His eyes scanned over his wall, his eyes focusing on some of the newest images he had gotten. There was one thing he loved, the Internet and the free access many people had. He looked to his hand, and the photos he had. He had gotten them off her Facebook and although many were of her and the crew, he was able to make them disappear with a snip of his scissors. He picked up the last photo where a crew member had to be removed. He picked up his scissors, and cutting around the image of Kate, he removed Mike standing next to her.
Kate rushed towards the boat, knowing she was late and that Mike would not be happy. However it was not her fault that her car had decided to get a flat battery and that the taxi decided to take forever to show up. She was just about to step onboard when her phone rang. She looked at the caller idea, only to see 'Private Number' flashing.
She answered it, "Kate McGregor."
At the sound of the voice of the receiver, Kate shuddered.
"Kate, it's David Harris."
"Lieutenant Harris," she replied, keeping her voice professional, "What is it I can do for you?"
His reply sent a shudder up her spine, "I was wondering what you were doing tonight. If you might like to get some dinner. Maybe catch up."
She wondered why he would want to catch up. As far as she could remember she had never met him, however familiar he might seem.
"I'm sorry Lieutenant Harris but the Hammersley has just been tasked and I'm afraid that I'm heading out as we speak. Maybe some other time."
Before he had the chance to reply, she hung up. She stared at the phone in her hand, not noticing the presence on the boarding ramp beside her.
"X?"
When there was no reply, he tried again, "Kate?"
She looked up, startled to see Mike standing there.
"Are you alright?"
She continued to stare at him before looking back at her phone.
"Yeah," she mumbled, "I'm fine."
He hated to push her into getting onto the boat, especially with the things that had been happening, but he had no choice.
"Kate," he said softly, "We're waiting for you to board so that we can leave."
Her eyes rose to look at him before she nodded and followed him onboard, saluting as she stepped onto the ship.
Kate stood in the bridge, watching the horizon absently, her thoughts drifting to Harris. She couldn't shake the feeling that she knew him from somewhere. There was something eerily familiar with him. She just couldn't place where she knew him. Her mind drifted from Harris to the man who had appeared in her bedroom. She repressed a shudder at the thought of him. He downright scared her and although he hadn't shown himself since that night, she always had that feeling that she was being watched. It wouldn't leave her.
Mike sat in his chair, his eyes glancing to his right, where Kate stood. It had been a few days since they had left base and a few days since he had been able to hold her in anyway. He noticed the way her eyes were distant, staring off into the horizon. He was worried about her. First there was that guy that showed up at her place and then her reaction to Lieutenant Harris. He also couldn't help but shake the feeling that there was something fishy about the guy. He intended to find out once they returned to base.
"Sir, I'm picking something up on radar," Nikki's voice cut into his thoughts.
He stood up walking over to her, looking over her shoulder at the target on screen.
"Look's like an FFV Sir," Nikki continued.
Mike turned to Buffer, "Picking up anything on EOD?"
Buffer nodded his head, "Yes Boss. Looks like a shotty old boat. Not going to fast."
A smile crossed Mike's face, "X you're leading this one."
He turned to Kate to see her still staring absently off onto the horizon. He walked over to her and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Kate?" he said softly.
She jumped, turning to look at him, "Sorry sir. I got lost in my thoughts there."
He gave her a worried look before turning to Buffer, "Buffer you're leading this one. Nav, pipe boarding stations."
Kate started to protest but he turned and cut her off, "X, I want to talk to you in my cabin… now."
Kate hung her head, before heading out of the bridge, Mike following.
"Nav let me know when they're boarding."
"Yes boss."
He closed the door behind him, watching as she sat down on his rack. He sat down in his chair and stared at her in silence.
"Kate, I'm worried about you," he said finally, breaking the silence.
She raised her eyes to look at him, "I'm fine."
He stood up, frustration getting the better of him, "You're not Kate. We really need to discuss this. What happened to you at the start of the week would have been terrifying, but you should have notified the police. Now, after meeting Lieutenant Harris, you're even more shaken up. Something is wrong here Kate and you're refusing to admit it."
Kate stood up, facing him, "What do you suppose I say to the police Mike? There is no evidence that there was someone there except for what I said! They would treat me as though I'm a lunatic! Plus we're on here for a few weeks so nothing is going to happen whilst I'm on the boat."
He stepped towards her and took the chance to gently cup her face, "Kate, I worry about you. I worry every time I see you jumping onto a boat and I'm worrying even more at seeing you so vulnerable." He leant his forehead against hers. "I'm scared I'm going to lose you," he whispered.
Kate let her eyes slip shut as he rested his forehead against hers. It had been their first contact in days and she didn't want the moment to pass. He made her feel safe, every time he held her or kissed her, she felt safe. She leant in to kiss him, wanting to reassure him that she would never leave him.
"Captain, bridge."
Nikki's voice broke the moment. He let out a sigh and pulled away, his eyes locking onto Kate's. The emotion in their eyes conveyed what the other felt.
"We should probably head back up to the bridge," she muttered.
He nodded his head, his hand heading for the door handle. As his fingers wrapped around the handle, he turned back to look at her.
"I love you Kate and I'm not going to let anything happen to you."
She stared at him, his words taking a moment to sink in, before she smiled, letting him know that she understood what he was saying.
He opened the door and the two walked out, back to their jobs.
After the FFV was secured, Mike turned to Kate.
"I need you to get onto NavCom, let them now we are bringing an FFV in," he said as he started to head out of the bridge.
Kate nodded, heading to pick up the phone. She dialled in and it didn't take long before someone answered on the other end.
"Lieutenant Harris."
Kate shuddered. Of all the people.
"Lieutenant Harris. This is Lieutenant McGregor from Hammersley."
"Ah Kate," his voice drawled, "How can I help you out."
She clenched her teeth, wanting to get his conversation over and done with, "Just thought to let you know that we've just picked up an FFV and we are heading back to base with it under tow and it's crew on board."
She just imagined the smile on Harris's face at the news she was returning.
"Well, Kate, I look forward to your arrival," he drawled.
Kate repressed another shudder before replying, "Thankyou Harris."
She hung up, not caring if it was rude or against protocol to do so. She just had to get the sound of his voice out of her head.
"You alright there Kate?" Nikki questioned.
Kate nodded her head, "I'm fine."
The tone of her voice was enough to let Nikki know that she wasn't going to say anything else.
As they came back into port, it was nearing dusk. The crew were glad, knowing they would have the night off before heading back off in the morning. As Kate went to step off the ship, she heard someone call out her name. Turning she saw Mike coming up behind her.
"Will I see you at home?" he whispered.
She nodded her head, "Yeah. See you at home."
He smiled at her before turning back to head below deck.
Kate flopped down on the couch, looking at her watch. It was 6:30 and frankly she couldn't be bothered to get up and cook dinner, instead thinking that takeaway was a mighty good option at that moment. She let her head fall back against the cushions, thinking she would wait for Mike to get home before deciding what they would get. It didn't take long however, for exhaustion to take over.
Mike walked up the path to his house, noticing the lack of lighting on inside. He opened the door and walked into his lounge room, Kate's familiar form asleep on the couch. He smiled, putting down his hat and bag as he walked over to her. He gently brushed a bit of hair off her face before leaning in and kissing him. She let out a soft moan before opening her eyes to see Mike standing there, a soft smile on his face.
"Hey," she mumbled, as she rubbed sleep from her eyes.
"You know I've been wanting to do that for the last week," he said, sitting down beside her.
She laughed, laying her head against his shoulder, "Can't keep your hands off me can you."
He reached out for her and pulled her onto his lap with a shriek. She laughed as she settled onto his lap wrapping her arms around his neck.
He leant in, unable to resist temptation any further and kissed her. She let out a soft moan as his hands drifted beneath her shirt, his hands running up and down the small of her back. She moved closer to him, wanting to feel safe again, wanting him to reassure her that everything would be alright. He deepened the kiss, the feel of her against him, causing all reasonable thought to vanish from his head. In that moment, there was only him and Kate.
They lay, cuddled on the couch, the only light coming from the front hall. His eyes rested on her face, the light making her features softer. Unable to resist he leant in and placed a light kiss on her lips. She smiled against his lips, gently deepening the kiss.
He let out a soft moan, "Kate, you do that again and we're gonna end up right where we started."
She laughed before looking him in the eyes, "As much as I'm loving this, I'm hungry."
She watched as his eyes glinted in amusement, before he leant back in to kiss her.
"I've got all I need here."
She let out a laugh before gently pushing Mike off her, "Seriously, I'm hungry."
He let out a sigh, moving to allow her to get off the couch, "Fine. Can we get pizzas?"
She smiled, "Just what I was thinking."
As the alarm went off the next morning at 5:30, Kate let out a groan before throwing her pillow at Mike.
"Turn it off, please!"
He grumbled something before rolling over and whacking the clock, sending the room into silence.
Kate moved, snuggling back into Mike's side, content to go back to sleep.
"Kate…" he said, almost bordering on whining, "We need to get up. We've got to get back to the boat."
She mumbled something before going silent again. Mike let out a sigh. Drastic times called for drastic measures. He reached down for her waist before he set his fingers to work, tickling her senseless.
She let out a shriek, leaping out of his grip and falling off the bed. As he heard the thump, he looked over the edge to see a very angry pair of green eyes looking at him.
"What did you do that for?"
He laughed, "I had to get you up somehow!"
She grumbled something before getting up. As she walked into the bathroom, she quickly turned back to him.
"I've got to go home to pick up a few things. Think you can handle going to the ship on your own with out me?" she asked with a smirk.
He laughed, falling back against his pillow, "I think I can. You want me to drop you off."
She looked thoughtful for a moment before nodding her head, "Thankyou. I'll get a cab from home to the boat."
He smiled at her, "Ok then."
As Kate got out of the car, she leant across and gave Mike a quick kiss.
"I'll see you onboard."
He nodded his head, his eyes glinting in amusement, "I can't wait." He watched her as she walked up the path and into her house, neither noticing the shift of the curtains as she opened her door.
Mike stood up in the bridge, his eyes drifting to the clock. It was now 7:30. He had dropped Kate off at her place at 6:00 and he knew it would not take her an hour and a half to get to the boat. He grabbed the phone and dialled Kate's number. It went straight through to her message bank. He tried her home number. Same thing. He was starting to get worried. It wasn't like her to be this late and not call.
He turned to Nikki, "I'm going to head over to her house and see if everything is all right. This isn't like her."
Nikki nodded her head, "Ok sir. We will delay departure until you get back. Would you like me to notify NavCom?"
He considered it, "Wait until you receive a call from me. I'll let you know."
Nikki nodded her head, "Good luck sir."
As he drove to Kate's, he kept trying to call her. Each time he received her voicemail. He started to panic. Something was wrong and he knew it. When he arrived at her house, he walked up the door and tried the handle. It swung open… to reveal a very messed up hallway. He slowly walked in, his eyes scanning the hallway. Furniture was tipped over and it looked as though there had been a struggle. Panic surged through him at the thought of what had happened to Kate. He pulled out his mobile phone, pulling up Nikki's number. Just as he was about to hit dial, pain shot through the back of his head and darkness consumed him.
