Harm shifted in his seat, trying for the fiftieth time to find a comfortable position. Even in first class he felt cramped. He opened his eyes, and glanced over at Mac who sat cross-legged on the seat next to him, studying the contents of the file folder in front of her. Occasionally she took the pen from between her teeth and scribbled a note on her legal pad. Harm smiled as he watched her work. He couldn't remember a time when she wasn't beautiful. Even now, sitting on a plane in her stocking feet, khaki drawstring pants and a comfortable sweatshirt. He loved that little crease she got above her nose when she concentrated.

"What time is it?" Harm asked in a low voice, as he sat up and rubbed the sleep from his eyes. His complimentary blanket fell to his waist.

"0426," she answered without looking up from her reading.

"You're internal clock even makes allowances for international time changes?"

She nodded.

"Have you gotten any sleep?"

She shook her head, and gave a distracted, "no," as she wrote another note on the pad.

He reached over and put a hand on her arm, "Mac don't you think you should try to get some rest? We have a full day tomorrow."

"Harm, I'm well aware of that. I just…" She took a deep breath, slowly closed the file folder and looked up at him. "I just want to get this over with."

"I know," He replied. "But we haven't even taken his statement yet. You can't solve the case tonight. Why don't you come over here and try to get some rest?" He winked and patted his chest invitingly.

She tried to smile, but shook her head, "Not yet Harm, I need to finish this."

"What are you working on?" He asked, scooting closer to have a look at her legal pad.

"Logistics. Right now I'm working out the witness list, and trying to set the stage. Berrett claims he was with a friend at the time of the murder. A, Jeremy Rayburn. We don't have his statement yet, so he should be the first one we talk to after we interview Berrett." Mac sifted through the papers until she found the one she wanted. "We do have the statements of the three witnesses outside the Globe, but I'd like to interview them again as soon as we can while it's still fresh in their minds. The only thing they seem to agree on at all is how many shots there were, and what direction they came from. There were two shots fired from the east side of the building," She paused, trying to remain objective. "One hit Mic…Commander Brumby in the chest, the other hit him in the head. He was killed instantly."

He laid a comforting hand on her shoulder, and scowled as he read over a statement from one of the witnesses, "Something doesn't smell right about this. The entire incident screams professional hit. The kill was efficient and clean. According to all 3 witnesses, no one even got so much as a glance of the perpetrator, and yet the amount of evidence left at the scene just doesn't mesh with a professional job. Particularly the murder weapon, just being tossed to the side like that. It just doesn't add up."

"I know. It looks like a frame job from the out set."

He reached over the armrest and began sorting through the papers, "A good frame job at that. Was there a possible motive listed on the police report?"

"No," She replied, staring at the paper in her hand with a contemplative frown.

"What?" He asked, seeing her expression.

"William Berrett is a desk jockey radio operator."

"That's not uncommon for a young Lieutenant in the NASF."

"Yeah, but then, where'd he learn to shoot like that?"

He shrugged, "Who knows, maybe marksmanship is a hobby of his, maybe he's had black ops training, or just maybe…" He paused for effect, and leaned over to whisper in her ear "…he's innocent."

She shot him a look, and shook her head, "There are too many questions. I have to be missing something."

He raised his eyebrows, "We haven't even landed yet Mac. All we have right now are questions. Give it a day or two."

She nodded, and began to gather the documents to put back into the file folder.

"Anyone else of interest on the witness list?"

"Just one person," She replied, looking intently at the legal pad in front of her.

"Who?"

"Mic's wife," She stated quietly. "Diane Brumby."

She saw him shift uncomfortably, and reached out to take his hand. He held onto her for a long moment before he spoke, "Does it bother you that Mic moved on?"

She slid the file folder and legal pad back into her brief case, and turned to face him, "No. I always expected him to move on. I hoped he would. It's just…" Mac hesitated and averted her gaze, "I could have been the one standing there while he was murdered right in front of me." Her voice dropped to a whisper, as a shudder moved through her.

"You could have?" He had always harbored the sentiment that she would never have married Brumby, even if he hadn't gone down in the drink. Maybe he'd been too presumptuous.

"Yeah, I could have," She replied. "If a certain sailor I know had decided to skip my engagement party."

He smiled at her. 'So that had been the turning point.' He raised the armrest that separated them, and held his arms out to her. She tried to unfold her stiff legs and scoot closer to him, but had little luck. He laughed, "What's wrong?"

"I've been in that position for way too long, my whole lower body's asleep."

She couldn't help but smile as he leered at her. Leaning over he whispered in her ear, "I know how to get your blood moving. Why don't you come over here so I can give you a demonstration?"

She rolled her eyes, and made another attempt to move close to him. He wrapped his arms around her, and pulled the blanket over them both. Trying to settle the best that he could with his back against the arm of the seat. She snuggled into his chest and breathed a long sigh.

"I'm sorry Mac," He whispered softly in her ear. "I know this can't be easy for you."

She tilted her head to look at him, "I know it's not easy for you either." Beneath the blanket she took hold of his hand, laced her fingers with his, and moved it to rest against her heart. He could feel the acceleration of her heartbeat as she held his gaze. "I love you, Harm," She whispered in assurance. He closed his eyes, rapt by the way she said his name. The way she had just handed her heart to him for safekeeping.

"I love you too Mac," He answered, laying a gentle kiss on her mouth. Praising God for their civilian clothing, that allowed him to hold her without regulations getting in the way. He rested his chin on the top of her head, braced his shoulder against the back of the seat, and tried to get some sleep. Tomorrow was not going to be easy.

TBC…