A/N: The good news is that this part is longer than the previous parts!

Trinkets – Part 4

Mac wanted to run to Harm as soon as she saw his weary figure slumped in the corner, but she knew that doing so wouldn't be wise.

Nichols was in a precarious emotional state, and she was already pushing things by threatening his ego to get him riled up enough to show Harm to her.

"See! I told you he was here," the frenzied captor declared.

Mac took a moment to survey Harm's condition. By no means did he look good. His wrists were still cuffed to a pipe above him. That and the walls were the only things keeping him from being completely crumpled on the floor. He wasn't awake as far as she could tell, but at least he was breathing. She was relieved enough by that to refocus on Nichols for the moment.

The man continued to rant, "I'm as much in charge of what's going on here as ... as my partner."

"I stand corrected. It doesn't look like your partner is even here. So, I guess that means you're in charge."

"Damn straight!" Jake cocked his head at her. Pleased that she was looking at him and not Harm, he more calmly asked her, "... Is that what you like? A man in charge?"

"... I do like a man who has a certain amount of power, who can stand up for things, make the right decisions when it comes down to it."

After she had spoken, her eyes did flit to Harm, prompting Nichols to point out, "Well, the Commander isn't in charge of anything anymore. He can barely stand up, period, and he certainly hasn't been making the wisest decisions."

"What do you mean, he hasn't been making the wisest decisions?"

"Let's just say, he wouldn't be in such bad shape if he would just cooperate. But he hasn't been talking, and that's not so good for his health."

"Talking about what?"

"... That's not for us to worry about."

"That's your partner's business," she deducted.

"Something like that, yeah."

Mac nodded. She wasn't going to push the issue at the moment. "You know, while I do like a man with an air of authority, ... that doesn't mean I like to be kept bound up."

Nichols regarded her for a second. "I don't want you to be bound up, but I can't let you be free yet."

She was disappointed, but the result was not unexpected. At least he seemed to have a sense of sympathy when it came to her. That could be useful. "So, what's the plan now that you've got me here?"

"Well ... I ..." Jake was clearly at a loss. "You're going to be mine."

"Yours, how?"

"I just ... I wanted you to pay attention to me."

"Okay. How about we sit down and talk," Mac suggested. She nodded her head towards the table and chairs that were located in that upstairs room.

Jake hesitated, but then agreed and gestured for her to walk to the seat.

"Can I ask a favor?"

"What?" he eyed her suspiciously.

"If my hands have to be bound, can you at least use cuffs instead of this tie and let them be in front of me? It's not going to be very comfortable sitting with them like this, behind me."

"I don't think that's such a good idea just yet."

"You're the boss," she conceded. Mac made her way to the chair that would allow her the best view of Harm, although she was trying her best not to look at him too much at this point. She made a big show of just how uncomfortable it was to have her hands bumping the back of the chair, so there was no way she could sit back comfortably.

She noticed a series of small television monitors set up along a wall, each showing footage of a different angle of the downstairs level and entrances. Nichols had definitely set up quite the surveillance system. There were even cameras set up in the car that she had driven to this building, the one that she had been given keys to and instructed to drive when she received this address from the restaurant bartender. Jake and his partner definitely did not want anyone tracking her.

The man sat across from Mac. He seemed a bit nervous, and he was sweating.

"You look like you could use a drink," Mac suggested. "You got any water around?"

"Yeah, it's downstairs."

"I can wait while you get it."

Jake looked over at Harm, still passed out, and then to Mac, as he weighed the dangers of leaving her unguarded.

Understanding his dilemma, Mac decided to assure him, "I'm not going anywhere."

Deciding to chance it, Jake did leave with a warning, "Don't try anything. I don't want to hurt you, but, so help me, if you try to bust out of here, I won't hesitate to kill you."

Mac again nodded. "I understand."

After another second, Nichols hurried down the stairs.

She didn't know how much time she had, but she had to check Harm. As far as she could tell, there were no cameras on this level, and she had to risk the movement. She quickly got to her feet and sprinted towards him.

"Harm!" she whispered loudly. "Harm, come on. I need you to wake up!"

No response.

She wanted to touch him, to shake him, to run her fingers soothingly over his sore face, but with her hands tied behind her, those weren't options. On her knees next to him, she tried turning and bumping him with her elbow, but that was awkward and didn't have any effect. She knew that she was running out of time before Nichols came back, and she really needed Harm to respond.

She leaned in close and put her mouth to his ear. "Harmon Rabb, you need to come to, now!" She closed her eyes and nuzzled her nose to his face, willing him to respond. She felt him shift, prompting her eyes to snap open. "Harm, that's it. Come on, open your eyes for me!"

He remained still. Needing to touch him again, she brushed her lips against his cheek. "Harm, I need you ..." She kissed the side of his face, despite some dried blood that was caked there. "... to wake up."

Deciding that he wasn't going to wake before Nichols returned, she indulged in one last nuzzle of her nose against his face and a brief kiss to the corner of his mouth. Glancing at the monitors, gauging Jake's progress, she shifted her weight to get up and return to her seat, when she heard a very weak laugh followed by a small cough.

When she looked back to Harm, his eyes were half open, and a small smile graced his sore face. "One nice thing about these drugs ..." he muttered quietly. "The hallucinations keep getting better."

"What?" Mac asked in a whisper.

"I could feel you this time, Sarah. Like you were ... really here."

She blew out a breath. "No, Harm. ... I am really here," she sweetly assured him. "And we're going to get you out of this place."

She heard footsteps. "Nichols is coming back. I have to get back to the chair. Pretend you're asleep, but don't you dare pass out on me again!"

Before Harm could process all that, Mac was back in the chair, and Nichols was entering the room carrying two large bottles of water. He stopped for a moment to survey the scene, and then walked over to the table, placing the bottles down. "You were out of your seat," he stated.

Trying to cover, she reminded him, "I told you that it isn't exactly comfortable to sit like this."

He looked over at Harm, who did have his eyes closed, but whose head was in a different position. Jake again looked at Mac, this time with more suspicion.

"Okay," she admitted, "I got up to check on him. I just wanted to make sure he's still alive. I bumped into him and his head rolled. He's not conscious, but he's breathing."

Jake sat down. He was not pleased. "You're going to have to let him go."

"I'm hoping that you will let him go," she stated. "You've got me now. If you set him free and let him get some medical care, I'll cooperate."

"It's not that simple," said Jake. "And I really wish you would just ... stop thinking about him!"

"Okay, fine. Let's talk about you."

Nichols shook his head and took a swig of water. "You aren't gonna make this easy, are you?"

"I thought I was," Mac said. "You said you wanted my attention, and I'm giving it to you."

"Yeah, but you ..." His sentence was cut off by the sound of a cell phone. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a pre-paid phone. "Yeah," he said as a greeting to whoever was on the line.

"She's here. It worked just the way you said it would. ... No, he's still out cold. ... Wait, what?" Nichols stood up and turned so his back was to Mac. He continued in a quiet, but urgent voice, "I can't do that. ... No, man, that's your crap. You never said I'd have to ..." Jake looked over at Harm and blew out a calming breath. A bit embarrassed, he insisted to the person on the other end, "I don't like needles, okay. Why can't you just do it yourself when you get here?"

He started pacing with agitation. "Okay, okay, I get it! Where is it?" He walked over to where there was a duffel bag. "Yeah, okay. ... The white one? ... Uh, yeah, I see it." There was silence for a long time, while Jake listened to instructions. Eventually, he ended the conversation, "I got it. ... Yeah, see ya soon."

He pulled out a syringe with a needle and looked at it apprehensively.

"Is that for the Commander or for me?" Mac asked.

Jake had momentarily forgotten about his company, and he was startled by her voice. "This ... this isn't for you."

"So, it's for the Commander. Are you drugging him?"

"It's ... not mine," he insisted.

"But you intend to inject him. What is it?"

"I don't know."

"Then why do it? ... I swear, Jake, if you kill him ..."

"It's not supposed to kill him!"

"What's it supposed to do? Make him talk? Keep him sedated? What?"

"No, this one is supposed to wake him up," said Jake.

"Are you sure?" asked Mac, not at all wanting Harm to be injected with anything more that these people had. "How do you know it won't kill him?"

"Because ... my partner told me."

"How do you know your partner isn't setting you up?"

"What are you talking about?"

"What if he wants the Commander dead? By getting you to inject Commander Rabb, when your partner is not even here, he gets you to take the fall as a murderer."

"No, ... he wouldn't."

Mac raised her eyebrows at Jake, as if to say, 'Really?' She did say, "Well, whatever is in that syringe, he's having you do his dirty work. I thought you were equal partners."

"We are!"

"But you're following his instructions. You don't want to use that needle. You only got it out because he told you to." She looked her captor in the eye. "You told me that you are in charge here, that you can make decisions."

"I am."

"Then don't do this."

TBC …

A/N: What do you think, so far? And Palmer is a very good guess, but it's only a possibility!