanked him then shut her door to dress.
After a quick glance in the mirror to see that
everything was in it's place, Mac made her way down
to the office.
"Hello?"
"Colonel. Is the commander with you?" the Admiral's
terse voiced asked her.
"No, yes," Mac corrected herself as Harm joined her.
"Let me put you on intercom."
"I'm here now sir," said Harm once Mac had pressed
the necessary buttons.
"How's the investigation going?" asked the Admiral.
"We just returned from the crash site last night and
we were going to talk with Captain Rodmen today,"
replied Harm.
"That's what I'm calling about. Yesterday Captain
Rodmen crumbled under questioning and admitted to
sabotaging the aircraft." Harm frowned at Mac.
"Did he say why?" asked Mac.
"Apparently he belonged to some militia group. The
plan was for the Captain to crash the plane so that
they could steal the radar system or something like
that. Anyway, what they weren't counting on was the
speedy response from the Air Force about recovering
the plane. That and the fact that Captain Rodmen
overshot the proposed crash site by about fifty miles."
Harm groaned. "If in doubt, blame a militia."
The Admiral chuckled. "Finish off the necessary
paper work then get on a plane back here as soon as
possible. Expect a full case load when you get back."
"We'll do that sir," said Harm as he hung up the
phone. He took a deep breath and looked at Mac.
"So?" she asked with her eyebrows raised.
"Let's go have some fun with paper work. My
favorite," Harm said sarcastically.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mac stood up and rolled her neck around to release
all the kinks she could feel building up. She and
Harm had been working for two hours and three
minutes exactly and Mac was starting to become
antsy.
"Harm?" she asked, laying her hand on his shoulder.
"I'm going for a walk. Care to join me?"
Harm smiled up at her. "Sure."
So they left their makeshift office and went outside,
opting to follow the horse trail to the accident site for
a short while. Once they were far enough out of sight
of the base, Harm slipped his hand in Mac's.
"I hate to put a damper on the moment, but how is
this going to work once we get back to DC?" asked
Mac, bringing their entwined hands into view.
Harm sighed. "I knew we'd have to face this
eventually. To be honest with you, I really don't
know."
Mac squeezed Harm's hand tighter. "Maybe we
shouldn't have started this in the first place."
"Mac." But Mac refused to look at him. He stopped
short and turned her to face him. "Waiting as long as
I did was the biggest mistakes I ever made. Now that
I finally have you I'm not going to give you up. I'll
sacrifice my career before I'll let you go, Sarah," said
Harm, knowing that using her first name always got
her attention.
"Harm you can't," Mac replied, her voice choked
with unshed tears.
"Yes I can, but I promise you that I won't let it come
to that. Were there's a will theirs a way right? We'll
make this work," he said bending down to kiss her
forehead.
Mac's hands came up to clasp the sides of his face
and pulled him into a fierce kiss. "I love you," she
whispered, wrapping her arms around his middle and
giving him a tight squeeze.
"I love you too," replied Harm. "Now we better start
heading back before they come looking for us."
Mac nodded and wiped her eyes with the back of her
hand. "Okay, I'm ready."
They turned back and headed towards the military
base, arm in arm. The future that lay ahead of them
was uncertain, but full of promise.
THE END