Assignment for Webb

By Bernadeen

Rated: M

For those of you who have read some of my other stories, I promised a Harm & Mac JAG adventure/romance story – and finally here it is. It's essentially complete except for some minor tweaks as I make the postings. I expect to post chapters every day or two. Hope you enjoy.

A/N by way of background: I started this story at least a couple of years ago. It started out to be set about four months prior to little AJ's fifth birthday … and therefore, nearing the time when the "Baby Deal" would occur .. or not.

However, after seeing "Measure of Men," it began to evolve into something else because Mac had treated Harm so cruelly (in my opinion) in that episode. Eventually I split the two stories and wrote a separate one which will be set after "Measure of Men" but prior to "JAG-a-thon" when H&M are at odds with each other. I'm a shipper, but Mac treated Harm so badly that I may not let her have him .. we'll see. That story is "Decisions" and is unfinished at present.

As editing began on this story, it took on a life of its own with the focus on "The Baby Deal" only incidental. It now involves Harm going under cover to infiltrate a drug cartel. I'm finding I have no control over the direction my stories go! I just type the words and hang on for the ride. Want to go along?

Assignment for Webb

By Bernadeen

Disclaimer: I don't own nor make any claim to the JAG characters. Other characters are mine. This story is for entertainment purposes only.

Chapter 1

North of Union Station
Monday, January 17
1930 EST

Another year beginning. Commander Harmon Rabb, Jr. relaxed at home listening to music and mused about where he was in his life. He was usually at home when not traveling on a case. No social life. He shook his head .. no desire for a social life. Wow, not yet forty and he was becoming a hermit! It really didn't bother him that he didn't have a girlfriend .. and hadn't had one for some time. Relationships were emotionally draining and a lot of work. And for what? You just got dumped sooner or later anyway!

What bothered him was that he felt like he was losing his edge in his profession. Somehow, the cases didn't ignite a fire in his gut like they used to. He remembered when he approached even the less serious cases with energy and determination. Now he seemed to be marking time. He felt no passion in his cases. So far he didn't believe he had sacrificed a client's right to adequate representation. But he worried that it would happen sooner or later. The frightening thing was that he should have been really bothered by that thought, but he couldn't raise that level of concern either.

He really needed a change of assignment. He had been at JAG HQ for most of his legal career in the Navy .. except for the six months he had gone back to aviation. He could never really regret that time .. he had to prove to himself that he could still cut it as a Naval aviator. He had done that and earned a second Distinguished Flying Cross before returning to JAG. The fact remained that his return to flying was too late to make it his career. And so many things had gone wrong in his personal life from that time on, that he wondered what would have happened if he hadn't left.

When he left to return to flying, his girlfriend, Jordon, made it clear she wanted to date a lawyer, not a pilot, and broke off their relationship. His best friend and partner Sarah "Mac" Mackenzie, hadn't understood why he left. He thought she, of all people, would, but it was a bad time in her life. Her estranged father had just died, her mother who had abandoned her showed up and left again, her little "sister" was leaving to be with her family, and then her best friend, namely him, also left her. She believed everyone she cared about was abandoning her … again. He hadn't thought about it enough at the time .. he was so focused on his chance to fly again. Damn him for being so self-centered, he thought. If he hadn't been so blind, maybe he and Mac could have worked things out. But by the time he came back, she was close friends with Mic, the brash Aussie.

He couldn't fault her, though. He had left, after all. What had he expected? He hadn't really thought about what he expected. Somehow he assumed everything and everyone would be just the same when he came back to JAG. It wasn't, and he had been naïve to think that nothing would change. Life at JAG had gone on.

Even though he was pursuing his first love – flying – he missed Mac more than he expected. Ever since they had been assigned as partners, they had been there for each other .. saving each other's sixes on more than one occasion. He missed their discussions, their teasing. Mac always managed to keep Harm anchored with her practical common sense and refusal to play to his ego. They knew each other's flaws and admired and respected each other in spite of or perhaps because of them.

And then there was the "Baby Deal," made the day Bud and Harriet's little AJ was born. Five years from that day, if neither of them was in a relationship, they would go halves on a baby. Her looks and his brains or his looks and her brains .. it would work either way. They had made a promise and shook hands on it. He thought about that deal many times while he was away flying.

While it was only later when Mac was preparing to marry Brumby that Harm finally acknowledged to himself that he was in love with her, he was beginning to have an inkling of his feelings thinking of the baby deal. First of all, he really didn't expect both of them would be free at the end of five years, so it was a safe promise. But what if they were? He was a bit embarrassed with himself when he realized he was fantasizing about fulfilling the baby deal the "old fashioned way." Mac was his best friend .. he didn't think about her that way. But the more he thought about it, he wondered why he didn't. She was beautiful, capable, tough, intelligent .. his equal in every respect – more than his equal in some things, though he would never admit that. He realized he was beginning to think of her as a woman first and a Marine second .. and that was treading on very dangerous ground, both emotionally and professionally.

By the time he returned to JAG, he had put those thoughts behind him, or so he thought. His relationship with Mac was strained. She resented his leaving to go flying. For his part, he was uncomfortable because he really was having difficulty ignoring the fact that she was a beautiful, desirable woman. And then that disaster on the ferry in Sydney Harbor ..

Mac tried to tell him how she felt .. that she wanted to be more than just his partner .. and he froze. He tried to ask her to wait, but she heard it as rejection. She was hurt, embarrassed, and ran straight into Brumby's arms.

She had made her choice and his pride and honor wouldn't let him compete with Brumby for her. He had been way out of line the night of Mac's engagement party when he kissed her and tried to tell her how he felt. Even then he backed way, only wanting her happiness. Everything really went to hell after he nearly died at sea, trying to get back for her wedding. The last few months had been torture. She built an unassailable wall between them, and finally he had given up. Whatever she had felt for him .. friendship, possibly love .. was clearly gone. They continued to work together, but both were assigned other partners from time to time. They were no longer a team.

And somewhere along the line, he began losing his edge. His thoughts had come full circle .. he had started an hour ago thinking he needed a change of assignment. But where? The Admiral was very astute about his people's abilities and performance. If he hadn't already seen problems with Harm's attitude, he soon would. It would be better to talk to the Admiral before he really screwed up a case and faced disciplinary action. Yes, tomorrow ..

JAG HQ
Tuesday, January 18
0800 EST

Harm arrived at work and put his briefcase and cover in his office. He sat down at his desk to gather his thoughts before asking to see the Admiral. His mind wasn't entirely made up and he needed to give some more thought to the problem in the clearer light of morning. A few minutes later, however, Tiner stopped in his office doorway and told him the Admiral wanted to see him ASAP.

Harm entered his CO's office and stood at attention. "Reporting as ordered, Sir."

"At ease, Commander. Have a seat." Admiral Chegwidden studied a communication on his desk for a minute before continuing. "I have a rather unusual assignment for you, but it's strictly voluntary." He paused and looked up at Harm before continuing. "Webb called," he said and watched the Commander's involuntary flinch. "Several government agencies, including the CIA, have been working together to break up a drug import operation from South America and Mexico. Two agents had succeeded in infiltrating separate parts of the drug organization. One was a pilot who flew some deliveries. Two nights ago, his plane crashed and both he and the other pilot were killed. From what we can learn, it was an accident. The cartel didn't know he was CIA.

The Admiral stopped speaking when a knock sounded on his door. "Enter," he called expectantly, and Clayton Webb, Assistant Director of the CIA, walked into his office. Webb and Harm acknowledged each other with a nod and Chegwidden looked toward Webb. "I told the Commander about the drug cartel and the death of the two pilots. Webb, perhaps you'd like to explain the assignment," the Admiral said, an edge to his voice.

"We want to get another agent into the cartel. They're likely to be searching for a pilot to replace the ones they lost." Webb looked directly at Harm. "You have a wide variety of combat, special ops, and aviation experience. We want to set you up to be a likely candidate for the cartel to approach as their new pilot."

Harm's face registered his surprise. "You must have lots of other pilots that you could recruit? Don't you think I'm a little too well known to go undercover?"

Webb answered, "Being well known won't be a problem. You're going to be yourself. The cover is that you'll be accused of drug possession. Your arrest will be well publicized. Even though the evidence is shaky, your Navy career is over. You cut a deal – dishonorable discharge, loss of all benefits, but no confinement. You're disillusioned, down on your luck, and you'll be in the right place at the right time to be recruited by the cartel."

Admiral Chegwidden needed to make the risks clear. "The reason this assignment is voluntary is the risks. It's practically a no-win situation for you. If you go through with the drug possession set up and the cartel doesn't contact you, it will be difficult to reverse your discharge without revealing the set up. If we break the cartel, it can be done. Until then, you'd be stuck with a ruined Navy career. No guarantees.

"If you do succeed in getting inside the cartel and you're discovered, they'll kill you without a second's hesitation. Even if the whole operation is successful and the cartel is brought down, there is the risk that we won't get every member. They could put out a contract on you to keep you from testifying. If everything goes perfectly – and you know the odds against that – more people will remember your drug possession charge than ever hear that it was unfounded.

"To make matters worse, you can tell no one. Only Webb and I will know. Bud, Mac, your mother – everyone has to believe you've gotten yourself involved in drugs.

"Commander, it's a lousy assignment, and I can't give you much time to think about it. Webb believes that we need to move quickly before the cartel can find another pilot. If you accept the assignment, we'll play it out in a week .. two at the most. Lots of publicity when the story breaks .. you've been on some high profile assignments and the media will grab the story of the Navy hero in disgrace," the Admiral finished.

Harm had been listening intently. The danger of the assignment itself was a challenge he believed he was ready for. But to possibly irreversibly give up his Navy career in disgrace .. and for his mother to believe he had gotten into drugs .. it would be devastating for her. "I understand the importance of the assignment and the risks. The worst would be for my mother .. for her to think it was all true would hurt her too much .."

"All right, Harm. Before the story breaks, I'll arrange a secure call for you to tell her not to believe everything she reads in the papers. You won't be able to tell her anything else .. she'll just have to trust you and go along. Will she do that?" Webb asked.

"I think I can get her to do that." He paused thoughtfully. "The staff here at JAG couldn't know anything ..? I mean, Bud and Harriett, Sturgis .. ?"

"We've got to keep this tightly contained. The more people who know, the more chance there is that your cover will be blown and you'll be killed. Your friends' reactions have to be genuine. I'm sorry, Harm," Webb explained.

As Harm nodded, still pondering his decision, AJ felt compelled to add, "you haven't mentioned Colonel MacKenzie. You're not concerned about her reaction?"

Harm nearly snorted. "Certainly you've noticed, Admiral, that Mac and I hardly speak. Her opinion of me no longer matters, and I'm sure she'll believe the worst," he said bitterly.

The Admiral felt an instant of sadness at the bitterness in the other officer's voice. Those two had been one of the best teams he had ever worked with. They had been close friends and now they could barely tolerate each other. AJ had considered sending one of them on a temporary assignment to give them some breathing room. This mission that Webb was suggesting was definitely not what he had in mind, however.

AJ offered no response to Harm's statement and waited for Harm's decision. After a few seconds, Harm looked from the Admiral to Webb. "With the Admiral's permission, and if he can spare me for an indefinite period of time, I'll take the assignment."

The Admiral looked at him sadly and said gruffly, "As I said, it's your decision. I just hope you know what you're doing." His voice softened slightly as he held out his hand. "Good luck, Harm. And take care."

After Harm agreed to meet Webb later that morning in a secure location away from JAG to go over the operational details of the assignment, he returned to his office to try to work normally. At 1100 he told Tiner he had an appointment regarding a case and left the office to meet Webb.

JAG HQ
Tuesday
1400 EST

Harm returned from his meeting with Webb. Things would be moving quickly now. There was no turning back. He had called his mother and tried to prepare her without telling her anything. She knew enough about his many varied assignments during his Navy career to understand, without having to be told, that this was something unusual and dangerous. As a mother, she was scared, but she understood the risks of a military career. She had a feeling that she would have to gather all her strength for the days ahead.

Closing his office door, Harm reviewed the plan. He would leave the office at 1630 to drive home. An anonymous tip would alert the police to watch for a red Corvette with drugs in it. To make sure he would be stopped, Harm would speed and perhaps break a few other traffic laws. Between speeding and having the tip about drugs, the police would have probable cause to open the glove box, where they would find just enough cocaine to get him charged with possession but not enough for a charge of dealing.

He would ask Bud to defend him. He dreaded the look of disappointment he knew Bud would have .. Harm knew he had always been Bud's hero, though, in Harm's opinion, Bud didn't need a hero. Bud was his own hero … he had proven himself as an excellent lawyer with a quick mind and his own style in a court room. Still, Harm would be able to convince Bud to do the deal he wanted. His only concern had been the prosecuting attorney. If it was Sturgis, he could be a bit self-righteous and might hold out for confinement. Likewise, Mac would go for blood. So it was decided that the Admiral himself would handle the prosecution. That made sense since Harm was a senior attorney and to have equal ranking attorneys prosecuting might not appear objective.

At 1630 Harm threw some files in his briefcase, as he often did, grabbed his cover, and left the office. As he prepared to pull out of the parking lot, he noticed a police car parked a half block away in the opposite direction. He dropped the Vette in low and squealed out onto the street. Well, that was fun anyway!

He turned down a less busy street and ran through the gears until he was approaching fifty before having to slow for a stop light. He proceeded to lay more rubber when the light turned green, and heard the first notes of a police siren. Glancing in the rear view mirror, he saw flashing red and blue lights quickly approaching. Harm pulled to the curb, and the police cruiser parked behind him. The officer walked to the Vette's window and stooped slightly to look at Harm. The officer seemed slightly taken aback by Harm's uniform. "You in a hurry, Commander?" he asked rather pleasantly.

"Come on, officer. I wasn't going that fast!" Harm used his most arrogant voice.

"License and registration, sir." The police officer demanded much less pleasantly.

Harm reached over to fumble in the glove box. In the early evening darkness, the police officer followed his hand with his flashlight. The first thing the officer saw was Harm's service pistol in its holster slide partly out of the glove box. The police officer quickly stepped back, drew his weapon, and in a steely voice said, "Commander, please step out of the car."

"I thought you wanted my registration …" Harm started to say exasperatedly.

"Commander, step out of the car … now!" It was not a request.

Harm defiantly took his time unwinding his long body out of the small sportscar and stood leaning slightly against the car. "Face the car, sir. Hands behind your head." As Harm slowly complied, the officer thumbed his radio and called for backup. In minutes another cruiser pulled up. While the two new arrivals searched Harm's person for weapons, the first officer opened the passenger door to look in the still open glove box. A minute later, he stood up and confronted Harm with a small bag of white powder. "So, going to have a happy evening, were you? Sorry to spoil it. You're under arrest for possession of narcotics. You have the right to remain silent …"

'Well, everything was going according to plan, so far,' Harm thought. The police continued to search his car. They put him in the back of one of the police cruisers and drove to the nearest police station. He was none too gently processed and finally allowed to make a phone call. He called the Admiral, who told him this was a charge the Navy would certainly want to handle, but that the transfer couldn't be made until morning. Harm would have to spend the night in jail. "But Admiral …" Harm began to protest.

He was cut short with a sharp, "Commander .."

Nothing more needed to be said. "Understood, sir," Harm replied. With a sigh, he hung up the phone and was escorted to a jail cell.