****
Naval Intelligence
Monday
0011 hours
The Navy Lieutenant turned on the lamp that was sitting on top of the office desk. She was there to finalize a high priority report case before the meeting in the morning. It was late into the night and she wanted to make sure she had everything in order. This was probably one of the biggest decisions in her life, not to mention the biggest political move that more than likely could destroy her naval career. But she had to live with the consequences. Her conscious vs. that of the lives of the men and women who were unfortunate to serve on the Sea Raptor.
They were finally getting somewhere. She and a Naval Intelligence Lieutenant had enough evidence to shut down the project and tomorrow was going to be the day they presented the evidence to the group that were higher up the food chain. The report was finalized, and now all she had to do was place it into the Lieutenant's safe and call it a night.
Twisting the handle, the safe beeped 'secure' when locked into place. Placing the picture back over, she then turned to gather the copies. When she first heard the office door open, she thought it was just one of the Military Police making their rounds. Instead what she saw was this stranger, standing in front of her. "May I help you?" He didn't answer her, he just stood there watching her.
The man slowly advanced towards her, he was putting on gloves. Somehow he had imagined her to be a little taller perhaps. Her hair was a little shorter and darker too, 'oh well..' he thought, '..people usually get bored with one look and so.. swoosh, there goes the hair.' He couldn't believe that this insignificant woman could cause the 'great' man such trouble.
This can't be happening to me, the woman thought. She backed away from the man dressed in a dark suit, she couldn't see his face, probably the last face she would see, she feared. She stumbled back into the desk, her hand brushed against the files she was skimming through minutes before. Were they the original files? No, they were already secure in the safe, these were the copies.
The woman felt that she had no other opportunity then to try to make a run for the door now. The letter opener, she thought. Slowly she fumbled across the desk until she felt the object she was searching for. With one hand she reached for the letter opener, and with her other, she grabbed the lamp and threw it at the man. He let the lamp bounce off his shoulder before reaching out and grabbing the woman by her arm. He laughed as she screamed.
He was looming over her, he put his hand in her face, his fingers clawing, trying to get a hold of her throat, when he glimpsed a flash of gold, and then the searing pain as it punctured into his left arm. He looked down at her, and saw the fear in her eyes before smiling at her. He flipped her around and held her delicate throat in his hands for a minute while whispering something inaudible in her ear before snapping her neck.
****
Millerton, South Carolina
7:42 A.M.
"How touching."
The red notebook carried the newspaper articles following the story of a kidnapped prize-winning dog that had been returned to its ten-year-old owner by a mysterious show-trainer. The culprit had been an unscruplous breeder named Marvin Smythe who had wanted to see his own animals succeed in the tiny Pekingese's place. The biggest picture in the notebook showed the ten year old boy with the dog, smiling from ear to ear.
Miss Parker dropped the little book onto the car seat between herself and Sydney and lit up a cigarette. She took a long drag on it as she glanced out the window. "This is all we have after driving all night?"
"He didn't leave us very much to go on this time, did he?" Sydney remarked, almost curiously, nearly to himself.
Parker exhaled slowly, but did not turn to look at him. "No... but knowing Jarod, that won't last for long."
Sydney picked up the notebook and began studying it, the articles, the small handwritten notes in the margins. Jarod's handwriting had always been so neat and methodical, even as a child. Much like the brilliant mind that guided the pen, each thought clear as cut glass. In the back cover of the notebook, Jarod had actually sketched the portrait of the Pekingese he'd rescued. It was drawn freehand, but was very good, capturing precisely the curious, liquid eyes and the pug-nosed cuteness of the animal. Sydney smiled to himself; Jarod had never been allowed to have a pet at the Centre. He must have enjoyed this particular "pretend" a great deal.
Suddenly he noticed something about the sketch that was slightly unusual, and he held the notebook closer to the car window for more light.
"What is it?" Parker wanted to know. She had crushed out her cigarette and was preparing to light another. Sydney examined the little detail carefully before answering. "The tag on the dog collar... it's drawn here in the shape of a military dog tag."
"So Jarod wants to play soldier for a day?" Miss Parker rolled her eyes slightly, taking a deep breath.
"No... sailor. The tag says U.S.N." Sydney replied. The letters were tiny, almost unreadable, but they were there.
"He must have a thing for ships." Parker puffed on the new cigarette. This wasn't the first time Jarod had "pretended" to be a naval officer. "Is there anything else?" She was annoyed that she hadn't seen the dog tag during her inspection of the notebook.
Sydney shook his head slightly, closing the notebook. "No. Nothing. I'm sure when Jarod's ready, he'll tell us what he wants us to know." He yawned. He needed coffee now.
"Hmph." Parker sniffed disdainfully, and she took another long, deliberate drag on the newly lit cigarette.
****
Judge Advocate General
0823 hours
Lieutenant Commander Harm Rabb stood behind his desk chair and glanced out the rain streaked windows of his office. He sipped on his coffee while watching other Navy staff trying hard to avoid getting wet. He spotted the pretty brunette Petty Officer who worked at the front reception looking towards his window, and he raised his coffee cup in a good-morning salute. But she didn't return the gesture. Didn't see him, or she was just ignoring him. He sighed.
Turning around at the sound of the door opening, he smiled when he saw his partner, Major Sarah MacKenzie stumble past his office looking like she lost the battle against the rain. "Let me guess, you slept in and decided to have your shower on the way to the office?" he called out while laughing.
Sarah stopped long enough to glance at him through the window, raised a brow at him then walked towards her own office, dumping her now broken umbrella and briefcase on her desk. She then walked over to the coffee pot and poured herself a cup of ambition, then went back to her desk and flopped down in her chair. "We're all not as lucky as you are to get parking close to the door, Harm." She called back. "That wind can sure gust when it wants to." Sarah eyed the remains of her umbrella.
"Tut tut Mac, did we not get enough sleep last night?" he had followed her into her office. Glancing around, he was amazed that she could find anything at all.
"I may have squeezed an hour or two in, I had to do a summary for an upcoming case. It's becoming a nightmare." She shivered at the thought.
"Can't be as much a nightmare as what I'm about to tell you."
Sarah swiveled her chair around to face Harm, awaiting his news. She noticed Harm was in his service dress blues, and that his dress jacket was still on. Strange considering one of the first things he does when he arrives is to take off his jacket and hang it up. He hated wearing his jacket in the office, he said he felt so... restricted.
"We have a command performance at center ring in 5 minutes."
Sarah moaned, "I haven't even finished my first cup of coffee."
Harm gave her a sympathetic pat on her shoulder before rinsing out his own cup. "Come on Mac, where's that Marine Corps ambition you brag about so much?"
"It's still in bed where it's supposed to be on a nasty day like today." she yawned.
**********************
NAVAL OFFICER KILLED
The newspaper headline topped the breaking story in the Leesburg, Virginia Gazette. Sitting in a booth in a local diner, a tall, dark-haired man with inquisitive eyes studied the article carefully. At the center of the front page story was a picture of the deceased, Lieutenant Samantha Collins. The picture showed her in her dress whites, her expression serious beneath the brim of her hat, or "cover" as it was referred to in military slang. The article itself detailed the story of how the bright young officer had been found in one of the Naval Intelligence offices with a self inflicted gun shot to her head. Jarod felt otherwise.
Jarod had been intrigued from the first, mainly because Collins had been involved with a military secret that was just now being revealed to the public and had become highly publicized within the Navy. The Sea Shadow. That stealth ship was the new baby of the Navy.
What had caught Jarod's attention was the noise she had started to make regarding the project's parent ship. The Sea Raptor. The Raptor project had been mothballed mainly due to the fact that it had some major design flaws. But now with all the glory of the Sea Shadow, the DoD contractors wanted to reactivate it and get it out to sea in a matter of mere months. Samantha had been against it, and she didn't hide that fact. It was all over the Navy Times and it was also known she had managed to start an investigation to stop the completion of the Sea Raptor.
"Will that be all for today, Cap'n?"
Jarod looked up to see the sixtyish proprietor of the little diner looking down at him. Jarod smiled, the expression lighting up his whole face. "Yes, it will, thank you. And I'm not a captain... just a lieutenant commander." Jarod dug into his pocket and paid his bill plus a generous tip.
"Well... seems like a good young sailor like yourself oughta be a captain." The man grinned back.
Jarod stood up, tucking the white "cover" beneath his arm and collecting his notebook and the newspaper. His dress blues stood out sharply among the small crowd of local patrons in casual civilian clothing. "I'm not really a sailor, either, actually." Jarod's grin broadened a bit. "I'm a lawyer."
****
J.A.G.
Boardroom 2C
0845 hours
Minutes later, Sarah and Harm walked into the office of Admiral Chegwidden. Commander Allison Krennick, Lieutenant (junior grade) Budd Roberts were already present. He nodded towards the Commander, she smiled back.
Admiral Chegwidden glanced up at the two latest arrivals. "You'll have time for formalities later Commander, right now we have a murder case to solve." The Admiral glanced at Lieutenant Roberts who then handed out some photo's for the group to glance at while he explained what little information he had.
"I need a senior officer to conduct a by-the-book, right-now, JAG investigation into an incident that has happened last night. The incident involves a suicide death, which may be homicide. With me so far?" the Admiral glanced around to make sure. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Last night at approximately 0130, a young naval lieutenant was found in an office at the Naval Intelligence building. Now this is where it gets sticky. See Lieutenant Samantha Collins works for the Department of Defense, but she was helping in an NI case, and now her death has become a JAG investigation.
"What we've got here is an investigation, and a political power play. We all know that NI is not entirely in good repute around the flag ranks here. Wanting to step on our toes.." he let it hang.
Harm stared directly at Admiral Chegwidden, avoiding the gaze of Commander Krennick. "Yes sir, I'm sure we've all heard some NI stories, but still, the Navy has suicides from time to time."
"Yeah but this one is going to stir up the press. It sounds like a pretty bizarre case, but since you all are going to investigate it, and I am the officer appointing you, I can't say anymore about it then what you see here. Command influence."
"Command influence?" Lieutenant JG Bud Roberts inquired.
Admiral Chegwidden paused for a minute. In a lower voice, "Yes Lieutenant, an investigating officer is required to find the facts for his/herself with no input from command influence to taint his/her findings."
Bud glanced away, he should have known that. He DID know that.
The pictures were slowly making their way around the room. Harm had to lean out of his chair to pass the photos over to Sarah. Reaching for them, she glanced at the first photo of a woman laying awkwardly beside the desk with her neck tilted un-naturally to one side. The second photo had a close up on her face. Sarah gasped suddenly. Where has she seen this woman before? She looked so familar somehow, like she had seen her recently.
The room had a sudden hush to it, and all eyes looked to her.
"A problem Major?" Admiral Chegwidden asked.
"Ugh, no sir." Sarah could feel her cheeks flush and tried to look like she had moved on to concentrate on the pictures, but the more she studied the woman's face, the more she felt that she knew her.
"Mr. Rabb, as I'm sure you figured out by now, I want you, and the Major to handle the investigation and you're going to have to deal with NI and keep them posted on your findings. Rabb, I know you have dealt previously with a few cases involving NI, that's why you're here, to guide them through all that bull shit bureaucracy they're going to put us through. Mr. Rabb, your contact with NI will be Commander Ryan, as I'm sure doesn't come to no big surprise."
"Aye sir."
"Lieutenant Roberts, I need you to keep an eye on the media. Ensign Sims... err Roberts, or is that Sims-Roberts?" He queried, then waved it off, not wanting to get them worked up at this point. "Either way, she is to help you prepare any statements that Rabb or MacKenzie may need to say. If anything. If I had my way, I wouldn't want any statements at all, and try to keep this as quiet as possible. Media these days are so in-your- face..." he let the sentence hang. "Commander Krennick will be available to help whoever needs it, any information you need, she'll have connections to help you. Understood?"
"Understood, sir!"
The Admiral stood up to leave. "Oh and Mr. Rabb. Do remember this is home base, and check in once in a while to keep us posted." With that, he left, closing the door behind him.
****
Falls Church Airport
1040 hours
Lieutenant Kate Pike stepped through the doors of the airport, the flood of sunlight blinding her temporarily. She looked around at her surroundings curiously; it had been awhile since she'd been in this area. Three years, to be exact. Three years since her transfer to SeaTac and then to Okinawa. This was her first three week vacation since then. Oh, she'd had the long weekend here and there, but not a real vacation. Three whole weeks to herself. When the clock had shown the last few minutes before freedom, she had gathered her briefcase and purse, and run out the door before Captain Baisley could find her to give her one of those 'it will only take a few minutes' assignments.
Kate pulled out her sunglasses and put them on, wiggling them on her nose until they were comfortable. She then picked up her two suitcases and her shoulderbag, which she slung over her shoulder with her purse.
The temperature was on its way to the 'high' of the day, and already she could feel the sweltering sun on her skin. It was unusual for this time of year. The muginess of the rain that morning could be felt instantaniously. That rental had better have air conditioning. Glancing at her watch, she realized she'd better get moving, she had a ton of things to do prior to meeting him.
****
Somewhere in Falls Church
1159 a.m.
The man sat in his cushy chair, he flipped mindlessly through the television stations, occasionally stopping to listen to what was being said. He was looking for anything on the murder of that naval lieutenant. So far nothing. Sipping on his cognac, he waited for the pain killers to kick in again. Damn b*tch managed to surprise him with that hit into his arm.
The telephone started to ring, the man glanced at his watch. 12:00 pm. Right on the nose. Military people, they live by the damn clock. He let it ring 4 times before picking it up. He didn't want to appear too anxious.
"Yeah?"
"Mr. Hawke?"
It was the captain. "You're little problem has been taken care of, cap'n."
"That's why I'm calling. You royally f*cked up this time. You killed her. I said to talk to her, not kill her, and second off.. I hope you know that she was not the only lieutenant who is aware of this."
"What you said, was to take care of this little problem you had. You did not specify you wanted her alive after I talked to her." What was it with these weak people? How do they get so far up the military ladder? Do they not have any balls? He could sense the captain was panicking now. Wait a minute, what did he say? There are more in on this?
"My gawd, you didn't have to kill her. We're screwed now. If the other lieutenant leaks the information she found out to anyone before we get a hold of her, we're dead. If they suspect anything about what's going on... " he paused, perhaps trying to catch his breath. "JAG is starting an investigation with NI."
"They're not going to find out anything. There is no evidence connecting me, you or your man to her murder. I even cleaned up the mess in her office before I left. Nothing is missing except the lamp that she threw at me and broke."
"I don't know, she has connections, I'm telling you. I know she talked to that lieutenant..." and then, as if in thought. "How could you leave the body?" he snapped. "At least we could have said she desserted."
"It was a message for them to drop their snooping. Besides, it looked like she killed herself." He sighed. "I'll deal with the other one too when the time comes. Now, have you deposited the rest of my money into my account?"
"Yes, it was sent this morning."
"Then it was nice doing business with you. You need me, you know how to contact me."
Mr. Hawke hung up the phone. He hated long conversations. Shorter the better, just in case they were tracing. Not that they were, but you never know. Everyone was out to cover their asses. He went back to watching the television in case they said something about her.
****
J.A.G. Head Quarters
1315 hours
"Major MacKenzie!" Commander Krennick called out. She poked out while holding the doors to the elevator. "Have you seen Mr. Rabb yet this afternoon?"
"Um, no ma'am I haven't. Would you..." Sarah had just opened up the office door to OPS a crack and was startled to hear her name.
"Tell him to come see me ASAP when you see him Major." Krennick turned on her heel and went back into the elevator, leaving Sarah to raise a brow and watch the doors close.
Opening the door the rest of the way and walking through, Sarah dropped off her brief case, and coat in her office, then she stopped by Harm's office. "Lieutenant Commander Rabb, please report to Commander Krennick's office ASAP." she said.
"Lieutenant Commander Rabb isn't here." Harm said hopefully, keeping his head down.
"Better you then me, sir." Bud answered while stepping out from behind the filing cabinet.
"I could order you to take my place, Lieutenant." he suggested, not sure if he himself meant it or said it teasingly.
"I guess you could, but you wouldn't put a newly wed's life in danger, now would you, sir?" smiling, Bud picked up the then ringing phone. Pausing a moment, "Judge Advocate General. Lieutenant Commander Rabb's office. Mm hmm, yes, yes. One moment please." Bud hit the little *hold* button. "Line two says she's from NI asking for Mr. Rabb. What ever did you do, sir?"
"Uh oh." Harm grimaced. "It's Commander Ryan, isn't it." It was a statement, not a question. Bud caught Harm's expression, and knew instantly that Harm *had* done something... wrong.
"Sir..." Bud asked, all seriousness. "What did you do?"
"I had Lieutenant Collins' office examined and catalogued for evidence without informing NI." When Bud gave him a surprised look, Harm shrugged. "I didn't want 'em underfoot."
"Sir... this is supposed to be a joint investigation."
"I know *that*, Bud. I'm quite sure she's going to throttle me when she finds out I'm going to be at the office where the lieutenant was found." Harm answered. "Just... let me talk to her, she's been on hold long enough, and I'm going to get my six chewed anyway."
"Okay, you say so, sir." Bud passed the call over, and Harm drew in a deep breath before answering.
"Lieutenant Commander Rabb." When Harm winced sharply only a moment later, Bud figured that *now* would be the best time to try to make his escape. Let the six-chewing begin. He didn't get very far.
"Are those the files on Lieutenant Collins, ma'am?" Bud asked.
"Yes it is Bud." Sarah smiled at him while handing it over. Bud quickly left the little office.
Harm slammed down the phone. "Damn it. Ryan just told me that there is point man who wants in to keep tabs on the investigation." he growled. "To top it off, she transfers me to the brainless wonder. Who the hell do they think they are, trying to dupe me into letting them do the report. We do that, its going to be incomplete and one sided."
"Now now Harm." Sarah sighed. "Don't go turning this into a blown out political power play, like the Admiral said."
Harm laughed, "Still, NI is trying to pull a fast one." He knew he shouldn't be classifying them all as morons, especially Ryan, but still, the few times he had dealings with the division, he walked away with killer headaches. He also knew that Ryan would kick his ass and set him straight if she were to ever hear him talk this way. "I had to tell him that the JAG himself, Admiral Chegwidden, who works for the Secretary of the Navy, who is at the top of our food chain and his, signed the documents that there is only one investigation. There better not be a separate investigation going on at NI that I or Commander Ryan have not set in motion because it could lead to a duplication in effort, confusion, people working at cross purposes, and probably a compromise of evidence in this case. He didn't like that much so I had to tell him that I had a direct line to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations office and that he was a classmate of the Admirals and if he didn't like it, I was sure I could get us a meeting on fairly short notice."
"What did he say to that?"
"He said he didn't have much choice, since I put it that way. He wants another one of his own officers to work the investigation, along with you, me, and Commander Ryan... he says she's smack in the middle of the same assignment that Collin's was working on"
"Sounds like it's going to be fun. OH, did you got see the commander yet?" Sarah smirked when he rolled his eyes. "You know she's going to want your hide if you ignore her all day."
Harm waved it off, not wanting to think about it at that moment. He sighed and placed his head down on his desk, a headache was starting to appear, and it somehow had the name of Allison Krennick on it. "I suppose I should get it over with. If I'm not back in 20 minutes, call the MP's and tell them where I was last seen."
****
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
1658 hours
Lieutenant j.g. Bud Roberts was typing frantically at the computer, putting together a statement that had to be on the desk of the Admiral by 1500. His fingers stumbled over the keyboard, hitting the backspace key more often than any other. He was grateful for spell checking. Except for their scurrying, it had been unusually quiet in the office today, and the sounds of his frenetic typing were the only ones in the room. Most of the office were either in meetings or training courses.
Suddenly the sound of light whistling broke the quiet, and Bud glanced up to see a tall lieutenant commander come around the corner, cover under one arm, a red notebook in one hand and a silver briefcase in the other. Bud frowned slightly; the man was not familiar to him at all, yet seemed to have a look of.....somehow, fitting in, as though he really belonged here. All at once Bud realized, a lieutenant commander, and he abruptly stood to attention as the officer approached.
"At ease, Lieutenant." The man said, and his voice was soft. "Perhaps you could help me."
"Yes, sir?" Bud glanced briefly at the report, hoping that this wouldn't take too long.
"I'm looking for a Lieutenant Commander Rabb?"
"Oh, you're in the right place, sir. He's usually in that office over there, but unfortunately he's out of the office." he paused a moment. "I think." Bud motioned toward the inner office, and the tall officer smiled at him in such a genuine way that Roberts couldn't help but return it.
"That's ok. I'll return in the morning then. I have some errands I have to do anyway." He gave Bud a nod, then offered Harriet a small smile which didn't go un-noticed by Bud. Harriet returned the smile then watched him leave. Bud furrowed his brow, then pretended he didn't notice. Harriet sighed.
Marriage, Harriet reflected, certainly had a way of putting a different perspective on work. She wasn't sure if she liked it yet or not. Oh, she like marriage just fine. It was this new...angle it brought to her working relationship with her husband that she wasn't too sure about.
They'd spent the better part of the day working together, preparing a plan for handling the media. Normally that wasn't Bud's thing any longer, and really it wasn't hers either, now that she was technically reassigned to the I.G.'s office. But Admiral Chegwidden had asked them personally to handle it. Just the request alone was enough to make them both realize how carefully this entire matter had to be handled.
The first statement from the Navy's point of view had been taken care of relatively easily...just a general overview of the body being discovered, and a hopeful sounding statement that perhaps the autopsy results would reveal more. It was the second draft, something a tad more detailed, that had gotten them into trouble. The main purpose of the second draft was to "cover their sixes" in case an overzealous reporter dug up more information than they should have access to. What more could they say then the release that was already made official that morning by the media.
'He can be so....stubborn!' she thought to herself with a soft sigh. She should've asked Commander Rabb about that, along with the "why are men such jerks" question some months ago. For his own part, Bud Roberts was absorbed in trying to wrap up the final details of a small press conference that was being called on the case... half a dozen reporters hunting like sharks for a story. It had been awhile since he'd tackled anything like this, and he wasn't entirely sure he liked it. He'd much rather be working the actual case... well, maybe that would come later.
His thoughts were interrupted by a very soft sigh. He glanced up to see Harriet looking at him. "What?" he asked, his tone slightly confused. They had only been married a couple months, and already he knew that look.
Harriet smiled a little bit in response. "Don't you think we've earned ourselves a nice dinner?" she asked. Certainly a few minutes away from the office alone could only help matters.
Bud glanced at his watch, taken a little by surprise that it was indeed already heading towards that time. They had been so preoccupied with what they were working on that he hadn't paid attention to the time. "Yeah... uhm... sure, Harriet. I guess we could do that." he pushed aside a folder. "The commander and the major should be back soon; maybe we can all go together."
Harriet bit her lip just momentarily, then sighed again. "I guess so." she said, not quite able to keep all the disappointment from her voice.
"Do what?" Harm asked as he breezed into the common area, intent on getting a few things from his office.
"Oh, Commander." Bud turned a bit to follow his CO with his gaze. "We were just talking about going to dinner... maybe you and the major wanted to join us?"
Harm glanced at the newlyweds and picked up on Harriet's slight, hidden message of 'no' in her expression and posture. He stifled a smile, and glanced away to keep his amused expression from Bud. "No, can't do that Bud. God knows where Mac is, and I have to get home, I have to meet.. someone." Harm shuffled through a stack of papers. "And I'm not likely to be back here until tomorrow morning."
"Understood, sir." Bud replied absently, no wiser to the silent communication that had taken place between his wife and his CO. "Oh, someone was looking for you, said he'd stop by later."
"Thanks, Bud. Have a good evening, you two." Harm grinned, then headed out with the notes he had come to find.
"I guess it's just the two of us now, hmm?" Harriet smiled, almost shyly, and Bud grinned back, suddenly glad it had worked out this way.
****
Tuesday Morning
Somewhere in Falls Church
0800 hours
The following morning, Hawke went out early to get a morning paper and some cigarettes from the convenience store. He walked across to the bakery and bought a coffee and a bagel, then walked over to the park and sat on a bench where he opened up his paper and scanned for any articles about *the* incident. He found it right away: A female naval lieutenant had committed suicide at the Naval Investigative offices. She had been DOA at the George Washington University Hospital with a self inflicted gun shot to the head. She had been identified as Lieutenant Samantha Collins, USN, age 27, attached to the Department of Defence Office at the Navy headquarters in the Pentagon. According to the paper, there was no witnesses to the incident.
He spent the next half hour drinking his coffee and eating his bagel while watching various women clicking past him in their heels. Every one of them was a looker. He smirked, no wonder these Navy types get themselves into trouble.. after all, he was quite sure now that there were many hidden secret affairs. These *great* men hoping to keep it quiet, especially after Tailhook.
He also thought about this other lieutenant, the one that he should have made the hit on in the first place. Was it his fault that they didn't tell him that some other person could be in her office?
He wondered if he should call them to see if they required his services again. Glancing down at the paper.. he figured that they probably didn't since it appeared that the investigating team had nothing on what happened to the young Lieutenant.
When he returned to his apartment, however, his answering machine was blinking at him, telling him that he had a message waiting. Hitting Play, he heard the hysterical message from the captain directing him to call ASAP on the private line. Hawke grinned and erased the message.
Naval Intelligence
Monday
0011 hours
The Navy Lieutenant turned on the lamp that was sitting on top of the office desk. She was there to finalize a high priority report case before the meeting in the morning. It was late into the night and she wanted to make sure she had everything in order. This was probably one of the biggest decisions in her life, not to mention the biggest political move that more than likely could destroy her naval career. But she had to live with the consequences. Her conscious vs. that of the lives of the men and women who were unfortunate to serve on the Sea Raptor.
They were finally getting somewhere. She and a Naval Intelligence Lieutenant had enough evidence to shut down the project and tomorrow was going to be the day they presented the evidence to the group that were higher up the food chain. The report was finalized, and now all she had to do was place it into the Lieutenant's safe and call it a night.
Twisting the handle, the safe beeped 'secure' when locked into place. Placing the picture back over, she then turned to gather the copies. When she first heard the office door open, she thought it was just one of the Military Police making their rounds. Instead what she saw was this stranger, standing in front of her. "May I help you?" He didn't answer her, he just stood there watching her.
The man slowly advanced towards her, he was putting on gloves. Somehow he had imagined her to be a little taller perhaps. Her hair was a little shorter and darker too, 'oh well..' he thought, '..people usually get bored with one look and so.. swoosh, there goes the hair.' He couldn't believe that this insignificant woman could cause the 'great' man such trouble.
This can't be happening to me, the woman thought. She backed away from the man dressed in a dark suit, she couldn't see his face, probably the last face she would see, she feared. She stumbled back into the desk, her hand brushed against the files she was skimming through minutes before. Were they the original files? No, they were already secure in the safe, these were the copies.
The woman felt that she had no other opportunity then to try to make a run for the door now. The letter opener, she thought. Slowly she fumbled across the desk until she felt the object she was searching for. With one hand she reached for the letter opener, and with her other, she grabbed the lamp and threw it at the man. He let the lamp bounce off his shoulder before reaching out and grabbing the woman by her arm. He laughed as she screamed.
He was looming over her, he put his hand in her face, his fingers clawing, trying to get a hold of her throat, when he glimpsed a flash of gold, and then the searing pain as it punctured into his left arm. He looked down at her, and saw the fear in her eyes before smiling at her. He flipped her around and held her delicate throat in his hands for a minute while whispering something inaudible in her ear before snapping her neck.
****
Millerton, South Carolina
7:42 A.M.
"How touching."
The red notebook carried the newspaper articles following the story of a kidnapped prize-winning dog that had been returned to its ten-year-old owner by a mysterious show-trainer. The culprit had been an unscruplous breeder named Marvin Smythe who had wanted to see his own animals succeed in the tiny Pekingese's place. The biggest picture in the notebook showed the ten year old boy with the dog, smiling from ear to ear.
Miss Parker dropped the little book onto the car seat between herself and Sydney and lit up a cigarette. She took a long drag on it as she glanced out the window. "This is all we have after driving all night?"
"He didn't leave us very much to go on this time, did he?" Sydney remarked, almost curiously, nearly to himself.
Parker exhaled slowly, but did not turn to look at him. "No... but knowing Jarod, that won't last for long."
Sydney picked up the notebook and began studying it, the articles, the small handwritten notes in the margins. Jarod's handwriting had always been so neat and methodical, even as a child. Much like the brilliant mind that guided the pen, each thought clear as cut glass. In the back cover of the notebook, Jarod had actually sketched the portrait of the Pekingese he'd rescued. It was drawn freehand, but was very good, capturing precisely the curious, liquid eyes and the pug-nosed cuteness of the animal. Sydney smiled to himself; Jarod had never been allowed to have a pet at the Centre. He must have enjoyed this particular "pretend" a great deal.
Suddenly he noticed something about the sketch that was slightly unusual, and he held the notebook closer to the car window for more light.
"What is it?" Parker wanted to know. She had crushed out her cigarette and was preparing to light another. Sydney examined the little detail carefully before answering. "The tag on the dog collar... it's drawn here in the shape of a military dog tag."
"So Jarod wants to play soldier for a day?" Miss Parker rolled her eyes slightly, taking a deep breath.
"No... sailor. The tag says U.S.N." Sydney replied. The letters were tiny, almost unreadable, but they were there.
"He must have a thing for ships." Parker puffed on the new cigarette. This wasn't the first time Jarod had "pretended" to be a naval officer. "Is there anything else?" She was annoyed that she hadn't seen the dog tag during her inspection of the notebook.
Sydney shook his head slightly, closing the notebook. "No. Nothing. I'm sure when Jarod's ready, he'll tell us what he wants us to know." He yawned. He needed coffee now.
"Hmph." Parker sniffed disdainfully, and she took another long, deliberate drag on the newly lit cigarette.
****
Judge Advocate General
0823 hours
Lieutenant Commander Harm Rabb stood behind his desk chair and glanced out the rain streaked windows of his office. He sipped on his coffee while watching other Navy staff trying hard to avoid getting wet. He spotted the pretty brunette Petty Officer who worked at the front reception looking towards his window, and he raised his coffee cup in a good-morning salute. But she didn't return the gesture. Didn't see him, or she was just ignoring him. He sighed.
Turning around at the sound of the door opening, he smiled when he saw his partner, Major Sarah MacKenzie stumble past his office looking like she lost the battle against the rain. "Let me guess, you slept in and decided to have your shower on the way to the office?" he called out while laughing.
Sarah stopped long enough to glance at him through the window, raised a brow at him then walked towards her own office, dumping her now broken umbrella and briefcase on her desk. She then walked over to the coffee pot and poured herself a cup of ambition, then went back to her desk and flopped down in her chair. "We're all not as lucky as you are to get parking close to the door, Harm." She called back. "That wind can sure gust when it wants to." Sarah eyed the remains of her umbrella.
"Tut tut Mac, did we not get enough sleep last night?" he had followed her into her office. Glancing around, he was amazed that she could find anything at all.
"I may have squeezed an hour or two in, I had to do a summary for an upcoming case. It's becoming a nightmare." She shivered at the thought.
"Can't be as much a nightmare as what I'm about to tell you."
Sarah swiveled her chair around to face Harm, awaiting his news. She noticed Harm was in his service dress blues, and that his dress jacket was still on. Strange considering one of the first things he does when he arrives is to take off his jacket and hang it up. He hated wearing his jacket in the office, he said he felt so... restricted.
"We have a command performance at center ring in 5 minutes."
Sarah moaned, "I haven't even finished my first cup of coffee."
Harm gave her a sympathetic pat on her shoulder before rinsing out his own cup. "Come on Mac, where's that Marine Corps ambition you brag about so much?"
"It's still in bed where it's supposed to be on a nasty day like today." she yawned.
**********************
NAVAL OFFICER KILLED
The newspaper headline topped the breaking story in the Leesburg, Virginia Gazette. Sitting in a booth in a local diner, a tall, dark-haired man with inquisitive eyes studied the article carefully. At the center of the front page story was a picture of the deceased, Lieutenant Samantha Collins. The picture showed her in her dress whites, her expression serious beneath the brim of her hat, or "cover" as it was referred to in military slang. The article itself detailed the story of how the bright young officer had been found in one of the Naval Intelligence offices with a self inflicted gun shot to her head. Jarod felt otherwise.
Jarod had been intrigued from the first, mainly because Collins had been involved with a military secret that was just now being revealed to the public and had become highly publicized within the Navy. The Sea Shadow. That stealth ship was the new baby of the Navy.
What had caught Jarod's attention was the noise she had started to make regarding the project's parent ship. The Sea Raptor. The Raptor project had been mothballed mainly due to the fact that it had some major design flaws. But now with all the glory of the Sea Shadow, the DoD contractors wanted to reactivate it and get it out to sea in a matter of mere months. Samantha had been against it, and she didn't hide that fact. It was all over the Navy Times and it was also known she had managed to start an investigation to stop the completion of the Sea Raptor.
"Will that be all for today, Cap'n?"
Jarod looked up to see the sixtyish proprietor of the little diner looking down at him. Jarod smiled, the expression lighting up his whole face. "Yes, it will, thank you. And I'm not a captain... just a lieutenant commander." Jarod dug into his pocket and paid his bill plus a generous tip.
"Well... seems like a good young sailor like yourself oughta be a captain." The man grinned back.
Jarod stood up, tucking the white "cover" beneath his arm and collecting his notebook and the newspaper. His dress blues stood out sharply among the small crowd of local patrons in casual civilian clothing. "I'm not really a sailor, either, actually." Jarod's grin broadened a bit. "I'm a lawyer."
****
J.A.G.
Boardroom 2C
0845 hours
Minutes later, Sarah and Harm walked into the office of Admiral Chegwidden. Commander Allison Krennick, Lieutenant (junior grade) Budd Roberts were already present. He nodded towards the Commander, she smiled back.
Admiral Chegwidden glanced up at the two latest arrivals. "You'll have time for formalities later Commander, right now we have a murder case to solve." The Admiral glanced at Lieutenant Roberts who then handed out some photo's for the group to glance at while he explained what little information he had.
"I need a senior officer to conduct a by-the-book, right-now, JAG investigation into an incident that has happened last night. The incident involves a suicide death, which may be homicide. With me so far?" the Admiral glanced around to make sure. Everyone nodded in agreement.
"Last night at approximately 0130, a young naval lieutenant was found in an office at the Naval Intelligence building. Now this is where it gets sticky. See Lieutenant Samantha Collins works for the Department of Defense, but she was helping in an NI case, and now her death has become a JAG investigation.
"What we've got here is an investigation, and a political power play. We all know that NI is not entirely in good repute around the flag ranks here. Wanting to step on our toes.." he let it hang.
Harm stared directly at Admiral Chegwidden, avoiding the gaze of Commander Krennick. "Yes sir, I'm sure we've all heard some NI stories, but still, the Navy has suicides from time to time."
"Yeah but this one is going to stir up the press. It sounds like a pretty bizarre case, but since you all are going to investigate it, and I am the officer appointing you, I can't say anymore about it then what you see here. Command influence."
"Command influence?" Lieutenant JG Bud Roberts inquired.
Admiral Chegwidden paused for a minute. In a lower voice, "Yes Lieutenant, an investigating officer is required to find the facts for his/herself with no input from command influence to taint his/her findings."
Bud glanced away, he should have known that. He DID know that.
The pictures were slowly making their way around the room. Harm had to lean out of his chair to pass the photos over to Sarah. Reaching for them, she glanced at the first photo of a woman laying awkwardly beside the desk with her neck tilted un-naturally to one side. The second photo had a close up on her face. Sarah gasped suddenly. Where has she seen this woman before? She looked so familar somehow, like she had seen her recently.
The room had a sudden hush to it, and all eyes looked to her.
"A problem Major?" Admiral Chegwidden asked.
"Ugh, no sir." Sarah could feel her cheeks flush and tried to look like she had moved on to concentrate on the pictures, but the more she studied the woman's face, the more she felt that she knew her.
"Mr. Rabb, as I'm sure you figured out by now, I want you, and the Major to handle the investigation and you're going to have to deal with NI and keep them posted on your findings. Rabb, I know you have dealt previously with a few cases involving NI, that's why you're here, to guide them through all that bull shit bureaucracy they're going to put us through. Mr. Rabb, your contact with NI will be Commander Ryan, as I'm sure doesn't come to no big surprise."
"Aye sir."
"Lieutenant Roberts, I need you to keep an eye on the media. Ensign Sims... err Roberts, or is that Sims-Roberts?" He queried, then waved it off, not wanting to get them worked up at this point. "Either way, she is to help you prepare any statements that Rabb or MacKenzie may need to say. If anything. If I had my way, I wouldn't want any statements at all, and try to keep this as quiet as possible. Media these days are so in-your- face..." he let the sentence hang. "Commander Krennick will be available to help whoever needs it, any information you need, she'll have connections to help you. Understood?"
"Understood, sir!"
The Admiral stood up to leave. "Oh and Mr. Rabb. Do remember this is home base, and check in once in a while to keep us posted." With that, he left, closing the door behind him.
****
Falls Church Airport
1040 hours
Lieutenant Kate Pike stepped through the doors of the airport, the flood of sunlight blinding her temporarily. She looked around at her surroundings curiously; it had been awhile since she'd been in this area. Three years, to be exact. Three years since her transfer to SeaTac and then to Okinawa. This was her first three week vacation since then. Oh, she'd had the long weekend here and there, but not a real vacation. Three whole weeks to herself. When the clock had shown the last few minutes before freedom, she had gathered her briefcase and purse, and run out the door before Captain Baisley could find her to give her one of those 'it will only take a few minutes' assignments.
Kate pulled out her sunglasses and put them on, wiggling them on her nose until they were comfortable. She then picked up her two suitcases and her shoulderbag, which she slung over her shoulder with her purse.
The temperature was on its way to the 'high' of the day, and already she could feel the sweltering sun on her skin. It was unusual for this time of year. The muginess of the rain that morning could be felt instantaniously. That rental had better have air conditioning. Glancing at her watch, she realized she'd better get moving, she had a ton of things to do prior to meeting him.
****
Somewhere in Falls Church
1159 a.m.
The man sat in his cushy chair, he flipped mindlessly through the television stations, occasionally stopping to listen to what was being said. He was looking for anything on the murder of that naval lieutenant. So far nothing. Sipping on his cognac, he waited for the pain killers to kick in again. Damn b*tch managed to surprise him with that hit into his arm.
The telephone started to ring, the man glanced at his watch. 12:00 pm. Right on the nose. Military people, they live by the damn clock. He let it ring 4 times before picking it up. He didn't want to appear too anxious.
"Yeah?"
"Mr. Hawke?"
It was the captain. "You're little problem has been taken care of, cap'n."
"That's why I'm calling. You royally f*cked up this time. You killed her. I said to talk to her, not kill her, and second off.. I hope you know that she was not the only lieutenant who is aware of this."
"What you said, was to take care of this little problem you had. You did not specify you wanted her alive after I talked to her." What was it with these weak people? How do they get so far up the military ladder? Do they not have any balls? He could sense the captain was panicking now. Wait a minute, what did he say? There are more in on this?
"My gawd, you didn't have to kill her. We're screwed now. If the other lieutenant leaks the information she found out to anyone before we get a hold of her, we're dead. If they suspect anything about what's going on... " he paused, perhaps trying to catch his breath. "JAG is starting an investigation with NI."
"They're not going to find out anything. There is no evidence connecting me, you or your man to her murder. I even cleaned up the mess in her office before I left. Nothing is missing except the lamp that she threw at me and broke."
"I don't know, she has connections, I'm telling you. I know she talked to that lieutenant..." and then, as if in thought. "How could you leave the body?" he snapped. "At least we could have said she desserted."
"It was a message for them to drop their snooping. Besides, it looked like she killed herself." He sighed. "I'll deal with the other one too when the time comes. Now, have you deposited the rest of my money into my account?"
"Yes, it was sent this morning."
"Then it was nice doing business with you. You need me, you know how to contact me."
Mr. Hawke hung up the phone. He hated long conversations. Shorter the better, just in case they were tracing. Not that they were, but you never know. Everyone was out to cover their asses. He went back to watching the television in case they said something about her.
****
J.A.G. Head Quarters
1315 hours
"Major MacKenzie!" Commander Krennick called out. She poked out while holding the doors to the elevator. "Have you seen Mr. Rabb yet this afternoon?"
"Um, no ma'am I haven't. Would you..." Sarah had just opened up the office door to OPS a crack and was startled to hear her name.
"Tell him to come see me ASAP when you see him Major." Krennick turned on her heel and went back into the elevator, leaving Sarah to raise a brow and watch the doors close.
Opening the door the rest of the way and walking through, Sarah dropped off her brief case, and coat in her office, then she stopped by Harm's office. "Lieutenant Commander Rabb, please report to Commander Krennick's office ASAP." she said.
"Lieutenant Commander Rabb isn't here." Harm said hopefully, keeping his head down.
"Better you then me, sir." Bud answered while stepping out from behind the filing cabinet.
"I could order you to take my place, Lieutenant." he suggested, not sure if he himself meant it or said it teasingly.
"I guess you could, but you wouldn't put a newly wed's life in danger, now would you, sir?" smiling, Bud picked up the then ringing phone. Pausing a moment, "Judge Advocate General. Lieutenant Commander Rabb's office. Mm hmm, yes, yes. One moment please." Bud hit the little *hold* button. "Line two says she's from NI asking for Mr. Rabb. What ever did you do, sir?"
"Uh oh." Harm grimaced. "It's Commander Ryan, isn't it." It was a statement, not a question. Bud caught Harm's expression, and knew instantly that Harm *had* done something... wrong.
"Sir..." Bud asked, all seriousness. "What did you do?"
"I had Lieutenant Collins' office examined and catalogued for evidence without informing NI." When Bud gave him a surprised look, Harm shrugged. "I didn't want 'em underfoot."
"Sir... this is supposed to be a joint investigation."
"I know *that*, Bud. I'm quite sure she's going to throttle me when she finds out I'm going to be at the office where the lieutenant was found." Harm answered. "Just... let me talk to her, she's been on hold long enough, and I'm going to get my six chewed anyway."
"Okay, you say so, sir." Bud passed the call over, and Harm drew in a deep breath before answering.
"Lieutenant Commander Rabb." When Harm winced sharply only a moment later, Bud figured that *now* would be the best time to try to make his escape. Let the six-chewing begin. He didn't get very far.
"Are those the files on Lieutenant Collins, ma'am?" Bud asked.
"Yes it is Bud." Sarah smiled at him while handing it over. Bud quickly left the little office.
Harm slammed down the phone. "Damn it. Ryan just told me that there is point man who wants in to keep tabs on the investigation." he growled. "To top it off, she transfers me to the brainless wonder. Who the hell do they think they are, trying to dupe me into letting them do the report. We do that, its going to be incomplete and one sided."
"Now now Harm." Sarah sighed. "Don't go turning this into a blown out political power play, like the Admiral said."
Harm laughed, "Still, NI is trying to pull a fast one." He knew he shouldn't be classifying them all as morons, especially Ryan, but still, the few times he had dealings with the division, he walked away with killer headaches. He also knew that Ryan would kick his ass and set him straight if she were to ever hear him talk this way. "I had to tell him that the JAG himself, Admiral Chegwidden, who works for the Secretary of the Navy, who is at the top of our food chain and his, signed the documents that there is only one investigation. There better not be a separate investigation going on at NI that I or Commander Ryan have not set in motion because it could lead to a duplication in effort, confusion, people working at cross purposes, and probably a compromise of evidence in this case. He didn't like that much so I had to tell him that I had a direct line to the Vice Chief of Naval Operations office and that he was a classmate of the Admirals and if he didn't like it, I was sure I could get us a meeting on fairly short notice."
"What did he say to that?"
"He said he didn't have much choice, since I put it that way. He wants another one of his own officers to work the investigation, along with you, me, and Commander Ryan... he says she's smack in the middle of the same assignment that Collin's was working on"
"Sounds like it's going to be fun. OH, did you got see the commander yet?" Sarah smirked when he rolled his eyes. "You know she's going to want your hide if you ignore her all day."
Harm waved it off, not wanting to think about it at that moment. He sighed and placed his head down on his desk, a headache was starting to appear, and it somehow had the name of Allison Krennick on it. "I suppose I should get it over with. If I'm not back in 20 minutes, call the MP's and tell them where I was last seen."
****
JAG Headquarters
Falls Church, Virginia
1658 hours
Lieutenant j.g. Bud Roberts was typing frantically at the computer, putting together a statement that had to be on the desk of the Admiral by 1500. His fingers stumbled over the keyboard, hitting the backspace key more often than any other. He was grateful for spell checking. Except for their scurrying, it had been unusually quiet in the office today, and the sounds of his frenetic typing were the only ones in the room. Most of the office were either in meetings or training courses.
Suddenly the sound of light whistling broke the quiet, and Bud glanced up to see a tall lieutenant commander come around the corner, cover under one arm, a red notebook in one hand and a silver briefcase in the other. Bud frowned slightly; the man was not familiar to him at all, yet seemed to have a look of.....somehow, fitting in, as though he really belonged here. All at once Bud realized, a lieutenant commander, and he abruptly stood to attention as the officer approached.
"At ease, Lieutenant." The man said, and his voice was soft. "Perhaps you could help me."
"Yes, sir?" Bud glanced briefly at the report, hoping that this wouldn't take too long.
"I'm looking for a Lieutenant Commander Rabb?"
"Oh, you're in the right place, sir. He's usually in that office over there, but unfortunately he's out of the office." he paused a moment. "I think." Bud motioned toward the inner office, and the tall officer smiled at him in such a genuine way that Roberts couldn't help but return it.
"That's ok. I'll return in the morning then. I have some errands I have to do anyway." He gave Bud a nod, then offered Harriet a small smile which didn't go un-noticed by Bud. Harriet returned the smile then watched him leave. Bud furrowed his brow, then pretended he didn't notice. Harriet sighed.
Marriage, Harriet reflected, certainly had a way of putting a different perspective on work. She wasn't sure if she liked it yet or not. Oh, she like marriage just fine. It was this new...angle it brought to her working relationship with her husband that she wasn't too sure about.
They'd spent the better part of the day working together, preparing a plan for handling the media. Normally that wasn't Bud's thing any longer, and really it wasn't hers either, now that she was technically reassigned to the I.G.'s office. But Admiral Chegwidden had asked them personally to handle it. Just the request alone was enough to make them both realize how carefully this entire matter had to be handled.
The first statement from the Navy's point of view had been taken care of relatively easily...just a general overview of the body being discovered, and a hopeful sounding statement that perhaps the autopsy results would reveal more. It was the second draft, something a tad more detailed, that had gotten them into trouble. The main purpose of the second draft was to "cover their sixes" in case an overzealous reporter dug up more information than they should have access to. What more could they say then the release that was already made official that morning by the media.
'He can be so....stubborn!' she thought to herself with a soft sigh. She should've asked Commander Rabb about that, along with the "why are men such jerks" question some months ago. For his own part, Bud Roberts was absorbed in trying to wrap up the final details of a small press conference that was being called on the case... half a dozen reporters hunting like sharks for a story. It had been awhile since he'd tackled anything like this, and he wasn't entirely sure he liked it. He'd much rather be working the actual case... well, maybe that would come later.
His thoughts were interrupted by a very soft sigh. He glanced up to see Harriet looking at him. "What?" he asked, his tone slightly confused. They had only been married a couple months, and already he knew that look.
Harriet smiled a little bit in response. "Don't you think we've earned ourselves a nice dinner?" she asked. Certainly a few minutes away from the office alone could only help matters.
Bud glanced at his watch, taken a little by surprise that it was indeed already heading towards that time. They had been so preoccupied with what they were working on that he hadn't paid attention to the time. "Yeah... uhm... sure, Harriet. I guess we could do that." he pushed aside a folder. "The commander and the major should be back soon; maybe we can all go together."
Harriet bit her lip just momentarily, then sighed again. "I guess so." she said, not quite able to keep all the disappointment from her voice.
"Do what?" Harm asked as he breezed into the common area, intent on getting a few things from his office.
"Oh, Commander." Bud turned a bit to follow his CO with his gaze. "We were just talking about going to dinner... maybe you and the major wanted to join us?"
Harm glanced at the newlyweds and picked up on Harriet's slight, hidden message of 'no' in her expression and posture. He stifled a smile, and glanced away to keep his amused expression from Bud. "No, can't do that Bud. God knows where Mac is, and I have to get home, I have to meet.. someone." Harm shuffled through a stack of papers. "And I'm not likely to be back here until tomorrow morning."
"Understood, sir." Bud replied absently, no wiser to the silent communication that had taken place between his wife and his CO. "Oh, someone was looking for you, said he'd stop by later."
"Thanks, Bud. Have a good evening, you two." Harm grinned, then headed out with the notes he had come to find.
"I guess it's just the two of us now, hmm?" Harriet smiled, almost shyly, and Bud grinned back, suddenly glad it had worked out this way.
****
Tuesday Morning
Somewhere in Falls Church
0800 hours
The following morning, Hawke went out early to get a morning paper and some cigarettes from the convenience store. He walked across to the bakery and bought a coffee and a bagel, then walked over to the park and sat on a bench where he opened up his paper and scanned for any articles about *the* incident. He found it right away: A female naval lieutenant had committed suicide at the Naval Investigative offices. She had been DOA at the George Washington University Hospital with a self inflicted gun shot to the head. She had been identified as Lieutenant Samantha Collins, USN, age 27, attached to the Department of Defence Office at the Navy headquarters in the Pentagon. According to the paper, there was no witnesses to the incident.
He spent the next half hour drinking his coffee and eating his bagel while watching various women clicking past him in their heels. Every one of them was a looker. He smirked, no wonder these Navy types get themselves into trouble.. after all, he was quite sure now that there were many hidden secret affairs. These *great* men hoping to keep it quiet, especially after Tailhook.
He also thought about this other lieutenant, the one that he should have made the hit on in the first place. Was it his fault that they didn't tell him that some other person could be in her office?
He wondered if he should call them to see if they required his services again. Glancing down at the paper.. he figured that they probably didn't since it appeared that the investigating team had nothing on what happened to the young Lieutenant.
When he returned to his apartment, however, his answering machine was blinking at him, telling him that he had a message waiting. Hitting Play, he heard the hysterical message from the captain directing him to call ASAP on the private line. Hawke grinned and erased the message.