Disclaimers: None of this is mine
Setting: Season 8
0023 local time
Washington DC
I'm not a thief and I don't lie.
Loren's words from so long ago echoed through Harm's head as he stormed along on the dimly lit bridge. After leaving Loren earlier he'd decided against going home, choosing instead to go for a walk to try to clear his head. It hadn't worked out quite like he'd thought it would. He was more mad at himself now than her, mad that he hadn't believed her when she'd told him the baby wasn't Sergei's. In his haste to jump to conclusions he'd forgotten those words, forgotten that whatever else she had done over the years she had never lied to him.
In his anger he didn't watch his steps as carefully as he should have and slipped, not for the first time that night, on a patch of ice. Pinwheeling his arms, he fought to regain his balance and keep from falling. Once he had regained his footing he glanced around, reflexively checking for witnesses.
He was surprised to find that he wasn't the only one out, despite the late hour, and apparently he wasn't the only one unsteady on their feet that night. Further down the bridge a man was helping his companion, who had fallen, up from the ground.
Harm frowned. There was something wrong about the way he was lifting her up. Then it hit him.
"Hey!" Harm started running towards them, heedless of the possibility of falling, in his haste to reach them before it was too late.
At his shout the man half turned and when he saw Harm coming towards him, dropped his companion back to the ground and took off. In the dim lighting Harm was unable to get a good look at his face but the three stripes on his sleeves spoke volumes. For a second Harm considered chasing after him but then he noticed the blood on the railing. Glancing down he saw more blood pooling around the woman's head. He crouched down to check for a pulse and in the process got his first good look at her face.
"Loren!"
Harm glanced in the direction her companion had taken off in but the man had already disappeared. He turned back to Loren, his fingers seeking out a pulse. He breathed a sigh of relief when he found one, noting also the faint rise and fall of her chest. Harm quickly removed his overcoat and tucked it around her upper body in an attempt to keep her warm. Then he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and dialed 911. The dispatcher answered on the second ring.
"I need an ambulance. It's an emergency!"
After giving the man their location, Harm did his best to answer his questions about Loren's condition. Finally, after what seemed like forever, the dispatcher spoke the words Harm had been waiting to hear.
"Sir, the paramedics are less than five minutes from your location." A pause. "Would you like me to remain on the line with you till they arrive?"
Harm doesn't answer, though, his full attention once again back on Loren. He noticed the pool of blood around her head was still expanding. The dispatcher had warned him not to do anything to move her while waiting for the paramedics, not that he had intended to anyway, but he needed to do something to stop the blood flow now. Not having anything else, he tore one of the sleeves off of his jacket and carefully worked it under her head to where the blood appeared to be coming from.
In the distance he heard the faint sound of approaching sirens.
"Hang in there Loren. Help is on the way."