If you weren't worried about Kale you should be. ;)

This chapter and 14 both have a cliffhanger.

I'm trying to re-work 15 and hopefully have it going before Christmas. We'll see. Some parts don't make sense to me. LOL!!!!

Anyhoo... Enjoy!

Jackie

Chapter 13 – The Funeral Of Hearts

Three Weeks Later.
1820 Local
Whole Foods Market
Georgetown

"Shit!" Mac cursed when she felt her Corvette sputter and then die. "Why me? What the hell else can go wrong?" The last three weeks had been a disaster. After breaking up with Harm, nothing in her life was complying. It was as if some otherworldly force was hell bent on destroying every aspect of her life.

Work was almost unbearable, especially when trying to secure another TAD assignment in hopes of keeping her distance from Harm only to wind up with him sitting second chair. He'd been cordial to her, as much as possible given the fact that they'd been intimate, a fact that hadn't bothered her until then. The Admiral, who was normally quite lenient, had driven her to the brink of insanity. When the TAD finally did come around, the end result was nothing more than a waste of time for the Navy. The airman she was defending decided to sing like a canary during cross. Then there was the sea sickness, something she'd never experienced before.

Once home, Chegwidden informed her that she could take the rest of the week off. Four days to relax and unwind if she could only shake the feeling of unease - a tension that seemed to want to strangle her. It was as if an icky fog that manifested itself no matter where she went and could only mean that someone was watching. It was a feeling that Mac hoped to never experience again. Dealing with one stalker in her lifetime was more than enough.

Now, as she sat in the confines of her vehicle, Mac could feel the hairs sticking up at the back of her neck. The prickly sensation sent a shiver down her spine and female intuition was practically screaming at her to run. There was just one problem: Marines didn't run. Using the car mirrors, Mac checked around the lot, happy to find that while she was not completely alone, the other patrons seemed harmless enough. "I'm losing it." With a huff, she rubbed the back of her neck, hoping to erase the unease. "I need a vacation." And she would get one too – four whole days. With renewed enthusiasm, Mac threw open the car door and headed into the store.

Mac took a shopping wagon and pushed it down the produce aisle, stopping to grab a bottle of orange juice. As she continued in the section, that eerie sensation settled in the pit of her stomach. A cool wind swept through her body, chilling her from inside out. Casually she looked around, hoping not to arouse suspicion if someone was watching.

To her right, a woman with two playful children stood by the vegetable section, rummaging through the stacks of broccoli. Behind her, an older gentleman with a Montreal Expos cap was placing lemons into a clear plastic bag.

Mac took a few apples and placed them into a similar bag and then into the cart. Each step she took made her feel as if she were moving deeper through a gauntlet. "Get a grip, Marine." She said to herself and wondered what she had done to deserve all of this bad fortune.

Not even in sleep was she afforded a respite. A particular nightmare plagued any type of sleep that she tried to have. Not even naps were exempt from the horrible visions that her psyche had conjured. It was always the same dream – She was running through a forest trying, without success, to outrun a wild animal that was chasing her. The animal pounced at her legs, tripping Mac and sending her tumbling down a ravine where a fallen tree finally stopped the decent. That's when the beast attacked and searched out her throat only to tear the flesh and kill her instantly.

With a sigh, she shook the thoughts lose and continued shopping, gathering only a few more items before heading to the check out. While waiting in line, she called for a taxi, opting to tow the car back in the morning. A relatively light traffic had her home in no time.

She considered calling Harm, just to let him know that she was back in town. Mac was sure he'd head over the second he knew she was in some kind of distress, but her actions towards him had been rather despicable and she was sill trying to sort out why she'd acted as she did. As was her nature, Mac had jumped to conclusions about Harm and his relationship with Katherine. It was unfair to accuse him of brainwashing her, especially when Mac fundamentally knew that he wouldn't do such a thing unless she was in severe danger.

Being hurt afforded people the right to act foolishly and, in retrospect, her accusations were definitely unfounded. At the time though, it made sense that he had controlled her in hopes of turning Mac into a version of Katherine. Why else was she so out of control with her feelings when it came to him? It wasn't until she was out at sea that something else struck her as interesting.

The whole soulmate/lifemate thing sounded preposterous at first. As much as she wanted to believe in the perfect match, this was real life and not a fairytale. Then again, she had warmed up to Harm's 'condition' and willingly accepted him for what he was. You couldn't get more storybook than that. It was that lifemate issue which prompted her to contact Sturgis on the guise of needing information on a case.

"You shouldn't have disappeared like that." He'd admonished her after collecting the information she was looking for. "Harm's worried about you." And Mac was worried about him and what repercussions, if any, this would have on both their personal and professional relationships.

She knew that Sturgis, despite being such a good friend to Harm, would shed light on current revelations. Gut instinct told her that he was a good man and was only looking out for his friends. So, she'd asked him and felt like a fool for doing so. "Sturgis, what's a lifemate?" Harm had explained, or tried to, but most of his words went in through one ear and out of the other.

Mac could hear the Commander's deep sigh and the faint sound of a door closing before he settled into a chair. "I was hoping to stay out of this as much as possible." He had, except for the 'motivational' conversations with Harm that he hoped would get the man together with Mac. "All of us have someone that we are supposed to be with. Someone that makes up for our faults and fills in the empty gaps. . .When one of us finds that person we know because we can not read or control their thoughts. . .That person can be an immortal or a mortal."

She still didn't understand that whole 'mind reading' process and why it had such a bearing on whom you could or couldn't be with. "I don't understand that whole 'mind control' issue. If you love someone, why does it have to matter?"

"It shouldn't." Sturgis confessed as he recalled falling victim to love and the fruitless relationship that had ensued 50 years ago when he'd met an immortal that had absolutely fascinated him. In retrospect it was probably nothing more than puppy love but it had taken him as far as nearly killing someone when the woman was in danger. After almost a year together though, the whole thing fell through and he felt nothing but disdain for her. "But, if you can read and control someone, even a person that you love, that relationship will self destruct. . .You can't really love someone unless you are willing to allow them their free will."

Okay, now it had started to make sense. Thinking back to past relationships, Mac was sure that her strong personality had probably irritated her former lovers. Mic had certainly felt the full force of her wrath in times when she didn't feel like complying. She just couldn't wrap her head around someone controlling her mind even if it was just to save her from arguing. She understood now the importance and was more than a little floored at the implication. "So Harm and I? Are we. . ." Mac couldn't bring herself to finish the question for the answer brought a deep weight on her shoulders from the guilt she was now feeling.

"Lifemates? Yes." Sturgis was sure of it. He hadn't ever seen Harm this crazy over anyone to the point that his constant pining over Katherine was starting to wane. "I know it's a lot to wrap your head around, Mac, but it's true. . .you're supposed to be together."

"I thought that Katherine was supposed to be with him."

"She was and some of our kind never find another lifemate and are forced to deal with living a half-life. It's rare that he found you."

"And even rarer that I look like her."

Sturgis considered that for a moment and shrugged it off as purely coincidental. "I know what you're thinking, Mac and Harm doesn't, for one minute, believe that you are Katherine." It was true, though at first, the warning bells had been ringing. Three women with the same face was a hard sign to interpret. "Look, I know that you're probably angry as hell with him and I can't blame you. He isn't exactly tactful in explaining things, but the bottom line is that you can't just keep away from him."

Oh, she knew that. Not even being at the opposite side of the Earth was really keeping him away from her. Mac thought about him constantly and the way her body was craving his was akin to a junkie needing a fix. "Why is that?"

Groaning, Sturgis settled into the more difficult part of this conversation. He really didn't want to know about their intimate functions although he'd teased Harm mercilessly about it. "Well, the attraction is there from the start, really. You can try all you like to have a normal relationship with someone else but it just won't work." It was funny that way and sometimes a bit depressing how the whole lifemate thing was supposed to bring you happiness but it often led to the destruction of someone else in the process. That was why most immortals just didn't let anyone in, unless they were being used as a food source. "The moment you umm. . .get intimate with your lifemate, whether they are mortal or immortal, the bond can't be broken, ever." You just would not fall out of love with your lifemate unless, as in Harm's case, there was someone else that was created for you.

Unabashed with the conversation, Mac continued onward with her questioning. "What happens if I had his blood?" She was hoping that it meant he was going to turn her – a thought that both excited and unsettled Mac at the same time. At one point she was ready to give up anything to be with him, a thought that shocked her. However, as time went by, she was considering her life – it had been hell but she'd made it to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and, as unfair as it was, the law was her life. It was the only thing that really made sense and, perhaps, the one aspect that she had some control over.

Several conversations with Harm had informed her that all immortals, eventually, would have to leave their current life and start over again before mortals became suspicious about their lack of aging. She also knew that immortal scientists were working on a serum that would make the user appear to age – something that would reverse the second in which the serum was not ingested. Harm had experimented with the concoction a few times but found that it not only made him appear to age, but it also zapped some of his preternatural strength and abilities – something he wasn't willing to part with.

"You're not a vampire, Mac. . .It's a little more complicated than just drinking blood. Harm would have to drain you to the point of death and then feed you his blood. . .Then, if you make it, you're one of us." If you make it? Could he sound anymore melodramatic? Sad fact was that many would-be immortals didn't 'make it.' The pain of the turn was so bad that it felt as if you were being ripped in two. Though Sturgis had no memory of it, Harm still retained every excruciating detail down to his spine cracking from the seizures that had gripped his body. Then again, Harm had been a very sick man and it was probably a miracle that he was alive now. "Sorry to cut this short, but I'm expected in court in twenty minutes. Call him, would you? At least just to let him know you're alright."

"I will, Sturgis. Thanks." She did call but not after weighing her predicament all over again. Mac was just too chicken to have a live conversation with the man and opted to phone his apartment, leaving a short message on his answering machine. She promised that she'd talk to him as soon as she was home and had a couple of days to unwind from her assignment.

After storing her purchases, Mac turned up the radio in her kitchen and decided on cleaning out the refrigerator. She donned a pair of yellow, dishwashing gloves and set to removing a cranberry stain from the floor of the appliance. She hoped that doing some sort of work would get her mind off of him, if only for a bit. Amidst singing along with Fleetwood Mac's "Little Lies", she felt it again, that eerie fog like sensation. Only this time the feeling was so strong that Mac careened against the cabinets as she struggled for air.

Try as she might, Mac just couldn't breathe. In hopes that it was due to some form of claustrophobia, she ran out of the kitchen, heading towards the balcony for some fresh air when a pair of hands grabbed her. "You will do as I say." She remembered that particular tone, it was the same that Harm used to control others except, this wasn't Harm. "I said, you will do as I say."

Mac felt a ruffling in her mind, a strange movement that was compelling her to listen. Instead, she shook her head and turned on her assailant, stomping her right heel on his foot. The man fell back in agony but quickly recovered and took her again before she had a chance to reach a pistol hidden behind her book shelf. "Let me go!" She ordered.

Never one to be denied, Kale struck her hard and then glanced down at Mac's unconscious form. He didn't really want to do this, but the evil in his veins was telling him otherwise. If ever there was a way to fulfill his father's wishes, this was it. And that was more important than his own life or his own happiness. Despite earlier protest, Kale had been bred for revenge.

So many centuries had passed and none of them had helped him complete the task set by his father. It just wasn't interesting enough to kill Harm – suffering would end with his death. No, what Kale had in mind was much more devastating. Carefully, he took Mac in his arms and jumped out of the balcony, landing on the grass beneath with the grace of a cat. There was a lot of travelling that needed to be done and little time to do it.


Four Days Later
1900 Local
Harm's Apartment
North of Union Station

There were certain times when the lights just needed to be off completely. Darkness had been his friend for so long. Hiding sins, scars and even his fears. This time, it did not provide that comfort anymore. No, this time, all it did was remind Harm that he was still alone and so bitterly lonely. He cast a jaundiced eye towards the phone and considered, for the tenth time that evening, if he should call Mac. He knew her assignment had concluded four days prior so she had to be there. She'd promised to speak to him after getting back home and unwinding.

What would he say? For days now he had a nagging feeling inside that something had happened but was consoled on the belief that bad news would travel quickly. Groaning, he reached for the bottle of Jack Daniels which was sitting on the coffee table. Again, he unscrewed the top and took a long pull knowing that, if anything, all it would do was give him a light buzz. Liquor just did not have an effect on his kind. It was the act itself which made him feel again, if only a little.

"Harm?" A voice appeared from his doorway and upon inspection, Harm realized that he'd left it unlocked. "Hey? You here?" The room was then bathed in light which exploded into his sensitive eyes like daggers. "Good, you're here."

"Kill the fucking light, Sturgis!" He pressed a hand over his aching eyes and pointed with the opposite hand which was holding the Jack Daniels. "I told you to leave me alone."

"Like that was going to happen." Sturgis knew of Harm's mood better than anyone. While he didn't take offense, he decided to cut to the chase. "I was hoping Mac was here."

Harm peaked from under his hand, his eyes half lidded. "Yeah, me too."

"You haven't even tried calling her?"

"No. She said she needed to unwind after her assignment. Maybe it's a good thing too, in all likelihood she's liable to chew my head off." Lob his head off was more like it. He hadn't quite been tactful in his means of explaining the truth about Katherine. Then again, what was he to say? 'Hey, did I tell you that you and my dead wife look alike? I used to love her a whole bunch but, lately, it's only you that I think about. How about I turn you into a vampire and we can live happily ever after?' Yeah, that would work wonders.

"This won't do a thing but require you to need more blood." Sturgis pointed out and then snatched the bottle away and dumped its contents into the sink. "I'm worried about Mac. I saw her car being towed out of Whole Foods. . .When I asked the manager he said she left it there four nights ago."

Snapping out of his wallowing mode, Harm stood up and walked into the kitchen. "That's not like Mac." If anything, she would have her car towed that very night or the next morning. "She loves that car." Reaching the phone on the wall, he dialed her number only to be greeted by her answering machine. "Hey Mac, if you're there please pick up. . . Look, I know things are weird right now but I need to talk to you. It's urgent." He waited for a few seconds, expecting her to pick up and when she didn't that strange sensation he'd been experiencing grew. Even when angry, she'd still answer, he knew that she would. Something was definitely wrong. "Can you drive me to her place?"

"Sure, I was gonna head there anyway."

The trip over had been nerve wracking. For days he'd been feeling a sense of distress that was gnawing at his gut. Anticipating her arrival had put him out of sorts and he didn't read his feelings for what they really were – fear. It had been too long since he'd had a connection with someone else and completely forgot that when a lifemate was in danger, those feelings would commence. Sleeping with Mac had only intensified those feelings, but he was too preoccupied with their argument to realize what it was until now.

Not bothering to knock, Harm pulled out his spare key, opened the door and stepped inside. Everything seemed to be in place except for movement that came from the curtains over by the balcony. They were nearing spring and though the weather was not as bitter, no one would be crazy enough to leave windows open. Especially not Mac who tended to get cold very easily.

The apartment felt like an icebox and there was a certain tingle in the air, detectible only to immortals, and it put both Harm and Sturgis on high alert. The men took opposite paths - Sturgis towards the kitchen and Harm towards Mac's bedroom. What he found was a clue that his worst nightmare was now a reality. He spotted the object taped to the mirror of Mac's vanity – a postcard with a specific image. Dejected, he stepped out into the living room and held up the discovery for Sturgis to see. "Kale's got her."

"What? Are you sure?" Sturgis took the postcard and stared down at the image. Lush, green contrasted against the harshness of jagged, sea-side cliffs. "Cliffs of Moher. Ireland."

Harm nodded. "Kale has a place a few hours away from my family home." He had been trying for years to tap into Kale's resources and figure out what the rogue was doing back in Ireland. True, Kale was Irish but his family home had been torn down many centuries ago. What distressed Harm the most was the length of time that Kale had Mac."Four days is a long time, Sturgis." For an immortal with the ability and resources to disappear to any ends of the Earth, that was a generous head start. "I knew something would happen to her." He also knew what rogue vampires like Kale were capable of. Their sins were unforgiveable – a straight ticket to hell. There was a reason why mortals believed that immortals were an abomination, a race too perfect to co-exist peacefully. "Kale is going to torture Mac."

Sturgis didn't understand the point. Knowing what he knew about their relationship, anything that Kale could do to Mac, Harm could reverse by turning her. "Why would he torture her?"

"Because, he's going to make me kill her." Verbalizing that thought made him feel like a million hot knives were being pressed into his flesh. Harm felt a pain deep within, so painful it drowned out the hurt he felt when he lost Katherine. Dejected, he sat on the edge of Mac's sofa and buried his head in his hands.

Alarmed by Harm's statement, Sturgis took a seat on the coffee table and stared at his friend, waiting for an explanation. "Okay." When it never came, he prodded for more information. "You can't say things like that and not explain."

"You're a healer, Sturgis. . .You help patch us up and make sure our women have healthy kids. You don't see what I see. You don't know what I know." His vague answer lingered in the air only making his friend that much more curious as to the horrors that Enforcers were programmed to endure. Rogues have been trying to raise an army against The Collective. To them, mortals are meant to be used for enjoyment and food. Rogues didn't want to co-exist. Every race had that group who fought against their government. Immortals were no different. "He'll turn her rogue and force me to kill her." He couldn't handle losing Mac and feared what he'd turn into for the sake of vengeance.

Sturgis shook his head in disagreement. There were rules and while not absolute, it was awfully difficult to get around them. "He can't turn her rogue." In theory, it was damned difficult to create a rogue vampire. Rogues usually targeted murders, rapists and sociopaths; people who's minds are warped so much that they were easy to control. Some people were just evil inside and Rogue vampires exploited that evil to create a foot soldier, a puppet to their vicious wiles. Turning Mac rogue would be a near impossibility. She had memories of her and Harm as well as his blood in her veins – bonds that couldn't be broken unless they lost one another.

Harm didn't want to think about it, much less explain the procedure. The discovery was a recent one, only a couple of years old. It was still a novelty and not readily known in the immortal world. "There's a sedative that acts quickly on the nerves of the human body. You won't be able to move but you'll feel everything done to you." The drug had little effect on immortals themselves, but to mortals, the lack of being able to defend oneself leaves such a psychological impact that makes the change easier for rogues to slip in and begin to mold their victim. He felt Sturgis' eyes on him, following as he stood and paced the living room. "Whatever that does to the mind of a person being tortured is enough for the change to happen. It does take several days though, especially with people who are strong willed." Despite her strong will, with Mac's past, Harm knew it would be that much easier on Kale. "It's the one thing he knows can destroy me. . .If Mac turns rogue, I'll have to kill her. . .They'll order me to."

Sturgis stood up abruptly and walked right into Harm's path. "No. There has to be a way to turn her back."

"Once it's done it's not reversible. .There's no way to turn her back."

The two men stood there, staring at each other in a silent conversation. They needed to get moving if Harm was going to find Mac in time. "If you get there and she's a rogue, would you kill her?." Sturgis dreaded asking that question, knowing that often, for duty's sake, they had been asked to sacrifice anything and were expected to comply.

Harm's heart told him one thing, but his head, the one thing he'd counted on for so long, said another. "I'll have to. . .and after I kill her, I'll find a way to kill myself. . ." He trailed off and felt a blood red tear sliding down his cheek. "Get me to Andrews."

Same Time
County Kerry, Ireland.

If there was one thing that Kale despised, it was quiet. Things were much too quiet which was the original reason why he forced the owners of the bed and breakfast to hand the castle over to him. He'd owned it for over ten years now and, much like Harm, had used it as a retreat when his life needed grounding. Unlike Harm, the place had no meaning for him. His family home had been destroyed when a young Harm had set it on fire in hopes of avenging his love. Really, it was more of a lair of sorts where he could do his dirty deeds without The Collective's prying eyes on him.

It was the perfect place to bring Mac.

The small castle was two stories high with turrets on each of the four corners of the building. There were six bedrooms, a library, a den and the usual rooms most homes had. What originally attracted him to the rather large home were the stories of the castle being haunted. However, if any ghosts did exist, Kale surely scared them away. All of the walls inside of the ancient home were made of stone. The only modern additions were the plumbing, electricity and climate control; the rest remained suspended in history.

Secluded as the home was, prying neighbors were kept far away and any plans of rescue from the outside world could be sensed with his preternatural hearing. From his place on the terrace outside of the library, Kale could see his new toy. The likeness between her and Katherine was absolutely astounding. Oh, there were differences. For one thing, Mac's hair had a few unnatural highlights and her body was much more tone and firm than Katherine's had been. As he recalled, Katherine had the same feistiness as the Marine, however, Mac seemed to have so much more fight.

He'd been in Harm and Katherine's bedroom when she was murdered. He saw the pleading in her eyes as she begged them not to kill Harm. Katherine did not fight but accepted her fate in an almost alarming way. That look in her eyes terrified him still. Had they done the right thing? To this day, he couldn't quite blame her for breaking his father's heart. Living a life devoid of love and then finding the other half of your soul was a powerful attraction. Nothing could stand in the way of the pull your lifemate had on you – nothing. In a way, he was in awe of Harm holding out for so long in regards to Mac. A man willing to put aside life's greatest happiness for whatever the reason was admirable.

Deep inside, he knew he wasn't meant to be this destructive. He wasn't supposed to kill for pleasure and yet it was the life he was forced into once his father's poisonous blood mixed with the anger of losing his family. It wasn't just the revenge which flowed through his veins, Kale and learned to enjoy torturing mortals. Hurting Mac, however, was becoming a true test. He kept seeing Katherine's face, kept remembering the remorse he felt when she died.

His hand, which was normally as steady as a surgeons', shook quite noticeably when he made a laceration down her spine with a knife. Kale still held the knife, blood now dried on its sharper edge as he tried to remember why he kidnapped her in the first place.

Stepping inside, he moved towards where Mac hung by the arms from a T shaped bar that was attached with chains from the ceiling. Her eyes were open but unseeing, lifeless, though very much alive. The drug he'd used was quick and effective, working to sedate the person to the point where they were conscious but could not move. With that conscious came awareness of what was being done as well as the excruciating pain.

Kale took Mac's hand and turned it over to expose her wrist. "I know this hurts you." With the tip of the knife, he made a line from the base of her palm to the middle of her wrist. "I can't apologize for it. Trust me; this is for your own good." A reckless life with no rules had to be more appealing than Harm and The Collective's pathetic society. With his opposite hand holding her arm steady, Kale licked the trail of blood and then fastened his mouth to the wound. He drank from her, slow and deep until he sensed her heart start to cease.

With great effort, he pulled away – it wasn't time yet. He needed to be patient just a little while longer. "I want him here. . .I want him to see you when you become mine." Until then, he would dangle her between life and death.